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The 2011 Tech Trends Report surveyed more than 4,000 Information Technology (IT) professionals from 93 countries and 25 industries who provided their views on future IT trends. The results also show a growing need for technical skills in the areas of business analytics, social business, mobile computing, open source technologies and cloud computing. Read the report at: http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/techtrendsreport, share your opinions at #TechTrends and see what IBM experts are saying about the findings at: www.youtube.com/IBMEcosystem
According to the report, business analytics software is the most widely used technology of those surveyed. In fact, business analytics software is being incorporated in almost every business process within organizations. The majority of respondents believe that business analytics will continue to be in demand for software development. The report also outlines the growing importance of open source platforms such as Apache Hadoop and Linux for business analytics software developers.
2011 Tech Trend survey respondents were asked which skills they needed to develop and/or deploy business analytics solutions.
The report provides IT and business professionals a roadmap of the technologies and skills that will be in greatest demand in the coming years. Key findings in the 2011 IBM Tech Trends Report include:
- Eighty-seven percent of respondents believe open source and open standard technologies will play a key role in the future of application development.
- During the next two years more than 75 percent of organizations will engage in cloud computing.
- Fifty-one percent of respondents cited the adoption of cloud technologies as part of their mobile strategy.
- Regional cultural differences impact social business adoption. India is strongly embracing social business with a 57 percent adoption rate, followed by the US with a 45 percent adoption rate and China with a 44 percent adoption rate. Russia shows the strongest resistance with a 19 percent adoption rate.
"The results are clear. Mobile computing, cloud computing, social business and business analytics have gone beyond niche status and are now part of any modern organization's core IT focus," said Jim Corgel, general manager ISV and Developer Relations, IBM. "IT professionals who can develop the skills needed to work across these technologies will be ready to meet growing business demand in the coming years."
IBM developerWorks, the company's online community for IT professionals is the industry's largest and most visited global site for them to gain technology skills. More than eight million IT professionals have visited the community to gain no-cost access to software tools and code, IT standards and best practices across various industries. Visitors also tap skills training in open technologies, business analytics, cloud computing and mobile computing, among others. In addition, IBM Business Partners and entrepreneurs can access advanced training and resources at IBM's network of 40 Innovation Centers around the world to further build their skills.
The complete IBM 2011 Tech Trends Report and the data gathered as part of the survey are available at: www.ibm.com/developerworks/techtrendsreport.
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THE BRAZEN CAREERIST- Most advice... on managing creative people is awful
A good manager is someone who makes everyone feel like he or she is creative in their work. Because creative work is the most fulfilling work, and we are each capable of that kind of work.
My favorite research on this topic is from John Mirowsky, professor of sociology at University of Texas, Austin. He finds that people people make choices to be more creative if they are gainfully employed. But also that we have more control than we realize over how creative we make our worklife.
"One thing that surprised us was that the daily activities of employed persons are more creative than those of non-employed persons of the same sex, age, and level of education."
How can you tell if you are creative at work? You could just ask yourself if you like your job. It is nearly impossible to like a job if you are not solving problems that are challenging. And if you are doing that, well, that is creative.
For another gauge, look at your cell phone call log. If you're routinely calling friends from work, you're probably not happy there, according to research from Nathan Eagle, at the Santa Fe Institute.
Here are five ways to make a job more creative:
1. Change your mindset
Bad situations breed creativity– but only if you feel responsible for fixing your own problems. So stop blaming your job or your boss or your work, and start looking to yourself. All jobs have opportunities for creativity. This usually means solving problems no one asks you to solve. That's right: Creativity at work is often about finding your own work, finding and solving your own problems. So most of you should blame yourself, not your job, for lack of creativity in your work.
2. Change your response to stress
We tend to respond to stress with routine responses– almost all of them bad for us in some way. Natalie Angier writes in the New York Times about our predisposed type of response to stress: "Regions of the brain associated with executive decision-making and goal-directed behaviors had shriveled, while, conversely, brain sectors linked to habit formation had bloomed... Rodents were cognitively predisposed to keep doing the same things over and over, to run laps in the same dead-ended rat race rather than seek a pipeline to greener sewers."
So when you have stress, try a new response.
3. Change the pace
John Freeman points out in the Wall Street Journal that changing the pace changes what it's like to do that task. You know this intuitively from dancing or sex. But it's also true of workplace tasks like writing email or cleaning our desk— both of which we often do quickly with no examination of whether or not that is a good pace for that task.
4. Try job hopping
This is a way to change your level of creativity on a larger scale. A big reason that job hopping helps your career is that people who job hop are more engaged in their work. Mirowsky explains this further: "People with a wide variety of jobs manage to find ways to make them creative."
5. Get in a long-term, intimate relationship
Be careful putting too much burden on a job. You need to be creative in order to feel fulfilled, yes. But there are infinite ways to be creative, and they don't necessarily have to relate to your job. Which is why the connection between a job and happiness is totally overrated. Intimate, long-term, intimate relationships matter most– and, not surprisingly, the act of putting two lives into one life requires creativity, always.
Penelope Trunk has started several companies and worked for many more.

subset: commoncrawl


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CPSC Launches National Campaign to Change the Way People Think and Act About Pool and Spa Safety
May 24, 2010, 11:00 ET
Pool Safely Campaign Aims to Reduce Child Drownings and Entrapments
CPSC, Olympians Hold Press Event to Release New Death and Injury Data
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., May 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) today kicks off the Pool Safely campaign (www.poolsafely.gov), a first-of-its-kind national public education effort to reduce child drownings and non-fatal submersions, and entrapments in swimming pools and spas. At a press conference at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex today, Olympic swimmers Jason Lezak and Janet Evans joined Inez Tenenbaum, Chairman of the CPSC; U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL); and Nancy Baker, mother of Virginia Graeme Baker, to officially launch Pool Safely and release the CPSC's annual submersion and entrapment reports.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030904/USCSCLOGO)
Today, CPSC released its annual reports on children's submersion and entrapment incidents which showed:
- From 2005-2007 there was an annual average of 385 pool and spa-related drownings for children younger than 15; about 78 percent, or 299, of these children were younger than five.
- From 2007-2009, there were an estimated average of 4,200 pool or spa emergency department-treated submersions for children younger than 15; and children between the ages of 12 to 35 months represented 47 percent of estimated injuries for these years.
- About 54 percent of the estimated injuries for 2007-2009 and 74 percent of the fatalities for 2005-2007 involving children younger than fifteen occurred at a residence.
- Most reported fatalities occurred on the day of (73 percent) or within a week of (additional 23 percent) the submersion incident. Just four percent of fatal victims survived beyond a week of the submersion; these victims had severe injuries and required intensive medical care.
- There were no reported entrapment fatalities for 2009. CPSC did receive eight reports of entrapment incidents in which seven people were injured during 2009.
For the complete reports see: Pool and Spa Submersions 2010 (http://www.cpsc.gov/library/foia/foia10/os/poolsub2010.pdf) and Circulation/Suction Entrapments 2010 (http://www.cpsc.gov/library/foia/foia10/os/entrap10.pdf). The years for reported injury and fatality statistics differ as a result of the lag in fatality reporting.
"It is important to keep in mind that these numbers represent family tragedies. Preventing child drownings year round is a priority for the CPSC," said Chairman Tenenbaum. "The Pool Safely campaign will start a national conversation with parents and children, pool owners and operators and industry professionals about the simple safety steps they can take to protect themselves and their families in and around pools and spas. These incidents are preventable, so our mission is to change the way families think and act about pool and spa safety."
The Pool Safely campaign is a key part of the CPSC's efforts to carry out the requirements of Section 1407 of the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act (P&SS Act), federal legislation signed into law in 2007 mandating new requirements for pool and spa safety. It includes a requirement for a national public education campaign designed to raise public awareness, support industry compliance, and improve safety at pools and spas.
"I have been involved in the issue of pool safety throughout my career and today marks a key milestone in the ongoing fight to reduce accidental drowning," said Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, author of the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act. "Educating communities on the potential dangers of swimming pools is a critical tool in saving the lives of our children. I am so pleased to have worked with my colleagues in Congress to provide the funds needed for implementation of this important campaign."
The Pool Safely campaign will deliver an important and simple message: just adding an extra safety step in and around the water can make all the difference. Your greatest water safety assurance comes from adopting and practicing as many water safety measures as possible, including: barriers that completely surround the pool with self-closing, self-latching gates; staying close, being alert, and watching children at the pool; learning and practicing water safety skills (knowing how to swim and perform CPR); and having the appropriate equipment (compliant drain covers, alarms, barriers and sensors).
The campaign will highlight the need to implement a "personal system of safety" that consists of adding as many proven water safety practices as possible in and around pools and spas.
"As a parent of young children, I know there's no single, sure-fire way to ensure their safety around pools and spas," added Janet Evans, five-time Olympic medalist in swimming. "Whether it's enrolling them in swimming lessons or simply watching them at all times, there is always one more thing I can do. The Pool Safely campaign offers a variety of simple steps we can all take to protect our children in pools and spas."
Pool Safely will serve as an information hub, delivering campaign tools and resources to various outreach channels. CPSC has taken the lead by partnering with national, regional and local organizations in the children's safety and drowning prevention communities. By engaging key partners, the campaign will reach the widest possible audience and build a sustainable network that will ensure the campaign's messaging is delivered for years to come.
"Knowing how to swim helped me win gold in the water, but it takes adding as many water safety steps as possible to ensure a safe environment for children in and around pools and spas," said seven-time Olympic medalist in swimming Jason Lezak. "No matter how responsible you already are, there is always one more safety step you can take to protect your child. That is how you can Pool Safely."
"I understand the need to bring together the public and dedicated partners in the water safety community to begin a national conversation about water safety," said Nancy Baker, the mother of Virginia Graeme for whom the Act is named. "I am honored to be involved in the Pool Safely campaign and look forward to working together to promote additional water safety steps we all can take in protecting our loved ones in and around pools and spas. Simple steps save lives."
The Pool Safely campaign – a national public education effort by the Consumer Product Safety Commission – is proud to partner with leading organizations, including American Red Cross, YMCA of the USA, Safe Kids USA, National Drowning Prevention Alliance (NDPA), World Waterpark Association (WWA), and Abbey's Hope. For more information, visit the website at www.poolsafely.gov or follow the campaign on Twitter @poolsafely.
CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772
CPSC Media Contact: (301) 504-7908
SOURCE U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission


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My late Uncle Hal had a few comedic saws he'd always pull out, usually after few beers. In one of his routines he would rub his palms together and say, "Consume. Consume. Consume. We must consume vast quantities!" And he'd cackle. As a boy I thought he was funny. Looking back, he seems prophetic.
My late Uncle Hal had a few comedic saws he'd always pull out, usually after few beers.
In one of his routines he would rub his palms together and say, "Consume. Consume. Consume. We must consume vast quantities!" And he'd cackle.As a boy I thought he was funny. Looking back, he seems prophetic.
Today, our economy is addicted to consumption as much as it is addicted to oil.
We consume so much stuff our houses can't even hold it all. An entire "self-storage" industry has sprung up around our consumption addiction. Acres of metal boxes, row on row, have sprung up in the last decade.
According to the Self Storage Association — no, I didn't make that up — storage is now a $20 billion-a-year industry occupying 2.2 billion square feet across the country. The industry growth chart looks like a ski jump. In 1985, the association says the U.S. had 6,600 storage units. In 2007 we had just shy of 60,000.By comparison, the rest of the whole world has 6,000 such units.
And it's not as if our homes have been getting smaller. The National Association of Home Builders notes the average home in 1970 was 1,400 square feet. In 2004, the average home had ballooned to 2,330 square feet.
And then the nation suddenly woke up and realized we can't really afford those bigger homes. We paid for them through finagled mortgages that have led to the highest foreclosure rates since the Great Depression. RealtyTrac Inc. says U.S. foreclosures filings jumped almost 80 percent in 2007, to 2.2 million.
So, what's Washington's answer to this disaster and the ensuing rrr, re, reces, ah, "economic downturn"?Spend more! Go. Buy. Consume. Don't worry. Go shopping.
Never mind President Bush's proposed $3.1 trillion budget contains a record $410 billion deficit.
Never mind the national debt, what we taxpayers owe total, stands at a record $9.2 trillion — that's $79,000 per taxpayer.
Never mind the Federal Reserve says consumer debt — not including those mortgages we can't afford — has grown from $210 billion in 2003 to a projected $255 billion in 2007.Forget all that.
Last week, Bush signed a $168 billion economic-stimulus package handing out tax rebates of up to $1,200 going to poor and middle-class families, incentives for businesses to invest in new equipment and some bailouts for the mortgage industry.
Rep. John Tierney, D-Beverly, stopped by the CNC offices a couple weeks ago to explain the negotiations surrounding the spend-now, pay-later package.
To his credit, he noted the package should be only the first of two steps.
The second step would involve less appetizing things like ending Bush's $1.7 trillion in tax cuts and investing more in education and in the nation's infrastructure.Good luck.
Essentially, Congress and Bush have given us dessert first and saved the spinach for later.
Already Arizona Sen. John McCain is running to the right on the Bush tax cuts, saying they should be permanent — although he opposed them when Bush first proposed them, back before he was running for president, back when he could still tell the truth.
The fact is we have some tough choices ahead. Beyond the debate over tax cuts vs. debt, we have to fashion a new economy. One that relies on investment in new industry and technology more — short-term pain for long-term gain — and on pure consumption less.
If not, our debt will consume us and we can all start living in those self-storage units, giving the name literal meaning.
Dan Mac Alpine is senior editor of the Beverly (Mass.) Citizen.


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WASHINGTON — The first investigation of how the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) did in paying benefits to Hurricane Katrina victims suggests massive fraud and the waste of millions of dollars of millions of taxpayer money.
Even given the scope of the disaster and FEMA's need to get money to victims quickly, experts say the Government Accountability Office report is damning. The GAO found "significant fraud and abuse." Investigators studied more than 200 cases, and say in 70 percent of them aid recipients gave bogus Social Security numbers — numbers that belonged to dead people, to someone else or to no one at all.
And when investigators checked out addresses given in these cases, about 40 percent were bogus — vacant lots or nonexistent apartments.
"What surprises me is the scope of the fraud, the magnitude of the fraud," says John Copenhaver, a former director of FEMA's regional office in Atlanta.
The report says FEMA basically did nothing to verify the identity or address of hundreds of thousands of aid recipients. One individual managed to collect 18 emergency payments of $2,000 using the same name, 18 different Social Security numbers and 12 bogus addresses.
"What this tells me," says Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, "is that FEMA has no controls and that millions of dollars are being wasted."
GAO also found that FEMA was in such disarray that almost half of those who received a $2,000 debit card got paid a second time.
None of this shocks evacuee Florencelee Jackson. She fought for months to get the aid she deserved but says she heard others talk of how easy it was to game the system.
"If you had a name, an address, a Social Security number," says Jackson, "you got money. I call it free money."
The GAO also found that some money was not exactly spent for essentials, but at a massage parlor, a casino and at "Condoms to Go."
Friday night, FEMA defended its performance, saying this was an emergency, many evacuees didn't have proper identification and anyone who defrauded taxpayers will be prosecuted.
Lisa Myers is NBC's senior investigative correspondent.


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Last week, the David Project released its "white paper" on Israel advocacy in US colleges and universities, titled A Burning Campus? Rethinking Israel Advocacy at America's Universities and Colleges.
The David Project is perhaps best known for its smear campaign against Columbia professor Joseph Massad in 2004–05, and more recently, for creating the most boring and uninspiring "Shit People Say" video.
Unlike previous hasbara handbooks, A Burning Campus? dispenses with the usual talking points and approaches Israel advocacy on college campuses more strategically.
As I demonstrate below, the report is surprisingly frank about how the anti-Semitism charge is used as a weapon, what is the best way to attack college professors, and which minority groups are best to, in their words, "co-opt."
The anti-Semitism charge as a tactic
The report is candid about how the anti-Semitism charge is used as a tactic. What it determines however, is that the tactic is ultimately ineffective and that other tactics should be employed.
Throughout the report, the authors assert that anti-Semitism is not a pervasive problem on college campuses:
Most American campuses are not hostile environments for most Jewish students….The chief concern therefore is not the welfare of Jewish students but that a pervasively negative atmosphere will affect the long-term thinking of current college students, negatively affecting strong bipartisan support for Israel.
Racial antisemitism of the kind most associated with the Nazis is not likely a serious problem on any American college campus. Swastikas appearing on a dorm room door or other similar manifestations are often dealt with quickly and seriously.
Campus is largely not a hostile environment for Jewish students. There has probably never been a richer array of ways for students to engage in meaningful Jewish activities today than there has ever been, including at schools where anti-Israelism is widespread.
Because anti-Semitism is not pervasive, such accusations are ineffective:
Pro-Israel organizations have often cast the challenge on campus as an assault on Jewish students rather than as a spreading pervasive negativity toward Israel. Casting the issue in these terms does not jive with the lived experience of many Jewish students, who know they can identify as Jews and largely not suffer repercussions…
[D]epicting campus as hostile to Jews has not to date proven to be an effective strategy for decreasing anti-Israelism on campus…
Therefore other tactics must be utilized.
How to attack professors
Instead of accusing your professors of anti-Semitism, accuse them of abusing their positions. This will produce higher returns:
[A]ccusing faculty members who propagandize against Israel of "academic malpractice" is likely to be a much more effective strategy than challenging specific allegations or invoking anti-Jewish bigotry. Rightly or wrongly, the current campus atmosphere is much more sympathetic to charges that teachers are not satisfactorily teaching their subject than to complaints of anti-Jewish bias and Israel supporters will likely have a greater practical impact by framing their concerns in this manner.
Apparently the David Project has come a long way since the days when founder Charles Jacobs labeled Jewish Columbia professors who disagreed with him as "the Marranos of Morningside Heights"—essentially Jew traitors.
Targeting specific racial groups
The report calls for pro-Israel students to build alliances with other groups on campus, notably with students of color:
Campus Israel advocates often overlook the importance of emerging groups with great potential to shape the campus conversation.
Many of these groups also have the potential to be co-opted into the anti-Israel coalition on campus. Preventing them from allying themselves with the anti-Israel effort or even co-opting them into pro-Israel efforts is an opportunity for a significant "win" by Israel advocates on many campuses.
Translation: If left unchecked, students of color might be "co-opted" into believing that Palestinians are subjected to racist oppression. We need to co-opt them first.
Notable among these are Indian groups, which have a potential for natural affinity. Indian Americans are overrepresented at many target schools…
Both [India and Israel] are primary targets and victims of Islamist terrorism, suffer from protracted border disputes with majority Muslim populations, have enjoyed tremendous success in high-tech industries and benefit from an impressive and growing national culture of entrepreneurship, and see themselves as the modern political manifestations of ancient civilizations.
Translation: Indians are never Muslim. They hate Muslims, so we have something in common. They're also entrepreneurs and are ancient like us.
Israel has a long standing, close alliance with the United States. Indian leaders increasingly see a close alliance with the United States as a pillar of their country's geopolitical strategy for many years to come. Indian political leaders therefore may view Israel's successful relationship with the United States in similar terms to the way that some Indian American leaders view American Jewish success.
Translation: There is no difference between US students of Indian descent and the government of India.
Other Asian groups are also increasingly significant factors on American campuses and could serve as fruitful partners:
South Korea has a large and growing evangelical population and there is evidence of increasing affinity for Israel and Jews in that country.
Translation: South Korean students love Jews and God.
China will obviously be a significant factor in world affairs for many years to come, and there is also some evidence of Chinese affinity for Jewish culture and Israel.
Translation: Chinese-American students control the world economy (through their dual loyalty to China) and groove to Matisyahu.
Many Latino student groups are susceptible to partnership in an anti-Israel coalition. Convincing them not to publicly affiliate with or otherwise support anti-Israelism would itself be a significant victory for Israel supporters on many campuses.
Although the report does not explain why Latino students are particularly susceptible to "anti-Israelism," a recent press briefing by The Israel Project might shed some light:
Americans of Hispanic origin, the fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States, are relatively hostile towards Israel because they are ignorant about Middle East affairs and are influenced by traditional anti-Israeli Catholic views, according to the Israel advocacy group, The Israel Project (TIP).
Translation: Latino students don't like Israel because they are ignorant and Catholic. Don't expect to win them over. The best you can do is prevent them from actively supporting the other side.
Conspicuously absent in the report is any discussion of African-American students, an issue that I will address in the near future.
Evangelical students
Evangelical students are an increasing proportion of and increasingly active on many target campuses. These students have a natural affinity for Israel and are becoming more active as campus advocates for Israel.
Evangelical positions on social issues like abortion and same-sex marriage are unpopular on most college campuses. Students who identify strongly in this way may have limited ability to influence non-evangelical students in a pro-Israel direction.
Translation: Evangelicals have a "natural affinity" for Israel, homophobia, and restricting women's rights. The first one is an asset, the latter two are liabilities, and evangelical anti-Semitism is a non-issue.
Israel supporters should therefore seek to work with this important demographic without entering into a permanent coalition that may hurt its ability to work with other groups and/or individuals on campus or that associates Israel's "brand" too closely with unpopular "social" issues.
At the same time, campus Israel supporters would be remiss not to seek to utilize and partner with evangelicals in creative ways.
Translation: Make sure Israel's reputation as a racist apartheid regime is not sullied by "unpopular" associations with homophobia and sexism.
And speaking of homophobia…
[M]any students have brought gay Israelis to campus to discuss gay rights in the country, an idea with obvious provenance that nevertheless does not usually interest a wider spectrum of campus due to its narrow focus on Israel. Instead, a pro-Israel group could plan a more general event on gay rights in the Middle East that would likely appeal to a much broader spectrum of students."
Translation: Notwithstanding the fact that you have just aligned yourself with homophobic evangelicals, when all else fails, exploit Middle Eastern queers.


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Weed Killers By The Glass: Kansas City, Missouri
Citizen Monitoring Result
Kansas City, Missouri drinking water is contaminated with cancer causing weed killers at levels that have exceeded federal standards for at least one herbicide. Tests of city tap water found six different pesticides or metabolites in a single sample. The most common pesticide contaminant is atrazine, which was found in every tap water sample tested between May 15 and July 1, 1995. Cyanazine was found in 81 percent of these same samples. During this test period approximately 2,900 infants in Kansas City consumed infant formula reconstituted with water contaminated with six toxic weed killers. (Note 1: Ershow, Abby G., and Cantor, Kenneth P. 1989. Total Water and Tapwater Intake in the United States: Population-Based Estimates of Quantities and Sources. Life Sciences Research Office; Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. Bethesda, MD)
Most of these weed killers are used in corn production. Since 1985, taxpayers have subsidized Missouri corn growers at a rate of $98 million per year, for a ten year total of $980 million. Farmers in turn pay nothing to clean up the water. The pesticide industry claims that farmers' weed control cost would double if these polluting herbicides were banned. Assuming the industry claim is true, the added costs to farmers would amount to just 11 percent of the value of the subsidy taxpayers pay to these corn farmers each year.
Causes mammary gland cancer in female rats in repeated studies.(Note 2: Copley, Marion. 1989. Follow-up to the Third Peer Review of Atrazine. EPA. Washington, D.C.; International Agency for Research on Cancer. 1991. World Health Organization. IARC Monographs on the Evolution of Cancer Risk to Humans. Vol. 53.) Classified by the EPA as a possible human carcinogen. Federal health standard in drinking water -- 3 parts per billion (ppb), European Drinking Water Standard -- 0.1 ppb.
- Found in 100 percent of 16 tap water samples
- Highest level found -- 1.90 ppb.
- Average concentration -- 1.01 ppb.
Causes mammary gland cancer in rats and birth defects in rats and rabbits in repeated studies. Causes genetic mutations. According to the EPA this makes cyanazine a potent carcinogen.(Note 3: Dykstra, William. 1991. Peer Review of Cyanazine (Bladex). EPA. Washington, D.C.) Classified by the EPA as a possible human carcinogen, required birth defects warning on the product label. Federal health guideline in drinking water -- 1 ppb. European Drinking Water Standard -- 0.1 ppb.
- Found in 81 percent of samples
- 25 percent of samples were above the federal health advisory.
- Highest level found -- 3.50 ppb, more than three times the federal health advisory.
- Average concentration -- 0.75 ppb.
Tests for Multiple Weed Killers
- Six pesticides or metabolites -- atrazine, cyanazine, metolachlor, alachlor, acetochlor, and desethylatrazine -- were found in a single sample of Kansas City, Missouri tap water collected on June 2, 1995.
- These six pesticides or metabolites include two pesticides classified by EPA as probable human carcinogens, three pesticides classified as possible human carcinogens, one pesticide that causes birth defects in animal studies, and three pesticides that disrupt the normal functioning of the hormone system.
- Federal drinking water standards do not account for this simultaneous exposure to multiple pesticides (or other contaminants) in drinking water, and allow cancer risks from these weed killers up to 29 times higher than the federal government allows from the same chemicals in food.
Use of 6 Major Herbicides on Missouri Corn Reached 6.1 Million Pounds in 1994, up One Million Pounds Since 1990
|Acres Treated, 1994
|Use, 1994 (lbs.)
(Note 4: USDA 1995. Agricultural Chemical Usage: 1994 Field Crops Summary.)


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Jb Leocoin Faucet: Building Wealth At Every Level – TAN
Thank you so much for visiting Affluence Network in looking for "Jb Leocoin Faucet" online. Ethereum is an incredible cryptocurrency platform, nevertheless, if growth is too fast, there may be some issues. If the platform is adopted immediately, Ethereum requests could rise drastically, and at a rate that surpasses the rate with which the miners can create new coins. Under such a scenario, the entire stage of Ethereum could become destabilized because of the increasing costs of running distributed applications. In turn, this could dampen interest Ethereum stage and ether. Instability of demand for ether may result in a negative change in the economic parameters of an Ethereum based business that may result in business being unable to continue to manage or to cease operation. The physical Internet backbone that carries information between the various nodes of the network has become the work of a number of firms called Internet service providers (ISPs), including firms that provide long distance pipelines, sometimes at the international level, regional local conduit, which finally links in families and businesses. The physical connection to the Internet can only occur through one of these ISPs, players like level 3, Cogent, and IBM AT&T. Each ISP manages its own network. Internet service providers Exchange IXPs, owned or private firms, and sometimes by Authorities, make for each of these networks to be interconnected or to transfer messages across the network. Many ISPs have agreements with suppliers of physical Internet backbone providers to offer Internet service over their networks for "last mile"-consumers and businesses who want to get Internet connectivity. Internet protocols, followed by everyone in the network makes it possible for the data to stream without interruption, in the correct place at the perfect time.
While none of these organizations "owns" the Internet collectively these firms determine how it functions, and established rules and standards that everyone stays. Contracts and legal framework that underlies all that is happening to ascertain how things work and what happens if something goes wrong. To get a domain name, for example, one needs consent from a Registrar, which has a contract with ICANN. To connect to the Internet, your ISP must be physical contracts with providers of Internet backbone services, and suppliers have contracts with IXPs from the Internet backbone to attach to and with her. Concern over security issues? A working group is formed to focus on the problem and the alternative developed and deployed is in the interest of all parties. If the Internet is down, you might have someone to phone to get it fixed. If the issue is from your ISP, they in turn have contracts set up and service level agreements, which govern the way in which these issues are worked out.
The benefit of cryptocurrency is that it uses blockchain technology. The network of nodes the make up the blockchain is not governed by any centered company. No one can tell the miners to upgrade, speed up, slow down, stop or do anything. And that is something that as a dedicated promoter badge of honor, and is identical to the way the Internet functions. But as you comprehend now, public Internet governance, normalities and rules that govern how it works current constitutional problems to the consumer. Blockchain technology has none of that. You have probably seen this many times where you frequently distribute the great word about crypto. "It's not volatile? What happens if the cost crashes? " sofar, several POS programs delivers free transformation of fiat, relieving some problem, but before the volatility cryptocurrencies is addressed, many people will soon be resistant to hold any. We must discover a way to struggle the volatility that's inherent in cryptocurrencies. Many people choose to use a money deflation, especially people who desire to save. Despite the criticism and disbelief, a cryptocurrency coin may be better suited for some uses than others. Fiscal seclusion, for instance, is amazing for political activists, but more problematic when it comes to political campaign financing. We need a stable cryptocurrency for use in trade; If you are living pay check to pay check, it'd happen as part of your wealth, with the rest reserved for other currencies. For most users of cryptocurrencies it isn't necessary to understand how the process functions in and of itself, but it is essentially crucial that you understand that there's a procedure for mining to create virtual currency. Unlike monies as we know them today where Authorities and banks can simply choose to print endless amounts (I 'm not saying they are doing so, only one point), cryptocurrencies to be operated by users using a mining application, which solves the sophisticated algorithms to release blocks of monies that can enter into circulation.
Jb Leocoin Faucet – The Affluence Network – The Opulence Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency is freeing people to transact money and do business on their terms. Each user can send and receive payments in a similar way, but in addition they take part in more sophisticated smart contracts. Multiple signatures allow a transaction to be supported by the network, but where a specific number of a defined group of folks agree to sign the deal, blockchain technology makes this possible. This enables advanced dispute mediation services to be developed in the future. These services could allow a third party to approve or reject a transaction in the event of disagreement between the other parties without checking their money. Unlike cash and other payment systems, the blockchain constantly leaves public evidence that a transaction happened. This can be potentially used in an appeal against businesses with deceptive practices. Since among the earliest forms of making money is in cash lending, it's a fact that you can do that with cryptocurrency. Most of the lending websites now focus on Bitcoin, many of these websites you're required fill in a captcha after a particular time frame and are rewarded with a small amount of coins for seeing them. It is possible to see the www.cryptofunds.co website to locate some lists of of these websites to tap into the money of your choice. Unlike forex, stocks and options, etc., altcoin marketplaces have very different dynamics. New ones are constantly popping up which means they do not have a lot of market data and historical outlook for you to backtest against. Most altcoins have rather inferior liquidity as well and it is hard to come up with an acceptable investment strategy. Just a fraction of bitcoins issued so far are available on the exchange markets. Bitcoin markets are competitive, which suggests the price a bitcoin will rise or fall depending on supply and demand. Lots of people hoard them for long term savings and investment. This restricts the number of bitcoins that are actually circulating in the exchanges. In addition, new bitcoins will continue to be issued for decades to come. Thus, even the most diligent buyer could not purchase all existing bitcoins. This scenario isn't to imply that markets usually are not vulnerable to price exploitation, yet there exists no need for big sums of cash to move market prices up or down. The merest occasions on earth economy can affect the price of Bitcoin, This can make Bitcoin and any other cryptocurrency volatile. When searching on the internet forJb Leocoin Faucet, there are many things to ponder.
Jb Leocoin Faucet: The Affluence Network – Wealth with Legs!
Click here to visit our home page and learn more about Jb Leocoin Faucet. The sweetness of the cryptocurrencies is that scam was proved an impossibility: because of the character of the protocol in which it's transacted. All transactions over a crypto currency blockchain are irreversible. As soon as you're paid, you get paid. This isn't something short-term where your customers can challenge or require a concessions, or use dishonest sleight of palm. Used, many merchants would be wise to utilize a payment processor, due to the irreversible character of crypto currency transactions, you have to ensure that stability is tough. With any kind of crypto currency whether it be a bitcoin, ether, litecoin, or the numerous additional altcoins, thieves and hackers could potentially gain access to your personal secrets and so steal your cash. Sadly, you most likely will never get it back. It's quite crucial for you to adopt some very good safe and secure procedures when dealing with any cryptocurrency. Doing this can guard you from many of these adverse events. In the case of a fully functioning cryptocurrency, it may also be dealt like a product. Supporters of cryptocurrencies proclaim this type of online money is not managed with a central bank system and it is not thus susceptible to the whims of its inflation. Because there are always a restricted number of items, this coinis worth is based on market forces, permitting entrepreneurs to trade over cryptocurrency exchanges. Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, LiteCoin, Ether, The Affluence Network, and many others have now been designed as a non-fiat currency. In other words, its backers argue that there's "actual" value, even through there is absolutely no physical representation of that value. The value increases due to computing power, that is, is the only way to create new coins distributed by allocating CPU power via computer programs called miners. Miners create a block after a period of time which is worth an ever decreasing amount of money or some sort of reward so that you can ensure the shortage. Each coin includes many smaller components. For Bitcoin, each component is called a satoshi. Operations that take place during mining are exactly to authenticate other trades, such that both creates and authenticates itself, a simple and elegant alternative, which will be one of the appealing aspects of the coin. The individual who has mined the coin holds the address, and transfers it into a value is supplied by another address, which is a "wallet" file stored on a computer. The blockchain is where the public record of all transactions resides. Most all cryptocurrencies function as Bitcoin does.
The fact that there's little evidence of any growth in the use of virtual money as a currency may be the reason there are minimal efforts to regulate it. The reason for this could be just that the market is too small for cryptocurrencies to justify any regulatory effort. It's also possible the regulators just do not comprehend the technology and its consequences, expecting any developments to act. Here is the trendiest thing about cryptocurrencies; they do not physically exist anywhere, not even on a hard drive. When you look at a particular address for a wallet featuring a cryptocurrency, there's no digital information held in it, like in the same manner that a bank could hold dollars in a bank account. It is nothing more than a representation of worth, but there is no real palpable kind of that worth. Cryptocurrency wallets may not be confiscated or immobilized or audited by the banks and the law. They don't have spending limits and withdrawal restrictions enforced on them. No one but the owner of the crypto wallet can decide how their riches will be managed. Mining cryptocurrencies is how new coins are put in circulation. Because there is no government control and crypto coins are digital, they cannot be printed or minted to create more. The mining process is what creates more of the coin. It may be useful to think about the mining as joining a lottery group, the pros and cons are the same. Mining crypto coins means you will really get to keep the total rewards of your efforts, but this reduces your likelihood of being successful. Instead, joining a pool means that, overall, members will have a much higher possibility of solving a block, but the reward will be divided between all members of the pool, predicated on the number of "shares" won.
If you are thinking about going it alone, it really is worth noting the applications settings for solo mining can be more complex than with a swimming pool, and beginners would be likely better take the latter path. This option also creates a steady stream of earnings, even if each payment is modest compared to fully block the benefit. If you are in search for Jb Leocoin Faucet, look no further than The Affluence Network.
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It should be challenging to get more little gains (~ 10%) throughout the day. Study how to read these Candlestick charts! And I discovered these two rules to be true: having little gains is more profitable than trying to fight up to the pinnacle. Most day traders follow Candlestick, so it's better to take a look at publications than wait for order confirmation when you think the cost is going down. Second, there is more volatility and compensation in monies that never have made it to the profitableness of websites like Coinwarz. The creation of websites has altered many lives, but there's always a concern as it pertains to the security of websites. There are other people with ill intentions who will see what you're doing online. They could monitor your trends over time. Some of the matters they can check online include seeing your online photographs, what you post online and even track your fiscal transitions over time with an aim of stealing from you. Even if there are many alternatives which have been implemented, there's always risk due to third parties. For example, when buying online using a credit card, you may be giving away a lot of your private information to the third party. Additionally, there are trade fees which make online payment expensive. It's definitely possible, but it must have the ability to understand opportunities no matter marketplace behaviour. The market moves in relation to cost BTC … So even supposing it's in a BTC trend down can make money by purchasing the altcoins which are altcoin oversold trading ratios-BTC. Sure, your purchasing power in DOLLARS may be lower, but as long as your purchasing power in BTC is still growing you will be fine. Entrepreneurs in the cryptocurrency movement may be wise to investigate possibilities for making enormous ammonts of cash with various kinds of internet marketing.There could be a rich reward for anyone daring enough to endure the cryptocurrency marketplaces.Bitcoin design provides an informative example of how one might make a lot of money in the cryptocurrency marketplaces. Bitcoin is an astonishing intellectual and technical achievement, and it's generated an avalanche of editorial coverage and venture capital investment opportunities. But not many people understand that and pass up on quite profitable business models made accessible because of the growing use of blockchain technology. You may run a search on the web. First learn, then models, indicators and most importantly practice looking at old charts and pick out trends. When you commence to keep a trading diary screenshots and your comment/forecast. Precisely what is the best way to get confident with charts IMHO. Oh certainly, and don't fool yourself into thinking that you get the uptrend will never decrease! Always will go down! You will discover that incremental increases are more reliable and profitable (most times)


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Notice - All Sumter County Schools have been inspected by an EPA-approved asbestos inspector and maintain a management plan file in the school as required under the AHERA regulations. The file is available to any parent to view.
Most of our asbestos containing materials are in the form of floor tiles and are non-friable. Although we do have some friable (able to crumble with hand pressure) suspect asbestos in our facilities, these materials are well maintained and are not accessible to the students. The law requires that we make this notice to all employees, students and staff annually.
We are glad to provide a healthy atmosphere for students and staff.
Sumter County Board of Education
Sumter County Public School System is committed to equal opportunity in employment and education and does not discriminate on the basis of sex. race, color, religion, or national origin, or against qualified handicapped persons and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. It is the policy of Sumter County Public Schools to be in accordance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which provides that: "no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." Inquiries concerning this policy may be directed to Hermania Woods, Federal Programs and Title IX Coordinator at firstname.lastname@example.com or 205-652-2271 xt.1212; 504 Coordinator, Mary B. Whitehead at email@example.com or 205-652-9605 xt.1101
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Grades 9 – 12 Learning Standards
Common Core: ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies
Key Ideas and Details
2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source;
· provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text (grades 9-10)
· provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas (grades 11-12)
3. Analyze in detail a series of events described in a text; determine whether earlier events caused later ones or simply preceded them (grades 9-10)
3. Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain (grades 11-12)
Craft and Structure
4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text,
· including vocabulary describing political, social, or economic aspects of history/social science (grades 9-10)
· including analyzing where the text leaves matters uncertain
9. Compare and contrast treatments of the same topic in several primary and secondary sources (grades 9 – 10)
9. Integrate information from diverse sources, both primary and secondary, into a coherent understanding of an idea or event, noting discrepancies among sources (grades 11-12)
Common Core: MATH
2007 Learning Results
Science and Technology
A1. Systems
A2. Models
C2. Understandings About Science and Technology
C3. Science, Technology, and Society
D2. Earth
D4. Force and Motion
Social Studies
C1. Economic Knowledge, Concepts, Themes, and Patterns
C2. Individual, Cultural, International, and Global Connections in Economics
D1. Geographic Knowledge, Concepts, Themes, and Patterns
D2. Individual, Cultural, International, and Global Connections in Geography
E1. Historical Knowledge, Concepts, Themes, and Patterns
E2. Individual, Cultural, International, and Global Connections in History
Visual and Performing Arts
Visual Arts, Theatre
B1. Media Skills
B2. Composition Skills
B3. Making Meaning
E1. The Arts and History and World Cultures
E2. The Arts and Other Disciplines


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They tumble
|Join The Mag creative writing group.
|Join The Mag creative writing group.
Do it with love, baby...that's the secret in the sauce :)ReplyDelete
Yes, it's how we carry all those random nails! Attractive is abstract!ReplyDelete
I love your rhyme in "wrist" and "sensitive."
This is amazing; definitely my favorite part:
"eyes shut, I lose equilibrium,
whisk fork-wild"
Phenomenal ending.
Do you see the two heads of black hair and what exactly is being eaten for breakfast, while the pot simmers on the stove in the forefront?
Thanks flipside...something yummy is definitely being eaten for breakfast...Delete
Oh, and your opening line was excellent, making it clear from the beginning exactly what kind of "eggs" you are mixing together. Brilliant word play with "if the shell breaks free." That is when the experience is the best, isn't it?Delete
An airy confection Tess, delicious in so many ways.ReplyDelete
lovely omelette, its gonna be!!! nice write, Tess!ReplyDelete
Wonderful, Tess. The second stanza I find especially strong...ReplyDelete
body language is key to make it delicious...ha. i like that bit there....and whisk fork wild....fun write tess...ReplyDelete
You might even augment the experience with a little Spanish, Western or French flair, perhaps even Thai one on... it would only make the flavor of this exciting poem a little more delicious! Thanks for sharing this, Tess!ReplyDelete
You say it all so well! Breakfast in bed.ReplyDelete
whisk fork wild~ absolutely! Throw in a few chiles with the cheese!
That's prety awesome! A delight to the senses..........ReplyDelete
The second stanza struck me as particularly appropriate! thanks.ReplyDelete
I love omelettes, and the omelette poem as well :-)ReplyDelete
"Whisk fork wild", "savor the mystery"....I LOVE how you weave words!ReplyDelete
delightful read and sound like a lovely breakfastReplyDelete
It's better when the shell breaks free! Delicious, a breakfast to be eaten anytime at all!ReplyDelete
you made me look at breakfast in a new light brilliantReplyDelete
You write with total abandon and I love it!!!ReplyDelete
They tumblewith a flick of the wrist....
... I lose equilibrium,
whisk fork-wild....
Body language is the key
to make it delicious...
There are lots of movements here,Tess! Enjoying the preparing even before the eating. Reminds me of the acrobatics of the Japanese chefs tossing and turning their knives and fork mid-air. We enjoy the fun of watching which whets the appetite. Wonderful write!
Hmmm - I love the idea of savoring texture only the random nails were a bit disturbing! The nuts and bolts of process! k.ReplyDelete
I'm trying to figure out if you're scrambling your eggs or tossing your salad here... 8-)ReplyDelete
Hmm, feels more like baking a delicious cake to me !ReplyDelete
oh the dance of making breakfastReplyDelete
You do realize I will be viewing my breakfast from here on out in such a new and vibrant light, right!ReplyDelete
Are you quite sure you wrote about breakfast? LOLReplyDelete
Oh! Whisk fork-wild. I like that!
Love all the movements in this.
Deliciously written
tasty indeed....thanks for sharing this TessReplyDelete
"Accept texture"
i love this advice, tess. it's direct and unusual. and isn't texture part of color.
and tess, you crack me up by where you find sensual :^)
The whole of it was as an egg a solid yolk yet fluid with protective white all about, i saw it and see itReplyDelete
Love this! Yum!
Anna :o]
Ah you could whisk me up an omelette - fork-wild od course - any time Tess.ReplyDelete
A little diamond of a poem.
Body language is the key
to make it delicious,
This I loved!
This puts me right in front of the stove. I like.ReplyDelete
What a sensuous omelette. I'm gonna try and make one.
Delicious. : )ReplyDelete
Now I am hungry! Omelette is perfect for the mangled breakfast image! :-)ReplyDelete
Great omlette poem! Yummy!ReplyDelete
For want of the nail, an omelette... Tasty whisking.ReplyDelete
so delightful and intelligent.....ReplyDelete
Dear Tess: I love eating the broken shells in "Omelette" aka living dangerously~ Fun~!! Read with much eggacting egglocution by Ronaldo~ReplyDelete
See what you made me do?
Go and have a full English breakfast at three in the afternoon for the first time in my life.
Sausage, egg, tomato, beans, french fries, mushroom and bacon. The lot. And very good it was too. Mind you, I then had to do 2 miles to walk it off again.
This was ever such a good prompt. Thank you.
Sometimes ya gotta do it...Delete
This guy!!! With the cigarette and the voice and the pausing... WIN. He is everything one of those guys should be.ReplyDelete
He certainly is...Delete
At the flick of a wrist, a few pencil strokes, reflecting, more pencil. Superb!ReplyDelete
Nothing like a sexy accented man to read your work. I'd lose equilibrium myself whisking ;).ReplyDelete
nice write... the title caught my attention!
The beauty of poetry (and of the poet) is to capture a moment we might otherwise think quotidian and turn it into an extraordinary piece of writing. Your poem did that. Many thanks.
Greetings from London.
TO me this poem fits the image. Cubism takes the eyes and the poem takes the ears to places in one's own mind that are unique to each individual. It is the distortions that accentuate the normal to a greater degree than the normal cam do for itself.
Congrats too, Tess. You deserve your reward.
Wow. Sizzling! a good whisking is often the secret ;PReplyDelete


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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) David Price got a hefty raise for winning the AL Cy Young Award.
A person with knowledge of the deal said Tuesday night that the three-time All-Star and the Tampa Bay Rays have agreed to a one-year contract worth just over $10 million, avoiding arbitration.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team had not yet made a formal announcement. Price earned $4.35 million last season, when he went 20-5 with an American League-low 2.56 ERA.
The hard-throwing left-hander barely beat out Detroit's Justin Verlander to become Tampa Bay's first Cy Young winner. He tied Jered Weaver for the league lead in wins and winning percentage and was sixth in strikeouts with 205 in 211 innings.
The Rays are expected to announce the deal with 27-year-old later this week.
Price was the first overall pick in the 2007 draft out of Vanderbilt. He was promoted to the majors late the following year, when Tampa Bay made an improbable run to the World Series.
In 2010, he became the youngest pitcher to start an All-Star game since Dwight Gooden in 1986 and finished second to Seattle's Felix Hernandez in Cy Young balloting after going 19-6 with a 2.72 ERA.
The ace of one of the deepest rotations in baseball last season, Price will be counted on even more in 2013 following a six-player trade that sent right-handers James Shields and Wade Davis to the Kansas City Royals in exchange for four minor leaguers, including top prospects Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi.


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1959 Plymouth Sport Fury
It's Forward look and Flamboyant style make the '59 Fury a timeless classic.
1959 marked the third year of the "Forward Look" for Plymouth. The body had been restyled in a rather flamboyant fashion, while having the same general silhouette. A new "Star View" windshield provided for some 11-percent more glass area with the addition of a compound curve top. The new sheet metal had a distinctive and sculpted shape that ended up outselling the 1958 version, and kept Plymouth in the number three overall sales position for the year.
The front end of the car was bold, and featured a lattice-work grille that was full-width, quad headlights, and a large bumper with a lower valance panel that had the look of a scooped jet intake. On the rear, the "stabilizing" fins were modified from the previous years with a new, longer, sweeping size and thinner shape, slightly canted outward. The taillights were moved down, and used built-in back-up lights, cleaning up the rear and providing a look of width and lowness.
Standard equipment on the top-of-the-line 1959 Sport Fury was the swivel seats, where at the touch of a lever it turned outward to aid in the entrance and exiting of the interior. This was particularly ideal for women dressed in tight skirts or evening gowns. The exterior of the Sport Fury was also adorned with special textured-aluminum trim on the sides, where the spears turned upwards on the rear fenders to replicate the shape of the fins. There wasn't actually any outside emblems or markings on the car that said "Sport Fury," just the word Fury (but gold-hued) to distinguish it from a regular Fury.
The Sport Fury used V-8 engines. Standard engine was a 260-horsepower 318 engine using a four-barrel (known in and around the Chrysler-Plymouth dealerships as the "V-800 Super-Pak), which produced 345 lb/ft. of torque. An optional "Golden Commando 395" engine--that had a completely different block, known as the "B" engine, delivered 305 horsepower from its 361 cubic inches, and was a $74.00 upgrade. This engine was fitted with 10.0:1 pistons, high-load valve springs, a dual-point ignition system, Carter AFB four-barrel carburetor, and low-restriction dual exhausts.
The 395 in the name of the engine refers to the torque rating, as it produced 395 lb/ft. of torque (at 3,000 rpm). The 361 was a new version of the "B" engine for 1959, being an outgrowth of the former 350-cid engine thanks to a larger bore (from 4.06 to 4.12 inches).
Two different automatic transmissions were offered in the Sport Fury, the standard equipment two-speed PowerFlite, and the rugged TorqueFlite three-speed, which in 1959 used a cast-iron case. 11-inch hydraulic drum brakes with Cyclebond linings were used front and rear.
According to the testing in the December 1958 edition of Motor Life Magazine, the Golden Commando 395 engine as fitted in a 1959 Sport Fury hardtop could accelerate from a standing start to 60 mph in 7.8 seconds, using 3.31:1 rear gearing. The editors averaged 14 miles per gallon in their testing.
There was a torsion bar front suspension up front, and it provided much-improved cornering, and less dive while braking. The rear used 2-1/2-inch outboard-mounted leaf springs.1959 was the final year for the Plymouth line to have a body-on-frame construction, as for 1960, a new unit-body was introduced.
Car Life Magazine also tested a '59 Sport Fury in their July 1959 issue (equipped with the Golden Commando 395 engine). They took it for a three-thousand mile drive up and down the east coast. They were most impressed with the suspension: "This Sport Fury's ride is top-notch all the way. The car corners at all speeds with a minimum of body lean or tire squeal. At higher speeds, its 'beefed up' suspension allows it to track curves without plowing or drifting. Even when taking you over large bumps, the car refuses to bounce or toss. Smaller bumps are just about completely soaked up by the suspension."
During the testing period, the editors weren't afraid to do some WOT (wide-open-throttle) action with the finned Mayflower. "The passing prowess of this automobile was a constant source of joy. When you're behind the wheel of the Sport Fury, you never feel the need for creeping up close to a car to be passed, so as to get by it at the first available opportunity. A flick of the right foot on the accelerator, at any speed below 75 miles per hour, results in instantaneous downshift into the intermediate of the transmission's three gears. A slight turn to the left on the steering wheel, and you're almost immediately past the car that had been leading you."
In all, a total of 17,867 Sport Fury Hardtops were produced in 1959 and not a whole lot of them survived, as rust was a major factor in their disappearance from the roads and highways to the junkyards of America.
San Diego, California's Dick Martin always liked the late-1950s Plymouths, and when he got his driver's license, he wanted to buy a used 1959 Sport Fury. However, he didn't have enough money to do so, and his parents didn't think it was right for him to borrow the money for one at that early time in his life. After all these years, he still desired a Sport Fury, so when the opportunity chance came up for him to purchase a beautiful example, the pictured Emerald Green hardtop, he jumped at the chance!
The car was restored by Richard L. Burdick in Hawleyton, New York, and he was highly qualified to perform the work as in 1959, he purchased a brand-new Sport Fury and knows the cars well. A lot of NOS parts were found for the restoration of the rare Plymouth, and today it is considered one of the best, most complete, properly restored 1959 Sport Fury cars in America.


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Scientists deploy multibeam sonar aboard the F/V Lily, Capt. Bill Muniz. Photo by Rachel Feeney.
Dr. Ray Grizzle, Capt. Mike Leary and crew pick the catch from a gillnet aboard the F/V Lori B. Photo by Chris Manning.
The crew fixes the net between tows aboard the F/V North Star out of Portland, ME. Photo by Rich MacKenzie.
Capt. Frank and Andrew Mirarchi prepare an experimental dogfish exclusion grate for the whiting fishery, designed by MA DMF scientists, for deployment from the F/V Barbara L. Peters. Photo by David Chosid.
Scientist Rebecca Jones and Capt. Brad Parady check out the catch from an experimental juvenile shrimp trap aboard the F/V Angela and Ashley. Photo by Chris Manning.


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LA Fitness, Irvine, CA, reached a class action lawsuit settlement in one case and won an appeal that overturned a verdict that had awarded the plaintiff more than $500,000 in another case.
In the case Jay Mau v. LA Fitness International LLC dba Pro Results, the plaintiff alleged that LA Fitness improperly included a voluntary termination clause in its personal training agreements and that some members paid a fee under that clause in order to cancel their contracts early.
Although LA Fitness denied any wrongdoing, the company agreed to modify language in current and future contracts and give members in the class action suit a free 45-day pass to all LA Fitness clubs excluding LA Fitness Signature Club locations as well as a cash payment worth about 6 percent of the early termination fee that they had paid.
The other case, Allen v. LA Fitness International LLC, was argued May 9 in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division. Plaintiff Eileen Allen had been awarded $525,000 in damages after a jury in a trial court found LA Fitness negligent in the case. Allen claimed she injured her shoulder performing what she termed an unsafe exercise in an LA Fitness club under the supervision of a personal trainer whom she claimed did not assess her condition and needs. Allen had signed an 18-month personal training contract at the club.
On June 15, the appellate court decided that there was no evidence of reckless conduct or gross negligence on the part of LA Fitness. The court disagreed with Allen's assertion that her contract that included her acknowledgement and assumption of risk and release was different because the contract was for a personal trainer.
LA Fitness declined further comment on either case.


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REAL ESTATE- ON THE BLOCK- West comes east: City neighborhood a SF treat
ADDRESS: 1024 Grove Street
NEIGHBORHOOD: Fifeville
SIZE: 1,125 fin. sq. ft.
LAND: 0.15 acres
CURB APPEAL: 6.5 out of 10
AGENT: Marjorie Adam, RE/MAX Assured Properties, 817-9573
The exceptionally hilly streets between Jefferson Park and Cherry Avenues seem more like San Francisco than Charlottesville– alas, without the cable cars. This week's tour brings us to the western part of Fifeville, just south of the UVA Medical Center.
This cream-colored stucco house has stood near the top of a hill at the corner of Jones Street and the one-way Grove Street for nearly 90 years. As often happens with older houses, the foundation has settled significantly. In fact, the tops of the interior doorways resemble Gumby's head.
While the doors– many original, and with original doorknobs and exterior locking mechanisms– have been cut down to fit their evolving frames, the settling is nonetheless a bit... unsettling.
The bright kitchen is an example of necessity mothering invention, and the owner has made some clever adjustments to the small space: the gas stove is narrower than most, as is the cutest dishwasher we've ever seen. When we laid eyes upon this 18-inch-wide model (the standard is 24 inches), our heart skipped a beat, and we felt a victorious thrill like the late great Steve Irwin must have felt upon capturing a rare beast on camera. Whirlopoolius narrowus awaits the adventurous buyer!
Even the microwave gets into the efficiency game, with a built-in toaster on one side. A double-stacked washer-dryer completes the effect. The ceramic sink looks original, and cabinets are situated wherever there's room– as well as a pantry.
While the kitchen is eclectic, it clearly reflects the tastes of the owner, who has lived here about ten years. While a flipper would have installed the obligatory "granite-maple-stainless" kitchen array, we give the owner credit for her determination to make herself a comfortable place to live. At sale time, though, it's not all guaranteed to charm: the floral print wallpaper and bold colors are definitely not for everyone. As the agent puts it, the next owners may wish to "make it their own."
Aesthetics aside, one thing we like to see in a house for sale is a list of improvements. This seller's list includes replacing the roof, sewer line, and electrical panel. The windows are also new. One big negative is the laminate flooring in the back two rooms downstairs: it's starting to buckle in spots. One never can tell with older houses, but most likely there's original hardwood underneath, as in the rest of the house.
The oak planks downstairs are the standard 2.25" wide, while upstairs are rustic 3.5"-wide planks. The only room up here, though, is the bedroom. The only bathroom? Downstairs in the back. As Scooby Doo used to say, Ruh-ro, Raggy!
While taking stairs to the bathroom doesn't rival the "shoes-and-a-flashlight" routine of our outhouse-using ancestors (and, if you believe stereotypes, of our contemporaries in West Virginia), it sure isn't convenient. The agent suggests a few potential solutions, thankfully none of which involve bedpans or elaborate Rube Goldberg machines with tubes.
First, the dining room (adjacent to the bathroom) counts as a bedroom, with the required closet and window– sleep there and make your guests walk the stairs! For more space, the owner took out the living room closet, but it could also be a bedroom.
None of this is to suggest that a family of 4.2 would be comfortable here– this house seems suited for a couple or single person. An ambitious couple with unexpected twins on the way, though, could build a room and bathroom on the second floor, as the rear of the house is currently just one story, and some of the neighboring houses appear to have undergone similar additions.
The back door opens to a small southwest-facing porch. Thanks to the placement of the house near the corner of the lot, the yard extends 40 feet to the side (Jones Street). Keep walking, and Fifeville Park is a block away. It's downhill, and there's no need to watch out for cable cars.
Each week, a brave local seller invites the Hook to provide an impartial, warts-and-all look at their real estate listing. E-mail yours today!
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Unfortunately, Charlottesville has quite a few old homes that have from bad floor plans to obsolete floor plans and fixtures. Instead of spending a ton of money to try to bring them up to modern standards and code, it's best to tear them down and put up something that would really encourage a family to live in the city. Frankly, this sounds more like a Section 8 rental.
The thing is, this isn't a "real" city, like San Francisco. It's just a college town with a big opinion of itself and its real estate. If this house were in SF you'd have all the advantages of a big City. Since you don't have the advantages of a big city, you get that old li(n)e "close to UVA." Which really means "in the shadow of the hospital where the poor people used to live." Since they were not only poor but also black and no doubt exploited and this area used to be part of plantation lands, the hardship gets to be remembered as "historic."
Gentrification? No. Just price gouging. In this economy, and in this housing market with OVER THREE YEARS OF INVENTORY, let's get real. The assessment is just to make City some money. A buyer who spends more than $50K on this needs to trot down the street to the psychiatric wing. This is one for the bubble blog.
This owner paid $51K in 1999 for this house, according to City reacords (realestate.charlottesville.org). Is it owner or real estate agent who thinks it's possible to make a profit of $128K? Are they aware of the percentage increase here?! ROTFL. Looks like Marjorie Adams missed the memo and couldn't send it on to her client.
There are some really great listings for San Francisco real estate over at Neighborcity that you should check out http://www.neighborcity.com/CA/San-Francisco
Sold, $158k, Aug 2010


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Unknown group torched two CSF vehicles parked in Tahrir square , lucky nobody was harmed last 9/10.
Nobody claimed responsibility until we found that video online title "Hooligans , operation No.0 : Torching the CSF vehicles on 9/10/2012 on a YouTube channel called "Arab Anonymous" {The channel was made on December 4th ,2010}
From the computerized narrator reading a perfect Arabic in inhuman way and the Vendetta King Tut's picture , we know that they are claiming to be anarchists. According to that message that reminded us with Anonymous' video message , we knew that group is just testing its power , this is training "Somebody could have been killed"
last 15/9/2012 "US embassy protest" from the street. "The video called the protesters as rebels yet this not an Islamist group". The group also said this operation is like an answer for how the MOI let Tahrir square to be invaded with "mercenaries" and how the graffiti of Mohamed Mahmoud was erased.
The video called the minister of interior Ahmed Gamal El Din as pig and declared their operations will target in the future the current regime and the Muslim brotherhood.
After that video , this Facebook Page with the name of "Hooligans" appeared.
I do not understand why they used the song of Mobinil Ad "Because we are all together !!"
Now on Friday we found them posting this status update on Friday during the clashes between MB and Non MB protesters with that photo:
Operation No.1 soon : F*cking the MB .. 3:45 PMJust in case the photo is removed : Molotov cocktails , a guy with fancy watch holding a paper with the name of the operation
Despite they did not claim responsibility of torching the MB buses at night , some people are to know between both incidents. It is worth to mention there were Molotov cocktails hurled at both sides of the protesters , may be
Interesting today we found another Facebook claiming to be the Hooligans page that was created on October 13/10 "today" but in Arabic "El Mshagbeen Movement"
I totally refuse the torching of MB buses because yesterday the MB buses and tomorrow it may be the HQ of Constitution party. I also refuse Molotov cocktails to be thrown at each other like animals and savages.
I think violence made us pay a heavy price in our Egyptian revolution and I will say it again , some adrenaline junkies dragged us in useless battles that made us lose a lot when it comes to the public.
Already we got growing threat of radical religious terrorism in Sinai and in Egypt especially with the rise of the Jihadist Salafism and the constant threats of Al Gama'a Al Islamiyaa and Islamic Jihad that they may hold arms again against Morsi and the current regime if it does not apply Sharia from their own perspective. We can not tolerate having a militant anarchist movement. I do not need to tell you that how much we paid in the terrorism years , at least look it from the freedoms we are fighting for. In terrorism years , no cry over the battle cry !!
I do not need to say that these guys will harm and are harming socialists and other anarchists in Egypt with these actions considering the fact this is a society that does not have a clear idea about anarchism. The MB needs something to play the role of the victim that they excelled for a long time. The ministry of interior and the New National security want to avenge for their dignity.
You want to know how much we lost , well may be you should check the results of the first round of the Presidential elections when Shafik and Morsi made it to the runoffs , the stability candidates. The people are looking for an alternative for the MB , more of these people will not go for the MB only but for the Mubarak regime that kept them safe from those kids.


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An interesting write-up over at The Economist on Richard Wrangham's argument about the role of cooking in human evolution, which he reiterated at the 2009 AAAS Annual Meeting in Chicago. The orthodox view among the anthropology community seems to be that human brain size increased due to a shift in diet from vegetables to meat. Wrangham's view is that it is the cooking of food rather than its origin which has influenced human brain size:
Cooking alters food in three important ways. It breaks starch molecules into more digestible fragments. It denatures protein molecules, so that their amino-acid chains unfold and digestive enzymes can attack them more easily. And heat physically softens food. That makes it easier to digest, so even though the stuff is no more calorific, the body uses fewer calories dealing with it.
On the face of it, it seems plausible. Cooked foods make more nutrients available, and would presumably require less chewing, reducing the size of the jaw and making more of the skull's internal space available for the brain.
This is a more application-oriented twist:
Indeed, Dr Wrangham suspects the main cause of the modern epidemic of obesity is not overeating (which the evidence suggests—in America, at least—is a myth) but the rise of processed foods. These are softer, because that is what people prefer.
On a very unscientific level, I had suspected once that upma made with fine semolina was digested more quickly (and consequently felt less filling) than upma made with coarse cracked wheat. It is nice to learn that there is a scientific basis for that hypothesis.
Now: assuming that food habits are harder to change than foods themselves, would it be possible to make people gain less weight by making foods artificially rough? Could one make a taste-free coarse-particled edible powder (like a "magic food") to sprinkle on (or mix with) soft creamy foods to make them digest more slowly? I'm not being facetious — if the food is grittier and rougher and takes longer to digest, the glycogen peak after a meal should be wider and shorter, and should presumably make a person less susceptible to diseases like Type II diabetes. One way to do this would be to eat naturally grittier and healthier foods (whole wheat flour instead of refined wheat flour for instance), but if one habitually eats foods that are too soft and easily digestible, could we add an antidigestive agent to the food to slow down the sugar rush?


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Houston biking group eyes future amid growth, complaints
On the last Friday of every month, Houston bicyclists meet at Market Square park to take part in Critical Mass, an informal bike ride that happens among different groups all over the world.
The size of the last ride was the talk of the town on Friday night, good and bad.
Abrahan Garza has been riding with CM since May 2009. He remembers there only being around 300 riders on his first ride. Friday night, he says he was one of nearly 1,500. Some estimated there to be close to 2,000.
Some have begun asking out loud if this means the event is getting too big for its own good.
The main gripe of people who encounter CM during a ride is that some of the riders are not observing traffic laws as those driving cars and trucks are expected to.
The practice of "corking" an intersection to protect riders is what usually angers most outsiders. An experienced rider blocks cars from entering an intersection as cyclists come through it.
This leads to plenty of honking and and back and forth between CM riders and those in cars. Riders also remind one another to not block train tracks or emergency vehicles.
Craig Taylor is a regular CM rider in Houston. He said he and others in CM would love have a police cruiser, a motorcycle cop, or even just a bicycle cop available to tour with them to help with safe passage.
Some CM materials do make mention of traffic safety, noting that in the interest of the group staying together while on a route, sometimes red lights and stop signs aren't obeyed.
"Safety always comes before the law," says one FAQ available online from the Chicago CM group.
The Houston-area rides usually last two hours or so, kicking off at 7:30 p.m. and sometimes encompassing 20 miles of biking.
Friday's ride began at the park and ended at Summer Street Studios, where you can still find some of artist David Adickes' sculpture work.
The goals of Houston's CM, besides camaraderie and appreciation of the cycling experience, is to send a message to those in automobiles that bicyclists are also on the streets and to respect their space.
In turn, this should cement Houston's image as a bike-friendly city.
Garza says he's seen riders as young as 10 and as old as 80.
"This proves that Houston is a bike city," says Garza, of the loosely-organized CM.
CM doesn't enforce any official rules or codes, other than basic bicycling etiquette. There is no enforcement of helmets or other protective gear. They welcome all bikes as well. Some newbies are coming to CM on B-cycles too.
From what Garza says, the group very much depends on riders using their best judgment.
As Garza reminds, there is no way to drum out problem bicyclists.
Since CM is a capital-O organization, there is no one to complain to directly. There is no official leadership or hierarchy.
The group's Facebook page is full of complaints from riders and outsiders alike.
After each ride, there are CM regulars and critics who air their beefs on social media.
Taylor says none of this is new, and it does come with the territory. Internet trolls sometimes get the best of a few riders.
"Any community that grows to a size that CM has will have bickering," Taylor says.
The disagreements don't affect the Friday night rides though.
"When you are out on the road this doesn't seem to be an issue," he says.
Taylor noticed on Friday that some in the group were littering and voiced his concerns on Facebook. He's now looking into instituting recycle crews and rolling litter baskets.
"Houston has really improved the bike access to a lot of the city," says Taylor. The CM goal, to remind drivers that they share the rode with bicycles, seems to be working here in Houston.
"The message that 'We are here as a group of individual bikers please keep us in mind when we are not in the mass' has been heard," Taylor says.
Garza reiterates that CM will never go away, even as riders come and go.
"Critical Mass ends when you stop riding," he says. "It's here to stay."


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In generations past, was it advantageous for a black man to have a distinctively black name?
Yes, according to a study published recently in the journal Explorations in Economic History.
Researchers Lisa D. Cook, Trevon D. Logan, and John M. Parmanc analyzed over 3 million death certificates from Alabama, Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina from 1802 to 1970. They looked specifically at the life expectancy of men with the following distinctively black names:
- Abe, Abraham
- Alonzo
- Ambrose
- Booker
- Elijah
- Freeman
- Isaac
- Isaiah
- Israel
- King
- Master
- Moses
- Percy
- Perlie, Purlie, Pearlie
- Presley, Presly
- Prince
- Titus
What did they find?
That black men with these names lived more than a full year longer (on average) than other black men. In fact, according to the abstract, "[a]s much as 10% of the historical between-race mortality gap would have been closed if every black man was given a black name."
So what's behind this beneficial effect?
It's hard to say, but Lisa D. Cook believes that the black men with Biblical names specifically could have been "held to a higher standard in academic and other activities […] and had stronger family, church or community ties," and that this could have played a part in their relative longevity.
Studies of modern black names, in contrast, regularly find that such names are a hindrance in the workplace, in academia, etc. My most recent post about this is: Men with "Black" Names Seen as Aggressive, Low Status.
Sources: What's in a name? In some cases, longer life, The mortality consequences of distinctively black names (abstract)


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Item #0040
100 days. Sugar Pie is the standard for making terrific pies, soups, muffins, and casseroles. Small 6" fruits are also good for carving table décor-size jack o'lanterns. Stores for months. Delicious pumpkin cheesecake recipe inside packet.
This packet sows 8 mounds.
Seedling Image
Days to Emerge:
Seed Depth:
Seed Spacing:
Mound Spacing:
When to sow outside: RECOMMENDED. 2 to 4 weeks after average last frost, and when the soil temperature has risen above 60°F.
When to start inside: Not recommended except in very short growing seasons; 2 to 4 weeks before average last frost. Sow in paper or pulp pots that can be planted directly in the ground. Transplant when soil temperatures are at least 60°F.
Harvesting: Harvest pumpkins before the first fall frost, and when foliage has begun to dry out. Cut stem with a knife, leaving 3"-4" of stem on the pumpkin. Do not hold the pumpkin by the stem; if stem attachment gets broken, or any part of the pumpkin bruises, the pumpkin may rot. Brush off any dirt or leaves. Cure in a sunny window or porch at 75°-80°F for 1 to 2 weeks before eating or storage. Do not allow harvested fruit to get wet.
Artist: Carolyn Crawford
Item #0040
4.00 grams
Whether you carve your pumpkin for a Halloween Jack O'Lantern, or plan to use it for baking, be sure to save the seeds for roasting. Pumpkin seeds are…More…


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Manufacturer: ESTON
Model: GDWS-500B
Warranty: 12 months
Working Room Size WDH: 700x800x900mm
Temperature Test Range: -40 °C~+180°C
Temperature Fluctuation: ± 0.5 °C
Temperature Uniformity: ± 2. 0 °C
Heating Rate: 2 °C/ min heat-up
Cooling Rate: 1 °C/ min cool-down
Humidity Test Range: 20%~98%RH
Humidity Fluctuation: ±2.0%
Humidity Uniformity: ±2.0%
Sensor: Wet and dry bulb sensor
Controller Type: 7.0 inch true color screen
Controller Run Mode: Fix run and program run
Program capacity: Max 120 groups, and all groups can be circulated.
Controller Language: English, Chinese
Communication Interface: RS232, USB, Ethernet
Computer Software: Yes
Cooling way: Air cooling
Compressor Brand: Tecumseh or other famous brands
Refrigerant Oil Type: R404/ R23
Condenser: Air cooled condenser
Motor Fan: Low noise centrifugal fan
Power supply: 220V, 50Hz, 1-ph or 380V, 50Hz, 3-ph
Relative Room Temperature: 5°C ~35°C
Relative Room Humidity: ≤ 85%RH
Company History
ESTON was founded on 2004 year, they located at the beautiful city of Shanghai, China.
They produce environment test equipments and service for China users and foreign distributors. They have professional R&D team, their engineers have more design experience, most of them came from some world famous environment test equipments manufactures, and takes us more new design and idea for their products. their plant area is about 1500 square meters, and they have professional production facilities, the equipments' materials and sheet metal workings are done by themselves. So they can customize any specifications test equipments in their side. They always believe that, there is no best equipments in the world, but their test equipments are best suitable for users. They have passed the ISO production management certificate, each of equipments must be tested more than 1 Week before shipment. So their test chambers can keep high performance testing functions and can be also very competitive in the market for distributors. their main market is in China, since from 2013 year, they started to develop the foreign markets, and by now, they have established many cooperation relationships with foreign distributors.
EMIN Viet Nam was glad to become the first distributor of Eston in Vietnam.
Catalog Laboratory Test Instruments
- 质量承诺
- 正品保修
- 送货到家
- 交易简单化


text: Blow up the barriers on the way or this cute dog will fly away. Road Closed is a new game from Wombat Buddy. This is a mini game for test your reaction. Press any key or click mouse button to throw bombs into obstacles. But be careful and don't blow up the bridge. Check how far you can ride.


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The Gnomon Workshop is widely regarded as the global leader in training tutorials for the designer working in the entertainment industry. With tutorials ranging from foundational drawing and design concepts to process tutorials from some of the top concept and character designers in the world, there is surely something here to inspire.
As the tattoo industry has seen an explosion in popularity over the last few years, the need training in this field has also grown. In these video tutorials, some of the top tattoo artists in the world share their techniques and their take on the art of tattoo. The tutorials range from absolute beginner level to advanced color and blending techniques used by some of the world's best.
The Gnomon Workshop offers professional training on most of the software applications used in today's digital pipelines. There are foundational titles to introduce users to the software and tools, as well as advanced production titles that discuss application tools and processes vital to the production of digital assets and media.
Professional Training for Artists
The Gnomon Workshop seeks out the most highly-regarded traditional and digital artists and technicians currently working in the entertainment and design industries. Our instructors have shared their practices working at such top studios as Pixar, ILM, Blizzard, and many more.Instructor GalleriesInstructor Interviews
Mark Dedecker has worked as the lead character artist at Gentle Giant Studios and Ignition Entertainment, specializing in high and low resolution modeling and texturing for film and game characters. Currently a freelance character artist and Gnomon School instructor, Mark has worked on numerous films, games and collectibles. Some of Mark's work can be seen in Golden Axe, Iron Man, Species: The Awakening; and his digital double work has been on films such as The Hulk, 10,000 BC andThe Watchmen. Mark's bust of Spiderman 3's "Venom" was featured on the June 2007 cover of Toy Fare magazine. Mark graduated from Gnomon School of Visual Effects in 2006.
"I had the good luck to work with Mark Dedecker professionally for three years when we were both with Gentle Giant Studios. Mark is a great artist who brings so much character to all his sculpts. I am always thrilled by the sense of life and personality in each of his works. Mark is one of those digital sculptors who is just as happy sculpting the flexed heroic figure as the beautiful subtleties of the aged or corpulent form. His abilities to communicate humor and persona in a variety of different physiques was always fun to see. Mark is also gifted with the ability to break down and understand the sometimes highly technical process of bringing a character from sculpture into a game. Never losing sight of the art Mark always seems to bring the highest quality to each project we undertook. Mark was always able to seamlessly move from sculpting a lifelike dynamic character, to creating highly detailed costume and weapons, to taking all those beautiful assets and making them work inside someone else's engine. I'm happy to have had the chance to work with Mark and I am excite for those who now have the chance to learn from his unique and powerful techniques."
Try a Class on Campus
Gnomon specializes in computer graphics education for careers in the entertainment industry.


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Radon is a natural radioactive gas, which enters buildings from the ground and can cause lung cancer.
If you are buying, building or extending a home, then you need to know about radon, and there are several reports available for you.
If the home has a full postal address including a postcode then you can obtain a Radon Risk Report (£3+VAT) online from UKradon
This report will tell you if the home is in a radon affected area, which you need to know if buying or living in it, and if you need to install radon protective measures, if you are planning to extend it.
If you are building a new home then you are unlikely to have a full postal address for it.
You can obtain a report from GeoReports service, located using grid references or site plans, which will tell you whether you need to install radon protective measures when building the home.
For further information about radon affected areas and radon protective measures see Radon data: radon potential dataset


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As a followup to my earlier blog post – here are some other online resources that can be used to support Reader Development (and are relevant to students on the ICTL course):
Fantastic Fiction – this website is particularly useful for searching by author and for filtering results by genre. The website also includes book reviews .
What's next? – a very useful website for identifying prequels and sequels. This website, produced by Kent District Libraries in the States, allows you to search titles in a given series – identifying titles occuring before or after the one you search for.
BookgroupInfo – If you want advice on starting a group or a place to promote your reading group then try Book Group Info which also allows users to search for reading groups by region.