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Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
Historical Association of Lewiston Museum Director Pam Hauth shows off the professional-grade time capsule that arrived Monday. Filling the capsule will be a project for the elementary students at the Tuscarora School on the reservation. The capsule will be embedded within the stone pillar behind the sculptures at the Tuscarora Heroes Monument, which will be located on Center Street in Lewiston.
It hasn't been decided when the time capsule will be opened ... but the year 2213 might be a good guess.


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Proposal highlights
President Barack Obama unveiled on Wednesday a series of initiatives he will pursue to combat gun violence. Here's a look at some highlights from his proposal, which included 23 executive actions Obama can take on his own:
Require universal background checks on everybody who purchases a gun (a call to Congress)
( Also on POLITICO: Obama, Biden remarks on gun violence)
Implement and strengthen a ban on military-style assault weapons (a call to Congress)
Limit gun magazine capacity to 10 rounds (a call to Congress)
Call on the Centers for Disease Control to research causes of and remedies for gun violence, eliminating restrictions on that research (executive action)
Encourage schools to take on more resource officers and counselors (executive action)
Improve the federal background check system by "addressing unnecessary legal barriers," requiring federal agencies to provide "relevant data" and encouraging states to provide information to that system (executive actions)
( PHOTOS: Will these guns be banned again?)
Ensure that guns found in criminal investigations are traced by federal law enforcement (executive action)
Start a national conversation about mental health, spearheaded by Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius (executive action)
Bolster support for and funding of law enforcement (a call to Congress)
Implement tough penalties for those who engage in gun trafficking (a call to Congress)
Call on the Attorney General to "review categories of individuals prohibited from having a gun" to ensure that people who could pose a threat "are not slipping through the cracks" (executive action)
Offer "rulemaking" that would enable law enforcement officials to run background checks after seizing a gun, before returning the weapon (executive action)
Have the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) provide gun dealers — who possess federal licenses — with a published letter detailing how to run background checks for "private sellers" (executive action)
Start a national campaign that emphasizes "safe and responsible gun ownership" (executive action)
Call for a review of safety standards designed for gun locks and gun safes (executive action)
Offer a report from the Department of Justice that assesses information on lost and stolen guns, and ensure that information is easily accessible for law enforcement. (executive action)
Nominate a director for the ATF (executive action)
Offer training for "active shooter situations" for law enforcement, first responders and school officials (executive action)
"Maximize enforcement efforts to prevent gun violence and prosecute gun crime" (executive action)
Call for a report from the Attorney General that details and analyzes new gun safety technology, and encourage the private sector to produce "innovative technologies" (executive action)
"Clarify" that the health care legislation doesn't preclude doctors from asking patients about their gun ownership at home (executive action)
Offer a letter for health care providers, stressing that they are not prevented by law "from reporting threats of violence to law enforcement authorities" (executive action)
Create emergency contingency plans for schools, places of higher education and houses of worship (executive action)
Clarify to state health officials which mental health services Medicaid must cover (executive action)
Complete regulations that outline the "essential health benefits and parity requirements" within the exchanges established by the health care legislation (executive action)
Complete "mental health parity regulations" (executive action)
Source: The White House

subset: commoncrawl


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While Web publishing continues to challenge the printed page as the primary means of sharing text, in one aspect it still lags way behind Johannes Gutenberg's 500 year old technology: Web developers have a relatively measly choice of fonts. Now the standards body for the Web is hoping to bring online the rich variety of type styles long available to print.
The World Wide Web Consortium's Web Fonts Working Group has launched version 1.0 of the The Web Open File Format (WOFF). This format will provide a platform for open source and commercial providers of fonts to make their creations easily available across the Web, according to W3C fonts activity lead Chris Lilley.
"In print, publishers use lots and lots of fonts all the time. And there is a mechanism for that: They can get a font from a particular client, and use it on their computers," Lilley said. "And when designers come to the Web, they're in shock when they find they can't do that."
Today, the vast majority of text rendered on the Web is rendered by browsers in a small number of typefaces, most provided to the Web by Microsoft, such as Arial, Verdana and Times New Roman. (Typographically speaking, the term typeface refers to a stylistic rendition of each letter in an alphabet, whereas the font refers to the a specific rendering of these letters).
This collection is but a small subset of the wide range of typefaces available for print media, though. Various initiatives, most confined to specific browsers, have tried to expand the palette of fonts, but have failed to take off, due the amount of work they required on the part of Web developers.
WOFF is an attempt to provide a platform for fonts that can be easily used by all browsers.
WOFF is actually a compression technology. A font owner can package a font in a WOFF container and post it on the Web. A browser, when it must render a page requiring the font, can download the font package, uncompress the font and use it to render the text. The page specifies the font needed with a Cascading Style Sheets(CSS)-based declaration.
The Mozilla Foundation provides an example page that allows the viewer to compare fonts already packaged in most browsers with a newly available WOFF-based downloadable font, the Charis SIL Compact (which is about a megabyte in size, or 80 kilobytes for the subset needed for the text). The Mozilla page allows the viewer to see how quickly the fonts load, as well as view the stylistic improvements. In the original incarnation, the page used a series of small images to render those letters that the browser could not render itself–the text itself is in the African Ewe and Adja languages. This technique of using images for letters slows the page loading time, gives the page an inconsistent lettering and makes the contents less scrutable to search engines, Lilley said.
The major browser makers are all currently incorporating, or are considering incorporating, WOFF into their products, including Apple, Google, Mozilla, Microsoft and Opera. Mozilla has started supporting WOFF with version 3.6 of the Firefox browser.
The developers behind the open source font editor, Fontforge is also adding WOFF support to their software.
In addition to potentially enriching the creativity of Web designers, the WOFF standard also tries to accommodate the commercial interests of font developers, or font foundries as they are frequently called.
Traditionally, fonts that could be purchased for Web use were often saddled with digital rights management (DRM) software, to prevent other sites from using the font without payment. DRM, however, turned out to be a headache to manage for commercial providers, Lilley said. While WOFF does not prevent unpaid use of commercial fonts, it does allow font foundries to easily identify which sites are using their fonts without their permission, thanks to the transparent nature of CSS.
"It turns out that the foundries didn't want DRM. In legal terms, they just wanted to make it a little more difficult [for Web developers] to accidentally infringe," Lilley said. In exchange for not using DRM, font producers will have a broader platform on which they can sell their wares, Lilley argued. "Having an effective format, means you can buy [easily] a Web license for a font," he said.
Joab Jackson covers enterprise software and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Joab on Twitter at @Joab_Jackson. Joab's e-mail address is firstname.lastname@example.com


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Friend of the Court Enforcement Team
The Macomb County FOC Enforcement Team is a specialized unit, established to locate and apprehend individuals who have not complied with court orders issued by the Macomb County Family Court Division. Many of these individuals also have additional outstanding Felony and Misdemeanor warrants. The FOC Enforcement Team receives 66% of their funding from the State of Michigan. The FOC Enforcement Team is comprised of five Deputy Sheriff's assigned as Detectives/Investigators supervised by a Sergeant.
The Macomb County FOC Enforcement Team primarily works undercover in plain clothes. These detectives work an assortment of shifts including weekends and holidays. They operate primarily in Macomb, Wayne, Oakland and St Clair Counties with the majority of the unit's focus in Macomb County. These arrests occur at a variety of locations including at home, work, while driving and even occasionally at the local bar or restaurant. Additionally, numerous arrests have also been made on individuals (friends/relatives) that have aided in harboring these fugitives and/or interfered with the investigations. ;Often individuals turn themselves in to the Friend of the Court and voluntarily resolve their warrants. In 2010, there were 779 warrants voluntarily resolved by this initiative. In 2010, the Enforcement Team reviewed over 2,900 outstanding warrants, valued at over $21 million dollars in past due child support. The Sheriff's Office working in conjunction with the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office have a special interest in delinquent offenders who owe large sums of back child support and have been previously arrested for Non Support. These individuals are now being charged with a four (4) year felony. In 2010, 52 individuals were arrested under this enhanced charge.
If you have knowledge of an individual with a possible warrant for failure to pay child support (Non Support) please contact the Macomb County Sheriff's Office at:


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If you've ever been to your marina during a thunderstorm, you've probably wondered how likely it is that your boat will be struck by lightning. The answer is, fortunately, not very. According to the most recent (2000-2005) BoatUS Marine Insurance claim files, the odds of your boat being struck by lightning in any year are about 1.2 in 1000. In fact, the claim files show no lightning claims for 13 states such as Idaho and Nebraska (no surprise). But, for those of you with boats in Florida, nobody has to tell you the odds are greater — much greater. Thirty-three percent of all lightning claims are from the Sunshine State and the strike rate there is 3.3 boats per thousand. Surprisingly, the second most struck area in the country is the Chesapeake Bay (twenty-nine percent), and those who boat there in the summer can attest to the ferocity of the sudden thunderstorms. Not surprisingly, the majority of strikes are on sailboats (4 per 1000), but power boats get struck also (5 per 10,000); Trawlers have the highest rate for power boats (2 per 1000) and lightning has struck houseboats, bass boats, and even PWCs.
One surprise: Multihull sailboats are struck more than twice as often as monohulls. Even accounting for the fact that a large percentage of multihulls are in lightning-prone Florida, the odds of multihulls being struck are still statistically much greater. Ewen Thomson, a well-known lightning researcher has a theory. Based on BoatUS supplied data, Ewen did an analysis of the "shielding effect" of nearby yachts. He theorizes that multihulls have a higher probability of being struck in a marina because their greater beam requires a wider berth. The result is less shielding from adjacent boats. Ewen cautions that his numbers contain a large uncertainty, though they appear to correlate with the BoatUS Marine Insurance claims history.
You Can Run, But You Can't Hide
Volumes have been written about methods to mitigate damage or even avert a lightning strike. Lightning, however, doesn't seem to read them. As an example, one boat, fitted with a popular "fuzzy" static dissipater at the top of the mast was struck twice in one year; ironically, the second time the bolt hit the dissipater even though the VHF antenna right next to it was higher (claim #0308082). Dewey Ives, a surveyor in Florida and member of the BoatUS Catastrophe Team who has seen his share of lightning damaged boats, says that lightning is unpredictable. "I've seen a small sailboat docked between two larger ones get hit and sometimes a powerboat in the middle of a marina filled with sailboats gets it. If lightning wants your boat, there's not much you can do about it." Ewen Thomson agrees, "Current research shows promise in mitigating damage from a lightning strike, but there is nothing that is effective in preventing a strike." Though not everyone agrees with that statement, in this issue of Seaworthy, we'll leave behind the sometimes contradictory expert opinions on how to prevent a strike and focus on what to do if your boat is hit.
First Things First
Often, according to Carroll Robertson, vice president of claims for BoatUS Marine Insurance, the extent of the damage from a lightning strike is not immediately apparent. Carroll advises that the first thing that should be done if your boat is struck (after calling BoatUS claims — 800 937-1937) is to get it short-hauled as quickly as possible for a quick assessment of the hull. The reason, Carroll says, is that when lightning exits your boat, it can leave via a through-hull fitting or even through the hull itself. Even if the force of the bolt doesn't blow out a through-hull or cause hull damage, it may cause a gradual leak that could go unnoticed and sink your boat. As part of its sue and labor provision, BoatUS Marine Insurance will pay to have your boat short-hauled to check for damage — the short-haul is not subject to a deductible. Once it's determined that the hull has no leaks, the rest of the boat can be examined for damage.
The amount of damage a boat sustains is determined in part by how the strike exits. In a properly bonded system that follows American Boat and Yacht Council standards, the strike should follow a low resistance path to a boat's keel or an installed grounding plate, though few boats are equipped from the factory this way. While no two lightning strikes are exactly alike, examining a typical claim can shed some light on the possible damages your boat might have if it's ever struck, some of which you may not have thought of. Claim #0104985: Priority, a 33-foot sailboat was struck in North Carolina during a July thunderstorm. Sailboats — and this one is no exception — are nearly always struck on the mast and a damaged or missing VHF antenna is typically the first sign that an unattended boat was struck — sometimes bits of a melted antenna are found on the deck. It's no surprise that electrical devices are susceptible to strikes; NOAA estimates a strike contains around 30,000,000 volts and a quick zap to a 12-volt device will certainly destroy it. But Carroll Robertson says that lightning is like horseshoes — close counts. There can sometimes be collateral damage when a nearby boat gets hit, either the result of the lightning's powerful electro-magnetic field (EMF), or the current induced by the field running through the boat's shorepower cord. This can create strange problems.
In one instance, the owner of a 28-foot sailboat noticed an amber LED on his battery charger that he'd never seen lit before and his depth sounder had quit working. He couldn't figure out what had happened until his neighbor told him his boat had been struck recently (claim # 0107363). On another boat moored next to a struck boat, the compass readings were 50 degrees off and slowly returned to normal after a few weeks. But a direct hit usually causes more obvious — and substantial — damage.
When a boat gets struck, lightning is trying to find its way to the water. In a sailboat, like Priority, gets struck, one of the paths it takes is down the mast; typically anything that happens to be close by on the way down can be destroyed — wind instruments, TV antennas, radar, lights, etc. Fortunately, the BoatUS Marine Insurance claim files have not shown that aluminum masts themselves get damaged; aluminum is a very good conductor and allows the strike free passage. However, wood and carbon fiber masts can get damaged since neither one is a good conductor. In one claim, a wooden mast that was partially rotted was destroyed when the charge heated up the damp mast causing the moisture to suddenly expand (witnesses said it "exploded". Standing rigging is another path lightning takes and although stainless steel does conduct as well as aluminum, damage to the rigging is rare.
Though mast-mounted components are the most likely to be destroyed, anything on the boat that is electronic can be damaged. In the case of Priority, the wind, speed and depth instruments were destroyed as was the air conditioner controls, the battery charger, autopilot, mast wiring, the refrigeration controls, the stereo, and of course, the VHF. In other cases, battery selector switches, power panel breakers, volt/amp meters, alternators, and even cabin lights were damaged. As a general rule, if the equipment works OK after the boat was struck, it probably wasn't damaged — it's unusual for electronics to fail months later. Dewey Ives says that often the first sign owners have that their boat was struck is that some of the boat's electronics don't work. "Look for fuse failures," he says. "If you have more than a couple of blown fuses, look to lightning as a possible cause." Power boats, he says, though not struck as frequently, are just as likely to sustain electronic damage.
Powerboats are typically struck on the VHF antenna or bimini top. One member who took his new 23-foot runabout out near Tampa Bay, saw a storm coming and turned around too late to get back to the dock,. He heard lightning strike the fiberglass VHF antenna ("A sound I hope I never have to hear again"). All of the boat's electronics were destroyed, but worse, the engine electrical system was damaged and the passengers had to endure the storm until the owner could wave down a passing boat. Although lightning struck an antenna that was only a few feet away, the passengers suffered nothing worse than temporary ringing in the ears. (Note: the fact that a boat's electronics may be destroyed during a thunderstorm — including the VHF — underscores the need for non-electronic signaling devices such as flares in case your boat is struck at sea and is taking on water, or worse, if someone is injured.)
Hull Damage
As hard as lightning is on electronics, it can be just as brutal to fiberglass. In the case of Priority, the lightning traveled down the mast as well as through the VHF coaxial cable. The cable had been disconnected and was resting against the hull inside the boat. When the strike exited the cable, it had no easy way to get to the water. After traveling a quarter of a mile through air, lightning has no trouble going through a fiberglass hull, and this is exactly what it did, blowing a three-inch hole on the way. Fortunately, the hole was above the waterline and the boat was saved from sinking. (Note: If you disconnect your VHF cable from your radio during lightning season, like some boaters do, be aware that anything near the connector, including you, can get zapped during a strike.) Other boats have not been so lucky.
Giving the lightning a low-resistance path to the water is a good idea, but if it's not done right, the damage can be even worse. The owner of a 27-foot sailboat bonded his through hulls properly with heavy wire, but didn't realize that underneath one of the seacocks, the through-hull fitting was made of Marelon — plastic. When the boat was struck, the lightning dutifully followed the wire, but instead of continuing to the water as it would have through a bronze fitting, it jumped across the plastic one, destroying it and partially sinking the boat.
Powerboats are also susceptible to hull damage and are less likely to have been fitted with a lightning protection system. Fortunately, the strike usually exits the boat through the props and rudders and aside from damage to the bottom paint, the running gear is not often damaged (although electronic engine controls sometimes are). Need another good reason to replace a leaking fuel tank? A 25-foot fishing boat with a small amount of fuel in the bilge exploded at the dock when it was struck, sending the contents of the boat's cockpit nearly 100 feet away. Occasionally, lightning enters a boat's electrical system and creates enough havoc to start a fire (claim #0107832). Fortunately, these types of claims are rare.
Minor Damage
One component that was destroyed in Priority were two shore power ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI). Marine surveyors say that they are nearly always destroyed during a strike and can easily be overlooked. Though they may still power appliances, the protection circuit is often non-functional; GFCIs can be easily checked by pushing the test button on the cover. Other small items to check are hand-held radios and GPS's, bilge pumps, inverters, lights, and fans. It should be noted that lightning is fickle and boat damage varies enormously — one owner saw his boat struck on the mast and yet none of the electronics were damaged, and in fact the only evidence the surveyor could find of the strike was a blackened area on the masthead.


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Book lodges in Pensacola
Looking to escape into the wilderness for a little while? With 4,121 lodges in Pensacola, you'll be right in the middle of the great outdoors, so if you're a hiker, a skier or a snowboarder, pack your gear and get a move on. Lodge accommodations are also great if you're looking for a place to get away and enjoy a little staycation away from it all. Board games, billiards, and movie nights are always winners when you're looking to stay inside and cozy up to the fire in your picturesque cabin.
Whether you're traveling for a few days or are looking for lodging for an extended getaway, Orbitz has a lodge hotel in Pensacola with your name on it.
Vacation lodges in Pensacola
Some Pensacola lodges have perks like pools, laundry rooms, and kitchens. If you're looking for a ritzier experience, check out lodge resorts; you'll likely find thoughtful concierge service, hot tubs and fitness center. These luxury lodges also provide room service, and will often rent out hiking or skiing equipment if you don't bring your own.
Traveling on a budget? We've got you. Cheap lodges give you a warm, comfortable place to stay without breaking the bank. Consider lodge bookings with a kitchen and spend a night in—you'll have plenty of money left over to splurge on the makings for s'mores.
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|Hotel Pensacola, At Home Inn & Suites, Quality Inn & Suites Pensacola Bayview


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Apple Fruit Cake, moved onto a lighter Apple Spice Cake (recipe below) and then found that Lumberjack Cake is very similar to a favourite Apple and Date Cake. All very good. All had such different textures.
I made the Apple Spice Cake after coming home from a busy day that had been hijacked by a computer virus. There was no time to drop into the supermarket. I was visiting a friend for lunch the next day and wanted to take something for lunch. Everything I needed was in my kitchen. The only ingredient I left out was walnuts, which Sylvia and I had used up in a batch of fruit balls. I made it in a small slice tin but next time might make it in my new 20cm square cake tin.
this recipe, which is the same as my Apple and Date Cake but has coconut in the topping. However I noticed that Lorraine used condensed milk in her topping and I happened to have some in the fridge so I just combined some condensed milk and shredded coconut for the topping. It was fantastic.
Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: Turkish Fig Pudding
This time two years ago: Bizarre gnocchi and strange crumble
This time three years ago: Tabouli from the Tree
This time four years ago: Lasagne and the Boy Wizard
Apple Spice Cake
Slightly adapted from Lovely Wee Days
- 2 cooking apples
- 1 c sugar (I used a bit less)
- 113g (4 oz) butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 cups flour (I used 1 cup white and 1/2 cup wholemeal)
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp salt (I used a pinch of salt)
- 1/2 cup sticky raisins (I used sultanas)
- 1/2 c walnuts (I didn't use)
In a small bowl cover the raisins or sultanas with boiling water. Peel, core and dice apples and sprinkle with sugar in another bowl - the apple will release some of its juices after standing for 5-10 minutes. Set aside while preparing other ingredients.
Mix butter and egg in a large mixing bowl. Add apples and then dry ingredients. Gently mix in drained raisins (or sultanas) and walnuts (if using). Pour into a greased and lined tin (I used a small slice tin but next time would use a 20cm round cake tin or a 20cm square cake tin).
Bake at 180 C for 50-60 minutes (I think this is for a 20cm round cake tin), or 35-40 minutes for a 20cm square cake tin, or 20-30 minutes for a small slice tin. Leave to cool before removing from the tin. Dust with icing sugar to serve.
On the stereo:
Listen, Listen: an Introduction to: Sandy Denny


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17 June 2010
The Brother Nathanael Foundation envisions an America that is Christian in its consciousness and wholesome in its culture.
The Foundation will support work that enables individuals and institutions to access the resources needed to take America back from the forces that are destroying our nation.
Whether its litigating for Christian symbols in the public square, creating and helping media outlets with factual news, or publishing books that will bypass the censors who fear truthful content, the Brother Nathanael Foundation will be there.
Come, let's work together to build a Christian America!


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The last time I took to the keyboard to blog I hadn't at all expected that the next time I did so would be at my desk at home in Rutland. But here I am. And how grateful I am to be here. Alive, all limbs intact.
Since being picked up by the Japan Coast Guard and then flying home, it has been a whirlwind couple of weeks as my mind and body recover, with much to sort out and deal with. As such, it has taken a little while to get to this point of being able to write about what has happened, is happening and will happen. Suffice to say, we took a beating and have been knocked back, and it is with a heavy heart and teary eyes that I must let you know that my good pal Gulliver the rowing boat won't be coming back. Unfortunately, during the pick up the Coast Guard removed some things they thought I might like to keep – the Yellowbrick tracker was in that pile, so sadly we have no means of tracking him. My hope is that he washes up on the other side, perhaps in a year or so, given the track record of tsunami debris reaching that coast.
It might seem strange that I should be so attached to a boat, but that's what happens. We were a team, each looking out for the other. Any boatie, especially the soloists, will tell you what it's like. It is gutting and feels like I have lost a friend. Were it not for him being so brilliantly built, I wouldn't have made it out of the storm in one piece. Jamie and Emily at Global Boatworks did another marvellous job in building such a fine boat.
Ahead of the storm's arrival, we knew it was going to be a very rough ride. Weather router Lee was closely tracking Mawar as it progressed North in Typhoon form from the Philippines, updating us on the likely conditions. Mawar means 'rose' in Indonesian, so I had nicknamed the storm system 'Rosie' in a bid to make it seem more friendly.
A row like this is a huge undertaking and my team and I had worked hard over the last 30 months liaising with the Japan Coast Guard and Weather Bureau to make sure we were as prepared as possible and that they were happy with our plans. We took on the North Pacific knowing the risks but with the best team, knowledge and boat we could build, hoping that the likes of 'Rosie' would leave us in relative peace. After all it was not Typhoon season in Japan. Alas 'twas not to be this time.
Out at sea, as it got closer to the 6th June when the centre of the system would be within 100 nautical miles of Gulliver and me, the wind forecast figures grew. Weakening from its typhoon form, we would be facing a violent tropical storm with sustained winds of 55-60 knots, gusting over 65 and more. By now I had prepared Gulliver as best I could and could only take to the cabin with my helmet, strap in and wait the worsening of the conditions. I had also agreed with my project manager, Sara, that I would text her using my Iridium Sat phone every hour or so to let her know that I was OK.
As predicted, by the evening of the 6th the wind and sea was a roaring mess. Knockdowns and capsizes became the norm as waves throttled us from all angles. Water had started to leak into my cabin via the hatches and before long a ribbon of water was streaming in through my main hatch, like a tap left open. Given the extraordinary force of the waves I wasn't surprised and I gritted my teeth each time a wave smashed directly into the bulkhead, waiting to see what would happen.
As night fell the conditions worsened, both inside and outside the cabin. Wave heights were up at 10 metres and still growing. The sea anchor was now taking huge strain – I could hear it and feel the g-force as I was thrown back in the harness as Gulliver was swung round into different wave sets. Over and over. A few times Gulliver was upended off the back of a wave then slammed down again with an ear-splitting thud, followed by another roll. By daylight we had rolled eight times and been knocked right over onto the side many more. The waves were now at 15 metres. Worst of all, the damage to Gulliver had clearly reached a critical state:
– Everything inside the cabin was wet, the electrics box and water maker included
– The sea anchor had gone from the bow of the boat and was attached only by its retrieval line on the side of the boat. This was holding us broadside to the waves meaning increased capsize risk
– The retrieval line was getting caught around different parts of the boat, breaking off critical equipment
– All of the communications aerials were damaged or ripped away
– I could hear that the rudder was damaged and it sounded like it was damaging the hull
– One of the safety rails had been ripped out, pulling holes into the cabins, potentially opening up the forward cabin to flooding
– The satellite dome on the front cabin had also gone, as had the GPS antenna, all serious leak paths into the front cabin
– And Gulliver was clearly taking longer to right himself after each capsize, given the water he had taken on
With all this damage and knowing that I already had water coming into the back cabin, there was no option but to call in for help. My feeling was that with the further inevitable capsizes there was a very real likelihood that the forward cabin would flood and I would be trapped in my cabin under water.
The most frustrating thing of all was that I was powerless to do anything else to prevent or repair the damage, given the sea conditions. To open that hatch would have meant a wave into the cabin and irrecoverable capsize and even if I had made it out I risked being swept overboard and seriously injured, if not drowned.
For the next 32 hours I lay and waited for the Coast Guard's rescue boat, willing Gulliver to keep righting through each capsize. From time to time I confirmed my position on the VHF radio with the Coast Guard plane which overflew us and, later, over fellow rower Charlie Martell aboard his boat Blossom who had also suffered serious boat damage a few hundred miles to my North. Sara and George stayed up through both UK nights with me, sending me messages and trying to keep me calm. I know Mum didn't have much sleep either.
I had been able to drink very little – condensation on the hatch above my head was often all I could reach to quench my thirst – and had eaten just a couple of Mars bars and boiled sweets throughout. Sweltering and airless through the daytime sunshine, at night I did my best to keep warm in a soaking cabin that got wetter with each roll and direct hit. My skin was chaffed and soggy from lying strapped to a soaking bed and I had a thumping headache after twice colliding with the cabin roof while not strapped in during a roll. We added twelve more rolls to the tally during the wait.
By the time I was picked up by Japan Coast Guard Vessel Zao, both Gulliver and I were battered. I was exhausted and Gulliver was in very poor shape. Thankfully by this time – 1700 on the 8th – the wind had dropped to below 20knots and the seas were calmer, making the rescue possible. However, the Coast Guard had already said they would not be able to take Gulliver aboard, so I prepared to abandon him, with the knowledge and hope that we could track and salvage him later on.
It took until the morning of the 10th to make the 500 miles back to shore. The Coast Guard crew took very good care of me and I smiled when the Captain said, 'See you again. Never give up' as we went our separate ways back in Japan.
Arriving on shore in Sendai I was met by friends from Tokyo and Choshi. It was emotional and I am so grateful to them for being there. I spent a few hours in hospital on a drip to rehydrate before being driven south to rest for a few days with friends. I then flew back to the UK and was delivered up to Rutland. It all feels rather surreal still right now. To have swapped the rolling blues of the North Pacific for the rolling greens of the Rutland countryside in such a short space of time is rather mind-boggling, and not just for me. This storm battered more than just Gulliver and me. And Charlie and Blossom. Our families and teams, and sponsors and supporters and followers have also taken a hit. I am just thankful we made it out alive. (Charlie and his boat Blossom were picked up the morning after I was by the crew of MV Last Tycoon, and they landed safely in Vancouver last week.)
I am very grateful to everyone for their support and kind messages – during this mad time and throughout the expedition so far. I travel solo mostly, but it is most definitely not a solo effort. Without the belief and commitment of so many people, we would never have even made it to Tower Bridge for the start of London2London. To the Japan Coast Guard and Falmouth Coast Guard for their efficiency, professionalism and support; to my Tokyo pals who looked after me and my Team Choshi friends for coming up to welcome me ashore; to my team and my family and friends; to sponsors and supporters and charities, schools and everyone following and joining in: thank you.
The next goal after getting back to normal and catching up with friends and family and sponsors, will be to plan how to continue the London2London journey in some form, staying true to the spirit and ideals which we set out with 14 months ago. I am determined that this is not the end of the journey, but will become a chapter in the story.
So for now, watch this space.
Until next time,
Sarah and, in his absence, Gulliver x
PS There is hope for Gulliver yet – I have had various notes from schoolchildren both at home and abroad saying they will look for him on the beach. They have also said I should never give up. Which is good, because it's not in my nature to do so.


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Hillary Clinton now leads Donald Trump by 8 points — 50 percent to 42 percent — in the wake of the Democratic National Convention, according to the latest NBC News|SurveyMonkey poll.
That's up from a single-point difference last week. Trump did not receive a similar bump after the Republican National Convention.
Clinton's gain also comes after Trump's comments about the family of a fallen American soldier and Trump's suggestion that Russian hackers should seek out deleted Clinton emails.
In a four-way match-up that includes Libertarian Gary Johnson and Green Party candidate Jill Stein, Clinton now leads Trump by 4 points — 42 percent to 38 percent. This is a lead-reversal from last week, when Trump was beating the Democratic nominee by 2 points.
The NBC News|SurveyMonkey Weekly Election Tracking poll was conducted online from July 25 through July 31 among 12,742 adults who say they are registered to vote.


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Calling all tea party and grassroots conservatives in Wisconsin! This is your moment. Your state is ground zero in the fight against the unions. We win there, we win everywhere.The fight against the unions... Well, there's an open declaration that it's not about solving the budget crisis, fairness, and shared sacrifice. I'm sure the people who've been protesting for the last 4 days will appreciate your frankness. That's what they accuse the Wisconsin GOP of doing. Is that the Tea Party way? You're coming in to serve us some iced tea, here in the Wisconsin winter — ice tea with a wedge of divisiveness, for that refreshing gulp of pure partisan flavor.
Why else do you think President Obama, Organizing for America and just about every element of the Left is focused on the fight in Wisconsin? Heck, even the godfather of the union movement, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, is flying into Madison today [to] address the union protestors.Yes, the anti-Scott Walker side has its outside agitators. I don't think that necessarily helps the protesters win over the people of Wisconsin. (As I've said.) By contrast, Scott Walker and the GOP legislators have looked like they are focused on the public good, doing what needs to be done for the people of Wisconsin, which I think is a persuasive political message in Wisconsin. You want to switch that to Republicans versus Democrats in a hardcore political standoff? By bringing in your own outside agitators? Is that good Tea Party style? I don't think so!
As the union thugs and clueless students run around the capitol shouting, "Tax the rich, fix the deficit!" and holding up signs with crosshairs on Scott Walker's head, the taxpayers of Wisconsin have been organizing.Okay, fine. Fine to have a protest supporting our governor. But it should be about Wisconsin and the public good — not party politics.
Tomorrow, (Saturday, February 19) from noon to 3pm, the local tea party leaders from across Wisconsin and American Majority are joining in a counter protest to the unions (I Stand with Scott Walker!) on the state capitol grounds in Madison.
Confirmed speakers are Andrew Breitbart, Herman Cain, Jim Hoff of Gateway Pundit and my brother Ned with more to come.Something tells me these people are not Wisconsinites.
Fox News, CNN and ABC News will be covering the event.Flex some muscle... I know it's a metaphor, but you're sending out propaganda calling the protesters "thugs" — and that's just too belligerent. The point is for people to show up, be there, physically. That means something. And it works a whole lot better when there is nothing explicitly or implicitly violent about your speeches, signs, and caricatures. Keep it idealistic and kind-spirited, pro-Walker protesters.
Time to flex some conservative muscle.
And if you come in from out of state, I don't particularly want you here, but you need to know — whatever you've read about "thugs" and signs with cross-hairs and Hitler — Wisconsin people are really polite. If you don't understand that and behave extra-well, you will look like a lout — and that's even before the Democratic-friendly media do their usual work of trying to make you look bad.
I hope Wisconsinites do show up today — on all sides of the debate. Be there. I will. Let's be good citizens, interact with each other, try to understand what's going on and who thinks what, who cares about Wisconsin and who's there to take advantage of the spotlight for nonWisconsin purposes. May the greater good prevail.


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Register for Ol' Myrt's upcoming genealogy webinar. It's all about the revolution - the American Revolution.
Men, don't let the term "daughters" throw you. Delving into NSDAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) application files can turn up documents provided as evidence of family relationships for each generation. Join this webinar Saturday to view a live demo of the DAR website and learn about the small but significant part that must be done in person or via remote research assistance.
Ol' Myrt here particularly recommends this newly revised website, as you can search for not only the patriotic ancestor, but for family members of the generations "in between." Once you find a lineage that is close to yours (perhaps "branching in" about 3-4 generations back) you can immediately download the application file with references to proof documents for a small fee.
Then its a matter of obtaining the source documents. There are a few tricks to this part, so be sure to tune in to the webinar for the latest info.
NSDAR - Resources for your Revolutionary War Ancestors WEBINAR
Presenter: DearMYRTLE
Presenter: DearMYRTLE
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Host: Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree Extension Series
10:00 AM - Pacific
11:00 AM - Mountain
12:00 PM - Central
1:00 PM - Eastern
Registration: https://www1.go
tomeeting.com/r egister/170393176
Participate in the live broadcast Saturday 2 July 2011.Thereafter, this webinar will be in the member-only area at SCGS website.
For more information about Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree Extension Series see: http://www.scgs
genealogy.com/J amboreeExtensio nSeries2011.htm


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CHICAGO – The John D. and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation today made it official. Bat Boy is a genius.
Weekly World News is proud to announce that Bat Boy has been chosen by the MacArthur Foundation to receive one of its prestigious fellowships, also called "genius grants."
Upon hearing the news Bat Boy took a baseball bat and smashed the offices of the MacArthur Foundation. They didn't mind though… "he's a genius, he can do whatever he wants."
The recipients of the fellowship, including Bat Boy, will each receive $500,000 in "no strings attached" support over the next five years. MacArthur Fellowships come without stipulations and reporting requirements and offer Fellows unprecedented freedom and opportunity to reflect, create, and explore. The work of MacArthur Fellows knows neither boundaries nor the constraints of age, place, and endeavor.
"This group of Fellows, along with the more than 800 who have come before, reflects the tremendous breadth of creativity among us," said MacArthur President Robert Gallucci. "They are explorers and risk takers, contributing to their fields and to society in innovative, impactful ways. They provide us all with inspiration and hope for the future."
Gallucci spoke about choosing Bat Boy. "There hasn't been a more active mutant in the United States – ever. Bat Boy's recent work with Bat Boy Conservation to combat White-Nose Syndrome was what made him a unanimous choice. We all love Bat Boy."
Stephen Hawking called Bat Boy to congratulate him. Their conversation could not be heard by any human beings, but there were a lot of enthusiastic high-pitched sounds and squeaks. "Hawking wishes he had half the mind that the half-boy does," Hawking's assistant, and new lover, said.
WWN is proud of Bat Boy and wish him the best during his five-year fellowship. To read more about Bat Boy's life, buy the new authorized biography, GOING MUTANT. You can get it HERE
Here's the Complete List of 2010 MacArthur Fellows:
The 2010 MacArthur Fellows
Amir Abo-Shaeer, Physics teacher, CA
Bat Boy, Mutant, WV
Nicholas Benson, Stone carver, RI.
Drew Berry, biomedical animator, Australia.
Michael Bolton, Singer, NV
Carlos D. Bustamante, Population Geneticist, CA
Matthew Carter, type designer, MA
David Cromer, Theater Director, NY
Shannon Lee Dawdy, Anthropologist, IL
Leonardo DiCaprio, Actor, CA.
Annette Gordon-Reed, American historian, MA
Kim Kardashian, Entrepreneur, CA
Yiyun Li,Fiction Writer, Davis, CA
Michal Lipson, Optical physicist, Ithaca, N.Y.
Lindsay Lohan, Actress, Hollywood, CA
Rachel Maddow, News anchor, NY
Nergis Mavalvala, Quantum Astrophysicist, MA
Jason Moran, Jazz Pianist and composer, NY
Sarah Palin, Grizzly Mom, AK
Sebastian Ruth, Violist, and Music Educator, RI
David Simon, author, producer and screenwriter, MD
Marla Spivak, entomologist, St. Paul, Minn.
Howard Stern, Broadcaster, NY
Elizabeth Turk, Sculptor, GA
CHICAGO – The John D. and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation today made it official. Bat Boy is a genius.


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I didn't want my picture taken because I was going to cry. I didn't know why I was going to cry, but I knew that if anybody spoke to me or looked at me too closely the tears would fly out of my eyes and the sobs would fly out of my throat and I'd cry for a week. I could feel the tears brimming and sloshing in me like water in a glass that is unsteady and too full.
―Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar


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Publication Date: February 28th 2013
POV: Female - First-person, Past tense
My Rating: 3 out of 5
Harriet Manners knows a lot of things.
She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a "jiffy" lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn't quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she's spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend's dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves.
As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn't seem to like her any more than the real world did.
And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?
This was a typical coming-of-age story. Very predictable. Harriet is picked on in school and when she is offered a modelling job, she accepts hoping it will change her life for the better. But she soon realizes that there are bullies wherever you go, and the trick is to ignore them, be yourself, and remember what is really important.
There was also a barely-there romance. We know absolutely nothing about Harriet's love interest besides the fact that he is gorgeous, part Asian, and he likes Harriet. There isnt a lot of depth in this. Its definitely for a younger audience than general YA, who would perhaps appreciate the simple message of the story: Be yourself.
"Have you been sniffing glitter again?"


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Mumbai, April 25 (IANS) With former Swedish police chief Sten Lindstrom giving him a clean chit in the Bofors gun payoff scandal, Amitabh Bachchan Wednesday said the accusations had led to years of "anguish of petulant blame".
"I speak from personal experience and personal exoneration. 25 years after the incident, I read today from one that pioneered accusation and investigation, of innocence. Of the fault that never lay before me. Of one that remained and shall perhaps remain a darkened spot, blemished beyond all recognition, but in admittance of wrong doing against me," Amitabh wrote on his blog bigb.bigadda.com.
"No one shall be able to understand or even remotely fathom, the hours and days and months and years of the anguish of petulant blame, that I had to go through. But will it really interest another? No it shall not," Amitabh, who was MP at the time, added.
Along with the late Rajiv Gandhi, the 69-year-old star was implicated in the kickbacks scandal on the Rs.1,500 crore gun deal.
His wife, Rajya Sabha MP Jaya Bachchan also spoke out. "We knew the truth 25 years back but justice takes its own time and our stand has been vindicated," she said.
In an interview to website thehoot.org, Lindstrom, who had operated under pseudonym Swedish Deep Throat, said there was no evidence to show that Gandhi had taken a bribe in the Bofors deal but he didn't stop the cover-up to protect Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrochi.
He also said the case against actor and then Congress MP Amitabh Bachchan and his family was planted in Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter by Indian investigators.
"Their mission was misguidance, connived to its maximum, for issues that never ever did be of any concern in the execution of their own selfish mercenary agenda. They won momentarily. But lost ultimately. Lost position and strength and power yes, but importantly their conscience. And today that counts the most!" said Amitabh.
The Bofors gun payoff scandal was a major corruption scandal in India during the 1980s and 1990s implicating then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi and several others who were accused of receiving kickbacks from Bofors AB for winning a bid to supply India 155 mm field howitzers. The scale of the corruption -- estimated to the tune of Rs.64 crore -- was far worse than any that India had seen before and directly led to the defeat of Gandhi's ruling Indian National Congress party in the November 1989 general elections.
Read More: Indira Gandhi | Rajiv Gandhi | Sonia Gandhi | Gandhi Nagar | Gandhi Smarak Nidhi | Gandhi Nagar Bazar | Feroz Gandhi Nagar Faridabad | Gandhi Camp Tso | Gandhi Samarak Nidhi | Gandhi Bazar | Gandhi Gate Dinanagar Ndtso | Gandhi Nagar Fazilka | Gandhi Gram | Gandhi Chowk Hamirpur | Gandhi Eye Hospital | Gandhi Market | Gandhi | Gandhi Nagar Mahoba | Gandhi Aashram | Hubli Gandhi Nagar | Raji


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Technicolor film was not color film, and it did not produce anything like lifelike colors. But how did it produce color movies? And why did those colors glow? And why did all of it lead to Dorothy getting ruby slippers?
As anyone who has seen an old Technicolor film knows, it looks weird. Blue eyes look like they glow. Pink faces look like they've been painted peach. Red looks scary. It all looks dyed, not recorded — and that's because it was. There wasn't any color film at the time that Technicolor was making its big splash. No one had figured out how to create a film stock that would record color. They had, however, found a way to make film stock that would filter out all the color that shouldn't get through. And they had dyes. By putting them together, they made Technicolor glorious.
Technicolor cameras didn't film in color. Instead they filmed in black and white, with different filters. The light entered the camera lens and went to a half-silvered mirror, which split the beam of light through a magenta lens (red and blue together), and a green lens. Behind the magenta lens was film sensitive to blue light, and film sensitive to red light. Behind the green lens was just plain light-sensitive film. The production crew ended up with three sets of film, one showing the blue light that the object they were filming gave off, one showing the red light, and one showing the green. All of these were black and white film strips. They just showed odd-looking pictures. For example, on the 'blue' roll, a person with few blue tones in their skin would have skin that looked completely dark, while a blue ribbon would look pure white. Each of the black and white images were dyed with its proper color. Sometimes, when they were dyed, the films would combined and re-filtered, so that only bright blues would make it out of the blue-dyed film.
At last, when it was time for the film to be shown, the three dyed films would be layered on top of one another, to make 'glorious technicolor.' This is why, especially in the early films, the coloring looks so painterly. It's also why most early films nearly cause eyestrain — especially the famous film The Wizard of Oz. The Technicolor process was expensive, not just because of the camera and the technicians needed to film, but the many incidental technical issues. Some colors, if they were too subtle, would suddenly pop out as other colors. Yellows would turn green in random patches, if too much of the wrong color was filtered out. And since the beam of light entering the camera was split between multiple films, only a fraction of the light in the studio made it onto any one film. This meant that the studio needed to be extra bright. Many regulars on The Wizard of Oz complained of eye damage from the studio lights, that lasted years.
Mostly, though, it meant that production teams didn't want to waste a single opportunity for color. In the books, Dorothy's slippers were silver, and the yellow brick road, silver slippers, and emerald green city were said to represent the gold standard, silverites, and paper money. But silver slippers were no fun at all on film. They might as well be filmed in black and white. Red, however, was easy to see, eye-catching, and didn't wreak havoc with the color mixing — the way the famed yellow-brick road often did. Hence the ruby slippers, which made the most of Technicolor, and an American fairy-tale was changed forever.
Via American History, Smithsonian, and Widescreen Museum.


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The Slavic Department teaches the languages, literatures, and cultures of the Slavic nations. The curriculum provides the language training prerequisite to specialization in a variety of careers (e.g., government, diplomacy, international trade, teaching), and offers an enriching cultural and linguistic background to non-majors, especially those interested in the ethnic heritage of the Slavic peoples.
Do you need to fulfill some requirements?
Check out the courses in the Slavic Department!
The Department of Slavic Languages & Literatures can help you with your general requirements! We regularly offer courses that meet general requirements, and many of our courses fulfill multiple requirements. Our classes could help to round-out your schedule while broadening your horizons! Contact us at www.lsa.umich.edu/slavic or email@example.com.
Students with high school training in Russian are required to take both the reading and listening (CEEB) Russian tests to evaluate their language proficiency. The results of the placement test determine the proper placement. The Slavic Department has final authority to determine the most appropriate course level. Heritage students (students partially raised in a Slavic-speaking environment) are required to contact the Slavic Department prior to enrolling in any language classes.
The University of Michigan offers outstanding instruction in Russian, a language
spoken by the one hundred fifty million people in Russia itself, and by
another thirty million people in the surrounding countries. Learning Russian
opens the door to exciting new opportunities, as the economies of Eastern
Europe continue to transform (Russia is now one of the world's major oil exporters).
Having "Russian" on your résumé will make you stand out in
applications for jobs or to professional schools. Learning Russian will give you
the chance to travel, study, and complete internships in the world's largest
country. All the achievements of Russian culture will be open to you — from
Dostoevsky, Chekhov, Bulgakov, and Nabokov, to Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky,
and the Kirov Ballet.
The Slavic Department and the Residential College jointly sponsor a proficiency oriented program of intensive Russian, consisting of a sequence of two eight-credit courses (RUSSIAN 103 and 203) equivalent to the regular first- and second-year program, plus a four-credit Readings Course (RCLANG 323) enabling a student to reach advanced proficiency in all four language skills in three terms. The program also includes daily Russian Language Table and weekly Russian Tea. For more information contact the RC's main office at (734) 647-4363.
The department offers a comprehensive, proficiency-oriented intensive spring/summer Russian language program for students at the first-, second-, or third-year levels. Guest students are highly encouraged to apply. Please see www.lsa.umich.edu/sli for more information.


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BERLIN – Three Berlin residents were arrested and charged last week with a variety of offenses from first-degree assault to resisting arrest after a donnybrook at a Bay Street apartment complex.
On Oct. 20, Berlin Police responded to a residence on Bay Street for a reported fight in progress. The investigation revealed one man, George Nock, Jr., 26, of Berlin, had struck another man, identified as Damar Collins, 20, also of Berlin, in the head with a large wooden board and attempted to strike several other individuals with the same weapon.
While police were attempting to arrest Nock, the man struck in the head with the board, Collins, interfered with the officers to the point the arrest could not be affected. When Collins was told he was under arrest for interfering, Collins spit in the face of an officer and ultimately had to be shot with a tazer to be controlled.
In the meantime, Collins' mother, Sharon Collins, 39, of Berlin, interceded on her son's behalf and was also arrested for failing to obey a lawful order and interfering with an arrest. All three were taken before a court commissioner. Nock was charged with first- and second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct and was held on a $10,000 bond. Damar Collins was charged with second-degree assault, resisting arrest and failure to obey a lawful order and was held on a $5,000 bond. Sharon Collins was charged with failure to obey a lawful order and interfering with an arrest and was released on her own recognizance.


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Saturday, April 10, 2010
Why I Love the iPad for Education: Initial Observations
My initial observations lead me to believe this is TRANSFORMATIVE. Especially for struggling learners (kids on IEPs and 504s for example). Why?
1. The Coolness Factor - Never discredit this. Everywhere I go, whenever I bring out the iPad, everyone's demeanor changes to enthusiastic excitement. They salivate. Their fingers twitch. Give an iPad to a student with special needs and their peers will change their views. Historically, students on IEPs have not been viewed as the Cool Kids. This can be a game changer. The touch technology and available apps offer UDL strategies which can meet the academic needs of our kids. (more in a subsequent post).
2. New ways to input text - This is a huge consideration. Typically, we ask students to use paper/pencil for learning or to demonstrate what they know. Think worksheets. Think the Five Paragraph Essay. For some kids, the mechanics of handwriting is too challenging a task for success. Additionally, the ability to keyboard in the traditional manner is impossible. The iPad offers two new alternatives. Dragon Dictation, a free app for speech recognition, record into the microphone and your text appears ready to be emailed or texted. ShapeWriter, a FUN way to input text using touch technology. I see ShapeWriter offering a better method for kids with dysgraphia, kids who have the ability to use only one hand, kids who need spelling support, kids who need to be highly engaged to input text.
3. Access to Content - Ira Socol criticizes the iPad as a step backward, Web 1.5. because it's not about content creation. I agree with that criticism and hope that subsequent versions will focus on those possibilities. (C'mon, Apple, no camera, no video capabilities?)
But school is also about accessing content. Again, Ira accurately points to the fact that text-to-speech capabilities are not built in. However, for the students who do not need TTS, the iPad offers options - access to interactive content and no need to carry around heavy textbooks and backpacks that cause back problems in kids.
4. Notebook replacement - Traditional school is about paper based notebooks both for recording notes and for recording assignments. For too many kids, this IS the disability. There just isn't enough space in those Assignment Notebooks. And too many kids can't read their own handwriting for later review of their notes. Instead, we assign adult para-educators to scribe when handwriting is a challenge for a student on an IEP. Promotes DEPENDENCE. Think outside the box and see how the iPad levels the playing field. Use organization apps to keep track of assignments in a legible manner. Use the color code features to organize notes. (Look for more
in a future post about specific apps for overcoming learning obstacles.).
5. Inability to multitask - I've read many complaints about the iPad's lack of multitasking capabilities. Let's turn this around and view this as a positive for some of our students. Limiting tasks to one at a time can be especially beneficial for some students.
6. Logistical Considerations - 1:1 laptop initiatives are proliferating. Districts are turning to the use of standard laptops or netbooks. Both require time to turn on the devices and access the application, and require charging during the day if there is ongoing use. The battery life of the iPad is said to be about 10 -12 hours. I got mine Wednesday night and have yet to charge it! And the instant on feature is huge for immediate use. We can't overlook the fact that turning on a laptop or netbook and getting to the Internet or specific software program can take at least five minutes or more. Valuable teaching/learning time lost.
The iPad is a lightweight, compact, very COOL device with limitations which have been articulated by many others. One thing I need NOW before I can recommend it to younger students is a compact, protective case. But think about the possibilities for struggling learners, for trying to REACH EVERY LEARNER and this can be transformative.
Stay tuned for subsequent posts which will identify apps to reach learners with specific learning obstacles.
Let the attacks begin....
24 comments:
Excellent, excellent post! Karen, a great summary. I loved your comment "4. Notebook replacement - Traditional school is about paper based notebooks both for recording notes and for recording assignments. For too many kids, this IS the disability. " So true. So exciting to see all this progress and the new opportunities for kids with so much potential and so many struggles with traditional methods of doing things. You're SO right ... just give these kids digital methods (with the training and support) and we'll see so many more skills than challenges.
- 9:22 AM, April 10, 2010
- Dan Callahan said...
Multitasking is coming to the iPhone and iPad with version 4 of the OS, this summer for iPhone, and in the fall for the iPad.
I had a long-winded paragraph here about the limits of voiceover technology in the iPhone/iPad, but I decided to do some quick research, and found this helpful post about getting VoiceOver working everywhere. I tried it with an article on nytimes.com and it worked brilliantly. Here's a handy video showing how to set up VoiceOver for use in iBooks in particular. It takes some changes in gestures, but totally worth it if needed, I'd imagine.
- 9:24 AM, April 10, 2010
- Sharon Eilts said...
Great, positive post. Can't wait for mine to be delivered to actually try out all the features.
Sharon Eilts
- 9:55 AM, April 10, 2010
- Eric Sailers, M.A., CCC-SLP said...
I couldn't have said it any better. You outlined some excellent arguments for iPad use in special education.
On Twitter and blogs, I have read a lot of criticism from educators about the iPad. The criticism happens to come from those who don't have an iPad and/or dislike Apple. I think if they got an iPad and loaded it with useful apps (e.g., Pages, Shapewriter, Dragon Dictation, Proloquo2Go, Cat in the Hat, Toy Story, Doodle Buddy, First Words Animals Speak it!) for students with special needs, they'd start to change their mind. Once they see a student using the iPad who require those tools, then it would be a done deal. The larger screen with accessibility in combination with extraordinary apps, is definitely a game changer for students with special needs.
The iPad is definitely not perfect. It needs multi-tasking and other features coming in fall with OS 4.0, switch access, a camera, more websities with html5 content, and more apps for optimized for the iPad. But, all this is coming, and not reasons to overlook the 1st generation.
For the cost, the iPad for special education purposes is head and shoulders above devices that do less and/or are much more costly.
- 10:50 AM, April 10, 2010
- miss.calcul8 said...
Thanks for writing this post. I have thus to be impressed with the ipad. Why would I want an oversized ipod or a limited laptop? The reasons you have pointed out here have helped me to see the ipad in a new perspective. I especially like how you point out that IEP students now have the chance to be the cool kids. That reason alone convinced me. We should empower them at every opportunity available.
- 12:10 PM, April 10, 2010
- Your Therapy Source Inc said...
I agree with your comments about Shapewriter. I am always amazed by its word prediction capabilities and ease of use.
I am disspointed that there is no camera or video. In addition, no Flash capabilities.
I think in a few years, the iPad may transform education just not yet.
- 1:15 PM, April 10, 2010
- irasocol said...
(posted on my blog and here)
I totally respect all that Karen says here, but in my post - http://bit.ly/aseZmC that I began by saying that I loved tablet computing, just not this tablet.
I agree that "cool" is great, that the touch screen is a fantastic interaction device, that choice in input systems is essential ("With this tool, running Windows7 and no other paid software at all, students could see and hear text, could watch videos, could listen to podcasts, and better still, they could create via keyboard (real or on-screen), via video camera, via microphone, via speech recognition, via handwriting, via drawing, and they could instantly share their creations with their classmates or the world").
Yes, HP's standard 12" multi-touch Tablet weighs 4 pounds, but those 4 pounds come with 3gb of RAM, 500gb of HD space, a real keyboard, a DVD+Blueray Read/Write Drive, a camera, fingerprint log-in, handwriting recognition, mobile broadband (should you want it-on any network) and none of the iPad's limitations for the same price as the 3G iPad with big memory.
That computer can utilize all the free tools available for Windows for accessibility, can utilize all the sophisticated assistive technology available for windows, and allow browser and office software choice.
And you are not linking your students directly to the storefront of a single content seller.
And that's right now. Newer, cheaper systems are coming from HP and from open-source linked manufacturers.
In other words, we need to separate the Tablet idea from Apple's product. Just as with the Kindle, I object to the iPad as a system solution - not an individual tool - for schools because it is one more example of schools selling their students to a vendor, which will always raise costs and limit opportunities in the future. And, as with the Kindle, I do not like adopting more limiting devices systemically. There are already better, free-er tablets than the iPad - I've seen them used in schools and they are brilliant. There's no reason to jump on a lesser, more controlled, device.
- Ira Socol
- 2:27 PM, April 10, 2010
- assistivetek said...
Hi Karen:
Thanks for your great post! You raise some really important issues with regard to using the iPad with students with learning differences. But putting technology that everyone is envious of in the hands of students with special needs is the way to go. I'm sure that if we gave students more of these cool tools they will use them.
Brian S. Friedlander, Ph.D.
AssistiveTek Blog
Skype: assistivetek
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- 3:35 PM, April 10, 2010
- Hartley said...
Thank you for a great post! I have been looking for something for my son to use -- he isn't ready for the multi-tasking laptop set up, so this might be good. He needs dictation software mostly (pen to paper and spelling issues, no problem with organization/ideas). I may just have to pick one up -- my husband will be so bummed! LOL
Thanks again!
- 3:59 PM, April 10, 2010
- Unknown said...
Karen, between your post and Bob Sprankle's I had to make a trip to the Apple Store today. I had them demo books, voiceover, movies, etc. for me and I am now on the "Notify Me" list to own an iPad and use it for all the things you so clearly describe in this post.
- 4:00 PM, April 10, 2010
- Madalaine Pugliese said...
Karen, what I love about iPad is how it narrows the conversation between general and special educators. For example, here is a NING offered by some of the Apple Distinguished Educators. What a wealth of learning tools and ideas or strategies on ways to implement.
- 10:57 AM, April 11, 2010
- Nancy Peske said...
Wow, thank you! This is SO helpful. I too have been thinking "No ability to multitask. And this is a bad thing for a kid with focus issues because...?" :) I am interested in the eReader capability. Can you adjust font size and type (san serif vs. serif) and contrast? For kids with visual processing order this would be big. I am still on the fence about which of these devices will be best for my son and am glad I waited on the Kindle because it sounds like the iPad has more useability. Now if only the price would come down!
- 10:57 AM, April 11, 2010
- David Truss said...
I love how you found the advantages for students with challenges and focused on the benefits the iPad has to offer, and yet I have to agree with Ira's comment above:
There's no reason to jump on a lesser, more controlled, device.
I don't have an issue with the iPad as a great, fun device, (I wouldn't mind one myself), but it's a tool that is limited compared to many other tools. To me 'coolness factor' doesn't outweigh what I said in my post:
It is a product that not only invites consumerism but is designed to promote it… this at a time when so many educators are trying to get students to be prosumers… and to be creators of content.
My advice: buy it for yourself, but put school money to more 'productive' use.
- 11:03 AM, April 11, 2010
- Madalaine Pugliese said...
Oooppsss I forgot the URL for the ning to explore
- 12:41 PM, April 11, 2010
- onscrn said...
I've had my iPad for a week, and the only thing I don't like about it is the weight. It's lighter than a notebook, but I get tired of holding it. Kids may just need to lay it flat (or tilted on dock) to use for any length of time.
I am excited about the touch screen. I got the iPad so I could see the iPad app I wrote actually running on the device it was meant for. It's OnScreen DNA Lite, a virtual model of the DNA double helix. User can rotate with finger swipes to see the model from different perspectives. Since it is meant to be used with other materials and, for best results, under the guidance of a teacher, it really doesn't have a level associated with it. I think that is a beautiful feature of visual apps: they can show things to beginners as well as advanced students in a memorable way.
Bob Estes
- 8:06 PM, April 11, 2010
- Randi Sargent said...
Hi Karen - I am contemplating purchasing an iPad for my son with CP to use for entertainment purposes (music, educatioanal apps, e-books...) I love the biggger, more accessbible screen, speakers etc but I am not sure it makes sense to have a $500+ "toy" in his backpack or how to protect it. It was suggested to me that the iTouch with iMainGo speakers would be a more durable option. Any advice is appreciated!
- 9:17 PM, April 11, 2010
- John Gale said...
I think that it comes down to apps. Proloquo2Go is only available on "iDevices" - iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad. For me, that puts iPad on the must-have list to have available for try-outs. Otherwise, like Ira, I would prefer something more open.
Apple does seem to be considering giving users more opportunities in the next version: http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/04/15/apple_seeks_to_hire_camera_expert_for_ipad_team.html
- 12:24 PM, April 17, 2010
The ipad has almost everything that I could want for my students except a USB port which makes would make it almost perfect!
- 5:01 PM, September 05, 2010
- smith said...
I am learning about blogs and like what you did in yours blog.Special Education
- 6:24 AM, January 06, 2011
- Kathi M. said...
YES! YES! My SLP is currently writing a grant to purchase iPads for her students with multiple disabilities and autism. When these students begin to work with this technology--everything changes! There will be obstacles--but we can't go back.
- 11:10 AM, February 18, 2011
- speakers for ipad said...
Hey, nice to read your post. I am a teacher too, and planning to use ipad as a revolutionary media eaching. It makes student get more engaged
- 9:09 PM, March 04, 2011
In #3 you mention "not about content creation." I think you are so off the mark on this one. For me, and what I show teachers. The entire device IS content creation, NOT content creation.
Take a look at your own statements:
#2 "New ways to input text" Students are creating content in three different ways in that post alone. One by keyboard, two by voice, and three by some "cool" ShapeWrite. All throughout that paragraph children/students are creating content!
#4 "Notebook replacement" This is the place where students begin those ideas that will be full featured throughout other content creating programs (Pages, Keynote).
Students can use the microphone to create podcasts.
Students can use Pages to create... ANYTHING with text, even their own iBooks!
Students can use Keynote to create presentations.
Students can use Puppet Pals to create plays with puppets. (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/puppet-pals/id342076546?mt=8)
My list can go on... In Short... iPad = Creation...
- 10:20 PM, March 13, 2011
- Karen Janowski said...
Keep in mind when this post was written - the first week the iPad came out. So much has happened since then in terms of app availability and new app creations.
I agree with you and have since written a subsequent post about how to use the iPad for creating content. (http://teachingeverystudent.blogspot.com/2011/01/content-creation-on-ipad-portable.html)
Thanks for your contributions as well.
- 10:52 AM, March 20, 2011
- Saimon Rafi said...
Summarizing teaches students the way to recognize the foremost vital ideas in a very text, the way to ignore inapplicable data, method} to integrate the central ideas in a very meaningful way. Teaching students to summarize improves their memory for what's browse. account ways will be utilized in virtually each content space.summarizing tool
- 12:06 PM, March 19, 2015


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Assignment: Lead staff writer and staff photographer for GPS hunting app onX.
Who: onX Hunt.
When: June 2018 - Present.
Where: Based in Missoula, Montana.
How: Working with on-the-ground partners for access and storytelling opportunities. Create email, blog posts, PR and other business communications. Work with in-house creative, social and marketing teams to brainstorm, design and execute strategies.
Usage: Blog, email, social, public relations, press.


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CasaTunes, maker of multi-room music servers that allow users to hear their tunes anywhere in the house, has upgraded its operating system to let iPhone and iPad users wirelessly stream their audio using Apple's AirPlay feature.
The company announced the release of CasaTunes 4.0 on Tuesday. While the hardware has always accommodated Internet-based radio stations, it previously worked only using wired-in speaker systems. Tuesday's upgrade includes the addition of CasaTunes Air, which lets users stream music wirelessly from their iOS devices to the server, or wirelessly from CasaTunes to AirPlay-enabled speakers.
The new software works on CasaTunes's complete line of multi-room music servers—starting at $1299 for standalone servers—which let you choose which sound-system-equipped room to play which music in. The equipment comes ready to play music from Internet-based services such as Pandora, Rdio, and Spotify.
Users can download CasaTunes 4.0 now.
XLi Music Server
Read our full XLi Music Server review


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Mystery of how snakes lost their legs solved by reptile fossil
Fresh analysis of a reptile fossil is helping scientists solve an evolutionary puzzle - how snakes lost their limbs.
The 90 million-year-old skull is giving researchers vital clues about how snakes evolved.
Comparisons between CT scans of the fossil and modern reptiles indicate that snakes lost their legs when their ancestors evolved to live and hunt in burrows, which many snakes still do today.
The findings show snakes did not lose their limbs in order to live in the sea, as was previously suggested.
Scientists used CT scans to examine the bony inner ear of Dinilysia patagonica, a 2-meter long reptile closely linked to modern snakes. These bony canals and cavities, like those in the ears of modern burrowing snakes, controlled its hearing and balance.
They built 3D virtual models to compare the inner ears of the fossils with those of modern lizards and snakes. Researchers found a distinctive structure within the inner ear of animals that actively burrow, which may help them detect prey and predators. This shape was not present in modern snakes that live in water or above ground.
The findings help scientists fill gaps in the story of snake evolution, and confirm Dinilysia patagonica as the largest burrowing snake ever known. They also offer clues about a hypothetical ancestral species from which all modern snakes descended, which was likely a burrower.
The study, published in Science Advances, was supported by the Royal Society.
Dr Hongyu Yi, of the University of Edinburgh's School of GeoSciences, who led the research, said: "How snakes lost their legs has long been a mystery to scientists, but it seems that this happened when their ancestors became adept at burrowing. The inner ears of fossils can reveal a remarkable amount of information, and are very useful when the exterior of fossils are too damaged or fragile to examine."
Mark Norell, of the American Museum of Natural History, who took part in the study, said: "This discovery would not have been possible a decade ago - CT scanning has revolutionised how we can study ancient animals. We hope similar studies can shed light on the evolution of more species, including lizards, crocodiles and turtles."
More information: The burrowing origin of modern snakes, Science Advances, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1500743
Journal information: Science Advances
Provided by University of Edinburgh


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Solidarity and emancipation
Social movements are the basis for the development of solidary society and economy models. Based on best practice examples and new ideas for a common way of production, distribution and administration of goods and services we will develop and examine alternative models. The European social and workers policies are in the focus of our research. At the same time we view solidarity as the cornerstone for emancipation of groups, classes and individuals. Solidarity is standing in opposition to all forms of exclusion and discrimination and is allowing the participation to all social, political and economic processes to each and everyone. If it regards the administration of common goods, the inclusion of migrants or the fighting of far-right extremism: solidarity and emancipation are the keys for a recovery of control of all socio-political and economic areas of life, that are currently being ruled by the neoliberal financial and economic capitalism.


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Use outdoor wicker furniture to introduce style to your home. Not only is it beautiful and comfortable, but it's also highly durable. Wicker furniture is made from sturdy synthetic materials; therefore, it can endure tough weather conditions. Because it is woven like a fiber, wicker is extremely pliant. Its flexibility means that it can be used to create any furniture shape. Here are 3 outdoor wicker furniture design ideas that will transform your space.
1. Wicker sectional
A sectional is ideal for people who entertain regularly because it is spacious. As it comes in sections, you can arrange it in several different ways to accommodate your guests. Its strong material makes it suitable for the outdoors, so you can leave it out all year long.
2. Wicker chairs
Wicker chairs are a great addition to the outdoors. If you want to outfit a tiny balcony, these chairs will fit properly, while adding style to your home. You can get outdoor wicker furniture in any color. This means that you will be able to choose a color that complements your decor.
3. Wicker sofa
Are you looking for something that is bigger than a chair but smaller than a sectional? A wicker sofa is the perfect solution to your problem. To maximize your outdoor seating space, you should combine wicker sofas with chairs. With a wicker sofa, you will be free to add any cushion that suits your tastes. You can even match your cushion color with the flowerbed!


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Right or wrong, Apple is kicking Samsung's butt about its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablets. The product has been attacked all over the world and Apple has made significant gains in Australia, Europe, and now the United States as well. U.S. district judge Lucy Koh has ruled that Samsung's tablets infringe on Apple patents. The product won't be banned in the States, but it means more hassles for Samsung. Worse, the company's lawyers made a huge blunder in court.
Reuters reports that at one point during the hearing, Koh held both an iPad and a Galaxy Tab 10.1 above her head and asked Samsung's lawyers if they could tell which was which at a distance of only 10 feet.
"Not at this distance your honor," said Kathleen Sullivan, a Samsung attorney that may need to get her eyes checked.
The judge asked the question again, this time of the entire Samsung legal team. "Can any of Samsung's lawyers tell me which one is Samsung and which one is Apple?" she asked. After a moment or two, one of the team got the right answer.
"It took a long time to make that distinction," Koh said.
I hate to say it, but there are enough distinguishing features between the iPad 2 and Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 to pick them apart at 10 feet, especially if you're a Samsung lawyer, who should be intimately familiar with the two devices. We don't know what angle they were held up at, but if the screens were visible, then the iPad Home button would be a giveaway, as would the Samsung logo on the Tab. In addition, the Galaxy Tab is thinner and longer because it has a widescreen while the iPad has a 4:3 screen. The back colors of the tablets are also different and the iPad has a tapered edge while the Galaxy Tab has a rounded edge. Then, of course, there's the buttons. The power button and volume keys on the iPad 2 are dark in color, different in placement and color than the silver Galaxy Tab buttons. The rear camera is also in a different place completely–upper left when in vertical orientation on the iPad and top center landscape on the Galaxy Tab. From what I remember, the Galaxy Tab doesn't even have a screen lock button, so that's a giveaway right there, if it's visible.
At this point, we wouldn't be surprised if the judge was holding up a white iPad. How can Samsung's lawyers have so much trouble picking out their own product at a negligible distance? Was the light blinding? Do they all suffer from intense near-sightedness? What's the deal?
Editors' Recommendations
- Forget Apple's newest iPad — the Galaxy Tab S8 should be your next tablet
- The Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 FE 5G gets a U.S launch. Can it compete with the iPad?
- The best iPad deals you can shop before Prime Day 2020


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We recently looked at the Federal Reserve's 2012 results. In particular, we pointed to some positive and negative developments. On a positive note, the Fed managed to shrink down the size of its balance sheet by approximately one-third of a percent. (Hey, it's a start.) On a negative note, this decrease occurred because banks shifted their holdings of reserves into cash, thus forcing the Fed to sell off some of its assets. I explained that this is a potentially negative result, as the shift into cash brings with it inflationary pressure on prices.
In this article I want to point out who has benefited from the Fed's operations over the past year.
There has been a lot of discussion about the large increase in reserves, and especially excess reserves, held by the banking system. Mostly this discussion is couched in terms of the increase in the money supply. While the increase in excess reserves—less than $2bn in August 2008 to almost $1.5 trillion at the end of 2012—does represent an increase in the money supply, some rule changes accompanying the crisis also signify that they are part of a bailout. One aspect of the Fed's crisis response was to commence paying interest on required and excess reserve balances. (The required reserve is the amount of money banks must hold to meet the minimum reserve requirement on deposits, and excess reserves are any amount held in excess of this minimum.)
Interest on reserves is set at 0.25 percent, and is paid from the Fed's operating revenues to its member banks. As we can see in Figure 1 below, the Fed has paid the banking system nearly $4bn each month for the last two years to hold on to their reserves.
Figure 1: Interest paid on reserve balances (monthly, $bn) Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
One way to think of this payment is as a sort of bailout. Since the payments on reserves are paid out from the Fed's operating revenues, it reduces its end of year profits by the same amount. Since these profits would normally be remitted to the Treasury, the policy of paying interest on reserves has been, in effect, a fiscal policy involving a transfer from the Treasury to the banking sector. Interest on reserves redirects taxpayer money to the banking system, over $45bn during 2012. This transfer from the Fed to the banking system is larger than any single year transfer from the Fed to the Treasury prior to 2009.
The Fed estimates that it will remit to the Treasury $88.9bn from its 2012 operations, a record-breaking year. As we can see in Figure 2, there has been a steady increase in the amounts of remittances to the Treasury over the past decade, and especially since 2009.
Figure 2: Federal Reserve annual remittances to U.S. Treasury ($bn)
The sharp increase after 2008 was the result of the quantitative easing policies. By increasing the money supply, the Fed had to purchase assets from the banking system. Some of these assets were U.S. Treasuries, some were riskier mortgage-backed securities, and some were guaranteed Federal agency debt. All of these newly purchased assets paid an interest rate, which contributed to the increase in Fed operating revenues and profits as it increased the money supply.
The $91bn of net income came almost wholly from interest earned on the securities the Fed holds ($80.5bn).
The U.S. Treasury issues bonds which are bought by the Federal Reserve. (We should note that the Fed doesn't buy these bonds directly from the Treasury, but only on the secondary market from favored dealers.) Interest paid on these bonds accumulates at the Fed as income, and at the end of the year the Fed distributes it back to the Treasury, less its operating expenses. Since the Fed held, give or take, about $1.6 trillion of U.S. Treasury securities over 2012, the government was essentially able to get a free lunch—any interest paid on these securities was an accounting fiction, as it was remitted back at the end of the year (less expenses).
Normally the Fed only operates at the short end of the yield curve. This means that as a general rule the Fed only purchases short-term U.S. Treasury debt. Since short-term debt is also the lowest yielding, some might say that the Fed is not really providing much of a free lunch.
The big news during 2012 for Fed watchers was the expansion of its "Operation Twist." With an increased focus on the long end of the yield curve, the Fed started purchasing bonds of longer maturity to keep long-term borrowing costs low. This was a savvy move that would help shield the Treasury from the effects of some of the Fed's own policies. The Fed has the potential to increase inflationary pressures on prices through its monetary expansion. Since this inflation is not occurring now, but almost certainly will at some future date, only longer-dated securities will see their yields rise to account for their lost purchasing power. This would spell disaster for a Treasury that finances itself in part with longer-dated securities. By pledging to buy longer-term bonds, the Fed will artificially reduce their yields and thus mask the inflation premium building on their yields.
|Jan. 1, 2012
|Jan. 1, 2013
|Within 15 days
|16 to 90 days
|91 days to 1 year
|1 to 5 years
|5 to 10 years
Table 1: Maturity distribution of U.S. Treasury holdings of the Fed ($m)
While the Fed has slightly decreased the total amount of Treasuries held, Operation Twist has increased the average maturity of these holdings. The Fed currently holds almost no Treasuries with maturities under 1 year and has increased its holdings dated longer than 5 years by over $200bn. Even though the total amount of Treasury debt held has decreased, the total distribution to the Treasury has increased because of this maturity shift. By holding higher interest rate bonds of longer maturities, the Fed earns more interest, which results in more profit to remit to the Treasury at year end.
As we review the Fed's operations in 2012 we see the usual outcomes. The banking sector has benefited from its operations (unusually so, thanks to the continued interest on reserve policy) and the government has received a free lunch by having a ready buyer for its ever-increasing debt, especially long-term debt, which might otherwise be susceptible to inflationary pressures increasing its interest yield. Let's see what surprises the Fed has in store for us in 2013.


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- Handloom Unstitched Dress Material
- Fabric: Pure Cotton
- Colors: Body in Purple color with Traditional Bomkai Designs, Dupatta in Orange with Traditional Designs. Salwar in Orange color.
- Set Contains 1 Kurta Material, 1 Dupatta, and 1 Salwar Material.
- Directly from the weavers of Odisha.
- Fabric care: Gentle wash in cold water.
Please Note: - Colors may vary from the actual product, because of the use of Camera Flash and Effects. Real Product is more beautiful and feels good


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When you join two halves of sponge cake (as in this photo) which way round are you supposed to do it? The instructions I've used seem to assume what comes out of your two cake tins are two fairly even, level cakes.
In my case I always get quite domed results.
Am I supposed to
a) squish the top one down on top of the bottom and disguise the poor join with filling
b) turn the bottom one over, for a good join, but a wobbly cake, but sort of works if you firm the bottom one down
c) cheat and slice off the dome of the bottom cake


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In this post I show the sequence of GAMESS calculations necessary to compute the free energy of the water dimer molecule at the B3LYP/6-31G(d)//PM3 level of theory. This notation means that the geometry and the free energy contribution is obtained with PM3, while the electronic energy is computed using B3LYP/6-31G(d) and the PM3 geometry. (By default the free energy is computed at 298.15 K and 1 atmosphere pressure.)
The steps are as follows:
1. Build the molecule
2. Optimize the geometry using PM3
3. Compute the frequencies for the optimized geometry to
a. verify that you found a minimum
b. compute the sum of the translational, rotational, and vibrational free energies at the PM3 level.
4. Compute the B3LYP/6-31G(d) energy for the PM3 optimized geometry
Some of the keywords I used have been described in a previous post, and I actually copy the keywords from this post to save typing.
The electronic energy for the water dimer is -152.7533 atomic units (au) while the sum of the translational, rotational, and vibrational free energies is 13.820 kcal/mol. If you repeat these calculations for the water molecule you get -76.3715 au and 2.271 kcal/mol (1 au = 627.51 kcal/mol).
So, the change in electronic energy on going from two water molecules to the water dimer is
ΔE = (-152.7533 - 2(-76.3715))*627.51 = -6.4 kcal/mol
The corresponding free energy change is
ΔG(298K) = -6.4 + 13.820 - 2(2.271) = -6.4 + 9.3 = 2.9 kcal/mol
Here I make the usual assumption that the electronic free energy is the electronic ground state energy.
Notice that the free energy change is positive meaning the water dimer is not predicted to form at this temperature and pressure (1 bar) under equilibrium conditions (the relative probability of observing the water dimer can be computed with this equation). This is because of the entropy of loss on going from 2 particles to 1.


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Cases involving criminal acts which appear to have some basis of solvability are referred to a Detective for further investigation.
To inquire about your case, call the Police Department at 321-868-3200 ext. 713 between the hours of 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. ask to speak to a member of the Criminal Investigations Division or Deborah Smith.
You can also email the Criminal Investigations Division or Deborah Smith with all inquiries.
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The Greater Atlanta Toy Dog Association was established to advance the interest of Pure-bred Toy dogs by maintaining high breeding standards to include soundness of body and mind, while preserving the unique beauty and character of the Toy Breeds.
Our club consists of members who are breeders, trainers, exhibitors, owners, and dog fanciers who participate with their dogs in conformation, obedience, rally, agility, earthdog events, breed rescue, and dog therapy.
Our meetings are open to the public and visitors are welcome. Click on the link to the left here for location, date and time, and directions.
Our club sponsors AKC events throughout the year.
To Contact Us:
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