text:
Stigmatized: Clark Elementary's failing grade
As trendy a neighborhood as Belmont seems to be, one thing gives parents who can afford its increasingly high real estate prices pause: Clark Elementary School.
Even before the No Child Left Behind Act decreed Clark's academic progress unsatisfactory and ordered that students be given the option of transferring to another city school, some parents had already made that choice– by opting to go private.
Now the Clark community is grappling with the stigma of failure the federal program has visited upon the school, and deciding whether to defend it– or bail.
Principal Art Stow does not expect a mass exodus. "I sense parents believe in the school and know we believe in the children," he says. And he thinks the school's small size may be partly to blame for its predicament.
No Child Left Behind uses SOL scores to determine progress, and Clark's third grade class that took the SOLs this year was an anomaly with only 35 students. That means only a handful of children needed to fail in order to bring the whole school down.
"Had four more students passed the test in English, we'd have passed," says Stow.
"It's very complicated," says Barbara Myer, Clark Parent Teacher Organization president. "First there are the federal government mandates and then the SOLs mandated by the state, and it ends up on the shoulder of eight-year-old children... I really loathe the whole thing."
"I really think it's disappointing for any school to have to go through this process because of this federally mandated program," says city school official Bobby Thompson.
Information on the school choice option was mailed to Clark parents July 7; they had to decide by July 21 whether they were switching schools. The irony is that a parent's choice of another school is not guaranteed; priority goes to the lowest-achieving students from low-income families.
Those are the students community activist Joy Johnson thinks are least likely to leave Clark, because it's a neighborhood school and because the student-teacher ratios are so low.
Johnson calls for bringing in the resources to help students pass rather than offering the option for them to go somewhere else. And she adds to the denunciations: "No Child Left Behind is a stupid law. It's not putting in the resources to make a child excel."
Myer does predict that some parents will move their children: those who aren't currently registered at Clark who want their children bused to another school.
Lindsay Howerton is weighing that option. She lives across the street from Clark, but until this year, her children have gone to Waldorf.
She checked out Clark when she moved to Belmont three years ago. Its focus on children struggling with basic literacy made her feel literature wasn't a priority.
"The kids of all my friends who live in Belmont go to private schools," she says. "My neighbors say, my kid needs art class or foreign language."
Howerton says she can no longer afford private school. And as a single mom who owns her own home, she knows it's neighbors like her who are more educated or more affluent who may be contributing to the disproportionately high number of low-income students at Clark.
"We all blame ourselves," she admits. "We say if we all [enroll at Clark] at once..." But she also concedes that before the choice program was available, she was considering home schooling or even selling her house and renting an apartment in Venable district to avoid sending her children to Clark full time.
The No Child Left Behind Act's taking Clark to the woodshed may have hurt the people it was intended to help. Myer went to an informational meeting at Friendship Court, and she says some attendees don't like the publicity that spotlighted them because they don't have much money.
She describes a moment at the meeting that brought tears to her eyes. "A parent said her child was being teased for going to Clark. The stress ends up coming out on eight year olds. I'd like it better to keep the stress on the grownups," she says.
As a Title 1 school, Clark Elementary has the lowest student-teacher ratio in town– and the largest percentage of low-income students. Now the federal No Child Left Behind program says Clark students can go to another school.
Chloe Cook and Anwyn Cook live across the street from Clark, but their mother, Lindsay Howerton, isn't sure the school is the best match for her daughters' educational needs.


text:
This primary source reader in the popular "Discovering" series contains a multi-part pedagogical framework that guides students through the process of historical inquiry and explanation. The text emphasizes historical study as interpretation rather than memorization of data.The Sixth Edition integrates new documents and revised coverage throughout. Appearing in Volumes I and II, the Reconstruction chapter uncovers the work ethic of farmers and workers in the West and North following the Civil War. Each chapter is organized within the same pedagogical framework: "The Problem, Background, The Method, The Evidence, Questions to Consider," and "Epilogue.""New!" With new organization and source selection, Chapter 3 in Volume I delves further into life in colonial Chesapeake Bay."New!" In Volume I, Chapter 9, students explore the following question: Was there a British abolitionist conspiracy to block the United States' annexation of Texas in order to halt the westward expansion of slavery?"New!" Completely revamped, Chapter 10 in Volume I sheds light on "The Port Royal Experiment" in the South Carolina Sea Islands during the Civil War."New!" In Volume II, Chapter 4 now focuses on Progressivism--with special emphasis on women and children."New!" Chapter 8 in Volume II provides insight into war with Japan in the 1940s.Wheeler, William Bruce is the author of 'Discovering the American Past A Look at the Evidence Volume 1', published 2006 under ISBN 9780618522590 and ISBN 061852259X.[read more]
You can find lots of answers to common customer questions in our FAQs
View a detailed breakdown of our shipping prices
Learn about our return policy
Still need help? Feel free to contact us
View college textbooks by subject
and top textbooks for college
With our dedicated customer support team, 30-day no-questions-asked return policy, and our price match guarantee, you can rest easy knowing that we're doing everything we can to save you time, money, and stress.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
***See note at base of article re: photo use***
Kristen Stewart's hair. Her real hair. Still wearing the Joan Jett mullet. Love.
It is a wig, see?
It's a wig with a dumbass hairline they put on every day for "Bella" instead of extensions. Given Stewart's reputation for no frills, she would probably hate extensions. After all, Kristen Stewart is no Hollywood Ebola Hilton. Or Lindsay Lohan. Good.
But fack. Was that the best wig option available? Really?
Kristen went out yesterday with Nikki Reed and Elizabeth Reaser. Shopping. And still so pretty even though she looks like she's wearing eyeliner that she didn't bother washing off from the night before. Oh Girlcrush, please don't change.
Hardcore Twi-Hards of course are complaining that she should never have cut her hair in the first place because girls should only have long bouncy ringlets. Girls should also avoid pants and only take jobs as secretaries.
But enough Twi-Hardery for now…
Because this is our first glimpse at Paris Latsis, former fiancé of Hollywood Ebola Paris Hilton, the blackest of all vaginal viruses, now boyfriend of Nikki Reed, in Vancouver hanging out with his girl and her girlfriends. Judging from those sunglasses, the Infection still lingers. He's probably wearing an Ed Hardy tee underneath that hoodie.
Exclusive photos from PUNKD Images/JK/KR
MANDATORY --- NO BLOG USE WITHOUT PERMISSION OF PUNKD Images OR Bauergriffinonline.com
SO much better than that busted wig
***See note at base of article re: photo use***


text:
Danks feels good after second bullpen session
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The actual velocity or location of John Danks' pitches during his second bullpen, taking place Sunday morning at Camelback Ranch, wasn't the most important factor resulting from another successful session.
It was the fact that Danks was able to bounce back from Thursday's first session without any pain that separates his post arthroscopic surgery work from his painful pre-surgical struggles last year.
"I think that's a big sign that I was able to get out there and feel good again," the upbeat Danks said following his 15-minute bullpen. "That makes me feel a lot better about things. We'll see how it feels in a couple days. It's exciting. I'm still making progress, which is a good sign."
"He felt better the further he went along, so that's good news," said White Sox manager Robin Ventura. "Everything is on schedule and he feels great. You just monitor that every time he goes out. All these little steps are better along the way."
Danks' Spring Training schedule has two days off in between trips to the mound, which means he'll be back to work on Wednesday for live batting practice. Three live batting practices are on tap for Danks before another bullpen on March 1 and his first Cactus League start on March 4 against the Giants.
Although it will be a controlled environment, Danks will be facing hitters Wednesday for the first time since May 19 when he beat the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Danks has been told by the White Sox that he's on target to break camp with the team, if that's a path the organization follows at the season's outset, but he's just focused on preparing like any other starting pitcher.
"I'm throwing what everyone else is throwing. It's not much different than what I'd be throwing if I was completely healthy," Danks said. "I'm trying to get it there and make the ball do some things and definitely want to pop the glove.
"At the same time, I'm not trying to throw 93 mph, either," added Danks, who threw more breaking balls in his second bullpen. "It's intense. I'm getting work in, but it isn't game speed. The next step will be to see how hitters react to it and what they're thinking, so I'm anxious to get some feedback from those guys."


text:
So almost all your favorite TV shows are on hiatus now. But don't panic! There's still new Futurama, plus a Greatest American Hero marathon. But more importantly, some of the strangest programming of the year airs during these summer doldrums.
Welcome back to our weekly guide to the best fantastical television, featuring sneak peeks at seven days of sweet, nasty televisual brain damage. Are you ready? Here we go!
Animal Planet is having a marathon of River Monsters: Unhooked, from 6 PM to midnight. Get up close and personal with piranhas, Amazon flesh eaters, and many other revolting things that want to kill you.
At 9 PM, my local PBS station is showing a 2004 documentary with the fascinating title A Program About Unusual Buildings. And maybe yours is too. Check your local listings.
Tonight, Twilight's Kristen Stewart is on Letterman, and Robert Pattinson is on Ellen DeGeneres. And Evangeline Lilly is on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon. Maybe she'll drop some hints about her role in the upcoming Real Steel.
Movies: How much excitement can you stand? There's X-Files: I Want To Believe on Cinemax at 1:30 PM, Aliens In The Attic on HBO at 2:30 PM.
But the real pick of the day is Brainstorm, the 1983 movie about a technology that allows you to record people's brainwaves. It's airing at 10 PM on TCM. All we really need to tell you is that it features people recording their experiences of having sex, so all their coworkers can watch. And Christopher Walken watching the most psychotic brain recording ever, with disastrous results. This is the film that will help you survive the long wait for Inception. Don't believe me? We posted an insane clip here. And here's another:
Warehouse 13: To get you nicely caught up for the return of this artifact-hunting show, Syfy is running a W13 marathon all day, from 9 AM to 4 PM. Remind yourself why you like this channel, by checking in on Artie and Claudia. This is definitely our pick of the day.
The Transformation Age: At the very least, my local PBS station is showing this special at 3 AM Wednesday morning. The full title is actually, The Transformation Age: Surviving a Technology Revolution with Robert X. Cringely. With a title like that, can you resist? Check your local listings to see if this 2008 program is showing up where you live.
Lost's Matthew Fox is on Jimmy Fallon.
Movies: Is it worth calling in sick just so you can stay home at watch Rob Schneider in The Hot Chick, on Comedy Central at 3 PM today? Let's put it this way, if you really need to feign illness, The Hot Chick will give you convincing symptoms of nausea and hydrocephalus, among other things. I guarantee an hour of this body-swapping movie will make your head swell up and cause you to forget who the president is. Watch the whole thing, and you may become sick enough to take a whole week off. Don't believe me? Watch this:
Possibly less brain-injuring is X-Men Origins: Wolverine, on HBO at 5 PM. Oh, and there's also The Spirit, on Showtime at 3:30 PM. An embarrassment of afternoon riches, really. And in the evening, there's Prophecy, in which mercury poisoning creates a deadly creature that stalks the woods, on TMC at 6:15 PM. And at 9 PM, Lifetime has horror classic The Gate. Finally, at 11 PM, Syfy has My Name Is Bruce, starring none other than Bruce Campbell. And if you can stay up late enough, The Goonies is on AMC at 1:30 Wednesday morning.
Eureka: Get reacquainted with the town full of wacky super-geniuses by watching a Syfy marathon, from 9 AM to 4 PM. You wouldn't want to stumble into Cafe Diem unprepared, would you?
True Blood: Speaking of marathons, HBO is showing the first three episodes of the current season back-to-back, from 8 PM to 11 PM.
Mythbusters: It's our pick of the day. Get tipsy and watch three alcohol-themed episodes in a row. First, at 7 PM, there's "Cooling A Six-Pack," in which the team discovers the fastest way to cool some beer down. Then at 8 PM, there's "Vodka Myths," in which we investigate just how bad an effect vodka has on your personal hygiene. And then at 9 PM, there's "Alcohol Myths," which explores whether beer goggles actually exist, and how easy it is to sober up. There's got to be a drinking game associated with these episodes.
Movies: Universal Soldier: The Return is on FX at 10 AM, and you can get a taste of just what a brilliant piece of film-making it is here. Also, at 9:30 AM, TMC is showing Dracula: Dead And Loving It. "Let me show you the deep, raw, passionate, unbridled sexual frenzy." "But Lucy, I'm British!" Yes, it's the Mel Brooks movie you've never seen.
At 8 PM, Cinemax has the Arnold Schwarzenegger/Danny DeVito vehicle Twins. And at midnight, the Spanish language channel Telefutura is showing Mad Max: Más Allá De La Cúpula Del Trueno, starring Mel Gibson and Tina Turner. This may actually be a decent movie in Spanish, and at the very least you'll learn how to say "Two men enter, one man leaves" to your Spanish-speaking friends. (If you don't already know, that is.)
Futurama: How could our pick of the day be anything else? A new episode, "Attack Of The Killer App," airs at 10 PM. This is the show's long-awaited mockery of YouTube, Twitter and all the other internet fads that weren't around the last time new episodes were being made. This time around, Fry posts an embarrassing video of Leela online. Comedy Central is also showing reruns from 9 to 10, and one more at 10:30. Here's a somewhat poor-quality clip:
Also, Twilight's Taylor Lautner is on Letterman. Maybe he'll talk about his Stretch Armstrong movie. And Twilight's Dakota Fanning is on Jimmy Kimmel.
Movies: Superhero campiness can be yours! At 7 PM, Showtime is showing Superhero Movie, the spoof which might almost be as funny as Meet The Spartans... although it helps if you're still buzzed from the Mythbusters drinking game. And then at 8 PM, Disney is showing Sky High, the superhero high school film.
Movies: Color Me Kubrick is on TMC at 6:20 PM, and it's our pick of the day. This is Stanley Kubrick, director of 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining, like you've never seen him before — as impersonated by a deranged con-man (John Malkovich.) The funny parts are really where the Kubrick imposter starts spinning weird tales about the utterly strange movie he plans to direct next. (Go to about 2:40 in this video.)
There's also Spider-Man at 7:30 on HBO and (shudder) Space Jam on Encore at 8 PM.
There's no new Doctor Who this week, thanks to the holiday weekend. Instead, the weeping angels two-parter co-starring Alex Kingston as River Song gets re-run, from 8 PM to 10 PM, and then again from 11 PM to 1 AM. That leaves us without a pick of the day, I'm afraid, although these episodes are worth checking out if you haven't seen them.
But maybe our pick of the day is the Biography episode about Will Smith, airing on A&E at 7 AM. Aren't you a bit curious to learn more about the man who's done as much to shape cinematic science fiction in the past decade as anyone else I can think of?
Movies: Syfy is showing the 1997 classic Asteroid twice in a row, at 9 AM and at 11 AM. This is followed by Post Impact at 1 PM, Earthstorm at 3 PM, Polar Storm at 7 PM and Supernova at 9 PM. Meanwhile, Encore has Reign Of Fire at 1:30 PM and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is on HBO at 3:30.
Or if you're still craving superhero campiness, FX has My Super Ex-Girlfriend at 2 PM and Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer at 4 PM. Plus Spider-Man 3 is on FX at 8 PM.
Or you could hold out for quality, and watch Hellboy 2 on Cinemax at 7:45.
Also, at 12:30 Sunday morning, you have a choice between Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope on Spike, or Alien Sex Files 3: Alien Ecstasy on Cinemax. Choose wisely, and bear in mind that George Lucas has not added any weird CG elements to Alien Sex Files 3, as far as we know.
Because of the July 4 holiday, there's no new True Blood this week. I know. Didn't we kick the Redcoats' asses for the express purpose of being able to watch V-blood orgies and dirt sex on a Sunday evening? Consider this King George's revenge. Also, possibly less upsetting is the news that there's no new episode of The Gates on ABC.
But all is well, because of Sunday's pick of the day. Syfy is showing a 20-hour Greatest American Hero marathon. That's right: 20 hours. You remember that show. "Believe it or not, I'm walking on air," yadda yadda. By all accounts it hasn't been repeated on national television since its original 1983 airing, and I believe the DVD versions are badly butchered due to music clearance problems.
But that's not all! ESPN is broadcasting a Hot Dog Eating Contest live at 9 AM (or probably noon EST), and then repeating it promptly in the following hour. Not strictly science fiction, I know, but our post-apocalyptic descendants will one day watch this program and weep at the collapse of civilization in progress. Plus I would imagine there's a lot of science to eating the maximum number of hot dogs in an hour.
At 10:30 AM, Nickelodeon is showing two apparently new episodes of The Adventures of Fanboy and Chum-Chum, an animated show about comic-book nerds who dress up in superhero costumes and go on adventures. Featuring the voice of The Daily Show's Wyatt Cenac. Also, starting at 11 AM, the Cartoon Channel is showing a slew of previously unaired episodes of Canada's Metajets. How meta can a jet get?
At 5:30 PM, Current TV has a new documentary called Laughably Bad Movies. Apparently it's about just what it sounds like. Not sure how they plan to cover such a rich topic in one hour, but it'll be fun to see them try. Also, at 8 PM, National Geographic has a rerun of a virtual tour of the ocean floor with the scary title, Drain The Ocean. And at 10 PM, Discovery Health teaches you about Surviving A Super Tumor.
And then Adult Swim also comes to our rescue — there's a new episode of the ocasionally science-fictional Boondocks at 11:30 PM, called "The Story Of Lando Freeman." And at midnight, there's a new episode of Squidbillies called "Clowny Freaks." Here's a snippet of a recent Squidbillies in which they go on the Holodeck and discover that Obama is evil.
Movies: Batman Begins is on FX at 8 AM Fantastic Four is on FX at 11 AM followed by another airing of Rise Of The Silver Surfer. At noon, E! is showing Independence Day, somewhat fittingly. And at 3 PM, FX has X-Men 3, which can just about tide you over until Tim Burton's Batman airs on WGN at 5:30. And then WGN follows that with Burton's Beetlejuice at 8 PM. BBC America has the James Bond film Goldeneye at 11 PM. Finally, at 11:45 PM, discover why we love the first Charlie's Angels movie, as it airs on TBS.


text:
Prince William to Host Taylor Swift in the Name of Charity
The Duke and the Duchess of Cambridge will host a number of acts in the name of charity
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's home is set to be transformed into a winter wonderland for a charitable evening headlined by Taylor Swift.
Jon Bon Jovi and James Blunt are also scheduled to perform during the Winter Whites Gala – to benefit homelessness charity Centrepoint, which William works closely with – at Kensington Palace on Nov. 26.
Bon Jovi will also be honored with the Centrepoint Great Britain Youth Inspiration Award, that recognizes the rocker's humanitarian work as founder of the Soul Foundation, which aids families and individuals in economic despair.
The evening has been produced by Hollywood screenwriter and producer Danielle Alexandra, a trustee of the charity. She says she has seen how young lives "have been transformed by the extraordinary work of Centrepoint and by Prince William s genuine and heartfelt dedication to the young people affected by homelessness. With 80,000 young people experiencing homelessness in the UK every year, there is still much work to do."
At the gala, guests (including young people from Centrepoint) will have a private reception and formal dinner, before taking their places in a Doctor Zhivago-themed marquee for the concert at the Palace.
Other acts so far confirmed on the bill include singer-songwriter Eliza Doolittle, classical violinist Charlie Siem, and street dance troupe Flawless (which won Britain's Got Talent in 2009).


text:
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
|5th October 2007, 08:35 AM
Hero Forero
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 4,419
Open question - What's your Spanish learning program?
It's been a while since we asked what you're doing right now to learn more Spanish, and I think it's really interesting to see what everyone else is doing to aprender más.... so, what are you doing these days? Courses? Radio programmes? Have you found an invaluable resource you keep going back to? A great book? Tell all!
|5th October 2007, 08:56 AM
El danés del foro
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Odense, Denmark
Posts: 34
I have Spanish classes in highschool,
At home I follow this forum,
play world of warcraft on a spanish server (I'm so lost caus I don't understand them),
I read spanish/danish small easy books,
I tell phrases to myself once in a while,
I listen to your podcasts...
Right now I cant construct that many sentences, and I dont know the verbs in other time than present (or very little in the two past forms)
But my goal is to follow conversations on Tenerife in week 8. And finish highschool in 19 months with an A+ in spanish and with a fluent language (also working on my english)
|5th October 2007, 07:41 PM
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Londres
Posts: 34
Going along to intercambio groups (there's quite a few in London). Reading books and magazines in Spanish instead of English (currently reading Harry Potter y la cámera secreta and Spanish Cosmo!). Watching movies in Spanish. That's about it. I've just started a degree in Spanish and Portuguese actually so I'll have to knuckle down and do a bit of actual studying one of these days...
|5th October 2007, 08:57 PM
Super Forero
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: North East England
Posts: 161
I have found that to vary it as much as possible is the key. So, at the moment I am listening to the advanced podcasts (of course) and I have a number of Spanish intercambios but mainly via the internet through skype (although I am hopefully going to meet someone for real on Monday who lives here in north east england, so me and she will be the only people who speak spanish here then, jejeje)
I am also doing an excellent online course at http://www.institutomagallanes.com/ which is really helping me - it gives you access to the cervantes online course plus tuition with an online tutor (Ben I think you should see if they want to advertise on the site! They aren't paying me honest, I have found them really good!)
Interested to hear other peoples' stories!
|6th October 2007, 05:54 PM
Super Forero
Join Date: May 2007
Location: madrid
Posts: 108
i am still using the byki [ transparent language] program. its basic but you can edit and put your own words and phrases on to the flash cards you just keep clicking away till the words and phrases are stuck in your mind..lol.. i was using it last night so for an example phrase i have now learned and can remember is ..... lo siento pero no es posible para mi asi / i am sorry but its not possible for me that way .. this kind of program with the flash cards seems to work for me...
|6th October 2007, 08:16 PM
El Perro
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Atlanta, Georgia & Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
Posts: 259
I log onto NIS on a daily basis. I listen to the podcasts, although at the moment, I am a bit behind in those. You're cranking them out rather quickly these days. Thanks!
There is a free class I have been going to offered at my church, but I am looking for a reputable school here in Atlanta which will offer courses with more intensity and more levels. Grammar is something I study almost daily for a bit with a workbook. ("Spanish Verb Tenses - Practice makes perfect" by Dorothy Richmond - McGraw Hill Press). I am trying to read El Alquimista by Paulo Coelho in spanish. I pick up the weekly free spanish papers published here to read their articles.
I am lagging behind in writing and intercambios. For a while I spoke with a few people on Skype, but I'm bad at it. A problem area for me is listening to and understanding lyrics to spanish-language songs. Although, truthfully, sometimes the diction on even english language pop songs is so bad I don't understand those either.
Old standards like "Trio Los Panchos" are easy for me to comprehend. Some Diego Torres I can figure out without looking up the lyrics. And I can understand Mercedes Sosa pretty well. The more instrumentation accompanying the singer, the less I can hear the words.
Last edited by Palmerito; 6th October 2007 at 09:24 PM.
|7th October 2007, 03:01 AM
Pangolin Forero
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Países Bajos
Posts: 3,791
|7th October 2007, 04:44 AM
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 8
I've been learning Spanish in school for 2 years and I hope to continue it in university next year... I only just started listening to the podcasts (to help me study for exams) and I go onto this forums to help my writing. Also, I listen to Spanish songs (although I don't know how helpful it is...I'd like to think it is ) and I occasionally watch the Spanish news (although they talk so fast it pretty much goes right over my head) and sometimes Spanish movies as well. In fact, I watched Mar Adentro yesterday and it was SUCH a great movie and by the end I was crying...a lot.... I think that the forums are the best way to consolidate for me because it helps me a lot with having to remember tenses e.t.c....so thanks heaps Ben and Marina!
|7th October 2007, 10:41 PM
Soy La Leche!
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Barcelona
Posts: 701
I'm still in almost total immersion but I don't follow a strict plan with it as I don't respond well to forcing myself to learn, so I try not to stress about committing words to memory, and rather just hope they'll go in of their own accord!
The phrase of the day app on Facebook is cool as they're snappy and easy to remember and they achieve what I want most to happen... ie, they surprise my Spanish friends with how authentic I sound! jeje.
My working day is in 100% Spanish so I know I'm learning a lot from that (mainly improving my comprehension speed rather than actually taking on new phrases) and outside of work I devote time to following the NIS podcasts and worksheets, pinching my flatmate's newspaper, watching films in Spanish, and only ever reading books in Spanish. Just finally got through the whole of "Perfume" and now I've just started reading "Saturday" by Ian McEwan, also in Spanish.
If I'm going for a walk on my own, I stick the podcasts on random play and let them sink in by osmosis! jeje. I know I must be improving as I can follow the advanced podcasts without missing much detail now, and can occasionally dis-entangle some of the colloquial phrases on the fly before even looking them up on the worksheets.
One thing that's not improving though is my comprehension when people speak at normal speed (ie, fast) in "street" type situations etc. I've tried earwigging in cafés and at the beach, but I still really struggle to understand anything at this level. I think I've "tuned into" Marina and Ben's Spanish quite well, but other people (especially strangers who don't speak so clearly) still leave me totally blank. I flick-flack around in Spanglish with my flatmate, as he speaks fast and I struggle with him in Spanish sometimes, but most of my friends seem to have found a good pace to speak at that they know I can follow.
|8th October 2007, 09:25 AM
El danés del foro
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Odense, Denmark
Posts: 34
|9th October 2007, 07:06 PM
Forero Senior
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: California, USA
Posts: 63
I enjoy listening to music in Spanish. I also watch a lot of TV in Spanish - mostly news and telenovelas. I listen to your podcasts when I'm walking and I'm trying to read more things in Spanish. I also practice with my wife, who is a native speaker, but knows nothing about grammar. When I ask her grammatical questions, the usual answer is, "because it sounds right that way".
|11th October 2007, 04:39 PM
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Perú
Posts: 14
I find www.webspanish.com really good as a back up for what i learn in my own time cos you can take as many or few lessons as you want, theyre really flexible.
also a brilliant website is www.practicespanishonline.com - ive used so many links from there in the past. basically its a huge list of online spanish resources and most of them are free. it also gives you a review of each resource so saves you a lot of time when youre looking for what you need.
Last edited by evelyn0666; 15th October 2007 at 06:13 PM.
|14th October 2007, 09:54 AM
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 9
I also listen regularly to all the podcasts, they are great for when you find yourself with some free time (bus, waiting for bus etc.). I have classes every week, one conversation and one longer grammar, art, culture study class. I find if I go to both classes every week I can notice the difference. Generally just one class a week without much else you tend to go into a holding pattern and not really progress much.
I have a number of books to read. I just finished reading Las Brujas (Roald Dahl) which I really enjoyed and found it was a very good level for me to read. I am now starting the first Harry Potter which I haven't read in English so could be a bit of a struggle.
To be honest, this site is the main online resource I keep coming back to. Good work!
Y por supuesto, me encanta escuchar música en español.
|23rd October 2007, 05:13 PM
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Amsterdam
Posts: 5
I use all kind of things. Varying from several podcasts (NIS and spanishpodcasts (from Mercedes, www.spanishpodcasts.org), with their respective [dis-]advantages), a course called Sueña (pt 2, intermediate series), i read books .. ATM I'm reading "El libro que Sandra Gavrilich quería que le escribía" on a adolescent/young adult relationship against the background of Madrid. Very lively written - and amusing too. Further I read stuff like Isabel Allende (I still adore the country, even after having been there).
And I got *The* Spanish Grammar by Matte/Bon. It has two parts: De la lengua a la idea, and De la idea a la lengua. So: form living and speaking to the rules and the other way round.
Also I listen very regularly to all kinds of spanish music (Amaral, Jarabe de Palo, and others from Chile and Argentina mainly). I actually spend quite a lot of time with Spanish ;o)
Last edited by mija; 24th October 2007 at 11:03 AM.
|26th October 2007, 04:25 PM
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 29
|26th October 2007, 04:57 PM
Hero Forero
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
Posts: 4,914
For me it was the prospect of social isolation and the teacher's paddle which motivated me to speak Spanish. I spent the third grade in Spain.
|30th October 2007, 06:45 AM
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 2
I speak English just fine but we aren't taught grammar in school aside from a little bit about punctuation (before taking Spanish I'd never heard the word "subjunctive" or "preterite")
What am I doing? Well, aside from listening to the Notes In Spanish beginner and intermediate podcasts (I find that I can understand enough of the intermediate ones for it to be useful, and I like how the beginner podcasts introduce phrases that people actually use), I'm doing... pretty much everything I can think of.
My love for languages was reawakened upon starting my college Spanish class. I'd taken a year in 8th grade and did well (so a lot of it's coming back), but with college classes being only four/five hours a week, I have a lot more time to study on my own and go in-depth.
And I do.
And I'm learning faster.
I pretty much do as much in Spanish as I can. I haven't listened to music in English for almost a month now, I pick up a copy of "La Prensa", a local paper in Spanish and English (that has a Spanish-only section inside if I'm feeling really ambitious). If any of my movies have a Spanish dub, I'll turn that on instead (without subtitles, I usually find that those distract me from actually trying to listen to and comprehend the Spanish).
I haven't gotten a chance to pick up any books yet, but that's definitely on my list.
I'll admit it, I watch Destinos as well. At this point the stuff they're actually going over is all review, but listening to the conversations is helpful, as always.
I don't really watch TV all that often except for a select few shows I keep up with, but I think I'm going to try some of the Univision telenovelas again.
When I'm thinking I'll often stop and wonder, "hmm, how would I say that in Spanish?" and give it a go just using what I've already learned. I think I should start saying it aloud though too (if I'm alone!), because the mind alone is not always the best place to solidify something.
I'll sometimes write a little bit in Spanish, just spouting off whatever I happen to know how to say. Which I should also start doing more often just to retain things.
I also started going to a conversation group. Just earlier tonight, actually! I think it'll be very helpful to actually have a place to practise saying things-- although tonight I was mostly explaining things about Spanish to other people. Oh well, review is always good! And it's nice to know I'm not the least fluent person there!
And of course, my college Spanish class. Can't forget that part.
In all seriousness though, I find it extremely helpful to have just that general guidance to keep me motivated. Professor's wonderful. He speaks Spanish in class a lot, most of the time, which I love and think more professors should do even when it's not required of them.
|31st October 2007, 01:10 PM
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: London
Posts: 9
I am a beginner Spanish learner, and although there are lots of courses here in London, I've decided against them because I have a very limited amount of time before I start travelling in Latin America next year:
In the last 6 weeks I have made good progress through the Pimsleur course (currently up to lesson 54/90). Based on the recommendation of evelyn0666 earlier in this thread, I thought I'd check out www.webspanish.com. I had my second class last night; I enjoyed it, and think that it will prove to be quite valuable.
I'm also trying to fit in some study of the 'Practice Makes Perfect' books.
I'm also going to check out http://lomastv.com to see if it's worth it.
|31st October 2007, 09:54 PM
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Florida
Posts: 30
Adult class one night a week
TV soap
Destinos, when I have time.
Think Spanish magazine & CD
Weekly Spanish newspaper
I have so many Spanish learning sites bookmarked that I don't have time for most of them.
Flash cards when I go for my morning walk, mostly verbs
Learn in your Car, CD's
After this year of classes, I hope to travel to Mexico for a month for immersion
Spanish. Would like anyones input about the best schools, best cities, etc.
If only I could come up with a way to retain what I learn.
|2nd November 2007, 03:17 AM
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Pennsylvania
Posts: 39
To improve my spanish I watch Spanish telenovelas, spanish meetup groups,listen to the podcasts ( I seemed to like the original first 30 podcasts the best, so I still listen to them again and again), flash cards and I do the Skype intercambio at times.
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
Linear Mode


text:
Study Masters
|Email this trainer now
|Email this trainer now
Here are just some of the companies whose trainers are found on this website
Our trainers are fully qualified to deliver Nationally Recognised Training in First Aid, including the following units of qualification:
HLTAID001 Provide Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
HLTAID002 Provide Basic Emergency Life Support
HLTAID003 Provide First Aid
HLTAID004 Provide an Emergency First Aid Response in an Education and Care Setting
HLTAID005 Provide First Aid in Remote Situations
HLTAID006 Provide Advanced First Aid
HLTAID007 Provide Advanced Resuscitation
HLTAID008 Manage First Aid Services & Resources
Many of our trainers are also qualified in other areas.
For Partnership enquiries please visit our Partnerships Website.
22282VIC Course in the Management of Asthma Risks and Emergencies in the Workplace
22300VIC Course in First Aid Management of Anaphylaxis
PUAEME004A Provide Emergency Care for Suspected Spinal Injury
PUAEME005A Provide Pain Management
22298VIC Course in Basic Oxygen Administration
UETTDRRF06B Perform Rescue from a Live LV Panel
UETTDRRF10B Provide First Aid in an ESI Environment
SISOOPS35A Provide First Aid in a Remote Location


text:
"I thought you cared about me. But you didn't. If you...
- by QuickSilver
- Rating:
- Published: 10 Feb 2014
- Updated: 4 Oct 2014
- Status: In Progress
Me, just a 16-year-old a normal girl. I'm living with my older brother Tyrone. I met someone name Louis and I think I'm in love
Join MovellasFind out what all the buzz is about. Join now to start sharing your creativity and passion
Loading ...


text:
Opinion: Silicon Valley's Next Big Things
WSJ Technology editor Scott Austin with a 2014 preview of the technologies and businesses that will change our lives. Photo credit: Getty Images.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... I ... I ... I ... the Antarctic melody store is twenty fourteen or talk about it so Scott Austin our own technology or know you're on the underside of the new bulb in the kind enough to rock up over the wall from the bottom of the SU to opine maybe Allah share some opinions but that's ... not just looking for Do What Technology Does above our been covering the of the top tech stories about twenty thirteen and as we look forward ... I'm wondering that we've had a pretty good quarter it looks like in the third quarter and I think people generally optimistic about the technology in the pace of innovation in the Silicon Valley ... aam ... wondering where the money is gone and in this sense I we saw a fad for some years I would call that my opinion name of putting a lot of money in the clean tech to Al Gore ... leading some lime green investments many of them didn't turn out too well ... is that ... it still was an area that gets money in twenty fourteen or or ... is that all social media where you what what is the buzzword you would expect a lot of people putting ... investment dollars in technology and anything over last couple of years a lot of money to funnel into ... social media to mobile ... a lot of consumer based startups and are certainly seen some of the valuations really come bubble up for some these companies Snapchat's and interests of the world ... but really where the money is now being directed is more to these ... enterprise ... companies of the company's their billing software and hardware for businesses and it's very interesting how technology ... he really ... was kind of a consumer ... oriented ... thing is it's almost like they're bringing the consumer to that the businesses now ... and so ... I'd you know that technology is shifting away where some network for consumers is now really working for businesses wanting to see a lot more ... venture capital money going into ... I can so the basic storage cloud storage companies that ... you really work were taken off with consumers than our own pushing into the enterprise ok and it sounds like it's more of the Valley's traditional roots in the right Steve not cleantech again not asking you to opine on whether this is a good thing or a bad thing ... but the but also I guess a relates to some of the stories you've been talking about this year in terms of a ... Dell and BlackBerry ... to the extent that they can not have of a revival here and so it seems like they're looking at that enterprise market I mean we've seen this rule to ... tectonic died in a shift in the in the landscape of technology in really this ... disruption that's happening you have Dell going private ... really saying hey we don't wanna be in the public spotlight ... the more it sold the company of its opposite having ... big problems with PCs Micra soft the three hundred billion dollar company but it's going in the wrong direction you see Steve Palmer retiring ... I there because it's it's it's not ... okay it didn't spur of that's true and a lot ... of course having of of all her thing ... this is a guy who I think to ... over thirteen years tripled revenue more than doubled profits ... um you know my dad didn't ... express my opinion there is a guy running an enterprise and technology apparently he agrees that he's gotta go ... we've got a big technology projects in Washington Healthcare dot Dove but I don't see too many people are leaving the head of the that effort directed ... Sudeep Rahman on that but ... but on this issue out ... of what would we expect going forward in these markets of Twitter IPO ... of a big deal this year in in in this market aam ... we've been looking for years been concerned about how you didn't see that many IPO's and now ... we've talked about some of the policy rate so that the Sarbanes Oxley etc you have the JOBS Act ... um ... possibly having an impact but to ... put aside the policy and politics ... what you think is the expectation for ... IPO's next year for venture backed companies generally is there ... it and optimism or more of caution about the future there's a lot of optimism because there are so many companies out there that have fifty million revenue hundred million in revenue this is not like the days ... I during the bubble when you have companies that ... you know not only were they not profitable it didn't happen in revenue on you does not seem that there's a ... direct companies in that the IPO door now and if your in Silicom Valley ... it's almost like you ... the world is exploding around in this is this is just an outstanding time of course of your outside you kind of question that if were to see companies like ... again BlackBerry Dell that are not in Silicom Valley Minnesota being disrupted ... but no I think you will see a lot more IP as I do think the you you mention the JOBS Act some policies ... that does help because it allows companies ... to ... I'm going to go public or start the process without getting public scrutiny you can hide your documents right ... behind a wall so to speak ... and I think you're and see a lot more companies so you try to come out there and so take advantage of the times are now seeing Twitter with this twenty five billion dollar valuation in Facebook now with its rebound ... I in the mobile ad space ... aam is a lot of companies that are just doing really well and are really going in the cycle is utterly year tool to forget ... that summer these companies are six seven ten years older I am sitting there for for quite a long time okay so not the baby wild eyed optimism without anything behind that of the of the dotcom boom but dove but people are feeling good in the Valley that this can be viewed here okay thanks thanks to the vet


text:
I am looking to buy green beans in bulk to blend/roast myself for use at my coffee outlets.
Other than ringing the plantations and getting them to ship beans to me is their any other way I can get hold of bulk green coffee from an importer in the UK?
There's online wholesalers in the States and Canada but for them to ship to the UK is expensive
I'm guessing the standard sack weight is about 20kg's?
Thank you for any guidance.


text:
squirrel, name for small or medium-sized rodents of the family Sciuridae, found throughout the world except in Australia, Madagascar, and the polar regions; it is applied especially to the tree-living species. Tree squirrels range from the size of a mouse to the size of a house cat and vary greatly in color; some Asian tree squirrels are brilliantly patterned. In addition to the tree squirrels, the family includes the ground squirrel, chipmunk, marmot, woodchuck, prairie dog, and flying squirrel.
Sections in this article:
- Introduction
- Types of Tree Squirrels
- Classification
- Tree Squirrel Characteristics and Behavior
- Bibliography
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Vertebrate Zoology


text:
File Name Extensions.section
In an earlier article, I spent a considerable amount of time discussing the history of metadata, and its role in Mac OS X. I did that partially because it's such a large topic that I didn't want it to overwhelm this Mac OS X 10.1 review. But in the time since the metadata article was written, there has been a very significant public policy clarification from Apple—one that confirms some of my worst fears about the future of metadata in Mac OS X.
In the metadata article, I wrote that Apple's Mac OS X metadata policies up to that point "seem[ed] to be based on the assumption that file type metadata will always be encoded in the file name." Sadly, I turned out to be right.
The bombshell was first dropped on an Apple mailing list, and was later formalized in the Mac OS X 10.1 release notes. You should read one of those links if you haven't already, because the exact behavior of the metadata management system in Mac OS X 10.1 is very complex, and I don't think it can be fully explained more concisely than it is already in those documents. But if it had to be condensed down to a single point, it would be this:
File name extensions are mandatory in Mac OS X 10.1
To comply with the new 10.1 metadata guidelines, all files created by Mac OS X applications must include a file name extension.
The aforementioned complexity is caused by an elaborate system of per-user, per-file, context-based file name extension hiding, conflict and confusion prevention, and a long list of guidelines for applications that create files or display file names. But the bottom line is that every new file created by a Mac OS X application must be created with an appropriate file name extension.
The reasoning behind this policy is simple. If every file created on Mac OS X has its file type information encoded in its file name, no additional action is required (on the part of the user or the OS) when a file is shared with an operating system that expects file type information to be encoded in this way (e.g. Windows).
The file name extension hiding and file name editing policies are geared towards preventing the Mac OS X 10.1 user from knowing which extensions actually exist in a file name at any given time, and preventing users from removing or changing this information. The guiding principle is described by Apple as "what you see is what you typed", meaning that the exact file name entered by the user in a save dialog box or while editing a file name in the Finder should be what is shown in the GUI. (Again, consult the official guidelines for a more thorough explanation.)
Furthermore, traditional, distinctly stored file type and creator metadata (in the form of HFS/HFS+ type and creator codes) is optional under the new policy. Application developers "may" set this information "if they wish." The only benefit Apple lists for this action is "increased interoperability with Mac OS 9 applications."
Mac OS X 10.1 Metadata in Action.subsection
The table below provides a brief taste of Mac OS X 10.1's metadata policies in action. It shows a sequence of user actions, the resulting file name (both actual and displayed in the Finder), type and creator codes, icon, application binding, and any other warnings or interactions.
|File Name
|Opens In
|Save a screen capture from within the Grab application, entering the text "Test" in the file name portion of the save dialog box.
|Go to the Finder, click on the file name to edit it, and enter the text "Hello" as the new name.
|Rename the file in the Finder again, this time entering the text "Hello.txt" as the new name.
|A warning dialog pops up. (Click the "Use .txt" button.) When double-clicked, TextEdit opens the file and displays garbage.
|Rename the file in the Finder, entering the text "Hello" as the new name.
|When double-clicked, TextEdit opens the file and displays garbage.
|Rename the file in the Finder, entering the text "Hello.gif" as the new name.
|A warning dialog pops up. (Click the "Use .gif" button.) Double-clicking the file causes Preview to display an error dialog.
|Use the "Name & Extension" section of the Finder's "Show Info" pallette (cmd-i) to remove the ".gif" extension from the file name.
|A warning dialog pops up. (Click the "OK" button.)
For those keeping score, that's:
- four different displayed file names
- five different actual file names
- three situations where the actual file name differed from the displayed file name
- four different icons (one of which gave no indication of which application would open the file)
- three different applications that launched and attempted to open the file when it was double-clicked
- four warning dialog boxes in the Finder
- one error dialog in Preview
- two instances of garbage displayed in TextEdit
(At no time were any HFS/HFS+ type or creator codes set.)
The user actions that caused all this consisted of a "Save" from within an application and a series of rename operations in the Finder.
For comparison, a similar sequence of steps in classic Mac OS would result in:
- a single icon displayed in the Finder
- a single application launched when the file is double clicked
- a displayed file name that always matched the actual file name
Again, this was all a result of a simple save and a series of rename operations in 10.1. Yes, there were many warning dialogs, but the point is that renaming a file should not be so fraught with danger, warnings or no warnings.
Furthermore, the warning dialogs displayed in the Finder mentioned only that the rename operations may cause the document to "open in a different application." There was no mention of an inability to view the document or a loss of cross-platform portability, despite the fact that, during four of the six states in this sequence, the file would not have opened successfully on a Windows system.
Big Problems.subsection
Needless to say, there has been strong and vocal opposition to Mac OS X 10.1's metadata policy from a large portion of the Mac community. And, not surprisingly, I've been part of that opposition. I don't think anyone debates the improved interoperability that strict adherence to this policy provides. It's the prioritization of interoperability above all else that is so objectionable. The natural extension of this value system is to simply use Windows.
Apple appears to want to have it all: perfect cross-platform interoperability married to a rich, Mac-like "local" user experience. But given the current state of those "foreign" platforms that Apple wants Mac OS X to interoperate with, sacrifices on one (or both) ends of that equation are required. The 10.1 metadata policy sacrifices simplicity and control (for both application developers and users) in the local user experience in an effort to improve cross-platform interoperability. This is an unwise sacrifice for many reasons.
While interoperability may be improved, it is still not perfect. Million of files created in classic Mac OS still exist on Mac OS X customers' hard drives—files either without file name extensions or, worse, with file names that may appear to have extensions. And don't forget about files that have resource forks, which will require encoding for safe passage to and from other platforms, with or without file name extensions.
The ability to choose file names that are meaningful to the user rather than the OS, and to have complete control over those file names (not just the illusion of control), has been a hallmark of the Mac user experience since 1984. It's also been one of its biggest advantages. If Mac users truly valued interoperability above the local user experience, they would not be using Macs in the first place.
If this sacrifice of a significant historic advantage of the Mac platform is meant to attract more users from other platforms, it is doomed to failure. First, the change alienates a substantial portion of the current Mac user base, so many of them will have to be replaced with platform converts to merely break even.
Second, in the grand scheme of things, mandatory file name extensions are a drop in the platform-convert bucket. Converts to the Mac platform would still need to purchase all new hardware, all new software, learn a new operating system, convert, transfer, or lose thousands of existing files, and then deal with all the remaining disadvantages of their new platform: fewer hardware choices, a smaller software selection, more expensive hardware, etc.
Furthermore, the "payoff" for this conversion consists of all of the historic advantages of the Mac platform that had failed to attract this user in the past, minus one of the biggest advantages that was just sacrificed in an effort to cause the conversion!
If the new policy is meant to improve the user experience for the current Mac user base, feedback on this issue to date clearly demonstrates that it fails to do so for many Mac users.
Ironically, the new policy hurts interoperability with the platform most likely to be encountered by Mac OS X users: classic Mac OS. Files created without type/creator codes by Mac OS X applications may not be usable in classic Mac OS, or in Mac OS X's own classic environment.
Worse, the 10.1 metadata policy also effectively closes the door on many possibly future metadata policies by not requiring that all possible metadata be written to every file created on Mac OS X. Less metadata means fewer possible interpretations, and therefore fewer possible policies for application binding, icon display, and so on, in the future.
The obvious solution is for Apple to come up with a new metadata system for Mac OS X that improves interoperability while also retaining all of the advantages of the Mac Way. This new system should be backwards-compatible with type/creator codes, but should be an entirely new implementation that goes beyond the limitations of its predecessors. Hypothetical feature of this new system might include the use of BeFS-style extensible file system metadata, MIME types, Java-style (e.g. "com.adobe.Photoshop") application identifiers, etc. The interoperability of this new system, while important, should never come at the cost of the local user experience.
That's a tall order, of course, and no one expects such a system to spring, fully formed, form the forehead of Apple (especially when they're apparently still struggling with retaining window and icon positions in the Finder. Sorry, low blow ;-) But there is a simpler interim solution that requires much less work.
Start with the Mac OS X 10.1 metadata policy, but make the following changes:
- All Mac OS X applications must write HFS/HFS+ type and creator codes when creating a file.
- Make the application binding policy user-configurable. Include preset configurations that correspond to the traditional Mac OS and Windows policies, and allow custom policies to be created by the user that reference (or ignore) metadata of the user's choosing when determining which application a file will open in, and which icon will be displayed for that file in the Finder.
- Add "metadata services" APIs to the OS for converting to and from various metadata representations: appending the appropriate file name extensions (based on other file type metadata, or even the file contents), or removing file name extensions (setting other file type metadata as appropriate). These APIs would reference a per-user, user-configurable metadata representation mapping table.
- Change the standard open/save dialog boxes to leverage the new metadata services APIs, and provide both system-wide and per-application preferences for each user to control which applications append file name extensions by default, and which don't. All open/save dialog boxes should have a checkbox to allow the defaults to be overridden on a per-file basis.
- Add menu commands and context menus to the Finder that use the new metadata services APIs to allow the user to convert selected files (or folders full of files, or entire volumes full of files) to and from different metadata representations.
- Change any applications or system services that currently depend on the presence of file name extensions to also understand file type metadata stored in locations other than the file name.
- Make the entire file name, including any extension, visible and editable at all times.
To improve interoperability, a future version Mac OS X that includes the changes listed above could ship with default settings that correspond closely to the current 10.1 behavior: the system-wide option to append file name extensions could be on by default, and the customizable binding policy could be set to match the 10.1 behavior.
Such a system would have nearly all of the interoperability benefits of the 10.1 policy, while also providing experienced Mac users who are both willing and able to manage interoperability on their own with the ability to do so—while retaining complete, simple, direct control over all file names. The new metadata services APIs and their use in the Finder and standard open/save dialog boxes would provide even more power to experienced users, freeing them from some of the more tedious manual conversion tasks.
Metadata Conclusion.subsection
The metadata policy in Mac OS X 10.1 is complex in its implementation (sometimes to the point of being mysterious), misguided in its apparent motivations, and does not live up to the quality of the traditional Mac user experience that it intends to replace. Furthermore, it will make future improvements more difficult as files created with "partial metadata" by Mac OS X applications that adhere to this policy proliferate.
I'd like to paraphrase something I wrote in the metadata article because the sentiment seems even more apt in light of the current situation:
There is a feeling in some parts of the Mac community that the advantages of using a Mac are being eroded slowly by Mac OS X. Given Apple's tiny market share, compromises are often necessary to maintain acceptable levels of interoperability. But in cases where alternate solutions provide similar interoperability improvements without sacrificing favorable aspects of the Mac user experience, Apple should do everything in its power to implement them as such. Any part of the Mac OS user experience that duplicates the experience on another platform ceases to be a compelling reason to buy a Mac.


text:
The purpose of this site is to provide helpful information for small businesses, but no representation is made about the accuracy of the information. The information contained in this web site is provided only as general information, and topics may or may not be updated subsequent to their initial posting. Please note that information on this site (including published posts) may change from time to time.
By using this site, you understand that this information is not provided in the course of an attorney-client relationship and is not intended to constitute legal advice. This site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney in your state. This site is not intended to be advertising and Simplicity Law does not wish to represent anyone desiring representation based upon viewing this site in a state where this blog fails to comply with all laws and ethical rules of that state.
IRS Circular 230 disclosure: To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the IRS, any tax information contained in this site was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding tax-related penalties under federal, state or local tax law or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed on this site.


text:
Local economy remains stagnant
College of Business hold economic forum to discuss outlook
City leaders, business owners and community members came together to talk about the national and local economy on Wednesday.
The College of Business at the University of Arkansas Fort Smith in partnership with Arvest Bank and the Fort Smith Chamber of Commerce hosted an economic forum to discuss the latest economic figures.
Organizers said about 140 people were expected to attend the forum on Wednesday afternoon.
While the forum will discuss the "big picture", like the unemployment rate and sales revenues, it will also focus on several different topics.
"This time we'll focus on cluster analysis," said Kermit Kuehn, the director of the Center for Business Research and Economic Development at the University of Arkansas Fort Smith. "That means looking at various economic clusters in our economy and seeing which ones did well between 2007 and 2010."
Kuehn said the forum makes information and data about the economy easily accessible to the public.
"You can't make good decisions about the economy if you don't know the facts about the economy," he said. "Our role is to provide the basic data that is out there in a form that we hold is readable and understandable, and this interpretable."
Kuehn said an economist from the St. Louis Federal Reserve will discuss the regional and national economy, with a focus on the ongoing stimulus plan.
Kuehn said the while the Fort Smith economy is still struggling, it is beginning to stabilize.
"Our economy has been stable," he said. "It looks like it's improving. That's where we've been for some months now, that kind of mode. Nothing taking off that you can be really excited about yet."
The College of Business holds this forum twice yearly.


text:
New evidence released in underage Gillete Stadium drinking case
Team 5 Investigates obtains testimony showing rules were ignored
Team 5 Investigates has uncovered new evidence in a case of underage drinking at Gillette Stadium.
As both sides head back to court on Tuesday, Team 5's Kathy Curran revealed how it appears rules that were put in place to prevent tragedy were ignored.
Debra Davis and Alexa Latteo were killed moments after leaving a tailgate party at the 2008 Country Music Fest at Gillette Stadium.
Pictures from the parking lots show an abundance of alcohol and games of beer pong in plain view.
Davis was just 20 years old when she went there to party with friends. They paid $40 to get into the parking lot but didn't have tickets to the concert.
Foxborough police said it was becoming a popular spot for out-of-control, underage, binge-drinking.
"I take responsibility, I knew Debra had alcohol that day and I don't understand why the Kraft company or Bob Kraft or the stadium can't take their share of responsibility," said Mary Ann Davis, Debra's mother.
Mary Ann Davis is suing the Kraft companies on behalf of her daughter's estate for not stopping unticketed fans from partying in the lots and for allowing underage drinking to spin out of control, allegations the Kraft companies deny.
According to the licensing agreement with the town, new rules were put in place before the 2008 Country Music festival.
One of the major changes was that you weren't supposed to be able to get into these parking lots unless you had a ticket to the concert, but testimony shows that wasn't enforced.
"I find that inexcusable," said Joe Borsellino, attorney for the Davis family.
According to court documents obtained by Team 5 Investigates, the head of security testified they played no role in checking tickets and said they don't train employees on crowd control or intoxicated fans.
Foxborough Police Chief Ed O'Leary testified the heads of security and parking pledged they would be checking to make sure every vehicle had tickets before entry.
However both of them said they thought that was the police's job.
"It appears that defendants defied the police orders," said Borsellino.
"The police on the private properties on and around the Rt. 1 area are not tasked with checking tickets, that would be the private property owners responsibility, they are there for public safety," said Douglas Louison, attorney for O'Leary.
"If I could live that day over again it would change what happened if I could, but I also think there also needs to be change on the part of the stadium of allowing the kids to go in. You can't just bury your head in the sand," said Davis.
The Davis family told Team 5 it's not about the money, it's about Kraft and his companies accepting responsibility. Attorneys for the Kraft companies and a spokesperson for the Kraft family had no comment because of the pending lawsuit.


text: Mediterranean cheese origins date back to Roman times. It is this historic and qualitative heritage that Karoun Dairies faithfully reproduces in its wide variety of Mediterranean Specialty dairy foods. All our products are made with fresh, growth hormone free Real California Milk. This insures that they retain the traditional qualities necessary in a healthy Mediterranean diet, a diet rich in nutritious cheeses and yogurts.


text:
By John Vibes
Source: trueactivist
It was reported this week that the NSA has discovered how to hide spyware inside the hard drives of consumer computers. According to recent reports, the software allows the NSA to eavesdrop on pretty much any activity that is taking place on the computer.
This recent development was discovered by the Russian cyber-security [...]


text:
TROY - A nondescript one-story building sits along Second Street in the city's Osgood neighborhood, and all that hints of the wonders that lie within are two handmade placards displaying a clam shell. On a blustery Sunday inside this building, the aptly named Discovery Hall, visitors were transported to the world's shores, from Australia to the Alaska, and the treasures that lie within their sands--sea shells. Discovery Hall is currently housing the return of "Jewels of the Sea," an exhibition of more than 800 sea shell species--including both the largest living sea shell and one of the smallest--and specimens of various other aquatic creatures, both living and extinct. The exhibit, complete with sand and a dune fence, is impressive, but perhaps even more so is the collector and curator, Ron Glasser, and the effort he has put into amassing his collection--one of several--over the past 35 years. Since his twenties, he has been slowly finding and buying sea shells, and has a collection of over 1,000. "This is what he would love to do all the time," said Kathy Glasser, Ron's wife, as she stood in the midst of the one of the exhibits. A craftsman specializing in historical restorations by trade, Ron's stronger passion lies in his avocation--learning about the natural world and sharing his knowledge of it. The Glassers have spent many hours along the shores of Cape Cod, Maine and Florida on the hunt for interesting specimens. Their initial efforts are decidedly low-tech, and comprise the age-old process of peering at a multitude of shells, a process continued when Ron brings home a bucket of sea debris from along a sand bar. In a process the amateur conchologist relishes, he pours over the contents of the bucket, a mixture of sand, shells and other sea debris from the originating locale, and in that he has unearthed some of his most exciting discoveries. The smallest seashell in the exhibit was found in just such a search. While perusing some sand from Venice Beach, Florida, Ron found a full-grown fossilized Olive shell, no bigger than a grain of sand. When he examined the inside the shell with a microscope he found a shell within a shell. Finding such a minute creature inside of another enlivens a sense of wonder in Ron, one that he would like to share with the world through the Discovery Hall, and especially with children. Ron would like for children to experience the excitement of coming across things, "purely by accident, and see what they thought was a grain of sand and then, through magnification, see what it actually is:" an organism within an organism, with each their own specific structure and purpose, far smaller than a grain of sand. The finding of the micro-shell was labor intensive, but there are others that Ron has, literally, found in clearance racks. Near the tail end of the summer shopping season, Ron came across a prize--a specimen of the world's largest living gastropod, a false trumpet shell (Latin: Syrinx aruanus) for $30 on the shelf at the HomeGoods store in Latham, where it was being sold as part of a summer merchandise clearance. Now that shell, too, has become part of the Discovery Hall display. "He's dreamed of having a museum," said Kathy. "A hands-on discovery for everyone. So much right now is technology--you Google it and you see pictures of it, but you never have the opportunity to feel it in your hand, to taste it, touch it, smell it and really have it be part of all the senses." Interest in offering that hands-on experience to her students is what brought Kathleen Testo, a third grade teacher at Rensselaer Park Elementary School in Lansingburgh, to the exhibit Sunday afternoon. "I was thinking about how much my third grade students would love this. They are just at that point where they can appreciate nature and its beauty," Testo said. "You really don't learn unless you get out there. You can look at pictures, but they just don't do justice."
Jewels of the Sea exhibit transports visitors to world's shores through shells
- Ian Benjamin
- Comments
Most Popular
- Two COVID-19 deaths reported in Saratoga County
- New York State Police Department blotter
- Saratoga Springs Police Department blotter
- Queensbury woman charged with DWI in a work zone
- Saratoga Springs Police Department blotter
- Malta Farm & Garden serves farm, garden and pet supply needs
- Parolee charged with possession of stolen property in Wilton
- Reader's View: Charter change for stronger democracy & inclusivity
- Motivated voters take advantage of early voting in Capital Region
- Colonie woman charged with vehicular assault, DWI after crash in Halfmoon


text:
Pure luxury, these 100% natural herbal soaps are handmade in small seasonal batches for the purest bathing experience around. Made with organically grown herbs, flowers & grains to create unique textures & colors, this season's fragrant offerings include:
Our products are 100% natural, contain certified organic ingredients as indicated, are hypo-allergenic, non-irritating & dermatological tested, with a certified shelf-life of 2 years from the date of opening. No animal testing.


text:
Colon Cancer: Did you know that it affects more than just the 50 years and over crowd?
I can tell you first hand that even in your 20's you could be at risk.
(visit www.coloncancercanada.ca to get more information and get involved!)
A brief history on how I got acquainted with Colon Cancer.
In November 2009, King Township's (Ontario, Canada) Tanya Shepherd, 28, died of colon cancer, leaving behind friends, family, husband, and a young child.
To raise awareness of the disease in memory of Tanya, Holly, her sister, Kate Shepherd, and sister-in-law, Jennifer Shepherd, are organizing a Push for Your Tush run/walk in Aurora.
In prior years, the sisters-in-law raised funds through the annual Underwear Affair in Toronto, where the team dedicated to Tanya's memory, Tanya's Tushies, was the top fundraising team. But when it was cancelled the year after Tanya passed, we knew we had to keep the awareness out there.
More than 22,500 Canadians were diagnosed with colon cancer in 2010 and more than 9,100 died from the disease. WOW! Surprising because early intervention avoids DEATH in most cases!
During Tanya's fight, family members created and sold cancer bead bracelets, where each colour of bead represented a different type of cancer, something we have continued to do to raise awareness and support for other families.
If your interested in one of these bracelets, let me know! I will ship them to you, drive them to you, or find a way :)
Everyone walked/ Ran despite the on and off rain!
Please, find a way to support this cause. Either by donation, or awareness because Colon Cancer is CURABLE WHEN FOUND EARLY!
Enjoy some of the pictures from this years event, taken by yours truly (Raven Knights Photoshoot)


text:
With a thriving community of over 1.6 million members, Unigo is the premier network for current and future college students to get to where they're going. Unigo provides cutting-edge tools, compelling content, and essential information, empowering students to make the best decisions about their college experience.
Students are our jam
We're here to help students. Every action we take and decision we make must benefit students. If it doesn't, we won't do it.
You can't learn alone
If two heads are better than one, how much better are a million? We believe that we're happier and more successful when we work together, so we're building a worldwide community where all students can support each other.
Helping you get where you want to go
College is not one-size-fits-all. Everybody's different. We're here to help you find the right school for you, and figure out how to pay for it.
Life is challenging, risky, and uncertain. Bring it on!
College and work aren't what they used to be, and that's OK because there's nothing we like better than a challenge. We're always looking for new ideas and creative solutions to help you stay ahead.
Study hard, play hard
A game of ping pong, Final Four on the flat screen, cracking jokes, and a pint of beer. Are we talking about life at college? Nope. That's a normal day at Unigo. Of course, we also bust our butts making the best tools to give you the most awesome experience possible. Who says you can't have it all?
We think accountability is cool
Keeping our word, earning your trust, and doing the right thing matters. You can count on us to be there when you need us.
Nearly $500K in Unigo scholarships awarded, and we're not stopping there!
We believe that every student matters, which is why we're proud to offer Our Scholarships, offering a variety of scholarships to give all students a chance to receive the higher education they deserve.
"One measure of an idea's greatness is how obvious it seems in retrospect ... Unigo's college advice and reviews are vivid in a way no guidebook can match."
"Unigo is a college resource built for the age of YouTube and Facebook." — Walt Mossberg
"Millions of students have used Unigo to assist in their college search."
"One of the top 10 college websites."
"A revolution for students."


text:
Python Programming, news on the Voidspace Python Projects and all things techie.
Silverlight Article Updates and PyCrypto for AMD64
I've updated a couple of the Silverlight articles on my IronPython and Silverlight Pages:
From Silverlight to Javascript and Back Again
An article on using the Scriptable attributes to call from IronPython into Javascript and from Javascript into IronPython. The update makes a couple of parts less confusing and corrects a mistake. Thanks to Jimmy Schementi for pointing these out. The download is unchanged.
Embedding IronPython in a C# Silverlight Application
Although the minimal example I had in this article worked, it had problems as soon as you tried to do anything non-trivial (like import Python modules for example!). This has now been corrected; thanks to Richard Klafter for pointing this out and providing the correction. The example project for download has been extended with the new code.
I've also posted online a binary distribution of PyCrypto 2.0.1 for Windows, for Python 2.6, for AMD64 processors! This was provided, by Jeffrey Foran. Many thanks. He says (by the way):
It was built with the free MSVC compiler and some minor hackery (minimal hackery to the pycrypto files, lots of hackery to the python and microsoft build tools). It passes all the tests fine, but it was not fun to actually get together. I tried very hard to build 2.5 also, but it was much more difficult for various reasons.
Like this post? Digg it or Del.icio.us it.
Posted by Fuzzyman on 2009-03-13 23:44:56 | |
Categories: Writing, Website, Projects, Python, IronPython Tags: silverlight, pycrypto
Resolverhacks: Unit Testing Spreadsheets and Importing CSV Files with Cell.Formula
I've created two new spreadsheets for the Resolver Hacks Website (with more in the works). I haven't yet written the articles that accompany them, but I've linked to them here in case it takes me a while to get round to it... Both of these articles use new features in Resolver One 1.4. Resolver One is a .NET programmable spreadsheet for developing applications and spreadsheet systems. Spreadsheets created with Resolver One are represented as IronPython programs which you can add code to using Python and .NET libraries: the dreamweaver of spreadsheets.
Both of these spreadsheets are hosted on the Resolver Exchange:
Importing CSV Files Using the Cell Formula Property
This spreadsheet is both a tool and an example. Resolver One doesn't currently support importing from CSV files out of the box [1]. You can easily import CSVs from user code, but the import is repeated every recalc and you can't edit the values. This spreadsheet allows you to import a comma or tab delimited file into a worksheet. It uses a .NET CSV Parser shipped with Resolver One and so has no external dependencies.
Click the button on the 'Import' spreadsheet and select the CSV file to import. After importing, the contents of the file will be in the 'Data' worksheet and you can delete the user code and save the spreadsheet with a new name.
Resolver One version 1.4 allows you to set data in the grid using the Formula property on cells. As well as being a useful tool this spreadsheet provides examples of using the cell Formula property plus using the OpenFileDialog and MessageBox (Windows Forms) dialogs from user code.
Test Driven Development of Spreadsheets
One of the coolest features of Resolver One is RunWorkbook. It can be used to create spreadsheet systems where the data is stored in a single spreadsheet and used in multiple places, or for turning spreadsheets into functions that can be called with new data to run calculations on. RunWorkbook is an IronPython function that exposes the Resolver One calculation engine - and we can actually use it from IronPython to Access Resolver One spreadsheets from Python programs.
One of the interesting possibilities this opens up is doing Test Driven Development of spreadsheets. You can write unit tests (using the Python unittest module) for the spreadsheets passing in known data to RunWorkbook and introspecting the returned workbook object to make assertions.
Although it will probably make more sense when the article is written, the zip file for download contains the spreadsheet and a unit test file that incrementally tests features in the spreadsheet. See the note below about the setup needed to run the tests (you need Resolver One 1.4 installed for starters).
Both of these spreadsheets require Resolver One version 1.4. You can download it from here.
In order to run the tests for the TDD example you will need to follow the instructions in Using Resolver One Spreadsheets from IronPython. This means copying ipy.exe from IronPython 2.0.1 into the bin directory of your Resolver One install.
We also have a new Resolver One ad on The Daily WTF, this time promoting the Resolver One Spreadsheet Challenge. You might have to refresh the page a few times to see it!
|You can paste a CSV from the clipboard into a worksheet and CSV import / export is still on the list of possible features for Resolver One 1.5...
Like this post? Digg it or Del.icio.us it.
Posted by Fuzzyman on 2009-03-13 23:24:01 | |
Categories: Work, IronPython Tags: resolverone, spreadsheets, CSV, TDD
Resolver One 1.4: IronPython 2, Numpy, and R
Resolver One is the Python and .NET programmable spreadsheet created by Resolver Systems After a lot of work, Resolver One 1.4 is now released! Version 1.4 took us a long time; the main feature is that Resolver One is now built on IronPython 2. We worked closely with the IronPython team on improving the performance of IronPython 2 - Resolver One exposed performance issues that only show up when you run a large Python application and IronPython 2.0.1 is largely the result of the work of Glenn (Resolver Systems) and Dino Veihland (Microsoft IronPython team) working together on it.
Tangible benefits this brings to Resolver One users include: Python 2.5 (with statement - yay!) and improved compatibility with the standard library (especially urllib2 which many users have requested). Due to the new compilation technique startup is also slightly faster.
The three other major features in Resolver One 1.4 are:
- The first step towards model side scripting - button handler code can now modify values and formulae in the spreadsheet (see Cell.Formula documentation)
- Support for Numpy arrays in the spreadsheet grid - through Ironclad (see this screencast for an illustration of what is possible)
- 24 new statistical functions now supported by Resolver One (see this list of all Spreadsheet functions in Resolver One)
You can read all about the release and a full list of all changes:
As always you can download a 31 days free trial, or if you are sharing the spreadsheets you create you can request an open source license: Download Resolver One.
The Resolver Challenge is still running and we've just announced the winner of round two. Marjan Ghahremani has worked out how to get Resolver One to work with R, an advanced statistical system.
Marjan is a student at UC Davis, double majoring in psychology and anthropology. Her interest is in doing research on social and developmental psychology, and for data analysis she needs a very strong statistical tool. R fits the bill perfectly, and with her integration code she can call into it from the Resolver One graphical interface.
Many congratulations to Marjan, and a huge "thank you" to all the other entrants! You can download the R integration code, along with an explanatory PDF file, from here.
In order to run complicated statistical analysis/modeling I use R (an open source clone of the powerful commercial language S-Plus). R is the most successful statistical library currently existing on the market. R has different powerful libraries for data mining, genetics, portfolio optimization, asset allocation, etc.
Although R is the strongest tool for statistical analysis, unlike SPSS it lacks an easy to use yet a powerful spreadsheet. On the other hand building a bridge between R and Resolver one is extremely difficult and involved a number of trial and errors and using Interop objects. By using the provided framework one can enjoy the power of all of the R libraries with the comfort and the power of Resolver One. The accompanying examples will help the reader to use similar strategies to solve complicated statistical problems and to develop exciting results and 2D/3D graphs using OpenGL capabilities and drawing. Users are able to develop fly-through 3D visualizations from Resolver One by using RGL library in R (see screenshot). I have made an effort to provide a complete framework with directions for how to write a program in this framework and how to do error handling between R and Resolver One. All the complex libraries are provided in binary format and users only need to call them from within their Resolver One. It will then enable them to use all the functionality of R inside their Resolver One spreadsheets and send them information successfully back and forth between these two programs.
The same component can be used to call SciLab functions (a clone of MATLAB, a scientific computing environment), using the same procedure provided in the article, users are able to use SciLab similar to the way they use R inside Resolver One.
If you weren't able to enter this round of the competition, or want to try again, there are three more rounds to go - with a $2,000 prize for each - before the final "best of the best" $15,000 decision in May
Like this post? Digg it or Del.icio.us it.
Posted by Fuzzyman on 2009-03-10 09:18:28 | |
Categories: Work, IronPython Tags: resolver, competition, R, numpy, spreadsheet, release, Ironclad
Interface design, Usability and Kitchen Hobs
I'm very interested in application usability. I'm aware that for those who aren't computer experts they can be complex and bewildering. As someone who has been using using computers inside and out for years this is something that is easy to forget; that the metaphors on which a modern OS is built are not 'intuitive' to the average human. To use modern computers fluently requires a huge amount of background experience that only comes from time, and even better from taking apart machines and programs to understand what is really going on underneath the metaphors.
Poorly designed applications and user interfaces on top of this make computers painfully difficult. On the other hand computers and applications can be usable, and if the things we create don't make people's lives less painful then we're wasting our time. I'm also interested in programming language design, and I like this quote from Guido van Rossum: "a programming language is an HCI" (Human Computer Interface). Programming languages are compromises between the language that computers speak (an electromagnetic dance where even 1s and 0s are an abstraction for the sake of humans) and a language that we're capable of reading and writing.
User interface design isn't restricted to the world of computers. My Dad is a health and safety consultant, specialising in health and safety as it applies to computer controlled systems. This includes industrial plant and machinery, power stations, oil rigs and the like. One of the most common causes of accidents, including fatal accidents, is operator error. Behind the operator error is often a poorly designed user interface, making the system or machinery much harder to operate correctly under pressure: bad UIs kill!
Because of this my Dad has also been interested in interface design for many years. He tells me that some of the best studies in the field are based on child psychology and there are aspects of interface design that can be categorised as objectively good or bad. One thing that every child learns early in its development is the principle of one-to-one correspondence. In its basic form you can see this in young children learning to use their limbs; that signals they send from their brain result in a corresponding movement in their arms and legs is a fascinating voyage of discovery for young babies.
This principle of one-to-one correspondence is baked into us and applies to the HCI. When we move the mouse physically with our hands the pointer moves in exact correspondence; which makes it easy to learn.
One example of an astonishingly badly designed user interface is the kitchen hob. The most common design has four cooking rings arranged in a square pattern. If it had four control knobs arranged in the same pattern then everyone would know which knob corresponded to which ring intuitively. The most common design pattern for hobs lays the four knobs out in a straight line; violating one-to-one correspondence with the consequence that you have to look and work out which one you need to use (and if you're anything like me probably getting it wrong anyway). If the knobs were arranged in the same pattern as the rings then everyone would find them straightforward to operate; one-to-one correspondence at work.
Like this post? Digg it or Del.icio.us it.
Posted by Fuzzyman on 2009-03-08 14:43:47 | |
Categories: General Programming Tags: usability, UI, interfaces
Real World IronPython at QCon
Next week I'll be at QCon in London, speaking on Real World IronPython:
IronPython is a port of Python, a popular open source dynamic language, to the .NET framework. .NET has traditionally been programmed with statically typed languages like C# and VB.NET.
Resolver Systems has been developing a full application with IronPython for the last three years. In this session we'll see how a dynamic language integrates with the .NET framework, learn what advantages it brings and look at several real-world use cases for IronPython; including adding user scripting to .NET applications.
This will be a new talk for me, and I'm looking forward to it. I was invited to QCon by Ola Bini who is running the Emerging Languages in the Enterprise track. Other speakers in this track include Martin Fowler, so I'm in illustrious company!
If you're at QCon come and say hi, see you there.
Like this post? Digg it or Del.icio.us it.
Posted by Fuzzyman on 2009-03-08 14:25:14 | |
Categories: IronPython Tags: QCon, conferences
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 License.


text:
Dead in a Park
- $3.99
- $3.99
Publisher Description
When Leah Norwood finds the body of Donald Collins in the city park, she doesn't know he is a distant relative. Young Donnie was a jewel thief and a career criminal. Hidden in the lining of his suit jacket was an exact replica of a ring that has been in Leah's family for over a hundred years. After her home is burglarized, the sexy chief of police is convinced the ruby ring has something to do with the murder.
Leah wants to find out what happened to Donnie, but why would someone kill for a hundred year old ring? She discovers a connection between Donnie and the drug-dealing Cantono family, between the Cantono family and a jewelry appraiser, and between the jewelry appraiser and one of her own employees. Chief Griggs might be onto something. All clues lead back to the family ring.
Leah loves a good mystery. Can she find the killer before the killer strikes again?


text:
Search results for author:"Marja Kankaanranta"
Total records matched: 1 Search took: 0.066 secs
Exploring the use of electronic portfolios in international contexts
Marja Kankaanranta; Helen Barrett; Elizabeth Hartnell-Young
World Conference on Educational Media and Technology 2001 (2001) pp. 874–876
One of the most exciting developments in the school reform movement is the use of alternative forms of assessment to evaluate student learning and teacher development. Different alternative assessment systems and forms must be judged based on the...
Topics: Interaction, Assessment, Professional Development, Portfolios, Students