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Station Agent, The
Winner of the Audience Award at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival, Tom McCarthy's surprisingly affecting The Station Agent is a modest, quiet film that values the spaces between words, and the silent, tentative glances between new friends. It's an antidote to the increasingly loud Hollywood film—a character-centered meditation symbolized eloquently by the slow inevitability of trains, and by the gorgeous melancholy of small-town New Jersey. And also by the poignant calm of a dwarf named Finbar.
Portrayed with a steely-eyed guardedness by Peter Dinklage, Fin is an unlikely protagonist. He's prone to deep-voiced murmurs, and he'd rather simply be alone with his silence. He's a diminutive man who has shut himself off from a world predisposed to ridicule him. When we first meet Fin, he is settled comfortably into his years-long routine of working with his old friend Henry (Paul Benjamin) at a train hobbyist shop—it's a quietly fulfilling, anonymous life. He is a man in love with the mythology of the locomotive, so when his life changes and he inherits a small, abandoned train depot in rural New Jersey, your first thought is that he's headed toward a new, equally solitary existence. But fate holds different plans for Fin.
Fate comes in the form of two fascinating friendships. Taking up residence adjacent to Fin's new property is the Gorgeous Frank's food truck, commandeered by the cheerfully in-your-face Joe (Bobby Cannavale)—a hysterical personality who bounces off Fin's quiet dignity like a relentlessly happy boy suffering from ADD. Every morning, Joe hurriedly sets up camp outside the deserted depot and stretches out to chat on his cell phone—between very infrequent coffee customers at this strange location. When he encounters Fin, he sees an instant friend, someone with which to talk and laugh at great length…but of course Fin wants none of that. Further complicating Fin's new idyllic scenario is the sudden intrusion of Olivia (Patricia Clarkson), who nearly runs Fin down in the street—twice! This woman's a mess, grieving and alone, and soon—as if below your radar—the film is alive with the sudden power of these three distinct personalities slowly coming together in their solitude.
The Station Agent wouldn't be nearly as powerful as it is without its exceptional cast. Foremost among these performers is Peter Dinklage, whose restraint and solemnity are absolutely compelling. Patricia Clarkson exudes emotional agony in all the right places, and when she allows her character the smallest of enjoyments, it's like your heart is breaking. Bobby Cannavale is the type of actor that garners laughs from just his movements and mutterings: the way he walks along train tracks, his posture at the edge of a couch, his obvious ad-libs. All three offer distinct pleasures, inhabiting their very different characters with confidence and utter realism. In smaller roles, Raven Goodwin shines as the frankly curious little girl Cleo, and Michelle Williams is perfect as Emily, an awkward librarian drawn to Fin.
This is a film that truly draws you in, and when it ends, you don't want to let it go. These are people you'd like to meet and befriend. Fin, above all, urges you forward into the film, making you want to learn more about him. It's easy to understand why he acts as a magnet to the characters around him, because he has the same effect on you. The magic of The Station Agent is that it's so potent while remaining largely quiet. You might think that a movie filled with silence and sadness would leave you snoring, but the truth is that every shot, every glance, commands your attention. And when the film does give way to joy—as in the inevitable train-chasing sequence—you just about cheer.
Buena Vista presents The Station Agent in an anamorphic-widescreen transfer of the film's original 1.85:1 theatrical presentation. The film was shot in 16mm and blown up to 35mm, so expect some inherent problems with sharpness, grain, and fine detail. Close-up detail is quite good, but detail begins to suffer from the middle distance back. Backgrounds are especially soft. You'll notice smudging and graininess, too, along with a certain flatness. Colors are fine if muted. Skin tones are accurate, but black levels are mediocre.
However, this seems an accurate representation of what I remember from the theater. What I don't remember from the theater, however, is the presence of moderate edge halos and ringing.
The disc's Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track is very low-key, in tune with the film. In case I didn't give the impression earlier, this is a dialog-heavy film, so most of the sound comes front and center. I noticed little activity across the front soundstage, and the surround channels are used solely for ambience, such as rain. This isn't the most dynamic soundtrack, but this track gets the job done. Voices are clear and accurate, with no perceived distortion at the high end.
You also get a French Dolby Digital 2.0 audio track, as well as English and French subtitles.
Appropriate to the tone of the film, the DVD offers a modest array of supplements. Primary among them is a Commentary by Tom McCarthy, Peter Dinklage, Bobby Cannivale, and Patricia Clarkson. This is one of those commentary tracks that's a relaxed joy. Containing lots of laughter and easy conversation, it's the kind of track that is really a glimpse into the atmosphere of the shoot itself. The actors talk about how they approached shooting various scenes, and they're full of praise for their cohorts. McCarthy heaps similar praise, on his cinematographer and cast and others. Everyone values the sense of acting that's not rushed, of characters just being quiet together—a concept that the film conveys very well. The film's western motif is brought up repeatedly. This is an extremely chummy commentary that's infectiously fun.
Next, you get 4 minutes worth of Deleted Scenes, all of which were merely cut for length. Lunch, The Roof, and Henry's Father are all snippets involving the character of Henry, near the start of the film. The Morning After is an extension of the scene between Fin and Emily. Finally, Gorgeous Frank offers an alternate ending to the film, which changes the tone of the ending from subdued to cheerful. You can choose to watch these scenes with or without commentary by McCarthy, Dinklage, and Cannivale.
Wrapping things up, you get Sneak Peeks at The Human Stain, The Barbarian Invasions, Cold Mountain, City of God, Bad Santa, and People I Know.
The Station Agent deserves all the acclaim it can find. I caught it a local theater, in a nearly empty auditorium. Too bad, because if you haven't discovered this film, you're really missing out on something special. This is a modest DVD release, but it's definitely worth your time and cash.
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The project involves the following work starting at Evergreen Lane and extending about 500 feet downstream:
The project is nearing completion and should be substantially complete on or about December 2, 2016. Since the fall planting season is over all tree and shrub planting will be completed in the Spring of 2017.
Update as of November 15, 2015: Recent activity includes completion of the Redi-Rock retaining wall, installation of the storm sewer system in Evergreen Lane and final grading activities in the stream channel. Curb and sidewalk will be installed in the next week or two and the roadway paved soon thereafter.

subset: commoncrawl


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Without daylight saving time, Sydney is 14 hours ahead of New York and Toronto; 15 hours ahead of Chicago and Dallas; and 17 hours ahead of Los Angeles.
Australia has three major time zones. Eastern Standard Time (EST) applies in Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland; Central Standard Time applies in South Australia and Northern Territory; and Western Standard Time applies in Western Australia. Central Standard Time is ½ hour behind EST, and Western Standard Time is 2 hours behind EST.
Within the EST zone, each state chooses a slightly different date on which to commence or end daylight saving—except for Queensland, where the powerful farm lobby has prevented the state from introducing daylight saving at all, since it would make the cows wake up an hour earlier. Western Australia and Northern Territory also decline to recognize daylight saving, which means that at certain times of the year Australia can have as many as six different time zones.


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Solving Dry Mouth Problems Right
Xerostomia or dry mouth condition is not a new thing. It happens to a lot of people, and most of them just don't know how to address the problem right. In fact, this condition may be treatable by three major remedies mostly recommended by oral healthy professionals. First is as simple as controlling the actual health conditions and other factors that triggered the dry mouth. Xerostomia is a disorder that lots of people experience, frequently when they're nervous or stressed. It may have symptoms like dry mouth, together with difficulty eating or ingesting, additionally to some burning sensation within the throat or perhaps a rough, dry tongue. This problem could be irritating whether it happens periodically however for some it's a persistent condition, triggered by outdoors stress and with time it may come to be a significant problem.
In case your xerostomia is triggered because of your medications, your doctors might need to improve your prescriptive drugs or adjust the dosage for your benefit without compromising your wellbeing. The most crucial component to keep the mouth area moist is by having a right flow of saliva. Without saliva, you wouldn't have the ability to chew or swallow the food, and based on the National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research, not getting enough saliva inside your mouth can eventually result in cavities or infections. Severe xerostomia could also stop you from eating enough food, resulting in potential malnourishment.
As for others, their case of xerostomia is triggered by a disease or perhaps a treatment like chemotherapy for cancer. It this is your case, then your physician could also give medicines not to aggravate the problem further. You will find numerous causes for dry mouth, including unwanted effects from medications, or illnesses like Aids and diabetes, which could modify the salivary glands. Chemotherapy or radiation may also cause a decrease in the quantity of saliva flow in your mouth. In the event that you're going through xerostomia on the lengthy time period which its effects are sustained, you will find numerous xerostomia remedies open to you.
First, in case your xerostomia is triggered with a medicine you're taking, you might have the ability to have your physician improve your prescription that doesn't affect your salivary glands. Your dental professional or physician could also have the ability to prescribe a medicine to improve the potency of your glands, or suggest artificial saliva to manage your problem. If it's your salivary glands that aren't working correctly your physician might point to a medicine that will help stimulate the glands to create more saliva. However, when the medical problem leading to the xerostomia can't be treated, like damages within the nerves in the brain and neck area, then it is advisable to go a major treatment.
The second nd major treatment methods are by stopping cavities. Saliva does not only allow us to chew, swallow and digest our meal. Additionally, it functions as our own mouth cleanser. Inadequate saliva boosts the risk for cavities and gum illnesses like gingivitis. For those who have xerostomia you best be keener with your oral cleanliness. Learn how to brush your teeth two times each day or ideally after each meal and before bed time. Start flossing your teeth every single day. The plaque accumulation can't be removed simply by brushing your teeth. Besides, you will find certain parts of your teeth that can't be reach at through brushing alone. Make sure to make use of a mouthwash that consists of fluoride and finally, go to your dental professional for any check-up and cleaning appointments every six months.
It is important that you learned all these important details that cause dry mouth as well as the treatment and solutions. It is essential that you find the right solution and treatment that will help you resolve your dry mouth problems before it can lead and cause further serious complications. You should also visit your dentist more often.


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Ukraine International operates cargo flights delivering medical supplies to Ukraine, Israel, and many European countries
Despite the embargo on commercial passenger flights, Ukraine International is operating cargo flights delivering medical supplies and humanitarian relief shipments.
Since April 13, 2020, Ukraine International has operated eleven cargo flights from China to Ukraine, Italy, Israel, Poland, France, and Germany. The carrier expects to operate another ten humanitarian flights in the next two weeks.
The airline operates these humanitarian relief flights using both its B-737 and B-767 equipment that has been configured especially to maximize the amount of cargo that can be delivered on these flights. The aircraft configuration allows for about nearly 70 cubic meters of cargo on the Boeing 737 aircraft and approximately 160 cubic meters on Boeing 767 aircraft.
"By carrying humanitarian cargo Ukraine International helps governments face against the COVID-19 pandemic and ensures essential business support, – noted Sergey Fomenko, UIA Vice President Commerce. – Doctors in Ukraine and many other countries await humanitarian relief shipments carried by our airline. It is our contribution to global struggle against the pandemic. We will proceed with such operations as much as it suffices."
The carrier does its utmost to serve Ukraine, and on a recent flight carrying medical cargo from China to Israel on April 18th, UIA also delivered the Holy Flame for the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The airline is appreciative of the respect and gratitude offered by many of our partners, and especially by the delegation of the Municipality of Bologna, headed by the Mayor of Bologna, who himself, welcomed UIA aircraft with humanitarian cargo from Shanghai, China.


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Michiel Sweerts
Soldiers playing Dice
Michiel Sweerts was among the 17th-century Dutch and Flemish artists who lived in Rome and depicted daily life in the city. He lived there for around ten years (1646–56), during which time he produced genre compositions of the type invented by Pieter van Laer. Sweerts painted a series of canvases in which he depicted beggars, peasants and soldiers playing dice and cards, as well as more unusual scenes such as wrestling. His paintings of this type have been compared with those of other northern artists in Rome, and works of this type were painted to be sold on the open market. Other artists comparable to Sweerts include the Dutch painters Jacob Duck, Pieter Codde and Willem Duyster, as well as Johannes Lingelbach and Pieter van Laer, the inventor of these genre compositions. Sweerts' scenes differ from those of these other artists in the mood and tone that he conveyed, and he approached his subjects in a restrained manner with even a slight note of melancholy. However broken down and tattered, his figures are treated with dignity and decorum, located in rather static settings with backgrounds that can on occasions be identified as specific locations in Rome. In Sweerts' paintings of this type the figures are strongly lit and modelled with a distinctive type of chiaroscuro.
According to Gaskell Soldiers playing Dice was painted shortly after Sweerts left Rome. In the foreground, and illuminated by a powerful focus of light, are two seated men playing dice on top of a drum that serves as a makeshift table. The figure seen frontally has just thrown the dice, which are carefully examined by the other player, seen from behind. The scene takes place out of doors in a courtyard, illuminated by a dim evening light whose warm glow is barely visible in the background sky. In the background and accompanying these two idle soldiers, Sweerts painted a further four figures that are almost impossible to detect: two seated on the right and another swathed in a cloak and hat standing just behind the principal scene. The fourth figure is only visible in outline and is standing guard in the doorway of the room that opens off the courtyard.
The painting has been compared to other canvases by Sweerts in which he depicts game playing, such as the one in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, in which two low-life figures play cards on a small barrel, and the one in the Musée du Louvre in which two soldiers, accompanied by other figures, play dice on top of a drum. Sweerts took the figure of the soldier in the yellow coat from the present work and repeated it in the figure of one of the students sketching in the oil entitled Studio Scene in the Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem. The present composition is completed in the left foreground with an eye-catching pile of pieces of armour with a flag on top. In his paintings of art academies and artists' studio such piles are made up of busts and fragments of classical sculptures.
Mar Borobia


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Fiber-optics has been around for more than six decades, but it became a household word during the 1990s-the decade of electronic communications. Fiber-optic equipment from the early 1980s bears little resemblance to today's high-bandwidth, easy-installation products.
During the past 15 years, fiber's technological leaps have kept pace with both the increased volume of data communications and the continuing demand for greater bandwidth. During the last five years, especially, the fiber-optic industry achieved incredible improvement in the performance, strength, bandwidth, and cost of fiber-optic equipment. Falling fiber-optic prices, in particular, could help fiber give copper cable a run for its money in the horizontal cabling market.
For electrical contractors, ease of installation is just as important as price. In 1985, only firms with extensive technical knowledge did fiber optic installations. Back then it took two- or three-man teams in special air-conditioned trucks equipped for fusion splicing of the fiber strands for the telephone companies. Cable that couldn't be pulled into these special trucks was spliced in sealed tents to assure no stray contaminants entered the splice and degraded the signal. In some cases, it took all day to splice a single multi-fiber cable.
By comparison, today a variety of organizations install fiber systems and employ many different installation methods and adhesives. Siemon Co.'s LightSpeed adhesive system can save time and improves on successful termination steps over standard anaerobic processes by eliminating termination steps and optimizing cure characteristics. The adhesive has a colored tint to provide visual identification during insertion, so the installer knows when a proper quantity of adhesive is used.
*In addition, various types of cable constructions are now available. Indoor/outdoor cables eliminate the indoor/outdoor splice or patch panel. Choices include loose tube, ribbon, breakout, premise, etc., with each design having specific performance and cost factors
Let's look at how fiber-optic components progressed over the years.
1934 Fiber-optic technology is born. AT&T employee Norman R. French patents an optical telephone system that uses a solid rod of glass or quartz (or similar material) for communication purposes.
1960 Theodere H. Maiman operates the first laser for which communications is its main application.
1975 Semiconductor lasers become commercially available.
1977 Bell Systems and General Telephone both offer their first fiber-optic communication systems.
In the next 20-plus years, the fiber-optic industry achieved incredible improvements in both the performance and cost of fiber-optic components. Today, optical-fiber technology is still keeping pace with the spiraling demand for more datacommunications networks and greater bandwidth-and the limits of optical fiber are yet to be reached.


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This is a time where I've gone right back to basics and took inspiration from my heritage. Pasta has always been a part of my life, in every shape and form, in every manner of handling it, when you're Italian, then this is in your DNA.
Sometimes pasta can be swamped by it's sauces - they mask it's texture rather than compliment it. During my recent trip to Italy I rediscovered how often the most simplest things are the most flavoursome and the same can be said for pasta dishes.
The simplest sauce is often the best.
So I've gone back to a dish from my childhood, a dish I've carried through adulthood - it's basic but works because it's all about flavour and it's all about simplicity.
I've made one adjustment to it's original form, inspired in part by a dish I ate in Torino. The modification is the addition of sweet potato. Traditionally, pumpkin could also be used.
For One person:
100 grams dried linguine
about 25 grams of Butter, chopped into cubes
fresh Sage leaves, 8-10 depending on their size
half a Sweet Potato, peeled, and cut into small cubes
freshly ground salt and pepper
freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Cooking the pasta:
I shouldn't have to give instruction but I will. The most important part - use LOTS of water. I can't stress that enough. And you must salt the water. In some parts of Italy they will say that the water must taste like the sea, in relation to it's saltiness. I don't go quite to that extent but you must be generous in the use of salt. Pasta needs salt. Otherwise it will just taste unbelievably bad and unbearably bland. Add the pasta only when the water is at a rolling boil and stir immediately after you add it in. You want to keep the pasta moving and the water boiling, it's these things that stop the pasta from sticking.
There's also no need to add oil to the water, or to throw it against ceilings or walls to see if it's done. Just taste it.
Cooking the sweet potato:
You can toss them in oil and roast them in oven till they are lightly browned or you can boil them until just tender and sauté them with a little oil in a frypan until slightly caramelised. If you do the latter, you can make the burnt butter sauce in the same pan.
To make the sauce:
In a shallow frypan, over low heat, drop in your cubes of butter and sage leaves, letting the butter slowly melt and the sage infuse. The butter will froth - just keep swirling the pan to help you control the colouring - you want the butter to slowly change colour and develop those little dark specks (caused by the separation of the milk solids). Take it off the heat if you think it's getting close. Add about three quarters of the sweet potato and toss through the sauce.
Once the pasta is cooked, strain and add to the frypan. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper and then toss to coat thoroughly before serving. Sprinkle with the left over sweet potato cubes and a generous amount of freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. If you're doing something this traditional, use the traditional ingredients.
Serve with a glass of red wine and you'll be back in Italy...Buon Appetito!


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The 15 Best Free Comics on the Kindle Fire
Like some lucky readers out there, I got a Kindle Fire for the holidays. It was a complete surprise, especially considering that I didn't ask for one, and didn't even really want one. Despite all the good news I'd heard about the Comixology app, my tactile orientation made it hard for me to get along with the idea of digital comics, but being so poor I only bought maybe a dozen comics last year ha


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Hey everyone!
I've been self-teaching myself Java for a quite a bit now. Though I still consider myself a beginner, I feel as though I've learned a lot. Oftentimes though when I'm learning things by myself I like to make sure no terms are left unambiguous for me. For example, I while learning the language, I made sure to understand the difference between parameters and arguments and things like fields and variables. Right now though I'm trying to grasp what is truly meant when people say "Data Structures" and "Data Types".
As of right now, after researching a lot, I'm thinking Data Types are simply the different types ranging from the primitive types (integer, boolean) to the man-made classes (maybe a Puppy class for example). Data Structures I'm thinking are ways of organizing these Data Types? Yet this still confuses me as I see Arrays called Data Types but at other times called Data Structures. What category would Enumerations fit in?
Thanks in advance!


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Springtime for Trump?
Hope Starts To Bud
For the New President
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
Perhaps it is a function of spring, and of the irrepressible perseverance of hope, which even motionless in the heart of darkness cannot be extinguished, that I cautiously predict the beginnings of a return to functioning government in Washington.
The whole country and much of the world hopes for an end to 20 years of gridlock, chronic fiscal mismanagement, absurd wars generating gigantic humanitarian crises and large strategic gains for the enemies of the West, in particular Iran, and debased domestic politics in which each change of regime in the White House and Congress seemed to make things worse and not better.
It would have been hard to foresee that such a simple act as firing 59 cruise missiles at a Syrian air base where gas attacks on Syrian civilians, ordered by the Syrian president, originated would have had the halcyon effect that it has had on the whole unruly Washington circus. It has been so long since a president acted effectively and decisively in the national interest by using American military strength that the confidence of the country and the world in the efficacy of the American military had declined.
Apart from the execution of Osama bin Laden, American military force had not visibly been successfully deployed since the surge in Iraq ten years ago. The long night of deliberate weakness in American foreign and security policy is over.
It was grim and depressing to see the video revenances from the Obama red-line fiasco, the claim of a great achievement in eliminating all of Syria's sarin-gas stocks without having to fire a shot. We all knew at the time it was an illusion, but the pictures of the child victims of the latest Assad atrocity were not merely horrifying in themselves, they were also a somber reminder of the terminal enfeeblement and mendacity of the Obama-Clinton-Kerry slapstick foreign-policy team.
That fiasco was of a piece with Susan Rice's righteous explanation that the murder of the American ambassador and other officials in Benghazi in 2012 was provoked by a "heinous" anti-Islamist Internet video produced by an anti-Islamist American private citizen. We all knew that that was a falsehood, too, but Susan Rice was the preferred candidate of the then-president to be secretary of state.
Hillary Clinton was disqualified by this whopper, not that the ultimate nominee (John Kerry) was remotely adequate. It was with all of them a foreign policy based on deliberate weakness and the doctrine of Mr. Obama's, as the egregious Tom Friedman of the New York Times fawningly called it, that if we treated enemy countries as friends they would be magically transformed into friends.
No one expects that the attack last week will reform Mr. Assad's behavior (it is only seven years since Hillary Clinton called him "a reformer"), but it has sent the message that the long night of delusional altruism and deliberate weakness in American foreign and security policy is over. It has also helped create the only circumstances in which relations between the United States and Russia can be put back on a sound foundation after the shambles of the Obama-Biden-Clinton "reset."
I wrote here several weeks ago of the promising meeting of the chairmen of the joint chiefs of staff of the United States, Russia, and Turkey, on March 9, and of the emerging policy of Turkey replacing Iran as a power in Syria and of a division of government within Syria between Assad and the Western-sponsored secular moderates. For this to have any possibility of success, Russia will have to grasp the fact that the goodwill and cooperation of the United States is worth more to it than its obscene friendship with Iran, insofar as such a quarrel among thieves could be so described.
The basis of such an arrangement would likely be the joint effort against ISIS, expulsion of Iran from Syria, a partition between Assad-ruled areas and Western-sponsored government zones, resettlement of refugees, recognition of Russian occupation of Crimea, the end of sanctions on Russia, a complete end of Russian harassment of Ukraine, and a joint guarantee of Ukraine's borders. Ukraine would refrain from entering NATO but would be able to join the European Union when its progress at self-government made it eligible.
Practically, the airstrike did not accomplish much, but psychologically and tactically it sent a uniformly clear message to all relevant centers of opinion, foreign and domestic. It did attract broad public and political support. Some of the highbrow conservative Never Trumpers, such as William Kristol, acknowledged the appropriateness of the measure. Some of the rabidly hostile press rallied admirably, such as Fareed Zakaria, a die-hard Obama enthusiast, who said that Mr. Trump had behaved like a president.
Of course the incorrigibles continued; Rachel Maddow on MSNBC found a guest to estimate at somewhere between 2% and 50% the chances that the entire raid was rigged up between Presidents Trump and Putin. I didn't catch his name and shortly after his lips began moving I determined that I did not want to know his name. It is hard not to wonder where Ms. Maddow finds such people and what level of maladjustment she must have achieved in order to inflict such nonsense on the diminutive knot of her viewers.
The apparently civilized meeting with the president of China and the confirmation of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, all on the same day, restored the impression of a determined president moving quickly. It is a distinct step forward to be done with the filibuster, an antediluvian invention of southern Democrats to prevent the passage of anti-lynching laws, and a procedural obstacle that has been terribly abused for decades.
All 52 Republicans held for Justice Gorsuch, three Democrats defected, and the new justice will ensure, among other things, the failure of the putsch the Democrats mounted — with the assistance of carefully shopped, flaky, left-wing West Coast judges — to emasculate the president's powers in matters of immigration.
There cannot be much left of the campaigns to represent Mr. Trump as a sexist or racist or autocrat or isolationist, or as someone about whom the New York Times's ineffable Nicholas Kristof detected "a whiff of treason," over the nonsensical Russian allegations. It is hard now to remember the march of angry women when President Trump was inaugurated or even to remember what they were angry about, or why Madonna wanted to "blow up the White House," or Representative Maxine Waters wanted to impeach Mr. Trump. The famous headgear for the mass women's demonstrations, which sold for $20 at the time to the saps at the marches, is now being remaindered at 95 cents.
The discomfort of the Democrats over the cloudy but persistent evidence of surveillance of Trump Tower has seriously muted their previous affected militancy on the bogus issue of Trump–Russia collusion. It has all become absurd, as chairman Devin Nunes of the House Intelligence Committee has dutifully stepped aside to permit an inquiry into the propriety of his informing the public and the president of evidence of improper surveillance of the president's campaign.
So there is now an investigation of Mr. Nunes's investigation of the Obama investigation and surveillance of the Trump campaign's fictitious collusion with Russia. These investigations, so fatuously hyped by most of the media, have been piled on top of each other even though there is no evidence to embarrass the president.
In the spirit of the season, I embrace the hope that the whole thunderhead of confected indignation will dissolve soon, that the Democrats will stop boycotting the administration and help to make the system work after these 20 lean years, and that Donald Trump will be able to enact the program that he promised, addressing decades of stagnation in many public-policy areas.
Taxes and whatever is feasible in health care should be next. The country and the world need to see that the American system works after all. Perhaps I am intoxicated by the anticipated scent of the magnolias, but I dare to hope that even infected elements of the national press may rediscover the joys of professionalism and of practicing their craft with integrity. This is now the American dream — effective government reported by a responsible press, after a prolonged agony of depressed sleeplessness.
firstname.lastname@example.com. From the National Review.


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Replacement Glass Tabletops for Your Patio Furniture
Update your patio furniture with a durable replacement glass tabletop from Glass Doctor®. Our experts specialize in creating custom glass pieces that meet your needs. Tempered glass is one option we offer to maximize outdoor furniture durability as well as to protect children and pets in case of breakage.
Call us at 855-603-1919 to schedule an in-home consultation and have a Glass Doctor expertly design perfect patio furniture to complement your lawn or garden.
Custom Glass for Your Outdoor Furniture
During your in-home consultation with a Glass Doctor specialist, we will measure your patio furniture tabletops to ensure we cut custom glass that is a perfect fit. Our design experts will work with you to ensure that your glass tabletop is perfectly suited to your needs and taste.
Patio furniture glass comes in a variety of shapes, including round, oval, rectangular, square and hexagonal. In addition to your glass tabletop shape, there are several finished glass edging styles to choose from.
Glass Doctor offers edging profiles including but not limited to:
Choosing the perfect edging profile will give your patio table glass top an extra bit of style that will impress your guests and greatly improve your outdoor space.
Advantages of Tempered Glass Tabletops
Glass Doctor offers tempered safety glass, which is ideal for replacement patio furniture and tabletops. Here are some features of tempered glass:
- It is more durable that more traditional glass types.
- It helps patio tables resist potential damage from heat, weather and collisions.
- If damaged, tempered glass also breaks into round, pebble-like pieces without sharp edges as opposed to traditional glass that will shatter into dangerous, jagged pieces.
Affordable Patio Tabletops Installed by Glass Doctor
Prevent future glass breakage and shield your patio table furniture from harmful UV rays with a replacement glass tabletop that is safe and reliable. Trust the experts at Glass Doctor to design and install the perfect glass solutions for your patio—all at an affordable price.
Replace your glass tabletop patio furniture by calling a Glass Doctor professional at 855-603-1919.
HomeSteady: https://homesteady.com/info-12197693-types-tempered-glass-patio-tables.html
Science ABC: https://www.scienceabc.com/eyeopeners/tempered-laminated-car-windshield-...


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We've heard a lot about Chip Kelly this week, but it could have been two Pac-12 head coaches interviewing for NFL jobs if University of Washington head coach Steve Sarkisian decided to throw his hat into the ring.
According to Albert Breer of the NFL Network, Sarkisian has turned down overtures from NFL teams asking him to interview for head coaching jobs this week. Per Breer, Sarkisian has aspirations to coach in the league, but has not been interested in the teams that have expressed a desire to speak to him.
It's fair to wonder what team would interest Sarkisian enough for him to make the jump to the professional level. Sarkisian turned down an interview with the Rams last year and he passed on a shot to become the Raiders' head coach in 2007 when he was USC's quarterbacks coach. They eventually hired Lane Kiffin, who was then on the USC staff with Sarkisian and lasted 20 games in the Oakland job.
Sarkisian has a 26-25 record in four years at Washington and helped turn Titans quarterback Jake Locker into a first-round pick during his time with the team. NFL teams obviously like Sarkisian, although their ardor may dim in the coming years if he keeps saying thanks but no thanks when they come calling.


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If you can't visit the great wonders of the world in person, Google's new World Wonders Project can get you pretty close. The World Wonders Project is an interactive website that uses the same street view technology used in Google Maps to allow visitors to explore many of the wonders of the world. In order to allow virtual visitors to get off the beaten path, Google used tricycles with cameras to explore territory closer than cars can go. In addition to exploring the World through the amazing street view technology, Google provides factual information, stunning images, 3-D models and YouTube videos right on the page.
The World Wonders Project is a valuable resource for the classroom. The virtual tours lend themselves to learning in ways in which an encyclopedia or textbook cannot compete. Comprehensive educational packets complete with curriculum connections and ideas for use in the classroom offer teachers an innovative way to teach social studies through engaging multimedia rich student centered learning experiences.
The project launched at the end of May and currently features 132 ancient and cultural spots located across many areas of the globe. It appears as though the site will expand. One does have to wonder, where's Africa?
Browse by location or by theme and try Google World Wonders Project for yourself! |


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Fiction Reviews
Book Review: The American Girl by Monika Fagerholm
- The American Girl
- Other Press, 528 pp.
Fractured Fairy Tales
In Monika Fagerholm's The American Girl there is a house. A house in the darker part of the District,
… an alpine villa on the low-lying damp ground by a turbid marsh. The nameless marsh.
The entire house was a staircase. A hundred steps leading up to the main entrance.
A staircase leading to nothing.
And deep within this house, deep down, deep down in the basement where the giant picture windows look out on the turbid marsh (when the view is not being choked by vegetation), deep down in the empty swimming pool, there are two girls playing.
Two girls named Sandra Wärn and Doris Flinkenberg.
Two girls playing with fire.
I'm sorry. Brief commercial break while I shake Fagerholm's style out of my fingertips.
Okay, back to your regularly scheduled program…
Born in 1961, Fagerholm belongs to a minority of Swedish-speakers in Finland. This novel, Den amerikanska flickan, her third, won a number of prestigious prizes and became a best-seller when it appeared in 2004.
And it's a challenge. Along with Joyce Carol Oates and Toni Morrison, she belongs to a group of writers who have spent the last few decades chopping up dense, emotionally-rich stories and slamming down the lid of the pressure cooker.
She mixes chronologies, shudders between past and present tenses and frequently incorporates italics:
Regardless, the moment was quickly over because later Lorelei Lindberg broke out into a rippling laughter that welled out into the quiet world that surrounded her. And then, in that moment, Sandra was one hundred percent convinced that her mother was playing a role for all she was worth. That she was on the glitter scene again. But now the performance did nothing.
Wikipedia, purveyor of all useless knowledge, calls this style "high literary," which is another way of saying it can bug the hell out of a reader.
It bugged the hell out of me. Granted, a grossly unfair comment, since I haven't read the book in its original language. Nor can I find fault with its general thrust – the havoc caused when an American arrives in an insular Finnish community during the late 60s.
Almost immediately we learn that the girl, Eddie de Wire, has drowned in the marsh. Her death is unexplained, a mystery that has a bad knock-on effect on many in the District – three siblings, Rita, Solveig and Bengt; their aunt, the "cousin's mama" and her son Björn; and the quirky baroness who lives in the Glass House.
But most importantly, Doris and Sandra.
Skillfully drawn by Fagerholm, these two waifs make up a classic odd couple: Sandra, the harelipped only child of a jetsetting couple named the Islander and Lorelei Lindberg, and Doris, the mistreated marsh child rescued by the cousin's mama:
Doris Flinkenberg with her very own way of expressing herself. You did not always know if she was serious or if she was playing a game. And if it was a game, in that case, what kind?
"One man's death is another man's breath," Doris Flinkenberg sighed in the cousin's kitchen, so delighted over finally having her own home, a real one.
Sandra is the one living in the house in the darker part of the District, where she and Doris play their fantastic games. In the empty pool, they surround themselves with silken fabrics (leftover from a failed business attempt by Lorelei), read lurid true crime stories and speculate on the unpleasant happenings around them.
It's a radioactive fairy tale, with adults known only by nicknames (the Black Sheep, the baroness) and facts twisted into fantasies. Ever seen Heavenly Creatures? There's a bit of that in here – the overheated imaginings of two girls on the edge of puberty.
Even the clues to the mysteries that Fagerholm drops along the way – elaborately drawn childhood maps, a half finished puzzle of an "Alpine Villa in Snow"– take on the shape of breadcrumbs leading to the alpine gingerbread house in the woods.
But as the girls grow, the District's many mysteries begin to clear, paralleling the girls' maturity. There is one last tragedy before Sandra's rational self takes over, and this marks the beginning of the novel's end. It's a cold dawn that greets the characters as they emerge from their midsummer madness.
A strange, tilting madness that seemingly only Northern European authors can produce. I'm thinking of Peter Høeg's similarly titled The Quiet Girl and Roald Dahl's boy-eating witches and the recent glut of Scandinavian crime fiction. I have a friend who lived for some time in Norway, and his description of the long winter nights has made me extremely cautious about visiting alone.
Of course, Fagerholm is Finnish, not Scandinavian. Which brings me conveniently back to my caution about this being a translation and my quibbles about her style. Here, for one last example, is her picture of the aftermath of a fire:
It had burned down on one side, the ground smarting with pain and the emptiness ran like a wide furrow farther into the woods than what could be seen with the naked eye from where she was standing.
You had me at "smarting with pain" and lost me with "than what could…" Maybe it's just a consequence of being immersed, again, in murky waters (see Oates's Little Bird of Heaven), but this kind of writing is starting to give me a rash. When reading "high literary" feels akin to contracting an infection, it's time to break out the antibiotics.
Elinor Teele is a freelance writer and photographer living in Massachusetts. In addition to reviews and essays, she writes short stories, novels and plays for children and adults. An adopted New Zealander, she holds a PhD in English Literature from the University of Cambridge, England.


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Luxury Cruises
Dragon Legend Cruise
Dragon Legend is the newest member of Indochina Junk fleet, proudly marked as the high end product line, there are two ships which will be launched in 2014. Dragon Legend features 24 luxury cabins, 4 decks with both inside and outside restaurants, spa, ba
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Violet Cruise is the most luxurious Halong Bay Vietnam! Entertain lavishly in a 43 sqm suite offering elegant Indochina 1930 decor featuring warm, exotic woods, fabrics and hand painted walls &ceiling.
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A LIFETIME EXPERIENCE IN THE GULF OF TONKIN The Au Co is the first and only luxury cruise operator specialising in offering a three-day two-night voyage through world-renowned Halong Bay, Cat Ba Island and the Gulf of Tonkin. The Au Co ship features the very latest safety standards and represents Vietnamese and Oriental culture at its best. Each of her
Learn MoreIndochina Sails
The Indochina Sails, launched in late 2008, features ceramic artworks handcrafted in Bat Trang, well known as the home of the country's most talented ceramic craftsmen. All of our boats are decorated with silk from Van Phuc, the "Silk V
Learn MoreValentine Cruise
Valentine Cruise is one of the most luxurious & boutique Junks in Halong Bay, built in Vietnam , utilizing local materials and the handiwork of skilled shipbuilders, craftsmen and artists. As in the days of old they are built entirely of wood.
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Officially open on 18 December 2007, our newest four star junk will set the standard for services and amenities on the bay. Fitted out in the 1930's Indochine style, the Halong Jasmine will feature 22 spacious cabin, restaurant,
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3 February 2013 | ||
12:00 | to | 13:00 |
St. Mark Square
The "Flight of the Angel" is a traditional event that goes back to the Serenissima period where an unknown guest of Venice, flying along a rope from San Marco bell tower to the middle of the square, will offer an homage to the Doge, and will be greeted by the crowded parterre of the period costumes parades of the Historical Re-enactments. As a conclusion, the embrace of the Angel and the Doge will smooth the atmosphere of a square galvanized by scenographical effects always appreciated by the Italian and international networks.
The "Doge" Parade is organized by C.E.R.S. – Consortium of European Re-enactment Societies, with the participation of Ass. Amici del Carnevale di Venezia and Ass. Internazionale per il Carnevale di Venezia.


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12 Labours of Hercules
Accompany Hercules on a quest to rescue his wife, kidnapped by the evil Hades in 12 Labours of Hercules! You'll meet heroes from Ancient Greece as you vanquish beasts, repair roads and construct wonders in this stunning Time Management game!
No magical creatures were harmed in the making of the game. They're all actors.


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Ultra modern LED wall light will add personality to any room in the house, including lounge rooms, entry, and especially for staircase landings.
Its long life LED technology is designed to provide ambient lighting with its warm white glow of 3000K.
- Input voltage: 240V
- Colour Temperature: 3000K
- Wattage: 2W
- 2 Piece Genesis Photonics LED Chips
- Lumens: 195 Lumens
- Ideal to create ambient lighting
- Ultra modern
- Low energy longlife LED lighting
- Beam: 120°
- 240V fitting, 12V driver included
- IP rating: IP21
- Not suitable for use with dimmers
Backplate Dimensions
- Length: 100mm
- Width: 45mm
- Depth: 30mm
Mounting U Bracket
- 90mm x 20mm
- Central 25mm cable entry
Click to view technical specification:
About CLA
CLA was established by Heath Cooper as a family business on the northern beaches of Sydney in 1999. The mission of CLA is to be the leading provider of innovative, high-quality energy saving lamps, lighting fixtures and related products to commercial, industrial, residential and utility markets.
Here in CLA, we are committed to providing an eclectic range of quality products. Our range is continually expanding and evolving to ensure we can offer our customers the latest in national and international trends.
Since its inception, CLA has expanded quickly to become an industry leader supplying benchmark technology over a diverse range of lighting products, from energy saving CFL lamps, recessed lighting, fluorescent, indoor/outdoor landscape and complex environment lighting to the more current LED lamps and fittings.
In addition to providing our customers with a full range of lighting products we also ensure that they are of top quality with competitive prices.
CLA has a total commitment to a "Customer First" attitude and to being consistently superior to competitors in fulfilling customer needs. At CLA, we are also committed to growing profitably and to the opportunity for all employees to contribute, grow, have fun and take pride in their work.
CLA, headquartered in Brookvale, has strategically based warehouses nationwide to ensure adequate stock levels with same day delivery service to most metro centers and next day delivery to regional areas.


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Illinois college students already eligible for over $1.1 billion in Pell Grants for the 2013-2014 academic year
DEERFIELD–(ENEWSPF)–March 27, 2013. In just the first three months of 2013 Illinois students filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) have already qualified for nearly $1.1 billion in federal Pell Grants to help pay for their postsecondary education during the 2013-2014 academic year.
"Students should be aware that even with projected funding for the state's Monetary Award Program exhausted, those who are MAP-eligible will likely also qualify for a Pell Grant, which can provide up to $5,645 annually when attending an eligible institution full time," said Illinois Student Assistance Commission Executive Director Eric Zarnikow.
"While not every student eligible for a grant claims one, last year Illinois students received more than $1.3 billion in Pell Grants. When combined, MAP plus Pell accounted for nearly $1.7 billion in non-loan financial assistance," Mr. Zarnikow added. "Pell is vitally important, especially when MAP funding is exhausted."
Mr. Zarnikow noted that nearly 94 percent of MAP-eligible students are also eligible for Pell. For a community college student in Illinois, the maximum Pell Grant covers 100 percent of tuition and fees with some money remaining to help pay for books and other expenses.
"It's important that students not end their search for non-loan assistance once MAP awards are suspended," he added. "But, as with almost all financial assistance, the important first step is for a student to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)."
The Federal Pell Grant Program provides need-based grants to low-income undergraduate students to promote access to postsecondary education. Students may use their grants at any one of approximately 5,400 participating postsecondary institutions including all Illinois public institutions and most private and many proprietary schools located in the state.
Grant amounts are dependent on the student's expected family contribution to pay for college; the cost of attending the institution; the student's full-time or part-time enrollment status; and whether the student attends for a full academic year or less.
For more information about MAP, the FAFSA and Pell Grants, visit ISAC's website at www.isac.org. Site visitors can also find a workshop or outreach event at www.isac.org/calendar or, from the ISAC home page, look up the closest member of the Illinois Student Assistance Corps (ISACorps) to get one-on-one assistance.
Source: illinois.gov


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Minitab Offers "Meet Quality Companion" Webinar August 6
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (PRWEB) July 29, 2013 -- Minitab Inc., the leading provider of software for quality improvement, is offering a free webinar to highlight how its process improvement software can support Lean Six Sigma projects.
"Meet Quality Companion" will be held on Tuesday, August 6, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. EDT (GMT -4:00). Registration is free at http://www.minitab.com/training/web-events/. Space is limited.
Quality Companion was designed by experienced practitioners to help improvement professionals manage Lean Six Sigma and other projects in one application.
"We created Quality Companion to help professionals get through their projects faster and more efficiently," says Andy Sharp, product marketing manager for Minitab. "It makes it easier for companies to achieve the maximum benefit from their quality improvement programs."
Companion's Project Roadmap™ helps plot a clear course of action to execute improvement projects. Adding Companion's built-in "soft" tools, such as process mapping, brainstorming and reporting, creates a detailed plan for the entire project—and the means to complete each step.
The software also includes more than 100 form templates, including C&E Matrix, FMEA and Project Charter, all of which are easily customized to fit any organization. Quality Companion even offers on-demand guidance, with built-in Coaches that give expert advice from experienced Lean Six Sigma professionals.
Quality Companion features a powerful tool for Value Stream Mapping (VSM), a Lean Six Sigma technique used to analyze the flow of information and materials needed to bring products to customers. The tool can be used to help improve manufacturing, supply chain, service-related, healthcare, software development or product development processes.
When a project ends, Companion maintains the entire project in one easy-to-manage file, making it simple to archive and review in the future.
Quality Companion has been embraced by organizations including Xerox, the U.S. Postal Service and BHP Billiton. A fully functional 30-day trial version is available at http://www.QualityCompanion.com.
About Minitab
Minitab Inc. is one of the world's leading developers of statistical and process improvement software. Thousands of distinguished companies use Minitab software, including Toshiba, DuPont, Boeing, Royal Bank of Scotland, Nestlé and Pfizer.
Minitab Statistical Software has been used in virtually every major Six Sigma initiative around the world, and is used to teach statistics in over 4,000 colleges and universities. Quality Companion® is used worldwide to plan and execute Six Sigma projects. Quality Trainer is an online e-learning course that teaches statistics for quality improvement. All Minitab products are backed by outstanding services, including training, e-learning opportunities and free technical support.
Minitab Inc., headquartered in State College, Pa., operates offices in the United Kingdom, France and Australia and has additional representatives throughout the world.
Eston Martz, Minitab Inc., 1-814-753-3270, [email protected]


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We've said it before: in the future simple interfaces will use nothing but your body. At least at first glance that's the case with this WiFi-based gesture control system. If you have Internet at home you probably have a WiFi access point. That's the first portion of the equation. The remainder is a way of measuring how the radio waves bounce off of your body. So far this is being done with Software-Define Radio (SDR) but researchers at University of Washington think it may be possible to build the technique into future WiFi devices.
The demo video shows this man waving his arm to adjust the volume of his home entertainment system. Intuition tells us that this would be impossible if your arm wasn't the only thing in motion at the time. But that issue is quickly addressed. Multiple antennas can track multiple people at the same time. There is also consideration for false-positives. The system requires a moderately complex wake-up gesture sequence to prevent you from, say, accidentally turning on the stereo when you roll over in bed.
If you're having trouble wraping your mind around this, consider this ultrasonic music player. The WiFi version does the same thing, but processing changes in the returning radio waves is much more complex.


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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A new research report says worldwide shipments of smartphones climbed 36 percent during the fourth quarter as they supplanted personal computers and other gadgets on holiday shopping lists.
The findings released Friday by International Data Corp. are the latest indication of the technology upheaval being wrought by the growing popularity of smartphones that can perform a wide variety of tasks, including surfing the Web and taking high-quality photos.
IDC estimates 219 million smartphones were shipped during the final three months of last year. That compares with nearly 161 million in the same 2011 period.
Samsung Electronics Co. retained its bragging rights as the smartphone leader, shipping nearly 64 million devices for a 29 percent share of the global market.
IPhone maker Apple Inc. ranked second with a 22 percent share.


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This article is more than 1 year old
SeaMicro pushes 'Atom smasher' to 768 cores in 10U box
A lot more bang for some more bucks
The drumbeat of system upgrades continues apace at microserver startup SeaMicro, with the company launching its third server node for its SM10000 "Atom smasher" in the past nine months.
The new machine is based on the same Atom N570 chip and related NM10 Express chipset from Intel that was used in the prior generation of SeaMicro machines that were launched in February, dubbed the SM10000-64. The difference between that machine and the new SM1000-64HD is that SeaMicro has crammed up to 768 Atom cores in the box, an increase of 50 per cent.
Both of the SeaMicro machines to come out in 2011 are based on the Atom N570, which started shipping in the first quarter of this year, is a dual-core, 64-bit version of the Atom chip that runs at 1.66GHz and that supports HyperThreading. With HyperThreading, the N570 presents four virtual instruction streams to the operating system running on the chip, and on many workloads it can boost performance on the order of 20 per cent or more. The N570 has 1MB of L2 cache on the chip and has an 8.5 watt thermal design point (TDP). This Atom chip may be a 64-bit chip, which is a requirement for a lot of the hyperscale Web data centers that are interested in buying the SM10000 machines, but the N570 does not support ECC error correction on its DDR3 memory controller, which is a bit of a big deal for some server shops, and does not support Intel's VT chip-level virtualization and VT-d I/O virtualization technologies. All of these technologies are supported on Intel's Xeon server chips, of course.
The first generation of SeaMicro machines, the SM10000, came out in June last year and started shipping in volume in September. The SM10000 was based on the 32-bit Atom Z530 processor, and crammed up to eight of these single-core chips on a single server card and then put 64 of these cards into the 10U rack-mounted chassis, for a total of 512 cores.
Back in February, when the SM10000-64 launched, the core count stayed the same at 512 cores, but the architecture shifted to 64-bits. You could see that the server card had some extra space on there, which SeaMicro is using in its latest server board to increase the compute density of the 10U chassis. Here's what the new card looks like:
The server card for the SM10000-64HD
So why didn't SeaMicro just put six Atom N570 processor/NM10 chipset pairs on the server card back in February? Andrew Feldman, CEO and co-founder at SeaMicro, tells The Register that the answer was "engineering expediency".
The problem is that the load balancer and torus interconnect at the heart of the SeaMicro system was tuned for 512 cores. And the easiest and quickest way to get 64-bit support out the door was to keep the core count the same and then spend the spring and early summer tweaking the SM10000's various microcode to support more cores. That is what has happened with the SM10000-64HD.
Tweaking this interconnect is not a trivial thing. The SeaMicro design includes a home-grown ASIC chip that virtualizes disk access and Ethernet networking for each of the Atom servers. The ASIC also implements a multi-dimensional torus interconnect between all of the server nodes, which is similar to the interconnect that IBM developed for its BlueGene massively parallel Linux supercomputer and which delivers 1.28Tb/sec of aggregate bandwidth across the 64 server motherboards.
SeaMicro also cooked up a field programmable gate array (FPGA) to do load balancing, and these circuits are hooked into the SM10000's system management tools to allow for pools of servers to be grouped together and managed as a single object and to provide guaranteed performance levels for groups of processors, disk, memory, and fabric. The fabric doesn't have a name, but this function performed by the fabric is called Dynamic Compute Allocation Technology, or DCAT.
With the ASIC interconnect, load balancing, and DCAT features all tuned up, now SeaMicro can put the full complement of six processors on the latest server card. Each socket gets 4GB of DDR3 memory, for a total of 1.5TB per chassis (that's 2GB per core).
The chassis supports up to 64 SATA disk or solid state drives and Gigabit Ethernet (64) or 10 Gigabit Ethernet (16) uplinks out of the back of the box to reach the outside world. The server cards plug into the SM10000 chassis and backplane through two PCI-Express 2.0 slots. The backplane currently supports 128 of these PCI slots for hooking in server boards. (Two columns of 32 slots on each side of the chassis.)
Just by increasing the processor count by 50 per cent on each server card, SeaMicro is able to decrease power consumption per processor by 18 per cent because the ASICs and interconnect are shared across more computing units without any extra power draw.
The SM10000, SM10000-64, and SM10000-64HD servers all look the same from the outside.
An original SM10000 server with 512 cores and 1TB of main memory cost $139,000. The bump up to the 64-bit Atom N570 for 512 cores and the same 1TB of memory boosted the price to $165,000. A 768-core, 1.5TB machine using the new 64HD cards will run you $237,000. That's 50 per cent more oomph and memory for 43.6 per cent more money. ®


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We use draw-line* as an example here, but calling any of the drawing functions specified in 2.3, CLIM Drawing Functions and 2.4, Graphics Protocols results in the following series of function calls on an output recording stream:
A program calls draw-line* on arguments sheet , x1 , y1 , x2 , y2 , and perhaps some drawing options.
draw-line* merges the supplied drawing options into the sheet's medium, and then calls medium-draw-line* on the sheet.
The :around method for medium-draw-line* on the output recording stream is called. This creates an output record with all of the information necessary to replay the output record, if stream-recording-p is t . If stream-drawing-p is t , this then does a call-next-method .
The primary method for medium-draw-line* performs the necessary user transformations by applying the medium transformation to x1 , y1 , x2 , y2 , and the clipping region. Then it draws on the underlying window.
replay-output-record for a graphics displayed output record simply calls the medium drawing function (such as medium-draw-line* ) directly on the sheet ( not on the medium) with stream-recording-p set to nil and stream-drawing-p set to t .


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[](/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/04/nw.jpg)Naomi Wolf has joined the Hamas chorus by attacking feminist hero Phyllis Chesler for being a Zionist agent. How facilely Wolf has adopted the language of Jew-haters the world over – an even more bitter irony coming from someone who has written an entire book comparing democratic America to Nazi Germany.
And Chesler's sin? To have dared to challenge the Left's party line of defending the Islamic mutilators of adolescent girls, and practitioners of gender apartheid. But then again, this isn't anything new for Wolf, seeing that she is on the record for finding the burqa sexy.
In her recent article, "Brandeis Feminists Fail the Historical Moment," Phyllis Chesler criticized Brandeis' phony feminists for their complicity in the University denying an honorary degree to Ayaan Hirsi Ali. In a response on her Facebook page, Wolf joined the anti-Semites of the Mearsheimer-Walt-Blumenthal set, claiming that Chesler has no mind of her own but is merely a puppet of the organized Jews:
"She is funded these days by pro-Israel advocacy organizations that support journalists and writers to advocate 'the party line' in terms of hardline anti-Islam and right-wing policy outcomes regarding Israel."
This is pretty crude even for a brain-dead Marxist.
Wolf goes on to complain that Chesler:
"has made some outlandish, grossly factually incorrect attacks on me whenever I write anything that encourages Western readers to have a deeper understanding of Islam."
What she means is a more groveling, supine attitude of appeasement towards barbaric Islamic attitudes and practices. When Wolf encourages people to have a "deeper understanding" of Islam, she is not alluding to caring more about the horrifying Islamic practices of female genital mutilation, honor killing, forced marriage, veiling and acid attacks carried out against Muslim women in the name of Islam.
Chesler has already answered Wolf's sick attack with a little tongue-in-cheek acidity:
"Naomi: Are you on the payroll of the public relations crisis management team Brandeis has reportedly hired? Are you now or have you ever been funded by George Soros? Or merely by the Democratic Party? Is Al Gore, for whom you once consulted, and who sold his cable channel to Al-Jazeera, backing you? Is he supporting your Woodhull Institute? Or are the Jordanian royals helping you? I know you visited with them and wrote about them very favorably."
Wolf's attack on Chesler is an extension of the collision that occurred between the two a few years back, after Wolf went on a political pilgrimage to the Muslim world and returned singing the praises of the burqa. Chesler dismantled Wolf's embarrassing fairy tales of the female gulag that Islam has constructed for nearly a billion women with such precision that one wonders why Wolf is now even bothering to step back into this mismatch. Unlike Wolf, Chesler is a true scholar of Islam and as the former bride of a Muslim in Afghanistan, she has first-hand experience of the horrors of Islamic gender apartheid.
Naomi Wolf is a sad emblem of the pathetic state of the Left and of its pseudo feminist wing: ignorant, arrogant, bigoted, anti-Semitic, anti-American and an embarrassing fifth column for the Islamic barbarians of the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas.
To get the whole story on why the Left reaches out in solidarity to Islamo-fascists and ignores their victims, watch Jamie Glazov discuss Jihad-Denial in the 2-part video series below:
Part 1:
Part 2:
Freedom Center pamphlets now available on Kindle: Click here.
Make sure to Subscribe to Frontpage's TV show, The Glazov Gang, and LIKE it on Facebook.


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Because dragons are awesome
2012 is the Chinese Year of the Dragon, not to mention the year in which the scaly mythical ne'er-do-wells returned to pop culture through the likes of Game of Thrones, Dragon's Dogma, and people still playing Skyrim. Whereas fads like superheroes or zombies encourage all manner of clever psychologizing, there's something admirably simple about a huge lizard-monster that breathes fire and digs shiny things.
With that in mind, we figured it was as good a time as any to highlight a few of our favorite fire-lizards from the world of gaming. As if there were ever a wrong time (possibly the Middle Ages?) for too many dragons...
7. The Ur-Dragon (Dragon's Dogma)
The Ur-Dragon (not to be confused with the Err-Dragon, who just develops a stutter whenever it's fire-breathin' time) packs a ridiculous amount of HP and offensive power. He actually shares persistent health when played online, meaning that players in separate games need to work together to down the beast. Sure, it doesn't "technically" make sense, but it's awesome, and if the fourth wall needs to be utterly shattered in order to take him down then so be it.
6. Alduin (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)
The massive dragon is the biggest and baddest of Skyrim's flying lizards, and in a game full of flying lizards sold on the promise of fighting flying lizards, that's actually not bad. And even then, appearing as a world-devouring, fire-breathing serpent is something of a step down for Alduin, who dwells in eternal fire as a force of pure destruction. Nice of him, then, to put on the scaly costume and play along, burninating the countryside.
5. Deathwing (World of Warcraft: Cataclysm)
Deathwing caused volcanoes, earthquakes, floods, and massive tectonic reshaping throughout Azeroth during the Shattering, the WoW-wide event that heralded his arrival within the game. He'd also randomly show up and kill players, just because he's a jerk. And then things got serious.
4. Thanatos (Thanatos)
Thanatos is the real deal. No complicated cosmological backstory here: Thanatos' powers include breathing fire, dropping rocks, eating villagers... and being slain inside of a minute, because being a dragon is actually really hard. He also might be the inspiration for Trogdor, which immediately raises his credential astronomically.
3. Red Dragon (Demon's Souls)
The Red Dragon is giant, scary, and extremely difficult to actually fight. If you try to approach him early in the game there's a good chance he's going to leave you as a smoldering pile of broken controllers and expletives. You can kill it with God's Wrath or a Sincere Prayer, which seems... quite appropriate for a huge flying avatar of evil. Then again, there's also a tried and tested method of seeing it off with a Meat Cleaver, which doesn't seem very Arthurian.
2. Spyro (Spyro the Dragon)
Besides the power of flight, fire-breathing, and looking absolutely adorable, Spyro breathes ice, lightning, and, um, dirt... and a line of successful, collectible toys! He's also revered among the easily-confused for his achievements as 39th Vice-President of the United States, a common misconception Insomniac has done notable little to address.
1. Singe (Dragon's Lair)
Need more? Singe has an impregnable fortress of riches and death - that same one that's mentioned in the game's title. Dragon's Lair was setting the benchmark for in-game dragons 30 years ago; all subsequent efforts did was refine the gameplay some (considerable) amount and switch the QTEs for button mashing.
More dragons?
Have we been dragon our heels in assembling this list? Would you like to hit us wyvern other dragon or two? You'll find our commenting policies to be far from draconian, provided you don't try to flame us.
And if you want to read about more monsters, check out the top 7 villains that need their own spin-off games and the top 7 bestest frenemies.


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Create a Website Account - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more.
Residents and businesses may conduct an easy self-audit but may also request a free water audit from water retailer Los Angeles County Waterworks District 29 by sending a request for a water audit to email@example.com. There are also easy and practical water saving measures, including using water efficient hardware which is often eligible for rebates. See www.malibucity.org/rebates for more information on rebates.
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You may wash your car if the hose is fitted with a shut-off nozzle and if all water runoff is absorbed by landscaping on the property where the vehicle is washed. Car washing cannot cause runoff into or upon any street, drainage ditch, storm drain, flood control channel, or drainage leading to creeks or ocean.
Mobile car wash companies must use a mat or containment system that prevents water runoff and captures water for reclamation and reuse in car washing, or for disposal at a permitted facility that recycles water.
Water waste may be reported at www.malibucity.org/waterwaster or by calling One-Call-to-City-Hall after hours at 310-456-2589, ext. 310. Your identity will be kept confidential when a report is submitted by phone or online.
There are a number of rebates available including for high efficiency washing machines, weather-based irrigation controllers, rotary sprinkler nozzles, rain barrels, cisterns, and more. For information on rebate and incentive programs visit www.socalwatersmart.com.


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An estimated 80 million American aduts—one in three—have one or more types of heart disease, says the American Heart Association (AHA), based in Dallas, Texas. Diet can have a significant effect on reducing the risk of developing heart disease. Since even people on statins (cholesterol-lowering drugs) develop heart attacks, dietary interventions should not be underestimated.
Dietary Components Are Key
Evidence suggests that dietary patterns have a lot to do with the development of heart disease. A study conducted by nutritional biochemist Alice Lichtenstein and colleagues has found that sticking to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans reduced the progression of arterial plaque—the buildup of fatty deposits in artery walls—in women who already had the disease. The guidelines provide authoritative advice about how dietary habits can promote health and reduce risk for major chronic diseases.
Lichtenstein is director of the Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts.
She and colleagues examined data on eating patterns of 224 postmenopausal women. Multiple angiographs—which measure the degree of coronary artery disease—were taken of each volunteer at the beginning and end of a 3-year study period. The researchers used a comprehensive measurement to score adherence to both individual and overall dietary components of the guidelines. They also used a mathematical method known as "regression analysis" to assess diet-disease associations. The women who showed a greater adherence to the overall guidelines had less progression of their atherosclerotic lesions over the 3-year period.
"We established that individual dietary components do not have the same weight as the total diet in terms of describing diet-disease relationships," says Lichtenstein. "This is important from a public health perspective, because the work supports the development of effective dietary guidance for preventing health problems."
The findings highlight the need for more sophisticated approaches to assessing the effect of dietary recommendations on various chronic diseases, wrote the authors.
The 2009 study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Food Chemical Findings
Some consumers clearly are striving to eat well as a way to prevent or delay heart problems that eventually could require taking prescription medications. In response, food companies are adding naturally occurring nutrients to foods in higher-than-natural concentrations as a way of helping consumers.
The term "phytosterols" refers to sterols and stanols, which are compounds found in small quantities in plants. When consumed by humans in large quantities, phytosterols reduce arterial plaque buildup. In plants, these compounds are similar in structure and function to cholesterol, and in humans, they work by blocking the absorption of cholesterol in the small intestine.
"Phytosterols are not naturally found in any one food serving in high enough levels to have an effect on cardiovascular disease," says Lichtenstein. Numerous clinical trials have shown that consuming foods enriched with at least 0.8 grams and up to 3 grams of plant sterols or stanols daily lowers serum low-density lipoprotein (LDL "bad") cholesterol. By comparison, a consumer would have to eat at least 100 or more carrots to get the equivalent of 0.8 grams of plant sterols, depending on size and composition estimates.
Significantly, plant sterol-supplemented food products—such as margarine spreads and orange juice—are now widely marketed to consumers for eating once a day with breakfast. "Studies are needed to examine the effects of plant sterol consumption frequency on circulating blood cholesterol as part of a diet low in saturated and trans fats," says Lichtenstein. She and colleagues studied the effect (on blood cholesterol levels) of giving volunteers plant sterols once in the morning compared with giving sterols three times a day.
Lichtenstein analyzed lipid (blood fat) profiles of 19 study volunteers from blood samples taken after each of three 6-day study phases—a relatively short intervention period. For the control phase, the volunteers were given a precisely controlled weight-maintaining diet, with no plant sterols. For the second phase, the volunteers were given the same diet, but with a standardized amount, 1.8 grams, of plant sterols in margarine with breakfast. For the third phase, the volunteers were given the same diet, but also 1.8 grams of plant sterols divided equally and given during each of the three meals per day.
Volunteers consumed their regular, habitual diets for 2 weeks in between each study phase.
The study found that consuming a single morning dose of plant sterols was not as effective at lowering plasma LDL cholesterol concentrations as was consuming the plant sterols three times per day. Among the three-times-per-day group, measures of cholesterol absorption decreased by 6 percent compared to controls.
The authors concluded that, based on the study, plasma LDL cholesterol is lowered most when plant sterols are consumed in smaller amounts given more often, rather than in one large amount.
The 2009 study appears in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Good Food Components—and Not
Not all food components affect blood lipid chemistry positively. Before the 1990s, public health recommendations to use less animal fats and tropical oils spurred food producers to partially hydrogenate fats—a process that introduces trans fatty acids (or trans fats) into fats of vegetable origin. Multiple research studies conducted throughout the 1990s show that partial hydrogenation and resulting trans fatty acids raise serum cholesterol levels. And a 1999 study headed by Lichtenstein shows a linear relationship between increased dietary intake of partially hydrogenated fat and increased levels of LDL cholesterol.
A more recent study led by Lichtenstein shows that substituting corn oil for partially hydrogenated soybean oil during a 35-day diet lowers risk factors for heart disease in women who already had moderately high cholesterol. Thirty women aged 50 or older participated in this fat-consumption study.
"For this study, we were not looking at any one specific amount of partially hydrogenated fat; instead, we wanted to know whether a shift in the type of fat used in food preparation would have a significant effect on plasma lipid levels," says Lichtenstein. "We were interested in documenting how much of a difference would occur if a relatively large number of producers made this switch. And what we found was that, yes, it does make a significant difference."
The 2009 study was published in Atherosclerosis.
The Right Fats, in the Right Amounts
Not surprisingly, AHA is working to increase awareness among consumers about the health benefits of reducing intakes of trans fatty acids without increasing intakes of saturated fats. AHA commissioned a tracking survey between 2006 and 2007 to measure changes in consumer awareness, knowledge, and behaviors in regard to fats and oils and their perceived impact on heart disease. Both surveys included a representative sample of the American population—1,000 adults, ages 18 to 65.
The 2006 AHA consumer research survey revealed that while 84 percent had heard the term "trans fats," close to half were unaware of the negative health effects they cause.
"We want people to get the right message about eating fats as part of a balanced dietary approach to reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease," says Lichtenstein, who co-chaired AHA's 2006 "Trans Fat Conference" and coauthored the conference report in Circulation in 2007. "The message is that a moderate-fat diet relatively low in trans and saturated fats but richer in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats is what people should be consuming."
The authors concluded that collaboration between the food industry and nutrition professionals is important to addressing future food development, processing, and technology issues.
In another published study, Lichtenstein and coauthors reported an improvement in consumer awareness of trans fats. Among the 2007 AHA survey respondents, 92 percent were aware of trans fats—up from 84 percent in 2006. But overall consumer awareness, especially regarding food sources of saturated and trans fats, remains relatively low, according to the study authors. They published the findings in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association in 2009.
"The message that total fat alone is important, such as when low-fat diets were wildly popular, is oversimplified. If you simply consume a low-fat diet, then triglyceride levels go up, HDL ("good" cholesterol) levels go down, and a positive effect on body weight is not necessarily achieved," says Lichtenstein.
This year, an estimated 1.2 million Americans will have a new or recurring heart attack, and nearly 200,000 more will have an undiagnosed or "silent" heart attack. Reducing risk factors such as elevated cholesterol and blood pressure through lifestyle changes can help avoid chronic health problems down the road. Such changes in daily routine can help save money on prescription drugs and overall healthcare costs while improving the quality of life for individuals.—By Rosalie Marion Bliss, Agricultural Research Service Information Staff.
This research is part of Human Nutrition, an ARS national program (#107) described at www.nps.ars.usda.gov.
Alice H. Lichtenstein is with the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, 711 Washington St., Boston, MA 02111; (617) 556-3127.
"Eat Smart for a Healthy Heart" was published in the July 2010 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.


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SAN FRANCISCO --- Thee Ohsees aren't breaking up, but they are taking a long hiatus as front man John Dwyer (our podcast interview) told the crowd at Wednesday's performance at Great American. "This will be the last Oh Sees show for a long while," he told the crowd. "So dig in."
Dwyer's off to LA (yet another artist leaves San Francisco) and Brigid Dawson leaving for Santa Cruz while bass guitarist Petey Dammit and drummer Mike Shoun are staying in the city.
We just want to thank Thee Ohsees for bringing the brilliant music for years and can't wait to see them live again in the future!


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Wall Street again has high hopes for Apple after record quarter
Though Apple is well known for giving investors conservative guidance for the coming quarter, many analysts were surprised by Apple's third-quarter guidance of 34 percent gross margin and $1.18 to $1.23 in earnings per share. Those totals were better than market expectations prior to Tuesday's earnings announcement.
Here is a breakdown of analyst ratings and price target changes, as well as excerpts from their commentary:
Piper Jaffray: Overweight ($186)
Analyst Gene Munster, with Piper Jaffray, said the fact that Apple can't make enough iPhones to meet demand is a good sign of things to come. He expects the accelerated sales of iPhones and Macs that began in the June quarter to continue. Munster is even more optimistic because Apple's guidance for the coming September quarter is less conservative than usual.
Munster also noted that Apple COO Tim Cook, during his comments on Tuesday's earnings conference call, left the door open for a large touch-screen device, but essentially ruled out the possibility of an Apple-branded netbook. The comments led Munster to believe that a tablet device will debut later this year or early next year. In addition, the analyst expects to see new iPods and an update to the Apple TV that could include DVR functionality.
"We maintain our Overweight rating on shares of AAPL," he wrote. "Raising price target from $180 to $186 to reflect higher EPS estimate on an unchanged multiple."
Caris & Company: Buy ($200)
Rob Cihra, with Caris & Company, sees the iPod touch as the "growing ace up Apple's sleeve." Although iPods were comparatively the weakest producer for the third quarter, the inclusion of the App Store with the iPod touch makes it stand out from other MP3 players on the market.
"We continue to believe Appleâs Touch keeps stealthily growing within mix and can exceed 10% of total revs," Cihra wrote. " A UNIQUE product angle competitors canât match (iPhone apps WITHOUT monthly service fee), iPod Touch becomes more than a music/video player but gaming device, etc., with video camera a likely addition in next (fall?) refresh."
Citi: Buy ($196)
Analyst Richard Gardner also cited Apple's positive guidance, above market expectations, from Tuesday's earnings report. He also viewed the company's pre-buying of $500 million in NAND flash memory as a positive.
"Mac, iPods and iPhone shipments were all meaningfully above our forecast, while EPS of $1.35 beat our estimate by $0.22 primarily on material gross margin upside," Gardner wrote. "We remain bullish on AAPL shares."
Needham & Co.: Strong Buy ($200)
Charlie Wolf has high expectations for AAPL stock after it "once again defied the recession" in the third quarter. But the analyst with Needham & Co. still has reservations about the future of the App Store. During Tuesday's conference call, the analyst told Apple executive Tim Cook he believes developers are currently in a "race to the bottom" with $0.99 apps.
"If the App Store is going to drive iPhone sales, the applications on the web site have to be unique and valuable to shoppers in ways that canât be matched on competing smartphone stores," he wrote. "In short, they should populate the 'killer app' category, which has been a key driver of hardware sales. To accomplish this will require that the most engaging applications are written for and can be easily discovered on the iPhone App Store."
RBC Capital Markets: Outperform ($190)
RBC's Mike Abramsky sees pending distribution of the iPhone 3GS in more overseas markets as a "catalyst to momentum." Particularly, the pending launch of the iPhone in China is seen as a huge opportunity for growth.
"Apple is expected to expand distribution of the iPhone 3GS to 80+ countries in Q4, up from 14 countries in Q3," Abramsky wrote. "We believe Apple may move away from carrier exclusivity agreements and launch additional carriers, possibly in the UK and other countries; nonexclusive distribution and increased competition are expected to increase iPhone demand and sales in those countries. The price cut of the iPhone 3G 8GB to $99 is expected to stimulate sales in more price-sensitive developing markets (e.g., Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Eastern Europe)."
Morgan Stanley: Overweight ($195)
Though analyst Kathryn Huberty originally thought the lack of a sub-$700 netbook would hurt Apple, she said Tuesday's earnings report was enough to alleviate those concerns for her. In addition, high margin iPhone sales and prepayment of flash memory de-emphasized long-term gross margin guidance of about 30 percent.
"With these risks muted," Huberty wrote, "iPhone sales > supply, and Mac unit upside, we see a high likelihood of the stock approaching our new $195 price target by calendar year-end."
UBS Investment Research: Neutral ($160)
Unlike most other analysts, Maynard J. Um is not as bullish on AAPL stock. The UBS report raised the target price for Apple to $160, from $140, but expressed concern that increased component costs, particularly on LCD panels, could hurt the company's bottom line.
"We maintain our Neutral rating," Um wrote, "though note that new product announcement (such as a new Verizon Wireless notebook or new iPods) could help boost sentiment."
Kaufman Bros.: Buy ($184)
Kaufman Bros. analyst Shaw Wu had cautioned that Apple could disappoint with the market's high expectations, but he noted in his report that "Apple was able to beat regardless."
We find this particularly impressive in light of high expectations and continued difficult macroeconomic conditions," Wu wrote. "We had cautioned that AAPL shares could consolidate near term given its significant outperformance and universal expectation of a sizable beat; however Apple was able to exceed even the most optimistic expectations."
Barclays Capital: Overweight ($188)
Ben A. Reitzes retained Apple's overweight rating, stating the stock did not disappoint. Though many on Wall Street were concerned the company would lower gross margin forecasts long-term, Apple did not. Reitzes also expects Apple to introduce new hardware in Q4.
"We look forward to even more new products again this quarter," he wrote, "including Snow Leopard software, additional iPhone 3GS international rollouts and new iPods which should come by fall."


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I am an inherently lazy writer.
Given the choice between curling up with a good book or sitting down at my computer, I will almost always choose the former over the latter.
I'm also not very good at managing my free time. I've studied the habits of brilliantly successful people to see if there were some techniques that I might find helpful. Did you know that Buckminster Fuller averaged just two hours of sleep a night for two years and claimed he was more energetic and alert as a result? Or that Honore de Balzac ate dried coffee grounds to stimulate his imagination?
Word is that Socrates even laid out his toga the night before and pre-pinned it in order to save time.
(OK, I made that last one up.)
The only thing that seems to work for me is making daily to-do lists. As you can probably tell, I've always been a big fan of lists. Not only do I always make mental lists in my head, I'm also always annoying friends to give me their lists. ("Who are the 5 hottest sitcom characters of all-time?" "Give me 5 names for your imaginary band." "If you could only eat 5 foods for the rest of your life, what would they be?")
Hmm...now I'm starting to realize why nobody wants to sit in a car with me for more than 3 hours.
Anyway, in lieu of any real writing, here are a few lists I compiled tonight:
The 5 Best Books I've Read In The Past 5 Weeks
- Nick Hornby's "Juliet, Naked"
- Lorrie Moore's "A Gate at the Stairs"
- Stefanie Wilder-Taylor's "It's Not Me, It's You."
- Colston Whitehead's "Sag Harbor"
- Michael Lewis' "Home Game"
My 5 Favorite Nostalgic Childhood Foods
- PB & J sandwiches
- Nesquik
- Chocolate eclairs
- Powdered iced tea
- TV dinners
The 5 Articles Of Clothing I'd Remove From Existence
- Crocs, Uggs & Birkenstocks
- Golf Visors
- Jean shorts (aka "jorts")
- Cardigan sweater vests
- Replica NFL jerseys
The 5 Things I'd Take To A Desert Island
- A Frette blanket
- James Joyces' "Ulysses"
- A case of Sriracha Hot Sauce
- Q-Tips
- The complete works of The Rolling Stones
5 Things That Always Bring Tears To My Eyes
- Parents outliving their children
- Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah"
- The last scene in "Rudy"
- Seeing awkward kids being shunned by their peers
- The tears of a loved one
5 Things That Always Bring A Smile To My Face
- My daughter
- Jeans and sweater weather
- The NY Post
- Reading books by the fireplace
- Five Guys hamburgers
5 Things That Always Make Me Laugh
- Jimmy Fallon's "The Housewives of Late Night"
- People who wear pajamas outside the house
- Leashes on cats
- Fat people trying to get into rowboats
- People walking into glass doors.
5 Best Quotes I Have Recently Read
- "Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." - Soren Kierkegaard
- "It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men." - Frederick Douglas
- "If you care about what others think of you, then you will always be their slave." - James Frey
- "Tina is my baby girl. She's my sister from another mother of a different color. I'd do 25 to life for her. She is down like four flat tires."" - Tracy Morgan
- "Age is a very high price to pay for maturity." - Tom Stoppard
That last quote is certainly resonating with me these days. Why? Because in about one week, I will be turning 41. Holy crap! FORTY. ONE. I certainly don't feel 41. What is 41 supposed to feel like anyway? Honestly, I'm not quite sure anymore.
Sometimes it feels like it was just yesterday that I was 16 years old and my biggest worry was where I should sit in the cafeteria or which pair of acid-washed Girbauds I should wear that day.
Those were the good old days.


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Move aligns with provincial expansion strategy as company executives aim to enhance leadership, visibility and product offerings to meet increasing customer demands
Daikin, the leading global innovator and provider of advanced, high-quality air conditioning, heating, ventilation and refrigeration (HVAC-R) products and solutions for residential, commercial and industrial applications; has relocated the head office for the company's Middle East and Africa Division, in line with plans to support growth and expand throughout the region.
Located in JAFZA-Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), the facility will be the base of operations for 250 staff members from sales & operational functions; as Daikin aims to maintain their position as regional market leader, further strengthen the leadership, visibility and product offerings for the entire MEA region, and to anticipate the future needs of customers. The new facility is situated on 22,000 sqm of land, with the building and warehouse amounting to 7,500 sqm, and combines the Training Academy, AHU Factory and flagship experience center. The office also features an array of new technological HVAC innovations including a chiller system, smart VRV system, along with AHU, FCU & BMS systems.
Tuna Gulenc, Vice President-Sales at Daikin MEA, said: "The opening of this brand-new facility reaffirms our commitment for long-term business expansion, and emphasizes to the market that we believe in both the growth potential of the MEA region and vision of the UAE."
In the last 13 years since Daikin's first office was established in the emirate, the business has grown from USD 30 million to exceed USD 300 million in the MEA region. Since then the small office has grown to become a full fledge MEA Headquarters with sales, service, logistics and manufacturing operations. The business has been expanded by establishing companies in the UAE, KSA and Egypt while developing an effective and proficient sales network across the MEA region. Daikin MEA has since evolved to employ more than 400 people from just 10 originally.
He continued: "Daikin MEA has grown to become the market leader in the region, and this has been made possible by the dedication and commitment demonstrated by our trusted employees and partners on a daily basis over a long period of time. Daikin believes in continuous development once we enter a market. We are building a company that will last one hundred years and more to serve our customers, employ and train more colleagues, and further contribute to our society, environment and planet. Our responsibility is to promote efficient systems to save energy through the various products and solutions, as well as to create careers and job openings in each country we operate in. The launch of the new facility is the latest step of this project and we look ahead to the coming years with strong desire, faith in the potential of the region and our company. We will continue to execute our strategic plans and actions accordingly as we pursue our dream in this region."
About Daikin
Daikin Industries is a global leader in developing and manufacturing advanced, high-quality air conditioning, heating, ventilation and refrigeration products (HVAC-R) and solutions for residential, commercial and industrial applications. Founded in Japan in 1924, the company strives to combine expertise and experience to create new innovative technologies by anticipating the future requirements of customers and society. Daikin has evolved over nine decades to employ 76,000 people with 90 production bases and presence in 150 countries worldwide.
Daikin Middle East & Africa promotes and provides aftermarket support for a full range of air conditioning equipment and systems in All GCC, Middle East and Africa regions.
Press releases
PR - Daikin Middle East and Africa relocates Dubai regional HQ-ENPDF | 130.11KB
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