text:
Opinion Sharing Meeting on Role of Community Radio in implementing Right To Information in Bangladesh
Opinion Sharing Meeting on
Role of Community Radio in implementing
Right To Information in Bangladesh
An opinion sharing meeting on "the role of Community Radio in implementing Right to Information" was held on 28th February, 2011, at 11 a.m. in Information Commission Bangladesh Office at Sher-e-Bangla-Nagar, Agargaon, Dhaka. The meeting was organized by Information Commission.
Ambassador (RTD) Mohammad Zamir of Chief Information Commissioner attended as the chief guest of the program. Information Commissioners –Mr.MA Taher and Dr.Sadeka Halim along with 14 licensed Community Radio Initiators from different parts of the country joined the meeting.
Professor Dr.Sadeka Halim, Commissioner of Information Commission welcomed the participants. Mr.AHM Bazlur Rahman, Chief Executive Officer of Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC)described the background and presented the latest progress situation of the Community Radio installation.
Chief Information Commissioner told in his speech that Community Radio could be an effective media for the rural people. So, it should get country-wide coverage .Community Radio contents should reflect the common aspects keeping the area-wise diversity as well .He told that this will also open up sectors of cooperation within the CR Initiators.
Professor Dr.Sadeka Halim, Information Commissioner told that community radio can be one of the best media in implementing the vision of "Digital Bangladesh". Community Radio has got immense potential in this respect. We have been informed that BNNRC has drafted a "CR Code of Conduct" on Community Radio Operation this Code of Conduct should be finalized in compliance with CR Policy of the govt in line with Right To Information Law. Information Commission may provide all kinds of supports in this respect.
Mr.MA Taher, Information Commissioner told in his speech that community radio will amplify the voices of the rural people .Community Radio may play effective role in ensuring Right to Information. Information Commission and CR Initiators will work closely for achieving this objective.
Among others –Ashik Ahmed from Proyash Manobik Unnayan Sangstha, Dr.Jahangir Alam, Agriculture Information Service (AIS), Kamrul Hasan Manju, Executive Director, MMC, Sabrina Sharmin of RDRS, Representative of Bangladesh Radio, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), Different Daylilies, TV and Radio delivered their speech and reiterated their commitment for effective role of community Radio in implementing Right to Information of Bangladesh.
A total of 46 participants participated in the meeting.
AHM. Bazlur Rahman-S21BR
Chief Executive Officer
Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC)
[NGO in Special Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council]
Head, Community Radio Academy
House: 13/1, Road: 2, Shaymoli, Dhaka-1207
Post Box: 5095, Dhaka 1205 Bangladesh
Phone: 88-02-9130750, 88-02-9138501
Cell: 01711881647 Fax: 88-02-9138501-105
E-mail: email@example.com www.bnnrc.net


text:
A Letter to Minecraft
Posted on 28th Nov 2010 at 09:59 by Paul Goodhead with 103 comments
Dear JoeThanks for your kind letter the other month, it was very nice of you to think of me and Harry while away on your Minecraft excursion. Unfortunately, I'm going to have to turn down your offer to join you however.
I don't mean to appear rude by turning down your offer, but believe me when I say I'd rather stab rusty forks into my own eyeballs than toil away away in an imaginary world, building nothing of any value, consequence or benefit.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Town Square
John Lane, what are you?
Original post made by Rick Pshaw, Danville, on Sep 19, 2010
These titles sound suspiciously contrived. And why do I say that? Because the CSU East Bay website gives his title as "Management Intern."
Is this a case of title exaggeration? Here's the CSU website:
Web Link
John Lane is the person who is costing the SRV School District $50,000. If he weren't running the district wouldn't have to spend that money to pay for its share of the election.
Comments (26)
a resident of another community
on Sep 19, 2010 at 8:16 am
Dear Dolores,
In our professional careers we use terms to describe our work. You are a journalist and your job title is Managing Editor. John Lane has similar titles at California State University East Bay for his work in project management.
If readers wish to research John, Rachel and others for their occupation and title as part of qualifications for Trustee of SRVUSD, then the focus should be on the specifics of the activities that relate to SRVUSD Board operations and decisions. John has a professional management education with current experience in operations, projects and budgets for a major educational institution.
Let's ask readers for what qualifications they want in trustees and have the candidates address those qualifications in their background.
a resident of Danville
on Sep 19, 2010 at 8:38 am
Rick: Thank you for providing this information on candidate John Lane. If we can not trust a candidate to at least be honest with his job title and experience, than we certainly can not trust them to run our school board. He also seems much too young to be in this important position. Hopefully with time and experience, he will learn the importance of honesty if he desires a position of public trust. I will not vote for him.
a resident of another community
on Sep 19, 2010 at 10:15 am
Dear Dolores,
Let me provide advisory to Gina and sponsored Forum pseudonyms. According to SRVUSD neighborhoods e-exchanges, any complaint about the cost of the election is seen as anti-voter. Today's articles on multi-million dollar legal settlements authorized by the current SRVUSD board makes the $50,000 cost of an election critical to district voters that wish to express their objection to such legal confrontations.
Where slates of candidates worked for Joan Buchanan and other highly respected trustees, the current slate is seen as a politically-back effort sponsored by special political interests in our corridor. The more John Lane is attacked, the more it appears as political "swift boating" authored by SRVUSD incumbents, political special interests and SRVUSD's new senior administrators.
Voters are clearly remembering EMCEB's role in the Swift Boating of Guy Houston in May/June 2008 that led to the re-election of a very unpopular supervisor.
Gina might wish to rethink the purpose of this exchange.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 19, 2010 at 1:22 pm
I am a Special Projects Manager at CSU East Bay and have been for the past 3 years. I have been involved in a number of projects ranging from:
• Creating a more efficient identification process called the One Card System
• Working with trade unions, students and administrators in creating University Hill a renovation project that is becoming the new marquee of CSUEB
• Helping the University move to Division II athletics
I am very proud of my work and the institution I belong too…I am sorry if a publication misrepresented my title.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 19, 2010 at 1:58 pm
It is adminrable that John Lane clarified his employment credientials even though he could certainly stand and run on his own merits. In this day and age of instant information, there is no way any candidate (or anyone for that matter) can hide the truth. And one comments stated that he is "to young to be in this important p;osition"...what a naive and discriminatory comment. If we "always do what we always did..we'll always get what we always got". I welcome and encourage our younger generation (and I'm in the senior category) to get into politics, bring their inovations and ideas and help all of us improve our schools, community and country. I intend to support and vote for John Lane.
a resident of Alamo
on Sep 19, 2010 at 2:45 pm
Rick Pshaw - Good work finding the inconsistencies. And John Lane - thank you for setting the record straight. Rick - I just happened to read your comments on Denise Jennison as well and I agree -- I wasn't impressed that she would be doing anything for our town. I read up and am very pleased with John Lane and plan to vote for him. Among other things, I see him as the catalyst for new ideas to save money without sacrificing the quality of education in our schools. Don't you feel like his motivation is most sincere since he doesn't even have children in the system? I'm for John!
a resident of Vista Grande Elementary School
on Sep 19, 2010 at 3:39 pm
jrm is a registered user.
Rickshaw is interesting....that's all I can say....
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 19, 2010 at 4:35 pm
I've known John for all his life and I can assure you he's no liar. I'm proud to say he manages money well, graduating from college with no debt while working his way through shows his ability to delay gratification and he's gone on 4 mission trips, which I thinks shows his heart is in the right place. 25 sounds young, I agree, but his soul is much older.
It will be a miracle if John wins over 3 candidates pooling their efforts against him but he's got my vote not just because I'm his father but I know if he wins, the school district will be better for it.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 19, 2010 at 4:46 pm
It is interesting that at all levels of our political process there is not an emphasis on issues – important issues affecting our communities, our families, our children, and our future – but rather on personalities, innuendo, and assertions that are taken for fact whether there is any substance to the assertion or not.
First on a personal level – I have known John Lane for over 10 years and know him to be a man of integrity, honesty, focus, and faith. I have been consulted with publications in my professional life and have prepared and stated my opinion for the articles only to see my thoughts misrepresented. This is not uncommon. So to make such a sweeping accusation against a man without asking the question is a bit presumptuous and not useful criticism or analysis.
Two of the other three candidates I count as friends & colleagues and know them to be sincere and outspoken in their dedication and service to the community. The fourth candidate I have recently met and sense a similar desire to serve our community.
I support John Lane for the School Board not as a negative to the other candidates but in a positive manner. To paraphrase President (then Candidate) Reagan, do not let the issue of age enter into this election race. We should not neglect the other candidates because they are too old and cannot possibly understand (or remember) what the issues and needs of a 21st century student or school system are!
There are three seats available for the School Board. I believe John Lane will ably and admirably fulfill the duties & commission in one of them.
Now let's talk issues and solutions… we will all be better served in that manner.
Thank you
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 19, 2010 at 5:33 pm
I'm glad to know they're talking about you John. You're making quite an impression being only 25 years old. You've accomplished more in your years than some people have in their lifetime.
Education has always been a top priority with you and I think it's great that you want to give back to our community as a school board member. You know you've got my vote!
a resident of another community
on Sep 19, 2010 at 7:09 pm
Dear Dolores,
All candidates have responded with earnest respect for the voters and full disclosure to support voters' decisions. Simply, every voter in SRVUSD should know that the four candidates are working fully to inform every voter of their positions, commitments and capabilities.
I personally enjoyed the personal respect among candidates and their commitment to the voters.
May we have your readers ask their questions and seek their answers as a function of this exchange?
a resident of Danville
on Sep 19, 2010 at 7:40 pm
John Lane: You are 25 years old, you have no children in our district, and I assume you are also not a property tax payer at your young age. It is admirable that you want to help our school district. But at 25 years old, you clearly do not have the wisdom that comes with life experiences to serve on our school board. Why not volunteer as a big brother, tudor at needs children, or do something else that would help our district, rather than running for school board? In time, with life experiences, you may be a very good candidate for school board. But until you have children, until you start paying property taxes, and until you have life experiences, the school board is beyond your capabilities. Good luck in the future, but in good conscience I can not vote for someone lacking the required life experiences to serve on as important as a job as our school board.
a resident of Vista Grande Elementary School
on Sep 19, 2010 at 9:06 pm
jrm is a registered user.
John Lane....do not be dismayed by "American" and his like...there has been no public forums for us to get to know you so far but "American" and "Rickshaw" are already attacking you...to make the man called "American" feel better would you agree to never, ever allow a Commie like Angela Davis to be exposed to our intellectually vulnerable youth? We don't want another Athenian situation on our hands...those kids ran out of the assembly with a hammer and a sickle in their arms.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 19, 2010 at 10:58 pm
I have known John D.Lane for 15 years, his honesty and integrety in my opinion,is beyond reproach. I aman attorney and have practiced law in the Bay Area for almost 50 (since Jan 1961) years, I have always found that an intellectually honest person would check the authenticity of web postings when relying on them to assert that another person, has made a false or an inaccurate statement, particularly a candidate for public office. I'm sure that had adequate investigation been made the truth would have confirmed John Lane's statement relative to his work experience. As for candidate's age and "life experience", John has for several years been a mentor for undergraduate college students.That I know as a fact. John was a scholarship recipient from a private foundation of which I serve as one of the trustees. I have knowledge of his activities and academic accomplishments.
Since when have a few elitist members of the community had the audacity to criticize any citizen for being a candidate for any office. This is still the United States of America and in my opinion any citizen regardless of their age, that steps forward and is willing to take on the responsibity to run and hold public office should be applauded. It appears to me from the tenor of the few negative comments that a "backroom deal" has been made between the current members of the School Board and their personal selection of a candidate who they think should be on the Board and not who the voters would necessarily want to elect.
It is a specious arguement that one must be a property owner in order to be qualified as a member of a school board,or that you need to have children. If those are someones idea of qualifications for being a school board member, God help us and our schools. Oops, sorry I forgot, God isn't allowed in our schools either. Frankly, I believe that a candidates analytic ability, his experience in the academic and/or business community along with innovative and new approaches to our public education system are the criteria upon which to elect a member of the School Board in order keep our schools at the top in the coming years. In my opinion John D. Lane is the right person for the job.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 19, 2010 at 11:02 pm
Mr. Pshaw, can you please tell me what you do for a living to stand up here on this platform and attempt to throw this seemingly bright energtic and responsible young man under the bus? I welcome change from these young people.... Isn't that what the majority voted into the white house? Change? why shouldn't John D. Lane ( by the way, that's his name) recieve the same chance?
a resident of Danville
on Sep 20, 2010 at 7:04 am
I've known John Lane for a long time, and if there's one thing you cannot attack about him, it's his character. If we could focus on the issues facing the school district and which candidates' ideas and plans will best address those issues, we'd probably have a better school board.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 20, 2010 at 7:05 am
I welcome an opportunity to vote for John Lane. I have found, in personal conversations with the current board members, that they were merely rubber-stamping decisions made by the district administration. I intend to vote for John and Denise. I will not vote for Rachel Hurd for any public office.
a resident of Danville
on Sep 20, 2010 at 9:04 am
After reviewing all the comments on this blog, and sensing the passion many members of our community have for John Lane, perhaps I was unfair to judge him solely on his young age. I do think life experiences are very important, and I do think having children in our district, and being a property tax payer, are also important bench marks. However, I am open minded(stop laughing JRM), and will reconsider my prior opinions, if Mr. Lane can convince me that he is truly the right person for our school board.
To that end, I would like to know where Mr. Lane stands on the following issues:
(1) Do you support another parcel tax?
(2) Are you prepared to put the students in our district first, over the interest of the teachers union?
(3) There has been talk of a year round school year, which I oppose, and where do you stand on that issue?
(4) What is the main difference between you and the other candidates that makes you a better candidate for our school board?
(5) What is the greatest obstacle facing our school district?
(6) What is your plan to overcome the greatest obstacle facing our school district?
(7) I believe school sport programs are essential for the learning process, for school spirit, and for teaching life lessons of team work and commitment and responsibility. Are you prepared to stand up and fight any challenges to cut our school sport programs?
(8) Do you honestly believe you have had enough life experiences to be ready for this position?
Thanks, and I will keep an open mind, and see if you are truly ready now for this very important position.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 20, 2010 at 11:38 am
Age alone should not be a criterion to run for a political office. There are many citizens that hold an elected office or managerial position who are under the age of 25 and doing a great job around the United States.
Although I don't have a mortgage (or any debt) I have paid taxes since I was 16 and started my own company providing jobs for students in the San Ramon Valley. I may not pay property taxes but I do value those residents that do, whether they have children or not. We have a great school system and local government but both could be run more efficiently and in these difficult economic times I do not believe in raising taxes to fill budget shortfalls. We have taxed our citizens enough. While in office I will not vote to raise them any further.
I am a mentor and big brother of students in high school and college from California high to CSU East Bay and UC Berkeley. My goal within our district is to be a positive role model for our STUDENTS. If they stay focused and work hard they can accomplish everything they set their mind too as I have.
I am a proponent of Students First. I know from talking with many students that they are not included enough in conversations that affect their development. Believe it or not I know that they have great ideas that will help take our district to the next level. When I am elected I will ensure that students, teachers, parents, and administrators collaborate together on issues that affect curriculum in our district.
My skill set will allow me to serve our district well.
Thank you
a resident of Danville
on Sep 20, 2010 at 11:51 am
Mr.Lane: Thank you for your response. I like your opinions, which I think answered my questions #1, #2, and #8. However, you have not answered #3 thru #7. What are your thoughts on #3 thru #7?
Thank you.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 20, 2010 at 12:24 pm
Thank you "American resident of Danville" for posting the questions on the issues. I will submit the rest of my answers shortly (after work)...
I encourage all residents in the area to find me on Facebook under "John D. Lane 4 School Board." I have created a few discussion topics that will address many questions and also start in creating the dialogue that I am talking about between students, parents, teachers, administrators and the tax payer. Please feel free to post your comments/questions there as well!
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 20, 2010 at 2:28 pm
American,a resident of the Danville neighborhood...what great questions to ask of John. And to John...Great answers and the open willingness to address these issue in such a timely manner. I wonder if "American" would care to pose these same questions to the other candidates? Perhaps,"American should get more involved in this election and organize a "Public Forum" to put all the candidates before the voters so that we can have a real discussion rather that petty snipes at a young man who "will" make a difference.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 21, 2010 at 10:55 am
Thank you "American resident of Danville" for posting your questions regarding the issues. Here are the rest of my answers.
(3)In order to stay competitive in the future both domestically and internationally we will have to consider switching to a year round system or a longer school year because this will allow the students to remain focused throughout the year and progress rapidly through expanded curriculum without having to be re-taught information from the previous year. When compared to other high performing nations we rank near the bottom in many categories including math and science. This is unacceptable for a nation that spends so much per student.
Web Link
(4) Times are changing and the board should reflect the future of education. I am not a parent, teacher, nor between the age of 35 to 55 and have yet to join the PTA. But, I did attend K-12 here in the San Ramon Valley graduating from California High School in 2003. I graduated debt-free from Cal State East Bay with a B.S. in Business Economics in 2007 and an MBA in 2010. I am a product of public education. It is important for young professionals to be represented in local politics. I have fresh ideas to inject into our school district to make it better than it already is.
(5) As a school board member maintaining solvency is my primary concern.
(6) Education will follow the trends of business. We need to prepare our students to interact with each other and the teachers in ways that will enhance their development in the new era of technology. It will be reasonable in the near future for students to have kindles or iPads instead of textbooks, communicate via web conferencing on school projects, or have the opportunity to interact with pen pals via the web (Skype) for foreign language lessons.
As a leading school district in the area we can leverage some of these fresh ideas to many of the strong Silicon Valley companies along with some of the large corporations we have in our own backyard.
Creating partnerships with these companies will also open doors for our students to secure internships in high school and possible very good careers after college as well.
(7) I was an athlete and understand the benefits of being on a team and learning how to work together in order to win as well as the friendships that are developed on and off the field as a result. I also have a healthy respect for the since of competition and the experiences gained from losing and then adjusting problems in order to win. But, my first priority is making sure our students are exceeding the standard in Math, Science, English and Writing. If we don't have the right programs or teachers that are qualified for these subjects than the success of our district will be in jeopardy.
a resident of San Ramon
on Sep 22, 2010 at 10:57 pm
Just want to clarify the issue that if John Lane would not have decided to run for one of the seats of the school board the district would have saved $50000, this is not true since the 3 incumbent had registered before John Lane did, thus the Registrar had to have them on the ballot and the school had to pay the share of $.
The second comment is direct to being young and not having experience. Just we need to remember that once we did not have experience but we acquired that through the other people who believed in us (first employer and those who came after that).
I have not read, as of today September 22 , where the other 3 candidates stand on the questions that American posted in here. I would like to read them and see where they stand on the issues.
to Mr. John Lane I applaude you to have the courage to run and keep your head high and I hope you succed in this.
a resident of San Ramon
on Oct 3, 2010 at 3:10 pm
This young man knocked on my door today and introduced himself as a candidate for the San Ramon Valley School Board. We're new to the area but he really seemed to have a passion for maintaining the spirit of competitive education in the valley. He's probably going to get both my husbands and my vote. Why is it I see signs with three names on it for the three positions available? Is there some "all for one, one for all" thing I'm missing out on? I've met John Lane for just a few minutes and I can tell he'd be a good director... young and virtuous. Who are the three musketeers or are they the three stooges and do we have to vote for all three if it turns out we only like one?
a resident of San Ramon
on Oct 6, 2010 at 11:51 am
We(our entire country) have gotten into this economic mess because we elected individuals (from bottom to top) who had all these grand and glorious visions and plans to change our Federal, State and Local governmental systems without regard to cost or who would pay for it.Those of us that were around and had children in school 40-50 years ago recall that every time our politicians needed money for one of their "visions" they hit the home owner by increasing either the tax rate or the assessed valuation.Ergo we voted for Prop 13 that slowed that process.
We need fiscally responsible citizens to run for public office Partisan and non partisan. Being a visionary requires the intellectual capacity to operate within a budget and get the most for the taxpayers money. John D. Lane IV is young and has the ability as well as the intellectual and moral capacity to work within a budget and to focus on our countries most important asset--Our Children and Their Education. "Go John Go". Julius Kahn III, Esq.
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MDays Showcases DMG Mori Seiki's Davis Campus
DMG Mori Seiki's Manufacturing Days 2013 event in Davis, California, gave customers, press and other guests a close look at the company's Digital Technology Laboratory and Manufacturing Factory, plus presentations on many facets of today's advanced manufacturing.
The machine tool factory in Davis produces NHX series machines as well as the DuraVertical 5100. This is a view of the machine assembly line.
DMG Mori Seiki's Manufacturing Days 2013 (November 12-15) gave customers, press and other guests a close look at the company's Digital Technology Laboratory (DTL) and Manufacturing Factory, plus presentations on many facets of today's advanced manufacturing. These two facilities make up the company's Davis, California, campus. Both buildings are quite different, but equally remarkable. They were open for tours throughout the event.
DTL provides much of the company's engineering analysis capability and R&D to support machine tool design and manufacturing operations around the world. The building also houses a sizable showroom of machine tools and related products. At MDays, one of the highlights in this area was an interactive exhibit of CELOS, DMG Mori Seiki's "app system" that integrates the machining process from original part idea to CNC programming to finished machining in a fully digitized, paperless flow that connects the shop floor with higher level business activities. Aerospace machines and high-performance, entry level machines were demoed here. Opened in 2009, DTL is a model of green, employee-friendly architecture and workspace.
The newer Manufacturing Factory, opened in July, 2012, covers 200,000 square feet of manufacturing space and an expansive showroom. The manufacturing space is about equally divided into production and assembly areas. The production area features three main automated machining cells. The assembly area enables HMCs and VMCs to be assembled, tested and prepared for shipment to customers in North America. In addition to machine building, the two areas provide an opportunity for the company to study and validate production concepts, often in collaboration with the R&D activities of DTL. For MDays, the factory showroom focused on machining solutions for automotive and contract machining. More than 40 technology partners, such as cutting tool suppliers, software developers, providers of workholding and other accessories added to the displays and demos there.
Three and a half days of technical presentations from a variety of manufacturing experts were offered to attendees. Particularly well received on the first day was Dr. Greg Hyatt's review of the company's recently announced concept for combining additive manufacturing and milling capability on one machine platform. This development underscores the strong complementary nature of additive processes and traditional machine, Dr. Hyatt said.
A personal high point for me was moderating a session about MTConnect on the second morning. The panel consisted of David Edstrom, president of the MTConnect Institute, and two representatives from shops that are prominent users of this communication protocol. Joel Neidig from ITAMCO showed a video of MTConnect-enabled applications for Google Glass, which wowed the audience. Then Shannon Sweatman from Southern Manufacturing Technologies brought things down to earth with an impressive glimpse of how MTConnect machine monitoring with DMG Mori Messenger provided vital and timely insights into shop floor effectiveness.
In DTL's showroom, a large exhibit of the CELOS app-based software system epitomized DMG Mori Seiki's theme of advanced, integrated manufacturing, which was the central focus of the Manufacturing Days event.
Greg Hyatt's lecture about "a hybrid machine which adds or removes metal with equal finesse" was one of the most talked-about technical presentations at MDays.


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A gambler bets half the money in his pocket on the toss of a coin,
winning an equal amount for a head and losing his money if the
result is a tail. After 2n plays he has won exactly n times. Has he
more money than he started with?
You have two bags, four red balls and four white balls. You must
put all the balls in the bags although you are allowed to have one
bag empty. How should you distribute the balls between the two bags
so as to make the probability of choosing a red ball as small as
possible and what will the probability be in that case?
To win on a scratch card you have to uncover three numbers that add
up to more than fifteen. What is the probability of winning a
We have two spinners, each numbered 1 to 4.
We're going to spin them both and add the numbers.
What possible totals might you get?
What is the least likely/most likely total to occur?
Use the interactivity below to test your hypotheses.
Full Screen Version (click 'back' on your internet browser to exit full screen mode)
Now make a new set of spinners.
The interactivity can record either the sum of, or the difference between, the numbers on the spinners, and you can see the results displayed on the relative frequency bar chart.
You can choose to run the interactivity lots of times so that the bar chart "settles down".
Experiment with different pairs of spinners.
What features do you notice on the bar charts that you produce?
Can you come up with ways of predicting what a chart will look like before you produce it?
The challenge
The bar charts below were generated on the interactivity using different combinations of spinners. (You can download a pdf with all eight bar charts here.)
Can you deduce which spinners were used to create each bar chart?
Can you explain how you used the information provided by the bar charts to work it out?
Final challenge
Imagine you had 1-20 and 1-30 spinners. Describe in as much detail as you can what the relative frequency bar charts would look like for:
Try to provide a good explanation to convince us that your descriptions of the bar charts are correct.


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SO it was Honeymooners versus family ties, Ed Norton versus Alex Keating. What we saw Thursday night in the vice-presidential debate wasn't only an argument about policy, it was a look at two different eras in American family life.
Biden of course could stand on Neptune and distract attention away from the sun. He entered the Senate in 1973, back when the old Democratic giants from the New Deal era still roamed the earth. Every sentimental tone of voice, every ebullient and condescending grin brought you back to the old kitchen tables in working class Catholic neighborhoods of places like Scranton, Chicago, San Francisco, Providence and Philadelphia.
That was a time, much more so than now, when there were still regional manners, regional accents and greater distance from the homogenizing influence of mass culture. That was a culture in which emotion was put out there on display - screaming matches between family members who could erupt in chest poking fury one second and then loyalty until death affection the next.
Biden gave America the full opera Thursday night, and I suspect there will be as many reactions as there are partisan flavors. Democrats will obviously be cheered by his aggressive impassioned and offensive performance.
It will be the crowning irony of the No Drama Obama campaign that it took a man who exudes more drama than a decade of Latin American soap operas to get Democrats out of their funk.
Biden clearly ended the psychic slide. He took it to Ryan on the inexplicability of the Republican tax plan. He had his best moments on those subjects Ryan is strongest, like budgets.
At the same time, my in box was filled with a certain number of people who would be happy if they could spend the next few weeks punching Biden in the face, and not just Republicans. What do independents want most? They want people who will practice a more respectful brand of politics, who will behave the way most Americans try to behave in their dealings - respectfully, maybe pausing to listen for a second. To them will seem like an off-putting caricature of the worst of old-style politics.
This is not just an issue of manners. It's: How are we going to practice the kind of politics that will help us avert the fiscal cliff? How are we going to balance the cross-cutting challenges, like increasing growth while reducing long term debt?
A lot of people will look at Biden's performance and see a style of politics that makes complex tradeoffs impossible. The people who think this way swing general elections.
Ryan hails from a different era, not the era of the 1950s era diner but the era of the workout gym. By Ryan's time, the national media culture was pervasive. The tone was cool, not hot. The meritocracy had kicked in and ambitious young people had learned to adopt a low-friction manner. Ryan emerges from this culture in the same way Barack Obama does.
This is a generation armed with self-awareness. In this generation you roll your eyes at anyone who is quite so flamboyantly demonstrative as the VP.
In addition, Ryan was nurtured by the conservative policy apparatus and had a tendency Thursday night to talk about policy even when he was asked about character. I would not say he defined a personality as firmly as he might have, but he did an excellent job of demonstrating policy professionalism. This debate was excessive in its attention to foreign policy - an arena that is a voting issue for very few. Ryan demonstrated amazing fluency, given how little time he has spent working in these areas.
He was strong on Obama's economic failures, strong on the Libya debacle (though why do candidates always cram too many topics into their answers early in any debate), and he did have a few chances to highlight the Obama campaigns crucial weakness-the relative absence of any positive agenda, the relative absence of any large plans for the next four years.
By the end, voters will have noticed one large irony. Emotionally, Biden dominated the night. Democrats were wondering if the Obama administration was a spent force, too exhausted to carry on. They don't have to wonder about that any more. But substantively, it is the Romney-Ryan proposals that were the center of attention. Some of those proposals are unpopular (Medicare, which was woefully under-covered). Some are popular (Taxes). But most of the discussion was on Romney plans because the other side just doesn't have many.
This was a battle of generations. The age difference was the undercurrent of every exchange. The older man had the virility, but in a way that will seem antique to many.
David Brooks is a columnist for the New York Times.


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The Fiber optic front site offered on some of the Buckmarks over the counter are good. They are also available from Browning to add to any of thier Buckmarks.
Are they worth it? That's entirely up to the shooter. Older shooters like myself who's eyes aren't what they used to be or shooters that ferequent indoor ranges or under low light conditions or racoon or other varmints at night would benefit also. I've a Buckmark URX target and shooting indoors I had difficult time seeing the front blade in those conditions. For me a little Bright Sights paint did the trick but I'd buy a fiber optic model if I do get another.


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This Morning: TriQuint and RF Micro To Merge, Netflix and Comcast Deal, Palo Alto Jumps
Here are some things going on this morning in your world of tech:
Shares of TriQuint Semiconductor (TQNT) and RF Micro Devices (RFMD) were briefly halted in pre-market trading after the companies announced they will merge in an all-stock transaction, giving each company 50% of the new venture. TriQuint shares subsequently shot up $2.47, or 27%, to $11.70, and RF Micro stock gained $1.29, or 22%, to $7.10. RF Micro CEO Robert Bruggeworth will be CEO of the combined company, while TriQuint CEO Ralph Quinsey will become chairman.
More details of the transaction are available in a deck of slides on the TriQuint investor relations Web site.
The announcement comes as the Mobile World Congress gets underway this week in Barcelona. While the news was coming out, Qualcomm (QCOM) was holding a press conference talking about how its new RF chips can integrate more and more of the traditional functions that both TriQuint and RF Micro have sold for years.
Qualcomm stock is up 35 cents at $75.96 in early trading.
Shares of Netflix (NFLX) are up $5.47, or 1.3%, at $437.70, after the company yesterday said it struck an agreement with Comcast (CMCSA) to make sure that its video subscribers get "a high-quality video experience for years to come," without disclosing terms of the deal. Netflix said it is not getting any sort of preferential treatment versus other video providers.
The announcement follows concerns last week about Comcast's ability to potentially slow or block such video services, following its decision to acquire rival Time Warner Cable.
Several analysts this morning wrote that the deal removes a concern for Netflix, although not everyone was ecstatic. On the bullish side, J.P. Morgan's Doug Anmuth expects Netflix stock to be pressured by worries about higher costs, but he reiterated an Overweight rating on Netflix, writing that there are several positives, including "a more direct connection should be positive for the Netflix user experience across Comcast's current footprint of nearly 54M homes passed and ~21M broadband subscribers—and managed subscriber total of ~30M with the Time Warner Cable merger," and given that "Netflix and Comcast were in interconnect discussions for many months and we believe Netflix likely anticipated some degree of higher costs related to network agreements in its 2014 guidance and target for 400 basis points of Y/Y margin expansion in the Domestic Streaming business."
On the other hand, Cantor Fitzgerald's Youssef Squali , who has a Hold on Netflix shares, wonders whether Netflix was "forced to pay," as he puts it, writing that "No terms were disclosed, but we believe that this agreement is likely to precipitate others in the U.S. and internationally."
"The stock's valuation and lack of visibility into the contribution margin impact of this deal (and potentially others) are keeping us on the sidelines."
Speaking of Comcast, Pacific Crest's Andy Hargreaves raised his rating on the shares to Outperform from Sector Perform this morning, with a $66 price target, writing that "Comcast's proposed acquisition of Time Warner Cable would create a cable network operator that reaches roughly 70% of homes in the United States. We believe this would allow Comcast to press its advantage around the bundle, leverage its improving video offering across a broader footprint, spend capital more efficiently, reduce operating costs as a percentage of revenue and create new revenue opportunities in Internet services."
Shares of networking security vendor Palo Alto Networks (PANW) are up $5.38, or over 7%, at $79.00, after the company this morning reported fiscal Q2 revenue of $141 million and EPS of 10 cents, topping the consensus for $136 million and 9 cents. Palo Alto forecast revenue this quarter in a range of $143 million to $147 million, and EPS in a range of 10 cents to 11 cents. That compares to the average estimate for this quarter of $142 million and 11 cents.
Shares of Microsoft (MSFT) are down 8 cents in early trading after the company this morning said at the Mobile World show that it will offer a version of Nokia phones running Google's Android operating system at very low prices, a strategy to bring more people to experience the various applications and cloud computing services commonly bundled with its own Windows Phone operating system. Yesterday, Microsoft held a press conference outlining how it is looking to ride a surge in usage of Windows Phone last year.
Shares of Facebook are up 51 cents, or 0.7%, at $69.10, after mobile messaging app WhatsApp's founder, Jan Koum, this morning said in Barcelona that the app will gain the ability for voice calls later this year. Facebook last week said it will purchase WhatsApp for $19 billion in cash and stock.


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In almost every movie you go to these days you'll see another screen — a television, a computer, even another movie screen — within the screen you're watching. Sometimes there will even be another screen inside of that screen, and so on. And often with the screen we get a keyboard or a camera or some look at whomever it is that's behind the screen within the screen we're looking at.
We're not talking high-concept auteurist masterpieces like Fellini's 8-1/2 (1963) here, either. This is happening with Bruce Willis in Live Free or Die Hard (2007) — you can't get less pointy-headed than that. Other recent examples include Redacted, Untraceable, Cloverfield, Diary of the Dead, The Signal, Vantage Point, Be Kind Rewind, Shutter, Funny Games, even Midnight Meat Train — films that run the gamut in taste, budget, and broadness of appeal.
So it's safe to say that all those screens and what's behind them — in other words, the media, which includes TV, cable, MySpace, e-mail, talk radio, iPhones, iPods . . . the ways to tune in and drop out are endless — trouble the sleep of people enough for them collectively to shell out nearly 135 million bucks to watch Die Hard's maverick cop John McClane take on this all-pervasive, multifaceted leviathan.
In 1964, when Marshall McLuhan submitted, in Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, that "We have extended our central nervous system itself in a global embrace, abolishing both space and time. . . . We approach the final phase of the extensions of man — the technological simulation of consciousness," it might have sounded a little over the top. Not so much now.
In this latest rash of films, just as in the White House, reality and truth are fluid, and are dictated by whoever is behind the camera.
Maybe he missed Akira Kurosawa's iconic Rashomon (1950). That classic showed little faith in the search for truth, contending that even the most basic medium — oral communication — can't get its story straight. In a medieval setting, witnesses to a crime engage in a dialectic of points of view that are mutually contradictory and reveal no truth but that there is no truth, a descent into unknowing that would henceforth be known as the Rashomon effect.
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Last Modified: Saturday, January 12, 2013 5:46 PM
By Johnathan Manning / American Press
The Calcasieu Parish district attorney said he would like to see more cases go to trial in the new year.
Speaking about the past year and his office's goal for 2013, John DeRosier said he wants prosecutors and judges to have more control of the dockets to see cases go to trial more swiftly.
"One of the problems we always have is getting these felony cases to trial," he said. "The reason for that is, historically, defendants who were charged with serious felonies simply won't plead guilty until they see that jury walk into that courtroom and you can imagine what that does to the system."
The court has already begun to try to move cases along through case management conferences, where plea agreements can be reached, DeRosier said. He said the conferences were "spearheaded" by the judges.
DeRosier said the goal is to move most of the cases through pleas, but "there needs to come a time when we have a conference and we need to tell the defendant as prosecutors and the judge needs to tell the defendant, this is the way it's going to be. This is as good as it's going to get. Either plead guilty to this or we're going to trial. There will be no further offer, no deal."
Not having a jury waiting in the wings only to have a plea deal reached would be a savings, he said.
"That's a lot of people that we inconvenience to come up here," DeRosier said.
He said he would also like to combine right-to-counsel court and probable-cause court — which he said would "streamline the misdemeanor process."
Representatives of the District Attorney's Office visited Harris County, Texas, which holds a combined court. "They disposed of a vast majority of their misdemeanor cases in a few days," DeRosier said.
That would free the office to "move on to cases like significant violent felony cases," DeRosier said.
DeRosier lists the parish's DWI pretrial diversion program among his office's top successes of the past year.
He said 1,600 DWIs were handled by the office last year. To get into the pretrial diversion program, entrants must meet and follow "strict guidelines," he said.
Twelve percent of those who enter the program were kicked out, he said. But of the 88 percent that made it through, there was a 1 percent recidivism rate, according to a three-year study, he said.
"Our goal is not to put impaired drivers in prison or in jail, but to keep impaired drivers off the highway," DeRosier said.
He said the nationwide DWI recidivism rate is 15 percent to 20 percent.
"Our overall mission is to try to make Calcasieu a better and safer place for everybody to live and raise their families, and impaired drivers are a good place to start," DeRosier said. "With help and cooperation of all of our law enforcement agencies, we've really done a remarkable job and stuck with it."
He said the number of deaths by drug overdose in Calcasieu remained the same as last year — 21 — down from 60 in 2007. He credited that to the work of law enforcement to keep pills from entering the state from Texas.
He said if a person is doctor-shopping in Texas, "they're going to be hard-pressed to bring it back and get (a prescription) filled in Calcasieu Parish, or anywhere in Southwest Louisiana. We greatly heightened the attention that's paid to all of these out-of-state drugs and prescriptions with all of the help from law enforcement."
DeRosier said his office has made some moves in how it handles cases. Historically there was a prosecutor for each of the six felony divisions, as well as special prosecutors for drugs, child abuse and domestic violence.
But felony and misdemeanor lawyers are now paired in each division, DeRosier said.
He said the move helps felony prosecutors move their caseloads and gives misdemeanor lawyers cross-training.
"That has worked well," DeRosier said. "I think that's one of the best things we've done relative to personnel."


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Home › Forums › Gear Forums › Gear (General) › Good light hiking pants
Dec 1, 2012 at 8:40 am #1296632
Does anyone have a recommendation for a good pair of pants that will provide a decent amount of warmth but are also good to like in? Not looking for anything down, I currently have pair of REi Endevor (sp?) pants which I like but I just realized how heavy they were. I've been thinking about getting some convertible pants to save weight but haven't like the ones I've tried on in the past.
Does anyone just bring a pair of think tights for warmth under shorts when needed and not actual pants? Thanks!Dec 1, 2012 at 9:53 am #1932401
Have you tried on a pair of KUHL Liberator Convertible pants? I'm not sure what your REI pants weighed in at, but I absolutely love the versatility, fit, craftsmanship and lack of restriction with my pair of KUHLs. My 30"x30" pair weighs in at 13.9oz. Very unique, tough, comfortable fabric (different inside and out) and the waist band lies SUPER flat.
KJDec 1, 2012 at 10:07 am #1932408
Richard CullipSpectator
@richardcullipLocale: San Diego County
A year or so ago, I swapped over from convertable pants to Railriders Adventure Khaki Pants. Love them. I mostly swapped over to long pants for sun protection with a side benefit of saving a bit of weight by eliminating the zip-off feature. I find the RR Adventure Khaki pants to be comfortable, lightweight and great to hike in. They have a minimum niumber of pockets but that suites me just fine since I don't really like carrying much in my pants pockets.Dec 1, 2012 at 10:09 am #1932410
Thanks Guys,
Kenneth that was the pair of convertible pants I was looking at, do they have any stretch to them at all?
Thanks!Dec 1, 2012 at 5:43 pm #1932460
Yup. KUHL is very smart in their design. They have what I'd call hidden stretch zones. There is a split in the material just below the back waist band. The split is tied together with a material that has a slight stretch. Additionally, if you look at the stitching on the pockets, they have what I'd refer to as cupped pockets (aka – a butt-area shaped for a rear end). KUHL has then lined the back of the pockets in this same slight stretch material…that also seems to have decent air flow and therefore keep your butt from sticking to the pants when you get hot, allowing them to move more freely on you as you hike varied terrain.
…that may there have been the most elaborate description I've ever written on a pair of pants…
KJDec 1, 2012 at 7:06 pm #1932474
Haha, thanks Kenneth! Last question, do they work well as just shorts? Does the zipper rub against your skin at all? Where does the inseam on the shorts fall in relation to your knee?
Thanks!Dec 1, 2012 at 10:49 pm #1932514
Max DiltheySpectator
@mdiltheyLocale: MaxTheCyclist.com
I hated the Kuhl pants and sent them back. Ideally, since a light pair of pants will keep you cool whether they're long or short in the summer, the idea of "convertible" pants doing anything seems to be marketing to me.
I am a skeptic, anyways.
When I got my Kuhl liberators, I liked the material but they were BAGGY, extremely baggy. They looked like they would get caught on everything, and I didn't even bother keeping them. I sent them back.
I picked up a pair of Mountain Hardwear Mesa Pants and have been thrilled. There isn't a ton of stretch (less than the Kuhl's) but the cut is loose in the thigh so you can climb over things. Thankfully, the cut in the calves is much thinner! They taper nicely without ever being fitted, but the fabric is out of the way from catching on your other boot or any briars along the trail.
These are my new adventure pants, and I am thrilled. Also, the pockets are fantastic- best I've ever used, all 5 of them.Dec 2, 2012 at 5:40 am #1932539
Adam RothermichBPL Member
@aroth87Locale: Missouri Ozarks
I've hiked in shorts and just brought tights for extra warmth instead of pants. I also had my Driducks pants to add for even more warmth. The coldest I've used this system was into the upper 30's (night time temps). While I was moving I was fine but at camp I draped my quilt over my legs.
As for pants, I've got a pair of Columbia convertible pants that I've used for years. The zip off legs are nice, though I mostly just zip them partially open to vent rather than take them all the way off. I'd like to get a "cooler" brand but even after 7 years of hiking and trail building the pants just keep going.
I've also got a pair of Mountain Khaki pants that are nice. They're nylon, not the heavy canvas like their Original Mountain Pants. The fit is a little more flattering but it doesn't have as many pockets as I'd like. Just one cargo pocket and one rear pocket in addition to the normal hand pockets. Be careful ordering Mountain Khakis online, their sizing seems off to me. I normally wear a 32" waist but couldn't even button their 32". I had to move up to a 35" so I had a little breathing room. I tried on two different styles of Mountain Khakis and needs a larger waist size than normal in both of them.
AdamDec 3, 2012 at 10:48 am #1932754
Slo HikerBPL Member
@slohikerLocale: NC Foothills
The cut doesn't suit my build so I can't wear them, but RailRiders X-Treme Adventure pants are the bomb in terms on construction and features IMO.
I've been wearing ExOfficio pants (Nomads initially, Nio Amphi style now) for over a dozen years now and have found nothing better at this point.Dec 3, 2012 at 11:24 am #1932761
michael leviMember
@m-lLocale: W-Never Eat Soggy (W)affles
Prana zion stretch for me, they have little buttons to roll them into long shorts too.Dec 3, 2012 at 11:34 am #1932764
Max DiltheySpectator
@mdiltheyLocale: MaxTheCyclist.com
I also love Prana, I have had a pair of their durable khakis for two years and they refuse to quit- all my other pants from two years ago are now shorts from torn knees.Dec 3, 2012 at 11:40 am #1932768
Ben CBPL Member
@alexdrewreedLocale: Kentucky
I regularly wear long baselayer bottoms under shorts in camp and in the morning. I typically use this approach down to at least 30 degrees. Its not pretty but I see a lot of other backpackers doing the same. My legs stay warm while moving, so I typically wear the baselayer bottoms only in camp and sometimes in the morning. This set up works well for me in a broad range of temperatures, is pretty cheap, and is pretty light.Dec 3, 2012 at 11:47 am #1932771
I'm at work right now, so I don't have them in front of me…but I know the zippers are covered by a flap on the inside off of the top zip. If I am remembering correctly, they split right at the top of my kneecap. I have never had any issues with the zippers rubbing, bothering or interfering with anything. As per Max's comment about them being baggier…I'd agree. They are baggier, but as a result have kept me cooler because of it. I don't like tighter restrictive pants. The less material in contact with my legs the better. I hike commando and these pants are an afterthought. I find it to be the closest I've come to feeling like I'm hiking without pants on. YAY FREEDOM! :O)
They've held up to a lot of granite, sandstone and bushwhacking without issue. Ultimately it's up to you and your preference, but if what I'm saying sounds like what you're looking for…I'm very certain you'll like them.
KJDec 6, 2012 at 4:17 pm #1933674
Nick GatelBPL Member
@ngatelLocale: Southern California
"I regularly wear long baselayer bottoms under shorts in camp and in the morning. I typically use this approach down to at least 30 degrees. Its not pretty… "
+ 1
But I look good in them :)
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.


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Mike here.
We started a bee course last winter and received the first nuc a couple weeks ago. All is well and the ladies are drinking the sugar water and pollen is rolling in. We had a wet cold snap over the past couple days and noticed yesterday a few dead. Bees at the entrance and they were hunkered down from the wind and wet.
We live north of Atlanta in the little town of Kennesaw Georgia. First time Beekeepers and trying to get our heads around all the information needed to keep a healthy hive.
We are looking forward to all the help we have gotten off this forum and ready to be asking a bunch of new-bee questions.


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Home › Forums › Campfire › Editor's Roundtable › An Introduction to Nordic and Backcountry Ski Gear
Dec 12, 2012 at 8:41 am #1296996
Maia JordanBPL Member
@maiaLocale: Rocky Mountains
Companion forum thread to:Dec 12, 2012 at 2:39 pm #1935067
ROBERT TANGENSpectator
@robertm2sLocale: Lake Tahoe
The Dynafit bindings are releasable, hence a safer binding, yes?Dec 12, 2012 at 4:46 pm #1935098
Eric BlumensaadtBPL Member
@danepackerLocale: Mojave Desert
Thanks for a well written and nicely illustrated introduction to the subject.
Over the years of XC racing, touring and Nordic patrolling I've owned everything from wooden Bonna skis to aluminum honeycomb core K2 (yes, K2) classic racing skis to Fischer skate skis.
But for backcountry I have 2 pair:
SKIS>Osnes Norwegian Army skis, 210 cm. (exclusively at Neptune Mt'neering. Boulder, CO)
BOOTS> Vasque heavy leather 3 pin
BINDINGS> Voile release type 3 pin
SKIS> Atomic TM 22 190 cm.
BOOTS> Scarpa T3
BINDINGS> Again, Voile release type, pins ground off
My BC SKI PACK is a heavily midified CamelBak Commander camo hunting pack – 2.500 cc. – (New aluminum stays, REI padded hip belt, bottom straps, side pockets, etc., etc.) With this pack I can carry enough to be "almost comfortable" if stranded overnight plus my avy gear, always my avy gear.Dec 12, 2012 at 5:26 pm #1935106
Paul MagnantiBPL Member
@paulmagsLocale: Front Range Zoo
I loved the article..of course Nordic Backcountry is my favorite type of skiing. :)
My Nordic setup is very similar to Eric's (I use the civilian version of the Asnes skis, Crispi touring boots, Voile bindings) and I love it for covering distance but still having basic turn capability.
My tele setup is beefier (K2 Waybacks, Scarpa T2 boots), but it is Nordic backcountry I love the most for reasons listed in the article.
Now, I need to get out there for a few winter overnighters soon. :)
(Though I do have a 10th Mtn Division hut trip over Christmas… )Dec 12, 2012 at 5:35 pm #1935109
"Nordic Touring Example" = 6.2 lb
"Nordic Backcountry Example" = 9.8 lb
"Lighter AT Example (but can be as little as 12 pounds)" = 15.5 lb
My lightest AT setup = 5.9 pounds (w/ skins)Dec 12, 2012 at 5:52 pm #1935110
Michael MartinBPL Member
@mikemartinLocale: North Idaho
Robert wrote: "The Dynafit bindings are releasable, hence a safer binding, yes?"
There are releasable tele bindings as well, but they tend to be about a pound heavier than their non-releasable counterparts. You have to make your own risk assessment. Personally, I use a releasable tele binding (7tm) for inbounds skiing where weight isn't a concern and I'm more likely to ski aggressively. I use a non-releasable binding in the backcountry to save weight, but I ski really carefully.
Tele proponents will claim the added lower extremity mobility afforded by the free heel makes injury less likely than with a locked down heel. YMMV.
Jonathan wrote: "My lightest AT setup = 5.9 pounds (w/ skins)"
That is impressively light. What are the components of your setup?
MikeDec 12, 2012 at 6:04 pm #1935113
Sam HaraldsonBPL Member
@sharaldsLocale: Gallatin Range
Mike, the uptrack in that photo should've gone straight up the hill, man! * wink wink *Dec 12, 2012 at 6:05 pm #1935114
"Jonathan wrote: "My lightest AT setup = 5.9 pounds (w/ skins)"
That is impressively light. What are the components of your setup?"
— Those are the specs for my Hagan + Dynafit + Dynafit setup (plus some old BD mohair skins, with full-length skins adding another four oz per pair, although that makes the comparison with patterned-base xc skis kind of pointless).
— But all rando/"skimo" gear is basically the same now for weight, as the differences among them are less than the pair-to-pair variances.
— The latest state-of-the-art is summarized here (click one of the three tabs at the top to switch among skis, boots, and bindings):
— If you pay full retail for the very latest and lightest, then yes, they're pricey. But with so much new gear coming out lately, the only slightly heavier models from just a few years ago are now relatively inexpensive on the used market. (And that slightly heavier gear was already winning the Elk Mountains Grand Traverse *nordic* race years ago, which says a lot about the superior efficiency of AT gear over nordic gear on nordic terrain.)
— It is a shame though that while racing improves nordic track/skate gear and AT gear, there's just no market for lightweight efficient nordic backcountry gear. I still enjoy using my nordic backcountry gear for golf courses and mellow hiking trails, etc., but my AT gear is lighter than my nordic backcountry gear…Dec 12, 2012 at 8:23 pm #1935135
Roger CaffinModerator
@rcaffinLocale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe
> The incredible beauty of the winter landscape is undeniable.
Absolutely, totally and utterly!
We used to use classic Scarpa leather 3-pin boots on Bonner Conquests with voile plates or better, but outgrew the boots (badly) while Scarpa were having their 'no more leather boots' period of idiocy. So Sue & I went to NNN-BC bindings and boots and matching skis. Compared to the Bonners, which were dead straight, went like a rocket, and didn't know anything about corners, the side cut on our current skis is very pleasant. And they don't go much slower either.
Wonderful stuff.
CheersDec 12, 2012 at 9:58 pm #1935151
Excellent article. When I describe Nordic and backcountry ski gear, I start by comparing it to biking. You can get a road bike or a mountain bike or a bike that is something in between. You can put knobby tires on your road bike, or smooth tires on your mountain bike, but why bother? Some very expensive mountain bikes are probably lighter than your average road bike, even though they are capable of handling much tougher terrain. The same is true of skis.
Of course, it is tougher with skis because you have so many variables. Not only do you have to deal with the terrain (steep, narrow, forested, etc.) but also the quality of the snow. For the Northwest, I find that a light cross country ski with some sidecut and no metal edge is often just fine for logging roads and moderate backcountry terrain. I use a Fischer Inbound Crown (68-58-64). Since it is light, I use a regular cross country boot (non BC) with it. Unlike in the Rockies, the snow around here often consolidates really quickly. This means that I usually don't need the extra floatation. I've even done some backcountry skiing with my classic (long and skinny) cross country skis and handled it just fine. The terrain was easy (step turning was fine) and the snow was solid enough to support me.
If I think it will be crusty or icy, I will switch to a metal edged ski. Since the metal edged skis I own have a bit more sidecut and weight, I move up in boot class, to a Nordic BC boot when I use these (they are intended for tougher terrain). I'm sure there are folks who mix and match different classes of boots with skis, but in general, I think it is harder to use a light boot with a heavy ski than the other way around. You could certainly use a heavy boot with a light (straight) ski since that is essentially what people used to do not too long ago. In other words, if you took a an Alpine boot and binding and attached it to Fischer S-Bound you would probably look a lot like a skier from forty years ago (before the radical sidecut and wide body skis became popular).
That doesn't mean that the bigger skis don't have there place. Just the other day I saw my brother ski down a small chute with Telemark gear and a pair of Rossignol BC 125 skis. The skis are big and fat (125-90-115). There are fatter skis out there, but few of them have the fish scales like these. Which brings up a couple of points. First, skis with fish scales are way handier in the Northwest than waxing. On the west side (AKA wet side) of the mountains, the temperature is often a few degrees either side of freezing, and it will change during the day. This makes waxing a real pain. In the Methow (on the east side of the Cascades) folks still use kick wax (and go very fast with it). Second, there are several fish scale (or waxless) skis that are rather large, and are pretty new. Since this article: http://www.backcountrymagazine.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=577&Itemid=54 was published, Viole has come out with a couple skis in this category. These are light (for their surface area) and have a lot of floatation, without a huge amount of sidecut. I haven't tried, but I would imagine trying to use any of these big waxless skis with a BC boot would be very difficult. I think using these requires Telemark or Randonee gear. The ski I use for the steepest terrain I encounter is the Alpina Lite Terrain. It has a lot of sidecut (102-64-87) but is narrow enough in the waist to allow me to use BC boots. I have yet to find a pair of plastic (Randonee or Telemark) boots that I find comfortable, but I haven't tried many.Dec 12, 2012 at 10:01 pm #1935152
Paul McLaughlinBPL Member
Nice article. As a backcountry ski tourer, I can attest that it is great fun once you know what you're doing. I ski in areas that are full of people in the summer and see no one for a week. And you definitely do not have to be a good skier to enjoy it. I do not consider myself to be a good skier and yet I was able to cross the Sierra on skis. So ski skill is not important. What you do need to be good at is navigation. That is the critical skill, since trails and roads are buried under many feet of snow. Plus, of course, snow camping skills.
Gear – There is a lot of room for overlap in various directions. There is no reason you can't put Dynafit bindings on a lightweight ski with fishscales if you want to(though this won't work on all skis due to variations in core construction and screw holding abilities). Some folks even ski with just the Dynafit toe pieces on lightweight skis. My rig is Atomic Rainers – very similar to Fischer S-bound 88's or Salomon XADV 89's – 3-pin bindings and Garmont Excursion boots (the lightest of the plastic tele boots). I could save a pound or more by going to Dynafits and light rando race boots – and have more downhill control. Though maybe not as good in rolling terrain.
My experience has been that a light ski with a somewhat stiffer boot can work really well, while the reverse is not so good, especially when carrying a multi-day pack. I think this is especially true for less experienced/skilled skiers; broadly speaking, a lighter, more flexible boot means faster while a heavier, stiffer boot means more control, so if in doubt go with the slightly beefier boot. With more experience and/or skill you can do more with less.
I've had my skis in terrain that I guess would be considered in the framework of this article as ski mountaineering terrain, and yet, as I said, I am not a good skier. If I were a better skier I could do even more with the gear I have. So a fairly light setup can do quite a lot. I would like to go lighter on the boots, but I have yet to hear good things about any leather or fabric/leather boot as regards staying dry for a week in wet spring corn snow, so I stick with the light plastic. But the skis I am very happy with. I think a ski like the ones I have is just about ideal for the ski backpacker, which is what I think of myself as. I don't go to the mountains to ski, I ski to go to the mountains.Dec 12, 2012 at 10:14 pm #1935158
Jonathan wrote:
"It is a shame though that while racing improves nordic track/skate gear and AT gear, there's just no market for lightweight efficient nordic backcountry gear. I still enjoy using my nordic backcountry gear for golf courses and mellow hiking trails, etc., but my AT gear is lighter than my nordic backcountry gear…"
I agree completely. I'm afraid so much of it is racing oriented, and no one has come up with a race that makes sense for the Nordic backcountry equipment. Or rather, a Nordic backcountry race is simply won by folks using Randonee gear now. Maybe if they had lots of rolling hills (which would require transition) but banned skate skiing, but still had a few steep hills (which would require more than Nordic track gear) then maybe fast BC gear would stand a chance. If nothing else, it might drive folks to add waxless patterns to some of those really light skis. Just doing that would be great. Waxless skis are great for touring as well as yoyo skiing.
Great link, by the way.Dec 13, 2012 at 7:09 am #1935201
Nice work gents.
I do not think that the amount of camber when un-weighted is an accurate way to assess functional camber when skiing. Some skis with comparable amounts of arch compress in very different ways. The paper test is here still valid.
The Grand Traverse would be a better example for debate if it wasn't won, always, by the same ~dozen CB/Gunny locals who have the course absolutely dialed.Dec 13, 2012 at 7:30 am #1935204
I agree Paul, a skinnier ski with a firm boot can work really well. A soft boot and a fat ski is a challenge. I have a pair of Rainiers as well, and use them with BC boots for a great all around Nordic setup. Browsing the link that Jonathan mentioned (http://www.skintrack.com/skis-comparison/) suggests that plenty of folks are racing with skis not too different than that (other than weight and fish scales). The Rainiers are 88-60-78, and there are plenty of skis in that range on that website. In other words, pairing the Rainiers with Randonee boots would work well. Of course, they might not have as much float as you want, or be as easy to turn as you want, but they will certainly cruise and carve. As you mention, you could easily go with skinnier or straighter skis as long as you can mount the bindings.Dec 13, 2012 at 10:18 am #1935245
scott NelsonBPL Member
@nlsscottLocale: Hawaii/Sierras
Great Article,
It is great to see so much interest in backcountry touring. Judging by all the magazines, you would think that skiing away from a downhill resort only involves throwing yourself off a cliff, or descending a chute that Yvon Chouinard did the first ice climb of. There is little coverage of anyone using skis to have an adventure in the backcountry. I remember the days of Allan Bard, Ned Gillete, and Doug Robinson inspiring the rest of us duffers to go see the world in snow. Maybe with more attention, the gear would advance. Thanks, ScottDec 13, 2012 at 10:46 am #1935249
"Browsing the link that Jonathan mentioned (http://www.skintrack.com/skis-comparison/) suggests that plenty of folks are racing with skis not too different than that (other than weight and fish scales). The Rainiers are 88-60-78, and there are plenty of skis in that range on that website. In other words, pairing the Rainiers with Randonee boots would work well. Of course, they might not have as much float as you want, or be as easy to turn as you want, but they will certainly cruise and carve. As you mention, you could easily go with skinnier or straighter skis as long as you can mount the bindings."
– Yes, as much as I love my various wider skis, something in the mid 60s or so (i.e., rando race / SkiMo width) is really all you need for practical efficient travel, regardless of conditions. Anything wider than that is for more fun on the down, not for faster and/or more efficient travel overall. (Sure all sorts of unconsolidated snow conditions are really unpleasant on narrower skis, but any time losses on such descent are more than offset by gains on the rest of the tour.)
– This also highlights the misleading nature of the various examples, which pair heavier wider skis with AT gear. Sure, that's typical of what's out there in common use, but BPL articles on, say, tents, don't take the same approach (e.g., using WalMart-weight gear for selected categories). The only common element of an AT setup is the ability to lock the heel for the descent, and that's as light as about nine ounces for bindings (per pair), with boots that weigh less than either SNS-BC or NNN-BC that offer only a small fraction of the control.
– Even worse is the telemark example, which uses lighter skis than the AT example, despite if anything AT boots & bindings allowing for a lighter ski, not a heavier ski. (As for highlighting a ski from a company that went out of business over nine years ago, well…)
– Also, the "Standard AT Example" is not standard at all but rather is based around a hybrid/sidecountry binding that is instant obsolescence for anyone interested in getting into backcountry skiing, even the touring-for-turns type.
"The Grand Traverse would be a better example for debate if it wasn't won, always, by the same ~dozen CB/Gunny locals who have the course absolutely dialed."
– The fastest racers there now use SkiMo / AT race gear. Before everyone used nordic backcountry gear. They switched because SkiMo gear became better (as well as more widely available in the U.S.) while nordic backcountry gear has stagnated. Why does the same people winning it have any relevance, especially when nordic backcountry gear used to win the race? (This is kind of akin to if the only choices for trail running races were heavy hiking boots versus pavement running shoes, but the pavement running shoes – once adopted – always won the trail running races.)Dec 13, 2012 at 12:46 pm #1935270
While some XCD skis may be dimensionally similar to rando race sticks, the difference in flex between the two is typically pretty enormous. Even a stiffer XCD ski like a Fischer or Rossi is much softer tip-tail than the rando skis I've seen (Dynafit, Trab, Merelli).
If you were to design a course where nordic and AT gear were evenly matched, the Grand Traverse would be pretty close. Certainly the closest established race course of which I'm aware. To have a fair comparision, you'd need evenly matched teams on different ski systems. Problem is that the night start gives locals a huge advantage, and thus the realistic chances of outsiders mounting a challenge in our hypothetical is small. 2008 was the first year it was won (in the men's division) on rando gear, in pretty gnarly conditions. The winning co-ed pair was an hour slower (10 hrs v. 9), had little familiarity with the course, and used combi boots and edgeless classic race skis.
Something to think about, i.e. lets mind the details and compare apples to apples.Dec 13, 2012 at 8:15 pm #1935352
Paul McLaughlinBPL Member
A little elaboration on DaveC's point about flex difference between rando race skis and XCD – the rando race skis are downhill skis – their flex is not designed for kick and glide efficiency. So for tours in rolling terrain and/or with significant flat sections, they would probably not be as good as an XCD ski with a more XC kind of camber/flex – given equal boots/bindings. I know I have certainly wished for one of those light rando race skis to be available with a patterned base (like I could afford it if it was!) simply because they are so light, but in actuality for most of my skiing an XCD kind of flex is probably more efficient.Dec 13, 2012 at 10:02 pm #1935369
John YatesBPL Member
I'm puzzled that you don't mention waxing tele skis with kick wax. In fact you say "[tele skis] are designed to go steeply up or down but they are not as efficient for touring on level to moderate terrain. You can tour with them but you have to do it with skins on…" Not true. Kick wax works very well on tele skis in rolling terrain. I almost always wax my tele skis with Swix Polar kick wax as a base wax on the entire base and then add softer wax as necessary.
Also, I think you over estimate the importance of a wax pocket for skiing on unconsolidated snow. Having a wax pocket and/or a double camber ski is really only useful on a firm track. On unconsolidated snow the ski doesn't bend with each stride to make the wax pocket contact the snow. What works very well is to wax the entire ski with kick wax, usually the same wax along the whole ski.
Very few of the people I see out touring for turns on tele skis use kick wax, even in rolling terrain where it would be much more efficient. I have a friend who boasts that he has never put kick wax on his tele skis, even as the rest of us wait for him to sidestep up gentle inclines that we have just walked up. I think he believes that kick wax would ruin his glide, but unless you are seriously over waxed, this just isn't true.
Thanks for the article; except for the above comments, I thought it is very good.Dec 13, 2012 at 10:17 pm #1935371
Michael MartinBPL Member
@mikemartinLocale: North Idaho
The photo in the article where I'm pulling a pulk was taken on an 11-day trip in YNP with Chris Townsend, among others. Chris is a master at ski waxing and carries a variety of waxes with the usual assorted tools (scraper, cork, IR thermometer, etc.). During that trip, he and several of our group did exactly as you described — grip wax on conventional tele skis — with excellent results.
Personally, I've had mixed success with waxable XC skis and miserable failures with grip wax on tele skis. Part of my problem is that I ski a lot in warm and variable snow conditions that make waxing tricky, but most of it is just my ineptitude with wax. I frequently bring along a wax kit for my tele setup, but have never been able to reproduce Chris' success with it, eventually throwing my arms up in disgust and putting the skins back on. I'm certain many could do better than I.
-MikeDec 14, 2012 at 2:28 am #1935382
Roman VazhnovBPL Member
@joarrLocale: Russia
"…gear was already winning the Elk Mountains Grand Traverse *nordic* race years ago, which says a lot about the superior efficiency of AT gear over nordic gear on nordic terrain."
Jonathan, can you describe the conditions of the race and the gear for such races a little further? Were the racers using grip wax on AT skis? Or using skate skiing? What were the reasons of using AT gear (may be to lose on flat section and then to win on downhill)? Or there is no flat section?Dec 14, 2012 at 3:49 am #1935384
Hendrik MorkelBPL Member
@skullmonkeyLocale: Finland
Here's my take on the Madshus Glittertind MGV+ Skis as well as a lot of photos of it.Dec 14, 2012 at 6:47 am #1935397
Yes, non-locals and others not familiar with the EMGT course are at a disadvantage. However, I don't see how this has any relevance to the nordic vs alpine touring gear differential? The most striking disadvantage in recent years has actually been visited upon non-local SkiMo racers. Meanwhile, anyone who wants to be competitive – local or otherwise – has switched to alpine touring gear for this prominent nordic terrain race.
The reason is obvious is you have any familiarity with modern lightweight alpine touring gear. Unfortunately the authors of this article clearly lack such familiarity, most tellingly in the statement of "Lighter AT Example (but can be as little as 12 pounds)" even though my lightest setup is almost HALF that purported lower bound.
Setting aside the weights of skis (since that is not specific to AT boots and bindings), nordic backcountry boots (both those in the article, and my own pair too) weight *MORE* than modern AT race boots. And what do you get in return for that extra weight? Slightly *LESS* resistance-free range of motion while striding, and far far *LESS* control when skiing down (even w/o bothering to lock down the AT binding heel). AT bindings also weigh less than nordic backcountry bindings, but that differential is smaller and also less important (since static weight gliding along on the snow is far less important that the weight on your foot that must be pivoted with each stride).
Given that lighter weight and superior efficiency of modern lightweight AT gear, no surprise that it dominates a race that was previously the domain of nordic backcountry gear.
As for kick wax, the terminology of "tele" skis is not very helpful (since any ski to which a telemark binding is mounted becomes a tele ski, and skis marketed specifically as telemark are almost always just rebadged alpine downhill skis, sometimes lightened and/or softened, and but sometimes just different graphics). Really we're talking about double camber versus camber-and-a-half versus single camber. And even the latter category has significant variation: my old Atomic MX:20 AT skis had very noticeable camber, perhaps even venturing into camber-and-a-half territory, whereas my Movement Fish-X skis have very less, and my Hagan X-Race even less.
Obviously kick wax works far better with double camber skis, since that's the whole point of double camber skis. But kick wax can also work with single camber skis – not as well, but it works. I've used it with single camber skis, and it makes a noticeable improvement. (Nailing the right wax is of course another issue altogether, but that's the same challenge regardless of the type of ski.)Dec 14, 2012 at 7:53 am #1935407
Yellowstone in the heart of winter is the easiest place for kick wax I can think of.
Roman, the Grand Traverse is a 40 mile route between Crested Butte and Aspen. You can see a map here; http://westelkproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/GT_Map-823×1024.jpg It's a great summer or winter route, very scenic.
There's not much outright flat, but there's a lot of gentle climbing on snowed in roads and snowmachine tracks. There are some steep downhills in there as well, but if old memory serves none save the final descent (down the ski area in Aspen) are much more than 1000 vertical feet. The local hard guys have for the last 5 years been running skimo gear and nearly full coverage mohair skins. The final ridge from Barnard to the ski area is a rolling ridge which forces anyone to make compromises with it's frequent transitions. Folks on AT gear skate the ups when conditions are good, keep skins on for the downs and skin the ups, or occasionally just bootpack the ups and ski the downs.Dec 14, 2012 at 9:15 am #1935414
John YatesBPL Member
Waxing for warm and/or variable conditions is indeed a challenge, and I use a pair of waxless skis or go where skins make sense when conditions make waxing hard. In particular, waxless skis work well enough on refrozen spring snow that I've given up using klister altogether.
It's important to point out, though, that for dry, cold, new snow, waxing is not very hard to learn and in those conditions a well waxed ski works very much better that a waxless ski: both the glide and grip are better.
I don't know whether you meant to imply this, but I inferred from "I've had mixed success with waxable XC skis and miserable failures with grip wax on tele skis" that you think waxing works less well on tele skis than on waxable XC skis. As far as I know a square inch of p-tex with the right wax on it works as well on a waxable XC ski as a tele ski, with exception of a double camber ski on a good track, which will work better than a single camber ski (which is what tele skis are).
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PSA: Beware! Friday the 13th: The Game's servers are a total mess right now
May 26, 2017 | 5 Comments
Konami and Universal Studios will present a special Silent Hill-themed Halloween Horror Nights at both the Orlando and Hollywood locations this fall.
Characters from the survival horror series will invade the theme parks as a promotional event for Silent Hill: Revelation 3D, debuting in theaters on October 26. It marks the first time Universal's Halloween Horror Nights has adapted a video game franchise.
Universal confirmed that visitors would encounter "the iconic deformed nurses and the executioner" — so keep an eye out for Pyramid Head, among other favorites.
Follow @wita on Twitter for tales of superheroes, plumbers in overalls, and literary adventures.


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Jefferson City man arrested for stabbing girlfriend, another woman
A Jefferson City man is in Cole County jail for stabbing two women early Thursday morning.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A Jefferson City man is behind bars after stabbing two women early Thursday morning.
32-year-old Michael Lutz accused his ex-fiance, 27-year-old Amanda Shelton, of stealing a washer and dryer from his storage unit to pay his bail when he was in jail on prior domestic abuse.
The couple began fighting in the 900 block of Harding Avenue, when Lutz cut Shelton's throat. Shelton claimed Lutz was high on meth at the time of the attack.
"I sold the washer and dryer to get him out of jail. I got choked, my hair pulled, and a knife across my throat," said Shelton.
44-year-old Tammy Case and another man attempted to break up the fight by hitting Lutz with a chair, but during the scuffle Lutz dragged Shelton into a crawl space and slashed her throat with a box cutter. Lutz also stabbed Case in the back, injuring her.
Shelton says she has advice for others in abusive relationships; "I know its hard to get out. Although they frighten you, you get out and run. Get somewhere safe and put a restraining order on them or cal the cops they're here to help."
According to Shelton, Lutz drove himself to the hospital claiming he had been beaten up by Shelton. He was later arrested by Jefferson City police.
Captain Doug Shoemaker of the Jefferson City Police Department says the department has programs in place to help victims of domestic assault.
"We have victim services. We make every victim aware of possible services after the incident occurs so that they don't feel like they're alone in a situation or they can't escape the cycle of violence," said Shoemaker.
Lutz has a history of abuse toward Shelton.
He faces charges of second degree assault and first degree domestic assault, and is currently being held in the Cole County jail.
Both victims are in stable condition.


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Current Weather: Holland, MI
- Clear sky
The Union of Catholic Students presents: "What does it mean to be prolife? A Discussion on Human Dignity."
Dr. Ortiz of the Religion department will lead a discussion on the value of human life at all stages, from conception to a natural death. This event is part of our ongoing Living the Faith: A Topical Exploration of Catholicism discussion series.


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Baking breakfast cakes is one of my favorite tasks as innkeeper at Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast. Most people do not take the time to bake from scratch today because of time and health reasons. But on vacation you do get to splurge. I actually found this recipe several years ago on the nestle site. Our guests love the flavor; not too heavy on the pumpkin with a surprise filling of brown sugar streusel finished off with a citrus glaze drizzled on top. I hope your family enjoys it as much as we do.
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
2 tsp. butter
Combine first three ingredients. Cut in butter with pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Set aside.
3 c. flour
1 T. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 c. sugar
1 c. butter, softened
4 eggs at room temp.
1 c. pure pumpkin, I use Libby's
1 c. sour cream at room temp.
2 tsp. vanilla
Combine first 4 ingredients in bowl. Beat together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add pumpkin, sour cream and vanilla; mix well. Gradually beat in flour mixture.
Spoon half of batter into a greased and floured 12-cup bundt pan. Sprinkle streusel over batter – try not to allow streusel to touch sides of pan. Top with remaining batter making sure the batter layer touches the edge of the pan. Bake for 55 – 60 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes in pan on wire rack. Invert onto wire rack to cool completely. Drizzle with glaze.
Combine 1 1/2 c. sifted powdered sugar and 2 – 3 T. orange juice in small bowl stirring until smooth. Drizzle over cooled cake.
Can be made in advance and frozen.
Cut into wedges, serve and enjoy. Would love to get a comment on your results.
I'll look forward to seeing you soon,
Whispering Pines Bed and Breakfast ——————————-


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The year was 1968.
America was in the midst of "The Space Race" with the Russians. Man had yet to set foot on the moon, but the Apollo program was in full swing. The world was only a year away from taking "One small step for man".
There was probably never more attention and fervor surrounding space exploration than during that specific period in time. And that year, Stanley Kubrick released "2001: A Space Odyssey".
One of the most ambitious films of all time.