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$300 price tag its wallet-friendly for an unlocked phone
Largest display in a Nokia Lumia phone so far
Good value, Decent performance
4G smartphone on a budget
Free under contract, has long-lasting battery life
Employs some of the new LG Optimus UI enhancements
Amazing battery life, Solid build quality
Sluggish benchmark performance, Lackluster camera
Very inexpensive for an unlocked smartphone
Web-based Firefox OS platform easy to create apps for
Extremely economical, Factory unlocked, Well built for the price
Very low price point
Vivid 4.3-inch screen
Unique and solid design
Very fast LTE speeds
Gorgeous hardware
High-def everything
4G LTE connectivity
Blazing LTE data speeds
Super-fast LTE data speeds
Affordable Windows Phone
Great social networking
Good social networking integration
Slick user experience
Excellent, envelope-pushing 41-megapixel camera
Groundbreaking PureView camera technology
Archaic Symbian OS is a relic
Fantastic call quality
Eco-friendly initiatives
Future-proofed with 4G LTE
Eco-friendly design
Solid performance
Reasonably priced handset with Android 4.0 and a zippy dual-core CPU
Terrific value for the money
Unnecessary UI overlay for ICS, Redundant bloatware
Camera quality is quite good
Solid build, thin design
Eco-friendly, Very little bloatware
ReviewGist helps you find the best products to buy by making sense of online reviews.
We are currently aggregating 376,500 reviews
covering over 29,474 products.
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UWCHLAN - Run into an excellent pitcher, with an equally strong team behind her, in a single-elimination tournament … and the season can be over in a hurry.
That was the fate of the Spring-Ford softball team in the second round of the District 1-AAAA Tournament on Wednesday afternoon at Lionville Park.
The Rams were held to just three scattered singles by Downingtown East left-hander Casey Thompson, whose defense made all of the routine plays and several difficult plays behind her, in a season-ending 2-0 loss. Thompson fanned seven - all in the first four innings - and freshman catcher Brigette Nordberg went 3-for-3 and knocked in both runs for the Ches-Mont League runners-up. East (18-3) will travel to top-seeded Neshaminy, a 3-1 winner over Boyertown, on Friday for a quarterfinal contest.
Haleigh Williams picked up two hits for the ninth-seeded Rams (18-5) while throwing a complete-game eight-hitter.
'I'm not disappointed with our outcome,' said Spring-Ford coach Tim Hughes. 'We have a very young team. It's probably my fault again for not stressing the importance of districts.
'I'm still proud of the girls. They probably overachieved, according to most. We'll see what they do next year.'
Thompson showed right from the start that she was going to be tough to handle as she retired the first two batters on a strikeout and bouncer to second, gave up a hit to left to Williams, and then fanned the next batter to retire the side … all the while displaying a lively fastball.
'I throw a cutter, a two-seamer,' she said. 'It's a completely different movement to the ball than a four-seamer. That first inning, we definitely found out what the umpire's strike zone was and we kept trying to hit it. And my catcher did a great job. Our communication was on today.'
Eighth-seeded East - which had a bye in Monday's opening round while the Rams were winning a 3-2 game against Interboro - scored in the first on three straight one-out singles. Renea Petrucci began the string of hits with a pop to center that dropped among three defenders, Sara Ercolani followed with a fly to left that fell in front of the fielder, and Nordberg brought home the run with a grounder right through the middle.
The hosts added an insurance run in the fifth when Courtney Flach led off with a single, advanced to second on an infield hit by Kristen Owens, and scored on a two-out hit to left by Nordberg, making a nice slide to avoid the tag at the plate on a close play.
Meanwhile, Thompson was in control as she allowed no more than one runner in any inning while giving up another single to Williams in the sixth and one in the seventh to Bri Kofer and walks in the third and fifth. Only one Ram advanced past first, that on a wild pitch with two away in the sixth.
'She pitched a fantastic game,' said Cougar coach Mike Morgan. 'I'm very happy for her. She's worked awfully hard to get to where she is. It's a team effort. We made some really nice defensive plays. I counted at least five.'
'Our defense was really good today,' Thompson added.
Two of those good defensive plays came in the seventh inning with the game still definitely on the line.
Nordberg caught a difficult foul pop to begin the frame. Then Morgan Newton hit a shot headed toward right field, but first baseman Paige Warfel made a back-handed stab on the short hop and took it to the bag for an out. That looked even bigger when Kofer followed with a hit to left. Thompson retired the next batter on a pop to second – one of six infield pops - to end the game.
The Rams had their best chance to score in the inning before that when Williams grounded a single to left with two out and runner Jess Hamdan advanced on the wild pitch. But right fielder Flach ran a long way into foul territory to make a catch and retire the side.
'That young lady (Flach) made a great slide to home plate,' said Morgan. 'A great slide and a great catch on the flyball down the line in the sixth.'
'That's softball,' said Hughes. 'We just couldn't get the ball down the line. That's taking nothing away from Downingtown. They played well and deserved to win. Mike Morgan does a great job with those kids.'
Thompson was happy with how her team performed in all areas of the game.
'We're definitely hitting,' she said. 'We didn't back down the whole game. That's our motto – we're not going to back down. We're moving on to Friday.'
The loss ended a fine season for the Pioneer Athletic Conference champion Rams. But Hughes would have liked more.
'We've got a few banners on the wall with PAC-10 championships,' he said. 'We only have one for a district championship.'

subset: commoncrawl


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Considered by many to be the best carrier based fighter-bomber of World War II, today we honor the May 29, 1940 first flight of the F4U Corsair on Warbirds.
Despite early issues with getting Corsair squadrons qualified for carrier landings, the Marine Corps had no reservations about using her as a land-based fighter beginning in 1942. The navy restricted the planes from carrier landings until early 1944. Despite the Corsair's superior performance in almost all categories, veteran Navy pilots preferred the F-6 Hellcat as it was easier to land having less tendency to bounce. Many naval aviators disparagingly called the F4U "hog", hognose", or even "bent-wing widow maker".
The F-4 Corsair's combat debut in 1943 was as part of the fiasco near Kahili known as the "Saint Valentine's Day Massacre". 4 P-38s, 2 P-40s, 2 B-24s, and 2 F4Us were lost with no more than 4 Zeros downed. Despite this rocky first encounter, Marine pilots soon learned to take advantage of the Corsair's superior capabilities and six .50 caliber machineguns versus Japanese fighters. These ground based squadrons would operate in some of the Pacific theater's hottest zones like Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, Philippines, Marshall Islands, Palaus, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa.
The F4U has had a star-studded cast of pilots. Charles Lindbergh served as a test pilot and evaluator while Hall of Fame baseball player Ted Williams was a flight instructor for the F4U at Pensacola. Among Marine Corps Corsair pilots there were 15 confirmed aces and 4 Medal of Honor recipients. The first Corsair Ace was Second Lieutenant Kenneth A. Walsh while the most famous was probably Major Gregory "Pappy" Boyington f the Blacksheep Squadron (VMF-214).
Having seen service with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, Royal New Zealand Airforce, and the U.K. Royal Navy Fleet Arm, the end of WWII did not spell the end of the Corsair's career. The F4U would serve with Argentinian, El Salvadoran, French, and Honduran militaries. Combat roles would include the First Indochina War, the Suez Crisis, the Algerian War, and War of Tunisian Independence. But, the Corsair would truly shine as close support aircraft and night fighter during the Korean War. Ensign Jesse L. Brown, the U.S. Navy's 1st African-American naval aviator, flew Corsairs on combat missions from the USS Leyte (CV-32). He was shot down on December 4, 1950 and became the first U.S. Navy officer killed during the Korean War.
F4U Corsairs feature prominently in media. John Wayne starred in a film about Marine Corps aviators called Flying Leathernecks. The made for television movie and follow-up series Baa Baa Black Sheep fictionally portrays the actions of Greg "Pappy" Boyington and the Black Sheep Squadron (VMF-214)
You can view a very thorough history of the Vought F4U Corsair on YouTube in this 5-part series.
(If you have suggestions of other aircraft to cover in upcoming Warbirds posts, please put them in the comments. Thanks.)


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This Russian shawl is made of special luxurious silk - crepe de chine, with hand-braided fringe from artificial silk. Russian shawls from crepe de chine are light, graceful with a pleasing drape. The roses and flowers come to life under the painter's brush. The matte surface and "pebbled" texture of crepe de chine reflect individual pinpoints of light, giving it wonderful chromatic depth and striking eye-appeal. The beauty of this silk Pavlovo Posad scarf is hardly expressed in words or by pictures, you should see and wear it yourself.
No posts found
RusClothing.com is designed to be the best place to find most authentic collection of Russian clothing. Russian dresses, Ukrainian shirts, kokoshnik, kosovorotka, valenki and much much more! And not to forget famous Russian wool shawls. We want Russian clothing to be the combination of traditional folk art and today Russian fashion.
All our Russian clothing is handmade and can be customized to any needs. Made in Russia, shipped worldwide.


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Trading Cards Trade Forum Code of Conduct
1) No buying or selling of cards. This is a TRADING forum, not a BUYING or SELLING forum.
2) This forum is for Cryptozoic's Trading Card Products only. If you are looking for WoW TCG trades, please head over to this forum: http://forums.cryptozoic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=9
3) No profanity, inappropriate content, hateful language or harassment is allowed in any form.
4) Do not link to unrelated or inappropriate websites. This includes eBay auctions and sales of any kind.
5) Do not disrupt the forum to draw more attention to your post. This includes, but is not limited to, putting titles or posts in all caps, or excessively bumping posts.
6) Please do not use the boards for private discussions. This can be done via private message.
7) Cryptozoic Entertainment assumes not responsibility or any liability of any kind in conjunction with trades. We do not monitor trades, intervene, or mediate disputes for forum members. Any reputation threads are community based and are not endorsed by Cryptozoic Entertainment. Trade at your own risk.
The Code of Conduct is subject to changes as the community evolves, so please check back regularly to make sure you're familiar with the rules and regulations of the forum. Have fun!
The CZE Team


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Charlotte Hungerford Hospital establishes visitor guidelines to protect patients
TORRINGTON >> Charlotte Hungerford Hospital (CHH) is establishing new temporary visitor guidelines as a FLU virus prevention measure.
CHH will be restricting visitors and volunteers aged 16 and younger and visitors with FLU Symptoms beginning Friday, Jan. 4, 2013.
This is a precautionary measure and is part of the hospital's continuing efforts to provide a higher level of care and for the safety and well-being of our patients, their families and our staff.
The seasonal flu is a widely known public health issue for which simple, prevention steps will be taken to limit the transmission of this influenza.
CHH would like to thank the public for their support and apologize for any inconvenience these new guidelines may cause. Please visit www.charlottehungerford.org for additional and updated information.
Restrictions apply to all visitors and volunteers aged 16 or younger and any visitor that displays a cough, sore throat, chills, runny nose, body aches, or a fever of 100 degrees or more.
Effective beginning Friday, Jan. 4, 2013 until further notice.
This restriction applies to Charlotte Hungerford Hospital public waiting areas and Inpatient Units (Intensive Care Unit, Maternity and Pediatrics, 4th 5th, 6th, and 7th Floor patient rooms, Ambulatory Surgery).
For more information call 496-6544 - firstname.lastname@example.com.


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What is the Maya Research Program?
The Maya Research Program is a U.S.-based non-profit organization (501C3) that sponsors archaeological and ethnographic research in Middle America. Each summer since 1992, we have sponsored archaeological fieldwork in northwestern Belize and ethnographic research in the village of Yaxunah, Mexico. The Maya Research Program is affiliated with the University of Texas at Tyler.
Our goal is, first and foremost, to conduct research that helps us better understand the complex ancient societies of the Americas. MRP is proud to have a diverse staff of talented scientists contributing to this goal and many of our affiliated scholars are recognized as leaders in their fields. Recent support has come from the Archaeological Institute of America, National Geographic Society, the National Science Foundation, the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, the Heinz Foundation, and the American Council of Learned Societies. In addition, the Blue Creek field school has been certified by the Register of Professional Archaeologists and the project was recognized as the winner of the Archaeological Institute of America's Excavation Outreach contest.
Another key MRP goal is to encourage the participation of students and volunteers — anyone who wants to experience the real world of archaeological or anthropological research and understand how we learn about cultures may join us. We see this as a critical educational component of MRP's work and it helps us accomplish our research goals as well. The ages of our participants range from 18 to over 80. So many of our participants return year after year that MRP has become an extended family. About half of our participants are university students under 30 years old and the other half are professionals and retirees. While the majority of participants come from the United States and Canada, we have students from Australian, European, Latin American, and Japanese institutions as well. For students, academic credit can usually be arranged either via UTT or the student's home institution. Many of our students go on to become successful graduate students in archaeology or a related field and return to focus on MRP projects for their theses and dissertations.
In 2014 and 2015 we again offer opportunities to participate in our field program and learn about the Maya of the past and today. The Blue Creek Archaeological Project is open to student and non-student participants, regardless of experience. The field school has been certified by the Register of Professional Archaeologists and participants will receive training in archaeological field and laboratory techniques. Academic credit and scholarships are available. We invite students and volunteers to participate in the Maya Research Program's archaeological field season in northwestern Belize.
2014 Season Dates:
Session 1: Monday May 26 to Sunday June 8
Session 2: Monday June 9 to Sunday June 22
Session 3: Monday June 30 to Sunday July 13
Session 4: Monday July 14 to Sunday July 27
2015 Season Dates:
Session 1: Monday June 1st to Sunday June 14th
Session 2: Monday June 15th to Sunday June 28th
Session 3: Monday July 6th to Sunday July 19th
Session 4: Monday July 20th to Sunday August 2nd
If you are interested in joining the team this summer or next – please get in touch soon as space is limited! If you have any questions – please don't hesitate to contact us:
MRP's 23rd archaeological field season in Belize
The Maya Research Program is having a very successful 23rd archaeological field season in northwestern Belize! This summer we are concentrating on the site of Xnoha. Xnoha is a medium sized Maya center located on the edge of the Alacranes Bajo. We are delineating the architecture of the site core, three of its elite residences, and a possible shrine structure. In addition, we have recorded and conserved the mural recovered from Tulix Mul, secured numerous soil samples from wetland features, and finalized excavations at "Alvin's Cave" and "Rice Mill Cave 3." Our bioarchaeology field school is active this session and we are looking forward to our 3D modeling and photogrammetry workshop next week. If you are interested in seeing weekly updates from the field – you can follow our progress on our Facebook page or via the photo gallery on our website.


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�BOSTON LEGAL� IS AMONG WINNERS OF THE 65th ANNUAL PEABODY AWARDS
ABC TV�s �Boston Legal� was among the winners of the 65th Annual Peabody Awards which were announced April 5 by the University of Georgia�s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. The winners, chosen by the Peabody board as the best in electronic media for 2005, were named in a ceremony in the Peabody Gallery on the University of Georgia Campus.
The board selected �Boston Legal,� along with four other entertainment series, because it �uses a blue-chip Beantown law firm�s civil cases as springboards to comment about issues from the death penalty to credit card companies� predatory practices to morning-after contraceptives.�
This marks the fourth Peabody Award for creator/executive producer David E. Kelley. Previous wins are for �Boston Public� (2002), �The Practice� (1998) and �Ally McBeal� (1998).
The Peabody Board is a 16-member group comprised of television critics, broadcast and cable industry executives and experts in culture and the arts. The Peabody Awards will be presented June 5 at a luncheon at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. For more information about the Peabody Archive or the Peabody Awards, visit www.peabody.uga.edu.
Led by an Emmy Award-winning cast, �Boston Legal� tells the professional and personal stories of a group of brilliant but often emotionally challenged attorneys. Fast-paced and darkly comedic, the series confronts social and moral issues, while its characters continually stretch the boundaries of the law.
The series stars James Spader as Alan Shore, Julie Bowen as Denise Bauer, Mark Valley as Brad Chase, Rene Auberjonois as Paul Lewiston, with Candice Bergen as Shirley Schmidt and William Shatner as Denny Crane.
�Boston Legal� was created by David E. Kelley. Kelley, Bill D�Elia and Janet Leahy are executive producers. The series is produced by David E. Kelley Productions in association with Twentieth Century Fox Television.


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|Snowboard or Ski Home for people who love to snowboard or ski (see all ski resorts)
|Snowboard or ski in Arkansas
List of ski resorts in Arkansas
We don't know any ski resorts in this area. If you know any, post it on our discussion board.
Snowboard or Ski in Arkansas discussion forum
This is the place where you can discuss about where you can go skiing or snowboarding in Arkansas. If there are ski resorts in Arkansas not listed here, we would love to know!! Did you snowboard or ski in Arkansas this season? If you did, post a message about your snowboard or ski trip here now. Any messages related to snowboard or ski in Arkansas are welcome here too!!


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The D-case is that of a 17 year old woman who has been prevented travelling to England for an abortion. If she is forced to go through with the pregnancy the baby will die soon after birth as the foetus has anencephaly which means parts of the skull and the brain are missing. What follows are reports on solidarity demonstrations on Saturday 5th and Monday 7th May.y
Choice Ireland held a rally at the GPO in Dublin Saturday 5th May in solidarity with 'D' who is prevented travelling to England for an abortion by a court injunction
You can listen to the Audio of speakers at GPO for D case rally (3.4 mb, 15 minutes) at http://www.indymedia.ie/attachments/may2007/choicedemod...e.mp3
Pro-choice rally faces off counter demonstration at Four Courts on Monday 7th May
The D-case of a 17 year old woman who has been prevented travelling to England for an abortion continued in the High Court today. A pro-choice solidarity rally took place outside as well as a brief anti-woman counter rally.
This was the first anti-woman counter rally during the case, it attracted less than 1/3 of the attendance of Saturdays pro-choice rally at the GPO despite the fact that many of the anti-woman activists had brought along young children to make up the numbers.
While the pro-choice rally ran from the morning into the afternoon the counter rally was only present for an hour - little more than photocall in the hope of getting media attention. 'D' refused to be intimidated by the counter rally and walked through it to enter the courts - they packed up and left shortly afterwards.
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This logo perfectly used for any Automobile Services and Accessories related Businesses.
- Font: Ubuntu Bold, Ubuntu Italic (http://font.ubuntu.com/)
- Colour: CMYK
- Files: .ai / .eps
- Size: Resizeable
Kindly contact me if you need any help and I am happy to offer support. Would be highly appreciate if you may rate this item..


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This site is the archived OWASP Foundation Wiki and is no longer accepting Account Requests.
To view the new OWASP Foundation website, please visit https://owasp.org
Application Threat Modeling
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Decompose the Application
- 3 Determine and rank threats
- 4 Determine countermeasures and mitigations
Threat modeling is an approach for analysing the security of an application. It is a structured approach that enables you to identify, quantify and address the security risks associated with an application. Threat modeling is not an approach to reviewing code but it does compliment the secure code review process. The inclusion of threat modeling in the SDL can help to ensure that applications are being developed with security built-in from the very beginning. This, combined with the documentation produced as part of the threat modeling process can give the reviewer a greater understanding of the system. This allows the reviewer to see where the entry points to the application are and the associated threats with each entry point. The concept of threat modeling is not new but there has been a clear mindset change in recent years. Modern threat modeling looks at a system from a potential attackers perspective, as opposed to a defenders view point. Microsoft have been strong advocates of the process over the past number of years. They have made threat modeling a core component of their SDL which they claim to be one of the reasons for the increased security of their products in recent years. When source code analysis is performed outside the SDLC such as on existing applications, the results of the thread modeling help in reducing the complexity of the source code analysis by promoting an in-depth first approach vs. breadth first approach. Instead to code review all source code with equal focus you can prioritize the secure code review of components whose threat modeling has ranked with high risk threats.
The threat modeling process can be decomposed into 3 high level steps:
Step 1: Decompose the Application. The first step in the threat modeling process is concerned with gaining an understanding of the application and how it interacts with external entities. This involves creating use cases to understand how the application is used, identifying entry points to see where a potential attacker could interact with the application, identifying assets i.e. items/areas that the attacker would be interested in and trust levels which represent the access rights that the application will grant to external entities. This information is documented in the Threat Model document and it is also used to produce data flow diagrams (DFD) for the application. The DFDs show the different paths through the system highlighting the privilege boundaries.
Step 2: Determine and rank threats. Critical to the identification of threats is using a threat categorization methodology. A threat categorization such as STRIDE can be used or the Application Security Frame (ASF) that defines threat categories such as Auditing & Logging, Authentication, Authorization, Configuration Management, Data Protection in Storage and Transit, Data Validation, Exception Management. The goal of the threat categorization is help identify threats both from the attacker (STRIDE) and the defensive perspective (ASF). DFDs produced in step 1 helps to identify the potential threat targets from the attacker perspective such as data sources, processes, data flows and interactions with users. These threats can be identified further as the roots for threat trees; there is one three for threat goal. From the defensive perspective ASF categorization helps to identify the threats as weaknesses of security controls for such threats. Common threat lists with examples can help in the identification of such threats. Use and abuse cases can illustrate how existing protective measures could be bypassed, or were a lack of such protection exists. The determination of the security risk for each threat can be determine using a value based risk model such as DREAD or less subjective qualitative risk model based upon general risk factors (e.g. likelihood and impact)
Step 3: Determine countermeasures and mitigation. A lack of protection of a threat might indicate a vulnerability whose risk exposure could be mitigated with the implementation of a countermeasure. Such countermeasures can be identified using threat-countermeasure mapping lists. Once a risk ranking is assigned to the threats it is possible to sort threats from the highest to the lowest risk and prioritize the mitigation effort such as by respond to such threats by applying the identified countermeasures. The risk mitigation strategy might involve evaluating these threats from the business impact that they pose and reduce the risk. Other options might include taking the risk assuming the business impact is acceptable because of compensating controls, informing the user of the threat, remove the risk posed by the threat completely or the least preferable option that is to do nothing.
Each of the above steps are documented as they are carried out. The resulting document is the threat model for the application. This guide will use an example to help explain the concepts behind threat modeling. The same example will be used throughout each of the 3 steps as a learning aid. The example that will be used is a college library website. At the end of the guide we will have produced the threat model for the college library website. Each of the steps in the threat modeling process are described in detail below.
Decompose the Application
The goal of this step is to gain an understanding of the application and how it interacts with external entities. This goal is achieved by information gathering and documentation. The information gathering process is carried out using a clearly defined structure, this ensures the correct information is collected. This structure also defines how the information should be documented to produce the Threat Model.
Threat Model Information
The first item in the threat model is the information relating to the threat model. This must include the the following:
- Application Name - The name of the application.
- Application Version - The version of the application.
- Description - A high level description of the application.
- Document Owner - The owner of the threat modeling document.
- Participants - The participants involved in the threat modeling process for this application.
- Reviewer - The reviewer(s) of the threat model.
|Threat Model Information
|Application Version:
|The college library website is the first implementation of a website to provide librarians and library patrons (students and college staff) with online services.
As this is the first implementation of the website the functionality will be limited. There will be three users of the application:
|Document Owner:
|David Lowry
|David Rook
|Eoin Keary
Use Cases
Use cases are an important step in gaining an understanding of the applications structure and its use. Use cases capture the functional requirements of an application. They describe the interaction between the actor, i.e. the user of the application and the application to achieve a specific goal. The user cases help define the scope for the threat model as they are essentially documenting the requirements of the application.
The use case below shows the student actor interacting with the application. A student can carry out two tasks with the application - login and search for books.
The use case below shows the college faculty actor interacting with the application. A faculty member can carry out three tasks with the application - login, request books and search for books.
The use case below shows the librarian actor interacting with the application. A librarian can carry out four tasks with the application - login, search for books, add a book and add a user.
External Dependencies
External dependencies are items external to the code of the application that may pose a threat to the application. These items are typically still within the control of the organisation but possibly not within the control of the development team. The first area to look at when investigating external dependencies is how will the application be deployed in a production environment and what are the requirements surrounding this. This involves looking at how the application is or is not intended to be run. For example if the application is expected to be run on a server that has been hardened to the organisations hardening standard and it is expected to sit behind a firewall then this information should be documented in the external dependencies section. External dependencies should be documented as follows:
- ID - A unique ID assigned to the external dependency.
- Description - A textual description of the external dependency.
|External Dependencies
|The college library website will run on a Linux server running apache. This server will be hardened as per the colleges server hardening standard. This includes the application of the latest operating system and application security patches.
|The database server will be mysql and it will run on a Linux server. This server will be hardened as per the colleges server hardening standard. This will include the application of the lastest operating system and application security patches.
|The connection between the Web Server and the database server will be over a private network.
|The Web Server is behind a firewall and the only communication available is TLS.
Entry Points
Entry points define the interfaces through which potential attackers can interact with the application or supply it with data. In order for potential attacker to attack an application entry points must exist. Entry points in an application can be layered, for example each web page in a web application may contain multiple entry points. Entry points should be documented as follows:
- ID - A unique ID assigned to the entry point. This will be used to cross reference the entry point with any threats or vulnerabilities that are identified. In the case of layer entry points a major.minor notation should be used.
- Name - A descriptive name identifying the entry point and its purpose.
- Description - A textual description detailing the interaction or processing that occurs at the entry point.
- Trust Levels - The level of access required at the entry point is documented here. These will be cross referenced with the trusts levels defined later in the document.
|Entry Points
|Trust Levels
|HTTPS Port
|The college library website will be only be accessable via TLS. All pages within the college library website are layered on this entry point.
|(1) Anonymous Web User
(2) User with Valid Login Credentials
|Library Main Page
|The splash page for the college library website is the entry point for all users.
|(1) Anonymous Web User
(2) User with Valid Login Credentials
|Login Page
|Students, faculty members and librarians must login to the college library website before they can carry out any of the use cases.
|(1) Anonymous Web User
(2) User with Login Credentials
|Login Function
|The login function accepts user supplied credentials and compares them with those in the database.
(2) User with Valid Login Credentials
|Search Entry Page
|The page used to enter a search query.
(2) User with Valid Login Credentials
The system must have something that the attacker is interested in, these items/areas of interest are defined as assets. Assets are essentially threat targets, i.e. they are the reason threats will exist. Assets can be both physical assets and abstract assets. For example an asset of an application might be a list of clients and their personal information, this is a physical asset. An abstract asset might be the reputation of an organsation. Assets are documented in the threat model as follows:
- ID - A unique ID is assigned to identify each asset. This will be used to cross reference the asset with any threats or vulnerabilities that are identified.
- Name - A descriptive name that clearly identifies the asset.
- Description - A textual description of what the asset is and why it needs to be protected.
- Trust Levels - The level of access required to access the entry point is documented here. These will be cross referenced with the trust levels defined in the next step.
|Trust Levels
|Library Users and Librarian
|Assets relating to students, faculty members and librarians.
|Users Login Details
|The login credentials that a student or a faculty member will use to log into the College Library website.
(2) User with Valid Login Credentials
|Librarian Login Details
|The login credentials that a Librarian will use to log into the College Library website.
(4) Librarian
|Personal Data
|The College Library website will store personal information relating to the students, faculty members and librarians.
(4) Librarian
|Assets relating to the underlying system.
|Availability of College Library Website
|The College Library website should be available 24 hours a day and can be accessed by all students, college faculty members and librarians.
(5) Database Server Administrator
|Ability to Execute Code as a Web Server User
|This is the ability to execute source code on the web server as a web server user.
(6) Website Administrator
|Ability to Execute SQL as a Database Read User
|This is the ability to execute SQL select queries on the database and thus retrieve any information stored within the College Library database.
(5) Database Server Administrator
|Ability to Execute SQL as a Database Read/Write User
|This is the ability to execute SQL select, insert and update queries on the database and thus have read and write access to any information stored within the College Library database.
(5) Database Server Administrator
|Assets relating to the College Library website.
|Login Session
|This is the login session of a user to the College Library website. This user could be a student, a member of the college faculty or a Librarian.
(2) User with Valid Login Credentials
|Access to the Database Server
|Access to the database server allows you to administer the database giving you full access to the database users and all data contained within the database.
(5) Database Server Administrator
|Ability to Create Users.
|The ability to create users would allow an individual to create new users on the system. These could be student users, faculty member users and librarian users.
(4) Librarian
|Access to Audit Data
|The audit data shows all audit-able events that occurred within the College Library application by students, staff and librarians.
(6) Website Administrator
Trust Levels
Trust levels represent the access rights that the application will grant to external entities. The trust levels are cross referenced with the entry points and assets. This allows us to defined the access rights or privileges required at each entry point and those required to interact with each asset. Trust levels are documented in the threat model as follows:
- ID - A unique number is assigned to each trust level. This is used to cross reference the trust level with the entry points and assets.
- Name - A descriptive name that allows you to identify the external entities that have been granted this trust level.
- Description - A textual description of the trust level detailing the external entity who has been granted the trust level.
|Trust Levels
|Anonymous Web User
|A user who has connected to the college library website but has not provided valid credentials.
|User with Valid Login Credentials
|A user who has connected to the college library website and has logged in using valid login credentials.
|User with Invalid Login Credentials
|A user who has connected to the college library website and is attempting to login in using invalid login credentials.
|The librarian can create users on the library website and view their personal information.
|Database Server Administrator
|The database server administrator has read and write access to the database that is used by the college library website.
|Website Administrator
|The Website administrator can configure the college library website.
|Web Server User Process
|This is the process/user that the web server executes code as and authenticates itself against the database server as.
|Database Read User
|The database user account used to access the database for read access.
|Database Read/Write User
|The database user account used to access the database for read and write access.
Data Flow Diagrams
All of the information collected allows us to accurately model the application through the use of Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs). The DFDs will allow us to gain a better understanding of the application by providing a visual representation of how the application processes data. The focus of the DFDs is on how data moves through the application and what happens to the data as it moves. DFDs are hierarchical in structure so they can be used to decompose the application into subsystems and lower-level subsystems. The high level DFD will allow us to clarify the scope of the application being modeled. The lower level iterations will allow us to focus on the specific processes involved when processing specific data. There are a number of symbols that are used in DFDs for threat modeling. These are described below:
External Entity
The external entity shape is used to represent any entity outside the application that interacts with the application via an entry point.
The process shape represents a task that handles data within the application. The task may process the data or perform an action based on the data.
Multiple Process
The multiple process shape is used to present a collection of subprocesses. The multiple process can be broken down into its subprocesses in another DFD.
Data Store
The data store shape is used to represent locations where data is stored. Data stores do not modify the data they only store data.
Data Flow
The data flow shape represents data movement within the application. The direction of the data movement is represented by the arrow.
Privilege Boundary
The privilege boundary shape is used to represent the change of privilege levels as the data flows through the application.
Data Flow Diagram for the College Library Website.
User Login Data Flow Diagram for the College Library Website.
Determine and rank threats
Threat Categorization
The first step in the determination of threats is adopting a threat categorization. A threat categorization provides a set of threat categories with corresponding examples so that threats can be systematically identified in the application in a structured and repeatable manner.
A threat categorization such as STRIDE is useful in the identification of threats by classifying attacker goals such as:
- Spoofing
- Tampering
- Repudiation
- Information Disclosure
- Denial of Service
- Elevation of Privilege.
A threat list of generic threats organized in these categories with examples and the affected security controls is provided in the following table:
|STRIDE Threat List
|Security Control
|Threat action aimed to illegally access and use another user's credentials, such as username and password
|Threat action aimed to maliciously change/modify persistent data, such as persistent data in a database, and the alteration of data in transit between two computers over an open network, such as the Internet
|Threat action aimed to perform illegal operation in a system that lacks the ability to trace the prohibited operations.
|Information disclosure.
|Threat action to read a file that they were not granted access to, or to read data in transit.
|Denial of service.
|Threat aimed to deny access to valid users such as by making a web server temporarily unavailable or unusable.
|Elevation of privilege.
|Threat aimed to gain privileged access to resources for gaining unauthorized access to information or to compromise a system.
The Application Security Frame (ASF) defines threat categories in terms of defensive controls such as:
- Auditing & Logging
- Authentication
- Authorization
- Configuration Management
- Data Protection in Storage and Transit
- Data Validation
- Exception Management
- User and Session Management
Descriptions and examples of generic threats organized in these categories is provided in the following threat list:
|ASF Threat List
|Attack Examples
|Auditing & Logging
|Threats caused by failure to maintain detailed and accurate application logs that can allow for traceability and non-repudiation and provide enough information for administrators to identify security issues and for incident response specialists to trace an attack. An attacker can use logs to obtain critical information about the system as well as tamper them to clear his traces after an attack.
1. Non repudiation
|Threats caused by lack of strong protocols to validate the identity of a user to access a system or component outside the trust boundary. An attacker can obtain illegitimate access to the system or its individual components.
1. Impersonation
|Threats caused by lack of a mechanisms to enforce access control on protected resources within the system. An attacker can get access to resources that should not have privileges to access to.
1. Escalation of privileges
|Configuration Management
|Threats caused by insecure deployment and administration. An attacker can get access to system/user data and gain unauthorized access to system functionality
1. Elevation of privileges
|Data Protection in Storage and Transit
|Threats caused by the implementation of encryption and lack of adequate protection for secrets and other data in storage or transit. An attacker can compromise user/system confidentiality and data integrity by bypassing the cryptographic mechanisms used by the system
1. Access to sensitive data in storage
|Data Validation
|Threats due to lack of input validation and output validation whenever data crosses system or trust boundaries. An attacker can use data as a vector to carry the payload for attacks such as SQL injection, cross site scripting, or buffer overflows that lead to arbitrary code execution, denial of service, information disclosure and elevation of privileges attacks.
1. Cross Site Scripting
|Exception Management
|Threats caused by failure to handle exceptions effectively and in a secure manner and any resulting unauthorized disclosure of information. An attacker can use exceptions to crash the application or to obtain other information regarding the system such as the database schema that he or she can then use to launch an attack.
1. Denial of Service
|User and Session Management
|Threats caused by the lack of mechanisms to maintain session independence between multiple logged on users and the lack of adequate and secure management of authenticated sessions. An attacker can gain access to another user's data and for unauthorized access to system resources and data
1. Session hijacking
Threat Analysis
The prerequisite in the analysis of threats is the understanding of the generic definition of risk that is the probability that a threat agent will exploit a vulnerability to cause an impact to the application. From the perspective of risk management, threat modeling is the systematic & strategic approach for identifying and enumerating threats to an application environment with the objective of minimizing risk and the associated impacts.
Threat analysis as such is the identification of the threats to the application and involves the analysis of each aspect of the application functionality and architecture and design to identify and classify potential weaknesses that could lead to an exploit.
In the step 1 of TM we have modeled the system showing data flows, trust boundaries, process components and entry and exit points. An example of such modeling is shown in the Example: Data Flow Diagram for the College Library Website.
Data flows show how data flows logically through the end to end and allow the identification of affected components through critical points (i.e. data entering or leaving the system, storage of data) and the flow of control through these components. Trust boundaries show any location where the level of trust changes. Process components show where data is processed such as web servers, application servers and database servers. Entry points show where data enters the system (i.e. input fields, methods) and exit points are where it leaves the system (i.e. dynamic output, methods), respectively. Entry and exit points define a trust boundary.
Threat lists based on STRIDE model are useful in the identification of threats with regards to the attacker goals. For example, if the threat scenario is attacking the login, would the attacker brute force the password to break the authentication? If the threat scenario is to try to elevate privileges to gain another user privileges, would the attacker try to perform forceful browsing?
From the attacker's point of view and hence it is vital that all possible attack vectors are evaluated. For this reason, it is also important to consider entry and exit points, since they could also allow the realization of certain kinds of threats. For example the login page allows sending authentication credentials and the input data accepted by an entry point has to validate for potential malicious input to exploit vulnerabilities such as SQL injection, cross site scripting and buffer overflows. Additionally, the data flow passing through that point has to be used to determine the threats to the entry points to the next components along the flow, If the following components can be regarded critical (e.g. the hold sensitive data) that entry point can be regarded more critical as well. In an end to end data flow for example the input data (i.e. username and password) from a login page passed on without validation it could be exploited for a SQL injection attack to manipulate a query for breaking the authentication or to modify a table in the database.
Exit points might serve as attack points to the client (e.g. XSS vulnerabilities) as well for the realization of information disclosure vulnerabilities. For example, in the case of exit points from components handling confidential data (e.g. data access components), exit points lacking security controls to protect the confidentiality and integrity can lead to disclosure of such confidential information to an unauthorized user.
In many cases threats enabled by exit points are related to the threats of the corresponding entry point. In the login example, error messages returned to the user via the exit point might allow for entry point attacks such as account harvesting (e.g. username not found), or SQL injection (e.g. SQL exception errors).
From the defensive perspective, the identification of threats driven by security control categorization such as ASF, allows a threat analyst to focus on specific issues related to weaknesses (e.g. vulnerabilities) in security controls. Typically the process of threat identification involves going through iterative cycles where initially all the possible threats in the threat list that apply to each component are evaluated.
At the next iteration threats are further analyzed by exploring the attack paths, the root causes (e.g. vulnerabilities, depicted as orange blocks) for the threat to be exploited and the necessary mitigation controls (e.g. countermeasures, depicted as green blocks). A threat tree as shown in figure 2 is useful to perform such threat analysis
Once common threats, vulnerabilities and attacks are assessed, a more focused threat analysis should take in consideration use and abuse cases. By thoroughly analyzing the use scenarios, weaknesses can be identified that could lead to the realization of a threat. Abuse cases should be identified as part of the security requirement engineering activity. These abuse cases can illustrate how existing protective measures could be bypassed, or were a lack of such protection exists. A use and misuse case graph for authentication is shown in figure 3
Finally it is possible to bring all of this together by determining the types of threat to each component of the decomposed system. This can be done by using a threat categorization such as STRIDE or ASF, the use of threat trees to determine how the threat can be exposed by a vulnerability and use and misuse cases to further validate the lack of a countermeasure to mitigate the threat.
To apply STRIDE to the data flow diagram items the following table can be used:
Ranking of Threats
Threats can be ranked from the perspective of risk factors. By determing the risk factor posed by the various identified threats it is possible to create a prioritized list of threats support os a risk mitigation startegy such as decicing on which threats have to be mitigated first. Different risk factors can be used to determine with threats can be ranked as High, Medium or Low risk. In general threat-risk models use different factors to model risks such as shown in figure 3
The Microsoft DREAD threat-risk ranking model the technical risk factors for impact are Damage and Affected Users while the ease of exploitation factors are Reproducibility, Exploitability and Discoverability. This risk factorization allows the assignment of values to the different influencing factors of a threat. The determine the ranking of a threat the threat analyst has to answer where basic questions for each factor of risk for example:
- For Damage: How big the damage can be?
- For Reproducibility: How easy is it to reproduce an attack to work?
- For Exploitability: How much time, effort and expertise is needed to exploit the threat?
- For Affected Users: If a threat were exploited, what percentage of users would be affected?
- For Discoverability: How easy is it for an attacker to discover this threat?
By referring to the college library website it is possible to document sample threats releated to the use cases such as:
Threat: Malicious user views confidential information of students, faculty members and librarians.
- Damage potential: Threat to reputation as well as financial and legal liability:8
- Reproducibility: Fully reproducible:10
- Exploitability: Require to be on the same subnet or have compromised a router:7
- Affected users: Affects all users:10
- Discoverability: Can be found out easily:10
Overall DREAD score: (8+10+7+10+10) / 5 = 9
In this case having 9 on a 10 point scale is certainly an high risk threat
Generic Risk Model
A more generic risk model takes into consideration the Likelihood (e.g. probability of an attack) and the Impact (e.g. damage potential):
Risk = Likelihood x Impact
The likelihood or probability is defined by the ease of exploitation, which mainly depends on the type of threat and the system characteristics and by the possibility to realize a threat, which is determined by the existence of an appropriate countermeasure.
The following is a set of considerations for determining ease of exploitation:
- Can an attacker exploit this remotely?
- Does the attacker need to be authenticated?
- Can the exploit be automated?
The impact mainly depends on the damage potential and the extent of the impact such as the number of components that are affected by a threat.
Examples to determine the damage potential are:
- Can an attacker completely take over and manipulate the system?
- Can an attacker gain administration access to the system?
- Can an attacker crash the system?
- Can the attacker obtain access to sensitive information such as secrets, PII
Examples to determine the number of components that are affected by a threat:
- How many data sources and systems can be impacted?
These examples helps in the calculation of the overall risk values by assigning qualitative values such as High, Medium and Low to Likelihood and Impact factors. In this case using qualitative values rather than numeric ones like in the case of the DREAD model help avoid the ranking becoming overly subjective.
Determine countermeasures and mitigations
Countermeasure Identification
The purpose of the countermeasure identification is to determine if there is some kind of protective measure (e.g. security control, policy measures) in place that can prevent each threat previosly identified via threat analysis from being realized. Vulnerabilities are then those threats that have no countermeasures. Since each of these threats has been categorized either with STRIDE ot ASF it is possible to find appropriate countermeasures in the application within the given category.
Provided below is a brief and limited checklist which is by no means an exhaustive list for identifying countermeasures for specific threats. Example of countermeasures for ASF threat types are included in the following table:
|ASF Threat & Countermeasures List
|Threat Type
|Configuration Management
|Data Protection in Storage and Transit
|Data Validation / Parameter Validation
|Error Handling and Exception Management
|User and Session Management
|Auditing and Logging
When using STRIDE, the following threat-mitigation table can be used to identify techniques that can be employed to mitigate the threats.
|STRIDE Threat & Mitigation Techniques List
|Threat Type
|Mitigation Techniques
|Spoofing Identity
|Tampering with data
|Information Disclosure
|Denial of Service
|Elevation of privilege
Once threats and corresponding countermeasures are identified it is possible to derive a threat profile with the following criteria:
- Non mitigated threats: Threats have no countermeasures and represent vulnerabilities that can be fully exploited and cause an impact
- Partially mitigated threats: Partially mitigated threats by one or more countermeasures and represent vulnerabilities that can only partially exploited and cause a limited impact
- Fully mitigated threats: These threats have appropriate countermeasures in place and do not expose vulnerability and cause impact
Mitigation Strategies
The objective or risk management is to reduce the impact that the exploitation of a threat can have to the application. This can be done by responding to a theat with a risk mitigation strategy. In general there are four options to mitigate threats
- Do nothing: for example hoping for the best
- Informing about the risk: for example warning user population about the risk
- Mitigate the risk: for example by putting countermeasures in place
- Accept the risk: for example after evaluating the impact of the exploitation (business impact)
- Transfer the risk: for example through contractual agreements and insurance
The decision which strategy is most appropriate depends on the impact an exploitation of a threat can have, the likelihood of its occurrence, and the costs for transferring (i.e. costs for insurance) or avoiding (i.e. costs or losses due redesign) it. That is, such decision is based on the risk a threat poses to the system. Therefore, the chosen strategy does not mitigate the threat itself but the risk it poses to the system. Ultimately the overall risk has to take into account the business impact since this is a critical factor for the business risk management strategy. One strategy could be to fix only the vulnerabilities which cost to fix is less than the potential business impact derived by the exploitation of the vulnerability. Another strategy could be to accept the risk when the loss of some security controls (e.g. Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability) implies a small degradation of the service and not a loss of a critical business function. In some cases, transfer of the risk to another service provider might also be an option.


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Bone-bothering boffins have reconstructed a giant prehistoric penguin species from fossils that were first found in New Zealand in 1977.
Artist's impression of Kairuku penguins. Credit: Chris Gaskin, Geology Museum, University of Otago
Ewan Fordyce, a palaeontologist at the island nation's University of Otago, found the ancient bones to make nearly an entire skeleton 35 years ago - and in the last few years enlisted the help of two more boffins from North Carolina State University to figure out what the huge penguin would have looked like.
New Zealand was a great place for penguins around 25 million years ago, during the Oligocene period, because most of the country was underwater leaving rocky islands scattered about where penguins could hide out from predators and forage for food.
The giant penguin, which the boffins named Kairuku after the Maori for "diver who returns with food", was one of at least five different species of penguin that lived in New Zealand at this time. The diversity of species is one of the reasons that figuring out what Kairuku looked like was difficult as well as its unique appearance.
Kairuku was more than a foot taller than the modern Emperor penguin and had a long narrow bill and narrow wing bones.
"Kairuku was an elegant bird by penguin standards, with a slender body and long flippers, but short, thick legs and feet," Dan Ksepka of North Carolina State University said in a canned statement.
"If we had done a reconstruction by extrapolating from the length of its flippers, it would have stood over 6 feet tall. In reality, Kairuku was around 4-feet, 2 inches tall or so."
The size and physique of Kairuku is interesting to boffins because it helps them figure out how far the birds swam.
"This species gives us a more complete picture of these giant penguins generally, and may help us to determine how great their range was during the Oligocene period," Ksepka added.
The boffins' findings were published in the Journal of Vertebrate Palaeontology. ®


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CUT or UNCUT?
In Africa, where HIV cases are very numerous and for years the contagion takes its toll without stopping, years ago a study among subjects circumcised and uncircumcised pointed out that circumcision led to a lower risk of infection.
The news went around the world and since then many doctors of any nationality, without posing the question, sided in favor of circumcision recommending it to all, as a method of HIV prevention and other urinary infections. Among them, the American Academy of pediatric that from long recommends all families the circumcision for all males newborn.
Fortunately, a lot of pediatricians and urologists, as Italians, have a different view and practice circumcision for therapeutic purposes only and exclusively for the correction of Phimosis, a common children pathology characterized by an abnormal narrowing of the foreskin, and only as a last-resort when the conventional medical therapies are not successful.
I say "fortunately" and there'll explain why.
Apart from the fact that not all of us live in Africa or in countries where HIV is so widespread, to defend themselves effectively by this disease, there are also other better methods. Most HIV infections in Africa are transmitted by contaminated injections and surgical procedures. In the studies, the effects of other variables that would influence HIV infection were not considered, and critical data were omitted. For example, the HIV status of the female partners of the men was not determined. It was not known which infections were heterosexually transmitted, the effect of circumcision on the rate of heterosexually transmitted HIV could not actually be determined. There are at least 17 observational studies that have not found any benefit from male circumcision in reducing HIV transmission. Among developed countries, the United States has the highest circumcision rate and the highest rate of heterosexually transmitted HIV. Other countries have lower rates of HIV infection than the United States and do not practice circumcision.
In addition, we must consider that the Postectomia surgery is not without risks, and although the incidence is low (0.1 to 35%) there may be complications such as pain, difficulty urinating, local edema, bleeding, flaws, fistula and complications to the penis.
Beyond HIV, circumcision was already widespread in some countries for religious reasons, but this is another story also questionable.
Our Lord has created us as we are and there was no reason to include some organ that was a simple plus. From an evolutionary and physician perspective, every organ in the human body has its specific task and nothing is to be considered as superfluous, beyond what the different cultures and religions suggest or require.
Therefore, the foreskin of the penis was not put there by accident and has its own importance.
One of the major side effects that many circumcised people complain, it is the reduction of overall sensitivity, due to the loss of erogenous tissue. There is a less manageability of the penis, masturbation difficulties, numbness of the glans (which remaining exposed, it is no longer protected from rubbing on clothing), and of the frenulum (for many the most important for the purposes of pleasure), resulting in difficulty orgasmic. Refractory periods (recovery time) become longer and it's necessary a stronger stimulation of the tissues, which "stressed" can make painful and frustrating the sexual intercourse and masturbation.
In all countries where circumcision is uncommon (like Europe, Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Jamaica, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela), there was not an increase of HIV cases that can be attributed to lack of circumcision. American researchers tend to avoid studying or acknowledging the sexual and psychological harm associated with circumcision. This pro-circumcision bias in American medicine reflects the pro-circumcision bias in American culture. The United States is the only country in the world that in most cases circumcises some of its male infants for non-religious reasons.
Here are ten compelling arguments against circumcision:
Argument #1
The foreskin is natural, necessary and important.
Far from an unnecessary extra flap of skin, the foreskin is actually a highly sensitive and functional organ that serves several important purposes. First, the glans or head of the penis is meant to be an internal organ and the foreskin covers and protects it from harm in much the same way as the eyelid protects the eye. In circumcised males, the glans becomes hardened or keratinized by constant exposure and irritation, which reduces sensitivity. The foreskin itself is a highly sensitive erogenous zone and has more nerve receptors and a greater variety of nerve receptors than any other part of the penis.
Argument #2
Most medical experts do not recommend neonatal circumcision.
There is no medical justification for routine infant circumcision. The purported correlations between an intact foreskin and various diseases and problems that circumcisers have used for years to convince parents to let them cut their newborns have been gradually disproved or shown to be insignificant.
A detailed breakdown of the connections— or lack thereof—between circumcision and conditions such as penile and prostate cancer, urinary tract infections, sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS, phimosis, balanitis xerotica obliterans (BXO) and even cervical cancer in female partners, is beyond the scope of this article, but parents should be aware that the American Academy of Pediatrics states that, "The existing scientific evidence is not sufficient to recommend routine circumcision," and the Canadian Paediatric Society confirmed their stance in 1996 that, "Circumcision of newborns should not be routinely performed."
Argument #3
The penis is naturally self-cleaning and proper hygiene is easy to teach and perform.
The foreskin protects the glans from contaminants and debris. An intact foreskin can also produce a natural moisturizing substance with antibacterial and antiviral properties called smegma, which helps keep the glans soft and the penis clean and healthy. When a baby boy is born, the foreskin is actually attached to the glans to shelter the developing glans from harm. Some doctors still suggest that parents should forcibly retract a baby's foreskin in order to clean it, but there is no need to do so. The foreskin will naturally detach from the glans as the boy ages and eventually he'll be able to retract it. Pulling back the foreskin in the shower or bath and rinsing it with warm water is all the cleaning an adult requires in this area. Surgical alteration is hardly necessary to keep the penis clean when warm water and soap are readily available.
Argument #4
Circumcision affects sexual function and desensitizes the penis.
Removing a highly sensitive organ like the foreskin will logically reduce sensation in the genital area. In fact, this point was touted in Victorian times as a benefit of the operation. Masturbation was then thought of as a grave sin and a serious health risk, to blame for nearly all diseases. Since circumcised boys would receive less pleasure from sexual stimulation, they would be less likely to engage in the evil of masturbation.
The foreskin facilitates sexual intercourse by allowing the penis to move in and out of the vagina in its own double-layered sheath of movable skin. Circumcised males lack the self- lubricating properties of the foreskin, which creates friction during intercourse that can result in small tears and bleeding in both the man and woman. Artificial lubricants have been developed largely to make up for the function of the foreskin in circumcised men. The long-term effects of these chemical lubricants are not known.
Argument #5
He doesn't need to be cut to fit in.
Much has been made of the idea that an uncircumcised boy in our modern society could find himself ridiculed by other circumcised boys in locker rooms, causing serious psychological damage. Boys will find any excuse to make fun of each other and if it's not the appearance of his penis, it will be something else. Providing a child with a combination of education, honesty and confidence is the best defense against this sort of teasing.
The rate of infant circumcision has been falling steadily since the 1980s, so an uncircumcised boy today may actually find himself in the majority. In 1996, the rate of circumcision in Canada was between three and six percent, falling from a high of 46 percent.
Another pro-cutting argument is the desire of the circumcised father to have his son look the same as him, but this is not so much for the benefit of the son as it is for the father. A boy will be capable of understanding the difference and the reason for it and may someday even thank his parents for giving him the choice his father never had.
Argument #6
Circumcision is painful and traumatic for babies.
Many circumcisers try to convince parents that babies are incapable of experiencing pain and even if they do feel it, they won't remember it. In fact, scientific evidence proves that babies do feel pain and may feel it even more acutely than adults. Yet most circumcisions are performed without general anaesthesia, which is dangerous for children, and frequently without local anaesthesia in the form of shots or creams that cannot completely eliminate the pain anyway. The pain of circumcision can have serious repercussions on the body of a newborn baby. Babies are known to scream hysterically, stop breathing, lose consciousness, vomit and defecate during the operation. The shock of the surgery can even cause ruptures of the heart, lungs and stomach.
The effects of this trauma can continue after the surgery is completed. Some babies experience severely disrupted sleep patterns, breastfeeding complications and interruptions of the infant- mother attachment process after circumcision.
Argument #7
There are serious potential complications to circumcision.
The rates of complications and accidents related to circumcision is nearly impossible to determine since hospitals are not required to report these incidents, but it is estimated to range from two to 10 percent, while at least one out of every 500 circumcisions results in a serious surgical accident.
The risks of circumcision include bleeding, infection, necrosis (the penis dies and falls off), gangrene, BXO, urinary tract infection, urinary retention, meatal ulceration or stenosis (the urinary opening is damaged, scarred or contracted), urethral fistula (an abnormal tube-like passage in the urethra), hypospadias or epispadias (when the urinary opening appears along the top or bottom of the penis rather than at the tip of the glans) and lymphedema (a swelling of the skin caused by a build-up of lymph fluid).
Botched circumcisions can result in buried penis (the penis retreats inside the body), adhesions, excessive skin loss, curvature of the penis, cysts, skin tags, pitting of the glans, scarring, impotence, amputation of the glans or the entire penis and even death.
Argument #8
We don't mutilate the genitals of our baby girls.
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is practiced in many cultures around the world. The World Health Organization estimates that as many as two million girls each year are subjected to some sort of genital cutting, which may include amputation of the clitoris, the hood of the clitoris and/or the labia, as well as stitching closed the vaginal opening afterward. Three quarters of these cases occur in the countries of Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia and Sudan.
This kind of genital surgery is seen in the West as barbaric, tribal and torturous. Since the 1990s when FGM was first revealed to the North American public at large, major efforts have gone into eradicating the practice around the world. Yet we still expose our boys to similarly painful, traumatic and unnecessary surgery in North America as a matter of course.
Argument #9
I do not believe that those who have sex (hetero-or homo-) with a stranger they feel protected just because are circumcised, and should always use a condom. A nonsense. Condoms are better than 99% effective and if circumcision results in lower condom use, the rate of HIV infections will increase.
Argument #10
Religious tradition is a poor excuse to subject your baby to circumcision. The history of circumcision is a long and complicated one. As a symbolic ritual it appeared independently in many different ancient cultures around the world. It has been imbued with a variety of meanings—identifying a priestly class, indicating privilege, initiating boys into manhood and representing a commitment to God.
To conclude, I think that as in all the important choices (sexuality, religion, lifestyle, study, work, career) parents ought not take these decisions on their own and make choices that might not be shared by their children when they become adults, especially for those that are irreversible, such as circumcision.


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Do you love RPGs? Of course you do, we do as well. You're going to absolutely love this!
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- 1992.19
- Pièce
- 6 September 1990
Item consists of 1 wooden commemorative paddle, affixed with a plaque, painted, and signed.
Sadler, W. Murray
Item consists of 1 wooden commemorative paddle, affixed with a plaque, painted, and signed.
Sadler, W. Murray
Interior University Society fonds (W. Murray Sadler)
Fonds consists of the records of W. Murray Sadler which are related to the Interior University Society. The Interior University Society was incorporated in 1987 after organizational efforts initiated by Tom Steadman, Bryson Stone and Charles McCaffray. The society's objectives were to promote the establishment of a university in Prince George, B.C., later to be known as the University of Northern British Columbia. The first president of the society was Prince George lawyer W. Murray Sadler. The Society launched a membership campaign in 1987, retained the services of Dr. Urban Dahllof to undertake a feasibility study, and conducted a survey to determine the support level in northern B.C. for a university. In October, 1988, the society's proposals and studies were presented to the provincial cabinet. In 1989, an Implementation Planning Group was established, chaired by Horst Sander. The planning group completed its study and reported to the government in December of 1989, recommending a full-status university be established in the north.
Sadler, W. Murray


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Three boys were booked on suspicion of bullying or kicking red-haired students at a middle school when a "Kick a Ginger Day" prank inspired by a "South Park" episode got out of hand, authorities said Monday.
A 13-year-old boy was detained last week for investigation of threatening to inflict injury by means of electronic communication — essentially, cyberbullying. Two 12-year-olds were booked for battery on school property, Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said.
The three suspects, whose identities were not released because of their ages, were booked Wednesday and released to their parents. They could face misdemeanor charges, but it was unclear when the case might be submitted for possible prosecution, Whitmore said.
Four girls and three boys reported that schoolmates shoved or kicked them on Nov. 20 at A.E. Wright Middle School in Calabasas, an affluent suburb of Los Angeles.
No serious injuries were reported. Most incidents involved a single person kicking a student's shoe or leg, but one youngster was bruised when three or four boys confronted him at once, said Donald Zimring, superintendent of the Las Virgenes Unified School District.
He may have been kicked in the groin or head while on the ground, although accounts differ, Zimring said.
"Any time a youngster gets hurt because of a thoughtless act ... there ought to be consequences," Zimring said.
Assemblies were held Monday at the school to discuss the incident.
Investigators said the attacks apparently were inspired by a 2005 episode of "South Park" that parodied racial prejudice by having the character Cartman incite a hate campaign against freckled, red-haired "ginger kids."
The episode apparently inspired the 13-year-old to send his friends a Facebook message declaring "Kick a Ginger Day," Zimring said.


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Thomas Wolfe wrote You Can't Go Home Again, a book that I once started but could not finish even after visiting the Wolfe home in Asheville, NC. If Christians could go home again, where would it be? The Garden of Eden? The sword-wielding angels guarding the place would make that difficult. Judah? Adding Protestant Christian claims to the difficulties in Palestine sure seems unwise. Plus, Protestants never had much of a presence in Jerusalem or Israel (except vicariously if Christendom and the Crusades do anything for you). The Netherlands? Scotland? England? Massachusetts Bay? The U.S.? Protestants have lots of vested interests in certain national identities. But most of us, no matter how Kuyperian, neo-Puritian, Covenanter, or exceptionalist would concede that none of these so-called Protestant nations are really the center of God's redemptive plans (the way that Eden and Israel were).
In other words, we're all in exile because Jesus has gone to prepare a home for his people.
But some Protestants still regard Israel as a "holy" land in the way they understand Israeli-Palestinian relations. I certainly understand why Western powers would have wanted to secure a homeland for Jews, especially after World War II. But why place the nation of Israel, established with some kind of Zionist sentiments, smack dab in the middle of an ethnically and religiously hostile territory? Might a better place have been Newfoundland or Montana? Just create a Jewish state somewhere in North America. (And by the way, if American diplomats these days find a 2-state solution attractive, why not a 2-state option in 1861? If you look at maps of Israel, the Confederate States of America's borders looked a whole lot more secure than the situation that John Kerry faces.)
And then, what happens if the only biblical holy land is heaven? Bill Smith points the way:
Does the Israeli state have a right to the territory allotted to the tribes of Israel by Joshua? If you are a dispensationalist, you do think that, because you believe that the Jews are God's people, that there is a future for Israel distinct from the church, and that the Old Testament land belongs to Israel by divine right. You believe that the human race is divided both as believers and unbelievers and as Jews and Gentiles. We live in a parenthesis (the Church Age) which will be followed by God's implementation of his original plan for Israel and the fulfillment of his ancient promises to Israel.
My question to those who are not dispensationalists is, Why do you respond to the actions of the Israelis on dispensationalist assumptions? That is, Why do you respond to the conflicts in Palestine as though you believe a geographical land belongs to ethnic Jews and the modern Jewish state? Or, Why do you instinctively support what the Israeli state does as though it has a special status that trumps every other consideration?
In other words, it seems to me that the right way to view the national claims and geographical aspirations of ethnic Jews is to view them the same as we would any other group of people in the world. It is to view these claims and aspirations as we would if (as is the case) ethnic Jews do not have a Biblical claim to land in the Middle East. The modern state of Israel is no different from any other nation as to its rights and obligations.


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Last year, an academic study tapped Don Cherry as the new face of Canadian Nationalism. The world recoiled in horror, not least of all Canadians themselves. (I know. I asked them all.) But Grapes's geographical jingoism is something you kind of have to tune out, because at least it doesn't affect his hockey analysis. Until it does.
From last night's CBC pregame show, as relayed and analyzed by Backhand Shelf:
"You know why I'm picking them? 23 North Americans, 14 Canadians, 8 guys from Ontario – heart and character, that's why they're going to win."
Heart and character: two things you only have if your passport has a blue cover.
Cherry's prediction came incrementally true: the Kings did indeed win game 1, with a nifty overtime breakaway goal from Anze Kopitar, who was born and raised in Slovenia, which I believe is just south of Fort McMurray.
Breaking: Don Cherry is nationalistic and wrong [Backhand Shelf]


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Nutting highlights expectations in address to Bucs
Club chairman emphasizes necessity of building on exciting playoff run of '13
BRADENTON, Fla. -- Baseball players who make early exits from the playoffs have a tendency to avoid watching the rest of the postseason, finding it haunting.
Baseball owners, apparently, are cut from a different cloth. Pirates chairman Bob Nutting watched the team that ousted his club -- the St. Louis Cardinals -- all the way into the World Series, and found it inspiring.
"It stung, because we were so close, and to see them continue on had to be a motivator for everyone here," Nutting said Wednesday morning, shortly after delivering his annual Spring Training address to Pirates players and staff. "That absolutely could've, should've been us, going farther.
"That one extra game -- maybe Game 4 in PNC Park [a 2-1 loss in the potential National League Division Series clincher] more than the final game [the 6-1 loss in St. Louis] -- reinforced what a huge impact one game can have on a franchise. It re-emphasized for every single person in the organization why we need to push forward."
That, in essence, was the message delivered to the troops by Nutting in the highlight of his brief sojourn to Pirate City. That, and the vitality of appreciating and rewarding the role fans have played in the team's resurgence.
"The fan response to the team emphasized for me our responsibility to perform every day, every inning, every at-bat. I shared that with the guys," said Nutting, who has been making these speeches every spring of his ownership, but never one quite like this.
None had ever followed a 94-win season.
"It is different this year," Nutting said. "The whole level of expectation has changed. And we need to move forward, get better. We can't be satisfied. Every team in baseball is now aware of us."
In an 18-minute on-field session with media following his meeting with the team, Nutting touched on numerous issues affecting his baseball team.
One subject he was not prepared to discuss were the long-term futures of manager Clint Hurdle and general manager Neal Huntington, both entering the final years of their contracts, which include options for 2015. Most significantly, following Atlanta's extension on Wednesday of Fredi Gonzalez, Hurdle is one of three Major League managers without a 2015 guarantee (the others being Texas' Ron Washington and Milwaukee's Ron Roenicke).
"I have tremendous respect and affection for both. What they have done for this organization is tremendous, and I hope they will be with the organization for a long time," Nutting said. "But this early in Spring Training is not the right time for that discussion. Having talked with both, I know it's not the first topic on anybody's mind."
The main topic of conversation at the Tuesday night dinner shared by the men, presumably, was how well the team is positioned to satisfy the higher expectations it faces.
"But I'm very enthusiastic about the team we have to put on the field, very enthusiastic about our starting rotation," Nutting said. "There are areas we've talked about building more, but we are in a strong position to put out a team that can excel. Never satisfied, very enthusiastic -- that's me. We'll never go on auto-pilot. We demand commitment to constant improvement.
"The expectations are great, but that just brings them in line with the expectations we've always had, There is no doubt ... nobody has any question about the future and the goal of this organization. We're absolutely committed, with single-minded focus, on moving beyond the success of last year."
Nutting fielded numerous inquiries relating to the Pirates' payroll and its level of flexibility, given the success at the PNC Park gate and the increase in the share of MLB's national television package.
• On the TV money, a hot-button topic all winter:
"There are a lot of variables [a slice of each team's share will be funneled to MLB's central fund, for instance], but we're not focused on the total dollars, but on making absolutely efficient use of the dollars we are getting."
• On adding payroll, through player acquisition, in the six weeks remaining in Spring Training:
"Nothing is off the table, but we need to be smart. At what point would we be getting appropriate return? It's situational, and I rely on Neal to make those decisions."
• On adding payroll at the Trade Deadline:
"No question, it is easier and more impactful to write an extra check, rather than give up prospects. But I don't want to tie Neal 's hands on that. Yet, we can't lose focus of why we are here [through the help of home-grown prospects]."


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See also...
Manolo Blahnik
Date: born 1943
Biography: When Manolo Blahnik is asked what has made him one of the most beloved contemporary shoe designers, he simply answers, "My shoes have something other shoes don't—personality." Best known for his high heels (which he believes should never exceed four inches), Blahnik's influences vary greatly, resulting in designs that are sexy, elegant, subversive, or a combination thereof. He maintains what is described as a "fanatically loyal" following, and clients admire both the artistry and exquisite craftsmanship of his designs. Blahnik himself designs every shoe in his collections, beginning with a sketch. He then hand-carves the lasts, selects the materials, and personally oversees the production of each style. Born and raised in the Canary Islands, Blahnik studied literature and art in Geneva before moving to Paris, and then to London. In 1970, he arranged a meeting with the inimitable Diana Vreeland, who was then the editor of American Vogue. He showed her some sketches for set designs—his primary interest—as well as some for shoes. On her sage advice, he pursued shoe design. By the following year, his whimsical platforms were shown with Ossie Clark's runway collection. In suede and rubber with red cherries at the ankle, Blahnik now describes the shoes as "disgusting"—but they were right for their time. Blahnik quickly caught the attention of the fashion elite, and soon Bianca Jagger was wearing a pair of his heels while riding horseback into Studio 54. But his fame received an enormous boost in the early 2000s when Carrie Bradshaw, the fashion-conscious journalist played by Sarah Jessica Parker in the television series Sex and the City, proclaimed Blahnik to be one of her favorite designers. Despite the recognition, however, his company is still relatively small, and is still owned and run by Blahnik himself. By limiting production, he maintains an air of exclusivity that keeps his clients wanting more.


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The perfect balance, the happy medium, just enough - these are the most desirable positions. Just as we can have equilibrium in life, wood also has the proper balance measured in what is called an equilibrium moisture content and for this reason the practice of acclimation is not recommended for Superior flooring products.
Your home is an expression of who you are, an extension of yourself. How you live and identify yourself can be clearly evident in the way you decorate your home. It is your living environment, and you care about that environment. you care about how it looks, how it feels and how it remains.
Going to your local flooring store can be daunting. We all set out to find the best products within our budgeted price range and walk into a showroom to be overwhelmed by the number of products available, each boasting of "high-quality."
© Herwynen Sawmill Limited Canada.
Site by Orchard Design


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Product Information Downloads
Product Details ● Kosher Certificate
Always refer to the product package for the most accurate nutrition information and up-to-date list of ingredients. Paper copies of ingredients or nutrition information may quickly become obsolete as recipe and packaging changes are made. If concerned with food allergies, do not rely on this document for purchase - refer to the product package.


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Bee Luscious: Product Reviews
Just wanted to talk about some Bee Luscious makeup items (from Bee Royal Products: http://www.beeroyalproducts.com/- there is currently a 25% discount on your "shopping cart".) I've posted a blog in the past- interviewing a company representative, so feel free to check that out for further details about the brand. I have also done a YouTube eye makeup tutorial highlighting several products, and more will be included in my first "Mature Makeup" video. In short- here are a few general observations about the brand:
-wide range of makeup/skincare
-highly pigmented makeup products
-rich textured powders/shadows
-comparable quality to various high-end brands
-high-end price tag, but you can find periodic discounts to save $$$
Swatches: on top- shadows in the "Perfect Compact"-
on the bottom- "Signature Quad" shades.
Automatic Long Lasting Eyeliner in Bark
A rich chocolate brown eyeliner that goes on like a dream. If you have delicate or more loose skin around the eye area, you won't need to worry about having to tug on your lids to get this on. It just glides right on. There is more moisture in this liner than Revlon Colorstay, for example, so it will smudge for you, which is nice... but I would suggest setting it with an eyeshadow to help it last longer. On it's own, it didn't last quite as long as Revlon Colorstay. Very rich and pigmented though.
I've never had a blush that looked as pretty as this in the package. It's molded into a gorgeous rose design, with multiple shades of pink- some deeper, and some lighter. I wouldn't call it a shimmer that the palette gives off- but it's not matte either... sort of a pearly finish. I like to swirl my brush lightly over all the entire palette- and you end up with a gorgeous pink blush. A little bit goes a long way- you don't have to try hard to pick up a nice amount of color on your brush.
Liquid Lustre Lipgloss: Pink Champagne & Euphoric


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Aaron Rodgers will start for Packers in Sunday's must-win game
GREEN BAY, Wis. - Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will return to start Sunday's game for the NFC North title against the Chicago Bears.
Coach Mike McCarthy announced Thursday that Rodgers will be back after missing seven games because of a left collarbone injury.
Green Bay (7-7-1) is 2-5-1 since Rodgers went down during the first series of a 27-20 loss Nov. 4 to Chicago. But the Packers have managed to hang on with a shot to win a third straight division title with a victory over the Bears at Soldier Field.
The Packers have been riddled by injuries. Linebacker Clay Matthews is out again with a right thumb injury, while running back Eddie Lacy is hobbled by an ankle injury.
Green Bay has also gone the majority of the season without tight end Jermichael Finley (neck) and playmaking receiver Randall Cobb (leg).
Still, the Packers managed to start 5-2 despite the injuries with Rodgers leading the offense.
Things changed drastically after the 2011 NFL MVP got hurt after being sacked while scrambling out of the pocket in the Week 9 loss to Chicago at Lambeau Field. The Packers went on a five-game winless skid, shuffling through three more starting quarterbacks.
Green Bay then won two straight with backup Matt Flynn before falling 38-31 last week to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Losses by Chicago and the Detroit Lions set up the winner-take-all finale Sunday with the Bears for the division and a home playoff game the following weekend.


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7 Questions to Specify the Correct Circuit Breaker
Circuit breaker selection is a multi-step process. It is a best practice for engineers to make a preliminary breaker selection early in the design phase so the device can be accounted for in the mechanical design; detailed breaker specifications will develop as the design proceeds.
Specifying the right breaker at the right point in the design process can lead to a more robust design, avoid redesigns, decrease development costs and add value to the end product.
Here are 7 questions you can ask yourself to help identify the best circuit protection solution for your design.
1. What is the AC or DC voltage requirement?
2. What is the normal operating amperage of the circuit?
3. How many poles are required?
4. What type of terminals are needed?
5. How should the device be mounted?
6. What type of actuation is preferred?
7. What approvals are needed (UL, VDE, CSA, etc.)?