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Show #229: Neut, Root, and ReleaseDevObjective() , Frameworks , ColdFusion Builder , ColdFusion 11 Add comments
This week Dave and Scott discuss the Net Neutrality ruling, a recent hacking of Lenovo, and the release of ColdFusion 11 Updater 4. They also talk about dev.Objective(), the release of F/W 1, version 3, what it means to be a "developer", and how to store documents outside of the webroot.
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Lenovo website hacked
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FW/1 V3 released
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Documents outside web root
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3 responses to "Show #229: Neut, Root, and Release"
Chris Laning Says:
Mar 4, 2015 at 7:14 PM I have to say, editing this episode, especially during the part on Net Neutrality, about killed my blood pressure! Do you know how frustrating it is to hear opinions on a controversial topic and not be able to respond? So I had to make sure that mine was the very first comment for this episode!
I have opted to put it all in one comment, so those who are interested in this topic, especially in hearing the opposing view on this topic, buckle in. I am going to take this point by point.
Scott starts off by saying the Net Neutrality is good for everyone who is connected to the internet, unless they own stock in telecoms. I could not disagree with him more! Placing regulatory powers over the Internet (at least access to it in the US) in the hands of the FCC will, and I believe by design, have the opposite effect on its stated goals. It will not increase competition, it will actually make the playing field less fair, and will not neutralize the big corporations like so many people believe. I will get into why as we continue.
Scott says that basic premise of Net Neutrality is to prohibit companies from slowing down service to sites they don't like (i.e. Verizon slowing down service to NBC because it is Comcast owned). That is indeed the premise being floated out there. But the idea is of course based off of the original clash between Netflix and Comcast. It is often presented as, and indeed Scott suggests at one point that the telcoms decided they could make more money by charging the people who have the content the public want to access. This is a very short sighted and pedantic evaluation of the situation.
Netflix accounts for nearly 35% of peak internet traffic (Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2843225/Netflix-accounts-35-peak-internet-traffic-double-nearest-rival-YouTube.html). During the debate between Netflix and Comcast, the trouble spot was traced to the third-party provider that delivered Netflix data to Comcast (Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/02/23/netflix-comcast-deal-streaming/5757631/) . That delivery ramp was too small and Netflix felt that Comcast should pay to open that up, not them. But that would mean, I presume, that Comcast would have to pass that cost on to all of their customers, not just the ones clogging the pipes with Netflix movies. So Aunt Sally, who is just using Comcast to send email, check Facebook, and maybe pin a few things on Pinterest, has to pay higher rates so Joe her neighbor down the street can stream HD quality movies 24 hours a day. How fair is that? By Comcast telling Netflix to pay them to cover the costs of connections (actually setting up direct connections and bypassing third party vendors), they were pushing the costs back on those who benefited from it most. I would be willing to bet, though this is just conjecture, that the amount charged to Netflix still doesn't cover all the costs, and that Comcast isn't "making money" off of the deal, only lowering costs incurred as a result of Netflix bandwidth hogging. I'm sorry, that is a perfectly reasonable request.
Scott said that the best analogy he heard for Net Neutrality was that the Internet is a shopping mall. Every store has to pay rent. Some pay more because they take up more space. Some companies have to pay more to get bigger pipe. Without Net Neutrality, that means owners of the mall can charge Macy's more to use the escalator or to get the elevator to stop at a particular floor. I think it is an nonsensical analogy. Equating the ISP connection to the escalator or elevator is not logical. However, equating it to the mall hallway sizes and locations is. In that case, stores do pay more rent to be in the higher trafficked areas. Which means his analogy proves the case against Net Neutrality. Because under Net Neutrality, the mall would have to charge all stores the same rent regardless of size, location, or traffic. So either the mall would have to set the rent prices so low it became a flea market, or they would have to set the rent prices so high that the mom and pops and the boutique stores would be priced out. Price fixing, even by the government, never ends well.
Having spent my summers in college working as a toll collector on the NJ Turnpike, I found Scott's second analogy amusing, if not also incorrect. Scott said if you have a toll road, you are going to charge the customers to get on the toll road, and they are going to have to pay to access the stuff that is off the toll road. So now somebody comes and puts an IKEA along the NJ Turnpike, and the turnpike now wants to charge IKEA money for people getting off the turnpike to go visit the store. When IKEA itself is paying for when it has to get on the turnpike to deliver goods to peoples houses or other stores. Dave called it double charging.
This analogy has several problems. First off, an IKEA off the Turnpike would by default have customers being charged to get off there as you can't exit the Turnpike anywhere without paying a toll (with the exception of the rest stops for which the operators no doubt pay the Turnpike Authority PLENTY for the privilege). But make no mistake, IKEA would not even get a permit to build a store right off the Turnpike if the exit was not big enough to handle the anticipated traffic. To get a permit, IKEA would have to pony up money to help the Authority make the necessary infrastructure improvements…...hmmmm….sounds kind of like the whole Netflix/Comcast deal. So, the anti-Net Neutrality side can claim this analogy too.
In discussion on other parts of the ruling, Scott says the ruling will help municipalities providing their own Internet Services expand beyond their borders which they are currently prevented from doing via state law. In particular, Chattanooga, TN and Wilson, NC. Scott says FCC says those laws are BS. He bets that the states that have those laws will come under pressure. Because they only benefit Telcoms.
Forgetting both the huge glaring assault to state's rights this decision seeks to impose, and the inadvisability of municipalities playing in areas better left to the private sector, there are two key problems with this decision: its unintended consequences and its impending irrelevancy.
Many of those "BS" state laws are in place because companies had to make huge outlays of capital to bring service to everyone in the area. In many cases, particularly in the rural areas, the outlay of investment capital will never see a return. Early on, and in many cases still, there are areas not being served. State and local governments used these "protective" laws to convince a company to serve most if not all of the customers in the area by ensuring a regional monopoly. This way, the company would be persuaded or required to serve all in the area and could make up for the losses in those rural areas by the profits made in the populated areas. Yes, those laws protected the telecoms, but they also helped ensure even the most remote citizen of the area could get some access to the service. Not saying I am in full agreement with those laws, but suspending them could actually cause many in the rural areas to lose connectivity all together, at least in the short term. That would be the opposite of leveling the playing field….unless you use the destructive definition of leveling.
But this particular ruling was unnecessary because the problem it is seeking to address is becoming irrelevant. Many areas are already seeing companies come in who are offering wifi based broadband. In addition, mobile broadband keeps getting better and better. These over the air solutions aren't subject to the same infrastructure protections and exclusivity that gave the big telcos their advantages. So all this ruling does is to try to vainly justify putting control of the US internet into government hands.
That brings us to the crux of the rebuttal. I was at least one (not sure if there were others) of the people who Scott had a Twitter discussion with over Net Neutrality. Indeed, I said things that are apparently "batsh*t crazy"!. He is entitled to believe that, but I am equally entitled to believe that of him for failing to see the obvious.
First assertion, Scott says "I've heard people say now the government controls the Internet. No they don't. They don't control the internet…They don't want to control the content, they just want to make sure everybody has equal access to the pipe through which the content flows." Dave follows up with mentioning that last year they did come out with some stuff to try to control content. Scott says he would fight that until they day he dies. He says "Some people think that because I am for Net Neutrality I am for censorship and that is not the case. If you think that is the same thing you're an idiot."
Well first, this "decision" does, without a doubt, place regulatory control of the Internet (again within the US borders) under the control of the FCC. So I am a little unclear how Scott can just simply state "No they don't." in response to the phrase "the government now controls the Internet". By the FCC making a ruling that asserts their regulatory authority over the Internet, they are, by default, saying they are in control of the Internet.
Second, while Scott denies that they want to control content, Dave tries to support this (oddly enough) by indicating that they did come out with some stuff before about trying to control content, but that it was rousingly shot down. While I vaguely recall this, I was unable to turn any substantial information on this. If, however, this was true, it would be highly probable that those same provisions are hidden in the rules this ruling puts into place. It is commonplace in Washington that if something gets shot down because people fear it, just rebrand it and reintroduce it the following year, this time hiding the objectionable parts. Again, I can find nothing documenting what Dave mentioned, so I can't speak to that exactly.
But, this ruling does, as stated in the first assertion, establish the FCC as the authority over U.S. Internet access, and there is nothing that could realistically prevent the FCC from controlling content. Whether it is in the form of "decency standards" or a return of the "fairness doctrine", from a regulatory standpoint, FCC would now have this authority. Congress could pass resolutions overturning this authority, but it would have to be signed by the President (unlikely since this is his baby) or passed by ⅔ majority to override a veto (also unlikely in this divided Congress). So, yes Scott, the FCC can now control content if they wish. And it is all well and good that you would be against it if that were the case. But there won't be thing one any of us can do about it at that point. That was why it was so important that this ruling be voted down. The horse is out of the barn now.
Scott's denial that they want to control content is not based on anything other than his own projection. He knows he wouldn't control content, and therefore is confident that they won't either. However, many were confident just a couple of years ago that the NSA would not be collecting information on the average citizen, unless they had probable cause. But we know now that indeed they have been collecting….well...just about everything on everybody.
I freely admit that I made the assertion that placing the Internet under FCC control will inevitably lead to taxes and licensing. I realize Scott sees it as crazy to automatically assume that is the case, but one is hard pressed to find anything put under government control that is not ultimately taxed. I made the point, as Scott pointed out, that the FCC when they took control of radio, licensed, taxed, and controlled it. I also pointed out that when they FCC took control of Television, they licensed, taxed, and controlled it. It hardly seems illogical that the next great communications advancement, newly put under their charge, will inevitably lead to the same result. In fact, it seems more illogical to assume that this time it will be different.
Scott is trying to base much of his belief that it is different on the fact that this is classified under Title II, and while he did not mention it in this podcast, in our Twitter conversation he pointed to that fact that the FCC "forebears" many of the provisions that apply to utilities. First off, just because it is classified as Title II, there is nothing, NOTHING, that prevents the FCC from regulating it as it does radio and television. Second, "forebearing" is not written in stone. Essentially, they are promising that they won't use certain sections. While I find it commendable that Scott would take a political appointee at his word, I don't share his optimism. Neither does Ajit Pai, one of the two FCC commissioners who voted against Net Neutrality.
"Pai, however, contends that the plan still would allow for rate regulation. "The plan repeatedly states that the FCC will apply sections 201 and 202 of the Communications Act, including their rate regulation provisions, to determine whether prices charged by broadband providers are 'unjust or unreasonable,'" Pai said. He also claims that the proposal "opens the door to billions of dollars in new taxes on broadband." "The plan repeatedly states that it is only deferring a decision on new broadband taxes ... not prohibiting them," he said.
(Source: http://www.newsmax.com/US/FCC-Internet-net-neutrality-regulate/2015/02/10/id/624010/)
That fact is, no one outside of the commission has seen the rules. Scott event admits that we have not seen the rules. Dave says the rules weren't released because of Verizon challenging the decision. That is factually incorrect. Verizon challenged the 2010 ruling. No challenges have been filed to this ruling yet. So why were the rules not released? I contend it is because once the rules are made known only the most ardent of Net Neutrality supporters would still support it. What other explanation can there be? If the rules are so wonderful and "good for everyone" why hide it? Commissioner Wheeler was even called before Congress to testify ahead of the decision, and refused to do so. (Source: http://sharylattkisson.com/fcc-chairman-just-says-no-to-testifying-to-congress/).
So let me sum this up. One point of the this ruling is supposedly to limit corporate control of the Internet and level the playing field to increase competition. But, it is taking an area not currently under government control and placing it there. Historically, this means that to get anything changed or fixed one will need lots of lobbying cash rather than innovation. This gives companies with the most money, like Apple and Google (who are both shockingly supporters of Net Neutrality), a legal attack dog to squash up and coming competitors. In fact, historically, most corporate influence and corruption comes as a result of the government regulating an industry. So it is incredible that so many "anti-corporate" people are so in favor of this. Apparently, they don't look past the spin.
Second, it attempts to fix the "oligopolies" situation, of one or two big ISPs in an area. But it is because of government that these "oligopolies" exist. So, fixing that with even more government control is illogical.
No. If you apply reason, logic, and historical fact to the Net Neutrality issue, it is not reasonable in any way, shape or form, to conclude anything other than that the Net Neutrality ruling is bad for all users of the Internet. Its just too bad that so many failed to recognize the naked grab of government control because they were more interested "sticking it" to the telcos, or have a misguided view of what real fairness is.
Scott Stroz Says:
Mar 5, 2015 at 1:36 AM Chris,
The FCC will not have 'regulatory control' of the Internet (inside or outside US borders), rather over ISPs and Internet access - a subtle, but important distinction. You keep coming back to the fact that the FCC wants to censor the Internet the way they 'censor' TV & radio, but what you seem to not understand is that TV & radio are not Title II utilities, like Internet access will be when these new rules are put in place. With Internet access being treated as a 'common carrier' under Title II, it would be more accurate to compare Internet access to freight lines and cruise ships than TV and radio. You claim that my belief the FCC does not want to censor the Internet is based on conjecture, yet seem totally justified in using conjecture to keep stating what you believe is absolute truth.
Yes, government created the oligopolies, but it was to 'protect' the telcos and their capital investment. In essence, these laws exist to benefit, in many places, a single company. One. Single. Company. But, let's not kid ourselves, the telcos were pulling the strings, and would not surprise me if, in some cases, actually wrote the drafts of these laws themselves.
Only time will tell who is 'right'. But, for now, I feel good in the fact that teclos will not be able to throttle the pipe and that munincipalities will have the authority, in a few places, to offer Internet access without interference from laws designed to protect telcos.
Phillip Senn Says:
Mar 6, 2015 at 4:47 AM Bravo Chris. I can't imagine how much of your time it took to write all that.
I am very grateful for the cfhour broadcast.
I was in another declining technology a decade ago and one of the things that the trade magazine did was start talking about the technology industry as a whole because there wasn't any new news to talk about.
And I don't think it has to be headline news either, like "this week in ColdFusion" or anything. I am angry/frustrated that programming takes sooooo looooonnnnngggg to do. We really don't appreciate how long it takes to write programs. So tips like (long ago) Scott saying that from now on, he was always going to use bootstrap really helped me. It took me like a week to come up with the $.ajax necessary to post to a cfc and return a query in json format. And in the end, it was only a few lines of code.
I don't think I've still gotten over that, and that was years ago now. I might think that I'm carrying a crutch, if it weren't for the fact that every new topic is like that in our industry.
Oh, except for Google's Material Design for Twitter Bootstrap. That was as simple as dropping in a css file and a couple of js files and bam! My site looked like a Material Design site.
Oh wait, come to think of it - I did have to spend the rest of the afternoon tweeking some margins and paddings.


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Request Medical Records
Patients treated at Hospital for Special Care may request a copy of their medical records by sending a written request to the Health Information Management department:
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For questions, call: (860) 827-4863 (Monday – Friday, 8 am - 4 pm)
For your convenience, you may use the Authorization to Release Patient Health Information form.
Please specify the type of information and/or dates of service that you want to be sent from the medical record.
- Patient's Full Name (including maiden name or other names that may be needed to locate the correct record)
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- Signature, Date and Printed Name of the patient or other authorized person making the request
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
The great outdoors offers so many opportunities to keep active and enjoy some amazing scenery. Some of the terms used can be a bit ambiguous though, especially to those new to the field. Here, we will attempt to clear up the differences between some popular outdoor activities.
Hillwalking is the simple pastime of walking up a hill or mountain with the aim of reaching its summit. This is very similar to hiking except that it is solely based on reaching an area of higher elevation.
Scrambling is similar to hillwalking in that it involves the goal of reaching the summit of a hill or mountain. It differs though because scrambling trails are more rugged and hands must sometimes be employed in order to reach the final destination.
Rock Climbing is like extreme scrambling involving steeper inclines, cliff faces and the like. Often additional equipment such as ropes, karabiners and harnesses must be used as there is a higher risk of injury.
TrailZilla.com – Free maps, routes and trailz online.
- Find, plan, share and print trail maps
- Upload and download trailz to and from your PC, Mac, mobile, iPhone or GPS
- Free street, satellite and terrain maps worldwide
- Premium content including Ordnance Survey Landranger and Explorer maps, IGN French maps, AA routes and much more…..
Trailzilla.com - 'For cycling, walking, hiking, biking routes and maps or whatever your passion – map it on TrailZilla'


text: Where are the Picassos, Van Goghs, Mc Eschers, Dahlis, Rembrandts of our time? Are we to absorbed to enjoy "new art". Have our computers enveloped our love of paint and canvas? The last "good" painter/artist I seen/heard of is that Bisquet guy... isn't he dead anyway? Can anyone introduce me to some "new art"? (pls disregard my spelling errors, as I don't have tons of time at work to research...thx)


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Now our customers can find information about Inspecta services in Denmark as well.
You can visit the newly launched site here: http://www.inspecta.com/da/
Altogether this means Inspecta site now provides content in Danish, Finnish Latvian, Norwegian and Swedish, as well content in English at the corporate site.
Still to come are the local sites for Estonia, Lithuania and for our Russian-speaking customers.


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Monday, June 29, 2009
Perfectly Satisfying
Posted by Loweeel at 10:10 PM
So much is going on outside of my wine life that I don't even know where to start. After a long night at work, I wanted something simple, refreshing, and easy.
I got a bottle of the Dry Creek Vineyard 2008 "Petite Zin" Rose (Sonoma County) as a sample from Dry Creek Vineyard's wine club. I requested a bottle from Kim Stare Wallace after seeing it on their website, where it retails for $18. While perhaPS above the median price for a rose, this one is worth the price; it is distinctive and offers flavors that other roses don't.
This wine is 80% Zin, but the 20% PS really PuncheS above its weight. The grapes are from Sonoma County, and it's 13.9% ABV. It was harvested on 9/11/2008, and fermented for 30 days at 52 degrees Fahrenheit, then aged 2 months in French oak. The wine is classified as Dry, and has a pH of 3.57 (I'm not sure where it fits in dry roses, but it's a pretty typical pH for a "dry red" that's not spoofulated) and a TA of 0.67 (no units given). 384 cases were made, and Dry Creek Vineyard says that it can age 3-5 years (which, again, probably derives from the PS)
It's rounder and fuller-bodied than many roses. The color is dark -- even darker than the picture. It's very dark for a rose, just a few shades lighter than some beaujolais and pinot. Again, credit the PS.
Aged 2 months in French Oak, it reveals some creamyness and spice, underlying the dark fruits that PS is known for. It's very refreshing to find pepper and blackberries, and black cherries in a rose -- most of the ones I've had, regardless of varietal or blend, seem to stop at cherry limeade. This one goes darker, and deliciously so, but has that lime-like tingle lingering on the tongue and the finish.
This would pair nicely with a variety of dishes, including salmon, PeSto-based PaStas, and chicken dishes without too many strong flavors -- though southwestern would be a great pairing.
I haven't had too many PS roses (the Bella Vista/Cilurzo in April was sweeter than I expected, and I have a 2005 "off-label" from David Fulton, my "unicorn", that I'm looking forward to trying this month; Bogle apparently makes one from time to time, but I haven't been able to try it), but this is highly, highly recommended for all PS fans.
As I've come to expect from their wines in general, Dry Creek Vineyard's Petite Zin is a very well-crafted, well-balanced wine that nevertheless PreSents a nice value and unusual flavors and tasting notes. Seek this one out if you have a chance -- a rose this full-bodied is quite an experience, and the creamy key lime pie finish is really refreshing after a long, hot, humid, day.
Labels: Dry Creek Valley, Dry Creek Vineyard, reviews, Rose
1 comment:
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- January 14, 2012 at 2:42 AM
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Thursday, November 18, 2010
Vintage Space Rocket Paint By Number
Well I WAS thinking about snagging this vintage space paint by number for my retro Space theme office, but noooo, it's already been bid up higher than I think it's worth and more.
I have been good. I have not been buying much lately. I have been selective about what I buy. I eat my vegetables and pay my bills on time.
Sure, it's rare, you don't see these too often, but jeepers, do other people HAVE to buy what I want? lol...
Heck, I'll paint my own. Boo hiss... They can keep their original.
Can you tell I am bitter? Bitter?!
Happy Thursday Blogger friends! I hope you are finding better deals than me!
Posted by 1950s Atomic Ranch House at 8:57 AM


text:
Small positice corporate / pop / rock / acoustic track, which combines an energetic start, filled with electronic elements that would be the perfect choice for you. Catchy tune with a simple energetic tempo, power piano, light rock rhythm, unusual percussion elements, atmospheric acoustic and retro electro guitar sounds perfectly fit into any presentation. Suitable for logo ident, stinger video productions, intros; also can be used as background music for your movie, presentation, motivational clips, animation, great game, cartoon, wonderful trailers, teasers and more.
The pack contains both short and long variation of song.
Short track: 0:00-0:35
Long track: 0:36-2:05


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Sea ice loss is accelerating in the Barents and Kara Seas (BKS). Assessing potential linkages between sea ice retreat/thinning and the region's ancient and unique social–ecological systems is a pressing task. Tundra nomadism remains a vitally important livelihood for indigenous Nenets and their large reindeer herds. Warming summer air temperatures have been linked to more frequent and sustained summer high-pressure systems over West Siberia, Russia, but not to sea ice retreat. At the same time, autumn/winter rain-on-snow (ROS) events have become more frequent and intense. Here, we review evidence for autumn atmospheric warming and precipitation increases over Arctic coastal lands in proximity to BKS ice loss. Two major ROS events during November 2006 and 2013 led to massive winter reindeer mortality episodes on the Yamal Peninsula. Fieldwork with migratory herders has revealed that the ecological and socio-economic impacts from the catastrophic 2013 event will unfold for years to come. The suggested link between sea ice loss, more frequent and intense ROS events and high reindeer mortality has serious implications for the future of tundra Nenets nomadism.
1. Introduction
As Arctic warming has significantly exceeded that of lower latitudes in recent decades [1], indigenous peoples have reported symptoms of accelerating change, even while characterizing extreme weather events as 'normal' in the context of life lived on land and/or sea [2,3]. In the Eurasian Arctic, the rapid retreat and thinning of sea ice in the Barents and Kara Seas (BKS) are critical components of feedbacks to Arctic and global climate change [1,4]. Coincidentally, autumn and winter rain-on-snow (ROS) events, resulting in ice-encrusted pastures and mass starvation of semi-domesticated reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), have increased in frequency and intensity across the northwest Russian Arctic [5,6]. This region is home to the world's largest and most productive reindeer herds. Warmer/wetter winters have negatively affected the much smaller wild reindeer populations on High Arctic Svalbard [7,8]. In the Low Arctic, there is an urgent need to understand whether and how regional sea ice loss is driving major ROS events over mainland Russia and, crucially, the implications of such events for the region's ancient and unique social–ecological systems (SES).
At the circumpolar level, it has been proposed that increases in Arctic terrestrial primary productivity are linked to sea ice decline and thinning [9–11]. However, evidence based on tundra shrub dendroclimatology from Nenets Autonomous Okrug and Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (YNAO) does not support such a linkage in the BKS region: in recent decades, the trend of increasing deciduous shrub growth appears closely tied to more frequent and intense summer high-pressure systems over West Siberia [12]. While attention has focused on summer temperature coupled with contraction of summer reindeer pastures due to incremental hydrocarbon development [13], autumn and winter warming have been severe, leading to large changes in regional biota [6,14,15].
In particular, a major ROS event during autumn/winter 2013–2014 led to the starvation of 61 000 reindeer out of a population of ca 275 000 animals on the Yamal Peninsula [14]. Historically, 2013–2014 is the region's largest recorded mortality episode, and sits within a pattern of more frequent and intense autumn/winter ROS events [5,6]. If sea ice loss is driving increasingly severe ROS events and high reindeer mortality, it will have serious implications for the future of tundra Nenets nomadism. Here, we review evidence for autumn atmospheric warming and precipitation increases over Arctic coastal lands in proximity to the BKS and their links to sea ice loss. We consider how both recent (2006 and 2013) and historic ROS events have shaped Nenets strategies for coping with extreme weather from the perspective of recent literature, including modelling efforts, and empirical measures of sea ice and associated atmospheric conditions. We also explore Nenets strategies for adaptation to ROS events in recent decades and into the future.
2. Material and methods
Around 6000 of the approximately 30 000 indigenous Yamal Nenets of West Siberia are reindeer nomads who migrate up to 1200 km annually between lichen woodlands (winter pastures) south of the Ob River and northern shrub–graminoid tundra (spring/summer/autumn pastures) on the Yamal Peninsula [13]. The total reindeer population in YNAO was 705 000 in January 2016, of which 394 000 were privately owned. Migratory units range in size from 100 to several thousand animals. Between March 2014 and April 2016, we surveyed 60 herders and administrators in the Yamalski and Priuralski raions, representing the Yarsalinskaia and Baidaratskaia tundras (electronic supplementary material, S1). Via intensive participant observation in all seasons with Nenets nomads, we created a detailed oral history of herding strategies and movements over several decades.
We combed archives of Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) data to search for both seasonal and date-specific anomalies in atmospheric conditions over the BKS in two winters with high reindeer mortality (2006–2007 and 2013–2014). Archives of Advanced Scatterometer (ASCAT; electronic supplementary material, S2) data were similarly searched to detect the autumn 2013 ROS event over land. Sea ice extent was estimated using Special Sensor Microwave Imager/Sounder (SSMIS; electronic supplementary material, S3). We checked for precipitation anomalies using European Reanalysis (ERA)-Interim data, a global atmospheric reanalysis from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, which provides medium-range forecast data for this region. The findings from the combined quantitative and qualitative (i.e. participatory) approaches are coupled with a literature review that focuses on modelling of BKS ice loss.
3. Results
During the period 5–10 November 2006 (the date of the 2006–2007 winter ROS event) and 5–10 November 2013, SSMIS shows that BKS ice was steadily decreasing (electronic supplementary material, S4). Herders reported that the most recent catastrophic ROS event (serad po in Nenets language, i.e. bad/distress year) began on 8–9 November 2013 with about 24 h of rain, after which temperatures dropped and remained below freezing for the remainder of the autumn and throughout the winter. ASCAT data accurately detected the severe icing of pastures beginning 10 November 2013 over most of the southern Yamal Peninsula, an area covering ca 27 058 km2 (figure 1a). Autumn AIRS data indicate anomalously high total precipitable water over Nenets Okrug on 6 November 2006 and 8 November 2013, and over YNAO on 7 November 2006 and 8–9 November 2013 (figure 1b–f). According to AIRS data, air temperatures were anomalously high over Nenets Okrug on 6 November 2006 and YNAO on 7 November 2006. Anomalous high air temperatures characterized both regions on 6–9 November 2013, followed by cold anomalies over the Yamal Peninsula on 10 November 2013 (figure 1g–i). AIRS detected positive sensible heat fluxes from the surface to the atmosphere over the Barents Sea (BS) on 5–7 November 2006 and the Kara Sea (KS) on 8–9 November 2006. In 2013, positive sensible heat flux was detected over the BS on 5–8 November and the KS on 9 November. ERA-Interim data forecasted high precipitation anomalies over Nenets Okrug and YNAO on 6–7 November 2006 and 6–7 November 2013 (figure 2a), coupled with wind advection from the south (figure 2b). ERA data have close agreement with empirical data and incorporate sea ice data. By spring–summer 2014, the private herders who had lost most or all of their animals to starvation were functionally stranded in the tundra. With no draught reindeer to haul their camps, they resorted to full-time subsistence fishing and borrowed breeding stock to rebuild their herds, a multi-year process. Herders identified other historically bad icing events since World War II as occurring about once per decade, e.g. in 1947, 1954, 1974 and 1996.
4. Discussion
Warmer, wetter Arctic winters over the past decade have raised concern [16,17], particularly regarding impacts of ROS events on Eurasian semi-domesticated and wild reindeer populations [5,7,8,14,15,18]. Recent winter sea ice retreat is most pronounced in the BS [19]. This has been attributed to increasing 'Atlantification' [19,20] and has been linked to anomalous warm advection over the BS in light ice years [21]. Another factor in BKS ice loss is Ural Blocking with a positive North Atlantic oscillation (NAO), which was more persistent in 2000–2013 than in 1979–1999 [22]. Modelling efforts, such as atmospheric reanalyses, including the ERA-Interim, have indicated anomalously high winter sensible heat flux in the BS [23]. In a recent circumpolar comparison, BS was the only region with significant warming in all models [23]. Negative ice concentration anomalies were most pronounced in the BS, with significant precipitation increases over regions of winter sea ice loss, and atmospheric warming spreading to neighbouring landmasses around the BS [24]. However, a decrease of wintertime sea ice cover in the BKS does not always result in a priori expected warming over adjacent continental areas [25]. At the same time, quantitative links between Arctic sea ice retreat and increasing precipitation remain poorly constrained [26], yet important linkages between November BS ice loss and the NAO sign for the following winter have been reported [11].
Meteorological data show that rain fell over the central YNAO on 8–9 November 2013 [7], and on 7 November 2006, but not in southern forest–tundra and northern tundra zones. AIRS data for winter 2013–2014 (not shown) support herders' observations that cold weather prevailed after ice crust formed on 10 November 2013. ASCAT, despite low sensitivity to snow structural change relative to QuikSCAT [5], was able to capture the event owing to its intensity and severity (figure 1a). The ERA-Interim pattern of moisture convergence is similar to that of precipitation detected (figure 2; electronic supplementary material, S5–S9). Although wind streamline indicates that moisture is transported from the south, this does not mean that moisture originally derived from the continent, but it would have been introduced earlier from the sea (electronic supplementary material, S10).
Some of the individual elements in the chain of events that proceeds from Warming → Sea ice decline → Increased precipitation and winter temperatures → ROS events → Reindeer mortality → SES resilience have been reported elsewhere [4–9,11,13,16–24]. However, (i) this is the first time the whole, integrated picture is presented for a region where the coupling between sea ice-related environmental changes and critically important semi-domesticated reindeer nomad SES is manifest quite clearly and (ii) this is the first study to propose a link between brief but spatially significant retreat of November sea ice and massive ROS events over the Russian mainland. We stress the idea that sea ice declines are very likely linked with increased precipitation and higher temperatures in the BKS region. It is logical to infer that ROS events will be more frequent in these situations.
The pattern of more frequent and intense autumn/winter ROS events in Nenets Okrug and YNAO mirrors that of summer high-pressure systems over West Siberia. Together, the regional autumn, winter and summer warming trends present real challenges to maintaining tundra reindeer nomadism as a viable livelihood. Yet, indigenous peoples have critical data and perspectives to contribute to understanding climate change [2,3,27,28] and consciously facilitate their own social–ecological resilience through collective agency [13]. Nenets oral histories documented that smaller, more nimble privately owned herds fared better than larger collective herds. This strategy has worked well for dealing with encroaching infrastructure [13]. Regional warming already exceeds the 1.5°C scenario envisioned by the COP21 Paris agreement of 2015. Our analysis suggests that decreasing November BKS ice extent is linked to precipitation over coastal lands, putting Nenets herds and herders at risk. If BKS ice continues to decline, better forecasts of autumn ice retreat coupled with additional mobile slaughterhouses could help to buffer against reindeer starvation following future ROS events. Even a few days of early warning could make a critical difference. This could be achieved via combined use of empirical data coupled with ERA-reanalysis. Realizing mutual coexistence of tundra nomadism within the Arctic's largest natural gas complex under a warming climate will require meaningful consultation, as well as ready access to—and careful interpretation of—real-time meteorological and sea ice data and modelling.
Interviewees consented to be interviewed and have approved the information and the sharing of it publicly.
Data accessibility
AIRS, SSMIS, ERA and MERRA-2 data are freely available, respectively, at: airs.jpl.nasa.gov, nsidc.org, apps.ecmwf.int/datasets/data/interim-full-daily and https://gmao.gsfc.nasa.gov/reanalysis/MERRA-2/.
Authors' contributions
B.C.F. conceived and designed the study. R.L., N.M., M.V. and B.C.F. conducted interviews, sometimes with T.K., A.S. and M.M.-F. L.N.B., K.-Y.K., J.C.S. and A.B. analysed AIRS/MERRA-2, ERA-Interim, SSMIS and ASCAT data, respectively. T.K., L.N.B., K.-Y.K. and A.B. prepared the figures. P.Z. assisted data handling and analysis. B.C.F. drafted the manuscript with help from M.M.-F. All authors participated in the revisions, gave final approval for publication and are responsible for the contents of the article.
Competing interests
We have no competing interests.
Funded by Academy of Finland Decisions no. 256991 and no. 251111 and JPI Climate no. 291581. A Visiting Fellowship from the Dickey Center for International Understanding, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH generously supported B.C.F. during 2015–2016. M.M.-F. was supported by an NERC IRF (NE/L011859/1).
We thank the Yamal herders whose intimate ways of engaging with the tundra spurred this research and were indispensible in realizing it via their intensive participation in all seasons.
One contribution to the special feature 'Effects of sea ice on Arctic biota'.
Electronic supplementary material is available online at https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.3552540.
- Received May 31, 2016.
- Accepted October 13, 2016.
- © 2016 The Authors.
Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.


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Troops close bases on last Afghan tour
Troops from the West Midlands and Staffordshire have closed or handed over the bases they have been operating from on their final operational tour in Afghanistan.
Members of the 3rd Battalion the Mercian Regiment – formerly The Staffords – closed the main operating base called Price that is close to the strategically-important town of Gereshk in trouble-torn Helmand Province, where its C Company has been based.
Meanwhile, the battalion's A Company has handed over control of its Patrol Base – Lashkar Gah Durai at a key intersection on Highway 1, the region's main road artery – to Afghan forces.
Both companies had spent weeks gradually shrinking the size of the bases and Combat Logistic Patrols delivered the last of the equipment and materiel to Camp Bastion, the main base for UK troops.
Mercian troops took part in a handover ceremony at the weekend before pulling back to Camp Bastion where they will now spend time biologically cleaning the fighting vehicles they have been using.
The vehicles and troops will then come home as army chiefs prepare for the final stages of the operation that will see all British combat troops leave Afghanistan by the end of the year.
Brigadier James Woodham, Commander Task Force Helmand, said: "The handover of these bases represents an historic moment in the UK's military campaign in Afghanistan. This was a complex and significant operation."
There is now only one patrol base being used by British troops outside Camp Bastion. At the height of the conflict there were 137.
3Mercian soldiers spoke of their feelings as the last tour nears its end.
Private Josh Burt, 24, of Stoke-on-Trent, admitted the departure from Helmand would bring a range of feelings.
Pte Burt said: "Obviously there's feelings here, because we've lost blokes.
"But on the other side, everyone just wants to go home and it's a job well done for us."
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Sep 11, 2014
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Interesting Immigration Study
Although I'm not crazy about illegal immigration, my reasoning has never really involved illegals and an alleged propensity for criminal activity while in the United States. It is important to reiterate, however, that the above study makes no distinction between legals and illegals, so we can't draw a definite conclusion on illegals and criminality. Nevertheless, the data does at least suggest that it's risky to make the illegal immigrant/criminality link.
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Immigrants are far less likely than the average U.S.-born citizen to commit crime in California, the most populous state in the United States, according to a report issued late on Monday.
People born outside the United States make up about 35 percent of California's adult population but account for about 17 percent of the adult prison population, the report by the Public Policy Institute of California showed.
According to the report's authors the findings suggest that long-standing fears of immigration as a threat to public safety are unjustified. The report also noted that U.S.-born adult men are incarcerated at a rate more than 2 1/2 times greater than that of foreign-born men.
"Our research indicates that limiting immigration, requiring higher educational levels to obtain visas, or spending more money to increase penalties against criminal immigrants will have little impact on public safety," said Kristin Butcher, co-author of the report and associate professor of economics at Wellesley College.
The study did not differentiate between documented immigrants and illegal immigrants.
The question of what to do about the millions of undocumented workers living in the United States has been one of the major issues in the U.S. presidential election. Mexico, which accounts for a high proportion of illegal immigrants in California, was deeply disappointed at the U.S. Congress' failure to pass President George W. Bush's overhaul of immigration laws last year.
When Butcher and her co-author, Anne Morrison Piehl, associate professor of economics at Rutgers University, considered all those committed to institutions including prison, jails, halfway houses and the like, they found an even greater disparity.
Among men 18 to 40, the population most likely to be in institutions because of criminal activity, the report found that in California, U.S.-born men were institutionalized 10 times more often than foreign-born men (4.2 percent vs. 0.42 percent).
Among other findings in the report, non-citizen men from Mexico 18 to 40 -- a group disproportionately likely to have entered the United States illegally -- are more than eight times less likely than U.S.-born men in the same age group to be in a correctional institution (0.48 percent vs. 4.2 percent).
"From a public safety standpoint, there would be little reason to further limit immigration, to favor entry by high-skilled immigrants, or to increase penalties against criminal immigrants," the report said.
(Reporting by Duncan Martell; Editing by Adam Tanner and Bill Trott)
Labels: immigration


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It was a calm and sunny Friday morning as Daniel Manera grabbed his lunch off the kitchen table and stuffed it into his bag along with his pencil case and his books for that day.
'See you later, Mum!' he called up the stairs. A relatively tall woman- about five foot eight- appeared at the top of the stairs in a dressing-gown with her mahogany-brown, wavy hair wrapped up in a towel.
'I'll see you later, honey,' she replied. 'If it's raining I'll collect you from school. There's meant to be some heavy storms in the area later so pick up your brother from his school and I'll meet you at the bus stop.'
'Sure, Mum, have a good day.' Daniel left his house and walked right to a house a few blocks down the street to meet his best friend Mike before they walked to school together.
Daniel Manera was a sixteen-year-old boy in his first year of sixth form; five foot six and still growing with dark hair and tanned skin he'd inherited from the Italian blood on his mother's side, people rarely believed he was related to his brother, who had inherited the black hair and paler skin of their English father, Alex, who coincidentally also had Italian ancestors but had lived all of his life in England. It had been due to this heritage, when eighteen-year-old Alex had been visiting an Italian grandfather, that he had met a girl named Serafina. The two kept in contact but never saw each other again until three years later, Serafina moved to England to go to university; the two had met but chance while Alex was visiting a friend at the same university, leading to Serafina becoming Alex's girlfriend, and later, his wife.
'Hi mate,' greeted Mike. 'Can I ask you a favour?'
Daniel tried to suppress a grin. He had an idea what this favour might be. 'Sure, go ahead.'
'Have you done the English homework? Only, I couldn't find the sheet with the questions on last night so I've still got a few left.'
'Sure, I'll give it to you at break,' smiled Daniel.
'What are you laughing about?' asked Mike.
'Oh, nothing,' said Daniel airily as he followed his friend through the school gates with 'Knole Academy' engraved into the stone archway above their heads. 'I'm just adding that to the number of homework sheets you've lost since term started.'
All right, all right.' Mike held his hands up in mock surrender as they moved through the crush of students to reach their lockers. 'I swear Maisie eats homework sheets for breakfast. I can never find them where I've left them and she always looks guilty whenever I see her afterwards.' Maisie was Mike's tortoiseshell-and-white cat he had adopted from the RSPCA after she had been found abandoned and starving as a kitten. 'And besides, we've got Maths first and you know Mr Johnson is gonna be on your case after last week.'
'I know,' sighed Daniel, remembering the tough equation the teacher had just posed to him when his phone had started ringing loudly, resulting in 'Lightning' by The Wanted being blasted through the classroom. 'George must've nicked my phone while I was packing my bag and figured out the code to unlock it and taken it off silent. I was hurrying so much because I was running late that I just didn't notice. Then of course Mum had to phone me despite knowing full well I was at school.'
'Yeah well, if you changed your code to something a little less obvious than your date of birth...' teased Mike.
'Trust me, I already have.' Daniel rolled his eyes and stepped into their Maths class room. 'Come on, let's get this over with.'
'What was that, Mr Manera?' asked Mr Johnson briskly. 'Homework please.'
'Nothing,' he murmured, digging the relevant paperwork out of his bag and handing it over. He made his way over to his seat on the furthest back table in the room while Mike gave over his homework and followed him, dumping his bag down next to the table and sinking into the chair next to Daniel.
'Great,' he moaned. 'Johnson's in a strict mood today so it'll be nothing but algebra and equations work from textbooks all lesson, just you wait.'
'It's almost half term, maybe he'll give out some Halloween-related problems like Miss Turley used to do,' said Daniel hopefully. Miss Turley had been head of Maths until she had retired last year and had always been a favourite among the students because she was known to set mini competitions on the run up to the holidays, often with chocolate prizes.
'Doubt it, this is Mr Johnson we're talking about,' said Mike, getting out his books and pencil case.
'True,' admitted Daniel as he followed suit.
Lunchtime couldn't arrive quickly enough as Daniel had to endure a long hour and forty-five minutes of English. Mike had managed to finish the questions on Shakespeare's Othello at break, but there were the usual characters who strolled in late or forgot their homework or just didn't bother to do it, and consequently Mrs Manson had been in a foul and unforgiving mood, making the class split into groups and act out different scenes in Act Two of the play and then analyse them to present to the class. She ruthlessly made them take notes on each others' performances to give feedback and to top it all off, gave them a practise essay on the ways Shakespeare set up his story and characters in the first act.
'Man, that was hard!' groaned Mike as they left the classroom, his spiky black hair having teased itself out of his gelled updo so that it flopped down over his forehead, causing him to keep brushing it aside every few minutes. 'She was in an awful mood; I got my work to her on time and everything.'
'At least it's over for today,' reminded Daniel. Both boys had frees after lunch, during which they usually went home to either of their houses. However, today Daniel looked out the canteen window and noticed that his mother had been right about the weather; a fierce wind was whistling outside and causing the windows to bang ominously and rain had begun to fall against the windows, albeit only a light shower.
Daniel and Mike sat down at a table close to the window and began eating their lunches. Mike's cousin, a boy named Isaac in year eleven, sat at their table briefly to introduce a friend to them, but apart from that they ate alone.
'Look at the popular kids, what do you reckon Jake's got detention with Miss Gordon for forgetting his copy of Small Island again?' joked Mike. Jake was the typical big, muscled football player who was known for his tough-guy attitude and his almost vicious playing on the field, but not necessarily his brains. He was infamous for picking on a number of kids, including Daniel and Mike, who had both fallen into the high school social group of not uncool, but the invisible kids who seemed to blend into the background and were largely ignored unless attention was drawn to them.
'Mmhmm, probably,' agreed Daniel. While Mike was picking out some of the jocks and cheerleaders to make fun of, Daniel zoned out as he recognised with a slight pang of regret, and not for the first time, one of the girls sitting at the table with the jocks. Her name was Ellie and he'd been at primary school with her; in fact, they'd been best of friends for the last three years of school together. However, since the first day of high school, Ellie had been shy and, having been placed in different classes from Daniel, had hung out with another girl she knew. The girl had just happened to be friends with the kids who became the popular crowd while Daniel had made friends with Mike, and since then nothing had changed. Daniel had to admit he sometimes missed his old best friend, but he'd never dream of telling anybody, especially not Mike. He knew he'd never hear the end of it, especially if word got out to the popular crowd, and he thought that Ellie would most definitely not be impressed if people found out. She seemed so comfortable and happy with her crowd of friends that Daniel thought she couldn't possibly remember their years as friends together. If anything, she would probably think of them as an embarrassment, he thought.
'Dan? Dan?' Mike clicked his fingers in front of the other boy's face.
Daniel blinked rapidly. 'Sorry mate, I must've zoned out there for a minute.'
'I'll say. I was gonna tell you, you might wanna give your mum a ring and get her to pick you up.' He indicated the window with his head. Daniel turned to see heavy rain assaulting the tall glass windows. The glass panes banged in their frames and the wind had got even worse; the whistling had been joined by ominous crashes from outside. Several kids had already rushed over to the windows and the whole canteen became consumed by noise as students tried to make themselves heard over the sounds of the weather.
'Everything's going crazy!' called a ginger-haired boy in the year below Daniel and Mike just as one of the school's metal recycling dustbins was hurled across the school grounds. Stray sheets of paper escaped the bin's lid and were whipped away by the fierce wind.
'Look!' called a girl, pointing upwards at the sky dramatically. The whole canteen suddenly went silent as the students rushed over and spotted the black storm clouds threatening the horizon.
'Jesus,' whispered Mike. 'Look at that. Looks like there's going to be one heck of a thunderstorm later.'
'You don't say,' muttered back Daniel. 'I'd better ring George and check he's okay, then I'll ring Mum about picking us up. If it gets much worse I'm not even sure I'll make it to George's school.'
Just then the school tannoy burst into life and the headteacher's voice began echoing through the tinny speakers.
'As I'm sure you'll have noticed a severe rainstorm has struck most of southern England including here in Sevenoaks. The weather channels have reported strong, high-speed winds travelling across the Channel from France and another weather front coming down from the north. The school will remain open but any students living half an hour away or more have permission to leave school now while the storm is still relatively mild. Any other students who feel they may have trouble getting home safely can come and see me in my office and the school will try to arrange transport home for those who need it. For the moment stay inside the building unless you are being picked up. Staff will be out in the car park to keep track of the students leaving, so please sign off with them before you leave.'
The tannoy buzzed and then went silent. Calm followed for a few seconds before havoc ensued as students began alternately cheering, fumbling for phones, chatting animatedly and ringing parents or relatives to organise lifts home. Daniel fished out his mobile and scrolled rapidly through his contacts list until he located his brother's number. He mentally thanked his parents for buying George a phone last Christmas and bit his lip as the phone rang in his ear. His brother was terrified of thunderstorms and he worried that it would start before they could get home from school.
'Daniel?' George's shaky voice sounded through the speaker in his ear, followed by a crackle. Evidently the weather was already beginning to interfere with the phone signal.
'George are you okay?' Daniel had to raise his voice above the chattering students and the banging windows to make himself heard.
'I'm okay, I think,' said George, but there was definitely a tremor in his voice.
'Good. Make sure you stay inside and I'm going to ring Mum so she can pick us up. Okay?'
'Okay,' nodded George. 'See you later.'
'Bye.' Daniel hung up the phone and turned to Mike. 'Your mum's working today isn't she?' When he nodded, Daniel continued: 'Do you want me to ask mine if you can come home in our car? There's no way you'll be able to walk home in this.'
Mike nodded. 'Sure mate, thanks.'
Daniel dialled his home number and pressed the green button before holding his phone to his ear. He covered his other ear with his hand to speak to her.
'Daniel?' His mum answered the phone immediately, concern in her voice. 'Do you want me to pick you up from school?'
'Don't rush out,' said Daniel hastily, visions of her driving fast to reach him, and the heavy rain that had to be coating the roads in a dangerous layer of water. 'Whenever you can reach us safely is fine.'
'Okay,' she replied. 'How's George? I haven't been able to get through to him on his phone,' she fretted.
'That's probably because I was talking to him. He's a little scared but he's fine,' reassured Daniel.
'Good,' said his mother, relieved.
'Also, is it okay if we drop Mike off on the way home? His mum's working till late this evening and he can't walk home in this.'
'Of course, tell him that's fine,' she said warmly. 'He can come round ours if he wants, so he's not at home in this on his own, and I'll get some hot chocolate ready for you all. How does that sound?'
'Thanks Mum.' He smiled and hung up and turned back to Mike. 'Mum said she's fine to pick you up too and that you can come home with us if you want.'
'Thanks mate,' smiled Mike. 'So what time will your mum be coming?'
'George finishes school at half three so she'll probably leave home at about three to get to us, so about ten past or quarter past three depending on how bad the weather is.' Daniel shrugged.
'Okay,' said Mike and returned to his lunch.
Daniel finished eating his sandwich and gazed out of the window at the ever-worsening rainstorm, wondering if his brother would be okay and hoping that his mother would make it safely to school and home again.


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Customers should tip their valets between $2 and $5 when picking up their returned cars, according to Emily Post's tipping guidelines. This represents standard tip-range etiquette, but the personal decision of how much to tip is based on the perceived quality of the service, the interaction with the valet and the understanding of the social norms regarding valet tipping.
After compiling the results of an employee survey, VEGAS.com recommends a $5 valet tip for standard service, but the site also suggests that extra service or extenuating circumstances warrant a change in the tip amount. If a customer makes a special request, such as a car wash or luggage pick-up, the amount of the tip should increase accordingly. Valet service provided on a scorching hot Las Vegas day may also be considered as an extraordinary service that deserves a bigger tip. Regarding when to tip, opinions are divided between offering the full tip when picking up the car or splitting the tip in two between the drop-off and pick-up times. At Las Vegas hotels, where valet service is free and guests save on parking costs, customers can navigate and comply with the accepted customs by understanding that valet tipping is an expectation and that $5 is the suggested base amount.


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EventsPage address: https://www.mnsu.edu/wellness/events/spring2017/
Spring 2017
May is National Bike Month
- National Bike-to-Work Week 2017: May 15-19, 2017
- Bike-to-Work Day - Friday, May 19, 2017
- Mankato Area Bike Walk Events
- Poster (PDF)
- Overcome Commuting Concerns (PDF)
- Bike Bingo (PDF)
Rock Climbing
We are hosting a free rock climbing event for faculty and staff! All experience levels are welcome. Please wear clothing that allows free movement; you must have socks to participate. Shoes and harnesses are provided. There will be trained staff to ensure the safety of all climbers.
- Thursday, April 27 from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Myers Field House.
- Please RSVP to [firstname.lastname@example.com] by Tuesday, April 25.
New This Spring! 4-Person Golf Scramble for Faculty and Staff
Get your team together for a 4-person golf scramble for faculty and staff! There will be prizes for the winning team and pin prizes.
- Thursday, May 11 at Terrace View Golf Course with a 5:00 p.m. start time. (Rain date: Thursday, May 18)
- $20/person with riding cart; $13/person walking.
- Contact Wendy Schuller to register at email@example.com or extension 2015. The registration deadline is Monday, May 1.
Gluten/Celiac Disease
Is gluten-free right for me?? Join campus dietitian, Lexi, to learn about Celiac Disease, what a gluten-free diet looks like, and if it is right for you!
- Tuesday, April 25 from 12 to 1 p.m. in CSU 238.
Poker Walk
Join us for this year's Poker Walk! The walk will begin by the fountain on campus outside of the CSU. There will be multiple stops along the way where you will receive poker chips. The person with the best hand at the end wins a prize! Previous poker experience is not required. Also, there will be juice sampling provided by WYSIWYG Juice Co! We hope to see you there!
- Monday, April 17 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
With busy schedules and many things to juggle, it can sometimes be difficult to be kind to one's self and engage in self-care. For many people, their internal dialogue and relationship with themselves is not reflective of how they would interact with someone they care for. Please join us in presenting Carrie Rief from the Counseling Center! She will help us explore the concept of compassion turned inward and the potential impact on relationships both with self and others.
- Tuesday, March 28 from 12 to 1 p.m. in CSU 201.
Mindful Eating
It is our pleasure to have Erin Gonzalez, Registered Dietitian at the Mankato Clinic and adjunct professor here at MSU, speak about mindful eating. For the first session, Erin will be laying the foundations and explaining the basics on how to eat mindfully. The second session will have us take what we learned in the first session and use it in our daily lives with our children and families.
- The first session will be on Wednesday, March 22 from 12 to 1 p.m. in CSU 238.
- The second session will be on Wednesday, March 5 from 12 to 1 p.m. in CSU 201.
One Small Change Challenge
Please join our Employee Wellness Interns, Paige Lachelt and Sara Jensen, for the first session of a 6-week challenge. This first session will encourage you to make one small change towards a healthier you, whether it be related to nutrition, activity level, etc. Come find out how one small change can change your life!
- The first session will be Tuesday, February 28 from 12 to 1 p.m. in CSU 238.
- The session after the 6-week challenge will be Thursday, April 13. This will be where you can share and celebrate your change.
Country Heat Live
Join Camille Kurtenbach, Beachbody Coach and MSU Alum, in this high-energy, low-impact, easy-to-follow dance workout that is perfect for all fitness levels! Whether you're a dance newbie or you already have great moves, you're going to love stepping it up to the hottest country hits around!
- Classes will be held in HN 225 from 5:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on the following Thursdays - March 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, April 6, 13, 20.
- The first class is FREE. Then $5/session or $20 for 5 sessions.
FREE Ice Skating- No more tickets available
The Wellness at Work Committee is pleased to offer free ice skating for our employees and their family members.
- Skating will be available at the All Seasons Arena from 2:15 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. on the following Saturdays - February 25, March 4, 11, and 25.
- To obtain tickets, please contact Wendy in Human Resources at 507-389-2015. You will need one ticket for each person skating.
Spring Break Six
Spring Break Six is a 6 week program designed to jump start your fitness before spring break! This program offers healthy competition between friends and teams to help you get in shape! A trainer meets twice weekly with your team of four to compete against other teams in weekly challenges earning points. (This program is for MSU students, faculty and staff.)
- $200 total per team ($50 per person)
- *If you do not have a team of four, the cost is still $200. You must at least have a team of three to register.
- 6 Weeks of Training (12 team training sessions) and Pre and Post Fitness Assessments
- EMPLOYEES – FREE 6 Week Otto Recreation Center Membership included!
- Date of Program: January 23rd - March 3rd
- Register and pay easily online as an entire team in one transaction by Wednesday, January 18! http://www.mnsu.edu/campusrec/fitness/springbreaksix.html
POUND 'Lite' Workout Class for ALL Fitness Levels! (NEW FOR SPRING SEMESTER)
- Enjoy a full body cardio jam session, combining light resistance with constant simulated drumming.
- The workout fuses cardio, Pilates, and isometric movements.
- If you are curious about what this class is about, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRPhvnrWcSI to view a short video.
- In this class the instructor will provide a lighter version of the POUND moves for those who prefer a less strenuous exercise on their lunch hour.
- Advanced level moves will also be demonstrated so participants can rock a little harder if preferred.
- Classes will be offered from 12:00 p.m. to 12:40 p.m. in PH 102 on January 13, 20, 27, February 17, 24, and March 3.
- Cost is $27 for a 6 week session punch card or $6 a class for the drop in fee.
Bowling and Billiards
- FREE bowling and billiards for faculty and staff at the CSU Maverick Bullpen on Tuesdays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. beginning January 17, 2017, through February 28, 2017.
- Just go to the main desk to get your bowling shoes or billiard supplies.
- Let them know that you are an employee and you can play for free.
How to Set and Stick to Your New Year's Resolutions
- Lexi Cournoyer, MSU Campus Dietitian, will be giving a presentation that will focus on nutrition, fitness and overall wellness.
- She will also discuss goal setting and ways to stay motivated!
- Start the year out right and join us on Tuesday, January 24 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. in CSU 238.
Otto Recreation Center Orientation
- MSU faculty and staff are invited to attend an Otto Recreation Center Orientation on Wednesday, January 25 at 12:15 p.m. or Thursday, January 26 at 11:30 a.m.
- Please meet at the Otto Recreation Center front desk (HC 1900) to begin the 30-minute tour.
- Any employees attending either orientation will be offered a FREE 2-week membership to the Rec Center.
- If you have any questions, please contact Carly Hopper at firstname.lastname@example.com.
Indoor Duathlon
- The Office of Campus Recreation will be hosting an Indoor Duathlon on Sunday, February 5 at 9 a.m. in the Otto Recreation Center.
- The Duathlon format is a 20 minute run/20 minute bike/20 minute run.
- The goal is to accumulate as many miles as you can in 60 minutes!


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Strangers Help Mom Whose Car was in Danger of Being Towed While She's in the ER with Newborn Baby
A young mother was waiting in the ER with her newborn baby but she did not expect that further tests are needed to check her child's condition. Kaylee Goemans had earlier placed all the change she had in her purse on the parking meter but time was running out but she could not just leave her kid at the ER to add more change on the meter. The child was later diagnosed with intussusception and a heart murmur.
Running out of options but afraid that her car might be towed for failing to pay the parking fees, she turned to other moms in an FB group for help, reports CBS News.
Within minutes, several responded – some imploring other moms to help Kaylee while there were others who offered to place change in her parking meter. After asking for the details on her vehicle, at least 5 moms went out of their way to help out the young mom with her dilemma!
It was a great to witness this story of kindness in an online community – these women do not know each personally yet they pitched in to help one in distress.
Kaylee shared the story in gratitude to the women who helped her out as well as to inspire others to "pay it forward".
She said:
It's a rough world right now and we only have each other in it. We need to show the next generation how important it is to help others who need it. I have a saying, "Not every day is good, but there is good in every day!"


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The first cancer-fighting proton beam therapy machines which costs 17M has arrived in the UK. With this machines means British patients will have no need to travel abroad for the revolutionary treatment.
The machine was only available overseas, now is being installed as the final phase of the Rutherford Cancer Centre being built in Newport, South Wales.
The machine will take a year to install and is expected to treat 500 patients a year. The technology uses a high-energy beam of protons instead of X-rays, to deliver radiotherapy for patients- reducing the risk of damaging surrounding healthy organs.
Acording to Professor Gordon McVie, chairman of Proton Partners International, "This is a milestone for cancer treatment in the UK.
"We are committed to transforming cancer care and that is why we are installing the most advanced proton therapy technology available.
"Around 10% of cancer patients will benefit from proton beam therapy by having significantly less long-term side effects. The availability of this treatment in the UK will mean over time that patients will no longer have to endure travelling abroad for treatment, which is the case at present."
The installation of the 55-ton #cyclotron Proteus®ONE solution for #protonbeamtherapy began today at #TheRutherford #SouthWales @IBAToday pic.twitter.com/KPewC1qLmq— Proton Partners (@ProtonPartners) 20 May 2017


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Kerry Washington & Eminem Set for 'Saturday Night Live'!
Kerry Washington is headed to Saturday Night Live as a host for the upcoming November 2 show, NBC has announced!
The 36-year-old Scandal star has never hosted the show before – so exciting!
Joining Kerry in Studio 8H that evening will be musical guest Eminem, who will be making his 6th appearance on the show. Eminem's latest album, The Marshall Mathers LP 2 is set for release on November 5.
As previously reported, Edward Norton and Janelle Monae will be making an appearance as host and musical guest respectively on the comedy variety show the week before on October 26.
ARE YOU EXCITED to watch Kerry Washington make her SNL debut???