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Number of posts: 9,599
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Science publisher fooled by gibberish papers
From phys.org:
Publisher of science journals Springer said Thursday it would scrap 16 papers from its archives after they were revealed to be computer-generated gibberish.
The fake papers had been submitted to conferences on computer science and engineering whose proceedings were published in specialised, subscription-only publications, Springer said. "We are in the process of taking down the papers as quickly as possible," the German-based publisher said in a statement. "This means that they will be removed, not retracted, since they are all nonsense." more ... |
Posted by Jim__ | Fri Feb 28, 2014, 07:45 AM (7 replies)
"It is impossible to found a civilization on fear and hatred and cruelty. It would never endure."
That is, at one point, Winston's reply to O'Brien, and is probably what Orwell believed.
In June, John Crowley gave a talk at MoMA on The Future as Parable. From about 8 minutes in up to about 20 minutes in he talked about Orwell's 1984. A short excerpt from what he said: ...
Here is another. In 1946, as he was conceiving 1984, George Orwell reviewed the writings of an American political philosopher and futurologist named James Burnham, whose work had made a deep impression on him. Burnham began his political life a Trotskyite and went on to become an editor of the National Review. In 1940, he published The Managerial Revolution, which foresaw the coming of a new order in human political and economic organization. Capitalism would soon disappear, but socialism wouldnt replace it. Instead, Burnham said, a managerial class of bureaucrats and technocrats and administrators was evolving that would replace both the old-fashioned business owner/entrepreneur and electoral politics. Private property would disappear but wouldnt be replaced by common ownership; the managers would make all decisions, distribute all wealth, retain all power. The rest of humanity would subsist as dependents, happily enough, controlled by propaganda. Meanwhile the clusters of small states, democratic or tyrannical or whatever, would vanish, to be replaced by a few huge combines America, Europe plus western Asia, the Pacific East, the Soviet sphere. These would be continuously at war, though never able to dominate all the others. A kind of stasis would probably eventuate and last from then on, or at least for a very long time. In Burnhams vision, as Orwell describes it, the only engine of history is the struggle for power: All historical changes finally boil down to the replacement of one ruling class by another. Talk about utopia or the classless society is bullshit (humbug, Orwell calls it). It is clear that Burnham is fascinated by the spectacle of power, says Orwell. There is a note of unmistakable relish over the cruelty and wickedness of the processes that are being discussed. ... The question Burnham ought to ask but never does, Orwell says, is why this lust for power became the ruling human passion just at the time when the rule of the many by the few, which might once have been necessary to survival and the expansion of human culture, has become unnecessary. Orwell predicts, astutely, that the Russian régime will either democratise itself, or it will perish. The huge, invincible, everlasting slave empire of which Burnham appears to dream will not be established, or, if established, will not endure, because slavery is no longer a stable basis for human society. If thats his reasoned opinion about Burnhams dream, then why did he write a book warning of its possibility? In 1984, dystopianism has arisen whole expanded and crystallising and conquered the world in just the forty years since the end of the Nazi empire, and apparently it seems set to last, a boot stamping on a human face, forever. But it wont and cant. The only possibility was that Orwell was building a Burnham world precisely in order to contradict him by going further than even Burnham could. 1984 is not a warning, much less a prediction, but a parable. It doesnt mean what it seems at first to mean, just as the parables of Jesus dont mean what they seem at first to mean. ... |
Posted by Jim__ | Mon Oct 28, 2013, 04:39 PM (0 replies)
A paper from 2011 disagrees that the size of quantum graininess can be the Planck length.
The article referenced in the OP says:
The Planck length turns out to be a very short distance: about 10-35 meters. It is a hundred million trillion times smaller than the diameter of a protontoo small to measure and, arguably, too small to ever be measured.
... There is another important aspect of the Planck length. Relativity predicts that distances as measured by an observer in a fast-moving reference frame shrinkthe so-called Lorentz contraction. But the Planck length is specialits the only length that can be derived from the constants c, G, and h without adding some arbitrary constantso it may retain the same value in all reference frames, not subject to any Lorentz contraction. But the Planck length is derived from universal constants, so it must have the same value in all reference frames; it cant change according to a Lorentz contraction. This implies that relativity theory does not apply at this size scale. We need some new scientific explanation for this phenomenon, and stochastic space-time might provide it. The idea that the Planck length cannot be shortened by the Lorentz contraction suggests that it is a fundamental quantum, or unit, of length. As a result, volumes with dimensions smaller than the Planck length arguably dont exist. The Planck length then, is a highly likely candidate for the size of a space-time grain, the smallest possible piece of space-time. A description of the 2011 paper says: Einsteins General Theory of Relativity describes the properties of gravity and assumes that space is a smooth, continuous fabric. Yet quantum theory suggests that space should be grainy at the smallest scales, like sand on a beach.
... Some theories suggest that the quantum nature of space should manifest itself at the Planck scale: the minuscule 10-35 of a metre, where a millimetre is 10-3 m. However, Integrals observations are about 10 000 times more accurate than any previous and show that any quantum graininess must be at a level of 10-48 m or smaller. This is a very important result in fundamental physics and will rule out some string theories and quantum loop gravity theories, says Dr Laurent. more ... |
Posted by Jim__ | Sat Jun 8, 2013, 05:34 PM (0 replies)
Surprising that Rosenberg claims to be on board with all that; then claims the macro world is ...
... asymptotically deterministic.
Yet Hoefer's paper, linked to from Pigliucci's blog, explicitly claims we don't even know if the question of whether or not the universe is deterministic is decidable, yet Rosenberg is claiming that he knows it is asymtotically deterministic at the macro level. And, we are not just talking about quantum events with no large effects in the macro world, it may be impossible to determine whether chaotic system are deterministic or stochastic: ...
The usual idealizing assumptions are made: no friction, perfectly elastic collisions, no outside influences. The ball's trajectory is determined by its initial position and direction of motion. If we imagine a slightly different initial direction, the trajectory will at first be only slightly different. And collisions with the straight walls will not tend to increase very rapidly the difference between trajectories. But collisions with the convex object will have the effect of amplifying the differences. After several collisions with the convex body or bodies, trajectories that started out very close to one another will have become wildly differentSDIC (sensitive dependence on initial conditions - Jim). In the example of the billiard table, we know that we are starting out with a Newtonian deterministic systemthat is how the idealized example is defined. But chaotic dynamical systems come in a great variety of types: discrete and continuous, 2-dimensional, 3-dimensional and higher, particle-based and fluid-flow-based, and so on. Mathematically, we may suppose all of these systems share SDIC. But generally they will also display properties such as unpredictability, non-computability, Kolmogorov-random behavior, and so onat least when looked at in the right way, or at the right level of detail. This leads to the following epistemic difficulty: if, in nature, we find a type of system that displays some or all of these latter properties, how can we decide which of the following two hypotheses is true? 1. The system is governed by genuinely stochastic, indeterministic laws (or by no laws at all), i.e., its apparent randomness is in fact real randomness. 2. The system is governed by underlying deterministic laws, but is chaotic. In other words, once one appreciates the varieties of chaotic dynamical systems that exist, mathematically speaking, it starts to look difficultmaybe impossiblefor us to ever decide whether apparently random behavior in nature arises from genuine stochasticity, or rather from deterministic chaos. Patrick Suppes (1993, 1996) argues, on the basis of theorems proven by Ornstein (1974 and later) that There are processes which can equally well be analyzed as deterministic systems of classical mechanics or as indeterministic semi-Markov processes, no matter how many observations are made. And he concludes that Deterministic metaphysicians can comfortably hold to their view knowing they cannot be empirically refuted, but so can indeterministic ones as well. (Suppes (1993), p. 254) ... I don't see how Rosenberg can be on board with this and then claim that nature is asymtotically deterministic. And, research indicates that animal brains have built-in chaotic subsystems - i.e we can't know whether they are deterministic or not. For instance, this excerpt from Towards a scientific concept of free will as a biological trait: spontaneous actions and decision-making in invertebrates - ( http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/early/2010/12/14/rspb.2010.2325.full| ): ...
A corresponding conclusion can be drawn from two earlier studies, which independently found that the temporal structure of the variability in spontaneous turning manoeuvres both in tethered and in free-flying fruitflies could not be explained by random system noise . Instead, a nonlinear signature was found, suggesting that fly brains operate at criticality, meaning that they are mathematically unstable, which, in turn, implies an evolved mechanism rendering brains highly susceptible to the smallest differences in initial conditions (i.e. SDIC - Jim) and amplifying them exponentially . Put differently, fly brains have evolved to generate unpredictable turning manoeuvres. The default state also of flies is to behave variably. Ongoing studies are trying to localize the brain circuits giving rise to this nonlinear signature. Results from studies in walking flies indicate that at least some component of variability in walking activity is under the control of a circuit in the so-called ellipsoid body, deep in the central brain . The authors tested the temporal structure in spontaneous bouts of activity in flies walking back and forth individually in small tubes and found that the power law in their data disappeared if a subset of neurons in the ellipsoid body was experimentally silenced. Analogous experiments have recently been taken up independently by another group and the results are currently being evaluated . The neurons of the ellipsoid body of the fly also exhibit spontaneous activity in live imaging experiments , suggesting a default-mode network also might exist in insects. Even what is often presented to students as the simplest behaviour, the spinal stretch reflex in vertebrates, contains adaptive variability. Via the cortico-spinal tract, the motor cortex injects variability into this reflex arc, making it variable enough for operant self-learning . Jonathan Wolpaw and colleagues can train mice, rats, monkeys and humans to produce reflex magnitudes either larger or smaller than a previously determined baseline precisely because much of the deviations from this baseline are not noise but variability deliberately injected into the reflex. Thus, while invertebrates lead the way in the biological study of behavioural variability, the principles discovered there can be found in vertebrates as well. One of the common observations of behavioural variability in all animals seems to be that it is not entirely random, yet unpredictable. The principle thought to underlie this observation is nonlinearity. Nonlinear systems are characterized by sensitive dependence on initial conditions. This means such systems can amplify tiny disturbances such that the states of two initially almost identical nonlinear systems can diverge exponentially from each other. Because of this nonlinearity, it does not matter (and it is currently unknown) whether the tiny disturbances are objectively random as in quantum randomness or whether they can be attributed to system, or thermal noise. What can be said is that principled, quantum randomness is always some part of the phenomenon, whether it is necessary or not, simply because quantum fluctuations do occur. Other than that it must be a non-zero contribution, there is currently insufficient data to quantify the contribution of such quantum randomness. In effect, such nonlinearity may be imagined as an amplification system in the brain that can either increase or decrease the variability in behaviour by exploiting small, random fluctuations as a source for generating large-scale variability. A general account of such amplification effects had already been formulated as early as in the 1930s . Interestingly, a neuronal amplification process was recently observed directly in the barrel cortex of rodents, opening up the intriguing perspective of a physiological mechanism dedicated to generating neural (and by consequence behavioural) variability . ... |
Posted by Jim__ | Sun Feb 12, 2012, 02:57 PM (0 replies)
I can't get to the review that you're referencing.
I can only read the first paragraph of the review without getting a subscription to TNR which I'm not interested in. That paragraph just contains a bunch of ridiculous looking questions. So I found another review of the book, and it looks like those questions and answers are directly from the book:
Its a seemingly simple notion, and one that many scientists and scientific-minded people would claim already to hew to, but it has surprisingly fraught implications. Rosenberg lays them out very early in Chapter 1, in a series of questions and answers. Is there a God? No. What is the nature of reality? What physics says it is. What is the purpose of the universe? There is none. Similarly, theres no meaning to life; you and I are here because of dumb luck, and theres no soul. ... While Massimo Pigliucci hasn't yet reviewed this book, he has referred to it numerous times. For example: Lately I hear the word determinism being thrown around like a trump card for all sorts of arguments, most obviously the recent discussions of free will that we have had on this blog. Moreover, as I already mentioned in passing, I am reading a new book by Alex Rosenberg that feels a lot like Dawkins on steroids (if you can imagine that), a huge portion of which is based on the assumption which the author thinks he can derive from established and certainly unchangeable physics of, you guessed it, determinism!
I got so sick of the smug attitudes that Rosenberg, Coyne, Harris and others derive from their acceptance of determinism obviously without having looked much into the issue that I delved into the topic a bit more in depth myself. As a result, Ive become agnostic about determinism, and I highly recommend the same position to anyone seriously interested in these topics (as opposed to anyone using his bad understanding of physics and philosophy to score rhetorical points). A good starting point from which to get a grip on the nuances and complexities of discussions concerning determinism is a very nicely written article by Carl Hoefer in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, as well as several of the primary sources cited there, particularly John Earman's Primer on Determinism. ... I've seen some good reviews of Rosenberg's book; but most of the reviews I've read have panned it. |
Posted by Jim__ | Fri Feb 10, 2012, 12:53 PM (1 replies)
Ronald Dworkin: Religion without God.
Dworkin gave the Einstein Lectures at the University of Bern on December 12, 13, and 14. Videos of his lectures (about 1 hour and 20 minutes each) can be found: here:
Here is an excerpt from the abstract of the lectures: : "For most people religion means a belief in a god. But Albert Einstein said that he was both an atheist and a deeply religious man. Millions of ordinary people seem to have the same thought: they say that though they dont believe in a god they do believe in something bigger than us. In these lectures I argue that these claims are not linguistic contradictions, as they are often taken to be, but fundamental insights into what a religion really is.
A religious attitude involves moral and cosmic convictions beyond simply a belief in god: that people have an innate, inescapable responsibility to make something valuable of their lives and that the natural universe is gloriously, mysteriously wonderful. Religious people accept such convictions as matters of faith rather than evidence and as personality-defining creeds that play a pervasive role in their lives. In these lectures I argue that a belief in god is not only not essential to the religious attitude but is actually irrelevant to that attitude. The existence or non-existence of a god does not even bear on the question of peoples intrinsic ethical responsibility or their glorification of the universe. I do not argue either for or against the existence of a god, but only that a gods existence can make no difference to the truth of religious values. If a god exists, perhaps he can send people to Heaven or Hell. But he cannot create right answers to moral questions or instill the universe with a glory it would not otherwise have. How, then, can we defend a religious attitude if we cannot rely on a god? In the first lecture I offer a godless argument that moral and ethical values are objectively real: They do not depend on god, but neither are they just subjective or relative to cultures. They are objective and universal. In the second lecture I concentrate on Einsteins own religion: his bewitchment by the universe. What kind of beauty might the vast universe be thought to hold what analogy to more familiar sources of beauty is most suggestive? I propose that the beauty basic physicists really hope to find is the beauty of a powerful, profound mathematical proof. Godly religions insist that though god explains everything his own existence need not be explained because he necessarily exists. Religious atheists like Einstein have, I believe, a parallel faith: that when a unifying theory of everything is found it will be not only simple but, in the way of mathematics, inevitable. They dream of a new kind of necessity: cosmic necessity. a little bit more ... |
Posted by Jim__ | Sun Jan 15, 2012, 01:57 PM (3 replies)
In your attempt to discuss human limitations you raise 2 spurious issues: fear and religion.
Your post does not justify either issue as pertinent to the consideration of human limitations.
I'm going to consider only the potential limitations on human knowledge. My first consideration in this would be the historical development of the human brain. It developed through evolution via the natural selection of accidental mutations. Specifically, the human brain was selected for because it solved problems in the environment better than brains based on other accidental changes. We have to assume that our brains are a minimal cost model that can work well with our bodies and solve environmental problems a little bit better than the next-best model. Since evolution did not require that our brain have an unlimited capacity to solve problems; but only a slightly better capacity to solve the problems that were encountered in its environment, I believe that there is an a fortiori case that the human brain has limitations. Is there any evidence for such limitations? Yes. For example, the human brain has a tendency to categorize knowledge. We divide up problems into subject matter categories, entities into life and non-life categories, life into plant and animal, and then subdivide these categories. To a certain extent, we see the world in terms of these categories; they have a certain determinative effect on our knowledge. Is there a physical constraint on the categories that we choose? An excerpt for Philosophy in the Flesh by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (Basic Books pp 18 - 19): The first and most important thing to realize about categorization is that it is an inescapable consequence of our biological makeup. We are neural beings. Our brains each have 100 billion neurons and 100 trillion synaptic connections. It is common in the brain for information to be passed from one dense ensemble of neurons to another via a relatively sparse set of connections. Whenever this happens, tha pattern of activation distributed over the first set of neurons is too great to be represented in a one-to-one manner in the sparse set of connections. Therefore, the sparse set of connections necessarily groups together certain input patterns in mapping them across to the output ensemble. Whenever a neural ensemble provides the same output with different inputs, there is a neural categorization.
To take a concrete example, each human eye has 100 million light-sensing cones, but only about 1 million fibers leading to the brain. Each incoming image therefore must be reduced in complexity by a factor of 100. That is, information in each fiber constitutes a "categorization' of the information from about 100 cells. Neural categorization of this sort exists throughout the brain, up through the highest levels of categories that we can be aware of. When we see trees, we them as trees, not just as individual objects distinct from one another. The same with rocks, houses, windows, doors, and so on. A small percentage of our categories have been formed by conscious acts of categorization, but most are formed automatically and unconsciously as a result of functioning in the world. Though we learn new categories regularly, we cannot make massive changes in our category systems through conscious acts of recategorization (though, through experience in the world, our categories are subject to unconscious reshaping and partial change). We do not, and cannot, have full conscious control over how we categorize. Even when we think we are forming new categories, our unconscious categories enter into our choice of possible conscious categories. Most important, it is not just that our bodies and brains determine that we will categorize; they also determine what kinds of categories we will have and what their structures will be. Think of the properties of the human body that contribute to the peculiarities of our conceptual system. We have eyes and ears, arms and legs that work in certain very definite ways and not in others. We have a visual system, with topographic maps and orientation sensitive cells, that provide structures for our ability to conceptualize spatial relations. Our abilities to move in the ways we do and to track the motion of other things give motion a major role in our conceptual system. The fact that we have muscles and use them to apply force in certain ways leads to the structure of our system of causal concepts. What is important is not just that we have bodies and that thought is somehow embodied. What is important is that the peculiar nature of our bodies shapes our very possibilities fro conceptualization and categorization. |
Posted by Jim__ | Fri Dec 30, 2011, 10:15 AM (1 replies)
That is the conclusion of the argument.
Aquinas' argument is (in part):
Now whatever is in motion is put in motion by another
... If that by which it is put in motion be itself put in motion, then this also must needs be put in motion by another, and that by another again. ... But this cannot go on to infinity, because then there would be no first mover, and, consequently, no other mover ... Therefore it is necessary to arrive at a first mover, put in motion by no other As to your question: Are you saying its a warranted conclusion, and if so, where is your evidence?
Read my post #10: ... The whole argument leads to the conclusion that there is a need for an unmoved mover. You can call the argument invalid; but you can't claim the claim that the conclusion is an entirely unwarranted assumption.
... This is not to claim that Aquinas' arguments are right. They have been rather famously refuted - for instance, by Kant. Dawkins could have just cited Kant. As to: As far as the second, no idea, have no interest in bullshit fields of study such as theology(or parapsychology like a BS posted in another post in this thread).
Your interest is quite beside the point. You asked why Dawkins was attacked. In this instance, his claims were attacked because he claimed: Even if we allow the dubious luxury of arbitrarily conjuring up a terminator to an infinite regress and giving it a name, simply because we need one, there is absolutely no reason to endow that terminator with any of the properties normally ascribed to God: omnipotence, omniscience, goodness, creativity of design, to say nothing of such human attributes as listening to prayers, forgiving sins and reading innermost thoughts.
But, as I stated in my post, Summa Theologica goes on to derive God's attributes based on the previously given existence arguments. Again, I'm not arguing for the correctness of Aquinas' arguments; just that to claim they are not even there is, to say the least, extreme sloppiness, and, as such, subject to attack. |
Posted by Jim__ | Tue Dec 20, 2011, 05:31 PM (1 replies)
"...under direct attack by many people who use misinformation, lies, and ignorance as their weapons.
Dawkins can easily be accused of using these very weapons in The God Delusion and that is why it was so vociferously attacked.
Yes, Dawkins is an expert biologist. I enjoyed reading his books on biology. Creationists criticized Dawkins for his arguments on biology. However, the criticisms that I see now, criticisms coming from philosophers and theologians have to do with Dawkins' attempt to argue philosophy and/or theology. He speaks with contempt about theology and then tries to refute certain of its claims. For instance, my copy of The God Delusion is Houghton Mifflin 2006. On page 77, he tries to refute Aquinas' unmoved mover argument (The ellipsis in the quote just covers Dawkins' presentation of: The Uncaused Cause argument and The Cosmological argument): 1. The Unmoved Mover. Nothing moves without a prior mover. This leads us to a regress, from which the only escape is God. Something had to make the first move, and that something we call God.
... All three of these arguments rely upon the idea of a regress and invoke God to terminate it. They make the entirely unwarrented assumption that God himself is immune to the regress. Even if we allow the dubious luxury of arbitrarily conjuring up a terminator to an infinite regress and giving it a name, simply because we need one, there is absolutely no reason to endow that terminator with any of the properties normally ascribed to God: omnipotence, omniscience, goodness, creativity of design, to say nothing of such human attributes as listening to prayers, forgiving sins and reading innermost thoughts. ... Aquinas in Summa Theologica on Question 2 Article 3 (his unmoved mover argument): I answer that, The existence of God can be proved in five ways.
The first and more manifest way is the argument from motion. It is certain, and evident to our senses, that in the world some things are in motion. Now whatever is in motion is put in motion by another, for nothing can be in motion except it is in potentiality to that towards which it is in motion; whereas a thing moves inasmuch as it is in act. For motion is nothing else than the reduction of something from potentiality to actuality. But nothing can be reduced from potentiality to actuality, except by something in a state of actuality. Thus that which is actually hot, as fire, makes wood, which is potentially hot, to be actually hot, and thereby moves and changes it. Now it is not possible that the same thing should be at once in actuality and potentiality in the same respect, but only in different respects. For what is actually hot cannot simultaneously be potentially hot; but it is simultaneously potentially cold. It is therefore impossible that in the same respect and in the same way a thing should be both mover and moved, i.e. that it should move itself. Therefore, whatever is in motion must be put in motion by another. If that by which it is put in motion be itself put in motion, then this also must needs be put in motion by another, and that by another again. But this cannot go on to infinity, because then there would be no first mover, and, consequently, no other mover; seeing that subsequent movers move only inasmuch as they are put in motion by the first mover; as the staff moves only because it is put in motion by the hand. Therefore it is necessary to arrive at a first mover, put in motion by no other; and this everyone understands to be God. They make the entirely unwarrented assumption that God himself is immune to the regress? The whole argument leads to the conclusion that there is a need for an unmoved mover. You can call the argument invalid; but you can't claim the claim that the conclusion is an entirely unwarrented assumption. As to his claim about the lack of argument for the attributes of God, here is an excerpt from the Table of Contents. The attributes are derived based on the arguments given with respect to the existence of God (i.e. the one's Dawkins is referencing): ...
4. The Perfection of God 5. Of Goodness in General 6. The Goodness of God 7. The Infinity of God 8. The Existence of God in Things 9. The Immutability of God 10. The Eternity of God 11. The Unity of God 12. How God Is Known by Us ... Dawkins' claims here (and elsewhere) are just wrong; and 5 minutes of research would tell him that. This is not to claim that Aquinas' arguments are right. They have been rather famously refuted - for instance, by Kant. Dawkins could have just cited Kant. Instead he tries to refute the argument himself and fails even to state it correctly. So, yes, The God Delusion was attacked for the sloppiness of its arguments. |
Posted by Jim__ | Tue Dec 20, 2011, 04:36 PM (2 replies)
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Our Original design of a traditional Celtic Cross is done in a "Baroque" style: The work that distinguishes the Baroque period [17th Century] is stylistically complex with the desire to evoke emotional states by appealing to the senses in dramatic ways. Examples of the Celtic cross date back as far as 5000 years BC; its origins are not known. The traditional "Celtic" Cross consists of a Circle centered upon the traditional "Latin cross." The shaft of the cross represents the World Axis; a Spiritual bridge between Heaven and the Earth. The four arms of the cross divide the world into the four directions, four elements, four seasons, and separates heaven and earth. The circle is a female symbol representing the unity of all life; Divine Light, and Spiritual Radiance. The cross combined with the circle unites the principles of female and male. The focal point at the center represents the Most High God, the "motionless mover," about which all life revolves. The same point is also the placement of Jesus' heart while he was on the cross-the source for divine love. The unbroken knot work that adorns the "Baroque" Cross is symbolic of the never ending process of our Spiritual Growth.
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For 2011, the Titan SE and LE become the Titan SV and SL.
Driving Impressions When it comes to power, the 2011 Nissan Titan is in no danger of being called wimpy. The standard 5.6-liter V8, which pumps out an impressive 317 horsepower, responds instantly...
to throttle input and pulls strongly even under load. Nissan's 5-speed gated automatic transmission shifts smoothly and the gated shifter makes it easy shuttling between first and second gears, something we did quite often on steep downhill descents. We did pick up on some vibration telegraphed through the steering wheel, and there is a noticeable exhaust note upon application of the throttle. When it comes to normal driving situations, however, the Titan delivers a smooth, controlled ride and exhibits better-than-average pickup truck steering and handling response.Wide-Swinging Rear Door
The hinged rear door on the King Cab model swings back 168 degrees to create exceptionally convenient interior access.
Exterior Storage Box
The Titan's exterior storage box (located behind the left rear wheel) is perfect for storing such items as jumper cables, tow chains and tools.
Depending upon trim, the 2011 Nissan Titan can offer a practical or practically luxurious truck interior environment. Base models feature bench seating and a column shifter, while upper-end trims tout bucket-style Captain's-Chair seating and a wide center console outfitted with a gated shifter, which directs the shift lever through a slotted path, providing more precise control when shifting gears. While we did find the cabin to be roomy and well appointed, some taller folks commented that, even with the seat at its lowest position, they still found themselves staring out through the windshield's tint band. We also found some uneasiness with the power window buttons, which are placed parallel to the windows. Although easy to reach, with the windows lowered we fear this design makes the switches vulnerable to the outside elements.
The 2011 Nissan Titan is available in King and Crew Cab truck configurations, with three bed lengths, and a choice of a long or short wheelbase. Common-sense features, such as the available built-in channel system with moveable cleats and the protective factory spray-in bedliner, show the Titan's design team understands the rear-world situations for which the pickup might be used. Other clever features include the lockable external storage bin located outside the bed and just behind the left rear wheel and, on the King Cab model, a rear door that facilitates easy loading by opening a full 168 degrees. Off-road enthusiasts will love the 10-inches of ground clearance (measured at the axle) provided by the PRO-4X trim.
Standard equipment for the Titan S includes a 317-horsepower 5.6-liter V8, 5-speed automatic transmission with a Tow/Haul mode, 4-wheel Active-Brake Limited Slip (ABLS) brakes, air conditioning, full gauges, exterior cargo light, dual manually-operated side mirrors, full bench seat, a rear 12-volt outlet, AM/FM stereo with CD, tilt wheel, tire-pressure monitor, 18-inch steel wheels and front, side and full-length side-curtain airbags. The S Crew Cab, SV, SL and PRO-4X add even more standard features, including power locks, power windows, remote keyless entry, cruise control, a sliding rear window and 18-inch alloy wheels.
Options vary by trim and include 4-wheel drive (4WD), a tow package, Bluetooth hands-free phone connectivity, Rockford Fosgate audio, a spray-in bedliner, an 8-way power driver's seat, heated front seats, rear-seat DVD entertainment system (on the Crew Cab), navigation, an electronic locking rear differential, bed extender and a Homelink Universal Transceiver.
Unlike many of its competitors, the 2011 Nissan Titan pickup offers only one engine choice, and it's the most powerful V8 Nissan builds. The 5.6-liter V8 produces an abundance of power, but it cannot reasonably be expected to deliver the best fuel economy. A no-cost option is the same engine fitted with technology that makes it E85-compatible.
5.6-liter V8
317 horsepower @ 5,200 rpm
385 lb-ft of torque @ 3,400 rpm
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 13/18 (2WD, gasoline), 12/17 (4WD, gasoline), 9/13 (2WD, E85), 9/13 (4WD, E85)
To compare current market prices, check out KBB.com's car classifieds to view the new and used Nissan Titan Crew Cab vehicles for sale near you.
Based on 204 Ratings for the 2005 - 2014 models.
Review this carBy Americo on Monday, January 05, 2015
I own this car - My approximate mileage is 104,000
overall rating 9 of 10rating detailsPros: "Fun to drive"
Cons: "fuel is little hard on it."
Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 9
"I always been a big horn fan and when I bought the Nissa Titan I was not sure about it but after a while I really enjoy the truck it will give you the power that you need to tow at any time, I'm proud to drive the titan at any time."
12 people out of 19 found this review helpful
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By Jerry Dale on Sunday, September 07, 2014
I own this car - My approximate mileage is 29,500
overall rating 9 of 10rating detailsPros: "fun driving,quiet ride, comfy seats"
Cons: "cost a fortune to fill it up."
Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 10
"Traded my 09 Silverado on this truck and had I known how nice they were I would have never owned a Chevy. Much more leg room in the backseat, quieter in the cab and about 3-5 mpg better on the highway.I'm averaging 19 on the highway in the first month I've owned it."
15 people out of 35 found this review helpful
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By Bob Ball on Friday, June 20, 2014
I own this car - My approximate mileage is 2,778
overall rating 10 of 10rating detailsPros: "Performance, interior features, ride, much cheaper"
Cons: "Bad gas mileage...Hope next gen has better mpg"
Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 10
"Happy with having a Titan its a great truck to own has an good ride but gas mileage not best dropping to 18.2 mpg less. It's a real nice truck with SV Crew Cab all of features were available on Titan. The ride is smooth read reviews about it don't know why people were biasing about this truck to me a very nice truck although might be 10 years older needs some cosmetic changes love how comfortable the seats. Interior looks reasonable for price ever handling is amazing and got some excellent horsepower with the 4.6L engine it's so powerful. Titan has great brake distances and tows anything includes side bars available for storage something like with Ram 1500s box storages. Have a navigation system, Pioneer CD stereo, rear view camera is optional. I am just amazed on how much room it offers doesn't feel lacking or steering shakes when taking the Titan at higher speed it's a well built truck as don't think nothing isn't wrong buying a Titan long take on long test drive know details and long term reliability when maintaining not abusing it will last at least 200K miles. Overall we are proud of our Nissan reliability still own a '05 Altima 2.5s bought new in 2005 with 180K miles and wife has a 2014 Maxima she loves so much and I am happy with my Titan truck. It looks good was much cheaper for me getting this over Chevy, Ford or Toyota maybe that is why this truck hasn't changed a bit in style because Nissan wanted buyers to have a good deal when making a purchasing on the Titan just gave some new updates from interior to performance. One thing about Nissan they have some of the best VQ engines ever in class. I will keep it until reaches 300,000 miles while taking care of engine and tranny than it will last a long time don't think 2013-14 models haven't suffer low problems than averaged as other years either except rear axle problems but know a coworkers friend who has one at almost 200K miles with no problems bought new but love mine new Titan it's the best ever had."
15 people out of 25 found this review helpful
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By Clayp711 on Friday, May 30, 2014
I own this car - My approximate mileage is 165,000
overall rating 5 of 10rating detailsPros: "Sturdy, plain and simple"
Cons: "Drinks gas like an alcoholic, overpriced"
Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 3
"This truck was overpriced for the lack of features and drank gas like a fish. Two tanks per week at $80 per tank (120 mi round trip daily commute). Had the same truck once in the LE model and my payment for that from brand new with NMAC was $11 less than this was used with 36k miles."
9 people out of 17 found this review helpful
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By Ed on Friday, May 09, 2014
I own this car - My approximate mileage is 117,000
overall rating 10 of 10rating detailsPros: "DEFINITELY"
Cons: "THREE (3) CUP HOLDERS"
Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 10
"Custom-match truck bed cover made. Comfortable leather seats, instant heat/air, inside convenient for anyone's needs. paint and finish look like the day I purchased NEW. My truck in EXCELLENT condition, inside and out. MOTTO: Take care of your car/truck, it takes care of you!"
11 people out of 19 found this review helpful
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By srivkin78 on Tuesday, April 22, 2014
I own this car - My approximate mileage is 11,000
overall rating 10 of 10rating detailsPros: "Full of options for much less then Ford/Chevy"
Cons: "MPG's but it's expected"
Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 10
"First off the Titan is the only truck I have owned but i have driven Ram 1500 and Silverados and i can say this: This is a very nice riding truck and for the money, you get a lot. I had a 2007 Titan CC LE 4x4 short bed loaded which was my first truck i ever owned and loved it...and now i have a 2013 CC SV Premium 4x4. Got it for a great price, around $36,000 after incentives. I use it as an active home owner truck but i know this thing would make a great construction truck. PLENTY of room. It's very cozy and everyone who has ridden in it has commented on how much room there is and how smooth the ride is. Plenty of power for most people not the mention the VQ56 engine responds well to bolt ons like, exhaust, headers, intake and Uprev tune...you will pick up some very nice gains if you are into adding performance mods. Check the Titantalk forums. Gas mileage with spirited driving is 13.5MPG( i use 93 octane 100% of the time), on long trips i can get around 16. So in camparison it falls short compared to other models....But that will all change the the new Diesel comes out for 2015....which i will be getting. If you are looking to get into a Titan, wait for teh 2015 Titan Diesel to be released, i will be well worth it...300+hp and 500+tq and rumored at or above 25 MPG"
6 people out of 9 found this review helpful
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Summary: Teaching reading to children in a language that is not their own is a daunting task. Combining the best classroom practices and research on teaching reading and language acquisition, Mary Cappellini integrates effective reading instruction with effective language instruction. Through the framework of a balanced reading program, she emphasizes the importance of constantly listening for and assessing children's language and reading strategies during read aloud, shared ...show morereading, guided reading, and independent reading, including literature circles.
Mary plans and demonstrates whole-class, small-group, and individual reading instruction using a model of "reading to, with, and by children" with fiction and nonfiction texts. She works in the primary and upper grades with children at all stages of English language development and at all developmental reading levels. With on-going assessments based on those interactions, she shows how to plan for more effective instruction. Mary constantly questions and discusses whether the child needs more support in language development or in developing reading strategies, breaking down assumptions that equate a low level of English proficiency with a lack of reading strategies, or English language fluency with accomplished reading skills.
Through the use of wonderful literature, and by maintaining a focus on the children's strengths, needs, prior knowledge, and interests, Mary constantly challenges students as they develop their fluency in English while becoming fluent readers.
Included in this text are:
Balancing Reading and Language Learning provides the strategies proven to be effective in a balanced reading program, while at the same time valuing the native culture and first-language skills of the English language learner. Regardless of how many or how few ELL students a teacher has, this invaluable resource helps them meet the challenges and reap the rewards of teaching children to read as they learn the language. ...show less
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BOSTON — Will Middlebrooks' hopes for an injury-free 2014 didn't last long.
Middlebrooks was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Sunday with a Grade 1 strain of his right calf. The Red Sox recalled infielder Brock Holt from Pawtucket, and Jonathan Herrera received his second straight start at third base on Sunday.
"Unfortunately, we're missing a power right-handed bat that was getting off to what looked to be a pretty darn good start," manager John Farrell said.
Middlebrooks is 3-for-13 on the season with a home run and double. It's not yet clear how much time he'll need on the DL.
It's especially frustrating for Middlebrooks, given his commitment this offseason to strengthening his body specifically to avoid the disabled list. He was plagued by lingering core issues for much of 2013, which while not causing his offensive struggles certainly didn't help.
"When you lose a guy like Will, some of the thunder in the lineup, it just makes it different," said David Ortiz. "But [we're] going to hang in there until he gets back and try to go about our business."
Herrera went 1-for-4 in Middlebrooks' place and miscommunicated with Jon Lester on a well-placed second-inning bunt by Milwaukee's Khris Davis.
Holt had been in the PawSox lineup when he got the news to drive north on I-95. The left-handed hitter has gotten off to a quick start with Pawtucket, collecting four hits in the team's first three games. That's a far cry from where he was last April, when he hit .149 for the PawSox.
"Last year, as the new guy, I wasn't too comfortable," said Holt. "This year I feel a lot better. It helped me in spring training, just being around the guys again, and now going into the season."
Holt ended up playing 26 games for the Red Sox last year, including 17 starts at third.
Holt received the call over other candidates such as Brandon Snyder and Garin Cecchini. Although Snyder may be a better fit to platoon at third with Herrera — who's a better left-handed hitter than right-handed — he isn't on the 40-man roster. The organization deemed it too early to bring up the 22-year-old Cecchini, who has all of 15 Triple-A plate appearances. Furthermore, Cecchini's glove may not be ready for the big-league spotlight just yet.
"While he's had good at-bats there, there's still some development defensively that's taking place," Farrell said of Cecchini. "His time is coming, but we didn't feel like it's right now."
After a 1-for-3 day Sunday, Cecchini is 6-for-12 with three walks for the PawSox in 2014.
Left-handed reliever Craig Breslow will throw one more rehab inning for the PawSox on Monday before having his status reevaluated. Breslow is on the disabled list with a left shoulder strain.
He's shown no ill effects after appearing on back-to-back nights in Pawtucket on Thursday and Friday, tossing 1 2/3 scoreless innings.
"I feel good, I feel strong," said Breslow. "I feel like I'm really close. Hopefully [Monday] will be it."
Sunday was a planned day off for Grady Sizemore, with the day game following the night game. Farrell said that a complete down day isn't necessary for Sizemore, so he should be available off the bench on most days he doesn't start.
Despite pitching three of the last four days, Koji Uehara was available if needed Sunday, said Farrell.
Twitter: @TimBritton


text:
WASHINGTON – An agency created to prevent foreclosures has turned instead to helping people sell their homes for less than they owe, officials said this week.
Without more support from lenders, Save Our Home AZ can't modify more than a handful of Arizona's sour mortgages, so the $268 million fund is trying to find other ways to help troubled homeowners – even if that means aiding so-called short sales.
"The modification effort has been pretty much a failure," said Michael Trailor, director of the Arizona Department of Housing. "The short sale may be the best tool we have considering the failure of modification."
About a year after the program began, only three homeowners had reduced the principal amount owed on their homes and only 11 had settled a second mortgage. The housing department, which oversees the program, still has much of its fund available to modify loans but has not been able to find takers because of reluctance from lenders.
While a short sale is not ideal, Trailor said, it prevents foreclosure, has a much smaller effect on a homeowner's credit and ensures that the property will have another owner. He called it a last resort for homeowners.
"I wish we could say that we had prevented over 2,000 homes from entering into foreclosure or short sale, but we can't say that because of the resistance we have encountered," Trailor said.
That resistance comes from banks that cannot or will not modify mortgages to reduce the amount owed, he said. That is particularly true of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the government-sponsored firms that own the majority of Arizona mortgages.
"The key to me is Fannie and Freddie," Trailor said. "They control the majority of mortgages in this country. … It just cuts out such a huge piece of the mortgage industry that it discourages lenders to participate."
The $268 million was allocated to Arizona by the U.S. Treasury Department beginning in 2009 as part of the Hardest Hit Fund, which went to five states slammed by the housing crisis. The fund has since expanded to 18 states and the District of Columbia, all of which have programs specifically tailored to their needs.
Since it began, Save Our Home AZ has given troubled homeowners about $3.5 million. Most of the funds have been distributed through an unemployment assistance program, which helps pay the mortgage for homeowners who have lost jobs or earn significantly less than when they financed their homes.
That program has been relatively successful because it requires minimal risk on the bank's end: Banks simply have to let the fund pay the mortgage in addition to the homeowner. Under the original loan-modification program, by contrast, banks had to forgive up to $50,000 of debt to get matching funds from Save Our Home AZ.
In a short sale, the fund will pay closing costs and can provide the seller with up to $4,500 to pay for a move.
The Treasury does allow fund money to be transferred from one program to the next so all of the money is, in essence, available for unemployment and short-sale assistance.
But hurdles remain. Restrictions on debt-to-value ratios – mortgages that are deeply "under water" – and on cash-out refinances keep many from tapping into the fund.
"There's a lot of people who need this help, and they're not able to get it," said Todd Francis, chief operating officer of Neighborhood Housing Services of Phoenix.
Unlike many other states, Arizona currently does not assist homeowners who performed a cash-out refinance, which means taking out a loan on the property without repaying the original lien. The rule is meant to keep from helping irresponsible borrowers who took out loans to buy luxury items.
Trailor estimated that 20 percent of Save Our Home AZ's denials are because of cash-out refinancing. But some of those people used the money for medical bills, home improvements or other uses that are sensible in Trailor's eyes. He said Save Our Home AZ is trying to exempt the more-responsible borrowers.
That leniency could open up the unemployment program to many more Arizona homeowners, said Liza Vasquez, a foreclosure counseling supervisor with Neighborhood Housing Services of Phoenix.
Joshua Armstrong is a reporter for Cronkite News Service.


text:
Matt Vensel is in his first year at the Star Tribune after covering the Ravens for the Baltimore Sun for six years. He is a Pittsburgh native and a Penn State grad. Follow him at @mattvensel.
Mark Craig has covered the NFL for 23 years, and the Vikings since 2003 for the Star Tribune. He is one of 44 Pro Football Hall of Fame selectors. Follow him at @markcraignfl.
Master Tesfatsion is the Star Tribune's digital Vikings writer. He is a 2013 graduate of Arizona State and worked for mlb.com before arriving in Minneapolis. Follow him at @masterstrib.
Vikings coach Leslie Frazier wouldn't come out and say Christian Ponder will start on Sunday at Seattle. But he did admit that's the likely scenario, barring an unforeseen change in Ponder's progress from a separated left [non-throwing] shoulder on Saturday.
"Christian is better," Frazier said after today's practice. "We gave him a little bit more today in practice, so that was encouraging. We'll see how he feels tomorrow with the extended work he got today and then we'll make a determination based on where he is tomorrow. We want to make sure that he feels comfortable as well as our medical staff as well.
"The way he moved around today, he looked pretty good. Hopefully, he'll wake up tomorrow without any residual effects, negative effects from the workload that we gave him. But you never know."
Frazier wouldn't say whether Matt Cassell or Josh Freeman would serve as the backup, although Cassel looks to be the No. 2. Frazier also said it's possible the team will keep all three quarterbacks active against Seattle.
In other news:
Vikings defensive end Jared Allen said he gets nostalgic with 11-year veteran defensive tackle Kevin Williams on how the NFL used to be when they started their careers.
Allen, in his 10th season in the league, said "hazing" has changed significantly since he started his career with the Chiefs in 2004 and feels the rite of passage message in having veterans establish the atmosphere in the locker room has been lost to a degree.
"From a player's standpoint, I think some of the younger guys come in and there's a sense of entitlement, and you lose that work ethic, you lose that true veteran-led locker room sometimes," Allen said. "You got to know who you're dealing with. You can't treat everyone the same. You can't treat every rookie the same. Some guys are more sensitive than others, but it's a sign of respect."
Allen said he knows Dolphins guard Richie Incognito, who has been suspended by the team as the NFL reviews a harassment complaint from tackle Jonathan Martin, but he doesn't know the details of the situation in Miami. He said it's a terrible situation for Martin, Incognito and the team that's down two offensive linemen.
"Richie has a good heart, he really does," Allen said. "I know he's catching some heat right now, but from what I know of Richie, we've always had a good relationship. He's always been cool with my family. We have mutual friends, so it's a bad deal."
Reports on the hazing issues in Miami mention an instance where the rookies were stuck paying a $30,000 team dinner. Allen recalled during his rookie year driving 20 miles to pick up Popeyes chicken before every team flight with the Chiefs and has heard of first-round picks picking up $50,000-$60,000 tabs at the "rookie dinners" before the NFL implemented a rookie wage scale.
"It just depends on when you came in," Allen said. "Reasonable back in the day? Yeah. I mean, I've heard of worse. I've heard of less. It depends. That's usually how it is. But usually it's a rite of passage you go through, so as a rookie from a football standpoint you go through stuff and that's what kind of brings you together as a team."
Vikings head coach Leslie Frazier has a policy against hazing with the players, and players have to tread lightly with a rookie.
"We do little things like, 'Go get me coffee,'" Allen said. "Nothing too crazy, but I appreciate it going through that because I had the respect of the vets. Then when it's your turn, you don't feel so bad giving it to someone else."
Coach Leslie Frazier finally said what everyone has been expecting him to say since Matt Cassel led the Vikings to a turnover-free 34-27 victory over the Steelers in London back on Sept. 29:
"Matt Cassel is going to be our starting quarterback on Sunday."
There, it's official. But it wasn't an easy decision. Naming Cassel the starter ahead of a now-healthy Christian Ponder along with signing former Bucs QB Josh Freeman on Monday has serious ramifications for the future of a guy who three weeks ago was still considered the team's quarterback of the future.
"I think it's always tough when you make a change at quarterback," Frazier said. "You have to take a lot of factors into it when you're doing that. You don't make those decisions lightly and we didn't. We'll see how it plays out. But this is the start of this ballgame. We'll see how Matt does. But we'll see how it plays out over time."
Ponder, who missed the Steelers game because of a fractured rib, will back Cassel up on Sunday against the Panthers at Mall of America Field. As for Freeman, Frazier said, "we have not decided at this point what we're going to do with Josh. We don't see him being able to play this ballgame yet, based on where we are and where he is with our offense." In that case, Freeman would be a game-day inactive.
As for what happens next week, Frazier said that will take care of itself next week. Obviously, if the Vikings win and Cassel moves the offense with the same rhythm that he did in London, well, it will be difficult to remove him. Of course, the Vikings didn't bring Freeman in to stand on the sideline for 12 weeks either.
"I think we need to sit back on Monday after the game and evaluate things and see where we are," Frazier said. "See how it goes."
The Vikings next game after Sunday is Oct. 21 at the Giants. Asked if Freeman would be able to play in that game, Frazier said, "Probably have to look at some things next week to make that determination. I'm not sure, even as we speak, if that would be the case. But we'll evaluate it when we come back next week."
Cassel said he was anticipating that would start and was preparing as if he would. But he said he didn't know for sure until this morning.
"You never know in this league," Cassel said. "I wouldn't have guessed on Monday we'd have another quarterback in the room as well. You never know what's going to happen. But at the same time it's always about getting myself prepared and being accountable to my teammates, getting ready to go."
Cassel said he's not looking beyond Sunday's game.
"It's just one more opportunity," he said. "[Against Pittsburgh], we took a great approach and the guys came out and responded well. We all responded well. We played well as a team and hopefully we can build off that. For us it's always a one-game season right now to get ourselves back in to this race."
Cassel did allow himself a second to enjoy the moment.
"It's exciting," he said. "That's why you come out here and you compete through OTAs and minicamp and all that stuff."
In other news:
The Vikings were afraid someone would claim No. 3 QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson before they had a chance to sign him to their practice squad. And for good reason. The 49ers claimed him not long ago.
Bethel-Thompson was released to make room for Monday's signing of Josh Freeman.
The Vikings also released defensive end George Johnson and claimed defensive end Justin Trattou off waivers.
Meanwhile, Christian Ponder practiced today, but only on a limited basis as he comes back from the fractured rib that sidelined him for the Steelers game two weeks ago.
Also limited in practice today were: CB Chris Cook (groin), TE Rhett Ellison (knee), SS Jamarca Sanford (hamstring) and DT Kevin Williams (knee). Earlier today, coach Leslie Frazier said he expects Sanford and Cook to return after missing the Steelers game. Ellison, who has missed the past two games, also is expected to play.
LONDON -- The Vikings injury report has become lengthy. Seven players either were limited or did not participate at all on Wednesday.
As addressed earlier today, quarterback Christian Ponder was limited because of a rib injury. Also limited were Kevin Williams (knee) and running back Matt Asiata (hamstring).
Three defensive backs did not practice -- Chris Cook (groin), Jamarca Sanford (hamstring) and A.J. Jefferson (ankle). Tight end Rhett Ellison also did not participate after missing Sunday's game against Cleveland because of a knee injury.
The Vikings health issues in the secondary are a major concern because they potentially could be without two starters in Cook and Sanford. General manager Rick Spielman gave a rare in-season media session today and said his staff, including assistant GM George Paton, stayed back in the Twin Cities to monitor the waiver wire so they could be in position to handle logistics if they need to make a roster move this week.
"I've been monitoring at 2 a.m. the wires for any potential moves that can be made, the logistics of making those moves, how you get that guy over to England, does he have a passport if we have to bring a player over here," Spielman said. "That's been kind of interesting. I didn't get to sleep until 2:30 this morning and had to get woken up. I called my people over there and it's 3 in the morning over there and they're asking what you're doing.
"We've got until 9 o'clock tonight to make a move but we have to do it on your (Minn) time. It's worked out great so far and we'll see anything from a personnel standpoint, if we have to do anything, that we'll be able to get that accomplished."
The injuries in the secondary create speculation about whether the team has contacted Antoine Winfield to see if he will put off retirement for now. Spielman declined to discuss their potential interest in Winfield.
"I won't get into any facts on who we talked to or what we're doing," he said. "We always look at options when there are injuries. We'll continue to that."
Asked if Winfield has been ruled in or out of consideration, Spielman said, "I can't rule anything. You never know."


text:
'More Cavalier' plants could counter effects of climate change
17 December 2008
A leading UK plant scientist has called for the application of new in-depth data analysis of plants' regulatory systems to enable plant breeders to develop varieties that are naturally less conservative.
"To develop varieties of crops that can produce high yield sustainably under changing climatic conditions we need to be able to override plants' natural tendency to batten down the hatches really hard when times are tough, and to hedge their bets when times are good," said Professor Ottoline Leyser of the University of York's department of Biology.
Professor Leyser was speaking at a recent meeting of the Strategy Advisory Board* of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council – the major public funder of plant science research in the UK.
She told the meeting that plants are naturally conservative. Evolution has driven them to plan for the long term and adopt a cautious rate of growth in case things get really bad in the future. While this makes sense in the wild, said Professor Leyser, for crop plants we want varieties that will behave in a more 'cavalier fashion' and maintain a faster rate of growth in a range of environments, investing that growth specifically in plant parts of agricultural relevance.
Although 10,000 years of plant breeding has made significant inroads in modifying plant growth properties, sophisticated new information about plant genes and their functions provides exciting opportunities for plant breeders to tap into the unused potential of plants to maintain productivity, even in harsh conditions.
There is a tendency to assume that plants are growing as fast as they can given the resources available to them, but multiple lines of evidence now show that this is not the case. Plants have specific genes that limit growth, and quite simple changes in those genes can increase productivity. The trick, however, is to breed plants with more sophisticated combinations of these genes that will still respond to the environment, protecting themselves from harsh conditions, but in a more light-touch way. To do that, we need to understand how these genes work together as a system to regulate growth.
Professor Leyser said that one of the big challenges is to channel this information rapidly into large scale plant breeding.
* The Board advises BBSRC Council on its strategic priorities and planning, and brings together academic and industry based researchers.
About BBSRC
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is the UK funding agency for research in the life sciences. Sponsored by Government, BBSRC annually invests around £420M in a wide range of research that makes a significant contribution to the quality of life for UK citizens and supports a number of important industrial stakeholders including the agriculture, food, chemical, healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors. www.bbsrc.ac.uk
About the University of York's Department of Biology
The University of York's Department of Biology is one of the leading centres for biological teaching and research in the UK. The Department both teaches degree courses and undertakes research across the whole spectrum of modern Biology, from molecular genetics and biochemistry to ecology.
Matt Goode, Head of External Relations
tel: 01793 413299
Tracey Jewitt, Media Officer
tel: 01793 414694
fax: 01793 413382


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Lawrence Eagleburger was appointed Secretary of State on December 8, 1992 and continued in that position until January 19, 1993. Eagleburger's tenure as Secretary capped off a distinguished 27-year career with the Department of State. He continues to actively engage in foreign policy issues.
Lawrence Sidney Eagleburger, 62nd Secretary of State
Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 1, 1930, Eagleburger earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1952, before serving as a First Lieutenant in the United States Army from 1952 to 1954. Following his army years, the future diplomat returned to his alma mater, where he earned a master's degree in 1957. Upon graduation, Eagleburger joined the Foreign Service and served as a political analyst for Cuba before being sent to Yugoslavia, where he was assigned to the U.S. Embassy's economic section from 1961 to 1965. He also worked as a National Security Council staff member from 1966 to 1967, and as Special Assistant to the Under Secretary of State from 1967 to 1969.
During the Nixon Administration, Eagleburger held a number of roles, including Executive Assistant to the President's Advisor for National Security Affairs (1969), Political Advisor and Chief of the Political Section of the U.S. Mission to NATO (1969-71), and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (1971-73). He was then named the Executive Secretary to the Secretary of State from 1975 to 1977, before President Jimmy Carter appointed him Ambassador to Yugoslavia from 1977 to 1981.
Eagleburger continued to rise within the ranks of the Department of State during the Reagan and Bush I Administrations--serving as Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs under President Ronald Reagan and Deputy Secretary of State during President George H.W. Bush's tenure.
When James Baker left his post as Secretary of State in August of 1992 to lead President Bush's reelection campaign, Eagleburger took over the Department of State as Acting Secretary of State until the President gave him a recess appointment as Secretary of State on December 8, 1992. Eagleburger's career service over the years gave him invaluable experience and knowledge in many important areas of U.S. diplomacy.
Most notably, the time he spent in Yugoslavia led him to become President George H.W. Bush's primary advisor during Yugoslavia's disintegration following communism's demise in Eastern Europe. Eagleburger's role as an advisor on Yugoslavian affairs was not without controversy. He gained a reputation as a strong Serbian supporter and denied that there had been atrocities committed in Croatia. As the Department's second-highest ranking official prior to taking over the Secretary's position, Eagleburger also played a key role during the First Persian Gulf War.
Since his retirement, he has remained a strong voice on international and political issues, becoming chairman of the International Commission on Holocaust-Era Insurance Claims in 1998, which worked to resolve unpaid insurance claims for Holocaust survivors. In recent years, Eagleburger has publicly commented on U.S. Middle Eastern policy and served on the Iraq Study Group.


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I guess one of the great things about being a touch of depressed is that you get to take anti-depressants.
And taking anti-depressants makes you a touch of Pollyanna.
Especially when you still get a touch overwhelmed and drink Vodka at night.
And that can be pretty great because you're funny.
Even if your kid keeps getting Croup.
But hey! Croup means going to the Pediatrician!
Who is hot.
So you have to shave your legs which is kind of nice because you feel a little more sexy.
Or you might go swimming.
Which helps you lose weight.
So really? Being a little depressed sorta kinda helps you lose weight in the long run.
Who's in?
Read more


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That the Tiger's roar may echo o'er the mountain height!
A $1 million gift to Clemson University ensures that two legacies that began in the early 1900s will benefit current and future students.
Join us for the 15th annual CAFLS Alumni Golf Tournament to raise funds for the Thomas E. Skelton Scholarship Fund.
Mark your calendar for March 26-29!
New Savannah River Photographic Survey Exhibit Opening, March 7 in Clemson's Sikes Hall.
This year's tour begins April 14th! Find an event near you and hear what our coaches have to say about 2014.
Dr. Jerry Reel traveled to Chicago, where he shared Clemson history with parents, alumni, and members of the Chicago Clemson Club.
You loved your Clemson experience. Your children can share that experience this summer.
Claude Howell earned his wings as a Marine and died serving his Country as a Naval aviator.
The College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities held a luncheon to celebrate and honor donors to the college's endowments and annual scholarships.
Alumna recently elected President of the Carolinas' Council on Military Education.
Clemson scientists have received a grant from the NIH to discover metabolic targets that could lead to a cure for African sleeping sickness.
Alum recently named Chief Storyteller of Gray Digital Group.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded the grant to broaden the impact of advanced computing resources.
Alumnus opens farm that has become one of the largest and fastest growing farming operations in America.
At Greenville Business magazine's Corporate Tuesday event sponsored by Clemson, attendees learned about Clemson's impact on Upstate SC from Alumni Assoc Sr Director, Wil Brasington.
Experience the City of Clemson, the University and the foothills with this easy-to-use guide, filled with over 150 color photographs.
Seminars designed to help you devise a successful business strategy. Clemson Alumni receive a 5% discount off the registration fee - use promo code PawPower.
Clemson alumna wins funding for new agreements designed to enhance learning through the use of the agency's Earth science resources.
Clemson University researchers are working on some of the toughest questions in nuclear safety.
Growing concerns about brain trauma to football players have led to new materials used to make helmets.
Tigers are running from extinction so YOU should run to help save them!
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New Living Translation (NLT) | New International Version (NIV) |
1 "Listen in silence before me, you lands beyond the sea. Bring your strongest arguments. Come now and speak. The court is ready for your case." | 1 "Be silent before me, you islands! Let the nations renew their strength! Let them come forward and speak; let us meet together at the place of judgment. |
Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. (New Living Translation - The Bible Online) | Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide. (New International Version Bible Online) |


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Sokoban for the Nokia 7650 – I have no idea how to play it yet but there's 90 levels so should keep me going for a while!
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Current events
From BEAM Robotics Wiki
We apologize for the need to display ads on this wiki. But somehow we must pay for hosting.
[edit] Anything BEAM going on in your area? Add it here.
Ongoing - 2009 WCRS Ongoing Display at the Calgary Aerospace Museum for solar powered units.
November 2008. Eastern Canadian Robot Games, which holds competitions for Solarrollers, Photovores, and Walkers.


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Lessons from a Fat Hypnotist –Farquharson/Tedesco
November 2012Cynthia was trying to lose weight. Not enough time to eat right and too much Chipotle was putting the stress test on her clothing. Having tried most of every option, she decided to jump in on a Groupon deal that offered two sessions with a hypnotist for $99.
On the day of her first appointment, Cynthia arrived on time, walked in, sat down and waited. Before long, the hypnotist came out to meet her. But, any chance he had of helping her disappeared when she got a good look at him. It seems that the hypnotist was no stranger to the buffet.
Would you go and listen to a motivational speech given by Eeyore? How about hearing a sermon on Sunday morning delivered by Charlie Sheen? Would you let Bernard Madoff handle your money? The decision to make an investment, be it time or money, in any business or activity requires a certain level of faith in the product.
In the print world, the "product" consists of everything, from the quality of the mail piece to the condition of the shop itself. Like it or not, you are being judged on your ability to do for your company precisely what it is you are promising to do for a customer's. Even showing up late for an appointment sends a "fat hypnotist" message to a potential customer.
The way to make money in print these days has less to do with your ability to magically make ink or toner stick to paper and more to do with your ability to help customers grow their businesses. Prove to them that print is helping you to grow your business and you just might be given the chance to show them how print can help grow theirs. In other words, walk the walk.
Create a 'Harry Met Sally' Moment
Have you ever been to a restaurant and seen a meal being delivered that looks absolutely scrumptious? You immediately want to know what it is so that you can order it, too. How great would it be if your customers and prospects had this kind of "I'll have what she's having" moment, similar to that famous scene in the movie, "When Harry Met Sally" (did you know the woman in that scene was Rob Reiner's mother?). It's possible, but you need to bring your A game to your own marketing efforts. You need to be so good that your customers will slam their hands on the counter and scream, "Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" Moving on...


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flythomascook was created in 2004 as the main retail arm of Thomas Cook Airlines. Cheap flights from flythomascook give customers an easy way to book charter flights to destinations all over the world, including a wide range of European destinations, plus the US, Canada, the Caribbean, East Africa and Asia. The main headquarters of the airline are in Manchester, although many flythomascook flights depart from the second hub at London Gatwick airport.
Thomas Cook Airlines UK Ltd, the precursor to modern airline, was established in 1999. Following the merger of Thomas Cook AG and MyTravel Group PLC in 2007, the new Thomas Cook Airlines began operations in 2008. Thomas Cook Airlines has a fleet of more than 40 Boeing and Airbus aircraft. Cheap flights from flythomascook have 11 different UK departure points, including Manchester, London Gatwick, Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow and Newcastle airports.
Check-In flythomascook check-in times are as follows: airport check-in opens three hours prior to departure and closes strictly one hour before the flight.
Baggage flythomascook cabin baggage is limited to one bag per person with a maximum weight of 5kg, and dimensions that must not exceed 48cm x 28cm x 23cm. The one bag limit includes items such as laptops. Hold baggage allowances range from 15-30kg, depending on the destination.
Seating For most flythomascook flights the seat pitch is 30 inches, however some routes that are operated using the Boeing 757-200 aircraft have a seat pitch of 35 inches.
Frequent Flyer Programme There is currently no frequent flyer programme available with flythomascook. Information on airline reward programmes may however be subject to change.
Additional Information As a charter airline, flights from flythomascook are slightly different to scheduled airline flights such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. Some flythomascook flights will provide entertainment such as movies, and hot meals may be available, but these will usually incur extra charges and need to be booked in advance.


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NEW YORK - Jul 18, 2013
Infor, a leading provider of business application software serving more than 70,000 customers, has confirmed that aerospace leader BAE Systems Military Air and Information (MAI) will standardize on Infor applications as part of a business transformation project that is expected to yield operational efficiency improvements and reduced licence costs. Currently at the solution design phase, the Infor Aerospace & Defense project is projected to go live in 2015 and will be rolled out across numerous locations in the UK.
News Points
BAE Systems Quote
This transformation project is born from the simple realization that fewer applications lead to easier management and less distraction from our core activities," said John Booth, BAE Systems' Head of Project. "The next step in that process is to standardize on applications that do not need customization to deliver the functionality we require, with a clear, simple upgrade path to help keep us competitive."
Infor Quote
"BAE Systems MAI and other defense contractors must work smarter and faster than ever before in order to reduce the cost of defense projects in the face of ever tighter margins," said Arsenin Rodriguez, director of business consulting, Aerospace and Defense, Infor. "A trusted source of live, contextual information, delivered to the right person to help them make the best decisions is a cornerstone of competitive advantage. Infor provides this new level of business information to help companies like BAE Systems MAI win on the global defense stage."
"This project validates that Infor has gained significant momentum in the aerospace and defense industry with the latest release of Infor10x," said Edward Talerico, industry director, Aerospace and Defense, Infor. "Our ongoing innovation and investment in enterprise applications for customers is driven by continued collaboration with customers such as BAE Systems."
Additional Resources
About Infor
Infor is fundamentally changing the way information is published and consumed in the enterprise, helping 70,000 customers in 194 countries improve operations, drive growth, and quickly adapt to changes in business demands. Infor offers deep industry-specific applications and suites, engineered for speed, and with an innovative user experience design that is simple, transparent, and elegant. Infor provides flexible deployment options that give customers a choice to run their businesses in the cloud, on-premises, or both. To learn more about Infor, please visit www.infor.com.
Infor customers include:
Dan Barnhardt
U.S.A. and Canada
Phone:+1 646 336 1731
Claudia Vazquez
Latin America
Phone:+54 11 4010 8079
Richard Moore
United Kingdom, Southern Europe,
Middle East and Africa
Phone:+44 121 615 8189
Tanja Hossfeld
Central, Northern and Eastern Europe
Phone:+49 172 7481 111
Phyllis Tan
Phone:+65 9799 9133
Sharon Sulc
Phone:+1 614 537 6634


text: Superhero Glam Rock Mask And Cuff Set by iwishiwasa £22.50$42.92€29.62$37.67 In stock free gift wrap £2.75$5.24€3.62$4.60 mainland UK delivery - Order now and receive this item on or before Monday 9 February £2.75$5.24€3.62$4.60 mainland UK deliveryEstimated delivery: 5-7 days International delivery available colourcolour (required)black/orangered/turquoiseblack/greencolour (required)black/orangered/turquoiseblack/greencolour (required)black/orangered/turquoiseblack/greencolour (required)black/orangered/turquoiseblack/green sizesize (required)small (age3-8)medium (age 8-12)size (required)small (age3-8)medium (age 8-12)size (required)small (age3-8)medium (age 8-12)size (required)small (age3-8)medium (age 8-12) quantity by iwishiwasa Location: London, GB read seller's profile see seller's complete range more items from this seller Superhero Glory Mask £24$45.78€31.60$40.18 Superhero Blade Cuffs £8.90$16.98€11.71$14.90 Superhero Star Cape £22$41.97€28.96$36.83 Superhero Flame Cape £25$47.69€32.91$41.85 Feather Headdress Red £49$93.48€64.51$82.04 Feather Headdress Blue £49$93.48€64.51$82.04 view all you may also like PRODUCT DETAILS CUSTOMER REVIEWS DELIVERY RETURNS Made in Britain free gift wrap ask seller a question Rock your world and scare your friends in this lucha libre inspired mask and cuff set! This set comprises one lucha-libre style mask and one pair of 'blade' cuffs in matching colours The mask is made from high quality lycra with brightly coloured appliqué eyeholes and star motif. There are no fastenings, simply pull the mask on and off. The fabric is really stretchy so one size fits all. Blade cuffs are made from a neoprene type fabric (but without any rubber, so are breathable) with PVC Vinyl 'blades'. The fabric has a slight stretch and can easily be pulled on and off the wrist without adult assistance. Available in colourways: Black with orange and turquoise details, black and orange cuffs Red with turquoise and yellow details, red and turquoise cuffs Turquoise with orange and yellow details, turquoise and orange cuffs Black wtih green and orange details, black and green cuffs Sizing: available in small (age 3-8) or meduim (age 8-12) please select from the drop down menu. Free gift wrap is available for this product. Please select this and enter a gift message at the checkout stage if required. Our wrap consists of bright tissue paper, ribbons, and branded stickers; colours may vary. made from: Mask is made from high quality lycra with PVC vinyl applique motifs. Suitable for age 3 up to young teenager. Cuffs are made from 'neoprene' style fabric with PVC vinyl 'blades'. Small: suitable for age 3- 8. Meduim age 8-12 dimensions: The cuff measures 9cm in length. Blades stand up 5cm high. product code: 183907 1 customer review Wed 01 Jan 2014 No comment supplied. read about our product rating system ratings guide trusted independent customer feedbackforum excellent bad good poor This product is dispatched to you by iwishiwasa. MAINLAND UK order now and receive this item on or before price Standard Delivery Monday 9 February £2.75$5.24€3.62$4.60 NON-MAINLAND UK estimated delivery price Highlands & Islands of Scotland 2-5 daysfrom dispatch £2.75$5.24€3.62$4.60 Northern Ireland 2-5 daysfrom dispatch £2.75$5.24€3.62$4.60 Other UK Islands 2-5 daysfrom dispatch £4.95$9.44€6.51$8.28 INTERNATIONAL DELIVERY estimated delivery price Western Europe 2-5 daysfrom dispatch £11.50$21.94€15.14$19.25 Rest of Europe 5-10 daysfrom dispatch £11.50$21.94€15.14$19.25 USA & Canada 5-10 daysfrom dispatch £18.50$35.29€24.35$30.97 Far East & Australasia 5-10 daysfrom dispatch £19.50$37.20€25.67$32.64 Rest of the world 5-14 daysfrom dispatch £19.50$37.20€25.67$32.64 You have 28 days, from receipt of cancellable goods, to notify the seller if you wish to cancel your order or exchange an item. Please note: goods that are personalised, bespoke or made-to-order to your specific requirements, perishable products and personal items sold with a hygiene seal (cosmetics, underwear) in instances where the seal is broken are non-refundable, unless faulty. Read more about our returns policy.Should you choose to return or exchange your order you will need to deliver the item(s) to the UK, where this seller is based. iwishiwasa's return policy