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January 2, 2014
The NYMetroParents January 2014 issue focuses on local education and includes our guide to area schools, articles about personalized learning and future classroom design, plus Pinkalicious recipes, a guide to ski resorts in the NYC area, tons of fun family activities, and more!
January 2014 Education Issue
EDUCATION FEATUREThe Future of LearningOne size does not fit all when it comes to learning, and a variety of innovative educators are honing in on that idea to bring a more customized approach to teaching our children. Find out how several local schools are doing just that.
EDUCATION FEATURECatholic School NewsDespite a number of Catholic schools shutting down across the nation, The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn is taking steps to innovate its schools to keep Catholic schools in Brooklyn and Queens open.
FOOD & NUTRITION FEATUREPinkalicious RecipesVictoria Kann, co-creator of the Pinkalicious series, shares several recipes from her new Pinkalicious Cupcake Cookbook, including how to make Pinkalicious cupcakes with buttercream frosting and star wands with royal icing.
JANUARY SPECIALWestchester Camp & Activities Fair Comes to TownMore than 50 camps will gather for you to do your summer camp research all in one place -- and getting your questions answered in person, well, there's nothing better than that!
FAMILY OUTINGCradle of Aviation MuseumFly with the Blue Angels, meet an astronaut, and soar into space at the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City, NY, an institution that celebrates the grand history of aviation on Long Island.
THEATERShen Yun Brings Chinese Legends to Life in NYCShen Yun Performing Arts, a New York-based company, brings the rich heritage of Chinese legends to life, sweeping audiences away with colorful dance, vibrant music, and spectacular sets. What beautiful secrets are in store this year?
WHERE-TO GUIDESkiing and Snowboarding in the NortheastSkiing and snowboarding with the family this winter? Our guide includes resorts and mountains just outside of the New York metropolitan area, to the slopes of Connecticut, New Jersey, Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania. Beginner lessons and kid-friendly slopes for new skiiers and snowboarders are readily available at most mountains.
BONUS: Search our comprehensive calendar for fun and low-cost family activities in the NYC area
STUFF WE LIKEGo GraphicCheck out these cool new products for kids, including an awesome all-in-one fort, hiding space, and play pen; super-soft, super sustainable, and super cute shirts from Stella Blu; a book full of crafts, projects, and brain-teasers that are sure to beat boredom; and a subscription service that delivers thoughtful, modern gifts for kids straight to your door.
Q&AWhat You Can Learn From Your AdolescentWhen your child goes through teenage development, it can sometimes feel like you're speaking different languages. We spoke with Daniel J. Siegel, M.D., about how to connect with your teenager, establishing trust with your teen, and how your relationship changes.
QUOTABLESThe Best of the Rest of the WebA selection of thought-provoking quotes from the web and the world of parenting. This month features author Katrina Alcorn and blogs NYC Taught Me and Dim Sum Debutante, plus highlights from the NYMetroParents Twitter feed.
VOICESPlaygrounds of New YorkHow an NYC author's view of the jungle gym scene changed after he became a father
RAISING OUR KIDSPost-Holiday Blues?Contracting a case of the blues is fairly common as the holiday magic wanes and you and your family shift back into your daily routines. We all miss the lights and festivities, but if your sense of loss lingers too long, it may be a sign of a deeper issue.
SPECIAL NEEDSYour Child Has a Diagnosis--Now What?Debbie Bertrand, a Rockland County mom and advocate of families of children with special needs, shares her experiences as she navigated life after her daughter was diagnosed with cerebral palsy.
HEALTHHow Can I Choose the Right Pediatrician for My Family?Sanjiv Shah, M.D., chief medical officer of Fidelis Care, shares what families should look for when choosing a pediatrician, what questions to ask a pediatrician during an interview, the qualities to look for in a pediatric office, and how to switch pediatricians.
HEALTHHow Can I Protect My Child from Hearing Loss?A recent study shows that more and younger children are using technology. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association provides safety tips for children using technology, headphone safety tips for children, and signs of childhood hearing loss.
EDUCATIONWhat Do I Say When My Child Asks, 'When Will I Ever Need to Know This?'We spoke to Jayanthi Raghunath, director and instructor of the Kumon Math and Reading Centers of Spring Valley and New City, to find out more about the roles parents play in motivating kids and helping them understand why school work is a personal investment.
ACTIVITIESWhat Type of Piano Should My Child Begin Lessons On?When you don't have room for a piano in your own home, what is your next best option? The founder and director of New York Piano School reveals which portable keyboards are your best bet when your young child starts piano lessons.
BIRTHDAYHow Can I Take the Best Birthday Party Pictures?Arm yourself with our handy list of must-have birthday shots, then focus on capturing the highlights of the day before handing your camera off to someone else so you can get in a few pictures with your special girl or boy.
How to Turn After School Activities Into Scholarships
Interview With Rachel Zoe on Motherhood
DIY: Make You Home Uniquely You
Make Your Own Hanging Canopy Tent
Party Planning
After-School Activities
Camp Guide
Sports for Kids
Child Care Options
Education Resources
Family Health Guide
Special Needs Guide
Jul 13, 2017
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Jul 07, 2017
Jun 26, 2017
May 31, 2017
How to help your child embrace competitive pursuits--such as ballet--by dealing with disappointments and competition in a positive way.
Come September, your children will be schlepping books, homework, and lunch boxes to and from school five days a week. Dr. Emily Dodwell, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon, shares tips for choosing the best backpack and how to prevent back injuries with tips for packing and carrying a backpack.
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U.S. Tells Iraq It Must Reveal Weapons Sites (NY TIMES) By DAVID E. SANGER WASHINGTON 12/06/02)
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/06/international/middleeast/06IRAQ.html
NEW YORK TIMES Articles-Index-Top
WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 Less than 72 hours before Saddam Hussein is required to declare any weapons of mass destruction he holds, the Bush administration set stiff demands today, saying at the White House and the Pentagon that Iraq must physically take inspectors to the weapons and make available all the people who developed and worked on them.
Mr. Hussein, the Iraqi president, appeared on Iraqi television today to urge "patience" in dealing with the United Nations inspectors, and said his objective was to allow the inspectors to do their work so that he could "keep our people out of harm´s way." But he gave no indication that he planned to lead the inspectors to suspect sites or hidden caches of weapons, as the White House demands. [Page A17.]
At the White House, President Bush´s spokesman, Ari Fleischer, dismissed Iraq´s claims that it possesses no nuclear weapons, citing the testimony of past weapons inspectors and intelligence experts. But he offered no new evidence to back up the administration´s declarations that the Iraqi government had simply moved its weapons of mass destruction out of sight.
"The president of the United States and the secretary of defense would not assert as plainly and bluntly as they have that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction if it was not true, and if they did not have a solid basis for saying it," he said.
Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, speaking at the Pentagon, said Iraq´s leaders faced three choices. "They could decide that the game´s up, and Saddam Hussein and his family could leave the country which would be a nice outcome," he said, planting anew an idea for a way out of war: exiling the Iraqi leader.
Alternatively, he said, Mr. Hussein could "open up his country and say: ´Here are our weapons of mass destruction. Here´s where they´re located. Here are the people who made them.´ " Or, he said, "He could follow the pattern of previous years" and "continue to lie and deceive and deny."
Officials in the White House left no doubt they thought Mr. Hussein would reach for the third option.
The coordinated statements from Washington came as administration officials worried that Mr. Hussein might get the upper hand in a public relations war if he dropped a blizzard of papers on the United Nations this weekend, filled with descriptions of "dual use" plants that could be used to make ordinary chemicals or pharmaceuticals or weapons.
But the big question the White House now confronts is how to respond to the Iraqi information, and whether to counter it with declassified American intelligence information to prove that Mr. Hussein omitted the most damaging evidence of his weapons programs.
Mr. Fleischer said today that the task facing the United Nations inspectors was a virtually hopeless one without the active aid of the Iraqi government or defectors with knowledge of the weapons programs. In Iraq, a country the size of France, a hundred inspectors could not be expected to succeed by themselves, he said.
Administration officials stopped just short of endorsing Vice President Dick Cheney´s statement in August which he has never repeated since that "a return of inspectors would provide no assurance whatsoever" of Iraqi compliance, and could create "false comfort" that Mr. Hussein was somehow "back in his box." But the clear implication of today´s comments was that many members of Mr. Bush´s national security team retain that view.
In preparation for the deluge from Iraq, officials at the White House, are already planning for how to deal with the information Mr. Hussein delivers, hoping to farm it out quickly to the national laboratories, the Central Intelligence Agency and other government experts for examination. They have made clear that Washington will not respond to the disclosures until they have fully analyzed them.
As for whether the United States will reveal any intelligence information on Iraqi weapons, one intelligence official said, "There´s an institutional resistance to making our most secret stuff available, even to some of the governments that might demand it." Other experts say the administration´s troubles are deepened by the fact that there is no single piece of clear evidence that would back up the claims Mr. Fleischer and Mr. Rumsfeld made today.
Mr. Fleischer did not point to any particular piece of evidence in making his assertions today, and it is not clear what intelligence the administration is using as a basis for its deductions. It is also unclear how much of this information has been shared with the United Nations.
"I don´t think they are going to be able to replicate Adlai Stevenson´s feat during the Cuban missile crisis," said Kenneth M. Pollack, an Iraq expert at the C.I.A. and the White House during the Clinton administration. He was referring to the photographs Mr. Stevenson produced proving that the Soviet Union was moving missiles into Cuba.
"It´s unlikely we have satellite photos of Scud missiles in Baghdad," Mr. Pollack said. But he suggested that other data, including some provided by Iraqi defectors, could bolster the administration´s case.
Briefing reporters today, Mr. Fleischer contended that secret talks under way with 15 nations that the United States had identified as potential partners in any coalition against Iraq had resulted in "good responses."
But he declined to name any of the countries, even though some of the most critical, including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, have been the subject of intense lobbying by Mr. Bush and a team of officials he has dispatched around the world.
Some of those allies have asked for more intelligence, officials say, so that they can justify aiding the United States. The weapons inspectors, too, have put some pressure on Washington.
Hans Blix, one of the chief inspectors, said this week that after Iraq´s declaration was delivered, "it will be the moment for those who say they have evidence to put this evidence on the table." One of his deputies, Demetrius Perricos, said the United States should hand over more information to the inspectors, saying he did not believe he was "being served the intelligence that national authorities have."
The intelligence that has been made public so far about Iraq´s activities since inspectors were withdrawn in 1998 is sketchy. The C.I.A. has said Iraq bought specialty aluminum tubes that could be the cylinders for centrifuges, the key equipment in the enrichment of uranium. But other experts inside the American government have described other uses for the tubes.
Similarly, the agency has declassified satellite photographs of a site previously used to manufacture arms. The pictures show reconstruction work on the buildings, but not what is happening inside. So far, it is unclear if inspectors, during their first week of surveys, have found anything in these buildings.
U.S. Issues Terror Warning
WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 (Reuters) The government warned citizens today of a "possible terrorist threat" in Turkey, which is likely to be an American ally in any war with Iraq, citing unconfirmed information suggesting Americans might be targeted and urging caution at a civilian airport used by American troops.
"The U.S. government has received unconfirmed and fragmentary information that suggests unknown terrorists may be planning to conduct a terrorist incident in southeast Turkey against official U.S. government facilities or personnel," the State Department said.
"American citizens should be particularly cautious if they travel into or out of the Gaziantep airport," it added.
The airport in Gaziantep, 315 miles southeast of Ankara, is sometimes used by American troops. (Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company 12/06/02)
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THE re-opening of the Homebase store in Worcester tomorrow (Friday) will be marked with a £1,000 donation to Acorn's Children's Hospice.
Colleagues voted unanimously to support the Worcester based charity offering care for life limited and life threatened children and young people, and their families.
A representative from Acorns Children's Hospice will be on hand at the store in Elgar Retail Park, off Blackpole Road, to accept the donation from store manager Chris Cullinan before cutting the ribbon.
The new-look store will also be unveiled offering a range of new products and ways decorate the home, including touch screen technology allowing shoppers to transform rooms in their homes.


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Dr. Damico studies the ways in which humans have utilized, thought about, and shaped waterways. Her dissertation studied water conflict in the nineteenth-century U.S.-Mexico borderlands, focusing on continuity and change following the U.S. conquest of New Mexico. Her recent research, presented at conferences and in the process of being written up for publication, expands this inquiry to study the relationship between the city of Albuququerque and the Rio Grande. Since coming to Saint Francis in 2009, Dr. Damico has also expanded her research to include local issues, such as the famous Johnstown flood of 1889 and its ramifications. Dr. Damico involves her students in this local research and, in that capacity, is one of the associate directors of the Center for Watershed Research and Service. Her publications include "The Cebolleta Land Grant: Multicultural Contention and Cooperation." Natural Resources Journal, Fall 2008; and a review of David DeJong, Stealing the Gila (2009).
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CME switchover incase PRI failover
Unanswered Question
User Badges:
I have 2 CME each one is having one PRI terminated. I have 20 phones. 10 is registered to CME-1, rest 10 t the 2nd CME-2. I wan to achieve: if PRI-1 goes down, phones registered to CME-1 will get de-register & re-register with CME-2. Is this achievable. I am using CME 8.6.....
Kindly suggest....
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I have this problem too.
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I have found the source of the annoying whistling wind noise associated with the driver's side mirror in my '98 A4 2.8 and I have come up with a permanent fix. On my car this noise was at its worst at 65 MPH and above.
I kept trying to locate the source of the noise by placing electrical tape over various gaps until I finally found it. There's a black fairing that covers the mount between the driver's side mirror and the lower front corner of the driver's side window. Where the fairing meets the glass it is triangular in shape, with the "rear" portion vertical. On my car, there was about a 1/8 inch gap between the back vertical edge of the fairing and the window glass. When I covered that gap it stopped the noise dead.
I came up with a simple permanent fix, as illustrated and described in this FAQ. Before you go to the trouble of implementing this fix, I suggest you first try a test on your car by covering the gap with tape and going for a test ride.
Here's the permanent fix:
Go to a hardware store and buy a 4 1/2 inch long piece of 1/4 inch
diameter (OD) plastic tubing. The stuff I used was clear and had pretty thick walls, which is good. Black would be fine, too, but thin-walled tubing like drip irrigation line might not work as well. It is such a small piece they'll probably just give it to you for free.
Take an X-acto blade or razor blade and slit the tubing lengthwise along one side. Roll down your window and slide the slitted tubing over the back edge of the fairing. Close the window and work the tubing over so it seals the gap between the fairing and the window. Click here for a picture showing the installed fix.
That's it. It doesn't affect the use of the window and should last the life of the car. If the tubing slides up and down a bit you might need to squirt a little silicone adhesive in the tubing and re-apply it.
This may not work for everyone, as I think there are a variety of other causes, but it sure turned the trick for me and I hope it will for you, too. Good luck!


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Well we all know Shaq is dating *Hoops, former "Flavor of Love" Star, I think they make the cutest couple but this picture had me in tears of laughter. I found this picture on twitter and the tweets about it were hilarious someone said "It looks like he is walking his child" #tears lol he's not lying. Check out this flick as his towers over his girlfriend, she looks like a toy doll standing next to him. I wonder if it's a photo shopped flick or the truth, either way I believe they are happy together and that's all that matters at the end of the day!
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Strawberry Shortcake Jr. Ringer T-Shirt
Everybody loves dessert and here's a favorite: Strawberry Shortcake! Whipped cream, juicy berries and yummy cake!
Sweet mother's day gift.Tags: chocolate, strawberries, Mom, sweets, Mother's DayAdded 6 Years Ago from Gift-ideaz
This Strawberry Necklace and Earrings set is by far the best strawberry set in the market and it is Dior too! The crystals sparkle and I like the Dior logo. It looks so sweet, and I like that it comes in a set. They are extreme... This Strawberry Necklace and Earrings set is by far the best strawberry set in the market and it is Dior too! The crystals sparkle and I like the Dior logo. It looks so sweet, and I like that it comes in a set. They are extremely RARE especially the necklace. I searched everywhere for them and finally found it on twad.com with FREE shippping too! So for all of you who have been looking for it too, they have it! It says they have limited quantities so I don't know how long they will last but they are on sale now. Still available at twadsis.comTags: jewelry, necklaces, strawberries, sweets, Dior, fruit jewelry, strawberry necklace, dior necklace, strawberry jewelryAdded 7 Years Ago from Twadsis
A picture is worth a thousand words. And, I could eat every one.Added 8 Years Ago from Fannie May Candies
Okay, so this image is not the best,,,,however, this patisserie IS! Divine, Delicious, Decadent and who the devil cares....go order, eat , enjoy!Tags: food, restaurants, chef, blueberry, desserts, sweets, strawberries, foodies, decadentAdded 10 Years Ago from Patisseriechantilly
I can't believe this tasty looking treat is actually a bath towel. The delicious looking towel set is topped off with strawberry magnets!Tags: gifts, towels, romance, chocolate, Romantic, spa, Valentines, bath towels, Valentine'sAdded 10 Years Ago from Fredflare
These berries are absolutely delicious! A great , yummy treat :)Tags: gourmet, treats, strawberries, yum, sweets, chocolate, holiday giftsAdded 10 Years Ago from Berries
These chocolate covered strawberries would look great at your Christmas party.Tags: fruit, chocolate, sweets, strawberry, strawberries, Christmas, igiftsAdded 10 Years Ago from Martha's Flowers
Can this count towards my serving of fruit for the day?Tags: candy, chocolate, sweets, strawberry, strawberries, Valentine's, igiftsAdded 10 Years Ago from Ccberries


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posted by tera .
1. Many people know that the weight of an object varies on different planets, but did you know that the weight of an object on earth also varies according to the elevation of the object? In particular, the weight of an object follows this equation: , where C is a constant, and r is the distance that the object is from the center of the earth.
a. Solve the equation for r.
b. Suppose that an object is 100 pounds when it is at sea level. Find the value of C that makes the equation true. (Sea level is 3,963 miles from the center of the earth.)
c. Use the value of C you found in the previous question to determine how much the object would weigh in
i. Death Valley (282 feet below sea level)
ii. The top of Mt McKinley (20,320 feet above sea level)
What's the question?


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Floral Yoke Cardigan by Cathy Payson
Welcome! You are browsing as a guestWould you like to see 3 projects made from this pattern and much more? create a free account What am I missing?
© Coats & Clark
Floral Yoke Cardigan
This pattern is available for free.
For more information, see: http://www.redheart.com/free-patterns/floral-yoke-ca...


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EU Calls On Russia to Negotiate With Ukraine
European Leaders Say They Will Impose Tough Sanctions on Moscow if No Results
BRUSSELS—European leaders said Thursday that if Russia doesn't begin negotiations with Ukraine within days and produce results in short order, the European Union will impose tough sanctions on Moscow, including travel bans and asset freezes on its leaders.
The statement was stronger than expected, driven in part by a decision of the parliament of Crimea to request that it leave Ukraine and become part of Russia. The bloc didn't say...


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US Sailing, Rolex sign sponsorship dealPosted on
US Sailing and Rolex Watch USA announced a four-year sponsorship through 2012.
A longtime official sponsor of US Sailings Team AlphaGraphics, Rolex has increased its collaboration by becoming a new Gold partner.
Our partnership with Rolex has been a cornerstone of the support we provide for our athletes. By becoming a Gold level partner, Rolex will play an even bigger role in helping our athletes unlock potential as they train for the 2012 Games, says Dean Brenner, chairman of the Olympic sailing program.
Rolex Watch USA also maintains title sponsorship of US Sailings biennial Rolex International Womens Keelboat Championship, the annual US Sailing Rolex Miami OCR and Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year Awards while continuing to sponsor US Sailings 11 U.S. adult championships and racing clinics associated with them.


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True Cost Calculator
Upfront Calculations - What you see is what you get
Simple & Transparant Financial Aid
Both merit and need based aid have been reworked so that negotiating cost will be a notion of the past affording a private college education to more families. A basic, upfront calculator, identical to what the financial aid office uses to determine institutional aid amounts is available at your finger tips. What you see is what you get! No surprises. Other funded scholarships are available too.
NOTE: This Calculator is for Undergraduate Resident Programs ONLY
First time college students
You will need your high school GPA and test scores as well as the most recent tax information for yourself and your parents.
Transfer students
You will need your college GPA as well as the most recent tax information for yourself and your parents if you are under the age of 24.
Private Loans for Education
After you have considered all federal loans, you may also be ... Learn more
Repaying Your Loans
American Student Assistance Partnership Prescott College ... Learn more


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Looking for a taxi?
Page Tools
If illegal taxis are dangerous- as police, the Victorian Taxi Directorate and industry operators warn - why are people so willing to use them? Because they're there - when, all too often, licensed cabs are not. More than a decade after Jeff Kennett began something of a personal crusade for better taxi services, there are still problems. The complaints that a parliamentary committee reported to the premier in 1993 can still be heard: it's hard to find a taxi during major events, in peak times or late at night; and if you do find one, you have to hope the driver speaks English and knows how to get to your destination, or can at least consult a directory.
When Liberal leader Robert Doyle tried to revive the Kennett crusade, he was accused of maligning hard-working migrants on whom the industry depends in a time of low unemployment. This reflects the fact that the work and pay are not attractive and driver turnover is high. Even so, it is open to question whether levels of supervision and requirements for training (only 10 days) and testing are adequate.
Mr Kennett once said Victoria's taxis would "soon be as famous as London . . . cabs". As it happens, half-a-dozen London cabbies were recently brought to Melbourne and 175 London cabs are to carry 2006 Commonwealth Games advertising. Part of the London cab legend is "The Knowledge", which makes every rigorously trained cabbie a guide and ambassador. We fear visitors who expect that kind of service in Melbourne are in for a rude shock.


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Keith Urban Has to Get His Shirts Approved to Wear on 'American Idol'
Photo: Getty Images
By Sierra Marquina
Singer and American Idol judge Keith Urban phoned in to On Air with Ryan Seacrest to talk Season 13 and his new single "Cop Car."
On Tuesday night's live Idol, we saw the Top 10 girls make the cut … but also, Keith donned one of his signature t-shirts, an item of clothing that surprisingly gets him in trouble at times.
"I have to check with the Idol people sometimes because sometimes they aren't appropriate," Keith laughs of his tight tees. "Every now and then [they tell me I can't wear one]. Let's just say every now and then, I have to take a picture of my shirt and send it to them."
As far as the talent goes, Keith is proud of this season. "I like the fact we've got some really good young ones in here … extremely good singers … but it's so much more than that [at this stage] … I was saying to Nic [wife Nicole Kidman] the other day when you get to the Top 30, they can all sing. They're all great singers, so then for me, it's the ones who make me feel something, that's what it all comes down to."
When he's not helping make other artists' dreams come true, Keith is also working on his own music. Most recently, the country superstar released "Cop Car" off his album Fuse.
The song is about a young couple who fall in love in the back seat of a police cruiser, and considering Keith is a songwriter himself, where'd the idea come from?
"This is a song that a friend of mine sent to me," he explains. "It was written by three guys in Nashville and I do a lot of songwriting, but every now and then I come upon a song that just speaks to me and I had never heard that before."
Catch American Idol on FOX Wednesday and Thursdays at 8/7c.
Download "Cop Car" on iTunes now here.


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When provided information about the nutritional content of supermarket foods, more consumers will choose healthier items.
That's the finding of a new study that investigated Hannaford Supermarkets' gold star food rating system. The study, whose results were published in Food Policy, compared data from 134 Hannaford stores in Northeastern states against a control group of non-Hannaford supermarkets that did not have a food rating system, the Associated Press notes.
Researchers found that sales of cereals that received a no-star rating were 2.58% lower at Hannaford stores. Cereals with a higher star rating saw modestly higher sales at Hannaford stores, compared to the control group.
Hannaford, a subsidiary of Delhaize Group (DEG), operates 1,800 stores across North America. It implemented its gold star system in 2006.


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3-3-5 defense
Neck Sharpies: Not Getting Even
This would not go over well.
After the injury to Ryan Glasgow Michigan has struggled to stop zone running. Indiana and Penn State tore the defense to shreds on stretch or outside zone, until Penn State decided the thing that got them two huge gains in three attempts wasn't worth using again (please keep James Franklin forever kthx). I drew that up last week and found Michigan was still trying to defend runs by shooting the DL upfield and dominating one-on-one matchups up front, as opposed to soundly preventing guards from releasing onto the linebackers.
With Urban Meyer, one of a few true masters of modern running attacks, doing the planning for the Game, we knew Michigan's defensive coaches would have to pull something out of our butts to stop it. Here's what we found in our butts:
Michigan broke out a 3-3-5 defense with an "even" front. Offensive coaches have different names for fronts but the basics are:
- Under: NT on the center, shaded to strong. DT on a guard. (aka Weak, 50)
- Over: NT on the center, shaded to weak. DT on a guard. (aka Strong)
- Even: DL are lined up over guards, none over the center. (aka Split)
- Okie: Center is covered, guards are not. (aka 30)
- Bear: Center and guards all covered. (aka 46, Eagle, Double Eagle)
These can be split into "Odd" (under/over) and "Even" (Even, Okie, Bear). It is usual for just about any defense to come out in multiple fronts over the course of a game, though Bear and Okie are more rare than the other three.
Anyway that's what that means. By putting guys over the guards it makes it tougher for them to release to the next level. Michigan State used to love their even fronts back when Bullough was their best run defender, and that tells you something about the design of this defense. Tweaking your defense is about making life hard on your better players so things are easier for the rest of your players. "Even" makes life hard on the MLB, since that center is getting a free release unto him.
There's nothing 100% unsound about this defense. Depending on the offense's play, one LB is likely to get a center on him but the other is often a free hitter. If your LB eating the block is good at beating those consistently, or your free hitter is a ninja who sniffs out the play and attacks ferociously, or your unblocked guy is coached to play aggressively against an option you can defeat a basic run play regularly.
[After the JUMP, we totally can't]
Dear Diary Desires More Tacos for Effing Wall
Those Van Bergenian thighs. That Clarkian pass rush. That responsible chin…[Fuller]
Final reminder to settlers along Lake Erie: We're coming to your Cleveland on Monday to talk about…I dunno…basketball or kickers or something. We've now added "Big Ed" Muransky to the lineup. Here's some footage of Muransky (#72 right, sometimes left tackle) as a sophomore against MSU, courtesy of WH. The rest of "we" are Brian, John U. Bacon, [huge gap in how much you care] and myself.
We've got the area reserved behind the bar through 11, and there's about 100-120 people coming, which means when the Ohio State fans show up later to watch the national championship game there'll be this wall of Michigan fans to greet them. And a bearded blogger guy rooting loudly for Oregon…while standing behind Big Ed Muransky.
Huge thanks to this lemon-eater for setting it up.
OT don't care SVG is boss: The Pistons cut their best player then ripped off a seven-game win streak. To win #6 they had to preserve a 1-point lead from the defending champions on the road, so Van Gundy used the last rasps of his weakening voice to demand the stones "Just form a [bleep]-ing wall." So I formed an effin' t-shirt.
If you hate this one you're all fired. My "IT'S H4PPENING" shirt is gone now but we've got several other new offerings if you haven't been on the store lately:
Not this again! New coaches mean new schemes to learn and WMUKirk did an amazing job in two diaries of showing how Durkin likes to play chess. Part 1 got into the base stuff and Part 2 was about how he mixed those to stay one step ahead of Jameis Winston's reads. There's this from Part 1:
What I've noticed is he doesn't deviate from 4 basic coverages. Quarters, Cover 3 Press, Cover 1, and his favorite blitz is the Fire Blitz from the QB's blind side. He hardly ever runs Man Under, Tampa 2, or Cover 0. He values speed and isn't against running a 3-4 with 3-3-5 personnel.
Florida's 3-3-5 was lifting one of the middle linebackers for a safety/spur/hybrid space player dude, and looked thusly:
The WDE is a pass rusher type and is standing up. On 1st and 15 this is Xtreme speed.
That's a 3-3-5 but not a Casteel stack; it's more like one of Mattison's okies except the MLB is a LB, not Mike Martin.
[Cont. after the jump]
Hokepoints: Charting Defensive Rotation
Wot it sez up dere^. Despite the blowout nature we got a good look last Saturday at the various positions that Michigan will rotate this season. So I charted who was in at what spot for every play. The results (link to Google doc):
Here's your starting defense, with everybody in their base 4-3 under spots. I want to self-congratulate the MGoStaff for nailing the starting lineup in HTTV with the exception of free safety, since Avery, though out of the lineup, was nominally ahead of Wilson on the depth chart.
The corners lined up to the field or boundary; the line was usually aligned to the formation but then CMU usually aligned to the boundary anyway. The safeties were always lined up to the formation. They split who ended up the deeper guy; usually it was the field guy, and usually that was Wilson.
There was heavy rotation in the front four, an almost even three-man rotation in the linebackers, and the secondary stayed put until it was time to empty the bench. It was rotation, not platooning; guys would go in for a certain number of plays then come out. I charted 44 non-garbage (before 14:59 of the 3rd quarter) plays; rotations as follows:
[Jump for breakdown, nickel, garbage time]
Hokepoints: What's a Nickelback?
Before we get to this, if you haven't yet go down to Heiko's Exclusive Interview with Borges. It is penetrating, and excellent, and kind of a coup that we got it.
I know what you were thinking. When spring practices meant there was actual FOOTBALL to pay attention to for a moment, you immediately sought the defensive back depth chart because:
- You are aware that the original X-hating god resides in our backfield
- You are aware that Jordan Kovacs isn't back there being your banky anymore
- You remember how you felt about things before Kovacs became your banky
- You remember we recruited a 5-star (to at least one service) this year and that he's enrolling early.
- You can't really name all the various Cass Tech dudes so you kinda have to check in every once in awhile to figure out which you actually have to learn.
This is likely when you discovered the aforementioned 5-star was at nickelback and you did a double-take because you read Dymonte's scouting report, and "is a cornerback" wasn't in it. I am supposing further that you think "nickelback" equals "cornerback" because by golly you've played that game with Woodson or Desmond or Denard or a handful of less important schmucks on the cover, and know that nickelback is the guy you put third on the cornerback depth chart who comes in on passing downs. Right Inigo?
Back when your grandpa was playing NCAA '06 or whatever, base defenses were 4-3 or 3-4, backfields had four dudes, and teams would cordially run on 1st and 2nd down and if it was still long on 3rd down they'd put another receiver on the field, you'd put another cornerback on the field, and because this was a 5th defensive back you called him the "nickel" and everything was nice and sense-y-make-y.
Then everything changed.
[Jump to understand]
Picture Pages: Ending It, Part III
So. Michigan got a nice play from Will Campbell to turn second and three into third and one despite kind of conceding the first down, then saw Kenny Demens blow upfield as soon as he saw Venric Mark block a blitzing James Ross. He hewed down a Colter scramble in the backfield. Now it's fourth and two, and all the timeouts have been taken.
Michigan comes out in… this. I guess. Whatever this is. Weird is what it is.
Please note that Northwestern has also brought their share of weird to the party. They're in a two back set with all three WRs to the field, which means one of those slots is covered up. Michigan is seven on eight in the box, with a safety—Gordon—hanging out deep. If Northwestern can get guys blocked they should have a guy running free. As we'll see, they don't.
This has been mentioned before, but Michigan came out in this weird formation on fourth and two in an attempt to bait Northwestern into a handoff up the middle, which they successfully did.
As a bonus, the bait here is compounded by Northwestern confusion. It does not matter what Colter does here. They're dead.
Part The First: Black Surge
Jibreel Black is shaded playside of the center above and immediately shoots upfield of said center.
This is easy for him. Just go straight upfield. It does two things:
- Invites Colter to hand off. That looks dangerous to him because if he's forced to pitch early by a Black surge then Roh is likely to contain the back.
- Forces the dive back to the backside of the play, where there are two Northwestern OL and three Michigan defenders.
In the wider view you can see three Northwestern OL releasing, with the fourth dealing with Clark.
Part The Second: Handoff Away From Strength
That looks un-promising. But here's what they'll do:
The option provides blocking strength to the front side of the play because you're letting the end go to option him; on the backside you're blocking him. Here Northwestern burns that strength as two confused guys go after Ross. A third has to cut Ryan, and there's no one for three separate Michigan defenders.
At the mesh point Colter is looking at Roh on the edge and Black surging through, which seemingly puts acres of space between the NT and backside DE. There are acres, in fact.
Part The Third: Free Train With Purchase Of Handoff
Everyone run around and do things! Be happy! And then play the dog groomers song and kill everyone's buzz. But those first 5 seconds were rad.
Things And Stuff
This was dead in every way. If Colter decides to keep he is probably going to get pushed wide by Black, maybe even have a pitched forced by him a la Mike Martin last year. If he does not…
…it's Mike Trumpy in space against Jordan Kovacs with Roh pursuing from the inside-out. We've seen how that story ends, against this team even.
That was forth and inches, this is fourth and two. I'll take my chances there.
This play seems specifically designed to defeat the option. The Black surge is going to do one of two things. One option is what it did. The other is for the playside G to block Black, likely with help from the center, and leave one guy for Ross. If those guys can combo Black a keep meets the same fate you see in the frame on the last bullet. If those guys can combo Black and the C manages a release to the second level, then you are possibly in business as you hypothetically have enough guys to block the LBs.
I don't see how that happens though given what Black does here. No one is coming off that guy fast enough to be useful. The only option that gets yards is a check.
Nothing else? Just a check? The only other way in which this might eke out the first down is by letting the backside end go, too, and having that tackle hit Demens. This may or may not work and exposes the back to Clark coming down the line; at least if he's hit by Clark it's from behind. Really, though, there's nothing.
Demens! This isn't the hardest play in the world for a linebacker but even so you can't do it any better. There's no drama after this:
No spinning out or grinding forward or sliding off. The guy just goes down, backwards, game over. That's one of them form tackles.
Cat and mouse. This play followed a series of timeouts. Michigan showed the formation they ran before the first one:
Northwestern called TO, and came out with their covered slot formation. Michigan again showed the 3-3-5 alignment…
…until everyone in the front seven yelled at Ryan to get on the LOS…
Roh had to do a ton of pointing and talking to get this to happen
…and then Michigan called timeout before a false start. As a bonus, unless the slot receiver moved after the camera took him out of the picture, Northwestern only had six on the line of scrimmage and would have been hit with an illegal formation.
So they went to it, got a TO, showed it, got rid of it, called a TO, and then ran it. The dance of doom.
A gimmick defense for gimmick times. Yeah this could get gashed by stuff other than what Northwestern ran; Michigan knew their comfort zone and had a plan to blow it up. They had plenty of problems in this game, and I think Mattison is going to have to make some adjustments to slow the Wildcats down in future years, but at the end it was Michigan who got the last stab in after a knock-down, drag-out fight.
Picture Pages: This Is Not A Stack
Note: no UFR today, as the torrent got down late Monday and I couldn't do the first half then. Hopefully both halves tomorrow.
You'll have to forgive the picture quality on this one—both of these are low-quality torrents. Just like Michigan's defense. AMIRITE!
So in the game column this week I complained about the alignment of the middle linebacker in this bastardized version of the 3-3-5. Michigan has him maybe a yard behind the nose tackle, like so:
This creates a major vulnerability against misdirection, as we'll see. This play is a first and ten on Penn State's first drive. They've driven it into the Michigan half of the field because of depressing things, and more depressing things will happen. This isn't one of them. Michigan shows a two-deep with six in the box, but moves Kovacs down late to add a seventh guy, which gives Michigan the formation above versus Penn State's ace 3-wide.
At the snap the offset fullback heads inside the tackle to his side. You can see the handoff is going to be made to the right side of McGloin. Linebackers start scraping as each and every DE attempts to take on two blockers:
Here's the handoff point. The fullback is hitting the backside B gap, which makes me think this is a called counter play. Where's Demens?
Demens has taken a step towards the line of scrimmage and has hit a guard. Now… he hit the backside guard, the one that PSU is cutting towards. He read the play, but he's a linebacker two yards from the LOS meeting a guard with a free release who's much bigger than him. Momentum means that the best he can do is bounce off it and attempt to flow down the line. (This is much more apparent in the video below.)
The play cuts back as designed. Roh has attacked a frontside gap. Martin and Demens are caught up in the wash on the interior, and Mouton, who was scraping along well back of everyone else, is going to eat the fullback four yards downfield:
The saving grace here is Kovacs, who sifts through the blockers and makes a mediocre ankle tackle that the RB (Royster, I think) steps through:
Demens and others finish it off but after four yards:
Michigan got away with this by putting an extra player in the box late. When Penn State was not caught in a bad playcall, counters like this gashed Michigan all night.
Here's the video:
I don't have an exact replica of this from Rodriguez's WVU days but here's an inside zone Rutgers ran in their 2007 game. Rutgers was no joke on the ground in '07. Ray Rice was around and the Scarlet Knights finished 26th nationally.
The first thing that's obvious is that the MLB is six yards off the line of scrimmage, not two. Also despite playing against a bigger set—Rutgers has a tight end on the field instead of a third wide receiver—West Virginia maintains two deep safeties:
At the snap WVU has shifted to an aggressive look with the OLBs and the spur at the LOS; the MLB has moved up a yard:
At the snap six players attack the line, giving all but one WVU DL a one-on-one matchup:
This is a similar setup, really: inside zone. Main difference is that there is an inline TE instead of a fullback on the backside, but they block the backside end above. The playside end is about to beat a Rutgers tackle to the inside. Note the MLB two yards away from the LOS now—where Demens started the play—after the handoff. He's scraping to the hole. A Rice cutback would be somewhat problematic for him but he's not likely to get a lineman in his face:
MLB has now engaged an OL at the LOS. Rutgers tackle is totally beaten and forces Rice to start cutting:
There are four WVU guys in the area:
And Rice goes down shortly after he crosses the LOS:
On the day Rutgers would get 183 rushing yards, but Mike Teel completed under 50% of his passes and threw two interceptions on a 128 yard passing day because WVU left the safeties back the whole time. West Virginia won 31-3. Their rushing defense was 18th nationally.
So, things:
- It seemed like Michigan was using Jonas Mouton like WVU used their MLB in the 3-3-5. Except Mouton was four yards off the LOS, not six, and not aligned in the middle of the field. So if he's going to get to anything on the frontside he has to run hard, which means he is susceptible to cutbacks.
- I don't think Demens ever had a prayer of dealing with a cutback or counter because of his alignment. One step to the playside and he's a yard away from the LOS about to get swallowed by a guard.
- Michigan plays Demens at the same depth in their other line alignments. 3-4:
Paired with the disconnect in WVU's 3-3-5 this signals shoehorning to me. Demens should be at a certain depth in more conventional sets and putting him six yards back would confuse him in pass drops, run fills, etc, but in the 3-3-5 he takes one step and there's a lineman releasing free into him. In these sets he's got a chance to scrape without dealing with an unblocked OL all the time. So…
- Michigan's deployment of the 3-3-5 isn't really a 3-3-5. I don't know what it is, but that whole attacking from everywhere, making different fronts, blitzing, getting guys through the line unblocked thing is something you can see on a fairly typical WVU play above. There are six guys on the LOS threatening and a dedicated cleanup guy behind them with the space and time to get anywhere along the line. Michigan is a passive three man line with guys you can easily single block (but get to double if you want) and linebackers who are living a nightmare. It's incoherent, and Michigan going back to it after having a fairly solid day against Iowa basing almost exclusively from traditional fronts is a miniature version of what happened against Purdue in 2008. Michigan's 3-3-5 is a 3-4 with linebackers in places that don't make sense.
- Michigan only escapes the above play by outnumbering the offense. No one on the defense beat their counterpart. Everyone was blocked out of the play, which means you can't win unless you've got an extra guy, which means you can't play two deep without getting smashed.
- I have no idea what Greg Robinson is trying to accomplish. This puts me in the same situation as Greg Robinson.


text: Northwest Natural Gas Company, dba NW Natural (NYSE:NWN), today reported that results of operations for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2011, produced a seasonal net loss of $8.3 million or 31 cents per share compared to a net loss of $7.4 million or 28 cents per share in the same quarter last year. For the nine months ended September 30, 2011, net income was $34.7 million or $1.30 per share, which compares to $43.1 million or $1.62 per share for the same period in 2010. Both periods include the effects of repealed utility tax legislation in Oregon as noted last quarter. Included in the nine-month period of 2011 was a second-quarter charge of $4.4 million after-tax, or 17 cents per share, compared to income of $2.9 million after-tax or 11 cents per share in 2010, from utility tax legislation. Results for 2010 also include the previously disclosed net refund of property taxes received in the first quarter of 2010 of $6.1 million or 14 cents per share. Rate decreases approved for 2011-12 heating season for customers NW Natural received approval to pass on more than 2 percent rate decreases to residential customers in Oregon and Washington, effective Nov. 1, 2011. These rate reductions result in the lowest billing rates in seven years for the company's residential customers. Rates are established each year under purchased gas adjustment (PGA) mechanisms in Oregon and Washington to reflect the expected cost of natural gas commodity purchases, which includes the company's cost of gas in inventory and its gas purchases hedged with financial derivatives. The company updated its PGA prices for Oregon and Washington customers in mid-October, and the new rates went into effect Nov. 1, 2011. Under the company's PGA incentive sharing mechanism in Oregon, the company also selected a 90:10 sharing ratio for customers and shareholders related to commodity gains or losses in Oregon for the 2011-12 heating season. In Washington, all gas costs are passed through to customers.


text:
Hamburg v Werder Bremen Live
Available on 8 channels inside the members area!!!
Hamburg could reach their first European Cup final in 26 years if they overcome north German rivals Werder Bremen in the second leg of their UEFA Cup semi final clash at the Nordbank Arena this Thursday. Watch the UEFA Cup semifinal between HSV and Werder Bremen live from the comfort of your PC by signing up to view online footy at free football tv.
HSV beat Bremen 1-0 in the first leg at the Weserstadion last week. Piotr Trochowski scored the winner from Guy Demel's cross. It was an important win for Martin Jol's men, who were eliminated by Bremen from the German Cup a week prior to the first leg. HSV could have won by more than a single goal had Bremen keeper Tim Wiese not been in such brilliant form.
Hamburg's chances of winning the Bundesliga title took a serious blow after they could only draw against Hertha Berlin on Sunday. German defender Marcell Jansen gave HSV an early lead which was cancelled out by Gojko Kacar in the second half. Striker Jose Paolo Guerrero will miss this clash after being booked in the first leg.
Werder Bremen had Tim Wiese to thank for keeping the score line respectable at the Weserstadion. He produced two excellent saves to deny Ivica Olic. Despite a loss at home, Werder will believe that they are still in with a chance.
Werder lost their weekend Bundesliga game to Cologne as trainer Thomas Schaaf chose to rotate his squad. The likes of Diego, Clemens Fritz, Mesut Ozil and Hugo Almeida were rested keeping the second leg semifinal clash in mind.
It won't be easy for Werder, but they will give it their all. These two German sides are bitter rivals, and this game will be tightly contested. Sign up today to watch Hamburg vs Werder Bremen live.
Tags: Hamburg, Werder Bremen, UEFA Cup, Martin Jol, Bundesliga, Tim Wiese, Diego, Werder Bremen live


text:
TrueCrypt is a great little freeware tool I've used on my USB flash drive for quite a while. A new version was just released that includes the following features:
- Ability to encrypt a system partition/drive (i.e. a partition/drive where Windows is installed) with pre-boot authentication (anyone who wants to gain access and use the system, read and write files, etc., needs to enter the correct password each time before the system starts). For more information, see the chapter System Encryption in the documentation. (Windows Vista/XP/2003)
- Pipelined operations increasing read/write speed by up to 100% (Windows)
- Mac OS X version
- Graphical user interface for the Linux version of TrueCrypt
- XTS mode of operation, which was designed by Phillip Rogaway in 2003 and which was recently approved as the IEEE 1619 standard for cryptographic protection of data on block-oriented storage devices. XTS is faster and more secure than LRW mode (for more information on XTS mode, see the section Modes of Operation in the documentation).Note: New volumes created by this version of TrueCrypt can be encrypted only in XTS mode. However, volumes created by previous versions of TrueCrypt can still be mounted using this version of TrueCrypt.
- SHA-512 hash algorithm (replacing SHA-1, which is no longer available when creating new volumes).Note: To re-encrypt the header of an existing volume with a header key derived using HMAC-SHA-512 (PRF), select 'Volumes' > 'Set Header Key Derivation Algorithm'.
If you are new to TrueCrypt, start by reading the FAQ, tutorial and technical deails. Now that TrueCrypt supports pre-boot authentication, there is no reason not to use it on my laptop and other portable devices.


text:
Review: Traktor DJ for iPad
Traktor has long been a firm favourite with digital DJs, including with about three-quarters of Digital DJ Tips readers. The desktop software offers a wealth of functionality and pushes the boundaries with things like its extensive effects and Remix Decks. Now, Traktor DJ has joined its bigger brother, bringing the world of Traktor to the iPad.
So what does the newest DJ app for the iPad (iPad 2 and upwards with iOS6, to be precise) look like, and what does it do differently from other iPad DJ apps in order to stand out from the crowd? Let's find out in our full Traktor DJ For iPad review and video talkthrough...
First impressions
As the app loads up for the first time, you are presented with a brief video of highlighted features giving you a taster of what's in store. Firstly, it's probably best that you put to one side the image of a DJ with two spinning turntables with pitch sliders and a mixer: As you explore Traktor DJ, that will only make you feel old! Traktor DJ re-imagines a DJ's job, with the waveforms centrestage. This is something that I've been keen on ever since first getting my hands on an iPad, and I was immediately approving of it here.
Why? Because a horizontal waveform-based display makes much more sense than a vinyl/CDJ emulation when you try and DJ with an iOS device. The frequency colour-coded waveforms on Traktor DJ appear crisp, precise and almost hypnotic as they scroll across the screen; they've done an excellent job with them.
You do have a smaller overall waveform to show your progress through the track, plus you can use pinch gestures on this to zoom in and out of the main waveform for closer detail. This becomes particularly useful when setting one of the generous eight hot cue points - plenty of scope for you to set markers on the intro, first beat, vocals, breakdowns and outro, probably with a few to spare.
With the waveform as the main focus of the app, you quickly realise that most of the major functions have been ushered to the side. The main function buttons for each deck (Play, Loop, EQ and FX) are on the right-hand side, and unusually, the slimline crossfader also positioned (vertically) on the right. At first glance this may feel odd, but you soon realise that through the use of your right thumb you can load, play, loop and mix between tracks with ease. and of course, you are in reality mixing from the "top" waveform to the "bottom" one, so it makes sense in that way too.
Getting started
When the app is started for the first time, the music library on the device is automatically analysed. Depending on how many tracks you have and their format, this may take a little while. To get the best results from the app, I would recommend leaving this for a while to finish. While you're waiting, you could make a cup of tea and re-read this review, or alternatively, you could browse through the neat in-app tutorials (by clicking the "Information" icon at the top of the screen). Doing so displays a sidebar on the left with topics of interest, and screenshots with text to explain each feature.
If you haven't looked at the tutorials, a notification-style number will be displayed next to the Information icon, indicating that you have a few features left to read about - a neat idea. The in-app help is well presented, clear and concise so should be easy for anyone to follow and understand.
What happens during that analysis though? Well, the analysis detects the BPM, beatgrid and harmonic key for every track. Harmonic analysis is something new to DJ apps on iOS. The result is that every track has a BPM and key marker against it. This is used by the app when displaying a list of recommended tracks. The latest version (2.6.1) of Traktor Pro will also provide the same advanced key detection functionality. It's a bit confusing in the NI is using its own notation rather than "real" keys or the Camelot notation, but at least it's there.
Loading a track
Choosing a track to load into the deck is a slick process. You can access the music library page in a number of ways: by taping on the music icon at the top right-hand side of the screen, by tapping on the artwork / track detail on either deck, or by swiping up from the bottom of the screen.
The music library is an area where the app improves on all other iOS DJ apps. Not only is there the usual slicing of your music library into playlist, artist, genre and so on, but as mentioned Traktor DJ also does some real-time analysis of the tracks you've got loaded and provides you with a list of recommended tracks which can match on compatible keys or similar BPM value. If you want a perfect match then both the key and BPM icons will be highlighted in green for easy identification. It would be nice to see some definable sorting available on the recommended tracks section, so that those with a best match are displayed at the top.
The other displays of your music (for example in a playlist) can be sorted in a number of ways including by harmonic key (that's the little music note icon) and BPM (that's the heart/pulse icon). You can also search for tracks in the music library as well as accessing previous recordings made within the app. This could be useful if you're interrupted during a mix session. You could easily come back to your recorded mix, load it into a deck and continue from where you left off, overdub FX or mix in further tracks over the top.
Adjusting the beatgrid
Once your tracks have been loaded into both decks, what's your next move? I found that my first task was to take a look at the beatgrid, most of the functionality in the app relies on the beatgrid so it's worth double checking.
On tracks with a solid beat throughout it was perfect every time. Adjusting the beatgrid is simple enough, tap on the lined button alongside "Sync" and you get a detailed waveform display and a clear beatgrid. If the grid is slightly out, you can correct it by pushing the waveform forward or back to your preference.
It's worth scrolling through the track to a few different points to ensure that your beat grid is near enough correct throughout. You can also adjust the BPM of the track on this screen, via half, double or tap-tempo buttons.
You can change the master tempo by pressing the BPM indicator in the top centre and using the circular dial which looks like it's been inspired by the early iPods. This will change the tempo for any track with the "Sync" button active (highlighted in green).
Note that Traktor DJ provides no "warping" or "elastic beatgridding" (like Ableton Live or Serato), and so it can't beatgrid with non electronic music (ie anything with a real drummer whose tempo varies slightly as they play). Worse, as the software has no tempo nudge, you can't "manually" beatmatch with it either - so at the moment, it's strictly for electronic music DJs (or DJs who don't want to beatmix, of course).
Cues and loops
Setting a cue point is simple too. By clicking on the flag button you can set (and delete) eight cue points, which are remembered every time the track is loaded. These cues are hot cues (so playback will start when you press any set cue point).
There is another button next to the flag, which has a frosty "Freeze" icon that stops the waveform scrolling. If this is enabled during playback you can play any segment of the waveform displayed, a bit like chopping it up into tiny pieces and playing back on a piano roll. The Freeze function can be used in Loop mode, allowing you to loop segments of your main loop all without losing a beat. It's a cousin of the Slicer functions on some Serato controllers, like the Novation Twitch and the Pioneer DDJ-SX. Remixing on the fly! It's all the rage, this "breaking from the timeline" idea in software DJing (see The One and forthcoming Virtual DJ 8), but Traktor DJ has actually got it to market. Top marks.
The loop functionality is simple; you can set a default loop length in the settings (accessed on the music library page) and you can adjust the length by swiping on the waveform. There is no way to set and store loop-in and loop-out points, so looping is all live and instant.
EQ, Filter and FX
The EQ panel has a cool blue colour scheme and good wide sliders that have a visible trail to them, so you can quickly see where they are positioned. A quick tap on the centre line (not the slider) will return that EQ setting back to zero. The EQs are not full audio kill, but they are clear and responsive. You can also use a high-pass / low-pass filter on the same panel as EQ (accessed via the "Filter" tab). The central point on the X-Y filter pad is zero; sliding down to the left will leave you with just bass frequencies, while sliding up and right will give you just the highs. The filter can be locked in place using the Lock icon, this will also place a tiny button near the "Sync" button on the waveform view. This means you can quickly turn off that filter without needing to go back into the EQ page.
The FX panel (with orange colour scheme) appears from the left of the screen and gives you a decent sized X-Y control pad for your FX. There are three drop-down lists for the FX, but it seems that you can only apply one effect at a time. The three lists then could be set to whatever your top three most used FX are. As with the filter on the EQ panel, the FX can be locked in place leaving your fingers free to move onto something else within the app. Once again, if the effect is locked on, a small "FX" button appears alongside the "Sync" button - enabling a quick switch off when needed.
Other features
Traktor DJ provides splitter cable support which would give you a mono cue and mono master signal from the headphone jack (any in-app recording would also be in mono). It also supports USB audio sound cards; the press release specifically refers to Traktor Audio 6 and 10, which I didn't actually realise were USB class compliant. You can connect these via the Camera Connection Kit to give you a higher quality stereo cueing and stereo master output. I haven't got one of these interfaces but it would be interesting to hear if anyone has used these with their iPad.
I'll throw the gauntlet down here, though: NI is a big company and this is a big app. It would be good to see an Apple-approved audio interface (maybe also a dock?) from NI that negated the need to use the Camera Connection Kit hack, and that also allowed you to charge your iPad when using Traktor DJ. How about it, NI?
You can adjust the master volume using the little speaker icon near the top. From this menu you can also trigger the in-app recording and adjust cue volume and cue mix detail. The in-app recording is stored in wav format and can be downloaded to your desktop via the app file sharing functionality in iTunes.
Another trick up the sleeve of Native Instruments is to launch Traktor DJ in conjunction with the next version of the Traktor Pro software. This means that Traktor DJ has bi-directional synchronisation of beatgrids, cue points and BPM data. This is achieved via a free Dropbox account, configurable via the settings page. An iCloud option would certainly make sense here too.
Traktor DJ is different to a lot of other DJ apps available on iOS. The focus is on going beyond simple beatmatching, and so the software clears the usual controls out to the sides, to give the user a much more fun playing with the waveforms. It's certainly an immersive way to explore and play with music.
The design of the app demonstrates a lot of attention to detail. I particularly liked the comprehensive in-app tutorials which are informative but don't feel too technical, and the luxurious scrolling waveforms. The decision to have most major controls on the right-hand side means that you could perform most of those tasks (including loading a new track into a deck) with one hand, while the other could be holding the iPad . A casual flick of the thumb and a track from your library gets thrown into whichever deck you've chosen and you're ready to go.
The colour scheme also feels easy to look at - although I was dreaming about scrolling waveforms one evening last week after sustained use! Mixing between tracks without using the usual pitch controls takes a little getting used to, but there will be new DJs who know of nothing else but the Sync button anyway. As mentioned before though, it's a non-starter for funk, disco or any other music without a perfectly regimented beat.
The way Traktor DJ presents recommended tracks is clever, although you could easily find yourself blindly going down a "recommended" path when in fact perhaps you would be better off changing the pace completely. It is an incredibly useful feature though, and along with the harmonic analysis, is a first in an iOS DJ app. The "Freeze" functionality is brilliant fun, particularly effective when in loop mode. I'm looking forward to seeing what people get up to with this as it's another new feature that we haven't seen on iOS before.
With the synchronisation option between the app and Traktor Pro (via DropBox), the app could be used by DJs to do their beatgrid and cue point homework while on the move. Alternatively, if you're already a Traktor Pro user it would be a quick process to transfer your metadata across onto your iPad. Native Instruments has had the luxury of developing for the iPad unencumbered by the baggage it must feel when iterating the "main" Traktor app, and it's good to see that the company hasn't tried to cram too much in here at v1.0. No four decks support, no dozens of effects, no Remix decks...
By concentrating on some key features, Native Instruments now has the base to react slowly and deliberately as it develops the app, and Traktor DJ should be all the better for that. Also, it would be naive to think that the designers aren't rethinking Traktor on the PC and Mac too, and it will be interesting to see what v3 of Traktor brings for those platforms.
Overall, Traktor DJ definitely springs more than a few pleasant surprises and thankfully gives us a fresh look at how DJing could be achieved on an iPad. Because you can get started in moments and instantly mix harmonically between tracks, I believe it will be popular with DJs of all abilities, and of course could well be the stepping stone for new DJs from iOS towards a full Traktor Pro set-up.
Review Summary:
Traktor DJ is different to a lot of other DJ apps available on iOS. The focus is on going beyond simple beatmatching, and so the software clears the usual controls out to the sides, to give the user a much more fun playing with the waveforms. It's certainly an immersive way to explore and play with music.
- Traktor DJ for iPad
- Rating:
- From: Native Instruments
- Price: $19.99
- Reviewed by:
Video Review
Do you use Traktor Pro, and if so will you be adding Traktor DJ as your iOS companion software? How do you feel about the lack of pitch control? Do you like the idea of the Freeze feature? What about the next track recommendation engine? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments.


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The Women of World War II Memorial Fund has been told it will cost £335,000 to remedy the problem, which the charity says it cannot afford.
Westminster Council is deciding if it can be moved to Parliament Square.
The £1m memorial is expected to be unveiled in July to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of WWII.
But Betty Boothroyd, the charity's patron and former Speaker of the House of Commons, said: "The Queen has accepted our invitation to unveil the monument on 9 July and our plans for a reunion of war heroines and veterans are well-advanced.
'Technical hitch'
"It would be a tragedy if all our hard work and high hopes are jeopardised by a technical hitch."
Transco, the energy company which owns the gas pipes, is giving the charity a £50,000 donation, but says it has to adhere to health and safety regulations to keep a clear access to paths.
But Major David Robertson, the charity's chairman, said they do not have the funds to meet the bill.
"The solution is to move the monument a short distance out of harm's reach. Westminster Council understands the urgency of the problem and is working with us," he said.
"The contribution women made to the war effort has been underrated for the past 60 years."
The bronze memorial, which will be 22ft high, 16ft long and 6ft wide, will depict the uniforms and working clothes worn by women during WWII.
Last year the charity was awarded £934,000 as a "special tribute on behalf of the nation".


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The Making of a Couture Invitation
July 8, Studio 450, New York
Lion in the Sun, from $500 for 100; 718-369-4006
1. For the save-the-date, I used flowers based on those in a painting for a show I was in at P.S 1. I engraved my own handwriting so it'd feel more personal.
2. We both love turquoise and used the color throughout the wedding reception. My bridal party chose their own dresses in any shade of blue-green. We asked the groomsmen to wear a blue-green tie or handkerchief.
3. Ryan often brings me lilies, so I decided to draw a spotted lily myself and have it letterpressed into the background of our invitation card. I use orchids in my work, so I considered that, but in the end I thought an orchid would be too sexual for a wedding invite.
From the Winter 2007 New York Wedding Guide


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How do experienced and talented film critics approach a film? They always focus on whether every single frame and moment has been uniquely crafted to have a deep impact on the viewer. Theoretically speaking, nothing is an accident in films and every activity in a film like actors delivering dialogues, setting up a shot or the placement of a property is preplanned and, harmoniously blending all these aspects is an incredibly complicated process. The creator of a film has to make several important decisions at the right time to make his creation a great work of art. The reasoning behind every decision comes down to how it works with the story and how does it affect the viewer. Renowned film critics always look upon this aspect in a detailed manner and they dissect a film in different ways to come up with high quality critical view points.
Good critics do not stand between a film and its viewers
Today, objective film criticism has become a rare practice and most people come up with their biased opinions without following an impartial method of approach. Top film critics make sincere and committed efforts to minimize their complex personality stand between the film and the prospective viewer. You need to give attention to certain important facts while reading a film criticism. First of all, you have to find how does the critic describe the plot and it is always advisable to check whether the entire review revolves around the plot itself. Inexperienced film critics do not have clear cut idea about the difference between a film review and a plot summary and, they often write about the plot in a detailed manner without putting forward their creative and critical viewpoints about the film. Experienced critics report what they have seen and they make sincere efforts to interpret in a detached manner.
Better film vocabulary, respect towards the medium and proper knowledge about other art forms
If you do not have the ability to make astute comparisons, nobody is going to consider you as a good film critic and your cinematic vocabulary should be really good as well. Renowned critics usually come up with intelligent, insightful and relevant observations and, they always respect the medium they are criticizing. Best professionals show great respect for all art forms and this quality helps them write articulately about a film. There was a well known Hollywood film producer that recently sent shivers up the spine of the industry when she decided to do a special feature on the construction industry — she focused on the incredible amount of building that is being done due to expansion from Amazon and Facebook in the state of Washington and shot several scenes about Seattle shipping containers and how they are being put to great use, even when some are over decade old. Films make use of different types of art forms to communicate with the viewers and if you do not have adequate knowledge about other art forms like painting, music and dance, you will not be able to write authentic, interesting and objective reviews and criticisms. All these qualities can always be associated with experienced film critics.
Studying the masters and developing a unique voice
Film criticism can be considered as an art form and in order to master this art, you must study the old masters of this art form. Top critics have clear cut understanding about the foundation that modern film criticism is built upon and it helps them write accurately, clearly and in an unprejudiced manner as well. The key to become a successful film critic is to develop a unique voice out of your views and this voice should speak to the reader in uncomplicated manner. The talent in writing is absolutely essential but your ideas should communicate with the readers properly as well. You can find a lot of successful film critics with different writing styles including conversational, succinct, profane or personal but they are unique in their own way. Uniqueness is the most important characteristic that can be associated with reputed film critics.
And to wrap things up…
Film criticism can be described as an art to be learned and practiced. Although there are no hard and fast rules to become a successful film critic, you should have good writing skills and it is absolutely essential to have better understanding about other art forms. Good critics never stand in between a film and its viewers and, they always display great amount of respect for the medium they are criticizing. It can be said without an iota of doubt that best film critics know how to develop a unique tone and voice, and this voice communicates with the reader in the best possible manner.


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At AbelCine, we're always trying to stay on the cutting edge of technological development in the camera world, so we often get questions about the latest cameras and workflows. Recently, a client asked about playing back 4K footage on his new Sony 4K home theater projector, which he primarily used for HD screenings. Now he wanted to be able to record 4K footage in his studio space and immediately play it back in his screening room in 4K. In other words, he wanted to treat 4K just like a standard HD system, where we can easily record and play back at full resolution. 4K RAW acquisition and workflows are pretty well established now, but this client was asking for something rather different: 4K video. The ability to both capture and immediately play back 4K footage at full resolution is still rare, even with the latest and greatest cameras, so this request was a bit more complicated than it sounds. The Canon EOS C500 camera, however, offered a unique solution to this problem and one that makes 4K a little more plug-and-play.
To understand why the C500 was the answer, I need to explain a couple of things about the current state of 4K tools and recording formats.
A RAW Deal
At the heart of this issue is the fact that most 4K acquisition is in some kind of RAW data format. Sensors are essentially black-and-white; their photosites gather light and output voltage. Color on a single-sensor camera typically is made using a filter array; RAW data stores brightness information from each photosite and color information from whatever single color it's filtered for (red, green or blue). So in RAW, each stored pixel doesn't represent all colors, just one. Video recording, on the other hand, stores each pixel with both brightness and full color information. So why don't we just always record video? Because an uncompressed video file would be a considerably larger file size than the same RAW data, especially at high bit rates like the 12- to 16-bit ranges we see in some formats. For example, a single frame of ARRIRAW in 16×9 mode would be about 7 MB; the same 12-bit DPX file (a video frame) would be around 19 MB—a pretty big difference. So the question is, if the video is derived from the RAW sensor data anyway, why bother recording in video? Well, it all comes down to your workflow.
With the release of the RED ONE camera a few years back, RAW capture became a reality for many productions, including television series. RED enabled 4K production at an affordable price point, but it didn't come without some caveats. RAW data needs to be processed into video to be used, which meant an extra step in post. When RED first hit the production world, this conversion step was painfully slow on most computers. RED helped speed it up with the release of their RED Rocket com-puter card, and today's software tools minimize the post issues even more. Despite all of that, the majority of television productions today are shot in video. The introduction of the ARRI ALEXA in 2010 really changed the game. The ALEXA can output high-resolution RAW, or record in HD in the popular ProRes or DNxHD compression. The latter has proven to be the choice of a large majority of television productions. The ALEXA makes a great image, but some believe that it also was the HD workflow that pushed many television shows toward the camera.
The ALEXA records in a Log mode, giving a great deal of dynamic range, and in recording qualities up to 12-bit ProRes 4444. This is a very high-quality recording mode, but is still strictly a 1920×1080 resolution. Recording in RAW is a great option, but it's not practical in terms of cost and time in post. The quality and dynamic range of the ALEXA's HD recording is good enough for television work, and has been used for theatrical releases, as well. RAW recording is still preferable for high-res finishing and recomposition options, but it's not the norm today. Is it possible to combine high-resolution recording with the relatively easy video workflow? Canon was hoping you would ask that question, and their answer is the C500.


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History & Statistics of Job Boards (Infographic)
Job boards facilitate employers to post about job openings. Job description, job role, number of positions, reviews of various organizations, career advice, job-search based on skills and other facilities will also be provided in some employment sites. Job boards help job seekers to locate a particular job, fill the application or submit their CVs or resumes for the interested job position online. Job boards have been around for many years and they still serve as useful means of employment for both the employers, as well as job seekers. Take a look at the history and statistics pertaining to job boards in this infographic.
20% of hiring takes place through job boards, which is second to jobs through referrals. They have been around for many years. Job boards are classic and still stand as important means of hire. Job boards are here to stay and continue to evolve to keep with the dynamic social media. Job boards are a best way for learning about the new job openings that show up in the industry, the skills required to qualify for those roles and how to proceed with the application process.
The beginning of job boards industry was during 1990-1994, with job listings coming up on Usenet, CareerMosaic, and Monster. Between the years 1995 and 1997, few developments were witnessed such as new website launches and newspaper job listings going online. Major changes took place in the years 1998 and 1999. Recovery and developments were seen between 2000 and 2002. Significant growth time for the industry was around 2003-2007. After the recession during 2008-2010, job boards industry picked up again and entered the modern era, which is now.
Embed this infographic on your site.
Category: Job Descriptions


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The international lenders overseeing Greece's bailout are back in Athens for their latest audit, as Greek officials hope dissent in the lending group might allow them new negotiating room.
It's the first time high-ranking representatives of the troika - the International Monetary Fund, the European Commission and the European Central Bank - have assembled here since an IMF report last week conceded that it had made mistakes in Greece's first foreign bailout. The report prompted angry reactions from the European Commission, not to mention Greek citizens weary of years of recession and austerity measures imposed by the lenders.
Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras met with the foreign envoys on Monday for the first in a series of talks expected to focus on Greek pledges for layoffs in the civil service, an overhaul of the dysfunctional tax collection system and the status of a slow-moving effort to raise money by selling off state assets. Athens is obliged to show progress on those and other commitments to secure a tranche of €3.3 billion in rescue loans that are scheduled to be dispensed this month.
A ministry official described the first meeting as a discussion and an exchange of views about where we are and how we see things.
"We didn't decide on anything,'' he said. "All issues remain open."
Greeks see leverage in IMF rebuke
Having arranged two bailouts for Greece worth a combined €240 billion over the past three years, the troika has been handing out the aid in instalments in exchange for the country's adopting economic changes and hitting austerity targets.
Many Greeks have protested those measures, which have helped slash living standards as the country enters its sixth year of recession and have played a part in an unemployment rate that has reached 27 per cent.
Greek government officials hope that the string of errors highlighted in the IMF's internal report might prompt the troika to ease demands for more painful reforms. The report concluded that the fund made serious miscalculations and failed to anticipate the severity of Greece's economic downturn. The IMF's admission has given Greece some negotiating power, Stournaras said in an interview with the centre-left To Vima newspaper on Sunday.
Among the concessions he is expected to seek is the lowering of the value-added tax on restaurants and taverns - to 13 per cent, from 23 per cent - as a way to lighten the burden on small businesses and help the crucial tourism sector, which is forecasting a record year of 17 million foreign visitors.
Delay sought on government layoffs
Government officials are also expected to ask for a reprieve in the approximately 2000 layoffs in the civil service that the troika wants to see over the summer; Athens fears that possible labour protests and transport strikes would hamper tourism.
Greece had committed to dismissing 4000 public sector workers this year and an additional 11,000 in 2014. Even after those cuts, the number of Greek civil servants would be more than 600,000, compared with around 3 million working in the private sector.
Other issues likely to be discussed are an expected funding gap of €4.6 billion for financing the bailout program in 2014 and measures that will be taken to cover the shortfall.
Also on the table might be discussion of how likely it is that Greece's international creditors might be forced to take some losses on their holdings of Greek debt next year to ease the country's financial burden.
Another big topic on the agenda is Greece's huge untapped potential for privatising government-owned assets. But Athens received an unpleasant surprise when the Russian energy giant Gazprom failed to submit an offer for the Greece's public gas corporation, Depa, by Mondays deadline.
EU investigating Gazprom
Athens had hoped to close a deal with Gazprom after meetings in recent months between the Russian company's chief executive, Alexey Miller, and the Greek prime minister, Antonis Samaras. Gazprom made a preliminary bid last year of €900 million, and a final bid of around €800 million had been expected.
Some Greek media reports Monday said the deal went sour following a dispute over the price at which Gazprom would supply gas to Greek households. Others reported that objections by the European Union's competition authorities, which have been investigating Gazprom since last fall, led the Russians to withdraw their interest.
Addressing supporters of his conservative New Democracy Party, which leads Greece's ruling coalition, in the northern port of Thessaloniki on Sunday, Samaras said the government was doing everything in our power to attract investments. He accused the main leftist opposition party, Syriza, which opposes the terms of Greece's foreign bailouts and has pledged to reverse all privatisations if it comes to power, of doing all it can to chase investments away.
The New York Times


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A 13-year-old Palmdale boy, apparently despondent over a school suspension, shot and killed himself Monday night in Kern County, sheriff's officials said.
Nigel Hardy left a suicide note in his room, and his father's gun was missing, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a missing-persons alert Monday evening.
At 8:12 p.m., someone called 911 in Kern County to report a suicide at a restaurant called Crazy Otto's in Rosamond. That's about 19 miles north of where Nigel was last seen.
Ray Pruitt, a Kern sheriff's spokesman, said a boy who had shot himself in the head was alive at the time and was taken to Antelope Valley Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 10:05 p.m. The L.A. sheriff confirmed it was Nigel.
Ed Winter, an L.A. County assistant chief coroner, said Nigel had just turned 13 on Thursday.
He had last been seen Monday morning. While searching his room, his father found an apparent suicide note, the L.A. County sheriff said.
The father's gun was missing. While deputies did not know if Nigel had taken the gun, his school, Hillview Middle, was placed on "heightened awareness," the Sheriff's Department said.
The Antelope Valley Times published a photo showing scores of parents in front of the school Monday afternoon while deputies stood guard. The paper reported the school was locked down for hours Monday.
The Times cited a sheriff's broadcast that said Nigel was a cheerleader who had been bullied and gotten into a fight with a fellow student last week, leading to his suspension.
A woman who answered the phone at Hillview Tuesday morning said there were counseling resources available for students, but she referred questions to the Westside Union School District superintendent's office. No one there was immediately available.
818-514-5610 twitter.com/ethartley


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Biblical garden creator leaves world-class legacy
Little did Walter Jacob and Irene Loewenthal realize when they met while vacationing in Italy in 1958 that Pittsburgh would become a focal point in their lives.
"I was studying in England at the time, and Irene was working as a laboratory technician in Israel," said Walter Jacob, rabbi emeritus of Rodef Shalom Congregation in Oakland. "I found Irene to be a bright, intelligent young woman who was able to get people to follow, a trait she carried throughout her life, which enhanced the life of others."
Irene Jacob of Point Breeze, founding director of the Rodef Shalom Biblical Garden, died on Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012, in her home. She was 84.
Mrs. Jacob co-founded Mainstay Services for Handicapped Children and was involved with Mothers Day Out, an organization that enabled stay-at-home moms to have time for themselves.
Born and raised in Germany and England, Irene Loewenthal was one of three children of insurance broker Ludwig and Anna Loewenthal, who moved to England once the Nazis came to power in Germany.
She immigrated to Israel six months after independence was declared in 1948.
She and the rabbi were married in the same year they met.
Walter Jacob recalled hearing his wife describe the English as hard workers and great gardeners, and say how much she enjoyed watching her father cultivate his garden.
After he became rabbi of Rodef Shalom, Mrs. Jacob became actively engaged with the temple families.
Her commitment in developing the Rodef Shalom Biblical Garden established her as a world-class horticulturist whose creation attracted visitors from throughout the world.
Gardens often portray periods in the history of a nation, her husband said, and "the items in Irene's Biblical Garden designate periods in Israel's history."
The garden features plants and trees cited in the Bible. This year, the exhibit added a replica of a 3,000-year-old plow made with materials that would have been used in ancient Israel.
As educational coordinator at Phipps Conservatory in Oakland, Mrs. Jacob put together an exhibit of plants of the Bible.
Mrs. Jacob wrote or was co-author of seven books on horticulture, including "Plants of the Bible and Their Uses."
In addition to her husband, survivors include a sister, Eva Meisler of Jerusalem, and a brother, Eli Loewenthal of Haifa.
Mrs. Jacob was preceded in death by her children, Claire, Kenny, Daniel and Eslyn Jacob.
Services were Friday in Rodef Shalom Temple, with interment in West View Cemetery of Rodef Shalom Congregation. Arrangements were by Ralph Schugar Chapel Inc.
The family asks that memorials be in the form of contributions to the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Garden Endowment Fund, c/o Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15213.
Jerry Vondas is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-320-7823 or email@example.com.


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|You are in: Football: Eng Prem
Saturday, 28 October, 2000, 16:25 GMT 17:25 UK
Ipswich brace sinks sorry Boro
Ipswich 2-1 Middlesbrough.
Town boss George Burley will be pleased to have finally converted away success into home points as Ipswich finish off a sorely-depleted Middlesbrough.
Goals from Richard Naylor and Mark Venus were enough to give the Ipswich a rare win at Portman Road and add to Boro boss Brian Robson's worries.
Middlesbrough, without Paul Ince due to a knee injury and Croatian star Allen Boksic who is still recovering from his own knee problems, looked makeshift and uncertain.
Also Mark Crossley, once touted for England a few years ago, will be kicking himself after his mistake cost Boro their first goal.
Despite a late consolation goal from a deflected Dean Gordon free-kick, it was definitely Ipswich in the driving seat.
Early pressure
From the start, George Burley's side were looking sharp enough to cause Middlesbrough some probems and dominated the centre of play.
However, the first real credible chance fell to Boro as goalkeeper Richard Wright had to be on his toes to save Mark Summerbell's long-range header.
A few minutes later, it was Mark Crossley at the other end who had to keep out Marcus Stewart's effort.
Boro's closest opportunity came in the 15th minute as Columbian striker Hamilton Ricard raced forward into the Ipswich half and found himself one-on-one with Wright.
Ricard, perhaps a little too confidently, tried to slip the the ball under the former England U-21 international, but Wright was not going to concede that easily and blocked it.
Manager Robson showed his dissatisfaction by taking off Ricard shortly after, despite no apparent injury, and brought on summer signing Noel Whelan.
But again and again it was Ipswich doing the attacking, sending shots and teasing passes across Boro's goalmouth, and it seemed only a matter of time before they would get on the score sheet.
Crossley mistake
Crossley only had himself to blame when in the 25th minute he impetuously came out of his area to meet Magilton's incisive pass down the middle of the field.
Instead of clearing the ball to safety, the former Nottingham Forest goalkeeper simply deflected it to a prowling Richard Naylor on the left who calmly drove it into the back of an empty net.
Now a goal down, Boro were feeling the strain and French star Christian Karembeu launched himself too eagerly into a challenge on Mark Venus three minutes later.
Referee Neale Barry gave a free-kick and 33-year-old Venus slid the ball under the Boro wall and past Crossley whose line of sight was clearly blocked by his own players.
After that, Boro seemed to be clutching at straws as they desperately tried to make chances.
Ipswich seemed to slightly lose their way in the second half as Middlesbrough made more of a game of it, but that was all.
The deflected free-kick in the 68th minute by Gordon did little to lift a sorry Boro side and was disappointing for Ipswich after such a dominating performance in defence.
Just to add to Robson's worries, striker Brian Deane was carted off in the second half after a nasty collision and could join Boro's growing injury list.
In the end though, Ipswich continue to challenge in the top half of the table while Middlesbrough, who have yet to keep a clean sheet this season, must wonder where it is all going wrong.
Ipswich: R. Wright, Wilnis, Clapham, Venus, McGreal,
Hreidarsson, Holland, Magilton, Stewart, J. Wright, Naylor.
Middlesbrough: Crossley, Fleming, Gordon, Vickers, Festa,
Karembeu, Deane, Campbell, Ricard, Summerbell, Cooper.
Referee: N Barry (Scunthorpe)
Other top Eng Prem stories:
Links to top Eng Prem stories are at the foot of the page.
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