text:
Theft, marijuana possession
Morgan McConnel, 19, of Williston was charged with stealing more than $100 worth of CDs from Wal-Mart on April 15, according to police reports. She was also charged with possession of marijuana after police found "marijuana and several pipes/bongs in her car," according to the report.
· Beverly Stoudt, 57, and Ashley Stoudt, 20, of Eden were charged with retail theft from Wal-Mart on April 16, according to police reports. The mother/daughter team went through the self-checkout without paying for some items, according to the report.
· A 15-year-old male from Richmond and two friends, from Richmond and Jericho, were charged with stealing a $50 pair of boots from Plato's Closet on April 18, according to police reports. The case was referred to the Williston Reparative Board.
· Three vehicles were broken into at Courtyard by Marriott on Hurricane Lane on April 19, according to police reports. One window was smashed and small items and change were taken from the vehicles, according to the report. Anyone with information is asked to call Williston Police at 878-6611.
Bomb threat a hoax
Reginald Graham, 79, of Burlington was cited for "false public alarm" on April 18 after a Lavallee Lane resident called to report a bomb threat, according to police reports. Graham allegedly told the resident that he had put a bomb in the person's car, which was parked in the resident's driveway, according to police. The home was evacuated for several hours and the Williston Fire Department and Vermont State Police Bomb Team were placed on standby during the investigation, according to the report. After interviews by police, the threat was determined to be a hoax, police said.
Driving under the influence
On April 19, police received a report of two intoxicated women purchasing beer at Taft Corners Mobil, according to police reports. The women left the store and were found on Essex Road, according to police. Shannon Ilges, 34, of Colchester was cited for charges of driving under the influence and for giving false information to police, according to the report.
Underage drinking
Ashleigh Tillson, 20, of South Hero was charged with underage drinking and transported to ACT 1 detoxification center with a blood-alcohol content of .111 on April 20, according to police reports. Tillson and an unidentified man had been in an argument at Clark's Sunoco, according to police.
Driving with a suspended license
· Patrick Lavely, 52, of Essex was charged for criminally driving with a suspended license on Route 2 on April 20, and was also cited to appear in court on April 22 on an outstanding arrest warrant, according to police reports.
· On April 21, police cited Christopher Boutin, 21, of Georgia for criminally driving with a suspended license, according to police reports. Boutin's driver's license is currently suspended for a driving under the influence conviction earlier this year, according to police.


text:
Tags indie, folk, blues, random, indie folk
Artists Ben Howard, Feist, Bison
February 09, 2012
A random assortment of some of my faves.
Music by artists such as: Iron & Wine, Ben Howard, and Feist
Songs For a Wednesday Afternoon by DouglasHiggins
Just a few songs I've been listening to on this lovely afternoon :).
acoustic, folk, freak folk, experimental
Steal Me Away by DouglasHiggins
Some nice music to sit and listen to while you're hanging out at home on a rainy day
artists such as Gregory and the Hawk, Feist, Sigur Rós.
folk, indie, calm, acoustic, lo-fi
Inside Me a Lunatic Sings by DouglasHiggins
A mish mash of some calm soothing folk as well as some loudy rock/pop stuff! Enjoy :)
Music from artists such as Damien Rice, Sigur Rós, Anya Marina, a...
folk, acoustic, pop, indie rock, guitar
Jane Came By With A Lock Of Your Hair by DouglasHiggins
Music by artists such as: Feist, Modest Mouse, and Death Cab for Cutie.
folk, indie, indie rock, acoustic

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Micheletto Corella
Micheletto Corella (Micheletto Coreglia, Michele de Corella or Miquel de Corella) was a Valencian condottiero born on an unknown date in València. He was killed in Milan in January 1508.
Known as Valentino's executioner, he and Cesare Borgia were thought to be close friends since childhood, going on to accompany one another during their studies at the University of Pisa.[1]
On 23 December 1499, a Don Michele de Corella and the Bishop of Trani were left in Forli as lieutenants in Cesare Borgia's army around the time of the seizure of Forli. [2]
In March, 1502, Corella was left by Cesare as his governor in Piombino. [3] Corella was then dispatched to Pesaro with Ramiro de Lorqua under the order of Cesare Borgia in October, 1502. [4] With his lances, on his way to Pesaro, Corella heard of the insurgence of the rebelling Fossombrone and Pergola, and ventured to those towns to sack them pitilessly as punishment.
Machiavelli describes a conversation Corella had with Oliverotto da Fermo on 31 December 1502: "Therefore Don Michele rode off and joined Oliverotto, telling him that it was not right to keep his men out of their quarters, because these might be taken up by the men of the duke; and he advised him to send them at once to their quarters and to come himself to meet the duke." [5]
On the night of 31 December 1502, Vitellozzo Vitelli and Oliverotto da Fermo, who had been arrested under Cesare's command, were strangled to death, supposedly by Corella (hinted in Machiavelli's letter of 31 December).
In November 1503, Michele da Corella and della Volpe had gone north with seven hundred horse to support Cesare's Romagnuoli but the group were defeated in Tuscany by the army of Gianpaolo Baglioni (Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia, Chapter III: Julius II) After Micheletto Corella and della Volpe were taken prisoner in 1503, Corella was first imprisoned in Florence and then in Rome where he was questioned and tortured.[6] However, he refused to reveal the many secrets he knew about the Borgias.[7]
He was liberated by Julius II in 1505, and thanks to Niccolò Machiavelli's mediation, was hired by Florence as bargello. He held this position for two years, until 1507.[8]
He was killed in Milan in 1508 by some fellow countrymen although the instigator is unknown.[9]
Historian Rafael Sabatini described Micheletto Corella as follows: "Corella was a captain of foot, a soldier of fortune, who from the earliest days of Cesare's military career had followed the duke's fortunes- the very man who is alleged to have strangled Alfonso of Aragon by Cesare's orders. He is generally assumed to have been a Spaniard, and is commonly designated as Micheletto, or Don Miguel; but Alvisi supposes him, from his name of Corella, to have been a Venetian, and he tells us that by his fidelity to Cesare and the implicit manner in which he executed his master's orders, he earned - as is notorious- considerable hatred." (Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia Chapter XII: Lucrezia's Third Marriage.)
Portrayals in popular culture[edit]
- The 1981 BBC series The Borgias, starring actor Maurice O'Connell as Micheletto Corella
- The 2011 Showtime series The Borgias, starring actor Sean Harris as Micheletto
- The 2011 Canal+ series Borgia, starring actor Petr Vanēk as Don Miguel de Corella
- The Family, a novel by Mario Puzo
- Cantarella, a manga by You Higuri
- The Borgias by Alexandre Dumas, père
- Borgia, by Milo Manara (artist) & Alejandro Jodorowsky (writer), serialized graphic novel depicting the story of the Borgia family.
- Cesare by Fuyumi Soryo (manga)
- O César o nada by Manuel Vázquez Montalbán
- Mémoires horrifiques et burlesques d'un tueur, a bande dessinée by Bernard Seyer
- The Borgia Chronicles, a series by Kate Quinn
- Prince of Foxes, by Samuel Shellabarger[10]
- The Shame of Motley, by Rafael Sabatini[11]
- Micheletto Corella is a character and target in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood.
- ^ Fusero 1972, p.247.
- ^ Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia Chapter VII: The Siege of Faenza
- ^ Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia Chapter XII: Lucrezia's Third Marriage.
- ^ Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia Chapter XV: Macchiavelli's Legation.
- ^ Machiavelli: "A description of the methods adopted by the Duke Valentino when murdering Vitellozzo Vitelli, Oliverotto da Fermo, the Signor Pagolo, and the Duke di Gravina Orsini" 1503
- ^ Dionisotti 1980, p.30.
- ^ Fusero 1972, p.247.
- ^ Dionisotti 1980, p.10
- ^ Dionisotti 1980, p.25.
- ^ Shellabarger, Samuel (31 July 2002). "Prince of Foxes". Bridgeworks. p. 146-148. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
- ^ Sabatini, Rafael (2010). "The Shame of Motley". Wildside Press. p. 283-284. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
- Carlo Dionisotti, Machiavelli, Cesare Borgia e don Micheletto, in Machiavellerie. Storia e fortuna di Machiavelli, Torino, Einaudi 1980, ISBN 88-06-50005-8
- Clemente Fusero, The Borgias, translated by Peter Green, Praeger 1972, ISBN 0-275-57740-6
- Niccolò Machiavelli, Description of the Manner in which Duke Valentino put Vitellozzo Vitelli, Oliverotto da Fermo, Lord Pagola and the Duke of Gravina to Death
- Niccolò Machiavelli, Letters
- Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia Chapter VII: The Siege of Faenza
- Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia Chapter XII: Lucrezia's Third Marriage
- Rafael Sabatini, The Life of Cesare Borgia Chapter XV: Macchiavelli's Legation
External links[edit]
- (Italian) Condottieri di Ventura


text:
The Russian tanker Renda, accompanied by a Coast Guard cutter, has started its journey south after a unqiue fuel run to the western Alaska town of Nome.
The Renda and the Coast Guard's Healy will now travel more than 360 miles through the frozen Bering Sea to the open ocean, according to the Coast Guard.
The Renda and the Healy arrived in Nome earlier this month after an 11-day journey, with the goal of delivering 1.4 million gallons of fuel.
PHOTOS: The Renda's journey from start to finish
READ MORE: Fuel delivery to Nome, Alaska: A mission of economics or humanitarianism?


text:
Welcome Back!
Hey there Critter friends! It's Derrig again, and I'm back with a cool video from our time abroad. A few of us attended Unite 2012 in Amsterdam, which was an awesome experience that I can't wait for you to see!
What is Unite? It's a special conference held every year for game developers using the Unity Engine! For those of you who don't speak Geek, a game engine is the basic framework of a game that includes its most basic systems. Think of it like a foundation of a house, upon which you could build any type of house you like! Unity happens to be a really awesome engine and a great company to work with. They support creative thinking and enjoy helping smaller studios make great games that you might not get to see otherwise!
So Unite is a place where Unity Developers get together to share ideas, attend lots of great lectures, learn new tips and tricks for cooler games, and best of all – make new friends! This year it was held in Amsterdam, which is a world away from our studio in Charleston! It was quite a journey, and we had a great time learning from some really telented people. It was also an awesome chance to explore a city unlike any we've ever been to before, and if you get the opportunity you should definitely check out Amsterdam.
It was an awesome opportunity and a great time for the team. I hope you like the video of our trip. We're already using some of the tips we learned to bring you some great new content coming soon. Until next time – keep saving those critters!
Dank je wel!


text:
E-book sales to hit almost $1 billion this year
As 2010 closes, U.S. consumers will have bought $966 million worth of e-books this year, with sales likely to reach close to $3 billion in another five years, says research firm Forrester.
Although e-book buying is still a niche market, those people who like their books electronic are spending lots of money.
This year, U.S. consumers will have spent $966 million on e-books, according to a report released yesterday by Forrester. By 2015, e-books will be close to a $3 billion market, projects the research firm.
Most of the 4,000 people questioned by Forrester for a recent survey still get their books the old-fashioned way, either borrowing them from a friend or taking them out from the library. Only 7 percent of the people polled read e-books, according to a blog post from Forrester analyst James McQuivey. But they read the most books and spend lots of money on them.
Among those surveyed, the average e-book reading aficionado reads about 41 percent of books in electronic format, a percentage that includes people who don't have a dedicated e-book reader, such as the Amazon Kindle. Among those who own a Kindle or other dedicated device, 66 percent get their books digitally.
Dedicated e-book readers are only one way for reading digital books, and not the most popular way. The survey found that 35 percent of people who read e-books do so on a laptop. Rounding out the top five, the Kindle came in second at 32 percent, followed by the iPhone, the Sony eReader, and a Netbook.
Looking ahead, Forrester is forecasting that the 7 percent figure of current e-book reading adults will rise once more people "get the hang" of consuming books in digital format. The research firm believes its forecast of a near $3 billion market by 2015 will happen even if the industry doesn't continue to innovate with new types of screens and different types of content.


text:
Forgot your password? No problem. Enter your email here and we'll send you a link to reset it.
If you're still having trouble, get in touch with us here and we'll take care of it.
Card #1 at Currie Rd end of Trail (2.2 miles)
Card #2 in Kearneysville(6.8 miles total)
Card #3 at Short Rd (9.3 miles total)
Card #4 in Kearneysville(11.9 miles total)
Card #5 at the finish in Bardane(14 miles total.)
|Starts in:
|Jefferson, WV, US
|14.1 mi
|+609 / -612 ft
But, if you'd still rather sign-up without it, no problem. Just tell us a little about yourself:


text:
Bullying and kids with special needs: Got any good tips to share?
October may be National Bullying Prevention Month, although there's been a whole lot of talk about the topic in the past couple of years. It's always troublesome to hear the stories, even more so when it involves a kid with special needs. Today, I read about Abby, a kid with Asperger syndrome whose parents had to start home-schooling her when she was 9 because of bullies at school. As her mom, Patricia, revealed, "Her fellow students constantly mocked her autism-related outburts. To help her cope, the teachers would set aside a safe place for Abby to go every week. Even then, the children would deface the space with derogatory signs."
This mom shared her experiences with the Interactive Autism Network, the country's largest online autism research database. Today it launched a nationwide survey to determine how bullying affects children with autism spectrum disorder. IAN is asking parents to share their kids' experiences with bullying, and how they dealt, in the hopes of raising awareness and getting policymakers and educators to understand the extent of the problem.
Of course, it's not just children with autism and Asperger's who deal with bullying; kids with other special needs are also victims, and hopefully the results of this study will generally raise awareness about the matter. We're lucky in our house: Max, who is 8 and has cerebral palsy, has never faced this. It's mostly because he leads such a protected life: He's in a school for kids with special needs, he goes to programs for kids with special needs, during summer he's in a camp for kids with special needs, and so on.
I've been trying to do more inclusionary activities with Max. This week, he and his dad are going to their first Cub Scouts meeting. His dad will be there with him the entire time, as will the den leader, so I'm not concerned. And yet, I ache for Max to be more independent. There will come a time when he will be off doing activities on his own, hopefully integrated activities. He will still need a careful pair of eyes on him. But with all the awareness being raised on the topic, I'd like to think that kids will have a higher level of conscientiousness about treating all kids, including ones with special needs, with respect. It would help for schools like my son's to offer programs on ways parents can teach kids about bullying; even though kids like Max are in a protected environment, some won't always be. At least that's what I pray for with Max, although it's clearly a double-edged sword.
Has your child ever been a victim of bullying? Did you learn anything from that experience that could help other parents and their kids? Please share here.
Related posts from my other blog:
How other kids treat kids with special needs: It starts with the parents
Siblings with disabilities: Her brother's keeper
Are we too sucked into special needs world?
Photo/photoplasiaAdd a Comment
Tags: autism | Categories: To The Max
Must Read
by Laurie Q
On October 18, 2011 at 8:54 pm
Something cool we've started here in London Ontario is a peer-mediated social skill program called TRACKS. It teaches children skills they can use to effectively interact with kids who have special needs (persistence, modelling, etc.). There's lots more to it than that, but what we've found is that when kids have these skills, they're more comfortable interacting with kids who have special needs and bullying really decreases. The program also encourages adults to step back a bit and allow for more peer-to-peer interaction. Lots of cool friendships developed this past summer as a result of running TRACKS in our summer day camps, and we'll certainly be expanding the program because of its great success.
On October 27, 2011 at 2:47 pm
After a terribly embarrassing event at recess last year, I kept my special needs son home and went in to talk to his classmates on my own. I wrote about what happened on my blog, thefoorce.com. The story is also posted on Child Mind Institute and nymetroparents.com. This was the single most effective thing I have done to combat bullying in his short little life – wondering now why I hadn't thought of it sooner…
by MargAngel
On October 28, 2011 at 4:47 pm
Pay them a compliment or just ignore it. Most kids on the spectrum don't realize it's bullying at all and remain unaware until much later in life. People pick on people. It's on tv and everywhere in this culture or death where by we teach our kids it's okay to kill and to be killed. What do we expect? With social media now it's ever easier to abuse and neglect other people's emotions and their states in life. Regardless teach your child to be kind and patient and if everyone is responsible then everyone will respond.
by Molly
On October 30, 2011 at 3:10 pm
My brother had a tic disorder and was bullied almost to death. I can't think about it without feeling nauseous. Now that the disorder is gone, he is an amazing advocate for kids with special needs.


text:
Sounders FC blog
The Sounders FC blog is news, game coverage and commentary of Seattle's newest sports obsession.
Posts filtered on Tag
Unintelligible Timbers coach does Alaska Airlines safety video
Despite living 4,500 miles away, the Timbers Army has long fancied itself a Scottish-style band of supporters, minus the death threats and street violence. Now they have a Scottish head coach in John Spencer. And the team's corporate sponsor is Alaska Airlines. [Read More]
Gotta hand it to the Timbers Army: They rocked the national anthem
The Portland Timbers played their first home Major League Soccer match Thursday night, beating the Chicago Fire 4-2. And while Sounders fans will claim to be the best in the league, the Timbers Army can lay claim to the most enthusiastic national anthem. Before Thursday's game, the crowd at PGE Park offered up a full-throated […] [Read More]
Report: Timbers interested in Australia's top player
The Portland Timbers are taking a hard look at Argentinean midfielder Marcos Flores, one of the top players in Australia's A-league, Adelaide Now reported Tuesday. Flores, who plays for Adelaide United, turned down the Timbers' initial offer but wants to meet with team boss Rini Coolen, the report said. Geoffrey C. Arnold of the Oregonian, […] [Read More]
Timbers pick up midfielder Jewsbury
The Portland Timbers acquired midfielder Jack Jewsbury from Sporting Kansas City for allocation money Tuesday. Jewsbury, 29, has 15 goals and 21 assists for Sporting, formerly the Wizards, in the past eight season. He scored two goals in 29 games last season. For more Sounders news see the front page of the Sounders blog. [Read More]


text:
The Card Services Office's regular business hours are 8:00am - 4:30pm, Monday - Friday. We also observe the University's holiday schedule. If you are running late and hope to catch someone at 4:30pm, please call. Chances are, you will still find someone in the office.
Our "virtual" office on the web is open 24/7/365. Visit https://cardservices.creighton.edu/ to load JayBuck$ or report a lost/stolen card anytime, day or night! Cards reported as lost/stolen may be reactivated in the office; retired (replaced) cards cannot.
We have extended hours at the beginning of each semester as posted. The office no longer relocates to the Skutt Student Center for Move-In or Summer Preview. Instead, please visit us at our location in the Harper Center.


text:
Can Breast Cancer Be Prevented?
Like any cancer, breast cancer is a complex disease, and there is no sure way to protect yourself. But Mehmet Oz, MD, a leading cardiac surgeon and host of the Daytime Emmy Award-winning The Dr. Oz Show, says there are many things you can do to move the odds in your favor. "I'm pretty convinced that a fair amount of breast cancer is related to environmental risk," says Dr. Oz. "In countries like Japan, breast cancer is dramatically lower than in this country. When Japanese women move here, within a generation, they pick up the same incidence of breast cancer as American women." Read on for 10 things you can do to help ward off breast cancer.
Set Boundaries on Your BMI
Being overweight has many negative consequences for health, and the risk of breast cancer is one of them. The effect of weight is dramatic. "For a woman who weighs over 175 pounds, the chances of breast cancer are about 25 percent higher than someone who weighs 132 pounds," Dr. Oz says. "If there was a medication that gave us the same improvement as weight loss, we would be all over it." Strive to keep your body mass index (BMI) under 25. Two more reasons to keep your weight in check: Breast cancer is often detected at a later stage in obese women, and obese women are more likely to die from breast cancer.
Get Physical
Moderate daily exercise reduces breast cancer risk by 15 to 25 percent, Dr. Oz says. And you don't have to become a gym rat or train for a marathon — walking 30 minutes five days a week will do the trick. To get the protective effect, walk briskly. "It has to be moderate exercise," says Dr. Oz, "not just a stroll to the park." One way exercise may lower the risk of breast cancer is by decreasing circulating levels of estrogen in the body. While estrogen is vital for many normal body functions, increased exposure to estrogen can raise breast cancer risk.
Opt for a 'Mocktail'
The evidence that alcohol raises the risk of cancer, including breast cancer, is so strong that in 2000, the National Institutes of Health listed the consumption of alcoholic beverages as a "known human carcinogen" for the first time. Dr. Oz advises avoiding alcohol entirely or greatly limiting drinking. The American Cancer Society says the more a woman drinks, the higher the risk of breast cancer. Even one drink a day increases the risk by a small amount. Women who drink two to five drinks a day are one and a half times more likely to develop breast cancer.
Eat for Protection
A healthy diet can lower your risk of breast cancer, and an unhealthy diet can increase your risk. Dr. Oz advises eating lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. Use vegetable oils instead of animal fats, and avoid sugared drinks, refined carbohydrates, and fatty foods. Certain foods offer additional protection, including whole soy, especially if it's fermented, Dr. Oz says. "Soy has estrogens that attach to cells, but they don't have the same effect as body estrogen." Instead, the natural estrogens found in soy can block body estrogen from affecting cells. Dr Oz says other foods that can help protect against cancer include turmeric, garlic, olive oil, green tea, and seaweed.
Say No to Hormones
For decades, women have used hormone therapy during and after menopause to combat symptoms such as hot flashes, irritability, and trouble sleeping. But recent research has shown that hormone replacement therapy may increase the risk of breast cancer. Just how much hormone replacement may increase the risk isn't clear, but Dr. Oz says if you don't have symptoms at menopause, it's a good idea to forego the hormones. However, he adds that it's okay to use hormones if necessary to relieve unwanted menopausal symptoms — advice he gives to his own family members. "Take it for as long as you need it, but probably less than five years is reasonable," he says.
Consider Medication
Women who are over age 60 or who have a family history of breast cancer should consider taking an estrogen-blocking drug such as tamoxifen or raloxifene, says Dr. Oz. Both drugs stop breast cells from being affected by estrogen. According to the American Cancer Society, studies have shown that tamoxifen reduces the risk of breast cancer by about 50 percent and raloxifene reduces the risk by about 38 percent in women at higher risk for the disease. Because there are also risks associated with these drugs, Dr. Oz urges women to talk to their doctors about the pros and cons.
Stay Away From Smokes
Although smoking is a factor in lung and other cancers, its role in breast cancer has been unclear. But a recent review by a Canadian panel of experts showed that both active smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke increase breast cancer risk in premenopausal women. The panel cited evidence from studies suggesting that women who start smoking at a young age are 20 percent more likely to develop breast cancer, and smoking for many years increases risk by up to 30 percent. The bottom line, according to Dr. Oz, is that breast cancer is just one of many reasons to nix the cigarettes. "I could give you 50 reasons not to smoke," he says.
Breastfeed Your Baby
Numerous studies have shown that women who breastfeed have a lower risk of breast cancer. The fact that women in developed countries tend to breastfeed for shorter periods or skip it completely is a major contributor to the high rates of breast cancer in these countries, according to an analysis of 47 studies in 30 countries. When a woman is breastfeeding, Dr. Oz explains, her body produces higher levels of the hormone prolactin, which lowers the levels of estrogen. The longer a woman breastfeeds over a lifetime, the more protected she is against breast cancer, the analysis concluded. Dr. Oz recommends that, if possible, women breastfeed for at least a year.
Take Part in Research
Dr. Oz encourages women to consider participating in clinical trials studying ways to reduce the risk of breast cancer. For example, ongoing research is studying whether soy, vitamin D, green tea, and other supplements or foods affect breast cancer risk. By participating in a clinical trial, you have a chance to help all women, and you may end up lowering your own breast cancer risk at the same time. And there's another benefit. "Without question, individuals get better care if they're in clinical trials," Dr. Oz says.
Join In!
Take a long walk. Wear a pink ribbon. Attend a fashion show. Organizations that support breast cancer research host hundreds of events every year to raise money for research efforts. Dr. Oz says one way to improve your own chances against breast cancer is to support these efforts, and the feeling of community can have a positive effect on your overall health. "I find that people who get involved in things like this get a lot of benefit out of it," Dr. Oz says. "You count. You matter. You're making a difference."
- Last Updated: 10/20/10
- Last Updated: 10/20/10


text:
Renaissance Literature and Early Modern Studies
Study of English Renaissance/early modern literature and culture draws on the expertise of a dozen graduate faculty members. Their research encompasses a variety of subjects from within the period, including aesthetic forms, contested histories, social and religious structures, performance and rhetorical conventions, gender, material culture, and language. Course offerings reflect such specialties as Shakespeare and early drama (Barret, Bruster, Loehlin, Mallin, Richmond-Garza, Rumrich, Whigham, Wojciehowski); sixteenth- and seventeenth-century verse, including Wyatt, Sidney, Spenser, and Donne (Barret, Rumrich, Whigham); Milton (Rumrich); rhetoric and non-literary writing and culture (Rebhorn, Whigham, Woods); early modern sociolinguistics (Blockley); global Renaissance studies (Wojciehowski); Medieval-Renaissance studies (Barret, Scala, Woods); and the English Renaissance in its European context (Rebhorn, Richmond-Garza, Wojciehowski).
Students conducting research in this field benefit from the interdisciplinary interests of the faculty, as well as from the archival holdings of the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center (HRC), which features many renaissance books in its celebrated Pforzheimer and Wrenn collections. Shakespeare studies at the University are complemented by the University's Shakespeare at Winedale program, annual performances by the Actors from the London Stage (AFTLS), and by productions in the larger Austin area. Historically, research in this field has also been enriched by connections with other areas and concerns such as Medieval, Eighteenth-century, Poetry and Poetics, and Linguistics.
- Barret, J.K.
- Blockley, Mary E.
- Bruster, Douglas
- Loehlin, James N.
- Mallin, Eric S.
- Rebhorn, Wayne A.
- Richmond-Garza, Elizabeth M.
- Rumrich, John
- Scala, Elizabeth
- Whigham, Frank
- Wojciehowski, Hannah Chapelle
- Woods, Marjorie Curry


text:
30+ Best FREE Business Card Templates in PSD File Format
- 2358 Views
- October 25, 2012
- By sohail issa
- in Freebies, Photoshop, Psd file
- 6 Comments
- Edit
Everyone needs a business card. Even I have business cards, and I hardly ever leave the computer! Today we have some great resources for you designers (and non designers). Often times people don't have the time, or the skills to design a business card, so they don't do it. Your excuse is now Invalid. These FREE PSD Format Business Card Template Designs are simply gorgeous, and well done – you will be hard pressed to not be able to find one perfect for your business card. If you don't like them, perhaps take one and make it your own in Photoshop, customize it how you feel necessary – it definitely helps out to have a template for this since most people use an online Business Cards Printing service – and are not sure what dimensions are standard, or what size to use, or what the print settings or format should be in order to get it done properly. Most of these are print ready – so it will take care of most of the complicated stuff for you. So Dive in, Get Creative and Enjoy!
30+ Best FREE Business Card Templates in PSD File Format
FREE Professional Business Card
Download Free Premium Business Card Design
Free Business Card PSD Template for SEO Company
Professional Transparent Business Card for FREE
Best FREE Business Card Templates (PSD Download) & Resources
Best (so far) Business Card Design Tutorials, Resources, & Inspirations
Free Business Card PSD
Free business card Template – Cubic
Free Business Card PSD Template for Photographers
FREE business card calendar template AI PSD CDR Format
FREE Web Developer Business Card format print ready
Free Business Card PSD Template Inspired by Digg
Free Minimal Business Card Template
FREE Business Card Template
G.K Design Business Card .PSD FILE
Free PSD: Flow Business Cards in 3 Colors
Identification Card PSD
Free Rounded Corner Business Card Design
Free Clean Business Card Design
Free Eco-Friendly Business Card Template Ver.2
Free Eco-Friendly Business Card Template in PSD
Free business card Template – Organico
Free Geeky Business Card Template – Adobe Illustrator File Format
Exclusive FREE PSD Download – Dark, Creative, & Minimal Business Card Print-Ready Design Template
1500+ Business Card Resources (Free Downloads & Premium), Tutorials & Inspirations
Comments ( 6 )
Cool PSDs! You can have a look at my website http://www.free-business-cards.net to see some unique business card design.
Hope you like and enjoy it!
nice colection. thx
Great site! I Abolutly love it. Keep up the good work.
Useful info. Lucky me I discovered your web site by chance, and I am shocked why this accident didn't happened earlier! I bookmarked it.
Nice selection, just keep going with good work
Thank you bro


text:
Learn to creatively compose short-form advertisements in Adobe Premiere Pro and create spots that market a brand as well as sell a product.
Introduces essential storytelling concepts and creative editing techniques for creating a narrative short film with Premiere Pro, from selecting shots to placing cuts.
"I am a 56-year-old film editor. FCP 7 was the first really intimidating system I encountered. I tried books and a video course but was still confused. Then my son came home with a free trial for lynda.com. I get it! I am editing again! No more feelings of defeat and feeling "too old for this"! THANK YOU!" —Colin L.
more from our members »


text:
About Iaspis >
Expert visits
Grants & Studios >
International Cooperative Projects in Sweden
Grant Holders >
Public Programme >
Expert Visits
Publications >
Visit the archive
Staff & Contact >
/ Antony Hudek on Artist Placement Group
Lecture: Exhibiting Artist Placement Group, or How to Display an Approach
Date: Monday, February 27, 12.00
Address: Iaspis, The Swedish Arts Grants Committee, Maria skolgata 83, 2nd floor
Antony Hudek
will talk about
Artist Placement Group
), an artist-run organization founded in London, 1966, seeking to refocus art outside the gallery. For almost twenty years, APG negotiated placements on behalf of artists in government and industry according to a core set of principles that constituted its distinctive approach: the artist was to be remunerated; she or he was free to produce any outcome from her or his placement (what APG referred to as the 'Open Brief'); and the artist's 'work' began the moment she or he come into contact with the host organization (as APG's axiom put it: 'Context is Half the Work').
In September 2012, the contemporary art exhibition centre, Raven Row in London will organize the first exhibition devoted to APG. The talk at Iaspis will address some of the curatorial challenges raised by the Raven Row exhibition, which seeks to highlight not only the APG's historical significance but, more importantly, its relevance to contemporary debates about the artist's social and political role.
Antony Hudek is Mellon research fellow at University College London and co-director of Occasional Papers.
Tea and DIY sandwiches will be available.
You are also welcome to the next lecture in Iaspis series of talks about international artist led initiative; on March1st
Beatriz Santiago Muñoz
will talk about
in Puerto Rico.
For more information please contact Iaspis project coordinator Ulrika Sten at e-mail:
or phone no. +46 (0)8 506 550
Updated: 2012-03-05
Tell a friend
The Swedish Arts Grants Committee
The Artists' Guide
International Dance Programme
International Music Programme
Apply here
About this webbsite
Personuppgiftslagen PuL
Iaspis, Maria skolgata 83, 2nd floor
+46 8 - 50 65 50 00


text:
The Center for a Free Cuba (CFC) is an independent, non-partisan institution dedicated to promoting human rights and a transition to democracy and the rule of law on the island. Established in November 1997, the Center gathers and disseminates information about Cuba and Cubans to the media, NGOs, and the international community. The Center also assists the people of Cuba through its information outreach and humanitarian programs on the island. The Center has received a 501(c)(3) exemption from the Internal Revenue Service. Contributions to the Center are tax deductible.
The Center publishes articles on U.S. Cuba policy and other foreign issues. The Center also publishes special reports and participates in the debate about Cuba in the opinion pages of major newspapers. The Center also produces and distributes books and other publications in Spanish inside Cuba.
The Center sponsors a variety of press events, academic conferences, and briefings on Cuba issues. One of the Center's first conferences was cosponsored with the Georgetown University, University of Miami, and the Democratic National Institute on the role of the military in the transition to democracy was held in mid 2000 in Portugal. Many other conferences have been sponsored throughout the years.
In the News
Staff and Board Members of the Center are quoted periodically by print media and appear in TV and radio programs dealing with Cuba. Opinion articles written at the Center have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times, The Chicago Tribune, The San Diego Union, etc. The Center responds to media queries on a regular basis.
Capitol Hill
The Center sponsors an informal Congressional staff policy dinner group. The Center distributes on a timely basis reports and information about the Cuban situation to Senators, Congressmen and their staffs. With the cooperation of Members of Congress, the Center has sponsored briefings, films, policy luncheons, a photo exhibit, a concert with award winning Cuban artist Paquito D'Rivero and other events on Capitol Hill.
President and CEO: Ambassador James Cason
Board of Directors:Mr. Manuel J. Cutillas, Mr. Filiberto Agusti, Esq., Ambassador Everett Briggs, Mr. Nestor Carbonell, Ms. Beatriz Casals, Mr. Jeronimo Esteve-Abril, Mr. Guillermo Marmol, Ambassador Jose Sorzano, Mr. Manuel Iglesias, Esq.
Research Council: Sergio Diaz-Briquets * Mark Falcoff (American Enterprise Institute) * Edward González (RAND) * Irving Louis Horowitz (Rutgers University) * Enrico Mario Santí (University of Kentucky, Lexington) * Eusebio Mujal-León (Georgetown University) * Jaime Suchlicki (University of Miami)
President: Ambassador James Cason
James Cason is the retired U.S. Foreign Service officer, most recently serving as Ambassador to Paraguay, a post he held from December, 2005 to August 2008. Prior to assuming that post, he served as the chief of the United States Interests Section in Havana, Cuba, from September 10, 2002 to September 10, 2005. He was succeeded by Michael E. Parmly.
Cason also served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and Kingston, Jamaica. Previously he served as Political Advisor to the Commander of the U.S. Atlantic Command (USACOM) and to NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT). Cason also served at U.S. missions in Milan, Italy; Lisbon, Portugal; San Salvador, El Salvador; Panama City, Panama; Maracaibo, Venezuela; Montevideo, Uruguay; and La Paz, Bolivia.
James Cason graduated from Dartmouth College in the class of 1966 and has an M.A. from the School of Advanced International Studies(SAIS), Johns Hopkins University(JHU).
Executive Director: Frank Calzón
Born in Cuba and trained as a Political Scientist at Rutgers (BA Political Science) and at Georgetown (MA Comparative Politics,) he has testified on Cuba before Congressional committees and the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva. Mr. Calzon served for 10 years as the Washington representative for Freedom House, the respected human rights organization. He has written many articles for major dailies in the United States and elsewhere, and has appeared in many radio and TV programs. His work at the Center for a free Cuba entails the development and maintenance contacts with the Congress, the diplomatic corps and democratic government officials around the world.
Center for a Free Cuba
1725 DeSales St NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036


text:
Political Pulse 08.16.09
Bus system board to get new members
The Regional Transportation Authority board of directors is set for a major overhaul Wednesday, when the Nueces County Commissioners Court appoints three directors to the 11-member-board that oversees the public bus system.
County appointee Mike Rendon is off, as is vice-chair Anna Flores. Neither applied for reappointment.
Rendon is a former RTA board chairman. His last appointment was by a 3-2 vote when Democrats held a 3-2 edge on the Commissioners Court. He is well-connected to Democratic County Commissioner Oscar Ortiz and his brother, U.S. Rep. Solomon P. Ortiz.
Now the balance on the Commissioners Court is 3-2 the other way and the appointment decisions should be interesting. County appointee David Martinez, a Democrat who has asked to be reappointed, is Rendon's brother-in-law. Martinez is up against Republicans who want on the board including Connie Scott, who ran against state Rep. Abel Herrero, D-Robstown, last year, and Angie Flores Granado, who is leading some of the efforts to elect U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, governor.
Businessman Randy Aycock, politically active businesswoman Gloria Perez and Abel Alonzo, an advocate for the disabled, also are in the mix.
That's 'Mr. Chubby' to you, Saenz says
At a Tuesday meeting to talk about issues related to the planned Interstate 69 corridor that is supposed to weave through South Texas, Jim Wells County Judge Arnold Saenz commented to the media and then jokingly spelled his name.
San Patricio County Judge Terry Simpson snickered and told Saenz he needed to 'fess up and tell people what his "real name" is.
Turns out, several of the rural county judges and others call Saenz "Chubby."
"It's Mr. Chubby to them," a grinning Saenz said pointing to Simpson.
Gun rights advocate lauds Hegar for bill
The Texas State Rifle Association named state Sen. Glenn Hegar, R-Katy, as Texas Legislator of the Year for 2009 for his efforts in defense of Texans' gun rights during the 81st Texas Legislature, which ended in June.
"Senator Hegar has long been recognized by law-abiding Texas gun owners as a friend and ally but his actions during the 81st Texas Legislature clearly affirm his place as one of the state's foremost champions of Second Amendment rights," said Alice Tripp, the association's legislative director.
This session, Hegar authored a bill that would have prevented employers from adopting policies that would keep employees from keeping legally owned firearms in their locked vehicle in the parking lot of their workplace.
The bill passed the Senate but stalled prior to House consideration after Democrats held a talk-a-thon to prevent consideration of controversial voter identification legislation, according to Hegar's office.
The Texas State Rifle Association is the official state affiliate of the National Rifle Association and has more than 39,000 members.
Political Pulse is compiled by Caller-Times politics reporter Jaime Powell. Have a tip? Contact Powell at 886-3716 or email@example.com
Subscribe to the Caller-Times
Need Help? Call us at 1-800-566-8098.
Monday-Friday: 6am-3pm / Saturday: 7am-11am / Sunday: 7am-11am


text:
Art Courses
Curtin's School of Design and Art is a major centre for visual arts and design education in Australia and internationally, offering creative students a comprehensive range of challenging, contemporary programs.
These courses develop strong presentation and visual communication skills, and encourage creativity, versatility, depth of knowledge and research. Our students have access to excellent facilities and technical support for practical work in a wide range of media.
Bachelor of Arts
Postgraduate Courses
- Graduate Certificate in Design and Art
- Graduate Diploma in Art
- Master of Arts - Art
- Master of Applied Design and Art


text:
Dear Beachbody,
I am a true friend and believer in your Beachbody products. I have completed two rounds of Power 90 and now Slim in 6. Your products have virtually changed my life. I owe you the rest of it and will continue using your products. Yesterday, I ordered Debbie's new Slim Series and will purchase P90X as soon as it is released.
In the past, I have tried every exercise video and equipment that is out there with very little or no results. Now, I tell everyone I know about your products because they work. I just wish I could give everyone just a little motivation to try them. They would be hooked just as I am. Being a Human Resource Manager with a company with over a thousand employees, I know your products could change so many lives for the better and I am doing my best to get the word out when I can. Not only will your products change the way people look, it will change how they feel about themselves and the world around them. Here is how I got started with your products and why they have changed my life.
Over a year ago, I was struggling with anxiety and major depression. With everyone in my father's family at one time or another being diagnosed with cancer, I had convinced myself that I had cancer and was dying. I went from doctor to doctor believing I had one type of cancer or another. Once a doctor was able to convince me I was ok and didn't have the type of cancer I believed I had, I would then think I had another type of cancer. Life was almost worst than death living in so much fear. My family and friends were helpless in convincing me I was ok.
Finally, I ended up at a Rheumatologists office and met a woman doctor who had the answer I was looking for. She explained to me that in order to get over the anxiety and depression, I would have to do some type of strenuous exercise five time a week. Shortly, after that visit, I happened upon your Power 90 commercial. I ordered Power 90 and after a few short weeks I not only looked better, my anxiety had lifted along with my depression. I am so healthy now physically and mentally. I no longer live in fear of dying and look forward to the future because I know I will be here a very long time.
My husband asked me to go to Paris with him last fall. Before Power 90, I would have never gone. I had so much fear and felt old and tired. Well, I was still a little apprehensive about flying. But, I told my husband that if he would quit smoking so that he would be around to share my life, I would put my fear of flying aside and go to Paris. Then I also asked him to purchase Slim in 6 for me for Christmas.
I started Slim in 6 on December 26, 2002 and finished the day we flew to Paris on February 6, 2003. Thanks to Slim in 6, I was one of the "sexiest" fifty-year old grandmas over there. It was the best vacation of my life. My husband loves my new shape and wants to show me off. So he kept insisting that I buy more clothes while I was there. My weight hadn't changed much because I never had much to lose. However, I went from a size 8 to a 4-6. My body is now as toned as it was when I was in my twenties. My friends and family are so jealous. I do tell them my secret though and tell them to visit Beachbody.com.
Besides your exercise videos, your community message boards have meant the world to me. There is no one in my family that works out. However, I have been able to get all of the motivation and support anyone could need on your boards. I also feel great when I am able to help out someone else as well. Who needs all of that exercise equipment and memberships to health clubs? I tried all of that with little or no results. All anyone needs is one of your programs and they will be hooked like I am. Thank you Beachbody for giving me my life back.
Sincerely,Nancy M.
Get special offers, plus free health, fitness, and weight loss tips.
Connect with Beachbody, fans, coaches, and your favorite trainers!
Bookmark or share this page by emailing it to your friends, or adding it to your favorite networking sites! Simply mouse over the Share icon below for options.
Get special offers and expert advice!
Click here to chat live with a customer service representative.
Home | About Us | Careers | Press | Beachbody® Blog | California Supply Chains Act | Customer Service | Live Chat |
My Account | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Site Map | Contact Us | Shopping Cart | Index
†Results may vary. Exercise and proper diet are necessary to achieve and maintain weight loss and muscle definition.
Please consult with a physician before beginning any exercise program.
© 2015 Beachbody, LLC. All rights reserved.


text:
BJ's makes donation to three local charities
The BJ's Charitable Foundation recently presented donations totaling $20,000 to three local nonprofit organizations: CrossOver Ministries' eyeglass and vision program, FeedMore's mobile pantry and the Children's Museum of Richmond's Book Nook literacy program. The check presentations took place Sept. 11 at BJ's Wholesale Club on Starling Drive in Henrico.
Pictured with the CrossOver check are (from left): Carlie Cross, BJ's regional acquisition retention manager; Kyra Dillard Wright, vision program manager; Julie Bilodeau, director of operations; and Lynn Williams, development manager. The check will benefit the eyeglass project, which includes pre-screening and evaluations of low-income
individuals with vision needs, a medical visit to check basic health, a voucher to receive eyeglasses at BJ's Wholesale Club, and a follow-up evaluation and survey.
The BJ's Charitable Foundation grants funds quarterly to organizations where BJ's clubs are located. The Foundation chooses organizations that provide critical services and programs focusing on hunger prevention, self-sufficiency, healthcare and education, which is the company's giving focus. A complete list of charitable organizations receiving grants is located at http://www.BJs.com/community
10th annual Filipino Festival coming in August
The 10th Annual Filipino Festival will be held Aug. 7-8 at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, 8200 Woodman Rd., beginning with opening ceremonies at 5 p.m. Friday and continuing with live entertainment, food and exhibits until 10 p.m. On Saturday the festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. with a full schedule of performances featuring traditional Filipino dance, music and song.
Filipino cuisine, including BBQ, pansit, lumpia, adobo, halo-halo, lechon, empanada and leche flan, will be available for purchase. The festival will also feature a children's area, church tours, exhibits, and health screenings. > Read more.
CMoR reopens at new Short Pump site
The Children's Museum of Richmond last week opened its new Short Pump location at Short Pump Town Center, to the delight of children who attended a sneak preview of the location July 10. The new facility, located under the forthcoming LL Bean store (formerly the food court) is 8,500 square feet in size – much larger than CMoR's former Short Pump location at West Broad Village, which opened in 2010. The new space includes The CarMax Foundation Service Station, the Silver Diner, a grocery store, a performance stage and an art studio, as well as a giant Light Bright Wall. > Read more.
Weekend Top 10
The Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Henrico Police are both presenting community events tomorrow, Aug. 1. The Feria Community Resource Fair at Richmond International Raceway brings together community service providers, embassies/consulates from Latin American countries, government agencies, nonprofit organizations and corporations that impact the Latino community. The Division of Police's Community Day will feature demonstrations and displays from police, fire, animal protection and sheriff's office, as well as family activities, food, entertainment and more. Other events this weekend include wine, chess and theatre! For all our top picks this weekend, click here! > Read more.
3 community meetings planned about September UCI championship cycling races
Three Henrico students participating in 8-day James River Expedition
CASA volunteers sworn in
Police arrest man in upskirting case
Business in brief
- More News
Print Edition
Jul. 16, 2015Click here to read the print edition.
Weekend Top 10
Minion mania
Weekend Top 10
Weekend Top 10
Weekend Top 10
- More Entertainment
Obituary – Bernice Lauterbach
Obituary – Marion P. Breschel
Obituary – Marian S. Blankenship
- More Obituaries
10th annual Filipino Festival coming in August
CMoR reopens at new Short Pump site
Prince George man wins Walmart Bass Fishing League event in Henrico
- More Community
The greatest love of all
My daughters' other dads
All hail to mothers and the hardest job of all
- More Opinions
Athlete of the Week – July 3: Kayla Sell
Athlete of the Week – June 19: Sydney Whitaker
Steward School's Enright drafted by NY Mets
- More Sports
Reader Survey | Advertising | Email updates
ClassifiedsATTENTION DIABETICS with Medicare. Get a FREE talking meter and diabetic testing supplies at NO COST, plus FREE home delivery! Best of all, this meter eliminates painful finger pricking! Call… Full text
Place an Ad | More Classifieds
CalendarThe Tuckahoe Square Dance Club will hold an open house from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. at Temple Beth El Education Center, 601 N. Parham Rd. No experience necessary. Casual… Full text


text:
Meridian Community College
910 Highway 19 N,
Meridian, MS 39307
Tanya Wright
Program Coordinator
Meridian Community College is the place to be for students interested in the field of Cosmetology. MCC offers two programs that prepare students to care for the hair, hands, feet, and complexion (Cosmetology program and Nail Technician program).
The Cosmetology program curriculum is in compliance with the Mississippi State Board of Cosmetology standards. The program combines classroom, lab, and clinical training experiences as well as requiring a total of 1,500 clock hours (230 classroom theory hours and 1270 supervised work training hours). The student will receive a certificate and be eligible to take the Mississippi State Board of Cosmetology license's exam. For more information on this program read the gainful employment disclosure.
Meridian Community College • 910 Highway 19 N, Meridian, MS 39307 • 601-483-8241 • 1-800-MCC-THE-1
Accreditation • Nondiscrimination Statement • Mission Statement • Transparency © 2013. All rights reserved.
Contact Webmaster


text:
Frequent Bathroom Remodeling Questions
This list of frequently asked bathroom remodeling questions was put together to help you in your discovery phase of your bathroom planning.
There are hundreds of decisions to be made during your bathroom remodel design phase. Our focus is to make this process as painless as possible for all of our design and renovation clients.
Can I meet with one of your designers to discuss options for my bathroom remodel and get a free estimate?
- We would be happy to meet with you to discuss your bathroom remodel. During that meeting we can share preliminary ideas for your bathroom remodel and give you our estimate of the budget range for your bathroom remodel.
How do we get started with planing my bathroom remodel?
- We like to start the process with our design phase. During this phase we will get to know your wishes and your overall home style. From there we will help you navigate through the multitude of details involved with updating your bathroom's floor plan, cabinet style, counter top options, tile flooring options, lighting ideas and much more.
Does Homework Remodels always start with a design phase?
- We make a practice of starting with a design phase with almost all of our clients. We find that it insures the best ultimate remodel with the fewest issues for everyone concerned.
Are there costs for the design phase?
- We do charge for the work we do to design bathroom remodels. Our minimum charge is $500.00. We will discuss charges with you when we meet for your free consultation and budget range evaluation.
How long will it take to design my bathroom remodel?
- It will depend on the complexity of your bathroom remodel. Reconfiguring the floor plan or deciding on structural changes will take longer. Usually it will take two to four weeks.
Where do we start with the design phase of our bathroom remodel?
- We usually start by asking you questions about how you and your family use your bathroom. We need to know what works for you and what doesn't. If you have a wish list we what to know all about it. If you have gathered online photos of bathrooms you admire we would like to see them. Our goal is to start by learning to see your home and your future bathroom through your eyes. Once we do this we can add our expertise to the mix to develop the design for your new bathroom.
How long will it take to remodel my bathroom?
It will depend on the extent of your bathroom remodel as to how long it will take. Most bathroom remodels include removing the tub and or shower plus replacing the toilet vanity and flooring. If the bathroom remodel is more extensive the entire room may be rearranged and or enlarged involving concrete floor cutting removing and rearranging walls and the ceiling.
A simple bathroom remodel might be finished in as little as two weeks. More extensive projects could take four to six weeks depending on the complexity of the new bathroom.
Can my shower be re-tiled without redoing the bathroom floor?
- We have successfully replaced tubs and showers without redoing the bathroom flooring. Tubs can be more of an issue if the edge of the bathtub has a unique shape. The best situation is when the homeowner has extra tiles from the last bathroom remodel to repair the floor as necessary after the tub replacement.
Is it necessary to have a bathroom exhaust fan?
The building code does not require exhaust fans if the bathroom has a window but the reality is that every bathroom should have an exhaust fan.
The biggest reason is to remove humidity from the bathroom during baths and showers. Humidity that builds up in your bathroom will damage everything it comes into contact with in the bathroom. Many homeowners will notice issues with the walls, ceiling, and fixtures only after it has reached the point of needing repair.
By running the fan while you shower or bathe the humidity will be removed. You will notice the mirror will not fog over, nor will anything else in the bathroom suffer from the moisture.
How do I choose a new toilet?
Toilets can be challenging to pick out for your new bathroom. They are not like cars that can be taken for a test ride. In fact most big box stores have them displayed on high shelves making it even harder to decide.
The best way to choose is by doing online research and possibly visiting a plumbing showroom. Many of these showrooms will not only have toilets down where you can inspect them, they will also have experts on staff to explain your options.
What are WaterSense bathroom fixtures?
The EPA set up the Watersense program to help preserve the nations water supply. Watersense fixtures have been third party verified to perform as well or better that conventional bathroom and kitchen fixtures while using 20% less water.
These bathroom and kitchen fixtures are the state of the art in water features. I would always recommend that you consider a Watersense fixture if at all possible for your bathroom remodel.
How long does a double sink vanity need to be?
- A double sink vanity cabinet needs to be at least five foot wide to provide enough space for two people to use the area at one time.
What is frame-less glass?
Frame-less glass refers to the various shower enclosures made with either 3/8" or 1/2" glass. This thicker glass is tempered and safe for bathroom use. It is strong enough to be used to make dividing walls and doors.
The glass comes in many variations to satisfy different design options. formless glass shower doors and enclosures are totally custom enabling you total freedom in your bathroom shower designs.
What type of tile can I use on my bathroom floor and shower?
Bathrooms have been built and remodeled in any number of types of tile over the years. Traditionally showers were built with ceramic tile made specifically for bathrooms and kitchen back-splashes.
Today the choices are limitless. Bathrooms are being remodeled using numerous types of stone, ceramic, porcelain, metal and glass tile depending on the design's style.
What does it take to rearrange my bathroom floor plan?
The original layout in some bathrooms is so bad that the only cure is to start over with a new floor plan. Before diving into demolishing the bathroom that has irritated you for so long, be sure to work out all the details of your new layout and design.
A bathroom layout needs to be a balanced mix of practicality and style. Arranging the features so that you are showing off a beautiful shower or a vanity with it's unique faucets, counter tops and mirror will create both style and function.
If you are concerned about minimizing the budget, be sure to consider plumbing accessibility. Arranging your new bathroom floor plan to require minimum plumbing changes will have a positive effect on the cost of your bathroom remodel.
How can I avoid forgetting to turn off the bathroom exhaust fan?
Nothing is more annoying than finding that an exhaust fan has been running all day while you were away The loss of electricity from the fan running and the loss of conditioned air that you paid to cool or heat can be frustrating.
The simplest cure is installing a timer switch. There are various options, the best ones will have several buttons for time options from a few minutes to half an hour. Be sure that your timer switch is rated for twenty amps in order to match your exhaust fans requirements.
Why does my shower smell?
The bad news is that if your shower has a odor in it there is a water leak causing what may be a mold problem. If it is leaking there is no way to fix it other than t tear out and replace the shower.
You should have a professional inspect your shower to determine the extent of the problem and take care of it as soon as possible. If you have mold in your walls it can be a serious health risk for you and your family and should't be taken lightly.
Mold spreads easily when it is disturbed so don't attempt to deal with it yourself.
Why is a tile shower expensive to replace?
Most people are surprised to find out how much it costs to replace a bathroom shower. The only thing more expensive is to replace a poorly installed shower that has failed shortly after it was installed.
Before the shower tile is installed there is a major amount of work that goes into insuring that the new shower will stay watertight and drain properly for years to come. Taking shortcuts or using inferior materials or workmanship on your new bathroom shower will only lead to disaster.
Is it better to replace or refinish my bath tub and shower tile?
Refinishing a bathroom tub and or shower can be a good option in some situations. Professionally done it can add years to the life of your tub or shower without the major expense of removal or replacement. Your bath tub must not have rust in it if you expect the new finish to last for an extended time. Minor injuries in the existing tub or tile can be repaired prior to refinishing so that your updated bathroom features will look like new.
Keep in mind that the grout lines will be refinished along with the tile. Everything will be monochromatic. If you have larger grout lines this may look artificial.
Is it necessary to replace the shower valve for my new shower?
Technically it's not necessary, but it is considered the wise thing to do considering the expense of creating the new bathroom shower and what it would take to replace the old shower head after the new shower is installed.
There may be occasions where the existing shower valves were built so that they could have their internal components replaced without starting over. This would be the exception to the rule.
Does homework Remodels do bathroom remodeling in my area?
We serve homeowners in metro Phoenix and all of the surrounding communities of Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, Ahwatukee, Gilbert, Glendale and Mesa. If you are looking for an experienced bathroom remodeler we would invite you to contact us for all your home improvement needs.
As a full service design build remodeling contractor we can help you update your homes bathrooms or create an entire new bathroom or master suite for you.
For additional remodel questions email Steve at:
We will be glad to answer any questions or come to your home to answer questions and preview your upcoming remodeling project.


text:
10.1 WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY: Cavs 5th at All-Ohio; Yoder 21st
Women's Cross Country, 2010-10-01
Walsh (30-27) finished 5th at the All-Ohio Championships held at Elvin R. King Cross Country Course at Cedarville University today. Malone University (34) won the race, followed by Ashland University (48), Cedarville University (70), Shawnee State University (96) and the Cavs (176).
Lissa Yoder (So., Cortland, OH/Maplewood) finished in 21st place in a time of 19:36.4. Nicole Culler (Jr., Beloit, OH/West Branch) was next, placing 34th in a time of 20:24. Megan Case (Sr., Louisville, OH/HS) placed 37th (20:38.3), Katie Laughlin (Jr., Malvern, OH/Canton South) 41st (20:54.9), Kaley Charek (Fr., Clinton, OH/Green, OH) 43rd (21:00.0), Rachelle Miller (Jr., Uniontown, OH/Lake) 48th (21:27.0) and Ashley Demsey (Sr., Parma, OH/Padua Franciscan) 57th (22:31.7).
North Canton, Ohio 44720
800.362.9846 | 330.490.7090
Visiting Walsh / Need Directions?
Search Engine Marketing & University Web Development by The Karcher Group
Walsh University is not affiliated with Walsh College
©2015 All rights reserved


text:
Week in Review: Sequestration is here
Washington hit the deadline for the sequester, despite the Obama Adminitsration's dire warnings. Meanwhile, Bob Woodward fought the White House, CPAC snubbed Gov. Chris Christie and the Supreme Court considered the future of the Voting Rights Act.
Please see the Comments FAQ if you have any additional questions or email your thoughts to firstname.lastname@example.com powered by Disqus


text:
LAS VEGAS, NEV. (Feb. 9) - The New Mexico state women's tennis team split its two matches on Saturday, Feb. 10. First, the Aggies were swept by the host UNLV Rebels 7-0. Later in the day, the Aggies redeemed themselves with a 5-2 win over Weber State.
With the No. 57 Rebels taking the doubles point to start off the match, before the Aggies battled to try and make a comeback in singles competition. At the No. 1 spot, senior Jodie Williams fell in straight sets to 20th-ranked Aleksandra Josifoska 6-1 and 6-3. With each of the other Aggies doing down in two sets also, Annemieke Witte was able to take her opponent, Janine Erasmus, to four tough sets before the point was decided. Going down 6-0, 2-6, 1-0 (11-9), Witte was unable to hold out for the point at the No. 4 position.
NM State Came back in the second dual of the day with a 5-2 win over Weber State, beginning with a sweep for the doubles point. Williams and Denise Van Der Ben were able to start things with an 8-2 win at the top doubles spot. As Ginet Pinero and Witte were able to lock in the point with an 8-5 win at the second spot.
The top two singles spots were left unfinished as the Aggies in the next three positions were able to secure Aggie points for the win. Pinero took her match in two straight sets (6-3, 6-2) at the No. 3 spot, while Witte and Ros-Polly Nguyen each picked up the point in straight sets as well.
NM State's only single loss came at the sixth position when Lisa Roslanova went down 6-1 and 6-2.
The Aggies finish the season-opening weekend against Cal State Northridge on Sunday, Feb. 9, at 11 a.m.
#57 UNLV 7, New Mexico State 0
Singles competition
1. #20 Aleksandra Josifoska (UNLV) def. Jodie Williams (NMSU) 6-1, 6-3
2. Lucia Batta (UNLV) def. Denise Van Der Ben (NMSU) 6-4, 6-2
3. Nives Pavlovic (UNLV) def. Ginet Pinero (NMSU) 6-0, 6-2
4. Janine Erasmus (UNLV) def. Annemieke Witte (NMSU) 6-0, 2-6, 1-0 (11-9)
5. Iren Kotseva (UNLV) def. Ros-Polly Nguyen (NMSU) 6-0, 6-2
6. Anett Ferenczi-Bako (UNLV) def. Lisa Roslanova (NMSU) 6-1, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Lucia Batta/Nives Pavlovic (UNLV) vs. Jodie Williams/Denise Van Der Ben (NMSU) 5-7, unfinished
2. Janine Erasmus/Aleksandra Josifoska (UNLV) def. Ginet Pinero/Annemieke Witte (NMSU) 8-3
3. Iren Kotseva/Anett Ferenczi-Bako (UNLV) def. Ros-Polly Nguyen/Lisa Roslanova (NMSU) 8-5
Mexico State 5, Weber State 2
Singles competition
1. Ashley Tanner (WSU) def. Jodie Williams (NMSU) 7-5, 1-0, retired
2. Denise Van Der Ben (NMSU) def. Kristi Elmer (WSU) 6-1, 2-0, retired
3. Ginet Pinero (NMSU) def. Nittaya Phonharath (WSU) 6-3, 6-2
4. Annemieke Witte (NMSU) def. Thais Kurer (WSU) 6-1, 6-1
5. Ros-Polly Nguyen (NMSU) def. Michelle Warwick (WSU) 6-2, 6-4
6. Annika Karlsen (WSU) def. Lisa Roslanova (NMSU) 6-3, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Jodie Williams/Denise Van Der Ben (NMSU) def. Kristi Elmer/Thais Kurer (WSU) 8-2
2. Ginet Pinero/Annemieke Witte (NMSU) def. Ashley Tanner/Michelle Warwick (WSU) 8-5
3. Ros-Polly Nguyen/Lisa Roslanova (NMSU) vs. Carly Lloyd/Nittaya Phonharath (WSU) unfinished


text:
Pig face Christina RicciChristina Ricci is set to play a woman with a bizarre feature - a pig's snout.
The beautiful actress will transform her looks for independent comedy 'Penelope' - which also stars blonde beauty Reese Witherspoon - and is thrilled about the porky role.
She is quoted as saying in Britain's Daily Sport newspaper: "It's a modern day fable about this girl whose family lineage is cursed. She's born with a pig's nose.
"The only way to break the curse is for someone of her own kind to accept and love her."
The brunette beauty admitted she surprised her agent by accepting the part because she thought she'd definitely reject it.
She said: "My agent was actually scared to send the script to me because she thought I'd be offended."
Earlier this year, the 'Monster' star revealed she wants to marry boyfriend Adam Goldberg.
She confessed: "I would marry Adam, because I'm very traditional and conservative.
"I definitely want children, ideally after I'm married, but you can't control everything."


text:
The invention provides a gas diffusion electrode containing a fiber reinforced composite structure in a layer thereof, the structure comprising structurally intact fibers precoated with sinterable polymeric material, which material is heat sintered, whereby the fibers are bonded to each other and to other components of the structure by the sintered polymeric material, while maintaining their individual fibrous structure and strength.
1. A gas diffusion electrode containing a fiber reinforced composite structure in a layer thereof, said structure comprising structurally intact fibers precoated with sinterable polymeric material, which material is heat sintered, whereby said fibers are bonded to each other and to other components of said structure by said sintered polymeric material, while maintaining their individual fibrous structure and strength.
2. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 1, wherein said layer is an active layer.
3. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 1, wherein said layer is a blocking layer.
4. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 3, wherein said polymeric material is hydrophobic.
5. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 1, wherein said electrode is part of a metal-air battery.
6. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 1, wherein said electrode is part of a hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell.
7. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 1, wherein said electrode is part of an electrosynthesis cell.
8. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 1, wherein said fibers have a length of between about 100 and 5000 microns and a diameter of between about 5 and 500 microns.
9. A gas diffusion electrode according to claim 1, wherein said intact fibers are carbon fibers, coated with a fluoropolymer.
10. A gas diffusion electrode according a claim 1, wherein said intact fibers are fluoropolymer fibers, coated with a different fluoropolymeric material, said material having a lower sintering temperature than said fibers.
The present invention relates to gas diffusion electrodes and to methods for the preparation thereof. More particularly the present invention relates to gas diffusion electrodes for use in metal-air batteries and hydrogen-oxygen fuel cells.
Metal-air batteries of monopolar and bipolar design, both rechargeable and primary, as well as electrodes therefor, are known in the art as described, e.g., in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,549,422; 4,246,324; 4,341,847; 4,463,064; 4,565,749; 4,585,710; 4,877,694; 4,908,281; 4,925,744 and 4,957,826.
As is known and described, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,908,281, metal-air batteries produce electricity by the electrochemical coupling of a reactive metallic anode to an air cathode through a suitable electrolyte in a cell. The air cathode is typically a sheet-like member, having opposite surfaces respectively exposed to the atmosphere and to the aqueous electrolyte of the cell. During cell operation oxygen is reduced within the cathode while metal of the anode is oxidized, providing a usable electric current flow through external circuitry connected between the anode and cathode. The air cathode must be permeable to air but substantially impermeable to aqueous electrolyte, and must incorporate an electrically conductive element to which the external circuitry can be connected. Present-day commercial air cathodes are commonly constituted of carbon (with or without an added oxygen-reduction catalyst) in association with a finely divided polymeric material and incorporating a metal screen as the conductive element. A variety of anode metals have been used or proposed; among them, zinc, iron, lithium, aluminum, or alloys thereof are considered especially advantageous for particular applications, owing to their low cost, light weight, and ability to function as anodes in metal-air batteries using a variety of electrolytes. A typical aluminum-air cell comprises a body of aqueous electrolyte, a sheet-like air cathode having one surface exposed to the electrolyte and the other surface exposed to air, and an aluminum alloy anode member (e.g. a flat plate) immersed in the electrolyte in facing spaced relation to the first-mentioned cathode surface.
Aqueous electrolytes for aluminum-air batteries consist of two major types, namely a neutral-pH electrolyte usually containing halide salts and, because of its relatively low electrical conductivity and the virtual insolubility of aluminum therein, is used for relatively low power applications. The high alkaline electrolyte types usually employ NaOH or KOH solution, and yield a higher cell voltage than the neutral electrolyte versions.
As described also in U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,535 in present-day commercial metal-air cell practice, the air cathode is commonly constituted of carbon (with or without an added dissociation-promoting catalyst) containing a finely divided hydrophobic polymeric material and incorporating a metal screen as the conductive element. A variety of anode metals are used including iron, zinc, magnesium, aluminum, alloys of aluminum, etc. Alloys of aluminum and magnesium are considered especially advantageous for particular applications owing to low cost, light weight and ability to function as anodes in metal-air batteries using neutral electrolytes, such as sea water or other aqueous saline solutions. Metal-air batteries have an essentially infinite shelf-storage life rendering them very suitable for standby or emergency uses in that the metal-air battery may be activated by immersing the electrode stack in an electrolyte. As stated the gas diffusion electrodes are usually comprised of a blocking layer, an active layer and a current collector.
The function of the blocking layer is to face the gas phase and allow penetration of the reactant gas (e.g. O2) and accompanying gas (e.g. N2) while preventing the permeation of electrolyte. The blocking layer usually comprises hydrophobic elements such as polyteterafluoroethylene (PTFE) in various forms such as films, particles and removable pore former, e.g. ammonium benzoate particles, and carbon black etc.
The active layer must be partially permeable to both the reactant gas (e.g. O2) and liquid (e.g. KOH electrolyte). It further comprises a conducting element such as carbon optionally catalyzed with an electrocatalyst for the gas reaction (e.g. Pt, Ag, the cobalt complex of tetramethoxyphenyl porphyrin (CoTMPP) for 2 reduction) or unsupported electrocatalyst (e.g. Ag)).
The conducting and/or electroactive component is supported in a matrix with suitable binders, which confer a partially hydrophilic and partially hydrophobic character. The binders may be hydrophilic (e.g. fluorinated polymers such as the perfluorosulfonate ionomer produced by E. I. du Pont de Nemours under trademark of Nafion) or hydrophobic (e.g. polytetrafluoroethylene PTFE particles, PTFE/carbon mix). There may be an optional removable pore former in the matrix.
The current collector is a metallic support for the active and blocking layer and is placed between them or on either side thereof and allows current removal from the electrode. It usually comprises a woven or expanded mesh or coated mesh which is stable in the electrochemical environment of the electrode (e.g. nickel or silver plated nickel for KOH electrolyte, 25 mesh size, 0.005 inch strands). Alternatively the current collector may be a metallic felt mat (e.g. of nickel) as described in U.S. Pat. No. 07/633,518.
In preparing porous composite electrodes there is a constant search for improved electrodes and methods for the preparation thereof in order to provide an electrode which is more robust for practical application while maintaining high stable performance.
Thus as stated, e.g. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,694 porous electrodes containing catalytic particulates have been developed to advance the commercialization of electrolytic devices such as fuel cells and metal-air batteries. The electrodes can be useful as oxygen cathodes in such batteries and fuel cells. To enhance their commercial potential, efforts have been extended to augment the electrode capability to operate at high current densities while maintaining acceptable durability.
Attention has also been paid to the development of efficient and economical electrodes capable of performing in the harsh chemical environments created by acid or alkaline electrolytes. It has been necessary to attempt to maintain a balance for the permeability of the liquid electrolyte and for the gaseous reactant. Progress in electrode development has led to, for example, electrodes capable of sustained performance at current densities substantially above about 400 milliamps per square centimeter, while exhibiting acceptable resistance to electrolyte. However, long operating life with sustained, desirable performance including resistance to electrode flooding while retarding undesirable depletion of catalytic activity is still needed.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,405,544 there is described and claimed a method for preparing an electrode active layer comprising mixing an aqueous dispersion of particulate polytetrafluoroethylene with an aqueous suspension of particulate carbon black; washing and drying; mixing with a pore-forming agent; fibrillating said mixture; drying; adding polytetrafluoroethylene fibers while chopping said dried fibrillated mixture and thereafter forming said chopped mixtures into a sheet, which is washed and dried.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,694 there is described and claimed an electrode capable of extended performance at high current density, said electrode comprising a gas porous, gas supplying layer containing hydrophobic polymer, and an electrolyte porous active layer comprising catalyst containing carbon particles intimately blended with, and uniformly distributed throughout, hydrophilic halogenated polymer binder for said catalyzed carbon particles, which intimate blend is combined in said active layer with particulate substance bound with hydrophobic polymer.
Similarly in U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,535 there is described and claimed an electrochemical cathode, which comprises: a current collecting substrate capable of being connected to electrical circuitry; and conductive nonwoven webs laminated to said current collecting substrate and impregnated with a mixture of carbon particles and a nonfibrous polymer substance for holding said carbon particles in said web, said conductive nonwoven web being formed of conductive carbon fibers.
Furthermore there is described and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,615,954 a fast response, high current density oxygen cathode comprising: a form-stable, electrically conductive, wetproofing layer composed essentially of an intimate, consolidated and heat sintered mixture of carbon black and particulate hydrophobic polymeric binder derived predominantly from polytetrafluoroethylene, having at least one anisometric electroconductive reinforcing material incorporated therein; and, directly adhered to one surface of said wetproofing layer, a porous active layer having a thickness between about 0.03 and about 0.1 millimeter and composed essentially of a mixture of particles of a polymer of tetrafluoroethylene and cobalt catalyst-containing particles of an active carbon predominantly of a size between about 2 and about 20 micrometers and having a B.E.T. surface area of over about 1000 m2 /gram.
In contradistinction to the electrodes described in the prior art and available on the market today and the methods for the preparation of the active and blocking layers thereof described in the literature, there is now provided, according to the present invention, a gas diffusion electrode containing a fiber reinforced composite structure in a layer thereof, said structure comprising structurally intact fibers precoated with sinterable polymeric material, which material is heat sintered, whereby said fibers are bonded to each other and to other components of said structure by said sintered polymeric material, while maintaining their individual fibrous structure and strength.
Thus it will be realised that the present invention provides for the first time structurally intact fibers, coated with sintered hydrophobic polymeric material as the reinforcing component for both active and blocking layers of gas diffusion electrodes.
In contradistinction, the above mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,535 describes a non-woven conductive fibrous web structure (a carbon felt) on which carbon particles are supported with the aid of a non fibrous polymeric substance. This Patent specifically notes on Column 4 line 37 that the thermal processing steps are well below the sintering temperature of the polymeric substance, whereas the electrodes of the present invention preferably comprise a particulate microstructure which is reinforced by coated fibers and in which the bonding of the complete structure is due to the sintering of both polymeric particles in the microstructure and in the coating of the fiber.
The optimization of the microstructure of the active layer in the electrodes of the present invention contribute to the achievement of high performance of the gas diffusion electrode. The microstructure obtained in U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,535 is basically dominated by the carbon felt skeleton to which other components are added on, and this is very limiting as to optimization. Moreover, the strength of the microstructure is poor in U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,535 because the polymeric binder is not sintered.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,405,544 mentioned hereinbefore the powdered components are roll-pressed into a sheet at a rolling temperature of about 37� to 49� C. and the highest temperature used in the preparation thereof was 204� C. for the entirely different purpose of decomposing chloroplatinic acid to platinum. The temperature is insufficient to effect sintering of any of the polymeric components. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,694 mentioned hereinbefore sintering is indeed carried out at a temperature of between 250� C. and 350� C. however the mixture described therein does not contain reinforcing fibers and as shown in Table 1 and 2 in the comparative example hereinafter the tensile strength of a non-fiber reinforced layer is substantially lower than that of one prepared according to the present invention.
Furthermore, U.S. Pat. No. 4,615,954 teaches the sintering of a mixture containing both fibers and PTFE particles however as also shown in Table 1 and 2 in the comparative example hereinafter the tensile strength of a composition prepared from a mere mixture of fibers and PTFE particles also does not have this tensile strength achieved by providing structurally intact fibers precoated with sinterable polymeric material, which material is then heat sintered so that the precoated fibers are bonded to each other and to other components of the formed layer.
According to the present invention the skeleton of the electrode is formed by the arrangement of the particulate microstructure which can be independently optimized. To this, a reinforcing fibrous element is added and its coating sintered, which on the one hand does not detract from the microstructure and performance, yet on the other hand substantially improves strength.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention said fibers have a length of between about 100 and 5000 microns and a diameter of between about 5 and 500 microns. The fibers will preferably constitute 0.5-50 wt % of the layer and the thickness of the coating of said fibers will preferably be between 0.2 micron and 50 microns, wherein said coating thickness will usually not exceed one tenth of the thickness of the fiber.
The term "gas diffusion electrode" as are used herein relates not only to the air or oxygen cathodes as find application in metal-air batteries, such as aluminum-air and zinc-air batteries, but also relates to such electrodes as may find use in applications such as for electrochemical synthesis cells such as the chlor-alkali cell described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,405,544, related fuel cell applications, metal-gas cells (e.g. nickel-hydrogen) and nickel-hydride cells. It is therefore meant to be understood that the electrode of the present invention need not be limited to use as an air cathode, i.e., limited to use for oxygen reduction, but can be employed in a variety of reactions including hydrogen oxidation, sulphur dioxide oxidation, organic fuel oxidation, hydrogen evolution and oxygen evolution.
Moreover, a variety of electrolytes may come into contact with the gas diffusion electrode of the present invention, as represented by acid electrolytes, alkaline electrolytes and saline electrolytes. The electrolytes may be non-aqueous systems, and therefore the electrode may find use in applications such as organic electrolyte batteries. Where the electrode of the present invention may be made up from two layers, there will be used terms herein to describe the one, or hydrophobic layer, such as the "wetproof layer" or "backing layer" or "gas supplying layer." This layer can be made of "hdyrophobic ingredient" or "gas supplying material". Then the other, or partially hydrophilic layer, may often be referred to herein as the "active layer" and the material used in preparing it as the "active material" or "hydrophilic ingredient". Such active material can consist of a mixture of finely-divided catalyzed carbon plus hydrophilic binder, and/or hydrophobic binder.
During the processing of the electrode, thermal steps exceed the sintering temperature of the coating of the fiber but not that of the core material of the fiber. The fibers thus become bonded to the other components and to each other while maintaining fibrous structure and maintaining their original strength.
In a first preferred embodiment of the present invention said intact fibers could be carbon fibers coated with a fluoropolymer, while in another preferred embodiment of the present invention said intact fibers could be fluoropolymer fibers coated with a different fluoropolymer having a lower sintering temperature (e.g. PTFE having a sintering temperature of 355� C. coated with FEP fluoroethylene copolymer having a sintering temperature of 270� C.).
It has now been surprisingly found that electrodes produced according to the present invention are superior to electrodes having no fibers because of the inherent added mechanical strength provided by the fiber reinforced composite structures. They are also superior to electrodes with monocomponent fibers where the processing is either below or above the fiber sintering temperature. In the case where the processing temperature is below the sintering temperature of the fiber (e.g. carbon fibers, where processing is at 355� C.) the fibers do not themselves sinter and their adhesion to the structure is poor. In the case where the processing temperature is above the sintering temperature of the fiber (e.g. PTFE fibers where processing is at 355� C.), the fibers undergo massive melting and lose their structural integrity, and this has a detrimental effect on the electrode microstructure.
As will be demonstrated hereinafter the present invention provides stable high power electrode performance with improved mechanical strength compared with prior art electrodes. As will be realised, improved mechanical strength is a vital requirement for metal-air batteries (e.g. for EV applications with mechanically rechargeable anodes, in which mechanical wear and tear requirements are especially severe), or generally in metal-air, electro synthesis cells or fuel cell systems due to the fact that the gas electrode forms an external exposed wall of the cell and must not leak electrolyte.
While the invention will now be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments in the following examples so that aspects thereof may be more fully understood and appreciated, it is not intended to limit the invention to these particular embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Thus, the following examples which include preferred embodiments will serve to illustrate the practice of this invention, it being understood that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of preferred embodiments of the present invention only and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of formulation procedures as well as of the principles and conceptual aspects of the invention.
A coated fiber-reinforced blocking layer precursor for a gas diffusion electrode which can be used in a metal-air battery, in a hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell, in an electrosynthesis cell or for similar uses was made as follows:
62 gm of acetylene carbon black (Shawinigan Black, Chevron) was dispersed in distilled water (3.2 1) by means of an overhead stirrer. To this, 38 gm of particulate ethylene propylene co-polymer dispersion (FEP-T120 dispersion, DuPont) was added, and the mixture further blended by the stirrer. The resulting dispersion was filtered on a Buchner funnel and the moist solid was then dried overnight in an oven at 150� C. The dried solid was then heat treated at 250� C. for 24 hours in order to remove the wetting agent of the FEP dispersion. The resulting FEP/carbon mixture was then chopped using a coffee grinder (SEB, type 8115) for two minutes.
A 0.8 gm portion of the above FEP/carbon mixture was then mechanically blended with 0.2 gm of FEP coated PTFE fibers (W. L. Gore and Assocs. Inc) in a Pascall Lab Mixer, followed by chopping in the coffee grinder. The chopped mixture was added to isopropanol (30 ml) and homogenized in a blender (Moulinex, type 276). The homogenized mixture was then filtered to form a 40 cm2 mud-like layer, and dried at about 120� C. while being compressed at 50 kg/cm2. This dried layer could then be used as the blocking layer precursor for a gas diffusion electrode (see Example 2).
A coated fiber-reinforced active layer for a gas diffusion electrode and the air electrode itself were made as follows:
800 ml of isopropanol was stirred together with 300 ml of hydrophilic fluorinated polymer solution (Nafion 1100 EW, Solution Technology Inc.). A 50 gm portion of Shawinigan black catalyzed by 10 wt % CoTMPP electrocatalyst (Aldrich) was thoroughly dispersed in the above solution using an overhead mixer. This mixture was then dried at 55� C. overnight. The dried catalyzed mixture was then chopped as described in Example 1.
An 0.45 gm portion of the chopped catalyzed product was then mechanically blended with 0.08 gm FEP powder (DuPont, Teflon P 532-8000) and 0.05 gm of FEP-coated PTFE fibers (Gore) in the Pascall Lab Mixer followed by chopping in the coffee grinder. The resulting chopped mixture was added to isopropanol (30 ml) and homogenized in the Moulinex blender. The homogenized mixture was then filtered through the blocking layer from Example 1 to form a 40 cm2 mud-like layer onto which a nickel mesh current collector (40 mesh size) was placed. The resulting matrix was dried at about 120� C. while being compressed at 200 kg/cm2. The dried matrix was then sintered at 305� C. for 30 minutes under a pressure of 10 kg/cm2. This dried matrix could then be used as an oxygen reduction cathode.
A 6 cm2 section of the air electrode was tested for electrochemical performance in a test cell using CO2 scrubbed air and a 7.5 M/l KOH electrolyte at 25� C. The air electrode faced an inert nickel counter electrode in the cell. The electrolyte filled the gap between the air electrode and the counter electrode while air was supplied to the back of the air electrode via the blocking layer. Polarization of the air electrode as induced by a DC power supply was measured against a standard Hg/HgO reference electrode immersed in the electrolyte.
After an overnight soaking in the cell, the air electrode was polarized in the following continuous cyclic mode:
______________________________________ 30 secs at 200 mA/cm2 45 secs at 50 mA/cm2 45 secs at 0 mA/cm2______________________________________
After one hour the electrode provided 400 mA/cm2 at -290 mV vs. the reference and 200 mA/cm2 at -180 mV vs. the reference. This is excellent performance for an oxygen reduction electrode. No change in performance was detectable over 200 hours of performance.
Samples of both blocking layer and active layers with optimized microstructures were prepared for tensile strength testing.
Three blocking layer samples were prepared as in Example 1, and then subsequently pressed at 200 kg/cm2. The test specimens prepared from the three samples had the approximate dimensions 50�10�1 mm3. The compositions, sintering temperatures and measured tensile strengths are shown in Table 1.
TABLE 1______________________________________COMPOSITIONWT % Un- FEP SINT-SAM- coated Coated ERING TENSILEPLE Carbon FEP PTFE PTFE TEMP STRENGTHNO. Black T120 Fibers Fibers �C. KG/CM2______________________________________1A 62 38 0 0 305 4.61B 49.6 30.4 20 0 305 5.01C 49.6 30.4 0 20 305 13.1______________________________________
As may be seen, the tensile strength of the coated fiber-reinforced sample (1C) much exceeded that of the non-reinforced sample (1A) and that of the monocomponent PTFE fiber reinforced sample (1B) sintered at the same temperature.
Three active layer samples for tensile strength testing were prepared as in Example 2, with the exception that the filtering step was performed without the supporting blocking layer, and further that the nickel current collector mesh was not introduced prior to drying the filtered layer. The test specimens prepared from the three samples had the approximate dimensions 50�10�1 mm3. The compositions, sintering temperatures and measured tensile strengths are collected in Table 2.
TABLE 2__________________________________________________________________________COMPOSITIONWT % Catalyzed FEP Carbon & Coated SINTERING TENSILESAMPLE Hydrophilic FEP PTFE PTFE TEMP. STRENGTHNO. Polymer Powder Fibers Fibers �C. KG/CM2__________________________________________________________________________2A 84.9 15.1 0 0 305 3.02B 77.6 13.8 8.6 0 305 3.82C 77.6 13.8 0 8.6 305 6.6__________________________________________________________________________
As can be seen from Table 2, the tensile strength of the coated-fiber reinforced sample (2C) much exceeded that of the non-reinforced sample (2A), and that of the monocomponent PTFE fiber reinforced sample sintered below the PTFE sintering temperature (2B).
It will be evident to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing illustrative examples and that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the essential attributes thereof, and it is therefore desired that the present embodiments and examples be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.
Patent Citations
Referenced by
Legal Events
Original Image


text:
The Pine Hills
Journalism by The College of Saint Rose
Monthly Archive for February, 2011
Jivamukti Gets Political
A politically inspired yoga class encouraged attendees on Monday night to meditate on politics and saving the world. More than 20 people participated in the Jivamukti class at the Heartspace Yoga & Healing Arts Center in the Pine Hills neighborhood of Albany. In honor of President's day, Jivamukti yoga students were treated to an eclectic, […] [Read More]
Chicken Joe's: A New Face on the Restaurant Scene
An area known as a hub for take-out restaurants is about to have a new addition. Chicken Joe's, a downstate chain, has scheduled its grand opening in the Capital Region for noon Thursday. After the 486 Yates St. shop opens tomorrow, the owners already have plans for another storefront to open in May on nearby […] [Read More]
A Florist's Gamble: Valentine's Day
Most people don't think about Valentine's Day as a gamble. Thanks to the 2011 calendar, this Monday's Saint Valentine holiday could be big, or a bust, for local florists. "The single most factor that will affect our business for Valentine's Day, is the day of the week," said Diane "Susie" Nagengast . Nagengast is the […] [Read More]


text:
Silver Creek Apartments
Monday – Friday 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
Saturday – Sunday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Silver Creek offers spacious One and Two Bedroom Apartment Homes that include a full size washer and Dryer. Located in the metro center area.
Send Message to listing owner
Silver Creek Apartments


text:
15 April 2014
Lady Gaga interviewed on Capital FM Radio
Earlier today Lady Gaga called into UK's biggest radio station Capital FM. During an exclusive chat with Marvin Humes, the G.U.Y. singer talked about her latest single from ARTPOP, the music video for it, her upcoming tour, the artRAVE: The ARTPOP Ball, and how she is currently rehearsing in Chicago.
Listen to Lady Gaga's full interview on Capital FM below.