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FixMyStreet Pro for Westminster
Posted by Myfanwy 3rd September 2019
Posted in Community, FixMyStreet
Comments Off on FixMyStreet Pro for Westminster
London's best known and most-visited neighbourhood is now covered by FixMyStreet Pro. If you're living, working or sightseeing in the borough of Westminster, your reports will drop directly into the council's own systems.
In this first phase, the following categories are covered, with potholes, street signs and lights to follow soon:
So, visitors to Hyde Park can report overflowing dog poo bins. Commuters coming through Victoria Station can let the authorities know about graffiti.
And may we suggest that Westminster's best known residents are welcome to report, should the view from the palace ever be marred by an unswept Mall.
Everyone — royalty, the political ruling class, the humble citizen and even tourists from far flung places — can make a report either via fixmystreet.com or on the Westminster website, and in either case they'll go directly into the council systems to be dealt with. There's also the option to log in through the council's My Westminster portal.
Especially for Westminster
As with all FixMyStreet Pro installs, this one has its own distinct features, and the integration with the My Westminster log-in, a pre-existing service where users can keep track of their reports, planning applications and so on, was a vital requirement.
mySociety's knowledge and experience helped us deliver this project smoothly to further improve the efficiency and transparency of our City Management teams
The two systems working together like this means that for those already signed up to My Westminster, only a single log-in is required: ideal for the local resident who may be completing several community-based tasks in short order.
Councillor Paul Swaddle, Cabinet Member for Customer Services and Digital, Westminster City Council, says: "mySociety have been professional, from the point of contracting all the way through to deployment of our new 'Report it' application.
"Their team worked in partnership with council staff to integrate FixMyStreet into our systems including CRM against challenging timescales. They also supported us in delivering several successful resident engagement sessions, and quickly reflecting user feedback in the WCC branded version of the site.
"mySociety's knowledge and experience helped us deliver this project smoothly to further improve the efficiency and transparency of our City Management teams."
Testing with the people that matter
Westminster have been a shining example of best practice when it comes to implementing a new service. They did something that ideally all authorities would do when introducing a new online system, inviting potential users in to have a go, and feed back their thoughts.
Once they had had a chance to enjoy that amazing view from the council offices, local residents tried out the report making interface. mySociety designer Martin was there to take notes, and users' feedback was added directly into our development roadmap.
We hope that they, and all residents of Westminster, will be happy with their new service.
Top image: Dean Molyneaux (CC by-sa 2.0)
Taggedcouncils, fault-reporting software, Westminster
Speedy integration for Hounslow
Posted by Myfanwy 29th August 2019
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Hounslow is the latest borough to adopt FixMyStreet Pro, adding to the ever-growing share of Greater London councils who have chosen the service as their main street reporting interface.
As with other Pro integrations, citizens can now make reports via the Hounslow website or on FixMyStreet.com; either way they'll display on both sites, and will drop directly into the council's case management system — in this case, Confirm.
It's part of a dual contract with contractors Ringway that operates the highways contract on behalf of the London Borough of Hounslow: watch this space for the other council implementation going live soon on the Isle of Wight.
In fact, this installation has involved a seamless transfer which minimised the impact on council staff; everything was handled through Ringway, including user testing via their network of volunteer 'Lay Assessors'.
Thanks to a lot of previous experience with Confirm, it's all proven very straightforward from our point of view. The whole system was up and running in just two weeks, something of a record for FixMyStreet Pro implementation — and a great illustration of just how quickly councils can get going and start to see real change in their customer interface with FixMyStreet Pro if everything is in place.
Rob Gillespie, Ringway's Regional Director, agrees: "I have been impressed with the level of engagement and simplicity of this change. The team behind FixMyStreet has supported our team to develop a service that I believe will be a real game-changer for the industry. Our aim was to improve the accessibility of our highway services, and improve the connectivity between customers and our operational teams. This partnership has really delivered on these expectations."
Image: Nigel Thompson (CC by-sa/2.0)
Taggedcouncils, fault-reporting software, Hounslow, software for councils
WhatDoTheyKnow Pro helps TBIJ get the whole picture on council sales
Posted by Myfanwy 8th March 2019
Posted in Transparency, WhatDoTheyKnow
Comments Off on WhatDoTheyKnow Pro helps TBIJ get the whole picture on council sales
In a major new inquiry, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism made Freedom of Information requests across all 353 councils in England.
Their aim? To build up a full picture of the public places and spaces sold by councils across the country, as they struggle to make up funding shortfalls.
The Bureau used WhatDoTheyKnow Pro's batch functionality to help them in this mass investigation, which has resulted in an important report for Huffington Post as well as an interactive public database where you can search to see what your own local council has sold.
In total, councils' responses have confirmed the sale of over 12,000 assets since 2014. The report goes on to prove that in many cases, the proceeds have been used to fund staff redundancies as authorities are forced to cut back.
Investigations like this serve to highlight one of the key benefits of WhatDoTheyKnow Pro's batch feature. While some of the data may have previously been available piecemeal – published in regional papers, perhaps, or requested at a local level — this is the first time that the full picture across the country has been made visible.
One of the journalists responsible for the report, Gareth Davies, says:
I've been working on these FOIs since July last year and I've no doubt the dataset I built would be nowhere near as comprehensive without the @WhatDoTheyKnow Pro dashboard. Also means I know exactly which councils have still yet to respond, 180+ days later.
We are glad that the service was of help.
If you'd like to check out WhatDoTheyKnow Pro, sign up here.
Image: © Mat Fascione via geograph.org.uk/p/4278237 (cc-by-sa/2.0)
Taggedcouncils, FOI, freedom of information
Use your rights: The People's Audit sheds light on council finances
Posted by Myfanwy 9th August 2018
Posted in Transparency, WhatDoTheyKnow, WhatDoTheyKnow (only)
What can you do if you suspect your local council of financial misconduct?
One solution is to take a good hard look at their books; and thanks to the Local Audit and Accountability Act we all have the right to do just that for a set 30-day period each year.
The People's Audit is a volunteer-run network of people who are keen to raise awareness of these little-known rights, in the belief that local government spending should be open and accountable to local people.
At the same time, they're using the Act to good effect themselves, as they probe into spending anomalies in their own borough of Lambeth. They've found that the Freedom of Information Act has proved a useful complement to their auditing activity.
Investigating financial misconduct
We spoke to Ben Rymer from The People's Audit to find out more. What exactly have they uncovered to date?
"Perhaps the most worrying finding was around the Fenwick Estate regeneration project in Clapham. The chosen supplier was almost £6 million more expensive than some others who tendered. This is a massive red flag as the likelihood of this sum being accounted for by quality of work alone is slim."
There's plenty more: Ben says they've made concerning findings around public housing, procurement and contract management and how major works are overseen, from possible price fixing between contractors to payments for work that was never done.
For example, the group say that a sampling of some of the housing blocks on the Wyvil Estate in Vauxhall indicates that the council paid its contractors for more than twice the number of repairs that were actually carried out.
They also claim to have found evidence of land in Kenningham and Streatham being sold to a private developer at a discount of at least £1m, without any competitive tender.
And another major finding was that costs for Lambeth's new town hall — originally flagged as a money-saver for residents — have overrun by more than £50 million.
Two Acts working together
So, some substantial discoveries. Where does Freedom of Information come into the picture?
Ben says that the two Acts can be used together, to good effect. "The Local Audit Act requires access to be given to documents relating to costs incurred by the council in the preceding financial year. Once these have been obtained, FOI requests can then be targeted more precisely using the insights gained from such documents."
But there is a slight snag: with the Local Audit Act offering access only within a specific period of 30 days each year, the FOI Act's prescription that a response must arrive within 'up to 20 working days' does not allow for much wiggle room, especially if the FOI response generates more questions that might be answered through scrutiny of the accounts.
Ben says that unfortunately, responses to both Acts are often delayed, refused on the grounds that they would take too long (despite similar requests to other councils being processed without an issue) or just ignored. "An extreme example is our attempt to obtain the original budget for Lambeth's new town hall, which we have now been trying to get hold of for 18 months!".
But all of this notwithstanding, WhatDoTheyKnow has been a useful tool for the FOI side of the People's Audit's investigations: "It is an easy way to organise FOI requests, and the fact that it's all in public means that other people can use the information in the responses — though we do also submit requests directly to the council."
"One notable success was when one of the team received some emails via WhatDoTheyKnow following the audit inspection period in 2015 which showed that the council had agreed to install gyms in libraries months before any public consultation on the idea."
So, the group have uncovered plenty of concerning information — but have they actually made a difference?
Ben says that they've achieved a good amount of local and national press attention. More importantly, they've seen an increased focus on financial issues among the people of Lambeth, especially in the run-up to the local elections in the spring. "Given that we are all volunteers with day jobs and families we think this is a pretty good result!"
And they believe that there's been some effect within their local authority too, although not as wholehearted as they would have liked. "They have published their responses to citizen audit requests and are making more positive noises about the importance of transparency.
"However, they are also imposing arbitrary limits on the amount of information which citizens can request and have put in place 'guidance' around requests which we think may be intended to discourage further requests."
Your turn?
If the Local Audit and Accountability Act is new to you, you may be wondering whether you should be using it yourself. The People's Audit think you should consider it:
"Local Government financial scrutiny is really important and these powers need to be used to their fullest to prevent wasteful spending or corruption. Many people don't realise that councils are often £1bn+ organisations, or that UK councils spend a total of over £92bn a year. Yet since the Audit Commission was abolished there is very little scrutiny of this spend.
"Many local newspapers have closed in recent years so citizen audits and hyperlocal publications have become more important.
"The powers are hugely underused currently. However what we've hopefully shown is that a group of committed individuals can use them to good effect."
If you'd like to do the same, find out more on the People's Audit website.
Image: Mark Longair (CC by-sa/2.0)
Taggedcase studies, councils, FOI, freedom of information, local government, people's audit
Why we posted a whole manual online
Posted by David Eaton 4th June 2018
Comments Off on Why we posted a whole manual online
Against conventional wisdom, we've just published the staff manual for FixMyStreet Pro online, where it's easy for anyone to access.
When we were putting this manual together, we thought we'd have a quick google round for other council SAAS documentation, to see if anyone was doing it particularly well.
We didn't get very far, though — it seems there's a culture of corporate secrecy amongst other suppliers, and a fear of publishing such materials in case of imitation.
It seems that our decision to publish our entire manual online, along with a handy print version, freely available with no password, is perhaps a little unusual.
Why so open?
We've gone our own way on this one for a few reasons.
First, because it helps our clients. We know that it's far easier for customers to look online for materials than it is to remember where they've put a physical handbook.
We know we could have put it behind a password, but that just adds an impediment for our existing customers, as well as for anyone hoping to understand the service a little better before making a purchasing decision. Plus, who remembers passwords for something they might only be accessing a couple of times a year? It's just extra faff.
This way, staff only need bookmark the documentation page, and they'll always be able to find the most up to date version of the manual.
There's another reason as well, though. Most mySociety codebases — including FixMyStreet — are Open Source, meaning that anyone who wants to can inspect or use the code for their own purposes. If anyone really wanted to know our 'secrets'… well, they're already out in the public domain.
We reckon there's more to gain by publishing our instruction manual than there is to lose. Sure, competitors might see what features we offer, and they might even copy them. We're confident, though, that our customer service, company culture, and our insistence on making our products as user friendly as possible, all give us an advantage that imitators are unlikely to be able to match.
So, if you're from a council yourself (or if you're just curious) please do go ahead and read the manual. We hope you'll find it of interest, and that it might cast some light on what makes FixMyStreet Pro different from other offerings in the field.
Image: Alexandre Godreau (Unsplash)
Taggedcouncils, documentation, fault-reporting software, FixMyStreet Pro, street fault reporting
Confirming the benefits: how FixMyStreet Pro integrates with the Confirm Asset Management System
Posted by David Eaton 17th April 2018
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We often talk about how FixMyStreet Pro can integrate directly with council's existing systems, and how doing so can help councils be more efficient — but what exactly does that mean in practice?
Let's take a look at our two most recent FixMyStreet Pro installations. Both B&NES and Buckinghamshire councils use the same asset management system, Confirm, and it gives us a great example of how FixMyStreet Pro's ability to 'communicate' with such systems will make everything a whole lot easier for residents and for council staff, even with two very different types of local authority.
Saving time and effort
FixMyStreet has always provided the resident with an easy interface through which to file a street report. For many councils, however, such reports arrive in an email inbox and then have to be forwarded to the right location or typed into the council's CRM, all adding to the sum total of time and effort dedicated to each report.
Now, using the Confirm API, Bucks and B&NES councils can access and work on FixMyStreet reports through Confirm's standard 'inspector module', removing any need for this extra step.
Two-way information
Optionally, the information flow can go both ways, and indeed this is the case for both B&NES and Buckinghamshire councils. What this means is that for example, when an issue has been inspected and council staff change its status (perhaps from 'report received' to 'repair underway'), this status change will be passed back to FixMyStreet, automatically syncing with the site, and notifying the report-maker with the update — again removing another mundane task from customer services staff.
If a highways inspector should come across a new issue while they are out and about on their rounds, they can raise an issue in Confirm just as they always would have. But now, that will also create a report on FixMyStreet which residents can view, keeping everyone up to date and ensuring that reports aren't made about issues that the council already know about.
Canned responses
FixMyStreet Pro also allows for council administrators to create template responses — an invaluable timesaver when responding to one of the more common situations such as "issue identified and prioritised" or "issue now fixed and closed". While Confirm also has its own template responses, FixMyStreet Pro offers more flexibility, as the same template can be reused across multiple report categories and status types. Buckinghamshire really saw the benefit of this: they were able to reduce the number of templates in use from around 450 to 46.
Mapping assets
Assets such as streetlights, grit bins and gullies can be pulled through from Confirm and overlaid on the map. This makes it significantly easier for both residents and staff to locate and report issue, speeding up the issue resolution time — we'll be delving more deeply into this in our next blog post, with a few more technical details for those who are interested.
Image: Highways England (CC by/2.0)
Taggedcouncils, fault-reporting software, FixMyStreet Pro, local government, software for councils, street fault reporting
Two new FixMyStreet Pro councils
We're delighted to welcome two new councils who are now using FixMyStreet Pro for their fault-reporting: Buckinghamshire and Bath & NE Somerset.
Residents in these areas can make reports on the councils' own websites, where they'll find FixMyStreet as the street fault interface — or through the main FixMyStreet website and app. Whichever you choose, your reports will be published in all three places.
So far, so convenient for residents — but behind the scenes, there's lots more going on that improves the efficiency of the whole fault-fixing cycle.
Both councils are users of the Confirm CRM system, with which FixMyStreet Pro can now be fully integrated. What that means in practice is that when you make a report, it drops directly into the council's existing workflows, with no need for someone in the middle to retype or redirect your report.
Council staff can use the best of both systems' useful tools for shortlisting, inspecting and updating the status of your issues — and when a report has been progressed to the next stage of the fixing cycle, you'll be automatically kept up to date both by email, and with messages posted directly to your report page.
In another advance, both councils are now displaying assets such as bins, trees and adopted highways in context-sensitive areas of the report-making journey, so it's easy to identify exactly which one you're talking about when you make your report. That saves time for you, and for the council when they go out to fix it .
If you're interested in the technical details, we'll have more about both Confirm integration and asset layers in future blog posts.
Image: Kosala Bandara (CC by/2.0)
Making better information requests in Hackney – Part II
Posted by Zarino Zappia 21st March 2018
Posted in Commercial services, FOI Works, Transparency
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This is part II in a series of blog posts about our work with Hackney Council to conduct a discovery and prototyping project to improve the public-facing parts of information request processes. Read the first part here.
With our experience of running WhatDoTheyKnow and Alaveteli, we're big believers in the importance of information transparency laws in our democratic system. But at the same time, we understand the operational challenges of meeting the statutory requirements of these laws for public bodies.
The challenges of dealing with information requests
While many local authorities have dedicated information governance staff whose job it is to manage requests, finding and compiling the information is often done by hard-pressed staff within services, fitting in information-related work around their core responsibilities.
Requesters sometimes have the expectation that information is all carefully organised in a few databases, ready to be aggregated and extracted at the click of a button. In reality, the degree to which information is well-organised varies a lot between services in a council and between different councils, often because of procurement decisions and departmental priorities stretching back many years.
Working with Hackney Council
We're part way through our project with Hackney Council that Mark wrote about a few weeks ago, helping them redesign the public-facing parts of their FOI and Subject Access Request (SAR) services, so we've seen these challenges up close. We've also seen how they can be made even trickier by legacy IT systems that are no longer fit for purpose.
Catching up on the work we're doing with @mySociety to see how we can make freedom of information and subject access requests better for users. pic.twitter.com/BbZDljBL3C
— Rob Miller (@RobMiller31) February 28, 2018
At our 'show and tell' last week with Hackney, we shared findings from some of the research we've done, along with early prototypes of potential new FOI and SAR submission forms, both created collaboratively with Hackney Council staff.
Prototyping with the GDS toolkit
We decided to go straight from sketches to HTML-based prototypes for this project. We thought that moving in-browser with real interactive elements would make it easier to test out some of the more complicated interactions and conditional workflow of the SAR process in particular.
Prototyping is about quickly testing hypotheses, and not getting bogged down in implementation details. So it was a pleasure to use the GDS frontend toolkit to build our prototypes. Not only did the GOV.UK toolkit help us build something relatively rich in just a few days, but it also meant we benefited from GDS's previous work on design patterns developed for exactly this kind of context.
Using public information to reduce FOI requests
When submitting a request via WhatDoTheyKnow, users are automatically shown previously submitted requests that might answer their question, and we know that almost 10% of requesters have a look at these suggestions in more detail.
As you can see here, we took this pattern from WhatDoTheyKnow, and enhanced it further in our FOI prototype.
Now, as well as prompting with previous FOI responses from a disclosure log that we're hoping to build, we also want to include relevant links to other topical or frequently requested information, drawn from other data sources within the council.
If we can get this to work well, we think it could have a number of benefits:
Helping the person submitting the FOI get their answer more quickly
Reducing the number of requests that would otherwise have been sent to the council
Encouraging more proactive, structured publishing of data by the council.
It's this last point which we're really interested in, longer term. We think using a common sense technology approach to highlight possible answers to FOI requests before they are made will get people answers more quickly, reduce the burden on responders, and reinforce efforts to proactively release commonly requested data leading to real transparency benefits.
We've been doing usability testing of these prototypes over the last few days, and will be looking very closely at whether our assumptions here stand up to scrutiny.
Reducing back and forth around SARs
Given our background, we're inevitably very interested in the FOI component of this project, but the Subject Access Request component is no less important. And while there's none of the same opportunity for pre-emptively answering people's requests, there's plenty of scope for making the submission process a lot smoother.
A valid FOI is just a written request and some contact details, but the information needed for a SAR to be valid is much greater and more complicated. For example, along with the specifics of the request, a solicitor asking for personal information on behalf of a parent and their 16-year old child would have to provide proof of ID and address for both family members, a letter of consent from the child, and a letter of authority from the parent, confirming that the solicitor is acting for them. Even the most straightforward SAR calls for the handling of personal data and confirmation of the requestor's identity and address.
Given all this complexity, it's easy for there to be a lot of back and forth at the start of a SAR: clarifying a request, asking for documents, arranging receipt of documents, and so on.
We're hoping to build something that makes it much clearer to the person making the request what they'll need to do, thereby taking some of that responsibility off the shoulders of the team managing the requests.
The sketch above was our first crack at something that could handle (most of) this complexity, and we've made a number of changes since then as our understanding of it all has increased.
Recruiting representative users to test SAR submission has proved challenging and wasn't helped by the Beast from the East rearing its snow-covered head. But we changed tack and successfully ran some guerilla testing in Hackney's service centre last week, and we're hoping to do further testing later in the project that has more chance of benefiting from contacts cultivated by individual services.
Changing the conversation
The conversation around information requests often focuses on the burden of responding. And although the number of information requests local authorities receive is unlikely to decrease any time soon, we're hoping that through our collaboration with Hackney, we can make handling them a whole lot easier.
If we do it well, we think we could eliminate a lot of the process issues created by poorly-designed legacy systems, while baking in a fundamentally more open and transparent way of operating that has the potential to benefit both citizen and state alike.
If you're responsible for managing FOI requests or data protection in your own public sector body and you'd like to follow this project in more detail—or if you'd like to participate in some of the discovery work—then please get in touch at hello@mysociety.org.
Image: Sarah Palmer-Edwards
Taggedcouncils, FOI, FOI for Councils, freedom of information, Hackney, software for councils, subject access requests
Where there's muck there's brass
Posted by Mark Cridge 12th February 2018
We created FixMyStreet Pro to help councils and city governments better manage inbound street reports and issues from their residents.
In the past few months we've rolled out the FixMyStreet Pro service to new customers including Bath & North East Somerset, Buckinghamshire and Rutland councils; each of whom are taking the opportunity to get rid of legacy software, simplify their operations and make use of a much simpler and intuitive way for their residents and staff to make and manage reports.
We're now looking for input from councils to help us guide the next phase of our service development on FixMyStreet Pro.
Having spoken to dozens of councils we think we can help them save more money by extending FixMyStreet Pro to other areas like waste and environment services and we would like to explore how much development work that might entail.
Not just for streets
As FixMyStreet's name would suggest our focus so far has been on handling issues related to highways like potholes, lighting and gullies (drains to me and you), but FixMyStreet Pro already handles reports for a whole range of issues beyond streets.
Typically council users of FixMyStreet Pro have around 13 to 15 different self-selected categories that they accept reports on – each of which can be directed to different teams or departments. Tree reports can be sent directly to the parks department, graffiti or abandoned cars can be passed along to the just the right team in street cleansing.
These 'front end reports' all have one thing in common: all we need to make the report is a location and description, plus a contact for the reporter, which could be as simple as an email address or phone number.
But once you get deeper into the glamorous world of bins and waste services for individual residents the situation gets a little more complicated.
Missed bin collections, requests for recycling bags, bulky waste collection – these all require the resident to be identified, the particular property to be checked with the UPRN (Unique Property Reference Number), and in some cases payments levied and collected.
FixMyStreet Pro doesn't currently offer these additional waste services, although it doesn't require a huge leap of imagination to see how we could add these adjacent features to the service, not least because we already do a lot of the pieces across our other commercial services.
Fortunately there has already been a lot of work done to define common standards, such as the Local Waste Service Standards Project from 2016 and more recent work by individual councils to apply some of this work – we also have a lot of our own research and experience to draw upon with numerous specific feature requests from our current local authority clients.
To make this happen we'd like to recruit at least two or three friendly councils available for interviews and possibly a workshop or two, to help us determine specific requirements and test out some of our early prototypes and hypotheses. From here we'd aim to develop these features into fully working aspects of FixMyStreet Pro over the summer.
If this is of interest to you, if you're already grappling with this in your own council, or you'd just like to find out more, please get in touch with enquiries@fixmystreet.com and we can have a chat.
In the meantime you can always find out more about what FixMyStreet Pro can do on one of our regular Friday Webinars.
Image: Smabs Sputzer CC BY 2.0
Taggedbins, citizen to government, councils, FixMyStreet for Councils, local government, software for councils


text:
Sztagi – liny olinowania stałego stabilizujące omasztowanie w płaszczyźnie symetrii jednostki pływającej. Biegną od masztu do sztagowników mocowanych w pokładzie lub do innych drzewc. Na dawnych żaglowcach sztagi były najgrubszymi linami roślinnymi, dziś zazwyczaj są to liny plecione ze stalowych drutów. Na sztagach mogą być rozpięte również żagle, które nazywa się sztakslami. W zależności od miejsca mocowania występują: sztagi dziobowe, sztagi międzymasztowe, achtersztagi, baksztagi oraz sztagi drzewc pomocniczych.

Sztagi dziobowe
Mocowane do masztu i biegnące ku pokładowi w kierunku dziobu jednostki. Utrzymują maszt i zapobiegają jego przechyleniu w kierunku rufy. W zależności od wielkości jednostki i skomplikowania takielunku mogą występować pojedynczo lub wielokrotnie. I tak w drugim przypadku i w zależności od miejsca mocowania sztagu w maszcie można wyróżnić np. (od najbliższego masztu): sztag, stensztag, forsztag. Stensztag biegnie od stengi masztu. W przypadku gdy w jednym miejscu na pokładzie mocowane są dwa sztagi ten bliżej dziobu dostaje przedrostek for (forsztag). Niekiedy można spotkać również baby-sztag w układzie z pojedynczymi wantami kolumnowymi. Można wyróżnić kilka koncepcji zastosowania sztagów:
 sztag sztywny - powszechnie często stosowany na jachtach turystycznych. Stanowi aluminiowy profil, przez który przebiega stalowa lina przenosząca obciążenie i wyposażony w likszparę do mocowania sztaksla. Umożliwia szybkie i wygodne stawianie i opuszczanie żagla poprzez nawijanie go na sztag tzw. rolfok.
 sztag wybierany - niekiedy spotykany na małych jednostkach śródlądowych. Poprzez system bloków i fału daje możliwość regulacji napięcia bezpośrednio z kokpitu podczas żeglugi. Umożliwia dostosowanie pochylenia masztu oraz jego ewentualne złożenie.
 jumpsztag - biegnie od topu masztu i rozparty o jumpsaling wraca w kierunku masztu. Służy do stabilizacji stengi.

Sztagi międzymasztowe
Przebiegają pomiędzy sąsiednimi masztami np. od topu bezanmasztu do kolumny grotmasztu (bezansztag). Niekiedy mogą być prowadzone w kierunku poprzedniego masztu. Zasady nazewnictwa obowiązują takie same jak w przypadku sztagów dziobowych.

Achtersztag

Inaczej aftersztag. Usztywnia maszt i zapobiega jego pochyleniu w  kierunku dziobu. Biegnie od topu masztu do mocowania w okolicy pawęży. Najczęściej występuje pojedynczo i umieszczony jest wzdłuż diametralnej jednostki. Rzadziej podwójnie, wtedy każdy z achtersztagów mocowany jest na jednej z burt.

Baksztagi

Przebiegają od topu masztu do okuć w pokładzie mocowanych na burtach na odcinku między rufą a masztem. Dokładne położenie okuć zależy od konstrukcji jednostki. Baksztagi występują parami, niekiedy w większej ilości. Baksztagami zazwyczaj pracuje się podczas żeglugi wybierając nawietrzny, a luzując zawietrzny. Baksztagi stosowane są zawsze przy ożaglowaniu gaflowym, gdzie gafel uniemożliwia zamocowanie achtersztagu, rzadziej spotykane przy ożaglowaniu bermudzkim.

Sztagi drzewc pomocniczych
Elementy olinowania stałego służące do stabilizacji takich elementów jak bukszpryt czy wystrzał. Można do nich zaliczyć: watersztag, waterbaksztaag, achterwatersztag oraz achterwaterbaksztag.
 watersztag - biegnie od noku bukszprytu do stewy dziobowej jednostki. Przeciwdziała siłom unoszącym bukszpryt do góry. Niekiedy watersztag wykonany jest z łańcucha i w przypadku dużych jednostek zwielokrotniony. Może być rozparty delfiniakiem zwanym na żaglowcach strzałą Marcina.
 waterbaksztag - przebiega od noku bukszprytu do wykuszy (blindgafli) na burtach jednostki. Występuje parami i przeciwdziała siłom odchylającym bukszpryt od diametralnej.
 achterwatersztag - pełni taką samą rolę jak watersztag lecz w przypadku wystrzału. Łączy jego nok ze stewą rufową.
 achterwaterbaksztag - pełni taką samą rolę jak waterbaksztag lecz w przypadku wystrzału. Łączy jego nok z burtami.

Zobacz też
 olinowanie ruchome
 zwrot przez sztag

Bibliografia

Olinowanie (żeglarstwo)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Nursing home employment continues free fall, industry prepares for worker exodus
Revamp of the nation's vaccination effort may not be enough
State Medicaid agencies could spend up to $5 million to cover mosquito repellent
Virgil Dickson
A Miami-Dade County mosquito control worker sprays around a school in Miami on Monday. The CDC has issued a new advisory that says pregnant women should not travel a Zika-stricken part of Miami, and pregnant women who live there should take steps to prevent mosquito bites and sexual spread of the virus.
With more reports of non-travel related Zika cases popping up in the U.S., state Medicaid agencies are preparing to spend millions to prevent spread of the virus. But some experts say that money could be better spent elsewhere.
In the past few weeks, Louisiana, Texas, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, Ohio and Virginia have all said they plan to cover mosquito repellent in an effort to prevent contraction of the virus. Delaware has posted a proposed rulemaking to do the same.
Texas officials believe they may spend as much as $12.6 million in federal and state funding as a result of the new coverage. Louisiana estimates it will spend more than $5 million. The other states did not immediately respond to requests for cost projections.
Earlier this summer, the CMS granted states permission to cover (PDF) repellents if they were prescribed by an authorized health professional.
Advocates and providers called the coverage critical to decreasing the chances of transmission among lower income people who already are more at risk for contracting the virus, according to Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association. Zika causes a mild illness in most people but can lead to severe brain-related birth defects if women are infected during pregnancy.
"When living paycheck to paycheck, mosquito repellent is just like medication. Necessary, but discretionary over rent, food and transportation to get to work," Benjamin said.
Low-income individuals are more likely to get infected with Zika because they may live in homes without air conditioning or window screens, or may have jobs outdoors — all factors which make them more likely to get bitten by mosquitoes, said Dr. Sylvia Becker-Dreps, associate professor in the department of family medicine at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.
However, of the 2,260 cases of Zika confirmed so far in the U.S., only 14 were acquired within the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Some experts say the repellent coverage might not be well thought out.
"The vast majority of the U.S. population is at very low risk for acquiring Zika infection in the absence of travel, thus, as a generalization, any widespread prevention spending on individual Medicaid consumers will bring mostly cost and little efficacy," said Dr. Matt Collins, an infectious diseases fellow at UNC School of Medicine's Division of Infectious Diseases.
The coverage decision comes at a time when costs of the products are increasing. For instance, the price of Off Deep Woods brand spray averaged $6.52 per unit, up 33 cents from the previous year according to Market researcher IRI, which tracks sales in brick-and-mortar retail stores in the U.S. The average price for bug spray purchased online has jumped to $12.66, up 23% over the last year, according to data analytics firm 1010data.
Overall, Americans have spent nearly $62 million on insect repellent this year, up 12% from a year ago, according to IRI.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Salman Khan, Rana Daggubati, Ram Charan attend Aashrita's wedding.
Venkatesh's daughter, Aashritha Daggubati, who owns a baking company called Infinity Platter, is getting married in Jaipur in a private ceremony. She is getting married to Vinayak Reddy who happens to be the chairman of the Hyderabad Race Club. Both the families had decided to do a destination wedding away from the media glare as tons of celebrities would be attending it. Pictures from the ceremonies are flooding the Internet and the wedding looks nothing short of a magical fairy-tale.
The wedding has been a star-studded celebration. Celebrities like Salman Khan, Rana Daggubati, Chaitanya Akinneni, Samantha Akkineni, Ram Charan, Upasana Konidela and others attended the wedding and needless to say, they all looked dapper! The bride and groom chose to wear traditional outfits for their big day and they looked absolutely mesmerising. Upasana took to her Twitter account and shared many pictures from the ceremony and must we say, Ram Charan is looking out of the world with that moustache of his!
Nayanthara's Kolaiyuthir Kaalam trailer will give you all the scary feels!
Several photos of Salman Khan along with Rana Daggubati have also been doing the rounds. Both of them chose to wear snazzy outfits and looked every bit handsome. Videos from the pre-wedding festivities show the celebrities breaking a leg on the dance floor. Rana Daggubati and Naga Chaitanya, who are Aashritha's cousins, were seen dancing with Samantha. Veteran actress Bina Kak also shared many pictures from the ceremony and it all looked like one big happy wedding! The couple will hold their reception in Hyderabad on March 28.
nextVishnu Vishal on CSK vs RCB game: "What a boring start to IPL 2019"


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Home / News / Dog found emaciated, matted and with 'smashed' jaw
Dog found emaciated, matted and with 'smashed' jaw
By Jayne / News / 1 Comment / 8th July 2018
The RSPCA has launched an investigation after a skinny dog with matted fur and a broken jaw was found wandering around Norwich.
The animal welfare charity was contacted on Thursday night (5 July) by a member of the public who found the dog staggering down Ruskin Road in the city.
RSPCA Inspector Ben Kirby, investigating, said: "The woman said the dog was in a real state and she was unable to see what type of dog she was as her coat was just one large, matted mass.
"The poor thing's mouth was held open at a 90 degree angle and she was unable to close it.
"She had faeces and fur matted into her coat and was in a really awful state.
The on-call team asked her to take the dog to a local vet where staff discovered the poodle cross terrier type had a broken jaw.
"Veterinary staff shaved all of the dog's matts off and said they had four dogs' worth of coat just from her," Inspector Kirby added. "Her jaw was virtually smashed, it was broken in two places and x-rays showed the bone had come right away from her skull. She must have been in so much pain."
He collected the little dog, thought to be an older adult female, and took her to another vet for further tests.
Vets found she had a serious break to her jaw which had become infected and she was extremely emaciated, with a body condition score of just 3 out of 9. She was also suffering from decayed teeth.
"Sadly, the vets confirmed that the injury to her jaw was extremely serious and not repairable. Vets confirmed that she was in a lot of pain and heartbreakingly both clinics felt that the only option was to put her to sleep," inspector Kirby added.
"It's really upsetting that someone had left her in such a state and in so much pain. It's completely unacceptable to allow a dog to suffer like this.
"I'd like to know where this dog has come from and if anyone recognises her. She wasn't wearing a collar and wasn't microchipped.
"Anyone with information which might help our investigation should get in touch by calling our appeal line on 0300 123 8018 and leave a message for me."
Grooming your dog is an important part of looking after your pet and needs to be done regularly. Owners should also take their dog to the vets regularly for check-ups and should contact them for advice for any concerns.
Helen Burton 2 years ago
Makes me so mad , dumping the dog in her hours of need !!


Chances are you have a pretty good idea what kind of guild you want to be part of. You are in the right place if you think that good people make games great, enjoy doing pointless things for fun and want to be better at games without an elitist attitude. Right now we're mostly playing Guild Wars 2, DOTA2 and a variety of other games that we find interesting. We are looking for others who play one or both of these games, or share our relaxed, friendly attitude to social gaming. If that sounds like good news, read on.
Mystic Spiral [MYST] was founded in May 2006 in Guild Wars by Quatra and Tasha. We believe that all games are better when shared with a group of friends and our other aims are captured in the guild's motto – make friends, have fun and get the job done.
Gaming is something all our members are passionate about and while around 40 of our 50 active members are online at least every other day, there is a balance between online and offline life. There's also recognition that a game doesn't stay fun forever, so what we play does change slowly over time. Although Guild Wars 2 and DOTA2 have our attention for now, we also play a variety of other titles together on the side. We love Steam sales for (re)discovering new and old games. And despite having a casual attitude our members still tackle the hardest content available – who said being casual meant sacrificing achievement?!
MYST is made up of all kinds of people from all across the globe. Around 70% of our members from Europe with others from Africa, North America, Asia and Australasia. Most are between 18 and 35 (there is no age restriction) and either in full time employment or education.
To cope with the various different timezones and languages, we use UTC as "guild time" (the clock on our homepage is set to UTC) and communication is in English in game, on our forum, on Ventrilo and on Steam. We're happy to help people learning the language in whatever way they'd like. Most of our members are online during the evenings in Europe and at weekends, but we aim to make events accessible to all time zones.
New players are as welcome as veterans.
There isn't a big hierarchy in MYST. Everyone is welcome to provide feedback, run events and contribute to guild life however they like.
Joining an established guild can be tough, so we try to reach out to new members to help them find their way in the guild and answering any questions they may have. There are also a handful of Leaders who are responsible for the administration side of guild life and setting goals. That's it.
We don't demand a certain amount of time from people each week and no one is forced to buy a particular game to maintain membership. Once someone has become a full member of the guild they are expected to have some contact with others once a month (not just log in) to be considered active. If that doesn't happen, they are marked as inactive until their activity picks up again; sometimes this happens years later! The rules are a little different for members in the probationary period as you'll see below.
We're interested in all aspects of the game, with a focus on PvE. Our home server is Aurora Glade EU server and the guild has access to every guild upgrade, with regular guild boosts and with a full complement of Guild Missions run each Sunday.
We don't require our members to represent MYST all the time (but you should spend time with us to remain an active member) and encourage our members to get involved with the events of our allies, Dragon Season.
We prefer quality instead of quantity and are therefore looking for members willing to join our group, be sociable and play games together. After your initial application, you'll have a brief chat with one of the leaders who'll set up your forum account and invite you into the guild for a probationary period (usually 4 weeks).
During this period, you can become acquainted with the guild, and of course the rest of the guild can meet you too. You'll have access to our forums, our Ventrilo server and you're encouraged to attend events. In other words: you can do everything a guild member can. All our members are encouraged to reach out to new members, play some games with them, and provide feedback on those encounters to the Leaders and Officers. Guild events aimed at "breaking the ice" are organised frequently to help this entire process, but it's up to you to involve yourself.
When the new member has had some time to settle in, Leaders and Officers will review the probation period, including the feedback from all MYST members, and either promote the new member to "full member" or deny membership. No need to start sweating though, we don't bite (often). Just be nice, have fun and most importantly, get involved.
If we look like somewhere you'd like to call home, you should take a look at our rules before applying.


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Serena Williams is no stranger to JTA Communicator of the Week, having been recognised in both 2015 and 2017. It is no surprise, given her pop culture icon status and fearless use of her vast platform to tackle critical issues like racism and gender equality in sport. But this week she is here for something far simpler, yet equally as powerful. Raw emotion. Because it was a tearful Williams who dominated sports headlines, following the tennis giant's semi-final loss to Naomi Osaka in the Australian Open.
"If I ever say farewell, I wouldn't tell anyone," Williams said when asked about her possible farewell to tennis as her press conference visage, honed over 26 years on the professional circuit, visibly cracked. When then pushed on her below par performance, Williams said, "I don't know," before choking back tears and adding, "I'm done."
Though she said so little, her raw emotion was more powerful than words could have ever been. In that painfully human moment, her vulnerability was communication at its most authentic. It was clear that the 39-year-old's passion for the game is unwavering and her desire to continue performing at the highest level unbroken.
Not long after her press conference, Williams took to Instagram to showcase her humble gratitude to her fans in Melbourne and 12.9 million-strong following: "Your support, your cheers, I only wish I could have done better for you today. I am forever in debt and grateful to each and every single one of you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I adore you."
Her tears have been interpreted by many as a sign of the sporting legend's impending retirement. But from a life-threatening pulmonary embolism to severe complications surrounding the birth of her daughter, Serena Williams is well acquainted with rising stronger from colossal challenges. It seems likely that she will return even stronger and push herself further to grab hold of the final puzzle piece in her incredible career – one more Grand Slam singles title to equal Margaret Court's record of 24.
With a net worth of over $200 million, Williams has built a personal brand with endorsements, fashion lines and business ventures. She has challenged and smashed the flagrant sexism in tennis' archaic clothing rules with catsuits and tutus. She has championed athlete choice and advanced female empowerment in sport. In fact, Williams does not need to be on court to make headlines. Yet her emotional reaction to rumours of a farewell to her life's work signals her resolve to continue serving up feats of excellence, whether on hard court, grass or clay.
Williams is one of the greatest athletes of all time with a confidence and determination that is almost inhuman on occasion. But this week she has shown us her vulnerability and common humanity through the universal act of shedding tears. For communicating through raw, powerful emotion and demonstrating her unrelenting passion to play and win, Serena Williams is JTA Communicator of the Week.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
In recognition of Serena Williams' use of her global platform to drive positive change across the world of sport, we have provided below the links to her previous JTA Communicator of the Week appearances.
Week 184 (22 - 28 April 2017): https://bit.ly/3ayGIgH
Week 75 (7 - 13 March 2015): https://bit.ly/3pzymK2


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Successful startup founders often recall moments of clarity when recounting their company's story, when an idea clicked and changed their entrepreneurial path for the better. In the long run, these lightbulb anecdotes provide valuable learning lessons, which the community-driven tech industry prides itself in sharing with the world.
To that end, we found some of the best pieces of advice New York tech founders have given to budding entrepreneurs over the years. Check them out in the speeches below.
Podcasting network, Gimlet Media, was founded by former This American Life and Planet Money producer Alex Blumberg and former management consultant Matthew Lieber. As Blumberg chronicled his efforts to launch Gimlet through his podcast Startup, the company gained serious traction as listeners tuned in to hear about the company's game-changing moments as a business. Now, the show produces over 11 shows, which are downloaded over seven million times per month by listeners from nearly 190 countries worldwide.
Coworking giant WeWork was founded Adam Neumann and Miguel McKelvey in 2010, who originally started the company as an eco-friendly coworking experiment in Brooklyn. Since coming to fruition, the company has raised a whopping $1.69 billion funding and is valued at over $10 billion.
Joanne Wilson is an angel investor who bets on companies founded and run by women. She also founded the Women's Entrepreneur Festival, an annual event in New York City dedicated to supporting a community of women entrepreneurs.
David Karp began his career as an intern at Frederator Studios, where he built the company's first blogging platform and internet video network. In 2006, when Karp was 21, Karp began working on a microblogging website, which officially launched as Tumblr in 2007. In 2013, Tumblr was acquired by Yahoo! For $1.1 billion.
Sprinklr, an enterprise social media management company, was founded by Ragy Thomas in 2009. To date, the company has raised $228.5 million in private investment and has made 10 acquisitions, including TBG Digital, one of Facebook's largest ad-buying clients.
Carter Cleveland founded Artsy in 2009 with a mission to make the art world accessible to anyone with an Internet connection. The company employs a full suite of technology to offer the world's largest online database of contemporary art, as well as serve as a comprehensive resource for learning about and collecting art from the leading galleries, museums, art fairs and auctions all around the world. The company now counts over 160 employees on its team.
Warby Parker, a direct-to-consumer business for prescription eyewear, was founded by Neil Blumenthal, David Gilboa, Jeffrey Raider and Andrew Hunt in 2010. The company has seen exponential growth since then, scoring a $1.2 billion valuation in 2015.


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CM Naveen Patnaik demands inclusion of Kosali and Ho languages in 8th schedule
July 22, 2015 at 12:34 pm sanjibkarmee	Leave a comment
Following is a report from the TOI:
BHUBANESWAR: Ahead of the elections for two newly created municipal corporations—Sambalpur and Rourkela, chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday urged the Centre to expedite inclusion of Sambalpuri/Kosali and Ho languages in the Eighth schedule of the Constitution.
In a letter to Union home minister Rajnath Singh, the Odisha chief minister said on the basis of the recommendations of an expert panel, the state government had already submitted a proposal in this regard.
"It may be reiterated that Sambalpuri/Kosali is the mother tongue of more than 7.5 million people in Western Odisha and spoken for many centuries. It is used as a medium of teaching in non-formal schools now," he noted.
Naveen also said Ho language is the mother tongue of more than one million tribal people living in bordering districts of Odisha and Jharkhand.
It also tried to woo the people of western parts of the state, the party had announced in its election manifesto during 2014 elections, to pressurize the Union government for inclusion of Koshali in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
It was a long standing demand from different quarters to accord constitutional status to the Sambalpuri/Kosali and Ho languages.
Entry filed under: Athmallik, Balangir, Bargarh, Boudh, Deogarh, Jharsuguda, Kalahandi, Kosli language and literature, Language, Nuapada, Region watch, Sambalpur, Subarnapur, Sundergarh.
Odisha-Centre MoU on Khurda Road-Balangir rail project	Bhubaneswar and Rourkela top smart city list in Odisha


Goodwin Crescent is off Thomas Street which is accessed from Queen Street in Swinton. Close by are Swinton Queen Primary School and the centre of Swinton near Mexborough.
To be offered by Auction. Vacant two storey detached care home in need of refurbishment due to fire damage. Ideal development opportunity for self-build subject to planning.
First Floor Five Bedrooms, Bathroom, Shower room.
1. Due to the poor condition of the building viewings are external only.
2. The buyers admin is £1000 plus VAT.


SUVA, Fiji Islands (February 6, 2000 – Fiji's Daily Post)---Coconut water may become the next sports beverage, at least for Pacific Island countries like Fiji, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has announced.
If this happens, there may be potential opportunities for investment in a country like Fiji where coconuts are easy to grow.
A new cold sterilization process to bottle coconut water now exists.
Using this method, coconut water is expected to retain its full taste and contain the salts, sugars and vitamins that make it the ideal sports beverage.
The inventor of the process, Morton Satin of FAO, describes coconut water as "a natural beverage product with the delicate aroma, taste and drinking characteristics required of a sports drink."
At present most of the commercial production of coconut water uses thermal processing and is carried out in Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand.
Although thermal processing eliminates the risk of bacteria, it eliminates some nutrients and most of all the delicate flavor of coconut water.
FAO has officially applied to patent cold bottling of coconut water in Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom and the USA.
Outside these countries the process can be freely made available to manufacturers who wish to bottle coconut water on an industrial scale.


Left to Right: NFL Alumni President Bart Oates, Health City U.S. Sales & Marketing Specialist Mary Jones, Health City Director of Business Development Shomari Scott, and NFL Alumni CEO Beasley Ree.
MOUNT LAUREL, NEW JERSEY, UNITED STATES, April 6, 2019 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Health City Cayman Islands is supporting NFL Alumni's (NFLA) charitable mission with a $20,000 donation to its "Caring for Kids" program.
The world-class tertiary care medical facility, which was founded by renowned cardiac surgeon Dr. Devi Shetty, presented the donation at NFLA's New Jersey headquarters. Health City became an NFLA service partner in 2018.
Health City Director of Business Development Shomari Scott said: "We are pleased to support the NFL Alumni's charitable mission with this donation to 'Caring for Kids'. At Health City Cayman Islands, a large part of our mission is to bring health care to those who need it most. In our five years of operation, we have provided lifesaving heart surgeries to over 300 children in need from around the world. We are happy to partner with an organization that has children's best interests at heart."
NFL Alumni CEO Beasley Reece said: "We thank Health City Cayman Islands for this generous donation to support our mission to improve children's lives. Our partnership with Health City is part of the NFLA's commitment to not only help kids but also to provide affordable health- and wellness-related services to benefit the quality of life of our members. By partnering with Health City Cayman Islands, we are able to provide our members with another excellent medical resource."
Health City, which marks its fifth anniversary in April 2019, is committed to successful results and improved quality of life for its patients. Surgeons and medical staff at Health City have extensive experience in their fields, employ the latest technologies, and together provide seamless concierge care. Patients recover in the secure and tranquil setting of Grand Cayman - which is located just one hour away from Miami, Florida.
NFL Alumni also has a traditional mission of "Caring for Kids" across the country. Player alumni give back in their local communities by raising funds for youth-related charities through their 35 regional chapters. It is a tradition that has existed for more than 50 years. Alumni support typically raises more than $1.5 million dollars annually for worthwhile causes.
NFL Alumni was founded in 1967 and is the oldest and most recognizable national organization of retired professional athletes. NFL Alumni consists of former NFL players, coaches, executives, spouses, cheerleaders and associate members. NFL Alumni's mission "Caring for our Own" is to serve, assist and inform its members and their families. NFL Alumni offers a wide array of medical, financial and business programs to help members lead healthy, productive and successful lives. NFL Alumni also promotes the post-playing careers of its members and it also contributes to local community initiatives under its "Caring for Kids" programs. Pro Football Legends is the commercial marketing name and logo of NFL Alumni. The NFL Alumni Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Health City Cayman Islands, the vision of renowned heart surgeon and humanitarian Dr. Devi Shetty, is supported by Narayana Health, one of India's largest private health care systems. Health City, only the second hospital in the Caribbean to receive the Joint Commission International's hospital accreditation, provides compassionate, high-quality, affordable health care services in a world-class, comfortable, patient-centered environment. Offering health care to local, regional and international patients, Health City Cayman Islands delivers excellence in adult and pediatric cardiology, cardiac surgery, cardiac electrophysiology, medical oncology, orthopedics, sports medicine, pediatric endocrinology, gastrointestinal and bariatric surgery, neurology, interventional neurology and neuro-diagnostics, neurosurgery, minimally invasive spine surgery, gynecology, urology, pediatric allergies, colorectal surgery, dental, sleep lab and pulmonology services.


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Home / Steam Games / LEGO Star Wars - The Force Awakens - Deluxe Edition
LEGO Star Wars - The Force Awakens - Deluxe Edition
Buy LEGO Star Wars The Force Awakens Deluxe Edition now!
You will receive the key for the game by TT Games via eMail within the delivery time stated above.
The complete Lego Star Wars experience with The Force Awakens and the Season Pass, which offers even more levels, characters and vehicles.
Download LEGO Star Wars The Force Awakens Deluxe Edition for free via the Steam network. Steam can be found here.
The Deluxe Edition contains:
LEGO Star Wars - The Force Awakens (original game)
LEGO Star Wars - The Force Awakens - Season Pass
The Force is strong with this one… The No. 1 LEGO® videogame franchise triumphantly returns with a fun-filled, humorous journey through the new Star Wars adventure. Play as all of the characters from the movie, including Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and BB-8, as well as Kylo Ren, General Hux and Captain Phasma.
In LEGO® Star Wars™: The Force Awakens™, relive the epic action from the blockbuster film in way that only LEGO can offer, featuring brand new story content from the Star Wars Universe that explores the time between Star Wars: Return of the Jedi and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens introduces new gameplay mechanics, including the enhanced Multi-Builds system, where players can choose from multiple building options to advance the game, or engage in intense new Blaster Battles for the first time, utilizing surrounding environments to drive back the First Order.
The LEGO Star Wars The Force Awakens Season Pass includes new playable levels, characters and vehicles.
OS: Windows XP/Vista/7/8/10
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (2.4 GHz) / AMD Phenom x4 9850 (2.5 GHz)
Graphics: GeForce GT 430 (1024 MB)/ Radeon HD 6850 (1024 MB)
Additional Notes: Windows XP and DirectX® 9.0b and below not supported
Processor: Intel i5, 4 x 2.6 GHz or AMD equivalent
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 or ATI Radeon HD 5850 or better, 1Gb RAM
LEGO - The Hobbit
LEGO Batman Trilogy
LEGO DC Super Villains
LEGO DC Super Villains - Deluxe Edition
LEGO Marvel's Avengers - Deluxe Edition
LEGO World
DOOM (Doom 4 Key)
LEGO Star Wars III - The Clone Wars
Middle-Earth Shadow of Mordor - Game of the Year Edition
Star Wars Empire at War - Gold Pack
Steam Surprise Premium - Random Steam Key - 5 Pack


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Connecticut takes steps to change social studies
News // Connecticut
Journal Register Co.
HARTFORD >> Connecticut is taking the first steps toward changing how elementary, middle and high school students learn social studies, tying lessons more closely to critical thinking about government and the economy.
The state board of education approved a statement Wednesday giving school districts guidance on developing a social studies curriculum that prepares students to enter a "globally competitive workforce" where economics, geography, technology and culture play a role.
"It gives students the skills of being citizens, asking questions about government, economics, about the past," said John Tully, a Central Connecticut State University history professor who worked with the board on the curriculum changes.
With a flood of information easily available on the Internet, students must now learn how to think critically about facts available on countless websites, he said.
"What I can't look up is 'What questions am I not asking?"' Tully said. "What's hidden?"
The board of education statement dovetails with Common Core curriculum, a set of college- and career-ready standards. Common Core has been adopted by more than 40 states, but it's also drawn fire from critics such as Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal who say courses are being drawn up at the national level, bypassing local education.
Dianna Roberge-Wentzell, chief academic officer of the Connecticut Department of Education, said a major change in the direction of social studies teaching followed the recent release of recommendations by the National Council on the Social Studies. Known as the "College, Career and Civic Life Framework," or C3, the initiative was devised by social studies teachers and others in states and backed by professional organizations representing civics, economics, geography and history.
The initiative recognizes the "important role" that Common Core standards play in defining grade school and high school literacy expectations. The C3 initiative proposes instruction in civics that include political institutions, rules and laws; economics, which propose lessons on the national and global economies; geography; and history.
Tully said Connecticut teachers and others have been advocating for social studies curriculum that would make up for Common Core's absence of more complete course content.
The changed curriculum could be adopted by the state board of education in the fall, Tully said. But Connecticut schools are not bound to follow the state and may establish their own curriculum on their own schedules.


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Clean Energy / News & Views / Solar Owners Rate Michigan's Net Metering, Utility Pilots
Solar Owners Rate Michigan's Net Metering, Utility Pilots
Flexibility, sensible rates, new models top wish lists
Solar | April 16, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo
*This is Part 6 of our ongoing coverage of the MPSC solar work group. See the entire series here.
From left: MPSC's Paul Proudfoot and Julie Baldwin accepted an 1,800-signature petition from Sierra Club's Brad van Guilder and signers Bob Wasserman and John Ford, owner of a solar power system, after the Apr. 8 Solar Work Group session. The petition urges quick action setting strong pro-solar policies. (Photo: Anne Woiwode)
John Ford is crystal clear about why he took advantage of DTE Energy's Solar Currents pilot program and installed a modest solar energy system on his Ann Arbor home last fall.
"I didn't have a second thought about it," said the Pfizer retiree about his 3.2-kilowatt project, which will pay for itself in 10 years and then provide 20 years of free electricity. "It is the way we have to go on this planet in order to preserve it."
And Ford is just as clear about why he signed a Sierra Club petition urging the Michigan Public Service Commission to require more solar development from utilities, and then showed up at a recent MPSC Solar Work Group meeting to help present his and 1,800 other online signatures to the agency's staff.
"Anything we can do to facilitate the solar industry working well with DTE is worth every effort possible," he said a few days later. "I think those meetings are a great thing."
MPSC launched the work group in February to find a way forward for customer-based solar development by DTE and Consumers Energy. Both want to drop their solar pilot programs, which pay more for homegrown solar electricity than Michigan's net metering law requires.
The push for more solar, which led to the 40-member work group of advocates and state and utility officials, reflects rising concern that Michigan is far behind other similarly un-sunny states in developing sun power. The advocates see the state's lack of solar policies quashing the thousands of high-skill, long-term jobs that more solar growth would produce while cutting pollution and greenhouse gases.
They add that properly priced, smaller-scale solar can help utilities save fuel costs, avoid new power-line construction, and cut power purchases from pricey "peaker plants" on hot, sunny, heavily air-conditioned days.
"I'm not exactly sure why they are not embracing solar and wind way more than they are. They are scared to death of solar taking over their industry," Ford said. "But it should be a symbiotic relationship that fulfills future energy needs."
He said DTE's Solar Currents program works smoothly for him—from installation to grid connection to billing—and mostly covers his $70 monthly electric bills.
But he wants DTE to pay more than 3 cents for each "extra" kilowatt-hour his panels produce—that is, power that exceeds what he typically uses. Ford also wants more flexibility; five neighbors want to invest in a large system he wants to build on his adjacent lot, but DTE told him it's illegal to send his power across property lines.
"The MPSC should be looking at allowing people to do something like that," he said.
In fact, the work group is discussing what Ford's suggestion amounts to: allowing different kinds of "community solar" projects.
As work group meetings continue, interviews with other solar panel owners confirmed that, like Ford, they are glad they built their systems, but have suggestions for improving the utilities' solar pilots and the state's net metering rules.
The state's net metering rules require utilities to buy electricity from customers' solar systems at their full retail rate—essentially rolling meters backwards when the panels produce more power than their owner uses. But they cannot sell more power than they typically use, and larger systems, sized for commercial operations, earn significantly less than the retail rate.
Those rules have produced only modest solar growth. MPSC says that, at the end of 2012, Michigan's 1,330 net-metered systems could produce up to 9,500 kilowatts— 0.1 percent of the power from a medium-sized coal plant.
Better than Wall Street
But net metering works fine for Dave Coveyou, whose family-owned, 140-year-old Coveyou Scenic Farm Market, just south of Petoskey, raises and retails organic vegetables, flowers, fruit, and holiday wreaths and trees.
Coveyou installed his system for a rock bottom price, taking advantage of sharply lower panel prices and his own electrical engineering expertise. He switched on his 16-kilowatt system in early March to power high-efficiency pumps, coolers, and heaters.
"For me, it was economics," he said. "It requires more upfront money, but it certainly pays for itself over time. I remember in the 1970s you would never want to put in electric heat, but I want to be off propane and gasoline, from a business standpoint."
But Coveyou dislikes the 20-kilowatt system limit for earning the higher, retail rate. He believes farmers could build much larger systems to power their entire operations and sell excess power onto the grid at a price good both for growers and utilities—particularly during summer's pricey peak-power demand.
"There really is a solid case for designing a program that will actually pay people for their electricity," he said. "That could really help small farmers all across the state."
"I can invest in the stock market or invest in something [like solar] that is good for the country," he added. "Let's try to implement something that's working in other states. I got to believe that the commission would say those things make sense."
A Tale of Two Systems
Ross Draper hopes that's true, based on the unique view of customer-owned solar power he's gained. His employer, FPE-Sunsource in Kalamazoo, has two solar systems, uses net metering for one and Consumers' pilot Experimental Advanced Renewables Program for the other.
FPE entered a 2010 EARP lottery, won, and installed a 20.7-kilowatt system that earns 42.5 cents per kilowatt-hour from Consumers for 15 years, and turns a small profit for the company. Pleased, FPE built another, 27-kilowatt system the following year—meaning solar would provide 20 percent of FPE's electricity—and began applying for subsequent EARP drawings.
But the company has not won again, even as Draper watched EARP lower its rates for new, non-residential contracts to 19.9 cents.
"There's just no way people will go for that and grow the solar industry," he said. Draper added that, even if he wins in a drawing, FPE might stick with net metering for the second system because it could soon offer a better deal as rates continue to rise. He estimates that, at current rates, the system will pay for itself in about 20 years.
Draper said he would like to see a "menu-driven program where you can pick and choose different payback periods with different amounts per kWh, rather than a 'one size fits all' approach."
He plainly dislikes the current situation.
"The power companies met their renewables mandates, so now they say, 'We don't have to go any further,'" he said. "But they have no competition and there is something wrong with them not trying to help from their side of things. They are an impediment to this, and it kind of bugs me that they do that."
Wanted: New Game Plan
Like John Ford, Robert Stegmier is a Sierra Club member and installed his solar system because he wanted to cut his carbon footprint, not necessarily his utility bill. He's something of a solar pioneer; when he installed his modest, 2-kilowatt system eight years ago, solar was very cutting edge in Michigan.
At that time the 30-percent solar federal tax credit only covered the project's first $2,000, and only about a dozen people, including him, were using Michigan's original, very weak net metering law. Solar power was clearly for hobbyists.
He was also one of the first solar owners to gain acceptance to Consumers' EARP program. He likes his arrangement.
"They buy all of my electricity, so I know what they are purchasing from me in kilowatt-hours," he said, "and they charge me for everything I use from them, so I can easily figure out what I'm getting out of my solar panels."
Today, net metering is a somewhat better deal in Michigan, solar panels are much cheaper, and some utilities are starting to see that properly priced and distributed, smaller-scale solar systems can benefit panel owners and power companies. But Stegmier also believes Michigan's utilities are lagging behind what is actually occurring in the energy industry, especially given solar's potential to produce significant amounts of power here.
"I would like to see the utilities in Michigan, because they are a monopolistic system within our free enterprise system, making those kinds of investments," he said. "They should have bought the system on my roof, and paid me accordingly. Or community solar systems: the utilities could do that, too."
Stegmier said he understands big companies' reluctance to jump into small-scale solar.
"It would be a whole different ballgame. If they owned a bunch of panels on a bunch of roofs, they would have a whole bunch of individuals to deal with in a different way," he said. "Today they have the product—energy—and you buy it or you don't buy it.
"But they have a game plan, they have plants licensed for 30, 50 years. If the auto companies didn't have a federal mandate, would they be where they are at now with mileage? The government stepped in and said, 'OK, you got to do this.'
"I don't really like that, but sometimes that is what you have to do. If they have a monopoly, then I have limited options."
Jim Dulzo is the Michigan Land Use Institute's senior energy policy specialist. Reach him at jimdulzo@mlui.org. This is Part 6 of a continuing series about the Solar Work Group process occurring in Lansing.
1915 days ago, 11:05am | by Elaine Dierwa | Report Comment
I hope LBWL will offer a program in the near future.
1849 days ago, 5:22am | by taylor | Report Comment
I want a solar system. I want them to give me market rate in energy give back. But asking them to buy the system is crazy. I see where he's coming from. Maybe after a year they can give credits for ownership, but straight out the gate. They don't know what types of owners we will be.


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Kalashtami 2022: All you need to know about the Lord Kaal Bhairav Jayanti
When is Kalashtami in the year 2022
Importance of Kalashtami
Kalbhairav Puja
Worship Kaal Bhairav chanting these mantras
Who is Kalbhairav?
Origin of Lord Bhairav
The second story of Lord Kalabhairav
Forms of Bhairav
Kalabhairava is the protector of the universe
Important Temples of Kalabhairav
Kalashtami, which is also known as Kala Ashtami, is celebrated every month during the Ashtami Tithi of Krishna Paksha. The devotees of Lord Bhairav fast on all Kalashtami days in the year and worship him. The most important Kalashtami, which is also known as Kalabhairava Jayanti, falls in the month of Margashirsha as per the North Indian lunar month calendar. Meanwhile, according to the South Indian lunar month calendar, Kalabhairava Jayanti falls in the month of Kartik. However, both calendars celebrate Kalabhairav Jayanti on the same day. It is believed that Lord Shiva emerged as Bhairav on the day of Kalabhairav Jayanti. Hence it is also known as the Bhairav Ashtami.
16 November 2022, Wednesday will be celebrated as Kaal Bhairav Jayanti this year. Let's see the days when Kalashtami will be celebrated in the year 2022
Auspicious beginning
January 25, 2022, Tuesday Start - 07:48 AM, Jan 25, End - 06:25 AM, Jan 26 Magh
February 23, 2022, Wednesday Begins - 04:56 PM, Feb 23, Ends - 03:03 PM, Feb 24 Falgun
March 25, 2022, Friday Begins - 12:09 AM, March 25, Ends - 10:04 PM, March 25 Chaitra
April 23, 2022, Saturday Start - 06:27 AM, April 23, End - 04:29 AM, April 24 Vaishakh
May 22, 2022, Sunday Begins - 12:59 PM, May 22, Ends - 11:34 AM, May 23 Jyaistha
June 20, 2022, Monday Begins - 09:01 PM, June 20, Ends - 08:30 PM, June 21 Ashad
July 20, 2022, Wednesday Starts - 07:35 AM, Jul 20, Ends - 08:11 AM, Jul 21 Shravan
August 19, 2022, Friday Begins - 09:20 PM, Aug 18, Ends - 10:59 PM, Aug 19 Bhadrapada
September 17, 2022, Saturday Begins - 02:14 PM, Sept 17, Ends - 04:32 PM, Sept 18 Ashwin
October 17, 2022, Monday Begins - 09:29 AM, Oct 17, Ends - 11:57 AM, Oct 18 Karthik
November 16, 2022, Wednesday Begins - 05:49 AM, Nov 16, Ends - 07:57 AM, Nov 17 Margashirsha
December 16, 2022, Frida Begins - 01:39 AM, Dec 16, Ends - 03:02 AM, Dec 17 Poush
Kalashtami is an important festival for Hindus as it is believed that worshiping Kalabhairava on this day brings success and financial stability in life. It is also said that Lord Bhairav protects his devotees from all kinds of negative emotions and instincts like anger, jealousy, and greed. Kalabhairav, the fearsome form of Lord Shiva, is often worshiped in many temples across the country.
Kaal Bhairav Puja
On the eve of Kalabhairav Jayanti, the devotees take a holy bath early in the morning and then begin with all the rituals. Let us find out what those rituals are:
The devotees worship all the three deities Goddess Parvati, Lord Shiva, and Lord Kaal Bhairav together. Sweets, flowers, and fruits are also offered to the deities in order to make them happy. After the puja, the devotees begin with chanting the Kaal Bhairav Katha.
The devotees do not sleep for the entire night and tell stories of Lord Shiva and Lord Kalabhairava to the invitees and all other devotees.
After reciting the Kaal Bhairav mantras and shlokas, devotees worship Kaal Bahirav at midnight by performing the Kaal Bhairav Aarti. The sound of conch shells, bells, and drums while chanting the mantras creates a sacred and positive atmosphere.
Devotees also fast on Kalabhairav Jayanti to wash away all their sins, get rid of obstacles, and attain happiness and great success in life
In some places across the country, devotees also serve sweets and milk to dogs as it is considered a sacred religious act. This is because dogs are considered to be the vehicle and companion of Lord Kalabhairava.
"Hrim batukaya updudharanay kuru kuru batukaya hari."
"Om Hreem Vatukaras Apadudharak Vatukaya Hreem"
"Om Haran Hreem Hoon Hrum Hrun Kshetrapalaya Kaal Bhairavaya Namah"
Who is Kaal Bhairav?
Lord Kaal Bhairav is the fierce form of Lord Shiva. He is depicted in an aggressive way, with angry eyes, flaming hair, tiger teeth, snakes around his neck, and a terrifying garland made of human skulls. Kaal Bhairav takes a Trishul, a drum, and the fifth head of Brahma, often looking terrifying. He has a blue-hued throat from swallowing poison to save the entire world. Therefore, he is said to be the conqueror of death.
In order to accomplish various siddhis, Lord Kaal Bhairav is widely worshiped by Tantriks and Yogis across the country. He is also considered to be the protector and kotwal of the universe. In astrology, Lord Bhairav is the Swami of Rahu, that is why people worship him in order to get great benefits from Rahu. It is believed that Bhairav is related to Bhairavi, the Mahavidya Devi who blesses us with Lagna Shuddhi, which purifies and preserves the body, character, personality, and other qualities related to the followers.
Lord Bhairav with full dedication and devotion can help you defeat all your enemies and achieve all kinds of success and happiness in the world. Worshiping and performing proper Pujas regularly appeases Lord Bhairav. A proper puja for Bhairav includes coconut, flowers, vermilion, mustard oil, black sesame, etc which are offered to the Lord in order to please him and get his blessings. Although Bhairav is the fierce form of Shiva, he himself has eight forms – Kaal Bhairav, Asitanga Bhairav, Sanhar Bhairav, Ruru Bhairav, Krodh Bhairav, Kappal Bhairav, Rudra Bhairav, and Unmat Bhairav.
The origin of Bhairav can be traced back to the "Shiva Maha-Purana", in which the conversation between Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu is described. According to the Purana, Lord Vishnu asks Lord Brahma who is the supreme creator of the universe, Lord Brahma right away declares himself as the creator of the universe. After hearing this, Lord Vishnu reprimands Lord Brahma for his hasty and overconfident answer which leads to a long debate. After the debate, they decide to get answers from the four Vedas. The Rigveda declares Lord Rudra also known as Shiva as the supreme being and the creator of the universe. Yajurveda also answers that the one who we worship by performing various Yagyas (Yagams) and other such rigorous austerities and rituals is none other than Shiva. The Samaveda states that the revered figure is worshiped by various yogis and the person who controls the whole world is none other than Tryambakam (Shiva). And lastly, the Atharvaveda says, through the path of devotion all human beings can see and feel the Lord who can take away all the worries, sorrows, and pain of everyone is actually Shankara (Shiva). After hearing this, both Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu started laughing in disbelief.
Then suddenly Lord Shiva appeared in a powerful divine light. Lord Brahma looked at him angrily with his fifth head. Lord Shiva immediately created a living being and said that he would become the king of Kaal (death) and would be known as Kaal Bhairav. But Lord Brahma's fifth head was still burning in flames with anger, Kaal Bhairav then pulled the flaming head off from Brahma. In order to save Kaal Bhairav from Brahmahatya, Lord Shiva ordered him to go around various holy places (pilgrimages). As instructed, Kaal Bhairav took Brahma's head in his hand, started bathing in various holy places (pilgrimages), and worshiped many different Gods but Brahmahatya Dosha was still after him, following him every place he would go to.
Finally, Kaal Bhairav reached Mokshapuri, Kashi. As soon as he entered Kashi, Brahmhatya dosh merged into hell. Brahma's head (Kapal) fell at a place called Kapal Mochan which was later called Kapal Mochan Teerth. After this, Kaal Bhairav provided shelter to all his devotees and settled himself permanently in Kashi. The people living or visiting Kashi should worship Kaal Bhairav as he protects his devotees.
The day of Ashtami (the eighth day after Purnima) in the month of Margashirsha, is considered to be an important day to worship Kaal Bhairav. Other than this, Sunday, Tuesday, Ashtami, and Chaturdashi are some of the important days for worshiping Kaal Bhairav. The devotees who circumambulate Lord Kaal Bhairav 8 times can be freed from all their sins and those who worship him for six months can get all kinds of accomplishments in life.
There is another story of the origin of Bhairav which is the story of Shiva and Shakti. Sati, the daughter of Daksha, the king of the gods, chose Shiva as her husband. However, Daksh disapproved of their marriage by allegedly stating that Shiva lives in the jungles with wild animals and ghosts and hence has no resemblance to him. But Sati against her father Daksh's will married Shiva. Soon after their wedding, Daksha organized a grand "Yagya" in his palace where he invited all the kings and gods except Lord Shiva. After learning about the Yagya, Sati decided to go there. As soon as she reached the Palace, Daksha publicly insulted Shiva. Sati then unable to bear the humiliation of her husband sacrificed herself by jumping into the sacred fire of the Yagya.
After learning this, Lord Shiva destroyed the Yagya and killed Daksha by beheading him. Shiva took the corpse of Shakti on his shoulders and started flouncing here and there in his Rudra form which could destroy the entire universe. To prevent that, Lord Vishnu used his Sudarshana Chakra to cut Shakti's body into pieces, which then fell around. The places where the body parts of Shakti had fallen are now known as Shakti Peethas. It is said that Shiva in the form of Bhairav protects all these Shaktipeeths. Every Shaktipeeth temple is accompanied by a temple dedicated to Bhairav.
There are a total of 64 Bhairvas. These 64 Bhairvas are divided and grouped into 8 categories and each category is led by one Pramukh Bhairava. The major eight Bhairvas are called Ashtanga Bhairava. All 8 directions of the universe are controlled by the Ashta Bhairav. Each Bhairav has seven sub-Bhairavas, which is a total of 64 Bhairavas. All the Bhairavas are ruled and controlled by Maha Swarna Kaal Bhairav, who is known as Kaal Bhairav. According to some Shaivite Tantric scriptures, Kaal Bhairav is the supreme ruler of the universe and Bhairavi is his wife.
It is said that the 8 Bhairavs represent the five elements of the universe – Air, Fire, Water, Sky, and Earth, and the rest three are the sun, the moon, and the soul. Each of the 8 Bhairavas are different in appearance, have different weapons, and have different vehicles. They even bless their followers with 8 different types of wealth which represent Ashta Lakshmi. It is also believed that if you worship Bhairav consistently and with full devotion, you can attain a true Guru in your life. There are also different mantras for all the eight different Bhairavs.
Bhairav is also called the protector, as he protects all the eight directions of the universe. In Shiva temples, when the temple is closed, the keys are placed in front of Bhairav as it is believed that he himself guards the temple.
People have been worshiping Kaal Bhairav since ancient times. But according to the holy texts, 60 years from the Chirtabhanu year that is from April 2002 to the next Chirtabhanu year April 2062 is considered to be the most important time.
The Ashtami (the eighth day after Purnima) is said to be the most ideal day for worship and performing rituals. According to the Hindu calendar, Kaal Bhairav appeared on Earth in the month of Margashirsha.
There are many temples of Bhairav that are located in different parts of India. Kaal Bhairav temples can also be found in and around Shaktipeeths, Jyotirlinga, and Mahamaya temples.
Kal Bhairav Temple, Ujjain
The Kaal Bhairav temple of Ujjain is said to be one of the most unique temples in India, liquors are offered to the Lord. This temple is situated at the riverbanks of Shipra.
Kal Bhairav Temple, Varanasi
The Kaal Bhairav temple of Varanasi is dedicated to the idol of Bhairav. It is considered the Kotwal of Varanasi and one of the greatest Hindu temples in the state.
Kalabhairaveshwara Temple, Karnataka
Kalabhairaveshwara Temple is an ancient temple in Karnataka, which is also known as Kalabhairaveshwara Kshetra Palaka in the Adichunchanagiri Hills.
Ajaikpada Bhairav temple, Orissa
The Ajikapada Bhairav temple in the Jagatsinghpur district of Orissa is found in the Chausath Yogini temple in Orissa.
Kalabhaivar Temple, Tamil Nadu
The most famous temple of Kalabhairav is located in the Dharmapuri district of Tamil Nadu.
Chomukh Bhairavji temple, Rajasthan
Chomukh Bhairavji Temple is located in the Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan and is worshiped by the people of Kharkhara.
Shri Kaal Bhairav Nath Swamy Temple
Shri Kaal Bhairav Nath Swamy Temple is located in the Adegaon village of Madhya Pradesh.
We are certain that by now you must've understood the importance of Lord Kala Bhairava in the
Hindu religion. And now that you know how important and blissful it is to worship Lord Kaal Bhairava on the Kalashtami, it's time to follow all the rituals and worship the great Lord for his blessings.


An effective PAC can increase parents' awareness of the importance of mathematics and science for their child's future.
An effective PAC can help parents understand their roles in helping their children recognize the importance of mathematics and science in everyday life.
Engaging parents and their children in science and mathematics activities, through a MSFN, can increase parents' attitudes toward, and appreciation of, math and science.
Copyright © 2010 by Rosalind Barnes, Judith Monsaas.


The Ford Motor Plant, a landmark in my St. Paul neighborhood, closed in 2011. Though I grew up and have spent most of my life near the plant, it's role never truly had a noticeable impact on me until it was gone.
A couple of years ago, long after the demolition commenced, I began noticing the ruins growing behind the surrounding security fence. I found landscapes of metal, tubing, wire and concrete, and couldn't help but draw parallels between the objects populating this abandoned world and the subjects I use for artistic compositions, still-lifes and landscapes. Attracted to the variety of color, texture and line, I began to photograph the mountains of rubble.
The huge factory, covering acres of space and enclosed only by a fence, had once been capable of putting food on the tables of hundreds of families. The scraps I am painting depict the transiency of all things. What was once a bustling center for creation is now a surprisingly picturesque graveyard. Soon it will be something else, but that too, someday, will be replaced.
My paintings explore the phenomena of the deconstructed buildings and the remnants of their existence. I plan to create a body of work consisting of at least twenty or thirty paintings with very large, large and medium formats.


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you got anything Scooby Doo?
I am interested in Venture and Who.
I'm bringing all the just released "ventures" and probably some of the older waves.
I'm bringing "presidential monsters"....."mattel and matty retro's"
is any one looking for "battle star galactica"