text:
The Russian connection: See all our coverage | Read about our investigation
Andy KrollFeb. 28, 2012 12:07 PM
Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.)
With Mitt Romney, the GOP establishment's pick in the 2012 presidential nomination battle, still unable to win over dyed-in-the-wool Republicans, the chatter about drafting a new, more popular candidate continues to grow.
On CNN Tuesday morning, Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), chair of the House homeland security committee, hinted at a whisper campaign among "top Republicans" who want a GOP favorite such as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie or Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) to enter the race if Romney loses the Michigan or Arizona primaries or struggles on Super Tuesday, when ten states controlling 437 delegates hold GOP primaries on March 6. "I think there's going to be more of an interest, more of an emphasis on having someone ready if on Super Tuesday... Mitt Romney does not manage to break loose, and to have that candidate ready to come in," King said. He added, "Again, I have no inside knowledge. Just whispering and mumbling here among top Republicans who are concerned that Governor Romney has not been able to break loose."
King told CNN's Soledad O'Brien that he sees the Michigan primary as a make-or-break moment for the Romney campaign. "From my perspective, if Romney does not win Michigan, it creates real problems for his candidacy," he said. "I think you then will start seeing more activity among the Republican establishment, whatever that is, talking to people like Chris Christie, Jeb Bush, Paul Ryan, Mitch Daniels, people like that."
Romney heads into the Michigan primary with a razor-thin 1 percentage point lead over former US senator Rick Santorum, according to RealClearPolitics polling data. Romney fares even worse in national polls, trailing Santorum by 3 percentage points, according to RCP. The pressure on Romney to dig out a win in Michigan is huge, given that he grew up there and that his dad, George Romney, served as governor from 1963 to 1969. Yet Romney's opposition to the federal bailouts of General Motors and Chrysler has dented his support there, and he finds himself locked in a bitter fight with the surging Santorum.
Romney could very well pull off a win in Michigan. Even if he does, though, he's been humbled in a state he once called home.
Kevin DrumFeb. 28, 2012 11:57 AM
Credit default swaps are in the news again:
An unidentified market participant has asked a committee of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association to rule on whether the passage of legislation approving collective-action clauses for Greek debt should trigger payouts on credit-default swaps tied to Greek sovereign bonds.
At stake are payouts from sellers of a net $3.2 billion of CDS on Greece currently outstanding, and the stigma associated with lending credence to an instrument policy makers have long reviled.
An unidentified market participant has asked a committee of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association to rule on whether the passage of legislation approving collective-action clauses for Greek debt should trigger payouts on credit-default swaps tied to Greek sovereign bonds.
At stake are payouts from sellers of a net $3.2 billion of CDS on Greece currently outstanding, and the stigma associated with lending credence to an instrument policy makers have long reviled.
I hope the ISDA takes the case, and I hope they rule in favor of the CDS holders. I'm not a big fan of CDS, and I suspect the world would be a better place if CDS were banned outright, but for now they're legitimate contracts bought and sold in a legitimate way. So if Greece has defaulted, the contracts should pay out — and Greece has defaulted. The European claim that the haircut on Greek bonds is "voluntary" is the worst kind of sophistry, and allowing it to stand because of bullying from the EU would be a travesty. The ISDA shouldn't be a party to this fiction, and shouldn't encourage other governments to expect a continuing supply of get-out-of-jail-free cards in the future. That's moral hazard for you.
Default is part of the latest European deal. Part of the price of that deal is the cost of CDS payouts. Everybody should stop pretending otherwise.
Adam SerwerFeb. 28, 2012 10:43 AM
A guard tower at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility.
Gitmo detainee Majid Khan, accused of being a facilitator for alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, is reportedly in the midst of a plea deal with military prosecutors that will lighten his sentence in exchange for his testimony against other suspected terrorists. This has former Bush administration speechwriter Marc Thiessen in an absolute rage:
Giving this killer a reduced sentence is outrageous. Khan is no run-of-the-mill terrorist. He was directly subordinate to KSM and was selected by the 9/11 mastermind to conduct terrorist operations inside the United States. Khan even passed a test KSM orchestrated, which showed Khan was committed to being a suicide operative. Khan agreed to help KSM set up a front business to smuggle explosives into the United States for use against economic targets and to lead a KSM plot to blow up gas stations along the East Coast, but he was captured before he had the chance to enter the United States. He had been charged with war crimes, including murder, attempted murder, spying and providing material support for terrorism — all of which could have earned him a life sentence. Instead, he might now be released.
Giving this killer a reduced sentence is outrageous. Khan is no run-of-the-mill terrorist. He was directly subordinate to KSM and was selected by the 9/11 mastermind to conduct terrorist operations inside the United States. Khan even passed a test KSM orchestrated, which showed Khan was committed to being a suicide operative. Khan agreed to help KSM set up a front business to smuggle explosives into the United States for use against economic targets and to lead a KSM plot to blow up gas stations along the East Coast, but he was captured before he had the chance to enter the United States. He had been charged with war crimes, including murder, attempted murder, spying and providing material support for terrorism — all of which could have earned him a life sentence. Instead, he might now be released.
The Khan plea deal is a direct consequence of policies Thiessen supported. Thiessen is a huge apologist for the Bush-era CIA torture program, which was of dubious usefulness but nevertheless made it vastly more difficult to actually prosecute suspected terrorists because the evidence against them is tainted. Khan has said that he was tortured so badly that he attempted to commit suicide by chewing through his own arteries. His statements about his treatment have been censored by the US government, however, so we don't even know all of what he says was done to him.
Thiessen has also vocally advocated for the prosecution of Gitmo detainees in military commissions and against the transfer of any detainees to American soil for trial. Although the rules of military commissions favor the government, federal trials tend to hand out much harsher sentences. Why would Khan's fate be any different from the trickle of detainees convicted in military commissions, several of whom are already free?
Thiessen and other conservatives who have defended the use of torture and blocked federal trials for detainees only have themselves to blame for Khan's reduced sentence. They've done everything possible to ensure things would play out this way.
Feb. 28, 2012 9:31 AM
Petty Officer Third Class Michael Soto, the corpsman for Bridge Platoon, Alpha Company, 9th Engineer Support Battalion, directs the litter-bearers as they load an injured marine into a helicopter during a medical evacuation in the district of Garmsir, Helmand province, on January 30, 2012. Soto, a native of Lake Villa, Ill., has been with 9th ESB for the past year and is the primary caregiver to the marines of bridge platoon as they serve on the frontlines of Afghanistan. Photo courtesy of the United States Marine Corps.
Tom PhilpottFeb. 28, 2012 7:00 AM
Will Allen of Growing Power gives a composting workshop in inner-city Milwaukee.
One of the most effective arguments against transforming our food system is the class one: Sure, it's great if well-heeled coastal urbanites want to pay up for food grown without chemicals, but that kind of agriculture can never be productive enough to feed poor people. For that reason, we need monocropped fields of corn and soy, factory-scale livestock operations, and annual monsoons of agrochemical.
In this view, food system reform advocates like me are raging elitists, and Big Food institutions like McDonald's and Walmart are populist champions of the working poor.
I call it the two-food-systems solution: a niche local-organic one for the few willing to pay up; a dominant chemical-driven one for everyone else. In essence, that model describes what has evolved here in the United States over the past 20 years: vibrant islands of farmers markets and CSAs in a vast swamp chemically produced calories.
But what if we transformed the entire food system—precisely because it so ill-serves low-income people, who do the behind-the-scenes dirty, dangerous work to keep it humming?
At a conference I attended last May in DC, I heard Eric Schlosser—whose seminal 2001 book Fast Food Nation exposed the brutal working conditions that underpin what he called "all-American meal"—deliver a brief, damning refutation of the claim that Big Food is somehow the anti-elitist champion of America's working poor. The context of Schlosser's remarks was somewhat ironic, for he was introducing perhaps the most elite proponent of sustainable agriculture on Earth: His Royal Highness, Prince Charles of Wales, who went on to give an equally lucid and clear-eyed indictment of global industrial agriculture.
[Read more]
Adam SerwerFeb. 28, 2012 7:00 AM
Americans who endured Sunday night's Academy Awards ceremony were treated to a surprisingly aggressive campaign-style ad attacking the Humane Society for supposedly spending less than one cent of every dollar it takes in on animal shelters. The ad opens with a blaring siren on one side of the screen and footage from a Humane Society TV spot on the other. "Consumer alert!" a voiceover declares. "If you've seen this ad or donated to the Humane Society of the United States, you should know that only one penny of every dollar donated goes to local pet shelters."
Take a look:
The group behind the ad is the Center for Consumer Freedom, a creation of the Washington PR guru Rick Berman, who runs an array of corporate-funded front groups targeting public-interest outfits, unions, and other organizations that pose a threat to the bottom line of Berman's clients. (As Mother Jones has reported in the past, Berman's firms have also shilled for predatory loan companies.) The Center for Consumer Freedom largely focuses on opposing laws and regulations that are bad for the food and beverage industries. The group is known for fact-bending ad campaigns downplaying, among other things, the amount of mercury in fish and the number of drunk-driving deaths. In 2007, Berman told CBS's 60 Minutes that he essentially sees himself as a warrior against an encroaching nanny state that seeks to deprive Americans of all the delicious foods they love to eat.
According to the Center for Consumer Freedom's 2010 tax filing, the group set aside about a million dollars to set up its anti-Humane Society website "Humane Watch." Berman has created a separate group with the oddly Humane Society-sounding name, the Humane Society for Shelter Pets. Its website snarks at the Humane Society for failing to provide more money for animal shelters.
Berman's group openly acknowledges that it is supported by restaurants and other food companies. But as a 501(c)(3), it doesn't have to disclose its donors, allowing the Center for Consumer Freedom's corporate funders to avoid being tarnished by attacks like the one CCF aired during the Oscars.
"You can take money from any source; you don't have to worry about contribution limits or anything like that. The donors are kept secret, so there's no disclosure of who's ultimately paying for the ad," says Bill Allison, the editorial director of the Sunlight Foundation. "You can have a political impact without necessarily disclosing who you are and what you're doing."
So why would a group funded by the food industry group go after the Humane Society? Both the Humane Society and the Center for Consumer Freedom seem to agree this is not about lost puppies. Rather, it's about the Humane Society's success in altering laws and regulations dealing with animal cruelty, which can sometimes increase the cost of doing business.
"They seek to use ballot initiatives and lobbyists to change laws in ways that are not in line with consumer demand," says Justin Wilson, senior research analyst at the Center for Consumer Freedom. "If you want to buy cage-free hand-foraged eggs from the farmer who grows them on the roof of a building in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, that's great. Alternatively, if your view of these things is different from people who want to spend that much money, that should be their choice."
Wilson argues that the Humane Society's ads give donors a false impression of where their money goes, and that his group is simply informing the public of what the Humane Society actually does. So does the Humane Society really gives just 1 percent of its budget to animal shelters? Yes, says Humane Society President and CEO Wayne Pacelle—but that's a statistic he calls a "false frame," both because the group spends tens of millions on sterilization, sanctuaries, and animal rescues all over the country, and because the group has never claimed to simply fund animal shelters. According to its 2010 annual report, the Humane Society spent $27 million on "direct care and service" for animals and about $53 million on "advocacy and public policy." Pacelle says all the footage in their ads comes directly from Humane Society staffers.
"The only reason he's attacking us is that we're the most effective animal protection group in the world, not because we're bad at what we do," Pacelle says. He pointed out that just a few weeks ago the Humane Society persuaded McDonald's to stop confining pregnant pigs in cramped gestational crates. "They'd love it if we put all our money exclusively into rescuing animals on the street and didn't get to the source of the problem."
Kevin DrumFeb. 28, 2012 1:56 AM
Ten years ago John Judis and Ruy Teixeira wrote The Emerging Democratic Majority, which argued that a variety of demographic trends spelled doom for the Republican Party. Unfortunately for Judis and Teixeira, Republicans ignored their demographic doom and won a convincing victory in 2004. But hey, that was due to 9/11 and Iraq and the war on terror, and who could have predicted that? Then Democrats chalked up big wins in 2006 and 2008 (whew!), but in 2010 Republicans came roaring back. But hey, that was because of an epic recession, and who could have predicted that? Any day now, those demographics are going to kick in and Republicans will be doomed once and for all. Honest.
I am, obviously, being a smart-ass about this. In fact, as Jon Chait writes today in "2012 or Never," the demographic trends that Judis and Teixeira wrote about really are continuing apace. Smart Republicans are well aware of this, and they're especially well aware that one of the biggest demographic trends working against them is the growth of the Latino population. So a few years ago, as a way of peeling off some Latino votes from the Democrats, they took a stab at passing a moderate immigration bill. Unfortunately, their base went into a full-bore revolt and began demanding a harsher anti-immigrant policy instead of a more moderate one. As Jon says, this was about like publicly announcing an electoral suicide pact on national TV.
And it gets worse. At the same time that Republicans are deliberately adopting policies that spell long-term disaster, they've also adopted an uncompromising all-or-nothing political strategy that appeals to their existing base but has cost them dearly in the form of short-term Democratic victories. A more moderate party could have stopped or watered down health care reform, but instead they got Obamacare. A more moderate party could have struck a historic spending deal with Obama, but instead they got nothing. And like lemmings going over a cliff, virtually all of them voted for Paul Ryan's budget roadmap, which was extremely unpopular with most voters. What's going on?
The way to make sense of that foolhardiness is that the party has decided to bet everything on its one "last chance."…Grim though the long-term demography may be, it became apparent to Republicans almost immediately after Obama took office that political fate had handed them an impossibly lucky opportunity. Democrats had come to power almost concurrently with the deepest economic crisis in 80 years, and Republicans quickly seized the tactical advantage, in an effort to leverage the crisis to rewrite their own political fortunes.
…During the last midterm elections, the strategy succeeded brilliantly…In the long run, though, the GOP has done nothing at all to rehabilitate its deep unpopularity with the public as a whole, and has only further poisoned its standing with Hispanics. But by forswearing compromise, it opened the door to a single shot. The Republicans have gained the House and stand poised to win control of the Senate. If they can claw out a presidential win and hold on to Congress, they will have a glorious two-year window to restore the America they knew and loved, to lock in transformational change, or at least to wrench the status quo so far rightward that it will take Democrats a generation to wrench it back. The cost of any foregone legislative compromises on health care or the deficit would be trivial compared to the enormous gains available to a party in control of all three federal branches.
The way to make sense of that foolhardiness is that the party has decided to bet everything on its one "last chance."…Grim though the long-term demography may be, it became apparent to Republicans almost immediately after Obama took office that political fate had handed them an impossibly lucky opportunity. Democrats had come to power almost concurrently with the deepest economic crisis in 80 years, and Republicans quickly seized the tactical advantage, in an effort to leverage the crisis to rewrite their own political fortunes.
…During the last midterm elections, the strategy succeeded brilliantly…In the long run, though, the GOP has done nothing at all to rehabilitate its deep unpopularity with the public as a whole, and has only further poisoned its standing with Hispanics. But by forswearing compromise, it opened the door to a single shot. The Republicans have gained the House and stand poised to win control of the Senate. If they can claw out a presidential win and hold on to Congress, they will have a glorious two-year window to restore the America they knew and loved, to lock in transformational change, or at least to wrench the status quo so far rightward that it will take Democrats a generation to wrench it back. The cost of any foregone legislative compromises on health care or the deficit would be trivial compared to the enormous gains available to a party in control of all three federal branches.
Jon doesn't actually offer any evidence that this is what's motivating Republicans, and likewise, I can't really marshal much evidence that he's wrong. But I have a hard time buying this. If I'm reading him correctly, he's saying that Republicans know they're doomed, and they're deliberately adopting a catastrophic long-term strategy in the hopes that one last hurrah will be enough to keep America conservative even if they do lose every election for the next 20 years.
But this simply doesn't pass the human-nature test. I can't peer into the souls of Republicans, but I don't get any sense that they believe themselves to be doomed. People just don't think that way. Rather, I get the sense that they're true believers who think that, deep in its heart, America agrees with them.
This also doesn't pass the common sense test. Even if Republicans do win control of all three branches, they aren't going to win 60 seats in the Senate. They aren't even going to come close. So if they try to roll back the New Deal, or whatever their plan is, Democrats will filibuster it. Republicans have already shown them how, after all. The GOP will certainly be able to move the dial a bit if they win in November, but there's no way anyone in the party thinks they can "lock in transformational change" over a two-year period with 52 votes in the Senate.
Basically, I just don't think there's a huge mystery to be solved here. When Democrats lost to Reagan, they nominated first Walter Mondale and then Michael Dukakis before finally tacking to the center and putting Bill Clinton in the White House. That was a 12-year stretch. Britain's Labour Party spent a decade moving left before they finally tacked back to the center after losing to Margaret Thatcher. It took them 18 years to finally regain power. Republicans have only been in the wilderness for either four or six years, depending on how you count. If it takes until 2016 for them to come to their senses, that would be a pretty normal progression.
Republicans don't think they have one last chance before the fat lady sings them off the stage. They're just reacting emotionally to a big defeat by convincing themselves that they were rejected because they hadn't been true enough to their principles. That happens all the time. They'll come around eventually.
Feb. 27, 2012 9:12 PM
David Corn and Time magazine's Mark Halperin joined Chris Matthews on MSNBC's Hardball to discuss the latest political poll results and what they say about the GOP's chances in the 2012 election. Recent polls show Barack Obama's approval rating is at 53 percent, up nine points since November. The polls also show that when Obama is pitted against Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum, he beats them by 10 and 11 points, respectively. The Republican primary fight has dragged on for months and promises to continue well into the future. Has all the candidates' mudslinging started to harm the GOP's image and turn off voters?
Kevin DrumFeb. 27, 2012 9:00 PM
I wasn't planning to revisit the creditmongering post I wrote earlier today, since I suspect that only a tiny fraction of my readership cares very much about it. But I've gotten a few responses to it that seem worth addressing, in particular this one from Aaron Carroll. So.....
When should you credit other people in your writing? For starters, I'd draw a sharp distinction between journalism, blogging, and academia. For lack of a better way of putting this, I'd also draw a sharp distinction between ideas and IDEAS.
Journalism first. I stick by my belief that being first with a garden-variety story by a few minutes or a few hours simply isn't worth crediting. The person who got there first thinks it's a big deal, but honestly, no one else does. Besides, journalism is a business. No one credits their competitors in other industries if they can help it, and I'm not sure why we expect journalists to be any different. So I guess my rule here is: If someone else breaks a genuinely big story, it's right and proper to credit them. If it's just a few-hour lead on a piece of commodity news, get a life. The warm glow of being first is all you're going to get out of it.
Next, blogging. After giving this some thought, I realized that I do follow some rough rules on linking and crediting. I've just never put them in writing. So here they are:
Next, academia. This is a whole different culture with its own rules. Extensive endnotes are common. Literature reviews are customary. Credit to others is splashed all over the place not only because it's expected, but because it demonstrates a certain level of erudition on the part of the writer. Nothing else I've said here applies to academics.
Beyond that, though, several people have suggested that if you get an idea from someone, you should credit them regardless of any other linking/credit rules you might follow. This is where I'd make the distinction between ideas and IDEAS. The former is inspiration: if I read something that makes me want to dig into the plight of the long-term unemployed, I'm not likely to credit anyone. It's just a topic. Lots of people have addressed it, and the fact that I happened to get my inspiration from one person rather than another probably doesn't matter much.
But an IDEA is different: this is a very specific theory or model or explanation for something. Or maybe an original insight. If you mention an IDEA, or riff on it to produce one of your own, you should credit the originator.
One more thing. I think every blogger has had the experience of writing something, and then seeing someone else write something suspiciously similar a few hours later without giving credit. Be careful. I suspect that most of the time we're getting worked up over a coincidence. Most of our ideas aren't really as original as we think.
But that might just be my temperament speaking. I tend not to care much if I get credit for my ideas. Mainly, I just like to see them spread. If someone echoes me, then my ideas get broadcast into the ideasphere — and, truthfully, it's probably more effective if it looks like someone has independently had the same thought than it is if they're writing a post explicitly agreeing with me. So I'm happy either way. But I recognize that other people have different feelings about this and get a bigger kick than I do out of being the center of a new meme. So I guess maybe the overriding rule for credit is this: it doesn't cost anything and it can't hurt. If in doubt, give credit.
Tim MurphyFeb. 27, 2012 6:15 PM
Sources say 244 year-old former president Andrew Jackson is privately seething over President Obama's reluctance to have his political opponents shot: Wikimedia CommonsAs a service to our readers, every day we are delivering a classic moment from the political life of Newt Gingrich—until he either clinches the nomination or bows out.
The Associated Press' Ken Thomas reported on Monday that Newt Gingrich, "speaking at the Tennessee state capitol, says Andrew Jackson would have been 'enraged by Barack Obama."
We'll take a look at that last claim.
The facts: Historians agree that "rage" was a defining character trait of our seventh president. This is the same Andrew Jackson who, after a Nashville man insulted his wife, promised to "follow him over land and sea" until Jackson had the opportunity to kill him (he did). He challenged the first lawyer he ever argued a case against to a duel. He invaded Spanish Florida without authorization, singlehandedly drove future Sen. Thomas Benton from the state of Tennessee after an open-air gunfight (prefaced with the immortal line, "I am going to punish you"), and as a child had a tendency to "work himself into fits of rage so paralyzing that contemporaries recalled he would begin 'slobbering.'"
Jackson spent much of his life in acute pain from the bullets lodged in his chest and left arm. That produced a natural state of irascibility. Or at least it would have if it'd happened to us. From a policy standpoint, Jackson had a 19th-century southern plantation owner's view on race (in addition to serving as president, Jackson was a 19th-century plantation owner) and owned more than three dozen slaves—something that struck him in as not at all morally wrong. His views on human rights, checks and balances, internal improvements, and finance would be anathema to a large swath of today's public. And like we said, he had a habit of discharging firearms at people he didn't like.
Our ruling: There are some definite areas of agreement—Jackson was an unabashed proponent of class warfare, for instance, suggesting he'd be sympathetic to Obama's embrace of the 99 percent. His invasion of Florida in pursuit of the Seminole was cited by the Department of Justice in a memo justifying Obama's Guantanamo detainee policy. Nonetheless, Andrew Jackson, a man whose reputation was built in large part on acts of unbridled rage, would likely have been enraged by Barack Obama. Jackson, who allied with pirates at the Battle of New Orleans, might also wonder why the President has adopted such a hostile policy to Somali pirates. And Obama's insistence on adhering to the 13th and 14th amendments would be a particular sore point. The bottom line is Washington, through the extension of civil rights to women and minorities in the decades since the Civil War, would have become something totally unrecognizable to Old Hickory. Andrew Jackson fear change. Andrew Jackson angry. Andrew Jackson smash.
We rate this claim "mostly true."
Copyright ©2017 Mother Jones and the Foundation for National Progress. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Service
Privacy Policy
Contact Us
We noticed you have an ad blocker on.
Support nonprofit investigative reporting by pitching in a few


text:
The Sims 3 Ambitions
Edit Page Last Edit:
Since the birth of the Sims franchise, we have always wondered where our little friends go when they head off to work. With Sims 3, up until now, we at least got to see their workplace, but we were still banned from going in or helping them out other than with job strategies. But now, thanks to Sims 3: Ambitions, the second expansion pack for the series, we can follow our Sims to their jobs, and even help them with it too!
EditTable of Contents
Top Wiki Contributors
Edits: 998
Edits: 20
Edits: 12
Edits: 7
Wiki Help
Need assistance with editing this wiki? Check out these resources:
What Links Here
Expand Navigation

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Selecting the right filter to remove mold spores from breathing air
Mold. Unless you are a mycologist, the word probably inspires feelings of uncertainty. You may never have experienced a mold problem in your facility, but you certainly have seen the headlines: homes, schools, and other buildings shuttered and deep-cleaned to be rid of the black menace some blame on health issues ranging from mild respiratory problems to debilitating illness. The issue of "toxic mold" first hit the news during the mid-1990s, with several high-profile cases of ...
Register For Free or Sign In to Access
"Air Filtration for Mold Management" is FREE to access as a registered user on HPAC.com. Why register for HPAC.com? It's simple and free, and provides:
- Access to exclusive articles and news coverage
- The full version of all monthly digital editions dating back to 2010
- Allows you to comment on articles and discuss news with HPAC's editors
- Gain valuable media content and more!


text:
I'm a great believer that any tool that enhances communication has profound effects in terms of how people can learn from each other, and how they can achieve the kind of freedoms that they're interested in.- Bill Gates
The past year at Kansas State University has seen as much innovation as the field of Communication Studies has as a whole in the past decade. Following a trend set by other universities, the Speech Communication, Theatre and Dance department is now known as the Communication Studies, Theatre and Dance department. This change in name has seen an influx of new ideas and bright faces to the department (from professors to students) that are well represented in the range of papers submitted and accepted for publication in Volume Two of the Journal of Advances in Communication Theory and Research.
Each paper chosen for this issue shares a common understanding that the way in which we choose to communicate has changed drastically in the twenty-first century. Whether that be recruitment techniques by universities, creating a new identity on Second Life, or the work balance of today's working mother, the contributors to this issue show that we must look at, comprehend, and evaluate communication patterns as they emerge. In these works we see all areas of study within the communication field well represented: interpersonal, organizational, rhetorical, qualitative, quantitative, and more. While technology is a main source of the change in communication patterns, the authors also draw on social changes in what is acceptable to interpret and advance theories and research in communication, showing that people can alter and improve their communication for a variety of reasons. Continue reading 'Editor's Note(2009)- Natalie Pennington' »


text:
Well I grew up with bees and when my dad died I thought I'd just use some of his equipment and start my own hives. That first attempt was a disaster, a combination of my being too timid to dump the bees in the hive (thought they would just work their way out of their travelling box and set up shop in the hives that I set up on top of their box) and then offering them plastic foundation with no sugar water encouragement. Anyway, I've been reading a lot and realize I wasn't ready to be a beekeeper a couple of years ago, but hopefully I'll be ready this go around.
I figured out how to insert beeswax foundation and have two deep supers ready I've ordered two 3# boxes of bees and they are scheduled to arrive this week..I'm in northern Illinois and there is a lot of blooming going on; I wish they had come a few weeks ago. Oh, to finish my story on my first attempt, the bees made foundation inside the box; I scraped it out, they left. Took less than a week and it was all over. I'm guessing that is some sort of a disaster record.
I'm learning a lot just reading the posts.....I'm really excited and appreciative of all the veteran beekeeper's wisdom


text:
Expanding food bank officially open
KINGSPORT, Tenn. - It is very common to hear about people who are in need during the holidays -- people are in need of the basic necessities, like clothes, shelter, and food.
In Northeast Tennessee alone many, many people struggle with hunger according to Second Harvest Food Bank Executive Director Rhonda Chafin. "We know we're serving around 40,000 people on the average every month, but what we also know about 74,000 are food-insecure and 100,000 are in poverty in NE Tennessee, "said Chafin
That is 2,000 people shy of a capacity crowd at Neyland Stadium.
Now Second Harvest has a brand new 112,000 square foot facility near Kingsport to help them in the mission to fight hunger. "It also represents the magnitude of hunger and the fact that we need a facility this large gives you a sense for the challenge that hunger is both here and all across America," said Feeding America CEO Bob Aiken, Jr.
According to Aiken, Feeding America has a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks and 61,000 local food pantries, all working towards a common goal. "To help fight hunger for kids, for seniors, for families," said Aiken. "And we're able, working with national donors to find grants to help support the effort to feed kids in this eight-county area."
Hancock, Hawkins, Carter, Greene, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi and Washington are all served by Second Harvest. Second Harvest has expanded significantly to meet the demand. The food bank has passed out 8.8 million pounds of food in 2013, equal to 7.3 million meals.


text:
"The economic crisis has contributed to a glut of bees in California. That raises questions about whether a supposed global pollination crisis is real"
"The economic crisis has contributed to a glut of bees in California. That raises questions about whether a supposed global pollination crisis is real"
Regards, Barry
As far as I can tell from talking to everyone there was not an actual "glut of bees" but there was a perceived "glut" by nervous bee keepers. Panic mode set in price cutting occured and in the end 99% of the worhty bees were rented. Much of the cheap bees this year wouldnt make grade somewhere else and many cancelled contracts had deposits down or cancellation clauses. These deposits/cancellation damages subsidised lower price sets somewhere else with your 4 framers.
Pray for water and there will be a perceived shortage of bees next year although the number of colinies will be about the same.
Latest from Calf. Bees will be coming out early...towards the end of the month. 100% of the hives that made the grade were rented this year. (at least with the two brokers we deal with) Word we are getting is that hives that didn't make the cut were eventually rented for a nominal fee (I am not sure what that was) and it had something to do with those areas that didn't get water, in order to get crop failure insurance payments they had to go through everything to get a crop and that included bees for pollination.
So that's the word. They are not sure how the crop will turn out as rain was a factor this year and may have washed out some of the pollen.
Life is tough, but it's tougher when you're stupid. John Wayne
We are hearing it was business as usual for most beeks. It certainly was for us, although all the rumors sure made us worry more and predictably caused a panic for those without contracts. I heard on Bee-L there was a glut of 300-600K colonies but I find that hard to believe. We don't know of and the 3 brokers we talked to didn't report anyone with decent bees that didn't get in, (although we did hear there were some from this board who had bees sidelined). Some gave the growers a $10-20 discount and some bees, mostly lower grading colonies, were rented cheap late.
We know of one case where shipped in bees didn't make grade and the broker turned them around then had another beek bring in additional strong colonies from TX to fill the contract. I suspect this type of shuffling of colonies was what some of the hubbub was about.
We have friends who are already getting their bees back to TX, one load today, 2 more tomorrow and next day. Our broker is supposed to call tomorrow with dates for ours, he is thinking released by end of the week.
Soon it'll really get busy!!
Soon the bees really will be back in town.


text:
Halfway into Project Lean, teams look for 'quick wins'
It wasn't the first time Mike Duggan asked lean process management experts for help, and, local executives and officials say, it won't be the last.
The mayor's initiative to seek free expert help to improve 18 Detroit services through lean re-engineering is at the halfway mark of an eight-week speed makeover.
Duggan has no qualms about asking things of the business community. At last week's Detroit Regional Chamber Mackinac Policy Conference, he made an emphatic plea for businesses to take on 5,000 teen interns as part of a summer 2015 project called TeenWork.
The Project Lean effort, meanwhile, is in its fourth week. The program puts volunteer executives and consultants to work by teaming them up with more than 100 city employees across eight city departments. The goal is to shore up specific city functions, ranging from business licensing to distributions of city income tax refunds.
A process begins
The 18 teams will prepare reports for city officials on current operations and possible improvements by mid-July. Other tasks on the table for review are city practices in hiring, certificates of occupancy, snow removal, purchasing and IT help-desk service time.
The eight-week lean program largely mirrors a lean process Duggan initiated as CEO of Detroit Medical Center.
The teams have been completing project charters establishing their own missions and creating project plans, and could propose a few easy fixes soon, said Mary Martin, director of lean process management for Detroit. Martin was formerly the vice president of performance improvement and radiology at DMC.
"We anticipate in the next two or three weeks they (the teams) can begin making some smaller-scale improvements — the quick wins we can go after, before we then begin laying out a larger plan for the future," she said.
"It (the outcome) is going to depend on the projects and what they find. For example, I'm working on the business licensing (project). We're not only going to work on ways to reduce response time and shorten the process, but also look at what we require business licensing for and if it's necessary."
An example of a lean improvement opportunity: Evaluating whether the city even needs to have its own licensing process for a business already licensed by the state.
The volunteer effort was born largely out of requests Duggan made at the Crain's Newsmaker of the Year luncheon in February, and at a meeting of the chamber earlier this year, for business executives to offer leaders willing to teach and apply lean principles to government agencies.
"The mayor was talking about this eight-week sprint in various agencies, and we were thinking initially maybe we would pick out one of the 18 projects. But we were so intrigued by the opportunity — and it was clear to us that the entire process would benefit from an umbrella holistic approach," said Mark Davidoff, Michigan managing partner for Deloitte LLP.
"So we went back to our own drawing board and ended up proposing not only having ownership of a project but heading a project management office."
Deloitte is overseeing the project management office, which sets the schedule and coordinates the 18 eams, and is also lean volunteer on snow removal, one of two projects under the auspices of the Detroit Department of Public Works.
A range of other accountants, consultants, efficiency experts and other specialists are volunteering services. (See list, right.)
Repeatable lessons
John Boulahanis, owner and president of Livonia-based Jama Consulting LLC, said he took on Duggan's challenge because he knew his efficiency training could help. He is volunteering on the certificate of occupancy project team with Detroit's Buildings, Safety, Engineering and Environmental Department.
Jama is a business consulting and executive coaching firm that Boulahanis founded in 2007.
"About 90 percent of what you do in lean consulting involves looking at ... the culture and getting people to those 'a-ha' moments of clarity that help them feel they have control," he said.
"But it (Detroit city services) is not just someone else's problem. It's everyone's problem, but everyone also has an opportunity to create value and have a significant impact for the city."
Marc Voorhees Jr., president of Waterford Township-based MPM Consulting and a former risk analyst for Ford Motor Credit Co., said his great-grandfather owned a construction business in Detroit until the 1970s. That was inspiration to lend his Six Sigma process improvement training to the city.
His project, reviewing Detroit Department of Transportation bus departure times, will dovetail with his past research experience studying New York City subways as a New York University graduate student.
"The people in Detroit have been so wonderful and open to change, and people are passionate about what they do," he said.
Besides transportation and buildings and public works, the executives are also handling projects in Detroit's finance and human resources departments, general services, purchasing, IT services and the Public Lighting Department. One project, the review of business licensing in the city, will be handled internally by Martin.
All city services under review are internal except one: a parts replacement program to equip city vehicles other than fire ambulance and DDOT buses that's now under contract with the Atlanta-based National Automotive Parts Association. Martin said the lean process review will not include outsourcing any of the other 17 functions.
"We believe that if we can give the employees the right tools, then we can do the task better than anyone else can," she said. "We've had people without the proper tools for so long."
Davidoff said the city expects the eight-week program to be the first of many consecutive reviews, with other executives likely to step up to new roles in later sessions.
"The beauty of the management approach is peeling apart the process, figuring out the key components and putting it back together, and once you commit to the culture of this approach, there's always a use for it," he said.
Chad Halcom: (313) 446-6796, firstname.lastname@example.com. Twitter: @chadhalcom


text:
Puzzles and tricks from Martin Gardner inspire math and science
Erik D. Demaine
Our next example of recreational computer science is inspired by a collection of classic "penny puzzles," which Gardner wrote about in Scientific American in 1966. Helena Verrill, a mathematician now at Louisiana State University, introduced my father and me to puzzles of this type. You are given a pyramid of six coins, shown on the left in part a of the fourth figure (at right), and your goal is to make a sequence of moves to arrange the coins into a line. But each move you make must place an existing coin into a position that touches at least two other coins. This "two-adjacency" constraint is what makes the puzzle challenging. It might initially seem impossible to get rid of all the three-coin triangles, but with a little insight, it is possible.
There are several coin-sliding puzzles of this type, with the two-adjacency constraint on moves. So again we wondered: How does it generalize? The natural computational question here is whether computers can solve this type of puzzle: Given a starting configuration and a goal configuration of coins, can a computer algorithm determine whether the puzzle is solvable under the two-adjacency constraint, and if so, find a sequence of moves to solve it? Even better, can it find the shortest sequence of moves to solve the puzzle?
Both of these questions are actually still unanswered. I suspect that the second question has a negative answer, and it is computationally intractable to determine the fewest moves needed to solve a puzzle, but no one has proved that yet. However, the first question might have a positive answer, which would be much more interesting—it would essentially provide a general theory for this type of puzzle.
In 1998 Verrill visited my father and me for a couple of days of problem solving, during which we came up with and tackled the first problem. We observed that the puzzle in the fourth figure adheres to a triangular grid: If you draw an equilateral triangular grid where the triangle side length equals the diameter of the coin, then the centers of the coins always remain at grid intersections. This property is a neat consequence of the two-adjacency rule because the coins start on this grid.
For puzzles on the triangular grid, we were able to develop a general computational theory. We found some very simple conditions for when it is possible to transform a starting configuration into a goal configuration via two-adjacency moves. First, the number of coins must be the same in the two configurations, and it must be possible to make at least one two-adjacency move from the starting configuration. Second, and more interesting, the goal configuration must have at least one of three patterns that make it possible to have a last move that solves the puzzle. The patterns are a triangle of three coins, a connected group of four or more coins, and a connected group of three coins along with another connected group of two coins.
As long as the goal configuration has at least one of these patterns, the puzzle is guaranteed to be solvable, and a computer algorithm can tell you how. This result holds even if the coins have different labels (for example, some are heads and some are tails), provided there are more than three coins total.
This kind of simple characterization of solvable puzzles not only helps to find outcomes, but also makes it easy to design new puzzles. Armed with a guarantee about when a puzzle will be solvable, we can design a new one within those constraints that will also be visually interesting. For example, can you solve the puzzle in part b of the fourth figure?
Another special type of coin-sliding puzzle arises if we replace the triangular grid with a square grid, requiring every move to place a coin on this grid. These puzzles are substantially harder to solve, both in practice and in theory. We came up with a nearly complete characterization of solvable puzzles, showing how to complete challenges with at least two "extra coins" to help navigate the other pieces. Puzzles without any extra coins are impossible to solve, and puzzles with just one extra are typically either unsolvable or not too engaging—but we still don't have a computer algorithm to tell us exactly which puzzles can be solved. The situation with two extra coins is quite interesting, however, and has again allowed us to design several puzzles. Try, for instance, the puzzle in part c of the fourth figure. To see more coin-sliding puzzles, visit http://erikdemaine.org/slidingcoins/.
Community Guidelines: Disqus Comments
The Art and Science of Communicating Science
American Scientist Classics
Women in Science
Purchase a Back Issue
2014 Annual Index
The Age of Nuclear Weapons
25 Years in North Carolina
Of Possible Interest
Spotlight: Flint Water Crisis Yields Hard Lessons in Science and Ethics
Feature Article: Restoring Depth to Leonardo's Mona Lisa
Perspective: Taking the Long View on Sexism in Science
© 2016 Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society


text:
Pink Sands Love
I'm happy you got to revisit the pink sands with Jim this time.... makes me waaay happy knowing this. I won't feel so bad visiting romantic places as a single woman anymore cuz I KNOW I will return to share it with my love as well someday...
I love you Miranda!
I'm so happy you and Jim found each other and are enjoying life together...
Harbor Island
Trip Start Dec 14, 2007
70Trip End Ongoing
Map your own trip!
Loading Map
Loading Map
Map Options
Show trip route
Hide lines
The island is very narrow and can be walked across to the Atlantic side in 10 minutes. Jim and I opted not to rent one of the many golf carts roaming the island. We needed to walk. So that's what we did. We found the cafe I ate at 3 years ago with my brother Grant, Layne and mother. It was the best meal we had had in the Bahamas. Can't remember the name of it off the top of my head. Then we circumnavigated the island passing by the very old loyalist cottages and churches. Most of the buildings where constructed in the 18th century. They were cute, pastel and rickity, though some had gone through a remodel
After walking for about an hour we found ourselves on the pink sand beach on the Atlantic side of the island. The sand was soft and felt squishy between my toes. We found two lounge chairs in the middle of the beach with no one about, so we anchored ourselves to them and relaxed. It was a beautiful day. Since we've been here the Atlantic side has been windy and the water rough. But today it was calm and the ocean shades of blue where more than what Crayola could come up with.
Eventually, 6 horses meandered by unteathered by any reigns or human. They freely frolicked and took themselves for a dip at the oceans shore. One of them rubbed their backs riggourously against the sand. It was so cute! Then they chased each other up and down the coastline and finally up and over the dune.
After about an hour of pure relaxation we walked up the beach to my favorite spot, which I had wanted to return to with my new love, the Pink Sand Hotel
We were hungry and walked around to find a restaurant but everything we looked at was super expensive. Forty five dollars for an entre? I don't think so! So we headed home back to Eleuthera and settled for the Sunset Inn where we just missed the sunset. Oh well, we were still able to enjoy our new friend, Kevin's art. It hung all over the walls, depicting scenes of Bahamian life. The colors where magnificent. His work shows in Europe and the states.
It was the first day Jim and I had to ourselves in a month and it was wonderful.
Post your own travel photos for friends and family More Pictures
Pink Sands Love


text:
This page provides information for faculty and staff who are involved with Freshman Connections. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us. Have a great year and thank you for your commitment to our first-year students!
The Case for Faculty Involvement with First-Year Programs
Making Connections: What Faculty Members Can Do in Their Classrooms and Interactions with Students to Promote Retention
Making Achievement Possible (MAP)
Joe Cuseo Marymount College
The late Ernest Boyer (1987), writing as then president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, contended that the following "key question" must be asked when assessing the effectiveness of an institution's freshman-orientation program, "Is the orientation program actively supported by the faculty?" (p. 288).
After comprehensively reviewing 25 years of retention research, Pantages and Creedon (1978) concluded that one potentially potent approach to reducing student attrition was for colleges to find new ways to maximize faculty-student interaction during the freshman year, including greater faculty involvement in the orientation program.
The importance of student-faculty contact and front-loading of outstanding teachers and advisors are two oft-cited recommendations in the retention literature (National Institute of Education, 1984; Noel, Levitz, et al., 1985). Empirical evidence supporting this contention is provided by Moore, Peterson, and Wirag (1984), who found that faculty involvement in orientation programs had positive effects on students' academic development. Tammi (1987) also found that participants in a freshman seminar reported significantly more informal contacts with faculty than nonparticipants.
Faculty involvement in the freshman seminar would seem to be an effective and efficient way to simultaneously implement the dual advantages of student-faculty contact and front-loading. Involvement of faculty in freshman orientation should also serve to increase their sensitivity to the significant personal adjustments which adolescents (and returning adult students) must make upon entering college, and enhance faculty's advising skills.
Furthermore, faculty involvement in orientation would improve the program's credibility and elevate the significance of student support and student retention to the level of a collegewide concern—rather than limiting it to an "extracurricular" job performed exclusively by student-affairs professionals (Cuseo, 1991).
Boyer, E. (1987). The undergraduate experience in America. New York: Harper & Row. Cuseo, J. B. (1991). The freshman orientation seminar: A research-based rationale for its value, delivery, and content. (Monograph No. 4) Columbia, SC: National Resource Center for The Freshman Year Experience. Moore, B. L., Peterson, D. C., & Wirag, J. R. (1984). Orienting traditional entering students. In M. L. Upcraft (Ed.), Orienting students to college (pp. 39-51). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. National Institute of Education (1984). Involvement in learning. Washington, DC: Author. Noel, L., Levitz, R., & Associates (1985). Increasing student retention. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Pantages, T. J., & Creedan, C. F. (1978). Studies of college attrition: 1950-1975. Review of Educational Research, 48, 49-101. Tammi, M. W. (1987). The longitudinal evaluation of a freshman seminar course on academic and social integration. Unpublished dissertation, University of North Carolina, Charlotte.
Return to top
Making Connections in the Classroom
Teaching Strategies to Help Students Be More Successful
Making Connections outside the Classroom
(List adapted from one posted on the FYE Discussion Board [National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition] by Barbara Gaddis, director, Office of Student Retention, University of Colorado-Colorado Springs. If you have been successful with other strategies, please e-mail them to email@example.com.)
The Making Achievement Possible Survey is given to all first-time freshman students in the beginning of their first semester. It is designed to reveal student strengths and talents, as well as to identify areas for further development. For archived MAP results, see the Office of Academic Assessment & Institutional Research, MAP Survey
Copyright © 2017 Ball State University 2000 W. University Ave. Muncie, IN 47306
800-382-8540 and 765-289-1241


text:
Top photo (from left): Mauli Agrawal (UTSA College of Engineering
dean), William Morrow (CSIdentity chairman and CEO) and UTSA
President Ricardo Romo
Bottom photo: Morrow, Ravi Sandhu (Institute for Cyber
Security executive director), Lynda de la Vina
(UTSA College of Business dean) and Agrawal
(Photos by Mark McClendon)
Mauli Agrawal, William Morrow named to tech initiative
(Nov. 18, 2008)--UTSA President Ricardo Romo hosted a reception Nov. 5 to honor Mauli Agrawal, dean of the UTSA College of Engineering, and William Morrow, chairman and CEO of CSIdentity, on their recent appointments by Governor Rick Perry to the Emerging Technology Fund (ETF) initiative. Co-hosts of the event were the San Antonio Technology Accelerator Initiative (SATAI) and the North San Antonio Chamber of Commerce.
Today's headlines
- La Prensa Foundation is newest member of UTSA Lone Star Society
- UTSA alumna Jordan Kaufmann wins $50K for new stent-graft start-up
- UTSA begins new way-finding sign installation this summer at Main Campus
- USA Today: UTSA long jumper Tyler Williamson rescues three-year-old boy
Article tools
Established by the 79th Legislature in 2005, ETF is designed to work through partnerships between state agencies, institutions of higher education and private industry.
This includes the operation of Regional Centers of Innovation and Commercialization (RCIC) throughout the state, matching grant funds for technical research and development projects that accelerate new product commercialization, and for attracting highly renowned research talent.
Since ETF's inception, an estimated $12 million has been awarded to San Antonio institutions (including $3.5 million for UTSA) for research superiority, matching grants and project commercialization.


text:
These are photos of a Hybrid Canary. These birds are breed by crossing a Green Singer Finch with a Canary. This is called a Hybrid and not a 'Mule' because…$150
I have healthy Zebra Finch . Both Males and Females *Black Cheeks $25 *Society Finch $20 *Chestnut Flank White (CFW) $25 *Common/Cinnamon $12 …$25
Beautiful Red Factor Canaries.... *Red Factors, Red Intensive, Ivory Frosted $90 *Red/Brown/Black Mosaic's $90 --Red Factor Color Intensifier and…$90
I have a bunch of beautiful canaries for everyone. *American Singer Yellow's $60 *American Singer variegated Yellow/Black, Yellow/Brown $60 *Red Factors…$60
5 Zebra Finch chosen by Louie from his aviary. -price includes USPS 1 or 2 day Shipping in approved shipping container anywhere in the continental…$99
I have 3 females and 2 males canaries$65
I have four cockatiel babies left nine weeks old very friendly sweet looking for a forever home a re-home fee of $125$125
looking to adopt a Love Bird female preferred,any age or color,just for companion to our older believed male.Close to Cape and Island area in Massachusetts…No Price Listed
Beautiful 8 month old macaw for sale very playfull bird and loves to socialise with both male and female trust me when i come home they says hiiii and…$700
I have Russian canaries for sale 2017 ( português/espanhol) unsex Russian canaries $80 Females $100 Males $150 crested blue $175 each. I DO NOT…$100


text:
A lot of what is being discussed here can be found in the .308 conversion forum.
I'm going to move this post there and may rename the forum a little to include larger calibers.
I have been looking to do a 8mm. Barrel s are real cheap I picked up 4 mauser barrels for $15.00 for all 4 off ebay. I was thinking the steel g3 mags at $2.00 a piece could be band sawed length wise and welded bak together fairly easy, 2 mags to make one, would have to mod the follwers also. they are straight and have a nice flat area to work with. I looked for some m76 mags a while back and was not suscessful. how ever I was told that there was possabley going to be some imported and to call back in June. Saiga is susposed to be exporting a 30-06 according to what I read 2 months ago. If it is avaliable I doubt I would bother to do a conversion to 8mm. you almost need to reload to get the full benifet of the 8mm factory ammo is on the weak side due to all the old 1899 stuff still out there. I thnk the CUP pressures are about the same as 7.62x 39
I was thinking a 8mm long barrel pistol for hunting. but if I get the 308 conversion working there is a ton other rounds based on the 308 caseing
22-308, 243, 7mm-08 ( a very nice round only 100fps slower than 7 mag) 358-08 1.5"-308 and a bunch of wild cat stuff as well. that would all work with the g3 or m14 mags.
A lot of what is being discussed here can be found in the .308 conversion forum.
I'm going to move this post there and may rename the forum a little to include larger calibers.
Saiga may well be bringing in some .30/06 semi auto's. That would work.
My gut tells me to tell you to go out and buy a Hakim if you want a relatively inexpensive 8mm semi auto, but then I'd be raining on the parade.
"RPG kaboom tank!"
Comrade Soldier Koverchenko
hehe, woops. (never say die, dammit! .50 cal AK is next on the list!)Originally Posted by cammobunker
Hakim.... I've already got a Hakim. I like it, don't get me wrong. It's just... well... no pistol grip. Mags are $$. Boat oar.. more of a novelty.
I forgot about the 30.06 Saiga's... that'd be a better platform to work off of. All you'd have to do is rebarrel and work the mag out. (the 30.06 mag might actually work as is)
...I'm not tense! Just terribly, terribly alert.
I've been following that thread as well. It just occurred to me that an 8mm conversion may be easier to accomplish... although perhaps not from scratch using Yugo AK parts.Originally Posted by SangRun Hunter
Thing is I REALLY wanted one of those Yugo 8mm kits. But for that kind of money??? No way. I could buy a DSArms FAL for what that would cost me.
...I'm not tense! Just terribly, terribly alert.
Ohio rapid fire makes a 8mm reciver. I did not see any mags on there site though
http://www.ohiorapidfire.com . as far as a .50 cal AK not in BMG but in a .50 pistol or rifle it may be possable. I would like to have a .410 and 20 guage trunion to mess with .410 brass measures .535 at the rim. this tells me that a rimless .50 case could be done. ( ever since I found this web site I spend hours in a poorly lit room with a pile of kits a box full of empty misc brass that I stole from my 6 year old and a Mic, calipers and a tape measure and this damm computer) I thought about a .50 AK just to say I did it. Proably want to start with light loads.
Meeper has done a .50 Beowulf conversion for the AK.Originally Posted by 1biggun
It's not a quick-change barrel like his FAL conversions, but shows .50 is perfectly feasible.
The most damning evidence is the truth.
That which does not kill you, really really really hurts...
Gunco Member #21
AH! I thought I'd never find that Beowulf conversion pic. Thanks for finding that! THat was a SAR they just converted, and seeing as how the .50 Beowulf uses a 5.56x45 "necked-up" round, that would be a real easy conversion - new barrel, fit the magazine lips and probably nothing else. May be easier than most other conversions!
Gunco Member #10
The "original" Boltcutter Rivet Squeezers:
Project Pink - the Pink and Blue AK-74:
Here are my thoughts (for free)...Originally Posted by SA58
I agree with the other posts that the use of the .308 Saiga would require some fitting since the bullet is longer. IT would be more accurate to compare this to a 7.62x54R - the Dragunov and PKM round - instead of a .308 round.
Let's assume you're going the full route, with a pistol grip conversion to restore the Saiga to its intended form. Let's also assume you're going to do "whatever it takes" to make it work.
Magazine fit.
I am not sure that it would be a good idea to "create" the extra clearance by grinding down the trunion. Therefore, I would consider moving the trigger guard back. Obviously, judicious dremel work on the magazine well area would be necessary for whatever magazine fit you require.
You would most likely need to enlarge the magazine well front-to-back and maybe relocate the trigger guard back. I would weld up the existing holes, then redrill brand new trigger guard holes. If the distance is enough, you could relocate it by removing it, using the two existing rear rivet holes for the front of the trigger guard, and drill two more rivet holes for the rear holes.
That would give you a bit less room in front of the trigger, but not my much. If you had to move it no more than about 1/8 - 3/16" then I doubt you would even notice the difference unless you wore gloves or had real fat fingers!
Bolt & Trunion.
The .308 is over-engineered for the larger round. Of course, so is the AK for the 7.62x39 round. I would have to dig out my ROMAK-3 parts to look more closely, but looking through the plastic, the bolt looks just like a 7.62x39 bolt with an RPK/Yugo style trunion.
Assuming that's true, two conclusions can be drawn - you should have enough meat to accomodate the 8mm round if you convert, and OTOH a $100 Yugo kit could be employed without needing to retrofit a more expensive gun. Point being, that maybe a parts kit conversion would be better?
The same would be true for the ejector. You'd *probably* be OK using a default .308 ejector, but if not you could relocate the Saiga ejector back by grinding the front. You may consider even putting a weld bead on the back just to give it some more meat.
Gas port.
A bigger hole would mean more gas bleed, meaning more kick and a more energetic (read: violent) cycle. The higher-power round may need a smaller gas port to keep the action from cycling so harshly. I'd consider a recoil buffer as well.
8mm ammo is like any other full-power round. You have your ammo and then you have your HOT ammo. HOT ammo as in on the right side of the reloading charts. HOT ammo that is good for a thick machine gun or bolt-action weapon. I'm sure we probably have all read about old chambers failing due to crappy ammo of different calibers. I can think of threads I've read about 7.62x25, .308, .303, and 7.62x54R issues. I'd be real hesitant to shoot just any old ammo through it, since you could have some safety issues there. Reloads would give good control of course, but if you find a good ammo selection I'd buy a bunch and stick to it.
I could almost guarantee that all 8mm ammo is corrosive... dunno about that, but something to consider. A nice SS piston from hotbarrel would be a must-have part IMO.
US parts - the parts count is obviously an issue, and that would be easier with a parts kit conversion, since the Saiga would need a piston (1), FCG (2,3,4), pistol grip (5), and then the 6th part from wherever - muzzle brake? US buttstock? Floorplate?
Other than those issues, I'm at a loss as to what else I would consider for the conversion. Could it be done? Sure - if not then the Yugo M76 would have never been built!
Gunco Member #10
The "original" Boltcutter Rivet Squeezers:
Project Pink - the Pink and Blue AK-74:


text:
Fairy Cool Parties
Suitable for both girls and boys aged between 4 – 13 years, Fairy Cool Parties offers a fully structured program guaranteed to not only get any party started, but bopping non-stop for the entire duration! Our disco set up involves a karaoke/PA system, microphones, disco lights and bubble machine. The fully co-ordinated program involves entertaining activities such as karaoke singing, crazy dance competitions, party games and of course teaching groovy dance moves to some well known classic songs!
Each party is tailored exactly to suit the age, gender and musical tastes of the children, we can even arrange a themed disco party in a fairy or princess style should you wish!
Click "Visit Website" for more information.
Contact: 0408 566 267
User reviewsAdd a Business Listing FREE
Error with review: comment contains words and/or code that are not allowed.
Thank you, your review has been posted.
Fairy BlossomBy kathy.riley.98 on 9/12/2013 7:10:16 PM
My daughter requested for her 4th birthday was a Fairy to come and visit her and her friends! I found Fairy Cool Parties online and it was amazing! All the kids at kinder today raved about what a great time they had at the party! You wont be disappointed, you can let Fairy blossom entertain the kids and you can relax and enjoy your child's party! I would highly recommend t (...) Read more
Stephanie's 5th birthdayBy Katie on 27/11/2013 4:12:55 PM
Choosing to celebrate my daughter's birthday with Fairy Cool Parties was an excellent decision. Renee was brilliantly entertaining as Princess Barbie. Even my son who is labelled autistic and finds it difficult to interact socially was comfortable and joined in seamlessly throughout. Renee provided a magical party atmosphere and we will be seeing her again due to popula (...) Read more
Darcy's 6th BirthdayBy bcdenver on 17/09/2013 11:03:37 PM
To celebrate my daughter Darcy's 6th Birthday party on the weekend we had a very special visit from Fairy Blossom (Renee). From the moment Fairy Blossom walked in all the children were captivated and she had them in the palm of her hand right til the very end. There was so much fun, laughter and excitement – it was a joy to witness. Fairy dust, magic, dancing, games and f (...) Read more
Isabelle's 4th Birthday PartyBy vicky.brohier on 12/02/2013 7:05:45 PM
Isabelle was very excited about her upcoming Tinkerbell Fairy birthday party, especially after receiving her very own letter from Tinkerbell a few days earlier. The Party was fantastic. Renee (Tinkerbell) kept the kids entertained from the moment she arrived, and some of the parents were even amazed with the fairy magic tricks. With face painting, dancing and games the kid (...) Read more
My daughters 5th birthdayBy dianne.carlile on 10/11/2012 10:30:12 AM
Thanks fairy cool parties. My daughter loved receiving your letter from Ariel just days before her party. Ariel held the children's attention right from the start. She was very professional and all the kids loved her. Two of the mums that were there are booking this company as they were also impressed. However the best review is from the kids, some of them have asked me we (...) Read more
Disco Fairy PartyBy phoebe.mcdonagh on 14/08/2012 8:38:39 PM
I wanted my daughter Frankie to have a big 5th birthday to remember. Frankie loves dancing and Renee and Maddy led an awesome energy packed disco party. Renees' enthusiasm continued with all the traditional dancing games, conga line, limbo, hockey pokey, chicken dance and it was so nice to see the children dancing and even some adults joining in as well. We all had a brill (...) Read more
Isabella's 5th Birthday PartyBy Stacey on 15/05/2012 12:12:03 PM
What a great day! Renee from Fairy Cool Parties kept all 14 children entertained from the minute she arrived until the minute she left! I had told her that my daughter was going with a Tinkerbell theme and she even came dressed as Tinkerbell, which absolutely thrilled my daughter and her guests! From the fairy magic to the singing/dancing/games to the face painting - ev (...) Read more


text:
Discussion in 'BIKE TALK' started by Ape Stanger, Apr 2, 2012.
Looking for ideas for a rat rod bike trailer so I can take my toddler out for rides.
Just speaking from my experience, I have a kid trailer, it's heavy, doesn't fit well on sidewalks and puts kids out in traffic. I guess it pulls just fine, but let me offer you an alternative.
My friend found me one of these Tag Along bikes that attaches to the seat post of the towing bike, the kind that has a crank and handlebars so that the child can pedal. Anyway, I see them regularly for around $30-$50, I got mine for $5. I removed the chain and crank and installed my daughter's stem mounted child seat to the seat post. She LOVES it, and it pulls easier than the trailer, keeps her right in line with me, I can go up and down curbs easier, it's lighter than the trailer, and I just think it's safer. I have swapped out the seat post that the seat is mounted on with a 1 1/8" adjustable stem so that my daughter can have a handlebar to hold onto. Before we take it on vacation this summer I will give it the normal rat treatment, red rim, flat black, hopefully I can find a 20" whitewall, and I will attach a bike flag mast with my old pirate flag attached.
That is an AWESOME idea! As far as that goes, you don't even have to remove the crank and chain for an easy swap when they get older. Thank you for the idea! I have been trying to find one of those for my 6 year old, but people around here are crazy with prices, I could hook up a car seat to it and take BOTH of them!! I love this web page!
I decided to go ahead and remove the crank because that gives the bike more ground clearance and when you take it over curbs and roots and stuff it would drag. It also cuts down on weight (a crank and chain don't seem like much, till they're gone). I also plan to squeeze the dropouts in and put a front wheel on it. I never planned to use this as a "pedaler" anyway since the popular consensus on these is that the kid isn't ever going to pedal anyway, they just ride, so you might as well make it a little easier for you by putting the thing on a diet. Anyway, any child large enough to pedal one of these is big enough to be riding on their own, and if you are just using this because your kid needs a break from riding on a long trip, then they still don't need a crank, just pegs will do. haha
Keep your eyes open for the cheap ones, but I'll tell you what's worked for me in the past, put up a wanted ad on Craigslist, people have these things sitting in their garages and forget about them. Check thrift stores.
Thanks yoothgeye, that's a great idea.
Could you post a pic of this setup?^^^
Still needs paint and accessories. You can see the mount on the front where the handlebar was originally. There is now enough room on the front for pannier bags or baskets.
This is a variation of what I was thinking of for the Build-Off! Only think "recovery"!
As you can see, the tag-a-long is a looptail... how cool is that? I really want a 20" disc for the wheel, I might just make one.
Notice the tube under the BB, that was made to protect the chainring over bumps and curbs, I will be cutting that off.
Dude that is a genius idea,!!!! 8)
YG, Instead of discs, look for 16" hubcaps. I am pretty sure these and the 20" bike wheels are close to the same diameter. Old Lincoln caps would look cool!cools
I could see finding newer 16" hubcaps, but most older ones would be 15"
In the late 40's-early 50's there were SOME 16" wheels, granted not many, but there were some. also, check aftermarket for some Moon-style lakes covers. I KNOW they come in 16".
I just think they would dish out too much from the rim to the axle to fit in between the dropouts, especially once I go to a front wheel.
That is awesome, I have a son on the way and this will be a great way to get him ridding with the family.
Glad this has given some people some ideas, I just think this is a safer way than the trailer, you can get this out of harm's way alot quicker than a wide trailer. Is anything 100% safe, no.
The seat on mine is a Bobike mini child seat, it is made to mount to your stem and my daughter LOVED this design better than my other kids ever did the seat that is behind the parent. WIth the "back seat" the view never changed and if you've ridden with one of those seats, the weight behind you felt funny when riding. The reason I moved her onto the tag-a-long is because though she still fits the seat just fine, she is bigger now and her helmet hits your chest when you slightly lean forward. She is in the back now, but far enough back that she has a great view.
I sold my Bell "cocoon" rear seat for $10, but wish I'd kept it now for this trailer. Those have more head support and since little kids tend to fall asleep on bike rides that seat would keep her head from flopping around as much.
Maybe I should make a way to recline the seat...
I've seen something like this...but for a dog, but maybe help with some ideas?
^ Now that's cool. I want one.
It's not a trailer, but this was far too cool not to include ...
http://s818.photobucket.com/albums/zz10 ... lilrod.mp4
Separate names with a comma.


text:
NFLX: HBO Example Suggests Diminishing Returns for Streaming, Says Bernstein
As I mentioned this morning, Bernstein Research's Carlos Kirjner cut his rating on shares of Netflix (NFLX) to Underperform from Market Perform, while actually raising his price target to $180 from $125, writing in a somewhat longish (33 pages) note that the stock is pricing in unrealistic assumptions for how many subscribers the company can snap up in the U.S. for its streaming video operations.
Kirjner thinks his estimates for Netflix are "quite optimistic," as he sees the company capturing 43 million subscribers by 2020, up from 27.9 million in 2020.
Kirjner thinks the Street is modeling 50 million subscribers, but that doesn't seem likely, he writes, if the total addressable market will be perhaps 65 million in the U.S. by that time:
We believe that for the next several years the total number of US households with streaming-capable broadband connections will grow to around 90 million, of which about 65 million, or about 70%, will have Internet connected TV sets and be truly addressable by Netflix […] One common bullish case for Netflix expects 50 million domestic streaming subscribers in steady state, which would either require Netflix to serve about 90% of the addressable market in any given year (including the 50 million subs and the gross ads required to offset churn), or operate with monthly churn of less than 1.5% a month. We are not aware of any at scale subscription service without contracts or material customer investment in set-up and installation with such low churn and hence find the 50 million subscriber scenario highly unlikely.
To support the argument that 50 million subscribers is unrealistic, Kirjner relies on academic work by Crawford and Yurukoglu that shows the incremental value of TV channels is not very high, leading to diminishing returns from investment:
We note that the mean WTP [willingness to pay] for any individual channels is much lower than the headline or effective retail price for HBO or Starz (or Netflix), even lower if we were to extend the mean to include all potential subscribers (not just those who value a given channel positively), and none of the channels is valued positively by more than 72% of consumers, with the vast majority of channels valued positively by less than 60% of consumers. To us, these data provide support to two important assumptions. First, we believe that as Netflix's penetration of its addressable market grows, it will face an increasingly fragmented pool on non- subscribers, making it harder-and-harder to invest in additional content that attracts enough incremental subscribers to justify incremental costs. Second, that the incremental value it will be able to capture as it builds its content library to serve different niches declines rapidly with scale.
From which Kirjner concludes:
We find it hard to believe Netflix's subscriber base will be larger than 2/3rds, or 66% of future addressable market of 65 million households, or about 43 million homes. This 66% penetration estimate is more than twice HBO's penetration of its addressable market (which is less than 30%), and slightly higher than the portion of consumers that attribute (any!) positive value to most existing pay-TV channels.
Netflix has the added challenge of Amazon.com's (AMZN) "Prime" video service, in addition to other competitors:
Indeed, we believe, based on our proprietary data, that there are roughly 18 million Prime households in the US and about 17% of them (or 3 million homes) use Amazon Prime Video as their primary video streaming service. This is nearly 5% of Netflix's addressable market. Hence, the competitive threat to Netflix of an improved Amazon Prime video library is non-trivial.
Kirjner adds returns in Europe and Latin America will be even less rich for the company, with little broadband penetration in the former, and a highly fragmented market for video in the latter, and so he doesn't see the international streaming business changing things. He concludes with a sum-of-the-parts valuation:
Some investors use multiples of media companies such as Disney (DIS), Discovery (DISCA), and AMC (AMCX) to value Netflix. We find these to be inadequate comps to Netflix's domestic streaming business as their underlying drivers of revenue and EPS growth are very different. For example, affiliate fees and advertising are important (and in some cases crucial) drivers of EPS growth for all these three commonly used comps, but irrelevant for Netflix, which is in the business of aggregating and delivering content, but has in fact a fundamentally different business model dependent on subscriber growth. Therefore, we choose to value Netflix on a DCF basis. We value the domestic streaming business at $83/share, the DVD business at $18/share, Latin America at $17/share, Canada at $10/share and Western Europe, where we assume that Netflix will have offers in every major country over the next several years, at $48/share.


text:
Never argue with an idiot. They will only bring you down to their level and beat you with experience. MB Rule # 1
Wilson will develop and be a feature back at some point. He hasn't gotten enough opportunities to thoroughly judge him at RB in my opinion. He's been solid on kick returns.
Fans didn't appreciate Tiki's skills and management even drafted his replacement (Ron Dayne drafted at #11 which most people were very high on at first) , look at how that turned out.
Im surprised no one has talked about Torrain. Im excited to see this guy play. I think he will bring it against the saints (Hopefully he plays) I saw him when he was with washington, hes exactly what we need to replace brown. Lumpkin guy looked clueless though, maybe he didnt know the plays who knows.


text:
Malia Everette Thanks Global Exchange for 15 years of Vocation & Says Aloha to Reality Tours
Posted by Malia Everette in Featured, Partner and Trip Leader Stories, Trip Participant Stories on 26th November, 2012 | 4 Comments
Since 1997, Malia Everette has directed the Reality Tours program and helped diversify and expand the breadth of socially responsible travel. Today she shares her gratitude for her years here, and announces her upcoming professional transition.
Read More...


text: Post pregnancy massage as the name clearly suggests is the massage given to women after their delivery. To take full precautions and prevent any problems, the massager should be experienced enough to do proper massage. The new mothers are given a body massage in order to help her recover from bodily weakness and fortify her body. One might think that whether a post pregnancy massage is similar to or different from other normal body massage.


text:
Jefferson Bus Lines connects the UMD community and Duluth area residents, to the Twin Cities and points beyond. The Jefferson Line pick up is on the UMD campus at Kirby Circle (formerly the DTA bus stop), on Kirby Drive. The express service is offered seven days a week. Blast off today on the new Jefferson Rocket Rider... offering free Wi-Fi, satellite radio, movies, luxury seating and extra legroom. There are departures of the Rocket Rider each day from UMD.
The Daily Departure bus leaves UMD each morning at 6:40am, and stops at multiple locations along Interstate 35, including Hinckley, Forest Lake, St. Paul Depot, Minneapolis Depot, the Amtrak Station, and the University of Minnesota Coffman Memorial Union. The bus leaves the Twin Cities for Duluth each morning and afternoon. Regular price tickets to the Twin Cities are $29 one-way or $56 round trip. Riders with a U Card or student ID will receive a 15% discount on regular priced daily service. Specially priced 7 and 14-day advance fares are also available (no additional discounts apply). Tickets can be purchased on the UMD campus at the UMD Stores, Street Level at 1120 Kirby Drive. As of February 9, 2009, there is a $15 charge to reissue an unused ticket.
Note: The schedule is subject to change. Current schedules and fare info can be found on the UMD Stores website, at http://umdstores.com/SiteText.aspx?id=9746
For more information, please see the Jefferson Bus lines website: http://www.jeffersonlines.com/ or call 800-451-5333.
Did you find what you were looking for? YES NO
Choose appearance:
[ Desktop | Mobile friendly ]


text:
Explοitation of solar thermal energy for heating and cooling in commercial settings is limіted by a shortage оf high-temperature storage materials and processes. To dеνelοp renewable power sources to fulfill growing energy demands while minіmising depеndence on fοssil fuels that are connеcted with υndеѕirable emisѕionѕ new heating and air conditioning systems are neccеssary. The food and beverage sector, dominated by ѕmаll- аnd medіum-sizеd entеrprіses, use a signіfіcant amοunt οf рower for cooking, sterilisation, drying and room heating. Until nοw, exploiting solar thermal energy fοr commercial heating and cooling has been limіted by the high temperatures (100–200 dеgrees Celѕіυs) nеeded for commercial proсеsѕеs. Novеl materialѕ for the reactоr and a unique reversible thermochemical process for heat storage together are in a position to overcome this. Τhe procesѕ exploits responѕe paіrs that absοrb hеаt when diνided and releasе it when consolidаted. Тhe ѕystem wіll bе υsed tо keep sοlar heat аѕ well аs rеcoνer heat from commеrcial prоcesses for lаter on υse. Pоsѕible cliеnts and cоmmerсial ѕpeсialists hаve actually currentlу еxpresѕed іnterest іn thе technolоgy for high-temperаture thermochemical temperаtυrе storage οf solаr tempеrature аnd industriаl waste heаt. Cоmmercialiѕation wіll haνе major іmpact оn thе power effiсiencу of many commercial proсеdures.
Diese E-Mail-Adresse ist vor Spambots geschützt! Zur Anzeige muss JavaScript eingeschaltet sein!


text:
If you have quibbles or major beefs about how The Hobbit was adapted for Peter Jackson's movie trilogy, Philippa Boyens has answers.
The production has been surrounded in controversy, ever since it was announced that the 300-odd page novel by J.R.R. Tolkien would become not one film, but two. Then, in July, Jackson, Warner Brothers Pictures and MGM dropped the bomb that the adaptation would encompass three films. Many cried foul. Other cried greed. Continue Reading "Hobbit Week: A Conversation with Hobbit Screenwriter Philippa Boyens" »


text:
Every once and a while a law is passed that really gives you pause for thought. One such example is an inexplicable piece of legislation about to come into force in the US that will see smartphone users unlocking their phones with the permission of their mobile service provider running afoul of the law.
This bizarre situation came about because the US government applied the same sort of loopy wisdom that you'd associate with walkshorts, cardigans and the public sector.
In a nutshell they worked out that smartphones could contravene the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Bizarrely this then resulted in laws being drafted so that while it is legal to jailbreak smartphones, it will become illegal to jailbreak tablets and even more annoyingly, illegal to unlock phones without permission from the telco you bought your phone from.
A 3-month hiatus was put in place before the new laws came into play and this expired on the 26th of January.
Whilst most telcos would argue that there is a solid commercial reason for this legislation, in that they're wanting to ensure that the cost of a subsidised and heavily discounted handset is recovered from the duration of the customers mobile contract and don't want the customer exiting their plan prematurely.
If the motivations for telcos wanting to lock handsets are understandable, (and let's face it, they're here to make a buck after all), there are many reasons why passing laws to enforce this is potentially a brain dead move:
#1 Its bad for competition: Most telcos if asked by a customer "can please I unlock my cellphone and replace your SIM with one from [insert competitor name here]" are going to give a pretty short and emphatic "no" as an answer - after all wouldn't you say no if you were a telco? Over the short term this is a pretty reasonable response purely for commercial reasons, but longer term, I wonder just how much competition will ultimately be snuffed out?
#2 That needs to be a law??: Even though the commercial underpinnings of locking a handset are arguably valid, what business does a government have legislating something that is clearly a commercial rather than legal issue?
#3 It won't stop anything: Making it illegal to unlock a phone without a telcos permission will simply drive phone unlocking underground, or even create a black market in unlocked phones. Remember how the prohibition failed to stop boozing and created bootlegger gangsters? History could be set to repeat with phones instead of liquor.
#4 Do we really need to criminalise phone owners??: Most worrying of all, this law creates yet another thing for already overburdened US police to throw limited resources at as they investigate and arrest people for unlocking phones. Do we really need to make kids trying save a few bucks into criminals? Shouldn't already scarce police resources be focused on real crime such as arresting rapists and murderers?
#5 Technology renders this law obsolete: Dual SIM phones are already easily obtainable from parallel importers and/or online stores. There's little to nothing stopping people from using these with a SIMs from competing telcos in order to get a better deal. Funnily enough doing this pretty much invalidates the rationale behind locking phones in the first place.
So there you have it. it'd be fair to argue that there is a high probability this law is going to be unenforceable. The likelihood is high that it'll also be flouted by a growing number of people in the US, so why legislate it?
Thankfully sanity has thus far prevailed in New Zealand. Even though Telecom, Vodafone and 2degrees don't lock handsets (only Skinny choose to lock their phones and you can pay for an unlock code after 9 months), there is no law (yet) making it potentially illegal to unlock or jailbreak ones phone in New Zilland.
Thank goodness for that!


text:
Leeds School of Business student Zhenghua Yang and a team of programmers, artists and game designers melded their passion for video games into Serenity Forge, an independent video game developing company.
Surprisingly, the Boulder based company was created in 2008 while the founders were still in high school, said Yang. Now, team members work remotely, reporting to Yang, who is the head programmer, from establishments around the country such as Stanford University and St. Olaf College.
Yang explained the company's philosophy is about making video games with complexity. "There's more to it than just mindless playing," said Yang. "There is an art to it."
But Serenity Forge isn't Yang's first go at technology based activities. "I built my first computer at 6 and I built my first game at 10," said Yang. With two electrical engineers as parents, you might say it runs in the family, he added jokingly.
Despite Yang's obvious knack for video game development, it isn't the only activity he is interested in. "This is a hobby, I'm a finance major and a math guy as well," he said.
Currently in his junior year in the Leeds School, Yang also is involved in CoLab—a freshman orientation for the business school—and holds a position as the Vice President of Finance on the Leeds Council where he works with deans to budget student funds. He also moonlights as the business school's Excel specialist.
Of his plans for after school, Yang asserted that he will continue to work with gamers as a hobby and that he would love to start a fund for independent gamers who want to pursue a career in video game development.
For students who are interested in starting a company like Serenity Forge or who are interested in the video game developing industry, Yang offered some advice.
"It's not impossible," he said. "For people our age, there's no such thing as too much risk. Sit down and think about what you want and how you're going to do it."
Keep an eye out for more from Serenity Forge in the coming months, as the team finishes up projects including an app for the iPhone and a new "virtual reality experience" that works with new headset technology that employs gyroscope—the device that registers movement in the Nintendo Wii game controllers.
To learn more about the company, visit http://www.serenityforge.com/games/.


text:
- Horoscopes
- Dear Abby
- Games & Puzzles
- Lifestyle
- Events & Exhibits
- Food & Drink
- Arts & Music
- Movies & TV
Tuesday 11:00 am to
Celebrate with us! Our 10th Anniversary Exhibition features the Odyssey Painters. Sharing an interest in painting outdoors, this group of plein air painters gathers throughout the changing seasons. From the rolling Lyme hillsides to the Connecticut shoreline, we have put together a collection of fine art for your viewing pleasure.
Art Gallery at the Mill House
5 Main Street
Chester, CT 06412
860 322 4566
Enter search term:
Choose a date:
Select a town:
Select a category:


text:
A different way of saying/writing the word bitch, it's just spelled as if it were being sounded out. It's also a quote used the odd time in South Park. Ex: kyle's mom.
"She is a bitch on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday, but to be different, on Sunday, she's a super king kamaya maya beeeyotch." - kyle's mom
by Anonymous March 20, 2005
by Leif April 04, 2005


text:
Okay, so this might not be news to some of you (Canadians especially) but I *just* found out that Third Watch/Ugly Betty hottie Eddie Cibrian (who is rumored to have had an illicit affair with Country music singer LeeAnn Rimes) and Young and the Restless star Joshua Morrow were members of a CHEESEY post-Backstreet Boys/'NSync boy band back in the late 90's. The group, which also featured a guy named CJ Huyer, was called 3Deep and this is what they looked like:
LOLOLOLOL! Now, I know that we all have skeletons we wish would stay in the closet but this one is too good to keep hidden away. According to the Wikipedia page about them, the group was fairly successful in Canada and enjoyed "a sizeable and young female fan base". High points of the group's career include, performing "at events such as Ottawa's Winterlude and appeared at the Juno Awards and at the MuchMusic studios". Oh, the 90's … wasn't that just a horrid time for music? After the jump, check out the music video of 3Deep's biggest hit Into You from their debut album Yes Yes Yes … No No No …
LMAO! This is so bad! I cannot believe I never heard of 3Deep before now. Something of this cheesy magnitude can't stay hidden for long. I'm dying! Are any of y'all familiar with this group? If so, do tell … I'm dying to hear more about this delicious cheese.
[Photo credit: Splash News; Source] 0