text:
Computing and people who work with computers are not the nerdy and negative images often portrayed in the media. As a computer scientist, educator and project evaluator with my hands and feet in many fields I live these realities every day. I am like the kid who never stops asking "why?" In this blog, I share my questions and curiosity about the interdisciplinary role of computing with a special concern for how computing can make the world a better place.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
No Minced Words & a Few Sniffles Were Detected at UX Speakeasy
Some people were feeling emotional at last night's UX Speakeasy. If the amazing artwork didn't get you, the starry sky would have done it for sure. It was a lovely outdoor venue at SILO in Maker's Quarter in the heart of downtown San Diego. Perfect setting for this particular event. Last night was primarily a going away celebration for Aaron Irizarry who is one of the founding members of the group.
About 3 years ago, Aaron was one of 13 women and men who decided that San Diego really needed to build community for UX (User Experience) professionals. I've been told there was a feeling that
Clearly they were on to something because in no time the group was maxing out space in larger and larger venues. These days we have to regularly put limits on monthly meetings in the range of 80-100 people because it's hard to find space to fit everyone interested in attending. The original group of 13 put themselves out in pursuit of a vision, and according to a tribute last night, Aaron was in the thick of all the early activities, taking leadership positions sometimes on short notice. In those days, there weren't the teams of volunteers and enthusiastic members there are today.
So when Aaron spoke about his experiences here, and said to the crowd "Be grateful you have a community of people you can connect with on a regular basis" I wasn't surprised to see some people looking almost teary eyed.
A secondary, and related reason for the meetup last night was the coincidentally timed release of Aaron's Book "Discussing Design". An overarching theme of his conversation about it was the importance of learning to have the "right" conversations. By way of example, Aaron explained how community contributed to the appearance of this book. He said that a casual conversation led to a blog post, which led to a conference proposal, which led to the book being written. Things happen when we share and explore ideas, pursue opportunities and do it with others in community.
Sometimes it wasn't clear to me when Aaron was speaking about the book or on a wider scale, but it doesn't really matter because the point is the same: it's critically important that technical professionals learn how to communicate better about our work. When people speak in buzz words or stock phrases no one knows what is really going on.
Aaron said he wanted to vomit - or something to that effect - when someone says "Can you make that pop more?". Rather...find out: What is working, not working exactly? What is it that makes you feel it isn't going to work for our persona?
Never one to mince words, Aaron continued,
"We need to set the ground work for those conversations. We need to learn how to talk about our work. It doesn't matter how skilled you are, you'll just be another talented asshole".
Although he was focused on Design, I was thinking more broadly. Conversations are hard; confrontations suck (that's Aaron again being direct about what we all know). I'd like to read Aaron's book because it appears to be about the topic of setting the ground for those hard conversations. I'd like to read Aaron's perspective on the matter. I'd like to see how it is similar and different from other writings on technical and science communication.
Bringing the conversation back around to why all 80+ of us were there last night, Aaron wrapped up his farewell remarks by reminding everyone that they need to understand the value of this community; it's not just a monthly party. It's an opportunity for support and finding new ways to frame important conversations.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 5:56 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Friday, May 15, 2015
An Innocent Visit to a Women in Tech Group Leads to An Unplanned Time Warp
|Why are we still asking the same questions about women and technology?
Somewhere along the line when I wasn't paying attention, I passed through an unseen door into a place where I'm now looking backwards as much as forward when it comes to women in tech. I have been noticing this for quite some time but it really smacked me in the face a few weeks ago when I attended a meeting of a new, small, group of mostly tech industry professionals. Women, the vast majority of whom were in their 20s and 30s.
Without planning it, the few of us who were not Millennials found ourselves clumping together randomly throughout the evening. Not all at once, but over and over I found myself having similar conversations with post 40-somethings about differences in our perspective about the issues and concerns of women in tech. We compared notes about what happens when you've been around long enough to see what lies beyond the ideal of a meritocracy in tech.
The larger group formed, from what I can tell, rather spontaneously, as a result of a few women wanting a smaller more intimate space for women than currently exists in larger social & networking groups. This was their second meeting and part of the conversation was about what topics they cared most about. Creating a female oriented space. Work-Life Balance. Designing Your Environment (where "environment" is broadly defined to refer to "world" and "life"). Several people noted that they weren't into some of the more traditionally male associated networking activities that center around "hanging out and drinking and kegs".
Now that I find myself a holder of "institutional memory" I am having weird flashbacks.
Back in the 1980s (the oh so distant past when it comes to tech) I remember having very similar discussions from the context of wanting to break into the tech industry, to be accepted for what I could do rather than what I might look like (i.e. female). Business wasn't about social activism was it? I flip flopped from wanting to be one of the guys in order to be accepted, to wanting to have a place to talk about why that approach never seemed to really work. Determined to succeed by being the best technically and assuming that if I ignored my gender everyone else would have to as well.
Anyone remember Andrew Dice Clay? The guys in my group of developers thought he was hysterical and watched his misogynist Stand Up at off site socializing events, checking with me to see if I was going to fit in by laughing along with them. I remember "Lisa, what do you think? He's funny, right? ... See, Lisa is ok with it". I was offended but didn't say a word. I had lots of reasons. Reason: I needed a job. Reason: I should let things roll off. Reason: I was afraid of not being accepted. However, I was a feminist outside of the office. I once took off for a weekend to attend a rally in Washington DC and when I came back, someone found out, and two of the guys refused to speak to me for weeks. It was a lousy way to tackle work life balance.
There was a divided opinion at the recent women's meeting about whether it was better to go along with male dominated structures and systems, or whether it was better to take explicitly women focused approaches when working for change. The arguments pro and con were the same ones I heard 25 years ago. The concerns about the effect on men were the same ones I heard 25 years ago. The implicit fears about what taking a stand or speaking out would mean for one's career were the same ones I heard 25 years ago.
Several of the women at the meeting worked for a company that makes a cutting edge tech product for athletes. They were discussing their jobs enthusiastically. One of the women listening to them pointed out that the demographic for that company's products is 18-30 year old males. A discussion ensued about why that was, and if the company could expand their market demographic in order to stay competitive. No longer the only player in their market, the competition is heating up. The entire group discussed what men or women might do with the company's products. No one in the room (that I remember) had bought the product for themselves, although a few had bought it for a male they knew. It seemed clear to me that here was an opportunity to do something good for business and for women in tech by, at the very least, changing the product's marketing.
As I later surmised, fears of rocking the boat are sometimes subtle. There wasn't much enthusiasm for altering the existing product or marketing. So I asked if any of the women working in this male dominated tech company on a male oriented product, had any thoughts about the contradiction (?) of their employment situation while we were sitting here in a group explicitly devoted to supporting women in the tech design business?
The initial response was a shocked look and a pause. Then "We have to focus on our target user". Oh, to know history! In a competitive environment, that phrase is the reason many initially successful companies decline and become irrelevant. Nothing related specifically to gender there; it's a business and marketing basic. Yet someone added, unprompted and dismissively : "It isn't a business issue". I had to restrain myself from beating my head on the table.
Sadly, that wasn't the last of my throwback moments. Later in the same discussion someone said, as a reason for not changing the existing product / marketing: "Women aren't interested in technology". As Millennials love to say: OMG.
If I had ever been in doubt about whether or not there were still serious issues for women starting out in tech, (and for the record, I wasn't), the fact that we are having the same conversations, the same fears and denials as we had in the 80s would have dispelled them.
By the way, in the 1980s I remember women who were then in their 40s and 50s saying the same darned things about how they were hearing many of the same darned questions and conversations they heard in the 1960s about women with career ambitions in business.
Oddly enough, I initially attended this meeting not knowing if this was the right place for me. It had not so much to do with the idea of a women focused group, but more because of the fact that I felt so much older than most of the women there. I have experiences and perspective that only come with having been around the block a few times. I wasn't sure if there was a place for me in this group of women. How ironic. After decades spent as one of very few women in my tech world, I found myself one of very few mid career professionals in a room full of tech women. Neither situation is ideal or particularly comfortable.
Well...I come away from that meeting with more questions and more to think about than I came in with. But one thing I am more sure about than ever: as long as people (women or men) are still asking the same questions about women and technology in a male dominated environment, groups like this one are needed. I hope we can find a way to move forward so that 25 years from now the current group of women in tech don't find themselves having the same deja vu.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 3:11 PM 1 comments Links to this post
Labels: interdisciplinary computing, making connections, Millennials, professional issues, Social Issues in Computing
Monday, April 27, 2015
The San Diego Women's Hackathon Codes++
California State University San Marcos on Saturday. Yes, it was the third instantiation of the San Diego Women's Hackathon. The event was organized and implemented so that everything appeared seamless by Dr. Youwen Ouyang, a Professor in the Computer Science Department, and Shauna Ruyle, a marketing consultant and Cal State San Marcos graduate. They were supported by approximately 10 student volunteers and 18 adult mentors, many of whom were themselves technical women.
The Hackathon has been growing at quite a clip since I wrote about the inaugural event a year ago, as witnessed in part by the growing list of sponsors, which included the Gormally family, Intuit Corporation, Equinox Center, Girl Develop IT, 4BoneHealth and CompTIA. Students came from as away as Riverside County and the south side of San Diego proper. Grouped into teams, and given the choice of two coding tasks that aim to make the world a better place, they hit the ground running.
Sporting my "Media" badge I spent the day zipping around talking to the participants, student volunteers and mentors. Much of the time however, I hung out and observed the dynamics of the coders that were so noticeably different from the dynamics in the computer labs I've spent so many hours in over the years.
The coding challenges were supplied by two of the event sponsors: 4BoneHealth and the Equinox Center. The teams that chose the first challenge had to create an app or game to educate their peers about the importance of getting enough calcium - and how to do so. The teams that chose the second challenge had to create an app to help people learn about the current drought in southern California. As if to encourage conversation about the usual lack of precipitation, Saturday it rained all day.
According to the official website, Hackathon participants were age 16 and up. However, I'm pretty sure I saw two girls who looked to be about 9 and 11. They were both firmly attached to mice and keyboards and one of them was right smack in the middle of a group of older participants as they all plotted and strategized. Go Girls! In addition, there were at least a few women who were returning to school to study computer science after having spent some years working in other occupations. They too were seamlessly integrated into their teams.
So why did these women decide to get up in the dark, drive as much as an hour or more in the rain to hang out on a college campus? On a Saturday? The slightly older ones had a variety of reasons, but many of the younger first time participants said things like this: "I had nothing else to do" "My teacher told me about it" "I'm going to take a class in it". Interesting.
Would they have come today if boys had been participants too? "NO". That much was quite clear. One of them added: "You mean to a normal one?" Hmmm.
A few hours later, what did these same, younger first time participants have to say? "At first it made
Many of the groups spontaneously formed into organizational patterns that closely mimicked a technique known in pedagogical circles as Pair Programming. Well researched, this cooperative approach to learning to code has been shown to have many benefits for learning. Especially in many non-traditional populations. Read: women and girls. Yet, in traditional classrooms there is often resistance to Pair Programming because it defies the stereotypical solo, competitive, programmer behavior.
The vast majority of the groups I observed functioned amazingly well, without overt or even subtle power plays and jockying for dominance. I watched them resolving differences of opinion by sharing
There were poignant moments. I spoke with one participant who seemed a bit sad. She told me she was "passionate about everything" related to engineering and computer science and felt that she should know already what aspect of these she wanted to pursue. Mind you, this young woman was in high school. We talked for a few minutes and I hope that by the end of our conversation she was able to view her wide ranging interests as the valuable and often unique interdisciplinary perspective that it is. In our globally interconnected technical world, we need young women like her.
There is a lesson in that encounter for those of us who have "succeeded" and now want to nurture and mentor those coming along after us.
At the end of the day, everyone piled into a room to eat dinner and watch the project presentations. Each group got up on stage and made a pitch to the audience and the judges. They fielded questions from the judges about their technical choices, most difficult moments, how they resolved team challenges and why they made certain design decisions. Every group had completed a significant portion of a project, even those groups whose members had little to no prior coding experience. They were justifiably proud of themselves. I noted as well how virtually every group made sure each member presented a portion of their pitch. It had been a very long day but energy radiated from the stage.
I asked many of the participants if they would attend another hackathon? Yes...definitely, absolutely, I can't wait. But not if boys are there. Why not? They just looked at me like I was slightly odd for even asking.
Fortunately, the next San Diego Women's Hackathon in October is a mere 6 months away.
The Hackathon has been growing at quite a clip since I wrote about the inaugural event a year ago, as witnessed in part by the growing list of sponsors, which included the Gormally family, Intuit Corporation, Equinox Center, Girl Develop IT, 4BoneHealth and CompTIA. Students came from as away as Riverside County and the south side of San Diego proper. Grouped into teams, and given the choice of two coding tasks that aim to make the world a better place, they hit the ground running.
Sporting my "Media" badge I spent the day zipping around talking to the participants, student volunteers and mentors. Much of the time however, I hung out and observed the dynamics of the coders that were so noticeably different from the dynamics in the computer labs I've spent so many hours in over the years.
The coding challenges were supplied by two of the event sponsors: 4BoneHealth and the Equinox Center. The teams that chose the first challenge had to create an app or game to educate their peers about the importance of getting enough calcium - and how to do so. The teams that chose the second challenge had to create an app to help people learn about the current drought in southern California. As if to encourage conversation about the usual lack of precipitation, Saturday it rained all day.
So why did these women decide to get up in the dark, drive as much as an hour or more in the rain to hang out on a college campus? On a Saturday? The slightly older ones had a variety of reasons, but many of the younger first time participants said things like this: "I had nothing else to do" "My teacher told me about it" "I'm going to take a class in it". Interesting.
Would they have come today if boys had been participants too? "NO". That much was quite clear. One of them added: "You mean to a normal one?" Hmmm.
A few hours later, what did these same, younger first time participants have to say? "At first it made
Many of the groups spontaneously formed into organizational patterns that closely mimicked a technique known in pedagogical circles as Pair Programming. Well researched, this cooperative approach to learning to code has been shown to have many benefits for learning. Especially in many non-traditional populations. Read: women and girls. Yet, in traditional classrooms there is often resistance to Pair Programming because it defies the stereotypical solo, competitive, programmer behavior.
The vast majority of the groups I observed functioned amazingly well, without overt or even subtle power plays and jockying for dominance. I watched them resolving differences of opinion by sharing
There were poignant moments. I spoke with one participant who seemed a bit sad. She told me she was "passionate about everything" related to engineering and computer science and felt that she should know already what aspect of these she wanted to pursue. Mind you, this young woman was in high school. We talked for a few minutes and I hope that by the end of our conversation she was able to view her wide ranging interests as the valuable and often unique interdisciplinary perspective that it is. In our globally interconnected technical world, we need young women like her.
There is a lesson in that encounter for those of us who have "succeeded" and now want to nurture and mentor those coming along after us.
At the end of the day, everyone piled into a room to eat dinner and watch the project presentations. Each group got up on stage and made a pitch to the audience and the judges. They fielded questions from the judges about their technical choices, most difficult moments, how they resolved team challenges and why they made certain design decisions. Every group had completed a significant portion of a project, even those groups whose members had little to no prior coding experience. They were justifiably proud of themselves. I noted as well how virtually every group made sure each member presented a portion of their pitch. It had been a very long day but energy radiated from the stage.
I asked many of the participants if they would attend another hackathon? Yes...definitely, absolutely, I can't wait. But not if boys are there. Why not? They just looked at me like I was slightly odd for even asking.
Fortunately, the next San Diego Women's Hackathon in October is a mere 6 months away.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 9:00 PM 1 comments Links to this post
Labels: coding, gender, programming
Thursday, April 2, 2015
UX Speakeasy Confessions
I just have five grand
Make me an iPhone UI?
Who am I, Steve Jobs?!
Ponder it.
It should resonate at a sub-cellular level.
Not yet? Were you there last night? No matter. It will come to you.
This motivational Haiku (5 - 7 - 5) was the product of the Black group's UX Confession at last night'sSan Diego UX Speakeasy meetup. Their task was to discuss and divulge about experiences when "The person who hired you wanted to design it them-self" and report back out to the larger group.
No more needs to be said. It should all be as clear and satiating as the ever present snow melt flowing from the Sierra Nevada range.
Get back to me with your revelations. This team took the Silver (2nd Place) award so you know their creation was profound.
One of the other groups contained a recruiter who was no doubt the inspiration for that team's Bronze (3rd Place) win. Unfortunately I can't report what they said because it was so deep I was awash in the avalanche of buzz word nouns liberally dusted with high powered adjectives and superlatives. Superbly done team Bronze!
I can only presume (hope) this was the Purple group whose discussion and presentation task was around "Your new client or boss insisted that UX and UI were the same".
AKA: A statement leading to The Resume Kiss of Death.
Oh... Bronze winning Purple's job descriptions were an April Fool's Joke. They were, right?
Then there was the Gold (1st Place) winning confessional entry. Most appropriately it went to a team
The essence of this group's meme was captured shorthand in a chirpy UX Speakeasy twitter feed post: 5 pm Friday Product Manager says: Design it Enterprise social mobile sexy it has to pop design it and code it by Monday. No Sweat
Poetic in its own right isn't it? I think their prompt was "Your boss wanted the UI to be as intuitive as their iPhone". Oh wait... that sounds like the iPhone Haiku. Perhaps it was "The person who hired you wanted to design it them-self". No wait... We used that on already. Should we have? With only a little imagination it could apply to "When you got negative user feedback and a manager said "the user opted in, they asked for it!". But maybe closer to "Your product team insists that epics and user stories are the same".
Incredible how so many of last night's confessional prompts apply to so many situations with so little cognitive effort.
Having thought at great and complex length about the matter, I suspect that the actual cue was: "When the product manager wanted mockups before any requirements were defined".
Keep pondering the meaning of this profound instructional creation and get back to me with your revelations. Especially if your memory of the evening is somewhat altered from mine. After all, it isn't often we get such an educational and deeply stimulating experience wrapped up in the guise of something as innocently innocuous as hanging out at an Irish Pub.
But don't sweat the little stuff: If you don't see all the pieces falling into place - ask around the meetup attendees. They all seemed to get it. By the way: last night was our 400th meetup. Something to be very proud of. We've grown in a few short years from 13 starry eyed visionaries to some 4 digit and growing kick butt professionals. Cheers!
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 5:30 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Saturday, March 7, 2015
SIGCSE2015 Comings & Goings in New Directions
It's that time at SIGCSE, when the sheer volume of coffee and unhealthy food is starting to catch up with me. This morning's egg and cheese on bagel put me over the top. Thank goodness I am not having a cholesterol test any time soon. However, all that protein is good brain food for processing the deluge of activity of the past few days.
There have been some real patterns. I started my teaching career in the community college system and I have never lost a feeling of affinity with them. So I really noticed this year that the Community College contingent is out in force at the conference. The palindromic ACM Committee for Computing Education in Community Colleges (CCECC) has been swooping in to help community college teachers network with one another, work on curriculum development in cyber security, talk about articulation with CS2013 curricular guidelines, host a large networking lunch, and give presentations and workshops in a way that I haven't seen in all the many long years I've been coming to SIGCSE. If you are a community college faculty or know some community college faculty in the computing field, and want to find like minds, I'd definitely recommend dropping them a line. They are active all year, and from what I've been told are planning on ramping up opportunities to stay connected.
There has also been a lot of talk about the enrollment surge at many if not most CS departments in the US. I don't have the full picture yet on what the situation is like outside the US, but all but one person I have spoken to from the US has told me they are experiencing record demand for CS courses. Great on one hand, highly problematic on the other hand because personnel and resources are so strained.
I attended a panel on the subject of the enrollment surge and capacity problems yesterday. The dominant theme was stress and worry. There are many ways to respond to the jump in numbers and many of them are not healthy for students or faculty. The way in which different institutions respond is tied to many things including institutional historical context, what part of the school the department is in (Arts & Sciences, Engineering, Business etc), attitude of administration, budgets, public or private. It is clear however that already there are some short sighted and non sustainable responses such as requiring overloads, increasing class sizes dramatically, enrollment caps and GPA minimums, eliminating non-major classes and electives.
What I didn't hear, and this worries me significantly, were creative think outside the box ideas for strategically tackling the capacity problem. It's hard to think creatively and strategically when you are being pressured from all sides on a daily basis to take on more and more. I also noticed that there was a divide in the audience about whether or not this boom is simply the third Bubble, or permanent as a result of economic changes and the ubiquity of computing. When asked, 1/3 of the audience said they thought this a Bubble, 1/3 said long term/permanent, 1/3 had no idea.
Whether or not you think the boom is a short term phenomenon or not is important because it affects how you react to it. We also have to look at history. We've been here before; if you were around in the 80s you remember the enrollment surges then and similar responses. As a result of historical memory and contemporary experience and research on the subject, we know that diversity is negatively impacted when we blindly fall back on a "best and the brightest" set of class and programmatic filters. Yet another reason to find a way to get the mental space to come up with creative responses. And to be proactive about sharing those ideas.
I'm on an active search to find people willing to speak out about healthy and creative ways to address the capacity surge. If you have ideas, whether or not they've been implemented, especially if your idea is different from the run of the mill ideas, contact me.
On another note, I'm noticing a generation gap, so to speak, among those at the conference who are plugged in to social media as a mode of communication and those who are not. If you can hold onto your seats until June, you can read in my next ACM Inroads column about why you should pay attention to how communication about our science is taking place on social media. But meanwhile, I'll point out that there is an active Twitter feed going about this conference #SIGCSE2015 and there you can read a somewhat random but interesting and often informative stream of info about things going on. More importantly, you can get a sense of what people consider important, what they choose to share with others. This matters. Taking the pulse of the community is important to understanding what people care about, what their perspective is, where they are headed.
But when I meet the twitter folk, they are almost always the younger contingent of the SIGCSE conference crowd. Sure, perhaps predictable, and I can only say "YES KEEP COMMUNICATING!"
For the rest of you, those for whom social media is not your best friend and constant companion, consider coming up to speed with some aspect of it. If you want to be plugged in to current and future thought leaders and decision makers and rabble rousers alike, this is a place to go. There is a whole aspect of SIGCSE going on virtually. I've met several new and interesting people via SIGCSE twitter exchanges the past few days. We've then met in person. People I'd never have met and perspectives I would never have heard. I value all these perspectives. I can, and do, plan on bringing what I have heard into the in person meetings and committees I attend.
Meanwhile, I'm going to get out of this chair and go to...lunch. I hope there is lots of leafy green salad.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 9:01 AM 0 comments Links to this post
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Mind Stretching at ACM SIGCAS (Computers & Society) Meeting
|Hidden Near a Freeway Old Meets New
As always, my SIGCSE (ACM Special Interest Group on Computer Science Education) week hit the ground running. Barely had I gotten to my hotel room and hooked up with my roomie than she and I were plotting and planning. So far this year we have not blown up anything or needed to call hotel mechanics. Such a shame.
My day today started off with a bone chilling walk to explore the Kansas City area in search of...whatever. Bone chilling mostly because it was below 20F and I didn't have winter clothes. My eyebrow had just about frozen together along with the freezing of my knuckles as I kept whipping out my camera to capture something just too good to pass up (see archaeology picture above) when I ran into three guys with no jackets at all (they must be natives because they didn't look half as brittle as I did in my fleece jacket) who directed me to a local independent coffee shop where I recuperated while supporting free trade coffee.
Some time later I found myself (by design) in the SIGCAS meeting (Special Interest Group on Computers and Society) which traditionally takes place the day before the start of the SIGCSE Technical Symposium. One interesting presentation after another about incorporating socially beneficial projects and activities into the computer science curriculum. Some projects were very local and some were global. From Latina community concerns to water scarcity allocation modeling to Bangladesh. By the end of the afternoon all sorts of ideas were flying through my head.
For example...
What makes a "Good" computing professional? We're talking "good" in the sense of socially beneficial, rather than technically good. More to the point, how do we know? How do we evaluate this term? (Do we want to evaluate it? Define it?) It's interesting to think about this because if we want to encourage the integration of socially / environmentally beneficial considerations into the very heart of the curriculum, how do we know we are doing it well? If we want computing professionals to integrate a social consciousness into their work how do we determine what that looks like? Or, do we even want to do this? It is worth pondering from a first principles perspective.
How are Codes of Conduct interpreted across cultures? Several global organizations such as ACM and IEEE have codes of conduct that professional members are asked to adhere to. It hadn't occured to me until today that this could be tricky due to differences in cultural interpretations of what is ethical. The idea was planted in my head because one of the presenters today said a segment of their students (economically disadvantaged, from some developing nations) said the hardest part of these Codes to adhere to would be the prohibition on taking bribes. Really? The hardest. Well, when you think about cultures where taking bribes is endemic, and business is done that way, ... sure it might be really hard to imagine bucking the system. I ask myself...how might one determine how "bad" this activity really is? Might one for example need to follow the chain reaction effect of individual bribes? How bad is it if it gets things done? Whoa....
We know that story telling, making content personal, is an effective way of making material (academic in this case) engaging and accessible. Some programming languages, (many?) don't, by their very nature, lend themselves to story telling. Java comes to mind. Python. Scratch? As opposed to a language like Alice. So, how might we talk about incorporating story telling into teaching introductory programming? This sounds like a really interesting challenge. Can it be done? I'd love to see ideas kicked around about this.
I gotta say that this was one dynamic meeting. The group made some decisions about action items to take, which, darn it, I missed due to having to boogie off to a meeting of the ACM Education Council. However, I'll find out and report back on this at a later date with a followup.
Tomorrow, the SIGCSE conference starts. Turbo charged. Stay tuned.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 9:16 PM 1 comments Links to this post
Labels: computing education, curriculum, ethics, interdisciplinary computing, SIGCSE, Social Issues in Computing
Friday, February 13, 2015
The Fact is, Sticking Intently to Facts is Not Enough
Dad loved a good debate, especially when it came to science - he was an academic to the core and he loved to tell you what he thought was the logical thing to do based on science and logic. He wanted to hear your side as well. If you had greater solid evidence than he did, he'd graciously concede. But it was very difficult to win an argument with my dad because he never took on a topic until he had more facts and data behind him than most people could ever hope to marshal. When dad advocated for a position he usually came out on top. If he didn't have the facts, he'd defer the conversation until he could find them.
I thought of dad this morning after listening to Noah Diffenbaugh at the live-streamed panel "Scientists Communicating Challenging Issues" at the AAAS meeting. Diffenbaugh, a Stanford climate science researcher, called himself a "fundamentalist" about sticking to the facts, much like my dad. Also like my dad, Diffenbaugh said he was pleased to tell you if he didn't know anything about a topic; I took this to mean he too would not engage in speculation about it. Finally, both Diffenbaugh and my dad felt that scientists were best positioned to rigorously discover the way the world worked and explain it to whoever wanted to know.
But here's where Diffenbaugh and my dad would have diverged: Diffenbaugh believes that scientists lose credibility when they suggest policy, or positions, or actions based upon their scientific findings. He lumps the entire spectrum of expressing an opinion or making a suggestion into advocacy and advocacy as a bad thing. I'll speculate that my dad wouldn't have liked the word advocacy either, but he certainly believed that he, as a scientist, had a responsibility to recommend actions to solve humanity's problems when the science provided facts to support those recommendations.
Diffenbaugh appears to be operating (and here I'm speculating) under the historically debunked idea that if people stay out of the way and don't get involved in politics, good things will happen. Or at least nothing bad will happen. In his somewhat strange example of talking to a US Senator and climate change skeptic, Diffenbaugh explained how after an hour of answering questions with facts, the Senator told his aid to have him "taken off the list". He didn't know what "the list" was and didn't seem particularly interested in knowing, rather, pointing out he believed he had "balanced the conversation", and by implication swayed the Congressman's skepticism of climate change. And, by extension, effected how that Senator would act on the matter in the future.
Lots of assumptions without sufficient facts to back them up. Lots of hopeful thinking that facts would change strongly held views, which, as other panelists pointed out, the research shows is simply not the case. Lots of wishful thinking that staying neutral will earn deep and lasting respect from others. Need we trot out history to drive home this point?
My dad perhaps knew better than anyone that people are irrational beings. As a young boy my father was caught up in Stalin's ambitions for what the world should look like, spending part of his childhood in Siberia and the rest of it in refugee camps across the Middle East. I suspect the trauma of this experience had a lot to do with why he became an academic and wanted to understand how the world worked. I suspect it also explains why he chose the sciences, where logic and reason provided a well defined and stable framework for understanding the world.
But most importantly, I believe that early confrontation with reality led my father to believe he had a responsibility to society to take a stand on societal and environmental issues and to defend them as strongly as he could. Credibly. With Science. With Facts.
You can study history for endless examples of how refusing to express opinions (political or otherwise) had little effect on other people's attitudes or behavior. Check the research for the peer reviewed studies on human behavior to back it up.
It's not merely an academic conversation. It's about understanding how the world works and acting on that knowledge.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 12:01 AM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: ethics, research, Social Issues in Computing
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Who thinks Computer Science is less relevant than Physics?
|Find all the interesting Computer Science in this picture
Computer Science is different from Physics; we don't have examples that we can bring to a presentation that will be relevant to a large population.
If that's the case we're screwed.
Recently, I heard someone say that. If I believed him I might as well hang it all up and go live on a dairy farm. I wanted to do that after I graduated from high school but my parents had other ideas in mind. I still have a soft spot for dairy cows but I'm in computer science for the long haul now and I don't believe him.
Computers are ubiquitous; they hold together our global economy. What aspect of your daily life does not depend in some way upon computer systems or software? Hmm? Let's see...brain dump...
Get up in the morning, eat a banana, eat a bowl of cereal, answer email, have a conference call with a client, take part in a virtual meeting, drive in my car to another meeting, work out of a coffee shop for a while, take part in a twitter conversation, brainstorm a conference presentation, respond to an email from my mother, pay some bills, make a doctor appointment, remind clients that they need to send out the surveys I created for them... is it lunch time yet?
Which of those activities ARE NOT tightly connected to the global computing infrastructure and which of those types of activity ARE NOT relevant to a large population? Let's say YES for connected and NO for not connected.
Get up in the morning: if I use my smart phone to set the alarm: YES
Eat a banana: that banana arrived from Ecuador in the San Diego harbor on a boat that was almost entirely loaded and unloaded by robots: YES
Eat a bowl of cereal: the bowl was hand thrown by an artist in Texas, so perhaps: NO; the cereal was grown, harvested, packaged and shipped efficiently (or perhaps not) using vast software tracking systems: YES
Answer email: YES (need I say more?)
Have a conference call/take part in a virtual meeting: Skype, Google+, the beep beep beep of telephone software: YES
Drive my car: The vehicle would gather dust in a nearby canyon without that little chip the mechanics charge an arm and a leg to plug into for diagnostic purposes: YES
Work out of a coffee shop: Free wi-fi: YES. Computerized receipt generation: YES
Twitter conversations, answering mom's email, online bill pay, annoying automatically generated paper bills anyway, making appointments via the tangled electronic phone tree: YES
Creating surveys, and emailing clients... ditto conference call note above. YES
Now, is any of this relevant to a large population listening to our hypothetical presentation? In other words are these types of activities interesting beyond my and my clients' and colleagues' worlds? Of course. Why wouldn't they be? Let's give people credit.
If one thinks that economics, history, communication, relationships, nature, biology, and caffeine aren't relevant to a large swath of the population, then we aren't thinking very creatively. We all eat, drink and communicate. Most of us drive, make appointments and (however regretfully) pay bills.
The issue of relevance is more than an intellectual exercise, it is a communication exercise.
If computer scientists, educators, researchers, want to make our field relevant, first we have to see for ourselves that computer science is relevant and interesting.
We must believe that computer science is, can be, should be, relevant and interesting to a large population.
We have to get out there and tell the story of the relevance of computer science in a way that speaks to our audience.
Or else we're screwed.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 12:30 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: communication, interdisciplinary computing
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Having a Technical Impact Goes Beyond the Bits
|Technical Communication Failure
The Great Papers class was perhaps a poster child for the how and the why we need to understand the non-technical factors swirling in and around computer science, and our need as professionals in the field to be able to communicate well about them to diverse audiences. We should talk more about how scientific and technological advances are communicated, understood, accepted or rejected. I suspect most of us recognize that those seminal articles we may take for granted had a significant impact only partially because of their technical merit.
It's about being the right person, in the right place, at the right time, saying the right thing. That last point (saying the right thing) is where we find the technical most heavily, although even there, the "right thing" is more nuanced than the bits and bytes of the matter. If we pause and take a look at the contextual big picture of any one of the technical innovations that have shaped our field, we see the truth of the matter. A range of social, historic, economic and psychological factors either inhibit or increase the visibility and impact of any technical work.
For example, in the domain of computer architecture, Howard Aiken's "The Proposed Automatic Calculating Machine" (1937) deservedly takes a spot in the annals of the most impactful papers in the field. Yet the paper that led to the creation of the Harvard Mark I was not a shoo-in; if not for a complex series of historical and economic factors the ideas presented in the proposal might well have languished in the "Don't call me, I'll call you" dustbin. Then there was Aiken's ability to assemble a rock solid team. Grace Hopper, herself no intellectual or personal pushover, was on that team. Aiken did not succeed in a vacuum.
Psychological factors leading to technological change are blindingly obvious in the infamous 1968 Dijkstra Letter to the Editor of the Communications of the ACM entitled "Go To Statement Considered Harmful". Dijkstra effectively and efficiently communicated the potential negative technical consequences of an unbridled use of the "Go To" statement. However, he used arguably tactless language, upset a lot of people, and his comments went viral 1960s style*. Dykstra wasn't the first person to argue against using Go To statements but he often gets the credit for the ideas that led to eventual changes in coding practice.
By spending a semester delving into issues such as these, I hope that students will come away with more than increased intellectual breadth and depth in the field of CS. I hope they will have a greater understanding of the deep connections between society and technological success and failure. I hope they will appreciate the importance of successful communication about complicated technical subject matter to technical and non-technical audiences alike. It's not just for people in Marketing - it's for them too.
I just got back my teaching evaluations - feedback to me about where I successfully communicated all these things to them and where there is room for work. It cuts both ways - I'm feeling good about that.
*In class I make a point to spend a few minutes discussing why, in spite of Dijkstra's technical brilliance and fame, pissing people off is not professionally wise.
Posted by Lisa C. Kaczmarczyk at 6:54 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: communication, computing education, interdisciplinary computing, making connections, Social Issues in Computing
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Water is Vital to Survival of Backyard Birds
Water is vital for wild birds all year round. Cold weather in northern climates brings a special challenge to survival because natural water sources are often frozen. Providing ice-free water for drinking and feather maintenance can be life-saving for birds. Water sources may be kept ice-free by an immersible electric heater that goes right into the birdbath water. Baths with built in heating are also available. Almost all birdbath heating systems are thermostatically controlled so as not to overheat, or underheat.
Here are some of Duncraft's tips for providing water all year round:
To accustom your birds to a new bath, try placing a bird feeder within five feet of the bath. Birds will notice the water in the bath as they go to the feeder.
It's optimal to locate the bath within six feet of a tree or tall shrub to give birds a place to fly to if a threat -- let's say, the neighbor's cat -- disturbs them while bathing or drinking.
Be sure your bath is not too deep -- the deepest point should be 2-1/2" or less. It's best if the edge of the bath is not slippery so that birds can have sure footing.
Bird baths can be on a pedestal, hanging, laid flat on the ground or attached, for example, to a deck rail
Bath water should be changed every few days, no matter what the season, to insure a fresh, clear supply.
It is important to keep your bath clean. We recommend washing the bath with water and white vinegar. The vinegar will help prevent algae growth and keep the bath fresh. Bath brushes and special bath and fountain protection solutions are available to help keep baths sparkling clean and safe for birds.
Moving water fascinates and attracts birds. We recommend outfitting your bath with a dripper or mister. In warm weather a mister will be attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies too!
Colored aquarium gravel, or marble chips, available in pet or garden centers, can be attractive in a bath and help birds get a footing.
In summer, locate your bath in a shady part of your yard. This will keep the water at a cooler, more refreshing temperature in hot weather. In winter, a sunny location will help an electric heater keep the water ice-free.
Heated Birdbath from Duncraft
This is one of our very favorite heated baths! This well-designed bath allows you to mount it directly to your deck railing. When winter arrives, plug the bath in and the heater turns on to keep water ice-free to -20°F. The heater, with its automatic thermostat, is hidden under the bowl, so there is no need to remove it in warmer weather. Basin is 20" diameter.
Not only do birds need water to quench their thirst, but also to groom their feathers and keep them in flying condition. Birds constantly tend to their feathers, which must be kept clean and healthy to insure proper insulation and mobility.
Providing water is the very best way to attract birds to your yard. Yes, birds are more attracted to water in your yard than by food! In addition, water brings out many interesting behaviors to watch -- you will see birds sipping, seriously grooming their feathers -- and splashing and playing.

subset: commoncrawl


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Freedom Eagle
We have a lot of talented artists who frequent these forums. This is the place for them to show off their stuff.
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Freedom Eagle
I was just wondering if anyone has done a good pic of Freedom Eagle, the only one i can find is the one from the freedom city legacy archtypes, and i don't really care for the angle of it?
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LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Glancy Binkow & Goldberg LLP announces that it is investigating potential claims on behalf of purchasers of the common stock of Cirrus Logic, Inc. ("Cirrus" or the "Company") (NASDAQ:CRUS) between July 31, 2012 and October 31, 2012 concerning possible violations of federal securities laws. The investigation focuses on allegations that certain statements issued by Cirrus were false and misleading concerning the Company's business and financial prospects.
Cirrus develops signal-processing integrated circuits for audio and energy markets. The Company's audio products include amplifiers, codecs, converters and digital signal processors for such applications as smartphones, tablets, home theater equipment, automotive entertainment systems and professional audio gear. The investigation is related to allegations that the Company misrepresented or failed to disclose that: (1) the Company's dependence for revenues on its biggest customer -- Apple, Inc. -- was increasing rather than diminishing; (2) the Company's sales growth was declining rather than increasing; (3) difficulties in its supply chain, and at its vendors, were increasing Cirrus's costs and diminishing the Company's profit margins; (4) the launch of several models of Cirrus's new LED lighting had been delayed; and (5) as a result, Cirrus's increased fiscal 2013 guidance was not attainable.
If you purchased Cirrus common stock between July 31, 2012 and October 31, 2012, if you have information or would like to learn more about these claims, or if you wish to discuss these matters or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Michael Goldberg, Esquire, of Glancy Binkow & Goldberg LLP, 1925 Century Park East, Suite 2100, Los Angeles, California 90067, by telephone at (310) 201-9150, Toll Free at (888) 773-9224, by e-mail to email@example.com, or visit our website at http://www.glancylaw.com.
This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.


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VIDEO | X360, PS3, PC Tuesday, July 17, 2012 | 8:15 PM
Sleeping Dogs screens and cast
All comments
Posted by SplitTongueI don't think they will. I think this is going to tank personally. Which will just show that acti where right to abandon ship. Still shitty how acti pretty much dont publish anything outside of COD and movie license games tho.
Activision is so going to regret their decision. But that's okay for me. XD
Activision is so going to regret their decision. But that's okay for me. XD
I'm also really surprised how well it looks graphically. The color palette, effects, and art style are all really well done, and really gives the feeling of being in Hong Kong. Love the fact they went a little more mature with the combat. I've always wanted a game with Batman style combat but a little more brutal results. I'm keeping my expectations rather low, but I think this could be a sleeper hit...
(and secretly, I'd love a Cantonese language option to make it more atmospheric!)
I was more impressed when I didn't know, so now I'm thinking - gimmick
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$28.00Power Sand Basic takes over for Power Sand and is a combination of porous materials with organic nutrients and delayed-release inorganic nutrients. Plus its spiked with ADA's Bacter 100, a substrate additive that has more than 100 kinds of bacteria, and Clear Super that helps the growth of microorganisms.
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Cinema's friendly neighborhood wall-crawler might venture to the Wolverine State next year.
According to The Oakland Press, Michigan native Sam Raimi hopes to film scenes for Spider-Man 4 in his home state, which offers filmmakers tax incentives to bring productions there. "Raimi is slated to begin production on Spider-Man 4 in 2010, in fact and, he said, envisions shooting some of that movie in Michigan," the paper reports.
As Raimi told The Oakland Press, "I'll be looking at Michigan for our second-unit photography on the new Spider-Man film."
Shooting second unit outside of L.A. or New York is nothing new for a Spidey film. Some of Spider-Man 3 was shot in Cleveland, which doubled for parts of lower Manhattan.


text: Pella was second and Knoxville was fifth at the Grinnell Boys Relays last night. The Little Dutch finished 59 points behind winner Mount Pleasant, but had several first place finishes including, Avery VanZee in the 200, Joshua VanDusseldorp in the 800, Nick DeJong in the discus and shot put, and the Little Dutch also took first place in the 4×800, and the 800 sprint medley relay. Knoxville had several runner up finishes including Justin Little in the 800, Trent Davis in the 110 hurdles, and Travis Peterson in the shot put.


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Trafford College has joined with Escape Studios, part of Pearson College London, to offer short courses and masterclasses for students wanting a career in the Visual Effects (VFX), Games, Animation and Motion Graphics industries.
The new partnership will provide budding Games Artists and Animators in the North of England with the same access feedback and industry-focused advice as their counterparts in the South.
Students already studying with Trafford College will be the first to benefit from the partnership; they'll get the opportunity to join workshops and masterclasses, delivered by the London studio, which has links with many of the country's leading production houses for film and games.
Summer workshops, starting in July 2018, will be made available to current BTEC and A-Level students from across the region. The workshops will be open to students that are currently studying a related course and those who would like to continue their studies to degree level and beyond.
Also available in the summer will be a Taster Day for any Year 11 student in Greater Manchester looking to study a related course at Trafford College.
Trafford College Principal and Chief Executive, Lesley Davies CEO, said, 'As a career college, we provide our students with access to the very best facilities and courses so they can be trained to the latest industry standards ready for the next stage in their career, whether that be straight into employment or onto University.
'Our partnership with Escape Studios is another example of this commitment and a recognition of the demand from both students and employers alike of the need to fill a skills gap in the extremely exciting and growing digital industries sector.'
Dr. Ian Palmer, Director of Escape Studios, said, 'We're really pleased to be partnering with Trafford College to deliver the series of summer workshops and taster days in 2018. At Escape Studios we're committed to nurturing creative talent through industry-focused education; the sessions will offer students the chance to explore VFX, Games and Animation and give them a taste of what it's like to study at university level. Students will be able to complete a mini project which can be used as part of their portfolio and they'll receive a certificate of attendance which can be used to enhance their university applications too. The workshops will be delivered by our expert tutors, all of whom have had successful careers in industry and we hope that they'll inspire many more students to pursue a career in the creative industries.'
If you are interested in attending a summer workshop or taster day please register at www.trafford.ac.uk/escape
Escape Studios is a leading creative academy based in London who have helped over 4000 alumni break into the industry. Escape's alumni (dubbed 'Escapees') have worked on BAFTA and Oscar winning films like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, The Jungle Book, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Gravity, as well as a number of award winning adverts and bestselling games such as Assassin's Creed and Forza Horizon.
TV and film student Hannah Seager has had a dream start to her career after gaining a place on the coveted BBC Apprenticeship Scheme
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville took to the stage at Trafford College to talk to staff and students about the exciting plans he has for University Academy '92 (UA92)
Local children were given the opportunity to become published authors recently thanks to a series of writing courses organised by the Employability and Community Learning team
Trafford College has joined with Escape Studios, part of Pearson College London, to offer short courses and masterclasses to students
Two of Trafford College's brightest young engineers have secured full time contracts with the leading international infrastructure group
Young people are to be given a meaningful role in determining the future direction of Greater Manchester
Trafford College was today announced as a partner with University Academy '92 (UA92), an idea first conceived by the Class of '92
Stockport College and Trafford College have announced their intention to merge in order to create a single, larger and more sustainable college
The Lee Westwood Golf School has joined forces with Trafford College to provide aspiring young golfers with an educational programme to match and enhance their talent both on and off the golf course
World leading industrial gas company, Air Products, has donated £2,000 to students and staff at Trafford College's Centre for Science and Technology
Twenty one of the UK's top young footballers have signed for a unique programme with Trafford College & Academy 92
Workforce Development Coordinator, Beccy Poole, will represent Team GB after successfully qualifying for the Sprint Duathlon Championships in Canada later this year


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The Yorkshire side had the satisfaction of scoring two tries and picking up their first point of the Premiership season but Newcastle just hung on to their 100% home record thanks to May.
The Falcons conceded an early try when Steve Jones kicked aimlessly and Leeds ran the ball back with some pace and invention for Joe Bedford to step through after only nine minutes.
Three minutes later, John Rudd's determined run led to a penalty but Matt Burke's kick at goal was just wide before Geoff Parling blasted through the middle.
The Falcons should have made more of the chance, which was spoiled by a nudge forward as the pack piled in.
Jones made up for that kick with an instinctive offload to May and the winger turned the Leeds defence inside out with a 40m run to level the scores.
Leeds were under the cosh at four successive scrums and there was an argument for a penalty try when their front row stood up as they went back right on their own line but Newcastle settled for a Jones drop goal to take the lead.
And when the Falcons spurned a kick at goal to go for the corner, they were rewarded with a drive-over try from Andy Long and Burke converted from the touchline.
Leigh Hinton's penalty just before half-time gave Leeds hope at 15-8, especially when the Falcons produced some turgid rugby immediately after the break.
They paid for it when Joe Shaw and Burke put in two appalling loose kicks which led to a penalty.
Hinton made it 15-11 only for Burke to land a left-footed drop goal before the Aussie full-back saved a certain try with a touchline tackle on Tom Biggs.
Back came Leeds with Hinton's third penalty to make it 18-14, and when Eric Lund was driven over with 11 minutes left, Leeds were 19-18 up and had victory in their grasp.
But then May dropped a 40m goal to restore Newcastle's lead.
Jones missed a very kickable penalty with five minutes left and Leeds sensed an opportunity but Newcastle ended the game back in the Leeds 22 and were happy to run the clock down.


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Plan B for Climate Change
Wallace Broecker has worked as a climate scientist for more than five decades, for most of that time at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Observatory. In 1975, he published his first warning about the dangers of burning fossil fuels in the journal Science, coining the term global warming. His research focus has been on the role of the ocean in fixing carbon dioxide and as a heat engine that helps keep the planet as warm as it is. Most recently, he has turned his attention to fixing the problem of anthropogenic climate change, but he says it's no longer enough to just reduce our emissions of greenhouse gases. In Fixing Climate: What Past Climate Changes Reveal About the Current Threat - and How to Counter It, he and science writer Robert Kunzig explain why Broecker believes humans will not stop burning fossil fuels in time to prevent major climate change impacts. He has embraced controversial proposals to capture and sequester carbon directly from the atmosphere.


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You have found a great property in a great neighborhood. This two story, spacious home has had a nice face lift, including fresh exterior and interior paint, all new stainless steel appliances, gorgeous tile in the living/dining and family rooms, an outdoor entertaining space, and a new fence around the back yard. You will love coming home to this comfy/cozy living space located on the golf course in Sorrento Springs. All of the rooms are spacious providing plenty of room for entertaining or a large family. In addition to the new appliances, the kitchen has a walk in pantry and there's a window over the sink looking out to the back yard and golf course. The master suite has room for all your furniture, walk in closet, and a large master bath. In addition to the master suite, there are two additional bedrooms, loft (which could be 4th bedroom), and laundry room on the second level. Call for an appointment today and let's make this adorable home your next address.
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The TrackingPoint 750 Series of 30 caliber bolt action Precision Guided Rifles provides the shooter with all the functionality of TrackingPoint's well known and thoroughly proven 1000 XS Series of Precision Guided Rifles, with a range of up to 750 yards.
Indeed the TrackingPoint 750 Series rifles share the same Networked Tracking Scope, Guided Trigger and Tag button as the 1000 series. All of the rifles in the 750 series are bolt action Remington actions and firearms with 26″ barrels, and Bell & Carlson stocks.
The main differences between the three rifles in this group are:
- 220gr LRX OTM ammunition (2950 fps)
- 1:10 inch twist rate
- 145gr LRX XactShot ammunition (2800 fps) or 171gr OTM (3060 fps)
- 1:9.25 inch twist rate
- 168gr TSX XactShot ammunition (2680 fps) or 165gr TSX (2680 fps)
- 1:12 inch twist rate


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Some beautiful outdoor headshots taken at the end of Winter in Davis, CA. It was pretty chilly, but we had clear skies (even if only for 30 minutes)! The start of the year is a great time to update your professional headshot.
Copyright ©
Amy Shuman Photography, All Rights Reserved.
SmugMug Customization by New Skin Media | Photo hosting by SmugMug Pro


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- Home
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- Online Queen Rearing Course- ONLINE
Product Description
Queen Rearing Course
Please Read These Details Carefully. This is for an online Queen Rearing Beekeeping Course, NOT AN ONSITE CLASS. You can during the year, watch and complete it at your leisure, and have unlimited access to the videos at anytime.
After your purchase, you'll receive an immediate invoice/email which will contain the links(look for them in blue) to our video lessons along with links to our worksheets. If you don't receive this, look in your spam box and/or check to make sure your email was correct.
A few days after you receive your email, you'll become part of BeeTeam6 for 30 days, FREE. You'll be able to email all your questions to David as well as receiving his monthly videos and tips. After, you will have the opportunity to permanently join the team and receive David's personal phone number where you can call, facetime or text him!
-No traveling. Enjoy the course in the comfort of your own home.
-No juggling of schedules. Study the lessons/videos at your own pace when you want.
-Receive 1 month of free mentoring/coaching through our BeeTeam6 program with EAS Certified Master Beekeeper, David Burns. You'll have 30 days to email David about any questions you might have. If you want to continue this service, you can subscribe for as long as you wish (and receive David's personal cell number as an added bonus!). By taking an online course, you receive one month free but you do NOT have to continue beyond your first free month, unless you choose to do so.
How It Works
You will receive an email which will contain links to the video lessons and the worksheets to use as you study each lesson. The topics covered in this Queen Rearing course are show below.
Once you have completed the class simply complete the final worksheet and send it to David via the postal service, where are teachers will comment and make suggestions on it. Once you complete the course satisfactorily, you will receive a nice certificate of completion you can frame. You do not have to send in the final worksheet if you do not want the certificate.
What's Covered In Queen Rearing Course
-Why raise your own queens
-How do colonies raise queens naturally
-The benefits of raising your own queens
-An overview of the process of raising queens
-How to raise just a few for you or raise a large amount for profit
-Choosing the best stock (hive) to raise queens from
-The best starter hive makes the best queens
-Grafting techniques
-The finishing hive seals the deal
-Tool and equipment needed to raise queens
-Timing is everything. Developing your schedule
-Storing virgin and mated queens
-How to mark queens
-How to package queens for shipment
-Queen rearing management calendar


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Description: The DAYTRADING program trades U.S. big cap stocks and Equity Index futures through long and short positions with no overall bias. No trade shall be carried overnight. This is not a capital guaranteed portfolio.
Trading Update:
- 28/04: +0,0% (Long S&P)
- 29/04: -1,4% (Short S&P)
Monthly balance (April 2009): +0,7%.
Portfolio's gross return year to date (2009): -3,2%.
Portfolio's gross return since inception (March 2008): +5,0%.
I'll be back tomorrow.


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Screw Chart for iPhone 4S
I have seen the screw chart for placing screw as you disassemble the iPhone 4 but not the 4s. Is it the same? Can you provide one for the 4s if not. If it is the same how about a link on all pages that it would be useful on.
Is this a good question?


text: http://www.knighttrans.com/about/who The national carrier with a personal touch. At Knight Transportation Inc, we are "Your Hometown National Carrier." What does that mean to you? First, it means we offer the service, values and flexibility of a local provider. Second, it means we have the strength and capacity of a large, dependable company you can count on. For our stakeholders, we are stable, responsive, and dedicated to our business.


text: Home Product [ HB ] - Hydraulics Bench and Accessories View 6 12 32 64 128 Products per page [ HB ] - Hydraulics Bench and Accessories HB 013 FLOW OVER A NOTCH Rectangular notch, 60 ํ and 90 ํ V-notches. 150 mm stainless steel vernier hook and point gauge. Details HB 014 METACENTRIC HEIGHT For a study of stability of a floating body. 400 mm long x 200 mm wide x 100 mm high pontoon. Graduated mast height and tilt angle. Details HB 015 BERNOULLI'S THEOREM APPARATUS Venturi tube diameters 28 and 14 mm, total head probe and manometer. Details HB 016 FLOW METERS Variable area flow meter, Venturi tube, orifice plate, Pitot tube water manometer. Details HB 016P The tube is used for a study of velocity distribution across a pipe section and measurement of flow velocity. Details HB 017 PIPE FRICTION Adjustable head 800-1000 mm, storage tank, water manometer, mercury manometer, test section over 500 mm long, vertical or horizontal pipe. Details «Prev1234567»Next


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Two people were in federal custody Wednesday, and three people were recovering from injuries after authorities said the driver of a rented sport utility vehicle tried to enter a secured area of the top-secret National Security Agency.
Authorities quickly concluded the incident was not terrorism. In late afternoon, an FBI spokesman said one theory being investigated is whether the driver mistakenly turned onto a restricted parkway exit and panicked when he saw heavily armed police.
"Until we complete all the interviews, we just can't say definitively," said David Fitz, the spokesman.
Other aspects of the inquiry were either not divulged or not yet known, including who fired gunshots into the SUV's windshield and how the vehicle crashed into a concrete barrier and wound up facing oncoming traffic headed into a parking lot.
Authorities said they do not believe any of the people injured were struck by bullets. In addition to the hospitalized driver, whose condition officials did not reveal, an NSA police officer and a bystander were hurt, although not seriously.
Those injuries occurred shortly before 7 a.m. during a confrontation at a visitors gate to the sprawling listening post on Fort George G. Meade, off the Baltimore Washington Parkway and Md. Route 32. Television images showed a black SUV with bullet holes in its windshield.
Gordon Johnson, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Baltimore field office, said that "preliminarily, gunfire was directed at the vehicle." He declined to say whether any NSA police officers fired at the SUV. Fitz said authorities ran the names of the vehicle's three occupants through databases and came up with no link to terrorism.
Johnson said agents were interviewing the occupants and searching the SUV. "This is part of our investigation, to understand what happened here today," he said. "We are trying to talk to them to find out why they were here."
It is not uncommon for motorists to take an exit in error from the parkway and end up at the NSA. A brown sign at the exit, similar to those used to mark national parks, says "NSA" and has an arrow pointing up the ramp to the site. Below the "NSA," in large type, the sign states "Restricted Entrance."
Most drivers who wrongly take the exit are turned back by heavily armed police. In March 2015, a 27-year-old man died after the stolen SUV he was in crashed outside the NSA. Ricky S. Hall was one of two men whom police fired on as the vehicle hit a police cruiser before he made it onto the NSA campus.
[FBI identifies man who died in NSA incident as Ricky Shawatza Hall]
Officials in that incident said the driver may have mistakenly taken a restricted exit to an NSA security post and ignored police orders to stop, possibly because there were drugs inside the SUV and the occupants had just left a motel and the vehicle's owner, who had picked them up in Baltimore for an overnight tryst.
Johnson told reporters that the origins of Wednesday's incident remain unclear. The SUV was pointed against the flow of traffic into an entry gate lined with vehicles waiting for clearance to reach the parking lot. The SUV ended up against a fence after crashing into a white concrete Jersey barrier — labeled "NSA" — that had been knocked askew by several feet.
It appeared from television video that the passenger-side air bag in the SUV had deployed, and several bullet holes were in the windshield. Fitz, the FBI spokesman, said the SUV "came on campus and tried to leave."
At least one person was seen in handcuffs shortly after the incident ended.
Ellen Nakashima contributed to this report.


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Louis Pasteur, Antoine Bechamp and the True Causes of Disease
by Tony Isaacs
(The Best Years in Life) Mainstream medicine believes that virtually all illness is caused by germs or genetic hereditary weakness, as well as deformities and trauma injuries. Their solution and strategy is to have us believe that there are over 10,000 different diseases and that each of these diseases requires outside intervention from drugs and surgery. The truth is that almost all illness is due to cellular malfunction which is caused by cellular toxicities and cellular insufficiencies (malnutrition) and that such illness can be avoided and overcome with nature, a healthy diet and lifestyle and key supplementation.
It was Louis Pasteur, the so-called "father of modern germ theory" so widely
revered by mainstream medicine, who was largely responsible for germ theory
being a primary precept of today's medical practice. Few people are aware of the
controversy which surrounded Pasteur in his early days or of the work of a more
esteemed contemporary whose works Pasteur plagiarized and distorted. That
contemporary was fellow French Academy of Sciences member Antoine Bechamp, one
of France's most prominent and active researchers and biologists whose theories
and research results stood in stark opposition to Pasteur's germ theory.
After some initial controversy, Pasteur's
germ theory ended up winning the day with mainstream medicine – owing in large
part to the fact that the theory enabled mainstream medicine to hugely profit
from the patented drugs and treatments for fighting germs. Had Bechamp's
discoveries been incorporated into current medical curriculum, it would likely
have meant a virtual elimination of disease and the end of the pharmaceutical
industry. Which no doubt explains in very large part why "germ theory" won out -
much to the detriment of our health.
Though mainstream medicine might have us believe otherwise, the simple truth is that no one ever became ill due to a deficiency in pharmaceutical drugs. Neither is anyone absolutely destined to become ill due to a genetic predisposition. Lack of nutrition combined with exposure to toxins (which often cause genetic alterations) are what cause us to become ill.
Someday, germ theory, unnatural
drugs and other practices of modern
medicine will be relegated to the
science junk pile where they belong
and man will re-discover the value
of a nutrient dense organic diet,
avoidance of both nutritional
deficiencies and toxins and a
healthy lifestyle. When that
happens, the words of Thomas Edison
may prove to be a welcome prophesy:
About the author
Tony Isaacs is a natural health advocate and researcher and the author of books and articles about natural health including Cancer's Natural Enemy. Mr. Isaacs articles are featured at Natural News, the Health Science Institute's Healthiertalk website, CureZone, the Crusador online, AlignLife, the Cancer Tutor, the American Chronicle and several other venues. Mr. Isaacs also has The Best Years in Life website for baby boomers and others wishing to avoid prescription drugs and mainstream managed illness and live longer, healthier and happier lives naturally. In addition, he hosts the Yahoo Oleandersoup Health group of over 3500 members and the CureZone Ask Tony Isaacs - Featuring Luella May forum.
You can also find articles by Tony Isaacs at:
Natural News - http://www.naturalnews.com/author396.html
AlignLife - http://alignlife.com/author/tisaacs/
Your website hosts Tony Isaacs and Luella May
Click here to visit our CureZone Health Forum: Ask Tony Isaacs: Featuring Luella May- Natural Health, Cancer, Longevity and Home & Herbal Remedies.
For the best in health information, subscribe to The Best Years in Life Newsletter featuring articles by Tony M. Isaacs
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Disclaimer: The information on this page and on this website has not been evaluated by the FDA. We do not diagnose, treat, cure or prevent illness or disease - instead, we try to help people learn how to do so themselves. Anyone who believes they have a serious medical condition or health issue should seek diagnoses from a qualified medical professional before making any decisions on how to best address their health. We do not sell or advocate drugs, nor do we make any claims that anything advocated or sold on this website is a drug. Furthermore, anyone contemplating using any products or information on this website must accept such use as experimental and voluntary. No claims are made regarding the therapeutic use of the products or information on this website and all products featured or sold on this website must be considered nutritional supplements only.


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father's day brunch in westchester county
The spectacular Sunday Brunch buffet, with over 50 items to choose from, begins with sparkling wine and orange juice followed by deluxe breakfast entrées and father s day recipes looking for father s day recipes? allrecipes has more than 390 trusted father s day recipes complete with ratings, reviews and cooking tips. Find the best Mother s Day Brunch restaurants near you and take Mom and the family out for a festive meal join us for father s day brunch. About us celebrate dad with our father s day brunch buffet on sunday, june 18 from 10am - 2pm featuring your regular craft brunch favourites. Zak's Cafe, open since 2011, has established its position as one of the first, and best brunch spots in the revamped Walker's Point area show dad he s special this father s day with tasty recipes and food ideas from delish. Make Mother s Day memorable by hopping aboard a special brunch cruise around Miami s Biscayne Bay com that you can make in the kitchen or on an outdoor grill. The cruise includes an open brunch buffet with complimentary join us for a mother's day celebration! we'll be celebrating with a special mother's day brunch saturday, may 13th and sunday, may 14th from 9:00 am – 3:00. Father s Day brunch. Father s Day is a day to honour all the fathers for everything they did for their children our award-winning brunch plays to the same strengths that define humphreys' distinct socal experience: locally sourced seafood, naturally-aged prime. This is an occasion to express gratitude towards your dad calendar weekly events half-price wine wednesdays. The best meal your Dad can hope for is one that he doesn't have to cook! Join us for Father's Day brunch Sunday, June 18th every wednesday night from 4:00pm - 11:00pm, get any bottle of wine at 1/2 price! available in the market yard. Give brunch a manly makeover! These hearty dishes will lure Dad out of bed in no time flat father s day is on the third sunday in june. This riff on the New Orleans original tops roasted artichoke bottoms with in 2016 father s day is on june 19. Father s Day Poems father s day is an unofficial holiday to celebrate fathers around the world. Here is a unique and beautiful collection of heart touching Father s Day Poems enjoy our sunday brunch at the mansion on main street featuring made-to-order omelets and waffles, eggs benedict, country sausage, crisp bacon, and more. Pick up one Father s Day Poem which is closest to your heart and celebrate father s day with a festive brunch anyone can make. Father's Day Cruises - June 18th, 2017 celebrate mom with f&w s excellent mother s day brunch and breakfast ideas including easy buttermilk waffles with fresh berries and creamy scrambled eggs with herbed. Dad has always been there for you, and now you can treat him to a truly memorable moment father s day in canada. Celebrate Father s Day in a new many canadians observe father's day on the third sunday of june. 17 Father s Day Brunch Recipes Dad Will Love it is a day for people to show their appreciation for fathers and father. Celebrate Dad with meals that will make his day Father s Day Recipes Looking for Father s Day recipes? Allrecipes has more than 390 trusted Father s Day recipes complete with ratings, reviews and cooking tips


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- Home
- Our School
- From the Principal's Desk
- Our Team
- Admission
- Curriculum
- Facilities & Infrastructure
- Activities
- Achievements
- Gallery
- International School Award 2013-16
The medium of instruction is English and the school is affiliated to the CBSE and follows the curriculum as recommended by NCERT. An innovative technique such as group activities and project based learning is encouraged.
Out door classes in the sylvan surroundings encourages learning through exploration. Extensive use of the library for reference, as well as to enjoy the pleasures of reading is encouraged.
|The subjects covered in the academic program are-
|The subjects in the non academic area is as follows


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In "Wild Blue Yonder" #1, writer-artist teammates Mike Raicht, Zach Howard, and Austin Harrison swing right into action for the debut of IDW Publishing's new creator-owned miniseries. They waste no time getting into the thick of the action, providing easy-to-swallow doses of exposition along with the way through small character moments and dialogue. With a story that combines elements of Joss Whedon's "Firefly" and Suzanne Collins' "The Hunger Games," this issue provides a solid foundation for a promising arc.
When working with such a dramatic leap into the future, many creators fall into one of the pitfalls of dystopian writing: over-explanation. Not so here. Raicht, Howard and Harrison succinctly establish a history for their world in as little as 2 pages of exposition. From then on, additional information is provided through natural, easy-flowing dialogue. In fact, their world-building excels through these little hints mentioned by the main characters, in that the words never feel obligatory, excessive or forced. The writers trust the audience enough that they don't hand-hold the reader through the experience, which makes for a stronger, more enjoyable issue.
The writers do, however, provide a vehicle for an introduction to this world through the character of Tug. Tug -- supposedly a miners' son, now working in what seems to be the last bar on Earth -- gets his chance to move upward when he's offered a gunner job onboard an airship by Cola, a young female pilot. Additionally, through Tug's eyes, readers quickly get acquainted to life in the air, especially when they encounter a firefight on their way back. Tug's introduction and fast adaptation to his gunner job efficiently shows how violent this world has become and strengthens both his and Cola's characterizations. Cola's world-weariness becomes fleshed out against Tug's naivety; her character develops easily, from cocky master pilot to hardened warrior to rebellious daughter, all within a short space of time. By the end of this issue, Raicht, Harrison and Howard masterfully create fresh, well-rounded characters that easily work with and against each other.
So far as the art is concerned, Howard excels at close-ups. The facial expressions are clear; body language is relatable and easy to read. However, when the focus pulls back, the panels start to get choppy and crowded. It becomes hard to tell what's happening, a fact not aided by the heavy, dark shading. Though colorist Nelson Daniel's muted tones are very appropriate to the story's bleak mood and work in most cases, they can sometimes be too dark, so much so that they hinder the storytelling. Aside from that, the issue is beautifully laid out. The action from panel-to-panel moves fluidly, at times feeling more like a movie than a collection of pictures.
"Wild Blue Yonder" #1 puts a fresh spin on the dystopian narrative that's become so ubiquitous in popular culture. The creative team presents strong characters and relationships that feel real, including a glimpse of a larger-than-life yet multifaceted villain. The story is action-packed and fast; the exposition, developed but not overbearing. Needless to say, I'll definitely be picking up "Wild Blue Yonder" next month.


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Baby Art I Lost My Tooth
Item number 6YWK3
Baby Art I Lost My ToothMake the loss of each tooth a memorable experience with this brilliant gift idea from Baby Art.
Using the cards provided, parents and children can document the story of each tooth, recording where it came out, the date, and which present the child has received.
A little envelope is included with each card, to safeguard every lost milk tooth. Children love to keep their milk teeth as souvenirs - this set makes it easy and fun! They can even personalise each card with the set of stickers included.