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Earlier this month, Reid Hoffman wrote some advice on how to treat your career like a startup. The key, he writes, is keeping several opposing concepts in mind: being flexible yet persistent; to plan your future but don't be constrained by those plans.
He begins by pointing out that these are the same requirements for a startup. He then proceeds to elaborate on what he refers to as Plan A, B, Z planning. Plan A is, obviously, your current plan. Plan B is your next plan; there might be many reasons, good and bad, to switch to plan B. Plan Z is what you will do in the worst case scenario.
Reid Hoffman is the founder of LinkedIn, and has since gone on to become a prolific investor. The linked post is a tease for his new book.


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by Jim Boyle
The Elk River area was heavily represented at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., where delegates this past week nominated President Barack Obama for re-election.
Gabe Davis, Patrick Jansen and Wes Gadsden, all with Elk River mailing addresses, were among the delegates at the Charlotte Convention Center to hear from the president and a long list of dignitaries, as well as a star-studded cast of Obama supporters.
"It was very unifying," Davis said of the convention, noting it's extremely rare for a community to have three delegates attend the national convention.
It was Davis' and Jansen's first convention. Gadsden was at Obama's first presidential endorsement. He said both conventions were equally enjoyable, but for different reasons.
The first, of course, included the first nomination of who would become the first black president. Gadsden continues to see the dawning of a new era.
"This time I was looking for newcomers, and I saw just that," he said of women speakers and speakers supporting gay marriage and the president supporting gay marriage and gay speakers."
Each local came about their delegate status a little differently in the highly competitive selection processes.
Davis and Gadsen had to wait until the very end of the 6th District congressional endorsing convention. Election of delegates is the very last step of the event. Delegates there cast their vote and leave. Those vying for the right to be a delegate at the national convention then must wait until the votes are tabulated.
Then it was announced and Davis and Gadsden were winners.
"You have no clue what it's like," Davis said. "It's like winning the lottery. It's like winning the golden ticket."
Jansen had to do it differently for his delegate status. He had to garner support during a walking caucus among his union colleagues at the state convention. He was able pull support together by joining groups and agreeing to work together for agreed-upon results. It wasn't quite as climatic, but every bit as effective.
Gadsden relied on young Republicans he sought support from before the conventions started.
The three men from Otsego (Davis and Jansen) and Big Lake Township (Gadsden) enjoyed meeting delegates from other states and discovered many are facing or have faced the same issues as Minnesota.
They hope that Minnesota will be the first of 30-plus states to turn down an attempt to pass an anti-gay marriage amendment.
Davis said Minnesotans are paying legislators to figure things out and if legislation they pass doesn't work, it can be tweaked in another session rather than having "to put something to another vote."
The convention was an opportunity to see people like Mary J. Blige, James Taylor and Jeff Bridges perform. It was also a chance to meet with Ty Pennington of ABCs "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" and Tyne Daley of "Cagney and Lacey." The number of politicians they met with and listened to made it difficult for them to pick a favorite meeting or speech.
The speakers are what made Gadsden's second national convention equally enjoyable. Republicans' message has been one of doom and gloom, these Democrats said.
"The First Lady spoke so well, the governor from Michigan knocked it out of the park and, of course, Bill Clinton made it a great convention," Gadsden said.
They left the convention hopeful for the future.
"We have to bring people back together," Davis said of the future in America. "It's up to us. That's the feeling I left with."
The trip also gave Davis, a longtime political junkie, a chance to connect with soldiers at Fort Campbell Army base in Kentucky that he has sent care packages to for the past eight years. He has made it a custom to gather from fellow Democrats the necessary items for care packages at conventions he attends and at other times.
The U.S. Army installation is situated along the Kentucky and Tennessee border between Hopkinsville, Ky., and Clarksville, Tenn. Davis took an hour flight to Nashville, Tenn. en route to see the Cecilio Ponce family.
"It was great to see him and meet his family," Davis said.
Davis, an Air Force veteran, has been attending endorsing conventions for 20-some years.
Jansen has been around politics his entire life, except for a 22-year span that he spent out of the state of Minnesota after serving in a Navy submarine force.
"My mom got me involved," he said. "She worked on campaigns for Humphrey, Mondale and Dayton."
When he moved back to Minnesota in 2001 it was natural for him to start getting involved in party politics. He never dreamed it would take him to a national endorsing convention, however.
It gave him a chance to connect with Hawaiian delegates he has a special bond with, having served in Hawaii.
It also gave him a chance to share his distaste about Rep. Michele Bachmann. Jansen wore a pin with Bachmann crossed out that drew many comments.
"She's universally hated," Jansen said. "People wanted to buy the pin. We could have made a fortune."
All three will now turn their attention to Nov. 6. Democratic success that day would mean a trip to Washington, D.C. for the inauguration.

subset: commoncrawl


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A NAILSWORTH horse supplement business has defied the odds to win a national award after just nine years since its launch.
Equifeast, of Avening Road Nailsworth, has beaten hundreds of entrants to win the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Innovation of the Year Award at a ceremony in London on Thursday May 22.
Launching in 2005, the family business design, manufacture and market nutritional supplements for horses and has tripled in UK sales in the past three years. It has brought to market over five new products and count riding pro Harry Meade and Olympian Laura Tomlinson as loyal customers.
Malcolm Green and wife Sally had previous involvement in the animal supplement market, having launched The Birdcare Company in 1994. The idea of creating a horse supplement came to marketing and research director Malcolm as he struggled to control a misbehaving horse he was riding.
Mr Green praised the hard work and passion of his staff and is hoping the award can help the business develop further: "Winning the Business Innovation of the Year Award has come at an ideal time. To be able to make international approaches while promoting ourselves as the UK's most innovative business is a great conversation starter" he said.


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Canon CanoScan LiDE 60
Canon CanoScan LiDE 60
The slim $80 Canon CanoScan LiDE 60 weighs barely four pounds and measures less than two inches high, making it a good choice for those with limited desktop space. With the small plastic stand that's included, you can use or store the scanner in an upright position. The LiDE 60 also eliminates a power cord and cuts down on cable clutter by drawing power through its Hi-Speed USB 2.0 connection.
Unlike the vast majority of the flatbed models PC World has reviewed recently, the LiDE 60 is a single-purpose scanner limited to scanning photos and other paper documents, and only at a maximum resolution of 1200 dpi (as opposed to 2400 dpi or higher). It has no transparency adapter--not even as an add-on accessory--so you can't use it for scanning film. And although its lid is expandable, you can't completely remove it in order to scan large items, such as coffee-table books.
In our speed tests, the LiDE 60 earned an overall rating of Very Good, performing surprisingly well for a scanner that makes its USB cable perform double duty. For example, in our full-page 300-dpi color and monochrome tests, the LiDE 60's scores of about 34 and 22 seconds (respectively) were nearly identical to the scores earned by top-scoring the Epson Perfection 3490 Photo for the same tests. But the LiDE 60's score of about 36 seconds in our 2-by-2-inch color photo scan (at 1200 dpi) placed it closer to the average among other value models PC World has tested.
The LiDE 60's image quality at default settings underwhelmed our jury. In our print test of a 2-by-2-inch color photo at the LiDE 60's maximum resolution of 1200 dpi and maximum 24-bit color depth, the color lacked subtlety and came out a tad too bright. For example, overly red skin tones didn't accurately replicate the original's natural shades of pink. And in our on-screen test of a 5-by-7-inch color photo, the overall color appeared slightly dark, making it harder to distinguish details in shadowy areas. On the other hand, the LiDE's monochrome tests generally did a good job of reproducing the proper brightness and contrast of the originals.
Fortunately, we also found that the LiDE 60 could produce better color results after we tweaked some of the default settings in the scanner driver, Canon ScanGear CS. For example, when I turned off the preset "Auto Tone: On" option--which can cause too much color clipping in certain images--the test scans looked much more like the originals, with more accurate color, brightness, and contrast. The LiDE's scanning software also provides other automated image enhancement options (fade correction, backlight correction, and reduction of dust and scratches), which successfully improved various test scans. Another plus: Different scanning modes serve novice and veteran users.
The LiDE 60 provides four push buttons to expedite various jobs: scanning, copying, sending e-mail, and creating PDF files. The software bundle includes an image editor (ArcSoft PhotoStudio 5.5) and an optical character recognition application (ScanSoft OmniPage SE 2.0).
The small Canon CanoScan LiDE 60 is best suited for budget-minded users who want an easy, unobtrusive, and undemanding scanner.
Richard Jantz
Canon CanoScan LiDE 60


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A STOURPORT woman with a "determined" personality has celebrated her 100th birthday.
Dorothy Bird, a resident at Hernes Nest House in Bewdley, toasted the milestone by having high tea with family, friends and the Mayor of Bewdley, Linda Candlin.
The centenarian worked as a carpet picker for Bond Worth Ltd and in the early 1970s she repaired carpets at 10 Downing Street when Edward Heath was Prime Minister.
She was also chairman of Stourport Townswomen's Guild for many years.
Mrs Bird's niece Zelma Barry said: "My auntie is a very determined woman. She lived on her own until the age of 99 and she drove right up until her 80s. Her hobbies were sewing, knitting or baking and she was very creative.
"She also spent her spare time indulging in marquetry, tapestry and toy-making and she made delicious cakes at birthdays."
"Dorothy says she does not feel 100 but she knows it is a landmark anniversary."
Mrs Bird was born in 1914, the same year as Sir Alec Guinness, who starred in films including The Lavender Hill Mob, The Ladykillers and Kind Hearts and Coronets, and Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, whose work included Under Milk Wood, Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, Fern Hill and A Child's Christmas In Wales were also born.
Both individuals have been featured on commemorative Royal Mail stamps celebrating famous people born 100 years ago.
At the time of Mrs Bird's birth in May, 1914 the UK was facing a range of domestic struggles.
The Suffragette movement was intensifying and a general strike of miners, railway workers and port workers was being planned.
The year was culturally significant too. Charlie Chaplin had just made his film debut in the silent comedy Making A Living and Pygmalion, the play by George Bernard Shaw, had opened to critical acclaim.
Cost of living records were also collected in 1914 for the first time. In that year a pint of beer cost twopence-halfpenny and dinner at a five-star restaurant seven shillings and sixpence. A four-cylinder car cost £730 and the Prime Minister Herbert Asquith received a salary of £5,000.


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Demand the release of three people on a hunger strike at the Northwest Detention Center prison for immigrants, who are whistleblowers exposing brutality and inhumane conditions there. They are currently being held in solitary confinement in retaliation.
Book Review: Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets by Svetlana Alexievich
Review by Helen Gilbert
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Mon, August 21, 7:00pm
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Sun, August 27, 12:00 pm
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Mondays, Aug. 14 thru Sept. 29 (excluding Labor Day weekend), 7:00-8:30pm
Six-week discussion circle on the book Poor Workers' Unions


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Season 2 is online!
Patch notes: http://forum.playdom.com/showthread.php?322323
There should now be three tabs on the mission screen instead of two. Story: Season 1, Story: Season 2, and Spec Op. As soon as you access it you'll see a screen saying that Season 2 is unlocked.
That's weird, I didn't get the screen of season 2 unlocked pop up....
I think it was a bug problem, but I finally got it. Gonna play this later! :-)
Daimon Hellstrom unlocked, only thing I actually got done from this Op
Spec Op ends in 22 and a half hours.
Hey, I play. if you want, you can add me.


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This can be a difficult question to answer, as it depends on exactly what you mean. Here are a few of the oldest fizzy drinks in the world listed by date.
1783 – Johann Schweppe founded the Schweppes Company in Geneva, producing drinks based on carbonated water. in 1831 the company started producing lemonade in the UK which quickly became popular and in the 1870s Schweppes started producing it's famous Tonic Water.
1866 – Vernors Ginger Ale and Hires Root Beer (both now owned by the same company that makes Dr Pepper) were first produced in 1866.
1876 (1884) – In 1876, in the USA, Moxie was invented by Dr. Augustin Thompson as a medicine. But it wasnt until 1884 that the drink became commercially available.
1878 – FioaraVanti is a strawberry flavoured soft drink from Ecuador in South America that was first commercially available in 1878. The drink is now owned by The Coca Cola Company.
1885 – Dr Pepper. Well known throughout the world, Dr Pepper is probably the oldest "famous" drink and was first made available in 1885.
1886 – The biggest brand in the world, Coca Cola, made its debut in 1886, one year after Dr Pepper.
1898 – And the list wouldnt be complete without finding out when Coca Colas main rival Pepsi was first produced. 1898 being the answer.


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Piedmont means 'at the foot of the mountain'. The region is enclosed to the north and west by the Alps and to the south by the Apennines, which seal it off from Liguria and the Mediterranean coast. Much of the terrain is unsuited to viticulture, consisting either of mountains or the flat valley of the River Po, which opens out onto Lombardy in the east. The principal wine areas are situated in the Alpine foothills to the east and southeast of the regional capital of Turin, around the centres of Alba and Asti.
Piedmont boasts more DOCGs and DOCs, and produces more quality wine, than any other Italian region including Veneto and Tuscany. Although especially noted for Barolo and Barbaresco, production is dominated by Asti and Moscato d'Asti and, to a lesser extent, Barbera d'Asti. Unusually, there is no regional IGP/IGT; instead, the region is covered by the generic DOC appellations of Piemonte, Langhe, and Monferrato.
As may be inferred from the geography, winters in Piedmont are harsh, but the ripening season is long and relatively dry. The principal black grape varieties are Nebbiolo, Barbera, and Dolcetto; the principal white grape varieties are Moscato, Cortese, and Arneis. Nebbiolo and Barbera tend to be planted on warmer sites, Dolcetto and Moscato on cooler sites. Several other indigenous and international grape varieties are also planted.
Although Barbera is the most planted grape variety, Nebbiolo is the most noble, not only in Piedmont but also in Italy. It is very late to ripen, with harvests typically taking place in mid-to-late October, after the autumn fogs (nebbie) have risen. Nebbiolo underlies several DOCs and DOCGs, including Barolo, Barbaresco, Roero, and Gattinara.
Back in 1980, Barolo obtained one of the first three Italian DOCGs together with Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. The Barolo delimited area lies in the Langhe hills south of Alba and the River Tanaro. The bulk of it sits on five communes: Barolo, La Morra, Castiglione Falletto, Monforte d'Alba, and Serralunga d'Alba. Though smallish, the area harbours a plethora of subtly different mesoclimates, soil types, altitudes, and aspects. Broadly speaking, it consists of two valleys: the Central Valley encompassing the communes of Barolo and La Morra, and, to the east, the Serralunga Valley encompassing the communes of Castiglione Falleto, Monteforte d'Alba, and Serralunga d'Alba. The soils are primarily calcareous clay, but those of the Central Valley are richer in calcareous marl and yield more delicate and perfumed wines, while those of the Serralunga Valley are richer in sandstone and yield more full-bodied and tannic wines.
Average holding size is very small and emphasis on quality very strong, leading to comparisons with Burgundy. Although there is no official cru system as in Burgundy, some vineyards are considered superior and their wines priced accordingly. DOCG regulations for Barolo call for 38 months ageing (62 months for the Riserva), of which at least 18 in oak—traditionally large casks (botti) to avoid contributing even more tannins to the wine.
Although full-bodied, Barolo is light in colour, typically with a brick or rust red tinge that can make it seem older, sometimes much older, than it really is. The nose is potentially very complex and often short-handed as 'tar and roses'. Other notes include damsons, mulberries, dried fruit, violets, herbs, dark chocolate, liquorice, and, with increasing age, leather, camphor, tobacco, forest floor, mushrooms, and truffles. The palate is marked by high acidity and alcohol, and, above all, very high tannins, which, in the best of cases, are experienced as a silky or velvety texture.
There is also a more modern, earlier drinking style of Barolo that is fruitier and less austere, often with obvious new French oak influence. Some traditional producers argue that the more modern style is unfaithful to the spirit of Barolo, and seem to be gaining the upper hand in the 'Barolo Wars' against the modernists. However, even the staunchest traditionalists employ some modern techniques in their wineries, and, at least in that much, their Barolo is a compromise between the traditional and the modern.
Barbaresco lies to the east of Alba, fewer than 10 miles from Barolo with which it is often compared. The delimited area is considerably smaller than that of Barolo and can be broadly divided into three areas: Barbaresco, Treiso, and Neive. The soils of calcareous marl are similar to those of Barolo but lighter and more uniform. The climate is warmer and drier, enabling the grapes to ripen a full fortnight earlier.
In terms of style, there is some overlap with Barolo, but Barbaresco tends to be more feminine, that is, more aromatic, elegant, and refined, with softer fruit and suppler, riper tannins. Although tight and tannic in its youth, it requires less cellaring time and is less long-lived. According to DOCG regulations, it must be aged for one year fewer than Barolo. The region's star producer is Gaja. Note that wines from Barolo and Barbaresco can, if required, be declassified to Langhe Nebbiolo DOC.
Other notable Piedmont Nebbiolos
Roero is a small, recently promoted, DOCG that lies across the river from Barbaresco. The soils are sandier than in the Langhe, resulting in a wine that is lighter, more delicate, and earlier maturing. DOCG regulations stipulate that Roero must contain 95-98% Nebbiolo and 2-5% Arneis, and be aged for 20 months (32 months for the Riserva) of which six in cask.
Further north, north of Novara, are the small, neighbouring areas of Gattinara and Ghemme. The climate here is cooler than in the Langhe, and, despite the steep south-facing slopes, the wines are even more tannic, acidic, and long-lived than Barolo. Gattinara DOCG consists of 90% Nebbiolo (Spanna) along with Bonarda (Uva Rara) and Vespolina to 'soften' the wine. Ghemme DOCG consists of the same blend, but with 75% Nebbiolo. Both Gattinara and Ghemme must be aged for at least three years prior to release.
The best Nebbiolo wine from outside Piedmont is Valtellina Superiore DOCG from Lombardy.
Barbera accounts for half of Piedmontese plantings. Although it plays second fiddle to Nebbiolo, it can produce wines of great distinction, especially within the delimited areas of Barbera d'Asti DOCG, Barbera del Monferrato Superiore DOCG, and Barbera d'Alba DOC (which overlaps with Barolo and Barbaresco). Compared to Nebbiolo, it is higher yielding and earlier ripening, and much more adaptable.
In the mid-1980s a number of Piedmontese producers added methanol to their Barberas, killing over thirty people and blinding many more. Barbera's reputation is still recovering from this scandal.
Barbera ranges in style from light and delicate to heavy and powerful. It is typically deep ruby in colour with an intense and mouth-filling fruitiness (often dominated by black cherries), very high acidity, low tannins, and a dry finish. Some modern examples are aged in oak, which imparts tannins and notes of vanilla and spice.
Dolcetto and other black grape varieties
Being adaptable and early to ripen, Dolcetto is often planted on cooler, less distinguished sites. It is generally made as a simple and undemanding 'early to market' wine, generating income for the producer while his Nebbiolos and Barberas are still maturing. Dolcetto skins are rich in anthocyanins, yielding a dark colour that ranges from deep ruby to purple. A short and gentle fermentation that aims to limit tannin extraction produces a wine that is soft, fruity, and uncomplicated—often thought of as Italy's best answer to Beaujolais. Notes of black cherry, soft spice, and liquorice are accompanied by moderate acidity, high alcohol, and a characteristic dry, bitter almond finish. Piedmont has a number of DOCGs and DOCs for Dolcetto, most notably Dogliani DOCG and Dolcetto d'Alba DOC.
Other black grape varieties in Piedmont include Grignolino, Freisa, and Brachetto, the latter being made into a medium sweet, semi-sparkling wine.
The spiritual home of Cortese is in the steep chalk-clay hills around Gavi in the far southeast corner of Piedmont. Its most famous incarnation is Cortese di Gavi DOCG, the first Italian white wine to achieve international acclaim. Cortese di Gavi from Gavi itself is labelled 'Gavi di Gavi'. Cortese wines are characterized by their zesty acidity, which can be searing in cooler vintages. Cortese di Gavi is light and dry, fruity and floral, with notes of lime, peach, and white flowers, hints of grass or herbs, and a citrusy finish. The wine can improve with some age.
The historical function of Arneis (Piemontese, 'little rascal') was to soften and perfume Nebbiolo. Despite being difficult to grow, naturally lacking in acidity, and prone to oxidation, Arneis can yield delicate and characterful wines. It is most at home in the Roero Hills, and, in the main, bottled as either Roero Arneis DOCG or Langhe DOC. It is rather full-bodied, oaked or unoaked, with dominant notes of ripe pears, apricots, white flowers, and hops, and a dry finish with an aftertaste of almonds.
The principal white grape variety in Piedmont is neither Cortese nor Arneis but Moscato, which underpins sparkling Asti and semi-sparkling Moscato d'Asti. We discuss these Moscato wines further in our book.
Neel Burton is co-author, together with James Flewellen, of The Concise Guide to Wine and Blind Tasting.


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As we all know, it is the new political trend in Sydney to find weird laws that date back to medieval times and randomly implement them without hesitation, judgement or general consensus of the population.
Just to add to the chaos that is our strenuous lockout laws, City of Sydney Council has added fuel to the fire, putting a ban on some of our late night food vendors located on King Street in Newtown. Yep, no more late night Istanbul on King and Mr. Yeeros... Guess we will have to make some drunken oily kebab fix ourselves once we get home.
The Vice-president of the Australian Medical Association, Stephen Parnis stated in a SMH article that the changes came about due to health concerns, as doctors encourage food consumption in conjunction with drinking, and not after.
This a load of poop. Newtown is known for it's vibrancy and promotion of freedom. The demand for food after midnight is high with there being so many bars on King street. Istanbul and Yeeros have been forced to shut their doors on hungry partiers at 12am, which makes no sense whatsoever because people can still legally drink at bars in Newtown after 1am. So basically the laws don't even back up the initial argument.
Initially some of these food vendors were open, busy and serving until 4am no probs until the local council and Police decided to enforce laws they haven't cared about for a decade. Has anyone seen how packed out Stanmore McDonalds (The closest 24/7 Mcdonalds to Newtown) gets on a Saturday/Sunday morning? Why should the government stop us from EATING?
A lot of the demand doesn't just come from party goers either, it also comes from late night RPA and surrounding hospitality outlets for something to eat after they finish their late shift. And, let's not get into the effect it will have on the business owners.
Sydney is turning into a ghost town as each of these menacing rules gets put in place seemingly every minute. Help us stop it by signing the petition here.


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Comment on Tite Kubo: "I'll Keep Bleach Going For At Least 10 Years" by Darkrockslizer:
Even twilight was better.
Darkrockslizer made other comments on this post:
- Tite Kubo: "I'll Keep Bleach Going For At Least 10 Years":
Dost not this be troll, I pity your soul.
Recent comments by Darkrockslizer:
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I think he's not a boy anymore.
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The story was so bad it was good. Especially the ending episode, I had not laughed this badly since watching The Omen (2006).
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@20:57 I think he just did not know how digesting works. You know, some people are even oblivious of what's hanging from between their legs when they're 17.
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This is madness!!
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LoL, lol!


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EVERYTHING was going to plan for the male cicada looking for love. High in his tree in the dry bush country of eastern Australia, he started his serenade. First he gave a bright chirruping prelude, then urr-chip, urr-chip, urr-chip. Right on cue came an answering click. Each time the cicada repeated his urr-chip, there was that click again. His luck was in: a female was signalling her interest. The cicada began to move slowly towards the source of the clicks, singing as he went. The closer he got, the louder the clicks, and soon he could make out a telltale trembling among the leaves. Sure of his target now, he made his final move.
Quick as a flash, a pair of long, green legs darted out and clasped him in a tight embrace. In another instant, a powerful pair of insect jaws clamped around his head. What had gone wrong? His song was perfect, the response exactly right and dead on cue. But the cicada had been deceived. Those come-hither clicks were not the love call of a female cicada but a con trick executed by a voracious predator in search of a meal.
When husband-and- wife cicada experts Dave Marshall and Kathy Hill of the University of Connecticut at Storrs first heard this insect duet they too were taken in. They study cicadas belonging to the Cicadettini tribe, a group in which males and females locate each other with a characteristic call-and-response routine. Recently they have focused their attention on Australia, where there are hundreds of species of these duetting cicadas, most undescribed and many still to be discovered. To their expert ears, what they were hearing was the call-and-response of Kobonga oxleyi. "When we homed in on the clicks, we expected to see a small, black cicada," says Hill. "Instead, we found a giant green-and-white katydid."
Hill and Marshall had stumbled across something extraordinary. The spotted predatory katydid, Chlorobalius leucoviridis, a species of bush cricket common across the arid interior of Australia, has a unique talent. It snares male cicadas by imitating the female response to their songs, making it the first known example of acoustic aggressive mimicry.
Most examples of mimicry are a form of defence. Innumerable insects camouflage themselves as leaves, flowers or twigs, or pose as unpalatable species to escape predators. Aggressive mimicry is more malevolent: this time it is the predator that fools its prey, luring victims with the false promise of food or sex. The most famous examples are bolas spiders, which produce fake female-moth pheromones, and predaceous female fireflies, which mimic flashing females of other species (see "Love-lights and perfumed nights").
To mimicry based on smell and sight, we can now add sound. For Hill and Marshall, the siren call of the katydid is exciting for another reason too: it may help explain why cicada songs are so diverse and evolve so quickly.
Male cicadas are famous for their singing, with choruses often reaching deafening volumes. Their songs consist of a rapid series of clicks generated by tymbals - a pair of ribbed, membranous organs on the sides of the abdomen. Only males have tymbals and, in general, males sing and females approach them silently. Female Cicadettini, though, are not so mute. As the male sings they chip in at intervals with loud clicks, produced by a sharp flick of their wings. "The male turns towards the sound and uses it to locate the female," says Marshall. "When it gets close it also looks for the movement of the flicking wings."
The males of each species have a unique song which enables the female cicadas to recognise one of their own. Some songs consist of simple patterns of pulsed clicks, others are much more complex, with a longish "prelude" leading into the call-and-response phase. The sound of a female wing-flick is short and nondescript, however, and so for the male, recognition hinges on timing. Embedded in every song are cues, elements of the song that the female must reply to accurately and promptly to attract a mate.
For those familiar with the songs of duetting cicadas, it is pretty easy to identify cues. They are generally made up of a short and comparatively loud burst of clicks that ends abruptly. "Even if you've never heard the species before, you can usually pick out the cues," says Marshall.
All in the timing
That has proved a boon for the biologists. They have found that one of the best ways to collect specimens is to call males down from their trees with well-timed snaps of the fingers. It takes skill: female cicadas respond to cues within 70 milliseconds, sometimes less than half that time. "Males respond to our finger snaps if we can follow the cue within around 100 milliseconds, " says Marshall. "It's easier if there's a rhythmic pattern to the song so you can anticipate where the clicks come. It takes practice but we've gotten quite good at it."
In 2005, Hill and Marshall joined up with the Australian Museum's cicada expert Max Moulds for a collecting trip in Queensland. One night, they camped near the small town of Cunnamulla. "I happened to wake up very early and heard a cicada singing," recalls Hill. "It was a species that was proving difficult to collect so I went out with my net." Then she heard what sounded like the clicking of a female. "I could see the little black male getting closer and closer to the source of the clicks. Then when it was about 20 centimetres away it abruptly flew away to another tree."
Hill couldn't find either cicada, but a few hours later she heard another male singing and two females clicking in reply. By now Marshall was up and about and after recording the duet, the pair homed in on one of the clicking females. "Then I saw what was making the clicks - a fierce-looking katydid," says Hill. "I rushed back to the tree where I heard the clicking female earlier and found another katydid, about 10 centimetres long and brilliantly camouflaged."
The recording of the duet revealed how accurate the katydid's impersonation had been. Its click was brief and acoustically nondescript, with a broad spectrum of frequencies - just like a female cicada's - and each click followed a cue from the male with an average delay of 58 milliseconds. Like a female cicada, the katydid also provided a visual clue to its whereabouts, though instead of flicking its wings, the katydid flexed its legs with a jerky bounce.
Hill and Marshall suspected that the clicks were part of a predatory strategy and it didn't take long to confirm this. Later that day they pitched their tent, put the katydids from Cunnamulla inside and released a succession of male cicadas into the makeshift lab. "Max agonised over this. It was hard work collecting specimens and now we wanted to feed some to the katydids - so we only used ones he was willing to sacrifice," says Marshall. When the first cicada began to sing, a katydid quickly replied. The cicada moved closer. And closer. Suddenly the katydid grabbed it with its forelegs and subdued it by biting off part of its head, before eating everything but the indigestible forewings. Five kills later and there was no doubt they had been right.
The experiment also showed that katydids could attract several species of cicada with markedly different songs. Their versatility as mimics became even more evident as the expedition progressed and the biologists added more cicadas to their live collection. As they drove along, every so often one of their specimens started to sing - and the katydids would reply. "When we realised how broad the katydid's abilities were, we began to play them songs from our computer archive using my laptop," says Marshall. The katydids responded to more than two dozen songs with beautifully timed responses. "They even got it right when the cicadas were from New Zealand and North America, whose songs they could never encounter."
Versatile virtuosos
By 2008, Marshall and Hill had recorded more than 30 minutes of cicada-katydid duets. The songs varied from very simple with just one sort of cue to the virtuoso, with long introductory passages followed by complex cueing sections. Cues ranged from a simple isolated "tick" to a passage lasting nearly 2 seconds (see diagram). None of this seemed to faze the katydids. They could respond correctly to 22 of the 26 species tested, and for 18 of these, they got it right more than 90 per cent of the time (PloS ONE, DOI: 10.1371/journal. pone.0004185
"Their versatility is impressive," says Marshall. "But the katydid isn't quite as clever as it looks." Female cicadas must recognise their suitor's song in its entirety even though they reply only to specific cues. Katydids don't mind which species they eat and so the distinctive phrasing and embellishments are irrelevant: they need only recognise the male's cues. As long as they click after a brief phrase that ends abruptly they are likely to attract one male or another. "It's evolved a mechanism based on the application of a few general rules. That's what makes it so versatile, but it also means it's unlikely to get it right all the time," says Marshall. As he and Hill discovered on their Australian road trips, captive katydids will sometimes respond to almost any short, sharp sound - the click of two coins or even the sound of a car's indicator signal. "They aren't perfect, but they don't need to be."
Captive katydids respond to almost any short, sharp sound, like the click of two coins or even the sound of a car's indicator.
Many questions remain to be answered about how the spotted katydid evolved to become an aggressive mimic. Like cicadas, katydids are singing insects, so they have many of the requisites for acoustic mimicry - noisemaking structures, hearing organs and a brain that can interpret patterns of sound. Some katydids sing courtship duets too, with the males trilling and females clicking in reply. Yet the spotted katydid's mimicry isn't just a modification of an existing courtship song. If that were the case, you would expect them to duet - and this species doesn't seem to. You would also expect male spotted katydid songs to include recognisable cues, which they don't. And you would expect only female katydids to click to cicadas - yet both male and female katydids capture cicadas in this way. Hill and Marshall suggest that unlike the firefly Photuris, which has adapted its normal courtship signals to trick males of closely related species, the katydid's mimicry may have evolved purely for predatory purposes.
Musical arms race
For cicada biologists, these discoveries may help answer an entirely different question. There's something about the courtship songs of singing insects that has bugged entomologists for many years. What drives their evolution and why do they change so rapidly? Sexual characteristics are usually relatively stable. "If a male sings something too different, the female won't recognise him and he loses out," says Marshall. "Yet cicada songs change unexpectedly fast and are often the first sign that populations are diverging into new species." For newly evolved species that live in the same place there's an obvious explanation: the songs must diverge to allow mate recognition. Another force for change could be female choice, where picky females encourage males to change their tune. "If the male's song was any indicator of his quality as a mate, that might explain why some songs change so rapidly, but female cicadas don't seem at all choosy," says Marshall.
Marshall and Hill suspect that in the case of Cicadettini cicadas, predation could be one of the forces driving change, as they engage in a sort of musical arms race to outwit spotted katydids. "Some songs are very complex with short phrases that look like cues. Katydids click after them - but female cicadas never do," says Hill. "These could be false cues to trick the katydid into giving itself away." As katydids cotton on to the false cues, then the cicadas must lay more traps to keep one step ahead of their predators, speeding the rate of song evolution and perhaps explaining why some songs are so extraordinarily complex.
This is not the only way to expose imposters. Some species seem more wary of poorly timed finger clicks. "They may have more stringent criteria for the exact sound of the click and its timing," says Marshall. One species that could be growing wise to the katydid clicks is Kobonga oxleyi, the little black cicada that led to the discovery of acoustic aggressive mimicry. And that could account for the behaviour of the very first one that Hill heard duetting with a katydid - the one that got away.
Love-lights and perfumed nights
Most forms of mimicry are defensive and help potential prey avoid predators. Aggressive mimicry is where predators draw prey closer with the promise of a mate or with fake food - as in the case of the angler fish's lure, or the pink worm-like tongue of the alligator snapping turtle. The most sophisticated aggressive mimics attract victims by exploiting their courtship signals.
Among the most famous are the bolas spiders (Mastophora species), the females of which attract male moths by producing a whiff of female moth pheromones. These extraordinary spiders capture their prey with the aid of a sticky ball on the end of a filament - the arachnid equivalent of a South American gaucho's bolas. When prey comes within reach, the spider swings the ball - and if it hits the insect it sticks. To ensure prey comes close enough, the spiders emit a stream of volatile chemicals that includes compounds present in moth pheromones. Most of these spiders capture moths of a single species, but M. hutchinsoni alters the perfume as the night wears on, attracting one moth species early in the evening and another a few hours later.
An even more versatile mimic is the voracious female Photuris firefly, which attracts males of other species by replying to their courtship flashes. Male fireflies signal to prospective mates with a species-specific pattern of light flashes and females reply with flashes that vary both in their length and the delay between signal and response - yet Photuris can mimic as many as 11 species. The ultimate imposter, though, is the male Photuris. In a bid to attract a female's attention, it has taken to mimicking the flashes of her prey - sensibly switching to its own courtship signals once he gets dangerously close.


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Custom Kawasaki W650 by CRD
Kawasaki W650 is a fantastic classic motorcycle of Japanese production. This model is discontinued for several years, since replaced it with a new Kawasaki classic W800. Nevertheless, motorcycle Kawasaki W650 is considered extremely successful for both drives as standard, as well as to build custom bikes.Continue reading →


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Track ALL your admin activity, not just what built-in log supports
Track ALL your admin activity, not just what built-in log supports
Full-featured audit log for administrative actions. Includes many actions not supported in built-in audit log.
Different filters to apply to the audit trail.
Logging options are configurable.
More details
Auditor for JIRA solves the problem of the lack of information about past actions performed by multiple JIRA administrators.
Today JIRA doesn't provide complete audit trail for administrative events. In JIRA 6.2 some auditing was introduced, but not everything is tracked. There is no easy way to find out which administrator made which change and when.
Someone deleted an issue? Users were added or deleted? Your default scheme parameters changed affecting all your projects? Plugin was disabled? Custom field was added to all projects for some reason? User's password was reset? Group membership for someone was updated? Somebody changed workflow and things don't work as expected?
With Auditor for JIRA, if any of this happens you know exactly who made the change, when and why. This makes your work much easier and puts all your JIRA administration under control.
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Sorry, it took us long, but we finally released Auditor for Confluence add-on in 2015:
Thanks for your report and sorry for not responding earlier!
This has been fixed in our latest version 2.1.0. Should no longer be an issue.
Really sorry about your poor experience.
We've expanded coverage significantly and track many events that are not tracked by built-in JIRA audit log.
We've also done a complete redesign of our user interface, it follows Atlassian best practices, is convenient to use and looks modern.
We expanded our tracking significantly. Component name changes are tracked, as well as many other actions.
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Server products and apps are hosted on your servers. Licenses are perpetual and the purchase price include 12 months of maintenance (support and version updates).
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Apps are billed based on the number of users in your host product. For JIRA Server 7.0 or later, the app tier should match the maximum tier of the licensed JIRA products on your instance. For example, if you're running JIRA Software (50 users) and JIRA Service Desk (10 agents) on the same instance, you should purchase the 50-user tier for apps. For versions of JIRA Server prior to 7.0, the app tier should match the licensed user tier for JIRA. Even if fewer users want to use the app than your JIRA license, the two licenses should match exactly.Note: While this app has features specific to JIRA Service Desk, the app is technically available across the whole JIRA instance. Therefore the above guidelines for the license tier still apply.
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Version 3.1.1 • JIRA Server 6.4 - 7.4.2 • Released 2017-07-23
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This documentation is archived and is not being maintained.
ParallelEnumerable.GroupBy<TSource, TKey> Method (ParallelQuery<TSource>, Func<TSource, TKey>, IEqualityComparer<TKey>)
Visual Studio 2010
Namespace: System.Linq
Groups in parallel the elements of a sequence according to a specified key selector function and compares the keys by using a specified IComparer<T>.
Assembly: System.Core (in System.Core.dll)
public static ParallelQuery<IGrouping<TKey, TSource>> GroupBy<TSource, TKey>( this ParallelQuery<TSource> source, Func<TSource, TKey> keySelector, IEqualityComparer<TKey> comparer )
Type Parameters
- TSource
The type of elements of source.
- TKey
The type of the key returned by keySelector>.
- source
- Type: System.Linq.ParallelQuery<TSource>
An OrderedParallelQuery<TSource> that contains elements to sort.
- keySelector
- Type: System.Func<TSource, TKey>
A function to extract a key from an element.
- comparer
- Type: System.Collections.Generic.IEqualityComparer<TKey>
An IComparer<T> to compare keys.
Return ValueType: System.Linq.ParallelQuery<IGrouping<TKey, TSource>>
A sequence of groups that are sorted descending according to TKey.
Usage NoteIn Visual Basic and C#, you can call this method as an instance method on any object of type ParallelQuery<TSource>. When you use instance method syntax to call this method, omit the first parameter. For more information, see Extension Methods (Visual Basic) or Extension Methods (C# Programming Guide).
The query was canceled with the token passed in through WithCancellation.
source or action is a null reference (Nothing in Visual Basic).
One or more exceptions occurred during the evaluation of the query.
Windows 7, Windows Vista SP1 or later, Windows XP SP3, Windows Server 2008 (Server Core not supported), Windows Server 2008 R2 (Server Core supported with SP1 or later), Windows Server 2003 SP2
The .NET Framework does not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.
Other Resources


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Reviews - Springwood Guest House4
58 Massetts Road, Gatwick, Horley, RH6 7DS
Customer Reviews
Our reviews are from genuine LateRooms.com customers. We verify that the customer has stayed before leaving a review.
Very Good
100% would recommend it to a friend
Customer service
Food quality
Room quality
Springwood Guesthouse
A great place to stay while you are on your travels.
Staff and guests are friendly. The Guesthouse is a clean and relaxing.
Read More Less
Beautiful, immensely stylish and very comfortable stay. Art deco heaven!
Springwood is a very beautiful period house set in a leafy road very close to Gatwick.
Sue runs her place impeccably. She's thought of everything you could possibly want and provides a superb service. This place would be a joy to anyone who has a flight to catch and cannt bear the thought of another dreary Gatwick hotel room in a square block on the airport perimeter. Stay here instead. You can even get a lift to the airport. You will sleep in the utmost comfort in a house that has been lovingly and carefully restored, with wonderful rooms and the most spectacular art deco treasures in every corner. Sue is an art deco collector with wonderful taste - everything from furniture to tiles, light fittings, tea cups, rugs and chairs has been carefully chosen. Her love of art deco shines through. My room was simply beautiful. Each room is different: each one has a theme. I'm going back. Any excuse will do!
Read More Less
Overnight stay
It was a very pleasant guesthouse, with an art decor flair.
That was different. I appreciated the free transport to the Airport built into the price of the room
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The Grand National, Syria and North Koreafor the week ending Sun 15 April 2012
- The Grand National dominated the news, after two injured horses had to be put down, favourite Synchronised and According to Pete
- A ceasefire in Syria, North Korea's attempts at launching a long-range rocket, and David Cameron visits Burma were covered lots
- Tension in Sudan, Guido Fawkes' publication of Motorman files, and hacking allegations spread to the US were covered little
View the Orwell Prize longlists for journalism, blogs and books
Visit the Media Standards Trust's Churnalism.com - a public service for distinguishing journalism from churnalism
For the latest instalment of Tobias Grubbe, journalisted's 18th century jobbing journalist, go to journalisted.com/tobias-grubbe
Covered Lots
- The Grand National, one of Britain's crown jewels in the sporting calender, took place on Saturday, 275 articles
- A ceasefire came into force in Syria on Thursday, but the violence appeared to continue, 212 articles
- North Korea ignored calls for them to not launch a long-range rocket, but it crashes into the ocean minutes after the launch, 121 articles
- David Cameron visits Burma and meets with the opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as the UK considers easing economic sanctions on the country, 106 articles
Covered Little
- Sudan says they will mobilise its army against South Sudan after the latter annexes the biggest oilfield in Sudan, 10 articles
- Guido Fawkes publishes the bluebook of the Motorman files, 9 articles
- Mark Lewis, the lawyer who had a prominent role in exposing the prevalence of phone hacking at the News of the World, flew to the US to prepare filing lawsuits against News Corporation, 8 articles
Political ups and downs (top ten by number of articles)
- David Cameron, 514 articles (+32% on last week)
- George Osborne, 243 articles (+32% on last week)
- Boris Johnson, 148 articles (+6% on last week)
- Ken Livingstone, 142 articles (+21% on last week)
- Nick Clegg, 134 articles (-12% on last week)
- Ed Miliband, 108 articles (-14% on last week)
- William Hague, 105 articles (+81% on last week)
- Tony Blair, 97 articles (+9% on last week)
- Theresa May, 63 articles (-42% on last week)
- Vince Cable, 57 articles (+33% on last week)
Celebrity vs Serious
- One Direction have a busy week, from being sued for $1 million, to touring Australia and Rihanna admitting she would 'love to hook-up' with Harry Styles, 88 articles vs. the 551 day-old company Instagram is bought out for $1 billion by Facebook, 81 articles
- Speaking of Rihanna, she spent the week promoting her new film, Battleship, in various ways, 73 articles vs. Rick Santorum pulls out of the race to be the Republican nominee in the US elections, 62 articles
- Adele tops the youngest rich list with a reported £20 million fortune, 57 articles vs. the National Union of Teachers threaten to strike if the six week summer break is cut, 42 articles
Eurozone leaders (top ten by number of articles)
- Nicolas Sarkozy (France), 83 articles (+9% on last week)
- Mariano Rajoy (Spain), 39 articles (+160% on last week)
- Mario Monti (Italy), 17 articles (-39% on last week)
- Angela Merkel (Germany), 16 articles (-38% on last week)
- Lucas Papademos (Greece), 15 articles (+114% on last week)
- Enda Kenny (Ireland), 8 articles (+60% on last week)
- Pedro Passos Coelho (Portugal), 3 articles (+200% on last week)
- Jean-Claude Juncker (Luxembourg), 1 article (-50% on last week)
- Elio di Rupo (Belgium), 1 article (from 0 last week)
- Lawrence Gonzi (Malta), 1 article (from 0 last week)
No other Eurozone leaders were mentioned in UK press coverage.
Who wrote a lot about...the government plans to reform tax relief
- Patrick Wintour, The Guardian, 7 articles
- James Kirkup, The Daily Telegraph, 5 articles
- Jason Groves, MailOnline, 5 articles
- Robin Wigglesworth, The Financial Times, 4 articles
- Tim Shipman, MailOnline, 4 articles
- Andrew Grice, The Independent, 3 articles
- Michael Savage, The Times, 3 articles
- Kiran Stacey, The Financial Times, 3 articles
Long form journalism
- 3,492 words. Andrew Hussey (The Guardian), France:a divided nation goes to the polls
- 3,172 words. Danny Forston (The Sunday Times), Billionaires in the pipeline
- 2,878 words. Finlay Young (The Independent), Lost boys: what became of Liberia's child soldiers?
Journalists who have updated their profile
Louise Redvers is a freelance journalist who has contributed to the BBC World Service, Agence France Presse (AFP), the Economist and the Mail & Guardian, amongst others. Follow her on twitter @louiseredvers
Barbara Njau is a senior reporter at fDi magazine. She attended the University of Nottingham where she completed a BA in Politics and after leaving university she was an editorial researcher for This Is Africa. Follow her on twitter @Barbara_Njau
All information taken from journalisted profiles as updated (2012-04-17)
If you have a profile on journalisted you can now claim it and start adding articles, links and contact details
Do email firstname.lastname@example.com if you spot any mistakes or have suggestions for other journalisted weekly analyses. You can also follow us on Twitter @journalisted
All Journalisted weekly newsletter statistics are calculated based on articles published on national news websites, BBC News online and Sky News online


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Creekwood Farm RV Park
- Where4696 Jonathan Creek Rd, Waynesville, NC 28785, USA
- WhatDump Station
Easy place to dump tanks after a trip. $10 fee. Also looks to be a nice campground along the river for a short weekend stay. By Frankie Adkins
Easy place to dump tanks after a trip. $10 fee. Also looks to be a nice campground along the river for a short weekend stay. By Frankie Adkins
Asheville's Bear Creek RV Park & Campground in Asheville, North Carolina has such gorgeous scenery that it is described as "Land of the Sky". The sunsets are spectacular, the staff is friendly, and the accommodations for travelers are excellent. The park is open year round with large, level, paved lots. Each lot has full 30 and 50 amp hookups. There are 25 pull-through sites that are 25'x60'. The big rig sites and the 65 back-in sites are 25'x50'. Guests will be happy with the showers, laundry, and a seasonal, heated pool. Visitors have easy access to I-40, I-240, and I-26. The park has a rating of 9.5, a restroom rating of 10, and a scenic rating of 8.5. The cable and Wi-Fi is complimentary. The park management has a list of good camping practices that make life at the park better for all residents. These practices include quiet hours, sensible pet care, and recycling facilities.
Once you pull your RV into the Springwood RV Park, you will know you are in for a comfortable, quiet, and superior experience. The beautifully-landscaped grounds of this RV park, located in Greenville, is designed to make you feel at home, which is just what the managers want you to feel. You can choose from a grassy, gravel, or even patio-covered site and can even have access to a private restroom or shower if you so desire. Your pets are even welcome within the guidelines of the RV park, so nobody gets left behind. Enjoy picnicking in your own private little patio, or taking a leisurely stroll around the property as you make new friends and learn the scenery around you. With close proximity to local hotspots of the city, you never have too far to go. Your big rig can even be accommodated, which means you can drive the property with ease.
The Biltmore Estate near Asheville's Bear Creek RV Park & Campground in Asheville, North Carolina is a fascinating, enchanting site for a visit. This is a private estate on six acres of beautifully landscaped grounds. The main house is a mansion built by George Vanderbilt II between 1889 and 1895. With over 170,000 square feet of living space, the house is one of the largest in the United States. The house is still owned by descendants of George Vanderbilt. This house is a perfect example of what was known as the Gilded Age. Architects often rank this house in the top ten for architectural excellence. Richard Morris Hunt, the architect, designed the home based on homes he and Vanderbilt had visited in France. The guided tours of the home provide a great deal about the history of the country and this area when the home was being built. The estate is so spectacular that guests often recognize it as a home that has been used in movies and television.
Anyone who loves nature can appreciate the wondrous beauty to be found in Falls Park. A natural wonder proudly calling Greenville home, this is a large and spacious park where guests can walk many paths and cross historical bridges as they explore the territory around them. The park is well-known for its active waterfalls, so keep your eyes and ears open for the telltale gurgle and roar of the free-flowing waters that will delight everyone in your clan. There are wild animals to encounter as well, such as cheeky chipmunks and curious, lazy ducks and geese that are worth stopping to view as they navigate their natural habitat. You can't visit the historical part of this beautiful city without visiting this lovely park that locals are truly proud of. You never know what events are hosted in the park as well, so be sure to check in before you stop by so you don't miss anything.


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3G Traffic Lite
by: Cseh Tamás • 28
All Android applications categories
by: Cseh Tamás • 28
3G Traffic Lite is the best choice to count mobile internet traffic and save battery.
-Save battery (doesn't do anything in the background)
-Show received/sent bytes (current and total)
-Set limit
-Reset current traffic when need
-History that shows the date and size when traffic was reset
-User friendly, simple user interface
-Supports ENGLISH and HUNGARIAN
Note that these are not official stats from suppliers. These are system stats.
It may not work with Samsung devices!! It was tested on Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo, Arc S, Mini and ZTE Blade.
If you are interested in Pro, see in-app instructions.
from 28 reviews
Download 3G Traffic Lite
Free - V1 - 139K
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text:
Appropriate treatment will vary, depending on the cause of the kidney disorder. In general, the earlier kidney disease is recognised, the more likely it is to be treatable, and sometimes – as may occur with acute kidney disease – the damage may be reversible. Goals of treatment are to treat underlying conditions, minimise kidney dysfunction, control symptoms, and prevent the progression of kidney disease to the extent possible.
In the case of diabetes, monitoring and controlling blood glucose levels is paramount. For people with hypertension, lowering blood pressure, often through the use of medications, can help protect the kidneys from damage.
Other medications may be used to relieve some of the symptoms of kidney disease, such as anaemia and oedema, or to lower cholesterol in order to reduce the risk of heart disease. Dietary changes may also be recommended.
Some kidney conditions, such as infections and some acute kidney injuries, can be resolved without causing permanent kidney damage. In many cases, however, the damage cannot be reversed. If the damage is severe and kidney failure has been reached, treatment involves dialysis – either using a machine several times a week to take over kidney filtration or by using peritoneal dialysis – or kidney transplantation.


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by JR Nyquist FinancialSense.com Fri, 3 Sep 2010 Once upon a time there was a nation, free and proud. It was armed and ready for war. Its warriors were battle-ready and disciplined. But the leaders of this nation were socialists, and they were opposed to their own country's armed forces. In secret collaboration with... »
Archive for September 3rd, 2010
What's Past is Prologue…(Must Read!)
Peak Denial About Peak Oil
By: James Quinn Market Oracle Sep 03, 2010 It is par for the course that with oil hovering between $70 and $80 per barrel Americans have continued to buy SUVs and Trucks at a rapid pace. Politicians don't have constituents screaming at them because gas is $4.00 per gallon, so it is no longer... »
Double-Dip Recession Deepens as U.S. Housing Market Collapses
By: Mike Larson Market Oracle Sep 03, 2010 The Double-Dip recession I've been predicting for some time is deepening. And nowhere is the emergence of this powerful economic force more clear than in the housing market. All the fresh economic data confirms that home sales are weakening … home inventories are rising … and... »
OIL WAS APPARENTLY AIRBORNE" says city-employed geologist — Reports of "oily brown substance" that "you could actually feel it in your hair" (PHOTO & AUDIO)
FloridaOilSpillLaw.com September 3rd, 2010 Listen at 9:00 a.m. to NPR's report 'Gulf Communities Investigate Spill's Oily Residue'. Morning Edition interviewed Ted Scarritt of Orange Beach, Ala. who owns a company that rents beach chairs and umbrellas. "Scarritt and his workers noticed recently that when the wind was coming in strong from the south, over... »
INLAND fish kill near Destin, FL: Reporter says "red plume replaced the visible bottom" & "Oily sheen with a foamy, bubbling substance with reddish stringy globs" — BP DENIES LINK
FloridaOilSpillLaw.com September 2nd, 2010 In today's article, Fears of oil in inland waters grow after fish kill, the Walton Sun reported on "a fish kill in Choctawhatchee Bay last Saturday. "Plenty of dead fish, dead shrimp and I seen a few crabs and they were hiding in the rocks… I hate it," a resident... »
No Safe Harbor on Gulf Coast; Human Blood Tests Show Dangerous Levels of Toxic Exposure
Jerry Cope HuffingtonPost.com September 2, 2010 Even as BP and US government officials continue to declare the oil spill over at Mississippi Canyon 252 and the cleanup operation an unqualified success, for the first time blood tests on sickened humans have shown signs of exposure to high levels of toxic chemicals related to crude... »
More whales wash ashore in Florida
Did whales in Delray Beach and Jensen Beach wash ashore for the same reason? WPTV.com 09/02/2010 A dead whale was discovered Thursday morning in Delray Beach at 240 South Ocean Boulevard. A short time later, scientists were dispatched to aid a pigmy sperm whale that was found alive and stranded in shallow water, just... »
Pending Home Sales Reconfirm The Housing Market is Crashing
Michael David White BusinessInsider.com Sep. 3, 2010 Record low levels of demand continue to haunt the U.S. housing market with July pending home sales re-confirming previous crash-level readings. With Chart…HERE »
2nd Gulf oil platform explosion now subject of federal investigation
AL.com Friday, September 03, 2010 WASHINGTON — The agency that oversees offshore drilling will investigate the fire on an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Michael Bromwich, director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement, says his agency will work with the Coast Guard to investigate the fire. The oil... »
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William N. Grigg FreedomInOurTime.com "I been forced to write my own laws, and you violated one in there. I just have to find you guilty of contempt of cop." Bumper Morgan, Joseph Wambaugh's eponymous Blue Knight, justifying his brutal assault on a young man who had casually insulted him. Jared Lunn, a 21-year-old volunteer... »


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Juan Arellano ventured onto the ice on the Big Eau Pleine Reservoir near Wausau, Wis., to ice fish with some friends in a friendly competition.
The Anoka native came off the ice as one of 10 members of a team that will represent the U.S. at the 2013 World Ice Fishing Championships next winter, which will likely be held near Wausau once again.
"I didn't really expect to go out for the team, but I asked my mom for $300 for the entry fee and a few buddies and I ended up doing well and qualified," he said. His friends finished among the bottom of the 45 that competed.
Arellano was named to the team after three heats over two days of competition on the body of water west of the town of Mosinee that shrunk the size of the field of 30 anglers from seven states to 20 for the semifinals.
The final 10 were determined by weight of pan fish (perch, crappies and sunfish) and rough fish (carp, bullhead, etc.) caught March 11.
Arellano, a self-described ice fishing freak, finished third overall in the heats after a slow start while temperatures soared to 60 degrees.
He reeled in a two-pound carp, 14-inch perch, 15-inch crappies and 10-inch blue gills.
"The ice fishing was unreal to me," said Arellano, who averages 125 days on the ice and close to 100 days on the water fishing. "This is the best season I've had by far. We've gotten a lot of fish traveling around the country with Dave Genz."
He's entered other competitions, including the Ultimate Pan Fish League, based out of Blaine (Thorn Brothers) with teammate Chris Wallace and is a regular angler on the five-stop North American Ice Fishing Circuit (NAIFC).
Arellano describes Genz as his fishing mentor.
Fifteen inches of ice made for safe conditions, but the slippery surface was another story.
Arellano joins Michael Thompson of Minneapolis as the only Minnesotans on the squad.
"I grew up fishing in the boat with my dad and brother," he said. "Then in high school I started ice fishing with buddies and it grew into a passion more than I expected it to."
Nearly two dozen nations from the northern hemisphere compete in the three-day world championships, including many eastern and northern European nations along with the U.S. and Canada.
The 2012 championship was held in Finland.
The tournament, which restricts the use of power augers and electronics, was a grueling trial that included five heats to narrow entrants down to the final grouping.
Anglers also have to fish five meters apart.
Not being able to rely on power tools and electronics to reel in pan and rough fish made it all that more tough and contestants were allowed to practice on the ice three days before the event.
The USA Ice Team was created in 2008 to bring together the most accomplished ice anglers in the country in hopes of winning international titles.
Arellano will be part of the team that last won a world ice fishing championship in 2010.
Each team comprises five anglers with one alternate, a captain and coach.
The competition spans two days with the winning team determined by the total weight of the fish caught on each day.
One angler from each country fishes inside each competition zone with their own hand auger.
To get on the team, the USF3 program's website describes the qualifications to be on team as pretty broad. Anyone with a valid fishing license and U.S. citizenship can participate in the trials.
Arellano said fishing without the helpful power tools and electronics took some adjustment. As he prepares for the world championship, Arellano said the goal is to hone his skills with the auger to get faster and learn how to fish better without electronics.
Being able to find the fish inside the tournament zone comes down to the angler's speed in drilling holes and their knowledge of the body of water in addition to a little bit of luck.
"It really comes down to the luck of the draw and to drill a lot of holes," Arellano said. "You have to be about two feet off the bottom and find that sweet spot of the fish column and they start to come. This type of fishing is a lot of hard work. If you can put the time in you can succeed."
Arellano spent two weekends ago on the ice on Devil's Lake in North Dakota on a late-season excursion. "It was very little and a little scary," he said as the ice was quickly eroding. He's gone through the ice before, luckily it was only five feet deep so he managed to get out quickly.


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Marine biologist (and Harvard Ph.D.) Randy Olsen gave up his tenured professorship to pursue a career in film. Some might call this a rash move–but it gave Olsen time to create one of the more talked-about scientific documentaries of the decade.
Flock of Dodos is a humorous look at the debate between proponents of evolution and intelligent design. Since its premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York, in April 2006, it has played in film festivals all over the U.S. and abroad.
Now Flock of Dodos makes its rounds in celebration of World Darwin Day. See if it's playing at a movie house near you.


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$ 90.00Size Chart
Estate 14k gold earrings set with faux Pink Tourmaline.
$ 385.00
Gorgeous set of 4 necklaces includes 2 vintage Zuni fetish necklaces and 2 natural carved and polished shell beaded necklaces. Included are:
A Zuni fetish necklace with carved Spiny Oyster shell birds and tumbled Turquoise beads and Coral beads completed with beige shell heishi beads. Hand made Sterling Silver hook and eye clasp, no signature, tested, approximately 28" long. Authentic Native American piece.
A Zuni Fetish necklace composed of brown heishi beads and several carved stone bear beads with Sterling Silver handmade hook and eye clasp and features a large hand carved Turquoise bear pendant. Stones included are Jade, several types of Jasper, Agate, Malachite, Azurite, Turquoise, Pipe Stone and Mother of Pearl. Unmarked, carefully tested. Measures approximately 29" long. Authentic Native American piece.
2 beige/red graduated Mother of Pearl or Spiny Oyster (as they are sand and coral red) beaded necklaces. One necklace is 19" and the other is 16.5". Origin unknown as they have gold tone barrel clasps.
All together they form a stunning, cheerful and colorful ensemble. In excellent condition, estimated to date from the 1970's.View full product details
$ 148.00
This vintage men's bracelet in solid sterling silver is extremely well made by hand. Composed of double woven snake chain, it has a center piece set with a natural green Turquoise cabochon, which displays matrix on both edges. The ends are articulated at the clasp, the centerpiece is slightly curved for the perfect fit.
This handsome vintage bracelet is also hefty at approximately 25 grams. It fits wrists up to almost 8". It is 12mm at the widest point.
In excellent condition, estimated to date from the 1980's. Likely made in Bali at that time, it is marked simply 925 on the box clasp.View full product details
$ 125.00
You will love how elegant this Wittnauer watch looks on your wrist. Beautifully designed and expertly made as you would expect from the Wittnauer brand.
The watch is all gold filled including the band, the dial, the hands and the hour markers. Each function is visually enhanced by texture. The band's texture is repeated on the dial. The bezel is highly polished to delineate the case and separate the textured dial. The hand and markers are enameled in a center grooved area. It is a gorgeous watch.
Case measures approximately 5/8" wide not including the crown, 3/4" top to bottom and 5/16" deep.
The rare ETA Swiss movement is quartz, marked 977.001, marked Wittnauer 5Q.
The original custom articulated band is 7/16" next to the case and tapers to 5/16" at the back, length set for 6 3/4" length. The double safety clasp has the raised Wittnauer logo.
In excellent condition with minor signs of wear consistent with age. It is estimated to date from the 1970's to 80's.View full product details
This information is intended to help you understand our sizing methods.
Please note many small measurements are in millimeters. It is a Jewelry Industry standard for accuracy.
You can download and print the Ring Sizing Chart. Make sure to follow the directions closely for best accuracy. Most rings can be re-sized unless otherwise noted. The cost of sizing is not included, please inquire with ring information and size required for an estimate.
Our model's hand is approximately 5" wide or 12 cm as seen in this image:
We measure bracelets based on their wearable length, not the actual length. We do this because chunky bracelets will have a smaller wearable length than the actual length as the thickness of the bracelet reduces the internal measurement. If at any time you would like the actual length and is not in the description, please feel free to contact us.


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Lectures on gauge invariance and mass of vector bosons1 edition - first published in 1964
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Home > Wellness > Health Library > Trismus
Browse and register for related classes.
Trismus is a condition in which one of the jaw muscles tightens or
spasms, holding the mouth shut. A person with trismus has problems talking,
eating, and brushing his or her teeth.
Trismus can result from injury, problems with the joint, surgery,
radiation treatment, or sometimes problems with clenching or tightening the
Treatment depends on the cause of the problem but often includes
oral devices and exercises.
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PHILADELPHIA - The Penn Volleyball team has been the class of the Ivy League in recent years, winning back-to-back league titles in 2009 and 2010 with a combined league record of 25-3 during that span. The Quakers have also made two straight NCAA Championship appearances and earned the school's first postseason victory in 2009. The team appears poised to continue the dominance into 2011, as head coach Kerry Carr brings in a strong recruiting class to an already talented roster.
Carr once again went across the country to put together a diverse recruiting class to supplant the six seniors she lost to graduation. The group of seven incoming freshman hail from five states and is made up of: Meghan Connolly, Elizabeth Horner, Trina Ohms, Kristina Pelekoudas, Taylor Smith, Kendall Turner and Emma White.
A 5-9 setter, Connolly hails from Atlanta and comes from one the top volleyball programs in the state of Georgia. Her team at the Marist School reached the George AAAA state semifinals in each of her final three years, including 2008 and 2009 appearances in the state championship game. As a junior, she was named to the Georgia High School Association AAAA All-State team and was also named a GVCA senior all-star. She plays for the A5 Mizuno club team as well. Connolly also boasts a strong connection to Penn, as her father and grandfather are both alumni.
Elizabeth Horner is the lone Pennsylvanian and comes to the Quakers from State College. As a 6-2 outside hitter, she led her team to a No. 3 ranking in the AAA Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association Poll during the 2010 season and was named All-District 6, All-Independence League and All-State as a senior. As a freshman, Horner was named All-District 6 and All-Independence League and helped her team to a district and regional championship. In the offseason, she was invited to the 2006-07 USA Volleyball Girls Select Holiday National Training camps in Colorado Springs. Horner also plays for the Revolution club volleyball team.
Hailing from Palo Alto high school, the 5-11 Trina Ohms served as her team's outside hitter on their way to the California I State Championship in 2010. The team went 41-1 en route to winning a SCVAL League championship, Central Coast Section Championship, NorCal Championship and state championship. Palo Alto also finished the season ranked second in the nation according to MaxPreps.com. She was named First-team All-SCVAL and Palo Alto Daily News for her efforts. Ohms also plays for Vision Volleyball Club and was part of the team which finished third at the junior national championships in the 2010 open division.
Kristina Pelekoudas is also a California product, coming from University high school. The 5-11 setter and right side hitter was named First-team All-Pacific Coast League and All-City (Irvine) as a junior and senior. She was named the team's MVP after her final season also served as one of the team's captains as a junior and senior. Pelekoudas plays for the Orange Country Volleyball Club and her team recorded a top-10 finish at the Junior National Tournament in the 18-open division.
Keeping Penn's Texas contingent at two, Taylor Smith enters Penn from Lake Travis high school. As a 6-1 middle blocker, she helped her team to the Texas 4A state championship in 2010. The team was also recognized as the 18th best team in the country according to MaxPreps.com. She was a first-team all-district selection as a junior and was named a member of the second team as a senior and sophomore. Lake Travis also made a run in 2008, finishing as Texas 4A semifinalists. Smith was a three-time academic all-state selection and plays for the Austin Juniors Volleyball 18 Mizuno club team.
A 6-0 middle blocker, Kendall Turner hails from Colorado. Playing for Mountain Vista, she helped her team to league and district championships in 2008 and was named second-team All-Continental League. Turner repeated that same honor as a senior, after being named honorable mention as a junior. As a senior, she served as team captain and was named academic all-state. Turner played for the Colorado Juniors club team as well.
The Quakers' third California recruit, Emma White, comes from Mira Costa high school. A 5-11 outside hitter, she was named the Bay League's Most Outstanding Player as a senior and also honored as a member of the All-CIF team. Overall, she was a three-time All-Area and All-Bay selection during her career, winning three Bay League Championships in the process. As a sophomore, her team also finished second in CIF Division I. White plays for the Sunshine Volleyball Club, the same club which produced Penn graduating senior standout Madison Wojciechowski, as well as current defensive specialist, Dani Shepherd.
"Overall, we are pleased with our recruiting class and feel they can make an immediate impact on the program, said Carr. "When you graduate so many award-winning, four-year senior starters such as Penn did this year, your incoming class needs to be talent-rich. Fortunately, I do believe these incoming recruits will not only complete our team, but join a team already composed of hard-working, talented returning players making huge strides in the spring season. I am so excited for next fall as all of our players, both incoming and returning, are making sure they are ready to defend the Ivy League title with their tenacity and team chemistry!"


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Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb.18
By - Trend: Sabina Ahmadova
The Career Management Center of "ADA" University will hold second Career Week on Feb. 24-27.
Azersun Holding is the sponsor and organizer of the event, the university told Trend on Feb 18.
Career Week includes various seminars and presentations with the purpose of familiarizing university students with the labor market and career opportunities existing in the country. Students and graduates will have the opportunity to meet with representatives of the structures from non-governmental and private sectors. Within weeks, students will also receive career practice and become familiar with job opportunities during the summer holidays.
Some 90 institutions and companies from various sectors will participate at the exhibition during Career Week.
Translated by S.I.
Edited by C.N


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Lurbel origins date back to the early 90's, when Miguel Lurbe Sanz, together with his sons Miguel and Rafael, founded a hosiery company in their native town of Ontinyent (Valencia province). The original business focused on the functional socks which offered high quality and a rotation product to the hosiery market. Miguel, together with his sons turned the family business into a leading brand name in the hosiery sector. Since the very beginning, Lurbel perseverance has led us to a continuous improvement. The specialization, our innovative initiative and the best technology have allowed us to develop the high quality Lurbel sport garments. All the garments have a simple design to focus on their performance features. This is a wise decision with successful results. I
The delivery options available for shipping this product along with the contents of your basket to USA are:
Wiggle ships to over 100 countries. To see what delivery options are available for other destinations you can update your delivery destination via the International Options feature at the top right of the website.
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We will happily refund or exchange any item purchased on Wiggle if returned to us within 365 days, excluding Wiggle gift vouchers and personalized products except when faulty.
Returned goods must be unused and supplied with their original packaging, unless the goods are faulty.
Wiggle will pay the return postage costs for any faulty items.
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Large crystals of highly doped Cr4+:Ca2GeO4 were grown by a top-seeded solution growth method. Absorption and emission measurements for various crystal orientations have been performed. From the spectroscopic measurements, the only optically active center was identified as tetrahedrally coordinated Cr4+. Gain-switched, tunable laser operation of Cr4+:Ca2GeO4 crystal was demonstrated. Pulse energies of 0.4 mJ at 1.4 μm have been generated at a repetition rate of 100 Hz. Tunability over the 1348–1482-nm spectral range has been demonstrated.
© 1996 Optical Society of AmericaFull Article | PDF Article
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Blu Ray Ripper Blogs
A list useful software evaluation and testing information that helps you to make a good decision.
Owner: cheneygreen
Listed in: Technology
Other Tags: software, video converter, DVD converter, data recovery
Blu-ray & DVD software download and reviews,including DVD Ripper, DVD Copy, Blu-ray Ripper and.. other DVD tools.
Owner: jimmy6280
Listed in: Computers
Other Tags: dvd software, blu ray software, dvd ripper, dvd copy software


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Friday the 13th isn't particularly lucky if you're looking for a good new movie.
The only new Hollywood film is "Ice Age: Continental Drift," the fourth installment of an animated series that deserved extinction some time ago. This time, our prehistoric pals – Manny the mammoth (voiced by Ray Romano), Sid the Sloth (voiced by John Leguizamo) and Diego the sabertooth tiger (voiced by Denis Leary) – are separated from the rest of their herd, and fall in with pirates led by a gold-toothed primate (voiced by Peter Dinklage). The relationships and even some of the gags are recycled from past movies, and weren't that funny to start with. (There is a hilarious "Simpsons" short attached to this "Ice Age," which has more laughs in three minutes than the feature generates in 90.)
The other new movie this week is "Where Do We Go Now?," an offbeat combination of comedy, musical numbers, serious drama and heavy-handed messaging. It centers on the Christian and Muslim women of a remote Lebanese village, who devise comic plots to keep their angry menfolk from killing each other. Director/star Nadine Labaki (who made the wonderful beauty-shop romance "Caramel" a few years ago) has a lot of interesting ideas floating about this film, but forcing them all together in one narrative gets messy and convoluted.


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Klein Declares Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act A Victory For Equal Rights
Looks Ahead to Passing Paid Family Leave Act in New York
BRONX, NY- Senator Jeff Klein (D-Bronx/Westchester) applauded the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, declaring it a "victory" for equal rights
On Thursday, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, a law named for an Alabama woman who at the end of a 19-year career as a supervisor in a tire factory complained that she had been paid less than men.
After a Supreme Court ruling against her, Congress approved the legislation that expands workers' rights to sue in this kind of case, relaxing the statute of limitations.
"Women continue to face opposition in the work place, but today's historic legislation marks a step forward in what has been a centuries old battle to substantiate the fundamental principle of the Declaration of Independence: that all men are created equal. I am exceptionally proud to share this moment with my female colleagues in the Legislature, and all the working women across the state. This is a watershed moment in the fight for equal rights but there is still more ahead," said Senator Klein.
Klein expressed hope that the Senate would pass the Paid Family Leave Act which last year passed the Assembly and has been introduced in the Senate by Senator Craig Johnson.
Studies by the New York Women's Foundation have found that New York State ranks in the bottom third of states for women's labor force participation (44th); and African American and Latina women are much less likely to be in managerial or professional occupations relative to white and Asian American women. However, women continue to enter the workforce at an increasing rate, and New York is no different. Women represent 53% of the state's workforce, with 66% of mothers with young children working outside the home and 20% of adults caring for an elderly relative. In addition, 78% of people who need family leave can't afford to take it.
According to a June 2008 estimate by the Department of Insurance, Paid Family Leave would only cost about $8/person annually or 16 cents/week, which translates into a 10-15% increase in disability premiums.
In polls by the Community Service Society, New Yorkers across income levels said they would be willing to pay for a paid family leave benefit. Seventy-six percent of low-income New Yorkers and 64% of moderate and higher income New Yorkers said they would favor extending TDI to provide up to 12 weeks of paid family leave even if it meant $1 a week would be deducted from their paychecks. (Source: 2005 Unheard Third Survey, CSS).


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San Van Party Pack is the latest down-loadable add-on available for Skate 3, which is one of the most critically acclaimed skateboarding games in the market. This add-on feature, which consists of a number of new objectives, tracks and hidden options, was released on September 21, 2010. One of the features that developers relied on making this add-on for Skate 3 as successful as others was the ability to make your own skate park. This provides the user with the option to customize a skate park according to all of their preferences. The size of the park through to the style of ramps is completely up to the user playing Skate 3. It is bringing your dream park into reality with a touch of some buttons. Players of Skate 3 have just fallen in love with this amazing feature because not many games in the market offer much of a chance to create your own skate park, but San Van Party Pack for Skate 3 hits the spot. In addition to being able to create your own skate park, the latest add-on also has a brand new skate park that is sure to get your gaming juices flowing.
There are many great objectives and new things to try out in this game that will surely enhance the overall gaming experience. However, some gamers might advise anyone planning to try this new add-on for Skate 3, to play the previous add-on versions because it will help in understanding the entirety of the game. Nevertheless, if you ask me, you can jump straight to this specific Skate 3 add-on if you please. Taking the nature of the game into regard, missing a couple of new features will not hinder your overall gaming experience. You will not miss out anything vital because each add-on is completely different and are not dependent on each other.
Now to talk about some of the key new objectives that makes this Skate 3 add-on probably the best on yet. Firstly, there are a number of challenges that will make Skate 3 – San Van Party Pack enjoyable and interesting from the get go, such as the 'Own the Spot', 'Photo', 'Film' and 'Own the Lot'. These challenges require the user to carry out a number of difficult tricks in various modes, such as the gallery gap line, the quintessential stair, tranny trench and skatepark gauntlet. However, these are challenges that will not take up much of your time, especially if you have been playing Skate 3 for a while.
However, there are some challenges in Skate 3
San Van Party Pack that will take some time and might even result in you wanting to break your controller. Firstly, 'The Corkscrew', is one of the hardest tricks to perform. Everyone who is familiar with Skate 3 knows how technique it takes to perform a single loop, but performing two full loops is something that might take you a while. It is a great way to test yourself and perfect your skills. Moreover, the 'Marraffanator', or the Skatepark Gauntlet, is one big challenge that is made up of 12 small ones. This is considered the complete challenge because of how it tests all of your skills. However, remember these challenges can get a little difficult and somewhat irritating when you constantly fail. Therefore, instead of quitting and giving up, you can always change the difficulty level down so the gameplay is easier. Once you have learned and perfected the skills on the easier level, you will have a much better chance of performing them on the harder ones.
In addition to the new features of San Van Party Pack, the add-on still keeps itself true to its original game, Skate 3. All of the original favorites, ranging from the graphics, gameplay, characters to the creative zone and skating parks are all still featured in the San Van Party Pack for Skate 3. This add-on is down-loadable content, which simply means that you can download straight into your PlayStation 3 or XBOX 360 gaming console from the internet. There are select websites that you should prefer to download from, such as the official PlayStation 3, the official XBOX 360 website or the home page of EA Sports. You can also download it directly, using the console itself. All you need to do is connect to the internet, via the PS3 Network and XBOX Live, and purchase the download directly from their respective online stores. This is probably the easiest way to download the video game directly onto your console. Another major benefit of Skate 3 – San Van Party Pack is the size, as it only requires almost 470 MB of hard drive space to be downloaded. This add on is then used to update your game automatically and the next time you turn on to play Skate 3, you will have all the great new features and objectives right in front of you. All you need in accessible internet connection and credit card information and in a matter of minutes you will have an updated version of Skate 3.