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Qumran, the land of buried treasure
The world of the Dead Sea Scrolls comes to life in the ancient Essene desert outpost
The year was 68 CE and the Romans were coming, tearing through Judea and destroying everything and everyone in their path. An isolated community of 200 Jewish souls, located below the cliffs on the northwestern shores of the Dead Sea, reached a desperate decision. It was a long shot — but they resolved to hide away the fruit of two centuries of hard labor, hoping to return someday and to pick up where they'd left off. Wrapping hundreds of fragile scrolls in linen, they placed them gently inside clay jars and hid them in caves near their homes at Qumran.
Almost two thousand years later, in spring of 1947, a shepherd boy taking his flock to Bethlehem passed by the caves. One of his goats had wandered off and no sooner had he thrown a rock into the nearest opening to flush it out than he heard a crash: the stone had smashed an ancient jar. Since that time, over 800 scrolls — and the ancient settlement itself — have come to light.
The first century was not the only time that Jews had settled at Qumran. Indeed, there were Jews here during the Israelite and First Temple Period who abandoned the site only during the Babylonian conquest. But the Jews who settled here during the second century BCE were an especially spiritually oriented group. They were called the Essenes, and belonged to one of the largest of contemporary Jewish sects in Judea.
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From the Dead Sea Scrolls they wrote during the Second Temple period, we learn that they lived communal lives. They were mostly celibate, and preached and practiced an ascetic, contemplative life while waiting for the Messiah to lead them to everlasting glory. Members of the sect ate together, prayed together exactly in the manner required in the Bible, and bathed often to purify their bodies and wash away their sins. So similar were many of their beliefs to those of Christians today that some researchers find the origins of Christianity within the Essene creed.
When you bathe a lot you need plenty of water — not so easy to find in the Judean desert! To this end, and well before Roman aqueducts came into fashion, the Essenes built an elaborate water system leading from Wadi Qumran to their ritual pools and reservoirs. The waterfall from the top of the cliffs is dry most of the year but, during heavy rains, the flow is tremendous: the Essenes may have built a dam beneath it.
Qumran National Park offers a fascinating glimpse into that ancient past, full of archeological finds that are augmented by ongoing excavations. A special feature at the Park is the video center, whose multi-screens offer a dizzying bird's-eye view of the cave-ridden cliffs and crags that fill the Judean desert. Viewers are stunned by its immensity, the silence, and the desolation of the brown, stony hills among which the Essenes made their home. Just as fascinating are the scenes of "Essenes" as they go about their every day life.
Just outside the video center is a tiny museum with remains found at the site. One favorite exhibit provides the sounds of water, moving footsteps, and discarded garments — so people can actually visualize an Essene descending into ritual pools.
East of the ruins in the direction of the Sea are over a thousand Essene graves. From the fact that six female skeletons were uncovered here, and the knowledge that the community remained a stable 200 at all times, we can assume that a few of the men, at least, had wives. Additional new members were probably adopted from other sects as children and brought up here.
A trail follows the Essene water channel that picked up flowing waters from the hills and deposited them here in a series of pools. Interestingly, while Hellenistic and Roman-era reservoirs are square, one of the pools here is round. Experts speculate that the pool — typical of the Bronze (Israelite) era — was either used by much earlier Jewish settlers or was shaped out of geological necessity by the later residents. A sign designates some of the excavations as Essene public rooms; they probably made their homes in hillside caves.
The tower jutting out from the rest of the park was used for defense, observation or storage. Other interesting excavations include the Scriptorium, the most important feature in the complex. During excavations archeologists found dry inkwells and pieces from a number of weirdly shaped tables in this room. Apparently the Essene scribes worked standing up at the tables, which were placed close to each other so that parchment could be spread out, examined and sewn together.
Some of the scrolls that were discovered are copies of the Bible. Until they came to light, the oldest Bible in the world was from the 10th century. Yet, to the astonishment of the experts, that Bible is almost word for word the same Holy Book as the one written by the Essenes in the Second Temple period!
Just outside of the excavations, green trail markers leads hikers on a trail up into the cliffs, slightly south of where the first three scrolls were discovered. In winter, the riverbed below the trail — Nahal Qumran — is full of lovely gorges and little pools that are filled with water. An added attraction: from here there is a great view of the Dead Sea, the national park, and Cave Number 4. It is here that more than half of the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered.
The trail eventually winds through the Qumran aqueduct, and hikers have to bend over as they pass frog-footed through the tunnels. Emerging, they are high enough to view two openings in one of the caves (less visible but also possible to view from a covered hut down below).
One of the exciting finds from this area is called the Copper Scroll. Discovered in a cave nearby and written on copper and tin, it lists buried treasures and where they can be found. The description beautifully matches this particular cave. It reads: "In the Pillar Cave with the two openings that face east…" It's easy to understand why former Baptist priest Vendyl Jones, who claims to be the inspiration for the Indiana Jones series of movies, has spent years excavating here in his search for what he believes are the Temple Treasures.
Note: Some of the original Dead Sea Scrolls are on view at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, in the Shrine of the Book.
Except for the hike, almost the entire site is wheelchair accessible.
Aviva Bar-Am is the author of seven English-language guides to Israel.
Shmuel Bar-Am is a licensed tour guide who provides private, customized tours in Israel for individuals, families and small groups.
All rights reserved.


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Up to [NetBSD Developer Wiki] / wikisrc
Request diff between arbitrary revisions
Keyword substitution: kv
Default branch: MAIN
Current tag: HEAD
Mixed-case filenames (which mean mixed-case URLs) have been fixed in the repository while it's still young and a little wild. HTTP redirects keep the old mixed-case URLs working. This commit uses [[!meta title]] to set the page titles back exactly as they were. commit_prep will prevent further mixed-case filenames from being committed.

subset: commoncrawl


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What's it going to be tonight? Sautéed greens (good) or beef lo mein (bad)?
Behavioral economist and Predictably Irrational author Dan Ariely says being good or bad depends on what day you're looking at—if it's a Friday night at the end of a stressful workweek, you're more likely to go with the beef lo mein; but if it's a Sunday evening after a restful weekend, the vegetables will seem like the better choice.
"It's on stressful days that many of us give in to temptation and choose unhealthy options," writes the Duke University professor in his blog post "Understanding Ego Depletion," published Wednesday. "The connection between exhaustion and the consumption of junk food is not just a figment of your imagination."
What Ariely is describing is a behavioral phenomenon that he refers to as "ego depletion." In other words, when we've said no to temptation long enough, our willpower gives out and we say yes. For financial advisors and their clients, the key to understanding ego depletion is understanding that the phenomenon is the same whether the behavior involves making bad food choices or bad investment decisions.
Resolutions most often get derailed in times of crisis, Ariely says, and he offers these six rules to avoid breaking under stress:
1) Acknowledge the tension, don't ignore it. Ariely describes the internal dialogues we all have with ourselves :"I'm starving! I should go home and make a salad and finish off that leftover grilled chicken," followed by, "But it's been such a long day. I don't feel like cooking. Plus, beef lo mein sounds amazing right now."
The push-pull relationship between reason and impulse explains why we make bad decisions. Self-control is limited.
2) Call it what it is: ego depletion. "Eventually, when we've said 'no' to enough yummy food, drinks, potential purchases, and forced ourselves to do enough unwanted chores, we find ourselves in a state called ego depletion, where we don't have any more energy to make good decisions," Ariel writes.
Ego depletion is the psychological sum of the feelings of stress and exhaustion added to all the decisions you've made throughout the day.
3) Understand ego depletion. Ariely points to research by Stanford University professor Baba Shiv and Indiana University Prof. Sasha Fedorikhin, who found evidence that people yield to temptation more readily when the part of the brain responsible for deliberative thinking has its hands full.
"Even a simple cognitive load can alter decisions that could potentially have an effect on our lives and health," Ariely says.
4) Include and consider the moral implications. In a thought experiment that Ariely describes in his blog post, participants were asked to complete a color-matching task. When asked to then take a short quiz, the group that did the heavier mental lifting in the first task were more likely to cheat on the quiz.
"When we become depleted, we're not only more apt to make bad and/or dishonest choices, we're also more likely to allow ourselves to be tempted to make them in the first place," Ariely writes.
5) Evade ego depletion. "There's a saying that nothing good happens after midnight, and arguably, depletion is behind this bit of folk wisdom," Ariely writes.
The best way to evade such depletion, he continues, is to plan for indulgences every now and then.
"The key here is planning the indulgence rather than waiting until you have absolutely nothing left in the tank," he says. "It's in the latter moments of desperation that you throw yourself on the couch with the whole pint of ice cream."
6) Know thyself. Simply knowing you can become depleted, and knowing the kinds of decisions you might make as a result, makes you far better equipped to handle difficult situations when they arise, according to Ariely.
"The reality of modern life is that we can't always avoid depletion," he says, "but that doesn't mean we're helpless against it."
Read an interview with Dan Ariely from Investment Advisor's April 2010 issue on AdvisorOne.


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Recipe from Tina Goble of Texas
Place chicken and pineapple rings with juice in a large bowl. Pour in enough Teriyaki to cover the chicken completely. Cover and refrigerate overnight. The next day, place chicken on broiler pan and cook until done, while basting often with marinade. In the last few minutes of cooking, place the pineapple rings on the chicken and let them brown. Serve over rice for a delicious and EASY meal your family is sure to love.
*DISCLAIMER*: The information contained in or provided through this site section is intended for general consumer understanding and education only and is not intended to be and is not a substitute for professional advice. Use of this site section and any information contained on or provided through this site section is at your own risk and any information contained on or provided through this site section is provided on an "as is" basis without any representations or warranties.


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After 42 years together, Emmy-winning couple Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner officially tied the knot on New Years Eve, NBC News reports.
The news broke when celebrity/gossip writer Liz Smith wrote about the ceremony for her syndicated column.
"Lily Tomlin and her love, the writer Jane Wagner, got married on the eve of 2014," she wrote, adding, "My wish is that their happiness will be as great as their combined talents."
Tomlin, 75, and Wagner, 78, have partnered on a number of properties including the film "The Incredible Shrinking Woman," and the play "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe," for which Tomlin won the 1986 Tony Award for Best Actress.
The newlyweds met in 1971 while working on Tomlin's comedy album, "This Is a Recording," which won the Grammy award for Best Comedy Recording in 1972.
The comedian discussed the wedding in October.
"We're talking about it," Tomlin told E! at GLESN's Respect Awards at the Beverly Hills Hotel. "I think December, I'm off. I have no obligations at the moment."
As Gay Star News reports, the women put off tying the knot because of California's Proposition 8, which halted same-sex marriages in the state. But the measure was struck down in June, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional, which made the couple reconsider their stance.
"You don't really need to get married, but marriage is awfully nice," Tomlin told E!. "Everybody I know who got married, they say it really makes a difference. They feel very very happy about it."
From our media partner EDGE


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Equine Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Research Study
This study will concentrate on how efficiently a horse's cardiovascular and pulmonary systems function when galloping and jumping across country, and will be seeking answers to such questions as: Are our horses hearts working harder now than in the past? Does the short format increase pressures in the lung vessels?
We are also delighted to report that Professional's Choice, a leader in equine leg care and sports medicine products, is lending its full support to this important study. Michele Scott, Vice President of Professional's Choice Sports Medicine Products, Inc., has long been interested in the study and the welfare of event horses is of paramount importance to her and her company.
Collapsible Fence Technology Research Study
The collapsible fence study needs your help! The study is collecting data about the sizes and weights of eventing horses and riders in order to use realistic information in the study of collapsible and deformable fences to improve safety. Please safely take the measurements of the horse as pictured in the survey. We suggest a soft measuring tape at least 7' in length (one that is used to measure jump heights or lines may be handy) and a horse height measuring stick; a second person is helpful, but not required. An owner or rider with more than one horse can submit a separate survey for each. If there are unknown measurements, such as the horse's scale weight, it is okay to skip it and complete the rest of the survey. Any information provided will be helpful.
The following link can be used to access the survey: https://goo.gl/forms/vijro77cY9WSbX4e2
The USEA has committed to making a grant to the USEF to cover the first phase of the study into frangible fence technology being conducted by the University of Kentucky College of Engineering. Eric Grulke, Suzanne Weaver Smith, Katie Kahmann, Michelle Tucker, Ben Matar and John Greenwell are members of the University of Kentucky Engineering Team who will conduct the study which will cover the evaluation of jump designs for improved horse and rider safety with a focus on in-field mechanical testing, analysis and design, materials evaluation and construction cost estimation divided into the following tasks.
1. Field Testing of Prototype Breakaway Safety Features
This task will provide immediate results for a hinged gate concept to demonstrate the process and value of the overall project, including the presentation of results. Throughout the project, field testing will be conducted to demonstrate and verify safety features of new concepts and designs. Standard video, high-speed video and/or motion tracking of horse/rider dynamics at local events will also be conducted in order to support design and verification efforts.
2. Design and Analysis of New Concepts
New concepts such as the strap-and-snap breakaway concept and fundamental questions such as the effect of deformable or sliding/breakaway contact points, develop designs, perform Monte Carlo and finite-element analyses to evaluate performance.
3. Materials Evaluation
Laboratory and field testing of materials contributing to design and to evaluation of concepts constructed with standard materials, foam (Prolog) and other novel materials will be undertaken. Standard testing methods will be used where applicable, but it is anticipated that novel materials may require non-standard testing approaches.
The USEA believes that this is one of the most important projects needing support as it speaks to one of our key guiding principles: the welfare of both horse and rider. "We are working on all types of frangible technology and while it may not prevent a fall, we hope it will minimize the effects of one." said USEF President and FEI course designer, David O'Connor. "The U.S. has the second largest number of starters in the world and we have long wanted to form a bigger partnership with other countries doing similar studies. It is exciting that the researchers from Britain's Bristol University, who have been working on these studies for a few years, and researchers from our own University of Kentucky are now able to bounce ideas back and forth about frangible technology as we all work to improve safety."
The USEA is privileged to announce that upon hearing of this major study, Tom Spalding of SpaldingLabs, the Fly Predator® folks, immediately agreed to make his company the founding corporate donor. "I hope that others will see the immense value in a study such as this and join me in helping the USEA secure the financial support needed to get the job done," said Tom from his company's headquarters in Arroyo Grande, California. "Eventing is a truly exciting sport and both horses and riders are amazing athletes. They deserve our best efforts to insure the courses over which they compete are to the highest safety standard possible. This work should lead to new generation of still challenging, yet much safer, fences that will benefit Eventers and their horses for years to come."
GPS Speed Study
This study has been completed!
Spearheaded by former international event rider, John Staples, and Dr. Reed Ayers, upper level event rider and a Research Assistant Professor at the Colorado School of Mines (Department of Metallurgical and Materials Science), this study aims to monitor horses and riders on the cross-country course to determine the speeds at which the courses are being negotiated. Some surprising data has already come to light as to the excessive speeds some riders have achieved in order to complete courses inside the time. While the study will be ongoing throughout the year coaches have already been able to use the data to educate students on the importance of pace.


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ACT Oracle User Group Seminar Session: 2 June 2010 May 27, 2010Posted by Richard Foote in 11g New features, Advert, Oracle Indexes.
Just a short note for anyone near the Canberra region that the next ACT Oracle User Group Seminar Session will be held next Wednesday, 2 June 2010 at the Oracle Offices in Turner.
I'll be presenting "Indexing New Features and Improvements Introduced in Oracle 11g Release 1 & 2″. Follow the above link for the full agenda.
If that isn't enough to make you want to attend, there will be free beer and pizza available afterwards 🙂
No comments yet — be the first.


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An exceptional program for exceptional properties.
Windermere's Premier Properties™ program was created to address the unique needs of our luxury market clientele. Our extensive network of luxury home experts have earned a reputation for providing exceptional service to discerning clients interested in buying or selling homes in some of the Western United States' finest neighborhoods.
Unique properties require distinctive marketing.
The success of our Premier Properties™ program centers on customized marketing strategies, including distinctive signage, specialized advertising opportunities and publications, and high-end direct marketing materials. Every one of our luxury listings also receives unparalleled marketing exposure through Windermere.com.
Refined technology, remarkable results.
Technology is an important part of the process for both buyers and sellers of luxury homes. Through Windermere.com, we are able to highlight these properties using distinctive features, enhanced search capabilities, expansive photo galleries, and detailed property information. This process makes it simpler for buyers to locate luxury home listings while providing distinctive marketing for sellers of luxury homes.
Search for Premier Properties by State:


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State agencies across West Virginia must now get written approval before they use statewide contracts to buy goods and services that cost more than $250,000.
The policy change follows federal and state reviews of West Virginia's decision to buy more than 1,000 Internet routers that cost $24 million.
The state Office of Technology bought the routers two years ago under a statewide contract typically used for routine and repetitive purchases. The state Purchasing Division wasn't notified about the router transaction.
Earlier this week, the West Virginia Purchasing Division sent emails to more than 170 state agencies about the revamped purchasing rules. The new regulations take effect on Friday.
"For future purchases from our master contracts, this procedural change will provide the Purchasing Division advance notice," said Diane Holley-Brown, a Department of Administration spokeswoman. "The department continually assesses purchasing procedures to ensure the best policies and practices."
Under the tighter rules, state agencies must send a memo to the Purchasing Division when they plan to use a statewide contract to buy items that cost $250,000 or more. Statewide contracts are competitively bid.
The memo must include "a synopsis of the purchase, the item [name], the participating vendor, the bidding information, any award justification and the amount," according to a draft of the new rules in the state purchasing "handbook."
The Purchasing Division must sign off on the request before agencies can pay vendors.
State officials acknowledged Thursday that the $24 million router transaction contributed to the policy change. But they said that wasn't the only high-dollar purchase the state has made under a statewide contract. No other transactions were singled out, however.
"When making changes to procedures, we take a responsible approach and look at everything, not an isolated situation," Holley-Brown said.
In 2010, West Virginia received a $126.3 million federal stimulus grant to bring high-speed Internet to 1,064 "community anchor institutions" - schools, libraries, state agencies, 911 centers, county courthouses, health clinics and other public facilities.
That year, the state used $24 million from the grant to buy the routers under an existing 2007 statewide contract for "Internet Voice Protocol Communications." The contract mentioned nothing about routers.
A team of former and current state officials authorized the router purchase, and the Office of Technology signed off on the transaction.
West Virginia law specifies that state agencies use such statewide contracts for "commodities that are needed on a repetitive basis ..."
The 2007 communications equipment contract didn't specify a maximum-dollar purchase limit, but the contract apparently wasn't designed for multimillion-dollar transactions.
The $24 million router purchase was 345 times higher than the average purchase on the statewide contract and 22 times higher than the next largest transaction, the Gazette has reported.
Under the 2007 contract, state agencies spent $53,600 per purchase on average during the past five years - excluding the $24 million router transaction, according to state Auditor's records.
By using the statewide contract, state officials bypassed the state's formal and comprehensive bidding process.
Instead, the Office of Technology used a "secondary bid process," soliciting router bids on the agency's online "bulletin board" for five days. The request was never publicly advertised, and the Purchasing Division and Department of Administration never reviewed the bids.
That will change under the new rules.
"In the case of utilizing the secondary bid process, the Purchasing Division will have two opportunities to review the agency's purchase," Holley-Brown said. "First with the agency's intent, and secondly, once they have attained bids from the qualified bidders and plan to issue the [purchase] release order."
State Homeland Security Director Jimmy Gianato has defended the router purchase, saying the state followed "normal procedures for procuring such equipment," according to a letter he sent to the Legislative Auditor in late August.
Gale Given, West Virginia's chief technology officer, also has said the state's decision to use the 2007 contract to buy the routers was appropriate. Given did not work in state government when the state bought the routers in July 2010.
The machines, which funnel data from one computer network to another, cost $22,600 each.
In a report released last week, the U.S. Commerce Department's Inspector General found that West Virginia could have purchased smaller, less expensive routers for many schools, libraries, county courthouses, health centers and planning agencies.
The Cisco 3945 series routers - which the state purchased from Verizon's retail division - were designed to serve a minimum of 500 users. But the state has installed the devices in some public facilities with only a few Internet connections. Seventy percent of the routers wound up in schools and libraries.
The state Legislative Auditor is expected to release a report about the $24 million router purchase in February.
Reach Eric Eyre
at firstname.lastname@example.com
or 304-348-4869.
| (Search Help)
Article Dated


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In order to see what time you have set to begin with on the forum, go to the main forum page, and look near the top under The Parrot Forum's banner and immediately under the links "FAQ" "Search" "Members" "User Control Panel" etc. On the left side, you should be able to see the time in the settings on your username.
Those members who observed daylight saving time recently (putting your clocks an hour back at 2 AM the first Sunday in the month November) may want to change their time on the forum.
You can change this on the forum by clicking the link "User Control Panel" at the top of the page, and then clicking "Board Preferences". Look for where it says "Summer Time/DST is in effect" and select "yes" or "no", and then click the "Submit" button.
Some observe Daylight Savings Time while others do not. To accommodate all forum members, you can manually select to have this in effect or not on the forum.


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One Size
Sterling Silver Lapis Doublet Pendant Enhancer
• Doublet pendant enhancer of polished Sterling Silver swirl prongs and textured rope border
• Pear-shaped, faceted crystal quartz over lapis doublet is featured in the center
• Pendant measures 1" long x 5/8" wide with polished snap hinge bail
• Designed and crafted in America with gemstones from around the world
A doublet pendant enhancer of sculptural elegance that invites a closer look. Finished with a textured rope and polished scroll design, the versatile enhancer can be worn on it's matching necklace (5-4364-183, sold separately) or with cords and chains that you already own. Any way you choose to wear it, this necklace provides a beautiful finishing touch to your casual and dressy ensembles.
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Summary: The old version of the Manuscript Browser at
chs75.harvard.eduis going away. Its replacement will appear at
amphoreus.hpcc.uh.edu. In the interim, a beta application is available at
An archive of every digital image in the HMT library is always available for manual and automatic downloading.
BackgroundIn 2007, shortly after we completed photography of manuscripts Marciana 822, Marciana 821, and Marciana 841, we wrote and posted online an application for browsing the high-resolution images. This application used the Google Maps API to allow users to manipulate the images; it allowed searching by the enumeration of manuscript folios and by poetic book and line.
Technological and scholarly considerations alike dictate that we take this original application offline. Using the Google Maps API is not ideal for our purposes. Google Maps assumes that it is displaying images of the surface of the earth, for one thing, and using it for serious work on manuscripts requires many workarounds, compromises, and hacks. More serious, though, is the problem of scholarly citation. In the five years since we wrote the original facsimile browser, our understanding of scholarly citation in a digital world has matured. By standardizing on citation with URNs, we can deliver effective applications today, using scholarly material that can remain valid in the future. The old application does not support citation using URNs; its replacements do.
What Will HappenThe application at
chs75.harvard.edu will cease working at any moment. New "Facsimile Browser" applications are being developed on two hosts:
beta.hpcc.uh.edu and
beta hosts experimental versions of HMT applications; when we consider versions of an application ready for regular public use, we will also host them on
In the meantime, users can use two resources for accessing digital images of the Homeric manuscripts:
- Our beta version of a Facsimile Browser is online at
- As always, users can download complete sets of images of any of our manuscripts from http://amphoreus.hpcc.uh.edu.
About the Beta Facsimile BrowserThe application that lives at
http://beta.hpcc.uh.edu/tomcat/hmtapps/ allows users to look up digital images of manuscripts, and associated data, by requesting citations of folios or by poetic book and line.
We wrote this application to explore a URN-driven graph of HMT data. Its state as of December 26, 2012 reflects its origin as a test-bed for this way of integrating our data.
The application will evolve over the next few weeks as we redesign the user interface with a wider audience in mind. Once that redesign is complete, we will put the application on the
amphoreus.hpcc.uh.edu server and announce its public availability.


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Hard-driving, competitive, goal-focused, Keith A. Vanderveen, president of the home region of Wells Fargo Advisors' Private Client Group, does not mince words. Certainly not at the peak of the financial crisis when the impassioned former $4.2 million-producing branch manager was rallying his troops: In a federally mandated sale, Wells Fargo had just acquired too-big-to-fail Wachovia—the firm that only a year before bought A.G. Edwards and, in 2003, Prudential Securities.
The challenge facing Vanderveen, who joined Prudential in 2001, was to motivate the mix of advisors from four different firms to get behind Wells Fargo and turn around the lagging region that ranked last of 10.
"Can you ride for the brand?" he asked, evoking courageous, hardworking cowboys of the Old West who loyally affiliated with a ranch or brand.
"I asked everybody to consider the fact that A.G. Edwards was gone and was never going to come back and that Wachovia was gone and was never going to come back and that 'You've got to make a decision: Can you ride for this brand? If you can't, you've got to leave.' Thankfully, most people stayed." And, "the brand," Vanderveen says, "turned out to be a huge winner."
Today, Wells Fargo Advisors, a non-bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Co., is the third largest brokerage in the United States and boasts more than 15,000 FAs.
Keith Vanderveen, 51, is a strapping 6'2"-tall man of Dutch ancestry, within whose tough management style is woven the ability to connect deeply with advisors and managers to inspire them to accomplish more than they likely would otherwise.
Indeed, in only three years Vanderveen drove the Wells Fargo Advisors home region—Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Arkansas and parts of Illinois—from dead-last to fourth place in profitability and advisor retention. His chief goal is to lead the region to No. 1. If resolve and performance record are any indication, that will happen soon.
"I'm a very, very aggressive competitor. I absolutely love to win. I love goals. I love achievement—I can hardly get enough of it," he says.
A pro racquetball player in his youth, Vanderveen has scored an impressive winning streak in financial services over nearly three decades. Starting as an advisor at Merrill Lynch in 1984, in less than a decade he was a million-dollar producer. The first branch he managed—where he quadrupled his own production and doubled branch revenues, with 21 out of 22 FAs doubling their business—was named Office of the Year.
But after 18 years of great success at Merrill, Vanderveen decided to move to Prudential. There, he drove the Midwest region from last to first place (2007), then followed up with the stunning turnaround of Wells Fargo's home region, formed after its 2008 Wachovia acquisition.
Based at Wells Fargo Advisors headquarters in St. Louis, Vanderveen oversees about 1,500 advisors managing $91 billion in assets out of more than 150 branches.
Reporting to James E. Hays, president of the Private Client Group, Vanderveen runs a business totaling three-quarters-of-a-billion dollars in revenue, for which he sets and executes high-level strategy and develops, hires and fires branch managers, complex managers, market managers and advisors.
He gives major emphasis to recruiting and in the last year has hired FAs across the region. By fall, he will open a branch at the headquarters complex that is to comprise 20 to 30 FAs.
Foremost, he seeks advisors region-wide who give their clients' interests top priority. "We're trying to identify and hire people of integrity who are stalwarts of the community," he says. "I want FAs who understand that they're dealing predominantly with clients in 'the second half of life' who want personal connection and trust. This is almost always evidenced by a relationship built upon a financial planning process."
Both experienced and new FAs have eagerly responded to his recruiting efforts.
"I'm proud of the fact that we've hired a lot of people looking for a better [situation]. There's a lot of unhappiness at Morgan Stanley [Smith Barney]. And I have many Merrill friends that have been coming over," he says. "We train a lot of people as well. In my Sugarland, Texas, branch, the biggest FA is a trainee. But it's a tough business, and not everybody makes it."
One of Vanderveen's primary objectives is to move FAs to a significantly more advisory-based platform. "We've been really trying to push the adoption of financial planning and conversation versus selling [to] people. And especially in the new regulatory environment, we're trying to get our FAs to look at the liability side of the balance sheet to help clients with their lending needs and make sure they're not paying more on debt than they ought to," says Vanderveen, who so far this year has spoken to 92% of the region's FAs in person right in their own branches.
Off the road, he works in a comfortable office on the 14th floor in one of seven interconnected buildings. Previously the home office of A.G. Edwards, Wachovia relocated its headquarters there from Richmond, Virginia.
Right outside Vanderveen's office stands a big, brass bull.
"Some people think it's 'Keith, the Bull,'" he says with a laugh. "Well, sometimes you do act like a bull because you have to push for things no matter what."
Beyond overarching goals of boosting revenue growth and profitability, Vanderveen's main push is to be No. 1 among the firm's regions, of which there are now nine. That largely means motivating veteran FAs to expand their assets under management.
"It's ridiculous that Schwab and Fidelity are gathering more new net assets than all the brokerage firms combined and trying to convince people that they give individual financial advisor attention, which I don't believe they do," he insists. "I think we have a better model for clients," which features the firm's innovative financial planning tool, Envision. Last year Vanderveen's region created more financial plans with Envision than did any other region, he says.
But spurring middle-aged FAs ("the average age of our financial advisors now is 54") to grow their business isn't so easy because, in general, they've become complacent, he says. The prevailing attitude is "business is good enough. I don't need to grow anymore. If anything, I'd like to be more efficient so I can spend more time on the golf course."
To change that mindset, Vanderveen tries to impress upon FAs that they have "a talent the world desperately needs: to help people in the second half of life manage their wealth. Rolling out the next trip or trinket—the way [FAs] were incented to grow when they were younger—is not effective," he says. "In the second half of our lives, it's a much higher calling, a recognition that we have a gift and a talent that people need, which we have to be willing to share with more of them."
Another challenge is finding managers who can truly inspire advisors, a major Vanderveen hiring criterion. "That's what differentiates good managers," he says. The regional president counts local management as "the key ingredient" in his region's sharp improvement.
"I have not been afraid to change managers when we needed to, and put someone in the seat that knows how to set a vision and inspire people to perform better than they would on their own," he says.
At Merrill, he was a producing branch manager in Naperville, Ill., for five years and upon joining Prudential, continued to grow his book of business. Named a regional manager within nine months, he was appointed regional president of the combined Prudential and Wachovia firms in 2002. That was when Vanderveen handed over his by-then $4.2 million book and stopped being a producer.
"It was a good run," he remarks, casually.
Among his many managerial accomplishments is his success at integrating advisors and managers from four different corporate cultures while simultaneously, and aggressively, driving business forward.
But, to be sure, Vanderveen's world was rocked with Wachovia's sudden demise.
"Number one, it was very, very painful to watch Wachovia basically go out of business. You couldn't sell all your restricted stock," he says. "And number two, the home office bonus pools were cut down to almost nothing. Not me personally, but everybody that I was affiliated with had really tough financial times to get through," he recalls.
Still, "coming out of the crisis, advisors at firms like Citi, Bank of America and UBS were spending an hour or two a day just defending their firms," he says. "Our financial advisors didn't have that issue."
Moreover, he has found Wells Fargo to be "a terrific parent." "They love the business. They've been extremely supportive. They've allowed [CEO-president Danny Ludeman, who held these posts at Wachovia Securities] and the leadership team to continue to grow the business. The brand resonates with clients. I love the culture—it's more of a hands-off [approach]. Wells Fargo allows its 80[-plus] different businesses to run relatively independently and grow."
He continues: "Here, there's a different way of thinking about clients and advisors from what I saw at [Merrill]. I couldn't be more pleased."
Now, he says, "the big emphasis [firm-wide] is trying to get everybody to have diversity—women, people of color, sexual orientation—at the forefront of their minds so that we look more like our client base and have a way to reach out and connect with it."
For example, "in recruiting FAs, I'm always looking for diversity to grow the business. We must do a better job of reflecting the communities we serve as our country's demographics and culture evolve," he says.
The thrust for inclusiveness includes online and in-person training "to make sure that when we post positions, we have a diverse candidate pool before making any decision. We're not just willing to say, 'Well, there's nobody out there—let's hire the next white male.' We want to really emphasize taking the extra step to get a diverse team of candidates," he says.
As a senior manager, Vanderveen ultimately defines his personal triumphs by the success of the managers he's helped. He excels not only at setting goals but also at emboldening people to recognize that the goals are achievable.
"I love watching managers start to believe in themselves and grow, and help their branch or complex or market grow," he says. "And I love when advisors who tell me that I've inspired them say: 'Keith, you made all the difference.'"
It is indeed rare for a senior manager to be a multi-million-dollar producer.
Here is Keith A. Vanderveen's story:
Born in a Fort Lee, Va., army hospital, he grew up in Pittsburgh, the eldest of four children. By senior year at Wheaton College, he aspired to be an entrepreneur. "I liked the idea of sales because I thought if I worked harder than everybody else, I could do better than everybody else," he recalls.
Near graduation, his close friend and mentor, Dave Young, introduced him to four colleagues, each a standout in a different field, to give the young Vanderveen a sense of various types of businesses.
"After spending two hours with Dave's PaineWebber broker, I knew that was what I wanted to do," he says. Right away, he began cold-calling for a broker at the firm.
Graduating in 1983 with a B.A. in economics, he worked briefly as a broker at a small Grand Rapids, Mich., shop. But with the principal's death the following year and the firm's imminent sale to a railroad, he opted to move on and joined Merrill Lynch in its Oakbrook, Ill., branch.
His production rose swiftly to $200,000. Next goal: to become a million-dollar producer in five years. Mission accomplished in 1993. Two years after that, Merrill appointed him branch manager of the new Oakbrook satellite office in Naperville, Ill. Within three years, he quadrupled his own production and doubled branch revenues.
Secret to that production power? Building a team early on played a big part, but the real key was Vanderveen's philosophy of "more, not better."
"Most financial advisors were spending their time trying to figure out how to do something better," he says. "I found something that worked and just did more, more, more of it until you wouldn't think to do that much," he says. "For example, other advisors held seminars and sent out 500 invitations. I sent out 10,000 to 20,000. Other advisors had 10 people show up. I'd have 300. I wasn't doing anything better than anyone else—I just did more of it than they thought to do. That carried me a long way."
Now a manager, Vanderveen was eager to find out if he could run a large area yet still be involved enough with branch managers and advisors to help them grow. "I loved managing and wanted a chance at running Chicago," he recalls. But that, he discovered, meant giving away his $4 million book and first becoming a district sales manager in another city.
"No, no, no, I'd like to run Chicago," he told management. They said: "That's not the system," whereupon Vanderveen took his request to top management all the way to Robert Mulholland, then senior vice president.
"But at the end of the day, everybody agreed that I didn't fit the system—and that nobody is bigger than the system," he says.
In 2001 he left Merrill and joined Prudential. Nine months later he was Midwest president based in Chicago. As a regional president of the merged Prudential and Wachovia firms, he led his region to No.1 in 2007. Shortly afterward, he was asked to run the new Wells Fargo home region.
"From my perspective," he says, "it's been fantastic." —J.W.R.


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13 Yaxham Road, Norfolk, NR19 1HB
Consumer credit service provided by Pay4Later in association with Moneyway. Pay4Later is licensed by The Office of Fair Trading (Consumer Credit Licence: 0616240). For more information please refer to our frequently asked questions or visit http://www.pay4later.com/.
Moneyway is a Trading name of Secure Trust Bank PLC. Secure Trust Bank is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority, licensed by the Office of Fair Trading and a member of the Finance and Leasing Association. For more information please visit http://www.securetrustbank.com/.
Season : 2021
Code : MONDFOXYR
Weight : 20KG
Thanks to the Foxy MTB design will never be the same again.
The Foxy is Mondraker's benchmark trail bike and arguably the most complete Mountain Bike' in a line-up of high-performance, world beating and World Championship winning machines.
We've tried to give you as much information as possible but if there's something missing that you need to know, you can get in touch with us below.
Cycle to Work Schemes are a great way to save even more on our wide range of new bikes and accessories. Choose a bike, hire it for an agreed length of time from your employer using pre-tax salary sacrifice meaning you pay less tax and then snap it up for a fraction of its value at the end of the period.
We work closely with and accept vouchers from the following schemes:
Green commute initiative
c2w support
Halfords Cycle2work
We can also work directly with your company and help you set up your own internal Cycle to Work Scheme. This can be beneficial for both the company and the employees by streamlining the process for the HR department and enabling the employees to avoid paying any commission.
We'll also be able to build a close relationship with your company offering service packages and providing you with essential tools such as Pumps, Multi-Tools and Oils to keep at the office to encourage staff members to cycle more. If you'd like to know more about this please get in touch.
To learn more about the benefits of Cycle Scheme and see how to place an order with us, click here.
View our full Click & Collect information
Built, Prepared, Checked & Repacked
Each and every bike we send out goes through a thorough build process.
Once it's picked from our warehouse it's built by one of our trained mechanics to ensure that your bike is running to perfection.
Set up for you: let us know your weight and we'll set the suspension with the recommended pressures.
Once built, a second member of the build team takes over to check nothing has been missed before preparing it for packing.
Once in the packing bay, we remove the front wheel and handlebars from the stem and carefully wrap it to fit it securely into an export grade box.
Generally we try to reuse the box it came in, but if that's not up to scratch we'll pop your bike into one of our own export grade boxes.
Tracked UK Delivery
All of our bikes are sent with TNT and can be tracked along their journey.
#newbikeday your bike has arrived
Final assembly once you've received the bike is quick and easy - usually just putting the front wheel in and re-attaching the handlebars with 4 allen key bolts. We provide an easy to follow step-by-step instruction sheet to help you along the way.
If in doubt we're always available at the other end of a phone line to talk you through it.
General adjustments
Although all our bikes are fully assembled prior to shipping, to ensure safe arrival it is possible that some small readjustment is needed upon arrival. We are happy to advise over the phone, but if you are unsure, we would always recommend having your bike assembled by a professional.
We cannot accept any cycle warranty claim or return for incorrect pedal fitment or damage to crank arms caused by incorrect pedal fitment as described in the helpsheet supplied with all of our bikes.
If the wheels on the bike you've ordered become untrue through use, or the gears need readjustment after initial use, this unfortunately not covered under warranty.
Due to the mechanical nature of bicycles, it is highly recommended that new bicycles are serviced within 6-8 weeks of ownership, by a professional bicycle shop, to ensure correct adjustment, lubrication and torque settings.
Pauls Cycles cannot reimburse any costs associated with the set up and adjustment of a new cycle.
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We know you're keen to receive your bike as quickly as possible, so aim to dispatch your order the following working day. During very busy periods there may be a 1-2 delay on dispatch but we'll make this clear straight away.
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If you have instructed the courier to leave your package on your doorstep or in another insecure place, we cannot claim for missing items or damage to your package. We therefore strongly recommend that you advise us of a favoured delivery day, ask the courier to leave your package with a trusted neighbour, or collect it from a local delivery depot.
Finance & Delivery
When using Finance we are stipulated to deliver your order to your registered billing address where the Finance agreement has been taken out. We can hold dispatch for a day that suits you (if you can work from home, or you have a family member who can be home on a particular day for example) but we are unable to change the delivery address.
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If you'd like your bike delivered outside of the UK, please visit our international delivery guide here.
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Consumer credit services are only available to over 18s and subject to status.
Credit is provided by V12 Retail Finance Ltd, a trading name of Secure Trust Bank Plc. which is registered in England and Wales: 541132. Registered Office: One Arleston Way, Solihull, B90 4LH. Secure Trust Bank Plc is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority with registration number 204550. For more information please visit www.v12retailfinance.com
If you are intending to use finance as your payment option, please note we will only ship your order to your billing address, and not to an alternative delivery address.
This is for estimation purposes only. Actual Finance Application is Completed During Checkout.
With Pre-Order, you can purchase the latest items added to our store in advance of them arriving with us.
You Pre-Order is prioritised (at no additional charge); meaning that, as soon as the product arrives with us, we can wrap it straight back up and get it sent out to you - it often never even hits the stock room shelves!
With Pre-Launch, the date when we expect to receive the product ourselves is still a little too hazy to be confident in accepting Pre-Orders.
So, instead, you can submit your email address against the item you are interested in and we will email you as soon as stock arrives on the system.
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Tech Tools for Better Business - Branding Your Business
The workshops will be held the 2nd, 4th & 5th Wednesdays of each month from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. A light meal will be provided by the Friends of the Llano Library. All workshops will be at the Llano Library. Please register for the workshops you plan to attend. This week's workshop is Website Basics 1 using Weebly, Homestead, and Wix, conducted by Cheryl Quallenburg More about the project: The Llano Library has partnered with the Llano Chamber of Commerce to participate in an Impact Grant funded by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Texas State Library and Archives Commission to bring design and marketing concepts to Llano's local businesses and non-profits. A series of workshops have been scheduled covering a variety of topics key to building and growing a small business or non-profit by successful marketing. These workshops will cover designing creative signage, posters, brochures and flyers for distribution, building email marketing campaigns, website design, using surveys as a business tool, additional special media platforms beyond Facebook, and exploring e-commerce. In addition, a business center has been created at the Library with a computer and laptop loaded with design software, a color printer with capabilities of printing up to 11X17, and a scanner. The laptop will be made available for remote use.
June 14th, 2017 5:30 PM through 7:00 PM
102 E. Haynie
Llano, TX 78643
United States
Llano, TX 78643
United States
Phone: 325-247-5248


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Explore our Research
Expanded Legend
- Member Research, which are larger, ongoing projects by senior and up-and-coming scholars.
- Seed Grant Research, which are mid-sized projects by leading experts or up-and-coming scholars working in important sub-fields.
- Data Collection Sites, which are where CFSP supports data collection.
- Special Projects, which are projects stemming from targeted calls for proposals.


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This is a great video from Jake McKee (formally LEGO's Global Community Relations Specialist) discussing how LEGO found, supported and incubated their biggest fans from around the world to help pull the company out of a pretty dark time to be back on top of the world, lead in part, by a strong social media strategy.
A word of warning, this is a 30 minute video, from a conference late last year (so skip the first 30 secs) and is not exactly their strategy, but more a case study of success, however, it's well worth the time, and probably something you won't have time to watch at your desk today so just make sure you remember to watch it later!
Jake McKee makes three really strong, but incredibly simple (how often do we see simplicity works socially?!) points.
1. Look beyond your target customers
2. Support existing fans
3. Find what works and replicate
1. Look beyond your target customers
Your target market isn't always your biggest group of talkers. For years, LEGO was focused on kids — that is, until they realized adults had created their own community of enthusiasts. When LEGO started connecting these talkers, not only did they increase their word of mouth, they immediately helped their bottom line. Whereas kids were spending $20 a year on LEGOs, these adults were spending around $1,000.
2. Support existing fans
Without LEGO's knowledge, adult fans had already created an online LEGO community and marketplace. LEGO approached this group by offering support and resources in the form of an ambassador program. By offering to support what these fans were already doing so well -instead of demanding ownership and control -LEGO was welcomed into the community.
3. Find what works and replicate
The enthusiasm of the adult fans helped teach LEGO how to gain more participation from their other fans- including kids. Jake says that when you find something that works with one fan group, try applying it to other groups of talkers. Because the fundamentals of great communities are the same, strategies behind one fan community can often generate similar success for another community. (via Igor on Viral Blog)


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LEWISTON, Idaho - (Box Score) Three Lee (Tenn.) pitchers combined on a four-hitter and the Flames took advantage of Oklahoma City errors early to capture a 7-3 win in Game 12 of the Avista-NAIA World Series at Harris Field on Monday night.
The victory by the second-seeded Flames, 56-9-1 overall, guaranteed that both Tennessee schools in the 10-team double-elimination tournament finish with trophies. Tennessee-Wesleyan is the other undefeated team left in the tournament and along with Lee is guaranteed no worse than a fourth-place finish.
Oklahoma City, the No. 3 seed, hurt itself with four errors in the contest to fall to 48-11 overall. Three errors came in the first three innings when Lee jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the battle of perennial powers.
Lee pitchers Patrick Merkling, Joe Fabre and Jose Samayoa combined to quiet OCU's big bats as well. The Stars entered the Series hitting .352 on the season and averaging better than eight runs a game. Merkling pitched the first seven innings and allowed three runs, but only one was earned. He gave up three hits and three walks, but struck out seven. Fabre allowed one hit in the eighth, while Samayoa pitched a perfect ninth.
Lee took advantage of OCU's sloppy play with two runs in the first inning. Jorge Saez reached on a fielding error and Blake Barber followed with a one-out single. Roberto Reyes bounced into a fielder's choice to force Barber out at second. Corey Davis then singled in the first run, while a dropped fly ball by center fielder Cody Ferrell allowed a second run in.
Lee added three more in the second when a walk to Edmanuel Rivera and a single by Brady Renner put runners on the corner. Saez then hit a potential double-play grounder to shortstop, but the second baseman's relay throw to first sailed into the Lee dugout to allow a run to score and Saez to reach second. Barber and Reyes then hit back-to-back RBI singles for a 5-0 lead.
The Flames kept rolling with a solo run in the third. Mike Moore started the inning with a double and then scored on a two-out double by Rivera.
OCU got on the board in the fourth with the help of a Lee error. Miguel Beltran started the inning with a single and Dane Phillips reached on a fielding error. A one-out walk loaded the bases and set up a sacrifice fly RBI by Kale Gaden. A ground ball by Rich Hawkins drove in the second run.
OCU picked up another run in the sixth to cut the lead to 6-3. Gaden started the rally when he was hit by a pitch and he later scored on a single to left by Hawkins.
The Flames picked up their final run in the top of the eighth on sacrifice RBI bunt by Rivera.
Barber led Lee's 10-hit attack with three hits, while Moore added two along with two runs. Rivera finished with two RBI. Hawkins had two RBI for OCU.
Lee and Tennessee Wesleyan will meet in Tuesday's feature game at 6:30 p.m. with the winner being the only undefeated team remaining. Oklahoma City falls into the loser's bracket where it will take on top seed LSU Shreveport at 3 p.m.


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Delaware Continuing Education Requirements:
|Total Hours
|Elective Hours
|You Need:
|We Offer:
Delaware Continuing Education Packages
|Total Hours
|Elective Hours
|Mandatory Hours
|Add To Cart
21-Hr. DE CE Package (with Ethics course)
Delaware Requirement Details for Real Estate Continuing Education
Continuing Education and License Renewal Date: 4/30 of every even-numbered year
Use this chart to determine how much CE you must complete for your first renewal as a Broker, Associate Broker or Salesperson in Delaware.
- This chart applies to your first renewal as a Broker or Associate Broker even when you were previously a Delaware-licensed Salesperson.
- This chart does not apply to your first renewal as a Broker or Associate Broker when you changed broker type (that is, from Broker to Associate Broker or vice versa) during the previous two years. In this situation, the amount of required CE is the same as if you had not changed from one broker type to the other.
|IF the issue date of your license was…
|THEN you must complete…
|before 5/1/2018
|21 hours
|5/1/2018 through 10/31/2018
|18 hours
|11/1/2018 through 4/30/2019
|12 hours
|5/1/2019 through 10/31/2019
|6 hours
|11/1/2019 through 4/30/2020
|0 hours
Required Content for First Renewal:
- If you are a newly-licensed Broker or Associate Broker or if you are a Salesperson licensed by reciprocity, the content of your CE must be based on the required Module Course Contents.
- If you are a newly-licensed Salesperson who was not previously licensed in another jurisdiction, the content of your CE must meet the following requirements:
- You must complete the four Newly-Licensed Salesperson Modules, totaling 12 CE hours, within the first 12 months after your license is issued. These 12 hours will be applied to the required amount of CE hours based on the chart above.
- If your CE requirement is 21 hours based on the chart above, you must complete core modules 1, 5, and 6 listed in Module Course Contents.These three modules are in addition to the required four Newly-Licensed Salesperson Modules that you must complete in your first 12 months of licensure.
- If your CE requirement is 18 hours based on the chart above, you must complete any two of core modules 1, 5 or 6 listed in Module Course Contents. These two modules are in addition to the required four Newly-Licensed Salesperson Modules that you must complete in your first 12 months of licensure.
- If your CE requirement is 12 or 6 hours based on the chart above, you will meet your CE requirement by completing Newly-Licensed Salesperson Modules.
- 3 hours in Module 1 (agency and fair housing)
- 3 hours in Module 2 (professional standards)
- 3 hours in Module 3 (real estate documents)
- 3 hours in Module 4 (office management)
- 3 hours in Module 5 (legislative issues)
- 3 hours in Module 6 (practices of real estate)
- 3 hours in Module 7 (electives)
The CE Shop's Offering: 21 hours
Reporting: Real estate course completions are reported to the Delaware Real Estate Commission. The state requires schools to report course completions within seven to ten days from the course completion date. Course completions will be reported within this time frame. The Commission does not post CE credits to the licensees account. It is the responsibility of the licensee to ensure that they have completed the continuing education requirement.
Expiration Date of Course: Course expiration dates vary by course but are generally one year after order date. Each course has an individual expiration date which is listed in your account.
Final Exams: Final exams must be passed with at least a 80% and may be taken as many times as necessary in order to pass.
Certificates: Upon completion of the course, The CE Shop will provide students with an electronic Certificate of Completion. Certificates will remain in your account for a minimum of five years, should you need additional copies. Please refer to your license renewal application to determine if you need to submit your Certificate of Completion with your license renewal request. Course completion dates are recorded using Central Standard Time. Please note that the date of your Certificate of Completion will reflect this.
License Renewal Process: The process to renew a license in Delaware is to log in to the licensing system online and follow the prompts to renew.
Delaware Real Estate Commission
Street Address: Cannon Building, 861 Silver Lake Blvd., Suite 203, Dover, DE 19904
Telephone: 302.744.4500
Fax: 302.739.2711


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Oldest ever engraving discovered on half-a-million-year-old shell
About half a million years ago, Homo erectus on Java was already using the shells of freshwater mussels as raw material for tools and as a "canvas" for an engraving. Dutch scientists report on this in Nature (4 December 2014). The discovery provides new insights into the evolution of human behaviour. This research result is a beautiful example of interdisciplinary NWO research: dating methods from the Earth sciences provide insights into the humanities.


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For decades, the White House has welcomed soon-to-be Chinese leaders to Washington with happy faces and professions of cooperation. But when Xi Jinping, the man set to become China's president later this year, makes his White House debut Tuesday, President Obama might find it harder to keep underlying economic and political frustrations under wraps than past presidents have, some analysts say.
Key issues in the US-China relationship – trade, currency policy, cybersecurity, and human rights – are sharper than just a few years ago, and an anti-China election-year climate has increased pressure.
Republican candidate Mitt Romney, for instance, insists that if elected president he would use his first day in the Oval Office to declare China a currency manipulator. And the Obama administration itself in January announced a reorientation of US defense priorities toward Asia.
The result is that "the game plan for the Obama administration may be generally the same on this visit as it was for us in 2002, which was … to lower expectations for deliverables and focus on the relationship," says Michael Green, who was the National Security Council's senior director for Asian affairs when Chinese President Hu Jintao visited the Bush White House in 2002.
Yet the current situation means it will be "harder" than when Mr. Hu first visited "to invest in the relationship, emphasize the positive, [and] lower expectations," says Mr. Green, now a senior Asia analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
[ Video is no longer available. ]
The stormier climate will test Xi, who will want to show his domestic audience that he can hold his own with the Americans even as he charms them. Xi, who will also visit Iowa and Los Angeles, is purported to be a fan of American culture.
Xi, who technically is being hosted by Vice President Joe Biden, is also expected to announce some sizable agricultural purchases while in the Midwest, in an effort to dent criticisms of China's trade surplus with the US.
In addition to US-China issues, Xi and US leaders are expected to address international concerns, including North Korea, Iran, and Syria.
On North Korea, the US made something of a "welcome to Washington" gesture by announcing Monday that a US delegation will travel to Beijing to meet with North Korean officials Feb. 23. Given that China is most interested in promoting stability on the Korean Peninsula, it favors US engagement with Pyongyang.
The US, on the other hand, is worried that North Korea, under new leader Kim Jung-un, could decide in the coming months to carry out either another nuclear test or a missile test – actions that would serve to bolster the new leader's credentials, but that could also set off a new regional crisis.
Coloring all these issue is the Obama administration's new policy of "pivoting" toward Asia. The policy includes new US military bases in the region and revitalized relations with Southeast Asian countries. But Green says the administration has since toned down its rhetoric, which set off alarms in Beijing.
"Since our friends in Beijing found 'pivot' too aggressive and threatening, I've heard the administration is going to change it to 'pirouette,' " he says. "We're going to pirouette to Asia."


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You may be the savviest financial advisor in your community, but can you command attention through an effectively written email or blog post?
Investment writing consultant Susan Weiner (left) hopes to help communications-challenged advisors escape a fate condemned to obscurity at a presentation next week at the Financial Planning Association's annual gathering in San Antonio.
Besides being a writer and editor, Weiner is also a CFA charterholder who has worked in the financial services industry, so she understands both the challenges and the solutions advisors face in the workaday problems of email communications.
Weiner, speaking with AdvisorOne a week ahead of her FPA session, said the biggest of those challenges—not just for advisors but for anyone who is not a professional writer—is to keep the reader's perspective in mind.
"That means knowing who your reader is, pushing your readers' hot buttons so they pay attention, structuring so it's easier for your reader to understand what you're saying," Weiner says.
Weiner, based in West Newton, Mass., says the principle of "What's in it for me?", or WIIFM for short, should guide you to more reader-friendly communications.
"When someone looks at their email inbox, they're going to judge things by WIIFM," she says.
Since your clients and prospects are generally overburdened with email, Weiner says they must perceive a clear benefit to reading yours. "In order to target with WIIFM, you have to really know who they are," she adds.
Weiner proposes a four-step process to write effective emails and letters to clients. The first step is knowing your readers.
"Why are they in the relationship with you? What are they going to get out of working with you as a financial advisor?" A powerful question Weiner suggests as a way of aligning your perspective with that of the reader is to ask what is keeping them awake at night.
"As an advisor, if you understand that, then you're better able to appeal to them.
"You can have an article called '401k Plan Rules' or [the same article titled] 'Get Free Money by Taking Advantage of Your Employer's Match.' " The topic is the same, but one may have no appeal to your clients while the other may very much resonate with them, she says.
Weiner's second step is to structure clearly: "I think the email subject line is the most important line you'll write. Make your point really clear in the subject line and carry it through into the body as well," she says.
In general, Weiner advocates getting to the "meat of the matter" right away. "Everyone's busy; they don't want to scan through an entire email to figure out what you want," she says. But she acknowledges that the nature of your relationship with the client may allow for polite preliminaries. Still, advisors should "put right near the top what it is you're looking for," she says.
In working with advisors—Weiner teaches a five-lesson virtual class on "how to write blog posts people will read"—she frequently ends up taking items buried at the bottom of an advisor's communication and pulling it to the top where it belongs.
The third step to more effective email communications is to simplify sentences.
"Make them shorter. People don't have long attention spans," she says, adding that "advisors have some pretty long sentences out there."
One exercise she asks of advisors is to write something and then cut it by 10%. Eliminating superfluous information allows you to convey essential information, she says. Emphasizing active verbs yields further improvement, she adds.
Weiner's fourth step is using plain language. "Especially when dealing with individual investors, it's important not to use jargon, or you'll lose them."
She cites "mitigate" as a word "compliance people love," though "ease," "manage" or "cut" would do.
Other examples of verbosity include "'exogenous' or 'secular,' even 'headwinds'—if you're not a sailor, do you even know what headwinds are?"
After taking these four steps into account in their emails, advisors should reread their note before pushing the send button. "Go back and read it from the reader's perspective. Would I know what the reader wants me to do? How would I respond?" In other words, if you're looking for a document to be signed or inviting a prospect to a free seminar, make sure that that is immediately clear from your message.
As for blog posts, while the same four steps are paramount there as well, there's a key difference:
"Personality comes into play more." Weiner says. "It's so hard to distinguish yourself on the basis of products and services, yet you're the only one with your personality. So I encourage people to take up blogging for that reason. It's a good way to reflect your personality and interests."


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"Dancing with the Stars the Results Show" Premieres with
First Elimination in Week Two, Tuesday, March 29
Macy's "Stars of Dance" Returns with All-New Performances
A star-studded cast filled with celebrities across a variety of genres -- including a boxing legend, a talk-show personality, a Super Bowl Steeler, a former Playboy bunny and a legendary comedic actress - are set to compete each week on the dance floor in the spectacular two-hour season premiere of "Dancing with the Stars," MONDAY, MARCH 21 (8:00-10:01 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.
All 11 couples will dance for the first time on live national television on MONDAY,
MARCH 21, with couples either performing the Foxtrot or the Cha Cha Cha. The couple with the lowest combined judges' scores and public votes for their performance will be sent home the following week on the season premiere of "Dancing with the Stars the Results Show," TUESDAY, MARCH 29 (9:00-10:01 p.m., ET).
The 11 celebrities heading to the dance floor this season, as announced tonight by "Dancing with the Stars" hosts Tom Bergeron and Brooke Burke in a live press conference during "The Bachelor," are as follows:
KIRSTIE ALLEY - Kirstie Alley has emerged as one of the great actresses of her generation, proving time and again that she is capable of great depth and range, as well as possessing comedic timing second to none. Kirstie's work in television has earned her seven Golden Globe and eight Emmy nominations, winning one Golden Globe, two Emmys and three People's Choice Awards. She co-wrote and starred in Showtime's critically acclaimed comedy "Fat Actress," and played the title character, as well as serving as executive producer, on the NBC sitcom "Veronica's Closet." In 1994 Kirstie showcased her dramatic range starring in the CBS TV movie "David's Mother," for which she won her second Emmy. In 1987 she joined the cast of the long-running hit NBC sitcom, "Cheers," as the neurotic Rebecca Howe. Kirstie received critical accolades and won both an Emmy for Lead Actress in a Comedy Series and Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Comedy Series in 1991. She made her movie debut in 1982 in "Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan," in which she played beautiful Vulcan officer Lieutenant Saavik. In 1999 Kirstie starred in the dark comedy film "Drop Dead Gorgeous," a cult-classic mockumentary that follows the contestants in a beauty pageant in Minnesota. She starred in Woody Allen's "Deconstructing Harry," and alongside John Travolta in the hit films "Look Who's Talking," "Look Who's Talking Too" and "Look Who's Talking Now." Some of her other film credits include "Shoot to Kill," "Summer School," "For Richer or Poorer" and "Champions." In 1995 Kirstie was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She served as the spokesperson for Pier One from 2000 to 2004, and Jenny Craig from 2005 to 2008. In 2010 Kirstie worked with experts in science, nutrition, and medicine to develop Organic Liaison, which includes Rescue Me, the first ever USDA certified organic weight-loss product.
"PSYCHO" MIKE CATHERWOOD -- Born and raised in Los Angeles, Michael Catherwood (aka Psycho Mike) has an eclectic background from the city that made him the person he is today. Michael is a mixed race Hispanic who immersed himself in the Los Angeles punk and hard rock scene. He moved to
the east coast to study theatre at Rutgers University, where he spent most his time enjoying the emerging Jersey punk scene. After finishing school, he returned to L.A. to become a member of the top-rated "Kevin & Bean Morning Show" on KROQ-FM. Known to listeners as "Psycho Mike," he has developed many of the radio show's most well known and talked about characters and segments. His often controversial music has garnered him worldwide notice and acclaim. In addition to the "Kevin & Bean Morning Show," Mike is the co-host of Loveline Radio (Westwood One) with Dr. Drew Pinsky, and has guest hosted on E! Entertainment's "The Daily 10" and most recently on "Live with Regis & Kelly." He has also done numerous successful voiceover and commercial campaigns for such clients as Major League Baseball, TNT, Discovery Channel and AT&T.
CHRIS JERICHO -- A six-time WWE world champion, two- time New York Times best-selling author, lead singer of the rock band Fozzy and host of the ABC game show "Downfall," Chris Jericho began wrestling at age 19 and is one of the most popular performers in wrestling history. In 2001 Chris was the first ever Undisputed Champion of the WWE, and he is the only performer to have held six different titles in the 44-year history of World Wrestling Entertainment. He became a New York Times best-selling author in 2007 with his autobiography, A Lion's Tale: Around the World in Spandex, and is currently on the list again with his follow-up, Undisputed: How to Become the World Champion in 1,372 Easy Steps, his second auto-biography. Chris' rock band, Fozzy, has sold a quarter of a million CDs worldwide.
CHELSEA KANE - Chelsea Kane (formerly Chelsea Staub) is a versatile young actress and musician. She currently stars in the web series "The Homes" on Lockerz.com. She is also the voice of Bea in Disney Channel's animated comedy series, "Fish Hooks," the imaginative story of three tween fish navigating high school. Chelsea recently starred as Stella Malone, the longtime friend and style guru to the Lucas brothers in the Disney Channel comedy series, "JONAS." The Phoenix, Arizona native has been acting professionally since the age of nine. She landed her first role as Young Kim in the national Broadway tour of "Showboat," and went on to star in the productions "Peter Pan," "The Wiz," "Cinderella," "Oliver," "Annie," "Titanic," "The Sound of Music," "Schoolhouse Rock," "A Christmas Carol" and "The Secret Garden," among others. Chelsea starred in the Disney Channel Original Movies "Minutemen" and "Starstruck," and guest-starred on Disney Channel's hit series "Wizards of Waverly Place," "Cracking Up," "Summerland," "Listen Up" and "The Bill Engvall Show." On the big screen, she landed her first role in the family film "Arizona Summer," and had a starring role in the motion picture "Bratz." During her free time, Chelsea enjoys hitting the concert circuit with her Polaroid camera and her favorite musician friends.
SUGAR RAY LEONARD - Sugar Ray Leonard is one of the legendary sports icons of the 20th century whose very name epitomizes boxing and conjures the image of a champion. He was host and mentor for the first three seasons of the series "Contender" on NBC & ESPN, by Dreamworks Television and Mark Burnett Productions. Ray recently appeared in the Paramount Pictures feature film "The Fighter," and served as a consultant on the upcoming Walt Disney Pictures film starring Hugh Jackman, "Real Steel," being released fall 2011. Ray will release his first autobiography (Viking Books) entitled The Big Fight: My Life In and Out of the Ring on June 7, 2011, developed with veteran author Michael Arkush. Having learned to box at age 14, Ray's career includes three National Golden Gloves titles, two Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) championships and the 1975 Pan-American Games crown. After winning a gold medal in boxing at the 1976 Olympic Games, he turned professional to help his family deal with mounting medical bills incurred because of his father's illness. The late Howard Cosell called Ray the "new Mohammed Ali." In 1977, at age 20, he won his first professional fight, setting the stage for a collection of some of the most memorable fights in history. He went on to defeat some of the finest boxers of the modern era, including Wilfred Benitez, Roberto Duran, Thomas Hearns and Marvin Hagler, from whom Ray won the world middleweight title. During his 20-year professional career, he also won world titles in the welterweight, junior middleweight, super middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, becoming the first boxer to win world titles in five different weight classes, a record that stands to this day. Ray has been a successful television broadcaster for NBC, ABC, HBO and
ESPN, and has fostered commercial endorsement relationships with companies including EA Sports, Track Inc., Ford, Carnation, 7-Up, Nabisco, Coca-Cola, Revlon and numerous others. He is also among the most sought-after motivational/inspirational speakers in the world. His speech, entitled "POWER" (Prepare, Overcome, and Win Every Round), is consistently booked with major Fortune 500 companies worldwide. Ray has always been devoted to the community and for many years has been the international chairman of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk for a Cure. He also participates in a variety of national and international causes benefiting children's charities. Ray has four children and lives in Southern California with his wife, Bernadette.
RALPH MACCHIO - An actor, writer, director and producer, Ralph Macchio first gained world recognition for playing the title role in the popular classic "The Karate Kid" and its successors, "The Karate Kid II" and "The Karate Kid III." His extensive list of film credits includes Francis Ford Coppola's "The Outsiders" and the hit film "My Cousin Vinny." Among his multiple television credits, Ralph had a two-season arc on ABC's "Ugly Betty," a comedic guest star lead on the series "Psych," as well as a dramatic guest lead character on ABC's drama, "The Whole Truth." He was seen as a guest star on the hit series "Entourage," as well as the comedy "Headcase." Ralph recently appeared in a funnyordie.com viral video sensation, "Wax On, #### Off," which has gathered rave reviews from critics and viewers since its release this past summer. On the New York stage, he made his Broadway debut starring opposite Robert DeNiro in the sold-out Joseph Papp production of "Cuba and His Teddy Bear" at the Longacre Theatre.
PETRA NEMCOVA - Born and raised in Karvina, in the Czech Republic, Petra Nemcova took the modeling world by storm after being discovered by a modeling scout on the streets of her native country. Petra has graced the pages and covers of magazines such as Elle, Harper's Bazaar, Shape, Cosmopolitan, Vanity Fair and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition. In 2004 she suffered a broken pelvis and severe internal injuries while on vacation in Thailand during the devastating Tsunami. After her recovery, Petra created the "Happy Hearts Fund" (www.happyheartsfund.org), a charitable organization and campaign dedicated to improving children's lives through education and sustainable programs in natural disaster areas. Happy Hearts Fund, founded in 2006, has rebuilt 47 schools and kindergartens, with eight more on their way, and has presence in nine countries, including Thailand, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru, Sri Lanka, Haiti, India, Chile and Hurricane Katrina-affected areas of the United States. One-hundred percent of all donations received are directed to children's programming.
ROMEO - Percy Romeo Miller, Jr., better known by his stage name, Romeo, is an American entertainer, actor, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is the son of businessman and music mogul Percy Miller. Romeo has sold over 10 million records as a multi-platinum music artist and has been awarded an American Music Award and a Grammy�. Named in 2010's "Top 5 Sexiest Men in the World," he is the youngest CEO of the multi-million dollar record company No Limit Forever, and is the youngest entertainer to top the Billboard charts, at age 10. Romeo has dedicated his life to giving back to the community and helping at-risk youth with his foundation, Urban Born.org. His acting credits include his No. 1 television show, "Romeo!," on Nickelodeon, "The Defenders" and "The Cape." He starred in the movie "Honey," with Jessica Alba, and co-stars in the upcoming film "Jumping the Broom," with Angela Bassett. Not only an entertainer, Romeo is also studying business and film at the University of Southern California. As a freshman, he and his basketball team made USC history by winning their first Pac-10 championship. He understands the importance of education, so he remains a student at USC while he pursues his entertainment career and business. Romeo is also the founder and president of P. Miller and College Boyys clothing.
HINES WARD - A four-time Pro Bowler, three-time Super Bowl participant, two-time Super Bowl Champion and Super Bowl XL MVP, Hines Ward holds virtually every record in Steelers wide receiving history and will go down in the record books as the Steelers' all-time leading wide receiver. He was given the honor of being named to the Steelers' 75th Season All-Time Team, and this fall will be
entering his 14th season with the Pittsburgh Steelers as the longest tenured wide receiver with the same team in the NFL. Considered by many the best blocking wide receiver to ever play the game, he is fresh off an outstanding performance in a close loss to the Green Bay Packers in this year's Super Bowl a few weeks ago. Hines is a fierce competitor with a big smile and a big heart; Beyond his NFL career, he is a symbol of success and good will to the Korean community and all of Asia. His Helping Hands Foundation is devoted to the fight against bi-racial discrimination in the United States and Korea. The program in the U.S. focuses on improving literacy among children and provides programs and services to better equip them for achieving success in life. In Korea the program focuses on raising awareness for the problem of biracial discrimination and providing inspiration to the mixed race children in that country. Mr. Smile himself, Hines is an ambassador of hope to children everywhere.
KENDRA WILKINSON - Television personality and glamour girl Kendra Wilkinson is best known from her self-titled E! hit reality series, "Kendra." Just wrapping its third season, the show follows Kendra, NFL player husband Hank and son Hank IV through their crazy lives. Portraying life in the spotlight and the challenges of raising a toddler son and being an NFL wife, the show is a fun-filled, action-packed look into the real world of Kendra Wilkinson. She got her start on one of E! Entertainment's highest rated television shows, "The Girls Next Door," co-starring on the reality hit for five seasons, until 2009, when she closed that chapter in her life and opened a new one. That year Kendra got married, welcomed the birth of her son and, of course, debuted her show, "Kendra." At 25, she is a self-described tomboy and avid sports fan who loves watching boxing and rooting for her favorite football team, the San Diego Chargers. Since the debut of "The Girls Next Door," Kendra has appeared on the cover of numerous magazines and has enjoyed television and movie appearances. In 2007 she was part of the cast of MTV's reality series "Celebrity Rap Superstar," where she proved to be an audience favorite, finishing in 2nd place in the competition. In August 2008, Kendra was featured in the movie "The House Bunny," along with "The Girls Next Door" co-stars Holly Madison, Bridget Marquette and Hugh Hefner, and in January 2009 she was featured on the CBS hit series "How I Met Your Mother."
WENDY WILLIAMS - Called a "breakthrough in daytime" by The New York Times, Wendy Williams burst onto the national talk show scene in July 2009 with the launch of her daily, syndicated program, "The Wendy Williams Show." Touted by People Magazine as one of the "best shows of 2009," the critically-acclaimed series now has the distinction of being "must-see TV." A mother, wife and best-selling author, Wendy built a devoted cult following from her years as one of radio's most popular personalities. In addition to her daytime television success, she will host GSN's new original series, "Love Triangle," slated to premiere April 2011. Wendy was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame (only the second African American woman to be honored by the organization) in November 2009. She is the author of two New York Times bestsellers, Wendy's Got the Heat and The Wendy Williams Experience.
"Dancing with the Stars" returns with new surprises and all the elements viewers have come to know and love. "Macy's Stars of Dance," which features some of the best choreographers and performers from different styles of dance and offers viewers performances that represent the peak of achievement in their genres, will return on "Dancing with the Stars the Results Show." One of the "Macy's Stars of Dance" performances will be the hugely popular "Design-a-Dance," where fans have the chance to select their favorite professional dancers, dance styles and music at www.abc.com.
Below are key dates for Season 12 (dates and times subject to change):
· "Dancing with the Stars'" two-hour season premiere performance show, MONDAY, MARCH 21 (8:00-10:01 p.m., ET).
· "Dancing with the Stars the Results Show's" one-hour season premiere, TUESDAY, MARCH 29 (9:00-10:01 p.m., ET).
· "Dancing with the Stars'" 1000th Competitive Dance, MONDAY, APRIL 18 (8:00-9:31 p.m., ET)
· "Dancing with the Stars'" final performance show, MONDAY, MAY 23 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET)
· "Dancing with the Stars'" season finale, TUESDAY, MAY 24 (9:00-11:00 p.m., ET)
Hosted by Tom Bergeron ("America's Funniest Home Videos") and Brooke Burke ("Dancing with the Stars" Season Seven Champion), the celebrities perform choreographed dance routines which will be judged by renowned Ballroom judge Len Goodman and dancer/choreographers Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba.
Viewers may cast their votes for their favorite teams via phone on Monday night during and up to 30 minutes after the "Dancing with the Stars" performance shows. AT&T customers may also text message their votes by texting the word "VOTE" and entering the number that corresponds to the team they want to support (message and data rates may apply). AT&T will also offer customers exclusive mobile video footage of weekly backstage highlights to keep fans connected to some of their favorite couples all season long. Viewers may also vote online at www.abc.com starting from the opening of each episode on the East Coast with voting closing at 8:00 a.m., PT/11:00 a.m., ET on Tuesday mornings.
"Dancing with the Stars" is the U.S. version of the international smash hit series, "Strictly Come Dancing." This version is produced by BBC Worldwide Productions. Conrad Green serves as executive producer and Ashley Edens-Shaffer and Joe Sungkur are co-executive producers. Alex Rudzinski directs. "Dancing with the Stars" is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound.
About BBC Worldwide Productions:
BBC Worldwide Productions is based in Los Angeles and develops and produces scripted and non-scripted projects for U.S. cable and broadcast networks, as well as digital platforms. The production company is responsible for the smash hit "Dancing with the Stars" (ABC), "Top Gear" (HISTORY), "What Not to Wear" (TLC) and "Torchwood: Miracle Day" (Starz). BBC Worldwide Productions is one of seven core businesses within BBC Worldwide, the main commercial arm and wholly-owned subsidiary of British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).