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Start watching for holiday discounts in November; you can often get great deals for early ordering.
Photo cards are a great way to announce life events or send out family updates because they include pictures, making the message much more personal. We started using them for holiday cards once we had kids so we could show friends and family how the little ones had grown.
Unfortunately, the personalization of the card does cost more than a traditional card. This year, every Christmas card we received in the mail was a photo card, so I thought it was time to share a few ways you can save money on photo cards. (See also: 5 Cheap Greeting Cards That Blow Hallmark Away)
I've found that stores like Sam's Club, Walgreens, and Costco offer lower prices than online services like Shutterfly, Vistaprint, or Snapfish.
They don't offer the customization options the online providers do, but if you're looking to save money, the local stores are your choice. How big are the savings?
Costco will charge you $15 before tax for 50 cards (6 x 7½). Here are the lowest prices for 50 holiday greeting cards from the some of the online services:
If you need more than 50, you can order additional sets of 25 from Costco for $5.50. One downside to Costco is that the minimum order is 50 cards. Places like Shutterfly and Snapfish do give you the option of ordering cards in varying amounts. They offer tiered pricing, so the fewer the cards you order, the higher the price per card.
Here's a look at the lowest prices for 20 cards:
Another benefit of buying local is that you don't have to pay shipping costs. The online photo services offer free shipping, but you have to spend a minimum amount to qualify. Right now it's a $65 minimum for Vistaprint and a $30 minimum for Shutterfly and Snapfish.
One of the nice things about the Vistaprint, Shutterfly, and Snapfish websites is that they have search filters that let you narrow down the best card for you based on a variety of features.
When you're choosing your card, the fewer features you choose, the more you'll save on your cards. For example, Shutterfly lets you pick between Photo Paper and a more expensive Premium Card Stock. TinyPrints.com gives you the option of upgrading to a Shimmer or DoubleThick Matte finish, both of which are more than the regular Matte or Semi-Glossy finish. Adding more options does make for a fancier card, but it will also cost you more money.
We keep all of the cards we get over the holidays on a big ring so we can flip through them later. You can tell which ones are on nicer card stock, but the thing that makes the biggest difference is the picture on the card itself. So choose a great picture, and the options and upgrades won't make that much difference.
We saved an additional $5 off our Costco photo card order by using a coupon from the monthly mailer. Many online photo services offer discount codes that you can get if you're on their customer list. You can also find them by just searching the web for "photo card coupon code." Some services have a current discounts page, like this Snapfish deals page.
Earlier I mentioned saving on shipping costs by ordering a minimum amount. Some places will also offer discount codes on shipping.
My wife doesn't agree with this tip, but if you're really looking to cut costs, it's definitely an option. If you have lots of people you'd like to send photos to but don't want to spend the money to buy and mail all those photo cards, you can send some electronically.
After you buy and mail physical cards for 10-20 people, you can share the photos on the card with everyone else via email. From their sites, Costco and Shutterfly both let you enter the email addresses you want to share your pictures with. Unfortunately, Costco requires anyone who gets your email to actually sign up for a photo center account before they can view the photos. Shutterfly doesn't force recipients to join their service to see the photos and they even let you add a message to the back of each photo.
When you're buying things like holiday cards or baby announcements, you tend to feel a little more sentimental, and your emotions might try to talk you into spending extra money because "it's your family and they're worth it." I agree that they are worth it, but here are a few ways you can send out great family photos that do them justice but don't break the budget. If you can't bring yourself to spend the money on cards even after cutting your costs with these tips you can always make your own cards.
How have you found ways to save on photo and announcement cards?
Disclaimer: The links and mentions on this site may be affiliate links. But they do not affect the actual opinions and recommendations of the authors.
Wise Bread is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
Start watching for holiday discounts in November; you can often get great deals for early ordering.


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Getting small…
Over the years, (R)D has contemplated miniature paintings, miniature Biblical temples, miniature pencil carvings, even miniature golf…
Now, something even closer to your correspondent's heart: miniature books.
Miniature books (generally defined as not exceeding 100 mm [3.9 inches] in height, width or thickness) first came into fashion in the late Fifteenth Century, when the tiny tomes were produced as novelties. Soon, printers began producing the small volumes to show off their skills.
Hungarian collector Jozsef Tari has been collecting miniature books and newspapers since 1972; his library now includes more than 4500 volumes of Lilliputian literature.
More on miniature books and Tari's collection at Web Urbanist (from whence, the photos above).
As we reach for a smaller duster, we might bake a laced cake for journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson; he was born in Louisville on this date in 1929. The author of Hell's Angels, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 is widely credited as the creator of the Gonzo school of journalism (an extreme form of New Journalism in which the reporter isn't simply present, he/she is central), and widely remembered for his love of inebriates and guns and for his hate of authoritarianism in general and Richard Nixon in particular.
…the massive, frustrated energies of a mainly young, disillusioned electorate that has long since abandoned the idea that we all have a duty to vote. This is like being told you have a duty to buy a new car, but you have to choose immediately between a Ford and a Chevy.
– Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 (1973)

subset: commoncrawl


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Ease up on workouts to aid flu recovery, expert says
(HealthDay)—Exercising when you have a cold or the flu can cause more harm than good in some cases, an expert warns.
U.S. health officials recently reported widespread flu activity in 25 states.
"Depending on where a person experiences symptoms of illness can make or break his or her workout and recovery," Karin Richards, acting chair of the kinesiology department at University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, said in a university news release.
"For instance, those who experience above-the-neck symptoms such as stuffy noses and sneezing are generally fine to continue their exercise routine," she explained. "However, those with symptoms below the neck, such as a fever, nausea and muscle aches, are urged to stay in bed and recover."
If you have the flu, you need to avoid exercise and stay home from fitness centers so that you don't spread the virus to others, she said. If you have minor cold symptoms, you can still exercise but should lower the intensity of your regular workout. For example, if you typically run, switch to walking, she suggested.
"There is a fine line between a minor cold and the flu, and it's important for individuals to stay in tune with their bodies," Richards said. "A person's body is stressed when fighting the infection, so placing additional stress through intense exercise only suppresses the immune system even more."
Exercise at home or outdoors until your symptoms disappear. If you do go to the gym, avoid sneezing and coughing on workout equipment, she noted.
Sometimes, yoga and gentle stretches can make you feel better and relieve congestion and pressure, said Richards.
Although halting your exercise program while you're sick may seem like a major setback, most people are able to return to their workout routines fairly quickly once they've fully recovered, she added.
"Of course, individuals are encouraged to seek the advice of their primary care physician or a health care professional if they have any questions regarding continuation or resumption of their exercise routine if they are sick," Richards said.
More information: The American Academy of Family Physicians has more about colds and the flu.
Copyright © 2014 HealthDay. All rights reserved.


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Featured Vancouver Real Estate Listings
Are You Ready to Buy Your Next Home in Vancouver?
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Get Pre-approved for a Home Mortgage
Perhaps the most important step that you should keep in mind when it comes to buying your first home is to get pre-approved for a home mortgage loan. By getting pre-approved for a home mortgage loan before you start looking, you will be in a far stronger position to enter into a real estate contract.
The typical home seller will be more eager to enter into a sales contract with a person who has been pre-approved for a home mortgage loan. One of the biggest obstacles to closing a real estate deal in Vancouver and the Lower Mainland is usually the inability of the buyer to obtain acceptable bank financing. By coming to the bargaining table with a pre-approved home mortgage, you will be able to demonstrate to a seller that you are serious about buying their home.
Develop a Specific Home Buying Plan
Another important step that you will want to take when it comes to buying your first home is to develop a specific home buying plan. If you do not have a plan, you will often be tempted off course in your search for that perfect property. A Vancouver REALTOR® will help you set up your plan.
Perhaps the most significant element of a plan is to set forth specifically what you are willing to pay for a house, condo or townhouse. The failure to establish such a budget oftentimes results in a person ending up spending far more on a home than he/she can actually afford.
Consult with a REALTOR®


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Native Plants
Search for native plants by scientific name, common name or family. If you are not sure what you are looking for, try the Combination Search or our Recommended Species lists.
Prunus pensylvanica
Prunus pensylvanica L. f.
Pin Cherry, Fire Cherry, Wild Red Cherry, Bird Cherry, Pigeon Cherry
Rosaceae (Rose Family)
USDA Symbol: PRPE2
USDA Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N), SPM (N)
Fire Cherry or Pin Cherry is a slender, sometimes shrubby, tree, 35-50 ft. tall. Fine-textured, bright red branches; reddish to yellow-orange, mature bark; flat-topped clusters of white flowers; and bright red fruit are some of the plant�s attributes. Small tree or shrub with horizontal branches; narrow, rounded, open crown; shiny red twigs; bitter, aromatic bark and foliage; and tiny red cherries. Fall foliage is colorful.
This species is often called "Fire Cherry" because its seedlings come up after forest fires. The plants grow rapidly and can be used for fuel and pulpwood. It is also a "nurse" tree, providing cover and shade for the establishment of seedlings of the next generation of larger hardwoods. The cherries are made into jelly and are also consumed by wildlife.
From the Image Gallery
Plant CharacteristicsDuration: Perennial
Habit: Tree
Leaf Retention: Deciduous
Fruit Type: Drupe
Size Notes: Up to about 50 feet tall.
Leaf: Green
Autumn Foliage: yes
Fruit: Red
Bloom InformationBloom Color: White
Bloom Time: Apr , May , Jun
DistributionUSA: CO , CT , GA , IA , IL , IN , MA , MD , ME , MI , MN , MT , NC , ND , NH , NJ , NY , OH , PA , RI , SD , TN , VA , VT , WI , WV , WY
Canada: AB , BC , MB , NB , NL , NS , ON , PE , QC , SK
Native Distribution: Lab. to e. B. C., s. to NJ, SC mts., IL & SD
Native Habitat: Dry to moist clearings; open woods; woodland edges; disturbed areas
Growing ConditionsWater Use: Medium
Light Requirement: Sun
Soil Moisture: Dry
Soil pH: Circumneutral (pH 6.8-7.2)
CaCO3 Tolerance: None
Drought Tolerance: High
Soil Description: Rocky or sandy, well-drained soils.
Conditions Comments: Pin cherry grows very rapidly but serves only as a pioneer species, usually disappearing within 20 years unless sites are repeatedly disturbed. Branches break in ice storms.
BenefitUse Wildlife: Twenty-five species of nongame birds, several upland game birds, fur and game mammals, and small mammals eat pin cherry fruit. Buds are eaten by upland game birds, especially sharp-tailed and ruffed grouse. Foliage and twigs are browsed by deer. However, the foliage has a high calcium to phosphorous ratio which is undesirable for good deer nutrition. Except in dense thickets, pin cherry provides only fair nesting cover and materials for birds. Beavers cut pin cherry and may completely remove small stands . Leaves are poison (hydrocyanic acid) to livestock under certain conditions. However, the toxicity of pin cherry leaves is lower than that of most other cherry species. (USDA Forest Service)
Use Food: EDIBLE PARTS: Fruits are used for jelly or syrup. Boil down in water, strain, and add sugar to taste. (Poisonous Plants of N.C.)
Warning: POISONOUS PARTS: Wilted leaves, twigs (stems), seeds. Highly toxic, may be fatal if eaten. Symptoms include gasping, weakness, excitement, pupil dilation, spasms, convulsions, coma, respiratory failure. Toxic Principle: Cyanogenic glycoside, amygdalin.
Conspicuous Flowers: yes
Fragrant Flowers: yes
Attracts: Birds , Butterflies
Larval Host: Columbia silkmoth
Value to Beneficial InsectsSpecial Value to Native Bees
This information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.
Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA)
Columbia silkmoth
(Hyalophora columbia)
Learn more at BAMONA
Adult Food Source
Larval Host
PropagationDescription: Prunus species may be rooted from dormant hardwood, softwood, semi-hardwood, or root cuttings. Semi-hardwood and softwood cuttings taken in summer root easiest. Germination of most seeds requires cold stratification. Suckers can be separated from paren
Seed Collection: Collect fruit when it is filled out, firm, and its ripe color. Clean seeds from pulp and briefly air dry. (Seeds to be sown immediately in fall do not need drying.) Storage viability is maintained at 31-41 degrees.
Seed Treatment: For spring sowing, stratify seeds in moist sand for 30-60 days in a greenhouse, then cold stratify (36-41 degrees) for 60-90 days. Plant well before high temperatures.
Commercially Avail: yes
Find Seed or Plants
Find seed sources for this species at the Native Seed Network.
View propagation protocol from Native Plants Network.
Mr. Smarty Plants says
Alternatives to non-Texas native pin cherry for Texas
February 28, 2006
Dear Ms. Smarty Plants, I learned that the fire cherry/ pin cherry is a very hardy tree, and that it is very drought resistant. I live in zone 7, on black land, which becomes very dry in the summer. ...
view the full question and answer
National Wetland Indicator Status
From the National Organizations DirectoryAccording to the species list provided by Affiliate Organizations, this plant is on display at the following locations:
Native Seed Network - Corvallis, OR
BibliographyBibref 1186 - Field Guide to Moths of Eastern North America (2005) Covell, C.V., Jr.
Bibref 1185 - Field Guide to Western Butterflies (Peterson Field Guides) (1999) Opler, P.A. and A.B. Wright
Bibref 946 - Gardening with Prairie Plants: How to Create Beautiful Native Landscapes (2002) Wasowski, Sally
Search More Titles in Bibliography
Web ReferenceWebref 3 - Flora of North America (2014) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter
Additional resourcesUSDA: Find Prunus pensylvanica in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Prunus pensylvanica in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Prunus pensylvanica
MetadataRecord Modified: 2023-05-10
Research By: TWC Staff


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New York, NY – Los Angeles Galaxy forward Mike Magee was named the MLS Player of the Week on Monday for the first week of the 2013 season.
Magee netted his first career hat trick on Sunday in the Galaxy's 4-0 win over the Chicago Fire at the Home Depot Center.
Magee opened his 2013 account in the 38th minute on a terrific left-footed volley, and scored twice in a six minute span in the second half to secure three points for the two-time defending champions.
This was Magee's second career Player of the Week honor.
The MLS Player of the Week award is selected each week by the North American Soccer Reporters. The group consists of members of online, print, television, and radio media.
2013 MLS Player of the Week winners:
Week 1: Mike Magee (Los Angeles Galaxy)


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You are here
Export 2 results:Author [ Title] Type Year
Filters: Author is A. Benassi [Clear All Filters]
"A liquid crystal fiberoptic catheter for blood flow measurement by thermodilution", JOURNAL OF NUCLEAR MEDICINE AND ALLIED SCIENCES, vol. 23, pp. 173–177, 1979.,
"A new fibre-optic liquid crystal catheter for oxygen saturation and blood flow measurement in the coronary sinus", JOURNAL OF BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING, vol. 2, pp. 257–264, 1980.,


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The condition that $P'^TFP$ is skew-symmetric is equivalent to $\vec{X}^TP'^TFP\vec{X} = 0$ for all $\vec{X}$. [1]
The authors say that if A is skew-symmetric than $\vec{x}^T A \vec{x} = 0$. Sadly, there is no further proof of that.
Other than expanding the equation (which I did) is there a different proof that holds for any sized skew-symmetric matrix? If so, what is the proof?
My thoughts:
I can only assume that because (as Wikipedia tells me) a skew-symmetric matrix of odd-size has one eigenvalue equal to zero, there always exists a kernel such that $A\vec{x} = \vec{0}$ but that would be specific to odd-sized matrices and would not hold for all $\vec{x}$.
[1] Multiple View Geometry, p.255, Second Edition 2004, Hartley & Zisserman, CUP (Section canonical cameras given F)


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UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN River Falls
Developed in partnership with UW-River Falls Student Senate, the Falcon Scholars program brings with it the ability to enrich learning (and, therefore, employment relevance and leadership capacity) for UWRF students, to raise the academic standards among undergraduates, and to support engagement and excellence among faculty and staff.
Upon admission, incoming freshmen who have a record of academic success may apply to become a Falcon Scholar through a rigorous application process. Qualifying students who continue to maintain a 2.75 GPA will be offered renewable, four-year scholarship support ($1,000/year; $4,000 total), funded by donors. Differential tuition funds of $2,000 will be used to support international study abroad and/or participation in undergraduate research, scholarly or creative activity for Falcon Scholars attending full-time.
Students, especially first-generation students, benefit in multiple ways. First, this initiative makes unique educational opportunities available to many more students across a range of academic colleges and disciplines. Second, it reduces the need to pursue off-campus jobs, thereby amplifying academic focus. Third, expanded opportunities come while keeping UWRF affordable.


text: While Roland Funeral Service is involved with death on a daily basis, we never forget that completing all the necessary arrangements of a funeral service is a task most families face only a few times. We can assist you in completing all of the arrangements within your financial means and with the special preferences you desire. Our intention is to help make every ceremony personal and meaningful, and truly reflective of the life that was lived.


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Draft Details
Number:prEN 17826
Committee:CEN/TC 252
Committee name:Child care articles
Review published:18 Aug 2023
Review end date:12 Oct 2023
Categories:Equipment for children
Contact email:NsaiNep(at)NSAI.ie
You may comment on any clause of this document. Simply enter the clause number, make your comment and your proposed changed text for each clause, subclause, paragraph, table or figure.
All comments are checked by a moderator before they are made public on the site. This is to ensure that improper language or marketing is not placed on the site – we will not judge or modify technical content. Similarly, we will not correct your grammar or spelling


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Spare parts service and repairs
Our spare parts team provides you with competent advice and delivers original spare parts with the service you expect.
Verind advises you competently and supplies you quickly and on schedule with original spare parts. We provide information regarding prices and delivery times, consulting for spare part packages after the installation of new equipment and a customer-specific spare parts concepts.
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Via Papa Giovanni XXIII, 25/29
20053 Rodano (MI)
Via Papa Giovanni XXIII, 25/29
20053 Rodano (MI)


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Share meeting
In response to the invitation extended by the World Heritage Committee at its twelfth session, the Holy See and Italy, each according to its competence, submitted a joint request for the inclusion of the extraterritorial properties of the Holy See which are located in the historic centre of Rome, extended to the walls of Urban VIII. The properties concerned are as follows: Complesso dei San Giovanni in Laterano (Basilica, Palazzo Apostolico Lateranense, edifici annessi, Scala santa); Complesso di Santa Maria Maggiore (Basilica, edifici annessi); Palazzo di San Callisto, in Trastevere; Palazzo della Cancelleria; Palazzo di Propaganda Fide, in Piazza di Spagna; Palazzo Maffei (Palazzo della Pigna); Palazzo del Santo Uffizio; Palazzo dei Convertendi; Palazzo detto dei Propilei; Palazzo Pio; Immobili sul Gianicolo; as well as the inclusion of the Basilica of San Paolo fuori le Mura.
On the basis of cultural criteria (i), (ii), (iv) and (vi), the Committee decided to proceed with this extension, with which it was extremely pleased. The extended site will be inscribed as:
"Historic Centre of Rome, the properties of the Holy See in that city enjoying its extra-territorial rights and San Paolo Fuori le Mural"
Italy/Holy See (each according to jurisdiction)
As emphasized by the Delegate of the Holy See, the Committee felt that this situation, which was sui generis, would not constitute a precedent.


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Unlike many other nations, the U.S. does not require companies to offer paid time off to workers. Americans who are offered vacation often don't take it. Click on the chart to see why.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Dubbed the "no vacation nation," the United States lags behind most other developed countries when it comes to vacation days. But Americans don't seem to mind.
Most workers don't use all their vacation days in the first place.
About 57% of working Americans had unused vacation time at the end of 2011, and most of them left an average of 11 days on the table - or nearly 70 percent of their allotted time off, according to a study performed by Harris Interactive for JetBlue.
Employers certainly aren't complaining. Separate data from financial information company Sageworks shows profits-per-employee are at a 10-year high. Could workers cramming in more hours be a factor? Yes, says Libby Bierman, a Sageworks analyst.
"We don't have exact information on why profits increased, but I think it's safe to say it's a combination of people spending more time at work and technological advancements," she said.
As companies cut back on staff during the recession, they learned how to get by with a leaner workforce and rely more on technology.
Since then, employees who saw their workloads build up over those years feel they can't afford to take time off.
One of the biggest reasons for forgoing vacation, according to a survey by Kelton Research, was workers felt they had too much work.
"I don't really have a back-up for my job," said Kyra Mancine, a catalog copywriter in Rochester, N.Y. "I worry that if I'm gone for an extended vacation, the work won't get done and I'll come back to a huge pile-up of projects. I hate coming back to hundreds of emails."
A fifth of workers surveyed also said they couldn't afford to travel.
"I can't afford to do anything when I do take time off," said Emily Harley, a marketing and media relations manager based in Helena, Ala. "It just wasn't worth the trade-off to let work back up and cause myself stress, if the only thing I could do with time off was clean house!"
And about 9% of the survey respondents said they were afraid to take time off amid an unstable job market -- not surprising when the unemployment rate is still above 8%.
Unlike most other developed countries, U.S. law doesn't require companies to offer paid vacation time to their employees.
The United Kingdom for instance requires employers to give at least 28 vacation days. In Finland, France and Greece, the minimum is 25. In Germany and Japan, it's 20.
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Forget Me Not Climbers
Brushed Sterling Silver
- Details
- Shipping & Returns
Forget-me-nots symbolize a connection that endures all challenges and passage of time. These Tashi brushed sterling silver climbers are a sweet memento.
- Brushed sterling silver
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If you're not satisfied with your purchase, full price merchandise is eligible for a full refund within 14 days of delivery, and store credit within 28 days of delivery. View our full return poilicy here.
Tashi is the Tibetan word for "good fortune." Designers Wren Campbell and James Burns live in the beautiful seaside city of Vancouver, where inspiration for jewellery design flows from the magnificent natural environment of the West coast. Each design in the Tashi collection is crafted in sterling silver, 14k or 18k gold vermeil with great attention to detail. Semiprecious stones and freshwater pearls provide the colour palette, while simple shapes allow the materials to shine.Shop the collection


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The Alaska Chamber Singers, with musical director David Hagen, present "Darwin Sings: The Evolution of Choral Music" at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Mariner Theatre. The Homer High School Concert Choir makes a special appearance. The concert explores the history of Western choral music from chant and organum of the Dark Ages through the Renaissance, Baroque, Classical and Romantic eras and into the 20th century and beyond. Tickets are $12 adults, $10 seniors and $7 students with proceeds benefitting the Homer High School Concert Choir.
'Darwin Sings' concert explores choral music
Tags: Arts, Features, Homer High School


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Still a work in progress
Sun | Technology
NEW YORK Thirty-five years after computer scientists at UCLA linked two bulky computers using a 15-foot gray cable, testing a new way for exchanging data over networks, what would ultimately become the Internet remains a work in progress.
University researchers are experimenting with ways to increase its capacity and speed. Programmers are trying to imbue Web pages with intelligence. And work is underway to re-engineer the network to reduce spam and security troubles.
All the while threats loom: Critics warn that commercial, legal and political pressures could hinder the types of innovations that made the Internet what it is today.
Stephen Crocker and Vinton Cerf were among the graduate students who joined UCLA professor Len Kleinrock in an engineering lab on Sept. 2, 1969, as bits of meaningless test data flowed silently between the two computers. By January, three other "nodes" joined the fledgling network.
Then came e-mail a few years later, a core communications protocol called TCP/IP in the late 70s, the domain name system in the 80s and the World Wide Web now the second most popular application behind e-mail in 1990. The Internet expanded beyond its initial military and educational domain into businesses and homes around the world.
Today, Crocker continues work on the Internet, designing better tools for collaboration. And as security chairman for the Internet's key oversight body, he is trying to defend the core addressing system from outside threats, including an attempt last year by a private search engine to grab Web surfers who mistype addresses.
He acknowledges the Internet he helped build is far from finished, and changes are in store to meet growing demands for multimedia. Network providers now make only "best efforts" at delivering data packets, and Crocker said better guarantees are needed to prevent the skips and stutters now common with video.
Cerf, now at MCI Inc., said he wished he could have designed the Internet with security built-in. Microsoft Corp., Yahoo Inc. and America Online Inc., among others, are currently trying to retrofit the network so e-mail senders can be authenticated a way to cut down on junk messages sent using spoofed addresses.
Among Cerf's other projects: a next-generation numbering system called IPv6 to accommodate the ever-growing armies of Internet-ready wireless devices, game consoles, even dog collars. Working with NASA, Cerf is also trying to extend the network into outer space to better communicate with spacecraft.
But many features being developed today wouldn't have been possible at birth given the slower computing speeds and narrower Internet pipes, or bandwidth, Cerf said.
"With the tools we had then, we did as much as we could reasonably have done," he said.
While engineers tinker with the Internet's core framework, some university researchers looking for more speed are developing separate systems that parallel the Internet. That way, data-intensive applications like video conferencing, brain imaging and global climate research won't have to compete with e-mail and e-commerce.
Think information highway with an express lane.
Some applications are so data-intensive, they are "simply impractical to do on the current Internet," said Tracy Futhey, chairwoman of the National LambdaRail. The project offers for its members dedicated high-speed lines so data can "get from point A to point B and not have to contend with the other traffic."
LambdaRail recently completed its first optical connection from San Diego to Seattle to Pittsburgh to Jacksonville, Fla. Work on additional links is planned for next year.
Undersea explorer Robert Ballard has used another network, Internet2, to host live, interactive presentations with students and aquarium visitors from the wreck of the Titanic, which he found in 1985.
The Internet's bandwidth can carry only "lousy" video and "can't compete with looking out the window," Ballard said. But with Internet2, "high-definition zoom cameras can show them the eyelids."
Internet2, with speeds 100 times the typical broadband service at home, is now limited to selected universities, companies and institutions, but researchers expect any breakthroughs to ultimately migrate to the main Internet.
While Internet2 and LambdaRail seek to move data faster and faster, researchers with the World Wide Web Consortium are trying to make information smarter and smarter. Semantic Web is a next-generation Web designed to make more kinds of data easier for computers to locate and process.
Consider the separate teams of scientists who study genes, proteins and chemical pathways. With the Semantic Web, tags are added to information in databases describing gene and protein sequences. One group may use one scheme and another team something else; the Semantic Web could help link the two. Ultimately, software could be written to process the data and make inferences that previously required human intervention.
With the same principles, searching to buy an automobile in Massachusetts will also incorporate listings for cars in Boston.
Change doesn't come easily, however. For instance, the IPv6 numbering system was deemed an Internet standard about five years ago, but the vast majority of software and hardware today still runs on the older IPv4, which is rapidly running out of room.
And the Internet faces general resistance from old-world forces that want to preserve their current ways of doing things: Companies that value profit over greater good. Copyright holders who want to protect their music and movies. Governments that seek to censor information or spy on its citizens.
In early August, the Federal Communications Commission declared that Internet-based phone calls should be subject to the same type of law enforcement surveillance as cell and landline phones. That means Internet service providers would have to design their systems to permit police wiretaps.
Jonathan Zittrain, a professor with Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet and Society, fears a slippery slope. As these outside pressures meddle with the Net's open architecture, he said, there's less opportunity for experimentation and for innovations like the World Wide Web, born out of an unauthorized project at a Swiss nuclear research lab.


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How the Saints Save Christmas
Deep Silver • Action & adventure
This content requires a game (sold separately).
If you already own the Season Pass DO NOT purchase this content here as you will be charged again. How the Saints Save Christmas (1953) - Santa is trapped inside the Simulation but the Scrooge-like Boss of the Third Street Saints can't muster enough Christmas spirit to save him. Can the Saints help the Boss discover the true meaning of the season in time? A holiday classic for the whole family.
Published by
Deep Silver
Developed by
DS Volition
Release date
Playable on
- Xbox One
- Xbox Series X|S


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JERUSALEM – Spanish soccer giant Barcelona's players have met Israel President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem as part of their two-day Mideast "Peace Tour."
Peres says the team's visit Sunday is a dream come true for Israeli children. Before the meeting, the players visited the Western Wall, a Jewish holy site. Stars such as Lionel Messi and Cesc Fabregas were snapped wearing yarmulkes, the traditional Jewish skullcap.
On Saturday, Barcelona visited the West Bank, where players met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and toured holy sites in Bethlehem. The team later held a soccer clinic for local children.
Barcelona will play a goodwill game with local Israeli children in Tel Aviv later Sunday.


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|Micra is a Scrabble word. Scrabble point value for micra: 9 points.
|Micra is a Words with Friends word. Words with Friends point value for micra: 9 points.
Above are the results of unscrambling micra. Using the word generator and word unscrambler for the letters M I C R A, we unscrambled the letters to create a list of all the words found in Scrabble, Words with Friends, and Text Twist. We found a total of 27 words by unscrambling the letters in micra. Click these words to find out how many points they are worth, their definitions, and all the other words that can be made by unscrambling the letters from these words. If one or more words can be unscrambled with all the letters entered plus one new letter, then they will also be displayed.
|Definition of "micra" found in the Merriam Webster dictionary
|Definition of "micra" from The Free Dictionary
|Definition of "micra" from Dictionary.com
|Words that start with micra
|Words that end with micra
|Words that contain micra


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Spectrum Noir
Spectrum Noir is a growing range of alcohol and watercolour mediums which have been designed to suit beginner colourists, students and artists alike. For high quality, affordable and vivid colours, Spectrum Noir is the brand for you.
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Obama shrunk aerial firefighting fleet
TOWN HALL: Obama shrunk aerial firefighting fleet (poll)
Green agenda targets slurry bombers
June 26, 2012 7:49 PM
As fire rages out of control on the edge of Colorado Springs, threatening lives and property, it is time we listen to those who have warned us about the negative effect environmentalists and President Barack Obama have had on the federal governments ability to fight fires.
Much of whats burning is the Pike National Forest, which is federal property. Yet it took almost three days to get federal fire fighting aircraft off the ground to begin dumping meaningful loads of slurry to slow the fires growth. Because the Forest Service has a shortage of planes, Air Force C-130s finally joined the effort Monday afternoon to battle a fire that began Saturday morning.
Part of the problem is red tape and vague policy regarding use of military aircraft to put out fires, even when they burn federal property. Part of it involves intentional interference with aerial fire suppression. Part of the problem is the Obama administration.
Environmentalists have fought the use of slurry for years, which may or may not explain why Obama seems to lack enthusiasm for a robust tanker fleet.
Environmentalists sued to stop the use of fire retardant after it killed 50 steelhead trout in the Santa Ynez River near Santa Barbara, Calif., in 2009. An earlier lawsuit involved the accidental dumping of between 1,000 and 2,000 gallons of fire retardant into Oregons Fall River in 2002, a mistake that killed all fish in the river. That mishap involved a slurry formula that is no longer used.
As a result of the most recent lawsuit, the Forest Service adopted rules that prevent dropping slurry within 300 feet of streams and lakes except when human lives are at risk. Forest officials say the rules wont harm firefighting efforts.
We hope that is true. Even if it is, we know that a shortage of planes to drop retardants most certainly hinders firefighting throughout the country. Thats common sense.
Former Gazette editorial page editor Sean Paige confronts the Green threat to our economy, property and freedoms on his website
MonkeyWrenchingAmerica.com. Just days before the Waldo Canyon fire began, Paige explained how the Obama administration is doing an election-year scramble to get the U.S. Forest Service the air support it needs to battle what promises to be an explosive wildfire season.
Less than a year ago, the same administration seemed to be doing its best to leave the Forest Service ill-equipped to deal with the mounting wildfire threat, by summarily cancelling a contract with a company that furnished roughly one third of the wildfire-fighting tankers in the agencys already-depleted fleet. That action might loom large as calls mount for an investigation into why the agencys air assets seem inadequate to meet the threat.
Washington-based Human Events magazine reported in September of 2011 that nearly half of the federal governments air tankers sat idle at a California airport, as wildfires ripped through national forests throughout California, Texas, New Mexico, and other states.
It turns out the Obama administration ended a long-standing contract, leaving the Forest Service with only 11 tankers to battle 50 wildfires that were burning nationwide. A decade ago, the Forest Service had 40 firefighting tankers.
The Obama administration canceled the governments contract with Aero Union a company with 60 employees that had been under contract with the Forest Service for 50 years. Though it canceled that contract, the administration had no plan for an immediate replacement. Aero Union CEO Britt Gourley told Human Events the administration provided no details on why the contract was ended.
They didnt want to talk about it, Gourley said of Obama administration officials.
A Forest Service official said the contract was cancelled over safety concerns, but the company had recently passed its annual inspection.
We can try connecting dots and presume the Obama administration is more enthused with environmental activism than effective fire suppression. That would be speculation, as it is impossible to know any persons true motive. We know for sure that our countrys fleet of firefighting aircraft has diminished during Obamas reign. Meanwhile, fires are igniting all over Colorado, far exceeding governments ability to quickly contain them.
Read more: Obama shrunk aerial firefighting fleet (poll) | obama, edge, rages - TOWN HALL - Colorado Springs Gazette, COSupport our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at https://eepurl.com/cktGTn


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For the ultimate in picture quality, this TV pairs the brilliance of 4K clarity with the brightness, color, and detail of High Dynamic Range (HDR). Previously hidden areas of dark shadow and sunlight are now full of clarity and detail.
Uncover the detail with 4K HDRA High Dynamic Range (HDR)-compatible TV will change the way you look at TV. Combined with 4K Ultra HD resolution, HDR video content delivers exceptional detail, color and contrast, with a far wider range of brightness than other video formats. The result is the most lifelike picture TVs have ever been able to create, with brilliant highlights and fine detail.
Rediscover every detail with 4K X-Reality PRODiscover a thrilling world of extraordinary clarity. Every single pixel is enhanced beautifully by our most powerful 4K picture processing technology ever. Individual parts of each scene are analyzed and matched with a special image database that independently addresses texture, contrast, color, and edges. The difference is clear with supremely lifelike detail, whatever you're watching.
Made to listen: ClearAudio+Make your listening as lifelike as your viewing. ClearAudio+ fine-tunes TV sound for an immersive experience that seems to surround you. Hear music, dialog, and surround effects with greater clarity and separation, whatever you're watching.
Motionflow XR keeps the action smoothEnjoy smooth and sharp details even in fast-moving sequences with Motionflow XR. This innovative technology creates and inserts extra frames between the original ones. It compares key visual factors on successive frames, then calculates the split second of missing action in the sequences. Some models also include black-frame insertion for a blur-free and truly cinematic look.
DSEE restores detail to your digital musicLow-resolution Internet video, catch-up TV and other heavily compressed audio files don't always sound so great. A large amount of information gets thrown away when digital audio is compressed. With Digital Sound Enhancement Engine (DSEE) technology, lost frequency components (especially high frequencies) are restored for natural sound with a more spacious feel.
Access YouTube instantly with one clickGo straight to YouTube and enjoy all your favorite videos. We have made YouTube faster than ever on this Internet-ready TV and included a YouTube button on the remote control for easy browsing.
Cinematic S-Force Front SurroundEnjoy an immersive soundstage that pulls you into the heart of the action. S-Force Front Surround mimics the way the brain correlates sound sources to create proper volume, time lag, and sound wave spectrum - using only left and right speaker channels. By naturally emulating three-dimensional sound fields, you'll enjoy rich, high-fidelity audio across a wider listening area.
Great entertainment wirelessly with built-in Wi-FiLink up easily to your home network. With built-in Wi-Fi, you're free to go online and browse movies, enjoy video channels like YouTube and access services such as on-demand TV. Best of all, you can stream entertainment from your wireless home network and the Internet without the clutter of cables.
Clear Phase for smooth, balanced frequenciesBRAVIA uses a powerful computer model to analyze and compensate for inaccuracies in speaker response. It does this by "sampling" the speaker frequency with higher precision. This information is fed back to cancel out any peaks or dips in the speaker's natural response - resulting in pure, natural audio with smooth, even reproduction of all frequencies.
Super multi-format USB play Enjoy your favorite digital content from any USB stick. Play music, video clips and view photo collections all through your TV with super multi-format USB play. Supporting a wide range of codecs, you can experience ultimate format versatility - simply plug in and you're ready to go.
Enjoy HDR gaming with PlayStationSony 4K HDR televisions are perfect partners for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro consoles. Immerse yourself in a responsive, fun-filled gaming experience with vivid textures and intensely vibrant colors. See your favorite games come to life with the incredible picture quality.
Your smartphone on the big screenScreen mirroring lets you enjoy content and apps from your smartphone on your Sony TV. Supersize all your memories and enjoy them on the big screen with family and friends.
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10/01/1961.01/10/1961.10 January 1961.Tractor demonstration David Brown 950 at Multyfarnham Co. Westmeath.Add to Cart
- Filename
- B701-8014.jpg
- Copyright
- Copyrighted to SKP & Associates Ltd trading as Lensmen & Associates, Lensmen Photographic Agency and Lensmen Photographic Archive, Irish Photo Archive. wwwirishphotoarchive.ie. . .COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS ACT, 2000..Under the Copyright and Related Rig
- Image Size
- 1024x805 / 309.8KB
- Contained in galleries
- Search ALL, Search ALL, 1960s, Images of Tractors all over Ireland since the 1950s


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Maui Brewing Co. recently announced that the authentic Hawaiian craft brewery is partnering with San Diego, Calif.-based Stone Brewing Co. to create a new craft beer distributor: Maui-Stone Craft Beverages. The distribution company was created by craft brewers specifically for Hawaiian craft beer enthusiasts. Maui-Stone Craft Beverages will offer both breweries' beers as well as an amazing portfolio of other craft beer brands from Colorado and California. The ultimate goal of this joint venture is to elevate craft beer awareness island-wide and bring more craft beer to Hawaii.
Targeting April 2014, Stone will begin shipping a diverse portfolio of bottles and kegs to Maui from San Diego by way of refrigerated containers. Once the beer arrives in Maui, it will be transported to a 16,000-square-foot distribution center with a cold storage area. Stone Brewing and Maui Brewing's joint efforts will ensure that fans have the opportunity to purchase various fresh craft beer brands at retailers for on-site and off-site consumption throughout Maui that will include:
Maui Brewing Co. — Maui, Hawaii
Stone Brewing Co. — Escondido (San Diego County), Calif.
AleSmith Brewing Co. — San Diego, Calif.
Avery Brewing Co. — Boulder, Colo.
Bear Republic Brewing Co. — Healdsburg (Sonoma County), Calif.
The Bruery — Placentia (Orange County), Calif.
Oskar Blues Brewery — Longmont, Colo.
Port Brewing Co./The Lost Abbey — San Marcos (San Diego County), Calif.
Saint Archer Brewing Co. — San Diego, Calif.
Maui Brewing Founder Garrett Marrero and Stone Co-founders Greg Koch and Steve Wagner have been long time friends and business acquaintances, working together to attain mutual success in the craft beer industry.
"Ever since Greg and I initially met and shared a cab in 2006 during the Seattle World Beer Cup, we have had a positive and continuously growing relationship as craft beer comrades," said Marrero. "A major part of Stone and Maui's successful relationship can be credited to both companies having aligned visions for the growth of craft beer, including environmental sustainability, regard for the community and uncompromising business ethics. Maui-Stone Craft Beverages is just another foray in the brewing companies' shared mission of bringing great beers to deserving fans."
Since 2008, Maui Brewing Co. has employed Stone's own distribution company, Stone Distributing Co., to make its craft ales and lagers available to retailers throughout Southern California. Additionally, in 2009, Maui Brewing contributed to the collaborative brewing of Ken Schmidt/Maui/Stone Kona Coffee, Macadamia, Coconut Porter, and helped Stone secure special ingredients for the beer through its distributors.
As a result of this new distribution partnership, Maui residents may expect a dramatic increase in craft beer selections from notable brewers. Most importantly, because of this joint venture, Maui is about to become even more flavorful for residents and visitors alike.


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Retired astronaut Jerry Carr was commander of Skylab 4 from November 1973 to February 1974 and logged more than 2,000 hours in space. In a recent TED Lesson, Carr shared his experience as a NASA astronaut, from training up until he was assigned to Skylab. It touches on the parts of astronaut life that don't happen in space—the training, the waiting, and the disappointment in having a mission canceled. But it's still riveting, especially accompanied by Sharon Colman Graham's animation.
Meet Microsoft's New Surface Laptops
[TED-Ed via Geekosystem]


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A third Miz Mozelle dress
Back in 2011, I made two versions of the Miz Mozelle pattern - one a totally unwearable toile (but I think this may still be my favourite version, as I love plain fabrics) and one from Liberty stretch silk satin. I've been meaning to revisit this pattern ever since, but time flies and suddenly four years have passed by. As evidence of this time-flying point, another whole week slipped by after I'd finally finished making this third dress, while it sat waiting for me to make the belt to go with it - a ten minute task that I struggled to fit in. It's often this way with sewing - whether it's binding a quilt or hemming a dress, the bulk of the sewing seems to be something that one can power through, only to be left feeling overwhelmed by the final stitches.
Anyway, it's finished now and the hurdle of the belt has been jumped not once, but twice. For after making the belt, I decided that it needed shortening the next day.
I made a few changes this time around - one of them being that I added a few inches to the length as I am not a big fan of my knees and know that I'll wear it more if it's this length, the second was to massively reduce the side seams on the bodice section of the dress. When I tried this on, mid-make, and asked my husband what he thought, he suggested that it was 'billowing' at the sides on the upper portion of the dress. This is the style of the dress and personally I quite like it, but I decided to take in the sides using basting stitches to trial his suggestion and I did quite like the effect, so decided to go with it for this version. You can see the photos below of my various Miz Mozelle's for billow-comparison purposes - this version is a lot more fitted across the bust.
I used an Art Gallery Fabrics jersey that I bought months and months ago for this latest dress. It's lovely - very soft, nice to sew with and a colour and print that feels really wearable. I like that it's clamshells, but that the overall effect is one of confetti or blossom. Or something else that feels quite light, happy and speckled. But I think I still love wearing unpatterned fabrics best.
I've found this dress varies from fabric to fabric: while I'd found the keyhole on my blue version far too big and bra-revealing, on this version, after I had perfectly bound and buttoned the keyhole, I then unpicked it all and made it bigger as it looked rather prim. I was able to cut it to the size the pattern dictated and somehow my bra is not revealed. I think the blue jersey was definitely something of a super-drape fabric and may have been being pulled down by its own weight, which was oddly heavy, despite its fluidity. It is indeed quite a strange fabric - as I wrote in my original post, it was being sold off very cheaply for dying people's hands blue. And it also smells and feels a bit swimming costumey. It wasn't just the gaping keyhole that made that toile unwearable.
And here's another, accessorised by golden retrievers, only one of them mine!
I'm not sure that this print is still available in the UK, but Annie now has other Art Gallery Fabric knits in stock of an identical weight and drape - if you're interested, it's a very stable knit to sew with. However, I'm still hankering after a dress that resembles the blue swimming costume dress! I'm considering remaking it in a bamboo jersey, which is super drapey, but which has the disadvantage of being slightly more tricky to sew with and very fine - it's what I used for my Homage to Johnnie dress, below. I wish bamboo jersey were just a tiny bit thicker though as it can be unflattering if you wear non-seamless underwear with it and I'd quite like dress no.4 to be suitable for sitting in the garden with dogs, rather than going to weddings (the former not being such a thoughtfully-chosen-underwear-occasion).
If you happen to know of any interesting plain knits, I'd love to hear!
Florence x


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This computer icon in the schedule indicates that this date/time will be conducted as Instructor-Led Online Training.
Guaranteed date: We will carry out all guaranteed training regardless of the number of attendees, exempt from force majeure or other unexpected events, like e.g. accidents or illness of the trainer, which prevent the course from being conducted.
This class will become guaranteed to run with one more student registration.


text:
Computer Related Health Disorders
Learn how to identify 10 computer related health disorders.
Team Diversity Rapid Fire
You'll learn what actions support team diversity in this quick fire game.
PM: Sources of Conflict
You'll be introduced to the sources of conflict you'll need to manage as a project manager.
Listening Effectively
You'll learn ways to improve your listening skills in this rapid fire game.
Computing Careers
Careers in Computing
Keyboard Shortcut
Identifying the Wordpad Keyboard Shortcuts
Name that Shortcut! Keyboard Shortcuts
Match the keyboard shortcut to the correct definition.
IT Networking: Prior Knowledge Internet Game
Match the vocabulary word with the correct definition
Class 2 -Revision (INPUT AND OUTPUT DEVICES)
Select the correct answer
Oprah Winfrey Crossword
Just a crossword about Oprah.


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Insurance Glossary
Vacation Rental Insurance policies can contain technical industry terms that make reading a challenge. To avoid confusion, the carrier as created the following list of definitions for a number of industry terms and phrases.
The following definitions are provided for informational purposes only. Please refer to your Vacation Rental Insurance Policy or Certificate of Insurance for definitions and coverages specific to your Policy/Certificate.
Lock Off
A room or additional rental area which can be separate from the main rental area of hotel, motel or vacation rental unit.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Long-Term Rental
Rental of a cabin, condo, apartment, house or villa for mmore than 30 days, usually for 6 or 12 months, usually with option to continue longer. Think of his as "conventional rental and documented with a lease. Usually fully furnished including a kitche, bath and sleeping area.
See also: Short-term Rental, Mid-Term Rentall, Vacation Rental, Holiday Let, Holiday Home Origin: Vacation Rental Association Link: VacationRentalAssociation.org
Lost & Found
Most owners or managers have a location at which articles found in a lodging property are kept for a short period of time. Owners and managers do not take responsibility for lost and found items nor offer guarantee that such items will be located after a guest's departure.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Low Season
The season when guest occupancy and rates are lowest.
See also: Travel Seasons, Peak Season, Shoulder Season Origin: Vacation Rental Association
The act of maintaining and providing services to a property. Sometimes routine matters such as changing furnace filters, or changing locks. Generally differentiated from work necessary to correct damages.
See also: Repairs Origin: Vacation Rental Association
In most lodging, guests do not rent "Days" but instead bookings are thought of as "Nights". The origin of this terminology comes from the traditional (Hotel, Motel) industry where guests frequently arrive in the afternoon and leave in the morning. Hence it is the night they are renting not the day.
See also: Day Origin: Vacation Rental Association
No Pets
When a lodging facility disallows pets of any kind at the property. If No Pets are specified then pets are not welcome on the grounds, in the vicinity or inside the buildings. [ Service animals are exempt from such limits. ]
See also: Pet Friendly, Service Animal Origin: Vacation Rental Association
No Show
A customer with a reservation at a lodging facility who fails to show up and does not cancel.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
No Smoking
In most jurisdictions, guests are not allowed to smoke in properties or anywhere inside the buildings. Usually there are rules that prohibit smoking within a certain distance of the building or its entrance ways or that prohibit smoking anywhere on the grounds. Most owners of lodging facilities prohibit smoking anywhere on the grounds or in the building
See also: Smoking Penalty Origin: Vacation Rental Association
A percentage indicating the number of nights sold (compared to number available) in a hotel, resort, motel, or vacation rental facility or destination.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
A person of any age who enters a lodging unit at any time; or enters the property or resort on which it sits. Includes overnight guests but also drop-in visitors.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Order (Booking)
When a guest makes a booking online it is referred to as an Order until such time as a staff member accepts and confirms it. The software uses this word as a Booking Status.
See also: Abandoned, Aborted, Blocked, Cancelled, Confirmed, Hold, Incomplete, In Error, Out of Service, Quoted, Unblocked Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Out Cleaning
Vacation rental homes are usually cleaned after the guest departs, this is referred to as an Out Clean. Usually there is a one time fee for this service.
See also: Out Cleaning Fee, Interim Clean, Housekeeping Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Charges to the Guests for additional rent, activities, services, housekeeping or repairs that are greater than appeared on the guest's original estimated charges.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
A fixed price travel product that makes it easy for a traveler to buy and enjoy a destination or several destinations. Packages offer a mix of elements like transportation, accommodations, restaurants, entertainment, cultural activities, sightseeing and car rental.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Patient & Family Lodging
Traditional hotel or other facility that provides lodging to patients receiving care in the area or to their families.
Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Peak Season
The primary travel season when occupancy and rates are the highest
See also: Travel Seasons, Low Season, Shoulder Season Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Pet Deposit
Should a lodging facility allow for pets they may require the guest to pay a significant deposit to cover any damage or excessive cleaning necessitated by the pets occupancy. Pet Deposits are usually refundable if no damage or effect occurs
See also: Pet Fee, Pet Friendly, No Pets, Pet Penalty Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Pet Fee
If a lodging property allows guests to bring pets, they may charge a fee, usually daily, for that privilege. Generally guests are also responsible for any damage they may cause.
See also: Pet Friendly, No Pets, Pet Deposit, Pet Penalty Origin: Vacation Rental Association
Pet Friendly
A lodging unit which allows pets in the facility and on the grounds. There is often a deposit and/or a daily fee for allowing pets.
See also: No Pets Origin: Vacation Rental Association


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Autobiographical Narrative of Leonard A. Charpentier, June 18, 1999
Description: Narrative of Dr. Leonard A. Charpentier. The narrative includes a monologue of Charpentier's experiences as a P-47 fighter pilot in the European Theater during World War II. Charpentier talks about basic training, flight training, fighter pilot training, his assignment to the 86th Fighter Squadron on Corsica, the P-47 Thunderbolt, various missions, his being shot down on a mission over southern France and being captured, the treatment of his wounds at a German field hospital, and his postwar me… more
Date: June 18, 1999
Creator: Charpentier, Leonard A.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Book


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Groundhog Day in Blue Jay Land
For the odd baseball executive, I'm sure every day must feel like Groundhog Day. Despite their best efforts, sometimes they are just stuck in the endless loop of mediocrity and have no way of getting out of it.
Luckily for us Blue Jays fans, Alex Anthopoulos is not one of those people. AA has been furiously pursuing signings and trades this offseason in what has been one of the most active winters in recent memory.
After all, it wasn't all that long ago when the biggest offseason acquisition by the Blue Jays was the minor league signing of Kevin Millar. We were chomping at the bit for any morsel of Blue Jays news, and the only thing fed to us by the front office was Kevin Millar's Spring Training invite.
I'm thankful there's been a flurry of activity this offseason because the six months between the final game of the regular season and Opening Day can drag on longer than an ESPN Sunday Night Baseball matchup between the Yankees and the Red Sox.
With all the trades, free agent signings, and a new manager at the helm, I can't think of a better time to get excited about Blue Jays baseball again.
So however you chose to celebrate this obscure rodent-centric holiday, just be sure to remember this very recently constructed Groundhog Day baseball proverb:
If Alex Anthopoulos sees his shadow, then it's eight more weeks of the offseason. But if the Silent Assassin doesn't see his shadow, then a blindsided trade is surely on the horizon.


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United States Department of Energy
Seal of the U.S. Department of Energy
Flag of the U.S. Department of Energy
James V. Forrestal Building, Department Headquarters
|Agency overview
|August 4, 1977
|Preceding agencies
|James V. Forrestal Building
1000 Independence Avenue
Southwest, Washington, D.C., U.S.
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
|12,944 federal (2014)[1]
93,094 contract (2008)
|Annual budget
|$27.9 billion (2015)[2]
|Agency executives
The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is a Cabinet-level department of the United States Government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material. Its responsibilities include the nation's nuclear weapons program, nuclear reactor production for the United States Navy, energy conservation, energy-related research, radioactive waste disposal, and domestic energy production. It also directs research in genomics; the Human Genome Project originated in a DOE initiative.[3] DOE sponsors more research in the physical sciences than any other U.S. federal agency, the majority of which is conducted through its system of National Laboratories.[4]
The agency is administered by the United States Secretary of Energy, and its headquarters are located in Southwest Washington, D.C., on Independence Avenue in the James V. Forrestal Building, named for James Forrestal, as well as in Germantown, Maryland.
Former Governor of Texas Rick Perry is the current Secretary of Energy. He was confirmed by a 62 to 37 vote in the United States Senate on March 2, 2017.[5]
- 1 History
- 2 Organization
- 3 Facilities
- 4 Responsibility for nuclear weapons
- 5 Related legislation
- 6 Budget
- 7 Energy Savings Performance Contract
- 8 Loan guarantee program
- 9 Energy Innovation Hubs
- 10 List of Secretaries of Energy
- 11 Symbolism in the seal
- 12 See also
- 13 Notes
- 14 References
- 15 Further reading
- 16 External links
In 1942, during World War II, the United States started the Manhattan Project, a project to develop the atomic bomb, under the eye of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. After the war in 1946, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was created to control the future of the project.[6][7]
In 1974, the AEC gave way to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which was tasked with regulating the nuclear power industry, and the Energy Research and Development Administration, which was tasked to manage the nuclear weapon, naval reactor, and energy development programs.
The 1973 oil crisis called attention to the need to consolidate energy policy. On August 4, 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed into law The Department of Energy Organization Act of 1977 (Pub.L. 95–91, 91 Stat. 565, enacted August 4, 1977), which created the Department of Energy.[8] The new agency, which began operations on October 1, 1977, consolidated the Federal Energy Administration, the Energy Research and Development Administration, the Federal Power Commission, and programs of various other agencies. Former Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger, who served under Presidents Nixon and Ford during the Vietnam War, was appointed as the first secretary.
On March 28, 2017 a supervisor in the Office of International Climate and Clean Energy asked staff to avoid the phrases "climate change," "emissions reduction," or "Paris Agreement" in written memos, briefings or other written communication. A DOE spokesperson denied that phrases had been banned.[9][10]
Weapon plans stolen
In December 1999, the FBI was investigating how China obtained plans for a specific nuclear device. Wen Ho Lee was accused of stealing nuclear secrets from Los Alamos National Laboratory for the People's Republic of China. Federal officials, including then-Energy Secretary Bill Richardson, publicly named Lee as a suspect before he was charged with a crime. The U. S. Congress held hearings to investigate the Department of Energy's mishandling of his case. Republican senators thought that an independent agency should be in charge of nuclear weapons and security issues, not the Department of Energy.[11] All but one of the 59 charges against Lee were eventually dropped because the investigation finally proved that the plans the Chinese obtained could not have come from Lee. Lee filed suit and won a $1.6 million settlement against the federal government and news agencies.[12]
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The department is under the control and supervision of a United States Secretary of Energy, a political appointee of the President of the United States. The Energy Secretary is assisted in managing the department by a United States Deputy Secretary of Energy, also appointed by the president, who assumes the duties of the secretary in his absence. The department also has three under secretaries, each appointed by the president, who oversee the major areas of the department's work. The president also appoints seven officials with the rank of Assistant Secretary of Energy who have line management responsibility for major organizational elements of the Department. The Energy Secretary assigns their functions and duties.
- United States Secretary of Energy
- United States Deputy Secretary of Energy
- United States Associate Deputy Secretary of Energy
- Under Secretary for Science and Energy
- Under Secretary for Nuclear Security
- Under Secretary for Management and Performance
- Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy
- Energy Information Administration
- Bonneville Power Administration
- Southeastern Power Administration
- Southwestern Power Administration
- Western Area Power Administration
- Assistant Secretary for International Affairs
- Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
- General Counsel
- Chief Financial Officer
- Enterprise Assessments
- Energy Policy and System Analysis
- Intelligence and Counterintelligence
- Loan Programs Office
- Public Affairs
- Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization
- United States Associate Deputy Secretary of Energy
- United States Deputy Secretary of Energy
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The Department of Energy operates a system of national laboratories and technical facilities for research and development agency, as follows:
- Ames Laboratory
- Argonne National Laboratory
- Brookhaven National Laboratory
- Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory
- Idaho National Laboratory
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
- Los Alamos National Laboratory
- National Energy Technology Laboratory
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
- Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
- Sandia National Laboratories
- Savannah River National Laboratory
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
- Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility
Other major DOE facilities include:
- Albany Research Center
- Bannister Federal Complex
- Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory – focuses on the design and development of nuclear power for the U.S. Navy
- Kansas City Plant
- Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory – operates for Naval Reactors Program Research under the DOE (not a National Laboratory)
- National Petroleum Technology Office
- Nevada Test Site
- New Brunswick Laboratory
- Office of Fossil Energy[13]
- Office of River Protection [1] (Hanford Site)
- Pantex
- Radiological and Environmental Sciences Laboratory
- Y-12 National Security Complex
- Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository
- Pahute Mesa Airstrip – Nye County, Nevada, in supporting Nevada National Security Site
Responsibility for nuclear weapons
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The DOE/NNSA has federal responsibility for the design, testing and production of all nuclear weapons. NNSA in turn uses contractors to carry out its responsibilities at the following government owned sites:
- Design of the nuclear components of the weapon: Los Alamos National Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
- Engineering of the weapon systems: Sandia National Laboratories
- Manufacturing of key components: Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Kansas City Plant, and Y-12 National Security Complex
- Testing: Nevada Test Site
- Final weapon and warhead assembling and dismantling: Pantex
Related legislation
- 1920 – Federal Power Act
- 1935 – Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935
- 1946 – Atomic Energy Act PL 79-585 (created the Atomic Energy Commission) [Superseded by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954]
- 1954 – Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as Amended PL 83-703
- 1956 – Colorado River Storage Project PL 84-485
- 1957 – Atomic Energy Commission Acquisition of Property PL 85-162
- 1957 – Price-Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act PL 85-256
- 1968 – Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act PL 90-481
- 1973 – Mineral Leasing Act Amendments (Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline Authorization) PL 93-153
- 1974 – Energy Reorganization Act PL 93-438 (Split the AEC into the Energy Research and Development Administration and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission)
- 1975 – Energy Policy and Conservation Act PL 94-163
- 1977 – Department of Energy Organization Act PL 95-91 (Dismantled ERDA and replaced it with the Department of Energy)
- 1978 – National Energy Act PL 95-617, 618, 619, 620, 621
- 1980 – Energy Security Act PL 96-294
- 1989 – Natural Gas Wellhead Decontrol Act PL 101-60
- 1992 – Energy Policy Act of 1992 PL 102-486
- 2000 – National Nuclear Security Administration Act PL 106-65
- 2005 – Energy Policy Act of 2005 PL 109-58
- 2007 – Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 PL 110-140
- 2008 – Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 PL 110-234
President Barack Obama unveiled on May 7, 2009, a $26.4 billion budget request for DOE for fiscal year (FY) 2010, including $2.3 billion for the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). The budget aims to substantially expand the use of renewable energy sources while improving energy transmission infrastructure. It also makes significant investments[clarification needed] in hybrids and plug-in hybrids, in smart grid technologies, and in scientific research and innovation.[14]
As part of the $789 billion economic stimulus package in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Congress provided Energy with an additional $38.3 billion for fiscal years 2009 and 2010, adding about 75 percent to Energy's annual budgets. Most of the stimulus spending was in the form of grants and contracts.
For fiscal year 2013, each of the operating units of the Department of Energy operated with the following budgets:[15]
|Funding (in billions)
|Nuclear Security
|Energy and Environment
Energy Savings Performance Contract
Energy Savings Performance Contracts (ESPCs) are contracts under which a contractor designs, constructs, and obtains the necessary financing for an energy savings project, and the federal agency makes payments over time to the contractor from the savings in the agency's utility bills. The contractor guarantees the energy improvements will generate savings, and after the contract ends, all continuing cost savings accrue to the federal agency.[16]
Loan guarantee program
Title XVII of Energy Policy Act of 2005 authorizes the DOE to issue loan guarantees to eligible projects that "avoid, reduce, or sequester air pollutants or anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases" and "employ new or significantly improved technologies as compared to technologies in service in the United States at the time the guarantee is issued".[17]
In loan guarantees, a conditional commitment requires to meet an equity commitment, as well as other conditions, before the loan guarantee is completed.[18]
Energy Innovation Hubs
Energy Innovation Hubs are multi-disciplinary meant to advance highly promising areas of energy science and technology from their early stages of research to the point that the risk level will be low enough for industry to commercialize the technologies.[14] The Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors (CASL) was the first DOE Energy Innovation Hub established in July 2010, for the purpose of providing advanced modeling and simulation (M&S) solutions for commercial nuclear reactors.
The DOE budget includes $280 million to fund eight Energy Innovation Hubs, each of which is focused on a particular energy challenge. Two of the eight hubs are included in the EERE budget and will focus on integrating smart materials, designs, and systems into buildings to better conserve energy and on designing and discovering new concepts and materials needed to convert solar energy into electricity. Another two hubs, included in the DOE Office of Science budget, will tackle the challenges of devising advanced methods of energy storage and creating fuels directly from sunlight without the use of plants or microbes. Yet another hub will develop "smart" materials that will allow the electrical grid to adapt and respond to changing conditions.[14]
In 2012, The DOE awarded $120 million to the Ames Laboratory to start a new EIH, the Critical Materials Institute, which will focus on improving the supply of rare earth elements, which is controlled by China.[19]
List of Secretaries of Energy
|President served
|James R. Schlesinger
|August 6, 1977
|August 23, 1979
|Jimmy Carter
|Charles W. Duncan, Jr.
|August 24, 1979
|January 20, 1981
|James B. Edwards
|January 23, 1981
|November 5, 1982
|Ronald Reagan
|Donald Paul Hodel
|November 5, 1982
|February 7, 1985
|John S. Herrington
|February 7, 1985
|January 20, 1989
|James D. Watkins
|March 1, 1989
|January 20, 1993
|George H. W. Bush
|Hazel R. O'Leary
|January 22, 1993
|January 20, 1997
|Bill Clinton
|Federico F. Peña
|March 12, 1997
|June 30, 1998
|Bill Richardson
|August 18, 1998
|January 20, 2001
|Spencer Abraham
|January 20, 2001
|January 31, 2005
|George W. Bush
|Samuel W. Bodman
|February 1, 2005
|January 20, 2009
|Steven Chu
|January 21, 2009
|April 22, 2013
|Barack Obama
|Ernest Moniz
|May 16, 2013
|January 20, 2017
|Rick Perry
|March 2, 2017
|Donald Trump
Symbolism in the seal
Excerpt from the code of federal regulations, Title 10: Energy[20]
The official seal of the Department of energy "includes a green shield bisected by a gold-colored lightning bolt, on which is emblazoned a gold-colored symbolic sun, atom, oil derrick, windmill, and dynamo. It is crested by the white head of an eagle, atop a white rope. Both appear on a blue field surrounded by concentric circles in which the name of the agency, in gold, appears on a green background."
"The eagle represents the care in planning and the purposefulness of efforts required to respond to the Nation's increasing demands for energy. The sun, atom, oil derrick, windmill, and dynamo serve as representative technologies whose enhanced development can help meet these demands. The rope represents the cohesiveness in the development of the technologies and their link to our future capabilities. The lightning bolt represents the power of the natural forces from which energy is derived and the Nation's challenge in harnessing the forces."
"The color scheme is derived from nature, symbolizing both the source of energy and the support of man's existence. The blue field represents air and water, green represents mineral resources and the earth itself, and gold represents the creation of energy in the release of natural forces. By invoking this symbolism, the color scheme represents the Nation's commitment to meet its energy needs in a manner consistent with the preservation of the natural environment."
See also
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- Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations
- Advanced Energy Initiative
- Federal Energy Management Program
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
- Fernald Feed Materials Production Center
- GovEnergy
- Institute of Nuclear Materials Management
- National Council on Electricity Policy
- North American Solar Challenge
- Solar Decathlon
- State Energy Program
- The World Institute for Nuclear Security
- Weatherization Assistance Program
- ↑ Acts as the de facto Deputy Secretary pursuant to the DOE order of succession.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Office of Fossil Energy, accessed January 22, 2017
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Further reading
- Cumming, Alfred (Specialist in Intelligence and National Security). "Polygraph Use by the Department of Energy: Issues for Congress." (Archive) Congressional Research Service. February 9, 2009.
External links
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to United States Department of Energy.
- No URL found. Please specify a URL here or add one to Wikidata.
- Department of Energy in the Federal Register
- Works by the United States Department of Energy at Project Gutenberg
- Advanced Energy Initiative
- Twenty In Ten
- United States Department of Energy collected news and commentary at The Washington Post
- Use American English from December 2016
- Articles with invalid date parameter in template
- All Wikipedia articles written in American English
- Use mdy dates from January 2017
- Pages with broken file links
- Wikipedia articles needing clarification from December 2016
- Articles with excessive see also sections from December 2016
- Commons category link is defined as the pagename
- Official website missing URL
- United States Department of Energy
- 1977 establishments in Washington, D.C.
- Government agencies established in 1977
- United States federal executive departments


text:
Cheap Plastic Made from Sugarcane
Making plastic from sugar can be just as cheap as making it from petroleum, says Dow Chemical. The company plans to build a plant in Brazil that it says will be the world's largest facility for making polymers from plants.
The project will begin with the construction of a 240-million-liter ethanol plant, a joint venture with Mitsui, that is set to begin later this year. By the beginning of next year, Dow will finish engineering plans for facilities that will convert that ethanol into hundreds of thousands of metric tons of polyethylene, the world's most widely used plastic.
Bio-based chemicals production has grown quickly in recent years, but it still represents just 7.7 percent of the overall chemicals market. Production has been limited in many cases to specialty chemicals or niche products. But Dow now says chemicals made from plant feedstocks may be ready to compete head-to-head with petrochemicals made in large volumes.
Most large-volume chemicals are made from petroleum. About 80 million tons of polyethylene are made annually around the world. But high oil prices have increased the costs of petrochemicals. And in Brazil, long-standing government support for sugarcane ethanol production has allowed the industry to drive down costs, making ethanol competitive with fossil fuels. Making polyethylene from sugar "would not necessarily be attractive in other regions," says Luis Cirihal, Dow's director of renewable alternatives and business development for Latin America.
The technology for converting ethanol into ethylene, the precursor for polyethylene, is not new. "The dehydration process for converting ethanol to ethylene has been known since the 1920s. The only thing that's really new here is the scale," Cirihal says. The new plant will have a polyethylene production capacity comparable to production at a petrochemical plant. Though the exact production levels aren't yet settled, they will be on the order of "what you have heard before," he says, referring to a proposed Dow project that would have made 350,000 metric tons of polyethylene from sugarcane. (That proposal relied on a partnership that ended as a result of the recession.) It will be bigger than a 200,000-ton sugarcane-to-polyethylene plant operated by Brazil-based Braskem.
The new plant won't be the first time Dow has invested significantly in bio-based plastics. A decade ago, it partnered with Cargill to make corn-based plastics. But Dow pulled out of that venture in 2005 after the market for the bioplastic failed to take off. Cirihal says that Dow is now taking a different approach. The earlier plastic was a new material, and proved difficult to market and distribute. He says that's why Dow decided to make a common material with an established market this time. The sugarcane-based polyethylene will perform just as well as oil-based polyethylene, he says.
Cirihal says Dow is keeping costs down by doing every part of the process, from growing the sugarcane to producing the polymers. This makes it possible, for example, to provide energy to run the plant with biomass left over from producing sugar from sugarcane. While he says the plastics produced will be competitive with petrochemicals, he also says the company hopes to charge more for the product because of the significant demand for low-carbon, sustainable materials.
Deep Dive
Climate change and energy
How a half-trillion dollars is transforming climate technology
Checking in with the landmark Inflation Reduction Act, one year later.
Zinc batteries that offer an alternative to lithium just got a big boost
The US Department of Energy just committed a $400 million loan to battery maker Eos.
This startup has engineered a clever way to reuse waste heat from cloud computing
Heata is now using these busy servers to heat water for homes.
The US just invested more than $1 billion in carbon removal
The move represents a big step in the effort to suck CO2 out of the atmosphere—and slow down climate change.
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text:
[StBernard] EPA Posts Underwater Dispersant Monitoring Data
Westley Annis
Westley at da-parish.com
Sun May 23 11:08:21 EDT 2010
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EPA Posts Underwater Dispersant Monitoring Data
Under stringent plan, BP must conduct constant monitoring of dispersant use
at leak source and provide data to the government
WASHINGTON The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last night began
posting results from the ongoing monitoring of BPs use of underwater
dispersants in the Gulf of Mexico at
received this data from BP last night and posted it within hours.
Dispersants are a chemical used to break up oil into small droplets so that
they are more easily degraded. Dispersants are generally less toxic than the
oils they break down.
This is part of EPAs continued commitment to make air, water, sediment and
dispersant monitoring data available to the public as quickly as possible
and to ensure the citizens of the gulf region have access to all relevant
public and environmental health information relating to the BP spill.
On May 15, EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard authorized BP to use dispersants
underwater at the source of the Deepwater Horizon leak. As the dispersant is
used underwater, BP is required to do constant, scientifically rigorous
monitoring so EPA scientists may determine the dispersants effectiveness
and impact on the environment, water and air quality, and human health. EPA
is posting the information BP collects during the monitoring to ensure the
public has access to this data.
While EPA has not yet identified any significant effects on aquatic life,
EPA today also directed BP to begin using, within 72 hours, a less toxic and
more effective dispersant. EPA took this step because BP is using this
dispersant in unprecedented volumes and, last week, began using it
underwater at the source of the leak a procedure that has never been tried
before. Given the unprecedented use, EPA wants to ensure BP is using the
least toxic approved product.
Regardless of which dispersant BP uses, EPA has been and will continue to
closely scrutinize the monitoring results. EPA still reserves the right to
stop BPs use of dispersants underwater entirely if the science indicates
that this dispersant method has negative impacts on the environment that
outweighs its benefits.
EPA continues to add information to its BP oil spill response Web site to
keep the public informed about the impact of the spill and the EPAs
response. The public can also see results of EPAs ongoing air, water and
soil quality monitoring on the Web site.
The dispersant page:
Continue to track EPAs response to the spill:
Additional information on the broader response from the U.S. Coast Guard and
other responding agencies:
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text:
West to East, and a world away
A few months ago, after 20 years, I moved from the West to the East, reluctantly, carting a truckload of artifacts and memories, literal stones and actual stories, each one a product of the forests, mountains or deserts of Bend, Ore., Missoula, Mont., Argenta, British Columbia, Canada, and beyond.
My little 4-cylinder truck labored under the load, beetling along the Hi-Line out of Montana, looking like a cross between the Beverly Hillbillies and the Road Warrior. It was a tough go for that truck, 20 years old itself, but it was nothing compared to the weight that hung in my heart.
Having grown up in the East, I'd fallen in love with the West, unknowingly, as it turned out: fallen in love with every last stereotype and square inch of wide-open space and sky. I had honest-to-goodness horse crap on my honest-to-goodness cowboy boots (I myself am a fraud) and I didn't ever want it rubbed or washed off. The West gets into you this way, takes hold of you like that -- so deep and dirty and honest and clean that you can't picture yourself anywhere else. I know I can't. Still can't. And I'm already here: gone.
Traveling into North Dakota, on into Wisconsin and eventually to the U.P. of Michigan, into trees that looked like some high school kid had swallowed a handful of mushrooms and gone after the forests with a fistful of highlighters, I had time to think about all I was leaving behind and why it affected me so. I'd come to love the place, surely, but I wanted to know why.
What was it about the West that had me so torn-up about leaving? I'd said goodbye to friends -- and that was a loss I was mourning -- but that's not what I was thinking about as the Rockies fell away in my rearview mirror, as the sun set where it's supposed to and I wasn't there underneath it looking up. It was the loss of a landscape I was feeling, an end, pointed even as I was in the direction of perpetual beginnings.
It wasn't until I hit Fenton, Mich., that I knew. I pulled into the Holiday Inn Express parking lot, a desert of tar with not a stitch of worthwhile horizon to be seen. This after camping for the previous week -- no tent, just a sleeping bag under a pot-lid of sky shot through with so many stars it was more white than black. With a coat-collar swear I huffed my road weariness across the blacktop and knew for a fact that there wasn't a patch of grass within 1,000 miles that had felt my tread. I had no relationship to anything I could see -- and that's when I knew.
We are creatures of intimacy. That's what every relationship is about, even the sexual ones, even the bad ones. We all want to be loved and we all want to love. Intimacy is knowing someone, knowing them well, and knowing a place, a landscape, is no different. It's analogous to home. We are sheltered by knowledge; knowledge provides safety. And I had come to know a place -- imperfectly, poorly in many regards -- but with real appreciation and dare I say devotion. Place, in many ways, defines us.
I couldn't call myself a Westerner, not with a capital W, not with a straight face, and not to the ranchers I knew. But I knew, too, that you didn't have to be a fifth-generation cowpoke or full-blood Native American to love the land and know it and call it your own.
I knew Argenta, B.C., because I knew every deer trail that linked every deer trail that linked every home in that off-the-grid hippie refuge of a glorious place.
I knew Potomac, Mont., because I knew at every hour of the day the exact shade and slant of light against the two big ponderosa pines that stood outside my cabin, knew the trees at 6 p.m., 6 a.m. and midnight.
And I knew Bend, Ore., because sober or drunk I could fall off my bike and recognize the volcanic dust ground into my arm. That's what landscape is. That's what knowing a place is. It's not just loving it. It's not just liking it. It's being able to predict when the osprey that nests over the river will be back. And getting it right.
Charles Finn is a contributor to Writers on the Range, a service of High Country News (hcn.org). The editor of the High Desert Journal, he now lives on the East Coast.