text:
Mexican wolf recovery #fail
At the end of 2007, we published a story by investigative reporter John Dougherty called "Last Chance for the Lobo," about the "bloody mess" that had become the Mexican wolf reintroduction in New Mexico and Arizona. There were so few wolves left when the recovery effort started that many born in captivity were inbred. Ranchers didn't want the wolves on the land any more than they did decades ago, when they almost wiped the predators out. Wolves were illegally killed, or baited to prey on cattle so the feds would do the dirty work of predator control themselves. When Dougherty's story ran in our pages, 84 reintroduced Mexican wolves had been killed -- and there were just 40 left in the wild.
Four years later, the population has increased a bit -- to 58 wolves -- but little else has changed. Four out of five wolves released in Mexico in the fall of 2011 met death-by-poison within months. Stateside, three of the four wolves known to have died last year were illegally shot. (Although, this was good news, in a way, because fewer wolves died, in total, than in the previous year.)
A glimmer of hope was publicized over the summer: Two new couples had "hooked up," and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service hoped they would breed and grow into viable new packs. And at the beginning of this year, a male, M1133, was released in Arizona, with the hope that he would mate with the top lady dog in the Bluestem Pack, whose alpha male was poached last summer. It was the first release in four years.
But this arranged marriage -- like so much of the recovery effort -- didn't go as planned. Last week, M1133 was recaptured because he'd strayed outside his prospective mate's territory and the two were unlikely to meet.
John Morgart, then Fish and Wildlife's Mexican wolf recovery coordinator, told Dougherty in 2007: "Wolves can make it in the wild if it's just a matter of biology. Wolves are easy." That M1133 was snapped back up so quickly for doing what wolves do -- roam -- is another reminder that the relationship between people and wolves in the Southwest is still remarkably uneasy.
Cally Carswell is HCN's assistant editor.


text:
VIDEO BABY GRAND PIANO At Gigantic Art Space. Designed for use in concert, nightclubs or even at home, the video baby grand is a highly specialized, broadcast quality video effects system. Garnder Post and Greg Deocampo perform with the baby grand on Fri, June 4 at 7:30. 59 Franklin St., 212-226-6762.
ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES, 32 Second Ave., 505-5181: Call for information on upcoming films through May at AFA.
Art in general, 49 Walker St., 212-219-0473: Call for information about upcoming film schedule.
THE CANtor film center, 36 E. Eighth St., 212-571-2170: Call for information about film schedule & times.
COLLECTIVE: UNCONSCIOUS, 145 Ludlow St., 254-5277: Tue.Robert Beck Memorial Cinema, local, underground & independent films, 9:30 p.m., $5.
FILM FORUM 1, 209 W. Houston St., www.filmforum.com, 727-8110: Superstar in a Housedress, a portrait of Jackie Curtis, May 5-18, 1, 2:50, 4:40, 6:30, 8:20 & 10:10 p.m., $9.75 per screening; Upcoming: May 21-July 1-Igmar Bergman retrospective, 6 week, 34 film festival of the work of one of cinemas great masters, call for schedule, $9.75 per screening.
FILM FORUM 2, 209 W. Houston St., 727-8110: May 7-20- Godzilla, the original film with over 40 minutes of unseen footage, 1:10, 3:15, 5:30, 7:30 & 9:40 p.m., $9.75; Call about current films showing on the Forums smaller screens.
The new school, Tishman Auditorium, 66 W. 12th St., 800-319-4321: Through May 7-Dorothy Hirshon Film Festival, honoring the work of filmaker John Waters, call for schedule & times, free.
NEW YORK UNIVERSITy, Cantor Film Center, 36 E. Eighth St., 212-414-2688: Call for schedule & more information, 212-998-1795.
SCHOOL OF VISUAL ARTS, MOMA Film/Gramercy Theater, 127 E. 23rd St., 212-592-2195: Call for schedule & information.
Pioneer Theater, 155 E. Third St., 254-3300: Sun.SHORT FILM SLAM, show your original films and videos before an audience in a real cinema setting, call for guidelines, 2-4 p.m., sign-up 1:30 p.m.
Video Theater NYC, 85 East Fourth St., 212-868-4444: A new microcinema in New York, hoping to create a new niche for independent, low-budget works that are not big enough for the Film Forum or the Angelika, call now for more information, $5.
Join our forums
Email our editor
View our previous issues
Report Distribution Problems
The Villager is published by
Community Media LLC.
The Villager | 487 Greenwich St., Suite 6A | New York, NY 10013
Phone: 212.229.1890 | Fax: 212.229.2970
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Written permission of the publisher must be obtainedbefore any of the contents of this newspaper, in whole or in part, can be reproduced or redistributed.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
MMA event tonight at JFK to feature localsStaff report
August 29. 2013 10:19PM
For the first time in five years, Manchester will host a mixed martial arts event.
BONE MMA, which stands for Best of New England, will feature seven fights at JFK Coliseum starting tonight at 6:30.
Local fighters Paul Gaffney (Team Link in Hooksett) and J.T. Harold (Team Pit Bull out of Plaistow) will square off, with the bout carrying extra meaning for Gaffney.
His two children, Paul Gaffney IV (age 6) and Harlee Grace (age 4) suffer from Canavan disease, a degenerative disorder that causes progressive damage to nerve cells in the brain.
There will be a fundraiser at the MMA event to raise money to help the Gaffney family with expenses related to the care of the children.
"My kids are my inspiration to fight," Gaffney said. "I'm really looking forward to the fight. My opponent is the No. 2 ranked fighter in New England. We're both lefties with a similar game plan to stand in there and bang with each other."
The main event of the night features Traylor Trahan (2-0), who trains in Bedford and is a former amateur champion. He'll be taking on Phil Parrish (1-0).
Show promoter Ryan Fennelly said it was difficult to get the event off the ground in Manchester, but is hopeful this could lead to more down the road.
"We had a lot of hoops to jump through with the city. The last MMA event here was in 2008," Fennelly said. "People said it was a challenge to do it here and that made me want to do it even more."
Tickets are available at the door and cost $40 for general admission.


text:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 5 large eggs
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 3 tablespoons dark rum
- 2 tablespoons dark corn syrup
- 3/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1
- Rum raisin ice cream
- 4 cups chopped tropical fruit (such as pineapple, mango, papaya, and guava)
- Toasted chopped pecans
Recipe Preparation
For Cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 3-inch-high sides. Whisk flour and baking powder in medium bowl. Beat butter, sugar, and salt in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix 1 cup water and vanilla extract in measuring cup. Fold flour mixture into butter mixture in 3 additions alternately with water mixture in 2 additions. Transfer batter to prepared springform pan.
Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
For Sauce:
Combine first 7 ingredients in heavy medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high. Boil without stirring until sauce is reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 5 minutes. Cool slightly. DO AHEAD Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Rewarm slightly before continuing.
Remove sides from cake pan. Slice cake. Place 1 wedge on each plate. Place scoop of ice cream alongside. Spoon chopped tropical fruit alongside. Drizzle cake with sauce. Sprinkle with chopped pecans and serve.


text:
Detail Images
Current Color
Free 2-Day shipping on orders over $50. Learn More
Select style & size:Select options
7 Reviews
Upgrade your fork-mounted rack to fit bikes with 15mm axles.
With the Yakima Fork Adapter 15mm T Axle, you can transport your mountain bike on your fork mounted bike rack. Compatible with forks that fit 15mm axles up to 100mm wide.
- Item #YAK0293
Tech Specs
Gearhead Help
Tech Specs
- Reviews
What do you think about this product?
Have questions about this product?
Solution for common transport problems
- Familiarity: I've used it several times
I picked this up, so that my son can keep this in his gear bag when he goes on rides/races with his team, as often times they only have ways of mounting with traditional QR racks. This way he always has the tool on hand that allows the transport of his bike safely.
I have used TA adapters in the past, and they perform as they're supposed to.
Yakima Fork Adapter
- Familiarity: I've used it several times
A simple fix to the big problem of hub compatibility on roof racks. This made it easy. However, not all mountain forks are the same spacing, make you youre looking for the adapter for a fork with 15mm thru-axle spacing.
Yakima fork adapter was my quick fix!
- Familiarity: I've used it several times
Got the JetStream Base Rack Bars & Skyline Tower System and while everything was easy to install, easy to use and worry free carrying my MB's, one of my bikes didn't fit but I just got this 15mm T axel for adapter and it fit. Overall, super stoked with the Yakima rack set up!
- Familiarity: I've used it several times
It works well and secures fork with 15 mm axle. Should be cheaper as it is really small simple part.
Works in Feedback Stand
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
I use this in my Feedback Sports stand. It works great.
Works well.
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
There are not many options for fork mount racks and thru axles, this one works well. Agree with mkshort707's comment the someone needs to come up with a locking solution, but the product will extend the investment into my Yakima setup for many years.
4 stars for not having a locking option, otherwise it is a greta product.
Love it.
- Familiarity: I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions
Wish someone would come up wih a locking mechanism for it
I have the niner rkt 9 rdo with the rockshox Reba front fork. I bought this adapter thinking it would work well with my 9mm bike rack but not so fast. The Yakima adapter is 15mm x 100 while my fork is 15mm x 110 so there is some play and it doesn't hold the bike steady. Any ideas or a shim/spacer I could use? I don't think anyone is making adapters for these forks yet- help in Texas


text:
|Music by
|Walt Kraemer
|Sesame Street
The Pinball Number Count is a series of animated segments that debuted on Sesame Street in season 8. Each entry follows a pinball as it goes through an extravagant pinball machine, while the Pointer Sisters sing a counting song. The lyrics count up to the number twelve, with each segment focusing on a different number.
Animation was made for numbers two through twelve; a segment for number one was never produced.[1]
The "Pinball Number Count" segments contain common beginning and ending sequences showing the launch of the pinball into the machine and the exit of the pinball from play, respectively. Between these two sequences are different number-specific animated narrative showing the pinball in play. This middle segment features a scene in which a number of contraptions moved the pinball about the interior of the machine. These scenes are tied to a theme, such as an amusement park, a jungle, a forest, a European medieval area, a desert, US landmarks, international landmarks, a golf course, a circus, a baseball game, and a farm.
The segments were produced and animated by Jeff Hale's Imagination Inc. The animation was directed by Hale, who also developed the concept and design for the segments.[1] The actual animators included Ernie Fosselius.[2] The animation recalls contemporary psychedelic and pop art styles, typified by the ornate pinball bumpers, colorful geometrical motifs, and whimsical themes and devices inside the machine.
In 2010, a stop-motion remake of the segment done by an Italian animation studio, Florence Animation. The segment was entered in the AniBOOM Awards 4 Sesame Street and was declared the winner and aired during Season 41, as a part of Episode 4221.[3]
The music for Pinball Number Count was composed by Walt Kraemer, who also served as producer, and was arranged by Ed Bogas.[1] The vocals were provided by the Pointer Sisters. The arrangements in the eleven films reflect musical idioms commonly found in 1970s urban culture, predominantly funk and jazz, though other styles including Caribbean steel drum music are also represented. The number-specific middle sections contain one of three different improvised instrumental solos over a basic progression featuring soprano saxophone, electric guitar, and steel drum. The vocals work in similar fashion with wild lines from the Pointers shouting the various numbers from 2 to 12 at different intensities each time the pinball hit a selected target.
The 2000 Sesame Street home video Let's Make Music features a segment with Elmo and Telly sitting on the stoop of 123 Sesame Street singing the song accompanied by cast members of the musical Stomp using push brooms as instruments. This led into the 12 segment, which had pinball sound effects added.
In 2003, as part of the show's 35th anniversary, Sesame Workshop and UK- and Canada-based electronica label Ninja Tune released a 12-inch vinyl record for the DJ collectors' and beat diggers' market titled Solid Steel Presents Sesame Street. The maxi-single included a new remix of "Pinball Number Count" combining all 11 sketches and all three versions of the solo section into one extended track. Ninja Tune also produced a video remix for the DVD ZenTV and, for a limited time, also had a 1,280-by-1,024-sized computer wallpaper available for downloading. Strictly Kev, part of DJ Food, re-edited the song for the new mix.[4]
This reworked and remastered DJ Food edit was featured on the Songs from the Street: 35 Years of Music collection; according to producer/composer Walt Kraemer, this was because a clean master track of the original recording did not exist.[1] The remix video was released as a bonus feature on What's the Name of That Song? and Sesame Street: Old School: Volume 2. Pentatonix perform an a capella cover of the song in a Season 44 insert as part of their "Number Medley."
| The pinball finds its way through carnival- and amusement park-themed obstacles-riding a roller coaster, a ferris wheel, and some hanging airplanes until being dropped into a clown's mouth that enters a haunted house of ghosts and ghouls.
Solo: steel drum
(First: Episode 0987)
| The ball rolls through circus attractions. It is shot from a cannon, caught by clowns, and handed off by a ringmaster to a juggling monkey who tosses it to a lion tamer and his lion. The ball then lands on the nose of a seal and is launched by a hippopotamus to a pink elephant that runs it into the hole.
Solo: electric guitar
(First: Episode 0978)
| The ball passes golf-themed obstacles, a reference to the golf term "fore".
Solo: steel drum
(First: Episode 0984)
| The ball is kicked into the backseat of a car which enters a tunnel, from which emerges a bicycle with the ball in its basket. The ball is then pushed by a locomotive, then a magnet attached to a plane picks it up and drops it into a tugboat, which then sinks. After the ball is shot out of a volcano, it is caught by a blimp, which drops it into the hole.
Solo: saxophone
(First: Episode 0991)
| The ball encounters farm-themed obstacles. Rolling down a barn and kicked by a donkey through a heard of sheep, the ball lands in a haystack. A goat farmer tosses it to a chicken that lays it like an egg. The ball chases a pig into a barn where the farmer drops it into the hole.
Solo: saxophone
(First: Episode 0983)
| The ball rolls past famous world landmarks, including the Taj Mahal, the Sphinx and the pyramid of Khafre.
Solo: saxophone
(First: Episode 0989)
| The ball goes through the wilderness exploring forest-themed obstacles.
Solo: electric guitar
(First: Episode 1031)
| The pinball encounters mechanical baseball players and is chased under the bleachers and down a hole by a mechanical dog.
Solo: steel drum
(First: Episode 1032)
| The ball encounters European medieval- and fantasy-themed items. It is launched from a catapult by a knight into the mouth of a dragon that spits it to a giant that hits it toward a cannon that shoots it into a witch's cauldron.
Solo: saxophone
(First: Episode 0990)
| Mechanical jungle animals pass the ball around, including an elephant, a zebra, a lion, and a gorilla that flicks it into the hole.
Solo: electric guitar
(First: Episode 1034)
| The ball goes sightseeing through famous American landmarks, including the Statue of Liberty, the Washington Monument, Mount Rushmore, Old Faithful and the Golden Gate Bridge.
Solo: steel drum
(First: Episode 0985)
Muppet Mentions and covers
- A tribute song by Stephen Lynch titled "Jim Henson's Dead" was released on his 2000 album A Little Bit Special. In it, Lynch incorporates the tune and lyrics from the song into a myriad of other Henson and Muppet references.
- The Dead Hensons, a San Francisco Bay Area band, covered "Pinball Number Count" and has performed the song in concert.
- A cover of "Pinball Number Count" was released by the band Wicked Hemlocks on its debut album, Quill of the Mad. Stick in Your Spokes Records, 2007. NPR described it as "a brilliant and completely surprising cover."[5]
- The jazz-funk-rock trio Big Organ Trio recorded an instrumental cover of "Pinball Number Count."
- In 2004, a techno-style video-audio remix of the song, cut together with footage from the Beatles animated feature Yellow Submarine was released on the Internet by a UK group called Braces Tower.
- The 2005 Family Guy episode "The Father, the Son, and the Holy Fonz" features its own remake of the cartoon with character Stewie encased inside a plastic ball in place of the pinball.
- In 2010, Aniboom.com started a Sesame Street animation contest that included a category to remake the original classic. Digital artists from around the world have now done remakes, including this feature at PinballNumberCount.com
In-show references
- In Let's Make Music, Elmo demonstrates ways to make music without using instruments to Telly. Elmo states that counting can become music and starts singing the chorus from the segment. He's joined by Telly, then Luke Cresswell making a rhythm with a broom.
- In The Street We Live On, Grover takes Elmo on a magical taxi ride through the history of Sesame Street. While trying to get to Hooper's Store, they instead find themselves in the ending scene of the cartoon.
- During a spoof of Just Dance in Elmo's Alphabet Challenge, the background is based off one from the segment.
- The clock from the segment is seen on the wall of an Anything Muppet's living room in a "Grovercize" segment in Kinect Sesame Street TV. The clock is also used as a recurring element seen in the "Smart Cookies" segments.[6]
- Audio
- Songs from the Street: 35 Years of Music (DJ Food Re-Edit-Special Extension by Strictly Kev)
- Solid Steel presents Sesame Street (DJ Food Re-Edit-Special Extension by Strictly Kev)
- Video
- The Great Numbers Game -- #12 segment.
- Let's Make Music -- #12 segment with sound effects.
- What's the Name of That Song?-DJ Food remix (as a DVD bonus segment).
- Shalom Sesame: Passover -- #10 segment in Hebrew.
- Sesame English: Rock On -- #5 segment
- Old School: Volume 2 -- #2 segment included as part of episodes 1056 and 1186, and #4 segment (the booklet said #2 segment) and DJ Food remix included as Season 7 classic cuts. Additionally the set includes a collectible reproduction of a Pinball Number Count animation cel.
- 40 Years of Sunny Days -- #7 segment.
- Elmo's Magic Numbers-2 through 12 (as a DVD bonus segment).
- Count on Elmo (2010 remake)
- Old School: Volume 3 -- #2 segment included as part of Episode 1316 and #12 segment as part of Episode 1576
Although mentioned in the packaging and promotional material for Old School: Volume 1, "Pinball Number Count" is not actually included on the set.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 A Letter from Walt Kraemer (dead URL, no archive)
- ↑ Muppet Central post by Sally Cruikshank
- ↑ Sesame Workshop - Aniboom Awards 4 Sesame Street Winner is Announced
- ↑ Sesame Workshop Press Release. August 4, 2003
- ↑ Second Stage: "Wicked Hemlocks: 'Number Count,'" NPR, 2007.
- ↑ "Smart Cookies" concept art by Michael Lapinski


text:
Welcome to the Virus Encyclopedia of Panda Security.
Windows 2003/XP/2000/NT/ME/98/95
Abwiz.AZ is a Trojan, which although seemingly inoffensive, can actually carry out attacks and intrusions.
It captures certain information entered or saved by the user, with the corresponding threat to privacy:
passwords saved by certain Windows services; keystrokes, in order to obtain information for accessing online banking services, passwords and other confidential information.
It sends the gathered information to a remote user by any available means: email, FTP, etc.
It reduces the security level of the computer:
it changes the security settings of Internet Explorer, decreasing its security level; it notifies the attacker that the computer has been compromised and is ready to be used maliciously.
Abwiz.AZ accesses several websites to download files, which it then runs. These can be any type of file, although they are normally malware.
Abwiz.AZ uses the following propagation or distribution methods:


text:
Factoring Benefits
Stop wasting time thinking about cash flow issues
and start spending more time on your business.
You are not burdened with having to make
monthly payments to repay a loan.
Receive money in as few days as two to four days.
Maintain complete control of your business.
Remove or lessen the business costs associated
with the collection process.
Gain a greater control over your cash flow by deciding
exactly how many invoices to sell and when.
Win the battle against slow-paying clients.
Increase your production and sale.
It gives you professional collection
and credit checking services.
Meet your payroll.
Pay your payroll taxes.
Provide case discounts for your materials.
Increase your purchasing power, allowing you
to enjoy bulk purchasing discounts or early payment discounts.
Improve your credit rating as you continually have
the cash on hand to pay bills on time.
Provide cash for your expansion.
Provide cash for your marketing.
Improve your financial statement.
It provides you with complete and detailed
reports about your accounts receivable portfolio


text:
FDA Voice: Dr. Yeboah, thank you for blogging with FDA Voice today. Can you tell us about your job at FDA, and give us some background on the origin and scope of FDA's Office of Minority Health?
Dr. Yeboah: Absolutely! The FDA Office of Minority Health (OMH) was established in 2010, as mandated by the Affordable Care Act. OMH serves as the principal advisor to Commissioner Hamburg on minority health and health disparities. I'm currently the Acting Director, and have been on board since the inception of the Office.
FDA Voice: What is the mission or vision for the office, and how did you develop it?
Dr. Yeboah: Our regulatory mission is to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities and achieve the highest standard of health for all. In doing so, we focus on three key areas:
1) Strengthening FDA's capacity to address minority health and health disparities through coordinated leadership on regulatory actions and decision making across the agency.
2) Promoting effective communication and the dissemination of information to the public, particularly underserved, vulnerable populations.
3) Improving and strengthening the research and evaluation of sub-population data associations with race and ethnicity.
This mission for OMH was developed after discussions with health professional groups, academicians, advocacy groups, industry and a cadre of leaders in the area of minority health.
FDA Voice: Can you tell us more about your initiatives to improve FDA's ability to address minority health and health disparities among racial and ethnic populations?
Dr. Yeboah: OMH explores the intersection between regulatory science and health disparities. The 2010 US Census estimates that minorities account for 46% of the overall US population, and current health statistics highlight poorer health outcomes for African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian American, Hispanic American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. Across racial and ethnic groups, a disproportionate share of minority communities are more likely to die from serious health issues such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer and asthma, to name a few.
The scientific need for understanding health disparities through scientific research is critical to eliminating health inequities and ensuring the highest standard of health for all.
As highlighted in FDA's Strategic Priorities 2011-2015, expanding efforts to meet the needs of special populations is a crosscutting agency priority. Strengthening FDA's capacity to understand the complexities associated with minority health and health disparities can lead to better health outcomes for the most vulnerable communities, whether it is through epigenomics, personalized medicine or targeted risk communication among underserved populations.
In May we held a Webinar entitled Steps to Addressing Health Disparities. The Webinar discussed the establishment of the Office of Minority Health at FDA and also discussed agency efforts to ensure the safety, efficacy, and security of regulated products among vulnerable populations.
FDA Voice: We'd love to hear about the initiatives and partnerships you are working on to address health disparities. I know there are a lot of them, but if you could give us some details that would be great!
Dr. Yeboah: Yes – as we talked about, OMH is looking to find opportunities for collaborating in the areas related to minority health, health disparities and issues of personalized medicine. So far this year we have been able to finalize four University-based research partnerships:
- University of Hawaii Hilo, College of Pharmacy
- Meharry Medical College, Center for AIDS Health Disparities Research
- University of Nebraska, Rural Health Education Network
- University Of Hawaii Manoa, Office of Public Health Studies
These partnerships are solely focused on examining minority health and health disparities from a regulatory perspective. For example, we have a research Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) with the University of Hawaii, Hilo College of Pharmacy, to work on reducing disparities in diabetes treatment and outcomes among Asian and Pacific Islander Americans living in Hawaii. And, to date, we have established partnerships with several Universities exploring issues of disparities in diabetes, tobacco and HIV/AIDS.
We have additional University-based research partnerships that are pending and have several collaborations with other organizations including the National Institutes of Health, with whom we are co-sponsoring the 2012 Summit on the Science of Eliminating Health Disparities: Building a Healthier Society, Integrating Science, Policy and Practice, in the fall. We are also partnering with the Centers for Disease Control and National Hispanic Alliance. We look forward to growing additional partnerships to address issues of health disparities from a regulatory perspective.
Find out the details on our MOU's. We have a lot of exciting and promising activities on the horizon at OMH!
FDA Voice: How is the Office of Minority Health helping to diversify the FDA Advisory Committees?
Dr. Yeboah: Last year OMH began a new initiative called "Enhancing Diversity on FDA Advisory Committees." The goal is to broaden the search for qualified advisory committee candidates who have experience with underserved communities.
Advisory committees are essential in supporting FDA's mission of protecting and promoting the public health by obtaining independent expert advice on scientific, technical, and policy matters. Promoting FDA's leadership role in addressing health disparities and assuring diverse perspectives on advisory committees are integral to achieving the agency's public health mission.
The expertise provided by advisory committee members is essential for understanding the safety and efficacy of regulated products on the target population, especially racial and ethnic populations, who are often disproportionately impacted by higher rates of disease, disability and premature death for conditions ranging from cancer to cardiovascular disease and HIV/AIDS to name a few.
It is critical that FDA Advisory Committee members have the expertise and experience necessary to effectively consider the impact of regulated products on racial and ethnic populations. Health professionals from racial and ethnic minority groups or who serve in minority communities often possess valuable experience in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease among racial and ethnic minorities.
FDA Voice: I understand the Office of Minority Health is also helping to strengthen research with clinical trials. Can you talk about that a bit?
Dr. Yeboah: We collaborated with FDA's Office of Women's Health, the Society for Women's Health Research, and industry representatives, and held the "Dialogues on Diversifying Clinical Trials: Successful Strategies for Engaging Women and Minorities" conference late last year to explore promising practices in clinical trials for the inclusion of women and minority populations. The meeting drew a cadre of professionals from various fields including pharmaceutical industry representatives, health care providers, patient advocacy groups and academia.
OMH continues to pursue the overarching goals discussed at the conference: to increase the participation of underserved populations in clinical trials with resulting improvement in clinical care and positive health outcomes, and to share successful practices in the recruitment, retention and analysis of women and minorities in clinical trials. For additional information about the conference or our office please visit the OMH Webpage.
Michelle Yeboah, Dr.P.H., is Director of FDA's Office of Minority Health (Acting)


text:
Her Turn
"Ryan and I haven't even celebrated our first anniversary, but our marriage is already in trouble," said Laurel, a 29-year-old who's been married for just 10 months. "Looking back, I see that our problems started during the year that Ryan and I were engaged. I lived in St. Louis then, and at first we had a great time going out with friends and enjoying city life. It was all new to Ryan, who comes from the small town where we live now. Then, about halfway through the year, I started gaining weight and feeling constantly tired. At first I figured it was because I was constantly running around and grabbing fast food. I didn't realize how heavy I had gotten until I went in for the second fitting for my wedding gown. The seamstress couldn't zip it up!
"Later, when I weighed myself, I had hit 140 pounds -- 20 pounds over my usual weight! I made up my mind to get back to 120 before the wedding. Ryan got me a membership at his gym and went on a diet with me. And it worked -- I took off so much weight that my gown was actually loose on our wedding day. But within three months, the weight had come right back. Eventually, I quit going to the gym, which really ticked Ryan off, but I just didn't have the energy. The first thing I'd do when I got home from work was lie down. Ryan would end up cooking dinner, which we'd eat in front of the TV. Then I'd go to bed. Needless to say, this didn't exactly do wonders for our sex life.
"On weekends, after dragging myself to work all week, all I wanted to do was sleep. Ryan kept asking me to go with him on his fishing trips, but I was too exhausted. Then my periods began coming every two weeks and were really, really heavy. And I kept gaining more and more weight -- some 60 pounds in all. That's when I finally went to a doctor.
"My blood tests showed that I have Hashimoto's disease, a condition where my immune system attacks my thyroid gland and causes hormone fluctuations that affect my periods and my metabolism. The doctor said it's a relatively rare condition that runs in families and usually doesn't show up until adulthood. When I checked with my mom, she said one of my great-aunts had had it, too. I'm taking medicine, which helps with the symptoms, but the disease can't be cured -- only managed.
"When I got home and explained all this to Ryan, I started sobbing. But he gave me no sympathy at all! He didn't even hug me. All he said was that I was making matters worse by lying around and stuffing my face."
"When it comes to hormones, guys just don't get it! I still get heavy periods every couple of weeks, and even with the medications, I have next to no energy. But Ryan acts as if my disease is all in my head. The other day, he actually called me lazy! And when he's not doubting my disease, he's bugging me to try some half-baked remedy he found on the Internet.
"When I remember how great things were while we were dating, my heart just breaks. We met in vocational school, where I was doing dental-assistant training and Ryan was learning master carpentry. We went out to nice restaurants, socialized with friends, and saw plays and movies. And we spent a lot of time with our families. Ryan and I both adore each other's parents, and his folks and mine get along great. We were the 'golden couple' everybody envied.
"Not anymore. Ryan spends all his free time on his best friend's farm or out fishing. Whatever happened to dinner and the movies? The other night I got so lonely that I called two girlfriends and went out with them to a bar for a few hours. Ryan was at his buddy's house, and when he called me at home, the machine picked up. He panicked and called my cell phone. When he heard the music in the background, he was furious and said I had no business being out at a bar.
"When I got home, he started screaming at me about how it was pretty strange that suddenly I had the pep to stay out until all hours. He accused me of exaggerating my symptoms and using my illness as an excuse not to do things with him. He said he has researched Hashimoto's disease on the Internet and that most people 'don't give in to it.' Please! It's my body. I don't care what other people are saying on message boards. I know how I feel! We got into a horrible fight and I ended up sleeping on the couch. The next morning I called for a marriage-counseling appointment. I love Ryan, but why should I stay with a man who apparently didn't mean it when he vowed to love me in sickness and in health?"
His Turn
"Laurel has completely given in to her disease," said Ryan, a ruggedly handsome 28-year-old. "She says she can't control her weight or find the energy to exercise, but I think she's simply not motivated. Look at the way she managed to get into fantastic shape in order to fit into her wedding gown. I've done research and I know for a fact that the worst thing for someone with her condition is to pig out and become a couch potato.
"If anybody needs to eat right and exercise, it's Laurel. The meds she's taking help, but lifestyle changes are what make a real difference. I showed Laurel the Web sites where I found this information. What did she do? She started crying and whining that I never give her any sympathy! Come on. I've read plenty of success stories on these Web sites, about women with a low-functioning thyroid who have managed to run marathons and climb mountains. Once they got into fitness, the problems with their periods and their energy level improved. It's all about attitude and a little self-discipline. But Laurel just mopes around feeling sorry for herself.
"One day I got so mad that I told her she was lazy. As usual, she started bawling. She claimed she was upset because I think her disease is all in her head. That's ridiculous. I know she has a chronic condition. I'm not a moron. But I also know that there are ways to live well with her condition. Letting yourself balloon to 180 pounds is not one of them.
"No wonder she's too tired to go fishing with me. I work hard all week doing carpentry and I really look forward to my weekends on the lake. Being out in the country recharges me, brings me peace. It would be nice to have my wife join me. But she'd rather sleep in."
"At this point, I think she's avoiding me. She goes to sleep before I do, so we almost never have sex. This is definitely not how I imagined married life. I'm young and healthy and have a normal sex drive. The fact that my wife would rather sleep than make love is a huge issue for me.
"But it's not only that. The night she went out to a bar without telling me, I was pretty peeved because going out drinking and staying up late is not going to do her any good. But she hung up on me and turned off her phone. I do not deserve to be treated like that when all I'm trying to do is get her to take charge of her health.
"The sad thing is that if Laurel could get hold of herself, we could have a great life together. I just got a union job with an excellent salary and benefits. That means we can afford to start a family soon. In fact, that was the first thing her dad said to me when I told him about my new job. He's a fantastic guy, and I love him and Laurel's mother as if they were my own parents. It's amazing how similar our families are, even though Laurel grew up in the city and I grew up on a farm. We share the same values.
"If Laurel and I got a divorce, it would be the first ever in either of our families. When I proposed to her, I pictured us together for the rest of our lives. I can't believe it's come to this and we haven't even been married for a year!"
The Counselor's Turn
"Listening to both Laurel and Ryan talk about their marital discord, I heard a subtext that I sensed neither one of them had acknowledged," said the counselor. "While Laurel's illness seemed to them to be the cause of their conflict, on another level each of them had a hidden agenda. Ryan had assumed that his wife would join him on his fishing trips, yet he never communicated that to Laurel during their courtship. For her part, Laurel had assumed that because Ryan had seemed to enjoy city life when they were dating, he would want to go out to restaurants, movies, and plays after they got married. Instead, he surprised her by retreating to exclusively nonurban forms of recreation.
"Of course, Laurel's symptoms made the situation worse. If she hadn't been so sluggish, she might have been willing to try fishing. And if she hadn't been dozing off in the evening, Ryan might have suggested one of the urban activities they'd once enjoyed. As it was, neither fulfilled the other's expectations, causing them to slip farther and farther apart. Even their sex life disappeared.
"I sensed, though, that this couple loved each other very much and, as Ryan pointed out, shared core values. I began by encouraging both of them to express their hidden agendas. At first they fell into fight mode, using accusatory language. Ryan said, 'You're too lazy to get up and go fishing with me,' to which Laurel retorted, 'You acted like you enjoyed city life but now you never take me anywhere.' I taught them to rephrase their statements to be less inflammatory, so that Ryan might say, 'I think you'd have fun going fishing with me.' Laurel, in turn, could say, 'I'd love to do the things we used to do in the city, at least every now and then.'
"As soon as I explained this to them, Ryan actually burst out laughing. 'Man, that seems so simple and obvious,' he said. Yet to them it had come as something of a revelation. With very little relationship experience between them, these two newlyweds were still figuring out how to be married. Something as simple as being polite to one another had eluded them. I pointed that out, and Ryan nodded. 'Both of us had parents who taught us respect, but I guess we lost it somewhere along the line.' Then he took a deep breath and said softly, 'Laurel, I'm sorry I called you lazy. That was a rotten thing to say. All I meant was that I want you to put as much effort as you can into being well. I can't stand to see you let this disease get the better of you.' Laurel's eyes welled up and she fumbled for a tissue in her purse. He pulled her close. 'I love you,' he whispered. 'I'm so sorry I seemed unsympathetic to your illness.'
"'I love you, too,' Laurel finally managed to choke out through her tears."
"After that breakthrough moment, Ryan and Laurel still had to make some practical changes. I asked them to begin eating dinner in the dining room rather than in front of the TV so that they could practice their communication skills and thereby cement their emotional bond. I also urged each of them to try to fulfill at least some of the other's formerly hidden expectations. To that end, Laurel got up early one weekend and accompanied Ryan on his fishing trip. 'It was a lot of fun,' she reported, 'and it was so nice just to have that quiet time in the boat together.' The couple also committed to a once-a-week 'date' in the city for dinner or a play or a get-together with friends. Additionally, although I knew he meant well, I advised Ryan to cut back on his Internet research and refrain from offering Laurel a lot of unsolicited advice about how to handle her disease. And I counseled Laurel to start eating sensibly and get back into some kind of exercise regimen. As a result, she joined Weight Watchers, and she and Ryan started an early-morning routine of brisk walking together.
"At a session a few weeks later, the couple was all smiles as they told me about a long weekend trip they took to Branson, Missouri, for their first anniversary. Branson is a resort town where they were able to fish on three magnificent lakes, as well as go to nice restaurants and live stage shows. 'We both had a great time,' Ryan said, 'and we made good use of the king-size bed.'
"Laurel blushed and nodded. 'I have to admit I'm feeling better now that I'm losing weight and doing the walking,' she said. 'I see now that all his research and advice weren't meant as put-downs -- he was just worried about me. But I had to be the one to help myself.'
"'I just hope that someday I can teach our kids to treat themselves better than I was treating myself,' Laurel continued, 'especially if they inherit my condition. I know now that it's not impossible to control.'
"'Not impossible, but not easy, either,' Ryan said, squeezing his wife's hand. 'I'm so proud of everything you've accomplished.'"
Originally published in Ladies' Home Journal, February 2007.


text:
THE OUTLAW KING Trailer (2018). Video courtesy - FRESH Movie Trailers
View the discussion thread.
Twarit Mukhya: One CRPF personnel injured as terrorists hurl grenade on camp in Pulwama
Terrorists hurled a grenade
Read More..
Full Speech: PM Narendra Modi in BHU, "Kashi Has Changed in Last 4 Years"
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
More Than 1 Lakh People Become Homeless In Assam As China Releases Water In Brahmaputra River
Six districts of Assam suffer
SpaceX reveals identity of the world's first lunar space tourist
Elon Musk's SpaceX announced
South Korean President Moon Jae-in visits Pyongyang
South Korean President Moon
Russian Il-20 downed by Syrian air defense forces - MoD
The Russian military say the
Putin & Erdogan agree Idlib buffer zone to avert new Syria crisis
Russia and Turkey have agreed
Playing the Victim: Woman charged for fabricating story about Trump-related hate crime
Authorities have charged a
'White Awake': US college under fire for creating 'safe space' for white students (DEBATE)
The US University of Maryland
Norway Report: 'Ill-informed' decision over Libya bombing in 2011
Years down the line, some


text:
Remembering when all things were possible
Growing up in the Midwest after WWII was special. It was a magical time, when Big Brother was in development as a concept of fiction. We were the last generation of kids who could think like Robin Hood and Huckleberry Finn, and experience our dreams and fantasies.
The world was ours to deal with as we saw fit. We could still live as we liked, beholden to no master. If we were clever, anything was possible. And that's what made my generation so great. We believed that we controlled our destiny.
When I was a kid, people worked at the same company all their lives. They didn't change jobs every three years in hopes of racing up a proverbial industry ladder. They were rewarded for their loyalty.
Lamentably, the world has changed. Technology has advanced to measures never before considered possible. Unfortunately, that technology has homogenized our thinking and stifled our imaginations – whether "intentionally" is yet to be decided. However, scientific explanation is readily available for anyone seeking to know if theoretical concepts are folly or within the range of possibility, and that alone discourages the timid from exceeding the boundaries of reasonableness.
If mankind had always discarded that which was illogical based on current scientific knowledge, we would never have had electricity or internal combustion engines. For sure, we would have stopped attempting to fly, and the idea of interstellar travel would have remained a myth.
I like to think that the instinctive way of thinking from my youth had a sensibility that gave us hope. It seemed natural to believe that love and marriage were meant to last forever, or at least until "death do us part." That was the ideal young lovers supported when they entered their union.
Divorce in those days was scandalous. People worked at making their marriages last. Today, drafting a pre-nuptial agreement to handle financial considerations in case a marriage fails is common practice. That practice makes me think that those involved expected their marriage to fail and felt that a "pre-nup" minimized the paperwork.
Even the idea of love having special meaning and magic has evaporated into the ether. People don't form relationships because of time demands and other pressures. They "hook up" to satisfy physical or societal needs with no sense of loss or obligation. The lyrics to the love songs and ballads of the 1940s and '50s refl ect the sentiment of the day. The lyrics in today's songs likewise reflect the mindset of the times and make the songs of yesterday appear sappy and corny.
Not only has our mindset changed, our values appear to be calculated using information gleaned from a computer database. We talk about teaching our children with accelerated methods of learning and uniform ways of thinking, as if we were programming them instead of teaching them. They don't go out to explore the world and discover life. They learn everything through second-hand information, including their values and political position. That is frightening.
Programming a generation to think, believe and digest information that they are going to live by for the rest of their lives would have been the stuff of dark science fiction when I was a boy. When we look at the big picture, and the contrasting ideologies that people are dying to defend in today's world, it is difficult to deny that we are turning into human versions of modern robots.
Political correctness is causing societal divisions to become more pronounced by forcing acceptance of diversity. We are encouraging hostilities, not stopping them. What was wrong with our country being founded on a Judeo-Christian religious platform? We were once proud to allow people with different beliefs to practice their religion without persecution. It was an example for the world to follow.
Now, we are taking strides to deny our beliefs as a culture, to assure that those who do not share our ideology are not offended. That is not what America's founders intended. If we keep thinking this way, "God Bless America" will be deleted from our repertoire of patriotic songs.
I want to believe in the magic of love, enduring marriage and the right to practice my religion with impunity and without embarrassment. I want my Christmas cards to say "Merry Christmas," my kids to believe in Santa Claus and I want to believe that one day, I will be able to personally fly. I like life in the American system that I can't understand.


text:
Filed under: update | Tags: 1970s, community, french, italy, nanni balestrini, red brigades, short stories, terrible community, tiqqun, zines
"Nanni Balestrini was born in Milan in 1935. Known both as an experimental writer of prose and verse and as a cultural and political activist, he played a leading role in avant-garde writing and publishing in the sixties. His involvement with the extra-parliamentary left in the seventies resulted in terrorism charges (of which he was subsequently acquitted) and a long period of self- imposed exile from Italy.
Let A Thousand Hands… is an extract translated from the novel La Violenza Illustrata (Einaudi, 1976). Using one of Balestrini's favorite techniques, it is a montage of newspaper reports of the death of Mara Cagol, one of the founders of the Red Brigades.
FIAT (1977) is a first-hand account of work (or its refusal) at the infamous FIAT plant in Turin, Italy.
His major novels are Gli Invisibili (Bompiania, 1987; tr. The Unseen, Verso 1989) and L'editore (Feltrinelli 1989)."
Theses on the Terrible Community
"Everyone knows the terrible communities, having spent time in them or being within them still because they are always stronger than the others. And because of that one always stays, in part – and parts at the same time. Family, school, work, and prison are the classic faces of this form of contemporary hell. But they are less interesting as they belong to an old form of market evolution and only presently survive. On the contrary, there are the terrible communities which struggle against the existing state of things that are at one and the same time attractive and better than "this world." And at the same time their way of being closer to the truth – and therefore to joy – moves them away from freedom more than anything else.
The question we must answer in a final manner is of a more ethical than political nature because the classic political forms and their categories fit us like our childhood clothing. The question is to know if we prefer the possibility of an unknown danger to the certainty of a present pain. That is to say if we want to continue to live and speak in agreement (dissident perhaps, but always in agreement) with what has been done so far – and thus with the terrible communities – or, if we want to question that small portion of our desire that the culture has not already infested in its mess, to try – in the name of an original happiness – a different path.
This text was conceived as a contribution to that other voyage."


text: There is a growing recognition in higher education that improving customer service is a critical step to ensuring students' momentium toward a degree and to improving student persistence. Yet, surveying professionals at 79 post-secondary instititions, we found that over half would grade there school with a "C" or lower letter grade for customer service. Customer service expectations from both students and parents continue to increase, and it is increasingly critical to meet that demand with a strong commitment to developing a culture of service.


text:
High Touch for High Tech
Financial advisor Elaine Meyers of Credit Suisse has attracted a loyal following among young entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley. What she's recommending now.
If youth breeds a sense of immortality, money only feeds it. Such is life in Silicon Valley, where young and wealthy visionaries assume that life goes on forever.
Elaine Meyers, a Credit Suisse advisor, has built her practice around that blind spot. She caters to newly rich tech entrepreneurs from her San Francisco office. For initial meetings, Meyers brings an estate planner and a tax specialist to address a young client's future. "They typically don't have an estate plan put into place," says Meyers, 42 years old....


text:
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Frenetic campaigning entered its last stages Sunday for make-or-break elections in Zimbabwe on July 31 with both main contenders calling for their supporters to turn out in large numbers to cast votes.
President Robert Mugabe, 89, spoke for two hours Sunday at the main 50,000-seat sports stadium in Harare that was not filled to capacity. He said his ZANU-PF party will rescue the troubled economy with a renewed black empowerment program. His campaign organizers said 1,138 foreign-owned companies still operating in the southern African nation will be targeted to yield 51 percent control to blacks.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai told enthusiastic crowds of his supporters at another sports arena that he wants to create jobs and rebuild the economy with new investments. He said Mugabe ruined the once prosperous nation through reckless policies.
"We want to build, not destroy. We will remove dictatorship using democratic means," Tsvangirai said.
Amid concerns of voting rigging, lawyers for Tsvangirai's party said Morgan Komichi, a top party official and the deputy transport minister in the coalition government, was arrested for questioning by police earlier Sunday.
Komichi reported being handed voting papers from a special ballot that was held July 14-15 for uniformed services on duty on election day. He said the papers, which carried votes for Tsvangirai's party, were found in a garbage can outside a convention facility where the state election commission has its command center. He said they had evidently been thrown away.
Police said he should have reported the find first to the commission before releasing the information.
Mugabe used his campaign to voice his criticism of same sex partners, telling a rally in the second city of Bulawayo on Saturday he believed in "castration" for homosexuals. Earlier, he described Tsvangirai as a "frog" and a "python" that nearly swallowed voters in the last disputed elections in 2008 that led regional leaders to intervene and form Zimbabwe's shaky coalition.
"We should make him vomit this time," Mugabe said. "Tsvangirai is a coward, more like my late Uncle Shoniwa's dog which used to run away from game when we went hunting. It died without killing a single prey and the same will happen to Tsvangirai."
Tsvangirai is to hold his last campaign rally in downtown Harare on Monday. He questioned Sunday why Mugabe wanted another five years in presidential office.
"What can he change which he didn't change in 33 years?" since independence from colonial rule in 1980.
Campaigning is disallowed on Tuesday, the eve of polling.


text:
You are hereHome ›
Narrow Search
Now showing results 1-10 of 11
In this lesson, students will be introduced to how the Doppler effect changes our perception of wavelengths of sound (pitch) and light (color). Students will model how astronomers use the line spectra of stars to identify elements in the stars and... (View More) the speeds of galaxies in the universe. Requires some special equipment for spectral analysis and a darkened room for viewing spectra. Suggestions are included for introducing the Doppler Effect for students unfamiliar with this concept. This activity is part of the Cosmic Times teachers guide and is intended to be used in conjunction with the 1929 Cosmic Times Poster. (View Less)
Materials Cost: Over $20 per group of students
This is an activity about the states of matter. Learners will participate in a demonstration to reintroduce them to three states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas. The demonstration also introduces them to a fourth state of matter, plasma, through... (View More) investigation of the properties of volume and shape as they relate to common solids, liquids, and gases, and to the mystery matter later identified at the end as plasma. The demonstration also covers plasma's connection to the Sun and connections to science related to the Interstellar Boundary Explorer, or IBEX, spacecraft. This activity complements other IBEX informal education materials. The demonstration requires use of a small plasma ball and, ideally, a slightly darkened room so that the plasma ball can be more easily seen. An instructional video explaining how to facilitate this activity is available: http://bit.ly/125ZW5k. (View Less)
Materials Cost: Over $20
This is a lesson about the formation of glaciers, ice layering and stratigraphy, and the cryosphere and cryobotics. Learners will collect evidence of layering, explore the science story that layering tells, study snow and ice for insights into... (View More) climate change, and learn about the tools used to explore ice layers on Earth and in the solar system. Connections between rings of a tree and rings in an ice core will be made. Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. This is lesson 7 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)
This is a lesson about the characteristics of ice as a mineral and how it compares to other minerals with respect to hardness. Learners will observe ice crystals, develop a hardness scale and position ice on it. Learners will also practice working... (View More) collaboratively in a team. Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. This is lesson 3 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)
This is a lesson about how and why ice flows, especially in a large mass such as a glacier. Learners will experience the qualities of viscoelastic materials and view videos of glacial ice flows. They will observe ice flows and materials other than... (View More) ice flowing differently under stress, and will investigate landscape changes as a result of large scale glacial movement. Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. This is lesson 5 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)
Learners will investigate how water and ice exist in the atmosphere as they study water vapor condensing, find that clouds are made of tiny droplets of water, and notice that snow forms in clouds. Activities include demonstrations by the teacher,... (View More) small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. In addition to commonly found classroom materials, dry ice, an aquarium or terrarium container, magnifying glass are needed. This is lesson 6 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)
In this activity, students will demonstrate the generator effect, which is due to electromagnetic induction when a conductor (a long metal wire) moves through a magnetic field. Materials required to this activity include: a 100-foot extension cord... (View More) with ground prong, current or voltage galvanometer, two lead wires with alligator clips on at least one end, and one compass. This activity must be done in an open space large enough to swing a 100-foot cord as a jump rope, such as a gymnasium or outdoor field. This is activity three of "Exploring Magnetism." The guide includes science background information, student worksheets, glossary and related resources. (View Less)
This is a design challenge about heat transfer and insulation. Learners will apply the scientific method to design and build a container that will keep items cool when placed in boiling water. They will practice collaboration in team-building and in... (View More) teamwork. This is lesson 4 of 4 at the Grade 9-12 range of the module, Staying Cool. (View Less)
This is an activity about polarized light. Learners will use a polarizing filter to build and calibrate a simple polarimeter, use the constructed polarimeter to find sources of polarized light, and measure the angle of polarization of polarized... (View More) light sources and attempt to measure the strength of polarization. This activity is from the Touch the Sun educator guide. (View Less)
Materials Cost: Over $20 per group of students
In this activity, learners will explore the properties of color filters and filter bandpass by observing light sources using diffraction grating and color filters and create a graph of percent transmission versus wavelength to characterize the... (View More) bandpass of the filter. This activity requires various light sources, a diffraction grating, and two or more color filters that are transparent to some wavelengths of light and opaque, or nearly opaque, at other wavelengths. This is an activity in the Touch the Sun educator guide. (View Less)
Materials Cost: Over $20 per group of students


text:
Aquarium project fishing for spot at Chambers St.
Rendering of the temporary aquarium that might be on the Hudson River near Chambers St. this July and stay there for up to a year, if not a bit longer. It will be about 1,000 square feet, but the precise dimensions have not been determined.
By Ronda Kaysen
New York Harbor fish might soon make an appearance on the bank of the Hudson River if a Tribeca marine science field station gets its way.
The River Project, a 19-year-old nonprofit organization, hopes to build City Fish, a temporary, modular outdoor aquarium exhibit next summer by the bike path/walkway near Stuyvesant High School. Designed with sweeping windows, the aquarium will allow passersby to observe native New York Harbor fish, invertebrates and seaweed from outside, although visitors could also step inside the 1,000-square-foot structure, which might open to the public as soon as next summer. Greenery will cascade down from the rooftop and decorate the ground level as well.
The River Project was displaced from its longtime home at Pier 26 for the renovation of Segment 3 of the Hudson River Park project. The Hudson River Park Trust, which is developing the park, donated park space north of Chambers St. to the River Project until renovation begins on that portion of the park. The River Project hopes to open the aquarium by July 4 and keep it open until construction begins near the bike path sometime in 2007. Last week, the River Project submitted a proposal to the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation for a $1 million cultural enhancement grant.
This is basically our one chance of doing this project, said Cathy Drew, River Project founder and executive director, in a telephone interview. Were putting all our resources into this [aquarium.]
Last month, the L.M.D.C. announced plans to distribute $35 million in cultural enhancement grants for individuals and organizations Downtown. The corporation received more than 100 applications by the Dec. 22 deadline and expects to make a first round of decisions in the spring. We are pleased with the number of responses, L.M.D.C. President Stefan Pryor said in a statement.
Since the River Project left Pier 26 this fall, it has been occupying office and storage space at Pier 40 at Houston St. and at the Tribeca Organization office on Hudson and Canal Sts. Although the organizations student intern program is operated out of Pier 40, the public programming has been put on hold. If the aquarium is funded, it will be the organizations first project open to the public since the relocation. Because of the brief period that the space is available, the River Project must get funding immediately in order to proceed with the project, which has only been in the works for six weeks.
This was a godsend to hear about the L.M.D.C. proposal, said Drew. If we dont get this award, we cant do it [build the aquarium] because there wouldnt be time to apply for anything else.
As part of the grant requirements, the River Project must match the $1 million grant with $1 million in additional funds. L.M.D.C. funds would be used to construct the aquarium and the matching funds would be used for operating costs. The Trust is also paying $70 million to build the Hudson River Park segment.
Trust officials have thrown their support behind the aquarium, which is designed by the same team designing the parks Segment 3, Weisz + Yoes Studio and landscape architect Signe Nielsen. However, the aquarium will be positioned on a swath of land slated for renovation and will need to move when the construction schedule demands it.
Its something that is definitely a consistent use in terms of the types of interim uses that weve encouraged over the years, said Noreen Doyle, the Trusts vice president. Although Doyle is certain work on the bike path will not begin next summer, she said, We cant commit as to how far into the following year it will be there.
Aware of the time restraints, Drew hopes to eventually relocate the aquarium to the Lower East Side waterfront, which is slated for a $150 million, L.M.D.C.-funded redevelopment of its own. As part of the East River waterfront redevelopment, the city plans to create several pavilions beneath the F.D.R. Drive. Drew envisions placing the aquarium inside one of the pavilions. You could see through the aquarium to the river, said Drew, adding that it would be inexpensive to transport the aquarium there. It would fit in perfectly.
Email our editor
View our previous issues
Report Distribution Problems
The Villager is published by
Community Media LLC.
The Villager | 487 Greenwich St., Suite 6A | New York, NY 10013
Phone: 212.229.1890 | Fax: 212.229.2790
Email: email@example.com
Written permission of the publisher must be obtainedbefore any of the contents of this newspaper, in whole or in part, can be reproduced or redistributed.


text:
Joe Dunne says he is expecting League One to be just as tough again next season.
Colchester United are preparing for a seventh successive campaign in the division, which is now beginning to take shape for next year.
The League One play-off final between Leyton Orient and Rotherham United takes place at Wembley, on Sunday.
And one further team will also be promoted to the division from League Two, with Burton Albion taking on Fleetwood on Bank Holiday Monday.
Doncaster Rovers, Barnsley and Yeovil Town were relegated from the Championship, while Scunthorpe United, Chesterfield and Rochdale went up from League Two.
And with the likes of Preston North End, Sheffield United, Bristol City and Peterbrough United remaining in League One, it promises to be a competitive once again next season.
U's boss Dunne said: "It's a tough division and it's going to be just as tough, next year.
"I don't agree that the league next year will be slightly easier.
"I think the teams that are coming up and coming down will form yet again the basis of an extremely competitive league.
"Teams generally with a top budget will get out of this league.
"But to get out of this division is hard and we're set for another tough season - I'm not going to pretend otherwise."
For all of the latest Colchester United news, including more on Dominic Vose's new two-year deal with the U's, see Friday's Daily Gazette.


text:
City engineers are predicting another trade-off when downtown bike lines replace car space next year: hundreds more cyclists get safe routes, while drivers alongside them could experience about a minute more of peak-hour congestion.
A new report lays out the targets that define success for the approved one-year trial for the network of barrier-separated cycle tracks downtown. Cyclist volumes will double or triple but collision rates will drop or stay flat, while businesses shouldn't suffer.
The one group experiencing any measure of pain, according to the targets, is motorists on the routes expected to lose traffic lanes, including 5th Street S.W. and 12th Avenue S.
During peak hours, a successful bike lane trial would increase travel times on those corridors by 20 per cent or less. For a five-minute jog across the Beltline, that would suggest it grows to six minutes when one lane is turned over exclusively to cyclists next July.
"There were going to be no misconceptions about that," said Evan Woolley, councillor for the Beltline and downtown.
"Traffic jams happen in the city. Hopefully, we're going to take a whole bunch of cars off the road."
The city's targets for automobiles along cycle track routes is the same or lower volumes, meaning that the safe cycling option may not convert motorists to pedallers on those streets.
Calgary's economic development agency was among the business groups touting the cycling network's potential to make the downtown more attractive for would-be employees who want biking as an option.
However, Robert Fernandez, executive director of its provincial counterpart Alberta Economic Development Authority, countered that after seeing the performance targets that forecast more congestion in the core.
"Bike lane planners have it all wrong. They are making Calgary non-competitive, unproductive and inefficient," Fernandez wrote on Twitter this weekend.
Pointing to his group's past warnings that traffic costs the Alberta economy billions of dollars in lost productivity, he said in an interview those extra seconds and minutes of traffic delay accumulate.
"There is a multiplier there," he said.
While transportation engineers have proposed the target, they don't know exactly what existing travel times are for those stretches. They'll measure baseline data this fall and next May, and keep tracking throughout the one-year trial.
"How much more idling time?" asked Coun. Ward Sutherland, one of council's sharpest critics of the downtown bike network trial.
Cycling planners predicted a two-way bike route on 1st Street S.E. would have delayed afternoon peak commutes by 30 to 60 seconds, or up to 22 per cent.
Council rejected that proposed route, but last April approved safe space for cyclists on 12th Avenue, 5th Street, and a route that starts on 8th Avenue in west downtown and shares pedestrian space on Stephen Avenue then ends on 9th Avenue in East Village.
After installing Calgary's first curb-separated bike lanes on 7th Street S.W. last summer, cycling counts more than doubled within months, the transportation department. Officials also reported that car travel times improved despite the trimming of road space, thanks to better traffic signal timing.
Coun. Richard Pootmans, who supported the downtown bike network, said he'd hoped better traffic flow without bikes sharing car space.
"I'm surprised they're working with a figure like 20 per cent (delay)," he said.
Carla Hills, a Mission resident and daily cyclist, predicted most drivers wouldn't notice a one-minute driving delay next o those bike routes.
"If a car stalls in the lane, everybody's delayed by that much. If a homeless guy takes an extra 30 seconds to cross the road — it happens every day," she said.
"It's so minute in actuality, compared to when you look at it in theory."
Safer space to get downtown via 5th Street will bring huge benefits to cyclists like her, she said.
"Being able to do so without having all these lanes of traffic or jump in front of buses like I've seen other people do — would be really nice."
Cycle track network performance targets, proposed (and how measured):
1) Public satisfaction with cycle tracks same or higher (telephone survey, interviews)
2) Collisions same or fewer (Calgary Police Service data)
3) Double or triple cyclist volumes (automated counter, video cameras)
4) Peak period automobile travel times up 20 per cent or less (GPS, stopwatch trials)
5) Illegal cycling on sidewalks or the wrong way in two per cent or fewer of cases (observations, video camera)
6) Lease rates for ground-floor retail spaces is same or higher (City of Calgary data)
7) Retail vacancy rate is same or lower (City data)
8) Customers' visits and spending goes up at adjacent retailers (customer interviews)
9) More customers per day at adjacent retailers (merchant interviews)
10) Same or fewer pedestrians and automobiles (observations, video camera)
11) Women make up more than one-quarter of cyclists (observations, video camera)
12) More children and seniors cycling (observations, video camera)


text:
Home Page
No RG Is Scheduled at this time
Mensa Testing
Mensa Testing
Our Oregon & SW Washington chapter offers real IQ tests which will qualify you for admission. They are quite affordable.
Click the link for more info.
How To Join
Intro: How To Join Mensa
Qualifying Test Scores
Mensa Testing
Visitor Info
General Visitor Info
Downtown Restaurants
Downtown ATMs
Tax-Free Shopping
Beer & Brewpubs
Wine & Wineries
Food & Restaurants
Top 10 Things To Do In Oregon
Ok top 20. We tried but couldn't limit it to just 10.
Top 20 Reasons to Visit Portland
Don't take our word for it...
Top 20 Reasons to Visit Portland
A mirror of the article above, just in case.
Symphony, Opera, Ballet, Theater
Zoo & Kidstuff
Universities & Colleges
News Media
City, State National
Public Gardens
Points of Interest
Big Events
Oregon Cities
Oregon Mensa SIGHT
Gifted Children
Intro: Oregon Mensa's
Gifted Children Pages
Oregon Mensa Scholarships
School Resources
Other Resources: Portland and Pacific Northwest
Oregon Laws & Rules
Books and Publications
National Associations & Other Resources
National Listing of Schools and Programs
About Gifted People
Gifted Children Quotes
Broken Links
Local Member Info
Local Member Info
Oregon Mensa Online
Oregon Southcoast
Mensa Jargon
Animated Homepage - Won an Award
About Mensa
About Gifted People
SIGs - Special Interest Groups
Bylaws of Oregon Mensa
Candidate for Local Office Petition
Newsletter, Calendar, Events
Newsletter & Calendar
No RG Is Scheduled at this time.
AG - Mensa's National Annual Gathering
Our Excom
Elected Local Officers
Our Volunteers
Appointed Roles
Our Wall of Heroes
History of Volunteers & Contributions
RG/AG Resources
RG/AG Resources
Event Management Tools and Tips for Local Chapters
Twenty reasons to visit Portland
From wineries and bars to cycling and aerial trams,
this is the best on offer in Portland, Oregon.
Mirrored from: TheAge.com.au
(click for Original Post)
September 30, 2012
Louise Goldsbury
1 Close to nature
One of my criteria for loving a city is how easily I can get out of it. In Portland, hiking trails start 10 minutes from downtown via light rail. A little further, Forest Park has more than 100 kilometres of walking tracks. Less than an hour away is Willamette Valley for wine tasting, or the Clackamas River for rafting and tubing. In two hours, you can be skiing (year-round) at Mount Hood, or swimming at Cannon Beach on the wild Oregon coast. A favourite weekend activity among locals is to drive 40 minutes to Multnomah Falls and go for a walk with views of Columbia River Gorge.
Bridge by bike ... the Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade floating walkway. Photo: Getty Images
2 Distillery hopping
It's perfectly acceptable to drink straight rum at 10am in Portland, as long as you're sampling the handcrafted spirits at one of its new micro-distilleries. In the past two or three years, independent producers (usually a couple of drinking buddies) have set up on the east side, making their own liquor. Buy a Distillery Row Passport for $US20 ($19) to receive tastings of the entire range at five venues within walking distance of each other. Don't miss House Spirits, which makes the world-renowned Aviation Gin, and New Deal's flavoured vodkas. Also included are a winery and a cider bar, a short bus ride away.
3 Craft brew capital
Portland has 51 breweries and more brew-pubs per capita than anywhere in the US. Combined with daily happy hours and beer festivals held almost every week in summer, this good-time town lives up to its "Beervana" nickname. Bailey's Taproom and Apex have real-time monitors displaying the level of each keg. Sidebar, on North Williams Avenue, showcases barrel-aged beers, and Cascade Brewing, on Belmont Street, specialises in sours. For a fun setting, McMenamins has converted a primary school into a pub, which also houses a music hall, a $US3 cinema and a cigar lounge in the old detention room.
4 The weird and wonderful
There's no denying many residents have eccentric tendencies. Apart from a prevalence of tattoos and creative fashion, Portland has the coin-operated 24 Hour Church of Elvis, (pictured below) and the World Naked Bike Ride. At the Peculiarium, visitors can try an ice-cream sundae sprinkled with insects. Be careful not to trip over Mills End Park, on the median strip of South-West Naito Parkway. Measuring 61 centimetres across, this patch of greenery is listed by Guinness World Records as the smallest park in the world.
5 Fifty Shades of Grey
In the best-selling erotic novel, the steamy scenes take place in Portland's Heathman Hotel - in the bar, elevators and dining room. The hotel, which is mentioned 19 times in the three-book series, has a range of themed packages that cost up to $US2750. A low-budget option is its Fifty Shades of Gin cocktail.
6 Stripparoke
Proving further that this is one saucy city, Portland is also known as "Pornland" due to its large number of fantasy stores and strip clubs. However, these are no ordinary establishments. One of the clubs serves only vegan food and the dancers are not allowed to wear (or remove) animal-based clothing. On Sunday nights, Devils Point incorporates karaoke. At this female-friendly "stripparoke", you sing while the girls dance. Often dressed in costumes matching your song choice, the talented strippers are very good-humoured. And yes, they do get naked.
7 Food carts
People may tell you to go to Voodoo Doughnut, but skip the sugar and grab some street food instead. Portland invented the concept of food carts before it became cool, so there are entire blocks lined with vans selling everything from cheeseburger dumplings to apple-pie crepes. Hot spots include Built to Grill and Nong's Khao Man Gai. Make a day of it and have breakfast at Brunch Box, a healthy lunch at The Whole Bowl and dinner at Fonzi's Bakabana Cabana.
8 Powell's City of Books
Powell's, on West Burnside, is the largest used and new bookstore in the world. Customers are provided with a map, and it can get so busy that the queue to use the bathroom is 15 minutes long. In a bookshop. Nine colour-coded rooms, divided into 3500 sections, are stocked with more than a million volumes, including out-of-print titles. The Espresso Book Machine, in the purple room, enables authors to self-publish their work at the push of a button. Browse, buy, sell your old books or have a coffee.
The largest new and used bookstore in the world ... Powell's City of Books. Photo: Alamy
9 Finding Portlandia
Fans of Portlandia need no other reason to visit Portland than to seek out the locations of this comedy sketch show. The cafe where Peter and Nancy inquire about the history and emotional status of the chicken on the menu is the Gilt Club. The lesbian-run bookshop is In Other Words. "Whose Dog Is This?" was filmed at Firehouse, and The Deuce is actually the Ace Hotel. Go for a walk along Eastbank Esplanade where the cast sang The Dream of the '90s, describing this magical land where young people go to retire.
10 Cheap transport
The city's free zone came to a screeching halt in September but getting around is still affordable. A one-day pass costs $US5 for adults and $US2 for seniors ($US3.30 for kids), allowing unlimited travel on the buses, streetcar and MAX light rail, even to and from the airport.
11 The 4T Trail
For an overview from all angles, the 4T (trail, tram, trolley and train) starts with a walk through a forest to the city's highest point, Council Crest, then descends by cable car, known as the Portland Aerial Tram. Exiting at the South Waterfront, you then jump on the streetcar (trolley) and ride downtown, where you catch the MAX back to your hotel. A great half-day out.
12 Tax-free shopping
Oregon is one of five US states with no sales tax, so you can save on items that are already cheaper than in Australia. Downtown has all the big names such as Macy's and Nordstrom. The Pearl District and Nob Hill are best for boutiques and gifts. Portland Saturday Market is good for art, jewellery and live music. Vintage-clothing enthusiasts will love the many second-hand outlets in unusual settings, such as former school buses and 1960s caravans.
13 Urban wineries
Oregon is famous for its pinot noir, and the state's wine country is within an hour's drive of the capital, but even this convenience is superseded by the wineries in Portland's neighbourhoods. At these tiny sites, they crush the grapes, make the wine and label the bottles. Hip Chicks Do Wine is run by a couple of women in a warehouse in the backstreets of the industrial south-east. Tastings are offered to the public daily (for a small fee). At weekends, an association of eight "urban wineries" also holds events, tours and tastings.
14 Washington Park
On more than 160 hectares, this wonderful park comprises Oregon Zoo, the exquisite Japanese Garden, museums, an amphitheatre, archery range, tennis courts, soccer fields and picnic areas. It's also home to the nation's oldest public rose test garden, which offers a great outlook over the city and the Cascade Range mountains.
Exquisite ...
The Japanese Garden
in Washington Park.
Photo: Getty Images
15 Restaurants with bars
Portland's diverse food scene is exceptional, with a focus on fresh local produce. The coolest venues combine dining with a cocktail bar in a striking space. Oven and Shaker is a partnership between an award-winning chef, bartender and restaurateur, serving ridiculously good wood-fired pizzas and ingredient-driven cocktails. Irving Street Kitchen does a tasty brunch, including a nine-hour slow-cooked pork belly that comes with waffles, fried egg and smoked maple syrup. The sublime meals and atmosphere, however, are best in the evenings.
16 Portland City Grill
High in the sky ... the Portland Aerial Tram. Photo: Getty Images
In my five months of living in this city, the most memorable dinner experience was at Portland City Grill. Every course, every staff member, the view and the ambience were faultless. I can still taste the kung pao calamari (it goes through 300 kilograms a week) and the 100 per cent Dungeness crab cakes. This landmark, on the 30th floor of the pink US Bancorp building, is a must. Happy hours (4-7pm, 9pm-close, all day Sunday) are crazy value, with dishes priced from $US4 and cocktails for $US5.
17 Rooftop views
To look down at the Willamette River, the ice-capped Mount Hood and Mount St Helens, get up on a roof. The best open-air vantage points are Departure, a lounge and Asian restaurant on top of the Nines hotel, and Noble Rot wine bar. Portland City Grill has the best view behind glass.
18 Bike the bridges
Consistently ranked as the US's top city for cyclists, Portland is riddled with bike lanes and streets designated bike-friendly. Bicycles are allowed on the MAX and even the local buses have bike racks. A bike valet service is offered at the foot of the Aerial Tram. Hire a bike and criss-cross the Broadway, Steel, Burnside and Hawthorne bridges over the Willamette River.
19 Lan Su Chinese Garden
Escape to this quiet corner of Chinatown and head for the tea house in the Tower of Cosmic Reflections. Choose from the extensive collection of Chinese teas, try some mung bean moon cake and enjoy live traditional music at lunchtime. Tours, talks and art exhibitions are also held in these beautiful gardens.
Escape the rush ... Lan Su Chinese Garden, Portland.
20 Hotel deLuxe
The hotel is on the MAX line, ideally positioned. Walking distance to the city centre and the hip Pearl District, this boutique property pays tribute to the golden era of Hollywood, with decor devoted to films of the 1930s to '50s. Be sure to have breakfast in the elegant Gracie's and finish your day in the dark and mysterious Driftwood Room bar (happy hours are 2pm-6.30pm and 9.30pm-midnight).
External Links:
=Google Map
American Mensa Ltd.
Mensa Foundation
Mensa International
Site Map
Web Design Copyright © 2017
| Hosting Courtesy:
American Mensa Limited


text:
XMAS OFFER DJI INSPIRE 1 with 3 Extra Batteries
Official DJI distributor WORLD WIDE, Right now DJI is offering a slash in price for Brand
new in SEALED box DJI products with complete accessories. Never opened, never activated.
Free shipping This XMAS SEASON.
Package Contents
Remote Control
3 x Battery
Power Cable
6 x Spare Propeller
Connection Cable
Car Charger
Micro USB lead
Battery to power bank adapter
Battery charging hub
Enjoy the following benefits:
Orders processed and shipped within 1 Working Day
12 month warranty
In-house QC
Award winning customer support
Quantity order discounts
Worldwide Shipping
Certification: CE, FCC, RoHS
Cash back: You can earn up to 50% credit toward your next purchase
To discuss, you can E-Mail: isell.repp @ hotmail . com or Call/SMS me on +1 (831) 687-9988 +1 (508) 441-4065..
Misc Details:
- State: Colorado
- Country: United States
- Listed: September 10, 2017 4:28 pm
- Expires: This ad has expired


text:
What I'm not really looking forward to is EU stuff that will most likely use comic art on the cards. It's just not my thing. I like the photos.
You never thought in retrospect that it would be great to have that unmade character on a vintage card?
Page created in 0.061 seconds with 19 queries.


text:
Know more about this business than we do? Cool! Please submit any corrections or missing details you may have.Help us make it right
Direct Wholesale located at 1499 Monterey Hwy in San Jose, CA services vehicles for Auto Repair. Call (408) 279-5436 to book an appointment or to hear more about the services of Direct Wholesale.
Be the first YellowBot user to add photos or videos of Direct Wholesale
Direct Wholesale can be found at S 1st St 1399. The following is offered: Used Car Dealers. The entry is present with us since Sep 8, 2010 and was last updated on Nov 14, 2013. In San Jose there are 98 other Used Car Dealers. An overview can be found here.
Direct Wholesale is located at 1499 Monterey Hwy, San Jose, CA..
If you don't see your business listed on YellowBot, please add your business listing.
YellowBot wants to get your input! If you have a comment, find a bug or think of something neat we should do, let us know by emailing us.
© 2007-2018 Solfo, Inc. – All rights reserved


text:
I don't have much to say about the demise of Rupert Murdoch's iPad-only newspaper, The Daily, except that it doesn't surprise me. I took advantage of the free subscription offer back when it launched, but I checked out after two days. It was narrow in scope, and you couldn't link to stories, or send them to friends. There wasn't a lot on it of interest, and it was more trouble than it was worth. This I decided after two days, and never went back.
But I do want to highlight an important point about the whole Daily project that Freddie de Boer makes in his autopsy:
Why would people think that you could have a viable media business model while catering only to people who own iPads? Because our media world is made up of people from a particular social and cultural class. Broadly speaking, they're a myopic and provincial bunch, and so when they look around at their peers and social cohort, they see that everybody owns an iPad and assume that's true of the world at large. You're sure to see tons of analysis of this story in the usual places in the coming hours– The Atlantic, Slate– and it'll be written by people from the same narrow group that worked at The Daily in the first place. As such, they'll be lacking an important perspective, which is what the world looks like outside of the narrow slice of educated digitally-connected strivers who write the Internet. It's the most consistent and determinative aspect of our media: it's a homogenous group that fancies itself diverse and thus cannot see how incredibly out of touch it is with how most people live. I invite reporters to come here to Lafayette Indiana and ask around at the Village Pantry about the demise of The Daily.
Freddie writes from the left (in case you don't know his work), but he is absolutely, utterly right about the narrowness and homogeneity of our media class. Over the course of my career in media, I have often observed that there is very little diversity in our mainstream media, though from within the bubble, diversity is fetishized. "Diversity" in this sense usually boils down to the worldview of a certain kind of college-educated urban bourgeois person. This, I suppose, is to be expected, given the professionalization of journalism. It has been my experience, though, that few of us writers or editors at the newspapers where I've worked have much genuine curiosity at all about the lives and opinions of the secretaries, maintenance crew, and other non-college types alongside whom we worked, except insofar as they confirmed our pet theories about the Way The World Works.
I concede that I bear guilt on that front too. It's damned difficult for anyone to keep an open mind, and keep questioning one's own prejudices; it's especially hard to do so when so many people around you not only agree with your views, but also share the belief that being a professional journalist makes one more inclined to question conventional wisdom. In this way, it was probably good for me to be such a cultural and ideological outlier in the newsrooms in which I've worked, but of course that did not make me necessarily as curious or as questioning as I ought to have been. No one person can know everything. No one person can ever know everything that he doesn't know. This is the theory, I think, behind why we need "diversity" in the newsroom, but it doesn't work out that way in reality. Looking like America is not the same thing as thinking like America.
In the past, American journalism might have been more reflective of working-class points of view — I'm just guessing this, based on the fact that journalism wasn't always a profession you needed a college degree to enter — but it certainly did not tell the stories of black folks, or other minorities. Whatever the faults of the news media today, it's better than it used to be on this front. I wonder, though, whether there is any general aspiration within media culture to tell stories outside the narrow niche of producers, writers, editors, and people like themselves, or people who care about the things they care about.
On the other hand, I wonder too if there is any aspiration among consumers of media culture to see, hear, and read stories about people unlike themselves.
Is it hard to succeed with a general-interest publication (or broadcast) today because the culture is more fragmented? Or because the media have fragmented? Or both? Is it the case that media in the pre-cable, pre-Internet days were based on an artificial construct: the idea that there was a common culture and an account of the facts that we could all agree on? Does the media we have today better reflect reality, or are we, in our fragmentation and self-silo-ization, less able to perceive reality?
This is not exactly what Freddie is talking about, but it's not too far from it.