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Please note: The following presentations are in Microsoft PowerPoint format.
To download the free MS Powerpoint Viewer, please visit Microsoft's website.
Alaska State Planning Grant Overview.
Alice Rarig, MA, MPH, PhD. Planner, Health Planning & Systems Development Unit, Office of the Commissioner, Alaska Department of Health & Social Services. Alaska Health Summit, December 4, 2006.
Available Data on Alaska's Uninsured.
Stephanie Walden and Alice Rarig. Health Planning & Systems Development Unit, Office of the Commissioner, Alaska Department of Health & Social Services.
Health Care Benefit Survey Sample of Employers
Neal Gilbertsen, PhD, Economist, Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Research and Analysis Section. Alaska Health Summit Session 103. December 4, 2006.
Alaska Household Health Insurance Coverage Survey.
Rebecca S. Wells, SM, Health Survey Lab Manager, Alaska Department of Health & Social Services, Division of Public Health, Section of Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. December 4, 2006.
Health Insurance Coverage & Access in Alaska: Focus Group Study of the Uninsured.
Virgene Hanna and Rosyland Frazier, Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Alaska Anchorage. December 4, 2006
Session 312 Achieving a High Performance Health System
The Commonwealth Fund's Commission on a High Performance Health System has released a report called "Why Not the Best?" scoring the US health system performance on the basis of 37 indicators measuring outcomes, quality, access, efficiency and equity. Cathy Schoen, senior vice president of The Commonwealth Fund, who conceptualized and oversaw the development and production of the scorecard, presents the Scorecard approach. Alaska health economists, private sector and public health experts provided information and comments on Alaska's health system performance and challenges. (ISER Economist Scott Goldsmith, ANTHC CEO Paul Sherry, and Providence Health Systems Planner Joel Gilbertson commented.)
Why Not the Best? Towards a High Performance Health System.
Cathy Schoen, Senior Vice President, The Commonwealth Fund. Alaska Health Summit. December 6, 2006, Alice Rarig, Planner IV, Alaska Department of Health & Social Services.


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The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson is the seventh leader in the Chabad-Lubavitch dynasty. He has been described as the most phenomenal Jewish personality of our time. To his hundreds of thousands of followers and millions of sympathizers and admirers around the world, he is "the Rebbe" today's most dominant figure in Judaism and, undoubtedly, the one individual more than any other singularly responsible for stirring the conscience and spiritual awakening of world Jewry.
Born in 1902, on the 11th day of Nissan, in Nikolayev, Russia, the Rebbe is the son of the renowned Kabbalist and Talmudic scholar, the late Rabbi Levi Yitzchak and Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson. He is the great-grandson-and namesake-of the third Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch. (His mother, Rebbetzin Chana, 1880-1964, during her famous husband's exile by the Soviets to a remote village in Asian Russia, displayed legendary courage and ingenuity; for example, she labored to make inks from herbs she gathered in the fields-so that Rabbi Levi Yitzchak could continue writing his commentary on Kabbala and other Torah-subjects).
Within the Lubavitch community, the title shliach evokes respect, perhaps even a tinge of envy. They are the chosen few, the elite. Children aspire to be shluchim, dreaming of manning a Chabad House in far-off exotic lands where strange languages are spoken. The product of childish minds, it is an idealized dream, free of the difficulties and traumas that beset the shliach in real life.
There is no trumpet sounded when they arrive in their new home city; no red carpets unrolled in their honor. They have few friends, no relatives, no familiar culture, atmosphere or environment. Many commodities, such as kosher meat, dairy products and other basics, may have to be flown in, but here are certain staples, vitally essential to their mission, which they bring with them by the truckload: Friendliness, affection for all Jews, compassion, tolerance, self-sacrifice, utter devotion and selfless dedication.
Armed with these, they immediately begin their work of outreach-explaining, shedding light, dispelling myths, countering stereotypes. "what does it mean to be a Jew?" "Rabbi, how can I observe the Shabbat-when my store has its best sales on Saturday?" "How are mitzvot relevant today, in this community?" The shliach of Chabad does not insist; he suggests. He does not criticize; he encourages. He does not "preach down" at people; he acts as a genuine equal, a friend. And the revolution begins. It takes place without anyone realizing it. A few years fly by, and, "out of nowhere," it is a familiar and accepted sight to see families with Sukkot, observing Shabbat, kosher, etc. …
Schneerson Center distributes free food to over 200 participants per month and distributes the food for Jewish Holidays to 200 congregants.
Over 80 people participating in Friday night Dinners and Saturday afternoons.
Our Holiday programs usually serve between 80 to 150 people
Lag BaOmer is a festive day on the Jewish calendar, celebrating the anniversary of the passing of the great sage and mystic Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, author of the Zohar. Lag BaOmer 2015 party had more than 250 people in the park. People enjoyed a barbecue and music. The kids enjoyed a bounce house and a musician.
We plan to have an ice cream party in the park on May 23rd in honor of Shavuot and expect children with their parents to participate.
Women's class every Tuesday on Kabbala with the participation of about 20 women.
Every Shabbos afternoon there is a class at 4pm on the ethics of our fathers with 20 to 40 participants.
Tuesday classes for Women at 8 PM
Once a month we have a Rosh Chodesh group for at least 20 women
Sunday Morning at 11am we have a Jewish School for 6 to 10 year olds with 10 participants.
2655 Balboa Street, San Francisco, CA 94121
(415) 724-8652

subset: commoncrawl


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Have you heard?
The whole world will be listening!
Be part of the conversation on the 2nd International Day of Listening
Thursday, September 21, 2017
International Listening Association
943 Park Drive
Belle Plaine, MN 56011, USA
Phone: (001) 952-594-5697The ILA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
.pdf files downloaded from this site require Adobe Reader
Web Hosting provided by myhosting.com


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> Due to different listings on a master calendar of track and field meets than what Madras High thought was in effect, the White Buffalos will not have an April 10 meet.
Estacada -- which was thought to be coming to Madras on April 3 by the Buffs -- instead was planning on a meet at Wilsonville, Madras Athletic Director Margaret Sturza explained. Because of that, an April 10 Wilsonville at Madras will not be happening.
Instead, the Buffs battled both Estacada and Wilsonville, as well as Sherwood, on April 3.
Its Saturday, April 12, venture to the Sisters Invitational will now be the next event for Madras.
With the change in schedule, Madras won't be at home until April 23, when it hosts Gladstone on a Wednesday.


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Interview: Urban Outfitters x SXSW
We talk to UO's Music Director Dryw Scully about the line-up including Best Coast, Grimes, Nite Jewel and more.
Once more, Urban Outfitters is hosting its own stage at SXSW. And this year is shaping up to be one of its most epic offerings yet. For four days, from March 14–17, you can catch the likes of Best Coast, Grimes, Nite Jewel and Light Asylum LIVE in the Austin store FOR FREE. We're also excited about the inclusion of up-and-comers Blouse, Craft Spells, Psychic Ills, Bleached and Teengirl Fantasy (see below for the complete bill). We caught up with Urban Outfitters' Music Director, Dryw Scully, to talk about how one goes about curating such an amazing line-up, who he's most looking forward to seeing and what is his version of musical torture.
Ingrid Kesa: How did you go about curating who would play?
Dryw Scully: The process for booking our Live In Austin Backlot Performances starts in the first week in January. By the time I begin to book bands I generally have a wishlist of artists. I aim to book bands that have found success from the previous year, or bands that I see as potentially being the band on everyone's list at the time of the conference.
What are you most looking forward to about SXSW this year?
2012 will be my 11th consecutive year attending and hosting bands at our Austin store. I'm pretty much wiped out at the end of each of our events. So going to shows and taking in more music is generally low on my list. Relaxing, hanging with co-workers and checking out new restaurants is what's it's all about for me now. Re-energizing to do it all over the next day. My answer to this question would have been different if asked 6 years ago. What happens in Austin, stays in Austin.
Can you choose one of your favourite up-and-coming bands on the line-up and tell us a little about them and why they're great?
This is a very tough question, though I would probably say I'm most looking forward to Cold Specks. She is so fantastic; her music is so hauntingly beautiful. I plan on standing side-of-stage and shutting my eyes, then envisioning Cold Specks performing for me somewhere far away from Austin.
What is one song that always puts you in a good mood?
'Summertime' by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince.
In some prisons they play songs on repeat to torture the inmates or people being interrogated. What song to you is like torture?
Anything by Die Antwoord.
Urban Outfitters' Austin store is located at 2406 Guadalupe St. Be sure to follow the UO Live in Austin Tumblr for real-time updates, interviews, videos and more!


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Home/Complete Boards
The VICTORY
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Resin Epoxy Glue
Functional old school mold with nose and tail kick
31 x 10.00″ kick tail
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Abec 7 Bearings
Cruiser Board
Between Skateboard and Longboard
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The idea of "being my own boss" is appealing to many people. Whether you're a mother, a student, senior citizen, or just someone who likes to have control over her working life, the notion that you can have flexible hours and an income directly tied to your own money making ideas is attractive. Unfortunately, the self-employment / work-at-home field is filled with people who make their money by scamming others. Mystery shopping is no exception.
First, remember: mystery shopping itself is not a scam! Every day, thousands of people visit stores, restaurants, hotels, apartment complexes, and other businesses and get paid to shop by filing detailed reports on the quality of their experience. Companies use this information to improve their customer service. Mystery shopping is not a highly-compensated job; most people earn a little extra money and some "treats," such as free restaurant meals. Getting started is fairly straightforward. However, to do so, you may need to dodge a minefield of scams. Here's how to spot them…
1. Be Skeptical
Ironically, one of the reasons why scammers continue to be successful is that, most people are fundamentally honest. They would never try to take someone else's money under false pretenses, and so they can't imagine anyone would do this to them. But they will. Always view mystery shopping advertisements, and other money making ideas, particularly if they are unsolicited, with a jaundiced eye and investigate them using the following hints.
2. Don't Get Greedy
We hate to break it to you, but you are not going to make thousands just by visiting a few shops and spending an hour or two on the computer per month. By and large, mystery shopping pays only small amounts for each shop, sometimes as little as $5. To make any real money (perhaps $1,000 per month) as a mystery shopper, you need to do lots of shops, cover a lot of ground, work in a large urban area, and put in the time and effort to build your reputation as a reliable source. Often you'll need to play a role, or use hidden audio or video equipment. This is hard, time-consuming work. Anyone who tells you differently is very likely a scammer.
Related Stories:
Mystery Shopping: Can You Really Get Paid to Shop?
Insider Tips for Finding Reputable Mystery Shopping Companies
What You Should Know About Mystery Shopper Certification
10 Valuable Tips to Spot Mystery Shopping Scams
3. Never Pay to Play
In this, the most common type of mystery shopping scam, you'll be asked to pay money up front to add your name and resume information to a list of shoppers. Other scammers may ask you to purchase training materials, agency lists, retail lists, or other money making ideas which you could easily find on the internet for free. Sometimes, you'll actually receive a (usually worthless) product. Most often, they take your money (or worse, your credit information) and run. The files of the Better Business Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission, and every Attorney General's office in the country are bursting with complaints made by people who ponied up money, thinking they were going to get a job. Make this your cardinal rule: Never pay to play!
4. You Can't Take it to the Bank!
In this scam you, the victim, are sent a packet of supposed mystery shopping materials and your first assignment: to take the enclosed cashier's check to a bank, cash it, and wire the funds to the supplied address. To make sure you don't think too much about this, you're given a firm, quick deadline and told that future employment is contingent on your prompt action. In another version, you're given a cashier's check and told to use it to "secret shop" Walmart's "MoneyGram" system by wiring the money to a fictional relative in another country. In both cases, the cashier's check is a forgery and you end up being held liable when it fails to clear, while the scammer still collects the money you unwittingly sent. Make it your policy to never cash a check or wire money if the sender or recipient is unknown or unfamiliar to you. And if you do receive an offer like this through the mail, contact your bank and the local authorities. You won't be the only one, and by alerting community officials, you may spare a less savvy person financial heartache.
5. Check the Contacts
Most scammers are clever enough to make their contact materials look professional. Look closely for suspicious hints, such as poor English, bad photo quality, and unrealistic claims. Search for the company online; if you find no web presence, it's a bad sign. Make sure that the contact information on your material is identical to that on the website. Never be afraid to actually use the contact information on the website; a legitimate company wants to hear from you, and if their name is being used for a scam, they'll want to know.
6. Do Your Research
The internet is an invaluable resource for chasing down mystery shopping fraud. Whenever you consider working with a mystery shopping or scheduling agency, search for it online and in mystery shopping forums. What is its reputation? What have others experienced? Does it appear in lawsuits, news stories, or Snopes? Be aware that scam companies change their names repeatedly, so if you're not finding anything, ask for advice from experienced members on mystery shopper forums. Still unsure? Go with your gut and refuse the offer- money making ideas should never cost you more than what you're willing to give.
7. The Government is Your Friend
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Protection Agency in your area, and your state's Attorney General make it their business to locate and prosecute scammers. If you have a question about a particular business, believe you have been contacted by a scammer, or have actually fallen for a scam, contact them.
8. … And so is the BBB
Remember, anyone can stick a bogus BBB badge on his website. To truly check out a company's status with the Better Business Bureau, call your local office, as well as the office in the company's own community. Staff there should be able to tell you if complaints have been filed against it. However, finding no complaints is not a guarantee that a business is legitimate. Remember, scammers change their company names constantly in an effort to stay ahead of the law; it's possible that they have no claims because none have yet been filed.
9. Ask Your Mom… No, Seiously…
Or your spouse, big sister, best friend, or Great-Aunt Patty. Sometimes, we want something so badly that we're blind to its dangers. You may really need the money in that cashier's check. You may wonder if the offer you received in your e-mail or saw in the paper isn't a hint from God. Do yourself a favor and first consult someone whose judgment you trust. They want the best for you and, because they're not emotionally invested, they're more likely to pick up on warning signs which you're unable to see.
10. Go to the Source
Finally, realize that, if you really want to pursue mystery shopping, there is a professional organization you can turn to. The Mystery Shopping Providers' Association (MSPA) website contains a list of hundreds of reputable shopping and scheduling companies for you to choose from, as well as a certification program and job boards. Of course, you should research any company you'd like to work for, using the methods we've discussed. But you're much better off going with a company listed here than with one who recruits shoppers via signs on telephone poles.
It can be hard to detect a scam especially with the wealth of money making ideas online; that's why there are so many of them. But when it comes to mystery shopping, you are now well-armed. Be cautious, do your research, follow your gut and you can stay safe as you begin your mystery shopping career.


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TEDxSydney 2012 featured a line-up of passionate speakers, musicians and – of course – who can forget Sam Simmons's comedic exploration of the importance of incorporating some 'silliness' into our lives.
This year's TEDx had a unifying theme of being connected to those in Sydney, those living near us, those who are similar and different than us, members of the global community and finally to the universe. Of the many memorable talks, I particularly enjoyed listening to Mandyam Srinivasan talk about his research into the cognitive functions of bees, and the exciting new prospect of monitoring physiological responses in bees to determine if they feel joy, fear, anxiety and love.
Kate Burridge's talk on euphemisms had the audience (or at least me) think of the way we talk, and how we choose our words. Satsuki Odamura and The Sydney Koto Ensemble's performance was mesmerising, and left me wanting to hear more. And having moved to Sydney only a couple of months ago, I was introduced to Katie Noonan's musical genius by a jazz enthusiast, and was delighted to be able to watch her live and sing along with the TEDxSydney audience.
If I took anything away from TEDxSydney, it was that an idea combined with the passion to pursue a question will inevitability result in a change. Whether the change is small or big, it's often worth it.


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I need to set the column headers of a ListView to be non-clickable (as I
don't want to implement any sorting or anything else for the ListView on user
clicking on the column headers).
I tried to use GridViewColumn.HeaderTemplate elements for my columns and
define a custom header template using TextBlock elements, as I though this
would replace the default "button"-like textblocks added by default; but this
doesn't work well for some reason, i.e. my style is shown on the header
(including any settings I set up for the custom textblocks), but the headers
are still clickable.
It seems that the clickable behavior for the header is added by a parent
container of the stylable column header (such as the
GridViewHeaderRowPresenter), so this must be resolved in another way. My next
thought then was to use a custom template for the whole ListView that will
use the GridViewHeaderRowPresenter and ItemsPresenter in a stack panel, and
then styling te GridViewHeaderRowPresenter somehow. But I didn't know how to
style the GridViewHeaderRowPresenter object either to remove the button
behavior generated for the column headers, and now I'm out of ideas.
Can someonw guide me on this? (I acknowledge I'm not very much experienced
with WPF, the resolution could be simple, but I didn't yet think of it!)
Thank you in advance for any ideas.
Sorin Dolha, DlhSoft


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NASCAR team reports as the Sprint Cup Series makes its first stop of the season at Atlanta Motor Speedway:
Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
This week: Harvick remains the points leader as the series heads to Atlanta, site of his first career victory in 2001 when he replaced the late Dale Earnhardt after he was killed in the last turn of the last lap of that year's Daytona 500. That is Harvick's only win at Atlanta, but he has four top-five and five top-10 finishes in 18 starts there. He was fourth last March and second last September and has three top-10 finishes in his last four AMS starts. "Atlanta, over the last few years, has just been one of those places that seem to fit everything that we do," Harvick said. "We have had chances to win there, whether it's been in a truck, a Nationwide car or our Shell-Pennzoil car — we have had a chance to win there in anything the last few years. So hopefully nothing has changed. Atlanta has just always been really good to us. We go there expecting to be in contention for the win, and anything short of that will be a disappointment."
Last week: Harvick finished second behind Jimmie Johnson for the second consecutive race, this time by 1.874 seconds at Las Vegas. Harvick led two times for two laps. "It was a good day," Harvick said. "For us, I put us behind on Friday when I smacked the wall there in practice. The guys did a great job fixing the car. We just got behind from that point and were able to make up ground today. That to me is the most promising thing we've been able to do the last two weeks is go to the back and come to the front. It was tough to pass today. We were able to get the track position that we needed at the end of the race. We just came up one spot short."
Etc.: Harvick questions the logic of holding a tire test at Atlanta in the offseason. "In my opinion, they have the tire tests at the wrong time of the year," Harvick said. "At those types of race tracks, you need to have the tire tests when the weather is going to be closer to what it will actually be for the race. And you need to have it when there is a bunch of rubber on the race track because they get some false indications of where the tires need to be because the track is green. The tires react very differently under those circumstances."
Clint Bowyer, No. 33 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
This week: Bowyer has yet to finish in the top five at Atlanta, where he has four top-10 finishes in eight starts. One of those top-10s came in this race last March when he was sixth. In fact, all four of his top-10 finishes are sixth place, including three in a row from March 2007 to March 2008. He finished 29th last September. "Atlanta has been a good track for us," he said. "We've run up front, led laps before and had strong showings. But usually something happens at the end. The last time we were there, it was a disaster. Guys with a lot of dirt-track experience run well at Atlanta because that's what you're doing — you're dirt-tracking at 200 miles per hour at a big race track. You have to get up on the wheel to make things happen but hold onto the car and don't let it get out from underneath you. Most of the time, you're really loose as the back end of the car is trying to come out from underneath you. It happens about every corner on every lap. It doesn't matter what line you're in; you could be on the white line or all the way up at the wall. Either way, you're loose all the way around the track. In order to be good on the long run, you have to be really loose on the start of it."
Last week: Bowyer is coming off an eighth-place finish at Las Vegas, where he led one time for three laps. "Shane Wilson (his crew chief) made a great call to stay out during that final caution," he said. "We couldn't seem to get the grip we needed to stay in the top 10 most of the day, but that call allowed us to gain five points for leading a lap and good enough track position to get that eighth-place finish."
Etc.: When asked to name his favorite racing movies, Bowyer picked a few that were never up for Academy Award nominations. "Stroker Ace was a good one," Bowyer said. "I like Six Pack, too. Who doesn't like Brewster Baker in Six Pack? That was a great one."
Mark Martin, No. 5 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports
This week: Martin is a two-time Atlanta winner, but both victories are ancient history. He won the November race in 1991 and the November race in 1994. He has 14 top-five and 23 top-10 finishes in an incredible 48 career starts. He was 31st last March and fifth last September — the latter was his first finish higher than 22nd in his last four starts at AMS. "Atlanta has always been one of my favorite race tracks," Martin said. "The very first time I came here, I just felt good. It has the characteristics of a short track, but on a much larger level. There's an intensity to racing here, and qualifying is wide-open fast. Every time I've been to Atlanta I've had a great race car. Both races last year, we were real, real good. The tire, of course, bit us in the first race, but we had a car capable of winning. I'm sure we'll have a good car again this weekend. The guys on this team have given me great race cars in the first three races this year, and I know I'll have another one this weekend."
Last week: Martin never led a lap at Vegas but still finished fourth. "It was a great finish," Martin said. "It was just a great job by everybody on the team. It was an awesome race car at the end. We were off a little bit at the beginning; we weren't prepared for that sunshine and struggled for a long time. Then we got the car good there at the end. Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) and the guys just did a great job. We were pretty competitive there at the last."
Etc.: The Sprint Cup Series will conduct a test March 16 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway to provide teams track time with the new spoiler, which is replacing the current wing. This change is scheduled to go into effect later this month.
Matt Kenseth, No. 17 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing
This week: Kenseth is looking for his first Atlanta win but has seven top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in 20 starts there. When he finished 12th in both of last year's races, those were his first finishes outside the top 10 there after a streak of five in a row. "Atlanta is a track where you not only race your competitors, you race the track," Kenseth said. "It's really high-banked and fast. You start off fast and the track gets slick, so you're always looking for a different groove and for more grip. The cars are tougher to drive and they move around a lot more than the old cars used to, so you want to make sure that your car isn't too loose in the turns. When the track gets slick, you've got to have a good-handling car so that you can change your points and get into the corners. I always have a lot of fun racing at Atlanta because it is always a challenge."
Last week: Kenseth led one time for nine laps and finished fifth at Vegas. "It was pretty good," Kenseth said. "The Ford handled pretty well all day. They made some really good adjustments all day, but we had that one run where we got off sequence. I thought we had a loose wheel or something and it turned out they couldn't find anything, but I got really loose and had a real bad vibration, so for safety's sake we went ahead and pitted. I was worried that if we didn't get a caution it was going to cost us, but at the end of the day it worked out."
Etc.: Crew chief Todd Parrott is preparing for his third Cup race with Kenseth in 2010 after replacing Drew Blickensderfer following the Daytona 500. "Atlanta is a great place to race and drivers can race on multiple grooves and easily two and three wide," Parrott said. "One of the things we focus on is making sure that our car is not loose on entry into the turns because Atlanta's a place where you carry a lot of speed into the corner. Having good drive off the corner is also important at Atlanta because everyone always seems to fight cars that are loose in and loose off the corners."
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports
This week: After two straight victories, Johnson has climbed from 35th to fifth in the standings in his quest for a fifth straight Sprint Cup championship, and he has known similar success at Atlanta — he's a three-time winner there (October 2004 and both races in 2007). He has nine top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in 17 AMS starts. He finished ninth in this race last March and 36th last September when the race was moved to Labor Day Weekend. Since finishing 32nd in March 2004, Johnson has an incredible eight top-five and 10 top-10 finishes in his last 13 races at Atlanta. "Atlanta really reminds me of Darlington where you just have to be very conscious of what end of the race car is taking the abuse or what tire is slipping and sliding too much," Johnson said. "Every time you slide that tire, you're just taking speed out of the car, and especially off the tail end of the run. You're just trying to be very aware of what tires work and looking for ways to get around that, the balance and the load between all four tires. When you're able to do that, your car typically drives very comfortable and you're going to need that for 500 miles at Atlanta. It just kind of comes down to that — making sure you feel all four tires being worked equally. It's rough and we all love it being rough. I know we've been through it over the years where originally people were a little nervous that we were picking apart the race tracks, but it's so rough and abrasive, it makes it one of if not the most challenging race on the circuit, especially on the long run. You're up near the wall and there are bumps and jumps and seams that you have to worry about crossing over — it's a handful."
Last week: Johnson drove the No. 48 to career win No. 49 at Las Vegas, using a four-tire pit stop at the end of the race to steal the lead from Jeff Gordon, who had led seven times for 219 laps in the 267-lap contest. By comparison, Johnson led just two times for 18 laps but led the lap that matters the most — the final lap. "Man, that was one heck of a race all afternoon long," Johnson said. "Jeff and I were racing each other so hard. It is so cool to be in Vegas and get this bad boy (Trophy Belt). Jeff and I were racing so hard at the end of the day. I wasn't sure if I was going to get away from him once I got by him, and I did and I was able to get out and away from him. Everything worked well. It was a great day in the pits, great day on the track. I'm just so proud of this race team and everything we are doing in these Chevys."
Etc.: Johnson scoffs at the term "invincible" when it is applied to him. "I don't know if it's just our makeup or mindset, what it is," Johnson said. "If you get off to a quick start, I think we're both sitting here (he and his crew chief, Chad Knaus), even though we haven't talked about it, we can't sit still. Complacency is going to kill you. We're looking forward to going to Atlanta with new ideas and new things. We're excited. It's early in the year. It is a relief to know that we worked in the right areas over the offseason. But, you know, Richmond (the last race of the regular season) is a long way away from right now. We need to keep collecting points, winning races, make the Chase, then get to work for what we're really here for. It's great. We don't feel invincible, though. It was nice to go out there today and really earn this one, race Jeff that hard for the win. So, you know, I feel very good about things. But invincible? Far from that."
Greg Biffle, No. 16 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing
This week: Biffle has never won at Atlanta but has three top-five and eight top-10 finishes in 14 starts there. He was 34th last March and 10th in September. His last top-five finish there was fourth in March 2008. "Atlanta is a great track to race at because it's so big and fast," he said. "We're taking a car there that we've had some success with, so if our hard work pays off, it should be a good weekend for us. We've had great cars so far this season and probably should have finished in the top five every week. I feel confident with the way our season is going so far, and I feel like that win might be right around the corner."
Last week: Biffle finished 10th at Las Vegas after leading one time for four laps, but both he and crew chief Greg Erwin thought they had a top-five car. Biffle was slowed by pit-road incident in which he got blocked in by A.J. Allmendinger. "Overall I'm disappointed," Erwin said. "We thought we had a lot better car than a 10th-place finish today. We worked our way up into the top five when that incident occurred on pit road, but the safer call was to hold Greg. The 43 (Allmendinger) just wasn't checking up, and if I would have sent him, we would have gotten hit. I'm disappointed. It's not what we had in mind today. We thought we had a better car than that, but it's what you do when the chips are down and how you battle back and we got ourselves back into 10th, so it could have been a lot worse."
Etc.: The Ford that Erwin has prepared was not set up to run on asphalt, but the team decided to bring it to Atlanta anyway. "The car we're taking to Atlanta was actually our 'concrete car' last year and ran very well with it," Erwin said. "So we decided to take it to Atlanta and see what we can do with it there. The company is working very hard on our mile-and-a-half program and we ran OK in Vegas, but we're looking for better results this weekend in Atlanta. The pit crew has been doing very well."
Jeff Burton, No. 31 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
This week: Burton has never won at Atlanta, where he has just seven top-five and 13 top-10 finishes in 31 starts. He was 14th last March and 34th in September, and his last top-five there came in the October 2007 race — and yet he still likes the track. "Atlanta is one of my favorite racetracks," he said. "I really enjoy going there and I'm excited about running there this year. It's one of those places where I think we have a good shot of winning. To me, it's a great challenge. The difference between qualifying and racing there is so big. The track gets so slick during the race and becomes a blast to drive on. You have to get up on the wheel and drive the car. It's so much fun. As a race car driver, that's the kind of racing you hope for. The biggest challenge is the way the speed falls off so much. It's like the track has two personalities. You have to be aggressive and drive hard for qualifying and then, when the race starts, you race it like you used to race Darlington. The place gets really slick and real slimy. It's amazing the amount of grip you don't have there. You have to have a car that makes more grip than your competitors, and making the most out of that is what will put you in the winner's circle. Even the best-handling car there in the last few years has handled awful. So finding a way to do it better than your competition in a low, low grip arena will be the biggest challenge."
Last week: Burton continued the RCR dominance this season with an 11th-place finish, which kept him in the top 10 in the standings.
Etc.: One member from Burton's team hails from Georgia. Jackman Adam North grew up in Sonoraville, Ga. In addition to his race day duty on the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet, North is a fabricator in RCR's Sprint Cup Series shop.
Joey Logano, No. 20 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
This week: Logano finished 30th in this race last March and 22nd in September in his only two Cup starts at AMS. "Atlanta was a tough track for me last year, a lot like Texas," Logano said. "I tend to run better on tracks with a lot of grip, and Atlanta doesn't have any. I have gotten much better on them, so I am feeling better about this weekend. The track is so line-sensitive, and I struggled with that. It was frustrating. I'm looking forward to going back now and seeing how much we can improve from last year. Now that Zippy (crew chief Greg Zipadelli) and I understand each other better, I think it will be much easier to work on the car. Plus, I'm not spending time trying to figure out my way around the tracks anymore. We can unload off the truck and get right to work tuning on the Toyota."
Last week: The 20-year-old Logano, who finished sixth at Vegas, has been one of the most impressive Cup drivers thus far this season. "Another good Toyota — two weeks in a row, I am really excited about that," Logano said. "I tell you, if you keep getting top-10s, you'll get closer to the top five, and eventually the wins are going to come. I'm pretty pumped up about how we did here. We didn't start the race that good, but to come back at the end and get a solid top-10 — we almost had Matt (Kenseth) there coming to the line (for fifth place). It's a lot of fun, like I said last week, to see the front of the lead pack and you can almost get to the lead — it's a lot of fun."
Etc.: So far, there has been no sophomore slump for Logano. "The start of the season is like night and day compared to last year," he said. "I know it sounds obvious, but it is so much more fun now. I think as a team we have a lot of momentum going, and it's important to keep it going. It's only three races into the season, but it sets the tone for the guys on the team and back in the shop. Last year was hard on everyone, and I think we are all reaping the benefits of a lot of hard work and standing behind one another. No one gave up last year because we knew we could do it, and I think we are showing everyone else that now."
David Reutimann, No. 00 Toyota, Michael Waltrip Racing
This week: Reutimann has just one top-10 finish, a fourth last September, in five starts at Atlanta. He finished 32nd at AMS last March. "I like Atlanta Motor Speedway a lot," he said. "It's a cool racetrack. It's pretty abrasive, so it's a little bit rougher on the tires. The cars slide around a lot and it can be pretty fun, especially if we have a pretty good Mitsubishi/Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota. The track is still really, really fast — it's one of the fastest places we go. We've had some good runs there in the past." Reutimann's first pole came in the Truck Series at Atlanta in the second race of his rookie year.
Last week: Reutimann finished 13th at Vegas and is ninth in the Cup standings. "We just seemed to be off today," he said. "There were times when we got it pretty decent, but it just seemed like track position was everything. The guys did a great job on pit road for the Toyota, and we had some great pit stops. We worked on the car and made it better. We just never could get up to where we needed to get. We'd give up some at the start of the run and gain it back at the end. At the end of the race we didn't have the amount of laps we needed to try to put together anything that would have been pretty good."
Etc.: Crew chief Rodney Childers is pleased with the way the team has started this season. "It's going good so far," Childers said. "It's been kind of like what we've planned. We haven't set the world on fire, but we've just been trying to be real consistent like we did last year in the first five races to just put ourselves in a good position in points when Martinsville comes around. We're trying to be top-10, top-15 every week. The pit crew is doing a great job and getting better every week. We've had good Toyotas. We have to do a little better at the race track, but so far it's going good."
Carl Edwards, No. 99 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing
This week: Atlanta is one of Edwards' best tracks — he has three wins, six top-five finishes and eight top-10s in 11 starts. He swept both races in 2005 and also drove to victory in October 2008. He was third in this race last March and 37th in September. Since finishing seventh in October 2006, Edwards has five top-10 finishes, including three top-fives in his last seven AMS starts. "I can't wait to go to Atlanta Motor Speedway," said Edwards, whose car will have a special paint scheme to commemorate his first Cup victory there. "... The track is great. It's multi-grooved, fast, fun and has a lot of history. The fans there are awesome. The track is similar to Las Vegas, where we made significant improvements but we still need to work on it. This weekend means a lot to me and I can't wait to race there."
Last week: Edwards retained his 10th position in the standings after finishing 12th at Vegas.
Etc.: Based on Edwards' track record at Atlanta, crew chief Bob Osborne expects more success Sunday. "I feel like we made a lot of progress as a team in Vegas last weekend and hope we can keep that momentum going at Atlanta," Osborne said. "We had a really good car in Vegas, but we got behind during that long green-flag run in the middle of the race and didn't have time to recover from that before the race ended. Our pit crew has been amazing this year, so we just need to put it all together."
Tony Stewart, No. 14 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing
This week: Stewart has two wins and 13 top-10 finishes in 22 starts at Atlanta. In this race last year, Stewart came from two laps down to finish eighth. "At this place (AMS), that is hard to do," said Stewart. "That showed what a strong team and car we had that day. And if we can stay on the lead lap all day (this weekend), I am looking forward to a really good day."
Last week: Stewart finished seventh at Vegas for his second consecutive top-10 finish and jumped from 17th to 11th in the standings. "I struggled on restarts," said Stewart. "It took a couple of laps to get going, and when you lose so much time here on restarts like that, it makes for a long day. We ended up seventh, which is all right, but you always want more."
Etc.: Stewart would love Sunday's race to come down to another duel between him and four-time champion Jimmie Johnson, like the 2007 spring race at Atlanta. Stewart led five times for l21 laps but finished second after a side-by-side battle with Johnson that ended when Johnson pinched Stewart into the turn-two wall late in the race. "He was faster than us right there," said Stewart. "I just wish he would've given us enough room to race him for it."
Kyle Busch, No. 18 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
This week: Busch has one win (March 2008) and two top-five finishes in 11 starts at Atlanta. "We ran well there when we won in 2008, but last year we struggled trying to get our car handling right and never really hit on it," said Busch. "I know Dave (Rogers, his crew chief) has been working hard on our setup so we can be competitive there."
Last week: Busch ran in and around the top five all afternoon until he was caught speeding on pit road with only 51 laps remaining. The penalty dropped him from sixth to 17th. Busch rallied to finish 15th and move up one spot in the standings to 12th. "Totally my fault," Busch said of the penalty. "I feel bad for the guys since we had a good car and we didn't end up finishing where we ran all day long."
Etc.: Busch has finished 14th, 14th and 15th in the first three races of the year and admits he's frustrated. "The guys have given me good cars thus far, but things haven't fallen our way with luck, and then the speeding penalty last week," he said.
Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports
This week: Gordon will be seeking his sixth straight top-10 finish at Atlanta and his ninth in the last 10 races at the track. The last of his four wins at AMS came in the fall of 2003. "We've had some strong runs there recently, and we want to build on the strong run of last week," said Gordon, who will be racing a new car this weekend.
Last week: A late-race decision to change only two tires turned out to be a mistake, and Gordon was not able to hold off teammate Jimmie Johnson and his four new tires after dominating the race to that point. Gordon had led seven times for 219 laps, but he faded in the final 17 laps and ended up third. "When you are leading sometimes that tough call can go against you," said Gordon. "We just thought more guys were going to take two tires."
Etc.: Gordon said he does not want crew chief Steve Letarte "to beat himself up" over the two-tire call. "We had an awesome, awesome DuPont/Pepsi Max Chevrolet. We certainly showed them that we were here," Gordon added. "I think that you are going to see a lot more out of us this year. If a few more guys would have taken two (tires), I think we would have been all set."
Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Chevrolet, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
This week: McMurray has four top-10 finishes in 15 starts at Atlanta. "We had a good car last week before the accident, so I feel good about this weekend," said McMurray. "We didn't have any trouble getting into the top 10 after starting 24th (at Vegas). So I think we are going to have a good car for Sunday."
Last week: McMurray took full blame for the accident that took out him and teammate Juan Pablo Montoya as well as pole-sitter Kurt Busch. "I just got really loose underneath him (Montoya) and he turned in a little earlier than what I was expecting and when he did it made it even looser," said McMurray. "I just had to catch my car, and unfortunately I got into him when I did that." McMurray ended up 34th to drop from fourth to 14th in the standings.
Etc.: McMurray said he felt too much was being made of Montoya's comments. "You guys (the media) probably shouldn't put a lot of stock into what he said when you ask somebody something immediately after getting crashed," said McMurray. "They typically don't have nice things to say."
Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports
This week: Earnhardt has one win, eight top-five finishes and 10 top-10s in 21 starts at Atlanta. The eight top-fives match his personal best at a Cup track. He also has that many at Talladega, Richmond and Martinsville. "We've always run pretty good at Atlanta, so I look forward to going there," said Earnhardt. "It's a fun track, and it's a fast track."
Last week: A couple of bad pit stops kept Earnhardt from challenging for a top-10 finish at Vegas. "We didn't have great (pit stops) all day," Earnhardt said after his 16th-place finish. "We've had some good ones in the past, and these guys can do it. Today we struggled a little bit and it hurt us." He had run inside the top 10 for much of the first two-thirds of the race.
Etc.: Car owner Rick Hendrick is pleased with Earnhardt's progress so far in 2010. "I feel they've made a ton of improvement," said Hendrick. "I'm looking forward to Atlanta. Today (Vegas), we had a couple of bobbles in the pits with the pit crew. It seems like every time the car is good, the pit crew screws up. If the pit crew is on, the car, something breaks. But overall I feel good about how much progress the 88 has made."
Scott Speed, No. 82 Toyota, Red Bull Racing
This week: Speed has never finished better than 24th in three Sprint Cup starts at Atlanta. Speed, a former Formula One driver, made his first NASCAR start at AMS in a Camping World Truck race in March 2008. He finished 27th that day but returned in the fall to finish fifth. "Atlanta will always be special because of making my NASCAR debut there," said Speed.
Last week: Speed finished 22nd at Vegas after leading for the third straight race. "It was not our finest hour by any means," he said. "But if our bad days are 22nd, then we're doing something good. We just misread the track a little bit. We had some stuff done to the car that we couldn't go back on."
Etc.: Speed said the team's main goal for the first five races of the season remains "to be securely in the top 35 (in the car owner point standings) after those five. Having to qualify for every race is real bad on the nerves." Speed sits 16th in the standings after the first three races.
Paul Menard, No. 98 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports
This week: Menard has one top-10 finish in seven starts at Atlanta, a seventh in his first Cup start at the track (the spring race of 2006). "I like Atlanta," said Menard. "It's wide and fast and it's a great track to race on, but right now I'd look forward to going just about anywhere."
Last week: Menard finished 17th for his third straight top-20 finish to open the season as he moved up one spot in the standings to 17th. This is the first time in Menard's young career that he has put together three consecutive top-20 finishes. "I feel really good about our cars and what we're doing, and the pit crew, and Paul's head is right," veteran crew chief Slugger Labbe said. "We'll just keep building on this."
Etc.: Labbe said the key at Atlanta is "finding the balance to be able to go well at the start of the run but keep the tires underneath you at the end of the run as well. That's the challenge. The 99 team (Carl Edwards) tested at Atlanta, and we were able to get some pretty good data and information from that."
Brian Vickers, No. 83 Toyota, Red Bull Racing
This week: Vickers will be seeking his third straight top-seven finish and fifth top-10 finish in the last six races at Atlanta. "We are in need of a good run after last week in Vegas," said Vickers. "And I can think of no better track in which to rebound and run up front. Atlanta's been a good track for us."
Last week: It was a long afternoon for Vickers as he finished 31st, five laps down. "We were horrible today — probably the worst we have been," said Vickers. "The car started off very loose and stayed that way most of the race. We never could get a handle on it. Whatever it was, it was a beast to hang on to. We tried everything we could. Something was just off on the car all day."
Etc.: Vickers had a chance to win the March race a year ago at Atlanta, but a bad pit stop ended any hopes he had of challenging for the win. Vickers was running second when a caution was waved with four laps to go. He pitted along with most of the leaders but fell to sixth after a lengthy pit stop. Vickers ended up fifth.
Kurt Busch, No. 2 Dodge, Penske Racing
This week: Busch is the defending champion for this weekend's Kobalt Tools 500. "Winning that race signaled to all the other competitors, the media and the fans that our team was for real and the 'blue deuce crew' would be contenders for more race wins and could be a player later on in the points battle," said Busch, who led six times for 234 laps in the dominating victory. "The way our season has gone so far this year, we sure could use another race like that this time around, too."
Last week: After winning the pole position on his home track, Busch had high hopes for the Vegas race. But his day came to a crashing end on lap 97 when he was caught up in an accident. As a result, he ended up 35th to drop from 11th to 19th in the standings. "We had great expectations starting on the pole here, but Lady Luck wasn't on our side," said Busch. "We struggled a bit early, but there was plenty of race left to get our Miller Lite Dodge back to the front. But ..."
Etc.: Busch will be busy testing for the next couple of weeks. On Tuesday, he will test at Gresham Motorsports Park, a half-mile oval near Jefferson, Ga. On March 16, he will participate in the open test at Talladega. And then on March 23-24, Busch will be part of a test at Charlotte.
David Ragan, No. 6 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing
This week: Ragan has one top-10 finish in six starts at Atlanta. "I'm really pumped up to be going back to my hometown track," said Ragan, who is from Unadilla, Ga. "I love going to Atlanta. It's close to home, and the track is fun to race at. We've had some average weeks so far (in 2010) but need to step it up and get a good hometown finish."
Last week: Ragan was forced to make an extra pit stop because of a fuel problem on pit road, and that left him in 23rd place at the end of the Vegas race. "Our finishing result doesn't show what kind of car we had," said Ragan. "We had a mishap with the fuel and we couldn't run as long as the other guys. We just need to get a full race in and run like we should."
Etc.: Crew chief Donnie Wingo said Atlanta is a "really challenging track because of the rate the tires wear out. The tires wear out fast, so it makes the driver have to work their way around the track to find different lines."
Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
This week: Hamlin has two top-six finishes in the last three races at Atlanta. "It's funny to think of Atlanta as a place where you can come to turn momentum in your favor, knowing how tricky this place can be. But we've been strong here lately, and I think anyone in this series will tell you the best way to put frustrations on the race track behind you is to get back on the race track."
Last week: It was another disappointing day for the driver who many people expected to be Jimmie Johnson's No. 1 challenger in 2010 as Hamlin finished 19th to drop one spot in the standings to 22nd. "We fought a loose car the entire afternoon," said Hamlin. "And we did just about everything we could do to try to tighten it up, and basically nothing worked."
Etc.: Hamlin points out, "The first month of the season is a grind, so I think we are all happy to have Daytona and the trip out west for those two races behind us. It's good for everyone to get home, get back on a normal race schedule, and that really starts now as we head to Atlanta. As far as on track, I think we are just missing by a little bit, but the results will start coming."
Kasey Kahne, No. 9 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports
This week: Kahne won the race at Atlanta last September for his second victory at the track in 12 starts. He finished seventh in this race a year ago. "We were real strong in both races last year," said Kahne. "So we have high hopes for this weekend. Atlanta has always been one of my better tracks (beginning with three top-five finishes in his first three Cup starts at AMS)."
Last week: Kahne rallied in the last half of the race to finish ninth for his first top-10 finish of the season as he jumped from 33rd to 23rd in the standings. "From where we were the first 100 laps, we made big gains," said Kahne. "It was kind of a different setup than what we've run in the past, so we just need to work on that a little more and figure out exactly what happened there. But I was pleased."
Etc.: Kahne believes the top-10 finish at Vegas is proof of how strong his team is. "We had cars that could run in the top 10 in the first three races," said Kahne. "We had a situation at Daytona (getting hit from behind) and had driver error at California and we finally got a top-10 (at Las Vegas), so I think we're where we should have been in the other races. Now we just have to keep working hard to try to get those points back."
Regan Smith, No. 78 Chevrolet, Furniture Row Racing
This week: Smith has finished 30th and 38th in his two Cup starts at Atlanta. "It's not that I don't like the Atlanta track," said Smith. "I just haven't spent that much time there. I need to develop a little better feel for the place."
Last week: Smith finished 21st at Vegas to climb from 30th to 25th in the standings. "When the car is not totally right, you need to race smart as a team," said crew chief Ryan Coniam. "The driver needs to be savvy on the track, the pit crew needs to be on, and we all have to fight for everything we can get. That is exactly what this Furniture Row team did today."
Etc.: Smith, who is in his second season with the team, believes "this is a greatly improved team compared to what it was at this time last year. It's all about improvements right now, and that's what we're doing. There are plenty of races to go, and our goal is to be running with the leaders (by the end of the season). We'll get there."
Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Chevrolet, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
This week: Montoya finished third last fall at Atlanta after leading 31 laps. That's one of his two top-five finishes in six starts at the track. "We need a real good run — and finish," said Montoya. "And we couldn't be going to be a better place to get it than Atlanta. We really ran good there last fall. We need another run like that (to get back in the hunt for the Chase)."
Last week: Montoya was livid after being run into by teammate Jamie McMurray on the restart on lap 97. The multi-car crash left Montoya in 37th place. "He nearly ran me into the fence," said an angry Montoya. "Jamie plain and simple just wrecked us. I'm sure (he's) going to say, 'Oh, I didn't mean that.' " Montoya dropped from 23rd to 26th in the standings.
Etc.: Montoya's hopes of qualifying for the Chase for the Championship for a second consecutive year have taken a real beating the last two weeks. "We had a problem last week (at California) with the motor, and this week we get wrecked," said Montoya. "It is painful. He (McMurray) is just trying to prove to people he can drive a race car, but he is not doing himself any favors."
Ryan Newman, No. 39 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing
This week: Newman finished ninth in September at Atlanta for his fifth top-10 finish in 16 starts there. Newman will be making the 300th start of his Cup career this weekend. "We need another run like we had last September," said Newman, who is 32nd in the standings after the first three races of the year. "We need to start moving up that (point) ladder."
Last week: After posting the third-fastest time in qualifying, Newman had high hopes for the Shelby American 400. But handling problems and poor pit stops left him in 18th place at the end of the day. "I'm not proud of where we finished," said Newman. "We have some work to do. We had some handing issues, and we also struggled on pit road."
Etc.: Newman hopes to become the all-time pole winner at Atlanta on Friday. He is tied with Buddy Baker for the top spot with seven poles apiece. "Buddy was my mentor when we first got to Cup," said Newman. "He always had me drive the track backward because it gives you a different perspective of entry and exit points. So it would be special to break Buddy's record."
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|Home > Allana
♀ Allana
What does Allana mean?
Allana [al-lana] as a name for girls means "precious; awakening". Allana is a variant form of Alana (Old German, Hawaiian).
ASSOCIATED WITH precious
VARIANTS Alonna, Alona, Allinah, Alleynah, Aleynah, Aleyna, Alawna, Alannah▲, Alanna▲, Alani▲, Alanah, Alaina▲
OTHER FORMS VIA ALANA Alaine, Alane, Alanis, Alayne, Alene▼, Aleyne, Alleen, Allena, Allene▼, Alleyne, Allina, Allyn, Allyna, Lana▲CREATIVE FORMS
(female) Allada, Allara, ..
(male) Allaal, Allaan, .. MIDDLE NAME PAIRINGS
Allana Blakely (A.B.), ..
How popular is Allana?
Allana is an uncommon first name for women. Allana is a unique surname too for all people. (2000 U.S. DEMOGRAPHICS)
Allana was first listed in 1997 and reached its peak rank of #1738 in the U.S. in the year 1999, but is not ranked at the moment. (TOP 2000 NAMES, 2015)
Which version is better?with its source form and related girl names. Alaina (#176 LAST YEAR), Alana (#202), Alanah (#1418), Alane, Alani (#525), Alanis (#1556), Alanna (#508), Alannah (#756), Alene, Aleyna (#1829), Alleen, Allena, Allene, Allyn, Alona, Alonna and Lana (#353) are the prominent variation forms of Allana. Adoption of these relations of Allana is well-received among parents today (ADOPTION OF 0.4%), except for versions such as Alene which have become less in vogue. The most fashionable names for newborns here are Alaina, Alana, Alani, Alanna, Alannah and Lana.
Similar Names
Allana is pronounced similarly to Aleana, Alena▲, Alenah, Alianna▲, Aliena, Allona, Alonia, Alwinna, Alyna, Alynah, Alyona, Elena▲, Elianna▲, Elina, Ellena, Ellina, Ellona, Elona, Ileana, Ilianna, Illeana, Ilonna, Iolana, Olianna and Wilona. Other suggested similar names are Aiyana, Alaia▲, Alala, Alamea, Alaya▲, Albane, Albina▼, Aldara, Aldina, Aldona, Aleine, Alima, Aline▼, Alla, Allaine, Allayne, Alldina (see Alida), Alldona (see Alida), Alleine, Allexa, Allia, Allida, Allisa, Allma, Allyne, Allynn, Alma▼, Alsina, Alsyna, Aluma, Alvina▼, Alwyne, Alzena, Alzina, Amana, Arlan, Arlana, Arlena, Arlina, Avana, Aviana▲, Delana, Ellan, Ellane, Flana, Gilana, Gleana, Kalana, Milana▲ and Nolana. These names tend to be more commonly used than Allana.See names in meaning and etymology.


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Here's the mandolin music and tab for 15 stirring and uplifting traditional hymns. The CD features gorgeous performances by Butch Baldassari, along with other luminaries of the Nashville bluegrass scene. Songs: Morning Has Broken · Wayfaring Stranger · Simple Gifts · Redeemed · Down to the River to Pray · Leaning on the Everlasting Arms · What a Friend We Have in Jesus · Amazing Grace · Unclouded Day · I Am a Pilgrim · Softly and Tenderly · Precious Memories · Sweet Hour of Prayer · Life Is like a Mountain Railway · Pass Me Not, O Gentle Saviour.
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As Bump notes, this goes a long way toward explaining the disciplinary disparity between blacks and whites in public schools.
These few tweets couldn't possibly pass that bar and thus qualify for the schools' disciplinary action.
The investigating officer from his headquarters recommended the matter be closed with no disciplinary action.
It leaves all the most difficult responsibilities of parenthood, financial and disciplinary, up to mothers.
The disciplinary process, he says, was heavily stacked against him.
A state of slavery has been a disciplinary ordeal to every people who have ever developed beyond the savage condition.
If they are true, are you proceeding in the disciplinary way against me?
It can also become the consequence of three years of non-activity either as a disciplinary measure or through ill-health.
Just this, that they are moving him to the disciplinary Battalion; and it is you who are the cause of it.
It is safe to say that 90 percent of all disciplinary difficulties come from cases of this sort.


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Provo • Passionate Brigham Young fans stood up and stood out in the stands. The noise inside the Marriott Center was at times deafening. And Jimmer Fredette walked on to the court to a standing ovation and exited the hardwood to an even louder applause.
Fredette was back at home Thursday night, and home was very good to Jimmer.
The Sacramento guard scored 27 points on 9-of-20 shooting and dished out 10 assists during a 140-126 losing effort in an exhibition game that bore his name. An announced crowd of 11,124 mostly screaming BYU students wearing Cougars gear relished the opportunity to watch Fredette up close during the NBA lockout. The 2011 Wooden Award said memories from the outing will instantly be placed on his personal trophy shelf.
"Great crowd. A lot of energy," Fredette said. "It reminded me of a BYU basketball game. Not quite as many fans in the stands, but it felt like it when we were out there playing."
The lockout-inspired contest marked Fredette's first public matchup since he was selected by the Kings with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. Fredette's agency organized the exhibition, loading the roster with NBA rookies such as Charlotte's Bismack Biyombo and Kemba Walker. Fredette held his own, displaying the range that made him a lottery pick and showing off muscular shoulders that have become chiseled during the NBA's 85-day work stoppage.
Asked to evaluate his outing, Fredette said he did "all right." He was pleased with his overall performance, but found himself adjusting to everything from stricter defensive rules to increased television timeouts.
"I've got to continue to get better," said Fredette, who was 3 of 8 behind the 3-point line and added six rebounds while playing a game-high 41 minutes.
Portland's Nolan Smith scored a game-high 30 points, while Denver's Kenneth Faried recorded 23 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. Former BYU guard Jackson Emery totaled five points and five rebounds.
Fredette wasn't the only one touched by the contest. San Diego State coach Steve Fisher said that nothing can compare to the Marriott Center in the throes of Jimmermania, while BYU coach Dave Rose was given another chance to coach the guard who carried the Cougars to the Sweet 16 last season.
"This was just a special game with Jimmer," Rose said.
Twitter: @tribjazz
Storylines Happy homecoming
R Former BYU guard Jimmer Fredette scored 27 points on 9-of-20 shooting.
• Portland's Nolan Smith scored a game-high 30 points.
• Denver's Kenneth Faried adds 23 points and 17 rebounds.


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News & Events
Ashraf Rushdy - Job Talk
The New Apologists for Slavery
This talk is comprised of parts of two projects on which I am currently working. One is a study of contemporary historical apologies. The second is a comparative study of two late-nineteenth-century African American writers. These are distinct projects, and it is only in this talk that I am experimenting with putting them into dialogue with each other.
My first project is a study of the emergence of a new global political discourse of apology. I want to understand the meanings of the proliferating practice of national heads of state and religious leaders issuing numerous apologies for what their nations and churches did to aggrieved peoples in the near and distant past, as well as the prominent feature of truth and reconciliation commission hearings in which police agents of various sorts apologize to those they tortured. I want to see in what way these episodes – apologies for recent acts committed by individuals representing the state, and apologies for past events by representatives of the state – can be seen as expressions of a peculiar dynamic in our historical moment (in which the powers to apologize and to forgive are unequally parceled out in our post-colonial, post-apartheid, post-junta states). This project, tentatively entitled "Reflections on the Guilted Age: Political and Historical Apologies Considered," explores how these apologies rearticulate and challenge some of the categories on which they depend (categories like race, power, historical time).
The second project is a study that compares the careers of Charles Chesnutt and Pauline Hopkins. There are marked similarities in their careers – they both enjoyed a very short and concentrated period of publishing success between about 1899 and 1905, they both addressed the major political issues of the 1890s, particularly the role of racist violence in creating American racial categories, and they both experimented with folkloric, mythical, and popular genres (the oral tale, the spiritual-mystical adventure story, the passing narrative). There are also stark differences – notably that Chesnutt was the first African American writer to publish with mainstream presses, while Hopkins published almost exclusively in black- owned, black-edited venues. I am interested in seeing how these two different writers conceived of and entered the literary marketplace, how the independent venues and established publishing houses with which they were associated affected their artistry, and what a comparison of two fin de siècle writers of different temperaments, different literary sensibilities, and different political affiliations will reveal about the remarkable challenges African American writers faced during the decades, 1890-1910, that crucial moment of transition and rebirth for the African American novel.
Ashraf Rushdy is a candidate for the open faculty position in Africana Literature.
Start Time: 2/25/2013 12:10 PM
Location: 3222 AH
Contact: firstname.lastname@example.com
Location: 3222 AH
Contact: firstname.lastname@example.com
To view all upcoming events, please click here.


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Away the witches were sent, with instructions to meet at the pit of Acheron in the morning.
Acheron was a stream of Epirus, and Pandosia was a town upon the banks of it.
After this, the Barons pursue their way to Acheron, and call upon Charon to ferry them across.
I invoke no Acheron to overwhelm him in the whirlpools of his muddy gulf.
He plots the return of Acheron, with its towers and wizards and kings and horrors, as it was in the long ago.
But it was stolen from me, and Acheron fell, and I fled in exile into dark Stygia.
Acheron, at first the name of a river of the lower world, came to be used as a name for the whole of the lower world generally.
Here was its home in the centuries before it journeyed to Acheron.
I have seen what he plots—and I tell you it is no less than the restoration of the ancient, black, grisly kingdom of Acheron!'
Amalric stared at the man from Acheron with mingled fear and admiration.
1580s, fabled river of the Lower World in Greek mythology. The name perhaps means "marsh-like" (cf. Greek akherousai "marshlike water"); the derivation from Greek akhos "woe" is considered folk etymology.


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Hey, since it's happy hour somewhere in the world at this very moment, here's a drinking game to even better enhance your viewing experience of the new body-doubled, digitally sophistimacated "Mercy" music video. The Rules are simple...
"Mercy" Video Drinking Game Rules:
1. Any time a rapper duplicates, take two swigs.
2. Every time Yeezy makes a noise that sounds like a small furry animal having a hernia, make a toast to someone's pet.
3. Any time Cudi spazzes out, you must go sit alone in the corner like this , and drink.
4. Any time you think see a haute couture-wearing ninja, drink.
5. Any time anyone does something that reminds you of this , drink.
6. Any time you think you hear someone rap " Mummenschanz ," drink.
7. Any time you wish a rapper's verse was left off the song, drink.
8. Last ninja standing wins!
WARNING: Remember to pass keys to the Lambo to someone not playing. Interpretative rap dance is awesome — till someone gets hurt.


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4 Min Read
BERLIN (Reuters) - The German language is difficult enough as it is, but a list of ordinary terms contaminated by the Nazis is causing problems for politicians, TV hosts and even church leaders six decades after the Third Reich collapsed.
Phrases like "family policy", "foreign workers", "pure-bred", "degenerate" and "locusts" are as dangerous for Germans to use as more obviously Nazi-linked words such as "Fuehrer" and "Lebensraum" (living space).
This week industrialist Klaus-Michael Kuehne was condemned by Jewish groups for saying he wanted a "pure-bred" German solution for a shipping company that had attracted interest from Danish investors.
Last week conservative state premier Christian Wulff had to apologise for using the term "pogrom atmosphere" to describe the public outcry over executive wages, causing an uproar that gave an obscure TV interview a mass audience in replays for days.
"These are all basically neutral German words but have been seen as defamatory since the end of World War Two," said Georg Stoetzel, a German language professor at Duesseldorf University who has published a 786-page dictionary of such terms.
"It's schizophrenic, but I can guarantee at least once a week someone in Germany will say something, consciously or unconsciously, that gets them into hot water. Even a mathematician who uses 'Endloesung' (final solution) for a math equation is seen as tactless."
In Germany, where feelings of shame about World War Two and the Holocaust run deep, the issue of tainted terms is a more powerful one than the question of "political correctness" in other countries.
Franz Muentefering, chairman of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), was condemned in 2005 for comparing hedge fund operators to locusts ("Heuschrecken"), although members of his party called the criticism ridiculous.
Left party leader Oskar Lafontaine got into trouble for his use of the word "Fremdarbeiter" (foreign workers). Cologne's Roman Catholic archbishop, Joachim Meisner, was criticised for complaints about "degenerate" culture in Germany.
Television comedian Harald Schmidt lampooned the problem by devising a "Nazometer", an device that flashed every time a questionable word was uttered -- such as "Dusche" (shower), "Autobahn" or "Gasherd" (gas oven).
Schmidt was criticised and dropped the "Nazometer". He complained to Der Spiegel magazine: "American standup comedians, even Jewish comedians, can do it. But Germans can't."
A top economist, Hans-Werner Sinn, faced calls for his resignation last month when he compared current hostility to bankers to the scapegoating of Jews in the 1930s.
Television host Eva Herman was sacked earlier this year for praising Nazi-era family policies.
"It was a time of cruelty," she said. "There were things that were good too -- the values, the children, the mothers, the families, the sense of solidarity."
After the ARD channel fired her, she appeared in a talk show on the rival network ZDF to defend herself -- but promptly made another faux pas, praising the building of motorways as a Hitler-era achievement.
"I mean, autobahns were built then, weren't they?" she said.
Herman was then asked to leave the show by its host Johannes B. Kerner, who said: "'Autobahn' is a step too far!"


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They had gone by boyish names like Sneaky, Big Barney, Little Joe and Yuck.
But federal charges filed against 49 defendants linked to the notorious Vineland Boys street gang involve anything but kid stuff:
Cop killing. Witness slaying. Racketeering. Conspiracy. A 78-count criminal felony indictment also includes numerous drug and firearms charges against the east San Fernando Valley gang members.
Opening statements are expected this week in the first of a series of trials likely to extend into next year.
One law enforcement official called it the largest street-gang case in memory.
"A lot of these guys are looking at life in prison," said Thom Mrozak, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, which is prosecuting the case. "You take them out of circulation; they can't hide out in the street."
The first trial is for a dozen members of the Vineland Boys who investigators say have terrorized parts of Burbank, Sun Valley, North Hollywood and Palmdale for years.
To bust gang leaders, prosecutors employed RICO, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act laws more commonly used to prosecute organized crime suspects.
In addition to 55 counts of racketeering, the defendants are accused of murder, money laundering, conspiracy and witness intimidation and of dealing cocaine, crack, methamphetamine and marijuana.
Prosecutors charge the gang with selling drugs to buyers as far away as Hawaii and Indiana. According to the 159-page indictment, the gang paid "taxes" to the Mexican Mafia in return for state prison protection.
The opening trial, set in a high-security courtroom at the Roybal Federal Building, is expected to last three months.
The gang was "once considered the joke of the Valley," said Lt. Pete Durham, who is in charge of the Gang Impact Team at the LAPD's Foothill Division. "We used to say they couldn't shoot straight. But we found out that they were pretty sophisticated - buying cars in other people's names, buying homes with shadow owners, even running some legitimate businesses for money laundering.
"Who'd have thought you could get a RICO indictment against a street gang?"
In another trial of Vineland Boys, three could face the death penalty on charges of murdering a 16-year-old girl who testified against one of them in an earlier homicide case.
Jose "Peps" Ledesma, Raul "Clown" Robledo and Javier "Coco" Covarrubius are charged with murder in the death of Martha Puebla, gunned down in 2003 in front of her Sun Valley home.
A pretrial conference for David Garcia, a Vineland Boys member charged by the state with murdering rookie Burbank police Officer Matthew Pavelka, is scheduled to start Aug. 29. Garcia, who fled to Mexico after the slaying, was returned to Los Angeles to face charges of murder and attempted murder, as well as various weapons and drug charges.
Pavelka, for whom a portion of the Golden State Freeway has been named, was killed in 2003 during a shootout that left another gangster dead and a Burbank officer partially paralyzed.
A Vineland Boys crackdown by 1,300 officers from local, state and federal law enforcement agencies followed.
Many might have been mindful of the 1988 fatal shooting of Los Angeles police Officer James Beyea, who had been out of the Police Academy only three months when he was gunned down by a 17-year-old Vineland Boys member.
But few likely knew that the 259 Vineland Boys members had morphed from a Valley football team of the 1980s.
In a pre-dawn raid in June 2005, Operation Silent Night, an army of police arrested 36 of them, netting 39 guns and 12 pounds of drugs. "Today is Armageddon for the Vineland Boys," Burbank Police Chief Tom Hoefel, who had supervised Pavelka, said then.
Dozens more were arrested in subsequent raids. One early morning raid last December resulted in the arrest of six Vineland Boys, including one who had an SKS assault rifle with a makeshift laser sight that authorities believe was used in two local homicides.
But while police attempted to avenge the death of a Burbank cop, it was a one-time Burbank mayor who would pay a price for her Vineland Boys connections.
Three days before Christmas, former Councilwoman Stacey Murphy pleaded guilty to drug and child-endangerment charges after police found cocaine, guns and ammunition at her Burbank home.
Murphy's longtime boyfriend, Scott Schaffer, pleaded guilty to drug and weapons charges after he traded guns for cocaine with Vineland Boys members.
He told detectives that Murphy knew two of the men with whom he had traded guns were in the gang.
Police say that the federal indictment of the Vineland Boys has hindered its leadership, but not broken a gang that still numbers in the hundreds. Vineland Boys crime decreased after the raid, but police say it's on the upswing as a young generation of gang members fights to regroup and re-establish its turf. Police also report a new wave of witness intimidation by the gang.
On March 15, police say that Vineland gang members executed a potential witness as he walked home from the North Hollywood police station. Miguel Delatorre had survived an earlier shooting and had just been interviewed by detectives.
"The sad part about it was that he couldn't identify the person who shot him," said North Hollywood Division Capt. William Sweet.
Police say it's vital that law enforcement remain vigilant against the vicious Vineland Boys gang - with more cops on the street and more follow-through by police and prosecutors.
"We've taken some ground; we need to hold it," Durham said. "You never give up ground. In these days of limited resources, we can't afford to forget about these guys."
(818) 713-3730


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Hi all, I'm currently trying to set up a master/slave cluster with PostgreSQL 9 and DRBD. On my Ubuntu 10.04 nodes, I've installed Heartbeat 3.0.3 and Pacemaker 1.08 and DRBD 8.3.7. I also installed PostgreSQL 9 via this backport repo: ppa:pitti/postgresql The pacemaker/heartbeat cluster is working with DRBD except for one thing, the ocf:heartbeat:pgsql resource agent seems to be outdated for PostgreSQL 9. I've changed the installation paths in the pgsql resource agent to be in line with my backport repo installation. Anyone had success with DRBD + PostgreSQL 9. If not, what do you suggest for the replication? I need HA first and foremost. Thanks! Danny
Next: From: Fabricio Mota Date: 2011-09-03 17:40:05 Subject: Hi all! Previous: From: spinlock Date: 2011-05-25 22:34:37 Subject:


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We like this one a lot. Flickr user rudolf_mittelmann has posted a nice shot of his PowerBook Duo 280c running a custom-built HyperCard stack that controls the train you see zipping past. Classic Macs running classic software to complete atypical tasks make us happy.
"PowerBook Duo 280c" posted by rudolf_mittelmann.
For the month of April, the theme for our Rig of the Day will be "Vintage Macs" in honor of Apple's anniversary. If you'd like to see your own rig featured here, simply upload photos into our group Flickr pool. Let's see your vintage Macs (Apples and Newtons, too)! We'll select an image every day to highlight.


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Cart Details Should Go Here
On Sale
Smith Sunglasses Rockford Silver Polar Platinum$ 179.00
Product Details
Style Number : RFPPGYMSV
Manufacturer : Smith
The Rockford represents a new update on the classic aviator shape. Constructed of stainless steel, a 9x3 Toric lens, and Smith's new tailor fit adjustable nose pads. Nose pads engineered with two-position adjustability, providing a personal fit and designed specifically not to pull or catch your hair. The end result is a unique style that can be worn on all occasions.


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Jodhpur (Rajasthan), Feb 24 (IANS) After some spectacular performances and soulful musical experience here, the sixth edition of World Sufi Spirit Festival (WSSF) now heads to Nagaur.
The festival that kickstarted here Friday at the Mehrangarh Fort culminates Wednesday at the Ahichhatragarh Fort in Nagaur.
"The Sufi music festival was started in Nagaur, but just for making it more reachable and for better exposure, it was brought to Mehrangarh. I can say that it has picked up very well here," Karni Jasol, director of Mehrangarh Fort, told IANS.
Talking about the responses, he said: "We are very happy about the response garnered by the festival this year. The footfalls were more then double from the previous year. Next edition would be equally exciting and more. It would have combination of international, Indian and local flavours. This year, nearly 100 regional musicians took part."
For artists from different backgrounds and genres to music lovers from all over the world, the Mehrangarh Fort was a perfect host.
It was the festival's second edition at the fort and the turnout was great. Hosted by the royal family of Jodhpur, the festival had musical traditions from various parts of the world.
Performers from Egypt, Turkey, France, Mongolia and Afghanistan showcased their talent and were applauded for their music. From India, musicians from Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan performed.
Almost all of these artists and some more will be performing at Nagaur, where the music journey is heads now.


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The ability to disorientate someone's sense of balance. Variation of Mental Inducement.
Also Called
- Psionic Equilibrium Distortion
- Vertigo Effect/Induction
User can give the target vertigo, causing confusion, disorientation and/or nausea, possibly even unconsciousness.
- Enhanced Balance
- Incapacitation Inducement
- Inducement
- Mental Inducement
- Nerve Manipulation
- Sound Manipulation
- May or may not be immune to their own ability.
- May be able to affect a limited amount of targets.
- Depending on method of application, Psychic Shield may nullify this ability.
Known Users
- Vertigo (Marvel Comics)
- Count Vertigo (DC Comics)
- Silver the Hedgehog (Sonic the Hedgehog)
- Tenpouin Yuuki (Code:Breaker)
- Dosu Kinuta (Naruto)
- Kin Tsuchi (Naruto); anime only
- Darcy (Winx Club)
- Bellamy (One Piece)
- Saitama (One-Punch Man); via Serious Tableflip
- Lord Mordred Hood (Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog)
- Rosalind Dillon/Top (Arrowverse)
- Vertigo (World of Winx)
Known Objects
- Vertigo (Arrow)


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There are wonderful wineries in Northwest Missouri creating excellent
and unique red and white wines. When you visit these fine wineries
you will love their wines and have a great opportunity to get a
lesson in wine-making. Many of these wineries are close to the cities
of Kansas City, Independence, St. Joseph and Trenton, making them a convenient and
quick getaway for wine lovers. You can take a winery tour of local
vineyards in Northwest MO follow a Missouri
wine trail to visit more than one of these wineries in an afternoon.
Most of these wineries are open to the public and offer public tours
of their wineries. Other require that you call ahead to schedule
a private tour. Contact any of the wineries below to find out the
specifics. If you want a unique environment for your corporate event
or wedding, many of these wineries offer amazing facilities that
will make your special occasion even more special. With so many
great Northwest Missouri wineries, take some time and do your best
to sample everything each has to offer!
NW MO Wine Bars
NW MO Wine Shops
NW MO Wine Festivals
For additional Northwestern Missouri winery information including
wine trails, wine tours, and popular wine events, you can
contact the Missouri Division of Tourism at P.O. Box 1055, Jefferson City, MO 65102 Telephone: 573-751-4133.
Do you own or know of a Northwestern Missouri winery not found on
this page? Want us to list that winery here? Please contact
us with the information so we can keep our list up to date for
our visitors. Thank you!
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Kerr Drug has received approval for reaccreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Health Care, making it the first corporate organization to receive approval for ACHC's new Community Retail program, the organization announced.
Astrologers would say this is the Age of Pisces, while the Chinese zodiac calls it the Year of the Dragon. For health care, it might be a good time to start calling it the "Great Generic Epoch."
How can Congress plug the leaks in the pharmaceutical supply chain and dry up the stream of gray market drugs without making the current drug shortage even worse? And can federal regulators shut down gray market profiteers without limiting "the ability of pharmacies to take care of their patients?"
The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on Wednesday released a staff report on the investigation into the gray market for pharmaceuticals — what the committee defined as "shady operators who make enormous profits by buying hard-to-find drugs and reselling them at huge markups" — specifically naming pharmacies as a primary culprit.
Significant product recalls and the ongoing recession have driven consumer behavior change in the OTC aisle, according to a new report published Tuesday by Kline.
Prescription drug abuse and diversion merit a coordinated response across federal agencies, and pending legislation can advance this unified approach, stated National Association of Chain Drug Stores president and CEO Steve Anderson in a letter to senators.
The National Association of Chain Drug Stores announced on Wednesday that it has submitted a statement to the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, detailing chain pharmacy's engagement in the prevention of prescription drug abuse, and its commitment to maintaining patients' ready access to medications vital for pain management and for treatment regimens.
Thrifty White Pharmacy is carrying a new prescription drug packaging system that it said would improve adherence.
Is the reauthorization of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act "the most important pharmaceutical legislation since the 1984 Hatch-Waxman Act?"
While most of the attention to the Prescription Drug User Fee Act reauthorization focused on what it would mean for the generic drug industry, one other aspect of the law recently drew applause from a group that advocates on behalf of the blind.
President Barack Obama signed into law Monday what some called a "historic" reauthorization of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act.
A drug maker and a branch of the National Education Association have released a set of education resources designed to curb prescription drug abuse and misuse.
The leader of the country's largest privately owned specialty pharmacy provider had a day in Washington.
In 2008, an investigation by the Associated Press revealed that drinking water supplies in major cities and metropolitan regions across the country are riddled with pharmaceutical compounds.
The National Association of Chain Drug Stores on Wednesday urged Congress to pass the Prescription Drug User Fee Act, legislation essential to the review process for new medications and that also contains important pro-patient, pro-pharmacy provisions.
As the U.S. Senate and House reconcile their versions of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores on Wednesday urged U.S. House and Senate leaders to expand provisions in the final bill to help ensure that Americans continue to have access to safe and effective prescription medications, while also curbing prescription drug abuse.
With overwhelming support in both the U.S. House and Senate and the strong backing of President Obama, a reauthorization of the landmark Prescription Drug User Fee Act that funds new drug application reviews at the Food and Drug Administration is a near certainty, probably within days or weeks at most. But one amendment to the Senate's version of PDUFA reauthorization, contained in the Food and Drug Administration Safety Innovation Act, could threaten both retail pharmacies and the patients they serve.
The state of New York is looking to become a national leader in curbing prescription drug abuse.
Government authorities are working to educate independent pharmacy owners on prescription drug abuse, an independent pharmacy network said.
This is one of the tweaks health reform needs to make it meaningful and to appropriately align all of the incentives in the right direction — and that's toward overall healthcare cost reduction.
Five pharmacy organizations on Thursday wrote Congress in opposition of an amendment to the Food and Drug Administration Safety Innovation Act due to its potential to delay patients' timely relief from chronic pain while increasing drug costs.
The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed legislation that reauthorizes the Food and Drug Administration's prescription drug user fee programs that are scheduled to expire in September. H.R. 5651 passed the House by a vote of 387 to 5.
Two supermarket chains owned by Royal Ahold are dispensing prescription pet drugs at their stores, they said Wednesday.
Following the Senate's defeat of a proposal that would have permitted "personal importation" of prescription drug medications, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores lauded the Senate's decision to support patient safety.
Are the nation's more than 330,000 pharmacy technicians ready to step up to a higher level of patient services and a more demanding but rewarding career? For most pharmacy techs, that step up in duties is either fast approaching or has already begun.


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|Information for:
|Campus Communicators
Jon Armbruster with a Labeo collected in 2010 from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Photo by Keith Ray.
Auburn University scientists have teamed up with researchers from Florida State University in an attempt to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships of minnows and their relatives, a group of fishes that represents approximately 4,000 species worldwide. According to Jonathan Armbruster, professor of biological sciences and curator of fishes for the Auburn University Museum of Natural History, constructing the phylogenetic tree, or evolutionary tree, of minnows presents a huge challenge, and it wasn't until recently, with the advent of advanced genomic sequencing techniques, that researchers were able to begin scratching the surface of such a daunting task.
"The relationship between various species of minnows has been in a state of flux because studies have shown many different and conflicting relationships between minnows," said Armbruster. "But, that was the best scientists could do at the time because they could only collect around six genes at a time. Now, thanks to a new method called 'anchored phylogenomics,' we can look at hundreds of genes relatively rapidly and relatively cheaply."
Armbruster first became aware of anchored phylogenomics at the Evolution 2012 Conference, an event that brought together scientists from all over the world who are dedicated to the study of ecology and evolutionary biology. Two faculty members at Florida State University, Emily and Alan Lemmon, a husband-and-wife team, gave a presentation at the conference on how they developed the anchored phylogenomic technique. Emily, an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, enlisted the help of her computer-savvy husband, Alan, an assistant professor in the Department of Scientific Computing, to create the method which extracts genes at a much faster and efficient rate.
"Anchored phylogenomics is a more pointed technique. It targets specific genes and it's a more efficient way of looking at evolutionary relationships," said Armbruster.
Over the course of the past several years, Armbruster and his graduate students have travelled the world collecting minnows from places as far away as Africa and Thailand. The specimens, which are housed in Auburn's Museum of Natural History, provided the DNA for the research.
"Auburn extracted the DNA then shared it with Florida State, and after they run the sequencing, we will analyze the results," said Armbruster.
Two Auburn graduate students, Milton Tan and Carla Stout, are assisting with the project as part of their doctoral research.
"Anchored phylogenomics has changed how we do things in phylogenetic research, at least for now, and there is a lot you can do once you know the evolutionary relationship of groups," said Tan. "I am looking at minnows that do not mature to adulthood. They are paedomorphic and look like baby fishes as adults – transparent, really small, and a lot of their bones remain as cartilage. There is more than one genus of these fishes, and the question is, are they each other's closest relatives or not. If they are, this characteristic would have evolved one time. If they are not, they would have evolved this several times."
Tan said Auburn has received the initial results for about 100 genes and he has begun analyzing the data.
"The science looks good," said Tan, "but what we are seeing is also different from past results."
Armbruster likes to compare the search for a phylogenetic tree to the search for the Holy Grail.
"There is only one correct phylogenetic tree and it's probably imaginary because we are taking this complex process and simplifying it, and, in the end, you don't really know if you have found the true tree," he said. "But the research is important because it helps us make sense out of life. And many disciplines, such as ecology and morphology, do not make sense at all without knowledge of evolutionary relationships, not to mention we need a stable taxonomy."
The research is supported by a multi-institutional, four-year National Science Foundation grant in the amount of approximately $3 million titled, "All Cypriniformes Species Inventory," for which Armbruster is one of the principal investigators. Research is also supported by the Fish Collection in the Auburn University Museum of Natural History, which provides access to specimens that are integral to studying and understanding the biodiversity of minnows.
The Fish Collection in Auburn's museum contains more than 800,000 preserved specimens in more than 60,000 lots, or jars, and the collection is growing rapidly with approximately 1,800 lots added annually. Particularly strong are collections from all over Alabama and Georgia, including some of the few major collections from the southeastern U.S. made prior to 1950. Also included are specimens of most fish species of the U.S., and a significant collection of marine fishes from the Gulf of Mexico.
"In the last 15 years, we have taken a collection with mainly local interest and made it a very important global collection," said Armbruster. "We have specimens from every continent, and we have traveled to some of the most remote places on the earth to discover new species."
Also included is a Neotropical fish collection featuring species from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Guyana, Panama, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela. There are also significant collections from Africa and Southeast Asia. Scientists from all over the world have used the wealth of data contained within Auburn's Fishes Collection to learn about species diversity, morphology, anatomy, genetics and distributions.
The Auburn University Museum of Natural History is sponsored by the College of Sciences and Mathematics. For more information on the Fish Collection, watch the behind-the-scenes tour here or visit the Auburn University Museum of Natural History's website. For more information on Armbruster, click here.
— By Candis Birchfield, College of Sciences and Mathematics
Last Updated: Dec. 28, 2013