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> Update: All Passengers Disembarked from Carnival Triumph; Bus Carrying Passengers Breaks Down
Date Published: February 15, 2013
Carnival Cruise Lines
Profile and Reviews
Cruise News
Update: All Passengers Disembarked from Carnival Triumph; Bus Carrying Passengers Breaks Down
Weigh In on the Triumph Fire Saga
Carnival Splendor Fire Redux: This Again?
First-Hand Tales From Debarking Passengers
Compensation for Impacted Passengers
Updated: 10:35 a.m. EST
-- Carnival Triumph is being moved to dry dock, where inspections of the ship will begin.
Updated: 8:00 a.m. EST
-- A bus carrying passengers from Carnival Triumph to New Orleans broke down during its trip, according to a series of tweets from passenger Clark Jones.
Jones took to Twitter around 3 a.m. EST, to say: "Seriously? This is happening. Our bus is broke down."
Jones then added the hashtags #helpmejesus, #carnivalbusbreakdown and #carnivaltriumph to his next tweet, "2:30 a.m. Bus broken down. Not going anywhere."
According to Jones, the bus was broken down for approximately an hour before passengers and luggage were moved to a replacement bus. He and the other passengers have now reached New Orleans, according to his account.
Updated: 5:30 a.m. EST
-- Carnival has officially confirmed that all passengers have been disembarked from Carnival Triumph, according to CNN.
(1:30 a.m. EST) --
Carnival Triumph finally arrived in Mobile after spending four days at sea with little electricity and few toilets.
Tugboats pulled the stricken ship and the more than 4,200 people onboard into port at 9:15 p.m. (8:15 p.m. EST) in a drama that played out on live TV.
Passengers waved towels and flashlights from the railings to show their relief, and chants of "Let me off! Let me off!" could be heard coming from the ship.
Prior to boarding the ship himself,
Carnival Cruises Lines
' CEO, Gerry Cahill, spoke to the crowd of journalists, passengers' family members and well-wishers.
"First, I'd like to start with saying how very thankful we all are that the ship is alongside and everyone is safe.
"I am so appreciative of the efforts of everyone involved in bringing the Carnival Triumph safely to the Port of Mobile.
"I want to thank the United States Coast Guard, The Port and City of Mobile, Customs and Border Protection, and the countless other parties who have been incredibly helpful throughout.
"I'd also like to thank our shoreside teams for working around the clock to make this happen. And finally, I want to thank our crew for all they have done. We have seen and heard so many reports, online and in the media, from passengers praising the crew's hard work.
"I am now going onboard to talk with our guests and crew, as well as to help with getting our guests off the ship and on their way home. Thank you."
The company estimated that it would take four to five hours to get all passengers, who had to be cleared by customs officials, off the ship, which had only one working elevator.
Passengers are being taken by bus either to Galveston, Texas, which is about seven hours away, or to New Orleans, two hours away, where Carnival has booked 1,500 hotel rooms.
Triumph crew members also disembarked from the ship in Mobile and will be put up in hotels there. They will then be reassigned to other vessels in the Carnival fleet.
Investigations into the cause of the engine room fire will be undertaken by the Bahamas Maritime Authority, as the ship is flagged in the Bahamas. Earlier this month, Triumph underwent repairs for propulsion problems that stemmed from an electrical issue within one of the ship's alternators.
Weigh In on the Triumph Fire Saga
Carnival Splendor Fire Redux: This Again?
First-Hand Tales From Debarking Passengers
Compensation for Impacted Passengers
--by Adam Coulter, U.K. Editor
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The 2014 WGC Cadillac Championship will be hosted at the Trump National Doral in Miami, Florida between Thursday 6th March and Sunday 9th March.
The Cadillac Championship prize fund is $9,000,000 for the 2014, $50,000 more than last year's tournament. Tiger Woods is the defending champion at the 2014 Cadillac Championship.

subset: commoncrawl


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Content Design
One mobile content expert explains why the ever-important mobile strategy for branded content should be to think holistically about the audience rather than to go through a rigid UI checklist.
Just in time for 4th of July, a new content meme is taking off: USA maps that seem primed to provoke debate and dissent. And they're working. If the Founding Fathers had the Thrillist "Red, White, & Booze" map, they'd be arguing too much over Yuengling vs. Yards to get a darned thing done.
Virtually every content site on the internet runs off of a database, but that central fact is obscured from the person creating the content.
What did designers of various fonts used by Obama and Romney have in mind when designing them?
Brands that aren't on Instagram now could be making a huge mistake.
With a little creativity and imagination, marketers can captivate subscribers and convince them not to click the dreaded unsubscribe link.


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OMEA Honors Capital University's Jim Swearingen for Distinguished Service
23rd annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Learning January 20
Nursing Students Take Top Honors at Statewide Competition
see more news & events
*OptionalDownload the PDF with detailed course descriptions
Once a completed application packet has been received, it will be sent to the Capital University faculty member who supervises the program. Then, a review of the entire application and an aural skills assessment for the student will take place. If you are interested in applying to the Hungary Program through Capital University, please send your application packets to: Jennifer Adams Dr. Sandra Mathias Capital University Capital UniversityOffice of International Education Conservatory of Music1 College and Main 1 College and MainColumbus, OH 43209-2394 Columbus, OH 43209-2394(614) 236-6170 (614) 236-6267Classes begin in early September and end in mid-December. You can decide when you'd like to return to the United States at the end of the program. You may opt to stay for a second semester in the spring. Please contact Capital University for updated program cost and date information.


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Home Congregations About Us Bookstore Press Room Giving
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In "Moral Tales," a Tapestry of Faith program
Take a few minutes to evaluate the session with your co-leader immediately afterward, while it is fresh. If this is the final session, you may wish to write some suggestions to future leaders of Moral Tales and/or leaders who will work next with this group of children. Make note of any particular activities and approaches you found most /least effective with this particular group and any information about group dynamics that may be helpful to them.
You might find it helpful to consider these questions:
For more information contact web @ uua.org.
This work is made possible by the generosity of individual donors and congregations. Please consider making a donation today.
Last updated on Thursday, October 27, 2011.
Sidebar Content, Page Navigation
More Ways to Search
Donate to Support This Program and the Ongoing Work of the UUA
Read or subscribe to UUA.org Updates for the latest additions to our site.
Learn more about the Beliefs & Principles of Unitarian Universalism, or read our online magazine, UU World, for features on today's Unitarian Universalists. Visit an online UU church, or find a congregation near you.


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Risk and Compliance IT professionals
Ernst & Young FSO LondonCompetitive
We're helping shape the future of financial services and want experienced, entrepreneurial Risk and compliance IT professional of exceptional talent to join us. You'll bring intellectual curiosity to every challenge and give our clients advice that helps them do business better.
If you have experience in Risk and Compliance IT, including Credit and Market Risk, Treasury, or Compliance with a background in financial services,we have outstanding opportunities working with the world's most successful companies.
What you will do
Join us as a Risk and Compliance IT professional and you'll be involved in:
• Risk Technology architecture
• Data architecture
• Programme or project management
• Risk IT analysis and transformation
• Sourcing
• Cost reduction
• IT operating model.
What you need
We're looking for people who have:
• Technical expertise and therefore client credibility in the field of risk and regulatory technology
• Delivery of major risk/ regulatory transformation programmes
• Experience in the delivery of major risk/regulatory transformation programmes
• Experience of developing propositions that are current and relevant to our clients
• Prior consulting experience at a Big 4, major system integrator or top tier consulting firm; investment or retail bank; insurance or asset management firm; or, financial services regulator
• An understanding of the vendor landscape.
We have Risk and Compliance career opportunities in the UK and throughout Europe working with the world's leading financial services organisations.
It's more than a job application. It's about your future.
At Ernst & Young our inclusive work environment means that everyone's opinion is valued. This enables us to provide better advice and ideas to our clients, which in turn helps you develop as an individual to achieve your potential and make a difference.
- Posted
- 22 May 2012
- Closes
- 24 June 2012
- Ref
- Job Sector
- Risk Management
- Experience Level
- Department Head, Executive, Management, Officer
- Contract Type
- Permanent
About Ernst & Young FSO
Ernst & Young is in the business of delivering seamless, consistent, high-quality professional services worldwide. We have 152,000 individuals across 140 countries, with an array of talents, who deliver these services daily.


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Lawson: We're not a boyband
IT'S always nice when a band choose a name that's particularly meaningful to them. But there are few stories quite as personal as Lawson's.
The band — singer Andy Brown, guitarist Joel Peat, bassist Ryan Fletcher and drummer Adam Pitts — formed in 2009 as The Grove. But they changed their name after Andy was diagnosed with a potentially fatal brain tumour.


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Original post at http://dscotthagan.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-sound-of-other-peoples-children.html
The sights and sounds of our front yard differ depending on the time of day. When school is out our boys are often seen throwing the ball, with our little white Maltese standing watch. However, when school is in session there is a different sound in the neighborhood. It is the sound of other children at play. The playground of the neighborhood school a block from our home isn't more than a hundred yards away. Our boys attend another school, about a mile from here, so the sounds I hear on days I am around the house are the sounds of other people's children.
The sound of children at play is high-pitched and steady. We can remember from our own youth what kind of games illicit such sounds: tag, chase, cowboys, and the like. The details of the game never mattered much when we were that age, as long as we could stretch our legs and were not behind a desk. But, on this day, the sounds matter a great deal. It is a sound that is more important and more precious today.
The news coverage out of Newtown, Connecticut today is terrible. Children and adults killed in senseless violence. Our nation is praying for those families. I am. I trust you are, too. Let our prayers not stop before they turn us to a deepened commitment to care and concern for other's people children every day and not just on days like this. I will embrace my children more tightly today. May it not stop there. For me or for you. May our passion for raising children to mature into adults who care for others and don't do harm extend beyond our own.
The sound of someone else's children at play reminds me of what a precious stewardship we have been given on this earth. Many have rightly proposed that we are measured by how we treat other people's children. Jesus' own words offer important examples: If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea. (Matthew 18:6). Earlier Jesus gives a positive example: And whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward." (Matthew 10:42)
Our first reaction to the news from Connecticut is to pray. I hope we don't stop with a prayer. I hope we find a place to invest in the lives of other people's children. Volunteer at your local school to read or sit in the lunchroom. Offer to mentor a child through a local agency, like the Matthew Promise Academy at Open Door here in Columbus. Sign up to teach a Children's Sunday School class in your local congregation. Of course, not every person can do this directly but you can do something. Lend your support, contribute money, write notes of encouragement, and certainly keep praying. I want the sound of my children and others to remain that of joy and play.


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Welcome to Bad Ash Training
*(No staplers were injured during the making of this office challenge)
Fast forward 12 months- Total combined weight loss of over 45 lbs., both less than 12% body fat, and amazingly, now there are only two chins amongst the two gentlemen. All was good in the world. But alas, there was something missing. Both guys couldn't find a protein company that related to them; enough of the chemical blends, ingredients they couldn't pronounce, ridiculous tech names, and absurd flashy labels. They needed something old school, simple, honest, and most importantly, something clean. They couldn't find it, so they created it.
Which brings us to today, the creation of SLAP NUTRITION, LLC. Created by folks who wanted to stop getting slapped around by the nutrition industry and start slapping back for the little guy.
So here we are……Not taking ourselves too seriously, having fun, and Slapping the Nutrition Industry One WHEY or Another (TM)


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Rob is a developer who has a passion for developing low maintenance solutions. He has been programming in .NET since the early days of 1.0. In his day job he works on the awesome Puppet, but his opinions expressed in many locations are his own. Rob is a C# MVP, ASPInsider, C# Insider, an MCSD for .NET, holds a bachelor's degree in MIS from Kansas State University, is active in his local .Net User Group, a regional INETA speaker, an eagle scout, and a veteran officer of the US Army Reserve. He also presents on topics he finds interesting a few times a year.
His goal in life is to make things easier/better for those around him. His goals in development are to bring low maintenance solutions (using SOLID where applicable) that solve the problem at hand and are not necessarily focused on the shiniest new tool/framework.
He works on several frameworks that people like. He invented yet another apt-get framework for Windows, named chocolatey, hoping this time it would stick. Rob is very active in OSS and manages several OSS projects. Some of those projects include UppercuT, RoundhousE, chocolatey and NuGet.
He started out in life going down the path of artist and converted to developer when he realized it could make a bigger impact on folks and realized he could work with computers. Rob got his first lessons in Microsoft Windows at age 18 when he purchased a Gateway PC that needed a lot of love and attention. That's when he first fell in love with computers, both fixing them and creating things. It wasn't until a couple of years into college before he realized he could make a career of computers and helping people solve problems.
In his spare time he spends time with his wife and two kids who keep him busy during the daylight hours.
Rob is the FerventCoder because he is very passionate about his craft.
Veronica Belmont - about.me user since 2010
"First, customize your page. It's easy and fun to design!"
Hi! I'm currently living in (City), where I work at (Work Place) doing (Job Title). When I'm not working I like to (Hobby), (Interest) and (Passion). Connect with me!
"Next, connect services and send people to your page."
"That's it! Let about.me do all of the work for you."
Showcase a 360 degree view of who you are
Help people find and follow you on your social networks
Be found for new opportunities


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September 11, 2009
(Portland, Maine) NO on 1/Protect Maine Equality and the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) jointly released the following statement from UUA President Rev. Peter Morales today:
The May 2009 passage of marriage equality legislation in Maine was a historic step towards justice for same-sex couples and their families. We owe tremendous thanks to the citizens of Maine, including many Unitarian Universalists, and to their elected officials who supported this legislation.
But now marriage equality is in danger in Maine. I call upon supportive Mainers to reaffirm their commitment to fairness for all families by voting against repeal of the legislation recognizing same-sex marriage.
I know that Unitarian Universalists in Maine will continue to be at the forefront of the struggle for equality. Commitment to the inherent worth and dignity of every person is at the core of Unitarian Universalism, and Unitarian Universalists in Maine have a strong history of support for bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender (BGLT) rights. In 1996, the Unitarian Universalist Association called for full legal recognition for same-sex couples nationwide, and our faith community has advocated in support of marriage equality ever since. We will continue this witness in Maine in the coming months.
Unitarian Universalists will stand on the side of love. I invite you to stand with us.
The Unitarian Universalist Association is a faith community of more than 1,000 self-governing congregations that bring to the world a vision of religious freedom, tolerance and social justice.
The UUA has supported civil rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people for several decades. The denomination voted in 1996 to advocate for full legal marriage equality for same-sex couples.
For more information on the UUA, including recent press releases and news articles, please visit our online press room.
Shelby Meyerhoff, Public Witness Specialist Unitarian Universalist Association 25 Beacon Street Boston, MA 02108 (617) 948-6103 pw_specialist @ uua.org
Mark Sullivan, Communications Director NO on 1/Protect Maine Equality 550 Forest Avenue Portland, Maine 04101 (207)899-1330 (207)671-0542 (cell) mark @ protectmaineequality.org
Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Transgender Equality
For more information contact web @ uua.org.
This work is made possible by the generosity of individual donors and congregations. Please consider making a donation today.
Last updated on Tuesday, May 24, 2011.
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Magnify Image UUA President Rev. Peter Morales
Rev. Morales Media Kit with Bio, Photos, and Press Coverage
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Read or subscribe to UUA.org Updates for the latest additions to our site.
Learn more about the Beliefs & Principles of Unitarian Universalism, or read our online magazine, UU World, for features on today's Unitarian Universalists. Visit an online UU church, or find a congregation near you.


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To those who were asking about the BBF and where they may get it outside of Japan. I'm sorry for both the delay in answering your questions and for other things, which I take full responsibility for and will come to in due course.
I have returned to work after a nice break, so my updates to theplasticlens will be dictated by my fatigue levels after shift work and other responsibilities like family which come before writing here.
Let me update you now and explain my previous remark about other things ~ I feel that my enthusiasm over the prospective release of the new toy camera, the twin lens reflex 35mm BBF (Blackbird, Fly) from Superheadz may have generated a lot of (deserved) enthusiasm and anticipation regarding the camera with quite a few people wanting to get their hands on one. After receiving a few queries regarding distribution outside of Japan I contacted my friends at Powershovel/Superheadz about this. The good news is that unlike the Tolne, (which appeared as a blip on the Toy Camera radar screen and then was not to be seen again), the BBF will be being released and yes, it will find a market outside of Japan. The slightly disappointing news for those outside of Japan who would like one now, if not yesterday is that Superheadz don't have ordering for these markets in place yet, but they do have plans for releasing it via third party stores such as (perhaps) Urban Outfitters and places like the MoMA shop in the U.S.A. (edit – and ICP in New York – www.icp.org by the end of October) – for Europe they are still considering options… edit ~ I have since heard of two outlets; Incognito www.incognito-uk.co.uk & The Photographers' gallery www.photonet.org.uk, sometime in mid-October.
They are also looking into a way of providing online ordering for outside countries, but are not able to say when that will be active yet, probably in the new year.
So once again, my apologies for generating premature expectations, for some reason I had thought that Superheadz did have distribution points outside Japan, but that was my mistake, sorry, but rest assured, if you are patient (or if you have a contact in Japan), you will be able to get a BBF eventually!
*note – please see my latest update regarding online ordering outside of Japan.
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October 24, 2014
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Jeff Rapp
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February 25, 2011
Adrian Calyborn Jared Sullinger Kevin Wilson Mikel Leshoure Draymond Green Tim Brewster J.J. Watt Talor Battle Darius Morris Martez Wilson Adam Robinson James Vandenberg Corey Liuget Trevor Mbakwe basketball Jordan Morgan Brady Hoke JaJuan Johnson Aaron Craft Jordan Taylor John Shurna Keaton Nankivil Jon Diebler Ralph Sampson III football Derrell Johnson-Koulianos Rich Rodriguez Ricky Stanzi Kirk Ferentz Bill Lynch Matt Gatens Tandon Doss John Clay David Jackson Demetri McCamey David Lighty Suzy Merchant Jerry Kill E'Twaun Moore
OSU ended the season with two straight losses, allowing 34 points in the B1G title game with Michigan State and 40 more vs. Clemson in the Orange Bowl. The D needs work, but what should Urban Meyer fix first?
vote now
In our latest installment, we look at the state of the Big Ten men's basketball race, declare Michigan State as the winner on the women's side, begin to outline what lies ahead in football and more.
by Jeff Rapp
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Keri Randolph, director of learning for the Southeast Tennessee STEM Innovation Hub, led the Rotarians in an exercise to compare new learning styles with those most of the audience experienced in school.
"STEM (the acronym for science, technology, engineering and math) is about engaging kids in the learning process and getting them doing things hands-on," Southeast Tennessee STEM Innovation Hub managing director Tracey Carisch said. "It's also about a different way of learning, so that kids are learning how to think and learning how to problem solve and learning how to work with their fellow classmates on projects."
This focus connects the classroom with real-life scenarios, giving the student a better sense of how they might use this information in the future. Carisch said they have also emphasized partnerships with local businesses to give students an opportunity to see science and math in action.
"What we want to see is kids engaged and teachers as facilitators," Randolph said.
She pointed out that the new approach gets students engaged and allows them to talk in class. Carisch said this gives the students a sense of ownership.
Having a STEM focus goes beyond adding more classes to a class schedule. According to Carisch, such a focus is about incorporating these subjects into other areas of studies and connecting them.
The STEM Innovation Hub provides continuing training for teachers in how to incorporate a STEM focus into the classroom and embrace new teaching methods.
"If you look back at the '60s, we (United States) were at our scientific boom. That was when every kid wanted to be an astronaut. We had engineers and technologists coming into the field, more and more every year," Carisch said. "Then it started to plateau. Then we started to notice that the number that we needed ... we needed more people who had these science, technology, engineering and math skills but not as many people seemed interested."
There are many theories as why there was a decline in interest, according to Carisch. Some people think that because such a focus was put on making students better readers, science and math suffered.
"We sacrificed math and science at the youngest grade levels," Carisch said.
The National Science Foundation began looking into the problem of a decline in engineers and scientists at 2001. They concluded that students needed to see the subject matter in action in order to be excited about it. Now, STEM programs have been developed for preschool through high school. A major component is critical thinking.
As teachers are striving to create innovative learning atmospheres, they are also creating new teaching planning strategies. Carisch said as a STEM focus encourages group work among students, teachers are also sharing ideas and strategies to better reach students with the information they need.
"We don't want schools to be standing alone teaching kids and for business to be over here waiting for them to get out," Carisch said.
In Hamilton County a STEM High School has been established on the campus of Chattanooga State Community college. Here, instead of the teacher giving the students information, students have read (or watched video containing) most of the information. The classroom is then a way for them to use the information in a project.


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Described as a �facial in a jar,� TAMMY FENDER Epi-Peel Formula No. E-517 contains rosemary, spearmint and purifying clay. The multi-tasking mask and peel formula leaves skin free of impurities and brightly polished. $80, tammyfender.com.
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Cosmetics Sponsored by
The Mini Synthetic Brush Kit is a travel kit containing eight brushes using soft, luxurious synthetic materials that are man-made and 100% animal-free.
The collection includes a large domed powder, blush, deluxe oval fluff, large angle fluff, chisel double angle, camouflage oval, lip and small angle brushes. 516-437-4080, www.brushup.com


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Reviewed Tomato Feta Pasta Salad
Apr 13, 2012 in Food Network Community Toolbox on FoodNetwork.com
"Amazing recipe! I make it fairly often because my husband just raves over it and he is a v-e-r-y picky eater! He's a meat and potatoes kind of guy but loves this pasta salad. As other folks commented, I doubled the dressing, too. Think I'll add artichokes next time, too. Thank you Ina!""


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Rochelle Rosen, PhD Assistant Professor The Miriam Hospital Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine Coro West, Suite 309 164 Summit Ave Providence, RI 02906 Phone: 401-793-8182 Fax: email@example.com
Rochelle Rosen, PhD, is a medical anthropologist and an assistant professor in the Department of Community Health at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and The Miriam Hospital. She is also affiliated faculty at the International Health Institute of Brown University. She received her PhD in anthropology from Brown University and completed postdoctoral training in behavioral medicine at the Centers. Her research interests are focused in two areas: 1) HIV-prevention for women via vaginal microbicide acceptability; and 2) preventive health care issues in the South Pacific island of American Samoa. She specializes in using qualitative methods in multidisciplinary project teams to collect formative and evaluative data on people's health care experiences. Recent projects include qualitative translational research to help design and implement a community-based intervention on diabetes in American Samoa, and the cultural and linguistic translation of an assessment of alcohol and drug use into Samoan.
More about Rochelle Rosen, PhD:


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How to "fix" low UG GPA?
CFHey WSO,
Some users may recall older posts in which I talk about having a low GPA. I'm still doing internships and have delayed graduation yet again in an effort to find a job I'm comfortable with. I think (hope) I'll succeed, eventually, and with the help of WSO and my real-world connections.
However, one thing I've been considering is: how do I "fix" a low GPA out of undergrad? I'm from a non-target, which definitely doesn't help my situation. However, I'm at a stage where the circumstances that led to the low grades are no longer an issue.
- I can't do a MSF because my GPA is too low for an admit to any good programs (barring 800 on the GMAT, which I'm not counting on).
- I finished my undergrad program (120 credit hours), so I can't retake classes (nor do I have the money for it considering I'd have to retake a lot of them).
- I've considered a second bachelors degree from a NYC school: cheap enough to afford and finish in 1 year, but would only fulfill the express purpose of getting a good GPA. Baruch isn't exactly prestigious.
- Go to a lower-ranked MSF (or eventaully MBA). I don't like this option.
- Save a small country and win a Nobel Prize to offset the GPA. For some reason, I'm not confident I can do this (uplifting commentary is welcome).
Thus far, the second degree from a similar non-target seems to be the best option. I'm aware that it will only correct a grade deficiency (and even then, transcripts reveal all), but the number seems to be that important in applying for jobs in finance. If I can finish it within my 2-3 years as whatever I start out as, why not?
As well, I read of a member here who took a good number of MS courses at NYU (almost 10, IIRC) and got a 4.0 as an independent student. He used this to offset his 2.7 and get into a top-10 business school. This may be a consideration, but I don't have nearly enough money to do that right now.
Any advice?
Thanks for the help everyone, it has really helped throughout my (fledgling) career.
Equities are for chumps.
You don't have enough money
STYou don't have enough money yet are looking to get another bachelors. That makes no sense. What gaurantees do you have that you will get a job you like when you get the other degree? None at all. Get a non-IB job and look to lateral or get a Masters once you can afford. Not every single IB/S&T etc. person is from a top Masters/MBA etc. I dont know why you assume this. Consider going through a staffing firm to break in and do a BO/MO role. In my opinion, you are going about it entirely the wrong way, accept your GPA and do what you can with it.
Frank Sinatra - "Alcohol may be man's worst enemy, but the bible says love your enemy."
Tough to neutralize it right
IBTough to neutralize it right now. For MBA admissions you build an alternative transcript at a school like UCLA Extension, etc.
NPhttp://mfe.berkeley.edu/academics/preprogram.html would be a cheap option at this point, and I know it will be looked upon favourably if you wish to apply to MFEs.
The extension programs or a second degree would both also be great options.
I would say just find a job,
HFI would say just find a job, any job. Once you've worked for a year or so. Your GPA doesn't really come up when interviewing after that time. At least for me.
Network your face off, and keep looking to get better at that. Follow peoples advice, Stay positive.
Fear is the greatest motivator. Motivation is what it takes to find profit.
How low is low? A 2.8 would
?How low is low? A 2.8 would probably paired with a strong >700 GMAT get you into a tier 2 MSF, Rochester has a 10% of 2.8
G.M.Trevelyan: Whoever
Whoever extends their education due to their gpa is absolutely pathetic in my mind. Your GPA sucks... who cares? It limits your options, sure, but get the fuck out of school and start doing something useful.
You clearly visit this forum to talk down to other users. Grow up.
What is your GPA and GMAT
OWhat is your GPA and GMAT score. Do you have any relevant internships or work experience.
Give me these three and Ill tell you which programs you are competitive for.
IMO, most people underestimate their MSF chances.
Going off the idea of a
?Going off the idea of a strong GMAT/weak GPA, let's say a 2.7, 730 a list like this might work:
Reach: Texas, Tulane, Vandy, Villanova
50-50: Illinois, Ohio State, Maryland, Rochester, Syracuse
Safety: American, Brandeis, Florida State, Wake Forest (MA in management, not an MSF)
Obviously you'll need to cut this list down to a more manageable number, but it's somewhere to start.
I don't know how to help with
?I don't know how to help with your case but I can totally relate to this. My GPA was not high at all, barely satisfactory but what helps is that I finished my undergrad in an astonishing time frame.
I'm feeling like a star, you can't stop my shine---Ridin' Solo


text:
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Tough and durable enough for all your dugout gear, the NIKE® Keystone baseball duffel bag features a large, full-length main compartment that holds a helmet, glove, and other key essentials. A separate sleeve holds up to 3 bats.
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price was right but just too small for my needs
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There doesn't seem to be a single memory company standing still at the moment; every week we're getting a press release from someone that they've released a new high speed kit. PC3-16000 seems so last year all of a sudden as PC3-17600 has become the number high end users want.
Today we'll be looking at an A-DATA kit which is part of the Gaming series. While we haven't seen anything from the Gaming series before, hopefully the modules follow the same winning formula that we've seen on previous kits of A-DATA memory.
Like most kits we've seen recently, this one is a 4GB kit which means it's best suited for your P55 based platform which has become a favorite to people who want the performance but don't want to spend the big dollars associated with the X58 platform.
For now let's have a quick look at the package and modules before seeing how we went with the kit itself when it came to overclocking and all round performance.


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Oct 28, 2010 1:03 AM by Shelby Rhodes (staff)
There are lots of fun ways to celebrate Halloween on the Central Coast. This year the Charles Paddock Zoo in Atascadero is looking to add to the celebration.
"Zoo Boo" Saturday will feature a kids theme Halloween celebration for the family.
Visitors are encouraged to bring a decorated vegetable for the carving contest. Beware, however, even the animals like to join in on the pumpkin fun.
"The meercats had some crickets in their (pumpkins), there were special fruit treats for the spider monkeys, same for the lemurs," Alan Baker, Director of the Charles Paddock Zoo said. "So it's their favorite foods and treats and we hide them to kind of give them a chance to search for them and find them."
Of course it wouldn't be Halloween with out some treats, so each child will be given a free bag of candy.
Offensive or inappropriate comments are subject to removal. To report a comment, please e-mail us at email@example.com, and include the name of the story and information on the comment.
Thank you! KSBY.com
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Skip Maine state header navigation
March 10, 2005
Colby College, Roberts Union, Whitney Room
Attending: First Lady Karen Baldacci, Patrick Phillips, Katie Bauer, Lyn Brown, Mary Madden, Harry Osgood, Liz Fisher, Lauren McNally (for Lisa Plimpton), Carla Ritchie, Wendy Ault, Diana Doiron, Rebecca Sockbeson, Jeanne Whynot-Vickers, Joyce McPhetres, Susan Corrente (facilitator)
Guests: Karl Covert (SAD 71), Mark Tappan ( Colby College), Ruth Ellen Cohen ( Bangor Daily News)
WELCOME: Patrick and Susan welcomed the members of the Task Force and their guests.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF DECEMBER 10, 2004 MEETING: The minutes of the meeting were approved by consensus.
SCHEDULING MATTERS/UPDATES: Susan reported that, due to the snowstorm on the day of our meeting scheduled in February we missed a presentation by Steve Wessler; due to scheduling needs he will now be meeting with the Research Team on April 25, 2005 from 2 PM - 4 PM in Room # 500 of the Cross State Office Building and Task Force members are welcome at the meeting. Also, two more meetings (April and May, 2005) are scheduled for the Task Force. During the summer months of June and July, there will be no meetings of the whole Task Force but the Research Team will proceed with the work on the Report, and the Event Planning Team will be reconvened to do parallel work on the rollout of the Report, and professional development on the recommended practices that will be included in the Report, with the full Task Force reconvening in August to discuss the final draft of the Report and the plans developed by the Event Planning Team.
PLAN TO RECONVENE THE "EVENT PLANNING TEAM" FOR ROLLOUT/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Susan noted that we will be reconvening the Event Planning Team soon to track the work of the Research Team on the Report and begin to plan both the rollout of the Report and the professional development on the recommended practices to be included in the Report. The discussion at our December Task Force meeting confirmed that the first level of professional development should be raising the level of awareness of the issues, given the values discussion this will involve; and that it should include a sharing of ideas among those teachers/administrators and others who have implemented practices that have been successful. Members today also reiterated the concern that more and more teachers are expressing feelings of being overloaded, and we'll want to be sensitive to the perception that we are adding "one more thing" to their already very full plates. Susan noted that some parts of the plan can be developed even as the recommended practices are still being developed by the Research Team. Susan will send an email to the Task Force, indicating which members are on the Event Planning Team and inviting others who are interested to join this group; she will also set a schedule of meetings for this Team through July/August 2005.
Patrick suggested that the Event Planning Team may also want to connect to other Department initiatives, where relevant, to avoid duplication of events and reach groups that have already gathered for other professional development opportunities.
PRESENTATION/DISCUSSION: Karl Covert (SAD 71): Karl presented his work on "emotion language", which relies in part on the work of Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896 - 1934) on social development. He shared the theory that thinking is not possible without language, and that emotion language is largely absent from classrooms; where it is used in classrooms, students develop the capacity for it. Emotion language contributes greatly to social competence and social competence, in turn, is a good indicator of academic success. In a study of first and second graders, ages 5-8, gender and socio-economic status were found to be not as important as indicators of social competence as emotion language competence and verbal ability. However, research has revealed that mothers use more emotion language with girls than boys, so there is some gender influence there. One Task Force member suggested that this may carry over into the classroom, with the largely female teaching staff in K-12 possibly using more emotion language with girls than boys.
Karl listed the factors needed to promote growth in emotion language and therefore in social competence: (1) an emotionally safe environment; (2) the modeling of the use of emotion language; (3) the development of children's feeling vocabulary; (4) the development of children's understanding of what initiates certain emotion states; and (5) the development for children of scripts from which to learn to express feelings through emotion language. Karl noted that "the Responsive Classroom" includes many of these factors and helps create an environment where the group process manages itself, as opposed to being teacher directed. It was suggested by a Task Force member that we may want to consider classroom management according to these principles as a recommended practice.
Rebecca noted that this was important work for creating opportunities for students to discharge emotional stress, which opportunities are needed by those children who do not have those opportunities at home or anywhere else.
PRESENTATION/DISCUSSION: Mark Tappan ( Colby College): Mark distributed a handout on the Search Institute's Assets Inventory and some related research. He began his presentation by asking members to identify the social and the personal aspect of each of their lives that had contributed to their success; and he showed that several of those mentioned were included in the asset inventory. He noted that males report fewer assets in general but the data for each asset has not yet been disaggregated and would need to be for further study of gender differences. Some racial/ethnic breakdown has been done and he can provide that research upon request. Karen noted that Communities for Children is taking the asset work a step further, with an initiative called "Where Every Child is Known" through which community/school/neighborhood connections are developed. Joyce suggested that it might be helpful to compare schools that are asset rich with those that are not, to see what the implications for student performance are. Harry noted that Colby's mentor program is centered on asset building; Mark confirmed this and indicated that he works with the Colby mentor program.
UPDATE ON REPORT: Mary noted that the Research Team has requested data from the College Board and is continuing to analyze the data that has been gathered to date, particularly on the gaps in male/female performance on the MEA and the NAEP. So far, socio-economic status is emerging as more of an indicator of lower performance than gender. Susan noted that the Team will continue to meet monthly and share the developing Report.
REMINDER OF NEXT MEETING: April 14, 2005, 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM, Cross State Office Building, Room # 105


text:
Statement of Jill Long Thompson
Former Under Secretary for Rural Development
Before the Senate Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development and Related Agencies
March 3, 1998
Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased to be here today to present to the subcommittee the President's Budget request for Rural Development for fiscal year 1999. This request reflects the President's strong commitment to the needs of rural areas even when balancing the Federal Budget has been his highest priority. I think the President's commitment to balancing the budget and the resulting unprecedented economic growth presents us with a very important lesson. The lower deficit has generated the lowest interest rates in decades, thereby lowering the cost of capital which has generated new investment in plants and equipments and created millions of new jobs. In addition, the level of homeownership in this country has reached an all time high of 66%. Perhaps the best news is that the "misery index," the combination of unemployment and inflation, is at its lowest level in 30 years.
Almost all of the new jobs that have been created are in the private sector. The government has been a very important partner in this expansion, but its role has been to create an environment of investor confidence, and this is the way our economy works best. This is also the role we think appropriate in rural areas, to help create the environment that generates confidence and private investment.
I wish I could report to you that the full benefits of this economic expansion have reached rural areas. We are beginning to see some improvement in the net creation of new jobs and some increase in rural salaries, but not as much as I would like to see. After a full decade of decreasing real income, rural wages are beginning to increase because of tight labor markets. However, income levels in rural areas continue to lag behind those in urban areas, and rural areas continue to experience very high poverty rates. Rural median household income is only about 77% of that in urban areas. Additionally, median household income for African American and female-headed households is only about 50% of the overall rural median income. One disturbing fact is that employment still does not always lift a family out of poverty in rural areas. A typical rural wage is below the poverty line and is not sufficient to support a family of four. Poverty in rural areas is 2 percentage points higher than it is in urban areas, 15.6% and 13.4% respectively. Poverty in the rural south is just under 20%. The unemployment rate is 16% higher in rural areas than in urban areas. And as I stated last year, the most devastating effect of rural economies is that 3.2 million rural children live in poverty and 48% of the African-American children in rural areas live in poverty. It is very difficult for these children to attain the educational levels that will be necessary to compete for jobs in this information technology dominated economy.
These are the reasons that the President is committed to continuing Federal investment in rural areas. Yet, he is cognizant that the Federal government alone cannot solve these problems. I recently had an opportunity to review a report prepared by a USDA Task Force on rural poverty. Its authors concluded that a healthy rate of economic growth is essential to the alleviation of rural poverty, but it is not (by itself) a sufficient condition to bring the adjustments needed. The report was written in 1961.
I think the authors also had the answer to much of the problem of rural poverty when they stated, "the problems of rural economic stagnation are so deep-seated and the effects are so widespread on all community facilities, resources and attitudes, that the only development program that will work is one that attacks many problems simultaneously, and in depth." The President recognized this approach when he created the Empowerment Zone/Enterprise Community (EZ/EC) legislation, the concept of which is to address the structural economic problems comprehensively and in depth.
As noted in the President's Budget, the Kentucky Highlands, one of the three rural empowerment zones, has used $11 million of its EZ funds to expand the amount of investment capital. From the amounts obligated to date, they have leveraged an additional $38 million in private capital for 11 new manufacturing enterprises creating 575 new jobs, and they have commitments to create an additional 1,600 jobs. According to one of the EZ/EC Board Members, the current unemployment rate for the three county area is below 6% for the first time in memory. The President's budget provides for a second round of EZ designations -- five for rural areas and 15 for urban areas. This comprehensive and in-depth approach was also part of the Administration's thinking in the Rural Community Advancement Program (RCAP) which we have discussed previously with the subcommittee. The budget again requests the authority to transfer funds among the program areas within RCAP to provide us the flexibility to address problems as they need to be addressed. The budget also provides for the 3% set-aside of the RCAP funding for Federally-recognized Indian tribes as authorized by the 1996 Farm Bill.
An additional benefit of the economic expansion is that the interest rate sensitive programs administered by Rural Development are 40% less costly than they were in FY 1993. We are in the enviable position of being able to deliver these programs to rural America, at less cost. The budget request for the programs administered by the Rural Development agencies totals $10.4 billion requiring $2.2 billion in budget authority. These are increases of about $450 million and $110 million respectively over the levels enacted for FY 1998. This includes the program level and budget authority, $2.8 billion and $715 million, requested for the programs under RCAP.
Utilities Programs
Mr. Chairman, each of the programs administered by Rural Development contributes significantly to the economic viability of rural communities, but perhaps none are more important than the programs that provide basic infrastructure investment. Economic growth and vitality cannot occur without the systems that provide water and sewer, electric, and telecommunications services. The presence of these systems does not guarantee economic growth. But one thing is an absolute certainty: growth and stability will not occur without them. These programs are responsible for much of the economic growth that has occurred in rural areas during the past fifty years, but as you well know, many rural areas still have not prospered and many of the infrastructure systems that we have built are now old and they need to be replaced. These programs are still very much needed in rural America, but the measurement of need has shifted from prior years when success was the number of farms or households connected to electricity and telephone systems for the first time to the amount of economic activity generated by these investments.
The telecommunications and electric industries throughout this country are in the vortex of change. Monopolistic supply is giving way to open competition and while the generally held perception that competition will drive down cost may be true for the two industries from a macro-economic perspective, we must be vigilant that rural areas are treated fairly in the process. The Telecommunications Deregulation Act continued the "universal service" concept which ensures that rural areas will continue to have access to the telecommunications network at reasonable cost. The Administration is in the process of addressing similar issues for electric service. The lack of consumer density in rural systems, combined with the fact that construction cost in rural areas is virtually the same as in urban areas, means the cost per rural consumer is much higher. On average, revenue per mile for urban utility systems is 8 times that of rural areas. This, of course, translates to higher rates in rural areas and puts rural systems at a competitive disadvantage with neighboring systems. We are working with electric borrowers to ensure they are in the best possible competitive position and to ensure that our loan security is protected when the electric industry is deregulated.
The budget authority requested for the electric and telecommunication loan programs is $40.3 million. This will support lending levels totaling $1.7 billion and, factoring in the private capital that accompanies this investment, the total investment in electric and telecommunications grows to $5.1 billion. This level of investment will provide new or improved service to at least 1.8 million residents of rural areas and in the process support over 34,000 jobs primarily in the construction trades.
Due to the growing demand for electric loans, we are also proposing a new Treasury rate direct loan program of $400 million which requires budget authority of only $840,000. We are proposing a new direct loan program rather than increasing the request for the Federal Financing Bank (FFB). The reason for this request is, since FFB financing has traditionally been used only for generation and transmission loans, distribution borrowers have expressed some reluctance to use the FFB authority because of the additional time needed to process the loans. This new authority requires authorizing legislation which will be submitted to Congress in the very near future. The total budget authority requested for electric loans is just under $30 million.
The budget authority requested for telecommunications loans, including the Rural Telephone Bank, totals $10.3 million. There are still many rural areas that cannot access the full benefits of modern telecommunications because the basic switching equipment has not been modernized. Most of the exchanges in this category for the past few years are being sold and the new owners are installing newer equipment. We do not provide financing for the purchase of these systems, but we are financing the new equipment, and require that the equipment that we finance will provide the capability to provide subscribers full access to modern telecommunications.
As you know, in prior years the Administration has proposed immediate privatization of the Rural Telephone Bank. Because of concerns of the Bank's ability to suddenly begin operating effectively as a private lending institution in a deregulated environment, without a transition period, the Administration is now proposing the Bank operate as a performance based corporation. As a performance based organization, the Board and managers would be required to set specific strategic and financial goals, one of which would be to achieve privatization in not less than ten years, and more quickly if possible. The Bank would have the authority to hire its own personnel, and funding for salaries and expenses and the subsidy cost of loans would be requested from balances in the liquidating account. Legislation is necessary to effect this proposal.
For Distance Learning/Telemedicine loans and grants the budget requests a lending level of $150 million and a grant level of $15 million. The request for grants is an increase of $2.5 million. The loan request is the same as enacted for 1998. The demand for this program continues to grow, not only because of the education and medical benefits that it provides rural areas, but also because more and more people are beginning to realize its potential as an economic development tool. As firms are assessing areas for opportunities to locate facilities in rural areas, among the first questions asked are about the quality of education and health care. This program provides the opportunity to rural areas to reap immediate benefits in education and medical care, but the presence of these capabilities also provides the longer term benefits of attracting new growth.
Mr. Chairman, the value and benefits of this program are best demonstrated by comments made in 1995 by the manager of a water system in the southwestern part of the country -- "Thanks to the Department of Agriculture, we have running water in our faucets. We hauled water in barrels and water tanks until you gave us a loan and grant ... for the first time since the town was founded the citizens were able to get a drink of water from a faucet. Without your help, it never would have happened." This statement was made following completion of a Water 2000 project awarded in 1995.
The 1980 Census reported 2.1 million rural Americans did not have any drinking water flowing into their homes. The 1990 Census reported that this number had been reduced to just over 1 million and since the Water 2000 Initiative was implemented in FY 1995, Rural Development has invested $1.3 billion in loans and grants that have afforded just under 300,000 people the opportunity to have safe, clean water in their homes for the first time.
Water 2000, as ambitious, challenging and rewarding as it is, is a small part of the water and waste disposal program in rural America. The Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey conducted periodically by the Environmental Protection Agency estimates the total investment needed in small systems (serving less than 3,300 people) to bring them into compliance with the Nation's Drinking Water standards is $37 billion. A similar investment is needed for water disposal systems. At present the applications for loan and grant assistance through this program total over $3 billion.
The budget requests $1.3 billion in loans and grants for this program, a slight increase over the amount made available for FY 1998. This level of funding would provide new water service to about 500,000 rural residents, improved water service to an additional 400,000 rural residents, provide new or improved waste disposal service to about 410,000 rural residents and in the process support about 30,000 jobs primarily in the construction trades.
Housing Programs
No single factor contributes more to community stability than does homeownership. Since the early 1970s USDA's rural housing programs have played a key role in improving the availability and quality of housing in rural America. These programs reach families and individuals who cannot otherwise afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing. The Housing Programs (Housing Programs) has financed over 2 million single family homes since the inception of its homewnership program. Housing Programs has been particularly successful in reaching those residents that the private market and other government programs cannot reach -- low and very low income families living in isolated rural areas.
The budget request for the rural housing and community facilities programs is $5.5 billion requiring $895 million in budget authority, 65% of which is for rental assistance payments. This represents an increase in the program level of $300 million over the 1998 level and an increase of $27 million in budget authority. The request for the homeownership program, the flagship program, is $4.0 billion of which $1.0 billion is for direct loans, the same amount enacted for 1998. The average income for families borrowing under this program is $17,000, barely above the poverty level. For the guaranteed ownership program we are requesting $3.0 billion. These two programs will finance over 60,000 new and improved homes. Each home constructed provides 1.75 years of employment, over $50,000 in wages and over $20,000 in taxes for the local economy.
In addition, we are again proposing legislation that would permit use of the guaranteed loan program for refinancing direct loans. These loans would be made available to borrowers who do not have enough equity in their homes to refinance in the private market and are paying us interest in excess of the existing market rates. We are currently prohibited from refinancing direct loans.
For the multi-family housing programs, we are requesting $250 million, of which $100 million is for direct loans, requiring $48 million in budget authority. This is a decrease from the level enacted for 1998. This level of funding will provide over 1,100 new units and will provide for the rehabilitation of just under 5,000 units. The average income of tenants in this program is $7,300.
We are also requesting $150 million for the guaranteed multi-family housing program which has operated as a pilot program for the past two years. This program serves tenants with much higher incomes, up to 115% of area median income, than in the direct program and is therefore much less costly. The budget would provide for the construction of about 4,100 units.
For rental assistance, the budget requests $583 million, a $42 million increase over the 1998 level. Of this amount $544 million is needed for expiring contracts and the remainder will be used for rehabilitation, new construction, and servicing, as well as for farm labor housing consistent with the recommendations of the Civil Rights Action Team. Rental assistance payments are made to the developers of the projects as the difference between the 30% of income required by the tenants and the market rental cost of the unit.
We are again requesting $26 million for the mutual and self-help program which provides the technical assistance required for families engaging in the construction of their own homes. As you are well aware, Mr. Chairman, this is one of the most rewarding programs that we administer. It provides not only a decent, safe housing unit, but it also provides a measure of self confidence and self assurance for the family and it is the only way the participants will ever have the opportunity to own a home. One measurement of success for this program is that the delinquency rate is significantly below that of the direct loan program. The participants are incredibly and justifiably proud of their accomplishment.
For the community facilities programs we are requesting a total of $418 million, $200 million for direct loans, $210 million for guaranteed loans, and $8 million for grants. These programs finance a wide variety of facilities throughout rural America, but the priorities are health and safety projects. During the past two years Housing Programs has also placed an emphasis on funding child care centers. The decrease in real income for rural families during the 1980s; the fact that close to 50% of rural workers have income that is near or below the poverty level; and the fact that women are filling many of the new jobs created in rural areas dictate that child care facilities be available in rural areas. This is critical for families to make the transition from welfare to work. Housing Programs, working with a national non-profit organization, began the rural child care initiative in 1996 and since then we have increased the number of child care projects funded from 6 in 1992 to 44 in 1997 and we expect to fund even more in 1999.
Business Programs
The key to improving economic conditions in rural areas is the creation of business opportunities and jobs and the role of the Federal government is to assist in creating the environment that generates private investment. Economic growth tends to occur with concentrations of population and investment capital, or is associated with the abundance of extractable natural resources. For too many years, this country has been attempting to apply what is known about economic growth in urban areas to rural areas. This is not practical. And it is equally true that there is no single "solution" that can be employed in each situation. Rural areas hold two key advantages in economic development, the abundance of natural resources, including agricultural production, and a labor pool that has a tremendous work ethic.
We can be more effective if investment is channeled into businesses associated with what is readily available in rural areas. The concentration of agricultural production and processing causes the migration of investment capital out of rural areas and the population tends to follow in hopes of economic improvement. In addition, the out-migration of capital and people diminishes prospects for attracting external capital.
The question is, "how do we maximize the advantages that rural areas have to offer?" One solution is to ensure that a larger portion of the income generated from agricultural production remains in rural areas. One way this can be done is through the establishment of more businesses engaged in processing and marketing of agricultural commodities. The processing of food and non-food as well as feed and non-feed uses of agricultural commodities in rural areas helps retain income and capital needed for other investments in rural areas.
With the $1.0 billion requested for the Business and Industry loan guarantee program, I intend to set aside $200 million exclusively for the use of cooperative businesses. These funds will be available only for cooperatives for a certain time, and if not used for this purpose will be available for other loans. We will also continue to work closely with AARCC and other organizations to ensure that no investment opportunity is missed and we will continue to work with cooperative associations to develop other investment opportunities, both for the Business Programs and for AARCC.
Mr. Chairman, the budget request for the Business Programs programs totals $1.2 billion, requiring $77.6 million in budget authority. For the flagship program, guaranteed Business and Industry loans, we are requesting $1.0 billion, and $50 million for direct B&I loans. Direct lending will be targeted to those traditionally under-served areas of the country. For the Rural Economic Development loan and grant programs (cushion of credit) we are requesting $15.0 million in loans and $11 million in grants; $35.0 million for Intermediary Relending loans and $40.3 million for Rural Business Enterprise Grants.
For assistance to cooperatives, we are requesting $1.7 million in Rural Cooperative grants and $2.0 million for Federal/State Research on Cooperatives. Research on cooperatives has not kept pace with the growth in cooperatively owned businesses, particularly with respect to non-traditional cooperative activity such as processing and retail and export cooperatives. In addition, we are also requesting $2.0 million for the Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas program. The volume of requests handled by this office has grown significantly in recent years and the level of financial support has remained constant. We need to increase funding for this activity in order to respond quickly to customers.
For the Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Corporation we are requesting a total of $10.0 million, $8.5 million for investments and $1.5 for administrative costs. This level of funding is expected to help bring 6 new products to market and will create about 1,000 new jobs in rural America based on agricultural commodities. Mr. Chairman, this helps retain more income in rural America and I would like to do more of this. This program can take what has been a waste product like wheat straw or peanut hulls, which actually have a negative value, and develop new products and creating positive economic values for farmers and producing jobs for other rural residents. Other countries invest much more in this type of activity than we do and we are losing business opportunities. For example, a firm in England is exporting non-load bearing wall panels made from wheat straw to this country, of all places. The largest wheat producing country in the world is importing products made from wheat straw.
The request for Salaries and Expenses for Rural Development, $527 million, is an increase of $18 million over 1998. There are several reasons for this increase. First, because of all of the organizational changes that have occurred within Rural Development over the past few years, we have lost a disproportional share of the lower level employees, even though we have used every means available to keep them, such as buyouts and early retirements of our more senior employees. This has caused our average salary costs to increase significantly. While this is a situation I would not have preferred, it is something that has to be dealt with because the alternative is no better. If sufficient funding is not available for salaries and expenses then it will be necessary to execute a Reduction-in-Force (RIF) to remain within available funding. This action will only exacerbate the problem because a RIF will, in-turn, eliminate additional lower level employees driving the average salary cost even higher. The vast majority of these staff are in our field offices and are primarily responsible for delivering the programs we are discussing today. We need to keep them employed.
Rural Development is blessed with very dedicated and hard working staff that have maintained a positive attitude toward public service through our reorganization, restructuring and streamlining efforts. They know the value of the programs we deliver because most of them live and work in the communities in which we provide assistance.
Another reason for requesting an increase is that in order to retain our employment level through FY 1998, we have deferred investment in information technology and training, something we cannot again afford to do. Investments in information technology and training are means through which we can realize additional efficiencies. In fact, the Secretary's plan for achieving efficiencies through convergence of the administrative services of the three county based mission areas is dependent on investments in the common computing environment and re-engineering of our business practices. Achieving additional savings through administrative efficiencies will provide the flexibility for all three mission areas to continue to support the staffs responsible for delivering the programs. We will also better utilize support staffs by directing their efforts to more critical needs rather than maintaining antiquated, staff intensive systems. Of the $18 million increase for salaries and expenses, $8.5 million in the budget is for investments in information technology; most of this is for maintenance of our existing systems, proceeding with service center implementation, and accomplishing the changes in systems necessitated by the Century date change.
Providing support to the very dedicated employees of Rural Development is a priority equal to funding any of the programs we have discussed. Without the employees we will not be able to continue to deliver the programs as effectively as we have in prior years and many needs in rural areas will not be met. I ask for your very serious consideration of this request.
This concludes my comments. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before the subcommittee. The Administrators and I will be most happy to answer any questions you and members of the subcommittee may have.
Congressional Issues Home Page


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Here's another layered Easter foldover card. I didn't like the eggs on the card I made yesterday so I swapped them out for a pot of tulips.
Download cutting files: DXF1 and DXF2; PDF; SVG1 and SVG2
Hand score center card folds if you are using svg files.
Assembly instructions here.
Extreme Cards and Papercrafting: pop up cards, movable and mechanical cards, digital crafts and unusual papercrafts.


text:
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Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360)
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- Publisher EA Games
- Developer BioWare Corp
- Release date 29-Jan-2010
- Suitable for people aged and over.
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- Mass Effect 3, an epic RPG - 3rd person shooter available on the Microsoft Xbox 360
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The Reapers are destroying Earth, the cradle of Humanity, and only Commander Shepard can stop them before all sentient life has been scoured from the Galaxy
Saving the Galaxy
The Reapers are an ancient race of machines, who systematically scour the galaxy of life, and then return to deep space and wait another 50,000 years for the galaxy to recover, only to begin the process again. Once again the Galaxy is on the verge of utter ruin, and only Commander Shepard, the Hero of the Citadel, can unite the Galaxy under a single banner of survival to offer a glimmer of hope.
Mass Effect 3 - The Ultimate role-playing experience
Mass Effect 3 on the Xbox 360, offers you the ultimate role-playing experience. Save who you want, when you want to save them, if you even want to even save them at all. Craft your own story as your decisions have profound impacts on the worlds around you, ensuring that your experience is unique to you. Taking Advantage of an intricate Paragon/Renegade system, your personality will affect your appearance and the relationships that you have with all of the Characters around you. You'll forge Shepard in your own image, choose what planets to explore and who to form alliances with, but beware, the Galaxy is depending on you, and every choice is balanced on a knife edge.
New faster and more fluid combat
Wage your war, how you want. Lay down a withering hail of fire and go in all guns blazing, or use Mass Effect 3's advanced cover system for a more tactical approach. Take advantage of your devastating Biotic abilities, to throw your enemies around like toys, or rip them apart. If that's not your style then perhaps you'd prefer to use technological warfare? Hack into enemy robots and turn your foe's upon one another, or activate your Cloaking abilities and eliminate your adversaries with your devastating melee attacks. Use your team mates to round out your attacks or stack abilities to ruin your opponents with overwhelming force.
So join Commander Shepard in Mass Effect 3, on the Xbox 360, and save the galaxy once and for all, or fail and see everything you know and love destroyed. This is your story, you decide how it finally ends. . .
Features of Mass Effect 3 on the Xbox 360 include:
- A rich, branching storyline: Experience a sci-fi epic with multiple endings determined by your choices and actions throughout the game.
- Massive in scope: Battle on many worlds across the galaxy as you unite the ultimate force to take back the Earth before it's too late.
- Large-scale and intelligent enemies: Battle enormous enemies and take on a smarter type of foe that will consistently challenge your best combat tactics and put you on the edge of your seat.
- Unlock a customisable arsenal: Tailor each weapon with devastating upgrades including scopes, grips, barrels and dozens of other unique attachments. Each weapon boasts its own powerful impact and visual flair.
- Unleash death from afar or go toe-to-toe: Customise your soldier and squad to engage the enemy on your terms. A huge variety of weapons, abilities and equipment allow you to combat the enemy in your preferred of play.


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Wow! Thanks for the great info!
"Paging Dr. Barrett... Dr. Steven Barrett, please report to the DisneyWorldTrivia.com Hidden Mickeys thread for a STAT diagnosis!"
Lou, we all know that one of your favorite Hidden Mickeys is the place setting in the Haunted Mansion. This is not an official Hidden Mickey but the cast members like to sneak in and set one of the place settings on the dining room table in the classic Hidden Mickey shape.
Well, I am not sure if you all are aware of a new limited edition pin collection titled "Hidden Disney". This is a series of pins that feature little secrets throughout WDW including 5 dedicated to Hidden Mickeys. Here's the list...check out October
Pins in the 2006 collection will include:
Maybe there is an official Hidden Mickey in the dining room, but if not, then perhaps those plates will be in a permanent position from now on....
- January - Electrical Water Pageant
- February - Disney's Polynesian Resort - Hidden Mickey
- March - Belle's Library - France Pavilion - Epcot®
- April - The Boneyard® - Dinoland, U.S.A.® - Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park - Hidden Mickey
- May - Magnolia Golf Course - 6th Hole - Hidden Mickey
- June - Center of Walt Disney World® Resort - Epcot®
- July - Adventurer's Club - Downtown Disney® - Pleasure Island
- August - Sci-Fi Dine In Theater - Disney-MGM Studios
- September - Mr. Toad and Owl in the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh - Magic Kingdom® Park
- October - Haunted Mansion Dining Room - Magic Kingdom® Park - Hidden Mickey
- November - Muppet*Vision 3D Courtyard - Disney-MGM Studios - Hidden Mickey
- December - Disney's Wilderness Lodge - Fire Rock Geyser
Here's the actual link if you want to read more:
Wow! Thanks for the great info!
"Paging Dr. Barrett... Dr. Steven Barrett, please report to the DisneyWorldTrivia.com Hidden Mickeys thread for a STAT diagnosis!"
Lou Mongello
Host, Author & Site Owner
Funny you should mention this! In our room there was a little trivia pamphlet & it also had some hidden mickeys on it. The place setting at the HM was mentioned!
"What ARRRRGH you doing?"
"What are you doing?"
"No, What ARRRRGH you doing?"Cap'n Jack lives again!"I'll try anything once or twice, that's the kind of mouse I am"
when we did our tour
he told us that it will be coming official because of it always being switched back to the hidden mickey
Around here, however, we don't look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things... and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths. - Walt Disney
Lou, this discussion reminds me of the side profile of Mickey's head in the Gangster Room of The Great Movie Ride. A cast member told our Hidden Mickey Hunt group that this HM was placed by cast members (therefore, unofficial), so the Imagineers removed it. Enough guests complained about its loss, so the Imagineers replaced it. So now I guess it's "official," just like the Haunted Mansion plate and saucers. If we (the guests) believe strongly enough, then Tinker Bell and a little pixie dust can make it happen! I hope Steve Jobs and the Apple folks believe in Hidden Mickeys; if not, we have some educating to do!
I agree! (BTW, for all you fans of HMs out there - I had a chance to ride along next to Steve on the GMR and a few other attractions duing MouseFest. Needless to say, it really was a treat to have the man himself pointing out the HMs!!)
Also, it's nice to see that some of these HMs that have been around for so long are finally be adopted as "official"
Lou Mongello
Host, Author & Site Owner
The old (2001-ish) WDW website had this Mickey listed as well on it.
Just found this thread because I thought that I found some good confirmation for the haunted mansion hidden mickey while watching a souvenir tape for the MK that was copyrighted 1980. When they showed the haunted mansion, the hidden mickey was on the table way back then too.
Stitch Smash!
'86, '87, '88, '89, '90, '91, '94, '95, '97, '98, '99, '00, '01, '02, '03, '04, '05, '06, '08
'87, '89, '90, '93, '94, '99, '01, '05, '08
'92, '95, '96, '99, '04


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Thuzi was founded in Tampa, Florida during 2008. Since then, Thuzi has been on a bullet train of success and growth, marked by record-breaking social media campaigns for some of the top brands in casual dining, e-commerce and sports teams in the world. Along the way, Thuzi has been awarded several prestigious distinctions from Microsoft and Facebook.
As the list of clients grows, Thuzi continues to expand the team and facility at the Tampa headquarters in order to give detailed attention to each client's specific needs. Thuzi has also opened offices in New York City and Chicago.
Over the years, many remarkable social media marketing campaigns have been born as a result of Thuzi's unmatched technological and creative talent. Thuzi is part social media marketing agency, part cutting-edge technology and 100% focused on client success.
- One of initial Facebook Preferred Developer Consultants (now the PMD program).
- One of the first 20 companies granted access to the Facebook Ads API beta.
- Selected by Microsoft for their BizSpark One Program.
- Invited to join Microsoft's Worldwide Advisory Council for ISV's.


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- Discussion Graph Tool (Microsoft Research) — simplifies social media analysis by making it easy to extract high-level features and co-occurrence relationships from raw data.
- Superlinear Productivity in Collective Group Actions (PLoS ONE) — study of open source projects shows small groups exhibit non-linear productivity increases by size, which drop off at larger sizes. we document a size effect in the strength and variability of the superlinear effect, with smaller groups exhibiting widely distributed superlinear exponents, some of them characterizing highly productive teams. In contrast, large groups tend to have a smaller superlinearity and less variability.
- coop — cheat sheet of the most common concurrency program flows in Go.
- Tessera — set of open source tools around Hadoop, R, and visualization.
"social graph" entries
Four short links: 5 August 2014
Discussion Graph Tool, Superlinear Productivity, Go Concurrency, and R Map/Reduce Tools
Four short links: 9 June 2014
SQL against Text, Fake Social Networks, Hidden Biases, and Versioned Data
- textql — execute SQL against structured text like CSV or TSV.
- Social Network Structure of Fake Friends — author bought 4,000 Twitter followers and studied their relationships.
- Hidden Biases in Big Data — with every big data set, we need to ask which people are excluded. Which places are less visible? What happens if you live in the shadow of big data sets? (via Quinn Norton)
- CoreObject — a version-controlled object database for Objective-C that supports powerful undo, semantic merging, and real-time collaborative editing.
Four short links: 21 February 2014
Twitter Clusters, Web Assembly, Modern Web Practices, and Social Network Algorithms
- Mapping Twitter Topic Networks (Pew Internet) — Conversations on Twitter create networks with identifiable contours as people reply to and mention one another in their tweets. These conversational structures differ, depending on the subject and the people driving the conversation. Six structures are regularly observed: divided, unified, fragmented, clustered, and inward and outward hub and spoke structures. These are created as individuals choose whom to reply to or mention in their Twitter messages and the structures tell a story about the nature of the conversation. (via Washington Post)
- yasp — a fully functional web-based assembler development environment, including a real assembler, emulator and debugger. The assembler dialect is a custom which is held very simple so as to keep the learning curve as shallow as possible.
- The 12-Factor App — twelve habits of highly successful web developers, essentially.
- Fast Approximation of Betweenness Centrality through Sampling (PDF) — Betweenness centrality is a fundamental measure in social network analysis, expressing the importance or influence of individual vertices in a network in terms of the fraction of shortest paths that pass through them. Exact computation in large networks is prohibitively expensive and fast approximation algorithms are required in these cases. We present two efficient randomized algorithms for betweenness estimation.
Four short links: 17 February 2014
Commandline iMessage, Lovely Data, Software Plagiarism Detection, and 3D GIFs
- imsg — use iMessage from the commandline.
- Facebook Data Science Team Posts About Love — I tell people, "this is what you look like to SkyNet."
- A System for Detecting Software Plagiarism — the research behind the undergraduate bete noir.
- 3D GIFs — this is awesome because brain.
Four short links: 15 January 2014
SCADA Security, Graph Clustering, Facebook Flipbook, and Projections Illustrated
- Hackers Gain 'Full Control' of Critical SCADA Systems (IT News) — The vulnerabilities were discovered by Russian researchers who over the last year probed popular and high-end ICS and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems used to control everything from home solar panel installations to critical national infrastructure. More on the Botnet of Things.
- mcl — Markov Cluster Algorithm, a fast and scalable unsupervised cluster algorithm for graphs (also known as networks) based on simulation of (stochastic) flow in graphs.
- Facebook to Launch Flipboard-like Reader (Recode) — what I'd actually like to see is Facebook join the open web by producing and consuming RSS/Atom/anything feeds, but that's a long shot. I fear it'll either limit you to whatever circle-jerk-of-prosperity paywall-penetrating content-for-advertising-eyeballs trades the Facebook execs have made, or else it'll be a leech on the scrotum of the open web by consuming RSS without producing it. I'm all out of respect for empire-builders who think you're a fool if you value the open web. AOL might have died, but its vision of content kings running the network is alive and well in the hands of Facebook and Google. I'll gladly post about the actual product launch if it is neither partnership eyeball-abuse nor parasitism.
- Map Projections Illustrated with a Face (Flowing Data) — really neat, wish I'd had these when I was getting my head around map projections.
Four short links: 7 January 2014
Wearables Mature, Network as Filter, To The Androidmobile, and U R Pwn3d
- Pebble Gets App Store (ReadWrite Web) — as both Pebble and MetaWatch go after the high-end watch market. Wearables becoming more than a nerd novelty.
- Thinking About the Network as Filter (JP Rangaswami) — Constant re-openings of the same debate as people try and get a synchronous outcome out of an asynchronous tool without the agreements and conventions in place to do it. He says friends are your social filters. You no longer have to read every email. When you come back from vacation, whatever has passed in the stream unread can stay unread but most social tools are built as collectors, not as filters. Looking forward to the rest in his series.
- Open Auto Alliance — The OAA is a global alliance of technology and auto industry leaders committed to bringing the Android platform to cars starting in 2014. "KidGamesPack 7 requires access to your history, SMS, location, network connectivity, speed, weight, in-car audio, and ABS control systems. Install or Cancel?"
- Jacob Appelbaum's CCC Talk — transcript of an excellent talk. One of the scariest parts about this is that for this system or these sets of systems to exist, we have been kept vulnerable. So it is the case that if the Chinese, if the Russians, if people here wish to build this system, there's nothing that stops them. And in fact the NSA has in a literal sense retarded the process by which we would secure the internet because it establishes a hegemony of power, their power in secret to do these things.
Four short links: 12 July 2013
Name Analysis, Old UIs, Browser Crypto Social Network, and Smart Watch Displays
- How Well Does Name Analysis Work? (Pete Warden) — explanation of how those "turn a name into gender/ethnicity/etc" routines work, and how accurate they are. Age has the weakest correlation with names. There are actually some strong patterns by time of birth, with certain names widely recognized as old-fashioned or trendy, but those tend to be swamped by class and ethnicity-based differences in the popularity of names.
- Old Interfaces — a lazy-scrolling interface to Andy Baio's collection of faux UIs from movies. (via Andy Baio)
- Pidder — browser-crypto'd social network, address book, messaging, RSS reader, and more.
- What I Learned From Researching Almost Every Single Smart Watch That Has Been Rumoured or Announced (Quartz) — interesting roundup of the different display technologies used in each of the smartwatches.
Four short links: 31 May 2013
- Modeling Users' Activity on Twitter Networks: Validation of Dunbar's Number (PLoSone) — In this paper we analyze a dataset of Twitter conversations collected across six months involving 1.7 million individuals and test the theoretical cognitive limit on the number of stable social relationships known as Dunbar's number. We find that the data are in agreement with Dunbar's result; users can entertain a maximum of 100–200 stable relationships. Thus, the 'economy of attention' is limited in the online world by cognitive and biological constraints as predicted by Dunbar's theory. We propose a simple model for users' behavior that includes finite priority queuing and time resources that reproduces the observed social behavior.
- Mary Meeker's Internet Trends (Slideshare) — check out slide 24, ~2x month-on-month growth for MyFitnessPal's number of API calls, which Meeker users as a proxy for "fitness data on mobile + wearable devices".
- What I Learned as an Oompa Loompa (Elaine Wherry) — working in a chocolate factory, learning the differences and overlaps between a web startup and an more traditional physical goods business. It's so much easier to build a sustainable organization around a simple revenue model. There are no tensions between ad partners, distribution sites, engineering, and sales teams. There are fewer points of failure. Instead, everyone is aligned towards a simple goal: make something people want.
- Augmented Reality Futures (Quartz) — wrap-up of tech in the works and coming. Instruction is the bit that interests me, scaffolding our lives: While it isn't on the market yet, Inglobe Technologies just previewed an augmented reality app that tracks and virtually labels the components of a car engine in real time. That would make popping the hood of your car on the side of the road much less scary. The app claims to simplify tasks like checking oil and topping up coolant fluid, even for novice mechanics.
Improving options for unlocking your graph data
Graph data is an area that has attracted many enthusiastic entrepreneurs and developers
The popular open source project GraphLab received a major boost early this week when a new company comprised of its founding developers, raised funding to develop analytic tools for graph data sets. GraphLab Inc. will continue to use the open source GraphLab to "push the limits of graph computation and develop new ideas", but having a commercial company will accelerate development, and allow the hiring of resources dedicated to improving usability and documentation.
While social media placed graph data on the radar of many companies, similar data sets can be found in many domains including the life and health sciences, security, and financial services. Graph data is different enough that it necessitates special tools and techniques. Because tools were a bit too complex for casual users, in the past this meant graph data analytics was the province of specialists. Fortunately graph data is an area that has attracted many enthusiastic entrepreneurs and developers. The tools have improved and I expect things to get much easier for users in the future. A great place to learn more about tools for graph data, is at the upcoming GraphLab Workshop (on July 1st in SF).
Data wrangling: creating graphs
Before you can take advantage of the other tools mentioned in this post, you'll need to turn your data (e.g., web pages) into graphs. GraphBuilder is an open source project from Intel, that uses Hadoop MapReduce1 to build graphs out of large data sets. Another option is the combination of GraphX/Spark described below. (A startup called Trifacta is building a general-purpose, data wrangling tool, that could help as well. )
Four short links: 10 May 2013
Remixing Success, Scratch in the Browser, 3D Takedown, and Wolfram Network Analysis
- The Remixing Dilemma — summary of research on remixed projects, finding that (1) Projects with moderate amounts of code are remixed more often than either very simple or very complex projects. (2) Projects by more prominent creators are more generative. (3) Remixes are more likely to attract remixers than de novo projects.
- Scratch 2.0 — my favourite first programming language for kids and adults, now in the browser! Downloadable version for offline use coming soon. See the overview for what's new.
- State Dept Takedown on 3D-Printed Gun (Forbes) — The government says it wants to review the files for compliance with arms export control laws known as the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR. By uploading the weapons files to the Internet and allowing them to be downloaded abroad, the letter implies Wilson's high-tech gun group may have violated those export controls.
- Data Science of the Facebook World (Stephen Wolfram) — More than a million people have now used our Wolfram|Alpha Personal Analytics for Facebook. And as part of our latest update, in addition to collecting some anonymized statistics, we launched a Data Donor program that allows people to contribute detailed data to us for research purposes. A few weeks ago we decided to start analyzing all this data… (via Phil Earnhardt)


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Monika H Band By Ernest Barteldes Published March 20, 2007 BrightSelf-Released
Strains of musical theater, modern jazz, folk and a ton of other influences are all over this CD. Most of the lyrics are original, save a couple of poems by the likes of Allen Ginsberg and Herman Melville that have been set to music. The instrumentation varies substantially throughout—for instance, "Organs" opens with an a cappella introduction that morphs into a '70s The Who-meets-art-jazz feel filled with free guitar, vibraphone and vocal improvisations. The prog-rock "Details" places a beautiful, effect-laden guitar in the background, and there's a long instrumental suite between the verses. Ginsberg's poetry is taken to another level with "Written In My Dream," an eerie five-minute tune that seems to emerge from a sleepless night. Monika H's music probably presents itself better in a live setting ("The Race," in particular, seems created to be great on stage), and it is not intended for those into easy listening.