text:
Why is it only July?!
Last year, the Olympics helped me/fans get through the offseason. This summer, there's…Eurobasket (9/7 – 9/20). For now, let's ignore the possibility that one might not even be able to watch the games even if one were so inclined.
The Jazz will be well-represented in the tournament:
Russia — Andrei Gennadevich Kirilenko (2007 Eurobasket MVP)
Greece — Konstantine Demetrios Koufos (2007 FIBA Europe Under-18 MVP)
Croatia — Ante Tomic, Goran Suton (on roster, has not committed)
Ukraine — Kyrylo Fesenko
Spanish Matador League–Carlos Boozer
(anyone know if Memo is playing for Turkey?)
FES Let's talk a bit about Fes, who, by the way, posted this today:
mother just hit me with cooking pan. we hud the yelling. said I will merry Amurikan girl, not ukraine. did not know teweting so expaneishve
KOC was quoted in today's desnews expressing displeasure over Fes' decision to go home for the summer and play for the Ukrainian national team (what Fes said previously)/work out with his personal trainer (what KOC said; could his trainer be his mom?) and skip Orlando.
I previously said that I don't have any problem with Fes wanting to play for his national team, especially after he told the sob story about how all the good folk back home see his absence on the national team in past summers as him not caring about his country, etc. However, a little research reveals that Ukraine didn't even qualify for Eurobasket. Instead, Ukraine is only playing in the "Relegation Round" against three other teams to see which two get dropped from Division A to Division B. Er…
CJ sltrib's Jazz blog also reported that Jerry suggested to CJ that he play in the summer league during his exit interview. CJ apparently feigned interest, and has not been heard from since.
FB Boozer has also been MIA since the Jazz announced that
his word is worthless he had opted in. So Ross Siler is currently in Orlando covering the Jazz summer league team. He contacted FB's reps and volunteered to drive from Orlando to Miami (no short drive) so that he could speak to FB, and got a flat-out "NO" in response (mp3). I could have told Siler that Boozer would say no. Siler is such small beans. FB only talks to the national media…guys like ESPN's Chris Sheridan. FB makes me want to choke a bitch.
AK Siler also claimed in the same interview linked above that AK "is being shopped everywhere," but in his daily "from Orlando" interview two days later, backtracked, saying that the Jazz have not initiated any trade conversations about AK. Meanwhile, AK apparently found out about the T-Mac trade rumor from the Russian sports media. I'm sure that went over well.
AK-47: Food for the pigs. (According to the blog, DWill and KK and families were supposed to go on that Bahamian trip, but they backed out due to thunderstorm forecasts. What do I take from this? Further confirmation of who gets along with who in the locker room.)
THE KOOF KK2 has packed on 15-20 pounds this summer (and it's only July). No mention of whether it's muscle or not muscle. His neck looks thicker, at any rate.
SAP As for Sap, the Blazers are reportedly poised to take Sap away from the Jazz with a "toxic," front-loaded, signing bonus-included offer. Like I've said previously, much as I like Sap, I don't think the Jazz should overpay to keep him (and by overpay I mean over 8mill, though I personally don't think he should be getting more than 6-7). According to The Oregonian, "Sources say Millsap has told the Blazers he would be amicable to playing behind LaMarcus Aldridge."
I have many questions about this. The locker room problems that started as soon as Boozer returned from injury-wait-consult-wait-consult-wait-consult-surgery were supposedly caused by a combination of Boozer the person and Sap being unhappy with his decreased minutes. His decreased production over the rest of the season can be attributed to either his unhappiness or his being just plain worn down. I've never thought of Sap as a guy with an unrealistic perception of the world (his agentuncle is another story), and if he indeed does not have unrealistic expectations, I don't see why he, knowing that he plays behind Boozer when Boozer is available, would expect his [starter] minutes to be unaffected by Boozer's return. However, if his decreased production is the result of petulance over his minutes, then what's up with his willingness to be a bench guy in POR? Is it because POR is showing him the money?
LBJ In the wake of the "the King is too high and mighty to shake your hand" incident, LBJ continues to cement his status as a spoiled little princess douchebag. By the way, did you know that he was named "LeBron" because his mother "mistakenly believed that it meant 'The Strength' in French"? At least, that's what it said on his Wikipedia page last week. That part has since been removed by him, his mother, his handlers, Nike, or whoever.
… Finally, if you stop and think about it, what kind of messed up world is this where a $5 million/year wage offer can be construed as a slap in the face? If what they're getting paid can be seen as representative of their social value, NBA players should be curing diseases, bringing about world peace, ending starvation, making it rain in the desert, keeping Antarctica frozen, outlawing online sellers gouging buyers on shipping charges for international orders, etc.


text:
Wall Street put together a moderate advance in light post-holiday trading Friday after the finance arm of General Motors got a government lifeline, but dreary holiday spending readings dimmed the chance of a big year-end rally. The major indexes finished the week with losses, the result of
Not surprisingly, Americans spent much less on gifts this season than they did last year, according to SpendingPulse, a division of MasterCard Advisors. Retail sales dropped between 5.5 percent and 8 percent compared with last year, the data showed, or between 2 percent and 4 percent after stripping out auto and gas sales.
Personal consumption is a huge part of U.S. economic activity — comprising more than two-thirds of gross domestic product — so Wall Street is nervous that a more frugal consumer could keep the economy weak in 2009.
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
Investors did get a some good news on Christmas Eve, when the Federal Reserve allowed GMAC Financial Services — the finance arm of struggling Detroit automaker General Motors Corp. — to become a bank holding company and thus qualify for the government's $700 billion rescue fund. Analysts had said that without financial help, GMAC might have had to file for bankruptcy protection or shut down.
There was little conviction behind the advance, which the market managed after stocks meandered for much of the session. With just three full trading days left in the year, no news has been upbeat enough to spark a big year-end rally, a consequence of the great uncertainty still in the market. December is usually a strong month for stocks, and a flurry of trading known as a "Santa Claus rally" is often seen in the final week.
"I think we could have a year-end rally, but it's got a formidable headwind in the form of tax-selling, in my view," said Hugh Johnson, chairman and chief investment officer of Johnson Illington Advisors.
Tax-loss selling is when investors sell their poorly-performing stocks to realize a loss for the year, which can reduce their taxes in upcoming years.
According to preliminary calculations, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 47.07, or 0.56 percent, to 8,515.55 after Thursday's market holiday.
Broader stock indicators also rose. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 4.65, or 0.54 percent, to 872.80, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 5.34, or 0.35 percent, to 1,530.24. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 6.28, or 1.33 percent, to 476.77.
For the week, the Dow ended down 0.74 percent, the S&P 500 fell 1.7 percent and the Nasdaq lost 2.1 percent.
As the year winds down, investors are flummoxed over what 2009 might bring. Some market analysts are predicting a stock market recovery, and others are predicting more volatility; but nearly all are doing so with the caveat that anything is possible.
"It's hard to imagine another year that is going to be as dismal or dark or bad as 2008," Johnson said. "It's even hard to imagine that we have another down year in 2009 — the odds are the stock market will be higher at the end of 2009. Common sense tells you that."
The Dow is down 35.8 percent for the year.
But, Johnson added, it's impossible to forecast the end of a bear market, and "confidence can turn on a dime."
On Friday, the dollar was down against other major currencies, while gold prices rose.
Demand for government bonds increased. The three-month Treasury bill's yield fell to 0.01 percent from 0.02 percent late Wednesday, and the 10-year Treasury note's yield fell to 2.14 percent from 2.19 percent.
Light, sweet crude rose $2.36 to $37.71 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude prices had tumbled Wednesday for the ninth straight day — dipping as low as $35.13 — after gloomy economic reports and growing stockpiles of unused gasoline suggesting eroded demand.
GMAC notes shot higher on the news of the company's transformation into a bank. GMAC's 7.25 percent note due to mature in 2033 rose 88.5 percent to $9.67 from $5.13 on Wednesday. But analysts were wary of the big price move, noting that volume was thin, and saying there is still much to be resolved about the company's finances.
Japan on Friday reminded U.S. investors that the recession is not isolated to the United States. Japanese automakers and other manufacturers cut output last month by 8.1 percent — the biggest decrease since records began in 1953 — in the face of slowing demand overseas.
Despite the plunge, Japan's Nikkei stock index rose 1.63 percent.
In other overseas trading, Hong Kong markets were closed, as were those in Britain, Germany and France.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Forum: Google AdWords
This place for sharing tips about Google Adwords and how to make money from your site through advertising on Google.
Google AdWords Forum
Google AdWords will place your ad in front of thousands of potential prospects. You will quickly see an influx of traffic to your site and more sales.
By joining this forum you will learn time saving tips and many ways to increase your click-through rate. Share as you learn and help other have success as well.
See more: adwords campaign, $25 adwords coupons, conversion rates, google display ads, adwords alternative, keyword suggestion tool, conversion tracking code, shopping campaigns, landing pages, google adwords certified, opt-in form, keyword planner
Moderators of this Forum
Users Browsing this Forum
There are currently 3 users browsing this forum. (0 members & 3 guests)


text:
0 Items (Empty)
Recently Viewed Items
Your Shopping Cart
Your shopping cart is currently empty. If you would like to make a purchase today, add items to your shopping cart.
ReelBait ® Spinners sold 6 on a card come in of 5 core colors. We give you 5 feet of 14# test monofiliment line and lazer sharp hooks. All of our spinners feature the Quick Change blade Snaps to customize blade color without retieing. 6 blades are included. You may be purchase additional blades in 10 packs. This lets you customize your spinners to your fishing conditions.
Made in the U.S.A.


text:
Divorce can be a lengthy process that may strain your finances and leave you feeling out of control. But with the right preparation, you can protect your interests, take charge of your future, and move on with your life. The checklist on the left will get you started.
First things first: Should you hire an attorney?
There's no legal requirement that you hire an attorney when divorcing. In fact, going it alone may be a sensible option if you're young and have been married only a short time, are childless, and have few assets.
However, most divorcing couples hire attorneys to better protect their interests, even though doing so can be expensive. Divorce attorneys typically charge hourly rates and require you to submit retainers (lump sums) up front.
It's not unusual, for example, for an attorney to charge as much as $150 to $200 per hour and require an initial retainer of up to $2,500 to $5,000. The fee depends on the complexity of the case, the reputation and experience of the divorce attorney, and your geographic location.
You should know that if you're a homemaker or earn less income than your spouse, it's still possible to obtain legal representation. You can submit a motion to the court, asking a judge to order your spouse to pay for your attorney's fees.
If you and your spouse can agree on most issues, you may save time and money by filing an uncontested divorce. If you can't agree on significant issues, you may want to meet with a divorce mediator, who can help you resolve issues that the two of you can't resolve alone.
To find a mediator, contact your local domestic relations court, ask friends for a referral, or look in the telephone book. Certain attorneys, members of the clergy, psychologists, social workers, marriage counselors, and financial planners may offer their services as mediators.
Save time and money by doing your homework before meeting with a divorce professional.
If you're uncertain about some of these areas, you can obtain the necessary information through your spouse's financial affidavit and/or the discovery process, both of which are mandated by the court.
© 2003 Forefield, Inc.
Make an inventory of your financial situation. This will help you to prepare in two ways:
To take stock of your situation, here are the steps you might follow:
The current balance in all bank accounts;
The value of any brokerage accounts;
The value of investments, including any IRAs;
Your residence(s);
Your autos; and
Your valuable antiques, jewelry, luxury items, collections, and furnishings.
The current balance in all bank accounts;
The value of any brokerage accounts;
The value of investments, including any IRAs;
Your residence(s);
Your autos; and
Your valuable antiques, jewelry, luxury items, collections, and furnishings.
If you are a spouse who has not worked outside the home lately, be sure to open a separate bank account in your own name and apply for a credit card in your own name. These measures will help you to establish credit after the divorce.
© CPA Site Solutions
Alimony. Financial payments made to help support a spouse or former spouse during separation or following divorce. Also called spousal support or spousal maintenance.
Alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Methods of resolving legal disputes without going to trial, in a less adversarial manner, such as through arbitration or mediation.
Arrearage. The amount of money that is past due for child or spousal support.
Child support. Money that a non-custodial parent pays to the custodial parent for their child(ren)'s support.
Child support guidelines. Guidelines established by statute or rule in each jurisdiction that set forth the manner in which child support must be calculated, generally based on the income of the parents and the needs of the children.
Custody. Having rights to your child. Custody can be either legal, which means that you have the right to make important decisions about your child's welfare, or physical, which means that the child lives with and is raised by you.
Decree. The court's written order or decision finalizing the divorce, often issued in conjunction with the court's judgment.
Default. Failing to answer a petition or complaint for divorce. Failing to file an answer or appear in court as required can result in the court awarding everything requested by the filing spouse.
Defendant. The person against whom legal papers are filed, also sometimes referred to as the respondent.
Deposition. Part of the discovery or information-exchanging process of a legal proceeding, in which the attorney for the other party asks you questions, you answer with your attorney present, and a transcript of the proceedings is prepared.
Discovery. The information-exchanging process of a legal proceeding, including serving and answering interrogatories and requests for production of documents, and taking depositions.
Dissolution. Another word for divorce, which is the legal termination of a marriage relationship.
Divorce. The legal termination of a marriage relationship.
Domestic violence. Physical abuse or threats of abuse occurring between members of the same household.
Equitable distribution. A division of property that is fair in view of all of the circumstances. Equitable does not necessarily mean equal.
Interrogatories. Written questions served by the opposing party that must be answered in writing as part of the discovery process.
Joint legal custody. The sharing, by both parents, of the right to make important decisions about a child's welfare.
Joint physical custody. The sharing, by both parents, of the actual physical care and custody of a child.
Legal custody. The right to make important decisions about the raising of your child, on issues such as health care, religious upbringing, education, etc.
Marital property. Generally, all property acquired during the marriage.
Mediation. A form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) for resolving legal disputes without going to trial, by the use of a trained and impartial third party who attempts to bring the parties together in mutual agreement.
Non-custodial parent. The parent who does not have physical custody of the child(ren).
Non-marital property. Generally, property owned by either spouse prior to marriage or acquired by them individually, such as by gift or inheritance, during the marriage.
Physical custody. The day-to-day rights and responsibilities associated with having your child in your home and being responsible for his or her care and upbringing.
Petitioner. Often, the person who initiates divorce or marriage dissolution proceedings, also called the plaintiff.
Plaintiff. The person who initiates legal proceedings, often called the petitioner in family law matters.
Premarital agreement. An agreement entered into before marriage that sets forth each party's rights and responsibilities should the marriage terminate by death or divorce. Also called a prenuptial agreement.
Prenuptial agreement. An agreement entered into before marriage that sets forth each party's rights and responsibilities should the marriage terminate by death or divorce. Also called a premarital agreement.
Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO). Pronounced "kwah-dro," an order issued by the court to divide retirement benefits.
Respondent. The person who answers a petition in a legal proceeding, sometimes also referred to as the defendant.
Restraining order. An order issued by the court requiring the subject of the order to refrain from doing something, often issued in conjunction with domestic violence or custody disputes.
Settlement conference. A meeting at which the parties and their lawyers attempt to settle the case before trial, often ordered by the court.
Split custody. A form of custody (generally not looked upon favorably) in which some or one of the parties' children is/are in the custody of one parent and the remaining child(ren) is/are in the custody of the other parent.
Spousal support or maintenance. Financial payments made to help support a spouse or former spouse during separation or following divorce. Also called alimony.
Stipulation. An agreement entered into by the divorcing spouses that settles the issues between them and is often entered into the court's final order or judgment and decree.
Visitation. The time that a noncustodial parent spends with his or her child(ren).
Copyright © 2007 FindLaw. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
When people decide to get a divorce, they usually don't know what
to expect. Divorce is a complicated legal process, and it can be full
of unpleasant surprises and frustrating delays. A general understanding
of the process will help you feel more comfortable at an uncomfortable
The following chronology gives a general idea of how the average divorce proceeds. Your divorce may be a little different because of differences among state laws or because of specific issues between you and your spouse.
It's hard to say how long all these steps will take in your case. The entire process can take from as little as a few months, to as long as several years. Generally speaking, the more the couple can cooperate and agree to reasonable compromises, the smoother and faster the divorce will go.
Estimate your post-divorce living expenses.
Figure out how much it will cost you to live after the divorce. This figure is especially important for the spouse who is planning to remain in the family home with the children; it may be determined that the estimated living expenses are not manageable.
To estimate these expenses, add together all of your monthly debts and living expenses, including rent or mortgage. Then total your after-tax monthly income from all sources. The remaining amount is your disposable income.
Here are some tips for handling the credit aspects of divorce, both in the planning stages and afterwards.
Cancel all joint accounts
First, it is important to cancel all joint accounts immediately once you know you are going to obtain a divorce.
Creditors have the right to seek payment from either party on a joint credit card or other credit account, no matter which party actually incurred the bill. If you allow your name to remain on joint accounts with your ex-spouse, you are also responsible for the bills.
Your divorce agreement may specify which one of you pays the bills. As far as the creditor is concerned, however, both you and your spouse remain responsible if the joint accounts remain open.
The creditor will try to collect the bill from whoever it thinks may be able to pay, and at the same time report the late payments to the credit bureaus under both names. Your credit history could be damaged because of the co-signer's irresponsibility.
Some credit contracts require that you immediately pay the outstanding balance in full if you close an account. If so, try to get the creditor to have the balance transferred to separate accounts.
If your spouse's poor credit affects you
If your spouse's poor credit hurts your credit record, you may be able to separate yourself from the spouse's information on your credit report. The Equal Credit Opportunity Act requires a creditor to take into account any information showing that the credit history being considered does not reflect your own.
If for instance, you can show that accounts you shared with your spouse were opened by him or her before your marriage, and that he or she paid the bills, you may be able to convince the creditor that the harmful information relates to your spouse's credit record, not yours.
In practice, it is difficult to prove that the credit history under consideration does not reflect your own, and you may have to be persistent.
For women: Maintain your own credit before you need it
If a woman divorces, and changes her name on an account, lenders may review her application or credit file to see whether her qualifications alone meet their credit standards. They may ask her to reapply. (The account remains open.)
Maintaining credit in your own name avoids this inconvenience. It can also make it easier to preserve your own, separate, credit history. Further, should you need credit in an emergency, it will be available.
Do not use only your husband's name—e.g., Mrs. John Wilson—for credit purposes.
Check your credit report if you have not done so recently. Make sure the accounts you share are being reported in your name as well as your spouse's. If not, and you want to use your spouse's credit history to build your own, write to the creditor and request the account be reported in both names.
Also, determine if there is any inaccurate or incomplete information in your file. If so, write to the credit bureau and ask them to correct it. The credit bureau must confirm the data within a reasonable time period, and let you know when they have corrected the mistake.
If you have been sharing your husband's accounts, building your own credit history in your name should be fairly easy. Call a major credit bureau and request a copy of your file. Contact the issuers of the cards you share with your husband and ask them to report the accounts in your name as well.
If you used the accounts, but never co-signed for them, ask to be added on as jointly liable for some of the major credit cards. Once you have several accounts listed as references on your credit record, apply for a department store card, or even a Visa or MasterCard, in your own name.
If you held accounts jointly and they were opened before 1977 (in which case they may have been reported only in your husband's name), point them out and tell the creditor to consider them as your credit history also. The creditor cannot require your spouse's or former spouse's signature to access his credit file if you are using his information to qualify for credit.
A secured credit card is a fairly quick and easy way to get a major credit card if you do not have a credit history. Secured credit cards look and are used like regular Visa or MasterCard's, but they require a savings or money market deposit of several hundred dollars that the lender holds in case you default.
In most cases, the creditor will report your payment record on these accounts just like a regular bankcard, allowing you to build a good credit record if you pay your bills promptly.
Division of property does not necessarily mean a physical division. Rather, the court may award each spouse a percentage of the total value of the property. (It is illegal for either spouse to hide assets in order to shield them from property division.)
Each spouse will get personal property, assets, and debts the total net worth of which add up to his or her percentage.
Courts divide property under one of two basic schemes: community property or equitable distribution. Community debts are divided according to the same principles.
How do we distinguish between community and non-community property?
Very generally, here are the rules for determining what's community property and what isn't:
Who gets to live in the house during the divorce?
If children are involved, the parent who spends the most time with the kids, or who provides their primary care, usually remains in the marital home with them. If you don't have children and the house is the separate property of just one spouse, that spouse has the legal right to ask the other to leave.
If, however, you don't have children and you own the house together, this question gets tricky. Neither of you has a legal right to kick the other out. You can request that the other person leave, but he or she doesn't have to. If your spouse changes the locks, or somehow prevents you from entering the home, you can call the police.
The police will probably direct your spouse to open the door and let you back in. When you both own the home, the only time you can get your spouse to leave is if your spouse has committed domestic violence and a judge grants a restraining order.
Whatever you do, do not claim domestic violence has occurred, just to get your spouse removed from the home. (Some people have resorted to this extreme tactic.) Once a judge realizes this has occurred, the party claiming violence may be asked to vacate the home, and the judge may be biased against him or her during future negotiations.
If you believe you are a victim of domestic violence, but are not sure, go to the Yellow Pages and call your local domestic violence hotline.
Copyright © 1996, 2000 American Bar Association
Marital or Community Property
Marital or community property is defined somewhat differently by different states, but it generally includes property and income acquired during the marriage. Wages earned during the marriage are marital property. A home, furniture, and cars purchased during the marriage usually are considered marital property.
When property is considered to be marital or community property, the court has the power to divide the property between the parties. Unlike separate or nonmarital property, one party does not have an automatic right to keep the property in the event of a divorce.
If title to property is held in the name of only one spouse, that does not necessarily mean that the property is not marital or community property. Assume, for example, that wife and husband both work and use their wages to purchase a car.
If title to the car is only in the wife's name or only in the husband's name, the car still is marital property because payments for the car came from marital funds (their wages). Even if one spouse bought the car with his or her wages, was the only driver, and held title to the car, the car still is marital property because payments came from marital funds.
As a practical matter, if husband and wife owned two cars and a judge had to decide who receives which car, the husband and wife probably would each receive the vehicle that he or she primarily drove. Nonetheless, if the property in question is marital property, the judge has the power to give it to either party.
A pension also is usually marital property, even though it may have been earned by the labor of only one spouse during the marriage. To the extent that rights to a pension were earned partially during the marriage and partially during a period when the parties were not married, the part earned during the marriage may be marital property and the part earned when the parties were not married may be nonmarital property.
Dividing Marital or Community Property
A few states, such as California, take a rather simple approach. Lawmakers in those states believe property should be divided equally because they view marriage as a joint undertaking in which both spouses are presumed to contribute equally to the acquisition and preservation of property.
The contributions may be different in nature, but they are treated equally. The wage earner does not receive more property than the homemaker, and vice versa. All marital property will be divided fifty-fifty, unless the husband and wife had a premarital agreement stating otherwise.
The California community property approach saves resources. Husbands and wives do not have to spend time and money arguing about who should get more property since the law of that state already has determined that community property will be divided fifty-fifty.
In California, there still may be issues to dispute, such as: What is and what is not community property? What is the value of a particular piece of community property? For example, if an actress divorces mid-way in production of a film, how does one value her interest in the film?
Although California may save resources by declaring an automatic fifty-fifty split, it deprives courts of the opportunity to fine-tune property divisions to meet the needs of individual cases. In several other community property states and in all equitable distribution states, courts are allowed to fine-tune property divisions. (That may or may not be an advantage, depending on the cost of fighting over what is "equitable" and one's faith in judges to make fair decisions regarding property.)
"Equitable distribution" means a court divides marital property as it thinks is fair. Like community property states, states applying principles of equitable distribution view marriage as a shared enterprise in which both spouses usually contribute significantly to the acquisition and preservation of property.
Unlike the community property approach of California, however, equitable distribution states are not locked into a fifty-fifty split. The division of property could be fifty-fifty, sixty-forty, seventy-thirty, or even all for one spouse and nothing for the other (although that would be very unusual).
Under equitable distribution, courts consider a variety of factors and need not weigh the factors equally. That permits more flexibility and more attention to the financial situation of both spouses after the divorce. However, it also makes the resolution of property issues less predictable.
Here are some examples of factors that are considered by states applying principles of equitable distribution:
Dividing Marital or Community Propertybb
Guide to Family Law
Copyright © 1996, 2000 American Bar Association
How alimony is determined.
Unlike child support, which in most states is mandated according to very specific monetary guidelines, courts have broad discretion in determining whether to award alimony and, if so, how much and for how long.
The Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act, on which many states' spousal support statutes are based, recommends that courts consider the following factors in making decisions about alimony awards:
Alimony and Support Orders.
Although awards may be hard to estimate, whether the payer spouse will comply with a support order is even harder to gauge.
Alimony enforcement is not like child-support enforcement, which has the "teeth" of wage garnishment, liens, and other enforcement mechanisms. The recipient could, however, return to court in a contempt proceeding to force payment.
How long alimony must be paid.
Alimony is often deemed "rehabilitative," that is, ordered for only so long as is necessary for the recipient spouse to receive training and become self-supporting. If the divorce decree does not specify a spousal support termination date, the payments must continue until the court orders otherwise.
Most awards end if the recipient remarries. Termination upon the payer's death is not necessarily automatic; in cases in which the recipient spouse is unlikely to obtain gainful employment, due perhaps to age or health considerations, the court may order that further support be provided from the payer's estate or life insurance proceeds.
Alimony Trends.
In the past, most alimony awards provided for payments to former wives by breadwinning former husbands. As the culture has changed, so that now most marriages include two wage earners, women are viewed as less dependent, and men are more likely to be primary parents, the courts and spousal support awards have kept pace.
More and more, the tradition of men paying and women receiving spousal support is being eroded, and orders of alimony payments from ex-wife to ex-husband are on the rise.1
Tax aspects of Alimony.
Alimony usually is treated as income to the recipient and a deduction from income to the person paying alimony. This can result in a savings in the combined income tax payments of the husband and wife. The reason for the savings is that additional income to the wife (in the form of alimony) will be taxed at a lower rate than if it was treated as income to the husband.
Assume a husband and wife are about to be divorced. Before payment of alimony, the wife has a taxable income of $10,000 and the husband has a taxable income of $70,000. If they each were to pay taxes on these amounts, their combined tax liability would be $17,991. (The husband would pay $16,487; the wife would pay $1,504, applying the 1999 federal tax tables).
If the husband were to pay the wife $20,000 per year in alimony, his taxable income would drop to $50,000, and the wife's taxable income would increase to $30,000. Their combined federal income tax payments then would be $15,720 ($10,660 by husband and $5,060 by wife). The savings on their combined tax bills would be $2,271 over what would be paid if the alimony payments were taxable to the husband.
The wife's tax bills have gone up, but so has her income.2
Taxes: Alimony paid and received.
You may deduct the alimony or separate maintenance payments you are required to make to your spouse or former spouse, or to a third party on behalf of that spouse.
This topic covers alimony under divorce or separate maintenance decrees or written separation agreements entered into by you and your spouse or former spouse after 1984. It explains what is deductible if you pay alimony, and what is taxable if you receive alimony.
Alimony payments you make under a divorce or separation instrument, such as a divorce decree or a written agreement incident thereto, are deductible if all of the following requirements are met:
Child support is never deductible. If your divorce decree or other written instrument or agreement calls for alimony and child support, and you pay less than the total required, the payments apply first to child support. Any remaining amount is then considered alimony.
Property settlements, whether in a lump sum or installments, even though required by the divorce decree or other written instrument or agreement, do not qualify as alimony. Any payments not required by such a decree or agreement do not qualify as alimony.
You do not have to itemize deductions to claim your alimony payments. You may claim the deduction on line 34a of Form 1040. You must provide the social security number of the spouse or former spouse receiving the payments. If you don't, you may have to pay a $50 penalty and your deduction may be disallowed.
If you are the spouse or former spouse who is receiving the alimony, you must report the full amount as income on line 11 of Form 1040. If you do not give your social security number to your spouse or former spouse who is making the alimony payments, you may have to pay a $50 penalty.3
1Copyright © 2007 FindLaw
2Guide to Family Law
Copyright © 1996, 2000 American Bar Association
3Internal Revenue Service
Consider these custody decision factors
In deciding who will have custody, the courts consider various factors. The overriding consideration is always the child's best interests, although that can be hard to determine.
Often, the main factor is which parent has been the child's "primary caretaker" (more on this below). If the children are old enough, the courts will take their preference into account in making a custody decision.
Although the "best interest" standard does vary from state to state, some factors are common in the best interest analysis used by the individual states, including:
Determine the "Primary Caretaker" of the child
In addition to the above factors, some states' family courts allow a preference for the parent who can demonstrate that he or she was a child's primary caretaker during the course of the marriage.
In custody cases, the "primary caretaker" factor became important as psychologists began to stress the importance of the bond between a child and his or her primary caretaker.
This emotional bond is said to be important to the child's successful passage through his or her developmental stages, and psychologists strongly encourage the continuation of the "primary caretaker"-child relationship after divorce, as being vital to the child's psychological stability.
When determining which parent has been the primary caretaker, courts focus on direct care-taking responsibilities, such as:
Depending on the state where the custody determination is being made, other factors may be considered as important when determining primary caretaker status. Even such things as exposure to second-hand smoke and volunteerism in the child's school have been considered in a primary caretaker analysis.
While, in the past, the primary caretaker preference seemed just another way to award custody to mothers, as more and more men share parenting responsibilities, this preference does not necessarily favor mothers.
When it is apparent that both parents have equally shared parenting responsibilities, courts once again will fall back on the "best interest" standard in determining custody.
Physical and legal custody
In most situations, physical custody is awarded to one parent with whom the child will live most of the time. Often, however, the custodial parent shares "legal custody" of the child with the non-custodial parent.
"Legal custody" includes the right to make decisions about the child's education, religion, health care, and other important concerns.
Joint custody
Some parents have chosen a joint-custody arrangement in which the child spends an approximately equal amount of time with both parents. Proponents of this arrangement say it lessens the feeling of loss that a child may experience in a divorce.
Critics, however, say that it is best for the child to have one home base, with liberal visitation allowed to the "non-custodial" parent. Because joint custody requires a high degree of cooperation between the parents, courts are reluctant to order joint custody unless both parents are in agreement and can demonstrate the ability to make joint decisions and cooperate for the child's sake.
Split custody
Another option, although much less favored, is split custody, in which one parent has custody of one or more of the parties' children, and the other parent has custody of the other(s).
Courts usually prefer not to separate siblings, however, when issuing custody orders.
Unmarried parents
When the child's parents are unmarried, the statutes of most states require that the mother be awarded sole physical custody unless the father takes action to be awarded custody.
An unwed father often cannot win custody over a mother who is a good parent, but he will usually take priority over other relatives, foster parents, or prospective adoptive parents.
How child custody decisions are made
In any situation where child custody rights are at issue, a number of key questions are raised. If you are going through a divorce, you will want to know whether your child will live primarily with you, and if not, whether will you will be able to make important decisions as to how your child will be raised.
If you are a close relative or family friend of a child who is not your own, you may be wondering if getting custody of that child is even a possibility.
Answers to these questions are at the root of most custody situations, but for parents and others without significant experience with child custody and the legal system, a fundamental concern is: How are custody decisions made?
Following is a brief discussion in response to that question.
Divorce and child custody decisions
If you are a parent considering divorce, or if you are already involved in the process, you are probably wondering how child custody and visitation issues are resolved in a divorce. In general, like all aspects of a divorce -- including property division, child support, financial division, and spousal support (alimony) -- child custody and visitation will either be decided by agreement between the divorcing couple (usually with the help of attorneys and mediators) or by the court. More specifically, custody and visitation decisions are typically resolved in one of two main ways in a divorce:
Unmarried parents and child custody decisions
When a child's parents are unmarried, the statutes of most states require that the mother be awarded sole physical custody unless the father takes action to be awarded custody.
An unwed father often cannot win custody over a mother who is a good parent, but he can take steps to secure some form of custody and visitation rights.
For unmarried parents involved in a custody dispute, options for the custody decision are largely the same as those for divorcing couples -- child custody and visitation will be resolved either through agreement between the child's parents, or by a family court judge's decision.
But, unlike divorcing couples, unmarried parents will not need to resolve any potentially complicated (and contentious) divorce-related issues such as division of property and payment of spousal support, so the decision-making process is focused almost exclusively on child custody. For this reason, resolution of custody and visitation may be more simplified for unmarried parents.
If unmarried parents do not reach a child custody and visitation agreement out-of-court, the matter will go before a family court judge for resolution.
Especially when making child custody decisions involving unmarried parents, the family court's primary consideration will be to identify the child's "primary caretaker."
Non-parental child custody decisions
In some cases, people other than a child's parents may wish to obtain custody -- including relatives like grandparents, aunts, uncles, and close family friends. Some states label such a situation as "non-parental" or "third-party" custody. (Note: Other states refer to the third-party's goal in these situations as obtaining "guardianship" of the child, rather than custody.)
Whatever the label, most states have specific procedures that must be followed by people seeking non-parental custody. The process usually begins when the person seeking custody files a document called a "non-parental custody petition" (or similarly-titled petition) with the court, which sets out the person's relationship to the child, the status of the child's parents (living, dead, whereabouts unknown), and the reasons the person is seeking (and should be granted) custody.
Usually, a copy of this petition must also be delivered to the child's parents, if they are living and their whereabouts are known. To see examples of non-parental custody requirements and petitions in two states, click on the links below.
Child Support Basics
When married parents divorce or separate, or when only one of the unmarried parents of a child has custody, the court may order the "non-custodial" parent (the parent with whom the child does not live) to pay a certain portion of his or her income as child support.
This is not the only scenario in which child support might arise. Less frequently, when neither parent has custody, the court may order them to pay child support to a third party who cares for their child.
No matter what situation gives rise to the need for child support, it might help to think of the legal right to child support as being possessed by a child (which it technically is), for his or her proper care and upbringing, regardless of who actually receives child support payments.
The government's role in child support
Because in the United States nearly half of all marriages end in divorce and almost one-fourth of all children are born to unmarried parents, the regulation of child support is an important social issue. Whereas once the arrangement for and payment of child support was left to the parents, now state child support enforcement agencies are taking an aggressive role in seeking payments from non-custodial parents.
Frequently, the agency and court will work together to implement a child support withholding order, by which the child support amount is automatically taken from the payer's paycheck. If the child support payments become delinquent, the agency can implement other collection mechanisms, such as withholding support amounts from tax refunds, or seizing real estate or personal property.
Child Support Orders
Child support orders are issued by the family court, which bases the amount of the support on the state child support guidelines. These guidelines establish the amount of support that must be paid, based largely on the non-custodial parent's income and the number of children. The court will also take into account other relevant factors, such as the custodial parent's income and the needs of the children.
The court can deviate from the guidelines if there are significant reasons for doing so. The fact that the custodial parent has a high income does not itself justify deviation from the guidelines, because under the law children have the right to benefit from both parents' incomes.
Child support can be increased if there is a change in circumstances justifying the increase, such as an increase in the payer's income or the cost of living, a decrease in the custodial parent's income, or an increase in the child's needs. Similarly, the amount can be reduced if the circumstances justify the reduction.
Unmarried parents and child support
In cases involving unmarried mothers seeking child support, the first step may be to legally establish the father's "paternity" of the child. The father can do this voluntarily, but if he does not the mother may need to bring a lawsuit to establish paternity, which is usually done using genetic (DNA) testing. T
he court will order the "putative" (or alleged) father to submit to the testing if he does not agree to do so voluntarily. Once paternity is established, the court will issue a child support order in a manner similar to that in a divorce situation.
Interstate moves and child support
When the non-custodial parent moves to another state, the custodial parent may have to rely on the Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act to implement or ensure payment of child support. This Act provides the mechanisms by which a support order issued in one state can by enforced by the courts of another state.
Child support: getting a lawyer's help
If you are facing a potential child support issue or dispute, whether due to divorce or as a single parent, a family law lawyer can help by fairly and zealously representing either side in a child support proceeding. A family law lawyer will work to obtain the best possible result in the entry of a child support order, enforcement of an existing order, or in establishing or disproving paternity.
Copyright © 2007 FindLaw
Fortunately, parents can help their kids during a divorce. By minimizing the tension the situation creates, being patient as everyone adjusts to the new situation, and responding openly and honestly to your kids' concerns, you can help them through this difficult time.
Crucial to a child's ability to get through a divorce is the ability of the divorcing parents to maintain a civil relationship. Conflict between parents — whether they're separated, divorced, or still together — causes major stress for kids that can last well beyond childhood.
Tell your kids about divorce.
As soon as you're certain of your plans, talk to your child about your decision to live apart. Although there's no easy way to break the news, if possible have both parents be there for this conversation. And it's important to leave feelings of anger, guilt, or blame out of it.
Although the discussion about divorce should be tailored to a child's age, maturity, and temperament, be sure to convey one basic message: What happened is between mom and dad and does not have anything to do with the kids. Most kids will feel they are to blame even after parents have said that they are not. So it's vital for parents to keep providing this reassurance.
Give kids enough information to prepare them for any upcoming changes in their lives. Try to answer their questions as truthfully as possible, in a way that they can understand and process. Remember that kids don't need to know every last detail — they just need to know enough to understand clearly how their lives are going to change.
With younger kids, it's best to keep it simple. You might say something like: "Mom and dad are going to live in different houses so they don't fight so much, but we both love you very much and will try to help you get through this."
Older kids and teens may be more in tune with what parents have been going through, and may have more probing — and difficult — questions about things based on what they've overheard and picked up on from conversations and fights.
Tell kids who are upset about the news that you recognize and care about their feelings and reassure them that all of their upset feelings are perfectly OK and understandable. You might say: "I know this is very upsetting for you. Can we try to think of something that would make you feel better?" or "We both love you and are sorry that mommy and daddy have to live apart."
Not all kids react right away. Let yours know that's OK too, and there will be other times to talk, if they want to. Some kids try to please their parents by acting as if everything is fine, or try to avoid any difficult feelings by denying that they feel any anger or sadness at the news.
Whatever your child's immediate reaction, it's important to provide answers and reassurance about how life will change and what will stay the same. Be ready with answers to these questions, even before they're asked:
Try to be honest when addressing your child's concerns and provide reassurance that the family will get through this, even though it may take some time.
Help your kids cope.
Divorce brings numerous changes and a very real sense of loss. Many kids — and parents — grieve the loss of the kind of family they had hoped for, and children especially miss the presence of a parent and the family life they had. That's why it's common and very natural for some kids to hold out hope that their parents will someday get back together — even after the finality of divorce has been explained to them. Mourning the loss of a family is normal, but over time both you and your child will come to accept the new situation. So reassure kids that it's OK for them to wish that mom and dad will reunite, but also explain the finality of your decisions.
Here are some ways to help kids cope with the upset of a divorce:
Consistency and routine can go a long way toward providing comfort and familiarity that can help your family during this major life change. When possible, minimize unpredictable schedules, transitions, or abrupt separations.
Especially during a divorce, kids will benefit from one-on-one time with each parent. No matter how inconvenient, try to accommodate your ex-partner as you figure out visitation schedules.
It's natural that you'll be concerned about how a child is coping with this change. The best thing that you can do is trust your instincts and rely on what you know about your kids. Does they seem to be acting differently than usual? Is a child doing things like regressing to younger behaviors, such as thumb-sucking or bedwetting? Do emotions seem to be getting in the way of everyday routines, like school and social life?
Depression, moodiness, acting out, poor performance in school, use of alcohol or other drugs, sexual activity, or chronic oppositional behavior can all signal that kids are having trouble. Teens may have behavior problems, exhibit depression, show poor school performance, run away from home, or get into trouble with the law. Regardless of whether such troubles are related to the divorce, they are serious problems that affect a teen's well-being and indicate the need for outside help.
Don't fight in front of the kids.
Although the occasional argument between parents is expected even in a healthy family, living in a battleground of continual hostility and unresolved conflict can place a heavy burden on any child. Screaming, fighting, arguing, or violence can make kids fearful and apprehensive.
Witnessing parental conflict presents an inappropriate model for kids, who are still learning how to deal with their own relationships. Kids whose parents maintain anger and hostility are much more likely to have continued emotional and behavioral difficulties that last beyond childhood.
Talking with a mediator or divorce counselor can help couples air their grievances and hurt to each other in a way that doesn't cause harm to the children. Though it may be difficult, working together in this way will spare kids the hurt caused by continued bitterness and anger.
Adjust to a new living situation.
Because divorce can be such a big change, adjustments in living arrangements should be handled gradually.
Several types of living situations should be considered:
There's no simple solution to this. Although some kids can thrive spending half their time with each parent, others seem to need the stability of having one "home" and visiting with the other parent. Some parents choose to both remain in the same home — but this only works in the rarest of circumstances and in general should be avoided.
Whatever arrangement you choose, your child's needs should always come first. Avoid getting involved in a tug of war as a way to "win." When deciding how to handle holidays, birthdays, and vacations, stay focused on what's best for the kids. It's important for parents to resolve these issues themselves and not ask the kids to choose.
During the preteen years, when kids become more involved with activities apart from their parents, they may need different schedules to accommodate their changing priorities. Ideally, kids benefit most from consistent support from both parents, but they may resist equal time-sharing if it interrupts school or their social lives. Be prepared for their thoughts on time-sharing, and try to be flexible.
Your child may refuse to share time with you and your spouse equally and may try to take sides. If this occurs, as hard as it is, try not to take it personally. Maintain the visitation schedule and emphasize the importance of the involvement of both parents.
Kids sometimes propose spending an entire summer, semester, or school year with the noncustodial parent. But this may not reflect that they want to move. Listen to and explore these options if they're brought up.
Parenting under pressure.
It's hard to maintain your role as a parent when going through any kind of emotional turmoil. You might be tempted to depend on kids for emotional support or to ask them to report back on what the other parent is doing. Resist such urges — mothers and fathers should work hard to keep their parental roles in place. Kids, no matter how much they try to understand what you're going through, are still just kids.
Consistency in routine and discipline across the households is important. Similar expectations regarding bedtimes, rules, and homework will reduce anxiety. Wherever possible work with the other parent to maintain consistent rules — and even when you can't enforce them in your ex-partner's home, you can stick to them in yours.
It's important to maintain as much normalcy as possible after a divorce by keeping regular routines, including mealtimes, house rules about behavior, and discipline. Relaxing limits, especially during a time of change, tends to make kids insecure and reduces your chances of regaining appropriate parental authority later.
Resist the urge to drop routines and spoil kids upset about a divorce by letting them break rules or not enforcing limits. You should feel free to lavish affection on them — kids don't get spoiled by too many hugs or comforting words — but buying things to replace love or allowing kids to act any way they want is not in their best interests and you may have a hard time trying to reign them back in once the dust settles.
Divorce is a major crisis for a family. But if you and your former spouse can work together and maintain a civil relationship for the benefit of your children, the original family unit can continue to be a source of strength, even if stepfamilies enter the picture.
So remember to:
Many of the elements that help kids in intact families thrive and be emotionally healthy are the same ones that help those from divorced families thrive and be emotionally healthy. With good support, kids can and do successfully make this life adjustment.
©1995-2007 The Nemours Foundation


text:
Parent Directory | Revision Log
Fixed to show "n/d" when the RNA count is zero.
#!/usr/bin/perl -w =head1 Genome Data Generator This script creates a set of HTML include files that list the statistics for the genomes in each of the genome groups. Genomes that are new to this version of the Sprout will be specially marked. In order for this to work, both the current and previous Sprout databases must be available on this machine. This is one positional parameter: the name of a directory in which to place the include files. The currently-supported command-line options are as follows. =over 4 =item user Name suffix to be used for log files. If omitted, the PID is used. =item trace Numeric trace level. A higher trace level causes more messages to appear. The default trace level is 2. Tracing will be directly to the standard output as well as to a C<trace>I<User>C<.log> file in the FIG temporary directory, where I<User> is the value of the B<user> option above. =item sql If specified, turns on tracing of SQL activity. =item background Save the standard and error output to files. The files will be created in the FIG temporary directory and will be named C<err>I<User>C<.log> and C<out>I<User>C<.log>, respectively, where I<User> is the value of the B<user> option above. =item h Display this command's parameters and options. =item strict If specified, strict groups will be used; otherwise, groups with a common primary name will be combined into a single group. (The primary name of the group is the first capitalized word.) =item oddStyle Style to use for odd rows of the table. =item evenStyle Style to use for even rows of the table. =item tableStyle Style to use for the table itself. =item markerStyle Style to use for small-text markers (e.g. NEW!) =item numStyle Style to use for numeric cells. =item counterStyle Style to use for counter cells. =item linkCGI Path to the CGI script for displaying detailed statistics. =back =cut use strict; use Tracer; use DocUtils; use TestUtils; use Cwd; use File::Copy; use File::Path; use Sprout; use SFXlate; use CGI qw(:standard); use FIG; no warnings 'once'; # only when coding # Get the command-line options and parameters. my ($options, @parameters) = StandardSetup([qw(Sprout ERDB) ], { strict => [0, 'keep related groups separate'], oddStyle => ['odd', 'style for odd rows'], evenStyle => ['even', 'style for even rows'], tableStyle => ['genomestats', 'style for whole table'], markerStyle => ['tinytext', 'style for markers'], numStyle => ['numcell', 'style for cells with numeric values'], counterStyle => ['countercell', 'style for cells with counter values'], linkCGI => ['../FIG/genome_statistics.cgi', 'path to CGI script for detailed statistics'], }, "<targetDir>", @ARGV); # Verify the directory name. my $targetDir = $parameters[0]; if (! $targetDir) { Confess("No target directory specified."); } elsif (! -d $targetDir) { Confess("Target directory $targetDir not found."); } else { # Get the old Sprout. my $oldSprout = SFXlate->new_sprout_only($FIG_Config::oldSproutDB); # Extract the genome group data from the old Sprout. my %oldGroupHash = $oldSprout->GetGroups(); if (! $options->{strict}) { %oldGroupHash = Fix(%oldGroupHash); } # Get the new Sprout. my $sprout = SFXlate->new_sprout_only(); my %newGroupHash = $sprout->GetGroups(); if (! $options->{strict}) { %newGroupHash = Fix(%newGroupHash); } # Loop through the groups. for my $groupID (keys %newGroupHash) { Trace("Processing group $groupID.") if T(2); # Get the genomes from the new hash. my @newGenomes = @{$newGroupHash{$groupID}}; # Create a hash for finding if a genome is in the old group. If the entire group is # new, we just use an empty hash. my %oldGenomes = (); if (exists $oldGroupHash{$groupID}) { %oldGenomes = map { $_ => 1 } @{$oldGroupHash{$groupID}}; } # Create the output file. my $outFileName = "stats-" . lc($groupID) . ".inc"; Open(\*GROUPFILE, ">$targetDir/$outFileName"); # Get the styles. my ($tableStyle, $markerStyle, @rowStyle) = ($options->{tableStyle}, $options->{markerStyle}, $options->{evenStyle}, $options->{oddStyle}); my ($numStyle, $counterStyle) = ($options->{numStyle}, $options->{counterStyle}); # Start the table. print GROUPFILE "
\n"; # Create the header row. print GROUPFILE Tr( { class => 'odd' }, th(["Strain annotated in NMPDR", "Genome size, bp", "Protein Encoding Genes (PEGs)", "Named genes in subsystems", # s0 "Named genes not in subsystems", # n0 "Hypothetical genes in subsystems", # s1 "Hypothetical genes not in subsystems", # n1 "RNAs", ])) . "\n"; # Set up some useful stuff for the four count columns. my %linkParms = ( s0 => "nothypo_sub", n0 => "nothypo_nosub", s1 => "hypo_sub", n1 => "hypo_nosub" ); my @columnTypes = ('s0', 'n0', 's1', 'n1'); # The data rows will be built next. We'll be putting them into a hash keyed by # organism name. The hash enables us to spit them out sorted by name. my %rows = (); # Loop through the genomes in the new group. for my $genomeID (@newGenomes) { # Check to see if this genome is new. my $new = (! exists $oldGenomes{$genomeID} ? "new " : ""); Trace("Processing ${new}genome $genomeID for $groupID.") if T(3); # Get the strain name. my $genomeName = $sprout->GenusSpecies($genomeID); # If this is a new strain, build the HTML for the NEW! mark. if ($new) { $new = " NEW!"; } # Get the genome length. my $genomeLen = Tracer::CommaFormat($sprout->GenomeLength($genomeID)); # Get the number of PEGs. my $pegCount = Tracer::CommaFormat($sprout->FeatureCount($genomeID, 'peg')); # Get the number of RNAs. my $rnaCount = Tracer::CommaFormat($sprout->FeatureCount($genomeID, 'rna')); # If there are no RNAs, we say we don't know the number, since we know there # must be RNAs somewhere. if (! $rnaCount) { $rnaCount = "n/d"; } # Now we have four categories of features to work with, for each # combination of named or hypothetical vs. in-subsystem or # not-in-subsystem. First, we get all of the feature assignments for # the genome. my $assignHash = $sprout->GenomeAssignments($genomeID); # Next, we get all of the features in the genome that belong to a # subsystem. This involves a query via the subsystem spreadsheet. my %ssHash = map { $_ => 1 } $sprout->GetFlat(['IsGenomeOf', 'ContainsFeature'], "IsGenomeOf(from-link) = ?", [$genomeID], 'ContainsFeature(to-link)'); # Create a hash to track the four categories. "s" or "n" indicates # in or out of a subsystem. "1" or "0" indicates hypothetical or # real. my %counters = ( s0 => 0, n0 => 0, s1 => 0, n1 => 0 ); # Also keep a count of all the features. my $totalFeatures = 0; # Loop through the assignments. for my $fid (keys %{$assignHash}) { # Form the counter key. my $ss = ( exists $ssHash{$fid} ? "s" : "n" ) . FIG::hypo($assignHash->{$fid} ); # Record this feature. $counters{$ss} += 1; $totalFeatures++; } Trace("$totalFeatures total features found for $genomeID.") if T(3); # We have all our data. Next we need to compute the percentages and the links. # First, the link stuff. my $linkPrefix = "$options->{linkCGI}?user=\&genome=$genomeID&SPROUT=1&request="; # Now format the counters and percentages. for my $type (keys %linkParms) { $counters{$type} = a( { href => "$linkPrefix$linkParms{$type}" }, sprintf("%d(%.1f%%)", $counters{$type}, Tracer::Percent($counters{$type}, $totalFeatures))); } my @counterValues = map { $counters{$_} } @columnTypes; # Create the row text. Note that we use the distributive capability of the TD # function to apply the same style to each one. my $rowHtml = join("", td("$genomeName$new"), td({ class => $numStyle }, $genomeLen), td({ class => $numStyle }, $pegCount), td({ class => $counterStyle }, \@counterValues), td({ class => $numStyle }, $rnaCount), ); # Put it in the row hash. $rows{$genomeName} = $rowHtml; } # Set up a counter. my $rowCount = 0; # Now we have all the rows set up. We want to sort them and then # write them to the output file. First, we create a variable # we can use to select the even or odd style. my $rowType = 0; # Loop through the rows. for my $rowID (sort keys %rows) { # Format the row. print GROUPFILE Tr( { class => $rowStyle[$rowType] }, $rows{$rowID} ) . "\n"; # Flip the row type. $rowType = 1 - $rowType; # Count the row. $rowCount++; } # All done, terminate the table and close the file. print GROUPFILE "
\n"; close GROUPFILE; Trace("$rowCount genomes processed.") if T(2); } # We're all done. Trace("Processing complete.") if T(2); } =head3 Fix C<< my %fixedHash = Fix(%groupHash); >> Prepare a genome group hash for processing. Groups with the same primary name will be combined. The primary name is the first capitalized word in the group name. =over 4 =item groupHash Hash to be fixed up. =item RETURN Returns a fixed-up version of the hash. =back =cut sub Fix { # Get the parameters. my (%groupHash) = @_; # Create the result hash. my %retVal = (); # Copy over the genomes. for my $groupID (keys %groupHash) { # Make a safety copy of the group ID. my $realGroupID = $groupID; # Yank the primary name. if ($groupID =~ /([A-Z]\w+)/) { $realGroupID = $1; } # Append this group's genomes into the result hash. Tracer::AddToListMap(\%retVal, $realGroupID, @{$groupHash{$groupID}}); } # Return the result hash. return %retVal; } 1;
|MCS Webmaster
|ViewVC Help
|Powered by ViewVC 1.0.3


text:
1 box yellow cake mix, without puddingMilk, substitute for water in cake mix2 Tbsp. cocoa1 tsp. vinegar2 eggs, or amount cake mix requires1 oz. red food coloring1/2 cup vegetable oil2 cans cream cheese frosting
Easiest and best red velvet cake you'll ever make.
Click Here to access the online Public Inspection File
Viewers with disabilities can get assistance accessing this station's FCC Public Inspection File by contacting the station with the information listed below. Questions or concerns relating to the accessibility of the FCC's online public file system should be directed to the FCC at 888-225-5322, 888-835-5322 (TTY), or email@example.com.


text:
B-61 Silver Bullet hydrogen bomb (1967) training replicas at Wings Over the Rockies Museum. Denver, CO.
Photo by Jim Steinhart © 2012, all rights reserved. (Ref: CODW671)
Click an index below to see this photo among related images:
Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum, Denver
Captions List for Denver


text:
View Larger Map
The Hamburger Wagon is located at Market Square and Main Street in Historic Downtown Miamisburg, Ohio.
Hamburger Wagon
P.O. Box 322
Miamisburg, OH 45343
Tel: (937) 847-2442
Hours of Operation:
Memorial Day thru Labor Day:
Mon-Sat 10:30-7 pm, Sun 11-7 pm
Labor Day thru Memorial Day:
Mon-Sat 10:30-6 pm, Sun 11-6
Open All Winter!
Branding, Design and Development by Gary Hartman Design


text:
New York, September 13, 2011--The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the new measures taken by Egypt's ruling military council. In recent days, the military announced that it would actively enforce the Hosni Mubarak-era Emergency Law, which allows civilians, including journalists, to be tried in state security courts. Other recent anti-press measures include an Al-Jazeera bureau being raided and shut down, the military announcing a "temporary freeze" on issuing licenses to satellite television stations, and a foreign blogger being denied entry into the country.
"For months now, the ruling Supreme Military Council of the Armed Forces [SCAF] has been going to great lengths to hamstring the media and snuff out critical reporting," said Mohamed Abdel Dayem, CPJ Middle East and North Africa program coordinator. "As the self-proclaimed guardian of the revolution, the military council ought to facilitate the work of long-silenced voices in the media instead of shutting them down and threatening them with repressive state security proceedings."
On Saturday, the SCAF announced that it will enforce the Emergency Law, which allows civilians, including journalists, to be tried in state security courts and detained indefinitely, the independent daily Al-Masry al-Youm reported. The announcement came despite the military's commitment to annul the law by September--a core demand of the revolution. Under the law, security officials would be allowed to take "legal procedures" to crack down on acts of "thuggery" and could use "all legal powers to safeguard the country's security," Al-Masry al-Youm said.
On Sunday, Egyptian police raided the Al-Agouza District offices of Al-Jazeera Mubasher Misr (Al-Jazeera Live-Egypt), an affiliate of the Qatar-based broadcaster Al-Jazeera-Mubasher, shutting down their live, around-the-clock broadcasts from Cairo, Al-Jazeera reported. Uniformed security personnel raided the bureau, seizing live broadcasting equipment and detaining engineer Islam al-Banna, Station Director Ayman Gaballah told CPJ. Al-Banna was released on Monday, the station's Cairo bureau chief, Ahmad Zein, said in an interview with broadcaster ONTV. Gaballah said that the channel continued to broadcast live from Doha. Egyptian authorities on Sunday also stopped the station's live broadcasts from another location at the Media Production City outside Cairo.
Gaballah told CPJ that Al-Jazeera Mubasher Misr began broadcasting shortly after the former regime's fall in February and that they had applied for a license six months ago but were repeatedly told by the ministry that they could go on broadcasting without a problem since their license would be issued "within days." Although the SCAF said the shutdown was the result of the channel operating without a license, CPJ research indicates that this was merely a pretext to silence the critical broadcaster. CPJ interviews also indicate that at least a handful of other stations were given similar instructions regarding their licenses and have operated in this manner since February.
Al-Jazeera Mubasher Misr had extensively covered the recent protests in front of Israel's embassy in Cairo, which had culminated in the ransacking of the embassy, the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram reported.
On Wednesday, the SCAF announced a "temporary freeze" on broadcasting licenses for new satellite television stations, the news channel Al-Arabiya reported. The SCAF also assigned the Investment Authority, a government organ entirely unrelated to the media, with taking legal action against satellite channels broadcasting what it deemed could incite violence or "destabilize" the country.
In a separate anti-press incident, Imad Bazzi, the Lebanese blogger who pens Trella.org and is the founder of the Arab Blogging Forum, was denied entry at Cairo International Airport upon his arrival from Beirut on Tuesday, local and human rights groups reported. After 10 hours of questioning, Bazzi was deported, as he had reportedly been "blacklisted" as a security concern, the Lebanese daily Al-Akbar said. In June, the journalist had visited the jailed Egyptian blogger Maikel Nabil Sanad, who has been imprisoned since March 28 on charges of insulting Egypt's armed forces.


text:
The Terminator is a 1984 science fiction film that has spawned a franchise of movies, comic books, video games, theme park attractions and a television series. The stories involve a future from which robots are sent back in time to avert (or start) a world war.
- A "Movie Mania" interstitial stars Kermit the Frog as "The Kerminator," sent from the future on a mission to save mankind. Nothing can stop him until Miss Piggy happens upon the cybernetic frog and inquires as to his recent whereabouts. When the Kerminator mistakes her for Sarah Connor, she assumes that he's been seeing another woman. In accessing his response options, his computer brain chooses to run like heck from the oncoming threat.
- The Muppet Parodies 1998 Calendar also features Kermit as "The Kerminator," equipped with a fly-swatter and shades warning enemies to "Bug-Off."
- The Sesame Street 25th anniversary special Stars and Street Forever features John Goodman as an operator for a Tough Guy Hotline. After spewing a slew of Hollywood tough guy lines to Telly while pumping iron, he signs off by saying, "Hasta la vista, baby," a line made famous by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the second film.
- Elmo's World: Jackets features a Muppet motorcyle jacket who quotes another of the Terminator's famous lines from the original film: "I'll be back," even using Schwarzenegger's signature, and often mocked, Austrian accent.
- The character Arnold Schnuffleupanegger references both movies in his appearance on Sesame Street, saying, "I'll be back. Hasta la vista, baby!"
- In a 2017 Vanity Fair video, Elmo utters "I'll be back" and Count von Count utters "Hasta la vista, baby!"
- Aaron Cash played a Terminator in the pilot for Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008)
- Claire Danes played Kate Brewster in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
- Terry Crews played Captain Jericho in Terminator Salvation (2009)
- M. C. Gainey played the roadhouse bouncer in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
- Lena Headey played Sarah Connor on Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-2009)
- Kristanna Loken played TX in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
- Marianne Muellerleile played the wrong Sarah in The Terminator (1984)
- Patrick Pinney played a bar customer in The Terminator (1984)
- Arnold Schwarzenegger played "the Terminator" in the first three films
- Brian Thompson played a punk in The Terminator (1984)
- Rick Zieff played Mr. Jones in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.


text:
Brin d'Bois Swan With Outstreched Wings
The pleasure of the wooden, ecological and natural toy. Toys and figurines made by Brin d'Bois are formed using soft and warm colors, giving free rein to the development of the imagination of the child. Figurines can also decorate your life according to your imagination. Figurines and wooden toys Brin d'Bois have been shaped and hand painted with natural oils and varnishes and non-toxic. They comply with current European safety exigeances on toys. Ages 3+. Warning: Choking Hazard, can contain small parts, not suitable for children under three years.
Recommended for children over 3 years.


text:
Parkers Hot Dogs was featured on Man vs, Food.
Can you handle a 5lbs Chili Dog? Well Can you? Come On In and Give it a Try.
"The 5lb. Chili Dog Challenge"
Parker's is originally from Santa Cruz. Parker Wilson started "Parker's Jumbo Dogs" in the late 1940's in the Santa Cruz area. By 1955, Parker's was well established and was located
in Capitola by then. Parker passed away in the 1970's. Parker's son, John Parker, opened the first Parker's
in Roseville in 1997, upon his retirement from the Air Force.
1605A Douglas Blvd.
(Corner of Sunrise
& Douglas Blvd)
(916) 786-2202
Sat-Sun: 11AM-6PM
Locate Us


text:
Science Operations Statistics
You are here
Primary tabs
Gemini Observatory tracks completion rates for queue programs, open shutter efficiency, acquisition times and weather losses for both telescopes. In addition, the Observatory has investigated the distribution of the real observing conditions. This information may be used in the future to better match the queue filling to the expected distribution of the observing conditions. Information on RA distributions as well as the demand for the various GMOS gratings in semesters 2006B-2008A is also available. The following summarizes current status of these Science Operations Statistics. The information on weather loss and delivered science nights, as well as the completion rates for queue programs is updated regularly. The remainder of the information originates from specific requests from committees or from internal analysis of operations questions. This information will only be updated as time allows or as the need for updated analysis arises. Last update: February 2013.
- Weather loss and delivered science nights
- Completion rates for queue programs
- Acquisition times
- Open shutter efficiency
- The effect of program length
- Distribution of observing conditions
- User demand for Target-of-Opportunity programs
- GMOS gratings - demand and execution
- Non-sidereal observations
- New users
- Long-term RA distributions
A separate page in the Observing with Gemini area shows the subscription rates for the Gemini telescopes.
Weather loss and delivered science nights
Each semester at the time of the Call for Proposals, the Observatory with input from the Operations Working Group decides on the number of offered science nights. The science queue (and classical nights) are filled using this number of science nights. The actual delivered number of science nights can either be larger (if planned engineering or commissioning tasks did not happen) or smaller (if engineering or commissioning tasks take longer than planned or if unforeseen events happen). In addition, the weather loss for a given semester will affect the completion rates. Figure 1 below shows the use of available time.
Gemini North suffered an unusually high amount of weather loss in the period from late December 2008 to late April 2009. Further details can be found here.
Figure 1: Use of available time for Gemini North and South during semesters 2005A to 2012B. On average, scheduled science nights make up 87.6% of all nights. The long term (2005A-2012B) weather loss amounts to 23.5%.
Completion rates for queue programs
The completion rates of queue programs are closely tracked and queue planning is carried out to optimize the completion rates. Full multi-instrument queue planning was put in place at Gemini North starting in semester 2005A, with Gemini South following in semester 2005B. This change combined with better reliability of instruments and telescopes has led to a significant improvement in the completion rates across all scientific ranking bands. Further, in semester 2004A the sizes of the ranking bands were changed from equal size to roughly 20%, 30%, and 50% for band 1, 2, and 3, respectively. At the same time the national TACs were given the option of granting band 1 programs rollover status such that it would be active in the queue for a total of three semesters. Starting in 2007A, the ranking bands were adjusted to roughly 30%, 30%, and 40% for band 1, 2, and 3, respectively.
Figure 2 shows the queue completion rates for both sites. The completion rates for 2003A-2004B exclude ToO (Target of Opportunity) programs. For semesters 2005B and later, ToO programs are included in the completion rates. A ToO program's completion is defined as the executed time relative to the triggered time. If a ToO program has used all allocated time, it is counted as completed independent of the amount of triggered time. ToO programs that do not trigger any observations are excluded from the statistics. It should be kept in mind that there are still active band 1 programs with rollover status from the past two semesters, which can still reach 90-100% completion.
For band 3 programs the queue planning aims at getting a
significant amount of data for the programs that are in fact started,
rather than getting a little bit of data for many programs. The effect of this planning can be seen in Figure 2. The fraction of started band 3 programs that get at least 75% of the requested data is typically 70%.
Figure 2: Summary of the completion rates over a range of semesters from 2002B to 2012B and for both sites, as of Feb 8, 2013. Semesters 2012A and 2012B still have active programs with rollover status in band 1. Thus, the final completion rate for band 1 is expected to be higher than shown on this figure.
1 Band 1: 90% completion rate after rollover period
2 Band 2: 75% completion rate
3 Band 2: 85% of started programs should have 75% of data taken
4A Band 3: 80% of started programs should have 75% of PI defined minimum data taken
1 Band 1: 100% completion rate after rollover period
2 Band 2: 90% completion rate
3 Band 2: 100% of started programs should have 75% of data taken
4B Band 3: 80% of started programs should have 100% of PI defined minimum data taken
5 Band 3: 80% of started programs should have 75% of all data taken
Table 1: Completion rate requirements and goals, as endorsed by the Gemini Board and the Operations Working Group.
Acquisition times
The acquisition times are tracked from the records in the observing database.
From an earlier study of this, it is known that the median time to slew and acquire
a guide star for a new target is about 6 minutes. The exact time of course depends
strongly on the length of the slew. In the following, this time is excluded from the
statistics. Figure 3 and tables 2 and 3 below summarize the acquisition times for
all the spectroscopic modes, and for the only imaging mode (NIRI+Altair) that has
significant acquisition time above the slew and guide star acquisition.
For the spectroscopic modes, the measured acquisition time is the time it takes to
image the target and align it in the spectroscopic aperture (slit, IFU or MOS mask).
For NIRI+Altair the measured acquisition time is the time it takes to center the
target on the NIRI array.
Comparison of the 2005B+2006A times, when the acquisition procedures for the various instruments were not homogeneous and not integrated with the rest of the software, and the 2008A times, after the procedures had been integrated, shows a marked improvement. The integrated acquisition software saves 3 minutes per acquisition, which adds up to 3 nights per semester per site.
Figure 3: Acquisition times for spectroscopic and imaging observing modes done in queue time for Gemini North and South. In all cases the improvement from semesters 2005B/2006A to 2008A due to the integrated acquisition procedures is clearly visible.
Table 2: Summary of the number of acquisitions as well as the acquisition times for spectroscopic modes and NIRI/Altair imaging, showing the improvement from semester 2005B/2006A to 2008A.
Table 3: Acquisition statistics for semester 2008A, showing a more detailed breakdown by instrument and observing mode.
Open shutter efficiency
The open shutter efficiency for Gemini instruments has been tracked since August 2004. For each night the open shutter time is extracted from the FITS headers of the obtained observations. Open shutter efficiency is defined as the sum of all science and calibration exposures obtained between evening and morning twilight, divided by the usable time available (hours between twilight less time lost to weather or technical faults).
Figure 4 summarizes the open shutter efficiency for two epochs, August 2004 - Feb 16, 2006, and semester 2008A. GMOS-N used to have about 5% higher open shutter efficiency than GMOS-S, which may have been due to the effect of consistent queue planning of all GMOS-N nights since its commissioning. However, in 2008A these differences are no longer present. There is a noticeable improvement in efficiency for the most frequently used instrument combinations. It can also be seen that multi-instrument night efficiency is a function of the mixture of demand for different instruments.
Figure 4: Open shutter efficiency for facility instruments at Gemini North and South for 2004-2005 and for semester 2008A. Open shutter efficiency is derived as the fraction of the usable time during the night, less any loss due to weather or technical faults.
The effect of program length
An investigation was carried out to better understand how the requested program length affects the probability of a program getting the requested data. Only semesters 2005A-2009B were included in this investigation since these semesters closely reflect the current queue planning principles and methods, while this is not the case for the earlier semesters.
Figure 5: Comparison of the distribution of program lengths for scheduled programs (gray) and programs that got at least 75% of the requested data (orange). For band 1 and 2 the distributions are identical. Thus, the program length for these two ranking bands has no influence on whether the program gets data. For band 3 there is a tendency that more of the shorter programs get executed. This is as expected since the queue planning focuses on selecting programs from band 3 that have a fair chance of getting a significant faction of the requested data. The median program length in band 3 for scheduled programs is 9 hours, while the median program length for those that got at least 75% of the requested data is 6 hours.
Distribution of observing conditions
In order to simplify the investigation of the effect of the observing conditions, six broad bins of observing conditions were defined as shown in table 4, based on the percentile bins used by the PIs to specify the required observing conditions.
Table 4: Observing condition bins, based on the percentile bins used by PIs to specify their required observing conditions.
All the science observations in the observing database for a number of semesters were mapped onto these six broad observing condition bins.
This was done both for the planned science observations and the executed
science observations. Figure 6 shows the distribution by bin.
Semesters 07B+08A are shown for both sites, and compared to the 18 weeks of winter at Gemini North in 2008/2009 - a prolonged period of poor weather, on which more details can be found here. The proportions predicted by the model currently used for filling queue time are plotted as well.
Figure 6: Fraction of useful time, sorted by observing condition bin, for three different time periods. The model fraction is shown in gray. The red bars correspond to the prolonged period of poor weather in winter 2008/09.
User demand for Target-of-Opportunity programs
Figure 7 shows the percentage charged for Gemini's Target of Opportunity (ToO) programs, sorted by band. It is readily apparent that we are using 20-25% of band 1 time on ToOs. ToOs come in two varieties:
- Rapid ToOs: response times vary from a few minutes up to 24 hours. In 2010A, there were 10 triggers per month per site.
- Standard ToOs: response times greater than 24 hours. in 2010A, there were 20 triggers per month per site.
Figure 7: Fraction of time charged for Target of Opportunity programs, by band.
GMOS gratings - demand and execution
Because the two GMOSs can carry only three gratings simultaneously, it is of special interest to PIs with programs in band 3 to know which gratings are in highest demand and therefore will most often be in the instruments. Figure 8 shows this information for semesters 2006B-2008A.
Figure 8: GMOS gratings: Total planned time in science observations as well as the executed time are shown for the six gratings for GMOS-N and GMOS-S.
Non-sidereal observations
Figure 9 shows the fraction of time allocated to non-sidereal programs, from 2010A to 2011B. On average, Gemini North has about 9% of its time allocated to non-sidereal programs, with an even higher fraction in 2011B. Gemini South currently features less non-sidereal programs. The reason for this discrepancy is currently not well understood, although it should be noted that Gemini North's host, the University of Hawaii, is involved in many non-sidereal programs.
Figure 9: The fraction of time allocated to non-sidereal programs.
New users
Table 5 presents the number of new Gemini users, where a "new" user is defined as a PI name with no programs on Gemini in any prior semester (starting with 2000). The numbers are relatively stable, with on average 50 new PIs each semester, representing 21.9% of all Gemini PIs.
Table 5: The number of new Gemini PIs over the past few semesters.
Last update: March 22, 2012 by Michael Hoenig


text:
Hokkaido UniversityJapanSapporo
Bad Ass Japanese Bikers
A bunch of badass Japanese bikers.
Lavatory in style
The Japanese fans are such an amazing cultural icon
Culturejapanjapanese fansJapaneseFans
JapanRyokanTraditional Japanese houseTravelJapanese
The Itsukushima Shrine, popularly known as Miyajima is a Shinto shrine Hiroshima Prefecture. The shrine complex is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The shrine's signature red entrance gate, or torii, was built over the water but when the tide is low, people can walk right up to it. It is a must-visit if you are in the southern part of Japan.
JapanMiyajimaTravelMiyajima Shrine
The Superfast Shinkasen in Tokyo, Japan.
Superfast trainShinkansenBullet TrainTrainTokyoJapanTravel
The Itsukushima Shrine popularly called as Miyajima is a Shinto shrine on the island of Itsukushima in Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. The shrine complex is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
TravelJapanUNESCO World HeritageMiyajimaHiroshima
The temple of the golden pavilion Kinkaku-ji in Kyoto, Japan. Architecturally one of the most magnificent temples in all of Japan.
'Gorgeous Temple' - A picture of a temple in Kyoto, Japan.
TravelJapanKyotoTempleBuddhist Temple


text:
12 Colorado football players honored as scholar-athletes
Twelve local high school athletes were honored as scholar-athlete award winners by the Colorado chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame on Monday at the Denver West Marriott.
One of the organization's goals is to honor the state's top high school student-athletes. The criteria for the selections include athletic ability (40 percent), academic achievement and character (40 percent), and citizenship and service (20 percent).
Here are the honorees with short bios provided by the NFF:


text:
Refine resultsClear all
Keyword search
- Accessible by public transport (5)
- Bicycle rack (2)
- Bus parking (4)
- Car parking (4)
- Children's quiz available (4)
- Disabled toilets (5)
- Display on history (5)
- Dogs not permitted (5)
- Guided tours – ask on site for details (3)
- Mobility scooters available (2)
- Picnic area (4)
- Restaurant/café (5)
- Self service tea/coffee (1)
- Shop (5)
- Toilets (5)
- Visitor centre (3)
- Water bottle refill (5)
Search results
The search has returned 5 placesRefine results
Duff House
Unravel the story of how owner William Duff and architect William Adam clashed over the creation of this splendid Georgian mansion.
Edinburgh Castle
Discover a world famous icon. This stronghold has dominated the skyline of Scotland's capital city for centuries.
Skara Brae
Step back 5,000 years in time to explore the best-preserved Neolithic settlement in Western Europe.
Stirling Castle
Explore one of Scotland's greatest castles, home to generations of monarchs and a fortress since ancient times.
Urquhart Castle
Discover more than 1,000 years of stirring history in this grand castle on the shores of Loch Ness.