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Pulling Money-Market Funds Into Proper Regulation
I'm among the last people standing who think that Paul Volcker is right about money-market mutual funds. They pose a systemic risk to the financial system and need a radical fix.
That's not going to happen, at least not now. The Securities and Exchange Commission proposes to tighten the regulations governing money funds, but only by a little bit. The new rules won't force much of a change in the way that money funds operate.
The danger posed by these funds was exposed last September, when Lehman Brothers failed and the $62.5 billion Reserve Primary Fund got stuck with its commercial paper. Money funds are expected to maintain their net asset value, or NAV, at $1 a share to keep their customers' savings safe.
Reserve Primary's net asset value dropped to 97 cents -- known in the industry as "breaking the buck." That set off a run, not only on the Reserve Primary but also on the other funds that invest in commercial paper. Billions of dollars fled into Treasury funds, and the commercial-paper market froze. To prevent a meltdown in corporate finance, the government had to ride to the rescue with temporary federal insurance and a backup lending facility.
Enter the Group of Thirty, a private organization that studies international finance issues and risks. In January it issued proposals for reform, after a study that Volcker led.
The G-30 nailed the weaknesses in money-market funds, describing them as institutions with "no capital, no supervision and no safety net," yet offering checking-account and cash-management services like those of regulated commercial banks.
Higher Interest Rates
There's a difference here: Banks have to hold reserves against demand deposits and pay for Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. protection. Money funds offer similar transaction accounts without being burdened by these costs. That's why they usually offer higher interest rates than banks.
In most cases, money-fund sponsors have come to their funds' rescue if any question arose about the $1 value of their shares. Peter Crane, president and founder of Crane Data in Westboro, Mass., says as many as one-third of the funds will have needed support by the time this global financial squeeze abates.
But you cannot be sure that sponsors will always be willing or able to bail out shareholders, says Jack Winters of Hingham, Mass., an expert who worked in the industry from 1976 to 2008 and commented on the SEC proposals.
"Dealers supported auction-rate securities for 25 years until their financial situation precluded it," he says.
Under the new regulations proposed by the SEC, money funds will be required to invest in shorter-term securities, stick to the highest quality, hold a modest amount of liquid capital to satisfy sudden withdrawal demands, and post their holdings on their Web site once a month. All of that pretty much follows the industry's own suggestions, as outlined in a March report issued by the Investment Company Institute, the mutual fund trade association in Washington.

domain: finance


Educators and business leaders, eager to find out how the state’s new economic development plan will focus on workforce training and its role in raising the per capita income in Mississippi, may not agree on a definitive plan, but insist investments in advanced skills training are a necessity to attract — and keep — business and industry.
“If we want to move the state’s economy toward higher-paying, high-technology jobs, workforce training is singularly important to that process,” said Dwight Evans, president and CEO of Mississippi Power, president of the Mississippi Economic Council and co-chair of the Mississippi Partnership for Economic Development. “Attracting high-tech jobs and industries to the state should not be our only goal. We also want to ensure that we seek high technology applications for the jobs and industries that already have a strong presence in Mississippi. We have a strong community college, junior college and university system in our state that can readily adapt to these changing needs and is, in fact, already making strides in that direction.”
Accomplishing that goal will require a major investment, said Dr. Clyde Muse, president of Hinds Community College, the state’s third largest college.
“If we are going to train this workforce for better-paying, high-tech jobs, then we’re going to have to be willing to invest in advanced skill training in our community colleges because new technologies create intense competition for business across the country,” Muse said.
“Any economic development plan must have, as one of its centerpieces, a vision of a highly-trained, technically-skilled workforce for business and industry. If we look at what attracts business and industry to locate — and stay — in the state, we think about a lot of incentives, but one thing’s for sure: if you cannot provide a highly-skilled workforce that will enable that business to be locally competitive, they’re not going to stay. Neither are they going to come. In many cases, economic developers either don’t communicate, or either internalize, that fact because after the hunt, the big question is: do you have the ability to train my workforce?”
Johnny Franklin, director of special projects for the Public Education Forum of Mississippi, said the state must first analyze its economic development activities, their effectiveness and compare it to what other successful states are doing.
“The plan must be unique to Mississippi, not a copy of another state’s,” he said. “For any economic growth to take place in Mississippi, we must have an educated and trained workforce. Everyone who speaks on or everything you read on successful economic development efforts, says this is a common requirement. At some point we must stop the rhetoric on this issue and develop a plan for accomplishing it. What must we do, what changes must occur for Mississippi to insure a prospective business or industry that they will have an educated and trained workforce?”
Pamela P. Smith, spokesperson for the Mississippi State Board of Trustees of the Institutions of Higher Learning, said raising the state’s ranking of in-home computer and Internet access is imperative to workforce development. Only 25% of Mississippians have computers in their homes, and only 13.6% have home Internet access. Alaska has the highest percentage of households with computers at 62.4%, and the highest home Internet access at 44.1%.
“On the technology side, we are 50th in the states for access in the home to the Internet,” Smith said. “That’s going to be a major part of workforce development as we move forward. Not just e-mail, but access to the Web. Through an organized effort like the one the governor is working on, there is much more we can do in research, and in working with businesses, to make sure they have the skilled workforce we need. We are so anxious to get involved in this. We have very skilled people at these campuses teaching or doing research that directly relates to that goal and we just have to get it organized.”
Dr. Olon Ray, executive director of the State Board for Community and Junior Colleges, said many options should be considered.
“Whatever choices we make, at the core, there must be an increasing role for training and education,” Ray said. “Without that, we cannot succeed. We must start concentrating more on training for advanced skills positions if we’re ever going to raise the per capita income in the state and be competitive with the rest of the nation. We cannot continue to train people to do routine, normal jobs.”
According to the U.S. Commerce Department Census Bureau report released last month, Mississippi led the nation in service industry job growth between 1992 and 1997. Gambling provided the state with a 66.9% gain in employment.
Controversy surrounds the education of casino workers in an industry that accounts for nearly 35,000 jobs in the state. In FY2000, the 8% gaming tax will generate about $150 million, or 4.4%, of the general fund. Yet Mississippi’s colleges cannot offer courses needed for its workforce without legislative approval. (Please see related story on page 12 of this week’s MBJ.)
“Gaming is a major employment source,” said Ray. “The state needs to be involved in the training picture for gaming-specific professional programs just as we would for any other business.”
Before new training programs can be successful, Mississippi’s workforce must be motivated, said Gary Blair, president of Batesville Tooling & Design, Inc.
“I’ve always had a deep desire for self-improvement, but I also had to be teachable,” said Blair, who started his business in 1991 after working for many years in a manufacturing plant. Last year, Batesville Tooling & Design was recognized by the Mississippi Business Journal’s Fast 40 program as one of the state’s fastest-growing companies.
A mentoring program could be an important element in the state’s plan, Blair said.
“People need mentors, not just figureheads, who will critique tasks accomplished for enhanced repeat jobs,” he said. “Employees need the proper time to achieve proficiency in a particular area before moving on, and to work in an environment that matches their personality.
Editor’s note: This story is part four in a series of articles examining the revamping of Mississippi’s economic development strategy. In the coming weeks, the Mississippi Business Journal will take a look at the forces driving the state’s economy into a new century.
Contact MBJ contributing writer Lynne Wilbanks Jeter at email@example.com or (601) 853-3967.
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Our founder, Janean Mann, wrote an article on LinkedIn about why she choose El Paso to start Junes. Link to the article on LinkedIn.
All too often people think they need to move to another part of the country (or world) to make an impact. We divorce social impact from our day-to-day, making it something that we have to set aside time for, or travel dramatic distances to get to. Social impact is not synonymous with volunteer, and from where I’m sitting there is a lot of work we need to do on a local level to change the way our world works.
Conscious capitalism is the way of the future, the entrepreneurs that will be the most successful are those who commit to building organizations that give back to communities. In tandem with this cultural shift, more consumers have an elevated consciousness about the products they buy. The result being a slow shift in collective buying power from self-centered consumers to people who care about the impact of their purchases. This is fantastic news. What’s even better? People don’t need to move to a major city to build an impact company, they can do so from their own backyard.
I’m from El Paso, Texas, a city with over 800,000 thousand residents bordering Mexico. Just across the border is Ciudad Juárez, a larger city with over 2 million residents. Though El Paso is most certainly not a ‘small town’, it is a little behind from the rest of the country in terms of impact driven work culture. Though we have a budding environmental community, due to our proximity to the border there is significant cultural impact on El Paso’s business culture. Everything from gender roles, family values, and how people engage at work skews more traditional. As a result, El Paso didn’t feel like the right place to build my career, I needed to move to a major city.
I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit, it’s part of what drove me to move to New York. Though I’ve always had a desire to create, over the years I’ve had a growing desire to build a company that directly impacts people in a positive way. It’s no secret that US coastal cities are becoming harder places for young entrepreneurs to build their companies. Though New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco have major appeal, with the rising cost of living, combined with the trials and tribulations of starting a business, budding entrepreneurs need to consider relocating to other cities for a chance to grow their organizations as well as have a positive influence in their hometowns. I experienced this directly when I decided to move back from New York to El Paso.
The day I visited Juárez with friends for the first time since the drug war had decelerated was a Christmas vacation in 2013. Visiting a fabric store, I came up with the idea for a product but as I walked around the eerily empty streets, I was struck by all the fliers of missing women. A gruesome repercussion of the drug war was femicide. A chaotic, lawless city, deepened the machismo culture which sanctioned women's kidnapping, abuse and murder of hundreds of women. I thought, “Why is this still happening and what are we doing about it?”. That’s when I knew I wanted to build my company around a purpose, a cause, a call-for-action to try to help the women of Juárez.
This decision wasn’t dominated by a desire to leave New York, but part of a strategic plan to build a company I believe in, have a positive influence in my hometown, and adding to the El Paso and Juárez local economies. I would not have been able to bring my company, Junes, where it is today with the financial pressures of New York.
My point is, you don’t need to build your company in a major city to grow a successful impact driven organization. In my experience, you’ll create more financial stability and facilitate change in your local community.

domain: sociology


Clarence Cazalot, chairman, president and CEO of Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO), jumped up Houston Business Journal’s Highest-Paid Executives of Public Companies list from No. 15 last year to No. 1 this year.
The list is ranked by total compensation, and Cazalot’s increased 208.8 percent from last year — the largest increase of any executive on the list.
Mark Ellis, president and CEO of Linn Energy LLC (NYSE: LINE), ranks No. 16, but his 94.9 percent increase was the second-highest on the list.
Also of note, this year’s list includes only one executive per public company, so more companies are represented. Equilar, an executive compensation data firm, provided data for the list.
Last week, HBJ revealed Houston's Top 100 Public Companies list. Print and digital subscribers can read more about Houston's Top 100 Public Companies in Houston Business Journal’s Public/Private Companies Report.
Click on the image at right for a slideshow of the top five executives on the Highest-Paid Executives of Public Companies list.
Have you missed other top of the list news? Click here for past reports.


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This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the anime series Gurren Lagann, which is trademarked by Gainax Corporation.
For the most part, characters depicted in this work are characters created and owned by Kazuki Nakashima and Hiroyuki Imaishi. I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Gurren Lagann. There are a couple minor original characters appearing of my own design, however.
The story I tell about the former members of Team Dai Gurren is my own invention, and it is not purported or believed to be part of Gurren Lagann's story canon. This story is for entertainment only and is not part of the official story line.
I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. And I am very grateful to Messrs. Nakashima and Imaishi for sharing their wonderful story with the rest of us. Without their anime creation, my story would be sans raison d'être.
This is the story of a man who had made an uneasy peace with his Destiny. By piercing the heavens and creating them anew, he had saved the Spiral Races throughout the Universe, including his own. In so doing, he enabled the friends he loved and all humankind to carry on with their lives-to love, to prosper, to build the next generation beginning with their own homes and families. But his victories had come at a terrible price, losing those most precious to him. He had resigned himself to wander the Surface for the rest of his days while cherishing their memories in his heart, though longing to be near them in spirit once again. But Destiny would seek out the man one final time to be reconciled once and for all, forever changing him in ways he never could have conceived.
"Just a little longer, Boota," the man said, concentrating intently on the shallow water rippling between the rocks below him.
"Bui," his little pigmole companion said in reply, lying on the ground next to where the man had set down his rucksack and bed roll. This was the spot where they would make camp for the night after another day sojourning through the vast wilderness.
While he was grateful for the occasional opportunity to earn an honest day's wage for an honest day's work, he certainly enjoyed travelling on foot from settlement to settlement. It gave him the opportunity to explore the Surface, which, after all, was the reason he and his brother had ventured from their underground village in the first place. Over the last several years, he'd settled into a comfortable routine. He would explore the vast wilderness heading in no particular direction until his travels brought him to a village or settlement. There he would spend some time getting to know the people, offering to help them drill for water. Sometimes he would help plant gardens to grow vegetables so people could better sustain themselves. And everywhere he went, he planted flowers. Those were the moments he looked forward to the most, each time renewing the promise he had made what seemed like so long ago. But after a few weeks, or maybe even a month, he would leave suddenly and return to the wilderness. This was where he felt most at peace.
He couldn't even begin to figure how many miles he'd walked over the last several years as he wandered to and fro about the earth. His travels had taken him to the tops of mountain peaks, the bottoms of massive canyons, from one side of vast prairies to the other, through raging rivers, and across painted deserts. He had come to treasure each of those moments as precious in its own way. The memory of the places he had seen made the perils of harsh terrain, hot days, cold nights, poisonous plants, swarming insects, biting reptiles and vicious animals seem worthwhile.
Yesterday the man and his furry companion had wandered out from underneath the dense forest canopy and onto the river plain. Autumn was upon them, and the leaves of the broadleaf trees were all turning their vibrant colors before falling to the ground. Soon enough the trees would be bare and the rains would come. And the snow would follow along shortly afterward. Spring would come once again and green everything up before the lush foliage would blot out the sunlight from the forest floor once again. He looked forward to enjoying another complete cycle, finding himself never tiring of the wonder of it all.
Following the river upstream, he had soon found himself in the foothills. He hadn't been able to make time as he would had he headed out on the flatlands right away, though this time through he wasn't in that much of a hurry either. While tomorrow would see them likely heading deeper in to the hilly country, for now they would rest along the headwaters of this great river near a patch of late-blooming flowers. They would blaze a trail towards the flatlands before too long, though, knowing he would need to make good time travelling south to stay ahead of the inevitable change of seasons. He had spent the last winter in a settlement so isolated he was unable to leave until spring. As much as he had liked getting to know its people, he had nearly gone stir crazy from his wanderlust. This year he planned to stay ahead of the hard frost by heading southward, so he could keep digging and planting before returning in the spring.
He regretted in that moment leaving his cloak on the shore, shuddering slightly as the crisp air foretelling of the coming winter nipped at his bare back and chest. The fellow known as Simon the Digger stood with each foot perched on a rock in the middle of the stream, holding his staff above his head. In such a pose his well-toned form could well be compared to that of a marble statue from days of antiquity save for the scraggly beard and unkempt dark hair tied back behind his head. The staff pointed downward, with the rock drill at its end moving side-to-side slightly as he followed his quarry's movements.
He had come to depend upon both not only while drilling for water, but also to help stave off hunger during the periods in between. Over time, he had grown pretty skilled at spear fishing. He looked forward to being successful again as his empty stomach growled impatiently. The fish had come upstream to spawn before winter. Several of them swished lazily around in the shallow water below Simon's feet as the late afternoon sun rippled upon its surface. "We'll fry up some fish tonight and eat fine for sure, lil' buddy."
At length, Simon thrust his staff into the water with a determined grunt. "Hah!" he cried, as its point found its mark.
"Bui! Buibui!" cheered Boota from the shore as he chased his tail in a dance of celebration.
"Not bad if I do say so myself," he beamed, turning to face his little furry companion as he held up his staff to examine the speared fish as it wriggled helplessly on the tip of his drill. "Not bad at-"
Simon's words caught in his throat as he grabbed reflexively at his chest. His breath was taken away in an instant by an intense pain unlike anything he'd ever experienced. The staff fell from his other hand, landing in the water just before Simon collapsed.
"Bui?! BUI!" Boota squealed with alarm as the swift current carried off the speared fish belly up out of sight. The frigid water surrounding his face and body quickly brought Simon back to his senses. Spluttering wildly, he managed to grab his staff and crawl up onto the river bank as the pain subsided. "Bui!" his little companion squeaked as he jumped up on his shoulder and nuzzled Simon's ear with concern.
"Dunno, Boota," Simon panted. "I don't know what's going on! I never felt anything like-"
He grabbed at his chest again as he doubled over, screaming in agony in response to pain that had overtaken him. Simon felt Boota leap from his shoulder as he fell forward, landing roughly on the hard ground. He could tell a measure of his own life force was being forcibly drained from his very body. But within a moment the terrible sensation passed, though he was still struggling to control his breathing. He had come very near to blacking out.
Is my life close to ending? Simon thought as he looked up at the horizon and pulled himself up slowly with his forearms. He had heard of people experiencing such symptoms before their hearts had stopped beating, but was he really old enough now to experience them himself? Looking up toward where the sun had begun to sink below the horizon, he believed he beheld what, to him, could only be called an angel.
Simon's heart pounded in his chest as his mind struggled to accept what his senses perceived. He wasn't sure if this was a trick of a dying mind or if he really was seeing what he thought he was seeing. To him, the very clouds in the sky had formed themselves into her perfect likeness in silhouette, backlit by the setting sun. He could even see what appeared to be her long hair glinting with the colors of the rainbow.
"NIA!" he screamed, falling on his chest again as he reached a trembling hand skyward. His love, lost to him years before, was coming for him so they could be together once again. "Oh, Nia, I'm ready!" he cried out as tears began running down the sides of his face. Simon the Digger surrendered his spirit, believing his next breath would be his last.
But it wasn't. Neither was the next one. Nor was the one after that.
Simon looked up, grunting confusedly as the gamine figure appeared to wag a finger at him. "Huh?"
The image gestured gracefully toward the eastern sky where the Evening Star shone brightly against the twilight. Simon strained his eyes as he turned his head but closed them quickly as an eerie light flashed brightly. He started from the deafening noise that followed, but knew instantly it wasn't thunder. It was a sonic boom.
Simon looked back toward the setting sun, noticing the colors of the sky had rearranged themselves back into their brilliant yet random tapestry. Whatever he had believed he was seeing a moment ago, he saw nothing but the last vestiges of an early autumn sunset now.
Glancing back toward the spot in the sky from where the noise had come, Simon lay transfixed upon the scene before him. Simon could make out what appeared to be a pair of Grapearl fighting mecha as they trailed smoke and flames behind them in a lazy arc toward the horizon all the way back to the ring of mist where a teleportation halo had already slammed shut. From what he could tell, one of the mechs had lost control of almost all of its control surfaces as the other tried valiantly yet vainly to guide them both down safely.
Simon's last thought was whether the Grapearl's pilots managed to activate their emergency radiobeacons before blackness overcame him.
"Are you hurt?"
Simon groaned into consciousness as he responded woozily to the speaker's voice, which at that moment was shaking his shoulder to rouse him. "No, I don't think so."
He blinked a moment as the flashlight's beam shone brightly in his eyes. The sensation of the crisp air biting at his bare back and chest returned, stronger now that night had fallen, causing him to shiver.
"You are Simon the Digger, correct?"
"Yes, that's right."
"C'mon, on your feet then," the voice said as he saw a gloved hand reach down into his view. Simon took it in his and slowly pulled himself up to his full height. It was nearly dark now, which made it difficult for Simon to see exactly who was talking to him. The spotlights on the two hovercrafts in front of him shining behind the man made it difficult for Simon to see his face.
"Bui!" Simon heard before Boota jumped up on his shoulder. He recognized the soldier wearing the battle dress uniform from the militia which guarded Kamina City, his former home. "Here," the man as he held out Simon's cloak. He took it graciously and pulled slowly over his head. "Thanks."
"Sure," the soldier replied. "Would you like some help with your things? I've been asked to accompany you to my superior."
"I'm rather interested in just who you guys are, who your superior is and why you're all way out here? Are you rescuing the pilots of those Grapearls?"
"I'm Captain Slegnejm, and the homely mug driving is Sergeant Eflowwk. We're with the Fifth Engineering Brigade."
"You mean you're Dayakka's men?" Simon interjected.
Simon felt better knowing these men planned to take him to see Dayakka and that his old friend was running this show. He was sure the Grapearl pilots would be in good hands.
The soldier chuckled. "Well, we were. We both served under Dayakka back when I was a lieutenant. He commands all the Engineers now. Can I help you with your things?"
Simon glanced at the hovercraft behind him. Another similar unit stood by a short distance beyond, manned by two more soldiers who pointed at him as they gestured to one another excitedly.
"No, that won't be necessary. I feel fine now, except I'm a little tired." Simon was still having trouble figuring why he had blacked out, though. Perhaps next time he passed through Kamina City he would have a physical examination performed on him. He reasoned he wasn't getting any younger, after all.
"Glad to hear that," the man replied, picking up Simon's rucksack and staff anyway and placing them in the back of the hovercraft's open canopy. "We've been looking forward to meeting you. Now if you would take a seat, we would like to be away."
Simon sighed. "Well, we might as well go along, Boota," he said as he shrugged his shoulders. The little creature settled down under one of the flaps of the rucksack as Simon climbed in and settled himself. If nothing else, this would put them into Kamina City a couple of days ahead of time, helping him keep ahead of the hard frost the winter would bring. Despite the good fortune, Simon felt a strange sense of foreboding welling up within him just the same.
They travelled westward for some time while the harvest moon shone brightly and low in the sky behind them. The two hovercrafts raced across the high plain while Simon glanced occasionally at the stars to keep mental notes of their route. They had followed the river bottoms out of the valley, skirting the foothills. By his estimate, they were a good half-day's ride north and east of Kamina City. It seemed to Simon these militia troops were some ways out of their normal theatre of operations. He nibbled at what was left of the biscuits and dried meat the men had offered him, grateful for the opportunity to satiate his growling stomach after their dinner was interrupted. Boota had already fallen back asleep underneath the flap of his rucksack.
The glow he'd seen on the horizon some ways back finally revealed itself as a contingent of Grapearls and other various pieces of equipment milling around in the middle of the grassy prairie ahead of them. Light plants had been deployed to aid the work. Simon pulled his driller's goggles down over his eyes and stood to look toward the site. Bracing himself on the roll cage surrounding the craft's cockpit, Simon could only stare in shock as they arrived. His mind did not want to comprehend what was plain to his eyes.
"Oh, please, dear God, not them!"
The combat engineers along with their Grapearl escorts had managed to extinguish the fire, but they were only just now beginning to clear the wreckage and rubble from the crash site. Simon saw what he now realized must have been the two Grapearls he'd seen earlier falling out of the sky after their teleport. While good portions of the two mechs were crumpled beyond recognition or scorched from incendiary impacts, the markings and insignia he could see on the undamaged portions were unmistakable.
"GIMMY! DARRY!" Simon cried as he leapt from the hovercraft before it had come to a stop. He put his hand to his forehead in a look of desperation before turning to growl angrily at the two soldiers who had brought him here. "Where the hell are the Adai twins? Are they all right?"
"We don't know ourselves, sir," the soldier replied. His partner held up his hands, gesturing in a manner suggesting Simon calm down. "I'm sure we'll be able to find out soon enough how the Commanders are-"
"Then find out, and find out right now!" Simon barked as he drew his goggles down around his neck. "JUST WHO IN THE HELL DO YOU-"
"They know exactly who you are, Simon, which is why they brought you to me right away."
Simon turned toward where the familiar voice had come. "Well met, Dayakka."
"I was hoping we might meet again under happier circumstances, my friend," the other man said as he and Simon clasped each other's shoulders exchanging a hearty greeting.
Dayakka turned to the soldiers operating the hovercraft as he ran a hand through his close-cropped graying hair. "Leave his things here and return to Central. We'll be along after we mop up."
The two men thumped their chests in salute before one of them lugged Simon's rucksack and staff over the side of the craft and down to the ground. "Bui! Bui!" Boota squeaked as he emerged from the rucksack and jumped up on Simon's shoulder. "Thank you for the lift," he said to them both.
"Gladly," the first man replied. "Yeah, not every day we get to meet *the* Simon the Digger," said the other. A moment later, the marker lights from the speedy craft were lost in the murky darkness as they sped off toward Kamina City.
Dayakka chuckled. "Actually, it was good I heard your voice, Simon. I would have hardly had recognized you otherwise. You ought to try partaking in the miracles of modern civilization more often. Like shaving," he said, sniffing the air noisily in Simon's direction for effect. "And showering." Simon could see the laugh lines and crow's-feet beginning to form on his friend's face as he smiled at him.
"Well, you know that I'd always wanted to explore the Surface, so now I have the time," Simon chuckled good-naturedly at his friend's rebuke. "There isn't much by way of modern conveniences out here in the bush, you know, but I usually clean up before I take on a new drilling job or plant flowers. I did, however, sort of take an unexpected cold shower before your men found me."
Simon whistled as he noticed the epaulets on Dayakka's uniform. "Those men said you'd been promoted over all the engineers, but I didn't know they went and made you general!"
"The mountain of paperwork got bigger, so they had to promote me to a higher rank so I could still see over it, I guess," Dayakka snorted. "Sometimes I think I'm just the only one thick-headed enough to take the damn job. But someone had to do it, and Kiyoh and the kids like that I'm home most every night now."
"But then why would you be out here during field operations?"
"Well, this particular mission called for it. Come with me please, Simon; I need to talk to you. And there are things you need to see."
Simon hoisted his rucksack over one shoulder and slung his staff over the other. A moment later, he and Dayakka stood near the nearly completely demolished cockpit of Commander Darry Adai's mech.
"Dayakka, are Gimmy and Darry..."
"I can assure you they're both alive, but in pretty rough shape. They got the snot beat out of them for sure. I've been getting updates on their condition every half hour or so. Their vitals are stable now, although it sounds as though Gimmy is still unconscious. Amazingly enough, Darry was talking when we pulled her out of her cockpit but sustained a compound fracture to her left leg. We had to sedate her for her own good as she became hysterical when we told her that her brother was unresponsive."
Simon felt his heart ache for the two kids. Well, they aren't exactly kids anymore, he thought with a sense of nostalgia. He had sat next to his friend Dayakka and his family several years ago when Gimmy and Darry Adai had graduated at the top of their class from Lagann Academy. Then they had accepted their commissions with the space forces. A few months back, Simon learned that they had returned to Kamina City for a "special assignment", and figured this certainly must have had to do with it. He took pride in their being two of the best pilots in the joint Terran fleet, as well as growing into fine young adults and respected officers. Both were married now; Gimmy's son was a toddler already.
Simon reflected silently how he hadn't been much more than a kid himself that day he and Kamina left their underground village with Lagann what seemed like an eternity ago.
He whistled as he inspected the ruined cockpit of Darry's mech up close. The engagement must have been brutal. "I'm certainly glad Darry was still talking after taking a blow like that on the lower frontal quadrant." Simon knew full well she must have parried just quick enough to avoid a direct hit by an ion cannon blast. A lesser pilot would certainly have been incinerated instantly.
"Well, I'm sure The Tigress going to catch hell from her husband over this. He's been imploring upon her to take that promotion and let someone else play stick jockey."
A moment later, Simon and Dayakka looked up at the smashed hulk of Gimmy's Grapearl. The cockpit had sustained tremendous blunt force impact, requiring the engineers to extract him through a hole cut into the back of the mech. Simon shook his head in disbelief. "I don't understand, Dayakka. Who would do such a thing to them?"
"Let me begin by saying that everything you've seen and heard here is very sensitive and under no circumstances can be talked about publicly."
Simon nodded. "These two volunteered to test pilot a new super teleportation system we've been working on to conduct a reconnaissance mission to The Periphery," Dayakka continued. "This process expands upon the rudimentary understanding we have of the process you yourself used to transport us to Nia and the Anti-Spirals during our final battle with them, but requires much less Spiral Energy."
"Well, looking at these scorch marks, I'm guessing they didn't just teleport into an asteroid field."
"You are correct, Simon. They did indeed beam into the middle of a firefight."
"On the Periphery? Who could have attacked them out there? I've heard it's about as much of a backwater as this place," Simon replied, waving his hand around him.
"We wanted to see for ourselves whether or not what we have heard from the other Races was true. And today, we received our answer."
Dayakka held up a small imager and queued it up. An image appeared showing what appeared to be a battle between two opposing star fleets recorded by the external cameras on Gimmy and Darry's mechs. Shortly into the video, Simon heard the alarm in their voices-they had been discovered and began taking fire. A number of hostiles teleported directly in front of Gimmy and Darry's mechs. After a minute or so of brilliant maneuvering, Simon could see the enemy forces ganging up on them. He could see the punishing fire and melee bludgeoning the enemy mechs were dishing out before the images abruptly cut to blue screen.
He shut off the imager and put it back into his pocket. "You will recall the day Team Dai Gurren had defeated the Anti-Spirals, we had been contacted by a number of other Spiral Races. Though our abilities to teleport our own fleets are rudimentary, we have had some successful diplomatic missions to some of the nearer systems." Dayakka hung his head. "However, some of the Races living on the Periphery are now starting to wage war on one another. Several have already been subjugated. We are concerned for our well-being and that of our allies.
"But those races have been kin for centuries!"
"That may be so, Simon, but it appears the hawks among them crave more Spiral Power, just as the Anti-Spirals predicted. The conflict may be in a backwater part of the galaxy, sure. But you've just witnessed their intentions. And this footage confirms that everything we can do, so can they. We fear they may bring the fight to us in time, and what would likely result."
Simon nodded. The Spiral Nemesis they had all sacrificed so much to avert would be all but inevitable. The cataclysmic event believed to hail the end of the Universe had come to be known in a darkly jovial manner as the corollary of the theory used to describe its beginning. The Big Crunch.
Dayakka turned and walked away from the ruined mech toward a small hovercraft parked near where a mobile command post had been established. "The intense fighting Gimmy and Darry found themselves in severely depleted their energy stores. We didn't think they had enough juice to make it home; especially given many of the power conduits to their prototype teleportation equipment were destroyed. We despaired they would ever make it back. But by some miracle they must have managed to focus the very last of their own Spiral Power and navigate their way here. It must have taken an enormous toll on them, as their vital signs were dangerously low when we extracted them."
Simon shook his head as if to clear it as Dayakka's words sank in. "What's with you, Simon?"
"Er, nothing, Dayakka. Just recalling something from before, that's all." Could those have been the very moments he felt his own Spiral Power being siphoned away?
"It was something of a happy accident that I could retrieve all of you with one operation," Dayakka chuckled as he climbed into the hovercraft and motioned Simon to do the same. Boota settled down in his usual spot once Simon had stowed his gear.
"Indeed, my friend. Tell me, how is everyone? You and Kiyoh have a son now too, right?"
"Yes indeed," Dayakka replied, poking a button on the craft's console to pop up a small image of the boy with the rest of their family. "Dano had a high fever though when I left, so I should call home to see how he's doing. Anne seems to like doting on her kid brother, which helps Kiyoh and I out a lot. She's such a good girl, you know."
The glow of the morning sun had just begun to light up the eastern sky as the two men sped across the landscape toward Kamina City. They had a fine time catching up and laughing about bygone days as they went.

domain: literature


In a move many expected, the Reserve Bank has this week lowered the official cash rate to 0.75%, hopeful it will help stimulate employment and income growth, set against a backdrop of improving housing markets in both Sydney and Melbourne.
The decision, which was largely anticipated, marks a third cut in less than four months since the RBA first took action to lower rates back in June.
In a statement accompanying the decision, RBA Governor Philip Lowe said:
While the outlook for the global economy remains reasonable, the risks are tilted to the downside. The US–China trade and technology disputes are affecting international trade flows and investment as businesses scale back spending plans because of the increased uncertainty.
A gentle turning point, however, appears to have been reached with economic growth a little higher over the first half of this year than over the second half of 2018. The low level of interest rates, recent tax cuts, ongoing spending on infrastructure, signs of stabilisation in some established housing markets and a brighter outlook for the resources sector should all support growth.
There are further signs of a turnaround in established housing markets, especially in Sydney and Melbourne. In contrast, new dwelling activity has weakened and growth in housing credit remains low.
The Board took the decision to lower interest rates further this week to support employment and income growth and to provide greater confidence that inflation will be consistent with the medium-term target.
It is reasonable to expect that an extended period of low interest rates will be required in Australia to reach full employment and achieve the inflation target. The Board will continue to monitor developments, including in the labour market, and is prepared to ease monetary policy further if needed to support sustainable growth in the economy, full employment and the achievement of the inflation target over time.
The new standard variable rate for home loans will take effect on 22 October.
With home loan rates falling all around, now could be perfect time to get your foot in the door of the property market. If you already have a home loan it could be the prime time to refinance your current deal to a better value offer. Before purchasing any new piece of property, be sure to book a pre-purchase inspection with Your Building Inspector.
You can find RBA Governor Philip Lowe’s full statement here https://www.rba.gov.au/media-releases/2019/mr-19-27.html


text:
Series: IMF Working Papers
Author(s): Ari Aisen , and Michael Franken
Publisher: INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND
Publication Date: 01 February 2010
Keywords: credit boom, bust cycles, money market, banking, banking system,
This paper empirically estimates the main determinants of bank credit growth during the 2008 financial crisis. Using a sample covering over 80 countries, this paper finds that larger bank credit booms prior to the...


text:
We really wanted to post this yesterday, but didn’t want to overwhelm you with too much Blake Lively. Oh, who are we kidding, you can never have too much, and […]
Post Tagged with: "valentino"
We love it when the claws come out in the fashion world, although we don’t believe Valentino meant anything malicious by his comments regarding Raf Simons’ potential employment at Dior.
The New Year’s Eve film itself contains a cast full of Hollywood’s finest A-listers, so why should the Los Angeles premiere be any different? There were so many spectacular looks […]

domain: artistic


text:
bill - 2:33 am on May 21, 2012 (gmt 0)
Yahoo Said in Talks to Sell 20% of Alibaba for $7 Billion [bloomberg.com]
Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) is in talks to sell about 20 percent of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. for about $7 billion, a deal that would cut by half its stake in China’s largest e- commerce provider, a person with knowledge of the matter said.
Alibaba Group, which has been trying to buy back the stake in itself for more than a year, may announce a deal as soon as next week, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. Yahoo has come close to selling the stake in the past and failed, and it may not reach an agreement this time either, the person said.

domain: news


text:
Strategic Monitor Farm East to focus on managing lower inputs
With ever-increasing pressure for farmers to find ways to cut costs, Strategic Monitor Farm East will start to look at managed lower inputs during the next 12 months.
Over the last few years, cereals grower Brian Barker has been using a traffic light system of low, medium and high inputs depending on the potential of each field.
Brian farms at EJ Barker & Sons is a family farm partnership and contracting business in Suffolk which dates back to 1957.
The 513ha arable farm business uses a traditional 12-year rotation, incorporating winter wheat for feed, herbage grass seed and break crops of spring barley, beans, oilseed rape and linseed.
Varieties to be tested include KWS Silverstone, KWS Santiago, KWS Siskin, Graham and Shabras.
Brian will then use disease monitoring and yield mapping to compare any responses to the different levels of investment.
Paul Gosling, AHDB crop protection scientist, said: “In the last few years, plant breeders have been producing varieties with good resistance and little or no yield penalty.
This opens the possibility of reducing fungicide inputs, but the question is how far can you cut without losing yield to disease – and do these varieties respond strongly to fungicides due to greening or other physiological effects?
The wheat will be direct drilled at the end of September, following linseed.
Teresa Meadows, AHDB knowledge exchange manager, said: “The aim of this demonstration is to explore how fungicide investment can be varied according to variety and the season, helping us to understand how we can be flexible to match the crop’s progress in-season.”
- Cover crops and crop establishment demonstration, to further investigate nitrate leaching;
- Boosting early crop biomass demonstration.
Developments at the Strategic Farm will be shared throughout the year through blogs, articles and videos.
The vision of the Strategic Farm East is to understand the farmed environment and develop a long-term strategy to increase productivity and produce a high-quality end product without having a negative effect on the farmed environment.
The project will bridge the gap between research and practical farming and provide a programme of demonstrations, subject to full net-margin cost-benefit analysis, which is relevant to the current situation facing UK farming.

domain: food


text:
Are Electro-Acoustics and the Vernacular the Largets Developments in 20th Century Music?
2624 words 11 pagesEAMMON MSETFI Contextual studies (MU314) Convenor: Tim Howle Essay 1
Denis Smalley has suggested that the two most important musical developments in the 20th Century are the domains of the 'electro-acoustic' and the 'vernacular'. To what extent is his assumption correct?
This piece will demonstrate an understanding of the developments in 20th century music, with a detailed view on the path and expansion of electro-acoustic technology and of the vernacular. This will also be highlighting the theoretical ideas that made these large developments possible and the technological innovations that created the foundations for both these areas.
After composers, Wagner and Brahms, who stretched the boundaries of …show more content…
Stockhausen was a critic of popular music and its dependence on repetition, which he thought, was very predictably, although his work became very influential for popular musicians. His technique was most influential on popular musicians; he was amongst the first to implicate sampling and synthesized sound to compositions, the influence can be seen in Pop, rock and jazz in the 1960s notably on the Beatles Sgt Peppers (1967) album where an extensive use of magnetic tape sampling and tape delays were used. Many popular musicians have credited Stockhausen, his use of sampling and synthesized sound inspired a generation of popular music, where his techniques have developed.
How Post-war recording technologies gave birth to electro-acoustic technology and popular music
During the war, a mass demand for technology was created, Eric Hobsbawm describes this period as a “technological earthquake” (P.41 Timothy D. Taylor, 2001); this necessity for communications technology was vital for the war effort. Throughout this period the Germans created Magnetic tape to send coded messages, as well as to record radio broadcasts (this was later used extensively in early electro-acoustic compositions). After the

domain: history


Alex Maese, whose career as a jockey spanned nearly 30 years, died early Thursday morning in Pasadena, Calif., from complications of recent surgery.
A life-size bronze statue of Seabiscuit and his jockey, George "The Iceman" Woolf, was unveiled July 17 at the Remington Carriage Museum in Cardston, Alberta, Canada.
Santa Anita Park announced Dec. 9 a list of five finalists for the 61st annual Santa Anita George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, with the winner to be announced in January.
The Seabiscuit Heritage Foundation and Frank R. Howard Memorial Hospital - built 80 years ago by Charles S. Howard, owner of Seabiscuit - are slated to benefit from a special Ridgewood Ranch tour and reception in honor of the legendary runner's 75th birthday.
Jon Court, a Florida native who has won more than 3,000 career races, has been selected as the winner of the 2007 Santa Anita George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award.
Less than two months after his Nov. 26 retirement from racing, former jockey Gary Stevens is considering an invitation to guest star in the ABC original family series Wildfire.
Robby Albarado, the regular rider on Horse of the Year favorite Mineshaft, is the winner of the 2004 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, Santa Anita Park announced Thursday.
Robby Albarado, Gary Baze, Julie Krone, Randall Meier and Richard Migliore have been nominated for the 2004 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, Santa Anita Park announced this week.
- By Jack Shinar
George Woolf's "lucky saddle," which he used when he guided Seabiscuit to victory over War Admiral in the 1938 Pimlico Special, is the centerpiece of a major auction of much of the great rider's racing collection July 20 in Beverly Hills.
Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens, who portrays the late George Woolf in the upcoming Universal film, "Seabiscuit: An American Legend," will resume riding at Santa Anita on Feb. 14.
"Spider-Man" star Tobey Maguire has signed on to play jockey Red Pollard, who piloted the fabled Depression era horse Seabiscuit, in the major motion picture release of the Laura Hillenbrand book "Seabiscuit: An American Legend."
Retired California trainer William "Billy" Buck died of a heart attack March 23 at his home in Jamestown, Calif. Buck had spent the afternoon gardening.
Dean Kutz is the winner of the 2001 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award. Kutz becomes the 52nd winner of the award that has been presented annually since 1950 and honors the memory of one of the greatest Thoroughbred jockeys in history. Kutz, 44, will receive the award in a winner's circle ceremony on Sunday, March 25 at Santa Anita.
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text:
Exclusive finds with a new theme each month.
Our VP of creative projects shares what she's into.
Stay updated with a steady stream of new info.
Chat with us or call 1.888.282.6060.
The distressed finish of a curb-link necklace turns the spotlight onto the glittery clusters of opaquely colored jewels.


text:
The Pollera is a tourist class hotel in a great location. Rooms are small, with 1960s era furnishings. The shower was weak, after waiting 5 mins for hot water. No hair dryer in the room, and none available when we first asked (later one appeared). Breakfast typical for this class hotel, not bad but no raves. Staff pleasant (for the... More
- Also Known As:
- Pollera Krakow
- Pollera Hotel Krakow
- Reservation Options:
- TripAdvisor is proud to partner with Booking.com, Cheap Tickets, Priceline, Expedia and Hotels.com so you can book your Pollera reservations with confidence. We help millions of travellers each month to find the perfect hotel for both holiday and business trips, always with the best discounts and special offers.

domain: travel


text:
Check this out: a boy ended up on stage during Biebz’s “One Less Lonely Girl” serenade this weekend and totally took Justin off-guard!
This is the funniest thing we’ve seen all day! Justin Bieber was singing his ballad “One Less Lonely Girl” at the Maryland State Fair Sept. 5 — and instead of serenading a lovely lady, producers surprised him with a MAN!
16-year-old Justin was totally taken off-guard, started cracking up and then refused to give the heavy-set, balding man his bouquet of red roses. Instead, the Biebs knocked the man’s crown (yes, he was wearing a princess crown) off his head and pulled a girl out from the audience, while the lonely man pouted on the side of the stage.
It gets even better! As Justin was hugging his “lonely girl,” the “lonely man” came up behind the teen pop star and picked him up in a giant bear hug…it’s hysterical!
Do you think Justin’s “lonely guy” was funny…or a little creepy? Sound off below!

domain: celebrity


text:
In the midst of the holiday season, we launched the fourth volume of The Scout Guide Tampa Bay. To celebrate the guide’s debut, Editor Allison Adams held a party for members and friends at Oxford Exchange, where guests enjoyed drinks, appetizers, and live music.
The details: Venue: Oxford Exchange. Event Coordination: Oxford Exchange Private Events. Food and drinks: Oxford Exchange. Music: Josh Walther & The Phase5 Band. Flower arrangement: Botanica International Design & Decor Studio. Photography featured here: Pezz Photo.


text:
Buying a good GPU is getting harder day by day. German publication Computerbase.de has noticed Nvidia increasing the price of the RTX 30-series Founders Edition graphics cards in Europe. The new graphics cards are all 5 to 6.5% costlier across the cards. A small 6.5% increase in the price of the RTX 3090 makes the price a whopping €100 extra.
When Toms Hardware asked Nvidia if they were to increase the prices in the United States, one of their representatives mentioned the price hike was a result of exchange rate fluctuation.
Although MSRPs are meaningless in the world of GPU shortages, it was still discouraging for buyers to know that the Founders Edition cards will be more expensive to buy in EU.
|GPU||Old price||New price||Change|
|RTX 3060 Ti||€419||€439||+ €20||5%|
|RTX 3070||€519||€549||+ €30||6%|
|RTX 3070 Ti||€619||€649||+ €30||5%|
|RTX 3080||€719||€759||+ €40||6%|
|RTX 3080 Ti||€1,199||€1,269||+ €70||6%|
|RTX 3090||€1,549||€1,649||+ €100||6.5%|
Last year, in January there was a 3 to 4% hike in the GPU in Europe due to tax rates. This time around Nvidia says it is the conversation rate that led to the hike. It is very difficult to understand how many graphics cards are being sold directly to customers, but the number is expected to be insignificant compared to the demand.
Currently, Nvidia doesn’t sell GPUs directly to customers in the USA. US customers looking to buy the GPU need to go to Best buy as it is the exclusive partner for the Founders Edition cards. In the past, there has been a drop of 17,000 cards in the USA which has not satisfied the demand for the highly sought out item in the market.
In a world with a GPU shortage, Nvidia’s Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress has stated that we can expect supply to improve in the second half of 2022.


text:
lol...so u are one of the two guys with a BIG tripod and a small DC and shoot at the red setting sun? is that a Oly??Originally posted by misato
anyone from clubpsnap went there?
i saw quite a few "old" man shooting away with nikon and canon SLR. there was one mounted on tripod.. aiming at the starhub blimp. I saw another one.. with the wife.. during the better part of the evening.. shooting away too.
The last couple(young ones) i saw.. brought alot of equipment in a bag.. on tripod shooting away in the better part of the evening skies.. and later.. started doing "tourist" shooting of themselves on a big boulder.
Nope.. I'm using the Canon A40.Originally posted by kamwai
lol...so u are one of the two guys with a BIG tripod and a small DC and shoot at the red setting sun? is that a Oly??
i am not the old man shooting with nikon..those have Press Pass...i think they are from the media?? i spot abt 5 of them...ALL OF THEM USE NIKON
The only one that use Canon is not a commerical photographer i guess...with a EOS 1v and 70-200L shooting at the bikes...with a manfrotto 190C and 308RC
I carried a lot of stuff today...a Lowepro Offroad on my waist, an Outdoor backpack contains 30+ teddy bears, a manfrotto tripod and a Camera of cos...
i was running up and down the big boulder shooting me and my gf...i guess we were the young couple u are refering to?
That's the place when i went to photoshoot with other ClubSNAPPER last yearOriginally posted by misato
Nope.. I'm using the Canon A40.
Guess we all found the best spot to snap away.

domain: hobby


text:
Increase Housing Supply and Prices Will Fall
You often don’t know you’re in a bubble until it has actually popped. This is what ASIC chairman, Greg Medcraft, was warning three years ago. Shortly...
Industry 4.0 Will Reshape Property and Construction
For centuries, goods such as food, clothing, houses and weapons were made by hand.
Cracks Appearing in the World’s Most Desirable Property Markets
Is this the end of the global housing boom?
Slowdown on the Horizon for US Housing Market
They were fed up with Seattle’s home bidding wars. They were only in their late 20s but had already lost two battles and were ready to...
Depreciation and Off-the-Plan Properties
Investors who are looking to purchase a new property often look at buying off-the-plan.
Record Land Releases Creating Huge Greenfield Opportunities
Drive along the old Princes Highway toward Pakenham in Melbourne’s south-east and ‘Land for Sale’ signs dot the landscape.
Four Questions You Should Ask Your Quantity Surveyor
Are you an investor who’s heard about the benefits of depreciation and have decided to start claiming?
Dubai Property ‘a Money-laundering Haven’
War profiteers, terror financiers and drug traffickers sanctioned by the US in recent years have used Dubai's real estate market as a haven for their assets,...
Owner Occupiers on the Rise in National Apartment Market
In the most comprehensive national survey in Australia, property consultants Urbis tracked over 120,000 brand new and off the plan selling apartments across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane,...
Home Prices fell 0.7% in June Quarter
Home prices in Australian capital cities fell by 0.7 per cent in the three months to June.
Regional NSW Home Values to Outgrow Sydney
Sydney's property market has long held a mortgage on real estate headlines, but analysts say home values in regional NSW are poised for stronger growth than...
BIM for Smart Buildings
In terms of innovation, BIM for smart buildings is leading the way and it is all set to change the way buildings are operated. “Imagine” you...
Charging Foreign Owners Extra For Property Will Cost West Australian Jobs
They say, “money makes the world go ‘round” and although it may seem crass and crude, it’s quite true. Take a drive through any of WA’s...
NSW Council Rates Set To Rise
Ratepayers across NSW will be slugged with higher council fees after a ruling from the pricing regulator.
One Million Ordered to Evacuate Florence
More than one million people have fled toward higher ground in a mass evacuation ordered three days before the expected arrival of Hurricane Florence.
Housing Shouldn't Hit Bank Stability: RBA
A senior Reserve Bank official has downplayed the chances of a slowdown in Australia's once-booming housing market undermining the stability of the country's banks, saying the...
Investa Sets Date to Decide on Takeover
Investa Office Fund has set next Monday as the date for its shareholders to vote on Blackstone Group's sweetened $3.3 billion takeover bid.
Japan Cleaning up After Typhoon Kills 11
Japan has begun cleaning up after a powerful typhoon killed 11 people, injured hundreds and stranded thousands at a flooded airport, though when the airport in...


laptop queries? Answered
i have had my gateway t-16 for about a month now, so no ive decided its time to start considering modifying it.
i just recently got a new battery for it, only $47 off ebay.
but ive got some issues with this laptop.
well, not really issues but things i have a problem with.
first off, the laptop has a phone line modem, im never going to need it, so im wondering, if i remove the modem card from inside the laptop will it continue to run properly?
second, there is the Realtek wireless card, for barely average wireless connection distances, the card gets extremely hot, i dont have a thermometer, but i can easily say its hotter than 50 degrees, my cpu is at 41 degrees right now and the card is a lot hotter than it is (to the touch)
third is the cpu itself, it can be a low enough temperature to turn off the fan, but thats quite rare, the fan is almost always running.
ive been thinking about taking advantage off all the space in the cpu area and make a heatsink assembly that goes on top of the heatpipe, right above the cpu. the cpu is only at 40 degrees right now because im not doing anything, sometimes even low requirement games will shoot up the temperature to 70+ degrees, in just a few cases (less than 3) the laptop has shut itself off because the cpu reached its thermal limit, 95 degrees.
i cant even watch the ben heck show without worrying about the temperature, and no form of cooling pad helps, cpu cover on or off.
the cpu cover is also a problem, there is no direct intake for the cpu fan, the cover has no vent right there, just a spot where the plastic is a bit higher, otherwise the air for the cpu is drawn from the motherboard side, where the air is already warm from the chipset, im currently running the laptop with the cpu cover off.
the ram gets warm, but its not out of any ordinary operating temperatures.
last and certainly not least, is the apparent lack of bluetooth in my laptop, the case is even designed with a space for a bluetooth module, and there is a connector on the motherboard for a bluetooth module, and if i had one, i would put it in. what really bothered me is the fact that the gateway service staff had insisted that i was seeing things when i saw the bluetooth coneection, and that there was no way in the world that my laptop could have internal bluetooth. this ticked me off, because they designed the laptop and they dont even know whats inside it.
i could definitely work around the heat problems if there were some really small blower fans, but im not sure if such a thing exists.
also, why would my wireless internet turn off (and not turn on) when i plug in a usb flash drive?


text:
I love decorating my house for the Holidays. Tree trimming hasn’t ever just been about my tree. I trim everything from the kitchen, the bathroom and my desk at work. I wanted to share with our readers some of my ideas that are not just easy but also inexpensive as well.
For example, did you know that using pinecones on your christmas tree, around your candles and in your fireplace make beautiful accents and spruce up everyone’s holiday spirits. If real pine cones arent available in your area, every dollar store carries them ready to hang on your tree. Personally, that is where I purchase mine and I purchase the lovely snow tipped ones which really make your tree look authentic. If you have the luxury of having real pinecones, you can dip the edges in glitter glue and tie a ribbon around the top portion in order to hang them on the tree. Kids love to do this as well and it makes for happy memory making.
Not to toot my own horn, but I always get compliments on my tree ornaments. What people don’t know is that half of the ornaments on my tree cost less than $2.00 per ornament, some even being as low as $0.59. My secret you might ask? I hit the craft stores the weekend after Christmas and definitiely hit the dollar stores all during the holiday season and pick up extra ordinary, unusual ornaments. Natural ornaments give trees that old fashioned look (i.e., pinecones, wooden toy ornaments, wooden birdhouses, snowflakes, angels and stars). These visual affirmations, for me, help me to de-stress and make me much calmer during all of the hecticness of the season. Actually, taking time enjoying these beautiful ornaments, calming lights and decorations makes me feel closer to God and to nature. It makes my spirit sing.
Lastly, decorating for my family allows me to escape back to a time when I enjoyed watching my mother and grandmothers decorate and share memories. Through these memories, we learn each other’s stories and we connect to one another as family.
TMF Readers, let us in on your holiday decorating tips. We would love to hear them.
Peace, Blessings and Happy Decorating!


A federal judge's decision to keep retired sheriff's deputy Robert "Bob" Holloway III in jail this week pending trial was based largely on concerns about threats aimed at witnesses in the case, authorities said.
Holloway's attorney, Roger K. Vehrs of Fresno, said a witness named in court Sept. 12 received a threatening phone call after court. The judge didn't blame the call on Holloway, Vehrs said. "But he said he felt that there was enough confusion, and circumstances that were suspicious, that he couldn't release Bob at this time," Vehrs said.
Prosecutor Laurel J. Montoya quoted U.S. District Judge Oliver W. Wanger as saying Holloway could be "a dangerous man."
"He also said that, at times, Bob is very generous. He does help his friends," she said. "But the generosity doesn't make up for these other events."
A grand jury indicted Holloway, 60, his son Brent Holloway, 35, and 11 others in July on charges related to suspected illegal operations at Road Dog Cycle in Denair going back to 1997.
The shop closed after the arrests. Robert Holloway has been in custody since July 15. Brent Holloway was released in early August.
Authorities say the Holloways ran a racketeering enterprise at the shop, allowing motorcycle club members to take bikes on credit without official loans. Authorities say club presidents would repossess the bikes for Robert Holloway when members missed payments.
Supporters say the Holloways have been good to their community, raising funds for local causes and being flexible when customers couldn't make payments.
The two-year investigation snared several men with law enforcement backgrounds: retired sheriff's Capt. Raul DeLeon, retired sheriff's deputy David Swanson and former corrections officer Stephen Johnson. They are charged with lying to federal authorities.
DeLeon was placed on administrative leave in December. He retired from the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department in August.
During five days of hearings in the past week aimed at determining whether Holloway should be released from jail, prosecutors argued that he has a long history of breaking rules.
Holloway, for example, has said he retired in 1985 from the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department for medical reasons after a drunken driver slammed into his patrol car.
But prosecutors linked Holloway's retirement to an internal affairs investigation that culminated with a recommendation to end his employment. The investigation started after someone broke into a sergeant's office, Montoya said. Investigators said they found Holloway's fingerprint on a file about him that had been removed from a sergeant's locked desk.
"They confronted him and their recommendation was termination," she said. "He elected to take his medical retirement at that point in time."
Vehrs said his next step will be to challenge the constitutionality of recordings collected during the investigation, but described the judge's decision Wednesday as "extremely fair."
In Holloway's defense, Vehrs brought in several witnesses to challenge evidence in the federal indictment. Prosecutors said Holloway and his associates threatened one of them, Darnell Levingston, when he owed money for a bike. Levingston testified that he had never been threatened.
"He didn't know why he was in the indictment," Vehrs said.
Prosecutors have been "overzealous" throughout the case, Vehrs added. In more than 30 years as an attorney, he said, he has "never seen this kind of pressure" to keep someone in jail.
"(Montoya) has been a pit bull in this case," he said. "She won this round. And now we're onto the next one."
Bee staff writer Emilie Raguso can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org or 578-2235.


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Break Out Your Retro Matchbox Collection and Play Osprey’s Gaslands
Osprey Games puts out a lot of great games. One of their recent Hits is Gaslands. Personally, I really like this one because it is easy to get in on with a limited budget. Grab some matchbox cars, a rulebook, and you’re ready to play!
Gaslands is a game of vehicular combat. It uses templates and a fairly simple set of rules but also contains campaign rules and comes across as a very streamlined system.
Osprey Games describes the game as follows…
Shoot, ram, skid and loot your way through the ruins of civilisation with Gaslands, a tabletop wargame of car-on-car destruction in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Players control small fleets of armed vehicles in battles for resources, dominance and survival. With rules for multiple vehicle types (from motorbikes to big rigs), varied special weapons and accessories (including oil slicks, caltrops and nitro boosters), and a host of options for scenarios, environmental conditions, crew and campaigns, players can tailor games to match their own visions for an anarchic future. From Osprey Games Webstore.
The system uses templates for movement and has often been compared to X-Wing and Car Wars. That said, this game is much more streamlined and easy to play than Car Wars and not the same as X-Wing. For one thing, it is a hell of a lot cheaper to play.
To get in, all you need is a $20 rulebook and some matchbox cars. Perhaps, you already have cars. Then you are in for just $20. If you are like me, you had to buy a few and then you are still in for just $30 to $40. $30 to $40 to get all in on a miniatures game is absolutely stellar.
Many people paint up their cars and add weaponry. I went with the theory that the weapons are retractable systems like in a James Bond film. Presto, I am up and ready to go!
While I didn’t bother fix up my cars, a lot of people use Gaslands as an excuse to add weapons to their Hotwheels and paint them up. That is a cool hobby in and of itself.
Gaslands has been doing massively well for Osprey Games and they have already had to do more than one printing of the game. On top of being wildly popular, the game also boasts a number of third party creators that create products for the game. These companies are called “Friends of Gaslands.”
The Author also has two free expansions of the game available through Osprey Games’ Resources Page or through the Gaslands Time Extended Online Magazine. Yes. You read that right. This game has free expansions available!!!
The Gaslands Website also has a number of videos available to go through.
Wrapping it up…
If you haven’t checked out Gaslands before, I hope you take a look at it after reading this article. It is a great game at an incredible value. How often can you get “all-in” on a game for just $20 to $40 and that is exactly what you have here!!! Osprey did great with this one and a lot of people are having a real blast with the game.
Also be sure to check out the game’s Facebook Group. There is a very active community of players there with some really cool content.
Disclosure: Osprey Games sent me a copy of Gaslands for Review Purposes.
Images of the cars taken on a Cigar Box Battle Mat.
Event Notice – Chatham, Ontario, Canada – September 28 and 29
If you are interested and live in driving distance to Chatham, Ontario, KEGSCon 6 is September 28 to 29. For my American friends, Chatham is about an hour away from the Detroit / Windsor Boarder.
Event Notice – Kitchener, Ontario, Canada – October 13 and 14
SkyCon is an up and coming gaming convention in Kitchener, Ontario. They feature many RPGs and Board Games to choose from. They also have a number of Miniatures Tournaments on the books including ones for Maulifaux, Guild Ball, Blood Bowl, Dark Age, and Infinity. I plan to be at this event and can likely be found taking pictures or testing out one of the RPGs or Board Games (with minis in them).
Event Notice – Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada – October 19 and 20
Council Fires is is one of my favorite gaming events. This year it is in a new location closer to the American Boarder for my friends in New York that would like to come up for some games. I plan to be in attendance at this event.


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Setanta Soprano Whistles Full Set - High D, Eb & C [LEADTIME]
- 1,000.00 Grams
Setanta Soprano Whistles Full Set - High D, Eb & C
We're extremely proud to announce the all new Setanta Soprano Whistle Set, containing one removable headjoint and three bodies in the keys of C, D and Eb.
Never get caught out at a session again! Change key effortlessly by simply attaching the fipple to a new body. So whether you want to up the ante with a fast-paced Eb session, or slow things down with the rich tone of a C whistle, this is the set for you.
Setanta Whistles offer a beautifully warm clear tone in all octaves, excellent responsiveness and exceptionally accurate tuning. Each whistle is precision engineered with a personal handcrafted touch.
This quality tin whistle set is a worthy investment for any whistle player. You’ll be able to hear and feel the difference a premium instrument makes to your playing.
We ask you to please bear in mind that these are handcrafted, artisanal Irish whistles and, as a result, waiting times may exceed the advertised length. John is a perfectionist and will not let a whistle leave his workshop until it is the finest it can be.
Full Set Includes:
- Choice of fipple - brass head with Delrin cork, brass head or Delrin head.
- 3 brass soprano whistle bodies (C, D & Eb)
Please Note: If adding extra fipples (whistle heads) to your set order, John recommends the Brass fipple for the C whistle, the Delrin fipple for the D whistle and the Brass fipple with Delrin cork for the Eb whistle. If you do not state a preference for any extra fipples ordered John will choose the recommended fipples as detailed above.
Watch and listen to the video below to hear the different fipples and their various tones:
Key Features of the Setanta Soprano Whistles Set:
- Two piece brass construction
- Comfortable mouthpiece
- Highly responsive
- Clear, bright, balanced tone
- Subtle chiff
- Excellent volume
- Highly accurate tuning
- Effortless to play across all octaves
- Superb Irish Session Whistle
- Bonus Whistle Lessons with John O'Brien
BONUS WHISTLE LESSONS
For a limited time only, when you purchase a Setanta Soprano Whistle Set, you will receive five free online whistle lessons with professional musician, maker and tutor, John O’Brien.
These lessons feature three extensive beginner lessons by the end of which you will be playing a polka and a classic Irish jig and will have learnt a few excellent tricks on the whistle.
You’ll also receive two intermediate lessons focusing on traditional Irish tunes; Rose in the Heather and The Drunken Landlady, made famous by The Bothy Band. You’ll also learn rolls, cuts and taps and more.
ABOUT THE MAKER
Setanta Whistles are designed and produced in Dublin, Ireland, by John O’Brien, marrying the latest in precision engineering with the personal handcrafted touch people have become accustomed to expect from top quality Irish brand
John has spent numerous years playing whistles and uilleann pipes professionally on the road with Riverdance, Celtic Woman and Celtic Thunder (to name but a few) in venues ranging from London's Royal Albert Hall to Carngie Hall and Broadway in New York.
John felt it was time to produce a range of quality instruments specifically designed for the rigours of performing professionally across musical genres from céilí bands to orchestral work. With this in mind, he developed his new range of Setanta whistles featuring a beautifully warm clear tone in all octaves, excellent responsiveness and exceptionally accurate tuning.
One of the main reasons John felt it was important to develop the new range of whistles was to satisfy what he himself as a professional musician was looking for in terms of tuning.
He opted for the highly accurate equal temperament tuning system which allows the individual player to push, pull and bend notes with the minimum of effort.
This has been a labour of love for John but in order to bring his concept from dream to reality he enlisted the expertise of his long time friend, musician, and instrument manufacturer, Paraic McNeela.
This whistle has been precisely engineered featuring a warm balanced tone, excellent responsiveness and highly accurate tuning.
Good to Know:
- 14 day money back guarantee from the day you receive your Setanta whistle. See our Shipping & Returns Policy.
- If purchased before 12pm (Monday-Friday), we ship it the same business day.
- Priority Shipping Worldwide.
- If you're in a hurry enquire about our FedEx 4-6 day shipping.
ESTIMATED SHIPPING TIMES
Please note, whilst we will endeavour to ship all orders immediately, bear in mind these are handcrafted instruments, made to order and some minor delays may occur.
IRELAND (Next Day)
UK (5 - 7 days)
EUROPE (7 days)
USA and CANADA (7 - 10) days)
REST OF WORLD (10 - 14 days)


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Swedish band Little Dragon is known for their eccentric dance music and collaborations with some of our favorite artists (most recently on FKJ’s new album). Today they announced a new EP and dropped a new track, “Frisco.”
Little Dragon do a great job of skirting the line between creepy and cool on “Frisco.” The sonic backbone of this song is a dark synth beat. It sounds almost out of tune with the rest of the track, which adds a cool dissonance. However, this actually elevates the track by establishing a slightly ominous mood. As we progress through the track, the tone eventually lightens, like a flower bud unfurling into full bloom. This matches the theme of “Frisco” perfectly, which Little Dragon explains as being about “renewal, letting out your full potential and moving with the wave of change and life.”
Alongside the release of “Frisco” comes the announcement of their upcoming EP. Opening The Door, coming out via Ninja Tune, drops on September 16. In addition to “Frisco,” this EP also includes collaborations with JID and Swedish musician Stefan Sandberg. Until then, you can check out “Frisco” below. Enjoy!

domain: entertainment


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I'm very proud to have been able to work on Uncharted 4 from the beginning look development stages, to the final release. I was responsible for modeling, asset placement, scene composition and assembly. Here are a some examples of environments I contribut
I had the chance to be part of the amazing environment team here at Naughty Dog. In collaboration with my talented coworkers I was responsible for modeling and set dressing. Various props were done by colleagues or outsourcing.


The Topflytech TLD2-D Plug & Play OBDII tracker with CAN BUS reading tracks vehicles and provides vital vehicle data, including ignition, VIN, odometer, and fuel level. When working with BLE sensors, it monitors temperature, humidity, door status, etc. This vehicle tracker requires no installation or maintenance but offers powerful functions.
Real-time and buffered locations:
Real-time location updates can occur as frequently as every 3 seconds. Up to 60,000 location points can be saved in the buffer if out of network coverage.
Plug & Play
No installation or maintenance needed.
CAN BUS reading
Includes VIN, odometer, fuel level, RPM, and DTC.
Driving behavior detection
Utilizes a 6-axis accelerometer to accurately detect reckless driving events such as harsh acceleration, turning, braking, and crashes.
BLE 5.0 for sensors
Compatible with TOPFLYtech’s BLE temp & humi sensor TSTH1-B, temp & door sensor TSDT1-B, wireless relay TSR1-B, and your own sensors.
Reckless Driving Buzzer
Internal buzzer warns drivers when harsh driving behavior occurs.
Alerts for the device disconnected from power.
Backup power for sending disconnection alerts when power is disconnected.
Ignition on/off alerts
Alerts for the engine switching on or off.
Integration of the device is subject to the terms and conditions of our software.
Real time location updates can be as frequent as 3s. Up to 60,000 location points can be saved in buffer if out of network coverage
No installation and maintenance needed
6 axis accelerometer for accurately detecting reckless driving events such as harsh acceleration, turning, braking and crash.
Compatible with TOPFLYtech’s BLE temp & humi senor TSTH1-B, temp & door sensor TSDT1-B, wireless relay TSR1-B and your own sensors
Internal buzzer for waring drivers when harsh driving behaviour occurs.
Alerts for device disconnected from power
Backup power for sending disconnection alerts when power disconnected
Alerts for engine is switched on or off


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There are two ways to ride a wakeboard. 1. Edging and driving through the wake where your speed from attack angle and pop will determine your lift. This requires a higher skill level because you’re dealing with different forces from the pull of the line and the timing of your jump. 2. Riding a thinner profiled board with more top water speed and less line load. This style creates a pendulum using more of a natural centripetal approach with less effort both on and leaving the water. Last year we put the Vault on a diet and took almost 20% of the weight out. Now a rider has more feedback with the water, less swing weight in the air, and easier transitioned turns. For over 20 years we have been designing boards recognizing that your shoulders and hips are not always parallel in wakeboarding. Your body is crossed up riding toeside, and more inline riding heelside, and every aspect of the Vault takes this into consideration for the proper foundation to your riding.
• Thinner, Sharper Toeside Rail
• Fuller, Vertical Heelside Rail
• 2 Fibreglass 1.7” Hook Fins
• 4 Molded-in Fins
• Designed for the Building Block to Wakeboarding
The leader of the lightweight adjustability is built on an adaptive MainFrame chassis that will shape to every aspect of a rider’s foot as it is cinched up. Complete with our AutoLock lacing system, Stage 1 foam, and a revolutionary adaptive skeleton – continuing to separate itself from the others in ease of entry, adjustability and overall fit.
• MainFrame Technology
• AutoLock Technology
• Stage 1 Liner
• Classic S.O.L.E.
• Built in Ankle Support
Get exclusive access to new gear guides and offers. Get $20 off your first purchase when you sign up. Just use code WSCFamily at checkout.


While I agree it's not critical, if you do any kind of 'fast' or aggressive corner riding, GET A SM RATED TIRE. A sportbike tire is, while the same size, designed for a MUCH heavier bike. They take longer to heat up with less weight, so if you go for a ride up into some twisties your tires aren't going to grip as much (with a sportbike rated tire).You can use most any sport bike type tire in the one size larger 150/60/17 size. I think the stock DRZ-SM tire is a 140. Not many choices in this 140 size.
Avon, Bridgestone, Continental, Dunlop, Metzeler, Michelin, Pirelli, etc.
Plenty of choices. Nice to have but not important to have a 'SM' specific tire like the ContiForce SM. Some people who commute on their SM use sport-touring type tires.
Now, if you just use the bike for commuting and such, then supertireguy is right, just go for a tire that fits your bike.
Also, glad to hear the Conti rear works with a Dunlop front, I have to do the exact same thing in the next few weeks haha.


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Saudi Arabian Oil Co., the world’s largest crude exporter, said most of its computer network is back to normal after it was attacked by a virus that forced the company to isolate many parts of its systems.
The state-owned oil company, known as Saudi Aramco, said it was able to clean out the virus that attacked the network from an external source on Aug. 15 and affected 30,000 personal computers. Output of crude oil and refined products wasn’t affected since the attack, the company said Sunday in an e-mailed statement.
“We want assure our customers and partners that our fundamental operations for oil and gas production and distribution are continuous with the same reliability,” Chief Executive Officer Khalid al-Falih said in the statement. “This is not the first attack on Saudi Aramco and it will not be the last, and we will fortify our network with all possible means to prevent similar future penetration.”
Al-Falih said the company is still investigating the incident and “all parties responsible for it.”
Saudi Aramco had to prevent external access to its network immediately after the attack as a precautionary measure.
“Our precautionary procedures, which have been in place to counter such threats, and our multiple protective systems, have helped to mitigate these deplorable cyber threats from spiraling,” al-Falih said in the statement.


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Filmore scores 19 with 2 clutch FTs, SE Louisiana wins 77-71
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) " Joshua Filmore, in his second game back from a serious knee injury, scored 19 points, including a pair of key free throws with 10 seconds left as Southeastern Louisiana edged Samford 77-71 on Friday in the Savannah Invitational.
Filmore missed all of last season and the start of this one before playing at Kent State Tuesday. He went scoreless at Kent State but his return has Southeastern Louisiana (3-3) on a two-game win streak.
Jordan Capps also scored 19 and Marlain Veal scored 15 with 10 assists and four steals.
Demetrius Denzel-Dyson led Samford with 23 points, Justin Coleman added 15, Alex Thompson 12 and Eric Adams 10 with three blocked shots, two coming late in the game as Samford rallied into a 59-59 tie. The Bulldogs (1-5) have lost four in a row.
Samford had closed to 73-70 before Filmore hit the clutch free throws.


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In a final rule published last month, the EPA increased the allowable concentration of Didecyl Dimethyl Ammonium in carbonate and bicarbonate forms, from 240 parts per million to 400 ppm.
DDACB can be used on food contact surfaces when applied or used in public eating places, dairy processing equipment, and/or food processing equipment and utensils.
Objections and requests for hearings must be received on or before 22 October.
In December last year the EPA issued a notice announcing the filing of a pesticide tolerance petition by Lonza, a producer and supporter of active pharmaceutical ingredients and microbial control.
The petition requested that 40 CFR 180.940(a), be amended by establishing concentration limits for DDACB in end use solutions eligible for tolerance exemption.


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Short-Term Missions, A Christian Guide to STMs is a full and concise guide to STMs. What you need to know about planning a STM, or joining a STM team, and considering the options as part of the Great Commission, from the Good News to good works. This book is full of anecdotes and advice with informative timelines, and a biblical framework for STMs to help you engage in cross-cultural missions; with viable solutions to common mission issues to make your STM more effective to the glory of God.
An easy-to-read comprehensive guide to short-term missions, for the young and inexperienced, or for the seasoned STM-er who is planning to take a team abroad, for sharing the Good News or for humanitarian purposes. Full of practical advice with much wisdom from Scripture coupled with hard leant experiences.
Mathew Backholer is the co-founder of ByFaith Media (www.ByFaith.org) and films and presents the reality mission series ByFaith TV which airs globally on numerous Christian networks. He has been on more than thirty mission trips and has travelled to more than forty nations of the world. He has travelled the length of Africa, from Cairo to the Cape, across South-East Asia from India to Vietnam and from Nepal to Russia via China and Mongolia and has survived the Trans-Siberian Railway. He has driven around Europe, visited North Africa six times, and has journeyed alone, with friends, as part of team and as a leader. He is the author of many books, including: How to Plan, Prepare and Successfully Complete Your Short-Term Mission, Extreme Faith - On Fire Christianity and Global Revival - Worldwide Outpourings.
Most places have at least one church or chapel. Together with cathedrals, these buildings, their sites and surroundings offer an inexhaustible range of teaching and study opportunities. This books placed them in their historical context, introducing sources and suggesting themes, exercises and project ideas for curriculum work.
This is the fourth and final volume in a series which presents a complete corpus of all the church buildings that were built, rebuilt or simply in use in the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem between the capture of Jerusalem by the First Crusade in 1099 and the loss of Acre in 1291. This volume deals with the major coastal cities of Acre and Tyre, which were both in Frankish hands for almost two centuries, and also contains addenda and corrigenda to volumes 1-3. It describes and discusses some 120 churches and chapels that are attested by documentary or surviving evidence, accompanied where possible by plans, elevation drawings and photographs. This is an indispensable work of reference to all those concerned with the medieval archaeology of the Holy Land, the history of the Church in the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and the art and architecture of the Latin East.
Christian Faith Articles
Christian Faith Books

domain: library