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CAPITOLA — Lisa Murphy had great expectations when Capitola entered a national recycling competition in July offering a $100,000 grant for a sustainability project, but as of the beginning of the month, the seaside city of 9,900 ranked 48th out of 50 participating communities.
The leader in the SC Johnson Recyclebank Challenge is Lakes at Red Rock, Va., followed by Huntington Woods, Mich., and Horace, N.D.
Capitola, the only city in California to compete, is ahead of Rapid City, S.D., and Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
All the communities in the competition have a population of fewer than 10,000.
The city of Capitola has a commission on the environment advising city leaders, and the City Council banned polystyrene and required all takeout food packaging be recyclable or compostable so as to protect the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.
But this recycling challenge has been a challenge.
For recycling efforts to be counted, residents must go online to www.recyclebank.com, register and then report their recycling. The challenge uses the honor system.
"The response has not been as high as I had hoped," said Murphy, who is the city"s administrative services manager. "To move up the ranks, people need to sign up and report once a month that they recycled. It is so easy."
Other communities have seen leadership from the next generation. In Indian Harbor Beach, Fla., which ranks 11th, a 12-year-old volunteered to lead his class in promoting recycling, according to challenge organizers.
Murphy"s latest strategy is to reach out to the environmental club at New Brighton Middle School in Capitola, which has sent a flier home to families telling them about the recycling challenge.
She also put information about the contest in the city"s "Wasteline" newsletter and is connecting with Save Our Shores, a local environmental nonprofit, to get the word out.
To participate in the challenge, go to www.recyclebank.com.
Follow Sentinel reporter Jondi Gumz on Twitter at Twitter.com/jondigumz


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The Treasure Gallery presents an extraordinarily rich collection of jewellery. Its basis is formed by the collection of the Russian Imperial family.
The Gold Room features works produced by ancient Greek masters, pieces of Scythian gold, jewellery from Oriental countries (India, Iran, China), as well as outstanding examples of Eastern ceremonial weapons.
Visit to the Treasure Gallery of the State Hermitage Museum
Visits are by guided tour only.
Guided tour tickets can be purchased at museum ticket offices upon arrival. The tickets are purchased together with the entrance ticket.
350 RUB – guided tour ticket for one visitor.
8000 RUB – guided tour ticket to the Gold Room for groups up to 7 visitors in foreign language, off-tour schedule (price excluding the cost of admission ticket; entrance tickets are purchased separately for each person in the group).
One more visitor (up to 16 people) – 700 RUB
Opening Hours of the Treasure Gallery
Tuesday-Saturday 11.00 – 16.00
Sunday 11.00 – 15.00
For further inquiries please call (812) 571-34-20, (812) 710-96-25
Advance booking for groups up to 16 visitors can be made at the museum's Excursion Bureau and by telephone (812) 571-84-46

subset: commoncrawl


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Wilford (Billy) H. Fawcett returned to Minnesota from World War I with a footlocker full of dirty jokes. On a slow night in 1920 while he was working at the Minneapolis Tribune he sorted through the jokes and put them into a pamphlet he titled "Captain Billy's Whiz-Bang" [whiz-bang being the sound shells made during the war]. So our next best Minnesota book is:
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang
The content was loosely organized around Whiz-Bang farm in Robbinsdale, the original Lake Woebegone. Characters included Gus, the hired man; Deacon Callahan, whose daughter, Lizzie's virtue was always being designed upon; and Pedro the bull who rejected unworthy author submissions. The masthead read "explosion of pedigreed bull." The jokes were juvenile, sexist, racist, anti-Semitic, and haven't aged well.
The Girl: "You mustn't come into my dressing room."
The Man: "Why not? Am I not good enough?"
The Girl: "You might be worse."
Or "Harold" said the pretty young teacher, "in the sentence 'I saw the girl climb the fence' how many i's would you use?"
"Bofe of 'em teacher" replied Harold with a grin.
Fawcett found a printer and enlisted his sons to distribute the press run from their wagons to Minneapolis at baseball games, drugstores and local hotels where the consigned blue humor was held under the counter. Word of mouth fueled sales. The magazine went from an initial press run of 5,000 to half a million once Fawcett created a distribution network that revolutionized the industry. Soon the "Whiz-bang" was in newsstands, hotels, and trains, all over the country.
By the end of the decade Fawcett had twelve magazines. "True Confessions" was the first followed by titles like "Screen Play," and "Modern Mechanics" [which was sued by "Popular Mechanics" beginning a seemingly never ending series of lawsuits]. Roscoe Fawcett, Billy's brother, was brought into the business and much of the work during summers was done on Pelican Lake at Fawcett's Breezy Point Lodge.
When Billy divorced his wife Annette, who he referred to in his publications as the "henna-headed heckler," she used his money to purchase a competitor of the "Whiz-bang" called the "Eye-Opener" and moved it to Minnesota. For a period of time Minnesota was the capital of indelicate literature.
The company eventually moved to Greenwich, Connecticut and played perhaps an even more important role in dictating literary taste. Fawcett Publication began Whiz Comics, staring Captain Marvel, and a line of original paperback books under the Gold Medal imprint.
The Company kept the same "Whiz-bang" sensibilities. The Gold Medal Books editor in 1964 stated that they were trying to blend the "shoot 'em up sex novel" with a helping of good literature. When Gold Medal Books editor -in-chief, William Lengel received a scathing review of a manuscript his inclination was to publish it rather than pass on it. One such title was Mandingo a title that sold two million copies in its first five years.
It is hard to understate the impact, for better or worse, Fawcett had on American culture. By the mid 1960's the Fawcett brothers presided over an empire with $75 million and 200,000 million units in annual sales. CBS bought the company for $50 million in cash in 1977 [$ 160 mil in today's dollars].
The Minnesota Historical Society library has a nearly complete run of "Captain Billy's Whiz-bang" and has microfilmed it for posterity.


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This geometric and form inspired necklace is part of Alexandra's "Honeycomb Dream Collection". The main body of the pendant i made from solid silver, whilst cold enamel is used to give colour to the inside of each honeycomb compartment. It is available in two different colour combinations - choose yours using the drop down menu.
Alexandra says, "I like to give my pieces an intrinsic meditative quality through depth, visual geometric rhythm or physical movement, to obtain a strong interaction between the piece and its wearer."
All of our products come with free delivery to mainland UK.
If you live outside the UK mainland and would like to make a purchase, please contact us using the Ask a Question" tab for details on additional delivery costs.
You have 14 days from receiving the product to notify Sable & Ox if you wish to return an item. Please note that pieces commissioned to your specific requirements, or items with a broken hygiene seal cannot be returned unless found to be faulty.
Take note that all of our products are packaged and shipped by the artist and not by Sable & Ox.
Read our full deliveries and returns policy here.
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requirements and ideas for a commission based on this kind of work


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File an Appraisal Complaint
|Complete the Interagency Appraisal Complaint Form. Do not mail, email, or fax additional information unless requested.
|Please be aware that there is a time limit of 30 minutes to complete the online complaint form. If your session exceeds the 30 minute time limit, any information you have entered may be lost. To avoid this, gather all necessary information prior to selecting the form.
If the link to the Interagency Appraisal Complaint Form is broken, follow these instructions to update your browser settings.


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Islamic State video depicts beheading of Kurdish soldier, warns against US alliance
By SHASHANK BENGALI | Los Angeles Times (MCT) | Published: August 29, 2014
IRBIL, Iraq — Kurdish Iraqi officials on Friday condemned a video depicting the beheading of one of their soldiers by Islamic State extremists, who said it was retribution for the Kurds' alliance with the United States.
The six-minute video shows 15 Kurdish soldiers held captive in the militant-held city of Mosul, one of whom is later killed in front of a mosque.
Kurdish officials said they were treating the video as authentic but that it would not deter their forces from battling Islamic State, a Sunni Arab militant organization that has claimed a caliphate on lands it controls in Syria and Iraq. Kurdish soldiers backed by U.S. airstrikes have pushed the extremists out of some of the territory they seized this month in an offensive across parts of northern Iraq.
"We have lost many men, and maybe we will lose more men, but that will not stop us from implementing our strategy," said Ari Mamshae, a spokesman for Massoud Barzani, president of Iraq's semiautonomous northern Kurdish region.
The video, which was posted to YouTube on Thursday but immediately deleted by the site, is part of a propaganda effort by Islamic State that has drawn international condemnation. A similar video circulated last week showing the killing of American journalist James Foley, who was captured in Syria two years ago.
A member of Islamic State also claimed Thursday to have beheaded one of 11 Lebanese soldiers the group captured this month in clashes along the Syria-Lebanon border.
A Twitter user named Abou Misaab Hafid al-Baghdadi linked to a picture showing the soldier's beheading with the message, "Now you know who are the lions of ISIS," an acronym sometimes used for Islamic State. Lebanese officials reportedly were investigating whether the claim was authentic.
The video from Iraq showed the Kurdish soldiers wearing orange jumpsuits, as did Foley. One soldier named Hassan Mohamed Hashin reads a message to Kurdish leaders that said, "You have made a big mistake by joining hands with America."
Later in the video, a black-clad militant brandishes a knife next to a soldier as he warns that the rest of the captives will be killed if Kurdish forces don't break their alliance with the U.S. The next clip shows the soldier's bloodied body.
Working with the U.S. military, Kurdish forces have rolled back some of Islamic State's territorial gains. The Pentagon has carried out 110 airstrikes in Iraq this month, more than half in the area of the strategic Mosul dam, including four on Friday that targeted militant vehicles.
The Kurdish soldiers, known as peshmerga, who retook Mosul dam two weeks ago reportedly drove the militants out of the northern district of Zumar on Thursday amid clashes that left several civilians dead or injured, residents said.
In recent weeks, Kurdish commanders have met with teams of U.S. military advisers and have said they expect to receive weapons and ammunition from the United States to help fight the well-armed militants.
Special correspondent Nabih Bulos in Amman, Jordan, contributed to this report.
©2014 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.


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It is fun and hobby of some people that they like to have their personal pet. This desire is linked with different desires and purposes that can be understood with observation of social and financial surroundings of people in the social order. For instance, some people have guard dog and some people have family dog; this scene is different for various people. In the same way, people are also taking interest to make their dogs and pets attractive and eye catching with different techniques and methods. The piercing is also a part of these strategies and public attraction in this tact is also obvious and certain without any doubt. Piercing is a technical work which should be completed with proper care and attention. This small effort is helpful to complete piercing procedure with promptness and effectiveness. Some people may find consider piercing there pets as offensive as an invisible fence for dogs, but generally speaking it really is no more cruel than neutering or spaying your dog, and can give some nice stylish props to the hippest dog in town. Check out you tube for some great info on piercing your pet and the petsafe invisible fence.
Dudes an Invisible fence may hurt your pierced pet friend, but dogs learn quickly to avoid the boundaries and as you all know piercing pain it temporary, so is an electronic dog door.
Watch this videos
Usage of apt tact in this process
For this purpose, people should take an apt and sharp tool because this is effective to make piercing procedure successful and unbeaten in the public purchase. There are various tools that can be used in piercing procedure like needles and nails. After gaining this instrument, people should use a hard surface to push this needle in the ear of pet properly. This process should be completed quickly because this is a sensitive matter for those people that love with animals in their social and communal projects. In the same way, pet owner should press the needle with full power because this is recommended by experts that piercing procedure should be completed with one attempt. In some cases, this is needed to perform piercing procedure with two or three attempts because this process is performed according to skin condition of pets. In this matter, attaining the services of some professional and experienced personals is also a favorable option for customers without any doubt and reservation in the public purchase. Accordingly, customers can also use latest technologies and resources that are reachable for all people without any difference and divergence. In the same way, customers are capable to use these technological innovations easily as this is usable facility with small knowledge of modern tools and instruments in the communal and societal purposes.
Fame of piercing of pets
As the result of this situation, it can be stated that piercing of pets and dogs is popular procedure in the present age. People are taking high attention in this matter and this attraction is also useful as this is increasing the knowledge and experience of customers. In the same way, this is also sign of completion of piercing procedure of pets with rapidness and success. With this performance, pets are also looking gorgeous and owners of pets can also recognize their dogs and pets easily. This is also supportive tact to make life enjoyable and safe with company of dogs that are available in various types and categories. Consequently, accomplishment of this sensitive and specific process is based on the interest and attention level of lovers of pets. This is supportive scenario as pet's owners can use appropriate source at proper place and time with easiness.


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Harpoon Pumpkin Cider Is Surprisingly Good
Pull up a stool next to your drinking buddy Will.
The wave of beer industry consolidation that culminated with Budweiser turning Belgian in 2008 has made Samuel Adams the largest American-owned brewery. Boston's original craft beer maker has expanded to such an extent that I recently drank my breakfast at a Sam Adams brewpub in the Baltimore airport, and I could have done so at several other airports around the country.
Now that Samuel Adams is America's brewery, Harpoon has slid comfortably into place as Boston's brewery, hosting several annual blowouts at its Southie facility and sponsoring just about every road race, danceathon, and pie-eating contest in town.
Harpoon's flagship IPA remains the company's bread and butter, but they've been expanding the product line in the face of increased competition for the hop-head market. Rather than getting caught up in the gravity wars, Harpoon has kept its IPA unchanged since its 1993 debut—at 5.9% ABV and 42 IBUs, it seems almost quaint by today's standards—and has instead diversified its offerings, most notably with UFO Hefeweizen and a seasonal lineup.
In 2007, Harpoon began dabbling in cider, and this fall they've introduced a pumpkin variant. If you read enough food blogs, you might be convinced that pumpkin flavoring is totally played out, making Harpoon very late to a very lame party, but don't kid yourself. Harpoon knows that cider is sold to humans, not blogs, and humans love pumpkin-spiced things. Axe will make their next billion dollars on nutmeg body spray before anyone goes broke betting on pie drinks.
The primary challenge in turning a regular-flavored thing into a pumpkin-flavored thing is that pumpkins don't have a whole lot of flavor to begin with. A chunk of unadorned pumpkin doesn't make for a very interesting snack, so it stands to reason that if you're relying on it to fix up your cider, you need to start with decent apple juice. Once you've got a solid base, then the trick is to add enough real pumpkin to justify the label and then cheat your way to the top with a reasonable blend of sugars and spices that add autumnal dessert character without making a candy corny mockery of the situation.
Harpoon Pumpkin Cider, made with a blend of predominantly Macintosh and Empire apples from New England orchards, scores in the apple juice department. I find their regular cider to be a bit on the sweet side (as I do most ciders not specifically engineered for dryness) but for whatever reason the pumpkin number comes across as much tarter on the apple front. But solid cider can be undermined in a hurry by too heavy a hand with the enhancements, so Harpoon's real achievement here is getting the spice dosage right.
This cider lets the apples do most of the talking. It's identifiably pumpkin-spice-flavored—I'm not trying to pull one of those "This is great fish because it's not very fishy" moves on you here—but it's hard apple cider first and foremost. The fruit juice is complemented (rather than dominated) by the traditional pumpkin pie additives. The first non-apple flavor to hit my nose was clove, a welcome departure from the typical reliance on the sillier spices, but there's plenty of cinnamon on the back end, with lesser contributions from nutmeg and ginger. Harpoon respects the money-maker spices but doesn't lean too hard on the sweet stuff, and the result is an easy-drinking off-dry cider that comes with the sort of unintimidating statistics (4.8% ABV, 140 calories per bottle, $7.99 per 6-pack) that make it suitable for all your fall drinking needs.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Gangplank Book Club Starts Feb 1st.
We will be reading The Omnivore's Dilemma.
At this event we will be doing a round table to discuss the book. Let's share our love for learning!
You can purchase the book at Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe for 20% off (paperback) or at Bookman's.
Join the book club on Good Reads:


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"Dear Dr. Grumpy,
"Since my injury I haven't been able to go hunting, which used to be one of my favorite things. I found out that the state has a program for disabled deer hunting. Could you please complete the attached forms to let me participate in this?"
I hope this is simply a misplaced adjective, and not some bizarre new state program.


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Roman: Why This Startup is Tackling Erectile Dysfunction
It's the elephant in the room: erectile dysfunction (ED). Throughout history, men (gay, straight and everyone in between) have often boasted of their sexual prowess as a means of amplifying their self-worth. And while psychologists could spend years unearthing this deeply embedded connection to sexual performance, often there are underlying medical issues that can affect one's ability to have and maintain an erection.
ED is not merely an issue facing baby boomers and beyond; it's a condition that affects 30 million men nationwide, many of whom may have no idea that what's going on (or not going on) down below can be symptomatic of what's going on above.
Such was the case with Roman co-founder and CEO Zachariah Reitano. Launched in the fall of 2017, Roman is the first end-to-end service for men's health and provides everything from online diagnosis to medication delivery for ED.
Reitano's experience dates back to when he was a teenager and experienced erectile dysfunction at 17. Fortunately, his father was a physician and sexual health expert, so broaching the subject was more comfortable than most might experience with their parents. His father was immediately concerned. The next time the pair was exercising together, his father took his pulse and felt that a stress test was in order. During the test, Reitano's heart stopped and he collapsed to the floor - what followed was an ablation procedure to repair an abnormal heart rhythm.
In an unwelcome twist of fate, Reitano's heart medication had one side effect: ED. Fortunately, with careful monitoring and transparent dialogue, he's been simultaneously able to monitor his heart health and his sexual health. But this is often a rarity for men. In discussions with his co-founders, Rob Schutz and Saman Rahmanian, the trio anecdotally determined that they didn't rank too high in self-care. Their research further revealed that on average men die five years earlier than women and visit the doctor half as frequently.
And while an overhaul of society's approach to men's health, one step at a time seemed like a valuable and much-needed resource.
"On average, men die 5 years earlier and visit the doctor half as frequently as women," says Reitano. "The sad part is how big a part 'machismo' plays for this discrepancy. Most of us grew up with the "rub some dirt on it" approach. With Roman, we've built a way for guys to start that conversation with a doctor - seamlessly and discreetly and start them on a path to improving their overall health."
Reitano describes ED (and diminished erections) as a "car's check engine light" for overall health. Key factors all work together for the body to produce an erection, including hormonal release and a well-functioning nervous system. ED can be a sign of diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, obesity, or depression. More than 50 percent of men experience some form of ED but only a fraction explore treatment options, and those who have previously purchased online are often delivered counterfeit drugs that are laced with everything from floor wax to paint.
Roman has become an industry game changer in two essential ways. The platform increases access by reducing the barriers to treatment and lowering the cost of medication. It also creates a physician bond, which is a stepping stone toward more comprehensive healthcare.
How It Works
Roman's six-step plan looks at the big picture with six steps to address patient needs and concerns:
1. Select Your Medication Preference
Roman offers Viagra (as well as a generic version), Cialis and Levitra - each has its benefits and should be carefully considered.
2. Five-Minute Online Visit
A convenient assessment of your medical history, sexual health, current medications, allergies and symptoms.
3. Photo and ID
Identity verification is an important step in Roman's best practices.
4. U.S. Licensed Physician Review
This will determine if ED medication is safe and appropriate.
5. Free Meds Delivery
If appropriate, the Roman Pharmacy Network will ship your medication in discreet packaging and refill automatically monthly or quarterly. Pharmacy pick-up is also an option.
6. Member Support
Call or chat with your physician, pharmacist or medical professional at any time.
Roman is also invested in the bigger picture. Other resources available include personalized treatment plans, ordering blood tests to explore potential underlying causes and forwarding information to other healthcare providers to maintain a comprehensive assessment. Roman also provides a $20 credit towards future Roman services if a member shows proof of visiting a doctor in person.
Exploring and treating ED is a personal decision. Fortunately, with Roman now on the scene, you don't have to make it alone.
Sponsored content.
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text: Yeah, on our 2011s there is a difference as Tom notes here: http://www.saxton.org/tom_saxton/2012/09/dcqc-soc.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;rdhauser wrote:decided to stop at the Tahoma Market quick charger for a security charge. We thought we were just about through with the seventh bar (just below half a tank) and so selected 60% charge from the Blink quick charge options. That wasn't quite enough so I suspect there is some difference between what we track and what a charger gets from he car's system. We got home fine, but the last two or three miles were under the Low battery warning. Didn't ever see turtle, though. If we stop for a security charge in the future, I'm sure we'll take the time to get more charge than we need.


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What's Paul McCartney's doomsday scenario? Someone, somewhere, somehow manages to leak the Beatles' music onto the internet, where it will be stolen by everyone, all the time. This must be prevented! Notice a problem there? Yeah, it gets worse.
A few days ago, we found out that Apple Corps and EMI would finally release the Beatles' catalog in a digital format. It's not that we couldn't have just purchased CDs and ripped them—that's what everyone's been doing for years now—it's just that it felt like progress. In reality, it was just the near-random actions of someone who has no idea what's going on, at all. From the Guardian via Ars, Paul McCartney's view on selling the Beatles' music online:
I met [EMI's chief executive] on a plane once. I said: "What is the problem? I want to do it, we all want to do it." And he explained that in the deal that we want, they feel exposed. If [digitised Beatles music] gets out, if one employee decides to take it home and wap it on to the internet, we would have the right to say, "Now you recompense us for that. And they're scared of that."
Just to be clear, Paul McCartney says he wants to sell music online, but he—and his record company—are worried that someone could conceivably download it, upload it back to the internet, and open the floodgates to piracy. As opposed to just uploading the higher-quality digital files you're selling to people on Apple-shaped USB drives right now, or on CDs, more than a decade ago. McCartney expects an agreement by which he would be compensated if people share his music, as if it would be somehow correlated with the release of Beatles' tracks online, which EMI—no stranger to releasing music online—is scared of because it's insane.
Poor Paul! Someone should tell him, you know, about all the wapping. [Ars Technica]
UPDATE: From anonymized (not anonymous) source who researched similar subjects in the past, a possible explanation:
It's not the music for sale they're worried about but the raw remasters (this is why McCartney specifically refers to an employee potentially uploading the music). I don't know how much you've read about the making of [Beatles Rock Band] but they went to incredible lengths to protect the masters. It was only towards the end of the project that Harmonix received the (heavily encrypted) music they needed; before then, Apple Corps had been sending them "dirtied-up" copies of the music just in case it was intercepted halfway.
The real threat from McCartney and the other Beatles (and er, spouses of Beatles) is that if, somewhere in the process of turning their music into iTunes-friendly files, the MASTERS get leaked... then they will sue the pants off of EMI. And EMI allegedly said they are in such a precarious financial position that they do not want to take the risk of getting hit by a lawsuit that could take the company down.
An alternate theory, which still doesn't quite work. If masters leaked to the internet, presumably they'd be encoded in something like FLAC at best, which would be indistinguishable from the files the Beatles are OK with selling on USB drives right now. Or if this refers to the recording's component parts, like the ones used to create Rock Band, still: This seems avoidable. And in either strain of paranoia: Paul McCartney doesn't understand the internet. (And possibly other things, too!)


text: |Information on the O'Hara Township website is provided as a service to the community. Township rules and regulations are subject to change and the information on this web site should be considered as general guidance only. While the Township attempts to post current and useful information, not all information may be complete, accurate or up to date. In general, inquiries (including reference to official documents) can and should be made to the Township before proceeding with plans or programs.


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OAKLAND — A man is in stable condition after being shot multiple times on New Year's Eve, police said.
Officers were dispatched about 6 p.m. to the 2500 block of East 16th Street for a report of shots being fired, said Officer Kevin McDonald.
When police arrived, they found a man suffering from gunshot wounds, McDonald said.
The victim was taken to a hospital in stable condition.
McDonald said three suspects armed with guns were seen fleeing the area in an unidentified vehicle.
Police and Crime Stoppers of Oakland are offering up to $5,000 in reward money for information on the case. Anyone with information can call police at 510-238-3326.
Contact Natalie Neysa Alund at 510-293-2469. Follow her at Twitter.com/nataliealund


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The Ultra III Bloom, the world's first shoe made using Algae removed from waterways from around the World, is a true hero of sustainable barefoot design. Developed in collaboration with Bloom Foam, an eco-crusading team based in Mississippi who define themselves as "the world's first plant-based, high-performance solution to synthetic and petroleum-based flexible foams."
Every pair helps to re-circulate 57 gallons of filtered water back into natural habitats and prevents the equivalent of 40 balloons full of CO2 being released into the Earth's atmosphere. The Bloom Foam is created by harvesting algal biomass from freshwater sources at high risk of algal bloom.
You may have heard of Bloom Foam already. It recently gained international media coverage with the support of World Champion surfer, Kelly Slater, who's released surfing traction pads using the eco-friendly material to the applaud of fellow eco-conscious surfers.
Harmful Algal blooms pose an eco-crisis threating marine environments the World over. Chemical wastes –notably containing phosphorous and nitrates, often found in fertilizers – are seeping into our waterways and creating conditions that trigger the uncontrollable growth of Algae. The Algae releases toxins harmful to humans and animals, as well as depleting oxygen in the water and blocking sunlight – vital components to a healthy marine ecosystem. This can lead to mass deaths of local wildlife (marine mammals, fish-stocks, birds) and the pollution of drinking water and the air we breathe.
VIVOBAREFOOT recently collaborated with cold water surf brand, Finisterre, to share a limited edition flash of blue and flame orange.
By removing the Algae from marine-systems and replacing the ecologically harmful petro-based materials used for so many modern products, Bloom Foam is tackling the problem head on. Better still, it's a naturally perfect material for an Amphibious shoe like the Ultra III – being highly flexible, durable and lightweight. Ideal for exploring over land and sea with natural barefoot freedom.
By supporting products made using pioneering technologies like Bloom Foam, we can help make the World a cleaner place.
VIVOBAREFOOT are the official partners for ÖTILLÖ Swimrun, the World's most beautiful endurance race.
The antithesis of mass production. London Cloth Company weave fabrics to order, using quality British wool – the perfect partner to the Vivobarefoot Handcut Collection.
The Soul of Africa Charitable Trust, founded by Lancelot Clark (former MD of Clarks shoes and father to Vivo MD, Galahad), has been passionately working to create opportunities for employment in shoe-making on the African continent since 2003. The Trust then gathers profits from international sales and returns them to inspirational local projects.
Brainy, foot-shaped feet grow up strong and skillful too. Kid's feet are born perfect. While being barefoot as much as possible is ideal, we get that it's not realistic: so Vivobarefoot is a barely-there shoe to help them grow...
Receive exclusive updates on promotions, news and product launches


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I'm maintaining around 10 PC's with Windows XP as their Operating System. Currently we're using antivirus within each PC. Now I want to upgrade our antivirus. I'm searching antivirus with these criteria
- Network based
- Beside virus, can handle worm, and trojan
- If possible also built in firewall
So which antivirus match with my criteria?


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"Missing from the district court's discussion of Almonte's qualifications is any discussion of how his Santa Muerte testimony could legitimately connect Medina's prayer to drug trafficking. There is no evidence that Santa Muerte iconography is 'associational,' nor was there any allegation that the 'main purpose' of Santa Muerte veneration 'was to traffic in' narcotics. Cf. id. at 1562, 1563. Almonte testified that there may be 'millions' of followers of Santa Muerte, but he proffered no manner of distinguishing individuals who pray to Santa Muerte for illicit purposes from everyone else. His data comes from his work as a narcotics detective and his compilation of 'several cases from law enforcement officers throughout the United States where these items have been involved in drug trafficking and other criminal activity.' Mere observation that a correlation exists—especially when the observer is a law enforcement officer likely to encounter a biased sample—does not meaningfully assist the jury in determining guilt or innocence."
The decision went on to note that describing Santa Muerte as a "tool" of the drug trade was, legally speaking, a bit of a reach on the part of prosecution.
"The government's inability at every stage of litigation to explain precisely how Santa Muerte can be "used" elucidates the poor fit between our 'tools of the trade' jurisprudence and Almonte's purported area of expertise. It also highlights that further inquiry by the district court would have revealed that Almonte's testimony would not properly 'help the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue.'"
In short, mere devotion to Santa Muerte is not probable cause, and can't be used to tie someone to the drug trade. On reading the decision Dr. Andrew Chesnut, a professor of religious studies and author of "Devoted to Death: Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint," tweeted that this was a "big blow" to self-appointed hobbyist experts within law enforcement.
Santa Muerte court ruling is big blow to law enforcement self-appointed "experts" who testify in drug cases on regular basis
— Dr. Andrew Chesnut (@AndrewChesnut1) July 3, 2014
Chesnut went on to tell the Associated Press that "Santa Muerte has been used as evidence and used as probable cause in some cases, but she is not just a narco saint, and many of her devotees aren't involved in criminal behavior." Chesnut has long advocated against law enforcement trusting the testimony of self-appointed experts on this often misunderstood religious movement, and has written in-depth about Santa Muerte and other folk-saints for Huffington Post.
So what does this ruling mean? It means that the two accused in this case will get a new trial, one that will leave out testimony regarding Santa Muerte, and it is also a huge blow against the liberal use of self-made occult and "cult" experts in criminal trials. This is very good news for anyone who practices a misunderstood minority religion in the United States. It is easy to scare a jury with tales of strange belief systems, when the focus should be on presentation of material evidence in a particular case.


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Small Plant News: Volume 4, Number 9
|Small Plant News Archive Page. This is an archive page. No new content is being added. While these newsletters remain available for reference purposes, the documents do not reflect changes to Agency policy that may have been instituted since the newsletters were published. Also note that resources and websites mentioned in older issues may have moved or may no longer be available. Points of contact for various initiatives may have changed.
In This Issue:
- Want To Tap Into the Growing Farmers Market Sector?
- Looking Into FSIS' Routine Listeria monocytogenes Risk-Based Sampling Program: What This Means for You
- Avoiding Noncompliance Records: Originating From Record Authenticity Requirements
- Commonly Asked Questions & Answers
Want To Tap Into the Growing Farmers Market Sector?
By Janet McGinn
Are you a small or very small plant meat and poultry operator who would just love to tap into the growing demand for local products available at farmers markets? Did you know that in 2011, the number of operational farmers markets grew from 6,132 to 7,175, an increase of 17 percent?
Farmers markets are a vital part of the urban/farm linkage and have continued to rise in popularity. This article highlights some of the resources available to assist you in selling your products at farmers markets.
Your first step might be to see if there is there is a farmers market in your area. You can find out by searching the USDA National Farmers Market Directory at https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/local-regional/food-directories-listings. Farmers markets can be searched by State, county, city, Zip Code, and participation in Federal nutrition assistance programs. While you might think that farmers markets only operate while fresh produce is in season, winter farmers markets (November - March) operate in 47 States and the District of Columbia.
The USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is the agency primarily responsible for programs to support farmers markets. Among other things, AMS' Marketing Services Division administers the Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP), a grant program initiated in 2006 that supports outreach and marketing opportunities for farmers markets. Grants are awarded on a competitive basis following comprehensive review. The FMPP offered $10 million in grants in FY 2011. To find out more about the FMPP, go to www.ams.usda.gov/FMPP.
Other services AMS provides to farmers market stakeholders include technical assistance in market facility development, outreach, and organizational support, including the Farmers Market Consortium, a public/private sector partnership dedicated to supporting the farmers market industry by sharing and publicizing information about available sources of funding and technical resources.
The growth of farmers markets and the economic, social, and health benefits they provide support USDA's Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative, a USDA-wide effort to create new economic opportunities by better connecting consumers with local producers. It is also intended to promote a national conversation on why it's important for people to know where their food comes from and how it gets to their plate.
For more information on the many resources available from AMS to support farmers markets, go to www.ams.usda.gov/WholesaleFarmersMarkets or contact Debra Tropp, Chief of the AMS' Farmers Market and Direct Marketing Research Branch at (202) 720-8326 or email@example.com.
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Looking Into FSIS' Routine Listeria monocytogenes Risk-Based Sampling Program: What This Means for You
Sybil Wright
In an effort to reduce public health risks, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has implemented a testing program to verify your compliance with 9 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 430, which addresses the control of Listeria monocytogenes ( Lm) in post-lethality exposed ready-to-eat (RTE) products. Under the Routine Listeria monocytogenes Risk-Based Sampling Program (RLm), an FSIS team collects a sample of your RTE products, product-contact surfaces, and environmental surfaces for testing. In addition, a comprehensive Food Safety Assessment would be conducted in conjunction with the RLm sampling.
FSIS selects establishments for testing based on risks associated with the type of product and control measures used by the establishment. Once the RLm sampling has been conducted in your establishment, you normally won't be eligible for scheduling again for a 24-month period, provided that the sample result is negative, of course.
Let's say you've been notified that your plant has been selected for sampling. Here are some helpful pointers to guide you through the sampling process:
- FSIS highly recommends that you hold all products represented by the sample until confirmed test results are received.
- The sampling team will secure product samples and ship them to the laboratory after the establishment has completed all interventions, except for any intervention based on microbiological test results. FSIS will not wait for the establishment to receive those microbiological test results before sending the sample to the laboratory. In many cases, FSIS samples will be collected and submitted to the laboratory before the establishment completes pre-shipment review. This represents a change in policy that occurred with the issuance of FSIS Directive 10,240.4, Revision 2, on February 3, 2009.
- When FSIS takes a sample for testing, you can also take a sample and send it for testing to a certified laboratory at the same time. FSIS expects your establishment to take action any time there is a positive result, whether the result came from the agency's sample or your sample.
- It's your responsibility to determine the amount of product represented by the sample. You should consider the following factors:
- Your establishment's coding of product;
- Pathogens of concern;
- Processing and packing procedures;
- Equipment used;
- Same source;
- Your plant's Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan, including all monitoring, verification, corrective actions, and testing procedures;
- Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures records; and
- Whether some or all of the affected products are controlled by a different HACCP plan.
- Most negative results are obtained within 3 days. Confirmed positive results may take up to 8 days. The district office will provide presumptive Lm positive results to you. For results of future analysis, you can receive results by email. (Contact your district office for a copy of FSIS Form 10,230-2.)
- If a test result is positive and you did not hold, but elected to distribute, the product, FSIS will request that you conduct a recall in a timely fashion—usually the same day—at your expense. FSIS Directive 8080.1, Revision 5, Amendment 3, provides details of the recall procedure. However, you should take every precaution to avoid a recall to protect public health and maintain consumers' confidence in your business.
- When an RTE product sample or post-lethality-exposed RTE food contact surface sample tests positive for Lm, an FSIS team will evaluate the results based on your control measures and will initiate the appropriate enforcement action, if warranted. In response to any non-compliance, FSIS expects you to bring your plant into compliance with all applicable regulations. After the implementation of any corrective action that is necessary to bring your plant into compliance, the in-plant inspection team will verify your corrective actions, including disposition of the product.
As always, you should fully cooperate with FSIS inspectors during Agency testing by making your establishment's test results and other supporting documents readily available.
FSIS recognizes the real-world scenarios that are unique to your situation as owners, operators, and managers of small and very small plants. Dealing with public health, consumer confidence, and economic issues can be very challenging as you make your business decisions. As a public health regulatory agency, FSIS will continue to encourage all establishments to adopt practices that will prevent adulterated products from entering commerce.
For your convenience, the link to the "Industry Best Practices for Holding Tested Products" is available at www.haccpalliance.org/alliance/HoldingTestedProdSept1905.pdf. To receive a copy of the guidelines or to provide comments, questions, or feedback on FSIS' Routine Listeria monocytogenes Risk-Based Sampling Program, contact FSIS' Policy Development Division at (800) 233-3935. A printed copy of the guidelines can be ordered through FSIS' Web site at www.fsis.usda.gov/Science/Resources_&_Information/index.asp .
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Avoiding Noncompliance Records: Originating From Record Authenticity Requirements
By Commander Jeff Tarrant, U.S. Public Health Service
In previous issues of Small Plant News, we addressed some common noncompliance records (NR) originating from supporting documentation requirements. We'd like to add to that by focusing this time on common NRs stemming from record authenticity requirements.
According to 9 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 417.5(b), "each entry on a record maintained under the [establishment's] Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan shall be made at the time the specific event occurs and include the date and time recorded, and shall be signed or initialed by the establishment employee making the entry."
FSIS inspectors are trained to review your plant's documentation records related to your HACCP plan. To help you understand the inspectors' thought processes better when reviewing your documentation, we've provided the following questions they ask themselves when gathering information on record authenticity requirements.
- Was each entry on the record made at the time the event occurred?
- Does each entry include the time?
- Was each entry on the record signed or initialed by the plant employee who made the entry?
- Does each record include the date?
The inspectors will then assess the information and determine compliance. If, after gathering and assessing information pertaining to the HACCP record authenticity requirement, the inspector finds that your plant has met all regulatory requirements, then there is regulatory compliance. If the inspector finds that you have not met all regulatory requirements, there is noncompliance.
To understand 9 CFR 417.5(b) better, let's use the following example. The Better Meat Company's (fictitious company for this scenario) HACCP plan has a monitoring procedure for checking temperatures of incoming trimmings by checking two combos from each truck with a long-stem thermometer. The FSIS inspector requests the company's HACCP records and finds the following incoming trimmings log. The inspector starts gathering information by asking himself or herself the previously listed questions while reviewing the following log.
|Incoming Trimmings Log
|Critical limit = 38 ºF or lower
|Date: 6-8-08
|Truck ID
|Combo ID
|Tracking #
|4:56 am
|5:05 am
|7:20 am
After reviewing the incoming trimmings log, the inspector notices that the last entry (truck #8526) does not contain the time the event occurred or the temperature. In addition, it does not include the signature or initials of the person performing the activity. Therefore, the inspector determines that there is recordkeeping noncompliance and an NR is generated.
This is just one example, but by familiarizing yourself with the regulations that affect your plant, you can ensure that your facility remains in compliance.
For more information on noncompliance records, visit FSIS' Web site at www.fsis.usda.gov or contact the Program and Policy Development Division at (800) 233-3935 or (402) 344-5000.
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Commonly Asked Questions & Answers
Q. Do pest control programs have to be written documents?
A. No. Pest control programs addressed in 9 CFR 416.2(a) are not required by regulation to be written programs. However, they must be implemented and maintained to prevent or eliminate pest harborage and breeding within the limits of the official premises. Although such programs are not required to be written, a written program is beneficial to the establishment because it describes what actions are to be taken, when the actions are to be taken, and what is done to provide evidence that the actions were taken. A prudent establishment would focus on documenting as many aspects of its operation to demonstrate that its overall food safety system is working properly.
Q. Can more than one of the official inspection legends (i.e., meat legend, poultry legend, or exotic animal legend) be printed on the same product container?
A. Yes. A container of product intended for distribution to other than the retail trade may bear one or more official inspection legends. A container of product intended for sale to household consumers may only bear one official mark of inspection.
Many official establishments operate under Federal Grants of Inspection for meat products, poultry products, and exotic animal products. Considerable economic savings can be realized by these establishments when certain containers can be utilized for multiple types of inspected/passed products.
Note: A "container" is either (a) a shipping container that holds fully labeled immediate containers or (b) a shipping container that doubles as an immediate container. In either situation, the shipping containers are not meant for retail sale. Processors can print up to three inspection legends on one container and use it for either meat, poultry, exotic animal products, or a mixture thereof. The container is required to contain inspected product. The establishment using the tri-legend cartons must have a Grant of Inspection that allows production of all three types of product. All legends must be removed from the container if it is used for non-inspected product, for example, tomato sauce or vegetables.
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Small Plant NEWS
Editor: Keith Payne
Managing Editor: Jane Johnson, DVM
Production: Joan Lindenberger, Sally Fernandez
Design: Gordon Wilson, Duane Robinson
Contact: Small Plant News, USDA/FSIS, Patriots Plaza III, Rm. 9-267A, Mailstop 3778, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


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kidzsearch.com > wiki Explore:web images videos games
the World
|Orbital characteristics
|Epoch J2000.0
|152,097,701 km
|147,098,074 km
|149,597,887.5 km
|365.256366 days
1.0000175 yr[2]
Average orbital speed
|29.783 km/s
107,218 km/h[2]
to the invariable plane[4]
|Physical characteristics
Equatorial radius
|6,378.1 km
Polar radius
|6,356.8 km
|510,072,000 km²
|1.08321 × 10¹² km³
|5.9736 × 1024 kg
Mean density
|5.515 g/cm³
|0.99732 g
|11.186 km/s
The Earth is the third planet from the Sun and it is the only planet known to have life on it. The Earth formed around 4.5 billion years ago.[5] It is one of four rocky planets on the inside of the Solar System. The other three are Mercury, Venus, and Mars.
The large mass of the Sun makes the Earth move around it, just as the mass of the Earth makes the Moon move around it. The Earth also turns round in space, so different parts face the Sun at different times. The Earth goes around the Sun once (one "year") for every 365¼ times it turns all the way around (one "day").
The Moon goes around the Earth about every 27⅓ days, and reflects light from the Sun. As the Earth goes round the Sun at the same time, the changing light of the Moon takes about 29½ days to go from dark to bright to dark again. That is where the idea of "month" came from. However, now most months have 30 or 31 days so they fit into one year.
The Earth is the only planet in our Solar System that has a large amount of liquid water.[6] About 71% of the surface of the Earth is covered by oceans. Because of this, it is sometimes called the "Blue Planet".[7]
Because of its water, the Earth is home to millions of species of plants and animals.[8][9] The things that live on Earth have changed its surface greatly. For example, early cyanobacteria changed the air and gave it oxygen. The living part of the Earth's surface is called the "biosphere".[10]
Orbit and turning
The Earth is part of the eight planets and many thousands of small bodies that move around the Sun as its Solar System. The Solar System is moving through the Orion Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy now and will be for about the next 10,000 years.[11]
The Earth is generally 150,000,000 kilometers or 93,000,000 mi away from the Sun (this distance is named an "Astronomical Unit"). The Earth moves along its way at an average speed of about 30 km or 19 mi a second.[12] The Earth turns all the way around about 365¼ times in the time it takes for the Earth to go all the way around the Sun.[13] To make up this extra bit of a day every year, an additional day is used every four years. This is named a "leap year".
The Moon goes around the Earth at an average distance of 400,000 kilometers (250,000 mi). It is locked to Earth, so that it always has the same half facing the Earth; the other half is called the "Dark Side of the Moon". It takes about 27⅓ days for the Moon to go all the way around the Earth but, because the Earth is moving around the Sun at the same time, it takes about 29½ days for the Moon to go from dark to bright to dark again. This is where the word "month" came from, even though most months now have 30 or 31 days.
History of the Earth
- See also: Historical geology, Age of the Earth, Giant impact hypothesis, and Great Oxygenation Event
The Earth and the other planets formed about 4.6 billion years ago.[5][14] They were made of the leftover gas from the nebula that made the Sun. The Moon may have been formed after a collision between the early Earth and a smaller planet (sometimes called Theia). Scientists believe that parts of both planets broke off — becoming (by gravity) the Moon.[15]
Earth's water came from different places. Condensing water vapour, comets and asteroids hitting the Earth made the oceans. Within a billion years (that is at about 3.6 billion years ago) the first life evolved, in the Archaean era.[16] Some bacteria developed photosynthesis, which lets plants make food from the Sun's light and water. This released a lot of oxygen, which was first taken up by iron in solution. Eventually, free oxygen got into the atmosphere or air, making the Earth's surface suitable for aerobic life (see Great Oxygenation Event). This oxygen also formed the ozone layer which protects the Earth from bad ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. This protection made it possible for things to move from the deep ocean to the surface.
The Earth was very different in the distant past. Long ago, almost all land was in one place. This is called a supercontinent. The earliest known supercontinent was called Vaalbara. Much later, there was a time (the Cryogenian) when the Earth was almost entirely covered by thick ice sheets (glaciers).[17] This is called the Snowball Earth theory.[17]
What it is made of
The Earth is rocky. It is the largest of the rocky planets moving around the Sun by mass and by size. It is still much, much smaller than the gas planets such as Jupiter, though.
Chemical make-up
Over all, the Earth is made of iron (32.1%), oxygen (30.1%), silicon (15.1%), magnesium (13.9%), sulfur (2.9%), nickel (1.8%), calcium (1.5%), and aluminium (1.4%). The 1.2% left over is made of many different kinds of other chemicals. Chemicals that are very uncommon (such as gold and platinum) can be very valuable.
The structure of the Earth changes from the inside to the outside. The center of the earth (the "core") is mostly iron (88.8%), nickel (5.8%), sulfur (4.5%), and less than 1% other things.[18] The surface (the "crust") is largely oxygen (47%). Oxygen is normally a gas but it can join with other chemicals to make compounds like water and rocks. 99.22% of rocks have oxygen in them. The most common oxygen-having rocks are silica (made with silicon), alumina (made with aluminum), rust (made with iron), lime (made with calcium), magnesia (made with magnesium), potash (made with potassium), and soda (made with sodium), but there are others as well.[19]
The Earth's shape is a ball that is a little squashed on the top and bottom. This is because the Earth turns around itself very quickly, pushing the middle out a little and pulling the top and bottom in a little. The equator, the line around the middle of the Earth, is about 40,075 kilometers or 24,900 mi long and, generally, the Earth is about 12,742 kilometers or 7,918 mi wide (though, again, that changes a little when you go from the top or bottom to the middle.) When you make an overall comparison, the Earth looks very, very round but, because the Earth is so big, the highest mountain above sea level—the well-known Mount Everest (which is 8.8 km or 5.5 mi above sea level)—is not actually the one that is the farthest away from the center of the Earth. Instead, the sleeping volcano Mount Chimborazo in Ecuador is: it is only 6.3 km or 3.9 mi above sea level but it is almost at the equator. Because of this, Mount Chimborazo is 6,384.4 km or 3,967.1 mi from the center of the Earth, while Mount Everest is 2.1 kilometers or 1.3 mi closer to it.[20][21][22] Similarly, the lowest point below sea level that we are conscious of is the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean. It is about 10.9 km or 6.8 mi below sea level,[23] but, again, there are probably places at the bottom of the Arctic Ocean that are nearer to the center of the Earth.
What it is like inside
The deepest hole ever dug is only about 12.3 kilometers or 7.6 mi. We know a lot about the inside of the Earth, though, because we can learn things from earthquakes and the times when volcanoes erupt. We are able to see how quickly the shock waves move through the Earth in different places.
The inside of the Earth is very different from the outside. Almost all of Earth's liquid water is in the seas or close to the surface. The surface also has a lot of oxygen, which comes from plants. Small and simple kinds of life can live far under the earth, but animals and plants only live on the surface or in the seas. The rocks on the surface of the Earth (the "crust") are well known. They are thicker where there is land, between 30 to 50 km or 19 to 31 mi thick. Under the seas they are sometimes only 6 km or 3.7 mi thick.[24] There are three groups of rocks that make up most of the outside of the Earth. Some rock is made when the hot liquid rock comes from inside the earth ("igneous rocks"); another type of rock is made when sediment is laid down, usually under the sea ("sedimentary rocks"); and a third kind of rock is made when the other two are changed by very high temperature or pressure ("metamorphic rocks"). A very few rocks also fall out of the sky ("meteorites").
Below the crust is warm and almost-liquid rock that is always moving around (the "mantle"). Then, there is a thin liquid layer of very heated rock (the "outer core"). This is very hot: 7,000 °C or 13,000 °F.[25] The middle of the inside of the Earth would be liquid as well but all the weight of the rock above it pushes it back into being solid. This solid middle part (the "inner core") is almost all iron. This is what makes the Earth magnetic.
Pieces moving around
The Earth's crust is solid but made of parts which move very slowly.[26] The thin level of hard rock on the outside of the Earth rests on hot liquid material below it in the deeper mantle.[27] This liquid material moves because it gets heat from the hot center of the earth. The slow movement of the plates is what causes earthquakes, volcanoes and large groups of mountains on the Earth.
There are three ways plates can come together. Two plates can move towards each other ("convergent" plate edges). This can form islands (such as Japan), burning mountains, and high mountain ranges (such as the Andes and Himalayas).[28] Two plates can move away from each other ("divergent" plate edges). This gives the warm liquid rock inside the earth a place to come out. This makes special mountain ranges below the sea or large low lands like Africa's Great Rift Valley.[29][30] Plates are able to move beside each other as well ("transform" plate edges, such as the San Andreas Fault). This makes their edges crush against each other and makes many shocks as they move.[31]
What it's like outside
The outside of the Earth is not even. There are high pointed places named mountains and high flat places named plateaus; there are large low places called valleys and thin low places called canyons. For the most part, moving air and water from the sky and seas damages rocks in high places and breaks them into small pieces; the air and water then move these pieces to lower places. The largest of these places are named plains and are very important for growing food and building great towns. Many persons live in the large plains of China and India, for example. Because of this, the Earth would have all been very flat a long time before now, but the moving plates discussed above make new high places before that is able to come about.
All of the high and low places on Earth are made of or are on top of rocks. The different kinds of these rocks was discussed above. The outside of the Earth is usually not uncovered rock, though. Over 70% of the Earth is covered by seas full of salty water.[32] (This salty water makes up about 97½% of all Earth's water. The fresh water persons can drink is mostly ice. Only a very small amount is at hand in rivers and under the earth for men and women to drink and use.[33]) The air above the Earth stops the water from going away into outer space. As well, there have been so many living things for such a long time that much of the land on Earth is covered with plants or with what is left from earlier living things. Places with very little rain are dry wastes named deserts; these normally have very few living things but life is able to grow very quickly when these wastes have an uncommon rainfall. Places with large amounts of rain are almost always large woods; these sometimes have so many trees that their leaves stop all the Sun's light from being able to get to the earth at all. Lately, persons have also changed the outside of the Earth a great amount (see below).
All around the Earth is a large amount of air (the "atmosphere"). The mass of the Earth pulls the gasses in the air down and does not let them go into outer space. The air is mostly made of nitrogen (about 78%) and oxygen (about 21%) but there are a few other gasses as well.[34] Most living things need the air (or parts of the air gripped in the water) to breathe and live. They use the gasses—specially oxygen and carbon dioxide—to make and use sugar and to give themselves power.
The air animals and plants use to live is only the first level of the air around the Earth (the "troposphere"). The day to day changes in this level of air are named "weather"; the changes between places far away from each other and from year to year are named the "climate". Rain and storms are both in this level. Both come about because this part of the air gets colder as it goes up. Cold air becomes thicker and falls, and warm air becomes thinner and goes up.[35] The turning Earth moves the air as well and air moves north and south because the middle of the Earth generally gets more power from the Sun and is warmer than the north and south points. At the same time, air over water (specially very warm water) gets water in it but, because cold air is not able to take in as much water, it starts to make clouds and rain as it gets colder. The way water moves around in a circle like this is called the "water cycle".[35]
Above this first level, there are four other levels. The air gets colder as it goes up in the first level; in the second level (the "stratosphere"), the air gets warmer as it goes up. This level has a special kind of oxygen named "ozone". The ozone in this air keeps living things safe from damaging rays from the Sun. The power from these rays is what makes this level warmer and warmer. The middle level (the "mesosphere") gets colder and colder with height; the fourth level (the "thermosphere") gets warmer and warmer; and the last level (the "exosphere") is almost outer space and has very little air at all. It reaches about half the way to the Moon. The three outer levels have a lot of electric power moving through them; this is called the "ionosphere" and is important for radio and other electric waves in the air. It is also where the Northern Lights are.
Even though air seems very light, the weight of all of the air above the outside of the Earth ("air pressure") is important. Generally, from sea level to the top of the outer level of the air, a space of air one square centimeter across has a mass of about 1.03 kg and a space of air one square inch across has a weight of about 14.7 pounds. The mass of the air also keeps the Earth safe when rocks ("meteorites") hit it from outer space. Without the air, the damage meteorites do would be much geater. Because of the air, meteorites generally burn up long before they get to the earth.
The air also keeps the Earth warm, specially the half turned away from the Sun. Some gasses – especially methane and carbon dioxide – work like a blanket to keep things warm.[36] In the past, the Earth has been much warmer and much colder than it is now. Since persons have grown used to the heat we have now, though, we do not want the Earth to be too much warmer or colder. Most of the ways men and women create electric power use burning kinds of carbon—specially coal, oil, and natural gas. Burning these creates new carbon dioxide and can cause more warming. A large discussion is going on now about what men and women should do about the Earth's latest warming, which has gone on for about 150 years. So far, this warming has been good for persons: plants have grown better and the weather has been better than when it was colder before. Some persons who learn about science, though, say that many bad things will possibly come about if the warming goes on.
About 7 billion people live on Earth. They live in about 200 different lands called countries. Some (like Russia) are large with many large cities. Others (like the Vatican) are small. The five countries with the most people are China, India, the United States, Indonesia, and Brazil. About 90% of people live in the north half of the world, which has most of the land. Scientists think that people originally came from Africa. Now, 70% of all people do not live in Africa but in Europe and Asia.[37]
People change the Earth in many ways. They have been able to grow plants for food and clothes for about ten thousand years. When there was enough food, they were able to build towns and cities. Near these places, men and women were able to change rivers, bring water to farms, and stop floods (rising water) from coming over their land. People found useful animals and bred them so they were easier to keep. Science and industry have given men and women much better health and much more power: now even poor people can live with much more comfort and less pain than before.
Related pages
- ↑ By International Astronomical Union convention, the term "Terra" is used for naming extensive land masses, rather than for the planet Earth. Cf. Blue, Jennifer (July 5, 2007). "Descriptor Terms (Feature Types)". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS. http://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/jsp/append5.jsp. Retrieved 2007-07-05.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Williams, Dr. David R.. "Earth Fact Sheet". NASA. http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/earthfact.html. Retrieved 2011-02-03.
- ↑ Standish, E. Myles; Williams, James C. "Orbital Ephemerides of the Sun, Moon, and Planets" (PDF). International Astronomical Union Commission 4: (Ephemerides). http://iau-comm4.jpl.nasa.gov/XSChap8.pdf. Retrieved 2010-04-03. See table 8.10.2. Calculation based upon 1 AU = 149,597,870,700(3) m.
- ↑ Allen, Clabon Walter; Cox, Arthur N. (2000). Allen's Astrophysical Quantities. Springer. p. 294. . http://books.google.com/?id=w8PK2XFLLH8C&pg=PA294.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "The age of the Earth in the twentieth century- a problem (mostly) solved". Geological Society, London, Special Publications. http://sp.lyellcollection.org/cgi/content/abstract/190/1/205. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ↑ "Rover reveals Mars was once wet enough for life". Microsoft. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4202901/. Retrieved 28 July 2009.
- ↑ Blue Planet is a poetic title for the Earth used in movies, in cheap paper books, in poetry, and in government reports (such as the European Space Agency's "Exploring the water cycle of the 'Blue Planet'")
- ↑ "How many species are there on Earth". Harvard University. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1988Sci...241.1441M. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ↑ Purves, William Kirkwood et al (2001). Life, the science of biology. Macmillan. p. 455. .
- ↑ "Origins of life on Earth". Space.com. http://www.space.com/searchforlife/life_origins_001205.html. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ↑ "Earth's location in the Milky Way". NASA. http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/answers/030827a.html. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ↑ "NASA- an Earth fact sheet". NASA. http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/earthfact.html. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ↑ Staff (2007-08-07). "Useful Constants". International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service. http://hpiers.obspm.fr/eop-pc/models/constants.html. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
- ↑ Dalrymple, G. Brent (2001). "The age of the Earth in the twentieth century: a problem (mostly) solved". Special Publications, Geological Society of London 190 (1): 205–221. .
- ↑ "Origin of the Moon in a giant impact near the end of the Earth's formation". Nature.com. http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v412/n6848/abs/412708a0.html. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ↑ "Earth life appeared on land 1.5 billion years earlier than previously thought". SpaceRef.com. http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewnews.html?id=258. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 "The Snowball Earth". Paul F. Hoffman and Daniel P. Schrag. Harvard University. August 8, 1999. https://web.archive.org/web/20090910075356/http://www.eps.harvard.edu/people/faculty/hoffman/snowball_paper.html. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ↑ Morgan J.W. & Anders E. 1980. Chemical composition of Earth, Venus, and Mercury. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science 77 (12): 6973–6977. [1] Full free text
- ↑ Chisholm, Hugh (editor). "Petrology" in the Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th edition. Cambridge University Press (Cambridge), 1911.
- ↑ Senne, Joseph H. (May 2000). "Did Edmund Hilary climb the wrong mountain?". May 2000 Volume 20 Number 5. Professional Surveyor Magazine. http://www.profsurv.com/archive.php?issue=42&article=589. Retrieved 2008-10-24.
- ↑ Sharp, David (2005-03-05). "Chimborazo and the old kilogram". The Lancet 365 (9462): 831–832. .
- ↑ "Tall tales about highest peaks". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. http://www.abc.net.au/science/k2/moments/s1086384.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-29.
- ↑ "7,000 m Class Remotely Operated Vehicle KAIKO 7000". Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC). http://www.jamstec.go.jp/e/about/equipment/ships/kaiko7000.html. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
- ↑ Toshiro Tanimoto. "Crustal Surface of the Earth". American Geophysical Union. http://www.agu.org/reference/gephys/15_tanimoto.pdf. Retrieved 2009-08-02.
- ↑ D. Alfé; M. J. Gillan, L. Vočadlo, J. Brodholt, G. D. Price (2002-04-25). "The ab initio simulation of the Earth's core". D. Alfé. http://chianti.geol.ucl.ac.uk/~dario/pubblicazioni/PTRSA2002.pdf. Retrieved 2009-08-02.
- ↑ Tackley, Paul J. (2000-06-16). "Mantle convection and plate tectonics: towards an integrated physical and chemical theory". Science 288 (5473): 2002–2007. . .
- ↑ "The Crust". Oregon State University. http://volcano.oregonstate.edu/education/vwlessons/lessons/Earths_layers/Earths_layers4.html. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
- ↑ Seyfert, Carl K. (1987). The encyclopedia of structural geology and plate tectonics. .
- ↑ "Plate Tectonics: plate boundaries". platetectonics.com. http://www.platetectonics.com/book/page_5.asp. Retrieved 12 June 2010.
- ↑ "Understanding plate motions". USGS. http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/understanding.html. Retrieved 12 June 2010.
- ↑ Oreskes (2003). Plate tectonics: an insider's history of the modern theory of the Earth. Westview Press. .
- ↑ "CHAPTER 8: Introduction to the Hydrosphere". Physical Geography. http://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/8a.html. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ↑ "WORLD WATER RESOURCES AND THEIR USES". UNESCO. http://espejo.unesco.org.uy/. Retrieved 2009-08-06. [dead link]
- ↑ "NASA - Earth's atmosphere". NASA. http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/9-12/features/912_liftoff_atm.html. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ↑ 35.0 35.1 "What causes weather?". NASA. http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/weather_worldbook.html. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ↑ "Fundamentals of physical geography - the greenhouse effect". Physical Geography. http://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/7h.html. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ↑ Diamond, Jared. 1997. Guns, Germs, and Steel: the fate of human societies. New York: Norton.
Other websites
- "Solar Views". Calvin J. Hamilton. http://www.solarviews.com/eng/earth.htm. Retrieved 06-08-2009.
- "NASA – Earth". Nasa. http://www.earth.nasa.gov/science/questions.html. Retrieved 06-08-2009.
The Solar System
| Sun
| Planets
☾ = moon(s) ∅ = rings
|Earth ☾
|Mars ☾
|Jupiter ☾ ∅
|Saturn ☾ ∅
|Uranus ☾ ∅
|Neptune ☾ ∅
|Dwarf planets
|Pluto ☾
|Haumea ☾
|Eris ☾
(minor planets)
| Groups and families: Vulcanoids · Near-Earth asteroids · Asteroid belt
Jupiter Trojans · Centaurs · Neptune Trojans · Asteroid moons · Meteoroids · Pallas · Juno · Vesta · Hygiea · Interamnia · Europa
|See also the list of asteroids.
| Trans-
|Kuiper belt – Plutinos: Orcus · Ixion – Cubewanos: Varuna ·
Quaoar · Huya
|Scattered disc: Sedna
| Periodic comets and non-periodic comets
Damocloids · Oort cloud
|See also the list of solar system objects


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Penny De Los Santos began photographing as a way to understand her own diverse cultural background and identity. Born in Europe to an American military family that eventually settled in small town Texas, with generations of family history tied to the Texas-Mexico border, Penny's background no doubt inspired curiosity about culture. Photographing culture has been at the heart of Penny's work. It has influenced the subject she picks and the way she makes photographs. Her evolution into food photography has allowed her to explore and celebrate community, history, and people through the food lens.
Penny is an award-winning internationally published photographer and has been fortunate enough to travel extensively throughout the US and to over 30 countries on assignment. She is a Senior Contributing photographer to Saveur Magazine and a regular contributing photographer for National Geographic Magazine. Penny has received numerous grants, fellowships, and awards for her documentary photography including: The National Geographic Photography Grant, Recipient of the Prestigious World Press Joop Stewart Master class, College Photographer of the Year, Eastman Kodak Photography Grant, Canon USA Photography Grant, The Eddie Adams Photography Grant, California New Media Award, Ohio University School of Visual Communication Photography Grant and The Parson's School of Design Marty Fortier Fellowship.
Her work has been featured in magazines including Time, News Week, Sports Illustrated, Mother Jones, Latina, Texas Monthly, Budget Travel, Caribbean Travel, U.S. News & World Report and Paris Match. She has been a contract photographer for numerous publishing companies and cookbooks. Penny has a Master's degree from Ohio University's School of Visual Communication and an Undergraduate degree in Journalism from Texas A&M University. She has been a featured speaker at many universities and industry conferences throughout the country.
Penny lives in New York City with her dog Nigella.


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Fire up Mercedes' new C63 AMG Coupe and it's the sound of its 6.2-litre V8 engine that will get your blood flowing every time. It's a very close cousin of the powerplant residing under the hood of the SLS AMG supercar, but here you get the kind of power and that deep rumbling sound in a car that will cost roughly a third of the SLS's price tag.
If you're in the market for a coupe with mega-power, chances are fuel economy ratings are not at the top of your priorities. In this segment, power is where it's at and the 6.2L V8 develops 451 horsepower. Spec the optional Performance Package PLUS and the V8 gets the forged pistons, connecting rods and crankshaft borrowed from the SLS AMG that enable it to crank out 481 hp, with AMG also throwing in a limited-slip differential, red brake calipers and a carbon-fibre trunklid spoiler. The Coupe's maximum speed is also raised to 280 kilometres an hour.
On the track, the C63 AMG Coupe was a more-than-willing performer. With a rigid chassis and a balance that feels right, it was possible to dive into corners, thanks to a wide front track and a very precise steering system that, unfortunately, could provide more feedback. The seats were firm, very supportive and featured large bolsters, so speeding around corners was not a problem as you are essentially bolted into a car that was always stable and very quick to respond to driver inputs. With the electronic stability control set to the Sport-plus mode, it was possible to hang the tail out when accelerating hard on corner exits, knowing that the system would intervene to prevent a mishap.


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Mountain Top Rodeo
October 31 - November 1
Virtual Hemlock Festival
November 7
Dahlonega Christmas
November 27 - January 1
(706) 864-2257
1 Public Square, Dahlonega, Georgia 30533
Open Monday-Saturday 9am-5pm; Sunday 10am-5pm. Closed certain holidays.
Twenty years before the 1849 gold rush to California, thousands of gold seekers flocked into the Cherokee Territory of northeast Georgia, beginning the nation's first major gold rush.
According to an interview conducted by the Atlanta Constitution in 1894, Benjamin Parks first discovered gold in the Lumpkin County area while deer hunting in 1828.The courthouse building was built using locally made brick which includes trace amounts of gold. The building served as the seat of Lumpkin county government from 1836 to 1965. it is the oldest existing courthouse in Georgia of 132 historic courthouses.
The building was restored by the state of Georgia as a State Historic Site and adapted for use as the Gold Museum and is one of the most visited Historic Sites in the state.The Dahlonega Courthouse Gold Museum offers visitors a look at the mining history of Georgia. A 23-minute film describes the mining techniques and lifestyles of the prospectors through interviews with members of long time mining families of the area.
Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber & Visitors Bureau | 13 South Park Street | Dahlonega, GA 30533 | (706) 864-3711 or (800) 231-5543.
COVID-19 Update: Some events and festivals may be canceled due to escalation of the situation surrounding COVID-19. Click here for more updates.


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Wild-card weekend is over in the NFL playoffs, and Seattle's Russell Wilson is the lone rookie quarterback remaining.
And, Wilson's Seahawks made a pretty good case that they might be here a while.
Wilson teamed with Marshawn Lynch to lead Seattle to a 24-14 comeback victory over the Washington Redskins, who finished the game Sunday without Robert Griffin III - their star rookie quarterback who reinjured his right knee.
``It was a tremendous game,'' Wilson said. ``We were fortunate enough to come out with a win. It was a battle, we kept playing. One play at a time, that's what I kept telling the guys.''
The Seahawks (12-5) overcame a 14-0 first-quarter hole - their biggest deficit this season - and will visit the top-seeded Atlanta Falcons (13-3) next Sunday. Seattle has a six-game winning streak, and ended the stigma that it couldn't win on the road in the playoffs - ending an eight-game skid away from home in the postseason.
``It was a huge win,'' Wilson said, ``and we're excited about the opportunities.''
In Baltimore, Ray Lewis and the Ravens eliminated Andrew Luck, the No. 1 overall pick, and the Indianapolis Colts with a 24-9 win. The victory delayed Lewis' retirement for at least another week as Baltimore (11-6) heads to top-seeded Denver (13-3) next Saturday.
``I knew how it started, but I never knew how it would end here in Baltimore,'' said Lewis, who played his final home game. ``To go the way it did today, I wouldn't change nothing.''
The other playoff games next weekend are Green Bay at San Francisco on Saturday, and Houston at New England on Sunday.
The Packers (12-5) set up the showdown with the 49ers (11-4-1) after beating the Minnesota Vikings in the wild-card round Saturday. The teams met in the season opener, a 30-22 victory by San Francisco.
Houston gets another chance against New England after beating Cincinnati 19-13 on Saturday in quarterback Matt Schaub's first postseason start. The AFC East champion Patriots trounced the Texans 42-14 at Foxborough on Dec. 10, the first of three losses in four games for Houston to end the regular season.
At Landover, Md., Griffin's knee buckled as he tried to field a bad shotgun snap, leaving the Redskins an offseason to worry about their franchise player's health.
Griffin was playing in his third game since spraining his right knee about a month ago against Baltimore, and he had been looking gimpy since tumbling backward following an ill-advised sidearm throw in the first quarter.
Nevertheless, he stayed in the game. Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said he didn't pull Griffin because the quarterback wanted to continue.
``I think I did put myself at more risk,'' Griffin said. ``But every time you get on the field, you're putting yourself on the line.''
Griffin was scheduled for an MRI to determine the extent of the injury.
Lynch ran for 132 yards, and Wilson completed 15 of 26 passes for 187 yards and ran eight times for 67 yards for the Seahawks.
Ravens 24, Colts 9
Anquan Boldin set a franchise record with 145 yards receiving, including the clinching touchdown in the Ravens' victory. It set up a rematch with Denver and Peyton Manning, who cruised past Baltimore 34-17 three weeks ago.
``I wanted Denver,'' Boldin said, ``because they beat us. We'll make it different.''
Lewis, who made 13 tackles, ended his last home game in Baltimore at fullback for the final kneel-down. He then went into a short version of his trademark dance before being mobbed by teammates. He followed with a victory lap, his right arm, covered by a brace, held high in salute to the fans after playing for the first time since tearing his right triceps on Oct. 14 against Dallas.
The loss ended the Colts' turnaround season in which they went from 2-14 to the playoffs in coach Chuck Pagano's first year in Indianapolis (11-6). Pagano missed 12 weeks while undergoing treatment for leukemia and returned last week.
Indy's only points came on three field goals by Adam Vinatieri. Luck completed 28 of 54 passes, the most attempts by a rookie in a playoff game, for 288 yards.
Online:http://pro32.ap.org/poll andhttp://twitter.com/AP-NFL


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Russian EVA-31 spacewalk
ISS032-E-021028 (20 Aug. 2012) --- Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, Expedition 32 commander, participates in a session of extravehicular activity (EVA) to continue outfitting the International Space Station. During the five-hour, 51-minute spacewalk, Padalka and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko (out of frame), flight engineer, moved the Strela-2 cargo boom from the Pirs docking compartment to the Zarya module to prepare Pirs for its eventual replacement with a new Russian multipurpose laboratory module. The two spacewalking cosmonauts also installed micrometeoroid debris shields on the exterior of the Zvezda service module and deployed a small science satellite.


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Using Writing to Combat Bullying and Cliques
I could see the hurt in the students' eyes. They were so often excluded by the gaggle of girls by the lockers, left without a seat at lunch, trying to find a game to join at recess. These events happen regularly in middle school, but this year was especially painful. After exhausting my usual methods, I decided to use writing as an attempt to rebuild our classroom community.
We were dealing with bullying and exclusion. We talked about the issues as a class, but only a few students spoke up. Most were quiet and too hurt or embarrassed to speak. I struggled to improve the situation; if I couldn't get them to share what was really going on, how could I make things better? I decided to write the kids a letter. I wanted to convey what I was seeing in the classroom, how much pain was being inflicted, and how I remembered experiencing these same feelings in middle school. I handed the children copies of my letter and asked them to respond in writing. Here's what I wrote:
Dear Class,
On the first day of school, I mentioned some of the things that are most important to me as a teacher. At the top of the list was "building a strong community." I always want this classroom to feel like a home away from home. Many friendships have been built, and we've had some amazing conversations as a group. Just the other day, some of you suggested that I come up with an adjective to describe each of you. It was fun (and easy) thinking of positive things to say about you. When I read the adjectives aloud, you all smiled and nodded, not just about your own, but about your classmates'. This shows me that you know each other, and that even though you may not all be close friends, you recognize the positive qualities in one another. This leads me to my first point: You don't all need to be close friends, but you do need to be kind to one another. Recently, I don't think that's always been the case.
Over the last few weeks, I've noticed an increase in cliques forming. As most of you know, cliques are groups that exclude other people. They are always together and will sometimes act superior to others. Sometimes this just means that they are huddled together all the time, at lockers, desks, etc. Sometimes, it goes beyond that, and leads to eye rolling or making frustrated faces when they are asked to work with different people. This may seem like no big deal, but people can be (and are being) hurt by this behavior. Mean stares and gossip can cause deep wounds and make people feel badly about themselves. This is another serious form of bullying.
Unfortunately, this is happening in our classroom and in our hallways. I cannot force you to be friends with someone, and I don't want to make you feel as though I'm doing that. But, I would like you to see the good in everyone, even when you have little in common.
Sometimes we want to be a part of a group so badly, we start acting like someone else. We lose ourselves and end up making decisions that go against our own beliefs. This is uncomfortable. It happened to me when I was in 7th grade, and I lost some really good friends, just because I wanted to be part of a more popular group. Fortunately, when I was in high school, I stopped trying to be like others, and went back to being myself. I was lucky enough to regain the trust of my true friends.
I think this class can work together to repair our community that is struggling a bit right now. I'd like you to take a minute to write me back. Please use the attached sheet (you can get more if you need to) and share some of your observations. Here are some things I'd like you to write about. Feel free to add other thoughts, if you come up with anything.
- • Have you witnessed cliques that exclude certain kids?
- • Have you ever felt excluded this year? If so, when?
- • Have you excluded others this year? Why do you think?
Everyone, please answer this question:
- • What is one thing you could change about your behavior this year that would make our classroom a stronger community?
No one will be asked to share their letters with anyone other than me. Their purpose is to help improve our classroom community. Later, we may have a discussion about your observations, but you won't need to share anything unless you'd like to.
Mr. Rockower
Expressions of Healing
After reading my letter, the students wrote and wrote and wrote. After the better part of an hour, I collected their work. I couldn't believe the honesty, hurt, regret, and healing that came from these letters. They opened up more than I ever anticipated. Here are some of their responses (edited minimally, for clarity):
"I have noticed the cliques, and I am sad to say that I belong to one. Every single time we exclude someone (which we do way too much), I notice that hurt expression on their face, and a part of me wants to cry."
"A lot of people don't like me. I feel so small around them, like they are better than me."
"People call me dumb a lot, but I never try to give dumb answers, so it hurts when people call me that."
It was clear that these problems were not new; the students had been dealing with them throughout elementary school.
"I have seen a lot of cliques, not just in our classroom, but in every grade and every classroom."
"I hate acting like this, because all through elementary, I was the one the cliques excluded. I can still remember how I would cry myself to sleep some nights wondering why they didn't like me."
"Thank you for writing us this letter. I have been waiting for this injustice to stop since 4th grade. I have always seen cliques that exclude kids, not directly to their face, but with looks and just walking away. I think with one look at a person you can see if they are part of a clique or not."
Some were upset that their actions might be causing others pain and were searching for ways to change.
"I absolutely do not want anyone to feel left out and I respect everyone in this class no matter who they are."
"Sometimes people don't realize that they are excluding other classmates, but they are. I hope I'm not one of those people. I know some people in our class are feeling left out, and I want to change that."
"I have been trying to make the people I hang out with the opposite of a clique, but it keeps getting harder and harder."
"Yes, I have done inappropriate things to impress others or get attention and fit in and it worked. But I didn't like the guilty feeling I got later. It felt wrong and I hated it."
A few students shared how desperately they longed to be part of the popular group. For example:
"I always wanted to be with the popular groups, so I started to dress differently. In my eyes, I was always a fatty, so I tried to look different. I started buying clothes at A & F or other popular clothes shops. Look where that got me: nowhere."
And this student articulated (possibly what everyone was trying to say) in a powerful, heartfelt snapshot of middle school cliques:
"I fear that my urge to fit in will win out against my own personality. There are the girly-girls, the half-in half-out girly-girls, the 'cool' sporty guys, the half-in half-out sport guys, the video gamers, and many other minor cliques. Then there are the outliers. I consider myself to be an outlier. It can be a good thing, in the sense that you don't hurt anyone, but it is also bad: You get almost no social credit at all. But for some idiotic reason, in each kid's soul, there's a part that burns to fit in. I hate it. I think I have not been overcome by it yet, but as you grow, this section becomes larger and larger. And before long, it becomes you. You scramble to become popular by any means necessary."
A Change in Climate
One student broke down while writing and asked if she could just speak with me. We talked during a break later in the day, and through tears, she explained that cliques were on her mind every second of the day. She'd been excluded from lunch tables and recess groups, and generally ignored by most of her peers throughout the school year. I was angry with myself for waiting as long as I did. Even though this particular child preferred to voice her opinion rather than write, she admitted that without the letter I'd written, she wouldn't have been comfortable opening up.
Most of the students held themselves accountable for their behavior in ways they never would have in an oral discussion. After this writing experience, there was a noticeable lifting of tension. Students vowed to make changes, and many did. Issues still surfacedthe problems did not disappearbut the climate of the classroom changed for the better. I saw more smiling, more laughing, more inclusion.
I've always believed that classroom meetings are crucial to maintaining a positive environment. However, I'd never considered using writing as a tool to expose bullying or relieve hidden tension. This year has taught me that I don't always know the kids or the classroom dynamics as well as I think I do. Though some are willing to open up about concerns, many wouldn't dream of doing so in a whole-group setting. Still, they want to express their concerns in a safe manner. Writing offers that opportunity.
I'd like to say that we all talked about the letters afterward, and that everyone understood one another's concerns. But we didn't talk about them at all. Through the writing process, through their honest and contrite acknowledgment of mistakes, they were all aware of what needed to change.
And really, that's the best we can do as teachers. I believe it's our instinct to hold students to a strict set of rules and deliver consequences when those rules are broken. But we can also help students become aware of their actions and how their behaviors affect others, guiding them toward real accountabilitythe kind that comes from self-examination, reflection, and an intrinsic desire to make better choices. Sometimes the impetus for such change begins quietly, on paper.
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Your website is fully equipped with everything necessary to start selling online. Whether you sell one or hundreds of products, the integration of payments buttons and shopping carts is equally easy and takes these simple steps:
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