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When considering the Mid-South corn harvest, one of Dennis Gardisser's first concerns is how quickly and efficiently the grain can be handled. Potential bottlenecks abound, says the Arkansas Extension engineer.
"I'm afraid we'll be able to harvest it a lot quicker than we can get rid of it," he says. "One issue is having enough trucks and buggies to keep the harvest flow even. We don't want the harvest to be throttled by an inability to get the grain out of the combine. I hope everyone has that planned out, whether using on-farm storage or another option.
He says managing the speed of harvest will be critical. "Many new corn farmers don't realize how quickly corn comes out of the field. If you've got 200 bushels per acre, the grain piles up quickly. Everyone will be at the barn trying to unload at the same time, I'm afraid."
Gardisser, a well-respected veteran of grain-harvesting mechanics and planning, says newer corn farmers are especially vulnerable to bad harvesting decisions.
"It may sound simplistic, but everyone needs to remember the combine should be set a bit differently for corn than for rice. The combine needs a corn header, if at all possible. We have seen situations where farmers have tried to cut corn with a flat-table header. But that's very difficult to do — harder on the combine, harder to keep grain loss minimized, and it's slower."
Anyone new to corn headers needs to "study set-up recommendations. The headers aren't hard to set. But if they're not working properly, the efficiency and grain losses can drop dramatically."
Coming right up
Arkansas' corn harvest isn't far off, says Jason Kelley. "In southeast Arkansas — Eudora, Chicot County, Ashley County — where the corn wasn't burned back by the Easter freeze, there will be some corn harvested in July," says the Arkansas Extension corn specialist. "But most of our corn harvest will kick off in early August. At least that's what I'm hoping for — that would give us a little more time to prepare."
The harvest in Louisiana could begin sooner, says David Lanclos, LSU AgCenter corn specialist, because of the drought conditions that have persisted in some areas. "There's plenty of speculation combines could be running as early as July 15," he said. "Although those situations may be isolated, I don't doubt it could happen."
Drought stress might also mean Mississippi could be looking at a big crop maturing in a relatively short time, according to Erick Larson, Extension corn specialist at Mississippi State University. "Drought stress may accelerate the maturity process and harvest may not be spread out as much as it normally is, depending on rainfall."
Lack of irrigation in west Tennessee's production area is also causing yield loss and could bring on harvest faster than expected, said Angela Thompson, Tennessee Extension corn specialist.
Most of the specialists say areas hit by the Easter freeze and subsequent replanting will definitely mean a prolonged harvest.
"In other states, if things go as expected, the corn can come off at nearly the same time," says Kelley. "Here, we've got a bunch of replanted corn — corn that, in a normal year, would be considered late-planted in late April and into May.
"In the beginning our producers might have thought, 'We'll get the corn off and out of the way before harvesting rice or other crops.' Now, though, this replant corn will probably throw a kink into those plans. It's much more likely for our corn harvest to have a conflict."
Moisture levels
Based on past data, the best harvest moisture is between 18 percent and 22 percent. Corn can be allowed to dry more in the field. But doing that can lead to losses — how much largely depends on the variety.
Regardless, Gardisser says harvest should begin around the 20 percent moisture level. "With that in mind, there has to be a way to dry it. If they let it stand in the field, the risk is wind blowing the crop over and extra losses during picking."
Unfortunately, irrigation water won't cover a field equally. Drier areas often include corners, sandy soils, and high spots. "The problem is anytime corn is stressed the potential for aflatoxin goes up. So if there are any suspect spots in the field — corners, ends, whatever — pick them separately, perhaps last. Doing that means less chance of combine of equipment being contaminated by any aflatoxin that may be present."
It doesn't take much aflatoxin to ruin someone's day, warns Gardisser. "And if a crop is infected with aflatoxin, it can't be used for cattle feed nor for ethanol. I've heard, 'Well, if it's infected, I'll just send it off to produce ethanol.' But the renewable fuel industry won't take it either."
In fact, the crop can't even cross state lines with aflatoxin at more than 25 parts per million.
Also, avoid letting corn sit in a hopper belly or truck bottom for more than 12 hours. "The first load of the morning is often the dampest. Dew is on the crop when it is combined and it goes right to the hopper belly bottom. It sits there until the truck is full and then it may sit at the elevator for a few more hours. In that situation, the potential for the growth of unwelcome disease increases."
On-farm storage and drying of corn doesn't have to involve corn-centric equipment. Unless the corn is very wet, "standard rice bins do a fine job in most cases."
Not drying corn could produce a stiff penalty. Anyone not doing so, "will be sorry when they take high-moisture corn to the elevator. I'd try to get the moisture down somehow."
The optimum moisture content for corn is 15.5 percent. To reach that percentage, how much does corn shrinkage matter? "I've heard things said like 'Well, corn weighs more when I sell it at 18 percent moisture. That should override any dockage.' But, no, I guarantee that isn't the case. The dockage cost is much more than the 2 or 3 extra pounds of water moisture. The farmer won't win in that game."
Regardless, 15.5 percent moisture is prime. And farmers don't want to get below that percentage because "there's no premium for moistures below 15.5. That's another way farmers can lose money."
In storage, Gardisser likes to keep corn at 14 percent moisture or below. "Put some air on it, get it dried." Farmers make a mistake when binned corn is subjected to both heat and fans. "The thought is adding heat will speed the drying process up. So they may set the air at 9 percent equilibrium and they're wasting money.
"The best thing to do is get a psychrometer and measure the air quality. If the corn is going to market, turn the fans on and get the moisture to 15.5 percent. Then quit."
Easing the crunch
Farmers looking to ease a storage crunch frequently ask Gardisser about the large, in-field storage bags often used outside the United States.
"These bags must be sealed — no air. If the bag is breached, the grain can turn to mush. Whatever happens, at this point we have no data to dispute — good, bad or indifferent — the claims about how these bags work. But since our storage capacity is limited, a bunch of those bags will be utilized.
"I suspect the mistakes with these bags will come where there's not a good seal or deer or rodents find it."
Data on the storage bags out of Israel and South America "looks fine. But no one — and I've asked some knowledgeable people about this — including the companies selling the bags, has data on what happens to corn in these bags in our temperature and humidity environment. That data doesn't exist. We'll have it next year."
There have also been queries about spiked-tooth combines. "We recommend against using that, if possible. It breaks the cob into pieces and puts a lot of material into the hopper and it's harder to separate. We also recommend against using flat-table cutters."
The header needs to be on the same spacing as the planter. "We don't want a 36-inch row and a 30-inch header."
New corn producers also need to know that corn headers are large and heavy. "Many times a corn header is added to a combine and they have to add weight to the back end. That keeps the back end down so they can steer when there's not a lot in the hopper. Two-wheel drive combines are especially prone to being tipsy with a corn header on."
Other issues
Gardisser believes elevators will be "very critical on the quality of corn they'll take. They may not want high-moisture corn because that'll slow them down too — and energy costs are high. So they'll be selective and I think, in some cases, farmers will have a hard time finding a place to take their corn."
Depending on the weather, if there are any suspicions of aflatoxin "they'll also be extremely selective. They don't want to contaminate a whole barge with one mistake. And that's fine.
"What all this means is farmers need to be speaking with their elevators and have a good, clear understanding in writing about the elevators' parameters in taking corn."


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Liz blahh 3/1/2012 2:40:21 PMImpressive! #1446760
Jeff Robinson 3/1/2012 3:31:10 PMWow Debby - This is Outstanding in every way! Very Impressive it is! #10016614
Jack Gaskin 3/1/2012 7:26:12 PMLove that you managed to catch him AWAKE and actually looking at you. He is W/O Question the most well rested BIG CAT ANYPLACE...
Jack #10016990
Patrick Rouzes 3/2/2012 3:00:51 PMExceptional tones, textures, detail, pose, expression & b/g here Debby! WTG! #10018403
Jeffrey R. Bange 3/2/2012 7:53:09 PMBeautiful capture Debby, one of my favorites of the big cats. Did you know that they have two new sisters there that are about 2 years old, they are not out everyday. #10018701
Emile Abbott 3/3/2012 1:10:22 PMNow talk about eye contact. Great portrait Debby #10019987
Deborah C. Lewinson 3/3/2012 2:37:22 PMLiz, Jeff, Jack, Paddy, Jeffrey, and Emile, thank you for your terrific comments! I appreciate your feedback!
Debby #10020173
Carol Eade 3/3/2012 6:45:27 PMSo beautiful, Debby, and love the tones. #10020502
Reynaldo D. Reyes 3/4/2012 11:40:26 AMYou've captured the attention grabbing stare of this great cat that seems like it does not want to be bothered. Perfect pose! #10021388
Phyllis H. Burchett 3/5/2012 6:49:05 AMFantastic capture Deb, awesome eye contact. #10022761
Deborah C. Lewinson 3/5/2012 7:06:20 PMCarol, Rey, and Phyllis, thanks so much for your kind words and support!
Debby #10023884
John Rivera 3/6/2012 4:58:36 AMGreat capture! #10024624
Deborah C. Lewinson 3/6/2012 5:01:25 AMThanks, John! #10024635
Snow Leopard at Bronx Zoo
Exif: F Number: 5.6, Exposure Bias Value: -2.00, ExposureTime: 1/320 seconds, Flash: fired, compulsory flash mode, return light detected, ISO: 400, White balance: Manual white balance, FocalLength: 150.00 mm, Model: NIKON D300S
Uploaded on 3/1/2012 2:35:42 PM
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Camera: Nikon D300s Digital SLR Camera
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subset: commoncrawl


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Poll: What Pizza Practices Are Unacceptable?
Pizza vox populi.
Pizza is subjected to all kinds of abuses and mistreatment. The napkin blot, considered by many to be a huge slice faux pas, is a rampant practice (particularly among teenage girls). Every day hundreds, maybe thousands, of perfectly good crusts are abandoned on plates around the world. Others are only considered to be edible if first plunged into condiments, usually of the salad dressing class; a practice that has gained more momentum in recent years. Even GOP candidate Mitt Romney is said to be guilty of the pizza transgression of peeling the cheese off his pizza. What treatments do you consider to be intolerable pizza blunders?
Select all that apply.
This post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Serious Eats. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.


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Content tagged with 'Predators'
John Debney scoring Predators using Bowers & Wilkins speakers
Fantastic footage of John Debney scoring the new Robert Rodriguez produced Predators film. The music sounds absolutely stunning and we're very pleased to see he's using our speakers. Starring… Read more
Posted on: Thursday, 10 Jun 2010
Categories: Speakers, Hi-fi speakers
Tags: B&W, Bowers & Wilkins speakers, Bowrs & Wilkins 800 series, John Debney, Predators


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On September 8, 2008 Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, spoke to 400 people gathered for an event hosted by the animal welfare organization, Compassion in World Farming. F Pachauri, an Indian economist (and vegetarian) who had just been reelected to a second term as chairman, made one of the most public and bold statements about the connection between our diet and global warming on the world stage: Choosing to eat less meat, Pachauri said, or cutting out meat entirely, is one of the most important personal choices we can make to address climate change.
"In terms of immediacy of action and the feasibility of bringing about reductions in a short period of time, it clearly is the most attractive opportunity," said Pachauri. "Give up meat for one day [a week] initially, and decrease it from there."
To many of us, Pachauri's specific prescription for addressing change might come as a surprise. When we think about the culprits behind the climate crisis, we tend to think about Big Oil or dirty coal-fired powered plants. We picture cars and industrial skylines, or imagine factories and smokestacks. It's time we start thinking about another sector of the economy that is increasingly exacerbating the climate crisis. The global food system—including deforestation to make way for crops for cattle and cars—is responsible for an estimated one-third of total greenhouse gas emissions (see below, Main Sources of Emission from Agriculture).
Livestock production alone contributes to 18 percent of the global warming effect—more than the emissions from every single car, train, and plane on the planet. FThough livestock production only contributes 9 percent of carbon dioxide emissions, the sector is responsible for 37 percent of methane and 65 percent of nitrous oxide, both potent greenhouse gases. F
Move over Hummer, say hello to the hamburger.
The Food and Climate Change Connection
So how is food—supposedly life-sustaining stuff—one of the key factors in an environmental crisis that threatens the basis of life on earth? A big part of the answer is in the rapid and radical twentieth-century transformation of our food system from sustainably based, locally focused production, to a fossil-fuel addicted industrialized system. Agriculture has changed more in the past two generations than it did in the previous 12,000 years. Unfortunately for us, almost every single aspect of our modern industrial system creates greenhouse gas emissions. And, as Dr. Pachauri says, another big reason is the rapid growth of livestock production. Indeed, to produce 2.2 pounds of beef burns enough energy to light a 100 watt bulb for twenty days, Pachauri noted in his remarks earlier this month. F
Table 1 : Main Sources of Emission from Agriculture
Main Sources of Emissions
Percent of the Total Global
On the Farm
On the Land
On the Road
Additional Sources
Estimated Total*
33% of the total global warming effect can be attributed to the food system.
*Note: These percentages are a rough estimation of the global warming effect of the food system. Because of the complexity of global warming science as well as the challenge of securing accurate estimations of emissions from these various sectors, this estimation is the best we can hope for. While more research is certainly needed, in the meantime, we must begin to make policy changes to address what we do know: That our food system is a significant contributor to the global warming effect, and that we each can do something about it.
On the Farm
Fertilizers and on-farm fossil fuel use
Industrial farms Gare fossil-fuel addicted places, from their reliance on fossil fuels for powering machinery to petroleum-based chemicals used to create artificial soil fertility, protect against pests, and stave off weeds. The use of fossil fuels on farms, as well as in the manufacture of fertilizers and agricultural chemicals, contributes to the greenhouse gas emissions generated by the food sector.
With one-third of the world's cereal harvest and 90 percent of the world's soy harvest being raised for animal feed, the energy required to grow those crops is a major factor in these on-farm emissions. FIn the United States and Canada, half of all synthetic fertilizer is used for feed crops. FIn the UK, the total is nearly 70 percent. F
A major reason that beef, in particular, has such a large environmental impact is because, of all livestock, cattle are among the worst converters of grain to meat. Whereas in nature, cattle, which are ruminants, convert inedible-to-humans grasses into high-grade proteins, under industrial production, grainfed cattle only provide about one pound of beef for every 10 to 16 pounds of feed they consume.*
Because industrialized agriculture also relies on huge amounts of water for irrigation, these farms will be much more vulnerable as climate change increases extreme droughts. Globally, 70 percent of the world's available freshwater is being diverted to irrigation-intensive agriculture. F
*Note: "Conversion ratios" are hotly contested. In Frances Moore Lappe's book, Diet for a Small Planet, she estimated that the conversion ratio for US-feedlot cattle is sixteen pounds of grain and soy to produce one pound of beef. In The End of Food, journalist Paul Roberts argues that these conversion ratios don't account for the 60 percent of a cow's weight that is bone, organ, and hide—inedible stuff. The real conversion ratio for beef, Roberts argues, should be even lower. He estimates that it takes "a full 20 pounds of grain to make a single pound of beef." F F
The impact of livestock
The other reason that livestock production has such a substantial impact on climate change is that livestock are among the main sources of the world's methane emissions. (Rice cultivation is another, accounting for one-tenth of all agricultural emissions, according to the Stern Report). F Ruminant livestock, including cattle, buffalo, sheep, and goats, are the main agricultural sources of methane. Ruminants digest through microbial, or "enteric" fermentation, which produces methane that is released by the animals through belching and, to a lesser degree, via flatulence. While this process enables ruminants to digest fibrous grasses that humans can't convert into digestible form, it also contributes to livestock's impact on climate change. Enteric fermentation accounts for one-quarter of the total emissions from the livestock sector. (Land use changes, such as deforestation and desertification caused by over-pasturing livestock or growing feed crops, account for another 35.4%, while manure accounts for 30.5%). F
Industrial livestock production also generates greenhouse gasses due to the manner in which animal waste is managed. In sustainable agricultural systems, there's no such thing as waste: manure is part of a holistic cycle and serves as fertilizer. But in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), animal waste is not cycled through the farm since there's simply too much of it. Instead, waste is stored in huge pits euphemistically called "manure lagoons." Without sufficient oxygenation, waste stored in this manner ends up emitting methane and nitrous oxide. The US scores at the top of the world for methane emissions from manure, and pigs are at the top in terms of methane emissions, responsible for half of the globe's total. F
The sheer number of animals being raised for meat on the planet is another reason that livestock production accounts for nearly one-fifth of all global greenhouse gas emissions. In 1965, 10 billion livestock animals were slaughtered each year; today that number is 55 billion. F
On the Land
The bulk of the pressure on land around the globe, from precious wetlands in Indonesia to rainforests in Brazil, comes from the agricultural sector. F These rainforests and wetlands play a vital role in climate stability because they sequester carbon, absorbing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in the soils and plants. With their destruction, carbon is released back into the atmosphere and the carbon cycle that keeps our climate in balance comes further unhinged. Because these lands play such a vital role as carbon sinks, it's no surprise that their destruction is partly responsible for the emissions from land use changes that add up to nearly 18 percent of the total global warming effect.
The biggest driver behind these "land use changes," as the climate change folks call them, is the expansion of pasture for cattle, feed crops for livestock, and oil palm for processed foods and biofuels. F Most of these land use changes are concentrated in just a handful of countries. Brazil is the heart of rainforest destruction, mainly to meet demand for livestock grazing and feed. Malaysia and Indonesia are the world's main producers of palm oil; here, plantations are leading to rapid rainforest and wetland habitat destruction. Malaysia produced 43 percent and Indonesia 44 percent of the world's total palm oil last year. FWhile the exact amount of land that has been converted into oil palm plantations is hard to determine, we know that demand for palm oil has soared in the last two decades, especially due to growing demand for edible vegetable oils from the world's top two importing countries, India and China, according to an assessment by the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service. F
The erosion and deterioration of soils on industrial farms also releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. By destroying the natural soil fertility and disturbing the soil through tillage, industrial farming also adds to the deterioration of soil and its carbon emissions. F
On the Road: The Food Miles Question
And what about the distance food travels to get to our plates? Despite all the attention to food miles, emissions from food transport are not the biggest component of the sector's impact on climate change.
While total emissions from transportation contribute to 13.1 percent of the global warming effect, this includes emissions from toting around all kinds of things—from people to pork chops. FTransport emissions specifically from food are just a sliver of these emissions.
Nonetheless, reducing food miles can still make a meaningful dent in our foods' emissions toll. Consider the fossil fuels wasted carting fresh tomatoes to New Jersey, a state with ample farmland that exports tons of tomatoes every year. Researchers at Rutgers University estimated that meeting the New Jersey demand for just one year's supply of out-of-state tomatoes used up enough fossil fuel to drive an 18-wheeler around the world 249 times.
Food miles matter because so much of our food transport is unnecessary. Local food is also a better choice because it is fresher and therefore healthier for us. Buying local also supports our local economies. Purchasing local foods means supporting small-scale businesses and protecting green space in our communities.
Of course, direct trade with small-scale farmers in far away places can be a critical way to support economic development in other parts of the world. But most of the global food trade isn't benefiting small-scale farmers — it's benefiting the biggest grain traders at the cost of the climate. FAnd most of this global food trade is completely unnecessary, or redundant. Consider, for example, the fish caught off the coast of Maine, flash frozen, shipped to China for processing into filets, and shipped back to our mega-markets in the United States. Or, consider the business of beef. In 2007, the US exported 1.431 billion pounds of beef and veal (5.4 percent of our total beef production) Fand imported 3.052 billion pounds of the same, measured by commercial carcass weight. FThis cross-continent transport of food makes economic sense only because the true costs of such transport, including the big bill for its contribution to climate change, are not counted on the balance sheets of food corporations.
The main reason for sticking with the locavores is that the local food being celebrated is often a pseudonym for sustainably raised foods—and those foods will be the ones produced without fertilizers, grown without destroying precious wetlands or rainforests, and with animals raised on pasture rather than in confinement.
Other Sources of Emissions
Because the food system is connected to so many aspects of our lives, it's hard to get an exact tally of total emissions. Here are some other places where the food system's emissions crop up.
- Waste: Another four percent of global greenhouse gas emissions comes from waste, including food waste. Where does all our uneaten food end up and the tons of food ready for harvest that never even makes it to our plates? Landfills. And landfills are a key source of methane as food and other refuse decay.
- Manufacturing: An additional 10 percent of global emissions stems from manufacturing and construction, which includes construction for the food industry.
How Can Farming Help Address the Climate Crisis?
In nature, plants transform the sun's energy into food that provides a foundation for life. Humans are fueled by this transformation either directly (we eat the food) or indirectly (we eat the animals that have fed on this energy). It's a clever cycle: it's inherently abundant. But the industrialization of agriculture, picking up pace in the past generation, has flipped the natural abundance of farming on its head. Instead of producing energy, industrial agriculture consumes it, through the addiction to fossil fuel-powered machinery and petroleum-based agrochemicals. Industrial farms are often considered highly efficient, but only because these wasted inputs and devastating outputs—including the impact on the climate—are not accounted for. (See Table 3 : The Core Differences between Climate-Crisis Agriculture and Climate-Friendly Farming).
Unlike industrial farms, small-scale organic G and sustainable farms rely on people power, not heavy machinery, and depend on nature, not manmade chemicals for soil fertility and pest management. As a result, small-scale sustainable farms have been found to emit between one-half and two-thirds less carbon dioxide for every acre of production. F
New research is documenting that organic farms can emit as little as half the carbon dioxide generated by industrial farms. Organic farms also use much less fossil-fuel energy than their conventional counterparts—in many cases as much as one-third less, and studies are also showing that organic farming can sequester carbon, providing a potentially powerful tool to help us address climate change. In fact, 10,000 medium-sized organic farms can store as much carbon in the soil as we would save if we took one million cars off the road.
Yes, the very source of energy—the food consumers eat—has become one of the planet's most significant contributors to climate instability, but it need not be. There is another way.
An Overview of Food System Sources of Greenhouse Gases
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is emitted by burning fossil fuels to power farm machinery, produce agricultural chemicals, and transport food. In addition, carbon dioxide is released when forests and wetlands are cleared for crop production, particularly for animal feed, pasture, or oil palm production. Finally, trapped carbon in soils is also released through soil erosion and deterioration on industrial farms.
Agricultural methane is released primarily by ruminants such as cattle, and during rice production. It has 23 times the greenhouse effect of carbon dioxide over 100 years.
Nitrous oxide*
Nitrous oxide is released mainly from the use of man-made fertilizer, especially the overuse of nitrogen on crops grown for animal feed. It has 296 times the greenhouse effect of carbon dioxide over 100 years, or 275 over 20 years.
*A note about methane and nitrous oxide: In the US, the food system accounts for an estimated 17 percent of all fossil fuel use, but accounts for a much larger percentage of the country's methane and nitrous oxide emissions. Widespread overuse of artificial nitrogen fertilizer, for instance, much of which is wasted in leaching and runoff, contributes to three-quarters of total US nitrous oxide emissions. And globally, agriculture is responsible for nearly two-thirds of methane emissions. While methane and nitrous oxide make up much smaller portions of total greenhouse gas emissions, these gases are still important factors in the climate crisis, in part because they each have stronger global warming effects than carbon dioxide and also because they constitute an increasing portion of total emissions.
Table 3 : The Core Differences Between Climate-Crisis Agriculture and Climate-Friendly Farming
Climate-Crisis Agriculture
Climate-Friendly Farming
Ignores Place
Values Place
Emits Carbon
Stores Carbon
Dependent on Chemicals
Depends on Nature for Fertility and Pest Management
Disrupts Natural Cycles
Protects Nature's Cycles
Squanders Energy
Produces Energy
Fossil-Fuel Powered
People and Animal Powered
Wastes Water
Retains and Conserves Water
What You Can Do
- Eat and Drink with the Environment in Mind
Many of the resources at Sustainable Table can help you make climate-friendly food choices every day. Here are some of the principles of low-carbon dining, with links to more information.
- Eat less meat and dairy: Go cold turkey, or just trim your consumption. Try cutting out meat just one day of the week. Check out Meatless Monday for more inspiration.
- Choose organic and sustainably raised foods: Visit Eat Well Guide to find sustainable food throghout the US.
- Eat local: Lower your food mile odometer, and always try to find local sustainable food. Get inspired with these ideas and by the original locavores.
- Eat whole foods: Cut back on processed foods—visit In the Kitchen for recipes and cooking ideas. Check out your "carbon foodprint" at Bon Appetit's Low-Carbon Diet Calculator.
- Take back the tap: Kick the bottled water habit. Visit Food & Water Watch for more information about the environmental impact of bottled water, the benefits of tap water, and how you can add your voice to those of people across the country demanding better regulation of our precious public resource—water.
- Get Involved on a Broader Scale
Go beyond your plate to get involved with exciting campaigns that are making the food and climate connection. Here are three recommendations.
- Rainforest Action Network's Agribusiness Campaign
Join Rainforest Action Network's agribusiness campaign and learn what you can do to help stop the deforestation of the world's precious rainforests.
- Center for Food Safety's Cool Foods Campaign
Check out the Center's newest campaign, helping eaters and businesses around the country learn about the simple choices they can make to support a climate-friendly food system.
- La Via Campesina's Small Farmers Cooling the Planet
Join this international network of farmer associations across the planet to promote small-scale farming as a key strategy for mitigating and adapting to climate change.
- Rainforest Action Network's Agribusiness Campaign
- Get Informed
- Read the Environmental Working Group's Meat Eater's Guide to Climate Change and Health to learn more about the issue and to find tips for reducing your diet's impact on the planet.
- Visit Take a Bite out of Climate Change to find more resources and sign up to stay informed.
- Learn more about the meat and climate change connection. Read the definitive study from the United Nations: Livestock's Long Shadow.
- Check out the manifesto on Food and Climate Change from Vandana Shiva and her colleagues at the International Commission on the Future of Food. The Manifesto summarizes the connections between industrial agriculture and climate change and offers a compelling call to action from the perspective of farmers in the global south.
- Read Soil not Oil by Vandana Shiva from South End Press: Shiva connects the dots between the world's most pressing crises: food insecurity, oil dependence and climate change.
This article was adapted from Diet for a Hot Planet, a book about food and climate change by Anna Lappé. Visit the Take a Bite Out of Climate Change website to learn more, or contact the author at [email protected].


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Regions › Northern Virginia
Virginia localities rank high on 'Where the Jobs Are' list
- August 24, 2012
- |
Loudoun County was ranked No. 1 and two other Virginia localities were in the top 10 in a national listing of U.S. counties with the highest job grown since 2000.
The CNN Money list "Where the Jobs Are" showed Loudoun with the highest job growth rate, 83.6 percent. Prince William County was eighth with a job growth rate of 48.6 percent, and Suffolk (which actually is a city) was ninth with a job growth rate of 43 percent.
In explaining Loudoun's job growth, CNN Money noted the proliferation of data centers, "which now occupy 4.3 million square feet in the county, earning Loudoun the nickname 'Data Center Alley.'"
The website also counted the county's easy access to Washington, D.C., and Washington Dulles International Airport as major benefits. In addition, CNN Money said "the planned extension of the Washington Metro in Loudoun, which recently got a green light for funding, is expected to lure more young professionals to the region."
Loudoun is home to 9,500 businesses and a total of 137,000 employees. The county's largest private employers include AOL, Raytheon, Verizon and Digital Realty. Many of Loudoun's information and communications technology companies are based in the Ashburn area.
In Prince William, CNN Money took note of the county's expedited permit process for companies in targeted industries promising high-paying jobs and capital investment. The county announced 770 new jobs last year, an increase of almost 14 percent from the year before.
The website also listed the county's 1,600-acre Innovation Technology Park as a major asset. Its tenants include the FBI, Comcast and George Mason University's Life Sciences campus.
In Suffolk, CNN Money noted that the Naval Network Warfare Command, NNWC Global Network Operations Center Detachment, Navy Cyber Defense Operations Command and Navy Cyber Forces are expected next year to occupy some buildings vacated last year by U.S. Joint Forces Command. These operations are expected to bring an estimated 1,000 additional employees to the county.
The city also benefits from its proximity to the Port of Virginia, the website said.


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A Dance to Keep Your Stones Flat
Carpenter and woodworker Carl Bilderback never flattens his oilstones. And they are both dead flat – I couldn't get a .00125" feeler gauge under a straightedge that I laid on the stones.
His stones aren't magic. He simply knows how to dance.
The trick to keeping your stones flat is in how you hold the tool and how you work the stone. As we were getting ready for our Lie-Nielsen Hand Tool Event this morning, Carl showed me how he's kept his stones flat for 25 years and I shot the above video.
— Christopher Schwarz
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Federal officials are warning California medical marijuana dispensaries they must shut down within 45 days or face criminal prosecution and having their property confiscated.
The state's four U.S. attorneys sent letters Wednesday and Thursday notifying at least 16 pot shops or their landlords that they are violating federal drug laws, even though medical marijuana is legal in California. The attorneys are to announce their coordinated crackdown at a Friday news conference.
The move marks an escalation of the conflict between the government and the medical marijuana industry.
The Associated Press obtained copies of the letters that a prosecutor sent to 12 of San Diego's dispensaries. They state that federal law "takes precedence over state law and applies regardless of the particular uses for which a dispensary is selling pot.


text:
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A British man accused of arranging the killing of his wife on their honeymoon was charged with murder in South Africa on Tuesday, hours after arriving from Britain following a lost battle to avoid extradition.
Shrien Dewani landed at Cape Town's international airport in a plane chartered by South Africa's justice ministry because of concerns about security and adequate monitoring of his medical condition if he had taken a commercial flight, the ministry said in a statement. The government "did not want to take chances" with Dewani's transfer because of "undisputed evidence" during his extradition hearing that he had shown suicidal tendencies, according to the ministry.
Lawyers for the 34-year-old businessman say he suffers from post-traumatic stress and depression and is unfit to stand trial. He arrived in South Africa with an escort consisting of a doctor, a nurse and officials from Interpol and the South African police, the government said.
Dewani's 28-year-old bride, Anni, was found shot dead in an abandoned taxi in a poor area of Cape Town in November 2010. Dewani, who denies wrongdoing, is accused of hiring men to kill his wife and make it look like a botched carjacking during what he said was a township tour. Three men, including the cab's driver and a gunman, have been convicted for the murder.
Dewani was taken in a police convoy soon after his arrival in South Africa to the Western Cape High Court. He was charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder and defeating the ends of justice and his case was postponed to May 12, pending a medical examination to determine whether he would be able to stand trial, the South African police said in a statement.
"We wish Dewani well as far as his health is concerned, in order for him to be able to tell his side of the story. Our investigating team is ready to resume with the trial," Lt. Anwa Dramat, head of a police investigative unit called the Hawks, said in a statement.
Dewani will be held at the Valkenberg psychiatric hospital in Cape Town, the South African Press Association reported.
The Briton, who had grey streaks in his hair, looked straight ahead during his court appearance, the news agency reported. He was represented by prominent lawyer Francois van Zyl. Some of his relatives attended the hearing. Members of the women's league of South Africa's ruling party, the African National Congress, gathered at the courthouse to condemn violence against women and show support for the family of Anni Dewani.
South African authorities had allowed Dewani to leave for Britain after his wife's killing. He was later arrested there, setting the stage for a legal battle over extradition that lasted years. Britain's High Court last month rejected all his grounds for appeal.


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Oct. 19, 2012 -- Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Enforcement Division agents are investigating a fatal hunting incident that took the life of a Lake Charles man in Allen Parish.
The Reeves Police Department received a report on Oct. 18 about a truck that had been parked on the side of Hwy. 190 near Rodeo Pen Road in Reeves for two to three days and notified the Allen Parish Sheriff's Office (APSO).
A sheriff's office deputy found the truck and noticed a trail into the woods. After walking the trail for approximately 100 yards, the deputy found the body of Donald C. Hodge Sr., 60, shortly after 5 p.m. on Oct. 18.
The APSO deputy found Hodge under a tree with a lock on type deer stand lying next to him with what appeared to be broken straps that would normally secure the stand to the tree. Authorities did not find a safety harness attached to Hodge or the tree.
His body was turned over to the Allen Parish Coroner's Office.
LDWF will be the lead investigative agency and do not suspect foul play.
For more information, contact Adam Einck at 225-765-2465 or firstname.lastname@example.com [4].


text:
Congratulations to Ahmad Bahr Mohamed and Len Binns. Ahmad Bahr Mohamed, a DBA/Database developer at Applied Industrial Technology (AIT) in Cleveland, Ohio, won first prize of $100 for the best solution to the May Reader Challenge, "Running SQL Server 2000 Queries in SQL Server 2005." Len Binns, a Senior Programmer/Analyst at the University at Buffalo's School of Dental Medicine, won second prize of $50. Here's a recap of the problem and the solution to the May Reader Challenge.
David is a DBA who manages several SQL Server 2000 database servers. His current project is to test his applications against a database server running SQL Server 2005. As part of the evaluation, David needs to verify queries and stored procedure calls made from some of the applications that collect various statistics in the production environment. One particular SQL Server 2000 database query produces an error on the SQL Server 2005 server. The following snippet shows the query and error:
SELECT r.name, p.runid, p.attr, CAST(p.value AS int) AS measure
FROM ProcStats AS p
JOIN Runs AS r
ON r.id = p.runid
WHERE p.attr = r.primary_attr AND CAST(p.value AS int) > 20000
Server: Msg 245, Level 16, State 1, Line 1
Syntax error converting the varchar value '1/1/2000' to a column of data type int.
The query uses the sample data in the following code:
CREATE TABLE Runs (
id int NOT NULL identity primary key, name varchar(30) NOT NULL, primary_attr varchar(30)
CREATE TABLE ProcStats (
id int NOT NULL identity primary key, runid int NOT NULL references Runs(id), attr varchar(30)
NOT NULL, value varchar(30) NOT NULL
INSERT INTO Runs values ('r1', 'a2')
INSERT INTO Runs values ('r2', 'a2')
INSERT INTO ProcStats values( 1, 'a1', '1/1/2000' )
INSERT INTO ProcStats values( 2, 'a1', '1/1/2000' )
INSERT INTO ProcStats values( 1, 'a2', '8348' ) INSERT INTO ProcStats values( 2, 'a2', '192487' )
Without making any schema changes help David to do the following:
1. Identify the cause of the error.
2. Rewrite the query so that he can eliminate the error and ensure that the query runs on both SQL Server 2005 and 2000.
David determines that evaluating the CAST expression on rows that don't contain the attr value a2 causes the error. Because the ProcStats table's value column stores different data types, the conversion to integer won't work for all rows. Generally, in SQL Server the order of predicate evaluation in the WHERE clause isn't guaranteed. The query optimizer can rearrange the predicates and evaluate them in different orders. (SQL Server 2005 has better optimization techniques than SQL Server 2000 for specifying which expressions to evaluate before others in predicate evaluation.) The error results from the conversion of the datetime value in the value column to an integer.
As shown in the following query, David must rewrite the predicate that contains the CAST expression:
SELECT r.name, p.runid, p.attr , CASE ISNUMERIC(p.value) WHEN 1 THEN CAST(p.value AS int) end AS measure
FROM ProcStats AS p
JOIN Runs AS r
ON r.id = p.runid
HERE p.attr = r.primary_attr
AND CASE ISNUMERIC(p.value) WHEN 1 THEN CAST(p.value as int) end > 20000
The CASE expression ensures that the query performs the CAST only on rows that contain a numeric value in the attr column. If David reorders the predicate and evaluates it before the p.attr = r.primary_attr search condition, the CASE expression will return NULL for the rows instead of performing the CAST expression. In addition to the changes to the WHERE clause, the SELECT list should also perform the same check as a best practice.
The SQL Server 2005 Books Online (BOL) topic "Behavior Changes to Database Engine Features in SQL Server 2005" ( http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143359(SQL.90).aspx ) documents this query optimizer behavior change. To read about the change, open the BOL topic and click in the Transact-SQL table under the Expressions in queries feature.
In addition, the topic "Troubleshooting Errors and Warnings on Query Expressions" ( http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms188295(SQL.90).aspx ) contains more detail about the behavior.
Now, test your SQL Server savvy in the June Reader Challenge, "Writing Efficient Queries to Return Inventory Items" (below). Submit your solution in an email message to [email protected] by May 18. Umachandar Jayachandran, a SQL Server Magazine technical editor, will evaluate the responses. We'll announce the winner in an upcoming SQL Server Magazine UPDATE. The first-place winner will receive $100, and the second-place winner will receive $50.
Alex is a database architect who has designed an inventory application for his company. The application uses a SQL Server 2000 server to store the data, and the inventory database consists of two main tables: Suppliers and Items. The code below creates the tables containing the relevant columns and sample data.
CREATE TABLE Suppliers (SupplierId INT NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY, Weight INT
NOT NULL CHECK(Weight >= 0) UNIQUE)
CREATE TABLE Items (Item VARCHAR(50) NOT NULL, SupplierId INT NOT NULL
REFERENCES Suppliers(SupplierId), PRIMARY KEY(SupplierId, Item))
INSERT INTO Suppliers VALUES(1, 30)
INSERT INTO Suppliers VALUES(2, 20)
INSERT INTO Suppliers VALUES(3, 10)
INSERT INTO Items VALUES ('item1', 1)
INSERT INTO Items VALUES ('item1', 2)
INSERT INTO Items VALUES ('item2', 2)
INSERT INTO Items VALUES ('item2', 3)
The Suppliers table stores each supplier of a particular item in the inventory. The inventory application uses an algorithm to assign a weight to each supplier. If multiple suppliers provide a particular item, the supplier that has the lowest weight has higher priority. (You can set the priority according to a combination of factors--e.g., availability, customer feedback, price. In this challenge, the priority indicates the item's availability.)
Help Alex write an efficient query that returns each item with the preferred supplier (i.e., the one with the lowest weight), and explain how he can use Query Analyzer tool to verify the various queries' efficiency.


text:
Cards ignite late as Miller shuts out Blue Jays
TORONTO -- Perhaps it was because of the freshness of the performance or its timing for a club grasping for positive momentum. But after watching Shelby Miller stifle baseball's hottest-hitting team in a 5-0 win on Saturday, manager Mike Matheny insisted that he had never seen his 23-year-old starter better.
While Miller may have relied on an overpowering fastball to mow down 27 Colorado hitters in a row in a start last May, this time he toyed with Toronto purely by pitching.View Full Game Coverage
TORONTO -- Perhaps it was because of the freshness of the performance or its timing for a club grasping for positive momentum. But after watching Shelby Miller stifle baseball's hottest-hitting team in a 5-0 win on Saturday, manager Mike Matheny insisted that he had never seen his 23-year-old starter better.
While Miller may have relied on an overpowering fastball to mow down 27 Colorado hitters in a row in a start last May, this time he toyed with Toronto purely by pitching.View Full Game Coverage
With a re-emerging changeup, a complement of off-speed pitches and an ability to throw his fastball high or low for strikes, Miller took a no-hitter into the sixth and a shutout all the way through. It made Randal Grichuk's first career home run and the team's eighth-inning insurance scoring plenty to ensure the Cardinals a win over Toronto in front of 42,981 at Rogers Centre.
"A little speechless still," Miller said of his second career shutout. "It's a big deal."
A day after the Blue Jays swarmed the bases against Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn, Miller kept Toronto's activity to a minimum. He retired 13 straight to open his 13th start before a walk foiled that stretch. Toronto didn't get its first hit until Jose Reyes lined a single to right with two outs in the sixth.
That presented the only messy spot of the afternoon for Miller, as Melky Cabrera followed with a double off the glove of diving first baseman Allen Craig. With two in scoring position and three-hole hitter Jose Bautista up, Miller found a little something extra with his fastball.
Bautista swung through a high 96-mph heater for strike two. Cardinals catcher Tony Cruz, making the spot start, called for another.
"It's a big part of the game right there," Cruz said. "I'm sure [Miller's] adrenaline was going. He had a good fastball, too. I felt that."
Miller came back with a 97-mph pitch, his fastest of the afternoon. Bautista couldn't catch up.
"He turned it up, no question," Matheny said. "Just challenge is what he did. It was power on power, and it worked out good for us."
It was the third of five strikeouts for Miller, who improved to 7-5 with the win.
"Sometimes you get into situations where you just have a little bit more, I guess," Miller said. "That was a huge point in the game with runners on second, third and two outs and one of the best hitters in the game up."
Miller pitched with the lead beginning in the fifth after Grichuk took Mark Buehrle's first-pitch changeup and deposited it over the wall in center. The home run was the first of Grichuk's big league career. Before it, he had tallied just two hits (both singles) in 15 at-bats since being recalled by the club.
The ball was later retrieved by the team's assistant trainer and will soon sit alongside the ball Grichuk connected on for his first Major League hit.
"You just really have to be patient," Grichuk said of facing Buehrle. "He's having a really good year. You know he's going to go away, he's going to go in, he's going to go up, he's going to go down. You just have to wait and hopefully not chase and see a ball over the plate. "
While it was the only run the Cardinals scored off Buehrle in seven innings, St. Louis did work the veteran left-hander to several deep counts that had his pitch count up to 90 by the end of the fifth. Buehrle entered the afternoon seeking to become the Majors' first 11-game winner.
"Buehrle was great," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "His command was off a little bit, but he gutted it out for seven innings and he did what he does; he kept them off the scoreboard. But the story of the game was Miller."
The Cardinals hope this is merely the start of a new chapter for Miller, who has been stung by inconsistent mechanics, walks, inefficiency and home runs in an up-and-down start to the season.
He started working out some of those mechanical issues his last time out, an appearance that opened with six scoreless innings before Miller was knocked around in the seventh. Part of that adjustment was keeping his glove hand still and farther from his body. A repeatable delivery has followed.
"My fastball location these past two games, I feel like a lot better," Miller said. "I just feel like I've thrown more strikes. We went back and looked at what I was doing early in the year last year. I'm trying to repeat my mechanics as much as possible. I'm in a groove where that feels good."
That fastball has also been made better by regular incorporation of Miller's off-speed pitches.
"Shelby, in the past, has really depended on stuff and just pure ability," Matheny said. "I see him realizing that this league is pretty good, and these guys are smart and have all the resources that we have and they're going to be getting better. That's huge for his confidence. … First inning, first pitch, it just looked like he had confidence and rhythm."
The Cardinals provided Miller with some breathing room and the opportunity to handle the ninth by scoring four times off reliever Aaron Loup in the eighth. Mark Ellis and Grichuk each drew bases-loaded walks. In between, two more scored on Cruz's single up the middle.
Miller, who had lost each of his past three starts, followed the big inning by retiring five of his final six batters. The Blue Jays, who lead the American League in runs scored, home runs and hits, had been shut out just once previously this season.
Miller, often frustrated by his inefficiency, flipped that script and finished with a pitch count of 105.
"That was everything you could ask for," Matheny said. "He just pitched today. It looked like a guy who had been around a while."
Jenifer Langosch is a reporter for MLB.com. Read her blog, By Gosh, It's Langosch, and follow her on Twitter @LangoschMLB.


text:
Alaska King Crab with Bearnaise Dip
Succulent Alaska King Crab legs are steamed and served with a delightful sauce made fragrant with tarragon and thyme.
2 cups water
1 cup dry white wine
2 slices lemon
2 sprigs fresh tarragon
1 sprig fresh thyme
18 lb. Alaska king crab split legs, thawed
Béarnaise Dip:
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup tarragon vinegar
1/2 cup shallots, chopped
2 tbsp. fresh tarragon leaves
4 peppercorns, crushed
1/2 tsp. fresh thyme
4 to 5 cups basic Hollandaise sauce
1/4 cup parsley, minced
2 tbsp. fresh minced tarragon
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. hot pepper sauce
3 cups sour cream
1. Bring water, wine, lemon, tarragon, and thyme to boil in large sauté pan. Add crab; return to boil, reduce heat, and steam, covered, about 5 min. or until crab is thoroughly heated.
2. For dip, combine wine, vinegar, shallots, tarragon leaves, peppercorns, and thyme; boil mixture, reducing by half; strain.
3. Add strained reduced liquid to Hollandaise. Add parsley, minced tarragon, salt, pepper, and pepper sauce; fold in sour cream.
4. To serve: arrange 2 split legs and 1 1/2 oz. Béarnaise Dip on serving platter.


text:
Huitong construction machinery company has some back-channelling to get some high quality low price machines from government and state-owned enterprises.We can offer you the best machine with best price.Looking forward to your inquiry.
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text:
Jack Nicklaus 1986 Masters Champion Framed 16 x 20 Photograph with Autographed Scorecard
Jack Nicklaus celebrates his famous birdie putt on the 17th hole during the 1986 Masters at Augusta. The Golden Bear went on to become the oldest winner of the tournament. Jack, with his 6 victories, is also known as The Master of the Masters. This framed collectible comes with a 16 x 20 color photo and an official replica scorecard which has been personally handsigned by Jack Nicklaus and a descriptive plate. Limited edition of 186. It comes double matted and framed and includes the official Golden Bear hologram as well as an individually numbered, tamper evident hologram from Fanatics Authentic. To ensure authenticity, the hologram can be reviewed online. This process helps to ensure that the product purchased is authentic and eliminates any possibility of duplication or fraud. Measures 37.5 x 33.5 x 1.
- 16 x 20 Masters photo
- Double matted
- Fanatics Authentic Presented by Mounted Memories
- Framed in wood
- Includes Golden Bear hologram
- Limited edition of 186
- Measures approximately 37 x 33 x 1
- Official replica scorecard
- Personally hand-signed


text:
Geography, while not a stand-alone department, supports majors in history and social studies as well as elementary and social science teacher certifications.
Physical Geography (GEOG 111) is a course taught in four major units and focuses on the physical processes of the earth. Cultural Geography (GEOG 112) focuses on how geography affects culture and how culture affect geography. Both courses are in line with the degree requirements for Virginia Wesleyan University and the regulations for teacher licensure for the State of Virginia.


text:
Tapering of the Fed's $85 billion bond-purchasing program could start as early as next month, and pessimistic speculation has driven gold prices down to new lows not seen for roughly three weeks. According to New York broker Carlos Santalla, "the downward pressure in gold (COMEX:GCU13) is testament to the belief that tapering is likely to start sooner rather than later," and many investors are not ready for a sudden change in monetary policy.
As the economy improves and the dollar gains strength, gold inversely loses its value and can become a trap for futures investors who are rapidly selling similar precious metal assets that have little to no yield. Before the news of tapering, investors used commodities like gold as protection against inflation, but now that the Fed is tightening its monetary policy and decreasing the supply of money, interest rates are going to rise and futures will continue to decrease. For example, the SPDR Gold Trust, which dropped 32% this year, so far 2013 is hitting some of the lowest prices since early 2009. Regardless of any further statements from the Fed, a decrease in the government's quantitative easing initiatives will mean an end to gold investor peace of mind.
So with the possibility of a September Fed taper still on the table, how can a trader speculate on further downside in gold prices?
There are a few ways to do this:
- Trade the ETF. There are several ETF products to choose from that offer exposure to the spot price of gold and double and triple ETFs can offer some leverage to investors. However, all ETFs have expense rations built in so they can never track their underlying perfectly.
- Gold futures and options. Using gold futures and options offer the inherent leverage and capital efficiency that make them an attractive alternative to physical gold or ETFs. Using futures and options is the most efficient way to take a bullish view on gold in the short term.
With gold futures trading near $1290.00 the options market is implying a move of 95 points by November expiration. This gives us a downside target of $1195.00. With this downside target calculated we can now look at a trade setup.
Trade: Buying the /GC Nov 1220-1200 Put Spread for $3.20 Risk: $320 per 1 lot Reward: $1,680 per 1 lot Breakeven: $1,216.80
This trade sets up for a great return potential on invested capital with a more conservative target than the options market implies.
Click to enlarge.


text:
Posted 6 years ago
(310 items)
Here are some more of my metal detector finds. Nothing spectacular here, about a 50/50 mix of Wheat and Memorial Pennies, with several Buffalo Nickels thrown in.
The other item, is, I believe, a pole tag. As you can see, it is from Texas, and dated 1944. If anybody knows, please let us know.


text:
The Long-term Day Trader: Short-term Strategies to Boost Your Long-term Profits
Career Press, 2000 - 218 pages
Making the case that long-term day trading is not an oxymoron, the author of 101 Investment Lessons from the Wizards of Wall Street and his professional day trader coauthor share rules and interviews with successful online traders on maximizing returns with insights from traditional investing. Recom
From inside the book
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The Long-Term Day Trader: Short-Term Strategies to Boost Your Long-Term Profits
Michael Sincere,Deron Wagner
No preview available - 2001
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text:
Sony is pretty much being thrown into every corner of the ring during its fight with the jailbreak community. The PlayStation 3 has been hacked using any imaginable USB peripheral; you can jailbreak it using an iPod, Pandora, Dingoo, and, as a final uppercut in Sony's face, using its very own PlayStation 3 controller.
While that last one requires a little soldering, it's still pretty awesome. Practical? No. Symbolic value? High. Sadly, it's as of yet unclear whether or not the controller hack is blocked by version 3.50 of the firmware, but if it isn't, Sony might be in for a bit of trouble since blocking its own controller from working would be, uh, unfortunate.
Part of the problem lies with Sony itself. Microsoft has been much more accommodating to independent developers with the Xbox360 and XNA, while all Sony had to offer was a limited way of running Linux - a feature it removed from all PlayStation models earlier this year.
While Sony is busy fighting jailbreakers and removing genuine features in the process, Microsoft is launching a brand new Xbox system software update (later this year) with a new user interface, and a completely new audio codec and infrastructure for much clearer Xbox Live chat. In the meantime, Sony still hasn't introduced cross-game chat.
Way to listen to your users, Sony. Keep it up. There's a reason your PS3 has been number three consistently.


text:
The N.C. Department of Transportation will hold an informational workshop Thursday to gauge public interest on a proposed project to widen Interstate 26 — a measure blocked by critics in the past.
The N.C. Department of Transportation will hold an informational workshop Thursday to gauge public interest on a proposed project to widen Interstate 26 — a measure blocked by critics in the past.
The $263 million project involves a multi-lane widening of 22.2 miles of I-26 from U.S. Highway 25 in East Flat Rock to I-40 in Buncombe County, and includes an overhaul of overpasses.
Between 45,000 and 80,000 or more cars travel the busy interstate on an average day outside of tourist season, according to Undrea Major, project development engineer for DOT. The steady flow of cars has led to traffic snarls, but relieving the congestion has been stalled by critics who have said the money would be better spent elsewhere or that widening would harm the environment.
The DOT planned to build a new interstate interchange to relieve traffic at Clear Creek Road that would have bulldozed an office park and part of Patton Park to bring people down the newly-widened Asheville Highway in 2000. It sparked a public outcry, however, and the plans were shelved.
A few years later, local leaders urged DOT to use the money instead to widen I-26 in Henderson County. That plan was halted in 2003 when U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle sided with environmentalists in a lawsuit to block the project, saying state law required DOT to study its environmental impact.
The DOT has been studying how all highway projects and growth in the area through the next few decades will affect the environment, according to Major.
Proposed improvements are aimed at relieving congestion, but the first phase of construction may not begin until fiscal year 2019-20, with the final phase earmarked for startup in 2030, if all goes well.
Major said the phases are tentative, with construction phased in over time to cause the least disruption to motorists.
We're "taking everything into consideration right now," he said. "We want to look at everything."
Thursday's informational meeting will be an important part of the process.
"As part of our process, we want to get involvement from the public where we get comments locally to help us make our decisions. We want to analyze impacts to the natural environment and the human environment... to determine what kinds of concerns may be on the ground there locally," Major said.
He added that the DOT considers other avenues outside of widening when looking at improving congestion in areas, such as improving thoroughfares along the corridor and studying public transit.
Although widening I-26 has proven controversial in the past, Major said the DOT plans to do the responsible thing, taking a look within reason at "all of the influences to impacts along the corridor."
The big thing, he said, is "really educating the public on our process," he said. We want to "do the proper investigation, start the dialogue and keep the communication going so we make informed decisions."
The public is invited to attend at any time during the workshop hours to speak individually with NCDOT officials and review the project area map. There will not be a formal presentation.
The opportunity to submit written comments or questions will be provided. Comments and suggestions received will be considered during the design phase.
For more information, contact Major, NCDOT Project Development and Environmental Analysis Unit, at 919-707-6028 or firstname.lastname@example.com.
Reach Weaver at firstname.lastname@example.com or 828-694-7867.


text:
By Don Reid
COLDWATER � Branch County Circuit Judge Bill O�Grady said Victor Hanshaw was "unsupervisable." He sentenced him to prison for 15 months to 10 years for breaking into a Union township barn last September.
The 18-year old started the new crime spree only 14 days after Judge O�Grady placed him on probation in last August for fleeing police because he was riding an off road vehicle on Girard and Union City roads.
With prison or probation allowed under the sentencing guidelines, Hanshaw was asked by the Judge why he should get probation again? Hanshaw admitted "I don�t know the right answers."
Hanshaw was the look out and helped Dillon Eaton hit at least three barns in Branch and four in Calhoun counties stealing wire and other items. All the items could be sold for scrap were taken from the barns during the evenings or early morning hours.
Many of the items were found at Eaton�s Tekonsha home after Calhoun authorities acted on a tip. Hanshaw told authorities a number of guns taken were fenced in the Flint area.
Because one of the victims was Branch County Prosecutor Ralph Kimble the case was assigned to Calhoun County. Its Chief Assistant Prosecutor Matthew Smith offered Hanshaw a plea bargain in both counties because he cooperated with Michigan State Police and agreed to testify against Eaton, "a person of great interest in our county."
Eaton was a former Tekonsha Volunteer fireman charged with arson at two neighbor�s buildings. He was found not guilty by a jury at trial last November. He is pending trial on the theft cases.
Defense attorney J.R. Colbeck claimed "I don�t know if his actions reflect his true character." Judge O�Grady questioned the character of anyone who was first given a break only to start committing other crimes within two weeks.
The Judge did agreed to allow the Department of corrections to consider Hanshaw for Boot Camp or another alternative sentencing program.
Hanshaw to prison for farm break-ins
By Don Reid


text:
Wednesday's morning storm cancelled areas schools, allowing for not only pretty snow, but the chance for children to enjoy it.
Click on the attached link to see photos, by the Item staff and its readers.
To submit your own photo of snow fun in the Clinton, Berlin, Bolton, Lancaster and Sterling area, email your image, with names and location, to email@example.com.


text:
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Tojiro Suminagashi Traditional Hocho
Carbon Steel
Artisan Made
Blade Style - Hon Kasumi Style
Carbon Steel - Blue #2 (Aogami)
Carbon Steel - Damascus
Japanese/Asian Knives
Single Bevel
Sushi Knives
Wood - Ho Wood
Maker: Tojiro Suminagashi Traditional Hocho (click to see more by this maker)
Item num: 86364
Blade length: 6.00 in.Total length: 11.45 in.Blade height (at heel): 2.10 in.Blade thickness (near bolster): 0.28 in.Item weight: 8.25 oz.Shipment weight: 11.36 oz.Blade: Kasumi-yaki blade formed from a suminagashi jigane and aogami hagane (Hrc 62-64)Handle: Ho wood with a buffalo horn ferrule
Description: Ajikiri Deba Hocho are shorter in length than other deba. It is named for the horse mackerel, "aji", that it is traditionally used to cut. Ajikiri are ideal for deboning meat and small fish and are used for many other general purpose cutting tasks. It can be used for detailed cutting jobs that would be performed by a paring knife in the Western kitchen.
Tojiro Suminagashi Traditional knives are hand forged by masters in Niigata, Japan. The knives are not only impressive in appearance, with their distinctive damascus pattern, but their performance is legendary. Aogami is one of the highest quality and hardest steels used in Japan. This cutting edge (hagane) is supported by many alternating layers of damascus. This technique results in a blade that is very strong, yet fairly easy to re-sharpen. Because aogami is a carbon steel, these knives must be dried after use to prevent rust or tarnish.
Traditional Japanese chef's knives differ from European-styled knives in that they are sharpened with a bevel on only one side. The opposite side is slightly hollowed. Because of this, these knives can generally be honed to a sharper edge than can double bevel knives.
The right-handed 'D' shape handle fits comfortably and securely in the hand and is best used by a right-handed user. It is formed from ho wood, the traditional wood for Japanese handles. This wood, which is a relative of magnolia, holds up extremely well in the harsh environment of the kitchen. A buffalo horn ferrule adds nice contrast.


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