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An Indictment
We focus on the weaknesses of our heroes and leaders because, whether we admit it or not, we need them to be human like us. Transcending mortality cannot be allowed because there must be a clear line between god and mortal. Zeus punished Prometheus for aspiring to be like the gods, not for trying to bring fire to humanity. And as Prometheus learned the hard way, punishment is meted out as atonement for abstract ideals, not specific offenses.
The fall of the House of A-Rod can be described as a modern day illustration of this idea. Here is a man who seeks to be god-like, a player without equal who can singlehandedly take a team on his back and drag them along with him. But like all who covet godhood, a tragic flaw bars the way. We don't crucify him for his actions. We crucify him for his aspirations and our expectations.
So, despite my general dislike of Mr. Rodriguez and my general contempt for both him and his actions, I also can't help but feel sorry that once again another of our heroes has been dragged in front of the gods and found wanting. And as sportswriters, bloggers and fans alike pick at A-Rod the way the gryphon picked at Prometheus' liver, perhaps we should take a step back and rethink this lesson. After all, this is not so much a story of human frailty as it is an indictment of the gods and their impotence.
6 Comments
You are correct. The problem lies with the powers to be that control this game we all love. Thus my letter to Bud, asking for change – because if he won't do it, we fans will. Stop by and read it Allen.
The problem with A-Rod is that he actually hasn't taken a team on his back and dragged them with him. He seems to me to be the epitome of the self-centred athlete more concerned with his own performance than with the status of the team.
p.s. is the crucifiction being covered by MLB Network?
We can't just scrutinize A-Rod, we have to look at MLB, the players union and more. Regardless, this needs to be fixed immediately.
Allen- One of the things that I find interesting, as you put, him being "dragged out in front of the gods…" is that out of the 104 names that tested positive, his was the only one leaked. It also makes me think that our desire to see our heroes succeed may be what's causing the down fall of baseball.
A-Rod does look like a god. He's so perfect looking. Hmmm. Now it makes sense.
A god with human weaknesses. Sigh. Maybe I should give him a hug. Kumbaya.


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KI Blue Bell Extends Rosh Hashanah Service to one and All!
Recognizing that most families prefer to meet a congregation before considering religious school, or even membership, KI Blue Bell invites the public to attend a Community Rosh Hashanah Family Service on September 5th.
"While our congregation maintains deep roots in our community, we encourage both change and growth," said Kleinman. "And as those who visit us on September 5th for our High Holy Day celebration will discover, we also embrace the joy to be found in this and other events hosted by our congregation."
Although reservations are required, there is no cost to attend the service, which will include arts and crafts projects, familiar High Holy Day music, and a dessert buffet. The event is geared toward families with children ages 3-10.
Guests will have the opportunity to experience the warm and child-friendly congregation. KI Blue Bell has been a welcoming environment to traditional, interfaith, and non-traditional families since the Blue Bell campus opened its doors seven years ago. KI's main campus in Elkins Park was founded in 1847.
The service will begin at 3:00 p.m. at the Normandy Farm Grand Ballroom located at 1401 Morris Rd Blue Bell, PA 19422
For more information about KI Blue Bell, JQuest or to RSVP, please call 215-887-8700 or visit http://kenesethisrael.org/blue_bell_campus/
Keneseth Israel was founded in 1847 in response to the need of the growing Jewish population in the Philadelphia area. Over the next 158 years, the congregation grew even more and its members spread out over Montgomery County. Due to the migration of members into the Blue Bell area, KI opened a second campus in Blue Bell in 2005. The congregation currently leases space from St. John Lutheran Church at 1802 Skippack Pike, Blue Bell. Ki Blue Bell offers monthly family-friendly Shabbat services, an engaging religious school accredited by the Reform Movement's National Association of Temple Educators, and enriching educational and social programs.

subset: commoncrawl


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>Health and Nutrition>Loose bowels when I run
The Greatest of All Time
Needs more cowbell!
• Do some dus...and some CX...and some tandem gravel...and some podiums...
• PRs
• 130#s (or less)
• Stop letting my core go to hell
Where would we be without our coffee. I plan my whole race around when I can get my coffee in.
My secret weapon: coffee
Drink this 90 minutes before run. Cleans everything out. No poopy problems.
Problem is that I do not drink coffee. Not that I have any thing against the stuff. I just never develop the habit. I guess I should think about trying it.
Well I run in the AM usually between 5 to 5:30 AM Sometimes I have to start at 4:00 AM Not sure I can get up 90 minutes before to drink coffee.
I am not your typical coffee drinker either. I prefer Hazlenut flavor with skim milk, and about 4 packs of Splenda. So basically, it no longer tastes like coffee.
Hazelnut is my favorite flavor, too.


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Rivane NeuenschwanderBelo Horizonte, Brazil
Rivane Neuenschwander
Rivane Neuenschwander was born in 1967 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where she lives and works. She studied at the School of Fine Arts, UFMG, Brazil and the Royal College of Art in London, England. She has exhibited her work internationallyRead more
Shahzia SikanderNew York, New York, USA
Shahzia Sikander
Shahzia Sikander was born in Lahore, Pakistan in 1969. She received her B.F.A. from the National College of Arts, Lahore and an M.F.A. from the Rhode Island School of Design. After participating in the CORE ProgramRead more
Tony VillejoSan Antonio, Texas, USA
Tony Villejo
Tony Villejo was born in 1953 in San Antonio, TX where he lives and works. He studied fine art with Mel Casas at San Antonio College. Villejo has worked in the theater and entertainment industry for nearly two decades, buildingRead more
Kellie Jones
Dan CameronSenior Curator, New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, NY
Dan Cameron is Curator of the 8th International Istanbul Biennial set to open in September 2003. Currently, he is also Senior Curator at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, a position he began in 1995. Cameron, basedRead more
Amada CruzSenior Curator, New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, NY
Annette DiMeo CarlozziSenior Curator, New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, NY
Nancy RubinsSenior Curator, New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, NY
Born in 1952 in Naples, Texas, Californian Nancy Rubins received her MFA from the University of California, Davis. She has had numerous solo exhibitions, including shows at Paul Kasmin Gallery, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, and the VeniceRead more
Hans Ulrich ObristCo-Director, Exhibitions and Programs and Director of International Projects, Serpentine Gallery, London, England
Hans Ulrich-Obrist is the Co-Director of Exhibitions and Programs and Director of International Projects at the Serpentine Gallery in London, positions created for Ulrich-Obrist in April 2006. As a curator at the Musée d'Art ModerneRead more


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My signature is a mess. And it is the best I can do with cursive writing.
I may have missed fountain pens by a few years when growing up – ah, the advent of the 19-cent Bic pen – but cursive writing was drilled into us from third grade on. Mrs. Hickey had her work cut out with me.
Printing in block letters was so much easier, and I had mastered that. But in third grade we were required to write in cursive. To say it was beautiful was an understatement.
One letter gracefully flowing into the next was a work of art. One that I never mastered. And this was before I had ever heard of the word "computer" or worse yet, "texting." I'd say, "even worse yet, Twitter," but I have not advanced that far in social media skills.
Texting wasn't a word in third grade, and if it was, it would have probably had something to do with reading textbooks. "Oh, Dick can't come out and play. He had a lot of texting to catch up on." No chance. Not when a perfectly uninvented and uncool word could be used, "reading."
Texting really still could be called writing and be accurate and understandable to the masses. We didn't need a new word. Alas, we got one.
Mrs. Hickey had her hands full that year, and she probably accomplished more than any other teacher I have had. Not only did she have to teach cursive writing to a group of primitive printers, she had to teach division and the multiplication tables up to 12, not to mention how to use a dictionary.
We were raw material in third grade, just able to read and write coherent sentences such as "How are you?" and "I am fine" to pen pals. In cursive.
The Northwest Herald's Shawn Shinneman reported a few weeks back about the status of cursive writing in society, and he didn't have good news to report. Schools are not teaching it as much. It used to be a half hour a day was devoted to cursive writing; now it's down to 5 to 15 minutes a day, if at all. The goal is to teach students how to read it as well as how to sign their names. The extra time is being devoted to computers.
I would have been all for it in third grade as I struggled mightily with cursive writing, especially the capital Es and Qs and Zs, to say nothing of stringing together the lowercase letters of a word to make it legible. It was as if I had a cinder block attached to my wrist. It wouldn't flow across the page but jump, stop and start.
I'd look at the cursive charts that were pinned above the blackboards and knew what I wanted the letters to look like. Best friend Stephen Schloesser had perfect penmanship, and I couldn't keep up with the smartest kid in the class.
In eighth grade, we had a long paper to write about a subject of our choosing. I wrote an essay that was a fictional, humorous account of grammar, which is where schools ought to be devoting that time left over from cursive lessons. I've seen the email. Too many people are too nearly illiterate because of computers and texting.
It remains one of the pieces of writing that I am most proud of, but I lost points because my penmanship was atrocious. It was duly noted – by a very kind teacher – that I could have put more effort into my handwriting. This was before typewriters. By then, we weren't practicing cursive writing; we were applying what we learned and being judged on it. It was that important.
Today, my handwriting is a hybrid of cursive and block printing. I never could master the lowercase s, for instance. I switch gears to block printing when I come to the s. Before writing this, I tried to write a sentence or two using the cursive writing that was drilled into me beginning in third grade. It took forever and it looked atrocious, as if I had a cinder block attached to my wrist. Ah, memories.
I have seen precious few people who are experts at cursive writing, with one letter flowing perfectly into the next as if they were meant to be mates for life. It's a thing of beauty, and I am jealous. If only I could master cursive instead of the swill I put down on paper. When I write letters, I have to try to take the reader into account and slow down so what I write actually can be read on the other end.
The one I have the most practice at – signing my name – is the one I am worst at. It is a squiggle of up-and-down lines that could very well be my name when I insist on it. Mrs. Hickey wouldn't accept it. I'd be marked wrong and be told to sign another receipt, only this time slow down and use what I've learned. I've tried. It's not going to happen. I flunk.
• Dick Peterson, who lives in Woodstock, is a mental-health advocate. He is a freelance writer and a former Northwest Herald Opinion Page editor. He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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ECS | CeRTS | IWAS | Teachers
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For Immediate Release
August 1, 2005
Springfield, Ill. The Illinois State Board of
Education (ISBE) has released Adequate Yearly Progress
(AYP) School Status Reports to 1,738 Illinois schools
and 289 districts. ISBE issued the reports based on spring
2005 testing results following a data correction and approval
window. This years reports are being released months
earlier than in any previous year.
When Governor Blagojevich appointed seven new members
to the State Board in September of 2004, one of his top
charges to the group was to address the persistent delays
and inaccuracies in providing data to local schools and
districts. The new State Board addressed this issue
as one of its first initiatives to help schools, students
and parents.
We know that in the past, the timeliness and accuracy
of these reports has been a big problem for schools,
said State Board Chairman Jesse Ruiz. When
the Governor called on us to help schools in Illinois,
this is one of the issues he was talking about. Knowing
how important it is for schools to have this information
as early as possible, we made this a top priority.
ISBE did not issue AYP School Status Reports for Spring
2004 testing until November of 2004. Accurate reports
based on spring 2003 testing were not released until June
of 2004. The extreme delay caused serious difficulties
for schools and districts whose School Improvement Status
required them to communicate the option of School Choice
and Supplemental Education Services (SES) to parents.
I congratulate the State Board on its success in
getting timely, accurate information to schools,
said Gov. Blagojevich. When I named the new
Board last fall, I made it clear that it needed to fix
the agencys practice of issuing late, inaccurate
reports. I applaud the Boards work to eliminate
a chronic problem that had caused schools difficulties
for years.
In addition to getting the AYP School Status Reports out
to schools more quickly, the State Board is helping districts
and schools that must offer School Choice and SES by providing
sample letters to send to parents.
Schools need reports that are on time and correct.
Our staff has worked closely with schools and districts
to get accurate information into their hands as soon as
possible this year, said Randy Dunn, State Superintendent.
We know that schools need time to communicate with
parents before the start of a new school year. Speeding
up our data collection and review process has helped them
do that.
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires all states
to measure each public school's and district's achievement
and establish annual achievement targets for the state.
The overarching goal is for all students to meet or exceed
standards in reading and mathematics by 2014.
Each year, the state calculates a school or district's
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) to determine if students
are improving their performance based on the established
annual targets. Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) calculations
in Illinois are based on three factors:
Illinois State Board of Education
100 North First Street
Springfield, IL 62777


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INGREDIENTS:½ cup boneless, skinless chicken breast, grilled, diced 2 Tbsp. Buffalo Blend (recipe follows) 2 flour tortillas, 9-inch ¼ cup cheddar cheese, shredded ¼ cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded 2 Tbsp. sour cream ¼ avocado, medium, sliced and fanned 1 Tbsp. green onion, chopped for garnishBuffalo Blend: 1 cup clarified butter 1 ½ cups Frank's® Original RedHot® Cayenne Pepper Sauce DIRECTIONS:Toss chicken with Buffalo Blend. Sprinkle cheeses evenly on tortilla. Top with chicken. Place ...
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Could Be the Fans, Man
Pardon me for being brash, but it's certainly no secret that the group mind of the Phillies faithful is about as unruly as the world markets are on this fine Friday afternoon. And while I've never been to Citizens Bank Ballpark, I have seen the drunken exploits of Phillies fanatics in St. Louis as well as here in Chicago. In fact, one of my fondest baseball memories is seeing two Phillies fans fight two Cubs fans outside of Haray Caray's Tavern on Sheffield and Addison. Quite the conundrum as I didn't know who to root for: the two ^ssholes in Cubs jerseys or the two ^ssholes in Phillies jerseys.
I don't remember who won the fight; I do remember I wanted to stay as far away from them as possible.
And that hasn't changed one bit.
So in reading Mike Bauman's column this morning — where he theorizes that in order for the Dodgers to come out of Philly with a win someone other than Manny Ramirez has got to hit the ball — I chuckled when he passively mentioned the x-factor of drowning out the noise of "the extremely vocal support of 45,839 of their [the Phillies'] closest friends."
Touché, Mike. Touché.
As one highly respected blogger put it earlier this year: Philadelphia Fans Don't Deserve Championship Teams.
And after watching this I have a hard time disagreeing with him:
I know my esteemed colleague, Mr. Krause, has equated the Philly message to that of Barack Obama and even picked them to run the table all the way to the Championship but I can't stop myself from thinking how crazy that comparison actually is. Philly fans, obviously, have no qualms about fighting back while Democrats seem to be inherently meek (see Al Gore 2000, John Kerry 2004, Barack Obama 2008). Philly fans are hardly known for their eloquent speech whereas the Democrats bank on it.
In fact, I think the only thing that Philly fans and Democrats have in common is that they both lose when it really counts.
Let's hope that one of them doesn't this time around.
Go ahead, Philadelphia. Go ahead and hate me. It's nothing I'm not used to. Really. But don't hate me 'cuz I'm right (and please stop firebombing my house).
4 Comments
Anyone who wants to have a go at me because of that blog about the Phillies fans had better be prepared—I'm 5'11", a muscular 200, and I bite.
I will remain silent on this. While I haven't seen anything quite like that at Fenway, there are times when the Red Sox college crowd goes overboard with their never-ending thirst for their team's success and the next beer. But then you can find that in most stadiums except perhaps in G-rated Busch Stadium, where they always applaud the other team if they lose, and in Kauffman Stadium, where there are no fans.
Steve T.
Though I've never seen fans actually going at it with fists at Yankee Stadium, I've seen some reeealllly heated arguments and some "_____ Suckks" chants that'll be aimed at like one person wearing some random jersey. I saw once some heated bickering between a Red Sox fan and Yankee fan that lasted the entire game and went on and on after every play but at the end of the game the guys were guys and pounded and said it was all good.
You know what I'd love to see though? An entire group run onto the field one day. I find it hilarious seeing the security run wild trying to catch someone on the field quick before they look like they can't do their job… and then when they do, it's TACKLE TO THE GROUND. I wonder what they'd do if a kid ran onto the field. I could imagine them pulling off the old mother trick, pulling them by the ear and saying "You no good piece of __________________________________________________" [That speech always goes on forever.]
V – http://flairforthedramatic.mlblogs.com
I'm here to stick up for KC fans. They do show up! It's not their fault that their team stinks or that it's snowing during games!


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Cough and Cold Medications: Use Only as Directed
Winter is here and, with it, cold season. To arm themselves, many people purchase over-the-counter drugs, which are those that don't require a doctor's prescription. Read More »7 Comments
Smokeless tobacco is the latest nicotine-based product to drift into the marketplace and try to catch the attention of young people. Read More »10 Comments
Let's Talk: Who is Your Role Model?
Everyone looks up to someone…a family member, a celebrity, or someone who has overcome hard times to succeed in life. It helps us to have a role model. Question #9: Who do you look up to? Who are your role models? Why? Read More »4 Comments
Stop Distracted Driving: Stay Alert To Stay Safe
We live in a world obsessed with multitasking—people are watching TV while texting their friends while updating their Facebook status while tweeting about the latest celebrity gossip. And some people will even multitask behind the wheel of a car—not real smart, and reeeaaally dangerous. The U.S. Read More »18 Comments
Good Riddance: Peer Pressure
Peer pressure happens in every high school and middle school in the country, and is pretty much a part of growing up. Being pressured by your peers can be difficult and even stressful…it's hard sometimes to go against the group and stand up for your beliefs and what you know is right. Read More »3 Comments


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I've been having major allergy/sinus troubles recently. I was wondering if you llladies might have any recommendations for meds or other treatments that are nursing friendly?
One thing: I can't use a netti pot or any other form of nasal irrigation -- they give me nosebleeds.
I and my sinuses thank you in advance!


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Veteran seamstress thinks Barre is 'right fit'By Stefan Hard
Stefan Hard / Staff Photo Patricia Morse cuts a piece of giraffe pattern faux fur for a hat in her Something Sew Right shop in Barre.
Veteran seamstress Patricia Morse has altered her business more than once over the years. She's looking for just the right fit.
She may have found it in Barre.
Morse recently relocated from Montpelier and opened her Something Sew Right shop in her apartment at 29 West St. in Barre, where she can keep her expenses low and live with her lovable pooch at her side while she makes clothing alterations for customers and dreams of designing her own line of clothing.
Something Sew Right is right in the heart of Barre. Sitting at her sewing table in front of a big bay window, Morse can see the courthouse straight in front of her, and Dunkin' Donuts to her right. A large sign out front announces her shop's presence and a sign on the door welcomes walk-ins.
Morse, 60, has worked professionally as a seamstress for others, and for herself, for 27 years. She caught the seamstress bug at only age 10, picking up basic skills her mother taught her, practicing them in 4-H Club, and in high school home economics class.
"I came from a family of six kids, and we didn't have extra money," said Morse. "I got into it when I realized I could make my own clothes and not have to wear hand-me-downs."
Morse's enthusiasm for sewing did not translate into a career out of high school. Instead, she went for a degree in parapsychology at Burlington College, but then fell back on to her skills sewing, working at Champlain Leather in Burlington.
Morse struck out on her own, starting her own business in Waitsfield, then moving it to Montpelier, where state government workers represented a steady demand for alterations to suits. Now, she is re-establishing her shop in Barre and hoping many of her Montpelier customers will follow her and that word-of-mouth will bring in new customers in Barre.
"I feel like Barre is on the upswing," said Morse on Sunday, hovering over some giraffe-pattern faux fur on her large cutting table. "People are saying that the downtown is really looking up, and they did a good job rebuilding Main Street."
In her Barre shop, Morse is surrounded by customer items awaiting her alteration, and some of her creations, including jackets, scarves, hats, and pocketbooks. Morse works with virtually any kind of material, from leather to fleece, and will alter everything from motorcycle jackets to wedding dresses. She does everything herself, and said she demands excellence from herself in every job.
Over the years, Morse has seen styles fall out of fashion, only to return decades later. She's beginning to see people come in and ask for shoulder pads to be added to their shirts and blouses, in a return of early 1980s fashions.
"One of the things I enjoy most is taking a piece of clothing that a customer feels has become outdated, and altering it to bring it up-to-date," said Morse. "I like taking an old favorite and making into something new." She recently took a conservative wedding dress worn by a bride-to-be's grandmother and updated its look, cutting three-quarter-length sleeves into cap sleeves and dropping the neckline.
Morse has seen a steady increase in the popularity of thrift shops, and many items that come in to her shop are thrift items bought for their style appeal, but lacking in proper fit, and sometimes worn or faded. Even brand new items can present challenges, like when a a customer comes in with a new pair of the very popular "distressed" jeans and wants them hemmed. Morse has to cut off the pre-worn stitching at the bottom of the legs, shorten the leg, then re-attach the "distressed" cuff to maintain the overall look.
Morse welcomes the challenges posed by alterations of all kinds, and it is her bread-and-butter business, but she is planning to expand her business to include her real passion: creating her own clothing for women, and particularly for larger women who welcome flowing designs that compliment their shape and build.
"I have a lot of ideas that I've begun sketching for designs that drape over the body in a flattering way … in items for casual wear or for the office," said Morse. Morse sees a growing demand in this niche, and she wants to put up a website, sell directly over the web, while showing some of her designs in her shop and measuring a fitting customers for custom designs.
Depending on how busy Morse gets in Barre, she might have to hire expert help, but she said that could be a daunting task.
"This really is a dying profession," said Morse. "There are so few of us (tailors and seamstresses) left. I don't even think it is taught in a lot of high schools, and unless you attend a design school in college, I don't know where you would get enough training to get to the expert level."
On the reverse side, Morse probably doesn't have to worry about a lot of competition and soon may have a lot of her kind of business sewn up in a refashioned downtown Barre.
firstname.lastname@example.com IN Central VermontMIDDLEBURY According to WebMD, Dystonia is a movement disorder that causes a persons muscles ... Full StoryTiffany Briggs and Kayla Jackson eyed each other across the table, clasped hands, and then it was... Full StoryMARLBORO Police are investigating a burglary on Higley Hill Road. Full Story
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Statement from Congressman Hinchey on Hurricane recovery
Washington, DC -- Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) today released the following statement regarding early recovery efforts from Hurricane Irene. In the aftermath of the storm, Hinchey has been working to ensure that localities are prepared to receive needed federal assistance.
"The circumstances we face in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene are tragic. My heart goes out to those who have felt the worst effects of this storm. Thousands saw damage to their homes, many were severely injured, and some lost friends and loved ones. While the storm has passed, many of our communities remain flooded and without power.
"Yet, as we always do, New Yorkers from across our region have pulled together in support of each other. I want to thank the first responders who rescued those in harm's way and the neighbors who lent a helping hand to friends in need. Their efforts have helped to lessen the destructive force of this storm.
"Moving forward, it is critical that local, county, state and federal officials coordinate their efforts so we can recover from Hurricane Irene as quickly as possible. My offices are open for business, and we're working directly with FEMA and other federal agencies to ensure that New York receives the resources it desperately needs. I am also working with the counties and localities in New York's 22nd Congressional District to ensure that their needs are being met.
"It's clear that a major disaster has occurred and federal funds should be provided to help New Yorkers recover. Congressional action will also be necessary to increase funding for the President's Disaster Relief fund. The fund now contains less than $1 billion, and the effects of Hurricane Irene felt throughout the eastern seaboard are likely to run this account far into the red. I am hopeful that the funding necessary to support recovery efforts will be made available without the typical Washington, DC games of partisanship. This is an emergency, and we can't afford to waste any time in getting New Yorkers, and all Americans affected by Hurricane Irene, back on their feet."


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Lace Overlay Tee
Style: 570091331
Out of Stock
Temptress tee. Boudoir lace and black chiffon are very becoming on top of a form-fitting soft knit tee with cap sleeves.
- Contoured stretch fit.
- Chiffon-trimmed neckline. Heather gray front; black knit back.
- 95% Rayon, 5% Spandex. Machine wash. Imported.
- Hits at the lower hip (25.75" from shoulder).
Read more… Read less…


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Safer banks make bond markets more risky
In the offices of financial authorities worldwide, justified satisfaction at making big banks more stable is giving way to twinges of alarm that one side effect has been to make the bond market riskier.
Since the financial crisis, regulators have been on high alert for systemic risk – the danger that, as in 2007/08, a problem with one institution or activity could jeopardise the entire financial system.
By its nature systemic risk cannot be wholly eliminated – and while it had to be shifted away from the banks, the danger was that too much of it would reappear at some other point in the system.
Increasing the level of capital banks were obliged to hold against bonds on their books was a good way to make them more stable. But making it more expensive to hold bonds made banks less willing to deal them – no longer could a seller of bonds be confident of finding a bank willing to buy. The bond market's main shock absorber had been weakened.
Margie Patel, a high-yield portfolio manager at US fund firm Wells Fargo Funds Management, said: "Dealer liquidity has been in a multi-year secular decline."
At the same time bond issuance has soared and investors in search of yield as interest rates stayed low have bought increasingly risky bonds. If the predicted rise in US and UK rates provokes a bond sell-off so severe it hits the prices of other assets, systemic risk will have resurfaced with a vengeance.
In recent months, authorities including the International Monetary Fund, the US Federal Reserve, the UK Financial Conduct Authority and the European Central Bank have expressed concern.
In a June consultation with the US, the IMF warned that a precipitate attempt by investors "to exit certain markets – perhaps exacerbated by outflows from ETFs and mutual funds as well as near-term market illiquidity – could trigger an abrupt and self-reinforcing re-pricing of a range of financial assets".
Patel added: "The illusion of liquidity looks good today, but in the face of true, material bad news, you'd see what would happen to liquidity."
The European Central Bank's financial stability report in May described "an abrupt reversal of the global search for yield, amid pockets of illiquidity and likely asset price misalignment", as the number-one risk to euro area financial stability.
The Bank of England issued a similar warning in a June stability report. It also said asset managers may be overconfident of their ability to meet client demands to sell: "There are indications that some asset managers may be operating on the basis that they can sell assets quickly in the event of possible redemptions – a strategy which, if pursued simultaneously by many funds, could amplify increases in risk premia and volatility."
The risks are amplified by the growing prominence of mutual funds. According to Federal Reserve data, households and mutual funds – considered more likely than institutional investors to take flight as risks emerge – now own around 37% of credit markets, up from 29% in 2008.
These outflows can become self-fulfilling, with redemptions strongly correlated with recent weak performance, according to research from Royal Bank of Scotland. A 1% loss in high-yield markets is typically accompanied by a $1.5 billion outflow from high-yield mutual funds, according to the UK bank.
At RBS, Alberto Gallo, Lee Tyrrell-Hendry and Tao Pan said in a note published this month: "The performance-outflows correlation is high, although not so high as to create a negative feedback loop. However, in market downturns the relationship gets stronger, and as weaker performance happens, so do more outflows."
Concerns are not confined to high-yield bonds. The IMF's most recent report on global financial stability pointed to risks in fixed income markets in developing economies, for example, where an influx of foreign investors was contributing to increased volatility.
The Fund said the increased presence of international money had led to a "systemic liquidity mismatch" in which it can be difficult for local firms and marketmakers to cope with large-scale outflows.
All the authorities express concern that a sell-off in bonds would hit other assets. In its report, the ECB highlighted the risk that investors attempting to exit funds could lead fund managers to sell more liquid assets to meet those redemptions. Hedge funds and mortgage real estate investment trusts, often highly leveraged, are a particular concern, as they rely on short-term funding, which could dry up in a period of stress.
This in turn could have consequences for the primary market, making it more expensive and more difficult for companies to raise funds in the capital markets.
The question now: what to do?
In the UK, the FCA published a notice last month that declining corporate bond market liquidity could make it difficult to exit positions during market swings.
Gill Lofts, head of UK wealth and asset management at consultancy EY, said: "We know this is an area where the regulator is keen to ensure there is appropriate protection. The biggest issue is what does that protection look like?"
A spokeswoman for the FCA declined to comment on future work, but said its supervisory capability in the area had been expanded and "ongoing communications" were likely.
In May BlackRock, the world's largest fund manager, urged regulators to minimise "run risks" – clients clamouring for the money in the equivalent of a bank run – by having pension funds and other asset owners foot the bill for net flows.
John Taylor, portfolio manager, fixed income, AllianceBernstein, said reports that US authorities are considering exit fees for bond funds posed problems. He said: "The threat of these being introduced may cause investors to get out now, before they are introduced, which may cause problems around liquidity etc, which the authorities are actually trying to solve."
One head of electronic trading at a leading fixed income house said: "Some of the asset managers in the US are lobbying the government about putting gates on, as they do with hedge funds. That is real. That is the next potential dislocation. It may take something like that to change that market."
-- Joe McGrath contributed to this article


text: I have been exclusively double pumping for 4 months now and only recently I have noticed that my right breast is slow in catching up with the left breast and produces less milk when expressing per session i.e 20mls less. Is this normal? Will this affect my breast in the long run? Is there anything I can do to get it to catch up? Before both breasts produced brilliantly the same amount. Thanks. B.


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Office of Student Records
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- Your Right to Know
- Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
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The Office of Student Records provides a variety of student services:
- Processes requests for College of DuPage and Lyons Township Junior College transcripts
- Processes applications for degrees and certificates
- Verifies student enrollment for employers, loan deferments and insurance purposes
- Evaluates transcripts from other institutions specifying credits accepted by COD
Online Degree Audit
COD students can run a degree audit online that reports progress toward completion of a degree or certificate.
Where to Send your Transcripts
You can mail transcripts to:
College of DuPage
Office of Student Records
425 Fawell Blvd.
Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
Transcripts are considered official only if enclosed in a sealed envelope and identified as official by the sending institution.
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Electronic transcripts are considered official only if received directly from the sending college or high school and identified as official by the sending institution. Transcripts sent by email from the student, even if from a college email account, are not considered official documents.
See Transcript Evaluation and Proof of Prerequisites for more information.
Order Transcripts Online
Order your official transcript online through your secure myACCESS account.
Final Grades Online
Final course grades can be accessed online through your secure myACCESS account.
Don't have a myACCESS account? Get started now!
- Go to myACCESS
- Click on the "I'm new to myACCESS" menu bar
- Read the instructions and click "OK"
- Enter your last name and your Social Security number or your seven-digit COD ID number, then click submit
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- When you receive your temporary password by email, login with your User ID and temporary password. You will be prompted to change your password. Passwords must be at least six characters and include at least one number.
Office of Student Records
Student Resource Center (SRC), Room 2150
Monday to Thursday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Phone: (630) 942-3838
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Individuals who need language assistance, please call Campus Central at (630) 942-3000 or email email@example.com.
College of DuPage
425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn IL
60137 (630) 942-2800
2016 College of DuPage


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Students Talk to Students About Breakfast WINNER: PHILADELPHIA SCHOOL DISTRICT/ARAMARK Entry: Breakfast Commercial Contest The Big Idea: Adults (at least some of them) know the importance of a healthy breakfast, but communicating that message to youngsters can sometimes come across as nagging. So, who better to send the message without the adult baggage than other youngsters? That was the idea behind the Breakfast Commercial Contest sponsored by Aramark and the Philadelphia School District ...
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PopTech Blog
It's a happy Wednesday! All of the stage talks you heard at the PopTech 2013 conference just a few weeks ago are now available online. Like what you see? Join us at PopTech 2014 next October.
Community takes center stage in 'The City Resilient' Edition
The latest PopTech Edition focuses on community as the central element in this deep examination of the tenets of urban resilience. PopTech is releasing this Edition to coincide with the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Sandy slamming into the East Coast.
This collection of in-depth articles and videos examines the basic definitions that help us study resilience, explores common attributes of communities that seem to bounce back and it begins to unpack some of the key cutting-edge techniques and technologies in the field.
While community is the nucleus of this Edition, the constellation of information brought to that concept is markedly diverse. The opinions come from a distinctly multi-disciplinary panel of experts in an effort to bring the broadest possible aperture to subject matter that is pressing, complicated and difficult to define and measure.
The format varies widely as well. "The City Resilient: Enabling communities to bound back" is a formidable blend of videos of prepared talks, interviews and short documentary films, as well as written pieces submitted by outside writers and text profiles of a handful of provocative resilience innovators.
The videos and articles attempt to examine such fundamental issues as the definition of community in the 21st century and how to measure resilience. The authors and speakers delve into the preparation, response and recovery from sudden, intense disasters like killer storms, as well as slower, creeping afflictions like economic decline. And finally, the group of experts weighs the best ways to manage the complex web of overlapping authorities and institutions before, during and after a crisis.
Each PopTech Edition explores an emerging theme from the perspective of some of the remarkable innovators shaping it. This particular Edition grew out of an urban resilience summit by PopTech and the Rockefeller Foundation at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in June 2013. Please enjoy PopTech's fourth Edition, "The City Resilient."
At PopTech: Immersions for creativity of all kinds
Day three of PopTech consisted of a series of "immersions," opportunities to engage in structured discussions on pressing topics of innovation, study the creative process with a pair of skilled artists, or go out on a selection of Maine-oriented activities from sailing to chowder making.
In one of these immersions, Artist Shantell Martin and self-described "nerd artist researcher hacker" Zach Lieberman invited a small group of around 10 PopTech attendees to explore the creative process and work on a series of exercises to provoke visual creativity. Gathering in a sunlit room of the historic Camden Opera House, the pair spent two hours discussing creativity, drawing, instructing and talking.
Lieberman described the instruction as "exercises around conditional design." They began with simple tasks of collaborative drawing using only straight lines and dots, and then into creating drawings out of one long, continuous line. "Lines can tell us where we come from. Lines can tell us where we are going," Lieberman said. "I think there is something really beautiful about an infinite line."
Martin shared an intimate treat with the small class. She invited the participants into a large room hung with tall sheets of white paper. She then created one of her trademark, large-scale black-and-white drawings using thick black magic marker.
The whole time, Martin described what she was doing, what she was thinking and invited the clearly enthralled audience to ask whatever they liked about the process. "Thinking that you are finished and feeling like you are finished are two different things," she explained near the end of her work.
The immersions were the last wrinkle in "Sparks of Brilliance." See you next year in Camden.
Photos by PopTech.
At PopTech: A deep dive into creativity on day two
Day two of PopTech 2013 featured a deep dive into the mysterious origins of creativity inside the human brain and some examination of creativity in fields as diverse as science, medicine, photography and business.
Cognitive psychologist Scott Barry Kaufman is working to unravel some of those mysterious origins. He is deeply immersed in research that is rapidly mapping out the creative process inside the human brain with the help of brain scanning equipment. Kaufman explored with the Camden audience the specific portions of the brain that activate and deactivate during creativity and how those patterns differ in some highly creative people.
The precuneous, for example, is a region of the brain heavily involved in "looking in," or producing and following thoughts such as daydreams or thinking about the future. Other parts of the brain are "looking out," or paying attention to the outside world as we go about our business.
For most of us, our brains concentrate largely on one or the other. "The more that you are focusing on your inner stream of chatter, you are oblivious to what is going on out there," Kaufman explained as an example.
But brain scans of particularly creative people show they are actually doing more of both at the same time. They are able to "simultaneously activate these two brain networks," Kaufman said.
Just as deeply as Kaufman is interested in some of the good things going on inside our brains, brain cancer researcher Jim Olson has come up with some potentially revolutionary ways of getting something bad out: cancer.
Olson has invented "tumor paint," that lights up cancer cells, showing surgeons precisely what to cut out while leaving healthy cells in place. The paint is based on the venom of a scorpion and is 100,000 times more sensitive than an MRI in detecting cancer cells.
Tumor paint illuminates brain, prostate, breast, colon, skin and other cancers and human clinical trials are set to begin in Australia late this year. "In a few years, surgeons will have a hard time going back to surgery as they have done it in the past," he said.
A series of speakers also brought the Camden audience along on an exploration of some of the creative processes at work in a variety of other fields.
Photographer Adam Magyar develops ingenious digital camera systems and employs high-tech, digital tools adapted from industrial applications. He is particularly interested in urban environments and city dwellers. His riveting work transforms otherwise mundane situations into compelling and magical images. "I was always interested in the rest — the unimportant moments," he told the audience. 'I always capture a lot of details. I love details."
Similarly David Robertson, a professor at the Wharton School, used the history of innovation at LEGO to show how creativity sometimes needs boundaries to excel. At LEGO, this has meant disciplined market research before inventing new toys and forcing designers to work within relatively strict parameters.
Robertson admits that the trick is knowing how much to let business creativity bloom and how much to set some limits. "It is a hard balance. A lot of companies get it wrong," he admitted. LEGO is getting it right. Profits are soaring.
Lisa Servon, who conducts research on urban poverty, community development and economic development, brings hands-on creativity to her work trying to develop financial tools that are useful to poorer Americans. Part of that work has involved Servon working at a check-cashing facility in the Bronx. "Poor people know best what they need," she said. "It is not the policy makers and the researchers."
They joined a full slate of speakers and PopTech Fellows who took the stage in Camden to help the audience better understand the creative process in all its glory. See you next year in Camden.
Photos by PopTech.
At PopTech: Communities, data, and ethical resilience
How could communities make better use of big data to enhance their resilience?
The six Bellagio/PopTech Fellows convened this past August at the Rockefeller Foundation's Bellagio Center to look deeply at how data can help communities bounce back in the face of key stresses — environmental, political, social and economic.
Building on their multidisciplinary backgrounds, and spurred on by several catalysts, the Fellows created a fresh approach that emphasizes ethics as a central — and often overlooked — factor.
Today, at PopTech, the Fellows announced "Big Data, Communities and Ethical Resilience: A Framework for Action," which outlines the interplay of six key domains, including ethics, governance, science, technology, place and sociocultural context.
The framework is already generating original ideas on how communities can more appropriately sense, analyze and utilize data, while respecting the autonomy and privacy of community members. We are excited to share the Fellows' vision, and look forward to the practical applications that are beginning to emerge.
At PopTech: Violence interruption leveraged by mobile phones
A raft of data supports the public health approach to preventing violence and cultivating peace. Treating violence like a communicable disease that spreads rapidly among people and groups provides a proven effective stratagem for tracking and interrupting an outbreak and preventing further spread.
For years, those kinds of violence interdiction efforts have utilized "boots on the ground," relying mostly on the physical efforts of trained personnel who go out to trouble spots and leverage their local knowledge and contacts in communities to help tamp down outbreaks of violence or prevent it in the first place.
In March, just five years after vicious post-election violence rattled Kenya, a similar contagion-style effort was employed there during and after elections, which this time proceeded peacefully for a variety of reasons. But there was a twist in this violence prevention effort: It may have been the first time that mobile phones were used to expand the reach and impact of the disease-control approach to preventing violence.
That exercise included a hybrid of research in the field long before the elections, personal networking in tandem with the use of mobile phones, sharp discipline in the vetting of intelligence on potential violence, and careful diligence in text messaging. These techniques may provide an invaluable blueprint if that high-tech violence-interruption model goes to scale at other locations around the world.
PeaceTXT is a PopTech-initiated collaborative effort to understand how new communication technologies can be integrated with face-to-face violence prevention to reach scale. PeaceTXT is a cooperative endeavor that began by looking at how the mobile phone might be used as a fulcrum in PeaceTXT partner CureViolence's approach to violence prevention. CureViolence worked in Chicago to explore the possibility of using text messaging to amplify their approach and to identify possible communications mediums that could be used for violence prevention.
Sisi ni Amani Kenya is an organization founded specifically to enhance local peace-building in Kenya with a text-message-based approach to civic education and violence prevention, and received support from PeaceTXT to further develop and scale its model. The program also relies heavily on the technological expertise of the Praekelt Foundation, Medic Mobile and QCRI.
During the 2013 elections, Sisi Ni Amani implemented its programming on the ground and across mobile networks. The organization was established, in part, in response to the devastatingly effective use of mobile phones in 2007 to spread rumors and stoke political violence. "If our approach to using mobile technology is modeled after anything, it is from the people who wanted to cause violence in 2007, and did it really effectively," said Founder Rachel Brown.
But members of the Sisi Ni Amani team emphasize that local intelligence, networking and knowledge were every bit as important as the use of the mobile technology, and that the messages might have been useless — or worse, potentially inflammatory — without it. "Some of the places where we are working, we have lived there," explained George Ooko, one of the Sisi Ni Amani coordinators who spent the election season embedded in Kenyan neighborhoods armed with a cell phone, three extra cell phone batteries and a spare charger.
When text messages are sent, they have to be carefully formulated to consider local language and mores. Each 160-word text, in fact, is vetted by a small group of local volunteers before it is sent, in order to maximize impact and minimize the risk of untoward results. "You have to be very careful which word you use," said Ooko, who is attending PopTech in Camden. (Sisi Ni Amani also relies on deep local knowledge to carefully vet incoming intelligence on potential violence through a variety of sources.)
The texting that did take place was also highly disciplined and targeted. Messages could be sent to users in specific geographic areas, allowing messages to be tailored for particular threats and using language most likely to prove effective to a niche audience. Sisi Ni Amani also learned some valuable lessons about limiting overall messages to avoid overload, and sending messages at the most effective times of day.
But surprisingly, Ooko and his colleagues say that one of the most important facets of their election work was determining when not to send a text. Mary Njambi, another Sisi Ni Amani coordinator attending PopTech, described receiving reports from voters who said they were being locked out of a voting facility. In that case, Sisi Ni Amani decided it was better to contact local elections officials directly, and no text was needed. In other cases, the organization delivered intelligence directly to police. "You shouldn't always send a message," Njambi said.
All of that discipline may have helped, and Sisi Ni Amani's statistics from the election are impressive. Around 65,000 Kenyans signed up to receive messages during the elections. The group sent out more than 680,000 text messages during the election season. A Sisi Ni Amani post-election survey showed that 46 percent of respondents forwarded a Sisi Ni Amani message to others. Around 85 percent of respondents reported talking with others about messages, and 92 percent reported that the messages had a positive impact.
PeaceTXT is an effort that grew out of a markedly diverse group of collaborators. CureViolence, for example, early on dispatched their international director to Nairobi to help Sisi Ni Amani incorporate the disease-control model into their high-tech hybrid. "We had a disease-control approach, the same as you would have for tuberculosis, cholera or AIDS," said Josh Gryniewicz, the director of communications at CureViolence. "How do we amplify the work? That is here SMS came in."
Gryniewicz also acknowledged PopTech's leadership spearheading the work of PeaceTXT over the last several years. "None of this would have happened without PopTech," he said.
PeaceTXT will be sharing its experiences and methodologies in the coming months and will continue to work toward the development of an integrated model of violence interruption and prevention that builds on the success of the early work in Chicago and Kenya.
At PopTech: Impact Fund will assist remote health care effort
Josh Nesbit, a PopTech Social Innovation Fellow in 2009, pioneered the use of mobile phones for health care in a remote region of Malawi. He then went on to co-found Medic Mobile, which is bringing these innovations to broader parts of the developing world. The model features a central clinic laptop running FrontlineSMS software, enabling community health workers to use mobile phones to coordinate patient care.
Raj Panjabi was a PopTech Social Innovation Fellow the next year, in 2010. He co-founded Last Mile Health, which forges innovative partnerships between rural health centers and their surrounding communities. The model features dispatching community health workers trained to treat patients in remote locations.
At PopTech's annual convening in Camden this year, it was announced that the pair are the first to receive support from the PopTech Impact Fund — a program committed to leveraging resources and providing small catalyst investments that seed new initiatives that have high potential for disruptive impact. It is one of the ways PopTech nurtures its network of change agents and precipitates collaborative endeavors.
Through the Fund, Nesbit and Panjabi plan to combine the power of their two programs. The idea is to equip Panjabi's remote community health care workers with the technological tools utilized in Nesbit's program. This has the potential to dramatically improve the delivery of health care by providing those health care workers with virtual access to medical expertise and coordinating capabilities they would not otherwise have in remote locations. "Do we have the moral imagination to make things better?" Nesbit asked the Camden crowd. And Panjabi seemed to answer: "We have a chance right now to change the way an entire country cares for its people in the most remote areas."
At PopTech: The courage to summon creativity
Courage was a common theme expressed on the first day of PopTech's 2013 gathering, "Sparks of Brilliance," a convening to explore the nature of creativity. Athletes, artists and engineers all described overcoming fear as an integral — even paramount — component of the creative process. Fear of failure. Fear of embarrassment. Fear of physical pain.
Rodney Mullen is a legend among street skaters. He invented most of the tricks in any great skateboarder's toolbox: the flatground ollie, kickflip, heelflip, impossible, and 360-flip.
And his body has paid the price. At times in his life, Mullen has had so much scar tissue in his hip joints it has impaired his ability to walk. He showed the Camden audience some frightening videos of skaters going down in some horrific, frightening wrecks. "This may come as a surprise to you," Mullen joked. "Skateboarding can be hard on the body."
But he insisted that the courage and tenacity to get back up, continue trying and continue inventing despite fear and physical pain was a part of coming up with new stunts and continuously improving. "What we do as skateboarders is we fall. We get back up and we fall," Mullen explained. "There is a correlation between overcoming, resilience, drive and success."
For Mullen, the creative process also includes relaxing the mind and ignoring any conventional wisdom that says something can't be done or achieved. "The biggest obstacle to creativity is piercing through this obstacle of disbelief," he told the Camden audience.
Helen Marriage is a co-director of Artichoke, a creative company, which she founded with Nicky Webb in 2005. Artichoke enables artists to create breathtaking, city-wide art installations that she calls, "large-scale public interventions."
For example, "The Sultan's Elephant" in May 2006 was the largest free theater ever seen in downtown London. It included a giant, 42-ton mechanical elephant, joined by a 20-foot tall girl, that entertained audiences for four days with sprays of water and rides.
Marriage is mesmerized by the transformation of public spaces into theaters for shared artistic experiences. "The point is the brilliance of these artists in reimagining our world," she says
But some of her job is surprisingly mundane: She has to convince public bureaucrats — transportation officials, police, public administrators — to agree to allow these huge interventions to move forward. Mostly, Marriage says those officials are often afraid. They are afraid that traffic will be snarled. They are afraid people will be angry. They are afraid that people won't like it.
Marriage's job, in part, is to convince those officials to have the courage to let the creativity happen. "There are many reasons why people are frightened. One of my jobs is to identify those anxieties and take them away," she says. "The point is the transformation of the human being."
Todd Reichert and Cameron Robertson are aerospace engineers. They recently won the 33-year-old AHS Sikorsky Prize, for the first flight of a human-powered helicopter to exceed 60 seconds duration and reach 3 meters in height.
The machine they built is a sprawling, complex monster with four sweeping blades and a bicycle at the center — big enough to fill up an airplane hangar. "It has the wingspan of a 737 and weighs less than a seat in that aircraft," Robertson explained.
But to do it, both engineers described a process of setting out to design something that many other engineers believed could not be achieved. They also failed many, many times. The pair thrilled the Camden audience with a video of their prototype violently crashing again and again before they finally achieved stable flight. "Impossible is nothing," Robertson said.
This was also true of Zach Lieberman, who helps kids summon the courage to be creative at his School for Poetic Computation. "One of the things I promote as a professor is this idea of fearlessness," he said. And it was true of artist Shantell Martin, who has to have the courage to let her pen have a life of its own in order to create her stunning illustrations. "I don't know where the pen is going," she said "The pen is going and I am just following."
And for the many speakers and Fellows who presented on day one of PopTech 2013, the strength, courage and resolve to be creative formed a unifying theme. What revelations will day two bring?
Photos by PopTech.
At PopTech: A clutch of scientists sparks innovation in the Middle East
The Arab world was once such a hotbed of innovation that the torrent of technological breakthroughs that took place there starting around the 7th century is sometimes called the "1,001 Inventions." The era witnessed the first flying machine, the first hospitals and the paramount invention of coffee.
But today the same region is often considered a consumer culture that often lacks the means to promote and nurture the entrepreneurial spirit and is largely devoid of the kinds institutions and informal networks that recognize and cultivate innovation.
Saudi scientist Dr. Hayat Sindi believes that the region is awash with youth and talent that remains largely untapped. "We have been consumers for a long time," Sindi said about that part of the world. "It's now time to transform into an industrialized society that can match the world's most advanced economies."
Several years ago Sindi set out to establish an organization to cultivate an ecosystem of innovation that would embrace and assist young scientists from the Middle East who have particularly promising ideas or prototypes in the fields of energy, health, water and the environment. She called it the i2 Institute (imagination and ingenuity) and her work is coming to fruition. The institute formally launched in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in November 2012.
The central focus of i2 is a robust fellows program. In May, the first six i2 fellows began an intensive training program focused on entrepreneurship, business and social sciences. Sindi's program has attracted the support of the MIT Media Lab, PwC, IBM and Harvard University, and it includes five weeks of training in Cambridge, Mass.
The idea is to elevate the fellows' ideas, improve and broaden their skill sets, and help bring their projects to scale. But the program is also supposed to create examples of entrepreneurial success from the Middle East and to cultivate a culture of innovation. "We need to connect the dots," Sindi explained. "Good inventors need the right environment and part of my job is to contribute to the creation of a larger ecosystem."
The social science portion of the fellows training includes a trip to PopTech, and Sindi's fellows are in Camden this week, meeting, observing the conference and networking. Sindi was previously a PopTech Science Fellow and a Social Innovation Fellow and benefited from that training and networking herself.
Sindi says PopTech deserves considerable credit for i2's success thus far, and she traces the idea for the fellows program back to a pivotal meeting with PopTech Executive Director Andrew Zolli and President Leetha Filderman at PopTech's annual conference back in 2009. "That was very important," Sindi said. "They gave me connections to the right people who would help me. Their constant support has really inspired me."
Saudi microbiologist Hosam Zowawi is one of the first i2 fellows. Zowawi was working on his doctorate at the University of Queensland in Australia studying the spread of antibiotic-resistant "superbugs" in the Middle East. He was overwhelmed with the burden of studying around a thousand samples of bacteria looking for superbugs. "I was thinking, 'How on earth am I going to analyze all these samples?'" So Zowawi came up with a new, rapid diagnostic tool that now promises to aid in initial medical management and the implementation of infection control precautions.
It's a promising breakthrough, but has not yet been brought to scale. "I have a science background and no business background at all. It was hard to figure out how I would commercialize this tool," he said. "Thankfully, I found i2."
Like Sindi, Zowawi is similarly evangelical about cultivating an atmosphere of innovation in the Middle East. "The current belief is you can't do this type of thing in this culture," he said about that region. "This shows that the culture of entrepreneurship is starting to grow."
All revolutionary eras start somewhere. Perhaps Zowawi is one of the first pioneers of the next 1,001 Inventions.
Get Social at PopTech 2013
This week on Oct. 24-26 our annual showcase of world-changing people, projects and ideas takes place in Camden, Maine. Whether you're joining us in Camden or watching the livestream at home, here are a few ways to maximize your PopTech 2013 experience.
- Once again this year, we are streaming the PopTech conference live online. And thanks to our friends at Livestream, we're able to do so free of charge. Check out the conference schedule, mark your calendar, and don't forget to tune in.
- Download the PopTech 2013 app for up-to-the-minute conference information on speakers, Fellows, schedules and maps.
- We've compiled PopTech 2013 speakers, performers, session leaders and 2013 Fellows Twitter lists so you can follow along with conversations on the ground and add your thoughts.
- Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, LinkedIn and the PopTech blog to stay up-to-date- on conference related-news.
- The official hashtag for this year's conference is #poptech.
- Coordinate carpooling to PopTech 2013 on Twitter by using #PopTechCarpool or by visiting the PopTech Connect Facebook group.
- Be sure to stop by the Camden Village Green Oct. 24-26 (across the street from the Camden Opera House) to check out "parkSPARKS," an interactive art installation from By Design involving hammocks, reclaimed float rope, mesh and local lumber from a Maine barn.
- On Saturday, Oct. 26, speaker and skateboarding legend Rodney Mullen will be at the Camden Skate Park, located just uphill from the Opera House at 10 Knowlton Street. Be sure to stop by and say hello to the man who invented numerous skateboarding tricks, including the flatground ollie, kickflip, heelflip, impossible, and 360-flip. The park will open at 2:00pm and Rodney will stop by at 2:30pm. Please note that children 10 years old and under who will be skateboarding need to have a parent or guardian present. Additionally, anyone under 18 who will be skateboarding needs to have a parent or guardian sign a release form at the skate park.
Image: Peter Durand


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administration of music
A large part of my time at NSI/Children's thus far has involved creating the 30-minute stimuli material. Basically, I've listened to a lot of lullabies, chosen the ones that match qualifications set by prior research, performed some sound editing to equalize any abrupt volume changes (which are jarring for anyone, but especially babies), and sound tested them to ensure appropriate volume level.
Above is the brilliant Donald Hutson. He works on creating Brain-Based Devices for the Neurosciences Institute, but on the side, he is a master destroyer at BattleBots. Check his website here. He has a bot called Diesector – eek. On a lighter note, Donald engineered the lovely speaker system we are using to play music for the babies. The black thing coming out of the back of the speaker is actually a camera stand. A wire runs directly from the speaker to the iPod, so it doesn't need any outside power. As long as the iPod is charged, the babies'll hear music. This picture shows the iPod securely connected to the pole, but it took some finagling and brainstorming to get it to that point.
Donald attached one of those plastic snap-clasps (I just made up that name) to the iPod with adhesive foam tape. He then secured it with a zip tie, and we put it on the pole. It was a little loose, and I wanted to make sure that I would be able to see the screen at all times, so he added one thin layer of black duct tape. This added the perfect amount of traction and extra circumference for a snug fit around the pole.
The process of sound testing involved latching the speaker onto a chair in the conference room at NSI so the sound would project about one foot from the end of the sound level meter. This emulated the conditions of the speaker over a baby's head. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the appropriate maximum sound level for prolonged exposure for an infant is 70-75 dB, so I had to first test each song for its existing dB level and then adjust accordingly.
This entire process is done, with the finalized lullaby playlist on both iPods we have designated for the study. This week at the hospital, the nurses are getting officially informed about the study and hopefully early next week, I will finally start the music administration we've all been waiting for!
I'll leave you all with just a few robot-themed songs I enjoy.
Remnants of my however-modest presence in the NJSKA scene:
I wish I could find the Japanese version on YouTube but I failed:
I've told the world this approx. a billion times, but I'm seeing Robyn on the 22nd:
Fave remix (of this song) of the week. I feel like everyone tries to rmx this, and luckily most of them do a great job with it:


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2012 Chevrolet Express Cargo Van Values
The 2012 Chevrolet Express Cargo van comes in 1500, 2500 or 3500 variants. As well as offering a choice of either a 135-inch or 155-inch wheelbase, the 2500 and 3500 models of the 2012 Chevrolet Express Cargo vans offer additional ground clearance. Entry level 2012 Express 1500 model power comes with either a 195 horsepower, 4.3 liter V-6 or a 5.3 liter FlexFuel V-8 engine generating 310 horsepower. Both engine choices on the 2012 Chevrolet Express 1500 Cargo van are matched with a four-speed automatic as standard. For larger towing and hauling requirements, the 2012 Express 2500 and 3500 Cargo vans provides more professional grade power. Two V-8 engines, a 280 horsepower 4.8 liter and a 323 horsepower 6-liter powerplant, are equipped on the higher range of Chevrolet's full-sized cargo van with the added perk of E85 fuel flexibility. A 6-speed automatic transmission is included with the 2012 Express 2500 and 3500 Cargo van. With up to 10,000 pounds of towing capacity furnished with the 6-liter gasoline engine, the Chevrolet Express 2500 and 3500 Cargo vans also offer a 6.6 Duramax turbodiesel powerplant that can pull with 525 pounds-feet of torque. Air conditioning, external transmission cooler, dual 12-volt power outlets and forward airbags are standard equipment on all 2012 Chevrolet Express Cargo vans.Read more Read less
Select a 2012 Chevrolet Express Cargo Van trim level
G1500 Van-V8
G2500 Van-V8
G3500 Van-V8


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Hello again,
I read about this somewhere but can't remember the answer. I'm pumping at work for LO but also have a small freezer worth of milk. Should I just give LO the refrigerated stuff I pumped today to drink tomorrow? Or use the frozen stuff first? I went back to work on 12/1 and have been freezing the milk when I get home and then defrosting milk for him for the next day. Am I doing this wrong???


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What's in it for us?
By Kevin Uhrich 03/28/2013
The last time we looked, positions on the Pasadena City Council and Board of Education were nonpartisan. The idea, at least in theory, is to keep the sometimes dirty world of party politics out of decision-making on what most people have come to accept as universally important issues — like keeping everyone in the community physically secure, a primary job of the council, and educating our children, the single-most important duty of every school board member.
This nonpartisan system has worked pretty well, although both the council and Board of Education have been dominated over the past few decades by Democrats. The truth is, though, party affiliation for most local officeholders has never really been an issue, unless, of course, someone brought it up, which has rarely happened.
The school board has been no different than the City Council inasmuch as party politics have played little if any role in how people perceive what they do. That is, until now.
In the race for newly created District 3 on the Board of Education, recently formed under provisions of voter-approved Measure A, some onetime backers of Tyron Hampton, who faces off against Ruben Hueso in the April 16 runoff election, say they are withdrawing their support. And why is that? Hampton is a Republican, and apparently having an African-American Republican on the school board is unthinkable, no matter how well he knows the district or how sincere his desire to improve it.
In the primary, Hampton, a local contractor who, according to his Web site, graduated from Cal Poly Pomona, raised only a few hundred dollars, with one $100 contribution coming from sitting Board President Renatta Cooper, the board's only African-American member and, incidentally, a Democrat.
On the other hand, Hueso, a teacher with children attending public schools, lists a number of major out-of-town donors to his campaign. Although the district, which was carved out of some of Pasadena's poorest neighborhoods and includes most of Northwest Pasadena, Hueso has collected more than $30,000 — $1,000 from the California Real Estate Political Action Committee, $1,000 from the local and ostensibly nonpartisan political action group ACT, and $14,000 from the campaigns of Democratic state Sen. Kevin DeLeon of Los Angeles and Assemblyman Ben Hueso, Ruben's brother, from Encinitas. Hueso's brother contributed $11,000 from his 2012 re-election campaign, according to the latest financial records filed with the Pasadena City Clerk's Office. DeLeon gave from his 2018 Assembly campaign fund. Former state Assembly Speaker Fabio Nuñez, also from San Diego and running for state Attorney General in 2014, gave Hueso $5,000 with funds from that upcoming campaign. One of Hueso's local supporters is Pasadena Board of Education member Ed Honowitz, who gave $250.
Although Cooper still supports Hampton, others who have asked not to be named for this story said they cannot do the same after learning that previously unknown fact about the candidate's party affiliation.
In May, voters approved Measure A, which did away with the PUSD's former at-large voting system in favor of districts. The structure is similar to the one employed by the City Council, with seven separate districts, each consisting of roughly 29,000 people. The goal was to increase voting and office-holding opportunities for members of minority groups.
In the March 5 election, Hueso came out on top in a field of three candidates, which included foster mother Diedre Duncan, who reported no contributions but still managed to capture enough votes to keep Hueso from taking the 50 percent plus one vote needed to win outright, forcing a runoff with Hampton.
No one faults Hueso for going to his family and friends for money, even if those folks are members of the Legislature and not from Pasadena. We are also concerned about the perceived need for all African-American officeholders to be Democrats. But we have to wonder if members of the task force that created these districts last year could have foreseen such developments in which party-driven ward politics and well-funded forces from outside the community could play such major roles in securing a seat on the local school board.
Actually, if they didn't know, they should have. One of the few locally prominent people to object to Measure A was former Board member Bill Bibbiani — a Republican and former top PUSD district administrator whose job over 30 years with the district consisted, in part, of racially integrating Pasadena schools — who told them such things were likely to occur.
Actually, Bibbiani wrote in a column for this newspaper, Measure A's "only guaranteed effect will be to significantly reduce the voting rights of all voters and blocs thereof, wherever they live."
Under the at-large system, citizens could vote for or against each of the board members who were up for re-election every two years. But under Measure A, "voters will be limited to voting for one board member only every four years — a single member from a single sub-district whose boundaries have been drawn in large part based on a committee's perception of its overall racial/ethnic characteristics. … Measure A will result in racially oriented, ward-based 'what's in it for me' politics and politicians."
Further, Bibbiani observed, when you make it inexpensive to campaign, "you may get 'local' candidates who run merely to win the one real perk enjoyed by the school board members, a comprehensive family health insurance program! Or, outside political groups could try to 'buy' a seat on the cheap!"
Given all that's occurred in the race for District 3, it appears some of Bibbiani's predictions are materializing in both campaigns, raising not so much the question of what's in it for them, but what's in it for us when one of these two men eventually takes office.
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This is certainly not the first time political party affiliation has played a role in Pasadena "non partisan" elections. Go back to Henry Wilfong and his race with Loretta Glickman as just one example. So this is nothing new. What is new is that district elections represent a true shift of power from a city wide block (and machine) to the districts. With district elections, we will end up with some good elected officials and with some bad ones, as in any election system. We have got to try something different because I do not know anybody happy with the way things have been in the school district, in spite of the great work of some great people at all levels. Both Hueso and Hampton seem like great candidates and there will be a lot in it for all of us whichever one wins -- which they might not have done citywide.
Well done, well documented, well thought out and executed. Keep up the good work!
As a quick rule-of-thumb, especially at the local community level, it seems to me that any candidate that collects more money from outside some district (or city) than is donated from the inside should be considered nothing more than a "ringer" who is dead-set and well-financed on accomplishing nothing more (at the end of the day) than betraying the community (s)he's supposed to represent, and I really don't care how charismatically a collaterally sold out sponsoring shills may plea otherwise.
Ultimately, you get the representation you pay for, and if somebody else has "donated" for more stock, then your candidate ain't really working for you.


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1. Seattle Seahawks (12-2)
Nothing like a shutout to atone for a loss. The next time the Seahawks play in New Jersey, it just might be in the Super Bowl. (Photo by Ron Antonelli/Getty Images)
2. Denver Broncos (11-3)
A Patriots loss is the best thing that happened to Denver this week. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
3. Kansas City Chiefs (11-3)
Jamaal Charles won't win MVP, but he deserves consideration – especially after his five-touchdown day clinched a playoff berth. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
4. Carolina Panthers (10-4)
This Sunday's home game against New Orleans just got real interesting. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
5. San Francisco 49ers (10-4)
Another 1,000-yard season for Frank Gore. The 49ers have won four straight. (Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)
6. New England Patriots (10-4)
The rabbit stayed in the hat this week. (Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images)
7. New Orleans Saints (10-4)
The Saints have lost four of their last five road games and have looked completely awful in each of their last two. (Photo by Michael Thomas/Getty Images)
8. Cincinnati Bengals (9-5)
The Bengals had a chance to seize control of the AFC's No. 2 seed – on prime time, no less – and got embarrassed. Cincinnati is now 2-10 in its last 12 divisional road games. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
9. Arizona Cardinals (9-5)
When you're up by 17 points with just over three minutes to go, you shouldn't need overtime to get the W. Nevertheless, that's six wins in seven games. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
10. Baltimore Ravens (8-6)
Justin Tucker is pretty much the man. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
11. Chicago Bears (8-6)
Jay Cutler was rusty early but solid late. Either way, a win should quiet the Josh McCown debate – this week, anyway. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
12. Philadelphia Eagles (8-6)
The Eagles passed on 48 of their 61 plays – and five of the 13 carries were by Nick Foles. No balance? No win. (Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)
13. Indianapolis Colts (9-5)
Since spoiling Peyton Manning's return to Indy, the Colts have beaten the Titans (twice) and Texans (twice). That's it. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
14. Miami Dolphins (8-6)
Beating New England is big for the psyche of this franchise. Kudos to Miami for keeping it together this season. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
15. San Diego Chargers (7-7)
Stunning win. Not a surprising win, but a stunning win. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
16. Green Bay Packers (7-6-1)
Five second-half possessions, five second-half touchdowns. This team, thanks to one of the best comebacks in franchise history, is still alive for the playoffs. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
17. Detroit Lions (7-7)
The Lions didn't allow a single touchdown and lost. This one is squarely on the offense – especially Matthew Stafford, who threw three interceptions, and Calvin Johnson, who had several timely drops. Detroit has now lost four of five. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
18. Dallas Cowboys (7-7)
Why does this team refuse to give the ball to DeMarco Murray (7.4 yards per carry on Sunday)? Blame Tony Romo all you want, but the play-calling was atrocious. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
19. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-8)
That win was all grit, all pride. Bengals got schooled. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
20. New York Jets (6-8)
Geno Smith did a great job managing the game – until he threw that pick-six in the fourth quarter. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
21. St. Louis Rams (6-8)
The Rams' last three wins have all come against winning teams – New Orleans, Chicago and Indianapolis – and they've all been by double digits. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
22. Minnesota Vikings (4-9-1)
Despite playing without their top two running backs, top two tight ends and three top cornerbacks, the Vikings scored 48 points – their most since 1998. (Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)
23. Tennessee Titans (5-9)
Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 402 yards and four touchdowns, but it wasn't enough. That's five losses in six games, including three straight. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)
24. Atlanta Falcons (4-10)
Tony Gonzalez became the fifth player in NFL history with 15,000 receiving yards. So yeah, this year wasn't a total waste. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
25. Buffalo Bills (5-9)
Nice bounce-back game for E.J. Manuel, whose three touchdowns were an encouraging sight. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
26. New York Giants (5-9)
Eli Manning threw five interceptions on Sunday and now has a league-leading 25 on the season. (Photo by Ron Antonelli/Getty Images)
27. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-10)
Tampa Bay's last four losses came against San Francisco, Carolina (twice) and Seattle – by a combined 61 points. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
28. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-10)
MJ-Who? Jordan Todman (153 total yards) looked good. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
29. Cleveland Browns (4-10)
How do you score two defensive touchdowns and lose? (Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images)
30. Oakland Raiders (4-10)
The Raiders' seven turnovers were their most since 1998. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
31. Washington Redskins (3-11)
The Redskins committed seven turnovers, the franchise's most since 1988. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
32. Houston Texans (2-12)
Twelve straight losses. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)


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Out of stock items are built on demand. You buy it, we build it. Ships within 5 days.
In stock orders ship same day if received by 4:00 PM Mountain Standard Time!
Our Medium Aviator Bag is the right size for cramming camping and sporting gear into. Jam two sleeping bags, pillows, pads and even an extra blanket and you've got most of what you need to keep you and your honey warm and cozy for a night in the wild.
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