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It turns out that China's been mixing its nuclear missiles in with its conventional ones at the same military bases. Not really, uh, advisable: that makes it really hard for other countries to figure out if a Chinese missile launch is just a conventional one or the beginnings of a nuclear Armageddon. But fret not — while China's missile mingling may not be very sensible, it's not going to cause World War III.
In what's thought to be the first comprehensive, non-governmental report on China's nuclear warplans, John Lewis, a professor of Chinese politics at Stanford University, reveals that China stores its nuclear and conventional missiles in the same locations. Writing in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Lewis warns that the intermingling could trigger a nuclear launch: once another nation watched a Chinese missile blast off, it might trigger a nuclear retaliation from a confused, panicked Russia or United States. And then, should the Chinese see their nuclear assets targeted and destroyed, they might conceivable launch their surviving nuclear warheads.
Nor is Lewis convinced that China's military policies are characterized by restraint. "The notion that China only acts in self defense is wrong," he tells Danger Room. "Their whole war plan is aimed at attacking Taiwan."
That said, even Lewis thinks China's missile ambiguity is unlikely to result in a nuclear exchange. (In fact, he emphasizes that the Chinese government actually encouraged him to write his piece — as a gesture of transparency.) And other experts agree that the Chinese missile move is merely stupid, not suicidal.
Jeffrey Lewis, a nuclear weapons analyst at the Monterrey Institute of International Studies, says the de facto presumption in the case of a missile launch is that China isn't going nuclear. The People's Republic has a declared no-first-use policy; China isn't going to nuke, say, Japan over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islands.
And James Dobbins, a former U.S. ambassador to a host of conflict zones, thinks the U.S. isn't buckwild enough to go nuclear over a confusing missile launch. "I don't believe the U.S. would launch a nuclear strike on warning in response to a Chinese ballistic attack on U.S. or allied targets," Dobbins tells Danger Room.
So why would China group its nuclear and conventional missiles together? Experts largely agree that the decision was a logistical one and "practical, not rational," says Monterrey's Jeffrey Lewis. Another theory: the Chinese think launching a conventional weapon from a nuclear base would prevent a counterattack, since an adversary is unlikely to take the risk of bombing a nuclear weapons base.
There's also another possibility: a lumbering, dumb bureaucracy keeps the missiles group together out of inertia. The Chinese may make bad missile decisions. But under that theory, at least their reasons for those bad decisions will be familiar to the Pentagon.


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This article is more than 1 year old
Oz bookshop to deliver by drone
Guys? You do know Amazon can already deliver books to your smartphone?
An Australian university textbook rental outfit called Zookal has promised to deliver its wares by drone.
Zookal has teamed with another Sydney startup, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) outfit Flirtey, to deliver books.
Customers order books using their smartphone and once loaded Flirtey's drone homes in on that device thanks to some GPS wizardry. Flirtey's birds are hexacopters and can fly even if they lose one rotor.
The two companies feel the service will … erm … fly because posting books takes too long. By undercutting the postal service on time and price, they think they're on a winner.
Just when the drone delivery service will emerge isn't discussed, but tests are promised on the University of Sydney's campus.
Of course it's already possible to have books delivered to a smartphone: Amazon's Kindle app is available on iOS, Android, Windows Phone and even BlackBerry while the Nook app works on the first three OSes mentioned.
Today, not every textbook is available as an eBook. Vulture South wonders what will come first: drone delivery or an eBook epiphany for textbook publishers? ®

subset: commoncrawl


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If you build it, they will come...
My family and I will be making a trip to Iowa on Memorial Day weekend of 2013 for the Handworks Event.
The event has a long list of hand tool vendors and enthusiasts.
It is free
The door prizes are incredible.
All you have to do is register and be present. This can be done through the website.


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Bill bolsters ag, forest and food processing
MONTPELIER — Vermont lawmakers are working on legislation that aims to bolster Vermont's economy while retaining the hallmarks of its rural landscape.
The main focus in both the House and Senate agriculture committees so far this session has been the Working Lands Enterprise Bill, which seeks to bolster the agriculture, forestry and value-added food processing business sectors in the state.
The bill would establish a board to oversee the Working Lands Enterprise Fund, which would offer grants and loans that would promote entrepreneurship within the fields of agriculture and forestry.
"The bill seeks to revitalize both existing agriculture and emerging agriculture," said Sen. Harold Giard, D-Bridport, who sits on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
Rep. Will Stevens, I-Shoreham, a co-sponsor of the Working Lands bill in the House, said a unique aspect of the bill is that it draws forestry into the fold; in the past, forestry legislation has always fallen into a separate category.
"We're getting a lot of support," said Stevens, who added that the committees have been focused largely on hearing testimony on the bill.
The bill calls for $3 million in the fund in the first year, ramping up to $15 million a few years later.
Stevens said it's not yet clear where the funding the bill requires would come from, but the need for the bill is clear. After the committees have hammered out the bill's specifics, he said, talk will turn to funding concerns.
A primary goal in crafting the bill, he said, is making sure it specifically targets those areas that need additional investment to move forward, building on the findings of the 2011 Farm to Plate Strategic Plan.
The bill before the House Agriculture Committee states: "The farm to plate report identified a gap in the investment arena for working lands enterprises. Notably, there is a lack of public investment, particularly from the state, in this area."
This, said Stevens, doesn't mean that the bill would create a whole new board and a whole new fund. He said the current focus is on finding areas where agriculture and forestry services and resources are being duplicated on the state level, and streamlining them under the umbrella of this new bill.
"The state of Vermont has recognized the need to better coordinate economic development services and investments, as well as the need to assist entrepreneurs with navigating the regulatory process," the bill states.
Stevens said Rep. Paul Ralston, D-Middlebury, has also been a fixture at the committee's hearings so far in his role as a member of the Commerce and Economic Development Committee.
"It isn't our intent to say, 'We're the government — we're here to help,'" Stevens said. "We're working to take stock of the needs that the private sector isn't willing to do — things that, but for those actions, the industry might perish."
Rep. Harvey Smith, though not on the Agriculture Committee this session, is still following the bill closely as a farmer himself. The New Haven Republican said he hopes to see careful scrutiny of the bill to include the most important issues at hand.
"There really is strong support from a lot of people — there's a desire to buy local, to know where your food is grown and that it was raised humanely," Smith said. "We need to continue down that road, and to put in place some of the things that will help us get there."
The Working Lands bill also broaches the topic of Irene, stating that investing in Vermont's agriculture and forestry industries is crucial to the rebuilding process.
"Vermont has experienced a major disaster with Tropical Storm Irene this past year," reads the bill. "Now is the time to build resiliency and focus on our strengths, such as our working lands economy and our small businesses."
Smith cautioned against rushing to send the bill to the floor, as he said the topic demands a great deal of scrutiny.
"The devil's in the details," Smith said.
The Legislature is expected to wrap up the session in May.
Reporter Andrea Suozzo is at [email protected].
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From D&D Wiki
This material is published under the OGL 1.0a. |
Size/Type: | Huge Magical Beast |
Hit Dice: | 9d10+45 (94 hp) |
Initiative: | +1 |
Speed: | 40 ft. (8 squares), climb 15 ft. |
Armor Class: | 20 (–2 size, +1 Dex, +11 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 19 |
Base Attack/Grapple: | +9/+25 |
Attack: | Bite +15 melee (2d4+12) |
Full Attack: | Bite +15 melee (2d4+12) |
Space/Reach: | 15 ft./10 ft. |
Special Attacks: | Breath weapon, constrict 2d8+8, improved grab, rake 1d4+4, swallow whole |
Special Qualities: | Can't be tripped, darkvision 60 ft., immunity to electricity, low-light vision, scent |
Saves: | Fort +11, Ref +7, Will +5 |
Abilities: | Str 26, Dex 13, Con 21, Int 7, Wis 14, Cha 12 |
Skills: | Climb +16, Hide +5, Listen +4, Spot +4, Survival +2 |
Feats: | Alertness, Cleave, Power Attack, Track |
Environment: | Warm hills |
Organization: | Solitary or pair |
Challenge Rating: | 8 |
Treasure: | Standard |
Alignment: | Often neutral |
Advancement: | 10–13 HD (Huge); 14–27 HD (Gargantuan) |
Level Adjustment: | — |
The behir is a serpentine monster that can slither like a snake or use its dozen legs to move with considerable speed. A behir is about 40 feet long and weighs about 4,000 pounds. It can fold its limbs close to its long, narrow body and slither in snake fashion if it desires. The coloration of behirs ranges from ultramarine to deep blue with bands of gray-brown. The belly is pale blue. The two large horns curving back over the head look dangerous but are actually used for preening the creature's scales, not for fighting.
Behirs speak Common.
A behir usually bites and grabs its prey first, then either swallows or constricts the opponent. It can employ its claws only against foes caught in its coils. If beset by a large number of foes, it uses its breath weapon.
Breath Weapon (Su): 20-foot line, once every 10 rounds, damage 7d6 electricity, Reflex DC 19 half. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Constrict (Ex): A behir deals 2d8+8 points of damage with a successful grapple check. It can make six rake attacks against a grappled foe as well.
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a behir must hit a creature of any size with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity.
If it wins the grapple check, it it establishes a hold and can attempt to constrict the opponent or swallow the opponent in the following round.
Rake (Ex): Six claws, attack bonus +15 melee, damage 1d4+4.
Swallow Whole (Ex): A behir can try to swallow a grabbed Medium or smaller opponent by making a successful grapple check.
A behir that swallows an opponent can use its Cleave feat to bite and grab another opponent.
A swallowed creature takes 2d8+8 points of bludgeoning damage and 8 points of acid damage per round from the behir's gizzard. A swallowed creature can cut its way out by using a light slashing or piercing weapon to deal 25 points of damage to the gizzard (AC 15). Once the creature exits, muscular action closes the hole; another swallowed opponent must cut its own way out.
A behir's gizzard can hold 2 Medium, 8 Small, 32 Tiny, or 128 Diminutive or smaller opponents.
Skills: Behirs have a +8 racial bonus on Climb checks and can always choose to take 10 on Climb checks, even if rushed or threatened.
Back to Main Page → 3.5e Open Game Content → System Reference Document → Creatures


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WATCH: Women of Asia at Work
In conjunction with the UN Commission on the Status of Women Conference, Deputy Director of UN Women Lakshmi Puri, Deborah Gillis, Kaoriko Kuge, and Nobuko Sasae explore the ways in which women have affected Asia's workforce in the 21st century.
International Women's Day with Maya Krishna Rao
The Women of the Cambodian Spring
Opposition parliamentarian Mu Sochua, a delegate of this year's Women Leaders of New Asia summit, saw her brave countrywomen standing up to corruption and demanding change during the country's most recent election. Read Mo Sochua's full article on the Daily Beast, here.
The Other Half of Tomorrow
THE OTHER HALF OF TOMORROW is a portrait of contemporary Pakistan as seen through the perspectives of Pakistani women working to change their country. A series of seven linked chapters, the film introduces us to the disparate contexts that make up a complex culture — from a women's rights' workshop in a village in rural Punjab, to an underground dance academy in Karachi, to the playing fields of the Pakistan Women's Cricket Team.
Astrid Tuminez at WEF-East Asia and speaking engagement on Leadership in Vietnam
WLNA Advisory Committee member and delegate Astrid Tuminez has participated in a number of key activities recently, including the World Economic Forum on East Asia, last June in Myanmar, and in Vietnam where she conducted lectures on leadership lessons at the Ho Chi Minh Academy.


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This article is more than 1 year old
Intel to take 'Averill' to market as Centrino-like platform
Targeting enterprise desktops this time
Intel will next year launch its third branded PC platform, after Centrino and Viiv, this time pitched at corporate desktops.
As yet there's no word on the platform's go-to-market brandname, but it will almost certainly be based on Intel's 'Averill' platform. Averill was announced at the chip giant's Developer Forum in March this year for availability in 2006.
Averill is based on Intel's upcoming 'Broadwater' chipset, which will ship primarily as the 965 family, but also as the 946 and 963 product lines, it is believed. The platform also takes in Intel's next-generation Gigabit Ethernet controller, 'Nineveh', and its 65nm dual- and single-core Pentium D and Pentium 4 6xx processors.
Broadwater is expected to debut Q2 2006, with Averill's introduction following soon after, we'd say. Look to next Spring's Intel Developer Forum for a formal introduction.
The platform will support Intel's Active Management Technology, its enterprise-oriented remote-control system, aling with 'LaGrande', the company's upcoming Trusted Computing security sub-system, and Virtualisation Technology.
Intel re-organised its corporate structure around platforms in January 2005. Since then it has announced a number of corporate and consumer desktop platforms, but none has yet come to market as a Centrino-style branded bundle. Indeed, to date, Intel has studiously avoided suggesting any of its more enterprise-oriented platforms will ship as branded entities.
Not shipping them as such calls into question the relevance of the company's platform-centric approach, of course, so it was refreshing to hear VP Ananda Chandrasekher today say that Averill will indeed ship as a branded product.
Intel's second branded platform, Viiv, was announced in August and will come to market in Q1 2006. It's pitched at media centre systems, both powerful Pentium D-based boxes and small form-factor units built around the upcoming 65nm Pentium M, 'Yonah'. Viiv comprises those two CPUs, the 945/ICH7-DH and 945GM/ICH7-MDH chipsets, and an Intel LAN controller. The platform spec. also mandates Intel HD Audio support, a "Viiv verified 10ft GUI shell (MCE or other)", a Serial ATA HDD and Intel's Platform Driver Software 1.0.
Viiv was originally touted as a Windows XP Media Center Edition-based platform, but the appearance of the "or other" on Intel documentation suggests the company has a broader outlook, possibly related to rumours that Apple's next Mac Mini will be both Intel-based and offer media centre functionality through its Front Row GUI shell. ®


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Sending organisation's data:
Organisation: Asociatia Zöld Nap (Green Sun Association)
Post address: strada Ghioceilor, nr. 12, bl.17, sc.A, ap. 4,
Postal code: 525400
Town: Targu Secuiesc
Country: Romania
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Phone: +40766.61066
Fax: -
Contact: Mr Ráduly Attila
Signatory: Ráduly Attila
Position: president
Contact person: Derzsi Katalin
E-mail: email@example.com
Mobile: +40741.037061
Short description of Association:
The Association Zöld Nap is an environmental, professional-scientific organization which was established in the summer of 2009. The members of the association are ecologists, economists, fine artists, but one can find in the group teachers, engineers and sociologists as well. We formed alliance in the consciousness of our dissimilarity, fighting for a politically and religiously independent cause, a fight that we have to win together. On the fivest anniversary of the Green Sun Association's activity we can talk about more than 500 events that we organized.
The objects of the association are:
- to promote environmental mentality
- to promote civilian self-awareness in our region and to clarify for people living in the 'Three Chairs' region that civilian organizations can help a lot in resolving the ecological-sociological problems.
- to promote healthy lifestyle
The realization of our engagement, the 'Nemere' Trail, will have a good influence on the developing of the society in our region by helping the spreading the news about easily attainable healthy ways of living, and it also might contribute to the development of the local tourism and to the taking to local products.
The complete route goes through around fifty settlements, touching at least 30 different mineral water sources and 187 mansions. It reveals the unique natural and cultural treasures of the Upper Three Chairs and offers a glimpse of the region's customs, traditions and way of life. The length of the road is 230 km long on the whole, 150 km of which can be found in the area of Targu Secuiesc, and 70 km in Orbaiszek.
EI ref: 2013-RO-78
PIC code: 949404767
Here is a sample of our mandate form filled with all the data you could need. Please use this one, add your data and than send it to email@example.com and than we can send you the signed version.
Frequently asked questions
In what way will you prepare the volunteer for EVS?
As a Sending Organisation we will prepare the volunteer before her departure by providing all the necessary help and support required. Pre-departure training is organised by Sending Organisation. We enrol volunteer in AXA insurance and inform about the procedures when operating with AXA insurance and assist the volunteer in getting the European Heath Insurance Card. We inform the volunteer about her responsibilities and rights during the EVS projects according to the EVS guidelines. If volunteer has an interest, we provide a short introduction into the language and cultural issues done by some ex volunteer. During the pre-departure training we work on all the emotional aspects which volunteer could face: cultural shock, stereotypes, intercultural issues and as well we work on the motivation, project development, crisis situations, etc.
What support will you give to the volunteer and how will you keep contact during the EVS?
She will have at her disposition one person, with who can talk and discuss all the problems she has. As sending organization we provide the pre-departure training and we will help her with insurance, and inform about her duties and rights as on EVS volunteer.
We will keep contact with our her trough internet, skype discussions during the project.
How will you evaluate the project with the volunteer?
We will evaluate the project as sending organisation during the project and we are going to send our report after 15 days when she is returning home. She will write the volunteer report , based on the journal that she is writing daily/ weakly (as we recommend) so in the end would be easy. She can base in our help in every situation.
What actions will you take to evaluate the project and disseminate results after the project? If you need any funds, please make a budget.
The results will be easily disseminated by the participants via preparing interesting materials for local newspapers and magazines, and giving interviews to local TV channels. This will be done to encourage the young people to be involved in further projects that the participants are going to introduce in a short period of time after the end of this project..
The visibility of the project will be provided on the Internet: www.transindex.ro, www.kezdi.info, www.pluszportal.ro, www.erdely.ma, and other sites operating in youth domenion, and websites for specialists in Hungarian and Romanian languages.
Visibility of the project lies in the fact that not only the project but also the results and continuation of it will be presented to the public without discrimination based on gender, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability or sexual orientation.
How the volunteers will be trained and supported after the Service?
Green Sun Association will organise an individual evaluation meeting for the volunteer where our colleeges talk about his/her experiences, learnings, happy moments and difficulties and help him/her in the integration back into his/her home country. It can be a hard task for an EVS volunteer to get back to the "gray weekdays" and to handle the feeling that their friends and family do not understand what they experienced. It is always useful that they can talk about these feelings with Green Sun Association as our colleeges were also EVS volunteers in the past. Also the Association can provide carrier advices and help in finding next steps for future volunteering and European projects.


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Two-way Radios Let Public Safety Officials Communicate Reliably.
Motorola's diverse portfolio of 2-Way radio products for government and public safety allows customers to focus on their mission—not the technology.
When your mission matters most, there isn't time to waste struggling with poor communication or unreliable 2-Way radios. Trust Motorola to allow your team to have better information, better decisions, and a better outcome. View all of our radio two-way technologies and solutions to learn more
You are ready for the next call. With APX, So is your radio.
In an emergency, other first responders may be a few feet or several miles away. When every second counts, you need a radio you can rely on to get the job done. Since coordinating response and protecting lives is at the heart of every mission, every two-way radio transmission is crucial. And every radio has one job to do: keep you safe.
The APX P25 mission-critical two-way radio series redefines safety in portable communication. From the fire line to the factory line, APX puts the right device into the hands of the right user. Every feature and function is designed with its users in mind - from the rugged, easy to operate design to the loudest, clearest audio. The result is the ability to keep your people and community safer than ever before.
Learn More About Motorola Public Safety Portable Radios
Learn More About Motorola Public Safety Mobile Radios
Powered By The Si Series & CommandCentral Vault
Motorola's Digital Evidence Management Solution is comprised of the Si Series Video Speaker Microphone and CommandCentral Vault Digital Evidence Management Software. Combined, they provide a unified, simplified, smart approach to capturing, storing, managing and sharing multimedia content for greater public transparency and accountability.
Capture Critical Events Instantly and Accurately
Motorola's Si Series Video Speaker Microphones (VSM) allow agencies to trim down the number of devices needed for public safety personnel to do their job effectively. An extension of the high-performing Motorola APX™ radio, the Si Series is a smart interface with an integrated remote speaker microphone and body-worn camera in one. It assures the reliable voice and mission-critical sight, sound and security your officers need to work safely.
Capturing Video Is Not Hard, Managing It Shouldn't Be Either
What you do with video evidence after capturing it is what can make the difference in addressing accountability concerns with the public and protecting officers and citizens alike. Take an innovative approach to content management with a complete workflow to store, manage and share your body-worn video from CommandCentral Vault.
CommandCentral Vault is a CJIS-capable cloud application, part of Digital Evidence Management Solution, designed to reduce administrative overhead, simplify digital storage challenges and maintain agency policy and compliance.
The P25 DVRS (Digital Vehicular Repeater System) is a small, rugged, self-contained, 10W radio base station integrated with Motorola remote mount APX™ or XTL™ series mobile radios. It improves portable radio coverage for police, fire and other emergency personnel by using the higher power of the mobile radio in the vehicle to extend the range of the portable back to the radio system.
Digital Vehicular Repeater System (DVRS)
Learn More About P25 Dispatch Consoles
Public Safety LTE Will Help Deliver State-Of-The-Art Solutions To First Responders And The Communities They Serve
Whether it is high-priority broadband data or streaming real-time video, an urgent dispatch update or interoperable push-to-talk, our growing portfolio of Public Safety LTE infrastructure, devices, and services allows you to make use of this advanced mobile broadband technology – today.
Whether it's answering the call to an urban incident or a wildland fire, many firefighters, EMS personnel and other first responders rely on their pager. The new MINITOR VI™ Two-Tone Voice Pager is rugged, reliable and lightweight. Built for the realities of firefighting and emergency response, the new pager offers improved ergonomics, better wearability and much more.
Click here for Motorola Pagers
A small and compact solution that is budget friendly, the VRX1000 provides federal agencies, state patrol and public safety first responders the ability to communicate on their portable radios in a mobile-only coverage area. Equipped with cross-band and in-band performance, and available in 700/800 MHz VHF and UHF frequencies, the VRX 1000 is compatible with P25 APX 7500, APX6500 and APX 4500 mobile radios.
VRX1000 Vehicle Radio Extender
Metropolitan Communications offers a variety of vehicle equipment that is a necessity for public safety vehicles.


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Obama vs. Romney on Government Contracting and Federal Spending With the Presidential election nearing, we break down the candidates' stance on small-business contracting and how they plan to invest -- or not invest -- future federal dollars.
By Diana Ransom •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Editor's Note: This 10-part series looks at issues critical to entrepreneurs this election season. Read installments on the economy, taxes, healthcare and capital.
Landing the U.S. government as a client is often a blessing for small-business owners. But it can quickly become a burden once a government contract dries up, which is a growing possibility as calls for austerity have escalated this election season.
For small businesses, the government can serve as an ideal customer -- one that tends to drop billions on everything from office equipment and notepads to bullet-proof vests and consulting services. But this big spender may soon begin to pull back.
A year ago, Congress reached a deficit-reduction deal that imposed across-the-board cuts, or what's known on Capitol Hill as sequestration. The move was meant to force Congress to reduce the nation's ever-widening deficit -- or else trigger $1.2 trillion in automatic cuts to defense and nondefense programs. With a January deadline looming, some business owners like Todd Flemming fear the deficit-reducing measure will backfire -- costing the U.S. jobs and harming small businesses.
As the president and CEO of Infrasafe, a small federal contractor in Orlando, Fla., Flemming depends on clients like the Department of Defense and the General Services Administration for 80 percent of his security company's sales. So it's little wonder that he is nervous.
"A lot of the funding we get comes from discretionary spending that federal agencies do at the end of the year," says Flemming. "We're seeing now they don't know how much money they'll have or what contracts they'll have going forward… It creates a lot of uncertainty."
Besides the effect of across-the-board cuts on small businesses, contractors often complain that serving as a prime contractor or subcontractor is riddled with obstacles. The paperwork can be exorbitant and the competition fierce.
Related: Where They Stand on Taxes: Obama vs. Romney
What's more, the government hasn't met its stated 23 percent small-business contracting goal since 1999. The Small Business Administration recently revealed that small firms last year received just 21.7 percent of government-wide contracts, which amounted to nearly $91.5 billion. Similarly, most of the set-aside programs fostered by the government to aid disadvantaged businesses also failed to meet spending goals -- with the women-owned business program missing the mark by the widest margin.
Though neither presidential candidate is saying much about the future of government contracting, their views on the role of government investment is well-documented. Here's how each of the candidates stand on federal investment and government contracting:
Barack Obama
Barack Obama has made no secret about supporting a policy of investing tax dollars in U.S. businesses. Under his watch, companies like the now-bankrupt solar-panel maker Solyndra have received $535 million in loan guarantees, but he has also supported investments in everything from electric-drivetrain technologies to fast-charging batteries. At the end of 2011, Obama also signed into law a defense bill that included a provision to both extend and expand two key small-business research programs. The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program require certain federal agencies to devote a percentage of their research budgets to U.S. companies aiming to commercialize the latest technologies. Last year, both programs divvied out $1.36 billion in funding to small businesses. The year before, they received roughly $2.4 billion.
Related: Obama vs. Romney: A Tale of Two Economic Plans
Then, in November, the President -- per his "We Can't Wait" initiative -- called for federal agencies that have laboratories like the Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health to halve the time it takes small businesses to receive research and development grants. Also last year and again in July, Obama called for trimming the time it takes small federal contractors to get paid, to 15 days from 30.
Mitt Romney
Once upon a time, the government's role in supporting business growth was widely believed to be a platform that both parties could get behind. The internet, among other inventions, is brought to you courtesy of government scientists, after all. In his book No Apology: The Case for American Greatness, (St. Martin's Press, 2010) Romney even called the practice essential to the nation's economic well-being, and highlighted the government's involvement in creating everything from lasers to MP3 players to MRI scanners. In his book, he also advocated boosting the government's investment in research and development.
Related: Entrepreneur Becomes Lightning Rod in 'We Built It' Debate
But today, he's spent more time doling out critiques of federal investments and trumpeting a "We Built It" mantra. Embattled green-energy company Solyndra, for instance, received Romney's wrath, as did the President's $787 billion economic stimulus package, which helped bolster small businesses and construction firms, among others. In an Iowa speech in mid-May, he called the government's policy of deficit spending -- that is, spending borrowed money -- a fast-moving fire that threatened to follow the nation's children around for years to come. He has since called for austerity and reform of government entitlement programs, including Medicare and Social Security, as well as a proposal to limit government spending to 20 percent of gross domestic product, down from the current 24.3 percent.
Which candidate do you think would best address your government-contracting pains as president? Leave a comment and let us know.


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WASHINGTON (AP) — Two fierce competitors who've given their all, President Barack Obama and Republican Mitt Romney now yield center stage to voters for an Election Day choice that will frame the contours of government and the nation for years to come.
After a grinding presidential campaign that packed suspense to the finish, Americans head into polling places in sleepy hollows, bustling cities and superstorm-ravaged beach towns deeply divided. All sides are awaiting, in particular, a verdict from the nine battleground states whose votes will determine which man can piece together the 270 electoral votes needed for victory.
Obama has more options for getting there. So Romney decided to make a late dash to Cleveland and Pittsburgh on Tuesday while running mate Paul Ryan threw in stops in Cleveland and Richmond, Va. Obama opted to make a dozen radio and satellite TV interviews from his hometown of Chicago to keep his closing arguments fresh in voters' minds.
Both sides cast the Election Day choice as one with far-reaching repercussions for a nation still recovering from the biggest economic downturn since the Great Depression and at odds over how big a role government should play in solving the country's problems.
"It's a choice between two different visions for America," Obama declared in Madison, Wis., asking voters to let him complete work on the economic turnaround that began in his first term. "It's a choice between returning to the top-down policies that crashed our economy, or a future that's built on providing opportunity to everybody and growing a strong middle class."
No matter who wins White House, new Congress a likely problem for new president's agenda
WASHINGTON (AP) — No matter who is elected president, he's likely to find that the next Congress will remain what the current one has been for President Barack Obama — a headache.
Months of speeches, saturation TV advertising, uncountable events and more than $2 billion in campaign spending are coming together to produce a new Congress strikingly similar to the one that exists now: a House that Republicans will run with about a 50-seat margin, and a Senate narrowly controlled by Democrats.
Republicans started this year thinking they would grab control of the Senate because they were only defending 10 of the 33 seats at stake on Election Day. That seems unlikely now thanks to controversial rape statements by GOP candidates in Missouri and Indiana, the retirement of popular Maine GOP Sen. Olympia Snowe, and strong races run by Democratic incumbents in Florida and Michigan.
Democrats seem certain to fall short of adding the 25 seats they need to take over the House, and at best may gain a handful of districts. With Republicans gaining governorships and state legislatures in the 2010 elections, the GOP was better able to draw new district lines reflecting the latest census to protect their incumbents and put Democratic House members in less friendly terrain.
"My sense is no one will have a mandate coming out of this," GOP consultant Matt Mackowiak said Monday. "And clearly we're going to have divided government. And that's going to make the next two years very difficult."
While other issues have surfaced, economy remains single most important one in this election
WASHINGTON (AP) — The race for the White House is pretty much back where it started, after thousands of ads, billions of dollars in spending, two conventions and three presidential debates. Despite some detours, the emphasis is heavily on the nation's lukewarm economy and President Barack Obama's stewardship of it.
But if Tuesday's election does amount to a referendum on the Obama economy, the outcome likely won't shine a bright light on how to fix it. There's too much polarization in the nation's capital and in the country as a whole — regardless of who wins — to produce a clear consensus plan for averting a looming "fiscal cliff" of higher taxes and deep automatic cuts in military and domestic spending.
Last week's devastating East Coast storm, the campaign debates and controversy over the deadly terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, scrambled things a bit in the home stretch.
But as millions of Americans vote for president, Congress and thousands of state and local posts, the excruciatingly slow economic recovery and continued high joblessness were clearly weighing on their minds.
Obama's Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, doggedly tried to keep the focus on the economy. Its poor performance on Obama's watch has been his main theme. He cites his own business background in presenting himself as the person who can heal it and restore jobs.
Housing, voting, power: Problems abound post-Sandy, and another storm is on the way
NEW YORK (AP) — From trying to figure out where people would live to how they would be able to vote and when all the lights will finally come on, government officials are still facing multiple fronts in the efforts to recover from Superstorm Sandy. All that, and there's another storm coming.
Where to house potentially tens of thousands of people left homeless by the storm is the most pressing crisis, as cold weather sets in.
"It's not going to be a simple task. It's going to be one of the most complicated and long-term recovery efforts in U.S. history," said Mark Merritt, president of Witt Associates, a Washington crisis management consulting firm founded by former Federal Emergency Management Agency director James Lee Witt.
FEMA said it has already dispensed close to $200 million in emergency housing assistance and has put 34,000 people in New York and New Jersey up in hotels and motels. But local, state and federal officials have yet to lay out a specific, comprehensive plan for finding them long-term places to live. And given the scarcity and high cost of housing there and the lack of open space, it could prove a monumental undertaking.
Sandy killed more 100 people in 10 states but vented the worst of its fury on New Jersey and New York. A week after the storm slammed the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast, more than 1 million homes and businesses remained without power.
Gunmen assassinate brother of parliament speaker in Syrian capital
BEIRUT (AP) — Syria's state-run TV reports that gunmen have assassinated the brother of the parliament speaker.
The report on Tuesday said Mohammed Osama Laham was killed in the Damascus neighborhood of Midan. It did not say when it happened, but a Syrian official said Laham was killed Monday night.
The TV and the Syrian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media, said Laham was a brother of Parliament Speaker Jihad Laham.
A number of officials and top army officers have been assassinated in Syria since the uprising against President Bashar Assad began in March last year.
Prosecutor: US soldier watched revenge killing movie, drank before Afghan village massacre
JOINT BASE LEWIS-McCHORD, Wash. (AP) — Staff Sgt. Robert Bales spent the evening on his remote outpost in southern Afghanistan with fellow soldiers, watching a movie about revenge killings, sharing whiskey from a plastic bottle and discussing an attack that cost one of their friends his leg.
Within hours, a prosecutor said Monday, a cape-wearing Bales embarked on a killing spree of his own, slaughtering 16 Afghan civilians before returning to the base in predawn darkness, bloody and incredulous that his comrades ordered him to surrender his weapons.
"I thought I was doing the right thing," a fellow soldier recalled him saying.
The details emerged at the opening of a preliminary hearing in Bales' case at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, offering the clearest picture yet of one of the worst atrocities of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
The prosecutor, Lt. Col. Jay Morse, said that after Bales attacked one village near his post at Camp Belambay, he returned, woke a colleague to report what he had done, and said that he was headed out to attack another village.
Ballot measures highlighted by historic votes to legalize gay marriage, recreational marijuana
Lady Gaga and Brad Pitt have weighed in on one side, evangelist icon Billy Graham on the other as the four-state showdown over same-sex marriage reaches its Election Day conclusion with the potential for a historic breakthrough.
Until now, same-sex marriage has been rejected in all 32 states that have held popular votes on the issue. Gay-rights advocates believe they have a chance to break that streak as Maine, Maryland and Washington state vote on whether to legalize same-sex marriage, and Minnesota votes on whether to place a ban on gay marriage in the state constitution.
In all, there are 176 measures on the ballots in 38 states, according to the Initiative and Referendum Institute at the University of Southern California. Washington, Oregon and Colorado could become the first to legalize recreational use of marijuana; Massachusetts is considering whether to allow physician-assisted suicide; Californians have a chance to repeal the death penalty.
But no other issue has generated the star power or multistate intensity of the same-sex marriage measures.
In just the past week, Lady Gaga released a video backing same-sex marriage, while Pitt donated $100,000 to support the cause. On the other side, Graham, 93, took out newspaper ads asking voters to support "the biblical definition of marriage between a man and a woman."
NY, NJ officials go to considerable lengths to help residents vote in wake of superstorm
NEW YORK (AP) — Authorities in New York and New Jersey were set to drive some displaced voters to their polling sites and direct others to cast ballots elsewhere as residents insisted the devastation wrought by Superstorm Sandy wouldn't stop them from participating in Tuesday's election.
"Nothing is more important than voting. What is the connection between voting and this?" said Alex Shamis, a resident of hard-hit Staten Island, gesturing to his mud-filled home.
Election officials in both states were guardedly optimistic that power would be restored and most polling places would be open in all but the worst-hit areas. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order Monday allowing residents to cast a so-called affidavit, or provisional ballot, at any polling place in the state for president and statewide office holders, an opportunity New Jersey was extending to voters as well.
"Compared to what we have had to deal with in the past week, this will be a walk in the park when it comes to voting," Cuomo said.
Provisional ballots are counted after elected officials confirm a voter's eligibility.
Defense set to begin for Texas woman facing murder charge in deadly fire at her home day care
HOUSTON (AP) — Attorneys for a Texas woman facing a murder charge after a fire at her home day care killed four children and injured three other kids could begin presenting their case to jurors.
However, Jessica Tata's defense team declined to say how many witnesses, if any, they planned to call Tuesday to testify in a Houston courtroom.
Prosecutors rested their case against Tata on Monday after calling about 30 witnesses over nearly two weeks.
Investigators allege that Tata had left the seven children she was caring for alone at her home to go shopping at a nearby Target store when oil in a pan ignited atop a stovetop burner that had been left on. The children in the February 2011 fire ranged in age from 16 months to 3 years old.
Tata's attorneys insist she never intended to harm the children and that she tried to save them from the fire.
Saints beat slumping Eagles 28-13 on Robinson's 99-yard interception return, Brees' 2 TDs
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints are having fun again. They hope it's a sign of things to come in the second half of the season.
Michael Vick kept picking himself up off the Superdome turf, the recipient of an awful beating.
The Philadelphia Eagles are down — and nearly out.
Brees threw two touchdown passes, extending his NFL record streak to 51 games, and Patrick Robinson returned an interception 99 yards for a score to lead the Saints past the reeling Eagles 28-13 Monday night.
New Orleans (3-5), which bounced back from a dismal 34-14 loss at Denver, also got a 22-yard touchdown run from Chris Ivory.


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Are you ready for a wild west Steampunk adventure?
RPG Maker VX Ace
We are very pleased to bring you the first pack in the 2nd Generation of Pioneer Valley Games resources! The 2nd Generation focuses less on giving you a set quantity of graphics and more on giving you control over your resources. Instead of characters, you have character pieces that allow you to create thousands of unique character combinations. Each pack is compatible with all of the previous, giving you a virtually limitless amount of customization options!
In this pack, you will find essentials needed to create your own custom walking spritesheets in 4 and 8 directions (8 frames of animation), idle animations in 4 and 8 directions, pose sets, running spritesheets in 4 and 8 directions, busts, facesets (both have 8 emotional states), paperdolls, and - most excitingly – animated side-view battlers! More than 70 different animations are included, allowing you to create thousands of unique animated side-view battlers. All character animations in the 2nd Generation packs have been remastered to give your characters much higher quality movement than ever before.
But wait, there's more! You can create your own horses, and even cooler, your own high-powered Automatons, switching around a number of different torso and leg pieces for a total of 128 unique combinations (which will increase when more pieces are released!).
~Jesse, PVGames
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Utley booed after fifth at-bat ends in third strikeout
CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The crowd is thinning here at Bright House Field as the game heads to extra innings, but a few of the fans that remained booed Chase Utley after Tampa Yankees lefty Rigaberto Arrebato struck him out to end the bottom of the ninth inning.
Arrebato got Utley to swing through an offspeed pitch and the boos followed.
Utley is 0-for-5 with three strikeouts and a foul out in the first game of his minor-league rehab assignment.
Utley strikes out with runner at second
A second baseman doubled home three runs to give single-A Clearwater a 3-1 lead over the Tampa Yankees in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Albert Cartwright, however, is not going to be helping the floundering Phillies any time soon.
After Cartwright delivered his three-run double down the right-field line at Bright House Field, Chase Utley stepped to the plate for his fourth at-bat of the evening as the Threshers' designated hitter.
Utley struck out swinging against lefty Aaron Dott to end the inning. It was the second straight at-bat that Utley went down on strikes against Dott and he is 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and a foul out.
Utley strikes out looking
The fact that the ballpark sound system played Rush's Tom Sawyer as Chase Utley went to the plate in the bottom of the sixth inning was pretty much the highlight of the exercise.
Utley stepped in and took six pitches from Tampa Yankees lefty Aaron Dott, who relieved Sean Black at the start of the inning.
Here's the recap of Utley's third at-bat with the Threshers: Ball, strike looking, ball, strike looking, ball, strike looking -- out.
We'll be back when he hits again.
Kashmir and a line out
Led Zeppelin's Kashmir accompanied Chase Utley to the plate in the fourth inning. That, of course, is the song he hears before he hits at Citizens Bank Park, too.
His first time up, it was Led Zeppelin's Rock-n-Roll that accompanied him to the plate, which might not have been the right song, but it was the more appropriate one given how long it has been since he rock-n-rolled on a baseball diamond.
Anyway, Utley's second at-bat was far more eventful, but no more productive than his first.
In addition to the background music, there was also a proposal from the dollar-dog crowd: "Chase, marry me," a woman requested.
Utley worked the count to 2-2 against Tampa righthander Sean Black, then ripped a line drive down the right-field line that was called foul by the home-plate umpire Jose Esteras. They work with a two-man crew here in the Florida State League.
"What are you looking at blue?" a voice in the crowd asked.
No replay in the Florida State League either, but it looked close from where I was sitting.
Utley lined the next pitch from Black to left fielder Ramon Flores, who made the running catch for the first out of the inning.
Utley pops up first at-bat
Chase Utley's minor-league rehab assignment has officially started.
The Phillies' second baseman stepped to the plate as single-A Clearwater's designated hitter in the bottom of the first inning and saw four pitches against righthander Sean Black of the Tampa Yankees.
Utley, who is attempting to return from chronic soreness in his knees, took a strike and a ball, then swung through a fastball for a second strike. On the fourth pitch from Black, he popped up weakly in foul territory near the first-base dugout.
Black, the Yankees' starter, was 1-3 with a 6.44 ERA coming into the game. He is from Mount Laurel, N.J. and Lenape High School.
Brody Colvin, after five relief appearances, is the Clearwater starter and has five strikeouts through the first two innings.
Utley will be off this weekend
Chase Utley's minor-league rehab is minutes away from beginning at Bright House Field and we can already report when it's going to temporarily end.
Utley is hitting third for single-A Clearwater tonight as the designated hitter.
There was no immediate word on when he'll play in the field for the first time at second base or what his schedule will be beyond tonight.
We do know, however, that he will not be playing for Clearwater Friday, Saturday or Sunday because the Florida State League is shut down for its All-Star break.
Utley will remain in Clearwater during that time and play in simulated games, according to general manager Ruben Amaro Jr.
Stay tuned to this blog for updates on each of Utley's at-bats tonight against the Tampa Yankees.


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The growing awareness that knowledge-based capital (KBC) is driving economic growth is prevalent in today's global marketplace. KBC includes a broad range of intangible assets, like research, data, software and design skills, which capture or express human ingenuity. The creation and application of knowledge is especially critical to the ability of firms and organisations to develop in a competitive global economy and to create high-wage employment. KBC allows countries and firms to upgrade their comparative advantage and position themselves in higher value-added industries, activities and segments of the global marketplace. Indeed, in global value chains, most of the value of a good or service is typically created in upstream activities where product design, research and development, and production of core components occur, or in the tail-end of downstream activities where marketing and branding are applied. For example, iPod production in 2006 accounted for 14,000 jobs inside the United States and 27,000 jobs outside. But American workers–those who contributed design, software and marketing expertise–earned $753, nearly twice as much as foreign workers who earned $318 million. Technology is both enabling and fuelling the trend toward more knowledge-based economies. The growing pervasiveness of the Internet means that personal and professional activities are increasingly conducted online, while new capabilities are simultaneously emerging to capture, analyse and store these interactions. The explosive growth of mobile networks, cloud computing and smart information and communications technology (ICT) applications (ie sensors and machine-to-machine communication) enables vast fields of information–loosely referred to as "big data"–to be processed, shared and transferred across the globe. These data are like raw material for innovative firms and forward-thinking governments, enabling significant value creation, social benefits and productivity gains. References and recommended sources |
By Andrew Wyckoff, Director for Science, Technology and Industry, OECD ©OECD Yearbook 2013 |
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Swim Systems™ is a distinct separates collection. It is created for the modern women with a focus on style and detail. The line offers specialty design elements such as vintage inspired prints, European textured fabrics, and unique hardware.
The customers can choose from a variety of diverse prints and solids and 30 timeless silhouettes to mix-and-match their swimsuits. The cup sizes range from A to DD and from small and extra large. So no matter your age, style, or size, you can find a swimsuit for you with Swim Systems.
Swim Systems continues to expand its influence throughout the world. With over 800 specialty boutiques and online retailers, Swim Systems is a profound leader in the world of swimwear.


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At Zaheer Chaudhry, D.D.S we aim to maximize your insurance benefits and make any remaining balance easily affordable. Philadelphia area dentist Dr. Zaheer Chaudhry and his knowledgeable staff can help answer any of your insurance questions.
We accept most insurance carriers. Please check with us prior to your appointment, but it's safe to say we likely accept the type of insurance you carry.
Here at Zaheer Chaudhry, D.D.S, your comfort is our number one priority. We will do our utmost to put you at ease and keep you feeling relaxed and secure. Under the experienced leadership of Dr. Zaheer Chaudhry, our dedicated team of professionals is at your service to explain your treatment thoroughly and answer any questions you may have.
Let highly regarded Philadelphia area teeth whitening dentist Dr. Chaudhry help you reclaim your smile with the best professional tooth whitening methods for you. At Zaheer Chaudhry, D.D.S, our aim is to provide you with natural looking teeth so you can be proud of your smile.
It doesn't matter if your teeth are lightly stained from drinking coffee or tea, or if your tooth enamel is discolored. We'll provide you with a whiter, brighter smile.
If you are missing one or more teeth, you'll want to talk with Philadelphia area dental implant dentist Dr. Zaheer Chaudhry about replacements that look and feel as natural as your own teeth. If dentures are causing you problems, you may consider dental implants. Unlike dentures, which can be removed, Dr. Chaudhry offers dental implants that are permanently anchored into the jaw itself.
Zaheer Chaudhry, D.D.S is a trusted Philadelphia area dental implants practice providing natural-looking, comfortable tooth replacement. We make it our mission to use a gentle touch during the process.
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The face is angelic, the lighting soft and the subject is napping peacefully – just the way a newborn photo shoot should look. It took 13 years, but Latrell Higgins finally has his baby photos.
"Here's my sweet not so little newborn! His name is Latrell and weighs 112 lbs.," his mom Kelli Higgins proudly announced on Facebook, where the boy's simple wish created an online sensation.
Higgins and her husband adopted Latrell and his sister Chanya two years ago, welcoming the siblings to their home in Crestview, Fla. The family already had five biological children, with a sixth one on the way, but Higgins felt she had more love to give, especially to kids who would have a harder time finding a home because they were older. In the past decade, more older children have become available for adoption, experts say.
"These children, once they get past a certain age, they don't find homes and they age out of foster care," Higgins told TODAY.com.
"They have to figure out the world on their own and there's no one to go back to as an adult. Where do you go for Christmas? It's just horrible, it's heartbreaking."
Then one day, social services called: Latrell and Chanya, then 10 and 5, were looking for a family. "Let's just go for it," Higgins recalled her husband saying. A few days later, the kids moved in. The Higgins were the only ones to submit paperwork to adopt the pair, the family found out.
The siblings are growing up happily, but wounds from the past sometimes surface unexpectedly.
The family was sitting around the dinner table last month, when Higgins – a professional photographer – mentioned that she was preparing for an upcoming baby photo session. Latrell mentioned that he wished he had baby photos of himself.
Higgins' 12-year-old daughter asked, why not "recreate" a newborn photo shoot just for Latrell? The family had a good laugh thinking about him in all the newborn poses.
"I thought it was funny and that it would be a good idea," Latrell told TODAY.com. His mom found the notion bittersweet.
"I was very sad too because I didn't have any photos of him either," Higgins said. "I think it's really hard to have children and not know what they looked like when they were younger."
Higgins and Latrell went into her studio the next day, both laughing hysterically the whole time, she recalled.
While some people have raised concerns that Latrell would be embarrassed by the photos, he told TODAY.com that he likes the results and that everyone he has showed the photos to thinks they are funny. Meanwhile, positive reaction is overflowing on Higgins' Facebook page, where the photos have been shared thousands of times and prompted hundreds of comments of support.
"This is such a beautiful thing to do!" one person wrote. "I know so many people who adopted older children and don't have ANY pictures of their infancy. What a spectacular way to remedy that... after all, he'll always be your baby."
Higgins is particularly excited to start a conversation about adopting older kids.
"The one reaction that is really humbling and I'm really excited about is there have been a lot of parents that come to me telling me that they were thinking about adopting a baby, but after seeing those photos it's changed their minds and they want to adopt an older child," Higgins said.
There were more than 104,000 children in foster care who were waiting to be adopted in 2011, the last full year for which government statistics are available. The median age of a child waiting to find an adoptive home was 7, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
"Over the last decade, I'm seeing more older children available to be adopted and more people who are interested in adopting them," said Gloria Hochman, a spokeswoman for the National Adoption Center.
People who adopt older kids tend to already have children and have experience dealing with pre-teens and teens, she said. There's more help available now to families through post-adoption services, she added.
Back in Florida, Higgins said the lesson Latrell taught her is simple: We are never too old to want -- and deserve -- love, security and parents.


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Whether you're playing blues, rock, classical, or folk-all the chords you'll need are here. Even Eric Clapton started with a few basic chords. And Guitar Chords For Dummies offers guitarists of every ambition, skill level, and musical genre a key to the simplest and most complex guitar chords-over 600 in all. Illustrated with a grid showing the position of the fingers on a string, a photograph of the chord being played, and a brief comment on the chord and how to play it, this handy, portable reference offers musicians, whether experimenting at home or playing in a coffee house, instant access to the full range of chords that can be played on a guitar. Covers the theory and techniques of guitar chords Features a handy, portable design, which can fit into a guitar case Includes a convenient lay-flat (wire bound) format, allowing users to easily try out new chords An ideal resource for broadening musical technique and getting new ideas, Guitar Chords For Dummies will help you, whether you're just picking up the guitar or a seasoned musician, add sparkle and range to your musical repertoire.
Publisher | Wiley |
Series | For Dummies |
Contributors | Polin, Antoine (Author) |
Skill Level | 1 |
Pages | 384 |
Write Your Own Review


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Nurses in Belgium who administer life-ending drugs in euthanasia and in cases without explicit patient request often act outside of the law, according to a study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/abstract/cmaj.091881v1?ijkey=0bc4785f6a054de8be0ac118ab1b0ac35e2c4de7&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha.
Euthanasia is legal in Belgium if performed by physicians under strict requirements of due care, one of which is that they discuss the request with the nurses involved. Little is known about the role of nurses in euthanasia and in the use of life-ending drugs without a patient's request.
The study looked at the experiences of nurses in Belgium with euthanasia and other end-of-life decisions. The study, with 1265 respondents, had a response rate of 75.8%. Of this number 128 nurses reported that the last patient in their care who had a life-shortening end-of-life decision received euthanasia and 120 nurses reported on a patient who received life-ending drugs without the patient posing an explicit request.
In using life-ending drugs without explicit request, 48% of nurses helped prepare drugs, 56% were present during administering and 45% administered the drugs, mostly without the physician co-administering (82%) but under physician orders (98%). In euthanasia where the law states that it has to be performed by a physician, 12% of nurses administered the drugs, also mostly without the physician co-administering (86%) but always under physician orders.
"Particularly when due care criteria are not fulfilled, such as the patient poses no explicit request, nurses, next to the physician, risk legal prosecutions," write Els Inghelbrecht, Vrije Universiteit Brussel and coauthors. "Nurses stand in a vulnerable position as they can get stuck between performing a physician's orders and performing illegal acts."
The authors recommend further research as well as professional regulation and guidelines to clarify nurses' involvement in euthanasia and other end-of-life practices.


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UK scientists grow super brocoli
LONDON - The Associated Press
Popeye might want to consider switching to broccoli. British scientists unveiled a new breed of the vegetable that experts say packs a big nutritional punch.
The new broccoli was specially grown to contain two to three times the normal amount of glucoraphanin, a nutrient believed to help ward off heart disease.
"Vegetables are a medicine cabinet already," said Richard Mithen, who led the team of scientists at the Institute for Food Research in Norwich, England, that developed the new broccoli. "When you eat this broccoli ... you get a reduction in cholesterol in your blood stream," he told Associated Press Television.
An AP reporter who tasted the new broccoli found it was the same as the regular broccoli. Scientists, however, said it should taste slightly sweeter because it contains less sulphur.
Glucoraphanin works by breaking fat down in the body, preventing it from clogging the arteries. It is only found in broccoli in significant amounts.
To create the vegetable, sold as "super broccoli," Mithen and colleagues cross-bred a traditional British broccoli with a wild, bitter Sicilian variety that has no flowery head, and a big dose of glucoraphanin. After 14 years, the enhanced hybrid was produced, which has been granted a patent by European authorities. No genetic modification was used.
It's been on sale as Beneforte in select stores in California and Texas for the last year, and hit British shelves this month. Later this fall, the broccoli will be rolled out across the U.S.
The super vegetable is part of an increasing tendency among producers to inject extra nutrients into foods, ranging from calcium-enriched orange juice to fortified sugary cereals and milk with added omega 3 fatty acids. In Britain, the new broccoli is sold as part of a line of vegetables that includes mushrooms with extra vitamin D, and tomatoes and potatoes with added selenium.
Not enough data exists to know if anyone could overdose on glucoraphanin, but vitamin D and selenium in very high quantities can be toxic.
Mithen and colleagues are conducting human trials comparing the heart health of people eating the super broccoli to those who eat regular broccoli or no broccoli. They plan to submit the data to the European Food Safety Agency next year so they can claim in advertisements the broccoli has proven health benefits.
"There's a lot of circumstantial evidence that points to (glucoraphanin and related compounds) as the most important preventive agents for (heart attacks) and certain cancers, so it's a reasonable thing to do," said Lars Ove Dragsted, a professor in the department of human nutrition at the University of Copenhagen. He previously sat on panels at the International Agency for Research on Cancer examining the link between vegetables and cancer.
Dragsted said glucoraphanin is a mildly toxic compound used by plants to fight insects. In humans, glucoraphanin may stimulate our bodies' natural chemical defenses, potentially making the body stronger at removing dangerous compounds.
Other experts said eating foods packed with extra nutrients would probably only have a minimal impact compared with other lifestyle choices, like not smoking and exercising.
"Eating this new broccoli is not going to counteract your bad habits," said Glenys Jones, a nutritionist at Britain's Medical Research Council. She doubted whether adding the nutrients in broccoli to more popular foods would work to improve people's overall health.
"If you added this to a burger, people might think it's then a healthy food and eat more burgers, whereas this is not something they should be eating more of," Jones said. She also thought the super broccoli's U.K. price — it costs about a third more than regular broccoli — might discourage penny-pinching customers.
But that wasn't enough to deter Suzanne Johnson, a 43-year-old mother of two young children in London.
"I'm very concerned about the food they eat and would happily pay a bit more to buy something that has an added benefit," Johnson said.
But for her children, taste is ultimately more important than any nutritional value. "Broccoli is one of the vegetables they actually like, so I'm glad it's the one (scientists) have been working on," she said. "This wouldn't work if it had been mushrooms or asparagus."


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Expert Tips May Help Kids Avoid Allergens at School
Common allergy triggers in classrooms, on playgrounds spur 14 million absences a year in U.S.
URL of this page: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_127861.html
(*this news item will not be available after 10/31/2012)
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Just like germs or viruses, there are many allergy triggers in classrooms and on playgrounds that are responsible for more than 14 million missed school days each year in the United States, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI).
"Children with allergies and asthma should be able to feel good, be active and not miss any classes or activities this school year due to their condition," allergist Dr. James Sublett, chair of the ACAAI Public Relations Committee, said in a college news release. "Helping your child understand what triggers their symptoms can keep them focused on their studies and not their allergies."
The ACAAI advised that there are ways children can stay away from allergy triggers so they can feel their best, including:
- Avoid chalk dust. Children with asthma or allergies should wash their hands after handling chalk and not sit too close to the chalkboard.
- Steer clear of bees and wasps. Children should not disturb bees or other insects when they are outside. They should also avoid wearing brightly colored clothing on the playground. Children with insect allergies should consider talking to an allergist about venom immunotherapy, which can be 97 percent effective in preventing future reactions to insect bites, according to the release.
- Pack lunch. Children with food allergies should bring their lunch to school and avoid sharing food, napkins or utensils with their friends. Teachers, coaches and the school nurse should also be informed about students' food allergies. In extreme cases, food allergies can cause anaphylaxis, a life-threatening reaction. Parents could also suggest their child's school adopt an allergen-free snack policy.
- Be aware of breathing troubles after physical activity. Children who experience trouble breathing during or after gym class, recess or other physical activities at school could have exercise-induced bronchoconstriction or asthma. These children should visit an allergist who can diagnose and treat their condition.
- Don't cuddle classroom pets. Children with allergies should avoid pets with fur and not be seated next to children who have furry pets at home. Parents can also request that teachers choose a hairless classroom pet, such as a fish or a frog.
Copyright (c) 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
- More Health News on:
- Allergy
- Asthma in Children
- School Health


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Peace Movement (Civil War)
See also: Heroes of America.
Part 1: Introduction; Part 2: Initial Demonstrations for Peace; Part 3: The Peace Party, William W. Holden, and the Election of 1864; Part 4: The Final Defeat of the Peace Movement; Part 5: References
Part 5: References
William T. Auman, "Bryan Tyson: Southern Unionist and American Patriot," NCHR 62 (July 1985).
William C. Harris, William Woods Holden: Firebrand of North Carolina Politics (1987).
Marc W. Kruman, Parties and Politics in North Carolina, 1836-1865 (1983).
Joel H. Silbey, A Respectable Minority: The Democratic Party in the Civil War Era, 1860-1868 (1977).
1 January 2006 | Auman, William T.


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Books featuring vampires are pretty abundant. How did you make your book different? What draws you to these creatures of the night?
What are some of your favorite scenes or lines from the book?
Do you have a favorite vampire from books or movies? If so, who and why?
In less than 10 words, how would you describe Juniper?
October is the month we gear up for Halloween. What is your most memorable Halloween?
What can readers expect from Freak?


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Philips' First Detachable Wireless Speakers, Fidelio SoundBar HTL9100 Arrives
Philips' First Detachable Wireless Speakers, Fidelio SoundBar HTL9100 Arrives
The Philips Fidelio SoundBar HTL9100 has arrived in Singapore.
The SoundBar's Virtual Surround Sound eliminates the need for extra speakers, wires, or speaker stands. The speakers at the ends of the soundbar detach, so you can place them at the rear of your room to create the optimum 5.1 channel environment for surround sound on demand. Whether you're watching Avatar in 3-D, or playing the latest Xbox games, you get to enjoy surround sound from a completely wireless surround system with lossless audio quality.
Since it's fully wireless, the Philips Fidelio HTL9100 promises a 'clutter-free' experience so you can say goodbye to tripping over messy wires in your living room. The detachable speakers are battery-powered, and recharge automatically when they are reattached to the soundbar.
The HTL9100 has in-built orientation sensors operating at a different frequency to that of Bluetooth or Wireless, so there's practically zero network interference. You can connect your Bluetooth-enabled mobile device or tablet easily to the soundbar, and lose yourself in your favorite music, as the soundbar generates rich, powerful sound.
Because if a smart auto-orientation sensor that instantly optimizes audio quality once it detects whether your soundbar is placed horizontally or vertically, you get to choose to display your soundbar on a shelf, or mount it on a wall.
A quick overview:-
- Detachable wireless speakers
- Simple connection over media devices with 2 HDMI inputs
- Bluetooth to stream music wirelessly from any Bluetooth-enabled device
- DoubleBASS for fuller, deeper bass
- Wireless subwoofer
- Orientation sensor
The Philips Fidelio SoundBar HTL9100 retails for S$1299 at all major electronic stores.


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- 1. In contradistinction to "rock," which is used figuratively for "a refuge" (Isa. xxxiii. 16; Ps. xxvii. 5, xl. 2, lxi. 3), the "deep" ("ma'amaḳḳim") is a metaphorical expression for misfortune or sorrow (Ps. lxix.2,15; cxxx. 1). Thus the "deep valley" ("'emeḳ") designates a "place of affliction and judgment" (Joel iv. 2, 12, 14, Hebr.), and the phrase "deep pit" and similar words are used in the sense of "great danger" (Prov. xxii. 14, xxiii. 27; Isa. xxiv. 17, 22; Zech. ix. 11; Ps. lv. 23, lxxi. 20, lxxxvi. 13, lxxxviii. 6, cvii. 20; Lam. iii. 47, 53; iv. 20; compare the Arabian saying. "They live in a valley that is at the mercy of torrents." Hence "the depths of Shcol" (Prov. ix. 18) is an image of utter affliction.
- 2. "Deep" is also an expression for the unfathomableand inscrutable. Therefore hardened sinners are said to make deep—that is, heap up—their sins (Isa. xxxi. 6; Hosca v. 2, ix. 9), and "deep" is synonymous with "inexhaustible quantity" (Rom. xi. 33; II Cor. viii. 2). The Bible also speaks of people who are "deep"; that is, are cautious in speech (Isa. xxxiii. 19; Ezek. xxxiii. 5 et seq.). The Bible applies the word "deep" also to the heart (Ps. lxiv. 7; Judith viii. 14), and to a man's words (Prov. xviii. 4), or to his plans (Prov. xx. 5), while it finds "deep things" (secrets) in the universe (Job xii. 22), in the nature of things (Eccl. vii. 24), and in history (Dan. ii. 22). Hence the word "deep" is used in the sense of "inscrutable" in reference to God's thoughts (Ps. xcii. 6). As a further consequence of these metaphorical applications, "to make deep" came to be an equivalent for "to conceal" or "to deceive" (Isa. xxix. 15). It is interesting to note that in the cuneiform texts wisdom is designated as "the deep" ("nimeḳu"), and is characterized thereby as something difficult of attainment and seldom found.


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Book your Airport Taxi Transfers with MMA Transfers online Now.
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MMA Transfers, is a leading Private Hire Taxi Service to and from Manchester Airport. Established in 2016 Rated on Trip Advisor and Three Best Rated. We offer Private Hire Taxis including Manchester Airport Minibus services.
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The Princeton University chapter of Phi Beta Kappa will give its annual awards for excellence in undergraduate teaching to John Burgess, the John N. Woodhull Professor of Philosophy; Robert Sedgewick, the William O. Baker *39 Professor in Computer Science; and Kevin Wayne, the Phillip Y. Goldman '86 Senior Lecturer in Computer Science.
The awards will be presented at the Phi Beta Kappa induction ceremony, which will be held at 8:45 a.m. Monday, June 3, in Richardson Auditorium, Alexander Hall, prior to the graduating seniors' Class Day ceremony.
Princeton students elected to the academic honor society have selected recipients of the teaching prize annually since 2004. The students define the criteria for excellence in teaching as skill in instruction, commitment to working with and building relationships with undergraduates, and ability to spark students' intellectual interests. Each winner is presented with a plaque.
Burgess has taught at Princeton since 1975 and has been the undergraduate departmental representative for philosophy for 25 years.
He teaches several courses in logic and advises undergraduate independent work in philosophy and mathematics. Burgess is co-author of the definitive textbook "Computability and Logic" and author of "Philosophical Logic."
Through his books and teaching, Burgess aims to give students a greater appreciation for rigorous, formal thinking by explaining concepts in clear and concise ways.
Senior Jake Nebel wrote in his commendation: "Professor Burgess is one of the most caring and effective teachers I've ever had." Nebel added that Burgess' classes are enlivened by his "clear communication of dense material … his hilarious comments, historical gems, mathematical myths, personal stories and Jane Austen analogies."
Burgess graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton in 1969 and earned his Ph.D. at the University of California-Berkeley. He has served as president of the Phi Beta Kappa chapter of New Jersey and chair of the University's Judicial Committee.
Sedgewick and Wayne will be recognized for their co-teaching in computer science. The two lead courses on algorithms and introductory computer science, and have co-authored textbooks on the subjects.
"Computer science is the field of the future, and their positive influence to the scientists and professionals of tomorrow is undeniable," seniors Max Rabinovich and Ilias Giechaskiel wrote in their commendation.
The students added, "Their hard work has paved the way for countless students to go from not knowing the first thing about computer science to being able to apply it and even making it the centerpiece of fulfilling professional lives — an achievement that embodies some of the highest ideals of education."
This past academic year, Sedgewick and Wayne also taught their classes online to a total of 250,000 students around the world as part of the University's participation in the educational website Coursera.
Sedgewick served as founding chair of the Department of Computer Science from 1985 to 1994, and became an Association for Computing Machinery fellow in 1997 for his seminal work in the mathematical analysis of algorithms and pioneering research in algorithm animation. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University.
Wayne has taught at Princeton since 1998. He has been recognized with the School of Engineering and Applied Science's Distinguished Teacher Award and the Engineering Council's Excellence in Teaching Award. He received his Ph.D. from Cornell University.


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A team of scientists will be leaving for Antarctica this week in order to conduct a pollution study.
Terry Palmer, a Research Associate with the Harte Research Institute at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, is part of a team of scientists that will record their scientific adventures at McMurdo Station, the largest research station on the frozen continent of Antarctica. The results will be shared on the "Island to Ice 2013" educational blog.
Palmer, who will embark on his 10th trip to Antarctica, will leave on Thursday, Nov. 7, and will return on Saturday, Dec. 7. During his trip, funded by the National Science Foundation, the team will spend four weeks enduring a maximum wind chill of -10 F and experiencing the effects of a sun that never sets. In collaboration with researchers from Texas A&M University, the team will monitor the chemistry, macrofauna communities, sediment toxicity and animal tissue chemistry to determine if polluted areas of Antarctica are showing improvement.
"Antarctica provides such a surreal landscape and environment that is kind of overwhelming, but in a good way," said Palmer. "It's extremely cold and dry. There are no plants or insects, and very few animals."
Palmer, who says that the bitter cold causes contaminants on land and water to break down slowly, studies how human-induced physical changes affect benthic macrofauna communities of animals on and in the bottom of seas and estuaries. At McMurdo station, he will collect ocean floor sediment and tissue from organisms to analyze the effects of contamination. After samples are preserved, they will be shipped to Palmer's lab to be identified.
"Although some very small isolated parts of Antarctica are very polluted, organisms still manage to survive," he said. "The contaminations are restricted to the sediment sea floor; however, the contaminants have risen up the food chain and are present in the tissues of fish and other mobile species."
The "Island to Ice 2013" project allows students from Texas, other parts of the United States, and New Zealand to ask questions via email and view online journal entries about the studies conducted in Antarctica. This is the 13th year of the program.
This free educational webinar will provide a detailed process for climate-driven "pre-response" in a variety of key areas including: Supply Chain Disruptions, Employee Safety and Productivity, Regulatory and Compliance Risks …and many more areas.


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I would like to cook spare ribs to a fall-off-the-bone consistency. I don't have access to a grill.
I know how to do that with pork shoulders (dry rubbed, then uncovered in the oven at low heat for 6-8hrs), but spare ribs are a different type of animal. They are individually smaller pieces (my ribs are sawed in chunks), and they are fairly fatty, with a big bone.
What should I do? Should I pan-sear them first, do I need some liquid in the dish? Should I cover them?


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Compact Integrated Disc Player With AM/FM, iPod & iPhone Playback Enjoy Music From Around The Globe The RCD-N7 features internet radio with more than 12,000 stations to choose from Pandora as well as Denon's vTuner services, and it also features Napster and Rhapsody subscription music services. You'll enjoy a wealth of music choices in addition to listening to your own music library on your iPod or iPhone. With the available Denon Remote App, you can control the system from an iPhone or iPod touch. Quick And Easy Connection To The Internet Choose Your Own Speakers
The ideal personal desktop audio system, the RCD-N7 features a dock for quick and easy connection to your iPod or iPhone. The integrated dock lets you listen to your favorite music tracks, and the CD player also features WMA, MP3 and lossless FLAC playback capability, as well as compatibility with CD-R and CD-RW disc formats. The system features a powerful 65 watts per channel, and connects to the speakers via audiophile grade multi-way loudspeaker connectors.
The RCD-N7 is equipped with dual internet connection methods. There's an RJ-45 LAN port for direct wired connection to your home network, and there's also the built-in Wi-Fi feature that includes Wi-Fi Protected Setup for safe and secure connection to your wireless home network. The RCD-N7 is also DLNA-certified which provides access to music tracks on your multi-media home PC.
We've decided to make the matching SC-N7 speakers optional. While they're an ideal match sonically and aesthetically to the RCD-N7, you can choose to match the RCD-N7 with your own speakers, either a pair of standalone bookshelf types, or perhaps you'd prefer to mate the RCD-N7 with in-wall speakers. Either way, the choice is yours.
AirPlay Compatible
Denon RCD-N7 Network Ready Receiver/CD Wi-Fi Network Streaming AM/FM/CD Player With Integrated iPod Dock


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Excoriation! God demands blood! She is a witch! Where is her familiar! I saw her communing with Satan by the old Elm tree! The pig killed my wife! I saw Jim rise from the dead and walk the streets after his burial, he is possessed by an evil spirit!
The crowds that gathered outside of the Casey Anthony trial and heckled upon her subsequent release were the stuff of the Middle Ages (or alternatively the descendants of a lynch mob in either the old West or Jim Crow South). They did not have pitchforks and nooses. So perhaps that is a whee bit of progress as Casey Anthony was not torn limb from limb by those seeking "justice."
Frankly, the reflexive spectacle of a mania fueled moral panic in which white girls and women are forever under threat by evil moms and other villains is really nothing new or special. And moreover, the media coverage--where a desperate press is running on fumes and has resorted to talking about eerie coincidences which portend the rage of the Gods and prove that vengeance will be done--would be laughable if it were not so pathetic.
Lightning strikes near the site where Caylee Anthony's body was found; lightning near the court house; "bleeding" pictures of the poor child held like almost religious relics by deranged and grieving soccer moms who were interviewed on CNN; Casey spent 1,043 days in jail, Caylee had 1,042 days of life; and other signs point to inexorable justice and astrological intervention.
From the witch hysteria that swept Salem, Massachusetts and Europe in which many thousands of "unconventional" women (and others) were killed as a way of cementing social cohesion, stealing land and property, or as acts that granted social standing to accusers, to the media circus of the 21st century, it would seem that our little monkey brains have not changed all too much over the centuries. Group think still holds purchase.
[A question: Is the allure of old habits an adaptive response for surviving in a world where big frightening monsters could gobble up our primate ancestors on the plains of the Serengeti?]
One should not forget that the "supernatural" was commonplace during the Middle Ages of Europe: It was something to be explained through the logic of empiricism and procedures of law. Thus, a historical detour on a Monday to an era when witches and warlocks were burned at the stake, pigs were tried for murder, and church authorities had to offer logical proofs of how many angels could fit on the head of a pin.
As we watch the crying, hysterical mouth-breathers who have been suckered into the Casey Anthony spectacle and are now forced to find another drug, such echoes of the past sound none too unfamiliar in the present, do they not?
Medieval Court Cases: Animals on Trial?
One of the most bizarre human-animal trends of all recorded history took place in Europe during the Middle Ages. This was the formal prosecution of animals accused of committing crimes against people. Animals charged with such crimes (usually murder) were brought to court, appointed a lawyer, and tried, just as a person would be. Records show that hundreds of animals were found guilty and then executed by hanging.
In the 1994 article "The Law Is an Ass: Reading E. P. Evans' The Medieval Prosecution and Capital Punishment of Animals" (Society & Animals: Journal of Human-Animal Studies, published by the organization Psychologists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), Piers Beirne described the practice in detail.
The article reviewed books on the subject by several authors, focusing on one written by E. P. Evans in 1906. Evans described 191 animal trials, mostly from the fifteenth through the seventeenth centuries. Most of the trials took place in France, Italy, and Germany. There are also a few historical records of trials in other European countries and in the United States, Canada, and Brazil. Animals were tried for a variety of offenses besides murder, mostly fraud and theft. Records show that many were tortured for confessions (just as humans were) prior to the trial. It is not clear how animal confessions were interpreted, considering that animals cannot speak human languages.
Criminal proceedings against animals were handled with the utmost seriousness by medieval legal authorities. Animals that harmed humans were considered servants of the devil because they had violated God's directive in the Bible that humans should have dominion over animals. A particular Bible verse, Exodus 21:28, was often cited as the grounds for executing an animal convicted of murder: "If an ox gore a man or a woman that they die, then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten." The penalties for offenses less serious than murder matched those given to humans for the same types of crimes.
Evans listed a variety of domestic and wild animals, as well as rodents, sea creatures, birds, and insects, that were tried at various times by government or church courts. Those that could not be physically brought to court were tried in absentia. In general, only the larger domestic animals, such as pigs, bulls, cows, horses, sheep, and dogs, actually appeared in court and were subjected to punishments. A few animals were found innocent or granted pardons or reprieves by authorities. Many wild animals found guilty by church courts were excommunicated (exiled from the church).
The vast majority of criminal defendants were pigs, probably because farmers allowed them to roam free much of the time. In 1386 a pig accused of murdering an infant was tried and convicted by a court in Falaise, France. The pig was hanged at the gallows by the village hangman. Her six piglets were charged with being accessories to the crime but were acquitted "on account of their youth and their mother's bad example."
A lawyer could establish his reputation by performing well in animal trials. In France in the early 1500s, a lawyer named Bartholomé Chassenée was appointed to represent some rats that had eaten and destroyed some barley (a felony). Chassenée used a series of clever legal maneuvers to delay the trial as long as possible. At one point he convinced the judge that it was too dangerous for his clients to come to court on the appointed day because of the many cats in the neighborhood. Chassenée became famous throughout France for his excellent legal skills.
It is not clear why medieval courts went to the trouble to formally try animals before executing them. Some historians believe that these trials were intended to be warnings to animals and people about the consequences of their actions. Others believe the trials represented a philosophical desire to exert some human control over nature.


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