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Originally written on Fox Sports | Last updated 11/18/14
Offensive linemen Alex Boone and Mike Iupati stood in one corner of a near-empty San Francisco locker room and pondered just how close they had come to winning the Super Bowl. It quickly began to sink in, beneath the Superdome on Sunday night as the Baltimore Ravens celebrated, that their season had ended short of the goal. One year, they almost reached the NFL's championship game. The next, they nearly won it. The 49ers head into the offseason following a 34-31 Super Bowl loss knowing they were right there against the Ravens, and now move forward with the hope of keeping much of the team together and building to get back - and this time win it all. One big question: What to do with backup quarterback Alex Smith?
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Truck shoppers looking for a well-priced pickup with a manufacturer's warranty would be wise to check out our list. Read more
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Garrett Graham
Houston Texans
|Auction Value
By Matthew Hahn, Texans Correspondent, Sat, Dec 6th 8:56pm ESTGarret Graham has been ruled out of Sundays game with an ankle injury. (Source: House of Houston)
Fantasy Impact: While Graham absence will affect the Texan's tight end depth, it shouldn't affect the fantasy world. Unless you are in a deep league Graham has been to inconsistent to rely on.
By Matt Giraldi, Texans Correspondent, Mon, Nov 17th 12:46pm ESTGarrett Graham recorded the first touchdown of the season by a Houston Texans tight end in the 2nd quarter of Houston's victory over the Cleveland Browns. (Source: ESPN)
Fantasy Impact: While it's too early to instill confidence in the Texans' tight ends, it's certainly a good sign that Graham made the most of his two targets. Sunday was the first time in nearly a month where Graham caught at least two passes. He's still not worth a roster spot until we see a larger body of work from Ryan Mallett.
By Christopher Morgan, Texans Correspondent, Wed, Sep 10th 8:01pm EDTGraham (back) was limited in Wednesday's practice. (Source: houstontexans.com)
Fantasy Impact: The wait continues for Graham's 2014 debut. He looks to have a favorable match-up against a Raiders defense which gave up 7 catches for 57 yards to Jets' tight ends in Week 1. Houston tight ends were not impressive without Graham against Washington.
By Christopher Morgan, Texans Correspondent, Fri, Sep 5th 4:11pm EDTGraham was listed on the Texans' injury report for on Friday (back) and has not practiced this week. O'Brien said it is not "a major injury", but Graham would have to work-out "the morning of the game". Graham is the 27th ranked TE on FantsyPros this weekend against Washington and many experts project him with Top-15 upside. (Source: Houston Chronicle)
Fantasy Impact: O'Brien has been notoriously blasé about player injury news, so there is definite reason to doubt that Graham will play. The Texans play at 1:00 PM EST, so if you have another TE in a later game, you may want to roll him out this weekend.
By Aaron Hemenway, Texans Correspondent, Thu, Aug 14th 8:29pm EDTNonexistent in the Texan's preseason opener against the Cardinals, dropping his only target, it's difficult to know what to expect from Texans TE Garrett Graham this season. But if last season is any indication, when he failed to capitalize after Owen Daniels was sidelined, we can expect Ryan Griffin and rookie C.J.Fiedorowicz to be in the mix for snaps. (Source: ESPN)
Fantasy Impact: Graham was a mere average TE last season, going 49/545/5 in 13 games. It seems Coach Bill O'Brien will be using a lot of two-TE formations this season. However, if the Texans offensive line doesn't improve their blocking and take some pressure off the QB, the TE slots will remain a huge factor. Look for Graham to be a late-round draft pick, so it's best to keep any idea of drafting him on the back burner for now.
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Let the Discovery store satisfy your curiosity whether its the great outdoors or the latest in cutting edge science and technology. Youll find tech gadgets and novelty to binoculars, microscopes, and globes. Discoverys tech and gadgets shop is curated for young inquisitive minds to the more seasoned.
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- Live the experience of being a real paleontologist! Kids will dig out of the gypsum brick the bone repliacs, clear them accurately and assemble the detailed pieces to reproduce a faithful replica of the skull of the most ferocious dinosaur predator which lived during the end of the… [ read more ]
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- This science kit includes parts to create a robot that walks like a duck. Requires 2 AAA batteries and screwdriver (not included). [ read more ]
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Rádio Clube de Parintins
Recommended Stations
Daily Schedule
TuneIn does not have lineup information for this date. Try visiting the station's website for more information.
- Parintins, AM, Brazil
- Current Affairs , Brazilian Popular
- Portuguese
Estrada Odovaldo Novo, S/N Km 1 - Parintins/AM CEP: 69152-470
+55 (92) 3533-1564
- Visit the station website Email the station Suggest an update


text:
The latest news from Babyllon
Available in modern yellow and blue colours this innovative ...
Hedgehog garden ornament.£10 each
Hanging Wall Planters Secure plant pot hangers : Pack of 5.
The latest news from Babyllon
We will be attending the following RHS shows in 2011
The show season starts at Cardiff, with the best of spring blooms. This celebration of Welsh horticulture is set among the grounds of Bute Park.
Make the most of spring with inspirational ideas to transform your own garden into something really special.
17th-19th April 2015RHS Show Cardiff
The Invisible Pot Hanger ...go to site
7-10 May 2015Malvern Spring Show
See us on the Twister Stand ...go to site
19th - 24th MayRHS Chelsea Flower Show
. "Twisters" extendable grow frame, ...go to site


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Linux System Administrator
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I am an experienced System Administrator with a wide range of skills, including Linux servers administration, LAMP stack setup, OpenVZ and KVM virtualization, configuring services, working with version control systems and writing system maintenance scripts. I have a hands-on experience with Linux, including Ubuntu, CentOS, Red Hat, Gentoo and Debian distributions. I am able to code in OCaml, C, C++, Ruby (including Ruby on Rails), Bash/Zsh and read Java, Python, Haskell, Perl and Common Lisp programs. My most important virtues are: extreme responsibility, easy communication and attention to details.
- Comptuer Maintenance
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Linux System Admin | Tech Support | cPanel / WordPress Specialist
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I have more than 5 years working as a Linux systems administrator specializing in management for cPanel based servers in both virtual and dedicated environments. Stronger areas: Operating Systems: CentOS / Fedora / CloudLinux Control Panels: cPanel / Direct Admin / SolusVM / Kloxo Billing Systems: ClientExec, WHMCS, HostBill Database: MySQL / MariaDB Web Server: Apache / LiteSpeed / Nginx Virtualization: OpenVZ / XEN / KVM Various Others: cPanel DNS Clusters, Any work including the following: Initial setup of the server which includes configuring software/hardware raid, disk partitioning(LVM as well) Installing OS, Control panel, hardening/optimizing the server including firewall, rebuilding Apache / PHP, setup private name servers, migrating accounts to the server, ensuring all sites are working and make adjustments to server if necessary, make further optimizations to server to best fit the current environment.
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Systems Administrator / Developer
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I am a Systems Administrator / Developer, available for freelance work on a per diem basis, or for a more long-term project/job. I am fluent in PHP, Python, and Bash, and have a knowledge of Java, C++, and have touched a few other languages.. I have a strong command of Linux/Bash, as well as Administration of both Windows and Linux servers (Specifically cPanel/WHM servers and CloudLinux) on a LAMP stack.
Linux administrator / Devops engineer - AWS, Vmware, Puppet, Amazon
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I am self-motivated professional with over 10 yrs. of experience, I have strong work ethic and productive self-starter, proven with success being a freelancer at oDesk. I perform each project to the fullest of my capabilities and with the dedication that is expected from a professional as myself. Team player - Participated in multiple projects, joining large teams, effectively co-working with other professionals Effective leader - Took over leadership and managed team resources to achieve goals meeting deadlines. I've great experience with: - OS deployment, configuration and troubleshooting: CentOS, Ubuntu, Windows Server 2003 - 2012R2. - AWS (RDS, EC2, SES, S3, CloudFront, VPC, Route53, RedShift, Elastic Beanstalk etc.) - Web / Mail / Application: Apache, Tomcat, Send mail, Zimbra, Postfix, Qmail, Squirrelmail, FTP, Samba, OpenLDAP, POP3/ IMAPS & IIS server, Courier Map, Request Tracker, Openfire IM Server, Kickstart Server, LTSP, Cpanel, WHM and Plesk, Redhat Directory Server, CAS. MS Active Directory Server, WSUS Server, Atlassian JIRA\Confluence deployment and troubleshooting. - Virtualization: Vmware Server, Vmware ESXi Server. - Network Monitoring Tools: NagiOS, MRTG, PRTG, Solarwind, OpManager, OpenNMS, Watsup Gold. - Database: MySQL, Postgresql & MS SQL. - CMS: Drupal, Wordpress, Joomla, Liferay - DMS: Alfresco Well experience in Linux & Windows System administration, Puppet deployment, LDAP, Postfix, NFS/NIS, Samba, MySQL, Liferay, Alfresco, Tomcat, PHP, Apache and many others technologies.
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Magento / Zend / Strong, complex tasks / Ukraine
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14+ years Expeirenced Senior Developer / Project manager + Scrum Master High number of success projcts was done. Highly educated, Extreme expeirenced, Teams likely
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Linux System Administrator. LAMP Administrator. Security expert - Senior Ethical Hacker. PCI Compliance expert. ✔ Apache ✔ PHP ✔ MySQL ✔ DNS ✔ FTP ✔ Samba ✔ Postfix / Qmail / Sendmail ✔ DomainKey / DKIM / SPF ✔ Courier / Dovecot (IMAP/POP) ✔ SpamAssassin / ClamAV Amavis ✔ Kernel Hardening & Securing ✔ IPTables ✔ Wordpress, Joomla, PHPBB, Drupal ✔ Bash scripting
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+7 years experience install / manage and operate linux servers on a high scale machines infrastructure , open source solution consultancy using Nginx / PHP-fpm,MySQL,Kannel SMS Gateway,Memcache/Redis, Couchbase ,ElasticSearch / Solr Nagios/lcinga/munin, Puppet, Chef, Bash Scripting, PHP, Ruby, Vagrant, Docker , Git, AWS , VOIP, Asterisk also i have experience in load&stress testing and security vulnerability assessment
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I am the member of the MIS team and covering all release managements and server operations. I currently handle ESXi and ESX server farm in Australia and USA. • Have experience installing, maintaining and troubleshooting VMWare servers. ESXi and ESX Vsphere servers. Installing, maintaining iSCSI software. (OpeanFiler / OPEN-E / HP LeftHand) • Have experience installing, maintaining and troubleshooting MS Windows Server 2008 and 2003. Installing, maintaining and troubleshooting domain controller. Have experience in Active Directory maintaining and troubleshooting. Customizing Group Policies. Scheduling Backups. Domain Replications. DFS Replications. Installing, maintaining and troubleshooting IIS 7 and 6. DHCP Server installation, maintaining. • Have experience installing, maintaining and troubleshooting MS Office SharePoint Server 2007 and 2010. • Have experience installing, maintaining and troubleshooting MS Exchange server 2010. • Have experience installing, maintaining and troubleshooting following software firewalls. MS ISA Server 2006. Untangle (Open Source) SmoothWall (Open Source) • Have experience installing, maintaining and troubleshooting PLESK control panel and Cpanel. • Have experience installing, maintaining and troubleshooting UBUNTU/ CentOS / RedHat / SUSE Linux / Sun Solaris servers. Installing Apache Server, Virtual hosting, Apache SSH configurations and Apache failover clustering. Installing MySQL Server, MySQL data base replication and failover cluster. Installing FileZilla FTP Server Scheduling cron jobs. ISC DHCP failover clustering. • Have experience installing Windows 7, Windows XP, UBUNTU, KUBUTU, and Fedora. • Have experience working with Amazon cloud computing and Soft Layer cloud computing. • Have experience in installing, maintaining and troubleshooting wireless network. • Can maintain and troubleshoot LAN environment. • Have experience installing MS SQL 2008 and 2005 servers. I'm maintaining daily backups in MS SQL servers and database management. • Have Experience installing and maintaining CISCO ASA 5505 Firewall, CISCO Routers and CISCO Switches. Routing Protocol RIP, IGRP, RIP v2, EIGRP, OSPF Creating Vlan Nating Creating VPN


text:
Cheadle mum's fury as dog that mauled her daughter is allowed to live
Posted: August 21, 2014|
THE owner of a dog that mauled a six-year-old girl in a park has been ordered to pay her £1,000 and keep the animal muzzled when out in public.
But Mia Tweedy's family are furious that the bull mastiff will not be put down – despite the youngster having to spend four days in hospital after the attack.
They say the ordeal has left her scarred and terrified of all dogs.
Mia suffered four puncture wounds when the animal sunk its teeth into her arm as she played on swings in Cheadle's Tean Road Recreation Ground.
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Couple went after Meir dog owner with an axe after his Staffordshire bull terrier mauled their pet
Her mother Sophie Climpson said she was appalled by the sentence.
"I'm disgusted that the dog isn't going to be destroyed after what it did to my daughter," she said.
"It has caused a lot of upset. Mia has been left with four scars to her arm and is petrified of dogs, including small dogs.
"I hope this animal doesn't attack again. It makes no difference to me whether it's muzzled or not, I wanted it destroyed.
"I just hope it doesn't attack the owner's daughter who it shares a home with."
Mrs Climpson had taken Mia and her sisters Emmie, aged three, and nine-month-old Lola to the park after school on May 1.
She was feeding Lola when the dog attacked. Mia was taken to hospital and had to be given anaesthetic so doctors could clean and stitch her wounds.
Former Port Vale footballer Mick Cullerton, who had taken his grandchildren Polly and Louie to the park on the same day as the attack, pulled the dog off the youngster.
The 65-year-old, who saw the animal come up behind her and clamp its jaw around her arm, acted out of 'adrenaline' and saved Mia from further harm.
Mr Cullerton, who did not want to see the animal put down, said: "It's good that the dog will be made to wear a muzzle after what happened.
"Mia is such a lovely girl. When I saw her she said 'were you okay?' to me."
Following the incident Cheadle police interviewed the dog owner, who fully co-operated with the investigation. He was then prosecuted under the Dangerous Dogs Act.
Staffordshire Police said the owner had been served with a dog control order and had complied fully with it. He was also ordered to pay the costs of the case.
Mia's 67-year-old great-grandmother Barbara Hodgkinson, of Tean Road, Cheadle, said she didn't know what would have happened if Mr Cullerton hadn't been there to save Mia.
She has since called for action to prevent similar attacks happening to other families.


text:
Odyssey Inertia?
View Single Post
Archived Post
Lt. Commander
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 120
# 1
Odyssey Inertia?
I have noticed that my Odyssey handles a little worse than a Galaxy class ship. This is, so far as I can tell, due to the inertia rating (20 for the Odyssey, 25 for all versions of the Galaxy class according to in-game data), and it's a lot more annoying than it is in the Galaxy class. In short, it seems to have worse "traction."
Is there anything anyone can think of that might help with this? RCS consoles aren't going to do it, I'm pretty sure, though on something as big as an Ody they don't do a whole lot for you anyway in my experience.


text:
Damage from Tropical Storm Hanna Created Expensive Repair Problems at Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park
The National Park System recently suffered tropical storm damage in an unexpected place. Kevin Brandt, superintendent of Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, explained that flooding produced by Tropical Storm Hanna last month created a 125-foot breach in the park's historic towpath.
While parks in Florida and along the Gulf Coast are used to having to deal with damage from hurricanes and tropical storms, this damage occurred near the Old Angler's Inn just a couple of miles north of the Washington Beltway.
The National Park Service suspects that pre-existing cracks had already weakened the towpath wall. This made the towpath vulnerable to the deluge of water dumped by the storm, and it was simply overwhelmed.
Initial estimates of repair costs are well in excess of $1 million. If those figures hold up, repairs will put a substantial dent in the park's budget, which is currently just under $10 million per year. Not surprisingly, hurricane/tropical storm damage is not a regular part of the budget request for C&O Canal NHP. The NPS does have an emergency budget it can tap for things like storm damage.
As a down payment on this, the park's cooperative association, the C&O Canal Trust, has just launched a campaign to raise $100,000 for storm damage repairs. This figure would be matched by the National Park Service. For further details and contribution information, visit the C&O Canal Trust's website.
Was Bigfoot seen recently at Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park or did he just write the article? I was amused by the picture. :-)
Yes, a closely guarded secret can be revealed at last. Sabattis is Bigfoot. Remember that you read it here first.
Isn't this the kind of damage covered by insurance?
Anonymous -
An excellent question.
Unless something has changed since I retired from the NPS in 2001, here's the answer:
The federal government doesn't have insurance for such damage - repairs have to be covered out of existing agency funds, or in many cases, by funds appropriated via special legislation to cover repairs from storm damage, fires, earthquakes and similar incidents.
The theory is that the government saves money by being "self-insured" (in other words, uninsured), because the cost of paying for such repairs on a case by case basis is assumed to be less than the cost of premiums to insure the large number of government-owned facilities.


text:
EGP Group
Born in Taranto in 1968, has a degree in Economics and Business Administration at Bocconi University of Milan. He began his career working as a consultant for, among other companies, Calyon, Deloitte and Arthur D. Little, focusing on Corporate Finance and M&A projects. Almost all his business activities have been performed in international framework and when he joined Enel in 2007 as M&A Manager, he has been involved in acquisition projects in Russia and Bulgaria. After working as Head of M&A Finance, in 2010 he was appointed Head of International Risk Management at Corporate level. From December 2011 he is Head of Risk Management of Enel Green Power.
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The gradual rise in global temperatures and the instability of fossil fuel markets are driving the development of solar power throughout the world, particularly in the area of photovoltaic technologies
EGP's guidelines call for the design of layouts that are environmentally compatible, with an appropriate number of wind turbines for the area concerned
EGP's know-how has made the company a world leader in the development of this clean, renewable and cost-effective source of energy
Italy is where geothermal energy was used for the first time for industrial purposes, and the country remains one of the leading producers of geothermal electricity
The exploitation of biomass is an important chapter in Europe's development of renewable energy


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Drug-Free Relief From Dental Dread
October 21, 2010
Anxiety over dental visits is a common problem. Dawn Timmeney reports on a drug-free way to help patients relax during their appointments.
Topics: Health Medical Pharma, Politics, Social Issues, Phobias, Dentistry, Medicine, Dawn Timmeney, Medications in Dentistry, Periodontics, Fear of medical procedures, Periodontology, Anxiety disorders, Mouth, Oral pathology


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San Francisco, California
My Rating
Excellent, we were only on a two and half day stop over before going onto Hawaii so wanted to cram in as much a possible in that short space of time. I have been to San Francisco before and done most of the main sights myself but i wanted my kids and husband to experience it all too and the hop on ticket allowed us all to do that. Fishermans wharf and all the sights and smells, Pier 39 the seals, Alcatraz trip ......booked seperate but at least we got to the pier from the hop on bus, Golden Gate Bridge over and back before 3pm, onto Golden Gate Park, we had a little wander down Haight Ashbury area (which my 11 and 9 year old found fascinating !!!! I'll say no more hahaha), quick scoot round Union Square, took a seperate trip on the Cable car down hyde, quick drink in Buena Vista cafe, back on cable car up to Lombard crookedest street, quick jump off to walk down then back up, jumped on next passing cable car back to Union Square and meet with the hop on route , caught the last bus of the day back round the full circle. All the stops had something to do even if it was just for half an hour or so then hop on the next one. I really feel like my kids have seen so many diffrent parts of the city in such a short period they absolutely love it all. P.S, you can also get a great tan on the top deck if you get good weather!. Would recommend this ticket for anyone on a tight schedule as it helps organise your route for you but does not limit you to only those stops as you could explore inbetween too.
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Hometown Hero - Page 2
Schenectady Woman Delivers Baby in Apartment, Becomes a 'Hometown Hero'
Philanthropic Pet Photographer a 'Hometown Hero'
Community Servant of Troy a 'Hometown Hero'
Guilderland Girl Scout Leader a 'Hometown Hero'
Lyme Disease Advocate a 'Hometown Hero'
Kerry Lawler of Watervliet is this week's "Hometown Hero." She earned this title because of her work as a Lyme disease advocate after being diagnosed with the disease herself.
Kerry makes herself available to those who have Lyme disease and need help with what they are going through and making sense of it all
13-Year-Old Founder of TJ's Turkeys a 'Hometown Hero'
Director of Albany's Cure The Violence a 'Hometown Hero'
Clarence Jackson, of Albany, is the Director of Cure The Violence, an organization that works to protect the community and keep violence off the streets by hosting awareness events and rallies.
Clarence used his own personal experiences to start a movement in Albany to encourage a peaceful environment
23-Year-Old Guilderland Asst. Fire Chief a 'Hometown Hero'
Frank Zabinski may be one of the youngest assistant fire chiefs in the entire Capital Region.
At 23, Frank serves the Guilderland Fire Department and goes above and beyond in his job. According to the person who nominated Frank as this week's "Hometown Hero," "he is a devoted member of the fire department and is always the first responder at each fire call
Chatham + Stockport Chief of Police a 'Hometown Hero'
Peter Volkmann, of Stuyvesant, is the Chief of Chatham Police, Chief of Stockport Police, Police Academy Director, and a Certified Trainer for International Critical Incident Stress Foundation. He is a man who wears many hats and who, according to the person who nominated him, his wife Layne, "is always doing something for someone
Taghkanic Firefighter a 'Hometown Hero'
Gloversville Youth Volunteer a 'Hometown Hero'
Sharon Dion, a Gloversville woman who volunteers her time with the 4-H Youth Development Program of Cornell Cooperative Extension in Fulton and Montgomery Counties, was recently honored as an "outstanding volunteer" for her commitment to serving the community's youth through the organization


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Priapism (Penis Disorder) Center - Twin Falls, ID
WebMD Physician Directory
Twin Falls, Idaho
Priapism (Penis Disorder)
What is the definition of priapism?
Priapism is a prolonged, unwanted erection of the penis. It is usually painful and not related to sexual stimulation or arousal. Most clinicians consider priapism a medical emergency...
Other Related Priapism (Penis Disorder) Articles
Emergency Contact for Twin Falls
Nearby Twin Falls Hospitals *
Canyon View Behavioral Health
St Luke's Magic Valley Med Ctr
St Luke's Jerome
Walker Center
North Canyon Medical Center
Cassia Regional Medical Center
*Provider Directory Terms of Use:
The WebMD 'Provider Directory' is provided by WebMD for use by the general public as a quick reference of information about Providers. The Provider Directory is not intended as a tool for verifying the credentials, qualifications, or abilities of any Provider contained therein. Inclusion in the Provider Directory does not imply recommendation or endorsement nor does omission in the Provider Directory imply WebMD disapproval.


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How Do I Use Call Waiting On My US Cellular SCH-I225 (Exec) Phone?
While on a call you will hear a tone when receiving an incoming call, also the handset will also show a call waiting message and the caller's name (if it is contact) on the display. Press the green talk button, or tap the Answer soft key, to place the first call on hold and answer the second call. To return to the original call press the talk button again, or tap the Answer soft key; this will place the second call on hold.
Tip: For calls when you don't want to be interrupted, you can temporarily disable Call Waiting by pressing *70 before placing your call. Call Waiting is automatically reactivated once you end the call.
Note: Call waiting service must be enabled on your account with your service provider to take advantage of this functionality on the handset. Please consult with your provider for information regarding any additional fees that may be incurred.
Service Provider Contact Information
For more information about the US Cellular SCH-I225 handset, click here.


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Product: Mobile > Cell Phones > AT&T Cell Phones
Your message has been sent.
From the Home screen, press Menu > Settings > Sound Profile. Select the Sound Profile you want to edit. Scroll to Call Ringtone and press . Scroll to and select the tone of your choice. Press Save to finalize.


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Used by both the Army and Navy, this water-cooled engine powered practically all American and Canadian training airplanes during World War. When cancellation of production contracts after the Armistice resulted in a huge surplus of OX-5 engines, they were offered for sale at a fraction of their original cost. Many were sold for well under $300. Although it was not a reliable engine, the OX-5's low cost and availability made it popular with many aircraft builders in the early 1920s.
On Loan from the War Department, Air Service, Washington, D.C.
Physical Description:
Weight (dry): 145 kg (320 lb)


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Cheap TKJ to Garden City flights
Popular Flights from Tok, Alaska
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2,471.53 miles
GCK - Garden City Regional Airlines
Browse the most popular airlines servicing the Garden City (GCK) airport. Visit their flights pages to learn more about the most popular routes these carriers fly.


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A 7-month-old East Lyme company has been chosen as one of the state's first legal medical-marijuana dispensaries, the state Department of Consumer Protection said Thursday.
Thames Valley Apothecary LLC, whose principal is listed as Laurie A. Zrenda of East Lyme, plans to open by this summer a dispensary — one of six in the state — at the Center 32 plaza at 1100 Norwich-New London Turnpike in Uncasville. The facility will serve seriously ill patients who are certified as eligible by a physician and have registered with the state's Medical Marijuana Program.
Zrenda, a licensed pharmacist for the past 27 years, said she is planning to operate the dispensary with her pharmacist niece, Meredith Elmer. Zrenda is the girls' varsity tennis coach at East Lyme High School and works at Rite Aid in Uncasville.
"With the selection of dispensary facilities, all necessary pieces of the medical marijuana program are in place," said Consumer Protection Commissioner William M. Rubenstein in a statement. "The dispensary facilities will be the public face of Connecticut's medical marijuana program, and therefore, careful thought and deliberation went into selection of the most qualified applicants."
Montville First Selectman Ronald McDaniel said Zrenda approached the town several months ago to determine whether it had any zoning prohibitions that would disallow the dispensary. Zrenda said she has been renting a space in town since October in hopes of securing a dispensary license.
"It's an interesting opportunity for the town," McDaniel said in a phone interview. "If there's going to be a site, I'm glad it's going to be here."
McDaniel pointed out that the 1,200-square-foot Montville facility would be the only one east of the Connecticut River. But he also said he didn't expect a ton of traffic in and out of town because, at latest count, there were only about 100 registered medical-marijuana users in New London County.
"I don't see any major public safety issues," he said.
Zrenda said she looked at several communities, including Norwich, New London and Waterford, before settling on the Uncasville location. She called it a discreet location but easy to find, and said she heard that another company had found a dispensary location in Groton but didn't win state approval.
"It was a long hard road," Zrenda said of the approval process.
The dispensary initially will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, she said. Zrenda was unsure about pricing policies, but said marijuana in a variety of forms will likely be offered, and the building is being renovated with security uppermost in mind.
A monitoring program centralized in Hartford will prevent anyone from shopping around to get marijuana at more than one dispensary, she added.
"Doctors are the gatekeepers," Zrenda said.
The state previously had announced medical-marijuana production facilities would be located in West Haven, Portland, Simsbury and Watertown. A proposal submitted by two companies to produce medical cannabis at the Norwich business park failed to win approval.
The dispensaries, as with the production facilities, went through a competitive screening process, with a total of 27 considered. Dispensaries, required because medical marijuana has not been legalized on the federal level and therefore can't be issued to patients through traditional pharmacies, will be granted licenses upon payment of a $5,000 fee and completion of all documentation within the next month.
Other companies receiving approval as dispensaries were Arrow Alternative Care Inc. of Hartford, Bluepoint Apothecary LLC of Branford, D&B Wellness LLC of Bridgeport, Prime Wellness of Connecticut LLC of South Windsor and The Healing Corner Inc. of Bristol.
"All are expected to be ready to open and serve patients by the time marijuana products are available from licensed producers sometime this summer," the Consumer Protection department said in a release.
Despite the state's approval of dispensaries and producers, medical marijuana is not covered by any insurance plan. The maximum monthly amount of marijuana that can be dispensed, according to a state website, is 2.5 ounces.
New London man accused of threatening the governor, state police said
Brief car chase in Waterford leads to one arrest, search for another suspect
Connecticut elected officials tell U.S. Labor secretary manufacturers need training pipeline funds
New London school board again approves agreement with Garde Arts Center
Presidential Scholar from Old Lyme hopes to help others as a doctor
Suspected serial robber charged with another convenience store robbery
VIDEO: Menhaden die-off in Thames, other state waters being investigated by DEEP
For Waterford's Marissa Walker, matchup with Stonington is more than a game
Questions surround Andrew Maynard's return to the state Senate
Affordable housing units slated for former St. Mary Star of the Sea School building in New London
State jobs up in April, but southeastern Connecticut loses 500


text: Help Desk The Help Desk is your first contact for assistance with technical issues and requests. We are located in the basement of the Bush Memorial Library and can be contacted via phone, email or by visiting us here in person. If you want to troubleshoot and resolve problems on your own, the Knowledgebase is the place to start. For information on the Help Desk equipment checkout program please contact us directly. Contact the ITS Help Desk The current working hours for the HelpDesk are (all times Central): Monday to Thursday from 7:30am to 9:00pm Friday from 7:30am to 9:00pm Saturday from 7:30am to 7:00pm Sunday from 12:00pm to 9:00pm You can contact the Help Desk by: By Phone at (651) 523.2220 By Email at firstname.lastname@example.com Please include your Hamline Username or ID number and specifics about your request In Person Stop by the Help Desk in the basement of the Bush Library building (see hours above)


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Welcome to my Web Site!
If you've come this far, you probably already know that I am principally an orchestrator for Broadway, other theater, recordings, concerts and film. To answer your questions about what I do, use the links above.
Music Clips on the Audio page!
MP3 clips of my orchestrations from various projects.
Check them out! Click here
TONY and Drama Desk Awards: The Light in the Piazza
Previous nominations:
Shen Family Foundation
|Now Playing:
Bleeding Love
Sense and Sensibility (Paul Gordon) (co-orchestration with Larry Hochman)
Sandman (Richard Oberacker, Rob Taylor)
On the 20th Century (Broadway)
Something Rotten (Broadway)
On The Town (current Broadway revival. John Rando, dir.)
|Coming Up:
Ever After (Zina Goldrich, Marcy Heisler; Kathleen Marshall, dir.) (Papermill Playhouse)
Morning Star (Ricky Ian Gordon; Cincinnati Opera)
Here's a link to an interview I did while orchestrating ELMER GANTRY down at the Signature Theater in Arlington, Virginia. It's a "Quick 5" for the Maryland Theater Guide:
Assassins (Stephen Sondheim; Jamie Lloyd, dir.)
"...this superlatively acted production is as thrilling as it is bone-rattling... As nimbly orchestrated by Bruce Coughlin for an eight-piece orchestra, under the lucid musical direction of Alan Williams, it unfurls like a tattered flag rippling in an icy wind." (Isherwood, NY Times)
Urinetown (West End, London)
"...even better than the Broadway production I saw back in 2001 - it's sharp, smart, funny and disturbing."
Click here to view the 30-second promo video
Elmer Gantry (Mel Marvin. Eric Schaeffer, dir.)
27 -- An opera in 5 Acts
"A Hit is a Hit is a Hit"... a "superlative world premiere"... "taut, witty and affecting" (Opera Today)
|Recent CD Releases:
Check out MP3's here.
27 - An Opera in Five Acts
Big Fish (Andrew Lippa)
Far From Heaven (Michael Korie/Scott Frankel)
Frankel's music and Korie's lyrics soar again and again and again; Far From Heaven offers a feast of glorious musical theatre writing.
Giant (Michael John LaChiusa)
"We should also make special mention of the orchestrations by Bruce Coughlin. These are not just song orchestrations; they are a full musical tapestry and highly impressive."
"Giant is a big step forward for the American musical."
Audra McDonald: Go Back Home
I orchestrated Migratory V (Guettel), Make Someone Happy, Go Back Home (with Larry Hochman) and two new songs by Michael John LaChiusa from Marlene Dietrich's ABC's
"Mr. Coughlin's orchestration for "Grey Gardens" is ambrosia — I have been addicted to the CD for months. He has the woodwinds, in particular, burbling and blending and commenting on the songs in an intoxicating way — what that man can do with a bassoon alone. He is a Michelangelo of orchestration."
John McWhorter (Manhattan Institute) in an editorial commentary in the New York Sun (6/14/2007) about the 2007 TONY award for Best Orchestration. It's one man's opinion but makes for an interesting read: Read the NY Sun editorial here


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At 9-3, the New England Patriots currently sit behind the Denver Broncos as the number two seed in the AFC.
With just four games left in the season, if the Patriots want to hold onto the second seed and a first-round bye in the playoffs, there is no room for error.
Mike Florio joined Tom E. Curran on Quick Slants to discuss how the AFC playoff seeding will work out for the Patriots.
"If I'm a Patriots fan, I'm a little more concerned about the team that's right behind me because the Cincinnati Bengals, one game back, hold that head-to-head tiebreaker over the Patriots," Florio said. "The Patriots slip up and the Bengals take advantage, Bengals rise to the number two seed as weird as that may sound."
Last week added to a tough season for officiating crews, as many believe something has to change.
"The NFL keeps trying to make the officiating better within the mindset that currently is in place," Florio said. "I think it is going to take creative thinking to truly make officiating better. I think that a major overhaul needs to happen."


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Published April 22, 2015
From the stage at Washington DC's The Hamilton, British-born reggae singer, Maxi Priest performs music from his new CD "Easy to Love," an exciting blend of reggae, R&B and dancehall music.
Through the door and down the stairs, VOA's "The Hamilton Live" brings the audience along to a state-of-the-art music club, hidden just blocks from the White House in Washington, D.C.
Join us for intimate performances with musicians from every genre, including rock n' roll, rhythm-and-blues, gospel and bluegrass. Performers also share stories that inspire them and define their music. It's a 30-minute night out in the nation's capital, and an exclusive backstage pass to American music.


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VIEWS: 0 PAGES: 2 POSTED ON: 1/17/2013 Public Domain
Dish Latino: More Channel and Programming Choices Provided to Match Your Preferences Through the years, cable television renders a substantial point in the entertainment industry. It added thrill and fun as viewers are given with increased options for several channels and programs. Among the best providers of cable service is Dish Latino giving service to a large number of subscribers from Spanish and non-Spanish communities. The subscription deals offered by this cable television service source also come in a variety of alternatives from which subscribers can come up their choices of station and programming sets. If you visit their site at dishlatino.com, there is a line up of channels and their specialty for convenient browsing. The selection of account to apply for determines how much you will pay monthly for subscription charge. Nevertheless, the selection of channel options varies according to the subscription plan of your preference. Consequently, you can have access to much more stations and programs by paying higher subscription fees. Nonetheless you happen to be free to determine which channels to subscribe to so you don't throw away cash spending money on programs that you don't watch anyway. For this reason if you're a sports follower and not a huge fan of HBO films, you may opt for the former to the second item. What is good regarding Dish Latino is its very inexpensive charges. Featuring its offer of competitive charges to its subscribers, more people then may have access to more network channels. Saving 25 to 35 percent in subscription charges is surely a big total specifically for budget-conscious homes! If you are not specific which plan to sign up for, there are marketing representatives who are able to pay you a visit to explain numerous recommendations. When compared to other TV satellite network providers, Dish Latino is certainly the most affordable and most productive company between its competitors. If you fail to find the package that meets your needs and budget, you may even create your personal by talking about the important points with the reps. Nonetheless you need to pay attention to feasible more fees if you decide to customize your subscription deal. Inasmuch as the offered deals seem to be set up and marked down, you might lose out on such offers if you choose to have a distinctive plan. More details is available on this site. If you want to learn more about the services of Dish Latino, check out its site at dishlatino.com and look on the different sections. To begin with, go to the main ?Homepage? and ?About Page? so that you will get oriented on the procedures of the company as a whole. Next, you can go to the ?Services? and ?FAQ? pages to learn more.
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Characteristics of a reservoir are monitored during a casing drilling operation using a casing drilling assembly that includes a drill bit for drilling a borehole through an earth formation. A casing tubular is coupled with the casing drilling assembly and includes at least one station having at least one slot in the casing tubular. An antenna or sensor, adapted for signal transmission and/or reception, is disposed within the casing tubular and positioned such that the antenna or sensor is aligned with the at least one slotted station. The antenna or sensor is activated during a casing drilling operation to transmit and/or receive a signal.
1. A casing drilling system for monitoring a characteristic of a reservoir surrounding
a borehole, comprising:
a casing drilling assembly having a drill bit for drilling a borehole;
a casing tubular coupled to the casing drilling assembly, the casing tubular disposed within the borehole, the casing tubular including at least one station having at least one slot formed therein;
at least one antenna or sensor, adapted for transmission and/or reception of a signal, disposed within the casing tubular and positioned such that the antenna or sensor is aligned with the at least one slotted station; and
means for activating the at least one antenna or sensor to transmit and/or receive a signal.
2. The system of
3. The system of
4. The system of
5. The system of
6. The system of
a first signal is transmitted from a remote location and a second signal is received
at the at least one aligned antenna or sensor; wherein
the received signal is associated with the transmitted signal.
7. The system of
8. The system of
9. The system of
10. A casing drilling system for monitoring a characteristic of a reservoir surrounding a borehole, comprising:
means for making an opening in a wall of a casing tubular disposed within the borehole, the means being adapted for deployment through the tubular to a desired location in the tubular; and
a casing drilling assembly having a drill bit for drilling a borehole;
a casing tubular coupled to the casing drilling assembly, the casing tubular disposed within the borehole, the casing tubular including at least one station having at least one slot formed therein;
at least one antenna or sensor, adapted for transmission and/or reception of a signal, disposed within the casing tubular and positioned such that the antenna or sensor is aligned with the at least one slotted station; and
means for activating the at least one antenna or sensor to transmit and/or receive a signal.
11. The system of
12. The system of
13. A method for monitoring during a drilling operation a characteristic of a reservoir surrounding a borehole, comprising:
a) disposing a casing tubular within the borehole, the casing tubular including at least one station having at least one slot formed therein;
b) disposing at least one antenna within the casing tubular, each at least one antenna adapted to transmit or receive a signal;
c) aligning the at least one antenna with at least one slotted station within the casing tubular;
d) locking the casing tubular to a casing drilling apparatus, maintaining alignment with the antenna and the slotted station;
e) commence a drilling operation; and
f) transmitting, during the drilling operation, a first signal from the at least one aligned antenna and receiving a second signal associated with the transmitted signal.
14. The method of
15. The method of
16. The method of
(e) determining the phase and/or amplitude of the received signal.
17. The method of
(f) relating the determined phase and/or amplitude to corresponding reservoir resistivities; and
(g) relating the corresponding reservoir resistivities to reservoir oil saturations.
18. The method of
e) processing the received signal of step (d).
19. The method of
20. A method for monitoring during drilling operations a characteristic of a reservoir surrounding a borehole, the borehole having a casing tubular disposed therein, comprising:
a) inserting into the casing tubular a means for making an opening in a wall of the casing tubular;
b) making at least one opening at a desired location in the wall of the casing tubular; and
c) disposing at least one antenna within the casing tubular, each at least one antenna adapted to transmit or receive a signal;
d) aligning the at least one antenna with the at least one opening within the casing tubular;
e) locking the casing tubular to a casing drilling apparatus, maintaining alignment of the antenna and the opening;
f) commence a drilling operation; and
g) transmitting, during the drilling operation, a first signal from the at least one aligned antenna and receiving a second signal associated with the transmitted signal.
21. The method of
22. The method of
23. The method of
h) determining the phase and/or amplitude of the received signal.
24. The method of
(i) relating the determined phase and/or amplitude to corresponding reservoir resistivities; and
(j) relating the corresponding reservoir resistivities to reservoir oil saturations.
This application is a continuation-in-part of prior application Ser. No. 10/453,231, filed Jun. 3, 2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,863,127 which is a divisional of prior application Ser. No. 09/535,995, filed Mar. 27, 2000 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,614,229.
1.1 Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of reservoir characterization. More particularly, this invention relates to an improved technique for transmitting and/or receiving signals through a tubular such as casing or a liner to measure reservoir characteristics in casing drilling operations.
1.2 Description of Related Art
Petroleum is usually produced from oil reservoirs sufficiently far below a gas cap and above an aquifer. As the oil zone is being produced and depleted, the gas cap starts coning downward and the aquifer coning upwards towards the oil bearing zone. Such migration can adversely affect the extraction of petroleum by creating pockets that are missed by the producer and by saturating the oil deposits with water. As soon as either gas or water hits the well, its oil production usually ceases instantly.
Reservoirs are monitored for changes in saturation and early signatures of coning so that corrective action can be taken. One approach utilizes pulsed neutron measurements, which measure formation sigma (indicative of saline water) or carbon-oxygen ratios (indicative of the ratio of hydrocarbon to water). The primary disadvantages of such pulsed neutron measurements are shallow depth of investigation and low accuracy in low porosities. A shallow measurement can be fooled by water channeling behind casing, and shallow re-invasion of well fluids into the open zones (e.g., the perforated zones) when the well is not flowing.
Measuring the electrical resistivity near a borehole has long been used to determine production zones in oil and gas fields and to map sand and shale layers. Electrical resistivity depends directly on porosity, pore-fluid resistivity, and saturation. Porous formations having high resistivity generally indicate the presence of hydrocarbons, while low-resistivity formations are generally water saturated.
Cross-well monitoring is an approach to monitoring changes in reservoir saturation. This technique is an outgrowth of radar experiments conducted in the early 1970s. See Michael Wilt, Exploring Oil Fields with Crosshole Electromagnetic Induction, S
This approach has been studied for wells with fiberglass casing. The technique was used to monitor water-saturation changes in heavy oil zones undergoing steam flooding. See Michael Wilt et al., Crosshole electromagnetic topography: A new technology for oil field characterization, T
Another proposal for surveying and monitoring a reservoir is to deploy electrodes on the exterior of the casing. U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,051 (assigned to the present assignee) describes a casing, which has external insulation, electrodes, and cables for use in the completion. Its disadvantages include: the fragility of the external hardware and cable, the difficulty of running a complex completion into the well, the logistics of running a wire outside of the casing from surface to downhole, the inability to repair damaged or malfunctioning components, the difficulty to guarantee a hydraulic seal between the casing and the formation with external cables present, the possibility of cross-talk between these cables, the difficulty to place preamplifiers and other electronics near the electrodes, electrode impedance effects, and the influence of the cement annulus on resistivity.
Downhole techniques have been proposed utilizing slotted tubes or slotted liners. U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,208 describes the use of slotted tube sections as part of a drill string to sample ground water during drilling. A Slotted liner is a completion method used to prevent the wellbore from collapsing, and may also be used to prevent sand grains and other small particles from entering the wellbore and forming debris piles which may restrict fluid flow. A slotted liner is most often used in a horizontal well and is within a single producing formation. It is an alternative to leaving the hole completely open (i.e., with no casing), when an open hole may collapse or become blocked with debris. However, these types of slotted tubes or liners are not cemented in the wellbore, and do not provide hydraulic isolation from one well section to another. Slotted liners may be obtained from manufacturers such as Valley Perforating Co. of Bakersfield, Calif. (information available at <http://www.valleyperf.com/perf.htm>). See also James J. Smolen, Production Logging In Horizontal Wells, SPWLA T
These technologies have not been readily applicable to measurement and monitoring techniques using steel-cased production wells. The steel casing dramatically attenuates electromagnetic ("EM") signals, restricting the possible use of known techniques primarily to qualitative detection of high resistive zones, but not for quantitative saturation measurements. For the cross-well technique to be successful in cased holes, it has been proposed to run at extremely low frequencies so that the magnetic fields can penetrate steel casing. However, such an approach is extremely sensitive to the magnetic and electric properties of the casing, and it has not been successfully demonstrated.
Another technology area has been gaining in acceptance and also has the drawbacks associated with steel casing is casing drilling operations. Casing drilling uses standard oilfield casing to simultaneously drill and case the well. The completion casing is used as drill pipe, eliminating the expense of having drill pipe at the well-site. A drilling assembly is employed which drills a borehole of sufficient width to receive the casing. The bottom hole assembly (BHA) typically consists of a drill bit, an under-reamer, and collars used to lock the BHA to the bottom of the casing. At the rig surface, casing joints are picked up from the pipe rack and set into the mouse hole. A top drive is connected to the top of the casing joint that is then stabbed into the top of the casing string on a rotary table. The system utilizes a top drive to rotate the casing. In addition, mud motors and directional motors can also be used as part of the BHA.
A casing drilling BHA can be tripped into, and out of, the casing using a strong wireline cable. Specifically, a drill bit is sized to to pass through the casing. An underreamer is typically used to open the borehole sufficient to accommodate the casing. As such, drills bits can be replaced without pulling the casing from the well. In fact, a large advantage to casing drilling is the fact that the casing, once in place, should not need to be moved.
While much activity and progress has been made relating to the drilling process in casing drilling operation, there has been little to no focus on making formation evaluation measurements during casing drilling. In fact, as with cross-well technology, the casing acts as a barrier to the passage of signals necessary to make formation resistivity measurements.
One approach to obtain resistivity measurements through casing is discussed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,545,477 and 6,351,129. The approach disclosed in these patents consists of first causing a current to flow along the casing with a remote return current. A leakage current leaks through the casing toward the geological formation. The formation conductivity is evaluated based on the amount of leakage current. Another approach for resistivity measurements in conjunction with casing drilling requires the BHA to be tripped out, along with a portion of the casing. Essentially, the approach is an open-hole log with the desired formation exposed to the measurement device.
Thus, there remains a need for a technique for measuring and/or monitoring the characteristics of subterranean formations through steel casing. It is desirable to implement a technique that provides transparency for the passage of a signal through a tubular such as steel casing while maintaining hydraulic isolation between the tubular and the surrounding formations. It is also desired to implement a technique for through-casing signal-transmission and/or reception to place wells with greater accuracy.
Characteristics of a reservoir are monitored during a casing drilling operation using a casing drilling assembly that includes a drill bit for drilling a borehole through an earth formation. A casing tubular is coupled with the casing drilling assembly and includes at least one station having at least one slot in the casing tubular. An antenna or sensor, adapted for signal transmission and/or reception, is disposed within the casing tubular and positioned such that the antenna or sensor is aligned with the at least one slotted station. The antenna or sensor is activated during a casing drilling operation to transmit and/or receive a signal.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings in which:
In the interest of clarity, not all features of actual implementation are described in this specification. It will be appreciated that although the development of any such actual implementation might be complex and time-consuming, it would nevertheless be a routine undertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure.
4.1 Slotted Casing Station
The insulator 16 is made of an insulating material to permit the passage of EM radiation. Useable materials include the class of polyetherketones described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,320,224, or other suitable resins. Victrex USA, Inc. of West Chester, Pa. manufactures one type called PEEK. Cytec Fiberite, Greene Tweed, and BASF market other suitable thermoplastic resin materials. Another usable insulating material is Tetragonal Phase Zirconia ceramic ("TZP"), manufactured by Coors Ceramics of Golden, Colo. PEEK may be used for applications involving higher shock and lower differential pressures, while TZP can withstand higher differential pressure, but lower shock levels. According to finite element models, PEEK can withstand substantial pressure loading and may be used for harsh downhole conditions. Ceramics can withstand substantially higher loads, and may be used in permanent monitoring applications where shock is typically not an issue.
Protective metal upset rings 18 are mounted on the casing 10 above and below the insulator 16. The upset rings 18 protect the insulator 16 on the trip into the well, retaining the insulator 16 in position over the slots 14. The upset rings 18 may be mounted on the casing 10 in a number of ways as known in the art, e.g., spot welding or by fastener means.
Hydraulic isolation of the slotted station 12 may also be obtained by wrapping and curing fiberglass-epoxy directly on the casing 10, or PEEK can be applied at high temperature (not shown). Once in the well, the cement job will reinforce the hydraulic integrity of the insulator 16 over the slotted station.
The insert 22 provides transparency to incoming or outgoing EM signals while maintaining hydraulic integrity at the slot 14. In the event of pressure reversal, a fitted retaining sleeve 30 captures the insert 22 in the slot 14, preventing the insert 22 from being dislodged. The retaining sleeve 30 also has a slot 32 cut through its wall to provide a channel for any incoming or outgoing signal. The sleeve 30 preferably has a matching slot 32 for every slot 14 in the casing 10. However, only one slot 32 in the sleeve 30 needs to be matched with a slot 14 in the casing 10 for signal communication. Since the slot 32 provides a channel for the signal, the type of material used to make the sleeve 30 is immaterial to its effectiveness.
In downhole operations, external casing pressure may push the insert 22 inward. The bearing shoulder 21 takes this load. As the external pressure increases, the O-ring 26 pushes the metal elements 28, effectively closing off an extrusion gap. As a result, there is no room for extrusion of the O-ring 26. Since the metal is much harder than the O-ring material, it does not extrude at all. The modified geometry therefore creates a scenario where a soft element (the O-ring) provides the seal and a hard element (the metal loop) prevents extrusion, which is the ideal seal situation.
Since the casing 10 will be cemented into the formation, and since the metal will carry the mechanical stresses over the slotted station 12, the requirements on the mechanical strength of the insulating structure 15 should be modest. If the completion is not cemented in the pay zone, then a pressure seal is probably not needed. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that these sealing concepts have applications beyond those described herein.
4.2 Sources and Sensors
The invention uses sources and/or sensors disposed within the casing 10 to transmit and/or receive signals through the slots 14. Turning to
The mandrel 36 may be configured to support pressure, temperature, seismic, flow, hold-up or other sensors as known in the art (not shown). Such embodiments will facilitate the combination of various formation measurements e.g., resistivity with seismic surveys. The mandrel 36 also supports electronics, a downhole processor, and a wireline cable run from the surface to provide for telemetry (not shown). The power source can be local (e.g., batteries or turbine) or can be delivered from the surface via the wireline cable.
The resistivity measurements of the invention are obtained by using the coil antennas 38 to generate TE-polarized EM waves. Turning to
The current induced in each shield blade 44 flows to the edge of the blade. Here, it cannot continue azimuthally, but flows around the edge to the outside of the shield 40 and closes its loop on the outer blade surface. Thus, the outside of the shield 40 carries and effective current loop. The shields 40 are preferably radially thicker than about two skin depths to minimize any interference of the induced current flowing on the inside and the outside of the shield 40. Azimuthally, the slots 42 are preferably thinner than the width of the shield blade 44. One single slot 42 is sufficient to reliably filter the azimuthal wave.
At a receiving antenna 38, the process is reversed. The arriving (azimuthally or TE polarized) EM wave induces an azimuthal current on the outside of the shield 40. At the edge of each shield blade 44, the current flows around to the inside of the blade 44 where it closes the loop. Together, the shield blades 44 carry (on the inside) an approximately closed current loop which induces a current in the receiving antenna 38. This current signal is then processed and/or stored by the electronics downhole or sent to the surface via the wireline cable as known in the art. Any axial or radial component of the EM wave is short-circuited at the axial ends of shield 40 into the metal mandrel 36 body, thus eliminating parasitic signals.
Turning to
With the system 100 disposed in the casing 10, the EM waves generated by the antenna 38 couple to the slotted station 12 in the same way as to the shield 40. The azimuthal electric field component dominates the signal and induces a current on the inside of the casing 10, as shown in
Inside the casing 10, the metal mandrel 36 and the casing 10 itself provide a low attenuation path for TM waves. TM waves have (mostly) radial electric fields and azimuthal magnetic fields, as indicated in
TM waves can also be present on the outside of the casing 10 due to TE to TM conversion at dipping beds. As the steel in the casing 10 has a conductivity many orders of magnitude higher than any formation, such TM electrical currents can concentrate on the casing 10. However, the axial slots 14 in the casing 10 also function as an EM shield and do not permit TM fields on the outside of the casing 10 to penetrate inside the casing 10.
The source/sensor system 100 does not have to be immediately deployed when the well is completed. This equipment can be deployed months or years later, when there are significant changes in fluid saturations, as long as the tubular casing 10 is equipped with slotted stations 12. This greatly reduces the initial investment made by the oil company.
Another embodiment of a source/sensor system 110 is shown in
In a permanent monitoring installation, it may be advantageous to separately control the fluids produced from different regions of the well to optimize the overall well productivity. For example, if one region of the well is about to produce water, rather than oil, then that section of the well could be choked-back or even shut-in using a valve. Such valves can be located downhole from the surface as known in the art.
This completion isolates fluids flowing from different sections of the well. In this example, there are several regions of fluid flow. In the region just below the slotted station 12, perforations ("A") in the casing 10 allow fluids to enter the annular space between the casing 10 and the tubular 17. An opening 19 in the tubular then allows these fluids to flow inside the tubular, and then to enter a section of tubing A. The fluids flowing in tubing A can be separately controlled by a downhole valve or by a valve at the surface (not shown).
In a similar manner, tubing B may convey fluids from a lower section of casing 10. There may be a different set of perforations (not shown) which allows fluids to enter from a farther section of the well. The flow in tubing B may also be controlled separately by a valve (not shown). Above the slotted station 12, perforations "B" in the casing 10 allow fluids to enter the annular space between the tubular 17 and the casing 10. These fluids may be produced inside the tubular 17 to surface, or directed into another small tubular (not shown).
Hence, this complex completion allows fluids to be selectively produced in the wellbore. Mounting the antenna 38 on the exterior of the tubular 17 section positions the coil 38 close to the slot(s) 14 in the casing 10, and in a convenient location for the addition of packers, slips, valves, and multiple tubing strings.
4.3 Slot—Signal Interaction
The number of slots 14 and the dimensions of the slot 14 in the casing 10 affect how much TE signal passes through the slot 14, and therefore affects the overall efficiency of the measurement.
4.3.1 Axial Slot
Various factors affect the attenuation of the EM signal that passes through the station with the axial slot(s). These factors include the number of slots, the width of the slots, the length of the slots, the size and wall thickness of the casing, the casing material, and the frequency of the signal. Increasing the number, length and width of the slots generally increases the strength of the signal. For example, a casing with two slots on opposite sides has approximately half the attenuation of a one-slot configuration. However, the transmission is not significantly increased with more than approximately a dozen slots. For a fixed number, length, and width of slots, increasing the casing wall thickness and casing size has a slight effect on the signal. Hence, the techniques of the invention may be implemented with all casing sizes and in various configurations, including one long slot or long slotted-section.
Experimental and theoretical results for the attenuation and phase shift of an EM signal are plotted in
The attenuations vary from 13 dB (6-inch long slots at 20 Hz) to 2 dB (9 and 12 inch long slots around 10 kHz). These attenuations are far less than when there are no slots present, particularly at frequencies greater than 1 kHz, where the attenuations are typically 90 dB or greater. Hence, there will be sufficient signal levels to perform a useful measurement.
The attenuations are reasonable over a very wide frequency range, from Hertz to Megahertz. The ability to operate over a wide frequency range is extremely useful to measure different depths into the formation, as described in section 4.5.
4.3.2 Non-Axial Slot
The previous discussion has focused on TE field waves generated by axial (non-tilted) coil antennas 38 and axial slots 14 in the casing 10. As seen in
It is also possible to generate TM field waves with non-axial or tilted slots 14 in the casing 10. TM waves provide additional information that can be used to monitor the formation around the casing 10. For a given frequency and antenna 38 spacing, TM waves generally have shallower regions of investigation than TE waves. Turning to
The same coil antennas 38 used to generate TE waves can be used to generate TM waves as shown in
The axial magnetic field produces TE radiation, while the transverse magnetic field produces TM radiation. A slotted station 12 to let pass the desired TM-field wave, and attenuate the undesired components, should have at least one sloped slot 14 that is sloped at an angle Φ with respect to the casing 10 axis. If there are multiple slots 14 at the same angle Φ, then the axial components sum to an effective vertical magnetic dipole, and the transverse components sum to an azimuthal magnetic source equivalent to a vertical electric dipole.
While both TE and TM radiation are present, TM radiation will generally be guided along the casing 10 and be less attenuated than the TE radiation, resulting in a larger signal at a receiver antenna 38 within a sloped-slot station 12. Thus, by aligning an axial antenna 38 within a sloped-slot station 12 of the invention, TM field waves can be produced. The invention is also effective with the coils 38 disposed within the casing 10 at an angle with respect to the casing 10 axis.
The slotted station 12 or the coil 38 may be constructed to alter the tilt angle of the magnetic dipole with respect to the axial direction. Combinations of sloped and axial slots 14 of varying length, orientation, symmetry, and spacing, may be formed on the casing 10 wall. The sloped slots 14 may have equal or varied slope angles with respect to the casing 10. The slots 14 may also be cut in a curved pattern (instead of straight) within the casing 10 wall. The spacing between the coil antenna 38 and the inside diameter of the casing 10 may also be varied. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure that other modifications may be employed to increase the efficiency of the slotted station 12.
4.4 Electronics
It will be understood that the following embodiments of the invention incorporate the elements of the invention described above.
4.5 Well Completions and Measurement Schemes
The frequency of the transmitted signal f1 (see
Referring to the seven antennas (A–G) in
Turning to
4.5.1 Borehole Compensation
The accuracy of phase shift and attenuation measurements are significantly improved with borehole compensation ("BHC"), which can be obtained for any antennas except for the first and last ones on the completion. Referring to
Consider the receiver pair consisting of antennas B and C, and the transmitter pair consisting of antennas A and D. The BHC phase shift is
The phase shift imbalance is
4.5.2 Vertical Wells
4.5.3 Horizontal Wells
The above technique may be applied to a horizontal well 48 as shown in the embodiment of
4.5.4 Cross-Well Monitoring
Other embodiments of the invention may include a cased well equipped with slotted stations 12 and source/sensor systems in communication with an open hole, the surface, or another tubular disposed in a second borehole (not shown). Such configurations provide for asymmetric measurements (i.e., open-hole-cased-hole or surface-cased-hole) in both directions: source in the cased hole and sensors in the open hole or at the surface and vice versa.
4.5.5 Well Logging
As the tool 50 is moved through the well, the signal amplitude will vary as the antennas 38 pass by the slotted stations 12. The signal amplitude will be maximum when the antennas 38 are aligned with a slotted station 12, and will be minimum when the antennas 38 are distant from the slotted station 12. The die-off distance is approximately the length of the slot 14. Thus, monitoring the signal amplitude indicates when the antennas 38 are precisely aligned with the slotted stations 12, and the phase and amplitude or phase shift and attenuation at this instant may be used for the resistivity measurement. This approach may also be used to position the string for permanent monitoring.
Borehole compensation, as explained in section 4.5.1, removes any systematic errors caused by axial displacement or eccentricity.
With this configuration, periodic well logging could be performed early during production, and when time-lapse logging reveals changes, a permanent monitoring system could be deployed. This would provide stages of investment: stage 1—run completion with slotted stations 12, stage 2—perform periodic production logging, stage 3—place a permanent monitoring string. Being able to install the permanent monitoring string without pulling the tubing would be a major advantage. Therefore it is advantageous to use a small diameter well logging tool or permanent monitoring tool which can pass through the ID of a tubing string.
4.5.6 Slotted-Liner
As described above, tubular slotted-liners are used to buttress wellbores that are susceptible to collapsing. The tubulars are run into the wellbore to prevent the formation from collapsing and blocking-off the wellbore. These types of liners typically have a large number of narrow slots per unit length. The width of the slot is often chosen to be slightly smaller than the size of a sand grain in the producing formation (typically 0.01 to 0.05 inches). In common practice, the slot length is usually about 2 inches, and the number of slots per foot is chosen to provide about 3% to 5% open area in the liner wall. For example, a 5 inch diameter slotted liner having 80 slots per foot with each slot being 0.038 inches wide by 2 inches long, provides 3.2% open area, as shown in
An embodiment of the invention uses the described source/sensor implementations disposed inside of a slotted-liner (not shown) for measuring the characteristics of the surrounding formations.
4.5.7 Downhole Slot-Cutting
While the disclosed implementations of the invention have included a tubular having slotted stations already disposed on its walls prior to installation, the invention may also be implemented with an existing non-slotted tubular already installed in a well. A system 150 for monitoring a characteristic of a reservoir already having a tubular 151 installed is shown in
A conventional downhole mill-cutter 152 is deployed within the tubular 151 at the end of a transport means 154 such as coiled tubing or a wireline. The mill-cutter 152 is deployed within the tubular 151 to the desired producing zone, where it is activated from the surface to cut one or more slots within the wall of the tubular 151. The mill-cutter is used to cut a slot in the tubular by drilling a series of overlapping holes in the casing using a motor and drill bit with a 90-degree shaft. The motor may be mud-driven or electrically powered.
The slots may also be formed downhole by other approaches, such as the perforation techniques known in the art (not shown). Charges can be designed that cut elliptical holes instead of round ones. They can also be designed to cut wider holes with less penetration. One option is a gun with a number of charges aligned along the axis of the well that perforate overlapping holes.
Another approach is a common service used when drilling a re-entry well from an existing wellbore. A whipstock is placed in the tubular and a mill is attached to the end of a drill string, this assembly is moved down against the whipstock while rotating (not shown). The whip forces the mill against the tubular, eventually cutting a long, elliptical slot in the tubular. Yet another approach is the use of a sandblast jet cutter that is sent downhole to a desired position. With the use of these techniques, one can ensure that the slotted station is at the correct (or best possible) depth for production monitoring.
After making the opening(s) in the tubular 151, the source/sensor system 100 of
4.5.8 Casing Drilling
The slotted casing sections and resistivity tool design and operation described in the previous embodiments may also be implemented as part of a casing drilling system. In a casing drilling system, such as 920, casing sections 925 and the BHA 940 are locked together. Additional sections are added from above such that the first casing section is typically the casing section that remains closest to and locked with the BHA. The BHA 940 is typical of casing drilling BHA designs, which are well known. Common BHA configurations typically consist of a drill bit, an under-reamer, and collars associated with locking assemblies. The BHA may also include mud motors and directional drilling motors. According to an embodiment of the disclosed casing drilling system, since the formation evaluation section of the tool 921 does not extend beyond the casing, existing casing drilling BHA designs can be employed without departing from the inventive aspects of the disclosed subject matter. As such and for clarity purposes, the details of the various casing drilling BHA designs are not specifically discussed herein.
To make resistivity measurements according to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter, a slotted section 926 is used near the BHA 940. The slotted casing section 926 can be similar in design to other slotted section embodiments described herein. Specifically, slotted casing section 926 is a casing section similar in material to casing sections, such casing 925, that are added to the drillstring as the BHA advances downward. Slots 928 a–d, in slotted casing section 926, allow transmission of signals necessary to make resistivity measurements while providing the mechanical strength that is necessary for drilling operations. Furthermore, the slotted section 926 can contain slots, as described above, that operate to permit transmission of EM radiation.
The casing drilling system 920 includes a lower lock assembly 932 near the BHA 940 and an upper lock assembly 924 near the top of the casing drilling system 920. The upper and lower lock assemblies 924 and 932 perform dual functions for the disclosed casing drilling formation measurement operation. As with typical casing drilling systems, the locking assemblies function to lock the BHA, including the drill bit, to the casing. In this way, the casing rotates with the BHA and applies the downward force needed for drilling.
The locking assemblies 924 and 932 also function to align the resistivity antennas 936 a–d to the casing slots 928 a–d. Proper alignment between the antennas and slots is important to maximize signal to noise of the resistivity measurements. Locking mechanisms are known within existing casing drilling technology. However, improvements continue to be made with respect to locking systems and the specific casing drilling lock type or operation is not crucial to the disclosed casing drilling formation measurements. Specifically, even misaligned antenna and slot combination is useful in certain circumstances, and any attendant negative signal-to-noise effects may be corrected in processing. It is understood that even correctly aligned slots and antennas will undergo some relative displacement during severe and even normal drilling operations. Yet another function important to obtaining resistivity measurement, the locking assemblies 924 and/or 932 can also be configured to provide a electrically conductive path, providing a short between the casing drilling tool 921 and the casing 925 and/or 926. This short helps attenuate TM waves that may exist internal to the casing 926 and which can interfere with the resistivity readings. It should be noted that any number of shorting components, i.e. bow springs, can be used and the locking assemblies 924 and 932 are not required for this purpose.
Slots 928 a–d are shown as multiple slots stacked axial over the slotted casing section 926. Although four slots are discussed for exemplary purposes, any number of actual slots may be employed. In most cases, the number of stacked slots and the number of resistivity antennas are the same, however, this is not necessary. Furthermore, as discussed above with respect to embodiments other than casing drilling, the slot configuration may be of any number of design variations. For example, axial slots such as in
Similarly, the stacked antenna configuration of
Turning back to
In addition to upper seal 922, seals may be utilized near the BHA 940 to prevent return mud flow back through the internal area of the casing. Such a lower seal can be useful to avoid excessive accumulation of debris near the antennas 936 a–d. Likewise, seals may be employed to fill the casing slots 928 a–d. For example, slot inserts such as shown in
The electronics 930 associated with antennas 936 a–d is used to control the process of transmitting and receiving signals for making formation resistivity measurements.
4.6 Well Placement
In this embodiment, the first well 48 is equipped with a tubular having the slotted stations 12 and antennas 38 as described above. By using a conventional measuring while drilling ("MWD") tool 52 equipped with an appropriate sensor or detector (e.g., an antenna or a triaxial magnetometer), the tool 52 can detect the EM field (represented by dashed lines in
By alternately transmitting from the various antennas 38 in the first well 48, the operator can use the MWD tool 52 to monitor and adjust the orientation of the borehole during drilling. Alternatively, the source may be mounted on the tool 52 or drillstring, with the antennas in the well used as sensors (not shown). In this configuration, the operator would monitor the sensors and adjust the borehole orientation accordingly.
4.7 Implementations of the Invention
Once the casing drilling tool is in place, at step 955, the casing string traverses the borehole as a drilling operation commences. It should be understood that drilling operations as referenced herein include, vertical drilling, horizontal drilling, tripping, sliding or similar operations where a casing drilling string in motion relative to the formation. During one of these drilling operations, at step 956, electronics within the casing drilling tool excite one or more antennas to transmit into the formation an electromagnetic signal capable of passage through one or more slots in the slotted casing section. At step 958, in response to the transmitted signal, a signal is received from the formation through one or more of the slots.
At. Step 960, electronics within the casing drilling tool records the response for later processing, for example after the drilling operation is completed. Alternatively, processing of the received signal may be performed downhole to obtain real time or near real time resistivity measurements. In either case, a casing drilling tool equipped with mud pulse telemetry is able to transmit the gathered information to a surface station. In some operations, additional slotted casing sections can be added as the casing drilling tool progresses further downhole. Where multiple slotted casing sections exist, resistivity measurements can be made as the casing drilling tool is retrieved from its drilling position, for example for maintenance or to change the drill bit.
While the methods and systems of this invention have been described as specific embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variations may be applied to the structures and in the steps or in the sequence of steps of the methods described herein without departing from the concept and scope of the invention. For example, the disclosed inventions may also be implemented using different types of signal sources and/or sensors, including those adapted for sonic, neutron, gamma, or magnetic signals. All such similar variations apparent to those skilled in the art are deemed to be within this concept and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
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