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Subscribe To Sam Mendes Officially Directing Bond 24, With 2015 Release Date Confirmed Updates
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Fans of Skyfall and all other things good for James Bond, rejoice! Director Sam Mendes has finally agreed to return to direct another installment of the Bond franchise, signing on today officially to direct what's now just being called Bond 24. Here's what producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli had to say about bringing Mendes back into the fold:
"Following the extraordinary success of SKYFALL, we're really excited to be working once again with Daniel Craig, Sam Mendes and John Logan."
Craig, of course, is the actor currently building his own version of Bond as an icon on par with Sean Connery and Roger Moore, while screenwriter John Logan wrote Skyfall, along with Rango, The Aviator, Gladiator and other great things. Logan started work on both Bond 24 and Bond 25 last fall, while Skyfall was still in theaters, and the speculation was that the two stories would be linked-- presumably the way Casino Royale fed directly in to Quantum of Solace, but this time the second movie will actually be good.
Mendes, who had been focusing on theater adaptations of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and King Lear and spent a lot of time casting serious doubts about his return behind the camera, seemed grateful that he was able to balance all that with another turn behind the camera of the giant action film:
"I am very pleased that by giving me the time I need to honour all my theatre commitments, the producers have made it possible for me to direct Bond 24. I very much look forward to taking up the reins again, and to working with Daniel Craig, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli for a second time," said Mendes.
Confirmation about the size of the Brinks Truck that Sony backed up to Mendes's house has not yet arrived, but rest assured, when your movie makes a billion dollars, you get rewarded very handsomely for returning to the studio fold.
Now that Mendes is locked in, the studio was also able to confirm a release date-- Bond 24, or whatever they wind up calling it, will be released in the UK on October 23, 2015, and in the United States on November 6 that year. 2015, as you may know, is already an insanely busy year, scheduled for The Avengers 2, Jurassic Park 4, the finale of the Hunger Games franchise, and the return of this little thing called Star Wars. If this were 2005, we might worry about James Bond being able to make his mark in a year already so crowded with hotly anticipated blockbusters. But Skyfall was a massive, massive success, making more than $1 billion worldwide. The only competition Mendes new needs to worry about is himself.
To relive just what a great job Mendes did handling Skyfall, check out my interview with him from last film, and watch one of the many stunning trailers for Skyfall. Now we just have to hope that Mendes brings back cinematographer Roger Deakins, who deserves a Brinks truck of his own for the incredible work he did last time. Something as good as Skyfall might be hard to pull off, but the pieces are coming together to at least give it a shot.


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A Lesson in Conservative Optimism
The man who founded the Heritage Foundation in the 1970s explains how to build a think tank 'for the long haul.'
Ed Feulner, who is finishing a 35-year run as the president of the Heritage Foundation, should be glum. As one of conservatism's senior officers in the war of ideas and policy, Mr. Feulner is relinquishing the Heritage presidency in the wake of a losing presidential campaign. Instead, he hands a postelection visitor a copy of Heritage's weekly agenda and points to the "thought for the week." It is George Washington's July 1777 letter to one of his generals:
"We should never despair, our Situation before has been...

subset: commoncrawl


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The Countdown 2010 network met in Hanoi this August to discuss how to honour the commitment that they had made to significantly reduce the rate of biodiversity loss at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development.
Wiebke Herding from the IUCN Region of Europe and a representative from the Global Secretariat of Countdown 2010 shared best practices from European and African Countdown 2010 projects. She recommended that network participants prioritize their actions for the Countdown 2010 initiative. She also encouraged the group to be committed to safeguarding biodiversity as it is the right thing to do, it is important to encourage government officials to commit to specific targets, and that the Countdown 2010 initiative represents a window of opportunity to make real progress in conservation efforts.
Dr. Katherine Warner, Head of the IUCN Country Group for Viet Nam, Lao PDR and Cambodia, summarized the cross-cutting themes that pose a threat to biodiversity in Southeast Asia, focusing on the necessity for improved broad understanding of biodiversity issues.
Over exploitation of natural resources, institutional weakness, unsustainable infrastructure, and the lack of environmental awareness were identified in the workshop as the main challenges that impede the reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss in the Lower Mekong Hub.
The workshop proposed that platforms on biodiversity for the Lower Mekong Hub be established, to coordinate the exchange of research information and implementation of strategies in order to address these constraints. It was also suggested that strong communication links between all stakeholders in the region should be implemented.
The consultation workshop represents an important step towards ensuring communication and progressive action from Countdown 2010 signatories in the Lower Mekong Region.
For more information, please contact Ms. Bayley Dixon at [email protected]


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Reader Tony sent us this great little hack. If other readers have come up with hacks that help to carry stuff and fight theft, feel free to pass them along.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
I bought a used military ammo pouch for a couple of bucks, then took a broken SKS rear fender and removed both the front and rear part of the fender, keeping the middle part that attaches to the seat post. Then I used a piece of irregular left-over plastic from some discarded electronics and some plastic straps to affix the ammo pouch to the fender part.
Finally, I used even more plastic straps to fasten one part of a backpack buckle to the ammo pouch and the other part of the buckle to my saddle. The ammo pouch bag holds three tire levers, one small bottle of lube, a spare inner tube, a waterproof saddle cover and a set of Allen keys.
It can be attached in a few seconds and is just as easy to de-attach. This comes in handy on my commuter bike where I need to carry tools and prefer to keep them separated from my other stuff.
When I park my bike at work I bring the tools with me to keep them from getting stolen and then I re-attach the bag before I ride home. As an additional bonus, the pouch bags can be opened and closed very quickly and easily since they're made to be very user-friendly.


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This site provides information for all workers on their rights and responsibilities that affect health and safety at work.
All workers are entitled to work in environments where risks to their health and safety are properly controlled. Under health and safety law, the primary responsibility for this is down to employers. Employers have a duty to consult with their employees, or their representatives, on health and safety matters.
Some of the below links will take you away from this home page.
Guidance for workers on a range of topics, for example: Noise, Respiratory, Chemicals
General health and safety guidance can be found in HSMS.
Sign-up below to receive news and updates on Weekly Digest Newsletter.


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Saving Money Every Day
The things that you do most frequently are most frequently the things you can do differently to save money. (I'll wait…go ahead and read that one again!) My challenge to you is to find and share ways you can save money on daily activities.
Here's a few to get us started:
Mailing bills. No, I'm not going to say don't pay your bills! But first class postal rates keep climbing and we're not talking pennies anymore. Look for opportunities to stay caught up with utility bills, credit card bills, and similar accounts by using automatic or online payments.
Coffee. Granted, it's not easy to make a sugar free vanilla latte with soy at home. But buy some of the really good stuff in a bag and make a cup of quality brewed coffee to go from the house at least a couple times a week. Go ahead and invest in a nice percolator or coffee press—it will pay for itself when you use it regularly. If you typically just pick up a brewed coffee anyway, this is a no-brainer.
Cut the phone cord. The people that count call you on your cell. And people that you want to stay in touch with (Grandma, Aunt Jessie) can be trained to use a new set of digits. There are not many services in life that we need to buy two of. If you're counting minutes look at VoIP options that let you make calls over your Internet line.
Groceries. Yes, it's generally healthy to buy food that has an expiration date. But don't buy big quantities of deli meats, fresh vegetables, and fruit if chances are that half of it will go bad. I came across a great website, recipematcher.com, where you enter in all the random things you have in the pantry and refrigerator and it suggests creative ways to pull them together into a meal.
That just scratches the savings surface…what's worked for you?


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Illinois Fighting Illini Football Tickets
Illinois Fighting Illini Football Tickets Tickets Rated 0.00/5 based on 0 customer reviews 100 0
Head coach Tim Beckman qualified for a bowl game for the first time during his time at Illinois this past season. Unfortunately, the Fighting Illini fell to Louisiana Tech in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. With a home and home series just recently announced, Illinois will be traveling to take on out of conference foe North Carolina this season. The Illini will welcome the likes of Nebraska, Wisconsin and Iowa to Memorial Stadium this fall. One of the more exciting games of the season will be the regular season finale against the Northwestern Wildcats. The game will actually be played right here in Chicago at Soldier Field. It's in important year for the Illini in Tim Beckham's fourth year in charge. Cheer on the Illinois Fighting Illini all college football season long with Gold Coast Tickets!
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LEXINGTON- The country cannot afford four more years of the Obama administration's costly policies, Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann said during a stop Wednesday in South Carolina, home to the nation's first-in-the-South GOP primary.
"We can't be raising our debt ceiling, which means letting the Congress have even more authority to borrow even more money that we don't have, that these beautiful, next generation of children will have to pay back," Bachmann told voters in Lexington, a conservative stronghold once represented by Gov. Nikki Haley in the state Legislature. "Those days are done. We are getting our financial house in order."
Barnstorming South Carolina two days after officially launching her campaign in her hometown of Waterloo, Iowa, the Minnesota congresswoman was met with cheers from several hundred supporters when she said she stands "for the cause of the unborn, unashamedly so" and that the country could not afford President Barack Obama's costly health care overhaul.
"We cannot afford four more years of Barack Obama," said Bachmann, a mother of five.
Bachmann has not officially filed for candidacy in South Carolina's first-in-the-South primary, the winner of which has gone on to serve as the party's GOP presidential nominee in every election since 1980.
Last week, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman became the sixth candidate to file, joining former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, former Gov. Gary Johnson of New Mexico, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas and pizza magnate Herman Cain.
Also in South Carolina Wednesday, Cain told supporters in Greenville that his tax-cutting, pro-business philosophy will power the U.S. economy and put unemployed people back to work.
Bachmann's stop in the GOP stronghold came at the midpoint of her South Carolina bus tour. The Republican began the day by greeting voters in Charleston and was slated later to visit with voters in Greenville - home to tea party kingmaker U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint - before holding a town hall meeting in Rock Hill.
On Tuesday, Bachmann argued in New Hampshire that Washington is full of wasteful spending ideas. She ended the day with an appearance in Myrtle Beach.


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Joseph Kosuth (American, b. Toledo, Ohio, 1945)
White and Black(from the Art as Idea as Idea series), 1966
Enlarged negative photostats mounted on cardboard
Each: 48 x 48 in. (121.9 x 121.9 cm)
Gift of Andy Warhol, 1974
AMAM 1974.39a-b
Listen to a podcast about this artwork here
Kosuth presents his dictionary definitions of the words "White" and "Black" in the general format of a painting: square, flat fields with light figures and black grounds, hung on a wall. Yet the work refuses the pictorial project of painting and art in general, and instead addresses the language through which art is perceived, understood, and valorized.
At twenty-one years of age, Joseph Kosuth became well known for his Art as Idea as Idea series (1966-67). These works consisted of photostats of dictionary definitions, each one enlarged, printed in negative (white words, black ground), and then mounted on four-by-four-foot boards. Highly influential works of Conceptual Art, they address the viewer as a skeptical reader of "the functions, meaning, and use of any and all (art) propositions...."1 As with all the words that Kosuth chose, "White" and "Black" are terms that are common in all discussions of art, but are particularly charged--or "packed," like baggage--in discussions of modern art. "Original," "Meaning," "Material," and "Universal," are some other terms that found their way into Art as Idea as Idea.2
White and Black's presentation of two definitions appears to be unusual for the series. It is not clear whether Kosuth originally conceived the panels as a single work. He installed and displayed the Art as Idea as Idea panels in various combinations, making the most of the inevitable diaologues between one definition and another.The Oberlin work also exemplifies the tautological chain of language critiqued in Art as Idea as Idea.3 (In "concrete" terms, the work is indeed white and black.) And while the series might generally implicate language as a structure of social consent and power, the racial implications of White and Black's word chains must have seemed especially pointed and disturbing when the panels were placed together in 1966, as they still seem now.
As works that consist entirely of text, Kosuth's Art as Art as Idea series had an immense impact on the language-based conceptual practices of the 1960s, and on a wide range of more recent practices-- often termed "post-modern"--that address the present cultural and social arena in terms of its written messages. Jenny Holzer, for example, works almost exclusively with created texts that rework familiar sayings and notions into unsettling or enigmatic statements, in unexpected formats and contexts, while Barbara Kruger juxtaposes created texts with pre-existing images from the common culture in order to magnify and estrange the "normal" meanings and functions of such imagery.
A. Kurlander
Joseph Kosuth studied at the Toledo Museum School of Design from 1955 to 1962, and simultaneously began to pursue his interest in philosophy and science. He graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 1964, and in 1965 produced his first language-based works, presenting his ideas in glass, and in assemblages of objects, photographs and dictionary definitions (such as one and five clocks, 1965; London, The Tate Gallery). In 1966 he began the Art as Idea as Idea series, and was already (at twenty-one) writing about and discussing Conceptual Art in various public fora. In the late 1960s he became the American editor of the mostly British Art/Language, an important publication about (and of) language-based conceptual art. During this period he also founded the Museum of Normal Art, an early exhibition space for conceptual art in New York. By 1969 he was no longer producing objects of any kind, but was placing thesaurus excerpts on billboards and in the advertising section of magazines. Until the early 1980s he continued to insert anonymous messages and phrases into a variety of public spaces, the most important of which are the Text/Context billboards of 1978-79. In the early '80s his work returned to the art context of the gallery space, creating works such as the Cathexis series, which juxtapose reproductions of historic paintings with texts.
General References
Inboden, Gudren, ed. Bedeutung von Bedeutung: Texte und Dokumentation der Investigationnen uber Kunst wit 1965 in Auswahl/ The Making of Meaning: Selected Texts and Documentation of Investigations on Art Since 1965. Exh. cat., Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, 1981.
Kosuth, Joseph. Art after Philosophy and After: Collected Writings, 1966-1990. Edited by Gabriele Guercio. Cambridge, Mass., 1991.
Ring, Nancy. In The Dictionary of Art. Edited by Jane Turner. Vol. 18. London and New York, p. 401.
With Leo Castelli Gallery, New YorkCollection Andy Warhol, by whom given in 1974
Baltimore, Fifth Regiment Armory, 1893. Exhibition of Revolutionary Relics and Fine Arts in Aid of the Maryland Revolutionary Monument Fund. Easter week. Cat. no. 13 or 14 (both noted as owned by Mrs. J. S. Gilman).
Technical Data
The work is comprised of two enlarged photostats (negatives), each wrapped around and mounted on rigid cardboard. The work is in good condition. In 1977 the lower right corner of White was smashed; it was treated by shaving and shaping the expanded board with scalpel and razor. Losses and indentations were filled with a mixture of Masonite fibers and PVA emulsion. Chips, flakes, and flaps of the black paper were re-adhered with wheat-starch paste, and losses were inpainted with watercolor.
1. Joseph Kosuth, "Introductory Note by the American Editor," Art/Language(February 1970); cited in Lucy R. Lippard, The Dematerialization of the Art Object from 1966 to 1972, (New York and Washington, D.C., 1973; reprinted Berkeley, Calif., 1997), p. 148.
2. On this series of works, see the interview with Kosuth by Jeanne Siegel, "Art as Idea as Idea," in Joseph Kosuth, Art after Philosophy and After: Collected Writings, 1966-1990, ed. Gabriele Guercio (Cambridge, Mass., 1991), pp. 47-56.
3. Thomas Crow, The Rise of the Sixties: American and European Art in the Age of Dissent (New York, 1996) pp. 158-59.


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The Lois Lerner state
It is appropriate that the worst scandal of the Obama administration— the IRS targeting of conservatives — is a scandal of administrators and bureaucrats, of otherwise faceless people endowed with immense power over their fellow citizens and running free of serious oversight from elected officials.
They are the shock troops of the vast bureaucratic apparatus of the federal government. Its growth has been one of President Obama's chief goals, and the one he has had the most success in achieving. He has greatly enhanced the reach and power of regulatory agencies that are an inherent offense against self-government, even when they aren't enforcing the law in a biased way.
Story Continued Below
The administration's corruption isn't bags of cash or lies about interns; it is the distortion of our form of government by sidestepping democratic procedures and accountability and vesting authority in bureaucrats. The administrative state is, fundamentally, the Lois Lerner state.
In an excellent essay in the journal National Affairs, Chris DeMuth calls the regulatory agency "the most potent institutional innovation in American government since the Constitution." He notes that the regulatory state has three hallmarks, at least since the 1970s when its independent power began to grow.
One, Congress delegates lawmaking to the agencies by giving them massive discretion in implementing the vaguest of mandates. Two, there are no constraints on their effective spending power since the costs of their rules "are borne almost entirely by the private sector." Third, they enjoy "relative insulation from public debate and criticism."
Needless to say, this is not how American government is supposed to work. It reflects the mindset of the Progressives rather than the Founders. "The Constitution was designed," DeMuth writes, "to make lawmaking cumbersome, representative, and consensual; the regulatory agency was a workaround, designed to make lawmaking efficient, specialized, and purposeful. It was a way to accommodate growing demands for government intervention in the face of the constitutional bias for limited government."
And it has worked: "It has enabled the federal government of a vast, populous, diverse democracy to partake directly in the everyday affairs of scores of millions of citizens and businesses." Some of them, like the conservative organizations that applied for 501(c)(4) status and got harassed by the IRS for their temerity, we hear about; most we don't.


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Court Schedules
Located at County of Onondaga/City of Syracuse Criminal Courthouse (unless otherwise noted)
Civil Court
Monday through Friday
Part 1 at 9:30 a.m.
Community Court
Held in the Public Safety Building, 511 S. State St.
Every Thursday Part 2 at 9:30 a.m.
Judge McMahon presiding
Criminal Court
Monday through Friday. Part 4 at 9:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Housing Court
Second Wednesday of each month Judge McMahon presiding
Landlord/Tenant Eviction Court
Monday through Friday. Part 1 at 9:30 a.m.
Small Claims/Commercial Claims
Tuesdays and Thursdays, Part 1 at 1:30 p.m.
Traffic Court
Monday through Friday, Part 3 at 9:30 a.m.
Syracuse Community Treatment Court (SCTC)
Held in Public Safety Building, 511 S. State St.
Tuesday and Thursday, Part 1 2:00 p.m.
Judge Cecile presiding
Drug Offense Calendar
Monday, Part 8 at 9:30 a.m.
Judge Cecile presiding
Felony Dismissal Calendar
Thursday, Part 8 at 9:30 a.m.
Judge presiding
Domestic Violence Court
Monday through Friday, Part 2 at 1:30 p.m.
Judge presiding
Adolescent Diversion Part
Thursday Part 8 at 3:00 p.m. Judge Bogan presiding
Human Trafficking Intervention Part
1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month at 2:00 p.m.
Judge Limpert presiding.


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IDX provided courtesy of Realcomp II Ltd., via Inside Realty, LLC, Copyright 2019 Realcomp II Ltd. Shareholders. Real Estate listings other than those of Inside Realty, LLC are marked with the Broker Reciprocity logo and detailed information about them includes the name of the listing brokers. Information deemed to be reliable but not guaranteed. Any use of search facilities of data on the site, other than by a consumer looking to purchase real estate, is prohibited. Last updated on 2019-09-17.


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National Family History Week
Event Information
30 Jul 2010 2:30pm - 8 Aug 2010 2:30pm29 Jul 2011 (All day) - 7 Aug 2011 (All day)
- Australia wide
- Australia
Other Information
- firstname.lastname@example.com
- 0400 913 866
- http://www.familyhistoryweek.org.au
- The Australasian Federation of Family History Organisations Inc. PO Box 3012, Weston Creek ACT 2611
Family history and genealogy are proving the most popular hobbies around the world. Family history is the second biggest subject on the web with sites receiving billions of hits per year. There are over 250,000 Australians who are members of family history organisations so the week will have broad appeal across Australia.
National Family History week is an initiative of AFFHO (Australasian Federation of Family History Organisations). This popular initiative has received broad support from some of Austrlaia's leading government and non-government organisations. Sponsors include:
- Ancestry.com.au
- FindMyPast.com
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- FamilySearch.org
- National Archives Australia
- The Australian Bureau of Statistics
- Businesses like Joy Murrin Family History Services and Hamlin Printing
During the week events will be conducted across the country that focus on genealogy, family history, heraldry and related subjects including family reunions, seminars, talks, open days, history walks, book launches, film evening and expos.
- Login to post comments


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City of Orange welcomes two new council members
At their meeting Tuesday, May 9, the Orange City Council swore in two new members who are taking over the council seats for Districts 2 and 4.
Tommy Ferguson unseated District 2 incumbent Cullin Smith with the final vote tally standing at 353 to 224. Mary McKenna overtook incumbent Annette Pernell in a close race, winning by four votes with a tally of 148 to 144. At-large Councilman Bill Mello ran unopposed and joined the two newcomers at the swearing in Tuesday. A total of 882 ballots were cast.
The switch from old to new occurred mid-meeting after the canvassed votes were confirmed by council members Theresa Beauchamp, District 1 and Mayor Pro Tem, and Charles Guillory, At-Large representative. Once complete, the swearing-in ceremony began and each of the elected took their oaths of office. Then, the old members stepped down and removed their nameplates as the new members took their seats complete with new nameplates. As she stepped down, Pernell embraced her replacement and said, "Work hard. Do it for the people."
During council reports near the end of the meeting, Ferguson addressed the council and meeting attendees to express appreciation for the opportunity afforded him by winning the election.
"I first would like to thank you all, thank my family, my supporters, the citizens of Orange and District 2 for your support," Ferguson said.
"I hope to serve the city well," McKenna said during her comments. "I hope to do anything we can do to help the city grow."
McKenna serves as board president of the Orange Housing Authority.
Council member District 3 Essie Bellfield said the turnout for the recent elections was "a disgrace" and had stern words for those who failed to exercise their right to vote: "Get up off your rusty dusties and vote."
In other matters, concerned citizens approached the podium regarding notices they received last month stating there was a problem with the city's water in December 2012. Henry Lowe of Orange asked if there was a faster way to let citizens know their water is contaminated and about boil water notifications.
"Is our drinking water safe to drink?" Lowe asked.
City Manager Sean Oubre said the water was safe and the notices received were due to a "managerial issue" because the city failed to process the required number of water test samples by the end of last year.
"The issue is not the quality of water," Oubre asserted.


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Microsoft Surface is a strong entrance to the world of PC hardware for Microsoft, and as a device it's certainly highly recommendable.
The solid build, kickstand, the associated rage of keyboards and big screen make it adept for both work and play, and it's the closest device we've seen to a true hybrid.
It's not the world's most advanced tablet and performs solidly without excelling in any particular area. A great example of this is the screen is bright and clear, but relatively low resolution compared to new kids on the block like the Sony VAIO Duo 11.
Another is the processor, which noticeably struggles at the highest graphical demand. However, the lack of Windows Store apps means that Surface is still firmly a device for early adopters.
Anyone who forks out the £399 basic price will have to lump the lack of big-name apps for the foreseeable future, and by the time this problem is overcome, we could see a refreshed Surface.
But Surface represents a great value tablet that will get stronger with time, so if you're looking for a superb all-round Windows tablet which can double as a work machine, with bags of potential and head-turning appeal, then Surface should be high on your list.
We liked
The great build and built-in kickstand is a key part of Surface, and provided us with plenty of pleasing moments when we momentarily searched for a place to prop up our tablet before remembering there was no need.
The detachable Touch Cover and Type Covers with their multi-touch mouse trackpads for working in the traditional Windows environment were also some of the best mobile keyboards money can buy, and the lack of hassle in linking via Bluetooth, and the associated power drain with wireless technology makes Surface a true laptop replacement.
We disliked
The Windows Store needs a lot of work, fast. With the potential of Windows 8 being able to run across PC, tablet and the allure of a well-received Windows Phone 8, it shouldn't be hard to attract developers.
However, here we are, with a predictable shortfall in apps which will slow the pace of adoption, which will in turn slow the pace of developer attention. Microsoft needs to break this cycle.
The loading time of Windows apps was also disappointing, as was the drop in frame-rate on our 1080p video tests. While the latter was barely noticeable and wouldn't catch the attention of 90% of Surface buyers, the time spent looking at app splash screens was a cause of irritation.
The interface and navigation of Windows 8 needs to be snappier on Surface, and then consumers will appreciate it.
Final verdict
Surface makes you want to pick it up and play, pleases you with the delivery of Windows RT and the live tiles make it feel personal and alive.
Performance is a real issue, but since Tegra is at the heart of high performing tablets, we hope that RT can be tweaked to iron out slowdown issues.
Microsoft's hardware designers should be applauded for delivering a solid tablet which delivers a great experience, but now it's down to the fortunes of the Windows Store to decide whether Microsoft Surface is remembered in history.


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A professor of a taxpayer-funded state university is calling for National Rifle Association's (NRA) CEO Wayne LaPierre to be killed.
The professor is Erik Loomis (photo below), who's an assistant professor of history at the University of Rhode Island (URI).
Oliver Darcy reports for Campus Reform, Dec. 17, 2012, that in the wake of Adam Lanza's killing of 20 children and 6 adults in Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, Professor Loomis tweeted that " the National Rifle Association has murdered some more children." Loomis then called the NRA "a terrorist organization" and declared that he "want[s] Wayne LaPierre's head on a stick."
His tweets are now erased.
Thomas Lifson writes in American Thinker, Dec. 18, 2012, that Loomis received his PhD in history from the University of New Mexico in 2008, and has a history of violent rhetoric directed against conservatives. In March of this year, in an essay ironically titled, "Are Conservatives Any Crazier Today Than 50 Years Ago?," Loomis called for a "decades-long fight to the death" against conservatives as America's "only hope."
Oddly, the hypocrisy and irony of an anti-gun prof calling for the assassination of the CEO of a pro-gun organization is lost on the professor. But that is because, as Lifson observes, Erik Loomis is projecting his own violent impulses onto conservatives.
According to URI's website, all members of the university community pledge to help foster an "inclusive environment recognizing and respecting diversity." But one of its faculty clearly does not abide by the university's pledge. If Professor Loomis is so venomous as to publicly call for the death ("head on a stick") of the CEO of an organization he disapproves, imagine how Loomis treats his students who are conservative and/or pro-Second Amendment.
H/t FOTM's Anon.
I tried to find contact information for Loomis and the president of the U. of Rhode Island, David M. Dooley. But I cannot access the University of Rhode Island's (URI) website www.uri.edu, although there is nothing wrong with my computer or my high-speed Internet connection. But information can be found from other public sources (Rhode Island White Pages and Spokeo):
Erik Loomis
19 Amity St, Apt 2
Providence, RI 02908
(401) 437-6598
Contact info. for David Dooley, President, U. of Rhode Island:
- Email: firstname.lastname@example.com, email@example.com
- Phone: 401-874-2444
Dooley issued this statement:
December 18, 2012
University Community:
The University of Rhode Island does not condone acts or threats of violence. These remarks do not reflect the views of the institution and Erik Loomis does not speak on behalf of the University. The University is committed to fostering a safe, inclusive and equitable culture that aspires to promote positive change.
Dr. David M. Dooley
University of Rhode Island
Wow! That statement sure makes everything all okay now. [Snark]
H/t my bud Mark S. McGrew for the Update!
Eight professors have joined together to issue a statement in support of University of Rhode Island assistant professor Erik Loomis, who last week tweeted that he wanted NRA executive vice president "Wayne LaPierre's head on a stick."
The authors of the statement, posted on the blog Crooked Timber, defend Loomis' tweet as an example of metaphor and say their defense was "pulled together on an emergency basis" — perhaps explaining why distinguished academics would cite the Urban Dictionary as their source in explaining what "head on a stick" means, as well as their omission of his retweets of other violent metaphors wishing for those who support arming teachers to be "beaten to death" and Dick Morris to be hunted down and skinned for breakfast.
Nevertheless, Loomis has found defenders in academia, who worry that "his lack of tenure makes him vulnerable," a state of affairs the rest of us who don't enjoy the defense of "academic freedom" — that is, "scholars' freedom independently to express views (even intemperate ones) on topics of public importance" — face every day while arguing our beliefs in the public sphere. The fact that Loomis' tweets seemingly had nothing to do with his teaching or his field of study further stretches the idea that academics should enjoy special protection from criticism. Meanwhile, the authors of Loomis' defense call on university administrators to "affirm … the protections of the First Amendment" while overlooking a call for the head of a proponent of the Second Amendment.
Source: Twitchy


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iPhone 6s Batteries
Choose your model of iPhone 6s:
Parts that work with iPhone 6s:
iPhone 6s Replacement Battery
A replacement 1715 mAh battery compatible with the iPhone 6s. 3.82 Volts (V), 6.55 Watt Hours (Whr). This replacement does not require soldering and is compatible with al...
iPhone 6s Battery Connector Bracket
Fix a loose connection causing charging or other battery problems by replacing a bent or missing metal bracket securing the battery connector to the logic board. This par...
Device Info
The successor to the iPhone 6, the iPhone 6s was formally announced by Apple on September 9, 2015 and released September 25, 2015. Notable features include 3D Touch, Live Photos, the new A9 processor and M9 coprocessor as well as the Taptic Engine, previously only seen in the Apple Watch. The iSight camera is now 12 MP and sports the ability to shoot 4K video while the FaceTime camera has been upgraded to an impressive 5 MP.
Apple estimates that the iPhone 6s provides "up to" 50 hours of audio playback, 14 hours of talk time on 3G, 10 hours of Internet use on 3G, 10 hours of Internet use on LTE, 11 hours of Internet use on Wi-Fi, 11 hours of video playback and "up to" 10 days of standby time.
There are three models of the iPhone 6s. Model A1633 is sold in the US optionally locked to AT&T or offered unlocked, contract free for several carriers like T-Mobile, Verizon, and Sprint. Model A1688 is sold in the US for Sprint and Verizon or for T-Mobile with a nano-SIM, and for a wide variety of carriers in Canada, Europe, Asia, and elsewhere worldwide. Model A1700 is sold for mainland China.


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Stick a Pick in It
Some bakeries are using all-plastic character picks for their doll cakes, like so:
And while I applaud the move away from synthetic hair, which tends to get mired in the frosting and cause significant amounts of Jen-gagging, I also see that doll cakes are now degrading into nothing more than vaguely rounded lumps of cake with torso picks jammed into them. Check it out:
With that disk around her waist it looks like Cinderella is popping out of a manhole stuck in a blueberry. Granted, we can't blame the decorator there - after all, s/he didn't make the pick - but if we mosey over to the issue of the glaringly mismatched blues we can blame all we want; they'll make more. (Three words, hiring managers: "color vision testing".)
Or how about this one?
It looks like Dora the Explorer has just popped out of a giant organ and is proudly teaching us the Spanish phrase for "No thank you, I am allergic to purple brains". Which, while handy to know, isn't really something you'd want a visual with.
Jessy, Calla B., & Troy K., you may accuse me of skirting the issue, but that last Wreck really makes you think, doesn't it?
*Related Wreckage: Come On Barbie, Let's Go Party


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As my favorite ice hockey team became the champion of Poland today, I reminded famous Battle of the Ice that took place in 1242. During the fights, forces of Alexander Nevsky managed to draw Teutonic Knights at the frozen lake Peipus, where they started to slip and in consequence, many of them drowned under the ice.
The question is, where there any other battles in history, in which the ice took such an important role?
I don't mean the usual influence of winter conditions like during Napoleon campaign or Eastern Front during World War II, but the particular case of a battle taking place on the frozen river, lake or sea.
Both land and navy battles counts.


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Doctoral-level courses cover theoretical models and their empirical application to problems related to corporate financing and investment decisions, security analysis, portfolio management, and financial institutions and capital markets. A required sequence of four courses is specifically designed for and limited to doctoral students. The unifying theme of this course work is an understanding of the process of asset valuation in a competitive securities market. Knowledge of calculus is assumed. In addition, students customarily employ the computer in their courses in security analysis and portfolio management. Research emphasizes application of theoretical models so that students enhance their understanding of the models as well as their knowledge of the fields to which models can be meaningfully applied.
Unique Features
- Faculty on Editorial Boards for top academic journals
- Quantitative research receives special emphasis in program of study
- Doctoral fellowships available
- Small program with low student-faculty ratio
- Placements at prestigious universities as in UCLA, Carnegie Mellon, University of Michigan, London Business School
Student Profile (what we look for in an applicant):
- Strong analytical background
- MBA is helpful, but not required; graduate degree a plus.
- Work experience not required, although applicants typically have some experience in finance, consulting, or a technical field such as engineering.
Typical Program of Study
First year:
- Finance doctoral seminars (fall & spring)
- Economic theory courses (fall & spring)
- Econometrics (fall & spring)
- Minor Area and/or MBA electives
Second year:
- Finance doctoral seminars (fall & spring)
- Econometrics (fall) and Applied statistics (spring)
- Microeconomic theory electives
- Minor Area and/or MBA electives
The required Minor Area of study is Economics. There is a comprehensive preliminary exam typically after the second year. The dissertation research is primary focus after the preliminary exam is completed.
Further Details on Finance Area Program Requirements
Further information on the exact requirements of the Finance area can be found here.


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Bath time
The daily bath is an important time for your baby: in addition to keeping him clean, it helps develop his sensory development. It's also a special part of the day you can share together. Here's some helpful information for learning to wash your baby without damaging his delicate and immature skin. Using these tips, you'll be able to enjoy your baby's bath with complete peace of mind.
> Before the bath
> During the bath
> After the bath


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Originally Posted by Mjölnir
The highest I have seen is an anesthesiologist that came in as an O5 -- had about 25 years experience.
The dentist on my last MEU was a direct commission O4. He had been a dentist in private practice 20-some years.
Not related to this subject...but one base I was at had an E-6 Dental Tech who was an actual DDS a Dentist and practiced part-time at an office off-base.
As I understand it, he got his DDS later in his career and didn't want to do the 10-years commissioned or whatever...so was finishing out his 20 enlisted and planned to go full-time civilian Dentist after retirement.
The Voice of Reason
Forum Rules


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|Toronto, Ont.
|High School:
|Branksome Hall
|Human Evolutionary Biology
|House Affiliation:
2012-13 (Senior):
Recipient of the Radcliffe Prize, which is given to Harvard's outstanding senior female athelte ... Earned fourth straight CSA first team All-America award ... Named to the All-Ivy Team for the fourth consecutive year ... Tabbed Academic All-Ivy for the third straight year ... Named a CSA Scholar Athlete for the second time ... Finished year 14-3 and ranked sixth in the CSA individual rankings ... Earned first win of the season by defeating Dartmouth's Corey Schafer, 11-4, 11-8, 11-3, Nov. 28 at the No. 1 position ... Edged Penn's Yan Xin at No. 2, 9-11, 11-5, 6-11, 11-9, 11-4, Jan. 12 ... Topped two-time All-American Libby Eyre of Princeton, 11-6, 8-11, 11-5, 11-7, Jan. 13 ... ... Dominated Catherine Jenkins of Columbia, 11-1, 11-0, 11-3, Feb. 2 matchup ... Defeated Cornell's Jesse Pacheco, 11-7, 13-11, 11-8, Feb. 3 ... Outlasted 2012 NESCAC Player of the Year and first team All-American Catalina Perez of Trinity, 12-10, 10-12, 11-8, 11-7, Feb. 6 ... Rallied to defeat Katie Ballaine of Yale, 7-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-9 Feb. 12 ... Bested Stanford's Kerrie Sample, 15-13, 11-5, 11-9, in the CSA Howe Cup Quarterfinals Feb. 15 ... Reached the quarterfinals of the CSA individual national championship tournament March 1-3 ... Was accepted in the MSc in Clinical Embryology program at the University of Oxford
2011-12 (Junior):
Named to CSA All-America first team ... Earned Academic All-Ivy League honors ... Finished the season 14-3 overall, including 9-1 in the No. 2 position ... Named to the All-Ivy League first team ... CSA Scholar Athlete ... Missed the first two matches of the season ... Made season debut with wins against Corey Schafer (Dartmouth), 3-1, and Elena Laird (Middlebury), 3-0, in the No. 1 position Nov. 30 ... Helped the Crimson to a win, 8-1, over No. 5 Trinity Jan. 21 with a sweep of Alicia Rodriguez in the No. 2 spot ... Went 3-0 in the Howe Cup, including a 3-0 win over Kimberley Hay of Yale, to help Harvard earn its 13th national championship Feb. 26 ... Advanced to the semifinals at the CSA individual national championship tournament March 4.
2010-11 (Sophomore):
Named to CSA All-America first team ... Ivy League Player of the Year ... All-Ivy League first team honoree ... Tabbed Academic All-Ivy ... Harvard's No. 1 … Finished the year with a 16-1 record and was 12-0 at the No. 1 position ... Opened the season with an 11-0, 11-5, 11-4 win over Sarah Crosky of Brown … Won straight set matches over No. 11 Pamela Chua of Stanford and Courtney Bogle of Williams in a doubleheader on Nov. 21 … Downed No. 5 Valeria Wiens from Dartmouth in three games … Dominated Cornell's Jesse Pasheco, 11-3, 11-2, 11-4 ... Won all three of her matches at the 2011 CSA National Team Championship against opponents from Cornell, Trinity and Yale ... Reached the finals of the 2011 CSA Individual National Championship, losing the first match of her career to Millie Tomlinson in the Ramsay division finals.
2009-10 (Freshman):
Won CSA Individual national championship, claiming the Ramsay Cup ... All-America first-team selection ... Ivy League Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year ... Tabbed to All-Ivy League team ... Compiled a perfect 16-0 overall record during rookie season ... Owned a 5-0 mark at CSA Individual Championships ... Named COOP Student-Athlete of the Week Feb. 1 ... Was a perfect 11-0 at the No. 1 position ... Boasted a 3-0 record at CSA Team Championships ... Did not lose a game during dual season.
Helped Squash Canada finish fourth at 2010 World University Championships in Melbourne, Australia.
Before Harvard:
Has won 21 national squash championships, including five U.S. Junior Opens and six Canadian Junior Opens … Claimed the Canada Winter Games gold medal in 2007 and helped Team Ontario win the Canadian Women's Team Championship in 2006 … Member of two Canadian National Junior Women's teams that competed at the World Championships … Placed third at British Junior Open in 2009 … Became the first four-time winner of the GU19 junior squash national title in Canada … Was the first Canadian junior squash player to be named to three junior national teams.
Father, Robert, was an All-Ivy League ice hockey player at Cornell … Has played the flute since the fourth grade.


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SF's Bach Advances In Badminton
Chants of "U-S-A, U-S-A" competed with "Go Team China" on Tuesday in an unlikely setting: the Olympic badminton tournament.
Americans Howard Bach of San Francisco and Bob Malaythong defeated South African brothers Chris and Roelof Dednam 21-10, 21-16 to advance to the quarterfinals of the men's doubles event.
The road to the podium won't get any easier for the American shuttlers. On Wednesday, Malaythong and Bach will take on the second-seeded Chinese pair of Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng for a chance to move on to the semifinals.
Cai and Fu, who are third in the world rankings, defeated Jens Dyrloev Eriksen and Martin Hansen Lundgaard of Denmark 21-12, 21-11 in the adjacent court.
As loud as the chants were Tuesday for the Chinese players, Bach knows they will be even louder on Wednesday at the Beijing University of Technology Gymnasium.
"I heard the roar when China scored a point," said Bach. "Unless we step up tomorrow, it's gonna happen again."
Bach said he knows the Chinese pair are at a different level than he and his partner, who are 20th in the rankings. "It's kinda like the difference between China and the U.S. in basketball," said Bach.
Malaythong said teamwork is the key to defeating the Chinese.
"We've just got to get it together," said Malaythong. "I need Howard to set me up and I can smash all day."
By reaching the quarterfinals, Malaythong and Bach have already advanced further than any American ever has in the Olympic badminton tournament, but the two aren't satisfied yet.
"We want a medal," said Bach. "Gold would be nice but just to get a medal would be a huge achievement for us."
Malaythong was born in Laos and moved to the States in 1990. Bach's family immigrated to San Francisco from Vietnam in 1982.
Malaythong wore a Stars and Stripes bandanna for Tuesday's match.
"I started wearing it at the U.S. Open and when I won I decided to keep wearing it," said Malaythong.
It's the first Olympics for Malaythong. Bach competed with Kevin Qi Han in the Athens Olympics four years ago but was eliminated in the second round by Eriksen and Hansen.
Badminton is not popular as a competitive sport in the United States but Bach, who was the 2005 world champion in men's doubles with Tony Gunawan, is hoping a medal in Beijing will change all that.
"We want to show the American public that this is a competitive sport," said Bach. "It's not just for the backyard barbecue."
For Malaythong, this will be his last shot at an Olympic medal. He lives in the Orange County city of Orange in California now but will move to Boston after the Olympics to work as a badminton coach.
"I think the sport could explode in the U.S. if we get a medal," said Malaythong. "Right now, it's getting popular in California but if we win a medal that could change."
Bach said his father is in Vietnam on business now but is trying to get a visa to come to see him play in Beijing.


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Summer Reading List: Summer Sports, Baseball, & the Outside World
By Nina Schuyler, The Children's Book Review
Published: June 12, 2012
It's summertime with its big bowl of a blue sky. Outside becomes another room, with open fields and the whir and buzz of bugs and baseball, and the voice of the water and the touch of sand.
Day One of summer, my son asks, "Now what?" So we ride our bikes to the library and load our backpacks with books about summer. Here's a list to fill up the baggy pockets of summertime.


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A really busy, fun and interesting weekend event which revolves around a rally of stunning Traction Engines with approximately 20 full size traction engines and 20 miniature traction engines! Also, there will be Steam train rides for everyone, miniature train rides, working vintage farm machinery to watch, vintage commercial vehicles to admire and tractors, parades throughout the day, wood sawing demonstrations.
And all this at our normal Steaming Day prices:
Adult: £12
Senior: £11
Child: £8
Family (2a+4c): £34.50.
Pre-booking is not required, just come along and buy your tickets on the gate.
For an idea of what to expect, here is a link to a previous customer's You Tube video: https://youtu.be/4bRi6lFzfDk


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click on the images to see the movies, they'll open in a small pop-up window, each one is about 30secs long and around 2mb in size) or download them here if the pop up doesn't work -
- shelter, friends, i'm yours you're mine, passion -
Most of the stuff I post here is documentary, not planned and staged, just captured. I film using a little digital stills camera, and then treat the image and sound to help focus the ideas I'm presenting, and often write some music. You'll need to have quicktime to view these films, although some of them are available as flash movies in the archive.


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The story of the art forgers getting pardons for paintings is true. It is still not known to this day which paintings were fakes, which were real..one of the best aspects is the employment of forgers who duped THE PAPERWORK.
Baby Cheeks is the nick name of a real honest to goodness forger, but he went on to become a painter in his own right, and stayed in the south of France.
Ben is a mix of two people who actually did what I descibed. One arranged charity drops. The other wrote people to encourage them. Him I knew. He actually got replies back, one from a famous murder case that is still controversial to this day. When his cancer treatments got pricey he duped the autograph and kept the dupe and sold the original.
He is going in for his last round this year, and had everyone over for cantonese that had enough MSG to fry an elephant in it, and left us with various momentos while he can still remember doing it. This story is dedicated to him.
The prices and movies and games are as close to real as I could get. Movies and best sellers are as they appeared in papers at the time.
The line about Jesus being Jesus and Santa being Santa I heard once at a restaurant and just had to use.
Group Story: ICE MOUNTAIN, A Chirstmas Tale
Books, poems, stories and other tales!
Post Reply
Post Reply


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We said it was the "best Android phone you can buy on Verizon" when we reviewed it, but if you insist on rooting it—now's your time, courtesy of the guys at Unrevoked. [Unrevoked - Thanks, Max!]
UPDATE: I shouldn't have to say that only experienced rooters should try this, but it appears people are struggling with the hack. Use your common sense people, and proceed with caution.


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Together with the comprehensive utilization of modern technology and advanced gadgets there has been a noted enhancement in the sign of human being daily life in various respects. Modern technology has also manufactured people's life significantly less dangerous. Electronic alarm systems have aided individuals to make their properties a lot less at risk of robbery. Security alarms security alarms are very well-liked because of their performance and relatively low cost. Reed Brothers Security Locksmith
- With all the comprehensive usage of technologies and innovative tools we have seen a designated improvement from the manifestation.
- Security alarms alarm systems can be split up.
- Reed Brothers Security Alarm Systems.
Alarm systems available for sale are of different types. Certain kinds of alarm systems can be made functional with no specific understanding. However, there are actually other people that must be mounted and manufactured useful from the alarm system business service staff. The option of a property security alarm system would depend considerably on the specific requires of any distinct household along with the lifestyle directed with a specific household. Reed Brothers Security Alarm Systems
No specific understanding However there are actually
All home security home security systems contain 3 basic elements: the alarm, the indicator that keeps an eye on the against the law intrusion, along with the control that creates the alarm to sound in case there is a disturbance caused by an intruder. Security alarms home security systems can are powered by power provided by battery power or can work with the help of electrical power being a power source. Security systems that run on electric batteries might be put in with little problems however they are regarded less efficient than their electrical brethren. Reed Brothers Security Gates
Home security alarm systems can even be divided into personal-comprised alarm systems and home security systems with different components. Personal-comprised security alarms retain the security alarm, management, and indicator in just one model. These are ideal for use within tiny homes, offices, or apartment rentals, that have a lesser amount of doors and windows. These units are cost-effective and may be installed with little problems. In home security systems with separate components the products divide the sensor through the handle and alert. They function successfully in larger properties with several bedrooms seeking simultaneous security. Reed Brothers Security Safes
Systems with different components Personal-comprised security
- Reed Brothers Security Alarm Systems.
- Alarm systems available in the market are of different forms. Some kinds of alarm systems.
- Security alarms security alarms may also be separated.
- Reed Brothers Security Security Gates.


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The Nasty Bits: Pate
Recipes and stories for everything but the oink.
Get the Recipe
This is the first of probably many posts on pate. Why it has taken me almost two years to talk about pate in the Nasty Bits column, which by definition emphasizes ingredients like liver and fat, is really only due to my fear of overeating it. I envy those friends who can have just a little nibble on toast and bread, then say, "oh, that's too rich for my blood!"
I can easily polish off a slice of pate like most people would a slice of cake. I find its richness so beguiling and to compound matters, pate comes in such a variety of textures and flavors, there's one for every occasion.
Roughly defined as a combination of meat products and fat set in a terrine, pate is a many-splendored thing. A rustic country pate of ground pork and fat (pate de campagne) and a crusty baguette is all you need for a casual picnic; a truffled foie gras pate is just the thing for a special occasion. In between, there are game pates, pates with lots of aspic, pates with nuts, liver-intensive pates, creamy mousse pates, and so forth.
The first time I remember truly relishing pate wasn't until after college. I bought two tins, tender rabbit rillete and a duck liver pate (that was twice the price), from a store in Paris. Digging into what little euros I had left, I took the plunge and enjoyed both tins in a single train ride.
There was a little bread, a little pate, and as the train sped along, I dove into the creaminess of the pate and thought that life really couldn't have been better.
If you're looking for a way to get your feet wet, try this chicken or duck liver mousse. The recipe comes from Kenji, who got it from chef Jason Bond of Bondir in Boston. There's nothing particularly distinctive about it; it's just very good to eat, and very straightforward to make.
Remember to incorporate the fat and onions with the cream, eggs, and liver mixture slowly. The fat will break the mixture if introduced too quickly in the food processor. If the pate is cooked at a temperature that's too high, it will also break. But these are just perfunctory warnings for what really is a simple procedure: boil fat with onions, puree the livers with cream, eggs, and flavorings, slowly add in the fat and onions, and bake.
The mousse is very fine to eat with bread and crackers, and if you happen upon any leftovers, feel free to freeze them. Julia Child is so right in insisting that pates will never have their original texture once frozen, that there is a certain "damp quality of thawed pate." Nevertheless, frozen pates may be used to enrich pasta sauces, or spread thinly in banh-mi style sandwiches.
Get the Recipe
This post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Serious Eats. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.


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I had suffered from obesity that exhausted me physically and psychologically. I tried several diets, but they did not last. They all definitely failed. I also bragged and tried to convince myself that I was satisfied with my body and shape.
At that time, a diet for me was to deprive myself from eating. But I lately discovered that I deprived myself from the most beautiful thing in life, health. The strange thing is that I did not know my real weight! But I saw how I was gaining weight day by day.
Ten months ago was the turning point when I bought a dress. Whenever I liked something, I cannot find the right size. I sorrowfully wished to be thin.
The great shock was when a photo was taken for me and I saw myself, I was totally disappointed; as if it was the first time I saw myself. I couldn't sleep that night out of sorrow and depression. The following day I decided to get a scale to know my exact weight. There came the biggest shock when I found out that I weighed 105 kilos!
To my shock, I directly decided changing myself.
I put my trust in God and I started to read and search. I was convinced that losing weight was a basic part of my new lifestyle and not a temporary diet. When I visited the BSC, they convinced me that it was necessary to undergo a sleeve surgery. After a while, I started dreaming of my new shape, new life and new future.
After the surgery, all thanks to God and then to the BSC team, I stayed away from all types of fatty foods and anything that harmed her health and fitness. I ate healthy foods and followed all the standards set by the BSC dietitian and the medical crew who care for the patient before and after the surgery.
At first, I walked 15 to 30 minutes, but I used to feel pain in my leg. Despite this, I was so happy because I believed that I am on my way to fitness. Then I increased my walking pace to half an hour daily. I felt tired on the first week and I thought that my new lifestyle was a bit weird. This changed quickly. I lost 7 kilos on my first week. I was very happy and excited, and I forgot all my fatigue. My loss of kilos was a bit slow until I reached 70 kilos in 10 months.
At first, my goal was to reach 90 kilos, but today I am planning to reach 60 kilos and I said to myself that it was a blessing to reach this in a few months' time.
My patience, stability and the strong will were the secret.
I cannot express how can I thank the BSC Team first and then my mother who always supported me. My mother and my father were a great support along with me, siblings and relatives.
Thanks to God and thanks to them all because their support made me what I am today.
Great thanks for them to stand by me during my suffering and taking part in fulfilling my successful dream.
Deep thanks for every person who supported me even in his words.


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Shabby Shapes Photoshop Brushes
Shabby Shapes Photoshop Brushes
0.00 10.00
A High-Resolution Photoshop brush set of grungy, dirty simple shapes. This contains several basic shapes that can be combined to create more complicated shapes for borders, backgrounds and more. Each shape is big and bold; created to resemble a raised surface that has been inked and then pressed into a sheet of paper like an old trashy letterpress.
These are big. Many of the brushes are around 2500 pixels. Suitable for print projects and web projects.
This set is royalty-free, so you can use it in your products and designs both for personal use and commercial work; with no strings attached.
Let us know what you think by commenting below.
Compatibility: Adobe Photoshop CS and Above


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MC4 Series
PC Networkable LED 4 Line Message Center
Models with up to 200 characters
Link to this product
for email:
For web page (with image):
Catalog Numbers
|Catalog Number
ApprovalsAgency Approvals
Power cord with 3 prong plug supplied
Character Size from 1.5� to 7.2�; format dependent
Extruded Aluminum Case
Message modes� 20 consisting of: Automatic, Hold, Roll (6 directions), Rotate, Sparkle-On, Twinkle, Interlock, Wipe (6 directions), Flash, and Scroll.
Continuous message entry with automatic centering in any mode.
Real-time Clock can report Day and Time in 12 or 24-hour format. Maintains accurate time without power for up to two weeks.
Serial Computer interface-RS232 and RS485 (Multi-drop networking for up to 255 message centers).


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Three people, including former New England Patriot Aaron Hernandez, have now been arrested in connection to the murder of Odin Lloyd.
"We believe we have three individuals... and we're very pleased about that," said Bristol County, Mass., District attorney Sam Sutter.
Lloyd climbed into a car with Hernandez, Carlos Ortiz, 27, and Ernest Wallace in North Attleborough at 2:30 in the morning on June 17. A few hours later, Lloyd's body was found in a gravel pit, dead by a bullet from a .45-caliber gun.
Hernandez was arrested at his home Wednesday. On the same day, to far less fanfare, Ortiz was taken into custody in Bristol and charged as a fugitive from justice.
Ortiz pleaded not guilty to a charge of carrying a firearm without a licence, and would remain behind bars until a July 9 hearing, said his attorney, John Connors.
"Mr. Ortiz struck me as being a gentle person who is confused as to how he is in this situation," Connors said Friday, after meeting Ortiz for the first time. "We're going to try and prove he's not guilty."
Ernest Wallace turned himself in Friday in Miramar, Fla., after learning of an arrest warrant issued for him in Massachusetts. He was charged with accessory to murder before a Broward County, Fla., judge.
Surveillance cameras at a gas station captured image of the rented Nissan Altima, driven by Hernandez, with Lloyd, Ortiz and Wallace.
At 3:23 a.m., Lloyd sent a text message to his sister. "NFL. Just so you know," he wrote, alerting her to the company he kept.
Witnesses said they heard gunshots at 3:25 a.m.
Five minutes later, surveillance camera footage caught Hernandez carrying a gun as he arrived home, two others in tow. Lloyd was not with them.
After the car was returned to the rental company, investigators found a spent .45-caliber casing that matches the empty shells recovered near Lloyd's body. Also on the body of the victim: keys to the rental car registered in Hernandez's name.
Still, Hernandez has pleaded not guilty to premeditated murder, and his attorney maintains the case being built by the prosecution won't stand.
"It is a circumstantial case," said Michael Fee, Hernandez's attorney. "It is not a strong case."


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Part of the plan may involve the assistance of labour and birth aids - something as simple as a bendy straw to make easy access to refreshing water during the hard business of pushing. Or, it might be a portable CD player and your favourite music to distract or calm you.
Rather than rummage around through your hospital bag for all the important bits and pieces you might want during what could be a rushed labour experience, it's a great idea to pack a separate bag just for labour and birth aids. Make sure your partner knows where it is and that he is expected to remember it if you don't.
What to pack for labour and birth?
Fill your labour and birth bag with whatever you think will make your personal labour experience more enjoyable. That might include snacks for your birth partner (maybe fruit or biscuits), reading material (a favourite book or magazine to entertain yourself (or partner) if things aren't progressing, massage oils to help ease contraction pains, essential oils and a burner (but do check with the hospital in case you are only allowed electric burners for safety reasons), and a wheat bag (again check with the hospital because some hospitals won't let you heat them for safety reasons).
Your partner may need to get into a shower with you to help relieve your contraction pains so, just in case, pack a pair of bathers. Other labour aids might include pillows from home (but remember they could get stained), a birthing ball, visualisation pictures, or other things that might help you stay calm and focused.
And make sure that you also pack your birth plan if you have one!
This article was written by Claire Halliday for Australia's leading pregnancy resource, Kidspot.
Sources include Royal Women's Hospital, Melbourne, S.A. Department Of Health
This article was created for Kidspot - Australia's parenting resource for during your pregnancy


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Reset the BlackBerry 9700
Remove and reinsert the battery.
BlackBerry 9700 Bold Hard reset
Press: ALT + SHIFT + DEL
Format the device memory or a media card
If you format the BlackBerry® device memory or a media card, all the files in the device memory or on the media card are deleted.
Depending on your device model, you might not be able to format your device memory.
1. On the Home screen or in a folder, click the Options icon.
2. Click Memory.
3. Press the Menu key.
4. Click Format.
5. Complete the instructions on the screen.
Warning: All data on your phone will be deleted.


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In our Old Testament reading today, we hear the story of the great prophet Elijah, at the end of his life serving as God's prophet in difficult times. His protégé, Elisha, is with him, as the great prophet tries to get some "alone time." Elijah keeps trying to get Elisha to stay put. Elisha keeps insisting on accompanying Elijah on this final journey. So Elijah goes first to
Poor Elijah! If he had hoped for a quiet solitary moment to reflect at the end of his ministry, Elisha is determined to prevent it. They come to the edge of the
Elijah knows that the time of parting is near, so he looks at this young prophet-to-be who insisted on accompanying him on this final journey and says, "Before I go, what do you want me to leave to you?"
A difficult question, isn't it, when you don't know what your successor will ask for? A difficult question, when you don't know what your forebear will be willing to give? Each of us wants to leave a legacy that will be cherished, and when we ask that sort of question, we hope the person we ask will request something that is meaningful and representative of the relationship we have. We want to leave a legacy that makes sense, that is truly a double-portion.
The news earlier this week was of another kind of legacy. A woman who was dying of cancer was quite wealthy. After her death, it became known that she was leaving the bulk of her estate to her little
It is still unclear what will happen in this particular case. Will the dogs get the millions? Will the bodyguards who prevented the son from seeing his mother at the end of her life be proven to have coerced her somehow to include them in the will? Will the son be shown to be a venal grasping fool?
I wonder what would have happened if things were a little different. If, perhaps, he had been able to spend time with her, if he had asked her what her wishes were, what her hopes were for the vast fortune that she had. Might she have said, "I'm worried about the dogs. Who is going to care for them?" Might she have said, "I don't want everyone to fight over the money – I just want to reward those who have stuck by me through this terrible illness."
What would have happened if she had said to him, "Before I go, what may I do for you?"
Somehow, I doubt his request would be for "a double measure of your spirit." Something so ephemeral, so difficult to measure or count – this doesn't seem like the thing that this particular young man would be interested in. The only legacy with which he was concerned was the one that goes away quickly and with little result – cash.
But that ephemeral spiritual gift was what Elisha was asking for. He was not asking for twice Elijah's power. What he was asking for was Elijah's blessing indicating that Elisha held the position of his firstborn son, because in ancient times, that is what a double portion inheritance would mean. He wasn't asking for more of everything so he, Elisha, would be enriched with power. He was asking for his spiritual father's love as he knew Elijah would soon leave him. And Elijah, willing as he was, could not guarantee it, because the spirit comes only from God. Elisha might receive it, if he saw Elijah being taken by God, but even if he was present, would it really happen? Elijah departed in a whirlwind, in a fiery chariot, not knowing what would happen to this young man whom he had grown to cherish, this Elisha who was now crying out for him, "Father, father – abba, abba!"
Nor did Elisha know what the future might bring. He crumpled to the ground, tearing his clothes in mourning. But then he got up and picked up Elijah's cloak, which had fallen to the ground when the great prophet was lifted up in the chariot. He walked to the edge of the water. Would the mantle work? Had he been given the double portion of the spirit from Elijah and from God.
He hit the water with the cloth, and it parted, so that Elisha could cross over.
The gift that Elijah gave to Elisha was not power…it was a double portion of faith in him, that he could continue the work that God had commanded, work that Elijah would not live to see. For that matter, it was work that Elisha would not be able to complete. It was the legacy that would only be fulfilled when Jesus came, the Paschal Lamb who would redeem us all. It was a transition of hope, that moment when Elisha took up the mantle and struck the water with it, and crossed over. He had received the legacy he had requested.
It is an odd thing, this religion business. So much of what we do has to do with transitions and with hope. Whether we are talking about changes of leadership in the parish, or planning for building, it usually involves self-sacrifice, challenges, problems that may or may not be resolved. Think about the Cathedral of
I wonder if the people who helped begin construction on the great cathedral – the donors, the clergy, the workmen, had any idea what that place would look like when it was fully built? I would expect that they had hopes and dreams of what that massive house of God would someday be. They knew, like Elijah, that they would leave before it was completed. They did not know how the design would be modified from the original plans over the decades. They did not know that the fire would require that the building be closed for repair for several years more than a century after the work first started. But they knew that God intended this work for God's purpose, and they knew, like we do, that God has a different sense of time than we human beings do. So generation to generation of laborers, of priests, of parishioners, each did their part, and said to the next generation, "tell me what you would like me to leave to you?" And the answer was always the same, "give me the spirit – the double spirit – to continue this work, to complete the work that God has set for us."
This was their answer not because they thought they would be around to see it finished, or that their families would benefit from it as a completed building.
No, they knew that they were working in God's time, so that the work and the building were a legacy for future generations.
Such a different view of legacy, and what is truly important, than that of the woman and her dogs and her son!
In the two months since I first came here, I've heard so many stories about this beloved parish, and of its various transitions. The move from
Faithful people of God, laypeople and clergy alike, worked and continue to work together to build this place, not as a building project anymore but as a place where we grow into ever-deeper relationship with Christ, and where we invite others to become part of the Body of Christ. People of God hope for continued strength – a double portion of the Spirit – to guide us in that work. And the remarkable thing is that we do not do it because we think it will personally benefit us. It may not even benefit our children, because the work is marked in God's time, not human time. But it will benefit future generations. Our work together, you and I, is to build this parish in the Spirit, so that each person who walks into those church doors for the first time will say, "I feel something here – something special – and I want to participate in this!" So together we will put our hand to the plow. We will not look back, except in a prayer of thanks for those who have gone before, and who have bequeathed us that double portion of the Spirit. And each of us will do our part in the work of building this parish and the
This is the legacy that we leave. It is not measured in mere numbers. It is measured in the depth of our faith and our love of God, in the work that we do to make this parish, this community and this world to be all that God has planned for it. There will be no battles over this legacy, there will be only joy in the knowledge that this is the work we are all called to do.
So my question now is this: how will you live this legacy today and tomorrow and in the years to come? You've been given that double portion of the Spirit. How will you use it?


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Sky Bet Championship: Reading win 3-2 away at Nottingham Forest
Jordan Obita helped 10-man Reading end a four-game winless streak with a thrilling 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest.
Last Updated: 29/11/13 10:36pm
Pavel Pogrebnyak and Kaspars Gorkss had the Royals 2-0 to the good inside the opening 12 minutes of the Sky Bet Championship clash, but Simon Cox and sub Darius Henderson clawed Forest level, before Obita's crucial late strike.
Reading ended the game with 10 men as former Red Chris Gunter was sent off, but Nigel Adkins' side held on for a precious win.
Ex-Forest midfielder Garath McCleary set up the Reading opener after just nine minutes as he skipped past the challenge of Dan Harding, before whipping a low centre across the area where Pogrebnyak bundled the ball home at the far post.
Obita then tricked his way into the home box, before crashing a shot into the side netting, with the aid of a deflection.
From the resulting 12th-minute corner, the Royals increased their lead as centre-back Gorkss met Danny Guthrie's kick with a powerful header to stun the home crowd into silence.
It had been a dreadful opening period for Forest, but they finally settled into a rhythm without ever really looking threatening as Reading kept them at arm's reach.
Cox should have reduced the deficit after half an hour, with Forest's first real shot on goal, but his effort from six yards was brilliantly saved by goalkeeper Alex McCarthy. The rebound fell to Henri Lansbury, who curled a shot narrowly wide.
Five minutes before the interval, Forest reduced the arrears as Lansbury's delightful ball sent Jamie Mackie tearing down the right wing and with Cox steaming into the box, Mackie delivered pin-point for his strike partner to crash home unmarked at the back post against his old club.
Reds boss Billy Davies made two changes at half-time, bringing on Andy Reid and Henderson in place of Jamie Paterson and Raddy Majewski, and Henderson almost made an immediate impact by clipping the bar with a thunderous effort.
Reading were starting to wobble as Forest upped the tempo and Mackie brought another save out of McCarthy, with the Royals stopper tipping his header over.
And the pressure told as Henderson danced his way into the area and fired home a low shot to make it all square on the hour mark.
Another Forest break saw Cox play in Mackie, whose rasping drive came back off the bar and bounce the wrong side of the line as the visitors cleared the danger.
After being outplayed for much of the half, Reading silenced the Forest fans again by reclaiming the lead in the 74th minute as they finally mustered a meaningful attack, with Obita crashing home a shot from 12 yards following another McCleary assist.
Reading then handed Forest a lifeline with 10 minutes left as Gunter was shown a second yellow card after tripping Mackie on the edge of the box.
Lansbury had a late effort deflect just wide at the death, but they failed to find the equaliser their efforts deserved.


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Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Read help info
You can deactivate data connections. Only text messages and calls are then available. This is useful if you want to avoid unintended data traffic. Follow these instructions to activate or deactivate data connections.
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Dividing up your hard drive into multiple partitions can be an excellent way to reorganise your system, reduce file fragmentation, improve performance, and assist with data recovery. Windows own partitioning tools are rather basic, though, awkward to use and short on features. So if you want to get the most out of your hard drive then you'll benefit from using a specialist third-party tool, and O&O PartitionManager 3.0 Professional is one of the best.
The program comes with all the tools you need to create, move, shrink, expand or delete partitions, for instance. You can now convert primary partitions to logical drives, and vice versa. And unlike some of the competition, PartitionManager 3.0 Professional works with all disk types: MBR, GPT, even dynamic disks (volumes that extend over a number of physical drives).
Bonus features include the display of S.M.A.R.T. data, which can alert you to impending drive failure by reporting on drive surface errors. And if you're passing on a drive to someone else then you may also appreciate the ability to securely wipe a partition, so you can be sure that any confidential data it might have contained will be gone forever.
And if your hard drive becomes corrupted for some reason, and Windows will no longer start, then the full version of PartitionManager 3.0 Professional (not the trial) provides a recovery disc that can help. Unusually, it's Windows PE-based, so there are no Linux complexities to get in the way. You'll boot into the familiar Windows interface, with access to PartitionManager 3.0 to try and fix your system. And if you need more assistance, then RegEdit, a System Restore Point manager, CheckDisk tool and a copy of Internet Explorer are on hand to help you out.
A very capable, reliable and easy-to-use partitioning tool. The Windows PE-based recovery disc is a plus, too


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Granite Bay Real EstateCommunities within Granite Bay
Granite Bay is an upscale community in Placer County situated east of Roseville and west of Folsom Lake. The community boasts of a very high quality of life due to its great location, sound community plan, first rate schools, numerous churches, a low crime rate and excellent recreation opportunities.
The community is home to some of the Sacramento area's finest homes including a variety of custom-built luxury Spanish-style and Tudor properties. One may choose from guard gated estate communities, equestrian properties or acreage.
The area is comprised of gated, semi-gated, and open neighborhoods including Los Lagos, Shelborne and Wexford. Properties range from palatial estates to modestly-sized family homes, in addition to several horse ranches. Neighborhoods in the area embraced Granite Bay's natural surroundings in their landscaping, including incorporating granite outcroppings for which the area was named.
Granite Bay Community Park offers baseball fields, soccer fields, playgrounds, a BBQ pavilion, picnic areas, and bicycle/pedestrian trails. It is one of several parks of its kind in the area, including Miners Ravine Nature Reserve, Treelake Park, Douglas Ranch Park, Sterling Point Part, Ronald L. Feist Park, which collectively offer a number of playgrounds, picnic areas, tennis courts, and soccer and baseball fields.
Granite Bay is also known for its exceptional schools. Eureka Union School District consistently holds the highest academic performance index of any district within 50 miles of Sacramento and is a major draw for the community, along with the neighboring Roseville Joint Union School District. Both offer International Baccalaureate (IB) level education programs at Granite Bay High School as well as Oakmont High School.
Granite Bay is home to shopping centers filled with restaurants, coffee shops, fitness studios and seasonal farmers markets. Residents need not travel far for family-friendly outings, with Sacramento and Roseville minutes away.
Natural beauty is abundant in the area, which includes rolling hills, mature oak trees and granite rock outcroppings peppered with seasonal streams and lakes. Granite Bay/Roseville offers a wide selection of lifestyle choices in real estate.
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Occupying May Day
Issued on: Modified:
In today's pick of the world papers - the Occupy movement tries to bring May Day protests to the US, and we look at whether Joseph Kony is really involved in the conflict in Sudan.
The Huffington Post reports the now virtually defunct Occupy movement has joined forces with immigrants' rights groups in the US to call for a May Day strike - whileThe Guardian has advice from Noam Chomsky on what the movement should do next.
The Independent is looking at whether Joseph Kony is really involved in the conflict in Sudan - while The New York Times follows the US troops on Kony's trail.


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Will help guide Disciplinary and Ethics Commission in deliberations
Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. today announced that its Board of Directors has approved the organization's first-ever Sanction Guidelines, which will be used by the Disciplinary and Ethics Commission and staff when determining sanctions for particular CFP Board violations.
The Board of Directors approved the Sanction Guidelines – effective August 27, 2012 – at its July board meeting following careful and thoughtful review of feedback received from stakeholders during the comment period.
"These guidelines will help CFP® professionals understand what types of punishment they may receive for violating the rules they have agreed to as well as provide staff and the Disciplinary and Ethics Commission clear guidance on the appropriate sanction for a violation," said Kevin R. Keller, CEO of CFP Board.
CFP Board enforces its ethical standards by investigating incidents of allegedly unethical behavior by following the procedures established in CFP Board's . In cases where violations are found, CFP Board may impose discipline ranging from a private letter of censure or public admonition to suspension or revocation of the right to use the CFP® marks.
CFP Board's enforcement process includes written notice to individuals under investigation, the opportunity to respond to the matters under investigation, the opportunity to appear at a hearing to address allegations of misconduct, the right to be represented by legal counsel and introduce witnesses and evidence and the right to appeal decisions involving discipline.
In keeping with having a fair, thorough and expedient disciplinary process, CFP Board developed the Sanction Guidelines to help staff and the DEC maintain consistency regarding the imposition of sanctions for the violations of CFP Board's Standards of Professional Conduct.
The Sanction Guidelines identify the sanction guideline for violations of the Standards of Professional Conduct and policy notes for the DEC to consider when imposing the appropriate sanction. However, the DEC is not bound by the Sanction Guidelines, which are intended, along with anonymous case histories, to guide the DEC in its decision making.
The DEC may deviate from the sanction guideline if there are aggravating factors that warrant a more severe sanction or mitigating factors that warrant a less severe sanction. The Sanction Guidelines may also be used by the Appeals Committee of the Board of Directors, which considers appeals of the DEC's decisions.
The decision by the Board of Directors followed a 45-day comment period held from April 30, 2012 through June 14, 2012, during which CFP Board received a total of 33 comments and 162 responses to an online survey. Many commenters suggested that the sanction guidelines for specific categories of conduct were too lenient but were generally in favor of the proposed Sanction Guidelines. CFP Board considered these comments and modified its initial proposal to increase the sanction guidelines for several categories of conduct. In other instances, CFP Board amended the guidelines to provide for more clarity.
CFP Board will discuss the Sanction Guidelines in more detail during a webinar on August 14, 2012. The Sanction Guidelines can be found on CFP Board's website at www.CFP.net/downloads/CFPBoard_Sanction_Guidelines_2012-07.pdf.
About CFP Board: The mission of Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. is to benefit the public by granting the CFP® certification and upholding it as the recognized standard of excellence for competent and ethical personal financial planning. The Board of Directors, in furthering CFP Board's mission, acts on behalf of the public, CFP® certificants and other stakeholders. CFP Board owns the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, CFP® (with plaque design) and CFP® (with flame design) in the U.S., which it awards to individuals who successfully complete CFP Board's initial and ongoing certification requirements. CFP Board currently authorizes more than 66,000 individuals to use these marks in the United States.
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text: If you are just fixing up one room or building a new home to outfit with oil rubbed bronze, satin nickel, matte black, or polished brass hardware. We have everything to suit your needs and your budget. We automatically key all exterior door locks to match the same key at no charge if they are placed in the same order.


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Hooded shell jacket
The lightest jacket on the market to utilize Polartec's waterproof-breathable NeoShell fabric, the Westcomb Shift LT Hoody weighs 12 ounces. But that doesn't mean it's light on function: In addition to warding off the wet stuff, the fabric is ripstop enhanced, proving more than able to handle the rigors of the trail. Deep chest pockets hold gear, while long arms allow for full range of motion. [$400; westcomb.com]Back to top


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Just about everyone, it seems has faced up to the fact that our massive over-reliance on fossil fuels for energy needs is a bad thing. In two centuries we have managed to raise atmospheric CO2 levels higher than they've ever been since man first walked upright, and the consequence of that is very likely to be a warming of the planet's surface by at least 3?C within the next 50-100 years. As such, we need to find sustainable alternatives.
To hear the comments out of Washington, D.C., one might think the answer had already been found. Ethanol, as produced from corn, is being touted by those with their hands on the levers of power as the panacea to this problem. The idea is that corn can be grown, then fermented and distilled, and that distilled ethanol can be used to supplement the petrol or diesel we buy at the pumps. Unfortunately, this idea makes much better political sense than it does environmental or economic.
It's an attractive idea to US politicians since it plays well in the corn-producing states that are important in presidential primaries, and gives the impression of increasing energy independence, but the harder anyone actually looks at the numbers, the less sense bioethanol from corn makes. For one thing, almost half the US' cropland would have to be turned over to biofuel use to provide enough ethanol just for E10 (petrol with 10 percent ethanol). The numbers in Europe are similar, and devoting that much arable land to fuel production would have serious knock-on effects on food prices; Mexico has already seen corn prices triple in recent years thanks to the bioethanol frenzy.
Writing in this week's Science, Renton Righelato from the World Land Trust, and Dominick Spracklen of the University of Leeds argue that it makes much greater sense to the planet to increase carbon sequestration by returning cropland to woody forest, rather than biofuel production. The increases in carbon sequestration through forest restoration are greater than the saving in CO2 emissions that would be achieved by large-scale biofuel adoption, at least with any of the currently-proposed schemes.
One possible solution that would be the best of both worlds is a technique I reported on late last year, that of low-impact, high-biodiversity biofuel production, a practice that I can only hope achieves widespread adoption. Unfortunately, being a champion for LIDH won't do anything to help a presidential hopeful get their party's nomination, so it looks like we're stuck with corn for the time being.
Science, 2007. DOI: 10.1126/science.1141361


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Shaffer tackles spring with power and purpose
DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Every now and then the future gets a taste of the present. Such is Richie Shaffer's plight this spring.
The Rays selected Shaffer in the first round (25th overall) of the 2012 Draft out of Clemson. Like others in his situation, he must accrue the obligatory at-bats and innings in the field. If those numbers and innings add up favorably, he will one day find himself in the Major Leagues.
DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Every now and then the future gets a taste of the present. Such is Richie Shaffer's plight this spring.
The Rays selected Shaffer in the first round (25th overall) of the 2012 Draft out of Clemson. Like others in his situation, he must accrue the obligatory at-bats and innings in the field. If those numbers and innings add up favorably, he will one day find himself in the Major Leagues.
Because of the flexibility of Spring Training, Shaffer has been afforded several opportunities to join the varsity club for Grapefruit League action.
"It's been great," Shaffer said. "I'm not technically in [Major League] camp, but I've had some opportunities where I've been able to fill in for some guys. It's been an awesome experience to get in here and kind of get a rapport with some of the guys. Pick some of the veterans' brains. Just learn from watching. It's been fun; it's been pretty cool."
On Friday, he took the two-hour bus ride from Port Charlotte to Dunedin to dress out for the Rays against the Blue Jays.
"I might find out a day ahead," Shaffer said of when was typically told he would play with the Rays. "The last game I played in against the Yankees [Wednesday], I found out an hour ahead of time, so I was kind of rushing around a little bit. Some days they give you advance notice and other days a couple of hours warning. Obviously, I'm not complaining."
Last year, MLB.com ranked Shaffer as the 10th best prospect in the organization. Through two seasons in the Rays' farm system, he has a .265 average with 15 home runs and 99 RBIs. Of note, he earned Florida State League All-Star honors in 2013 after leading Charlotte with 33 doubles and 187 total bases.
Rays manager Joe Maddon has not seen too much of Shaffer, but he has seen enough to note: "A pretty good approach at the plate. I like his arm there at third base. He has a strong arm. But I haven't seen a whole lot to break him down further than that. But the power's definitely there, to all fields. Although I guess he likes to pull the ball primarily. But a good fielder. Throws really well."
Shaffer, who turns 23 on March 15, is pleased with his progress thus far in the professional ranks.
"I didn't know what to expect when I first signed," Shaffer said. "You hear all kind of things about professional baseball. Each player has their own progress at their individual levels. I think that I'm maturing as a player and growing every day.
"I think I'm making great strides. I like the improvements I'm making in my game. Just going to try and keep on growing and hopefully have a good year."
Shaffer said he made an easy transition from the aluminum bat he used in college to the wooden bat used in professional baseball.
"I had experience using wooden bats in college when I played in summer leagues," Shaffer said. "I haven't 100 percent found a model that I love; I'm still kind of searching. I've been experimenting. There are certain things I like, but I just haven't found the one that's perfect for me just yet. So hopefully I'll just grab a hold of one that just feels right."
Shaffer plays primarily third base, but he can also play first base or either of the corner outfield positions. And while he is known for his power, he understands the value of bringing along some leather as well.
"I know versatility is something that's valued highly in this organization," Shaffer said, adding that playing other positions was "definitely something I'm open to try to work on. As of right now, I'm working strictly at third base. I'm trying to perfect my craft over there.
"Until they say otherwise, my goal is to be a Gold Glove defender at whatever position I play. If they say they need me over at first, I'll go over there and work my butt off. If they say they need me in the outfield, so on and so forth."
Being a third baseman in the Rays' organization presents one monstrous obstacle in the form of All-Star Evan Longoria, who occupies the position for the Rays.
But Shaffer is not about to get caught up in thinking about that.
"There are players in the Major Leagues at every position, and, obviously, not all of them are the caliber of Evan Longoria, but there will always be good players ahead of you," Shaffer said. "So you can't worry about the people in front of you. You have to worry about yourself.
"You know the old saying, 'If you hit, they'll find a spot for you.' If you can hit, they'll find a spot for you. But you just have to make sure you take pride in your defense wherever you're at. You can't be a liability out there in the field, because pitching and defense is a premium in this organization. I personally take pride in my defense, and, if down the road whenever the day comes that I have to make a change, I'll take just as much pride in that position as well."
Bill Chastain is a reporter for MLB.com.


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2. The UDAY (Ujjwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana) scheme can be a game changer for India's ailing power sector. Do you agree? Substantiate.
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From ForensicsWiki
Revision as of 17:20, 3 May 2006 by Uwe Hermann (Talk | contribs)
The Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format is a commonly-used lossy image format.
JPEG files consist of a well defined header, some metadata, and a well defined footer. The header is usually FFd8 (hex).
Common file extensions are .jpg, .jpeg, .JPG, .JPE, and .jfif.
JPEG files can contain lots of metadata in Exif format. The jhead command line tool can be used to extract that metadata.