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Reporting in the March 8 issue of the journal Cell, Caltech
biology professor James H. Strauss, lead author Richard J. Kuhn of
Purdue (a former postdoctoral scholar in Strauss's lab), and
Michael G. Rossman and Timothy S. Baker, both of Purdue, describe
the structure of the virus they obtained with a cryoelectron
microscope. The detailed electron-density map shows the inner RNA
core of the virus as well as the other spherical layers that cover
it. At the surface is the glycoprotein scaffolding thought to allow
the virus to interact with the receptor and invade a host cell.
This is the first time the structure of one of the flaviviruses
has been described, Strauss says. The flaviviruses are a class of
viruses that include the yellow fever, West Nile, tick-borne
encephalitis, and Japanese encephalitis viruses. All are enclosed
with a glycoprotein outer layer that includes minor projections out
of the lipid layer due to the geometry of the scaffolding.
"Most viruses that cause serious illness are enveloped,
including influenza, hantaviruses, West Nile virus, smallpox, and
herpes—though not polio," Strauss says.
The surprise for the researchers was the unusual manner in which
the glycoproteins are arranged. Details from the Caltech and Purdue
computer-generated images show a highly variegated structure of
glycoprotein molecules that are evenly dispersed, but with a
surprisingly complicated pattern.
"It's symmetrical, but not with the obvious symmetry of most
symmetric viruses," Strauss explains. "This was not an expected
Strauss says it's still unclear what the odd symmetry will
ultimately mean for future research aimed at controlling the
disease, because the precise function of the different structural
domains of the glycoproteins are still not known. Those that have
been false-colored blue in the image are the domain of
glycoproteins thought to be involved in receptor binding—and
thus responsible for the virus's entry into a cell. The
glycoprotein structures coded yellow are an elongated domain
thought to be responsible for holding the scaffolding together; and
the ones coded red have a function that is not yet known.
But a more detailed view of these structures is the beginning of
a more informed strategy for a focused medical or pharmaceutical
attack, Strauss says. "You can think of the protease inhibitors for
HIV. Those in large part came from knowing the structure of the HIV
enzymes you were trying to interfere with."
Thus, the new work could lead to drugs that will bind to the
virus to prevent it from entering the cell, or perhaps from
reassembling once it is already inside the cell.
Dengue fever is a mosquito-spread disease that has been known
for centuries, but was first isolated in the 1940s after it became
a significant health concern for American forces in the Pacific
theater. A worldwide problem, the disease is found throughout Latin
America, the Caribbeans, Southeast Asia, and India, and is
currently at epidemic levels in Hawaii.
Especially virulent is the closely related dengue hemorrhagic
fever, which is responsible for most of the deaths. The disease is
a leading cause of infant mortality in Thailand, where there is an
especially vigorous program to find an effective vaccine.
More information can be found on the Center for Disease Control
Web site at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/dengue/index.htm.
Contact: Robert Tindol (626) 395-3631
Basing his instrument on a standard 300-millimeter telephoto lens for a 35-millimeter camera, Charbonneau will begin sweeping the skies this spring in hopes of catching a slew of "hot Jupiters" as their fast orbits take them in front of other stars. Admittedly, the charge-coupled device at the camera-end of the lens is a good bit more costly than the lens itself, but the total budget for the project—$100,000—is still a paltry sum when one considers that the next generation of earthbound telescopes will likely cost upwards of $400 million apiece.
Charbonneau, a recent import to the Caltech astronomy staff from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, is one of the world's leading authorities on the search for "transiting planets," or planets that should be detectable as they pass into the line of sight between their host star and Earth. In November, Charbonneau and his colleagues made international news when they discovered the first planetary atmosphere outside our own solar system. But that work was done with the Hubble Space Telescope. The yet-to-be-formally-named telescope at Palomar Observatory will certainly be more modest in cost, but every bit as ambitious a program for searching out other worlds.
"Basically, the philosophy of this project is that, if we can buy the stuff we need off the shelf, we'll buy it," the Canadian native said recently in his new campus office.
At the fore-end of the new instrument is a standard 300-millimeter camera lens. Charbonneau settled on a telephoto lens because he reasoned that the optics have been honed to a fine degree of precision over the years. Too, he assumed that the lens would be robust enough for the duration of the three-year project.
The charge-coupled device (CCD), a standard imaging tool in astronomy for the last couple of decades, is a $22,000 item that accounts for the largest part of the instrument budget. The CCD will be mounted in a specially constructed camera housing to fit at the back of the lens, and the entire device will be fitted onto an inexpensive equatorial mount—also available at many stores carrying amateur astronomical equipment.
Meanwhile, the Palomar staff has stored away a 20-inch telescope so Charbonneau will have a small dome for his new instrument, and are also doing other preparations to mechanize the actual observing so that a telescope operator will not have to be on site at all times.
Palomar Observatory engineer Hal Petrie says the mountain crew is currently busy linking the new telescope with an existing weather-monitoring system at the nearby 48-inch dome, where another automated telescope is located. The system monitors the atmospheric conditions to determine whether the dome should be opened.
"The new telescope is a very good use of space," says Petrie. "The potential for results is very exciting."
Charbonneau will be able to photograph a single square of sky, about 5 degrees by 5 degrees. That's a field of view in which about 100 full moons could fit. Or, if one prefers, a field of view in which an entire constellation can be seen at one time.
With special software Charbonneau helped develop during his time at Harvard-Smithsonian and at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, he will compare many pictures of the same patch of sky to see if any of the thousands of stars in each field have slightly changed. If the software turns up a star that has dimmed slightly, the reason could well be that a planet passed in front of the star between exposures.
Repeated measurements will allow Charbonneau to measure the orbital period and physical size of each planet, and further work with the 10-meter telescopes at the Keck Observatory will allow him and his colleagues to get spectrographic data, and thus, the mass and composition of each planet.
"Once you get the mass and size, you have the density," he says. Weather permitting, Charbonneau will be able to get up to 300 images during an ideal night. Assuming that he can have 20 good nights per month, he should have about 6,000 images each month show up in his computer.
The ideal time will be in the fall and winter, when the Milky Way is in view, and an extremely high number of stars can be squeezed into each photograph. This, too, is an anomaly in astrophysical research, particularly to cosmologists, for whom the Milky Way is pretty much a blocked view of the deep sky.
"It's estimated that about one in three stars in our field of view will be like the sun, and that one percent of sunlike stars will have a hot Jupiter, or a gas giant that is so close to the star that its orbit is about four or five days," he says.
"One-tenth of this 1 percent will be inclined in the right direction so that the planet will pass in front of its star, so that maybe one in 3,000 stars will have a planet we can detect," Charbonneau adds. "Or if you want to be conservative, about one in 6,000."
Compared to other research programs in astronomy, the search for hot Jupiters is fairly simple and straightforward to explain to the public, Charbonneau says.
"An amateur could do this, except maybe for the debugging of the software, which requires several people working 10 hours a day.
"But it's easy to understand what's going on, and cheap to build the equipment. That's why everyone thinks it's an ideal project—if it works."
The new Palomar telescope is the final instrument in a network of three. Of the other two, one is located in the Canary Islands and operated by the National Center for Atmospheric Research; the other is near Flagstaff, Arizona, and is operated by Lowell Observatory.
The large span in longitude of the three-instrument network will allow Charbonneau and his colleagues to observe a patch of sky with one telescope while the patch is above the horizon in the night sky, and then pass it off to the next westward telescope as the sun comes up.
Contact: Robert Tindol (626) 395-3631
Reporting in the February 7 issue of the journal Nature, Caltech applied physics professor Kerry Vahala and graduate students Sean Spillane and Tobias Kippenberg describe their progress in making the tiny device, which incorporates a small spherical glass bead and a stretched fiber-optic wire. The laser is especially efficient because of the way it stores light inside the microsphere, or resonator, as well as the manner in which the stretched optical wire permits efficient coupling of light into the sphere.
According to Vahala, the light wraps around the sphere in a ring orbit and subsequently intensifies over hundreds of thousands of orbits, resulting in extreme concentration of optical power within the sphere. In this way, very weak signals applied to the sphere from the fiber-optic wire can build to enormous intensities within the sphere itself.
At these higher power levels, the physics within the sphere enters a nonlinear regime wherein conventional rules for light propagation break down. In the Caltech work, the molecules of the glass bead itself are distorted, resulting in a process called Raman emission and lasing. Because Raman lasers require enormous intensities to function, they are usually power-hungry devices. The Caltech team uses the physics of the sphere to reduce both power and size. Normal Raman lasers turn on "with a shout"—these new devices require "only a whisper."
Central to this breakthrough was the ability to couple directly to the ring orbits, or whispering gallery modes, of the sphere while preserving the exquisite perfection of the sphere in terms of its ability to store and concentrate light. The Caltech team uses stretched optical fiber in the form of a taper to achieve coupling efficiencies, in which loss is negligible, both to and from the sphere.
Because Raman lasers and amplifiers can operate over a very broad range of wavelengths, they are important devices that extend other lasers into new or previously inaccessible wavelength bands. For example, Raman amplifiers are now used widely in commercial long-distance fiber communications systems because of this wavelength flexibility.
Also, through a process called cascading, it is possible to cover even greater wavelength bands by using one Raman laser as the pump for another. In this way, a whole series of wavelengths can be generated in a kind of domino effect. More generally, it can be used to extend the wavelength range of other laser sources into difficult-to-access wavelength bands for sensing or other purposes.
The article is titled "Ultralow-threshold Raman laser using a spherical dielectric microcavity," and is available at www.nature.com.
In the photo, the sphere has been doped, which enables observation of the ring orbit as green luminescence. The photo is by M. Cai of Vahala group.
Further discussion of this and related work can be found at the Vahala Caltech group website: www.its.caltech.edu/~vahalagr.
CONTACT: Robert Tindol (626) 395-3631
PASADENA, Calif.— Huntington's disease is a cruel disorder, destroying nerve cells in the brain that, over time, rob an individual of the ability to walk, talk, and eat. As yet, there is no cure or effective treatment for this hereditary disorder. The end result, then, is death, caused by such complications as infection or heart failure.
Now scientists at the California Institute of Technology have come one step closer to understanding how Huntington's disease develops and how it can be stopped. In a paper to be published in the January 22 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Paul H. Patterson, a Caltech professor of biology, postdoctoral scholar Ali Khoshnan, and research assistant Jan Ko have blocked the effects of the disease in cultured cells using antibodies.
Huntington's disease (HD) is caused by a mutation in the protein huntingtin (htt), specifically by the expansion of a site on the protein called polyQ. Such sites induce the production of antibodies that bind with a particular site, normally to kill the antigen. Khoshnan and his colleagues made an antibody that binds to the polyQ site, along with another antibody that binds to a different site, called polyP. The idea was to block either of these sites and see whether the toxic effects of mutant htt, which kills nerve cells in the brain, could be blocked.
"We knew that the polyQ site was critical because when it is expanded by mutation it causes HD," says Patterson." "It was also known that the polyP site on htt might be important for interfering with the functions of other proteins." The investigators produced a modified version of the antibodies that would allow them to be produced inside cells that also carry the toxic mutant htt. They found a key result: when the antibody against the polyP site is produced by cells carrying the mutant htt, the cells are rescued. That is, they are unaffected by the toxic HD protein. In striking contrast, when cells carrying the toxic htt are induced to produce the antibody against the polyQ site, the toxicity of htt is enhanced and the cells die even faster.
Khoshnan and coworkers suggest that the surprising result with the polyQ antibody may be due to the antibody stabilizing a shape of the mutant htt protein in its most deadly form. Most important, though, says Patterson, is that the rescue of the cells that produce the polyP antibody may indicate this is the site of the toxic htt in which the actual killing of cells takes place, and that covering it up with an antibody saves the cell. "Or, an alternative interpretation is that the binding of the antibody preserves the protein in a non-toxic shape," he says.
The researchers have two goals in mind with their work: elucidating the mechanism of neuronal death caused by mutant htt, and devising molecular strategies for blocking its toxic effects.
To arrive at their results, the scientists first developed eight monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), finding the three that either inhibited or exacerbated the toxicity of the mutant Htt protein. They next cloned the antigen-binding "domains" of the three; that is, the portion of the mAbs that does the actual binding. Finally, they caused these domains to be produced inside cells that were also making the mutant htt.
"Potentially, this knowledge could be useful in designing a therapeutic drug, one that covers up that part of the mutant protein that kills healthy cells," says Patterson. "The next stage of the work will be to deliver this antibody into the brains of mice that carry the human mutant gene and that have developed motor symptoms that are related to the disease. We want to see if this antibody can rescue these mice, even after they show signs of the disease. These experiments are, however, just beginning."
The Baltimore team reports, on today's Science Express Web site, on their study of single-cell mouse embryos that have been virally infected in a manner that leaves a new gene from a jellyfish permanently deposited into their genomes. The mice, after they have been carried to term, carry at least one copy of the gene in 80 percent of the cases, and 90 percent of these show high levels of the jellyfish protein. Further, the study shows that the offspring of the mice inherit the genes and make the new protein. Thus the method makes transgenic mice that have new genetic potential.
According to Baltimore, who is president of Caltech, the use of the HIV-like viruses could prove far superior to the current method of producing transgenic animals by pronuclear injection.
"It's surprising how well it works," says Baltimore, whose Nobel Prize-winning research on the genetic mechanisms of viruses 30 years ago is central to the new technique. "This technique is much easier and more efficient than the procedure now commonly in use, and the results suggest that it can be used to generate other transgenic animal species."
The technique exploits features of HIV-like viruses known as lentiviruses, which can infect both dividing and non-dividing cells, as gene delivery vehicles. Unlike HIV, the lentivirus is rendered incapable of causing AIDS. The lentivirus carries new genes into the cell's existing genome. In this case, newly fertilized mouse eggs were engineered to carry the green fluorescent protein (GFP) derived from jellyfish.
Baltimore and his team developed two ways of introducing the lentivirus into cells: microinjection of virus under the layer that protects recently fertilized eggs, or incubation of denuded fertilized eggs in a concentrated solution of the virus. The latter method is easier, although less efficient.
The transgenic mice, once they are born, carry a protein marker in all body tissues that make them glow green under a fluorescent light. This trait is genetic because the trait is a permanent feature of the animal's genome, and thus is carried throughout life and is inheritable by offspring. The term "transgene" refers to the fact that the new gene has been transferred.
Transgenics holds promise to biotechnology and experimental biology because the techniques can be used to "engineer" new, desirable traits in plants and animals, provided the trait can be identified and localized in another organism's genome. A transgenic cow, for example, might be engineered to produce milk containing therapeutic human proteins, or a transgenic chicken might produce eggs low in cholesterol.
In experimental biology, transgenics are valuable laboratory animals for fundamental research. A cat with an altered visual system, for example, might better accommodate fundamental studies of the nature of vision.
According to Baltimore, the procedure works on rats as well as mice. This is a huge advantage to experimentalists because of the number of laboratory applications in which rats are preferable, he says.
The planet orbits a yellow, sunlike star called HD 209458, a seventh-magnitude star (visible through an amateur telescope), which lies 150 light-years away in the autumn constellation Pegasus. Its atmospheric composition was probed when the planet passed in front of its parent star, allowing astronomers for the first time ever to see light from the star filtered through the planet's atmosphere.
Lead investigator David Charbonneau of the California Institute of Technology and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Timothy Brown of the National Center for Atmospheric Research, and colleagues used Hubble's spectrometer (the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph) to detect the presence of sodium in the planet's atmosphere.
"This opens up an exciting new phase of extrasolar planet exploration, where we can begin to compare and contrast the atmospheres of planets around other stars," says Charbonneau. The astronomers actually saw less sodium than predicted for the Jupiter-class planet, leading to one interpretation that high-altitude clouds in the alien atmosphere may have blocked some of the light. The findings will be published in the Astrophysical Journal.
The Hubble observation was not tuned to look for gases expected in a life-sustaining atmosphere (which is improbable for a planet as hot as the one observed). Nevertheless, this unique observing technique opens a new phase in the exploration of extrasolar planets, say astronomers.
Such observations could potentially provide the first direct evidence for life beyond Earth by measuring unusual abundances of atmospheric gases caused by the presence of living organisms. The planet orbiting HD 209458 was discovered in 1999 through its slight gravitational tug on the star. Based on that observation the planet is estimated to be 70 percent the mass of the giant planet Jupiter (or 220 times more massive than Earth).
Subsequently, astronomers discovered the planet passes in front of the star, causing the star to dim very slightly for the transit's duration. This means the planet's orbit happens to be tilted edge-on to our line-of-sight from Earth. It is the only example of a transit among all the extrasolar planets discovered to date.
The planet is an ideal target for repeat observations because it transits the star every 3.5 days—which is the extremely short amount of time it takes the planet to whirl around the star at a distance of merely 4 million miles from the star's searing surface. This precariously close proximity to the star heats the planet's atmosphere to a torrid 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit (1,100 degrees Celsius).
Previous transit observations by Hubble and ground-based telescopes confirmed that the planet is primarily gaseous, rather than liquid or solid, because it has a density less than that of water. (Earth, a rocky rather than a gaseous planet, has an average density five times that of water.) These earlier observations thus established that the planet is a gas giant, like Jupiter and Saturn.
The planet's swift orbit allowed for observations of four separate transits to be made by Hubble in search of direct evidence of an atmosphere. During each transit a small fraction of the star's light passed through the planet's atmosphere on its way to Earth. When the color of the light was analyzed by a spectrograph, the telltale "fingerprint" of sodium was detected. Though the star also has sodium in its outer layers, the STIS precisely measured the added influence of sodium in the planet's atmosphere.
The team—including Robert Noyes of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Ronald Gilliland of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland—next plans to look at HD 209458 again with Hubble, in other colors of the star's spectrum to see which are filtered by the planet's atmosphere. They hope eventually to detect methane, water vapor, potassium, and other chemicals in the planet's atmosphere. Once other transiting giants are found in the next few years, the team expects to characterize chemical differences among the atmospheres of these planets.
These anticipated findings would ultimately help astronomers better understand a bizarre class of extrasolar planets discovered in recent years that are dubbed "hot Jupiters." They are the size of Jupiter but orbit closer to their stars than the tiny innermost planet Mercury in our solar system. While Mercury is a scorched rock, these planets have enough gravity to hold onto their atmospheres, though some are hot enough to melt copper.
Conventional theory is that these giant planets could not have been born so close to their stars. Gravitational interactions with other planetary bodies or gravitational forces in a circumstellar disk must have carried these giants via spiraling orbits precariously close to their stars from their birthplace farther out, where they bulked up on gas and dust as they formed.
Proposed moderate-sized U.S. and European space telescopes could allow for the detection of many much smaller Earth-like planets by transit techniques within the next decade. The chances for detection will be more challenging, since detecting a planet orbiting at an Earth-like distance will mean a much tighter orbital alignment is needed for a transit. And the transits would be much less frequent for planets with an orbital period of a year, rather than days. Eventually, study of the atmosphere of these Earth-like planets will require meticulous measurements by future larger space telescopes.
The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), for NASA, under contract with the Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland. The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). The National Center for Atmospheric Research's primary sponsor is the National Science Foundation.
Contact: Robert Tindol (626) 395-3631
Ladan Shams, a Caltech postdoctoral researcher, and Shinsuke Shimojo, a professor of computation and neural systems at Caltech report that visual signals are influenced significantly by sounds at early cortical levels that have been believed to be "vision specific."
The team's initial behavioral finding was that when an observer is shown one flash of light accompanied by two beeps, the visual system is tricked so that the observer sees two flashes instead of one. In the new study, 13 healthy volunteers were asked to observe the stimuli on a computer screen and judge the number of flashes they saw on the screen.
While the participants performed the task, their brains' electric potentials were recorded from three electrodes positioned in the back of the scalp, where the early visual areas are located.
The researchers found that when the participants perceived the illusion—in other words, when sound changed the visual perception—the activity in the visual areas was modified. Furthermore, the change in activity was similar to that induced by an additional physical flash.
This suggests that the second flash, which is nothing but an illusion and is not due to a visual stimulus but rather caused by sound, invokes activity in the visual areas very similar to that which would be caused by a physical second flash. In short, sound induces a similar effect in this area of the brain to a visual stimulus.
The goal of this study was to get an understanding of how this alteration of vision by sound occurs in the brain. More specifically, the researchers asked whether the change in visual perception is caused by a change in the higher-level areas of the brain that are known to combine information from multiple senses, or whether it is a change that directly affects the activity of the areas that are believed to be exclusively involved in processing visual information.
The main result of the study was that the early visual cortical responses were modulated by accompanied sounds under conditions where the observers experienced the double-flash illusion. This suggests that the activity of the "visual" areas in the brain is affected by sound.
These findings challenge two traditional perspectives on how the brain processes sensory information. The first assumption is that humans are visual animals; vision is the dominant modality and hence not malleable by information from other modalities. Another general belief is that the information from different modalities is processed in the brain in parallel and separate paths.
The findings show that the visual information is affected by the auditory signals while being processed in the "modality-specific" visual pathway. These findings, together with earlier results in other modalities, suggest a paradigm of sensory processing that is more intertwined than segregated.
"The findings have an important implication for the new studies of human perception," says Shimojo. The overwhelming majority of studies in the field of perception have concerned themselves with one modality alone (based on the assumption of modality segregation).
This study, together with other studies indicating vigorous early plasticity and interactions across sensory modalities, is also very encouraging for applications such as sensory aids for children suffering from blindness or dyslexia, for educational applications, for man-made interfaces, and for media and information technology.
A report on this study will appear in the December issue of the journal NeuroReport. Ladan Shams is lead author of the paper.
Contact: Robert Tindol (626) 395-3631
Astrophysicists have combined the Palomar Mountain 200-inch Hale Telescope with the abilities of a new NASA satellite to detect and characterize a gamma-ray burst lying at a distance of only 5 billion light-years from Earth. This is the closest gamma-ray burst ever studied by optical telescopes.
The origin of cosmic gamma-ray bursts, spectacular flashes of high-energy radiation followed by slowly decaying optical and radio emission that can be seen from great distances, is still a puzzle to astronomers. Many scientists believe that the bursts result from explosions that signal the birth of black holes; however, all agree that more data are needed before we can really know black holes' origins and nature.
NASA's new High-Energy Transient Explorer (HETE) detected a gamma-ray burst on September 21. Data indicated that the event was located in the Lacerta constellation, and refined information from the Interplanetary Network (IPN), a series of satellites with gamma-ray detectors scattered about the solar system, reduced the region astronomers needed to search to find the fading embers of the explosion. Scientists at the California Institute of Technology's Palomar Observatory, using the historic Hale 200-inch reflector, were able to locate the visual afterglow the following day. This was the first burst from the HETE satellite to be pinpointed with an accuracy sufficient to study the remains.
On October 17 the Caltech team used the Hale Telescope to obtain a redshift for the burst. This allowed a distance to be inferred, implying that the burst happened some 5 billion years ago. This makes the burst one of the closest ever found, and thus easier to study in detail. Also on October 17 the team members, led by Dale Frail from the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, detected a twinkling radio counterpart of the burst using the Very Large Array in New Mexico.
According to Shri Kulkarni, who is the MacArthur Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Science at Caltech, the team was able to find the rare optical afterglow because of the quick detection and localization abilities of the HETE satellite and the rapid follow-up with the Palomar Mountain Hale Telescope.
HETE, the first satellite dedicated to the study of gamma-ray bursts, is on an extended mission until 2004. Launched on October 9, 2000, HETE was built by MIT as a mission of opportunity under the NASA Explorer Program. The HETE program is a collaboration between MIT; NASA; Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico; France's Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales, Centre d'Etude Spatiale des Rayonnements, and Ecole Nationale Superieure del'Aeronautique et de l'Espace; and Japan's Institute of Physical and Chemical Research. The science team includes members from the University of California (Berkeley and Santa Cruz) and the University of Chicago, as well as from Brazil, India, and Italy.
"I'm very excited. I could not sleep for two nights after making the discovery," said Paul Price, the Caltech graduate student who first identified the optical afterglow from Palomar.
"With this first confirmed observation of a gamma-ray burst and its afterglow, we've really turned the corner," said George Ricker of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, principal investigator for HETE. "As HETE locates more of these bursts and reports them quickly, we will begin to understand what causes them.
"The unique power of HETE is that it not only detects a large sample of these bursts, but it also relays the accurate location of each burst in real time to ground-based optical and radio observatories," Ricker said.
Because the enigmatic bursts disappear so quickly, scientists can best study the events by way of their afterglow. HETE detects these bursts as gamma rays or high-energy X rays, and then instantly relays the coordinates to a network of ground-based and orbiting telescopes for follow-up searches for such afterglows.
Additional observations of this event, made with the Italian BeppoSAX satellite and the Ulysses space probe, were coordinated by HETE team member Kevin Hurley at the University of California. The combination of the localization by the Interplanetary Network with the original HETE localization provided the refined information needed by ground-based observers to point their optical telescopes.
The opportunity to see the afterglow in optical light provides crucial information about what is triggering these mysterious bursts, which scientists speculate to be the explosion of massive stars, the merging of neutron stars and black holes, or possibly both. Follow-up observations of GRB 010921 using the Hubble Space Telescope and the telescopes on the ground should move us a few steps closer to the answer of this cosmic puzzle.
The team that identified the counterpart to GRB010921 includes—in addition to Caltech Professors Shri Kulkarni, Fiona Harrison, and S. George Djorgovski—postdoctoral fellows and scholars Re'em Sari, Titus Galama, Daniel Reichart, Derek Fox, and Ashish Mahabal, graduate students Joshua Bloom, Paul Price, Edo Berger, and Sara Yost, Dale Frail from the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, and many other collaborators.
More information on HETE can be found at: http://space.mit.edu/HETE Palomar Observatory: http://www.astro.caltech.edu/palomar/ Caltech Media Relations: http://pr.caltech.edu/media/.
The discovery is being reported in the October 20 issue of the Astrophysical Journal. According to lead author Richard Ellis, a professor of astronomy at the California Institute of Technology, the faint object is an excellent candidate for the long sought after "building blocks" thought to be abundant at early times and which later assembled to make present-day galaxies.
The discovery was made possible by examining small areas of sky viewed through a massive intervening cluster of galaxies, Abell 2218, 2 billion light-years away. The cluster acts as a powerful gravitational lens, magnifying distant objects and allowing the scientists to probe how distant galaxies assembled at very early times.
Gravitational lensing, a dramatic feature of Einstein's theory of general relativity, means that a massive object in the foreground bends the light rays radiating from one in the background because mass curves space. As a result, an object behind a massive foreground galaxy cluster like Abell 2218 can look much brighter because the foreground object has bent additional photons toward Earth, in much the same way that glass lenses in binoculars will bend more photons toward the eyes.
In the case of the system detected by Ellis and coworkers, the effect makes the image at least 30 times brighter than would be the case if the Abell 2218 cluster were not in the foreground. Without this boost, neither the Keck 10-meter Telescopes nor the Hubble Space Telescope would have detected the object.
Ellis explains, "Without the benefit of the powerful cosmic lens, the intriguing source would not even have been detected in the Hubble Deep Fields, historic deep exposures taken in 1995 and 1998."
Using the 10-meter Keck Telescopes at Mauna Kea, the collaboration found a faint signal corresponding to a pair of feeble images later recognized in a deep Hubble Space Telescope picture.
Spectroscopic studies made possible with the superior light-gathering power of the Keck confirmed that the images arise via the magnification of a single source diagnosed to be extremely distant and in the process of formation.
"The system contains about a million or so stars at a distance of 13.4 billion light-years, assuming that the universe is 14 billion years old," claims Ellis. "While more distant galaxies and quasars have been detected with the Keck Telescopes, by virtue of the magnification afforded by the foreground cosmic lens, we are witnessing a source much smaller than a normal galaxy forming its first generation of stars." " Our work is a little like studying early American history," says team member Mike Santos, a Caltech graduate student in astronomy. "But instead of focusing on prominent individuals like George Washington, we want to know how everyday men and women lived.
"To really understand what was going on in the early universe, we need to learn about the typical, commonplace building blocks, which hold important clues to the later assembly of normal galaxies. Our study represents a beginning to that understanding."
The precise location of the pair of images in relation to the lensing cluster allowed the researchers to confirm the magnification. This work was the contribution of team member Jean-Paul Kneib of the Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées near Toulouse, France, an expert in the rapidly developing field of gravitational lensing.
The team concludes that the star system is remarkably young (by cosmic standards) and thus may represent the birth of a subcomponent of a galaxy or "building block." Such systems are expected to have been abundant in the early universe and to have later assembled to form mature large galaxies like our own Milky Way.
Santos explains, "The narrow distribution of intensity observed with the Keck demonstrates we are seeing hydrogen gas heated by newly formed stars. But, crucially, there is not yet convincing evidence for a well-established mixture of stars of different ages. This suggests we are seeing the source at a time close to its formation."
In their article, the researchers infer that the stars had been forming at a rate of one solar mass per year for not much longer than a million years. Such a structure could represent the birth of a globular cluster, stellar systems recognized today to be the oldest components of the Milky Way galaxy. The work represents part of an ongoing survey to determine the abundance of such distant star-forming sources as well as to fix the period in cosmic history when the bulk of these important objects formed.
Contact:Robert Tindol (626) 395-3631
PASADENA, Calif.— The next exciting generation of multimedia on the Internet will be computer images created by three-dimensional geometry. Soon, instead of viewing a simple picture on their computer monitor, a user will be able to view an object from any viewpoint, lighting, or surface. The result will be images that seem to come to life.
It's exciting technology, unless, that is, your personal computer suffers from "bandwidth bottleneck," the frustrating experience that results in the herky-jerky motion of today's so-called streaming video, or audio that breaks up and is hard to hear. Now a solution is in hand for this up coming problem, thanks to a California Institute of Technology professor who's been named a finalist in Discover Magazine's 2001 Innovation Awards.
A team of computer scientists led by Caltech's Peter Schröder, a professor of computer science and applied and computational mathematics, and Wim Sweldens of Lucent Technologies, was acknowledged for developing the most powerful technique to date for computer graphics that will make it practical to send such detailed 3-D data over the Internet. The Innovation Awards are presented annually by Discover, the science publication, and are intended to honor scientists whose groundbreaking work will change the way we live.
Bandwidth bottleneck, a phrase used by Schröder, is caused by too much data being sent through a slow Internet connection to a slow computer. Schröder's expertise is in the mathematical foundations of computer graphics. He and his colleagues developed a compression algorithm—a repetitive computational procedure—that will make it practical to send 3-D images over the Internet, and to manipulate them on personal computers and handhelds.
Without this algorithm, the coming 3-D images would just further bog down the average PC with gobs of data. That's because such 3-D objects describe the actual geometry of an object, such as its depth or height, in detail, with all its measurements. The object could be a human head, or a part for an automobile in an on-line catalog, or a cartoon character. Such digital geometric data is typically acquired by 3-D laser scanning and represents objects using dense meshes with up to millions or even billions of triangles.
The compression challenge is to use the fewest possible bits (the basic unit of information in a digital computing system) to store and transmit these huge and complex sets of data. Efficient geometry compression—delivering the same or higher quality with fewer bits—could unlock the potential of high-end 3-D on consumer systems. The researchers, led by Schröder and Sweldens, report that their technique for geometry compression is up to 12 times better than standard compression methods.
Why this will be exciting for the everyday PC user is the power of 3-D images. "Imagine being able to download a 3-D model of Michelangelo's David to your home computer," says Schröder. "Not only would you see an individual picture, but you could examine in detail the chisel marks on David's cheek, or see what the statue looks like if you stood on a tall ladder."
Today, he says, such riches are reserved for high-end computer users with very high bandwidth Internet connections. "Sometime soon, though," says Schröder, "it can be available to any schoolchild the world over."


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Maria De La Luz Lara, 34, faces federal charges of international parental kidnapping and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. Glynn County police also have charged Lara with felony interference with child custody, court documents showed.
Also known as Rosaura Rosed, she fled the country after abducting her 11-year-old daughter, Elizabeth Garcia, and 10-year-old son, Abel Garcia Jr., FBI Special Agent Tony Alig told the Georgia Times-Union newspaper.
A federal grand jury indicted Lara on April 9 on the kidnapping charge. U.S. Magistrate James Graham previously issued a federal arrest warrant charging her with unlawful flight. Glynn police filed the state charge against Lara in June after she and the children disappeared, court records showed.

subset: commoncrawl


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Parks and Recreation
Mr. Allen Dressler was appointed Director of Parks & Recreation on March 1, 1993. Mr. Dressler is a native of Covington and a 1980 graduate of Covington High School. In 1984, Mr. Dressler received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Forest Resource Management from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). Mr. Dressler is a member of the Mountain, Soil and Water Conservation District and was once named Conservationist of the Year for Alleghany County, Bath County and Covington. Mr. Dressler has also been recognized as a life member of the National Registry of Who's Who.
The Department of Recreation shall be composed of a director of recreation and such other employees as the City Manager may determine. The Department of Recreation shall be responsible for providing, conducting and supervising public playgrounds, play fields, indoor recreation centers and other recreation areas and facilities owned or controlled by the city. The Department of Recreation shall have the power to conduct any form of recreation or cultural activity that will employ the leisure time of the people in a constructive and wholesome manner. The City of Covington Parks & Recreation Department maintains 60 acres of park and playground areas which geographically span the entire city. Included are eight athletic fields which are used for Little League sports, adult sport activities and our city stadium, Casey Field. In addition to the maintenance of parks and playgrounds, the Recreation Department maintains the grounds around five municipal buildings, median strips and landscapes seasonal flowers and plants throughout the city limits.
The Parks and Recreation Department includes the Recreation Director, Administrative Assistant, Crew Supervisor and 5 Laborers. Seasonal employees include lifeguards, maintenance personnel, facility supervisors and paid temporary personnel to assist with officiating, clock operations, gate collections and score keeping. For Parks and recreation information call 540-965-6360.
Thomas Smals is the City's Recreation Coordinator. Thomas will be maintaining pool operations, sport programs, festivals and other events that are sponsored by the City's Parks and Recreation Department. Thomas has created the facebook pages below for the Sport Complex & for the Parks and Recreation Department:
Jackson River Sport Complex facebook page:www.facebook.com/jacksonriversportscomplex
Parks and Recreation facebook page: www.facebook.com/covingtonparksandrec
Background Checks Link: https://opportunities.averity.com/CovingtonP&R
Other Parks and Recreation Page Links:


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Don Cannon Making a Beat for John Legend1 Comment
Here is a small clip of Don Cannon playing a beat that he made with Native Instruments Maschine for John Legend. Sounds good.
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Lines m, n, and o are parallel.
What angles are corresponding to ?
corresponding angles are in the same location on different lines
What is the measure of ?
angles K and J are supplementary
Which angles have measurements of 75°?
remember your vertical angles
Which angles have measures of 105°?
refer to question #2
Make it rain.
The who, what, where, when, and why of all your favorite quotes.
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hahahaha James and Sirius are so funny and so right. that was a great chapter, they were so close. I'm sure that Lindi likes him, and that she was probably thinking "kiss me" but being shy when Remus gave er more then just a second to think she got nervouse. I still think things will work out for her despite darlean i can't wait to read more. GREAT story.
Author's Response: That is exactly how Lindi feels! Thank you, Fiffer!
I love Sirius and James they are just to funnywhen they tease remus. Speaking of which Mr. Moony is making progress. I smell love in the air. i can't wait to read more. I really like how you write.
Arhhh curse Darlene. Well i suppose something had to be in the way of their romance for their to be a good story. Anyway i'm proud that remus figured out what was bugging Lindi. An i must ay i quite agree with messers prongs and padfoot.
So astronomy with Lindi and Darlene that should be intersting spetially with Lily playing matchmaker. The spetiall lessons seem interesting. This does explain how peter managed to be a spy and how Snape became so good at it. i wonder if all the maruders will become good at it. As for the ball i think it is a great idea. And i have a feeling that lindi and remus might attend together.
that was one of the funniest chapters i've read it was great.
Remus is so cute he get's so nervouse. I'm glad they got to talk for a little even if it wasn't the most charming talk they could have ahd. Mrs. Lupin is great a typical mum. malfoy and them suck. Anyway Lindi seems happy and it's nice to know a bit more about her. great story so far.
Author's Response: I know! He is so adorable. *huggles Remus* I'm glad you like Mrs. Lupin. I'm very fond of her. :) Malfoy...not so much, but he is fun to write. lol I'm glad you are enjoying the story, Fiffer. Thank you for such great feedback. I really appreciate it.
So Lily is trying t get Remus on the good side. this should be quite interesting. I wounder what he'll et up to with those draemy eyes of his.
Author's Response: Lily needed a mission to bring her into the story. What better one than helping poor dear Remus get the girl? ;)
Wow so Remus had another girl after him. Intersting. I tink it's great that Lily is tuttoring lindi. Anyway i like the story so far. I wonder how Darlean/Remus will affect Lindi/Remus
Author's Response: I figure Remus was so adorable and kind and wonderful and part of the cool crowd and just perfect he just had to have girls after him. ;) I had to get Lily into the story some how. ;) Glad you like that. Thank you for reviewing, Fiffer.
Wow professor Adamson is quite mean. I'm proud Resmus stood up to him. I wonder why Lindi is so bad at spells she seems bright enough to get them. Anyway i like the way you write the maruder's freindship it is very realistic.
Author's Response: Yes, he's a real jerk! Lindi....*sigh* <.< And thank you so much, Fiffer Haliwell. I really try to make it realistic, or as realistic as a story about boys with magic wands and werewolves can be. ;) Thank you.
Yey for Lindi, I lvoe Sirius but he can be an icredible prat whe it comes to girls. with his friends however he is extreamly loyal. I wonder how remus will get close to lindi and how Sirius will take it. even if he isn't emotionally involved it might be a blow to his ego. Then again he is a good friend.
Author's Response: LOL yes, Sirius can be a prat when it comes to a number of things, but I love him anyway. And that is a good question. ;) Thank you for reviewing, Fiffer.
Interesting she's a ravenclaw. Remus seems to really like her, as does everyone else. I liked the sorting ceremony for her and i really like that she isn't the first to do it. Something tells me that Sirius is in for a big suprise, I really hope he looses this bet.
I knew that girl was important. I wonder where she is transfering from. Sirius better not fuin this for Remus as much as I love him Sirius can be a git sometimes. Anyway I love the way youprotray the maruders, and how the map occures little by little and not all at once.
Author's Response: Thank you so much, Fiffer. Yes, she's slightly important. lol I'm so glad you like my version of the Marauders. That means the world to me.
Wow they mae it finally. I found it so sweet that they were so mad at nobody being able to help him. finally he won't suffer so much.
That was posibly the best reaction I have heard ever. It's really well written. You show that they care for him but they are also hurt because he didn't trust them. His first kiss was so sweet. i'm sure taht girl is going to play an important part in the story. I wonder why she never went to hogwarts she seemed to have been lookign forward to it.
I love that they become friends over the materials of their wand. Ok i know they became freinds befoer that but still that was like the final piece. I love that James tries to tame his hair.
I had never thought of it before, but it does fit that there are more then just 5 first years or so. I like the idea that they weren't all just placed together, they actually MADE their friendship. Any way nice chapter. I love Sirius and te way he acts in this story.
Wow I'm so happy for Remus he really deserved that. I really like the way you write.
Author's Response: :) Thank you so much for saying so, Fiffer. I love that name, btw. And yes, Remus did deserve it. *loves him* Thank you for the lovely review. :)
wow poor Remus that is a harsh childhood and he is so sweet. KNowing his future it's even harder to rad all this but at least he had some very good years.
Author's Response: :( Poor Remus; he is sooo sweet. But he had parents who loved him. I firmly believe that, or it would break my heart completely. Thank you for reading and reviewing Fiffer Haliwell. I appreciate it.
I have really tried to be patient but please tell me you are on the verge of submitting a new chapter! Btw keep up the good work.
Author's Response: Oh, finfine, I am trying. I actually think something went my way for a change today, which will hopefully give me more time this week to work on it than I had expected or hoped. *cheers* Now, this is no promise that I will finish it this week. I'd be surprised if I did, to be honest. I have been so distracted from it for such a long time, it will take work to get into the right frame of mind, but hopefully, I will make good progress. I rnAM REALLY SORRY IT IS TAKING SO LONG! I really hope I manage to make it worth the wait, though I realize that is a tall order after this HORRENDOUSLY long wait. Again, I promise to try. Thanks for the prod. :)rn
I'm a little sad. I haven't had internet for the past three months and I finally bought a new wireless card for my computer today. One of the first things that I did (now that I can finally use the internet again) was log onto this site, fingers crossed and hoping against hope that Chapter 50 had been posted, but to no avail. So sad. But on the bright side, apparently I haven't missed much during my three month technological darkness.
Since I'm here (and because I can again) I just want to commend you for Chapter 49. It was great, as always. I'm glad to finally know what the bet was. It definitely took Lindi far out of her comfort zone! And you gotta love teenage Remus! Oh, hormones. Plus, the "mature" birthday present that the Marauders gave Remus were fantastic. They are starting to grow up and I'm glad to be able to witness it through your fanfic.
Lastly, I want to thank you for not leaving us in too much suspense as we eagerly await Chapter 50. However, since the end of this chapter was so open-ended, I am really quite curious to see where you are going next. Happy writing!
Author's Response: Oh, I feel so very guilty. What a wonderful, and patient review. I am so ashamed that it has been so long. I always told myself I would not do that to readers as I hate it when I'm reading something. I really don't blame anyone who has given up or lost interest in the story. If it makes a difference, I have 3800+ words for the next chapter written. I still have a lot to go, but I am a little more focused than I have been in weeks. Sadly, I will have to go out of town this weekend and probably lose my focus again. >.< But RL...what can one do? *sigh* I am glad that even if the last chapter was open-ended, it wasn't a vicious cliff hanger or I would be so guilt ridden I would probably want to run away. :*(
Chapter 49...Oh, yes...hormones...yep...<.< scary things...>.> :X I'm really glad you liked the presents. I find those sorts of things difficult to come up with, which is why I'm trying to figure out how I can avoid all the other characters' birthdays. *wonders if anyone would buy that everyones' birthdays coincidentally occur over full moon and so we don't see what everyone gets/gives* *rolls eyes* Okay, now I'm rambling. I'm really happy you are enjoying the story still. Thank you for this really wonderful review, thelongestwinter. I will try very hard to get chapter 50 finished soon.


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Boulevard Brewing Co.
Smokestack Posters
With the success of our custom designed postcard set for Boulevard, our friends at the Brewery asked us to design and print a follow-up set of posters. Each poster is letterpress printed with 3-colors on the front and 1-color on the back of a heavy-duty 130# recycled coverstock. Posters are available for purchase at the Boulevard Brewing Co. Tasting Room and on their website.
Client: ESPN The Magazine Project: The Fight Issue Artwork Year:2013 : We were commissioned by ESPN The Magazine to create full page illustrations for their annual Fight Issue. The client...
Client: Tufboy Antiques Project: Business Cards + Postcards Year:2012 : We created a business card for our pal Web Thomas who owns a great little vintage shop filled with rusty...
Client: Tanner's Customs & Collision Project: Business Cards Year:2012 : We designed and letterpress printed the business cards for a local auto shop. The card is letterpress printed with 1...


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There aren't many places I consider myself inexperienced, but the red carpet at the ESPYS was certainly one of them, if my Chuck Taylors and little black dress ensemble didn't make it obvious enough already. I'm used to having long sit down interviews with athletes willing to give me their undivided attention – pretty much the exact opposite from last week at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE.
Here are some of my favorite moments/interview clips from the red carpet with some of the biggest names in sports and entertainment all under the same California sun:
Cody Regis from UCLA Baseball
Me: So Cody, I'm sure you were busy watching the All-Star Game last night? What was the best part of the night?
Cody (laughing): Well not Neil Diamond. Probably seeing Matt Harvey pitching.
Trey Burke, Utah Jazz
Me: You probably can't answer this, but who names a team the Pelicans?
Trey: I actually got the opportunity to talk to someone when I went down there for a workout. They wanted a name that stood for the whole city, and when Katrina hit, they had a lot of pelicans, so it makes sense.
Me: If you could name a team, what would you pick?
Trey: Los Angeles Lions, or something fierce…
Me: Who's the most fierce athlete here tonight?
Trey: Probably Adrian Peterson or LeBron. Those are two of the best athletes in the world and it's an honor to be here amongst them.
Me: Put the two of them against each other in a hockey game, a sport neither plays – who wins?
Trey: I gotta go LeBron.
Nikki and Brie Bella, Total Divas
Me to Nikki: Those shoes [Louboutins] are amazing, but how the hell do you walk down the red carpet in those crazy high heels and crutches?
Nikki: I'm Superman's girlfriend so that means I'm Superwoman, and it goes with the territory. I think the fact I was a soccer player for 11 years helped and then a wrestler for 8, so I have really strong legs. I feel like I was born in heels. I could skateboard in them.
Me: What do you think is harder: wearing a crazy long gown walking on stage for an acceptance speech in front of everyone or Louboutins and crutches?
Nikki: Definitely the crutches.
[Sidenote, Nikki really does date Superman, but he answers to John Cena.]
Datone Jones, Green Bay Packers
Me: What song pumps you up the most on the field?
Datone: I listen to a lot of instrumental – I'm into Kanye's HAM right now.
Me: How can you sing along if it's instrumental?
Datone: Who says I sing along? Sometimes I make up my own words, depends on who we're going to play, but that's my go-to song.
Me: Who does the best Lambeau Leap?
Datone: Datone Jones does it the best. Coming soon.
Michael Blackson, Comedian
Me: Tell me a joke.
Michael: You see Chris Bosh's long neck? He drink alcohol today, he don't get drunk until tomorrow.
Kenneth Faried, Denver Nuggets
Me: I just saw your cover of the Body Issue…lookin' good! How's it feel to be out here with all your clothes on?
Kenneth: Uncomfortable.
Me: Who is someone you could see tonight that would make you beyond excited?
Kenneth: Alicia Keys.
Me: How much would you pay for a private concert with her and her piano?
Kenneth: I wouldn't pay for that, but I'd brag about it.
Elena Hight, US Olympic Snowboarder
Me: Who is the most extreme athlete you've ever met or want to meet?
Elena: I'd have to say Travis Pastrana is the most extreme athlete I've ever met.
Me: Who are you most excited to see tonight?
Elena: There are so many amazing athletes to see everyone. Definitely Vernon Davis and Abby Wambach, those are top two.
Me: So you just stripped down for ESPN's annual Body Issue, does it feel weird having clothes on?
Elena: I'm definitely more liberal now.
Me: Who were you most nervous to see the photos?
Elena: My grandparents. They've seen it but I haven't talked to them yet.
Me: Would you consider getting a large print and hanging it over their couch?
Elena: I don't know about that, but I'm really proud of it. It was a cool experience.
Tony Kannan, Indy 500 Driver
Me: How excited are you to be here?
Tony: It's awesome! This is the biggest sporting event in the world and to be a part of it is an honor, but to be a nominee, it makes me more nervous than before a race. I'm meeting some of my idols here.
Me: Who are your idols?
Tony: Dwyane Wade and Michael Phelps are at the top.
Me: Do you think either of them would fit in your race car?
Tony: No way. I'd like to see it, but then they would ask me to play or swim and that's going to be terrible.
Me: Do you think you could play basketball?
Tony: No way, look at my size. I'm not Muggsy Bogues.
Next page: Mr. Belding! Also: babes.
Brandon Graham, Philadelphia Eagles
Me: Big Eagles fan here, how you feeling tonight?
Brandon: It's my first time here, just taking it all in and enjoying myself.
Me: What can Eagles fans look forward to this season?
Brandon: We're going to be moving fast paced this season, scoring a lot of touchdowns. It's definitely going to be a big year for the birds.
Me: What's one song that pumps you up?
Brandon: The whole Jay-Z album. Holy Grail is my favorite.
Me: Speaking of that album, you're stuck on a deserted island: Justin Timberlake or Jay-Z?
Brandon: Justin
Me: Kobe or Lebron?
Brandon: Stranded for how long?
Me: Life. Forever.
Brandon: I'll go with Kobe because Kobe will make up some stuff so we can make it through.
Mr. Belding, otherwise known as Dennis Haskins from Saved by the Bell
Me: Which well-known athlete do you think was in detention the most?
Mr. Belding: Maybe Floyd [Mayweather]. I know Floyd, he's very nice, but everyone makes mistakes. You learn and grow and move on.
Me: Thanks Mr. Belding. Actually, what is your real name? I'm embarrassed I don't know.
Mr. Belding: It's Dennis.
Melissa Rycroft, former Bachelor Contestant, Dancing with the Stars
Me: You have by far the biggest smile of the night Melissa, you must be excited?
Melissa: Don't tell my husband but I'm a big Jon Hamm fan, so I'm excited we get to see him all night long.
Me: If you could ask him one question, what would it be?
Melissa: If neither of us were married, what do you think would happen?
Me: What athlete do you love the most?
Melissa: Derek Jeter, I only met him once and I was so star-struck, I'd love to see him again for a do-over.
Me: If you could pick any partner for Dancing with the Stars, who would you pick?
Melissa: Derek Jeter, of course, and I'd definitely want to spend eight hours a day training with him. Don't tell my husband, it's date night tonight!
Cortez Allen, Pittsburgh Steelers
Me: On a scale of 1-10, how hot are you right now?
Cortez: I gotta give you a number? I'd say a 9.682.
Me: Do you know the only place hotter than that? Texas.
Cortez: Isn't Vegas hotter?
Me: So you're a smartass?
Cortez: Nah, just good at geography and stuff.
Me: Is there anyone here who'd make you pee your pants with excitement if you got to meet them?
Cortez: I do get star-struck, but I play it cool. I'm in the locker-room everyday with Troy Polamalu – how can you not be star-struck?
Me: So how do you play it cool? Avoid eye contact?
Cortez: I put on a façade and act like I been there before, even though this is my first time at the ESPYs.
Me: Who's your favorite celeb?
Cortez: Probably Gabrielle Union.
Me: She just passed by!
Cortez: Where?!
Me: Over there, but remember, play it cool!
Cortez: I got this, blondie.
Jack Hoffman (and father Andy), Best Moment Winner
Me: Are y'all nervous?
Andy: Mostly excited. I think the thing that excites all of us is raising awareness for pediatric brain cancer. The athletes are great, but what excites us is telling everyone about this disease one more time in front of an awesome captive audience.
Me: Who are you most excited to see tonight?
Andy and Jack: We're straight from the farm so it's cool to see everybody. Obviously we'd love to meet Robin Givens as her and Jack share a common fight, so that's someone our whole family would love to meet.
Kelly Clark, nominated for best female action sports athlete
Me: What's the most nerve-racking part being here tonight? I know you're up for a prestigious award…
Kelly: I don't get to spend a lot of days in heels, so I'm loving every minute of it. As a woman, the heels are the biggest fear walking down the red carpet, but so far so good.
Me: What's the hardest thing you've ever done in her career?
Kelly: At the '06 Olympics I went for it and came up short and ended up in 4th place. I think getting the courage to dream again after that is probably one of the hardest things. Getting back on the podium in Vancouver was a dream come true, and a victory in more ways than one.
Me: What do you say to young girls who want to be athletes like you?
Kelly: I would start with believing that nothing's impossible. My work is a testament to that. And learn to be comfortable in your own skin. And in heels!
Louisville Women's Basketball Team
Me: Congrats on being here ladies! Who's everyone most excited about seeing here tonight?
Team in Unison: LEBRON
Me: With or without a headband?
Team in Unison: WITHOUT!
Me: What do you say to young female athletes to motivate and encourage them?
Sarah Hammond: You never know what can happen as long as you try hard to do your best, and as long as you keep pushing forward, you can accomplish something like we did this year.
Bria Smith: We're at the ESPYs this year, so we're proof of that.
Sugar Shane Mosley, Boxer
Me: Welcome to the ESPYs Sugar Shane, how's your night? Who are you most excited to see?
SSM: I know a lot of the athletes, so I'm excited to see non-sports related.
Me: Like who?
SSM: Well who's here?
Me: A lot of actresses are here.
SSM: Yeah, I like actresses.
Me: Gabrielle Union just walked by looking gorgeous.
SSM: Yeah, her. She's my favorite. How long ago did she walk by?
Destinee Hooker, Olympic Volleyball Player
Me: Since you're from Austin, tell me something about Austin for those who have never been.
Destinee: It's definitely loud and crazy and the energy is awesome. I love the fans and the energy. When I was in the Olympics, I put up the hook 'em sign and fans loved that.
Me: If you could meet anyone tonight, who would get you super excited?
Destinee: I've been hearing a rumor that Kevin Hart is here – I'd love to get a picture with him.
Me: If you could any anything to him, what would you say?
Destinee: I'd probably make a joke with him and put my arm on his head and say, "Remember when you said on the BET awards to turn up, well we're going to turn it down." [As she gives me a visual of her picture perfect moment towering over his pretend small stature]
Stephanie Gilmore, 5x World Champion of Surfing
Me: Who would you love to see on a surfboard?
Stephanie: Definitely one of the NBA guys, any of them. I think they could do it, they just need a really big surfboard. They'd probably have to use a 10ft board because they're all about 9ft tall!
Jessica Long, Olympic Swimmer
Me: What song pumps you up before you jump in the pool?
Jessica: "Club Can't Handle Me" by Flo Rida. I'm not good at singing it, but I'm good at dancing to it when the time is right.
Jayme Lamm is a freelance sports and travel writer based in Houston and is currently in a full-court press writing her hugely opinionated sports column, The Blonde Side. Follow her travels for sporting events and check her out on Twitter.
Jayme compiled The Best LeBron James #NoHeadband Tweets and interviewed a Texan cheerleader in Meet "Moe".


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ALBUQUERQUE (KASA) – Ideum, the company responsible for interactive digital coffee tables is based out of Corrales and Albuquerque, New Mexico. The popular item is quickly revolutionizing home entertainment and family time.
"It's an incredibly versatile product in, it's reliable that we have some of the best fidelity in the market," says Paul Lacey, Chief Technical Officer of Ideum. "Arguably the best given the size and given the flexibility of the product."
The innovation from the workers at Ideum is not only seen in the incredible machines they produce, but they also fabricate some of the parts to cut down on costs and production time."
"A lot of what we are doing is unparalleled," adds Lacey. "Few competitors, what we've produced here is homegrown it's made in Albuquerque and Corrales we have, even the metal fabrication is here in state, we do all the assembly and testing here in Corrales, we even do a lot of the software development so we're a one stop shop in many respects."
That also includes use of a 3D printer making more efficient and smaller parts to keep the machines in a sleek design.
"All you have to do is plug it in," says Lacey. "Press one button and the system takes care of itself, it turns on, the application launches and you're ready to go."
With all that ease of use, another selling point for the unit is it's durability.
"Because we had that background of where we had a lot of moving parts, a lot of optics, trying to harden it and make it so it's bulletproof for public facilities," says Lacey. "We actually did tests where we could drop bowling balls on our systems and they just bounce right off."


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Bollywood Actresses Who Were Detained At Airports
After Minissha Lamba, Bipasha Basu it was Anushka Sharma who was in the news for getting detained at Airport. Though it has been quite a good time before any such incident occurred, I just found it interesting that a number of Bollywood actresses have ended up getting detained at the airport.
While for each actress has been detained for different reasons, a few years ago Anushka Sharma was detained due to some undeclared goods at the Airport. Bipasha basu apparently paid Rs. 12600 towards custom duty and Minissha Lamba was detained at the Mumbai airport for 16 long hours for not having declared Rs. 50 lakhs worth of jewellery.
Apart from their lifestyle, glamour and onscreen kisses, this is one more thing that brings these Bollywood celebs time and again into the limelight. And that is their frequent detentions at airport. It's not just the actors, but mainstream actresses too who have been detained at various International airports time and again. Let's take a look at some of these Bollywood actresses who were detained at the airport...
Bollywood Actresses Who Were Detained At Airport:


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Integrity Selling for the 21st Century
How to Sell the Way People Want to Buy
by Ron Willingham
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"I have observed several hundred salespeople who were taught to use deceptive practices like 'bait and switch' and encouraged to play negotiation games with customers. They were so stressed by this behavior that they suffered from a high incidence of alcohol and substance abuse, divorce, job-jumping, and low productivity. In the same industry, I have observed countless people who had been taught to sell with high integrity. Ironically, their customer satisfaction, profit margins, and salesperson retention were significantly higher." — Ron Willingham
If you've tried manipulative, self-focused selling techniques that demean you and your customer, if you've ever wondered if selling could be more than just talking people into buying, then Integrity Selling for the 21st Century is the book for you. Its concept is simple: Only by getting to know your customers and their needs — and believing that you can meet those needs — will you enjoy relationships with customers built on trust. And only then, when you bring more value to your customers than you receive in payment, will you begin to reap the rewards of high sales.
Since the publication of Ron Willingham's enormously successful first book, Integrity Selling, his sales program has been adopted by dozens of Fortune 500 companies, such as Johnson & Johnson and IBM, as well as the American Red Cross and the New York Times. In his new book, Integrity Selling for the 21st Century, Willingham explains how his selling system relates to today's business climate — when the need for integrity is greater than ever before.
Integrity Selling for the 21st Century teaches a process of self-evaluation to help you become a stellar salesperson in any business climate. Once you've established your own goals and personality traits, you'll be able to evaluate them in your customers and adapt your styles to create a more trusting, productive relationship.
Drawing upon Willingham's years of experience and success stories from sales forces of the more than 2,000 companies that have adopted the Integrity Selling system, Ron Willingham has created a blueprint for achieving success in sales while staying true to your values.
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Public health and access to affordable healthcare are important factors in long-term health outcomes and quality of life. Here's a summary of Pennsylvania residents' overall health, access to health insurance, and state leadership's approach to healthcare reform:
Pennsylvania health ratings
In 2014, America's Health Rankings placed Pennsylvania 28th out of the 50 states in terms of overall health. The state's rating is helped by a low percentage of uninsured, a strong high school graduation rate, and high immunization coverage among children and adolescents. Pennsylvania's challenges include high rates of drug deaths and air pollution, and relatively low per capita public health funding. In the past several years, the state has seen improved immunization coverage, fewer preventable hospitalizations and a decrease in smoking.
Pennsylvania fared slightly better in The Commonwealth Fund's 2015 Scorecard on State Health System Performance. The state came in 2oth out of the 50 states and DC, up from 22nd in 2014. The Pennsylvania Scorecard provides details showing how the rating was determined; the state scored better than average for prevention and treatment metrics, but lower than average on the "healthy lives" section, which includes factors such a specific disease incidence, tobacco use, and obesity.
Trust for America's Health has summarized a variety of public health data pertaining to Pennsylvania in their 2015 edition of Key Health Data, which contains information on specific diseases, health factors, and outcomes.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation also analyzed public health data at the county level, ranking Pennsylvania's counties on this interactive map. The southeast part of the state has some of the highest-ranking counties for both health factors and outcomes.
Pennsylvania and the Affordable Care Act
In 2010, both of Pennsylvania's U.S. Senators, Democrats Robert Casey and Arlen Specter, voted in favor of the ACA. In the U.S. House, eleven Democrat representatives voted yes, while seven Republicans voted no. Specter has since been replaced in the Senate by Republican Pat Toomey, and the U.S. House now includes just five Pennsylvania Democrats, and 13 Republicans.
At the state level, the overall population in Pennsylvania has a Democratic majority, but the Republicans hold a majority in the state's House and Senate. Former Gov. Tom Corbett was also a Republican and not an ACA supporter. As such, the state defaulted to a federally facilitated health insurance exchange.
But unlike many Republican governors, Corbett pursued the possibility of Medicaid expansion under the ACA. Corbett submitted his proposal for a modified version of Medicaid expansion – dubbed Healthy Pennsylvania – to HHS in February 2014. It took half a year of negotiations, but on August 28, 2014, Corbett and HHS announced that they had reached an agreement, and Pennsylvania became the 28th state, including DC, to accept federal funding to expand Medicaid and thereby cover residents with incomes up to 138 percent of poverty.
Corbett lost the 2014 gubernatorial election to Tom Wolf, a democrat. Gov. Wolf was sworn into office January 20, 2015. Shortly after he assumed office, Wolf began to do away with Healthy PA in favor of traditional Medicaid expansion, which had been a campaign promise.
How did Obamacare help PA residents?
Before the ACA was implemented, the uninsured rate in Pennsylvania was 11 percent, the seventh-lowest rate in the nation. Despite the fact that Pennsylvania has not yet expanded Medicaid, the uninsured rate had fallen slightly – to 10.3 percent – by the middle of 2014. About 360,000 people obtained coverage, including Medicaid/CHIP and private plans, through the Pennsylvania exchange during the first open enrollment.
By mid-2015, Pennsylvania's percentage of uninsured dropped to 7.7. The number of people that obtained 2015 coverage through the exchange, including Medicaid/CHIP and private plans, was 539,023.
Nonetheless, Pennsylvania still has 994,000 uninsured residents, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Forty-eight percent of them are eligible for Medicaid and 18 percent are eligible for tax credits if they buy private health plans through Pennsylvania's exchange.
In September 2015, Pennsylvania was awarded more than $3.1 million in Navigator grants to help six organizations provide outreach and enrollment assistance through 2018.
Pennsylvania enrollment in qualified health plans
In the fall of 2013, the Kaiser Family Foundation estimated that 1,276,000 Pennsylvania residents could potentially buy qualified health plans (QHPs) through the exchange and that 715,000 of them would qualify for premium subsidies. By the end of the first open enrollment period, 318,077 people purchased private plans in the Pennsylvania exchange, and 81 percent received premium subsidies.
During 2015 open enrollment, 472,697 Pennsylvanians selected private plans through the state's exchange. By June 30, however, some had dropped their coverage and total effectuated enrollment was 397,967 with 80.4 percent of enrollees in plans with premium tax credits and 55.3 percent receiving cost-sharing subsidies.
Pennsylvania's final 2016 rates have a 12 percent weighted average increase, and there will be 15 carriers offering individual health plans through the state's exchange.
PA Medicaid/CHIP
By July 27, 2015, about 439,000 Pennsylvanians had enrolled in the state's expanded Medicaid program – expanded coverage did not take effect until January 2015. The state saw a 12 percent increase in its average monthly Medicaid enrollment from 2013 to 2015, a number that is sure to keep changing now that Pennsylvania has expanded Medicaid coverage and Medicaid enrollment lasts year-round.
Medicare in the Keystone State
Pennsylvania Medicare enrollment reached 2.5 million in 2015, which is about 19.6 percent of the state's population. About 17 percent of the U.S. population is enrolled in Medicare. In the Keystone State, 82 percent of Medicare beneficiaries qualify based on age alone and 18 percent qualify due to a disability.
Medicare spends about $10,555 annually per Pennsylvania enrollee, and the state ranks fifth in overall Medicare spending with $23.7 billion per year.
Pennsylvanians that qualify for Medicare can select a Medicare Advantage plan instead of Original Medicare, and about 40 percent do so. About 41 percent of Pennsylvania's Medicare beneficiaries are enrolled in stand-alone prescription drug benefits through a Medicare Part D plan. Nationally, about 32 percent of Medicare beneficiaries choose a Medicare Advantage plan and 43 percent select a Rx plan.
State-based health reform legislation
Here's a summary of recent Pennsylvania legislation related to public health and healthcare reform:


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Wow Jerry.
I wonder who told Narron to let McCracken be the first guy to pinch hit in a game?
His track record as a marginal 11th/12th pitcher is well established. He should be kept as far away from high leverage innings as possible. Bringing him in to pitch in those situations is simply playing with matches.Originally Posted by Roy Tucker
What are you, people? On dope? - Mr Hand
No, and you can't necessarily use your best reliever in every game, regardless of the situation, unless you want his arm to fall off. A manager has to guess as to when the crucial part of the game is, and take into account how much work his ace reliever has already had. Automatically "saving" your closer for the ninth inning, regardless of the situation in the 6th, 7th or 8th inning, is mindless decision-making by a manager.Originally Posted by Chip R
"Hey...Dad. Wanna Have A Catch?" Kevin Costner in "Field Of Dreams."
So you pick your poison. Yan or White or Weathers. If Narron would have brought White in and he gave up a hit, people would have been crying for Yan who pitched well in every appearance before that one. He could have gone with Weathers but he's been pretty unreliable as of late and has been fighting a case of tendinitis. I'm not saying Yan is the second coming of Rob Dibble but there weren't/aren't a lot of options in that pen.Originally Posted by flyer85
So is bringing in ________, ________, and/or _________. (Insert Reds bullpen member here.)Originally Posted by flyer85
When all is said and done more is said than done.
Most managers aren't psychics. They don't know when a more crucial situation could arise. Let's take Saturday's game for example. You bring Coffey in that bases loaded situation instead of Yan. Let's say he gets out of it and the Reds score a run later on. Bottom of the 9th comes around and you no longer have Coffey available. Same situation comes up. Bases loaded, 2 outs and you have the 3 Stooges available to close it out. I don't know about you but I think nursing a 1 run lead in the 9th is a lot more crucial than a scoreless tie in the 6th. Even if you give up runs in the 6th, you still have 4 innings to come back. If you give up runs in the 9th you only have one shot and none if you are on the road.Originally Posted by RedsBaron
Can't we just make up a stat, like say a "Stop" for when a guy comes in anytime after the 5th inning with the tying or winning run left in scoring position by the previous pitcher and proceeds to get out of the inning (regardless of the number of outs it takes) without allowing any runs scored? And then can't we just make that stat more valuable than a "Save" and start paying our "stoppers" as such?
Yes, but if Yan gives up a hit or two you're not going to get that save opp in the 9th anyway. Your nails-closer will rust away if the relief corps can't carry a lead into the 9th, and he becomes a sunk cost.Originally Posted by Chip R
"It's easier to give up. I'm not a very vocal player. I lead by example. I take the attitude that I've got to go out and do it. Because of who I am, I've got to give everything I've got to come back."
-Ken Griffey Jr.
Wayne Granger, Phil Regan, Cecil Upshaw, Sparky Lyle, early Rich Gossage, Ted Abernathy, Ron Perranoski, Eddie Watt, Wilbur Wood, Jim Brewer, Jim Hughes, Dick Radatz, etc.Originally Posted by westofyou
Our interim pitching coach was even one of those guys who came in early in close games and pitched 2-3 innings if needed.
With relievers' contracts getting larger even in the setup role, such as Bob Howry who just blew threw town, a team who turns a Todd Coffey into a 60s-70s type reliever cannot be far away. But it takes some guts since the minute you go against the grain (Red Sox closer by committee was constantly getting "I told you so-ed" in the media) the scrutiny begins at the first failure.
BTW, with respect to the title of this thread, I think Narron was simply pointing out that he is really thinking that the "closer" idea may not be the best game plan for a bullpen as thin as his.
Can't win with 'em
Can't win without 'em
How is a manager supposed to be able to guess when that situation will be in time to warm the guy up? That's why you only see it in the playoffs, and often only in elimination games. You can't be warming pitchers up and not using them and getting them up again later repeatedly, that causes damage, too. They could do it years ago because they had starters pitching complete or nearly complete games almost routinely. And, frankly, no one really cared all that much if they wrecked a pitcher's arm from overuse. It just isn't enough to have a relief ace, you really need 2.Originally Posted by RedsBaron
I've been singing that song ever since our bullpen got thin in the post Sullivan, Williamson, Graves (before he blew up), 1st time Gabe White era. Keep on holding back that closer and he sits for days, or you put him in a blowout game "to get work." I can't wait to see the first manager defy the conventional "wisdom." I'm still waiting, though.Originally Posted by zombie-a-go-go
Can't win with 'em
Can't win without 'em
I don't think this was Narron's intention, but I've heard about other managers that deliberately put incendiary relievers in to prove a point to the GM, i.e. "this is an example of the meatheads you've given me, please give me better players".
The motel of lost companions,
Waits with heated pool and bar
which should be a clue to the FO that something needs to be done. Simply recycling other teams waste products is not going to solve the problem. You either have to try a solution form within or pay to get one elsewhere.Originally Posted by Chip R
What are you, people? On dope? - Mr Hand
i agree flyer86, but, its one thing to have a problem, its another to be able to solve it. im sure the fo knows the bullpen stinks. but who is out there that they can get right now that is any better than what they have already? i dont know, i just have to think few if any.Originally Posted by flyer85
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If you are in Orlando...you must go to the Flying Fish at the Boardwalk Inn at Epcot...The atmosphere is fantastic and the food is exceptional...The Team from the Executive Chef Tim Majoras to the dishwashers know how to deliver a wonderful experience.
My family experienced one of the best times of our lives. Due to an unfortunate situation we needed a smile in our lives. To start was a week vacation in Disney and the second thing was the experience at the Flying Fish Cafe. I booked at home reservations for the wine and dine meal and could not say enough about it. Courses were served with wine and our waiter described each and every one to the tee. The assistant chef described the meal and the wine complimented each and every bite. Sitting at the cooking station alone was an adventure one could not even describe, watching food being cooked and prepped for the general public. After two hours of eating and drinking, it was time to leave and I have to say that I would be the first in line to go back to this restaurant in a second. Thank you for the experience and I do hope we can meet again and do it all over again. One thing, I am sorry I am so late in writing a review on the place but between work and life it took a while. See you soon guys, Thanks.
We've been to Disneyworld 4 times in the past 6 years, and stayed at the Boardwalk for the last two. We tried the Flying Fish the first time (on our second visit), just because it was close to the hotel. Afterwards, we decided we had been missing out on a meal fit for kings.
Everything on the menu is absolutely delicious and is prepared exactly as you order it. The fish is perfectly prepared and seasoned and the desserts - well, it's tempting to lick the plates or bowls clean.
The service is quick and attentive without being overbearing and the servers we've had have been outstanding.
We recommend this restaurant to anyone visiting Disneyworld - anytime. While there are most assuredly other good restaurants at Disneyworld (Narcoossee's, etc), this is the absolute best - hands down.
This place is unbelievable. If you don't believe me just give it a try. If worse comes to worse the bakery is right down the boardwalk. But I'm willing to guess you won't be disappointed.
This signature restaurant has the most delicious crabcake appetizer I've ever tasted, and I'm from Maryland! Our waiter was so very kind and attentive! I would recommend going without kids, as it has an upscale atmosphere! The seafood truly was amazing! I would definitely like to experience this restaurant again!
My wife & I enjoyed our anniversary dinner here while mom kept the 2 year-old for an early bed time... it was such an amazing dinner! I was so blown away by the quality of the food and drinks. Yes, we spent a little more than we might back home, but it was so worth it. And even though we didn't have our little one with us, there were plenty of families enjoying the more upscale dining here.
We shared the crab cake for an appetizer (SO good!), then split a delicious caser salad, wife had a bellini & I got some delicious "flying fish" specialty drink with gin... thinking about it now & my mouth is watering. My entree was a potato covered red snapper, & my wife had scallops with cheese risotto - again, just amazing.
Our waitress from Hong Kong was super nice and gave us several little free treats to take back to our Art-of-Animation Suite for the rest of our family not at dinner.
I was a little embarrassed when they asked me to please observe the "gentlemen's rule" of no hats while dining... we were dressed nicely after going back for a shower after a day at Animal Kingdom, but that ball cap had to go! :)
I would highly recommend the Flying Fish Cafe!
we went to flying fish the week after thanksgiving 2009 and again 2010. we had a great time on both visits. wonderful wait staff. great food. we had a 9-something adr and got there much quicker than expected (not our kind of usual luck lol) but they were able to go ahead and seat us. i love this place. it would likely be packed and impossible to get into if it were in a different location. being on the boardwalk is likely why you can get an adr less than 180 days out otherwise based on the food/service etc... i think it would be one of the hardest reservations to get on wdw property. i almost hope it doesn't get to popular...it's a great secret little place to eat.
We dined there for dinner in June 2010
Staff were very helpful and the meals were very good ,my only negative was that with the with the fish meals they tended to put alot of sauce on it drowning out the flavour .Otherwise cant fault it
Me and my wife have eaten here several times over the years. Both as a couple and with family. Never disappointed but much better as a couple. Not for kids. Last visit was great. Service was excellent. Friendly and professional.
We had dinner for two at Flying Fish Cafe... I went into it with fairly high expectations, and they were all met and exceeded! Service was excellent... all courses came with perfect timing. I had the crab cakes, which were mouth watering. For the entree, I chose their signature dish, the potato wrapped snapper. It was amazing. The dessert was a chocolate cake wth a melted center which was also fantastic. The atmosphere was nice on the night I was there, and it wasn't very crowded at all. I recommend it as a great date destination for those who are a little adventurous with their dining choices.
This is a must do on the first day of any of our trips. My son absolutely loves their calimari and their crab cakes are to die for! I enjoy the atmosphere in this restaurant. The service is great, as a matter of fact, we have always had the same waiter each visit. Not only is the food amazing, but I love the decor as well. If you look at the mural on the side wall towards the back of the restaurant you'll find a hidden mickey. The only draw back here is the bathroom. You have to walk to the front of the restaurant and through the side doors into the carndy shoppe to get to the restroom. Other than that it's great!
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How can I change text and box color of the variations description on my products?
My problem is this: On any product if there is a variation - like choose size or color, the text describing it is white and the box is white so it cannot be read.
Example - http://flywithspa.com/store/product/sonex-corvair-sensenich-propeller/
I thought it might be a WooCommerce issue, but if I try a different theme the issue is resolved.
Thank you!


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Penguin Books
Corduroy Lapbook
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Corduroy Lapbook (Hardcover) * A toy bear in a department store wants a number of things, but when a little girl finally buys him he finds what he has always wanted most of all. * Paperback * 32 pages * Published Date: April 28, 2007
Material: Paperback
Brand: Penguin Books
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