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In my recent journey to fix my wounded computer, I became deeply absorbed and fascinated with the insights I gained into how a computer works. Using the Terminal in Ubuntu to enter commands reminded me of using MS DOS on my old Tandy and learning basic programming in grade school on even older computers. This got me thinking and reading about the history of the personal computer. It is amazing to think how a series of simple on/off circuits can be used in conjunction with Boolean logic to produce such complicated phenomena as we are now able to experience on our computers. Of course, we take it for granted and usually don't think about exactly how a computer works, as long as we can use it to get what we want, to entertain ourselves or access information. But behind all that are many, many lines of code.
Our experience of reality is very similar. I recently listened to a talk by John Daido Loori where at one point he was talking about our conditioning, how it starts right after we are born. We store each new experience in our memories. The programming, the conditioning becomes more and more complex until we take it for granted. We experience the operation of this programming as a seamless whole. Everything seems so simple and yet we don't realize how complicated this subjective experience is, how many programs are running in our heads based in so many lines of code.
One way Shakyamuni expressed his realization was by saying,
"House builder, you are seen!
You will not build a house again!
All the rafters are broken,
The ridgepole destroyed;
The mind, gone to the Unconstructed,
Has reached the end of craving!"
(Dhammapada, Gil Fronsdal translation)
In the twenty-first century, he might have said,
"Programmer, you are seen!
You do not run me any more.
The operating system has crashed,
The lines of code are plainly visible.
The mind, gone to the unprogrammed,
Has broken the circuit of the self."


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The cost for the initial inspection is $50.00 and if a re-inspection is needed, the cost is $25.00. The purpose of the cost is to cover the staff time and equipment required for the inspection.
Show All Answers
As of July 1, 2018, the Inflow/Infiltration Inspections will be a VoluntaryInspection and no longer required when selling your home.

subset: commoncrawl


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Happy 2019 to one & all
This book is a bullet… It starts with a bang, travels at the speed of light and doesn't stop till it reaches the target. 2 brother + 2 girls + 1 Nano = travel 500 miles to Waypoint to restore power to the world.
An adventurous thriller like no other, this book by Deborah Adams and Kimberley Perkins saw me stuck to the book the whole Sunday, longing to get to the end. The book didn't allow me to breathe, ok it did… But I didn't want to, I just wanted the story to go on….
I loved the way the authors knew their way around a thriller. Each chapter pulled me in. The brothers got separated, each met up with a girl and had enough trials and tribulations to keep my pulse skyrocketing.
Characterizations of brothers Simon and West were in contrast to each other, yet similar. West was the hunk, better in physical aspects, and Simon was the gamer, a hacker. They were both brave, wanting to protect and to do good for the people. And, yes, they were both sexy…. Oodles of oomph!!
The girls had their own strengths, Riya Sharma was a total badass who could take a guy out with a few kicks. And Alex was sweet vulnerable, filled with corny jokes but with a spine of steel. I was mightily impressed with the way the authors have made them no damsels in distress.
I love action sequence, guns knives, grenades, and this book gave me all that and more. The only niggle, if you can call it that, was that the plot was straightforward in most parts and I would recommend reading the prequel Intel, before getting to this to really understand what was happening in the region.
This book was nothing short of a vivid three dimensional motion picture, with action, adventure, romance, and of course, saving the world. Everything that I want in my movies and in my book.
I received a digital copy from the author, and this is my journey into its pages, straight from the heart!!
All my reviews can be found here
Teenage gamer Simon Harper happens to be a tech-genius and has been searching for the cause of the outage, but each new discovery only leads to more questions. When the key to restoring the power finally falls into his hands, Simon will have to partner with one of his least favorite people, his twin brother West, to bring it back.
On their 500-mile trek to Waypoint, they're tested in ways they never expected. And when two girls with secrets of their own tag along, the brothers must decide if trusting them is worth their lives. Will Simon survive the journey when the girl he develops feelings for may be the enemy he's running from?
Publication date: 1st December 2018
Publisher: Rocket City Publishing


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(AP) — Gov. Pat Quinn's running mate will continue working in Connecticut until March 1, just days before he appears on the ballot in Illinois' Democratic primary.
Paul Vallas will keep working as superintendent of Bridgeport public schools until then, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
Illinois' primary election will be held March 18.
Vallas submitted his resignation to Bridgeport officials on Dec. 31 and is required to give a 60-day notice.
Quinn picked the former Chicago schools CEO to be his running mate in November after Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon announced she was running for comptroller.
Quinn is considered a front-runner on the Democratic ticket, and the two are expected to face the winner of a Republican primary among four candidates: state Sens. Bill Brady and Kirk Dillard, state Treasurer Dan Rutherford and venture capitalist Bruce Rauner.
Vallas, who sought the Democratic nomination for Illinois governor in 2002 and ran schools in Philadelphia in New Orleans, had been fighting to keep his job in Connecticut.
"He does not want to leave the Bridgeport school system in the lurch," said Steven Ecker, an attorney for Vallas in Connecticut. "If he had done nothing and they wanted to fire him, he would have gotten a big payday."
Vallas will continue earning his $4,500 weekly salary until he departs. If he'd been fired from the post, the district would have been obligated to pay him a lump-sum payment of $234,000 along with a year of health insurance.
Leslie Wertheimer, a spokeswoman for the Quinn-Vallas campaign, said Vallas continues to meet with Quinn
"Paul's transition will be complete by March," she said.


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With the next Peter Jackson film, "The Hobbit", arriving in theaters in a couple of months, now is a great time to reacquaint yourselves with the mystical world of Tolkien. Monolith Productions has released a video and a few new artworks of two more characters being featured in the future Xbox LIVE Arcade game, Guardians of Middle-Earth.
Not to be confused with one of the dwarves Bilbo was accompanying in "The Hobbit", Nori has unique abilities that don't activate against enemy units, but against enemy structures. Once in range, Nori gains a massive stat boost to take down structures very quickly with his giant pick-like weapon. Because of large amount of experience with demolition and stonecraft, Nori is one fierce character to place on the field of battle.
Wulfrin, however, is a very mysterious sorcerer who uses dark magic to aid him and his allies. Wielding a bladed staff and riding a Fell Beast, Wulfrin specializing in defensive and survival magic that can support both him and his teammates with devastating results. Enemies will find it difficult to mount a strong assault with him constantly making teammates around him harder to defeat.
For further explanation and showcasing of both of these character's abilities, check out the new gameplay trailer below:
Guardians of Middle-Earth will release on December 4th in retail for $30 (with an included Season Pass code), while the digital form for PlayStation Network will arrive for $15 less (though the optional Season Pass purchase might meet the retail price). The Xbox LIVE Arcade version does not have a confirmed date, unfortunately.
On a much lighter note on the Lord of the Rings lore, a new video featuring a behind the scenes look at LEGO Lord of the Rings has been uploaded on Youtube. Within the video, we get a much deeper understanding on the developer's input on the movie franchise (this includes the added humor that goes along with any LEGO video game out there):
Source: Trueachievements.com


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When I co-founded Socialtext over five years ago, the insight was that tools emerging on the consumer web had better social dynamics than enterprise software, were a fun way to get things done and could be adapted to the context of an organization. I'm proud to finally see our partnership with Dan Bricklin come to fruition (see his post, and the history of the project) -- and the result is something truly new and solves real distributed multi-group collaboration problems.
Many at the conference told me SocialCalc was the best thing they saw, one said finally, a real Enterprise 2.0 application. I'm not afraid of overstating the difference and potential of SocialCalc:
- Most people play email volleyball with Excel attachments, spreadsheet hell, where its hard to work off of the latest version and error rates are as high as 90%. Recently, web spreadsheets have turned it into tetherball, but they largely are reimplementing a single worksheet on a single webpage.
- Enterprise work involves numbers, and the conversations around numbers support key decisions, assumptions and model
- The combination of a robust wiki and spreadsheet not only enables
this conversation, but all the things you love about wikis and define
Enterprise 2.0:
- Search
- Linking
- Authoring
- Tagging
- Extensions
- Signals
- Spreadsheets are not just about numbers, is the most popular tool for
- lists,
- tables,
- two-dimensional layout,
- databases,
- scratchpad applications,
- working around the structure of enterprise software, and
- working with structured information in an unstructured way.
- Enterprise work is distributed, multi-group, often asynchronous and with varying permissions. Working with SocialCalc across multiple spreadsheets, multiple pages and multiple workspaces supports distributed work.
- The deep integration and integrated user experience of SocialCalc and our Business Social Software platform creates capabilities even web spreadsheet plugins for wikis can't match.
- Distributed collaboration is essential for core use cases such as project management, planning, budgeting, forecasting, reporting and more. But in particular, it supports Socialtext's four core solution areas.
To put it another way:
I need to point out what SocialCalc should never be, function equivalent to Excel. Today it supports the ODF small group of functions. David Greenfield and Rafe Needleman see this as a weakness or a long way to go, but as Dennis Howlett points out, its a strength and we've come a long way because the approach is different. We would rather support 80% of calculation needs and focus on social software properties that give it a 10x benefit for distributed work.
For some it may be the simple availability of secure onsite deployment, given enterprise policies or the uncertainty of datamining in someone else's cloud. While the latter doesn't present as great a risk, the former is not changing as fast as you think.
In my last post, wrapping up the Enterprise 2.0 Conference, I made the argument that Enterprise 2.0 is just scratching the surface of process-specific solutions that are in-the-flow of daily work. SocialCalc lets people work with people and structured data in an unstructured way and is a real proof point for the potential of Enterprise 2.0. If you are interested in a demo or our private beta, contact us.


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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Katie Couric is joining Yahoo to anchor an expansion of the Internet company's video news coverage in a move that she hopes will help persuade other broadcast TV veterans make the transition into online programming.
Monday's announcement confirms recent published reports that Couric is hoping to attract more viewers on the Internet after spending the past 22 years working as a talk-show host and news anchor at NBC, CBS and ABC.
"I am particularly excited about hopefully attracting other people to this platform and venture," Couric said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We are in a major, transformative time in terms of media in this country."
Financial terms of Couric's contract with Yahoo weren't disclosed. She also declined to say how many more reporters will be added to her team at Yahoo.
Couric, 56, will continue to host her daytime talk show, "Katie," on ABC even after she becomes Yahoo's "global anchor" beginning early next year. She described her now role at Yahoo as a "work in progress."
"I will be involved in developing a lot of concepts, but not necessarily doing everything," Couric said. "I will be doing interviews, but not on a daily basis. Probably monthly at this point."
The Yahoo job appealed to Couric because it will give her an outlet to delve into breaking developments around the world that she regularly covered as the anchor of CBS' evening news from 2006 through 2011.
Couric's hiring is the latest coup for Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer as she brings in well-known journalists in an effort to create compelling content that will attract more people to the company's online services. In the past month, Yahoo has also lured away technology columnist David Pogue and political reporter Matt Bai from The New York Times.
Since leaving Google Inc. to become Yahoo's CEO 16 months ago, Mayer has been trying to make Yahoo's services more alluring so people will visit them on a regular basis and dwell for longer periods. In doing so, she is hoping Yahoo will be able to sell more digital ads and boost the Sunnyvale, Calif., company's revenue, which has been lagging the overall growth of Internet marketing for years.
"News is a definitive daily habit for our users, and Katie will work with our talented editorial team to pioneer a new chapter of digital journalism," Mayer said.
Yahoo already operates the most popular online news section in the U.S. with 81.5 million visitors in October, according to the most recent data from the research firm comScore Inc. The audience's size is roughly the same as when Mayer became Yahoo's CEO. CNN ranks second in online news in the U.S., with 70 million visitors.
Couric first became a household name as a co-host of the "Today" show on NBC from 1991 until she left to join CBS in 2006.
It remains unclear whether Couric's current talk show on ABC will be renewed after its run ends in May.
The Walt Disney Co., which produces the show, and the owned and operated stations that air the program haven't decided at this point, said Bill Carroll, an expert on the syndication market for Katz Media. Couric also said she is still trying to figure out whether she still wants to do the talk show.
AP Television Writer David Bauder in New York contributed to this story.


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Jim Sheridan wanted his name off 'Dream House'
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
EXCLUSIVE: Since it came out a week ago, Jim Sheridan's horror picture "Dream House" hasn't made many people happy. Less than 10% of critics on Rotten Tomatoes have given it a "fresh" rating, and the film, which stars Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz as a couple tormented by ghosts, has taken in a paltry $9.5 million.
Apparently there was someone else who wasn't tickled with "Dream House": Jim Sheridan.
The six-time Oscar nominee was in fact so displeased with the finished film he sought to have his name removed from it.
This summer, the director went to the Directors Guild of America with the aim of striking his name from the credits, said two people familiar with the action who declined to be identified because they were not authorized to talk about it publicly. If his bid had gone to term — the DGA would have had to rule that the finished film differed significantly from the movie he attempted to make — "Dream House" could have gone out with the director credit "Alan Smithee," Hollywood's equivalent of John Doe.
The bid was dropped after a series of events that included the company that was financing the film, Morgan Creek Productions, agreeing to a new set of reshoots. But the incident marked only the latest challenge for the genre film.
According to a person familiar with production, Sheridan began deviating from David Loucka's script early on, using an improvisational method he favors. That was followed by a disastrous test screening, rampant anxiety at Morgan Creek, a first round of reshoots, and the production company ultimately taking control of the film in the edit room.
(Like most directors, Sheridan did not have "final cut" — essentially the right to release the movie as he would like. The film's final version, then, reflects Morgan Creek's edit of a movie that Sheridan shot.)
As the tension between the parties grew -- the movie was being released by Universal Pictures, but the company's involvement was primarily of the marketing and distribution variety -- Sheridan moved forward with the DGA. When it came out, he also declined to do any publicity for the film.
A representative for Sheridan and a spokesman for Morgan Creek declined to comment.
The news surrounding "Dream House" underscores how much Sheridan's Hollywood stock has dipped. The Irish-born filmmaker surged on to the movie scene in 1989, when at 40 his debut feature, "My Left Foot," became a cultural sensation and a multiple Oscar nominee. A fact-based story about a painter with cerebral palsy, the movie wound up landing Daniel Day-Lewis a lead actor Oscar statuette and yielded director and screenplay Oscar nominations for Sheridan.
In the 13 years that followed, he wrote and directed acclaimed films such as "In the Name of the Father" and "In America."
But Sheridan has now endured three consecutive disappointments, including 2005's hip-hop story "Get Rich Or Die Tryin'" and "Brothers," the Tobey Maguire-Jake Gyllenhaal 2009 remake of a Danish-language war picture.
To some, the failures are the result of Sheridan moving too far away from his wheelhouse. "Father" and "In America" are both Irish-themed stories that are close to his heart — the latter, about a poor Irish family's arrival in New York's rough-and-tumble Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, is semi-autobiographical — but a war picture and a horror movie are, well, not.
Perhaps as a result, Sheridan is now debating directing a smaller film, said a person familiar with his plans: "Sheriff Street Stories," about his childhood in Ireland.
Daniel Craig film 'Dream House' seeks to avoid critics
-- Steven Zeitchik


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Artist Biography
Graciela Rodo Boulanger Bolivian Artist: B. 1935 – Graciela Rodo Boulanger's joyful scenes depict the pleasures of childhood in a childlike way. Born in La Paz, Bolivia, Graciela Rodo Boulanger was raised in an artistic environment. She studied piano with her mother, and it was at the age of 25, after having studied music in Chile, Austria, and Argentina, that she decided to devote herself to her creative expression, which is painting. Since her first one woman show in Vienna, 1953, she has worked in many other mediums beside oil painting: etching, lithography, water colour, pastel, sculpture and tapestry
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text: BOOMSHAKALAKA!!!! Jam with a friend in Local Multiplayer and rock your iPad with all the over-the-top, high-flying, 2-on-2 arcade basketball action just like you remember it – and like you've never seen before! Go to the hole. Go strong. Go for the monster jam. KABOOM! This app offers in-app purchases. You may disable in-app purchasing using your device settings. See http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4213 for more info FANS & CRITICS ARE ALL ON FIRE! "4.5/5…This is a must-have." (Carter Dotson, 148 Apps) "NBA JAM is a ton of fun on iOS." (Jared Nelson, Touch Arcade) "THIS IS A MUST BUY!!" (Miguel Pereyra, The Appera) "NBA JAM for iPad delivers top-tier basketball thrills." (Wired.com/Playbook) "Editor's Choice…It's certainly the best basketball game on any mobile platform." (Hilary Goldstein, IGN) HEAT UP ON iPAD Jam with all 30 NBA teams and your favorite NBA stars! Unlock legends from the classic arcade era like Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Dr. J, Scott Skiles, Karl Malone, Detlef Schrempf, and Danny Manning – plus some secret players you can only get on iOS. Open up outrageous cheats, too. And if you can't wait to go big, all the unlocks are available for instant purchase and download in the JAM store! PLAY NOW! PLAY CLASSIC! PLAY HEAD-TO-HEAD AGAINST A FRIEND! 3 modes of play let you ball the way you want: • Play Now – Select a team and jump right into the ballgame • Classic Campaign – Defeat all other teams to win the championship, and unlock legends, hidden players and cheats • Local Multiplayer – Go big head 2 big head against a friend on iPad or iPhone/iPod touch via local WiFi and Bluetooth Also select from two different control schemes (D-Pad and gesture-based) and take advantage of the outstanding versatility of your device. Is it the shoes? YOU'RE ON FIRE! If you're from the Old School, you'll feel the '90s nostalgia while you play the hottest new arcade sports game on the App Store. Featuring the voice of Tim Kitzrow (the original NBA JAM play-by-play announcer), you'll hear all the classic catchphrases plus a few new ones recorded just for this game. This JAM is all about "boomshakalaka"¬– and beyond! _______________________________________ ** DON'T MISS OUR OTHER EXCITING GAMES! ** SCRABBLE, TETRIS®, MONOPOLY, Need for Speed™ Hot Pursuit, ROCK BAND® Reloaded, SimCity™ Deluxe, Madden NFL 11 by EA Sports™ & PICTUREKA™! GIFT THIS APP: Click the "Buy App" arrow on the iTunes® App Store. Be the first to know! Get inside EA info on great deals, plus the latest game updates, tips & more… VISIT US: ea.com/iphone FOLLOW US: twitter.com/eamobile LIKE US: facebook.com/eamobile WATCH US: youtube.com/eamobilegames Terms of Service : http://www.ea.com/terms-of-service Privacy and Cookie Policy: http://www.ea.com/privacy-policy Game EULA: http://tos.ea.com/legalapp/mobileeula/US/en/GM/ Visit https://help.ea.com/ for assistance or inquiries. EA may retire online features and services after 30 days' notice posted on www.ea.com/1/service-updates. Important Consumer Information. This app: Contains direct links to the Internet; Collects data though third party ad serving and analytics technology (See Privacy & Cookie Policy for details).


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CHAPTER 9 QUALITY CHANGE AND NEW PRODUCTS Using the observed prices produces the following measures of price change:
Percentage change from period 2 to period 3 = (2.85 - 2.78)/2.78 x 100 = 2.5% Percentage change from period 1 to period 3 = (2.85 - 3.09)/3.09 x 100 = -7.8%. 9.10 However, this does not provide a measure of 'pure price' change because the item priced in period 3 is not identical to the item priced in the previous periods. What is required for period 3 is the 'price that would have been paid for the item not the observed price, but the price had the period 3 size can been available in period 2'. This price can be estimated by adjusting the period 3 price by the ratio of the item's weight in period 2 to its weight in period 3, giving a quality adjusted price of $3.14 ($2.85 x 440/400). Using this adjusted price in period 3 results in the following correct measures of price change:
Percentage change from period 2 to period 3 = (3.14 - 2.78)/2.78 x 100 = 12.9% Percentage change from period 1 to period 3 = (3.14 - 3.09)/3.09 x 100 = 1.6%. 9.11 After adjusting for the reduction in quality between periods 2 and 3, the rise in the observed price of 2.5% has been translated into a pure price increase of 12.9%. Similarly, the measure of price change between periods 1 and 3 has been changed from a fall of 7.8% to a rise of 1.6%. 9.12 Similar adjustment procedures can be used for other quality changes, the only issue being how to determine a suitable quality measure. For example, changes in the alcoholic content of spirits could be allowed for, simply by adjusting the price proportionally for the change in the alcoholic content. More difficult would be the handling of changes in the meat content of sausages or the salt content of margarine. 9.13 Of course, there are limits to the application of this approach. For example, it would be inappropriate to replace a medium sized can of tomato soup with a large or small sized can since price typically falls per unit of weight with significant increases in the container size. The samples should comprise relatively homogeneous items of similar sizes and quality. 9.14 The situation becomes more complicated with evolutionary goods such as high-technology commodities, motor vehicles and communication devices. Quality changes for these items are very hard to measure. A detailed explanation on the techniques used to measure quality changes for these items is set out in Chapter 8. Differences in production or option costs 9.15 It is possible to try to measure the change in quality by the estimated change in the costs of producing the two qualities. The estimates can be made in consultation with the producers of the goods or services, if appropriate. This method, like the other quantity adjustments, will only be satisfactory when the changes are fairly simple such as the addition of some new feature, or option, to an automobile. Consider the addition of Electronic Stability Control (ESC) to a new motor vehicle. In period 1 the price is obtained for the motor vehicle without the ESC option. In the next period ESC becomes standard for all motor vehicles. In order to accurately reflect the quality change, it is necessary to determine the cost of the option and the take-up rate by consumers. This information can be obtained from the dealer and/or manufacturer and used to determine the quality adjustment. Expert judgement 9.16 The use of expert views to estimate the value of the quality change is sometimes used for highly complex items where alternative methods are not feasible. Experts are guided with regard to the nature of the estimate required. This approach is generally not used in the CPI apart from estimates of quality change in motor vehicles where the option cost approach may not be feasible (i.e. the new feature was previously not an option). The expert judgement approach is generally applied using the Delphi method.(footnote 1) The Delphi method uses a panel of prices experts who each provide their estimate of the estimated value of the quality difference. The median is taken of these estimates and any estimate that is considered extreme is sent back to the expert concerned, who is asked to account for possible reasons behind the difference. The Delphi method is time-consuming and expensive, but it reflects the care needed in such matters. Hedonic technique 9.17 For more complex quality adjustment needs, statistical techniques such as heeding technique may be used. The heeding technique involves the use of a regression equation - the heeding function - in which prices from an array of different varieties of a product are the dependent variables, and the characteristics of that product are the independent (or explanatory) variables. The estimated parameters from the regression provide implicit prices for each of the price determining characteristics of the good. In simple terms, heeding modelling divides a good or service into its component characteristics, and uses these characteristics as explanatory variables for the price.(footnote 2) 9.18 Although this form of modelling allows for direct estimation of the amount of quality adjustment, large amounts of data and many calculations are required, which is expensive. An additional problem is that heeding techniques are not readily able to deal with quality changes that are not easily quantifiable, such as the handling characteristics of a car, the quality of medical care, or whether a variety of clothing is in or out of fashion. Implicit quality adjustments 9.19 Implicit quality adjustments are easy to implement but care needs to be taken to ensure the quality adjustment is done appropriately. Rather than making a direct adjustment for quality described in the explicit adjustment above, an option is selected which automatically sets how the quality adjustment between the previous and current product is applied. These include directly comparable, not directly comparable and overlapping prices adjustments. Directly comparable 9.20 This option is used when the difference between the two products is assumed to be all price change and the quality difference is judged negligible. Directly comparable does not apply any quality adjustment and records any observed price difference between the two products as actual price change. This is most likely to be the case when the change in quality is described in terms of additions or deletions to the original product. One example could be a women's winter jacket. The price observed in the first period was for a wool blend jacket with four buttons and a large collar. In the second period this item was no longer available and replaced with a wool jacket with five buttons and a smaller collar. The utility to the consumer was judged to be the same and therefore the item was deemed directly comparable. Similarly a washing machine priced in the first period may be replaced with another with the same features but a different product code and slight styling change. Not directly comparable 9.21 The purpose of this option is to link in the new product when the relative qualities of the original and replacement products can't be compared in any meaningful way. In this case, an imputed price will be calculated for the old product for use in the current period's index calculation, and the price collected for the new product will be stored for use as the 'back price' in the following period. This type of quality adjustment is more common in commodities where the pace of innovation is high with continual changes in the characteristics of products such as televisions etc. Care is taken when applying this quality adjustment to ensure that the observed price difference between the original and replacement products is not due to one product being on sale, as this is not treated as quality change. Overlapping prices 9.22 This option is used when both products are available on the market at the same time and the ratio of the prices of the new to the old quality should reflect their relative utilities to consumers. Suppose a washing machine 'Model A' has been available on the market for a number of years but is now being replaced by a new model 'Model B'. In period 1 'Model A' washing machine retailed for $450. In period 2 'Model A' retails for $500 but the new model 'Model B' is available with extra features such as greater water efficiency for $530. In period 3 only 'Model B' is available for $550. If no quality adjustment was applied the price change from period 1 to period 3 would be overstated. The overlapping price quality adjustment uses the price change of 'Model A' from period 1 to period 2 and the price change of 'Model B' from period 2 to period 3. The difference in price between 'Model B' ($530) and 'Model A' ($500) of $30 is treated a quality change. The price change from period 1 to period 3 is $70. This is described in Table 9.1.
Using the observed prices produces the following measures of price change:
Price change from period 2 to period 3 = $550 - $530 = $20 Total Price change from period 1 to period 3 = $50 + $20 = $70. 9.23 However, this method is not used very extensively because the requisite data are seldom available. Care is taken when applying this quality adjustment to ensure that the observed price difference between the original and replacement products is not due to one product being on sale, as this is not treated as quality change. 9.24 If there are no overlapping prices, or those prices are not normal, then quality adjustment becomes more difficult. It might be possible to use the last available price of the replaced item or to use estimates of differences in manufacturing costs. Again, using manufacturing costs will only be appropriate if costs broadly correlate with consumer utility. Other issues related to quality change 9.25 There are other circumstances where the use of price differentials as indicators of quality differentials may not be appropriate. Examples include items that are heavily subsidised or regulated, such as public education and pharmaceuticals. 9.26 The quality of the service in which a product is delivered is important. Purchasing 2 litres of milk at the local convenience store is a different quality of service than at a supermarket, even if the product is exactly the same. Similarly, purchasing an item online is different to purchasing it in a store. Consumers substituting to different outlets (e.g. more online retailers) will be treated as a quality change, not a price change. For example, if a consumer purchases a cookbook at a book retailer for $50 in one period, but then purchases the same item in the following period online for $40, this is not treated as a price fall. It is treated as a different product. Price change is measured by matching products from the same type of outlet over time. 9.27 For some types of quality change, it is doubtful if any accurate measure of the change can be calculated. For example, in the case of services, consider changes in medical operating procedures (e.g. keyhole surgery) that involve less pain and a speedier recovery, or educational services making a greater use of computers. In these cases generally no quality adjustments are applied. 9.28 One important area of quality change is that arising from governmental regulations. It is ABS practice that, unless these changes clearly affect the level of household utility, they are not treated as quality changes. An example of this practice is that any higher price for motor vehicles occasioned by mandatory pollution requirements is regarded as a price increase, not a quality improvement. 9.29 An important issue is whether a change to an item should be regarded as a quality change to an existing item or the creation of a new item. The simpler approach is to assume that the item is new, and to include it into an existing price sample. However, this practice implicitly assumes that the difference in quality is equivalent to the price difference. Clearly, if it is assessed that a price differential is not a reliable indicator of quality or household utility differentials, then some other appropriate quality adjustment should be made. NEW GOODS AND SERVICES 9.30 From time to time, major changes in existing products and services take place, or new products and services become available on the retail market and begin to account for a significant share of household expenditure. Some examples in recent years are tablets, 3D televisions, smart phones and electronic books. In these cases, careful consideration is given to whether these new goods or services should be priced for the CPI. 9.31 If a new product or service is deemed to be a completely different category of product (i.e. a new expenditure class) from any of the goods and services already included in the CPI, its inclusion would be considered only during one of the periodic reviews of the index where updated weighting patterns at the published level were available. The inclusion of television sets in the 1960s is a good example of this. However, where a new product or service falls within the definition of an existing expenditure class (e.g. the introduction of colour television sets, or mobile telephones), the issue is when and how to start measuring these price movements for the CPI. Normally, the decision is made after considering the following factors.
9.32 In general, a conservative approach is taken when dealing with the introduction of new goods and services into the CPI. They are introduced into existing expenditure classes only after it is deemed that they have become widely available to the buying public, have become a permanent part of household expenditure, and their price structures are free from premiums attributable to novelty value or scarcity. All introductions of new items are handled by including the new item into the index so that its introduction does not affect the level of the index. 1 For example, see Czinkota and Ronkainen, (1997). <back 2 The ABS has developed heeding price indexes for computers. Details are provided in Information Paper: The Introduction of Hedonic Price Indexes for Personal Computers (cat. no. 6458.0).
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Hundreds of sea turtles are washing up dead on the beaches of Central America and scientists don't know why.
An Olive Ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) swims at Ixtapilla beach, in Aquila municipality on the Pacific coast of Michoacan State, Mexico, on Octuber 13, 2013 [Credit: AFP] |
One hypothesis is that the killer is a potent neurotoxin that can be produced by algae during red tides, which are large accumulations of algae that turn sea water red or brown.
The puzzling thing, though, is that red tides have come and gone before without taking such a deadly toll on turtles.
Making things worse, some of the turtles dying are from endangered species.
In El Salvador, for instance, from late September to the middle of October, 114 sea turtles were discovered dead on Pacific coast beaches, according to the environment ministry.
They were black turtles (Chelonia agassizii), Olive Ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) and ones that are a cross between the two.
Scientists throughout Central America are alarmed, and the only laboratory that specializes in these creatures is taking tissue and organ samples to figure out what is going on.
The death toll in other countries is just as ugly — 115 so far this year in Guatemala, 280 in Costa Rica and an undisclosed number in Nicaragua. Another 200 died in late 2012 in Panama.
And in Nicaragua there is yet another problem: turtles showed up weeks late, at the end of September, to crawl up onto the beach and lay their eggs.
"Some say it could be due to climate change, sea currents or the techniques used by fishermen," said biologist Ivan Ramirez of the Foundation for the Sustainable Development of Nicaragua (Fundenic).
An Olive Ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) make its way to the sea after being released at San Diego beach in La Libertad, 34 kms south of San Salvador, on August 17, 2013 [Credit: AFP] |
The head of wildlife and ecosystems at the Salvadoran environment ministry, Nestor Herrera, said the strongest hypothesis over the death of the turtles is that they were killed by saxitoxin — which affects the nervous system and can be produced by a red tide.
In one area of El Salvador's coast, dogs that started eating dead turtles stopped breathing and died almost instantly.
In 2006, saxitoxin killed about 500 sea turtles in El Salvador, and four years later, another 100 died of the same cause.
However, there is a red tide almost every year, while such widespread turtle deaths have never happened before, said Angel Ibarra, coordinator of Ecological Unity of El Salvador, who added more study is needed to shed light on the phenomenon.
Others worry that the recent spate of turtle deaths can be traced more directly to human activity.
In Guatemala, the National Council of Protected Areas said some turtles are caught up by industrial-size fishing boats that drag nets along the sea bed and capture everything in their path, a process called trawling.
And drift net fishing, in which very long nets float behind a ship and near the surface of the water, could also be a threat to turtles.
Jose Leonidas Gomez, who works with a sea turtle conservation project in El Salvador, said turtles discovered dead on one beach were found not to have eaten, so it is presumed they got caught in nets.
Biologist Fabio Buitrago of Nicaragua's Fundenic said turtles are also being killed by fishermen who use explosives, among other techniques.
"The fishermen themselves say so," he said.
Antonio Benavides, a veteran turtle conservationist in El Salvador, said protecting the creatures is all the more difficult because the mortality rate for juveniles is already high.
Only one out of a thousand babies that hatch and make it out into the sea ever returns to the beach as an adult to lay eggs.
Fertility is yet another issue: in September scientists in Honduras said turtles on one beach laid 40 percent fewer eggs.
Author: Carlos Mario Marquez | Source: AFP [November 10, 2013]


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Big tax changes this year will force many top earners to pay closer attention to the tax treatment of their investments, including retirement accounts.
New Jersey attorney Doug Bramley usually gets a tax refund each spring, but he won't this year—or in the future—at least he's stopped counting on it.
"That's no longer going to happen. As my tax burden increases, I'm paying more and more in taxes and I'm not getting tax refunds and we have to plan financially for that," said Bramley, 40, who is married with two children.
(Read More: The Road to Diversification: ETFs)
Top earners like Bramley will take a big tax hit this year on earned and investment income. For couples with incomes of more than $450,000—or $400,000 if you're single—increases in federal income tax and Medicare surtax will result in a total tax hit of nearly 42 percent on earned income in 2013—a more than 5 percent increase over last year.
Add to that taxes on dividends and long-term capital gains now at nearly 24 percent for top earners—an almost 9 percent increase compared to 2012, and tax on interest income in 2013, which is now at a whopping 43 percent. Facing a potential tax hit like this is forcing households like Bramley's to make some changes.
Payroll tax changes have also reduced take-home pay for millions of Americans. "We have already done a lot of planning as a family in anticipation of the fact that my income will be a little lower because of these tax bites. We've made the decision not to move," said Bramley, who had been planning to relocate his family to a larger home until he reviewed his tax situation.
(Read More: New Retirement Calculus Gives New Life to Annuities)
Big changes are ahead for portfolio planning, too. Financial advisors say recent tax increases give new urgency to the need for diversification, and they recommend new strategies for investing.
First, buy some stocks for growth "that aren't paying dividends that maybe give you the same result in the end, but have a little less tax implications," said Doug Lockwood, a certified financial planner and principal of the Harbor Lights Financial Group in Manasquan, N.J. Then, "make sure that after you look at your nonqualified money you go to your tax-deductible money—your 401(k)s, 403bs, your IRAs—and make sure that you're absolutely maximizing those opportunities."
So where should you put your retirement dollars to avoid a big tax hit? Lockwood and other financial advisors suggest:
- Contribute the maximum amount to a 401(k) or employer-sponsored plan—up to $17,500 this year or $23,000 if you're 50 or older— to reduce your taxable income.
- Convert a regular IRA to a Roth IRA. You'll be taxed on the money you convert, but you can generally take the money out tax free in retirement, after age 59½ as long as you've held the account for five years.
- You can still keep a taxable account in the mix. Although putting more dollars there may be less attractive now.
"We're going to get back to really managing investments (thinking of) what the tax liabilities might be," Lockwood said. "And those folks who manage it the best will get to the finish line first."
For many, a varied investment strategy for an uncertain tax landscape is an imperative.


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Staying Fit
Millions are looking for ways to shave dollars and dimes from their daily expenses. To share your own tips, send an email to firstname.lastname@example.com. You can save money on everything, but here's how you can reduce insurance costs without compromising coverage.
Bundle insurance. If you roll your homeowners, automobile and other types of coverage into a package with the same company, you may receive a significant discount. On the other hand, companies that sell only one type of coverage, such as auto insurance, may offer less-expensive rates than companies that offer many types. Add everything up to determine whether or not a bundle will work for you.
Flash Sale! Join AARP today for $16 per year. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP The Magazine.
Consider dropping collision and comprehensive auto coverage if you have an older car and a way to replace it without the help of insurance. A good rule of thumb is that if the cost of your annual collision and comprehensive coverage equals 10 percent or more of the value of your car, drop the coverage. You could then use the savings to go toward the purchase of your next vehicle.
If you carpool or commute by rail and you park your car at a station, low mileage discounts may be available from your auto insurance company. Teenage drivers who get good grades may also be eligible for discounts.
Consider ditching a second or third car — along with a hefty portion of your premium.
A safe-driving course may get you auto insurance discounts of up to 10 percent. Washington, D.C., and 34 states mandate discounts for people who take a course, which usually costs between $15 and $40. Ask your agent — restrictions may apply. Look for payment deals. If you pay premiums annually, semiannually or even quarterly, you could save by avoiding monthly installment fees. Or find a company that doesn't charge installment fees. Some offer discounts if you sign up for automatic or online electronic payments.
A homeowners insurance premium reduction is often available for retirees and seniors because they may spend more time at home and can better monitor and maintain their property. Also think about raising your deductible.
Inventory your possessions annually and adjust your coverage. If you gave away expensive jewelry, remove that rider, which can decrease your home insurance premium anywhere from 1 to 20 percent.
Security improvements such as burglar alarms, dead-bolt locks, smoke detectors or even home sensors that can detect water or natural gas leaks may cut your homeowner insurance cost.
Long-time policyholders may earn a cut in premiums of as much as 10 percent. But that discount may come after years of increases, so check to see if you might do better elsewhere.
Nonsmokers, exercisers and people who maintain a healthy weight can enjoy big savings on life insurance.
Rate discounts on insurance levels often save money. For example, a $250,000 life insurance policy may have a lower premium than a $200,000 policy simply because the company offers a discount at $250,000.


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Experience a blend with a smooth and luxurious finish. It contains flavours reminiscent of Latin America including rich, exotic fruits and a bold distinctive smokiness. It is best served neat or on the rocks.
By clicking "continue" you agree you are sharing this content with individuals of legal drinking age only.
CloseTo a whisky tumbler
Add 45 ml Johnnie Walker Explorers' Club Collection - The Gold Route
Serve neat or over ice


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Advertisement |
Mark Christopher Lowe (born June 7, 1983 in Houston, Texas) is a Major League Baseball relief pitcher for the Texas Rangers. He made his Major League debut on July 7, 2006 in relief against the Detroit Tigers, loading the bases before striking out the side. He bats left-handed and throws right-handed. His fastball has been clocked as high as 101 mph. He also throws a slider and a circle changeup.
Mark Lowe attended the University of Texas-Arlington.
He began the season at the Class A Inland Empire 66ers and progressed all the way to the Major Leagues, where he set a club record when he opened his career by throwing 17-2/3 scoreless innings. Lowe was placed on the disabled list on August 20 with right elbow tendinitis and was later transferred to the 60-day disabled list. Lowe underwent arthroscopic surgery on his elbow after the season.


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What's Hot
What's Hot
March 2007
Omega-3 fatty acid balance influences depression risk A report scheduled to be published online in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine concluded that Americans need to improve their ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids if we want to reduce depression and inflammatory diseases. Ohio State University professor of psychiatry and psychology Jan Kiecolt-Glaser and colleagues studied 43 middle-aged to elderly men and women, of whom nearly half were the caregivers of spouses with Alzheimer's disease or other dementias, which is known to confer a significant amount of stress. The participants' blood was analyzed for interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor -alpha (TNF-alpha) and the receptor molecule for IL-6, all involved in inflammation. Completed questionnaires provided information on diet and depression levels. It was found that participants who consumed more omega-6 compared to omega-3 fatty acids and who reported more symptoms of depression had significantly higher levels of the inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF-alpha. "In this study, we're looking at the intersection of behavior, immune function and diet. In past experiments, we concentrated only on the first two," Dr Kiecolt-Glaser commented. "It now appears that diet is a very important variable in the equation as to how people respond to depression and stress." "The data suggest that higher depression and a poorer diet in terms of omega-3 can work together to promote inflammation. Other researchers have shown that clinically depressed people -- those with more severe depression -- often have lower omega-3 levels in their blood, and several studies have shown that supplementing diets with omega-3 improves depression," he noted. "People who are depressed don't eat well, or it might be that there is something about depression that affects how well people process such foods." Coauthor Martha Belury added, "The important message for consumers is that they don't have to take mega-doses of omega-3 to have some impact." —D Dye Proanthocyanidins help prevent skin cancer A one-day symposium held on March 25, 2007 during the 233rd national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Chicago was the site of a presentation by associate professor Santosh Katiyar, PhD, of the University of Alabama at Birmingham department of dermatology concerning the finding that proanthocyanidins from grape seeds help prevent ultraviolet light-induced skin cancer by improving the immune system. Hairless mice were given diets supplemented with a high or low percentage of grape seed proanthocyanidins, or a control diet and exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) light. Mice that received proanthocyanidins experienced a reduction in tumor incidence, as well as fewer and smaller tumors compared with animals provided with an unenhanced diet. Because immune suppression caused by ultraviolet-B radiation has been implicated in skin cancer risk, the research team investigated whether grapeseed proanthocyanidins affected UVB's effect on immune function. They found that the compound inhibited ultraviolet-B induced suppression of contact hypersensitivity in mice. Administration of proanthocyanidins reduced the increase in an immunosuppressive cytokine known as interleukin-10 in skin exposed to ultraviolet-B and in draining lymph notes compared with animals that did not receive the compound, while enhancing the production of immunostimulatory cytokine interleukin-12 (IL-12) in lymph nodes. Mice injected with an antibody that neutralized IL-12 did not experience the protective effects of proanthocyanidins against UVB induced immune suppression. "Our data suggested that prevention of photocarcinogenesis by grape seed proanthocyanidins is mediated through development of anti-tumor immune responses, which are regulated by IL-12 induction in mice," the authors conclude. "Grape seed proanthocyanidins also have antioxidant properties, and UV-induced oxidative stress has been implicated in the induction of skin cancers," Dr Katiyar added. "We speculate that the use of grape seed proanthocyanidins as a dietary supplement may have beneficial effects in protecting cutaneous disorders in UV-exposed skin including the risk of skin cancers." —D Dye Blueberries may help prevent colon cancer On March 25, 2007, the 233rd national meeting of the American Chemical Society was the site of a presentation by Bandaru S. Reddy, PhD, of Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey, of the discovery that a compound occurring in blueberries helps protect laboratory animals from developing colon cancer. The compound, known as pterostilbene, is an antioxidant similar to resveratrol that could be developed into a preventive nutritional supplement. Dr Reddy and his colleagues gave the carcinogen azoxymethane to eighteen rats to induce colon cancer. The rats were provided with balanced diets, half of which were supplemented with pterostilbene. After eight weeks, animals that received the compound had 57 percent fewer precancerous colon lesions than the control rats as well as reduced colon cell proliferation. Rats that consumed pterostilbene also experienced a reduction in the expression of genes involved in inflammation, which is a risk factor for the disease. Dr Reddy noted that some research suggests that pterostilbene may lower lipids, which, when elevated, are another known risk factor for colon cancer. A study conducted by coauthor Agnes Rimando of the USDA, also presented at the American Chemical Society's meeting, revealed that blueberry skins reduce cholesterol in animals when added to their diets. Dr Reddy suggested that pterostilbene could be combined with COX-2 inhibitors, which are anti-inflammatory drugs that have demonstrated a preventive effect against colon cancer in laboratory animals. By adding pterostilbene, the drugs could be administered in lower doses, which would reduce some of their well-known side effects. The research, funded by the National Institutes of Health, is the first to demonstrate the ability of pterostilbene to combat colon cancer. "This study underscores the need to include more berries in the diet, especially blueberries," Dr Reddy stated. —D Dye Low dose DHA reduces diastolic blood pressure A report published in the April, 2007 issue of The Journal of Nutrition concludes that supplementing with a low dose of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid found in fish and the algae they feed on, lowers diastolic blood pressure in middle-aged men and women. Thomas A. B. Sanders of King's College London and his British colleagues randomized 20 men and 18 women aged 40 to 65 to receive 0.7 grams DHA derived from algae or an olive oil placebo daily for three months. The treatment period was followed by an intervening period of at least four months during which no supplement was given, succeeded by another three months during which each group was given the supplement the other group had received in the initial treatment phase. Blood pressure was measured, and blood and urine samples were collected and tested at the beginning and end of each treatment period. Treatment with DHA resulted in a 58 percent increase in the DHA content of red blood cells, accompanied by a reduction in the proportions of omega-6 fatty acids. Although measures of arterial stiffness and endothelial function did not change during the short periods of DHA administration, diastolic blood pressure was lowered by an average of 3.3. mm HG and heart rate was reduced by 2.1 beats per minute after DHA administration compared to after the placebo period. "A significant reduction in diastolic blood pressure was noted which is likely to be of clinical significance with regard to risk of future vascular events in middle-aged subjects," the authors conclude. "Future work is needed to confirm these findings and to investigate further the effects of DHA on cardiac function. —D Dye High lignan diet linked with lower risk of breast cancer The March 21, 2007 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published the results of a large prospective study of postmenopausal women which concluded that women who consume high levels of lignans may have a reduced risk of breast cancer. Lignans are estrogen-like compounds found in such plant foods as flaxseed in addition to some fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Because phytoestrogens can bind to estrogen receptors, they may be involved in the prevention of breast cancer. The current study included 58,049 postmenopausal women living in France. Marina Touillaud, PhD of the National Institute of Health and Medical Research in France, and colleagues analyzed the results of dietary questionnaires completed by the participants to determine their intake of the plant lignans pinoresinol, lariciresinol, secoisolariciresinol, and matairesinol, and estimated the exposure to two enterolignans metabolized from plant lignans by intestinal bacteria. The participants were followed for a median of 7.7 years, during which 1,469 women developed breast cancer. Women whose intake of lignans was in the top 25 percent of participants were found to have a 17 percent lower risk of breast cancer than those whose intake was in the lowest fourth. When the individual lignans were analyzed, lariciersinol was found to be associated with a similar benefit. The protective effect was limited to cancers that were estrogen and progesterone receptor positive. High total estimated enterolignan levels were also associated with protection. "Although the possible role of plant foods in breast cancer prevention is still debated, increasing dietary lignan intake may be an interesting potential preventative approach," the authors write. "In view of the epidemiologic results of this study, the recommendation that women should consume diets that consist largely of fruits, vegetables, and cereals—all foods rich in lignans—should continue." —D Dye Inflammation may be involved in prostate cancer metastasis A report published online on March 19, 2007 in the journal Nature described the findings of University of California San Diego researchers that the inflammation associated with the immune system's attack on prostate tumors could be involved in their metastasis. It has been hypothesized that genetic changes within the cancer cell result in metastasis, but this does not explain metastases that occur years after the primary tumor. Working with a mouse model of prostate cancer, professor of pharmacology in UCSD's Laboratory of Gene Regulation and Signal Transduction, Michael Karin, PhD, and his colleagues discovered a signaling pathway that increased prostate tumor metastases. They found that a cytokine called RANK ligand, produced by inflammatory cells, initiates a chain reaction in which a protein kinase known as IKKa is activated to enter the cancer cell nucleus and reduce the expression of the antimetastatic gene Maspin. "An excellent inverse correlation between IKKa activation and Maspin production was detected, such that advanced prostate cancer cells contain high amounts of activated IKKa in their nuclei and express little or no Maspin," Dr Karin stated. "Maspin is a very potent inhibitor of metastasis; in a patient with metastasis, cells have found a way to turn off Maspin, which may depend on invasion of the tumor with RANK ligand-producing cells that activate IKKa." "Our findings suggest that promoting inflammation of the cancerous tissue, for instance, by performing prostate biopsies, may, ironically, hasten progression of metastasis," Dr Karin observed. "We have shown that proteins produced by inflammatory cells are the 'smoking gun' behind prostate cancer metastasis. The next step is to completely indict one of them." Research team member Steven L. Gonias, MD, PhD, added, "This study helps explain the paradox that, in certain types of malignancy, inflammation within a cancer may be counterproductive." —D Dye Meta-analysis concludes aspirin helps prevent colorectal cancer The results of a meta-analysis published in the March 6, 2007 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine found that regular users of aspirin have a lower rate of colon polyps (adenoma) and colorectal cancer than nonusers. Canadian reviewers identified 17 studies which sought to determine the preventive effect of aspirin on colorectal cancer, 14 that investigated the drug's effect on colorectal adenoma (which are a precursor of cancer), and 12 reviews of the drug's potential harm. Analysis of cohort studies (which examine a particular population of individuals) determined that regular use of aspirin reduced the risk of colorectal cancer by 22 percent compared with nonusers. One large, long-term study of American women showed that higher doses or the use of aspirin for ten years or more further lowered risk. For polyps, randomized clinical trials found an 18 percent reduction associated with aspirin use. For case-control studies (which compare individuals with a condition to matched control subjects who do not have the condition), there was a 13 percent lower risk, and in cohort studies there was a 28 percent reduction for aspirin users compared with nonusers. While primary prevention trials of aspirin did not find a higher rate of stroke associated with aspirin use, secondary prevention trials using higher doses of aspirin found an increase in hemorrhagic stroke risk, while the risk of ischemic stroke decreased. Increased gastrointestinal complications were also associated with aspirin use. "In conclusion, aspirin appears to reduce the incidence of colorectal adenomas and colorectal cancer," the authors write. "The available data would suggest that for chemoprevention, aspirin would need to be used in doses greater than used for cardiovascular prevention and for a duration close to 10 years. Therefore, the potential benefit of aspirin chemoprevention would need to be carefully weighed against its harms." —D Dye High "normal" glucose levels predict congestive heart failure hospitalization Blood glucose levels falling in the high end of the normal range or greater are associated with an increased risk of hospitalization for congestive heart failure among heart attack patients and others at risk of developing heart failure, according to a report published online on March 5, 2007 in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. Heart failure occurs when the heart cannot pump an adequate supply of blood throughout the body. Risk factors other than heart attack are diabetes and uncontrolled high blood pressure. Associate professor of cardiology at the Karolinska Institutet Claes Held, MD, PhD, and colleagues evaluated data from 31,546 high-risk patients participating in the Ongoing Telmisartan Alone and in Combination With Ramipril Global Endpoint Trial (ONTARGET) and Telmisartan Randomized Assessment Study in ACE Intolerant Subjects With Cardiovascular Disease (TRANSCEND). Subjects were classified as having low-normal glucose, high-normal glucose, impaired fasting glucose, newly diagnosed diabetes, or previously diagnosed diabetes upon enrollment. During an average 2.4 year follow up there were 668 hospitalizations for congestive heart failure. It was discovered that even small elevations in fasting glucose increased the risk of developing congestive heart failure in both diabetic and nondiabetic patients. "Even in the normal range, our results indicate that elevated blood glucose is associated with the risk of heart failure." Dr Held stated. "You can look at blood glucose much like blood pressure or cholesterol. Even if you have normal blood glucose, there is a gradual increase in risk wherever you start on the scale. If the blood sugar is 'high normal' there is a higher risk than those with 'low normal fasting blood glucose levels.'" The authors conclude that their findings "are consistent with accumulating evidence showing that elevated glucose is a progressive risk factor for cardiovascular disease outcomes even with levels below the threshold for a diagnosis of diabetes mellitus." —D Dye A new vitamin? The March 12, 2007 issue of Chemistry & Industry, published an article by Marina Murphy that unveils glowing expectations for epicatechin, a compound found in cocoa, tea and wine. In fact, Harvard Medical School professor of medicine Norman Hollenberg believes that the compound is so important that it should be considered a vitamin. Dr Hollenberg's observations of the Kuna people of Panama, who drink up to 40 cups of cocoa per week, are the source of his enthusiasm. The risk of the some of the most common western diseases: stroke, heart failure, cancer and diabetes, is reduced to less than 10 percent in this population. Additionally, no dementia has been observed among their many long-lived individuals. "If these observations predict the future, then we can say without blushing that they are among the most important observations in the history of medicine," Dr Hollenberg stated. "We all agree that penicillin and anesthesia are enormously important. But epicatechin could potentially get rid of 4 of the 5 most common diseases in the western world, how important does that make epicatechin?... I would say very important." Natural Products Association vice president of scientific affairs Daniel Fabricant shares Dr Hollenberg's views. "Vitamins are defined as being essential to the normal functioning, metabolism, regulation and growth of cells," he explained. "At the moment, the science does not support epicatechin having an essential role." However, he noted that "the link between high epicatechin consumption and a decreased risk of killer disease is so striking, it should be investigated further. It may be that these diseases are the result of epicatechin deficiency." For now, Fabricant suggests that phytonutrient is a more appropriate term since it is not yet known whether the compound is essential. While many individuals might look forward to a guilt-free mug of hot chocolate, "no doubt some people would prefer to get their epicatechin in capsule form," Dr Hollenberg noted. —D Dye The heart needs copper Although too much copper can be problematic health-wise, researchers at the University of Louisville in Kentucky and the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center reported online on the March 5, 2007 in The Journal of Experimental Medicine that supplementing mice with the mineral prevents enlargement of the heart when the organ is stressed. Deficient copper intake has been associated with increased cholesterol levels, clot formation, and heart disease. Y. James Kang and colleagues at the University of Louisville School of Medicine used a mouse model of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy caused by pressure overload induced by constriction of the ascending aorta. A group of control mice received sham surgeries. The animals received a diet providing RDA adequate levels (6 milligrams per kilogram diet) of copper for eight weeks. After four weeks on the diet, some of the animals were changed to a diet providing higher levels (20 milligrams per kilogram diet) for the remaining four weeks. Four weeks after the surgery, cardiac hypertrophy (enlargement) was observed. This was significantly reversed during the final four weeks of the study in the animals who received the higher copper diet, while the remainder went on to develop heart failure. The researchers found that supplementing with copper promoted the synthesis of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a protein that increases the growth of new blood vessels, which was reduced in the late phase of cardiac hypertrophy among mice that did not receive extra copper. The human equivalent dose for the high dose of copper used in the study is 2.9 milligrams per day, however, the recommended daily intake is only 0.9 milligrams. "Should similar effects of copper supplementation be found in controlled studies in human patients," the authors write, "this will point the way to a simple, nontoxic and extraordinarily economical therapy for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy." —D Dye Omega-3 fatty acids boost gray matter, mood On March 7, 2007 at the American Psychosomatic Society's Annual Meeting held in Budapest, Hungary, Sarah M. Conklin, PhD of the University of Pittsburgh reported the discovery that an increased intake of omega-3 fatty acids is associated with greater gray matter volume in areas of the brain related to mood and behavior. Animal research has shown that increasing omega-3 fatty acids in the diet results in structural brain changes. The researchers involved in the current study sought to determine whether gray matter volume was related to omega-3 fatty acid intake in humans to help explain the improvement in mood associated with increased omega-3 intake. Dr Conklin, who is a postdoctoral scholar at the Cardiovascular Behavioral Medicine Program in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh, and her colleagues questioned 55 healthy adults on their diets to determine their average intake of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. High-resolution structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain was used to measure gray matter volume. It was discovered that subjects whose intake of omega-3 fatty acids was high had greater gray matter volume in the bilateral anterior cingulate cortex, the right amygdala and the right hippocampus, which are associated with with emotional arousal and regulation. These areas have been found to be reduced in individuals with mood disorders such as major depressive disorder. In a study presented by Dr. Conklin at the previous year's meeting, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh found that participants who had lower blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids tended to have a more negative outlook and were more impulsive. Although the current study found an association with structural changes in the brain associated with greater omega-3 fatty acid intake, the team recommends further research to confirm a causative effect. —D Dye Whole grain breakfasts lower heart failure risk The American Heart Association's 47th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention was the site of a presentation on March 2, 2007 by Luc Djoussé, MD, MPH of Harvard Medical School of the finding that eating a whole-grain breakfast reduces the risk of developing heart failure. Dr Djoussé's team analyzed data from 1982 to 2006 obtained in the Physicians' Health Study for the current research. In questionnaires completed at the beginning of the study, 79 percent of 10,469 physicians reported consuming breakfast cereals that contained at least 25 percent oat or bran. Among the 35 percent of participants who reported consuming the cereals at least seven times per week, the risk of heart failure was reduced by 28 percent over the course of the study compared to participants who reported never eating them. A 22 percent risk reduction was observed among 39 percent subjects who consumed the cereals two to six times per week, and among the 26 percent who reported eating them up to once per week , there was a 14 percent reduction. When possible changes in cereal intake over time were taken into consideration, the results remained unchanged. Dr Djoussé, who is assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Aging at Brigham & Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, observed, "There are good and powerful arguments for eating a whole-grain cereal for breakfast. The significant health benefits of whole-grain cereal are not just for kids, but also for adults. A whole-grain, high-fiber breakfast may lower blood pressure and bad cholesterol and prevent heart attacks." "The Physicians' Health Study shows that even in a population with overall healthy behavior, it is possible to see less heart failure in those who eat a whole-grain cereal breakfast," he added. —D Dye |


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As you get further chilled, you'll find yourself hopping from foot to foot and jumping around. This is Nature's way to get you to generate heat and warm your body.
If you become so cold that you start to shiver, these vigorous muscular contractions generate lots of heat—perhaps 400 calories per hour.
Such intense shivering quickly depletes your muscle glycogen stores and drains your energy. This is when you'll be glad you have some emergency food in your pocket!
What's Biggest Nutritional Mistake Athletes Make in the Winter?
Failing to drink enough fluids is a major problem among winter athletes—players, skiers, runners and winter hikers alike. Cold blunts the thirst mechanism; you'll feel less thirsty despite significant sweat loss (if you overdress), to say nothing of respiratory fluid loss.
That is, winter athletes need to consciously consume fluids to replace the water that gets lost via breathing. When you breathe in cold, dry air, your body warms and humidifies that air. As you exhale, you lose significant amounts of water.
Some winter athletes purposefully skimp on fluids because urinating can be problematic—too much hassle to shed layers of clothing (ski suit, hockey gear, snow pants, etc.) Yet, dehydration hurts performance and is one cause of failed mountaineering adventures.
What's Best Way to Eat to Warm Myself Up?
If you become chilled by the winter weather, as can easily happen if you:
- Wear sweaty, wet clothing that drains body heat
- Fail to wear a hat (30 to 40 percent of body heat can get lost through the head)
- Drink icy water (from a water bottle kept on your bike or outside pocket of your backpack when winter hiking)
... the best way to warm yourself up is to consume warm carbohydrates—hot cocoa, mulled cider, steaming soup, as well as oatmeal, chili, or pasta. The warm food, added to the thermogenic effect of eating, contributes to rapid recovery.
In comparison, cold foods and fluids chill your body. Research subjects who ate a big bowl of ice cream in five minutes experienced a drop in fingertip temperature of two degrees F in the first five minutes, five degrees in 15 minutes.
In summer, this cooling effect is desirable, but in winter, hot foods are the better way to warm yourself.
Why Do I Gain Weight in the Winter?
Some people eat more because they are bored and less active. Instead of playing tennis, they are eating mindlessly in front of the TV.
For others, the change of seasons has a marked affect upon their mood (known as seasonal affective disorder, or SAD). Changes in brain chemicals increase carbohydrate cravings and the desire to eat more.
Holiday temptations also contribute to weight gain. A study of 195 people indicates they gained on average 0.8 pounds in the six weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year's.
Overweight and obese people gained even more, with about 14 percent of the group gaining more than five pounds. The problem is, very few of the subjects lost those holiday pounds.
Hence, yearly holiday weight gain—that's 8 pounds in 10 years—becomes a major contributor to America's obesity problem.
One weight-management solution is to stay active in the winter. By investing in proper clothing, you'll be able to stay warm from head to toe. You'll benefit from not only being able to enjoy exercise but also from sunlight—a good way to battle winter depression (and attempts to cheer yourself up with food).
Winter exercise is an asset for managing health, weight and the winter blues. The tricks are to dress right, fuel well, prevent dehydration—and you'll stay warm!
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Find healthy recipes to fuel your next race.
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About the Author
Nancy Clark, MS, RD, CSSD (Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics) helps both casual and competitive athletes learn how to eat a winning sports diet. Her practice is in Newton, Massachusetts (617-795-1875). The fifth edition of her Sports Nutrition Guidebook is available at www.nancyclarkrd.com. Also see NutritionSportsExerciseCEUs.com for online CEUs.


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Photography stands out among a mixed bag of interest
Putting all of Ed Kelley's interests in separate, tidy little boxes just doesn't work.
There's no way to separate Ed from Ed's photography; or Ed's photography from nature; or nature from Ed's philosophy. There is also Ed Kelley the artist, the musician, the businessman, the husband, the father and the hiker.
When you approach one you get them all – not wrapped into a neat, tidy package but more like a large balloon half-filled with water, and as soon as you feel like you have your hands around the "real" Ed, the water shifts and Ed flows effortlessly, knowledgably and comfortably into another aspect of the balloon.
According to Kelley, he was a teenager before he began to discover the natural world that surrounded him in Haywood County and across Western North Carolina.
"I was 15 or 16 when I hiked to the top of Mt. Pisgah with a friend who was in the Boy Scouts. I was blown away by the view. All the years I had lived here and I had never seen this," said Kelley, who owns Ridge Runner Naturals Gallery/Studio on Main Street in downtown Waynesville with his wife, Jo, a painter. The studio/gallery is adorned with Jo's and Ed's original artwork, including many examples of Ed's nature photography.
Kelley said not long after that experience he got his drivers license and more and more trailheads in the area became accessible. But, he said a major shift occurred when he was a music major at Mars Hill College.
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"They had what were called 'mini-mesters'," Kelley said. According to Kelley, a mini-mester was about a month-long class between the traditional fall and spring semesters.
"They had a backpacking class, and I signed up," he said. "It was the first time I had ever been in Shining Rock Wilderness. We had to bushwhack from (U.S.) 276 up to Shining Rock. Then we hiked over to Sam's Knob and back. We were out there for a couple of nights and it was awesome."
Not long after that trip, Kelley nixed the music program at Mars Hill and enrolled in Forestry at Haywood Community College. That just served to cement his connection to the out-of-doors.
"We were in the field all the time," Kelley said. "We had class in the woods; we would cruise timber or learn tree identification and there, I met a good friend who had the same kind of drive for the outdoors that I did.
"We both wanted to learn and see more and more. We went on lots of bushwhacking trips together. We would just get the maps out and say – look we can go from here to here – and we would set out."
Kelley said there is a good reason his business was named the "Ridge Runner."
"When we would get the maps out we would look at the ridges. The ridges are the connectors. We didn't know if there would be trails or not but we knew we could follow the ridges."
Second nature
Kelley said his attraction to photography predated his hiking addiction.
"I remember being in Washington, D.C., when I was in the seventh grade. I had this little box camera and I went all over town taking pictures," he said.
"Not long after that I bought an old Canon FX from a photographer friend of the family. It was completely manual. I had a 50mm, a 125mm and a 28mm wide-angle lens and I took that camera with me everywhere. If I was hiking it was in my backpack," Kelley said.
Looking back, Kelley said he is glad that he learned about photography from his old manual Cannon.
"I learned about light and aperture and shutter speed because all of that had to be done manually. It's ingrained in me now, and when I go out I can concentrate on the composition of the photograph," he said.
"Sometimes, now, I will hike to a specific spot at a specific time just to get one certain photograph. I've been there before and I've seen the scene and I know what time to be there for the best light," Kelley said.
"Of course there are other times when I just grab my camera and head out to see what I might find."
Asked to rank light, equipment, subject matter and composition or eye in some sort of photography hierarchy, Kelley said he felt the number one consideration was lighting.
"Everything else being equal, lighting will make or break a photograph," Kelley said. "The best subject in poor lighting will result in a poor photograph, where a somewhat mundane subject in perfect lighting can produce an exceptional photo."
Kelley ranked composition — being able to see in your mind's eye what the finished photo will be, second. He ranked subject third and equipment fourth.
"There is so much decent photographic equipment out there today, that if you learn about light and shutter speed and aperture, and composition you'll be able to get good photos."
His favorite times of day to shoot are dawn and dusk.
"The light is just so much warmer then – it kind of embraces the subject instead of just lighting it."
His favorite season is winter. 'Because of the lower angle of the sun, you get that warm light for a longer period of time."
A perfect storm
Kelley thinks the woods and mountains and balds are great. And he believes people can't help but benefit spiritually and physically by spending time out doors. And for him, adding photography to his walks in the woods just increases his enjoyment. It nurtures his artistic spirit as well as his physical and mental wellbeing.
"I need that balance in my life," Kelley said.
To see what that balance looks like go to www.edkelley.com.


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Jesus as "God": Scriptural Fact or Scribal Fantasy?
Related MediaNote: For academic treatment on this topic, see earlier article posted on bible.org. The final form of this work was included in the Christian Research Journal (vol 31.4 [2008]).
"Who do you say that I am?"
As we turn to the Bible, we expect an explicit answer to Jesus' question. In fact most Bible scholars have, at some point, searched the New Testament for passages that explicitly refer to Jesus as "God." This may seem like an easy pursuit with many "validating" texts, yet several problems quickly surface.
First, Jesus never used the term "God" when referring to Himself. Matthew, Mark, and Luke never explicitly give the title "God" to Jesus. No sermon in the Book of Acts attributes the title "God" to Jesus. Few existing New Testament manuscripts contain such "Jesus-God" passages prior to the fourth century, with several scholars assuming the Orthodox Church corrupted most of those. Finally—and arguably the biggest obstacle in ascribing the title "God" to Jesus—the existing New Testament manuscripts differ in all potential passages that explicitly call Jesus "God."
What is at stake here? At first glance, this undermines the traditional and essential Christian doctrine of the divinity of Christ.
Why is this issue important? The ascription of "God" to Jesus contributes to our understanding of who Christ is. C. S. Lewis, in Mere Christianity, wrote, "Then comes the real shock. Among these Jews there suddenly turns up a man who goes about talking as if He was God." In addition, some modern scholars continue to challenge the textual authenticity of these passages—leaving people in doubt whether the New Testament ever explicitly calls Jesus "God."
Fortunately, in the face of these challenges, we can turn to the Scriptures.
We begin by considering the compilation of our Bible. After a group or person received an original Gospel or letter, copies were made to make such letters accessible to a wider audience. The Apostle Paul even mentions providing it to a wider audience in Colossians 4:16, "And after you have read this letter, have it read to the church of Laodicea."
Unfortunately for us, scribes lacked the "copy and paste" functions current technology offers, they wrote copies by hand, and such copies were inconsistent. Most of the inconsistencies happened by mistake, such as spelling errors or word-order differences. On the other hand, some changes happened on purpose. How do we know what they did and why? How can we be sure what the original said?
Textual criticism is the study of surviving documents of which the original is unknown to determine the exact wording of the original. In this case, it is the study of the surviving copies of the New Testament.
Though different methods exist for determining what the original said, most textual critics today include both internal and external evidence when deciding on the original text. Basically, they evaluate everything: date, location, style, context, vocabulary, scribal habits, etc. Although this might seem mechanical, most working in the field would say that this discipline is both an art and a science.
So a textual critic is not one who has a "critical attitude" toward the Bible but rather one who works in the field of determining originals. Their task is important because we have none of the original New Testament manuscripts, and the ones we do have differ from one another. Consequently, before we can determine what the Bible means, we must first determine what it says. This, again, is what some textual critics now challenge relating to the "Jesus-God" passages. Let's briefly take a look at a few examples.
Until fourteen years ago, when professor and best-selling author, Bart Ehrman first published The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture, New Testament scholars agreed unanimously in their textual certainty of the statement in John 1:1, "and the Word was God." This scholarly agreement continues today with the exception of Ehrman. In at least three more published books and one published lecture series, Ehrman continues to suggest that the original text does not necessarily teach the deity of Christ, most often pointing to textual problems behind such verses. In this case, John 1:1, he remains unpersuaded by the scholarly consensus because of his hesitancy to dismiss a single eighth-century manuscript—a manuscript which once again gives him the "distinct impression" that the Orthodox Church changed the text in order to confirm the full deity of Christ.
Why would the Church want to do this? Allegedly, in this case, they changed it after declaring a man named Arius heretical for denying the full deity of Christ. The Orthodox Church, then, according to Ehrman, changed this text so that the implicit identification—Jesus as simply divine—would become an explicit one—God himself.
One problem with his thesis is that Arius never had a problem calling Jesus "God." In fact, he does so in a letter he wrote to Eusebius, bishop of Nicomedia, in which he wrote "he [the Son] subsisted before times and ages, full of grace and truth, God, only-begotten, unchangeable." Ehrman's orthodox-corruption theory, in this case, remains unjustifiable at its basic level.
Furthermore, the difference in this one eighth-century manuscript does not deny the deity of Jesus. Most scholars interpret this phrase as, "the Word had the same nature as God."
New Testament professor, Dr. Craig Keener, wrote in his commentary on John, "Regarding Jesus as merely 'divine' but not deity violates the context; identifying him with the Father does the same. For this reason... scholars from across the contemporary theological spectrum recognize that, although Father and Son are distinct in this text, they share deity in the same way."
Attempts to understand the theological motive(s) behind the variant in this one eighth-century manuscript do not change the fact that the text is certain and it explicitly ascribes the title "God" to Jesus: "and the Word was God."
Next we consider John 20:28. As world-renowned New Testament scholar Dr. N. T. Wright believes, John 20:28 is the fullest confession of faith in the entire Gospel. "My Lord and my God," cries Thomas upon touching the risen Christ. Even more intriguing is that this confession comes from the lips of "doubting Thomas."
So, does John 20:28 have an untrustworthy history? Once again, a single fifth-century manuscript has given Ehrman some textual reflux because it omits a Greek article before "God." Assuming Ehrman is correct, however, his argument is backwards. If the variant in this one manuscript is the original wording then the verse has a Greek grammatical construction which scholars label Granville Sharp's Rule—which requires us to understand both "Lord" and "God" in this verse as referring to Jesus. In other words, if Ehrman is correct in going with this one fifth-century manuscript, this verse is actually even more explicit.
Thus, no matter which manuscript contains the original wording, John 20:28 explicitly refers to Jesus as "God."
Hebrews 1:8 is another verse that possibly attributes "God" to Jesus, and the last one we will evaluate. The main textual difference is whether the last word in Greek should read "his" or "your." The answer will help us determine if Jesus is explicitly called "God":
Option 1 is a direct address, "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and a righteous scepter is the scepter of your kingdom."
Option 2 makes God the subject, "God is your throne [or, Your throne is God] forever and ever, and a righteous scepter is the scepter of his [i.e. God's] kingdom."
External evidence favors the pronoun "your"—in option 1—as having better textual credentials than the pronoun "his"—in option 2. Yet Ehrman says, "It is interesting to observe that the same manuscripts that evidence corruption in Hebrews 1:8 do so in John 1:18 as well, one of the other [Jesus-God] passages." While this brief statement is correct, he leaves the reader with a blurred view of the manuscript evidence. Indeed, all the manuscripts he used regarding this topic include other "Jesus-God" passages in them. Two examples include the following:
1. The fifth-century Western manuscript (D)
· Corrupted text according to Ehrman: John 1:1.
· Text that supports Ehrman's reading: John 20:28.
2. The eighth-century Alexandrian manuscript (L)
· Corrupted text according to Ehrman: John 20:28.
· Text that supports Ehrman's reading: John 1:1.
In light of these two examples, which are only a small sampling, the point is that no one would have received a distorted view of the deity of Christ if they received only their manuscript. Both manuscripts listed above have at least one "Jesus-God" verse that affirms the full deity of Christ. It is not essential, then, that every potential "Jesus-God" passage in every manuscript affirm the same. This evidential conclusion causes another major problem in Ehrman's overall orthodox-corruption thesis.
In the end, the best evidence in Heb 1:8 points to the true textual reading, "but to the Son [he declares], 'Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and a righteous scepter is the scepter of your kingdom.' " In other words, there is a high probability that Hebrews 1:8 is another explicit affirmation of Jesus as "God."
At the end of the day, no one contests that the New Testament usually reserves the title "God" for the Father. Yet this usage, though dominant, is not exclusive. The question now is not whether Jesus is explicitly called "God" in the New Testament, but how many times He is thus identified and by whom. This debate, then, does not jeopardize Orthodox Christology. We can therefore be confident in the midst of these challenges. In fact, the title "God" only makes explicit what other Christological titles such as "Lord" and "Son of God" imply. Dr. Murray Harris, prolific author and expert on the deity of Christ, concludes:
"Even if the early Church had never applied the title ['God'] to Jesus, his deity would still be apparent in his being the object of human and angelic worship and of saving faith; the exerciser of exclusively divine functions such as creatorial agency, the forgiveness of sins, and the final judgment; the addressee in petitionary prayer; the possessor of all divine attributes; the bearer of numerous titles used of Yahweh in the Old Testament; and the co-author of divine blessing. Faith in the deity of Christ does not rest on the evidence or validity of a series of 'proof-texts' in which Jesus may receive the title ['God'] but on the general testimony of the New Testament corroborated at the bar of personal experience."
Still, with at least one text that undoubtedly calls Jesus "God" in every respect (John 20:28), the question whether Jesus is ever called "God" in the New Testament is resolved. This does not mean the cry of skeptics will be silenced, but any other conclusion divorces itself from the textual evidence internally and externally. In other words, the overwhelming evidence clearly attests to the fact that Jesus as "God" is a scriptural fact. Whether one chooses to believe in Him as such is another matter.
Related Topics: Christology


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You can see a gallery of TEN ways of wearing it over there.
I'll have more links created after Thanksgiving. For now, here's its Ravelry project page, and its online photo set.
Edited on Dec. 3, 2011 to add:
- I blogged the story of the "Undaria" name here.
- You can now download the final pattern at DesigningVashti and in Ravelry.
Being able to blog right from my website is making me irrationally happy and kind of wonderstruck. I've had that website for a little over a year, and it's been slow-going for me to remember how to update it. (I'd rather be designing...) Meanwhile, I know how to blog and enjoy it, and how to create colorful newsletters.
Wow. A Wordpress-driven website is going to be FUN!