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NORTH READING, Mass. -- Police in Massachusetts responding to reports of an intruder in a woman's home quickly quacked the case.
A North Reading woman called police Saturday from her upstairs bedroom to report that she heard loud banging noises downstairs and feared someone had broken into her home.
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Officers who responded found no sign of a break-in.
But during a quick search of the home, police found a soot-covered wood duck.
Police say it appears the duck got in through the chimney.
An officer caught the duck and released it into a nearby pond.

subset: commoncrawl


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Which Black Box Wine is the Best?
I hate to say it, but sometimes I waste alcohol. I open a bottle, enjoy a glass or two, and put the rest in the fridge, promising myself I'll finish it tomorrow or the next day. But sometimes all the vacuum pumps and rubber stoppers in the world can't stop me from needing to pour the rest down the drain. More


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Code: IHHSR
Discovery tours are all about exploring & experiencing the world with like-minded people, dipping your toe beneath the usual tourist surface & discovering the real essence of a region. They are genuinely innovative, exciting & imaginative tours that offer that little bit more to travellers.
Travel to India and visit Delhi, tour from Shekhawati to Jaisalmer, explore Jodhpur, and visit the Taj Mahal of Agra on this Rajasthan Adventure through India.
Travel to India and discover the country at its most colourful amid the deserts, bazaars and forts of Rajasthan. This is a land where massive hilltop fortresses loom over cities and where markets are awhirl with locals dressed in the brightest shades of scarlet, gold and rose. Visit lakeside holy towns, sip chai at a royal retreat and take time to experience the local traditions of remote villages. From the whirlwind of heady Delhi, to a night under the stars on a desert camel safari, to the beauty of sunrise at the Taj Mahal - this journey through Rajasthan promises to be a true adventure.
Our tailor made adventure holidays will truly inspire and delight the senses and will live in your memory for ever.more info
Join us on one of our worldwide adventures coming up over the next few months – all guaranteed to depart, all at up to 20% off.more info


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Honorable Mentions
Environcon Matheson Ore Transfer Station Cleanup - Pollution Prevention, Michelle Prowse, Richard Sugarek, John Spitzley, California, BOR
Bureau of Reclamation, Sacramento, CA
Phone: 916-978-5036
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
The Matheson Ore Transfer Station (Matheson) leached pyrite ore into the Sacramento River since mining operations began in the early 1900's through 2005. The pyrite ore was high in arsenic, lead and sulfuric acid.
Although Matheson was a part of the Iron Mountain Mine (IMM) Superfund site, the settlement with responsible party did not cover the cost of a full remediation. Hence, the less toxic areas of the affected IMM sites such as Matheson, were not covered. Funding had to be found elsewhere.
The Matheson team used a contracting technique to 'piggyback' on an existing contract to save time, money and resources. Reclamation used EPA's existing IMM contract with CH2MHill, amending it to include the cleanup and restoration of Matheson.
Pyrite ore from the site no longer enters the Sacramento River and visitors can safely recreate at the site. In fact, the site is now part of the Shasta area Rails to Trails system used for walking, jogging, horseback riding, and bicycling. BLM has plans to put in a public restroom, staging area and educational interpretive center that will describe this multi agency success.
Team: Reclamation (Michelle Prowse), EPA (Richard Sugarek), CH2MHill (John Spitzley), Envirocon
Matheson the Attractive Nuisance / Party Spot
Matheson in September of 2005 Before Hydro Seeding
Matheson in March of 2006 with Grass Growing
Phone: 907-786-3506
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Old, outdated electronic equipment from throughout the Alaska was collected, stored, consolidated, palletized, wrapped, transported, and delivered to a responsible recycle collection center in Anchorage by a volunteer recycling team. The Team collected more than 6,600 pounds of outdated, bulky, old electronic equipment including Service-owned printers, PCs, laptops, copiers, monitors, speakers, radios, plotters, cabling and TVs. Some of this equipment had been stored for years at remote locations with no place to go except a local landfill. The equipment was certified for disposal, which required that property records adjustments, forms processing, etc. The total cost was approximately $6,000, or $.91 per pound, excluding the sweat equity of 25 to 28 person-days provided by members of the Team. Plans are underway to conduct a similar recycling event in Fiscal Year 2006.
Bureau of Reclamation, Sacramento, CA
Phone: 209-3270286
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
In 2005, Yosemite National Park successfully completed an innovative transportation project that resulted in remarkable reductions in fuel consumption, air pollution, and noise levels in Yosemite Valley, a world renowned visitor destination. The project consisted of the purchase and integration of a new fleet of eighteen 40-foot hybrid diesel-electric transit buses. These advanced technology transit buses replaced the prior fleet of conventional diesel shuttle buses, which were once the source of many visitor complaints. The new fleet is the first all hybrid electric transit bus fleet in the country. Response to the new buses has been overwhelmingly positive. The project has demonstrated Yosemite's leadership in the reduction of petroleum consumption through improvements in fleet fuel efficiency and the use of alternative fuel vehicles and alternative fuels.
Bureau of Reclamation, Yuma, AZ
Phone: 928-343-8334
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
The bureau of Reclamation's Yuma Area Office (YAO) collaborated with the Boy Scouts of America and the City of Yuma (Arizona) Clean and Beautiful Commission in the 2005 Colorado River Sweep; a major pollution cleanup project along the lower Colorado River adjacent to the Yuma East Wetlands on Saturday, October 29, 2005. In all, 229 volunteers showed up to help. During this 3-hour cleanup along 2 miles of shoreline and up to a ½-mile area in the floodplain (below the high-water mark), approximately 109 tons of trash and debris were removed, to include 105.85 tons of trash and debris, 1.17 tons of metal, 80 car tires, and 6 semi-truck tires.
Xanterra Zion Lodge, Springdale, UT
Phone: 435-722-7776
Email: email@example.com
Xanterra Parks and Resorts® is continually thinking of ways to become more sustainable from procuring eco-friendly products and supplies to implementing projects that utilize alternative energy, eliminate waste, and encourage recycling. To ensure their continuous improvement, they implemented an Environmental Management System (certified to the ISO 14001 international standard) which lays the foundation for success and measures results. This system, called Ecologix, represents the "logical integration of business and ecology," and is the driving force behind our journey towards sustainability.
And they go beyond compliance crafting Xanterra's 2015 Environmental Vision, which established long-term company-wide goals that guide all Xanterra employees and partners. The goals center around four general concepts: 1.) slowing global warming; 2.) preserving natural resources; 3.) minimizing hazardous substances; and 4.) protecting the natural environmental. The goals are:
2015 Environmental Vision Goals: (2000 baseline)
- Decrease fossil fuel usage by 30%.
- Increase usage of renewable energy to 7% of total electrical consumption.
- Achieve CAFÉ (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) of 35 mpg.
- Decrease greenhouse gas emissions by 30%.
- Divert 50% of solid waste from the landfill.
- Decrease water usage by 25%.
- Increase sustainable food purchases to 50%.
- Generate zero hazardous waste.
Xanterra at Zion Lodge's progress toward 2015 Environmental Vision Goals:
- 6% decrease of fossil fuel usage.
- 43% increase in renewable energy.
- 13% improvement of average fuel economy.
- 35% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions.
- 36% diversion of solid waste from the landfill.
- 50% reduction of water use.
- 7% increase in sustainable cuisine.
- Decrease in hazardous waste generation.
Further evidence of Zion's progress can be found in their 2005 Sustainability Report and Baseline Resource Tracking Spreadsheet. It is noteworthy that their Ecometrix data was verified by rigorous third party audit verification by KPMG Performance Registrar Inc. during their annual ISO 14001 surveillance audits.
National Park Service, Staten Island, NY
Phone: 718-354-4665
Email: email@example.com
The visitor facility is an addition to and an adaptive re-use of an existing facility originally constructed as concrete maintenance garage for the New York City Parks Department in 1970.
Environmental goals interweave within the three core park programs: resource stewardship, environmental education and recreation. The project minimizes environmental impacts, improve habitat quality, and maximizes the quality of the visitor experience through sustainable principles.
The environmental achievements of this project include:
- Minimizing overall development footprint.
- Extensive use of recycled materials.
- Sustainable materials including cork, bamboo and wheatboard.
- Natural light: light shelves, skylights, light pipes.
- Ground source heat pumps / water heat exchange system with primary and discharge wells.
- Thermal storage wall for winter heat.
- Building integrated solar photovoltaic system to heat domestic water.
- Passive solar heating features and architectural overhangs to provide summertime shade.
- Water reduction measures using waterless urinals resulting in a 66% water savings per year or a reduction of $1,800 in water/sewer costs.
- Reduced water usage fixtures translating into 25% reduction in maintenance costs and 50% in water savings.
- Green energy sources to power facility (wind source).
- Natural ventilation turbine extractors in north lobby.
- LEED (gold- pending) certification: the first Northeast Region building and only the 3rd building within NPS with LEED designation.
- Energy savings of 378 million Btu = $6,898 / annually.
- Serves as a model of sustainability for public and private sector.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bozeman, MT
Phone: 406-944-9903
Email: email@example.com
Since 2004, the Bozeman Fish Technology Center (Center) has made great strides in becoming a more environmentally-friendly facility. A vigorous recycling and energy conservation effort was instituted by the addition of a new building and additional staff. The Center staff developed an Environmental Management and Energy Conservation program to promote and improve environmental protection of the Center resources and conserve energy. The Center's Management of Environmental Resources Plan covers all aspects of environmental and natural resource management including: 1) recycling, 2) waste pollution prevention, 3) sustainable design and green building and purchasing, and 4) natural resource conservation. The Center's program includes various aspects of environmental, natural resource conservation, and energy management. In 2004, the Center teamed up with Montana State University to conduct an energy audit and to evaluate use of alternate energy. The staff developed an Environmental Compliance and Permitting Program and completed a comprehensive Human Health and Chemical Use Safety Plan in 2005 after several years of intensive work. Also in 2005, a new state-of-the-art laboratory and administrative building was completed. The building makes use of energy conserving strategies such as passive solar for heating and lighting, use of spring water for building cooling, and an automated HVAC system to promote effective energy conservation.
Bozeman NFH water re-use recirculation system
Rhode Island National Wildlife Complex Headquarters and Kettle Pond Visitor Center, Pam Rooney, Supervisory Architect, Rhode Island, FWS
Division of Engineering, Hadley MA
Phone: 413-253-8563
Email: email@example.com
Built to co-house several divisions of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the 14,400 s.f., USFWS Rhode Island Headquarters and Kettle Pond Visitor Center is an outstanding example of sustainable design. A recipient of the Department of Energy's Energy Saver Showcase Award, this LEED Certified-equivalent showcase is an example of careful site planning, recycling, and energy and water conservation. Layout and placement of the building and support facilities minimized land disturbance and sensitive site features were protected or restored during construction. Durable and long-lived recycled building materials were used throughout. Pavement from an abandoned airfield runway at Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge was used as base for the entry road. Low-flush toilets and flow restrictors minimize water use. Energy efficient technologies and materials are calculated to save approximately 41 percent of energy compared to a traditional office building, and an estimated 150,570 gm/yr of NOx; 532,875 gm/yr of SOx; and 70,491 lbm/yr of CO2, compared with conventional construction techniques. The geothermal heat exchange system for heating and cooling is calculated to save $7,000 in energy costs annually.
Main Lobby of the Kettle Pond Visitor Center
Bureau of Land Management ,
Boise & Twin Falls, ID
Phone: 208-373-3814
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Illegal dumping and promiscuous littering is a huge problem on public land and costs BLM significantly each year. The Great American Cleanup is a program under Keep America Beautiful, Inc. that is designed to help communities get involved with trash pick up and raise the awareness of the littering problem. This year the BLM Boise District Office and Twin Falls District Offices teamed with the Great American Cleanup to help communities in Idaho become familiar with the program and to bring public awareness to the litter problem on public lands. Through programs like this, we are hoping that littering will be reduced and more of the public will help look out for public lands to help keep America beautiful. The Districts organized several cleanup efforts using volunteer groups and contractors where needed. News releases were made throughout the state to help bring the awareness to the general public. Additional news coverage, through newspaper, radio, and television, helped the general public see the activities. Television interviews showed volunteers loading dumpsters and commenting about the trash on public lands. Generally, the volunteers were shocked at the amount of trash that people placed on the public land. BLM received a number of calls from several different communities wanting to conduct future cooperative efforts with the Great American
Need and Implementation: In Idaho, BLM spends more than $ 50,000 annually removing household garbage, construction debris, and other waste left on public land. The trash sites tend to attract more trash and other wastes, sometimes dangerous in nature. BLM needs a nationally recognized program to deal with this problem.
Innovation: Dump and trash pickups are common. What is innovated about this approach is utilizing the Great American Cleanup program, a series of volunteers, and a coordinated public relations effort.
Partnering and Cooperative Conservation: Idaho BLM believes the only way to defeat the illegal dumping problem is to have more people aware of how their public land is being trashed. This effort utilized a national partnership in concert with several local partnerships. The long range goal is to have these examples spawn additional partnerships throughout the state.
Scope and Project Impact: While the individual sites were definitely eyesores, the larger public relations effort and continuation of the program should result in a statewide scope of impact.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Celina, TN
Phone: 931-243-2443
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Developed and initiated in March, 2003, the Environmental Management System (EMS) has been a major influence in the manner in which Dale Hollow National Fish Hatchery conducts day to day operations, plans for future activities and seeks community involvement. The plan establishes the field station's environmental management policy, identifies the key environmental aspects and impacts of its operations, and establishes goals and targets to improve the field station's environmental performance. A major component of the Plan is waste pollution and recycling. Dale Hollow is proud to publicize information and benefits we learn with our partners and local community. Some of the many benefits and Hatchery accomplishments include excellent outreach and environmental education programs, and outstanding waste and pollution prevention initiatives. Notable achievements include reducing the use of formalin by approximately two-thirds by modifying operations and using hydrogen peroxide that breaks down in air and water, and also executing an outstanding recycling plan that diverts more than 70 percent of materials from the waste stream.
Big bluestem grown in the demonstration plot at Dale Hollow NFH
Bureau of Land Management, Prineville, OR
Phone: 202-452-7754
Email: email@example.com
The Prineville Bureau of Land Management (BLM) District is collaborating with federal, state and local agencies to promote increase use of, and to provide a steady supply of woody biomass. The BLM signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs (CTWS) in which the federal agencies in Central Oregon agreed to offer 80,000 bone dry tons off of 8,000 acres of woody biomass material annually for ten years. This biomass will reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire. The Prineville BLM has several other projects in central Oregon using stewardship contracting to provide woody biomass to current and future markets.


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Alumni Award Recipients
Frank Sedillo
Zia Award, 2013
Metropolitan Court Judge Frank Sedillo's ('82 BBA, '87 JD) pursuit of a legal career began in the legislative branch when he served as Aide/Doorkeeper for Senator Pete Domenici and then as Aide to Congressman Manuel Lujan. Now he presides not only in court but as host of "The Advocate," a City of Albuquerque GOV 16 Television show. His contributions to UNM athletics began with the Lobo football team and have continued with nearly 20 years' service on the UNM Alumni Lettermen's Association board of directors. Sedillo is licensed as a coach and official for the New Mexico Activities Association.
Frank Sedillo has been a role model for kids ever since he was a kid himself. His principal at Albuquerque High, Richard Romero, says "Frankie" was an athlete and a smart kid who would talk with everybody.
As an adult, Frank coaches football, baseball and basketball, and as a Metropolitan Court judge he remains, proudly, in touch with everybody. Good coaches and good judges — and Frank — hold a lot in common.
- A good coach is tough, but fair. So is a good judge. So is Frank.
- A good coach treats his players with respect, although that respect has to be earned. Not unlike a good judge. Not unlike Frank.
- A good coach understands a player's weaknesses and strengths. Not unlike a judge. Not unlike Frank.
- A good coach is a good observer. So is a good judge. So is Frank.
Frank tends to see things differently, Richard Romero says, not just as an athlete-student-lawyer, but as one of the people. He has empathy, due partially to his upbringing.
Frank's mom was a hairdresser and his dad a miner, railroad worker and machinist. They made a loving home for their three sons, teaching them the value of hard work and regard for others.
After playing three sports at Albuquerque High and graduating in the top of his class, Frank lettered in football at UNM. He earned Western Athletic Conference all-academic honors four years in a row, and received the Stan Bates Award as the WAC's top scholar-athlete.
A business grad, Frank sampled the Washington scene as an aide to US Senator Pete Domenici for a year before earning his JD at UNM in 1987. A practicing lawyer for 13 years, Frank was exposed to the full gamut of law—civil and criminal, family and corporate.
About the same time Frank began practicing law, he went back to practicing ball, but this time as a coach. He gave his time and heart to kids, emulating the coaches who had played such a role in his own youth. He is a licensed football coach and official with the New Mexico Activities Association. He served as president and on the board of directors of the Young American Football League.
An avid Alumni Letterman, Frank has served on the board of directors since 1994, including a term as president and multiple years' co-chairing the Hall of Honor.
In 2000, Frank was elected a judge in the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court.
When not at court, Frank volunteers for APS, the New Mexico State Bar, and the Center for Civic Values—almost always on behalf of young people. He continues to coach, but now he coaches his son's team.
Frank also hosts "The Advocate," a City of Albuquerque television show that answers and instructs citizens in legal matters.
Recently, Frank officiated at a gathering of couples wed in the UNM Alumni Chapel over the past 50 years who were renewing their vows. He instructed them to love, honor, and cheer for the Lobos.
Frank, you are a role model for us all. We are honored, your honor, to give you our Zia Award.


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GEORGIA – Police say a man was arrested after breaking into a home while wearing nothing but a cowboy hat.
The naked cowboy made himself way too comfortable in one neighborhood in the Atlanta area.
Now, he faces nearly a dozen charges.
It's not something you hear about every day, but it was all captured on film.
As surveillance cameras rolled — the cowboy was captured walking into a Georgia home.
When cops caught up to the suspect he'd broken into another home, where he helped himself to some beer and a little Braves baseball on TV.
The suspect wouldn't tell police why he took his clothes off.
He did tell police he was a U.S. Marshal who had bigger aspirations.
The naked cowboy is facing a series of charges — including burglary and indecent exposure.


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Monday Night Raw viewership
Some good news for WWE. Viewership for Monday Night Raw is back at 4 million this week. Many are attributing that to the return of Brock Lesnar, which was widely mentioned through social media by the internet wrestling community. A few are giving credit to Machine Gun Kelly, who is a mainstream name.
June 16, 2015
Brock Lesnar return to Raw
On June 22, 2015, WWE will be hosting Monday Night Raw in Indianapolis. The event has now become something that wrestling fans should not miss out on. Bankers Life Fieldhouse took to social media to announce that Brock Lesnar will be making his return to Monday Night Raw that evening. It appears that the comeback was recently negotiated and agreed upon. In the story line, Lesnar is still serving his suspension for attacking the commentators.
May 28, 2015
Vince Russo on Sami Zayn
Never one to avoid controversy, Vince Russo has drawn the ire of the internet wrestling community yet again. The source of discontent stems from the fact that he took to social media to say that Sami Zayn, who made his debut on Monday Night Raw this week, was not a television star yet. He stated that while the hardcore fans might know of him, the masses just assumed that he was some jobber that was in the ring with John Cena.
May 6, 2015
Booker T comments removed
While talking about the abilities of Adrian Neville, JBL stated that Owen Hart was a high flying but not anything like this. Innocently, Booker T added to that by stating that Hart did not defy gravity, which is a term used frequently for Neville. That drew the ire of fans, who immediate took to social media to bash Booker, who ended up issuing an apology. WWE decided to take it a step further by removing the comments on the replay of Monday Night Raw.
April 28, 2015
Michael Hayes receives backlash
Earlier in the week, Michael Hayes took to social media to promise WWE fans that there would be some surprises on the latest episode of Monday Night Raw. After the telecast was over, angry fans told Hayes that he did not keep his words. The legendary member of the Fabulous Freebirds decided to issue a response by stating that he never said that it would be huge surprises. He never promised Steve Austin or The Rock.
April 17, 2015
Wade Barrett shooting movie
Through social media, Wade Barrett revealed that he would be returning to England after WWE concludes their tour of Europe. He more than likely will be written off of Monday Night Raw so that he can return to his home country to film the movie Eliminators. No word yet on how long he will be on the set, but the front office should not have any problems with him being gone because he is not receiving a big push at the moment.
April 15, 2015
WWE fans upset
When the latest episode of Monday Night Raw ended, a lot of fans took to social media to complain about the final segment between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns. Many felt that it was a bit lackluster, especially since it was supposed to increase anticipation for Wrestlemania. It has now been reported that the live audience did not take well to the ending, either. Many of them expressed displeasure with WWE on the way out of the arena.
March 24, 2015
Snoop Dogg in the ring
It now appears extremely likely that Snoop Dogg is going to get into the ring on the next episode of Monday Night Raw and get physical with a WWE performer. Curtis Axel continues to sell their beef through social media. It is being said that he is more than willing to put over the very thin rapper because it will be good for the company. Management has always viewed Axel as a team player who will be around a long time.
March 21, 2015
Curtis Axel and Snoop Dogg
As of right now, all we know is that Snoop Dogg will be appearing on Monday Night Raw next week, and he'll be promoting his new CD. WWE has not informed us of what else he will be doing on the show. Social media has provided us with some clues, however. Curtis Axel and the rapper have been exchanging barbs online, which has led to speculations that the two of them could be working a segment together.
March 18, 2015
A rather interesting offer was made to Dolph Ziggler recently. A porn company asked him if they could produce some branded wrestling tights for him to wear on Monday Night Raw and Smackdown. Brazzers wanted to be the official sponsor of the former world heavyweight champion. Of course, this is simply a marketing ploy by someone that is very adept at social media marketing because WWE would never allow such a thing to happen.
March 5, 2015


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Bag-in-box packaging of products which will not readily flow under gravity conditions for discharge. The bag is of special three-ply form to provide separate product and pressure chambers. Coupling fitments are connected independently to the respective chambers. When it is desired to dispense the product, the product fitment is exposed at a wall of the box along with the pressure fitment. A dispensing valve on the product fitment is opened and pressure is supplied and maintained in the pressure chamber to expand it and exert pressure through the baffle wall on the product in the product chamber to aid in the dispensing of the product therefrom. Before applying dispensing pressure, the box is disposed in an enveloping pressure-resisting unit. A novel method is provided for efficiently producing the special bag.
1. A disposable flexible bag for packaging a product which will not readily flow by gravity comprising at least three plies of flexible material sealed together at their peripheral edges, the plies forming an outer product wall, an intermediate product baffle wall, and an outer displacement wall, thereby providing a product-receiving chamber and a pressure-receiving chamber which are independent of each other, and coupling fitments comprising product and pressure fitments connected independently to the respective chambers, said fitments being mounted on one of said outer walls, and a sealing seam between the fitments which seals the outer wall on which they are disposed to the inner baffle wall so that the product fitment communicates with the product chamber and the pressure fitment communicates with the pressure chamber independently.
2. A bag according to claim 1 in which the pressure fitment is extended through an opening and sealed to the outer product wall and is sealed to the intermediate product baffle wall which is pierced at the seal when the pressure fitment is to be used.
3. A bag according to claim 2 in which the seal is pierced during manufacture of the bag.
4. A bag according to claim 2 in which the fitments are at one side of the bag in spaced relationship, and the sealing seam extends between the fitments.
5. A bag according to claim 4 in which the fitments are at one side of the bag in longitudinally spaced relationship and the seam extends transversely across the bag between the fitments.
6. A bag according to claim 4 in which the fitments are at one side of the bag in laterally spaced relationship and the seam extends between the fitments.
7. A bag according to claim 2 in which the product fitment is a coupling spout through which the product chamber may be filled and dispensed, and the pressure fitment is a coupling sleeve adapted to be connected to a source of fluid under pressure.
8. In combination with the bag of claim 2, a protective compartment for receiving the filled bag with means for exposing the fitments for pressurizing the pressue chamber through the pressure fitment and dispensing the product from the product chamber.
9. The combination of claim 8 in which the compartment is a fiberboard box.
10. The combination of claim 9 including means connected to the pressure fitment for supplying and maintaining a predetermined low pressure in the pressure chamber to cause it to expand substantially to the contour of the box and act on the product chamber through the baffle wall to aid in dispensing the product through the product fitment.
11. The combination of claim 10 including a pressure-resisting enveloping unit for receiving the box to resist the pressure exerted on its walls during dispensing.
12. The combination of claim 11 in which the enveloping unit is of a form complemental to the box and has a gate structure which can be opened to receive the box.
13. The combination of claim 12 in which the fitments extend through holes in the box located at the gate structure, and a pressure-resisting plate associated with the gate structure through which the fitments are passed.
14. The combination of claim 13 in which the enveloping unit is of cage-like form with the gate structure at one end and has means which causes it to tilt toward that end.
15. A disposable flexible bag comprising at least three plies of flexible material sealed together at their peripheral edges, the plies forming a first outer wall, an intermediate baffle wall, and a second outer wall, thereby providing two chambers which are independent of each other, and coupling fitments connected independently to the respective chambers; said fitments being mounted on one of said outer walls, and a sealing seam between the fitments which seals the outer wall on which they are disposed to the inner baffle wall so that the fitments communicate with the respective chambers independently.
16. A bag according to claim 15 in which one fitment is extended through an opening in one of said outer walls and is sealed thereto and is also sealed to the intermediate product baffle wall which is pierced at the seal when that fitment is to be used.
17. A bag according to claim 16 in which the seal is pierced during manufacture of the bag.
18. A bag according to claim 16 in which the fitments are at one side of the bag in spaced relationship, and the sealing seam extends between the fitments.
19. A bag according to claim 18 in which the fitments are at one side of the bag in longitudinally spaced relationship and the seam extends transversely across the bag between the fitments.
20. A bag according to claim 18 in which the fitments are at one side of the bag in laterally spaced relationship and the seam extends between the fitments.
21. In combination with the bag of claim 15, a protective compartment for receiving the filled bag with means for exposing the fitments for use.
22. The combination of claim 21 in which the compartment is a fiberboard box.
23. The combination of claim 22 including a protective enveloping unit for receiving the box to resist pressure exerted on its walls during use.
24. The combination of claim 23 in which the enveloping unit is of a form complemental to the box and has a gate structure which can be opened to receive the box.
25. The combination of claim 24 in which the fitments extend through holes in the box located at the gate structure, and a protective plate associated with the gate structure through which the fitments are passed.
26. The combination of claim 25 in which the enveloping unit is of cage-like form with the gate structure at one end and means which causes it to tilt toward that end.
This application is copending with a related application, Ser. No. 89,642 filed Aug. 26, 1987.
This invention deals with the packaging and dispensing of aseptic or non-aseptic substances which will not readily flow by gravity, such as viscous and semi-viscous products or liquids with suspended solids, in a bag-in-box type package in which the product is in a disposable plastic bag enclosed in a protective fiberboard container. The packages could also be used for low viscosity products where the dispensing apparatus is remote and elevated above the package. As will later appear, the product is dispensed under pressure without passing through a pump. This would be particularly advantageous when handling aseptically processed and packed products, or e.g. diary products which are susceptible to bacterial spoilage. There would be no pump to dismantle and clean and no concern over contamination. For example, such products as aseptically packed juices or juice concentrate e.g. apple and orange, punches, bar mixes, etc. can be forced from the container at floor level to a dispenser at counter level.
In the following description, viscous or semi-viscous substances will be given as an example of products packaged and dispensed according to this invention, but as indicated, the invention is not limited to such products.
Bag-in-box packages have been in use for a number of years in packaging various products. One of the first of these packages used commercially is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,173,579. These packages have been used mainly for holding and dispensing liquids which will readily flow by gravity from the bag when the dispensing valve thereof is opened. However, they are not ordinarily used for containing and dispensing of substances which will not readily flow by gravity such as viscous and semi-viscous substances because of the requirement of special equipment, such as pumps, to dispense them.
The present invention deals with the combination of a novel disposable bag with the usual fiberboard box adapted to enclose and protect it. The baffle bag itself is of novel three-ply form, each ply consisting of one or more layers of mono- or multi-layer film. The middle or intermediate ply is a product baffle wall, the ply at the one side is the product outer wall and the ply at the other side is the displacement outer wall. Thus, there are two separate chambers produced in the bag, the one being the product-receiving chamber and the other being a pressure fluid-receiving chamber. Coupling fitments are provided on the bag in communication with the respective chambers for passing the product into and out of the product chamber and fluid under pressure into the opposed pressure chamber.
The bag is manufactured flat and the viscous or semi-viscous product is forced into the product chamber through its fitment and causes it to expand. The fluid-pressure chamber is not yet expanded and the displacement wall remains flat against the product baffle or barrier wall. In this condition, the filled bag is placed in a shipping container such as a box. To dispense the product, fluid-pressure is introduced into the pressure chamber of the bag and a valve on the product chamber is opened to permit forced dispensing. However, before this is done, the box is placed in a pressure-resisting enclosure, preferably in the form of a cage, since the dispensing pressure would otherwise cause bulging and eventual rupture of the box and subsequently the bag. The pressure is applied into the pressure chamber of the bag until the desired amount or all of the viscous or semi-viscous substance has been forced from the product chamber.
The product is likewise protected by the baffle ply from the fluid pressure being used to pressurize the bag. Relatively high pressures need not be used. Pressures 15 PSI or under are used according to this invention. A practical pressure range is 5 to 10 PSI, but in every case the pressure limit is determined by the strength of the "cage." Even here there is an upper limit somewhere between 10 and 15 PSI because the bag does not perfectly fill out the corners within the box and the result may be rupturing of the unsupported film.
The fitments for the two chambers could be on opposite sides of the bag, that is, on the other product wall and on the displacement outer wall as shown in copending application Ser. No. 89,642. However, in manufacturing the bag in a continuous strip it is desirable to have both fitments on the same side of the strip. This is accomplished according to this invention by having the product fitment on the product wall communicate directly with the product chamber and the pressure fitment next to it on the same wall but extending through the product wall to the intermediate baffle wall where it is sealed to be later pierced so it will be in direct communication with the pressure-filled chamber.
The best mode comtemplated in carrying out this invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the bag-in-box package of this invention disposed in a pressure-resisting cage for dispensing under pressure.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a plastic bag with coupling fitments on the same side in accordance with this invention.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 3--3 of FIG. 2 showing the fitments on the same side of the bag communicating with the respective chambers thereof.
FIG. 3A is an elevational view showing a pressure coupling which will pierce the seal in the pressure fitment of the bag as it is coupled thereto.
FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing the filled bag, a fiber box in which it may be packed and the pressure-resisting cage into which the box may be placed during dispensing, but it is to be understood that the operations are conducted seperately.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view throught the box showing the bag with its product chamber filled and expanded but its pressure-chamber not yet expanded.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the pressure chamber expanded to exert dispensing pressure on the filled product chamber with nearly one-half the product shown as remaining in the product chamber.
FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of the method of producing a strip of the bags with the fitments on the same side of the strip.
FIG. 7A is a schematic illustration of an optional means for piercing the seal at the inner end of the pressure fitting during bag manufacture.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a modification of the bag.
As previously indicated, this invention comprises generally a novel three-ply bag shown at 11 (FIGS. 2 and 3), and at 11b (FIG. 8), a fiberboard box 12 (FIGS. 1 and 4 to 6) and a pressure-resisting cage 6 (FIGS. 1, 4 and 13) for receiving the box during the dispensing operation under pressure. In FIGS. 7 and 7A, the method of forming a strip of the bags is illustrated.
This invention deals with a bag-in-box type package which can be filled with viscous or semi-viscous substances or other substances that will not readily flow under gravity force when it is desired to dispense the substance. Various substances may be packaged in bulk according to this invention, including foodstuffs such as salad dressings, catsup, mustard, pizza sauce, etc., paints and glues, oils and grease and many other viscous or semi-viscous products, some of which may be processed and filled aseptically. According to this invention, the flow of the substance during dispensing is greatly aided by pressure on the product. This is accomplished according to this invention by using a disposable plastic bag made of three plies, mainly two outer plies and an intermediate baffle ply so as to provide separate independent product and pressure chambers in the bag.
The bag 11 itself, as indicated, is composed of three plies of plastic film and examples of it are shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 and in FIG. 8. These films are sealed together at their peripheral edges. Each ply consists of one or more layers of mono- or multi-layer film. The bag is shown rectangular in form, but is not limited to that shape. Each ply is preferably a laminate and the bag formed according to this invention will consist of an outer laminate 21 which forms an outer product wall, an intermediate laminate 22 which forms a baffle wall, and another outer laminate 23 which forms a displacement outer wall. The two plies which come into contact with the product, that is plies 21 and 22, are each preferably of a laminate which consists of one inner barrier layer with outer layers of polyolefin, preferably polyethylene. The barrier layer may be of nylon or EVOH or a metalized polyester film. The outer displacement wall ply 23 which never comes into contact with the product may optionally be nothing more than polyethylene. When the bag is expanded from its flat manufactured state, two separate chambers are produced, namely, the product chamber 25 and the pressure chamber 26 as shown in FIG. 6 and as also indicated before bag expansion in FIG. 3.
Coupling fitments are provided on the bag for providing independent connections with the respective chambers 25 and 26. These fitments as shown in FIG. 3 take the form of a product filling and dispensing coupling spout 27 and a pressure-fluid receiving coupling sleeve 28. As previously indicated, and as shown in copending application Ser. No. 89,642, the fitments may be on the opposite outer plies 21 and 23 but are preferably on the same side longitudinally spaced to facilitate manufacture, being shown on the outer ply 21. It will be apparent from FIG. 3 that the spout 27 is mounted in an opening in the outer wall 21 and communicates directly with the product chamber 25 for filling it and and permitting flow therefrom. It has an inner flange 24 which is heat-sealed within and to the wall 21. The pressure fitting 28 is in the form of a threaded sleeve which has a flange 30 that is heat sealed between the wall 21 and the intermediate wall 22, its inner end being normally closed by wall 22 which can be pierced at 22a when the sleeve 28 is to function to communicate with pressure chamber 26 or in manufacture. It will be noted that there is a cross heat seal seam 31 between walls 21 and 22 which extends completely across the bag between the fittings 27 and 28 so that pressure fitting 28 can communicate with pressure chamber 26 but not product chamber 25. Instead of a heat seal seam 31 extending transversely completely across the bag, a heat seal 31b may be provided as shown on the bag 11b in FIG. 8 between the fittings 28b and 28b so they will have independent communication with the respective product and pressure chambers of the bag. In this instance, the fittings 27b and 28b will be side-by-side instead of longitudinally spaced as in FIG. 2.
The product chamber 26 of the bag 11 may be filled by the usual filling machines through the spout 27 and may be sealed by any suitable closure or cap 35 (FIG. 5) applied to the spout. The bag filled with product may then be placed in any suitable fiberboard box 12 as indicated in FIG. 11.
To dispense the product from the filled product chamber, the spout 27 may be slipped through a keyhole opening 27a in the adjacent end of the box, which may be like that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,173,579, and may be dispensed through a suitable valve and service line connector unit 36 which may be of various types, such as that described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,421,146. Pressure fitting 28 is accessed from the box in the same manner. To aid in dispensing of the viscous or semi-viscous product which will not readily flow, pressure is introduced into the pressure chamber 26 through the fitting 28. This pressure may be from a low pressure air source or water from the usual water tap regulated to low pressure. For this purpose, the fitting 28 will be passed through an opening 28a in the adjacent end of the box and have the low pressure supply line 37 connected thereto.
The line 37 may have a coupling 38 on its end which will screw onto the pressure fitment 28. This coupling, as shown in FIG. 3A, may have a sharp probe 39 which, as it enters the fitment 28, will pierce the seal at 22a. If the seal 22a is removed during manufacture of the bag, the probe 39 will not be needed.
The pressure will cause the pressure chamber 26 to gradually expand substantially into the condition illustrated in FIG. 6 where the baffle wall 22 will exert a desired pressure on the product in chamber 25 to cause it to dispense through spout 27.
Since the ordinary fiberboard box of bag-in-box packages can usually withstand pressures of only 1 to 2 PSI, it is necessary to reinforce the box 12 during dispensing under pressure from expansion of the pressure chamber 26. This is accomplished by use of a pressure-resisting enclosure of a suitable type such as that shown at 13 in FIGS. 1, 4, and 6.
The box enclosure 13 may take various forms, but it is shown herein as a cage-like metal structure, so it can be made at a low cost. However, it could be of solid, lightweight construction, or even be molded from plastic. Cages would usually be built in modules of four and serve the dual purpose of a box used in gravity dispensing. As shown, it may be of a series of square metal tubes welded together. It consists of end squares 40 and 41 held in longitudinally spaced relationship by the longitudinal tubes 42. The closed end is provided with vertical tubes 43 and a cross tube 44, and the other end is provided with a gate structure for the square open end 41. This end will permit insertion. of the box 12. The gate structure consists of a pair of vertical tubes 45 and a horizontal tube 46 crossed and welded together. The members 45 are hinged at 47 at their lower ends. All the tubes are sufficiently close to support the respective walls against rupture by the pressure. A removable reinforcing plate 48 may be provided within the gate structure which has openings 27c and 28c (FIGS. 1 and 6) through which the respective fittings 27 and 28 may be passed when the box 12 is inserted in the cage or enclosure 13. The gate structure may be held closed by bolts 49 having wing type heads for hand operation.
When it is desired to dispense the product, the filled bag 11 in the box 12 (FIG. 5) is inserted into the enclosure 13 by opening the gate and removing the plate 48. The fitments 27 and 28 are pulled through the respective openings 27a and 28a in the plate and then the plate is positioned at the end of the box and held in that position by closing and securing the gate. Thereafter, the pressure line 37 is connected to the fitting 28 by coupling 38 which pierces seal 22a if it is in place and the dispensing unit 36 is connected to the spout 27. The cage 13 is preferably inclined slightly to hold the box inclined toward the spout 27 by the downwardly extending legs of tubes 43. An angle of about seven degrees has been found suitable. Pressure applied through the fitment 28 will enter the pressure chamber 26 to expand it as indicated in FIG. 6 substantially to the contour of the box and exert through the baffle wall 22 a pressure on the product in the product chamber 25 to force it to flow towards the spout 27. This pressure can be continued until all of the product has been discharged or until only a portion of the product has been discharged. When completely discharged, the box may be removed from the enclosure 13 and may be discarded.
Thus, with this arrangement the flow of the viscous or semi-viscous product in the product chamber 25 can be greatly increased by the pressure created in the pressure chamber 26. This pressure can be maintained by a check valve in the line 37 and is preferably regulated by a low pressure regulator of the usual type associated with that valve.
The special bag 11 of this invention may be manufactured as indicated in FIG. 7. This method is generally similar to that disclosed in FIG. 12 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,601,410. A continuous strip 50 of the bags may be produced with fitments 27 and 28 at the upper side of the strip. For the sake of simplicity a roll of a single web 21a is shown to form the outer product wall 21, a roll of a single web 22a is shown to form the product baffle wall 22, and a roll of a single web 23a is shown to form the displacement outer wall 23. These webs are advanced to successive stations for certain operations. The web 21a is pulled intermittently, horizontally from its roll at an upper location above the webs 22a and 23a which are pulled intermittently from their respective rolls. Web 22a travels vertically around a lower guide roll 51 to an upper guide roll 52 where it is directed closely beneath the horizontally moving web 21a. Web 23a travels vertically around a lower guide roll 53 to an upper guide roll 54 where it is directed horizontally closely beneath the webs 21a and 22a.
The web 21a after being pulled under tension from its roll is subjected at one station to punch units 55 and 56 of a common type which are activated simultaneously to produce holes for receiving the respective fitments 27 and 28. The web 21a is moved to another station where units 57 and 58 of a common type insert fitments 27 and 28 into the respective holes in the web 21a. Each of these units includes a lower cylinder and piston unit which inserts the fitment into their respective holes and upper units which seals their flanges to the web 21a. As the web 21a is moved toward the next station, the web 22a is positioned closely beneath it and the superimposed webs 21a and 22a move to the next station into cooperation with the units 59 and 60 which operate simultaneously. The unit 59 is of a common type and produces the heat seal seam 31 of the bag completely across the strip between the fitments 27 and 28. The unit 60 is of such a type that it seals the under side of flange 30 of fitment 28 to web 22a to the condition shown in FIG. 3. The sealed-together webs 21a and 22a move on to another station into an edge heat sealing unit 61 of a common type and as they move into that unit, the web 23 moves closely beneath them after passing horizontally over the guide roller 54. This unit will heat seal the edges of the three webs 21a, 22a, and 23a together.
These combined webs are then moved on to another station consisting of an end sealing unit 62 which is of the usual type that has double sealing means 63 and 64 for producing a dual seal transversely across the webs 21a, 22a and 23a. Then the combined webs move to a unit 65 which will provide a perforated tear line between the dual end seams so that the bags will still be in the form of a strip 50. However, the unit 65 could be a cutter to cut individual bags from the strip.
Thus the fitments 27 and 28 will be at the upper side of the strip 50 of bags and will have the transverse seal 31 between the longitudinally spaced fitments. If it is desired to have the fitments 27b and 28b of the bag 11b, shown in FIG. 8, side-by-side, the unit 59 can be modified to produce the angular seam 31b extending from end to side at a corner of the bag. The fitments can be in other positions and a similar seam can be used between them to separate their functions.
If it is desired to break the 22a membrane across the inner end of pressure fitment 28 during the manufacture of the bag, the arrangement shown in FIG. 7A can be used which is a modification of units 60. This modified unit 60a has its lower heating element 62 provided with an upwardly movable piercing tool 63 which will normally be below the combined plies 21a and 22a. When the fitment 28 is moved into position over the tool, the tool is activated to move upwardly and pierce the layer 22a simultaneous to sealing the flange 30 of fitment 28 to web 22a.
It will be apparent that this invention provides a bag-in-box package which can receive a product which will not readily flow by gravity such as a viscous or semi-viscous product but that can be readily dispensed therefrom under pressure according to this invention. However, the shipping container need not necessarily be a box as long as it can resist the dispensing pressure. Also, as indicated, the bag itself could be enclosed within an enveloping rack compartment for dispensing. The three-ply bag is of novel form with separate product and pressure chambers that are independently connected to a product fitment and a pressure fitment. The special bag can be readily manufactured by a novel method provided by this invention.
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A tag that can be mounted to or within an article has means for sensing one or more conditions associated with the article, such as temperature, shock, radiation or atmosphere. The tag also includes power means such as a thin film battery, transducer means, data storage means, and means for transmitting data or information to a suitable receiver. The tag will accompany the article in transit or in storage and be able to inform an interested party of conditions experienced by the article. The tag can be programmed to sense conditions at specific time intervals, making use of an internal clock. The clock, data storage means, transducer means and transmission means can all be part of a thin film integrated circuit incorporated on the tag.
1. A self-contained tag for use with an article for sensing one or more conditions associated with said article, said tag including power means, condition sensing means, transducer means, information storage means, and information transmission means, whereby said transducer means converts a condition sensed by said sensing means into a signal that can be stored by said storage means for eventual transmission to a reader.
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14. A system for sensing, recording and transmitting condition information with respect to an article, comprising a tag and a reader, said tag including power means, condition sensing means, transducer means, information storage means, and information transmission means, whereby said transducer means converts a condition sensed by said sensing means into a signal that can be stored by said storage means for eventual transmission to said reader, and said reader including receiver means, storage means, and display means for accepting information from said tag and displaying said information for use by an interested party.
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The present invention relates to a system that includes a sensing and recording tag and a reader/writer that can instruct the tag and can read data created during use of the tag. The system will be utilized primarily in the transport and storage field to detect changes in the environment pertaining to products that are being shipped or stored.
Tags, strips or badges which will detect a condition change are well known. For example, people working around nuclear reactors, laboratories, factories, hospitals, etc. where nuclear radiation may be present wear badges which will change colour if the badge is exposed to dangerous levels of radiation. They may progressively change colour as the radiation builds up or they may change colour dramatically if they are exposed to a sudden potentially lethal dose of radiation. Other badges or tags are provided with chemical detecting material so that they will change colour in the presence of a potentially dangerous chemical or gas, such as chlorine. Yet other badges or tags may change colour as the result of a change in temperature over or below a set threshold. These tags may be worn by an individual or they may be stuck to or placed within a product or package or container so that someone later on can ascertain whether the product, package, or container was subjected to inappropriate environmental conditions, including inappropriate temperatures. Such tags may have importance with respect to products whose quality or shelf life, as in the case of foodstuffs, could be adversely affected by inappropriate environmental conditions.
Tags such as those described above are generally inexpensive as they are designed to record a single event or condition. Generally they cannot be reused once they have recorded the significant event but that is not a problem given that they are inexpensive. They may be termed as being disposable tags or detectors.
There are instances where it is desirable to be able to trace and record multiple events during the transport of a product or load and/or during the storage of such a load. Sensing and recording devices which will accomplish this are available; they include multiple sensors, a clock, a battery, a memory in which sensed data is recorded, and some form of output mechanism whereby the recorded data can be read for interpretation by an interested party. These devices, unfortunately, tend to be large in size in comparison to the disposable tags mentioned above, being as large as a cigarette package or even larger. They also tend to be very expensive, on the order of $200 each in comparison to the $1 cost of a disposable tag. On the other hand these devices are reusable which tends to offset their high initial cost.
It is apparent from the foregoing that there is a need for a multi-use sensing and recording tag that benefits from the small size of a disposable tag, which will perform the functions of the large-size multi-function device, and which will be much closer in cost to that of the disposable tag.
The present invention overcomes the problems of the prior art and meets the criteria set forth hereinabove. The invention contemplates in one aspect a reusable tag that can be attached to the exterior of a product, article, package or container or can be incorporated therewithin. The tag makes use of current and emerging technology relating to thin film power supplies, possibly including rechargeable thin film batteries, as well as thin film integrated circuit technology. A tag of this invention will be able to sense at least one of a plurality of environmental conditions, including temperature, atmosphere, and shock; may have built-in clock function so that the exact time that an event takes place will be recorded; sufficient memory to ensure that all events will be recorded; and may have means for transmitting recorded data or for permitting recorded data to be downloaded from its memory for later use. The tag may also be programmable and will be provided with a identifier to aid in assuring that the information therein pertains to a particular job.
While a multi-functional, multi-use tag is contemplated by this invention it should be realized that the same technology can be a single-use item, preprogrammed at the factory to detect and record specific events, and to transmit or give up the recorded data when signalled to do so. Once the data has been read the tag would be destroyed as it could not be re-used at all.
The system of the invention will include a reader/writer that can be programmed to read and display information gathered by the tag during its use. Such device could be used to reset the tag to "zero" so that it would be ready to record data for another project or job and could also be used to recharge the tag's battery if necessary. The reader/writer could also be used to program the tag for its particular job, depending on the data that will be needed at the end.
In its most basic form the present invention includes a sensing/recording tag used to acquire data and a reader used to download data from the tag. The tag itself will be of a small size, comparable to a credit card, or even smaller. It will be very thin and light, and it can be rigid, semi-rigid or flexible. Preferably it will be formed from a material that is very strong, will offer considerable resistance to cutting or tearing, and will be resistant to the deleterious effects of heat, cold, magnetism, chemicals and radiation. Such materials already exist and are well within the knowledge of skilled materials engineers. The material should also be capable of being adhered to the inside or the outside of a shipping container or a package.
The tag will be provided with a thin film battery as a power supply. Such thin film batteries already exist and are being further developed at a prodigious rate. A disposable tag would include a single or limited use battery whereas a reusable tag would use a rechargeable battery. It would be expected that a disposable tag would be less expensive to produce than a reusable tag.
The tag would also be provided with a programmable integrated circuit connected to the battery and which would include a clock, a series of sensors, and a memory for storing data derived from the sensors. The sensors could be programmed either at the factory or by the reader, if the reader is provided with a writing capability, to react to changes in temperature, position, atmosphere, impact, etc., with each change being recorded in the memory only if, for example, it exceeded a pre-set threshold. Whenever a recordable event is detected it would be recorded in the appropriate section of the memory relating to such events and the time that the event took place would be recorded as well, being associated with that particular event. It would not be necessary that the clock record the exact time that the recordable event took place; it would be sufficient for the clock to identify the nearest quarter hour, for example. It is likely that for jobs taking a long time, of days or weeks, the event timing can be coarser than for jobs of short duration. In the latter case it would be more desirable to record the exact time, say to the closest minute, at which an event took place. The accuracy of the timing can be pre-set from a list of criteria whenever the tag is programmed.
Included in the integrated circuit will be a specific identifier code for each tag so that the tag can be identified by a reader/writer used by the people interested in the data developed by the tag. The tag could be initially programmed at the factory to perform specific desired functions or the tag might be set up so that it could be programmed "on the job". In the latter case the reader/writer would be used to initially program the tag using a number of selectable criteria. The reader/writer will be provided with reading means for downloading the data from the tag at the end of a job. For this, the tag will also be provided with output means that can be coupled directly or indirectly to the reader/writer whereby the data recorded in memory can be transferred to the reader/writer for display and/or later use. The reader/writer can also be provided with means for recharging the battery of the tag if it is provided with a rechargeable thin film battery.
A disposable tag in accordance with this invention would likely cost in the vicinity of $3, a little more than existing single use tags. A reusable tag would be more expensive, perhaps in the vicinity of $8 each. Conceivably if a food merchant, for example, were to purchase reusable tags and several reader/writers in order to monitor shipments of produce from a country of origin to his warehouse in Canada he would have no need to purchase additional tags once his initial supply had been obtained. This would mean that the supplier of tags and reader/writers would have a limited market for tags, since once each of his customers had acquired its initial supply there would be no requirement for the customers to purchase more tags, except as replacements for lost or destroyed tags, or to accommodate an increase in business.
It is therefore an additional feature of the tags of this invention, in particular for the reusable tags, that each such tag will be "licensed" rather than sold to the customer so that the tag manufacturer can be assured of continuous income therefrom. Each tag or the licensed reader/writer would be provided with a countdown register so as to permit only a limited number of uses before the identified tag could no longer have its recorded data downloaded by a reader/writer. The number of uses would be associated with the particular identifier given to the particular tag at the factory and each reader/writer would have an identifier associated therewith known only to the manufacturer. When a tag has reached the end of its preprogrammed "life" the customer would contact the manufacturer and would "buy" another packet of uses for that tag. The manufacturer would provide the customer, after payment, with a special code that could be transmitted to the tag by the customer's reader/writer and which would reactivate that tag for the specific number of uses then purchased by the customer. In this manner the manufacturer would be assured of continuous income from reusable tags.
The manufacturer could alternatively manufacture non-programmable tags having sufficient battery power to meet a customer's requirements for, say, ten jobs of the same nature. The battery and the sensors would lie dormant until the customer's reader/writer is used to activate the tag, the activated tag then being used until it reaches the end of its preprogrammed life. The tag could not be reactivated and it would then be necessary for the customer to purchase a new tag as a replacement for the dead tag.
The tags can be provided with passive or active data transmission means, including RF (radio frequency) transmission, as is known in the art.
The manufacturer would have the ability to license the software that controls the reader/writer in order to exercise control over the activities of the licensees to thereby thwart unauthorized use of the tags or the reader/writers. The software would be developed so as to be adapted to the customer's particular needs, whether that need includes simple results, such as whether a particular predetermined temperature was exceeded, or more complex results, such as a timed log of environmental conditions including vibration, etc.
The foregoing has broadly described the present invention as currently contemplated, it being understood that a skilled person in this art could undoubtedly effect changes thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention itself.
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Clorazepate Pregnancy and Breastfeeding Warnings
Clorazepate is also known as: Tranxene, Tranxene SD, Tranxene T-Tab
Clorazepate Pregnancy Warnings
Clorazepate has not been formally assigned to a pregnancy category. Use of other benzodiazepines is associated with an increased risk in congenital malformations. Only limited experience with the use of clorazepate during pregnancy has been reported. Additionally, an increased risk of congenital malformations in humans has been associated with use of all known anticonvulsant agents in the treatment of women with epilepsy. However, epilepsy itself may be associated with an increased risk of congenital malformations. Clorazepate should only be given during pregnancy when there are no alternatives and benefit outweighs risk.
One study has reported that clorazepate given to women by intramuscular injection during the first stage of labor crosses the placental barrier slowly and is detectable in the blood of neonates. The principal metabolite of clorazepate, N-desmethyldiazepam, crosses the placental barrier more rapidly. Neonatal respiratory depression and neonatal withdrawal have been reported after maternal use of other benzodiazepines and are a theoretical risk of clorazepate therapy. Once case report has described multiple malformations in the offspring of a woman who took 23 capsules of clorazepate during the first trimester. The malformations included: abdominal distention, an oval mass in the suprapubic area, a skin tag at the site of the penis, absence of a urethral opening, absence of a scrotum, absence of an anus, and multiple malformations of the extremities. The infant died at 24 hours of age. Autopsy revealed absence of one lobe of the right lung, absence of the cecum and rectum, marked dilatation of the colon, fistula between the colon and bladder, absence of the right kidney, presence of a rudimentary left kidney, and several supernumerary spleens. To provide information regarding the effects of in utero exposure to clorazepate, physicians are advised to recommend that pregnant patients taking clorazepate enroll in the North American Antiepileptic Drug (NAAED) Pregnancy Registry. This can be done by calling the toll free number 1-888-233-2334, and must be done by patients themselves. Information on the registry can also be found at the website http://www.aedpregnancyregistry.org/.
Clorazepate Breastfeeding Warnings
Clorazepate and/or its principal metabolite, N-desmethyldiazepam, are excreted into human milk in small amounts. No adverse effects have been reported in nursing infants, but experience is quite limited. The American Academy of Pediatrics has no position on the use of clorazepate during breast-feeding but describes other benzodiazepines as drugs "whose effect on nursing infants is unknown but may be of concern". The manufacturer states that clorazepate should not be given to nursing mothers since it has been reported that nordiazepam is excreted in human breast milk.
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Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Wolters Kluwer Health and Drugs.com is accurate, up-to-date and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. In addition, the drug information contained herein may be time sensitive and should not be utilized as a reference resource beyond the date hereof. This material does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients, or recommend therapy. This drug information is a reference resource designed as supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill , knowledge, and judgement of healthcare practitioners in patient care. The absence of a warning for a given drug or combination thereof in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or combination is safe, effective, or appropriate for any given patient. Multum Information Services, Inc. does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Multum provides. Copyright 2000-2008 Multum Information Services, Inc. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist.


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Grand Trunk Travel Pillow
Retailers' Descriptions
Here's what other sites are saying:
The Grand Trunk Goods Bamboo Blend 1 Person Sleep Sack is a comfortable and clean way to sleep when conditions are questionable. It will also add a few degrees to your sleeping bag when used as liner. So whether you don't trust the hotel or hostel for cleanliness or you just need something to snooze in the Bamboo Blend sleep sack is for you. Made from a renewable resource (bamboo) and organic cotton the GT Bamboo Blend Sleep Sack is convenient and comfortable. The feel is soft and luxurious and certainly nicer than the cheap or dirty sheets you might find in some questionable establishment.Bamboo Blend has a soft luxurious feelMade from a renewable resourcePillow compartment - stuff in a pillow or clothes to make a pillowSplit partially down one side and uses ties to closeBreathable fabric and moisture wicking properties keeps you comfortableNaturally antibacterialBamboo material naturally resists odorsCarry or lash straps on the top and sideStuff Sack is attached to Sleep Sack so you can't lose itCord Lock Stuff Sack closureHand wash - tumble dry lowColor - Bamboo greenPacked Size - 7" x 4.5"Open Size - 7'1" x 2' 6" Weight - 1 lb.Materials - 70% Viscose from Bamboo - 30% Organic Cotton
- Campmor
Grand Trunk Travel Pillow
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- Attorney General Brad D. Schimel
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Please consult with a translator for accuracy if you are relying on the translation or are using this site for official business.Contact the Department of Justice
MADISON — Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced today that James Thorin was committed January, 13, 2012, in St. Croix County Circuit Court under Wisconsin's civil commitment law (Chapter 980, Wis. Stats.) after a jury trial before Judge Howard W. Cameron, Jr. The Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) filed the State's petition to commit Thorin to treatment on July 1, 2009.
Chapter 980 of the Wisconsin Statutes relates to the control, care and treatment of sexually violent persons. Under Wisconsin law, a person may be subject to a civil commitment when the person has been convicted of a sexually violent offense, has a mental disorder, and is dangerous to others because the mental disorder makes it likely he or she will commit further acts of sexual violence. A civil commitment is defined in Wisconsin law as commitment to the custody and care of the Department of Health Services for control, care, and treatment until the person is no longer considered sexually violent.
According to the DOJ petition, James Thorin of Brainerd, MN, was convicted of Kidnapping and Burglary in St. Croix County in 1983 and reconvicted in 1984, and was sentenced to 20 years in the Wisconsin State Prison System. These charges were sexually violent offenses because they were sexually motivated. Thorin was scheduled for release from the Department of Corrections on July 14, 2009, but was detained at a Department of Health Services facility to await trial on the petition.
The State's petition alleged that Thorin suffers from a mental condition that predisposes him to engage in acts of sexual violence. The petition also alleged that Thorin is dangerous as his mental disorder makes it likely that he will engage in future acts of sexual violence.
In addition to Thorin's convictions for the Wisconsin offenses, he also was sentenced on February 29, 2000, on charges of 3rd Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct; 4th Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct ; and 5th Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct before the district court for Crow Wing County, MN.
Assistant Attorney General Donald Latorraca represented the State of Wisconsin in this case.


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I bought this produce to use when fishing with my dad. It is easy to use and cushions very well. My only caveat is that you might not want to use this during the hottest parts of summer. My iPad kept freezing up from being too hot. A quick dip in the lake or storing it in the shade helped, but the foam prevents heat dissipation from the tablet. Keep it cool, and it works great!
Posted on 11/16/13


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- Bill Harrison
- New York, NY
- United States
This conversation is closed.
Can we redesign Money to better reflect our values in the digital age? How would you do it?
Money is a vote. Money is a direct, legally backed claim upon the allocation of scarce social resources. That's what a vote is. Voting is merely an indirect claim upon scarce social resources, and voting fails due to both a principal-agent tension and the speed/relative strength of money.
This is why we live in oligarchies and not democracies - the rich simply have more say as to the allocation of scarce social resources, and the poor have almost no say. A positive feedback loop makes the rich richer, and because the poor cannot financially compensate those who help them, altruism toward the poor is punished in our society...yet, each of us WANTS to be altruistic. That is human nature.
Therefore, Money is a Law, because it governs how we must live. We have created a society in which capital = fitness, and thus we are socially selecting at the upper echelons of power psychopaths who will do anything for money. There is no cost to their fitness if they exploit people or pollute or waste money or hoard money, and so their insane behavior continues.
The legal system (1) protects the wealthy, who can afford the best attorneys, buy politicians, and manipulate the tax code, and (2) takes violence off the table so the poor can't retaliate, when the rich commit daily acts of violence against the poor. Yet, game theory suggests that both punishment and reward are necessary for cooperation to exist.
So, as an example, can we redesign money to create "digital financial karma" to capture the "externalities" of people's behavior? Could we each digitally destroy money, at the same rate (we could have the option to pay $1 per day to destroy $2 of someone's ill-gotten money, depending on how much deflation we want)
Could we decentralize the Federal Reserve's creation of money (votes) so that it is no longer created for central banks and lent back to the public? Could we digitally give everyone, say, $3 (votes) per day to buy FOOD so they can have healthy brains? Why not?
Apr 4 2011: "The American People will take Socialism, but they won't take the label. I certainly proved it in the case of EPIC. Running on the Socialist ticket I got 60,000 votes, and running on the slogan to "End Poverty in California" I got 879,000. I think we simply have to recognize the fact that our enemies have succeeded in spreading the Big Lie. There is no use attacking it by a front attack, it is much better to out-flank them." - Upton Sinclair
Consistent cash transfers to the people at the very bottom of the economic pyramid, which would allow them to buy food that would otherwise go to waste = libertarian socialism. How is that not a win for everyone?
Cash transfer programs are already working in the US with the EBT/SNAP programs -
Electronic cash transfers have already been shown to be effective in Brazil:
Equality of opportunity = equal access to basic nutrition, which is obviously not met.Apr 4 2011: We declared that humans have the right to food in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 25. We produce more than enough food to feed all of humanity. Yet, millions of tons of food go to waste every year because people cannot afford it. Unless we can actually give food that would otherwise go to waste to the people at the bottom of the socioeconomic pyramid (I would argue, in the form of non-perishable cash), the UDHR Article 25 right to food is literally meaningless.
Obviously, market failure is the norm, not the exception, and fixing the market failure will require conscious action on all our parts.
Another quote from the Stiglitz article:
"Alexis de Tocqueville once described what he saw as a chief part of the peculiar genius of American society—something he called "self-interest properly understood." The last two words were the key. Everyone possesses self-interest in a narrow sense: I want what's good for me right now! Self-interest "properly understood" is different. It means appreciating that paying attention to everyone else's self-interest—in other words, the common welfare—is in fact a precondition for one's own ultimate well-being. Tocqueville was not suggesting that there was anything noble or idealistic about this outlook—in fact, he was suggesting the opposite. It was a mark of American pragmatism. Those canny Americans understood a basic fact: looking out for the other guy isn't just good for the soul—it's good for business."Apr 4 2011: So, I'll admit that framing the problem as "money is a vote" is a little strange.
However, there are two mainstream perspectives which make this less crazy. First, Nobel prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz has an article in Vanity Fair discussing how income inequality is bad for everyone, including the wealthy 1% who own 40% of the nation's capital::
" Wealth begets power, which begets more wealth. " - Joseph Stiglitz
"Economists long ago tried to justify the vast inequalities that seemed so troubling in the mid-19th century—inequalities that are but a pale shadow of what we are seeing in America today. The justification they came up with was called 'marginal-productivity theory.' In a nutshell, this theory associated higher incomes with higher productivity and a greater contribution to society. It is a theory that has always been cherished by the rich. Evidence for its validity, however, remains thin. The corporate executives who helped bring on the recession of the past three years—whose contribution to our society, and to their own companies, has been massively negative—went on to receive large bonuses. In some cases, companies were so embarrassed about calling such rewards "performance bonuses" that they felt compelled to change the name to "retention bonuses" (even if the only thing being retained was bad performance). Those who have contributed great positive innovations to our society, from the pioneers of genetic understanding to the pioneers of the Information Age, have received a pittance compared with those responsible for the financial innovations that brought our global economy to the brink of ruin.'
And Newsweek had an article (which includes some findings by TEDster Esther Duflo) about cash transfer programs helping the world's poorest people:
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/10/25/the-new-fix-for-poverty-give-cash-to-the-poor.htmlMar 15 2011: To frame this question another way, the rationale for separation of powers was that the US Founding Fathers didn't trust power concentrated in too few hands. Yet, there is no corresponding check upon the power of concentrated wealth.
In the 1950's, it used to be that extremely high top marginal tax rates (around 90% on income over the equivalent of 2 million) aligned the interests of the wealthy and the rest of the country.
See Malcolm Gladwell: www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/festival/2010/10/video-malcolm-gladwell.html
However, this outcome seems unlikely given that the mainstream media is controlled by both the wealthy and the stupid (non-mutually exclusive).
So, if the wealthy will see to it that they won't be taxed even at Clintonian levels, the legal system prevents accountability for wealthy bankers who can afford the best lawyers, and POTUS Obama cannot take on Big Money by himself, what is the check upon the power/greed/oligarchy of the wealthy?


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Ted Danson: My Wife Has a 'Sick Kind of Love' for Will Ferrell, Kirstie Alley Will Do 'Great' on 'DWTS'
By Nicki Gostin Posted Mar 22nd 2011 03:00PM
Danson tells PopEater that being a celebrity in the early 1980s was "not very different from being a 5-year-old in a room full of adults. Everyone is focused on you ... I needed to focus on something outside myself." Thankfully for us, that something was cleaning up our polluted oceans. He also shared with us his thoughts on how 'Cheers' co-star Kirstie Alley will fair on 'Dancing With the Stars,' how "green" he really is and his wife's "sick" relationship with Will Ferrell.
How green are you?
I'm greenish. I am always slightly embarrassed when it comes to us and what we're doing. We drive hybrids, we eat pretty good local. We're pretty good about what fish we eat. Carbon footprint is probably the biggest thing.
My big beef is with celebrities who preach being green and then take private jets.
Oh, I wish I had that dilemma.
So you don't take private jets?
No, but I have in my day. It would now be a conscious moral choice. We shouldn't be taking them.
So someone offers you a seat on a private jet to Martha's Vineyard...
I would leap at the opportunity and then probably somehow pull myself back from the brink.
So would you step on and then get off?
Can I look at the interior, please? I am not Ed Begley Jr. He is my hero. He walks the walk. I tend to sometimes talk more talk than walk.
This book is the real deal.
It really is the real deal. Everyone worked very hard to put it together, and I think it came out great.
How did you become interested in ocean conservation?
My father was an archeologist, and I grew up in a scientific community. Even though I was busy playing with my friends, I think something sunk in a little bit about stewardship. Flash forward to the 'Cheers' years and paying me a lot of money and feeling like, now I better become responsible. That all coincided with moving into a neighborhood that was in the middle of a fight to keep Occidental Petroleum from drilling 60 oil wells right along the beach in Santa Monica. And the fellow who was leading it and I became great friends. We succeeded in defeating their attempt, and out of a kind of naivete, I thought he and I will start this ocean advocacy group. And low and behold, it actually turned into a really respected staff of people in DC and LA. Then, about 10 years ago, it merged into Oceana, which is now the largest single ocean advocacy group.
So it kind of started off innocently, and I think because I'd been surrounded by it and couldn't change my mind and go, "OK, I'll see you later," I'd created an organization. I've been lucky enough to hang out with some incredibly bright scientists who dedicate their lives to this cause. I'm the guy who stands in front of the tent and says, "Thank you for watching 'Cheers.' Please come inside and listen to these amazing scientists."
Ever feel a little dumb talking to the scientists?
A little dumb? Oh my God, I sweated through this whole book. I felt like it was Sunday night and I had not written my college paper. As soon as I declared I was going to write it and I had a lot of help, I felt like, now I have to be the expert and I'm not. I'm an actor who knows a lot about oceans.
Ever get depressed by the enormity of the task?
Hopefully we've created a book that is solution-oriented. Yes, we spend time saying this is what is going on, and yes, we are literally at a tipping point for our oceans where we could conceivably fish them out commercially if we continue to do the damaging, wasteful kinds of fishing that we do. That's not going to happen, and here's why the world needs to do this, this and this, and you as an individual need to do this and this.
My wife [Oscar-winning actress Mary Steenburgen] said the most important think you can do is to tell people to go to the ocean, play in the water and then have a great fish dinner and remember how much you love the oceans and why, so you come from a place of joy, because if you come from a place of "Oh my God, this is overwhelming," you will not do anything, or you'll feel lousy doing it. So I truly believe you need a light heart.
Did you realize you were the butt of a lot of the jokes on 'Curb Your Enthusiasm'?
No, I didn't. One season, I was the butt of the whole season, and I had no idea. He [Larry David] was doing a scene with Lucy Lawless, and they were talking in the street and they see me, and my job is to walk by them and say, "Hey," and they say, "Hi." I got to my mark sooner than I should have and overheard them saying, "Oh God, I hate him he's such an a**hole" on camera, and I thought, "What?"
He's my friend. This year, standing in our guesthouse in Martha's Vineyard, where he stayed for free for like two months, he informed us that we were not going to be part of the next season. I said, "If that's true then I'm going to get on every show I can and tell them that you are a has-been and my manager tells me not to go on his show because it's peaked and it's on the way down so please quote me."
Your career has been chugging along quite nicely as of late.
I love 'Bored to Death.' It's a dream come true. It's injected a little life. That and 'Damages,' and begrudgingly I'll say 'Curb your Enthusiasm.' I'll begrudgingly admit that Larry David turned my career around.
How do you think Kirstie Alley will do on 'Dancing With the Stars'?
She's a great dancer. She'll do great.
Is the Museum of Natural History your favorite place to visit?
No. I grew up cleaning cases at my father's museum. He was the director of the Museum of Northern Arizona, and one of the first jobs I had was to wash off fingerprints on all the glass cases. When I get into a museum, I get a little antsy. I love them, but I don't have the staying power.
Do you have fingerprints marks on mirrors at home?
Yes! Mary can always tell when I'm a little bit emotional because I start cleaning like mad. I clean, I sweep, I vacuum.
You know your wife is pretty fabulous.
Oh God, I know. Thank you.
Are you worried that there's something going on between her and Will Ferrell. They do an awful lot of movies together.
Let me just put this in the hopper -- every movie that makes a crap load of money she's been in. I think they may be doing 'Stepbrothers 2.'
You can tell me if anything is going on between them.
Yes, there is, but it's very sick. It's a sick kind of love. You know what? They are probably two of the most trustworthy individuals on the planet. It's kind of fun to joke about them.
- Filed under:
- TV News -
- Interviews
- Tuesday 22 MarchBy leon
I don't know why but I thought he was married to Whoopie Goldberg.
- Tuesday 22 MarchBy stuLow Ranked Vote downVote upReport this
they dated. but he broke up w/ her when he choked on 1 of her nappy locks.
- Wednesday 23 MarchBy BTDT
I like this guy's work.
- Wednesday 20 AprilBy Don
I still loved the his show BECKER better than Cheers. They need to release the rest of the series on DVD.
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