text:
Index of content:
Volume 74, Issue 3, March 2003
Laser-based methods for ultrasensitive trace-isotope analyses74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1535232View Description Hide Description
An overview of experimental approaches to sensitive and selective trace analysis of long-lived radioactive isotopes is given, emphasizing methods based upon laser spectroscopy techniques. Two such laser-based methods, resonance ionizationmass spectrometry and atom trap trace analysis, have recently demonstrated high sensitivities and selectivities which are comparable to those of more mature methods such as accelerator mass spectrometry and low level counting. The analysis of long-lived radioactive isotopes has been used for a variety of applications in a broad range of scientific and technological fields and is steadily gaining importance. The development of these new laser-based methods can enhance our analysis capability and further expand the area of applications.
- Top
- OPTICS; ATOMS and MOLECULES; SPECTROSCOPY; PHOTON DETECTORS
Compton scattering and photoluminescence for x-ray imaging74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1536261View Description Hide Description
Experiments with high-intensity, submillimeter diameter, pulsed x-ray beams that will be generated by the planned Linac Coherent Light Source will require nonperturbing imaging of such beams. Two approaches to solving this problem are proposed: Compton scattering off a thin solid foil and photoluminescence induced in a thin gas jet. The first would be efficient for x-ray energies above a few keV, whereas the second can be used to detect lower-energy beams, below ∼1 keV. Spatial resolution of the time-integrated images would be ∼10 μm for the first technique and ∼60 μm for the second technique. The minimum number of x-ray quanta needed for reaching this spatial resolution is ∼10.11 The imaging does not introduce significant perturbations to the beam. A set of design equations and constraints is provided.
Growth characteristics and potential applications in optical sensors of composite crystal fiber74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1535235View Description Hide Description
Composite crystal fiber was grown by means of the laser heated pedestal growth method. By using a high quality as the seed and a sinteredpowder rod as the source rod, it was shown that can be readily grown on a end surface. The crystal fiber thus produced was processed and preliminary results showed that the crystal fiber demonstrated laser performance as a compact passively Q-switched laser device. A Q-switched laser output showing a 9 ns pulse duration, a 19 mW average output and a 10 kHz repetition rate was achieved. The use of the fiber in high temperature optical sensor application is discussed.
- PARTICLE SOURCES, OPTICS and ACCELERATION; PARTICLE DETECTORS
Miniaturized electrostatic analyzer manufactured using photolithographic etching74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1540715View Description Hide Description
A design for a new type of electrostatic analyzer, comprised of an arrangement of thin, patterned, conducting, and insulating plates and suitable for extreme miniaturization, is presented. The prototype, destined for use on a microsatellite-based experiment, is fabricated from photolithographically etched stainless steel plates with Teflon insulating layers. Results from tests on the prototype using a highly monoenergetic electron beam show that, as predicted, the device operates as a bandpass energy filter. The energy resolution and angular field of view of this design depend on the relative geometries of the apertures in the conducting plates and can be tailored to specific applications by varying these parameters.
An indirectly heated electron beam emitter assembly74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1535735View Description Hide Description
A simple, high performance indirectly heated axial electron gun has been designed and fabricated. A 0.9-mm-thick and 15-mm-wide tantalum strip was used as a cathode with an emission length of 42 mm. An emission current of 600 mA was achieved at an input heater power of only 116 W. The gun is useful for laboratory experiments as well as welding, evaporation of refractory metals, and for linear accelerators.
- NUCLEAR PHYSICS, FUSION and PLASMAS
Thomson scattering system for the diagnosis of the ETE spherical tokamak plasma74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1540717View Description Hide Description
A 10 J ruby laser Thomson scattering system was implemented on the ETE spherical tokamak to measure the density and temperature profiles. The laser probes the plasma at the horizontal midplane of the torus and the collection optics allows the observation of up to 22 points inside the plasma in the same plane. Radial profiles of plasma density and electron temperature were obtained for different times during the discharge by shot-to-shot procedure. Temperatures of up to 160 eV and densities of were measured. Since the level of stray light was too high, the calibration of the Thomson scattering system for density measurements was made using the nitrogen Raman technique instead of the usually applied Rayleigh method.
- MICROSCOPY and IMAGING
Direct measurement instrument for lattice spacing on regular crystalline surfaces using a scanning tunneling microscope and laser interferometry74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1536258View Description Hide Description
An instrument for direct measurement of the lattice spacing on regular crystalline surfaces, which incorporates a scanning tunneling microscope(STM) and a phase modulationhomodyneinterferometer (PMHI), was developed. Our aim was to verify the applicability of the length measurement method in which the lattice spacing on the crystalline surface obtained with the STM is used as a fine scale and the optical interference fringe, i.e., wavelength λ, of the PMHI is used as a coarse scale. The instrument consists of a STM head with a YZ axes tip scanner, a precise X-axis sample stage with flexure springs, and the PMHI with a four-path differential configuration. Combining the movements of the YZ-axes tip scanner and the X-axis sample stage, the instrument can perform long atomic STMimaging of the crystalline surface along the X axis, which is also the fast scanning axis for eliminating thermal drift. The relative displacement of the X-axis sample stage between optical interference dark fringes (=null points) of the PMHI, which is λ/16 times the integer value in the design, can be measured with a resolution of 10 pm or less using the phase modulation technique. The lattice spacing on a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) crystalline surface was measured by comparing the number of atoms in the atomic STMimage of 100 nm length with the optical fringes of the PMHI. The mean and expanded uncertainty of the lattice spacing between α sites of the HOPG surface were 0.246 nm and 7 pm, respectively. The mean value was very close to that reported by Park and Quate [Sang-II Park and C. F. Quate, Appl. Phys. Lett. 48, 112 (1986)]. The experimental results also show the feasibility of realizing length measurement using the lattice spacing on the crystalline surface and the PMHI.
A microscope for imaging, spectroscopy, and lithography at the nanometer scale: Combination of a two-photon laser scanning microscope and an atomic force microscope74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1535234View Description Hide Description
We designed and built a unique instrument that combines a two-photon laser scanning microscope (LSM) with an inverted atomic force microscope(AFM). Local photoluminescence(PL)spectroscopy and three-dimensional lithography are demonstrated using the two-photon LSM. High spatial resolution topographic images from the AFM can be recorded simultaneously with the PL images of the same region, allowing us to correlate PL variation and surface features of the sample. The wavelength of the short-pulse laser excitation can be varied continuously from 700 to 800 nm while the detection setup is optimized for signals between 350 and 650 nm. We demonstrate the performance of this instrument by examining the spatial variation of PL signals in GaN samples and by fabricating photonic crystal structures in polymer films.
Combined force and photonic probe microscope with single molecule sensitivity74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1536260View Description Hide Description
Direct integration of atomic force microscopy(AFM)imaging with single molecule optical detection promises to combine the resolving power of AFM with the chemical identification capabilities of optical techniques. We present a straightforward experimental approach to achieving such integration. Our design allows simultaneous acquisition of topographical images and optical images with single molecule sensitivity at any region of the optical spectrum. We describe an instrument that combines atomic force microscopy and scanning confocal optical microscopy in a single multifunctional setup that maximizes the use of commercially available parts. To build this instrument we replaced the built-in piezoscanner of a commercial optical microscope–AFM platform with an external scanner that translates the sample. We also added a simple circuit to the setup that modulates the AFM head laser and synchronizes collection of the AFM and optical data in interleave scanning mode. Finally, we demonstrate the technique's identification capabilities using a model system of dye-labeled beads.
The flexible and modern open source scanning probe microscopy software package GXSM74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1540718View Description Hide Description
GXSM is a full featured and modern scanning probe microscopy(SPM)software. It can be used both in stand alone mode for powerful image processing and analysis and connected to an instrument operating many different flavors of SPM, e.g., scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic force microscopy or in general two-dimensional multichannel data acquisition instruments. The GXSM core can handle different data types, e.g., integer and floating point numbers. An easily extendable plug-in architecture provides many image analysis and manipulation functions. A digital signal processor subsystem runs the feedback loop, generates the scanning signals, and acquires the data during SPM measurements. In addition it performs sophisticated spectroscopy tasks such as scanning tunneling spectroscopy. The GXSMsoftware is released under the GNU general public license and can be obtained via the Internet.
Design of a flexure for surface forces apparatus74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1533792View Description Hide Description
We report the design of a variation of a double cantilever flexure system used for the measurement of displacement and force in surface force apparatus (SFA). The new force sensor is called dual double cantilever. The simple cantilever flexure suffers rotation, sideways deflection, and thermal expansion at the free end when loaded normally and asymmetrically. In the double cantilever these errors are minimized to a second order. In the dual double cantilever flexure the stiffness is enhanced 16 times as that of a single cantilever flexure but the rotation, sideways deflection, and thermal expansion at the free end are brought to many orders below the instrument resolutions. The new design enables the measurement of deflection by optical and capacitive sensing methods. The stiffness and the strain of the aluminum alloy [AUG1(2024)] flexure were estimated [dimensions, length (l=50.5 mm), breadth (b=10.5 mm), and thickness (t=1.2 mm)] by finite element method and were also validated experimentally. The finite element method was also used to create a map for the selection of a flexure geometry relevant to the properties of material under investigation by a SFA or a nanoindenter.
A new simple method for decoding penumbra image: The filtered autocorrelation74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1539893View Description Hide Description
We present a new simple method for decoding penumbra image. Penumbral imaging is a coded aperture technique which uses a simple large circular aperture as coding aperture. Thus, the image of the object is coded and the information must be recovered through a decoding process. The proposed decoding method overcomes the classical problem related to the zero-crossing of the Fourier transform of the point spread function. This problem arises when using the usual methods based on inverse filtering in Fourier domain. Moreover, it allows to remove automatically the flat background which is often superimposed to the penumbra image, without requiring an evaluation of its mean level. Performance comparison with the classical pseudo-Wiener filtering are presented. The method has been applied to ICFneutron penumbra images recorded at the Omega Laser Facility of the LLE (University of Rochester, NY). Experimental results are presented.
Mass sensing of adsorbed molecules in sub-picogram sample with ultrathin silicon resonator74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1536262View Description Hide Description
Ultrathin single-crystalline silicon cantilevers with a thickness of 170 nm as a resonating sensor are applied to mass sensing. The hydrogen storage capacity of a small amount of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), which were mounted on an ultrathin resonator by a manipulator, is measured from the resonant frequency change. The resonator is annealed in ultrahigh vacuum to clean the surface and increase the quality factor, and exposed to oxygen gas to oxidize the surface for long-term stability. The resonator can be electrostatically actuated, and the vibration is measured by a laser Doppler vibrometer in ultrahigh vacuum. The mass of the CNTs is determined by the difference of resonant frequencies before and after mounting the CNTs, and the hydrogen storage capacity is determined from the frequency change after exposure to high-pressure hydrogen as well. The obtained hydrogen storage capacitance is 1.6%–6.0%. The available mass resolution and the achieved stability of the resonance of the 170-nm-thick resonator are below g and 5 Hz/days, respectively.
Optical measurements of structure and orientation in sheared carbon-nanotube suspensions74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1540722View Description Hide Description
We describe an optical metrology for measuring shear-induced structure and orientation in dilute dispersions of multiwalled carbon nanotubes. Small-angle polarized light scattering and optical microscopy are combined in situ to quantify the structural anisotropy of multiwalled carbon nanotubes in semidilute, surfactant-stabilized aqueous suspensions under simple shear flow. Measurements performed as a function of the applied shear rate are used to demonstrate the capabilities and limitations of the experimental technique, which should be suitable for probing the shear response of polymer-nanotube melts and solutions.
Elemental surface analysis at ambient pressure by electron-induced x-ray fluorescence74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1542889View Description Hide Description
The development of a portable surface elemental analysis tool, based on the excitation of characteristic x rays from samples at ambient pressure with a focused electron beam is described. This instrument relies on the use of a thin electron transmissive membrane to isolate the vacuum of the electron source from the ambient atmosphere. The major attributes of this instrument include rapid (several minutes) spectrum acquisition, nondestructive evaluation of elemental composition, no sample preparation, and high-to-medium (several hundreds μm) spatial resolution. The instrument proof-of-principle has been demonstrated in a laboratory setup by obtaining energy dispersive x-ray spectra from metal and mineral samples.
Internal resistive heating in diamond anvil cell for in situ x-ray diffraction and Raman scattering74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1539895View Description Hide Description
An internal resistive heater contained completely between the anvil faces of a diamond anvil cell has been used to conduct experiments up to 10 GPa and temperatures up to 3000 K. There is evidence that pressures up to 50 GPa can be achieved with smaller anvil faces and smaller heater assembly. The technique offers a very homogeneous temperature profile and excellent time stability for studying both metallic and nonmetallic materials. Temperature is measured by spectroradiometry as an image of the incandescent sample is projected onto the end of a fiber optic cable leading to a spectrometer. A very linear relationship between temperature and power provides accurate temperature measurements even when the temperature is below incandescence. The melting of gold determined by loss of diffraction peaks occurred at temperatures in good agreement with published values. In situ Raman spectra of revealed the conversion of quartz to coesite. This method offers a larger heating volume with more stable and uniform temperature than laser heating techniques and at temperatures much greater than those that can be achieved by external resistive heating techniques.
Extending the pressure and temperature limits of hydrothermal diamond anvil cells74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1536257View Description Hide Description
A modified hydrothermal diamond anvil cell(HDAC) has been developed. The cell is designed primarily for use with anvils incorporating internal heaters, but also solves several technical problems limiting the pressures and temperatures that can be reached with conventional HDACs. The essential features of the cell are (i) the pressurizing mechanics ensure strictly parallel alignment and preclude accidental collision of the anvils, (ii) the mechanical anvil holders provide both robust fixation of the anvils without any glue and reliable electrical contacts with the anvil facets, (iii) the diamond anvils can be heated while the anvil backing plates and the holders remain comparatively cool, (iv) stable hydrothermal working conditions to at least 4.5 GPa and 1000 °C can be achieved during the course of sluggish reactions typical of geoscience research thrusts, and (v) large sample volumes are possible, such as diameters of 0.5 mm and heights of 0.1 mm for a 1 mm culet.
Combined molecular beam epitaxy and diffractometer system for in situ x-ray studies of crystal growth74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1535237View Description Hide Description
A combination of a molecular beam epitaxy(MBE) machine and a six circle diffractometer has been constructed at a dedicated wiggler beamline at the storage ring BESSY II for in situ investigations of III–V compound crystal growth. The growth conditions in our system reach a high MBE standard with a noncooled base pressure of A fast entry load lock is available for sample exchange. Large-area Be windows in the ultrahigh vacuum chamber allow us to measure reflections at entrance and exit angles up to i.e., large perpendicular momentum transfers are possible. In situreflection high energy electron diffraction and x-ray fluorescence measurements can be performed simultaneously with x-ray scattering. A GaAs(001) surface prepared and examined in our system reveals terrace widths of 450 nm and reconstruction domain sizes of 210 nm. The possibility of time-resolved x-ray diffraction studies is demonstrated by observation of intensity oscillations during layer-by-layer homoepitaxialgrowth on the surface. The resolution functions of our experiment are determined.
Highly efficient time-of-flight spectrometer for studying low-energy secondary emission from dielectrics: Secondary-electron emission from LiF film74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1537044View Description Hide Description
A highly efficient time-of-flightelectron spectrometer is described. An incident electron current of the order of makes it suitable for studying secondary emission from dielectric surfaces. A microchannel plate position-sensitive detector allows flight distance correction while keeping a large acceptance angle. Measured energy distribution curves of secondary electronsgenerated from a LiF film by 19–31 eV incident electrons demonstrate good energy resolution and reveal reproducible and stable emission features at and
New compact classical 40 kV Mott polarimeter74(2003); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1535736View Description Hide Description
A compact classical electron spin detector based on Mott scattering is described. This Mott polarimeter has an efficiency of a maximum counting rate of 500 kcps and bulk size The design of the polarimeter goes back to the classical Mott detector, operating from 100 to 120 kV but it can be combined with conventional analyzers due to its compactness. In this Mott polarimeter an electrostatic acceleration voltage up to 40 kV can be applied and the detectors are energy sensitive silicondiodes operated in reverse bias with variable discriminator threshold. The detectors with the amplifiers are floated on the top of acceleration voltage to allow a field-free travel of the electrons from the scatteringgold foil to the detectors. Such features reduce the polarimeters sensitivity to slight motion or changes in the shape of the incoming beam.


text:
A portion of Highway 3 East of Brooklyn was closed for a short while on the night of April 9 while RCMP attended the scene of a car fire on the highway.
A bystander took this photo from their home during a car fire that took place in Brooklyn on April 9. No one was hurt.
Liverpool Fire Department firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze but damage to the late-model Chevrolet was extensive.
The cause of the fire has been preliminarily attributed to mechanical failure.
The highway was closed to traffic for approximately 40 minutes.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
COLUMBUS, Georgia -- An early morning fire destroyed a family's mobile home off Victory Drive, the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reports.
WTVM reports the fire started around 2:30 a.m. at the Pine Grove Mobile Home Park on Plateau Drive in south Columbus.
Deputy Chief Greg Lang said the fire originated near the mobile home's electrical box.
Three adults and two children were in the home and escaped with no injuries.


text:
Radonsky for the New Millenium
- 24 Little Neck clams
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon Parmesan, grated
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh pepper
- 3 tablespoons bacon fat
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- Malt vinegar
Half shell the clams and set them aside. Mix the flour, bread crumbs, Parmesan, salt, and pepper.
In a large pan over high heat, render the bacon fat. Sprinkle a generous coating of the flour mixture over all the clams and carefully place them flesh side down, using a spoon, into the fat. Cook for about two minutes and remove to serving plates flesh side up. Top them with fresh parsley and malt vinegar.
Recipe courtesy of Alton Brown
Cooking Tips
More Recipes and Ideas
New Potatoes with Feta
Recipe courtesy of Damaris Phillips
Grilled New Potato Salad with Peppers and Onions
Recipe courtesy of Bobby Flay
New York Street Dogs
Recipe courtesy of Food Network Kitchen


text:
Martyrs, members of a noble family of Brescia ; the elder brother, Faustinus, being a priest, the younger, a deacon. For their fearless preaching of the Gospel, they were arraigned before the Emperor Hadrian, who, first at Brescia, later at Rome and Naples, subjected them to frightful torments, after which they were beheaded at Bescia in the year 120, according to the Bollandists, though Allard (Histoire des Persécutions pendant les Deux Premiers Siècles, Paris, 1885) places the date as early as 118. The many "Acts" of these saints are chiefly of a legendary character. Fedele Savio, S.J. the most recent writer on the subject, calls in question nearly every fact related of them except their existince and martyrdom, which are too well attested by their inclusion in so many of the early martyrologies and their extraordinary cult in their native city, of which from time immemorial they have been the chief patrons. Rome, Bologna and Verona share with Brescia the possession of their relics. Their feast is celebrated on 15 February, the traditional date of their martyrdom.
The Catholic Encyclopedia is the most comprehensive resource on Catholic teaching, history, and information ever gathered in all of human history. This easy-to-search online version was originally printed between 1907 and 1912 in fifteen hard copy volumes.
Designed to present its readers with the full body of Catholic teaching, the Encyclopedia contains not only precise statements of what the Church has defined, but also an impartial record of different views of acknowledged authority on all disputed questions, national, political or factional. In the determination of the truth the most recent and acknowledged scientific methods are employed, and the results of the latest research in theology, philosophy, history, apologetics, archaeology, and other sciences are given careful consideration.
No one who is interested in human history, past and present, can ignore the Catholic Church, either as an institution which has been the central figure in the civilized world for nearly two thousand years, decisively affecting its destinies, religious, literary, scientific, social and political, or as an existing power whose influence and activity extend to every part of the globe. In the past century the Church has grown both extensively and intensively among English-speaking peoples. Their living interests demand that they should have the means of informing themselves about this vast institution, which, whether they are Catholics or not, affects their fortunes and their destiny.
Copyright © Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Company New York, NY. Volume 1: 1907; Volume 2: 1907; Volume 3: 1908; Volume 4: 1908; Volume 5: 1909; Volume 6: 1909; Volume 7: 1910; Volume 8: 1910; Volume 9: 1910; Volume 10: 1911; Volume 11: - 1911; Volume 12: - 1911; Volume 13: - 1912; Volume 14: 1912; Volume 15: 1912
Catholic Online Catholic Encyclopedia Digital version Compiled and Copyright © Catholic Online


text:
My mom was good about saving favorite things from my childhood, among them books. When I became a mother, I was thrilled to dust off my hardcover editions of "Mog the Forgetful Cat," "Miss Suzy" and "Veronica." Sure, they're a bit dated - love the 1960s-era style and black-and-white TV in "Mog" - but the stories hold up.
Take "Veronica," the story of a hippo longing to stand out. You see, Veronica's "inconspicuous," writes Roger Duvoisin, when she's among her large family. She pines for more than the soft muddy riverbank she calls home. She's tired of blending in with her cousins and siblings. So she strikes out for the city, where becomes a most conspicuous hippo, kicking up a mess of trouble before winding up in jail.
Then a nice old lady comes to free Veronica from jail and sees that she gets home again.
Once home, Veronica feels a bit different as she lies amid the mud with her family. Her adventures have changed her perspective.
"She was now famous among hippopotamuses and beloved by all of them. Almost every day at sunset, they gathered around her to hear about her marvelous adventures in the pink and white city."
"And Veronica was very happy."
The topic may be the bulky hippo, but Duvoisin's sketches are whimsical and happy. Some sketches are black and white, while others use pretty jewel tones.
"Polka Bats and Octopus Slacks" is another gem. Written by Calef Brown, "Polka Bats" is a collection of witty, smart poems like, "Funky Snowman," and "The Lonely Surfer."
"People ask the surfer dude, Why so far from the ocean blue? Because I'm so afraid of sharks, he says, and water too.The illustrations are colorful and fun. My daughters love lingering on each page, especially the drawing of the funky snowman.
"Turn up the music with the disco beat, when you're in the groove, you don't need feet Crowds come out and fill the street. Kick it, Funky Snowman!!
What about your family? Reading anything good these days? What are your kids' favorites?
-- Noelle Crombie; email@example.com


text:
This deal has ended.
Normally $30, Amazon has the Skullcandy Smokin Buds Headphones on sale for only $10.73. These feature 9mm speakers with a frequency range of 100Hz up to 18,000Hz. Shipping is free with $25 and there is no sales tax (except KS, KY, ND, NY, WA).No longer available


text:
MUSKEGON, MI – A Muskegon baker at Ryke's Bakery, Catering and Café in Muskegon is set to compete in America's Best Raisin Bread Contest after being named a finalist by the California Raisin Marketing Board.
Tom Elliott, 49, recently was named one of nine finalists in the wholesale or commercial raisin bread category. He and the other eight finalists in the category will compete in a bake-off Oct. 11 to 13 at the American Institute of Baking in Manhattan, Kansas.
Elliott, Ryke's Bakery's assistant production manager, entered his Golden Raisin English Muffin Bread in the contest. The key to his bread was using cinnamon chips in the muffin as a substitute for a traditional swirl of cinnamon.
"I'm very excited," Elliott said of being named a finalist. "Hey, this may happen."
Renee Rouwhorst, co-owner of Ryke's Bakery, said Elliott excels at the "skilled trade" that it takes to make special breads.
"He's a really talented bread baker," Rouwhorst said. "He's got really good instincts."
Those wishing to try Elliott's Golden Raisin English Muffin Bread can purchase it for $5.99 at Ryke's Bakery, 1788 Terrace St. in Muskegon.
The first-place winner in the competition will receive a five-day trip to California, including visits to wine country, San Francisco and a culinary institute. In addition, the California Raisin Marketing Board will publish a book containing the winning formulas from the bake-off.
For Elliott, the first-place prize provided the final push to get him to enter the contest in July.
He is hoping to win the trip, because he and his wife, Bren, recently were forced to cancel a planned visit to California after their dog died and they face an expensive veterinarian bill. Bren is originally from California and the Elliotts were planning to visit family.
"At first, I wasn't going to do it," Elliott said of entering the national competition, but the California trip changed his mind.
The event is put on by the California Raisin growers to reward the creativity and encourage new product development of raisin breads by America's professional and student bakers.
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
This is the Sale Barn page for Mini Miracles Farm
Miniature Jersey Cows for sale
Because of the demand for our top quality mini Jersey cattle many animals are sold before they are placed on this website.
The pictures below are examples of the great calves produced by Mini Miracles Farm. For current availability and pricing please contact us.


text:
The $72 million South Bay Credit Union in Redondo Beach, Calif., said it is converting to the CU*BASE core processing platform through CU*Northwest of Spokane, Wash.
"We had little investment in technology over the last several years. We needed to bring the credit union to the new millennium," said Jennifer Oliver, South Bay CEO.
"We can now provide our members with new products including mobile banking, text notices, relationship pricing benefits, integrated statements/receipts, enhanced bill payment solutions and speedier processing times," she said.
Oliver also cited having ownership equity a CUSO that "encourages credit unions to act together to bring real economies of scale without merger."
The conversion is scheduled for Oct. 11. South Bay CU currently runs on the UltraData core platform from Harland Financial Solutions, according to the Technology Survey at creditunions.com.
The 8,000-member credit union serves the South Bay area of Los Angeles County.
CU*Northwest, part of the network based at CU*Answers of Grand Rapids, Mich., said it now has 16 credit unions running on the system and four more scheduled to be converted this year.


text:
Dr. Thomas Hauff Jr specializes in general dentistry in Glenview, Illinois.
Dr. Thomas Hauff Jr has been compared 2 times. Details of Dr. Hauff's experience as an DDS are available on your free dentist report.
Primary Location for Dr. Hauff
Thomas G Hauff
1545 Waukegan Rd
Suite 9
Glenview, IL 60025
Patient Ratings and Reviews
There are no ratings or reviews available for Dr. Thomas Hauff Jr at this time. Reviews may not be ready for viewing or are still processing.
Be the first to rate and review Dr. Thomas Hauff Jr by clicking the following button.
Board Certification, Specialty and Expertise
Dr. Thomas Hauff has been identified as specializing in General Dentistry.
Patients may also know Dr. Thomas Hauff Jr DDS as:
Compare Similar Dentists
Top searched General Dentists in Glenview, IL
Related Cities and Specialties
Find a Job
Are you Dr. Thomas Hauff?
Update your information


text:
The New York Times reported today that the Obama administration has called for a comprehensive national system for regulating the use of federal waters along the nation's marine and Great Lakes shores, now administered by a hodgepodge of federal, state or other agencies with often-conflicting goals.
This is interesting news, and it's consistent with the White House's decision to rewrite standards for federal water projects, widening 26-year-old rules that guide the Army Corps of Engineers in an effort to consider environmental and social goals as well as economic ones.
It's also consistent with the White Houses' decision to create a Gulf Restoration Panel to oversee coastal restoration in Louisiana and Mississippi, amid criticism that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has failed to protect the region.


text:
The waiting was the hardest part.
For Christian Brothers Academy senior Hailey Dobbins, missing nine games of her final high school season was torture. Lots of tears were shed, she said, between late April and last week.
But Dobbins, one of only three seniors on the CBA team, was a happy camper after today's 17-10 victory over Watertown for the Brothers' fourth straight sectional title.
The defending state champions will continue their quest for another state title with Dobbins back in the fold.
Dobbins said she learned that she was out on April 25, before the Brothers played West Genesee. She returned last week for the Class B sectional playoffs.
CBA coach Doug Sedgwick said it's been a bit of a struggle for Dobbins, who is spending time both on defense and in the midfield.


text:
Wildfires blanket central Oregon in smoke
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 8:22 PM
Inappropriate photo? Alert us.
WEST OF US 197 AND US 97 JUNCTION, OREGON -August 30, 2011 - Fire crews from the BLM Lakeview District work the fire line just east of the Deschutes River in Central Oregon. A helicopter pre-treated the terrain by dumping water from the river on the area. Firefighters were black lining, or intentionally burning vegetation, to halt the spread of wildfire. Bruce Ely / The Oregonian
Related articles
- Homeowners in Clackamas County can stand down, but fires rage elsewhere in Oregon, Washington September 08, 2011, 12:35 PM
- Wildfires blanket central Oregon in smoke as firefighters race to get ahead of warm weather expected Labor Day August 30, 2011, 4:13 PM
- Warm Springs, Mount Hood fires spread; winds kick up, causing respiratory problems August 31, 2011, 1:18 PM


text:
In one of those confusing branding moves that's up there with the baffling Toyota Corolla Tercel, Ford decided to name a Torino-based midsize car the LTD II while keeping the regular full-sized LTD. This went on for the 1977 and 1978 model years, and then for 1979 the "big" LTD went to the Panther platform and sold alongside LTD IIs for that year. Why? Well, that's like asking why Henry Ford II refused Soichiro Honda's offer of cheap CVCC engines for the Fiesta a few years before! Anyway, here's an extremely green first-year LTD II wagon (not a Country Squire, which was based on the larger "regular" LTD) that I spotted in Northern California a couple weeks back. (Read More…)
Tag: LTD
Just after I wrote that non-Country Squire Ford LTDs were rare Junkyard Finds (we've had three so far: this '69, this '71, and this '72), I found this majestic yellow four-door hardtop in a San Francisco Bay Area wrecking yard. As an added bonus, it's a Brougham!
We've had quite a few Ford LTD Country Squire Junkyard Finds, but just a couple of regular non-wagon LTDs. This '71 LTD Brougham and this '69 LTD were about it prior to today, and both of those cars were four-doors. Today we've got a big green LTD Brougham coupe, which I photographed in the San Francisco Bay Area back in March. (Read More…)
Will the faux-woodgrain Country Squire Junkyard Finds never stop? Not if I can keep finding them! We started this sequence with this '76, then followed up with this '77 and this '86. Today's Squire is another Panther platform "woodie" wagon, Detroit's traditional rear-drive family hauler for the late 1980s. (Read More…)
Since we're on a Country Squire Junkyard Find roll, with a '76 Squire on Wednesday and a '77 Squire yesterday, let's take a look at a Panther Squire today. Yes, Panther Love even extends to Reagan-era woodie wagons! (Read More…)
We saw a 1976 Country Squire Junkyard Find yesterday, after going seven months since seeing this '75 Country Squire, but this Denver yard has given us back-to-back (actually, tailgate-to-tailgate) Malaise Era Country Squires. Today's find is in far better shape than yesterday's (which is both cool and saddening), so let's check it out! (Read More…)
The big Fords of the Malaise Era don't show up in the wrecking yards much these days, after several decades of being commonplace. The Taurus has replaced the LTD as the most common Ford product in high-turnover wrecking yards, and will likely hold that honor for another decade or two. Still, you see members of the full-size Ford family in The Crusher's waiting room every now and then; here's a Country Squire in Northern California. (Read More…)
It's going to take decades for the last of the Broughams to work their way through the junkyard system; the Detroit Brougham Era ran from about 1965 through 1990, and that's a lot of cars bearing heraldic crests and Nearly Velour™ interiors. In recent months, we've seen this '88 Cadillac Brougham d'Elegance, this '73 Mercury Montego Brougham, this Olds Delta 88 Royale Brougham, this '72 Mercury Marquis Brougham, and this '81 Pontiac Bonneville Brougham (I can see the need to search for some Chrysler and AMC Brougham Junkyard Finds now). Today, our Broughamic Junkyard Find dates back more than 40 years, to the heyday of the Big Detroit Brougham Era. (Read More…)
Every time I see a junked Ford LTD of this era, I recall my early-childhood memories of my grandfather's '69 LTD hardtop. My parents had a '67 Ford Custom and a '49 Cadillac sedan at the time, and I thought Grandpa's super-clean LTD was the most luxurious transportation imaginable. Nowadays, of course, most big Fords of the 1965-75 period that one encounters are total hoopties… but even a junked Early Malaise Era LTD still retains a bit of its original class. (Read More…)
You don't see a lot of intact 60s Detroit cars in the junkyards of Denver, where I now live. When I return to my old haunts in the San Francisco Bay Area, as I did last month, I find that a steady trickle of these old survivors still flows into the self-serve yards. Here's a big Ford I found in Oakland. (Read More…)


text:
Michael Shannon is arguably one of the finest actors of this generation. While most people know him for his work in Revolutionary Road and Boardwalk Empire, Shannon is currently starring as Producer Felix Artifex in Craig Wright's Mistakes Were Made at the Barrow Street Theatre in New York City.
So much of great acting is what the actor does between the lines. Most of this play involves Shannon listening and responding to someone on the other end of the phone. Shannon juggles phone calls from the writer, the actor, agents, the theater owner, the director, costume designer, his ex-wife, and a Middle Eastern thug. The audience never sees any of these eight people in the play, but Shannon somehow gives them specificity through these conversations.
As an actor, I feel privileged to be able to watch Shannon at work in such an intimate setting. His talent and work ethic are unparalleled. I got a chance to talk to him after the play. He couldn't have been a nicer guy and was genuinely interested as to how I received the play. He also was kind enough to shed some light on his rehearsal process.


text:
Topsy Turvy cake for the wedding of two musicians. Covered in fondant with handcut fondant decorations.
Bottom tier: Almond Cake with Cherry SMBC and fresh Cherries
Second tier: White Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Bean SMBC and fresh...
CakeCentral.com is the world's largest cake community for cake decorating professionals and enthusiasts.
(if this is a private computer)
Yes please, register now!


text:
The operation to refloat the Costa Concordia, the gigantic cruise ship that foundered last year off the Italian island of Giglio killing 32 people, is proceeding smoothly and with "precision," project officials said Monday.
Everything is going perfectly and the project team has gotten through one of the "most uncertain" phases of the operation, removing the vessel from the reef where it had lain for months, Sergio Girotto said.
"The first two hours were the most uncertain because it wasn't known with precision how much the boat was aground," said Girotto, who confirmed that one part of the ship's hull was still being supported on the rocks and another part was being supported on one of the platforms that had been built at the site for that purpose.
This is the first time that engineers are facing a challenge of this magnitude due to the great weight of the cruise ship and its position.
The "parbuckling," the technical term for the operation to rotate the vessel 65 degrees so that it is once again in a vertical position, began at 9 a.m. on Monday and will last about 12 hours.
The story attracted more than 500 reporters from all over the world, who are following the operation to remove the ship - which weighs 44,600 tons, is 290 meters (951 feet) long and about 70 meters (230 feet) high - from the rocks and refloat it.
The president of the Environmental Observatory, Maria Sargentini, also said that no issues of concern had been detected during this first phase.
Before beginning the operation some doubts had existed about the possible environmental impact it would have, given the certainty that much residue and various liquids that have accumulated inside the vessel over the months that it has been aground will spill into the sea as it is brought upright. EFE


text:
Feel the bankis acceptance requirements cautiously. Reply the calls and when you really don't need to converse with them, respond in a roundabout way. Companies offering as disappointment in providing immediate authorization may delay the process of getting the loan instant approval for your cash advances ought to be preferred approved. People needing more money will have a choice to use for a web based cash loan.
You are currently borrowing in a charge that would be around 300PERCENT-400% if it were extended to your year. I understand you're of making useless sacrifices every month tired, I know you actually wish to accomplish better and finally I know you're really looking for school funding. The web application must range from the necessary information such as telephone numbers handle , payment details, bank title, banking account number. You might also check the yellow pages on your phone book. Try consulting different loan companies should you still cannot locate any. They're certainly in touch with combination organizations and will simply place you in the right way.
Transferring bills over for only 6 months of interest liberation may not be in your greatest attention, if your substantial interest takes its area when the promotion is completed. All you've got to complete is, fill up a web based application form using the facts that are necessary along with the bank might take care of the remainder. But an answer is to this difficulty, acquire authorized for a 1 hour payday loan consolidation help and implement and acquire the money you will need quickly nowadays. This quantity has to be paid in pay day that was next that was full from the potential customer.
For this purpose they will often enter the brand, the surname in addition to possibly personality card or the person's social protection number number and run it through the device. This interest rate is usually less than all-the manifold prices bunch together. Reports show that people would prefer to take an internet paydayloan out in place of reduce costs. They're familiar with normally as savings accounts are described and proposed, the lifestyle would prefer to dwell.
Case in point, listed here is a typical example of rapidly a free payday loan consolidation that is seemingly small can switch on you, sending you. Perhaps the folks on TV are performing their own countdown, therefore I am pretty sure that you know precisely how many days are quit before one of the year's most wonderful instances. When you find yourself in a cash recession, don't panic or lose any rest. You do not also have to fulfill them to acquire the mortgage cash. Reimbursement options varies depending on the lender and the ones seeking loans out are better-off contacting their lender to clear any questions up. Competitive rates are, however, provided by many lenders.
This really is small types once the candidates acquire their next salary of loans which can be usually repaid. Your on line cash advance is going to supply you exactly the quantity you understand that you could always change to a consolidate pay day loans and that you need to solve your condition when it appears lifestyle really wants to harm you. For the former, just get your most recent pay stubs. Looking for consolidation firms is straightforward. Or find packages that include it for free.or discuss because of it. Instead of choosing anyone to get it done for you personally, do routine maintenance throughout the house oneself.
There is a negative stigma attached to advance loan creditors. They offer a quick way to obtain cash, but hold quite high interest rates. Nevertheless, a fee for EACH deal may impose that you want to block, which means as your bill remains open that you'll must spend a charge for as long. It would behoove before you sign up for multiple loans, one to do the math.


text:
Monton announced he has appointed Fremont attorney Robert Springstead as her successor. Springstead will complete Roach's four-year term that expires Dec. 31, 2012.
Both Springstead and Roach are Republicans. Neither could be reached for comment late Thursday afternoon.
Roach's office administrator said the prosecutor's imminent retirement isn't a sudden decision. Administrator Annie Barnes said Roach, who is 58, had been talking about her decision privately for several months and announced it to her office about a month ago.
"She's been 17 years with Newaygo County and before that with Muskegon County. She's ready to retire," Barnes said. "This is a 24-hour-a-day job. It's very wearing."
Roach will continue to teach a class at Ferris State University, Barnes said.
Roach, a former Muskegon-area attorney, was appointed prosecutor in May 1995 to succeed H. Kevin Drake after Drake's gubernatorial appointment as a district court judge, a post he still holds.
Roach was elected to the post four times after appointment — defeating Springstead in 2000 in the Republican primary.
Springstead, 42, has been in private practice in Newaygo and Oceana counties since 1993. He is with the firm Springstead Law Offices PC.
His father, Douglas A. Springstead, was Newaygo County prosecutor from 1969-76.
"Springstead has an excellent command of the law, and he enjoys a reputation among local judges for always being well-prepared and thorough in presenting his cases," Monton said in a statement.
Springstead and his wife, Terri, are lifelong Newaygo County residents. Their two daughters attend Fremont Public Schools.


text:
VACHERIE- While on a very familiar path he traveled many times, a 14 year-old boy encountered a tragic event that would change his life forever.
On Aug. 20, 1982, Aldon Cotton, now 41, was pinned under an Amtrak passenger train while taking a short-cut to choir rehearsal.
Cotton described that day by saying the Amtrak train wasn't moving when he proceeded to walk across the train tracks.
"I was basically in mid-air when the cook on the train yelled, and he scared me, as I looked at him, I fell down and the tracks were across my chest. I tried to get up and I couldn't," he said.
"The train started backing up and someone said start rolling. I tried to roll off of the tracks," Cotton added. "The first wheel ran over both of my legs, the second wheel had me pinned under the train."
"Immediately I yelled, Jesus and momma," said Cotton. The conductor of the train hit the emergency brakes and proceeded to the back of the train. An Amtrak worker saw what had happened and looked in disbelief according to Cotton.
At that moment, a doctor came and assessed the situation. Cotton remembered the doctor asking if there was any way to lift the train off of him with a jack or crane.
The conductor of the train said yes, there is, but it's on another train which is an hour away," Cotton said.
Cotton said people started calling local clergy men around the area to come and pray with him. "They called a Catholic priest and he read to me what is known as your last rites. That's what they read to you right before you die."
Cotton explained his leg hadn't been completely severed and there was still some nerve left there.
"The doctor looked at me and said, the only way to get you from under this train is to amputate your legs right now. The only problem is I can't give you anything for it, no anesthesia or anything, but I would still need you to continue talking to me."
"I told him, OK doc, do what you have to do." He shared how the doctor asked him if he was sure.
Aldon revealed later how the doctor got to him that day. He said the doctor's usual route to his home was congested and he passed the scene, automatically assuming help was on the way.
The doctor told Cotton he never hit the brakes to stop his vehicle, but something stopped the car and told him he was needed. Cotton said it was nothing but the Holy Spirit that redirected the doctor's route that day.
"I never understood the fame or the admiration," Cotton said. "While I was in the hospital I can remember getting two and three bags of mail a day."
Cotton recalled before this happened, he was marching in the band and involved in extracurricular activities. "I was gonna use my legs to get me out the ghetto."
"I have yet to know neither what a handicap is specifically nor what makes someone a handicap," Cotton said.
Aldon explained that he wouldn't fall into the pothole society was trying to throw him into simply because he was in a wheelchair.
"Some take his condition and would define it as handicapped, but Aldon will tell you, without Christ in your life you're the one that's handicapped," said Aaron Cotton, 45.
Aldon Cotton graduated from high school, college, and has been ordained as a minister.


text:
Friday, February 5, 2016
Awarded By
Scholastic Inc.
Award Amount
One Grand Prize Winner will receive $1,000 and a trip to New York City (total value $2,950). Four runners-up will each receive $500.
Five awards offered annually.
Deadline Info
Additional information is available on the provider's website. The student must complete the paper application, which includes basic contact information for the student, his/her parent(s) and his/her ... sign up for full scholarship deadline information.


text:
Emerald Group Publishing
Asian Review of Accounting
Order information:
Postal: Emerald Group Publishing, Howard House, Wagon Lane, Bingley, BD16 1WA, UK
Web: http://emeraldgrouppublishing.com/products/journals/journals.htm?id=ara Email:
Pricing information: 199 GB pounds
Download restrictions: Articles are not free to download
For corrections or technical questions regarding this series, please contact (Louise Lister)
Series handle: repec:eme:arapps
Citations RSS feed: at CitEc
Top item:
Citations RSS feed: at CitEc
Impact factors
- Simple (last 10 years)
- Recursive (10)
- Discounted (10)
- Recursive discounted (10)
- H-Index (10)
- Aggregate (10)
Top item:
- By citations
- By downloads (last 12 months)
2014, Volume 22, Issue 3
- 182-216 The value relevance and reliability of intangible assets : Evidence from Australia before and after adopting IFRS
by Xu-Dong Ji & Wei Lu
- 217-232 The impact of surplus free cash flow and audit quality on earnings management: The case of growth triangle countries
by Rusmin Rusmin & Emita W. Astami & Bambang Hartadi
- 233-256 Earnings management and voluntary disclosure of management's responsibility for the financial reports
by Prapaporn Kiattikulwattana
- 257-286 Theoretical perspectives on corporate disclosure: a critical evaluation and literature survey
by Mohamed A. Omran & Ahmed M. El-Galfy
- 287-303 ABC success: evidence from ISO 9000 certified companies in Thailand
by Phaithun Intakhan
- 304-317 Earnings management around tax rate reduction: evidence from China's 2007 corporate tax reform
by Tao Zeng
2014, Volume 22, Issue 2
- 78-97 The influence of board characteristics on sustainability reporting: Empirical evidence from Sri Lankan firms
by Mohamed M. Shamil & Junaid M. Shaikh & Poh-Ling Ho & Anbalagan Krishnan
- 98-127 Corporate reporting of intellectual capital: evidence from the Bangladeshi pharmaceutical sector
by Subhash Abhayawansa & Mohammad Azim
- 128-144 Management accounting systems, enterprise risk management and organizational performance in financial institutions
by Siti Zaleha Abdul Rasid & Che Ruhana Isa & Wan Khairuzzaman Wan Ismail
- 145-158 Effect of ethical ideologies on ethical judgment of future accountants: Malaysian evidence
by Suhaiza Ismail
- 159-178 How students' ethnicity influences their respect for teachers
by Elaine Evans & Rachel F. Baskerville & Katharine Wynn-Williams & Shirley J. Gillett
2014, Volume 22, Issue 1
- 2-19 Public disclosure and bank loan contracting: evidence from emerging markets
by Iftekhar Hasan & Liang Song
- 20-34 Audit quality and market pricing of earnings and earnings components in China
by Ahsan Habib & Haiyan Jiang & Donghua Zhou
- 35-55 An empirical study on the determinants of information disclosure of Malaysian non-profit organizations
by S. Zainon & R. Atan & Y. Bee Wah
- 56-72 The expectation-performance gap in generic skills in accounting graduates: Evidence from Sri Lanka
by Nadana Abayadeera & Kim Watty
2013, Volume 21, Issue 3
- 180-204 Japanese accounting academics' perceptions on the global convergence of accounting education in Japan
by Satoshi Sugahara
- 205-222 A study of Australian and Chinese accountants' attitudes towards independence issues and the impact on ethical judgements
by Ying Han Fan & Gordon Woodbine & Wei Cheng
- 223-240 Information disclosure by family-controlled firms: The role of board independence and institutional ownership
by Salim Darmadi & Achmad Sodikin
- 241-256 Drivers of value for money public private partnership projects in Malaysia
by Suhaiza Ismail
- 257-272 A risky tale of two countries
by Agung Nur Probohudono & Greg Tower & Rusmin Rusmin
2013, Volume 21, Issue 2
- 100-112 Management accounting practices and the turnaround process
by Noor Hasniza Haron & Ibrahim Kamal Abdul Rahman & Malcolm Smith
- 113-127 Exploring hegemonic change in China: a case of accounting evolution
by Lina Xu & Corinne Cortese & Eagle Zhang
- 128-143 Executive remuneration in China: a literature review
by Peter Rampling & Ian Eddie & Jackie Liu
- 144-159 Developing critical thinking skills and effective co-operative international accounting degree programs in China
by Hong He & Russell Craig & Jing Wen
- 160-175 Communication apprehension and communication self-efficacy in accounting students
by Trevor Hassall & Jose L. Arquero & John Joyce & Jose M. Gonzalez
2013, Volume 21, Issue 1
- 4-26 Students' perceptions on using iPods in accounting education: a mobile-learning experience
by Peter Richardson & Steven Dellaportas & Luckmika Perera & Ben Richardson
- 27-52 A longitudinal examination of intellectual capital disclosures and corporate governance attributes in Malaysia
by Abdifatah Ahmed Haji & Nazli A. Mohd Ghazali
- 53-73 Earnings quality and the adoption of IFRS-based accounting standards: Evidence from an emerging market
by Wan Adibah Wan Ismail & Khairul Anuar Kamarudin & Tony van Zijl & Keitha Dunstan
- 74-95 Accounting in a developing transitional economy: the case of Vietnam
by Doan Ngoc Phi Anh & Duc-Tho Nguyen
2012, Volume 20, Issue 3
- 184-197 The joint effect of budgetary participation and broad-scope management accounting systems on management performance
by Min-Tsung Cheng
- 198-221 The impact of ethnicity on auditor choice: Malaysian evidence
by Sharifah Nazatul Faiza Syed Mustapha Nazri & Malcolm Smith & Zubaidah Ismail
- 222-240 Factors influencing auditor change: evidence from Malaysia
by Sharifah Nazatul Faiza Syed Mustapha Nazri & Malcolm Smith & Zubaidah Ismail
- 241-258 Corporate governance and earnings management in Malaysian government linked companies: The impact of GLCs' transformation policy
by Muslim Har Sani Mohamad & Hafiz Majdi Abdul Rashid & Fekri Ali Mohammed Shawtari
- 259-277 A survey on student satisfaction with cooperative accounting education based on CPA firm internships
by Guangyou Liu
2012, Volume 20, Issue 2
- 93-118 Influence of a mandatory IFRS adoption on accounting practice: Evidence from Australia, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom
by Leopold Bayerlein & Omar Al Farooque
- 119-139 Firm size, disclosure and cost of equity capital
by Zaini Embong & Norman Mohd-Saleh & Mohamat Sabri Hassan
- 140-151 Mutual fund selection criteria: evidence from Malaysia
by Nurasyikin Jamaludin & Malcolm Smith & Paul Gerrans
- 152-162 Audit exemption among SMEs in Malaysia
by Norashikin Kamarudin & Zubaidah Zainal Abidin & Malcolm Smith
- 163-178 The impact of social pressures, locus of control, and professional commitment on auditors' judgment: Indonesian evidence
by Damai Nasution & Ralf Östermark
2012, Volume 20, Issue 1
- 4-19 The impact of a computerised consolidation accounting package (CCAP) on student performance
by Sutharson Kanapathippillai & Ahamed Shamlee Hasheem & Steven Dellaportas
- 20-33 Style of information usage and use of accounting information: a Malaysian study
by Nor Azrina Mohd Yusof @ Ghani & Wee Shu Hui & Ibrahim Kamal Abdul Rahman & Normah Omar Shah Alam & Michael S.C. Tse
- 34-57 Ethnicity and accounting conservatism: Malaysian evidence
by Rahimah Mohamed Yunos & Zubaidah Ismail & Ibrahim Kamal Abdul Rahman & Malcolm Smith
- 58-73 The value relevance of consolidated financial statements in an emerging market: The case of India
by Padmini Srinivasan & M.S. Narasimhan
- 74-87 Chinese auditors' views about independence and employer values
by Ying Han Fan & Gordon Woodbine & Glennda Scully
2011, Volume 19, Issue 3
- 192-207 The impact of independent directors and independent audit committees on earnings quality reported by Indonesian firms
by Ferdinand T. Siagian & Elok Tresnaningsih
- 208-220 The effects of changes in competition, technology and strategy on organizational performance in small and medium manufacturing companies
by Tuan Zainun Tuanmat & Malcolm Smith
- 221-242 Changes in management accounting practices in Malaysia
by Tuan Zainun Tuanmat & Malcolm Smith
- 243-265 The impact of cultural factors on students' learning style preferences: A global comparison between Japan, Australia and Belgium
by Gregory Boland & Satoshi Sugahara & Evelien Opdecam & Patricia Everaert
- 266-278 Overseas listing and accounting conservatism: evidence from Chinese H-share companies
by Fan-Hua Kung & Kieran James & Chia-Ling Cheng
2011, Volume 19, Issue 2
- 112-124 Where to now, Melbourne Croatia?: Football federation Australia's use of accounting numbers to institute exclusion upon ethnic clubs
by Kieran James & Chris Tolliday & Rex Walsh
- 125-146 Corporate communication for Vietnamese listed firms
by Greg Tower & Kelly Anh Vu & Glennda Scully
- 147-156 Cash conversion cycle and firm's performance of Japanese firms
by Haitham Nobanee & Modar Abdullatif & Maryam AlHajjar
- 157-170 The predictive ability of corporate narrative disclosures: Australian evidence
by Malcolm Smith & Yinan Dong & Yun Ren
- 171-185 The predictive ability of "conservatism" and "governance" variables in corporate financial disclosures
by Malcolm Smith & Yun Ren & Yinan Dong
2011, Volume 19, Issue 1
- 5-30 The appraisal of ordinary shares by Chinese financial analysts
by Jing Wang & Jim Haslam & Claire Marston
- 31-49 The indirect effects of PMS design on Malaysian service firms' characteristics and performance
by Amizawati Mohd Amir
- 50-67 Corporate governance and post-bankruptcy reorganisation performance: Evidence from Thailand
by Thanida Chitnomrath & Robert Evans & Theo Christopher
- 68-85 Insights on the diversity of financial ratios communication
by Norhani Aripin & Greg Tower & Grantley Taylor
- 86-108 Sustainable development: what it means to CFOs of New Zealand
by Dara K. Dimitrov & Howard Davey
2010, Volume 18, Issue 3
- 180-196 Income tax liability for large corporations in China: 1998-2007
by Tao Zeng
- 197-220 Ethical issues facing tax professionals: A comparative survey of tax agents and practitioners in Australia
by Rex Marshall & Malcolm Smith & Robert Armstrong
- 221-244 FRS36 and post-transition compliance quality among Singapore firms
by Tyrone M. Carlin & Nigel Finch & Khairil Faizal Khairi
- 245-259 Board ownership, audit committees' effectiveness, and corporate voluntary disclosures
by M. Akhtaruddin & Hasnah Haron
- 260-285 Improving customer outcomes through the implementation of customer relationship management: Evidence from Taiwan
by Malcolm Smith & Chen Chang
2010, Volume 18, Issue 2
- 92-105 Compulsory group work – accounting students' conceptions and suggestions
by Maria Cadiz Dyball & Anna Reid & Philip Ross & Herbert Schoch
- 106-130 The boycott model of foreign product purchase: an empirical test in China
by Malcolm Smith & Qianpin Li
- 131-147 Students' major choice in accounting and its effect on their self-efficacy towards generic skills: An Australian study
by Satoshi Sugahara & Kazumi Suzuki & Gregory Boland
- 148-161 The effect of a change in teaching structure on student performance
by Kevin M. Baird & Venkateshwaran Narayanan
- 162-173 Dysfunctional audit behaviour: an exploratory study in Malaysia
by Halil Paino & Zubaidah Ismail & Malcolm Smith
2010, Volume 18, Issue 1
- 2-29 The vocational skill priorities of Malaysian and UK students
by Trevor Hassall & John Joyce & José Luis Arquero Montaño & José María González González
- 5-19 The effect of privatisation on performance of state-owned-enterprises in Indonesia
by Emita W. Astami & Greg Tower & Rusmin Rusmin & John Neilson
- 30-49 Attitudes towards the accounting profession: an Australian perspective
by Tracey McDowall & Beverley Jackling
- 50-67 Corporate governance and earnings forecasts accuracy
by Nurwati A. Ahmad-Zaluki & Wan Nordin Wan-Hussin
- 68-82 Board ownership, audit committees' effectiveness and corporate voluntary disclosures
by M. Akhtaruddin & Hasnah Haron
2009, Volume 17, Issue 3
- 180-197 Making the mainstream: An analysis of the scholarly literature on accounting in China, 1999-2008
by Jayne Bisman & Weini Liao
- 198-211 Special treatment regulation in China: potential unintended consequences
by Wendy Green & Robert Czernkowski & Yi Wang
- 212-225 Cost-system functionality and the performance of the Malaysian palm oil industry
by Soon-Yau Foong & Neilson Anak Teruki
- 226-246 Corporate environmental reporting through the lens of semiotics
by Haslinda Yusoff & Glen Lehman
- 247-268 The impact of customer-related strategies on shareholder value: evidence from Taiwan
by Malcolm Smith & Chen Chang
2009, Volume 17, Issue 2
- 96-114 Investigating audit quality among Big 4 Malaysian firms
by Tyrone M. Carlin & Nigel Finch & Nur Hidayah Laili
- 115-135 Exporting the RAE: adoption of similar practices in Australia and New Zealand
by M.R. Mathews & Alan Sangster
- 136-148 Students' perceptions of accounting profession: work value approach
by Eleni Germanou & Trevor Hassall & Yanni Tournas
- 149-162 Grameen Bank's social performance disclosure: Responding to a negative assessment by Wall Street Journal in late 2001
by Muhammad Azizul Islam & Martin Reginald Mathews
- 163-176 Deconstructing local government performance and infrastructure measurement
by Robyn Pilcher
2009, Volume 17, Issue 1
- 5-22 The factors influencing accounting school students' career intention to become a Certified Public Accountant in Japan
by Satoshi Sugahara & Kazuo Hiramatsu & Greg Boland
- 23-39 Intangible assets and future growth: evidence from Japan
by Abdulrahman Al-Twaijry
- 40-58 Costs-benefits of adoption of IFRSs in countries with different harmonization histories
by Dennis W. Taylor
- 59-76 Determinants of financial and environmental disclosures through the internet by Malaysian companies
by Ali Saleh Al Arussi & Mohamad Hisyam Selamat & Mustafa Mohd Hanefah
- 77-88 Empirical evidence examining the academic performance of students in the first two accounting subjects
by Abdel Halabi
2008, Volume 16, Issue 3
- 185-196 Stock option disclosures of directors: where transparency can mask secrecy
by Jodie Nelson & Majella Percy
- 197-218 Stock option disclosures of directors: where transparency can mask secrecy
by Malcolm Smith & Zaharah Abdullah & Rafizan Abdul Razak
- 219-245 Internal audit outsourcing practice and rationales: SME evidence from New Zealand
by Karen Van Peursem & Lehan Jiang
- 246-262 Public sector accounting education in Australian universities: Obstacles and opportunities
by Nick Sciulli & Robert Sims
- 263-279 A content and citation analysis of accounting education manuscripts published in the Asian Review of Accounting: 1992-2007
by Jeffrey Faux
2008, Volume 16, Issue 2
- 97-108 Has the management of infrastructure assets (IAs) improved with the use of the accrual method in local government?
by Allan Molland & Robert Clift
- 109-133 Stock prices and accounting information: evidence from Malaysia
by Scott Pirie & Malcolm Smith
- 134-148 Accounting conservatism in Greater China: the influence of institutions and incentives
by Fan-Hua (Alex) Kung & Chih-Wen Ting & Kieran James
- 149-159 Supporting generic skills development in accounting through the simulation of unstructured case studies using video
by Jeffrey Faux
- 160-178 Auditors' perceptions of reasonable assurance in audit work and the effectiveness of the audit risk model
by Philip Law
2008, Volume 16, Issue 1
- 4-20 What lies beneath? Financial reporting and corporate governance in Australian banks
by Anne Abraham & Hemant Deo & Helen Irvine
- 21-38 Public private partnerships: an exploratory study in health care
by Nick Sciulli
- 39-55 Implementation of activity based costing in Malaysia: A case study of two companies
by Jamaliah Abdul Majid & Maliah Sulaiman
- 56-73 Corporate governance determinants on Australian resource companies' financial instrument disclosure practices
by Grantley Taylor & Greg Tower & Mitchell Van Der Zahn & John Neilson
- 74-91 Corporate governance determinants on Australian resource companies' financial instrument disclosure practices
by Gongmeng Chen & Michael Firth & Wei Wei Zhang
2007, Volume 15, Issue 2
- 100-121 Approaches to learning accounting: a cross-cultural study
by John Donald & Beverley Jackling
- 122-146 Attitudes towards plagiarism among undergraduate accounting students: Malaysian evidence
by Malcolm Smith & Noorlaila Ghazali & Siti Fatimah Noor Minhad
- 147-163 Audit committee characteristics and earnings management: evidence from Malaysia
by Norman Mohd Saleh & Takiah Mohd Iskandar & Mohd Mohid Rahmat
- 164-184 Applying stakeholder theory to analyze corporate environmental performance: Evidence from Australian listed companies
by Evangeline Elijido-Ten
- 185-199 Environmental disclosure and performance reporting in Malaysia
by Malcolm Smith & Khadijah Yahya & Ahmad Marzuki Amiruddin
2007, Volume 15, Issue 1
- 6-24 The importance in accounting of ambiguity tolerance at the national level: Evidence from Australia and China
by Noel Harding & Mingchuan Ren
- 25-44 An analysis of current trends in accounting professional development in People's Republic of China
by P.W. Senarath Yapa & Zhen Ping Hao
- 45-61 How do the Chinese management accountants cope with changes from a planned economy to a market economy
by Xu-dong Ji & M. Aiken & W. Lu
- 62-71 Accounting education in modern China: an analysis of conditions and observations
by Gordon Francis Woodbine
- 72-92 Determinants of disclosures of A-, B- and H-share companies
by Jinghui Liu & Ian Alexander Eddie
2006, Volume 14, Issue 1
- 5-23 The representativeness of management financial forecasts vis-à-vis naïve forecasts
by Neil Hartnett
- 24-36 Developing a scholarly approach to the evaluation of assessment practices
by Sonia Magdziarz & Kim Watty & Kaye Hilliar & Sophia Ji & Melissa Simpson
- 37-48 Reflections on the mentoring process with academics entering a "new" educational
by Sonia Magdziarz & Kim Watty & Kaye Hilliar & Sophia Ji & Melissa Simpson
- 49-65 The chairman's statement in Malaysian companies: A test of the obfuscation hypothesis
by Malcolm Smith & Anita Jamil & Yang Chik Johari & Syahrul Ahmar Ahmad
- 66-82 Power and knowledge in the Agricultural Lending Division of the Fiji Development Bank
by Hemant Deo & Helen Irvine
- 83-100 Sarbanes-Oxley: how far does it reach? An exploratory study in South East Asia
by Paul Herz & Paul McGurr
- 101-121 Personal and interpersonal skills: The process of prescribing definitions in an accounting degree
by Despina Whitefield & Louise Kloot
- 122-148 Environmental engagements through the lens of disclosure practices: A Malaysian story
by Haslinda Yusoff & Glen Lehman & Noraini Mohd Nasir
- 149-167 Perceptions of the certified public accountants by accounting and non-accounting tertiary students in Japan
by Satoshi Sugahara & Gregory Boland
- 168-186 Disclosure harmonization of accounting practices: the case for South Asia
by Muhammad Jahangir Ali


text:
CALUMET - The Calumet softball team got a great crowd and great weather Wednesday for their first Division 3 district playoff game.
Manistique got great pitching.
Emeralds ace Breiann Richey threw harder from the circle than any girl the Copper Kings had seen this season and Calumet's bats never caught up in a 6-0 loss to conclude a successful first season on a bittersweet note.
Article Photos
Calumet second baseman Celia Peterson throws to first after making a play on a ground ball during a Division 3 district quarterfinal against Manistique Wednesday at the Gipp Recreation Area in Laurium. Manistique won 6-0. (DMG photo by Michael Bleach)
Calumet beat Manistique 5-2 earlier in the season, but never faced Richey in that game.
As it turns out, they hadn't faced a pitcher of Richey's caliber all year long.
"Man she threw hard," Calumet coach Luke Peterson said. "When we played them in the Dome we faced their number two and we were able to get to her a little bit more. But (Richey), she is probably the best pitcher we faced this year."
Richey struck out nine over seven innings, walked just two and scattered four hits.
The numbers backed up what the eye saw as the Kings never got comfortable at the plate with Richey, a sophomore, pounding the strike zone with heat and occasionally mixing in a deceptive changeup.
"Basically what ends up happening is you have to try and cheat. You have to get that bat head out," Peterson said. "You have to be expecting to swing and then not swing (if you don't like the pitch). I think early on the girls were going up there trying to swing if it was there, but she's too fast for that. You kind of have to have a backwards approach."
Manistique backed their ace with three runs in the second inning, giving Richey all the breathing room she needed.
Two walks and a hit batter from Calumet starter Morgan Peters put runners on the bases while an outfield error and late cutoff throw allowed two runs to score with two hits in the inning.
Manistique would tack on a run in the third, fourth and sixth innings and total eight hits in all while taking six walks. Richey led the way here too, going 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
"With a pitcher like that you are not going to score a lot of runs so you have to cut down the errors and keep them off the board," Peterson said. "They kind of got to us early there."
Calumet's best chance to score came in the sixth frame after Clara Loukus walked and Selena Stromer rapped an infield single to put runners on second and third with one out.
A pair of groundouts kept the shutout clean though and Richey struck out two more in the seventh frame to put an exclamation point on the win.
"I thought we started to figure her out a bit by the end there but it was a little too late," Peterson said. "Just another learning experience. She is just a talented pitcher."
While it may not have ended the way they wanted it to, the season was still considered a wild success for the Kings.
They split with Houghton for the first ever Copper Country Conference championship and generated some strong momentum to keep the softball program viable and growing.
Peterson said the numbers for Little League have already swelled and should stock the high school program for years to come.
"We have something to build off of," Peterson said. "There are about 18-20 13-14 year olds that have signed up for Little League. We have a good system going there and we are going to keep rolling.
"The Manistique coach (Jessica Nord) actually mentioned what great fan support we had for this game. The team's going in a good direction."


text:
Northeast Alberta Street's King School will get a financial boost this month, thanks to The Waffle Window.
The restaurant recently launched a fundraiser that creates a school-specific special waffle each month. Then, $1.50 from each waffle sale goes to the school. The restaurant has locations on Alberta and Hawthorne, so it alternates between sponsoring northeast and southeast Portland schools. Last month, Richmond School raised $450 from sales of a pear and Nutella treat.
This month, Waffle Window will sell "King Lime Pie," a liege waffle topped with key lime pie filling, whipped cream, graham cracker crumble and a kiwi garnish. The restaurant will deliver the proceeds to the school at the end of March.
-- Casey Parks


text:
Ready or not, here comes Obamacare.
With the re-election of President Barack Obama, the health care reforms enacted in the signature achievement of his administration, the Affordable Care Act, are up and running. States now have until Dec. 14 to decide whether they will establish their own health insurance exchange or go with the federal flow, as mandated by the law that requires every man, woman, and child in this country to be covered by health insurance.
So far, Gov. Chris Christie — like most of his Republican Party and concerned citizens elsewhere — has refused to play this game, having vetoed earlier this year a bill supported by Assemblyman John Burzichelli D-3, of Paulsboro, that would have jump-started the process of forming a state health insurance exchange. The governor said at the time that he preferred to wait until the Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of the mandate, and then later until after the presidential election.
But, here's the thing. Obamacare is now the law of the land and, like it or not, it's better for New Jersey to decide its own fate in the matter than have a federal exchange plan foisted upon us. As Burzichelli said, "It's better to set our own rules than have someone else set them ...
"Until the next generation of health care reform," the assemblyman added.
U.S. Rep Frank LoBiondo, R-2nd District, voted against the Affordable Care Act when it narrowly passed the House of Representatives two years ago. Last week, he said that handling the exchange requirement is the governor's job. "Implementation of the law is a decision for Gov. Christie and the Legislature in Trenton," LoBiondo's press officer said.
Let's hope that Christie bites this bullet and takes the necessary steps to authorize a state-run insurance exchange. Actually, New Jersey is better prepared than most states for this task, having already installed some groundbreaking revisions of state Medicaid coverage for poor children and, in some cases, their underemployed parents. Under Christie's predecessor, Jon Corzine, our state led the nation in providing affordable access to quality health care for kids.
The key word here is "quality." If it's ours, this insurance mandate, let's make it good.


text:
Fletcher Forum of World Affairs
Bilal Baloch is Special Assistant to Vali Nasr, Dean of the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. You can follow him on twitter @babaloch
Fletcher Forum articles by Bilal Baloch:
After nearly nine years of battle in Iraq, the United States seeks to wash it's hands of the Middle East and pivot further east. But the region remains vitally important, both from an economic and geopolitical standpoint.
© 2014,
The Fletcher School |
Tufts University |
Contact Us


text:
Take a look at some of the best in photographs sent to the Suburban News during the week of May 13-17, 2013.
Things to do in Union County on Wednesday, May 22
• Holy Trinity Eastern Orthodox Church, Rahway, will host its Spring Tricky Tray Auction on Wednesday May 22 at 8 p.m., at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish Center, 1400 St. Georges Ave., Rahway. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. One hundred merchandise items will be given away. In addition, there will be four specials tables with seasonal items, lamps, small appliances, household items, and unique baskets. There will be a 50-50 drawing and separate drawings for a "mystery prize" and a flat-screen TV. Hot sandwiches, hot and cold drinks and desserts will be available in the kitchen. All proceeds will go to the church maintenance fund. Tickets are available in advance by calling Judy at 908-232-7874 or Paula at 732-574-9799.
• Senior Citizens Club of Clark will meet on Wednesday, May 22, from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., at The Polish Cultural Foundation located at 177 Broadway, Clark. All seniors 55 and over, residents and non-residents, are welcome to join the club. Refreshments are served; bingo is played after a short business meeting. For information, call Dorothy at 732-381-8526 or George at 732-382-0639.
• The Greater Westfield Area Chamber of Commerce invites business professionals from the surrounding towns to enjoy complimentary hors d'oeuvres at Happy Hour networking event at Acquaviva, 115 Elm St., Westfield on Wednesday, May 22 from 6-8 p.m. Open to all current and prospective members. Wine/Cocktails, $8. Register online at westfieldareachamber.com, Events Page.
$10 Current Members (Please click on "Member Login" first, once logged in then click "Register Now" to receive the discount) - $15 Prospective Members. For information, email Jackie Walters at email@example.com or 908-233-3021.
Have an event or photo you would like to share with the paper and your community? Send it to us at email@example.com and we will run it in print and post it online.


text:
Trey Songz
At the 2015 BET Honors this week, Trey Songz took the stage to help salute Usher by covering his 1998 hit "Nice & Slow". Check out his full performance in the video above!
Check out Trey's new video for "Slow Motion" above! The clip was directed by Dre Films, and the track is available for download and on Spotify now!
Trey also announced the release date for TRIGGA Reloaded - April 14th!
Valentine's Day just came early! Cuddle up in style with this new item from Trey, and for a limited time, enjoy free shipping on this item and orders of $60 or more! Head over to Trey's webstore now to pick up your Tuxedo Crewneck today!
Head over to TreySongz.com/slowmotion to receive a free acapella clip of "Slow Motion" to add to your Instagram clips!
Check out Trey's below, and use the hashtag #TreySlowMotion to have yours featured on the download page!


text:
JOHNSTOWN - A proposed $100,000 centralized Fulton County government records storage facility was removed by supervisors Wednesday from the county's 2011 capital plan and scheduled for consideration in 2012.
The facility - requested by County Clerk William Eschler to be located at the Fort Johnstown Annex - was one of several 2011 cuts made by the Board of Supervisors' Capital Projects Committee. Supervisors cited a very tight county budget year for 2011.
"Five years ago this would have been a decent project, " county Administrative Officer Jon Stead said of the records storage facility.
Eschler wants to consolidate many of the records scattered across different county facilities into one building. He said Friday he understands the financial situation the county is in.
"With the way things are, these projects are going to be put on the back burner," Eschler said.
In other committee cuts, supervisors decided to cut Sheriff Thomas J. Lorey's 2011 request for two patrol cars costing $58,000 down to one car costing $29,000.
The committee deleted a $26,000 midsize vehicle planned in 2011 for the Department of Solid Waste from the plan.
Stead said he thought the county Sanitary Landfill is better served anyway through a van or pickup truck to "do work."
"I just happen to feel there's no need for a sedan or a compact car at solid waste," Stead said. "To me, it doesn't make sense."
The committee also cut a $45,000 side slope mower for the landfill out of the capital plan.
Supervisors left in the 2011 capital plan a proposed $47,500 boiler upgrade project for the County Office Building. But financing for it was moved from the property tax levy to capital reserves, which is funded by national tobacco settlement money.
Also shifted from the levy to capital reserves were a $38,218 county PC-printer upgrade plan, $16,474 sever upgrade plan and a $240,000 Fonda Bypass Arterial Highway project.
Michael Anich covers Johnstown and Fulton County news. He can be reached at email@example.com


text:
Masi Bicycles has introduced a new range of cyclocross bikes for 2012, one of which is the CX Uno. What makes this model different from other cyclocross bikes is that it features economically friendly parts.
Made from Masi's unique 100% chromoly steel frame and lugged chromoly steel fork, the CX Uno is sturdy enough to last years. It also takes pride in its FSA Tempo compact crankset, Shimano 2300 8 speed shifters and derailleurs, and Tektro Oryx cantilever brake calipers.
Whether it is on the city trails or on the trails, the 2012 Masi CX Uno Cyclocross Bike performs like a pro. Weighing in at 27.4lbs, this cyclocross machine comes complete with rack and fender mounts, which allow for incredible versatility.


text:
Lobbying Tracker
Follow Washington influence using Sunlight's Lobbying Tracker tools for keeping up with K street. Keep checking this page as we add more resources and tools to LobbyTrack.
Lobbyist registrations
The lobbying registration tracker has a new home on Sunlight's Influence Explorer, and this version may not be up to date. Check out the new real-time lobbying registration tracker for the latest updates.
Sonny Callahan & Assoc for Rocky Research
Date received: Jan. 29, 2013
Issues: Defense
Specific issue: defense account lines in appropriations bills
Callahan, Sonny
Counts, Braxton C III
See original filing


text:
Is scrum a sham?
For most small companies, I think it is.
Filed in: Blobbing
March 29, 2012
An interesting post came out yesterday about how Agile is a sham. I've been on a few teams that have used agile development methodologies and in my experience, it just doesn't work. These methods try to make developers believe they have total control over the developement of a product. To me, that is the sham. However, I do see some valid situations to use these processes.
In full disclosure, I've never been on a product team with 20, 100, or even a 1000 developers that subscribe to agile techniques. However, I know quite a few developers who have been in this situation, and have talked at length about their experiences. For these teams, they are responsible for a small part in an enormous project. Their manager has a few managers and so on up the corporate food chain. These developers are usually paid pretty damned well, but more often than not, their opinion matters very little to the person who is overall in charge of their "product". All of that being said, more often than not, I hear that agile/scrum works for them, and works very well.
Getting cogs in a huge corporation to move in sync such a complex problem, I don't want to think about having to solve it. Team X might be waiting to implement something based on the API that Team Y is building. (Oh no scruministas, is that waterfall?!) So that being said, I think "agile" processes work in these situations. But let's stop kidding ourselves, a developer has control over things in their code like variable names and they way they structure loops, write their tests, and nothing more.
As human beings, we all suck at estimating the number of hours a task will take us. I've estimated things at a week that end up taking an hour. I've estimated things to take an hour that have taken me a week. You never know what kludge-fest you're going to get if you're going into legacy code that might be terrible or wonderful.
Next, let's talk about what motivates a developer. For me, there are a few things.
- Building something I think is fucking awesome and I'm proud of.
- I'd rather be building things than be in meetings.
- Solving interesting problems.
For the most part, developers of today aren't the tighty whitey-wearing nerds/geeks building their PCs that might come to mind for most people. We care about our company. We care about the products we working on. We want to build awesome shit and yell about how we built it from the rooftops. We're invested. We can't sleep at night if we feel like things aren't going right. Other than playing some Angry Birds on my iPhone or Wii Tennis with my wife, I haven't played a video game in many many years.
So this brings me to my gripes with "agile" at small companies.
- I hate meetings. Meetings are for execs. I'm not in it for the pension like some might be at a goverment agency or large company. I care about how much I'm getting done, and I feel like shit when I'm billing meeting time back to the client. Depending on the sprint length, I might be in meeting 2 days a week. If my team is 4 developers, that's 64 out of a possible 160 hours of dev time spent in meetings! Do the math execs, is this worth it?
- Along with other members of my team, I'm smart enough to realize that despite what you say, I have no control. This is my single biggest gripe with Scrum. I don't need my middle management Scrum Master telling me I have control when I know it's a flat out lie. Be honest with me.
- What the hell is "velocity"? I see this as an arbitrary number that means absolutely nothing. A dev goes on vacation or gets sick, your team velocity goes down. You run into a serious problem that takes significatly longer than you thought? Velocity goes down. So is this arbitray metric something to just make a developer feel like shit when things don't go as planned? Sure I know you're supposed to burn up, but on a small team, you should all be communicating. If your company culture doesn't suck, the other developers will know about the issue, they might be helping you. The execs, product owners, or whatever you call them should be kept in the loop too. If the exec doesn't try to communicate, you have way more issues to deal with.
- Publicly communicating release dates put undue pressure on developers. I've pulled all nighters to make these deadlines due to things going wrong. That's no way to live life. My quality of life suffered. If a developer isn't proud of what she/he has done and isn't ready to release it, then an exec needs to back up and understand it. If you need another day to be comfortable, the world isn't going to end. We build things on the internet. It's not like we are a Nurse Anesthestist or an Anaesthesiologist keeping a patient sedated and alive during surgery. A small team isn't building something like Facebook. The company generally isn't going to lose big bucks over missing something by a day.
I do believe that agile works in the case of a large company, however, it has no business in a small one. It burns developers out and makes them feel like shit when things go wrong. Execs, hire good developers who deeply care about what your company is building. Keep meetings to a minimum, shield your developers from clients and communicate, communicate, communicate. A developer likes feeling in the loop. Don't change things up on them mid-stream. Understand, their work is allowing you to make significantly more money than they do. They are cool with that because they know their work is having an impact. Be honest about your companies finances. Challenge your developers, stop putting arbitrary pressure on them, don't lie about the control they have. Screw story points and velocity. Show that you're passionate about your company building amazing stuff and you know your developers are the ones doing that. If you force Scrum/Agile down their throats, more often than not, your developers think it's a joke and go along just to appease you. If your developers don't buy into your passion for the company, find new developers and pay them well.
As for things a company can use from agile/scrum.
- Backlogs This is great. It's nice to know what the execs are thinking we need to do in the future.
- Epics/Stories Have your UX designer do these. They should communicate with developers as they go, but this saves a lot of work.
- Test your fucking code If you don't want to go all-in with TDD, subscribe to "Oh Fuck" or "Stupidity" driven development. Write regression tests, write tests to make sure complex actions work the way they are supposed to. Spending a few weeks to get tests up and running is going to save you time and money in the long run.
- Pair Programming can help in some situations Have something REALLY complex? Maybe two sets of eyes on it would be helpful. There's no reason to pair program "hello world" or 1 + 1. Use your head here and do what makes sense.
The key here is communication, people. Plain and simple. We all want to wake up and want to take on the world, not dread yet another standup meeting where we say the same thing as yesterday.
A small software company is just that, a software company. Stop worrying about processes and just build things. Are things moving slowly? Get rid of your middle management scrum master and hire another developer or two. That's going to speed up development significantly faster than anything else.


text:
Ive tried many a time to get my family/friends to try this lifestlye, but they are so poisened by conventional wisdom that by the end of the conversation theres a massive argument. They wont listen to me because of what there "Doctors" and "Dietitions" have told them, so I no longer bother with them anymore, its so frustrating. But anyway
I feel your pain


text:
Snow returns to Grand Rapids 1/31/13
Thursday, January 31, 2013 5:07 PM
Inappropriate photo? Alert us.
Ben Brothers shovels the sidewalk in front of his home with his son, Gabriel, 3, along Lyon Street NE in Grand Rapids Thursday, January 31, 2013. "We thoroughly enjoy the snow," Brothers said. "We try to get out as much as possible whether it's work or play." (Cory Morse | MLive.com)
Related articles
- Grand Rapids top headlines: Snow returns: Find out which Michigan cities topped snow record or came close March 13, 2014, 6:00 PM
- Grand Rapids hot headlines: Winter back with a vengeance in West Michigan; up to 14 inches of snow, ice jams, bitter cold expected January 31, 2013, 6:00 PM