text: Photo Gallery Best Science Pictures of 2011 Announced A spiny cucumber and a nanotube "city" feature among the winners of the 2011 International Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge. PUBLISHED Thu Feb 02 02:06:00 EST 2012 0 1 / 7 Tiny 2-D "Frontier" Weakly bonded particles that resemble a russet cliff in the U.S. Southwest won the people's choice award for photography in the 2011 International Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge. The layered solid—which resembles graphene, a main component of pencil lead—represents a new family of two-dimensional materials called MXene, according to co-creator Babak Anasori of Drexel University in Philadelphia. The 2-D material has unique properties that could lead to advances in fields such as energy-storage technology, the researchers say."This image was chosen to represent a new frontier—that is only visible from the cliff—in the world of 2-D materials that will indubitably play an important role in the future," Anasori wrote in a statement. Sponsored jointly by the journal Science and the National Science Foundation (NSF), the annual challenge was founded because "some of science's most powerful statements are not made in words," according to NSF. Overall, "the spirit of the competition is for communicating science, engineering, and technology for education and journalistic purposes."Judging criteria included visual impact, effective communication, freshness, and originality. (See some of the 2010 winners.) —Christine Dell'Amore Photograph courtesy B. Anasori, M. Naguib, Y. Gogotsi, and M. Barsoum, Drexel University New Look at Mouse Eyes A cross-section of a mouse eye reveals complex signs of metabolism—chemical changes in cells that release energy—in the eye's tissues. The picture won first place in the contest's photography category.To create the image, Bryan William Jones "assigned" colors to three organic molecules found in mouse eyes: taurine (red), glutamine (green), and glutamate (blue).The resulting range of hues comes from different molecular concentrations in the more than 70 classes of cell in the eye. For instance, the deep blue in the middle is optic fiber, while concentric rings of pink represent photoreceptor cells."Some of the muscles that move the eye can be seen on the outer, leftmost portion of the image as a golden color, while the sclera—which is normally the white part of your eye—is shown in green," Jones, of the University of Utah's Moran Eye Center, said via email.(See "Mice Get 'Human' Vision in Gene Experiment.") Photograph courtesy Bryan William Jones, University of Utah Death of a Tumor Green, T-shaped drug molecules fight "scary-looking, tentacled" breast cancer cells in an image that earned Emiko Paul of Echo Medical Media an honorable mention in the illustrations category.The drug—called TRA-8—locks into the cancer cells' "death receptors," so that the cells eventually die, Paul said via email.The illustration—based on photos of real breast cancer cells—shows how scientists are working on drugs to kill off only the cancer, leaving healthy cells alone, he said."The image was created to evoke a feeling of War of the Worlds, with the fight against breast cancer being waged by novel weapons like TRA-8."(Also read "War on Disease—Challenges for Humanity.") Illustration courtesy E. Paul and Q. Paul, Echo Medical Media, and R. Gamble, UAB Insight Toxic Cucumber Magnified 800 times, the skin of a young cucumber features in a picture that earned an honorable mention in the photography category.Since fruits and vegetables are most vulnerable to predators when they're immature, cucumber plants have developed two "powerful mechanisms to protect themselves against most herbivores," photographer Robert Rock Belliveau, a retired pathologist, said in a statement.For one, young cucumbers grow sharp points on their trichomes (pictured), a type of plant appendage. These points are 40 times thinner than a sewing needle and can prick animals' mouths. If that doesn't do the trick, the globular parts of the trichomes contain cucurbiticin, a toxic, bitter substance that can repulse or even kill invaders, according to Belliveau. Cucurbiticins are so bitter that people can taste their presence even when the substance is diluted to one part per billion. Photograph courtesy Robert Rock Belliveau Nanotube Metropolis Carbon nanotubes rise like futuristic skyscrapers in a picture that earned Joel Brehm, of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Office of Research and Economic Development, an honorable mention in the illustration category.Carbon nanotubes are cylinders of atoms that are only a few nanometers wide. Because the carbon-carbon bond is so strong, nanotubes have been proposed for use in a wide range of materials, from computer chips to space elevators.University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor Yongfeng Lu discovered laser-based production techniques that can precisely control the length, diameter, and properties of carbon nanotubes. This would allow nanotubes to be customized for specific uses."The 3-D illustration was developed to help Dr. Lu's team to visualize these nanoscale discoveries for diverse audiences," Brehm said in a statement.(See "Nano 'Wiretap' Spies on Cells.") Illustration courtesy Joel Brehm, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Hand Zoom A screenshot captures the action as a gamer zooms in on a human hand in Powers of Minus Ten (POMT), an app that won an honorable mention in the Interactive Games category.With the app, iPad, iPhone, PC, Mac, and web users can explore what the hand looks like down to the molecular level. The POMT app then lets users "review what they have discovered via timed mini-games," Laura Lynn Gonzalez of Green-Eye Visualization said in a statement.Future versions of POMT will include plants, minerals, and water droplets, as well as allow even deeper magnification down to the subatomic level.(Explore an interactive of the human body.) Illustration courtesy Laura Lynn Gonzalez, Green-Eye Visualization Next: Best Science Pictures of 2010 >> Image courtesy Konstantinov/Stefanov/Kovalevsky/Voronin, Visual Science Company Related Stories Meet the Cobots: Humans and Robots Together on the Factory Floor In the Empty Arctic, How to Get the Job Done? With a Drone. Elon Musk's Hyperloop Idea for Sonic Tubular Travel Gets Real


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Could you be pregnant? The proof is in the pregnancy test. But even before you miss a period, you might suspect — or hope — that you're pregnant. For some women, early signs and symptoms of pregnancy begin in the first few weeks after conception. Know the first signs of pregnancy.
In addition to a missed period, the earliest signs and symptoms of pregnancy might include:
Sometimes symptoms of pregnancy are less familiar or obvious. If you're pregnant, you might experience:
In addition, your basal body temperature — your temperature when you first wake up in the morning — might provide an early clue about pregnancy. Basal body temperature increases slightly soon after ovulation and remains at that level until your next period. If you've been charting your basal body temperature to determine when you ovulate, its continued elevation for more than two weeks could mean that you're pregnant.
Unfortunately, these signs and symptoms aren't unique to pregnancy. Some can indicate that you're getting sick or that your period is about to start. Likewise, you can be pregnant without experiencing any of these signs and symptoms.
Still, if you miss a period or notice any of the tip-offs on these lists, you might want to take a home pregnancy test — especially if you're not keeping track of your menstrual cycle or if it varies widely from one month to the next. If your home pregnancy test is positive, make an appointment with your health care provider. The sooner your pregnancy is confirmed, the sooner you can begin prenatal care.
Original article: http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/getting-pregnant/in-depth/symptoms-of-pregnancy/art-20043853
Any use of this site constitutes your agreement to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy linked below.
Mayo Clinic is a not-for-profit organization and proceeds from Web advertising help support our mission. Mayo Clinic does not endorse any of the third party products and services advertised.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Feb 18
Todd Bodine Racing No. 15 Tire Kingdom Camry at Daytona
Posted by: lori on Feb 18, 2011
Tagged in: Sherwin Williams , Germain Racing
First Daytona NNS Race for Bodine Since 2003
- Bodine is the Reigning Truck Series Champion after earning his 2nd title in 2010
- Bodine is Third Driver in Truck Series History to Win Multiple Titles, and Clinch Early
- Bodine Owns 21 Truck Series wins with Germain Racing and 36 NASCAR career wins
- At Daytona, Bodine has finished 5th or better in each of six NCWTS races
- The Chemung, NY, driver owns 15 NNS victories and seven Pole awards in 324 career starts
- Bodine owns Germain Racing's first NNS Top-five and Top-ten finishes
Mooresville, N.C. (February 18, 2010) - Germain Racing driver and reigning NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Todd Bodine is giving Tire Kingdom as well as team sponsor Valvoline double exposure in Daytona this weekend. Bodine races the No. 30 Tire Kingdom Tundra tonight at Daytona International Speedway and tomorrow he will compete in his 12th race in NASCAR's number two series at the famous race track behind the wheel of the No. 15 Tire Kingdom Camry.
"Tire Kingdom has been in racing -- they do a lot of other things in NHRA and drag racing, and they partnered with Valvoline to come up with this program for Speed Weeks. We're really proud to be able to be with them in NASCAR. Hopefully we can grow the program and make it bigger and better down the line," said Bodine, who scored a victory sporting the Valvoline logo last season in the Truck Series at Texas Motor Speedway.
Germain Racing and Bodine were hoping to make it a trifecta weekend for Tire Kingdom's debut run with the team, but Bodine was caught up in a late race crash in the Gatorade Duels on Thursday afternoon which spoiled his bid for a spot in the Daytona 500 starting lineup. Still the driver affectionately known as "The Onion" will do his best to make the competition cry and the fans cheer wildly on two different broadcast networks this weekend at Daytona.
Watch Bodine on ESPN2 on Friday at 4:00 PM ET as he qualifies the No. 15 Tire Kingdom Camry for Saturday's race which airs on ESPN2 at 1:00 PM ET.
On SPEED, watch Bodine in the No. 30 Tire Kingdom Tundra on Friday, February 18th, at Daytona International Speedway on SPEED with race coverage beginning at 7:30 PM Eastern. Or, tune your radio to your local MRN affiliate.
Follow Germain Racing on Twitter @GermainRacing or on the web at Germainracing.com or become a fan on Facebook: Facebook.com/pages/Germain-Racing/198863890135.
Service Central® is the automotive service offering available exclusively at Tire Kingdom®, NTB-National Tire and Battery®, Merchant's Tire and Auto®, and Big O Tires®. Available at nearly 1,300 locations nationwide, its trained and certified ASE technicians use state-of-the art equipment to provide quality service on cars or trucks. The nationwide warranty provides peace of mind while it protects consumers and their investment in over 40 states. (http://www.facebook.com/ServiceCentralRacing)
Headquartered in Juno Beach, Florida, TBC Retail Group, Inc., a subsidiary of TBC Corporation, operates more than 800 tire and automotive service centers under the brands: Tire Kingdom®, NTB - National Tire and Battery®, and Merchant's Tire and Auto Centers®, along with nearly 500 franchised Big O Tires® locations. The contingent of nearly 1300 stores has trained and certified ASE technicians who use state-of-the-art equipment to provide quality service on cars and trucks. The nationwide warranty provides peace of mind while it protects consumers and their investment in over 40 states. TBC Retail Group employs more than 300 associates at its Juno Beach, Fla. headquarters and approximately 10,000 associates nationally. To locate a store near you, call 800-NEW-TIRE. TBC Corporation, headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, is one of the nation's largest marketers of automotive replacement tires through a multi-channel retail and wholesale strategy.


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Participate in Teen Tech Week and Win an iTunes Giftcard!
Teen Tech week was last week, but we're extending the festivities until April 3. You can participate by creating a trailer or a playlist for your favorite book. The winner of each contest will receive a $15 iTunes giftcard. Visit the Teen Tech Week website for more information.


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If you're looking for a clean, fresh fragrance that exudes femininity without overpowering the senses, philosophy amazing grace may be just the right scent for you. Whether you've been using philosophy products for years and already know of the incredible benefits that they offer or are completely new to the brand, the philosophy amazing grace reviews on this page are here to help you as you shop.
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One of philosophy's most popular fragrances, amazing grace is a favorite among our customers due to its light scent that is comprised of a bouquet of tasteful floral notes. In addition to the amazing grace fragrance products, philosophy also offers a wide variety of bath products, hair care products and skin care products imparted with their signature scent. Like all philosophy products, the formulas included in the collection are designed to make caring for the hair and skin a simple, pleasurable experience.
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Are Author Book-Signings Dying?
What will happen to author book-signing events as more and more books are released in digital format? No one is quite certain. While some can't imagine life without the tactile pleasures of printed books, others rave about their reading experience with their Kindles, Nooks, iPhones, iPads, and the like.
Stephen King said on CNN, "The book is not the important part. The book is the delivery system. The important part is the story." At this point, we appear to be in a dynamic in-between stage, leaving consumers and library patrons their choice of book formats.
And, author book-signing events are still going strong.
Upcoming Author Events at the Belmont Library
The Belmont Library, in partnership with local bookstore M is for Mystery and More!, has six authors representing a variety of genres, scheduled to appear at the library this spring:
Joyce Carol Oates
Joyce Carol Oates will read from her achingly vivid memoir, A Widow's Story, on Friday, April 8th at 7:30 PM. Oates, whose prolific career includes a National Book Award for her novel Them and a PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Art of the Short Story was recently awarded a National Humanities Medal in honor of her lifetime of literary achievement. Many of her books can be borrowed in digital format.
J. A. Jance
Best-selling mystery writer J. A. Jance will read from her latest bookFatal Error on Sunday, April 17 at 7:00 PM. Fatal Error is the sixth of Jance's Ali Reynolds series, and Library Journal has given it a thumbs-up - "Reynolds is a fine example of women over the age of 50 living life to its fullest and setting a standard of professionalism and maturity." Jance is also available in digital format.
Luanne Rice
Luanne Rice, well-known author of over twenty five novels that often explore nature, the sea, love and family, will read from her latest book The Silver Boat on Tuesday, April 26 at 7:00 PM. Rice, who as a young woman worked at Woods Hole, MA as a whale researcher and deckhand, once again returns to her beloved sea in this new novel. You can find a wide array of Rice's books in our digital library.
Stay Tuned for More Information on May Author Events
Mystery writer Lawrence Block and Science Fiction legend Robert Silverberg will appear together on Tuesday, May 17th at 7:00 pm, and Edgar-award nominated Norwegian writer Jo Nesbo will appear on Sunday, May 22 at 2:00 pm. Stay tuned for more detail on the May author events at the Belmont Library.
Author Bio:
Kathleen B. is totally passionate about the idea of life-long education. The public library embodies this ideal in an arena that invites engagement from all ages, ethnicities and social classes.


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|Kansas votes against Lincoln County augmentation credit
|Written by Wauneta Breeze
|Thursday, 11 July 2013 16:41
Nebraska expected to file for
fast track arbitration
By Russ Pankonin
The Imperial Republican
Kansas voiced their disapproval once again for allowing Nebraska to get 100 percent credit for augmentation pumping. This time their opposition focused on the Lincoln County project.
During a tele-meeting of the Republican River Compact Administration (RRCA) Tuesday, Nebraska asked the RRCA to approve full credit for pumping from the Lincoln County augmentation project.
For the proposal to pass, the three states represented in the RRCA—Nebraska, Colorado and Kansas—would all have to vote yes. Kansas voted no.
Nebraska will likely file for fast track arbitration on the issue, according to Upper Republican Natural Resources District (URNRD) Manager Jasper Fanning.
Nebraska has already asked for fast track arbitration on their 100 percent credit request on the Rock Creek augmentation project. Alternative compliance plans requested during water-short years are also included in the arbitration.
Both states with projects
Nebraska and Colorado both have augmentation projects to keep each state in compliance with the 2002 Republican River compact settlement with Kansas.
Colorado has completed an augmentation project in northeast Colorado designed to deliver water to the North Fork of the Republican River near Haigler, Neb.
However, the project has not yet delivered any water, due to objections from Kansas.
Colorado is also seeking 100 percent credit for the water, which Kansas has opposed.
In addition, Kansas wants the South Fork of the Republican in northwest Kansas to be made whole, as well.
Those issues are presently in arbitration.
Rock Creek operational
The URNRD is currently operating the Rock Creek augmentation project, delivering water to the Republican River near Parks.
However, the district only receives 69 percent credit for each acre-foot delivered to the river.
The URNRD has to make up 10,680 acre-feet of overuse that occurred during last summer's drought conditions. With only 69 percent credit, nearly 16,000 acre-feet of water will have to be pumped from the project.
N-CORPE, a consortium of Republican Basin NRDs and the Twin Platte NRD, purchased 19,000 acres in Lincoln County.
Active irrigation on 15,874 acres of the tract will be retired. This will generate about 45,000 acre-feet of water annually that can be used for compliance purposes by the entities.
However, without Kansas' approval for 100 percent credit, the project, when operational, will only get compliance credit of 54 percent.
Dundy County tax issues
During last week's regular meeting held in Imperial July 2, Dundy County resident Stuart Bartels of Wauneta addressed the board about land taxes on the Rock Creek project.
Bartels commended the board for their vision to develop the Rock Creek project. He said it's beneficial to the district.
However, he objected to the URNRD's stance of not paying property taxes on the project.
He said the loss of tax revenue on that land puts an unfair burden on Dundy County taxpayers, who will be the ones making up for the difference.
Fanning explained NRDs are not allowed to pay tax on land designated for a public purpose.
The NRDs deem this land as land for a public use or benefit. However, the Dundy County commissioners disagreed with that stance.
Fanning said their goal was to work with Dundy County on creating a way for the URNRD to make some kind of payment in lieu of taxes. Right now, no such statute exists, Fanning said. The NRD just wants to do what's right and legal, he added.
Haigler farmer-rancher Mark McVey asked the board if any action had been taken on a bill he submitted to the board in June.
He submitted a bill to the NRD for loss of property value, labor and mileage totalling $48,000 for the damage he figures he's suffered as a result of the Rock Creek project.
Board Chair Terry Martin said no action has been taken.
McVey said if the bill is not paid, he will hire legal counsel and seek to shut down the Rock Creek project.
"I'm not going to provide the entire water for the Republican Basin for free. Either pay for it or I'm going to shut you down," he told the board.
McVey has said he represents a large number of people in the vicinity of the project who oppose it.


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This is a basic two-hour, hands-on introductory computer class for adults. This general overview concerns basic hardware, using a mouse, opening programs and more. An introduction to the Internet is also included.
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Health insurance is required by the University and is a necessity in the United States because of the very high cost of healthcare. When you are registered for classes, you will be charged automatically for the NYU-sponsored CHP Comprehensive Insurance Plan. You will remain enrolled in that plan unless you complete the online enrollment/waiver process before the semester deadline.
Students have an option to:
To meet the criteria you must:
|Insurance Effective Dates
|August 21st through August 20th of the following year
|January 9th through
August 20th
|May 14th through
August 20th
The following types of insurance plans will not be acceptable for waiving the NYU plans:
Travel policies with limited benefits and exclusions of coverage important for a college population.
Insurance plans that always require students to pay for treatment out-of-pocket and then be reimbursed.
To avoid being obligated to pay for two health insurance plans, please do not purchase another health insurance plan before it is approved. Your waiver will not be processed until Student Health Insurance Services confirms that your insurance plan meets the University's requirements.
After completing the online waiver process, you must submit insurance plan documentation to Student Health Insurance Services for review. Plan documentation must include:
A copy of your insurance ID card, and
A copy of your insurance policy, in English, indicating:
(Based on the information provided, NYU reserves the right to deny your waiver request.)
Submit documentation to:
In-person or by mail:
NYU Student Health Insurance Services
726 Broadway, Suite 346
New York, NY 10003
By Fax: (212) 443-1011
By email: email@example.com
If your waiver is approved, the Bursar will be notified to remove the insurance premium from your account.


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CO vs. All That "Other Stuff"!
Posted 06 January 2013 - 02:25 PM
Hopefully, those who have read the CO posts now have a better understanding of how the obstruction affects the scope's overall performance.
In my experience, there are other factors which are much more important considerations.
*Let me qualify my comments by stating that, over the past 40 years, I've owned or extensively used more than 30 SCT's. These include a variety of Celestron, Meade, Criterion, B&L and Takahashi.
The optical quality of ALL of the Criterion and B&L models (basically the same scopes) was inferior in just about every aspect. The size of the CO would not have mattered!
More than half of the Celestrons and Meades would have been rated 'poor' to 'mediocre' (again, the other shortcomings would have been vastly more important than CO). *Note: these were earlier models. Most of the Celestrons and Meades I've seen in the past few years have been of much higher quality.
The Takahashi TSC-225 proved to be the "gold standard" until the Meade ACF design came along. I don't yet have enough experience with the Celestron Edge to compare them with the ACF.
If you have an older SCT and are dissatisfied with it's performance, you may simply have a scope that came off the assembly line with very little QC exercised. These scopes must exhibit good optical quality on multiple elements: corrector plate, primary mirror, secondary, and diagonal.
PLUS you've got a primary mirror that must remain perfectly aligned even though it is MOVING up and down in order to focus!
This last item is always going to be a potential problem. It is the only weakness I've discovered in the ACF. Fortunately, there is a solution...
LOCK the primary in place at the exact point it should be separated from the secondary, then install a rack & pinion focuser. Trust me, it makes a difference!
There's also the question of collimation. I am constantly amazed at the number of SCT users at star parties who have collimation "issues" and either don't know it and think the soft images are just the price to be paid for having an SCT, or who DO know the images are not what they could be and blame some other aspect of the scope. From what I've seen THIS is the #1 problem for SCT users.
Until the newer secondary-holder design of the Meade ACF, most SCT's were notorious for becoming decollimated when moved around a lot.
Job One, before each observing session, was to collimate the scope!
Today, I'm still impressed every time I use the 10" ACF to discover that the collimation has NOT shifted AT ALL. With Uncle Rod Mollise's help, I precisely collimated this scope when I first received it some three years ago and, despite it being set-up, transported, taken down and set-up again dozens of times...I HAVE ONLY HAD TO TOUCH THE COLLIMATION ONCE...and that was just a near-infinitessimal turn of one screw!
SO - now you've got your SCT precisely collimated, locked the primary in place and installed the R&P. What then happens all-too-often is that the owner will insert a cheap diagonal into the focuser and undo much of the improvement he's made with the earlier tweaks!
You can have a near-perfect corrector, primary and secondary and STILL not achieve great visual results because you've 'bounced' the image off a rough diagonal mirror or misaligned prism.
I won't even take this thread into eyepieces because, hopefully, anyone who's taken the earlier steps to improve quality already knows that you need decent eyepieces.
After completing the steps listed above, my 10" ACF displays more planetary detail than any refractor I've ever owned (and that includes a
6" Takahashi FC-150, 6" f/15 AP Triplet and an 8" Alvan Clark). I'm assuming a 10" Zeiss would outperform it but you'd spend at least 10X as much $$$ just for the OTA (not to mention the ginormously expensive and heavy mount and the permanent observatory you'd want to keep it in)!
Posted 06 January 2013 - 03:32 PM
Not much we can do about the CO; but all the rest of it is in our hands.
Posted 06 January 2013 - 07:42 PM
The truth is of course more complicated. Many amateurs have both kinds of scopes and/or a better understanding of the action of an obstruction. This is the third camp!
You can come back here years from now - and someone will be asking the same question about CO! And the same arguments and discussions will follow.
It sort of reminds me of the StarTrek episodes featuring the Pakleds from the Alpha Quadrant. You know the guys that say "We are smart." They don't want to hear any thoughtful positions, they just want to collect stuff.
There also seems a tendency for people to get diverted away from practical matters as Rick mentioned. Your note on collimation is right on and as far as diagonals go - there are many good ones out there - and they really don't cost that much. A good one will not effect performance in any perceived manner.
Posted 06 January 2013 - 08:01 PM
Posted 06 January 2013 - 09:21 PM
Fortunately, there is a solution...
LOCK the primary in place at the exact point it should be separated from the secondary, then install a rack & pinion focuser.
I haven't followed the CO thread really carefully but your statement above seems to be a common belief among many SCT owners... the problem is, how can the correct spacing be determined easily without a heck of alot of testing? I'd guess you're proposing something like a Roddier test? Or, using the intra/extra focal patterns at different backfocus distances? All of this sound very time consuming and frankly may not be conclusive. My SCT images are often mushy, probably due to poor thermals and maybe collimation. I'd need to deal with all of that before even attempting what you're suggesting, yes?
Posted 06 January 2013 - 09:22 PM
My other scopes have been dobs 6,8and 10 inch. From my expereance optical quality is number one, much more than telescope type.
A SCT with perfect optics and a 30% central obstruction can never give better that 1/4 wave performance. Not that 1/4 wave performance is bad. That said, you will never find a SCT, or any other design with perfect optics.
Posted 06 January 2013 - 09:43 PM
Cooling, same thing. Take precautions, prep the scope, and pray for moderate conditions the scope (all scopes) can stay in tune with. A good diagonal is an easy fix, especially with dielectric coatings, if it is a problem at all. Apparently not, not much anyway. Eyepieces, too. Same thing.
Personally, I am beginning to think the biggest fault, if you will, of a multiple lens/mirror design is veiling glare or scatter. On this, YMMV.
I am not versed on the advanced SCT designs, like ACF or Edge, but don't they use additional lenses to correct for coma? Meade does not say in this ad, but apparently they found a good "hyperbolic" system using the Schmidt corrector and primary.
"Fortunately, Meade engineers developed a radical new Advanced Coma Free design by combining a hyperbolic secondary mirror with a corrector-lens-and-spherical-primary-mirror combination that performs as one hyperbolic element. This Advanced version of the traditional CF design produces a coma-free, flat field of view that rivals traditional CF telescopes "
I am wondering about the correction of the wave front on such a hyperbolic system, how far from ideal spherical does a hyperbolic system deviate? Not sure what the wave front looks like, but surely it meets one of the simpler diffraction limited criteria.
BTW, it does seem from anecdotal evidence (and my own experience) the newer CATs are better corrected and smooth these days. They seem to be more consistently capable of 0.95 aberrant Strehl (with a .3D CO means about 0.80 nominal, working Strehl.) Folks are very pleased with some aspect of them, be it sharper images and resulting contrast improvement (I appreciate that, despite a moderate CO) or flatter field.
And, again, this scope is optimized across the, uh hum, MTF with a huge secondary to suit a broader range of applications. It gains a little on the hi frequency end (tight, equal double star pairs), and gives up a little on the mid range (fine planetary and tight, unequal doubles) by changing the intensity structure through the Airy pattern and reducing peak intensity (probably below 80%.) The "aesthetics" of which can be and are hotly debated. But, this does affect contrast at small scales (for visual) down to about 4x the Raleigh criteria, if that scale matters to anyone. It matters somewhat to me, I push my scope hard and deep in better than average seeing. It's a trade off in the design, despite the off axis performance (which seems to be geared to larger imaging chips and not the eye.)
In any case, get a scope that suits your needs, control the induced aberrations (cooling, collimation, and de-focus) and enjoy it under steady skies. If it pleases you, then there is nothing wrong with that scope. Some folks probably do not collimate their scopes, no surprise. That's on them.
So, if "all other stuff" includes collimation (plus mirrors shift) and a cheap diagonal, then feel lucky. Those are easy fixes. If a fixed focuser is key, find a sufficient back focus and induce ~1/24th wave over correction per inch of back focus. I doubt anyone will notice.
Posted 06 January 2013 - 11:55 PM
If the radii on the two mirrors is reasonably close to the nominal design, then one can simply rely on the manufacturer's specification for the position of focus with respect to the rear opening. No need to laboriously test. Just place an eyepiece field stop at this distance, focus the primary and then lock it down.
Now, if one or both mirrors departs from nominal radius of curvature by some threshold, the resulting optimum position for focus will differ. There is some leeway before the wavefront is affected to any notable degree, and I should *think* these scopes are sufficiently well executed that reliance upon the maker's recommended nominal focus position will not steer you wrong.
Posted 07 January 2013 - 12:05 AM
Fortunately, there is a solution...
LOCK the primary in place at the exact point it should be separated from the secondary, then install a rack & pinion focuser.
I haven't followed the CO thread really carefully but your statement above seems to be a common belief among many SCT owners... the problem is, how can the correct spacing be determined easily without a heck of alot of testing? I'd guess you're proposing something like a Roddier test? Or, using the intra/extra focal patterns at different backfocus distances? All of this sound very time consuming and frankly may not be conclusive. My SCT images are often mushy, probably due to poor thermals and maybe collimation. I'd need to deal with all of that before even attempting what you're suggesting, yes?
Hi Loren...assuming your scope does not have poorly figured optics, decollimation is probably the cause of your 'mushy' images.
In my opinion collimation is the FIRST thing to check.
An "artificial star" (point light-source) is invaluable for this purpose.
If you can't get your hands on one, try finding a point-source reflection of the sun off a bright shiny object about 100 feet or more away from the scope. Trying to 'chase' a star around in the dark to do the traditional 'star test' can be extremely frustrating if you don't have much experience (you have to keep re-centering the star after each adjustment) and poor seeing can make it difficult to accurately gauge the diffraction rings.
Yes, you're right about the calculations involved in determining the proper distance between the corrector and the primary. The math hurts my head!
With a LOT of help from smarter people than me, I found that the proper spacing for my 10" was such that the focal plane (at infinity) should fall some 3-1/2" behind the backplate of the scope. Knowing this allows the proper placement of the rack & pinion focuser.
Sometimes (depending on the scope and the R&P involved) you just can't make the two reach acceptable focus at the precise point. But a relatively small difference in the optimal vs. practical placement is not nearly as important to improved images as getting that primary secured in-place and perpendicular to the light path. That primary can, and does, flop around when it's being racked up and down the internal mounting tube. If you reach a given focal point and the primary mirror is even slightly off-axis, you've just UNdone your secondary collimation efforts and induced even more error into the system!
You know we're all crazy, right? I'm just not sure if we actually DO all this stuff because we're crazy...or if doing all this has made us crazy!
Posted 07 January 2013 - 10:24 AM
A SCT with perfect optics and a 30% central obstruction can never give better that 1/4 wave performance. Not that 1/4 wave performance is bad. That said, you will never find a SCT, or any other design with perfect optics.
This really isn't quite the case, and should never be offered as a "Baseline" for comparing an obstructed instrument to an unobstructed instrument without at least a nod to the more complete story.
First, the effects of the central obstruction are most severe in the middle and higher part of the MTF curve (large and medium scale detail). Once you get past the elbow, where the smallest detail is to be found on the target, there is littel effect on the image.
The computational Strehl for a 30% obstruction is not .82 as is often written, but more like .88. This is considerably better than the Strehl of .82 that .25% of pure SA would result in.
I have plotted two curves.. One if for a perfect system with a 30% obstruction (left image), and the other is for a perfect system with .25 waves of lower order spherical abberation (right image).
The colored lines are sample points that show how much contrast is lost over the perfect system at each point in the linear resulution (spatial frequency) spectrum.
At the top left, it is easy to see that the obstructed telescope is performing slightly better than the .25 wave scope, and once you get past the elbow, where the most damage is being done, it is easy to see that the obstructed telescope pulls ahead and remains ahead.
This lower right hand portion of the MTF plot represents the finest scale detail the aperture can resolve, and it is ls abundantlhy clear that not only is the obstructed instrument ahead of the .25 wave instrument, it is also ahead of a perfect unobstructed instrument.
Now when the obstruction gets to .33D, the damage at the worst part of the curve is similar to the worst sag in the .25mm instrument, but once you get past the curve, the obstruction is clearly better.
Now the problem is that for visual use, the left half of the graph tends to be more important (often referred to as the important low and mid frequencies) because to get the smallest detail that the scope can resolve large enough for the visual observer to comfortably see, the exit pupil will get small enough that it starts to work against the observer for low contrast detail.
But the camera will show it easily. For imaging the finest scale detail the instrument can resolve, the central obstructoin has no damage at all in the image, and in fact can somewhat enhance the finest detai.
This is why large obstructions are OK for imageing scopes, but not so good for visual observation, but as the chart show, the 30% obstruction is superior to .25 wave over about half of the instruments spatial response frequencies.
I will be fair though and say this... The differences are so subtle that visually, the average observer would struggle to see them.
But the camera will.
That to me makes your statement somewhat innacurate. The CO = 1/4th wave is a good approximation for visual use, but somewhat overstates the damage that a 30% obstruction does.
I do agree with your sentiment on never finding an SCT with perfect optics, but no telescope is truely perfect.
Still, in the sentiment as it was intended, I agree that his is indeed the issue with the commercial SCT. Because it it starts wtih a 33% obstruction, anything other than quite minor optical imperfections will indeed quickly drive the scope to be truely worse than .25 pure LSA, and that is the real problem. To work well, the design has to be made to a very high tolerance. This means that any SA in the instrument combined with the contrast loss from the obstruction quickly pushes the scope into a poor performance envelope. Some SA would reduce the contrast below a perfect unobstructed aperture at both the low and high frequencies, and further deepen the sag we see at the elbow in the plot.
A truely excellent 33% obstructed SCT does little evident damage to the image. A small amount of contrast is lost in the mid frequencies, but the low frequencies are little changed, and the higest frequencies are improved.
But other defects lower the contrast across the entire spectrum, while an obstruction is the only device that can actually raise the contrast at any point in the spectrum over a perfect unobstructed instrument.
Bottom line... .25 SA is worse than a 30% obstructiion... Not much, and for visual use only, it is fair to compare them, but for imageing (and I personally belive for an experienced planetary observer), the 33% obstruction is not that important. The smallest, lowest contrast details available at the target are actually enhanced in the obstructed instrument (assuming good optics).
I routinely see very difficult detail in my 32% and 34% obstructed SCTs. Both have excellent optics, and both are excellent performers.
Side by side with my 6" APO, one has to look hard to see detail in the 6" APO that is not visible in my EdgeHD 8". I say this on the forums and people are skeptical, but people that have been to my house for star parties that have done side by side comparisons are usually shocked at how close the performance is. They have been led to believe that the big CO destroys the image, but the reality is that by itself, it does not have a huge impact.
The difference though is that my EdgeHD has about the best optics I have ever seen in a reflector. Similar to the Russian MNs I have owned. I would estimate a Strehl of over .95. No defect that is easily detectable in star testing, with almost perfect SA control. Not typical of the older SCTs I have owned.
Attached Files
Posted 07 January 2013 - 12:43 PM
Makes sense. I imagine that's true because a reasonably good scope can still produce a peak intensity of about 80% (sort of a proxy for diffraction limited performance deemed acceptable) with an obstruction near .3D. Obstruction-less scopes perform with a higher peak intensity equal to their Strehl and the result is dimmer rings.
I routinely see very difficult detail in my 32% and 34% obstructed SCTs. Both have excellent optics, and both are excellent performers.
You are correct, the MTF curves are similar for 1/4 SA and .32D. However, SA affects the wavefront and the CO adds diffraction. With added diffraction, the central disc is smaller and brighter, so their Strehl equivalents are different: .82 and about .88, respectively. The CO has less impact on the image over the entire range, as I read it, especially at the high freq end.
Posted 07 January 2013 - 09:18 PM
Strehl however has more limitations than most people realize. A 0.95 strehl scope is clearly superior to a scope of 0.85. However two scopes with the same aperture and obstruction and identical strehl can yield different results in imaging.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 04:13 AM
Bottom line... .25 SA is worse than a 30% obstructiion..
This is somewhat a side issue - but are your plots based on 0.25 SA without optimal defocus? If the only error in the wavefront is 0.25 SA, you can compensate for it almost entirely by a shift in focus. In Suiter, for example, 0.25 SA actually refers to about +1 wave of SA and -1 wave of defocus. So if you have about 1 wave of SA, you can defocus so the resulting wavefront, combining defocus with SA, has an overall P-V error of about 1/4 wave.
So I think either your plot does not include defocus, in which case it makes 0.25 SA worse than it really is, or it does include defocus, and the actual SA term is closer to 1 wave - which is a big error in the optics.
Either way - it's hard to compare two different systems based on a single number or a single plot. The higher values of MTF at the high end may pass individual spatial frequencies well, but in an actual view of jupiter's bands, for example, they could look ugly and distorted.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 04:57 AM
Perhaps to avoid confusion we should state that 1/4 wave in Suiter is comparable to 0.0745wv rms for low order spherical aberration. Thats approx 0.8 strehl. Because different aberrations are distributed differently, and in real optics not in a perfectly smooth fashion, equivalences between PTV and RMS values are fairly complex.
The focus is shifted yes, and the resultant PSF and MTF should be evaluated at best focus, which it is in Suiter.
Spherical aberration is a true resolution killer, nominal obstruction is not.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 05:29 AM
The 1/4 wave in Suiter is the traditional terminology going back to Rayleigh.
No - it isn't, since the Seidel form of the aberration terms has taken over. Rayleigh includes defocus as a form of aberration, and he describes the impact of defocus by itself on an image. If you always speak in terms of optimal focus, then you can never have aberration due to pure defocus.
The total aberration from combined spherical and defocus is:
W = a040p^4 + a020p^2
The first coefficient, a040, is the amount of spherical aberration and the second, a020, is the amount of defocus aberration. I can point, and already have, to many texts that state that you can tolerate nearly a full wave of spherical aberration when it is compensated by defocus to keep the total wavefront error below 1/4 wave P-V. Suiter is a rare exception that glosses over the difference between the Seidel definition of each third order aberration term and the Zernike form - normally those things are kept distinct to avoid confusion. It is due to this ambiguity and confusion that I asked what exactly is being shown above - since "1/4 wave of spherical" is very different from "1/4 wave total wavefront error due to combined spherical and defocus."
You can have a given amount of spherical aberration and combine it with coma and astigmatism and defocus and end up with any crazed amount of total wavefront aberration. But the amount of spherical inherent in the wavefront remains the same - given by the coefficient on the p^4 term.
If a telescope is guaranteed to have 1/4 P-V wavefront error - the amount of spherical aberration could be much larger than this. Or it could be less and involve some mix of other aberrations. All you know is that at best focus, the wavefront will have 1/4 wave P-V total error from all the terms.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 05:39 AM
Yes a telescope has a mixture of aberrations and all the terms do add, albeit differently. Perhaps since there is some confusion we should stick to rms equivalents, which I like anyway since they are easier to do calculations from.
Since not many here want to plod through Born & Wolf we should try to keep the explanations at a useful level, with emphasis towards practicality.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 08:29 AM
Here is a pretty good write up of aberration theory and Seidel terms, and it shows plots of PSF's due to spherical aberration alone in 8.40. Note that the upper left image of W040 = 0.25lambda is an image of pure spherical, whereas Suiter's non-conventional figure shows SA=0.25 - and in fact corresponds to something different from 8.40 since it is a picture of 1 wave SA combined with -1 wave defocus.
I can answer my original question of "which is being shown in the figure above - 0.25 SA with no defocus, or 1 wave SA with -1 wave defocus?"
This page is not an amateur optics page and is from Wyant at the U. of AZ Op. Sci. Center. If you enter 0.25 lambda spherical alone, you will get a strehl of 0.8 and a corresponding MTF. If you enter 1 wave spherical combined with -1 wave defocus, you will also get a strehl of 0.80, and the MTF is a better match to the plot in this thread. Therefore I conclude that plot actually shows a full wave of spherical aberration combined with defocus to yield 0.25 lambda P-V total wavefront error. At paraxial focus, this same system would have had much lower strehl - around 0.09 - for the same 1 wave of spherical.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 09:43 AM
As for the rest, I can only say that my experience matches MTF plots farily well.
The EdgeHD 6" Vs the 6" APO, when plotted, suggests that the EdgeHD should maintian about the same contrast as the 6" APO for the finest details, and I find this to be the case.
For example, Cassini is every bit as crisp and as sharp in the EdgeHD as it is in the 6" APO. Likewise, thin band structure on Jupiter appears to be very similar to the 6" APO.
Larger, fainter festoons though, like in the equitorial band on Jupiter, don't show quite as well in the EdgeHD 8". These are larger(mid frequency) details that would be more at the center and left side of the MTF chart, and they are less easily visible in the EdgeHD 8" than in the 6" APO.
And likewise, these large, low contrast details are much more easily seen in the C14 than in the 6" APO.
These large festoons are all within the angular resolution limit of all three scopes, and are a classic (to me) example of "Mid Frequency" performance. While they are angularly large, they start with very low contrast.
The more contrast the aperture looses, the more difficult they become to see.
But my experience has been very consistent. The scopes with more clear aperture tend to show them better than scopes with less clear aperture.
As for refocusing, that might work on a point source, but I have my doubt that it would be effective on a complex extended target. Maybe. I just don't know.
But a CO does damage the image. I do not at all disagree. And maybe it does do as much damage as 1/4th wave of pure SA (I have my doubts, but don't keep a 1/4th wave scope around to compare to).
But in the overall scheme of things, the CO is easily offset by simply adding a bit more aperture.
And this is the benefit of large SCTs. It makes it possible to simply get the performence of a smaller scope using brute force and still having an affordable, compact, (relatively) light, and easy to use instrument.
But CO does damage the image with respect to aperture. I realized how bad it was the first time I compared a C9.25 to a MN61. One would think that the C9 would do better because of the 50% increase in aperture, but there was no contest.. The MN61 was blazingly good in comparison. About as close to my 6" APO as I have seen in a similar or smaller size scope.
Plotted on an MTF chart though, it was easy to see that the C9 would have had to start with perfect optics to be in the game. But the 37% obstruction I think was the major cuplrit in the C9s failure to perform better than the MN61.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 10:40 AM
Since you and other people interested in MTF often point to the high frequency stuff and how it relates to "resolution" - note that if you increase defocus beyond -1 wave (min RMS/max Strehl) you will boost the high frequency part of the MTF in exchange for the mid-frequencies. This may well be what you do when you focus in on the belts of jupiter - it's hard to say. But the amount of spherical aberration (1 wave) is fixed here, and you can alter the PSF and MTF to get the best view of a given object based on the spatial frequencies you are studying. This may end up increasing RMS and reducing Strehl - but it does boost the higher frequencies in the same way an increased CO does - if that is something you want to do.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 02:18 PM
Most amateurs chase focus all night at levels that exceed the needed amount of balancing defocus due to seeing effects as well as thermal changes. In typical applications one will find a user chasing somewhere from best focus to smallest blur and back again. Operationally the user has no idea where paraxial focus is, and in any event a scope with 0.25 wv ptv LSA at either paraxial focus or marginal focus at the other end would be simply awful. Knowing the defocus term in backyard astronomy is not a useful parameter.
For some applications a quarter wave ptv of LSA is a lot. For high resolution imaging it is too much, for when the other aberration terms which are surely there are added the usage of the scope will be limited to widefield or low power use. LSA is a resolution killer. Central obstruction is not.
In the case of the SCT it is even more complicated by the fact that in all probability the scope has a minimum amount of LSA at a given wavelength. I've seen a lot of SCT's corrected in red and showing pretty severe overcorrection in blue. One of the reasons the Edge HD series seem to be star testing so well visually is that they tend to be very well corrected in green. Before the SCT users out there protest too much, I hasten to add I've seen a lot of supposedly premium refractors fail on the blue end as well.
There is no doubt from my analysis and from experience that the central obstruction effects on image quality are usually overstated. But they should be understood and the MTF displays the effect very well.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 06:07 PM
Practically speaking, from my experience as a casual observer with MCT, SCT and achromatic refractor, I wish an instrument's intrinsic limitations were the only obstacle to a good view. Usually seeing (high level and local) is the most significant barrier to obtaining a detailed view. I've been careful to accumulate each of my scopes on a modest budget. If one keeps that factor in mind, the views through a sub $300 Maksutov or circa $400 C8 are astounding value, and show me far more than the 6" APO that I don't and won't own. They are also easy to mount for visual use. That these instruments are often considered as a "runner up" is a shame - a well tuned catadioptric scope with good optics can be a powerful tool. Rather like my MGB providing an excellent and fun drive, despite it not being an E Type Jaguar...
Of course, CATs do require attention to detail - for starters, the importance of good collimation is hard to over emphasize. That last "whisker" of adjustment can make all the difference, yet the mechanisms aren't so user-friendly to the newcomer. Furthermore, based on experience with both my CATs I note that mechanical assembly can fall short of what is needed to get the best out of essentially blameless optics. Tilted baffle tubes & primary mirrors, off centre secondarys and the like can really spoil the show. However, many users will be unable to recognise, or be unwilling to investigate & tackle these problems. I'd love to know how many good sets of optics have been compromised by non optimum assembly - could this have contributed to some of the received wisdom regarding CAT performance? As the writer and broadcaster Sir Patrick Moore would have put it "well, we just don't know", but I have my suspicions.
What I do know is that when I got my C8 properly "sorted" to the best of my abilities - ensuring that everything was coaxial, squared-on and collimated - I was amazed by its planetary performance. This was quite different to its "as received" capability, despite seemingly succesful attempts to collimate with the secondary mirror screws. My Orion 127 Maksutov also benefitted from similar treatment, if not to the same degree.
I've rambled on long enough, perhaps too much, but will finish in saying that good execution of a design is as important as a good design.
Posted 08 January 2013 - 11:29 PM
What's interesting to me is the idea an obstructed scope has a smaller Airy disc that is a bit brighter than it would normally be if it's intensity were spread over 1.22 Lambda/D. This, in my understanding, is what differentiates CO diffraction and spherical aberration. This is what causes an obstructed scope to exceed a perfect unobstructed aperture on very small scales (near the radius of the Airy disc.) And it is what allows, under very minimal induced aberrations, to actually exceed Raleigh and Dawes limits by about half an arc second.
The peak intensity is a bit higher for an obstructed scope with good correction than with one with 1/4 wave SA. SO, yes, a scope with an aberrant Strehl of 0.95 can be very good while the CO reduces peak intensity (not aberrant Strehl) further to about 80% (a peak intensity comparable the Raleigh limit) or less depending on the combined affects of both the wavefront error and added diffraction.
The scale of these effects seem to be over rated for general viewing because we're talking scales to about 4x the Raleigh limit. But, for critical viewing, they can be important. On Airy disc scales, this is where obstructed scopes rule. On slightly larger scales is where unobstructed scopes rule with peak intensity (nominal, system Strehl) equal to their aberrant Strehl. CATs do not enjoy this trait.
But, we're focused on the CO and not the "other stuff" such as veiling glare and scatter in CAT optics (including reflectors), which happen to be obstructed.
Posted 09 January 2013 - 01:16 AM
Optical quality rules and is THE most important factor.
Now I've heard the argument about the 1/4 wave derating for the 30% CO and it's overblown. Let's discuss it. In the case of the 10" SC with 30% obstruction, is it as good as a 10" perfect APO? No. Obstructed scopes will always take a performance hit for the obstruction. Do you really want to compare it to a 10" APO? Get real! A 10" SC with a 30% CO will only perform about as well as a 7" perfect APO. I can live with that...
Posted 09 January 2013 - 02:21 AM
I haven't been talking specifically about CO stuff but more to encourage formal terminology in these discussions, and references to optics textbooks. The nomenclature has been honed over centuries to avoid some of the ambiguities that come up in these discussions. I think there is over confidence in going by a few metrics of a system performance, when things like Strehl and MTF are meant more as guides and figures of merit rather than hard performance metrics that allow systems to be ranked against each other.
When someone looks at an object in an eyepiece, the resulting image involves the object itself, the optics, the perceptual process, and the personal preference for choice of focus. Much of that is not captured in fixed metrics of the optical system alone, but it's all playing a role.
I am always amazed at how different jupiter looks at different powers in the same telescope. If I put a big image of jupiter on the wall and view it from close or far, I don't see much change in detail - but with different eyepieces and magnfications, the colors and spatial frequencies all have different impact - and I always adjust focus to bring out optimal (for me) detail. You could say that at low power I bias the focus so that MTF emphasizes the mid-range, since mid-range is higher frequency at low power; and at high power I bias it toward the high frequency part. But either way - there is a lot going on just in changing powers with a given telescope - let alone comparing two with different CO's. And in terms of the MTF or Strehl of the OTA itself at "best" focus - nothing should be changing at all.
Posted 09 January 2013 - 05:35 AM
What's interesting to me is the idea an obstructed scope has a smaller Airy disc that is a bit brighter than it would normally be if it's intensity were spread over 1.22 Lambda/D. This, in my understanding, is what differentiates CO diffraction and spherical aberration. This is what causes an obstructed scope to exceed a perfect unobstructed aperture on very small scales (near the radius of the Airy disc.) And it is what allows, under very minimal induced aberrations, to actually exceed Raleigh and Dawes limits by about half an arc second.
It is my understanding that the central disk is slightly smaller than it would appear in scope without a CO because there is more energy in the rings and less energy in the central disk. One thing to remember is that hidden inside every scope without a central obstruction is a scope with any sized central obstruction one desires.


text:
Michelle's daughter is 7. She brought a book home from the school library called 'She's all that' which she found unsuitable for this age group. It had a poem in it called Sugar and Spice – the content of the poem was very sexist and appalling.
Joe said that on three occasions this year he has had occasion to stay in hotels for work. Each time he checks in, he hands over his credit card and keys in his pin number for pre-authorisation. He says a 'hold' had been placed on his personal account for anything up to 14 days. He is not happy with this.
Aine was upset about the latest pension cuts for those with Defined Benefit Pensions.
Eamon wants to be a taxi driver. You must get 80% in both sections of the test to pass. Industry knowledge is one part (54 questions). He got 78% in that part and failed. The second part is area knowledge. He passed that part. It costs him €89 a pop. His point is that he has passed one part before. He has sat the test 8 times.
Alice got married on the 20th of November 1963, she is 50 years married today, she was in Dublin on her honeymoon when she heard about the death of John F. Kennedy. She went to the Pillar bar in O'Connell street with her new husband Eamon after they had been to the cinema when the news came on and Charles Mitchell told them that JFK had been shot in Dallas.


text:
Greetings from Germany.
One of my favorite hobbies has been roleplaying, for the last 21 years (since i was 11).
And i have acquired quite a taste for complex and logical maps.
The kind in which nearly everything serves in a "realistic" purpose, so that the players
could make logical conjectures and act accordingly.
I stumbled upon this forum in my search for ideas/maps for a "caribbean" style setting.
As it is meant to be more of a one time scenario, i decided trying to seek
out some good maps on the net (googling went nowhere), before going all the way myself.
I didn't find a better place to put these questions ("request" threads don't seem right, also
the mapmaking discussions seem occupied with other things), so i put them here. You may move this thread, of course, if it doesn't belong here.
What i seek:
-a fortified (palisade) camp near a beach/shore with a pier and maybe some jungle in the vicinity
-indian/tribe style jungle-villages
-maps of islands (dense jungle, mountain/volcano, ancient temple etc.)
-submarine town (inhabited by creatures like "Deep Ones" but not evil and sinister)
Yes, i found the search button, but i'm looking for any hints/links and not only on this site.
Besides, the map(s) i'm seeking might be hidden behind any arbitrary name from a RPG that is
unknown to me.
Thanks, in advance.


text:
More Information
19th Cucalorus film fest runs through Sunday
Published: Wednesday, November 13, 2013 at 8:22 a.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, November 13, 2013 at 8:22 a.m.
Dim the lights and grab a comfy theater seat because it's time to press play on the 19th Cucalorus Film Festival.
What: Cucalorus Film Festival
When: Nov. 13-17
Where: Venues are Thalian Hall (310 Chestnut St.), City Stage (21 N. Front St., fifth floor), Jengo's Playhouse (815
Princess St.), TheatreNOW (19 S. 10th St.) and Ziggy's by the Sea (208 Market St.) in Wilmington
Tickets: Prices range from $10 individual screening tickets to the $300 all-inclusive
Pegasorus pass
Details: 343-5995 or Cucalorus.org
Running through Sunday, more than 200 independent features, documentaries, short films and music videos will screen at venues around Wilmington.
The annual exhibition started Wednesday with festival favorite Dance-a-lorus, a convergence of dance and film, at Thalian Hall,.
But as Thursday morning rolls around, the films will take the spotlight as Thalian Hall, TheatreNOW, City Stage and Jengo's Playhouse open their doors for screenings scheduled to run from morning to midnight.
Among the notable films are "A Short History of Decay," which was filmed locally and stars former Wilmington resident and Tony Award-winning actress Linda Lavin (7:15 p.m. Thursday, Thalian Hall; see review 5D); "The Act of Killing," a headline-making documentary gaining Academy Award buzz (1 p.m. Friday, Thalian Hall); "Wilmington on Fire," a work-in-progress about the local race riots of 1898 (4:30 p.m. Thursday, Jengo's Playhouse); and horror movie auteur Ti West's newest effort "The Sacrament" (10 p.m. Friday, City Stage) to name a very few.
Films all have been placed in programs to make deciding which screening to catch a little easier: Magnolia, the best films coming out of the film festival circuit; Voices, films that zero in on challenging and important issues; Vanguard, celebrating pioneering work from emerging artists across the globe; Midnight Madness, films that deliver stories of sex, horror and the unusual; and Works-In-Progress, a platform for filmmakers to screen portions of unfinished projects in search of feedback (see story, 1D). Themed blocks of short films also will be screened.
Even with a cinematic focus, the festival won't exclude music fans from the festivities. Ziggy's by the Sea will host Visual/Sound/Walls beginning Thursday night (see story, 1D), where music videos will be showcased in an immersive, multi-projection exhibit.
Wilmington and North Carolina's film industry will be the focus of the "State of the Slate" panel discussion (4 p.m. Thursday, Thalian Hall Ballroom) about the future of film in the Tar Heel state. EUE/Screen Gems Studio executive vice president Bill Vassar and N.C. Film Commission director Aaron Syrett will be among those taking part.
Filmmakers and actors from many selections will be on hand to talk with festival attendees. Two-time Academy Award-nominee Shirley Knight, who stars in "Redwood Highway," will participate in a Q&A after the film screening 4 p.m. Saturday at Thalian Hall.
Festival-goers are encouraged to arrive early for screenings and events. Tickets can be purchased at the door and online at Cucalorus.org.
Hunter Ingram: 343-2327
On Twitter: @WilmonFilm
Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.


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WASHINGTON (AP) - House Republicans vowed Wednesday to pass legislation that would prevent a partial government shutdown and avoid a historic national default while simultaneously canceling out President Barack Obama's unpopular health care overhaul, inaugurating a new round of political brinkmanship as critical deadlines approach.
Obama swiftly condemned the effort as attempted political extortion, and the national Chamber of Commerce called on lawmakers to pass urgent spending and borrowing legislation - unencumbered by debate over Obamacare.
The two-step strategy announced by House Speaker John Boehner marked a concession to his confrontational rank and file. At the same time, it represented a challenge to conservatives inside the Senate and out who have spent the summer seeking the votes needed to pull the president's cherished health care law out by its roots. They now will be called on to deliver.
Article Photos
AP Photo
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, meets with reporters following a strategy session at the Capitol on Wednesday.
"The fight over here has been won. The House has voted 40 times to defund, change Obamacare, to repeal it. It's time for the Senate to have this fight," said Boehner, an Ohio Republican.
As outlined by several officials, Boehner and the leadership intend to set a House vote for Friday on legislation to fund the government through Dec. 15 at existing levels while permanently defunding the health care law. The same bill will include a requirement for Treasury to give priority to Social Security and disability payments in the event the government reaches its borrowing limit and cannot pay all of its obligations.
A second measure, to be brought to the floor as early as next week, would allow Treasury to borrow freely for one year.
That same bill is also expected to be loaded with other requirements, including the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline from Canada to the United States, a project that environmentalists oppose and that the Obama administration has so far refused to approve.
Other elements will reflect different Republican budget priorities, including as-yet-undisclosed savings from health care and government benefit programs and steps to speed work on an overhaul of the tax code.
Prospects for passage of the two bills are high in the House, where Republicans have a majority and leaders pronounced the rank and file united behind the strategy.
But both measures are certain to be viewed as non-starters by majority Democrats in the Senate.
Some Republicans appeared to concede during the day that the legislation that eventually reaches the White House will leave the health care law in effect.
"I don't think that any reasonable person thinks there's anything to be gained by a government shutdown," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. "Rather than a shutdown of government, what we need is a Republican victory in 2014 so we can be in control. I'm not sure those are mutually compatible."
But a fellow Texas Republican, Sen. Ted Cruz said it was important to hold fast. He said Democrats appear to have the votes to restore funds for the health care law, adding, "At that point, House Republicans must stand firm, hold their ground and continue to listen to the American people."


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Design By: Maggie Weldon
Skill Level: Easy
Size: Size 2, 3, 4 T and 4, 5, 6 and 6X.
Directions are given for size Small and size Medium are in parentheses.
Pattern works for any size T-shirt – short, long sleeve or turtleneck.
Dress: Sport Weight Yarn
(Size 3 thread can be substituted. We recommend Aunt Lydia's Fashion 3)
Blue (MC) – 5-8 oz, 335-488 yards;
White (CC) – 5 yards;
Yellow (B), White (C) and Green (D) – 5 yards each; T-shirt; Awl (available at any hardware store); Yarn Needle; Cork Board, Marking Pen
Purse: 100% Cotton Size 3 Crochet Thread
Blue (MC) – 1 ¼ oz, 105 yds;
Small amounts of White (W), Yellow (Y), Green (G).
Hat: 100% Cotton Size 3 Crochet Thread
Blue (MC) – 1 ¼ oz, 105 yds;
Small amounts of White (W), Yellow (Y), Green (G).
Crochet Hook: Size C-2 (2.75 mm) and F (3.75 mm) or size needed to obtain gauge.
Gauge for larger hook: Each shell = 1"
Daisy T-Shirt Dress With Hat and Purse Crochet Patterns
Transform a plain t-shirt into a cute crochet dress for a little girl. This comfortable and trendy blue t-shirt dress will become a staple of your daughter's wardrobe this Spring and Summer. Daisy T-Shirt Dress with Hat and Purse crochet patterns have a delicate crochet ruffle skirt and daisy embellishment on the shirt. Use a new t-shirt to create the Daisy T-Shirt Dress, or recycle a nice t-shirt with a stain you want to cover up. The strategically placed crochet daisy flower on the shirt lets you choose the placement based on the child or shirt you are using. The crochet pattern set also includes instructions for a matching hat and purse that also sport a pretty daisy flower embellishment. This outfit and accessories are adorable from head to toe.
Daisy T-Shirt Dress with Hat and Purse is an easy crochet pattern. Beginners can have fun creating their first crochet garment and crochet accessories. The pattern uses sport weight yarn and crochet thread for a light and comfortable garment. Cotton thread for the hat keeps your child's head cool during the warm summer months. The Daisy T-shirt dress includes instructions for a child's size 2 up to 6X, or a small size up to a medium. This versatile pattern works with any type of knit shirt. Choose a short-sleeve, long-sleeve or turtleneck and start creating this pretty ensemble. Any girl will love twirling in this comfortable ruffle dress. The hat and purse are just the icing on the cake with this spring-fling outfit.
Other popular girl crochet clothing patterns include:
Paper Moon Dolly & Me Dress Set Crochet Patterns
Dolly & Me Accessories and Toys Crochet Pattern
Crochet Wraps for Dolly & Me
Rose T-Shirt Dress and Purse Crochet Patterns
Roses and Lace Sundress for GirlsCrochet Pattern
Ponchos for Kids Crochet Patterns
Candy Corn Poncho and Hat Set Crochet Pattern
Shipping Policy
Orders are generally shipped within 1-3 business days of the order being submitted to us. We ship orders Monday, Wednesday and Thursday each week with the exception of any major US holidays. Our shipping and handling charges include the costs for Customer Service, processing and postage. Shipping and handling is non-refundable. We accept payment through PayPal, Visa, MasterCard, and Discover Card. We do not accept Cash, Checks or Money Orders; please do not send these to us!
Return Policy
Our policy lasts for 60 days. If 60 days have passed since your purchase was made, unfortunately we can not offer you a refund. To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it. It must also be in the original packaging. To complete your return, we require a receipt or proof of purchase be sent with your return. Please do not send your purchase back to the product manufacturer. There are certain situations where only partial refunds are granted: Books with obvious signs of use Any item not in its original condition, is damaged or missing parts for reasons not due to our error. There are certain situations where no refund will be granted: CD or DVD that has been opened Clearance/Bargain Items - Only regular priced items may be refunded, unfortunately Clearance/Bargain items cannot be refunded.
Download Policy
Maggie's Crochet Brand offers download versions of most of our products. Adobe Reader is required when opening the patterns. If you do not have Adobe Reader installed on your computer or device, you can download it here: http://get.adobe.com/reader/. Please note: Using other programs such as Preview or PDF Complete will cause printing errors and more. Due to the nature of downloadable products, we cannot and will not refund the cost of the item. If the item is a Maggie's Crochet Brand pattern, we can generally mail the pattern to you if you are having trouble downloading. Shipping and handling charges will have to be charged using a credit card by phone. Some downloads are not available to ship out - these are noted and all sales are final on those products. If you are not sure, please contact customer service.
Copyright Policy
Any person in violation of our copyright will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. This site is owned and operated by Maggie Weldon Designs. All the content on this site, including but not limited to photographs, pattern designs, logos and text is owned by Maggie Weldon Designs. All materials contained on this site are protected by both United States and International copyright laws and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Maggie Weldon Designs. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. A copy of downloaded patterns may be printed by the purchaser, for personal use only and are not to be distributed. Items made from Maggie's Crochet patterns may be sold, however a notice must be attached to each item giving credit to both Maggie's Crochet and the pattern designer.


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About this font family
Bradwell is a slightly condensed sans-serif in eight weights, including a few quite light faces and with fairly small increments between the different weights. We feel it has a fairly modern feel to it rather than a traditional one, and for a legible sans-serif it has its own style rather than treading well-worn paths. It lends itself well to modern graphic design of all kinds and is ideal for adverts and magazines, and any situation where a compact typeface would be best suited. More…
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LeBron James
Birth Name: LeBron James
Born: 12/30/1984
Birth Place: Akron, Ohio, USA
Born: 12/30/1984
Birth Place: Akron, Ohio, USA
LeBron Raymone James was born in Akron, OH on Dec. 30, 1984 to 16-year-old single mother Gloria Marie James. Gloria struggled to find steady work, and she and her son moved around from apartment to apartment, often in undesirable parts of town. James' father, a man named Anthony McClelland, was not really a part of Gloria and LeBron's lives. Gloria began dating Eddie Jackson in LeBron's youth, and despite being in and out of prison during that time period, Jackson and LeBron became close. Seeing an opportunity of stability for her son, Gloria allowed LeBron to move in with youth football coach, Frank Walker. It was Walker who first introduced a young LeBron James to basketball at nine-years-... Continue Bio >>
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Is this the next RapeLay controversy?
Although interactive DVDs aren't traditionally thought of as video games, they would appear to fall into something of a gray area between movies and games.
That may be an academic argument, but, in lodging a new protest against online retailer Amazon.com, woman-centric website Feministing treats Stockholm: An Exploration of True Love as a video game:
it looks like another game involving violence against women seems to have"slipped" past [Amazon's] radar. "Stockholm: An Exploration of True Love" is a game that allows the user to experience,
"…a terrifyingly vivid exploration of Stockholm Syndrome, a psychological condition in which a captive falls in love with her kidnapper. And you play the part of the kidnapper. With a limited number of options, you must figure out how to make her fall in love with you."
This includes using poison gas on the victim, sexually assaulting her and using psychological abuse against her in efforts to make her "love" you. Unbelievable.
While RapeLay was offered by a third-party reseller on Amazon, Stockholm appears to shipping direct from the online retailer's inventory.


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Christmas comeback
Culture | Around the country, the American "Scroogocracy" shows signs of warming up to the traditional Christian holiday
Pssst: Don't tell the American Civil Liberties Union, but the word Christmas this year is busting out all over:
- In New York, Macy's holiday theme for 2005 is "Christmas in the City." And ads for Dillard's department stores say "Discover Christmas. Discover Dillard's."
- In Jackson County, Ga., public-school officials have lifted their moratorium on "Christmas" parties and are allowing teachers to wear Christmas-themed jewelry again.
- In Encinitas, Calif., Mayor Dan Dalager, citing both American cultural and spiritual tradition, changed the name of the city's annual December processional from "Holiday Parade" back to "Christmas Parade."
Whether Christ- or Santa-centered, more than nine in 10 Americans celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25. But the ACLU and other litigious foot soldiers of political correctness have over the past decade largely succeeded in chiseling the word Christmas out of the public square, creating in the process an American Scroogocracy made up of cities, major retailers, and public schools. This year, though, conservative opposition, consumer pique, and the ludicrous renaming of the "Christmas tree" have combined to convince some folks to declare the anti-Christmas emperors naked-and call the holiday by its right name.
One early sign of success involved a 14-foot tree from Nova Scotia. For 34 years, the Canadian province had donated a Christmas tree to the city of Boston in thanks for the city's help following a 1917 ship collision in Halifax. This November, though, just before Beantown's annual tree-lighting, officials re-dubbed the pine a "Holiday Tree." Orlando-based public-interest law firm Liberty Counsel immediately threatened to sue the city for religious discrimination, then pressed the point on national news shows like The O'Reilly Factor.
The city backed down. "This is a Christmas tree," Boston Parks Commissioner Toni Pollak told the Boston Herald. "It's definitely a Christmas tree."
The Liberty Counsel's arboreal advocacy was part of its three-year-old Friend or Foe Christmas campaign, a public-education and media push designed to get the word out that Christmas in the public square is constitutionally kosher. Bolstered by partnerships with the Association of Christian Schools International and Liberty University's Rev. Jerry Falwell, the campaign has this year gained steam. But Liberty Counsel president Matt Staver said it is the Christmas tree issue in particular that has folks like Fox News' Bill O'Reilly crying foul over the de-Christmasing of America.
"Everybody knows that a green, pointed tree that we decorate in December is a Christmas tree," said Mr. Staver. "Calling it a 'holiday tree' is like calling a menorah a 'candelabra.' It is this issue-the absurdity of renaming the Christmas tree-that has popped the balloon of most people, where they are saying enough is enough."
In the wake of Boston's attempt to defoliate Christmas, Lowe's home improvement stores, under challenge by the American Family Association (AFA), quickly reversed its own similar tack. The chain had begun advertising the sale of "holiday trees," but last week quickly re-renamed them "Christmas trees" and apologized for the error. House Speaker Dennis Hastert last month reversed a decade of PC quackery, restoring to the decorated fir on the U.S. Capitol's west lawn its historical name, "Capitol Christmas Tree."
Activists have also chalked up non-tree victories on the retail front. The Catholic League claims credit for pushing Wal-Mart to include on its website a "Christmas" gift category alongside existing click-throughs to Kwanzaa and Hanukkah presents. Macy's acknowledgment of Christmas was at least in part a response to AFA pressure, as was a promise Walgreen's made last week to reexamine its use of the word Christmas in time for the 2006 holiday season.
Still, the return of Christmas is thus far only a mini-renaissance. In November, the AFA surveyed the sales circulars of 11 major retailers and found Christmas mentioned only twice, while the word holiday appeared 59 times. Target, meanwhile, remains defiant in the face of an AFA-sponsored boycott. So far, 600,000 people have pledged not to shop at the mid-priced retail giant because, while its profits depend heavily on Christmas buying, Target refuses to use the word Christmas in its in-store promotions and advertising. Even Scroogier, the chain has for the second year booted Salvation Army bell-ringers from its storefronts, even though many Americans are now needier than ever after Hurricane Katrina.
Some Americans are fighting for Christmas in their hometowns. Mary Moylan, 50, a stay-at-home mom in St. Charles, Mich., in 2002 began promoting religious free-exercise rights in public schools near her home. Using materials from the Rutherford Institute and Liberty Counsel, Mrs. Moylan two years ago explained to a St. Charles public-school official that the dumbing down of Christmas to a generic winter holiday went against the wishes of the very rural and conservative surrounding community.
"He was nice and smiley and shook my hand," she said. "Then he blew me off." Two weeks ago, though, she spoke to the St. Charles district superintendent. Now, a town billboard advertises the high school's "Christmas Musical" and "Merry Christmas" signs are posted at one elementary school.
Mrs. Moylan said she's found that most people don't know the legal ins and outs of the public observance of Christmas. Meanwhile, the expatriation of the holiday "is something that's being foisted on the public, and the public doesn't want it at all."
Holiday cheer
The Jews Against Anti-Christian Defamation see an accelerating attempt to scrub religion from American public life
By Priya Abraham
At first glance, there had to be a punch line to this picture: three Jews, one a rabbi, seated before a poster of a bright green Christmas tree with the words, "It's OK to say Merry Christmas."
So Don Feder, president of Jews Against Anti-Christian Defamation (JAACD), went straight to the point. Strange as it seemed, his group had called the Dec. 1 press conference to speak against the banishing of Christmas from schools, shops, and the public square.
"It's a matter of simple courtesy to acknowledge a holiday celebrated by 96 percent of the American people," he said at the National Press Club in Washington. "Would a Christian living in Israel be offended if someone wished him a 'Happy Hanukkah?'"
Retailers such as Lowe's and Macy's are slowly beginning to re-insert the word Christmas in their advertising. But already this year, some have run afoul of Christian consumers.
Lowe's stores nationwide were selling "holiday trees" before complaints prompted them to switch to "Christmas trees" (see main article). And like many retailers, Wal-Mart's policy is to wish customers "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." When one complained, a now former Wal-Mart employee wrote back that Christmas has its roots in "Siberian shamanism": "The colors associated with 'christmas' red and white are actually a representation of the aminita mascera [sic.] mushroom. Santa is also borrowed from the Caucasus, mistletoe from the Celts, yule log from the Goths, the time from the Visigoths and the tree from the worship of Baal. It is a wide wide world."
For Mr. Feder and his fellow panelists, such examples are more than laughable sops to political correctness. At root, they see an accelerating attempt to undermine Christian values and scrub religion from American public life. These values, they say, have secured freedom for Jews and other non-Christians. "Were it not for the rooted Christian decency of this country I'd be a lampshade or a bar of soap," said Michael Horowitz, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute.
Scholar and Rabbi Daniel Lapin added some historical analysis. In Europe during his great-grandfather's time, he said, the choice was between secularism and Christian theocracy-the first of which naturally appealed more to Jews.
But now, "the choice is actually between a sordid, spreading, secular, sinister society on the one hand, and on the other hand a society of benign Christianity the likes of which the world hasn't seen in any other place for the last 2,000 years."
For all its novelty, JAACD falls into the familiar religious conservative camp fighting against secular liberalism. As such, it butts heads with groups such as the Jewish Anti-Defamation League. Formed in April, its advisory board includes well-known conservatives such as David Horowitz and Mona Charen.
Final speaker and comedian Jackie Mason, who spoke via conference call, even managed a contrast with the Ku Klux Klan: Because "they're not an immediate threat and they didn't directly kill somebody, they're still allowed their freedom of speech and we've preserved their right to do it. But if the Ku Klux Klan was marching with a symbol that said 'Merry Christmas,' they (wouldn't) be allowed."
Even with the sober speeches, the irony of a band of Jews defending Christmas did not escape the septuagenarian Mr. Mason: "Who knew that in my lifetime I'd be fighting for the right of Christians to practice their religion?"


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|Cathy Sullivan retires after 38 years
|Written by Kyle Arnoldy
For nearly four decades, Cathy Sullivan has welcomed kids into her classroom at Holyoke Elementary, but when the children exit the building for summer break Friday, May 24, Sullivan will officially begin her retirement.
"I still can't quite get my head around the fact that I am not going to be at the school anymore," Sullivan said. "After all this time, it kind of becomes part of who you are."
After earning her degree in elementary education with a math minor at the University of Northern Colorado, Sullivan set out to California for an adventure. She accepted a position as a second-grade reading and social studies educator at a private school in Orange County. While there, she also ran the before- and after-school programs.
Sullivan returned to Colorado after a year to be closer to family. Although she began the job hunt during the summer, a difficult time to find teaching positions, she was hired in Holyoke.
Growing up in Colorado Springs, Sullivan stated she had never heard of Holyoke until she began applying for open positions. She laughed as she recalled turning off the interstate at Sterling and beginning the drive on Highway 6. After passing through Fleming and Haxtun, she said she nearly turned around when she hit Paoli.
While the move to Holyoke was a bit of a culture shock, Sullivan says she has come to enjoy the small-town life. More than anything, she appreciates the environment Holyoke offers for raising children.
In her first year of teaching, Sullivan met her husband Steve, a Holyoke native, and they went on to have two kids, Ashley and Jared. Ashley, 26, works at the Holyoke Enterprise, and Jared, 25, has begun work as a mechanical engineer in Golden. Steve runs Sully's Construction, LLC in Holyoke with his brother Jeff.
Over her 37-year tenure at Re-1J School District, Sullivan taught sixth-grade math, science and social studies for 15 years, fourth grade for seven years and Title I for the final 15 years. Title I is aimed at helping kids who have fallen behind in math and reading.
"I loved sixth grade while I was there, but I needed a little change because you can't do the same thing forever," Sullivan explained. "In Title I, we see a variety of kids. I have had kindergarten through sixth grade, which was kind of neat because I had only worked with upper elementary until then. It was nice coming down and working with the younger kids. At first I didn't think I would like it, but I really have."
Cathy Sullivan's 37 years at Holyoke Elementary will come to an end at the conclusion of the school year.
No matter the age or the class, Sullivan enjoyed being able to help kids grow and realize their potential. She noted that as she steps away, it is going to be the students she misses the most.
"I love working with the kids," Sullivan said. "It is just something new every day. It's great to see them have their successes and they say and do things that make you smile and laugh everyday."
Another perk of teaching in a small town is, instead of passing kids to the next grade and forgetting about them, Sullivan was able to see how they continued to succeed as they matured and grew into adulthood. She noted that there are a couple of teachers at HHS that she taught when they were much younger.
Over the past 38 years, Sullivan said she has noticed many changes in the classroom. She pointed to technology as the biggest difference she has seen. Not only has technology changed the way subjects are taught, but changed the ways in which students can respond, do their work and the project possibilities. She also noticed how student dynamics have changed.
"Holyoke has actually changed a lot as far as the kids," Sullivan explained. "When I first came here it pretty much was the kids that came to kindergarten together graduated together and it was the exact same group, which looking back now, that's pretty strange. There were kids that moved in and it wasn't a normal thing to have a new kid in class, so that has kind of changed."
Sullivan also noticed how some things never change. She joked about how everything cycles around. While exercises may be touted as the newest way to facilitate learning, she said they usually are the same ideas from the past with different names.
For the past three years, Sullivan has been at the elementary school part-time, helping her ease her way into retirement. She said it was the best of both worlds as she had more time off to connect with friends and still was able to see the kids every day.
With even more time off on the horizon, Sullivan said she is interested in looking into genealogy to discover family history. Traveling is also a possibility in the future as well as joining a group of retired teachers who frequently gather for Bible study and other activities.
Holyoke Enterprise May 16, 2013


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Hi all,
I've got an issue whereby my Nokia E61i cannot download messages via IMAP. It can connect and download headers, but when I attempt to view a message it tries to download it but nothing happens - I am left at the same screen looking at the new headers.
Strange thing is, it's similar to a bug (14850) that's reported fixed, and there's an old thread that describes the same problem that ends in a fix.
I'm running the OSS version 5.0.8 on Ubuntu 6.06. I also get exactly the same problem on a Nokia E71 so it's not the phone that's at fault. I've tried appending "/ni" to my username but it makes no difference.
What can I try next?