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Recent news
Opera Upgrade for Symbian
Opera 5.14 for Symbian OS released
London, UK and Oslo, Norway - Apr. 23, 2002
Today, at the Symbian Developer Expo in London, Opera Software ASA released Opera 5.14 for Symbian OS. The release includes minor fixes to the Web browser edition that was chosen as the default browser for Symbian Ltd.'s reference designs in May of 2001.
Since then, Nokia has also chosen to include an adapted version of the Opera for Symbian OS on its Nokia 9210i Communicator, released at CeBIT this year.
"The Opera browser complements the flexibility of the Symbian OS with its extreme speed, small size and many user-friendly features," says Lars Boilesen, VP of Embedded Products, Opera Software ASA. "It's great to see the rapid development pace of the browser, ensuring the continually best Internet experience on any Symbian OS device for our partners."
Opera 5.14 for Symbian OS is superfast, only a 3 MB download and extremely secure. Users can enjoy popular Opera features such as the ability to toggle images off and on for faster page loading, or navigate entirely with simple keyboard shortcuts. This updated version includes improved JavaScript support and bugfixes in the cookie confirmation dialog box.
"As the latest rave reviews for Opera on the Nokia 9210i Communicator and on the Sharp Zaurus show, Opera has become the leading embedded browser developer," says Lars Boilesen, VP of Embedded Products, Opera Software ASA. "With this release, our many loyal Opera for Psion users can upgrade their Internet experience as well."
Opera 5.14 for Symbian OS can be downloaded at www.opera.com. Users who have registered and paid for Opera 5.x for Symbian OS, are entitled to a free upgrade to Opera 5.14 for Symbian OS.
The Opera 5.14 for Symbian OS can be downloaded to the following machines: Psion Series 5mx, Psion Revo, Psion netBook, Oregon Osaris. Please note that it is not possible to download Opera 5.14 for Symbian OS onto the Nokia 9210 Communicator.
Visit Opera Software at booth B3 during the Symbian Developer Expo from April 23-24.
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About Opera Software
Opera Software ASA is an industry leader in the development of Web browsers for the desktop and embedded markets, partnering with companies such as IBM, AMD, Symbian, Canal+ Technologies, Ericsson, Sharp and Lineo. The Opera browser has received international recognition from endusers and the industry press for being faster, smaller and more standards-compliant than other browsers. Opera is available on Windows, Mac, Linux/Solaris, Symbian OS, and QNX. Opera Software ASA is a privately held company headquartered in Oslo, Norway. Learn more about Opera at www.opera.com.
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Since its founding in 1996, Opera has been a pioneer in shaping the future of the internet. Providing faster and more innovative web browsers, Opera is the everyday browser of choice for more than 320 million people.
Opera Software AS is a privately held company and is headquartered in Oslo, Norway. Follow our news at http://blogs.opera.com/news/.
Opera is a trademark of Opera Software AS.

subset: commoncrawl


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You've just received a document entitled "Order/Notice to Withhold Income for Child Support," or some similar title, related to one of your employees. Now what?
First, do not ignore this document! A Texas employer who knowingly fails to withhold court-ordered child support may be subject to a $200 fine for each pay period during which it failed to withhold income and remit child support to the appropriate agency. You are required to begin deducting for child support during the first pay period following your receipt of this Order/Notice.
Under Section 158.206 of the Texas Family Code, you are NOT LIABLE to your employee if you comply with the Order/Notice. In fact, you could be liable to your employee for the amounts you failed to withhold if you do not comply with the order. So put this document on the top of your "to do" list.
Next, read the Order/Notice carefully. In Texas, almost every child support payment must be made through the Office of the Attorney General of Texas, Child Support Division's State Disbursement Unit ("SDU"). You may, on occasion, be ordered to remit payment to another government agency. It is extremely unlikely that you will be ordered to make child support payments directly to an individual or his/her attorney. Follow the directions concerning the amount to be withheld, the place to remit payment, and the information to be provided. If you employ more than 50 persons, you may be required to remit payment by electronic funds transfer.
Next, check your payroll records. In Texas, you cannot withhold more than 50% of your employee's "disposable earnings" – which means the part that remains after mandatory deductions for social security, medicare, federal income taxes, union dues, nondiscretionary retirement contributions, and medical/hospitalization/disability insurance coverage for the employee and the employee's children. If the Order/Notice is close to or exceeds that amount, seek guidance from your friendly neighborhood employment law attorney or another Human Resources professional.
As an employer, you can also deduct a $10 per month processing fee, in addition to the amount to be withheld as child support.
Withholding orders for child support have priority over any other garnishments, attachments, writs of execution or other judgments affecting the employee's disposable earnings. If you have received multiple orders related to an employee's wages, seek guidance.
Special rules also apply for withholding from an employee's workers' compensation benefits, severance pay, and any lump-sum payments (such as bonuses or payment in lieu of accrued leave). In these situations, you should also seek further guidance.
By: Cynthia W. Veidt, firstname.lastname@example.com


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Wed, Sep. 06, 2017 Posted: 07:40 PM
Labor Day's celebration of American workers is well-deserved because hard work defines us.
The little church near the restaurant was ideal—she could attend the early service and go right to work afterwards. She noticed a man standing up in the back pew.
He stood the whole service.
As church ended and she was making her way out the door she realized the man who'd been standing was her boss, Pat Sullivan, owner of the restaurant where she waited tables.
She asked him why he stood throughout the service.
"I hire people who have to stand on their feet all day long in order to make my business prosper.
So whenever I go to church, I stand to remind myself how it feels.
I hope it keeps me from being too bossy and makes me remember not to push my help too hard when they are tired. Most of all, it makes me grateful for the labor and loyalty of my employees, who have made my restaurant a success."
I've been opening my eyes wider to all the people who stand as they work—beginning with my husband at his stand-up desk. He sells apples that are carefully packed by workers standing for forty hours a week.
This week I dropped off supplies to our school and saw teachers standing in front of classrooms and bending over desks helping students. I bought groceries from a friendly clerk—who was almost through her long day on her feet. I watched a postal carrier walk up and down a neighborhood delivering mail.
Even though I don't have to stand to work, I'm going to take some time each day to stand for all my fellow American workers who do.
Pat Sullivan's Labor Day thoughts were shared in Guideposts.
Karen Farris


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International Journal of Photoenergy
Volume 2012, Article ID 536194, 8 pages
Preparation and Characterization of Sensitized Nanoporous with Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity under Visible-Light Irradiation
1School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
2State key labs of Crystal Materials, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China
Received 18 December 2011; Accepted 31 January 2012
Academic Editor: Xuxu Wang
Copyright © 2012 Juzheng Zhang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
A yellow/brown powder of sensitized nanoporous TiO2 was obtained via an hydrolysis with TiCl4 and iodine hydrosol as raw material. I2 nanoparticles in the hydrosol were used as seeds to initiate the nucleation of a precursory TiO2 shell. The hybridized jumbles were further calcinated at different temperatures. The structure, crystallinity, morphology, and other physical-chemical properties of the samples are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms measurements, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The formation mechanism of these sensitized nanoporous TiO2 is discussed. Methylene blue solutions were used as model wastewater to evaluate the visible light photocatalytic activity of the samples. The results indicate that iodine can exist even in high-temperature calcination for iodine being encapsulated in the nanocavities inside TiO2. The degradation of methylene blue (MB) accorded with the first-order reaction model.
1. Introduction
Semiconductor-catalyzed photooxidation using solar light as an energy source is one of the most efficient processes for a rapid and low-cost degradation of organic pollutants. The excellent chemical stability, nontoxicity, and photoactivity of TiO2 has attracted much attention for its potential use as a solid photocatalyst for environmental purification [1–3]. However, because of its large bandgap of 3.20 eV, only a small UV fraction of solar light, about 2-3%, can be utilized to generate electron-hole pairs. Hence, it is crucial to enhance the light harvesting of TiO2 in the visible region which accounts for more than 43% of the total solar energy [4, 5].
In general, two methods are utilized to enhance the light harvest of TiO2 in the visible region. One method is to sensitize TiO2 with color centers that have proper energy levels for photoelectron transfer between the color centers and TiO2. A cost-effective sensitization of TiO2 is typically achieved by adding nonmetals such as I2 [6–8] and S [9, 10]. The other way is to form a doping level through intercalation of proper atoms into anatase form. For example, by doping carbon [11, 12] and nitrogen [13–15] atoms into the TiO2 lattice, a new, weak absorption is generated at lower energies and promising approach for inducing effective Vis-absorption.
In addition to the narrow bandgap, the enhancement of surface area of the TiO2 is another important aspect for the efficiency of the materials because the desired photocatalytic reactions occur at the interfaces of the catalyst-pollute solution [16, 17]. Mesoporous TiO2 with high specific surface area can provide abundant active sites to adsorb reactant molecules and facilitate the accessibility of reactants to the catalysts [18, 19]. Light efficiency can also be enhanced due to the increased specific surface area and multiple scattering [20].
As a photosensitizer, element iodine not only has the absorption ability in the visible light region but also has low toxicity and can be dissolved in many solvent. Therefore, the elemental iodine can be used as a photosensitizer and prepared visible light photocatalytic materials. Titanium(IV) alkoxides have been frequently studied as titanium precursors, but their high cost and the need to handle organic solvents are important drawbacks. Inorganic precursors are preferable, and TiO2 powders have been often prepared by hydrolysis of TiCl4, generally in aqueous acidic solutions [21] and in pure water [22, 23].
Based on the above state-of-the-art designing strategies for TiO2-based photocatalysts, this paper reports the synthesis of high surface area sensitized nanoporous TiO2. The I2 sensitized is confined preferentially in the surface/near surface region of TiO2 structure in order to accommodate hot carriers in the surface region. The I2 nanoparticles in the I2-hydrosol serve as seeds for nucleation of small TiO2 particles formed from the hydrolysis of the TiCl4. This template-free soft synthetic strategy allows the doping and pore formation to be accomplished simultaneously during calcination, while the amount and position of doping elements can be readily controlled under mild conditions.
2. Experimental
2.1. Materials and Sample Preparation
All chemicals used in this study were reagent grade (Tianjin Ruijinte Chemical Reagent Corp.) without further purification. Water used was deionized and doubly distilled. The sensitized porous TiO2 samples were synthesized via the hydrolysis of TiCl4 in iodine hydrosol without using any templates or surfactants, followed by calcination at elevated temperatures.
A typical procedure for preparing the samples is described as follows. First, 0.80 g iodine powders were dissolved in 40 mL absolute ethanol and slowly added drop-wisely into 100 mL of distilled water at 60°C with continuous stirring. The I2 hydrosol was formed after stirring for 0.5 h and then cooled to room temperature. 8 mL TiCl4 was carefully added into 40 mL-deionized water with gentle stirring in ice-water bath to avoid a drastic hydrolysis of TiCl4 in water (designated solution A). Solution A was then added dropwise with vigorous stirring into 100 mL of I2 hydrosol at room temperature, then the mixture solution was heated to 40°C and keet for 2 h under closed conditions. After that, a 20% (w/w) solution of ammonia was added dropwise with vigorous stirring until pH = 7, then the mixed solution was cooled down to room temperature and aged further to precipitate growth. Finally, the precipitates were centrifuged, washed with distilled water three times, and dried in an oven at 50°C. The precipitates obtained were calcined at different temperatures in air for 3 h. The samples after heat treatment were denoted as IT-T, where the second T indicates the calcination temperatures (in °C). In addition, commercial P25 (~80% anatase and ~20% rutile, Deguass) was used as a reference.
2.2. Characterization
The phases of the final products were identified using X-ray diffractometer (XRD) (Rigaku D/max-2500VPC) with a Ni-filtered Cu Kα radiation at a scanning rate of 0.02° s−1 from 20° to 70°. The morphology of the samples was observed with transmission electron microscope (TEM, Hitachi model H800) using an accelerating voltage of 100 kV. Ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) diffuse reflection spectra (DRS) were recorded in the range 200–800 nm at room temperature (Shimadzu UV-2550 UV-vis spectrophotometer). Porous structure and BET surface area were characterized by an N2 adsorption-desorption isotherm (ASAP-2020 Micromeritics Co.). Note that the samples were degassed at 180°C prior to the BET measurements. The pore volume and pore diameter distribution were derived from desorption branches of the isotherms by the Barrett-Joyner-Halenda (BJH) model. The BET surface area was calculated from the linear part of the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) plot.
2.3. Adsorption and Photocatalytic Activity Measurements
The adsorption capability and visible light photocatalytic activity of the sensitized porous TiO2 were evaluated by measuring the adsorption and decomposition rate of methylene blue (MB) solution at room temperature. For comparison, the same measurements were also performed on the commercial P25. For a typical absorption and photocatalytic experiment, a total of a 200 mg sample was added to 150 mL MB aqueous solution (5.0 × 10−4 mol/L) in a custom-made quartz reactor. The MB concentration was monitored by the UV-vis spectroscopy during the entire experiment. The solution was irradiated by visible light supplied by a 300 W tungsten-arc lamp (Zhejiang Electric Co. Ltd.) with a glass filter (transparent for nm). After 5 minute intervals during adsorption and visible light illumination, about 3 mL aliquots were taken out and centrifuged to remove the trace particles. The absorbance of the centrifuged solution was measured in the range 500–800 nm using a UV-vis spectrophotometer (Shimadzu UV-2550).
3. Results and Discussions
3.1. Sample Structure
The porous nanostructures were prepared via the hydrolysis of TiCl4 in I2 hydrosol, followed by calcinated in air at elevated temperatures for 3 h. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) is used to investigate the changes of structure and crystallite sizes of the prepared porous samples at different calcination temperatures. Figure 1 shows the XRD patterns of the samples after being calcinated at various temperatures from 200°C to 600°C. The XRD pattern for the sample obtained at 200°C indicated the sample predominantly amorphous titania besides trace amounts of anatase. The diffraction peaks at 2θ = 31.6°, 33.5° and 36.0° should be the iodine (JCPDS no. 71-1370). As the calcination temperatures increase, the XRD results show the pure anatase TiO2 phase (JCPDS file no. 21-172), indicating that the crystallization of the samples is achieved. In addition, as the calcination temperature increases, the peaks assigned to anatase become sharper and more intense due to the formation of larger grains as summarized in Table 1. The average crystallite sizes of sensitized nanoporous TiO2 are 4.1, 7.2, 9.8, and 13.2 nm for IT-300, IT-400, IT-500, and IT-600, respectively, which are estimated from the full width at half maximum of the diffraction peak using the Scherrer equation.
Figure 2 shows the TEM images of IT-T samples before and after being calcinated at different temperatures. The average particle size of the precursor is estimated to be 21 nm, as presented in Figure 2(a). No porous structure was observed at this point. The wormhole-like irregular mesopores for sensitized porous TiO2 can be observed in Figures 2(c)–2(f). The sample obtained at 200°C shows the noncrystalline nature of amorphous (Figure 2(b)), but there were porous structure. The amorphous structure is consistent with the XRD result, and the porous structure is caused by the I2 and H2O gas escape at heat treatment process. It is the subsequent heat treatment that creates the mesoporous structures. The apparent common feature of the four samples after heat treatment at 300°C, 400°C, 500°C and 600°C is that they all consist of pseudospherical TiO2 particles. Furthermore, each individual sphere is composed of a large number of much smaller and loosely packed TiO2 nanoparticles (about 4~10 nanometers in diameter). As a result, the interstitial voids among these primary nanoparticles constitute a short-range disordered nanoporous structure. We also notice that the size of the primary nanoparticles grows with the increasing calcination temperature.
Pore size and specific surface area of the as-prepared samples were characterized by nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherm measurements. Figure 3 shows the results obtained from N2 adsorption-desorption isotherm studies and analyzed by BET method for surface area and BJH pore size distribution. The surface area and porosity have been measured for all of the IT-T samples, and the results are given in Table 1. Calcination treatment showed a significant influence on the isotherm behavior of the samples. The VI-type isotherms for sample IT-200 and IV like Isotherm for samples IT-300, IT-400, IT-500, and IT-600 shown in Figure 3(a) demonstrate typical characteristics of mesoporous structure in the materials [24]. From the isotherms, it can be seen that the monolayer adsorption is complete when the relative pressure reaches 0.7 for sample IT-600. However, the monolayer adsorption for other samples is not complete until reaching a relative pressure of 0.8 for sample IT-300 and 0.78 for IT-400. This indicates that sample IT-600 possesses much smaller pore size than other samples. Although mesopores contribution could be observed in Figure 3(b) for IT-600, overall pore volume measured is 0.148 cm3g−1, indicating that the contribution from mesoporous is small. Less mesoporosity in IT-600 may be attributed to the large size of the particles. This result agrees with the XRD and TEM results.
Table 1 summarizes the BET-specific surface area and the apparent average pore size of our samples. The pore volume and specific surface area decrease with increasing calcination temperature. However, the samples still maintain relatively high specific surface area and pore size even for sample IT-600, which is calcined at 600°C. Consequently, this may enhance catalytic activity, as demonstrated later in the measurement of photocatalytic activity on degradation of methylene blue.
3.2. Possible Formation Mechanism of Sensitized Nanoporous TiO2
Different from the conventional doping method, in which the iodine (or its precursors) is added to the matrix of TiO2, we adopt a counter strategy to add precursors of TiO2 into the matrix of I2 nanoparticles formed in the I2 hydrosol. A possible multistep mechanism, illustrated in Figure 4, is proposed to interpret the formation of the sensitized nanoporous TiO2. When TiCl4 solution was added to I2 hydrosol, the heat of the exothermic reaction explosively generated the formation of orthotitanic acid (Ti(OH)4) to become a titania precursory layer on the I2 nanoparticles [23]. These primary TiO2 precursors formed as a shell on the surface of I2 particles. In other words, the I2 particles appear as nucleation sites for TiO2 spheres via the hydrolysis of TiCl4. At room temperature, the hydrolysis of TiCl4 is relatively slow. When the starting solution was heated in an isothermal water bath of 40°C for 2 h and add ammonia solution, it became supersaturated and precipitated. After drying the precursor turn into -H2TiO3. The subsequent calcinated of the precipitated at elevated temperatures leading to a series of reactions among I2 and TiO2 precursors with the presence of O2. We believe that the -sensitized nanoporous TiO2 is a product of the following synergetic processes, including (1) the I2 sublimes and the thermal decomposition H2TiO3 resulting gaseous products pulverize the TiO2 shell, leading to the formation of the primary pores. (2) Part of the I2 attaches to surface of the TiO2 primary particles. The further oxidation of I2 is more or less prevented by the shell of primary TiO2 nanoparticles [7]. (3) The amorphous TiO2 crystallizes into anatase TiO2.
3.3. UV-Vis Diffuse Reflectance Spectra
Figure 5 collects the UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectra of the as-synthesized samples, the P25, as well as the I2 hydrosol. In comparison to the pure TiO2, the spectra of sensitized nanoporous TiO2 samples exhibit a strong broad absorption band between 400 and 750 nm, covering nearly the entire visible range. This band is centered around 500 nm, which is the spectral range where iodine absorbs [7]. Apparently, the absorbance between 400 and 700 nm decreases for sample prepared at higher temperatures. This can be ascribed to the additional loss of I2 by sublimation at higher temperatures. But the sample which is obtained at 600°C still has a strong absorption in the visible region. Nonetheless, the absorption in the visible-light region implies that the prepared sensitized nanoporous TiO2 samples can be activated by visible light, and that more photogenerated electrons and holes can be created and they can participate in the photocatalytic oxidation reactions. We believe that, with the increase of the temperature during heat treatment, the concentration of iodine molecules on the surface of the IT samples decreased due to sublimation of I2 at high temperature, which is also confirmed by the color change of the samples during the heat treatment. The color of the samples changed from puce, to brown, slight brown and fawn, and finally to light gray when the temperature increased from 200 to 600°C.
3.4. Photocatalytic Activity on the Decomposition of Methylene Blue
Methylene blue (MB) is a brightly colored blue cationic thiazine dye and is often used as a test model pollutant in semiconductor photocatalysis. A blank experiment was also carried out. The pure MB solution cannot decompose without catalyst. Figure 6(a) shows the adsorption and photodegradation ability on MB solutions of our IT-T samples in comparison to P25. Prior to the turn-on of the light, the concentrations of MB in the presence of the IT-T samples deplete much faster than P25. This is especially seen for IT-200 sample; nearly 70% of the dye molecules were adsorbed within 30 min. We ascribe this effect to the much larger surface area of the IT-T samples than that of P25 as characterized and discussed above. For IT-T samples, their adsorption capacity increases with the decrease of the calcination temperatures. This can be credited to the reduced surface area.
Furthermore, Figure 6(a) shows, under visible light illumination, the MB solutions containing the IT-T samples underwent significant degradation and became nearly transparent within 50 min. In contrast, the MB solutions containing P25 show very limited degradation. It should be noted that IT-400 sample showed the highest photocatalytic oxidation on methylene blue. This is because the crystalline of IT-400 is well and has fewer defects, so the recombination of electron and hole is very low. In addition, the sample still has larger surface area, so IT-400 has good absorption capacity.
The photocatalytic activity of the powders can be quantitatively evaluated by comparing the apparent reaction rate constants. It is well known that photocatalytic oxidation of organic pollutants in aqueous suspension follows the Langmuir-Hinshelwood model [25], and it can be described as follows [26]: where is the concentration of MB aqueous at reaction time , is the initial MB concentration, is apparent rate constant, and is reaction time. The variations in as a function of irradiation time are given in Figure 6(b). Since all the curves can be fitted roughly to a straight line, the photocatalytic degradation reaction can be assumed to follow first-order kinetics [27]. The rate constant for the photodegradation of the MB using IT-400 is 21 times higher than that of P25. All together, we can conclude that IT-T samples exhibited a strong photocatalytic activity for decomposition of MB under visible light irradiation.
The cyclic stability test under the same conditions of IT-400 sample was also examined and shows excellent photocatalytic activity in degrading MB solution, as shown in Figure 7. No significant decrease in its photocatalytic oxidation activity is observed after being used 6 times, which makes it very promising for practical application.
3.5. Proposed Mechanism for the Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity
The enhanced photocatalytic oxidation activity in IT-T samples is a product of several factors. (1) The sensitized of introduces continuous states residing in between the VB and CB of TiO2 [28]. As schematically elucidated in Figure 8, we believe these I-induced continuous states can either accept visible light-excited electrons from the VB of TiO2 and/or provide visible-light excited electrons from these I2-induced states to the CB of TiO2. (2) Due to the nature of our preparing method, the sensitized I2 must be preferentially located in the surface region of the TiO2 nanoparticles. Consequently, the I-induced defective states are preferentially concentrated in the surface region instead of the bulk of the TiO2, which facilitate the trap of hot carrier in the surface region where the desired photodegradation reactions occur [6, 29]. (3) Because the photo-degradation occurs at the surface of TiO2, the organic pollute molecules must be preconcentrated at the TiO2 surface in order to react with the trap hot carriers and the reactive radicals. Thus, the high surface areas of the nanoporous TiO2 enhance the adsorption of methylene blue molecules onto the surface of TiO2 particles. This is evidenced by the pronounced more and faster deletion of methylene blue molecules in solution under darkness (Figure 6(a)) in comparison to P25 sample. In addition, large surface area can accommodate more surface-adsorbed water and hydroxyl groups that act as photoexcited hole traps and produce hydroxyl radicals for the degradation of organic pollute molecules [30].
4. Conclusions
In summary, a unique template-free synthetic strategy is used to prepare sensitized nanoporous TiO2 through a hydrolysis-calcination process. I2 hydrosol is used as nucleation center and sensitizer, while the TiCl4 was used as the precursor for TiO2. The calcination temperature has a crucial role in the amount of sensitized nanoporous TiO2. The calcination enhanced the phase transformation of the TiO2 powders form amorphous to anatase phases and crystallization of anatase. The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared samples was higher than that of P25 for the degradation of MB. The sample calcined at 400°C shows the highest photocatalytic activity in the decomposition of methylene blue under visible light due to the enhanced absorption in visible region and the large specific surface area.
S. Gao and B. Huang thank the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program, no. 2007CB613302), Doctoral Foundation of Shandong Province (2007BS04040), and Project of Shandong Province Higher Educational Science and Technology Program (J10LF02).
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Hi all, we are taking the kids to the Bronx Zoo tomorrow and are planning to go over to arthur ave afterward and had a few questions. some of the posts here on the topic are a little old so I wanted to see if any new people or even old veterans would chime in on some topics.
I was doing some research and saw that the covered market might be a good place to start after coming out of the zoo as there are 12 pretty good vendors in there. Any comments?
How far is the zoo from the actual arthur avenue?
Is parking going to be a problem is I come out of the zoo around 3 and try to find parking?
I have lived in brooklyn as a child and now in NJ and have not been to arthur ave, in my adult life I am going to have about 2-3 hours before things start closing down, what are the must hits? We are planning to bring a cooler and put food into the car to keep safe until we go home.
I was thinking it would be a good idea to try to not drive home from there at 5 on a friday night so we were thinking of eating dinner there. So where would you go if you had to have one meal there and are not coming back for a long while. I am italian and a very good cook in my own rite so basic red sauce and ckn parm is not what I am looking for. But that's good for the kids.
Thanks in advance


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29 Oct 2015
Oscilloscopes: from elite equipment to consumer device
Reimer Grootjans of LabNation looks at the way in which some oscilloscopes are becoming consumer devices and within the reach of the maker community.
It's hard to recall a hi-tech product which is as mandatory in a multitude of technical areas as an oscilloscope.
While they used to be reserved for highly trained personnel, recently they've been finding their way to a much broader audience.
But at the same time, it's hard to recall a hi-tech product which has evolved so little over the past half century. This article zooms in on the remarkable adventure the oscilloscope has undertaken starting from hi-tech device to becoming a consumer device.
Maker space is booming
Where computer enthusiasts typically were confined to local gatherings, things have evolved dramatically over the past years. The advent of high volume and very low-cost computers like Arduino and Raspberry Pi has significantly lowered the barrier for anyone interested in joining the DIY community in their aspirations to become a maker.
Whether you've created LED decoration for your Christmas tree or a new full-blown 3D printer, it has never been easier to show off your projects on different forums and invite people to work on your code through GitHub. On various crowdfunding platforms, a sprawl of extension boards to the Arduino and Raspberry Pi are being presented, allowing for a limitless number of ideas being converted into prototypes.
Figure 1: Low-cost development boards lower the barrier between software and electronics
While these makers typically have a background in software, what they're essentially doing is bridging the gap towards electronics. With all tools needed to develop and debug software being entirely free, the tools to debug electronic circuits come at a much higher cost, even though they are equally essential.
This allows for perfectly verified software driving the electronics, but you'll need a tool to figure out why a LED is not behaving according to your code, or why a sensor is not responding to the presumed calls from your Arduino. A simple multimeter to measure a fixed voltage can already shed some light into the darkness. But for most cases, you will want to see how this voltage evolves over time, and for this you need an oscilloscope.
A large portion of the maker community might even be unaware of their need for an oscilloscope. As one of my fellow makerspace frequenters put it: "you need a scope to debug your circuit the same way you need a breakpoint to debug your code". And he couldn't be more correct: where a breakpoint allows you to stop the time and check all parameter values in your program, a scope allows to stop the time and check the behaviour of your voltages during a certain timespan. Having multiple channels, a scope can help you in finding not only what is going wrong, but also what is causing your signals to do so.
Smaller makes cheaper
Typically there are 2 obstacles standing between a maker and an oscilloscope. One of them is cost. While it is true that the word oscilloscope itself sounds expensive, oscilloscope manufacturers have made an effort the past 5 years to design products geared specifically towards this emerging market of makers in need of an oscilloscope. In the end, they managed to present devices perfectly capable of debugging any maker project, at a cost of around $200.
This was achieved by keeping only the electronics and assembling them inside a USB box. Using the display of a PC and its input devices, there was no more need to put these bulky parts on the oscilloscope itself. This resulted in a much smaller, and consequently, cheaper device.
Frightening interface
The other barrier is the interface typical to an oscilloscope. The multitude of knobs and buttons can be discouraging to people not yet familiar with electronic measurement devices. As can be seen in Figure 2, the interface which originates from the 60s has almost not evolved at all over the past half century and is becoming a real barrier towards mass adoption.
Figure 2: The interface of an oscilloscope has not evolved in a half century
Even more so, some manufacturers of modern USB scopes use dated man machine interfaces on the PC. This requires the user to rotate knobs by mouse and select grid settings through drop-down menus - this can decrease the user experience compared to the traditional interface.
Figure 3: Various interfaces of PC-based oscilloscopes
Some new devices are breaking with this traditional interface, e.g. by using touch functionality present on many modern laptops and tablets. This enables the user to make the required control settings in a much more intuitive way. While this interface might require some getting used to for experienced engineers, its intuitive approach makes it more appealing to the maker community and the new tablet-raised generation of engineers.
Scoping on the go
But the realm of oscilloscopes is expanding even further. The completed transition from analogue to digital scopes has resulted in the introduction of many portable oscilloscopes, either USB-based as described earlier or stand-alone handhelds (see Figure 4). This allows circuits and devices to be analyzed and repaired far outside the reach of a lab, ideal for field technicians and service engineers.
Figure 4: Tablet-based oscilloscopes now entering the mobile market
With their software running on tablets and smartphones, any engineer carrying a smart device can connect to their oscilloscope on the spot, leveraging the processing performance and high-resolution displays of their smartphone or tablet.
Things to watch out for
In case you find yourself wondering whether an oscilloscope is the right thing for you, make sure you run through the list below. It describes the main specifications of an oscilloscope, and gives an indication of how much you'll need of everything.
Input: make sure the voltages you intend to look at are within the min and max boundaries specified. Keep in mind that a min of -20V and max of 20V don't imply you can visualize a 40V signal, so if you want to visualize signals of a large amplitude make you sure look for the peak-to-peak specification. Also, make sure the scope supports AC coupling, which is needed in case you want to look at small spikes on top of larger signals. The impedance should be at least 1MOhm with low capacitance (<20pF), as otherwise you will change the signal you're looking at by putting the probe tip on the signal!
Sample rate: defines how many times per second the voltage is converted into a value, so how many datapoints your graph will consist of. As a rule of thumb, make sure your samplerate is at least 10x faster than the signal you want to look at. So if you want to look at a 10MHz wave, you need at least 100MS per second.
Bandwidth: This defines how close the signal on the display is compared to the real signal. In the theoretic case where your signal would transition infinitely fast from 0V to 5V, the trace on your scope will still show some rise time which can take many samples. As a rule of thumb, make sure the bandwidth of the scope is at least 3x the frequency of the signal you want to measure, 5x is preferred.
Triggering capabilities: triggering allows you to position an event/transition of a signal on a fixed position on your display. Make sure your scope allows setting this trigger position freely in both directions. If only the date after the trigger can be displayed you will never know what happened before the trigger, which is typically the most interesting part. Be wary of 48MHz USB oscilloscopes, as this indicates the data is simply captured and sent straight over the USB bus, indicating no buffering possibilities for the trigger are present.
Logic analyzer: Some oscilloscopes also combine a digital/logical analyzer, which can be a great tool for any maker as this offers the ability to visualize the behavior of various digital signals simultaneously. Keep in mind these analyzers can only tell you whether the signal is high or low, not voltages.
On-board memory: Some oscilloscopes offer built-in RAM, which can be great as it allows you to freeze an event on the display, and afterwards zoom in into very fine detail to figure out exactly what happened when.
This new breed of oscilloscopes has a huge amount to offer and will appeal to the maker community and many others. Reduced cost while maintaining the functionality needed for many of the more basic measurements enables these scopes to carve out a new niche in the marketplace that many will take up.
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About the author
Riemer earned a M.Sc. Eng in Electronical Engineering at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel in 2005. After going for a PhD on real-time 3D cameras, he co-founded a company designing 3D cameras now distributed by several major California-based companies. As such, he had the rare opportunity to lead a hardware patent from prototype to mass-production, while at the same time experiencing a start-up grow to 100+ employees. Throughout 2013 he designed and validated the first prototypes of the SmartScope, which KickStarted LabNation in February 2014 by 1459 backers, with more than 2000 devices produced and shipped out before the end of the same year. Riemer currently acts as CTO for LabNation and as consultant for a start-up designing smart glasses, where he shares his knowledge on how to transform a concept into a product on the shelf. Next to hardware, Riemer has a passion for writing C# and graphical applications. He authored 3 books on XNA with positive reviews. He received the Microsoft MVP award in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.
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This predictable Northwest melodrama was one of the first made by William Randolph Hearst's film company, Cosmopolitan, for the Goldwyn studios. It was adapted from a story that appeared in Hearst's International Magazine and much of it was shot on-location in the Columbia Valley and around Quebec City. Lionel Barrymore, who had appeared in a prior Hearst film, Enemies of Women, stars for the producer again as pilot Conrad Dean, who is given the task of flying Miriam Helston (Seena Owen) up to the gold country to find her brother, Dick (Walter Miller). Dick, who is reopening his father's rich mines, has been kidnapped by a gang of outlaws headed by the vicious Laird (Louis Wolheim). Dean's plane is forced to land in the middle of nowhere and when he goes for help he becomes lost in a blizzard. Miriam goes looking for him and becomes snowblind (the original title of the picture was actually "Snowblind"). In this condition, she is found by Laird, who forces her to agree to marry him. While they are out searching for a priest, Dean goes looking for them in his airplane. He shows up in time to save Miriam from what is surely a fate worse than death. Dean and Miriam return to New York, where they are happily united.
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I've been trying hard to become more electronic in my daily interactions and transactions, but at the end of the day I still seem to have loads of paper in my pockets and wallet. I've tried to set up some experiments to analyze what I actually collect on a daily basis, but I found it too annoying. I usually end up throwing out, or filing, the scraps long before I do any analysis.
As a small business owner, I must now dutifully collect and manage most paper receipts for my taxes. I know from experience that if I don't make something easy for myself, the chances of it getting done are pretty slim, especially if the task is tedious. Over the last 4 years I've refined my process for dealing with paper (and electronic) receipts. My system is not fancy, but it's fast and easy, increasing the chances of me actually doing it.
After years of keeping a pen in my mailbox to instantly label mail "return to sender", I decided to replicate this practice (rule 3 below). Here are 3 quick and easy rules I created.
- I dedicate places to collect and store paper receipts when I'm on the go. Typically I designate the inside pocket of whatever jacket or purse I have with me, or a special spot in my wallet. I have multiple spots so I always have an option regardless of what I'm wearing or doing. This is especially useful when I'm traveling.
- I dedicate places in my home to store the paper receipts. Again, I have multiple spots to ensure I always have a quick access spot to dump my collected receipts. I have one bowl near the front door, a common spot to unload my wallet. I have another box in my office, which is the "official" holding spot for the receipts until they get entered as expenses.
- I prepare the dedicated places with the tools I need (e.g. pen, stapler, labels, envelopes, post-it notes, etc.). For example, I like to staple the original receipt to the credit card slip. Then I use a pen to write the amount and a short description directly onto the receipt, in case the receipt ink fades. Each box contains a stapler and a pen because this makes it easy for me to prepare receipts instantly.
This process saves me hours of time in searching each year.


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Posts Tagged 'Product Owner'
(Français) Jeu des rôles et des responsabilités de Scrum
Posted by Chris Deniaud on January 15th, 2017 at 3:44 am
English version here : Scrum Roles and Responsibilities Game. Choose "Français" in language's list...
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"Hitting the Target" — Business Value in Mission-Focused Organizations
Posted by David Kane on January 29th, 2016 at 11:01 am
How should organizations prioritize work in the face of conflicting goals and metrics? Help more people? Minimize delays? Prosecute more crimes? Lower costs? In this game participants will experience a dice-based simulation that has been created to explore these questio...
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Weekend Escape an agile backlog management game
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Andrew Rusling
on May 26th, 2015 at 2:58 am
Timing: 20 minutes to prepare plus 30 minutes for Standard version, or 75 to 90 minutes for Extended Version Overview: Small teams collaborate to order a backlog with a specific business goal in mind. Once the team has produced their backlog, they review the output of...
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Scrumble – an Agile board game
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Romain Trocherie
on February 9th, 2015 at 12:13 pm
Agility is completely new to you? Skeptical about applying Scrum for your project? Feel like challenging your team? Get ready to Scrumble! Developing Agile strengths and values through a fun simulation of Scrum Scrumble allows to highlight many issues that team members ...
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Product Owner Challenge
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Michael Tarnowski
on January 30th, 2015 at 7:03 am
Product Owner Challenge is a game with Lego kits. It illustrates the agile mindset vs. a waterfall-driven product development culture: stop micro-management and communicate face-to-face clear objectives, requirements, and product vision....
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The Product Owner Role
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UruIT - Agile Adoption Team
on May 28th, 2014 at 7:42 am
This game is perfect to express the duties of a Product Owner, not only for those that are running that role, but also for any other that works with scrum (Developers, Stakeholders, Managers, etc.). The idea is to focus on what the PO must do for the success of the proj...
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Scrum Roles and Responsibilities Game
Posted by
Andrew Rusling
on January 12th, 2014 at 7:02 am
Timing: 15 minutes to run, 30 minutes to prepare (once only). Materials: 32 Index Cards of one colour (I choose blue). 7 Index Cards of another colour (I choose pink). A permanent marker pen (i.e. sharpie). Two flip chart pieces of paper (A0 size) or large piece...
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Mind Reading
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Elinor Slomba
on September 8th, 2013 at 12:03 pm
This game is for exploring team members' responsibility to ask questions to find out the criteria for success, and to understand the importance of close collaboration with the customer/Product Owner to the success of a project. ...
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Top Traits
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Geoff Watts
on October 23rd, 2012 at 3:55 am
This exercise was co-created as part of a collaboration day between myself and Paul Goddard Timing: 30-60 minutes Materials: Top Trait templates Photographs of stakeholders Instructions: Explain that this is an exercise to help provide some context around the users of t...
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How much of God do you want? You can have as much as you want...
Look at my hands. They're small; short chubby fingers. The works...nothing special. Yet God has called them healing hands...and that is what I've been seeking from God lately. In prayer. And fasting. The gift of healing, He promised so long ago. A gift He offered on the cross with His blood!
Sunday, while at the conference, someone encouraged me to go pray for one of my young friend's mother, who has been having problems. (She has had so many surgeries and operations over the past few years, and was struggling with some problems that weekend it was a miracle she even came to the service Sunday!) I don't know why I didn't even argue the point in my point, I just went over to the mother and prayed for her. Don't really remember what I said, anymore; it's probably irrelevant anyway. All I know is that is she was healed! Praise God! And then this past Monday I got a phone call, and apparently she had a doctor appointment later last week. And--of course--the doctor confirmed that she was healed!
So, again, look at my hands...it's not about them. They are just hands. My hands...What I found where God's hands. Big, strong, powerful hands! Hands that can move mountains!
We can have as much of God as we want...
So how much are you seeking for Him in your life? Did you find it yet?
Whatever you do, don't quit!
Wednesday, April 30
Healing hands...
How much of God do you want? You can have as much as you want...
Related Topics: Conference, God Works, Healing, Testimony
Thursday, April 24
A Little note from Haney-Pack
Where packing means carrying Christ to the Nations
- Please pray for God's guidance and continuous direction, as we travel and minister both in the
US and abroad
- The provisions necessary to continue this work,
- And for the orphans in Benin, whom we are trying to raise support for!
<>< Hannah Joy
Related Topics: Africa, Benin Orphanage, Davismission, Friendship, Healing, Newsletter, Philippines, Preaching, Revival, Testimony, Women's Conference
Monday, April 14
Have you ever just stopped and listened? Focused on the past, but the good and not the bad? Just stopped, or even kept going, but thought of God as you did?
I'm excited. In about two days I'll be on the road for six hours with nothing but music, God, and a friend who enjoys both as much as I do. Then we'll meet two other friends and hang out with them almost two days, just us four (yes, it'll be another reunion of the Friends of Four, or FoF--see TEAM: Africa 2008). And I know God will show up in amazing ways! Even when it is just the fun of hanging out with close friends, it is still God-ordained! In laughter and fun--clean, Christian fun, that is--with friends, God is still glorified and always shows up. After all, He's not just a judge, He's our savior and I'm certain He takes joy in our joy just as much as in our sacrifice. Think on this: if when we give a coat to a person in need of a coat we give God a coat, then in pure fun, laughter, and hanging out with friends, whose to say you are not also doing the same with God? Especially if He is everywhere? And He should be in you, and in your Christian friends. So are we laughing with our friends, or are we Christ in the flesh, and truly just laughing with Him?
Can you tell I'm excited to hang out with my friends?! I see them as a blessing. Each one different, unique in their own way. Each one stretches and strengthens me in different ways, and I pray I do the same with them...
May God be ordained in our friendships, daily! And may this conference coming up this weekend, which the FoF will attend, also be a blessing...To everyone in attendance, and hanging out afterward! ...Thanks You, God, for Your many blessings and gifts!
Related Topics: Friends of Four, Friendship, Fun, God Works
Tuesday, April 8
Interesting Fact...
I just had to mention this, since I just learned it and it's so unusual!
Lets say you just went to the grocery store and came back with several fruits and vegetables in your arms. Among your purchases, you bought a cluster of banana fruits from a banana tree...or did you?
Did you know that a banana is actually a berry?
AND did you know that it grows on an herb not a tree?
AND that a cluster of bananas is actually called fingers?
SO, you just bought fingers of banana berry grown on a banana herb!
How's that for different?!
Monday, April 7
Amazing Grace: My Story, Healing
NOTE: Read Amazing Grace: INFO before reading this post!
As my profile says, I was in a wheelchair for about three years...
It all started when I was eleven years old. We had just moved back to our old hometown, three hours away north, and into an apartment on the second floor of an old building. Then shortly after we moved in the Arthritis decided to flare-up, as the doctor's call it (it means your joints get fat with fluid, and mad sore at every movement. So, basically, your body does the same thing it does with allergies: it over-reacts. In this case your own joints and the surrounding muscles are attacked, for little to no apparent reason!)
My hips got the brunt of it. But so did several other joints; and if a joint on the right side was under attack, the left one was too, and vise-versa. The middle finger on both hands, both wrists, both big toes, both ankles, and both knees where all hit together and hard, hurt most of the time, and most where eventually permanently damaged (i.e. partially or completely subluxed); meanwhile almost all my other joints where effected at various times in minor ways, and also permanently effected though not as obviously damaged.
It was not easy. I have had this problem since I was diagnosed with it at eighteen months old; I've developed a high tolerance of pain…but that only applied to the joints, not the heart; I felt rejected and left out. In such a short time, we had moved. I had left my friend's, we were stuck in the second floor of an building which only had stairs leading to it, and I had no way to get out and relate with new people or "hang out" with my sister, and best friend, anymore. We had not been there very long, before I needed help to get around, and by the time I was twelve—only a few months after we moved—I needed a wheelchair!
We moved into a house, shortly after that. It was a ranch house, and my dad quickly put in the short ramps necessary for me to get in and out of the back door. I still struggled with not feeling as though I fit in, but in part, it was probably my shyness and how content I seemed to just sit and watch…At any rate, shortly after the move, I felt the call from God to be a missionary; especially the call to Mexico. Also, I had always wanted to attend the Bible College my parent's worked at; most of the buildings were not handicap accessible, and some where considered historical and thereby unable to easily or cheaply be made handicap accessible.
I may have never stopped believing that God would heal me. Nor did I stop praying for it. And fighting for it. And getting frustrated that it had not happened yet. Constantly I wondered what else I could do, what system I could follow (forgiveness? More faith? What?) that would finally bring my healing to pass! I mean, what was left? What had I not tried?
I still remember the one night we had a youth meeting. I do not remember if it was a Friday or Saturday night, and if it was just a "hang out" event or if it was supposed to be a Bible study, but I do remember being there. At least in person, though mostly not in spirit or thought…I was sitting there, but in my head and heart I was hashing it out with God. All my arguments, all my frustration. And especially, the why's—why had I not been healed yet? I was rather certain I had tried everything I knew to try: I had been prayed for several times, I continued to believe, I searched my heart for all kinds of junk like unforgiveness or anything. I had been scolded for not having enough Faith (yet I kept telling my doctor I would not have hip surgery because I knew God would heal me; though there were times I doubted even my own words, I could not back down now or what testimony would that be of God?). I had heard all kinds of sermons on diseases. Looked at several books by the third year I was in the wheelchair (a mixed blessing and curse of working in the library!). Yet, still, nothing!
So I gave up. Literally! Told God that. That was it. No more! Didn't know what else to do; what else was there?!
Then Sunday, January 7, 2001, came. Teen Church was a struggle; I constantly fought over wanting to be healed, sensing God wanted it, and yet I wanted to stop focusing on it and just relax in God's presence, focus on Him and praise Him during the service. By the end of the service, I believe I did finally focus on God. Then I forgot all about the struggle…for a couple hours. Then I was alone in my bedroom, after lunch sometime, and feeling frustrated again. Such a short time left to the day, almost Youth Group time back at church, and yet I had really thought God wanted to heal me that day. Yet still nothing! Well, I carried that frustration to our Youth Meeting. And there, eventually, I gave it all up, once again...
Yet, God did not give up!
See, in the end, it is always all about God. His Glory! He will not compete with our methods. Nor be defined or put in a box. What might have worked for one person—one who wrote a book on how you too can be healed—might not work for the next. Why? Because God is not about methods! He's a jealous God; it is all about Him!
Yeah, in the end, a friend named Grace felt the Lord led her to pray for me. The youth all gathered around and our pastor prayed. Afterward, our pastor asked me to stand up just to try; there is nothing wrong with trying, after all, for the worse case would be that nothing had happened. As it turned out, though all during the prayer time, my right hip and my left knee had been serious pain, when I stood it was all instantly gone! And to the pastor's surprise I let go of his helping hands, and walked on my own…I have been walking ever since!
And it was all God!
Praise God! In the end, there was absolutely nothing I did that made it happen! Praise God that He still performs miracles, and chooses to be glorified using us!
Related Topics: Amazing Grace, God Works, Healing, Testimony
Amazing Grace: INFO
The posts labeled Amazing Grace: (I will be adding more posts under this title as more stories become available to share) are written to emphasize God, and how in the end it is He and He alone that does the work...
However, it is important that before we continue with the stories that we recognize the importance of our involvement. Though the emphasis is on God, and God alone—not us—doing it all, I want to mention that I am in no way saying we have no part nor that we should not be involved! In the end, it is all God! But, He uses us too. We should always be ready to pray for a friend in need, to push through for deliverance, to go and do the great commission, and live as the person God wants you to be!
God used my friend Grace, at the appointed time, to rise up in faith, step out of her comfort zone, and ask to pray for me. God used no power that we know of for the deliverance of my friend's friend, Kati, but who is to say that someone had not been praying and interceding on her behalf for years, though that person may not have even known Kati's struggle or, perhaps, they did not even know Kati at all! God has delivered many people from various different situations, and who is to say that once again someone else was not also interceding on their behalf? I know that my prayer and perseverance probably played a small part too, in the posts, past and present, that involved me...
But in the end, no matter what books you read, how much you pray, where you go, what you do or don't do, what systems or lists you follow—even ones that someone else wrote that worked for them—in the end, it is all about God! Thank God He is in control, and not us!
May you be blessed by the testimonies of God's Amazing Grace, and may you, too, know the fulfillment of Him in your life too. No matter what your struggle, God is in control, and He WILL deliver you!
Christ's love to y'all,
Related Topics: Amazing Grace, God Works, Information, Testimony
Friday, April 4
April Fools: The Prank
So here I am back at the house in Olean. Just the Hoffman's here off and on, they're here to make sure my cousin has a ride to and from school during the week and gets off to Grandma's during the weekends and holidays; meanwhile, Fred & Debby and Tim are still in Africa...
Or so it was on the day when pranks are usually pulled: APRIL 1st. Of course, the whole idea of April Fools was forgotten in Africa and those of us at the house had a brief thought of it, but never any time nor draw to see it through. So it was forgotten--for me that was nothing new since I've never pulled a prank in my life! (I've left blessings and scared people with a brief message that always ended in "April Fools" before I could really fool or scare them!)
I'm too nice. Always thought of pulling a prank, but why would you want to do something even as mild as a short-sheeted bed when you weight the possibilities?! What if they were really tired, looking forward to crawling into bed, and then...! Oi! I would hate it and would not appreciate it then! So why do something that could backfire and not be enjoyable to the person you're pulling the prank on? Even a really mild prank? Why take the risk you'll hurt them?
BUT, for the first time, I've felt comfortable enough with a group of people to not fear their wrath. Or anger. And to realize I'm not doing anything harmful or hurtful, but mild and funny...definitely no worse then what they've done to me! (picture me being held down while they put underwear on my head! Or when they dressed me as a baby! Or as a little country bumpkin!)...Besides, they don't embarrass easy (probably why they enjoy picking on me; their favorite thing is to see what facial expression they might see me do for the first time!)
So, I unofficially moved--and warned everyone--that April Fools back a couple days later for those in the Davis Household. AND I took a chance; a chance with the potential of backfiring!
Fred & Deb and Tim came back from Africa yesterday afternoon. Emily and Michelle had come up the night before, so it was like an Africa Team reunion (minus Tina, so sad!). And, like usual, us younguns (Michelle, Emily, Tim, & I) stayed up late talking into the wee hours of this morning then finally crawled into our beds. I felt bad, and waited for the reaction from the next room over, where Tim slept. But I never heard anything!
Well, I was thankful Tim did not seem to have a problem at all, because we had all been exhausted when we finally crawled into bed this morning. But later, after we had slept several hours and actually started to get up this morning and Tim popped in to say "good morning" to us, we got to talking and asked him if he had a hard time sleeping or something.
Well apparently it had never occurred to him that the bed had something wrong with it on purpose! And when we suggested it, he did not think at first that I had been the one to short-sheet it...He'd had a hard time getting into bed; could not get his legs in and thought it was odd, but then he gave up and simply stuck his feet out from under the covers and wrapped them around the top. And fell asleep peacefully after that!
So, while the prank did not backfire in bumming out either of us, since he was so tired and I would have felt bad, it did backfire in that he never even thought of that! He wasn't even sure what was a short-sheeted bed! But at least I pulled my first prank! Even if I did have to point it out to get noticed, and then show him and Emily what a short-sheet bed is!
That was our April Fools...postponed till the 4th!
And my first prank!
Related Topics: April Fools, Friendship, Fun


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CORE Credit Union is dedicated to supporting Bryan, Bulloch, Candler, Effingham, Emanuel, Evans, Jenkins and Screven counties. As part of these commitments, CORE supports charitable organizations that enhance the lives of our members and the communities which they live and work.
To request a donation or sponsorship from CORE Credit Union, please review the eligibility guidelines below:
All requests must be submitted in writing, accompanied by a CORE Credit Union Contribution, Gift and Donation Request Form found HERE. Request forms and supporting documentation may also be emailed or mailed to:
CORE Credit Union
Attention: Donation Request
Po Box 1987
Statesboro, GA 30459
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
A minimum of 30 day notice is required for consideration. All requests will be evaluated on an individual basis by the donations committee. CORE Credit Union reserves the right to deny any and all requests by any and all parties regardless of whether they meet or do not meet the criteria noted herein. CORE also reserves the right to provide in-kind contributions in lieu of cash requests for organizations that meet the criteria as set forth in this policy.
Consideration will be given to the financial need of each request, based on the following:
*A completed W-9 form for the organization will be required for any approved Donation & Sponsorship before funds are dispersed.
Donations must benefit non-profit organizations with a tax exemption under Section 501c(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and not classified as a private foundation and/or receive the majority of their support through outside funding. Requesting entities must conduct activities in a community, or within an adjacent community, in which CORE has a place of business.
CORE may NOT consider contributions to the following:
Organizations are limited to one donation or sponsorship per calendar year.


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Through my child's eyes
>> Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Over the past five weeks, Peanut and I have been reading through the book of Mark for our time in the Bible. She is a very sensitive child, and we have to be careful what we allow her to watch as far as television and movies. For example, when we watch Little House on the Prairie, she always sits next to me because if there is a disturbing scene (someone is injured or sick) she will bury her face into my neck. She can't bear to see anyone in pain.
Because of this, I have wondered how she would handle the chapter about Christ's crucifixion. I know she's heard the story before, as we've read about this in some of her Bible story books. But to my knowledge, this is the first time she's heard this story straight out of the Bible.
Today we were scheduled to read Mark 14:43-72. Peanut was sitting in my lap and while I was reading about the soldiers beating and mocking Jesus, she wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her face into me. I stopped reading for a bit so we could discuss what was happening, and how she felt. She said she didn't want to read anymore, so I asked her if she knew how the story ended. Peanut nodded her head yes, and said Jesus would come back to life. I asked if she wanted me to keep reading, so we could read the happy part of the story. Peanut thought for a bit, then agreed to have me continue reading. Mark 15 was very difficult for Peanut. I paused off and on to be sure she was ok. We talked about why Jesus died on the cross. Then I read chapter 16. It was such a relief to her to read about Jesus coming back to life, and that He was ok!
It was very touching this morning to read from the Bible with my girl. To be able to experience the anguish and joy through her eyes... I think this morning she is the one who taught me about reading God's Word... seeing it through my daughter's eyes was an eye opening experience for me. And it reminded me of what a great sacrifice Jesus made, so that I might have eternal life with Him.


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Press Release
The FBI's Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory (RCFL) initiative was chosen as one of the "Top 50" programs in the 2005 Innovations in American Government Awards competition ... Over 1,000 government organizations submitted applications to the annual competition-now in its 18th year - Read the press release.
[Posted on Wed, March 16 2005]FBI Program Named in "Top 50" of The 2005 Innovations in American Government Awards Competition
Source: FBI Web Site
March 16, 2005
WASHINGTON, D.C.- The FBI's Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory (RCFL) initiative was chosen as one of the "Top 50" programs in the 2005 Innovations in American Government Awards competition. Over 1,000 government organizations submitted applications to the annual competition-now in its 18th year.
According to Harvard University, the 50 semi-finalists "represent the best and brightest in government." Four criteria were used to evaluate each application: novelty, effectiveness in addressing important problems, significance, and the potential for replication by other government entities.
The RCFL Program is a national network of one-stop, full-service digital evidence laboratories. The FBI provides start-up and operational funding, training, personnel and equipment, while local area law enforcement agencies assign personnel to work as Examiners. During Fiscal Year 2004, the program supplied full service digital forensics support to over 1,000 law enforcement agencies in nearly a half dozen states; accepted 1,548 requests for service; conducted 1,304 forensics examinations, and trained 2,040 law enforcement personnel in various digital forensics techniques. Currently, there are seven RCFLs in operation, with another six laboratories opening in 2005.
FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III said, "It is an honor to have the FBI recognized in this prestigious competition. We are grateful for the opportunity to showcase the importance of strengthening law enforcement's digital forensics capacity. By combining partnerships and technology, the RCFL Program is blazing a bold, new path for all of law enforcement."
Most recently, RCFL personnel have collaborated with an array of law enforcement officials from all levels of government to provide digital forensics support for several major, high-profile investigations, including the murder of a 23-year old pregnant woman in Wichita, Kansas, the murders of U.S. District Judge Joan Lefkow's mother and husband in Chicago, and; the "BTK" serial murder case.
The award is a program of the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, and is administered in partnership with the Council for Excellence in Government.
Out of the 50 semi-finalists, eighteen will be named finalists in mid-April. To learn more about the RCFL Program, visit www.rcfl.gov.
[Original Article on the FBI site ]


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Women And Retirement
Women and the importance of planning for retirement.
Women tend to face more problems than men when it comes to preparing for retirement.
On average, women in the workforce tend to earn less, have lower job security and live longer than men. Making it vital for women to start planning for their retirement early in life.
By now it has probably been drilled into your mind how important it is to save. Well, retirement is no different especially for women. As mentioned before women tend to live longer than men, which means women need to plan more effectively for retirement.
Start saving as soon as possible. Start off small and save more as your paycheck grows. For example, if you were to start saving $100 per month starting at age 25 with an interest rate at 6% by the time you turn 65 you will have saved around $200,000. As you can see savings can really add up!
One good idea would be to make your deposits automatic. Setting up an automatic deposit from your paycheck is one less step you would need to worry about when saving for retirement. A second idea, may be to work as long as you are able to. Having a longer career will allow you to save more money for retirement, and gain more Social Security benefits.
Saving and having a budget go hand-in-hand, both are essential when planning for retirement. Creating a monthly budget will help you see where your money is going and where you may need to cut back on spending.
A retirement calculator is one beneficial tool to help you figure out how much you will need when it comes time for you to retire. Also, the Credit Union's Financial Advisors are always there for you whenever you have questions about your retirement plans.
Get out and stay out of Debt
Debt is a heavy weight to bear when it comes to retirement. Debt is one factor that may be setting women back from retiring comfortably. Try and pay off high interest rate credit cards and personal loans that are weighing you down.
Make a strong effort to stay out of debt, you want to be able to protect your retirement savings, and not borrow against it. After all, you worked hard to earn that money so you should try your best to keep it there.
Sometimes things don't always work out and that's fine, you are not alone in this situation. If you did not have a retirement fund before or during your marriage, now would be a great time to start one or continuing to contribute to your retirement plan. One option maybe to see if your employer offers a 401(k) or talk to your Financial Advisor about opening an Individual Retirement Account (IRA).
It is possible to receive benefits from your ex-spouse's retirement plan. However, certain rules apply and you may want to consult with your attorney and or Financial Advisor.
Death of a Spouse
Knowing your spouse's retirement plan is important if your spouse passes away before you. In most 401(k) plans the benefits of your deceased spouse will automatically be given to you. Generally, the majority of 401(k) plans are written so certain protections are applied for surviving spouses.
Saving for retirement is important no matter who you are. Women face unique issues when it comes to planning for retirement. It never hurts to stay on top of your finances and plan for the future!


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The abortion mill steadily cranks out messages that it needs to continue unabated. If not, they say, women will be using coat hangers or bleed to death in muck filled back alleys.
Well, eight women around the world have died after taking the abortion drug RU-486. That might not seem like much but it would do well to remember that this is a "safe alternative" to abortion. RU-486 has caused life-threatening complications to more than 800 women. These are only the ones reported. How many were not?
Hon. Christopher H. Smith OF New Jersey cosponsor of Holly's Law, authored by Representative Roscoe Bartlett (H.R. 1079) had this to say in the Congressional Record on Thursday, July 21, 2005
- Quote - Not only is RU-486 baby pesticide, killing unborn children up to 7 weeks, it is poison to the women themselves. Licensed by the Population Council, manufactured in the PRC, and widely disbursed by Planned Parenthood, at least five women have died in the U.S. after taking this dangerous drug. As a result of these women's deaths and serious concerns that many more women have died as well -- under-reporting is a serious problem -- new drug labeling will warn women that serious danger of sepsis and blood infection can occur.
- endquote -
The official government pages on H.R. 1079 said this as of today (11 Feb 06)
H.R. 1079 - Latest Major Action: 3/14/2005 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
And a related bill S.511 Latest Major Action: 3/3/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
But Fox News has this article: Rep. Bartlett Wins Support to Ban Abortion Pill dated Thursday, 2 Feb 2006
- Quote - WASHINGTON - Not only is the abortion pill RU-486 killing babies, Maryland Rep. Roscoe Bartlett said Wednesday, it's now known to kill their mothers and should be banned immediately.
Bartlett held a news conference Wednesday to boost passage of his legislation, commonly known as "Holly's Law," which calls for the Food and Drug Administration's suspension of RU-486. -
The bill has 79 other co-sponsors, including Rep. Jean Schmidt, R-Ohio.
"Too many girls have been lured into the masquerade that this is a quick-and-easy fix," she said. "Let's give it a vote."
Named after Holly Patterson, an 18-year-old California woman who died in 2003 after taking the drug, the bill is before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. No hearings have been scheduled.
...Using these figures, the article, by Michael Greene of Harvard Medical School, puts the risk of death at less than one per 100,000.
Four of the deaths associated with RU-486 were caused by septic shock, an overwhelming bacterial infection that can decrease blood pressure and flow, according to the FDA. The other was attributed to an ectopic pregnancy, where the embryo is attached outside the uterus.
"The bacteria has also been found in pregnant women and women who have had medical abortions," said Jennifer Morcone, spokeswoman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "There are a lot of scientific questions."
- endquotes -
Australia is currently considering the legalization of RU-486. The Advertiser of News.com.au on 7 Feb 06 says this:
- Quote - Abortion vote still close - THE MP conscience vote on lifting restrictions on the abortion pill RU-486 remained too close to call as debate escalated yesterday.
Former defense minister Robert Hill, a Liberal moderate, is expected to vote to lift the restrictions on the drug this week as one of his final acts in Parliament. When Senator Hill announced his resignation from Parliament last month, he said he would return to the Senate for a few weeks so he could have a say on "social issues".
Yesterday he would only say he was awaiting the report of the Senate inquiry into RU-486, which wrapped up in Sydney yesterday. - endquote -
Prying1 sez: This drug should be removed from the market at once and made to go through the full FDA Clinical Trials which were bypassed in its initial approval. During this period of time they can also check to see if there is any veracity to the claim that it works for breast cancer, uterine cancers and ovarian cancers.
RU-486 was approved for political purposes, and as a result numerous safety concerns were suppressed, trivialized and overlooked.
Many commercials on TV for drugs give the contraindications near the end with lines like, might cause nosebleed, stomach ulcers, headache, cramp, diarrhea and vomiting. How many of these commercials include "death" in the list.
Perhaps if they did for RU-486 Holly Patterson- - would be alive today. If other drugs did include "death" in the list how long would they stay on the market?


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In cooperation with Gibb herself, Poletti and Yee tell the story of the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, questioning authority with her feet.
The Boston Marathon had been taking place for 70 years when Bobbi Gibb, a white woman, steps illegally to the starting line in 1966, a hoodie covering her hair. Her road there is strewn with the land mines of bias, everything from "So unladylike" to the official comments on the rejection to her application: "Women cannot run marathons. It's against the rules." Poletti and Yee neatly evoke the joy some find in running, simply running. Gibb "ran with her pack, going higher and higher, / the world whooshing by, like the wind in the fire." Such couplets are found every few pages, the last four words the refrain. Readers gain a sense of the experience through Chapman's artwork, the light-footed energy of the watercolors slipping outside the pen's fine line, a veil of wind trailing behind Gibb. Halfway through the race her ruse is up. She is boiling in her hoodie and confides to a fellow marathoner, a black man, that she is afraid of ejection. "We won't let anyone throw you out; it's a free road."
Well-told and illustrated, Gibb's story speaks to not only women's fight for equality, but the power of community. (biographical note, timeline) (Picture book. 4-8)


text: First apologies if this is in wrong place - a few peeps in Hero forum suggested we start it in here. Twitter names - reply with your twitter names so all us androidforum users can follow each other. Mines: Nighthaunt looking forward to following you guys (especially the sites Guru's )


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I slept better last night and I have woken on a slightly warmer and pleasant spring morning.
I have been thinking about how I miss my dad.
I always miss my dad, just some days more than others. Today this feeling was brought into focus by a post that I read on facebook. Other people miss their parents. And I feel for them. If you read this and you miss your parents please accept a ruddy great big virtual hug from me.
And this got me to thinking about family and events past. I have spent some time thinking about my maternal grandparents, who were a bit potty but at the same time wonderful fun. I remember going on the train to the seaside with my little bro, my mum and my gran. Buckets and spades! I remember going to stay on a static caravan park with my gran and brother. Freedom to run everywhere and play games on the grass! I remember staying down near the Dymchurch railway and going on the small trains. I still love those train, took my own son their when he was small with my parents. These are all happy care-free childhood memories, where it's sunny a lot and grown-ups are huge and sometimes strange things. But you are safe with them.
But as I grew older I started to struggle with depression. When you think about it, this is an inevitable progression for an abuse survivor, especially an survivor that had blocked all memories of the abuse. I had no idea why I felt the pain that I felt. All I know is that it got worse each time it hit me.
I've said it before but having lost a dear and still much missed friend to suicide, I made a promise to my family and friends that I would not do that after the depression episode that hit when I was 20 years old. And I have, and I intend to continue keeping that promise. So when the next depression hit at the beginning of the 90's I had more things in place to keep me safe. For sure one thing I do is learn. Being honest during those dark days keeping living was the hardest thing to do. The desire for that pain to stop was immense and I so wanted to run away from it all. I have a memory that I keep coming back to of a day when my mum rang me and asked me to go and visit my grandparents who lived very close to where I was living as my great uncle was visiting and staying with them. I said I would try and try I did. I succeeded and later that day my mum rang to see how I was. During those days I frequently did not answer the phone when people rang – that's one of the things I do – it's self isolating behaviour – it's both a good and a bad thing. Anyway I answered the phone and spoke to her and in the course of the conversation I said that my gran had cried when I was there and I was perplexed by this. My mum said it was because my gran had not realised just how ill I had become. I think about this nowadays and realise how hard my parents worked to look after me during those times. That they had no idea why I was like that, why their beautiful, bright daughter would just disappear into a vacuum of darkness. Now I really feel for them. It must be so bewildering. I know it still is for my mum. And I feel for her.
But I am lucky to have people who care about and who totally believe in me and this has always provided me with the strength and determination to battle on and so battle on I did and eventually I came out of it.
I've said it before but I am going to say it again, what is happening with me now is simply a manifestation of the same problem. And I am feeling a lot better now but I am psychologically aware enough to know that if I just leave this it will happen again, and the next time It may well be even worse. So I went out of my way to fight my corner and obtain funding for the treatment that I require. To deal with this monster once and for all.
And so then I got to thinking about mean girls.
Mean girls. We all know them. Big sigh. For many they are just a sad fact of life, little more than a pesky gnat. But for me, they are a trigger. I have had counselling in the past to try to deal with this issue and it was identified that this is partly because there is a sense that people try to take things away from me and that they do this because they think that I get things easily. Well they are incorrect because I don't get things easily, so I am immediately guarded about such perceived thinking and behaviour. I am guarded about a lot of things, its a survival technique. And for all my perceived openness, I tell you all as much as I want you to know and I keep the rest to myself.
But this morning I have made the connection as to why I find mean girls such a problem.
They share a personality trait that is present in paedophiles. And that is that they are extraordinarily manipulative.
They will frequently engage in furtive underhand passive-aggressive behaviour. Sometimes that behaviour is more visible than other times and some people are aware of it but at the same time others appear to be completely unaware that it is occurring right under their noses. And if you have been through something terrible that happened right underneath peoples noses, that they did not see, can you imagine what it feels like to be in the middle of that again at a later date? It creates stress, it feels over-whelming, nauseating and extremely anger provoking and then the fight and flight response kicks in. You either want to stand and fight or you want to run for the hills. And there is mope than one way to do either of those. Sometimes it just happens internally.
So. just making that connection has really helped. It's another piece of the jigsaw back in place and the more pieces that are back in place, the clearer the picture. And I find I like a clear picture. You know what you are dealing with. And I make another promise, deal I intend to do.
Please keep contacting me, I am coming back to you all.
And please enjoy the lovely clear day people.
Much love


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Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Hope Squared Quilt Giving
Yesterday I had the immense pleasure of delivering 75 of the Hope Squared quilts to the Salvation Army in Grand Rapids. These pictures are of the teen moms who live there. They are ages 13-17 and are either pregnant or a mom to a little one or two. Can you imagine the amount of support, love and hope they need to keep trying everyday? It is my prayer that these quilts will be a concrete symbol of hope and determination. They loved their quilts and rumor has it (from a Salvation Army employee) that this morning some of the girls were still wrapped in thier quilts!
at 6:55 PM
5 comments:
- beth said...
fun pictures! what a great way to celebrate christmas...going to the salvation army. thank you.
- December 23, 2009 at 9:06 PM
- Carol E. said...
Great! Love the pictures! These girls need the message of support that the quilts provide. Thanks for doing this!
- December 23, 2009 at 10:42 PM
- Dotty Jane said...
Wonderful! Thanks for sharing the pictures and for doing all you do.
- December 24, 2009 at 4:03 AM
- Tallymou said...
Is there anything else we can do for the young moms-to-be?
- December 28, 2009 at 7:52 PM
- Magpie Sue said...
Thank you for sharing these pictures with us. It's so good to see our work being used and enjoyed.
- January 3, 2010 at 12:31 PM
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