text:
Thanks for redeeming.{{else}}
Success! Thanks for repurchasing.{{/if}} {{else}} {{#if Expired}}
Increase my visibility!{{else}} {{#if IsMultiPack}}
{{#if HasMultiPack}} You have {{MultiPackCount}} top spot(s) left. Now loading you into the search listings... {{else}} You have used all top spots. Now loading you into the search listings... {{/if}}{{else}}
We are loading you into the search listing pages...{{/if}} {{/if}} {{/if}} {{/if}}
{{Current}} just saw you!{{/if}} {{#if LastTopSpotPurchaseIsMulti }} {{#if HasAnyTopSpot}}
{{#if HasFreeTopSpot }} {{ UnclaimedTopSpotFree }} Free {{/if}} {{#if HasPaidTopSpot }} {{#if HasFreeTopSpot }} & {{/if}} {{ MultiPackCount }} {{/if}} Top Spot{{#if Plural}}s{{/if}} Left{{else}}
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You can now invite anyone to meet at your favorite Starbucks.
Limited-time feature
36 year old man | Chicago, IL, USA | Seeking women 18-35
Heller !!!
God fearing, energetic, out going always willing to try some thing new. Love music it relaxes me and or motivates the hell out of me ..................i I love drag racing and ufc some times just like to go to the bar and hang out with friends drink a beer (craft beer) watch the games I'm a die hard Chicago bears , cubs,bulls and blackhawks fan Sox fans are welcome too lol..and I dj at a club every once I'm a while But of course there is nothing like kicking back at home watch a flick ....if ya wanna know more just ask me
Camping , Cooking , Dining out , Fishing/Hunting , Hobbies and crafts , Movies/Videos , Museums and art , Music and concerts , Exploring new areas , Nightclubs/Dancing , Performing arts , Playing cards , Playing sports , Shopping/Antiques , Travel/Sightseeing , Video games , Volunteering , Watching sports
Auto racing / Motorcross, Baseball, Basketball, Billiards / Pool, Bowling, Dancing, Football, Hockey, Martial arts, Other types of exercise, Running, Soccer, Swimming, Tennis / Racquet sports, VolleyBall, Walking / Hiking, Weights / Machines
I exercise 5 or more times per week.
I have Cats, Dogs
Z{{Cta}} {{#if HasMoreInfo}} ?{{CtaSecondary}} {{/if}}
|What he is looking for
|5'7" (170cms)
|5'0" (152cms) to 6'4" (193cms)
|Body type:
|About average
|Slender, About average, Curvy, Athletic and toned
|No preference
|No preference
|Yes, but trying to quit
|Occasionally, Yes, but trying to quit
|Social Drinker
|Social Drinker, Regularly, Moderately
|Self-Employed / Entrepreneur
|No preference
|$50,001 to $75,000
|No preference
|No preference
|Have kids:
|Yes, and they sometimes live at home, Yes, and they live away from home, Yes, and they live at home
|Wants kids:
|Someday, No, but it's OK if my partner has kids
|Latino / Hispanic
|Asian, Black / African descent, East Indian, Latino / Hispanic, Middle Eastern, Native American, Pacific Islander, White / Caucasian, Other
|I'll tell you later
|No preference
|English, Spanish
|No preference
|High school
|No preference


text:
In the aftermath of the government shutdown and amid continued uncertainty about the next budget impasse, employee engagement in the federal government is under pressure. IT managers have an opportunity in the current environment to take concrete steps to re-engage their staffs and make significant improvements in employee retention and productivity.
CEB defines engagement as the amount of commitment, effort and intention to stay that employees exhibit based on their past experiences, present events and future expectations. Our research has identified four key engagement strategies that have the greatest impact in the current federal workplace. They can result in as much as a 30 percent improvement in employees' willingness to go above and beyond their current responsibilities and a 36 percent improvement in their intention to stay with the organization.
The strategies are:
1. Reconnect employees to the organization's mission. Employees who have a clear understanding of their connection to mission success increase their discretionary effort by more than 30 percent. This level of engagement requires an open dialogue around three major concepts: who we are as an agency, why the agency exists and, most important, how a particular individual contributes to the agency's mission.
Employees who feel empowered have engagement levels more than 20 percent higher than those who are less empowered.
2. Navigate role complexities. In a global survey of more than 23,000 employees, more than two-thirds reported that their jobs are more complex than ever. More than 60 percent reported an increase in collaboration and coordination with peers. Given this increasing complexity, IT managers need to guide their teams in adapting to rapid changes. Attempts to protect employees from complexity often backfire and can come across as micro-management. Instead, our research indicates that managers should focus on fostering key relationships, clarifying roles, and providing advice and context. Those types of activities are six to eight times more effective than attempting to over-simplify complex realities or filter information.
3. Empower workforce contributions. Employees who feel empowered have engagement levels more than 20 percent higher than those who are less empowered. Empowerment is not about expanding authority in decision-making but instead should focus on enabling employees to make greater organizational contributions within the scope of their authority. Approaches that empower employees, such as supporting risk taking and encouraging broader communications, result in engagement levels that are about 10 percent higher than average.
4. Focus employees on the future. We conducted a survey of more than 10,000 employees worldwide and discovered that past events, present experiences and future expectations all shape an employee's engagement. Most organizations focus on building positive present experiences and recovering from past events and often overlook future expectations. Managers can build higher employee engagement by having an honest dialogue about employees' desired capabilities, career interests and potential networks. In fact, organizations where employees have high levels of engagement can see a 17 percent increase in an employee's willingness to accept a new role in the organization and a 38 percent increase in the willingness to accept additional responsibility.
The government shutdown and the impending budget battles of 2014 are not the first, nor will they be the last, organizational upheavals that the federal IT workforce will face. Although many external forces are beyond their control, managers have the ability to address all four of the proven drivers of engagement. Even better, those strategies do not focus on changing existing compensation structures or performance models but instead stress the importance of effective communication and a connection to mission.
About the Authors
Kris van Riper is a managing director at CEB.
Sig Libowitz is a director at CEB.
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Meet 100 women and men who are doing great things in federal IT.
Click here for the full list
Three-time Federal 100 winner is leaving government in July.
Members of Congress heaped hard questions on federal IT leaders at a June 16 hearing and suggested strongly that somebody needs to be fired.
Senate bill carves out exemption for supercomputing and other lab IT; an earlier version of the measure would have exempted the entire Department of Energy.
OPM is partnering with CSID to try to manage the fallout from a massive breach of some 4 million federal personnel records.
Steve Kelman applauds the OMB's move to make career employees "goal leaders" for performance management initiatives -- but wishes it had come far earlier in the administration.
In an exclusive interview, Jimaye Sones, who was Defense Information Systems Agency comptroller from 2005 to 2013, says he was reassigned after revealing questionable accounting practices at the agency.
Through computer forensics training and internships, veterans are helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement tackle a backlog in child exploitation cases.
After two months on the job studying DOD's cybersecurity and IT needs, Secretary Ashton Carter is set to unveil a new Pentagon cyber strategy in Silicon Valley.
The failure of massive federal IT projects can usually be traced to poor management. The solution is as multilayered as the projects themselves.
All of that contradicts the basic tenet of Management 101: BS the grunts as long as possible.
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Great Northern Hotel
|Place Details
|Place ID
|Registration Type
|State Heritage
|Place Name
|Great Northern Hotel
|Place Classification
|Place Category
Retail, Wholesale, Services
|Place Type
3 Developing secondary and tertiary industries / 3.11 Lodging people
3 Developing secondary and tertiary industries / 3.1 Feeding Queenslanders
|Register Entry Date
|500 Flinders Street
|Town / Suburb
|Post Code
|Cultural Heritage Significance
|Principal Period
of Significance
|1900s (fabric) 1901-ongoing (historical use, social)
|Criterion A
|The Great Northern Hotel, erected 1900-01 in anticipation of the extension east to Blackwood Street of the Townsville railway terminus, illustrates the pattern of Queensland's history.
|Criterion C
|It is a well preserved building valued by the local community and visitors alike as a symbol of tropical Townsville, and has the potential to contribute significantly to further study of Queensland hotel architecture.
|Criterion D
|The Great Northern Hotel survives as a good example of its type, demonstrating the principal characteristics of a two-storeyed brick verandahed hotel with elaborate external cast-iron decorative detailing, most commonly found in tropical Australia. It exemplifies the gracious, slower early 20th century lifestyle of the western landowners and travellers for whom it was built, and survives as Townsville's finest example of this style of architecture.
|Criterion E
|The aesthetically pleasing facade in particular survives remarkably intact, and its decorative detailing, combined with the substantial scale of the building and its prominent corner position, make a strong contribution to the streetscape of Flinders Street, and to the townscape of Townsville.
|Criterion G
|The building has functioned as a hotel and performed a strong social role in the life of the Townsville community for close to a century, and as such has a strong association for Townsville residents with their social history. It is a well preserved building valued by the local community and visitors alike as a symbol of tropical Townsville, and has the potential to contribute significantly to further study of Queensland hotel architecture.
|The Great Northern Hotel, a large, two-storeyed brick and timber hotel, was erected in 1900-01 for Townsville timber firm Wilson Hart & Company, owners of the site. It was designed by prominent Townsville architects Tunbridge and Tunbridge. The application to build the Great Northern Hotel appears to have been initiated following the State government's announcement in 1900 of plans to erect a new Townsville railway terminus on land off Blackwood Street beside Ross Creek, which would bring the terminus closer to the eastern end of Flinders Street and to the retail and business heart of Townsville. Almost immediately [June 1900], applications were lodged to erect hotels on two corners of the nearby intersection of Flinders and Blackwood Streets - one being the Great Northern, the other replacing an existing hotel [the Newmarket?]. Both applicants intended to erect first-class hotels, both argued that Townsville suffered a lack of first-class accommodation - the hotels erected during the boom of the 1880s no longer offering the level of comfort and facilities required by turn-of-the-century travellers - and both applications were approved provided the buildings were erected within the time specified [9 months in each case]. Only the Great Northern came to fruition, and when opened early in 1901, was marketed as the hotel closest to the new Townsville terminus of the Great Northern Railway - hence the name of the hotel. The architects, Tunbridge & Tunbridge, designed a first class brick and timber hotel of 36 bedrooms, estimated to cost between £8,000 and £9,000. The Tunbridge brothers [Walter Howard and Oliver Allan] had entered into partnership in Townsville in 1887, and soon developed a substantial North Queensland architectural practice with offices in Charters Towers and later Rockhampton. Tunbridge and Tunbridge designed many Townsville hotels, including the Metropole [1887], Victoria Park [1896], Lowth's [1897 - demolished], Victoria Bridge [1900 - demolished], Empire [1901], Sovereign [1904] and Carriers Arms [1906 - demolished]. Although work on preparing the Blackwood Street site for the new railway terminus was underway in 1900, the station building was not erected until 1914. Despite this delay, the Great Northern Hotel proved popular with travellers from its opening. Designed and run as a first-class hotel, the Great Northern offered a high standard of service, good food, comfortable airy bedrooms and spacious public rooms. It also played a major role in the social life of the growing town. As with most early hotels in Australia, the Great Northern was a place for the community to meet and socialise, and for nearly a century the hotel has remained a popular drinking venue and prominent and well-known element of the city townscape.
|The Great Northern Hotel is located on a prominent corner site at the intersection of Flinders and Blackwood Streets, within an historic precinct which includes the 1914 Townsville Railway Station and oval lawn, garden and mature trees [600906], the 1932 Newmarket Hotel on the opposite corner, and the vista towards Castle Hill. The Great Northern Hotel is a substantial two-storeyed, L-shaped brick building with facades to Flinders and Blackwood Streets. It has a corrugated-iron roof, hidden behind a parapet decorated with classical motifs. Wide verandahs with bullnose roofing, cast-iron balustrading and friezes and a wooden valance on the lower level, adorn both street frontages. The timber verandah posts on the ground floor are decorated with fluted columns and capitals, and leadlight glass is a feature of the street level windows. Internally the building remains largely intact, despite some refurbishment of the Flinders Street wing of the ground floor, which contains the public bars. At this eastern end part of the ground floor has been converted into two shops and one has been reconstructed to form part of a second bar area. The main entrance doors in the Flinders Street wing have been replaced with aluminium and the bars refurbished. The main door of the hotel addresses Blackwood Street, closest to the railway station and leading to the reception, dining and accommodation areas of the hotel. This entrance retains its original timber joinery and sidelights and opens into a foyer with the original timber dado panelling. To the left of this foyer is the original office and office furniture. The former dining room to the right has been converted into a reception room and a new dining room opened in a room through the leadlight doors at the back of the foyer. The main internal staircase, rising from the Blackwood Street foyer, has well-crafted turned timber balusters and above the landing is a feature window with early leadlight central panes. Upstairs, there has been little alteration to the fabric of the building. The ceilings and most of the bedroom partition walls are the original tongue and groove boarding [horizontally-jointed on the walls]. Many of the original fretwork panels above the internal doors survive, while others have been replaced with glass or timber. The upstairs rooms are accessed from a T-shaped hallway with decorative masonry archways at regular intervals, and each bedroom has french doors opening onto front or rear verandahs.
|Element Name
|Great Northern Hotel
|Designer Name
Tunbridge & Tunbridge
|Design Period
|1900 - 1914 Early 20th century
|Construction Period
|1900 - 1901
|Construction Method
Load-bearing brick
|Fabric (Exterior Structure)
|Fabric (Roof)
Metal sheeting - corrugated iron
|Roof Form
Parapet front
|Place Components
Lead light/s
|Images and Maps
|Create a Web Map
Information about places in the Queensland Heritage Register is maintained by the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection (EHP) under the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. Information available here is only part of the full Register entry and should not be taken as an official entry. Absence does not mean a particular place is not in the Register.
Certified copies of the full entries in the Register are available for a fee.
You can also search the full Register for a fee to find out if a place or parcel of land is listed or otherwise affected by the Act.
Last updated: 15 March 2013


text:
Boys Basketball: Lely falls to Mariner
The Lely boys basketball team fell to Mariner, 59-46, on Wednesday in the Class 5A-District 12 semifinal on Wednesday.
Rodney Hunter and Chris Carpenter lifted their game to a higher level Wednesday night to carry Mariner to victory.
Hunter finished with a team-high 22 points for Mariner, while Carpenter hit for 15.
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Fueled by a love of travel and vibrant colors, textile virtuoso Suki Cheema creates contemporary home accents that flaunt lively, refreshing patterns. This Basils Wall Plum Pillow is covered in a modern, abstract design that was inspired by the architecture of Russian cathedrals. Printed and embroidered by hand using traditional artisan techniques, the 100% cotton piece is a dynamic yet tasteful decorating tool for your bed, sofa, or favorite chair.
Includes feather and down insert. 2 tie closures in back.
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text:
Are there any other Card fans out there? What do expect out of Charlie Strong? Can they beat Kentucky? Go bowling?
Personally, I think they should beat the Cats and go at least 6-6. :)
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Are there any other Card fans out there? What do expect out of Charlie Strong? Can they beat Kentucky? Go bowling?
Personally, I think they should beat the Cats and go at least 6-6. :)
Big UofL fan here. Not particularly optimistic about this year given what that guy we don't talk about left behind, but it seems like the program is moving in the right direction again.
UK should by all rights beat the Cards in week one, but they won't be nearly good enough to make that an automatic W (they almost never are). Beyond that, the non-conference slate is pretty soft, and this is probably not going to be the Big East's best year, so six wins seems imminently doable.
Living out of town, unfortunately my first look at the Cards in person will be November 6th in the Carrier Dome.
Devoted U of L fan here. My dad and I sat through the Weber years in Redbirds stadium. Really proud of the University for hiring Strong. He seems to be as classy as they come.
Hey Boston, nice to hear from a Cards fan up-east. I just remember as bad as UofL was last year, they had the UK game won before giving it away.
Charlie Strong just announced Adam Frohman as the starting QB. This should not come as a surprise to anyone.
Huge cards fan here. I think the Cards will beat UK. We have more talent than last year and it took a muffed punt to beat us in Lexington. We are at home and starting the Strong Era.
I got my tickets in the mail today :)
Hey Bearcat fan here, I wish you guys the worst of luck this year ;)
But really, I think Strong will get the Ville back. Just not quite this year.
Thanks Shane. Congrats on the recent success, but I will always remember UC for the 70-7 beatdown at Papa Johns in 2004. Oh, and I hope you guys crush both Oklahoma and WVU!
I have a soft spot for U of L because a few years ago, a young QB by the name of Justin Rascati saw the writing on the wall (I think it was the name "Brohm" he saw) and transferred from Louisville to a I-AA school in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia - James Madison, my alma mater. In 2004, he led the way to a National Championship win over perennial I-AA power Montana.
So thanks for that, Cards fans, and best of luck this season.
Six days until football!!! Eight days until the Governor's Cup comes back to its rightful home, The University of Louisville. Go Big East, Go Cards!!!


text:
A Gallup poll conducted last month reveals surprising data about the average American's estimate of gay and lesbian population numbers. The poll found that adults in the U.S., on average, believe that at least 25% of the country is gay or lesbian.
Participants were asked, "Just your best guess, what percent of Americans today would you say are gay or lesbian?" 35% of those polled said that they believe gays and lesbians make up over 25% of the population, while another 17% responded that gays and lesbians number between 20% and 25%.
The new findings appear to contrast with a previous report released by the Williams Institute in April, which tallied gays and lesbians as 3.5% of the population. Only 4% of Gallup's participants answered "less than 5%."
Women, young people (ages 18 to 29), people with lower incomes and people with less education gave higher estimates than other groups polled. Politically, slightly higher estimates were also given by Democrats, liberals, moderates and independents than Republicans and conservatives.
This is the second Gallup poll where Americans were asked to estimate the gay and lesbian population in the U.S. The first poll, conducted in 2002, found that participants estimated 21% of men were gay and that 22% of women were lesbian. Neither poll asked participants to estimate the bisexual or transgender population.
So what is the real size of the U.S. LGBT population? While the Gallup poll only reflects perceptions of gay and lesbian numbers, the poll's authors found that responses were influenced by demographics. Participants may be counting LGBT friends and family who didn't self-report in identity surveys such as those aggregated by the Williams Institute.
As reported by Gallup's Lymari Morales, the recent poll "suggests Americans' estimates are based more on who they are — and perhaps whom they know — than on their worldview."
Related Stories
9 Million People in America Identify as LGBT Says New Report
Gallup Poll: 64% of Americans Say Gay Relationships Should be Legal
How To React When Someone Comes Out: Dos and Don'ts for Straight Allies
Read more: civil rights, gallup poll, gay rights, lgbt, lgbt population, lgbt population in america, lgbt rights, united states
Photo credit: essygie
No way do I believe that 25% of the population is homosexual; the natural order of continuation of the species would not support a ridiculous high proportion as this. Sounds like made up numbers ... gay lobby is powerful and they are trying to prove normalcy with higher proportion in society.
It is more like 5%. There must be something weird which would cause excessive numbers of one quarter of the population being gay. The extinction of humans would eventually cease; heterosexuality is the procreator. Nature did not erradicate homosexuality as it has always been; but it is not viable to sustain the population. The Origin of the Species refers to adaptablility and social significance of the homosexuals.
Sorry, should have been "treated equal".
Dumitru Z.: You're so funny. Me being quite ironical, of course. There's no such thing as NORMAL.
Well, 50% of straight marriages ends in divorce, therefore it's NORMAL that straights will divorce.
In some city 60% or more of inner city dwellers are single households. Therefore it's NORMAL to live in a single person household, straight or not.
When all men and women are threated equal, I will stop arguing. Until then, I keep my torch lit and my keyboard warm!
In my opinion, I wouldn't be surprised if that 25% included bi-sexuals.
I hadn't thought of the actual percentages.
I really don't care what portion of the population is LBGT--can't we just live and let live?
I wonder what the effect of the belief is: the reality is that there is no data to support the idea that more than around around 6% of the US population may be GLBT (although this is disputed by a large health study in the UK (30,000 respondents) among whom only around 1% or something said they were gay. So, if 35% of the US population believe that one out of every 4 people is gay, what does this tell us -- they live next door to 3 gay couples? their gaydar is way off? and do they think this is a good thing or a bad thing?
As for the polls. These can be manipulated to get the desired results. Just choose an area of the known population where you know the percentage will be in favor of or against whatever the question is and get the desired results. Like for example: Do you think that the Care2 web site serves a useful purpose for people to express their opinions? Of course, the ppl on the site who see the question are going to agree. Those who don't use the site or are not aware it even exists aren't going to see the question. So, the results would be highly in favor of a Yes. How about this one: Do you think that having a Black president is good for the USA? Go to a predominantly Black or Republican community and you would get a majority Yes. Go to a known predominantly white Democrat community and the majority would probably be No. Ask a Christian community if they believe God created the universe and man. They would favor Yes. Ask a group of known non-believers and the majority would say No. So, poll outcomes can be manipulated, depending on the community, people and area polled. The only true way to get a close to accurate outcome is to have an election whereby everybody in the country gets to vote. Well, that's my rant on opinion polls.
What is the percentage of the population that is Homeless? What is the percentage of the population that are living in poverty? These are important issues that need attention and help. Poor kids go hungry and have difficulty getting a good education. Focus on problems that need to be taken care of. What is the percentage of the population who couldn't care less whether someone is gay, lesbian or not sure? I am heterosexual. Do I have to advertise that so everybody knows? Does anybody care? This issue has tied up the court systems, caused ppl to lose their jobs, be fined, sent to jail, degraded, and called nasty names. When will it ever end? Get on with your life and live it as you please but stop expecting the majority of the population to agree with you. It is not going to happen. So get on with life and deal with more important issues. Like Child Poverty and Illiteracy. Help fund a child to go to get a good education instead of paying high priced lawyers to keep trying to force beliefs onto other people.
Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may
not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.
This garbage is legal in the U.S. because corporations run this country and, therefore, the almighty…
Signed petitions, some previously. Thank you.
I guess I have had too much coffee this morning because I can't let this one go. Why hasn't the women's…


text:
Build a board and batten fence
A board and batten fence. (Gene Hamilton / July 14, 2014)
A fence contractor will build a 6-foot-high, 50-foot-long treated board and batten fence for about $976, which includes the labor and material. You can buy the materials for $625 and built it, saving 36 percent. Fence building is a time-consuming project that requires careful planning and layout, and then more difficult work like digging holes for the fence poles.
The materials include the fence sections, end posts, concrete and galvanized nails. You'll need to have a shovel, wheelbarrow and basic carpentry tools. To make the job easier, rent or borrow a post hole digger.
Before you do anything, contact your local building department and ask if there are building code requirements and permits needed to build a fence -- there usually are. And refer to a copy of your property survey to make sure you know exactly where your property begins and ends to avoid building a fence on your neighbor's property.
To find more DIY project costs and to post comments and questions, visit http://www.diyornot.com and http://www.m.diyornot.com on smartphones.
Pro Cost -- DIY Cost -- Pro time -- DIY Time -- DIY Savings -- Percent Saved
$976 -- $625 -- 12.6 -- 25.0 -- $351 -- 36 Percent
(c) 2014 GENE AND KATIE HAMILTON, DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.


text:
My third album is on Spotify, iTunes, and other channels.
I launched a new website: Songftware
An interesting conversation in the comments of Hacker News today.
From https://news.ycombinator.com/
I just finished the beta of Escrow, a social betting network. Try it out.
My first album has been published to Spotify. It's also available on iTunes, Google Play, and Amazon.
I've already made $.03 off of it.
I started a podcast. It's called "The Quoracast" and is an unofficial podcast dedicated to profiling members of the Quora.com community. Episodes can be found on the iTunes store or on Quoracast.com
Stock Similarities is a tool I wrote for comparing equities using cosine similarity. The source code can be found on github.
Upon starting the program, the user is presented with the following:
restrict : limits the parsed metrics to a stricter set than default
ld <ticker> : loads all information about a stock into memory
ld <sector> : load tech, pharm, food, or finance
ld all : loads several NASDAQ stocks from various sectors
list : list all loaded companies
print_vect <ticker> : print the formatted stock vector for a ticker which has been loaded into memory
print_atts <ticker> : print all raw attributes of a stock which is in memory
sim <ticker> <ticker> : print the cosine similarity of two vectors
vis : enter visualization mode
sr : perform SageRank
q : quit the system
A standard series of commands can be found here. It was generated from an older version of the code. Several key lines are:
measure_similarity MSFT AAPL 0.9487773944602984
measure_similarity AAPL AMZN 0.7766864280064972
measure_similarity MSFT AMZN 0.9341696778035647
The output is code that can be copied into a Processing file to get the following visualization:
The lines of output suggest that, of the three companies, AAPL and AMZN are the most disparate. As a result, AAPL and AMZN are connected by the hypotenuse (the longest line). The other meaningful component of the visualization is the radius of the circle, which is dictated by price/earnings ratio.
Stock data is pulled from Yahoo finance, formatted, parsed, and mapped to vectors. After this process, a stock can be summarized by a vector such as AAPL -> {contracts traded yesterday = 1000000000, last traded price = 520, short ratio = .5 …}. Vectors are compared using cosine similarity.
public static double cosineSimilarity(AttributeVector v1, AttributeVector v2) { return dotProduct(v1, v2) / (v1.magnitude() * v2.magnitude()); }
This creates a 1-to-1 similarity ratio for each pair of stocks. GraphFactory turns these relationships into edge lengths, so that the stocks form a fully connected graph.
The nodes can each be printed in order of ranked importance. A node's importance is the sum of the incoming edges in that node.
I received my box of supplies from Amazon. Whey protein, calcium, sulfur, magnesium, maltodextrin, iron, fiber gummies, multivitamins; it was like eight days of Hanukkah all at once. I looked up the recipe and got to work mixing up a batch.
I didn't realize that the author had made errata since his first post on the forums. For example, his recommended dosage of fiber gummies was 8 per day. That's 4x the daily dosage listed on the back of the container. I overdosed on fiber because I followed the misinformation of someone on the internet.
To protect me from my own lack of common sense, I'm quitting Soylent until the Kickstarter launches and FDA-acceptable batches are being shipped. I simply don't do the necessary homework to make my own. I will still drink protein shakes from the whey and maltodextrin, because those are of fairly uncontested nutritional value. But I'm done measuring teaspoons of pure calcium and sulfur and hoping I don't screw up.
Guess it's back to cooking swamp stew.
Yesterday I started drinking soylent.
The recipe hasn't been completely aligned with what Rob Rhinehart wrote about. I'm using the crude measurements my younger brother wrote on a sheet of paper inside his box of ingredients. He has been drinking Soylent for several months.
Today's breakfast was a cup of Soylent, some coffee, and a lot of water. Then I went to the gym with a bottle containing some powdered Soylent and consumed it throughout the workout. It was a similar experience to working out with a bottle of just protein powder, but the taste is unique and makes me look forward to taking a swig more than the typical temptation of "Vanilla Ice Cream" flavored whey.
I'm treating Soylent as a supplement to several light meals. I drink the daily dosage at a dilute concentration so I feel full and hydrated throughout the day. I can't eat 21 good meals a week, but I can probably manage 10-15. Eating half of my meals conventionally hedges against making a mistake in the recipe. Accurate preparation takes practice, and if I make and consume a full day's worth of erroneously measured Soylent, I could overdose.
By the time my shipment arrives in the mail, I should be ready to switch to 100% Soylent.


text:
ADMIN: System → Web Services → Roles
Last modified by kara on Mon, July 5, 2010 20:56Source|Old Revisions
Table of Contents
The System → Web Services → Roles option allows you to define permission for users for web services APIs. See the core API document for more information on APIs in Magento. http://www.magentocommerce.com/support/magento_core_api
Admin Panel Fields Reference
Role Info Tab
- Role Name (required field) - Name of the role, e.g., soap.
Role Resources Tab
- Resource Access (required field) – Custom | All. It's often advisable to select "all" while developing and debugging and then narrow the resources allowed once your web service is working.
- Resources - Specific resources and methods this role will have access to.


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What GB rom are you talking about? The Gingerbread rom stated here is the offical or about to become offical gingerbread update for the G2. As for the call drops and battery drain(Rmk said that he had great battery life using the g2 gingerbread update as a base)... I never had call drops. I live in the san diego area where I get almost full bars and 4g so I havnt got a call drop yet.
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A method and apparatus to enable high-quality digital transmissions to a satellite terminal operating in proximity to a radar source combines interleaving a sequence of channel symbols at a land station before transmission of an RF signal to a satellite, increasing the satellite's EIRP to compensate for the effects of the radar's duty factor on received signal power and code distance, detecting the radar pulses at a satellite terminal, blanking the received RF signal to prevent reception of the signal by the modem at the satellite terminal during the radar's ON time, having the modem recognize and eliminate the effect of the gap in the channel signals on its metric calculation, and de-interleaving the sequence of channel symbols. As a result, satellite terminals operating in proximity to radar sources can provide the same quality of service as if there were no radars operating.
1. An apparatus to enable high-quality digital transmissions to a satellite terminal operating in proximity to a radar source, comprising:
interleaving means for interleaving a sequence of channel symbols at a land station before transmission of an encoded signal reflecting said sequence of channel symbols to a satellite;
means for increasing said satellite's effective isotropic radiated power to compensate for the effects of a radar duty factor on received power and code distance;
radar detecting means at said satellite terminal to detect a radar pulse;
blanking means at said satellite terminal to prevent reception of said encoded signal by a modem at said satellite terminal during said radar pulse, thus creating a gap in said sequence of channel symbols, said modem having a forward error correction metric capable of recognizing and eliminating the effect of said gap on its metric calculation; and
de-interleaving means at said satellite terminal for de-interleaving said sequence of channel symbols.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said interleaving means has an interleaving depth approximately equal to a minimum anticipated repetition time of said radar pulse.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said satellite terminal further comprises an antenna for receiving said encoded signal from said satellite and for receiving said radar pulse, and a first filter whose passband includes said encoded signal and said radar pulse.
4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said radar detecting means comprises a level sensor for detecting presence or absence of said radar pulse.
5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said blanking means comprises a switch, and means for opening said switch when said level sensor detects a presence of said radar pulse and closing said switch when said level sensor detects an absence of said radar pulse.
6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said forward error correction metric of said modem has a decoder metric increment, and means for setting said decoder metric increment to zero when said level sensor detects the presence of said radar pulse.
7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said satellite terminal further comprises a second filter whose passband includes only said encoded signal, for allowing reception of said encoded signal at said modem when said switch is closed.
8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said satellite terminal further comprises an antenna for receiving said encoded signal from said satellite, and a filter whose passband includes only said encoded signal.
9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said radar detecting means comprises an auxiliary antenna for receiving said radar pulse and a radar pulse blanking signal from said radar source, and a level sensor for detecting presence or absence of said radar pulse.
10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said blanking means comprises a switch, and switching means for opening said switch when said level sensor detects the presence of said radar pulse and closing said switch when said level sensor detects the absence of said radar pulse, thus allowing reception of said encoded signal at said modem when said switch is closed.
11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said modem forward error correction decoding metric is incremented with the arrival of new signals, and means for setting said decoder metric increment to zero when said level sensor detects the presence of said radar pulse.
12. A method to enable high-quality digital transmissions to a satellite terminal operating in proximity to a radar source, comprising the steps of:
interleaving a sequence of channel symbols at a land station before transmission of an encoded signal reflecting said sequence of channel symbols to a satellite;
increasing said satellite's EIRP to compensate for the effects of a radar duty factor on received power and code distance;
detecting a radar pulse at said satellite terminal;
blanking said encoded signal at said satellite terminal to prevent reception of said encoded signal by a modem at said satellite terminal during said radar pulse, thus creating a gap in said sequence of channel symbols, said modem having a forward error correction metric capable of recognizing and eliminating the effect of said gap on its metric calculation; and
de-interleaving said sequence of channel symbols at said satellite terminal.
The present invention is directed to the field of interference suppression in satellite telecommunications systems. Specifically, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus to permit high quality digital satellite telephone service, business services and direct broadcast digital television to satellite terminals operating in proximity with radars, even when the radars are in operation.
When satellite telecommunications terminals are operated in proximity to radars (for example, shipboard satellite terminals operating in proximity to radars on or nearby the ship), interruptions and outages can occur at the satellite terminal when the radar is in use, even when the radar is not operating at the same frequency as the satellite signal. FIG. 1 depicts a scenario in which a shipboard satellite terminal 1 receives communication signals from a satellite 2, which relays information from a land earth station 3. An onboard navigation radar 4, which is located in proximity to the satellite terminal 1, will disrupt the functioning of the satellite terminal 1 when the navigation radar 4 is in use.
Depending on weather, location and function, radars may be in operation any time of the day or night, so interference could come from various sources: nearby ships, the same ship on which the satellite terminal is located, airport radars, or airborne early warning systems. Interference could occur even if the satellite terminal were separated from the radar source by several miles. The ability to create a telephone service business which is salable to the public and which meets international standards for availability requires that a means be found for maintaining high communications quality while radars are in use.
Current practice is to avoid operational use of the satellite terminal and nearby radar simultaneously, if possible, because there has been no effective way to use both the satellite terminal and radar simultaneously with the assurance that the telephone service will be maintained at a high level of quality. Disruptions are common when radar equipment is turned on.
FIG. 2 depicts the relevant parts of a conventional end-to-end satellite link. A land station 210 interfaces with terrestrial networks, encodes signals and transmits them to a satellite 220, which relays the signals to a mobile satellite terminal 230, which decodes the signals. The land station 210 includes a transmit modem 211 with forward error correction (FEC), an up-converter 212 to convert the modulated signal from the modem baseband to radio frequency (RF), a high power amplifier 213, an antenna 215, and a diplexer 214 with a bandpass filter to allow the antenna 215 to be used for both transmitting and receiving.
The satellite terminal 230 (or "receive terminal") has an antenna 231, a diplexer 232 with a bandpass filter, a low noise amplifier 233, a down-converter 234 to convert the RF signal to modem baseband, and a receive modem 235 with FEC. Components 231-235 make up the "front-end" of the satellite terminal.
In conventional systems where radar equipment and a satellite terminal are mounted in proximity, e.g., both on the same ship, solutions to the interference problem have been attempted but have not been completely successful. One reason for this may be that, to the inventors' knowledge, no one in the field has taken a serious look at the failure mechanism of communication links with nearby radars.
In a study performed for COMSAT Mobile Communications, it was found that, for L-Band satellite communications on U.S. Navy ships with high powered radars, the failure mechanism related to radar spurious signal energy entering the front-end of the satellite terminal. FIG. 3(a) shows a spectrum and waveform of a radar signal, offset from the band of a satellite receive signal. FIG. 3(b) shows a pulsed radar RF signal in the time domain. SO is the peak spectral level of the radar signal, τ is the pulse width of the radar signal, and T is the pulse repetition period. The radar's center frequency 310 is displaced from the satellite front-end frequency band 311 by tens or hundreds of megahertz. Even though spurious emission 312 in the far sideband of the radar may be very low in comparison to the main-band radar signal 313 (typically 50-100 dB down), it is still so strong at small distances that it interferes with the incoming satellite signal.
The data from the COMSAT study can be used to demonstrate, by computation, the various levels of interfering signals that are present in a C-Band terminal on a ship in proximity to a navigation radar. As a baseline, the scenario in Project CHALLENGE ATHENA: A Demonstration of Megabit Data Transmission to U.S. Naval Vessels, Classified Session 23, Paper #2, Milcom '93, Bedford, Mass. (CHALLENGE ATHENA), is used to generate representative numbers. Many variations on this scenario are possible. More powerful satellites will have potentially stronger signal components. Commercial navigation radars may not be as powerful as the Navy's AN/SPS-48, for example. The main conclusions stay the same, however. In order to better understand the power and dynamic range relationship among the various signals, an analysis was conducted to independently estimate the relative levels of wanted and unwanted signals within the configuration of the ship's earth station as described in CHALLENGE ATHENA.
Following the scenario from CHALLENGE ATHENA, it is assumed that a Navy carrier stationed between Norfolk, Va. and the eastern Caribbean is receiving a wideband 1.544 Mbps signal from an INTELSAT V (F6) satellite located over the Atlantic Ocean, at 310� E. The satellite is transmitting the signal via a global antenna. The satellite operating effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) is taken as 23.5 dBW. The elevation angle from the ship terminal to the satellite was calculated to be 45.6�, and the path loss at 4.15 GHz was calculated to be 196.3 dB. Table 1 summarizes the ship's terminal receive characteristics.
Link analysis was conducted to determine the received signal power and noise power (N) at the output of the terminal's antenna flange. Noise power levels were calculated using N=kTB for full terminal bandwidth (500 MHz), transponder bandwidth (40 MHz) and signal bandwidth (1.85 MHz). The results are summarized in Table 2.
TABLE 1______________________________________Terminal Receive CharacteristicsPARAMETER VALUE______________________________________Terminal (INTELSAT Std G) STD GRadome Diameter (m) 2.74Radome Loss (dB) 0.5Radome Noise temperature (K.�) 34Antenna Diameter (m) 2.2Antenna gain (dBi) @ 4.15 GHz 37.5Antenna Sidelobe Gain (dBi) G(φ) = 32 - 25log(φ)Antenna Noise temperature (K.�) 25LNB Noise temperature (K.�) 80System Noise Temperature (K.�) 139Terminal G/T (dB/K) 15.6Terminal Bandwidth (MHz) 500______________________________________
TABLE 2______________________________________Received Signal and Noise AnalysisPARAMETER VALUE______________________________________Satellite Saturated EIRP (dBW) 25.5Output Backoff (dB) 2.0Satellite Operating EIRP (dBW) 23.5Path Loss (dB) @ 4.15 GHZ 196.3Pointing Error (dB) 1.0Terminal Antenna Gain (dBi) 37.5Terminal Radome Loss (dB) 0.5Received Signal Strength (dBm) -106.8System Noise Temperature (dBK.�) 21.4Boltzmann's Constant -228.6Noise Power Density (dBm/Hz) -177.2Signal Bandwidth, 1.85 MHz (dBHz) 62.7Noise Power in Signal Bandwidth (dBm) -114.5Transponder Bandwidth, 40 MHz (dBHz) 76.0Noise Power in Transponder Bandwidth -101.2(dBm)Terminal Bandwidth, 500 MHz (dBHz) 87.0Noise Power in Terminal Bandwidth -90.2(dBm)______________________________________
The RF interference source to the STD G terminal, located on a sponson (a small flat structure that projects over the side of a ship) about 100 meters away from the Carrier's mast, was the AN/SPS-48C surveillance radar. The AN/SPS-48 is a three dimensional, long range air surveillance radar. It uses a combination of mechanical scanning in azimuth and electronic beam steering in elevation to provide position and altitude information. Table 3 summarizes the AN/SPS-48 performance characteristics.
TABLE 3______________________________________AN/SPS-48 Performance CharacteristicsITEM PARAMETER VALUE______________________________________Antenna Size 17 � 18 Beamwidth (deg) 1.6� � 1.6� Gain (dBi) 39Transmit Power Peak (MW) 2.2 Average (kW) 35Signal Frequency (GHz) 2.9-3.1 Pulse Width (μsec) 9 and 27 PRF (Hz) 342-2778______________________________________
The methodology employed here is to use the AN/SPS-48 radar published characteristics along with a free space loss analysis to determine typical interference levels. Consider the case where an INTELSAT Std-G terminal is receiving an unwanted signal from a AN/SPS-48 radar located 100 m away. The assumption is that the interference signal is received from the radar's antenna sidelobe (assumed to be -40 dB) and enters the INTELSAT terminal via its own antenna sidelobe. The elevation angle from the terminal to the radar was calculated to be 11 degrees. For a worst case analysis, it is assumed that the radar and the satellite are at the same azimuth angle relative to the terminal.
The radar signal presents two interference components to the terminal. One such component results from spectral energy in the out-of-band emission region of the AN/SPS-48. More precisely, low levels of energy emitted by the AN/SPS-48 radar in its out-of-band region enter the INTELSAT terminal in its own receive band. Discussions with the manufacturer of the radar, and measured spectral data under laboratory conditions, suggest emission levels of 90 dB below peak. However, under operational conditions, in the field and in particular with older equipment, these levels could be 10 or 20 dB higher and still meet MIL-STD-469A requirements for electromagnetic compatibility. Gawthrop, P. E., and Patrick, G. M., Ground-Based Weather Radar Compatibility with Digital Radio-Relay Microwave Systems, U.S. Department of Commerce NTIA Report 90-260, March 1990, section 5 ("Gawthrop"), reports on spurious levels for commercial navigation radars in the 50 dB to 60 dB down range, at several hundred MHz separation.
The other interference component results from the AN/SPS-48 inband emission which enters the INTELSAT terminal outside the diplexer pass band. FIG. 3(a) illustrates the power spectrum of a pulsed radar. The center frequency for the AN/SPS-48 is 2.96 GHz and its signal bandwidth is on the order of 37 kHz. The center frequency of the INTELSAT G terminal is at 3.95 GHz. Given that the INTELSAT G terminal employs a diplexer whose out-of-band rejection is 70 dB, any signal emitted by the radar in its own central band will be received by the satellite terminal 70 dB down.
Referring to FIG. 3(a), the peak spectral level (So) is the product of the average transmit power (Pav) and the pulse width (τ). If the desired peak spectral level is in dB, then the corresponding product is achieved by assigning a dB value to the average transmit power and pulse width as seen in the following equation.
SO =Pav +τ,
At the input to the LNA 233 (FIG. 2), the interfering signal consists of two major components. One component, Pint, is due to the radar's out-of-band emission in the terminal's diplexer 500 MHz pass-band (also in dB):
Pint =So -90+87
The other component, Pradar, is due to the radar's in-band emission in the satellite terminal's stop-band region (-70 dB):
Pradar =Pav -70
The relative power level between the interference caused by the radar's out-of-band and its in-band signals is, ##EQU1##
This result shows that improvements to the diplexer will not help, since the noise entering the INTELSAT G terminal front end from the radar's out-of-band emission is about 21 dB larger than the pulses that pass through the diplexer stop band. As a consequence, it should be noted that, when RFI hits the terminal, the predominant effect at the LNA 233 is due to the radar's out-of-band emission and not the main pulses.
Thus, for the close-in distances between a ship's radar and its satellite terminal, the spurious emission entering the front-end is more powerful than the (diplexer-filtered) main band energy of the radar. The spurious emission is sufficiently strong, and the pulse duration is sufficiently long, that when a pulse is "ON" it will disrupt the convolutional decoder normally used with modems on satellite terminals. Once errors occur, the decoder may or may not be able to recover during the noise-free "OFF" period of the radar because error events and noise have been added to the digital bit stream during the ON condition.
This failure mechanism is illustrated in FIG. 4, which treats the radar ON and OFF periods as changes in the instantaneous carrier-to-noise ratio (C/No) that are seen by the convolutional decoder. This analogy is valid because it is well known in the art that the time waveform response of the satellite terminal to the radar pulse is a noise-like signal (incoherent) whose duration is the same as the radar pulse, as shown in FIG. 5. Note also that the satellite terminal's response sometimes includes an impulsive "click" at the start and stop of the radar pulse. See Gawthrop, supra.
FIG. 4 depicts the relative time periods of radar pulses τ, pulse repetition period T, channel symbols S (encoded information bits), convolutional constraint lengths L and path metric memory M. FIG. 4 shows that, based on a typical satellite terminal bit rate of 1.544 Mbps, and a typical radar pulse duration τ, ordinary Viterbi algorithm or sequential decoding algorithm convolutional decoders get "swamped" (overwhelmed) by the elevated noise level caused by the radar pulse. This occurs because τ lasts for several constraint lengths of the convolutional code in the case of the Viterbi algorithm, and a large fraction of a constraint length in the case of the sequential algorithm. τ may also exceed the path metric memory size M, which typically extends back about three constraint lengths.
Conventional solutions to this problem partially or inadequately address getting end-to-end performance to be consistently and reliably within stringent bit error rate (BER) conditions, regardless of the presence or absence of the radar signal.
One approach adds a diplexing filter with better cutoff characteristics to the diplexer 232 of the conventional satellite terminal 230 depicted in FIG. 2. However, this does not eliminate the in-band energy which is causing failure of the decoder, as discussed supra.
A second approach adds a pulse blanking circuit to the satellite terminal 230 that opens when the radar pulse is ON. However, if the blanker is on the antenna side of the diplexer 232, it would disrupt signals transmitted by the terminal (i.e., the return link to land). If the blanker is on the LNA side of the diplexer 232, it does not respond adequately to the radar spurious noise in the satellite band, because this noise has characteristics very different from the radar pulse shape it is trying to detect. FIG. 5 shows the shape of the radar spurious noise which comes through the satellite terminal's front end vs. the shape of the radar pulse. Furthermore, attempting to "sense" the radar pulse on the antenna side of the diplexer 232 and then controlling the blanker on the LNA side does not work because the received radar pulse is very weak compared to the signals transmitted by the terminal. Regardless of where the blanking circuit is placed, and even if it operates correctly to eliminate only the affected channel symbols, the duration of the ON pulse is still too long compared to the convolutional code's constraint length as shown in FIG. 4. Thus, a blanking operation, applied without any further modification of the system, produces periodic outages and a loss of information.
A third technique is to add interleaving and de-interleaving to the conventional satellite system. Interleaving the channel symbols at the transmit modem 211 at the land station 210 and de-interleaving them at the receive modem 235 disperses the channel symbols that are hit by the ON radar pulse, but still leaves elevated levels of effective noise power spectral density on the affected channel symbols. This is a problem because the soft-decision decoder in the receive modem 235 will then propagate the elevated noise within its metric calculations. Satellite digital carriers are normally operated close to threshold. Since the elevated noise from the spurious radar emission can be tens of dB higher than background thermal noise, the radar's duty factor, which may be only a few percent, is effectively multiplied by the difference in noise levels.
A fourth approach is to simply boost the satellite power per carrier as used on a current state of the art terminal. However, increasing the EIRP of the signal from the satellite to the satellite terminal may not be sufficient to overcome the elevated levels of noise during the ON state of the radar. Inordinate increases in EIRP, combined with decreases in the digital data rate, may provide a short-term "fix", in the sense that it is getting some information through, even if not at data rates that were originally intended, but this approach is very wasteful of the satellite resource. Additionally, it requires unusual operational changes like ad-hoc requests for more power, data rate changes, and traffic dumping.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to enable high-quality digital transmissions to satellite terminals operating in proximity to radars.
It is a further object of the present invention to enable satellite terminals operating in proximity to radars to provide the same quality of service as if there were no radars operating.
These and other objects of the present invention can be realized by providing a method and corresponding apparatus which combines all four of the above-mentioned techniques (filtering, radar pulse blanking, interleaving and increasing satellite EIRP) in a unique and efficient configuration. First, the transmit modem at the land station uses interleaving to disperse the effect of the radar pulse at the mobile satellite terminal.
The satellite also increases its EIRP to compensate for the lost transmission based on the highest duty factor radar anticipated.
The mobile satellite terminal, or "receive terminal", near the radar employs a means to detect the rise and fall of the radar pulse during its ON time. The ON time is coincident with the increase in spurious emission entering the front end of the receive terminal. During the radar's ON time, the received RF signal is blanked out. Pulse blanking is performed such that the G/T (the ratio of gain to noise) of the satellite terminal remains unchanged.
The receive modem de-interleaves the received channel symbols, and the carrier and bit timing recovery in the receive modem are readjusted to handle the blanked out intervals.
The convolutional decoder adjusts the convolutional decoding metric to account for the blanked out intervals.
When the above method of the invention is carried out, service is restored to the level of quality provided by conventional systems as if there were no radar present.
The present invention will be more clearly understood from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 shows a typical satellite system with a nearby radar source.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the relevant parts of a conventional end-to-end satellite link.
FIG. 3 illustrates the spectrum and waveform of a radar signal, offset from the band of a satellite receive signal.
FIG. 4 illustrates the relative time periods of radar pulses, information bits, and convolutional constraint lengths.
FIG. 5 illustrates radar spurious noise which comes through a satellite receiver front end.
FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b) are block diagrams depicting a first embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a second embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a third embodiment of the invention.
The basic concept of the present invention is to employ a pulse blanker to entirely eliminate the affected channel symbols when the receive terminal senses the presence of a strong radar (ON) pulse. Since the duty factor of the radar is on the order of a few percent, no attempt is made to keep or use the channel symbols received during the ON pulse. Rather, the invention reduces the effects of the blanked-out channel symbols on the bit error rate (BER) via a modified modem design which incorporates an FEC metric that recognizes and eliminates the effect of blanked-out channel symbols on the metric calculation.
Referring to FIG. 6(a), a land station 610 comprises a convolutional encoder 611, a transmit modem 612 which includes interleaving means 613 and modulator 614, an up converter 615, a high power amplifier (HPA) 616, a diplexer 617 and an antenna 618.
Information bits from a terrestrial network are encoded by the convolutional encoder 611 and the resulting channel symbols are sent to the interleaving means 613. The interleaving depth is approximately equal to the shortest radar pulse repetition time, but selection of the interleaving span is not critical and does not have to exactly match the pulse repetition period. Radar operators can change the pulse repetition frequency and the center frequency of the radar signal, but selecting a single interleaving frame size and keeping it constant regardless of the radar pulse repetition rate will be sufficient to get adequate randomization of the gap in the channel symbols due to the radar pulse.
After interleaving, the signal is modulated at the modulator 614, converted to RF by the up converter 615, amplified by the HPA 616, and sent through the diplexer 617 to the antenna 618, which transmits it to a satellite (not shown).
The signal sent to the satellite is slightly increased over the level that is adequate with no radar present. This increase constitutes a modified transmission plan which compensates for the energy removed at radar duty factor rate along with an increase needed to compensate for reduced effectiveness of coding when channel symbols get removed by the blanker. Removal of some received channel symbols by the blanking circuit affects the performance by reducing the minimum distance of the code as well as reducing the energy-to-noise ratio per bit available to the decoder. These two effects are described next.
(a) Distance reduction
Convolutional codes are chosen to have good distance properties, which implies that when a particular code word is transmitted, any of the hundreds (or possibly thousands) of incorrect code words are guaranteed to lie no less than some minimum distance from that word. It should be clear that by eliminating code letters in the blanking operation, the minimum distance is reduced, thereby reducing the performance of the code, measured as bit error rate vs. signal to noise ratio.
(b) Energy-to-noise per bit
By taking the ratio of the signal energy which is available at the receiver per bit to the noise power density, one gets a measure of the adequacy of the signal strength. This ratio is given by the relationship ##EQU2## where C/No is the carrier-to-noise density on the link, and R is the data rate in bits per second. Removal of some percentage of code letters by the blanker will cause a corresponding reduction in C/No and therefore in Eb /NO.
The primary consequence of the above two effects on performance is to increase the bit error probability. To counter these effects, one can reduce the data rate or increase the available EIRP. The invention takes as a premise that the desired end result is to achieve transmission at a particular rate which should not be compromised by the presence of radar. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the EIRP (which leads to an increase in C/No. It can be demonstrated through simulation or through analysis that the amount of additional EIRP needed to compensate for a radar duty factor of X% is exactly 2X %. Thus, a 5% duty factor radar would require removal of 5% of the received signal through blanking, and would then require a 10% increase in EIRP, half needed to compensate for the actual loss in Eb /No, and half needed to compensate for the reduced distance properties of the code. This type of adjustment is well within the capability of most satellite systems.
Referring now to FIG. 6(b), which depicts the receive terminal 620, the signal from the satellite and the radar signal both enter the terminal 620 through an antenna 621 and a diplexer 622, which has a first filter whose passband includes the radar. Both signals then go to a level sensor 623, which determines the presence or absence of a radar signal, and to a first stage low noise amplifier (LNA) 624. A level sensor 623 needs to detect the radar's in-band signal, which is a square pulse, not the radar out-of-band noise. As shown in FIG. 5, the radar out-of-band noise is typically many tens of dB below the radar's in band signal. Therefore, the out of band noise does not represent a reliable estimate of the total ON time of the radar.
If the level sensor 623 detects the presence of a radar signal, it activates a switch control 625 to open a switch 626, which remains open for the duration of the radar pulse, thus blanking the radar-affected channel symbols. The level sensor 623 also sends a signal to a modem 630, which incorporates an FEC metric that recognizes and eliminates the effect of blanked-out channel symbols on the metric calculation. Specifically, the decoder metric increment is zero during the radar ON pulse, unlike a conventional modem, in which soft decisions would be made of the noise, which then gets added to the metric. The bandwidth of the carrier recovery and bit timing loops are also adjusted to handle the periodic gaps caused by the blanking operation.
When the level sensor 623 does not detect a radar pulse, the switch 626 is closed and the signal (the satellite signal) goes to a second filter 627, which sends the satellite signal to a second stage LNA 628, a down converter 629 which converts the signal from RF to modem baseband, and finally to a receive modem 630, which de-interleaves and demodulates the signal.
All the components involved in the blanking operation; that is, all the components of the satellite receiver 620 discussed above (except the antenna 621 and the down converter 629), need to be isolated to avoid lowering the G/T of the terminal.
In a second embodiment of the invention, a separate antenna is used to measure radar pulse ON time, allowing the use of an off-the-shelf diplexer and LNA. This may be desirable because building a broadband diplexer such as diplexer 622 may require using inefficient elements such as ridge waveguides which will reduce the G/T of the terminal, require higher prime power and require larger HPAs. Also, the need to maintain sensitivity for the wanted signal may cause serious overloading of the first stage LNA 624 when the radar pulse is present, necessitating the use of a special robust LNA design.
FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment of the invention, in which a receive terminal 700 utilizes an auxiliary antenna 720, which is an omni or broadbeam antenna whose passband characteristic is chosen to match the radar tuning range. The radar signal enters through the auxiliary antenna 720, is amplified by an auxiliary LNA 721, and goes to a level sensor 722, which activates switch control 723 to open switch 713, and signals receive modem 724 which recognizes and eliminates the effect of blanked-out channel symbols on the metric calculation, as explained in the description of the first embodiment of the invention.
The satellite signal and the radar signal both enter through main antenna 710, but unlike the first embodiment of the invention, the conventional diplexer 711 filters out the radar signal and allows only the satellite signal to pass to a conventional LNA 712. If the level sensor 722 does not detect a radar pulse, then it does not open switch 713, and the satellite signal passes to down converter 714 and receive modem 724, where it is de-interleaved and demodulated.
The auxiliary antenna 720 can be an omnidirectional antenna, which is much smaller than the main antenna 710, and thus can be placed near the main antenna 710 without increasing the "real estate" requirements of the satellite terminal. The sensitivity requirements for reliable radar pulse edge detection are easy to achieve with a small omnidirectional antenna.
In a variation of this embodiment of the invention, a radar pulse blanking signal 725 distributed by the radar system itself can be used to activate the level sensor 722. Some radar manufacturers provide a blanking signal directly at the radar transmitter that can be distributed to the other electronic devices operated near the radar (e.g., on the same ship). Since blanking also needs to be performed for radars which are not necessarily on the same ship as the satellite terminal, this distributed signal will not protect against radars external to the ship, so the auxiliary antenna 720 is still necessary.
In a third embodiment of the invention, blanking of the radar signal is done at intermediate frequency (IF) or at baseband frequency internal to the modem. Although RF blanking as described in the first two embodiments of the invention has the advantage of removing all signals with elevated noise levels from the receive chain (mixers, down converters, phase lock loops, bit synchronizers, frame synchronizers, etc.), if it is desired to simply accomplish the objective of "zeroing out" the decoder metric increment during the radar ON pulses, this can be achieved in the modem without RF blanking by numerically setting the metric increments to zero during the ON interval. Without RF blanking, the receive terminal front-end does not need to be distributed in two sections (with the components in the blanking operation isolated). However, a trade-off exists between the modem's complexity and the RF front-end's complexity. This embodiment's simpler RF front-end requires a more complex modem design that can withstand bursts of noise, because the radar spurious emissions (in the receive terminal band) are passed through to the modem.
FIG. 8 illustrates this embodiment of the invention, where the blanking of the radar signal is done entirely at baseband at the modem. The receive terminal 800 utilizes an auxiliary antenna 820, as in the second embodiment of the invention. The radar signal enters through the auxiliary antenna 820, is amplified by an auxiliary LNA 821, and goes to a level sensor 822, which signals a receive modem 824 which numerically sets its metric increments to zero.
The satellite signal and the radar signal both enter through main antenna 810, and like the second embodiment of the invention, the conventional diplexer 811 filters out the radar signal and allows only the satellite signal to pass to a conventional LNA 812. The satellite signal passes to down converter 813 and receive modem 824, where the signal is de-interleaved and demodulated.
The present invention can be used in the 1.544 Mbps full duplex systems in commercial demand today, as well as in higher data rate systems such as INTELSAT IDR and IBS, and to direct broadcast digital video. The link itself does not need to be full duplex.
While specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein, it will be apparent to those of skill in the art that other modifications may be made within the scope of the invention, and it is intended that the full measure of the invention be determined with reference to the following claims:
Patent Citations
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text:
"Welcome to London Luton Airport and on behalf of easyJet I wish you a pleasant journey through our corner of the network. I have a great team here in Luton who are all looking forward to being of service to you, making it easy, at every step. We have put this guide together to try and make your journey that little bit easier! Have a great journey." (Denise, Airport Manager)
- All easyJet international arrivals are required to proceed through passport control before going to baggage collection and arrivals hall.
- Should you have any questions surrounding lost or damaged baggage our baggage team have a desk located immediately after passport control in the baggage hall.
- London Luton operates an automated boarding announcement system in the departure lounge for boarding and final call for each flight. Individual named announcements are not made.
- Individual passenger calls for flights are only made within the gate area and not in the main departure lounge.
- You can expect to be boarded into a pre-boarding room at certain departure gates, other gates have open lounges.
- Please ensure you allow plenty of time to get to your gate as the journey times from the departure lounge vary from 15 minutes to 5 minutes.
- If you are a passenger with reduced mobility you must make yourself known to the service provider who has a special assistance desk near the easyJet bag drop area, as well as in the departure lounge.
For more detailed information on on the airport view terminal map.
The main access road into the airport can at busy times of the year become congested, please ensure that if travelling to the airport by car you allow plenty of time.
By Car
Find a great deal on car rental from the airport with our car rental partner Europcar.
With Europcar's Airport Connect service you can even collect, or return a rental car near your home.
Find a great deal on parking at the airport.
By taxi
Pre book your door-to-door airport transfers with our transfer partner Holiday Taxis.
Airport hotels
Take a look at our selection of comfortable and convenient airport hotels.
More Information
Find out more information on travelling to and from the airport including details on local bus and train services.
Check-in online
Remember to check in online and print your boarding pass for your flight. The service is free and is available from 30 days and up to 2 hours before the scheduled departure of your flight.
Cabin bags only?
If you only have cabin bags you can head straight to the departure gate. Remember to check in online 30 days and up to 2 hours before the scheduled departure and to print your boarding pass ready for your flight.
Hold luggage
If you have hold luggage, check in online and print your boarding pass, then once at the airport, take your bags to one of the easyJet 'Bag drop' desks located in the departure hall.
Need a hand?
If you have any specific needs or access requirements during your trip, please let us know online or by calling 0843 224 4165, no later than 48 hours before your scheduled departure time.
On time
We recommend arriving at the airport with plenty of time before you depart so you can get through security and find your boarding gate.


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Diarra commits to UConn
UConn secured a verbal commitment from Mamadou Diarra, a 6-foot-8 forward, on Friday morning.
UConn played two different brands of basketball from the first half to the second half on Friday.
Good thing the Huskies roared to a 32-point first half lead.
They needed the cushion, as they went flat and Fordham climbed to within to 13 (63-50) with just over 13 minutes left.
UConn pulled away again for an 88-73 victory.
"Fortunately, we came out with the win," coach Kevin Ollie said.
Sophomore Ryan Boatright had a career high 26 points. The Huskies are 9-2 heading into the holiday break.
Some post-game news, notes and quotes from the non-conference game at the XL Center inHartford:
-- Nice to see reserve Tyler Olander make a contribution. He came off the bench to chip in five points and six rebounds in 17 minutes. He had only four points and five rebounds in the previous three games.
Starting center Enosch Wolf struggled again, finishing with more fouls (3) than points and rebounds combined (1) in just eight minutes.
Overall, the frontcourt continues to have issues. Backcourt players, including reserve R.J. Evans (nine points), combined for 71 of UConn's 88 points.
"It's still a work in progress," Ollie said of the frontcourt. "We're going to keep trying to find somebody. They're going to keep playing. We can't go out and get Patrick Ewing. … Nobody is transferring here the second half of the season."
-- UConn lost the rebounding battle for the 10th time in 11 games. Fordham held a 40-28 edge, including 25-13 in the second half.
Fordham's dominance under the basket propelled a 19-0 run in the second half that helped cut the deficit to 13.
"It was a problem again," Ollie said.
-- The Huskies continue to share the basketball. For the second straight game, they had 21 assists. Boatright had a career-high nine assists but also six turnovers.
In the first half, the Huskies had 16 assists on 21 baskets and just two turnovers. They had 11 turnovers overall.
"I was really impressed with the way we moved the ball in the first half," Ollie said.
The Huskies have an impressive 42 assists and 20 turnovers in the last two games.
-- No Husky is hotter than Boatright who is averaging 21 points in the last three games. He's converted 24-of-35 from field goal attempts.
"I've been in the gym really focusing on my jump shot," Boatright said. "It's really paying off."
Ollie said: "He's playing good basketball. He's getting the ball in his spots. He's shooting the ball particularly well. … We want him to catch the ball and not hold it too much, and dribble, dribble, dribble."
-- A good sign: For the second straight game, four Huskies scored in double figures. Boatright had 26 and freshman Omar Calhoun scored 17 points while junior Shabazz Napier had 19 points and sophomore DeAndre Daniels added 10.
-- UConn had a season high 57 points in the first half.
-- Ollie, who's operating with a seven-month contract, had his share of supporters in the crowd on Friday. Several fans shouted: "Give Kevin a contract!"
-- The Huskies shot the ball well all over the court -- 50.8 percent from the field, 38.1 percent from 3-point range and 81.8 percent from the line.
-- UConn is off until Dec. 29 when it hosts Washington in Hartford. The Huskies are heading home for Christmas.
UConn secured a verbal commitment from Mamadou Diarra, a 6-foot-8 forward, on Friday morning.
For the second straight spring, UConn coach Kevin Ollie is the subject of NBA coaching rumors.
30-year-old Mack truck subject of debate in North Stonington
Fire official: Lightning strike likely cause of fire that destroyed home in East Lyme
Senators raise concerns about Yale-New Haven clinic closure plan, citing L+M talks
New London man arrested for failing to safeguard gun discharged at Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School
Community members celebrate SCOTUS decision of same-sex marriage
Newly signed state budget changes funding for cities and towns


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Sennheiser IE 8 In-Ear Headphones
" This is my first top tier IEM. I own it quite a long period of time. I am very happy with the SQ.... Anyway here is my review after 5 days of usage =) ( i left it in seller website) Честно говоря звук сразу после распаковки был ужасен :) Но я знал что динамическим затычкам надо время что бы 'раскрытся'. Так и произошло. Буквально через 5 часов они зазвучали значительно лучше...." --Vladimir_F1
Unique Melody Miracle
" http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/524282/review-unique-melody-miracle-6-driver-custom-iem That's my full review. In summary: These are simply the best customs, and possibly the best headphones of any type, that I have ever heard. I prefer it to my JH13pro due to it's better deep bass response and more natural tone. These sound great paired with a simple portable..." --project86
Sennheiser IE80
"Anyone aspiring to be an audiophile would have heard the name of these IEMs, they are one of the very best around and only a few are in the same league as this one. The IE80 was released a few years ago, following the IE8 which was for a long time, the best that Sennheiser had to offer in this regard. Lets cut the introduction short. This review is not an Audiophile perspective. Its just my..." --jnxr
Sennheiser IE800
"After reading glowing reviews of both of these in ear monitors I was still unable to decide which one would be right for me so I bought both, first the Shure and a few weeks later the Sennheiser. I already own the JH Audio 16 Pro, Ultimate Ears Triple.fi 10 Pro, HiFi Man HE-500, Sennheiser HD 650, Shure SRH940 among others. My music files are all in FLAC format and I play them through an..." --Art inTampa
Unique Melody Merlin
" I've taken down my review of the Merlins and will repost it once I get them back. By now it's been 4 months and I've had them in my posession for no more than two weeks out of those 4 months. Two weeks into the 3-5 week estimated turnaround time for my remolds/fixing and UM have gone back to maintaining radio silence. Not a word, not a single peep, no replies to emails...." --Sorensiim
Sennheiser MOMENTUM In-Ear
" This is a review of Sennheiser Momentum in-ear headphones with Android controls. http://en-us.sennheiser.com/momentum-headphones-in-ear I knew Senns was cooking something new to announce during or after IFA 2014, but I had no idea what to expect. The moment I read about Momentum In-Ear announcement and saw a promo video - I already started speculating in my mind how..." --twister6
Unique Melody Mentor acrylic universal/custom
"I purchased my Mentors in the first half of September 2014, and actually received them by the end of the same month. In all, it took only 2 weeks from the day my impressions were shipped to the day they arrived in my hands. I didn't pay for a rush order, so someone at UM must like me a lot. Thanks, anyway! BUILD The general build quality of the Mentor is decent. These are my..." --Malevolent
Sennheiser CX 870 ear canal phones
" Upgraded from my CX-215's WHICH ARE ALSO AMAZING! But these kill it in audio replication. I use these at work with my Sanza Fuze (Rockboxed and playing flac's) and it makes the day's fly by, My only complaint was at first finding the proper seal took a little work, also seemed to have a slight burn in period (which wasnt to bad) but when i first purchased the headphones I was..." --darkshyed
Sennheiser IE 7 Earphones
"These are normally over $400 on Amazon, where I got them for $100 "opened, but unused" with high expectations corresponding to the $400 price. They had all the tips, but with two mounted on the 'phones and four in the case; no grill cleaner. The problem I found, but which bothers me a lot, is that the highest notes on one of my favorite recordings, Philip Glass's Mishima soundtrack (which is..." --akgK340owner
Sennheiser CX300-B Earbuds (Black)
" Like many other people, I got my cx300's as they were widely available on the high street with not much competition at the time. They are mostly known for their bass which is very abundant. The problem with that much emphasis on bass is the rest of the range suffers. Treble, in particular, suffers quite badly and is drowned out. Add to this very little clarity in the bass which doesn't have..." --Marcus_C


text:
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Utah Laws & Regulations Governing Auto DealersUtah auto dealership license requirements - Utah License Application Information, Utah Car Sales Regulations, Utah Car Sales Fees, Utah Car Sales Forms, Utah Car Sales Bonds.
Utah Auto Dealer Licensing RequirementsUtah auto dealership license requirements - License Application Information, UT Car Sales Regulations, UT Car Sales Fees, UT Car Sales Forms, UT Car Sales Bonds.
Utah DMV Regulations for Buying & Selling VehiclesFind Utah DMV Regulations for Buying & Selling Vehicles.
Utah Automobile Dealer Licensing Forms & PaperworkForms required for opening a car dealership in Utah - Applications, Licenses, Bonds.
Guide for car buyers looking used cars & certified pre owned cars | DMV.orgOur used car buying guide covers everything from buying online to going through a dealer or private party. Get info on test drives, lemon laws, and more.
Guide for buying a new car, leasing and buying, & more | DMV.orgBefore inking a deal on a new car, learn about leasing, buying a car online or at a dealership, new car incentives, taxes, researching the market, and more.
Guide to Selling a Used Car Online, Locally and the Paperwork Involved | DMV.orgGet the basics of car donation and selling a car online or locally. Find out more on required paperwork such as the bill of sale and release of liability.
Order a VIN Check Before You Buy or Sell a Used CarOrder a VIN check to learn the history of your next used car purchase. Vehicle history reports reveal info such as previous accidents, flood damage, registration records.
Pros and Cons of Buying a Car Online or at a DealershipReview the advantages and disadvantages of buying a car online or going in person to buy a car at an auto dealership.
Auto Loans & Financing GuideFind info on auto loans and refinancing before buying your next new or used vehicle. Simply estimate your monthly payment with our auto loan calculator.


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Rachel Lil Mila Girls Toddler Boot
Sorry, this item is sold out!
Looks like you've got more shoe shopping to do - have fun!
Looks like you've got more shoe shopping to do - have fun!
Item # 284648
The Rachel Lil Mila is a fun and fashionable way to keep her feet warm and her style cool all season long!
- Synthetic upper
- Faux fur collar and trim
- Inside zipper closure
- Textile lining with cushioned insole
- Thick rubber traction sole
- Imported
- View more Girls Rachel Kids Shoes
- Online Exclusive!
By: CKCJ
Location: montreal, Qc.
December 07, 2013
"This cute boot fit the foot but we couldn't pull up the zipper...way too small in the leg, for a normal sized 18 mos. old"
Click anywhere to close this.


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Join the Adventurers for a weekend of challenges, adventures and fun. Girls will participate in three activities of their choice, such as archery, horseback riding, caving, high ropes, and crafts. The Adventurers — we challenge you to challenge yourself.
Find out more about the Adventurers group:
GSVSC Adventurers page
Facebook: Adventurers — Virginia Skyline
Join the Adventurers!
Participants may attend as individuals or troops. Registered Girl Scout adults may sign up as adult staff members with completed paperwork and paid adult fee for lodging and meals. Adults serve only as chaperones; they do not participate in activities.
Saturday & Sunday Challenges
All activities are 2 1/2 hours in length. Each girl will participate in three activities.
Archery: Learn the basics of how to shoot a bow and arrow. Limit of 10 girls/session.
Canoeing: Practice your paddling skills on the camp lake. Play some games, but be careful not to capsize! Must be able to swim. Limit of 12 girls/session.
Caving: Visit the underground world of a nearby cave. (Additional $15 fee payable after confirmation.) Limit of 10 girls/session.
Climbing Wall: Learn the basics of climbing on a man-made wall at the camp. Limit of 20 girls/session.
Digital Photography: Bring your digital camera and learn some new ways to use it to create better images of the events in your life. Limit of 12 girls/session.
Duct Tape Accessories: Add some fun accessories to your life: a flower pen, a wallet, hair clips …let your imagination go wild! Limit of 16 girls/session.
Geocaching: Learn the basics of this high-tech treasure hunting using a portable GPS unit. Limit of 15 girls/session.
Hemp Jewelry: Create your own hemp jewelry; choose from several different bracelet designs. Limit of 20 girls/session.
High Ropes: Challenge yourself on the high ropes course at the camp. Limit of 30 girls/session.
Horseback Riding: Learn the basics of horse care, and experience a beginner's riding lesson. (Additional $15 fee payable after confirmation.) Limit of 10 girls/session.
Mountain Biking: Challenge yourself on the hilly biking trails at the camp. Limit of 10 girls/session.
Outdoor Cooking: Try your hand at preparing some culinary delicacies over a campfire. Limit of 12 girls/session.
Rock Climbing: Travel to a nearby rock formation and try some natural climbing. (Additional $15 fee payable after confirmation.) Limit of 12 girls/session.
Tie-Dye Fun: Use different techniques to create some original fabric art: a t-shirt, a bandana, or maybe a pillowcase. Limit of 16 girls/session.
Lodging & Meals
Lodging will be in heated cabins with bunk beds. Participants may choose one roommate. Both girls must list each other on their registration forms or submit the information by mail or email. All meals are provided from Saturday breakfast through Sunday lunch. Fee includes all meals, lodging, patch and basic programming. Some high-adventure activities will have an additional fee (see above for specific fees).
Registration Forms
Individual Registration Form: Word Doc-Eform or PDF
Outdoor Learning Center at Horizons Participant Agreement: PDF
Event Details
Who: J, C, S, A (girls 11 & up by April 25) and Adults
Date: Friday, April 25 – Sunday, April 27, 2014
Time: Check-in: 7 PM on Friday; Check-out: 2 PM on Sunday
Place: Camp Horizons, Harrisonburg, VA
Fee: $135/girl (fee includes all meals from Saturday breakfast to Sunday lunch, lodging, patch, and basic programming; some high-adventure activities may have additional fees);
$85/adult (fee includes meals and lodging; adults serve as chaperones only and do not participate in activities)
Min./Max.: 50 girls & adults/150 girls & adults
Patch Included: yes
Registration Opens: November 1
Registration Closes: April 7, 2014
Scholarship Deadline: April 1, 2014. Scholarship forms are available online. Scholarship forms must be sent with registration forms.
To register: Send Challenge Weekend registration form, Outdoor Learning Center participant agreement and fee (checks payable to Adventurers) to:
Cyndi Tower
400 Bunker Hill Mill Rd.
Lexington, VA 24450
Questions: Cyndi Tower, 540-461-0058 or email@example.com


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These animal legs are made of light weight material for all night comfort wear. Foam haunches and brown frost hair trim complement to provide an animal leg appearance. Excellent for Minotaur, Satyr, Wolf and Goat costumes. Purchase the brown hoofs to complete the look (sold separately).
Split toe hooves are excellent for Minotaur, Satyr and Goat costumes. Looks great with the Brown Beast Legs (sold separately)


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Narrow your search
The streaming-music wars are on, with Apple Music and Spotify now locked in a battle on price, features and artist selection. But how do they compare on sound quality? We put them head-to-head to find out.
Which has the most apps? Which has the coolest features? Which one is the best? The most popular streamers all have their merits, so we'll help you decide which box is right for you.
"Solid frame rate is the most important thing." says Kurt Margenau, lead designer for the game.
Patrick Bach discusses the studio's history with single-player modes.
Fans take their smartphone out to the ballgame to watch instant replays and share photos. AT&T Park in San Francisco has rolled out EchoBOT technology alongside the existing Wi-Fi to ensure the cellular network is performing at its peak.
Minecraft: Windows 10 Beta Edition adds more controls and GameDVR support, and won't cost a dime for existing Minecraft PC owners.
Have video files you want to watch? The PS4 now gives you a tool do that.
The PonoPlayer is an inherently likeable portable music player that delivers excellent high-end sound, but its quirky design and lackluster battery life leave us waiting for the second generation -- or a price cut.
Available from the manufacturer.
Schiit's cheap 'n' cheerful headphone amp and digital converter wow the Audiophiliac!
When all hell breaks loose at Jurassic World, NFL star cornerback Richard Sherman must run for his life or face a certain death by dinosaur.


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Aging Gracefully
Older LGBTs get their own center in New York.
Older LGBTs get their own center in New York.
A story made famous by Barbra Streisand gets a queer 21st-century retelling.
Advocates for sexually abused men are trying to bring gay and bisexual survivors out of the closet.
For the price of a few good meals in another metropolis, diners in Philly can eat well and still have the dough for cocktails and culture.
Transgender actress Laverne Cox pushes boundaries in Musical Chairs, a new film about wheelchair ballroom dancing.
Jane Lynch hit on her, Bette Midler yelled at her, and she's followed in Madonna's footsteps.
Going to Dinah? Where You Should Stay
After a year of revealing tweets and racy blog posts, firebrand Sinéad O'Connor is holding nothing back on her new record, her ninth studio album in an unconventional 25-year career.
A viral video star uses his fame to raise money for people with HIV.
Many gay men are having biological children for less money and less hassle by seeking surrogacy in India.
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