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The Saab 9-3 sedan is an honest contender among sports sedans in its class. It's tight, it handles great, and there's lots of power from the 210-horsepower turbocharged engine on the Arc and Aero models. It's also smooth and quiet, comfortable and nicely trimmed. It feels like the upscale car it is.
The 9-3 convertible is a near-luxury drop top that seats four passengers. It's delightful to drive and quiet with the top up, with creature comforts galore and intuitive fixtures. With the top down, it wraps occupants in the panorama and aromas of the world around, setting a new standard for the class in all respects.
Sedan or convertible, the 9-3 stands apart from the crowd. It looks like a Saab and manages to remain a Saab, yet it's a thoroughly modern car with no quirks or foibles. The 9-3 was completely redesigned and re-engineered for the 2003 model year. And the all-new convertible followed for 2004. For 2005 the line-up includes a Linear convertible that drops the price of dropping the top. DVD navigation is available for 2005 Arc and Aero models.
Saab has always dared to be different. Influenced by its aeronautical background, Saab borrows aircraft design elements for its cars. Past examples of this have been the wraparound, near-vertical windshields and aircraft-style dashboards with instrument lighting that can be switched off at night. Small map lights looked like they came from a cockpit. Outside mirrors were bent at the edges to reduce blind spots. Even when American buyers stopped wanting hatchbacks, Saab stoically shipped them over.
General Motors absorbed Saab a few years back, but it didn't turn out to be the deal with the devil the Saab faithful feared. Granted, the idiosyncratic styling cues have been softened somewhat, edging the car closer to the automotive mainstream, but in exchange, GM funded a long-overdue development of newer and better-engineered cars.
In short, these are the best 9-3s Saab has ever produced.
The 2005 Saab 9-3 is available as a four-door sedan or two-door convertible. Each comes in three trim levels: Linear, Arc and Aero.
Linear models are powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 175 horsepower. Arc and Aero are powered by the same 2.0-liter engine but with a high-output turbocharger for 210 horsepower. A five-speed manual transmission is standard on Linear and Arc; Saab's five-speed automatic Sentronic ($1,350), which features semi-manual gear selection, is optional. Aero comes standard with a six-speed manual; the optional five-speed automatic comes with steering wheel-mounted shift paddles ($1,350).
The Linear sedan ($26,850) and the new Linear convertible ($37,100) come well equipped. Standard features include leather-appointed seats; five-spoke 16-inch alloy wheels; seven-speaker audio with CD; input for MP3; heated power mirrors; two 12V outlets. For 2005, all 9-3 models come with no-charge scheduled maintenance and roadside assistance during the warranty period.
The Arc sedan ($30,250) and convertible ($39,995) get a higher level of equipment: 10-spoke 16-inch alloys; dual-zone automatic climate control; cruise control; power windows, door locks and outside mirrors; a 300-watt stereo with CD player and 13 speakers; power front seats with driver memory; and front fog lights. Options include heated front seats ($500); Xenon headlamps with high-pressure washers ($650); moonroof ($1,200); and the navigation system ($2,295). Options for the Arc convertible include a Driver's Package ($1,695), consisting of a wood/leather steering wheel, wood shift surround, rain-sensing wipers, rear park assist, 6-disc CD changer, remote top operation, and auto-dimming interior mirror with integrated garage door opener.
The Aero sedan ($32,850) and Aero convertible ($42,600) feature a lowered, sport-tuned chassis; an exterior body kit; 17-inch wheels; a tire-pressure monitor; Sport exhaust; a 300-watt, 13-speaker sound system; and leather-faced seats. A Convertible Touring Package ($1,495) adds remote top operation, an auto-dimming interior mirror with integrated garage door opener, memory for the driver's seat, rain-sensing wipers, rear park assist, a poplar wood and leather steering wheel, and a six-disc CD changer. Heated seats ($500), and xenon HID headlamps with washers ($650) are optional.
The convertible can be enhanced with a blue top ($600) to replace the standard black top. A special color-matched tonneau ($350) is available to go with models ordered in the steel gray metallic paint.
Safety is a keynote feature on Saabs and the 9-3 is loaded with active and passive safety features. Among them: electronic stability control (ESP), cornering brake control, anti-lock brakes (ABS), electronic brake-force distribution (EBD), Brake Assist, and traction control, all designed to help the driver maintain control. In addition to the dual-stage front airbags, dual-stage side-impact and roofrail airbags protecting both torso and head come standard. Also standard: Saab's Active Head Restraint system that automatically cradles the head to minimize whiplash in a rear-impact collision.
From the front three-quarter view, there is no mistaking the 9-3 for anything but a Saab. Unlike Saabs of old, the windshield is steeply raked. But the sloping, wedge-like profile, the shape of the windows, the sleek, integrated headlights, and the distinctive grille are all unmistakably Saab.
The rear fascia no longer presents the edgy, Saab-signature look. Instead, a smoother, more rounded, monochromatic body panel integrating the bumper houses taillights somewhat reminiscent of earlier Saabs, only now wrapping around to the trailing edge of the rear quarter panel. It's a perfectly pleasing look.
The side profile shows a clearly defined wedge shape with the lower edge of the side windows picking up the slope of the hood and following it through to the high trunk line at the rear.
On convertibles, the soft top merges cleanly with the car's lines, retaining all the proper proportions and relationships with windshield, wheel openings and wedge profile. With the top down and tucked away beneath the solid tonneau cover, the rake of the windshield draws the eye naturally over the passenger area to the tonneau behind the rear-seat head restraints, which tapers into the trunk lid. The soft top features a glass rear window with a defogger.
Big, oval-shaped, open-grip door handles are finger friendly and integrate well into the design. Conspicuously absent from those door handles are key holes. You may not have noticed, but they've been disappearing from the passenger doors of most cars, but Saab has completely done away with using a key for normal entry of the car. Instead one has to rely on the remote key fob. But don't worry, if it ceases to function there is a back up key buried in the key fob and a hidden keyhole in the driver's door.
Anyone familiar with Saabs knows the most contentious issue is the location of the ignition key. Saab fans need not worry, as it's still located down on the center console behind the gearshift between the front seats. Those who have not experienced this unique placement of the ignition key don't know what they are missing. It is really sensible as it avoids the irritating jingle from the dangling mass of keys so many of us has on our key chains. It's also safer as it prevents the possibility of getting keys jammed in one's knees in a severe accident. Thankfully, Saab no longer requires the manual transmission be in reverse before the key can be removed. We don't miss that feature.
In the convertible, Saab has taken a refreshing approach to the headliner, replacing the traditional black fabric with a light tan. The intent is to boost the perceived interior space, especially front-seat headroom, which in fact gives up almost a full inch to the soft top's mechanicals. The deception succeeds, as there's not the claustrophobic feel so common in convertibles when their tops are raised.
Beyond that, the Saab 9-3 interior is pretty much what one would expect in a near-luxury car, although certain Saab styling cues remain. The instruments are arrayed in an easy-to-view layout with a big speedometer in a sweeping instrument panel that blends into the center console. It's still a relatively high dashboard compared to that in most other cars, but it's long been a signature styling cue of Saab cars so it's nice to see it retained. The buttons and switches are smaller than in many cars. Nonetheless they are all well placed for the driver to reach while driving. An extra set of warning gauges is mounted on top of the dashboard in the center in a small pod, locating them more directly in the driver's line of sight. Radio settings are also displayed here.
The glovebox is one of the largest we have seen in a long time.
At first blush it's easy to miss the parking brake. It's located on the center console, but it's design mirrors the grab handle on the passenger side of the console so that it looks as though it is a sculptured design feature. Once you know it's there it operates just like any other hand parking brake; take care, though, when releasing it, as inattention can result in a thumb pinched between the tip of the handle and its resting place in the console. The matching grip on the passenger side contains a slot useful for temporarily storing a CD or parking lot ticket, which is a clever piece of design.
The front seats that come standard are firm but comfortable, with side bolsters that restrain during spirited motoring without restricting while climbing in and out. The available Sport seats are more aggressive and best suited to bodies tending toward the slim end of the scale.
Overall quality of the interior appears to be very good. The sedan features wood trim, while the convertible goes with more matte-black finish. Door handles and the center console gearshift surround are trimmed in brushed chrome. The Aero steering wheel is fully wrapped in leather with brushed chrome trim on the spokes.
Rear-seat passengers in the two-door convertible do not fare as well as those in the four-door sedan, of course: The convertible gives up nearly 10 inches of hip room and nearly 3 inches of legroom. A center console can be folded down between the rear seats that contains cup holders and a map storage area.
Trunk space in the sedan is an impressive 14.8 cubic feet and it's very usable space. The sedan uses goose-neck hinges for the trunk, but they are hidden in a cover so they do not crush luggage when the trunk lid is closed. A small pass-through opening is provided for carrying skis and other long items. The 60/40 split rear seats can be folded for versatility when carrying one rear-seat passenger and cargo. Trunk space drops to 12.4 cubic feet in the conver
The Saab 9-3 handles impressively well, with a nicely balanced neutral feel. The sedan feels tight, like a true sports sedan. The convertible exhibits virtually zero cowl shake, thanks to the extensive bracing designed into the platform that the convertible shares with the sedan.
The steering is a little light, but not enough to detract from the fun-to-drive factor. Passive rear-wheel steering architecture in the rear suspension design keeps the rear tires dutifully following the front tires in quick lane changes and through rapid transitions when driving quickly on twisting roads. Directional stability is good over almost all road surfaces, even when equipped with the wider tires.
The ride is smooth. And it's quiet, with little road noise or wind noise invading the cabin.
Even the convertible is quiet, when the top is up. When the top is down, conversing with the person beside you can be done without shouting, even at extra-legal highway speeds. The rake of the windshield and a removable wind-block behind the front seats combine to reduce buffeting. Rear quarter vision is impeded by the broad expanse of fabric top that occupies the space normally filled by the sedan's much-slimmer C-pillar.
All in all, the Saab 9-3 is a car with no real quirks or foibles.
One area in which the 9-3 excels is its suppression of torque steer, a disconcerting trait afflicting many front-wheel-drive cars where the steering wheel tugs at the driver's hands under hard acceleration or resists corrections in the midst of a corner. (To many drivers this is not a concern, and some say it adds excitement.) Saab engineers worked hard to eliminate it in this latest-generation 9-3, and it appears they were largely successful. A modicum of tugging and some resistance is apparent while accelerating over uneven pavement or out of a tight corner, but it isn't an issue.
With the high-output turbocharger's 210 horsepower, the 9-3 has all the punch it needs, and can use, in today's driving environment. Torque, too, is more than adequate for those urgent passes on two-lane roads and for getting up to merge speed on highway onramps.
The sedan offers the best performance and handling, with the Aero at the front of the grid. The several hundred additional pounds in platform stiffening and occupant protection the convertible carries over the sedan is evident when the two are driven back-to-back, but it's an acceptable price to pay for the joys of top-down driving.
If you like doing your own shifting, go with the manual transmissions. The longish clutch throw takes some getting used to and the six-speed in the Aero feels a little rubbery, but you'll save yourself more than a thousand dollars and have much more fun.
Saab has mastered turbocharger technology so well that most people may not even realize the engine is turbocharged because there is very little turbo lag and there's no boost gauge to give the game away.
The Saab 9-3 is a compelling sports sedan. It's tight, crisp and fun to drive. The Arc and Aero are most fun, with their high-output engines. The 9-3 still stands apart from the crowd. It manages to remain a Saab yet has no quirks or foibles.
The Saab 9-3 convertible is the car to buy for anyone wanting a four-passenger, near-luxury drop top. Closed or open, it's delightful to drive, with creature comforts galore and intuitive fixtures. With the top down, it wraps its occupants in the panorama and aromas of the world around (and whizzing by), setting a new standard in all respects for the class.


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First Seniors Competition – Saturday, 6 April 2013
Please note in your diary our first Seniors competition round is on Saturday, 6 April 2013 vs Brothers at Jack Ross Oval.
The table below is a snapshot of all Premier grade games this year. You may wish to print and keep handy.
Details of other grades can be found on the Draws Results Ladders pages under the Premier Rugby and Club Rugby tabs on our website.

subset: commoncrawl


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Date: 30th July 2013
Angelina Jolie has been named Hollywood's highest-paid actress in Forbes' magazine's annual list of top female earner despite not having appeared in a movie since 2010.
Jolie tops the poll with earnings of $33 million (£21.5 million).
Hot on her heals, however, is 22-year-old Jennifer Lawrence, who coined in $26 million over the same period from June 2012 to June 2013, starring in a slew of hits.
By rather stark contrast, Jolie's last films were 2010's critically hammered 'The Tourist' with Johnny Depp, and the roundly unloved spy thriller 'Salt'.
Oddly there was also another sturdy two-year gap between her films before that, with 'Changeling', 'Wanted' and 'Kung-Fu Panda' in 2008.
But with Jolie able to command $15 million per role the sum she has reportedly received for 'Maleficent', out next year and endorsement for Louis Vuitton worth $10 million, she's placed at the top of the Hollywood heap.
Jolie has in recent years devoted more time to her humanitarian pursuits as a special envoy to the United Nations than her movie career, as well as being a mother to her six children with Brad Pitt.
Meanwhile, Kristen Stewart, who topped the Forbes list last year thanks almost entirely to the 'Twilight' series, has now slipped to number three, with earnings of $22 million.
Jennifer Aniston comes in at fourth, while fifth place is 'The Amazing Spider-Man' star Emma Stone.
Here's the top 10 in full:
Angelina Jolie - $33 million (£21.5 million)
Jennifer Lawrence - $26 million (£17 million)
Kristen Stewart - $22 million (£14.3 million)
Jennifer Aniston - $20 million (£13 million)
Emma Stone - $16 million (£10.4 million)
Charlize Theron - $15 million (£9.7 million)
Sandra Bullock - $14 million (£9.1 million)
Natalie Portman $14 million (£9.1 million)
Mila Kunis - $11 million (£7.1 million)
Julia Roberts - $11 million (£7.1 million)
Source: Press Release
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Freestyle Releasing and Freestyle Digital Media have acquired theatrical and DVD/VOD rights to the Julia Dyer-directed drama The Playroom and has slated a February 9, 2013 release date. Set in the suburbs during the 1970s, Playroom tells the story of the Cantwell family, who are trying to find their way in a world changing too fast for their liking. John Hawkes (The Sessions) and Molly Parker (Dexter) star as the hard-drinking parents of Maggie (newcomer Olivia Harris), who is grappling with her parents' flawed choices. The film, which premiered at this year's Tribeca Film Festival, was produced by Stephen Dyer and Angie Meyer. The deal was negotiated by Freestyle CEO Susan Jackson and Head of Acquisitions Chris Charalambous, and Bill Straus of BGP and Jonathan Gray of Gray, Krauss Stratford des Rochers.
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Consultation Services
Our pharmacist's pride themselves with the constant delivery of superior customer service. One way we ensure that our patients continue to get the understanding and support they deserve is by providing monthly chart reviews at nursing homes. They also visit assisted living facilities for medication regimen review programs, and are certain to inform medical professionals if something is concerning, alarming or needs attention.


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Golf is known to be an elegant and sophisticated sport, practiced by businessmen or aristocrats. Many wives of politicians, athletes, businessmen or even royalties have always loved to meet at a golf club and relax while playing a golf game. Given that these women want to look good and always like to be accessorized with beautiful and matching items, no wonder they also pay attention to the accessories they wear during golf matches.
Adequate jewelry during golf matches
The appropriate jewelry for women who like to play golf are those of good taste, elegant and discreet. Although there are no restrictions on the jewelry worn by players, feminine golf players prefer those that won't interfere with their playing skills, such as small earrings and thin bracelets Given that golf requires a lot of swinging and bending, it is recommended to avoid large necklaces, rings or earrings that can cause injuries or bad shots.
Golf themed jewelry
Feminine golf players also love to wear golf themed jewelry outside the golf course, therefore, they can choose from many accessories such as earrings, bracelets or rings in shapes of clubs, trophies, golf shoes or golf balls. Here are some of the funniest and the cutest golf themed jewelry women who like golf can wear.
Golf earrings
For women who like to play golf, there are a lot of golf themed earrings in the shape of a golf player, elegant pearl clips with club bags painted on them, crystal encrusted golf balls or funny earrings resembling golf clubs, golf tee posts and golf visors.
Golf bracelets
As for bracelets, golf players can opt for bracelets that look like golf balls or golf tee posts stuck to each other. A golf scene bracelet consisting in various golf themed tiny charms such as golf shoes or trophies is the perfect golf jewel.
Golf pendants
Women who like golf can choose from many charms in the shapes of golf visors, golf tees, golf clubs or golf balls. Those who prefer cute accessories can choose a golf shoe, a golf flag or a golf cart charm. Charms can be used not only on necklaces and bracelets but they can also be attached to a golf gadget such as a rangefinder. If you compare golf rangefinder models, you will see that there are some models particularly designed for women such as the pink Bushnell V2 Tour rangefinder. That pink gadget would work great with a sparkly golf pendant.
Hole-in-one jewelry
A very popular type of golf jewel is called "hole in one" and resembles the number 1 with a golf club on it, which means a lucky shot that will directly put the ball in the hole.
Golf necklaces
Golf themed necklaces are thin and discreet chains formed by tiny tee posts or golf clubs sticked together.


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Giant Swings will swing you high and fast, around and around. If you enjoy the sensation of flying with the wind in your face, then our spectacular Giant Swings is a must at your event. Bright and colourful, the Giant Swings will entertain the older children and teenagers at your event.
Minimum Height Requirement: Riders must be 1m tall to ride the Giant Swings
Area required: 14m diameter
Suitability: The Giant Swings have been a much loved traditional family attraction for many years, loved by both children and teenagers.
Patrons per hour: 120


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Jennifer Brewer, Center Director
Ages: 6 weeks to 12 years
Elementary Schools Bussed To:
Pleasant Valley School District, Dos Caminos Elementary, La Mariposa Elementary, Las Posas Elementary, Camarillo Heights Elementary, El Descanso Elementary, Rancho Rosal Elementary, Tierra Linda Elementary and UPS
Our center is accredited by NAEYC.
We're so proud!
Nationally only 10% of daycares are accredited - nearly 100% of our learning centers are. That's a big difference, and that means KinderCare kids are getting the very best. Here's why.
What Learning Looks Like
Our talented early-childhood teachers set kids down the path toward becoming lifelong learners in a positive, safe, and nurturing environment.
Our Programs
Infant Programs (6 weeks - 1 year)
Babies grow and learn every day. Our goal is to provide a safe and nurturing "home away from home" where babies can explore and make new discoveries. We know that learning through play is extremely valuable at this age and our Early Foundations® Infant program is designed to give babies the skills that will serve as the building blocks for a lifetime of learning.
Toddler Programs (1 – 2 Years)
As toddlers develop friendships, self-esteem, and curiosity, our Early Foundations® Toddler program will help them explore their world in a safe and nurturing environment. Our unique curriculum is based on the philosophy that children learn best through experiences. So each day is filled with fun activities that excite and develop toddlers, giving them the comfort and confidence to speak those first few important words, as well as make their first friends.
Discovery Preschool Programs (2 – 3 Years)
At this age, children are making new discoveries daily. And as two-year olds begin to exert their independence, our Early Foundations® Discovery Preschool program is prepared to open their eyes to a world of learning, sharing, and exploring. Our holistic approach in the classroom engages young minds with a blend of music, art, and movement, as well as the early education fundamentals they'll need as they continue on to preschool.
Preschool Programs (3 – 4 Years)
As preschoolers gain more self-esteem, they may feel ready to take on the world. Our Early Foundations® Preschool program enhances that confidence by providing activities to help children become problem solvers and lifelong learners. Through independent exploration, structured activities, and hands-on learning, children will work on early literacy, math, science, and social studies concepts. A healthy dose of running, jumping, and dancing keeps them active too.
Prekindergarten Programs (4 – 5 Years)
Prekindergartners are preparing for the adventure of a lifetime – school. And our Early Foundations Prekindergarten® program is designed to get them ready by teaching letters and words, math concepts, and valuable social skills. With small group instruction, independent play in an organized atmosphere, and whole-group activities, children will have all the right skills to hop, skip, and jump right into kindergarten.
Private Kindergarten Programs (5 – 6 Years)
As children reach school age, our comprehensive full-day kindergarten program helps them explore, communicate, and create – all in a nurturing, small-class setting. Our team of expert educators has created a unique curriculum of reading, language, arts, math, science, and physical fitness that's presented in a fun way to encourage a lifelong love of learning. Plus, our program is aligned with local and state elementary school standards, so children will be prepared to confidently enter first grade.
Before- & After-School Programs (5 – 12 Years)
Even after school's out for the day, children need to be engaged in a comfortable, yet stimulating environment. That's where our Catch the Wave® program comes in. This innovative before – and after-school program allows school-age children to balance learning and fun through a variety of experiences. From homework help to fun physical activities, our program is designed so that everyone goes home happy.
Summer Programs (preschool, prekindergarten, and school-age)
Don't miss out on KinderCare's Summer of Wonder: Six themed programs that will make summer exciting, educational and tons of fun. Whether your child is in our preschool, Pre-K or school-age programs, all of it is designed to help children learn while soaking up the fun. We offer flexible scheduling options to meet the needs of busy families like yours so we hope to see you there.
Elementary School Distance Learning
Healthy bodies, happy hearts, growing minds. We make distance learning easy on your whole family! Our teachers are trained to facilitate safe and dynamic learning experiences online and in-person. Since every school has their own learning plan, we've added flexible enrollment options to meet your family's needs. Whether you choose to enroll full-time, part-time, or before and after school, we're here for you!
Learning Adventures - Enrichment Program
Cooking Academy™ (3 – 12 Years)
In Cooking Academy, kids learn new recipes from cultures around the world and develop a healthy relationship with food. Kids in this delightful and delicious program whip up everything from Southwest rainbow lettuce wraps to pumpkin muffins, building their skills in STEM, communication, and more along the way. And yes—little chefs get to eat their culinary creations!
Phonics Adventures® (2 – 4 Years)
Learning how to read is a whole lot of fun at KinderCare! We help kids grow to love books and words (and get ready for kindergarten) in our Phonics Adventures program. From discovering the basics of vowels to practicing poetry, kids learn all about letters and sounds in small-group lessons made just for their age group. (Bonus: Kids who attend our phonics program are more prepared than their peers for school—and we have the data to prove it.)
STEM Innovators (3-8 Years)
You've probably heard a lot about how important STEM education is for your child, but what does that really mean? Our STEM Innovators program takes kids' natural ability to make sense of the world and applies it to robotics, chemistry, coding, geology, and more. Your child will experiment with activities like learning how lemon juice and baking soda interact to uncover secret messages, watching fizzy reactions in action, and discovering how to use technology to do amazing things!
Active Adventures
Our Teachers
We're the only company in early childhood education to select teachers based on natural talent. Being a great educator isn't enough though. KinderCare teachers are also amazing listeners, nurturers, boo-boo fixers, and smile-makers. Put more simply, we love our teachers and your child will, too.
Meet just a few of our amazing KinderCare teachers!
An Artist's Heart
"My classroom is full of art!" says Mary Annthipie-Bane, an award-winning early childhood educator at KinderCare. Art and creative expression, she says, help children discover who they really are.
We put our best-in-class teachers in a best-in-class workplace. We're so proud to have been named one of Gallup's 37 winners of the Great Workplace Award. When you put great teachers in an engaging center, your children will experience an amazing place to learn and grow.
Our Families
Don't take our word for it. Hear what our families have to say about our amazing center!
Been sending our son here since August, 2014. He has learned so much from the staff and other students. I thoroughly enjoy that the facility does not have TVs to "babysit" the kids. The staff always are proactive in communicating development and issues seen. They clean up daily so the toys don't sit filthy for long.
There are a fair amount of corporate level issues to deal with, but I would rather know there are norms and regulations in place and enforced then a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants program. I am all for my child expanding his ability to self-soothe, self entertain and grow with others... I don't want a totally unstructured program for him though. This facility offers structure and schedules that help a young child grow and develop. Without forcing a child into nap time at a set time, etc.
There are some things I wish they would do that I want done as a parent, that they can't do (eg turn lights down for naps, let them cry it out a little at nap time, etc), but I understand the corporate rules inhibit this. I don't want my child afraid of the dark or needing attention just because he is even slightly awake. He deals with our rules well at home though, so this peeve is a minor one - certainly not a peeve worth knocking down a Star on the rating.
We looked at three different "corporate" type of facilities and two "mom&pop" shop type of facilities. We opted for this facility and couldn't be happier."
David P. - KinderCare Parent
My 2 year old and 6 year old have been coming here for 2 years. They both love coming to school! The facility is always clean, the staff and teachers are friendly and treat you like family and my children are always involved in fun, age appropriate activities. We love our Camarillo Kindercare!"
Heather - KinderCare Parent
Who Are KinderCare Families?
They hail from hundreds of cities across the country from countless backgrounds, and proudly represent every walk in life. What our families have in common, though, is the want to give their children the best start in life. We are so proud to be their partner in parenting.
Hear from just a few of our amazing KinderCare families.
A Globe-Trotting Family Finds A
Home in Houston
Four young children, four different passports, two languages, two full-time jobs…oh, and a few triathlons thrown in for good measure. Meet the globe-trotting Colettas—a family on the go.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Camarillo KinderCare open?
Yes! Camarillo KinderCare is open to serve hardworking families in your community! We have new health and safety measures in place to protect families and staff.
What are your health and safety measures at your child care centers?
Check out the industry-leading health and safety measures we've put in place to protect your family and our staff. We can't wait to see you soon!
What programs are offered at Camarillo KinderCare?
At Camarillo KinderCare, we offer a wide range of programs, including:
- Infant Programs (6 weeks - 1 year)
- Toddler Programs (1 – 2 Years)
- Discovery Preschool Programs (2 – 3 Years)
- Preschool Programs (3 – 4 Years)
- Prekindergarten Programs (4 – 5 Years)
- Private Kindergarten Programs (5 – 6 Years)
- Before- & After-School Programs (5 – 12 Years)
- Summer Programs (preschool, prekindergarten, and school-age)
- Elementary School Distance Learning
- Cooking Academy™ (3 – 12 Years)
- Phonics Adventures® (2 – 4 Years)
- STEM Innovators (3-8 Years)
- Active Adventures
What are the operating hours of Camarillo KinderCare?
Camarillo KinderCare is open from 6:30 AM to 6:30 PM, Monday through Friday
What accreditations does Camarillo KinderCare hold?
Camarillo KinderCare is accredited by NAEYC.


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Mark Conway Memory Book
By Jason Graziadei
I&M Senior Writer
The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report regarding the Hyannis plane crash last month that took the life of Nantucket native Mark Conway, and investigators appear to be focusing on the flight control locks of the DeHavilland Twin Otter plane that crashed just after takeoff on June 18.
Although the report makes no specific finding as to the cause of the crash, it indicates the control lock pin may not have been removed from the cockpit control column prior to takeoff.
Two local commercial pilots, including Bob Walsh, who has logged more than 5,000 hours in Twin Otter airplanes, said a failure to remove the control lock pin would almost certainly cause the plane to crash. Walsh, who operates Nantucket Express, said the NTSB report confirmed his initial suspicions about why Conway�s plane had crashed. He added that Twin Otters do not have a built-in safety mechanism that would alert the pilot that the control lock pin had not been removed prior to takeoff.
�It�s one of the first things you do when you get in,� Walsh said. �The control lock holds the rudders. It�s a pin that locks the whole thing, the forward and back motion and the rudders. (If it was not removed) you can�t move the controls.�
Investigators from the federal agency reported that their examination of the cockpit control column showed that �the upper flight control lock was still attached to the column by its removable pin. The pin attaching the upper control lock to the control column remained tethered to upper flight control lock by a steel cable...Both the upper and lower flight control locks were retained for further examination.�
�It certainly is something we�re looking into, among other things,� said NTSB investigator Dennis Diaz. �What it means? I�m not ready to talk about at this point. The investigation is in its early stages, and I�m prohibited from making any speculation.�
Diaz said the NTSB�s final factual report on the incident will likely take six to nine months to complete.
The preliminary NTSB report also quotes an unnamed witness of the crash who saw the airplane taxi on the runway until it disappeared from his view behind trees. According to the report, the witness �found it strange that the airplane did not stop and 'rev up' its engines as he thought airplanes normally did...the witness noted that the engine sound did not seem to increase.�
Conway, a 1982 graduate of Nantucket High School, was flying the DeHavilland aircraft for Wiggins Airways and transporting UPS cargo on his morning run from Hyannis to Nantucket at the time of the crash. Conway, 43, was an experienced pilot, a painter, a standout football player for the Whalers, and the father of two daughters.
Conway had started working for Wiggins Airways in December 2007, a job in which he would make a morning run to Nantucket and an afternoon flight back to Hyannis Monday through Friday, transporting UPS cargo back and forth to the island where he grew up.
Following his graduation from Nantucket High School, Conway worked as a firefighter, served in the military, and eventually moved to Cape Cod, but commuted back to the island for his painting business. A former Island Airlines pilot and one of the founders of the Nantucket Shuttle commuter airline, Conway had been flying since 1984.
Conway lived in Marstons Mills on Cape Cod, but still had many family members left on Nantucket, including his parents, Shirley Watts and Stanley �Bushy� Conway, his brothers Ronald and Robert Conway, and a nephew, Ryan Conway. He is survived by his wife, Laurie, and their two daughters, Mary Catherine and Caroline.


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account_circleDiggy question for Opeth is
" Hi Mikael, I know you are an avid collector of vinyl records, but what is the record you are most proud to have in your collection and why? Also, just out of curiosity what's the most you ever paid for a record? "
todayOct 6th 2015 @ 12:57PM
phonelink asked Sep 30th 2015 @ 01:02AM
on their Mac
on their Mac


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Chick lit has its place. On long-haul flights, for example, when you're a bit pissed and bored with the films on offer, and all you wanted is some literary fast food. I recall one flight back from Colorado where I read Bridget Jones's Diary from start to finish with it hidden between the covers of a National Geographic in case it were assumed I was a single, lonely chocolate-head who flashed her knickers at work.
Don't get me wrong. I like that sort of woman. I'm not being snobby about crap books. It's just that all mass-produced products created for women (excluding sanitary protection) tends to be twee or schmaltzy. The basic chick-lit plot centres on getting a man, keeping a man or coping with a man when he leaves you/is being a total bell end.
Publishers must have realised they're losing out on my demographic (rabid, feminist, middle-aged lesbians who hate literary fiction but dislike being spoon-fed slush) so came up with Gone Girl, which has since given birth to several litters-worth of similar but inferior types.
So now we have 'sick chick lit'. Books for women, about womanly things, but with nasty twists. No covers of Louboutin ankle boots or wedding cakes. No pictures of the author's eight children on the dust jacket. With 'sick chick lit' you have edgy, matt black book fronts with prison-orange letters, and the promise of a proper plot in which you cannot visualise Colin Firth or Hugh Grant.
Except you sadly can. The film adaptation of Before I Go To Sleep had a bumbling but menacing Firth playing Mr Husband, who's so lovely and considerate you know something terrible will happen.
Gone Girl is OK as they go, but contains lines such as, 'Love makes you want to be a better man. But maybe love, real love, also gives you permission to just be the man you are.' As a gripping plot, it does the business, except the characters are all so unlikeable it is difficult to care which of them will encounter Freddy Kruger head whipping out of the water.
Before I Go To Sleep is firmly in the mould of Gone Girl. Without spoiling the plot, I can tell you that the promise of nasty, dangerous husbands is threaded through both books, with the main protagonist leaping from feeling in love to being shit scared. A bit like regular heterosexuality to be honest.
Apple Tree Yard is chick lit with a bit of grit. Married woman has affair. Lover might be a spy. Someone gets murdered. Court case. There are more plot twists in a Joanna Trollope.
Can we please do better than this? Women read more than men, and are less likely to skip pages and leave a book half way through according to research, so why are we are sold the dross? From now on, I am boycotting books aimed at women, unless the central plot involves dismantling the patriarchy using a hacksaw and a hedge strimmer.


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Meet The Team
I currently serve on the board of National Capital Lyme (NatCapLyme). I represent the Montgomery County chapter. NatCapLyme educates government officials and healthcare industry leaders about Lyme and tick-borne diseases on behalf of individuals and families of those afflicted with such diseases.
We focus on patient advocacy, education, awareness, and supporting Lyme disease grants through fundraising. Our advocacy and legislative efforts support our mission by advancing the pursuit of a cure for Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. Until that cure is found and made available to all who suffer, we will work tirelessly to bring public awareness to this growing epidemic that afflicts more than 300,000 Americans each year (CDC, 2013). That's why we were so excited we were able to contribute to the passage of the Lyme Disease Testing Information Disclosure Act of 2013. NatCapLyme played a significant role in the passage of this groundbreaking bill, which makes Virginia the first state in the nation to inform patients of the limitations of current Lyme disease tests.
As the board member for the Montgomery County NatCapLyme chapter, I run the county support group located in Montgomery County. This group is open to the public and meets on the third Sunday of every month from 2:00-4:00 PM in the downstairs conference room at 14245 Shady Grove Rd, Rockville, MD.
In 2012, Dr. Daniel Jaller and I appeared in the television show, Monsters Inside Me. Dr. Jaller and I partnered together to spread awareness and advocacy about Lyme disease and co-infections.
My experience and recovery has been featured in several TV and news segments such as Delmarva news, The Washington Post, and America Online (AOL). I have been a ongoing advocate for this debilitating disease for many years.
I have experience facilitating pain management groups for the United States federal government for individuals with chronic illnesses. I used a mindfulness based technique to help members understand their illness, how to incorporate lifestyle changes per their disease, and relaxation methods to help with pain.
In 2014, Governor Martin O'Mally and Secretary of State, John McDonough, awarded me with the Governor's Volunteer Service Award for all of the hard work and dedication that I put forward to help spread awareness for this disease and advocate on behalf of several Lyme disease bills.
In 2015, I partnered with the Lyme disease Association of the Eastern Shore creating a young adult support group for high school and college aged students struggling with this disease. The idea behind this group was to give young adults a safe space and an opportunity to come together to discuss how this disease impacts their lives at such a young age. In addition to the young adult group, I facilitated a group for parents with children whom have Lyme disease. This psychoeducational group helped parents understand the disease, dietary restrictions, and how to emotionally support a loved one experiencing Lyme disease.


text: I was intending to get this done for Robert Moog's birthday but didn't quite get it finished in time. I took the basic MiniMoog layout and tried to pare it down as much as possible to get cute/miniature but still useable and recognizably Moog styled synth. This is the first time I have tried modelling a full 3D interface and I didn't quite nail the look I was after. It's not quite finished yet as I had to overhaul all my previous GUI code to handle the 3D interface.


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(Mostly) French comics, Animal People
I love French comics. And European comics. And comics by European authors that aren't French but still publish in French. Mostly, I love French comics with Animal People.
I don't know how to read French, and you probably don't, either, but fortunately we in the States occasionally publish work by French comics artists — but not as often as we should.
In America, we basically only have two types of comics. We have major label comics: the superheroes, zombies and barbarians of Marvel, DC and their "indie" subsidiaries. And we have indie comics, which happen to cover everything that isn't mythology/sci-fi/fantasy.
And for that reason, indie comics are almost exclusively autobiographical, or thinly veiled autobiography, or stories about lonely people so real everything is basically autobiographical.
We have break-up comics and awkward people comics and childhood comics, but that's it. That's where the American indie genre ends.
French comics pick up where American comics leave off. They blend the major label fantasy and indie stylistic sensibilities to create something bizarre and refreshing. Imagine "The Adventures of Tin Tin" with Animal People.
Fantagraphics Books publishes one of my all-time favorites; Jason, short for John Arne Saerterøy. Jason's animal people inhabit satirical but celebratory genre pieces. In about 50 pages, Jason's "The Last Musketeer" tells the story of Athos, the last depressed musketeer in the 21st century. A meteor hits Paris, and Martians start invading. Before too long, Athos stows away to Mars to save the Martian princess in order to save Earth from total annihilation.
First Second puts out some fantastic French work, too, including work by Johann Sfar and Lewis Trondheim. I recently read Appollo & Trondheim's "Bourbon Island 1730." A young ornithologist (who is also a duck person named Raphael) visits the island to study native fowl under his teacher (a bespectacled, squat dog person named Despentes) and wishes to become a pirate. He soon finds out there is only one true pirate left (a bear person called Buzzard, based on the very real pirate Olivier Levasseur), and the islanders are out to get him.
But these are few examples of the vast register of European comic work. Unbounded by hulking major labels who control all the fantasy needs of audiences, European work can independently produce high fantasy epics (like Sfar & Trodheim's parodic "Donjon"), mythological retellings and historical fiction. In French.
And sometimes, the characters are animal people, allowing readers to dive into the fantastic without the intimidation of Big & Burly American Super Men and Ripped Supermodel Ladies in Iron Bikinis.
To be fair, the Animal People almost seem more realistic.


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Always on the Go
Arkansas Mailing Services had recently purchased a new delivery vehicle. How could they take advantage of their new blank canvas on wheels? They turned to CustomXM to assist them in creating this mobile billboard that carries their branding wherever they travel.
Arkansas Mailing Services
Arkansas Mailing Services, based in North Little Rock, provides mailing solutions including presorting, inserts, labeling and postage.
Arkansas Mailing Services Website: http://armailing.com/
Our Task
Arkansas Mailing Solutions engaged CustomXM to prepare vehicle graphics on the sides and rear windows of their new delivery vehicle. They wanted a fresh, crisp look that would clearly display their brand and contact information.
Products & Services Involved
Products and Services
- Graphic design
- Vehicle graphics
- Contour cut vinyl
- Perforated window graphics


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A lot has happened in Bachelor Nation over the last few months since ABC announced the first round of men who'd be competing for Clare Crawley's final rose on the next season of "The Bachelorette." ABC postponed filming of her season because of the pandemic, we heard Matt James (Tyler Cameron's BFF who was originally slotted to be a contestant on Clare's season) will make history as the first Black bachelor of the franchise (YES!), and we learned casting for Clare's season was still ongoing.
Now, after casting more contestants, ABC has officially revealed that Clare will have a group of 42 single men to choose from once her season begins. Of course, they're all worthy of that final rose based on these incredible (seemingly) social-distanced photos they submitted for their bios. So, we'll just have to wait and see whose personalities match their pics and who will bring the drama.
Click through the SLIDESHOW below to see the official photos of all 42 contestants (that's right... 42), along with their names, ages, and hometowns.
Irvine, California
Get ready to watch with this Chris Harrison cardboard cutout (a necessity) and this candle that apparently smells like "The Bachelor."
Follow Swoon on Instagram.


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Mystery School for Spiritual Awakening
Mystery School for Spiritual Growth
Magic is Real
You arrived here for a good reason, at the perfect time.
Spiritual Awakening is your birthright. It is a natural step on the path of enlightenment, and gives you the perspective to see that all psychic abilities developed by others are simply actions taken from higher awareness.
Magical Golden Age exists to help you on this path. As you awaken to your true nature, synchronicities will increase, and miracles will occur more naturally, and more frequently.
Realistic expectations and grounded, scientific teaching makes all the difference between genuine manifestation and fantasy. While all of the these words can be discussed in fantasy and superficially in certain books and websites, here, we realize that the most commonly desired types of Magic are possible.
Enroll in Wizard School
Learn how to develop psychic abilities and become a Real Magician
With your guide David Solomon
In this site, you can learn:
- Divine Embodiment
- How to Develop Psychic Abilities
- How to develop clairvoyance
- How to open your third eye
- Money spells, abundance Magic, and the Law of Attraction
- Love spells
- How to remember a past life
You will learn "light" Magic only. For example, how to love yourself more deeply, and give genuine love to others and receive it in return – we do not teach mind control. This is about personal transformation, ethical and sustainable.
A spell is a focused form of intention or prayer designed for personal transformation. The above words are meant to concisely organize information, and you can focus on what you care about most, and skip what doesn't interest you.
Let's help humanity awaken, together. Let's combine our efforts and bring about the next Magical Golden Age.
I love you.
I believe in you.
We are one.
-David Solomon
Visit Bali
Embody your Higher Self
Have fun!
To most people, Magic is just an idea. It's lumped with (lowercase) "magic" – illusion, spectacle, fantasy. It's kept safe in fairy tales and wishful thinking, in fantasy and mythology. To me, Magic is part of daily life: Something we can access at all times. An art, a science. A way of changing our world in any way we choose.
In this site, you can learn:
- Divine Embodiment
- How to develop Psychic Abilities
- How to develop clairvoyance
- How to open your third eye
- Money spells, abundance Magic, and the Law of Attraction
- Love spells
- How to remember a past life
Join Wizard School
Learn embodiment, how to develop psychic abilities and become supernatural.
With your guide David Solomon
Get Magic is Real: How to Create Reality, Manifest Miracles and Make Spirituality Fun Again! on Amazon
Real Magic transcends belief. Like the air we breathe and the bodies we live in, Magic IS.
It exists, eternal – a force of the universe, if not THE force of the universe.
The Sorcerer Supreme – the Ancient One – in Dr Strange, said:
"You think you know how the world works? You think that this material universe is all there is? What is real? What mysteries lie beyond the reach of your senses? At the root of existence, mind and matter meet. Thoughts shape reality. This universe is only one of an infinite number. Worlds without end. Some benevolent and life giving. Others filled with malice and hunger. Dark places where powers older than time lie ravenous… and waiting. Who are you in this vast multiverse, Mr. Strange?"
What do you want to experience? What don't you?
Human trafficking is sick. The Holocaust was awful – my grandmother spend 2 years in Auschwitz and Bergen Belsen and watched her mother die in front of her. Child poverty is awful. This comes from a human / ego perspective, not a Unity Consciousness one where All is Blessed in the eyes of God.
Practical Exercise to Build Power
This chapter about how to build power is an exclusive sneak peek to my newest magical book. Stay connected and explore my blog until I can share my new book with you. Steps To Build Power From an expanded sense of consciousness, which began at the end of your...
Practical Exercise to Build Power
This chapter about how to build power is an exclusive sneak peek to my newest magical book. Stay connected and explore my blog until I can share my new book with you. Steps To Build Power From an expanded sense of consciousness, which began at the end of your...
Miraculous Healing: A Real Story
This is one of the most important Magical events of my life: a miraculous healing. "The healer must be well grounded and able to be present and clear in all four dimensions of being at once: the physical, human energy field, Hara, and core essence dimensions."Barbara...
Thank you, fellow traveler. If you want to begin your education immediately, please sign up for an upcoming workshop and sign up for Wizard School, where you can receive emails between 2-3 times a week with updated texts, videos, book recommendations, projects and more.
If you want to be more deeply involved, after signing up and connecting with the content, please contact me. I'm actively growing this platform, and am hiring for many positions that aren't listed. If you have skill and experience achieving something you think could help this mission, send a pitch in a video 5 minutes or less, describing your passion for magic, who you are, your work experience, your suggestion, your plan for achieving it, and your desired compensation.
There is MUCH more to come.
Welcome to the most exciting time of your life.
– David Solomon


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Proudly serving Toronto since 1984, Frank and Daughter started out as Frank and Son's. They have worked as a team for 13 years, and yes the "daughter", Faith, actually does exist, and works alongside Frank.
After many years of service in the Toronto community, we feel confident that we can cater to your needs. We get the job done and we don't just meet expectations; we exceed them. Our customers keep coming back because we're dependable, knowledgeable and pleasant to work with.
Our employees provide unmatched service, delivering top quality service for your business! Each is committed to personal service. In keeping with this desire, we're not satisfied with our work until you are.
Aside from our amazing staff, we take the time and care to make sure even the tiniest detail is managed, in every circumstance. There, really, is no other way.
Contact us today at 416-921-9711 to find out how we can help you. It's our pleasure!


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Thursday, October 15, 2009
First Rain...
The last few days we've had the first rains of the season. First rains are always the best! They signal and end to the long hot summer days, and the beginnings of cozy fires in the fireplace, homemade soups and stews, fresh baked breads, the gorgeous colors of Autumn and the eager anticipation of family gatherings and holiday celebrations!
I thought I'd share a few pictures that I took today in between the showers of rain...
Psalm 118:1 "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting."
Blessings to you on this beautiful, rainy Autumn day!
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This is a photo that I think I like the concept of it better than the final product. (Truth be told, I am not sure it's quite post-worthy.) But in the interests of posting more recent photos over digging into the archives whenever possible, here is the view of the sailboat masts crowding the harbour late last Saturday afternoon as the clouds started to roll in.
Thanks for visiting. I really appreciate your support and comments!


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WASHINGTON -- In a little over 2 weeks, an FDA panel will convene to consider approval of Abbott's bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS) stent, AKA Absorb, but is this technology really ready for prime time U.S. use?
Maybe was the consensus that appeared to emerge after a full day of BVS data and debate here at CRT 2016.
"Not so fast," said Theodore A. Bass, MD, of University of Florida Health Jacksonville, who argued that even though ABSORB III met the predefined non-inferiority primary endpoints without differences in safety endpoints such as stent thrombosis, there is much to be desired in the evidence for BVS.
Bass explained that the study's non-inferiority margin was "very generous" and pointed out that the investigators used an intention-to-treat analysis when non-inferiority trials are typically designed 'as-treated' to reduce bias.
"It really is a first-generation technology," he emphasized during a presentation at the Cardiovascular Research Technologies 2016 meeting in Washington, D.C.
In addition, he said, the point estimates for each of the component endpoints all favored the Xience metallic stent. "While there were no statistically significant differences in stent thrombosis, the event rates were about two-fold higher at 1 year," Bass noted, questioning whether BVS can still be considered safe over that period.
Importantly, "incomplete strut coverage may be increased in more complex settings mostly excluded from randomized controlled trials, exposing patients at increased risk of target lesion failure and stent thrombosis as already shown in registries," he said. Patients in these trials usually "do not reflect most of our daily percutaneous coronary interventions."
Earlier in the day, Stephen Ellis, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic raised the safety issue during a panel discussion. He asked if his fellow panelists, a blue-ribbon group of trialists if they thought Absorb would meet the safety threshold of FDA panel, and all agreed that it would.
But Ellis and Bass both emphasized that a crucial safety -- and efficacy -- consideration will be the ability of operators to deploy what is generally considered a "tricky" device.
Currently there are about 6,500 interventional cardiologists practicing in the U.S. and on average they do "about 40 to 50 cases a year," Bass said. He questioned whether that volume would be enough to acquire expertise in BVS.
He suggested a need for more operator training and use of potent P2Y12 inhibitors such as prasugrel and ticagrelor.
"There needs to be a proctoring mechanism in place," Ellis agreed adding that "ideally there would be a registry mechanism to focus on vessel size and post-dilatation," two key technical issues that are easier to track than long-term outcomes.
Asked to estimate how widely BVS would be used if it wins FDA approval, Ellis said that at his institution it would probably only be used in about 3% of cases, but he noted that his patients generally present with very complex lesions that are not suitable for first generation BVS.
For the average practitioner outside of a research setting, Gregg W. Stone, MD, of Columbia University Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital, suggested that BVS is still a good option for some cases.
"Where it can really open up is with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction [STEMI] and acute coronary syndrome [ACS], which are really simple lesions. Most of these lesions would fit the criteria other than the fact that they contain thrombus," he said, estimating that one-fifth of his patients are eligible for BVS.
Azeem Latib, MB, BCh, of Milan's San Raffaele Scientific Institute, pitted his figure at 15%. "I don't think with the current technology I'm going to get more than 20%," he said.
Noting the differences between institutions, panel speaker Ron Waksman, MD, of MedStar Washington Hospital Center, said that understanding any given patient population is key. He expressed disfavor for implanting BVS in patients older than 80 years of age, whose life expectancies may expire before successful bioresorption. He estimated that it could be used in about 15% of his cases.
Bass disclosed serving as investigator for ABSORB III-IV.
Primary Source
Cardiovascular Research Technologies
Source Reference: Bass TA "Is it time to move from metallic permanent stents to BRS technology in the US? Not so fast" CRT 2016.


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A weaker US dollar, a stable rupee and a slow recovery in the inflow of foreign funds added $631.5 million to India's foreign exchange reserves during the week ended 18 September.
Anindya Banerjee, associate vice president for currency derivatives with Kotak Securities said, "A half-a-billion dollar upswing in the FX reserves can be attributed primarily to the weakness of the greenback against major G-7 currencies. The upswing is also due to some purchases of US dollar in the spot market."
(Also read: India's foreign reserves rise to $352 billion, reports RBI)
Over the week ending 18 September, the US dollar weakened between 0.3-0.4 percent against Euro, Pound and Yen.
The Indian reserves consist of nearly 20-25 percent of the non-dollar currencies. The individual movements of these currencies against the dollar impacts the overall reserve value.
Additionally, data with the National Securities Depository Limited showed that the foreign portfolio investors were net buyers in the Indian equities and debt markets.
They invested a total of $341.91 million in both sub-segments of the market during the week under review.
India's foreign exchange reserves rose by $631.5 million to $352.02 billion in the week ended 18 September.
In the previous week ended 11 September, the reserves had gained $2.35 billion to rise to $351.38 billion. However, the reserves had declined by $2.88 billion in the week ended September 4 to $349.03 billion.
Furthermore, the data furnished by the Reserve Bank of India in its weekly statistical supplement showed that the foreign currency assets had risen by $592.7 million to $328.56 billion in the week under review.
The FCA constitutes the largest component of forex reserves. It consists of US dollars, non-dollar currencies, securities and bonds bought abroad.
The RBI was quoted saying in its statistical supplement, "The FCA expressed in US dollar terms, includes the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US currencies such as the pound sterling, euro and yen held in reserve."
During the week under review, the country's gold reserves remained stagnant. The country's gold reserves had depleted by $214.8 million at $18.03 billion during the week ended 4 September.
The special drawing rights in the week under review were higher by $29.3 million at $4.09 billion.
The country's reserve position with the International Monetary Fund edged up by $9.5 million to $1.32 billion.


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Stanley Fischer
The U.S. financial system is extremely complex. We have one of the largest nonbank sectors as a percentage of the overall financial system among advanced market economies. Since the crisis, changes in the regulation and supervision of the financial sector, most significantly those related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (Dodd-Frank Act) and the Basel III process, have addressed many of the weaknesses revealed by the crisis. Nonetheless, challenges to our efforts to preserve financial stability remain.
The Structure, Vulnerabilities, and Regulation of the U.S. Financial System
To set the stage, it is useful to start with a brief overview of the structure of the U.S. financial system. A diverse set of institutions provides credit to households and businesses, and others provide deposit-like services and facilitate transactions across the financial system. As can be seen from panel A of figure 1, banks currently supply about one-third of the credit in the U.S. system. In addition to banks, institutions thought of as long-term investors, such as insurance companies, pension funds, and mutual funds, provide anotherone-third of credit within the system, while the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), primarily Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, supply 20 percent of credit. A final group, which I will refer to as other nonbanks and is often associated with substantial reliance on short-term wholesale funding, consists of broker-dealers, money market mutual funds (MMFs), finance companies, issuers of asset-backed securities, and mortgage real estate investment trusts, which together provide 14 percent of credit.3
In the first quarter of this year, U.S. financial firms held credit market debt equal to $38 trillion, or 2.2 times the gross domestic product (GDP) of the United States. As the figure shows, the size of the financial sector relative to GDP grew for nearly 50 years but declined after the financial crisis and has only started increasing again this year.
From the perspective of financial stability, there are two important dimensions along which the categories of institutions in figure 1 differ. First, banks, the GSEs, and most of what I have called other nonbanks tend to be more leveraged than other institutions. Second, some institutions are more reliant on short-term funding and hence vulnerable to runs. For example, MMFs were pressured during the recent crisis, as their deposit-like liabilities–held as assets by highly risk-averse investors and not backstopped by a deposit insurance system–led to a run dynamic after a large fund broke the buck. In addition (as highlighted in table 1), nearly half of the liabilities of broker-dealers consists–and consisted then–of short-term wholesale funding, which proved to be unstable in the crisis.
The pros and cons of a multifaceted financial system
The significant role of nonbanks in the U.S. financial system and the associated complex web of interconnections bring both advantages and challenges relative to the more bank-dependent systems of other advanced economies.4 A potential advantage of lower bank dependence is the possibility that a contraction in credit supply from banks can be offset by credit supply from other institutions or capital markets, thereby acting as a spare tire for credit supply. As shown in table 2, historical evidence suggests that the credit provided by what I termed long-term investors–that is, insurance companies, pension funds, and mutual funds–has tended to offset movements in bank credit relative to GDP, as indicated by the strong negative correlation of credit held by these institutions with bank credit during recessions. In other words, these institutions have acted as a spare tire for the banking sector.5
However, complexity also poses challenges. While the financial crisis arguably started in the nonbank sector, it quickly spread to the banking sector because of interconnections that were hard for regulators to detect and greatly underappreciated by investors and risk managers in the private sector.6 For example, when banks provide loans directly to households and businesses, the chain of intermediation is short and simple; in the nonbank sector, intermediation chains are long and often involve a multitude of both banks and other nonbank financial institutions.7
Regulatory, supervisory, and financial industry reforms since the crisis
U.S. regulators have undertaken a number of reforms to address weaknesses revealed by the crisis. The most significant set of reforms has focused on the banking sector and, in particular, on regulation and supervision of the largest, most interconnected firms. Changes include significantly higher capital requirements, additional capital charges for global systemically important banks, macro-based stress testing, and requirements that improve the resilience of banks' liquidity risk profile.
Changes for the nonbank sector have been more limited, but steps have been taken, including the final rule on risk retention in securitization, issued jointly by the Federal Reserve and five other agencies in October of last year, and the new MMF rules issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in July of last year, following a Section 120 recommendation by the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC).8 More recently, the SEC has also proposed rules to modernize data reporting by investment companies and advisers, as well as to enhance liquidity risk management and disclosure by open-end mutual funds, including exchange-traded funds.9 Other provisions include the central clearing requirement for standardized over-the-counter derivatives and the designation by the FSOC of four nonbanks as systemically important financial institutions.10 The industry has also undertaken important changes to bolster the resilience of its practices, including notable improvements to internal risk-management processes.11
Some challenges to macroprudential policy
The steps taken since the crisis have almost certainly improved the resilience of the U.S. financial system, but I would like to highlight two significant challenges that remain.
First, new regulations may lead to shifts in the institutional location of particular financial activities, which can potentially offset the expected effects of the regulatory reforms. The most significant changes in regulation have focused on large banks. This focus has been appropriate, as large banks are the most interconnected and complex institutions. Nonetheless, potential shifts of activity away from more regulated to less regulated institutions could lead to new risks.
It is still too early to gauge the degree to which such adaptations to regulatory changes may occur, although there are tentative signs. For example, we have seen notable growth in mortgage originations at independent mortgage companies as reflected in the striking increase in the share of home-purchase originations by independent mortgage companies from 35 percent in 2010 to 47 percent in 2014. This growth coincides with the timing of Basel III, stress testing, and banks' renewed appreciation of the legal risks in mortgage originations.12 As another example, there have also been many reports of diminished liquidity in fixed-income markets. Some observers have linked this shift to new regulations that have raised the costs of market making, although the evidence for changes in market liquidity is far from conclusive and a range of factors related to market structure may have contributed to the reporting of such shifts.13
Despite limited evidence to date, the possibility of activity relocating in response to regulation is a potential impediment to the effectiveness of macroprudential policy. This is clearly the case when activity moves from a regulated to an unregulated institution. But it may also be relevant even when activity moves from one regulated institution to an institution regulated by a different authority. This scenario can occur in the United States because different regulators are responsible for different institutions, and financial stability traditionally has not been, and in a number of cases is still not, a central component of these regulators' mandates. To be sure, the situation has improved since the crisis, as the FSOC facilitates interagency dialogue and has a shared responsibility for identifying risks and reporting on these findings and actions taken in its annual report submitted to the Congress. In addition, FSOC members jointly identify systemically important nonbank financial institutions. Despite these improvements, it remains possible that the FSOC members' different mandates, some of which do not include macroprudential regulation, may hinder coordination. By contrast, in the United Kingdom, fewer member agencies are represented on the Financial Policy Committee at the Bank of England, and each agency has an explicit macroprudential mandate. The committee has a number of tools to carry out this mandate, which currently are sectoral capital requirements, the countercyclical capital buffer, and limits on loan-to-value and debt-to-income ratios for mortgage lending.
A second significant challenge to macroprudential policy remains the relative lack of measures in the U.S. macroeconomic toolkit to address a cyclical buildup of financial stability risks. Since the crisis, frameworks have been or are currently being developed to deploy some countercyclical tools during periods when risks escalate, including the analysis of salient risks in annual stress tests for banks, the Basel III countercyclical capital buffer, and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) proposal for minimum margins on securities financing transactions. But the FSB proposal is far from being implemented, and a number of tools used in other countries are either not available to U.S. regulators or very far from being implemented. For example, several other countries have used tools such as time-varying risk weights and time-varying loan-to-value and debt-to-income caps on mortgages. Indeed, international experience points to the usefulness of these tools, whereas the efficacy of new tools in the United States, such as the countercyclical capital buffer, remains untested.14
In considering the difficulties caused by the relative unavailability of macroprudential tools in the United States, we need to recognize that there may well be an interaction between the extent to which the entire financial system can be strengthened and made more robust through structural measures–such as those imposed on the banking system since the Dodd-Frank Act–and the extent to which a country needs to rely more on macroprudential measures.15 Inter alia, this recognition could provide an ex post rationalization for the United States having imposed stronger capital and other charges than most foreign countries.
Implications for monetary policy
Though I remain concerned that the U.S. macroprudential toolkit is not large and not yet battle tested, that does not imply that I see acute risks to financial stability in the near term. Indeed, banks are well capitalized and have sizable liquidity buffers, the housing market is not overheated, and borrowing by households and businesses has only begun to pick up after years of decline or very slow growth. Further, I believe that the careful monitoring of the financial system now carried out by Fed staff members, particularly those in the Office of Financial Stability Policy and Research, and by the FSOC contributes to the stability of the U.S. financial system–though we have always to remind ourselves that, historically, not even the best intelligence services have succeeded in identifying every significant potential threat accurately and in a timely manner. This is another reminder of the importance of building resilience in the financial system.
Nonetheless, the limited macroprudential toolkit in the United States leads me to conclude that there may be times when adjustments in monetary policy should be discussed as a means to curb risks to financial stability. The deployment of monetary policy comes with significant costs. A more restrictive monetary policy would, all else being equal, lead to deviations from price stability and full employment. Moreover, financial stability considerations can sometimes point to the need for accommodative monetary policy. For example, the accommodative U.S. monetary policy since 2008 has helped repair the balance sheets of households, nonfinancial firms, and the financial sector.
Given these considerations, how should monetary policy be deployed to foster financial stability? This topic is a matter for further research, some of which will look similar to the analysis in an earlier time of whether and how monetary policy should react to rapidly rising asset prices. That discussion reached the conclusion that monetary policy should be deployed to deal with errant asset prices (assuming, of course, that they could be identified) only to the extent that not doing so would result in a worse outcome for current and future output and inflation.16
There are some calculations–for example, by Lars Svensson–that suggest it would hardly ever make sense to deploy monetary policy to deal with potential financial instability. The contention that macroprudential measures would be a better approach is persuasive, except when there are no relevant macroprudential measures available. I believe we need more research into the question. I also struggle in trying to find consistency between the certainty that many have that higher interest rates would have prevented the Global Financial Crisis and the view that the interest rate should not be used to deal with potential financial instabilities. Perhaps that problem can be solved by seeking to distinguish between a situation in which the interest rate is not at its short-run natural rate and one in which asset-pricing problems are sector specific.
Of course, we should not exaggerate. It is one thing to say we have no macroprudential tools and another to say that having more macroprudential measures–particularly in the area of housing finance–could provide major financial stability benefits. It also seems likely that monetary policy should be used for macroprudential purposes with an eye to the tradeoffs between reduced financial imbalances, price stability, and maximum employment. In this regard, a number of recent research papers have begun to frame the issue in terms of such tradeoffs, although this is a new area that deserves further research.17
It may also be fruitful for researchers to continue investigating the deployment of new or little-used monetary policy tools. For example, it is arguable that reserve requirements–a traditional monetary policy instrument–can be viewed as a macroprudential tool. In addition, some research has begun to ask important questions about the size and structure of monetary authority liabilities in fostering financial stability.18
To sum up: The need for coordination across different regulators with distinct mandates creates challenges to the timely deployment of macroprudential measures in the United States. Further, the toolkit to act countercyclically in the face of building financial stability risks is limited, requires more research on its efficacy, and may need to be enhanced. Given these challenges, we need to consider the potential role of monetary policy in fostering financial stability while recognizing that there is more research to be done in clarifying the potential costs and benefits of doing so when conditions appear so to warrant.
After all of the successful work that has been done to reform the financial system since the Global Financial Crisis, this summary may appear daunting and disappointing. But it is important to highlight these challenges now. Currently, the U.S. financial system appears resilient, reflecting the impressive progress made since the crisis. We need to address these questions now, before new risks emerge.


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Acer and NVIDIA are redefining Ultrabooks.
When it comes to those lithely powerful Ultrabooks, you can't be too thin, light or powerful. Acer is pushing the performance envelope on all three fronts with the Acer Timeline M3 Ultra – the world's first Ultrabook to rock a dedicated GeForce GT640M.
Today's Ultrabooks lack the graphics processing power to satisfy gamers and power users. The Timeline M3 Ultra breaks the mold by pairing the latest Intel Core processors with a discrete GPU based on the next-generation NVIDIA Kepler GPU architecture. The GeForce GT640M is based on the power efficient Kepler architecture in 28nm silicon and boasts Optimus technology to reduce power consumption where it's most important – an Ultrabook.
Thanks to NVIDIA and Acer, you can have high-end graphics performance and the best battery life on the planet.
Expect to see more Ultrabooks featuring discrete GeForce graphics cards in the near future. Your next Ultrabook doesn't have to compromise its multimedia chops – demand a thinner, lighter and more powerful machine like the Timeline M3 Ultra.
Clearly, the best Ultrabooks have NVIDIA GPUs.


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I am turning 29 and it's important that I keep my skin glowing and healthy. Even if you are not aging you still need to take care of your skin. I am blessed with oil free skin but still I make sure that my skin looks young and healthy. Keeping skin healthy is not a rocket science you just need to do few things in your daily routine. So let's get started.
I Wash my face twice a day with face wash: Make sure you wash your face once in the morning and second at night before you go to sleep. You can use any face wash according to skin your tone. Washing face removes all the dust & oil and keeps your skin fresh.
Also read : Get healthy skin this summer with DIY Mango Face Packs
I avoid drinking too much caffeine: If you have a habit of sipping coffee or tea all day long then you might end up with a dull skin. Drinking too much caffeine also cause anxiety and nervousness. Switch to green tea as it keeps skin glowing and clean. I just drink tea once in the morning that too without any sugar.
Also read : No more skin pigmentation with these amazing kitchen ingredients
I eat clean: Not always. I try my best to eat healthy food but I do fail sometimes due to lack of time to cook a healthy meal. But my office lunch is full of nutrients. There are some foods that are particularly good for skin which includes, almonds, sweet potato, tomato, spinach, watermelon, carrot and apple. So try to include them in your diet.
Also read : Top 5 Avocado face masks you will ever need for healthy & glowing skin
I Workout: I make sure to workout 4-5 times a week for atleast half an hour. Regular exercise increases your blood flow, hence keep your skin healthy. Exercise not only helps in keeping you in shape but remove dead skin cells also which ultimately leads to glowing skin.
I drink a lot of water: The very first thing I do the minute i open my eyes is to drink 1 glass warm water mixed with honey and lemon. It not only helps in reducing weight but it's also wonderful for your skin. It also helps in acne control and detoxes your whole body. Also, make a habit of drinking 7-8 glass of water daily.
I use natural home remedies for my skin: I rarely use any unnatural product on my skin. Natural remedies are best for taking care of your skin. I use rose water every alternate day to wipe my face. Just dip a cotton ball in rose water and clean your face well. You can also add glycerine is rose water for better effect. Rose water moisture your skin and make your skin smooth and glossy.
I avoid eating too much sugar: You have a sweet tooth, I get it. But eating too much sugar cause sagging in your skin. I bet you wouldn't want that. Instead of quitting sugar altogether, switch to healthier options like dark chocolate, dry fruits etc.
I don't put on heavy makeup: In fact, I rarely using any makeup except my kajal, which is a must. Putting too much makeup closes skin pore and doesn't allow it to breathe. Go makeup free on some days or try to use natural products.
Also read : Girls With Glasses : 10 Easy Makeup & Beauty Tips
I do not skip meals: No matter how busy I am, I never ever skip meals. I just can't stay hungry. Skipping meal on regular basis make your skin look dull and dry. You will lose all the glow and your skin will age faster. So always carry a healthy meal with you. I always have my box full of nuts with me. You too can carry such healthy options like orange, apple, nuts etc.
So that's all for today. I would love to read how all you sexy ladies take care of your skin. Please share your thoughts in the comment.


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Coast Fraser IDP SCD Programs
Posted on February 27, 2014 by Advisors
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'Pineapple Express 2' Trailer Is April Fools' Day Prank — With a Twist
While some companies took advantage of April Fools' Day to troll people for laughs, Sony saw it as marketing opportunity for its upcoming film, This is the End
A promo for the apocalyptic comedy, starring Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jay Baruchel and Jonah Hill as on-screen versions of themselves, is disguised as a trailer for Pineapple Express 2 — the supposed sequel to popular 2008 stoner movie, Pineapple Express.
The spot's first minute is shot like an amateur video, leading viewers to suspect that something's awry; then, confirmation around the 1:08 mark: It's an April Fools' prank. For the last 30 seconds, the promo reveals itself as a scene within This is the End.
Judging by the thousands of hits Pineapple Express 2 has received since going online Monday, Sony's clever marketing ploy — that is, piggybacking on the original film's considerable fan base — is a success.
This is the End is slated for release this summer. Check out the full trailer, below.
What do you think of Sony's April Fools-inspired tactic to promote a film? Tell us in the comments, below.
Screenshot image and top video courtesy of SonyPictures via YouTube; bottom video courtesy of YouTube, machinima


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One of my all time favourite bloggers, Oxford Neuroscientist Prof. Dorothy Bishop, or DeevyBee as she is known on Twitter has performed an amazing open access lecture focusing largely on the misunderstanding of neuroscience (click down to the "Emanuel Miller Lecture" to play the video). The talk is incredibly informative and digestible, even those with no understanding of neuroscience or psychology whatsoever will take a great deal away. The problem of the poor understanding of neuroscience is one of the main reasons why I started this blog, so if you like this blog then you'll love this lecture.
Click here to download the slides.
The talk begins with a reasoned explanation of how and when we should be sceptical of neuroscience research, Bishop goes on to cite 4 key reasons why certain kinds of scientific research will inevitbaly result in false-positives:
"The four horseman of the apocalypse"
1. Maturation – People develop naturally over time.
"There seems to be an implicit assumption that the brain, because it is a physical organ is somehow not going to change unless you give it some intervention – that it is there as a static thing. This is completely untrue… as evidenced by this series of images."
2. Practice effects – when people keep doing the same test again and again, they get better at it.
"…purely to do with the fact that you have got better at doing the test and nothing to do with your abilities… People forget that this can apply to language tests and thing like that. It also applies to some extent to the brain, often we don't know how important this is because brain imaging is so new.. clearly if you get brain responses to novelty, that means if you do something twice – the first time round you will get different responses to the second time round when it is no longer novel".
3. Regression to the mean – a statistical artefact of longitudinal studies that is exacerbated if you select participants on the basis of a low score on a test (for example participants with developmental difficulties). Bishop does an outstanding job of explaining the problem at about 18 minutes in to the talk.
"Regression to the mean is as inevitable as death and taxes"
Campbell and Kenny (1999) A primer on regression artefacts
4. The placebo effect. This is the obvious consideration that continues to impact poorly designed research but according to Bishop, the three issues listed above could actually be having an even greater impact than the placebo effect.
The Solution?
Bishop explains that a control group is vital in order to achieve valid findings, but a control group alone is not enough, we should also be asking questions such as:
- Are the groups randomly assigned – or is there some other factor at play?
- Is the control group given an alternative treatment? If not, why not?
- What causes drop out? People don't tend to drop out at random and this can have a very big effect on results.
Weisberg, Deena Skolnick. (2008). The Seductive Allure of Neuroscience Explanations. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 18 (3), 229-477 DOI: 10.1162/jocn.2008.20040
Campbell and Kenny (1999) A primer on regression artefactsFollow Simon on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, RSS, or join the mailing list.
TED has taken a lot of flak recently. Over at The New Republic, Evgeny Morozov has just published an eye wateringly brutal review of the popular site for bite-sized talks:
Today TED is an insatiable kingpin of international meme laundering—a place where ideas, regardless of their quality, go to seek celebrity, to live in the form of videos, tweets, and now e-books. In the world of TED—or, to use their argot, in the TED "ecosystem"—books become talks, talks become memes, memes become projects, projects become talks, talks become books—and so it goes ad infinitum in the sizzling Stakhanovite cycle of memetics, until any shade of depth or nuance disappears into the virtual void. Richard Dawkins, the father of memetics, should be very proud. Perhaps he can explain how "ideas worth spreading" become "ideas no footnotes can support."
…The TED ideal of thought is the ideal of the "takeaway"—the shrinkage of thought for people too busy to think.
This follows Carl Zimmer's similarly scathing account (this time on a talk by Philip Zimbardo and I must admit, I wholeheartedly agree with Zimmer's criticisms of Zimbardo's talk):
Zimbardo has served as the president of the American Psychological Association and has written a number of bestsellers and textbooks… and then this distinguished psychologist came to TED and delivered a rapid-fire bombardment of disconnected statistics and sweeping generalizations without any serious evidence backing them up. In this talk, he ends with a warning that our species will descend to the level of banana slugs. It's like the punchline of a joke.
I'm not a fan of over-generalising, and as rampant over-generalising is one of my biggest criticisms of TED, I'm going to try not to do the same thing here. I've seen some tremendous TED talks and I've seen some horrendous TED talks. TED has it's problems but TED is only a platform, though a powerful platform it may be. It's not a source in itself and it's clearly not where people should be headed for their sole education – there are far more promising on-line destinations for this than TED, but there again – TED told us that already.
If I were to be in charge of TED, I would not necessarily ask for higher quality-control, I'd ask to see better referencing, I certainly don't want to see TED reacting to criticism by policing what speakers can say. As long as sources are adequately provided, I'm happy to do the leg work and fact-check myself, or let the hive-mind do it for me – but this becomes a nightmarish task when you can't find a source to start with. Another thing I'd like to see is questions from the audience. I've heard people say time and time again that the most interesting part of lectures is the Q&A. This has certainly been my experience and I think it's sad that TED does not allow its audience the freedom to question the speakers at the pulpit of ideas. As Zimmer so eloquently put it, "When a TED talk ends, the lights go out. There's no time for questions".
For all its faults, TED remains a great springboard for ideas and inspiration. I'm not convinced that its style is really as bigger problem as has been made out by some, it serves (or at least it should serve) a very different purpose to true on-line learning. I see TED much the same way as I see Twitter, never as a source – but often as a doorway to discovery. I do however agree that we need to change the attitude that TED is somehow a stamp of approval for fact-checked information, that it is not. The attitude we should have to TED is no different to the attitude we should have to all things – a healthy scepticism. This TED talk (ironically), sums up both this attitude and the purpose of TED (as I perceive it) just perfectly:
It's an inspiring talk, it's from someone from a strongly academic background but who is not chiefly an academic. It's not particularly well referenced but that's sort of the point. It's not meant to be a lecture, it's meant to kick-start you in to thinking for yourself. A little inspiration can go a very long way, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't always check, question and challenge our sources. Always, always, always. Even.. no.. especially when, our source is TED.
Follow Simon on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, RSS, or join the mailing list.
A new documentary discusses a bizarre affliction that has been widely (and uncritically) reported in the media to affect around a dozen of the approximately one million Japanese tourists who visit Paris each year. Paris Syndrome is said to occur when a combination of factors leave tourists with a particularly severe case of culture shock.
Symptoms are purported to include:
'acute delusional states, hallucinations, feelings of persecution (perceptions of being a victim of prejudice, aggression, or hostility from others), derealization, depersonalization, anxiety, and also psychosomatic manifestations such as dizziness, tachycardia (and) sweating' – Wikipedia
Due to the relatively microscopic numbers reported, it seems to me to be all too likely that Paris has become the unfortunate victim of an illusory correlation. After all, twelve out of one million is a number that doesn't immediately strike me as particularly statistically significant, to say the least. To put this figure in to perspective, seven per thousand of the adult population are expected to suffer a schizophrenic episode at some point in their life. That is the equivalent of seven thousand per million, a number which suddenly makes twelve per million sound much smaller indeed.
Unfortunately, there is little by the way of well documented reports or case studies of Paris Syndrome and Professor Hiroaki Ota, the author of the original report1 published in a French psychiatric magazine, appears somewhat impossible to contact. It is certainly stirring to entertain the thought that perhaps something as seemingly benign (to a modern western generation) as a holiday to Paris, could spark a breakdown so severe it requires the victim to seek refuge and be accompanied back to their home country. In many ways there is some logic to the idea, there has certainly been plenty of theorising by the media and the internet's hivemind. In reality however, the explanation for this peculiar condition may come down to chance as much as it does to the cultural relationship between Parisians and their Japanese guests.
1. Viala, A., Ota, H., Vacheron, M.N., Martin, P., & Caroli, F. (2004). "Les Japonais en voyage pathologique à Paris : un modèle original de prise en charge transculturelle". Neuvure de journal Psychiatrie, 5, 31-34
NB: I couldn't figure out how to access the article referenced by the documentary, if anyone has access and the time and inclination to translate it from French I'd greatly appreciate it.Follow Simon on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, RSS, or join the mailing list.
The line below is taken from my undergrad revision notes, it is the same conclusion reached in a profile of Thomas Kuhn posted yesterday on the Scientific American blog.
"Kuhn described what science tends to be, Popper described what it ought to be"
Thomas Kuhn and Karl Popper were two philosophers with opposing views of the nature of science. Popper believed that the only way for science to progress is through testing falsifiable ideas, this theory has become the bedrock of scientific progress. Kuhn argued that this isn't how science works in practice – according to Kuhn, scientists in reality tend to spend most of their time "mopping up", which means producing results that fit in with the established view point. Kuhn popularised the term "paradigm shift", used to describe the event that occurs when a new discovery blows previously held beliefs out of the water, for example when the theory of evolution won the argument over theories based around intelligent design. I've always struggled to see why the two theories (Kuhn's and Poppers') are so often seen as mutually exclusive, from my perspective both theories are indeed correct and in fact complement each other to serve important lessons in their own right. Testing falsifiable theories is clearly the way forward but at the very same time this must be complemented by replicating results, if this does not happen then we have no way of knowing that we are on the right track and this is a very bad thing for science.
The Scientific American piece adds an interesting angle to the Kuhn-Popper debate, both philosophers are now deceased but the piece describes a fascinating account of how Thomas Kuhn really felt about how his writings were percieved. The piece reveals Kuhn's sentiment that he was "much fonder of (his) critics than (his) fans", this will ring true for many that have written about science and felt the frustration of having their views misunderstood. For Kuhn it seems, the frustration really got to him. He was left isolated, frustrated by students who misunderstood his message and fearing to speak to journalists who he felt would only misrepresent his viewpoint. The SciAm piece adds an often neglected aspect to the debate, perhaps "scientists can never truly understand the 'real world' or even each other", the way forward is to balance a healthy scepticism with a genuine openness to new ideas. This argument, was made in a fantastic essay by the late Carl Sagan:
"It seems to me what is called for is an exquisite balance between two conflicting needs: the most skeptical scrutiny of all hypotheses that are served up to us and at the same time a great openness to new ideas. Obviously those two modes of thought are in some tension. But if you are able to exercise only one of these modes, whichever one it is, you're in deep trouble.
If you are only skeptical, then no new ideas make it through to you. You never learn anything new. You become a crotchety old person convinced that nonsense is ruling the world. (There is, of course, much data to support you.) But every now and then, maybe once in a hundred cases, a new idea turns out to be on the mark, valid and wonderful. If you are too much in the habit of being skeptical about everything, you are going to miss or resent it, and either way you will be standing in the way of understanding and progress.
On the other hand, if you are open to the point of gullibility and have not an ounce of skeptical sense in you, then you cannot distinguish the useful as from the worthless ones. If all ideas have equal validity then you are lost, because then, it seems to me, no ideas have any validity at all.
Some ideas are better than others. The machinery for distinguishing them is an essential tool in dealing with the world and especially in dealing with the future. And it is precisely the mix of these two modes of thought that is central to the success of science."
The Burden of Skepticism by Carl Sagan via BrainPickings
I'll leave this discussion there and implore you to go ahead and read John Horgan's SciAm piece and Carl Sagan's essay as well as Ed Yong's Nature Magazine piece, the debates complement each other perfectly leaving a great deal worth pondering.
Horgan, J. (2012). What Thomas Kuhn Really Thought about Scientific "Truth" Scientific American, Cross-Check
Sagan, C. (1987). The Burden of Skepticism Skeptical Inquirer, vol. 12
Yong E (2012). Replication studies: Bad copy. Nature, 485 (7398), 298-300 PMID: 22596136Follow Simon on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, RSS, or join the mailing list.
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