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MINNEAPOLIS—CSM Corporation has announced the promotion of Steve Schlundt to chief operating officer of its lodging and residential divisions. "Steve has long been a key player on our management team," said Bob Micklash, president of CSM's lodging and residential divisions. ...Read More »
Category Archives: Comings & GoingsFeed Subscription
L.E. Hotels Names Melissa Brown Director of Sales
NEW YORK—Melissa Brown has joined international hotel representation company, L.E. Hotels, as the new director of sales for North America. Brown brings with her over two decades of experience in the luxury hotel and lifestyle industries. Brown has senior leadership ...Read More »
SIXTY Hotels Appoints Jim Biggar President
NEW YORK—SIXTY Collective, the company formed in 2013 by brothers Jason Pomeranc, Michael Pomeranc, Lawrence Pomeranc, and long-time collaborator Stephen Brandman, has announced the appointment of Jim Biggar as president of their SIXTY Hotels brand of properties currently in New ...Read More »
Morgans Hotel Group Adds New Members to Board of Directors
NEW YORK—Morgans Hotel Group Co. has announced that it has appointed veteran real estate investor Howard M. Lorber and hotel industry executive Kenneth E. Cruse to the company's Board of Directors, effective immediately, to fill the two vacancies. With the ...Read More »
Luxe Rodeo Drive Hotel Names New GM
BEVERLY HILLS—Adam Sydenham joins Luxe Hotels as the new general manager of the Luxe Rodeo Drive Hotel property. Sydenham brings with him over a decade of hospitality industry experience. Prior to joining Luxe Rodeo Drive Hotel, Sydenham worked abroad at ...Read More »
Brown Nester Hospitality Services Appoints VP, Sales
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.—Brown Nester Hospitality Services has appointed Carl McGroggan as vice president of sales for the company's California office. McGroggan joins Brown Nester with over 15 years of real estate and brokerage experience. From independent boutiques to full-service resorts, ...Read More »


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My Nonprofit Reviews
131 profile views
1 reviews
Review for YWCA Greater Austin, Austin, TX, USA
The YWCA Greater Austin is an outstanding organization because its staff and volunteers are dedicated to making a profound impact in the lives of Austin women. The YWCA offers great counseling services at very affordable prices.
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Would you volunteer for this group again?
For the time you spent, how much of an impact did you feel your work or activity had?
Did the organization use your time wisely?
Very Well
Would you recommend this group to a friend?
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
Role: Volunteer

subset: commoncrawl


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Archive for Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Trash surcharge won't apply for monthly billing
November 25, 2008
The fuel surcharge on De Soto resident's refuse bills the city council approved in September will not be added on November billing because the cost of fuel did not exceed the $3.63 minimum for the surcharge.
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CafeMom Veteran
Happy birthday from the girls in Baby's Firsts!
Thanks for joining us in Moms Of Strong-willed Toddlers, we're happy to have you. Feel free to jump right in and post or comment. We'd love to hear from you!
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Join Us At Mental Illness Support & Awareness
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I would like to invite you to a wonderful group here at Cafemom
The Psychic Realm
We offer free readings in all areas...guidance...advice...support...friendship and so much more
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Visvim released its Fluxus Denim Damaged 2. The denim is treated is way, so that it ages in a natural way. The denim features some nice damage details, the python patch on the back, and other nice details on the rivest and stitching, just as expected by Visvim. They are now available at Figure.
Visvim Fluxus Denim Damaged-2
Highsnobiety Style


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Rufus Wainwright at DePauw February 24th
January 15, 2002
January 15, 2002, Greencastle, Ind. - Critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright, Rolling Stone magazine's best new artist for 1998, will bring his North American concert tour to DePauw University, Sunday, February 24, for an 8 p.m. performance in Kresge Auditorium. Opening the show will be Teddy Thompson. Tickets, which are $5 for students, faculty and staff with a valid DePauw ID, and $10 for all others, will go on sale to campus buyers January 28 and to the general public through Ticketmaster February 1.
The child of folk music pioneers Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle, Rufus Wainwright was raised in Canada and began playing piano at age six. By 13 he was touring the United States with his sister, mother and aunt. A year later, his song "I'm A-Runnin'" was nominated for a Genie (the Canadian equivalent of an Oscar) for Best Song in a Film. Also that year, Wainwright was nominated for a Juno (the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy) for Most Promising Young Artist. In 1998, he released his self-titled debut album on DreamWorks Records. His second recoding, Poses, arrived in stores last year. He's also contributed songs to several movies, including Shrek and Moulin Rouge (he's seen at right performing The Beatles' "Across The Universe" on NBC's Tonight Show; the song is included on the I Am Sam motion picture soundtrack).
The New York Times called Wainwright, "One of the most whimsical and original young singer songwriters to come around in years." The Denver Post wrote, "The kid marches to a different beat than his parents, tapping into cabaret and Gershwin-tinged romanticism with charming results." Wainwright himself has said of his music, "Someone called it 'modern standards.' Someone else called it 'popera.' I call what I do entertainment. You're there; I'm the show. I'm here to serve you."
Jason Ankeny writes in All Music Guide, "Coming out as a homosexual while still in his teens, Wainwright sought solace in opera throughout his adolescent years, also becoming an enormous fan of performers including Edith Piaf, Al Jolson and Judy Garland. After attending the prestigious Millbrook School in upstate New York, he briefly studied music at Montreal's McGill University, eventually turning away from classical performance towards pop and rock." Ankeny says Wainwright's "lush, theatrical pop harked back to the traditions of Tin Pan Alley, cabaret and even opera."
In a ten point (on a scale of ten) review of "Poses" last June, Entertainment Weekly wrote "with Broadway-worthy new standards, and a strong supporting cast, Wainwright delivers a flawless, flip-flopless performance." Spin Cycle, which gave the new record a 9 out of ten score, offered "Part torch song, part Broadway, part cabaret, Poses is as theatrical as its animated creator is in performance." Wainwright toured with Tori Amos last fall, after embaring on a series of solo dates earlier in the year. He also provided background vocals on Elton John's "American Triangle," a tribute to Matthew Shepard, the gay University of Wyoming student who was brutally murdered in 1998 because of his sexual orientation. The song appears on John's latest album, Songs From the West Coast.
Greg Dillon, director of campus life, says DePauw students have been inquiring about bringing Rufus Wainwright to campus [DOWNLOAD VIDEO: "DILLON-RUFUS" 864KB] "since the spring of 2001. We made some attempts to get him for the fall semester, but his tour schedule didn't work out for us. I'm glad it worked out. This should be a wonderful evening of entertainment."
Like Wainwright, Teddy Thompson comes from rich musical stock. He is the son of Richard and Linda Thompson, British folk-rock legends whose album Turn Out the Lights regularly appears on lists of the best rock records of all time. In the summer of 2000, Teddy Thompson released his self-titled debut album for Virgin Records, on which Rufus Wainwright provided some harmonies.
For information about the February 24 Rufus Wainwright-Teddy Thompson concert at DePauw, call (765) 658-4850.Back


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Your donations keep RPGWatch running!
ES4: Oblivion - vs Limbo of the Lost
by Dhruin, 2008-06-12 00:55:04
This is a different one. GamePlasma has noticed some of the art in a Trisynergy point-and-click adventure called Limbo of the Lost looks
suspiciously identical amazingly similar to Bethsoft's Oblivion. There may well be a valid explanation - but head over and check out the screen comparisons for yourself. You'll recognise the original Oblivion screens from the interface.
Newsbit options: Add / View Comments (25) | Forward this newsbit | Link to this Newsbit
Information aboutES4: Oblivion
SP/MP: Single-player
Setting: Fantasy
Genre: RPG
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Release: Released


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Express. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express.
Chelsea plan summer swoop for Barcelona star
CHELSEA are planning to move for Barcelona ace Sergio Busquets in the summer, according to reports.
Sergio Busquets made his Barcelona debut in 2008
The midfielder has made 365 appearances for the Catalan giants since making his debut in 2008, but the Spanish international has recently been linked with a move to the Premier League.
Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo claim Chelsea are very keen on Busquets and plan to make a move for the 27-year-old at the end of the season.
However, the blues face competition from Manchester City for the midfielder.
Earlier this week Busquets seemingly issued a come-and-get-me-plea to incoming City boss Pep Guardiola by declaring the Spanish boss is somebody he would leave Barcelona for.
"I have always said there are just two persons who could make me change my decision to stay at Barcelona," He told ESPN.
"One of those two persons is my wife. And she is happy here right now, so I don't think there will be any issues on a personal level.
"On a sporting level, that other person is Guardiola. It's clear that I owe Pep a lot and I would be honoured to work with him again."


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This was just what I needed on a personal note this morning. The bright green liquor was a sight for sore, groggy eyes, shocking me out of my stupor. As notes of cooked spinach and bell peppers floated into my nose, I was pleased to find a small hint of lemon. Lifting the cup to my lips, I slurped up some of the tea, aerating it, allowing the angular, assertive flavors of bell peppers and rounded, roasted flavors of toasted walnuts wash over me. Perfection to start my day.
This lively, vegetal, but high-pitched tea is a vivid illustration of a good-quality blended Sencha. Kagoshima is a port city on the southern tip on Japan's Kyushu island, the second largest tea-producing area in Japan after Shizuoka. Kyushu is also the southernmost tea-producing area in Japan. Spring comes earlier here that to the rest of Japan's tea regions, so Kyushu brings Japan its first spring teas.
The island's large, flat plateau allows for Japan's biggest tea farms. The farms are vast and flat enough to accommodate an usual harvesting system: Giant tractors ride up and down the rows, trimming the newest leaves like lawn mowers and blowing cuttings into large bags behind them.
This mechanical harvest allows for such economies of scale that Kagoshima produces the cheapest teas in all of Japan. But the scope of these operations also prevents the gardens from making great, pure Senchas. Instead of nurturing exquisite Senchas from just one field or cultivar, Kagoshima tea makers blend one great Sencha from several varieties of individually inferior plants. One is what's called a "natural Gyokuro" Sencha. Its leaves flourish entirely in the sun but still produce the extra amino acids of a shade-grown tea. The result of this blending is a lemony Sencha with some of the rich, vegetal brothiness of a Gyokuro.


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Lucinda (Cindy) Sue Palmer passed away on July 22 from cancer. She was 62. She was surrounded by family and passed peacefully.
Cindy was born on April 5, 1952 in Huntsville, Ala.
Cindy married the love of her life, Rich, 43 years ago and they had two children, Jenny and Jake.
Rich and Cindy moved to Keizer in 1978 and quickly joined Keizer Clear Lake Methodist Church. Cindy was very active in the church, teaching Sunday School and Vacation Bible School.
Cindy worked for Marion County and Salem-Keizer School District for 25 years. She enjoyed teaching and working with special needs and medically fragile students. She retired in 2013.
In her spare time, Cindy loved to work in her flower garden. She enjoyed time on the Oregon coast looking for lighthouses. Cindy is survived by husband Rich, daughter Jenny (Paul Sawyer), son Jake (Anaiah); three brothers, Eric Noble (Pam), Craig Noble (Ronda), Ron Noble (Malissa), granddaughters Juliette and Scarlett Sawyer and sister-in-law Lynn Palmer.
The service was at Clear Lake Methodist Church on July 28.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Salem Friends of Felines, 980 Commercial Street, Salem, Ore.


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E-beam Is Priority for Next-Gen ICs
Post a comment
One of the most difficult challenges in the semiconductor industry is developing a direct-write electron-beam lithography system that employs multiple columns and multiple beams within each column. William Parker and his colleagues at Ion Diagnostics Inc. (Santa Clara, Calif.) are up to that challenge. And they need all kinds of specialists to do the job, from mechanical engineers to scientists in optics and physics, and of course EEs. Such a team could enable inline e-beam inspection systems for checking 300-mm wafers at a clip of nine wafers per hour.
The potential is enormous: A maskless lithography system for both drawing circuits and inspecting them is the Holy Grail, particularly as the costs to write mask sets escalate to the point where low-volume chips may not be affordable, except in FPGA format.
And direct-write electron beams are capable of sub-100-nanometer resolutions.
|William Parker is developing a multicolumn e-beam system at Ion Diagnostics, for both drawing and inspecting 300-mm wafers at a fast clip.
The stumbling block has been throughput-leading companies to propose multicolumn DWEB systems. As the pixel size decreases with process scaling and as wafer diameters move to 300 mm, throughput becomes an even bigger issue with single-column e-beam systems.
Ion Diagnostics employs cold-cathode arrays, which can be fabricated in parallel using the multibeam, multicolumn (MxM) approach.
The individual columns are spaced on 20 x 20-mm centers. A microfabricated cold field-emission array is used as the electron-beam source within each column. Each array can produce 32 independently controlled beams per column, writing at a high voltage of greater than 50 kilovolts to simplify proximity correction.
The beams would use common deflectors, an objective lens and a back-scattered electron detector for all 32 beams. Each microfabricated array would serve one column, with integrated electron optics to shape, align and blank each beam.
Ion Diagnostics currently proposes a system with 201 columns for 300-mm wafer production and 88 columns for a 200-mm wafer system.
William Parker is the son of a distinguished engineer, Norm Parker, who was a senior technology officer at Motorola Inc. William Parker also worked at Motorola from 1966 to 1972, and has a doctorate in physics from the University of Chicago in particle optics and materials analysis. He built an electron microscope while at Chicago, and then moved to Hughes Aircraft Co., where he headed up a group developing a focused ion-beam microprobe.
Parker said his company is backed by private investors and by Motorola Inc., which has a minority interest in Ion Diagnostics. Joe Nahas, manager of technology planning at Motorola, said Motorola has supported the technology during the incubation phase, with the goal of proving the system's feasibility. The challenge for Ion Diagnostics, Nahas said, is that an MxM system must deal with an extremely complex set of data, on the order of 10 to the 15th power number of bits. "The complexity of the data set is roughly equivalent to the mask data, which is presented to the tool, piped in as parallel data streams." Over the long range, such complex data-handling tasks-controlling some 6,000 sources in parallel-will be handled relatively easily by more powerful microprocessors, Parker said. His small staff of about 20 has a mix of skills in the electron-beam, optics, stage-positioning, system design and control subsystems fields.
In other ways, an MxM system is simpler than a single-column system. In a multicolumn system, the wafer stage travels the distance of the wafer, but in a multicolumn system the stage movement is minimal. And because the writing current is divided among many, there are no space-charge problems, he said. An MxM system can operate at high voltages, which improves the proximity correction as the fields are stitched together to make ICs.
Thus far, the group has created a prototype system with an electron-beam column capable of producing 32 individual electron beams. The group has developed source-conditioning technology that reduced the electron beam's temporal instability-that is, current fluctuations-which over time reduce the process latitude of the system.
Gerhard Gross, director of lithography at International Sematech, said he believes DWEB lithography has a future, particularly as mask costs continue to remain high. Semiconductor companies may be reluctant to bet on MxM systems early on, but they may be led to the concept as larger companies promote more conservative implementations of multicolumn DWEB systems.
Will Ion Diagnostics be able to create a prototype system that attracts support from other large commercial IC manufacturers besides Motorola? Will it gain enough funding, in a venture-capital environment that tends to shy away from IC equipment vendors? Those questions remain to be answered, but one thing is sure. Bill Parker and his team of scientists have put their energies and knowledge toward answering a complex set of challenges which, if solved, will change the course of the semiconductor industry.


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Harpenden is mainly a residential town on the borders between Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, it is situated between St Albans and Luton, and is considered to be within the London commuter belt. There is some local employment in the town but the workforce mainly commutes to London, Luton, St Albans and Hatfield.
Transport links are good with easy access to the M1 and M25 and a train service within the town to London/ Bedford.
Harpenden has a vibrant high street with both independent and national retailers represented. There is a sports centre, two tennis clubs, four golf courses, indoor swimming pool and many parks and open spaces to enjoy.
Accommodation can be expensive in the town but the nearby towns of Luton, Dunstable and Flitwick offer a wider choice of housing at a wider choice of cost. An accommodation list showing local estate agent and letting agent details is available on request.


text:
Luke Webb and Ryan Gilmour are back in the Bashley (Rydal) side for the visit of bottom-of-the-table Burridge to the BCG.
Webb has been playing for the Academy recently but his return will boost an often fragile Bashley middle-order.
Kevin Nash drops out, but Zimbabwean left-hand all-rounder Ryan Gilmour returns to the Bash line-up.
Bashley ended a winless seven-match run at Totton & Eling last weekend, while Burridge slumped to the bottom when Alton beat them by seven wickets.
Bashley (Rydal): Michael Porter, Nick Baker, James Morris, Richard Morris, Luke Webb, Jaron Morgan, Sam Thomson, Andy Neal, Ryan Gilmour, Dan Friedman, Ross Grierson.


text:
|Numéro de publication
|Type de publication
|Numéro de demande
|Date de publication
|4 juin 1996
|Date de dépôt
|16 févr. 1995
|Date de priorité
|31 mars 1994
|État de paiement des frais
|Autre référence de publication
|Numéro de publication
|Richard A. Gilmour, Thomas J. Hartswick, David C. Thomas, Ronald R. Uttecht, Erick G. Walton
|Cessionnaire d'origine
|International Business Machines Corp.
|Exporter la citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Citations de brevets (5), Référencé par (28), Classifications (5), Événements juridiques (3)
|Liens externes: USPTO, Cession USPTO, Espacenet
This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 08/221,715 filed on Mar. 31, 1994 now U.S. Pat. No. 5,420,455.
This invention relates to semiconductor integrated circuits which can be tailored by cutting lines in the circuit and, more particularly, to such circuits which have built therein barriers devices adjacent each line to be cut. These barriers prevent accidental injury to nearby circuit elements when the circuit is tailored. The invention further relates to the method of making the improved circuit.
Semiconductor integrated circuits are formed in a body of semiconductor material having active regions therein which are joined in a desired circuit configuration by a plurality of wiring layers laid down on the surface of the body.
Many semiconductor integrated circuits, such as logic circuits, are designed to be tailored, after manufacture, to provide certain logical combinations or meet other selected criteria. To permit such tailoring such circuits are designed with circuit alteration devices, typically and hereinafter referred to as fuses, which are usually in the form of lines that can be physically broken or cut to thereby alter the circuit from its original configuration. This tailoring ability is provided in such circuits, during the circuit design and is included as part of the wiring layers of the circuit.
In the manufacture of the circuit, these wiring layers are deposited and defined and interconnected with conductive vias through a series of well known photolithography and metal etching steps. Each such wiring level is coated with a layer of a glassy protective material, known as a passivation layer, which protects and insulates the wiring of each layer. The creation of integrated circuits with such multiple wiring layers is well known to the semiconductor art.
In such circuits it has been found that if the lines or fuses are formed with positive side slopes, they offer distinct advantages over line with negatively sloped side wall. The advantages are especially realized during the fabrication of the wiring levels, the subsequent deposition of the passivation layer, and the formation of the interconnection vias.
In some circuits, such as CMOS logic circuits, the fuses, designed in the circuit are usually formed in regular arrays in the upper most layers of wiring and in a position such that other wiring is not placed immediately thereover. In such arrays the fuses are often aligned in parallel rows and placed as closely together as is possible. By opening selected ones of these fuses the logic elements of the circuits can be arranged in different combinations to perform different logic functions.
These fuses are typically opened by applying a laser pulse of sufficient size, duration and power as to superheat and vaporize the metal forming the fuse. This superheating of the fuse and its vaporization fractures and blows away a portion of the overlying glassy protective layer creating a saucer shaped crater in the protective layer. When the protective layer ruptures, cracks can radiate outwardly causing additional damage such as breakage of or the uncovering of adjacent elements. Such uncovering of the adjacent elements can cause subsequent corrosion and premature failure of the circuit. Furthermore, there is no known means of repairing any of the adjacent circuit elements accidentally altered by the blowing of an adjacent fuse.
It has been found that when the fuse, being blown, has sides with a positive slope these effects are worsened because the beam, used to vaporize the fuse, is reflected therefrom and can cause partial melting and reflowing of adjacent circuit elements altering their resistive and capacitive characteristics and hence the circuit to which they are connected.
To prevent such damage to the adjacent elements, the prior art could provide no solution except that of increasing the inter-element distance between the fuse, and the adjacent elements. This solution is undesirable. The entire direction in the integrated circuit art has been directed towards reducing the size of the circuit and hence reducing inter-element dimensions to the smallest level possible. Thus, the only available solution was unacceptable but, until the present invention, there has been no other.
Accordingly, there now exists a need for an improved circuit arrangement which avoids all the above described problems associated with the blowing of such fuses as found in the prior art. The present invention, achieves these desirable results, by preventing both the beam energy and the effects of the fuse blowing to reach or affect any adjacent element in the circuit while maintaining the presently achievable, minimum, inter-element dimensions and all the other known advantages of such fuse arrays.
An object of the present invention is to provide an improved integrated circuit in which circuit elements adjacent to the fuse are unaffected when the fuse blows open.
It is another object of the present invention to prevent either the energy, of the fuse blowing operation, or the effects of the fuse blowing to reach or affect any adjacent element in the circuit while still providing minimum inter-element dimensions and all the other known advantages of such fused circuits.
It is another object of the invention to provide all the above and other objects and advantages, of the present invention, in an integrated circuit while using conventional integrated circuit materials and techniques.
These desirable results and other objects and advantages, of the present invention, are realized and provided by, depositing between each circuit element to be protected and the fuse being blown a body formed of a high melting point, non-frangible material. In the present invention, there is thus provided a semiconductor integrated circuit, having a plurality of metallic structures on a surface thereof with one of the structures being a fuse and a body of non-frangible, high melting point material positioned between the fuse and adjacent circuit elements.
These and other features are provided by the present invention which relates to a method of protecting adjacent circuit elements comprising the steps of depositing an insulating layer on the surface of a semiconductor device having active regions therein, forming a plurality of fuses and conductors on said layer, coating said fuses and conductors with a second insulating layer, patterning said layer with grooves between said fuses and any adjacent fuse or conductor and depositing a high melting point and non-frangible material in said grooves.
These and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of the preferred embodiment of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a top view of a typical fuse array as used in an integrated logic circuit.
FIG. 2 shows a section of the array of FIG. 1 taken along the lines 2--2.
FIG. 3 shows the array of FIG. 1 after one of the fuses therein has been blown by application of a laser beam.
FIG. 4 shows a section of the array of FIG. 3 taken along the lines 4--4.
FIG. 5 shows a top view of a fuse array similar to that of FIG. 1 with the present invention included therein.
FIG. 6 shows a section of the array of FIG. 5 taken along the lines 6--6.
FIG. 7 shows the array of FIG. 5 after one of the fuses therein has been blown by application of a laser beam.
FIG. 8 shows a section of the array of FIG. 7 taken along the lines 8--8.
FIG. 9 shows a cross section of an integrated circuit having a fuse array and additional wiring levels.
FIG. 10 shows a cross section of a variation of the integrated circuit of FIG. 9.
Basically, the present invention, as will be more fully set forth below, describes an integrated circuit having a multiplicity of fuses and conductive lines on its surface.
Referring now to the drawings and especially FIGS. 1 to 4 there will be generally described a method of producing an integrated circuit with a fuse array therein. In these FIGS. 1-4 a semiconductor substrate 10 has created therein a plurality of active device regions (not shown) therein. The substrate 10 typically is formed of silicon but may be any suitable semiconductor material. The active device regions are formed by processes well known to the semiconductor art.
Once all the active regions are formed in the substrate an insulating layer 12, about 10,000 Å in thickness, is formed over the surface 14 of the substrate 10. This layer 12 is typically formed by a chemical vapor deposit (CVD) of silicon oxide (SiO2). A photoresist (not shown) is laid down on top of the layer 12 and patterned to etch, by reactive ion etching, a plurality of via holes (not shown) in layer 12 to expose selected portions of the active regions. The photoresist is then removed and metal via connectors (not shown) are deposited therein to provide connectors from the active regions to the surface of layer 12. Once these connectors are formed a tri-level metal layer, typically about 10,000 Å in thickness, is deposited over the layer 12 and defined into a predetermined metallization or wiring pattern illustrated by metal lines 16, 18, and 20 by a suitable plasma etching process. Desirably, these lines are approximately 1.4 microns in width, at their widest point and are positioned 7.2 microns on center. Preferably this tri-level metal layer consists of outer layers 24 and 26 of titanium and a copper-aluminum core 28.
These lines can, in actuality, be fuses, resistors, capacitor plates, or merely conductive lines interconnecting various portions of the integrated circuit being built. In the present embodiment it will be assumed that these lines 16, 18, and 20 are designed as fuses in a logic array. The fuses 16, 18, and 20 are usually created by coating the deposited metal with a new photoresist layer, patterning the layer and then exposing the metal layer to a suitable reactive ion etch. As shown in FIG. 2 this reactive ion etch causes the fuses 16, 18, and 20 to have positive side slopes 16a, 18a, and 20a.
Once the lines 16, 18, and 20 are defined, the photoresist is removed and the entire substrate is coated with a passivation layer 22, typically formed of SiO2, and ranging in thickness between 7500 Å and 20,000 Å. The surface of this layer 22 is now planarized by known techniques. This layer 22 encloses and protects the defined wiring pattern. If additional levels of wiring are required the above described processes can be followed to define the additional wiring levels as will be later described in conjunction with FIGS. 9 and 10. All of the above described techniques are widely known and used in the semiconductor art and further description is not believed necessary.
Logic arrays are typically fabricated in a universal logic circuit and then altered by selective cutting of lines, i.e., blowing the fuses, therein to form the final desired logic. Presently such selective cutting of the lines is by a laser beam.
In the present example it will be assumed that to achieve the desired configuration it is necessary that the central line 18 or fuse is to cut. The process employed directs a laser beam, of sufficient energy and duration, against the line 18. For the above described lines, a laser, such as is sold by the ESI company having a beam energy of 2 microjoules, a diameter of between 6 and 7 microns and a pulse width of about 9 nanoseconds is directed against the line for about 9 nanoseconds.
In FIG. 3, the beam, being applied, is indicated by the dotted circle 30. The beam energy is absorbed by the line 18 causing the area of the line under the beam to be super heated and vaporized. When the area under beam vaporizes, the line is severed i.e., the fuse is blown. Because of the rapidity of the vaporization of the line 18 under the beam a large section of the overlying passivation layer 22 is blown away leaving a large, substantially circular crater 32 centered around the position where the beam impinged on the line 18. It should be noted that the crater created by the removal of the overlying passivation layer extends over the adjacent lines 16 and 20 exposes them. When these lines are so exposed they become subject to corrosion which can result in subsequent failure of these lines and premature failure of the circuit. It has further been found that some of the beam energy is reflected of the positive sloped sides of the line 18 and this energy is directed towards the adjacent lines 16 and 20 and causes melting or erosion of a portion of these lines 16 and 20 exerting additional pressure and stress on the adjacent lines 16 and 20. If the lines are sufficiently close, the amount of melting can be sufficient to cut through the lines. Even if the melting of the lines is insufficient to sever the lines 16 and 20 it can still be severe enough to cause a change in the resistivity of the line thus creating undesirable circuit changes. Finally, in some cases, extensive cracks have been found to radiate, through the passivation layer, out from the crater causing one or more of the adjacent lines to be broken. This inadvertent breaking of a line, that was not selected to be broken, leads to significant production losses.
To avoid these problems the prior art could only increase the center to center spacing of the lines to an extent that such effect did not occur. This prior art solution does not permit optimum circuit layout.
The present invention as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8 avoids all the problems encountered in the prior art while maintaining the smallest presently achievable, center to center, inter-line spacing.
FIG. 5 is created using the steps described above to create the device shown in FIG. 1 and like numerals refer to like features. However, the device shown in FIG. 5 is further treated following the planarization of the passivating layer 22 by again masking the surface of layer 22 with photoresist, and patterning it so the layer 22 can be provided with a plurality of grooves 40 approximately 0.9 microns in width and of sufficient depth to extend at least halfway down the thickness of the metal lines 16, 18, and 20. Reactants such as a halogen or halogen based compounds may be used, with materials such as Fluorine, or Carbon Tetrafluoride (CF4) or Carbon Trifluoride (CHF3) being especially preferred for etching SiO2. Photoresist is unaffected by these RIE etchants thus it not only protects the underlying passivation layer 22, except where the layer is exposed by patterning of the photoresist, but also defines the width of the grooves 40. As a result of the anisotropic nature of this RIE process, the sidewalls of the grooves 40 are sharply defined and are substantially perpendicular to the surface of the oxide passivating layer 22.
The separation of the grooves 40 must be greater than the diameter of the laser beam. In the present example, the lines 16, 18, and 20 are positioned 7.2 microns center to center. This means that, with a 6-7 micron wide laser beam the grooves 40 can be placed midway between the line 18 and the surrounding lines 16 and 20. Once the grooves 40 are defined they are filled with a non-frangible, high melting point material 41. In the present invention the material selected was tungsten. But other suitable materials which are not easily broken and which have melting points greater than the melting points of the fuse being blown such as molybdenum can be used.
Tungsten was selected, in the present example, because tungsten is widely used for filling the via holes and is used as the interconnecting material between wiring layers in integrated circuits. Although in the present invention no additional layer is shown over the passivation layer 22, additional metallization layers, as will be described in conjunction with FIGS. 9 and 10, could be so provided and the grooves could be made and back filled during the via hole opening and filling steps needed to create the interconnections between levels.
Again it will be assumed that to achieve the desired configuration it is necessary that the central line 18 is to cut. Again a laser beam, indicated in FIG. 7 by circle 50, that is identical, in all respects, to the one described above is directed against the line 18 such that the beam energy is absorbed by the line 18 to vaporize the portion of line 18 where the beam impinges as above described. Again because of the rapidity of the vaporization of that portion of line 18 under the beam a large section of the overlying passivation layer 22 is blown away.
Now however, the barriers 41 disposed in the grooves 40 confine the forces engendered by the line vaporization and prevents the formed crater 34 from expanding sufficiently to reach the adjacent lines 16 and 20. Thus, instead of leaving in the overlying passivation layer a large, substantially circular crater centered abound the point of impact of the beam 30 a more rectangular crater, whose sides are defined by the barriers 41, is created.
It should be noted, the barriers 41 extend at least half way down the thickness of the metal lines 16, 18, and 20. That is, the barriers must extend at least to the midpoint of the thickness of the fuse. By so positioning the barriers 41, not only is the cratering effect contained but substantially all of the beam energy reflected from the positively sloped sides of the line 18 is prevented from reaching the adjacent lines 16 and 20. Any energy that does reach the adjacent lines is insufficient to melt or otherwise physically alter the adjacent lines. Also it should be noted that the barriers are formed of a material that has a melting point substantially higher than the melting point of the lines 16, 18, and 20 thus any reflected energy is insufficient to melt these barriers. Preferably the melting point of the barrier material should be at least 50% higher than the melting point of the fuses. The barriers 41 should also be resistant to cracking in order to prevent any cracks propagated in the passivation layer from reaching the adjacent lines 16 and 20.
Because the cratering of the overlying passivation layer is prevented from extending over the adjacent lines 16 and 20 they do not become exposed and are not subject to corrosion. By preventing the possibility of such corrosion the quality and expected life of the product is enhanced. These barriers also prevent any cracks from extending over to one or more the adjacent lines further enhancing the quality of the product and cutting production losses.
By avoiding these problems encountered by the prior art, optimum circuit layout, denied to the prior art, can be achieved.
The present invention as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8 thus avoids all the problems encountered in the prior art while maintaining the smallest presently achievable inter-line spacing.
FIGS. 9 and 10 show a semiconductor substrate provided with a stack of wiring layers. Starting as before with a substrate 50 having active regions (not shown) therein and a dielectric layer 52 disposed on its top surface 51, a first passivated wiring level 53 is provided over the dielectric layer 52. Once this first wiring layer 53 is created, via connections are provided to it and an additional passivated wiring level 54 having a fuse array is similarly created thereon. For clarity of illustration, and because such multilayered wiring is well known to the prior art, only the fuse array formed of lines 56, 57, and 58 and the associated barriers 59, are shown in these FIGS. 9 and 10. The other wiring in each level and the interconnections therebetween are not shown in these FIGS. 9 and 10. Following the formation of the fuse containing wiring level 54 a capping passivated wiring level 55 is deposed thereon.
It should be noted that the barriers must be in the uppermost layer as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8 or extend to the surface of the capping layer 55, as shown in FIG. 9 or else the capping layer 55 should be removed down to the top of the barriers 59 as shown in FIG. 10.
This completes the description of the preferred embodiment of the invention. Since changes may be made in the above process without departing from the scope of the invention described herein, it is intended that all the matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted in an illustrative and not in a limiting sense. Thus other alternatives and modifications will now become apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.
|Brevet cité
|Date de dépôt
|Date de publication
|11 mai 1984
|27 aoűt 1985
|Fujitsu Limited
|Method for fabricating an integrated circuit with multi-layer wiring having opening for fuse
|13 déc. 1984
|29 juil. 1986
|Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
|Method of manufacturing a semiconductor device
|12 aoűt 1987
|1 aoűt 1989
|American Telephone And Telegraph Company, At&T Bell Laboratories
|Laser-blown links
|15 déc. 1992
|8 févr. 1994
|International Business Machines Corporation
|SiCr microfuses
|Titre non disponible
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|Date de dépôt
|Date de publication
|30 juin 1998
|7 sept. 1999
|Clear Logic, Inc.
|Non-uniform width configurable fuse structure
|3 févr. 1998
|16 mai 2000
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Method for activating fusible links on a circuit substrate
|7 avr. 1999
|26 sept. 2000
|Micron Technology, Inc.
|Utilization of die repattern layers for die internal connections
|9 sept. 1998
|21 nov. 2000
|United Microelectronics Corp.
|Architecture of poly fuses
|23 avr. 1999
|10 juil. 2001
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Metal-insulator-metal capacitor for copper damascene process and method of forming the same
|29 avr. 1999
|17 juil. 2001
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Pedestal fuse
|2 févr. 2000
|16 oct. 2001
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Apparatus for activating fusible links on a circuit substrate
|22 juin 2000
|18 déc. 2001
|Micron Technology, Inc.
|Utilization of die repattern layers for die internal connections
|30 avr. 1999
|23 avr. 2002
|International Business Machines Corporation
|High laser absorption copper fuse and method for making the same
|7 juin 2000
|30 avr. 2002
|Nec Corporation
|Semiconductor device with repair fuses and laser trimming method used therefor
|26 avr. 2001
|24 sept. 2002
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Pedestal fuse
|14 oct. 1999
|1 oct. 2002
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Antifuse for use with low k dielectric foam insulators
|4 janv. 1999
|26 nov. 2002
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Crack stop between neighboring fuses for protection from fuse blow damage
|23 mars 2001
|11 févr. 2003
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Tri-layer dielectric fuse cap for laser deletion
|27 juil. 2001
|1 avr. 2003
|Micron Technology, Inc.
|Utilization of die active surfaces for laterally extending die internal and external connections
|15 janv. 2003
|16 déc. 2003
|Micron Technologies, Inc.
|Utilization of die active surfaces for laterally extending die internal and external connections
|17 juin 2002
|6 janv. 2004
|Micron Technology, Inc.
|Method of forming semiconductor device utilizing die active surfaces for laterally extending die internal and external connections
|31 mai 2002
|28 déc. 2004
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Antifuse for use with low κ dielectric foam insulators
|7 oct. 2003
|2 aoűt 2005
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Fuse structure and method to form the same
|14 nov. 2001
|9 aoűt 2005
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Fuse structure and method to form the same
|26 oct. 2006
|22 mars 2011
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Damage propagation barrier and method of forming
|16 févr. 2011
|30 oct. 2012
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Damage propagation barrier
|31 mai 2002
|5 déc. 2002
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Antifuse for use with low kappa dielectric foam insulators
|7 oct. 2003
|15 avr. 2004
|Anderson David K.
|Fuse structure and method to form the same
|16 févr. 2011
|9 juin 2011
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Damage propagation barrier
|26 nov. 2003
|21 mars 2007
|Fuse structure forming method
|31 déc. 1999
|12 juil. 2000
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Crack stop between neighbouring fuses for protection from fuse blow damage
|31 déc. 1999
|27 aoűt 2003
|Infineon Technologies AG
|Crack stop between neighbouring fuses for protection from fuse blow damage
|Classification aux États-Unis
|Classification internationale
|Classification coopérative
|Classification européenne
|8 sept. 1999
|Fee payment
Year of fee payment: 4
|4 juin 2004
|Lapse for failure to pay maintenance fees
|3 aoűt 2004
|Expired due to failure to pay maintenance fee
Effective date: 20040604


text:
A delicious Body from Anais made of white see-thru and floral pattern material.
For a perfect fit, the Viva body ties in the back and the shoulder straps are adjustable.
Material: 80% polyamide, 20% spandex
Size: S (36)
No return and no cancellation permitted on this product!
There is no review in English yet.


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News About Weekend Shadow
Weekend Shadow Set To Strike in 2013 WA Guineas
22 November 2013
They may be one of the roughie tips in the WA Guineas 2013 this weekend, but Weekend Shadow has what it takes to surprise their rivals according to trainer Neville Parnham. One of the major races on a bumper Railway Stakes Day program at Ascot Racecourse on Saturday, this year's $400,000 Group 2 W.A. Guineas…


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Understanding the not-so-subtle signs your partner wants to have sex tonight.
As social creatures who have yet to develop the ability to read minds, it is vitally important we know how to decode even the clumsiest signals of interest from others. This is especially in the corner of communication that concerns love and sex.
But how, I hear you ask - other people are so peculiar!
The best place to begin is with your eyeballs. Look and you shall generally find something of interest. For better or worse, many of the physical indicators members of our species are aroused are masked by clothing, leaving us to observe bodily behaviour instead of function.
We must look for something that is a little out of the ordinary in their carriage or communications, something that speaks to motivations of an amorous inclination. Does that attractive stranger behave differently around you? They may be interested! Balls up and ask them for a coffee, at least.
Yet when you've moved past the getting-to-know-you phase and into couple territory, deciphering your lover's love signals becomes a slightly trickier matter. Tricky, and ever-more important due to the common assumption our lovers know everything about us, even if we have never actually told them what we want.
At this point, code-reading requires less compare/contrast and more tune-in/take-note– what is your partner doing differently in their day-to-day behaviour that indicates something is on their mind?
For example, let's consider the morning of the day before the night your partner is looking to get lucky. Say you live together and share a bathroom. Are there any clues to their carnal desire lying around the shower? A 'special' razor and cream is the red flag raised in my good friend's house to indicate his girlfriend has been busily, uh, preparing.
Another male-pal knows something is up when the good knickers disappear from the lingerie drawer. He tells me it's hard to concentrate at work all day ...
Meanwhile my girlfriend, whose husband happily does not conform to the stereotype of perpetual manly-randyness, knows dessert is on the menu when she spies fancy dinner ingredients in the fridge. A devoted epicurean, she knows he knows the way to her heart is through her stomach, and so looks forward to coming home and indulging in some serious appetite satisfaction.
In fact, their delicious dance of arousing allusion serves to highlight a noteworthy perk that comes with successful love-sign observation. Simply, it makes sex better. Like foreplay without the fondling. For this reason I encourage everyone to develop a few not-so-subtle shag-posts of their own.
By the same token, however, I advise not to rely on cues and clues alone. One of the most common themes in emails from readers concerning thwarted love lives concerns communication frustration: 'She/he never told me what she wanted, but got upset when she/he didn't get it', or 'I dropped every hint in the book and all I got was this lousy t-shirt...'
Like everything, it comes down to balance. You want to make sure you articulate what you want in order to get it, but you don't need to bludgeon anyone over the head either. Developing some readiness rituals as part of your love-making activity is a great way to set the scene and turn on your partner (and yourself). Relying too heavily on masked codes or complicated come-hither patterns are a fast-track to sexual frustration.
Don't you agree?
Have you been frustrated by ambiguous sex signals before? Do you struggle to express what you want with words? And what are your not-so-subtle signs you or your partner wants to have sex tonight?


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By Max Harrold
MONTREAL — Sea ice in the Arctic declined last month to the second-lowest level ever recorded, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration said Tuesday.
Satellite data showed the summertime sea ice coverage in the north narrowly missed the all-time record low, which was attained in 2007, NASA said in a statement.
The Arctic sea ice recedes every summer as the sun's rays reach higher into the northern hemisphere and sea ice reaches its annual minimum each year in September.
Joey Comiso, a scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said the sustained low minimum sea ice levels are part of a large-scale decline over the past three decades.
"The sea ice is not only declining, the pace of the decline is becoming more drastic," Mr. Comiso said. "The older, thicker ice is declining faster than the rest, making for a more vulnerable perennial ice cover."
The spread of Arctic sea ice on Sept. 9, the lowest point this year, was 4.33 million square kilometres, NASA said. Averaged over the month of September, ice extent was 4.61 million square kilometres. This places 2011's Arctic ice area as the second-lowest both for the daily minimum extent and the monthly average. Ice extent was 2.43 million square kilometres below the 1979 to 2000 average.
The sea ice announcement came two days after another announcement, this time about a gaping hole in the ozone layer above the Arctic.
The hole covered two million square kilometres — about twice the size of Ontario — and allowed high levels of harmful ultraviolet radiation to hit large swaths of northern Canada, Europe and Russia this spring, a team of 29 international research scientists said.
The measurements helped confirm that chlorine-based pollutants in the stratosphere, 18 to 20 kilometres above the ground, triggered a process that chewed up molecules in the ozone layer that protect Earth from the sun's intense ultraviolet light.
Montreal Gazette


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Use the tools below to refine your search by only displaying reviews with a certain number of star ratings or to only show reviews from a certain time period. Eg click on '1 star' to just display the reviews we have which received a 1 star rating click or 'Within the last month' to display just reviews posted over the last month.
Written on: 03/01/2013 by billtkl (1 review written)
I went to Hampton Court Ice Rink with the family last year and said I wouldn't do it again. Foolishly I was persuaded to go again this year and it was worse!. The ice rink was several inches deep in water. Nobody warned us. As soon as my son got on the ice he fell over due to the poor quality of the ice (and he is a reasonable skater) and was then covered in water. He had to stop skating immediately. The whole family immediately decided to do the same and I went for a refund. None was offered… Read Full Review
Written on: 15/12/2013
We wish we'd seen this review before booking. It is spot on. There was a huge puddle of water covering most of the rink when we were there on 13/12/13 - we saw loads of people fall over & get absolutely soaked - no where to dry off. The whole set up looked really tacky & the palace was just lit up with coloured flood lights - no twinkly lights. Somerset House is way better as is Tower Hill. AVOID!!! We'd never go back.


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Marc Ribot
Marc Ribot was born in Newark, New Jersey in 1954. As a teen, he played guitar in various garage bands while studying with his mentor, Haitian classical guitarist and composer Frantz Casseus. After moving to New York City in 1978, Ribot was a member of the soul/punk Realtones, and from 1984 - 1989, of John Lurie's Lounge Lizards. Between 1979 and 1985, Ribot also worked as a side musician with Brother Jack McDuff, Wilson Pickett, Carla Thomas, Rufus Thomas, Chuck Berry, and many others.
Rolling Stone points out that Guitarist Marc Ribot helped Tom Waits refine a new, weird Americana on 1985's Rain Dogs, and since then he's become the go-to guitar guy for all kinds of roots-music adventurers: Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, Elvis Costello, John Mellencamp. Additional recording credits include Soloman Burke, Marianne Faithful, Arto Lindsay, Caetano Veloso, Laurie Anderson, Susana Baca, McCoy Tyner, The Jazz Passengers, John Luries The Lounge Lizards, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Cibo Matto, James Carter, Vinicio Capposella (Italy), Auktyon (Russia), Vinicius Cantuaria, Sierra Maestra (Cuba), Alain Bashung (France), Marisa Monte, Allen Ginsburg, Madeleine Peyroux, Sam Phillips, and more recently Joe Henry, Allen Toussaint, Norah Jones, Akiko Yano, The Black Keys, Jeff Bridges, Jolie Holland, Elton John/Leon Russell and many others. Ribot frequently collaborates with producer T Bone Burnett, most notably on Alison Krauss and Robert Plant's Grammy Award winning "Raising Sand" and regularly works with composer John Zorn.
Marc has released 19 albums under his own name over a 30-year career, exploring everything from the pioneering jazz of Albert Ayler with his group Spiritual Unity (Pi Recordings), to the Cuban son of Arsenio Rodríguez with two critically acclaimed releases by the group Marc Ribot Y Los Cubanos Postizos. His avant power trio/post-rock band, Marc Ribots Ceramic Dog (Pi Recordings), continues the lineage of his earlier experimental no- wave/punk/noise groups Rootless Cosmopolitans and Shrek. Marc's latest solo recording Silent Movies released in 2010 on Pi Recordings was described as a "down-in-mouth-near master piece" by the Village Voice and has landed on several Best of 2010 lists including the LA Times and critical praise across the board.
Marc has performed on scores such as The Kids Are All Right, Where the Wild Things Are, "Walk The Line (Mangold)," "Everything is Illuminated," and "The Departed" (Scorcese)." Marc has also composed original scores including the PBS documentary "Revolucion: Cinco Miradas," the film "Drunkboat," starring John Malkovich and John Goodman, a documentary film by Greg Feldman titled "Joe Schmoe," a feature film by director Joe Brewster titled "The Killing Zone", and dance pieces "In as Much as Life is Borrowed", by famed Belgian choreographer, Wim Vandekeybus, and Yoshiko Chuma's "Altogether Different". Marc is also currently touring his live solo guitar score to Charlie Chaplins The Kid, which was commissioned by the NY Guitar Festival and premiered Jan 2010 at Merkin Hall, as well as a program of new arrangements of classic Film Noir scores commissioned by the New School Noir Arts Festival 2011.
In 2009, Marc was named curator and musical director for the years Century of Song Festival, part of the Ruhr Triennale in Germany. The concert series sparked new collaborations with Iggy Pop, Marianne Faithfull, David Hidalgo of Los Lobos, master cajón player Juan Medrano Cotito, Carla Bozulich and Tine Kindermann.
Marc's talents have also been showcased with a full symphony orchestra. Composer Stewart Wallace wrote a guitar concerto with orchestra specifically for Marc. The piece was premiered by the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington DC in July of 2004 and also appeared at The Cabrillo Festival in Santa Cruz, CA in August of 2005.
Marc is currently touring with several projects including the Marc Ribot Trio, a free jazz group featuring legendary bassist Henry Grimes and Chad Taylor on drums, his power trio Ceramic Dog with bassist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Ches Smith, a collaboration with Los Lobos guitarist David Hidalgo called Border Music, and with Caged Funk, a project of funk arrangements of John Cages music featuring Bernie Worrell of Parliament Funkadelic fame.


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YUCK! HORRIBLE! DO NOT BUY! I received a sample of this "tea", actually, it's a tisane NOT a tea at all, it's herbal. I tried it this evening and it is terrible!
The ingredients are: INGREDIENTS
Ginger, orange bergamot mint, lemon thyme, anise hyssop, anise seeds and blackberry leaves
No matter how long you steep it for all you can taste is a synthetic mint; the mint did not taste real whatsoever. It was a dry, stale mint with a hint of a kick to it, probably the ginger. It was also kind of a tart mint, not pleasing or soothing; it could have been the lemon thyme because it was a herbaceous-tartness, somewhat soft but nonetheless noticeable. I did not taste any type of fruit at all, no orange-bergamot or blackberry. Anise seed has a distinct licorice sweetness flavor, and there was no resemblance of that ingredient either. I even let it steep a few minutes, sipping in intervals and no matter when I tasted it, it was horrible. I didn't keep it for long…after about 5 minutes, I threw it out, I just couldn't take it anymore.
This is a stale, dry "tea". I would not waste my money on this one…I highly recommend staying away from this tisane.


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Congratulations! you are great!I like your design!
1700 ? Wow! how do you manage to do that ?i've been here almost a year now and i only have 149. loleven if i cheated to add a digit to that total (1490) i will still have less than you, lmao.congrats ! i am going to get myself some new running shoes so i can at least try to catch up with you, ha!ha!..
Congratulations! Your illustrations are so beautiful, I wish you a lot of successes with them and a lot of insiration for a lot of new images!
Beautiful! Congratulations!
CONGRATULATIONS.... you are always putting up great new illustrations...
Congrats for your new milestone!You had to retire? I didn't understand something.
Congratulations! Absolutely well deserved: your portfolio is beautiful!
ways to go. i love all your illustrations.
Congratulations!You always add beautiful illustrations,your all portfolio its great,good luck
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text:
Thank you very much, Congressman Heck, for that generous introduction. And thank you for your contributions to the 10th District and the entire nation.
In particular, I appreciate your leadership with the HECM bill, allowing HUD to make important reforms to this program, while continuing to help seniors age in place with comfort and dignity.
And I am deeply grateful that you invited me to be here today.
I always love coming to Washington, and during this visit, there is a special excitement in the air.
Now, I am under no illusion that it's because the HUD Secretary is here. I know that all this joy is because the Seahawks are going to the Super Bowl.
To all you fans, congratulations on this milestone accomplishment. They made quite a comeback against the 49ers on Sunday. So I can't think of a better place to talk about the housing market's comeback and future than right here in Washington.
The Progress We've Made
It's an important discussion to have because homes are the foundation of our lives and where we raise our families. Homes are at the center of healthy and thriving communities.
Owning a home helps families build wealth, start businesses and put their kids through college.
In short, home is critical to every aspect of our lives which is why we've got to ensure our housing market is healthy and provides opportunity to all responsible families.
Now, of course, this work hasn't been easy in recent times. Just a few years ago, our nation endured a once-in-a-lifetime crisis that devastated Americans across the nation. When President Obama took office in 2009, the housing market was in free-fall.
Home prices had fallen nearly 20 percent from the year before -- the largest one-year drop ever measured. Roughly three million borrowers were seriously delinquent. Construction projects and plans came to a halt, causing the industry to lose 100,000 jobs a month.
And of course, these drops represented more than shifting numbers on a spreadsheet. They represented people's lives, savings and struggles. So as soon as the President and I took office, we took action to stabilize the market and help those in need.
We helped nearly 8 million families modify their mortgages. We allocated $7 billion to communities in all 50 states through our Neighborhood Stabilization Program to address foreclosed and abandoned properties. And during the most trying times, the Federal Housing Administration stepped up to keep capital flowing and stabilize the market.
As a result of these and other efforts, the market is healing. From the beginning of 2012 to the third quarter of last year, the number of underwater borrowers fell by nearly half, lifting 5.7 million homeowners above water. During that same period, homeowners have seen $3.4 trillion in home equity restored. And, home prices continue to rise.
Bottom line: progress is happening. But as all of us know, there is still more work to do.
Access to credit for responsible families is still too limited. Underwater borrowers are still too common.
That's why the Administration is committed to accelerating the housing market recovery in a number of ways.
Accelerating Our Progress
First, we are empowering families with the tools they need to succeed in today's housing market.
I don't have to tell you that housing can be a complex and overwhelming source of frustration for families.
As we all know, a significant cause of the crisis was that many buyers simply didn't know what they were getting into. That's why, in the last four years, HUD-approved housing counselors have worked with more than nine million families, both in the pre-purchase and post-purchase phases.
By giving borrowers access to reliable and unbiased information, they will make better decisions and the entire market will benefit.
Another focus of ours is making it easier for single-family lenders to get quality products to those ready to buy. Right now, one of the major obstacles blocking a full housing recovery is regulatory uncertainty.
And I understand. The federal government has taken a lot of steps that were, in my view, necessary to restore confidence. But one of the outcomes was that, too often, the rules of the road weren't clear enough and that led to a tightening of credit.
According to the Federal Reserve, from 2007 to 2012, mortgage lending to borrowers with credit scores over 780 fell by a third. Loans to those with scores between 620 and 680 fell 90%.
So my colleagues and I have been working with a wide-variety of stakeholders, including many of you, to simplify things moving forward. Case in point is the qualified residential mortgage rule, which we finalized last month.
It's the result of six federal agencies, including HUD, coming together to make QRM equal to QM in order to simplify the mortgage origination process. This is a direct result of the feedback we've received since the first proposal in 2011.
Now our rule avoids greater complexity, and overly restrictive down payment requirements that could serve only to exclude creditworthy borrowers. Some of our critics have called this a dilution of our rule. But as you know, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's QM rule itself is a very strong measure. And we are confident that this will find the right balance between responsibility and opportunity moving forward.
I thank you for your engagement on this issue. We very much look forward to continuing to listen to stakeholders like you so we get these conditions right for the single-family market.
We are also committed to doing the same with the multi-family community. I've made it a priority to make it easier to do business with HUD so that we can put an end to unnecessary delays on the ground.
Case in point is our Low Income Housing Tax Credit Pilot Program. As you all know, in the past, investors using the Low Income Housing Tax Credit who wanted to access FHA financing had to follow an approval process that sometimes took a year or more.
Not only did that stall important affordable housing projects, it scared off other potential partners from trying in the first place. To address this challenge, we launched the pilot program last year and are seeing tremendous results.
Deals are taking an average of only 86 days from receipt of the complete application to closing.
And we are proud to be seeing these kinds of gains in a number of our initiatives. That's why we're committed to expanding this work with efforts like the transformation of our Multifamily Housing Office.
To compliment this work, the Administration continues to fight for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. All of us here know how important the LIHTC has been in generating multi-family activity.
That's why the President and I have championed it time and again, most recently, calling on Congress to continue to support this tool as part of his housing plan announced last August.
And I urge you to continue to do the same by letting Congress know that not only do we need to keep the LIHTC, we need to expand it in order to better address the needs out there and provide more flexibility for the credit.
Together, all these steps will go a long way in accelerating our housing market's growth.
And we want to make sure that this housing succeeds by working with public and private partners to improve surrounding community assets.
No housing can thrive if its residents don't have access to things like good jobs, quality schools and reliable transit options. That's why the Obama Administration has joined with local leaders to take a comprehensive approach to development.
At the community level, HUD launched the Choice Neighborhoods initiative, a competitive program that gives local leaders the flexibility to transform their neighborhoods in their own unique way.
Building off the HOPE VI public housing revitalization program, Choice expands the activities that resources can be targeted towards to include not just all forms of housing, but also neighborhood amenities.
This work is making a profound difference in communities like Yesler Terrace. In 2011, Seattle was one of the first five cities to be awarded Choice Neighborhoods implementation grant dollars -- in total, receiving nearly $30 million.
Yesterday, I had the chance to visit Yesler Terrace and see up close the profound changes underway. The Housing Authority is overseeing the development of thousands of new, mixed-development homes. Seattle University is providing educational support services to help young people.
And a wide-variety of partners are coming together to link the community with surrounding neighborhoods by creating paths for pedestrians to connect with the Little Saigon business district located just down the hill from Yesler Terrace as well as to maximize the impact of the new street car rail line that will run through the neighborhood, better connecting residents to downtown and the medical district.
In total, the partnerships created through Choice Neighborhoods are driving change and expanding opportunity. And at a time of tough budget choices, grantees are leveraging $8 for every $1 Choice Neighborhood brings, generating incredible outcomes at the community level.
At the regional level, the Partnership for Sustainable Communities is doing the same.
HUD has joined with the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to make entire regions more economically competitive.
The 143 planning grants we have awarded include 5 grantees from the state of Washington -- representing an investment of nearly $12 million.
One example is Puget Sound Regional Council's "Growing Transit Communities" plan to locate housing, jobs and services close to transit options so that everyone has access to opportunity.
Another example is Thurston County which has an ambitious plan to revitalize the Capitol-Martin Corridor.
In total, our grants are touching and improving the lives of nearly half the U.S. population in a number of profound and innovative ways. This kind of work is ensuring that communities have all the support they need to grow.
But we can't be satisfied by these results. After all, if the housing market were to collapse again, it would undermine all these efforts.
That is why we've got to ensure that a crisis of the magnitude we just saw never happens again by reforming our housing finance system.
Housing Finance Reform
Naturally, this will require action from Congress. Now, I know what you are all thinking: after the recent shutdown, what makes Shaun Donovan think that there can be movement in this area?
But I truly believe that housing can be an area of common ground -- like it has been throughout history.
President Truman and Senator Taft worked together on the Housing Act of 1949. Ed Brooke and Walter Mondale worked together to produce landmark housing legislation decades later. And last year, we saw bipartisan progress in Congress on this issue.
So it is time for all parties to finally make reform a reality. Last August, the President outlined a series of principles that he believes should be at the core of the housing finance system of the future -- three of which I want to highlight today.
The first is that private capital should be at the center of the system. We all know that current conditions--where government guarantees more than 80% of mortgages through Fannie, Freddie and FHA--are unsustainable.
The risks and rewards of mortgage lending have historically been in the hands of the private sector, and should continue to be in the future. So how do we structure reform?
To start with, reform legislation should put private capital in a first loss position so that we can ensure that taxpayers are never again on the hook for bad loans and bailouts.
That means winding down Fannie and Freddie in their current form. As the President has said, for too long, their model was "heads we win, tails you lose." We can change this by making a smooth transition of assets--the people and infrastructure--as part of government's new limited and targeted role. And as we make this transition, we remain firmly focused on doing it in a way that doesn't disrupt the credit market in the short-term so that our recovery can continue.
Second, the government role should be explicit and defined, as opposed to before when it was implicit. This requires the new entities to pay for the government insurance similar to banks paying for FDIC deposit insurance.
It also requires an expansion of the capital magnet fund and the housing trust fund so that the new system explicitly supports more affordable housing initiatives. Specifically on this last point, we've got to ensure that reform yields a major fund of $5 billion a year for the production of affordable housing.
The need is as great as it's ever been. According to HUD's latest "Worst Case Needs" study--in 2011--8.5 million lower income families paid more than half their monthly income for rent lived in severely substandard housing or both.
This was a record high -- up 43% since 2007. So it's clear that as we look to the future, we don't just need more available housing, we also need more affordable housing. And I look forward to working with all of you to meet this challenge.
A third principle of reform outlined by the President is ensuring access to safe, responsible financing like the 30-year fixed rate mortgage market by, in part, shaping a competitive marketplace that gives community banks and smaller lenders the same access to the capital markets as the big banks.
Six years after the financial collapse, it is time to get this and other critical aspects of housing finance reform done. I want to thank Congressman Heck for his leadership in this work.
I know that many of the points I just outlined are aligned with the principles he's long championed.
As he recently wrote in an op-ed in the Tacoma News Tribune: "when considering family well-being and the health of our economy -- there are few topics more important than this one."
He couldn't be more right which is why the time for action is now. We know that the Senate Banking Committee is working on housing finance reform.
They have held numerous hearings on everything related to housing finance -- from structure to affordability to transition. We need work with the Committee and the Senate to keep the momentum going so that we can get bipartisan legislative action early this year.
The time to make our voices heard is now. Let's keep up the pressure to put housing finance reform at the top of the legislative agenda.
Make no mistake: this won't be easy. In fact nothing about the housing comeback has been easy.
The market collapse was tough on everybody here.
But I know that the people of Washington are tougher. They are resilient. And as the Seahawks showed a few days ago, they don't stay down. They come back.
This is a sprit that I've seen across America as we fight our way back from the recession. We've come a long way, and now we've got to finish the job.
That means continuing to help struggling homeowners. That means giving families the knowledge they need to be successful homeowners.
That means eliminating uncertainty so that credit can go to families ready to own. That means supporting housing with comprehensive community development.
That means getting housing finance reform done to ensure that a crisis like this never happens again.
All of these components will help shape a solid foundation for the future. Now we've just got to make it happen.
Together, let's make the housing market work for both the industry and consumers. Together, let's shape a better and stronger America for all.
Thank you.
Source: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/press/speeches_remarks_statements/2014/Speech_012214


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DAVIE, Fla. - Rookie Ryan Tannehill's teammates have endorsed the decision to give him the starting quarterback job with the Miami Dolphins.
First-year coach Joe Philbin chose Tannehill over Matt Moore, who started the final 12 games last year. Moore is popular with teammates, but veteran players said Tuesday they expect Tannehill to do well.
The Dolphins (No. 27 in the AP Pro32) will have a rookie quarterback start a season opener for the first time when they play at Houston on Sept. 9. Tannehill will be the first rookie QB to start for Miami since John Beck in 2007.
Beck went 0-4 that year. The Dolphins anticipate better results from Tannehill, the first quarterback they've drafted in the opening round since Dan Marino in 1983.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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Hi All,
I just received a Wii that was already soft modded. The details of the soft mod, I'm still trying to figure out myself. I don't know anything about softmodding and how to download games and played the downloaded games on the Wii.
Allow me to apologize in advance for all future "stupid" questions.
I hope to learn alot here and better understand this thing called "soft mod".
Hi and welcome to WiiHacks romme
If you need advice or help for anything Wii related you have joined the right site, whether its hard or soft modded.
Don't be shy, ask if you are stuck, just don't expect other people to do all the work for you.
Before you start anything, make sure you read the rules go over the tutorials, and most importantly, search before asking questions.
Make sure you post in the correct areas of the forums.
Here is the site index wiihacks ultimate index written by ShadowSonic2
If you are starting from scratch, new 3.1-4.1 written by Dogeggs
If you already have Homebrew, upgrade to 4.1 written by Dogeggs
Don't update to 4.2, but if you are already on 4.2, complete 4.2 guide written by Messie
2009 Wii Serial numbers after LU3884XXXX and LEH2676XXXX have probably got the new D3-2 chip that prevents playing backup DVD's. They can still use original discs and USB loaders.
And please do donate to the forum if you are able so we can go on helping the Wii community.
I hope you have a great time here at WiiHacks, and increase your knowledge of all things Wii.


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Words from the wise: Sheila Hancock, 76
Lessons in life from the over-sixties
"I'm utterly inconsistent, reliably unreliable and I've learnt nothing from my mistakes, but I do keep an open mind. The saddest, most ageing thing is to become set in one's ways. I know people who are dogmatic, rigid in their beliefs, condemning everything. I could never be like that. It's easy when you're old to be lazy with your opinions, to think you know what's right just because you've lived so long – we don't. There's a Quaker credo: 'Consider the possibility you may be wrong.' In a rapidly changing world we must constantly reassess.
"I'm avid for new experiences. Not having so many years left, I'm desperate to cram in as many as I can while I'm still able. I'll ponce off at the…


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After visiting Tempe, Ariz. in May, quarterback Josh Dobbs (Alpharetta, Ga./Alpharetta) has decided he wants to be a Sun Devil.
"After extensive evaluation and much prayer, I committed to play at Arizona State," Dobbs said.
After passing for 3,113 yards and 31 touchdown passes in 11 games last year, the three-star prospect picked up double-digit offers in the spring. Dobbs is the No. 19 quarterback in the country and No. 48 prospect in Georgia.
He is the third commitment for Arizona State in the 2013 class, joining three-star athlete Nick Brown (Florence, Ariz./Florence) and three-star defensive end Dimarya Mixon (Mesquite, Texas/West Mesquite). If he signs, Dobbs would be the first Peach State prospect to sign with the Sun Devils during the last decade.


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(To preface this, I tried to get alkapal to start this thread but she wouldn't :) So I'm doing it but am hoping she'll weigh in.)
Thanks to the above 'hound, I was turned on to the Pillsbury thin crust pizza dough. Like in one of those "whack" cans for biscuits. I highly recommend that you keep one or more of these in your fridge. They're really good. Really. I don't read their instructions because, again, I got my "training" from alkapal. You oil the baking sheet and then spread the dough. It's a rectangle. With your oily fingers, press some chopped rosemary onto the dough. Then add sauce. To make it really easy, I bought a squeeze bottle of Contadina Pizza Squeeze, figuring I was going to be adding so much flavor to this that it wouldn't matter - and it didn't. I then topped with finely chopped fennel, pre-cooked but homemade sausage, thinly sliced shallots and shaved garlic (I used my vegetable peeler). Then I topped all that with a four-cheese Italian blend and then some freshed grated Parmesan. I then baked it at 500 (I believe the instructions said 400) per above 'hound :) She said not to worry that the edges might be looking burned; that you need that really high heat to crisp up the bottom. This made a big enough pizza for the two of us to have it for two meals. And I now have FOUR cans of the stuff in the fridge --- it was half price :) I've had pizza in restaurants that wasn't this good. And it's so easy and so last minute by using some prepared products.
Now that I've begun this thread I'm hoping my "buddy" will chime in because she has a good idea for a white pizza that I want to read about. Please???


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Drive along the turnpike through Homestead and Florida City these days and you cannot help but recall the lyrics to "Little Boxes," Sixties-era folk singer Malvina Reynolds's famous tune:
"Little boxes made of ticky tacky/And they all look just the same."
Well, yes.
El Nachito
12795 SW 280th St, Homestead; 305-258-8154
Open Sunday through Thursday 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
For those of us who cannot afford to slum next to Shaq on Star Island, the thousands of ruthlessly identical little boxes crammed like earth-tone sardines on acres of once-verdant land are the best we can do for home, hearth, and a mortgage that won't swallow our salaries whole. That's a lot of people, and they all have to eat.
One of the best places where all of those people can in fact should dine is El Nachito. Brought to you by the folks from Guadalajara in Pinecrest, El Nachito is one of the few signs of life in a just-birthed shopping center plopped in the middle of a vast field almost as empty as Paris Hilton's cranium. (Though by noon tomorrow it will likely be filled with thousands more townhouses and single-family homes stamped out like bottle caps.)
It would be nice if El Nachito's modestly piquant salsa was made 100 percent from fresh tomatoes, but perhaps that is asking too much of a restaurant where two people can gorge themselves silly for less than twenty bucks. On the other hand, the chips were fresh and crisp (our famous South Florida humidity can turn them into corn-flavor dishrags faster than you can say Dos Equis), and the thin, taquería-style guacamole was good though served ice-cold.
The lengthy menu includes all the usual culinary suspects tacos and burritos, tostadas and enchiladas, fajitas and gorditas, nachos and rellenos plus soups and salads, a molé and a ceviche, and a variety of dishes featuring plump sautéed shrimp.
To clear a little space for the more exciting dishes, the tacos and burritos and flautas and tostadas are creditable efforts, nothing out of the ordinary but eminently palatable. Like most plates, they are served with your choice of sauces (a mild, dusky red or exceptionally well-crafted green) plus tender and flavorful shredded chicken or tender and flavorful beef braised with big chunks of chilies or (as a sop to gringos?) ground beef. Sadly only the much-better-than-ordinary tamales come with roast pork, an omission at least this pig-loving diner would hope to be soon remedied.
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Now here is where things get interesting. Chiles rellenos are a lot better than average, too fat poblano chilies made even fatter with plenty of that tender beef, cloaked in egg batter fried puffy and greaseless, crowned with a sultry ranchero sauce and molten cheese.
Enchiladas verdes with chicken and more of that terrific tomatillo sauce are in my favorite "suiza" style, named after Mexico's Swiss immigrants, who became a backbone of that country's dairy industry, hence the enchiladas' thick mantle of cheese and sour cream.
Chicken molé boasts pieces of boneless (alas, slightly overcooked) chicken in a rich, complex sauce with subtle chocolate overtones. And camarones a la diabla serves up a generous complement of thumb-size shrimp in a wickedly seasoned chipotle sauce that burns with a slow, smoky, and utterly irresistible fire.
Put out the fire with a large square of unconscionably rich and decadent flan, smooth and creamy and impossible to stop eating despite a density approaching that of heavy water. If you've been crying in your cerveza over the lack of good Mexican food in these parts, well, the little boxes beckon.


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ATLANTA - The state Department of Natural Resources will regulate the remodeling of roughly two out of every five houses in Georgia as it steps in for the federal government to monitor lead paint removal.
Painters, carpenters and even plumbers who do work on houses built before 1978 are required to take prescribed steps to capture dust and paint flakes during their projects. Tradesmen who disturb 6 square feet of painted surface must be certified to prove they have the required 16-hour training, and they must keep records in case they're inspected or audited.
Lead was added to paint to improve its holding ability, but federal regulators concluded that benefit was outweighed by the harm to young children from breathing or ingesting dust or flakes. Lead has been blamed for learning defects, hyperactivity and high blood pressure in adults.
The DNR's Environmental Protection Division is adding five people to its staff to ensure tradesmen are following safety procedures, such as covering work areas in plastic and attaching vacuum hoses to sanders.
When up and running, Georgia's program will be one of just eight in the country overseen by state regulators rather than federal officials, according to Mark Smith, chief of the EPD's Land Protection Branch.
Both the Natural Resources board and industry representatives prefer it that way.
"We know from experience here in Georgia that it is far better to deal with the state-level regulators than the federal level, particularly when it comes to communication," said Bettie Sleeth, lobbyist for the Home Builders Association of Georgia.
The EPD has held meetings with various construction groups in drafting the rules.
"They were very cognizant of the effect on industry," Sleeth said.
Getting trained and certified will cost contractors $125 to $300 a year - less than in other states. When the board formally approves the rule this fall, the state will begin to publicize that property owners must hire one of the 4,000 certified contractors for repairs or renovations on older homes.
Experts predict that five additional state employees can cover the whole state because those contractors who are certified and go to the expense of properly capturing lead-paint dust will report those who cut corners.
A list of certified contractors by location is available on the Internet at cfpub.epa.gov/flpp/searchrrp_firm.htm.
► Find more information about lead and homes built before 1978: www.epa.gov/lead
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