text:
Flow diagram.
Stafford RE, McGonigal MD, Weigelt JA, Johnson TJ. Oral Contrast Solution and Computed Tomography for Blunt Abdominal TraumaA Randomized Study. Arch Surg. 1999;134(6):622-627. doi:10.1001/archsurg.134.6.622
© 2017
Oral contrast solution (OC) is unnecessary in the acute computed tomographic (CT) evaluation of the patient with blunt abdominal trauma.
Randomized controlled clinical trial.
Level I trauma center at a university-affiliated teaching hospital.
Five hundred adult patients sustaining blunt abdominal trauma and requiring urgent resuscitation and CT evaluation of the abdomen were eligible for the study. Those patients who were younger than 18 years, pregnant, or in police custody were excluded. One hundred six patients were excluded from the analysis (15 for inappropriate enrollment, 9 because a CT scan had not been performed, 1 owing to inability to accept a nasogastric tube, and 81 owing to missing or incomplete records). Three hundred ninety-four patients with an average age of 36 years, an average Revised Trauma Score of 10, and an average Glasgow Coma Scale score of 12 are included in the analysis.
Patients were randomized via computer-generated assignment to 1 of 2 groups either receiving OC or not receiving OC (no OC) after placement of a nasogastric tube. All patients received intravenous contrast solution and then underwent helical CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis using the GE HiSpeed Advantage CT scanner (GE Medical Systems, Milwaukee, Wis).
Main Outcome Measures
Abnormal CT results, need for laparotomy, missed gastrointestinal tract and solid organ injuries, nausea, and vomiting.
There were 199 patients in the OC group and 195 patients in the no OC group. Vomiting occurred in 12.9% of patients and the incidence was not different between groups. One hundred five abnormal scans (50 OC and 55 no OC) were obtained and 33 patients with abnormal scans (19 OC and 14 no OC) underwent laparotomy. There was 1 nontherapeutic laparotomy in each group. There was 1 missed small-bowel injury in the OC group (sensitivity, 86%) and no missed small-bowel injuries in the no OC group (sensitivity, 100%). Six bowel injuries were identified at laparotomy in the OC group. Two of the injuries were perforations without contrast extravasation but with pneumoperitoneum in 1. Three bowel injuries were identified in the no OC group, none of which were perforations. Seven of the 9 patients with bowel injury at laparotomy had associated intra-abdominal injury. Specificity for solid organ injury was 94% in the OC group and 57.1% in the no OC group. Sensitivity for solid organ injury was 84.2% in the OC group and 88.9% in the no OC group. The average time to abdominal CT scanning after placement of a nasogastric tube was 39.02 ± 18.73 minutes in the no OC group and 45.92 ± 24.17 minutes in the OC group (P=.008).
The addition of OC to the acute CT protocol for the evaluation of the patient with blunt abdominal trauma is unnecessary and delays time to CT scanning.
ORAL CONTRAST solution (OC) is recommended by both surgeons and radiologists when computed tomography (CT) is used for evaluation of the abdomen in patients with blunt abdominal trauma.1- 8 Oral contrast aids in the identification of bowel loops, helps delineate bowel mesentery, and distinguishes opacified intestine from hematoma, hemorrhage, and pancreatic pathologic findings.5- 7,9- 11 Finally, extravasation of OC is a specific finding for the diagnosis of hollow viscus perforation.3,8,11 The use of OC for blunt abdominal trauma CT scans does have potential disadvantages. These include vomiting with pulmonary aspiration and interference with subsequent angiographic studies.4,9,12 The effective use of OC also requires additional time for gut opacification, which may delay definitive treatment of injuries.1,13,14 The value of OC for CT scans in patients with blunt trauma has been questioned.2,13,15 Despite many reports of the accuracy of CT scans with OC in patients with blunt abdominal trauma, the necessity of OC as part of the CT scanning protocol has never been assessed in a randomized prospective fashion.
To evaluate the necessity of OC in CT evaluation of the patient with blunt abdominal trauma and to assess possible disadvantages of its use, we evaluated 500 consecutive patients who required CT evaluation of the abdomen for blunt abdominal trauma in a randomized prospective study.
All adult trauma patients presenting to the St Paul Ramsey Medical Center, St Paul, Minn, a level I trauma center, who required urgent resuscitation and CT evaluation of the abdomen for blunt abdominal trauma between June 1993 and October 1996 were eligible for entry into the study.
Patients who were younger than 18 years, pregnant, or in police custody were excluded from the study. Eligible patients were prospectively randomized to either the OC group or the group not receiving OC (no OC). Randomization was implemented by computer-generated assignment. The study was approved by our institutional review board.
All patients had a nasogastric tube placed prior to randomization. Patients in the OC group received 30 mL of diatrizoate meglumine (Gastrografin Oral; Bracco Diagnostics, Princeton, NJ) mixed with 700 mL of tap water, which was administered via the nasogastric tube in the emergency department. All patients received intravenous contrast by a mechanical injector at 2 mL/s at a maximum dose of 2 mL/kg. Intravenous contrast agents were either diatrizoate sodium (Renografin 76; Bracco Diagnostics) or iopromide (Ultravist; Berlex, Wayne, NJ). Computed tomographic scans were performed using the GE HiSpeed Advantage helical scanner (GE Medical Systems, Milwaukee, Wis). Scans were obtained using 7-mm cuts from the dome of the diaphragm to the pelvic crest and 10-mm cuts from the pelvic crest to the symphysis pubis. Scans were immediately examined by an attending radiologist, staff trauma surgeon, and chief surgical resident. Initial management decisions were based on this reading. Data collected at the time of CT scanning included demographic data, mechanism of injury, Glasgow Coma Scale score, Revised Trauma Score, and a history of aspiration or vomiting. The length of time in minutes for travel from the emergency department to the CT scanner, for scanning of the abdomen and pelvis, and for travel from the CT scanner to the ward, intensive care unit, or operating room was recorded. Patient records were reviewed for abnormal CT results on the final staff radiologist reading, need for laparotomy, and missed gastrointestinal tract injuries and complications. Laparotomy findings were compared with both initial and final preoperative CT results. Statistical analysis was performed using the χ2 test, t test, and Fisher exact test where appropriate. P ≤ .05 was considered statistically significant.
Five hundred consecutive patients who fit eligibility criteria were enrolled in the study (Figure 1). One hundred six patients were excluded from the analysis. Of these 106 patients, 15 patients were inappropriately enrolled in the study, 9 patients required immediate laparotomy obviating the need for abdominal CT scan, 1 patient was excluded because of the inability to pass a nasogastric tube, and the remaining 81 patients had incomplete or missing records. These 81 patients were prospectively identified and had initial data points collected, but final data could not be collated because their medical records could not be retrieved from our institution. Thus, 394 patients are included in the final analysis. There were 278 men (70%) and 116 women (30%). Their average ages were 35.6 and 37.8 years, respectively. Motor vehicle crashes accounted for 60.4% of the injuries; pedestrian vs auto accidents, 9.9%; falls, 9.6%; motorcycle crashes, 7.6%; and other mechanisms, 12.5%. The overall average Revised Trauma Score was 10 (range, 4-12) and the overall average Glasgow Coma Scale score was 12.0 (range, 3-15). These variables were not significantly different between the OC and no OC groups.
There were 199 patients in the OC group and 195 patients in the no OC group. There were 105 abnormal CT scans (50 OC and 55 no OC). Of those patients with abnormal CT scans, 33 (31%) underwent laparotomy. Of the 33 laparotomies performed, 19 were OC patients and 14 were no OC patients. There was 1 nontherapeutic laparotomy in each group. One missed small-bowel injury occurred in an OC patient and there were no missed small-bowel injuries in the no OC patients. Vomiting occurred in 27 OC patients (13.6%) and 24 no OC patients (12.3%). There were 2 witnessed aspiration episodes; however, neither of these were related to administration of OC therapy. None of these differences between the patient groups were statistically significant.
There were 6 bowel injuries confirmed at laparotomy in the OC group (Table 1). Thickening of the bowel wall was noted on CT in 3 of the patients in this group, and free fluid was noted in 2. Two of the injuries involved perforations. Only 1 of the perforations was associated with a pneumoperitoneum. There was no contrast extravasation seen on CT scan in either of the patients who had a perforation. The nontherapeutic laparotomy in this group occurred in a patient who had an initial CT scan that was read as negative except for an acetabular fracture. Because of persistent ileus, a second CT scan was performed that showed free fluid in the pelvis. No injury was found at laparotomy.
In the no OC group, there were 3 bowel injuries identified at laparotomy (Table 1). Two patients had free fluid and 1 patient had a thickened bowel as seen on the preoperative CT scan. There were no perforations in this group. Nontherapeutic laparotomy was performed on a patient who had been in a motor vehicle crash and sustained a pancreatic laceration with peripancreatic fluid and a liver laceration as seen on CT scan. At laparotomy, no liver or pancreatic injuries were noted, although retroperitoneal edema was seen. The patient was discharged from the hospital 8 days after the injury.
A missed small-bowel injury occurred in 1 patient in the OC group who sustained multiple orthopedic injuries by attempting suicide by jumping from a bridge. An abdominal and pelvic CT scan done at admission was read by an attending radiologist as negative for hollow viscus or solid organ injury, although the patient did have multiple pelvic fractures. The hospital stay was marked by an ileus, fever, and urinary tract infection. Despite treatment of the urinary tract infection, the patient remained febrile and subsequent workup revealed free air on a chest x-ray film. An exploratory laparotomy was performed on hospital day 20. At laparotomy, bowel content was noted in the peritoneal cavity. A perforation on the antimesenteric border of the midjejunum was found. The postoperative course was complicated by an anastomotic leak and the patient was discharged 60 days after injury.
Of those patients with bowel injury found at laparotomy, 7 had associated intra-abdominal injuries (Table 2). Most had solid organ injuries, and there were 2 bladder ruptures. Solid organ injury, most commonly of the spleen, was the most prevalent finding at laparotomy in those patients without bowel injury.
There were 11 patients who underwent laparotomy in the OC group who were suspected of having 17 solid organ injuries on the basis of preoperative CT scan. Sixteen injuries were confirmed at laparotomy (specificity, 94%). However, 3 injuries (liver, spleen, and pancreas) were identified at laparotomy that were not identified on the preoperative CT scan (sensitivity, 84.2%). In the no OC group, 12 patients were suspected of having 14 solid organ injuries on the basis of the preoperative CT scan results. Eight injuries were confirmed at laparotomy (specificity, 57.1%). One solid organ injury was found at laparotomy that was missed by the CT scan (sensitivity, 88.9%).
Accurate time data were available for 282 (138 no OC and 144 OC) patients. The average time from placement of a nasogastric tube or orogastric tube to abdominal CT scan was 39.02 ± 18.73 minutes in the no OC patients and 45.92 ± 24.17 minutes in the OC patients (P=.008).
Computed tomography has become the radiographic technique of choice in many trauma centers for the evaluation of the hemodynamically normal patient with blunt abdominal trauma.8,9 While many authors and investigators have advocated the use of OC in addition to intravenous contrast as part of the abdominal trauma CT scanning regimen,1- 8,16 considerable controversy remains regarding its necessity.9,13,15 In particular, there is concern regarding time delay to diagnosis of potentially lethal injuries, aspiration of gastric contents and contrast with subsequent pulmonary toxic effects, interference with evaluation of angiographic studies, and whether OC actually adds information to make the diagnosis of a critical bowel injury.4,9,12,13,15 In addition, there are pediatric and adult trauma centers where OC is not routinely used as part of the blunt abdominal CT scan protocol.15,17,18
The rationale for the use of OC in trauma CT of the abdomen is well delineated in the literature. One of the most commonly cited diagnostic signs of bowel perforation is the extravasation of OC.3,8,11,16 However, this is a rare event.8 In fact, the incidence ranges from 0% to 19% in patients who received OC for CT evaluation of blunt abdominal trauma and who had bowel perforation documented at laparotomy.3,11,13,16,19 Unfortunately, current data sets do not address a possible time bias for contrast extravasation as a positive finding. In a series of 24 patients seen in a 5-year period who had signs of bowel injury on CT, the CT scans were performed anywhere from 1 hour to as many as 6 weeks after injury.11 Rizzo et al3 reported 59% undergoing CT within 6 hours of injury and the remainder at varying times after admission and after discharge from the emergency department. There was no contrast extravasation in the 2 patients in this study who had bowel perforations. Both patients underwent scanning within 1 hour after injury and were in the OC group. All of our patients were studied on admission and all except 3 were done within 2 hours after admission, making our data pertinent to the immediate use of OC for diagnosis of bowel injuries.
The optimal use of OC also requires adequate transit time for gut opacification.1,13,14 Theoretically, opacification enables the gut to be distinguished from solid organs and omentum. Recommendations for the optimal length of time between administration of contrast and starting the abdominal CT scan vary. There are few studies where the amount of contrast in the gut has been quantified or addressed. Tsang et al13 evaluated 70 CT scans of patients with blunt abdominal trauma and found that only 59% of the scans had adequate small-bowel opacification despite an average time from OC administration to performance of the CT scan of 144 ± 5.9 minutes. Given that many patients with blunt trauma have a history of alcohol use and/or may have associated head injuries and lumbar fractures that can be associated with delayed gastric emptying and ileus, this is not a surprising finding.15,20 If adequate gut opacification cannot be achieved in a reasonable amount of time, the delay to diagnosis of potentially lethal injuries becomes a larger problem and patients are subjected to the administration of an agent that may be potentially harmful. In fact, we did find that the average time to abdominal CT scanning in those patients who received OC was longer than in the no OC patients and this was significantly different. We did not attempt to assess adequacy of gut opacification or radiologic interpretation between the 2 groups since we considered this subjective data not amenable to explicit review.
Pneumoperitoneum is considered to be another diagnostic sign of hollow viscus rupture.7,10,11 While this may be seen in up to 50% of patients with blunt abdominal trauma, a significant number of patients with perforation will not have pneumoperitoneum.10,11,15 Donohue et al11 reported pneumoperitoneum seen on CT scan in only 3 of 8 patients with documented bowel perforation at laparotomy. This was seen in only 1 of 2 patients in our series who had bowel perforation. It may be that the time interval from perforation to CT scan completion is an important factor in this determination.10 Small perforations may seal quickly and prevent extravasation of contrast and/or air that could then be detected by CT scan.10,18
The sensitivity of CT scan with OC for the diagnosis of blunt bowel injury ranges from 80% and 100% depending on the criteria used.14,19,21 Kearney et al14 reported a sensitivity of only 80% for detection of bowel injury by CT scan with OC, while Sherck et al19 reported a sensitivity of 92%. In a center where OC is not used in the protocol for blunt abdominal trauma CT scans, 6 patients with small-bowel injury at laparotomy all had findings on CT that were suggestive of bowel injury and 2 of these only had bowel wall thickening and free peritoneal fluid.18 Other investigators have determined that OC was unnecessary for the diagnosis of small-bowel injury.13,15 In those patients who had bowel injury at laparotomy, we identified 6 of 7 patients in the OC group (sensitivity 86%) and 100% in the no OC group by using the presence of free fluid not explained by solid organ injury and/or thickened bowel wall in addition to pneumoperitoneum and contrast extravasation as criteria for bowel injury. This difference was not statistically significant. Other investigators have found that the addition of these factors increases the sensitivity for detection of bowel injury.11,19,22,23 Thus, it seems that the sensitivity of CT scan for the detection of bowel injury at centers that use OC does not differ significantly from those centers that do not use OC, and our data concur.
The sensitivity of CT scan with OC varies between 90% and 100% for the diagnosis of solid organ injury. Our data, for both OC and no OC CT scans, is within this range. The significant number of false-positive CT results in the no OC group may be the result of "overreading" by the radiologist because no contrast was used. However, only 1 patient in this false-positive group had a nontherapeutic laparotomy. While the specificity was low, there was only 1 nontherapeutic laparotomy because of concurrent intra-abdominal injuries that were identified on the same no OC CT scans.
While vomiting and aspiration have been discussed in the literature as potential disadvantages to the use of OC, the incidence of these events and their temporal relationship to OC administration is not always easy to identify. Our study design required placing a nasogastric or orogastric tube in each patient before the administration of OC. Aspiration of gastric contents was also done before OC was given. These steps would explain the 12.9% incidence of vomiting that we saw, which is less than that in a previous report.13 Our low incidence and no difference between the groups could be related to nasogastric tube or orogastric tube placement. That contrast material was added to a full stomach may be the reason that these patients experienced vomiting. The incidence of aspiration in our series is compatible with the incidence found in retrospective reviews.9,13
Our study is, to our knowledge, the first randomized, prospective study comparing acute CT scanning of the abdomen with OC with CT scanning without OC in a blunt trauma patient population. All CT scans were done in the same manner and within similar time frames, which removes the time bias associated with previous studies. The primary limitation of this study is the low incidence of small-bowel injuries. Our inability to obtain missing records, which decreases the study sample size, is also a limitation. As a result, the power of the study to detect a statistically significant difference between the 2 groups is limited. Therefore, a true difference between the groups may exist that was not detected by this study. This is also a limitation of all retrospective studies.3,7,19 Given the low prevalence of hollow viscus injury, a large number of injured patients would be needed in each arm of a similarly randomized study to prove that there is no difference in outcomes between the groups. This would require a multicenter trial.
A high index of suspicion for hollow viscus and solid organ injury remains necessary when evaluating the patient with blunt abdominal trauma. Clinical signs and symptoms of peritonitis in addition to CT findings of unexplained free intraperitoneal fluid or pneumoperitoneum, extravasation of OC, streaking of the mesentery, and thickened bowel wall are suggestive of hollow viscus injury. The addition of OC to the acute CT protocol for the patient with blunt abdominal trauma is unnecessary and actually delays time to CT scanning. Our prospective findings are consistent with retrospective reports and we believe this correlation warrants our conclusion until a larger prospective study can refute this growing body of evidence. Subsequent CT examinations of the abdomen and pelvis in this population may not require OC either; however, this issue is not addressed in this study and requires further evaluation.
Presented at the 106th Scientific Session of the Western Surgical Association, Indianapolis, Ind, November 16, 1998.
Corresponding author: John A. Weigelt, MD, Department of Surgery, Regions Hospital, 640 Jackson St, St Paul, MN 55101 (e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com).
Cleon W. Goodwin, Jr, MD, Fort Sam Houston, Tex: Dr Stafford and her associates have convincingly demonstrated that adding OC agent to intravenous contrast for CT evaluation of blunt abdominal trauma patients has no positive benefit and at best is a nuisance in the management of such patients. This certainly is my experience sitting beside these patients in the CT room as they vomited throughout the procedure. This is a huge and deceptively difficult study carried out in a 3-year period. I have a few questions on how you made this study work.
I know that you had institutional review board clearance. Did you have to obtain informed consent from these patients? I suspect you did not because historically up to 50% of such patients choose not to participate in clinical trials. Who carried out the randomization? It seems you had a specific coordinator for this prospective study and, if so, how did you end up with incomplete records from 81 patients presumably with prospectively collected data?
I think you have settled the issue of whether OC must be used with these patients.
Richard E. Burney, MD, Ann Arbor, Mich: One of the areas that is hard to see by CT after trauma is the pancreaticoduodenal area, and contrast frequently helps to differentiate duodenal and pancreatic injuries. I wondered how many patients had pancreatic or duodenal injury, and did you have any problem in visualizing those injuries?
John Barrett, MD, Chicago, Ill: I wonder if you could expand on the point that you made in your presentation that the total number of patients who have gastrointestinal injuries in the study is extremely small. All of these patients had small-bowel injuries and none had duodenal injuries. Since these are the patients who would most commonly benefit from OC, I wondered how you can justify your conclusions.
J. David Richardson, MD, Louisville, Ky: Do your radiologists agree with your findings? We have had very similar results, but our radiologists simply refuse to interpret the CT scan without OC making this point moot for us. We agree with your results and interpretation of them.
Dr Weigelt: Dr Goodwin, as far as our consent issue, we convinced the institutional review board that both methods were standard of care and so we did not have to obtain consent before we enrolled the patient, as long as we approached the patient afterwards. At that time the patient usually agreed to participate.
The randomization was done by our computer. We had envelopes in the room, and once the nasogastric tube was placed, we essentially drew an envelope that assigned the patient to receive OC or not to receive it.
The 81 records that are not available is deceptive. We have the records on those patients from this prospective study. What is not available is basically their medical records, which could not be retrieved from our medical records department. Since our study design demanded these records to be reviewed, we had to exclude these patients. I know anybody who has tried to get a record out of a medical record department realizes that sometimes that is an impossible feat.
Both Dr Burney and Dr Barrett talked about the duodenal injuries. We have very few duodenal injuries in this group but do not believe this detracts from our conclusions. We can say pretty conclusively that there is no difference between the two given the limitations of the injuries that you saw in the study.
As far as the question about will the radiologist agree with this approach, presently we have some enlightened radiologists who do agree with it. We have some others who are still resistant to approach this as our standard. However, Dr McGonigal and the group is working on a practice guideline currently that will include the radiologists. It seems that we have the better data set than they do so we may actually be able to persuade them.


text:
Raptisandesh (New)
Business Journal (New)
KJC to celebrate Int'l Jazz Day on April 30
The Kathmandu Jazz Conservatory is celebrating the International Jazz day on April 30 with Jazz musicians from all over the valley, Nepalis and non-Nepali alike, gathering at Moksh, Lalitpur to play with the members of the Kathmandu Jazz Conservatory in joint concerts.
On the International Jazz Day, the world comes together, in peace and harmony, to share a passion for music and to join forces for freedom and creativity and to raise awareness of the virtues of jazz.
"Jazz is an educational tool. It is a force for peace, unity, and dialogue among people. Jazz draws roots from a great mix of people and cultures -from Africa, Europe and the Caribbean," stated a release issued by the UNESCO office in Kathmandu.
Nurtured in the United States, it is now woven into the fabric of every society, played across the world, enjoyed everywhere. It marks the most of the world's diversity, effortlessly crossing borders and bringing people together.
In November 2011, during the UNESCO General Conference, the international community proclaimed 30 April as "International Jazz Day". The Day was celebrated for the first time in 2012.
The day is an opportunity for governments, civil society organizations, educational institutions, and individuals to engage in the promotion of jazz music and to foster appreciation not only for the music but also for the contribution it can make to building more inclusive societies, UNESCO said.
For more and more people in Nepal, Jazz is a powerful means for celebrating the joy of diversity among cultures. Particularly for young people, it reinforces their role in social change in Nepal. It will bring out the best of what Jazz can do: Innovating, improvising, cherishing and uplifting experiences of people. Nepalnews.com

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Are We Looking at the Wrong Depression?
March 2, 2012
In order to understand the current economic stagnation, decision-makers are increasingly looking to economic history to offer some guidance. Many make immediate comparison to the Great Depression between 1929 and 1932 and call for the same Keynesian solution now that was implemented then. However, there remain crucial differences between the current financial crisis and the Depression, says Stephen Davies, academic director at the Institute of Economic Affairs in London.
- Unlike the 1930s, there has not been a substantial fall in general prices; in fact, prices in certain sectors such as food and fuel have actually spiked.
- While in the Great Depression the contraction was global and nearly universal in its impacts, the current downturn has been fairly weathered by much of the developing world, and the global economy as a whole has continued to grow.
- The level of unemployment is far more moderate now than it was then.
- So far there has not been the kind of sharp and sustained decline in world trade and economic activity that happened after 1930.
This suggests that comparisons between this downturn and that one are misleading, and that prescribing solutions based on their efficacy in the previous crisis is misguided. Rather, economists should point decision-makers to the "Long Depression," which lasted from 1873 to 1896, as it bears much greater resemblance to the current situation.
- The Long Depression was sparked by a global financial panic in 1873, which arose from the bursting of several speculative bubbles, particularly in railroads and real estate.
- The level of unemployment and economic disruption is much more in line with what the United States and Western Europe are currently experiencing.
- Technological innovations contributed to the economic upset: though they benefited society as a whole in the long run, their improved efficiencies created a need for labor readjustment and movement that upset the status quo.
This final point is crucial in creating policies for the current recession. Policymakers should avoid drastic measures and significant fiscal expenditure to combat what appears to be a persistent dearth of demand. Rather, they should draw comparisons from the Long Depression and recognize the current crisis for what it is: a gradual realignment of labor in response to technological innovations.
Source: Stephen Davies, "Are We Looking at the Wrong Depression?" Freeman Online, March 2012.
For text:
Browse more articles on Economic Issues


text:
Check out
OR http://www.tomsnetworking.com/Sections-article20.php
Or just Google 'qcheck'. You install endpoint clients on your PCs and then
from the 'console' you run performance tests between endpoint. I have used
QChecks big brother 'Chariot' (which is not free) to diagnose endpoint issues
across wireless and Gbit networks.
-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Razavi [mailto:mike at havepc dot com]
Sent: Thursday, February 24, 2005 11:36 PM
To: m0n0wall at lists dot m0n0 dot ch
Subject: [m0n0wall] a software to check my network???
Anyone know any windows based software which can help me to test my
network to make sure all my hubs, routers, switches, cables and computer
are not causing and network issues?
I really appreciate any thought on this.
To unsubscribe, e-mail: m0n0wall dash unsubscribe at lists dot m0n0 dot ch
For additional commands, e-mail: m0n0wall dash help at lists dot m0n0 dot ch


text:
Moderators: thunder, Gillian, Chari910, catloveyes, Helen8, kjshd05, Marie, fruitbat, LadyLucius
LadySekhmet wrote:Hmmm...I netflixed it (plain vanilla dvd), but I couldn't find any extras (ok, maybe I was a little traumatized by TL). Are they hidden? Are they only on the blue-ray? Should I re-netflix it at some point?
thunder wrote:I got the blu-ray/DVD today. JI is being interviewed several times on the special features on the Blu-ray. (But the focus is mainly on Taylor Lautner) Some of the interviews have been posted on YouTube. There's also a gag reel, and he has a couple of bloopers I don't regret buying it...
It's the same extra material on my DVD.
EDIT: Screen caps from Blooper reel:
Helen8 wrote:Marilaine, is there enough Jason in the Special Features to justify spending the $$ for it?
'm expecting a big run on "Hotel" dvds.
Should we warn them?
"That which does not kill you, makes you stronger"
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest


text:
NAPL Management Plus™ Awards Honor Companies for Excellence in Customer Service
Awards to be presented at Industry-wide Vision 3 Summit in Marco Island, Fla.
East Rutherford, N.J. -02/14/2012 -The National Association for Printing Leadership (NAPL) will honor 11 graphic communications companies with NAPL Management Plus™ Program Customer Plus™ Awards at the industry-wide Vision 3 Summit in Marco Island, Fla., Feb. 19-22. For information about the conference, go to www.vision3summit.org.
The awards, which are given in recognition of companies' superior customer service as judged by their customers in confidential responses to NAPL's eKG Competitive Edge Profile™ surveys, will be presented at special ceremonies on Feb. 21. The 2011 Customer Plus Platinum Awards—the program's highest honor—will go to five companies:
• Intelligencer Printing Company, Lancaster, Pa.
• Japs-Olson Company, St. Louis Park, Minn.
• Luminer Converting Group, Lakewood, N.J.
• Neyenesch Printers, San Diego, Calif.
• Wordsprint, Wytheville, Va.
Two companies will be presented with 2011 Customer Plus Gold Awards:
• Classic Graphics, Charlotte, N.C.
• Jet, Downers Grove, Ill.
In addition, four companies will receive 2011 Customer Plus Silver Awards:
• Cenveo, Stamford, Conn.
• Cenveo Publisher Services, Stamford, Conn.
• Grand River Printing & Imaging, Belleville, Mich.
• WS Packaging Group, Inc., Green Bay, Wis.
"Superior customer service has always been a key to success in our industry, but in today's business and economic environment, it is absolutely essential to long-term growth," said NAPL President and Chief Executive Officer Joseph P. Truncale, Ph.D. "Our Customer Plus Award winners have not only demonstrated the highest level of commitment to meeting their customer's needs, but have distinguished themselves from their competitors by achieving, and in many instances surpassing, their customer satisfaction goals—as shown by responses from those customers themselves."
Printing companies become eligible for a Customer Plus Award by completing an NAPL eKG Competitive Edge Profile,™ which surveys their customers on what they most value from them as a company and how they judge them in comparison to their competitors. Results are also benchmarked against industry standards and then scored against a database of responses from more than 20,000 previously surveyed printing customers. Only companies with the highest scores in the industry qualify for an NAPL Customer Plus Award.
Far more than a satisfaction survey, the eKG Competitive Edge Profile reveals how customers perceive a company, how they rate it against its competitors, and how they judge it in those areas they consider most important to them. "Following a Competitive Edge Profile survey, companies receive a report detailing where their organization outpaces or falls short of the competition," says Truncale. "This becomes the basis for a customized action plan that shows them what they must do right now to hold on to current customers and win new ones.
"Our research has shown clearly that there is a direct correlation between report findings and operating profits," he adds. "Those printing companies that know what their customers want and how they want it, that provide value in the minds of their customers, and improve client satisfaction based on defined areas of need, can drive profits up by five points in one year."
One Meadowlands Plaza, Suite 1511
East Rutherford, NJ 07073
Phone: (201) 634-9600
Fax: (201) 986-2976
For more information, contact:


text:
TLC To Tour — With Left Eye?
Tupac isn't the only artist experiencing a resurrection: Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes will appear with her TLC bandmates in an upcoming reunion tour, despite the fact that she died 10 years ago, the group's rep tells TMZ. Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas are currently planning the tour, which will take place this year in the US. Lopes' vocals will be incorporated into the live show, and her image will be projected onto a large screen. Read more…


text:
The family of murdered British soldier Lee Rigby has welcomed the lengthy jail terms for his killers, saying he will now be able to rest in peace.
Michael Adebolajo, 29, was given a whole life term for the barbaric killing and Michael Adebowale, 22, was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 45 years.
His mother Lyn Rigby said she spoke to her son as she watched the two be sentenced.
"I told Lee, 'It's time for you to rest in peace my beautiful son. Justice has been done and sleep well until we meet again'," she told Britain's The Sun newspaper.
"These sentences bring me comfort to know Lee will suffer no more - even though our pain goes on."
In an interview with the same newspaper the soldier's fiancee, Aimee West, who was also in court, said she hoped his killers would never be let out in her lifetime or that of his son, and said they had got what they wanted - "an eye for an eye".
West, a former member of the Royal Military Police, said: "They wanted to die. They wanted to be martyrs. They said they wanted to be ransomed back to their own people or be killed.
"They will be denied that in jail, where they will be spending the rest of their days. They don't deserve anything less."
She added: "They need to be locked up forever because that's what they didn't want. That's the only thing that gives me comfort."
Adebolajo and Adebowale had to be dragged from the dock in London yesterday after they erupted with rage when the judge told the British-born extremists they had been radicalised and had betrayed their religion.
The judge was forced to sentence the killers in their absence for butchering the father of one in broad daylight on May 22 last year.
They chose the young soldier as their victim because he was wearing a Help for Heroes hooded top, mowing him down in a car before hacking at his limp body with a meat cleaver and knives in an attempt to decapitate him.
As the began his sentencing remarks, Adebolajo screamed "Allahu Akbar" as he and Adebowale were pinned to the ground and bundled down to the cells by several prison officers.
The judge had told them: "You each converted to Islam some years ago. Thereafter you were radicalised and each became an extremist, espousing a cause and views which, as has been said elsewhere, are a betrayal of Islam and of the peaceful Muslim communities who give so much to our country."
Adebowale shouted, "that's a lie" and "it's not a betrayal of Islam", and ranted about Britain and America.
Explaining his decision to give Adebolajo a whole life term, the judge said the 29-year-old, who has two children and four stepchildren, was the leader of the murderous plot and had "no real prospect of rehabilitation".
However, Adebowale's younger age, mental health problems and "lesser role" meant that he escaped spending the rest of his natural life behind bars.
In an emotional victim impact statement read to the court, Rigby's widow Rebecca said: "Of all the feelings I have, the one thing that overrides everything is that I know my son will grow up and see images of his dad that no son should ever have to endure, and there is nothing I can do to change this."


text:
SALLY CLAY is close to tears as she holds in her arms a lamb that has just been born but will not survive for long.
''I don't think he can see. He's brain damaged and his head is lolling, he won't be able to suckle.''
The ewe comes across to nuzzle her offspring.
''He does have a wonderful mother who is trying to get him to stand up, but it's not going to happen. Lambs like this are not viable. It's heart breaking.''
John, the veteran farmer beside her in his lambing shed at this East Sussex farm, says grimly: ''He's getting cold now. I will have to shoot him. It's not easy.''
This is one of 74 farms across England that have been struck by a new disease that is causing thousands of lambs to be born dead or with deformities that mean they cannot survive for more than a few minutes.
A thousand farms across Europe have been hit in the last month or so - but nobody knows how bad things will get, because the lambing season is not in full swing. The disease is invisible in sheep until the infected ewes give birth.
Schmallenberg disease is so new it was named only in December, after the town in western Germany where the first cases were seen last August in dairy cows.
Scientists are not sure how it is transmitted, but the leading theory is that plumes of midges carrying the disease were blown across the sea in autumn. Sheep have a gestation period of five months, so the adults infected then are beginning to give birth now.
There is also a fear that cows will be affected. So far the disease has been found in cattle at five British farms, where calves have been aborted six months into pregnancy. Cows have a longer gestation period than sheep, so any serious impact on births will not be seen until later in the year.
John, who does not want his surname to be used, has lost 40 of the 400 lambs born so far, but others have lost more. He went to a public meeting where a scientist from the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency said the worst-hit farms could lose half their flocks.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said this has happened in rare cases in Europe, but the worst seen in Britain so far is 20 per cent.
Lambs can fetch $150 each at market and 16 million are born in Britain every year. ''This has huge potential financial implications for the farming community,'' said Alistair Mackintosh, of the National Farmers Union's livestock board, describing it as a potential catastrophe.
''To lose 20 per cent of your flock is catastrophic.''
Telegraph, London


text:
Scroll through these features and discover how Connect can boost learning outcomes in your class.
All the data you need delivered to you in a readable snapshot, Connect Insight for Educators offers answers to the following questions:
Your valuable time and expertise should be devoted to teaching—not grading. Connect will automatically grade assignments and quizzes, providing you with easy-to-read reports so you know which students need more guidance.
Who has the time to sift through multiple files, folders and click through various websites? Not you. Everything you need to be an effective educator is at your fingertips; consolidate all your course materials with Connect.
Develop a curriculum for your course using the best content for your students; a comprehensive library of resources provides you with options you can modify to suit your needs.
Whether you're looking to save time or for more consistency across multiple sections, with Connect, you can share courses and assignments with colleagues. Easily control permissions to allow another educator to modify content. Accomplish more in less time!
Focus on what's important: learning outcomes. Within Connect, you can create assignments and run reports to quickly assess whether students are learning crucial course content.
Seamlessly integrate Connect with your LMS, and easily access registration, attendance, assignments, grades and course resources in a central location—all in real time.
Connect is designed to be easy to use, but if you need a little help, or want to learn tips and tricks for super users, you can find tutorials as you work.
Accessible online, students can review lecture content wherever an internet connection is available. This no-fuss feature makes capturing lectures a breeze, and best of all, students can review the material using a powerful keyword search function, quickly pinpointing relevant information within the lecture recording.


text:
Albert Avalos Loves M.C. Hammer, Billy Idol, and Michael Jackson…I-Drive at 5: (Video)
Albert Avalos, a teacher at Ysleta High School, is my guest today on the I-Drive at 5. Albert also wins a family 4 pack of tickets to the Spring Home Show. Albert kicks off the show with these 3 of his favorite songs…
#1 – Can't Touch This – M.C. Hammer
#2 – Dancing With Myself – Billy Idol
#3 – P.Y.T. – Michael Jackson
Subscribe to 93.1 KISS FM on


text:
Celebrity Mailbag: Ask Cody Simpson Anything You Want!
Celebuzz has on fire with our Celebrity Mailbag series over the past few weeks, and now we've got yet another major one coming up — teen superstar Cody Simpson.
The Australian pop star will be answering questions from you — the very awesome Celebuzz readers — in an exclusive video for us, and now's your chance to ask him the things you've been dying to know. Want to know how he learned to sing? Or maybe what his favorite brand of toothpaste is? Whatever you want — ask it in the comments section of this post, and Cody will pick his favorites to answer in a video we'll post soon.
Got that? Drop your questions in the comments below, and be sure to "Like" Celebuzz on Facebook so you know when the video of Cody answering all of your questions is here! And, while you're at it, check out our recent mailbag with fellow young star Greyson Chance below!


text: The British Library The British Library http://sounds.bl.uk/JISC ASR IPR STATUS LIST.xls Kingston, Dorset C908/68 Henry talks about traditional ploughing and mowing by hand. He also recalls his mother baking in a brick oven. The original recording appears to have been paused on a number of occasions. 1956 Kingston, Dorset: OS Grid Reference(395500,79500) English sound University of Leeds Ellis, Stanley (b.1926 male, SED fieldworker) Gould, Henry (b.1884 male, retired farm worker) 00:04:45 00:04:45


text:
Kobe Bryant and His Catholic Faith
Here is something interesting, that I never knew about. Kobe Bryant is Catholic, and turned to a priest in his hours of need.
From a GQ story out today (Note: GQ isn't known as the most morally sound site, so please be cautious if you visit for the whole article, I link only for attribution purposes):
Which brings us to the hinge-point in the career of Kobe Bryant: the week he checked into a Colorado hotel room, had sex with a woman who worked there, and was subsequently arrested on a sexual-assault charge. A year later, the charges were dropped and Bryant apologized. But the incident will (obviously) never go away. When Bryant dies, the accusation will probably appear in the second paragraph of his obituary. And he knows this.
"I started to consider the mortality of what I was doing," he says. At the time, he was 24. "What's important? What's not important? What does it mean when everybody loves you, and then everybody hates your guts for something they think you did? So that's when I decided that—if people were going to like me or not like me—it was going to be for who I actually was. To hell with all that plain vanilla shit, just to get endorsement deals. Those are superficial, anyway. I don't enjoy doing them, anyway. I'll just show people who I actually am…. The [loss of the] endorsements were really the least of my concerns. Was I afraid of going to jail? Yes. It was twenty-five to life, man. I was terrified. The one thing that really helped me during that process—I'm Catholic, I grew up Catholic, my kids are Catholic—was talking to a priest. It was actually kind of funny: He looks at me and says, 'Did you do it?' And I say, 'Of course not.' Then he asks, 'Do you have a good lawyer?' And I'm like, 'Uh, yeah, he's phenomenal.' So then he just said, 'Let it go. Move on. God's not going to give you anything you can't handle, and it's in his hands now. This is something you can't control. So let it go.' And that was the turning point."
Most people know right away who Kobe Bryant is without explanation. But for those of you who may not, the simplest way to explain him is to say that he was once called "the next Michael Jordan," and that quickly turned into "could he be better than Jordan?" He is the all time leading scorer for the Los Angeles Lakers. He won 3 NBA championships in his first years in the league, is a perennial All-Star, a 3-time Gold Medalist, Slam Dunk Champion, NBA MVP, Scoring leader… the list goes on.
But, since 2003 what most of his bio's mention, almost immediately, is a 2003 sexual assault charge. Over the course of the next year as the legal battle waged, his image and name were decimated in the media. His rise from High School star, to heir apparent in the NBA, to his icy cool demeanor, all compounded with this crime resulted in huge fall from the top.
The charges were eventually dropped by prosecutors after the accuser refused to testify. Bryant admitted that he had an adulterous encounter, but denied the rape allegations. Yet, he did apologize publicly:
Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did. After months of reviewing discovery, listening to her attorney, and even her testimony in person, I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter.
I am not here to exonerate or even apologize for Bryant, his actions, or his days since. This is simply to say, that there has always been something about this story that made me wonder how he got through it, how he had some of his best years AFTER the fact. Many sports stars will enter a storm, come out ok on the immediate other side, but languish soon after. Kobe more or less did the opposite, but for some teammate and injury problems.
But all that said, more than a decade later he mentions his faith, specifically his CATHOLIC faith. He could have referenced God, and leave out the Church, especially knowing how it is viewed in professional sports and the media world. But he didn't…
I am not here to re-try, or litigate his case. I am here simply to say that it is impressive, only in-and-of-itself, that Bryant trumpets his Catholic faith as what he leaned on during his darkest days.


text:
It is an enduring image, the one out of Warren Township this week, of Cub Scouts from Pack 182, Den 12, meeting with a man portraying General, soon to be President, George Washington of Virginia, father of our country.
The Scouts are in their uniforms, blue shirts, golden neckerchiefs, and bright, sunny, eager faces. And Washington is in his Continental Army uniform, his dark blue great coat that tapers to tails in the back, and powder blue sash across his chest, not unlike the Boy Scout Merit Badge sashes these Cub Scouts might aspire to fill with badges of achievement.
Washington is also wearing knee-high riding boots, the kind needed when saddling up and heading out to command an army of neophyte colonialists trying to defeat nothing short of the legendary juggernaut British Army, the military super power of its day.
It is easy to imagine Washington standing on the ridge of the Watchung Mountains, and keeping an eye on the comings and goings of his adversary down on the plains of what is now Union County and Staten island, Raritan Bay, the Arthur Kill and Newark Bay.
Living history will also be evident this weekend at the Watchung Circle, where a cluster of activities will hold interest for the entire family, a presentation of what could legitimately be called learning through our shared living history.
The historic Texier House in the Watchung Circle has been renovated, refurbished, and transformed by the Watchung Historical Committee into a repository of Watchung History, with art pieces, artifacts and more. The collection is still growing, and at 10:30 a.m., this Saturday, there will be a ribbon cutting ceremony. Residents can get a glimpse inside of the progress and the collection so far.
To call attention to the Texier House's opening, there will be a Civil War encampment re-enactment just across the Watchung Circle in the Watchung Village Green from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
People of all ages, including kids of all ages, and all who have an interest in American history, can meet with re-enactors who will wear Civil War era uniforms, have Civil War era weaponry, and will have Civil War era tents, bed rolls, cooking implements, even recipes. There will be faux drills, and even an occasional discharge of Civil War era muskets, using blanks, of course, and in a very controlled, utterly safe way. Children will have the opportunity to show how well they can recite President Abraham Lincoln's iconic Gettysburg Address. It's not too late for everyone to memorize it, or at least copy it out and read it several times to pick up on all its offerings of tender healing during a time of profound national grief.
Then, at 7:30 p.m., over at the Watchung Arts Center, musician and historian David Kincaid will play his signature Civil War era Irish-American songs, with him singing in a Civil War era uniform, and accompanying himself on mandolin.
It is all to call attention to the living history that is and will be stored in the Texier House from here on in, in the middle of the Watchung Circle, where thousands of commuters pass every day, creating new story lines of the history of these towns, this region of New Jersey, and this little corner of this country.
Imagine George Washington, himself, and Abraham Lincoln, too, standing side-by-side your son and your daughter, your mother and your father, your neighbor and your fellow community volunteer on Saturday, no matter what you are doing this Saturday, learning something new every day, and deepening a sense of shared pride in our country, in our community, in family, and in our living history.
Washington fought to start that. Lincoln fought to preserve that and broaden that to include all people. We should fight to remember that, honor that, preserve that and pass it on for generations to come.


text:
The Seacoast United Mariners will compete in the Women's Premier Soccer League for the 2017 season, as part of the East-Northeast Division. Teams for the 2017 season include the Boston Aztec (MA), Boston Breakers College Academy (MA), CFC Passion (CT), New England Mutiny (MA), and the Seacoast United Phantoms (NH).
Scheduling for the upcoming season takes place at the Annual General Meeting, typically scheduled for Las Vegas, Nevada at the end of January of each year. Scroll down for more news about the WPSL. Visit he official WPSL website by clicking here!
The Seacoast Mariners WPSL team is three games into the season. They currently sit 1-2 and are coming off a huge 7-3 win over the Rhode Island Reds. This week also concludes the arrival of the entire roster for this summer. We were able to catch up and chat with Catalina Rubiano and Heather Magee on their soccer backgrounds and goals for this upcoming season with the Mariners. Both join the Mariners this summer in preparation for their final season of collegiate soccer at LSU (Louisiana State University).
The Mariners WPSL team earned their first win of the season over the Rhode Island Reds by a score of 7-3 at Stevenson Field on the campus of
Brown University in Providence Rhode Island.The Mariners dominated the game from the kick off as Rhode Island came out fast and furious against the Mariners, but the speed of play by the Mariners was just too much for the Reds to keep up with. The combinations of midfield play by Steph Gilkenson, Kristi Zerrilli, Megan Snyder, Caitlyn Bucksbaum, and fresh from Louisiana State University new Mariner Heather Magee, dictated the play for the entire match. Goal keepers Megan Manley and Madison Card combined for 8 saves. Goals were scored by Pavlina Nepakojova, Steph Gilkenson, Jaymee Wallace, and Amanda Arnold. The Mariners next match is June 6th at home vs. the Boston Aztecs.
The Seacoast United Mariners WPSL team lost a heartbreaker against the Boston Aztecs on Saturday. The Mariners went up 1-0 in the 29th minute from a goal scored by Pavlina Nepakojova. The Mariners went on to threaten many more times through the first half and carried most of the play. In the second half the Aztecs scored the equalizer in the 65th min. on a questionable handball call, which resulted in a penalty kick. The play went back and forth with the Mariners threatening numerous times getting behind the Aztec defenders. The combination of Caitlyn Bucksbaum, Kristi Zarilli, and Steph Gilkenson in the midfield helped the Mariners dictate the game. The heartbreaker came in the 86th minute on a full volley from an Aztec forward. The Mariners played quite well and have their next match on the May 30th against the Rhode Island Reds.


text:
Fernet & Jerry
When John Gertsen learned that Italian immigrants sometimes mix an obscure Sicilian bitters with eggnog as a kind of tonic, he had to try it. He substituted widely available Fernet-Branca for the bitters. The result? "The rich flavor of the egg takes the edge off the Fernet-Branca and the heat makes it smell heavenly."
Slideshow: Comforting Warming Drinks
- Servings: Makes 1 Drink
- 2 ounces Tom & Jerry Batter
- 1 1/2 ounces Fernet-Branca (bitter Italian digestif)
- 1/2 ounce Cognac
- 2 ounces hot whole milk
- Freshly grated nutmeg, for garnish
How to make this recipe
Spoon the Tom & Jerry Batter into a small warmed mug or heatproof glass. Gently fold in the Fernet-Branca and Cognac, then gently stir in the hot milk. Garnish the drink with freshly grated nutmeg.
Contributed By John Gertsen


text:
Outline: Obtain and plot MLWF for the 4 bands around the fermi level of lead
Input Files
- lead.scf ground state calculation
- lead.nscf compute the Bloch states on a regular grid
- lead.pw2wan compute the overlap and projections
- lead.win wannier90 input
The four lowest valence bands in lead are separated in energy from the higher conduction states. The MLWF of these states have partial occupancy. MLWF describing only the occupied states would be poorly localised.
We need to run a series of calculations to obtain the MLWF. The ex2 directory contains a suitable submission script, note that it does the following
- Run an scf calculation to obtain the ground-state charge density
- Run an nscf calculation to obtain the bloch states on a uniform grid of kpoints
- Run Wannier90 in pre-processing mode to determine which overlaps are needed
- Run pw2wannier90 to compute the overlaps (M) and projections (A)
- Run wannier90 to obtain the wannier functions
Fermi Surface Use Wannier interpolation to obtain the Fermi surface of lead. Rather than re-running the whole calculation we can use the unitary transformations obtained in the first calculation and restart from the plotting routine. Add the following keywords to the lead.win file:
restart = plot fermi_energy = x.xxxx fermi_surface_plot = true
and re-run wannier90. You should take the value of the fermi energy from the scf output. wannier90 calculates the band energies, through wannier interpolation, on a dense mesh of k-points in the Brillouin zone. The density of this grid is controlled by the keyword fermi_surface_num_points. The default value is 50 (i.e., 503 points). The Fermi surface file lead.bxsf can be viewed using XCrySDen, e.g.,
xcrysden --bxsf lead.bxsf
Further Exercises
Spinor Wannier Function
The spin orbit coupling strength is large in lead. We can compute spinor wannier orbitals. Make a copy of the lead input files in a new directory. Make the following changes. Add these lines to the system namelist in the scf and nscf input
lspinorb=.true., noncolin=.true., starting_magnetization = 0.0
In the wannier90 input file add or change the following
spinors : T num_wann : 8
Compute the MLWF.
Now compare the bandstructures for the calculations with, and without spin orbit. To compute the bandstructure add the following lines to the win file:
begin kpoint_path L 0.50000 0.50000 0.5000 G 0.00000 0.00000 0.0000 G 0.00000 0.00000 0.0000 X 0.50000 0.00000 0.5000 X 0.50000 -0.50000 0.0000 K 0.37500 -0.37500 0.0000 K 0.37500 -0.37500 0.0000 G 0.00000 0.00000 0.0000 end kpoint_path bands_plot : T
This produces a script lead_bands.gnu which you can open with gnuplot (or you can set bands_plot_format = xmgrace to get it in xmgrace style) . The script is easily modified to show both band structures.
Lead has a small unit cell, so the 2x2x2 kpoint sampling is far from convergence. Repeat the calculation with larger meshes (eg 4x4x4) and see how the spread and band-structures change. You will find a script called kmesh.pl in utilities. This will generate the appropriate kpoint grids
../utilities/kmesh.pl 4 4 4 (in pwscf format) ../utilities/kmesh.pl 4 4 4 w (in wannier90 format)
You can compare against the full PW bands. To help you wannier90 writes out the kpoints in the file lead_bands.kpt. There is a small fortran program to help with this. To save you time you can download the bands


text:
I had been considering revamping my back garden for a long time. The old paving was lifting and the lawn area was weeds including bindii. Greg from GardenGigs was happy to work with my suggestions and provided professional advice. I was confident that all the work would be done..
A very approachable and friendly person willing to oblige. Thanks Ashford. We have negotiated a monthly lawn mowing rate. Also to clear some dead branches and general garden maintenance.
Get your job done right
We verify our businesses
Only hire the best
Free to request and free to hire!
Mosman Park, WA
Building restoration / preservation
No (not required)
My name is Danielle, i am the property manager for this property. The current stone wall that surrounds the property is slowly deteriorating and collapsing in areas.The tenants will need to be cont...Make a similar request
What next?
Businesses like to send a quote as soon as possible. You may receive
your first quote within an hour.
Call us on 13 18 18Visit our help centre Back to job form
Keep an eye on your email for quotes that we send you from relevant businesses.
We don't post anything to Facebook. Loading... Something went wrong. Please try again. Or
We will notify you here when quotes come in.
Why do we need this?
Businesses who send you a quote may get in touch to chat about your request.
Looks like you've used Oneflare before. Login to Oneflare to submit your job.
Forgot your password? Reset your password
We have sent an email to
We have re-sent the email. Check your email and follow the link to change your password.
Send again
Be sure to check your spam folder for an email from firstname.lastname@example.com
You are continuing as . We will send all job updates to edit
Only businesses that send you a quote will see your contact details.
This is based on


text:
Monica Lewinsky Reacts To Beyonce's 'Partition'
Monica Lewinsky spoke to Vanity Fair about Beyonce's song, "Partition." You know, the line where she mentions that he [Jay Z] "Monica Lewinsky'd all on my gown."
In a brief interview with Vanity Fair, Monica decided to correct Beyonce.
"Thanks, Beyoncé, but if we're verbing, I think you meant 'Bill Clinton'd all on my gown,' not Monica Lewinsky'd!"
Photo Credit: Getty Images


text:
Analyst: Grand Theft Auto V could sell 25 million
EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich predicts Rockstar Games' upcoming open-world game cabable of moving many millions of copies in first year.
We'll begin emailing you updates about %gameName%.
Rockstar Games' upcoming open-world action game Grand Theft Auto V is the company's most ambitious project to date, and according to one analyst, that deep investment will be rewarded with strong first-year sales. Electronic Entertainment Design and Research analyst Jesse Divnich told Now Gamer recently that he believes the hotly hyped game could sell 25 million or more copies during its first 12 months.
He explained that though the current high-definition game market is "softening" as the existing console cycle comes to a close, the market for big-budget AAA titles like GTAV remains healthy.
"In the case of GTAV, I have little concerns about when it is released," he said. "Whether April, June, or even Winter, I'd expect GTAV to sell in upwards of 25 million copies in its first 12 months."
Rockstar Games last week confirmed GTAV will ship for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 during spring 2013. Preorders for the game opened this week at select retailers in the United States and Europe. The game's second trailer will arrive November 14.
For more on GTAV, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.


text:
Note: This message is displayed if (1) your browser is not standards-compliant or (2) you have you disabled CSS. Read our Policies for more information.
2-13-1 Online Permit Application Database
2-13-2 Telephone
2-13-3 E-Mail
The Permit Application Database provides the easiest and most up to date status information for permit applications. The online database is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and contains permit information for applications processed since 1990. It is searchable by the following fields:
Searches of the Online Permit Application Database can be further limited by searching a combination of the above fields.
A. Direct all telephone status inquiries to:
B. Provide the following:
A. Direct all e-mail status inquiries to:
B. Provide the following:
C. The inquiry will be routed to the appropriate staff member who will prepare and e-mail a response.


text:
Argentina 67-14 Namibia
Argentina recovered from their disappointing display against Australia with a convincing win over a sprightly Namibian side.
The Pumas ran in a total of 10 tries but it failed to deter their effectively amateur opponents, who showed invention throughout.
Hakkies Husselman was the pick of the underdogs, continually launching fresh offensives, and was rewarded with a second-half try, one of only two by his side.
Du Preez Grobler had earlier scored on the stroke of half-time.
For Argentina, Martin Gaitan ran in the tournament's third hat-trick, Pablo Bouza scored a brace and there was one apiece for Federico Mendez and the Miranda brothers.
Referee Nigel Williams also awarded two penalty tries.
The best of the Pumas' four first-half tries came on the half-hour mark when Gonzalo Quesada unleashed a rare break.
The Pumas fly-half beautifully delayed his pass to Juan Fernandez Miranda, drawing in two defenders and allowing the centre to slide under the posts unopposed.
Earlier, Mendez had touched down after a short blind-side break, before Bouza scored from the base of the scrum.
A penalty try capped the Pumas' quartet of tries in the half but the biggest cheer was saved for the effort of Grobler in the final minute.
In Namibia's first really threatening attack, Grobler left the Argentine defence stranded with a brace of side-steps.
It took just five minutes after the re-start for the Pumas to get their scoring under way, Gaitan profiting from a string of sweet passes through the backs following a fluffed drop-out by Emile Wessels.
Gaitan produced a double within 10 minutes, landing the ball in practically the same spot with a monstrous overlap, only moments after his side had been awarded their second penalty try.
The centre completed his hat-trick in the dying minutes with another simple slide in.
Nicolas Fernandez Miranda matched his brother's earlier effort with a try of his own but, in a mirror of the first half, Namibia picked up a try again with their only realistic scoring opportunity of the half.
Deservedly it was Husselman who forced his way through amidst a melee of players on the Pumas' try line.
But Argentina were not yet finished, Bouza completing his brace again with a simple touch down 10 minutes from time before Gaitan completed his hat-trick
Replacements: M Ledesma, R Roncero, P Albacete, I Fernandez Lobbe, A Pichot, F Contepomi, I Corleto.
Namibia: J Booysen; D Mouton, DP Grobler, C Powell, M Africa; E Wessels, H Husselman; K Lensing, J Meyer, N du Toit, H Senekal, E Isaacs, S van der Merwe, H Lintvelt, S Furter (capt).
Replacements: C van Tonder, A Blaauw, W Duvenhage, J van Lill, R Pedro, N Swanepoel, V Dreyer.


text: Win the Puncture DVD By Townsquare Promotions December 27, 2011 3:33 PM Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Win the Puncture DVD Sometimes the brightest light comes from the darkest places. Catch Chris Evans in PUNCTURE, a gripping new legal drama from Millennium Entertainment. Available January 3rd on DVD, Blu-Ray and Digitally wherever movies are sold. Category: Contests Share on Facebook Share on Twitter More Leave a comment Send to a friend! Print this page Pin it! Reddit This! Share on Tumblr! Recommended for You ZergNet Best of the Web ZergNet


text:
We use cookies to support optimal navigation through our website. If you want to learn more, please refer to the information on our privacy policy.
- Despre noi
- Group
We are a Swiss energy enterprise and stand for security, quality and sustainability. We are therefore locally anchored and globally present.
Our actions are determined in accordance with our ecological, social and economic objectives. We treat people and the environment with respect. Our long-term profitability gives us the freedom to act and makes us competitive.
The ongoing search for solutions that accord with the energy requirements of our customers shapes our thoughts and actions. It is with this in mind that we develop and realise products and services.


text:
Labor, as one observer noted in the past week, has started election year 2013 with all the finesse of a drunk coming home at 3 o'clock in the morning.
But there have been worse precedents.
Six months before sweeping to his third successive election victory,
In April 2001, the Coalition was sitting on a primary vote of 31 per cent in the Nielsen poll. In the most recent Newspoll, Labor was on 32 per cent, and on 34 per cent in the Essential Media poll.
In 2001, Howard trailed the then opposition leader
The first four months of 2001 were a nightmare for Howard, who had introduced the GST on July 1 the year before.
Just as the ministers
No matter how genuine or otherwise their reasons for wanting out, Reith and Wooldridge's departures were perceived as rats leaving a sinking ship and a further sign the government was doomed.
Much more damaging was the decision by John Moore to quit Parliament and force a byelection in his safe Brisbane seat of Ryan. The Liberals suffered a double-digit swing in Ryan and lost it for the first time to Labor.
It was hardly surprising given that one month before the Coalition was thrashed in the Queensland state election, and the GST and unpopularity of the Howard government were blamed.
And a month before that, on February 10, Richard Court's Liberal government was shown the door in Western Australia in a record landslide. Federal factors were blamed.
Against this backdrop, panic and ill discipline permeated Coalition ranks and there was mutinous talk of
In May, the tensions exploded when someone leaked to journalist Laurie Oakes the notorious
By comparison, the Gillard government's new year challenges look almost manageable.
Still, there are few, if any, in Labor, who believe the government can hang on to power on September 14 with Gillard at the helm.
A maladroit but properly motivated attempt to replace the lead Northern Territory senator,
None of these, in isolation, has been particularly catastrophic. In combination, however, they paint a picture of disorder.
Gillard is thinking hard about things, perhaps too hard. She knew a year ago that Evans and Roxon wanted to retire at the election. Her key reason for not announcing it at the end of last year and having a reshuffle, which would have been the usual time, was because she feared the media would start writing leadership stories.
She knew Evans stepping down as Senate leader would trigger a caucus ballot for his replacement. The last week of politics in a calendar year is known as the killing season for leaders, and Gillard did not want to do anything that would set the media off and perhaps unleash something larger, even though at the time there was no prospect of
She decided to use the resignations to her advantage and announce them in the new year and put a fresh face on things. She was not to know when Thomson was going to be arrested, nor did she anticipate she would mishandle the Crossin-Peris swap.
Comparatively, Howard's plight may have been worse in 2001, but there were differences. He had a budget surplus, which was used ruthlessly at the May budget to bribe older voters, the demographic most aggrieved with his government. Then, to eliminate another deadly problem, he backflipped on petrol by abolishing the annual indexation of excise.
At the same time, the economy was growing and Labor was playing a small target by relying on discontent with the GST to bring it victory.
On July 14, the Liberals held on to the seat of Aston in a byelection caused by the death of the sitting member, Peter Nugent.
"I believe that the government is well and truly back in the game,'' said Howard the next day. "If there were an unstoppable momentum for Labor to win the federal election, they'd have rolled us over in Aston."
He was right. Helped by policy backflips, other public acts of contrition and, not insignificantly, a growing economy, the Coalition was competitive by July. After that, the Tampa asylum seeker episode and September 11 terrorist attacks put the result beyond doubt.
Gillard can rely on none of these opportunities. She is hamstrung with a budget deficit, a hung parliament which always looks untidy, a restive caucus, the ever-present Rudd and a slowing economy.
And the public never disliked Howard as deeply.
In the week, the Coalition concentrated its fire on the government breaking its promise to return the budget to surplus. The government argues quite properly that circumstances have changed and it would be economically destructive to make more cuts to achieve a surplus. But it should not have been so emphatic about repeatedly promising one in the first place, given global economic volatility. It has given the Coalition another line of attack on trust.
Moreover, the Independent Commission Against Corruption hearings in NSW exposing alleged misdeeds of the former kingmakers of the old NSW state government, have exposed the structural flaws in Labor, which disgust voters.
These events are entirely beyond Gillard's control and unrelated to the federal government, but the daily allegations against
Gillard herself is a beneficiary of the so-called "NSW disease", given the way she took the job from Rudd. Ask MPs in western Sydney and they will tell you this is a factor out there in the prime minister's unpopularity.
Gillard's speech to caucus on Monday afternoon indicated she is feeling the pressure. It is perfectly normal for political leaders, especially in an election year, to use such meetings to call for unity and discipline, which is what both Gillard and Abbott did in the week.
But many found it bizarre when Gillard also told caucus that journalists had told her they had returned from holidays to find messages from MPs making negative comments about the government.
Gillard had only to read the papers to know her MPs were grizzling in private. Her message to caucus was perceived by her detractors as blaming her colleagues for her own mistakes. "I'll stop complaining when she stops f--cking up,'' said one MP.
One Liberal MP said it was the same pattern of behaviour
Others, however, say Gillard was right to be so blunt. Labor's constant self-analysis is self-destructive.
Not all of those pushing for Rudd are claiming he will win the election for Labor. Some believe he can, while others feel the party's structural problems are so deep that Rudd, at best, can turn a rout into a respectable loss. Hence, there is a third school of thought emerging in Labor along the lines that it is better to go to the gallows with dignity than change leaders again.
One minister said that in both NSW and federally, Labor had proved that "the model is broken" – the model being that changing leaders in response to bad polls will turn things around. To do so again would just worsen the public perception of the party.
Indeed, the Liberal Party has road-tested with voters the return of Rudd and found it would most probably result in a sugar hit for Labor in the polls but not do anything to ease voter unhappiness with Labor's structural problems, which ICAC and Thomson are illuminating.
One senior Rudd defender rejects this, saying Rudd, as such a high-profile victim of machine politics, can help combat the problem. He will once more take up the cudgels for party reform to try to diminish the power of the factions and unions.
At the same time, however, he would allow caucus to choose the frontbench. He, as opposition leader in 2007, broke with convention and vested this power in the leader, under the pretence of diminishing the power of the factions which made the choices.
The Australian Financial Review


text:
Toys from 1992
Tim Rowett has around 18,000 toys in his collection, and they are catalogued by date, i.e. when Tim acquired the toy. So when Tim delves into his toy archives to bring us more treasures from the collection, he often will bring to the studio a case of toys that all date from the same time. Here we have some toys that Tim collected in 1992.
There is a carved wooden apple, where you can remove the lid and store small items inside. A Japanese inventor created the fortune telling dice or Tarot dice - this is battery powered, and when you wave your hand over the crystal ball (actually it is plastic!) the little motor hidden in the base will agitate the dice for a few seconds, before it settles down to show... your fortune maybe! However the toy does have a habit of springing into life at random moments!
There is a little flipbook showing a teddy bear getting dressed in the morning, ready to go out. Also an instant snow ball maker - a plastic tongs mechanism which allows you to make snow balls without your hands getting wet or cold!
A little hand help zoetrope shows a horse and rider. A thumb push mechanism powers it very elegantly. And a classic bottle by the late Harry Eng. This one has a doll inside. Her eyes open and close as you tilt the bottle. However the doll's head is much wider than the neck of the bottle. How is it done? From Asia a nice craft toy - the bear brush!
Finally two musical toys. Paddle Drums are bats which can be tuned. Tim only has 2 but in theory you could have a whole octave and as you bat the ball from one person to the next, it would be possible to play a tune. A bit like hand bells maybe. And finally an Ocean Drum. This drum has a large number of tiny metal balls inside, and as you tilt the drum too and fro, you hear the sea wash as the waves break on the beach. Very soothing!
Items in the toy collection are not for sale.


text:
QUOTING QUIVERFULL is a regular feature of NLQ – we present the actual words of noted Quiverfull leaders and ask our readers: What do you think? Agree? Disagree? This is the place to state your opinion. Please, let's keep it respectful – but at the same time, we encourage readers … [Read more...]
Quoting Quiverfull: Conservative Feminism
January 13, 2013 by Suzanne Calulu
Filed Under: A Woman's Choice, Accountability, Alienation, Beautiful Girlhood, Beautiful Girlhood Catalogue (Vision Forum), Biblical Manhood & Womanhood, Big Happy Family Vision, Botkin Syndrome, Boundaries, Bounded Choice, Christian Culture War, Coercive Religious Groups (Cults), Complimentarianism, Confession, Control, Demonic Influences, Dominionism / Christian Reconstruction, Drinking the Koolaid, Elitism, Emotional Incest, Emotional Purity, Enmeshment, Father Worship, Fear Based Theology, Fear of Hell, Fear tactics, Femininity vs Feminism, Feminists, Formulaic Religion, Fruit of the Spirit, Fundamentalism, Gender Equality, Geoffrey Botkin, Group Think, Help Meet, Hot Topics, How Did I Get In This Mess?, Isolation, Issues, It's (Not That) Complicated by Anna Sophia and Elizabeth Botkin, J.O.Y (Self Denial), Jezebel Spirit, Judgementalism, Learned Helplessness, Legalism, Maintaining Appearances, Manipulation, Markers of a Cult, Marketing "Biblical Family Values", Marriage Covenant, Maternal Martyr, Mental / Emotional Health, Militant Fecundity, More from NLQ ..., Motherhood, Mutuality, NLQ Miscellany, NLQ Open Comments, Patriarchy, Perfectionism, Personal Autonomy, Proverbs 31 Woman, Quiverfull, Quiverfull & the Bible, Quiverfull Blogs, Quiverfull Books, Quiverfull Counterculture, Quiverfull Discernment, Quiverfull in politics, Quiverfull in the News, Quiverfull Leaders, Quiverfull Ministries, Quiverfull Multi-Media (Videos, Tapes, CDs / DVDs, Movies, etc.), Quiverfull Resources, Quiverfull Topics, Quoting Quiverfull, Return of the Daughters (Vision Forum), Self-Abnegation / Martydom, Self-Righteousness, Separation - Individuation, So Much More by Anna Sophia & Elizabeth Botkin, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual Abuse & Recovery, Spiritual Issues, Submission, The Godly Woman, Toxic Relationships, Traditional Gender Roles, Vision Forum (Doug Phillips), Visionary Daughters, Visionary Daughters (Anna Sophia & Elizabeth Botkin) Tagged With: Anna Sophia & Elizabeth Botkin, Conservative Feminism, gender roles, Quiverfull in politics, Visionary Daughters


text:
- Got the NETAPP NSO 156 questions from here. and guess what i PASSED! scored 88%. This site is a life saver. thank you so much once again. very prompt and helpful guys. Keep up the good job!
- You guys are doing great. Love the website and level of service that you have given. Just excellent....
- all good
- very cool.
- Thanks very much. i really appreciate your help. When can I expect your email? I have to do the exam the day after tomorrow thanks
Why Choose modernbursa Testing Engine
- Quality and Value
- modernbursa Practice Exams are written to the highest standards of technical accuracy, using only certified subject matter experts and published authors for development.
- Tested and Approved
- We are committed to the process of vendor and third party approvals. We believe professionals and executives alike deserve the confidence of quality coverage these authorizations provide.
- Easy to Pass
- If you prepare for these IT exams with modernbursa testing engines, It is easy to succeed for certifications in the first attempt.
- Try Before Buy
- modernbursa offers free demo of each product. You can check out the interface, question quality and usability of our practice exams before you decide to buy.


text:
Food for All
After a long run of mouth-watering desserts featured here lately, I thought it was time to bring it … [Read More...]
We had an early 4th of July BBQ this past weekend, and of course, I was in charge of dessert. I … [Read More...]
It's all about cookies this week! Last week, I started with the Best, Most Perfect Chocolate Chip … [Read More...]
Copyright © 2017 · innov8tive on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in


text:
When my grandmother called her the living room the "den," it always made me feel cozy and warm, like we were bears curling up in our little nook to relax together. Unfortunately many families' living rooms are the opposite of relaxing, littered with DVD cases, snack wrappers, toys, and old newspapers. There are five must-have tools for getting this cozy space organized and snuggly again, just in time to light an autumn fire! Click here to find out what these tools are on the Good Housekeeping Home Style Blog.
Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet


text:
Previously in the series: Genesis and Exodus, Leviticus through Deuteronomy, Joshua through Psalms, Proverbs through Song of Songs, Isaiah through Ezekiel, Daniel through Malachi, Matthew, Mark. [Read more…]
A few more notes on the gospels
December 9, 2012 by Leave a Comment
The Pope saying the date of Jesus' birth was miscalculated is not news
November 24, 2012 by Leave a Comment
I have no idea why this story is being treated as a big deal. Okay, I know: most journalists know hardly anything about Biblical scholarship, so when the Pope says our calendar gets the date of Jesus' birth wrong, they fail to think, "Oh, scholars have known this for a long time, and because neither [Read More…]


text:
A biting incident got someone kicked out of a Cincinnati-area day care on Thursday. That someone was day care worker Robin Mullins, 56, who bit a young child "to teach him a lesson," according to court records. From Cincinnati.com:
According to court documents, the 5-year-old bit another child at Andrew's Friends Pre-School & Daycare, 9870 Pippin Road, Colerain Township.
He was taken to the office, where Mullins allegedly bit him on the arm… She left a mark on the boy and caused an injury, police said.
"Day-care worker accused of biting 5-year-old" (Thanks, Charles Pescovitz!)


text:
We are constantly searching the United States to find places you can
buy Park Model Homes. We do not endorse any of these companies, we
simply aim to give you the as many options as possible to help your
search for a Park Model Home. If you are a dealer of Park Models in
North Carolina please send a link to your website to
email@example.com and we will be glad to add your company
to the directory.
NC Park Model Home dealer
- Countryside RV Center
has park models and other RVs, along with North
Carolina's larges Park Model Village. Yadkinville, NC.
Crisp RV Center
- Chocowinity, North Carolina
Over 35 years in the RV Business. Bayridge, Woodland
Park, Dutch Park Models.
Mountain Recreation Log Cabins
- Quality, custom
build Park Models and modular log homes in Newland,
Country Park Home and Cabin Sales - Franklin,
Western Carolina's source for Breckenridge, Chariot, Athens,
and TL Industries the leaders in the Park Model Industry.
Park Model Homes
Very Tiny Houses
Green Home Search
Small Home Kits
Building Green
Owner Financed
Wishbone Tiny Homes
Asheville builder of custom tiny homes from 150 to 1,000 square
Brevard Tiny House
North Carolina company builds small homes with lots of custom
options. Brevard, NC.
Tiny House and Park Model Home Dealers in NC


text: Swatch is a brand name for a line of wrist watches from the Swatch Group, a Swiss conglomerate with vertical control of the production of Swiss watches and related products. In 1982, Swatch was conceived and it was introduced to the market in Switzerland in March 1983. The first meaning of the name "Swatch" was "Second Watch" - because the new watch was introduced with a new concept of watches as casual, fun, and relatively disposable accessories. However later it was conceived as the contraction of Swiss (Made) Watch: "S'Watch", soon became "Swatch" as it is today perceived worldwide. The Swatch Group is the world's largest watch company, and the Group has accelerated its acquisition of Swiss luxury brands in recent years. The Swatch Group owns the following brands: Breguet, Blancpain, Jaquet Droz, Glashütte Original, Léon Hatot, Omega, Tiffany & Co., Rado, Longines, Union Glashütte, Tissot, Calvin Klein, Certina, Mido, Pierre Bal-main, Hamilton, Flik Flak and Endura.


text:
before it's in the papers"
NASA raises doubts on asteroid group thought to have killed dinosaurs
Sept. 20, 2011
Artist's concept of the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer.
(Credit: NASA
Artist's concept of the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer.
(Credit: NASA
Send us a comment
on this story, or send
it to a friend
New evidence suggests a family of asteroids recently blamed for the demise of the dinosaurs is not the culprit, NASA scientists say, keeping the case open on one of Earth's great mysteries. While many scientists agree that a large asteroid crashed into Earth about 65 million years ago, killing off the dinosaurs and some other lifeforms, they don't know exactly where that object came from or how it got here. A 2007 study using ground-based telescopes suggested the remnant of a huge asteroid, known as Baptistina, as a possible suspect. According to that theory, Baptistina crashed into another asteroid in the main belt between Mars and Jupiter about 160 million years ago. The collision would have sent shattered pieces as big as mountains flying, one of which hit Earth. But new observations from NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) satellite may rule out the Baptistina connection, according to the agency's researchers. This bolsters other recent evidence exonerating the family, they add. "The original calculations with visible light estimated the size and reflectivity of the Baptistina family members, leading to estimates of their age, but we now know those estimates were off. With infrared light, WISE was able to get a more accurate estimate, which throws the timing of the Baptistina theory into question," said Lindley Johnson, program executive for the Near Earth Object Observation Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "The demise of the dinosaurs remains in the cold case files." The satellite surveyed the sky twice in infrared light from January 2010 to February 2011. The asteroid-hunting portion of the mission used the data to catalogue more than 157,000 asteroids in the main belt and discovered more than 33,000 new ones. Visible light reflects off an asteroid. Without knowing how reflective the surface of the asteroid is, it's hard to accurately establish size. Infrared light observations allow a more accurate size estimate. They detect infrared light coming from the asteroid itself, which helps reveal its temperature and size. Once the size is known, the object's reflectivity can be re-calculated by combining infrared with visible-light data. The NASA investigators measured the reflectivity and the size of about 120,000 asteroids in the main belt, including 1,056 members of the Baptistina family. The scientists calculated the original parent Baptistina asteroid actually broke up closer to 80 million years ago, half as long as originally proposed. That wouldn't leave enough time for the asteroid to get here, they proposed. This calculation was possible because the size and reflectivity of the asteroid family members indicate how much time would have been required to reach their current locations—larger asteroids would not disperse in their orbits as fast as smaller ones. killed dinosaurs


text:
Campaign of the Month: June 2011
Shattered Gateway (Hiatus) ~ CotM Award JUNE 2011
(Major NPC) Oracle Queen Ophylia Mallack of Debron
Female Human (Inlander) Fighter/Priestess from the Nation of Debron. Birthright & Crown Queen of Debron, Chosen Great Oracle and High Priestess of Thelessara, and Mother of the Divine Child of Chaos.
Race: Human (Inlander)
Gender: Female
Age: 35
Height: 5' 3" / Weight: 100 lbs.
Hair/Eyes/Skin: Dark Brown/Hazel/Tanned
Wields: (HA #008) The Longsword, Yhoela
Deity: Was a common follower of Abriliam, but became a devout of the goddess Thelessara upon being chosen by the tenth Divine Receptacle.
Languages: High Common (Inlander Accent) & Nebrailic (Inlander Tongue)
Standing about five feet tall, Ophylia has sholder-length dark brown hair, and hazel eyes. She's aged 35 years, and has the fit, tone physique of a well trained soldier. She's manages to keep an sense of elegance and grace about her, though her every movement is obviously deliberate and planned. She seems to be quite aware of what's going on around her at all times, and doesn't seem the sort to be caught off guard easily. She's an attractive woman despite a large deep scar that runs the length of the left side of her face, and a leather eye patch she wears to conceal her missing right eye that was torn from its socket during battle with the Khwol when she was 30-years old.
Note: After her encounter with Kigmaru, her physical appearance is that of a pregnant woman, nearly full to term.
Noteworthy Equipment
- (MMI #109) Steel Shield [Ophylia's Shield] [Unidentified]
- (MMI #110) Full Plate [Ophylia's Armor] [Unidentified]
- (HA #008) The Longsword, Yhoela
Recent History ~ The Struggle of Divine Balance Manifest (Game Session #6)
Upon the murder of the Great Oracle of Debron at the hands of the Lord Lich, Thelachron the Horrid, Ophylia was chosen by the tenth Devine Receptacle to become the next Great Oracle, and high priestess of Thelessara. This made her the first individual in recorded history to wield the power of two receptacles simultaneously. She is The Great Oracle Queen, Birthright of Debron, High Priestess of Thelessara.
She has also been impregnated unwillingly by the dark god, Kigmaru, though a vision from her goddess, Thelessara, she has foreseen a way to purify the soul of her unborn immortal child. The vision was very cryptic, but insinuated there were artifacts of great power located in the ancient ruined temples where the receptacles were first created by the ancients millennia ago, and that these artifacts will enable her to channel the power of Illumina, goddess of light, to balance the darkness of her unborn son's soul. She is also made aware of the day and hour of her son's birth, whom it seems must gestate for a period of nearly three years before he will be born.
Recent History ~ Death of a Queen(Game Session #2-5)
(From Game Session #2) After the party was ambushed by the bandit gang known as "The Tangled Web" near the Fanged Mountains while following the Mulgarian shoreline southward, Ophylia, who had accepted the charge from the Oracle to see to the safety of the Seer Natasha, took the only escape route she could muster. She stripped of her armor, hid her receptacle in the sand on the beach, and her and the girl swam out into the ocean, presumably to go further down the shoreline away from danger.
After the a long battle between the bandits and the Birthrights, the drown body of Natasha washed ashore, and Ophylia's body goes unaccounted for. After waiting for an additional day, the Birthrights sadly presume she has been lost at sea.
It was later discovered that she had been rescued by the crew of the pirate airship, "Titain Scourge" and in turn she commissioned them (with the promise great weath), and formed a friendship with the pirate captain, Jamus Tanis.
From State of Affairs > About the Birthrights:
Queen Ophylia Mallack of Debron is the only ruling leader of one of the Nine Nations to not have an heir. She has decreed to postpone the searching of a Birthright until at least her first born (if and when she is able to conceive) is given the opportunity to undergo the ritual with the receptical. As such, as of the Campaign Prequel, she is the only Birthright to also be the current leader of a Nation, rather than an heir to one of the thrones.
Biographical History
The only surviving daughter of House Mallack, Ophylia is the daughter of King Gregor Malack IV of Debron, and his wife Queen Essabella Mallack. When she was eight years old, her brother, Allyn Mallack, became the Birthright of Debron, and heir to her father's throne.
Always the second favorite child of her parents, much attention was paid to her older brother, leaving Ophylia with much time to herself, and unattended. As an extraordinarily cute young woman, she was however a favorite of the soldiers of the Debron High Guard, and she could often be found having snuck into the barracks to spend time with the men she considered her friends. Though nothing inappropriate was taking place, this was much to the ire of the family of House Mallack, but it was allowed since it seemed to keep her occupied, and out of the way of the training and education of Allyn as he was prepared to assume the throne.
She spent her days training with the soldiers, and the evenings drinking and casting lots with them. The men came to love her, and she loved them. It was often whispered among the high guard that it was to their disappointment that her brother would assume the throne, as the men saw him as soft, untrained, and pampered.
In her 25th year, a series of strange events intersected with her fate, and in a single week an attempt had been made on the Kings life by a hired goblin assassin, her brother was murdered by the very same goblin, and her mother was banished to Silverfel without proper reason or accounting of the charges against her. It was said that she was murdered by a band of goblins while in transit to the Elven nation, but in fact, the series of events surrounding that week are, to this day, steeped in mystery, and no trace of her mother was ever found.
As the only surviving heir to the throne, King Gregor immediately allowed Ophylia to partake in the ritual of the Searching, and the receptacle of Debron, the Longsword, Yhoela, appointed her as the new Birthright.
The injury caused to the King during the attempted assassination, though not immediately fatal, was the man's undoing, as the dagger plunged into his chest, though it missed his heart, was tainted with a slow-acting poison, and within two weeks of his son's murder, the King himself fell deathly ill, and soon after expired.
Suddenly, an quite unexpectedly, Ophylia found herself as not only the Birthright of her nation, but also Queen and ruler of her people. There were whispers that the girl herself had conspired against her family, and there were attempted challenges to her position. Some of the nobles of the House Mallack insisted that she was too unfinished and hadn't been properly prepared to rule the nation, and that instead there should be a interim King placed upon the throne until she was ready.
However, Gormil Ignotrine (known as Striker), the captain of the High Guard, and close friend of Ophylia, stood by her side, and publically announced that anyone who wished to remove the rightful Queen from the throne would have to do so in opposition to the High Guard of Debron — There were no further challenges to her title.
In the coming years, guided by Striker's experience as a leader, Ophylia became the beloved Queen of Debron, friend of the great Oracle, and was even admired by those who once would have seen her dethroned.
The land prospered, and the mysterious events that surrounded the goblin assassins was all but forgotten by most, and ignored by the rest.