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Corrosion Engineering & Installation Services
Since 1997, RKR Hess's parent company, Universal Technical Research Services, Inc. (UTRS), has provided a variety of comprehensive corrosion control services to myriad clients. As a result of UTRS's recent acquisition of RKR Hess, its corrosion control services are now available to RKR Hess clients. UTRS's corrosion control team comprises the highest caliber licensed professional engineers and construction managers, many of whom have decades of field experience and are highly respected by their cathodic protection industry colleagues. All of our project engineers are NACE International certified, and many of our lead engineers frequently teach NACE certification courses.
In addition to its wide range of civil and environmental engineering services, RKR Hess will now be able to provide clients with such corrosion control services as: cathodic protection and alternating current (AC) mitigation for underground water, gas, and oil pipelines; cathodic protection of tank interiors and exteriors, including underground storage tanks (USTs) and aboveground storage tanks (ASTs); cathodic protection of reinforced concrete for bridges and tunnels; cathodic protection for submerged structures; and stray current services related to direct current (DC)-powered transit for heavy rail, light rail, and trolley systems.
Our corrosion engineering services include the following:
Corrosion Engineering
- Cathodic protection for pipelines, concrete structures, power plants, refineries, water and wastewater treatment plants
- Design of galvanic and impressed current systems, AC mitigation design
- Site corrosivity surveys
- Operations and maintenance
- Cost estimating
- Coating
- Chloride intrusion
- Annual surveys and testing
- Evaluation of existing systems
- Failure analysis
Construction Services
- Impressed current and galvanic systems
- Hydro excavation
- UST/AST interior and exterior CP
- Construction management
- Construction inspection
- System troubleshooting and repairs
- Test station and monitoring
station installation and reading
- Marine system installation
Transit Systems
- Stray current analysis (dynamic)
- Fixed facility stray current design
- Baseline and revenue stray current studies
- High pot testing
- Quality assurance, including cable megger, ballast resistance, insulating joint QA testing, ground resistance (fall of potential) troubleshooting
- Stray current mitigation design
- Low track-to-earth resistance and stray current troubleshooting
- Track-to-track and rail-to-rail resistance
- Ground mat testing (fall of potential)
- Installation inspection
- Training
- Expert witness services
- Track isolation design
- Transit system traction power modeling
- Traction power loop testing
- Construction management
- Soil resistivity survey for grounding and CP
Corrosion Control Services Division Sample Water/Wastewater Projects
|City of Philadelphia Water Department (PWD)
|Project Timeline: December 2009 – August 2014
|UTRS is a corrosion control consultant for the PWD, providing engineering services at various locations on the water distribution and transmission piping systems. The scope of work includes the design of corrosion control systems to address soil corrosion and stray traction earth current corrosion. UTRS also represents PWD during post-construction testing and initial activation of installed corrosion control measures. UTRS also conducts corrosion control assessment surveys, including a recent survey at one of PWD's water filtration plants.
|Montgomery Township, Eureka Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP)
|Project Timeline: August 2009 – present
|UTRS designed, activated, and adjusted cathodic protection systems for two at-grade wastewater treatment tanks for the Eureka WWTP in Montgomery Township, Pa. The scope of work also included the procurement and installation of cathodic protection materials. UTRS designed the required impressed current system for each tank to provide cathodic protection to the submerged portions of coated steel tank walls that were exposed to untreated and treated wastewater. Since 2010, UTRS has conducted annual cathodic protection system surveys.
|Project Timeline: 2010 – June 2014
|Since early 2010, UTRS has had an annual contract with CorTrol, one of PWD's corrosion control prime contractors. UTRS performs regularly scheduled periodic testing of PWD's cathodic protection and stray current mitigation corrosion control systems. If a system is found to not be operating in compliance with previous criteria, UTRS conducts troubleshooting field studies to determine the cause of the noted system deficiency.


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Step 1In a mixer, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch and vanilla seeds. Slowly add the buttermilk, whisking to combine.
Step 2Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and heat the mixture, whisking until it thickens.
Step 3Return the bowl to the mixer and mix until the mixture has cooled to lukewarm. Beat in the butter and Grand Marnier. Strain through a fine sieve. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely cooled.
Step 1Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Using a mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time and then add the vanilla.
Step 2In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, soda and salt.
Step 3Add half the buttermilk to the creamed mixture and mix well. Add half the dry ingredients, then the remaining buttermilk and mix. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix.
Step 4Line a 13- by 9-inch baking pan with parchment and spray with nonstick spray. Spread the batter in the pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 16 to 25 minutes until a wooden pick comes out clean. Cool slightly, then remove the cake from the pan and cool completely before cutting.
Step 5Using a cookie cutter, cut the cake into 12 (2- to 3-inch) rounds, selecting a size that fits snugly into the glasses you'll layer the trifles in.
Step 1Clean the berries and dice into half-inch pieces. In a saucepan, cook the berries with 4 tablespoons sugar over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender and a syrup has formed, about 3 minutes.
Step 2Taste and add the remaining sugar if needed. Add the Grand Marnier. Remove the compote from the heat, transfer it to a bowl and cool completely. Makes about 2 cups.
Step 1Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove it from the heat and let it cool completely, then add the Grand Marnier. Makes about three-fourths cup.
Step 1In a large bowl, work the pastry cream with a spatula until softened, then fold in the whipped cream.
Step 2In each of 6 (8-ounce) Pilsener glasses, place 1 teaspoon strawberry compote, then, using a pastry bag with no tip, or a spoon, add a half-inch layer of pastry cream. Brush each cake round with the sugar syrup. Place one round in each glass on top of the cream. Add a layer of sliced strawberries.
Step 3Repeat the layering of compote, cream and cake. Finish with cream and top with more strawberry slices.

subset: commoncrawl


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About Anne Dinshah and Alexandra Golaszewska, vegan consultants
What Inspired Our Name?
Cross Brothers was the slaughterhouse on the corner of Front and Venango Streets in Philadelphia. In 1957 after touring Cross Brothers, H. Jay Dinshah vowed to be vegan. He founded American Vegan Society in 1960.
Jay was a gifted orator and the first person to lecture extensively in the U.S. about veganism, sharing his experiences and vision to inspire others. Philadelphia is now regarded as the birthplace of the modern vegan movement in the U.S.
"Crossed" is defined as a spiritual condition that makes everything go wrong in life and goes unnoticed for years. "Uncrossed" represents a change to a positive path in life. We apply this to food options.
Sisters are the female duo of Anne Dinshah and Alexandra Golaszewska.
Our Team
Anne Dinshah
Anne Dinshah's family has been described as "vegan royalty." Her parents, Jay and Freya Dinshah, are considered the "father and mother of the modern vegan movement in the America." Anne is a lifelong vegan and is vice president of American Vegan Society.
Anne is more like the girl next door who can throw a great dinner party. Her recipes are easy to make, as shown in her book Dating Vegans. Anne learned to cook from Freya, who wrote the first cookbook in the U.S. with a vegan title: The Vegan Kitchen (1965) and together they wrote the kids' cookbook, Apples, Bean Dip, and Carrot Cake.
For years Anne explored American culture while working throughout the country, but recently returned home to the greater Philadelphia area. She holds degrees from University of Notre Dame and University of Texas. You can find her rowing on the Schuylkill River many early mornings.
Alexandra Golaszewska
Alexandra Golaszewska (go - la - shev - ska) describes her approach to food as "vegan-ish." She's a lifelong Philadelphian who loves visiting restaurants and trying all of the plant-based options.
She is the founder of Helios Media, a publicity strategist and an expert on social media. For two decades, she has worked with top-notch creative people in advertising, design, PR, and marketing. Her clients span a wide range of industries— they've ranged from celebrities to landmark destinations; from liquor brands to retro candy manufacturers.
She's a graduate of Drexel University and the Episcopal Academy, and prefers to get around by bicycle. You can find her on Instagram at @AlexandraGo.


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Judgment and Decision Making as a Skill
Learning, Development and Evolution
- Editors:
- Mandeep K. Dhami, University of Cambridge
- Anne Schlottmann, University College London
- Michael R. Waldmann, Georg-August-Universität, Göttingen, Germany
- Date Published: October 2013
- availability: Available
- format: Paperback
- isbn: 9781107676527
Other available formats:
Hardback, eBook
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This book presents a comprehensive review of both theories and research on the dynamic nature of human judgment and decision making (JDM). Leading researchers in the fields of JDM, cognitive development, human learning and neuroscience discuss short-term and long-term changes in JDM skills. The authors consider how such skills increase and decline on a developmental scale in children, adolescents and the elderly; how they may be learned; and how JDM skills can be improved and aided. In addition, beyond these behavioral approaches to understanding JDM as a skill, the book provides fascinating new insights from recent evolutionary and neuropsychological approaches. The authors identify opportunities for future research on the acquisition and changing nature of JDM. In a concluding chapter, eminent past presidents of the Society for Judgment and Decision Making provide personal reflections and perspectives on the notion of JDM as a dynamic skill.Read more
- Proposes a conception of human judgment and decision making, seeing it as a dynamic skill rather than a static capacity
- Provides a comprehensive and up-to-date review of the theories, research and methods from various areas of psychology (evolutionary, neuro-, developmental and learning) employed in understanding changes in human judgment and decision making
- Identifies areas of potential future research in the acquisition and changing nature of judgment and decision making, and outlines innovative methods that can be used
Reviews & endorsements
'Research on judgment and decision-making has been limited by a narrow focus on the content-blind rules of probability and utility with their assumptions of certainty. Exploring far beyond these limits, this informative volume demonstrates that there is more to good judgment than probability: it investigates rules of conversation, evolved capacities, smart heuristics, and other skills that can deal effectively with the uncertainty in our world.' Gerd Gigerenzer, Director of the Center for Adaptive Behavior and Cognition (ABC) and Director of the Harding Center for Risk Literacy, Max Planck Institute for Human DevelopmentSee more reviews
'This work presents pioneering chapters on an emerging perspective of Judgment Decision as a learned skill that begins early in childhood and keeps developing throughout the life span. This conceptual liberation from the long-dominant static concepts of rationality and biases leads into the real world of Judgment Decision - motivated and dynamic.' Norman Henry Anderson, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, University of California, San Diego
'… Dhami, Schlottmann and Waldmann have produced an important [book]. There is a lot of original thinking and new evidence here that has the potential to move the field of JDM into the front line of psychological science …' Joachim I. Krueger, American Journal of Psychology
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Product details
- Date Published: October 2013
- format: Paperback
- isbn: 9781107676527
- length: 328 pages
- dimensions: 229 x 152 x 18 mm
- weight: 0.44kg
- contains: 27 b/w illus.
- availability: Available
Table of Contents
Part I. Evolutionary and Neural Bases of JDM:
1. The evolved foundations of decision making Andreas Wilke and Peter M. Todd
2. Neural bases of judgment and decision making Oshin Vartanian and David R. Mandel
Part II. Developmental Approaches to JDM:
3. Judgment and decision making in young children Anne Schlottmann and Friedrich Wikening
4. Judgment and decision making in adolescents Wändi Brunie de Bruin
5. Aging and decision skills Ellen Peters and Wändi Brunie de Bruin
Part III. Learning JDM:
6. Learning of judgment and decision-making strategies Rui Mata and Jörg Rieskamp
7. Casual models in judgment and decision making York Hagmayer and David A. Lagnado
8. Learning judgment and decision making from feedback Nigel Harvey
Part IV. Improving and Aiding JDM:
9. Improving judgment and decision making through communication and representation Peter Sedlmeier and Denis J. Hilton
10. Aiding judgment and decision making J. Frank Yates and Andrea M. Angott
11. Perspectives on judgment and decision making as a skill Mandeep K. Dhami, Anne Schlottmann, Michael R. Waldman, James Shanteau, Thomas S. Wallsten, Baruch Fischhoff, Irwin P. Levin (with Joshua A. Weller and Elaine A. Bossard), Valerie F. Reyna, Jonathan Baron, Robin M. Hogarth, Joshua Klayman and Michael H. Birnbaum.
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The Police have arrested a notorious armed robber aka Pumpy who was arrested at Mushin by the Lagos State Taskforce, has narrated how he r*ped over 30 women in 3 years. A 37-year-old notorious armed robber identfied as Lanre Olowojobi, a.k.a Pumpy, who was apprehended by operatives of the Nigerian Police Force at the Mushin area of Lagos state at the weekend, has narrated how he was involved in robbery and r*pe of over 30 women in 3 years.
In his statement, Olowojobi admitted that he killed many of his victims for refusing to let go of their valuables.
The suspect was arrested at the weekend during a raid of some identified criminal hideouts in the Akala, Idi-Iro, and Fadeyi areas of the metropolis.
The raid followed frequent complaints by members of the public about the activities of Pumpy and his gang members.
In his confessional statement to the police, Pumpy narrated the crimes which were mostly carried out with members of his gang.
He disclosed that his accomplices would drag their unfortunate victims into the bush or abandoned structures where they took turns raping them.
The robbery kingpin, who hails from Ipoti in Ekiti State, also said he had shot dead more than 10 persons in frequent fracas in the Akala area of Mushin alone.
Pumpy narrated thus: "I joined the boys in the street in 2008 but I founded my own gang in 2010. Initially we were four members in the gang but we later increased to 10.
"Aside being contracted by land grabbers and members of the different transport unions during their frequent leadership tussles, we also recruit young boys and girls to sell drugs on the street.
"I have over 20 young boys and girls who sell Indian hemp, Codeine, Tramadol and other drugs to users in the area. These young boys and girls do this in return for food, shelter and protection.
"A good number of them ran away from their homes while some of them are destitute.
"Since 2010 when I founded my own gang, I have killed so many persons. Some of those killed either died during shootouts or were macheted.
"There was a time I butchered one guy like a goat simply because he assaulted my girlfriend. Before then, I had warned him to stay away from my girl but he refused.
"I even sent some of his friends to him and he still paid deaf ears. One day, I sent some of my boys to corner him at night and macheted him severally during the fight that later ensued."
Chairman of the Lagos State Task Force, Superintendent of Police, Olayinka Egbeyemi, who confirmed the arrest said that, though investigation was still ongoing, those arrested would soon be charged to court.


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Read more >
Join us for an afternoon of dancing in the style popular in colonial times. In the 1800s social dancing based on British and European folk dances, such as polkas and waltzes, was all the rage and learning to dance was part of growing up. Parking available. Afternoon tea provided.


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Just because the iPhone didn't entirely blow the UK away, doesn't mean companies aren't going to build neat accessories for it. And just such an accessory is the world's first 'Works With iPhone' speaker system -- the T612 from Altec Lansing. Not only are its speakers shielded from mobile signal interference, it's capable of blurting some quality audio, too, as we discovered at our private hands-on today at CES.
Both of the system's 76mm (3-inch) speakers are driven by neodymium magnets, backed up by a pair of silk dome tweeters. Because this is designed for the iPhone, it has some phone-related features, such as the ability to pause music when a call comes in and act as a speaker phone.
With a peak power output of 120W, there's enough beef here for this to fill a decent-sized bedroom. It's no hi-fi replacement, or a contender for more capable speaker systems. But with such intuitive integration with the world's snazziest phone, it's hard not to see this appealing to iPhowners around the globe. Naturally it works with all other iPods, and has a 3.5mm auxiliary input for other audio devices.
Expect a February launch in the US for $200 (£100), and a European launch around April/May. -Nate Lanxon


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Smackdown 1973: Candy, Madeline, Linda, Sylvia, and Tatum O'Neal
Behold the five Oscar-nominated Supporting Actresses of 1973: a "bitchin' babe" (Candy Clark), a pint-sized con-artist (Tatum O'Neal), a possessed teenager (Linda Blair), a selfish carnival dancer (Madeline Kahn), and a vinegary New York institution (Sylvia Sidney).
Last month's featured year, 1964, gave us an extremely senior acting shortlist of Oscar regulars but the corresponding shortlist of 1973, apart from Sylvia Sidney who had been a respected working actress for nearly a half-century, skewed very new and very young and not just because it gave us the youngest Oscar winner of all time in Tatum O'Neal; she was 10 years and 148 days old. The four actresses nominated with Sidney were in their first flush of stardom and only acting in their first (O'Neal) second (Kahn & Clark) or third films (Blair). The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences obviously approved of their career choice.
You've already heard 'what 1973 means to them' and now here to talk about these five performances are authors Mark Harris ("Five Came Back") and Karina Longworth ("Anatomy of an Actor: Meryl Streep"), film critics Bill Chambers (Film Freak Central) and Kyle Turner (Movie Scene), your host Nathaniel R (The Film Experience) and our special guest: two-time Emmy winning actress Dana Delany ("China Beach", "Body of Proof", and the forthcoming "Hand of God").
And, as ever, we must thank StinkyLulu for the original Smackdown inspiration in which we revisit Oscar shortlists of the past without all the campaigning and heat-of-the-moment politics that infect each awards race. Without further ado, part one of the main event.... (here's part two which is a podcast conversation)
LINDA BLAIR as "Regan" in The Exorcist
Synopsis: The daughter of a famous actress begins acting strangely. Can two priests save her from the demon inside?
Stats: 15 yrs old. First and only nomination. 41 minutes of screen time (or 34% of running time).
Dana Delany: William Friedkin clearly created a set where Blair felt free to perform. She is naturally real as a pre-teen and then fully committed in the physicality when she is possessed. I know it's McCambridge's voice, but Blair deserved this nomination just for what they put her through; the crucifix in the crotch, alone! ♥♥♥
Bill Chambers: This isn't one performance but three--four if you count the makeup unto itself. Blair provides the base coat, of course, and the guilessness she brings to her early scenes is perhaps easy to underrate; she's not just natural, she's impossibly ordinary. (Her squirms and grunts in the hospital scenes are also viscerally authentic.) But Regan is a puppet in both concept and execution, manifesting fewer reactions than she provokes. In the end, this isn't unlike nominating Yoda or something. ♥♥
Karina Longworth: In a movie full of terrible performances, at least Blair's gives you something to think about, in that it takes some work to separate out what she's actually doing on her own, and what is being accomplished via makeup, effects, and voice dubbing. The things that are wrong (dated, laughable) with the movie are not Blair's fault, exactly, but she also doesn't exactly give a sense of the agency or invention that she brings to the role that another actress wouldn't. ♥♥
Kyle Turner: Though part of what's memorable about Blair's performance has to do with Mercedes McCambridge's voice work, she adds an absolutely crucial element of that innocence and naiveté suddenly taken over by evil. The film is not only horrifying on a visceral level, but on a human level because we sympathise for Regan. She's going through Hell. Literally. ♥♥♥♥♥
Mark Harris: Revisiting this, I found myself surprised by how little Blair is in the movie—unlike the adults, she's not a character but an object, and William Friedkin uses her shrewdly but sparingly, in short, carefully chosen takes, sort of the way Spielberg deployed the shark in Jaws. It's far from great acting, but her ordinariness works well for the part, and even though it's a largely lip-synced performance (all hail Mercedes "Pazuzu" McCambridge!), she's impressively game in every scene. ♥♥
Nathaniel R: Those doctors and priests are such fools. Little Regan definitely has an unholy spirit inside her and its name is "McCambridge". Though the sound design, dubbing, and makeup are doing major heavy-lifting, Blair does just fine with her half portions, believably slipping towards catatonic trouble. Plus: watch her demon scenes with the sound off (I tried it!) and there's still solid physical acting. In short I believed this young actress scratched "Help Me" into her own stomach from the inside. ♥♥♥
Reader Write-Ins: "Even with all the help this performance gets (makeup, sound, voice actors, etc) I still think Blair was ahead of her age and completely believable. Even after all the spoofs and rip offs I still find her creepy and during the "normal" scenes she's very natural." - Mauro. (Reader average: ♥♥½)
Actress earns 19½ ❤s
4 more actresses after the jump


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Geophysicist Jay Melosh (MS '71, PhD '73) Wins Honor at Purdue University
Jay Melosh, a distinguished professor of geophysics at Purdue University internationally known for his work on impact cratering, planetary tectonics, and the physics of earthquakes and landslides, received the 2014 Herbert Newby McCoy Award, the school's most prestigious research honor in the natural sciences.
Melosh is part of NASA's Deep Impact mission that created a 50-m diameter impact crater on Comet Tempel 1 on July 4, 2005, the NExT mission that returned to Tempel 1 in 2011, the DIXI mission to comet Hartley-2, and the GRAIL mission to obtain high-precision data on our moon's gravity field. Asteroid #8216 was named "Melosh" in his honor.
"I'm certainly honored and humbled to join the fraternity of past McCoy Award winners at Purdue University who share a love of research and celebrate those days in the laboratory with our students when we realize we might be onto something that will provide a deeper understanding of our universe," Melosh said.


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John Vetter has served as the lead evaluator for Oklahoma Systems of Care since 2003 and was the primary designer of the Youth Information System (YIS), a dynamic user interface with data transformation capabilities. The YIS is a secure, web-based application which provides real-time access to evaluation and program monitoring data to state management and local site leadership. The YIS has become invaluable as a management tool in the ability of OKSOC site management and staff to identify, better serve, and document positive outcomes for individuals with critical needs. John worked with a committee of mental health professionals, youth and family members to develop the evaluation plan and data instruments used by Oklahoma System of Care's statewide wraparound project. He has presented multiple times at national meetings and workshops on E-TEAM's work with the OKSOC evaluation. John worked for several years in Albuquerque, New Mexico designing data collection and monitoring systems for substance abuse programs. John worked at the Center on Alcoholism, Substance Abuse and Addiction, affiliated with the University of New Mexico, where he created the Center's information system in support of a Target Cities grant from the Center on Substance Abuse Treatment. He planned and coordinated data collection for Albuquerque's network of substance abuse providers and handled all aspects of data reporting, to both CSAT and local governmental and university sponsors.
Carol Surber has nearly 30 years' experience conducting program evaluation with an emphasis in education, Pre-K to Grade 12. She currently serves as the lead evaluator for multiple education programs housed at the University of Oklahoma, including the Central Comprehensive Center (providing technical assistance to state education agencies in Colorado, Kansas, and Missouri) and the South Central Comprehensive Center (serving New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana), both of which are funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Her background includes serving as the lead external evaluator and principal grant writer for grantees of federally-funded programs, notably: seven Title III English Language Acquisition programs serving Native American and Spanish-speaking students; two Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiatives creating community-wide partnerships to prevent violence and drug use among school-age children; two 21st Century Community Learning Centers for after-school support; a Grant to Reduce Access to Alcohol among underage students; and a National Science Foundation project to promote science and technology skills among youth with disabilities. Carol has worked with over 40 school districts in both rural and urban locations across Oklahoma.
Adam Gibson, Ph.D. is a previous faculty member at Colorado State University, Utah State University, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Gibson has an extensive background in social science research methods, survey construction, statistics, and sampling design. Dr. Gibson has worked as an evaluator for the National Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service, and currently serves as the lead evaluator for Family Resource Information, Education and Network Development Services (FRIENDS), which provides technical assistance to federally funded Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) programs. Dr. Gibson is also the lead evaluator for a Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grant (SPF SIG) partnership with the Oklahoma City Area Inter-Tribal Health Board (OCAITHB).
Amber Romo holds a master's degree in psychology and has an extensive background in research and statistical analysis. Her co-authored textbook, Automaticity and Cognitive Control in Social Behavior, was published in 2007 and her co-authored article was published in Evolutionary Psychology in 2011. Amber has taught psychology courses at the University of Central Oklahoma for several years as an adjunct instructor. She has served as a judge for paper presentations given at the Oklahoma Psychological Society annual conference and as a student reviewer for Association for Psychological Science research competitions. Amber was awarded the Instructional Psychology and Technology Graduate Fellowship at the University of Oklahoma in 2011. She is the lead evaluator for the Migrant Education Program for the Oklahoma State Department of Education and the lead for the Early Literacy Quick Assessment validation study. She is currently working on Oklahoma Systems of Care for the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Studies and an evaluation for the Sam Noble Museum in Norman, Oklahoma.


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Good Reads highlights the best reporting and analysis available on the top international stories of the day – and other key topics you shouldn't miss.
Ten years ago today, American war planes began to pummel Taliban positions across Afghanistan in what became the first stage of America's longest war.
The bombing worked, and it did so quickly. Within a few days, Taliban fighters abandoned their positions and fled for the mountains. The armies of the Northern Alliance rolled into Kabul, and hundreds of foreign correspondents like myself rolled in as well to watch Afghans put their country back together after a decade of mujahideen civil war and misrule.
These were heady, hopeful times. Afghans greeted American soldiers in their Humvees with thumbs up, Afghan children followed American soldiers the way teenagers follow rock stars, reaching for their hands, asking for chocolates, mimicking their English. Afghans also looked to a new generation of leaders – Hamid Karzai being the most prominent – many of them returning from years of exile in the West, and gave them the greatest opportunity of a generation to recreate a society from the ground up.
Within a year or two, the Afghan mood of hope had changed to profound disappointment. The Americans became occupiers. Afghan leaders were derided as "dog washers," men who had held the lowest possible jobs in exile were now in charge, and failing at the simplest tasks.
Today's papers are full of stories on how things went wrong in Afghanistan, and the very narrow chance of setting them right again.
The Washington Post's Greg Jaffe and Joshua Partlow write a devastating piece on how America is "narrowing their goals for the country," as it prepares the long draw down of forces from Afghanistan. Once considered the "good war," Afghanistan has become "the good-enough war," they write.
The Post's sister publication, Foreign Policy, backs this up with a roundtable of experts, each with an essay on the lessons that we can learn from the Afghan war.
And in the Telegraph, former British ambassador Sherard Cowper-Coles, writes that the best hope for Afghanistan is to give up on the "fantasy" that there was a military solution to the political problems of Afghanistan. No one can deny the real achievements made in Afghanistan over the past year, in terms of health and literacy and political freedom, he writes, but "the real test is not what happens when and where Western forces are present, but what happens where and when they are not. And here the record of lasting achievement is more mixed, and the prospects darker."
History is often a study of missed chances and lost opportunities, and Declan Walsh's piece in the Guardian details the efforts of Hamid Karzai, a then little-known Pashtun tribal leader receiving a delegation of Taliban elders in the Kandahar suburb of Shah Wali Kot. The Taliban at that time wanted to negotiate a peaceful reconciliation, allowing Taliban fighters to return to their villages. Mr. Karzai seemed game, but the US military wasn't interested. As Mr. Walsh writes,
In retrospect, it was a tantalising opportunity for a smooth post-Taliban transition and, perhaps, a novel political dispensation. But it wasn't to be. Furious after the 9/11 attacks, the US war machine pursued the Taliban hard. Karzai, the new leader, acquiesced. And the Taliban leadership slunk across the border into Pakistan to lick their wounds and plan the resurgence that is racking the country today.
But while history is about learning from mistakes, it is also about learning from success, and today's announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize for three women – Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Liberian activist Leymah Gbowee and Yemeni activist Tawakul Karman – show the powerful effect that women can have in politics and peacemaking.
The New York Times quotes Thorbjorn Jagland, a former Norwegian prime minister who is now head of the Nobel committee that chooses winners, as saying this year's Nobel prize is a very deliberate signal to the world of the important role that women play: "We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women obtain the same opportunities as men to influence developments at all levels of society."
Ms. Johnson-Sirleaf is running for a second term in office in elections scheduled for Oct. 11, so keep an eye on the Monitor's coverage from the Liberian capital of Monrovia. See also a previous profile of Johnson-Sirleaf, the Harvard-educated economist, by Paige McClannahan, which ran last April.


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After departing the California coast for a several-month stint in East Asia and the Middle East, we were confident our cold weather gear would no longer be needed. Shivering temperatures and shin-deep slush in Amman, Jordan proved us wrong. Fortunately, Amman offers my favorite Middle East problem solving solution the souk. A quick shopping trip to the outdoor market area near King Hussein mosque yielded warm socks and sweaters to help get us over the hump. Souk shopping is one of many strategies my husband and I use to help us roll with the punches on road trips. Here are a few more.
Getting Around:
When it comes to navigation, we lean towards a hybrid approach which includes both traditional and techie solutions. There are many parts of the world that havent bothered to coordinate with app developers, so counting on the latest technologies will only get you so far. In addition to smart phone travel apps and your favorite GPS product, road atlases, local maps and MapQuest directions printed in advance should combine to provide you with all of the navigational support you need. When in doubt, call your hosts from the road or roll down your vehicle window and ask for additional directions the old fashioned way.
When problems arise that need a bit more time to solve such as construction detours or last-minute freelance assignments with an immediate turnaround, having access to Wi Fi is critical. If you have access through your wireless communications provider, fantastic. Many companies are stepping up these days with either tethering or traveling hot spot services. T-Mobile and Sprint are two such providers, Virgin Mobile is another.
If cell phone service sucks where you are (Hey, its been known to happen.), then search out a place to grab a coffee where the business is providing it for free. Panera Bread, Whole Foods, McDonalds and even Dunkin Donuts offer complimentary internet access, as do a number of shopping malls.
Local tourism offices and information bureaus are a great source of intel when it comes to searching out a great place to stay or have dinner in an unfamiliar place. Even the best researched vacations and business trips can hit a snag. Severe weather, construction delays, vehicle snafus and more have all been known to rear their ugly heads to interfere with my travel plans over the years. Chances are it will happen to you too, eventually. The other cool thing about tourism bureaus is they tend to have brochures on hand that include discount coupons for new visitors. Gotta love a bargain shopping opportunity when it presents itself.
Thrift Stores:
Speaking of bargains, North American thrift stores provide me with an affordable network of establishments within which to shop for things like sweaters, gloves and scarves when weather on the road takes an unexpectedly cold turn. Similarly, I can usually find some sort of luggage there if mine gets lost by the airline. It might not be comparable in price or functionality to what I have lost, but it can get the job done until I have a chance to file the reimbursement paperwork.
Store Locators:
I actually rely on these quite a bit. If we are in the middle of a long road trip, its extremely helpful to be able to find the nearest location of our typical go-to stores for things like Wi Fi, denim replacement, vegan fast food and more when an unplanned detour becomes necessary. We also use these to plan where on the route we can stop for an afternoon email check, and coordinate for fuel-up at the same time.
Do you have a favorite way to roll with the punches on road trips? Share your travel strategies below! We love hearing from you.
Photo Credit: Chovee


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10 Questions, Zoe style…
Thank you so much for having me, Zoe!
1. What is your writing process?
My writing process is pretty simple. When a muse hits me for a story, I write down as much of it as I can. When that process finishes, I look at the story, the basic plot, and find ways to make it better. I plot out the story and get that written out. Then I go back to writing. At this stage, I mostly cringe when my characters don't want to follow the wonderful plot I've created, but I let them be who they are and adjust as I go until finished.
2. What do you read for pleasure?
For pleasure, I like anything with a romantic storyline it. That could be anything from romantic suspense to sci-fi, comedy or horror.
3. What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
The greatest joy for me is when someone leaves an amazing review. It's like a confirmation that someone else shared my vision of the story. They get me, and the warm, fuzzy feeling is incredible.
4. Can you tell us a little about yourself?
I live in a small town, and I work full time. I have three beautiful boys at home, two dogs, and a Siamese cat. Spending time with my family is important to me, and it's also a lot of fun because we all share a similar interest in the paranormal.
5. What are your strengths and weaknesses when it comes down to sitting down and writing?
My strength is that I love to create stories. It's my hobby, it's my job, it's my passion, so luckily I've never had to force myself to write. My weakness is finding more time.
6. Do you have any strange writing habits?
Hmm. That's an interesting question. I'm not sure if it's strange or normal, but sometimes I abandon one story to work on another. No matter how badly I want my current one finished, I follow my muse.
7. What is your least favorite part of the publishing / writing process?
Marketing, for sure.
8. Are you a person who makes their bed in the morning, or do you not see much point?
I'm laughing as I answer this. No, I don't make my bed in the morning because I'm normally in it! I've been working nights at my "day" job, so my hours are a tad screwy.
9. Where is one place you want to visit that you haven't been before?
It's hard to choose just one. I mean, hot guys with accents are awesome, but I think I'd like to visit a real castle with ancient stone walls. Hey, if it comes with hot guys with accents, that's okay with me!
10. Choose: Vampires, Werewolves, Demons or Zombies?
Vampires. Always.
Bonus Question: How prepared are you for the Zombie Apocalypse I've ordered?
I think I'm pretty prepared. I've brushed up my skills on Left for Dead 2, and I have several swords in the house. I always have an awesome day after a zombie dream. I love them!
As mentioned before, Lisa has many books published. Her most recent is a finale in a series:
Ignoring the complications, she's determined to tell him how she feels in hopes of changing his plans for the future. But the closer she gets to him, the more powerful a hidden adversary becomes, and their sizzling attraction may not stand a chance in Hell.


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This has to be the easiest Italian dish to make and yet so delicious. Almost certainly you've tried something like it before; especially if you've travelled through the country as a vegetarian. It's the sort of thing that students learn to cook in a simplified form as their very first staple dish on leaving home – although I've fancied it up a bit from the basic one-pot dorm room grub. This should take you straight to Italy, even in the humblest of student digs!
You will need (to serve 4):
- Salt and Pepper
- 1.5 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 Large White Onion
- 2 Cloves of Garlic
- 1 Red Chilli
- 400g Passata
- A Handful of Fresh Basil
- 250g Dry Tagliatelle
- 1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
- 250g Mozzarella
- 50g Diced Black Olives
- Shavings of Parmesan (rennet-free
1. Chop the onion into small pieces and fry in the olive oil until clear.
2. Drop your tagliatelle into boiling water, it doesn't take as long as other shapes of pasta to cook so be careful not to overdo it. Keep stirring to untangle it and make sure it's not sticking to the bottom.
3. Finely dice the garlic, chilli, basil and olives and add to the pan with the onion and oil.
4. Add the passata and red wine vinegar and bring to the boil, before dropping the heat to simmer.
5. Add the cooked tagliatelle to the sauce and stir.
6. Shred the mozzarella into chunks and drop them in until slightly melted.


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A rare production with period instruments
Based on the classic Roman myth, John Blow's Venus & Adonis is a passionate tale about a beautiful goddess (Venus) and a handsome hunter (Adonis). A dream that becomes a twist of fate turns this love story into one of loss.
From the story of Virgil's Aeneid comes Henry Purcell's opera, Dido & Aeneas. This is a classic "boy meets girl" love story about a Trojan hero (Aeneas) who flees his homeland and falls in love with the Queen of Carthage (Dido). Their love is tested when they are torn between passion and duty.
Be historically entertained
Be transported from the stresses of 21st century life. Hear Baroque opera the way it was originally heard by early audiences with an authentic Baroque chamber ensemble, led by world-renowned harpsichordist and conductor Jory Vinikour. The intimacy of the Wilson Theatre at Vogel Hall is the perfect setting to experience these masterpieces that will seduce your ears, enchant your eyes, and forever stir your soul.
General Director William Florescu stages an evening to behold with a cast led by acclaimed mezzo-soprano Sandra Piques Eddy in the role of Dido, with soprano Alisa Jordheim as Venus/Belinda, and mezzo-soprano Colleen Brooks as the sorceress. Dani Kuepper, Choreographer and Artistic Director of Danceworks, brings fresh movement to this early operatic masterpiece. World renowned harpsichordist and conductor Jory Vinikour leads an authentic Baroque ensemble.
Runtime: 2 hours, including one 15-minute intermission
Ticket Range: $40-$115
|Premium Orch E-K, Aisle Side Orch F-J
|$ 115.00
|Center Orch L-O, Aisle Side Orch K-M, Center Front Loge A-B
|$ 95.00
|Front Orch C-D, Side Orch C-E
|$ 80.00
|Side Orch F-K
|$ 65.00
|Rear Center Orch P-Q, Side Orch L-O
|$ 50.00
|Rear Loge, Side Loge, Rear Side Orch P-R
|$ 40.00
Purchase tickets online,
or order by phone 1-800-32-OPERA | M-F 9am-5pm
Student and Educator discounts are available
Learn more about the production with our informative "What is Baroque?" video!


text: DevExtreme HTML5 JavaScript Tree List is a React component that displays hierarchical data in a table. Its main features include robust data layer, multiple editing modes, client-side data validation, numerous filtering and searching options, and many more. Tree List operates in controlled or uncontrolled state mode and can be used with Redux. Advanced UI customization is carried out using template components and render props. Declared PropTypes for typechecking are also included. Learn more about DevExtreme React components on GitHub.


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So what is this week's "Crossroads" podcast actually about?
Well, on one level it's about the "Christian" humor website called The Babylon Bee. But on a deeper level, it's about what happens when the word "Christian" is turned into an adjective defining a form of popular culture. At that point, all kinds of interesting and even distressing things take place. There are news stories in there, folks.
For example, when you hear someone talking about "Christian" rock 'n' roll, doesn't that (if you are of a certain age) make you think of that famous "Seinfeld" episode that included the riff about the car-radio buttons? Here's a flashback, from an "On Religion" column that I wrote long, long ago:
As she pulled into traffic, Elaine Benes turned on her boyfriend's car radio and began bouncing along to the music.
Then the lyrics sank in: "Jesus is one, Jesus is all. Jesus pick me up when I fall." In horror, she punched another button, then another. "Jesus," she muttered, discovering they all were set to Christian stations. Then the scene jumped to typical "Seinfeld" restaurant chat.
"I like Christian rock," said the ultra-cynical George Costanza. "It's very positive. It's not like those real musicians who think they're so cool and hip."
It's all about the world "real." We are not talking about "real" musicians, here. We are talking about "Christian" rock. Thus, when most people hear the phrase "Christian" rock, they probably think of this rather than this (please click these URLs).
What do you think of when you hear people talk about "Christian" movies? Do you think of this or of this?
How about the fine arts? When you think of Christian paintings, do you think of this or, well, of this?
I could go on. "Christian" humor, including satire, is not new -- in fact, it's ancient. That's a subject that the media scholar Terry Lindvall and I discussed in my "On Religion" column this week, which focused on the kind if gentle, but biting, inside-baseball humor found in the Bee. Here is a piece of that:
The key is that Ford is a modern man who is filling an ancient role. ...
"The biblical satirist shares in the blame and shame of his defendants. He may be God's prosecutor, but he is also entwined with the people he ridicules," wrote Lindvall in his book "God Mocks: A History of Religious Satire from the Hebrew Prophets to Stephen Colbert." A skilled satirist, he added, holds up a prophetic mirror that "offers a comic frame in which to look at and to look through the heart; the satirist finds that none are righteous, including himself."
The Bee stings everything from common family life ("Woman Finally Accepts Doctrine Of Total Depravity Now That Daughter Is Two") to lofty academia ("Jesus Was A Socialist Deconstructionist Feminist, Claims Socialist Deconstructionist Feminist Scholar").
However, a headline about President Barack Obama nominating the Canaanite god Moloch to serve on the Supreme Court perfectly illustrates Ford's method, noted Lindvall in an interview. The piece mocks evangelicals who are "totally paranoid" about anything Obama touches, yet also lances the left's ultimate Supreme Court litmus test -- abortion.
Ford, Lindvall added, "is piercing, yet gentle. ... It's more of a poke in the ribs, instead of a poke in the eyes."
Contemporary Christian satire is not new, either. Once upon a time there was a magazine called The Wittenburg Door and, especially in the early days, it had its moments of true insight. However, over time there was a tendency there for writers to center their acidic humor on the foibles of fundamentalists, alone, with all of the jabs coming from moderate to liberal evangelicals who had left all of that stupid stuff behind, if you know what I mean.
The Bee, meanwhile, covers a wide range of subjects, but most of its social-media traction comes from its humor about evangelicals, written by other evangelicals.
In other words, the Bee is "Christian" in the sense that it is a site written by Christians, primarily for Christians, with much of the humor based on a gentle, probing, analysis of the, as I put it in the column, "yins and yangs" of the evangelical niche culture.
But some of this satire, as demonstrated by the Moloch image, has multiple levels. This is where things get complex.
At this point, Bee creator Adam Ford (click here for his own website) is truly exploring territory that mixes Christian doctrine with The Onion. However, check out this recent page at The Onion. Could you run this "story" at The Babylon Bee and get away with it?
This is where I will end, with two crucial questions. First, it is one thing to be funny every now and then. That's easy -- especially when you are doing niche humor for a niche audience.
Consider this classic video for example:
Ah, but could you produce one or more videos a day like this, day after day?
Or how about this online probe-the-megachurches classic? Could the video and script people behind this work for, oh, The Tonight Show or Comedy Central and produce material this good on a regular basis? Yes, bias would be an issue. But at what point does skill and talent win out?
This brings me to the second issue raised, gently, in this podcast: Could Ford take his humor to the next level and truly "go secular," while still viewing the "real" world through his own unique, faith-centered lens?
In other words, will there come a day when "Christian" artists have the courage to make art for everyone, with their worldview soaked into the content? Gosh, I think someone has raised that very issue before.


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Venables and Sugar: A match made in heav…hell
Spurs, managed by Terry Venables had just won the 1991 FA Cup against Nottingham Forest, but they were a club in huge financial trouble. The club were £11m in debt at the end of that season, and the Midland Bank were circling as under the current ownership there was no plan that this debt was going to be paid off. This is where Alan Sugar stepped in. He rang Venables after the Cup Final and advised him that he would match the £3m invested by Venables and his business partners and they would become owners of Tottenham Hotspur. Venables would become Chief Executive and be in charge of all football matters, whilst Sugar who was proving himself to be an astute businessman with his technology company Amstrad, would oversee the business side and club finances.
During their first season in duel charge 1991/1992, Sugar's business expertise not only profited himself but the entire top flight of English football. During that season top level negotiations were taking place that would see the introduction of a Premier League starting the following season 1992/1993. Part of this new league were new TV rights. In 1991/1992 rights for top flight football were split between Match of the Day on BBC and ITV, who were paying around £4m a season to show a few games live. Clubs like Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool attracted the most television coverage, they were in bed with ITV and wanted to keep the next round of negotiations with them. However Premier League Chief Executive Rick Parry insisted that a proper tender process took place. This is where Sugar showed his business acumen. He contacted BSkyB boss Sam Chisholm, and informed him to blow ITV's bid out of the water. Sugar offered to abstain Tottenham's vote, due to his conflict of interests (Amstrad provided 95% of all BSkyB boxes in the country) however despite objections from Arsenal and Manchester United the remaining Premier League chairmen agreed that Spurs should have a vote. BSkyB got the deal by one vote. Spurs vote proving vital to not only BSkyB, but also to Sugar's business interests. With this businessman pulling the strings behind the scenes, and arguably one of the greatest coaches in English football in the last 15 years Venables in charge of the football side, optimism was high at the start of the 1992/1993 season.
With the clubs now flush from cash from the BSkyB TV deal, Spurs started making waves in the transfer market that summer. Southampton defender Neil Ruddock was brought in for £750,000 and young winger Darren Anderton was signed from Southampton's south-coast rivals for £1.75m. The club transfer record was then smashed when Teddy Sheringham was signed from Nottingham Forest for £2.1m. Whilst Sheringham was an excellent signing for Spurs, his transfer ultimately led to Venables departure from White Hart Lane.
The season started slowly for Spurs who were being coached by Ray Clemence and Doug Livermore, in fact the side's first victory was not until the 6th game of the season when Sheringham opened his account for Spurs in a 2-0 victory at home to Sheffield United. For the remainder of 1992, Spurs despite recording impressive victories over Liverpool and Arsenal at White Hart Lane, they really struggled for consistency, as 1992 came to an end Spurs were entrenched in the bottom half of the table.
Terry Venables decided to have a more hands-on approach with the coaching of the side in the New Year, and his brand of football took a while to bare fruition, but when it did it was sumptuous stuff. Spurs entertained Southampton in early February 1993 and they laboured through the 1st half, but then in an inspired spell of play, Spurs scored 4 in 4 minutes 44 seconds. It was amazing. This proved to be the catalyst for Spurs performances for the rest of the season.
Two weeks later champions Leeds were dispatched 4-0 at the Lane, with Sheringham grabbing a hat trick. One goal in particular was a delight. A long raking left footed pass by Neil Ruddock all of 60 yards, picked out on the on-rushing Sheringham in the Leeds box, and he guided his header into the top corner. A wonderful goal. Spurs were buzzing. The Lane was buzzing.
This good form coincided with a FA Cup run when Spurs were dispatching teams with a real swagger. Wimbledon were blown away in a wonderful display of football for 60 minutes and Spurs raced to a 3-0 lead, but it wouldn't be Spurs without a little wobble as the Dons fought back to 3-2. However Spurs were onto the Quarter Final's with a tricky away trip to a Manchester City who themselves were on a great run of form.
Spurs with a great away performance triumphed, as they won 4-2. Not only were Sheringham, Barmby and Anderton proving effective, but other un-sung members of the team were chipping in. None more so, than Nayim who bagged a hat-trick at Maine Road that day.
This led to another North London derby at Wembley against Arsenal, Spurs high on confidence banged and banged on the Arsenal door that day, but Arsenal that season were tough at the back, and they held firm. Tony Adams got the winning goal for Arsenal that day, but despite the defeat Spurs fans were positive about this team's potential.
If you wanted a game to typify the potential of this side, Spurs entertained high flying Norwich over Easter in 1993. Spurs were magnificent. They walloped, and I mean walloped Title-chasing Norwich 5-1. It was attacking vibrant football.
With names like Tim Flowers, Des Walker and Andy Townsend being linked for moves over that summer, Spurs fans were getting giddy with excitement. Apart from the Champions Manchester United, no-one else was playing football on a par with this Spurs side. Adding the steel and ability of Flowers, Walker and Townsend to the mix, could Spurs really push for the title in season 1993/1994?
However all was not a bed of roses behind the scenes. Sugar was getting exasperated with Venables laissez-faire approach to business. Venables proceeded with the transfer of Gordon Durie from Chelsea in 1992, despite being informed by Sugar that there was no money in place to make the transfer. Whilst wonderful on the training pitch Venables was out his depth in the boardroom. Sugar was desperate to pay Venables off, despite the team's success on the pitch. This private matter was leaked to the press by Venables on the night of the Footballer of the Year awards, and then all bets were off!
The club held a board meeting in which Sugar as Chairman had a casting vote, and sacked Terry Venables. However by 6pm that night, a judge had reinstated Venables. It was getting very, very messy. This led to the club's future being played out in the High Court at the Strand. Spurs fans taking side with Venables, poured vitriol on Sugar as he arrived at Court, shouting "Judas" and spitting on him and his wife. During the court proceedings, Venables shot himself in the foot. As mentioned when Spurs signed Sheringham from Nottingham Forest, Venables approached Sugar and said there's a problem in the deal "Cloughie likes a bung". Sugar informed Venables that Spurs under his chairmanship would have absolutely nothing to do with this kind of behaviour. Did Venables listen? Well Sheringham did sign for Spurs in the end, did a bung take place? We will never truly know.
In the High Court Venables' barrister stood up and started to read out the section of Sugar's witness statement about Brian Clough taking a bung over the Teddy Sheringham deal, that was Venables lot. The media went crazy. The judge called a halt to proceedings halfway through the second day, and he upheld Sugar's decision to fire Venables. Despite Venables threatening to fight the matter, he then relented and sold his shares to Sugar for £3m, and that was the end of Terry Venables at Spurs.
Alan Sugar; quick to draw a line under the last couple of months, quickly appointed Spurs legend Ossie Ardiles as manager…but that's a story for another day.


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benefits of music in children's education
The great value of applying music in educating children in colleges and at your house!
Regardless of whether your child may be the next Beyonce or far more possible to sing her solos during the shower, she is bound to benefit from some type of music education. Analysis exhibits that finding out the do-re-mis can assist young children excel in ways beyond the fundamental ABCs.
Far more Than just Music
Investigate has observed that learning music facilitates studying other topics and enhances capabilities that youngsters inevitably use in other places. "A music-rich expertise for young children of singing, listening and moving is seriously bringing an exceptionally really serious advantage to kids because they progress into far more formal discovering," says Mary Luehrisen, executive director with the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Basis, a not-for-profit association that promotes the benefits of generating music.
Producing music involves much more compared to the voice or fingers playing an instrument; a kid finding out about music needs to tap into many talent sets, usually concurrently. As an example, folks use their ears and eyes, likewise as huge and smaller muscle groups, says Kenneth Guilmartin, cofounder of Music Together, an early childhood music advancement program for infants by way of kindergarteners that includes moms and dads or caregivers from the classes.
"Music understanding supports all discovering. Not that Mozart helps make you smarter, but it's an incredibly integrating, stimulating pastime or action," Guilmartin says.
Language Development
"When you look at little ones ages two to nine, one among the breakthroughs in that spot is music's advantage for language improvement, and that is so significant at that stage," says Luehrisen. Although kids come into the globe prepared to decode sounds and phrases, music training aids boost people pure talents. "Growing up in a musically wealthy natural environment is often advantageous for children's language growth," she says. But Luehrisen adds that those inborn capacities should be "reinforced, practiced, celebrated," which can be performed at your home or in a additional formal music schooling setting.
As outlined by the Children's Music Workshop, the impact of music schooling on language advancement can be seen during the brain. "Recent scientific studies have obviously indicated that musical training physically develops the portion of the left side from the brain recognized for being concerned with processing language, and might in fact wire the brain's circuits in precise techniques. Linking acquainted songs to new info can also support imprint information on youthful minds," the group claims.
This romance among music and language advancement can be socially beneficial to younger little ones. "The advancement of language in excess of time tends to boost elements of the brain that aid procedure music," says Dr. Kyle Pruett, clinical professor of kid psychiatry at Yale College of Medicine and also a training musician. "Language competence is at the root of social competence. Musical practical experience strengthens the capacity to become verbally competent."
Elevated IQ
A study by E. Glenn Schellenberg in the University of Toronto at Mississauga, as published within a 2004 concern of Psychological Science, observed a little boost in the IQs of six-year-olds who have been given weekly voice and piano lessons. Schellenberg supplied 9 months of piano and voice lessons to a dozen six-year-olds, drama lessons (to find out if publicity to arts generally versus just music had an result) to a second group of six-year-olds, and no lessons to a third group. The children's IQs have been tested in advance of coming into the 1st grade, then again prior to getting into the second grade.
Surprisingly, the youngsters who had been provided music lessons more than the school year tested on normal 3 IQ factors increased compared to the other groups. The drama group did not possess the similar raise in IQ, but did working experience improved social behavior rewards not witnessed within the music-only group.
The Brain Functions More difficult
Study signifies the brain of the musician, even a young a single, performs in a different way than that of the nonmusician. "There's some excellent neuroscience investigation that youngsters involved in music have greater growth of neural action than folks not in music teaching. When you are a musician and you're enjoying an instrument, you need to be working with extra of the brain," says Dr. Eric Rasmussen, chair of your Early Childhood Music Department on the Peabody Preparatory with the Johns Hopkins University, in which he teaches a specialized music curriculum for young children aged two months to nine many years.
In actual fact, a review led by Ellen Winner, professor of psychology at Boston College, and Gottfried Schlaug, professor of neurology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, observed alterations in the brain pictures of youngsters who underwent 15 months of weekly music instruction and practice. The college students from the research who obtained music instruction had enhanced sound discrimination and fine motor tasks, and brain imaging showed adjustments on the networks in the brain linked with people talents, as outlined by the Dana Foundation, a private philanthropic organization that supports brain research.
Spatial-Temporal Skills
Research has also observed a causal website link involving music and spatial intelligence, which suggests that understanding music can assist small children visualize different aspects that must go with each other, like they would do when solving a math challenge.
"We have some quite fantastic data that music instruction does reliably strengthen spatial-temporal competencies in small children above time," explains Pruett, who aided located the Executing Arts Medication Association. These competencies come into perform in solving multistep problems 1 would experience in architecture, engineering, math, artwork, gaming, and particularly doing work with computers.
Improved Test Scores
A research published in 2007 by Christopher Johnson, professor of music education and music therapy with the University of Kansas, exposed that students in elementary schools with superior music schooling applications scored about 22 % greater in English and twenty % increased in math scores on standardized tests, in comparison to schools with low-quality music programs, regardless of socioeconomic disparities among the schools or college districts. Johnson compares the concentration that music coaching necessitates for the emphasis desired to perform very well on the standardized test.
Other than check score success, Johnson's study highlights the beneficial effects that a high quality music schooling can have on a young child's results. Luehrisen explains this psychological phenomenon in two sentences: "Schools which have rigorous applications and high-quality music and arts teachers most likely have high-quality teachers in other regions. In the event you have an setting the place there are a lot of people accomplishing creative, good, great things, joyful points, even those who are not doing which have a tendency to go up and do greater."
And it does not finish there: along with better effectiveness effects on concentration-based duties, music coaching may help with primary memory recall. "Formal education in music is additionally connected with other cognitive strengths like verbal recall proficiency," Pruett says. "People who have had formal musical teaching are usually fairly very good at remembering verbal information stored in memory."
Staying Musical
Music can increase your child' skills in learning together with other nonmusic duties, but it's important to have an understanding of that music will not make one particular smarter. As Pruett explains, the many intrinsic gains to music education involve remaining disciplined, finding out a skill, getting portion with the music planet, managing performance, becoming component of a thing it is possible to be proud of, and even struggling having a under best instructor.
"It's essential not to oversell how clever music can make you," Pruett says. "Music tends to make your child fascinating and delighted, and good will come later. It enriches their appetite for things that bring you pleasure and for your close friends you meet."
Though moms and dads may hope that enrolling their little one inside a music plan will make her a greater student, the primary motives to supply your little one using a musical education should be to assist them develop into extra musical, to value all elements of music, and to respect the system of mastering an instrument or studying to sing, that's worthwhile on its own merit.
"There is often a massive advantage from staying musical that we really do not understand, but it is personal. Music is for music's sake," Rasmussen says. "The advantage of music training for me is about currently being musical. It gives you have a better knowing of by yourself. The horizons are larger once you are involved in music," he adds. "Your understanding of artwork and the world, and just how you could assume and express yourself, are enhanced."


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European-Style B&B Minutes from DC Attractions
Located about a block from a Metrorail station, the Bethesda Court Hotel offers easy access to downtown DC. A quick train ride can put you at the foot of the Washington Monument or on the cobblestone streets of Georgetown. But there are plenty of reasons to stick around Bethesda too¬. Galleries, boutiques, and a new independent movie theater lie just steps away from the hotel. Bethesda Court also provides complimentary limo rides within a 3-mile radius—an area that encompasses the National Institutes of Health and its many research labs.
The hotel was recently updated with European details, including gold-trimmed picture frames and silk drapes in the guest rooms. Pedestal sinks and granite countertops add touches of luxury to the marble bathrooms. Public spaces include an old English garden courtyard furnished with wooden loungers and patio tables.
Bethesda, MD: Affluent Enclave Neighboring DC
Bethesda has some of the cosmopolitan flavor of DC, but feels decidedly quieter. There are a dozen or so art galleries in the downtown area and more than 200 restaurants representing cuisines from around the world. One of the many historic highlights worth a visit is the Bethesda Theatre, a restored 1930s Art Deco movie theater. Today it showcases a variety of live entertainment acts ranging from children's shows to Off Broadway plays and musicals. As a thriving cultural center, it's easy to see why Forbes once named Bethesda America's Most Educated Small Town.


text: Beautiful solid wood vanity w/ matching stool. Simple, classic, clean-lined style. The vanity has been refinished with two fresh coats of semi-gloss paint and a new oil-rubbed bronze drawer pull. The drawer slides well, and the mirror tilts. The paint color is a very pale gray that could also be taken for off-white. The stool has been reupholstered with a beautiful purple and white, heavy duty designer fabric. Charmingly petite, the vanity measures: 28"W x 16"D x 50"H.


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Posted November 24, 2017
For San Francisco Bay, the rainy season can bring a surge of pollution from sewage. Often the cause is the cooking and cleanup of rich foods, particularly holiday meals. Cooking rich foods like turkey, roasts, gravy, and desserts creates fats, oil, and grease that get washed down the drain during cleanup of pots, pans, and fryers.
Even small amounts of fat from your kitchen, plus small amounts from all your neighbors, can add up to a sewer line clogged with hardened fat. Sewage can then back up in homes, yards and even neighborhood streets. From there, sewage can be washed into storm drains, where it flows directly into local creeks and the Bay.
Sewage pollution causes problems that range from skin infections in swimmers to disease in sea lions to algae blooms that choke off the oxygen supply of fish and aquatic plants.
We can all keep our kitchens from polluting the Bay—and avoid sewage backups in our homes and neighborhoods.
Here are tips for Bay-friendly fat cleanup:
- Avoid washing these foods down the drain: cooking oil, meat fat, lard, shortening, butter, dairy products, margarine, fatty food scraps, sauces, gravy, and salad dressing.
- Pour cooled fats and oils into a can with a lid, and put the can in the garbage.
- Wipe down greasy pots, pans, and dishes with a paper towel before washing them. Dispose of the paper towel in your kitchen scrap recycling or in the garbage.
- Don't use hot water or the garbage disposal to wash fats down the drain. Water cools through the pipes, causing fats to harden into clogs further along in the sewer system.
- Drop off large amounts of cooking oil—like used oil from a fryer—at Bay Area recycling locations.
Here are a few locations around the Bay Area where you can recycle large amounts of cooking oil:
765 Pennsylvania Ave. (between 22nd & 23rd St.), San Francisco
Phone: (415) 642-7378
Central Contra Costa Household Hazardous Waste Facility:
4797 Imhoff Pl., Martinez
Phone: 1-800-646-1431
230 Bay Place, Oakland
Note: Self-service receptacle is located in the far right corner of the lower parking area.
Phone: (510) 834-9800
For more East Bay sites: East Bay Municipal Utility District's residential cooking oil and dropoff list
For more San Francisco sites: SF Greasecycle's list of used cooking oil drop-off sites
Photo by Chris Goldberg, Flickr/CC


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Letter to National Board
August 27, 2012 Leave a comment
Dear National Board Members:
On behalf of your DC Chapter, I would like to offer you a sense of our membership.
After a lengthy, wide-ranging, and honest discussion, our members voted overwhelmingly to encourage you to endorse the Romney-Ryan ticket. However, the remaining few, as well as some members of the majority, expressed legitimate concerns as to the anti-gay positions the candidates have assumed on certain issues of significance to our community generally, and gay Republicans specifically. We realize that you are aware of these issues and assume that these will be a part of your discussion as you decide the endorsement question.
If you favor our recommendation, we ask that you accompany an endorsement with a qualifier noting the significant differences we have with the ticket on some social and civil liberty issues and an expression of Log Cabin's intention of continuing to vigorously encourage the ticket and the Party to revise their positions to more directly reflect the true values of our Grand Old Party. We also feel that our national Executive Director, who we firmly stand behind, as well as other ambassadors of the organization, should seek a private meeting with the Governor, much in the way the Austin-12 did with George W. Bush in 2000 in order to create a dialogue about our issues outside of the spotlight of the media.
Finally, please be assured that our members firmly support the election of Governor Romney over President Obama, because of his outstanding fiscal and foreign relations policies and his efforts to reduce the size of government. We will work as hard as we can to support his election and are confident that he and the Party will continue to at least receive with an open mind our input on those topics on which we have agreed to disagree.
We look forward to hearing your decision and working to elect inclusive Republicans in November.
Robert Turner II
DC Log Cabin Republicans


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Bloggers.com Featured Profile
I was really surprised to have a couple of new foreign Twitter followers yesterday when I came home from church. I accepted their requests of course, but little did I know that my profile on Bloggers.com was already featured. It took me about two hours to finally see their tweets about me and well, as usual when I get shocked and excited, I screamed like a little girl-literally. :blush:
So yeah, it rattled a couple of living things in this huge box and it may be a little embarrassing but I was just so in awe because I haven't even accessed my Bloggers.com profile for weeks! Plus, I was not sure I was even getting votes let alone enough to be featured, but I did and I am just really thankful.
I've received comments from people I don't even know congratulating me and some were even telling me that they're glad I was finally featured. And I was just like, "Wow!" there really are people reading my blog after all and some of them really liked what I write about. And although the comments were not that many that it floods my comment box on Bloggers.com, still
they're something. Oh no, scratch that, that's really something!
Thank you for all the people who commented, voted and liked my blog! I was honestly thinking of transferring this blog to my other domain because I cannot access it without a proxy, but with such honor, how could I ever do it? I might just stick to using proxies just to add some content. Cheers guys and Godspeed everyone!
Filed under Achievement, General


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Heart River Animal Hospital, PC
4415 Memorial Highway, Mandan, ND 58554
Phone: (701) 663-0123 | Fax: (701) 663-0100
Mon-Thurs: 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM
Friday: 7:30 AM to 3:30 PM
Sat & Sun: Emergencies Only
Heart River Animal Hospital is proud to serve Mandan, ND and surrounding areas. We are dedicated to providing the highest level of veterinary medicine along with friendly, compassionate service.
We believe in treating every patient as if they were our own pet, and giving them the same loving attention and care. We are a group of highly trained, experienced animal lovers who are devoted to giving our patients the best care possible.
If you have any questions about how we can care for your pet, please don't hesitate to call us at (701) 663-0123. Thank you!
Our Philosophy: We value your pet as part of our family and will work with you to ensure their long and healthy life.
Our goal is to maintain and strengthen the bond you share by providing the highest standard of care.
Veterinary Website by DOCTOR Multimedia


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Foreclosure activity in Sonoma County has fallen to pre-housing crash levels, as a rebound in home prices and government actions sharply lowered the number of residents losing their homes.
The county recorded 82 homes lost to foreclosure in the third quarter, according to San Diego-based information service DataQuick. That was the lowest number since 49 foreclosures occurred in the fourth quarter of 2006 — months before the county's median home sales price began a decline of 50 percent.
The number of homes entering foreclosure also is back to levels of seven years ago. In the third quarter, the county recorded 199 notices of default, the first step in the foreclosure process. Excluding this year's first quarter, that figure was lower than for any other period going back to early 2006.
Foreclosures peaked in the county five years ago.
In the third quarter of 2008, 933 homes were lost at auctions or taken back by banks. The year ended with 2,800 foreclosures.
In contrast, in the first nine months of this year, the county has recorded 364 foreclosures.
Since 2007, 11,000 county homeowners have lost houses and condominiums in foreclosures — roughly 1 in every 10 homes here with a mortgage.
In California, experts attribute this year's slowdown partly to such government interventions as a new state law that took Jan. 1 — the Homeowner Bill of Rights.
They also point to settlements between the nation's largest banks and state officials aimed at decreasing foreclosures. More than 2,000 county homeowners received reductions in their loan balances or were allowed to walk away from their mortgages in short sales under a 2012 mortgage settlement that wiped out $272 million in housing debt.
"Lots of legal, regulatory and political hurdles popped up, slowing the foreclosure rate," said John Walsh, DataQuick president. "Then the economy stabilized and home prices started rising."
Lenders statewide filed 20,314 notices of default in the third quarter, a decrease of 58.6 percent from a year earlier, according to DataQuick.
Trustees deeds, the final loss of a home to foreclosure, totaled 8,030 statewide last quarter. That was the lowest amount for any quarter since the fourth quarter of 2006.


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One of the real accomplishments of Shame is that director Steve McQueen manages to take the very temptations that Hollywood so often uses to draw people to the box office--sex, beautiful women, attractive actors--and twists in it on its head. The magic of this subtle yet brilliant little trick is the fact that instead of buying into a "time is money" feel, McQueen lingers in every scene. We have long, fleshed out gazes into Brandon's life instead of brief snippets and highlights. At one point, Brandon goes on a date, and we get the first ten minutes of the date in a single shot, getting everything from what food they order to the way they awkwardly stumble from topic to topic with nervous first date smiles. By dragging the scene out without any snappy cuts and breaks, we've ceased to become movie-watchers and instead become voyeurs, hooked on watching these characters bear themselves bit by bit.
McQueen doesn't bother with trying to explain why Brandon is the way he is or what led him and his sister to lead such self-destructive lives with distracting flashbacks and forced exposition; instead, he holds us in every second of the painful present and doesn't let go. As Michael Fassbender said, "There is no place to hide in this whole script." Between the fearless acting, the solid script, and the unflinching eye of Steve McQueen, Shame is, if nothing else, the most courageous film of the year. The characters bare themselves (literally and figuratively) again and again, yet, like Brandon, when the film tempts us with "Want to play?", we find ourselves unable to look away.