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Machine Learning for Trading Course
This course introduces students to the real world challenges of implementing machine learning based trading strategies including the algorithmic steps from information gathering to market orders. The focus is on how to apply probabilistic machine learning approaches to trading decisions. We consider statistical approaches like linear regression, Q-Learning, KNN and regression trees and how to apply them to actual stock trading situations.
This course is composed of three mini-courses:
- Mini-course 1: Manipulating Financial Data in Python
- Mini-course 2: Computational Investing
- Mini-course 3: Machine Learning Algorithms for Trading
A set of course notes and example code can be found here: [[1]]
Video Content
The video content for this course is available for free at [Udacity].
Important note
This course ramps up in difficulty towards the end. The projects in the final 1/3 of the course are challenging. Be prepared.
Instructor information
Tucker Balch, Ph.D.
Professor, Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech
CS 7646 Course Designer
CS 7646 Instructor: Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Summer 2017 (online), Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Summer 2018, Fall 2018
CIOS reviews Media:2017SummerCIOS.pdf
Maria Hybinette
Associate Professor, Computer Science, University of Georgia
CS 4646 Instructor: Summer 2018
David Byrd
Research Scientist, Interactive Media Technology Center at Georgia Tech
CS 7646 On Campus Instructor: Summer 2016, Summer 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2019
CS 7646 Head TA: Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Fall 2017
David Joyner
CS 7646 Online Instructor: Spring 2019, Summer 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020
Joshua Fox
CS 7646 Head TA: Fall 2019, Spring 2020
Syllabi and schedule for specific semesters
- CS7646_Fall_2019 (also CS 4646)
- CS7646_Summer_2019
- CS7646_Spring_2019
- CS7646_Fall_2018 also includes details for CS 4646
- [Undergrad summer 2018]
- CS7646_Summer_2018
- CS7646_Spring_2018
- CS7646_Fall_2017
- CS7646_Summer_2017
- CS7646_Spring_2017
- CS7646_Fall_2016
- CS7646_Summer_2016
- CS7646_Spring_2016
Textbooks, Software & Other Resources
We will use the following textbooks:
- For Mini-course 1: Python for Finance by Yves Hilpisch amazon.com (optional)
- For Mini-course 2: What Hedge Funds Really Do by Romero and Balch amazon.com (required)
- For Mini-course 3: Machine Learning by Tom Mitchell (optional)
- Buy it for $218.00 at: amazon.com
- Buy a paperback version for $61.78. IMPORTANT WARNINGS: 1) They only ship to the US 2) It takes them 3 weeks to print the book. If you order from outside the US they will quietly accept your money but never ship the book: less expensive version at mcgraw hill
- Buy a paperback international version for $19.10. I am not certain about the reliability of this company: international
- Follow these instructions to set up the software: ML4T_Software_Setup
Other resources:
- Course notes developed by Octavian Blaga [docs.google.com]
- Pandas documentation: [pandas.pydata.org]
- David Byrd's slides on how to vectorize technical analysis methods: media:CDB_vectorize_me.pptx
All types of students are welcome! The Machine Learning topics might be "review" for CS students, while finance parts will be review for finance students. However, even if you have experience in these topics, you will find that we consider them in a different way than you might have seen before, in particular with an eye towards implementation for trading.
If you answer "no" to the following questions, it may be beneficial to refresh your knowledge of the prerequisite material prior to taking CS 7646:
- Do you have a working knowledge of basic statistics, including probability distributions (such as normal and uniform), calculation and differences between mean, median and mode
- Do you understand the difference between geometric mean and arithmetic mean?
- Do you have strong programming skills? Take this quiz compinvesti-prog-quiz if you would like help determining the strength of your programming skills.
- Are you competent with the Unix command line?
Who this course is for: The course is intended for people with strong software programming experience and introductory level knowledge of investment practice. A primary prerequisite is an interest and excitement about the stock market.
Software we'll use: In order to complete the programming assignments you will need to a development environment that you're comfortable with. We use Unix, but you can also work with Windows and Mac OS environments. You must download and install a set of Python modules to your computer (including NumPy, SciPy, and Pandas).
How to install the software: ML4T Software Setup
- OMSCS: We will use Udacity for lecture videos.
- Login here using your GT account: GT-Udacity Login (instruction video)
Note: DO NOT log in using your personal Udacity account, in case you have one. - Go to the course on Udacity (or navigate through My Courses): https://www.udacity.com/course/viewer#!/c-ud501
- Login here using your GT account: GT-Udacity Login (instruction video)
- If you have have trouble accessing Udacity content, please share your problem via email with email@example.com
- We will use Canvas for ALL submissions: Canvas (pick appropriate course site)
- We will use Piazza for interaction and discussion. Consult the page for the current semester for a link.
- A: 90.0% and above
- B: 80.0% and above
- C: 70.0% and above
- D: 60.0% and above
- F: below 60.0%
Students taking the course Pass/Fail must earn at least a 75% to pass.
We do not encourage "audit" students. If you are in the course on audit status, you must earn at least a "B" on the midterm.
See semester syllabus for assignment weights.
Minimum technical requirements
- Browser and connection speed: An up-to-date version of Chrome or Firefox is strongly recommended. We also support Internet Explorer 9 and the desktop versions of Internet Explorer 10 and above (not the metro versions). 2+ Mbps recommended; at minimum 0.768 Mbps download speed.
- Hardware: A computer with at least 4GB of RAM and CPU speed of at least 2.5GHz.
- For code development and testing, these three configurations will work
- PC: Windows XP or higher with latest updates installed
- Mac: OS X 10.6 or higher with latest updates installed
- Linux: Any recent distribution that has the supported browsers installed
- For online test taking (proctortrack) you will need one of:
- PC: Windows XP or higher with latest updates installed
- Mac: OS X 10.6 or higher with latest updates installed
- Linux is NOT supported.
Office hours
To be determined.
In most cases I expect that all submitted code will be written by you. I will present some libraries in class that you are allowed to use (such as pandas and numpy). Otherwise, all source code, images and write-ups you provide should have been created by you alone.
If we discover that you have submitted assignment material created by another student, either from a previous semester or in the current session, you will be assigned a 0 for the relevant project.
Class Policies
- For Pass/Fail students: Your overall grade must be 75% or higher to get a passing grade.
- Official communication is by email: We use piazza for discussions, but it is not an official communications channel.
- Student responsibilities: Be aware of the deadlines posted on the schedule. Start work on projects even if they are not open on Canvas.
- Grade contest period: After a project grade is released you have 7 days to contest the grade. After that time projects will not be reevaluated. You must have a very specific issue with a compelling argument as to why your grade is incorrect. Example compelling argument: "The TA took 10 points off because I was missing a chart, but the chart is visible on page 5." Example not compelling argument: "I think I should have gotten more points, please regrade my project."
- Grade contest process: Instruction to be released prior to Project 1 grade release.
- Late policy: Late assignments will not be graded unless a prior arrangement has been made with the instructors. See CS7646_Fall_2019#Late_Work
- Exam scheduling: Exams will be held on specific days at specific times. If there is an emergency or other issue that requires changing the date of an exam for you, you will need to have it approved by the Dean of Students. You can apply for that here: http://www.deanofstudents.gatech.edu (under Resources -> Class Absences)
- Each project for this course has it's own page on this wiki. That description includes a list of specific deliverables and usually a rubric. Be sure to double check your submission against those so you don't miss anything.
Many of the projects will be revised somewhat. They are finalized when they are released on Canvas.
- We require that your code run properly on one of the servers we have set up at GT.
- If a problem exists with your submitted code we will not consider reassessing it if it has not been tested as described above.
- Most projects will be accompanied with template code and grading code that you can use to test your project. It is necessary that your code passes the grading checks we provide, but the final batch tests may be more rigorous. Be sure to examine the rubrics in the project description to be sure your code meets them.
- Once you are satisfied with your code, submit the EXACT same working code via Canvas.
- It is a good idea to submit a version of your working code early (before the deadline) in case some problem arises with your internet connection or Canvas.
- The latest timestamp on any part of your submission will be used as the time of submission for your whole project. Accordingly, do not resubmit anything after the deadline, or it will be considered late.
- After the submission deadline we will test your code on one of our servers which is configured identically to the ones available for your test.


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This article is more than 1 year old
Apple site hacked 'by LulzSec' - report
No suggestion of snags at iTunes, though
Hackers claim to have broken into Apple's systems before posting a list of names and password hashes online.
The FT, in a story careful to make a number of caveats, attributes the hack on what would appears to be Apple's business intelligence unit on infamous and recently disbanded prankster hackers LulzSec. None of this has been confirmed and Apple is yet to say anything about the supposed hack.
Both LulzSec and Anonymous have targeted security consultancies and multinationals such as Sony over recent weeks, partly out of mischief and partly to expose poor security practices. The Apple attack might be taken to fit with that broad aim.
Anonymous linked to the supposed Apple data dump before, saying that "Apple could be target, too. But don't worry, we are busy elsewhere".
The whole situation is confusingly sketchy and all we can say for sure is that internal users of Apple's survey site ought to change their password, especially if they used login credentials likely to be exposed by a brute-force dictionary attack on the exposed password hashes.
The hack is limited to a problem with the survey site, so iTunes users, for example, should rest easy that their login credentials have not been exposed. ®

subset: commoncrawl


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In honor of DreamWorks Pictures' new movie THE HUNDRED-FOOT JOURNEY, starring Helen Mirren, here's a new Sparkling Lemonade recipe to make your Mixology Monday a little more sparkling!! Opens in theatres 8/8. Watch for more posts from me as I'll be headed to LA July 16th for the #100FootJourneyEvent.
Check out the trailer below:
Like THE HUNDRED FOOT JOURNEY on Facebook: http://facebook.com/100footjourneymovie
Follow THE HUNDRED FOOT JOURNEY on Twitter: https://twitter.com/the100ftJourney
Instagram: http://instagram.com/thehundredfootjourney
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/100FtJourney
THE HUNDRED-FOOT JOURNEY arrives in theaters everywhere on August 8th!
About THE HUNDRED-FOOT JOURNEY
In "The Hundred-Foot Journey," Hassan Kadam (Manish Dayal) is a culinary ingénue with the gastronomic equivalent of perfect pitch. Displaced from their native India, the Kadam family, led by Papa (Om Puri), settles in the quaint village of Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val in the south of France. Filled with charm, it is both picturesque and elegant—the ideal place to settle down and open an Indian restaurant, the Maison Mumbai. That is, until the chilly chef proprietress of Le Saule Pleureur, a Michelin starred, classical French restaurant run by Madame Mallory (Academy Award®-winner Helen Mirren), gets wind of it. Her icy protests against the new Indian restaurant a hundred feet from her own escalate to all out war between the two establishments—until Hassan's passion for French haute cuisine and for Mme. Mallory's enchanting sous chef, Marguerite (Charlotte Le Bon), combine with his mysteriously delicious talent to weave magic between their two cultures and imbue Saint-Antonin with the flavors of life that even Mme. Mallory cannot ignore. At first Mme. Mallory's culinary rival, she eventually recognizes Hassan's gift as a chef and takes him under her wing.
"The Hundred-Foot Journey" abounds with flavors that burst across the tongue. A stimulating triumph over exile, blossoming with passion and heart, with marjoram and madras, it is a portrayal of two worlds colliding and one boy's drive to find the comfort of home, in every pot, wherever he may be.
Directed by Lasse Hallström, and starring Academy Award-winner Helen Mirren, "The Hundred-Foot Journey" is produced by Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey, and Juliet Blake. The executive producers are Caroline Hewitt and Carla Gardini. The screenplay is written by Steven Knight, based on the novel "The Hundred-Foot Journey" by Richard C. Morais.
"The Hundred-Foot Journey will be released in theaters on August 8, 2014.
- Interview with Dave Boyle for House of Ninjas on Netflix - February 21, 2024
- Welcome Home Franklin Interview - February 16, 2024
- Interview Walt Dohrn and Tim Heitz on Trolls Band Together - February 8, 2024


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Faithfulness Day 35
Oct 29, 2020
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20 ESV


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This book is a complete user's guide and reference manual for Chez Scheme Version 8. It describes each language extension in detail and provides a number of userful hints and example programs to make programming in Chez Scheme more productive and enjoyable. Topics covered include debugging, interacting with programs and functions written in other programming languages, data abstraction, syntactic abstraction, modules, generic ports, numeric operations, compiler controls, system operations, storage management, and more.
R. Kent Dybvig is the principal developer of Chez Scheme, and the author of The Scheme Programming Language, 4th Edition.
The cover illustration was created by Jean-Pierre Hébert.
The printed version of this book was created with LaTeX from extended LaTeX sources with the help of a preprocessor written in Scheme. The preprocessor handles extensions for incorporating arbitrary verbatim Scheme code and various other features not directly supported by LaTeX.
The HTML version was created from the preprocessed sources for the printed version by a separate Scheme program that performs a LaTeX to HTML conversion. In addition to the extended LaTeX source files, this program takes as input the .aux and .bbl files produced by a complete LaTeX/BibTeX run of the document in order to support labels and page references in the text, summary of forms, and index. As it runs, the program produces a .haux file containing urls for the labels, bibliographic entries, and index entries; as with LaTeX, a second run of the program is needed to achieve proper cross-referencing.
Most of the images and certain mathematical formulas included in the HTML version were produced with the help of LaTeX, dvips, ghostscript, and various programs from the netpbm library.


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The Internal Revenue Code is packed with thousands of tax deductions, from write offs for unreimbursed medical expense to deductions for cheese baskets for clients. But because nobody wants to pay more than their fair share of taxes — and because the Tax Code is often dizzyingly complex — it's the time of year when even honest taxpayers may find themselves considering "imaginative" deductions. Almost 34 percent of tax returns claimed itemized deductions for the tax year 2008, according to tax publisher CCH. Some are totally legit; others are completely ridiculous, such as when Leona Helmsley attempted to deduct the cost of underwear as a business expense.
Click here for the slideshow
Some taxpayers find themselves in a murky legal area, such as The Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana in Fairfax, Calif. The state of California views the alliance as a legal business; the Feds aren't so sure. The company's founder, Lynette Shaw, told the Marin Independent Journal in March that the IRS had audited the alliance's tax returns for 2008 and 2009 and disallowed millions of dollars in business deductions, such as buying marijuana and renting office space, based on section 280E of the federal tax code, which deals with businesses trafficking in controlled substances.
That's not to say that the IRS hasn't let slide a few wacky deductions. Since it's the last weekend before federal returns are due, we thought we'd provide a little comic relief in the form of offbeat deductions that have actually worked. Careful, though: the IRS considers each taxpayer's situation individually — and there are many exceptions to every tax rule. If the Feds disallow your deductions you could be subject to penalties and interest charges, so consult a tax expert before you get too creative. In the meantime, enjoy these inventive deductions.
To read all of The Fiscal Times' Tax Day Countdown Series click here.


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It needs to be said, my expectations were high for Paranormal Activity 4…well, high considering this is the fourth feature in horror franchise that's part of subgenre (found footage) quickly wearing out its welcome. I found the first three Paranormal Activity movies fantastically haunting with their minimalist approach to displaying the titular phenomena, building from oddities that could be rationalized to totally terrifying and unexplainable violence caught on tape. The locked perspective of their cameras similarly made me feel trapped within their frame, and directing team Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman—of Catfish infamy—took this found footage aspect to a terrifying new realm in Paranormal Activity 3. With these two back for 4, I anticipated not only an intriguing continuation of the franchise's growing mythos, but also some innovative new scares within the format. Unfortunately, the most shocking part of Paranormal Activity 4 is how far it missed the mark.
The feature begins with a brief refresher of the end of Paranormal Activity 2, where a fully possessed Katie (Katie Featherston) slaughters her sister then kidnaps baby Hunter before strolling off into the night and out of range of the late family's security system cameras. Cut to five years later in Nevada where Alex, an adorable 15-year-old girl (Kathryn Newton) who inexplicably always carries her video camera, begins documenting the bizarre events that plague her and her family after the weird little boy-next-door stays with them. Robbie (Brady Allen) is a sullen child who lurks around their property late at night until his single mom is carted off by an ambulance, forcing Alex's family to take him in. Luckily for Alex, her goofy boyfriend (Matt Shively) "accidentally" recorded video of her sleeping, and caught the little creep up to no good. The teens turn all the family computers into surveillance cameras in hopes of proving to Alex's self-involved parents something strange is going on.
First off, teens toting cameras is a red flag for the found footage genre, as it's generally a lazy screenwriter device to justify why the camera is always around at pertinent moments that should seem innocuous to the characters. Because all young people record every inane moment of their life, right? But this is only the beginning of the plot holes that riddle Paranormal Activity 4, many of which I can't get into without spoiling the film's final act. Suffice to say, key characters eventually abandon their acquired knowledge and established motivations in service to the plot, making for an ending that is as senseless as it is frustrating. Between the found footage convention and the established rules of this franchise, the climax is a foregone (read: predictable) conclusion. So getting attached to this brave girl who is fighting valiantly to save her family from this evil is not only sad, it's a little boring.
To their credit, Joost and Schulman start off strong. They deftly establish the geography of the family's home so that the action and camera work that plays out later is easy to follow, and the audience is likewise primed for where to watch when things get worrisomely quiet. They also prove savvy at setting up shots, including open doorways and peppering the frame with idly moving objects like a swaying bead curtain, making us nervously scan the background for a possible threat. However, these setups payoff less than one would hope with some missed opportunities and a barrage of false alarm scares that are fun in the moment, but ultimately kill the brewing tension. There's more downtime here than the other movies have. As the nights plod along with more and more bizarre events, they peak at an insane supernatural event, cut to black and then pick up in the light of day with no lasting impact. Rather than building a prolonged and deepening anxiety through slowly mounting these attacks with no sense of relief as the first three films did, Paranormal Activity 4's stuttered structure is episodic, and at 88 minutes the film still feels long.
Ultimately, it seems Joost and Schulman lost track of what made this franchise work. They overstuff it with monsters, not just the unseen entity we've come to love to fear, but also killer Katie and creepy kids, a device that between this, Sinister and Possession has already worn out its welcome again. This three-pronged assault dilutes the menace of the franchise's central villain and does nothing to enhance the series' mythos. At the end of the film we know little more about this invisible evil spirit or what his plans are for Katie and Hunter than we did at the end of the third or second film. Then instead of innovation, the directors give into jump scares and false alarm gags to keep the audience invested, and in doing so lose the mounting suspense and dread that set the earlier films apart from their imitators. In short, Paranormal Activity 4 is more startling than scary and does more damage to the franchise than good.
Staff writer at CinemaBlend.
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I'd been excited to read Tobias Buckell's Crystal Rain for a while, for several reasons: 1) It's got a pretty bitchin' cover, with a dark-skinned man with a hook for a left hand and a flying ship; 2) it's a POC-centric novel, and I was curious to see how it worked out; 3) Tobias Buckell identifies strongly as POC, as Caribbean, despite passing as a generic white American dude.
I did not get around to reading Crystal Rain for several reasons: 1) grad school; 2) I somehow couldn't find a way to get my mitts on it on Amazon (Buckell's store only offers a hardcover); and 3) grad school (seriously, moving to a new city and getting used to grad school sucks up your time. Things nobody tells you). Also, priorities and all that meant that I had to pick other texts to read that more strongly coded as steampunk, and I wasn't sure whether Crystal Rain did.
Well, it kinda does and doesn't.
Worn by the steampunk postcolonialist when engaging with issues of race, representation, diversity, and other such exciting adventures as one might find in our genial genre
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Friday, November 25, 2011
Things This Blog Doesn't Cover (But Wishes It Could)
So I was saying to Adrienne Kress the other day while hanging around the autograph table at SFContario, that there have been three separate incidents throughout this year, at three separate cons (that'd be Nova Albion, CNSE, and SteamCon), that have something in common: at each con, someone has asked me, if I knew anything about Jewish steampunk.
My first reaction is always an awkward, "well, um." The first time, I spouted Ted Chiang's story in the first Vandermeer Steampunk anthology. The second time, I listened to a woman tell me about the difficulty of researching Yiddishness, particularly from Eastern Europe where her family is from. The third time, was during a SATW presentation and all I could say was, "there is some."
I write a lot about literature and analysing it, as well as analysing practices in the steampunk subculture, mostly focusing on the rhetoric people spout in defense of racist practices like cultural appropriation. I write about tropes and common ideas that are harmful.
I think a lot about decolonizing the mind, which tends to be a deeply personal thing for me. It's tied to my history as a Malaysian, in which I have to question what it means to be a product of colonialism. I have to ask myself what is racist about my upbringing and what I was surrounded with and how to combat that in a productive manner that promotes dialog between the races living in my country. I have to criticize the people I was brought up to respect and obey. I think about the colonization of my people and how it has continued, even after we were "independent." Because, make no mistake, our independence is relatively modern, and although the economic neocolonialism of our wealth and resources come from other sources beyond the traditional British, the reasons why my people often uncritically and unwittingly embrace these memes that deprecate and demean us, that tell us that we are lesser (because we are not rich enough, according to white standards, because we are not pretty enough, according to white standards, because we are not cultured or civilized enough, according to white standards) are rooted in hundred of years of a foreign presence that persisted in maintaining a military and a culture war against us as national, political, tribal and ethnic entities.
But there are other stories to talk about, too.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Decolonizing Geography, Starting with Names
"What's in a name?" as Shakespeare wrote, and then he goes on with some claptrap of how roses smell the same. Except, of course, that's not how communication works: the essence of a thing is always communicated through a lens, and the lens will be affected by a lot of other things, including but not limited to, what any given thing is called.
Names are important.
This is a post brought to you by this excellent list of names of the Caribbean islands as called by the natives before the colonizers popularized the names used today. So if you don't want to read what's under the cut, you should at least go have a look at that.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Philippine Steampunk: High Society
So some of ya'll may be aware of this by now, but apparently my head's been in the ground for the last while (between studying for the GRE, NaNo, depression, and PhD apps) so I missed the release of High Society on Amazon!
Written by Paolo Chikiamco, and art by Hannah Buena, this story is set in the same 'verse as Chikiamco's "On Wooden Wings," which can be found in Philippine Speculative Fiction 6.
From the Amazon description:
Take your first step into a world of automata, magic, and alternative history! The year is 1764, and, for the first time in nearly two centuries, the Spanish forces have been repelled from the great walled city of Manila. While the Spaniards are quick to lay the blame at the feet of the invading British and their clockwork machines, the secret to the success of the Filipinos may lie closer to home, with an ally that is both ancient and new, mythical and mechanical. "High Society" is a stand-alone steampunk comic book in the "Wooden War" series.
And if that is intriguing, there is a giveaway (closes Dec 18) at Tinamats of a Kindle version! She also has a review.
Friday, November 11, 2011
More Links of Interest: Historical Tumblrs
Because apparently I live on Tumblr, I come across interesting historical bits that I doubt I would have found on other media. I get such things on a lesser degree on Twitter, but let's just say Tumblr is summat superior.
Now, I can't perfectly vet these Tumblrs, so I don't know how accurate they are or how good they are as representations. I do try to pick Tumblrs that are run by POC, and POCs who identify specifically with that history they are showcasing, but I can't always tell identity just by what they choose to reblog or feature. I also try to pick Tumblrs that have text-heavy posts, rather than just pictures.
So anyway, linkage:
Monday, November 7, 2011
Link of Interest: One Hundred Percent Mixed
Some of ya'll might be on Tumblr (and possibly some of you follow me on there too), therefore, you might have heard of this new Tumblr which takes submissions: One Hundred Percent Mixed.
One Hundred Percent Mixed is "an illustrated documentary on what it means to be mixed", with questions relating to the mixed-race POC experience, with some optional questions on how being a mixie intersects with other issues too, such as gender and sexuality.
I've been chatting to quite a few folks about what it means to be mixed and identify strongly with one identity or another and how it feels quashed by another, but there're other some others who identify firstly as mixed, such as Dov Sherman, which is a different mindset and experience that takes place outside a more essentialist identity.
So if you identify as mixed-race (as in, someone asks you, what are you, and you can't give a simple reply like "Asian"), hop on over to represent, or see yourself represented. Or pass it on to other mixed-race folk you know. Or just plain check it out, to edjamacate yourself more on how people navigate the world.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Quote of Interest
In my previous post on multiculturalism, replyhazy asked, "but what can I do?" which is not a question I don't hear, and often comes from people who really really really want to be able to play in the sandbox and dress up as POC and they've done their research!
In "Restarting Clockwork Game: A Self-Examination of White Privilege Through an Ongoing Work," Jane Irwin writes about how her desire to write her graphic novel turned into a research project on Orientalism. Here's an excerpt:
"My imperfect understanding of the subject matter stemmed from a combination of cultural ignorance and lack of research, or rather, a blinkered focus on only one kind of research. After reading through the first hundred or so essays in RaceFail09, I realized that while I'd spent hours looking up clothing and wigs and scientific discoveries of the day, I'd devoted almost no time at all to the politics of the era, politics clearly visible to a sizable portion of my audience. ... I'd been so hung up on examining the Uncanny Valley and seeing the automaton only in terms of man versus machine that I'd completely failed to address the equally large issue of how 18th century Europeans chose to depict and interact with the Mysterious Orient."
I doubt it'll help any of you white people directly, but I hope it'll make ya'll feel slightly less alone. There ARE conversations on what white people can do and have been doing to make safe spaces for POC. Part of your job is to actively go looking for them.
This has been your Tip For White People To Not Be So Faily Of The Day. Don't expect another tomorrow.
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Advertisement |
Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Doc Brown in the Back to the Future trilogy and Uncle Fester in The Addams Family films, as well as Reverend Jim Ignatowski in the television series Taxi and most recently Mr. Goodman in Piranha 3D. He also starred in the short-lived television series Deadly Games, and also was a regular in the short-lived TV series Stacked, in the mid-2000s.
Lloyd has used his vocal talents in animation, frequently voicing villains. He currently voices the character Hacker on the animated PBS series Cyberchase. Lloyd has won three Primetime Emmy Awards and an Independent Spirit Award, and has been nominated for two Saturn Awards and a Daytime Emmy Award.
Lloyd was born in Stamford, Connecticut, the son of Samuel R. Lloyd, a lawyer, and his wife Ruth (née Lapham), a singer and sister of San Francisco mayor Roger Lapham. His maternal grandfather, Lewis Lapham, was one of the founders of the Texaco oil company, and Lloyd is also a descendant of Mayflower passenger John Howland. Lloyd attended the Fessenden School, a preparatory school in Newton, Massachusetts. Lloyd was raised in New Canaan, Connecticut and Westport, Connecticut where he graduated from Staples High School in 1958.


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When the Israelites were gathered at Mount Sinai, God gave them the Torah.
Scholars and academics have spent lifetimes debating the exact location of Mount Sinai. The Sinai peninsula is covered with mountains, some wide and flat, others tall and rugged. Trying to establish which mountain is actually Sinai based on the fact that the Jews converged on Mount Sinai just short of 7 weeks after leaving Egypt, is almost impossible given the many different factors such as speed, route taken and stops made.
There is a mountain on the Sinai peninsula that is called Mount Sinai (in Arabic Jebel Musa, the mountain of Moses), but many doubt that this is the true location.
What do you picture when you think of Mount Sinai? Given the important event that occurred there, most would assume that it was a tall, grand mountain when, in fact, it was just the opposite: The Midrash relates that all of the tall mountains fought to be chosen as the location for the giving of the Torah. Mount Sinai, knowing that it was the smallest of the mountains, remained silent, and God chose Sinai because of its simple humility.
The allegories of the Midrash are not whimsical fancies, but are an important means of teaching critical life lessons. Judaism considers humility to be a most important character trait. Moses is described as the most humble human who walked the earth. However, being humble, according to the Torah, does not mean making one's self a doormat. Rather, a humble person will know his/her own strengths and self-worth (as well as his/her weaknesses), and will not need others to acknowledge his/her significance.
This Treat was last posted on May 30, 2014.


text:
Dots per inch
Dots per inch (DPI, or dpi[1]) is a measure of spatial printing, video or image scanner dot density, in particular the number of individual dots that can be placed in a line within the span of 1 inch (2.54 cm). Similarly, dots per centimetre (d/cm or dpcm) refers to the number of individual dots that can be placed within a line of 1 centimetre (0.394 in).[2]
DPI measurement in printing[edit]
DPI is used to describe the resolution number of dots per inch in a digital print and the printing resolution of a hard copy print dot gain, which is the increase in the size of the halftone dots during printing. This is caused by the spreading of ink on the surface of the media.
Up to a point, printers with higher DPI produce clearer and more detailed output. A printer does not necessarily have a single DPI measurement; it is dependent on print mode, which is usually influenced by driver settings. The range of DPI supported by a printer is most dependent on the print head technology it uses. A dot matrix printer, for example, applies ink via tiny rods striking an ink ribbon, and has a relatively low resolution, typically in the range of 60 to 90 DPI (420 to 280 μm). An inkjet printer sprays ink through tiny nozzles, and is typically capable of 300–720 DPI.[3] A laser printer applies toner through a controlled electrostatic charge, and may be in the range of 600 to 2,400 DPI.
The DPI measurement of a printer often needs to be considerably higher than the pixels per inch (PPI) measurement of a video display in order to produce similar-quality output. This is due to the limited range of colours for each dot typically available on a printer. At each dot position, the simplest type of color printer can either print no dot, or print a dot consisting of a fixed volume of ink in each of four color channels (typically CMYK with cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink) or 24 = 16 colours on laser, wax and most inkjet printers, of which only 14 or 15 (or as few as 8 or 9) may be actually discernible depending on the strength of the black component, the strategy used for overlaying and combining it with the other colours, and whether it is in "color" mode.
Higher-end inkjet printers can offer 5, 6 or 7 ink colours giving 32, 64 or 128 possible tones per dot location (and again, it can be that not all combinations will produce a unique result). Contrast this to a standard sRGB monitor where each pixel produces 256 intensities of light in each of three channels (RGB).
While some color printers can produce variable drop volumes at each dot position, and may use additional ink-color channels, the number of colours is still typically less than on a monitor. Most printers must therefore produce additional colours through a halftone or dithering process, and rely on their base resolution being high enough to "fool" the human observer's eye into perceiving a patch of a single smooth colour.
The exception to this rule is dye-sublimation printers, which can apply a much more variable amount of dye—close to or exceeding the number of the 256 levels per channel available on a typical monitor—to each "pixel" on the page without dithering, but with other limitations:
- lower spatial resolution (typically 200 to 300 dpi), which can make text and lines look somewhat rough
- lower output speed (a single page requiring three or four complete passes, one for each dye colour, each of which may take more than fifteen seconds—generally quicker, however, than most inkjet printers' "photo" modes)
- a wasteful (and, for confidential documents, insecure) dye-film roll cartridge system
- occasional color registration errors (mainly along the long axis of the page), which necessitate recalibrating the printer to account for slippage and drift in the paper feed system.
These disadvantages mean that, despite their marked superiority in producing good photographic and non-linear diagrammatic output, dye-sublimation printers remain niche products, and thus other devices using higher resolution, lower color depth, and dither patterns remain the norm.
This dithered printing process could require a region of four to six dots (measured across each side) in order to faithfully reproduce the color in a single pixel. An image that is 100 pixels wide may need to be 400 to 600 dots in width in the printed output; if a 100 × 100-pixel image is to be printed in a one-inch square, the printer must be capable of 400 to 600 dots per inch to reproduce the image. Fittingly, 600 dpi (sometimes 720) is now the typical output resolution of entry-level laser printers and some utility inkjet printers, with 1200–1440 and 2400–2880 being common "high" resolutions. This contrasts with the 300–360 (or 240) dpi of early models, and the approximate 200 dpi of dot-matrix printers and fax machines, which gave faxed and computer-printed documents—especially those that made heavy use of graphics or coloured block text—a characteristic "digitized" appearance, because of their coarse, obvious dither patterns, inaccurate colours, loss of clarity in photographs, and jagged ("aliased") edges on some text and line art.
DPI or PPI in digital image files[edit]
In printing, DPI (dots per inch) refers to the output resolution of a printer or imagesetter, and PPI (pixels per inch) refers to the input resolution of a photograph or image. DPI refers to the physical dot density of an image when it is reproduced as a real physical entity, for example printed onto paper. A digitally stored image has no inherent physical dimensions, measured in inches or centimetres. Some digital file formats record a DPI value, or more commonly a PPI (pixels per inch) value, which is to be used when printing the image. This number lets the printer or software know the intended size of the image, or in the case of scanned images, the size of the original scanned object. For example, a bitmap image may measure 1,000 × 1,000 pixels, a resolution of 1 megapixel. If it is labelled as 250 PPI, that is an instruction to the printer to print it at a size of 4 × 4 inches. Changing the PPI to 100 in an image editing program would tell the printer to print it at a size of 10 × 10 inches. However, changing the PPI value would not change the size of the image in pixels which would still be 1,000 × 1,000. An image may also be resampled to change the number of pixels and therefore the size or resolution of the image, but this is quite different from simply setting a new PPI for the file.
For vector images, since the file is resolution independent, there is no need to resample the image before resizing it. (prints equally well at all sizes). However, there is still a target printing size. Some image formats, such as Photoshop format, can contain both bitmap and vector data in the same file. Adjusting the PPI in a Photoshop file will change the intended printing size of the bitmap portion of the data and also change the intended printing size of the vector data to match. This way the vector and bitmap data maintain a consistent size relationship when the target printing size is changed. Text stored as outline fonts in bitmap image formats is handled in the same way. Other formats, such as PDF, are primarily vector formats which can contain images, potentially at a mixture of resolutions. In these formats the target PPI of the bitmaps is adjusted to match when the target print size of the file is changed. This is the converse of how it works in a primarily bitmap format like Photoshop, but has exactly the same result of maintaining the relationship between the vector and bitmap portions of the data.[citation needed]
Computer monitor DPI standards[edit]
Since the 1980s, Macs have set the default display "DPI" to 72 PPI, while the Microsoft Windows operating system has used a default of 96 PPI.[4] These default specifications arose out of the problems rendering standard fonts in the early display systems of the 1980s, including the IBM-based CGA, EGA, VGA and 8514 displays as well as the Macintosh displays featured in the 128K computer and its successors. The choice of 72 PPI by Macintosh for their displays arose from existing convention: the official 72 points per inch mirrored the 72 pixels per inch that appeared on their display screens. (Points are a physical unit of measure in typography, dating from the days of printing presses, where 1 point by the modern definition is 1⁄72 of the international inch (25.4 mm), which therefore makes 1 point approximately 0.0139 in or 352.8 µm). Thus, the 72 pixels per inch seen on the display had exactly the same physical dimensions as the 72 points per inch later seen on a printout, with 1 pt in printed text equal to 1 px on the display screen. As it is, the Macintosh 128K featured a screen measuring 512 pixels in width by 342 pixels in height, and this corresponded to the width of standard office paper (512 px ÷ 72 px/in ≈ 7.1 in, with a 0.7 in margin down each side when assuming 8+1⁄2 in × 11 in North American paper size; in the rest of the world, it is 210 mm × 297 mm – called A4. B5 is 176 mm × 250 mm).[citation needed]
A consequence of Apple's decision was that the widely used 10-point fonts from the typewriter era had to be allotted 10 display pixels in em height, and 5 display pixels in x-height. This is technically described as 10 pixels per em (PPEm). This made 10-point fonts be rendered crudely and made them difficult to read on the display screen, particularly the lowercase characters. Furthermore, there was the consideration that computer screens are typically viewed (at a desk) at a distance 30% greater than printed materials, causing a mismatch between the perceived sizes seen on the computer screen and those on the printouts.[citation needed]
Microsoft tried to solve both problems with a hack that has had long-term consequences for the understanding of what DPI and PPI mean.[5] Microsoft began writing its software to treat the screen as though it provided a PPI characteristic that is 4⁄3 of what the screen actually displayed. Because most screens at the time provided around 72 PPI, Microsoft essentially wrote its software to assume that every screen provides 96 PPI (because 72 × 4⁄3 = 96). The short-term gain of this trickery was twofold:
- It would seem to the software that one-third more pixels were available for rendering an image, thereby allowing for bitmap fonts to be created with greater detail.
- On every screen that actually provided 72 PPI, each graphical element (such as a character of text) would be rendered at a size one third larger than it "should" be, thereby allowing a person to sit a comfortable distance from the screen. However, larger graphical elements meant less screen space was available for programs to draw; indeed, although the default 720-pixel wide mode of a Hercules mono graphics adaptor (the one-time gold standard for high resolution PC graphics) – or a "tweaked" VGA adaptor – provided an apparent 7+1⁄2-inch page width at this resolution, the more common and colour-capable display adaptors of the time all provided a 640-pixel wide image in their high resolution modes, enough for a bare 6+2⁄3 inches at 100% zoom (and barely any greater visible page height – a maximum of 5 inches, versus 4+3⁄4). Consequently, the default margins in Microsoft Word were set, and still remain at 1 full inch on all sides of the page, keeping the "text width" for standard size printer paper within visible limits; despite most computer monitors now being both larger and finer-pitched, and printer paper transports having become more sophisticated, the Mac-standard half-inch borders remain listed in Word 2010's page layout presets as the "narrow" option (versus the 1-inch default).[citation needed]
- Without using supplemental, software-provided zoom levels, the 1:1 relationship between display and print size was (deliberately) lost; the availability of different-sized, user-adjustable monitors and display adaptors with varying output resolutions exacerbated this, as it was not possible to rely on a properly-adjusted "standard" monitor and adaptor having a known PPI. For example, a 12-inch Hercules monitor and adaptor with a thick bezel and a little underscan may offer 90 "physical" PPI, with the displayed image appearing nearly identical to hardcopy (assuming the H-scan density was properly adjusted to give square pixels) but a thin-bezel 14-inch VGA monitor adjusted to give a borderless display may be closer to 60, with the same bitmap image thus appearing 50% larger; yet, someone with an 8514 ("XGA") adaptor and the same monitor could achieve 100 DPI using its 1024-pixel wide mode and adjusting the image to be underscanned. A user who wanted to directly compare on-screen elements against those on an existing printed page by holding it up against the monitor would therefore first need to determine the correct zoom level to use, largely by trial and error, and often not be able to obtain an exact match in programs that only allowed integer per cent settings, or even fixed pre-programmed zoom levels. For the examples above, they may need to use respectively 94% (precisely, 93.75) – or 90⁄96, 63% (62.5) – or 60⁄96; and 104% (104.167) – or 100⁄96, with the more commonly accessible 110% actually being a less precise match.[citation needed]
Thus, for example, a 10-point font on a Macintosh (at 72 PPI) was represented with 10 pixels (i.e., 10 PPEm), whereas a 10-point font on a Windows platform (at 96 PPI) at the same zoom level is represented with 13 pixels (i.e., Microsoft rounded 13+1⁄3 to 13 pixels, or 13 PPEm) – and, on a typical consumer grade monitor, would have physically appeared around 15⁄72 to 16⁄72 inch high instead of 10⁄72. Likewise, a 12-point font was represented with 12 pixels on a Macintosh, and 16 pixels (or a physical display height of maybe 19⁄72 inch) on a Windows platform at the same zoom, and so on.[6] The negative consequence of this standard is that with 96 PPI displays, there is no longer a one-to-one relationship between the font size in pixels and the printout size in points. This difference is accentuated on more recent displays that feature higher pixel densities. This has been less of a problem with the advent of vector graphics and fonts being used in place of bitmap graphics and fonts. Moreover, many Windows software programs have been written since the 1980s which assume that the screen provides 96 PPI. Accordingly, these programs do not display properly at common alternative resolutions such as 72 PPI or 120 PPI. The solution has been to introduce two concepts:[5]
- logical PPI: The PPI that software claims a screen provides. This can be thought of as the PPI provided by a virtual screen created by the operating system.
- physical PPI: The PPI that a physical screen actually provides.
Software programs render images to the virtual screen and then the operating system renders the virtual screen onto the physical screen. With a logical PPI of 96 PPI, older programs can still run properly regardless of the actual physical PPI of the display screen, although they may exhibit some visual distortion thanks to the effective 133.3% pixel zoom level (requiring either that every third pixel be doubled in width/height, or heavy-handed smoothing be employed).[citation needed]
How Microsoft Windows handles DPI scaling[edit]
Displays with high pixel densities were not common up to the Windows XP era. High DPI displays became mainstream around the time Windows 8 was released. Display scaling by entering a custom DPI irrespective of the display resolution has been a feature of Microsoft Windows since Windows 95.[7] Windows XP introduced the GDI+ library which allows resolution-independent text scaling.[8]
Windows Vista introduced support for programs to declare themselves to the OS that they are high-DPI aware via a manifest file or using an API.[9][10] For programs that do not declare themselves as DPI-aware, Windows Vista supports a compatibility feature called DPI virtualization so system metrics and UI elements are presented to applications as if they are running at 96 DPI and the Desktop Window Manager then scales the resulting application window to match the DPI setting. Windows Vista retains the Windows XP style scaling option which when enabled turns off DPI virtualization for all applications globally. DPI virtualization is a compatibility option as application developers are all expected to update their apps to support high DPI without relying on DPI virtualization.
Windows Vista also introduces Windows Presentation Foundation. WPF .NET applications are vector-based, not pixel-based and are designed to be resolution-independent. Developers using the old GDI API and Windows Forms on .NET Framework runtime need to update their apps to be DPI aware and flag their applications as DPI-aware.
Windows 7 adds the ability to change the DPI by doing only a log off, not a full reboot and makes it a per-user setting. Additionally, Windows 7 reads the monitor DPI from the EDID and automatically sets the system DPI value to match the monitor's physical pixel density, unless the effective resolution is less than 1024 × 768.
In Windows 8, only the DPI scaling percentage is shown in the DPI changing dialog and the display of the raw DPI value has been removed.[11] In Windows 8.1, the global setting to disable DPI virtualization (only use XP-style scaling) is removed and a per-app setting added for the user to disable DPI virtualization from the Compatibility tab.[11] When the DPI scaling setting is set to be higher than 120 PPI (125%), DPI virtualization is enabled for all applications unless the application opts out of it by specifying a DPI aware flag (manifest) as "true" inside the EXE. Windows 8.1 retains a per-application option to disable DPI virtualization of an app.[11] Windows 8.1 also adds the ability for different displays to use independent DPI scaling factors, although it calculates this automatically for each display and turns on DPI virtualization for all monitors at any scaling level.
Windows 10 adds manual control over DPI scaling for individual monitors.
Proposed metrication[edit]
There are some ongoing efforts to abandon the DPI Image resolution unit in favour of a metric unit, giving the inter-dot spacing in dots per centimetre (px/cm or dpcm), as used in CSS3 media queries[12] or micrometres (µm) between dots.[13] A resolution of 72 DPI, for example, equals a resolution of about 28 dpcm or an inter-dot spacing of about 353 µm.
DPI (dot/in) |
dpcm (dot/cm) |
Pitch (µm) |
72 | 28 | 353 |
96 | 38 | 265 |
150 | 59 | 169 |
203 | 80 | 125 |
300 | 118 | 85 |
2540 | 1000 | 10 |
4000 | 1575 | 6 |
See also[edit]
- Pixel density
- Samples per inch – a related concept for image scanners
- Lines per inch
- Metric typographic units
- Display resolution
- Mouse DPI
- Twip
- Points Per Degree
- ^ The acronym appears in sources as either "DPI" or lowercase "dpi". See: "Print Resolution Understanding 4-bit depth – Xerox" Archived 2017-11-12 at the Wayback Machine (PDF). Xerox.com. September 2012.
- ^ CSS3 Media Queries Recommendation
- ^ "OKI's Technology Guide to Inkjet Printing". www.askoki.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2009-08-15.
- ^ Hitchcock, Greg (2005-10-08). "Where does 96 DPI come from in Windows?". Microsoft Developer Network Blog. Microsoft. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
- ^ a b Hitchcock, Greg (2005-09-08). "Where does 96 DPI come from in Windows?". blogs.msdn.com. Retrieved 2010-05-09.
- ^ Connare, Vincent (1998-04-06). "Microsoft Typography – Making TrueType bitmap fonts". Microsoft. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
- ^ fbcontrb (2005-11-08). "Where does 96 DPI come from in Windows?". Blogs.msdn.com. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
- ^ "Why text appears different when drawn with GDIPlus versus GDI". Support.microsoft.com. 2018-02-04. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
- ^ "Win32 SetProcessDPIAware Function".
- ^ "Windows Vista DPI scaling: my Vista is bigger than your Vista". December 11, 2006.
- ^ a b c Christoph Nahr / (19 May 2011). "High DPI Settings in Windows". Kynosarges.org. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
- ^ "Media Queries".
- ^ "Class ResolutionSyntax". Sun Microsystems. Retrieved 2007-10-12.


text:
A creamy khichdi made with rice, spinach and plenty of butter and cream
Hindi: palak
Treasure house of vitamins and minerals, spinach must be included in the week's menu. The usage can be varied: chopped spinach leaves cooked with potatoes is a semi-wet vegetable with rotis, a few spinach leaves thrown in with mixed vegetables and turned into a soup is lovely on a cold winter night, chopped and blanched spinach makes a different sort of raita, spinach puree can be used in cutlets or kababs, the list goes on.
Prep Time : 21-25 minutes
Cook time : 26-30 minutes
Serve : 4
Level Of Cooking : Easy
Taste : Mild
Chef Sanjeev Kapoor is the most celebrated face of Indian cuisine. He is Chef extraordinaire, runs a successful TV Channel FoodFood, hosted Khana Khazana cookery show on television for more than 17 years, author of 150+ best selling cookbooks, restaurateur and winner of several culinary awards. He is living his dream of making Indian cuisine the number one in the world and empowering women through power of cooking to become self sufficient. His recipe portal www.sanjeevkapoor.com is a complete cookery manual with a compendium of more than 10,000 tried & tested recipes, videos, articles, tips & trivia and a wealth of information on the art and craft of cooking in both English and Hindi.


text:
Look, I didn't hate I Am Alive. We as an outlet did not hate I Am Alive. Some dug its monochromatic world and impossibly stiff challenge while others wrote it off as a frustrating experience that was not worth the very long wait. After playing and mostly enjoying the game, I fully understand the feelings of both sides.
I Am Alive, one of the more polarizing releases of last year took seven years, more than 30 million dollars, and lots of hand changing to make. A great article over at The Game Effect details the very rough development process from beginning to end, with some of the story holes being filed in by an anonymous employee of one of the developers that worked on the project.
The story starts with French developer Darkworks and ends six years later with Ubisoft Shanghai, and it's filled with head scratchers like this one, from the previously mentioned source:
"We went from a zombie survival game to a squad-based action game with rollercoaster rides to a single-avatar pseudo-stealth one (also with rollercoaster rides though)."
The full article is recommended for anyone that followed I Am Alive these past years.


text:
Outdated egg!
This is an egg for CHICKEN 3, the unsupported old release. You're almost certainly looking for the CHICKEN 4 version of this egg, if it exists.
If it does not exist, there may be equivalent functionality provided by another egg; have a look at the egg index. Otherwise, please consider porting this egg to the current version of CHICKEN.
A generic macro-expansion and code-walking and code-transformation facility.
[procedure] (expand EXPRESSION [HOOK [ARGUMENT ...]])
Recursively expands macros in EXPRESSION, calling the procedure HOOK (if provided). The hook is called with 5 or more arguments:
EXPR is the currently traversed subexpression, CLASS is a symbol identifying the expression class, WALK is a procedure of one or more arguments that should be called to walk sub-expressions of EXPR recursively. The additional arguments ARGUMENT ... will be passed to the hook as additional parameters, which in turn should pass the same number of extra arguments to recursive invocations of WALK (plus the sub-expression to walk). ENV is a list of lists containing the lexical environment, where each list is a list of lexically bound identifiers (symbols). The frontmost list holds the current environment. MARK is a procedure of one argument that can be used to mark subexpressions which should not be traversed by HOOK.
Invoking WALK with the same (eq?) EXPR that has been given as the first argument to HOOK performs default processing and walking of subexpressions of EXPR.
Note that the default processing returns S-expressions. If you want to use expand to create some other type (for example an abstract syntax tree of dedicated node records), you have to provide treatment and translation for all expression classes.
[procedure] (expand/context EXPRESSION CONTEXT [HOOK [ARGUMENT ...]])
Similar to expand, but allows passing additional expansion-parameters, which should be created by calling expansion-context.
[procedure] (expansion-context #!key evaluate compilation unsafe cooked classes prehook environment)
Creates an expansion-context that is used to pass additional expansion parameters to expand/context. The keyword arguments have the following meaning:
- evaluate
- should macro-expansion time evaluation be performed (for example, in an eval-when clause) (boolean, default: #f).
- compilation
- does the expansion happen during compilation (as opposed to interpretation) (boolean, default: #t when called during compilation or #f otherwise).
- unsafe
- does the expansion happen in an unsafe compilation context (boolean, default: #f).
- classes
- list of symbols identifying the classes of expressions for which the hook should be called during expansion (list or #t, default: #t).
- cooked
- whether internal forms that perform expansion-time evaluation or other special processing (usually compiler-specific) be processed as they appear (#t) or whether they should be passed through to the hook function - passing #t for evaluate implies cooked mode.
- prehook
- a procedure accepting at least 3 arguments, an expression, an environment and a continuation. This procedure will be called before any macroexpansion with the to-be-expanded expression in the first argument position. The continuation argument should be called with the actual expression to be expanded (or the original one) and any additional arguments. Returning from the prehook procedure without calling the continuation is undefined.
- environment
- the initial environment used in the expansion.
The following expression classes exist:
- ref
- variable reference
- literal
- literal constant
- quoted-literal
- quoted literal constant
- undefined
- an undefined value - note that this means really undefined, not (void)
- if
- if conditional
- begin
- begin sequence
- set!
- assignment
- let
- let binding form
- lambda
- lambda expression
- app
- procedure application
- compiler-form
- compiler special form
- require
- require-extension or require-for-syntax form (or internal equivalent)
- special
- special internal form - should normally be treated as a call to an identity function
Note that external macro packages like syntax-case expand their input completely, so the prehook will already get macroexpanded forms.
[procedure] (expansion-context? X)
Returns #t if X is an expansion context, or #f otherwise.
[procedure] (install-toplevel-expander EXPANDER [OVERRIDE-MACROEXPAND])
Installs EXPANDER as the toplevel macro expander for subsequent interpretation or compilation. If OVERRIDE-MACROEXPAND is given and true, then macroexpand will also invoke the given expander and no further internal macroexpansion takes place. Use this when you want to install a custom macroexpansion package that does complete processing of syntax transformation. If you merely want to do some custom pre-processing, pass #f for this argument (or omit it completely).
(define exp '(begin (define (count-bits2 n result) (if (zero? n) result (count-bits2 (bitwise-and n (sub1 n)) (add1 result)))) (time (do ((i 0 (add1 i))) ((>= i 10)) (print (count-bits2 i 0))))) )
(pp (expand exp)) ; expand all macros
(define exp2 ; trace global variable references (expand exp (lambda (x c w e m) (if (and (symbol? x) (not (ormap (cut memq x <>) e))) (w (m `(let ((x ,x)) (print "ref: " ',x " = " x) x) ) ) (w x) ) ) ) )
(pp exp2) (pp (eval exp2)) ; the code can be evaluated as usual
(define exp3 ; trace all calls (expand/context exp (expansion-context classes: '(app)) (lambda (x c w e m) (let ((fn (gensym))) (w (m `((let ((,fn ,(car x))) (print "calling: " ,fn) ,fn) ,@(map w (cdr x) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )
(pp exp3) (pp (eval exp3))
(define (instrument-calls exp pred? mod) ;; instrument calls that satisfy a given predicate (expand/context exp (expansion-context classes: '(app)) (lambda (x c w e m) (if (pred? x) (w (m (mod (map w x)))) (w x) ) ) ) )
(define exp4 ; trace calls (instrument-calls exp (constantly #t) (lambda (call) (let ((v (gensym))) `(begin (print "calling: " ',call) ,call) ) ) ) )
(pp exp4) (eval exp4)
;;;; count direct calls to "car"
(use miscmacros)
(define n 0)
(define (count exp) (expand/context exp (expansion-context classes: '(app)) (lambda (x c w e m) (match x (('car arg) (inc! n) `(car ,(w arg)) ) (_ (w x)) ) ) ) )
(for-each count (read-file "codewalk.scm")) (pp n) ; should be "7"
Copyright (c) 2006-2007, Felix L. Winkelmann All rights reserved. Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are met: Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer. Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution. Neither the name of the author nor the names of its contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from this software without specific prior written permission. THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
Version History
- 0.4
- certain internal lambda-forms didn't get properly expanded [Thanks to Benedikt Rosenau for reporting this]
- 0.3
- doesn't use interpreter-specific expansion hook anymore (doesn't work with syntax-case, otherwise)
- 0.2
- minor bugfixes, added support for "prehook" and "environment" context args
- 0.1
- initial release


text:
The Republic of Ireland booked their place in the quarter-finals of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup with a 3-0 win over Ghana in the final match of the group stages in Tobago.
The result means the Irish finish first in Group D, ahead of Brazil on goals scored, and will face off with Japan in the last-eight.
The Irish had the best possible start to the affair when in only the fifth minute they were awarded a free-kick some 40 yards from goal and wide out on the right. Surely, no one in their right mind would try a shot from such a position. But Megan Campbell did just that and caught out Ghana's goalkeeper Margaret Otoo, who was way off her line.
Campbell was mobbed by her teammates and the St Francis defender celebrated by simulating knockout punches on all of her colleagues.
Shortly after the goal the game began to develop an end-to-end feel, with the Irish doing their gritty best to play the long ball and pressurize the Ghanaians, who were getting some joy out of their tricky ball skills and rampaging dribblers.
Ireland's high-pressure style was causing havoc in the Ghana rearguard, and in the 36th minute it paid dividends with a second goal.
After taking too long to clear their lines, the African backline was dispossessed by Denise O'Sullivan who laid the ball on to Stacie Donnelly. She made no mistake with her shot to the top corner.
The Africans could have gone into the locker-room with a greater sense of hope and purpose had they not missed their best chance of the half in the 44th minute. Aileen Gilroy took down Beatrice Sesu in the corner of the box and the referee wasted no time pointing to the spot for penalty kick.
Much to Coach Abrahams Allotey's dismay, however, Mary Essiful hit the ball the wrong side of the right post to groan from the crowd.
Ireland nearly made it three when the foraging O'Sullivan blocked a clearance by Otoo and looked to be clean in on goal in the 54th minute.
Fortunately for Ghana, centre-back Regina Antwi was on the spot to make a last-gasp tackle. Up the other end, Rita Okyere had a good chance in the 65th minute, rounding her marker and forcing a brilliant diving save from Grace Maloney.
A header from the resulting corner-kick was cleared off the line by Siobhan Killeen as the girls in green were looking stretched. But the Irish sealed the affair in the 77th minute with another long-distance cracker, this time from Gilroy.
The win is only enough for the Irish to finish top of the section.
Their quarter-final will pit them against Japan, second place from Group C. Ghana's adventure in T&T is over and they join Canada on the next plain out.
Ghana won only a game in the Tournament, beating Brazil by a goal to nil, but that country has qualified to the next stage of the tournament.


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Whitefly, tomato growers find truce in new Texas variety
The whitefly in Texas may be sending up a surrender flag to tomato processors in the state thanks to a Texas AgriLife Research scientist developing a new variety that resists the virus spread by this pesky insect.
A 10-year battle against the insect all but wiped out the tomato industry in Texas, but the new tomato already is encouraging small processors to stay in business, according to Dr. Kevin Crosby, AgriLife Research vegetable breeder.
"We first saw this new virus around 2002 or so," Crosby said. "There were strains of this virus complex always in the Rio Grande Valley, but they weren't nearly as easily spread by the whitefly as this new strain that originated in the Middle East and then went from Florida to Mexico and then came to Texas.
"It spreads like wildfire. I've seen a 50-acre field just plowed under because they couldn't get a single tomato out of them. There are so many whiteflies down there in that subtropical region, you really can never completely eliminate whiteflies. You can't do it." Dr. Kevin Crosby
The researcher said tomato plants as young as three weeks old can be infected by the whiteflies, causing leaves to curl and turn yellow, ultimately killing the entire plant.
Tomato processing in the Rio Grande Valley pulled the plug rather than fight the prolific fly, industry officials said.
"Whiteflies just devastated the tomato industry here," said Buddy Ault, owner of Rio Valley Canning Co. in Donna. "At one time the Rio Grande Valley was producing about 40,000 acres of tomatoes until the whitefly came along. Acreage plunged. Then, about five years ago we noticed that plants were dying just when the fruit was about to mature. The leaves turned yellow and cut off nutrients to the fruit, causing tomatoes to stay green on the inside."
Growers first blamed the whitefly, then realized a virus carried by whitefly was to blame, Ault said.
"So, we asked Texas AgriLife Research about the possibility of developing an open-pollinated, virus-resistant variety," he said.
Help came from previous research conducted in Texas, aided by national and international vegetable breeding networks, Crosby said.
"Dr. Paul Leeper, who was a scientist at (AgriLife Research in) Weslaco for decades, did a lot of the early work on hot climate, processing tomatoes. As a result, he built a lot of very good varieties for the industry. In fact, his tomatoes at one point were the most popular tomatoes in tropical places because they could tolerate the heat," Crosby noted. "But we found out that they could not tolerate the new viruses that have been brought in by the whitefly."
Crosby called upon colleagues in Florida and Taiwan, who had identified tomato genes that provide resistance to the viral disease, in seeking plants to cross with the Texas varieties. He got a supply to test from Dr. Peter Hansen at the World Vegetable Research and Development Center in Taiwan, as well as from Dr. Jay Scott, a world-famous tomato breeder at the University of Florida.
"We were able to cross those lines with our Weslaco lines and generate material that was adapted to Texas and that had good processing qualities," Crosby said.
For now, the new variety called T-5 is being tested by some producers in the Rio Grande Valley and Crosby said the results are promising.
"Because it combines two distinct virus-resistance genes, resistance has been outstanding," he said.
"The new variety is impressive," said Ault, whose company cans a mixture of diced tomatoes and green peppers for H-E-B's Hill Country Fare label.
"We like the T-5 very much," he said. "It is highly productive, has good flavor, good color and is virus resistant. What we don't like about it is that it is an indeterminate variety, meaning not all the fruit sets and matures on the plant at the same time. As a processor, we prefer one that sets fruit all at the same time. But considering we had little to work with prior to the T-5, we're optimistic Dr. Crosby's good work will prevail."
Crosby plans to continue the virus-resistance research for the fresh tomato types and to develop varieties suited for growing in the different climate across the state.
"Growers of fresh market tomatoes are interested in our work because there's little to nothing in the vine-ripe class or heirloom-type cultivars, which are well-adapted to the heat and have the virus resistance," Crosby said.
Provided by Texas A&M AgriLife Communications


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The following obituaries were received for Thursday –
Edward "Ned" Moore Boyer II – Germantown
Edward "Ned" Moore Boyer II, 52, of Germantown passed away Tuesday, February 28th 2012 at Baptist Memorial Hospital- Memphis.
He was a graduate of Bedford North Lawrence High School, a 1982 graduate of Ball State University, where he played football and was a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity and was currently working at FTN Financial. Ned was a loving son, brother, husband, father, friend and dedicated volunteer coach, for various youth athletics throughout the community.
He is survived by his loving wife Amy T. Boyer; children Liza Boyer Easley and husband Edward, Doug Patrick and Bridget Boyer; parents Ned and Mary Nell Boyer; sister, Angela Falcone and husband Bob, and brother Greg Boyer and wife Barb.
He was preceded in death by his brother, Mark Boyer.
The family will receive friends from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. today at Memorial Park Funeral Home. Funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, March 2, 2012, at Church of the Holy Spirit, in Memphis Tn., 2300 Hickory Crest, Memphis, TN. 38119.
The family request that memorials be directed to North American Neuroendocrine Tumor Society.
Thomas Seybold Jr. – Newburgh
Thomas Seybold, Jr., 91, a former resident of Mitchell, passed from this life surrounded by the love and comfort of his family on Friday, February 24, 2012 at the Deaconess Gateway Hospital in Newburgh, Indiana.
Tom was born on February 15, 1921 in French Lick, Indiana to the late Thomas Seybold and Lindy (Hall) Seybold Caplinger.
He was a graduate of West Baden High School and lived his life in Orange County with his wife, Marjorie Marie (Pitcher) Seybold. She preceded him in death in May 1988.
He was a pipefitter and member of the Local Union #136-Plumbers and Steamfitters of Evansville.
Tom served his country honorably during WWII from January 25, 1943 – January 6, 1946 in the U.S. Army. He received three bronze stars, a good conduct medal and victory medal for his service.
He held memberships in the Cecil C. Martin American Legion Post #250 and the Marvin R. Davis Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #9107, both in Mitchell. He also enjoyed fishing and later in life, he took an interest in dancing.
He is survived by a host of loving family including his son, Thomas L. (wife, Annette) Seybold of Newburgh, IN; daughter, Marquetta (husband, Buddy) Dalton of Centerton, IN; 4 grandchildren, Phillip, Eric & Amanda Dalton and Garrett Seybold; 10 great grandchildren and 1 great great granddaughter.
He was preceded in death by his parents; wife and three sisters, Margie Seybold, Minnie Dixon and Grace Abel.
Family and friends are invited to a Celebration of Life Memorial Service on Saturday, March 3rd at 1:00 p.m. at the Chastain Funeral Home in Mitchell, Indiana. Military honors wil be accorded by the American Legion Post #250 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #9107.
Online condolences and memories may be shared with the family at www.chastainfuneralhome.com.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Jacob Finger United Methodist Church, 139 N 8th Street, Mitchell, Indiana 47446.


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Via Power Line and NRO's Eliana Johnson and our own QOTD, Fox News' Chris Wallace asks the question everyone except the media has been asking since the terrorist attack on our Benghazi consulate and the assassination of our Ambassador by al-Qaeda and/or its affiliates in eastern Libya. Wallace doesn't get to ask Barack Obama whether or not he bothered to hold a national-security meeting in the aftermath of the attack to determine whether the story the White House used for the next week was on the level — our President is much too busy weighing in on celebrity feuds to answer questions like these. Instead, it fell to President David Axelrod, who provides exactly the same level of leadership that his boss is demonstrating these days:
Q. How soon after the attack did the President meet with the National Security Council, with people from state, with people from the…, the Director of National Intelligence, with all of the various people to try to sort out what happened in Benghazi?
A. Look. We are sorting out what happened there. Understand that the President the day after the attack called it an act of terror and charged everyone with responsibility for getting to the bottom of what happened.
That wasn't the question, though. The question wasn't whether Obama gave an order; it's whether he bothered to make time to find out what happened. Wallace tries again:
Q. Yes, the president made a statement and then he went to a fundraiser in Nevada. Question: Before he went to the fundraiser in Nevada, did he meet with his National Security Council to try to sort out the shifting stories. Because State says they never said it was a spontaneous demonstration; Intel, you are quite right, did. Did he meet with the National Security Council before he went campaigning in Nevada?
A. Chris, I assure you that the president was in contact with all those who had information and responsibility in the national security chain about this incident.
It still doesn't answer the question — at least not directly. However, if the answer was "yes," I'm pretty sure Axelrod wouldn't have been tap-dancing around the question, which leads to the obvious conclusion that the President didn't bother to hold a meeting to find out what happened, after the first successful terrorist attack on an American diplomatic mission in 14 years.


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The Boston Redevelopment Authority is speeding up its consideration of building proposals by developers and others in the final months of Mayor Thomas M. Menino's administration, moving rapidly over the objections of some neighborhood residents and both candidates vying to become the city's next mayor.
The BRA, which reviews all major development projects, has started increasing the frequency of its board meetings to act on proposals calling for everything from tax relief, to long-term real estate plans for universities, to construction of towering residential buildings.
Between July and September, the BRA received 27 project submissions, a 68 percent increase over the same period in 2012. In addition to Menino's departure, the increased activity could be driven by several factors, such as developers' fears of rising interest rates and their desire to capitalize on Boston's red-hot residential real estate market.
Several hotly debated projects are pending, including long-term development plans for Northeastern University, a 33-story hotel and condominium building in the Back Bay, and a master plan for Harvard University's expansion into Allston.
The BRA's director, Peter Meade, said the authority is holding additional board meetings to make time for community debate and to respond to developers' plans at a time of rapid building activity. He said the BRA is not trying to rush projects into construction, or exert influence over the next administration.
"I'm doing my job until I'm no longer in the job," said Meade, who is stepping down when Menino leaves. He added the authority will continue to take up major proposals during the transition to the next administration. "I don't think we should just put it into cruise control," Meade said.
Typically, the authority's board meets once a month, but it held two meetings in September and plans to hold two in October. The mayoral election will determine Menino's successor on Nov. 5. Both candidates, Martin Walsh and John Connolly, are urging the BRA to delay approvals until community concerns are addressed.
"The decisions being made now are going to impact the next mayor. I don't think there is any doubt about that," Connolly said. "I think the big problem is that the [BRA] process needs to be more transparent. That was true a year ago, and it's true now."
Walsh said, "The BRA needs to slow down and adhere to its normal public process. I want to continue the growth of the city, but I want to make sure it's done in a smart way as we move forward."
Regardless, the decisions by Menino and the BRA will have a significant impact on development during the next administration.
Connolly and Walsh have outlined plans to significantly reform the authority's operations.
Walsh is proposing to replace the BRA with a new economic development agency whose director would serve under a contract and be less accountable to the mayor's office.
Connolly said he wants development to be determined by community planning and has pushed for more precise zoning rules, so that the height and use of new buildings is less subject to political manipulation.
But such reforms would take many months, if not years, to implement. The BRA is continuing to address a long list of new building proposals from Roxbury, to the West End, to the South Boston Innovation District.
In addition to the stepped-up meeting schedule at the BRA, Menino has said he intends to name a replacement for Clarence "Jeep" Jones, former BRA board chairman, who retired Sept. 26 after 32 years on the board.
Walsh and Connolly have advocated term limits for BRA board members and said the next mayor should get to name Jones's successor. Any nominee would have to be confirmed by the city council.
In recent weeks, some residents have said the BRA is advancing major building projects without listening to their concerns. "It seems like everything is on a rushed course," said Tom Iannotti, a Back Bay resident who is concerned a new tower proposed at 40 Trinity Place will worsen wind gusts in the area.
A spokeswoman for the BRA, Susan Elsbree, said Meade has told the project's developer that the concerns about wind must be addressed before the building can be approved. The 40 Trinity project, which calls for a 33-story hotel and condominium building near the John Hancock Tower, was first proposed in August 2012. While some neighboring condominium owners have raised concerns about wind and traffic issues, others have offered support for the project.
During a meeting Sept. 26, the BRA board faced protests from community activists who objected to its approval of tax breaks for the $630 million redevelopment of the former Filene's block and a $7.3 million contract granting the Red Sox permission to use public streets around Fenway Park on game days. Both items were approved by the board.
Meade has defended those actions, saying the $7.8 million tax break will allow the Filene's developer, Millennium Partners, to use the savings to lure a Roche Bros. supermarket and other retail stores to Downtown Crossing. He and other officials also asserted a new Red Sox agreement needed to be acted upon because the arrangement with the team expires at the end of the season.
The agendas for the BRA's October board meetings have not been published, but several major projects are expected to be taken up soon. Among them is a long-term development plan for Northeastern University and a new 484-bed residence hall for Boston College on Commonwealth Avenue.
The BRA postponed a planned vote on the residence hall Sept. 26 after neighbors complained the project was being advanced even though they were given little time to review proposed transportation improvements and other provisions. The dormitory proposal is expected to be taken up at a meeting scheduled for Tuesday.
Casey Ross can be reached at email@example.com.


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An efficient finite map from (byte)strings to values.
The implementation is based on big-endian patricia trees, like "Data.IntMap". We first trie on the elements of "Data.ByteString" and then trie on the big-endian bit representation of those elements. Patricia trees have efficient algorithms for union and other merging operations, but they're also quick for lookups and insertions.
If you are only interested in being able to associate strings to values, then you may prefer the 'hashmap' package which is faster for those only needing a map-like structure. This package is intended for those who need the extra capabilities that a trie-like structure can offer (e.g., structure sharing to reduce memory costs for highly redundant keys, taking the submap of all keys with a given prefix, contextual mapping, extracting the minimum and maximum keys, etc.).


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One of the big names in local advertising, Glenn Earl Schieke, suddenly passed away March 30, 2011 due to complications from pneumonia. Schieke was born Feb. 16, 1955.
In addition to being atop of one of the largest and the second-oldest advertising agency in L.A. area, Schieke was a talented musician.
As an accomplished performer on French horn, piano, and organ, he played a wide range of music and venues. He plated with the Denver Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Opera Company, Colorado's Central City Opera Company, the 1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremonies, the Disneyland All-American College Band, and in numerous theater productions, including the national touring company of The Wiz. Schieke studied under many prominent artists, and had the privilege of studying piano with Vladimir Horowitz, as well as also performing with Barbra Streisand on her "Evergreen" album.
Schieke was born and raised in the Black Hills of South Dakota. He attended the University of Denver where he majored in music, biology, and physics, graduating cum laude in 1977. He later earned his master's of business administration at the University of Denver and began a career in advertising at Benton & Bowles and, later, Foote, Cone & Belding.
In 1984 he joined The Phelps Group, an integrated marketing communications firm, for the opportunity to combine his passions for music and advertising.
"He led the advertising accounts for more than a dozen major musical instrument companies and directed campaigns to inspire people to enjoy and to make music," read the obituary featured on the company's website. "For 27 years, Glenn played a significant role in the company, most recently as Chief Operating Officer and General Manager, helping The Phelps Group become one of the top independent marketing agencies on the West Coast."
Schieke shared his music gifts with the First Christian Church of North Hollywood, of which he was a member, as its organist for more than 15 years. Not only would he play for Sunday services, but the weddings and funerals of fellow church members and the neighboring community.
"Those who knew and loved Glenn agree – he was music," read the Phelps' obituary. "(He) brought joy to people on their happiest occasions and provided comfort to others on their saddest days."
Schieke is survived by his mother, Leola Schieke, of Lead, S.D.; a sister, Marlynn Belmont of Spearfish, S.D.; brothers Greg (Mary) Schieke of Lincoln, Neb., and Norman Schieke of Tacoma, Wash.; three nephews and two nieces, a grand nephew and four grand nieces, and his longtime partner Terry Cole. He was preceded in death by his father, George Albert Schieke.
Services to celebrate Glenn's life will be Saturday, April 30, 2011 at the First Christian Church of North Hollywood at 2 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, a donation may be made in Glenn's name to the National MS Society or an organization or charity of your choice.
Editor's Note: The primary source material for this information was taken from Glenn Schieke Obituary as provided by The Phelps Group.


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TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Republican Gov. Rick Scott said Tuesday he will vote against a proposed constitutional amendment to allow the medical use of marijuana if it makes the 2014 ballot.
"I have a great deal of empathy for people battling difficult diseases and I understand arguments in favor of this initiative. But, having seen the terrible effects of alcohol and drug abuse first-hand, I cannot endorse sending Florida down this path and I would personally vote against it," Scott said through a spokeswoman. "No matter my personal beliefs, however, a ballot initiative would be up to the voters to decide."
The issue will put him at odds with Republican-turned-Democrat Charlie Crist, who is seeking the nomination to get his old job back with his new party.
Scott, who is the former CEO of the Columbia/HCA hospital chain, has previously said he is opposed to "illegal drug abuse" but hasn't specifically expressed opposition to the effort to allow use of marijuana for medical purposes when prescribed by a doctor.
Scott also supports Republican Attorney General Pam Bondi's effort to keep the proposal off the ballot by arguing the 74-word summary of the proposed amendment is confusing. House Speaker Will Weatherford and Senate President Don Gaetz, both Republicans, also support Bondi's effort.
Crist's boss, John Morgan of the Morgan & Morgan law firm, is leading a petition drive to put the proposed amendment on the ballot. He's less than 90,000-voter signatures away from the 683,149 needed to put the issue before Floridians. Morgan has spent nearly $3 million on the petition drive.
"No disrespect to the attorney general, but the notion of trying to get it to a point where you and I and the people of Florida don't get the opportunity to make this decision is not what a public servant should be doing. I support it, it's the right thing to do, it is out of compassion and I'm glad John's doing it," Crist said last week.
Morgan didn't return calls to his cellphone seeking comment.
The Supreme Court is considering Bondi's argument to strike the ballot language. The court will not rule on whether it approves of medical marijuana, but rather whether the 74-word ballot summary is misleading or not. Citizen initiatives are limited to 75 words when summing up a proposed constitutional amendment.
Morgan and the group United for Care have until Feb. 1 to reach the signature goal. United for Care said last week it has enough signatures, but they still have to be certified by elections supervisors.


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A Is For Adam
Ken and Mally Ham
1. Entertaining ABC Rhyme Book
You will fall in love with the Dodo bird. Everyone gets to watch this little character and his words of wisdom in this entertaining rhyme book. The first section consists of strikingly colorful illustrations, oftentimes very humorous, and a rhyme that teaches a very important foundational Biblical truth.
Younger children will enjoy just looking at the pictures and what they see tells it all! The whole Gospel message from Creation to the New Heaven and New Earth is obvious from the artwork alone. Older children, as well as adults, will enjoy reading the rhymes that go along with the drawings and they too will learn vital foundational truths.
Actually, the illustrations will speak to all age groups. Just look through the pages, and you will see what we mean!
2. Sunday School/Christian School/Home School/Home Devotional Teaching Book
The second part of this book contains notes for parents and teachers (and older children) that resembles a commentary on Genesis. Many unique concepts are discussed teaching the Gospel from Genesis and showing how foundational it is to the rest of Scripture.
At the end of the notes for each illustration, you will find student exercises that can be adapted for different age levels.
In the third part of the book, black and white drawings of each of the color illustrations shown in the first part of the book can be used for photocopying, etc. Feel free to copy these pictures and use them for hand-outs.
For teaching purposes, both the color illustrations and the black and white pictures can be made into overhead transparencies.
3. Coloring Book
The black and white pictures in the third section of the book can be colored by the children. This will help reinforce the Biblical concepts they learn as they read through the first part of the book. If you don't want the children drawing in the book, then you can photocopy the pages for them.
We are praying that not only will children and adults be better equipped to understand and defend the Gospel, but many will come to know the Savior as a result of this book.
We sincerely thank everyone who contributed suggestions as we put this publication together. We especially thank Dan Lietha for his long hours of painstaking work to produce the outstanding paintings that are featured in this publication.
Dedicated to Mervyn Ham
This book is dedicated to our Dad, Mervyn Ham, who went home to be with the Lord June 9, 1995. A is for Adam was produced because of the legacy he left us—a love for the Word of God. Our father never had great earthly riches, but he left his six children (and children's children) a spiritual inheritance more precious than silver or gold (Proverbs 13:22).
In his last hours, he told his family that life is all about "for and with." If you live in this world, it is for Christ and when you die it is with Christ. This book stands firm on the inerrancy and authority of Scripture while presenting the Gospel message to children and adults. It is our prayer that lives will be changed for the Lord so many will know what it means to be "for and with" as our precious Dad declared.


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Sarah Clark: She May Be a Saint utilizes Sylvia Plath's work as source material, and All the Twists of the Tongue is a collection of found...
18.032019September 10, 2019
Where Is She? Two Contemporary Poets on Erasure, Gendered Violence, & Poetry
By Sarah ClarkIn FeaturedTags Black Dahlia, body, C.D. Wright, Cat Conway, Cathleen Allyn Conway, chronic illness, confessional poetry, disability, domestic abuse, Elizabeth Short, erasure, Feminism, found poetry, gender-based violence, Gilbert and Gubar, Interview, Jacqueline Rose, James Ellroy, Janet Malcolm, Killing Eve, mental health, Minal Hajratwala, murder, neurodivergence, Performance, persona, protest poetry, rape, Rebecca Tamis, Sarah Clark, Sarah Nichols, Sarah Shin, silencing, SJ Fowler, Smith, Sylvia Plath, trauma


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Atlantic Canada's kids earn most from tooth fairy, study says
TORONTO — The Canadian Press
Last updated
If you're a kid in Atlantic Canada, here's a reason to smile. According to a new survey, the tooth fairy is paying a premium for baby teeth in the Maritimes and Newfoundland.
At $3.46 a tooth, it's 19 per cent higher than the national average of $2.80.
Even better, 35 per cent of respondents in Atlantic Canada said their children found $5 or more per tooth under their pillows in 2014.
Quebec children were the least likely to get a visit from the tooth fairy – 13 per cent received no money for their lost teeth. For those who did, $2.06 was the average rate.
The findings are from a telephone survey of approximately 1,000 households with children under age 13 conducted for Visa Canada.
The company is promoting the launch of an online financial calculator that allows children and parents to compare their earnings with other children from similar households in Canada.
Ontario reported the second-highest going rate for baby teeth at $3.21 apiece.
"Generally, kids are doing really well," said Visa spokesperson Michelle Michalak.
If kids in Atlantic Canada and Ontario save the funds, by the time they lose all 20 baby teeth they will have stashed away $69 and $64 respectively.
The average in the Prairies was $2.43 per tooth, but 55 per cent could expect to receive up to $5. In British Columbia, children got an average of $2.47 per tooth.
The poll was conducted for Visa by GfK Canadian Omnibus Service and had a claimed margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.


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We shred a lot of typical white paper at work because of confidentiality concerns. Is this paper safe to use in garden compost? I'd love to be able to use it but don't know about the chemicals in the paper or the printer ink.
--Katy in La Canada Flintridge, California
As any inmate of a cubicle can tell you, the paperless office has not arrived: we're using 4 million tons of copy paper a year. The good news is that only a third of the material to make paper comes directly from trees. A third of it is from recycling and another third from sawmill waste, according to the EPA.
It is indeed safe use this office paper in compost, according to the U.S. Composting Council and other sources. I have even come across studies that show that paper actually has lower levels of contaminants than typical yard waste—not that your typical yard waste is unsafe. Paper helps absorb water, which can help prevent your compost from stalling into the saturated, odorous gunk that tends to trouble the fastidious composter. It also provides carbon, an essential ingredient in compost, since a 30-to-1 ratio of carbon to nitrogen is ideal for happy production.
If mulching works in your garden (i.e., doesn't shelter slugs and snails), you could also use the frizzy paper for this purpose.
In general, however, the soundest use of this paper is simply to recycle it to make more paper. After all, paper can be recycled five to seven times before the fibers become too short to be resurrected into new paper.