text:
The imaging properties of optical microscopes are often compromised by aberrations that reduce image resolution and contrast. Adaptive optics technology has been employed in various systems to correct these aberrations and restore performance. This has required various departures from the traditional adaptive optics schemes that are used in astronomy. This review discusses the sources of aberrations, their effects and their correction with adaptive optics, particularly in confocal and two-photon microscopes. Different methods of wavefront sensing, indirect aberration measurement and aberration correction devices are discussed. Applications of adaptive optics in the related areas of optical data storage, optical tweezers and micro/nanofabrication are also reviewed.
1. Introduction
Optical microscopes are essential tools in many scientific fields. In the life sciences, they are widely used for the visualization of cellular structures and sub-cellular processes. Confocal and multiphoton microscopes are particularly important in this respect as they produce three-dimensional images of volumetric objects. However, the resolution of these microscopes is often adversely affected by the optical properties of the specimen itself. Spatial variations in the refractive index of the specimen introduce optical aberrations that compromise image quality. This is a particular problem when imaging deep into thick biological specimens. Ultimately, the aberrations restrict the amount of specimen that can be observed by the microscope, the depth being limited to a few cellular layers near the surface. This is a serious limitation if one wants to observe cells and their processes in their usual environment, rather than in the unnatural surroundings of a microscope slide.
Until a few years ago, this was a problem that many people knew about, but nobody could fix. Recently, researchers have started to use adaptive optics, a technique borrowed from astronomy, to measure and correct the aberrations and restore the optimum resolution of these systems. The techniques were originally developed for astronomical and military purposes, for stabilizing and de-blurring telescope images of stars and satellites affected by the aberrations caused by atmospheric turbulence (Tyson 1991; Hardy 1998). Adaptive optics technology is now being developed for more down-to-earth reasons, in smaller scale applications such as ophthalmic imaging and communications. Naturally, the same principles can be applied to microscopy.
The most widely used optical microscopes for high-resolution biomedical imaging are the scanning confocal and two-photon fluorescence microscopes (Wilson 1990; Gu 1996; Pawley 2006). One of the major strengths of these methods is their ability to provide three-dimensional images of volumetric specimens. In the confocal microscope, the three-dimensional resolution arises through the use of a pinhole situated before the photodetector. This pinhole obscures out-of-focus light and allows only light from the focus to be efficiently detected. The two-photon microscope relies upon the process of two-photon excitation fluorescence, in which a fluorophore is excited by the simultaneous absorption of two photons. As the efficiency of two-photon excitation process is proportional to the square of the illumination intensity, fluorescence is only efficiently generated in the focal spot, where the intensity is highest. The two-photon microscopy therefore exhibits intrinsic three-dimensional resolution without the need for a detector pinhole (Sheppard & Gu 1990).
Aberrations affect all types of microscopy, but the effects are particularly significant for both confocal and two-photon microscopy, causing a reduction in signal level, contrast and resolution. By correcting the aberrations, adaptive optics can improve the image quality or, in the best case, restore the optimum performance of the microscope. Several such adaptive optics systems have been implemented in microscopes and other closely related optical engineering systems. The requirements of these systems have led to the development of several new techniques. In this review, I present an overview of aberrations in microscopy and describe recent developments in microscope adaptive optics.
2. Aberrations in microscopy
(a) Description of wavefront aberrations
A high numerical aperture (NA) objective lens transforms planar wavefronts that pass through the lens pupil into spherical wavefronts in the focal region (figure 1). As the light passes through the optical system and the specimen, aberrations can be introduced that distort the wavefronts from this ideal planar or spherical form. These aberrations can be modelled as phase variations in the pupil of the objective lens. In principle, the aberrations are compensated by introducing an equal but opposite phase aberration into this pupil (or its optical conjugate) using an appropriate correction element. In order to reduce the amount of information required to specify aberrations, it is useful to represent them as an expansion in orthogonal functions. In this way, the aberration can often be accurately represented by a short sequence of function coefficients. In systems with circular pupils, the Zernike circle functions are regularly used as, in addition to their convenient mathematical properties, the low-order Zernike modes correspond closely to traditional aberration terms, such as astigmatism, coma or spherical aberration (Zernike 1934; Born & Wolf 1983; Mahajan 2001). Other sets of modes may also be appropriate, such as the eigenmodes of the correction element (Paterson et al. 2000).
(b) Sources of aberrations
One of the most studied specimen geometries is that of the planar refractive index mismatch, where the light is focused through a planar interface between two media with different refractive indices (figure 1b). This structure is common to many applications: it occurs in microscopy when focusing using an immersion objective, through a cover glass, or into a specimen-mounting medium. The effects of such refractive index mismatch on focusing were first investigated by Sheppard and colleagues (Sheppard & Cogswell 1991; Sheppard & Gu 1991). A comprehensive review of further studies pre-1998 is provided by Egner & Hell (1998). The primary effects of the refractive index mismatch are focal shift and spherical aberration that are proportional to the focusing depth; these can jointly be represented by a series of rotationally symmetric Zernike modes (Török et al. 1995; Booth et al. 1998; Booth & Wilson 2000). In microscopy, the spherical aberration induced by the refractive index mismatch of the cover glass is often removed by incorporating a correction aberration into the objective lens design. Further benefit is obtained through the use of water immersion objective for imaging aqueous specimens. Some of these objective lenses are equipped with adjustable cover glass correction, to enable the use of different cover glass thicknesses, although careful use is required to ensure correct operation (Schwertner et al. 2005).
A more significant problem is presented by the complex aberrations introduced by the optically inhomogeneous structure of biological specimens (figure 1c). Small but measurable variations have been found in direct measurements of the refractive indices of biological materials and organelles (Bolin et al. 1989; Tearney et al. 1995). These variations can lead to significant aberrations when focusing through thick specimens. Characterization of these aberrations is essential for the understanding of the requirements for a microscope adaptive optics system. Schwertner et al. (2004a,b) used an interferometer to directly measure specimen-induced aberrations and quantified the results in terms of Zernike function coefficients (figure 2). The aberrations can also be inferred if one knows the refractive index profile of the specimen. Kam et al. (2001) used Normarski differential interference microscopy to reconstruct this profile. Refractive index profiles have also been reconstructed using tomographic holographic microscopy (Charrière et al. 2006).
It should be noted that not all aberrations are caused by the specimen. Although great effort goes into the design of high-resolution microscopes to ensure that they operate at the diffraction limit, aberrations caused by imperfections in the optical system can still be present. For example, if a lens is used off-axis or with the wrong image conjugate, aberrations will be present to some degree (Born & Wolf 1983; Sheppard & Gu 1991). They may also arise when the system is not used under design conditions, for example with wrong wavelength or incorrect temperature (Juškaitis 2006).
(c) Effects of aberrations
There is a complex relationship between the phase aberrations in the pupil and the form of the focal spot. However, broadly speaking, aberrations lead to spreading of the focus both in the lateral plane and, more importantly, an elongation along the optic axis. This is accompanied by a reduction in the focal intensity. The distortion of the focal spot reduces the resolution of the system and causes a blurring between adjacent planes along the optic axis. The drop in intensity leads to a loss of optical efficiency and image contrast. Multiphoton processes are strongly affected by aberrations as the absorption probability is nonlinearly dependent on the focal intensity. In the confocal microscope, the fluorescence generation decreases in proportion to the focal intensity. However, the imaging of this fluorescence onto the detector pinhole is also affected, so the detected signal falls more rapidly due to the compound effect of aberrations in both the illumination and detection paths. Therefore, signal levels in confocal and two-photon microscopes are affected to a similar degree by aberrations (Gu & Sheppard 1995; Ganic et al. 2000; Booth & Wilson 2001). Signal levels can be restored by increasing the illumination laser power to compensate for the lower focal intensity, although this does nothing to restore the resolution. It also has the disadvantages of increasing photobleaching and photo-toxic effects—this is of particular importance in live cell imaging, where the lowest exposures are desirable (Hoebe et al. 2007).
(d) Constructive use of aberrations
It would be wrong on the part of the reader to think that aberrations are unconditionally detrimental to microscopy. Indeed, there are examples where aberrations have been put to good use in enhancing microscope images. It is possible to adjust imaging properties by introducing a phase pattern into the lens pupil (Neil et al. 2000c). This effect is most beneficial when combined with nonlinear methods, such as stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy (Hell 2007). In another method known as wavefront coding, aberrations are intentionally introduced in order to extend the depth of the focus of microscopes (Tucker et al. 1999). When imaging thick specimens, it is possible that light from out-of-focus planes contributes a significant background signal. While aberrations strongly affect in-focus image quality, they have little effect on out-of-focus background. This observation has allowed Leray & Mertz (2006) to remove the background fluorescence in multiphoton microscopy by subtracting a heavily aberrated image from an aberration-free image.
3. Adaptive optics for microscopy
(a) Implementations of adaptive optics in microscopy
One of the earliest implementations of adaptive optics in microscopy was the use of tip/tilt correction in a transmission confocal microscope (O'Byrne et al. 1999). The major problem encountered here is that the position of the spot at the detector is shifted laterally by structures in the specimen. The authors proposed using a tilting mirror in the transmission path to maintain the position of the focal spot on the detector. Unlike this system, most microscopes are used with epi illumination, with illumination and detection light passing through the same objective lens. In this epi configuration, tip/tilt and defocus aberrations are self-correcting, hence the focus is always conjugate to the detector. It should be noted, however, that this phenomenon does lead to image distortion (Schwertner et al. in press).
The confocal microscope provides maximum resolution and signal level when both illumination and emission paths are diffraction limited. As the illumination and fluorescence light both pass through the specimen, aberrations will be introduced into both the paths. It is clear that to restore diffraction-limited operation, aberration correction must be performed in both the paths. This dual path correction is readily implemented using a single deformable mirror (DM), a configuration that has been employed successfully in confocal fluorescence microscopes (Booth et al. 2002b; Wright et al. 2005; figure 3a). As two-photon microscopes are normally used without a detector pinhole, aberrations in the detection path are unimportant as they have no effect on the resolution or signal level. Therefore, an adaptive two-photon microscope needs only incorporate aberration correction in the illumination path. Such systems have been implemented using DMs (Sherman et al. 2002; Marsh et al. 2003; Rueckel et al. 2006) and liquid crystal spatial light modulators (Neil et al. 2000b).
In addition to scanning microscopes, adaptive optics has also been implemented in imaging microscopes. Adaptive correction for the imaging of two-dimensional objects has been demonstrated in a transmission microscope (Débarre et al. 2007). In a different application, predictive aberration correction has been used to extend the field of view of a microscope. Potsaid et al. (2005) combined an objective lens designed to have residual aberrations with a DM that compensated aberrations over a sub-region of the field of view. In this way, they were able to maintain diffraction-limited performance for a sequence of sub-images over a much extended field.
(b) Wavefront sensing and aberration measurement
Several types of wavefront sensing have been developed for adaptive optics, the most prominent methods being the Shack–Hartman wavefront sensor and interferometric sensors (Tyson 1991; Hardy 1998). These methods require a point-like reference source, such as the distant guide star used in astronomical systems, to produce a well-defined wavefront. In adaptive microscopy, the situation is more complicated as the three-dimensional structure of the specimen means that the reference source is generally far from point-like. In effect, the wavefront sensor would receive a multitude of wavefronts, each emanating from different parts of the specimen. Therefore, direct wavefront sensing is not straightforward in microscopy.
Further problems arise if reflected or scattered light is used as the reference source, as the coherent interaction of the light and the specimen structure can cause ambiguity in the wavefront measurement. This effect was discussed by Artal et al. (1995) in the context of ocular imaging. For specular reflection from a planar object, odd (asymmetric) aberrations in the illumination and reflection paths are cancelled, whereas the even (symmetric) components add up. For diffuse scattering, both odd and even aberrations can be measured. This problem does not occur for fluorescence emission, as the phase information from the illumination wavefront is always lost in the incoherent fluorescence process.
Most of the adaptive microscope systems so far implemented have not employed a wavefront sensor but have used indirect methods of aberration measurement. This approach requires relatively minor modification of the microscope, i.e. the inclusion of an adaptive optical element, and avoids the wavefront sensor pitfalls described previously. In general, this indirect approach involves the maximization of the photodetector signal using an appropriate optimization scheme. Several of these implementations have used stochastic methods based upon genetic algorithms or hill-climbing algorithms (Albert et al. 2000; Sherman et al. 2002; Marsh et al. 2003; Wright et al. 2005). These methods tend to require a large number of iterations that might not be practical for some applications where high speed or low exposure is required. Model-based approaches based upon modal wavefront sensing have shown better performance, requiring fewer measurements than model-free methods (Booth et al. 2002b; Booth 2006, 2007). Stochastic gradient descent algorithms (Vorontsov 2002) have been used in other areas of adaptive optics and might also have useful application in microscopy. Indirect aberration measurement through phase retrieval from images has also been suggested (Hanser et al. 2004).
Direct wavefront sensing can be applicable to microscopy if combined with a method for excluding out-of-focus light. For example, the modal wavefront sensor introduced by Neil et al. employs pinholes that behave much like the detector in a confocal microscope (Neil et al. 2000a; Booth et al. 2002a). Feierabend et al. (2004) have implemented a wavefront sensor that uses coherence gating to exclude the effects of out-of-focus light. This is a promising method for wavefront sensing in thick scattering specimens, such as brain tissue (Rueckel et al. 2006). However, in both cases, measurements are still to a degree dependent upon the specimen structure.
(c) Aberration correction devices
The commercial availability of practical, affordable correction devices has probably been the main driving factor in adaptive optics for microscopy. The development of liquid crystal (LC) panels for displays has led to spatial light modulators for research applications. These have been demonstrated in adaptive microscopy (Neil et al. 2000b), but have not been widely applied. The main drawbacks of LC devices are their polarization and wavelength dependence, which are not compatible with fluorescence microscopy. LC devices have, however, found wider application in optical data storage and optical trapping (see §4).
Microelectrical mechanical systems (MEMS) technology has enabled the production of a number of DM systems. These are particularly useful for fluorescence imaging, where the high optical efficiency of the mirror ensures that optical losses are low. The most widely used DMs have continuous reflective surfaces, although segmented MEMS mirrors are also becoming available (Dagel et al. 2006). Electrostatically actuated membrane DMs consist of a thin membrane with a reflective coating mounted above an electrode array (Vdovin et al. 1999). By applying a potential between the membrane and the electrode, the DM surface shape can be pulled towards the electrodes. A transparent electrode can also be included above the membrane to permit push–pull deformations (Bonora & Poletto 2006). Other electrostatically actuated MEMS DMs have been based upon microstructured silicon (Bifano et al. 1999). Here a supporting structure below the reflective membrane ensures that the influence of each actuator on the DM shape is spatially more confined than for a membrane DM. Piezo-electric actuators have been employed in DMs both using direct actuation of the mirror surface (Simonov et al. 2006) and through curvature control using bimorph actuators (Dainty et al. 1998). Magnetically actuated DMs have also been demonstrated (Fernandez et al. 2006). These DMs have been complemented by more exotic technologies such as thermally actuated (Vdovin & Loktev 2002), fluidic (Vuelban et al. 2006) and ferromagnetic devices (Laird et al. 2006).
Given the wide range of DMs available, the selection of an appropriate device for a particular application is a non-trivial task. While properties such as cost, size, speed and robustness are relatively self-explanatory, the aberration correction ability of a device is harder to evaluate. The standard quantities specified by manufacturers, such as maximum stroke or number of actuators, are not themselves useful guides to the compatibility of a device with an aberration correction task—more is not necessarily better. Several methods have been developed to characterize DMs and determine the range of correctable aberration modes (Zhu et al. 1999; Fernandez & Artal 2003; Booth et al. 2005) and the performance for particular correction tasks (Paterson et al. 2000; Dalimier & Dainty 2005).
4. Other applications of adaptive optics
The optical systems used in high-resolution microscopy are also central to other applications in optical and photonic engineering. These include data storage, optical trapping and micro/nanofabrication. All of these applications require the resolution provided by the tight focusing of light using high-NA objective lenses. As in microscopy, these methods suffer from aberrations introduced as the focused light passes through different parts of the specimen or substrate. The efficiency and accuracy of all of these processes are detrimentally affected by aberrations and the use of adaptive optics has great potential.
Much of the recent research into three-dimensional optical data storage has used multiphoton processes to record data and confocal microscopes for read-out. As these systems invariably involve focusing through a refractive index mismatch, aberration control is an important consideration in system design and the use of adaptive aberration correction has been explored. In these systems, the recording substrate is predominantly isotropic, so aberrations can be predicted from the focusing depth, obviating the need for direct aberration measurement. LC devices have been used in single or dual recording layer systems to correct spherical aberration due to the disc thickness and coma caused by disc tilt (Ohtaki et al. 1999; Somalingam et al. 2004; Knittel et al. 2005). The aberrations become more significant in three-dimensional storage where focusing depths are much larger. Early work in three-dimensional memory involved the compensation of spherical aberration by adjusting the tube length of the objective lens (Day & Gu 1998). Neil et al. (2002) employed an LC device to record data at a depth of 1 mm in a high refractive index medium. Booth et al. (2006) have demonstrated a DM-based system for aberration correction in the recording and read-out of multilayer polymer media (figure 3b).
Optical tweezers have been widely applied for the manipulation of small particles on the micrometre scale (Grier 2003; McGloin 2006). The effectiveness of optical tweezers is compromised by aberrations (Rohrbach & Stelzer 2002; Ganic et al. 2004; Roichman et al. 2006; Vermeulen et al. 2006) and adaptive optics have been applied by various groups to improve performance. Tube length correction was employed by Ke & Gu (1998) to compensate for refractive index mismatch-induced aberrations. Ota et al. (2003) used a DM to manually adjust spherical aberration introduced when trapping in an aqueous medium using an oil immersion objective. Theofanidou et al. (2004) optimized the two-photon fluorescence signal from a trapped fluorescent bead to increase trap strength. Aberrations have also been compensated in a system employing a LC spatial light modulator as a holographic element (Wulff et al. 2006).
Optical methods of nanofabrication have been used to manufacture polymer, ceramic and metallic structures with feature sizes as small as 100 nm (Serbin et al. 2003; Sun & Kawata 2004; Ishikawa et al. 2006). This sub-wavelength resolution is achieved through the use of nonlinear, thresholded optical processes. Thresholded multiphoton processes have also been employed to machine structures in high refractive index media for the manufacture of photonic crystals (Wong et al. 2006; Zhou & Gu 2006). As these methods require focusing between materials of different refractive indices, they suffer from aberrations that can reduce the focal intensity. If this drops below the threshold level, the fabrication effect can be lost entirely. Adaptive optics can be used to maintain focal spot quality even when focusing at depth in the fabrication substrate (Schwertner et al. 2006; figure 3c).
5. Future outlook
The principles of adaptive optics for microscopy and photonic engineering have been demonstrated in a number of implementations and applications. However, there are still many technical challenges to be met before adaptive optics becomes a standard feature. Studies have shown that specimen-induced aberrations can change significantly over a microscope's field of view (Schwertner et al. 2004a,b), so real-time adaptive optics for confocal and two-photon microscopes would be desirable. This may only be possible with improved aberration measurement schemes and faster correction devices—current DMs are limited in speed to a few kilohertz, whereas the fastest pixel rates in commercial microscopes can be in excess of 100 kHz. Advances could be made in correcting field-dependent aberrations through the use of multi-conjugate adaptive optics, where multiple adaptive elements are employed (Kam et al. 2007). This would also enable the use of adaptive optics in widefield microscopes, including the widefield sectioning microscopes that produce confocal-like images (Conchello & Lichtman 2005). There is also much scope for the use of adaptive optics in emerging microscopy methods. This is especially the case in microscopies that rely upon nonlinear effects, such as third harmonic generation (Débarre et al. 2006), coherent anti-Stokes Raman microscopy (Zumbusch et al. 1999) or STED microscopy (Hell 2007). Perhaps one of the major benefits of microscope adaptive optics will be for in vivo tissue imaging, as aberration correction provides better image contrast with the use of lower illumination intensities, correspondingly lower phototoxicity and improved specimen viability.
In three-dimensional optical data storage, the predominant challenge is the production of compact, low-cost and robust adaptive devices that can be incorporated into an optical drive. The most promising candidates seem to be LC devices that are currently being used in optical disc systems (Knittel et al. 2005). Most of the current work in aberration correction for optical tweezers has concerned the compensation of low-order spherical aberration. For trapping within complex biological specimens, it will be necessary to develop more advanced adaptive schemes. Optical fabrication methods will be more affected by aberrations as the size and complexity of the fabricated structures are increased. Again advances in microscope adaptive optics will help maintain the precision of the fabrication systems.
Images in figures 2 and 3 are reproduced with the kind permission of M. Schwertner and T. Wilson. The author is grateful to E. Botcherby, D. Débarre, R. Juškaitis, M. Schwertner and T. Wilson for numerous useful discussions concerning this material.
One contribution of 20 to a Triennial Issue 'Chemistry and engineering'.
- © 2007 The Royal Society


text:
In this story, bad behavior gets the best of the Bugville Critters. They forget their manners, do things they shouldn't, and get into trouble. It is up to a most unlikely bug to show them the right way to behave. The wonderfully crafted story is paired with playful examples that help children discover the world around them.
Don't miss more Bugville Critters adventures.
©2008 Robert Stanek; (P)2008 RP Audio
There are no reviews for this title yet.
Report Inappropriate Content
If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
|As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of being.
– Carl JungRate it:
|As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.
– Carl JungRate it:
|As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light of meaning in the darkness of mere being.
– Carl Gustav JungRate it:
|As far as we know, our computer has never had an undetected error.
– WeisertRate it:
|As fast as laws are devised, their evasion is contrived.
– German ProverbRate it:
|As favor and riches forsake a man, we discover in him the foolishness they concealed, and which no one perceived before.
– Jean de La BruyèreRate it:
|As flies to wanton boys, are we to the godsThey kill us for their sport.
– William ShakespeareRate it:
|As flower blooms in spring, compassion grows in mindfulness.
– Amit RayRate it:
|As for America, it is the ideal fruit of all your youthful hopes and reforms. Everybody is fairly decent, respectable, domestic, bourgeois, middle-class, and tiresome. There is absolutely nothing to revile except that it's a bore.
– Henry AdamsRate it:
|As for charity, it is a matter in which the immediate effect on the persons directly concerned, and the ultimate consequence to the general good, are apt to be at complete war with one another.
– John Stuart MillRate it:
|As for courage and will - we cannot measure how much of each lies within us, we can only trust there will be sufficient to carry through trials which may lie ahead.
– Andre NortonRate it:
|As for death one gets used to it, even if it's only other people's death you get used to.
– Enid BagnoldRate it:
|As for everything else, so for mathematical theory: beauty can be perceived but not explained.
– Arthur CayleyRate it:
|As for life, it is a battle and a sojourning in a strange land but the fame that comes after is oblivion.
– Marcus Aurelius AntoninusRate it:
|As for me, all I know is that I know nothing.
– SocratesRate it:
|As for me, except for an occasional heart attack, I feel as young as I ever did.
– Robert BenchleyRate it:
|As for me, I'll do what I do best. I'll lie, cheat, steal, and survive!
– Roman TorchwickRate it:
|As for me, prizes are nothing. My prize is my work.
– Katharine HepburnRate it:
|As for pictures and museums, that don't trouble me. The worst of going abroad is that you've always got to look at things of that sort. To have to do it at home would be beyond a joke.
– Margaret Oliphant OliphantRate it:
|As for the pyramids, there is nothing to wonder at in them so much as the fact that so many men could be found degraded enough to spend their lives constructing a tomb for some ambitious booby, whom it would have been wiser and manlier to have drowned in the Nile, and then given his body to the dogs.
– Henry David ThoreauRate it:
|As for the Virgin, the one distinctively female figure in the galaxy.
– L. P. Hartley, The Go-BetweenRate it:
|As for your ignorance - do not fear it. Instead be humbled by it and tend to it."
– Steve MaraboliRate it:
|As free as you allow others to be, such freedom you create for yourself.
– Bryant McGillRate it:
|As goes love so goes life.
– AberjhaniRate it:
|As gold is tried by the furnace, and the baser metal shown, so the hollow-hearted friend is known by adversity.
– MetastasioRate it:


text:
Cordis unveils 1-year results for its Incraft AAA stent graft system
by Mass Device
Johnson & Johnson's Cordis subsidiary touts positive 1-year findings for its Incraft AAA stent graft system in treatment of patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) subsidiary Cordis this month unveiled 1-year clinical findings from a study of its Incraft AAA stent graft system in treating abdominal aortic aneurysms.
The Incraft AAA system is under investigation through the company's multi-center, prospective, non-randomized INNOVATION study in AAA patients, according to a press release.


text:
Was he a considerate and attentive lover Simon or did the big ugly croat just beat you into submission?
It's official. You're a short, fat cnut with gay hair.
And you're the vision of manhood, you jug-eared ****
Who's gonna be the first and take the bottle then?
up the hammmers, cmon u irons!!!
Here's a link to this photo. Just copy and paste!
Here is direct link of this photo
Copy and paste the code below (HTML):
Copy and paste the code below (BBCode):
[URL=https://www.arrse.co.uk/community/gallery/photos/the-arrse-apprentice.6179/]The ARRSE apprentice[/URL] by [URL=https://www.arrse.co.uk/community/gallery/authors/bad-co.139/]Bad CO[/URL] on Army Rumour Service
Separate names with a comma.


text:
- Sing-Hoi Sze
- Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering
- Office:
- HRBB / Room 328B
- Email:
- email@example.com
- Phone:
- 979-458-3396
- Undergraduate Education
- B.Sc. Chinese University of Hong Kong (1990)
- Graduate Education
- M.S. Pennsylvania State University (1995)
- Ph.D. University of Southern California (2000)
- Postdoc. University of California-San Diego (2001-02)
- Joined Texas A&M in 2002
Bioinformatics / Computational Biology
Our work focuses on the application of various computer science techniques to solve computational problems in molecular biology. Our current research projects cover diverse areas in bioinformatics, including motif finding algorithms and their applications, computational approaches to model transcription factor binding sites, and algorithms for EST sequence assembly and enumeration of alternatively spliced variants of a gene.
The motif finding problem can be formulated as follows: given a set of sequences, find a pattern (motif) shared by these sequences. The major biological application of this computational problem is to identify transcription factor binding sites given a set of upstream sequences of genes that are believed to be co-regulated. Existing motif finding approaches usually make simplifying assumptions in modeling these sites and we are on a constant quest to develop better models. Recently, we work with a few groups of biologists on designing experiments to verify our predictions.
Another active research project is the identification of alternatively spliced variants of a gene from EST sequences. The traditional approach to this problem is to assemble EST sequences that represent fragments of a gene into a longer linear sequence which represents the most dominant form of the gene. In order to better model the splicing structure, we develop an algorithm to assemble the given set of EST sequences into a non- linear graph structure, so that each alternatively spliced variant of a gene is represented as a path in the graph.
Recent Publications
Sze, SH, Pimsler, ML, Tomberlin, JK, Jones, CD, Tarone, AM. A scalable and memory-efficient algorithm for de novo transcriptome assembly of non-model organisms. BMC Genomics. 2017;18 (Suppl 4):387.
doi: 10.1186/s12864-017-3735-1. PubMed PMID:28589866. PubMed Central PMC5461550.
Pandey, A, Ding, SL, Qin, QM, Gupta, R, Gomez, G, Lin, F et al.. Global Reprogramming of Host Kinase Signaling in Response to Fungal Infection. Cell Host Microbe. 2017;21 (5):637-649.e6.
doi: 10.1016/j.chom.2017.04.008. PubMed PMID:28494245. PubMed Central PMC5538893.
Yuan, Y, Zhang, Y, Fu, S, Crippen, TL, Visi, DK, Benbow, ME et al.. Genome Sequence of a Providencia stuartii Strain Isolated from Luciliasericata Salivary Glands. Genome Announc. 2017;5 (17):.
doi: 10.1128/genomeA.00250-17. PubMed PMID:28450516. PubMed Central PMC5408114.
Qiu, C, Erinne, OC, Dave, JM, Cui, P, Jin, H, Muthukrishnan, N et al.. High-Resolution Phenotypic Landscape of the RNA Polymerase II Trigger Loop. PLoS Genet. 2016;12 (11):e1006321.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1006321. PubMed PMID:27898685. PubMed Central PMC5127505.
Yuan, Y, Zhang, Y, Fu, S, Crippen, TL, Visi, DK, Benbow, ME et al.. Genome Sequence of a Proteus mirabilis Strain Isolated from the Salivary Glands of Larval Lucilia sericata. Genome Announc. 2016;4 (4):.
doi: 10.1128/genomeA.00672-16. PubMed PMID:27469950. PubMed Central PMC4966454.
Fu, S, Tarone, AM, Sze, SH. Heuristic pairwise alignment of de Bruijn graphs to facilitate simultaneous transcript discovery in related organisms from RNA-Seq data. BMC Genomics. 2015;16 Suppl 11 :S5.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-16-S11-S5. PubMed PMID:26576690. PubMed Central PMC4652555.
Edman, RM, Linger, RJ, Belikoff, EJ, Li, F, Sze, SH, Tarone, AM et al.. Functional characterization of calliphorid cell death genes and cellularization gene promoters for controlling gene expression and cell viability in early embryos. Insect Mol. Biol. 2015;24 (1):58-70.
doi: 10.1111/imb.12135. PubMed PMID:25225046. .
Sze, SH, Tarone, AM. A memory-efficient algorithm to obtain splicing graphs and de novo expression estimates from de Bruijn graphs of RNA-Seq data. BMC Genomics. 2014;15 Suppl 5 :S6.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-15-S5-S6. PubMed PMID:25082000. PubMed Central PMC4120145.
Radulović, ŽM, Kim, TK, Porter, LM, Sze, SH, Lewis, L, Mulenga, A et al.. A 24-48 h fed Amblyomma americanum tick saliva immuno-proteome. BMC Genomics. 2014;15 :518.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-15-518. PubMed PMID:24962723. PubMed Central PMC4099483.
Hsieh, MF, Sze, SH. Finding alignments of conserved graphlets in protein interaction networks. J. Comput. Biol. 2014;21 (3):234-46.
doi: 10.1089/cmb.2013.0130. PubMed PMID:24506222. .


text:
Accuen is a leading digital media acquisition platform that combines media, data, technology and strategy to buy the audiences you want to reach at scale.
Globaltakeoff.net is one of the fast growing next generation CPM Online Advertising Networking allowing the advertisers to reach targeted and qualified ...
Accuen Media is leading in Top 10K Sites, Top 100K Sites and Top 1M Sites.
GlobalTakeoff has better usage coverage in more websites categories. Including Arts & Entertainment, People & Society, Movies, TV & Video and 35 other categories.
Accuen Media is leading in News & Media, Business & Industry, Marketing & Advertising, Travel and 14 other categories.
Accuen Media is leading in most countries, including United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France and 12 other countries.
GlobalTakeoff is leading in India, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Mexico and 7 other countries.


text:
Thirty Million Words (2015) explains the importance of language in a child's early development and long-term success. These blinks outline the optimal early language environment for a child and highlight the ways parents can help their children during these critical years.
Dana Suskind is a surgeon specializing in hearing loss and cochlear implantation. She is the founder of the Thirty Million Words initiative, a program focused on the critical importance of early language exposure on a developing child.


text:
Member Log-in
Country / Region
Login to your membership account
your trip
Check in
Flight info
Your trip
Your flight will depart from outside of United States of America.You will be redirected to Vietnamese site of Vietnam Airlines to make this transaction.Your transaction will be subject to Vietnamese terms and conditions and will be charged in Vietnamese Dong (VND).
Adults (≥12 yrs)
Children(2<12 yrs)
Infant (<2 yrs)
Please enter one of the following:
Passenger Name:
Reservation code:
Email address:
Your email address is blank. Please update:
Please ensure you input the family name as it appears in your ticket
You can check in with one of below options
(06 caplock letters)
Adults (≥12 yrs)
Children(2<12 yrs)
Infant (<2 yrs)
Passenger Name:
Reservation code:
Email address:
Your email address is blank. Please update:
Check in Online
Flight info
Your trip
View Your Itinerary
Departure day
The delay or cancellation flight is not the desire of airlines and passengers. Vietnam Airlines shall make every effort to take care of you as well as possible due to our fault. We sincerely apologize and hope to receive your sympathy.
1. Services provision at the airport
The passenger having confirmed ticket and having been informed of the delayed/cancellation shall be provided with following service:
2. Compensation payment
In case of long delay, cancellation or denied boarding on flights departing from Viet Nam, passengers shall be compensated as Circular 14/2015/TT-BGTVT dated 27/04/2015 signed by the Minister of Transport on non-refundable advance compensation in air transport. For flights outside Viet Nam, compensation shall be applied in compliance with the current law of concerned countries or our regulations.
3. Waiver of liability
Under the provisions of the Government of Vietnam relevant countries, we shall be exempt obligation to provide services and compensation in the following cases:
4. Refund
In situations with delay/cancellation, passenger's ticket is made according to law and our regulation.
All restrictions, penalty fees, additional fare and surcharges (if any) are waived for passengers travelling on domestic or international flights departing from Vietnam in the following cases (i) the confirmed flight delays more than 2 hours; (ii) The confirmed flight departs earlier than scheduled; (iii) passengers are denied boarding on the confirmed flight. Please contact Vietnam Airlines for more details.
Passengers may access legal document as follows for more information:


text:
" Brand: LeapFrog / Age: 4 Years+ / Type: Reading / Writing / Electronic Learning "
* Prices may differ from that shown
==Getting the Book==
We were given the Leappad console system and a load of books and cartridges to go with it too, our friends children had outgrown them but as they still worked well she gave them to us. As the system was used mainly by her son we have ended up with more games aimed and boys really but as my daughter likes a wide range of characters it doesn't matter to her. I am not going to bore you with information about the actual console as I have already written a review on the console and don't want to repeat myself and bore you all.
You can still get hold of the console even though Leapfrog have brought out a much more up to date version, you can pick these up pretty cheaply second hand although you can still get some of the books new on Amazon aswell as used, you can pay anything from £4 to £23 per book, I certainly wouldn't be paying £23.
==The Front Cover==
The front cover of the book is made of thin card but has a glossy finish to it so is pretty strong. The book has a plastic covered metal spiral down the left hand side and then there is a red strip which tells you about the book. The main part of the front cover has a couple of the Cars characters such as Lightening McQueen and Rusty on the front of it and they are racing down the road. The red strip on the book has the Leapfrog logo on it, the age range which for this book is for ages 4-6 and a description of what this book should teach your child, this book is for reading and mathematics. It also covers,
Reading comprehension
Short Vowels
Parts of Speech
Compare and Contrast
Skip Counting
Deductive reasoning
As you can see one books really does cover a wide range of different things for your child to learn so even if they only got half of this out of a book the books would still be highly educational.
==To Use==
To use the book you have to open the Leappad console which is done very simply by pushing in a button on the upper piece and then the console opens up like a book. You place the book you are going to play with inside the console and the spiral fits nicely into a gap in the console. You have to place the cartridge which matches the book into the console which is really easy as it can only fit in there one way and then press the on off button to start your play. The console is easy to work on my daughter is able to work the console and set up a new book on her own.
==The Book==
Inside the front page of the book you have instructions on what each of the little pictures throughout the book can do, such as the game button, how to get the books to read and the volume controls all of which are very easy to work.
The book pretty much follows the story of the Cars film which was the very first film that my daughter actually would watch as she is a little strange and doesn't really like Disney films as she says there is always a baddie and they are scary. My daughter knows the cars film word for word and doesn't understand why this is a more compact version of events and everything isn't exactly the same as the film.
There is a go button on every page so that when you press it the console recognises what page you are on and then there is a speech bubble which you press for the book to read to you but you can also read the book one word at a time by pressing the pen down onto each individual word. My daughter likes to try and read the words for herself and then let the book read the word to see if she has worked it out right although this is a newish things she has started doing with the books as she begins to read more.
If you don't do anything for a while when the system is turned on it has different sayings which it will randomly speak to encourage your child to keep playing. There are little triangles at the bottom of the page one with a + on it and one with a - on it and these control the volume of the book although it doesn't go up too loud so it is comfortable for the parents whilst their children interact with the book.
Each page has a game button at the bottom of it so that your child can get even more out of them, the games cover a wide range of things that a child aged 4-6 should be learning. Sophie loves plasying the spelling game in this book where each picture of a car has a letter on it and she has to try and spell 3 letter words put of them, when she first started playing with this book she had the attitude of "I can't" but now she plays really well with the book and she is really proud of herself when the book congratulates her for spelling the word correctly.
Sophie loves playing with the book and the whole console system, she loves touching different cars on the pages and listening to what they have to say and I think it's great that the voices are the same as in the film. I think this and other books in the series have really helped to back up my daughter learning to read which I think is great and Sophie thinks is fantastic when she manages to work out a new word and she gets it right. Sophie hated reading when she first started school and I cannot say that this system has changed her mind but she certainly seems to enjoy reading more the more she plays with the system.
I think the whole system is a fantastic invention, it helps your child learn to read but also how words are made up so that they understand the principles behind reading. The system teaches a great variety of things and different books cover different learning aspects. The books range from 4 years to 8 years so there is loads of time to get more from this system and her younger sister who is only 2 has started to point the pen onto pictures and listen to it so I think she will be playing with this well before she is 4.
I cannot recommend this console enough and Sophie loves it, she will happily sit changing the books and playing through them all for hours at a time so I know she loves it and when she feels she has learnt something new or found a new answer she will come and show me what she has learnt - 5 stars.
Some of this information will be found in other Leappad book reviews that I have done but feel that they are necessary in each review for those readers that have not read the others. The main body of the review is different though and it's only background information that is similar.
We gave my son his Leappad on his 3rd birthday and to start with he was happy to just press the green go circle on each page to hear the story. Over the past couple of years he has been getting a couple of books from my parents and us for birthday and Christmas presents and now that he is learning to read by himself he is moving on to some of the slightly more advanced books and especially loves the books that go with his favourite films.
The Leappad is one of many electronic learning toys from Leap Frog. It is also available with a writing version nowadays but we have the original and it works by way of a book, a cartridge and an electronic pen that can be used to point to various things on each book. If you want to know more about the system itself, I have an old review lurking somewhere on the site about it.
***The Cartridge***
Before starting to use this book make sure the cartridge is pushed into the side of your Leappad so as it knows which book you are about to use. The cartridges are made of a pretty sturdy plastic casing with an opening at the side to be attached to the Leappad. This one has a picture of the Lightning McQueen on it as well as Cars written on it so it's easier for a child that can't read yet to see which one is needed.
***The Book***
Cars isn't a film that I've seen but my son and daughter keep telling me that I should watch it, but this means that I feel I can judge this book by it's own merits although I have been told that the story sticks mainly to the theme of the film.
On the opening page of each book are the instructions on how to use the book and these are quite simple really. Each time a page is turned you can see that there is a section of text that is read out whenever the green go circle is touched. This button also lets the cartridge know which page you are on. I'm not sure how all the electronic side of things work but just that it seems very clever.
There are also little pictures at the bottom of the pages that relate to games, repeating the question and volume control. If your child is reading the story and gets stuck on a word, that particular word can be touched and it will speak out what the word is. You can also choose to hear the whole of the text again by pressing the speech bubble beside it.
The story here starts by introducing us to all the cars in the story. Turning the page treats us to the story of the film, but once that has been read there are lots of opportunities for your child to explore the page further. Touching the different cars with the pen will let them hear voices that they will recognise from the film and other objects make different sounds too.
The games are varied throughout the book and all have something to offer a child in the way of learning different tasks. For example, one page has a spelling game to get children to spell 3 letter words. If they press the wrong car that the letter is on, they get a clue, such as try one on the blue cars. The book gives lots of encouragement even if they don't get the answer right straight away and a round of applause is given when they do answer correctly.
Other games in this book include number and shape recognition, as well as a good one that associates expressions with feeling sad, happy, confused or angry.
***The Learning Factor***
Each book has learning levels applicable to the age group that the book is aimed at and some of these might be a little bit tricky to start with so support is recommended. The games teach all sorts of things that will help children at school or just recognising things out and about.
The specific learning aids in this book that are highlighted are reading comprehension, spelling, short vowel sounds, parts of speech such as nouns and verbs, and counting, as well as recognising numbers. It is also highlighted for teaching children about comparisons and contrasts and how to find the answer through deduction.
***The Age Group***
The thing I like about this set of books is that they have an age group on them and this means that you can choose a book that won't be so advanced that they get frustrated with it but not so easy that they become bored quickly either.
This one is for children aged between four and six years old but I have to say that my son was using some of this age group when he was only 3 with some help from me, so it really depends on your child's abilities.
***My Thoughts***
I think the Leappad is one of the best things that we could have bought my son. He loves books but is fascinated by learning about anything and when this is done in a fun way with games and a good story, he doesn't even realise that he is being taught important life lessons.
This book was one that my son wanted for Christmas and like the Madagascar one he also received, this one was bought earlier because it was on for a fantastically cheap price in a sale. He loves to sit and play this one for ages and really takes pleasure from not only listening to the story but also by reading it himself. Being able to touch a word he is unsure of means he has the independence to use it on his own and not always have to be asking for help to sound a more difficult word out.
There are a couple of favourite games in this book that he will sit and play over and over again and to be honest this can get a wee bit annoying but it keeps him happy so who am I to complain. The first is one that is similar to one in the Madagascar book and features a story with words missing along the way. These words are shown on the page by blue, green, yellow or red and correspond to giant billboards with pictures on them. One set are all verbs, another adjectives, one are all nouns and the final one is full of sound effects. Children have to choose one from each group at the appropriate time and the story will be told back to them from the words that they have chosen. It's good because there are five pictures in each coloured set so a variety of stories can be made.
The other game he loves playing is one that has McQueen trying to reach the interstate and you see a maze of roads in front of him. Along these roads are numbers and when the game is started, the child has to move the pen along the roads until they reach the correct number that has been asked for. There are usually four numbers to get to and these go all around the maze in no particular order before the final one gets him to the interstate. This doesn't just help a child to recognise and find numbers but encourages them to have a good steady hand as the pen is moved over the roads. If it goes off the road there is a little reminder to stay on them next time.
***Price & Availability***
The great thing about this whole system is that there are a big variety of books around for ages up to 8 so if you have a three year old, it's certainly worth thinking about it. We thought it would work out quite expensive but there are always offers and sales on in stores such as Argos, Woolworths and even the official online store at www.leapfrogshop.co.uk.
We got this one in the sale from Woolworths for only £2.99 and I notice that it is selling for that price at Amazon just now too so it really is a good buy. Online normally this would set you back around £11.99.
Encourage your child to learn while having fun at the same time. This interactive book allows children to say it, sound it, spell it and define it as they interact with pictures on the page.


text:
One Big Happy Fame-ily, is a soft lilac with tons of silver micro in it. the formula was great and consistency was very good and coverage easy in two coats. but it doesn't come with the curved brush it was just like a regular flat brush.
then i try to do the string nail art, still i think it look very messy and too much gloppy nail polish there, but this is my 1st trial and im pretty much like it!


text:
A mother, her three-month old baby and three others on Saturday drowned after their canoe capsized and submerged by flood at Akenfa community in Yenagoa Local Government Area, Bayelsa State.
The canoe was said to have thrown its occupants into the floodwater after it collided with another wooden boat.
Canoes have emerged the most sought-after means of transportation in most parts of the state including the capital city since water overran the state.
Residents are forced to scramble for canoes mostly paddled by inexperienced persons to navigate the rising water at their peril.
Our correspondent gathered that three of the victims who were of Yoruba extraction died because of their inability to swim after the incident which occurred at about 9am.
The state Coordinator, National Anti-Corruption Corp, Princess Egbe, was said to have contacted members of the State Government Committee on Flood and informed them of the incident.
Members of the committee, including the Senior Special Assistant on Civil Society, Mr. Tony Ile, visited the area.
Egbe who confirmed the development to our correspondent blamed it on the inexperienced canoe paddlers.
"Out of the desire to make money, some unprofessional persons have rolled out canoes. The flood has caused us many pains," she said.
Meanwhile the state Chairman of the Civil Liberty Organisation, Mr. Nengi James, on Saturday visited the relief camps of flood victims to donate cash and food items worth over N1m.
James appealed to local and international donor agencies including the United Nations to come to the aid of the flood victims, lamenting that the situation had "degenerated from bad to worse."
"We are worried about the lack of proper documentation of the relief materials donated by individuals and we are calling for a special account to be opened for people to donate to avoid diversion of funds," he said.
Source: Naija.ng


text:
- Home
- Flights
- North America
- South West USA
- Hawaii
- Maui
- Kahului
- Flights to Kahului
Cheap flights to Kahului (OGG)
When is the best time to fly to Kahului?
Despite its tropical climate, Kahului is blessed with an all round balanced temperature, so if you're going for the heat alone, you won't be disappointed at any point in the year. If you really want to make the most of your money however, it's a good idea to travel from September to November. At this time the weather is pleasantly warm and dry but with fewer tourists. As this falls within school term time, the region is generally quieter with many tour operators, hotels and airlines offering much cheaper deals.
Kahului overview
Located on the Hawaiian island of Maui, the city of Kahului is the largest in the region, boasting a fully operational harbor complete with an impressive coastal view that stretches for miles and miles. Whilst this area isn't particularly well-known for its white sandy beaches, palm trees and luaus, visitors can still get a great taste for the local Polynesian lifestyle.
A bustling hive for travelers and commercial activity, Kahului is a must-visit for those seeking some much-needed retail therapy. Here you can while away the daylight hours exploring the many market places and malls to uncover the perfect keepsake of your trip. Offering both traditional and contemporary fare, visitors certainly won't be disappointed with the range of goods on offer.
Despite Kahului's reputation as a shoppers' paradise, this exotic island region is also home to the likes of the Maui Nui Botanical Gardens and the Maui Arts and Cultural Center. Spend the day strolling through the incredible gardens overflowing with lush Hawaiian vegetation before heading to the Arts and Cultural Center to witness a spectacular live performance as the sun sets. Offering everything from Rock to traditional Hula performances, you can completely immerse yourself in every aspect of Hawaiian life, from the ancient to the modern.
Before you leave this hidden gem, don't forget to take a short trip to the Kanaha Beach Park, where you can take part in various activities like windsurfing and kite boarding, or simply relax beneath the tropical sun.
Getting around Kahului
Kahului has several public transportation options including taxis and buses which are ideal for getting around the city quickly, but to truly experience this stunning region to the fullest, a car rental is highly recommended.
Getting from the Airport to the City
Kahului Airport (OGG) is incredibly popular with travelers because it is the main airport for Maui, therefore you can expect the ground transportation to be fairly good. As well as a number of car rental companies located within the airport, there is also a taxi rank outside. The fare into downtown Kahului will be pretty cheap, but check the price with your driver before departing. If you prefer, there is a shuttle bus traveling direct to several local hotels, but check the route beforehand.
Join for free and get our tailored newsletters full of hot travel deals.Sign up now
Flight deals to Kahului
Kahului (OGG)
Kahului (OGG)
Kahului (OGG)
Kahului (OGG)
Kahului (OGG)
Kahului (OGG)
USA departure airports for flights to Kahului
Select the airport or region closest to you to compare the prices of cheap flights to Kahului
- San Diego (SAN)
- Las Vegas (LAS)
- Seattle (SEA)
- Oakland (OAK)
- Los Angeles (LAX)
- San Francisco (SFO)
- New York (NYC)
- Honolulu (HNL)
- Denver (DEN)
- Phoenix (PHX)
- San Jose (SJC)
- Chicago (CHI)
- Sacramento (SMF)
- Atlanta (ATL)
- Boston (BOS)
- Portland (PDX)
- Washington (WAS)
- Albuquerque (ABQ)
- Austin (AUS)
- Lihue (LIH)
- Dallas (DFW)
- Salt Lake City (SLC)
- Miami (MIA)
- Pittsburgh (PIT)
- Memphis (MEM)
- Ontario (ONT)
- Philadelphia (PHL)
- Houston (IAH)
- St Louis (STL)
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL)
International departures to Kahului
- Departing from Australia: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Canada: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Hong Kong: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Indonesia: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Malaysia: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Nigeria: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from New Zealand: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Philippines: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Singapore: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from UK & Ireland: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from South Africa: Flights to Kahului
- Departing from Qatar: Flights to Kahului
This is useful information about Kahului
More useful information about Kahului
- Book a last minute flight to Maui and see Humpback whales migrate from Alaskan waters every autumn.
- The second largest island in Hawaii, Maui has two large volcanoes divided by a tropical central valley.
- The Shops at Wailea offer high-end retail therapy, including Maui-exclusive boutiques and art galleries.
- At Haleakala National Park, you can walk into the crater of the largest dormant volcano in the world.
- Non-stop Maui flights will allow you to live near The Garden of Eden, a botanical garden and arboretum.
- Kihei Beach is one of the world's longest white sand beaches that snakes along a bay.
- Direct flights to Maui would have you arrive at Hana Airport, Kahului Airport Airport, or Kapalua Airport.
- Visit The Carthaginian II, a ship museum dedicated to whaling and whales, in Lahaina.
- Maui flights will get you one step closer to snorkeling or scuba diving at the volcanic crater Molokini.
- While in Maui, check out the Pineapple Plantation Tour.


text:
|1,100 sq. ft.
|Property type
|Minimum Stay
|2 - 3 nights
'Deer Meadow Retreat': This beautiful mountain hideaway is tucked away in its own private valley near the end of a cul de sac road where the only passersby will be you. The meadow is graced with wildflowers and frequently visited by wildlife including deer, fox and occasionally a bear. Relax on the front deck and take in the panoramic views of pine and aspen forests on the surrounding hillsides. Soaking in the hot tub on a moonless night will open up another world, with more stars in the sky than you could have ever imagined.
And yet, your vacation paradise is conveniently located between Divide and Cripple Creek, less than a mile off the main highway, on a county maintained road that is easily accessible year round. You are only 45 minutes from Colorado Springs, 10 miles from historic Cripple Creek, and surrounded by state parks, hiking trails and back road jeep trails.
The home features new paint inside and out, new carpet and flooring, including ceramic tile, and many luxury items such as an Italian leather sofa and new pillow top mattresses. The decor is a warm mix of Southwestern and Mexican art, making each room a different experience of color and flair.
After a busy day of activities or visiting the many local tourist attractions, you can wind down in front of your beautiful Southwestern tiled gas fireplace, enjoying dish TV, your own DVDs or some of ours. The bedding is comfortably set up with 3 Queens.
You will never want to leave the Colorado Rockies after a few days at our 'Deer Meadow Retreat'!!
**MORE PHOTOS available upon request**
Amenities: Complete kitchen including coffee, tea, spices, foil and plastic wrap, washer, dryer, local phone, dish TV in living room and master, VCR, DVD, hot tub, gas fireplace, gas BBQ grill, deck furniture, towels and linens provided.
Nearby activities include less than 2 hours to World Class Skiing or White Water Rafting Also:
The Dinosaur Museum and fine restaurants in Woodland Park,
Gambling and restaurants in historical Cripple Creek,
Mueller State Park,
Florissant Fossil Beds,
Seven Falls,
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo,
North Pole,
Cave of the Winds,
Royal Gorge,
Pikes Peak,
Garden of the Gods,
Air Force Academy,
Fishing at Eleven Mile Reservoir or South Platte River,
Historical Victor, Gold Mines and Gold Belt Tour,
Molly Kathleen Gold Mine Tour,
Prime location for fall Aspen Viewing.
Gay and Gary Liberty have recently moved to Woodland Park and personally manage and maintain their three vacation rental cabins in the Pikes Peak area. Gary is retired from Air Force Reserves and his civil service career as an aircraft mechanic. Gay has many years of experience in the hospitality field in both resort marketing and hotel reservations and front desk. They are delighted to share their love of the Colorado mountains and their love of each special cabin setting to ensure a memorable and relaxing vacation experience for their guests.
Gay and Gary Liberty purchased this house in 1998
At the time when Deer Meadow Retreat was built, Gay...a mountian gal at heart...had been living in Divide and in the Rainbow Valley development for several years. Having some extra cash to invest, she shopped for quite some time to locate the right piece of land for the home she had personally selected as well. The intent was to rent the house conventionally, which she did for several years. Everything changed once she and Gary, now married, decided to update the house and rent it as a vacation rental because, for several years they had been living in Peyton, CO and for the first time they could enjoy the cabin and the location themselves!
Hi Gay and Gary
Well, we've been home for a week, and I wish I was still there in Colorado. We had a great time, and your cabin was wonderful. We had time to relax, time to explore, time to play, and time to re-connect. We had deer, elk, a fox, more deer, raccoons, and something that I'm not sure what it was (a pair of eyes peering at me at night, definitely not a hoofed creature) at the cabin.
It was 106 degrees in Riverside today.
I've got to figure out a way to spend more of my summers in Colorado.
Thanks again for sharing your cabin with us.
Riverside, CA
Hiking, scenic drives, tourist and historical attractions, gambling.
This was a very quiet and relaxing place to stay. The property was clean and well stocked. We have 4 kids ranging in age from 5-14 and enjoyed every minute. It was far enough from other houses that you didn't have any noise, which is surprising considering that there is a busy highway only a short distance away. The only problem we had was that we have a large diesel truck and couldn't make the hairpin turns to get to it and into the driveway. We had to make several tries at it backing up and going forward again. But it could not be helped, and was definitely worth it! There is a nice little grocery store just a few minutes away. We also really enjoyed the hot tub. My kids all had a blast! We would definitely recommend it to anyone!
I love how everything we needed was stock , we all love the view and overall enjoyed it . Hopefully next time we will stay for
Longer .
Great place to spend a weekend. Clean, comfortable, and very well equipped. The kitchen had everything we needed. The hot tub was very clean. Plenty of towels, linens, and blankets if you need them. The view was fabulous! Very peaceful and private. Didn't see any deer, but enjoyed watching a coyote come down to the valley to hunt each morning. Will definitely recommend to family and friends!
We loved our stay in the cabin! First night after the 9 hour drive we hopped right in the hot tub and were able to take in the beautiful night sky!
My boyfriend and I stayed the weekend before Valentine's day and had an amazing and relaxing weekend. The property is very clean and the house is cozy and comfortable. Upon arriving I ran around the house squeaking in excitement and taking everything in. Gay and Gary provided everything we needed from kitchen supplies to towels and toiletries. They also had wildlife guides and a binder full of nearby trails with maps and attractions which came in really handy as we didn't get cell reception and hadn't planned our outings beforehand. I loved that there was no cell service (t-mobile), it really added to the feel of "getting away from everything." We took advantage of the hot tub every chance we could get, and loved looking out over the porch to the beautiful views, especially after it had snowed. We even got to watch a fox trotting around the property! There are some other properties visible from the porch, but they were far enough away that we felt secluded. I also loved the fireplace and extra blankets as I get cold very easily. There were plenty of books, games, and movies to keep us entertained when we felt like staying in, and great sights to see when we wanted to explore. It was the perfect getaway spot and we loved every minute of our stay!
This home is simple, clean and quiet. We sledded out back on a very steep hill. (Oh my goodness, it was steep and FAST! )The hot tub was lovely on a moonless night; we saw a shooting star on New Year's Eve! The location is very convenient and I would definitely recommend this rental. My only suggestion is that the owner put in another comfy chair for the living room and that they repair the dryer. (It works, but doesn't get hot enough to dry the towels in a timely manner.) Other than those two little things, we LOVED it!
|Refundable damage deposit
|$59 + Tax
|Tax Rate
Add 3.9% State & Local Taxes
$150 damage deposit (fully refundable if property is left as found and no damage or missing items)
50% Deposit due at booking; balance due 45 days prior to arrival.
Until confirmed, rates and policies are subject to change.
Pets must be approved, inquire as to policy and fees will vary
Cleaning fees start at $59- 4 persons
Christmas and New Years weeks rent for $150/night based on 4 persons


text:
Sign up to stay in touch!
Thank you! You have successfully subscribed to Skipjack's newsletter.
Your cart is currently empty.
There's a world of great old bells available today on the market without clappers. Finding the right size or any replacement clapper to fit has been a difficult task...until now.
Handcrafted steel bell clapper made for large bells. Features a steel clapper stem, 1 1/2 inch stainless steel ball, and eye for attaching a bell rope. Available in lengths up to 15 inches with a standard length of 8 inches. Comes with a shackle for attachment. Expect up to two-three weeks for orders to be completed.
Measure the clapper from where it will hook on to the bell to the point of strike (center of ball) then subtract 1" to allow for the attachment shackle. See illustration below.
Thank you for shopping at Skipjack Nautical Wares & Marine Art Gallery, dealers in authentic nautical maritime antiques, collectibles, maritime ship salvage and hardware. OUR STORE offers for sale exceptional, quality nautical furniture and furnishings, nautical lamps and lighting, marine instruments, model boats, nautical gifts and decor. We're everything nautical!
Skipjack's Marine Art Gallery features exceptional works of art in various media representing artists from our region and as far away as New Zealand! Each artist that we show is chosen for their unique style of artwork, and has an artist page where you can preview their individual work. You can also browse art categorized by genre.
Please visit our online store again soon or if in the Hampton Roads (Tidewater) coastal region of Virginia, visit our marine gallery in historic Olde Towne Portsmouth. We're just a short distance from Virginia Beach, Colonial Williamsburg and the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and just across the river from downtown Norfolk. By boat, we're located at mile marker "0" of the Atlantic Intra-coastal Waterway!


text:
Rehtaeh Parsons, her father says, "wasn't bullied to death" by those who branded her a slut after she allegedly was raped.
"She was," Glen Canning says, "disappointed to death."
Compounding the tragic tale of the 17-year-old Canadian girl who hanged herself 18 months after the alleged attack by teens who were never charged, her father has stepped forward to tell of the sweetness that once emanated from his daughter.
Rehtaeh, who was taken off life support this week, "was always looking out for people or animals that needed help," Canning posted on his blog Thursday. "Sometimes her heart was too big, sometimes it scared me."
The alleged attack on Parsons and what followed had been likened to the Steubenville, Ohio, case involving two athletes and the rape of a 16-year-old. One of the boys in Canada allegedly took a photo of the assault on Parsons and "it quickly went viral," claimed the girl's mother, Leah Parsons. Rehtaeh was branded a "slut" and subjected her to bullying.
As the taunting continued, Rehtaeh became suicidal, and she hanged herself in her bathroom April 4.
Canning writes, "She died struggling to live, much as she spent the last 18 months. She hung on right to the very end, when the nurses were telling us if she couldn't be declared brain dead soon they couldn't use her as an organ donor. We couldn't wait any longer. She couldn't live any longer. And right at the last moment there was a change in her blood pressure as the last part of her brain gave away. She knew she had to leave. It was time to let go and find peace."
RELATED: Teen Kills Self After Alleged Rape in 'Canadian Steubenville' Case
He adds his daughter died "disappointed in people she thought she could trust, her school, and the police.
"She was my daughter, but she was your daughter too.
"For the love of God do something."


text:
Police believe violent robberies in Irving and Oklahoma are connected
Irving police think a man, killed in a shootout with police in Oklahoma, is the same man they wanted for a violent gas station robbery.
Surveillance cameras at an Irving Shell station caught the armed robbery in progress on January 19th.
Carrying a plastic sack in one hand and a gun in the other, the suspect strolls into the gas station and confronts the 53-year-old clerk, who was alone inside. He pointed the gun at the clerk and demanded his car keys. When the clerk refused and tried to leave the store, police say the suspect grabbed a metal bat and started beating the him.
The robber spent a full five minutes in the store before leaving with the clerk's SUV parked out front.
Fast forward two days and 200 miles away. A man shoots and kills the a bank president in Eufaula, Oklahoma, seconds after walking in. He also shot a teller who is recovering.
The suspect then takes a female customer hostage, leading Oklahoma police on a chase in the same SUV that was stolen in Irving. That chase ended in a shootout and the robberw as killed. His hostage was shot at one point after being used as a human shield, but is expected to be okay.
Police in Oklahoma identified the robbery suspect as 39-year-old Cedric Lamont Norris.
Irving police say they are close to confirming Norris as the man who committed the North Texas robbery as well, and believe these two incidents may have been part of a larger crime spree.


text: I called VZW they said its a known issue, and its reportedly related to the battery. What i didnt mention is that im on the seido 1750 ... they recommended i go to the store to test my battery. Anyhow since im pretty sure that wont work and ill end up calling again and probably shooting for a replacement, i was wondering if anyone has tried anything that has succesfully stopped the rebooting? I have 2 weeks left on the phone, i want to make sure this will not be an issue beyond my 30 days. I am not sure what to do, i dont like the X, this phone is perfect for me. If it works.


text:
Loring Wirbel
Loring Wirbel is a senior analyst at The Linley Group and senior editor of Networking Report. He has covered the semiconductor industry for more than 25 years and is widely known for his work as director of communications coverage at EE Times. Prior to joining The Linley Group, he managed the FPGA Gurus blog for EDN, the Smartbooks blog for Qualcomm, and the Smart Networks report for Adva Optical. He also worked on independent projects for Vitesse Semiconductor, Verdelogix, Vita, and Venture Online.
Loring spent the much of his career at CMP/United Business Media, where he eventually rose to director of UBM's market-intelligence unit. Prior to that position, he covered the communications, client-server, and mil-aero markets for EE Times (a CMP publication), writing numerous articles. During this time, he also spoke at industry events including ATM 2000, Communication System Design, DSL.con, and OEM Communications. In 2004, London's Pluto Press published his book "Star Wars: US Tools of Space Supremacy."
Prior to EE Times, Loring covered semiconductors for Electronic News. He started his career writing science and energy articles for the Tucson Citizen, then served as science editor for the Albuquerque Tribune. He studied computer science and electronic engineering at Michigan State University before earning a science journalism BA degree at the University of Arizona.Download a high-resolution photograph suitable for print purposes.


text:
NIVNew International Version
5It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations, the Lord your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.


text:
Greenlit: Developing Factual/Reality TV Ideas from Concept to Pitch reveals how to get an idea for a documentary or non-fiction/reality television series such as Touching the Void, The Apprentice or Supernanny from concept to commission and explains why having a great idea is not enough. Candid interviews with fifty top industry insiders – including international producers and buyers – reveal how globally successful shows were originally conceived and pitched; their war stories are in turns cautionary, entertaining and inspiring. Each chapter is stuffed with case studies, practical tips, resource lists, sample proposals and exercises designed to boost your skills and help you develop your own commission-winning ideas. Read it straight through for a master class in development and commissioning, or dip in to specific chapters when you need a refresher. Read this book to ensure your documentary or TV proposal is the one in one hundred that gets noticed.
Here are the links to the resources recommended at the end of each chapter:
Billion Dollar Game: How 3 Men Risked it All and Changed the Face of TV by Peter Bazalgette – the story of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, Big Brother and Survivor from the producer of Ready Steady Cook and Changing Rooms.
Desperate Networks by Bill Carter – an account of the LA TV industry over an eventful season in 2004-5, when hopeful producers were pitching programmes such as The Apprentice, American Idol and Survivor – and were all turned down.
Reality Check: The Business and Art of Producing Reality TV by Michael Essany – the former E! Channel talk show host describes how he launched his first show, aged just thirteen, and explains how he turned his small fry cable access series into an internationally syndicated programme.
Steps by Steps by Iikka Vehkalahti and Don Edkins – a step-by-step account of how an international documentary project featuring 38 films about HIV and AIDS in Southern Africa was conceived, developed and realized.
TV Mole: Development Moves – for information on who is the head of development at various independent production companies (use the search box to find a specific company).
TV Mole: Commissioner Moves – for information on commissioning executives at channels in the UK and USA (use the search box to find a specific channel).
Women in Film and Television has more than 10,000 members in 40 chapters around the world.
Whatever You Think, Think The Opposite by Paul Arden – with lots of pictures and big text (and easily read in the bathroom) this short book offers an injection of confidence if you ever doubt your creative ability.
Jump In!: Even If You Don't Know How to Swim by Mark Burnett – he explains why fear and procrastination are the biggest barriers to success, among stories of pitching and producing Survivor. Note that the first people he thanks in the acknowledgments are the 1500+ "show runners, producers, field producers, editors, assistant editors, loggers, casting associates, accountants, camera, sound, art department, unit and challenge teams" on his successful shows.
Broadcast – a weekly magazine devoted to the UK TV industry, including commissions, premieres and interviews with top industry players. Broadcast has a free daily email newsletter with the headlines, but you need to subscribe if you want online access to the full articles.
BARB (Broadcasters' Audience Research Board) – provides daily audience viewing figures (overnights) for UK TV programmes.
CableU – part of a development/distribution/representation company, CableU is an excellent subscription based website that analyzes US network performance, covers commissions and cancellations and offers detailed network profiles, including current briefs and pitching tips. Full access is currently $850 per annum but you can sign up to the very useful CableU blog for free, which has industry insights and interviews with producers and channel executives.
C21 – news and features about the TV industry. Various free newsletters can be delivered to your inbox; some articles can be read online, for other others you need a paid subscription.
Cynopsis – a daily email newsletter with new commissions, programmes in development, hirings and firings across the US TV industry. There is a separate newsletter for digital news.
Hollywood Reporter – daily and weekly entertainment industry magazine with a TV section. There are a number of daily email newsletters.
Nielsen – provides audience viewing figures for US TV shows.
Realscreen – an international magazine devoted to nonfiction programming. Sign up for the free email newsletter which is delivered Monday, Wednesday and Friday each week.
Variety – weekly magazine focusing on the US entertainment business but with an international readership. There is a free daily email newsletter with all the headlines but you need to subscribe to get full access to online content. Currently, nonsubscribers can access five pages on online content per month.
The Wit – another subscription only site that gives you access to factual and format programming commissioning and development news from around the world. You can also follow them on Facebook.
Likemind – a monthly breakfast meeting for creative people, usually held on the third Friday of every month in approximately 50 locations around the world.
Lexis Nexis – subscription news service with more than 4,000 sources. You can get free access to selected front page news stories, US military press releases, news programme transcripts, missing person information, among other things.
TV Mole: Ideas Generator – news stories, trends, exhibitions and new books are uploaded five times a week and categorized into art; books; business, documentary; history; lifestyle; multiplatform; natural history; reality; religion; science; technology innovations and videos. Click on the category list on the right side of the page to go to a specific category where you'll find dozens of short articles to help kick start your ideas.
Wikipedia list of historical anniversaries
Creativity by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi – drawing on more than one hundred interviews with creative people this book muses on the nature of the creative process. G
The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life by Twyla Tharp – an inspiring book by an acclaimed choreographer who explains her creative process and how to make creativity part of your daily life.
How to Devise a Game Show by D. Bodycombe – game shows are very specialized but you might be called upon to develop one, or to include game show elements in your format. This excellent e-book describes the development process, including all the legal considerations, in great detail.
HARO – Help a Reporter Out – a free online US-based resource that puts journalists in touch with experts and PR people. They have more than 100,000 sources and you can send a request for a request with an expert, information or stories to be included in their email newsletter, which goes out three times a day. Good for research: gathering background information and finding potential experts (do your own due diligence).
ProfNet – a US-based database that lists approximately 27,000 academic and corporate experts willing to talk to the media. Free to journalists, but experts must pay a fee.
Trading TV Formats by Chrisoph Fey – published by the European Broadcasting Union, this book discusses the issues around the copyright of programme formats and how to protect yourself. Although it's a complex area, the book does an admirable job of explaining it in plain English with lots of case studies and advice.
Writers Guild of America West – WGA provide a script registration service that you can use for your programme proposal/treatment. You don't have to be member and you don't have to live in the USA. WGA suggests registering drafts and works-in –progress with them and then registering the final draft with the US Copyright Office at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The WGAW registration fee for non-members is currently $20.
Writers Guild of America East – the WGA also has an east coast office. Registration currently costs $22 for non-members.
US Copyright Office at the Library of Congress, Washington D.C. – offers various services that register and record the authorship of an original work.
BECTU – the UK's media and entertainment union offer a registration service to its members for "proposals, concepts, ideas, formats and outlines, as long as they are written down in detail".
The Script Vault – approved by The Writers Guild of Great Britain, The Writers Vault offer a script, format or treatment registration service for £10. They also offer a useful 'notice of copyrigtht ownership' paragraph you can include when sending your idea to third parties.
Own It – provides a free intellectual property advice service for creative professionals in the UK.
Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writersby Christopher Vogler – a book aimed at screenwriters but helpful for anyone trying to structure a story: Mark Burnett's programmes, such as Survivor, make use of mythical storytelling techniques.
Addicted to Beauty – Oxygen – TV, online videos, original web series, merchandise, game, forums and blogs.
Battlefront – Ch4 – TV, video reports, blogs, campaign tools, partnership with Bebo.
Britain from Above – BBC 360 degree project: TV (BBC1, BBC2 and BBC4), geo-tagged original online videos, photographs, 'making of' videos, archive clips on YouTube, embedded Google maps, Google Earth, embeddable content.
Shark Runners Game – Discovery USA – TV (Shark Week), website, online game, email, text messaging.
Springwatch – BBC2 – TV series; website with blogs, message boards and webcam footage; official Flickr group with geotagged photos; book.
Cynopsis Digital – daily email newsletter with the latest (mainly US) multiplatform commissions.
Twitter – microblogging site where you can tap into what people are talking about and spot breaking stories as they happen. Try following some of the following (feel free to suggestion anyone you'd like to see on the list):
Channel 4 Education Multiplatform Commissioning Website – clear and detailed information about developing and pitching a multiplatform project.
Cynopsis Digital – a useful glossary of digital terms.
Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide by Henry Jenkins – an entertaining introduction to the ways that audiences respond to, interact with and repurpose old media content on new media platforms.
New Media Age – a weekly magazine dedicated to interactive media with a range of free email newsletters.
Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss – a slightly irritable guide to commas and semicolons.
The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White – the much loved classic guide to grammar, composition and style (Chapter V offers excellent advice that is particularly applicable to proposal writing).
The Guardian Stylebook by David Marsh and Nikki Marshall – an A- Z guide to tricky spellings, apostrophes and foreign accents (of the written rather than verbal variety).
123people – a free people search engine. See where potential hosts have a presence on the web and get their contact details. Beware as can throw up several different people with the same name.
Findatvexpert – free website featuring profiles, resumes and contact details of UK experts who are interested in appearing on TV.
Hollywood Representation Directory – book and online database that lists the contact details of more than 10,000 US talent agents, entertainment attorneys and casting directors. Updated twice yearly in April and October. Online subscription is $19.95 per month.
LinkedIn – check potential a potential expert's credentials and get introduced to interesting prospects via your connections.
Red Pages – subscription website that lists the agents, publicists and managers for more than 20,000 international celebrities.
Spotlight Presenters Directory – features profiles and agent contact details for more than 700 UK-based TV presenters. Cost: £20
TED Talks – a non-profit organization dedicated to "ideas worth spreading", which holds annual conferences around the world where expert speakers from the worlds arts, business, science, technology deliver inspiring 18-minute talks. Around 600 talks can be accessed online.
Trailer Mechanics: A Guide to Making Your Documentary Fundraising Trailer by Fernanda Rossi – a short book, aimed at independent documentary makers, which explains the art of making a fundraising trailer. It's also useful for helping to crystallize your idea (and your motivations).
CableReady – a US-based representation company that will help you pitch your idea to an appropriate production company or TV network. They work with channels, production companies and individual producers anywhere in the world.
Hollywood Creative Directory – "the phone book to Hollywood" that lists staff titles, email addresses, telephone numbers and websites for more than 2,000 production companies, networks and studios. Updated in January, May and September. The book is approximately $65 or you can get a monthly subscription to the online site for $19.95 per month.
PACT – a membership site for UK independent producers that has a free directory of production companies, searchable by genre.
Writers' and Artists' Yearbook 2011 – contact addresses and telephone numbers for UK TV channels. Also lists contact details for UK production companies, including their area of expertise, contact name, telephone number and website. Updated annually.
Writer's Market UK 2009 by Ed: Caroline Taggart – contains useful list of UK TV channels with contact details, an overview of the type of content transmitted, submission details and staff email formula. Also lists contact details for UK production companies, including websites. Updated annually.
Creating a Presentation in Microsoft Office Powerpoint 2007 for Windows by Tom Negrino – an easy to follow – and very visual – guide to making professional PowerPoint presentations.
Keynote 2 for MAC OS X by Tom Negrino – presentation preparation skills for Mac users.
The Pitch by Eileen Quinn and Judy Counihan – a short, witty and accessible guide to pitching in the TV or film industry.
Give Me the Money and I'll Shoot! Finance Your Factual TV/Film Project – an introduction to ten different types of funders and what they look for in a pitch.
The Age of Stupid – an independent documentary about climate change that was funded by more than 600 ordinary people who donated money or invested in the project.
End of the Line – documentary was funded by grants from a number of US and UK not-for-profit organizations such as WWF, The Marine Conservation Society, The Waitt Family Foundation and Britdoc.
Blast! – an independent documentary about a group of scientists who travel to the Antarctic to launch a high-altitude telescope, funded via ArtistShare.
The TV Book Club (10×30') – More 4's new book club is funded by opticians Specsavers.
Alabama Film Organization – has a useful list of US film foundations and grants.
ArtistShare – primarily a site for musicians where fans can help fund a project in exchange for "access to the creative process".
Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation – UK foundation that offers funding to socially documentaries that wouldn't be funded by a UK broadcaster. Also runs the Good Pitch, which brokers "relationships between third sector and filmmakers" for social-justice films. The Good Pitch tours the UK and North America.
Indiegogo – provides online resources for "fundraising, promotion and discovery", where filmmakers can upload their pitch and ask for funding.
Film Finance Handbook 2007/2008: How to Fund Your Film by Nicol Wistreich, Adam P. Davies – aimed at independent (narrative) movie producers but has an extensive global directory of funding bodies.
Shaking the Money Tree: 3rd Edition: The Art of Getting Grants and Donations for Film and Video by Morrie Warshawski – a guide to planning your fund-raising strategy and how to apply for grants from corporations, individuals and foundations.
The Art of Film Funding: Alternative Financing Concepts by Carole Lee Dean – US focused book written by a TV Producer who founded the Roy W. Dean Grant Foundation, which has granted more than $2milllion to filmmakers. Visit her website to find out more about the grant guidelines.
UK Film Council – funds documentaries that are intended for theatrical (cinema) release.
TV Mole – Selected TV Conferences and Markets 2010 ¦ 2011
Documentary Television – blog of TV consultant Peter Hamilton, which reveals what channels will pay for their programmes.
The Age of Stupid – provides a budget breakdown of their £485K feature documentary.
TV Mole: Production Budget Template
CableReady – a US-based development, distribution and representation company that will broker deals between you and a production company or TV channel. They work with channels, production companies and individual producers anywhere in the world.
cmbusinessaffairs.tv – UK based business affairs consultancy that works on a pre-agreed hourly rate. Advises on development and production including drafting and vetting of contracts.
Rights TV – a UK consultancy offering business affairs advice to people in the TV industry, including guidance on development deals, co-production agreements, writer's rights and licensing deals. They provide a free initial consultation and a flexible fee structure.
Dealmaking in the Film & Television Industry: From Negotiations Through Final Contracts by M. Litwak – written by a US entertainment attorney and professor of entertainment and copyright law but aimed at professional and aspiring film and TV producers.
TRC Media – an independent charity that facilitates training within the UK TV industry. They have published a couple of eye-opening reports into development and commissioning: Inside the Commissioners and Risky Business. (Their research was done almost a decade ago, but my own, more recent, research findings echo theirs).
Filmography – a list of – and links to – TV shows and documentaries mentioned in Greenlit.
Select Bibliography – a list of books consulted, mentioned or recommended in Greenlit.
Buy the book on: Amazon.co.uk ¦ Amazon.com


text:
The Beachside Love Visa Gift Card is the operative definition of love letters in the sand. Although the "L" looks suspiciously like a hook, with all that might imply, we take this at face value as a heartfelt expression. Let a special someone know you love them and you're thinking of them. If distance separates you, or if you have never made your feelings known and want to be mysterious, send a Beachside Love Visa Gift Card. If distance doesn't matter, by all means deliver it in person before any more sand slips through the hourglass.
The Visa Gift Card can be used wherever Visa debit cards are accepted.
Please visit our FAQ section if you have additional questions.
Click to view the Consumer Disclosures. Click to view the Terms and Conditions.