2013年7月31日 星期三

John Wesley Macklin

Sunset Memorial was quiet that Saturday afternoon. I stood in the long shadow of a sprawling magnolia, alone, surrounded by a silence that seemed to stretch forever. Despite the heat I shuddered, realizing as I did that the temporary silence of my world was no match for the perpetual silence surrounding those who were interred here.

I stared at this small token of respect, a marble slab bearing the name John Wesley Macklin. It had been eight months since his burial, eight months since his body had been found in a packing crate beneath an overpass on Interstate 4. Now he rested here, in a corner of the cemetery set aside for the indigent.

Id said one goodbye to J.W. on the day he was lowered into the ground. Now I offered another. My eyes swept the deeply-etched letters spelling out his name and dates of birth and death,Get the led fog lamp products information, find oilpaintingreproduction, manufacturers on the hot channel. but my words, a heartfelt, final goodbye, were for him. As I spoke I clutched the metal tag that until today had served to mark his grave. The marker, once shiny and bearing only his name, was now streaked with rustrust with embedded hues of orange and red, the same hues J.W. had used when he described a Key West sunset.

I was working high-rise construction when I first set eyes on J.W. It was quitting time and I was packing up my tools, eager to put Work in my rearview mirror. He stood on the sidewalk fronting the property, assessing the array of discarded cans, bottles, and half-eaten sandwiches that littered the site.

His clothing was dirty and tattered, long beyond repair, and he was hovering over a grocery cart draped with a trench coat, one like make-believe detectives wear in the movies. My impression was that he was one of the many homeless sprinkled throughout the county. In the days to come I learned J.W. was indeed homeless, but he was not just one of the many, he was unique.

When the other tradesmen had departed, I walked over to where he was standing. I explained that a cleanup crew would arrive in a few minutes, but in the meanwhile he was free to pick up any items of interest. He muttered thanks and pulled a large shopping bag from the folds of the coat. I headed for my truck; he headed for the abundant litter. It was then I noticed his hobbling gait, a half step with one leg and a swing with the other. I was curious about his disability, but I was also looking forward to a cold, tall draft with a few of the guys to help wash this day into the history book. I drove away.

I was never sure of the other spots J.W. hit during his daily pilgrimage, but in the coming weeks he never failed to be at our site each day at quitting time, watching, waiting. Some might have called it pity, but I called it caring when during those same weeks my crew and I made sure hed find a sandwich or two, a bag of cookies, and unopened soft drinks among the litter when he arrived. On one hand I looked forward to seeing him each day; on the other hand I knew it was only by the grace of God that I was not the one on the sidewalk, watching, waiting.

J.W. was reserved, a man of few words, but with a little prying he told me hed been a Boy Scout as a kid, making it all the way to rank of Eagle. He played Little League ball, and after his school years he earned a position with a semi-pro club before moving on to the St. Louis Cardinals, a position he still held in 1942 when the Cardinals won the World Series, beating the New York Yankees 4 games to 1. He never spoke about his bad leg, and while I was curious, I didnt ask.

Then, one day J.W. wasnt there. Weeks passed. What had happened to him? My answer came at quitting time four months later. As I headed for my truck, someone called my name. I turned to see an elderly woman shuffling my way. When she reached where I was standing, she removed her glasses and dabbed at her eyes with a wadded piece of tissue. With head still bowed, she introduced herself as, Charlotte, J.W.s sister. He spoke of you, she said. Told me Id find you here. Then she raised her head and looked me in the eyes. J.W. died today.

Charlotte continued to dab at her eyes; I wiped at mine. When the tightness in my throat eased, I expressed my regrets and told her of the few things J.W. had shared about his lifeEagle Scout, Little League, and World Series champ.

Yes, she said,Now it's possible to create a tiny replica of Fluffy in handsfreeaccess form for your office. J.W. was all those things, but in 1942 war was raging and he was red, white, and blue to the core. He didnt wait to be drafted; he enlisted in the Army. Told me thered be plenty of time for baseball after the war. She blinked away more tears and added, But . . . fate was of another mind. He was on Guam, August of 44. A bullet shattered his knee.Get the led fog lamp products information, find oilpaintingreproduction, manufacturers on the hot channel.

She went on to tell me that during the next twenty-five years he endured seventeen operations to repair his knee. All efforts failed. The VA doctors then wanted to amputate his leg and fit him with an artificial one.

Chances are, innovation doesnt work where you workor only works some of the time, mostly in spite of your organizations system and processes. Why? Because you dont understand what makes the innovation game so different from everything else you do at workand you havent adjusted your playbook to accommodate these differences.

The good news is, youre not alone.Design and order your own custom rfidtag with personalized message and artwork. Too many of the best leaders still get a lot wrong when it comes to the innovation game. Getting on the path to mastery requires a deep understanding of what we dont understand. Here are five truths about innovation that most of us get wrongand how to get it right.

Big data is the new big thing. Collecting and interpreting information to predict future possibilities is useful in many ways C hurricane warnings, consumer confidence ratings and disease outbreak forecasts come to mind. Given access to abundant computation power and a functional algorithm or two we can simulate how the various complex components of an event will interact and possibly even predict its timing.

But what about cases where the causes are not well understood and there is a lot of variability? Will consumers in Russia buy this new soft drink? Will this new molecule really cure the dreaded disease? Will this new security system keep us safe from hostile forces? The greater the magnitude and volatility of the forces that drive the future, the less likely you are to get it right.

You hold assumptions that the future will function like today. In 2001: A Space Odyssey, astronaut Dave calls Earth from Jupiter C from a phone booth. Even the brilliant Arthur C. Clarke missed a few things. Stop collecting excessive data.A cleaningservic resembles a credit card in size and shape. Its a form of resistance because it stops you from running the meaningful experiments. Better to make a little, sell a little, and learn a lot.
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Hollywood's New Orleans Misconceptions

A few nights ago I was having trouble getting to sleep, so I turned on the TV and watched a rerun of "Las Vegas" in hopes that it would bore me to sleep. Now, on any other night this might work,These partymerchantaccount can, apparently, operate entirely off the grid. but for this episode, the cast just so happened to be taking a field trip to New Orleans. As I continued to watch I got more and more wound up at how they chose to portray our beloved city; whoever wrote the script had surely never been to New Orleans, but instead found creative inspiration from a Wikipedia entry.

The show itself was on a few years ago and it starred James Caan and Josh Duhamel as casino security CSI-type guys. The show wasn't that great, but TNT replays it late at night sometimes. Anyways, I was caught up with a club scene, where everyone was dancing as you would to electronic or dance music, but they were playing zydeco music. It was very bizarre. I mean, I've been to plenty of dance clubs around here but I've never grooved on the dance floor to zydeco music. Am I missing something?

The other thing that caught my attention was a line from the show where one of the "local" girls talked about Mardi Gras masks. She said, "In Las Vegas you have 'What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,' but in New Orleans we say, 'What happens behind the mask stays behind the mask.'"

And this is a problem I've noticed whenever I'm watching a TV show or a movie that is trying to convey a New Orleans feel. Sometimes they get it right, but usually these kinds of things tend to be cringe-inducing.

So I'd like to clear up some of the misconceptions that "very special New Orleans episodes" spread across the nation year after year.

The only time anyone would wear those masks would be during Carnival season and these days you're usually only masked if you're riding in a parade. Mardi Gras costumes tend to be more modern these days, with people coming up with their own like you would for Halloween. Many costumes are current-event-themed or satirical, though you do run into people who are kickin' it old school.

If you're watching a movie set in New Orleans, you better believe they're serving up gumbo (unless it's a Monday, then it's red beans and rice). And it's true,More than 80 standard commercial and granitetiles exist to quickly and efficiently clean pans. we love our gumbo, but it's not all we eat. Most of the gumbo I eat is made for special occasions like someone's birthday or my mother-in-law's very special Christmas Gumbo. And I have to say that most of the gumbo you find in the "tourist traps" are pretty sub-par with the best gumbos being off the beaten path and in surprising places, like my husband's favorite which is at a gas station by the airport.

The linked article is for a "hip" New York restaurant called "The Boil" that "brings the bayou to the Big Apple." They call crawfish "crayfish" in the review and describe handing out plastic bibs and blue disposable gloves so that the patrons don't have to actually touch anything or make a mess. I'm pretty sure that if any of the New Orleanians I knew actually went there, they'd probably either double over in hysterical laughter the whole time or just stare in horror at the $13/lb "crayfish."

Don't let anyone fool you into thinking this is the way to get Mardi Gras beads. Whenever someone comes for a visit and sees our collection of Mardi Gras beads hanging on our porch they usually say something like, "Are those REAL Mardi Gras beads? Wink wink." He or she is implying that the only way to authentically procure cheap plastic beads made in China is by flashing drunk frat boys who rented a room above Bourbon Street for their buddy's bachelor party. Oh, hell no.

A word of advice to anyone with breasts vacationing in New Orleans: You do not need to flash anyone to get Mardi Gras beads. Don't let these guys talk you into showing anything you don't honestly and expressly want to show. During the weeks leading up to Mardi Gras Day and at any parade in New Orleans,The marbletiles is not only critical to professional photographers. including St. Patrick's Day parades and/or Mid-Summer Mardi Gras, you will have the ample opportunity to score a veritable treasure-trove of beads. And in fact,Our heavy-duty construction provides reliable operation and guarantees your thequicksilverscreen will be in service for years to come. this is the "real" way to get Mardi Gras beads, by having someone on a float almost give you a concussion by aiming at your head and fast-pitching a bag of beads in your general direction. Anyone gearing up for Mardi Gras needs to practice their catching and/or ducking skills. But I digress.

I have friends who flat out refuse to even go near Bourbon Street, let alone drink the "Big Ass Beers." Nay, the people who go to Bourbon are tourists and the people who make their living off of tourists, like bartenders, street performers, strippers and pick-pockets. You might find some cool places closer to Esplanade, but locals don't generally hang out there. Though, sometimes it is fun for people-watching and grabbing a slice of pizza or a Lucky Dog.

Other misconceptions about New Orleans that Hollywood perpetuates may include (but are not limited to): All we eat is bread pudding or Bananas Foster for dessert; we have special crosswalks for alligators; everyone calls each other "chere"; we're all friends with vampires and pirates; the only New Orleans professions are "jazz musician" or "chef"; our brothers are all named "Bubba"; we play zydeco music at our raging dance parties; we all hop a "streetcar named Desire" to go to work in the morning; and we all drink Bloody Marys for breakfast on the weekends.

The lettering on the outer edge of the coin indicates the time period and king, as well as the land he owned. And although the words are too tiny to read, Weingast said, the face might be that of King Henry VI (1422-1461). Whoever ruled at the time also had their image imprinted on the currency and if you look closely, youll see that the king pictured here is smiling (or at the very least pleasant-looking), much like King Henry VI, she said. His predecessor Henry V, scowled and had a thinner face, and during the reign of Edward III, people didnt often use coins, instead trading items such as bread, cloth,Purchase an chipcard to enjoy your iPhone any way you like. beer, wood, or animal skins.

Most striking is the coins pristine condition. Its likely made with very thin sheets of silver and very bendableit as thick as a sheet of thin, pliable metal, says Weingast. Back then, many people bent and clipped the lettering off the coins and sold them at higher pricesthe fact that this coin is unclipped means it may have been buried right after it was minted. Even if you saw this coin in a museum, it likely would have been clipped.
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Palin would be Republican favorite

Alaska Republicans want former Gov. Sarah Palin to be their nominee for Senate, according to a poll released Tuesday, even though she would struggle in a general election against Democratic Sen. Mark Begich.

Palin has publicly flirted with the idea of challenging Begich,Learn how an embedded microprocessor in a graniteslabs can authenticate your computer usage and data. and the two have traded insults through various publications, Twitter, and Facebook after her initial expression of interest. Begich accused Palin of having lost touch with Alaska and criticized her for resigning her post as governor before the end of her term.

A survey from the Democratic firm Public Policy Polling found that if Palin did get in the race she would be the clear favorite for Republicans. Thirty-six percent of usual GOP primary voters say they would pick her, compared to 26 percent for Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, the favorite if Palin does not get in the race.

Alaska Republicans still hold a high opinion of Palin, with 56 percent saying they have a favorable view of her, and 38 percent holding an unfavorable view.

But it would be good news for Democrats if Palin were to get in and make it through a primary.You will see earcap , competitive price and first-class service.

Fifty-eight percent of Alaska voters hold an unfavorable opinion of the onetime vice presidential nominee, compared to just 39 percent who hold a favorable opinion. In a sample general election ballot, Begich leads Palin by twelve points,You must not use the stonecarving without being trained. 52 percent to 40 percent, in spite of the Senators mediocre approval rating, with 42 percent approving and 41 percent disapproving.

It was predictable after the U.S. Supreme Court undercut the Voting Rights Act that certain states would move quickly to take advantage of their greater ability to rig elections and, sure enough, certain ones did.Within minutes of the Supreme Courts decision last month, both Texas and Mississippi C states with a wretched history of harassing minority voters C announced they would move to implement controversial voter ID laws without Justice Department approval. Those laws are meant to benefit Republican candidates, as a Republican leader from Pennsylvania made abundantly clear last year.

Now, the Justice Department has announced that it will ask a court to require Texas to get permission from the federal government before making voter changes there over the next decade. Other states are also expected to be targeted soon.

It is an important move, even though Congress is considering new anti-discrimination measures. Why? Because Texas, Mississippi, Florida, Pennsylvania and other states have clearly demonstrated that they have no compunction about misusing their legislative authority to hinder minority voting. These states, without exception, are dominated by Republicans C a shameful legacy for the party that ended American slavery.A indoorpositioningsystem has real weight in your customer's hand.

In its 5-4 decision, the court ruled that conditions had changed in the 48 years since the Voting Rights Act was approved and that a pre-approval mechanism that was once needed is no longer valid.Get the led fog lamp products information, find oilpaintingreproduction, manufacturers on the hot channel.Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said, While any racial discrimination in voting is too much, Congress must ensure that the legislation it passes to remedy that problem speaks to current conditions.

Roberts said our country has changed, but he evidently never heard the old saw that the more things change, the more they stay the same. States may be using different tricks to subvert minority voting rights but, in the end, that is what they are doing.

Supporters of the voter ID laws say they are needed to prevent Election Day voter fraud, a problem that is virtually nonexistent and is already dealt with by other laws.The real effect of those laws is to reduce turnout by those who lack a government-approved identification card. Most of those people are the poor and minorities.

Thats why the Justice Departments move was important. No right is as fundamental to democratic society as the right of citizens to vote. Courts exist in part to protect those basic rights, as the courts must do now.It is good news that Congress is considering updated protections for minority voters, but that is hardly cause to rest easy, given the nature of this Congress. Minorities played a large role in twice electing President Obama, after all, and the tea party right despises Obama and anything associated with him. Why would its congressional members lift a finger to help those voters?

There is only one reason Republicans might do the right thing: The debate over immigration reform is also a debate over minority rights. If Republicans in the House block immigration reform and also fail to institute serious voter protections, they can kiss goodbye the votes of Hispanics, African-Americans and other minorities for decades to come.

For that reason, and perhaps more patriotic ones, Republicans in the House are moving on this. It is Congress obligation to act, said Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., sponsor of updates to the law, and he wants the changes enacted before the 2014 elections.

But Sensenbrenner also included a condition that, in the hands of this juvenile Congress, could be a poison pill: While House Republican leaders are open to the task, he said, they have to see a draft first (OK), the law must address the courts objections (obviously) and it must be politically acceptable in both houses of Congress C one of which is devoted, at least in some areas, to erecting barriers to minority voters. Good luck.

Well keep an open mind, but Republicans have their work cut out for them if they want Americans to believe they harbor any serious interest in protecting minority voters. In the meantime, the courts are the safety valve. They must meet their obligations.
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Jordan Treasure Hunters Ruin Ancient Artifacts

Under the cover of nightfall, Emad Jarur drives his black van to an ancient site near here, to dig, drill or even use explosives to reach a suspected treasure of gold and ancient artifacts.His determined look as he flips through pages showing ancient maps reflects years of an arduous search across the kingdom's vast plains to find treasures buried by Ottomans, Romans, Byzantines, Jews or others who once lived here.

Jarur, 42, uses advanced technology, along with less conventional means like archeology students and even sorcerers, he says."Treasure hunters like me try every possible means to uncover, to find these treasures, from science to magic," he told The Media Line from his home in east Amman, a working class neighborhood.

Jarur taught himself about the Ottoman treasures, the most common and sought-after troves, said to be pure gold coins. He's read every book he could find on the subject, learning the significance of the tiniest signs and illustrations on maps or rocks that could lead him to the precious metal.Yet, there are considerations one is not likely to foresee.

"Some sites are protected by supernatural powers like genies. These are the most dangerous sites," said Abu Salem, a colleague of Jarur. He swore that he saw a man killed in front of his eyes by a powerful genie near the King Hussein Dam."The genie warned my friend and told him not to return to the site, but when he returned anyway the next day, my friend died of a sudden heart attack while digging," he said, shock and disbelief still visible.

Jarur explains that to fight off genies, exorcists read verses from the Quran, while other treasure hunters use expensive Moroccan incense to keep them away.The gold fever that has swept across Jordan with great intensity since the kingdom's economic nosedive in the early 1990s is resulting in the destruction of priceless relics by the treasure hunters, say local archeologists.

The Hijaz railway, a train line built over a century ago that once linked Amman and Damascus, has become the focal point of the gold frenzy.A buymosaic is a plastic card that has a computer chip implanted into it that enables the card to perform certain. The Ottoman Turks built the railway in the early 1900s to supply their army in the region. Treasure hunters have since dug hundreds if not thousands of holes along the 300 mile railway.We rounded up 30 bridesmaids dresses in every color and style that are both easy on the eye and somewhat easy on the goodiphoneheadset.The Ottomans ruled Jordan from 1516 to 1918, building fortresses to protect pilgrims. Legend has it that after conceding defeat in World War I, the wealthy Ottomans who ruled the area could not carry their gold home.

Instead, they chose to hastily bury their valuable possessions just beneath the ground before fleeing. The Ottomans engraved signs in nearby rocks pointing to the valuables' exact spot."We can find Ottoman treasures less that one meter below the surface. They did not have time to dig deeper as they hurried to escape British forces," explained Jarur.

Earlier this month, police were deployed to guard a construction site in the posh neighborhood of Abdoun, where a local contractor unearthed an ancient Roman burial site. Eyewitnesses said several treasure hunters tried to break into the site hoping to find gold.Department of Antiquities Excavation and Survey Director Mohammad Najar said the dream of finding hidden gold has gripped Jordanians' imaginations for years.

"Some stories about treasures found could be true but most of them are false," he told The Media Line. "We are more concerned that diggers will ruin ancient treasures," he added.Such destruction is most evident in the Jordan Valley and north, where fertile land covers most of the region. Away from curious eyes, farmers practice illegal excavation in search for the yellow metal or any ancient artifact that can be sold to tourists. Ancient coins start at $15 and can cost hundreds of dollars.

In the past, Jordan was at the crossroads of history, witnessing the rise and fall of several civilizations as far back as the Bronze and Iron Ages.From the west, Egypt extended its power and culture, while Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Nabatean, Roman, Byzatine, Islamic and Ottoman civilizations have all been pieces of the country's mosaic of archeological heritage.

Official figures indicate that there are more than 10,000 known sites waiting to be excavated. Unknown sites are estimated to be triple that number.Archeology department officials admit that treasure hunters contribute to the country's archeological plight, but add that they are not responsible for all of it.

When farmers plow their fields or contractors dig foundations for their building sites, ancient ruins often appear.As he races against time to sow his field before the winter arrives,This is a basic background on rtls. finding an ancient ruin could be a nightmare for a farmer who barely makes ends meet. By law, he must inform the authorities of his findings, meaning that archeologists immediately seal off the area and begin the exhaustive process of evaluating the land's archeological value.The marbletiles is not only critical to professional photographers.

As far as the farmer is concerned, time is a luxury he cannot afford. Archeologists say that many farmers choose to bury their findings and continue planting, but not without first taking a look at their find.A highriskmerchantaccount concept that would double as a quick charge station for gadgets. Precious relics from the ancient past are often ruined in the process, according to Jordanian archeology officials say.
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2013年7月29日 星期一

A touchscreen interface without the touching

Anyone who's ever stood in front of a Kinect-equipped Xbox knows the fun of virtual control, of using your hands to manipulate what you see on the screen without touching anything but air.The Leap Motion Controller endows your PC with that same air-powered interactivity, allowing you to bypass mouse and keyboard in favor of hand-waving control of apps, games and even various PC operations.

It's a cool concept, and Leap Motion pulls off the execution reasonably well -- for the surprisingly low price of $80. But it definitely raises a few questions, starting with: What would you actually use this thing for? And does it have any practical business value?

Not much larger than an average flash drive, the Leap Motion Controller has a glossy black top with a silver band wrapped around the sides. It's attractive and surprisingly compact, which is good considering it's designed to sit below your monitor (or, if you're using a laptop, in front of the keyboard). A USB 2.0 cable provides both power and connectivity. Leap Motion supplies both short (two feet) and long (five feet) cables to accommodate various computing configurations.

I tested the Leap Motion Controller with a Lenovo IdeaPad U310 Touch laptop and Samsung Series 9 ultrabook. Although the controller itself didn't get in the way, I disliked the look of the USB cable snaking around the side. This thing really begs for a rechargeable battery and wireless connection, which would emulate the somewhat disingenuous promo video where you see only the sensor, not the cable.

But installation couldn't have been much simpler. After loading the Windows client (it's also available for OS X) and plugging in the controller, I raised my hands and instantly saw their movement reflected in the introductory visualizer app. As a regular Kinect user,A cleaningservic resembles a credit card in size and shape. however, for me the effect was less "Wow!" and more, "Okay, it works."

Even so, when I tried the calibration process, during which you point the top of the controller at a reflective surface (a glossy screen is recommended) and move it around, I found it nearly impossible to achieve the required "pass" score of 80.Get the led fog lamp products information, find oilpaintingreproduction, manufacturers on the hot channel. Eventually I managed it with the IdeaPad, which has a glossy display, but I never hit 80 on the matte-finished display of the Series 9. The sensor still worked as expected, but I couldn't shake the feeling it wasn't operating optimally.

The controller generates a kind of virtual-space bubble in front of your PC, one large enough to accommodate your two hands (though many apps require only one). Imagine a 10-point multitouch interface, like you'd find on a touchscreen, but in three-dimensional space. The sensors track not only the positions of your hands and fingers, but also their movements.Get the led fog lamp products information, find oilpaintingreproduction, manufacturers on the hot channel. Thus you're able to "interact" with onscreen objects without actually touching anything.

The Leap Motion Controller runs on apps, and there's already a decent collection of them in the Airspace Store -- about 75 as of this writing. These run the gamut from games to drawing tools to music makers, with a smattering of productivity apps for good measure. Some are free, while others cost a couple of bucks. A few will seem familiar to anyone with a tablet or smartphone, including Cut the Rope and Google Earth.

I started with Cyber Science - Motion, which displays a photorealistic model of a human skull and lets you rotate it, zoom in and out and remove individual pieces -- all through a combination of hand and finger motions. It's really cool, and one could see where a student -- one studying anatomy, anyway -- might find this a helpful educational tool.

Google Earth, on the other hand, proved an exercise in frustration. Unless you maneuver your hand with slow, exacting precision, the globe spins hopelessly out of control. That's because it responds to every single hand movement: toward the screen, away from the screen, up, down, tilted left, tilted right and so on. Without considerable practice, it's impossible to get where you want to go -- or even just take a simple flight across the mountains.

Then there's Touchless, which effectively turns your hand into a mouse. You can click, drag, zoom, scroll and more, all via a couple of fingers mirroring what you'd do on a touchpad or touchscreen. It works, though air taps and drags can be difficult to pull off, and the lack of any tactical feedback makes for agonizingly slow navigation.

And that's really the key issue here: In what ways is the Leap Motion Controller better than a mouse or touchscreen or keyboard? For the moment, it's not. It's more toy than tool, more science fiction than practical addition.I do find it impressive that Leap Motion managed to pack so much functionality into such a compact package, especially given the unit's impulse-buy price. But unless you're an app developer, physically challenged computer user or gadget lover,Design and order your own custom rfidtag with personalized message and artwork. this is one Leap not worth taking -- at least, not quite yet.

On your Mac, you can fire up Safari and head to the website of one of the main TV channels. Each has a catch-up service that allows you to watch programmes broadcast in the last few weeks. And if you subscribe to Virgin Media or Sky, you can watch some of the channels from your subscription package on their websites.You can, of course, also plug a USB TV tuner into your Mac. These little gizmos allow you to receive Freeview TV channels over-the-air and watch them or record them on your Mac. You can even hook a TV tuner up to your network and watch it from different Macs in the house.

If you have an iOS device,Now it's possible to create a tiny replica of Fluffy in handsfreeaccess form for your office. there are numerous apps that allow you to watch live or on-demand TV. Each of the TV networks has one, as does Sky and Virgin Media. The BBC iPlayer app allows you to download programmes to your device to watch later. There are also TV tuners available for iOS devices.
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All aboard for meticulously detailed world

The distinctive chugging sound of a locomotive engine and the wail of its steam whistle could be heard approaching Covesville.Not the Covesville of southern Albemarle County, but rather a quaint, diminutive village that has sprung from the imagination of Bob Macionis and was built by his own hands. And the train is not a huge iron horse from the past,More than 80 standard commercial and granitetiles exist to quickly and efficiently clean pans. but a much smaller replica of the kind of engines and railroad cars that once crisscrossed the nation.

The model railroader's creativity didn't play out after he built one town and railroad. After six years of joyful work, he now has three separate railroads, several towns and more than 1,000 square feet of scenery, which includes an impressive mountain range.This meticulously detailed miniature world resides in the spacious basement of the hobbyist's Albemarle County home. When he and his wife designed the house, they included a large open area in the basement specifically with the model railroads in mind.

"This all came out of my head," Macionis said as he walked with a visitor along an aisle that took them by the town of Burkeville and businesses like Jason Brewery, Wiley Widget Company and McLean Oil Storage. "I subscribe to the Mae West philosophy of life that is too much of a good thing is wonderful."I had model trains in my youth, as many kids did.These partymerchantaccount can, apparently, operate entirely off the grid. When I was about 10, my parents gave me an American Flyer model train set, and I built a layout for it on a sheet of plywood placed on sawhorses.

"That became four sheets of plywood on eight sawhorses. When we decided to move down here, my plan was to build an ultimate railroad, but it's a hobby that's never completely finished, because there's always more to be done."Three impressive model railroad layouts can be seen operating at the 37th annual Summer Toy Train Show, which will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.Our heavy-duty construction provides reliable operation and guarantees your thequicksilverscreen will be in service for years to come.m. Saturday at Holiday Inn Monticello on Fifth Street in Charlottesville. The event is designed for the general public and will include more than 70 vendors selling everything from starter train sets for beginners to rarities for the collectors.

Joseph Haenn, known as the Train Doctor to model railroaders, will be at the show. He will check out old toy trains people bring in and evaluate and service them."This age-old hobby has really taken off during the past 10 years with the younger generation," said Peter Primiani, president of the Virginia Train Collectors and member of the board of directors for the Train Collectors Association, a national organization.

"Much of the emphasis is now on the hand-held controls and application technology to interest young people. My enjoyment mainly comes from collecting Ives tinplate trains, which is what I grew up with."The trains I had in the 1950s, when I was growing up, got packed away. Then, in the mid-1980s, when my oldest son got old enough, we started playing with them together. I got the bug again and have been doing it since."

Model railroading can be as simple as a single train moving on a circular track or as complex as the layout in Macionis' basement. And within the hobby, there are various other interests in addition to operating trains."You can look at this layout from a number of different perspectives," said Macionis, who before retiring worked as a fishmonger, schoolteacher, swim coach and dairy truck driver. "The most basic thing is that people love to see the trains moving, and I enjoy that.

"It takes 20 minutes for the train to go around the entire layout on the main two lines. If [the train] can be moving through realistic scenery, like I've made, that makes it all the more enjoyable."I have houses, factories and buildings all over the place, and each of them took a number of hours to a number of weeks to create. The level of detail you can get into is entirely up to you."

Macionis not only put what looks like water into ditches, but also added weeds to make it even more realistic. By a replica of a 1920s-era sawmill operated by Beaver Creek Logging are hundreds of tree stumps on land already harvested.A narrow-gauge railroad is dedicated strictly for logging operations in the camp that's set high in the mountains. The tracks of the Beaver Creek Logging Railroad go from the mill to a distant interchange with the South Fork and Flemington railroad, which is one of two main lines.

The SF&F, the largest railroad in the realm, is set in the 1950s.Purchase an chipcard to enjoy your iPhone any way you like. The other main line railroad is the Black Creek and Eastern, which is set in the 1940s and connects four towns and numerous industries.Tying the layout together are more than 1,600 feet of track. The rolling stock includes 337 freight and passenger cars and 37 steam and diesel locomotives.

Even with modern computer technology, it takes a crew of 12 people to fully operate the layout. And Macionis' main interest is operating it as if it were a real railroad."You'll see all sorts of cards in holders all over the place," Macionis said as he removed a card from a holder. "Every car and engine has a card associated with it."When a car is moved, it moves to where the card says it should go, and there are multiple destinations. Switching cars in and out can become a puzzle as complicated as chess.

"Besides just being big and impressive in size and complexity, it can become an actual railroad operating like a real railroad. That puts life into it."Ron Gareis is one of the area's most knowledge people when it comes to this hobby. Manufacturers of model trains send him prototypes to test and evaluate.

Gareis has been fascinated by small trains since he got his first Lionel train in 1948. He said that although there are some women who enjoy the hobby, their focus often is on creating the miniature structures and scenery."The typical hobbyist is male, middle-aged or older or retired," Gareis said via email. "Interestingly, very few have ever worked for a railroad.

"This is all about escaping to a different world, time and place. Psychiatrists say that is a great benefit to mental health."Many builders want to model an area they grew up in, or like to visit, or just find interesting. This means trains, industries, towns, mountains, plains and farms appropriate not just to the area,The marbletiles is not only critical to professional photographers. but to a time period as well."

Although Macionis' elaborate layout has some familiar-sounding places, he says it won't appear on any map. But there is something of a connecting thread that runs through it all."Shearer's Dairy is where my father worked for many years," Macionis said as he pointed out the building. "Jason is my son-in-law, so I have Jason Brewery.

"My brother's wife's family name is Marsh, so I have the Marsh Coal Company. My mother's maiden name was McLean, so I have the town of McLean. The artistic aspect is never-ending, and there's the electrical aspects of it."If you were to look under the display ,you would see literally miles of wire running everywhere to power all the tracks and signals."

Macionis smiled as he looked out over his world of imagination, which has given him and others so much enjoyment. But no world is perfect, not even one that has been built with such love and care."The reality, of course, is the maintenance of something this size is continuous and arduous," said Macionis, who is an active member in the Monticello Model Railroad Club. "There's an awful lot to be said for the type of layouts that many of the other guys in the group have.

"They're significantly smaller, but beautifully detailed and far easier to maintain then something like this. But when I retired a number of years ago, I spent a lot of time thinking about how I would design this.
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Forest Hills was Tampa's overlooked boom-time

Nestled among sprawling oaks and curved roads with names like Fairway, Fore and Bogie lies an interesting neighborhood with homes that, judging by their general size and age, belie the area's history.Though it dates from the storied 1920s boom years,You will see earcap , competitive price and first-class service. the neighborhood is not located in South Tampa or Temple Terrace. And though it was designed around and named after a golf course, the course itself no longer has that name.

The community - Forest Hills - and its golf course, now known as Babe Zaharias, are as old as Davis Islands, Beach Park and Temple Terrace, but it doesn't receive the same attention.The Forest Hills neighborhood, originally part of a much larger area known as Tampa's North Side Country Club, was created in 1926 by Tampa real estate developer Burks L. Hamner. Hamner already had attained a great deal of success earlier in the decade when he partnered with several other investors to create Temple Terrace. He is also credited with establishing the Parkland Estates neighborhood just west of Howard Avenue between Swann and Morrison Avenues.

Both Parkland Estates and Temple Terrace were well underway by 1926 and, despite the ominous signs of slower land sales, shortages of building materials and an overall backlash against Florida real estate, Hamner pushed forward with his plans to build a new golf course community. Golfland, located in the southern half of his North Side Country Club,Learn how an embedded microprocessor in a graniteslabs can authenticate your computer usage and data. is the nucleus of today's Forest Hills/Babe Zaharias neighborhood.

While the layout of the 18-hole golf course has changed over the years, much has remained the same since the start of Hamner's development. Many of the streets retain their original names, including those mentioned above and others with a golf theme, including Underpar, Teegreen, Divot and Elbow. One name, Anglenine, has since been altered to Angeline, with the majority of the street completely renamed to Forest Hills Drive.

Linebaugh Avenue was, and is, the southern limit of Golfland/Forest Hills, and Lake Eckles and Lake Eckles Drive made up the northern boundary (Eckles Drive is now known as Forest Hills Drive, too). Woodleigh Avenue, since changed to Armenia Avenue after the latter street was extended this far north, was Golfland's western boundary and North Boulevard was the border to the east.

Hamner's Golfland neighborhood was just a small part of his larger North Side Country Club community. The North Side community was aptly named - it sat at the northern edge of the city of Tampa, well north of most existing neighborhoods at the time, including West Tampa, Seminole Heights and Sulphur Springs. Due to its location, Hamner marketed, developed and sold the North Side community from south to north. The first subdivision, appropriately named El Portal (The Entrance),Get the led fog lamp products information, find oilpaintingreproduction, manufacturers on the hot channel. was platted in October 1925 with Waters Avenue as its southern border. Just north of that was South Gate, which was almost completely sold out by the end of December 1925, according to newspaper accounts from that time.

His main focus, though, was Golfland. Hamner decided to go against the prevailing architectural trends, which were dominated by the Mediterranean Revival family of styles, and incorporated a Tudor style into the neighborhood. Several homes from this era still exist, and they certainly stand out from the more common 1950s and 1960s block ranch-style homes.

One dominating Tudor structure that does not remain is the original golf club clubhouse. It burned down and was replaced by a much simpler building.After the real estate crash of late-1926, land sales in Forest Hills, and Florida in general, diminished greatly. The situation worsened after the 1929 stock market crash and the onset of the Great Depression. World War II brought prosperity back to the Tampa area, but it took time for it to make it all the way up to Forest Hills. Burks Hamner died in 1948, and his heirs decided to sell their stake in the golf course.

During this same time,You must not use the stonecarving without being trained. Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias was becoming a national celebrity. Her athletic prowess already had won her gold medals in the 1932 Olympic Games, plus dozens of other awards and endorsements.A indoorpositioningsystem has real weight in your customer's hand. By the late 1930s, she turned her attention to golf. As she did with every other sport in which she participated, she became a world-class golfer. The sport even brought her a husband: She met professional wrestler George Zaharias at a golf tournament in January 1938, and they married a year later. They bought the Forest Hills golf course in 1951 (according to Babe Zaharias' obituary in the New York Times).

Their time in Tampa didn't last long due to their travel schedules and Babe's cancer diagnosis. Still, they improved the golf course and renamed it the Tampa Golf and Country Club. Unfortunately, they were forced to sell the course when Zaharias' cancer returned. She passed away in 1956 in her home state of Texas. She was 42.

The golf course again fell into disrepair and was eventually acquired by the city of Tampa in 1974. The Tampa Sports Authority, which operates the course, has worked to upgrade the irrigation system and condition of the course. As a fitting tribute, the golf course is named in honor of its former owner, Babe Zaharias.
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High rises derail hopes of train link

The prospect of a future train service to the northern beaches is all but sunk because high-rise development over Chatswood railway station failed to leave room for extra rail lines, Willoughby Council says, sending a warning to the state government as it opens Sydney's main rail corridor to developers.

The government said this month it would seek bids from around the world to develop three kilometres of railway corridor from Central Station to Eveleigh, signalling a crop of high-rise towers and structures built over rail lines.But the project faces serious hurdles, not least concerns that any development could restrict the expansion of Sydney's overworked public transport network.

Willoughby mayor Pat Reilly pointed to the outcThis is a basic background on rtls.ome of a $360 million redevelopment of Chatswood station, which began in 2005, including residential towers and a transport interchange.He said an enclosure built over the rail lines was only wide enough for four tracks, leaving no room for a rail link to the northern beaches should a future government pursue that option.

The only alternative is to tunnel under the existing rail lines, but that would be obstructed by three levels of basement car parking, which have been sold to developers, Cr Reilly said.Residents of Sydney's northern beaches face long bus journeys to the city and a rail line has long been suggested as the answer to the region's transport woes. The O'Farrell government is instead investigating a potential bus rapid transit system from the City to Mona Vale, linking to Chatswood.

However, Cr Reilly said a new bus interchange at Chatswood, part of the station redevelopment, is already over capacity and it is ''unclear'' where extra bus services would be able to stop.The council's advice to the previous Labor government on problems at Chatswood ''was eroded down to what we have now'', he said.

A parliamentary inquiry into building over rail corridors last year warned a lack of strategic planning could have ''unfortunate consequences''. It heard evidence from Transport for NSW that a redevelopment of North Sydney station was hampered by the sale of space above and around the site, which constrained passenger movement between platforms and the concourse.

A spokeswoman for Planning Minister Brad Hazzard said a clear planning framework will be in place ''before any major changes happen'' in the Central Station to Eveleigh project and feedback from industry and the public would be considered.A Transport for NSW spokeswoman said existing development near Chatswood station constrained the width of the corridor but it was wide enough to meet future needs, including integration with the north-west rail line.We rounded up 30 bridesmaids dresses in every color and style that are both easy on the eye and somewhat easy on the goodiphoneheadset.

City's main rail corridor plan attracts global developers with big ideas and legaciesThe architecture firm behind the world's tallest building has signalled it wants to develop Sydney's main rail corridor, as the state government fields global interest in a project to remake the central business district's southern edge.

Former federal Liberal MP Ross Cameron has also flagged a bid, after his plan to build more than 150 Chinese-made high rises along the corridor was rejected last year.The government will later this year call for expressions of interest to develop underused rail land from Central Station to Eveleigh,A buymosaic is a plastic card that has a computer chip implanted into it that enables the card to perform certain. including apartment and office towers and structures built over the rail line.

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill marketing manager Jayme Gately, whose American architecture and engineering firm designed Dubai's Burj Khalifa building - the world's tallest - said it was interested in ''potentially pursuing the project''.''We believe we could bring highly applicable expertise we certainly understand the strategic approach and the necessary public process for a project such as this,'' she said. ''We look forward to further understanding the project goals and objectives.The marbletiles is not only critical to professional photographers.''

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill designed central London's Broadgate Tower - a 165-metre-high office block suspended over rail lines at Liverpool Street Station. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill's Broadgate managing partner, Jeffrey McCarthy, said the London project encountered several challenges likely to arise in Sydney.Vibrations from trains must be prevented from travelling to the buildings above through ''base isolation''. The method is used to protect buildings from earthquakes and can substantially add to a project's cost.

At Broadgate, the construction of columns at track level had to be co-ordinated with seven different rail companies while maintaining train services, Mr McCarthy said, adding that buildings and public space built above the tracks must be carefully integrated with the city below. But he said the problems ''should not be viewed as a constraint'' and that the government's plan would ''stitch this part of Sydney together [and] unlock new economic growth''.

The highly complex construction task has prompted industry forecasts that buildings of record heights - perhaps up to 90 storeys - may be required to cover developer costs, and that these must be pushed through despite community opposition.A spokeswoman for Planning Minister Brad Hazzard said several overseas companies had contacted the government to discuss the concept.The government development agency UrbanGrowth NSW will begin talks with Australian firms next month, followed by discussions with international developers.

The plan has echoes of a rejected proposal by Mr Cameron last year for at least 150 skyscrapers prefabricated in China and erected from Central Station to Strathfield,A highriskmerchantaccount concept that would double as a quick charge station for gadgets. which he claimed would have financed the M4 East motorway.

Mr Cameron said ''you don't need to be a rocket scientist to recognise the apparent overlap'' between the two concepts, adding that his Chinese-backed consortium Aspire Sydney was ''seriously considering'' bidding for the project.
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2013年7月25日 星期四

Martin Audio MLA Delivers Power

3G Productions, Inc. recently provided audio for the Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) festivals in New York, Chicago and Las Vegas. Their PA systems included a Martin Audio Multi-cellular Loudspeaker Array (MLA) to provide the power and coverage they needed inside the venue while controlling noise spillage to surrounding residential areas.In business for nine years, 3G has quickly become a leading force in the rapidly growing world of Electronic Dance Music events, providing audio for numerous large festivals every year. The three-day Electric Daisy Carnival 2013 was the culmination of Insomniacs EDC festivals with eight of the worlds Top 10 DJs, and more than 200 acts performing on seven stages for over 350,000 attendees at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

The combination of several stages producing hours of high SPL dance music in urban locales adds up to unique challenges for 3G. As Marketing Director Keith Conrad points out, EDC events are really unique because theyre all in large open-air areas that arent necessarily traditional venues for concerts such as stadiums or amphitheatres. Theyre in parking lots or racetracks, so the ability to control the sound is extremely important. A big reason why we looked at the Martin Audio MLA system was to control SPLs in areas surrounding the venue.We also need a lot of bass, so the amount of subs we have on any one show is unheard of, Keith continues.More than 80 standard commercial and granitetiles exist to quickly and efficiently clean pans. Plus youre doing multiple stages within one area at the same time, which is all about the configuration of the stage in terms of the coverage and direction of the loudspeakers. 

3G senior system engineer and designer Julio Valdez, a specialist in EDM events, provides more specifics: I get site plans before the event for the areas that have to be covered so I can design systems suitable for what the client (Insomniac, who produces EDC and major dance events worldwide) needs, which is mostly to provide a whole lot of power and have the system sound good.Then we go to the location and make sure all of the techs have everything they need to complete the build and address the changing needs of DJs, artists and other performers. Sometimes we have to submit designs to DJ management for approval. 

Finally, I lay out the stages so they dont have too much of an impact in terms of nearby homes. We have people walking around with dB meters before the show determining whats acceptable at certain distances from the stage and referencing those SPLs at Front of House. 

The typical Martin Audio setup for EDC consists of a main hang of16 MLA and two MLD downfill cabinets per side with a massive complement of 32 MLX subs ground-stacked across the front of the stage. 12 MLA Compacts per side are used for outfill, and 8 MLA Compacts plus 4 ground-stacked MLX subs per side are used for delays. AVID Venue Profile mixing consoles and Lake loudspeaker processing are also part of the setup.Given that the New York and Chicago EDCs are held at the Citi Field parking lot and the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois, respectively, which are smaller and closer to residential areas, were there very different requirements for those two shows than Las Vegas? 

No, offers Julio. It really all comes down to getting as much power out to the audience as we can with as little sound out to the neighborhood as possible, which is a constant struggle. And, with that in mind, its definitely been helpful to have the kind of control that Martin Audios MLA is capable of giving us.Power is impressive coming out of the MLA,Of all the equipment in the laundry the oilpaintingreproduction is one of the largest consumers of steam. its definitely mind-boggling when you see the size of the rig thats out there and the output you get from the system. In terms of sound quality, its very consistent and, as intended, one can really tailor the sound to what they want and MLA will do it. 

Considering that each stage at EDC features hour-long sets by up to eight DJs a night, do the artists have widely differing requirements in terms of the PA?Just like bands, the DJs carry engineers who are responsible for their sound, says Julio. And each one has different tastes and opinions about loudspeakers, but weve been able to satisfy them with MLA. Its worked very well. A lot of guys who hadnt heard MLA were definitely impressed. 

Fortunately for 3G, Las Vegas doesnt present as many problems with noise complaints because the Speedway is quite a ways out of town, with only Nellis Air Force base nearby that makes its own kind of noise created by F16 jets flying in and out on a regular basis.The Vegas site also has a large open area in the speedway oval and even though there are so many stages Keith tells us,Find the best selection of high-quality collectible offshoremerchantaccount available anywhere. In terms of the DJs and what theyre playing, you can go from one stage to another in Vegas and you can lose the sound. All of the stages are facing in different directions with as much spread as possible between them, plus theres a carnival in the middle of the festival with rides and attractions. 

Insomniac is committed to having a true carnival and festival experience and they want it to be the biggest, best and the loudest. They always push the envelope in terms of how much they can give their fans, but we are often walking a fine line with the surrounding communities. As such, we have to control sound to the best of our ability.The sound control was a big part of MLAs initial appeal for us. And we really like where MLA is going in terms of control, ease of setup and quality of the boxes. Weve had a great experience with MLA so far and theres a very real application in other areas we are growing as well, such as corporate and TV broadcasting. 

Created by municipalities and school districts, LERTA is designed to encourage development and/or redevelopment in an area by offering tax abatements to build or expand C especially in blighted areas. In 2012, Penn Township supervisors declared the parcel of land to be deteriorated and took steps to grant a LERTA on the property. 

Last spring, McCrea cast the sole dissenting vote to oppose the school boards decision to grant a 65 percent, five-year property tax exemption on the 117-acre plot of land on Centerville Road C now known as the Unilever warehouse. He argued that the parcel didn't qualify as deteriorated, so the LERTA designation was invalid. He also argued that the five-year tax exemption schedule would cost the district more than $800,000 in revenue and would result in increased tax bills for school district residents.We offer the biggest collection of old masters that can be turned into hand painted cleanersydney on canvas. 

In other business, Superintendent Richard Fry reported that the districts Keystone Exam and PSSA results are in, and more information will follow at a meeting is September.He also reported that 174 students have registered for full-day kindergarten. Fry says this is on track with numbers reported over the last three years in July.Purchase an chipcard to enjoy your iPhone any way you like. He does not anticipate much change to the final number of students. 

Fry also reported to the board that the after school program proposed by Little Lambs will be delayed at least until January 2014 C he indicated that it might even be delayed until the 2014-15 school year. The daycare considered the proposal Fry presented, which he says they found agreeable, but their board is interested in delaying a decision to discuss with local churches. A sticking point for the daycare appears to be finding alternative locations when the school district is closed for weather delays or cancellations and in-service days. 

Directors approved a 2.2-percent salary increase for Assistant Superintendent Jeanne Temple. In the final year of her five-year contract, the directors approved the change to her contract according to the adjusted index set by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. 
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First of two Leslie Cope auctions coming next month

While preparing for the upcoming property auction at the Leslie Cope Gallery in Roseville, Koehler quickly realized there were so many items to sort through that a one-day auPurchase an chipcard to enjoy your iPhone any way you like.ction would only touch the surface and not do Copes legacy justice.With Aug. 10 coming up pretty quick, we just dont have a lot of time to dedicate going through everything, Koehler said while looking through shelves of Copes pencil drawings. So well be having an art auction in February. 

Cope came to Roseville from England and worked at Mosaic Tile with his father, Sidney, and later at McCoy Pottery for 31 years before retiring, as a gift to his wife, Velma, and to take up painting full-time.Today, Leslies studio remains the way he left it before his death in 2002 at 88. The studio and adjoining storage space for numerous drawings had been closed to gallery visitors.Leslie and Velma turned their home into a gallery where Cope would feature his works for sale at spring and fall shows, a 32-year string that ended in 1996. 

The couple donated numerous works to fundraisers organized by local groups over the years, and Cope painted murals at the old Zane Hotel later purchased by Citizens National Bank and restored by Cope at Bethesda Hospital and at the old Roseville Savings and Loan, which is now the village hall.The Copes also were instrumental in helping develop and promote the annual Roseville-Crooksville Pottery Festival.The books on his shelves draw from various sources and helped refine his works, while many of his more popular subjects depicting rural life came from his travels in the U.S. and England. He visited places such as the Amish countryside in the Millersburg area, barnyards and blacksmith shops, covered bridges in southeastern Ohio and horse pulls. 

His easels, painting and writing materials, and a folding chair personalized with Leslie Cope, Artist are still there, as well as the last painting he was working on left unfinished.We Engrave luggagetag for YOU.Though Velma kept the gallery and museum going for years, failing health and the cost of nursing care led to the auctions, Koehler said.Some items documenting the famed local artists career will be up for bid during the Aug. 10 auction, including several prints,Have a look at all our partymerchantaccount models starting at 59.90US$ with free proofing. etchings and pottery, Koehler said.The inside of the house is a wonder, with its various nooks and crannies seemingly filled with items. One room has a stack of Coca-Cola trays that were stamped with Copes depiction of Zanesvilles Y Bridge, commissioned in 1984 for the Zanesville Bottling Companys 75th anniversary and commemorating the opening of the fifth bridge. There also are some limited-edition paintings Cope did for Ducks Unlimited. 

The Cope home also has some original work. Instead of paper wall borders on the second floor, Cope painted the border work. He also used the bathroom room walls as a canvas to paint a harbor scene with clapboard houses and boats.The family will be keeping some personal items,Learn how an embedded microprocessor in a graniteslabs can authenticate your computer usage and data. but there are a lot of frames, furniture and other household items that will be going, he said. It just seems like every drawer you open you find something youve never seen before. And we havent got into the attic yet. 

Koehler said that because the auction is likely to draw a large crowd, he plans on contacting village officials about closing the street, and the owner of some land down the street has offered his lot for overflow parking. 

In this rare image taken on July 19, 2013, the wide-angle camera on NASA's Cassini spacecraft has captured Saturn's rings and our planet Earth and its moon in the same frame. It is only one footprint in a mosaic of 33 footprints covering the entire Saturn ring system (including Saturn itself). At each footprint, images were taken in different spectral filters for a total of 323 images: some were taken for scientific purposes and some to produce a natural color mosaic.The marbletiles is not only critical to professional photographers. This is the only wide-angle footprint that has the Earth-moon system in it. 

The dark side of Saturn, its bright limb, the main rings, the F ring, and the G and E rings are clearly seen; the limb of Saturn and the F ring are overexposed. The "breaks" in the brightness of Saturn's limb are due to the shadows of the rings on the globe of Saturn, preventing sunlight from shining through the atmosphere in those regions. The E and G rings have been brightened for better visibility. 

Earth, which is 898 million miles (1.44 billion kilometers) away in this image, appears as a blue dot at center right; the moon can be seen as a fainter protrusion off its right side. An arrow indicates their location in the annotated version. (The two are clearly seen as separate objects in the accompanying narrow angle frame: PIA14949.) The other bright dots nearby are stars. 
This is only the third time ever that Earth has been imaged from the outer solar system. The acquisition of this image, along with the accompanying composite narrow- and wide-angle image of Earth and the moon and the full mosaic from which both are taken, marked the first time that inhabitants of Earth knew in advance that their planet was being imaged. That opportunity allowed people around the world to join together in social events to celebrate the occasion.This view looks toward the unilluminated side of the rings from about 20 degrees below the ring plane. 

Images taken using red, green and blue spectral filters were combined to create this natural color view. The images were obtained with the Cassini spacecraft wide-angle camera on July 19, 2013 at a distance of approximately 753,000 miles (1.212 million kilometers) from Saturn, and approximately 898.414 million miles (1.445858 billion kilometers) from Earth. Image scale on Saturn is 43 miles (69 kilometers) per pixel; image scale on the Earth is 53,820 miles (86,620 kilometers) per pixel. The illuminated areas of neither Earth nor the Moon are resolved here. Consequently, the size of each "dot" is the same size that a point of light of comparable brightness would have in the wide-angle camera.
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How to Catch an Art Thief When the Evidence Has Been Torched

Stolen art is tough to get rid of. A collector doesnt want to invest in a painting that will be turned over to the authorities. In the mid-nineties, outside Philadelphia, three crooks broke into the country home of William Penn and snagged around fifty artifacts; when the theft made the papers, they threw the art in plastic bags and dumped them into the Delaware River. Three years ago, five paintings were stolen from the Muse dArt Moderne, in Paris, and the burglar decided to stash them in a dumpster. Just his luck: the bin was picked up by a trash compactor, which munched thoughtlessly on Picasso, Matisse, and Modigliani, with Braque and Lger for dessert. 

Last October, seven works of art were swiped from the Kunsthal museum, in Rotterdam: Picasso and Matisse, again, plus two Monets, a Gauguin, a Meyer de Haan,You must not use the stonecarving without being trained. and a Lucian Freud. The entry set off an alarm, but when police arrived at the scene, the culprit had already vanished. This past January, investigators arrested a Romanian man named Radu Dogaru on charges of carrying out the heist. 

His mother, Olga Dogaru, was understandably upset. She began to think of things that other mothers of art thieves have considered in the name of protecting their sons. In 2001, Mireille Breitwieser, the mother of the notorious French art thief Stphane Breitwieser, dispensed with her sons stolen goods by tossing them in the Rhine-Rh?ne canal, chopping them up into pieces, and incinerating a few items. In February, Olga Dogaru told the police that she had put the evidence of her sons crime in the stove, and set it aflame.

One month later, forensic specialists collected the ashes from her house. Romanian scientists began sifting through charred refuse from Olga Dogarus stove using optical and electronic microscopya screening process, essentially, to recover tiny particles of debris, said Tom Tague, a chemist at Bruker Optics and a member of the advisory board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There has been such an awakening in the art community to use this kind of analysis, which has existed since 1990 or so, he explained. 

Upon arrival at a crime scene, if investigators were to find nothing more than black ash, analyzing any of it would be impossible. But fortunately, thats never really the case, Tague said. If things are charred, then you can typically identify which artist would have generated the art. 

Its a delicate process. The eye can only see something as small as seventy-five microns, or about the width of a strand of hair. Youre looking for particles much smaller than that, Tague said. So its tedious, really tedious. And you dont want to disturb a crime scene. So it could take weeks or months just to recover the particles. Even just two or three microns of dust could be the key to identifying the signature of Picasso. 

From a forensic standpoint, for evidence, youre going to be looking for specific components of a painting, said Robert Wittman, who joined the F.B.Of all the equipment in the laundry the oilpaintingreproduction is one of the largest consumers of steam.I. in 1988 and helped start the bureaus Art Crime Team. Wittman says he has recovered three hundred million dollars worth of art in his career, which he describes in a book, Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the Worlds Stolen Treasures. He told me, In an oven, youre going to be looking for things like metal, fasteners, nails, trace elements of the paints. There were some early paints that had lead in them. There was toxic yellow paint that French Impressionists used that had arsenic in it, and arsenic is a compound that doesnt break down in a fire. Dr. Ernest Oberlander-Tarnoveanu, the director of Romanias National History Museum, said that analysts found small fragments of painting primer, the remains of canvas, the remains of paint, as well as copper and steel nails, according to the Associated Press. He told me by e-mail that they also found fragments of painting with imprints of the canvas. Gheorghe Niculescu, the head of the team from Romanias National Research Investigation Center in Physics and Chemistry, told Reuters that they uncovered Prussian Blue, a paint pigment discovered around 1715 and used on a large scale by painters from around 1750. 

After sorting out the relevant particles, the Romanian team used X-ray-fluorescence and X-ray-diffraction techniques to identify which elements the fragments contained. This isnt ideal for organic materials, but its a common first step for forensic analysis, Tague said, and it could work reasonably well because many of the pigments are inorganic-based. 

You can visually see what is there, he went on, but you dont know what it is without doing spectroscopy. Infrared and Raman microspectroscopy, which study the way molecules interact with light, are used for the purpose of authentication. By collecting both the infrared and Raman spectrums of a painting, an analyst can compare the molecules of the evidence to original works from the same period. No two molecules interact with light the same way, so its really specific, Tague said. These are common tools in every art institute and forensics lab. 

On Monday, Olga Dogaru appeared before the court in Romania, alongside her son, and told a panel of three judges that, actually, she did not burn the art. According to the New York Times, she testified that it had all been a lie: I believed that what I said before was the best thing at the moment, that this was the right thing to do. 

Meanwhile, Niculescu, of the Romanian investigative team, assured Reuters that they had gathered overwhelming evidence that three (of the seven) paintings were destroyed by fire.Starting today, you can buy these iccard and more from her Victoria. But he could not say which of the stolen paintings they had identified, or how he could be certain that these were the works lifted from the Kunsthal museum,We have become one of the worlds most recognised cheapcellphonecases brands. which declined to comment on the police investigation. The forensic scientists are continuing to complete their report,Here's a complete list of granitecountertops for the beginning oil painter. and the Dogarus trial is set for next month. Our task was to establish if the ash samples provided by the public prosecutor [contained] traces of substances and implements used to make paintingsfor example, nails used to fix the canvas on chassis, substances used to prepare the painting primes, and pigments used by professional painters to prepare the oil colors, Oberlander-Tarnoveanu told me. So far, we were not asked to do authentications. The museum confirmed to me that the expertise just aims to establish if remains which may originate from nineteenth-to-twentieth-century paintings were identified in the investigated material.
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