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- Publish date:
- Updated on
- Year
- 1967
100,000 people march on the Pentagon
Demonstrators including radicals, liberals, black nationalists, hippies, professors, women's groups, and war veterans march on the Pentagon.
The rally in front of the Lincoln Memorial started peacefully, though Dr. Benjamin Spock—baby specialist, author, and outspoken critic of the war—did call President Johnson "the enemy." After the rally, the demonstrators, many waving the red, blue, and gold flag of the Viet Cong, began marching toward the Pentagon. Violence erupted when the more radical element of the demonstrators clashed with the soldiers and U.S. Marshals protecting the Pentagon.
The protesters surrounded and besieged the military nerve center until the early hours of October 23. By the time order was restored, 683 people, including novelist Norman Mailer and two United Press International reporters, had been arrested. This protest was paralleled by demonstrations in Japan and Western Europe, the most violent of which occurred outside the U.S. Embassy in London when 3,000 demonstrators attempted to storm the building.


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In preparation for the kickoff to the holiday season known as Black Friday (as if the ever-earlier arrival of poinsettias and twinkling lights weren't enough), we spoke with Ron Kurtz, head of American Affluence Research Center, who asked holiday-themed questions of 435 individuals plucked from the wealthiest 10% of American households. Respondents had a minimum net worth of $800,000.
AARC found that 71% of respondents plan to spend the same amount on holiday gifts this year as in 2011, while 23% say they will spend less. The remaining 6% planning to spend more than last year reported an average potential spending increase of 11%. And those planning to spend less reported an average potential decline of 13.1%.
Accounting for these three groups and the 7% of respondents who do not plan to buy holiday gifts at all – bah, humbug – and it looks like overall gift expenditures per wealthy household are expected to decline 2.4% from last year. That's an average gift-giving budget of $2,102 per respondent, still about four times the average gift spending of all American households, according to the National Retail Federation. According to the NRF's holiday consumer spending survey, however, all gift expenditures will increase 6.3% during the holidays.
But timing is everything - and emotions are running particularly high this year. The survey among the affluent was conducted in September, when the market was looking up, Kurtz notes. And even though people report their intent, there's always the possibility that "they may spend more than they plan," he said.
Or less if the markets are any indication as to which way the wind is blowing. Other curve balls: Superstorm Sandy, which AARC says may impact spending in affected East Coast areas that are emotionally and financially preoccupied. It's also not at all clear how continuing uncertainty about how Congress will address the fiscal cliff is going to affect spending plans this holiday.
Whatever the spending trend turns out, we spotted one gift that's hot: cold cash. AARC found that 48% of women list some form of "currency," like gift cards or cash, on the top of their holiday wish list. Among men, however, 31% wanted cash as well, but the biggest block, 45%, wanted clothing. Sounds to us like a little role reversal is in the cards for the holidays.

subset: commoncrawl


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Step 1: Prepare for Your Deployment
Updated: August 2011
Applies To: Windows HPC Server 2008 R2
The first step in the deployment of your HPC cluster is to make important decisions, such as deciding how you will be adding nodes to your cluster, and choosing a network topology for your cluster. The following checklist describes the steps involved in preparing for your deployment.
Checklist: Prepare for your deployment
1.1. Review initial considerations and system requirements
Review the list of initial considerations and system requirements to ensure that you have all the necessary hardware and software to deploy an HPC cluster.
1.2. Decide on the database configuration
Determine the database edition, installation location, and configuration options that are appropriate for your cluster.
1.3. Decide what type of nodes you want to add to your cluster and how many
Decide if you want to add compute nodes, broker nodes, workstation nodes, or Windows Azure to your cluster. Also, decide how many nodes to add.
1.4. Decide how to add compute nodes to your cluster
Decide if you will be adding nodes to your cluster from bare metal, from preconfigured nodes, or from an XML file. Decide also if you want to deploy nodes over iSCSI.
1.5. Choose the Active Directory doMayn for your cluster
Choose the Active Directory® doMayn to which you will join the head node and compute nodes of your HPC cluster.
1.6. Choose a doMayn account for adding nodes
Choose an existing doMayn account with enough privileges to add nodes to the cluster.
1.7. Choose a network topology for your cluster
Choose how the nodes in your cluster will be connected, and how the cluster will be connected to your enterprise network.
1.8. Prepare for multicast
If you will be deploying nodes from bare metal and want to multicast the operating system image that you will be using during deployment, configure your network switches appropriately.
1.9. Prepare for the integration of scripted power control tools
If you want to use your own power controls tools to start, shut down, and reboot compute nodes remotely, obtain and test all the necessary components of your power control tools.
1.1. Review initial considerations and system requirements
The following sections list some initial considerations that you need to review, as well as hardware and software requirements for Windows HPC Server 2008 R2.
|If you plan to run LINQ to HPC jobs on your cluster, there are additional hardware and software guidelines. For more information, see Deploying a Windows HPC Server Cluster to Run Jobs Using the LINQ to HPC Components (Preview).
Initial considerations
Review the following initial considerations before you deploy your HPC cluster.
Compatibility with previous versions
If you currently have a Windows HPC Server 2008 cluster, you can upgrade your cluster to Windows HPC Server 2008 R2. For detailed upgrade information and step-by-step procedures, see the Upgrade Guide for Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=197497).
The upgrade of a Windows Compute Cluster Server 2003 head node to a Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 head node is not supported.
Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 provides application programming interface (API)-level compatibility for applications that are integrated with Windows HPC Server 2008 or with Windows Compute Cluster Server 2003. These applications might, however, require changes to run on Windows Server® 2008 R2. If you encounter problems running your application on Windows Server 2008 R2, you should consult your software vendor.
For additional information about the compatibility of Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 with Windows HPC Server 2008 and with Windows Compute Cluster Server 2003, see the product information at the Windows HPC Server website (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=85562).
Server roles added during installation
The installation of HPC Pack 2008 R2 adds the following server roles to the head node:
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) Server, to provide IP addresses and related information for the cluster nodes.
Windows Deployment Services, to deploy nodes remotely.
File Services, to manage shared folders.
Note HPC Pack 2008 R2 with Service Pack 2 or later also adds the File Server Resource Manager service of the File Services role to configure folder quotas.
Network Policy and Access Services, which enables Routing and Remote Access so that network address translation (NAT) services can be provided to the cluster nodes.
Hardware requirements
Hardware requirements for Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 are very similar to those for Windows Server 2008 R2.
|For more information about installing Windows Server 2008 R2, including system requirements, see Installing Windows Server 2008 R2 (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=194693).
Processor (x64-based):
Minimum: 1.4 GHz
Recommended: 2 GHz or faster
Minimum: 512 MB
Recommended: 2 GB or more
Available disk space:
Minimum: 50 GB
Recommended: 80 GB or more
- DVD-ROM drive, if you will be using DVD media to install HPC Pack 2008 R2.
Network adapters:
The number of network adapters that you install on the nodes in your cluster depends on the network topology that you choose for your cluster. For more information about the different HPC cluster network topologies, see Appendix 1: HPC Cluster Networking.
You can deploy your HPC cluster with only one network adapter on each node, but you will be limited to only one possible network topology (all nodes only on an enterprise network). An additional network adapter on the head node will expand your options to a second possible network topology to choose from (compute nodes isolated on a private network).
You should also evaluate the possibility of installing a low-latency and high-throughput application network for your HPC cluster. This network will require installing specialized network adapters on the nodes.
Software requirements
The following list outlines the software requirements for the nodes in a Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 cluster:
The head node computer must be running Windows Server 2008 R2 HPC Edition, or another edition of Windows Server 2008 R2.
The operating system on the head node must be installed in one of the following languages that is supported by HPC Pack 2008 R2 on the head node: English, Japanese, or Simplified Chinese.
A compute node can be running Windows Server 2008 R2 HPC Edition, another edition of Windows Server 2008 R2, or a 64-bit edition of Windows Server® 2008.
A broker node can only be running Windows Server 2008 R2 HPC Edition, or another edition of Windows Server 2008 R2.
A workstation node can be running Windows® 7 Enterprise, Windows 7 Professional, or Windows 7 Ultimate (joining a doMayn is required).
HPC Pack 2008 R2
To enable users to submit jobs to your HPC cluster, you can install the utilities included with HPC Pack 2008 R2 on client computers. Those client computers must be running any of the following operating systems:
Windows 7 Enterprise, Windows 7 Professional, or Windows 7 Ultimate
Windows Vista® Enterprise, Windows Vista Business, Windows Vista Home, or Windows Vista Ultimate with Service Pack 2 or later (32-bit or 64-bit editions)
Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2 or later (x64-based), or Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 3 or later (x86-based)
Windows Server 2008 with Service Pack 2 or later (32-bit or 64-bit editions)
Windows Server 2003 R2 (x86- or x64-based)
Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 2 or later (x86- or x64-based)
1.2. Decide on the database configuration
Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 uses four different Microsoft® SQL Server® databases to store management, job scheduling, reporting, and diagnostics data. By default, if no other edition of SQL Server is detected, the head node installation program installs the Express edition of SQL Server 2008 SP1 (or the Express edition of SQL Server 2008 R2) and creates the four databases on the head node. Depending on the size, expected job throughput, and other requirements of your cluster, you can install a different edition of SQL Server 2008 SP1 or later, or install the databases on remote servers. The advantage of installing the databases on remote servers is that it saves resources on the head node, helping ensure that it can efficiently manage the cluster.
For detailed database configuration options and tuning guidelines, see Database Capacity Planning and Tuning for Microsoft HPC Pack.
|You should consider installing the HPC databases on one or more remote servers if your cluster will have more than 256 nodes or a high rate of job throughput.
To install the HPC databases on a remote server, that server must be running SQL Server® 2008 SP1 or later. Also, you need to create the databases and configure them for remote access before you start the deployment process for your HPC cluster.
For detailed information and step-by-step procedures for installing the HPC databases on remote servers, see the Deploying an HPC Cluster with Remote Databases Step-by-Step Guide (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=186534).
1.3. Decide what type of nodes you want to add to your cluster and how many
You can add the following types of nodes to your cluster:
Compute nodes. Compute nodes are used for running jobs. This type of node cannot become a different type of node (that is, change roles) without being redeployed.
Broker nodes. Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) broker nodes are used for routing WCF calls from the Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) clients to the SOA services running on nodes in your cluster. This type of node can change roles to become a compute node without being redeployed.
Workstation nodes. Workstation nodes can also run jobs. This type of node can only be created on a computer that is running Windows 7 Enterprise, Windows 7 Professional, or Windows 7 Ultimate. This type of node cannot change roles.
Windows Azure nodes. If you have a Windows Azure™ subscription, you can add Windows Azure nodes on demand to increase your cluster capacity when you need it. Like compute nodes and workstation nodes, Windows Azure nodes can run jobs.
Note You can add Windows Azure nodes only in Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 with Service Pack 1 or later. For more information, see Deploying Windows Azure Nodes.
When HPC Pack 2008 R2 is installed, depending on the type of node that is being created, different features are installed. These features determine the role that the node will perform in the cluster. In some cases, a node is able to change roles because it has the necessary features to perform a different role. The ability to change roles is an important aspect that you need to consider when deciding the type of nodes that you want to add to your cluster.
Another important decision that you have to make is the number of nodes that you want to add. For example, if you plan to run service-oriented architecture (SOA) jobs, the number of nodes can markedly affect cluster performance. If you plan to run LINQ to HPC jobs, you must have a minimum of three nodes, including the head node. If you are adding broker nodes, you also need to decide how many compute nodes you will add for each broker node that is available on the cluster. The ratio of broker nodes to compute nodes can also affect cluster performance.
Finally, if you want to configure the head node or a broker node in a failover cluster, you will need at least one additional computer for each failover cluster that you configure, which might reduce the number of nodes that you can add to your cluster. For more information about running an HPC cluster with failover clustering, see the Configuring Failover Clustering Step-by-Step Guide (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=194691) and Configuring Windows HPC Server for High Availability with SOA Applications (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=194786).
1.4. Decide how to add compute nodes to your cluster
You can use the following ways to add compute nodes to your cluster:
Deploy nodes from bare metal. The operating system and all the necessary HPC cluster features are automatically installed on each node as it is added to the cluster. No manual installation of the operating system or other software is required. Bare metal deployment is only possible for compute nodes and broker nodes.
Add preconfigured compute nodes. The compute nodes are already running one of the supported operating systems, and HPC Pack 2008 R2 is manually installed on each node.
Import a node XML file. A node XML file contains a list of all the nodes that will be added to the cluster. This XML file can be used to add preconfigured nodes or to deploy nodes from bare metal. For more information about node XML files, see Appendix 2: Creating a Node XML File.
The following is a list of details to take into consideration when choosing how to add nodes to your HPC cluster:
When deploying nodes from bare metal, Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 automatically generates computer names for your nodes. During the configuration process, you will be required to specify the naming convention to use when automatically generating computer names for the new nodes.
Nodes are assigned their computer name in the order that they are deployed.
If you want to add nodes from bare metal and assign computer names in a different way, you can use a node XML file. For more information about node XML files, see Appendix 2: Creating a Node XML File.
If you want to add preconfigured nodes to your cluster, you will need to install one of the supported operating systems on each node (if not already installed), as well as HPC Pack 2008 R2.
Deploying nodes over iSCSI
You can centralize the storage of your HPC cluster by using a network-attached storage array. A networked-attached storage array is a computer, storage system, or appliance that provides storage resources over a network connection.
By using a storage array, the nodes in your cluster will not require a local hard disk drive to serve as a system disk. Instead, the nodes use the storage resources on the storage array to boot the operating system over the network, using an iSCSI connection.
Nodes that are deployed over iSCSI are deployed from bare metal.
To have an iSCSI deployment, you will need the following:
One or more network-attached storage arrays
A network connection between the nodes in your cluster and the storage arrays
An iSCSI provider for the storage arrays, installed on the head node
|For detailed information about iSCSI deployment and step-by-step procedures for deploying iSCSI boot nodes, see the Deploying iSCSI Boot Nodes Step-by-Step Guide (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=194674).
1.5. Choose the Active Directory doMayn for your cluster
The nodes in your HPC cluster must be members of an Active Directory doMayn. Before deploying your cluster, you must choose the Active Directory doMayn that you will use for your HPC cluster.
If you do not have an Active Directory doMayn to which you can join your cluster, or if you prefer not to join an existing doMayn, you can install the Active Directory DoMayn Services role on a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 R2 and then configure a doMayn controller on that computer. For more information about installing the Active Directory DoMayn Services role on a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 R2, see the AD DS Installation and Removal Step-by-Step Guide (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=119580).
|Because of potential administrative difficulties and to ensure cluster performance, we do not recommend using the head node as a doMayn controller unless isolation is required (for example, for test purposes) or no other option exists.
|If you choose to install and configure an Active Directory doMayn controller on the head node, consult with your network administrator about the correct way to isolate the new Active Directory doMayn from the enterprise network, or how to join the new doMayn to an existing Active Directory forest.
|If you are installing HPC Pack 2008 R2 with Service Pack 2 or later, one consideration is the location of the runtime data share, a file share that is configured during installation. You can choose to use local storage on the head node , or you can configure an existing file share on a file server in the Active Directory doMayn. If you choose to configure an existing file share, you must prepare the share before the installation of HPC Pack 2008 R2 on the head node as described in Configure the Runtime Data Share.
1.6. Choose a doMayn account for adding nodes
During the configuration process of your HPC cluster, you must provide credentials for a doMayn user account that will be used for adding nodes and for system configuration. You must choose an existing account or create a new account, before starting your cluster deployment.
The following is a list of details to take into consideration when choosing the user account:
The user account that you choose must be a doMayn account with enough privileges to create Active Directory computer accounts for the nodes.
If the policies of your organization restrict you from using a doMayn account that can add new computers to the doMayn, you will need to ask your doMayn administrator to pre-create the computer objects for you in Active Directory DoMayn Services before you deploy your nodes. For more information, see Deploy Nodes with Pre-created Computer Objects in Active Directory (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=194363).
If part of your deployment requires access to resources on the enterprise network, the user account must have the necessary permissions to access those resources—for example, installation files that are available on a network server.
If you want to restart nodes remotely by using HPC Cluster Manager, the account must be a member of the local Administrators group on the head node. This requirement is only necessary if you do not have scripted power control tools that you can use to remotely restart the compute nodes.
1.7. Choose a network topology for your cluster
Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 supports five cluster topologies. These topologies are distinguished by how the nodes in the cluster are connected to each other and to the enterprise network. The five supported cluster topologies are:
Topology 1: Compute nodes isolated on a private network
Topology 2: All nodes on enterprise and private networks
Topology 3: Compute nodes isolated on private and application networks
Topology 4: All nodes on enterprise, private, and application networks
Topology 5: All nodes on an enterprise network
For more information about each network topology and each HPC cluster network, see Appendix 1: HPC Cluster Networking.
When you are choosing a network topology, you must take into consideration your existing network infrastructure and the type of nodes that you will be adding to your cluster:
Decide which network in the topology that you have chosen will serve as the enterprise network, the private network, and the application network.
Do not have the network adapter that is connected to the enterprise network on the head node in automatic configuration (that is, the IP address for that adapter does not start with:
169.254). That adapter must have a valid IP address, dynamically or manually assigned (static).
If you choose a topology that includes a private network, and you are planning to add nodes to your cluster from bare metal:
Ensure that there are no Pre-Boot Execution Environment (PXE) servers on the private network.
If you want to use an existing DHCP server for your private network, ensure that it is configured to recognize the head node as the PXE server in the network.
If you want to enable DHCP server on your head node for the private network or the application network and there are other DHCP servers connected to those networks, you must disable those DHCP servers.
If you have an existing DoMayn Name System (DNS) server connected to the same network as the nodes in your cluster, no action is necessary, but the nodes will be automatically deregistered from that DNS server.
Contact your system administrator to determine if Internet Protocol security (IPsec) is enforced on your doMayn through Group Policy. If IPsec is enforced on your doMayn through Group Policy, you may experience issues during deployment. A workaround is to make your head node an IPsec boundary server so that the other nodes in your cluster can communicate with the head node during PXE boot.
If you want to add workstation nodes to your cluster, topology 5 (all nodes on an enterprise network) is the recommended topology, but other topologies are supported. If you want to add workstation nodes on other topologies, see Adding Workstation Nodes Step-by-Step Guide (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=194376).
If you want to add broker nodes to your cluster, they must be connected to the network where the clients that are starting SOA sessions are connected (usually the enterprise network) and to the network where the nodes that are running the SOA services are connected (if different from the network where the clients are connected).
If you want to add nodes that can run LINQ to HPC jobs, you should choose a network topology that includes the enterprise network.
1.8. Prepare for multicast
If you will be deploying nodes from bare metal and want to multicast the operating system image that you will be using during deployment, we recommend that you prepare for multicast by:
Enabling Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) snooping on your network switches, if this feature is available. This will help to reduce multicast traffic.
Disabling Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) on your network switches, if this feature is enabled.
|For more information about these settings, contact your network administrator or your networking hardware vendor.
1.9. Prepare for the integration of scripted power control tools
The cluster administration console (HPC Cluster Manager) includes actions to start, shut down, and reboot compute nodes remotely. These actions are linked to a script file (
CcpPower.cmd) that performs these power control operations using operating system commands. You can replace the default commands in that script file with your own power control scripts, such as Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) scripts that are provided by your vendor of cluster solutions.
In preparation for this optional integration, you must obtain all the necessary scripts, dynamically linked library (DLL) files, and other components of your power control tools. After you have obtained all the necessary components, test them independently and ensure that they work as intended on the computers that you will be deploying as nodes in your cluster.
For information about modifying
CcpPower.cmd to integrate your own scripted power control tools, see Appendix 5: Scripted Power Control Tools.


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BERLIN—A German court's decision that ritual circumcision amounts to criminal bodily harm threatens religious freedom in Europe, a group of European Orthodox rabbis said Thursday.
The ruling, handed down last month by a Cologne court, has prompted widespread criticism from Jewish and Muslim groups alike, despite German government attempts to allay fears that it could lead to a national ban on circumcisions.
Despite the government's assurances, the president of the German Medical Association this week recommended that doctors cease performing circumcisions for religious reasons until the law can be clarified.
Following an emergency meeting in the German capital of some 40 rabbis from across Europe to discuss the issue, the head of the Conference of European Rabbis, Pinchas Goldschmidt, called circumcision "the foundation" of the Jewish faith.
Goldschmidt, the chief rabbi of Moscow, said that while the rabbis recognized the ruling does not set a nationwide precedent, it has raised fears among the Jewish community that members could be prosecuted if they circumcise their sons.
Goldschmidt cited France's ban on face-covering Muslim veils and Switzerland's ban on the construction of new minarets for mosques in saying the Cologne decision was part of a wider trend aimed at limiting religious traditions in largely secular Europe.
"I don't think that today there is a quasi-ban of circumcision in Germany, but it is an attack on circumcision — a big attack on circumcision — and I am here because I think that this is not only a problem for Germany but a problem for Europe," Goldschmidt said.
"Germany is an integral part — one of the most important parts — of Europe, so we want to solve this problem here first."
In a joint statement from Brussels earlier this week, a group of rabbis, imams and others said that they consider the ruling against circumcision "an affront on our basic religious and human rights."
In its decision, the court said that circumcising young boys on religious grounds amounts to bodily harm even if parents consent to the procedure.
The ruling came in the case of the circumcision of a 4-year-old Muslim boy that led to medical complications, and both German Jewish and Muslim groups have spoken out against it.
Avichai Apel, the chief rabbi of Dortmund, said he was in regular contact with Germany's bishops and imams on the issue.
"Circumcision is for us a duty, and the basis for a Jewish child to be a part of the Jewish people," he said. "Religious freedom is being curtailed, and that is something we cannot accept here in Germany."
Following the decision, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle was quick to offer assurances that it would not mean an end to the practice, saying "the free exercise of religion is protected in Germany — that includes religious traditions."
The German ambassador to Israel told lawmakers in Jerusalem on Monday that the government was looking into whether laws needed to be changed.
"For us the deadline is not tomorrow, but yesterday," Goldschmidt said of possible changes to the law. In the meantime, however, "we say to the Jewish community ... keep performing the brit milah, and have no fear."
Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper in an interview printed Tuesday that for her "the best thing here would be a clear word from one of the high courts."
"Circumcision has never been questioned in the past," she said. "It is about fundamental questions and different values. The question is what part of religious practice is also part of the right to physical integrity."


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We're so sorry that yesterday's Happy Hour didn't start as planned. Head over to My GSN now and redeem the promo code HAPPYHOUROOPS to receive 4,000 Tokens and 400 Oodles (expires 10/25 at midnight ET).
Happy Hour will be back next Sunday at the usual time! Thanks for your patience
Note: There were over 80 posts regarding Happy Hour starting late. We thank you for the head-s up.


text:
Everyone's computer builds up with unwanted and leftover files as time goes on, which can start to have a drag on performance if left unchecked. Windows' own Disk Clean tool can help in some quarters, but it barely scratches the surface when it comes to clearing out redundant files.
There's another problem too: when you delete a file from your computer, the data is left on your hard drive until it's overwritten by another file – in other words, there could be sensitive data you thought you'd deleted that's still lurking somewhere.
What you need is a program that can deal with both problems: disk-cleaning utilities are ten-a-penny, and there are plenty of file-shredding tools too, but rarely do they come together under one roof. BleachBit offers both capabilities in one program: it can clean up after a large number of programs as well as Windows, plus allows you to securely shred individual files (or the free space on a hard disk, ensuring that previously deleted files can't be recovered) too. These aren't too intuitive to use, and you'll need to check the online documentation to work out exactly what's required.
The cleaning tools – by contrast – are pretty straightforward to use: launch the program, and a list of all available options for each supported program is listed: either tick individual options or tick the program itself to select all the options for that program (if you need an explanation of what's being deleted, just select one of the entries). Click Preview to see what will be deleted, plus how much space will be saved, then click Delete to remove the lot.
What's new in 2.2 (see the extensive changelog for more info)?
- Add drag-and-drop support (thanks to contractor Pavel). Try dropping files onto the main application window.
- Fix preservation of thumbnails on Google Chrome and Chromium .
- Fix error Favicons is version 36 or 38 when cleaning Google Chrome and Chromium.
- Clean site engagement history on Google Chrome and Chromium.
- Enable secure delete for SQLite.
- Fix DatabaseError: no such table: moz_favicons for some Firefox profiles.
- Use HTTPS encryption when automatically checking for software updates.
- The bleachbit.org web site requires HTTPS encryption.
This no-frills tool does a reasonable job of cleaning out redundant files from your hard drive, but its disk-wiping tools need work going forward.


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On Jan. 8, 2011, a tragedy occurred in Tucson, Ariz. where 19 people were shot, six of whom lost their lives. Among the survivors is Tucson native and former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. The man recognized with saving the congresswoman's life, Daniel Hernandez, Jr., will speak about his heroic experience at Penn State Brandywine at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 17, in Room 113 of the Main Building.
While studying political science at the University of Arizona, Hernandez served as the congressional intern for Giffords' office and attended the constituent meeting held in a supermarket parking lot where the shooting occurred. Thanks to quick thinking and bravery, Hernandez was able to help save Giffords, who suffered a gunshot wound to the head.
During his visit to the Brandywine campus, Hernandez will give a moving and exhilarating speech that focuses on overcoming difficulty. He will discuss how growing up an Hispanic American and identifying as a gay man has shaped his life and empowered him. He will also share tips on how to secure internships at high levels and what it was like working for Giffords.
Penn State Brandywine Assistant Director of Student Affairs Ronika Money is excited to have Hernandez on campus to share his story.
"He is someone that is not that far from our students' age," she said. "I think it's great for our students to hear from one of their peers … the most important message is no matter where you are in life you still have the opportunity to make an impact and empower others."
This event is free and open to the public.


text:
Just bought a set of S&S generator cases (pre-65 style) . I know my flywheels from my 53 motor will not fit and will need a sproket shaft for a timken main bearing. However, does anyone know if I could use my 53 pinion shaft and gear as long as I make sure the bushing in the cam cover is compatible?
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks


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Even though fashion week was entertaining, I can't stop thinking about interior designer David Jimenez, who has the entire home blogosphere under a spell. His super-stylish rooms amaze me and although he doesn't take private clients (he is the president of visual merchandising and store design for Hallmark Cards Inc. in Kansas City ) he was kind enough to share his genius styling tricks. After I write this, I'm going home and redecorate the whole place. (In fact, I've already started: As per his suggestion, I already bought the doughnut phone on Ebay and I love it!) I hope you enjoy his tips as much as I do!
David Jimenez's Tricks of the Trade
"Sometimes the smallest styling details have the largest impact," he says "In my experience, the best styling details are the ones that aren't formulaic and happen spontaneously."
__Trick #1: Flowers with punch
__A hit of color via fresh flowers can keep any room from becoming ho-hum. The key is in identifying a contrasting color to the decor in the room. I love the look of pink coral peonies in my mostly neutral living room and green or white hydrangeas in my chocolate-colored sun room.
Trick#2: Incorporate retro accessories
Whether it's a vintage alarm clock, donut phone or hip thrift store lamp, these classics add instant panache and style to most any interior.
Trick #3: Include books to add depth
Heap a stack of books on a coffee table, side table or credenza. The effect is always the same; an easy, chic vibe that goes far in making a room look collected.
Trick #4: Create a wall of eclectic photographs
Whether it's framed family photos or collected pieces of art, nothing is more personal or looks as chic as a gallery wall in a room. I usually stick to all black and white with a combination of photos and charcoals for added interest.
Trick #5: Just add fruit
Fifteen years ago I read an article in Metropolitan Home that said that a bowl of lemons in the kitchen was inviting and created a welcoming feeling. After all these years, the tip still works. Oranges, apples and pears all make good options too.
Trick #6: Bring on the hooch
A well stocked bar always signals a home that is ready for entertaining. Consider purchasing beautiful bottles of liquor, a smart-looking ice bucket and even a stylish bar cart if you have the space and your budget permits.
Trick #7: Layer artwork over a mirror
A room full of mirrors may add depth to a room but could easily signal a horrible case of narcissism. Layer those mirrors with photography to achieve an air of casual elegance.
Trick # 8: Use wallpaper to make a statement
Beyond paint, the easiest way to add drama to an entry or bedroom is to cover one wall with wallpaper. There are terrific options on the market that range from flocked to foils and are relatively inexpensive when you're only covering a single wall.
Trick # 9: Put indoor furniture outdoors
If furniture is comfy inside, it's bound to be a hit outdoors on a patio, deck or portico. Consider upholstering classics like wing chairs or a camelback sofa in low-maintenance fabrics like Sunbrella or naugahyde for years of good wear.
Sometimes bathrooms can be the most neglected rooms in the home. Make a bold and dramatic statement in your bathroom by adding color to the walls, hanging a new shower curtain, burning a beautifully scented candle and even installing a chic light fixture. Your guests will appreciate the attention to detail and you'll love the makeover.


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Labor Day in 1991 was an opportunity for my new bride and I to take a little road trip on the mother road once again, so friday night after we both got off work we headed down to Needles. I remember listening to Cassette tapes of Roxette most of the way down in our 1986 Mercury Lynx and having a helluva time.
Back then I considered "sleeping in" was waking up at 6 AM, and was able to talk my wife into heading out early and fitting in a trip to Lake Havasu which was not far away. We woke up, went to the El Garces Harvey House in Kingman, took a few pictures and headed down the Freeway to Lake Havasu.
After a short visit to Lake Havasu, we headed back north and up to Topock. The road between Golden Shores and Oatman was gravel back then, but it was just good to be on the mother road again and before long we we're in Oatman Arizona yet again. To this day, I've never been on Interstate 40 to Kingman. We always go through oatman because the pull is too strong.
We spent our Saturday afternoon in Oatman and then into Kingman to crash for the night and head out again to see more Route 66. Robyn and I had done this route a year earlier on the Magna, but It never got old. Besides, we still needed to find our bridge we'd been looking for from the picture. Maybe this time was our lucky day.
On the way down from Oatman we passed by cool springs, which we'd seen before. I was surprised to see it had been rebuilt, but not very well:
I wasn't sure why. Old windows we're put in to look old, and the back of the building wasn't finished. I was in construction at the time, and hadn't seen this kind of a building method before. Last time we'd seen Cool Springs, it was just a foundation and a couple of stone pillars. Even so, it was cool to see something happening with this part of the mother road.
We rolled into kingman and got our room at the Quality Inn, which seemed like a really route 66 friendly spot in the road. In 1991, so many Arizona route 66 towns still seemed to be figuring out how to rebound from being bypassed. Kingman didn't quite have the route 66 pride it has today, so when we saw the Quality Inn Showing Route 66 Signs outside, we figured we'd give it a try. We also knew by our route 66 newsletters that the owner was part of the state route 66 association. The quality Inn puts a plaque on the door of the famous people that had stayed there, and our room was Will Rogers Jr. Good enough for Us.
The Next morning we woke up early again and headed out to hit the mother road again. It was a beautiful September Morning as we stopped by a place we didn't think too much of at the time, and I remember my new wife wondering why we stopped at the Hackberry General Store:
This is what it looked like in 1991:
This is what it looks like today:
It's neat to see how someone fixed it up and it's been a viable business for quite a few years now. Route 66 is doing good again!
I've probably said on this site a million times what got me into Route 66, so forgive me if I say it again. I was reading a Motorcycle magazine in the late 80's that had an article on Route 66. It had a picture of a place the author visited on his bike that had a mature tree growing out of an old bridge that struck me. I wanted to find that Bridge. I showed my future wife who is always up for a road trip adventure, so we set out to find that bridge. We looked for it before we we married and still hadn't found it. We only knew it was in Arizona.
I'd gotten pretty good at following old abandoned sections of roads while Driving. I started looking down washes and riverbeds this run to see if I could spot our bridge. After we got back on 1-40 on Crookton Road I spotted it out of the corner of my eye before we hit Ash Fork. I told Mrs Zip and we knew we were close. We got off at the next exit and tried to double back and after a mile of dirt roads and crossing railroad tracks in our little car, we doubled back to the crookton exit and found the cinder alignment of Route 66 that was active from 1920 to 1965. We pulled up and saw our bridge!
Once we basked in the glory of our road finding skills, we got back on the freeway and headed into Ash Fork to find the answer to another more recent mystery:
In Ash Fork, they were clearly filming a movie. We'd been this way before and aside from being the Flagstone Capital of the world, its a pretty sleepy town. When you see massive semi trucks from hollywood and movie sets, you recognize it immediately. We talked to one of the security guards watching the weekend sets to find out that they were filming for a Jean Claude Van Damme Movie Called Universal Soldier. That explained Rebuilding of cool springs! We took spome pictures and headed on up the road toward Williams.
After Williams, I could see what I know know is an old abandoned 1931 section of the National Old Trails Highway, which eventually became route 66. Because of the rain, we couldn't get back to it, so we got off at Devil Dog and searched for it on that side of the freeway. We found it.
We drove around as much as we could see here and saw where future alignments and improvements in excavating bypassed Devil Dog in 1952 till I turned into Interstate 40 in 1984.
From there, we drove up to Parks to drive yet again another old alignment of the mother road. Parks Arizona to this day is still one of my favorite Sections of Route 66.
Parks alignments are interesting. From the turn of the century to 1984 this section of mountainous route 66 changed many times, sometimes for only several feet. The general store and post office in Parks between 1931 to 1932 changed the front door of their establishment from the south side to the north side becuase the new road moved to the other side of them. The pavement there is still in good shape but the forest is slowly taking it over. Its one of the best sections of the entire road called route 66 I think.
Once we we're done screwing around in Parks, for some reason we decided to double back. I don't remember if we got the motel room for 2 nights, or we wanted so see something we missed, but in any case we headed west again. We had the added bonus of going through seligman again to have our 2nd hamburger ever at the snow cap if we hurried.
I'm pretty happy that in my 20 years travelling route 66 I've been able to meet some of its most colorful and enterprising people. Angel Delgadillo is regarded as Route 66's "angel" for his efforts to bring the mother road back into the world's consciousness. If Angel is the Angel, then his brother Juan is the clown. He was truly one of a kind, and regardless of your day he had the ability to put a smile on your face with his antics. If your heart was somehow made of stone enough to resist that, his hamburgers would certainly do the trick.
Juan Passed away in 2004 after working all day at the restaurant he built from scrap wood 50 years earlier. It was a sad day. Juan made everyone smile, and was a pure nutjob that built his local business in the middle of nowhere into a place that people would travel the globe to come visit, and thats no exaggeration. I am proud my wife and I got to see the master at work several times, and am proud to say that the beat goes on with his kids. I've taken my daughter there, and she laughed too.
For a good article on Juan Delgadillo, click here.
From the Snow Cap it started raining again, and we drove the whole way to Kingman in the Rain and it was just a nice trip. I'll always have the picture in my head of racing the Freight trains down to kingman in the pouring rain. We stayed the night in Kingman again. Tomorrow was labor day monday, and we'd need to head home again.
The next morning, we doubled back to Oatman. On the way there, we passed cool springs again and the Universal Soldier guys must have worked that weekend, because the cool springs movie set had been blown up. I wished I'd taken a picture of it. Everything was swept off the road and in piles.
We stopped in Oatman again, petted the burro's and had some food at a cool old restauraunt built out of plywood that I've never seen since (it was built around Joshua Trees), then made time to get to Topock, Needles and then Home.
It was a great route 66 Trip that I'll always remember.


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Actinoid element, also called actinide element, any of a series of 15 consecutive chemical elements in the periodic table from actinium to lawrencium (atomic numbers 89–103). As a group, they are significant largely because of their radioactivity. Although several members of the group, including uranium (the most familiar), occur naturally, most are man-made. Both uranium and plutonium have been used in atomic weapons for their explosive power and currently are being employed in nuclear plants for the production of electrical power. These elements are also called the actinide elements. However, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, the international body in charge of chemical nomenclature, prefers the term actinoid, since the -ide ending is usually reserved for negatively charged ions.
General similarities of the actinoid elements
The actinoid elements follow one another in the seventh series of the periodic table. Each has 86 electrons arranged as in the atoms of the noble gas radon (which precedes actinium by three columns in the table), with three more electrons that may be positioned in the 6d and 7s orbitals (the seventh shell is outermost), and with additional electrons packing into inside orbitals. Specifically, the series is formed by the insertion of one more electron for each successive new element into an underlying 5f orbital. The valence electrons, however, are found mainly in the 6d and 7s orbitals. Thus, the chief difference between the atoms of the elements of the series is the presence of additional 5f electrons deep within the electron cloud. Because of its position in the 5th shell, this distinguishing electron subshell actually affects the chemical properties of the actinoids only in a relatively minor way; 5f electrons do not usually contribute to the formation of chemical bonds with other atoms.
As with the elements of any group, there are a number of exceptions to these generalities, particularly in the lower members of the series, but, for most of these elements, the concept of a series of chemically similar actinoid elements is a useful guide for predicting their chemical and physical properties.
Like all elements, each actinoid has its own unique atomic number, equal to the number of protons in the nucleus and, consequently, to the number of electrons. At the same time, the atoms of an element are capable of existing in a number of forms (isotopes), each of which has a different number of neutrons in its nucleus and hence a different atomic mass. Although isotopes of a given element behave alike chemically, they have differing stabilities in relation to radioactive decay, which is a property of the nucleus. No element beyond bismuth in the periodic table—i.e., no element that has an atomic number greater than 83—has any stable isotopes; radioactive isotopes of every element in the table can be produced in the laboratory. The actinoids are unusual in forming a series of 15 elements having no stable isotopes; every actinoid isotope undergoes radioactive decay, and, as a result, only a few of the lighter, stabler members of the series (such as thorium and uranium) are found in nature. The half-life, or the precise time required for one-half of any amount of a particular isotope to disappear as a result of radioactive decay, is a measure of the stability of that isotope. Three naturally occurring isotopes in the actinoid series (232Th, 235U, and 238U) have long half-lives, of the order of billions of years. These isotopes are described as primordial, because they are believed to have been present when Earth accreted. Some of the isotopes to which the primordial actinoid isotopes decay are also found in nature, but the half-lives of the isotopes in the 232Th, 235U, or 238U decay chains are much shorter. See actinium and protactinium.
Actinium, thorium, protactinium, and uranium are the only actinoid elements found in nature to any significant extent. The remaining actinoid elements, commonly called the transuranium elements, are all man-made by bombarding naturally occurring actinoids with neutrons in reactors or with heavy ions (charged particles) in particle accelerators (such as cyclotrons). The actinoids beyond uranium do not occur in nature (except, in some cases, in trace amounts), because the stability of their isotopes decreases with increase in atomic number and whatever quantities may be produced decay too fast to accumulate. The half-life of uranium-238, the stablest uranium isotope, is 4.5 ×109 years. Plutonium-239 has a half-life of 24,400 years and is produced in reactors in ton amounts, but nobelium and lawrencium, elements 102 and 103, with half-lives of seconds, are produced a few atoms at a time. The first of these synthetic actinoid elements to be discovered (1940) was neptunium, atomic number 93, which was prepared by bombardment of uranium metal with neutrons.
Practical applications of the actinoids
The most common practical significance of the actinoids arises from the fissionability, or potential for splitting, of nuclei of certain of their isotopes. When an atomic nucleus breaks apart, or undergoes fission, a far more disruptive process than ordinary radioactive decay, enormous amounts of energy, as well as several neutrons, are liberated. This energy can be allowed to generate an atomic explosion, or it can be controlled and used as a fuel to generate heat for the production of electrical power. Nuclear processes for power production give off no smoke, smog, noxious gases, or even carbon dioxide, as conventional coal- or gas-fueled plants do. Nuclear power plants, however, do yield waste heat that may be considered thermal pollution, and they also yield useless and dangerous radioactive wastes that, although they are pollutants, may be less undesirable than those from fossil-fuel generators. For this and other reasons, such as economy of operation, there is a potential for an enormous electrical energy production inherent in nuclear energy-generating technologies, and, since the actinoid elements are the only known fissionable materials, the practical impact of their availability is great. The isotope of uranium with the atomic number 92 and mass 235, written as uranium-235 or, in chemical symbols, as 235U, is present to the extent of only about 0.7 percent in ordinary uranium, but it is a necessary fissionable material in the operation of a nuclear reactor using natural uranium. Other fissionable isotopes of great importance are uranium-233, plutonium-239, and plutonium-241.
Fissionable plutonium isotopes are formed as by-products of fission in reactors using uranium; when neutrons are added to uranium-238, which is not itself fissionable, it is converted to the fissionable isotope plutonium-239. Thorium, also, is potentially of great economic value, because one of its isotopes, thorium-232, can be converted into the fissionable isotope uranium-233 in a nuclear breeder reactor (i.e., one that produces more fissionable material than it consumes), thus increasing by many times available supplies of fissionable materials. Since thorium is about three times more plentiful than uranium in Earth's crust, the potential use of thorium to produce nuclear energy is significant.
The heavier actinoids, those beyond plutonium in the periodic table, are of interest principally to research scientists, though they have some potential practical uses as sources of thermoelectric heat and neutrons. One isotope, californium-252, is employed to some extent in cancer therapy.
Chemical properties of the actinoids
The chemistry of any element can be understood best in terms of atomic structure and its effect on the formation of chemical bonds. In the actinoid series, just as in the lanthanoids, added electrons (with increasing atomic number) go into internal f orbitals, where they are partially buried and consequently not chemically active. These two series occur in Group 3 (IIIb) of the periodic table; because the outer, or valence, electrons of these elements are much the same, the chemical properties of the elements in the two series tend to resemble one another closely. A great deal is known about the lanthanoids, all but one of which occur in nature as stable isotopes. Therefore, predictions about the chemistry of the actinoids, some of which can be prepared only in minute quantities, can be made with some success by comparing their electron structures with those of the lanthanoids. In the lanthanoid series of elements, as indicated above, each added electron goes into the f orbital of the fourth shell; this orbital is designated as 4f. In the actinoid elements the added electrons also go into an f orbital, in a similar manner but in the fifth shell instead. Electrons with larger quantum numbers generally are farther from the nucleus than those with smaller quantum numbers and are therefore usually less strongly held by it. As expected, then, electrons in the 5f orbitals, being farther from the nucleus, are much less tightly bound than those in 4f orbitals and, in fact, sometimes are active enough to take part in chemical reactions. The result is that the actinoid elements, in which the 5f orbitals are being filled, have more variable valences (number of electrons available for chemical bonds) than the lanthanoids, in which the 4f orbitals are being filled.
Actinoid metals
The similarities between many lanthanoid and actinoid compounds are striking and offer a useful comparison. Under certain conditions, for example, actinium, americium, curium, berkelium, and californium metals have the same crystal structure, as do many of the lanthanoids. Einsteinium, the heaviest actinoid element with sufficiently stable isotopes for macroscopic-scale chemical work, has the same structure as the lanthanoid europium. Several of the lighter actinoid elements from thorium through plutonium have different and unusual metallic structures, presumably because of the mixing of 5f and 6d orbitals in their atoms, some electrons entering unfilled 6d orbitals rather than the expected 5f orbitals.
The metals thorium, protactinium, uranium, neptunium, and plutonium are for the most part different from one another. Uranium, neptunium, and plutonium have extremely dense metallic forms. Neptunium, for example, with a density of 20.48 grams per cubic centimetre when crystallized into the orthorhombic crystal form at 25 °C (77 °F), is one of the densest metals known. A possible explanation for the fact that these metals show a number of different crystal forms is that the electrons in the 5f orbitals mix with those in the 6d orbitals and consequently form a number of hybrid electronic states of nearly the same energy. Beginning with americium, however, the electron energy levels seem to be sufficiently separated so that mixing does not occur.
Oxidation states
The actinoids generally show multiple oxidation states. Compounds of americium and californium with an oxidation state of +2 are known. There are reasons for expecting the existence of this state in some of the elements heavier than californium. For example, spectroscopic evidence for einsteinium(II) in the presence of the fluoride ion has been obtained. Divalent actinoids (that is, actinoids in the +2 oxidation state) form compounds with nearly the same properties as those of the divalent lanthanoids and, accordingly, iodides, bromides, and chlorides of divalent americium and californium have been found to be stable.
Oxidation states +3 and +4
Great similarities in chemical behaviour are found in the actinoids of oxidation state +3 (actinium and uranium through einsteinium); furthermore, these ions are much like the lanthanoids of the same oxidation state. The crystal types and many physical properties of these trivalent actinoids are dependent more on the size of the +3 ion (an atom that has given up three electrons and has become an ion with three positive charges, symbolized as Ac+3, etc.) of the particular element. For instance, the solubility in water of the trifluorides formed by actinoids with a +3 state (thorium and protactinium have unstable +3 states) is exceedingly low. The crystal structure type for most actinoid trifluorides is the same as that of lanthanum trifluoride, and, since the radius of the ion is a regular function of the atomic number, the circumstance allows extrapolation from the lanthanum compound to the actinoid compound and interpolation between known compounds in the series to determine missing values. The hydroxides, phosphates, oxalates, and alkali double sulfates of the actinoids are also insoluble, with many of each having identical crystal structures, or being isostructural. The chlorides, bromides, and iodides (i.e., the halides) of the actinoids are, for the most part, isostructural for any one halide, and the structure type can be predicted from a knowledge of the ionic radius. The solubility of these halides in water is generally great. The +3 oxides of actinoids are also isostructural, with the general formula M2O3, in which M is an actinoid element; they form cubic (or hexagonal) crystals, and the densities and other properties of these oxides and other crystalline compounds are thus easily predictable. Generally, then, the chemistry of the actinoids in the +3 oxidation state is similar, with the differences mainly due to ionic size. As a consequence of these similarities, separations of the elements and of their components are frequently difficult, necessitating the use of methods in which very slight physical differences of the atoms or ions serve to separate the chemically almost identical materials. Two methods are ion-exchange reactions, in which differences in ion size and bonding are used to effect separation, and solvent extraction, in which specific nonaqueous solvents and complexing reagents are used to withdraw the desired element from aqueous solution.
Actinoids in the +4 oxidation state also are much alike (and also resemble the +4 lanthanoids). The +4 actinoids—thorium, protactinium, uranium, neptunium, plutonium, berkelium, and, to a lesser extent, americium, curium, and californium—are sufficiently stable to undergo chemical reactions in aqueous solutions. Crystallized compounds in the +4 state exist for thorium, protactinium, uranium, neptunium, plutonium, americium, curium, berkelium, and californium. The oxides and many complex fluorides are known for all these elements. The dioxides are all isostructural, as are the tetrafluorides. Actinoid dioxides and tetrafluorides can be prepared in a dry state by igniting the metal itself, or one of its other compounds, in an atmosphere of oxygen or of fluorine. Some tetrachlorides, bromides, and iodides are known for thorium, uranium, and neptunium. The ease with which they can be formed decreases with increasing atomic number. Hydroxides of a number of these elements in the +4 state also are known; they are of very low solubility, as are the fluorides, oxalates, and phosphates. Again, many physical properties of the tetrafluorides are influenced more by ionic size than by atomic number, and isostructurality of these actinoid and lanthanoid compounds is the rule rather than the exception.
Oxidation states +5, +6, and +7
The similarities exhibited by the lanthanoid and actinoid compounds in the +3 and +4 oxidation states, as well as in some cases by the metallic elements, can be very useful. A great many individual differences, however, do arise. These are partly due to mixing of the orbitals (some electrons moving into d rather than f orbitals) and partly due to the relative degrees of binding of the f electrons.
The other main difference shown by the actinoids is that some possess the +5, +6, and +7 oxidation states (no lanthanoid element exceeds the +4 state). It appears that the 5f electrons of the actinoids, being far enough from the positively charged nucleus, permit increasingly easier removal and consequent formation of higher oxidation states. The element protactinium shows the +5 state; uranium, neptunium, and americium exhibit the +5 and +6 states; only neptunium and plutonium have the +7 state.
There are two types of chemical reactions for the +5 and +6 states. If M symbolizes any actinoid and if O, as usual, symbolizes oxygen, then the ions found both in aqueous (water) solution and in solids prepared from solution are represented by the general formulas MO2+ (meaning a molecule consisting of one atom of M with two of oxygen, the whole having a single positive charge) and MO22+. These ions have a linear shape—for example, [O=U=O]2+. In nonaqueous solution, and in solids prepared from them, compounds of M in the +5 and +6 oxidation states that do not contain oxygen are known. With the halogens (X being a general designation for a halogen—fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine), compounds are known that can be represented as MX5 (meaning a molecule consisting of one atom of an actinoid with five atoms of a halide) and MX6, as well as complexes of the type having the molecular formulas MX6−, MX72−, and MX83− for the +5 states and MX7− and MX82− for the +6 states. Neptunium(VII) and plutonium(VII) have been prepared in basic solution, and certain oxygenated ions (of the type represented by MO53−) as well as a few solid compounds have been identified with the same oxidation state. Complex oxides with alkali metals in which these two elements have the +7 state also have been prepared.
Physiological properties of the actinoids
All the actinoid elements are heavy metals and, as such, are toxic, just as lead is toxic; relatively large amounts ingested over a long period cause serious illness. But, with the exception of the long-lived thorium and uranium isotopes, the real danger with the actinoid elements lies in the radioactive properties of these elements. They are emitters of tissue-destroying and cancer-producing rays (alpha, beta, or gamma radioactivity). Furthermore, the chemistry of many of these elements is such that, once ingested, they tend to remain in certain organs of the body almost indefinitely. Several, such as plutonium and americium, if ingested, migrate to the bone marrow, where their radiation interferes with the production of red blood cells. Aerosol particles containing alpha-emitting radioisotopes lodge in lung tissue if inhaled. As a consequence, workers using these elements are required to take elaborate precautions to prevent ingestion. Less than one-millionth of a gram of some actinoid isotopes can be fatal.
Nuclear properties of the actinoids
All the isotopes of actinoid elements are unstable toward radioactive decay; the reason that actinium, thorium, protactinium, and uranium are found in nature at all is because some of their isotopes are unusually stable and others are being formed constantly by decay of the long-lived isotopes. It is convenient to divide the naturally occurring isotopes into families on the basis of the relationships of their atomic masses to each other. The mass numbers of all isotopes of the so-called thorium series, for instance, turn out to be multiples of four, and the series is known as the 4n series. In the uranium series, masses have been shown to be such that they are represented by 4n + 2; in the actinium series, by 4n + 3. Not found in nature to any significant extent, but which can be artificially produced, is the neptunium (4n + 1) series, named for its longest-lived member, neptunium-237.
In the various radioactive decay processes, several "rays" are emitted, the term ray being a holdover from the time when all these emissions were thought to be rays. They are (1) electrons, called beta particles to indicate their origin in radioactive decay and designated as negative beta, or β−, particles, (2) helium nuclei, called alpha particles and designated as α particles or as helium with a plus-two charge, He+2, (3) gamma rays, which are electromagnetic waves of very high frequency, designated as γ rays, and (4) positrons, which are positively charged electrons and are designated as positive beta, or β+, particles. Finally, an orbital electron in a radioactive atom may be captured by the nucleus and taken into it. This radioactive event is called K-capture. Except for the emission of gamma rays, each of these processes leads to an isotope of a different element—that is, to a substance with a different atomic number. The emission of an alpha particle leads to a change in atomic weight as well, because this emission has significant mass. The changes occur in sequence, each decay process leading to still another unstable element, until a region of stable isotopes of the elements lead and bismuth has been reached.
The most important nuclear reactions, however, involve the capture of neutrons by an actinoid nucleus, followed by splitting, or fission, of that nucleus into two unequal parts, with the liberation of enormous quantities of energy plus two or more extra neutrons. Nuclear reactors and atomic bombs depend upon the chain reaction set up by this process: the resulting neutrons react further, inducing more fission reactions, which produce more neutrons, which lead to still more fission reactions, with the result that, without control, a great deal of energy is liberated very quickly.
One gram of burning coal yields fewer than 10,000 calories of heat. The fission of one gram of uranium-235 produces 2 ×1010 calories, or about 2,000,000 times as much energy. With adequate control the energy can be released in useful form to make electricity.
The most important actinoid by far, because of its fissionability, is uranium, which has several isotopes. Natural uranium consists mostly of uranium-238, a nonfissionable isotope. The fissionable isotope uranium-235, which occurs to the extent of only seven-tenths of 1 percent, is the valuable substance that causes the chain reactions with neutrons. Methods that separate isotopes by virtue of their slightly different masses are used to enrich natural uranium with respect to uranium-235. Such enriched uranium was used in the first atomic bombs tested in New Mexico and exploded over Japan in the summer of 1945. The oxide UO2 is now the fuel for almost all nuclear reactors.
Two other fissionable actinoid isotopes are important. The first is plutonium-239, which may be prepared by neutron bombardment of uranium-238 and thus is formed as a by-product in uranium reactors in which uranium-238 is exposed to neutrons. Plutonium-239 can be used in place of uranium-235 in atomic weapons or in reactors. The second is potentially even more important, because it is produced from the element thorium, of which there are enormous reserves on Earth. When the isotope thorium-232 is bombarded by neutrons, it captures one neutron and is converted to thorium-233. This isotope decays by beta emission to protactinium-233, which again emits a beta particle to give uranium-233, also a fissionable isotope of uranium. Since uranium is a relatively scarce element, development of nuclear power on a large scale is expected to deplete rapidly the uranium that can be produced economically. The use of thorium thus could extend the supplies of fissionable material by about threefold, and the use of plutonium as well could more than double them. Breeder power reactors are designed so that very few neutrons are lost through the surface or from absorption by impurities, and more fissionable material (either uranium-233 or plutonium-239) is produced than is consumed. Should such breeder reactors be made practicable, never-ending supplies of fissionable isotopes would be available.
Although no other fissionable isotopes of the actinoids occur in significant amounts, there are practical uses of the nonfissionable isotopes because of the amounts of heat they produce by nuclear decay. For special power sources that require great dependability, thermoelectric generators using these isotopes have been considered. Alpha-emitting isotopes with radioactive half-lives in the range of several months to 100 years or more are suitable candidates. (Beta- or gamma-emitting isotopes require too much shielding to be usable.) Curium-244, which has a half-life of 18.1 years, produces 2.83 watts of heat per gram. Plutonium-238 produces 0.57 watt per gram and has the much longer half-life of 87.74 years. Plutonium-238 power sources have been planted on the Moon and have been used in space missions to the outer planets to provide electrical energy for transmitting messages back to Earth. Plutonium-238 also was used as the power source for pacemakers in the 1970s, before high-efficiency chemical batteries became available.
Learn More in these related Britannica articles:
chemical element
Chemical element, any substance that cannot be decomposed into simpler substances by ordinary chemical processes. Elements are the fundamental materials of which all matter is composed. This article considers the origin of the elements and their abundances throughout the universe. The geochemical distribution of these elementary substances in…
periodic table of the elements
Periodic table of the elements, in chemistry, the organized array of all the chemical elements in order of increasing atomic number—i.e., the total number of protons in the atomic nucleus. When the chemical elements are thus arranged, there is a recurring pattern called the "periodic law" in their properties, in…
Actinium (Ac), radioactive chemical element, in Group 3 (IIIb) of the periodic table, atomic number 89. Actinium was discovered (1899) by French chemist André-Louis Debierne in pitchblende residues left after French physicists Pierre and Marie Curie had extracted radium from them, and it was also discovered (1902) independently by German…
Lawrencium (Lr), synthetic chemical element, the 14th member of the actinoid series of the periodic table, atomic number 103. Not occurring in nature, lawrencium (probably as the isotope lawrencium-257) was first produced (1961) by chemists Albert Ghiorso, T. Sikkeland, A.E. Larsh, and R.M. Latimer at the University of California, Berkeley,…
atomic number
Atomic number, the number of a chemical element ( q.v.) in the periodic system, whereby the elements are arranged in order of increasing number of protons in the nucleus. Accordingly, the number of protons, which is always equal to the number of electrons in the neutral atom, is also the atomic…


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Chapter 1
Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievements. As a young man of eighteen he had brought honor to his village by throwing Amalinze the Cat. Amalinze was the great wrestler who for seven years was unbeaten, from Umuofia to Mbaino. He was called the Cat because his back would never touch the earth. It was this man that Okonkwo threw in a fight which the old men agreed was one of the fiercest since the founder of their town engaged a spirit of the wild for seven days and seven nights.
The drums beat and the flutes sang and the spectators held their breath. Amalinze was a wily craftsman, but Okonkwo was as slippery as a fish in water. Every nerve and every muscle stood out on their arms, on their backs and their thighs, and one almost heard them stretching to the breaking point. In the end Okonkwo threw the cat.


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|"The Twelve Days of Christmas" depicted by artist Xavier Romero-Frias
The song I've chosen here at A Light That Shines Again is a well-known favorite, yet behind the words we know so well there may be hidden meaning related to Irish history.
You'll find the lyrics in Irish and English below. Scroll down further to read my about my research into the background of this favorite carol.
To all of my readers: may your twelve days of Christmas, and your coming year, be merry!
Dha Lá Deag na Nollag (or) The Twelve Days of Christmas
Ar an chéad lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom patraisc i gcrann piorraí.
Ar an dara lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom dhá fhéarán bhreaca.
Ar an tríú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom trí chearc fhrancacha.
Ar an ceathrú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom ceithre éan ag glaoch.
Ar an cúigiú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom cúig fháinne óra.
Ar an séú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom sé ghé ag breith.
Ar an seachtú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom seacht n-eala ag snámh.
Ar an t-ochtú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom ochtar cailín ag bleán.
Ar an naoú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom naonúr ban ag damhsa.
Ar an deichiú lá Nollag thug mo leannán dom deichniúr tiarna ag léim.
Ar an t-aonú lá déag Nollag thug mo leannán dom aon phíobaire dhéag ag seinm.
Ar an dara lá déag Nollag thug mo leannán dom dháréag drumadóir ag drumadóireacht.
On the 1st day of Christmas my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree.
On the 2nd day of Christmas my true love gave to me two turtle doves.
On the 3rd day of Christmas my true love gave to me three french hens.
On the 4th day of Christmas my true love gave to me four calling birds.
On the 5th day of Christmas my true love gave to me five gold rings.
On the 6th day of Christmas my true love gave to me six geese a laying.
On the 7th day of Christmas my true love gave to me seven swans a swimming.
On the 8th day of Christmas my true love gave to me eight maids a milking.
On the 9th day of Christmas my true love gave to me nine maids a dancing.
On the 10th day of Christmas my true love gave to me ten lords a leaping.
On the 11th day of Christmas my true love gave to me eleven pipers pipering.
On the 12th day of Christmas my true love gave to me twelve drummers drumming.
In the spirit of the true meaning of Christmas, I was planning to write a post about the well-loved carol The Twelve Days of Christmas. I had learned several years ago that the objects throughout the carol had hidden meanings - they represented various aspects of the Christian faith. I understood that the carol had been written for use by persecuted English and Irish Catholics during the time of England's Protestant reformation. Or so I thought...
After a little bit of research on the subject (much thanks to Douglas Anderson's Hymns and Carols of Christmas website) I have learned enough about The Twelve Days of Christmas to write a book, never mind a blog post. And, no, the background of the carol may not be exactly what I had thought. But it does have a fascinating history steeped in the joy and merriment of the Christmas season which traveled through several countries before becoming an international phenomenon.
The song probably had its origin as a French carol and was sung as a sort of "chanson de geste" by the medieval troubadours of France, according to The Folk Carol of England by Douglas Brice.
Elizabeth Poston writes in The Second Penguin Book of Christmas Carols that the earliest written version of the song appears in "Twelth Day", a 13th-century manuscript located at Trinity College, Cambridge. The Twelve Days of Christmas was first published in a children's book called Mirth & Mischief in 1780, with its first appearance in a collection of Christmas songs coming in 1868.
Just to clarify, the "twelve days of Christmas" refers to the period of celebration between Christmas day itself and Epiphany on January 6. The song was originally sung by the French on Epiphany, otherwise known as Twelth Night.
In its more recent history, The Twelve Days of Christmas song has become a favorite throughout the traditional Christmas season and now our modern extended secular Christmas season which gets rolling in late November (and perhaps even earlier) in some places.
As for the meaning behind the symbols, here is the story as best I could find it. It turns out that a Catholic priest by the name of Fr. Hal Stockert had done some research for a project years back. In the process he came across some letters from Irish Jesuit priests to the motherhouse in Rheims, France. According to Fr. Stockert's memory (he hasn't been able to relocate the letters) some of the documents had mentions of the symbolism of The Twelve Days of Christmas being used as a secret catechism for persecuted Catholics at the time. Fr. Stockert posted his findings online not "as a doctoral thesis", as he put it, but "simply as some delicious tidbit [he] thought the world would be delighted to share over a holiday season". (See more about his story at Catholic Culture or Catholic Information Network. For another interesting discussion on the topic and a list of the symbols, see this CRI/Voice webpage.)
So it turns out that the carol, not necessarily written as a tool of faith, may have actually been used that way. Whether or not this was the case, thanks to this song we now have an interesting and memorable way to remember various aspects of faith.
Here are the symbols, according to the Catholic Culture webpage:
- true love = God Himself
- partridge in a pear tree = Jesus Christ
- 2 turtle doves = Old and New Testaments
- 3 French hens = faith, hope and charity (the theological virtues)
- 4 calling birds = the four Gospels and/or the four evangelists
- 5 golden rings = the first five books of the Old Testament (Pentateuch)
- 6 geese a-laying = the six days of creation
- 7 swans a-swimming = the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit and/or the seven sacraments
- 8 maids a-milking = the eight beatitudes
- 9 ladies dancing = the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit
- 10 lords a-leaping = the ten commandments
- 11 pipers piping = the eleven faithful apostles
- 12 drummers drumming = the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed
The article originally appeared here at A Light That Shines Again as part of Thomas MacEntee's Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories 2007 and 2009.


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TORONTO – Unionized workers at Chrysler's Ontario plants voted to accept a new contract on Sunday, marking the Canadian Auto Workers' successful negotiation of fresh agreements with the three big U.S. automakers.
The Chrysler workers voted 90 per cent in favour of the tentative deal which was reached last week.
It was not immediately clear how many of the 8,000 workers at Chrysler's plants in Toronto, Brampton and Windsor cast ballots in the ratification votes held this weekend.
The deal was based on agreements already accepted by CAW members at Ford and General Motors by margins of 82 per cent and 73 per cent.
The four-year contract includes lump sum payments as well as job security provisions.
It also pays new employees less and extends the time it takes them to get to the top of the pay scale.
Chrysler was the last of the Detroit Big Three automakers to hammer out a contract.
CAW President Ken Lewenza said the ratification of all three new agreements will now allow the union to focus on winning a national auto policy for Canada.
"One of our objectives coming into these talks was to position our industry for future growth and success, and we did as much as we possibly could on that front," Lewenza said in a statement released Sunday evening.
"But without a comprehensive sector development strategy, the future of auto manufacturing in Canada remains uncertain, at best."
He said a national auto policy could lay the groundwork for the industry's ongoing competitiveness and success and added that the union would be renewing efforts to win federal support for the issue.
The CAW's proposals for a national policy include the development of an auto investment policy, building a green industry and a buy-Canadian vehicle purchasing strategy.
The CAW represents 21,000 workers at the Big Three automakers.


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McDonald's manipulates us
Your [July 22] back-page editorial on Morgan Spurlock's McDonald's-bashing documentary Super Size Me misses the point. It's not just that McDonald's sells unhealthy food, but rather that McDonald's is a cultural force, responsible for manipulating Americans' dietary habits for decades.
I, regrettably, worked in Madison Avenue advertising for seven years, for Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Taco Bell (the chihuahua saying "Here leezard, leezard" that was me). I know McDonald's methods well.
The #1 jingle of all time is McDonalds' "You deserve a break today." They also lay claim to the #5 ad campaign of all time. The #2 advertising icon is Ronald McDonald, who Ad Age magazine describes as a "fast-food ambassador for kids." Ronald McDonald's face is recognized by 96 percent of American children, second only to Santa Claus. Why is that so important?
McDonald's own Operations and Training Manual says, "Children exert a phenomenal influence when it comes to restaurant selection. This means that you should do everything you can to appeal to children's love for Ronald and McDonald's."
A 1992 survey by Brand Audit Research reported that: "McDonald's is more likely to be chosen than its competitors in response to kids' pestering." 55 percent of parents surveyed gave "kids pester me to go" as a reason for going to McDonald's.
McDonald's spends nearly $2 billion a year on advertising. Statistically, half of all McDonald's advertising is aimed at children. But it's not just the clown. It's also the playgrounds, the birthday parties, and the toys. McDonald's distributes more toys per year than Toys-R-Us.
Parents fall into the trap, too. Dr. Tessa Van der Merwe, a World Health Organization endocrinologist, objects to McDonald's use of the term "meal" in phrases like "Happy Meal." Her advice to moms: "A meal does not consist of a load of carbohydrates, low-quality proteins, and a high fat content." Nevertheless, French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America.
Actor Geoffrey Giuliano, who played Ronald McDonald in the 1980s, equates McDonald's youth advertising to brainwashing and Nazi propaganda: "If they can keep you one step away from the truth and keep you stupid, you'll keep coming back." Anyone who thinks McDonald's is a benign force in the cultural marketplace is either in on the game or has been watching too much TV.
Brian Wimer


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Retirement System has Good Investment Return
PIERRE - Officials say the South Dakota Retirement System is in good financial shape after earning 12.4 percent on investments through the first seven months of the financial year.
State Investment Officer Matt Clark says the system now holds assets of more than $8.5 billion, up from $7.8 billion at the start of the financial year last July.
Rob Wylie, executive director of the Retirement System, says the system is about 98 percent funded, in much better shape than most other public pension plans in the nation. That means its assets are about 98 percent of the value of all potential future benefits to be paid to retirees in state and local agencies.
The system has more than 75,000 members, and most are still working in state government, local governments and schools.
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