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Anthony Rendon is doing just what he wanted to do in Spring Training – get noticed. Of course, ranking 17th on Keith Law's prospect list and 35th on Baseball Prospectus' list, its safe to say he had already been noticed. But you get my point. He's hit .400/.428/1.000, with 3 HRs and 3 doubles in 21 PAs after Wednesday's game, which is, needless to say, a good start.
We know that spring stats are to be taken very lightly. And even if they were more valuable, the sample size is so small that his numbers seem much less impressive. It's a great week, not much more. But because he is only 22, and because he has less than 200 pro PAs, this is still very encouraging to see. It's clear he can hold his own against high end pro pitching, even if he isn't facing aces all the time.
No matter how well he hits in the spring, though, there should be no question where he belongs to start the season. He has less than half a season of pro baseball under his belt, and there isn't a hole in the lineup waiting for him. So he'd be resigned to the bench, which is probably the worst place for a hitter with his experience. He needs to hit every day if possible, because he still needs to learn every day. But that isn't the end of the conversation with him. Read the rest of this entry »


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Warning: By law we cannot sell this product to anyone under 18, by placing an order with us you are confirming that you are over the age of 18.
Warm Down Warming Lava Scrub To Detox And Smooth 150ml
This is a specialist veterinary product. We will ask you a simple set of questions to confirm that you are buying the correct medicine for your pet and know how to use it safely
Order by 3pm for Express Courier Delivery Some of the items we sell are a bit too bulky to fit on our delivery vans so we offer our customers Express Courier Delivery via courier. Deliveries are made from 8am - 8pm Monday to Saturday and 9am - 5pm on Sundays. Your delivery slot will only be confirmed once your order has been placed.
Feel the heat rising as you massage away muscle tension and more with our warming scrub. This shower-activated exfoliator with Volcanic Ash warms on contact to help ease tension as it smoothes and purifies. Plus, our soothing essential oil blend of Wild Mint, Spearmint and Vanilla can help your skin to renew. It helps skin feel softer, ultra-clean, leaving you feeling restored.
How To Use
Massage onto damp skin in circular motions. Step under running water to activate warming. Rinse well. Adjust product amount for your desired warming effect. More product creates more warming.
Volcanic Ash

subset: commoncrawl


text: This Zorki 4 w/50mm f/2.8 Industar 26m lens is, well, a Zorki, like most FSU cameras, when they work they are great, but they can be tempermental. This one works, everything works, shutter, wind, self-timer, rangefinder is bright and spot on, covering is intact, chrome is in good shape, it even has a non-Zorki take-up spool. The lens is in good condition, very few marks on the glass, coating looks good, it makes a nice picture. The aperture and focus are smooth and working properly. The chrome is a little tarnished. $50.00. USA only. Payment by Paypal and shipped only to the Paypal address. Shipping is by USPS Priority mail. Please PM your Zip code so I can calculate postage. Sold as is, no return.


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Archive for Wednesday, November 1, 2006
Mission accomplished
Girls capture state crown with inspired performance in Wamego
De Soto cross country coach Chris McAfee thanked the parents, the fans and the fellow DHS staff that attended Saturday's state cross country meet, and finally he thanked his athletes, all the while trying to hold back tears.
The De Soto girls team had minutes before won the Class 4A state championship. Later McAfee would explain the key moments came during the week prior to the race -- that the secret was in the way his team prepared for and executed the final race plan.
But is that even fair?
The groundwork to De Soto's victory -- the single greatest accomplishment in Wildcat cross country history -- lay both in the week prior to the state meet and the month prior. It lay in the 16 minutes it took the entire championship squad to scurry across the course and in the hot summer days those same runners labored in more than a month ago.
The dream of a state championship wasn't born last week, but with months of planning and years of hard work. It was realized Saturday, on the golf course of the Wamego Country Club.
"We've worked so hard for this," Chesney Burgweger said. "Every morning during the summer, it was all hard work and it paid off. We knew we could get so much better, and here it is."
De Soto delivered defending champion Baldwin its most severe Class 4A defeat of the season, distancing the Bulldogs by 16 points. The Wildcats utilized medal-worthy performances by Carly Stanley (seventh), Lauren Karnitz (eighth) and Morgan Frehe (15th) and strong races by all seven runners to earn its first-ever cross country state championship.
Burgweger was 28th. Trish Roberts was 35th. Becca Roberts was 45th and Maddy Frehe was 61st in the 104-runner field.
"I felt at the beginning of the summer that our girls had a shot," McAfee said. "That was a pretty bold statement at the time because everyone was ready to give Baldwin the first-place trophy."
De Soto's chances of winning the meet ran the gauntlet throughout the season. McAfee said his Cats were considered long shots, mainly due to the strength Baldwin was returning from an overwhelmingly talented squad a year ago.
Baldwin won last year's title with 70 points -- 30 better than second-place Wamego and 69 better than fifth-place De Soto.
That Bulldog team graduated only its seventh-best runner and was the hands-down favorite in the Kansas Cross Country Coaches Association's preseason pool.
De Soto was picked fourth in that pool, then moved up to second later in the year, never passing Baldwin.
The girls didn't do much to change anyone's mind early, but tamed the Bulldogs now in three of the last four meetings.
"The first time we beat Baldwin was at KU Rim Rock, and it really sunk in then," Trish Roberts said. "After that we just thought 'We've done it once,' and that made it easier."
Staying ahead of Baldwin Saturday was the primary goal, and it showed from top to bottom.
De Soto's top three runners -- Karnitz, Frehe and Stanley -- have found success sticking with Baldwin's No. 2, Kelsey Verhaeghe. That strategy paid off again at state as the trio literally swarmed around her for the vast majority of the race. They finally all broke apart late and dashed for the finish line, all three crossing ahead of Verhaeghe.
"We ran the hills a little different -- we burned up them and went easy down them, so everyone that caught us on the downhill, we caught them on the uphill," Karnitz said.
It's backward logic from the way athletes usually tackle a hilly course such as Wamego's, but the reasoning summed up De Soto's focus.
"I don't know why we did it," she said. "That's what Verhaeghe did, so that's what we did. We followed her. That was our plan. Every race we pick a spot where we're going to pass her and this time we decided we'd do it with 800 meters left.
"It worked."
Verhaeghe and Madison Shoemaker finished ahead of Burgweger, and Calleigh Durr was right behind, but Trish Roberts rounded out De Soto's scoring runners well ahead of Baldwin's No. 5.
Even the final two Cats -- whose points aren't tallied when calculating the team's score -- were clearly gunning for purple. Becca Roberts slipped in one second ahead of both Julie Hill and Corinna Papps, and Maddy Frehe was one second in front of Baldwin's final runner, Misty Emery.
It all amounted to just a few points and it all took place in just a few seconds, but the Cats said that's what made the difference.
De Soto was well ahead of third-place Wamego's 113 points, and faced no serious threats from other area rivals. Tonganoxie was eighth in 211 and Eudora was tenth with 213.
"They ran incredible. They just ran absolutely incredible," McAfee said. "The race was won this week. Before the meet we always talk to them about the race, but this week, they sat us down and said 'We're going to tell you guys how it's going to go.'
"Where was the race won? It was won inside themselves. They were very focused from the first girl to the seventh girl and they did exactly what they needed to do."
McAfee found out the results about 15 minutes after the final runner crossed the finish line, and then ran with assistant coach Chad Brecheisen to where the seven runners and a mass of green-clad fans had gathered.
He gathered the group in tight and the runners smashed together up front. They were nearly unanimously happy with their individual performances, but none were certain as to the official news.
Slowly, glancing around, McAfee revealed what he knew: "You're looking at the new state champions," he said.
Later the team again huddled together, only moments after receiving the biggest trophy of them all. Diminuitive Morgan Frehe struggled to handle it by herself, but rarely was only one set of hands touching the oak behemoth.
Fingers canvassed it, feeling out the letters that spelled out the team's accomplishment, and the girls marveled that the small statue wasn't made out of plastic, but real metal.
Real. The dream was gone, and now it was real.
The Cats were state champions.
"It still doesn't feel real," Karnitz said. "It just feels like another meet because we kept saying it was just another meet. It hasn't hit yet. Yeah, we have a trophy, but now what?
"It was just great, and we did it all together."
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The rumors you may have heard are true… another snowboard company, just what the industry needs … maybe.
Sean Johnson has teamed up with some fellow derelicts and started his newest endeavor Stepchild Snowboards. "I'm not doing this to get rich," explains Johnson, "I am just another rider that is trying to help take back the industry. The majority of people making decisions on the direction of our sport don't even ride," says Sean. "What I also see happening is that too many companies have been following the same template on how a company should be run. There's not too much originality anymore and everyone seems to be doing a safety dance. Forum did a successful team video so now everyone is going to do a team video…Duh."
Stepchild is absolutely broke. They have no investors and don't want any. "I re-mortgaged my house and that is what's funding this. Why should someone that knows nothing about snowboarding have any say in a snowboard company?"
Stepchild is starting small and according to Johnson if they stay small then that is completely fine with him. "I would rather have 100% control of a smaller company than 10% control of a bigger one."
In the first year, the main focus will be on the Canadian market. Stepchild will never be sold in the larger sports chain stores and only available to specialty shops. "It's not like we are a ski company making neon parabolic skis one year and putting skulls on snowboards the next. If I see another skull on a snowboard I think I'll puke."
For the first year, Stepchild will have three shapes and sizes: 154, 158.5 and 162.Sean got Rob Morrow to help him with board specs and design.
"There can still be a community in the snowboard industry. I talk to certain companies and they all say how snowboarding is now big business. They fire people just before they have kids and " that's what big businesses do." The only thing big in snowboarding is certain people's egos."
Stepchild has no money for a team but negotiations are in the works to sign young up and comer Sean Kearns. "Stepchild's team will consist of riders who need free boards to ride or sell while they are between sponsors but if you wear a rocker belt or drive an Audi then don't call us," says Johnson.
Regardless of what Stepchild does, it should get pretty interesting. Wick Winder Distribution, another one of Sean's bright ideas, will distribute the boards.
(Wick Winder is also the Canadian Distributor for One Ball Jay.)
For more info call Wick Winder Distribution (604) 987-1184 or e-mail firstname.lastname@example.com


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Select or modify your travel plan
Update date, no of rooms or guest info
Update date, no of rooms or guest info
The Holiday Inn Berlin Center - Alexanderplatz is a brand new 242 room 4-star superior hotel in the vibrant center of Germany's capital - Berlin. The location makes this hotel the perfect spot for business travelers and holiday makers. Just steps away from major sights like the TV tower on Alexanderplatz, the Holiday Inn offers modern and fresh design and excellent customer oriented service. All of the rooms offer a high standard of comfort as well as free high speed internet access, large work desk, luxurious toiletries, air conditioning and tea and coffee making facilities. Guests will be able to relax in the hotel bar and also enjoy Vietnamese cuisine in the hotel's restaurant. This is an excellent new product in the most popular area of the city.
Berlin,Berlin Area,Berlin Region,Germany,Europe
Pets are allowed (Charges may be applicable)


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In the past four years, the cost of health care in the United States grew at about half the annual rate it did from 1990 to 2007. What accounts for the cost slowdown? According to economists Amitabh Chandra and Jonathan Holmes of Harvard, and Jonathan Skinner from Dartmouth, it wasn't the sluggish economy or early effects of the Affordable Care Act.
Instead, the economists attributed much of the bending cost curve to the rise of high-deductible health insurance plans, which generally make consumers less likely to use health care services because they have to pay a larger share of the costs.
Other factors: state efforts to rein in Medicaid costs and less spending by hospitals on expensive medical technology.
Read the economists' paper—"Is This Time Different? The Slowdown in Healthcare Spending"—on the website of the National Bureau of Economic Research.


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Al Kazeem's glad he wasn't eclipsed by French system
If last Saturday's Eclipse Stakes had been run in France, Al Kazeem would have collected the third-place prize money instead of being lfft at the rightful winner of the Group 1 race after costing Mukhadram second place due to major interference in the closing stages.
Jockey Paul Hanagan was almost put over the fence and while the best horse won the race, Mukhadram was prevented from finishing second which went to Declaration of War.
The outcome deprived Mukhradam owner Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum £46,000 in prize money and each-way and forecast punters of a return.
After a stewards' enquiry, the result was allowed to stand and jockey James Doyle banned for five days for careless riding.
Under French rules, a horse who prevents another from achieving the best possible finishing position, is disqualified and placed one place behind the horse who suffered. That would have meant Al Kazeem finishing third.
British racing is different and the rule is that a result will stand and only the jockey punished if it's deemed the horse concerned would have won regardless of the interference, in other words did not effect the winning result.
The French believe in punishing the horse that causes the problem, no matter where it occurs, so an incident could happen a long way out and the horse skate up by 10 lengths, only to lose the race.
That's not something most punters would welcome as everyone likes to see the best horse getting the prize as was the case with Al Kazeem.
But if the manoeuvre had cost Mukhadram victory, he still would not have got the verdict.
Yes, Al Kazeem would have been disqualified and placed last, but Mukhadram would only have been second as Declaration Of War finished in front of him and was not involved in the interference.
Hardly fair, one might argue, but at least it doesn't lead to ridiculous outcomes in the context of the whole race.
Meanwhile, the South African sprinter Shea Shea, unluckily beaten by Sole Power in Royal Ascot's King, can take the step up to six furlongs in Saturday's Newmarket July Cup in his stride and take his revenge on Power.
There has been plenty of support for him all week and 4/1 should be snapped up. .
Belfast Telegraph


text: They are having a bee theme in babies room & nature. My LQS had bee fabric so this is what I came up with. I had help from the owner also. I also had enough material for a mini quilt. The receiving blankets are the no binding blankets and are so easy. I did quilt bees, bee hive and butterflies on back of quilt. Don't know if you can see them. Hope mom and dad like the quilt.


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Image copyright:
Please sign in to comment. Don't have a profile? Join now! Joining is absolutely free and no personal information is required.
Put it up again with fewer pieces and see what happens.
Put this photo up this morning, Ardy. Probably too many pieces for most people. I should have made it about 35 pieces instead.
When did you do this? And 90 pieces! The only reason I'm on the board as that there have not been many solvers. 16:10 is a very slow time. But they look pretty. Thanks.


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maxpoet beauty
New Regime, - Poem by maxpoet beauty
New Regime,
New Regime that is so Unbelievable,
Can you see the man in me?
All saying that the same regime is no more,
This is the new regime,
Making of the Incredible,
Understand the World and see us through,
You Obviously don't know me,
This is the New Regime,
That the man is all percolating,
Rather Wilding into the ways of the man,
Tell me that time is all moving so fast,
But not near the Real Man,
Ain't this the new Regime,
That the World will never adjust into that way,
Let me go and tell you that I was laced up,
There is the toughest roughest you never see,
Obviously you never know,
How can you conquer which hast Overthrown and depose you?
Tell me,
Where is the Wisdom?
Never ever Under-rate that man,
Ever never.
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I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You
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CES 2013: SanDisk Launches Fast, Low Cost Ultra Plus / X110 SSD
Subject: Storage | January 7, 2013 - 09:55 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: x110 ssd, ultra plus, ssd, sandisk, ces 2013, CES, 19nm
SanDisk has officially launched a new solid state drive that is slated to offer up a good balance of performance and price. Based on 19nm flash used in a 2.5" form factor drive acceptable for either notebook or desktop upgrades, the new drive is the Ultra Plus in retail channels and known as the X110 to OEM partners.
The basic specifications that SanDisk have released include a SATA 3.0 6Gbps connection, and respectable sequential read and write speeds of 530 MB/s and 445 MB/s respectively. Random read and write speeds and IOPS were not listed in the press release.
However, in an odd twist for CES news, the new SanDisk solid state drive is actually available now at Amazon, Microcenter, and Newegg. Amazom and Microcenter will have 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB SKUs while Newegg will carry the 128GB and 256GB models.
Interestingly, SanDisk has priced these drives fairly cheaply with MSRPs of $79.99 for the 64GB model, $109.99 for the 128GB model, and $219.99 for 256GB drive. Granted the 64GB model is not great on $/GB, but the higher tier models are under $1/GB. Unfortunately, the 128GB model is out of stock on Amazon, and the 64GB and 256GB models are all well above MSRP at $120 and $250 respectively. Here's hoping the price comes down as more stock becomes available.
PC Perspective's CES 2013 coverage is sponsored by AMD.
Follow all of our coverage of the show at http://pcper.com/ces!
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text:
(CBS) - Two new studies suggest that cancer may go undetected in some women under the revised mammography guidelines. In 2009, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommended testing every two years for women 50 to 74. Previously all women over 40 were routinely tested. Researchers at New York - Presbyterian Hospital say in their study - nearly 20-percent of cancers detected from a mammogram were in women in their 40s.
(CBS) - Another new study shows chemotherapy can change the way the brain functions. It's a side effect known as "chemo brain" and can impact a patient's concentration and memory. Researchers at West Virginia University used brain imagining and found areas of the brain used for planning and prioritizing used less energy after chemotherapy.
(CBS) - Air pollution could affect your child's risk of developing autism even before they are born. Researchers at the University of Southern California say exposure to traffic-related air pollution can have an impact while the baby is still in the womb and up to a year after birth. Their study looked at more than 500 children and found kids exposed to the highest levels of air pollution from traffic were three times more likely to develop autism.


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Changes at dCS
In other news, the dCS Verdi LaScala upsampling transport, one of Stereophile's two Joint Digital Products for 2005, has been transformed into the Verdi Encore by the addition of two digital inputs which will be activated by a software CD update, available in the "not too distant" future. Price, basic spec, and performance are said to remain the same. "This change has been planned for some time," said dCS, "following the cessation of production of the previously used mechanism. It also enables dCS to increase the use of a common software platform through a range of players and transports, making development and design times shorter."
Stereophile has just taken delivery of a review sample of the UK company's first one-box SACD player, the P8i, which was premiered at Home Entertainment 2005 last May. Further members of the P8i family will be demonstrated at next month's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
dCS consumer products are distributed in the US by Audiophile Systems, 8709 Castle Park Drive, Indianapolis, IN 46256. Tel: (317) 841-4100. Fax: (317) 841-4107.


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Hairston's return to SD 'a dream come true'
Hairston's return to Friars 'a dream come true'
"I kid you not, Landon asks me that all the time," Hairston said on Friday. "I told him it was probably never going to happen."
In the first major trade of first-year general manager Jed Hoyer's tenure, the Padres officially sent third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff and Minor League second baseman Eric Sogard to the A's for Hairston and Minor League outfielder Aaron Cunningham on Saturday.
Hairston, reached by phone from his home in Arizona, said Friday that Kouzmanoff had contacted him earlier in the day and said he was being traded to the A's. Hairston, at that point, was happy to have his friend coming to the A's.
He didn't know at the time that he was on his way back to San Diego, where he played for parts of three seasons for the Padres until being traded to the A's on July 5 for three pitchers.
"For me to come back is just unbelievable," said Hairston.
Hairston, who like Kouzmanoff is arbitration-eligible, never wanted to leave the Padres. He was so stunned by the trade in July that he wept when talking to reporters.
"We really didn't want to give up Scotty. But for us, this is a move looking beyond this year," said then-Padres general manager Kevin Towers after the trade.
The Padres had been looking to add a right-handed-hitting outfielder all offseason and someone who could platoon in center field with Tony Gwynn. Oddly enough, Hairston's older brother, Jerry, a free agent, had been in talks with the Padres.
"My head has been spinning the whole day," Hairston said. "I never wanted to leave. ... I loved it here, my family loved it, the fans, the front office, were all great. Everything was clicking for me. I never wanted to play anywhere else."
Hairston hit .236 with seven home runs and 36 RBIs with the A's. He hit .299 with 10 home runs and 29 RBIs in 56 games before the trade.
Hairston is a career .287 hitter against left-handed pitchers, something that surely had a lot of appeal to the Padres. In 610 at-bats with the Padres, Hairston hit 35 home runs with 80 RBIs.
In his time with the Padres, Hairston showed that a right-handed hitter can have success at PETCO Park, a stadium with a reputation as a pitching-friendly ballpark. Hairston is a career .285 hitter with 19 home runs and 49 RBIs in 344 at-bats at PETCO Park.Hairston missed time at the end of the regular season with pain in his hip and back. But he said he had a physical by the A's on Dec. 12 and everything checked out fine. As of Friday afternoon, he hadn't been informed if he would need another physical.
Cunningham, who turns 24 in April, will already be joining his fourth organization. He's a right-handed hitter who batted .302 with 11 home runs and 48 RBIs in 334 at-bats with Triple-A Sacramento.
He's hit .211 with two home runs and 20 RBIs in 133 at-bats with the A's over the last two seasons. It's not known if he'll platoon with Will Venable in right field or if he will begin the season with Triple-A Portland.
Outfielder Kyle Blanks, presumably, will start in left field.
As for third base, the Padres parted with a player in Kouzmanoff who drove in a career-best 88 runs last season, his third with the Padres. He also set a National League record for fielding percentage for a third baseman (.990).
There were some in the Padres organization who felt Kouzmanoff had reached his ceiling as an offensive player. He hit 18, 23 and 18 home runs the past three seasons and his on-base percentage in that span was .309.
The trade allows Chase Headley to slide back to his natural position. Headley was asked before the 2008 season to move to the outfield so that he and Kouzmanoff could be in the lineup together.
"For me, it would be great to get back to third base. It's where I'm the most comfortable and where I feel I can make the biggest impact to help win games," Headley said Friday from his home in Tennessee.
"I was happy with what I was able to accomplish out there [in the outfield]. But it was a lot of work when you haven't played that position before. You don't want to just be an average Major League player. You want to be the best player you can be. ... I just think it makes a lot more sense being there [at third base] than in the outfield. For me, it will be fun."
Headley played 28 games at third base a year ago and had a .907 fielding percentage. He also played seven games there in 2008 and five at third base in 2007.
Corey Brock is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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With 300,000 sq. ft. of event space and famous resident ducks, The Peabody Orlando came out on top in a ranking of the 100 best meetings hotels released Monday by cloud-based event-management company Cvent. Using its online supplier network, the technology firm analyzed 80,000 hotels, considering such factors as total meeting space, the number of RFPs submitted and how much business meeting planners ultimately sent their way. Rounding out the Top 5 were the Gaylord Opryland Hotel & Convention Center in Nashville, Hyatt Regency Atlanta, Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando and The Venetian and Palazzo Resort, Hotel & Casinos in Las Vegas. cvent.com
Meanwhile, airport review website Skytrax named Vancouver International Airport as the best airport in North America for 2012, followed by Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport and San Francisco International Airport. The honors were part of the company's annual World Airport Awards released last week. The North American results were just part of the awards, which were based on surveys of 12 million passengers at 388 airports worldwide. The overall title of World's Best Airport was Incheon International Airport near Seoul, South Korea. worldairportawards.com


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Photo Galleries
Image 9 of 18
Israeli activists take part in a protest march toward the Erez border crossing between Israel and northern Gaza Strip on Aug. 28, marking the 25th birthday of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
Amir Cohen/Reuters/File
Image 9 of 18
© The Christian Science Monitor. All Rights Reserved.


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clothes for cruise
well by now you must be tired of me adding continuous posts to this site...but here goes another one! I went through my clothing yesterday and can't believe how scrupulous I was!!! I actually am taking less on an 11 night cruise than i would on a 7 day land package. I have to pat myself on the back (saying that; I hope I have enough!!!). I have read the countless and valued posts about clothing and think I did well. Could it be that i am over anxious...I mean we don't leave til March 29/04!!! LOL!!!
Re: clothes for cruise
Yeah, I'd say you are just a bit over anxious because come March 28 you'll have changed your cruise wardrobe about 245,783 times. <wink>
Re: clothes for cruise
You are most efficient!. My cruise leaves in April, and I haven't even made a list yet. I keep a master list in the computer, but every trip is different. On this cruise, I will need clothes for five formal nights.
Re: Re: clothes for cruise
LOL!!! Probably very true!!! LOL!!!
|All times are GMT -4. The time now is 06:23 PM.


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I like Angie....
To quote Borat: "She a very nice!!!!"
I like Angie....
To quote Borat: "She a very nice!!!!"
Mantroll II ?
Wow, they really shouldn't introduce us to these hampsters. Just start the game already.
And the snickers ad that keeps popping up is annoying!
"How do you know the chosen ones? No greater love hath a man than he lay down his life for his friend. Not for millions, not for glory, not for fame... for one person. In the dark. Where no one will ever know or see." - Sebastion, Babylon 5
Bodybuilder dude needs a tan. Only Dr. Evil can pull off the pasty white look.
Getting lost will help you find yourself.
Yes, Im afraid so.....OMG (pardon the pun)Originally Posted by Dogg;3128170;
Looks like a regular bunch of freaks.
"Feel the sky blanket you/ With gems and rhinestones/ See the path cut by the moon/ For you to walk on" - EV
What did that guy say about the flag and Democrats?????
I already hate that guy
I thought was my subconscious jonesing for chocolate. You mean you see it too?Originally Posted by AsIs;3128184;
Go to www.freerice.com to improve your vocabulary and feed the world!
oh dan dan dan. you puke
i don't see how they can be so surprised at the key ... some of them might be hidden okay, but how could the key hanging from the saddle be a surprise?


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Dormy Inn Premium Namba
Select your stay dates to check availability at Dormy Inn Premium Namba
Dormy Inn Premium Namba
About the Hotel
Property Location
Dormy Inn Premium Namba is in the heart of Osaka, walking distance from Hope Chapel Osaka and Dotombori Konamon Museum. This hotel is close to Osaka Castle and Osaka Science Museum.
Make yourself at home in one of the 230 air-conditioned rooms featuring refrigerators and flat-screen televisions. Complimentary wired and wireless Internet access keeps you connected, and digital programming provides entertainment. Private bathrooms with showers feature complimentary toiletries and hair dryers. Conveniences include phones, as well as safes and desks.
Rec, Spa, Premium Amenities
Don't miss out on the many recreational opportunities, including a spa tub, a sauna, and bicycles to rent. Additional features include complimentary wireless Internet access and tour/ticket assistance. Guests can catch a ride to nearby destinations on the complimentary area shuttle.
Enjoy a satisfying meal at a restaurant serving guests of Dormy Inn Premium Namba.
Business, Other Amenities
Featured amenities include complimentary high-speed (wired) Internet access, laundry facilities, and a safe deposit box at the front desk. Self parking (subject to charges) is available onsite.
Hotel Facilities
- Breakfast available (surcharge)
- Elevator/lift
- Free WiFi
- Free area shuttle
- Free wired high-speed Internet
- Laundry facilities
- Safe-deposit box at front desk
- Spa tub
- Number of buildings/towers - 1
- Sauna
- Newspapers in lobby (surcharge)
- Year Built 2013
- Smoke-free property
- Self parking (surcharge)
- Number of floors - 14
- Designated smoking areas
- Tours/ticket assistance
- Restaurant
- Total number of rooms - 230
Room Facilities
- In-room safe
- Free wired high-speed Internet
- Phone
- Pay movies
- Hair dryer
- Slippers
- Daily housekeeping
- Air conditioning
- Free toiletries
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text:
Toon Boom Animation has released Toon Boom Studio 4. The company says that Studio 4 increases the user's ability to create a wider range of animation styles easily, all within a more user friendly interface.
Feature highlights include a new user interface that Toon Boom claims offers unparalleled flexibility and increased ease-of-use, and the Photo Animation Made Easy system to animate bitmap images like any other vector drawing.
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There are over 30 other new features and improvements, including support of Illustrator layers, the Vectorize Preview window, improved drawing tools, Alpha Onion Skinning and support of Tablet PC OS (for Windows XP and Vista).
Toon Boom Studio 4 is available for the special launch price of $329.99 (around £163) using the promotional
code of TBS091307.


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COOL CONCLUSION: Checklists, collaborative editing, messaging and sharing folders are all a snap with the neat, attractive interface and powerful processing abilities of Quip.--Date/Version: Released 7/31/13 - Version 1.0
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From the open plains of the asphalt jungle, the clever and illustrious plastic bag faces numerous challenges on its migration to the Pacific Ocean.
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THE former Scotland and West Ham striker, Frank McAvennie, 40, was given a conditional discharge at Newcastle Crown Court yesterday after admitting possessing cocaine. He was acquitted of conspiracy to supply drugs after a nine-day trial last month but admitted possessing £30 of cocaine. McAvennie was also ordered to pay £150 costs.
Child beggars double
THE number of foreign children begging on the streets of Dublin has more than doubled in 12 months. There were 2,938 sightings last year, including 1,083 foreign children, says the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
Football wife had cocaine
THE wife of Gillingham Football Club's chairman, Paul Scally, yesterday admitted possessing cocaine. Lisa Marie Scally, 25, a cabaret singer, had originally pleaded not guilty at Maidstone Crown Court, Kent, claiming that the drugs had been planted on her in a nightclub. She was released to await sentencing.
Museum to get Lennon piano
GEORGE MICHAEL will play John Lennon's piano on his new album before handing it over to a Beatles museum in Liverpool, he said yesterday. Michael bought the upright Steinway, on which the former Beatle composed the peace anthem Imagine, at auction earlier this week for £1.67 million.
Air firm collapses
THE Transaer Irish air charter company went into liquidation last night with with the loss of nearly 550 jobs. The company, based at Dublin airport, said the war in Kosovo had had "a strong negative impact" on the Greek, Turkish and German markets where Transaer operated.
Police hunt
THE post of a Welsh-speaking chief constable of North Wales is to be advertised again. There have been too few applicants to succeed Michael Argent who is retiring.
Shots arrest
A MAN of 33 was arrested yesterday in connection with the firing of shots in Jalon's Wine Bar, Liverpool, where six Liverpool soccer players were dining.


text:
|Publication number
|Publication type
|Application number
|Publication date
|Apr 25, 1989
|Filing date
|Jan 15, 1988
|Priority date
|Feb 13, 1987
|Fee status
|Publication number
|William D. Uken
|Original Assignee
|Raychem Corp.
|Export Citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Patent Citations (18), Non-Patent Citations (2), Referenced by (36), Classifications (9), Legal Events (7)
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet
This application is a continuation of copending application Ser. No. 014,890 filed Feb. 13, 1987, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,585 issued on May 3, 1988.
The present invention relates to an optical fiber tap, methods for making same, and networks usable therewith.
Numerous methods have been proposed in the prior art for distributing information using an optical fiber, preferred methods including star, ring, and bus architectural networks. Generally speaking, star and ring networks utilize point-to-point connections, whereas bus networks are capable of utilizing non-point-to-point connections whereby an optical signal is only partially interrupted by any one connection.
For example Polczynski, U.S. Pat. No. 4,089,584 discloses a bus network which utilizes an optical fiber having a rectangular core and cladding, and connection or tapping of the fiber is accomplished by removing the cladding and disposing a prism or grading against an exposed rectangular core. Such networks are disadvantageous since the fiber and taps usable therewith are relatively complex in design and hence unduly expensive, and optical network performance is rather poor in view of relatively low tapping efficiencies that result using such methods.
Miller, GB No. 2,126,749B and Dakin et al. "Experimental Studies into the Non-Invasive Collection and Distribution of Data on a Fiber-Optic Monomode Bus" propose designing a read optical fiber bus using taps whereby light is withdrawn through a side of the optical fiber by passing the light through a coating of the fiber. Miller collects the light from the bus fiber by disposing a photodetector at an end of a curved and grooved light pipe disposed around the bus fiber, and Dakin et al. collects the light by tightly pressing a polymeric fiber with part of its cladding removed against a curved portion of the bus fiber. Such techniques are also disadvantageous in that again the taps are complicated in design, are craft sensitive to install in the field, and are not sufficiently efficient when tight flux budgets are mandated by network design.
Goell et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,982,123 at FIGS. 5A and 5B discloses an optical fiber read tap whereby an exposed glass cladding of a bent optical fiber portion is glued to a top of a photodetector. Such taps are disadvantageous since a strength of the fiber is disadvantageously affected by removal of its outer protective buffer, and rather small coupling light efficiencies are obtained by simply using epoxy to secure a bent optical fiber onto atop surface of a photodetector. In addition, the optical fiber is not releaseable from the tap.
Cross, U.S. Pat. No. 4,270,839 discloses a tap for an optical fiber whereby the fiber is bent in air, and downstream from the bent portion of the optical fiber a straight section of the optical fiber is glued within a straight light pipe which thereafter is curved and has a light detector at a remote end thereof. Again, such taps are disadvantageous since it has been found to yield relatively low light coupling efficiencies, and the optical fiber is not releaseable from the light pipe once glued thereonto.
Campbell et al., U.S. Ser. No. 602,242, filed April 19, 1984; Campbell et al., U.S. Ser. No. 754,035, filed July 11, 1985; and Campbell et al., U.S. Ser. No. 614,084, filed May 25, 1984, all assigned to the assignee of the present invention, the disclosures of which are all incorporated herein by reference, disclose several advantageous kinds of taps for either injecting light into or withdrawing light from optical fibers. However, there continues to be a need for yet more efficient taps which are also mechanically simple in structure.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to eliminate the above-noted drawbacks and to provide an optical read tap and/or optical write tap and network usable therewith which operates more efficiently than heretofore described.
These and other objects are achieved by utilizing a tap which bends an optical fiber in a plane, preferably the plane being flat, and utilizes reflecting means for directing light withdrawn from a core of the optical fiber towards a light collection end surface or for directing light from a light emitting end surface into a core of an optical fiber, the light reflector preferably having a reflectance greater than 0.5, preferably greater than 0.7 or 0.8, more preferably greater than 0.85 or 0.90, most preferably greater than 0.95, a polished light reflector being most preferred. Preferably, the light is coupled through a side of the optical fiber utilizing an optical coupler which has an index of refraction which optimally matches an outer surface of the optical fiber, and preferably the optical coupler is disposed so as to contact a bent portion of the optical fiber, though it can be disposed downstream of the bent portion of the optical fiber for reading, and upstream of the bend portion of the optical fiber for writing, if desired.
The reflecting surface is formed in a vicinity of the optical coupler and in close proximity therewith and deflects light out of the plane of the bent optical fiber portion and towards the end surface of a light element, the light element either constituting ultimately a photodetector for light detection or a light emitter for light injection. In any case, the light emitter or the light detector can be substantially displaced from the tap of the invention by utilizing a pigtail optical fiber light element which facilitates testing of the apparatus prior to permanent installation and after disposing a bus optical fiber within the tap. The tap further includes means for bending the optical fiber which is releaseable therefrom which also facilitates testing and repairs.
Since the light element is disposed outside the plane of the optical fiber bend, the bend profile of the optical fiber can be optimized for optimum optical efficiency and is not required to be unnecessarily further modified so as to accommodate mechanical size constraints imposed by a size of the light element, which is generally much larger than the fiber core.
The invention is most suitable for use in a serial manner on an optical fiber for creating either a read or a write bus therewith.
In addition, the invention allows the tap to be manufactured in a much more cost efficient way since simple molding techniques can be utilized to form a single component which incorporates both the bend profile features necessary to control and locate the fiber and the optical coupling and focusing elements required to optimally transfer the light between the light element and the fiber core in the bend. Also, a thickness of the component can be made sufficiently uniform to allow it to cool and harden in a stable manner when molding.
FIG. 1 illustrates a preferred tap embodiment of the invention which includes a curved reflection surface;
FIG. 2 illustrates a tap utilizing a planar reflection surface;
FIG. 3 illustrates another preferred embodiment of the invention which includes a member for releasably pressing an optical fiber so as to maintain a constant bend attitude therein;
FIG. 4 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the invention which includes a waveguide for transmitting light to and from an optical fiber core;
FIG. 5 illustrates a tap geometry whereby an end surface of a light element is disposed in a plane of an optical fiber bend;
FIG. 6 illustrates another preferred embodiment of the invention which utilizes a series of microbends for bending an optical fiber;
FIG. 7 illustrates yet a further embodiment of the invention whereby a microbend includes a series of microbends therein for bending an optical fiber; and
FIG. 8 illustrates one preferred embodiment of a network utilizing taps of the invention.
Referring to FIG. 1, an optical fiber 1 has a portion 2 thereof bent about a radius of curvature sufficiently small so as to cause light 3 to leak or radiate therefrom. The light 3 is then deflected by reflector 4 towards a light collection end surface 5 which in this figure is part of a photodetector 6.
Generally as used throughout herein the invention is described with reference to "a light element", and it should hereinafter be understood that the light element can constitute any one of a variety of apparatuses useful for detecting light withdrawn from an optical fiber; alternatively any one of a number of apparatuses for generating light for injection into an optical fiber; or simply a waveguide (e.g. pigtail optical fiber) connecting a light detector, light emitter, or further waveguide to the tap of the invention. Preferably the taps of the invention are constructed so that light is withdrawn from a core of an optical fiber, as opposed to its cladding, and alternatively light is injected into a core of the optical fiber as opposed to simply being injected into a cladding of the optical fiber, and according to preferred embodiments the light is injected or withdrawn by passing through one or more coatings of the fiber (e.g. buffers or jackets) and the cladding.
FIG. 2 illustrates a case where the light is injected into the optical fiber 1, and particularly its core, at the bend 2 using a reflection surface 14 which deflects light originating from a light source 8 after being focused by lens 9 so as to exit lens end surface 12. The lens 9 can comprise a pigtail optical fiber, or a specially formed waveguide. In both FIGS. 1 and 2 the reflection surface 4, 14 deflects the light between a core of a bent optical fiber portion 2 and a light element 5, 9.
FIG. 3 illustrates a geometry of a preferred tap embodiment which includes the concept of FIGS. 1 and whereby it is evident that in all cases a light element 6, 8, 68 has a respective end surface 11, 12, 13 which is disposed in a plane which is parallel with plane 24 and whose optical axis is not parallel to plane 24 (but is preferably normal or perpendicular to that plane), the plane including the bent optical fiber portion 2, as illustrated by the criss-crossing arrows 24 in FIG. 3.
In FIG. 3, a substrate 16 has formed thereon a groove 17 sized to accept an optical fiber 1 (not shown in FIG. 4) to be tapped, one groove 17 including a bent portion 22. The substrate includes first and second flanges 18 which define first and second grooves 19 along which a member 20 can slide along or parallel to the plane 24 which includes the bent portion 22 and the bent optical fiber portion 2. An end face 25 of the member 20 has a curved profile 26 complementary to a curved profile of the groove 17 such that the optical fiber 1 can be securely maintained in a constant bent attitude within the groove 17 by urging the member end face 25 against the optical fiber 1 and the groove 17 by utilizing a force which urges the member 20 along a direction of force arrow 28. Preferably the force 28 is resilient, and can be applied by a spring (not shown) so as to maintain a continuous load on the fiber regardless of dynamic changes which may occur over time, such as temperature induced differential material expansions and contractions, material creep due to stress, etc.
When the optical fiber 1 is disposed in the tap of FIG. 3 and is transmitting light in a direction from right to left in the drawing, light radiates outward from the fiber core, through its cladding, through its outer coating(s), and into the portion 14 of the substrate defining the groove bent portion 22 which functionally acts as an optical coupler 22 so as to facilitate light transfer between the outer coating of the fiber and the substrate portion 14. If desired, a wetting preferably stable agent, such as a partially cross-linked gel having finite elongation properties, such as an ultimate elongation in excess of 200 or 500% can be used to facilitate optical coupling. The light entering the optical coupler is deflected by the reflecting surface of the substrate portion 4 out of the plane 24 of the bent portion 2 of the fiber 1 and groove 17 and towards the light element 68 having a end surface 13 entirely disposed out of the plane 24, even though the end surface 13 can be in very close proximity to the bent portion 22. The reflection surface can simply be a smooth surface exposed to air shaped such that the withdrawn light hits the smooth surface at angles such that total internal reflection occurs of this surface with little or no light being refracted therethrough into the air. Preferably the smooth surface has a reflective coating thereon as well. It is preferred to form the surface so as to have a reflectance greater than 0.5, preferably greater than 0.6 or 0.7, most preferably greater than 0.8 or 0.85, optimally greater than 0.9 or 0.95.
Preferably, though not necessarily, the reflection surface 4 is curved in one or preferably two directions so as to optimize focusing between the fiber core and the light element, such as for example curved along a direction of axis X and Y (e.g. along a line 34 and a line 35) as schematically illustrated in FIG. 1. A parabolic or an elliptical reflector are two preferred embodiments. According to particularly preferred embodiments, the actual shape of the reflecting surface is optimized so that optimum focusing into the optical fiber core or onto a photodetector or the light collecting surface is achieved. To this end, the surface 4 is shaped and positioned such that preferably more than 30% of the light withdrawn from the fiber core is reflected, more preferably more than 40%, 50% or 60%, most preferably more than 70% or 80%. For light injection, the surface 14 is shaped and positioned such that as much light as possible emitted by the light source is injected into the fiber core as a guided mode, e.g. preferably more than 0.05%, more preferably more than 0.1%, 0.5% or 1%, most preferably more than 10%, 30% or 40%. Differences in phase-space area between the end surface of the light emitting source and the core of the fiber necessarily result in lower light injection efficiencies than are possible with a similar geometry for withdrawing light.
The invention produces several new and unexpected advantages. First, as graphically illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, by disposing the light element 6, 8, 68 and its end surface 11, 12, 13 completely out of the plane 24 of the bend, the bend profile of the optical fiber portion 2 can be optimized as desired to achieve optimum optical detection or injection efficiency without being unduly further modified due to a physical size of the light element or its end surface. This is more clearly illustrated by reference to FIG. 5 where a light element 71 is disposed so that its collection surface 72 is in the plane of the bend, the bend beginning at point 73 and ending at point 74. The difference between the physical size of the light element 71 and the optical fiber 1 including its bent profile 2 requires that the end surface 72 of the light element 71 be disposed an undesirably large distance away from the beginning of the fiber bend 73 which tends to decrease coupling efficiency. In addition, to allow the fiber 1 to clear a lowermost edge 75 of the end surface 72, the fiber bend portion must necessarily extend past point 76 of the bend so as to include arc 77, which is particularly disadvantageous since very little of the light escaping the fiber within the arc 77 will be collected by the end surface 72. Also, disposing the light element 71 so that its end surface 73 is in the plane of the bend requires that a thickness of a substrate housing the light element must be unduly thick in a region of the substrate which contains a groove for defining the bend profile for the fiber, thus complicating manufacturing of the substrate as molding tolerances become difficult to control.
In comparison, with the invention, the reflection surface 4, 14 can be disposed as close as desired to the bent optical fiber portion 2 and can be made as large and shaped as desired so as to deflect as much light as is required escaping from the fiber or the light source to achieve highest coupling efficiency. As mentioned, for light withdrawal, since the end surface of the light collecting element is out of the plane 24 of the bend, preferably the bent portion 2 or 22 of the optical fiber is disposed entirely upstream of the reflection surface 4, and for light injection, is disposed entirely downstream of the reflection surface 14 to achieve highest efficiencies.
FIG. 4 illustrates another preferred embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the light 3 withdrawn from the optical fiber 1 at the bent portion 2 is confined within a waveguide 30 which forms part of the substrate 16 and forms the bend profile 26 for the bent optical fiber portion 2, with the reflection surface 14 being disposed at an end of the waveguide 30.
FIG. 6 illustrates a yet further embodiment of the invention whereby both coupling in or out of the optical fiber 1 is accomplished utilizing a series of complementary microbend surfaces 80 between first and second substrates, the optical fiber 1 being disposed between the first and second substrates by a resilient force denoted by the arrow 28. In this embodiment, it is preferable for one of the members 81, 82 to have a reflective surface on the portion thereof forming the microbend surface so that light is preferentially coupled through the other member which is transparent, with the reflecting surface of the invention being disposed on that other member. As used throughout herein, by "microbend" is meant any kind of bend profile whereby an amplitude of the bend is less than two diameters of the fiber cladding, preferably less than one diameter of the fiber cladding, and typically of the order of 10 to 20% of the diameter of the fiber cladding, and as used throughout herein, a "macrobend" is defined as any bend having an amplitude greater than twice the fiber cladding diameter.
FIG. 7 illustrates a yet further embodiment of the invention whereby a substrate 86 has formed therein a microbend having an amplitude equal to the height 85, and within the surface of the macrobend a series of microbends are formed, with the reflecting surface being formed at an appropriate place within the substrate 86. A member having a curved reflective surface shaped complementary to the bend 84 so as to maintain the optical fiber appropriately bent is not shown but is required in operation.
FIG. 8 illustrates one practical embodiment for using taps having reflecting surfaces as described, FIG. 8 illustrating an optical fiber network 90 having first and second bus fibers 91, 92 interconnecting a plurality of terminals 93 in a bus architecture. The optical fiber 91 constitutes a read optical fiber, with the optical fiber 92 constituting a write optical fiber, the network being controlled by a CPU or central processing unit 94. According to the invention, the light is withdrawn from the read optical fiber 91 in a serial manner using a plurality of read taps 96 disposed in series constructed according to any combination of the embodiments described above, with the terminals 93 writing onto the write bus 92 via a plurality of taps 95 disposed in series and constructed according to any combination of the taps described above. Preferably signals going to any one or more of the terminals 93 are multiplexed in time rather than controlled by a token passing algorithm. According to a particularly preferred embodiment, any one or more of the terminals 93 is connected to one or more telephones, personal computers, mainframe computers, or similar data assembling and generating equipment.
The invention is useful for tapping both single mode and multimode fiber, including both step index and graded index, and is usable with both glass-on-glass and plastic clad silica fiber. According to a preferred embodiment, the invention includes the use of glass-on-glass fiber including a polymeric coating (e.g. buffer), the coating preferably having an index of refraction higher than the cladding, examples being an acrylate or silicone buffer, and/or any thin additional layers (e.g. jackets) surrounding the buffer. Typical preferred glass-on-glass fibers include single mode fibers having a core diameter of about 10 microns, and a cladding diameter of about 125 microns, and a buffer diameter in a range between about 250-500 microns, with multimode glass-on-glass fiber including a core/cladding diameter of roughly 50/125 microns, 100/140, microns, and 85/125 microns, for example. Preferred fibers include those having cylindrical cores, cylindrical claddings and cylindrical coatings (e.g. buffers and/or jackets) and preferably at least the buffer being maintained intact so as not to detrimentally degrade the strength of the fiber by exposing a glass surface thereof to moisture.
Though the invention has been described by reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, it is not to be limited thereby and is to be limited only by the appended claims.
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|Raynet Corporation
|Optical fiber tap utilizing reflector and resilient closure
|May 2, 1990
|Nov 15, 1990
|Raynet Corporation
|Method of coupling light via a coupler on a fiber optic light guide using phase space matching
|U.S. Classification
|385/32, 385/33, 385/48
|International Classification
|Cooperative Classification
|European Classification
|Feb 7, 1989
Owner name: BELLSOUTH ENTERPRISES, INC., GEORGIA
Free format text: SECURITY INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:RAYCHEM CORPORATION;REEL/FRAME:005024/0081
Effective date: 19880714
|Mar 20, 1989
Owner name: RAYCHEM CORPORATION, A CORP. OF CA
Free format text: MERGER;ASSIGNORS:RAYCHEM CORPORATION, A CORP. OF CA (MERGED INTO);MEHCYAR CORPORATION, A DE CORP. (CHANGED TO);REEL/FRAME:005175/0324;SIGNING DATES FROM 19870129 TO 19870729
|Sep 24, 1992
|Fee payment
Year of fee payment: 4
|Dec 3, 1996
|Maintenance fee reminder mailed
|Apr 27, 1997
|Lapse for failure to pay maintenance fees
|Jul 8, 1997
|Expired due to failure to pay maintenance fee
Effective date: 19970430
|Dec 7, 2005
Owner name: RAYCHEM CORPORATION, CALIFORNIA
Free format text: RELEASE BY SECURED PARTY;ASSIGNOR:BELLSOUTH ENTERPRISES, INC.;REEL/FRAME:016862/0001
Effective date: 19941116


text: The Good: Beating the friggin Jets and the joy of listening to a week of talk radio about how this team is preparing to choke! Brandon Fields, are you kidding me with those monster punts in that weather? He singlehandedly won the fieldposition battle for us all game. The defense. Pass defense so much better with getting rid of Jason Allen and his falling down. All LB's had solid games with standout plays all day. Even Crowder was laying the wood, knocking Greene out of the game and hitting with ferocity. As usual Cameron Wake coming up big, great job on the Wildcat destruction of Smith, and the last sack sealed the deal. D-line played tough all day, every yard the Jets gained was truly earned! The Bad: Turnovers, too many even for a sloppy day. The offense, totally inept performance. Sean Smith's catching ability, or lack thereof. The Ugly: Chad Henne. I bought my daughter his Jersey last year, seriously thinking he would be our QB for the future. I turned to her and promised her a new number, he is just so awful to watch. The Jets coach who stuck his knee out to interfere and almost seriously injure Nolan Carroll. Are you kidding me, that is one of the dirtiest and most dangerous plays in hockey as it frequently leads to serious knee damage. For a sideline coach to do that to an active player, is so low class. I am expecting big fines to be handed out to whoever that guy is.:crazy:


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Joseph Swank
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Joseph Swank
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Swank, Toeman, Johnson, Flaugher, Murdock, Overholt
From Biographical Memoirs of Huntington County, 1901, pages 613-615
Change is constant and general. Generations arise, and pass, unmarked, away; men are born, marry, live a few brief years and then disappear and are forgotten. It is a duty of the living as well as a present gratification to place upon the printed page a true record of a man's life, and thus preserve a monument to his posterity.
The late Joseph Swank, of Clear Creek township, was for many years a substantial factor in the local affairs of his neighborhood, and is remembered as one of Huntington county's most estimable and enterprising citizens. He was a native of Ohio, and was born March 26, 1821, in the county of Montgomery, the son of George Swank, a Pennsylvanian by birth. The father was one of the pioneers of Montgomery county, Ohio, settling there when the country was a wilderness and purchasing valuable lands from the government. Joseph was reared on the farm, and while still a boy became a valuable assistant to his father in clearing land and otherwise helping with the work necessary to insure success in a new and comparatively undeveloped country. He remained with his parents until reaching man's estate, and then began life for himself as a farmer, choosing on May 15, 1845, a wife in the person of Minerva Toeman, who was born February 9, 1825, and she ably assisted him in laying the foundation of his future competence. He continued to reside in the state of his nativity until 1848, when he came to Huntington county, Indiana, and entered one hundred and sixty acres of wild land in section three, Clear Creek township. Up to the time of his purchase no improvements of any kind had been made on the place, and his first work was to cut down the trees and clear away the brush from a spot sufficiently large to accommodate a cabin of small dimensions. This little building, consisting of a single room with clapboard roof and puncheon floor, stood near the site of the present dwelling and answered the purpose for which intended until replaced by a house of greater accommodations a number of years later.
Mr. Swank was a man of energy and knew not what it was to eat the bread of idleness. He worked hard, cheerfully encountered and overcome (sic) the numerous hardships incident to the period in which he lived, and by diligent application cleared and developed a fine farm and became one of the well-to-do men of his neighborhood and township. In all that constitutes true manhood he was a notable example and on (sic)one occupied a higher place in the esteem and confidence of his fellow citizens or did more for the general welfare of the community. While espousing the principles of the Republican party he was not a partisan, although firm in his convictions of what he considered right and ever ready to maintain the soundness of his opinions. His religious belief was represented by the United Brethren church with which he was for many years identified as an humble follower of the man of Nazareth.
Mr. Swank was a gentleman of noble aims and high purposes, endeavored always to do his whole duty toward God and his fellow man. To his name there attaches nothing akin to decipt (sic) or dishonesty, as his whole life, free and open, was absolutely incompatible with these or anything else not in harmony with strict integrity and true nobility of character. He was eminently successful in his business affairs, accumulating a sufficiency of this world's goods to place him in independent circumstances, besides enabling him to give to each of his children a good start in life. Personally he was a warm and true friend; and his neighbors unite in attributing to him correct motives in all of his undertakings, and in always endeavoring to exemplify the Golden Rule in his daily life and conduct. Such a man's death is a grievous loss to any community, and such his proved to be, when on the 17th day of September 1896, he gently yielded up his spirit to the God who gave it. He now quietly sleeps beneath the restful shades of the family cemetery, but his works remain to bless humanity and to make the world better by reason of his having lived therein. Mrs. Swank, who had been her husband's helpmeet and faithful companion for so many years, and who contributed so much to his success in life preceded him to the grave, dying December 28, 1887. She was the mother of seven children, the oldest being Cyrus, born February 12, 1846, who now lives in the city of Goshen; Julia A., the second in order of birth, was born October 12, 1848, and married Thomas Johnson, a farmer and stockraiser of Clear Creek township; Reuben, born June 20, 1851, is a manufacturer of buggies and carriages in Dayton, Ohio; the fourth is Harriet, born November 12, 1853, who is a resident of Whitley county, this state; Isabelle, born February 13, 1856, wife of Emery Flaugher, lives on a farm in the township of Clear Creek; Samantha, born September 13, 1858, now Mrs. James Murdock, is a resident of the county of Whitley; and the remaining member of the family, Ida, wife of Isaiah Overholt, lives on the old homestead.
Mrs. Overholt was born in Clear Creek township April 15, 1865, and thus far has passed her life within its borders. She received a good English education, and is a lady of intelligence, fine business tact, and possesses in a marked degree the esteem of her many neighbors and friends. Her marriage with Mr. Isaiah Overholt, a native of Ohio, was solemnized April 18, 1886, and she now owns the home place, consisting of a quarter section of fertile and highly improved land, being one of the most productive farms in Clear Creek. Mr. Overholt came to Huntington county in 1865, and has earned more than local repute since that time as a successful farmer and breeder of fine live stock. He ranks with the progressive men of the community where he resides and in business circles has a large and popular acquaintance throughout the county.
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Pushed by Barack Obama's naked attempts to destroy our economy, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has made up his mind: he will look west to China when he is ready to sell his nation's crude oil. Barack Obama has won this round to destroy America's economy, and we have lost.
Anyone who thought that this dangerous game of "chicken" would end in our closest neighbor and one of our strongest allies knuckling under (and waiting until Obama was finished using our lives to squeeze more campaign funds from the far Left) has been proven wrong. This is really going to happen. The Democratic cheerleaders in the media won't write about this catastrophe Obama has purposefully brought about, but that doesn't mean it won't happen. Foreign media, fortunately, feel no obligation to lie for Obama.
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As reported by Sun News of Canada, PM Harper recently expressed his frustration and simultaneous resolve on this matter in a public conversation with former Democratic congresswoman Jane Harman. Harper said that he will not change his mind to help Obama fool Americans into believing he has worthy intentions regarding the matter of approving the Keystone pipeline, which would have delivered Canadian oil to Texas for refinement.
In front of a group of business representatives, energy experts, and reporters, Harper said "Look, the very fact that a 'no' could even be said underscores to our country that we must diversify our energy export markets. We cannot be, as a country, in a situation where our one and, in many cases, only energy partner could say no to our energy products. We just cannot be in that position."
TRENDING: Dem Reads Trump's Tweets Out Loud During Hearing, That's When He Hears from Jeff Sessions
So there we have it. After three plus years of acting as a wrecking ball smashing through our economy, Obama has scored a double hit. He has choked off a major supply of oil and has insulted another ally.
Thanks to Obama, the damage from this bit of sabotage will take effect immediately; now that oil that has already been purchased from Canadian suppliers can't be delivered, those contracts are dissolved. To honor them, the Canadians would have to incur extra expense to deliver oil at a price which, because of its previously agreed upon price, is now falling below its true market value by the day. That is not going to happen in the world where Obama and his EPA thugs have no control and his media can't vilify capitalism. The Canadians don't give a damn what Barack Obama wants – they are in business to make a profit. Socialism is for Americans.
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The views expressed in this opinion article are solely those of their author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by the owners of this website.


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Your new discovery has implications for breast cancer therapy. Who funds you, the National Cancer Institute (NCI)? Nope: The U.S. Army. You've just developed a swift-growing tree that drinks up metals in the soil as if they were lemonade in July, and it could be the next killer app for cleaning up Superfund sites. Who cut the R&D checks, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)? Uh-uh: The U.S. Air Force. A new airborne chemical sensor: EPA? The Department of Energy? Homeland Security? No: It owes its existence to the Small Business Administration (SBA).
Why be normal? Securing funding is difficult, time-consuming, and unpredictable, especially in an election year. Who knows how next year's president's policies will impact the budgets of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and other stalwarts of scientific funding? The outlook right now isn't good. When a well dries up, it's time to drill a new one. It behooves anyone to look for money wherever it can be found.
By all means, go to the obvious sources. If you're a medical researcher, hit up NIH. If you're an engineer, knock on DOE's door or NSF's. But when you've exhausted your primary sources, consider this: Pots of gold are available throughout the federal government and the private sector, often where you'd least expect to find them. For example, the U.S. Army--through its Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs--trails only NCI as the leading funder of breast cancer research in the U.S. government. Who knew?
Finding Money Plenty
So how do you go about finding these hidden sources? Start with networking. See all those related research articles piling up on your desk? Check the acknowledgment section to see who is funding those projects, says Janet Rasey, director of research funding services at the University of Washington.
Then it's time to get out of the office. Your institution's Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) is an excellent place to start, says Jerry Boss, professor of microbiology and immunology at the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia, and a regular contributor to Next Wave. They may have a list of funding sources other researchers at your institution have used; colleagues whose work resembles yours might clue you into potential sources you hadn't thought of. OSP should also have a list of private foundations that support scientific research; if your research has even a tenuous connection to a foundation's interests, add the foundation to your list.
Then, put the OSP to work for you. OSPs exist to help you secure funding, so use them. Make an appointment and see what services they're able to offer. "It always works out better if you aren't trying to do things all on your own," says Susan Eckert, associate dean for finance in Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing and another Next Wave contributor.
Ask around. Talk to your PI, your old advisor, your collaborators. Pigeonhole researchers at conferences. Don't ask them straight out; chat them up about what they're working on these days--and, oh by the way, where do you get your funding? "I think it's amazing how many different kinds of grants PIs have that we don't know about," says Maryrose Franko, senior program officer at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, sponsor of GrantsNet.
And while you're at it, consider making contact even at the obvious funding agencies, if you haven't already. NIH, for example, is a wildly diverse place, so try to find a friendly guide. NIH program officers are there to help, says Dennis Glanzman, chief of theoretical and computational neuroscience at the National Institute for Mental Health. "Tell us what you're interested in or send a 1- to 2-page white paper. We can usually find the right person for you [to talk to]. So many people seem to be afraid of NIH as a black box, so they don't even try" to inquire, he says.
Your Lab is a Small Business
Of all the odd places you've looked for funding, I bet SBA is one you hadn't thought of. SBA does not directly fund research, but a 1982 SBA mandate has made available hundreds of millions of dollars through participating government agencies (in 2001, total grants exceeded $78 million). Every government agency with an external R&D budget of at least $100 million is required to participate in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. With 11 participating agencies (not including the National Security Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency, which participate under a different set of rules), this adds up to quite a bit of money.
And before you object that you're not in business, keep in mind a nice little caveat in the SBIR mechanism: You do not need to be in business to apply. Though SBIR grants require you to be employed by a small business at the time the award is made, with STTR grants you can keep your day job, as long as you are collaborating with a small business. STTR rules require that 40% of the research work has to be done by the business. If you have an idea with true potential, finding a young technology company that's willing to take some government money shouldn't be that hard.
Here's how it works. A participating agency with a specific need issues an SBIR or STTR solicitation describing it. If you find something you think you can develop, you apply.
Phase I typically nets you fewer than $100,000 for a short-term proof-of-concept study. If you get invited to apply for phase II, you're eligible for $450,000 to $750,000 over a 2-year period, at which point you are expected to develop the technology for commercialization. Phase III "is nirvana," says Morgan Allyn, director of strategic initiatives for Springboard Enterprises in Washington, D.C., which helps women entrepreneurs secure equity financing. That's because the true boon of SBIR is that once you've developed the technology, you are the government's exclusive provider for as long as you remain in control of it. That sensor you develop for the Air Force might just be bought by the other armed forces as well.
Several million- and billion-dollar companies owe their starts to SBIR grants, according to Allyn. "It gave them the edge. It put a stamp of approval that they knew how to do R&D, and you get easier access to other federal contracts. And the piece that trumps it all is, the moment you win a phase I SBIR contract you are immediately eligible to be the sole source provider."
The first step Allyn recommends is heading to SBIR World, which provides a searchable database of SBIR announcements both past and present. Plugging in a variety of keywords related to your work may produce some surprises. Even if you have no intention of applying for an SBIR grant, it might be a useful exercise. All of these agencies have external R&D of at least $100 million, so there is money to go after even through more traditional avenues.
So go crazy, there and elsewhere. Surf the NSF Web site, NIH's CRISP database, GrantsNet, the DOE Office of Science, and any other potential sponsors you can think of. Finally, visit Next Wave's extensive list of federal research-funding agencies. Surf using keywords only tangentially related to your own subject, and see what comes up. It may or not yield an unexpected windfall, but such explorations are an interesting exercise. Even better: Reading about other's research can always inspire new ideas for your own.


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Forums > Photography Talk > Buying Photoshop (CS suite) on subscription
I am getting a new computer soon. My current system is over 8 years old and running windows XP. I have CS2.
I heard that you can get the latest version of Photoshop on a subscription basis.....I think it's $20 a month...with a year commitment.
Is this a good way to go.......or should I just buy it outright?
Looking forward to your feedback.
Dec 09 12 02:59 pm Link
Posts: 2518
Brooklyn, New York, US
You system may not be able to run current version of PS
Min Sys requirments here
I know Adobe is ending support of XP after CS6 you will be S#$t out of luck then
My advice buy the DVD version
if you keep an eye out for sales quite often its sold for %50 off reg price
Another tip download the free PS demo
Run it on your system for a few weeks before committing to a contract
Dec 09 12 03:13 pm Link
not a good deal if you already have a previous version of Ps because in about 8 months of monthly payments you could "own" the full version update equivalent.
Now if you are starting from scratch, well That's a different story.
Dec 09 12 04:33 pm Link
Posts: 357
Richmond, Virginia, US
The OP says he's getting a new system, so XP support won't be an issue for him.
I use the subscription service and love it. It is the full product without the cost up front. You know they're making money no matter which option you choose.
Go for it.
Dec 09 12 04:35 pm Link
Posts: 276
Los Angeles, California, US
If all you're using is Photoshop I'm not sure if that's worth it? For people that use more applications from the suite it seems like a good deal though.
Dec 09 12 04:38 pm Link
Posts: 259
Frederick, Maryland, US
Subscriptions rarely benefit the consumer. I get CS for free...but will need to buy a new version shortly. I will be buying CS6 outright. It makes more sense.
Dec 09 12 04:49 pm Link
Posts: 2229
Glen Ellyn, Illinois, US
It doesn't make sense for a single app. If however, you will use other apps in the service (Premiere, Acrobat, Dreamweaver, Lightroom, etc.) ... well, the subscription may make sense.
In any event, you should know that the price of $20 is promotional ...
Dec 09 12 04:55 pm Link
Posts: 11294
Las Vegas, Nevada, US
1 other consideration: boxed or download (purchase) versions of CS allow use on 2 computers. They must be the same OS but you can use the software simultaneously on both computers.
The cloud version, you can install the software on 2 computers regardless of OS. You can not run the software on both simultaneously (according to the Adobe site).
Something I would consider if you use more than 1 machine for your work.
*from the FAQ: "Access to both the Mac OS and Windows® versions of the desktop applications and the ability to install them on your primary computer and one backup computer. So, if you have a Mac at home and a PC at work, you can install your applications on both as long as they are not running at the same time."
Dec 09 12 05:02 pm Link
Posts: 357
Richmond, Virginia, US
SYCF wrote:
This is true...I use most of the suite for multiple jobs.
Dec 09 12 05:33 pm Link
Hey.......thanx for all the advice............I will shop around.
Dec 09 12 05:46 pm Link
one thing to consider is all the deals you miss by locking in to a monthly price. and with Adobe there are always deals and upgrades and stuff like that. for Black Friday they had Elements 11 (or 38) on sale for 59$. whats the upgrade from Elements to CS6?
what's the upgrade on sale during boxing week? oh..ya...boxing week. there will be a sale.
Dec 09 12 05:52 pm Link
PhotosbyChuck wrote:
current price is 49$/month. I just checked.
Dec 09 12 05:56 pm Link
Posts: 1862
Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
PhotosbyChuck wrote:
AVD AlphaDuctions wrote:
That's for the entire CS6 suite. A client is building a new edit box (happy dance!) and installing CS6 PPro, Photoshop, After Effects, and several things I'll likely never use.
Dec 09 12 06:01 pm Link
Posts: 596
Westwood, California, US
If you get the CS6 subscription, i'd say its worth it! After a few years you pay the same amount anyway, but the upside is you get free upgrades, so you won't have to pay for CS7 when it comes out
Dec 09 12 06:13 pm Link
... it comes down to how much you will use the Suite and if it'll be cost effective for YOU.
$49 p/month is not worth it for just using Ps on a few photoshoots.
Dec 09 12 06:17 pm Link
Art Silva Photography wrote:
I think $49 a month is if you go month to month.......but if you commit to a year at a time it's $20
Dec 09 12 06:21 pm Link
BODYSHOP FEETURES wrote:
check for yourself. Go on Adobe's site and see. I don't know your exact situation so I cant be sure you don't qualify for some special deals but 49 is what I got.
Dec 09 12 06:24 pm Link
Posts: 11294
Las Vegas, Nevada, US
Art Silva Photography wrote:
BODYSHOP FEETURES wrote:
The $20 is just for Photoshop. The 49 price is for the entire CS *suite* and the cloud. Both are promotional prices for a 1 year agreement.
Posts: 2687
Apache Junction, Arizona, US
I went with the subscription and love it. Updates the day there out, help when you need it. I find it a great value for 50.00 a month.
I use ps6 (7 as soon as its out), dreamweaver, fireworks, lightroom, muse, creative cloud, illustrator, indesign, and flash pro. plus I use acrobat 11 pro. So it really is a great value for all those included.
My big thing is when something new upgrades I get it no extra cost. And quick service.
UltimateAppeal wrote:
Art Silva Photography wrote:
The $20 is just for Photoshop. The 49 price is for the entire CS *suite* and the cloud. Both are promotional prices for a 1 year agreement.
What is it AFTER the first year agreement?
Dec 09 12 06:35 pm Link
Posts: 2518
Brooklyn, New York, US
I saw $300 deals last year several times
$25 a month
If I run that for 2 few years Its cheaper than the subscription
If I have a program running fine I have no need to do every update
Support updates are free anyway to the person who thought she was getting some special with her subscription
F#$! the Cloud
Dec 09 12 07:21 pm Link