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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.3/158888
|Download PDF (Accepted manuscript) (Adobe Acrobat PDF, 97 KB)
- Title
- Rating non-elite tennis players using team doubles competition results
- Author(s)
- Clarke, S. R.
- Abstract
- Statistical methods can be useful in rating non-elite tennis players. This paper shows how clubs can use simple optimization techniques to rate their club's players in doubles tennis competitions. Even though clubs lack all relevant information, the effects of home advantage, position played, partner and strength of team opposition can be taken into account and evaluated. The results from all competing clubs, available to the body organizing the competition, are used to rate all players in the competition, and validate the results that were obtained with limited information. We show a home ground advantage exists in non-elite doubles tennis. A simple exponential smoothing method of rating players is then tested, and shown to produce reasonable results.
- Publication type
- Journal article
- Research centre
- Swinburne University of Technology. Faculty of Life and Social Sciences
- Source
- Journal of the Operational Research Society, Vol. 62, no. 7 (Jul 2011), pp. 1385-1390
- Publication year
- 2011
- FOR Code(s)
- 010206 Operations Research; 010401 Applied Statistics; 010406 Stochastic Analysis and Modelling
- Keyword(s)
- Exponential smoothing; Forecasting; Home advantage; Regression; Sports; Tennis
- Publisher
- Palgrave Macmillan
- 0160-5682
- Publisher URL
- Copyright
- Copyright © 2011 Operational Research Society Ltd. This is a pre-print of an article published in the Journal of the Operational Research Society. The definitive publisher-authenticated version (published in the Journal of the Operational Research Society, 62 (7), 1385-1390) is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/jors.2010.75
- Full text
- Peer reviewed


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The following are the official LAKC Championship Classes. These descriptions are not to be construed as the only rules for the classes.
Refer to the current year IKF / SKUSA rule books for complete event rules.
LAKC only uses SKUSA rules for class and post technical officiating. All racing and insurance related rules are per IKF unless otherwise noted.
ALL Drivers need to provide proof of birth date (i.e. birth certificate, passport, or drivers license) to be eligible for a license with LAKC.
Updated 26 Jan 2016 14:08
What does "Pilot" mean?: These class variations are for drivers who are not quite able to compete for the top positions in our championship classes. There are many reasons why these classes may be the best option for you. It may be because you race with older equipment, you have entry level equipment, you have less time to practice your skills, and many other reasons. For whatever the reason, enter these classes to compete with drivers in similar situations.
#All past Pilot champions MUST be moved out of the Pilot programs.
What does "NC" mean?: This is the designation for our NON-Contact classes. NC means that there will not be avoidable contact during the race. The on track race officials will determine, at their discretion, when avoidable contact has occurred. Infractions will result in actions ranging from a warning, being docked finishing positions, or disqualification.
Fuel Testing and Sample: Fuel is specified and must pass any test presented by the official tech personnel. The "sample" fuel will be VP-MS98L with Motul 2T Grand Prix mix oil at 16:1 Ratio. Stock Shifter classes VP-MS98L with Motul 2T Grand Prix. "Built" Shifters VP-C12 and Motul 2T Grand Prix. Participant is allowed one "fuel check". Any DQ is at the discretion of the Post Tech Supervisor. His decision is final and not pro testable.
Disclaimer: LAKC reserves the right to eliminate or add any class that does not meet the minimum requirements to be eligible for a championship. The minimum average to make a championship class is 5 per race. LAKC reserves the right to alter or change any of the above description as needed.

subset: commoncrawl


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Messages suggest that Adobe Flash Plugin is not working. Not loading? Not turned on? Not compatible?
I am not sure.
Here: search.php?keywords=adobe+flash there are a few suggestions.
This one seemed to make the most sense but following the instructions changes nothing.
Re: Flash issue in latest version
go to the adobe site and install from there
uncheck the mcafee crap
Maybe it is the specifics of my computer windows Vista 64bit HP Pavillion dv7 intel centrino But can't this whole process be less a mystery than it is? How much information does it take to create a panel with a list of programs, features, plug-in's etc etc that are marked: there or not there, on or off? Why create something that works best with something
( Adobe Flash for instance ) and make it so crazy to set into motion?
It's not just this plug-in that shows up wrapped in a mystery and maybe I'm not smart enough to understand why developers don't take the time and effort to make it a smooth and easy transition.
Waiting for the enlightenment.


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Macart: I am thinking about renting that symphony and I'm really not sure who else to call about the LC. This is the only one the hospital say we have in our area.
Mtmama: Thank you and I am going to check the price on renting a scale.
Bxlgirl:Output is good. He is three months and vaginal delivery.
Right now we are combining bottles and nursing and its working for now. I hope all this pumping is going to boost my supply. I haven't had to use formula but if I can't get more milk soon, I will have to resort to formula. I am not sure how much bm to give him at a time. Right now he is demanding 2oz every 1-1/2 hours and will just keep screaming and sucking his fist if I don't feed him more. He would like to even have more than this. No wonder he doesn't think I have enough.


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The White Township Supervisors held their first meeting of the year last night and heard an update on the lawsuit filed against the township by a Johnstown company. Solicitor Michael Delaney said the suit filed a year ago was for a contracted job that was performed by Laurel Management. According to Delaney's summary, there was a dispute about payments for storm water maintenance. The case is past the discovery phase. Delaney said he is requesting authority from the supervisors to settle.
Milt Lady had his first meeting as township manager. He had been often filling in for Larry Garner in the past few months. Lady reported that the S&T Bank Arena would be taking over the Learn to Skate, Learn to Play Hockey program from now on, with reduced rent as compensation.
PennDOT's speed study on North Fifth Street, near the high school entrance, is complete. They concluded that a speed reduction to 25 miles per hour from 35 was not justified.
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text: Forget about Phil Jackson. He doesn't deserve to coach this Knicks team. He wanted nothing to do with us when we had Ewing & he still wanted nothing to do with us during the past 10 years. He could care less about helping the Knicks become great; he wants a great team already in place so he can take the credit. Jackson always wants a silver spoon of roster talent. No heart if you ask me. Every coach wins with great players, but how great would Jackson have been without MJ & Pippen or Shaq & Kobe? I'd bring back Van Gundy way before Jackson.


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Miracle on 34th Street
Originally released in 1947, this classic has gotten the remake treatment more times than The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Maybe its staying power has to do with the fact that everyone loves to see Santa committed to a psychiatric facility.
Though it' not as irreverently funny as the other films on this list, Miracle makes us question our belief in things we can't prove, like God. And isn't that what Christmas comedies are all about?
The film won three Academy Awards and was ranked ninth on AFI' "100 Years"¦100 Cheers" list of America' most inspiring movies, barely beating out The Ref.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
Yes, we know this isn't a feature film, but this 1966 TV special packs as much of a punch in 22 minutes than any animated short in recent memory. So that' why it' included in this list of movies. If you have a problem with that it means you hate Christmas cheer.
Remember the part when his tiny dog Max is forced to pull that heavy sleigh? Or when the Grinch steals that Christmas tree in front of the adorable Whoville townie girl? And who can forget singer Thurl Ravenscroft' infectious baritone on "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch"? No one, and it' because this film dominates as much mental real estate as our first sexual experiences. Especially for CRACKED Editor Justin Droms, who, since losing his virginity while watching The Grinch, cannot properly have sex without it being on in the room.
Thurl Ravenscroft was also the voice of Kellogg' Tony the Tiger until his death in May of 2005. So, you know, don't say you've never learned anything from this website.
The Ref
Check out this bold claim: The Ref is the best film starring Dennis Leary. Trust us, people. It took a lot of brave decision-making to write that with all the other movies eligible for that distinction. And we stand by it.
Surely, with all the attempted robbery and bondage, it shares the honor of being the darkest Christmas comedy along with The Ice Harvest. Oh yeah, and Kevin Spacey is golden as one half of a staggeringly dysfunctional suburban marriage. If only he would have expanded on that character in a film with a better script, it could have been truly"¦ beautiful.
Dennis Leary broke into countless Boston apartments to research his role as the thieving Gus.
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
This heartwarming TV special' strongest attribute is that it featured a pre-pubescent Fairuza Balk. This is an oddly wholesome start for Ms. Balk considering that she went on to take such career-making roles as a witch in The Craft and a rock star' cum bucket in Almost Famous.
TBCPE, as it' known by diehard fans, is yet another X-mas story in which ragamuffin children discover the true meaning of the holiday. Simply by acting in a church play about the birth of Christ, the Herdman kids have a religious epiphany, get all Jesus freaky, and begin a strict regimen of brutal self-flagellation. At least some of that last part is true.
The Herdman clan reappears in two sequels, The Best Halloween Ever and The Best School Year Ever. The characters also served as the original culture pundits on VH1' Best Week Ever until they were all fired for being too homely and non-Jewish.
The Muppet Christmas Carol
Like many Americans, our first encounter with Charles Dickens' classic novel was narrated by the inimitable Gonzo. Along with Roots, this movie is one of the rare examples when the whole "the book is way better" claim is total horseshit.
While it' not necessarily the best Muppet movie, The Muppet Christmas Carol is far and away Michael Caine' strongest performance. Of course, the only other films we've seen him in are Jaws: The Revenge and The Swarm, but chances are the rest of his career isn't much more impressive.
Though Jim Henson supposedly died in 1990, there' strong reason to believe he' been secretly producing a sprawling masterpiece with Elvis, Kurt Cobain, and Tupac manning their Muppet versions.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
If only the real world had holiday-themed towns like those in The Nightmare Before Christmas. Oh man, we'd pack up shop and move to Mardi Gras-opolis and party all day and all night. And then we'd go fuck shit up in Earth Dayville like it was nobody' business. We're the coolest.
By far the spookiest and most clay-filled Christmas movie, Nightmare proves that Tim Burton is looking out for the kids. But compared to the rest of his oeuvre, it lands somewhere between Sleepy Hollow and that cool mixtape he made for a girl in high school.
As proud members of the list-making community, we protest this film' eligibility to be included in Christmas movie lists along with Halloween movie lists. There have to be firm ground rules, or all these lists we toil over become exercises in frivolity. And we can't have that, now can we?
Love Actually
Every British person alive was cast in this movie.
By the time the 30th love story was introduced and then somehow woven back into the third and fourth love stories by way of the tenth, we lost interest. Needless to say, the film made us want to marry a British chick and name all of our kids Rowan Atkinson.
CRACKED Editor Jack O'Brien once held Love Actually star Hugh Grant' umbrella for an entire day while he shopped for chocolates and penny loafers in all three of New York City' gay districts.
Christmas With the Kranks
For some reason, studio execs thought the public would get behind a movie about Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis frantically putting up Christmas decorations for their daughter' surprise homecoming.
In our turbulent post-9/11 world, movies like this lead the terrorists to believe they've won.
Ebert and Roeper gave it "Two thumbs, way way down," and even most ballet recital home videos deserve at least one thumb up to them.
Jingle All the Way
Sinbad, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Jim Belushi in one movie. Just thinking about this glorious trifecta makes us cum a little bit.
Because the movie is about two grown men racing to buy a last-minute Christmas gift, people blasted it for focusing too much on the material nature of the holiday. The studio' response was that it was intended to be a satire and must have gone over the public' head. Our response: Who the fuck gives a shit?
Sinbad wrote a sequel called Hey, It' Another Jingle All the Way Movie but he couldn't get any studio support. It has the exact same plot as the first one and many similar scenes. Come to think of it, the only major difference is that Arnold' character is to be played by Sinbad and Sinbad' old character was written for Dakota Fanning. Brilliant? Probably.
Nester, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey
This 1977 TV special is about a donkey with extraordinarily long ears that gets booted from the stable on account of his freakish appearance. It' set ancient Roman times and we think there' some sort of Jesus allegory at play.
It' one of those movies that you have to watch at least three times if you want to pick up on all the subtle allusions and idiosyncrasies, kind of like The Big Lebowski.
We've never seen it.


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Pilgrims on the Mayflower spot land, Jack the Ripper kills for the last time, the PGA integrates, Rolling Stone magazine debuts, and the Berlin Wall begins to fall, all on this day.
1953: Welsh poet and author Dylan Thomas, whose best-known works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion," dies at the age of 39 in New York City after falling into a coma four days earlier. At the post-mortem, the pathologist found three causes of death: pneumonia, brain swelling and a fatty liver.


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view full screen
Black/White Bead Stretch Bracelet Set
Style: 570074060
Out of Stock
Stretch bracelets sparkle as a quartet, or divide: two with glittering fireball beads, and two without. Wear with the Black/White Tassel Necklace or dressier Black/White Fireball Convertible Necklace.
- Set of four stretch bracelets.
- Glass and acrylic beads, some with white swirls, black foil centers and metallic iridescence; crystal pavé cast fireballs. Imitation rhodium nickel-free metal.
Read more… Read less…


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Allow it so other moderators can change names.
At the moment, only Sunshine can(?) and I've been waiting for a name change for almost 3 months now.
Any admin can, but we've all been extremely busy the last few weeks, so there are a lot of people waiting for name changes.
The good news is that we've got a site update coming which will allow everyone to change their own names! I'm told it should be deployed sometime on Monday, so keep an eye out.
i am also interested in this "name change"
Milk was a bad choice.
2013 MMO-Champion User of the Year (2nd runner up)
Yeah, there will be a cooldown to change a name (we're still discussing exactly how long), and you'll have your previous name reserved for a certain period of time so that people can't troll by stealing your old name and pretending to be you.
Settings --> Edit Profile
I notice we also have a Username History tab on our profiles now
Woot, thought about asking for this change a couple of years ago when I realized it wasn't used but ended up forgetting all about it for some reason.


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Shumlin signs bill package to fight addictionNeal P. Goswami / Staff Photo
Gov. Peter Shumlin signs bills designed to fight the drug war by switching the focus from punishment to treatment.
MONTPELIER Gov. Peter Shumlin signed a package of bills and executive orders Tuesday aimed at curbing the opiate and heroin addiction problem plaguing Vermont.
The second-term Democrat launched the legislative session in January by devoting his entire State of the State Address to a full-blown heroin crisis in the state. He called for treating the scourge of addiction as a public health crisis rather than a criminal justice matter and laid out proposals to improve treatment.
The marquee signing Tuesday at the State House was S.295, the centerpiece of the policy that we laid out in the State of the State, Shumlin said.
We added millions of dollars in funding to ensure that anyone who is ready for treatment receives treatment, he said. Thats incredibly important. There are more people who want treatment than we can treat.
The law provides assessment tools to courts and prosecutors and provides funding for county prosecutors to offer pretrial screening and treatment programs to suspects before they are arraigned, when they are considered most likely to be willing to address their addiction.
The risk assessment tools are also intended to help judges and prosecutors gather more information about defendants when trying to determine if bail is warranted. The law includes $760,000 to hire personnel to monitor offenders compliance with the program.
The law also creates stronger penalties for those charged with bringing more than 1 gram of heroin into the state to sell it. And a burglary that involves a weapon or threatening a home occupant will now be considered an aggravating factor, allowing judges to impose stiffer sentences.
The law will put Vermont on the cutting edge of ensuring that we as a family understand that opiate addiction threatens our quality of life, Shumlin said.
It threatens everything that Vermonters cherish about communities, neighborhoods, taking care of each other and ensuring that there arent threats to our quality of life, he said.
Shumlin signed the bill surrounded by law enforcement officials and lawmakers. Several, including Chittenden County States Attorney TJ Donovan, whose pilot program is the basis for the statewide effort, said Shumlins focus can help turn the tide.
I think Gov. Shumlin did something very rare for a public official, Donovan said. He was able, by virtue of giving one speech, to change the debate about how we view drug addiction. He was able to change the debate not only in the state of Vermont, but frankly, changed the debate in this country.
Bobby Sand, a senior policy and legal advisor for the Department of Public Safety, said Shumlins speech marks the beginning of a new direction in combatting addiction.
It has helped Vermonters understand that the problem has taken hold in the state, he said, and helps shine a bright, clean, antiseptic light on this topic that lets us all see with perfect clarity that these are not other people these are our people, this is us.
Sand, the former states attorney in Windsor County, said, For more than 40 years in the name of the war on drugs we have arrested and convicted and punished people who use drugs, believing that they are other people. When people reflect on drug policy changes for the early part of this century, Gov. Shumlins January 2014 State of the State Address will stand as a watershed moment because what he did was blow the lid off of the myth that these are other people.
Sen. Richard Sears, D-Bennington, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, helped craft the bill. He is serving as the co-chairman of a special legislative panel looking into child abuse following the deaths of two children in recent months.
He said Tuesday the panel is hearing how heroin and opiate abuse are leading to child abuse and neglect.
Nothing could be more timely than having this bill move forward right now, Sears said.
Prosecutors are not required to use the assessment tools, but the state will cover the costs when they do. Bram Kranichfeld, executive director of the Vermont Department of States Attorneys and Sheriffs Association, said all 14 states attorneys plan to participate.
Every prosecutor in the state wants to get started on these programs as soon as possible, he said.
Shumlin also signed into law S.308, which regulates dealers of precious metals. He said buying and selling precious metals and jewelry is tied in to the challenges with opiates that were facing.
When people need to support their habit they will do almost anything to support that habit, the governor said. They will rob you. They rob almost anything to raise the money to pay for their addiction.
The law creates a certification process for precious metal dealers, creates a 10-day delay before purchased items can be sold, and caps cash transactions at $25.
Retiring Rep. Thomas Koch, R/D-Barre Town, led the effort to pass the law. He said the new regulations should help curb burglaries perpetrated by addicts.
They break into homes, they steal jewelry, they steal silverware, they take it to a dealer and under present law the dealers can send it out of state and have it melted down within 24 hours and somebodys family heirloom is gone forever, Koch said.
Overall, what this bill really attempts to do is reduce the benefit that people can get by committing burglaries, he said.
Two executive orders were also signed. One creates the Governors Law Enforcement Officer Coordinating Council, which is designed to provide the governor with direct information from law enforcement on the states challenge with opiates.
The second creates the Governors Criminal Justice and Substance Abuse Council, which enhances the Criminal Justice Cabinet to include substance abuse issues.
Shumlins focus on addiction led to nationwide attention for Vermont. Both the New York Times and Rolling Stone magazine ran articles about the states challenge. Some criticized Shumlin for inviting such attention.
But the governor said he is more resolved than ever to tackle the problem and shift away from a criminal justice approach and embrace treatment.
I know that when we began this conversation in January there were some who felt we shouldnt be having it, he said. We have too many good Vermonters who are getting addicted first to FDA-approved drugs, then often moving to heroin, which is a cheaper and more lethal source, and were losing them.
Shumlin added, When we lose them we lose a piece of Vermont because they need to break the law, they need to rob, they do things in Vermont that really compromises our quality of life.
@rutlandherald.comMORE IN Vermont NewsAs Rutland prepares to welcome Syrian refugees to its community, some are continuing to voice... Full StoryMONTPELIER Gov. Full StoryMONTPELIER Gov. Full Story
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GV Now
Online tour showcases campus green features
Posted on July 01, 2014
Did you know that The Meadows was constructed to preserve two natural wooded areas that date back 75 years? Or that kitchen oil used at The Connection is recycled and made into bio-fuel?
These facts and more are outlined on a new online map that guides visitors through sustainable efforts, features and buildings on the Allendale Campus. Take the Green Tour at http://www.gvsu.edu/sustainability/digital-tour-310.htm
Norman Christopher, director of the Sustainable Community Development Initiative, said it's important to showcase Grand Valley's campus initiatives because more and more students are basing their college decision on an institution's sustainable curriculum and efforts.
"We want this tour to help potential students, faculty, staff members and families gain a deeper understanding of our sustainable efforts on the Allendale Campus," he said. "It will make them aware of the sustainable lifestyle new students and community members will experience at Grand Valley."
The creation of the map was a collective effort that included support from staff members in the Sustainable Community Development Initiative, Institutional Marketing, Facilities Services and Facilities Planning.
New features will be added as the Allendale Campus grows. A Pew Grand Rapids Campus map is underway.


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Amalfi Coast Walking NAW
Visiting: Italy
Trip Duration 8 Days
- Tour Style: Classic
- Tour Type: Centre Based
- Accommodation Grade: Standard
- Trek Grade: Easy to Moderate
Hiking on Italy's Amalfi Coast
A relaxed walking holiday exploring the spectacular Amalfi Coast. Our walks take us across cliff tops, through woodland and national parks, and culminate in the celebrated 'Walk of the Gods' - one of the world's greatest coastal walks. There is time to explore Amalfi, Positano and Capri, and you'll get the chance to visit Pompeii and Ravello. Our welcoming family-run agriturismo provides us with tasty home-produced food and wine.
Tour Highlights
- Coastal trails - Enjoy the natural and spectacular beauty of the Amalfi Coast
- Agriturismo accommodation - Experience warm hospitality and home-produced food and wine on a family-run farm
- Amalfi and Positano - Enjoy the buzz of these stylish and photogenic coastal resorts
- Capri - Escape the tourist bustle with a walk to the more peaceful areas of this stunning island
1Join trip at Naples airport; transfer to our agriturismo
2A warm up ridge walk above the Agerola Plain
3Walk to Amalfi along the Ancient Republic's Path
4Day Trip to Capri by boat
5Walk in the Ferriere National Park
6A free day to visit Pompeii and Vesuvius
7The 'Walk of the Gods' to Positano
8Trip ends at Naples Airport
Trip notes
Each departure date has its own dedicated trip note, detailing all you need to know about that trip. Whether you've already booked, or weighing up your options, please choose carefully the relevant itinerary for you.
We have the following different versions of the Amalfi Coast Walking trip available at present.
Please select a date:


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Via Technologies, a developer of microprocessors, core-logic sets and graphics chips, on Tuesday announced that at its Via Global Mobility Bazaar (GMB) Tech Forum Spring, which will be held on March 17th 2009 in Shenzhen, China, it would bring together a host of PC manufacturing and infrastructure partners and would discuss key technologies and market trends of netbooks.
"With the already strong momentum around mini-notebooks increasing, the Via GMB Alliance has attracted interest from both established players and new companies wishing to enter the market. This is not only a validation of Via's vision and strategy for the segment, but an acknowledgment of the tremendous business opportunity that exists around these popular devices."
The GMB program is a collaborative effort between Via Technologies, Microsoft Corp., American Megatrends (AMI), ITE Technologies, SanDisk, several China-based makers of mobile computers as well as a number of infrastructure partners. Under the program, Via as well as AMI, ITE and Microsoft will help manufacturers to develop netbooks, notebooks and other mobile devices based on various central processing units (CPUs) by Via, such as C7 or Nano. The latter will also ensure that the quality of actual products is high enough.
In the few short months since its formation, the number of Via GMB Alliance mini-notebook designs has grown to over 50, with a further 50 new designs expected to be rolled out by the end of Q1 2009, the company indicated.
Over 200 Via GMB Alliance partners have registered to attend the event, where they will observe live demonstrations of the latest mini-notebook technologies, as well as presentations exploring business and technology trends in this rapidly expanding market segment. Topics to be covered include new opportunities for memory module and SSD manufacturers, application utilization tips for embedded controller suppliers, and an overview of a wirelessly networked world and how we to go about getting there.


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"I love the 'Open Forum for Non-Catholics' shows. I have learned so much from these programs, and they've helped me to not be caught off-guard when I'm called to answer friends, family members, and co-workers who question the teachings and doctrines of the Church."
~ Tom
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"Once the decision had been made, to tarry in the opposition party would have been inconsistent with my whole past. I would have set my own infallibility in the place of the infallibility of the Church."
~ Karl von Hefele, Bishop of Rottenburg, university professor, theologian, prolific writer, and adamant opponent of the proposed doctrine of papal infallibility, on his subsequent submission to the Magisterium of the Church as promulgated at Vatican Council I.


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Cheats and Walkthroughs(120)
We desperately wanted to talk about God of War III on last week's episode of Feedback, but the Game Developers Conference prevented some us from, uh, progressing very far past the title screen. Adam Sessler, Abbie Heppe, Matt Keil and I all managed to finish God of War III before heading into the studio to record this week's episode of Feedback, however, which means it quickly turned into an all-out spoilercast, discussing the game's ups and downs from the inside out.
As such, this week's Feedback comes with a word of caution: in-depth God of War III spoilers abound! If you haven't finished God of War III, be very mindful when we start that discussion up.
Elsewhere in this week's Feedback...
- Nintendo surprised all of us by announcing the Nintendo 3DS, a 3D-enabled version of their dual-screened handheld that apparently won't require glasses. Speculation drive, engage!
- We spend a whole heck of a lot of time talking about Sony Santa Monica's God of War III and whether Kratos and players found what they were looking for by the time the credits rolled.
- Our reader question of the week also probes into God of War III, asking us to consider what it's like when characters take unexpected turns, sometimes against the desire of the player.
Feedback, trying desperately to stop swearing in front of a camera since the times of Zeus.
Subscribe to G4's WEB SHOWS Video Podcast:
The AUDIO MP3 of this episode of FEEDBACK is available here: Right-click and Save.


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Difference between revisions of "Dominican Republic"
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Latest revision as of 12:02, 23 August 2016
In July 1962, 22 Peace Corps Volunteers arrived in the Dominican Republic to work in community development projects throughout the country. Since then, more than 4,000 Volunteers have served in agriculture, urban and rural development, environment, small business development, health and education. Currently, there are about 150 Volunteers serving in the Dominican Republic.
The Peace Corps opened its program in the Dominican Republic in 1962 and Volunteers have always been well-received by the Dominican people. Even during times of political tension, strong personal bonds have been maintained. It is notable that the Peace Corps remained in the Dominican Republic during the suspension of diplomatic relations in 1963 and the civil war of 1965. Volunteers have assisted in relief efforts following Hurricanes David, Frederick, and Georges. The Peace Corps was recognized with the country's highest medal in 1986 during the agency's 25th anniversary celebration.
Volunteers provide direct community-based technical assistance to the most marginalized sectors of the population t o promote self-help strategies that respond to basic human needs and strengthen community efforts. Volunteers strive to increase local capacity for problem solving and form linkages among and across grassroots, regional, and national organizations.
In November 2000, the government requested the Peace Corps' assistance in implementing information technology programs in the country. Volunteers provide technical assistance for a national school-based computer laboratory project. Information technology remains a special area of focus and is incorporated into existing project areas.
Peace Corps is collaborating with the Ministry of Education to incorporate special education methodologies into public schools, developing programs specific to youth, and coordinating efforts with Volunteers who serve along the border in Haiti. Due to the country's continued vulnerability to natural disasters, Peace Corps/Dominican Republic is committed to increasing the capacity of local communities to prepare for and mitigate the effects of natural disasters.
Peace Corps History
Main article: History of the Peace Corps in Dominican Republic
Since 1962, more than 4,200 Volunteers have served in the Dominican Republic. These Volunteers have contributed to technical skills transfer and institutional capacity-building in a wide range of fields, including agriculture, urban and rural community development, forestry, conservation, environmental education, community health and child survival, nursing, small business development, fisheries, water and sanitation, teacher education, university education, youth development, and information technology.
Over the years, Peace Corps Volunteers have contributed significantly to the establishment and development of many of the country's leading nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and have worked hand-in-hand with the various administrations that have governed the Dominican Republic. In keeping with its commitment to peace and development, the Peace Corps remained in the Dominican Republic throughout its civil war in the 1960s. Our commitment to service has been highlighted through the good work of Volunteers and their project partners in the recovery efforts following two of the severest hurricanes (David in 1979 and George in 1998).
Living Conditions and Volunteer Lifestyle
Main article: Living conditions and volunteer lifestyles in Dominican Republic
During pre-service training (PST), you will live with a Dominican host family near the Peace Corps training center on the outskirts of Santo Domingo. The families are selected by training staff. Houses typically have electricity and running water (when these systems are operating). Your host family will provide you with a private room, and you will eat your meals with the family.
You will also live with a host family during the first three months of your Volunteer service. These host families are identified by the community and/or the host country agency and are approved by Peace Corps staff prior to your arrival. Living with a Dominican family allows faster integration into the community, provides a safe environment while you are settling in, and gives you time to look for independent housing should you choose to do so. During service, you are expected to live in the same type of housing commonly found in your community. Housing varies widely, depending on whether you live in a city, a large or small town, or a campo (rural) village.
Volunteers typically live in houses with tin or thatch roofs, walls of wood or cement block, and cement floors. Although some communities have electricity, a great many do not. Power outages are very common. The water supply is subject to the same inconsistencies. Many communities do not have water piped into houses. Rural families, for example, often have to walk to the nearest river or other water source for household water. Even if you live in a house with faucets, there is no guarantee that there will be water; it is common for water not to appear for days at a time. Volunteers placed in towns and more urbanised areas will also face some of these same challenges.
Main article: Training in Dominican Republic
You will participate in 11 weeks of intensive training in five major areas: technical job orientation, language (Spanish), cross-cultural adaptation, health, and safety training. You will live in a community near Santo Domingo with a Dominican family, sharing meals, conversations, and other everyday experiences. You will also visit secondary towns and rural areas to get accustomed to the realities of life in the Dominican Republic. Trainees are together for the first four weeks of training. For six weeks, you will live in a smaller town for community-based training by project sector. Following the community-based portion of your training, you will travel to your future project site for an orientation visit and then return to the capital for a training wrap-up and to swear-in as a Peace Corps Volunteer. If you are serving with a spouse and you and your spouse are assigned to different programs, you will live apart for the community-based training portion of the program. Married couples are allowed to get together for one weekend during community-based training if they are in different project areas.
Training helps you learn how to apply your strengths and knowledge to new situations, developing your skills as a facilitator in a variety of technical areas. It doesn't make you an expert. At the onset of training, the training staff will outline the goals you must achieve to become a Volunteer and the criteria that will be used to assess your progress. (A detailed breakdown of these criteria will be provided in-country.) Evaluation of your performance during training consists of a continual dialogue between you and the training staff.
Health Care and Safety
Main article: Health care and safety in Dominican Republic
The Peace Corps' highest priority is maintaining the good health and safety of every Volunteer. Peace Corps' medical programs emphasize the preventive, rather than the curative, approach to disease. The Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic maintains a clinic with two full-time medical officers, who take care of Volunteers' primary healthcare needs. Additional medical services, such as testing and basic treatment, are also available in the Dominican Republic at local, American-standard hospitals. If you become seriously ill, you will be transported either to an American-standard medical facility in the region or to the United States.
Diversity and Cross-Cultural Issues
Main article: Diversity and cross-cultural issues in Dominican Republic
In the Dominican Republic, as in other Peace Corps host countries, Volunteers' behavior, lifestyle, background, and beliefs are judged in a cultural context very different from their own. Certain personal perspectives or characteristics commonly accepted in the United States may be quite uncommon, unacceptable, or even repressed in the Dominican Republic.
Outside of the Dominican Republic's capital and tourist centers, residents of rural communities have had relatively little direct exposure to other cultures, races, religions, and lifestyles. What people view as typical American behavior or norms may be a misconception, such as the belief that all Americans are rich and have blond hair and blue eyes.
The people of the Dominican Republic are known for their generous hospitality to foreigners; however, members of the community in which you will live may display a range of reactions to cultural differences that you present. In particular, there are still subtle to overt forms of racial discrimination that are seen on a regular basis towards darker-skinned persons due to the historical tensions between Dominicans and Haitians.
- Possible Issues for Female Volunteers
- Possible Issues for Volunteers of Color
- Possible Issues for Senior Volunteers
- Possible Issues for Gay, Lesbian, or Bisexual Volunteers
- Possible Religious Issues for Volunteers
- Possible Issues for Volunteers With Disabilities
- Possible Issues for Married Volunteers
Frequently Asked Questions
2008 Volunteer Survey Results
|How personally rewarding is your overall Peace Corps service?|}}
2008 H1r::20|}}
2008 H1s::76|}}
|Today would you make the same decision to join the Peace Corps?|}}
2008 H2r::16|}}
2008 H2s::87.4|}}
|Would you recommend Peace Corps service to others you think are qualified?|}}
2008 H3r::14|}}
2008 H3s::87.8|}}
|Do you intend to complete your Peace Corps service?|}}
2008 H4r::4|}}
2008 H4s::116.5|}}
|How well do your Peace Corps experiences match the expectations you had before you became a Volunteer?|}}
2008 H5r::17|}}
2008 H5s::56.8|}}
|Would your host country benefit the most if the Peace Corps program were---?|}}
2008 H6r::26|}}
2008 H6s::88.8|}}
Main article: FAQs about Peace Corps in Dominican Republic
- How much luggage am I allowed to bring to the Dominican Republic?
- What is the electric current in the Dominican Republic?
- How much money should I bring?
- When can I take vacation and have people visit me?
- Will my belongings be covered by insurance?
- Do I need an international driver's license?
- What should I bring as gifts for Dominican friends and my host family?
- Where will my site assignment be when I finish training and how isolated will I be?
- How can my family contact me in an emergency?
- Can I call home from the Dominican Republic?
- Should I bring a cellular phone with me?
- Will there be e-mail and Internet access?
Packing List
Main article: Packing list for Dominican Republic
This list has been compiled by Volunteers serving in the Dominican Republic and is based on their experience. Use it as an informal guide in making your own list, bearing in mind that experience is individual. There is no perfect list! You obviously cannot bring everything we mention, so consider those items that make the most sense to you personally and professionally, considering your work sector.. Please keep in mind two important factors that might affect your decision on what to buy and what to bring: 1) you have a baggage weight limit; and 2) You can get almost everything that you need in the Dominican Republic.
- General Clothing
- For Men
- For Women
- Shoes
- Miscellaneous
- Items You Do Not Need to Bring
Peace Corps News
Current events relating to Peace Corps are also available by country of service or your home state
The following is automatic RSS feed of Peace Corps news for this country.
<rss title=on desc=off>http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&scoring=n&q=%22peace+corps%22+%22dominican+republican%22&output=rss%7Ccharset=UTF-8%7Cshort%7Cdate=M d</rss>
( As of Saturday December 10, 2016 )<rss title=off desc=off>http://peacecorpsjournals.com/rss/dr/blog/50.xml%7Ccharset=UTF-8%7Cshort%7Cmax=10</rss>
Country Fund
Contributions to the Dominican Republic Country Fund will support Volunteer and community projects that will take place in Dominican Republic. These projects include water and sanitation, agricultural development, and youth programs.
See also
- Volunteers who served in Dominican Republic
- List of resources for Dominican Republic
- Pre-Departure Checklist
- Inspector General Reports


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Historical Background
In order for the title to have any meaning for the contemporary student of Shakespeare's play, its origin must be explained. At the time the play was written, only three seasons were observed: autumn, winter, and summer—which included what we now consider spring and began in March. Therefore, the play, whose action takes place on the eve of May Day, actually is in midsummer as Shakespeare knew it. This was the time of year when animals were traditionally let out to pasture and the spirits of nature were thought to be abroad. The action takes place in the fairy wood, which may be what the "dream" part of the title refers, although it may refer to another common custom, the divining by midsummer dreams and flowers who one's lover is or whether one's lover is faithful, just as the characters in the play do. It was also customary on May Day (May 1st) to greet the day with a sunrise service that includes songs to emphasize hope and cheerfulness.
As was usual for a dramatist of his time, most of Shakespeare's plays were not original. This is not to say he plagiarized, rather that plays were based on other, earlier works by masters such as the ones Shakespeare studied in grammar school: Ovid, Plautus, Terence, and Chaucer. For Shakespeare, the poetry and the event were much more important than the characters in his plays. There are several theories about this but the preponderant one is that Puck is the imagination's way of ordering the random. It could be said that Puck (from English rustic folklore) is the gateway between the imaginative elements and reality as we know it. Curiously enough, Bottom is the only human who can see the imaginative (fairy) elements.
The play-within-the-play seems to be Shakespeare's version of a dramatist and actor's worst nightmare. Lines are forgotten, cues missed, conversation carried on between the actors and the audience, and the actors' efforts laughed at. In addition, the audience loudly and freely carries on conversations during the production. It is also a parody of...
(The entire section is 835 words.)


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Have you ever baked a cake in Baker CA? Enjoyed bourbon in Bourbon County, Ky.? Or, run a marathon in Marathon, Fla.?
Place names with double meaning
Published On: Feb 06 2014 12:08:07 PM HST Updated On: Apr 30 2014 09:01:56 AM HST
The views expressed are not those of this site, this station or its affiliated companies. By posting your comments you agree to accept our terms of use.blog comments powered by Disqus


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Find resources
Disease: Rotavirus
- 2008 Estimate of Worldwide Rotavirus-Associated Mortality in Children Younger than 5 Years Before the Introduction of Universal Rotavirus Vaccination Programmes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
This analysis, published in the The Lancet Infectious Diseases, applied data collected through the World Health Organization's Global Rotavirus Surveillance Network to update the estimate of childhood rotavirus mortality worldwide. The …
Author: Tate JE, Burton AH, Boschi-Pinto C, Steele AD, Duque J, Parashar UD
Publication date: 2011
- 2013 Rota Roundup
2013 was a remarkable year for rotavirus vaccines, the best tool to prevent severe rotavirus disease and the deadly, dehydrating diarrhea that it causes. This infographic depicts various rotavirus vaccine highlights from the year, including the …
Author: PATH
Publication date: 2014
- Acute Gastroenteritis Hospitalizations Among US Children Following Implementation of the Rotavirus Vaccine
This article, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, reports on a retrospective observational study which found that, following implementation of rotavirus vaccination in 2006, all-cause acute gastroenteritis hospitalization …
Author: Leshem E, Tate JE, Steiner CA, Curns AT, Lopman BA, Parashar UD
Publication date: 2015
- Addition of History of Intussusception as a Contraindication for Rotavirus Vaccination
This article, published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, reports on the revision that the US Food and Drug Administration has approved for the prescribing information and patient labeling for rotavirus vaccines manufactured by …
Author: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Publication date: 2011
- Addition of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency as a Contraindication for Administration of Rotavirus Vaccine
In response to reported cases of vaccine-acquired rotavirus infection in infants with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) following rotavirus vaccine administration, both Merck & Co. and GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals have revised …
Author: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Publication date: 2010
- Advancing Vaccines and Immunization Issues, Insights, and Innovations
This supplement of Vaccine contains 16 articles that cover a broad spectrum of important issues in vaccine science, including vaccine safety, efficacy, and implementation. The overarching theme revolves around identifying barriers to vaccination and …
Author: Artenstein AW, Halsey NA, Nowak GJ, eds.
Publication date: 2015
- Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP): Summary Report, June 19-20, 2013
This meeting report includes the recommendations of the US Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) regarding the issue of intussusception and rotavirus vaccines. ACIP reviewed recent data on the issue and discussed trends in …
Author: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Publication date: 2013
- Ask the Experts: Update on the Safety of Rotavirus Vaccines
This article, published by the American Pharmacists Association, addresses the safety of rotavirus vaccines, including the latest information on possible contamination issues. The authors indicate that the documented benefits of RotaTeq and …
Author: Mojica B, Hess K
Publication date: 2011
- Association Between Pentavalent Rotavirus Vaccine and Severe Rotavirus Diarrhea Among Children in Nicaragua
This article, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, summarizes the first study to assess the impact of rotavirus vaccination in a developing country. The authors concluded that the vaccine could have a substantial impact on …
Author: Patel M, Pedreira C, De Oliveira LH, et al.
Publication date: 2009
- Beyond Efficacy: The Full Public Health Impact of Vaccines
This conference report, published in Vaccine, describes an active discussion in the public health community on how to assess and incorporate, in addition to safety and measures of protective efficacy, the full public health value of preventive …
Author: Saadatian-Elahi M, Horstick O, Breiman RF, et al.
Publication date: 2016
- Broadening the Age Restriction for Initiating Rotavirus Vaccination in Regions With High Rotavirus Mortality: Benefits of Mortality Reduction Versus Risk of Fatal Intussusception
This article, published in Vaccine, reports on a study that assessed the potential benefits of mortality reduction versus the risk of fatal intussusception when (a) the first dose of rotavirus vaccine was administered by 12 weeks of age compared …
Author: Patel MM, Clark AD, Glass RI, et al.
Publication date: 2009
- Burden and Aetiology of Diarrhoeal Disease in Infants and Young Children in Developing Countries (the Global Enteric Multicenter Study, GEMS): A Prospective, Case-Control Study
This article, published in The Lancet, reports on results of the Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS), which was designed to identify the aetiology and population-based burden of pediatric diarrheal disease in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia. …
Author: Kotloff KL, Nataro JP, Blackwelder WC, et al.
Publication date: 2013
- Burden of Disease and Circulating Serotypes of Rotavirus Infection in Sub-Saharan Africa: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
To assess the potential impact of rotavirus vaccines in sub-Saharan Africa, researchers reviewed recent published data on rotavirus burden among children aged five years old and circulating serotypes in sub-Saharan Africa. Though many countries …
Author: Sanchez-Padilla E, Grais RF, Guerin PJ, et al.
Publication date: 2009
- Burden of Paediatric Rotavirus Gastroenteritis (RVGE) and Potential Benefits of a Universal Rotavirus Vaccination Programme with a Pentavalent Vaccine in Spain
This study, published in BMC Public Health, assesses the health outcomes and the economic impact of a universal rotavirus vaccination program with RotaTeq, a pentavalent rotavirus vaccine, against a no vaccination program in Spain. The study …
Author: Diez-Domingo J, Surinach NL, Alcalde NM, Betegon L, Largeron N, Trichard M
Publication date: 2010
- Can Successful Vaccines Teach Us How to Induce Efficient Protective Immune Responses?
This article, published in Nature Medicine, reviews current successful vaccines and identifies their mechanisms of protection in the hopes of tackling the challenges posed by those infectious targets that have thus far escaped successful …
Author: Lambert PH, Liu M, Siegrist CA
Publication date: 2005
- Center for Vaccine Innovation and Access
This website provides information about the work of PATH's Center for Vaccine Innovation and Access, which brings together expertise across every stage of vaccine research, development, and introduction to make lifesaving vaccines globally …
Author: PATH
- Changes in Hospitalisations for Acute Gastroenteritis in Australia After the National Rotavirus Vaccination Program
This retrospective analysis, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, found a sustained and substantial decline in rotavirus hospitalizations as well as hospitalizations for diarrhea of any cause following national vaccine …
Author: Dey A, Wang H, Menzies R, Macartney K
Publication date: 2012
- Child Health in Tanzania: Identifying Policy Pathways to Help Prevent Child Deaths From Pneumonia and Diarrhea
This report provides policy recommendations to help Tanzania reduce the impacts of pneumonia and diarrhea, including the use of available vaccines, to ensure all children have the chance to lead healthy lives.
Author: PATH
Publication date: 2014
- Clinical Consequences of Rotavirus Acute Gastroenteritis in Europe, 2004-2005: The REVEAL Study
After a multicenter study in several European countries, investigators determined that acute gastroenteritis caused by rotavirus resulted in more hospitalizations and emergency department visits than acute gastroenteritis from another cause. This …
Author: Guiaquinto C, Van Damme P, Huet F, et al.
Publication date: 2007
- Combination Vaccines Against Diarrheal Diseases
This article, published in Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, outlines the need for the development of affordable and effective combination vaccines against diarrheal diseases. Despite the well-documented global burden of diarrheal diseases, …
Author: Venkatesan MM, Van de Verg LL
Publication date: 2015
- Community Diarrhea Incidence Before and After Rotavirus Vaccine Introduction in Nicaragua
This article, published in the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, reports on a study that compared the incidence of diarrhea before and after the introduction of the pentavalent rotavirus vaccine in Leon, Nicaragua. The results …
Author: Becker-Dreps S, Meléndez M, Liu L, et al.
Publication date: 2013
- Comparative Evaluation of the Potential Impact of Rotavirus Versus HPV Vaccination in GAVI-Eligible Countries: A Preliminary Analysis Focused on the Relative Disease Burden
This article, published in BMC Infectious Diseases, reports on a study that aimed to provide early insight into how the comparative impact of different new vaccines could be assessed in resource-poor settings with respect to affordability, …
Author: Kim SY, Sweet S, Chang J, Goldie SJ
Publication date: 2011
- Comparative Review of Three Cost-Effectiveness Models for Rotavirus Vaccines in National Immunization Programs: A Generic Approach Applied to Various Regions in the World
This article, published in BMC Medicine, critically reviews available cost-effectiveness models for rotavirus vaccination, comparing their designs using a standardized approach and studying the similarities and differences in cost-effectiveness …
Author: Postma MJ, Jit M, Rozenbaum MH, Standaert BA, Tu HA, Hutubessy RCW
Publication date: 2011
- A Cost Comparison of Introducing and Delivering Pneumococcal, Rotavirus and Human Papillomavirus Vaccines in Rwanda
This article, published in Vaccine, reports on a cost comparison of introducing multiple vaccines in a single country and then assessing the financial and economic impact at the time and implications for the future. The objective of the analysis was …
Author: Ngabo F, Levin A, Wang SA, et al.
Publication date: 2015
- A Cost Effectiveness and Capacity Analysis for the Introduction of Universal Rotavirus Vaccination in Kenya: Comparison Between Rotarix and RotaTeq Vaccines
The authors of this article, published in PLoS ONE, applied cost-effectiveness modeling and a cold-chain impact assessment to aid decision-making on rotavirus vaccine introduction in Kenya. They conclude that use of either vaccine is cost-effective, …
Author: van Hoek AJ, Ngama M, Ismail A, et al.
Publication date: 2012


text: The Religious Antagonist was causing quite a stir at the AA Convention in Washington D.C. Everyone was talking about the guy who Richard Dawkins told to 'fuck off'. Nobody warned me, but I think I handled myself alright. www.youtube.com/embed/8H25ADf8I3I?rel=0 He cut out one thing from our conversation. I'm paraphrasing: Religious Antagonist: "Do atheists have bigger holes [Read More…]


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GV Now
GVSU teams win big at business competition
Posted on November 18, 2013
Team Soletics, from Grand Valley State University's Seidman College of Business, took first place and won $25,000 at the Accelerate Michigan Innovation competition November 14 in Detroit. Grand Valley alumnus Ryan Vaughn took first place in the Company Award category, winning $500,000.
Accelerate Michigan is an international business competition designed to bring together later-stage entrepreneurial companies with local, national and international investors.
Soletics competed among 35 teams in the student competition. Three undergraduate students were on the team, including Michael Kurley, chief executive officer; Lindsay Noonan, chief marketing officer; and Vanessa Gore, public relations specialist.
Soletics creates smart, outdoor athletic gear. The team is creating a jacket system, tailored to skiers and snowboarders, that will cool the core, heat the extremities, and provide excess power that can be used to charge a mobile device. The system uses a mixture of solar and thermoelectric fabrics and materials to provide power.
Vaughn, formerly an Entrepreneur in Residence at Grand Valley's Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, is the co-creator of Varsity News Network. Varsity News Network is described as the ESPN.com of high schools sports. Local media coverage can be limited so the network allows fans to promote their teams on the Web.


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Dordt College News
Dordt College welcomes new students, programs, facilities
September 10, 2012
Enrollment at Dordt College remains strong this year, with 1,391 new and returning students settling into their studies for the fall semester.
"We're pleased that so many students have chosen to further their education at Dordt College," said Dordt College President Dr. Erik Hoekstra. "We know that God is at work on our campus and is blessing our efforts to provide a high-quality, Christ-centered education. We look forward to a wonderful academic year together."
This year's student body is comprised of students from seven Canadian provinces, 18 foreign countries, and 37 U.S. states. States with the largest number of enrolled students are Iowa, California, Minnesota, South Dakota, Washington, and Michigan.
"In addition to 381 incoming freshmen, we are encouraged by the 62 transfer students joining our campus," said Executive Director of Admissions Quentin Van Essen. Enrollment numbers include new students, transfers, returning students, part-timers, and graduate students enrolled in Dordt's Master of Education program. The number does not include high school students taking college classes or the 140 preschool students at Dordt's Stepping Stones Preschool.
Bucking the trend at many colleges where women outnumber men, Dordt's student body is 52.8% men and 47.2% women.
This year's students are also enjoying some changes to campus, including a worship arts room in the Campus Center and a redesigned Teaching Resource Center in the library.
Last fall, the college added a worship arts minor, but students involved in the college's worship events didn't have a good practice area. Thanks to a generous donor, the college was able to create a space where students have the room they need to practice music and learn, using high-end industry-standard sound equipment and instruments.
"The space is divided into two areas. One is set up for music practice, and the other is designed for dialogue, planning, referencing, and teaching," said Jon De Groot, campus ministries coordinator. "It is interactive, attractive, and incredibly functional."
The new Teaching Resource Center includes three areas: the Discovery Café, the Curriculum and Children's Literature Collection, and the Learning Lab. The Discovery Café is modeled after an Apple store where students and faculty can try new products that they might want to use in their teaching. The Learning Lab is a classroom set up that is specially designed to encourage innovative teaching and learning styles. It is equipped with the newest software and equipment, and knowing how to use this technology will serve education students well, especially when they are looking for teaching jobs following graduation. The two spaces are divided by the collection of children's literature.
Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa, provides an excellent, comprehensive Christian education in the Reformed tradition and is fully accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Dordt has consistently been named to top colleges lists by the U.S. News & World Report, Princeton Review, Washington Monthly, and Forbes.com. Learn more about Dordt College at www.dordt.edu.
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Padres Win, Walk-Off Style
Back to some Padres baseball. On Sunday, we lost 12-7. I don't even want to go there because I need to talk about yesterday's game!
- 9-7 Padres (yes, you read that right!!)
WE WON!!! It was such a cool game. Definitely the best game they've played so far this spring. Chris Young started and threw 4.1 innings, giving up three runs on five hits. He also struck out five. It was good to see him go out there and have a fairly good game. Justin Hampson gave up a run in his 0.2 innings of work. Cesar Ramos had three decent innings. He threw two scoreless before allowing three runs in his third inning of work. Edwin Moreno threw the top of the ninth.
The Royals had a four-nothing lead until the sixth. But then the Padres scored four runs in the bottom of that inning to tie the game. Kyle Blanks had a booming two-run double. The Royals went ahead 7-4.
I didn't listen to the whole game, but I came in around the bottom of the ninth. The Padres are behind by three runs. It's so cool how you can look back at certain events, certain things that happened in your life, and you can remember exactly what was going on, what you were thinking. Well, this bottom of the ninth was one of those for me. Ah, I wish I had a play-by-play recap of that inning! I'll try to remember it as best as I can. I think we got two runners on with one out. A guy popped out shortstop, I think. Then Kyle Blanks came up. Kyle had already had a hit and two walks when he came up to the plate. He promptly hit a run-scoring single to tie the game. Then Chase Headley came up.
During this inning, I knew we were going to come back. Like, I had that feeling, but I didn't let myself get my hopes too high. But I knew. I told myself to enjoy the inning, no matter what happens, because something big might very well happen right now. With two outs, you're always cautious about getting your hopes up too high. But I knew that Chase could hit a walk-off homer. So cool that I thought about that! I think Ted Leitner called it. It might have been the batter before, but he mentioned that if one of these guys could just get one into that wind, which was blowing out, they could give the Padres a walk-off win. He TOTALLY called that.
Well, what do you know. After a pitching change, Chase Headley stepped into the box. With a count of 3-1, he hit a NO-DOUBTER right out of the park. It was so cool to hear the excitement in Ted's voice as he called it. He didn't have to tell us it was a no-doubter; we could hear it in his voice. I was sooooo excited!! Come-from-behind walk-offs are the best! I love love love them!!! It was so exciting. I mean, we won for the first time in a realllly long time. And this time, the hitting was able to catch up with the pitching.
Catcher Josh Bard got signed by the Nationals over the weekend. I really hope he can get some playing time!
Yesterday the Padres got a couple new players. We signed pitcher Shawn Hill to a minor league deal. He might get a rotation spot. We also got pitcher Luke Gregerson as the player-to-be named-later in the Khalil Greene deal.
Josh Geer, Scott Patterson, Joe Thatcher (WHOOOOHOOOOO!!!!), Jose Lobaton, Matt Antonelli, and Will Venable were sent to Triple-A. I feel bad for a few of these guys (not Thatcher), but it will be good for them.
I know you're all wondering….
You've been slogging through all that Padres news to see if there's any other news…
Yes, my dad read my entry last night…
He talked with my mom this morning…
And the answer is…is….is……………
I am sooooooooooo excited!! It's going to be so much fun!!!! I can't wait. My dad won't be taking me because he has responsibilites at church, but my mom and my little brothers will be going. I might even bring a few friends. Wow, that's the Sunday after next!! I'm kind of glad that it's coming up quickly, so that way I don't have to wait as long🙂 Hyun Young, it's going to be great to hang out at Petco Park with you! We need to convince Jen to come too! It's free, Jen…nice and easy on a student's budget!!
I wanted to thank you all for all the support, and for all the great comments that I put in my previous entry. I can't wait to share all the pictures and stories from this event with you! Thank you so much. You guys are the best!!
Today the Padres are playing the Angels in Tempe. Cha Seung Baek is starting. I think he's due for a good outing. Let's see if we can carry the momentum from yesterday into today!
Team Japan won the WBC for the second time last night. It was a really great game. I thought the defense was incredible. So, congrats to Team Japan. They made an incredible run, and they are a stellar baseball team.
I'm off to eat a celebratory slice of chocolate cake. I'm so excited!!!
(photo credit: wikipedia.com)
19 Comments
I'm happy to hear that you will be able to make it to fanfest! You will have a blast. =) Take a lot of cool pics. =)
~ King of Cali
Great news! Sounds like a great day to be a Padres fan…come-from-behind victory, Fan Fest coming up soon; I'm jealous! Enjoy.
Yay!!! I am so happy that you are going to Fan Fest! I can't wait to hear all about it!
When it comes to baseball, I'm rather easily convinced. Especially when it's free. I'll be there. 🙂
I am very happy for you! Thanks for commenting on my blog. It will surely be an interesting year. Good luck to the padres and hopefully you get some autographs!
I'm happy to hear that you will be able to make it to fanfest! You will have a blast. =) Take a lot of cool pics. =)
~ King of Cali
Chocolate cake that early in the morning? I know, I know, some of you would say "is never too early to eat choco cake". that is the way I feel about apple pie.
I know you will have a great time at the fanfest.
Great news, Kaybee! I intended to comment on yesterday's entry, and even had your blog up in my browser, and then somebody else hopped on the computer and I forgot. Of course we will be expecting pictures and complete coverage! I'm sure you'll have a blast!
Rants, Raves, and Random Thoughts
KING OF CALI, thanks! I can't wait!
PAIGE, being a Padres fan isn't easy, but sometimes you get one of those days…🙂
JULIA, thanks!
JEN, it will be great to meet you! Hyun Young and I will have to meet up with you somewhere.
JANE, yeah, it was pretty convincing, if I do say so myself. Thanks!
ROCKIE FAN 123, thanks for reading!
KING OF CALI, how kind of you to repeat your kind words! haha.
EMMA, I was just waiting for someone to comment on that🙂 Yeah, it's never too early. I get up at 6 so by the time it's 9, I need a snack. Besides, I'm celebrating🙂
SUE, thanks! I am so excited!
Good for you! You will really enjoy it. That is pretty cool that you will meet Hyun Young in person!
First off, YAY! You're going to fan day! After reading your last entry, how could he not let you go? I hope that you have an incredible time and I hope that you take lots of pictures!
Second, That's so cool that you had a feeling about the bottom of the ninth! I love those feelings! Good job! You should travel with the Padres year around. Maybe you will soon if you keep writing awesome entries like this!
BOB, yeah, and Jen too!
ELIZABETH, thanks! I'm really excited, and I'll probably take 200 pictures. That's my guess. So, there will be plenty to share🙂 You know, when we're writers for our team, then we'll get to travel with the team all the time. But for now, I think I'll have to stick close to home. But someday, maybe…🙂
HOLY CRAP! (Ah, pardon my language!) I can't WAIT already!! It will be so exciting to meet you (and your brothers) and get to know you more. My dad's gonna take only me and you won't be seeing my brother. AHH! When's April 5th??
CANUCK, I certainly will!
HYUN YOUNG, I can't wait!! It's going to be soooo much fun! I mean, we'll get to spend time at the ballpark together!!
Have fun at fan fest! Take lots of pictures! And, most importantly….report back! I probably did need to insist!
KATHY, I will take a ton of pictures! And yes, it's a good thing that you reminded me🙂


text:
Illinois Race to the Top
ArchivesApplications, documents and training materials from Phase I, Phase II, and Phase III of Race to the Top.
Phase III Archive
Phase III Document Archive
- Phase 3 Application (Final)
- Appendices
- ISBE RttT FAQs for LEAs
- Chris Koch RTTT3 Participation Letter to Superintendents
- LEA Statement of Intent
- Participating LEA Expectations and Timeline Chart
Phase III Webinar and Presentation Archive
RTTT3 Statewide System of Support Capacity Building Coach Follow-up Discussion
September 17, 2012
Race to the Top: Participating LEA Data Request-Survey Webinar
July 10, 2012
Race to the Top 3 Participating LEAs Scope of Work Update Webinar
June 15, 2012
Race to the Top 3 Budget Webinar
May 31, 2012
Race to the Top 3: Preparing the Scope of Work Webinar, Part II
March 22, 2012
Race to the Top 3: Supporting the District Scope of Work Process
March 15, 2012
Race to the Top 3: Preparing the Scope of Work Webinar, Part I
March 8, 2012
Race to the Top 3: and Illinois Shared Learning Environment Webinar
February 21, 2012
Race to the Top 3: Overview and Participation Requirements Webinar
February 7, 2012
Phase III News Archive
- Governor Quinn Announces Nearly $43 Million in Race to the Top Competition Federal Funding Award to Advance K-12 Reforms, Improve Student Achievement and Boost Science Technology Engineering, Math (STEM) Learning Across Illinois
Read more
- Select Illinois districts accelerate education reform under federal Race to the Top program
Thirty-seven districts raise the bar to improve student achievement
Read more
Phase II Archive
Phase II Document Archive
- RTTT Phase II Application (2.80 MB)
- Superintendent Chris Koch Special Message August 24, 2010
- Preliminary Listing of Phase II Partners
- Phase II Executive Summary
- Application for Phase II Funding: Q and A
- Memorandum of Understanding
- Participating LEA Acknowledgment
- Overview 1
- Overview 2
- Training Materials
Phase II Webinar and Presentation Archive
Race to the Top 2: Learning Performance Management System — Webinar
May 4, 2010
- Webinar Video
- Powerpoint Presentation
- Materials
Race to the Top 2— Phase II Webinar
April 27, 2010
Phase I Archive
Phase I Document Archive
- RTTT Phase I Application for Initial Funding (1.33 MB)
- RTTT Application Appendices
- School Districts that Submitted MOUs
- RTTT Questions and Answers
- USDE Race to the Top Program Guidance and Frequently Asked Questions
- Training Materials
Phase I Webinar and Presentation Archive
Illinois' Race to the Top Application — Phase I Webinar
December 18, 2009
ARRA Title I Waivers—Webinar
December 17, 2009
Provides information on the application process for Title I, Part A waivers. The waivers included in the ARRA-NCLB Consolidated Application deal with aspects of ARRA funding, such as waivers to permit an LEA to exclude ARRA funds when making certain fiscal and "set-aside" calculations and waivers of two Title I regulatory provisions related to the implementation of public school choice and supplemental educational services (SES). The carry-over wavier is not being processed through the application but is also be discussed.


text:
A Virginia man cleaning out his wallet hit the jackpot. Literally.
Robert Manning found a stack of Powerball tickets while digging through his billfold. Turns out, one of them was worth $1 million.
"It feels crazy," Manning, 51, said as Virignia Lottery officials presented him with his check Monday, according to NBC News. "It feels like there's nine million things going through my mind."
Numbers from the ticket he bought (3-7-9-26-54) matched the first five numbers for the drawing.
With one child in college and another planning to go, Manning's win came at a good time.


text:
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Chaudhry, Y, Nayak, A, Bordeleau, M-E, Tanaka, J, Pelletier, J, Belsham, GJ, Roberts, LO and Goodfellow, IG (2006) Caliciviruses differ in their functional requirements for eIF4F components JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY, 281 (35). 25315 - 25325. ISSN 0021-9258
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text: Hi ladies! I have an 8 month old that nurses about 6 times a day and eats three meals a day. She takes two naps and sleeps through the night. I don't want to over load her at meal time and her not get enough milk. Should she be eating less at meal time or CAN she skip a breastfeeding session here and there? (Sometimes she doesn't poop for a day and then only poops once a day with hard poops.)


text:
Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Red Pepper Vinaigrette
Makes: 4 servings
Time: About 45 minutes
Here is another potato-vinaigrette combo: The red pepper dressing is tart, sweet, and spicy, with a touch of cumin. This is best served warm or at room temperature, though of course you can refrigerate and serve it up to a day later, as long as you take it out of the refrigerator beforehand to take the chill off. Recipe from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian.


text:
Unless you've been living under a rock, you already know that the official release of JDK 1.4 came out in the first quarter of this year, and included with it is a new logging API. This API was first described in JSR 47. Essentially the same description is also available in the documentation of logging for JDK 1.4 .
In addition to the implementation provided in JDK 1.4, there is an open source implementation of the API for JDKs 1.2 and 1.3 called Lumberjack, available on SourceForge. The library provides a way for people to begin using the API before they make the move to JDK 1.4. It also allows them to use the API in work they do which must be done in 1.2 or 1.3 for some reason.
The logging API is part of J2SE as of JDK 1.4, and it ships with the JDK. It is designed to let a Java program, servlet, applet, EJB, etc. produce messages of interest to end users, system administrators, field engineers, and software developers. Especially in production situations, where things can't be run in a debugger, or if doing so masks the problem that is occurring (because it is timing related, for example), such logs are frequently the greatest (and sometimes the only) source of information about a running program.
To make sure that logging can be left in a production program, the API is designed to make logging as inexpensive as possible. To let code produce fine-grained logging when needed but not slow the application in normal production use, the API provides mechanisms to dynamically change what log messages are produced, so that the impact of the logging code is minimized during normal operation. It also provides a number of Java interfaces and superclasses that provide "hooks" for developers to extend the API.
The entire logging API is contained in the package
java.util.logging and is made up of the following
interfaces and classes:
We'll examine many of these types in more detail below.
To help motivate the use of the logging API, we will use a simple program, based on the idea of a "Hello World" program.
package logging.example1;
* A simple Java Hello World program, in the tradition of
* Kernighan and Ritchie.
public class HelloWorld {
public static void main(String[] args) {
HelloWorld hello = new HelloWorld("Hello world!");
private String theMessage;
public HelloWorld(String message) {
theMessage = message;
public void sayHello() {
We will expand upon this simple program in order to demonstrate and
motivate the logging API. The first thing we will do is actually
generate a logging message. This is straightforward; we need to
create a
Logger object, which represents the
HelloWorld class, like this:
package logging.example2;
import java.util.logging.Logger;
* A simple Java Hello World program, in the tradition of
* Kernighan and Ritchie.
public class HelloWorld {
private static Logger theLogger =
public static void main(String[] args) {
HelloWorld hello = new HelloWorld("Hello world!");
private String theMessage;
public HelloWorld(String message) {
theMessage = message;
public void sayHello() {
This generates a
Logger, which we can use to generate
logging messages. Since you typically use one logger per class, we
can make it a static field of the
HelloWorld class. We
use the fully qualified name of the
HelloWorld class as
the name of the
Logger. We'll look at the reasons for
this in more detail later. Now, let's actually use the
Logger to try to generate a logging message:
package logging.example3;
import java.util.logging.Logger;
* A simple Java Hello World program, in the tradition of
* Kernighan and Ritchie.
public class HelloWorld {
private static Logger theLogger =
public static void main(String[] args) {
HelloWorld hello = new HelloWorld("Hello world!");
private String theMessage;
public HelloWorld(String message) {
theMessage = message;
public void sayHello() {
// use the 'least important' type of message, one at
// the 'finest' level.
theLogger.finest("Hello logging!");
The logging API has a configuration file and by default, it provides
a handler that will send logging messages, in the form of a
LogRecord to the console (
So we would expect to see the string
"Hello logging!"; appear
our message of
"Hello world!". But if you run this program
you only
"Hello world!":
% java logging.example3.HelloWorld
Hello world
What's going on here? The answer lies in the notion of logging levels.
Because we want to leave logging code in an application that goes
into production, we need logging to cost us very little at runtime
when it is not being used. To help achieve this, the logging system
defines a class called
Level to specify the importance
of a logging record. The logging library has a set of predefined
logging levels:
|The highest value; intended for extremely important messages (e.g. fatal program errors).
|Intended for warning messages.
|Informational runtime messages.
|Informational messages about configuration settings/setup.
|Used for greater detail, when debugging/diagnosing problems.
|Even greater detail.
|The lowest value; greatest detail.
In addition to these levels, there is a level
which enables logging of all records, and one called
OFF that can be used to turn off logging. It is also
possible to define custom levels, but in this article we will stick
with the predefined levels.
Related Reading
Java In a Nutshell
So now we can explain why our logging record didn't appear. We
used the
finest() method of our logger, which generates
a logging record at the
Level.FINEST level. By default,
only records at the
Level.INFO level or higher
will be logged to the console, so our record wasn't printed. We can cause our logging record to
appear by increasing the logging level used in generating the record, like this:
package logging.example4;
import java.util.logging.Logger;
* A simple Java Hello World program, in the tradition of
* Kernighan and Ritchie.
public class HelloWorld {
private static Logger theLogger =
public static void main(String[] args) {
HelloWorld hello = new HelloWorld("Hello world!");
private String theMessage;
public HelloWorld(String message) {
theMessage = message;
public void sayHello() {
theLogger.info("Hello logging!");
Now, when we run this program, we see output like this:
% java logging.example4.HelloWorld
INFO; 992149105222ms; 3207485;# 1; logging.example4.HelloWorld; sayHello; Hello logging!
Hello world!
Of course, using a higher logging level for a logging record is not
always what we want. Sometimes we have messages that are
finer-grained than the
INFO level, and we only want
them printed when the information they contain is needed. To allow
this, the logging library allows us to control the log level of our
When we created our
Logger, we specified the name
of our class
logging.example4.HelloWorld) as the
Logger name, but didn't specify anything else. Each
Logger has its own
Level, used to screen out
any record which doesn't have a high enough level (this is part of what
makes logging inexpensive at runtime when not turned up). By default,
the threshold is set
Level.INFO. This means that records we log through
Logger will only get printed if they are at least
has high as
To get finer-grained records to
be logged, we need to set the logging level for our class to
something more verbose. But that isn't quite enough, because when a
record is logged to a
Logger, that
actually delegates the output of the record to a subclass of the
Handler class, like this:
And each
Handler has its own
Level, in additon to
the one for the
Logger. So even if we turn up the log level
of our
when the logger hands the record to its handler(s), the handler(s)
would ignore a
Level.FINE record. To get the handler(s) to
actually output the record, we need to turn up their level(s), like
package logging.example5;
import java.util.logging.Handler;
import java.util.logging.Level;
import java.util.logging.Logger;
import java.util.logging.LogManager;
* A simple Java Hello World program, in the tradition of
* Kernighan and Ritchie.
public class HelloWorld {
private static Logger theLogger =
public static void main( String[] args ) {
// The root logger's handlers default to INFO. We have to
// crank them up. We could crank up only some of them
// if we wanted, but we will turn them all up.
Handler[] handlers =
Logger.getLogger( "" ).getHandlers();
for ( int index = 0; index < handlers.length; index++ ) {
handlers[index].setLevel( Level.FINE );
// We also have to set our logger to log finer-grained
// messages
HelloWorld hello =
new HelloWorld("Hello world!");
private String theMessage;
public HelloWorld(String message) {
theMessage = message;
public void sayHello() {
theLogger.fine("Hello logging!");
This will produce output on the console like this:
FINE; 992190676635ms; 5213611;# 1; logging.example5.HelloWorld; sayHello; Hello logging!
Hello world!
This might lead you to wonder what handler is actually producing this
output. After all, our test program didn't create any handler. The answer
lies in the tree structure of loggers. Once a particular
decides to log a
LogRecord, the
Logger not only
passes it to any
Handler(s) attached to it, but it also forwards
the record to its parent
Logger. The parent
does not perform a level or
Filter check, but instead forwards
it to any attached
Handler(s) and forwards it to its parent
Logger. Eventually, the record reaches the root
Logger. The root
Logger has a
ConsoleHandler that produces the output we see. Note that this
forwarding behavior be controlled via the
setUseParentHandlers(boolean) method in the
Logger class.
There is much more that can be done with the provided handlers. It is also possible to create your own custom handlers. Space won't allow us to discuss them in more detail here; see the references below for places to learn more about handlers.
LogManager is, in many ways, the central class of the
logging library. It provides much of the control over what gets
logged and where it gets logged, including control over
initialization of logging. In terms of logging levels, it allows us
to set different logging levels for different "areas" of the
program. To understand this, we need to think of our program as
being broken down into different areas based on the package prefix
of the classes involved. So our program areas are organized in a
tree structure, like this (only some of the tree is shown, to
simplify the discussion):
But the
LogManager will allow us to control things at
more than just the class level. We could set the logging level for a
package, or even a set of packages, by calling the
LogManager.setLevel(String name, Level level) method.
So, for example, we could set the logging level of all loggers for
this article to
Level.FINE by making this call:
LogManager.getLogManager().setLevel("logging", Level.FINE);
This would make every
Logger with the package prefix of
logging" have a level of
Level.FINE, unless that particular
Logger already had a
Level explicitly set:
We would still need to turn up the levels of the root handlers as before, but would not have to set the individual loggers one at a time.
In addition to providing this ability to control log levels
en masse, the
LogManager provides:
(seen above).
Loggers (useful to
applets running in a more constrained security environment).
Level of a given package prefix or
There is one thing to keep in mind when setting the level for a package and
everything below it: any
Logger for a class or package below
the one being set that has
had its
Level explicitly set will keep that
Level, as will any
Logger whose
Level is set subsequent to setting the package's
Level. To get a
Logger to pick up the setting
for the package, you can set its
Level to
While space won't permit us to go into a description of
Filters, the logging API provides them as a means to
further control what records get logged. So, if you are using
logging and find that you want use more than the log
Level of the record when deciding whether to log it,
Filters are there. They can be attached to both
Loggers and
Handlers, and can be thought
of like this:
In this situation, the record must pass the
level check, the
Filter, the
Handler's level check, and the
Filter before it would actually be sent to the outside
world. This allows things to start out simple (with no filters) and
become more sophisticated as needed. In situations where you're
trying to get at just the right information without altering the
behavior of the program too much (and without overwhelming someone
reading the output), the ability to create more sophisticated
filters can be key to learning what needs to be known.
This article demonstrates using the fully qualified class name of
your class as the name of your
Logger. This is the
approach recommended by the Logging API documentation. However, the
LogManager and
Loggers really only care
that the names used are made up of strings separated by period
characters. So if you need to organize the logging of your software
in some other manner, you can -- as long as your scheme fits
into a tree hierarchy.
In addition, it is possible to use anonymous loggers, which don't have a name or affect any other loggers. These are good for applets running in a browser, as well as other high-security situations. They can also be used to keep classes relatively self-contained. However, when using anonymous loggers, you don't get many of the benefits of a named logger (the ability to have records forwarded to the global handlers, the ability to alter logging levels of groups of loggers by their common prefix, etc.).
The Logging API seems to strike a good balance between simplicity and power. As the examples above show, it is possible to get started with the Logging API very quickly, yet it is designed to be extensible so that it can be tailored to your needs. This article has really just scratched the surface of what can be done with logging. In particular, topics that we didn't discuss, which the API allows for, include:
For more information about logging, the best sources of information
are the JDK 1.4 documentation on logging and JSR 47. There is also
Javadoc for the
java.util.logging package, which
provides details about the classes.
Brian R. Gilstrap is an experienced Java developer, Mac user, Tai Chi practitioner and more.
Return to ONJava.com.
Copyright © 2009 O'Reilly Media, Inc.


text:
Byron Bay Events
|Late February
Byron Bay International Film Festival
|Easter weekend
Byron Bay Bluesfest
Australia's largest international Festival of Blues & Roots Music takes over Byron Bay every Easter and is a highlight of the Australian music calendar. Bluesfest features some of the world's top blues and roots artists and so much more in a jam packed 5 days of world class entertainment. The festival is held at Tyagarah Tree Farm and is nestled in 120 hectares and is just 11 kilometers
from Byron Bay town with shuttle buses running to and from the festival site.
|First Sunday May
The Byron Bay Ocean Swim Classic
The Big Swim is a charity swimming race from Wategos Beach to Main Beach, attracting a broad range of swimmers from throughout Australia. Covering a distance of 2.2 kilometres from Wategos Beach to Main Beach, Byron Bay, The Ocean Swim Classic is open to all competitors aged 12 years and above.
|Second Weekend May
Byron Triathlon
Bangalow Billy Cart Derby
The Billy Cart Derby brings crowds of several thousands to Bangalow for a day packed with billy-cart racing, expert skateboard riding, parades, children's rides and entertainment, a variety of foods to enjoy; a great day full of community fun. The main street of Bangalow becomes a race track, filled with billy carts of all shapes and sizes and kids of all ages. This award winning event is a great day out for the whole family.
|Early June
Masters 6 A Side Soccer Championships
Australia's largest 6 a side soccer tournament is held on the long weekend of June from 9am to 3pm at the Bangalow Sports and Recreation Grounds, NSW. This amazing competition is for men over 40 and women over 35. A soccer festival involving great food, drinks and entertainment for players and supporters for the entire weekend.
|Late July
Splendour In The Grass
Splendour in the Grass is an annual art and music festival which attracts music lovers to Byron Bay's northern scenic park-lands. The annual event accommodates 17,500 people who party for the weekend to a mix of rock, hip hop, electronic and alternative beats from both international and national artists, also featuring local arts and crafts, creative performances and cuisine.
|Early August
Byron Bay Writers Festival
Sample Food Festival
|Late September
Byron Lighthouse Run
The Byron Lighthouse Run is an annual community event proudly supported by local business to raise money for a different charity each year. You can participate as a 6.7 k walk or a 10 k run. The Lighthouse Run attracts around 900 participants – some who come because they are fast and fit and others just for fun.
|Early October
Boomerang Festival
Boomerang is a new world indigenous festival for all Australians with visitors being treated to 3 full days of performances from music to workshops, fire gatherings, dance performances and some interesting surprises. Boomerang features 4 stages, along with workshops, traditional healings, panels and forums over three days
which define the Indigenous experience in Australia.
|Late October
Byron Bay Surf Festival
The Byron Bay Surf Festival features everything from breath control and yoga workshops to creating your own wooden surfboard and art exhibitions – a varied celebration of a culture that is an iconic symbol of Australian life. Packed with events, workshops, markets and of course surfing, the festival is non-competitive and a great opportunity to celebrate this iconic sport in beautiful Byron Bay.
|Late October
Rainbow Ride Cycle Challenge
Supporting the Byron Emergency Accommodation Project (BEAP), the Rainbow Ride cycle challenge takes in the Northern Rivers Hinterland known as the Rainbow region starting in Byron Bay NSW. The Rainbow Ride Cycle Challenge welcomes you to Byron Bay for the weekend to soak up the sun, beaches, lighthouse walks and participate in the popular ride.
|Late October
Byron Bay Latin Fiesta
The Byron Latin Fiesta is a weekend celebration of Latin dance and music held annually over four nights and three days in Byron Bay. Enjoy Latin Dance Workshops & Parties! Get immersed with all things Latin! Live Latin bands & DJ's plus top national & international Latin dance instructors. All this and more plus the gorgeous beaches of Byron Bay!
|Late November
Mullum Music Festival
The Mullum Music Festival is a three day music festival weekend when this usually quiet little town comes alive. The organisers work hard each year to present musically diverse and challenging programs, engaging those attending with love and attention to the little details that make a bunch of concerts become a festival.
Byron Bay Schoolies
Every year thousands of Year 12 students from around Australia and New Zealand make plans for a holiday to celebrate their end of their school years. The Schoolies week usually takes place between mid-November and mid-December. Byron Schoolies tend to be a well behaved bunch with plenty of community support to make this an enjoyable celebration.
|24th December
Byron Bay Christmas
Join in the festivities of delightful community events held every Christmas Eve in Byron Bay. The carnival has a real family feel to it, bringing everyone together to celebrate. With an abundance of flavorsome foods, quirky fun street performances, musicians, bands, face-painting and puppet shows, there is something for everyone to enjoy.