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Republic of Turkey Places USD 2.9 Billion for Six U 214 Submarines Material Packages
Submarine strategy of the ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems group confirmed
The €2.0 billion order for six U 214 submarine material packages placed with ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems by the Republic of Turkey has entered into force with receipt of the advance payment. As a longstanding partner and supplier to the Turkish Navy, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems can now begin executing the order. The order will contribute to securing employment at HDW in Kiel, as well as at many subcontractors in Germany and Turkey, for the next ten years.
The comprehensive solution achieved in October 2010 for Hellenic Shipyards, under which Privinvest Shipbuilding, a major shareholder of Abu Dhabi MAR, acquired 75.1% of the company's shares from Thyssen Krupp Marine Systems group, can also be seen as a milestone for the ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems group. ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems was able to secure the acceptance of the first U-214 submarine for the Greek Navy and the payment of outstanding debts. As part of the agreement an option was granted for an order for two further submarines at Hellenic Shipyards/HDW. All parties are eager, provided the solid commitment which the Hellenic authorities have promised, to have this order successfully implemented.
Naval surface ship business close to export success again for the first time in many years
The naval surface ship business under the brand name MEKO has been restructured in Blohm+Voss Naval GmbH, founded this year with two sites at Hamburg and Emden. Blohm+Voss Naval GmbH is a highly efficient unit with around 500 employees, specialized in supplying engineering, procurement and project management for complex naval surface vessels in cooperation with different manufacturing sites in Germany and abroad. This is in line with the expectations of many export customers: Engineering from Germany, manufacturing in the country of the purchaser.
With the four ships of the F 125 program for the German Navy this business has a solid base workload; an initial export success is expected soon.
Major steps implemented in necessary divestment of civil shipbuilding activities
The financial crisis created a need for decisive action in the civil shipbuilding area: Capacities in commercial shipbuilding had to be reduced, exports strengthened, and the problem in Greece solved.
In March 2010 the majority of Nordseewerke in Emden was transferred to the SIAG group as part of a unique industrial transformation process for the North Sea coast. At Emden the SIAG group will produce large components for offshore wind farms in the North Sea, and has already won several orders.
A further element of the new strategy was to be the sale of the civil shipbuilding business of Blohm+Voss and HDW to the Abu Dhabi MAR group (combined with a military surface vessel joint venture with Blohm+Voss Naval). Following two years of amicable talks and negotiations exploring the joint-venture both ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems and Abu Dhabi MAR have agreed to cease their efforts to form the envisaged joint-venture around the naval and non-naval shipbuilding business of Blohm+Voss in Hamburg. Both parties believe that the commercial drivers for the transaction have weakened to a point that opportunities previously identified are no longer commercially viable.
The scope of the originally envisaged transaction between the two parties will now relate exclusively to the civil activities of HDW-Gaarden in Kiel. The corresponding contracts have been completed with the approval of the supervisory bodies; only formal regulatory approval now needs to be obtained.
For the civil operations of Blohm+Voss we are working without delay on solutions with the aim of transferring these companies in the medium term to new owners capable of placing a stronger strategic focus on the business of these companies than ThyssenKrupp can.
In line with the strategic development program resolved on May 13, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems will concentrate in the future on military shipbuilding. This involves our high-tech capacities for submarine system integration at HDW in Kiel and Kockums in Sweden as well as our design, equipment and project management capabilities for military surface vessels at Blohm+Voss Naval in Hamburg.
Overall, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems believes it is in a good position. As a compactly structured high-tech systems integrator ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems will be able to compete successfully in the global military shipbuilding market and therefore once again contribute appropriately to the earnings of the ThyssenKrupp Group while securing long-term jobs for the employees of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.
ThyssenKrupp is an integrated materials and technology group with currently almost 177,000 employees in more than 80 countries developing ideas and innovations to offer solutions for sustainable progress. In the 2009/2010 fiscal year they generated sales of more than €42 billion. Eight business areas focus the Group's activities and know-how in the strategic competency areas of Materials and Technologies. In addition to manufacturing materials and plants, the Group also provides complete system solutions and innovative services. We are continuously optimizing our portfolio to sustainably increase the earning power and the value of the Company.
Source: thyssenkrupp, July 1, 2011;


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Content Services solution OpenText Content Suite
Ensure compliant management of content throughout its lifecycle
What is a content services platform?
Content services play a central role as organizations strive to rebound from the current global upheaval as more cohesive, more stable and more productive entities. In a crisis, such as COVID-19, organizations struggle to retain momentum amid information access, process continuity, collaboration and governance challenges.
A content services platform builds on the strengths of traditional Enterprise Content Management (ECM) and serves as the foundation for enterprise-wide content management. Content services platforms enhance best practices in content lifecycle management, information access and governance, while expanding the management, distribution and use of information further into business processes.
The best content services platform offers flexible user interfaces to make it easy for users to work with content from whichever device or system is most efficient for their needs.
Gartner names OpenText™ a Leader
2021 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Content Services Platforms
OpenText Content Suite overview
OpenText™ Content Suite oversees the lifecycle management of information across the enterprise from capture through archiving and disposition. With agile information governance to address the latest data governance and data privacy best practices, Content Suite reduces risk and empowers organizations to focus on using information to drive strategic growth and productivity.
Content Suite runs anywhere as a cloud-native technology that simplifies deployments, upgrades and the introduction of new features. Content Suite can also be combined with Enterprise Managed Services to deliver Information Management solutions from the cloud of choice with the confidence of a single SLA commitment from OpenText.
What's new in Content Suite
Deployment automation, containerization
Intelligent document generation
Smart View personalization, advanced versioning
Records Management Classification Workspace
Enhanced security for shared content
Transport Workspace perspectives
Learn more about Content Suite CE on our blog and with these replays from OpenText Enterprise World Digital.
OpenText Content Suite features
Secure document management
Offers secure, audited, enterprise-wide control over any type of content, from contracts and engineering drawings to system reports, emails, images and much more. Provides users with quick access to reliable information using robust metadata and localization. Eases document processing for both administrators and end users with built-in search, viewing and workflow.
Smart View responsive user interface
Provides the ability to tailor intuitive, role-based views for the needs of business users. Offers easy integration to other applications through an extensive REST API and more than 50 pre-built widgets.
Mobile access to content
Brings the familiar styling and experience of the Smart View to mobile through OpenText™ Content Server Mobile. Offers secure access to Content Suite and Extended ECM content to view, edit, publish, download, process workflows, share links with colleagues and more. iOS and Android™ apps.
Content in context
Simplifies deployment and frees up valuable IT resources with pre-built templates in Connected Workspaces that aggregate content, data, people and tasks related to a common business project or case. Ensures content is seamlessly available to those who need it, when they need it, with governance policies automatically applied in the background. Easily integrates to lead applications via Extended ECM.
Intelligent enterprise capture
Scans and indexes services to convert paper into actionable and manageable electronic formats. Fully automates the digitization of any incoming content, from paper to chatbots, for more comprehensive requirements using OpenText™ Intelligent Capture. Supports advanced capabilities, such as optical character recognition (OCR), content classification, content routing and process automation, with machine learning.
Easy access and collaboration
Integrates tools, such as blogs, wikis, activity feeds, discussions, forums and comments, to enable effective teamwork. Ensures documents remain secure in Content Suite while users create, co-author and edit content through direct integration to Microsoft 365 or Microsoft Office desktop. Collaboration can be further complemented with the addition of Extended ECM integration to Microsoft Teams and OpenText™ Core Signature.
Work effectively in the cloud
Adds secure, easy, cloud-native sharing and collaboration capabilities with OpenText™ Core Share. Uses bi-directional synchronization between Content Suite, Extended ECM and Core Share to ensure that everyone with permission has access to the most up-to-date version of a document, while adhering to corporate security, compliance and privacy protocols.
Manage the content lifecycle
Ensures information governance of both digital and physical content to adhere to retention, disposition or destruction guidelines in accordance with internal policies and external regulations using OpenText™ Records Management.
Content archiving
Protects critical historical information within a secure, centralized archive, OpenText™ Archive Center, that leverages familiar search criteria and metadata to find and retrieve desired information from large volumes of stored files in seconds. Guarantees all documents are safely stored for years, yet instantly available when needed.
Customer success stories
Content Suite benefits
Complete, secure document lifecycle management
Enterprise-wide control over any type of content with comprehensive security and privacy.
Connect to business processes
Improve process efficiency by automating manual tasks and integrating content to lead applications.
Increase user adoption
Offer users an intuitive experience that empowers them with the information they need, when and where they need it, and with the context to use it effectively.
Collaborate more effectively
Seamlessly share and collaborate on content, both inside and outside the organization.
Improve Information Governance
Automate the classification of both structured and unstructured information.
Scale quickly and easily
Reduce expenses with a scalable repository designed to manage high volumes of content at all stages of the lifecycle.
Contact us to speak with a member of the Content Services team
Additional Resources
- Demo Videos: OpenText Content Suite
- Webinar: Connected Workspaces for Team and Project Efficiency
- Report: AIIM Uncovering the Secrets to Success with O365
- Infographic: 10 Things You Need to Know About Microsoft SharePoint and Office 365
- Analyst Research: Forrester Wave™: ECM Content Platform
- Blog: Building the business case to upgrade
- Educational Tools: OpenText InfoGov Basics

subset: commoncrawl


text: As one of the earliest users of the Team-Ada mailing list (May 1994!), I'd like to thank Jeff for the many years of silent but reliable service to the Ada community as administrator of this list. Welcome, Michael, and thanks for taking over. Dirk = Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2023 16:49:47 +0100 = From: Jeffrey R. Carter <[log in to unmask]> = Subject: Team-Ada Mailing List Change = To: [log in to unmask] = = Hello, all, = = Michael Holloway has taken over from me as the administrator of the Team-Ada = mailing list. = = It has been my privilege to serve the Ada community in this role since 2005, but = now it is time for someone else to step in. I'm sure Michael will do an = excellent job. = = This change should have no effect on the working of the list. = = -- = Jeff Carter ############################ You can unsubscribe at any time through this link: https://optout.acm.org/unsubscribe.cfm?rl=TEAM-ADA&RE=


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Library News | 圖書館消息 | Library News (Archive) | 圖書館消息 (過往內容)
Please be informed that the printing service provided by the Library Printing Shop located on 1st Floor will be suspended on the following dates: 20 Dec 2007 (Thu) – 26 Dec 2007 (Wed) If you need photocopying service during the above-mentioned dates, please consider the self-service photocopying machine placed outside the shop. Thank you for your attention. UM Library


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A second teenager is facing charges in last week's shooting at a Philadelphia charter high school for allegedly using a "guest" loophole to bring a gun into the school without triggering metal detectors.
Donte Walker, 18, is accused of supplying the gun that was used in the shooting inside the Delaware Valley Charter School Friday afternoon.
The shooting left a 17-year-old boy and an 18-year-old girl hurt.
Philadelphia Police Lt. John Stanford said surveillance footage from the school on the 5200 block of Old York Road in the Olney section of Philadelphia shows Walker entering the school shortly before the shooting as a "guest."
Walker, who graduated from the school last year, entered the building with a concealed black handgun and is seen handing over the gun to an unidentified man in exchange for cash in the gymnasium, according to Stanford.
Pictured at right is: Raisheem Rochwell (left) and Donte Walker.
The gun was then handed over to Raisheem Rochwell, Stanford said.
Walker faces charges including firearms violation and conspiracy.
According to Stanford, since Walker was a guest at the school he didn't need to go through a metal detector like students normally do.
"I would think it would be required for anyone coming into the school to go through the metal detectors. You have children's lives at stake here," Stanford said.
U.S. & World
Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world.
Investigators suspect Rochwell wanted the weapon because he feared he would be the target of an assault after school.
"If he's a target or not of a fight after school, that's still no excuse for him to have a firearm," Stanford said. "At the end of the day, you play with a loaded gun, things will happen."
Investigators have not confirmed whether they believe the 3:30 p.m. shooting was accidental, or if Rochwell intentionally fired the weapon. The female student was shot in the rear of her left arm. The bullet went through her bicep and then struck the male student in the shoulder, according to investigators.
Both victims were taken to Albert Einstein Medical Center. The girl was released on Friday while the boy was released on Sunday.
After a manhunt that included taking a 15-year-old boy into custody -- he was later released when police determined he wasn't involved -- police focused in on Rochwell and an unidentified 16-year-old boy. The 16-year-old turned himself in on Friday but was later released and not charged after questioning.
Rochwell turned himself in Saturday afternoon and remained behind bars Monday.
Rochwell's lawyer Amato Sanita said his client will be vindicated in the end.
Delaware Valley Charter School is one of 87 charter schools in Philadelphia. NBC10 reached out to Thomas Monson, the president of the school's Board of Trustees, for comment.
"We along with Philadelphia Police are investigating these events and will provide you with details as they become available," Monson said.
Philadelphia Police officers are not present in city charter schools because the schools don't fall under the Philadelphia School District's school police force. Security procedures are up to each individual charter school. That may change in light of the shooting, however, and how easily Walker was allegedly able to get inside the school.
NBC10 spoke briefly with Ernest Holiday, the school's CEO. Holiday said school officials are looking at surveillance video of the shooting and making security upgrades.
"We've been busy upgrading security to make sure that nothing like this happens again," he said.
He didn't go into specific details on what those upgrades will be however.
Late Monday afternoon, officials with the school sent a letter to parents.
"We have reviewed all security systems, processes, and procedures and heightened all of them to make certain our students and staff are safe," they wrote.
Officials with the school say they will have mental health personnel on hand when students return on Tuesday.


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I did a little organizing/purging the other day and decided a little blog candy was in order! This bundle contains two packs of Piggy Tales paper, stickers, ribbon etc.
All that is required from you is to leave a sweet little comment in the comments section at the bottom of this post. You may leave as many comments as you would like, increasing your chances of winning. :)


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Showing 49–52 of 52 results
You can request a specific date in the Order Notes box during checkout, and we will ship your plants as close to the time you request as possible. We ship February — October.
Winter and Early Spring Orders: We will send at the appropriate time for Spring planting in your area. See the chart below for approximate starting shipping dates by zone.
Late Spring and Summer Orders : After shipping has started to your area, we will send as soon as possible, normally within one to two weeks. PLEASE NOTE – We will do our best to ship as quickly as possible, but the plants are growing in the ground, not sitting on a shelf, so it takes some time to get them dug and ready to ship.
Fall Orders: We will send as soon as possible, up until it is too late to plant in your area. Orders placed after that time will ship the following spring. See the chart below for last shipping date by zone.
Approximate Dates We Start Shipping by USDA Hardiness Zone:
Approximate Dates We Stop Shipping by USDA Hardiness Zone:
It's pretty simple: most of you can grow any of the daylilies we sell. If you live in an area with a sustained cold period like we do in East Tennessee, you can grow all the varieties. However, If you live in an area that doesn't get freezing weather in the winter, dormant varieties won't work for you; you need to choose evergreen or semi-evergreen varieties.
We normally include bonus plants equal to about 20% of your order. And these aren't "leftover" plants, or "whatever we've got lying around." These are the same huge, healthy plants we sell. Just leave the decision up to us— we'll pick something we know you'll love!
After the year we've all had, we're trying to wring whatever joy we can find out of every day— even Tax Day*. So we put our thinking caps on and thought, "What is silly and fun and makes everyone happy?".
That's when it hit us: stickers! To make your day brighter, we are offering 13 stickers free with every order today through April 19!!!
Stick 'em on your water bottle, your cooler, your laptop (even your wheelbarrow!) or wherever else you could use a bit of cheery color.
*We know that Tax Day has officially been moved to May 17. Since today is traditionally Tax Day, though, we're going for it.


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Speaking of money, here's a great example of Jack Cole's screwball comics that revolves around the theme of money. As a near-starving artist in New York City at the time he created this story, Cole no doubt had his money on his mind, and his mind on his money, as the song goes.
These scans are generously provided to us by the gifted artist and Jack Cole fan Ryan Heshka, who scanned them from his own very rare copy of Target Comics #3. Be sure to check out Ryan's super cool art at his website (and I'm not just saying that because Ryan was nice enuff to supply scans -- I really DO love his art).
Cole did four of the curiously named Higrass Twins stories. He drew these while he was working at the Harry "A" Chesler shop, and they were sold to Novelty Press, who published them in issues one through four of their new title, Target Comics. For the other three Higrass Twins stories, see this earlier post.
Here, now, are three pages of insane comics from the early years of comics master Jack Cole, originally published in Target Comics #3 (Novelty Press - April, 1940).
That is All,
Screwball Paul


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The LA Times:
The Droid X comes loaded with several nonstandard applications for Google's Android, most of which cannot be removed. Among the phone's so-called junkware is a Blockbuster video app and a demo for an Electronic Arts game called Need for Speed: Shift.
You can't remove them because Android is open.
via Daring Fireball Linked List: Pre-Installed Android Apps.


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Bees are making headlines these days, and not in a positive way. Colony collapse disorder has cut through honeybee populations, with some beekeepers reportedly losing up to 90 percent of their stock in recent years. European bee populations are also declining, and so are some species of North American bumblebee. That data is often interpreted to mean that all of the world's 20,000 bee species are in danger, and that we may be in the midst of a "global pollinator crisis." But there's little data to back up those claims, scientists say.
"When you look at what's out there in the public press, the implication is that pollinators are all under threat, that there's some kind of mysterious decline across the board," says Sam Droege, a biologist at U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. "The problem is, there's really no data to show that either way."
A new paper, published in the Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society, offers a ray of hope for native bee species. In this research, Droege and his colleagues compiled a list of 770 species that are historically native to the eastern U.S. They sent this list to a network of bee experts, asking them to note which species they had found within the past 20 years. The survey revealed that 95 percent of the bee species that lived 150 years ago have not gone extinct. Thirty-seven species were nowhere to be found, but the researchers pointed out that those bees had been rare to begin with and were often subject to taxonomic confusion. The paper offers "a clarification to the 'all pollinators are going to hell' point of view," Droege says.
It is important to understand the health of our native pollinators, because "in the absence of pollination, whole communities could collapse," says USGS ecologist Ralph Grundel. "If plants can't reproduce, you lose the primary producers, and then the species that depend on them." It is also estimated that bees pollinate about a third of the food that we eat, at a value of about $15 billion per year.
Grundel, who was not involved in the research, said that the paper is a good starting point. "It's useful because they've put together this information on what was out there historically, and what still is out there. But the fact that they're not finding mass extinctions is not the equivalent of knowing whether species are declining or in jeopardy."
Droege, too, said that the conclusions are weaker than he'd like. "We'd love to make statements more detailed than, 'Yup, we found 'em!' But if we didn't do this paper, we basically wouldn't know anything at all," he says.
John Ascher, an invertebrate zoologist at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), agreed. He wrote in an e-mail that "we don't even know what native bees exist, as many remain undescribed or unidentifiable. Nor do we know where they live, as even state lists remain highly incomplete despite our best efforts…. As to how the bees are doing—we know even less."
In order to really understand the health of native bees, scientists need to document species' distribution and abundance as well as monitor how those numbers change over time. That's why Droege and several colleagues are working with the U.S. Forest Service to set up a nationwide bee-monitoring program. He recruited 11 experimental forest stations from places as far-flung as Maine, Colorado and Puerto Rico, and has created a standardized, almost foolproof collection strategy.
"It's fantastic that someone is doing this," says Rutgers University entomologist Rachael Winfree. "There are no long-term bee monitoring programs in North America, except for bumblebees. This is not a new idea, it's just no one is doing it."
Part of the reason there hasn't been a long-term, wide-scale bee monitoring program is because there wasn't an efficient way to collect the bees. Using nets takes time, and results vary depending on who swings them. Bowls of soapy water catch bees effectively, but the water evaporates quickly—meaning scientists have to check the traps frequently. "Figuring out how much and when to sample is tricky" with this method, Droege says. A third option uses malaise traps, which are large tent-like nets that funnel insects into jars of alcohol or propylene glycol, but these traps can cost up to $250 apiece.
Droege and his colleagues spent years cooking up a solution. They developed a trap made from painted plastic beer cups, soap and glycol. The paint colors attracts the bees, the soap kills them and the glycol preserves them. (Propylene glycol is "generally recognized as safe" by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.) The foresters at each site set out the traps, collect the captured bees every two weeks and mail them to Droege for identification.
The program is in its third year of data collection, but doesn't yet have a name or funding. And so far they haven't needed it; most of the participating sites report that maintaining the traps requires very little money or effort. Henry McNab, a research forester at the Bent Creek Experimental Forest in North Carolina, estimates that on average the bee collections required 15 minutes per week and about $30 per year.
Some sites have collected more than 1,400 bees in one summer. They've found several rare bees, and discovered species in places that would typically be considered outside of their normal range or habitat—for example, scientists at the Maine site collected a squash bee (Peponapis pruinosa), a species that is most common in the U.S. Southwest and rarely found north of southern New England.
The two-year analysis is also uncovering hints at population trends, although several years' more data are needed to determine whether these hints are significant. "The main goal is to look at change over time," Droege says. "If we can foresee declines, we can intervene before it's too late."
By making the monitoring project simple and inexpensive, Droege has made it easy for the experimental sites to continue participating for a very long time. Michael Ryan, a research ecologist at the Manitou Experimental Forest in Colorado, said in an email that "As long as the Forest Service can afford to keep a site manager at Manitou, we'll continue. And even if the site manager goes away [due to budget cuts]," he added, "I'll work somehow to get it done."
The simplicity of the program could come at a slight cost. For now, foresters participating in the monitoring program set up the traps in an area of their own choosing, typically in an area that is most convenient. But bees respond strongly to local habitat changes, such as weeds flowering in a nearby field or a freshly mowed lawn, Winfree says. She suggested that by standardizing and controlling the environments around the traps it will be easier to detect large-scale changes in bee populations, rather than the effects of local changes.
As the project is still in its infancy, Droege continues to work out the kinks. After he has proved that the experimental design works, he says he'll ask for federal funding in hopes of scaling up the project and increasing data resolution. At the moment Droege alone is tasked with identifying the thousands of bees collected, so he only has time to categorize them down to the genus level. "To some extent, the really interesting and important questions are at the species level," Winfree says. "The problem with having genus-level data is that, say one species is increasing and one went extinct, you wouldn't even detect it," because the total number of bees would stay the same, she says.
AMNH's Ascher also pointed out that this monitoring project alone won't to tell us everything we need to know about the bees' status. He said that it should be paired with diverse types of sampling that are better able to detect rare bees, and bees that occupy specialized habitats.
Nevertheless, it's a start. And whether or not the project receives funding, entomologists say that the project is a first and is already turning up important data about the U.S.'s native bees. "It shows how much research can be done on a shoestring budget," Bent Creek's McNab says. "And it's something that we can't afford not to do."


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Kelvin on the sun
On Friday 21 January 1887 Sir William Thomson (he became Lord Kelvin in 1892) addressed the Friday Evening Discourse in Physical Science at the Royal Institution in London. He addressed the audience on The Sun's Heat. In the tradition of the lectures he assumed that members of the audience had no expert scientific knowledge. It is worth commenting that Thomson is, of course, entirely wrong but there was no way before the discovery of the structure of the atom that he could possibly have produced a correct theory. The lecture is interesting both in showing the knowledge of the period, and also in showing how the leading scientists pushed forward the bounds of knowledge.
Below is a version of the first part of Thomson's lecture.
The second part of Thomson's lecture may be found here: Kelvin on the sun 2
Below is a version of the first part of Thomson's lecture.
The second part of Thomson's lecture may be found here: Kelvin on the sun 2
The Sun's Heat, Part 1
Sir William Thomson, LL.D. F.R.S. M.R.L.
Professor of Natural Philosophy in the University of Glasgow.
From human history we know that for several thousand years the sun has been giving heat and light to the earth as at present, possibly with some considerable fluctuations, and possibly with some not very small progressive variation. The records of agriculture, and the natural history of plants and animals within the time of human history, abound with evidence that there has been no exceedingly great change in the intensity of the sun's heat and light within the last three thousand years; but for all that, there may have been variations of quite as much as 5 or 10 per cent, as we may judge by considering that the intensity of the solar radiation to the earth is per cent greater in January than in July; and neither at the equator nor in the northern or southern hemispheres has this difference been discovered by experience or general observation of any kind. But as for the mere age of the sun, irrespective of the question of uniformity, we have proof of something vastly more than three thousand years in geological history, with its irrefragable evidence of continuity of life on the earth in time past for tens of thousands, and probably for millions of years.
Here, then, we have a splendid subject for contemplation and research in Natural Philosophy or Physics - the science of dead matter. The sun, a mere piece of matter of the moderate dimensions which we know it to have, bounded all round by cold ether, has been doing work at the rate of four hundred and seventy-six thousand million million million horse-power for three thousand years; and at possibly a higher, certainly not much lower, rate for a few million years. How is this to be explained? Natural philosophy cannot evade the question, and no physicist who is not engaged in trying to answer it can have any other justification than that his whole working time is occupied with work on some other subject or subjects of his province by which he has more hope of being able to advance science.
It may be taken as an established result of scientific inquiry that the sun is not a burning fire, and is merely a white hot fluid mass cooling, with some little accession of fresh energy by meteors occasionally falling in, but of very small account in comparison with the whole energy of heat which he gives out from year to year. Helmholtz's form of the meteoric theory of the origin of the sun's heat, may be accepted as having the highest degree of scientific probability that can be assigned to any assumption regarding actions of prehistoric times. The essential principle of the explanation is this; at some period of time, long past, the sun's initial heat was generated by the collision of pieces of matter gravitationally attracted together from distant space to build up his present mass; and shrinkage due to cooling gives, through the work done by the mutual gravitation of all parts of the shrinking mass, the vast heat-storage capacity in virtue of which the cooling has been, and continues to be, so slow.
In some otherwise excellent books it is "paradoxically" stated that the sun is becoming hotter because of the condensation. Paradoxes have no place in science. Their removal is the substitution of true for false statements and thoughts, not always so easily effected as in the present case. The truth is, that it is because the sun is becoming less hot in places of equal density that his mass is allowed to yield gradually under the condensing tendency of gravity and thus from age to age cooling and condensation go on together.
An essential detail of Helmholtz's theory of solar heat is that the sun must be fluid, because even though given at any moment hot enough from the surface to any depth, however great, inwards, to be brilliantly incandescent, the conduction of heat from within through solid matter of even the highest conducting quality known to us, would not suffice to maintain the incandescence of the surface for more than a few hours, after which all would be darkness. Observation confirms this conclusion so far as the outward appearance of the sun is concerned, but does not suffice to disprove the idea which was so eloquently set forth by Sir John Herschel, and which prevailed till thirty or forty years ago, that the sun is a solid nucleus enclosed in a sheet of violently agitated flame. In reality, the matter of the outer shell of the sun, from which the heat is radiated outwards, must in cooling become denser, and so becoming unstable in its high position must fall down, and hotter fluid from within must rush up to take its place. The tremendous currents thus continually produced in this great mass of flaming fluid constitute the province of the newly-developed science of solar physics, which, with its marvellous instrument of research - the spectroscope - is yearly and daily giving us more and more knowledge of the actual motions of the different ingredients, and of the splendid and all-important resulting phenomena.
To form some idea of the amount of the heat which is being continually carried up to the sun's surface and radiated out into space, and of the dynamical relations between it and the solar gravitation, let us first divide that prodigious number () of horse-power by the number () of square metres in the sun's surface, and we find 78,000 horse-power as the mechanical value of the radiation per square metre. Imagine, then, the engines of eight ironclads applied, by ideal mechanism of countless shafts, pulleys, and belts, to do all their available work of, say 10,000 horse-power each, in perpetuity driving one small paddle in a fluid contained in a square metre vat. The same heat would be given out from the square metre surface of the fluid as is given out from every square metre of the sun's surface.
But now to pass from a practically impossible combination of engines, and a physically impossible paddle and fluid and containing vessel, towards a more practical combination of matter for producing the same effect: still keep the ideal vat and paddle and fluid, but place the vat on the surface of a cool, solid, homogeneous globe of the same size (697,000 kilometres radius) as the sun, and of density (1.4) equal to the sun's mean density. Instead of using steam-power, let the paddle be driven by a weight descending in a pit excavated below the vat. As the simplest possible mechanism, take a long vertical shaft, with the paddle mounted on the top of it so as to turn horizontally. Let the weight be a nut working on a screw-thread on the vertical shaft, with guides to prevent the nut from turning - the screw and the guides being all absolutely frictionless. Let the pit be a metre square at its upper end, and let it be excavated quite down to the sun's centre, everywhere of square horizontal section, and tapering uniformly to a point in the centre. Let the weight be simply the excavated matter of the sun's mass, with merely a little clearance space between it and the four sides of the pit, and with a kilometre or so out off the lower pointed end to allow space for its descent. The mass of this weight is 326 million tons. Its heaviness, three-quarters of the heaviness of an equal mass at the sun's surface, is 244 million tons solar surface-heaviness. Now a horse-power is, per hour, 270 metre-tons, terrestrial surface-heaviness; or 10 metre-tons, solar surface-heaviness, because a ton of matter is twenty-seven times as heavy at the sun's surface as at the earth's. To do 78,000 horsepower, or 780,000 metre-tons solar surface-heaviness per hour, our weight must therefore descend at the rate of one metre in 313 hours, or about 28 metres per year.
To advance another step, still through impracticable mechanism, towards the practical method by which the sun's heat is produced, let the thread of the screw be of uniformly decreasing steepness from the surface downwards, so that the velocity of the weight, as it is allowed to descend by the turning of the screw, shall be in simple proportion to distance from the sun's centre. This will involve a uniform condensation of the material of the weight; but a condensation so exceedingly small in the course even of tens of thousands of years, that, whatever be the supposed material, metal or stone, of the weight, the elastic resistance against the condensation will be utterly imperceptible in comparison with the gravitational forces with which we are concerned. The work done per metre of descent of the top end of the weight will be just four-fifths of what it was when the thread of the screw was uniform. Thus, to do the 78,000 horse-power of work, the top end of the weight must descend at the rate of 35 metres per year: or 70 kilometres per 2000 years.
Now let the whole surface of our cool solid sun be divided into squares, for example as nearly as may be of one square metre area each, and lot the whole mass of the sun be divided into long inverted pyramids or pointed rods, each 697,000 kilometres long, with their points meeting at the centre. Let each be mounted on a screw, as already described for the long tapering weight which we first considered; and let the paddle at the top end of each screw-shaft revolve in a fluid, not now confined to a vat, but covering the whole surface of the sun to a depth of a few metres or kilometres. Arrange the viscosity of the fluid and the size of each paddle so as to let the paddle turn just so fast as to allow the top end of each pointed rod to descend at the rate of 35 metres per year. The whole fluid will, by the work which the paddles do in it, be made incandescent, and it will give out heat and light to just about the same amount as is actually done by the sun. If the fluid is a few thousand kilometres deep over the paddles, it would be impossible, by any of the appliances of solar physics, to see the difference between our model mechanical sun and the true sun.
To do away with the last vestige of impracticable mechanism in which the heavinesses of all parts of each long rod are supported on the thread of an ideal screw cut on a vertical shaft of ideal matter, absolutely hard and absolutely frictionless: first, go back a step to our supposition of just one such rod and screw working in a single pit excavated down to the centre of the sun, and let us suppose all the rest of the sun's mass to be rigid and absolutely impervious to heat. Warm up the matter of the pyramidal rod to such a temperature that its material melts and experiences as much of Sir Humphry Davy's "repulsive motion" as suffices to keep it balanced as a fluid, without either sinking or rising from the position in which it was held by the thread of the screw. When the matter is thus held up without the screw, take away the screw or let it melt in its place. We should thus have a pit from the sun's surface to his centre, of a square metre area at the surface, full of incandescent fluid, which we may suppose to be of the actual ingredients of the solar substance. This fluid, having at the first instant the temperature with which the paddle left it, would at the first instant continue radiating heat just as it did when the paddle was kept moving; but it would quickly become much cooler at its surface, and to a distance of a few metres down. Currents of less hot fluid tumbling clown, and hotter fluid coming up from below, in irregular whirls, would carry the cooled fluid down from the surface, and bring up hotter fluid from below, but this mixing could not go on through a depth of very many metres to a sufficient degree to keep up anything approaching to the high temperature maintained by the paddle; and after a few hours or days, solidification would commence at the surface. If the solidified matter floats on the fluid, at the same temperature, below it, the crust would simply thicken as ice on a lake thickens in frosty weather; but if, as is more probable, solid matter, of such ingredients as the sun is composed of, sinks in the liquid when both are at the melting temperature of the substance, thin films of the upper crust would fall in, and continue falling in, until, for several metres downwards, the whole mass of mixed solid and fluid becomes stiff enough (like the stiffness of paste or of mortar) to prevent the frozen film from falling down from the surface. The surface film would then quickly thicken, and in the course of a few hours or days become less than red-hot on its upper surface, the whole pit full of fluid would go on cooling with extreme slowness until, after possibly about a million million million years or so, it would be all at the same temperature as the space to which its upper end radiates.
Let precisely what we have been considering be done for every one of our pyramidal rods, with, however, in the first place, thin partitions of matter impervious to heat separating every pit from its four surrounding neighbours. Precisely the same series of events as we have been considering will take place in every one of the pits.
Suppose the whole complex mass to be rotating at the rate of once round in twenty-five days, which is, about as exactly as we know it, the time of the sun's rotation about his axis.
Now at the instant when the paddle stops let all the partitions be annulled, so that there shall be perfect freedom for currents to flow unresisted in any direction, except so far as resisted by the viscosity of the fluid, and leave the piece of matter, which we may now call the Sun, to himself. He will immediately begin showing all the phenomena known in solar physics. Of course the observer might have to wait a few years for sunspots, and a few quarter-centuries to discover periods of sunspots, but they would, I think I may say probably, all be there just as they are, because I think we may feel that it is most probable that all these actions are due to the sun's own substance, and not to external influences of any kind. It is, however, quite possible, and indeed many who know most of the subject think it probable, that some of the chief phenomena due to sunspots arise from influxes of meteoric matter circling round the sun.
The energy of chemical combination is as nothing compared with the gravitational energy of shrinkage, to which the sun's activity is almost wholly due. A body falling forty-six kilometres to the sun's surface or through the sun's atmosphere, has as much work done on it by gravity, as corresponds to a high estimate of chemical energy in the burning of combustible materials. But chemical combinations and dissociations may, as urged by Lockyer, in his book on the 'Chemistry of the Sun,' just now published, be thoroughly potent determining influences on some of the features of non-uniformity of the brightness in the grand phenomena of sunspots, hydrogen flames, and corona, which make the province of solar physics. But these are questions belonging to a very splendid branch of solar science to which only allusion can be made at the present time.
What concerns us as to the explanation of sun-light and sun-heat may be summarised in two propositions:-
- Gigantic currents throughout the sun's liquid mass are continually maintained by fluid, slightly cooled by radiation falling down from the surface, and hotter fluid rushing up to take its place.
- The work done in any time by the mutual gravitation of all the parts of the fluid, as it shrinks in virtue of the lowering of its temperature, is but little less than (so little less than, that we may regard it as practically equal to) the dynamical equivalent of the heat that is radiated from the sun in the same time.
The rate of shrinkage corresponding to the present rate of solar radiation has been proved to us, by the consideration of our dynamical model, to be 35 metres on the radius per year, or one ten-thousandth of its own length on the radius per two thousand years. Hence, if the solar radiation has been about the same as at present for two hundred thousand years, his radius must have been greater by one per cent two hundred thousand years ago than at present. If we wish to carry our calculations much farther back or forward than two hundred thousand years, we must reckon by differences of the reciprocal of the sun's radius, and not by differences simply of the radius, to take into account the change of density (which, for example, would be three per cent for one per cent change of the radius). Thus the rule, easily worked out according to the principles illustrated by our mechanical model, is this:-
Equal differences of the reciprocal of the radius correspond to equal quantities of heat radiated away from million of years to million of years.
Take two examples-
- If in past time there has been as much as fifteen million times the heat radiated from the sun as is at present radiated out in one year, the solar radius must have been four times as great as at present.
- If the sun's effective thermal capacity can be maintained by shrinkage till twenty million times the present year's amount of heat is radiated away, the sun's radius must be half what it is now. But it is to be remarked that the density which this would imply, being 11.2 times the density of water, or just about the density of lead, is probably too great to allow the free shrinkage as of a cooling gas to be still continued without obstruction through overcrowding of the molecules. It seems, therefore, most probable that we cannot for the future reckon on more of solar radiation than, if so much as, twenty million times the amount at present radiated out in a year. It is also to be remarked that the greatly diminished radiating surface, at a much lower temperature, would give out annually much less heat than the sun in his present condition gives. The same considerations led Newcomb to the conclusion:-
... that it is hardly likely that the sun can continue to give sufficient heat to support life on the earth (such life as we now are acquainted with, at least) for ten million years from the present time.
In our calculations we have taken Pouillet's number for the total activity of solar radiation, which practically agrees with Herschel's. Forbes showed the necessity for correcting the mode of allowing for atmospheric absorption used by his two predecessors in estimating the total amount of solar radiation, and he was thus led to a number 1.6 times theirs. Forty years later Langley, in an excellently worked out consideration of the whole question of absorption by our atmosphere, of radiant heat of all wave-lengths, accepts and confirms Forbes's reasoning, and by fresh observations in very favourable circumstances on Mount Whitney, 15,000 feet above the sea-level, finds a number a little greater still than Forbes (1.7, instead of Forbes' 1.6, times Pouillet's number). Thus Langley's measurement of solar radiation corresponds to 133,000 horse-power per square metre, instead of the 78,000 horse-power which we have taken, and diminishes each of our times in the ratio of 1 to 1.7. Thus, instead of Helmholtz's twenty million years, which was founded on Pouillet's estimate, we have only twelve millions, and similarly with all our other time reckonings based on Pouillet's results. In the circumstances, and taking fully into account all possibilities of greater density in the sun's interior, and of greater or less activity of radiation in past ages, it would, I think, be exceedingly rash to assume as probable anything more than twenty million years of the sun's light in the past history of the earth, or to reckon on more than five or six million years of sunlight for time to come.
We have seen that the sun draws on no external source for the heat he radiates out from year to year, and that the whole energy of this heat is due to the mutual attraction between his parts acting in conformity with the Newtonian law of gravitation. We have seen how an ideal mechanism, easily imagined and understood, though infinitely far from possibility of realisation, could direct the work done by mutual gravitation between all the parts of the shrinking mass, to actually generate its heat-equivalent in an ocean of white-hot liquid covering the sun's surface, and so keep it white-hot while constantly radiating out heat at the actual rate of the sun's heat-giving activity. Let us now consider a little more in detail the real forces and movements actually concerned in the process of cooling by radiation from the uttermost region of the sun, the falling inwards of the fluid thus cooled, the consequent mixing up of the whole mass of the sun, the resulting diminished elastic resistance to pressure in equi-dense parts, and the consequent shrinkage of the whole mass under the influence of mutual gravitation. I must first explain that this "elastic resistance to pressure" is due to heat, and is, in fact, what I have, in the present lecture, called "Sir Humphry Davy's repulsive motion". I called it so because Davy first used the expression "repulsive motion" to describe the fine intermolecular motions to which he and other founders of the Kinetic Theory of Heat attributed the elastic resistance to compression presented by
gases and fluids.
Imagine, instead of the atoms and molecules of the various substances which constitute the sun's mass, a vast number of elastic globes, like schoolboys' marbles or billiard balls. Consider first, anywhere on our earth a few million such balls put into a room, large enough to hold a thousand times their number, with perfectly hard walls and ceiling, but with a real wooden floor; or, what would be still more convenient for our purpose, a floor of thin elastic sheet steel, supported by joists close enough together to prevent it from drooping inconveniently in any part. Suppose in the beginning the marbles to be lying motionless on the floor. In this condition they represent the atoms of a gas, as for instance, oxygen, nitrogen, or hydrogen, absolutely deprived of heat, and therefore lying frozen, or as molecular dust strewn on the floor of the containing vessel.
If now a lamp be applied below the oxygen, nitrogen, or hydrogen, the substance becoming warmed by heat conducted through the floor, will rise from its condition of absolutely cold solid, or of incoherent molecular dust, and will spread as a gas through the whole enclosed space. If more and more heat be applied by the lamp the pressure of the gas outwards in all directions against the inside of the enclosing vessel will become greater and greater.
As a rude mechanical analogue to this warming of a gas by heat conducted through the floor of its containing vessel, from a lamp held below it, return to our room with floor strewn with marbles, and employ workmen to go below the floor and strike its underside in a great many places vehemently with mallets. The marbles in immediate contact with the floor will begin to jump from it and fall sharply back again like water in a pot on a fire simmering before it boils. If the workmen work energetically enough there will be more and more of commotion in the heap, till every one of the balls gets into a state of irregular vibration, up and down, or obliquely, or horizontally, but in no fixed direction; and by mutual jostling the heap swells up till the ceiling of the room prevents it from swelling any further. Suppose now the floor to become, like the walls and ceiling, absolutely rigid. The workmen may cease their work of hammering, which would now be no more availing to augment the motions of the marbles within, than would be a lamp applied outside to warm the contents of a vessel, if the vessel were made of ideal matter impermeable to heat. The marbles being perfectly elastic will continue for ever flying about in their room striking the walls and floor and ceiling and one another, and remaining in a constant average condition of denser crowd just over the floor and less and less dense up to the ceiling.
The second part of Thomson's lecture may be found here: Kelvin on the sun 2
Last Updated April 2007


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Until last night, the conventional wisdom in Washington was that the Tea Party was on the wane. Congressional leaders of the nascent movement, like Allen West and Joe Walsh had lost reelection, or, like Jim DeMint, had decided to leave politics altogether. House Speaker John Boehner had stripped some of the more outspoken members of the Tea Party caucus of their congressional leadership posts, a sign that the GOP establishment was no longer going to be led by its ultra-conservative tail. The big money groups backing the Tea Party were falling apart in a spate of post-election season squabbling.
But after 85 House Republicans joined Boehner in raising taxes without spending reductions during the end game of Monday night's fiscal-cliff negotiations, Tea Party leaders and conservative activists from around the country are dusting off their tri-corner hats and "Don't Tread On Me" signs, and now say that their members are as energized as they have ever been since the first Tax Day protests in 2009. And the Republican Party, they add, had better beware.
"We now have 85 members of the House who have shunned their noses at us," said Dustin Stockton, a Texas- and Nevada-based operative and the chief strategist of The Tea Party.net. "Our job now is to recruit and inspire and motivate people to run against those Republicans who did it."
For Tea Partiers and fiscally conservative Republican rank-and filers, the Congress that ended its term this week was at last a chance to get federal spending under control. Hopes were high that this class, which more than doubled the number of members in the House's Tea Party caucus on their first day, would repudiate previous Republican tendencies to reverse campaign promises and open up the spending spigot as soon as they had their hands on it. And if these newly minted members failed, the Tea Party promised to rally its energy behind new challengers who wouldn't.
Instead however, this Congress voted to increase spending three times, and never once to cut taxes. The final indignity, the bill to avoid the so-called "fiscal cliff" by raising taxes on the wealthiest, was negotiated behind closed doors and at the last minute, anathema to a group that had pledged unprecedented openness around legislation. Plus, as many Tea Party leaders around the nation pointed out, the bill that was passed this week includes $1 dollar of spending reductions for every $41 of new taxes.
"I was shocked about that. I was in complete shock," said Louisiana GOP chairman Roger Villere, Jr., who, despite working in the establishment, has actively courted Tea Party types in the Bayou. "I think the conservative movement is going to get fired up. I don't see people getting depressed. I see people getting fired up and working twice as hard."
And it's not just local grassroots groups that have been incensed about the deal, but even GOP insiders with close ties to the movement, such as Villere and some of the well-heeled national umbrella organizations that provided the Tea Party some institutional heft.
"Outrageous," said Matt Kibbe, president of Freedom Works, "is an understatement. This bill is an epic fail."
Already, those outside the official party apparatus are considering primarying incumbents, in some cases taking on those they helped elect a mere two years ago.
Ben Potiker, a Tea Party organizer in upstate New York who helped Republican Chris Gibson knock off a Democratic incumbent in 2010, said he wrote a note on Facebook to his friend that said, "What happened? As a candidate you ran on the call that we don't have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem, but here you go and cast a vote that does nothing to cut spending."
"To try to reduce the deficit on the backs of taxpayers is just wrong," Potiker added. And he pledged that his local Tea Party group would do a better job of screening candidates in the future.
"Gibson's votes since he got elected have been disappointing," he said. "Now we won't fall for the rhetoric. We will do a lot more vetting and dig deeper on what their plans are."
Stockton, the Tea Party organizer, likewise helped elect Congressman Joe Heck over a Democratic incumbent in the Las Vegas suburbs during the Tea Party wave of 2010. Now he says, "Joe Heck will face a primary challenge for sure."
"It's incredibly frustrating," he said. "The Republican Party has a branding issue. The brand is never to raise taxes and we see this as a tax increase, and you see the Obama administration spiking the football, saying they broke the Republicans' 'Iron Ceiling' of no new tax increases. Republicans and people like Heck now have a serious problem when they try to reach people like us."
In Ohio, Cincinnati Tea Party president George Brunemann said he looked forward to "having a conversation" with Ohio Sen. Rob Portman, who voted in favor of the measure.
"I think you will see more challenges [in 2014]," he said. "I am deeply concerned. We always knew that we had some people who were willing to go to the dark side of the force. We now need to show that the Tea Party movement isn't dead."
Organizers say an immediate challenge is to keep the Tea Party together after it has dissipated from its peak in 2010—a tough task for a group that has prided itself on its non-hierarchical infrastructure. On message boards, some were looking for other ways to stay active, such as refusing to pay their income tax or forming at last a third-party counterweight to the GOP.
"What we are hearing from activists is an incredible sense of frustration," said Stockton. What we have to do is take people from a more radical course of action and steer it towards more productive courses. And 2014 will be our first opportunity."
Chad Connelly, the chairman of the South Carolina GOP—a state where the Republican congressional delegation voted uniformly against the bill—agreed, and said another wave election was approaching, never mind who is standing in the way.
"If you think 2010 was the Tea Party Congress, just wait until 2014. You will see people even more angry and up in arms. I don't think we have seen nothing yet."


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From Whitman to the Winter Olympics
Jasmine Campbell '15 and Holly Brooks '04 are set to compete in the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. Campbell will represent the U.S. Virgin Islands in the slalom and giant slalom, while Brooks will race for the U.S. in the Nordic cross country. Whitman Magazine caught up with the athletes days before the Opening Ceremony. The following interviews are excerpts from two larger profiles that will appear in the March issue of Whitman Magazine.
Jasmine Campbell '15
U.S. Virgin Islands Ski Team
Jasmine Campbell '15
Jasmine Campbell '15 took a gap year at Whitman in order to train and compete in the Sochi Winter Olympics. Born on the island of St. John, the slalom and giant slalom skier is representing the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Whitman Magazine: What do people say when they find out you're a skier from the Virgin Islands.
Jasmine Campbell: Generally people say something like, "Oh rad! So that's like the Jamaican bobsled team, right?" I used to try to correct them and tell them that bobsleds and skiing really have nothing in common, just as the Virgin Islands and Jamaica are entirely different islands, but they seem confused and end up singing the Jamaican bobsled song anyhow.
Whitman Magazine: You grew up on a beach. Where did you learn to ski?
Jasmine Campbell: We moved to Sun Valley, Idaho, when I was 10. My father competed in the 1992 Olympics. He participated in slalom, GS [giant slalom] and Super G. My mother would have gone with him if she had not just given birth to me. However, I recently found out that she raced in a World Cup while pregnant with me, so maybe some of this skiing passion has been instilled in utero.
Whitman Magazine: You're competing for a small U.S. territory. What are your Olympic goals?
Jasmine Campbell: All I can hope to do is ski to the very best of my ability. Considering this in Sun Valley, Idaho, I feel confident that my training has equipped me to handle the pressure. However, I'm not deluding myself. Being half a world away at Sochi provides an entirely different landscape ramped up additionally by the awe of attending the Olympics to challenge me mentally and physically.
Whitman Magazine: So the Olympics are not about winning and losing?
Jasmine Campbell: The Olympics are about bringing the world together in a community of sport and human excellence. It's a time to transcend differences and divisiveness. I will consider my time at the Olympics a success by doing my own personal best, while connecting with this very special community of athletes. That said, I do have an additional personal performance goal of being one of the top Olympic competitors from the smaller nations.
Holly Brooks '04
U.S. Ski Team
Holly Brooks '04
You're the oldest member of the U.S. Ski Team. What do you think you bring to the team that your teammates may not?
I'm the oldest member of the U.S. Ski Team and the member that's taken the most non-traditional path towards the Olympics, but I wouldn't change my path for anything. I have no regrets about my late bloomer status. I feel as though I've lead a couple different lives: first as a regular college student, then in the work force, and now as a traditional athlete. Many full-time skiers have never experienced life outside of elite sports, and I think my route has given me perspective that allows me to fully understand the beauty of what I get to do every day as a professional ski racer.
You made the Vancouver Winter Olympics team in 2010. How was that experience?
I made the Vancouver team while working as a full-time coach. I worked my way up winning races domestically, then scoring points on the World Cup, being named to the U.S. Ski Team, and finally this year, making the A-team for the U.S. Ski Team. The Olympics are an amazing experience and something that I feel very special to have been a part of. It's an athletic experience that transcends cultures, borders, (ideally) politics and languages. I feel like it's the one time where the entire world unites to cheer on representatives from their country.
How was your experience on the Whitman ski team?
I skied on the Whitman Ski Team for four years while in college. I skied and trained with a lot of heart, but I was never very good. Many of my U.S. Ski Team teammates have stories of winning races their entire lives, whereas I loved training, competing and the lifestyle but never broke into the collegiate top 10! Luckily, cross country skiing is a sport where it takes years – even decades – to develop into a world-class athlete, and hence my success in the sport came later in life.
What advice would you give to current Whitman students who might want to move into professional sports after college?
Do what Whitman students do best: balance your passions of academics, athletics and extra-curricular activities. My liberal arts education has really helped me succeed as a professional athlete. I'm faced with promoting myself through public speaking engagements and writing, and the education I received at Whitman has helped me succeed in these arenas. I'm very thankful for my academic background.


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Preview of Leaky's "Deathly Hallows: Part 1" Set Report; Full Report October 5th
Sep 15, 2010
Earlier this year, Leaky was among a number of fan sties to visit the set of the "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" film at Leavesden Studios just outside London, England. Our full set report will be online on October 5, but today we have a sneak peek at what we uncovered on the set. Enjoy!
Always aiming to improve on the previous films, the cast and crew of the "Deathly Hallows" films seem to be on track to outdo themselves once again. While walking through the expansive former factory complex which houses the animatronic creature creation lab, prosthetic and makeup studio, and props department, evidence is everywhere of just how serious they are to get it right. On set we were able to tour the entire production, as well as speak to many of the actors and crew members about bringing the final chapter of the "Deathly Hallows" books to the big screen. In our full set report, we can share full details about the sets, props, costumes, and creations the production has crafted to bring Harry's world to life.
Stay close to Leaky in the coming weeks for our full report, which will include full interviews with the cast and crew, a complete rundown of my set tour, as well as more about what to expect for the first part of the "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" film!
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" will be released in theaters November 19, 2010.


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21 February 2012 20:00 | to | 22 February 2012 03:00 |
Known as the most important event to realize a dream and magically end a sumptuous Carnival, you cannot miss the famous INTERNATIONAL END OF CARNIVAL GRAND GALA AT PISANI-MORETTA.
In the gorgeous atmosphere of the most elegant Venetian Palace on the Grand Canal with precious frescoes painted by Tiepolo and completely enlightened by candles we will celebrate the end of Carnival 2012.
A welcome cocktail will be offered under the Porch of the Palace with music entertainment of the "Caffè Concerto Strauss" orchestra.
Music entertainments and extraordinary performances will accompany the gala dinner which will be served on the main floor.
It will be possible to dance romantic nineteenth century arias accompanied by the orchestra and, in the marvellously lit entrance on the ground floor, you will be able to dance till dawn with contemporary music to celebrate the end of Carnival 2012.
The famous DJ Alexandre Toesca will be accompanied by the Electic Violinist Filippo Rollando, internationally renowned.
Gala dinner served by "La Dogaressa" (3 courses, drinks included)
Open bar available to Guests.
Dress code: carnival costume


text: Table of Contents Who Is at Risk of Getting a Cataract?What Are the Signs that I Need Cataract Surgery?Is it possible to prevent cataracts?Cataract Treatment in Indore:The Types of Cataract surgery in Indore are listed here:To Summarise: Cataract Surgery Doctors in Indore are the Skilled specialist that can deal with the issues of Cataract. Cataract is a clouding of the natural lens of the eye that typically occurs with age, but can also occur in newborns and young children. Blurred vision, glare, and sensitivity to bright lights are all symptoms of this condition. As the disease continues, it causes a painless, gradual loss of vision, which can have a negative impact on one's quality of life by interfering with daily activities such as driving and reading. Who Is at Risk of Getting a Cataract? 1. People who are over the age of 60 2. People that have used steroids for a long time 3. Ultraviolet ray overexposure 4. Diabetes sufferers 5. Injuries to the eyes Book Free Consultation What Are the Signs that I Need Cataract Surgery? This is where the cataract surgery Doctors at Glamyo Health can help. Our specialists will discuss the diagnosis of cataract and your best corrected visual acuity with you after a complete and detailed eye examination (your vision with glasses). They will also assist you in determining whether or not you are comfortable wearing glasses in your daily life using trial lenses. Is it possible to prevent cataracts? Cataracts & other eye diseases like glaucoma are more common in older individuals, It is best to have your eyes evaluated on a regular basis. This is especially important if you have a family history of eye problems or if you have been exposed to things that could hurt your eyes. Adults should see an eye specialist every now and then for two years until they reach the age of 50 to avoid any eye issues. Cataract Treatment in Indore: Although there is no medication to treat cataracts, surgery has long been shown to be a beneficial treatment. With the advent of technology, it is now safer than ever to have surgery to restore your vision with low risks The extent to which your vision is compromised determines whether or not you should have surgery. Although some people with cataracts find that wearing eyeglasses, enlarging lenses, or using brighter lighting helps their eyesight. However, surgery is the only method to truly cure cataracts. If both eyes are affected by cataracts, each eye is operated on individually. There are two essential steps in cataract surgery. Book Free Consultation The Types of Cataract surgery in Indore are listed here: 1. Cataract surgery using phacoemulsification: The procedure takes an hour and begins with a local anaesthetic administered before any incisions are made. Incisions of smaller than 4mm are made in the side of the cornea in three minutes. Cataracts are divided into small pieces and sucked out using ultrasonography and a tube. The natural lens is taken out and then replaced with an artificial lens. 2. Laser or Bladeless Cataract Surgery: This technique does not require any incisions. A computer-guided femtosecond laser is used to remove the cataract. The most exact approach to cut cataract tissue is with a femtosecond laser. Because the procedure is more technically advanced and improved. To Summarise: While all methods of Cataract Surgery in Indore are equally effective, safe, and effective, the patient's choice is the determining element. To make a better decision, inquire with your cataract Surgery Doctors in Indore at Glamyo health as they are talented enough to assist you with the best method for your eyes. Expert ophthalmologists at Glamyo Health will perform a complete cataract examination and advise you on whether cataract surgery is best for you. Visit our website or call one of our medical advisors. Also Read: Cataract Surgeon in Indore Post navigation What is a Cataract & Who are the Skilled Cataract Surgery Doctors in Chandigarh? What is a Cataract & Who are the Skilled Cataract Surgery Doctors in Bhubaneswar?


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Minnetonka Landscaping & Design
Landscaping Service Minnetonka, MN – Landscapes Unlimited offers the following services:
Minnetonka landscaping design is the best Landscaping Contractor in Minnetonka, look no further, Landscapes Unlimited will be there from the beginning to the end. Whether its a small project or a updated back yard project to entertain the neighborhood we can help.
Minnetonka Landscaping & Design Services
Landscape Design Back Yard
In today's homes, the backyard has become an extension of your living space. We can help you create unique outdoor living designs, provide options for outdoor living ideas, and construct covered outdoor living spaces such as:
- Backyard Kitchens
- Outdoor Living Rooms
- Pavilions
- Pergolas
- Outdoor fireplaces and fire pits
- Pool Houses
Minnetonka Landscaping & Design – Front Yard Landscape Design
The entryway to your home should welcome people like open arms. There are many ways to create this warm embrace with concrete, both underfoot and as an architectural accent. Concrete is often maligned as being a cold, austere material. Yet it's anything but. Through the use of color, texture, shape and pattern, concrete can be made warm and inviting. Here are 10 ideas for using decorative concrete to create an attractive, beckoning front entry to your home. Be ready for lots of visitors!
Fire Pit Design Ideas, Out Door Fire Places, Back Yard Fire Pits
Adding a Fire Features or a fire pit as part of your landscaping will extend the enjoyment of your backyard for you and your guests. They provide warmth, light, a cooking source, and ambiance, making them a natural gathering spot for socializing, entertaining, and relaxation. People are drawn to the campfire-like atmosphere, and before you know it, there will be story-telling and laughter. A fire pit can also serve as an important focal point in your outdoor landscape design. When placed where it can be easily seen from your interior living space, it can be enjoyed from the indoors as well.
Back Yard Structure Designs
Adding an outdoor structure to your outdoor living area can add significant value to your home. Whether it's a gazebo, pergola, trellis or other area for entertaining outdoors, an outdoor structure will extend your home outside, adding square footage onto your house.
If having outdoor structures has been your dream, then Landscapes Unlimited can help make it reality.
Outdoor structures can define a room, and provide you with shelter and privacy in your landscape. A shaded area offers a comfortable place to relax and enjoy the breeze, while an enclosed area gets you away from insects. We'll create an outdoor living area that fits your personal style by considering how you want the area to fit into your property's décor.
Back Yard Swimming Pool Designs
Installing a swimming pool presents a number of custom design opportunities to meet your needs. Decisions regarding size, configuration, depth, type of use (lap pools, sport pools, diving pools, etc), equipment, and storage all add up to a new pool specific to you through swimming pool design. Landscapes Unlimited works with you and the pool contractor to make sure you are asking the right questions and getting the right answers for a successful pool installation.
Paver Driveway Designs, Concrete Driveway Paver, Driveway Paving Contractor
Paver Driveways have become a popular choice for homeowners over the last decade, since they are more visually attractive than traditional driveways, such as poured concrete, asphalt or gravel. Though the costs are higher, the end result will be well worth the added expense.
Landscapes Unlimited is at the forefront of paving stone installation. We enjoy what we do, are constantly striving for excellence and warranty our work from the ground up. We believe that as people become aware of the superiority of a segmental pavement and that as we continue to require our customer's overwhelming approval of our installations, Landscapes Unlimited will continue to be a dynamic leader in an expanding industry.
Backyard Patio Landscaping Design, Patio and Landscape Design Ideas
A fabulous patio design can make up a large part of your home's curb appeal. More importantly your patio is the entrance to your home and can make all the difference in the world to your experience of your home. A well planned and constructed patio design can transform your home and give it that "Wow Factor" that you are looking to achieve. Most importantly it's one of the lowest cost renovations or additions that you can make to your home with the quickest build out time.
Retaining Walls Design and Construction
Retaining walls are a relatively simple way to add aesthetically pleasing visual interest in your landscape project for your home or business. People with many hills in their yard often have a hard time using the space effectively and beautifully, especially if the hills are very steep. Retaining walls are multi-functional! If those difficult slopes are walled off properly, they become much safer as well as more attractive and usable. Terraces can be built into the retaining wall design as well for added flowers and plants which can create a lovely flowing landscape look. A variety of retaining wall materials are available so that your Landscapes Unlimited project can suit your style as well as compliment the exterior of your home or business.
Having a properly installed retaining wall is important for your safety. The professionals at Landscapes Unlimited will start with a proper foundation when installing your retaining wall, large or small, to avoid any buckling or shifting. We can install free standing retaining walls, walls with seating built in terraces, segmental retaining walls (SRW), or simple garden walls to help keep your plants safe from unwanted visitors. For a more natural look, we can install a boulder wall using various sizes of rock and put in plants such as creeping sedum to continue the natural look.
Outdoor Bar Designs, Back Yard Kitchen Designs
WHEN THE LANDSCAPE DESIGN program calls for a fully functional kitchen outdoors, we need to put some extra thought into it. Good planning will directly affect how much use and enjoyment you ultimately get from your outdoor kitchen. Here are a few important points that our landscape architects will consider during the planning phases:
THE STYLE OF OUTDOOR BARS AND KITCHEN and dining area that works best is simply the one that works best for you. Here are a few outdoor cooking/dining installation types that have worked perfectly for the size of the yard and the needs of the client.
Sport Court Design and Installation
Who needs a vacation? In the last few years, homeowners recognized the advantage of creating their own backyard resort through sport court design. Let's face it. "Stay-cation" is now a part of our vocabulary. While most people think a swimming pool is just the ticket, more families are looking at sport courts of all kinds. Limited space? Create a driveway basketball court from brick or concrete pavers, like the one we designed and built in Apple Valley, MN.
We have all seen tennis courts, basketball courts and trampolines at the neighbors. And backyard hockey rinks are a favorite here in Minnesota. But consider adding one of these less common sports or games to your backyard – chess boards, horseshoes, putting greens, bocce ball, volleyball, shuffleboard, or badminton. No reservations necessary.
Outdoor Lighting Design and Installation
Landscapes Unlimited is your complete, full-service solution for soft, subtle and elegant Landscape Lighting and Architectural Accent Lighting. We have over 10 years of experience in custom designing, installing and servicing high quality outdoor lighting systems throughout the Minnetonka, MN area. Our commitment is to treat each customer's home or business as if it were our own. We have a professional team of outdoor lighting designers and installers ready to handle all of your lighting needs. We offer both residential and commercial lighting solutions. We have had the opportunity to illuminate various styles and sizes of homes, outdoor living areas, landscapes, decks, patios, pool areas, walkways, driveways, water features, as well as gated communities, office buildings, churches, and country club facilities.
Water Features, Backyard Swimming Pool design and Installation
From natural-looking streams to architectural fountains, water features are important focal points in the landscape and some Minnetonka, MN homeowners opting to have more than one.
Some homeowners will put a fountain/bubbler at the front entry to greet guests. Others place water features close to outdoor living spaces or near a fire. Some water features are near swimming pools, hung on garden walls, or are fountainhead sprays hidden in a pool deck. Even the smallest spaces can have a water features. Containers and urns serve quite nicely as self-contained fountains.
Yes, you can build your own bit of paradise with a water garden custom designed to your specific preferences . Each site and each client is unique – take the time to study your site and decide exactly what the design should accomplish. The success of your pond, waterfall, pond-free system, fountain or other water feature relies on site-specific design, project planning, quality component selection and a bit of manual labor. We provide everything you need (except the labor!) for your successful project.
Creating your own pond, waterfall, stream or other water feature is one of the most rewarding home improvements you will ever complete. If you can use a shovel and follow simple directions, you'll soon be able to enjoy countless hours of peaceful contemplation beside your own water garden.
Natural Stone
Like the unique personality of your home, no two natural stones are the same. Finding natural stone that fits your design — color, pattern and movement — is a four-step process that is as exciting as it is personal. Landscapes Unlimited will facilitate the selection process and help you choose the perfect natural stone. Once you've decided, your fabricator will purchase the slabs, fabricate them to specifications and install the natural stone according to the schedule of the build.
Custom Deck Building Design and Installation
Landscapes Unlimited specializing in custom deck building, screened porches, sun rooms, and gazebos. Proudly serving the Minnetonka, MN area, we have developed a reputation for excellent service in delivering quality materials and workmanship in a timely manner.
When you contract with Landscapes Unlimited , you can expect a clean cut friendly crew of craftsmen who take pride in their work and will make every effort to complete your job as quickly and skillfully as possible. Together, we can design and build the project of your dreams. We work with wood, plastic, composite, glass, metal, cable, travertine, rubber and more! During the design phase, we will quote all material and size variations that interest you, as well as providing project photos and material samples.


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Some materials are radioactive. Their atoms give off radiation. When an atom gives off radiation, it turns into a different kind of atom. That is called radioactive decay. Some atoms decay very quickly, in seconds or minutes. Others take a long time to decay... sometimes millions of years! Scientists use the term "half-life" to describe how fast or slow the radioactive decay is.
Let's say you had 100 kilograms of tritium. Tritium is a radioactive form of hydrogen. The half-life of tritium is about 12 years. After 12 years, half of the tritium would be "gone". It would have given off radiation and decayed... and turned into helium. Only 50 kg of tritium would be left. After another 12 years (a second half-life), half of what was left would decay. There would only be 25 kg of tritium left after 24 years from the start. That's one-quarter (half of half) of the 100 kg we started with.
Different radioactive materials have different half-lives. Carbon-14 has a half-life of nearly 6,000 years. The half-life of uranium-235 is more than 700 million years! On the other hand, the half-life of nitrogen-13 is less than 10 minutes!


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Winners of Fourth ESO Astronomy Camp Bursaries Announced
4. listopadu 2016
More than 180 video applications from 25 countries were submitted for the 2016 ESO Astronomy Camp and the winners of the bursaries offered by ESO and the national partners have now been selected.
The standard of applications was extremely high this year, with a variety of highly enthusiastic future scientists and engineers keen to gain a place at this year's camp. ESO is delighted to announce that Lucia Mendes Cucchieri from Brazil is the winner of the ESO bursary. The ESO bursary covers the full cost of the camp and the associated travel for the student.
The following students will also receive financial support from the national partners:
- From the Institute of Astronomy at the University of Leuven, Belgium, support for Lara Delbroek
- From the Stellar Astrophysics Centre at Aarhus University, Denmark, support for Jesper Holm and Sebastian Stangegaard
- From the German Astronomical Society, Germany, support for Malin Moll
- From the National Institute of Astrophysics, Italy, support for Mariastella Cascone
- From the Netherlands Research School for Astronomy, the Netherlands, support for Tabitha de Haan
- From the Polish Astronomical Society, Poland, support for Bartosz Cieślik
- From Ciência Viva, Portugal, support for Luis Martins and Mariana Prazeres
- From the Spanish Astronomical Society, Spain, support for Alba Bellotas
- From the Swedish Astronomical Society, Sweden, Eleonora Svanberg
- From the University of Geneva, Switzerland, support for Omar Alam
- From the Eyuboglu High School, Turkey, support for Gözde İloğlu and Beyza Yildirim
- From the Royal Astronomical Society, United Kingdom, support for Laura Suller and John Conacher
Thanks to these partner organisations and the ESO bursary, one student from each ESO Member State from which applications were received will have financial assistance enabling them to participate in this potentially life-changing event. All partner organisations also contribute to the camp by providing speakers and input to the programme, thanks to a shared passion and vision for astronomy outreach.
The camp — organised by Sterrenlab in collaboration with ESO, the ESO Science Outreach Network and the Astronomical Observatory of the Autonomous Region of the Aosta Valley — will take place from 26 December 2016 to 1 January 2017 in Saint-Barthélemy, Nus, Italy.
Exploring the theme of "The Visible and Hidden Universe", the camp will hold several astronomical sessions, including lectures, hands-on activities, and night-time observations with the telescopes and instruments at the observatory. The camp follows the Responsible Research and Innovation guidelines by exposing students to real research and giving them the opportunity to interact with active scientists. Social activities, winter sports, and excursions will also contribute to making the camp a memorable experience for the participants.
In total, the camp will accommodate a maximum of 56 secondary school students aged between 16 and 18. Selected candidates will be contacted via private e-mail.
- Astronomy camp website
- Participant Perspectives on the ESO Astronomy Camp Programme
- ESO Science Outreach Network
- Sterrenlab
- Osservatorio Astronomico della Regione Autonoma Valle d'Aosta
- ESO Member States
- Nus
- Hostel of Saint Barthélemy
Tania Johnston
ESO Supernova Coordinator
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6130
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Cristina Olivotto
Tel: +41 76 4001378
Email: email@example.com
O zprávě
Id: | ann16079 |


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Attending group sittings (satsangh) at least once per week is obligatory for all abhyasis unless unusual circumstances prevent.
Abhyasi: Master, a practice-related question. I know the answer but some people would like to hear from you is about group meditation. So people say, "Let the group go on, but they want to sit wherever they are at their homes or wherever during that time rather than come to be present with other abhyasis. I don't think it's correct, but what would you say to them? Will it work?
Master: Babuji Maharaj said when there is a group meditation – satsangh -- all those who are in it appear before me, like on a television screen. I see them. Those who are not there are beyond my vision. You can say this.
Daily practice, individual sittings, group meditation: Obligatory, not compulsory
Abhyasi: Master, the opposite question has come up in our center recently. Abhyasis who are not doing their sadhana and who are not coming for individual sittings, but who like to show up for the satsangh.
Master: For satsangh? Well, that is the minimum they should do. When I joined the Mission in '64, Babuji said I do not compel anyone. Because people who have self-interest at heart, they come here and they improve [?] properly. I said what do you mean 'properly'? He said, Shall I tell you what I really mean? I said, Yes, of course – I have come to hear! He said, it is not compulsory but obligatory.
Abhyasi: Compulsory means forced from without. Obligatory comes from within?
Master: Yes, inside.
Abhyasi: We have two problems now and this is a common issue in the West. People either choose to have attendance in the group satsangh, and they avoid the individual sittings. And there's another group that will take the individual sittings but are no-shows at the group satsanghs. And this is a serious problem Master because you have on your roster a lot of people but you don't see them. What do we tell them?
Master: You see spiritual sadhana is like a balanced diet. You need proteins, you need carbohydrates, you need minerals, vitamins, and so on. Similarly, here there must be group satsangh, there must be individual sittings, daily practice.
Preceptors, not the abhyasi, determine when individual sittings are needed
Master (continuing): But Babuji has said one individual sitting in each fortnight (every two weeks) at the beginning, and then the preceptor must call you for an individual sitting. You're not supposed to decide whether or when you need a sitting. Now there's a tendency in the West that if they have a headache, the abhyasi will come to a preceptor and say please give me a cleaning. Cleaning is not necessary for headache. So it is for the preceptor to read the condition and say come to me after such-and-such a time. Like a doctor says, you know? 'Take this medicine for a week and then report to me again.' But here we don't do it and they don't do it also. So people go for an individual sitting every day of the week. It's a waste. As Babuji said, when the tank is full if you put more water into it, it will over flow. So there's a discipline in individual sittings and in group sittings. Group sittings obligatory. Weekly. Individual sittings, in response to a call.
Abhyasi: Master, I think this is something that maybe should go out in Sahaj Sandesh. Because though I may have missed many other statements only in one place did I recently find in a preceptor book your clarification that "It is the preceptor who must request the abhyasi to come for a sitting, not the other way around. When the abhyasis ask for a sitting it is almost always wrong." Yet so many preceptors do not take this initiatory step. We feel abhyasis may be offended, or may not come.
Master: If you are going to think of their being offended, you are a poor preceptor. It's like a doctor saying I can't give the medicine because it is bitter medicine and they may not like it. So you make them sweets. You are not true to your own calling.
Abhyasi: But you are saying clearly that it is the preceptor who makes the call, though at times an abhyasi can request if the preceptor, to ask if the preceptor feels a sitting is indicated? The mistake was made in thinking that the abhyasis should ask for the sitting, and never the preceptor –
Master: The preceptor is the one who should always determine.
Abhyasi: So it this was clarified from the very top –
Master: Yes. Put it in Sandesh.
Abhyasi: Also that in the beginning, everywhere fortnight.
Master: Yes.
Abhyasi: But Master, it has been my experience that often the preceptor doesn't know. Sometimes I really feel like that. I ask him, and he always says, 'Oh, come later.'
Master: We also have all said God doesn't know his work. Because he has favored the crooked, the mafia, you know, making them richer. And the poor man working honestly as a railway clerk gets Rs –30 a month. So we say God is blind.
Abhyasi: Master, is Sunday essential? Some cannot come on Sunday. So Wednesday?
Master: Okay. One group satsangh every week they must attend. Either this or that. Both, if they can. Babuji Maharaj said, 'Group satsangh is where group effort combines like a tug, like on a rope, in a tug-of-war, you know? All single-minded, all pulling toward the same goal. And brotherhood is created. Individual sitting is mainly for cleaning…
More was said, but this remark by Master can serve to conclude this instalment: Preceptors are supposed to prepare abhyasis so that the Master will lift them up. One sentence to be underlined! And what is this preparation of the abhyasi? Clean, clean, clean!
Gap in Taking Individual Sitting
Certain centres as well as some functionaries have raised queries in recent past regarding time gap in taking of individual sittings before and after attending Group Satsang.
Clarifications on this point were issued from time to time. Rev. Master's instructions are quite specific that the time gap of taking individual sitting before or after Group Satsang is FIVE hours and there should be no individual sittings on Sundays and Wednesdays before Group Satsang. The abhyasis are supposed to come to meditation hall well before hand, sit there in meditative mood and prepare themselves to receive the transmission and whatever spiritual work Rev. Master wants to do on them.
As many abhyasis of distant centres without any preceptor were keen to have individual sittings from visiting preceptors on Wednesdays and Sundays, the instruction regarding time gap of FIVE hours in taking individual sittings before and after Group Satsang on Wednesdays and Sundays was again put up before Rev. Master for his reconsideration.
Rev. Master has re-affirmed that the time gap of taking individual sittings after Group Satsang should certainly be FIVE hours. However, individual sittings can be given before Group Satsangh on Wednesdays and Sundays, but only cleaning need be done in those individual sittings. On the rest of the days of the week, when the Group Satsang is not held, the question of five hours of time gap before Group Satsang does not arise.


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IRVING, Texas (AP) — After watching their main targets get picked ahead of them, the Dallas Cowboys took center Travis Frederick of Wisconsin with the 31st selection in the NFL draft Thursday night after trading down 13 spots in a deal with San Francisco.
Offensive guards Jonathan Cooper of North Carolina and Chance Warmack of Alabama were taken in the top 10 and Texas safety Kenny Vaccaro went 15th to New Orleans — three ahead of Dallas' original slot.
Dallas got an extra third-round pick in the deal with the 49ers, the 74th overall. The Cowboys have six picks for the remaining six rounds.
The 6-foot-3, 312-pound Frederick started 31 of 32 career games at Wisconsin — 13 at guard and 18 at center.
The 60th draft-day trade since Jerry Jones bought the team in 1989 became more likely once Cooper and Warmack were gone, and the Cowboys were long shots to land either one.
With the guards off the board, a defensive choice was more likely from the 18th spot. When Missouri defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson went 13th to the New York Jets and Vaccaro was taken two picks later, the focus shifted to Florida defensive lineman Sharrif Floyd, who was projected as a top five pick by some.
The Cowboys decided they didn't want Floyd — who went 23rd to Minnesota — perhaps because he's a bit small for an interior defensive lineman at 6-foot-2 and 297 pounds. Dallas needs run stoppers more than pass rushers for the switch to the 4-3 defense. DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer figure to be the starters at defensive end, and there are more questions in middle.
One other possible first-round target at defensive tackle — Sylvester Williams of North Carolina — went 28th to Denver, three picks before Dallas' choice.
In Frederick, the Cowboys have someone who could play either guard or center. He spent all of his senior year at center, where the Cowboys figured before the draft to go to training camp with Phil Costa as the starter.
Costa, who made just three starts last season while batting ankle and back injuries, signed a two-year contract in March. Ryan Cook is under contract in 2013 as well after starting 11 games following a trade with Miami late in the preseason last year.
The Cowboys targeted interior offensive linemen because they had the second-worst rushing offense in the NFL last season. They struggled despite adding guards Mackenzy Bernadeau and Nate Livings in free agency last year, although Bernadeau played center for several games because of injuries.
A run on offensive tackles in the first round — five were taken in the first 19 picks — left Dallas with the lingering question of what will happen to right tackle Doug Free, who had a rough year after moving from left tackle and ended up splitting time with undrafted free agent Jermey Parnell.


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Tomorrow's special election for one of LA's fifteen City Council districts has drawn big money, but it may not draw many voters. With LA facing monumental financial problems, we hear from both candidates. Also, can the Archbishop of Canterbury prevent LA's Episcopal church from confirming a lesbian bishop? On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, 15,000 delegates, 5,000 reporters and 98 world leaders are gathering in Copenhagen to talk about climate change as the basic science faces a new challenge. We hear about those stolen e-mails.
Banner image: City Council candidates Christine Essel and Paul Krekorian