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Treatment of flocculatable industrial wastes with effective amounts of polyquaternary polymers obtained by reaction of a difunctional epoxy type reactant with a secondary amine to a solution viscosity above a minimum value provides improved processing of the wastes.
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United States Patent Panzer et a1.
m1 3,894,947 [451 July 15, 1975 PROCESS FOR TREATING INDUSTRIAL WASTES Inventors: Hans Peter Panzer, Stamford.
Conn.; Kenneth Wayne Dixon, Ypsilanti, Mich.
Assignee: American Cyanamid Company,
Stamford, Conn.
Filed: Feb. 25, 1974 Appl. N0.: 445,400
Related US. Application Data Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 347,274, April 2, 1973, abandoned, which is a division of Ser. No. 233,622, Feb. 4, 1972, Pat. No. 3,738,945, which is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 115,556, Feb. 16, 1971, abandoned.
US. Cl. 210/54 Int. Cl. C02B l/20 Field of Search 210/10, 47, 52-54;
References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 9/1939 Ulrich et a1 260/247 2,753,372 7/1956 Lundberg 260/501 3,240,721 3/1966 Fordyce 260/2 3,259,570 7/1966 Priesing et a1. 210/53 3,403,114 9/1968 Vandenberg 210/54 X 3,493,502 2/1970 Coscia 210/54 3,567,659 3/1971 Nagy 260/2 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLlCATlONS 1,111,144 7/1961 Germany Primary ExaminerTh0mas G. Wyse Attorney, Agent, or Firm-William J. van L00 5 Claims, N0 Drawings 1 PROCESS FOR TREATING INDUSTRIAL WASTES This is a continuation-in-part of our copending application Ser. No. 347,274, filed Apr. 1973 and now abandoned, which, in turn, is a division of our application Ser. No. 233,622, filed Feb. 4, 1972 and now US. Pat. No. 3,738,945, issued June 12. 1973. which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 115,556. filed Feb. 16, 1971, now abandoned.
This invention relates to a process of flocculating industrial wastes. More particularly, this invention relates to such a process wherein flocculatable industrial wastes, are treated with an effective amount of a polyquaternary polymer obtained from reaction of an epoxy type compound with a lower dialkylamine whereby a polymer is obtained having a solution viscosity of at least 100 centistokes at C. as a 37 percent solids aqueous solution based on the cationic portion of the polyquaternary.
Industries whose wastes cause difficulties are numerous and are increasing in number and size. The problem in the disposal of industrial waste are increasing to such an extent that special knowledge of the industrial processes is necessary for their solution, In many communities, the industries cooperate with municipal authorities to alleviate the waste disposal problems. In some instances, industrial wastes are treated to the major extent by industry while in other instances the major extent of treatment is carried out by the municipality. Thus, developments in treating industrial wastes may be of interest to industry, to municipalities, or to both.
Various treatments have been developed by dealing with industrial wastes. These treatments can be summarized as follows:
1. Remove sizeable suspended solids by screening or settling;
2. Remove fats, oils, and greasy solids by flotation and skimming procedures, aided in some cases by chemical treatment;
3. Remove colloidal solids by flocculation with chemical coagulants and electrolytes, followed by settling and possibly filtration;
4. Neutralize excessive acidity or alkalinity by addition of chemicals;
5. Remove or stabilize dissolved solids by chemical precipitation, or biological processes, or combination of both;
6. Decolorize by chemical treatment, with settling or filtration, simgly or in combination; and
7. Reoxygenate the wastes by suitable aeration methods. These particular methods of treatment are of varying degrees of success depending upon the specific industrial waste being treated, the most methods, more effective processing would be a significant advance in the art.
The process of the present invention is directed particularly to flocculation of industrial wastes, the treatment dealt with under (3) above. In order to apply flocculation to the treatment of industrial wastes, of course, it is necessary that the waste contain flocculatable solids that are advantageously removed. The flocculatable solids may be initially present in the wastes or may arise as a result of primary treatment of the wastes.
From the standpoint of disposing of industrial wastes, therefore, flocculation of aqueous dispersions is an important operation. An aqueous dispersion, as that term is employed, is intended to mean a system having two phases, one of which is a continuous outer aqueous phase regardless of whether the disperse or phases are suspensions of five particles or much larger particles. The term is applicable to industrial waste and is inclusive of mashes from fermentation processes for producing enzymes and the like, ilmenite digestion liquors, paper-making wastes, clay dispersions, iron ore slimes, laundry wastes, and the like as well as to other industrial wastes which have gone through some primary treatment which gives rise to flocculatable systems.
The physical properties that are responsible for effective performance of various flocculants are not precisely known and, therefore, are not predictable. There is no good correlation between property modifications that result in more effective performance with one flocculant type and those properties modifications that result in more effective performance with another flocculant type. Although some physical properties are shared be certain effective flocculants, the effect of variation of individual properties thereof does not appear to have been investigated to any great extent nor do the results of limited investigations lead to any consistant conclusions.
German Auslegeschrift, 1,1 11,144, July 20. l96l, produces a polyquaternary by reacting dimethylamine with epichlorohydrin. The product is obtained by a cold reactant addition stage in a dilute aqueous medium followed by a staged heating procedure and is described as a treating agent for dyed materials or as a dyeing assistant. No suggestion of use as a flocculant is made. The products are of low molecular weight as reflected in a viscosity when measured on the Gardner- I-ioldt scale at 25C. and at 37 percent solids, by weight, based on the cationic portion of the polyquaternary compound, of centistokes or less. While subsequent evaluation of the products as flocculants has shown some efficiency, the efficiency is considerably less than the polyquaternaries of the present invention and such evaluation was not suggested in the publication cited. The inventors of the German Auslegeschrift apparently were unaware of methods of increasing molecular weight of the polymer and, since the polymers they obtained were satisfactory for the use intended, were content not to go beyond the extent of polymerization actually achieved.
US. Pat. No. 2,454,547, Bock et al., Nov. 23, I948 discloses preparation of polyquaternary compounds by reaction of secondary amines with epichlorohydrin. The compounds obtained are surface active and of such low molecular weight as not to be considered for use as flocculants. The compounds are prepared by use of expensive solvents, which use increases product costs and requires additional processing steps for solvent recovery.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,259,570, July 5, 1966, Priesing et al., discloses a polymer prepared from equimolar quantities of epichlorohydrin and dimethylamine and in addition 13 percent by weight of tetraethylenepentamine, the particular method by which the polymer is obtained is not stated and it can only be presumed to have been made by procedures known in the prior art. Performance of the polymer alone in conjunction with an anaerobically digested sludge, however, as shown in Table 3 of the patent, indicates that it is of low molecular weight.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a process for flocculating flocculatable industrial wastes which are in the form of aqueous dispersions having negative charges which process comprises adding to the dispersion an effective amount of a waterdispersible polyquaternary polymer of essentially linear structure consisting essentially of the difunctional reaction product of a lower dialkylamine and a difunctional epoxy compound selected from the group consisting of epihalohydrins, diepoxides, precursors of epihalohydrins, and diepoxides which under alkaline conditions are readily converted into the corresponding epoxy compounds, and mixtures thereof, said polyquaternary polymer containing repeating units of wherein R and R are individually selected from the group consisting of alkyls of l to 3 carbon atoms; E is a residue obtained from said epoxy compound; the total amounts of reactants being substantially equimolar, the combination of which is such as to provide a polyquaternary compound which is such as to provide a polyquaternary compound which is a 37 percent aqueous solution, by weight, based on the cationic portion of said polyquaternary compound has a viscosity at C. of at least 100 centistokes; and X represents an ion forming the anionic portion of said polyquaternary; and thereafter removing water from the dispersion.
The present process is outstanding in performance in the flocculation of various flocculatable industrial wastes and has a widely diversified range of utility. The high efficiency of the process not only enables greater solids removal to be effected but allows desirable removal to be achieved a lower flocculant usages than is conventionally required.
The polyquaternary compounds of the present process, being the result of a polymerization reaction, are not obtained as simple single substances. Instead, the products are obtained as a mixture varying in molecular weight as to individual species. Complication characterization of the polymeric materials is the fact that ionic polyquaternary compounds are involved and characterization is influenced by the anionic portions present. To avoid these various problems, viscosity of aqueous solutions of the polyquaternary compounds is determined at concentrations expressed in terms exclusive of the anionic portion thereof to characterize the polymers and this property is known to correlate well with molecular weight of polymers. Throughout the specification and claims, therefore, the viscosity measurement reported is made at 25C. in aqueous medium at 37 percent polymer solids, by weight, based on the total weight of the cationic portion of the polyquaternary compound, that is to say the polymeric material minus its associated anion.
The preparing the various products of the present invention epoxy type reactants are employed. Epihalohydrins are used and are intended to include epichlorohydrin and epibromohydrin, for example. Longer chain epihalohydrins may also be used. Epichlorohydrin is preferred both from economic and reactivity aspects. Diepoxides, such as l,4-butanediol-diglycidyl ether, a
preferred diepoxide, are also useful. It is to be noted that epihalohydrins and diepoxides are bifunctional in reaction and this permits formation of essentially linear polymers. Precursors for epihalohydrins and diepoxides are also useful. For example, 1,3- dichloropropanoI-2, a precursor for epichlorohydrin, may be used. Similarly, I ,4-dichloro-2,3- dihydroxybutane, the precursor for l ,3- butanediepoxide, may.also be used. These precursors are readily converted into corresponding epoxy compounds under alkaline conditions and thus are generally employed under alkaline conditions in the present preparations. Mixtures of the various epoxy type reactants may also be employed. In forming the polymer chain, the amount of epoxy type compound should be substantially equimolar in amount to the amount of dialkylamine usage.
Secondary amines useful in the preparations of the present invention include dimethylamine, preferred, diethylamine, dipropylamines, and secondary amines containing mixtures of alkyl groups having I to 3 carbon atoms. Secondary amines of higher carbon atom contents are generally sluggish in reaction due to steric effects of the substituents present therein. Thus, such amines not only require unduly long reaction times but may also interfere with quaternary formation. Mixtures of the amines recited above may also be employed. It is to be noted that secondary amines are bifunctional in reaction with the bifunctional epoxy type reactants, a first function provided by the hydrogen atom and a second function involving quaternarization of the nitrogen atom. Since a secondary amine is employed in the preparation, the polymer obtained by use of difunctional epoxy type compound can only be linear in structure.
The carrying out the reaction of epoxy type compound with secondary amine, addition of the reactants may be in either order, i.e., the epoxy type compound may be added to the amine or the amine may be added to the epoxy type compound. Water is essential in preparing the reaction mixture and the amount of water present is critical. Generally, the amount of water present will be in the range of about 10 percent to about 55 percent, by weight, based on the total weight of reactants and water. Absence of water presents problems in controlling the reaction and some water is necessary to effect reaction. The amount of water present also influences the degree of polymerization effected, as reflected in solution viscosity of the resulting polyquaternary compound, lower amounts of water resulting in polyquaternary compounds of higher solution viscosities at equal solids of the cationic portion of the polyquaternary compound. Thus, the ultimate degree of polymerization obtained in a given preparation will be influenced by the amount of water present in the reaction mixture, and for products of high solution viscosities in water at 37 percent solids, by weight, based on the total weight of the cationic portion of the polyquaternary, it is essential that the amount of water present in the reaction mixture be limited, as indicated to avoid premature termination of the growing polymers chain by cyclization and hydrolysis occasioned by excessive water usage. In preferred instances, the amount of water present will be in the range of about 15 to 45 percent water, by weight, based on the total weight of reactants and water. In addition to water as the reaction medium, there may be used a water soluble alcohol in place of part of the water contemplated. It is generally preferred to use water alone, however, from an economic viewpoint.
The reaction of an epoxy type compound with secondary amine, such as dimethylamine is exothermic, for example, the reaction of epichlorohydrin with dimethylamine is exothermic to the extent of about 40 kilocalories per mole of epichlorohydrin initially employed. Accordingly, some care should be exercised to control the temperature during preparation of the reaction mixture. Use of water, as described above, is helpful. In addition, the rate of addition of reactants should be such as to keep the temperature in the range of about C. to about 70C. The addition may be of secondary amine to epoxy type compound dispersed or dissolved in water, of secondary amine dissolved in water to epoxy type compound, of epoxy type compound to amine dissolved in water, or any other suitable ramification of the additions recited.
After the reaction mixture has been obtained, the reaction should be allowed to proceed at a suitable temperature until a polyquaternary compound is obtained which, as a 37 percent aqueous solution by weight, based on the total solids of the cationic portion of the polyquaternary compound has a viscosity of at least I00 centistokes at C. In general, higher temperatures permit somewhat more rapid reaction, but the reaction of secondary amine and epoxy type compound is quite rapid at about 50C. and so temperatures from about C. to 70C. constitute a preferred practical range. High Viscosities, i.e. in excess of 150 centistokes, under the same conditions of measurement, are possible since polyquaternary compounds are water soluble even at relatively high viscosities.
The amount of a particular polymer which is to be used depends on the nature of the aqueous dispersion in which it is to be used. Relatively small amounts can be used for the flocculation of colloidal clays. The amount of flocculant needed is generally very moderate and less than with prior art flocculants. The volume of the aqueous dispersion treated can be so enormous as to require very large quantities of the polyquaternary compounds of the present invention. Aqueous dispersions, such as enzyme mashes, ilmenite digestion liquors, and paper-making wastes represent dispersions having a much higher content of the disperse phase, and the flocculation of such dispersions requires larger amounts of flocculant, but the increased efficiency of the products of the present invention as compared with currently used cationic flocculants still holds. It should be noted that the disperse phase is not necessarily a single kind of solid. For example, in paper wastes, the disperse may be solids with quite large particle size, much larger than the fine suspension of solids in the case of certain mining operations.
In all of the examples which follow, the parts are by weight unless otherwise specified and the water is deionized water. Also where solids or polymer solids are referred to, they are by weight, based on the weight of the cationic portion of the polyquaternary compound and not the total weight of the polymer including anion. Viscosities are determined by the Gardner-Holtz procedure.
EXAMPLE 1 In order to demonstrate the improved efficiency in settling iron ore slimes, the following test procedure was employed:
One liter samples of the test slime are placed in a sixplace laboratory stirrer and stirredat I00 rpm for l minute. A predetermined amount of flocculant to be tested in 25 milliliters of deionized water is then added to a sample. The sample is stirred at 80 rpm for 2 minutes and the stirrer turned off to allow the slime to settle. The height of the slime layer (lower portion in the graduate) is measured after l and I0 minutes. The turbidity in Jackson Units of the supernatant liquor is also determined after 10 minutes of settling.
Using this procedure, two flocculants were evaluated along with a control slime containing no flocculant both flocculants being the reaction product of dimetylamine and epichlorohydrin. A polyquaternary of the present invention having a solution viscosity of 235 centistokes at 25C. as a 37 percent solution based on the cationic portion of the polymer was employed at l and 2.5 parts per million real polymer solids based on the total amount of slime taken. As a comparative flocculant the product of German Auslegeschrift 1,111,144 was evaluated at l, 2.5, and 5 parts per million real polymer solids based on the total amount of slime taken. This product had a solution viscosity of centistokes at 25C. as a 37 percent solution based on the cationic portion of the polymer. The results obtained are given in Table I.
The results show that a polyquaternary of the present invention is more effective at low usage than is the prior art polyquaternary.
EXAMPLE 2 In order to demonstrate the improved efficiency of products of the present invention as filter aids in treating coal washings associated with processing bituminous coal the following procedure was used.
To a 2-liter pail is added 1,500 cc. of the coal washings under test, which comprise the effluent from initially flocculated washings. The effluent from the initial flocculation produces washings containing from 5 to 25 percent solids, which solids consist of about 40 percent fine bituminous coal and about 60 percent noncombustible inorganic matter such as clay and various silicates. An anionic flocculant a copolymer of percent acrylamaide and 30 percent acrylic acid, is added as a 03 percent aqueous solution to provide parts per million in the effluent under test. The effluent is then mixed for 1 minute to distribute the anionic flocculant therein and then filtered using a Dorr type 01 square foot filter leaf using a polypropylene cloth filter medium. Filtration time is for 35 seconds. The volume of filtrate is measured.
The above procedure is repeated except that after the anionic flocculant is mixed in the effluent under test, there is added .in separate runs sufficient of the polyquaternary polymers used in Example 1. Both polyquaternaries increase the volume of filtrate obtained with anionic polymer alone by at least 50 percent, but the polyquaternary of the present invention shows increased efficiency over that of the product of German Auslegeschrift 1,111,144 by at least 10 percent.
EXAMPLE 3 This example illustrates the effectiveness of the polymers of the present invention in treating waste water from a paper-making plant.
In carrying out the evaluation ofa flocculant in treating such waste waters, an effective amount of flocculant is added to the waste water to settle the suspended solids, The settled solids are separated by centrifugation and the quantity of filtrate obtained is measured.
In a laboratory experiment, 0.2 grams of flocculant on a real basis is added to 100 milliliters of suspension, the mixture is stirred to obtain uniformity and then a millimeter aliquot is placed in a centrifuge tube. Centrifugation is carried out at full speed for about 6 minutes after which time the volume of supernatant liquor is measured. As a control, a suspension containing no flucculant is evaluated and in such case the volume of supernatant liquor is typically 0.1 to 0.2 milliliters.
Evaluating the polyquaternaries as in Example 1, it is found that a volume of supernatant liquor in excess of 5 millimeters is obtained in both cases but that the polyquaternary of the present invention shows at least 10 percent greater volume than the product of the German Auslegeschrift.
We claim:
1. A process for flocculating flocculatable industrial wastes which are in the form of aqueous dispersions having negative charges which process comprises adding to the dispersion an effective amount of a waterdispersible polyquaternary polymer of essentially linear structure comprising the difunctional reaction product of dimethylamine and a difunctional epoxy compound selected from the group consisting of epihalohydrins and precursors of epihalohydrins which under alkaline conditions are readily converted into the corresponding epoxy compounds, and mixtures thereof, said poly quaternary polymer containing repeating units of wherein R and R are each methyl; E is a residue obtained from said epoxy compound; the total amounts of reactants being substantially equimolar, the combination of which is such as to provide a polyquaternary compound which as a 37 percent aqueous solution, by weight, based on the cationic portion of said polyquaternary compound has a viscosity of at least centistokes; and X represents an ion forming the anionic portion of said polyquaternary; and thereafter removing water from the dispersion.
2. The process of claim 1 wherein the solution viscosity is at least centistokes.
3. The process of claim 1 wherein the solution viscosity is at least 200 centistokes.
4. The process of claim 1 wherein the industrial waste is an iron ore slime.
5. The process of claim 1 wherein the industrial waste is a coal washing.
UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 5,69%,947 Dated J ly 5, 975
Inventor(5) HANS PETER PANZER and KENNETH WAYNE DIXON It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said'Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:
Column 6, line 19, the word "dimetylamine" should read dimethylamine Column 6, Table I, last column, "TU" should read JTU Signed and Scaled this sixth D y of January 1976 [SEAL] Arrest:
RUTHC.MASON C.MARSHALLDANN Arresting Officer Commissioner uj'PaIents and Trademarks
Citas de patentes
Citada por
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ASUS PadFone X (AT&T) Review
Combines two devices in one; Impressive value; Slick Dynamic Display feature; Above average tablet battery life; Strong performance
Below-average smartphone battery life; Bezel on tablet too large; Performance trails flagship Android devices
ASUS' PadFone X is an innovative and affordable hybrid that doubles as smartphone and tablet, but it's better in the former mode.
ASUS' new PadFone X for AT&T is the Voltron of mobile devices. The first ASUS handset to land on a major U.S. carrier since the ill-fated Garminphone, the PadFone is a standard 5-inch Android smartphone. But strap this device into its included 9-inch tablet dock, and you've got a fully functioning slate. What's more, both the handset and tablet sport crisp, full-HD displays. At just $199 with a two-year contract through AT&T, the PadFone X is an intriguing device at an aggressive price. Despite some flaws, this is one combo device that's worth checking out.
As a standalone smartphone, the 5-inch PadFone X' design is attractively low key. Its matte black, soft-touch rear panel gives the handset a comfortable grip. Its faux-metal plastic edges help give the phone a touch of panache. The center of the back panel has a grey AT&T logo, while the lower portion sports an inlaid Padfone emblem. At the top of the phone's rear is its 13-megapixel PixelMaster Camera.
There are no physical buttons on the handset's face, as ASUS instead uses onscreen Android controls. On the device's left edge are its power button and volume rocker. The top edge is home to a 3.5mm jack, while the bottom includes the handset's microUSB port and two slots for connecting the PadFone to its tablet dock.
Measuring 5.7 x 2.9 x 0.39 inches and weighing 5.5 ounces, the PadFone X is nearly the same size and weight as the 5-inch HTC One M8, which measures 5.8 x 2.8 x 0.37 inches and weighs 5.6 ounces. That's a bit heavy considering the M8 sports an all-aluminum frame, while the PadFone is made of plastic. Samsung's Galaxy S5 undercuts both the PadFone and One M8, measuring 5.3 x 2.9 x 0.25 inches and weighing just 5.1 ounces, despite its slightly larger, 5.1-inch display.
Padfone X Station Tablet Dock
The PadFone X's tablet dock is called the PadFone X Station. This device looks similar to most Android tablets, but there are two notable differences: First, there's a bulging cradle on its rear panel for docking the phone. Second, the X Station's face features a 9-inch display surrounded by an oddly thick bezel (about 1 inch).
On the slate's right and left sides you'll find a pair of matching, front-facing speakers. Above the tablet's display is its 1-megapixel camera. Along its left edge are a microUSB port and a volume rocker. The X Station's power button is situated on the device's top edge.
When docked with its X Station, the PadFone X grows to 9.9 x 6.8 x 0.46 inches and 1.4 pounds. That's significantly larger than the $499 Apple iPad Air, which measures 9.4 x 6.6 x 0.29 inches and weighs 1.1 pounds. The $399 iPad with Retina display comes in at 9.5 x 7.3 x 0.37 inches and 1.4 pounds.
The PadFone's 5-inch, 1920 x 1080 LED resolution display offers crystal-clear but somewhat dim visuals. When we watched the trailer for "Guardians of the Galaxy," Gamora's green skin popped while explosions from an aerial battle ripped across a beautiful azure sky. Text and images looked equally impressive.
At 338 nits, the PadFone's display brightness falls below the category average of 350 nits. The HTC One M8's 5-inch screen (368 nits) and the Galaxy S5's 5.1-inch panel (373 nits) are considerably brighter, giving videos and images a more vibrant look.
The PadFone X displays 96.5 percent of the sRGB color gamut. (Closer to 100 percent is better.) That's lower than the category average of 119 percent. The One M8 displayed 115 percent of the standard, while the Galaxy S5 displayed 158 percent, but over 100 percent isn't necessarily better.
Colors on the PadFone were slightly inaccurate, with the handset's display recording a Delta-E score of 7.1 (a score of 0 is perfect). That's higher than the smartphone category average of 5.06, as well as the HTC One M8's mark of 4.1. The Galaxy S5 offered a far more impressive rating of 0.9.
The X Station's 9-inch, 1920 x 1200 LED tablet display delivered sharp and bright visuals, with the screen reaching 363 nits versus the category average of 333 nits. The iPad Air, by comparison, measures 352 nits.
However, the PadFone's tablet screen could only display 67.4 percent of the sRGB gamut compared to the category average of 85 percent; the iPad Air hit 99 percent. Still, X Station delivers accurate color, with a near-perfect score of 0.9. That's far better than the category average of 5.44 and the iPad Air's score of 1.4.
If you want to customize the PadFone's display appearance, you can use the included Splendid app to adjust the screen temperature, hue and saturation. We preferred the app's default setting, as it seemed to provide the best viewing experience.
Sound from the PadFone X's rear-mounted speaker was underwhelming to say the least. DJ Snake and Lil' John's "Turn Down for What" lacked any kind of bass, while guitars and snare drum hits in heavier rock songs sounded out of tune. On the Laptop Mag Audio Test, which involves playing a steady tone at a distance of 13 inches, the PadFone X's speakers matched the category average of 80 decibels. This beats out the Galaxy S5, which reached just 73 dB, but it's behind the HTC One M8's powerful 83 dB speakers.
Plug the PadFone X into the X Station tablet dock, and audio performance improves dramatically. Bass hits in "Turn Down for What" were audible, though still not perfect, and guitar riffs rang out cleanly. Like its handset, the PadFone's tablet speakers reached 80 dB on our Laptop Audio Test, beating the category average of 79 dB.
ASUS also included its AudioWizard app, which lets you choose from six audio profiles that adjust overall sound quality. Of the six, we found Music Mode to be the most natural sounding, while Speech Mode sounded the least appealing, making everything overly harsh.
The PadFone X runs a lightly skinned version of Android Kitkat 4.4.2. ASUS' biggest changes to the OS include a modified lock screen, a settings menu and a notifications drawer. The lock screen includes three customizable quick-launch shortcuts for the Camera Mail and Phone apps. Below that is a quick-launch icon for Google Now. In tablet mode, the lock screen is limited to swiping to unlock and the aforementioned Google Now quick-launch icon.
ASUS developed the PadFone X's interface to recognize when the device is being used as a phone or tablet. When it is in phone mode, you can use the PadFone as you would any other Android device. You get a main home screen with a weather widget, Google Search bar and shortcuts for the Mail, Calendar and ISIS apps. Along the bottom are five customizable omnipresent icons for the Phone, Messaging, Apps Drawer, Browser and Camera apps. Beneath those are the handset's onscreen Android Back, Home and Recent Apps buttons.
One-finger swiping down from the top of the screen reveals the PadFone's blue and white notifications drawer. Two-finger swiping down from the top displays the PadFone's quick-settings drawer complete with a display brightness slider and 11 quick settings. Unfortunately, unlike with the Galaxy S5 or HTC One M8, you can't edit or otherwise adjust the PadFone X's quick-settings shortcuts.
In tablet mode, the PadFone X's home screen completely transforms to look like an Android-powered ASUS slate. You get a large desktop with a Google Search bar and weather widget, as well as shortcuts to the Play Store and folders for Google apps, ASUS apps and AT&T apps. Along the bottom of the screen are shortcuts for apps including the Phone, Messaging, Email, Calendar, Apps Drawer, Browser, Gallery, Camera and Settings apps. Below those are the slate's onscreen Android Back, Home and Recent Apps buttons.
Dynamic Display
To make a 2-in-1 device like the PadFone X, ASUS had to do some serious thinking about how apps would transition from phone to tablet mode and back on the fly. That's where the company's Dynamic Display software comes in. The feature manages an app's appearance and functionality by quickly changing its layout from phone to tablet style, depending on how you're using the device(s).
For example, when using the Mail app in smartphone mode, the screen will only show your messages. Drop the handset into the tablet cradle, and you'll be able to view all of your messages and the mailbox sidebar at the same time. It's a slick feature and one that works surprisingly well.
Unfortunately, the PadFone doesn't automatically enable Dynamic Display for all installed apps out of the box. Instead, you have to turn on the option to automatically add apps to the Dynamic Display list in the PadFone's settings menu. It's a minor annoyance, but one that could have been easily avoided. What's more, not all apps work with the feature. Facebook, for example, doesn't switch over to tablet mode when viewed on the slate, but instead stretches out the smartphone version of the app.
We also found that Web browsers such as Chrome and the standard Android browser don't recognize when they are in tablet mode. Instead, they always show the mobile versions of websites regardless of whether you are viewing them on the phone or tablet.
If you want to view a site in desktop mode, you'll have to select the option in your browser's settings. The problem with that solution: You'll still see full sites when you go back to the smartphone, until you disable desktop mode.
Keyboard Dock
If you want to use your PadFone X for business, you can opt to purchase ASUS' available $99 Bluetooth keyboard, which also adds a protective screen cover. At 1.7 pounds, however, this accessory adds a considerable amount of heft to the PadFone X. In fact, with everything combined, the setup tips the scales at 3.1 pounds. What's more, the keyboard doesn't quite sit well when used on your lap, toppling over backwards when the tablet is angled further back.
In terms of the overall typing experience, the PadFone X's keyboard leaves much to be desired. To save on real estate, certain keys (like the comma key) only work when holding down the function button at the same time. In general, we found keyboard to be too cramped for our liking. That said, the unit's clickpad was responsive and far more comfortable to use.
The key travel on the keyboard was 1.5 millimeters, which is average for most laptops. Key actuation required 60 grams of pressure, which is a bit more than the average of 55g.
Camera and Camcorder
A 13-megapixel PixelMaster Camera pulls shooting duty for both the PadFone X's smartphone and tablet. Photos captured using the camera were sharp and full of detail, though colors were too bright. A shot of a flower pot, for example, offered crisp lines along the various flowers' stems and buds, but the plants' purple petals and green leaves looked unnaturally white. A similar photo taken with the Galaxy S5 produced more-accurate colors while offering equally sharp details.
Full-HD videos taken with the PadFone X were clear and colorful, but the amount of lens shake made it look like we were shooting during an earthquake. A video taken at the same time using the Galaxy S5 was far less jumpy.
Thanks to its Snapdragon 800 processor, the PadFone X can shoot 4K videos. Unfortunately, you can't watch those videos on either the smartphone or tablet, as neither can display 4K content. What's more, there's a noticeable amount of jitteriness on 4K videos, as the camera records at just 17-18 frames per second. A standard 1080p video records at 24 fps.
The ASUS' tablet and smartphone portions both get their own front cameras, though the PadFone X's smartphone gets the better of the two, with a 2-MP "selfie" camera versus the tablet's 1-MP shooter. As expected, the phone's selfie camera captured the best photos, with more details and colors visible compared to those taken with the tablet.
Camera Features
ASUS packed the PadFone X with a host of excellent camera features that should keep both advanced and novice users occupied for quite some time. In terms of shooting modes, you get Auto, HDR, Beautification for selfies and close-ups, Panorama, Night, Low Light, and Smart Remove for taking out unwanted objects.
The All Smiles mode lets you capture five photos and select and save the best of the group, while GIF Animation lets you create short gif files. Video modes include Normal, High Speed, Slow Motion and Time Lapse.
Beyond shooting modes, the PadFone X also has 10 photo filters, as well as a comprehensive list of customizable settings ranging from white balance and ISO to video exposure level and face detection.
The brains of the PadFone X sit in its handset, and include a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage with support for a 64GB microSD card. Swiping through the home screens and apps drawer was buttery smooth, while games like "N.O.V.A. 3" looked excellent in either smartphone or tablet mode. Transitioning from tablet to smartphone mode took about 2.4 seconds.
On our real-world VidTrim test, the PadFone X took 6 minutes and 19 seconds to transcode a 204MB, 1080p video to 480p. That's nearly two minutes faster than the category average of 8:09. The HTC One M8 and Samsung Galaxy S5, which both run quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processors and 2GB of RAM, completed the test in 4:47 and 5:07, respectively.
Unfortunately, opening apps such as the aforementioned "N.O.V.A. 3" took nearly 10 seconds longer than the smartphone category average, 25 seconds versus 16 seconds. The Samsung Galaxy S5 took 18 seconds to launch the app, while the HTC One M8 took 12 seconds.
On the Geekbench 3 benchmark, which tests a device's multicore performance, the PadFone X scored 1,352. The HTC One M8 (2,480) and Galaxy S5 (2,927) performed markedly better, and the category average is also higher, at 1,806.
The PadFone fared slightly better on the Quadrant benchmark, which tests a device's overall performance, scoring 19,447. That's better than the category average of 12,780, but well below the HTC One M8's score of 24,645 and the Galaxy S5's mark of 24,859.
In terms of graphics and gameplay, the PadFone X and its Adreno 330 GPU scored 16,059 on the 3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited benchmark. That's higher than the smartphone category average of 12,036, but lower than the Galaxy S5's score of 18,204 and the One M8's showing of 20,965.
ASUS and AT&T loaded the PadFone X with a host of apps, though only some are useful. ASUS apps include SuperNote and Power Saver, which lets you choose between three battery modes, each with increasingly strict settings to maximize battery savings. The ASUS Splendid app allows you to customize the display's color temperature, while AudioWizard is for adjusting audio modes and settings.
AT&T saddled the PadFone with myAT&T, which lets you monitor your account activity; AT&T Locker cloud storage; AT&T Smart Wi-Fi; Mobile Hotspot; Usage Manager; AT&T Mobile Locate; Drive Mode; AT&T Ready2Go, which helps you setup your device; and Beats Music. There's too much stuff here.
Parents who want to keep their kids from accessing inappropriate content may be interested in the included Famigo app, which provides you with a variety of kid-friendly games and learning tools. For the security minded, the PadFone X includes Lookout Mobile Security and the Keeper password-protection app.
Battery Life
In order for the PadFone X to run in tablet mode, ASUS had to include batteries in both the device's phone and slate portions. The smartphone gets a 2300-mAh battery, while the tablet gets a 4990-mAh battery.
MORE: 10 Smartphones with the Longest Battery Life
On the Laptop Mag Battery test, which involves continuous Web surfing over 4G LTE with the display brightness set to 150 nits, the phone portion of the PadFone X lasted 6 hours and 45 minutes. That's shorter than the smartphone category average of 7:29. The Galaxy S5 for AT&T lasted a marathon 9:42, while the One M8 lasted an equally impressive 9:52.
MORE: 10 Tablets with the Longest Battery Life
As a tablet, the PadFone X lasted 9:42, more than an hour longer than the tablet category average of 8:09.
The PadFone X's biggest selling point is its impressive value proposition. For $199, you get a 5-inch smartphone with a 1080p display, strong performance and 13-MP camera, as well as a 9-inch tablet with a full-HD screen. What's more, rather than paying for two separate data plans for your smartphone and tablet, you only have to pay for a plan for your handset.
On AT&T, a 2GB Mobile Share plan costs $80 per month for the first device, and $10 per month for a second, such as a tablet. Since the PadFone X counts as just one device, you would end up paying $1,930 over the course of two years, not counting the cost of the hardware itself.
If you were to purchase two devices separately, such as a Samsung Galaxy S5 and an iPad, you would end up spending $240 more, or $2,170, over the course of the contract. Plus, you would need to spend extra on the tablet hardware. An iPad mini with Retina Display, for instance, starts at $429 with 4G LTE.
Bottom Line
The PadFone X is an intriguing device that packs a smartphone and tablet into a single, affordable package. On their own, the two devices are good, but not great. The handset's battery life is relatively short, while the slate is on the heavy side with a distractingly large bezel. Together, though, they make the PadFone X a fairly impressive hybrid at an aggressive price.
If you're searching only for a new smartphone, we would suggest picking up either the Samsung Galaxy S5 or HTC One M8, as both offer better overall performance and endurance. But if you're in the market for a smartphone and tablet in one -- and you don't want to pay extra for data -- the PadFone X is certainly worth a look.
|Phone Display Size
|Display Resolution
|Form Factor
|Candybar Touchscreen
|OS Family
|Operating System
|Android 4.4.2
|2.3-GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor
|Processor Family
|Qualcomm Snapdragon 800
|Internal Memory
|Memory Expansion Type
|microSD Card
|Display (main)
|5-inch 1920 x 1080 resolution display
|Display (secondary)
|9-inch 1920 x 1200 resolution display
|Bluetooth Type
|Bluetooth 4.0
|802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
|Front Camera Resolution
|Camera Resolution
|Talk / Standby Time
|3.5mm headphone
|5.7 x 2.9 x 0.39 inches (phone) 9.9 x 6.8 x 0.46 inches (tablet)
|5.45 ounces (phone) 18.15 (tablet)
|SAR Rating (Head)
|SAR Rating (Body)
|Company Website


text:
Below is the poem entitled At Odds which was written by poet
James Ph.
Kotsybar. Please feel free to comment on this poem. However, please remember, PoetrySoup is a place of encouragement and growth.
Read Poems by
James Ph.
James Ph. Kotsybar
Researchers seeking solutions can't say
things are the way they are because of God.
From Spirit, scientists must shy away
or risk their labors be seen as slipshod.
The fraction of them considered devout
must keep their studies apart from belief,
not daring to proselytize about
what brings their natures comfort and relief.
Faith remains outside their explanations,
despite convictions which may be affirmed.
No matter what profound implications,
their answers must be physically termed.
They want to know God's thoughts, yet they resist
even acknowledging God could exist.


text:
Mostly Cloudy
Wind: 5 mph
By Steve Skilton
The Harwood Union alpine ski teams competed Wednesday, March 5, in the final portion of the 2014 state ski meets. The event was slalom and the site was Burke Mountain. The Harwood girls' team entered the day in sixth place with the Harwood boys in eighth. For both teams a top-three finish overall was a team goal and hopes were high heading into the slalom event.
Megan O'Shea (10th) and Sophie Dasaro (15th) paced the Harwood girls with two solid runs down the 60-gate course on Burke's race trail. Maddie Lowe (28th), Mercedes Woolley (50th), Sarah Wry (59th) and Anna Belongia (62nd) all put in great efforts but could not advance the team from the sixth-place position.
Austin Taylor paced the Harwood boys' team with two solid runs to place 15th overall. Teammates John Egan (22nd), Matt Crowell (23rd), Ben Friedman (33rd) and Parker Herlihy (50th) also put in fine efforts for the team and moved the Harwood boys up to fifth overall in the meet.
Megan O'Shea and Austin Taylor qualified to represent Harwood and the Vermont team at the Eastern High School Championships which took place on March 8 and 9 at Attitash, NH. The team is comprised of the top 12 boys and girls from Vermont.
Two Harwood alpine ski team members capped off successful seasons competing at the Eastern High School Championships held the weekend of March 8 and 9 at Attitash, NH. Megan O'Shea and Austin Taylor qualified for the Vermont team based on results from the state ski meets held last week. States east of the Mississippi send teams each year to this big event. Each state selects the top 12 skiers to field their teams.
Megan's results were an 18th in the giant slalom and 62nd in the slalom. Megan stood in sixth place after the first run of the slalom. Taylor finished 56th in the slalom and did not finish the giant slalom. For both racers it was a great experience, their coach Steve Skilton said.


text:
Bambi Faivre Walters, PC focuses on meeting the needs of each client -- from individuals, government entities, small, medium and large businesses, start-ups, tribes, and foreign interests -- to assist with intellectual property legal services in the United States and in multiple countries throughout the world.
Our practice areas include:
Internet law
PCT & Foreign IP Protection
Technology Transfer
Federal Contracts
Bid Protests
Native American Law
Indian Civil Rights
Bambi Faivre Walters received her J.D., magna cum laude, from Tulane in 1997 and her B.S. in Systems Engineering with a minor in Environmental and Water Resource Systems from the University of Virginia in 1992. She is a licensed general contractor with added certifications in environmental and energy efficiency specialties.
Ms. Walters is a registered patent attorney having prosecuted over 800 foreign and domestic patent and trademarks applications. She is a registered patent attorney and is admitted the North Carolina State Bar. Ms. Walters is a member of numerous professional organizations.
2007 Diverse 50 Award
2008 Diverse 100 Award
2009 Top 100 MBE
United States Small Business Administration(SBA) Certified 8a, Native American, WOSDB
Virginia SWAM Certified Intellectual Property Law Firm
North Carolina Verified HUB Law Firm
1201 Jamestown Road
Williamsburg, VA 23185, United States
Contact: Bambi Walters
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text:
It's just like the '60s, man. They're taking it to the streets. Protesters are calling attention to all the ills of society — corporate greed, political mischief and wealth disparity. Yep, some think Occupy Wall Street and similar demonstrations around the nation are really going to shake things up.
I can't help but think of something Jake tells Lady Brett Ashley at the end of "The Sun Also Rises."
"Yes, isn't it pretty to think so?"
Three years ago, protests sprang up across the nation in opposition to government spending and taxes. "Tea partiers" carried signs and shouted pledges about taking back this country from the evil they said occupied the White House.
Many of the first "spontaneous" tea party rallies were actually organized and financed by GOP operatives. It was American politics at its finest. The mid-term elections saw tea party sympathizers elected to Congress. But even as the tea pot continues to boil, some old-time Republicans worry they have created a monster the party can no longer control.
Tea party supporters want change, and by God they will work to get it. They get behind candidates (Republicans) who support their cause, and they make darn sure they get their voters to the polls on election day. Conservatives also don't make any distinctions as to what office it is. They want their candidates elected whether it is for a seat on the school board or in the state General Assembly.
Instead of occupying Wall Street, progressive demonstrators would be better served to occupy a voting booth, and not just every four years to vote for a president. Too many Americans think being president is the most important political job in the land. Not necessarily. To truly effect change, a president needs a Congress that is willing to work with him. That is something President Obama learned all too painfully, even when he had Democratic majorities in both houses.
Whom you elect to local government offices, to the state Legislature and to Congress plays a big role in issues like legislative redistricting. And you can thank the Republican majority in the General Assembly for a new law requiring a photo ID to vote next year. Likewise, if you think state government is already too cozy with big business, you haven't seen anything yet. Just last week, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey announced he was traveling the state with officials from the National Federation of Independent Business to examine ways to roll back state regulations on "job creators." (Also, last week, the vice president of NFIB told a National Public Radio audience that the reason many businesses weren't hiring is because too many would-be hirees are waiting for their unemployment benefits to run out.)
Never underestimate the audacity of the business lobby, and never underestimate the naïveté of a progressive. Too many of them mistakenly believe that carrying a sign and chanting slogans are enough to force politicians to do the right thing. What will work is for the 99 percent who feel shafted by Wall Street to go to the polls and elect public servants who will truly make a difference.
Robert Houk is Opinion page editor for the Johnson City Press. He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Young COP17 delegates demand action against climate change
Este texto no ha sido traducido todavía
5 Diciembre 2011
On Young and Future Generations Day (YoFuGe Day) 1 December 2011 – a day within COP17 dedicated to young and future generations – 17 WAGGGS delegates at the climate change conference in Durban led a global action to demand that negotiators stop just talking and start taking action.
Girl Guides and Girl Scouts take action
Performing a climate change Cha Cha Cha, the delegates sang at the conference for "everybody make a change" and were joined by Girl Guides and Girl Scouts in many countries. See the videos and pictures here.
WAGGGS youth delegates ask Climate Negotiators to make a change
The action so impressed the Chair of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI), Robert Owen-Jones, that he invited the delegates to perform on Saturday 2 December to the plenary of the COP, so in front on 192 national delegations.
You can watch the WAGGGS performance here.
Girl Guides and Girl Scouts speak out
As part of YoFuGe day, WAGGGS delegate Beatrice Omweri from Kenya spoke at a side event hosted by WAGGGS, United Kingdom Youth Climate Coalition (UKYCC) and 350.org, titled "African Youth Voices in Climate Change." Beatrice's story is a powerful reminder of how climate change is affecting girls around the world. You can read Beatrice's storyhere, or read more about the event in World Board Member Shaleeka Abeygunasekera's blog.
WAGGGS delegate Megan Van Buskirk from Canada spoke at a UNEP event exploring the role education plays in combating climate change. Megan explained how non-formal education is particularly effective in getting people to take action, as well as raise awareness about the issue. You can read Megan's presentation here. WAGGGS youth delegate Thombi Thusi from South Africa also gave a speech at COP17, you can read Thombi's speech here.
Five key demands
WAGGGS and WOSM (the World Organization of the Scout Movement) co-hosted a press conference on YoFuGe Day to bring to the conference the demands of their combined membership of 40 million girls and boys, young women and young men in 172 countries. You can watch the press conference here.
WAGGGS and WOSM made five key demands, which included calling for COP17 participants to make a legally binding and ambitious deal on climate change.
In their demands, the delegates also called for young people to be recognised and involved in the decision making process, and for the needs and contributions of girls and young women to be considered in climate change policies, programmes and investments.
WAGGGS and WOSM also told COP17 negotiators that education was a key way of combating climate change, and that climate change must be treated as an issue that cuts across all areas of policy and legislation.
WAGGGS' and WOSM's five demands
Wherever you are in the world, you can join the youth delegates at COP17 in demanding that leaders implement measures to ensure a green, sustainable future.
Choose your action
The youth delegates have chosen several actions for you to choose from, please see our global action page for more information, or watch the video below.
If you decide to do this action with your group, please send us a video of your action to email@example.com and we'll post it on our Young and Future Generations (YoFuGe) page.
Find out who is on board and what the WAGGGS delegation will be doing our WAGGGS at COP 17 website.


text:
By Brian Cochran - July 16, 2005
I was so excited to get the display up and running that I followed the quick instructions that were provided.
The initial installation was smooth, and took approximately 10 minutes. You insert the MX610 into an empty 5 1/4
inch drive bay, attach the USB cable, and install the software drivers. I was then able to install the LCDC
software and play around with the display for a little bit. Using the LCDC Software, I was sending strings to
the screen, and then giggling. I had control. Now what I really needed to do was customize the display.
My first customization was to remove the external USB cable. The retail version of the MX610 only comes with an external
USB cable, which is what I hooked up during the quick install. Obviously, this is much more cumbersome than to
connect the device to an internal USB header. The review sample included an internal USB cable, which is not
included in the retail version, but is available as a standalone product. I removed the external USB cable for the
case-friendlier internal USB cable.
I also liked the look of the Indicator LED Bus that was included with the review sample. This is a bus of 3 bright
LEDs. I decided to mount this to a 3 1/2 inch dive face plate. Installation was relatively easy, with having to
drill 3 holes into the face plate, and mounting a snap, literally. The LEDs snap into the LED holders. This bus
was included with the review sample, but must be purchased separately from the retail MX610. You can set the LEDs
to run any sequence you like. To test this, I created a sequence that scrolls the LEDs back and forth like K.I.T.T.
Yep, I'm a total nerd. If you feel like blinding yourself, look directly into these bright LEDs. They rival the sun
for brightness.
My next customization was to attach my current case mods to the MX610 so that I wouldn't have to control them through my
bulky switches and microbus. This involved rewiring my Cold Cathode and case fans, which was no small task. Once
I had them rewired, connecting them was a simple as plugging them into the 3 pin fan headers. The CCFL
(Cold Cathode) was also plugged into one of these at the recommendation of the Technical Manual, which is included
on the CD. The Technical Manual also recommended that if the user wants to do anything that requires more power
than +5V to plug in an unmodified floppy power cable to the high power input of the unit. Since I was going to use
one of the fan headers for the CCFL, which requires +12V, I plugged in a floppy power cable.
Other useful items that were sent with the review sample, but are not included in the retail MX610, are a pair of
temperature probes. The MX610 can connect up to 32 temperature probes over what is know as a Dallas 1-Wire Bridge.
I only used 2 connections for these temperature probes. I placed the probes in locations in my case, one where it
should show the correct ambient temperature, and another where it shows a temp near the CPU. More on how I used
these later.
Next Page: Software


text:
HOPE Ministry
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
HOPE is a ministry to women who have lost babies due to miscarriage, stillbirth or early-infant death. HOPE represents:
- H – Healing
- O – Openness
- P – Prayer
- E – Encouragement
Women are connected with a mentor with whom they can talk in confidence about their feelings and emotions after the death of their child. Mentors have also experienced the loss of a child and can help those in the throes of grief by listening to them, crying with them and teaching them coping skills. In situations such as these, it's often easy for women to find themselves dealing with many emotions ranging from anger to doubt, and even guilt. Mentors in this ministry will utilize their experiences, coupled with their faith and the truth teachings of the Bible to help others find comfort in the midst of a storm.
If you or someone you know have experienced a loss such as this and would like to be connected with the HOPE Ministry, you can email us at .


text:
Precipitation amounts corresponding to various recurrence intervals (return periods) were computed by fitting a Beta-P distribution (Mielke and Johnson, 1974) to the daily extreme precipitation partial-duration series at each station (Table 1). It has been shown in a previous study that the Beta-P distribution provides the best representation of extreme precipitation in the Northeast U.S., compared to other commonly used theoretical distributions (Wilks 1993). Fitting a theoretical distribution to the observed data serves two purposes: 1) when computing precipitation amounts for shorter return periods, sampling irregularities are smoothed out of the observed data, and 2) due to the limited length of observation records at most stations, computation of precipitation amounts corresponding to longer (50-yr or 100-yr) return periods requires extrapolation beyond the observed data.
The following details about the Beta-P distribution and its use in return period computation follow those described by Wilks and Cember (1993), and were used identically in the present analyses. The probability density function for the Beta-P distribution is
, (1)
where x is the random variable (here, daily extreme precipitation partial-duration amounts), which must be nonnegative. The distribution has three parameters: a and q are dimensionless shape parameters, and b is a scale parameter having the same physical units as the random variable. The distributions were fit to data for each station by maximum likelihood, using the Levenberg-Marquardt method (Press et al. 1986), as described in Wilks (1993). One convenient feature of the Beta-P distribution is that it is analytically integrable, so that its cumulative distribution function can be written in closed form. That is, Beta-P probabilities can be obtained using
. (2)
Average return periods, R, relate to cumulative probabilities, F, of the distributions of partial-duration data according to
, (3)
where w is the average frequency with which the partial-duration data samples the full record of daily observations, in years-1. The average sampling frequency was chosen to be close to 1 yr-1, but because individual data records may start and stop on different dates and may contain different numbers of missing data, w varies slightly from station to station. Let N represent the number of daily observations passing the quality control screening that are available for a particular station. The partial-duration data were then constructed to consist of the largest n precipitation accumulations, where n is the greatest integer not exceeding N/365.25. This convention results in the average sampling frequency being
. (4)
Precipitation amounts, x, corresponding to specified return periods are obtained by inverting Equation 2 (i.e., solving it for x), and substituting the expression F(x)=1 – 1/wR obtained by rearrangement of Equation 3. These operations yield the expression for precipitation amounts as a function of return period, and of the parameters of the fitted Beta-P distribution,
. (5)
New York State was divided into a set of subregions using a Smirnov test-based clustering algorithm (DeGaetano 1998). Using this procedure, stations were grouped based on geographic proximity and similarities among empirical extreme precipitation half-partial-duration series. Statistical comparisons between stations were performed on half-partial-duration series (e.g. the greatest 25 components for a 50 year data sample) rather than on full-partial-duration series (e.g. 50 components for a 50 year data sample) for this purpose to better reflect the spatial pattern of the most extreme precipitation events. Each subregion formed from this procedure (15 subregions in New York) consisted of stations that have no statistical differences between their empirical extreme precipitation half-partial-duration series.
The procedure for computing regional extreme precipitation return period amounts was similar to that used for computing these amounts for individual stations. The only difference involved the construction of the extreme precipitation partial-duration series, for which extreme precipitation events at all stations within a subregion were used to construct a 'regional' partial-duration series. If multiple stations within a subregion observed precipitation over the same time period (±3 days), only the largest daily precipitation total is retained for consideration in the regional partial-duration series. This eliminates the dependence of regional results on the density of stations within a subregion, since the same precipitation event may influence a large area that encompasses many of the stations. Each daily precipitation amount retained for consideration in the regional partial-duration series can be considered an independent subregional precipitation event. Once the construction of the regional partial-duration series was complete, the computation of return period amounts using the Beta-P distribution was used.
Surface water runoff includes not only precipitation reaching the Earth's surface in liquid form, but also the melting of a snowpack that has accumulated over time. Some applications may be more interested in the return period amounts associated with surface runoff rather than those associated with precipitation alone. Across most of New York State, less than 10% of the precipitation events that comprise the extreme precipitation partial duration series are potentially enhanced by the melting of a snowpack. The precipitation events were determined to be potentially enhanced by snowmelt if these extreme events were accompanied by decreases in snow depth.
In order to assess the importance of snowmelt consideration when computing extreme precipitation return period amounts, observations of snowpack water equivalent (SWE) were obtained. Measurements of SWE are taken once-daily at first-order stations, 11 of which are utilized in New York and surrounding states (Table 5). Data at most of these stations were available from 1953-2003. Since SWE is measured each day at 18 UTC (1PM EST), daily changes in SWE reflect the change in snowpack between this hour on the current day, and the same hour on the previous day. Return periods were computed for daily extreme snowmelt events, daily extreme precipitation events, and the combination of these events. If snowmelt events influenced the extreme precipitation partial duration series at a station, its magnitude was often less than the 50th percentile of the series. As a result, the influence of snowmelt on extreme precipitation return period amounts was minimal (< 2-3%) for recurrence intervals of 2 and 5 years, and often non-existent for lower-frequency return periods.


text:
Carl Mays: 'Pressurized performers' are greatly appreciated
A newspaper headline this week read, "Three heroes beat train to save man's life." The report detailed how a man in his 20s hit his head and stumbled onto the tracks with the next train scheduled to arrive in two minutes. The account told how Garrett O'Hanlon immediately jumped down onto the tracks to help the dazed man. Seeing O'Hanlon struggle, Dennis Codrington leapt down to help. So did Matt Foley. The three worked quickly as the train approached. Waiting passengers on the platform helped lift the dazed man to safety and then assisted the rescuers onto the platform just as the train was arriving.
In December 2012, there was a comparable story at a New York subway station when Victor Samuel, a 43-year old married man with two children, jumped onto the tracks to save a 64-year-old man from sure death. Reports detail how both men almost lost their lives after Samuel half-dragged the man to the platform where three women, led by 5-foot-2-inch Doreen Winkler, grabbed hold of the men's arms and helped lift them onto the platform as a train pulled into the station. When Samuel was interviewed about being a hero, he said, "It was a collective effort. I really want to give credit to the others who helped me out."
Sadly, however, in another such instance in December 2012, bystanders in New York watched as a man who had been pushed onto some subway tracks struggled for about a minute to climb back onto the platform before being hit by a train and killed. A newspaper photographer (who said he was too far away to help) took pictures of the panicked man prior to his death.
I share these accounts today in order to emphasize that sometimes people react selflessly during a time of crisis – any type of crisis – while others merely observe. In such dire cases as the ones I have described, we don't know exactly how we would react until it happened. Daily, however, less dramatic but very important crises arise that call for us definitely to be participants rather than spectators, in business, family, education, sports or any other facet of life.
I have mentioned Helen Steiner Rice (1900-1981) in some of my columns, impressed by all she had to overcome before emerging to become known as the "poet laureate of inspirational verse." Totaling up all the cards and books she wrote for the Cincinnati-based Gibson Art Company, which later became Gibson Greetings, there is no telling how many of her verses have inspired, encouraged and uplifted millions of readers.
This rhyming couplet from Helen Steiner Rice is more than just appropriate when any size crisis arises: "Teach me sweet forbearance – When things do not go right – So I remain unruffled – When others grow uptight." A good companion to this couplet can be found in Proverbs 24:10 of The Living Bible: "You are a poor specimen if you can't stand the pressure of adversity."
I like the way one businessman encouraged his personnel to perform when adversity arises. He led them to "Stay calm and carry on," expressing, "We greatly appreciate conscientious, focused employees who perform well under pressure," and his company worked to reward the personnel for "pressurized performance."
He also related to Helen Steiner Rice's words, encouraging them to demonstrate forbearance in language, actions and reactions, reminding them that a calm, well-thought-out response has a soothing effect on others. And, as reflected in the two "subway hero stories" above, he emphasized the vital need for a "collective effort."
© 2013 by Carl Mays, National Speakers Association Hall of Fame member and author, whose MyMerlin.net mentoring site is based on his "A Strategy For Winning" book and program. Contact email@example.com or view www.carlmays.com.


text:
Corinne Momal-Vanian, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which was also attended by Spokespersons for the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the United Nations Refugee Agency, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the International Trade Centre.
Ms. Momal-Vanian read the statement issued by the Secretary-General saying he condemned the assassination today of Mr. Mohamed Brahmi, an opposition politician and member of Tunisia's National Constituent Assembly. The Secretary-General noted that this was the second assassination of a prominent political figure in Tunisia this year. He called for calm and stressed that acts of political violence weakened legitimate state institutions which underpinned the democratic process.
This heinous act must not be allowed to derail the progress that Tunisia continued to make in its democratic transition, including on the Constitution, and in meeting the social and economic aspirations of the Tunisian people.
Rupert Colville for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said Tunisia remained extremely tense after yesterday's assassination of the opposition politician Mohamad Brahmi. In addition to what the High Commissioner said in the press release she issued yesterday afternoon, the OHCHR urged the authorities to respect the right of people to protest and urge the security forces to take great care not to inflame the situation further by resorting to excessive use of force.
Answering questions, he said there was no intention at the present time to demand an international inquiry. Instead, the call was for a more effective investigation as the impact of such events on the political scene in Tunisia was significant and alarming. He reiterated that the investigation of previous killings was not satisfactory and the matter needed to be concluded with urgency.
Jemini Pandya for the Inter-Parliamentary Union said IPU had condemned the killing of Tunisian opposition leader Mohammed Brahmi, the leader of the opposition Movement of the People Party and a member of Tunisia's Constituent Assembly, and was urging authorities in the North African country to ensure those responsible were found and brought to justice quickly. A strong, vocal political opposition able to speak openly and without fear of reprisal was key to a healthy, vibrant democracy, she said. As an elected MP, Mohammed Brahmi represented his constituents, their views and their aspirations for a new Tunisia. IPU urged the Tunisian authorities to better protect the political opposition and ensure Tunisia remained committed to establishing a fully representative, democratic and peaceful society.
IPU's concern about the need for the perpetrators to be brought to justice quickly was based on the fact that six months after the killing of another politician, his killers had still not been named.
On a question asked she said it was likely that the Human Rights Committee of the IPU would pick up on this issue.
Melissa Fleming for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said UNHCR was concerned that Egyptian military and security personnel have been arbitrarily arresting and detaining an increasing number of Syrians, including several minors and people registered with UNHCR, amid growing anti-Syrian sentiment. UNHCR had been requesting access to 85 detained Syrians and assurances that they were not returned to Syria, stressing that they should be afforded fair and due process of law in Egypt.
This new climate began following allegations regarding participation of a few Syrians in protests and violent acts during July. There have also been numerous reports of xenophobic remarks and verbal attacks against Syrians, including disturbing statements made through certain media outlets. Since the start of the Syrian conflict, Syrians enjoyed an extremely hospitable environment in Egypt. The Government granted unrestricted visas and residence permits and had provided full access to public services. Syrians had not felt the urgency to renew expired residency permits as required. Now, a growing number of Syrians were expressing their fear of being arrested if they circulated in public.
This hostile environment had led to a notable increase in the number of Syrians approaching UNHCR to register. The Government estimates that there were some 250,000 to 300,000 Syrians currently residing in Egypt. 80,000 were registered with UNHCR as of 25 July, while around 28,800 have secured appointments for registration in the coming weeks.
Additionally, the Government had recently introduced entry requirements for Syrians, including visa and security clearance issuance prior to travel to Egypt. UNHCR appreciated the Egyptian Government's affirmation that Syrians were welcome in Egypt, but called upon the Government to ensure that any precautionary measures in light of the current security situation in the country do not infringe upon fundamental human rights principles and the country's international responsibilities to provide asylum and protection to refugees.
Answering questions she said no response had been received to the requests to visit the 85 Syrians mentioned, some of whom were said to be detained due to violent acts during protests. No reports of deportations had been received as yet.
Rupert Colville for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said the OHCHR fully supported the statement made by the Secretary-General yesterday. Some of the recent declarations by the Egyptian army were alarming and it was important to stress that it was the duty of the security forces to protect all citizens, whatever their political views. It was extremely important that security forces do not resort to excessive use of force. People had a right to make peaceful protests. All measures taken by the authorities must fully respect the law and international human rights standards. The OHCHR was closely following how the situation developed.
Answering a question he said it was necessary for the deposed President Morsi to be either released, or charged with an offence.
Melissa Fleming for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said a UNHCR report released today, while acknowledging significant progress in recent years, said Ukraine's asylum system still required fundamental improvements. It needed to offer better protection against refoulement and to improve the fairness and efficiency of the hearings process. As a result of these concerns, the United Nations United Nations Refugee Agency was advising other states not to return asylum-seekers to Ukraine at this time.
Rupert Colville for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said the OHCHR welcomed the announcement by President Thein Sein that another 73 political prisoners have been released in Myanmar, and also his recent statement that all political prisoners were to be released by the end of the year. This would be a significant step forward in the implementation of the ongoing reform process.
Global campaign on LGBT
Rupert Colville for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said the High Commissioner for Human Rights was to today launch 'Free & Equal,' an unprecedented global public education campaign for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) equality at a press conference in Cape Town, South Africa, at around 13:00 today. Also attending were Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Justice Edwin Cameron of the South African Constitutional Court. A number of international celebrities were also backing the campaign. More details were to be included in a press release at the time of the launch, along with the High Commissioner's speech.
ITC activities
Jarle Hetland for the International Trade Centre said the United Kingdom had announced funding of GBP7.2 million ($10.86m) for ITC that will go towards improving the trade capacities of developing countries. More specifically, the funding was to go towards removing barriers to trade in developing countries and ensuring that more women entrepreneurs participate in global value chains. So far ITC had carried out surveys identifying non-tariff measures and related obstacles to trade in 20 countries. Thanks to the UK funding, it was planned to carry out more surveys in another 20 countries.
He also mentioned that ITC had entered a new partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to help companies and banks better understand and integrate voluntary environmental and social standards in their risk management and investment decisions. Through this cooperation, IFC had become the first development finance institution to be referenced on ITC's Standards Map database. Referencing IFC's Performance Standards on Environmental and Social Sustainability on Standards Map makes it easier for stakeholders to analyse and compare covered by sustainability issues covered by voluntary standards.
He explained briefly that Standards Map was a database that covered more than 120 sustainability standards and initiatives, including the UN Global Compact and OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. It made it easier for companies to know what voluntary standards were available and how they can help strengthen production and trade activities. Finally, he added that the ITC Market Analysis Tool, already free of charge to users in least developed countries and developing countries, was now also available for journalists.
Geneva activities
Ms. Momal-Vanian said the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Committee of Human Rights had now completed their work, which began on July 8. The CEDAW Committee had considered reports from Cuba, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Dominican Republic, Cape Verde, United Kingdom, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Committee was to make its concluding observations on the reports public on Monday when they were to be available on the Committee's webpages. The roundup press release was to be issued this afternoon which included the link and a press conference was planned for 1.30 p.m. in Press Room The speakers were Nicole Ameline, Chairperson and Pramila Patten, Vice-Chair. [It was later announced that the press conference would be held under embargo until 29 July 2013 at 12.00 noon.]
The Committee on Human Rights had considered the reports of Ukraine, Tajikistan, Indonesia, Finland, Albania and the Czech Republic. The concluding observations were already available on the website of the Committee.
The Conference on Disarmament resumed next week its work session of 2013. The date of the next public plenary should be known on Monday.
In the room but not briefing were the International Labour Organization, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and the World Food Programme.
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Synopsis of Glee Season 4, Episode 9: What Happens in "Swan Song"?
There's just one episode between Sectionals and Christmas... and this is it! Glee Season 4, Episode 9: "Swan Song" airs on December 6, and there are big things in store for both Kurt (Chris Colfer) and Rachel (Lea Michele). Here's FOX's official summary of what to expect.
As New Directions regroup after Sectionals, Finn (Cory Monteith) ponders his future with the club. Meanwhile, Rachel prepares for the NYADA Winter Showcase, and Kurt gets his shot at redemption with a second audition in the all-new "Swan Song."
Original airdate: Thursday, December 6, 2012 at 9pm on FOX
Source: FOX
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J Fleet
Add unexpected, chic style to the room with J. Fleet's lacquered wood wastebasket, rendered in a gorgeous neutral pattern infused with artisan appeal.
J. Fleet's lacquered wood accessories have a rarefied aura. From start to finish, this collection is crafted by hand, using processes based on ancient techniques. Each spectacular piece has 15-20 coats of lacquer over luxe colors and exotic designs featuring layered foils and exquisite inlay. Gleaming with allure, these pieces are easy to weave into any decor scheme, and they enrich any room they're in.


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Lecture An Eagle"s View of the Bear and the Dragon: An American Perspective on the Socio-Cultural Commonalities and Differences between Contemporary Russia and China
Fri, September 15, 2006 • 12:00 PM - 12:00 PM • Chicano Culture Room, Texas Union 4.206
David J. Firestein is a career diplomat with the U.S. Department of State and a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Texas. A native of Austin, Texas, David holds a bachelor's degree from Georgetown University (international relations) and two master's degrees from the University of Texas (public affairs and Asian studies). Over the course of his fourteen-year career as a U.S. Foreign Service officer, David has served tours of duty at U.S. embassies in China (five years total) and Russia (four years), and undertaken temporary duty assignments elsewhere in Asia, Europe, and North and South America.


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View Photo Gallery
Unless you're Hugh Hefner, getting a lap dance is probably not a daily occurance. It's also not every day that you get a private show from a ripped fishnet-clad Nicki Minaj. So needless to say, Drake probably had a lot on his mind while filming the super sexy "Anaconda." What was going on in his head? We have a few guesses.
Was it weird for him to get up close and personal with his Young Money coworker? Was he worried about how his crush Rihanna would react? Is he flashing back to any Degrassi deleted scenes? Head up to the gallery and see what we imagined he was thinking!
[Photo: Young Money/Cash Money/Republic]


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Powerful Wayne rolls again
WAYNE -- Fast starts, big leads and few snaps. It's become the story of Wayne's first halves so far this season
The Pioneers raced to a 53-6 lead at the break and cruised to a 53-14 win Friday over visiting Mingo Central on Homecoming at Pioneer Field.
Toree Wallace was named as the 65th Miss Pioneer at halftime.
Wayne (5-0) was never challenged. The Pioneers rolled up 443 yards in the first half while holding the visiting Miners to minus-11 yards in the first half.
The clock ran continuously in the second half.
"I told the kids after the game we don't have to apologize for putting your foot to the floorboard in the beginning of it," Wayne coach Tom Harmon said after the Pioneers' 14th consecutive win. "We were playing a young team that got a little shell-shocked."
That shell-shock set in from the opening kickoff. Mingo Central's Alex Lee was attempting to cut into the middle of the field when Wayne sophomore Mason Hodge delivered a blow that sent Lee into the air and three yards backward.
By the time the onslaught ensued, Brandon Spurlock had three touchdown runs and 100 yards while Hodge added 82 yards on two carries and a score. James Egnor had 62 yards and a touchdown, and Nathan Spurlock added 70 yards on just four attempts.
For good measure, Grant Ferguson connected with Zach Cassidy for a pair of touchdown passes, the latter covering 44 yards.
The Miners' (3-2) lone score of the half came when Lee returned a kickoff 76 yards for a touchdown.
Wayne, ranked No. 2 in Class AA, racked up 519 yards of total offense. Mingo Central, which entered ranked No. 7, had its three-game winning streak snapped.
The Pioneers will travel to No. 1 Scott next week. The Skyhawks (6-0) beat Westside, 37-12.
"Our guys understand that there are some battles ahead. Our task is to make sure we're ready when that happens," Harmon said. "In the meantime we need to keep sharpening, keep getting better. We'll take that (blowout win) all year but we're not stupid. We think there could be some battles ahead, probably one next week."
W -- Spurlock 31 run (Stamper kick)
W -- Hodge 64 run (Stamper kick)
W -- Spurlock 42 run (Stamper kick)
MC -- Lee 76 kick return (pass failed)
W -- Egnor 1 run (Stamper kick)
W -- Spurlock 1 run (kick failed)
W -- Cassidy 13 pass from Ferguson (Stamper kick)
W -- Cassidy 44 pass from Ferguson (kneel down)
W -- Fry 12 run (kneel down)
MC -- Joplin 10 run (Prater run)
First Downs 4 21
Rushes-yards 33-101 37-465
Passing 1-5-0 3-7-0
Passing yards Minus 1 54
Total offense 100 519
Fumbles-lost 3-1 0-0
Penalties 7-43 4-30
Punts 6-19.0 0-0.0
RUSHING -- MC: May 10-18, C. Lester 6-55, Hammond 2-(-7), M. Lester 4-(-20), Team 2-(-10), Justice 3-19, Joplin 5-43, Prater 1-3. WAY: B. Spurlock 7-100, Egnor 3-62, Hodge 2-82, Ferguson 1-37, N. Spurlock 3-70, Lunsford 6-37, Fry 5-58, Perry 3-(-1), Queen 3-19, Stiltner 2-4, Tomblin 2-(-3).
PASSING -- MC: M. Lester 1-5-0, minus-1 yard. WAY: Ferguson 3-7-0, 54 yards.
RECEIVING -- MC: May 1-minus 1. WAY: Cassidy 2-57, Hodge 1-(-3).


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Photoshop is the tool of choice for most creative professionals and has quickly become household name synonymous with computer art and image manipulation. In Photoshop CS3 One-on-One: Beyond the Basics, internationally renowned Photoshop guru Deke McClelland teaches such digital-age wonders as masking, filters, layers, blend modes, Liquify, Vanishing Point, and vector-based type. Along the way, Deke also teaches tried-and-true methods for sharpening details, smoothing over wrinkles and imperfections, trimming away jowls and fat, and wrapping one image around the surface of another. Plus, the training teaches how to construct and organize the elements in a composition so you can edit them easily in the future. Exercise files accompany the tutorial.
Ready for more Photoshop CS3 training with Deke? Check out Photoshop CS3 One-on-One: Advanced Techniques.
Note: Photoshop CS3 One-on-One: The Essentials is a recommended prerequisite to Photoshop CS3 One-on-One: Beyond the Basics.
Download Deke's customized keyboard layouts for Photoshop from the Exercise Files tab.
I am still working inside the bigbrushstrokes.psd image that you will find inside the 11 sharpen folder. And you may recall in the previous exercise, I went ahead and applied the Unsharp Mask filter with an amount value of 200% and a radius value of 20 pixels to this upper-left hand brush strokes image. We just can't see the bottom to brush stroke images right now. And then, I turned around and applied the Smart Sharpen filter using the same amount and radius values with a remove settings of Gaussian Blur to this upper-right hand version of the brush strokes image, and we discovered that the two, our pixel for pixel identical, the two effects exactly match each other.
So, what's the big deal with the Smart Sharpen function? Well, it offers a lot more options including two other remove settings. Right now, we have remove set to Gaussian Blur but we can also set it to Lens Blur and to Motion Blur as well, and we should check that out. But first, I want to show you what's going on with my image and you should have an open on-screen if you have got access to it. Notice that there are these other two brush strokes down here that have not been modified and I call these guys Brush Strokes even though they are not really brush strokes, but they are thick lines that provide us with some edges here.
Notice that I have exactly aligned a size of my window so I can pop back up and down between these brush strokes so that when I pop up and down, they will exactly align with each other. And I am going to do that popping using the Home and End of keys. The Home key takes you to the upper-left corner of an image and the End key, and I am talking about those keys on the right-hand side of your keyboard, the End key takes you to the lower right hand corner of your image as it turns out. And you may say hey, Deke, why didn't you mention those keyboard shortcuts way back in the navigation section? Because you weren't ready for them.
Actually, that's a lie, I forgot. But, nevertheless, you weren't ready for them, now you are. Anyway, I have got to press the Home key again so we can see those, just see how they exactly align with each other. That's going to come in handy in just a moment. Now, I am going to press End in order to see the bottom two images. And yours may not exactly align, this is totally a function of having meticulously size of this window so this little trick is going to work. Alright, anyway, I am going to press the F7 key to bring up my Layers palette here and I am going to click on the Lens Blur item which selects the bottom up left hand image, and I will go ahead and press the F7 key to make that go away again and then I am going to press, because the last filter I chose was the Smart Sharpen filter, I am going to go ahead and press Ctrl+Alt+F or Command+Option+F on the Mac in order to bring back up the Smart Sharpen dialog box, complete with the last settings I applied.
And now, I am going to change the remove setting from Gaussian Blur to Lens Blur, and I invite you to do the same thing. Now, the idea here is Lens Blur is going to give us a different style of halo, did you see that, it's pretty different than Gaussian Blur. The Gaussian Blur halo is soft and very drifty, pretty big as it turns out, fills out a big area of radius. But the Lens Blur halo meanwhile is tighter as it turns out, it's more selective and it's designed to account better for images that have a little softness that were sharp with digital cameras.
So Gaussian Blur is a better choice if you have down sampled an image or if there is some softness associated with the scanner, so in other words, you scanned an image and it's a little soft because of your scanner hardware as opposed to the original image itself. And Gaussian Blur is a pretty good setting, but Lens Blur is much better where digital photographs are concerned and where sharp film scans are concerned as well. Anyway, I am going to go ahead and click on OK in order to accept that modification. Now, let's take advantage of that Home/End trick I was showing you.
This is the remove Gaussian Blur version of the image. It's actually the Unsharp Mask version but they are exactly the same. So it severs its purpose of comparison here. And I got to it by pressing the Home key of course. And if I press the End key, we will see the Lens Blur version. So this is Gaussian Blur, this is Lens Blur, this is the loosey-goosey Gaussian Blur here, very distributed. This is the much tighter, more focused if you will Lens Blur. Alright, now, let's check out the final option. I am going to press the F7 key to bring out the Layers palette once again.
Let's switch over to MO Blur, short for Motion Blur. Press F7 to make that palette go away, and I am going to press Ctrl+Alt+F in order to bring up the Smart Sharpen dialog box. Move that guy into the preview area so I can see what I am doing. Now, I am going to choose Motion Blur, and you will see a big difference this time. Notice that this is a directional haloing effect that we have right now and you can specify the angle if you want to. So for example, I could go ahead and raise that angle value to set it to let's say 45 degrees, so that we just have a nice diagonal halo going on here.
And so you can see we have got instead of tracing all the way around the circles for example with the dark halo and all the way inside with a light halo, we have basically what look like drop shadows, so we have got a dark drop shadow in one direction and the other direction as well inside the dark area of the image and inside the light area, we have a directional glow going on right there and right there as well. So, we get yet a tighter effect you will notice than we got with the Lens Blur and it's a directional effect as well, and it's designed for situations where you encounter camera shake essentially.
If you have got either a movement in your image or you move the camera, then you can use Motion Blur to account for that movement, and I will go ahead and click OK in order to accept the modification. You can of course compare these two guys side by side and I will go ahead and compare with the Home and End key, so I will compare this Motion Blur setting to the Gaussian Blur. This is Gaussian Blur right there and this is Motion Blur right there. Alright, so you can investigate more to your heart's content using this image if you enjoy this sort of analytical approach to your filters.
If not, if you prefer to see how the darn filter actually functions and how you use it on a regular basis, then join me in the next exercise.
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