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- Introduction
- Geologic history
- Land
- People
- Economy
- Government and society
- Cultural life
- History
- Prime ministers of Australia
- National and state emblems of Australia
Australia, the smallest continent and one of the largest countries on Earth, lying between the Pacific and Indian oceans in the Southern Hemisphere. Australia's capital is Canberra, located in the southeast between the larger and more important economic and cultural centres of Sydney and Melbourne.
The Australian mainland extends from west to east for nearly 2,500 miles (4,000 km) and from Cape York Peninsula in the northeast to Wilsons Promontory in the southeast for nearly 2,000 miles (3,200 km). To the south, Australian jurisdiction extends a further 310 miles (500 km) to the southern extremity of the island of Tasmania, and in the north it extends to the southern shores of Papua New Guinea. Australia is separated from Indonesia to the northwest by the Timor and Arafura seas, from Papua New Guinea to the northeast by the Coral Sea and the Torres Strait, from the Coral Sea Islands Territory by the Great Barrier Reef, from New Zealand to the southeast by the Tasman Sea, and from Antarctica in the far south by the Indian Ocean.
Australia has been called "the Oldest Continent," "the Last of Lands," and "the Last Frontier." These descriptions typify the world's fascination with Australia, but they are somewhat unsatisfactory. In simple physical terms the age of much of the continent is certainly impressive—most of the rocks providing the foundation of Australian landforms were formed during Precambrian and Paleozoic time (some 4 billion to 250 million years ago)—but the ages of the cores of all the continents are approximately the same. On the other hand, whereas the landscape history of extensive areas in Europe and North America has been profoundly influenced by events and processes that occurred since late in the last Ice Age—roughly the past 25,000 years—in Australia scientists use a more extensive timescale that takes into account the great antiquity of the continent's landscape.
Australia is the last of lands only in the sense that it was the last continent, apart from Antarctica, to be explored by Europeans. At least 60,000 years before European explorers sailed into the South Pacific, the first Aboriginal explorers had arrived from Asia, and by 20,000 years ago they had spread throughout the mainland and its chief island outlier, Tasmania. When Captain Arthur Phillip of the British Royal Navy landed with the First Fleet at Botany Bay in 1788, there may have been between 250,000 and 500,000 Aboriginals, though some estimates are much higher. Largely nomadic hunters and gatherers, the Aboriginals had already transformed the primeval landscape, principally by the use of fire, and, contrary to common European perceptions, they had established robust, semipermanent settlements in well-favoured localities.
The American-style concept of a national "frontier" moving outward along a line of settlement is also inappropriate. There was, rather, a series of comparatively independent expansions from the margins of the various colonies, which were not joined in an independent federated union until 1901. Frontier metaphors were long employed to suggest the existence of yet another extension of Europe and especially of an outpost of Anglo-Celtic culture in the distant "antipodes."
The most striking characteristics of the vast country are its global isolation, its low relief, and the aridity of much of its surface. If, like the English novelist D.H. Lawrence, visitors from the Northern Hemisphere are at first overwhelmed by "the vast, uninhabited land and by the grey charred bush…so phantom-like, so ghostly, with its tall, pale trees and many dead trees, like corpses," they should remember that to Australians the bush—that sparsely populated Inland or Outback beyond the Great Dividing Range of mountains running along the Pacific coast and separating it from the cities in the east—is familiar and evokes nostalgia. It still retains some of the mystical quality it had for the first explorers searching for inland seas and great rivers, and it remains a symbol of Australia's strength and independence; the Outback poem by A.B. ("Banjo") Paterson, "
Waltzing Matilda," is the unofficial national anthem of Australia known the world over.
Australia's isolation from other continents explains much of the singularity of its plant and animal life. Its unique flora and fauna include hundreds of kinds of eucalyptus trees and the only egg-laying mammals on Earth, the platypus and echidna. Other plants and animals associated with Australia are various acacias (Acacia pycnantha [golden wattle] is the national flower) and dingoes, kangaroos, koalas, and kookaburras. The Great Barrier Reef, off the east coast of Queensland, is the greatest mass of coral in the world and one of the world's foremost tourist attractions. The country's low relief results from the long and extensive erosive action of the forces of wind, rain, and the heat of the sun during the great periods of geologic time when the continental mass was elevated well above sea level.
Isolation is also a pronounced characteristic of much of the social landscape beyond the large coastal cities. But an equally significant feature of modern Australian society is the representation of a broad spectrum of cultures drawn from many lands, a development stemming from immigration that is transforming the strong Anglo-Celtic orientation of Australian culture. Assimilation, of course, is seldom a quick and easy process, and minority rights, multiculturalism, and race-related issues have played a large part in contemporary Australian politics. In the late 1990s these issues sparked a conservative backlash.
Unlike Britain, Australia has a federal form of government, with a central government and six constituent states (New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania). Each state has its own government, which exercises a limited degree of sovereignty. There are also two internal territories: Northern Territory, established as a self-governing territory in 1978, and the Australian Capital Territory (including the city of Canberra), which attained self-governing status in 1988. Major issues in resource development and environmental management have ignited controversies over the protection of states' rights and the federal government's gradual accumulation of power. The federal authorities also govern the external territories of Norfolk Island, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Christmas Island, Ashmore and Cartier islands, the Coral Sea Islands, and Heard and McDonald islands and claim the Australian Antarctic Territory, an area larger than Australia itself. Papua New Guinea, formerly an Australian external territory, gained its independence in 1975.
Historically part of the British Empire and now a member of the Commonwealth, Australia is a relatively prosperous independent country. Australians are in many respects fortunate in that they do not share their continent—which is only a little smaller than the United States—with any other country. Extremely remote from their traditional allies and trading partners—it is some 12,000 miles (19,000 km) from Australia to Great Britain via the Indian Ocean and the Suez Canal and about 7,000 miles (11,000 km) across the Pacific Ocean to the west coast of the United States—Australians have become more interested in the proximity of huge potential markets in Asia and in the highly competitive industrialized economies of Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Australia, the continent and the country, may have been quite isolated at the beginning of the 20th century, but it entered the 21st century a culturally diverse land brimming with confidence, an attitude encouraged by the worldwide fascination with the land "Down Under" and demonstrated when Sydney hosted the 2000 Summer Olympic Games.
Geologic history
The earliest known manifestations of the geologic record of the Australian continent are 4.4-billion-year-old detrital grains of zircon in metasedimentary rocks that were deposited from 3.7 to 3.3 billion years ago. Based on this and other findings, the Precambrian rocks in Australia have been determined to range in age from about 3.7 billion to 540 million years (i.e., to the end of Precambrian time). They are succeeded by rocks of the Paleozoic Era, which extended to about 250 million years ago; of the Mesozoic Era, which lasted until about 65 million years ago; and of the Cenozoic Era, the past 65 million years.
For millions of years Australia was part of the supercontinent of Pangaea and subsequently its southern segment, Gondwanaland (or Gondwana). Its separate existence was finally assured by the severing of the last connection between Tasmania and Antarctica, but it has been drifting toward the Southeast Asian landmass. As a continent, Australia thus encompasses two extremes: on the one hand, it contains the oldest known earth material while, on the other, it has stood as a free continent only since about 35 million years ago and is in the process—in terms of geologic time—of merging with Asia, so that its life span as a continent will be of relatively short duration. (See also geochronology: Geologic history of the Earth.)
General considerations
Tectonic framework
The map of the structural features of Australia and the surrounding region shows the distribution of the main tectonic units. The primary distinction is between the plates of oceanic lithosphere, generated within the past 160 million years by seafloor spreading at the oceanic ridges, and the continental lithosphere, accumulated over the past 4 billion years. (The lithosphere is the outer rock shell of the Earth that consists of the crust and the uppermost portion of the underlying mantle; see plate tectonics.) The largest area of oldest rocks is the Western Shield, comprising the western half of the continent, which has been eroded to a low relief. The youngest rocks are found in the growing fold belt of the Banda arcs and in New Guinea at the boundary between the Indian-Australian plate and the Eurasian and Pacific plates. The modern fold belts are separated from Australia by a "moat" (the Timor Trough) and a wide shelf (the Timor and Arafura seas). The northern half of the Australian margin is completed by the North West Shelf and the Exmouth Plateau on the west and by the Great Barrier Reef and the Queensland Plateau on the east.
Precambrian rocks occupy three tectonic environments. The first is in shields, such as the Yilgarn and Pilbara blocks of the Western Shield, enclosed by later orogenic (mountain) belts. The second is as the basement to a younger cover of Phanerozoic sediment (deposited during the past 540 million years); for example, all the sedimentary basins west of the Tasman Line are underlain by Precambrian basement. The third is as relicts in younger orogenic belts, as in the Georgetown Inlier of northern Queensland and in the western half of Tasmania. Rocks of Paleozoic age occur either in flat-lying sedimentary basins, such as the Canning Basin, or within belts, such as the east–west-trending Amadeus Transverse Zone and north-trending Tasman Fold Belt.
Mesozoic and Cenozoic rocks occur in widely distributed (though poorly exposed) basins onshore (the Great Artesian Basin in the eastern centre). Offshore they occur on the western, southern, and eastern margins, including beneath Bass Strait, which separates Australia from Tasmania, and to the north in the submerged ground between the Banda arcs/New Guinea and the mainland.
Chronological summary
The geologic development may be summarized as follows. Archean rocks (those more than 2.5 billion years old) crop out within the two-thirds of Australia that lies west of the Tasman Line. Individual blocks of Archean rocks became embedded in Proterozoic fold belts (those from about 2.5 billion to 540 million years old) to form a mosaic. The lines of weakness within the mosaic later guided stresses that pulled the blocks apart or pushed them together. The Proterozoic fold belts that bounded the western and southern sides of the Archean Yilgarn block, for example, became the sites of the continental margin during seafloor spreading in the Mesozoic, and the fold belts of the Amadeus Transverse Zone in central Australia guided the overthrusting of blocks in the north over those in the south during the late Paleozoic.
Proterozoic Australia was part of the supercontinent of Gondwanaland, comprising India and the other southern continents, from about 750 million years ago. At the beginning of the Paleozoic, some 540 million years ago, pieces began to flake off the Australian portion of Gondwanaland when ocean basins opened around its periphery. Off the northwest, an ancient forebear of the Indian Ocean, called the Tethys, transferred continental terranes (fault-bounded fragments of the crust) from Gondwanaland to Asia; later generations of this ocean rifted material northward, including the biggest and latest terrane of India. Off the east, an ancient Pacific Ocean opened and closed in the first of a series of back-arc basins or marginal seas that persists to the present.
The structure of Australia was determined by the following: the processes that welded the Archean blocks and Proterozoic fold belts into a mosaic; the lithospheric plate processes that acted on this mosaic along lines of weakness to form ocean basins by spreading along the western and southern margins; and the processes that accompanied the convergence of the Pacific Plate, including alternating back-arc spreading and subduction that accreted the eastern third of Australia during the Phanerozoic. Australia ultimately became isolated from its Gondwanaland neighbours India and Antarctica by seafloor spreading. It was isolated from Lord Howe Rise/New Zealand by back-arc spreading that began in the Mesozoic. Today, Australia is drifting northward from Antarctica as a result of seafloor spreading in the southeast Indian Ocean and, consequently, is colliding with the westward-moving Pacific Plate to form the strike-slip ranges of New Guinea and the S-shaped fold of the Banda arcs.
|Official name
|Commonwealth of Australia
|Form of government
|federal parliamentary state (formally a constitutional monarchy) with two legislative houses (Senate [76]; House of Representatives [150])
|Head of state
|British Monarch: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by Governor-General: Sir Peter John Cosgrove
|Head of government
|Prime Minister: Tony Abbott
|Official language
|Official religion
|Monetary unit
|Australian dollar ($A)
|(2014 est.) 23,557,000
|Total area (sq mi)
|Total area (sq km)
|Urban-rural population
|Urban: (2011) 89.2%
Rural: (2011) 10.8%
|Life expectancy at birth
|Male: (2011) 79.7 years
Female: (2009) 84.2 years
|Literacy: percentage of population age 15 and over literate
|Male: not available
Female: not available
|GNI per capita (U.S.$)
|(2013) 65,520


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Winona Ryder Gossip
Winona Ryder gossip, latest news, photos, and video.
Sundance Winona
George Pimentel/ Jonathan Leibson/ Chelsea Lauren/ Getty Images
A wild rare Winona Ryder appears. She's promoting Experimenter at Sundance, alongside Peter Sarsgaard and Kellan Lutz Wearing Glasses—Kellan Lutz Wearing Glasses is the new Kellan Lutz In A Tree. Anyway, back to the only one who matters, Winona. She's beautiful and That Face and Experimenter is getting good reviews, which is most pleasing. Full Story
Gwyneth on Howard: Brad, Winona, Ben
This interview is so f-cking good it requires two posts… And there was a gap in them posting the second part. It's Gwyneth on Howard Stern, of course. And it picks up right after she reveals that JayZ and Beyonce are her best famous friends. Howard then leads her from there to her childhood and her early days in Hollywood. Full Story
Winona's fashion return
It's been 10 years since my all-time, Winona Ryder, has fronted a fashion campaign. And now…she's fronting Rag & Bone. It's such a great fit. Said the brand's managing partner Marcus Wainwright: "To us, Winona Ryder is a bonafide icon." Yeah, she is. Full Story
Winona and the Visor's moment
Terrifying what's happening right now. The Visor is having a moment. You know who's been wearing -- or you could say "rocking" -- the visor for years and years and years? You'd know if you've ever been to a Chinese mall. Or played golf. Asian ladies. My ma, the Chinese Squawking Chicken. Full Story
Winona on Veronica's birthday week
Jamie McCarthy/ Dimitrios Kambouris/ Getty
I opened yesterday with Heathers. Click here if you missed it and the Entertainment Weekly oral history celebrating the 25th anniversary of the film. To mark the milestone, we shot a Winona appreciation segment for etalk last week. Just me freestyling on why Winona is still everything after all these years. Full Story
Winona Ryder: RED, Crazy, Beautiful
I threw you a Troy Dyer/Reality Bites reference yesterday in Smutty Tingles. And it happens to be the 20th anniversary of the movie, did you know that? We're going to come back to this after the Oscars because it deserves all of your attention. Full Story
Catching up with the Depp exes
MK/ AKM-GSI/ Splash, Valerie Macon/ Getty
While Johnny Depp may or may not be marrying Amber Heard, who had to make it SO OBVIOUS that she didn't want you to see her ring – click here for a refresher -- let's catch up with his exes. It's Kate Moss's 40th birthday today. Full Story
Gwyneth's Golden Globe weekend with Chris …and Winona?
Charley Gallay/ Kevin Mazur/ Joe Scarnici/ Getty
The Paltrow-Martins were out a lot this weekend in LA. On Friday Gwyneth Paltrow attended the Diane Von Furstenberg Journey Of A Dress Exhibition. She wore a black plunge neck pantsuit. On Saturday, she AND Chris Martin attended the Sean Penn & Friends HELP HAITI HOME Gala …together. And look at them. Full Story
GOOP & Depp
Gwyneth Paltrow and Johnny Depp were seen together in LA on the set of Mordecai yesterday. There were rumours circulating a few weeks that he hates her or something because she's a pain in the ass. How come she can't hate him for being a pain in the ass? It's not like Johnny Depp isn't a total cliché. Full Story
Winona in Vegas
Sandra Bullock + Las Vegas. Sure. Julia Roberts + Las Vegas. Yeah. Oceans Eleven. Cameron Diaz + Las Vegas. Of course. One actress that doesn't go with Las Vegas… Winona Ryder. Right? She was at the premiere of Homefront last night with Jason Statham, James Franco, and Kate Bosworth, looking the least comfortable of all of them. Full Story
Lydia 27 years later
Valerie Macon/ Getty
What Winona Ryder character would you bring back? Which one are you curious about? Who would you want to catch up with? Is it Veronica in Heathers? Or Rina from Lucas? God, I loved Lucas. Charlie Sheen was super hot in Lucas. Whatever happened to Kerri Green? The answer to that question, if you're Winona Ryder, is Lydia in Beetlejuice. Full Story
Mermaids reunion!
Dimitrios Kambouris/ Getty
Omg, where's Cher? Maybe it's better she's not there. My 80s heart would explode with love and maybe never recover. Ok but what song is playing in your head now? There can only be one! I've attached below. Does he love me I wanna know How can I tell if he loves me so… This'll be our theme song for the day, ok? So here are Winona Ryder and Christina Ricci front row at Marc Jacobs yesterday. Full Story
Who is Troy Dyer?
If you've been reading this blog long enough, you know how a few of us here feel about Reality Bites – ok maybe just Duana and me. This is the origin of our love-hate for Ethan Hawke. And our enduring love for loafers with anything. If you clicked on the title of this post because you know the name, I don't need to explain much more to you. Full Story
Johnny's women
Wenn, FameFlynet, Splash
They've all been pretty visible the last few days, with the exception of Kate Moss who's been known to attend the MET Gala so it wouldn't be surprising if we see her in New York tonight. Amber Heard was in New York yesterday photographed walking around in a long black and white skirt. Full Story

subset: commoncrawl


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Details and Shopping
Customer Favorite
Suede and leather lace-up boots with rubber bottoms and faux fur trimming. Treaded rubber soles. Waterproof.
*By Sorel
*Leather, Rubber
*11" shaft height, 1" heel
*By Sorel
*Leather, Rubber
*11" shaft height, 1" heel
Rated 4.5 out of 5Â by 8 reviewers.
Rated 2 out of 5Â by masseraj Cute but wierd fit Today I decided to try these on since I was interested in buying the blue version of these boots. First of all they are super cute however they fit really strange. Normally I'm a size 9 so I decided to try that on first. I was kind of surprise that my toes were a bit bunched up at the front of the shoe while the rest of the shoe was really wide. I decided to try the 10 on to see if that made a difference. There was not much difference in the width. In addition I found that there was a little more room in the front of the shoe for my toes however they did still touch the edge. After that I decided to try and walk around in them and found it really hard. They are super stiff around the ankles and I felt that it was a lot of work to walk in them. Good news is that they are warm. So I gave them two stars for warmth and cuteness and that is all I liked about them. Personally I think that this is a brand issue. I tried other Sorel boots and they all fit real weird like this one. 11.7.2012
Rated 5 out of 5Â by BOHOGYPSY Only Winter Boot You Need I would recommend these boots to anyone from NY to LA. I live in LA where our winter isn't for "Weathery". But I have traveled to the snow in Colorado with these and I was perfect for both. I think These are cooler than Uggs, but, keep your warmer than Uggs, just so you can get a feel.... I know it sounds crazy but they are amazing! 10.25.2012
Rated 5 out of 5Â by gabfab great boots! these boots run TTS, even with a little bit of room. i am usually an 8 or 8 1/2 in shoes because i have a wide foot and the 8's fit perfect. these are comfortable and warm. i trudged through slush, rain, and snow today and they kept my feet dry and warm. get them while they're on sale! these are definitely worth it for the last couple months of winter and next year. 1.30.2013
Rated 5 out of 5Â by roomoo Love them I received my boots yesterday and was so happy to get them. I live in Australia and it is pretty warm here at the moment so I could only leave them on for a minute or so, but I have bought them for our holiday to Europe at Christmas time and pretty positive they will keep my feet nice and warm. They also fit perfectly. 12.7.2012
Rated 4 out of 5Â by Tory88 Awesome Boots, but rub me the wrong way. I love these boots! They are super warm and very cute, but the thing is that I haven't gotten a chance to wear them a whole lot yet, so I may not have broken them in. So, so far, they've been rubbing one of my heals pretty bad. It's an issue that I hope works itself out once there's more snow! 11.17.2012
Rated 5 out of 5Â by Zenovka the perfect boots for this winter! It's the perfect boots for this winter! And .. since the time that I find ... In short, nothing to say quality .. color ... etc. .. as the picture! And finally! I found THE perfect pair of boots for this winter! Thanks. ;) 11.14.2012
Rated 5 out of 5Â by carole Must have for winter! I just bought these boots and I can't wait for the snow to come so I can wear them! I bought my usual size 7 and they fit perfect for me. They make your feet look really wide but they have a really thick lining. The lining is super cozy and warm and it's removable which is awesome incase the fury part gets wet or dirty. Best functional winter boot thats also cute! 11.13.2012
Rated 5 out of 5Â by Skinabeena Awesome boots! run big though I usually wear between a 91/2 and 10, and I got 9s because when I tried on the 10s they were too big. Besides that, they're adorable. It's true that they are very big-looking on the foot, especially around the toes. They're warm, too! I can wear them in the fall rain and winter snow in upstate NY just fine, so they are functional as well as fashionable. 11.8.2012
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i have some more top covers for sale, romanian in origin. these ones have a lot of finnish wear. infact id say they are approching being in the white! i have 4 or 5 of these. they would be great for a BFPU or if your going to refinish your kit anyways. or maybe you just like shiney stuff! lol. heres some pics of the top covers and a pic of a couple of my aks with the shiney covers just so you can see the contrast.
all normal rules apply. first ill take it rules. items will be cross posted so time stamp will be used if needed. shipping is $3 for the first one and $1 for each other one shipped with the first. if you have any questions please ask!
top covers are $8 each!
will trade for an 84 dated romanian trunion, and probably other stuff just ask.
items are located in central ohio, can do ftf if you like.
you can also email me at email@example.com for faster responce.
if you would like to know the serial numbers shoot me a pm.


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Giardiasis Overview
Giardiasis is an infection of the small bowel by a single-celled organism called Giardia lamblia. People become infected with the Giardia parasite after swallowing Giardia cysts often found in water contaminated by raw sewage or animal waste.
Giardiasis Causes
Giardia cysts are transmitted to humans in various ways.
Medically Reviewed by a Doctor on 12/15/2014
Medical Author:
Betsy P Schrader, MD
Medical Editor:
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Giardia lamblia was originally identified by von Leeuwenhoek in the 1600s and was first recognized in human stool byVilem Dusan Lambl (1824-1895) in 1859and by Alfred Giard (1846-1908) after whom it is named.


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Prep Rally
Little People of America petitions for high school to change 'Midgets' mascotDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally26 days ago
The organization Little People of America is asking an Illinois high school to change the name of the school's mascot. The Freeburg High School sports teams have been known as the "Freeburg Midgets" since the 1930s.
"[It's] kind of a derogatory, objectifying, dehumanizing term," Gary Arnold, president of LPA, told . "If you have a family that happens to have a person with dwarfism down the road, you know, that's going to create a very difficult environment for them to go to high school."
School apparel is known as "midgetwear," according to an . The organization says there are other schools across the country that use the mascot and it's asking all of them to change. It singled out Freeburg because the town is near St. Louis, where LPA is currently holding a national conference.
Freeburg's superintendent, Andrew Lehman, contends that the name is a "point of pride" in the town of 4,300. A local sportswriter gave the school's basketball team the nickname in the 1930s, and it stuck. The school board doesn't see it as offensive.
"That term can be very subjective. What's offensive to one person or group of people is going to have a very different meaning to other people," Lehman said.
Missouri high school will start girl at QBDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally1 mth ago
The starting quarterback on the Liberty North (Kansas City, MO.) freshman football team will be catching a lot of attention this fall. For the first time in school history, a girl will be calling the shots.
Brooke Liebsch has been playing Pop Warner football for six years. " I used to play soccer and I didn't like it," she told . "Then, one day, I caught a football and I'm like, I want to play football. Let's go."
Making her the starter is such an obvious choice, coach Brian Rockers told WDAF, that it's hardly gaining attention in town. He went as far as saying that it's actually easier to coach her than some of the boys.
"Girls listen a lot better than guys do for some reason," he said. "That's just the way it is. She allows us to coach and she lets us coach her and she listens."
She's also willing to play any position on the field. If there's a spot she prefers to avoid, it's those traditionally given to females on high school teams, like placeholder and offensive line.
High schooler Lorenz Frazier makes arguably the 'Catch of the Year'Celia Balf at Prep Rally1 mth ago
Lorenz Frazier may have just made the "Catch of the Year."
Frazier, a junior at Allen Park High School in Michigan, is a third baseman for the baseball team as well as the star point guard for the basketball team. His athleticism isn't up for question—that sprint, that leap and then that catch … world class.
It's that moment of suspension when a player goes flying over the dugout that makes this play so remarkable, especially when someone is able to topple over, then get back up and make a play, Frazier almost did just this.
Frazier made the catch and fired the ball back to second with the hopes of making a double play. The catch alone is award worthy — and people everywhere are sharing it.
Catch of the year worthy? We'll find out.
UCLA alum awards future Bruin Rachel Garcia the Gatorade National Player of the Year honorsCelia Balf at Prep Rally1 mth ago
Rachel Garcia, a UCLA signee and pitcher for Highland High School (Palmdale, Calif.), was named 2014-15 Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year. The award was presented by Stacey Nuveman, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and former UCLA standout catcher.
Just surprised Rachel Garcia with Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year award. AWESOME day honoring @raaaccchhheeell!! #GatoradePOY
Garcia was well-deserving of this honor with both her success on the field leading her team to a 26-2 record, and her commitment off the mound. Garcia maintained a 3.44 GPA, worked as a math tutor for her teammates and assisted in creating Golden League Gives Back, an initiative that helps the Grace Resource Center for the needy.
Months after traumatic accident, Indiana teen shines at state all-star gameDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally1 mth ago
Josh Speidel's lifelong dream came true in January, when the Columbus North (Ind.) High School senior learned that he'd been selected to play on the Indiana boys basketball all-star team. It seemed a fitting end to a fantastic high school career for a star athlete who was reportedly being recruited to play at the University of Vermont.
Days later, Speidel's dream suddenly seemed impossible. Speidel suffered a traumatic brain injury in a two-car crash on Feb. 1. The crash left him in a coma, nearly a month passing before he opened his eyes.
The all-star game was the furthest thing from anyone's mind. Yet basketball quickly became part of his recovery routine. In March, six weeks after the accident, his parents told Indy Starthat he was slowly regaining consciousness. His attempts to speak were unintelligible, but he was showing signs that he understood what people were saying to him.
Nation's top prep baseball team investigated for hazingDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally1 mth ago
A travel baseball team associated with recently-crowned state champion Parkview (Lilburn, Ga.) High School is being investigated for a hazing incident.
The team is coached by the school's coaching staff and includes most of the same players as the school team, but is not funded by the school or officially associated with the school.
Given the close affiliation, though, the school is investigating.
According to WSB-2 in Atlanta, incoming freshmen were allegedly hazed by current juniors on the team (known as rising seniors). The incident happened at a hotel in Charleston, S.C., where the team was playing in a tournament last weekend.
School officials released a statement Tuesday:
Texas freshman turns triple play, losing a cleat in the processDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally1 mth ago
Turning a triple play is impressive on its own. How about doing it while losing a cleat?
Kameron Lindsey, a freshman who plays shortstop at Colmesneil (Texas) High, was playing right next to second base, trying to hold the runner to a short lead. He was closer to the bag than the runner. When the batter sliced a line drive right at the pitcher, the runners at first and second took off.
The ball bounced high off the pitcher's glove, straight to a diving Lindsey. He made a clean catch and beat the baserunner back to second. That's two outs. Then he sent a clean throw to the first baseman to catch the runner there. Three outs.
It's hard to see in the video, but there was a fourth element to the play: Lindsey lost his shoe as he tagged second base.
He non-chalantly picks up the shoe as everyone starts cheering and running towards third base to celebrate.
California high school wins state on overturned call at firstDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally1 mth ago
A California high school baseball coach just made a case for all the managers who have ever stormed out of the dugout to argue a call.
Serrano (Phelan, Calif.) High held a 1-0 lead heading into the seventh inning of the state final game against South Torrance. South Torrance rallied back with an unearned run in the top of the inning, nearly taking the lead but eventually leaving the go-ahead run stranded at third, according to The San Bernardino County Sun.
Serrano loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the seventh, a golden opportunity to take back the run and the title. Daniel Brodie grounded to the second baseman, who flipped the ball to the shortstop to catch the runner heading to second. The shortstop threw it to first base for the double play.
A runner crossed homeplate, but it didn't matter. The double play negated the run. It looked like the game was heading to extra innings, until Serrano coach Joe Knowlton came out to argue that the shortstop's throw had pulled the first baseman off the bag.
Michigan's Brother Rice wins 11th straight state titleDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally1 mth ago
A high school in Michigan has what might be the most dominant streak in high school sports. Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) has won every state lacrosse title since the Michigan High School Athletics Association started sponsoring the sport in 2005.
On Saturday, the Warriors added the school's 11th-straight title. Brother Rice defeated Detroit Catholic Central (Novi, Mich.), 16-7. The two schools have met in the finals five times. It looked a lot like previous title games in many ways, but one: This year's squad did it without a superstar leading the way.
"We don't have a superstar on this team," Brother Rice coach Ajay Chawla told MLive. "We have a lot of very, very good players and we're unselfish. That's what we've been preaching all year. You've got to look for the next shot, look for the next guy open ... They haven't been selfish all season."
Former student and pro athlete responds to viral "Dear Steph Curry" letterDanielle Elliot at Prep Rally2 mths ago
In May, a Bay Area teacher wrote a letter to NBA MVP Steph Curry, praising Curry for being a role model, but asking him to please stay away from Mt. Eden High School in Hayward, Calif. The teacher, Matt Amaral, explained that many of his students dream of being professional athletes, while there are not enough adults telling them that they have a better chance of winning the lottery than of going pro – especially if they aren't working with private coaches and playing elite ball by the time they're in high school.
In an email to Yahoo Sports, a former Mt. Eden student responded. After attending Mt. Eden, Charlton Jimerson went on to graduate from the University of Miami, then played four seasons with the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners. This is his response:


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Ways to get involved in promoting the Victorious Gospel
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The confusions all part of the plan Micah, Babel anyone? Chaos to order, darkness to light.
Lucifer ,the Morning star falling to earth Being Adam[ Mankind] driven from the Garden , descended into Hades being death the conscious state of Man~ Death and Hades having their part in the Lake of Fire , the restoration of the DEAD~
Amen, Lucifer is Adam, who was a High Priest of God originally.
I wonder if Adam is just 'bearing the image' of the corrupt one........the lawless one..who had no legal right
"Since Babylon is Sodom and Egypt where our Lord was crucified (Revelation)" EagleswayRev 11:8 And their dead bodies lie upon the broadway of the great city, the which is called, spiritually, Sodom and Egypt, where, their Lord also was crucified.Wasn't Jesus crucifed in Jerusalem? "lie upon the broadway of the "great" city," The city is"spiritually called Sodom and Egypt," But in true understanding it was in Jerusalem where He was crucified, was it not?
So it wasn't Jerusalem? Is that correct?
It shall come to pass in the day the LORD gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve, 4 that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say: " How the oppressor has ceased, The golden city ceased! 5 The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked, The scepter of the rulers; 6 He who struck the people in wrath with a continual stroke, He who ruled the nations in anger, Is persecuted and no one hinders. 7 The whole earth is at rest and quiet; They break forth into singing. 8 Indeed the cypress trees rejoice over you, And the cedars of Lebanon, Saying, 'Since you were cut down, No woodsman has come up against us.' 9 " Hell from beneath is excited about you, To meet you at your coming; It stirs up the dead for you, All the chief ones of the earth; It has raised up from their thrones All the kings of the nations. 10 They all shall speak and say to you: ' Have you also become as weak as we? Have you become like us? 11 Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, And the sound of your stringed instruments; The maggot is spread under you, And worms cover you.'The Fall of Lucifer 12 " How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! 13 For you have said in your heart: ' I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.' 15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit. 16 " Those who see you will gaze at you, The verses used here are within the context of the proverb against the King of Babylon, and the golden city. Since Babylon is Sodom and Egypt where our Lord was crucified (Revelation)- to me, it speaks to the "Golden Head" of Daniels vision, Babylon, as the premier of all the kingdoms of men(nations that were weakened). Adam, as the man through whom death entered and all men died, through whom the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh and the pride of life entered- the Carnal Man- can be implied, but only metaphorically IMO. If the stones with which the "daystar", the "son of the morning" was decorated were set upon Adam then Adam it is, but there is no conclusive testimony to that I've seen. But if the Daystar was one of the "sons of the morning" who rejoiced over the creation(Job) then it could, and in my opinion is, "the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience", the "ruler of the hosts of wickedness in the heavenly realms", the power behind the thrones of men. Adam, Nebo, Pharoah, on through to the one who is to come (2 Thess 2:9) The "golden head" in the heavenly realms, who I believe met with Jesus as he fasted upon the mount, and rules the principalities and powers such as the "Prince of Persia" with whom Gabriel and Michael the archangel struggled as Daniel fasted for ten days. It seems to me that Adam came under the authority of the of the adversary, and that all the prophesies that run through the rulers of "this present evil age" also run through Satan, the source of Anti-Christ, angel of light.Zechariah 3:2And the LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?"2 Cor:3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.Acts 26:17,18 I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now[a] send you, 18 to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.'2 Thessalonians 2:9The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,Revelation 20:2He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand yearsIMO Every "ruler of men" from Pharoah to Pharisee to Pastor is in Adam, Lucifer, Satan. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. 18 Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
Quote from: micah7:9 on November 12, 2011, 12:41:26 AMSo it wasn't Jerusalem? Is that correct? definately outwardly OLd Jerusalem~
Quote from: Taffy on November 12, 2011, 12:46:30 AMQuote from: micah7:9 on November 12, 2011, 12:41:26 AMSo it wasn't Jerusalem? Is that correct? definately outwardly OLd Jerusalem~ Mystery babylon children of the flesh, those in bondage to the laws of mount sinai.As opposed the those in Christ, who abide in New Jerusalem which is above and free.
Some may be singing a differnt pitch, but it harmonizes with the lyrics of God in us.


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Press coverage biased for Obama
I would like to contrast Aiken Standards coverage of Benghazi vs. the South Carolina tax return data breach. It should be clear that President Obama continues to get a pass while Gov. Nikki Haley continues to get skewered by the Standard and the liberal press.
Lets contrast:
Both events were monumental screw-ups. Both stories broke months ago. Almost daily, tax returns has been front page news with much critical coverage of the governors initial and continuing actions. It would be hard to find any coverage of Benghazi unless you consider General Petraeuss affair to be coverage.
No one died as a result of tax return disclosures. Four Americans died as a result of Obamas stand-down order when those Americans begged for military assistance.
Haley proactively disclosed everything she knew and continues to disclose new information. Obama (aided and abetted by the press) lied about why Benghazi happened and has continued to dodge demands for who knew what when, and why four Americans were left to die without help.
Haley took action immediately to help South Carolina taxpayers whose information was disclosed. She took action to assure the data breaches could not happen again. Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice and others tried to cover up what really happened, left classified documents on the ground in Benghazi for weeks and, as near as I can tell, little has been done to improve security at our consulates.
The press coverage of tax returns asked how it happened, why did the state award a no-bid contract to Experian, why only 12 months coverage, etc. The press coverage of Benghazi has been silence.
Richard Nixon resigned over covering up a break-in. Obama gets a pass for covering up a terrorist attack that killed four Americans.
One final contrast: Haley showed leadership, Obama hid out.
Paul Anderson
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If you like Gmail Chat and you use Opera, there's a simple tip that will make you happy.
Download the latest build of Opera 9 (warning: Opera 9 is still pre-beta). Then go to gmail.com, logout if necessary, press F12, select "Edit site preferences", go to Network tab and select "Mask as Firefox".
Login to Gmail and you'll now have Gmail Chat in Opera.
Update: Gmail Chat works in Opera 9.10, thanks to a workaround in browser.js.
Introducing the Search Analytics API
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Sri Lanka Tours
Lying just off the southern tip of India is picturesque Sri Lanka. With over 2,000 years of history, Sri Lanka has a rich cultural heritage and a wealth of sacred sites, ancient cities, lush tea plantations and incredible landscapes.
Unsurprisingly, UNESCO has recognised eight World Heritage sites in Sri Lanka, several of which are located in what is known as the cultural triangle. As an experienced tour operator in Sri Lanka, we offer a diverse number of tours to Sri Lanka and we look forward to welcoming you on holiday to the Teardrop Isle soon.
Sri Lanka
with On the Go Tours
Popular tours to Sri Lanka and our top picks
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Explore Dambulla Rock Temple and ancient Polonnaruwa, visit iconic Sigiriya Rock and meet the elephants at Pinnawala Orphanage. Sip on refreshing Ceylon tea and take a jeep ride into Udawalawe National Park before to the...
5 days | FROM USD $1,559
Wing your way to Sri Lanka. Lush jungles, abundant wildlife, cool mountains and glorious beaches offer instant appeal to the traveller. Ancient cities steeped in Buddhist belief, remnants of the spice trade, tea and hill...
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Exotic Sri Lanka. Ancient cities steeped in history, elephants, tea plantations, lush countryside, bustling bazaars and wildlife, Sri Lanka has all this and more. Enjoy a wonderful 9 day tour, taking in the highlights of...
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Step back in time in postcolonial Galle on the south west coast of Sri Lanka and explore the city's wonderful 17th century defence fort, browse historical treasures in the Galle National Museum, and take a scenic along...
8 days | FROM USD $2,299
See the best of central Sri Lanka on this all-encompassing tour and join in the festivities of the exhilarating Kandy Festival aka Esala Perahera or The Festival of the Sacred Tooth. Spanning ten days, the annual sees a...
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Go wild in Sri Lanka visiting Yala, Udawalawe and Bandula National Parks. Add to this Whale Watching in Mirissa and most of the country's famed cultural triangle and you've got an action packed 10 days!
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See the best of the Indian Ocean. Grand temples, intricate ruins and a rich, intriguing culture combined with beautiful gardens and leafy wildlife parks in wonderful Sri Lanka. Breathtaking beaches and idyllic pleasures...
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On our tours in Sri Lanka you'll have the chance to dine with a local family near Sigiriya, witness the colourful parade of elephants during the annual Kandy Festival, taste a delightful blend of tea at Nuwara Eliya and watch a game of cricket with the locals on the Galle Face Green.
Styles of travel in Sri Lanka
Group Tours
You'll get a true impression of local culture on our group tours in Sri Lanka - see ancient temples, rock fortresses and caves of the island's famous cultural triangle, plus visit spice gardens, tea plantations and national parks too. There's also the opportunity to relax on one of Sri Lanka's many beautiful sun kissed beaches, a fantastic way to top off a culture-rich tour.
Tailor made Holidays
With a personalised itinerary carefully put together by our expert tailormade team, you can enjoy the sights and delights of Sri Lanka at your own pace – seeing what you want to see, when you want to see it - combining all the best sites of the cultural triangle with a bit of beach side R&R on Indian Ocean as well.
Beach Holidays
Soak up the sun on a beautiful Indian Ocean beach with out our Sri Lanka beach holidays. With a choice of two of the best 4 & 5 star beach front properties in Kalutara, you'll be picked up from Colombo airport and driven to your hotel. So all you need to do is enjoy the outdoor pools, a stunning beach front location and a whole host of facilities from Ayurvedic Spas to fabulous restaurants.
Private Tours
With well-planned itineraries visiting Sri Lanka's most loved places and gems off the beaten track, we're here to help you experience the true local flavour of Sri Lanka. We can tweak any of our suggested private tour itineraries to your requirements with upgraded hotels, a few more days of sightseeing or simply more time spent in a particular location.
Sri Lanka tour reviews
Scoring an average customer rating of 4.17 out of 5 based on 6 recent reviews — See All Sri Lanka Reviews
Travelling to Sri Lanka with us
On our tours in Sri Lanka you can meet elephants at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, head out on safari in Yala and Udawalawe National Parks or soak up plenty of the sunshine on Sri Lanka's gorgeous beaches. For great insight into Sri Lanka's history and culture, time your visit to coincide with one of its many festivals. On our Colombo Caves & Kandy Festival tour you attend the famous Kandy Festival, one of the most important Buddhist festivals in the Sri Lankan calendar.
"Ancient city of Anuradhapura, beautiful Buddhas everywhere."
by berto voigt
Posted on 01 Aug 2015
Recommended places to visit in Sri Lanka
Perched 370 metres above verdant jungle, the mysterious remains of this 5th century granite rock fortress are well worth exploring. The summit of Sigiriya is accessed by a steep staircase that climbs up the side of the rock, with a collection of Heavenly Maiden frescoes which can be seen en route. The top affords spectacular views of the jungle below and mountains in the distance.
Nuwara Eliya
Tea is one of Sri Lanka's biggest exports and they sure are proud of it. Witness tea pickers harvesting the crop and enjoy a cup of delicious pure Ceylon tea in the factory of the Nuwara Eliya tea plantation. Once a colonial favourite, this attractive town is a charming confluence of old world England and modern day Sri Lanka surrounded by picturesque hill country.
DambullaThis UNESCO-Listed cave temple is one of the best-preserved and most impressive in all of Sri Lanka, and it's not difficult to see why. Dambulla is made up of five different caves, each one of covered with wall to ceiling mural paintings and scattered with statues and sculptures of Buddha.
A huge white expanse of sand framed by swaying palm-trees on one side and a beautiful turquoise sea on the other, it doesn't get much better than Kalutara. Whether you want to snorkel, learn how to surf or simply kick back, relax and top up your tan, this is the place to be.
Spice Gardens
Sugar, spice and everything nice! Learn about some of Sri Lanka's most famous spices and what they are used for at a traditional Spice Garden. Wander around the grounds, watch a cooking demonstration that puts some of the spices to use and choose to buy some to take home with you.
Go wild on a jeep safari in Udawalawe National Park, home to elephants, deer, wild boar, buffao, jackal and much more. Home to over 400 elephants, this is probably the best place to catch a glimpse of a Sri Lankan elephant in the wild, plus there are sloth bears too!
Temple of the Tooth
Said to house a tooth of Buddha enclosed within a golden casket, The Temple of the Tooth is perhaps the most famous in Sri Lanka. Pop in here on a visit to the hill city of Kandy and if you go in the evening you may be lucky enough to catch a daily cultural display that takes place in the temple complex.
Our guide opened my eyes to what a beautiful, vibrant, hectic, exciting country India is. And what a contrast Sri Lanka was - tropical & calm! Thank you for a great time. "
Sri Lanka Travel Guide
Money, shopping, transport, food, health advice & more
Information on climatic and weather conditions in Sri Lanka
Places on our must-see list of any visit to Sri Lanka
Visa requirements for Sri Lanka and info on getting your visa
Trip reviews from our travellers to Sri Lanka


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Courses: Senior Research Tutorial on The Control of Cell Shape: Molecular & Evolutionary Approaches (BIOLH411I01)
Spring 2008
All embryos undergo a series of highly elaborate cell movements to produce t heir final shape and form. Understanding the molecular basis of these movements provides important insight into the underlying molecular mechanisms, and enables us to ask how changes in these mechanisms give rise to differences between organisms. Students therefore approach this subject from both molecular and evolutionary perspectives. Using the fruit fly as a model system, we are looking in side cells to ask how intricate changes to the cytoarchitecture of individual cells drive movements of entire layers of cells. We hope to further understand how these same developmental processes go awry in situations of human disease (e.g. cancer metastasis). We are also examining cell movements in a variety of insect s to ask how the developmental mechanisms themselves evolve and change. Projects draw on a variety of techniques including cell and molecular biology, embryology, genetics, genomics and cell imaging. Laboratory work is supplemented by readings from the current literature.
Prerequisites: Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.
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HOME NFL Pittsburgh Steelers Gear Pittsburgh Steelers Home Office & School Sale Items $20 to $40 (24 items) Product ID: 659697
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Make sure your Steelers always have your back when you carry your gear in this team-colored Slingback backpack. If you were looking for a stylish bag that'll shine with your die-hard Pittsburgh spirit, then you can stop your search. Featuring an embroidered felt appliqué team logo on the front of the zippered organizer pocket, the team name printed down the side, a padded laptop compartment inside and a single crossover padded adjustable strap, this handy bag will keep you prepped and organized with spirited Pittsburgh flair! Get it today and carry your Steelers fanaticism everywhere you go!
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Tricycle Blog
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December 21, 2007
One Foot in Front of the Other
Tom (of Blogmandu and Thoughts Chase Thoughts and other sites) has brought a great and powerful blog to our attention: One Foot in Front of the Other, which is the blog of a Zen practitioner named Michael whose illness has placed him the position of directly confronting the great matter of life and death. On December 14th he wrote: I'm curled up on a bed in an ER exam room. More »
13 comments
December 21, 2007
Bon Buddhist Santa Claus
The following letter turned up at the Tricycle office in late November and we decided it would make a nice Christmas post for obvious reasons... More »
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December 21, 2007
An Open Letter from Jack Kornfield, Ram Dass, and Sharon Salzberg
Dear Friends, We are writing to ask your support for two beloved friends of ours, Stephen and Ondrea Levine. They are currently facing significant difficulty. After a life-time of giving, they are now at a time to receive from those of us whose lives have been touched by their presence and teaching. More »
5 comments
December 19, 2007
Laura Bush Lashes out at the Burmese Junta; plus news on Gandhi, Baggio, and Burger King
Look out, Myanmar, Laura Bush is gonna getcha! Pop quiz: What was her First Lady project? Whatever it was, she's letting the junta have it in no uncertain terms: "The junta has made no meaningful attempt to meet and talk with democratic activists. Instead it has continued to harass and detain them," Laura Bush said. "The junta leaders continue to sell the country's natural resources to enrich themselves. While they reject international calls for a democratic transition, they have put Burma in shambles and placed its people in a perilous state," she said. "Children are being trafficked and subject to forced recruitment into the military; citizens are fleeing the country to seek work and basic healthcare; meanwhile infectious diseases, including AIDS and malaria, continue to spread unchecked," said Laura Bush. Right on. More »
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December 18, 2007
Aung San Suu Kyi to Receive Congressional Gold Medal, and Taiwan: Province of China?
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution Monday night to give Aung San Suu Kyi the Congressional gold medal, the same award that was recently given to the Dalai Lama to China's chagrin. The resolution was accompanied by some half-hearted language of condemnation for the junta: "It is time for the military junta to recognize the will of the Burmese people and open the door for true reconciliation. By awarding Suu Kyi with the Congressional Gold Medal, we send a strong message that enough is enough," [Representative Don Manzullo (R-IL)] said. More »
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December 17, 2007
96 Monks Freed, and Eastern Russia Deforested
The Burmese junta has released 96 monks from the September protests -- maybe some of them will find a way to tell the story of their months in captivity. And the headline says it all: "Rapping Monks, Nuns Hit Catwalk". This one comes courtesy of The Worst Horse and was also noticed by Urban Monk. What's Wal-Mart up to now? Killing Amur (Siberian) tigers, apparently. More »
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December 13, 2007
Not Giving Up on Burma
Well, you gotta hand it to Washington. Our government, which has given up on combatting (or even admitting) human-influenced climate change, is not giving up on Burma, at least rhetorically (It helps that Iran seems to be off the table for now.) Congress is finally pushing a bill through the gridlock that will cut off some finances for the junta. About time! And Bush promises more sanctions. On another note Danny Fisher points out we can sign a petition to tell the world we don't support the Bush administration's obstruction vis a vis the Bali talks. More »
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December 12, 2007
The Bodhidharma Stupa and the Damaged Bodhi Tree
A very cool movie by Andy Ferguson on the burial site of Bodhidharma is up on YouTube. The site has only recently been rediscovered and, even more recently, been refurbished. This will become a major pilgrimage site for Zen practitioners in the years to come. Thanks to the ZenFrog for pointing it out. Visit South Mountain Tours for more info on how to get there. More »
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December 11, 2007
Burma, International Bad Boy, and the Dalai Lama Rocks Italy
The world (plus Laura Bush, whatever planet she's on) is running out of patience with Myanmar's generals, says U.N sec-gen Ban Ki Moon. It seems Burma's leaders (as well as a certain U.S. president) don't much care what the U.N. says: U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari has been awaiting permission from the Burmese government to visit Burma to continue efforts to broker negotiations between the military leadership and the opposition. Gambari has been in Burma twice since the violent September crackdown on peaceful pro-democracy demonstrators. The U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva also condemned Burma again. More »
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December 11, 2007
Eat Local?
Despite Europe's interest in eating local foods to reduce food miles, "Europeans are eating — and importing — more food from outside the E.U. than ever before," according to DotEarth, a New York Times blog. In May the Times of London reported: Scottish prawns are being hand-shelled in China, Atlantic haddock caught off Scotland is being prepared in Poland and Welsh cockles are being sent to Holland to be put in jars before going on sale in Britain. Eating local is simply not possible in a world of 6.7 billion people (and counting) says Andrew Revkin, who writes the blog. So what to do? Find alternative, less-polluting fuel sources. More »
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December 10, 2007
BOOKS: Why is There Something Rather Than Nothing?
Polish philosopher Leszek Kolakowski's Why is There Something Rather Than Nothing?: 23 Questions From Great Philosophers was supposed to be longer. Or rather, it is longer in the original Polish: the English-language version (or at least the American version) drops seven philosophers, leaving twenty-three thinkers and their questions. The questions span the whole range of philosophical concern: What is the human spirit? How is knowledge possible? What is evil? What is the source of truth? Many questions are variations on what we can know and how we can be certain of anything (i.e. epistemology.) More »
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December 07, 2007
Game Over
The junta is firmly back in control, and international "efforts" to bring change to Burma has failed, according to the New York Times, and it's hard to argue. The junta toyed with the NLD and waited out the international indignation, all the while being enabled by ASEAN. And the crackdown was bloodier than reported (of course) according to Human Rights Watch. Now, back to business. Rubies, anyone? More »
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December 06, 2007
The American Nightmare
An ex-monk, Thanh Thach of Cambodia, was delivering pizza in Richmond, California on November 26th when he was gunned down by unknown assailants. He leaves a wife, Eng Heng, owner of a nail salon in San Anselmo, California and a U.S. citizen since the mid-90s, and three sons. His story reads like the dark side of the American dream, the ferocious struggle to get by in this country: Thach, who earned his U.S. citizenship in September, had recently lost his job as a mail handler at the U.S. Postal Service center in West Oakland and had been delivering pizzas for about a month. He had earned his manicurist license. How much is said in those quiet sentences. HOW TO HELP Pizza Hut has established a Thanh Thach memorial fund. More »
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December 06, 2007
Compassionate Gift-Giving and Dharma Combat
Joan Duncan Oliver wrote a piece for Tricycle about compassionate gift-giving that might help with some tricky decisions this holiday season. Singapore - City - Zen links to an amazing article on alternet.org, Dress for Excess: The Cost of Our Clothing Addiction. (S-C-Z often has great environmental links.) Here's some brief passages from the Alternet article: The numbers are astonishing. Apparel is easily the second-biggest consumer sector after food. We're spending $282 billion on new clothes annually, up from $162 billion in 1992, based on U.S. Census figures. . . More »
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December 05, 2007
Sharon Salzberg and Burma
This morning, insight meditation teacher and author Sharon Salzberg appeared with Tricycle editor James Shaheen on a show called "Be Happy, Dammit!" on Sirius radio at Lime 114 in a conversation with host Karen Salmansohn, bestselling author many books on happiness. For more on Karen, see notsalmon.com. Here's a programming schedule for the channel -- Be Happy, Dammit! airs weekdays at 8 AM East Coast time. Sharon is of course well known in the Buddhist community. More »
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December 04, 2007
Burma and Bodhi Day
More bloody confrontations unavoidable, says a Burmese monk, now in exile. (The Guardian Weekly out of the U.K. reported on November 16th (using reportage from Le Monde) that monks in Pakokku said, "If prices keep going up there will be more rallies. We didn't like the army entering the monasteries." They also reported a while ago that international outrage was fading fast over Burma. Ask Pamela Gayle White! The translator, writer, and teacher of Tibetan Buddhism is available for your questions on the tricycle website until December 21st. More »
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December 04, 2007
Is this how you feel?
This cartoon from our friend Roberto Guerra more or less sums it up: And here's a short clip of some beautiful chanting from the annual 24 Hour Nembutsu of the Amida Trust, from Pure Land Etchings. Here's a brief "Theory of Nembutsu" if you'd like to know more. The term roughly means Buddha in Mind, or Mindfulness of the Buddha, and derives, I think, from the Sanskrit Namo Amitabha Buddha. Comments clarifying this would be most welcome! - Philip Ryan, Web Editor More »
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December 04, 2007
OCD, China, and Shakespeare in Arizona
Reading about perfectionism / OCD in the New York Times. A counselor at U.C. Davis treating perfectionists gives them this advice: Leave work on time. Don't arrive early. Take all the breaks allowed. Leave the desk a mess. Allow yourself a set number of tries to finish a job; then turn in what you have. David Brooks, in another part of the paper, talks about China being a radical meritocracy (no one leaves work on time there): When you talk to Americans, you find that they have all these weird notions about Chinese communism. You try to tell them that China isn't a communist country anymore. It's got a different system: meritocratic paternalism. You joke: Imagine the Ivy League taking over the shell of the Communist Party and deciding not to change the name. More »
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December 03, 2007
Burma's Protesters to be Put on Trial
BURMA: Aung Sann Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy will not be involved in drafting Burma's new constitution, according to a spokesman for the junta. The junta also dismissed the September protests as "trivial." But the protesters will nevertheless be put on trial, in a complete mockery of due process. Ecologists are complaining about China's dams in Burma. More »
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December 03, 2007
BOOKS: Nonviolence by Mark Kurlansky, and Gandhi on Nonviolence edited by Thomas Merton
NONVIOLENCE is published by the Modern Library/Random House; GANDHI ON NONVIOLENCE, edited by Thomas Merton, is soon to be reissued by New Directions Press. More »


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This major serves as a business capstone to the various applied science programs offered at the community colleges. It is intended to prepare you for careers that require both technical skills and business knowledge.
If you have already completed an A.A.S. degree and are interested in continuing your education in business and management this is the ideal degree for you.
FactAn individual with a bachelor's degree earns, on average, nearly $20,000 more per year than someone with an associate's degree (Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 2010, Annual Social and Economic Supplement).Accessible ProgramConvenience is key to a successful education in today's world. Courses in this degreeprogram are offered online and on campus, making it easy for you to complete a bachelor'sdegree on your schedule.
Learn More.
To be eligible for this degree applicants must meet the university criteria and have earned an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree in a technical major from a regionally-accredited institution of higher education.
Note: Students not meeting the admission requirements of an A.A.S. degree in an occupational program, but who have completed 24 or more hours in technical course work and have met other university admission criteria, may be considered for admission.
I. General Education Requirements (37 Hours)Communications (9 Hours)• Written Communication (6)• Oral Communication (3)Mathematics (3 Hours)• Elementary Statistics (3)Social and Behavioral Science (9 Hours)• Principles of Microeconomics (3)• Principles of Macroeconomics (3)• One additional non-economics social science course (3)Humanities and Fine Arts (9 Hours)• One Humanities course (3)• One Fine Arts Course (3)• One Humanities or Fine Arts Course (3)Physical and Life Sciences (7 Hours)[One science must have a lab]• Life Science (3-4)• Physical Science (3-4)
Degree RequirementsStudents must meet all university and college requirements for a bachelor's degree as specified in the GSU catalog.II. Additional CBPA Requirements (9 hours)• MGMT 3210 Business Ethics and Social Responsibility (3)• MIS 2101 Basics of Information Technology (3)• STAT 2700 Statistics for Management I (3)• MIS Collegial Proficiency Exams (70% or higher score on all prior to 2nd semester)III. Program Requirements (42 Hours)• ACCT 2110 Financial Accounting (3)• ACCT 2111 Managerial Accounting (3)• BLAW 2100 Business Law I (3)• ENTR 3100 Principles of Entrepreneurship (3)• FIN 3110 Principles of Financial Management (3)• MGMT 2100 Introduction to Management Strategies (3)• MGMT 3200 Business Communications (3)• MGMT 3300 Human Resource Management (3)• MGMT 3400 Production and Operations Management (3)• MGMT 4500 Organizational Behavior (3)• MGMT 4600 Globalization of Business (3)• MIS 3101 Management Information Systems (3)• MKTG 2100 Introduction to Marketing Management (3)• MGMT 4900 Strategic Management (Capstone) (3)IV. Applied Science Courses (24 Hours)These courses are transferred from your A.A.S. degree V. Electives (8 Hours)Must be 3000 or 4000 level courses offered by CBPATotal - 120 Hours [37 General Education and 83 Program Requirements]


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These are the bookings recorded for the Doris C. Gravat Detention Center for May 1. Some of the people listed may not have actually spent time in jail if they posted bond and were released. Although those listed have been arrested and charged, that does not mean they have been found guilty. All bookings may be viewed online by visiting www.aikenstandard.com and clicking on the Crime tab.
Jermaine Daniel Wooden, 33 failure to pay two counts, violation of probation
Christopher Ray Pardue, 26 entering premises after warning or refusing to leave on request
Rickey Joey Dean Anderson Jr., 19 trespassing unlawful entry into enclosed place
Kirk Adam Toole, 25 trespassing unlawful entry into enclosed places
Charlton Gerard Mixon, 30 assault and battery third degree
Aaron Justin Williams, 22 driving without a license first offense bench warrant
Aimen Elroy Stewart, 18 simple possession of marijuana
Edward Junior Johnson, 39 assault and battery third degree, failure to comply
Fernandez Mandez Allen Jr., 42 malicious injury to a tree, house trespassing upon real property injury value $2,000
Donald Ray Gibbs II, 32 breach of trust with fraudulent intent value $2,000 or less
Bryan Lanell Greene, 37 failure to appear family court bench warrant
Lennie Vantravis Williams, 29 pointing and presenting firearms at a person, possession of a firearm or ammunition by a person convicted of a violent felony three counts, distribute, sell, manufacture or possession with intent to distribute near a school or park six counts, manufacture or possession of other substance in schedule I, II, III or flunitrazepam six counts, possession of other controlled substance in schedule I to V second offense or subsequent four counts, distribution of marijuana third offense or subsequent
Rudolph Keith Scott, 22 driving under suspension third offense sentence
Zacharias Edgar Scott, 20 criminal sexual conduct with a minor or attempted with a victim 11 to 14 years of age
Myajean Miles, 18 possession of other controlled substance first offense four counts, obstructing justice, possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance two count, operating a stash house, possession with intent to distribute marijuana with ½ mile of a park, possession with intent to distribute marijuana
Stephen Mark Hughes Jr., 25 use of a vehicle without permission for temporary purpose only, use of an automobile without permission
Gabrielle Lauren Skillman, 22 shoplifting less than $2,000
Amber Lee Boyd, 22 shoplifting less than $2,000
Mary Louise Salley, 50 possession of crack cocaine bondsman off bond
Johnny Lee Pittman, 60 failure to appear and pay as ordered
Lesley Ranae Slusher, 39 financial transaction card theft, financial transaction fraud value $500 or less in a six month period four counts
Deborah Kay Russo, 58 assault and battery third degree
Rashad Antowinne Edmonds, 24 no South Carolina drivers license, failure to acquire tag, operating an uninsured vehicle
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By Mark Krug, NJCAA Assistant Executive Director
NOTE: As part of the ongoing celebration of its 75th Anniversary, the national headquarters of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) will release nine insightful articles during the 2012-13 academic year that will make up the NJCAA 75th Anniversary Feature Series. Below is the fifth in the series, which can also be found in the January issue of NJCAA Review.
Also, a special 75th Anniversary Q&A feature with several individuals that currently help make the NJCAA's Division I Men's Basketball Championship Tournament such a success compliments this month's Feature Series.
As the United States of America entered one of its most defining eras, so too did the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). The organization suspended all activity from 1943-45 due to World War II, but athletics at two-year colleges did not cease, especially the sport of basketball.
By spring of 1945 the mere existence of the NJCAA was in question. Would the organization reorganize and emerge again? Out West one man wanted to make sure it did.
Compton College (Calif.) athletic director Earle J. Holmes was one of the founders of the NJCAA and wanted to see the organization reaffirm itself as servicemen returned from war and began enrolling in community colleges. In February of 1945 he invited administrators from many colleges that were previously active in the NJCAA, as well as their basketball teams, to his campus for the Western States College Basketball Tournament. The goal was to get excitement back into two-year college athletics and to his credit the NJCAA was given new life following this event.
Two years later, after large crowds gathered and enthusiasm for two-year college basketball increased, the NJCAA emerged when President P.F. Wilhelmsen of Sequoias College (Calif.) called a special meeting, with the blessing of Holmes, at the 1947 Western States College Basketball Tournament in Compton. The meeting produced a regional and national tournament framework for the first NJCAA Basketball Championship Tournament.
The task of finding a willing and appropriate host for the NJCAA's first national championship basketball tournament fell on new NJCAA President E.P. Coleman of Wentworth Military Academy (Mo.). The goal was to have the tournament staged in a basketball-friendly city in the central part of the United States so teams could have an easier time traveling to the event. Coleman negotiated and secured the field house on the campus of Southwest Missouri State College in Springfield to host the first national championship basketball tournament of the NJCAA in early March of 1948.
Success was nowhere to be found leading up to, during and after the inaugural NJCAA Basketball Championship Tournament. Several qualifying teams backed out due to travel costs and replacement teams were filing the bracket on a daily basis – so much so that the Springfield newspaper stopped printing the bracket due to the revolving door of teams.
Despite hosting the Missouri state high school championships earlier in the month, attendance throughout the tournament in Springfield was dreadful, which in turn resulted in a tremendous amount of financial debt for the NJCAA as ticket sales were expected to cover all operational expenses. As a result, the Chamber of Commerce and officials at Southwest Missouri State were not interested in making the tournament an annual event in Springfield. Luckily, someone else saw the tournament's potential.
Charles Sesher, athletic director at Hutchinson Junior College (Kan.), attended the first national tournament in Springfield with the goal of lobbying the powers that be to have his school host a future region tournament. Yet, by the time he left Springfield he was convinced Hutchinson was where the national tournament needed to be held. He went back to Hutchinson and convinced civic leaders in the Chamber of Commerce as well as the administration at HJC that staging the tournament in Hutchinson would yield big things for all involved. Sesher succeeded, but the NJCAA needed a $5,500 commitment upfront to avoid the financial problems it experienced in Springfield and the Chamber and HJC had no resources to give to this cause.
Sesher then turned to the area's local Lysle Rishel Post 68 of the American Legion due to its community involvement and deep pockets. Sesher sold its membership, made up of recent World War II veterans, on the benefits of hosting the tournament and by May of 1949 the NJCAA had publically announced that Hutchinson, Kansas was the site for the 1949 NJCAA Basketball Championship Tournament.
Supporters of the tournament's arrival in Hutchinson knew one way the event would garner immediate local support was if their beloved Blue Dragons were to qualify. However, the 1949 HJC squad fell short and finished fourth in Region 6.
When other regional tournaments completed in February of 1949, one issue that was coming into play again was the distance some teams were going to have to travel in order to participate. One team in particular, Region 16 champion Ricker Junior College of Houlton, Maine, was set to endure over 1,600 miles en route to Hutchinson. Ricker contacted tourney officials that the distance was too great and they would not be participating.
Successful ideas sometimes begin with a bit of luck, and for the NJCAA Basketball Championship Tournament the void in the 1949 bracket due to Ricker's withdrawal was exactly that. The empty spot in the tournament's field needed to be occupied immediately, and through an agreement and blessing of NJCAA officials, the Blue Dragons of Hutchinson Junior College were invited to complete the bracket. With the local team participating and advancing to the national title game, attendance and enthusiasm for the tournament surpassed expectations and left the Hutchinson community wanting more. After the conclusion of the '49 tournament a special relationship between the city of Hutchinson and the NJCAA had been established and the future of both entities would never be the same.
In his book "The JUCO Classic: 40 Years of the NJCAA Tournament," Michael Johnson's sentiment's put the mood of the relationship best – "In May 1948 a dying tournament stumbled into new life when enterprising men from Hutchinson, Kansas, offered to take the risk of playing host to it. With the good fortune of an unbelievable Cinderella performance, the tournament survived. Hutchinson fans witnessing the event would never forget its excitement. They were hooked…..The NJCAA Basketball Tournament had a home."
Successful and profitable tournaments in 1950 and '51 spurred the NJCAA's Executive Committee to commit to a five-year contract to Hutchinson and American Legion, which allowed the event to garner a dedicated fan base.
In addition, leaders and citizens of Hutchinson sent the NJCAA a clear message that they were committed to the organization and the tournament when they passed a $1 million dollar bond measure for the construction of a new field house in November 1950.
"The construction and opening of the Sports Arena was a great source of community pride and remains so today," explained Joe O'Sullivan who has served over 30 years on the American Legion's tournament committee and currently is tournament director. "When it opened in 1952 the Sports Arena was the second largest basketball arena in the state, right behind the recently constructed Allen Fieldhouse (University of Kansas)."
Over time, the outpouring of support for the tournament in the area was in large part due to the local college's success in the event. Throughout the first two decades of the tournament, the Blue Dragons of HJC qualified eight times. The success of the Blue Dragons, including great teams led by legendary coaches Sam Butterfield and Gene Keady, gave the tournament a firm foundation and passionate fan base that led to six decades of success.
In addition to potentially witnessing the Blue Dragons win a national championship, fans were also packing the Sports Arena each March to watch some of the best basketball players in the nation.
"By the late 1960s and early '70s, the opportunity to see some of the best undiscovered talent in the country joined the list as to why people stood in line in the snow to get tickets," said Johnson. "For example, 16 players that participated in the '69 tournament alone were eventually drafted in the pros and nine had distinguished pro careers."
Looking back at the rosters of teams that participated in the tournament over the event's history grabs the attention of any casual basketball fan. Coaches like Floyd Wagstaff (Tyler JC, Texas), Allen Bradfield (Vincennes Univ., Ind.), Joe O'Brien (Southeastern CC, Iowa), Ronnie Arrow (San Jacinto, Texas), Gene Keady (Hutchinson JC), Cotton Fitzsimmons (Moberly JC, Mo.), Nolan Richardson (Western Texas), Gene Bess (Three Rivers CC, Mo.) and Dick Baldwin (Broome Tech, N.J.) instructed or battled against talented players like Bobby Joe Hill (Burlington JC, Iowa), Doug Pendygraft (Lindsey Wilson, Kent.), Artis Gilmore (Gardner-Webb, N.C.), Larry Knight (Ellsworth CC, Iowa), Vinnie Johnson (McLennan CC, Texas), Spud Webb (Midland, Texas), Mitch Richmond (Moberly JC, Mo.), Walter Berry (San Jacinto, Texas), Paul Pressey (Western Texas), Shawn Marion (Vincennes Univ., Ind.) and Armon Gilliam (Independence CC, Kan.).
Hundreds of coaches and thousands of players have showcased their talents in front of sellout crowds that to this day keep coming back to the Sports Arena to see the best teams in the NJCAA compete for a national championship.
"Since my involvement with the tournament, I have watched many outstanding players," said Jerry Kershaw, who has served as the play-by-play voice of the tournament on Hutchinson's KWBW Radio since 1964. "Hutchinson fans have relished the opportunity to see players that participate in the tournament move on to major NCAA programs and the NBA. During the past 15- 20 years, nearly 55 players each year have moved on to play major college basketball."
One of the main objectives of the starting a national championship basketball tournament for the NJCAA, according to NJCAA leadership in the 1940s, was to "stimulate an increased amount of interest in the NJCAA from junior colleges located in all areas of the United States." Membership in the NJCAA was near 200 member colleges when the first tournament tipped off in Springfield in 1948. Just 15 years later membership in the NJCAA swelled to 329 member colleges and today it stands at over 500 member colleges in 43 states. The driving force behind the initial growth was the success and notoriety of the organization's national basketball tournament in Hutchinson.
The consistent success of the tournament has also yielded great financial revenue for the NJCAA, which is reinvested back into the organization. The tireless efforts of the American Legion and their volunteers over the past six decades has guided the tournament into a profitable venture for the NJCAA, which has helped spur growth and development of other sports the association sponsors as well as financed key initiatives of the organization for six decades.
"I think the time was right and many factors came together in order for the tournament to be a success," said O'Sullivan. "Leadership was one of them. It was a time when the Greatest Generation had just returned from World War II. These were men (and women) who were disciplined, goal oriented, confident in themselves, highly trained and experienced. Through the American Legion they identified with this project where they collectively worked for the benefit of a community."
In 1969, the NJCAA hired its first executive director, George E. Killian, established its national office in Hutchinson and conducted all business of the association there until 1985. Knowing that the long-term health of the NJCAA depended upon the tournament's success, Killian worked tirelessly with local officials and administrators at Hutchinson Junior College (by then Hutchinson Community College) to improving the tournament.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, members of Hutchinson's Lysle Rishel Post 68 of the American Legion continued their commitment to the tournament, making sure the day-today operations of the event went on without major incidents. Bob Gilliand, Bud Obee, Guy Holt, Al Wagler, Clark Wesley, Tom Westfall, Jerry Ricksecker and Joe O'Sullivan have led the efforts of hundreds of American Legion volunteers as chairmen and directors of the tournament since 1949. Their dedication, hard work and selfless investments into the tournament has in turn made the city of Hutchinson a mecca for college basketball.
"The tournament is as much a part of the fiber of Hutchinson as the Empire State Building is to New York City or the Golden Gate Bridge is to San Francisco," explained Hutchinson Sports Information Director Steve Carpenter. "As much as players, coaches and teams… the volunteers, American Legion guys and others, make this tournament special. As long as this group runs the day-to-day operations, the tournament will continue to be unique and special."
The tournament, now known as the NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship, started out as a mere experiment. After staging a few national championship track and field meets, could the NJCAA stage and organize a national basketball tournament? Was there interest? Could the NJCAA attain more members through basketball? Most importantly, was there a city or community willing to invest in the NJCAA and its future?
After six decades of success, it is easy to answer these questions. The struggles, stresses and hard work of the event's founders are too often overshadowed by the glory and success of recent tournaments. As the NJCAA celebrates its 75th Anniversary it is important to remember that the success of the NJCAA today is a dividend on the investment made by the people and community of Hutchinson, Kansas. For if it was not for the success of the basketball tournament it agreed to host in 1949, the NJCAA as we know it likely would not exist.
"The NJCAA and Hutchinson will always have a special relationship," stressed current NJCAA Executive Director Mary Ellen Leicht. "The city and everyone involved with the tournament, especially the American Legion and Hutchinson Community College, helped build and shape the NJCAA into what it is today."