text:
Balkan botch by Stephen Schwartz
October 2011 October 2011
Books October 2011
Balkan botch
by Stephen Schwartz
A review of My New American Life by Francine Prose.
In her latest offering to the fiction-reading public, the prolific Francine Prose has embarked on a daring project: to center a novel on a protagonist from a remote culture—ex-Communist Albania—about which the author knows very little. My New American Life describes a series of episodes experienced by a character whose personality and surroundings, both past and present, seem deliberately ill-defined and disjointed.
The principal figure of the novel, Lula, is a twenty-six-year-old Albanian immigrant woman who once served as an illegally employed waitress in a Manhattan establishment specializing in mojitos, a Caribbean drink made with rum and mint leaves. At the novel's outset, she has moved to the invented suburb of Baywater in northern New Jersey, to work as an au pair, overseeing the home life of Ezekiel...
Francine Prose
My New American Life
Harper, 306 pages, $25.99
Topics: Books
Midnight in Prague
Escapees in paradise: literary life in San Francisco
Koestler's contradictions


text:
Q: Python - Pandas - Dataframe How to add notnull to a column when using .count I am creating a new column that will count all ids but exclude a few rows of customers where the customer's ID has a certain prefix and has no repeat orders
df['newcolumn'] = df[(df.notnull['Date']) & (df['ID'].str.contains('prefix')) & (df['Repeat order'] == 'No')].groupby(['ID'], as_index=False).count()

I am getting below error
TypeError: 'method' object is not subscriptable

Still no difference when I replaced [] with () to resolve above error

A: change
df.notnull['Date']

to
df['Date'].notnull()

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Home Coaches Corner A Volunteer's Guide
A Volunteer's Guide
The Why's and How's of Being a Volunteer Assistant Coach
By Alexis Casati, SMU Women's Volunteer Assistant
The first time I met Jeff Nevolo he shuffle-step danced into our office at SMU and said "I'm back baby!" I didn't know what he was about to do next, but I knew that I needed to be there for it.
A month prior to this encounter, I had called Jeff to discuss his new position as a head coach, and wanted to see if he was looking for a volunteer assistant. Although I was already a full-time assistant, I wanted to continue developing my personal philosophies as a coach — just as many other volunteers do. However, this was before a global pandemic and an economic decline.
According to 2019-2020 team rosters, 33% of all Division I women's tennis programs and 36% of all Division I men's tennis programs had volunteer assistant coaches. This number totals out to be 198 volunteer coaches in all of Division I tennis, not including student-assistants or those who weren't listed on rosters. Even so, that's kind of a lot of people working for free despite the current state of the economy.
Here's why you should still volunteer and how you should go about it if you can.
The Rise of Volunteering: Why It's Becoming a More Prevalent Route
In 1992, the NCAA allowed for a volunteer coach in sports other than basketball and football. According to 2019-2020 rosters, four volunteers from the '90s are still in college tennis as head or associate head coaches at Western Michigan, Cincinnati, Seattle and Navy.
According to these coaches, volunteering then was a different experience than it is today. There were many programs that didn't have two full-time coaches like they do now, so most times the volunteer was around to help out in any capacity they chose. Even a lot of full-time college coaches were also club coaches to help pay the bills.
These coaches touched on the fact that volunteering now 25 years later is more similar to being in a full-time role; getting to travel with the team and meet other coaches in your conference have been some of the more recently added perks. Dave Morin, head coach at Western Michigan and former volunteer at Minnesota said it best: "It's (now) like getting a masters in your career path, which can be invaluable."
Coach Morin made another great point: Nowadays volunteers travel with top players to Oracle Masters or futures events, while full-time staff stays with the rest of the team. As this connection between college and pro tennis grows, not only do programs now need three coaches in some cases, but being able to go to these kinds of events as a coach is great experience.
Do Your Research: Where Should You Volunteer and Why?
People volunteer for different reasons. For some, they love college tennis and want to stay involved aside from their other full-time job. If you're looking to get involved in this way, reaching out to schools close to home might be the best move. Whether it's hitting partners, help with administrative work, or having another on-court coach on match days, you never know what a local program might need.
For others, volunteering has become an intentional career move; people who know they want to get into coaching—or at least are interested in trying—will go down this path to learn and become more connected before they enter a full-time gig. With recent job cuts and less movement in the full-time job market, one head coach also pointed out that volunteering might be the best option to get into college tennis right now.
On the women's side, the Big 12 conference is ahead of the game. Whether it was having a current volunteer coach or having a head or assistant with previous volunteer experience, all of these programs were connected to volunteering. On top of that, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Baylor alone have placed 10 former volunteers into current full-time head or assistant coaching roles. Outside of the Big 12, Georgia Tech has placed three former volunteers in full-time Power 5 roles, and UNC has led three former volunteers to current Division I head coach positions.
On the men's side, the ACC conference led all 2019-2020 men's teams in current volunteers with 10 out of 13 schools filling the position. UVA, Wake Forest, and Florida State have placed a total of seven head or assistant coaches. Outside of the ACC, Ball State and Alabama have both had three former volunteers become full-time head and assistant coaches, and Georgia, SMU, Northwestern, Texas A&M, Oklahoma State and Oklahoma have all had two former volunteers join full-time roles as well.
While most of the programs listed above are Power 5 schools, it is important to do your research regarding who is connected and whom you'd be learning from. Amazing coaches who love to mentor and teach are at all types of programs. There are currently 96 Division I women's and 76 Division I men's full-time coaches who have had volunteer experience in some capacity. Find them and reach out! They might have some insight on how their experience helped them, or which volunteer jobs are the best for what you are looking to learn.
Advice From Volunteers Turned Head Coaches
After speaking to several current head coaches about their volunteer experiences, it was clear that a lot of them had learned similar lessons: Throw yourself into as many aspects of the program as possible, build relationships off-court with your mentors, take notes. Many of them also viewed their time as an amazing opportunity and expressed extreme gratitude about their experiences. Here are the more unique pieces of advice that I received:
"If you're good to college tennis, it will be very good to you—but have to nurture that relationship." Jeff Nevolo, Head Coach at SMU (Volunteer at Alabama and Ball State).
"Just love it. Love the fact that you're at a bigger program than you're qualified enough to be paid for. Love the fact that you don't have the stress of recruiting or the lineup. Embrace that your role is the purest part of the job," Max Norris, Head coach at Ball State (Volunteer at Ball State and UNC).
"I wasn't afraid to voice my opinion. Whether something wasn't right, I saw a moment to speak up about players, lineup, whatever it was, I always said it," Boomer Saia, Head coach at Iowa State (Volunteer at Kansas and Vanderbilt).
"If you can attach yourself to a program that's on the rise that can be pretty important—there's no way to hide success. If you're at a smaller program there's only a couple people and some great players making it happen. As a volunteer you would get to be directly a part of that," Dave Morin, Head Coach at Western Michigan (Volunteer at Minnesota).
"Always try to look at the bigger picture and write things down. You think you'll remember (drills, etc.) but you won't. Get out of your comfort zone with the other (men's or women's) side, and people in the department; meet as many people as you can," Marisa Arce, Head Coach at DePaul (Volunteer at Oklahoma).
My Advice As a Current Volunteer
While money is usually the first concern for a young volunteer, it shouldn't be the main one. Think long-term: goals regarding money should succeed the primary goal of learning and growing as a coach. Don't let extra monetary goals hinder your best on-court work with the team or being able to contribute new ideas for the program.
With that being said, a piece of advice I received was that your research on where to volunteer should include asking if the school owns their own courts and if they'll take a part of your earnings in lessons/clinics. Similarly, are you able to work camps at that school? If you find the right place, you can still make a decent living.
Have a Student Mentality
In many ways, volunteering is similar to continuing your education. Try to be in the office as much as possible. If you were in school and missed a class, you'd miss a lesson. Similarly, if you stepped out of the office or missed a practice, you'd miss a learning opportunity.
Before I started at SMU, one of my former college coaches told me to keep a journal for drills, fitness, and practice plans. This has been a great help, however, I have found that taking notes during meetings or team talks can be even more beneficial. This specifically can help with developing your own coaching personality.
Be Authentic And Be Assertive
Volunteers have a unique role in that we're not the main authoritative figure. We can be authoritative, but we can also be role models, mentors, and friends. There is a special opportunity to build a specific type of relationship and connect with our players in a different way than a head or even full-time assistant coach can. Take advantage of this opportunity to develop your own voice and become an asset to the staff by contributing something that other staff members can't. Speak up and trust yourself. It doesn't hurt to be wrong.
Be The Team's Best Walk-on
Volunteers are similar to walk-ons in a financial sense. Although you're not getting paid, you still have a position that many others wish they had, and an opportunity to make an extremely positive impact on a young group of people.
Three things you might hear if you walked into our office or locker room at SMU are:
1. Whenever you think you've given it all, give more
2. Who's got it better than us?
3. It takes what it takes
While these phrases are said to our whole team, they can be even more beneficial for someone with no financial tie. There is a very specific role that a volunteer has with the team. Being a team player and doing whatever it takes to be good—even if it isn't always glamorous—are just the start to fulfilling your role.
Check out our Classifieds page for open positions!
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text:
Queen's cause of death may be revealed next week after royal mourning period ends
The cause of Queen Elizabeth II's death may be revealed next week, after the end of the royal mourning period. The Queen's death was announced to the public at 6:30 p.m. m. on Thursday, September 8. Very limited details of the circumstances surrounding the Queen's death have been revealed so far.
Registration of deaths in Scotland is compulsory under the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act 1965.
This law states that "the death of every person who dies in Scotland" must be recorded.
This includes submitting a death certificate to a registrar, which must be done within seven days of the occurrence of death.
If the Queen had died in England, there would be no requirement to publish an official cause of death because the Registration Act of 1836 does not apply to monarchs.
In Scotland, doctors must report all deaths that are "sudden, suspicious, accidental or unexplained" to the Crown Office.
But according to the Scottish Daily Express, the Crown Office in Edinburgh said her death had not been mentioned because "it was not a necessary death".
The Queen's funeral took place on Monday 19 September at Westminster Abbey in London.
Her coffin was carried in procession from Scotland to London.
The service, led by the Most Reverend Dr. David Hoyle Dean of Westminster, began at 11 a.m.
The sermon was delivered by the Right Reverend and Right Honorable Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury.
The Queen's state funeral was watched by more than 28 million people on 50 UK channels.
It was followed by a private burial service in Windsor, attended by members of the family.
After the funeral, the Queen's coffin traveled in procession from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch, also known as Constitution Arch, which was built as an original entrance to Buckingham Palace and stands between Hyde Corners. Park and Green Park.
From there the coffin traveled to Windsor, where the pledge service was held at St George's Chapel.
Queen Elizabeth II was buried in the King George VI Memorial Chapel, a small annex to the main chapel in Windsor.
She was buried alongside her father, George VI, the Queen Mother, and her sister, Princess Margaret.
Prince Philip was previously in the Royal Vault, but was moved to lie next to his wife in the chapel.
Puppy Taking To an Old Shoe For Comfort After Being Thrown Out With Garbage
Baby With Down Syndrome Is Loved by Millions After Presenting Adoptive Mom With Her 'New Smile'
Alicia Keys Turned Down $9 Million For 9 Minutes Because She Was Spending Quality Time With Her Husband
Next Life lessons: Miriam Margolyes on what life has taught her
Previous Tiffany Haddish: 'I Lost Everything' Because of Lawsuit


Diamond Bank Plc. has been awarded the prestigious Women's Market Champion honours by the Global Banking Alliance for Women. This year's women's market champions reflect the global nature of the global banking alliance for women's work hailing from diverse markets and regions.
According to Manager, Branding and Communications Strategy, Global Banking Alliance for Women (GBA), Vanessa Van Landingha, Diamond Bank was selected as one of the 2018 awardees for its outstanding impact on women development, and providing them with holistic solutions that meet their needs.
She said their engagement with the GBA network is essential to the work they do to economically empower women worldwide, and contribute to the women's market success of the entire membership.
"The awarded institutions are true champions of women, working to unleash the economic potential of the female economy," GBA Chief Executive, Inez Murray said.
Diamond Bank Plc is one of Nigeria's leading commercial bank providing enhanced customer experience through innovation and technology. Regarded as a supporter of Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises through SME lending, capacity building, business seminars, and workshops.
Recently, the Bank recorded a landmark funds disbursement of over N1 billion to small business owners under the cash flow-based SME lending scheme in partnership with the Women's World Banking (WWB), and this has earned the leading financial institution ranked among the top five SME-focused banks in Nigeria.
Happy. Skeptical. Kind. Thoughtful. Friendly. Easygoing. Christian. Igbo. Book addict.
Artist Mark Jenkins Shocks London!


Kwik Kar Wash of Flower Mound features the most advanced, state-of-the-art equipment that does not use brushes or harsh chemicals that can damage your cars finish. Our soft cloth cleans, shines and is 100% safe. The soaps and paint protection products we use are the best in the industry, as well as being safe and ecologically friendly.
Our car wash layout is designed to provide fast, efficient movement of vehicles. Whether you need a Full-Service Wash, Express Detail or an Express Exterior Wash, we will have you back on the road in short order. Our express car detailing crews use only the finest products to give your car a sparkling shine.


Our OPTIMA SILVER CLASSICS are also available for small scale lengths and children guitars. The strings are, specially to each size, exactly calculated and have the same sound quality like the the 4/4 string set. The 1/2, 1/4 and 1/8 sets are delivered with a wound G3 string. Due to their coating these string also have a high durability.
Each string set comes with one of the 10 cool stickers with our mouse Optimo for collecting.


I've read your statement after the shooting of the GOP Congressmen and aides in Virginia and am compelled to call you out, sir.
Senator, you said you were "sickened by this despicable act" and "Violence of any kind is unacceptable in our society." So my question to you is ...why did this surprise you? Why didn't you EXPECT this?
You espouse socialism. You carry the banner for socialism in America. You are a follower of Karl Marx.
In the history of mankind, there has NEVER been a Marxist revolution in a country that did not involve violence and blood. The history books still contain the facts of the aftermath of Stalin's purge in Russia, the millions killed by Mao, the killing fields of Cambodia, the slaughters in Cuba, North Korea and Vietnam. The slaughter of human beings and the ideals of progressive socialism go together like pancakes and syrup. Like white on rice.
So, in your dream for socialistic revolution in America, Senator Sanders, you certainly understand that the violence will come. You're a smart guy, quit playing dumb. This shooting didn't surprise you or "sicken" you - you expected it, you planned for it, you promoted it. When you promote a Marxist overthrow of America's governmental and economic system then you promote bloody revolution and loss of life.
People scratched their heads at why you soft-pedaled your campaign against Hillary Clinton. You let her off the hook for the email scandal, you gave her a pass on the Clinton Foundation. You wanted to lose because you knew that Trump's election would bring the revolution you have always dreamed of. You only ran in the Democrat primary so you could remain on center stage after the election and could seize the reins of the bloody revolt to follow.
So, Senator Sanders, keep your shock and lies to yourself. People have always admired you because you admitted you were a socialist. So continue your history of blunt honesty and applaud the shooting on the GOP the other day. Congratulate your minions for moving the revolution forward. Make another speech about Trump that riles the base up to the monster status of this new President. You do have a mission, Bernie. We know what it is. We know who you are and what you stand for.
So own up to the attack. Take responsibility. Own it.
What's more harmful: Putting millions already on the margins more at-risk via draconian policies, or shooting a racist lawmaker in the hip?
Amazingly accurate description of Barack Hussein Obama. Thank you.
Vegas this Friday night! 2 shows at Mandalay Bay. Oh, Palin, ur goin down so hard, you'd better just stay in Wasilla w ur "retarded baby"


text:
Шарон () — місто () в США, в окрузі Віклі штату Теннессі. Населення — 944 особи (2010).

Географія
Шарон розташований за координатами  (36.233721, -88.825057).  За даними Бюро перепису населення США в 2010 році місто мало площу 2,94 км², уся площа — суходіл. В 2017 році площа становила 3,29 км², з яких 3,29 км² — суходіл та 0,00 км² — водойми.

Демографія

Згідно з переписом 2010 року, у місті мешкали 944 особи в 421 домогосподарстві у складі 270 родин. Густота населення становила 321 особа/км².  Було 476 помешкань (162/км²).

Расовий склад населення:

До двох чи більше рас належало 0,8 %. Частка іспаномовних становила 1,1 % від усіх жителів.

За віковим діапазоном населення розподілялося таким чином: 19,3 % — особи молодші 18 років, 55,9 % — особи у віці 18—64 років, 24,8 % — особи у віці 65 років та старші. Медіана віку мешканця становила 45,5 року. На 100 осіб жіночої статі у місті припадало 92,3 чоловіків;  на 100 жінок у віці від 18 років та старших — 83,6 чоловіків також старших 18 років.

Середній дохід на одне домашнє господарство  становив  долар США (медіана — ), а середній дохід на одну сім'ю —  доларів (медіана — ). Медіана доходів становила  доларів для чоловіків та  доларів для жінок. За межею бідності перебувало 17,6 % осіб, у тому числі 30,3 % дітей у віці до 18 років та 7,6 % осіб у віці 65 років та старших.

Цивільне працевлаштоване населення становило 372 особи. Основні галузі зайнятості: освіта, охорона здоров'я та соціальна допомога — 29,0 %, виробництво — 14,0 %, роздрібна торгівля — 12,4 %.

Примітки

Джерела

Містечка Теннессі
Населені пункти округу Віклі (Теннессі)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


I don't think anyone could have predicted that in the twenty-first century the old doctrine of Calvinism would suddenly experience a great resurgence. Yet this is exactly what has happened. The New Calvinism, or the Young, Restless, Reformed, has been highlighted in platforms as diverse as Christianity Today and TIME as one of the ideas that is changing the world today. It has been a major emphasis in publishing and has its own celebrities, conferences and organizations.
Note: We don't expect that you will agree with everything we've chosen to include and exclude. Also, while the timeline is roughly chronological, individual events within a particular year may not be in the exact right order (so, for example, Chosen By God may have been published after Desiring God, though both were published in 1986).
Where Did All These Calvinists Come From?


Brian Mikolichek of Winsted is following in his father's footsteps by taking over the family business.
Mikolichek is the owner of Mikolichek Plumbing and Heating, located in rural Winsted. His dad, Harvey, owned Harvey's Plumbing and Heating in rural Silver Lake for 10 years.
Mikolichek has almost 15 years experience in the plumbing and heating industry. He started working with his dad at the age of 15, he said. He worked with his dad through high school and college.
He has more experience before the age of 30 than most other professionals.
Mikolichek offers a variety of services, including residential, remodel, light commercial, service, and air conditioning installation, he said. He is bonded and insured.
Besides knowing plumbing and heating, Mikolichek is educated and has two degrees  one in non-destructive testing from Ridgewater College, and the other in engineer manufacturing technology with a minor in quality control from St. Cloud State.
After college, he worked as a project and quality engineer at Production Tool in Plymouth for two years.
Mikolichek then went to work for a plumbing company TEK Mechanical Service in Hutchinson for two years before the change of hands April 1 in the Mikolichek family business.
While working for TEK, he worked on residential projects and also ran a crew on commercial jobs, he said.
The best thing about being his own boss is that "he is located close to home and is working for people he knows," he said.
"I like it a lot. When work calls, I go," he said. Service calls can come at any time and it's part of the job, he said.
In looking towards the future, Mikolichek is hoping to expand his business, he said.
"With the continued growth in the area, I would like to grow," he said. "I'd like to have two crews within a year."
In the meantime, Harvey helps out on a part-time basis when needed, Mikolichek said.
Mikolichek's main area of work is in a rough 30-mile radius, he said.
In his free time, Mikolichek spends time with his wife, Tiffany, who is due with their first child in September, as well as playing volleyball, he said.
For Mikolichek's services, call (320) 395-2002.


After taking on British GQ last month, the loyal fans of One Direction have found their next target: the veteran rockers of The Who.
The beef began this week, when a music blogger compared One Direction's latest hit, "Best Song Ever," to an earlier track from The Who, 1971's "Baba O'Riley." The blogger wrote, "Someone should call Trading Standards over the song title, as 1D sterilize The Who's 'Baba O'Riley.'"
This sparked a firestorm from Directioners, who interpreted the words as a threat to "Best Song Ever" being "taken down." The fans took to Twitter, making the hashtag #DontTouchBestSongEver trending in the U.S.
Most of the fans' grievances were focused on a Vevo record that was broken with the track (the music video to "Best Song Ever" wracked up to 10.9 million views within 24 hours of its release). The Directioners also took a chance to remind competitors not to "mess with their fandom," make jokes about The Who's irrelevance, and, in a rare move, align themselves with Justin Bieber's Beliebers to work together for their cause.


NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly has denied Community Board 2's request for traffic agents in order to relieve traffic congestion at the busy, three-way intersection known as Crames Square.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) statistics says the Crames Square intersection is the second most dangerous in the city.
Two years ago, the DOT made installments in response to dozens of injuries at the intersection. Community Board 2 says those installments were not enough.
The community board says they are planning a meeting with the DOT and the NYPD in Hunts Point in an effort to let the agencies see the hazards for themselves.


text:
Blog & Learning Resources
Services for Organisations
What people say about us….
Art Talks: Victoria and Albert Museum Undressed
Feb 16, 2017 @ 2:00 pm — Feb 16, 2017 @ 4:00pm
Undressed: A Brief History of Underwear
Looking at underwear design; underwear for men and women over the ages from lasting to luxury
designs. We shall be examining the cut, fit, fabric and decoration of this universal yet intimate
garment. After our tour we will continue to look at language, expressions and discuss the complex
world of underwear over a cup of tea.
Supported by Players of The People's Postcode Lottery
Cromwell Road, South Kensington, South Kensington, SW7 2RL United Kingdom
Speak Street is a pop up language cafe based in Islington. It helps people improve their everyday language skills, it's fun, flexible and community based. We offer Free English classes and low cost Spanish and French classes and events.
hello@speak-street.com
Feb 16, 2017 @ 2:00 pm
Feb 16, 2017 @ 4:00pm
View event on Facebook


Since Instagram was started it has become very successful, especially because one can take photos and filter them using the various Instagram filters available. No matter what some people may think or say, it is clear that Instagram has played a great role in photography worldwide. Instagram has very many users, and it has been proven that customers looking for certain services are more prone to using Instagram than any other app out there.
The first thing to do is downloading and Instagram app which is very simple and cheap, and also one can make a choice on whether they want to create a business account or a personal one. For those people who want a business account, Instagram helps them with some marketing tools and also behavior techniques that will help them achieve the best. The site requires people to post unique and quality photos in order for their work to be noticed.
Acquiring some photography skills is good for anyone who wants to progress in Instagram business wise, this will help you be better and more creative in what you do and ensure that people will always look out for your work. So as to attract more people it is good to publish updates promoting your work every once in a while, and also changing the content each time will be better. All you have to do to get to people you want to do business with on Instagram in future is by using hashtags.
So as to get peoples attention it is good to use some terms in your Instagram posts that will help people get to you better, and it is crucial to also engage more with followers. There is no best time for when to post your content on Instagram especially if your main focus is photography. Instagram filters are available to enhance the look of your videos and photos before posting them, one is guaranteed the best results especially if they know what they want.
In order to have an idea of what you are really good at, one can post different videos and photos and see the users comments and likes. Instagram has made it very easy for their users to get better and more quality photos due to its very many available images. Phones are very flexible compared to other traditional cameras, and with the Instagram app one is guaranteed to get good quality images that everyone will love.
Taking Photos, editing the images and sharing them has become very easy through the use of Instagram, this makes it a very effective way of sharing pictures across the globe.


[3G Fully Unlock] Sweet as pineApple!
Jailbroken work for 3.1 Custom FW?
is some one working on ultras0w for 5.11.07?
Unlock Factory or NOT ????
Unlock iphone 1g on 3.1.2 ?
What other sim cards are compatibable with iPhones?
how do i unlock 2g URGENT!
Please help...German 3GS with US Att Sim Card???
Solved: Unlock for 3G, using 3.1.3 FW - BOOTLOADER 5.08 ONLY!
Unlocked or lock with custom firmware?
is there away i can unlock iphone forever?
3.1.2 iPhone 3Gs Unlock PROBLEM!!! PLEASE HELP!!
Unlock iPhone OS 3.1.3 Baseband 05.11.07 With Blacksn0w ( Unofficial ) - Has anyone red this?
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Carrier Unlock iPhone 3Gs 3.1.3 jb/w Spirit baseband 05.12.01 ??
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ultrasnow still no service for tmobile.
Quick Question About at&t SIM Card?
iOS 3.1.2 & BB 5.13.04?
Auto Activated After a Restore!!!!!
MuscleNerd and Planetbeing are cooking iPhone 4 Baseband UNLOCK!
UL 3GS TMobile: visual VM?
Does 4.0.1 upgrade my baseband?
WTA Guys when do the jailbreak tools for iphone 3gs ios 4 come out?
At&t sim activation questions problem ?!?!


text:
Evangelical Women Celebrities: A Crisis of Authority
Erica Ramirez on Kate Bowler
The Preacher's Wife. Kate Bowler. Princeton University Press, 2019. pp. 368 $29.95 (hardback)
In The Preacher's Wife, Kate Bowler introduces readers to a group of powerful evangelical women leaders. Through this cohort, the book describes the rise of a new type of feminine power, one readily on display in the wives of some of America's most prominent megachurch pastors—Victoria Osteen, for instance, who is married to prosperity preacher Joel Osteen. The power wielded by these high-profile women is impressive. But, Bowler argues, the authority that "celebrity" women leaders garner is "precarious" because this kind of influence requires that women constantly embody feminine ideals, and leaves them vulnerable to the whims of the market and dependent on the stability of a husband's pastorate.
Though women leaders like Jen Hatmaker and Beth Moore are not household names outside Christian subcultures, Bowler admonishes that they "should not be underestimated." Politicians court evangelical women celebrities "as powerful brokers of public trust," and evangelical celebritydom (as a whole) is estimated to be an $8.5B enterprise.
In Bowler's account, because many conservative churches subscribe to complementarian gender roles and prohibit women's preaching, the authority won and wielded by women in conservative megaministry begins with a "professionalization" of the role of wife, mother, or daughter. To wit, as one leading author's online biography reads, "Priscilla Shirer is a wife and a mom first. But put a Bible in her hand and a message in her heart and you'll see why thousands flock to her conferences and dive into her Bible study series each year." New York Times' bestselling author Ann Voskamp's biography similarly introduces her as "Wife to the Farmer: Mama to 7." Proceeding from their familial roles, evangelical women channel their talents and ambitions towards accepted evangelical ideals and accompanying discourses, identified by Bowler as Preacher, Homemaker, Talent, Counselor, and Beauty. Leaders' efforts to nurture an image in accord with one of these ideals, and to establish a level of public recognition based on that image is—in Bowler's rendering— their active, savvy, difficult cultivation of evangelical celebrity authority.
Part of Bowler's logic for naming these leaders celebrities stems from the size of their audiences. Many have book sales that put them on bestsellers lists, and some have half a million or more Instagram followers. But her definition of celebrity also characterizes the kind of relationship these women have with their followers: "In evangelical and Pentecostal subcultures, these women garner a level of adoration and scrutiny more often associated with the entertainment industry." There is no question these women are in a bright spotlight, and not only for the women who "adore" them. Popular speakers Jen Hatmaker, Beth Moore, Glennon Doyle, and (before she passed in 2019) Rachel Held Evans have each been the subjects of numerous pieces in outlets like The New York Times and The Atlantic. Bowler writes with empathy and insight as she describes how hard female speakers work to make themselves market-ready. They must do so while negotiating a conservative evangelical culture that can be tricky for outspoken women. Together, Bowler explains, evangelicalism's complementarian culture and capitalism present various conflicts and temptations: women have to be excellent speakers, model mothers and wives, but must also admit flaws, personal sins, or painful secrets so as to remain relatable. They must be pretty and in great shape, but also dress modestly, so as to disavow sexiness. A megachurch presents staff and resources for a woman looking to create her own brand, but she may not even be allowed the title "co-pastor." If her husband leaves his post for any reason, her position in the church is most likely over too. Perhaps most importantly, women have to promote themselves without losing their inner compasses. Letting the market dictate who you will be, Bowler notes, is the way of madness.
Perhaps what makes evangelical female celebrity feel new—Bowler situates its rise in the 1970s—is this cohort's cultural prominence. But female showmakers are some of Pentecostalism's (most in this cohort are evangelicals and many are Pentecostal) most beloved founders. Leah Payne's excellent Gender and Pentecostal Revivalism (2015) demonstrates how Aimee Semple McPherson built an empire— and the authority to rule that empire— through the canny performance of feminine ideals like "bride" and "companionate wife." McPherson built Angelus Temple to showcase her theatrical performances, but Joyce Meyer and Paula White built their empires on television. Still, while televangelism has reached hundreds of millions, its aesthetics were inferior to broadcast television and did not draw in viewership from the wider, secular culture. In today's social media landscape, evangelical women have access to a more level playing field. They masterfully use Instagram to grow engaged audiences. And they have reached a new level of cultural dominance. Candace Cameron Bure, an outspoken evangelical, is reigning queen of the popular Hallmark channel. Baptist Joanna Gaines, who first rose to prominence on HGTV's Fixer Upper, now has her own line at Target and Magnolia Journal magazine. Her shop, Market at the Silos, has put Waco, Texas on the map. Hollywood celebrities like Kristen Bell and Natalie Portman follow Glennon Doyle's instagram and promote her newest book, which went to number one on Amazon and stayed there for weeks.
Bowler insightfully situates her subjects' ministries in relation to prior contexts of Protestant women's authority. For example, before evangelical female celebrities "ruled the marketplace," women commanded foreign missions' councils, managing thousands of personnel and millions of dollars. Then Bowler traces a transformation in the channels of women's authority. In the second half of the twentieth century, denominations took over the budgets of foreign missions boards and churches shifted from having a women's missionary auxiliaries to having women's ministries– programming largely dedicated to women's homemaking. Bowler deftly locates this shift writ small in the ministry of Elisabeth Elliott, who was first a missionary and then reinvented herself as a voice for domestic femininity.
Yet, there are two additional historical contexts that I would have appreciated seeing Bowler factor into her interpretation of the genealogy and character of celebrity authority: the disestablishment of denominational Christianity in the U.S. and the concomitant rise of female religious authority. Bowler supplies a short history of American Protestant women's relationship to institutional authority and therein depicts the rise of heartfelt, home-based religion as a confinement to the domestic sphere that deprived women of access to institutional authority. A "true woman" of the nineteenth century, Bowler writes, "found her worth in the home as a model of purity, piety, and wifely submission…she was assumed to possess innate moral superiority and yet confined to a narrow set of roles: child rearing, housekeeping, and building her home into a refuge from the world of work."
But this was less a confinement away from institutional authority and more the development of a parallel source of authority that was, at the same time, premised on the rejection of institution-based authority. While many women willingly symbolized the purity of the home, some also took up the pen and successfully targeted the church and a clergy class whose authority had been increasingly rejected by many from the early republic onward. For these women, the home was not a site of confinement or deprivation, but a source of religious authority all their own. In The Altar at Home (2014), Stokes illustrates how women sentimental writers "used their literary writings to acquire religious authority for themselves. In telling readers what they should believe, feel, and do, sentimental writers assumed ministerial duties and positioned themselves as important cultural arbiters of religious opinion." Women's sentimental texts often depicted clergy as unnecessary and even obstructive to religious observance, a belief Stokes notes was carried over from the prior Second Great Awakening. In their writings, such sentimental women authors constructed a domestic piety that explicitly negated the value of institutional goods of salvation and displaced them with the, to their minds, superior experiences of the spiritual hearth.
Thus, where Bowler sees the home in terms of confinement and deprivation of authority, and portrays the pulpit to be "the most important symbol of spiritual power," Stokes differently observes a relocation and reconstruction of the sacred, now no longer the pulpit but the home itself. "The female centeredness, emotionalism, and anti-clericalism characteristic of the Second Great Awakening became distinguishing generic traits of sentimental literature"— a literature that arose from and valorized the pious home. Women who narrativized sentimental convictions won recognition as higher cultural authorities than clergy. Harvard professor, diplomat and abolitionist James Russell Lowell encouraged Harriet Beecher Stowe to have faith in her own literary endeavors by extolling "the author's writing desk" as something "infinitely higher than a pulpit" and her stories as "grand preaching and in the right way." Thus, female sentimental writers became overt competitors with male clergy, and the home the rival of the institutional church. This development of the home into a source of religious authority over which women in the main presided and from which basis of authority they successfully competed with male institutional clergy, to my mind, challenges the idea that women in megaministry "professionalize" their domestic roles because that is what they have to work with. In building their ministries on a domestic discourse that showmakers like Aimee Semple MacPherson (as "bride and wife") and sentimental authors before her have developed into a cache of authority, today's evangelical female celebrities perpetuate a time-honored tradition of domestic authority in evangelical circles.
There is good reason to think that the sacred home and its female authorities, having won some share of the religious market early in the 19th and 20th centuries, now have religious institutions on the ropes. Never actually confining, the pious home is now hypermediated into new and prime spaces. I meet today's hierarchs of the hearth on Instagram. I walk into the virtualized sanctum of Joanna Gaines in Target's aisle 13. In one of forty such Hallmark movies, I head home for Christmas with a career woman played by Candace Cameron Bure, only there to confront an evangelical version of what really matters, which always takes the form of a heterosexual marriage plot. The evangelical hearth has enlarged beyond all foreseeable proportions, courtesy of women. As Bowler sublimely notes, evangelical women leaders embody an idealized domestic arrangement, and forward a reassuring sense that "the domestic sphere for women [was] reborn in an American culture that had muddied divine roles for husband and wife." Today's matriarchs of the hearth offer that sense to the masses, even as gender roles continue to undergo revision.
To see home-based and institutional forms of authority as highly gendered, and as in competition, could allow for each form to diagnose the advantages and limits of the other. Bowler's account readily reads the pitfalls of evangelical female authority against the benefits of institutional authority. She offers, for example, that when these celebrity women make mistakes, unlike clergy they don't have institutions who are invested in them to shelter them from the fallout. In a similar vein, Bowler notes that women without clear institutional belonging don't have ready access to health care. Additionally, as noted earlier, not having a job title of their own means that megachurch pastor wives depend on their husband's job security.
But this mode of comparison is misleading when it seems to imply a preference for institutional authority in these women leaders themselves, their audiences, or assumes such a preference for the reader. For example, Bowler suggests that evangelical women lack theological credentials and in their absence are "forced to rely on the authority of charisma… building brands based on experience or, worse, tragedies." Why should readers interpret the absence of certain theological credentials as a lack? Why assume that charisma is only a consolation-prize, inferior form of authority? Bowler similarly asserts that "women in evangelical and Pentecostal circles who could not claim 'pastor' reached for other titles;" such quotes impose a hierarchy of desire the top of which women are prevented from reaching. Unless this quote reflects actual and unsolicited reflections on the part of leading evangelical women celebrities, such an interpretation may be reading against their own value system. Pentecostal culture, from which many mega-ministry wives hail, does not value institutional authority over and against charismatic authority– a preference based on their genealogical tie to revolutionary-era Methodism. Like sentimental women authors, American Methodism too sprung from early American Protestantisms' anti-institutional, anti-clerical, revivalist strains. In symbolic parallel to the aforementioned literary, sentimental valorization of the hearth (over the church), A. Gregory Schneider's The Way of the Cross Leads Home (1993) portrays American Methodism as a deeply affectionate religious community that understood itself as "a family set against the world." As descendants of this strain, evangelical women leaders and readers alike often prioritize charismatic authority, one version of which is predicated on family and the home. Katelyn Beaty is right: "when evangelical women identify as wives and moms, it's because a lot of them genuinely believe family is more important than professional accomplishments." Where evangelical female authority is, essentially, charismatic domestic authority, this is most likely a good fit between "celebrity" leadership and enduring evangelical culture.
The development of evangelical celebrity authority from much earlier forms of female domestic charismatic authority suggests–not the form's precarity, as Bowler has termed it– but its durability and strength on the religious market. The prominence of Bowler's cohort suggests that their charismatic authority can well reveal the limits and pitfalls of institutional authority at this point in Protestant history. Today, the undeniable success (and tenure!) of women like Beth Moore challenges the idea that pastor and pulpit are actually the apex stations of power in evangelical life. Such women's success instead lends credence to the earlier notion that the pulpit is today inferior to the woman's writing desk, laptop, or cable television channel. Women like Jen Hatmaker get chided by denominational hierarchs if they step out of line, but institutions are vulnerable to domestic authority critique as well. Early forerunner "Mother" Maria Woodworth Etter was a divorcée who stridently critiqued institutional authority– to her great success. Rachel Held Evans, in a similar fashion, was never a pastor's wife, constantly critiqued evangelicalism and maintained a wide, vibrant audience. Women like Evans and Jen Hatmaker, who used family discourse to communicate her support for gay Christians, illustrate how readily female charismatic authorities assume a prophetic discourse, critiquing what they perceive to be the misuses of institution-based authority. It is hard to imagine that institutional leaders are not concerned when a woman with hundreds of thousands of engaged listeners critiques their doings as wrong or immoral.
The durability and even dominance of female domestic authority over the last two hundred years can be an important position from which to diagnose the instability of institutional religious authority in American life, but a more ambitious reading might go further. Virginia Burrus' The Making of a Heretic (1995) brilliantly demonstrates that the institutionalization of Christianity, in the fourth century, began by decentering Christianity from the home and featured, at the same time, the concomitant masculinization of its structures of authority. Burrus highlights that middle class women were largely the losers in this process, as the rising Catholic hierarchy disallowed such women the leadership roles they enjoyed in home-based early Christianity. Today, the overwhelming success of Pentecostalism, and of (mostly middle-class) charismatic women writers and speakers, suggests that the Catholic church's violent, forcible institutionalization of Christian authority—as a project—may actually have been a less successful effort than Bowler's read of the institutional pulpit suggests.
If these charismatic and institutional forms of authority in Christianity have, sometimes, been in outright (and highly gendered) competition, at other times they have been combined to create a very advantageous fusion of powers. The most powerful discourse in 1990s-era evangelicalism was licensed professional counselor James Dobson's radio show titled "Focus on the Family." Therein, Dobson used a relatively new form of institutional authority (psychology) to transform domestic family life into a man's territory. I would suggest that Bowler's treatment powerfully illustrates how actual marriages serve to broker a union of institutional power and domestic authority, in the persons of the pastor and his wife, that together bolster the overall success of evangelicalism. Wives like Victoria Osteen bring female, familial authority to the sprawling megachurches of their husbands and, Bowler's work shows, submit it to the still rival authority of the pulpit. We heard such tensions just last fall, when Calvinist John MacArthur unironically and publicly told Beth Moore to "go home," arguing that women should not preach. In her 2017 op-ed, Anglican priest and bestselling author Tish Harrison Warren problematized "spiritual bloggers" who write "from the comfort of their living rooms…disembedded from any larger institution or ecclesial structure" as harbingers of a "new" crisis of authority in church life. But, as Bowler's work shows, the indispensability of the acquisition of female domestic authority for institutions is clear: there are very few, if any, single male megachurch pastors. If one is to build an American megachurch empire, it seems that empire must often be covered in the softening symbolic repertoire of sentimental family bonds.
Bowler asks whether Americans will ever be comfortable having women "in the main seats of power, in the pulpit, in the corner office, or in the White House." While there is no woman in the Oval Office, there are at least two very influential, and visible, women in the White House. One, the President's daughter, Ivanka Trump, in her role based on family credentials, and the other, a Pentecostal female celebrity. Televangelist Paula White is currently using her celebrity authority to sacralize Trump's presidential administration–a stunning marriage of charismatic religious authority to institutional power –which makes Bowler's work indispensable to understanding the oversized import of evangelical female celebrity authority today.
Erica Ramirez is Director of Research at Auburn Seminary. She grew up in Texas, where faith seems to shape public life in innumerable ways. She has recently published articles in The Washington Post and Religion News Service, and is currently at work on her first book, a cultural sociology of American Pentecostalism.
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Annie Leibovitz in focus as legal troubles mount
Tue Sep 08, 2009 @ 02:48PM PST
The New York Supreme Court has given famed photographer Annie Leibovitz three more weeks to answer a lawsuit that claims she put up her intellectual property and real estate assets as collateral for a $24 million loan.
A hearing date has been scheduled for this case on October 2, but today is the deadline for Leibovitz to pay back those loans without possibly being declared in default.
Liebovitz's troubles could scare away other celebrities from using IP as collateral or securitizing IP to raise money. In past years, artists like Michael Jackson, David Bowie, and James Brown have mortgaged intellectual property in tricky financing structures. The Los Angeles Times says that "experts in marketing intellectual property see no close precedent to the Leibovitz deal," but the impact of seeing a fellow artist lose copyright control could be jarring for many in the artistic community.
In the meantime, Leibovitz has a few weeks to figure out what to do about Art Capital Group, the company that lent her money and is now taking her to court. Possibilities include making a settlement with ACG or declaring bankruptcy. As if these legal troubles weren't enough for the famed shutterfly, an Italian photographer has just filed a $300,000 lawsuit against Leibovitz for passing off his pictures as her own.
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I'll be making a small adjustment for this actual play. I'll be focusing less on what happened during play - though I will cover that - and more discussing the makeup of the adventure. I think that is probably more of interest to my readers.
One of my players commented how she didn't recall any adventures actually involving Cthulhu. With our previous adventure featuring some Thralls of Cthulhu that seemed a great opportunity to make use of the worldwide Cthulhu Cult.
I started with the ending - I had a vision of cultists trying to rise R'lyeh in Boston Harbor. Yes, it's supposed to be in the Pacific Ocean but I decided to adjust that and say R'lyeh is an extradimensional place. It is perhaps easiest to rise from the Pacific, but if the stars are right, it can be risen out of any water. I knew they'd need a tome so I broke the adventure into two parts - the first concerning them acquiring the tome they needed and the second them making use of it.
Ricardo López - Cuban revolutionary against Spain, older man - born 1860, making him in his mid-50s. Often field leader of this crew.
Thomas Greenshields - Scottish immigrant, intellectual, fond of pistols, engineering student. Given them access to more cultured places. Arsonist.
Fang Li - 2nd generation Chinese-American. Grandfathers both worked on transcontinental railroad, later settled in Boston. Fang family has laundromat. Li not a huge fan of that. Rails against the treatment of Chinese by American government.
We're not talking super-deep, multi layered characterizations. However, with these rough notes they all looked different and brought different things to the table. They were all men - though in the previous adventure the adversaries were both women (and they will likely appear again).
The first part of this adventure, a single session, then would need to deal with the cult getting noticed stealing the book. Enter roommates and lovers Dmitri Zadornoz and James Higgins. They recently came across and stole the 1850s tome Adam Jones' R'lyeh, annotated by Rev. Thomas Miller. Obsessed with the work, they wanted to share it with the world. The two worked at a jobber printer - a press for smaller jobs. On Thanksgiving, when the printer was closed, they printed a pamphlet with excerpts from the book - and their own ramblings. And they planned to do so on Christmas as well. But the cult has gotten wind of the book and wants it.
What is the book? It's a book of my own creation. I created a companion for explorer Henry Hudson, Adam Jones. I posited that he had come across references to R'lyeh while on the Pacific Ocean. He wrote his own mad ravings about it and published a book about it in 1605. He became obsessed with finding a Deep One city - his calculations showing it to be beyond what is now known as Hudson Bay. His calculations were off - it was actually near modern Innsmouth. Along with Hudson, Jones was lost in the final 1610-1611 voyage of Hudson (as was Hudson, due to crew mutiny). In the mid-19th century the Reverend Thomas Miller came across Jones' work and modernized it - though the Presbytery of Boston had a fit when they saw what he'd been working on and the book was suppressed, with only a few copies surviving. I decided to give it a short study time, making it a rather valuable Mythos tome and one much desired.
On the night of Christmas Higgins and Zadornoz were working on printing a new pamphlets. However, Ristil's cult struck. They killed Higgins and lit the press on fire. Zadornoz had stepped out and fled when he saw what happened. However, other cult members were waiting for him at his apartment - which they'd already hit, obtaining the book. Zadornoz escaped there as well, though he was shot and wounded. Disowned by his father, a rabbi, for being in a homosexual relationship, he was still on good terms with his sister - and his sister was engaged to a medical student who helped run an underground clinic to help defray the costs of medical school.
The adventure opened with police Captain McShane asking the investigators to look into the fire - remnants of the pamphlets made it clear what sort of strangeness was going on. I'd set things up so that I didn't need to worry about the investigators stopping the cult from getting the book - they already had it. But the characters had to learn about the cult - and have a chance of saving Zadornoz.
Whether they succeeded or not, the second part of the adventure was about getting their own copy of Adam Jones' R'lyeh. I added details for them to follow Zadornoz's backtrail, including the book shop he stole it from - Dale's Rare Books, owned by Curtis Dale. Dale would be able to point them to other places the book could be obtained, included the libraries at the Miskatonic University and Harvard University. I did also note that the cult would likely be monitoring the investigators and try to interfere.
I also dictated the book would specify the raising of R'lyeh would need to be done in parts. The initial spell had to be cast on a very foggy night so as to obscure the realigning of the stars. As it turns out, mid-January 1915 was extremely foggy in Boston. That would allow for the raising of a small island. If a proper sacrifice could be made to one of Cthulhu's starspawn, true R'lyeh could indeed be brought to our world. All hail Cthulhu. Iä Iä !
Colin O'Connor: Civil engineer from Dunmore, Ireland. Employed as a civil engineer by the city of Boston.
Lola Diaz Azar: Archaeologist hailing from Puerto Rico, born of a Puerto Rican mother and Middle Eastern father. Agent of the New England Watch and Ward Society, specializing in occult tomes.
Nathaniel Quincy, MD, Captain, US Army (Ret.) Former army doctor, served in Nicaragua and the Philippines. Now working as a medical examiner for Essex County.
The characters quickly gathered information at the burnt jobber press and found their way to Zadornoz and Higgins' apartment, driven by a Boston police officer. There they saw the place already ransacked but did find notes about Zadornoz's estranged family and they traveled to the family's modest home. While his father, Rabbi Yuri Zadornoz, was not helpful, his sister Susanna was - and was able to point out where her fiance David Kablukov ran a secret clinic. Unfortunately, the cult converged on the house. Baptiste, Torres, and Li attacked. It was not a fair fight and rapidly broke down into chaos in and around the house. Baptiste nearly killed Azar with his machete. O'Connor and Quincy struggled in battle with Li but eventually defeated him. Torres killed Yuri and their police driver. Baptiste and Torres left, gaining information and nearly running down Susana in their car. This proved an object lesson on the deadliness of combat in Call of Cthulhu. Quincy stabilized Azar and got her to the hospital. They tipped the police off to the location of the clinic but did not go there themselves - but they did hear tales of a horrifying police battle that killed two more officers with Zadornoz and Kablukov killed as well - with strange reports of zombies.
With three police officers killed in one night, the city was enraged. McShane made sure they had the resources they needed to stop the cult. After Azar recovered they went to Dale's Rare Books and from there the Miskatonic University at Arkham. It was there that cultist Leary tried to run them down, badly hurting O'Connor. Azar and Quincy persuaded Henry Armitage to give them access to Adam Jones' R'lyeh which they read while O'Connor recovered - and learned some forbidden magic from the tome - especially of interest being a way to banish Cthulhu.
When the fog came on January 18 they scoured the waterfront and found a fishermen who described the strange people who paid a fortune to rent his boat - even if they never returned it he'd have enough to buy a new boat. Cults ready for the end of the world don't see much a need for money. The fishermen had a general idea where they were going and with some money, they rented another boat and he took them out.
Sure enough, there was indeed a new island, one that glowed green in the fog. And on it was a horrid, giant, winged octopus-like creature. Not Cthulhu but one of his servants. The ritual had begun. It was too much for O'Connor, whose mind snapped. He had no memory of how they had arrived. Meanwhile, Quincy and Azar chanted the banishing spell. Quincy had to stop as O'Connor started advancing towards the cult, confused. Quincy tackled him as Azar completed the spell. As Cthulhu's servant vanished the island sank. They all found themselves in the cold waters of the harbor. The investigators quickly made for their boat, hoping the cult (especially machete man) would not survive the experience.


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Explorer 1: America's First Space Satellite
By Ryan Marquis February 29, 2016 September 28, 2017 History, Science
Explorer 1 – Source: NASA
You probably know that the Russian Sputnik satellite was the first human-made satellite to be placed into orbit. If not, I'm guessing you've at least heard of it. While the Russians beat the United States in that first declaration of space dominancy, America wasn't far behind. Today we learn the story of the United States's first orbital satellite: Explorer 1 1.
Towards the end of 1957, news of the Russians' space accomplishments was rocketing around the world. Their successful Sputnik spacecrafts had recorded new entries in world history: Sputnik 1 was the first human-made object put into Earth orbit; and Sputnik 2 carried the first living creature larger than a microbe, a poor dog sacrificed in the name of science, named Laika.
The United States's credibility was in question. Could the US compare to the Russia's space prowess?
News of Sputnik's milestones kickstarted an otherwise stalled United States space satellite program. The United States Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA), directed by Wernher von Braun, teamed up with the federally-funded research facility, JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) under the direction of Dr. William H. Pickering. JPL designed the Explorer 1 craft, while the ABMA modified one of its Jupiter-C rockets (gaining the designation Juno 1) to carry Explorer 1 payload into orbit.
A few months prior, in December of 1957, the United States Navy had attempted to put the first US satellite in orbit. That rocket made it about four feet above the launchpad before failing catastrophically in a magnificent ball of fire. Its failure earned such laughable nicknames as: Flopnik, Stayputnik, Oopsnik, and my favorite, Kaputnik.
Rapid work began on the satellite and launch system, and in only 84 days they had completed the design, construction, and assembly of Explorer 1 and its complementary rocket.
Explorer 1 schematic – Source: NASA
Explorer 1 consisted of two major components: the 37.25 inch scientific portion, containing science and communication instruments, mated to a 45.5 inch rocket booster. This package was placed atop the 70-foot-tall Juno 1: a four-stage, Redstone-family booster rocket.
Explorer 1 launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 10:48pm local time on January 31, 1958.
The satellite entered an eccentric orbit around Earth, with the closest point in its orbit at 358 kilometers (222 miles) and its furthest at 2,550 kilometers (1,580 miles). It completed an orbit every 114.8 minutes. Mercury batteries powered the craft's high-power transmitter for 31 days, with the low-power transmitter operational for 105 days. Explorer 1's final transmission was received on May 23, 1958. The silent Explorer 1 continued to orbit for more than 12 years, its orbit finally decaying to the point of re-entry and destruction in the atmosphere over the Pacific on March 31, 1970. By then, it had completed more than 58,000 orbits.
Explorer 1 effectively initiated the Cold War space race. But it did more than just prove that the United States could compete with the Russians in putting things in orbit. Explorer 1 conducted real science and made some important discoveries that would be important to understand as the world progressed into a space-faring society.
Explorer 1 contained two main scientific instruments: one for detecting cosmic rays, and another for studying micrometeorites.
The micrometeorite package consisted of a "wire grid (arrayed around the aft section of the rocket body) and an acoustic detector (placed in contact with the midsection)". Over the course of the experiment, 145 micrometeorite hits were detected.
The cosmic ray detection equipment made even greater discoveries. This was accomplished by an "Anton 314 omnidirectional Geiger tube detector", which measured the flux of charged particles hitting the detector. The experiment was overseen by Prof. James A. Van Allen.
A peculiarity was noted in this experiment: the expected radiation count was approximately 30 per second, but the detector would occasionally return a result of zero. It was determined that these zero count intervals coincided with altitudes greater than 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles). Further research determined that at those altitudes, the detector was actually being over-saturated and overwhelmed by the radiation. This led to the discovery of an energetic belt of charged particles that surround magnetized planets , such as Earth. This belt was named after James Van Allen, and today are known as Van Allen radiation belts. Knowledge of this region would become essential to the survival of humans that would travel through them in later space programs. The discovery was designated as one of the greatest of the International Geophysical Year.
William Hayward Pickering, James Van Allen, and Wernher von Braun at a press conference announcing the successful orbit insertion of Explorer 1 – Source: NASA
At around 1:00 am on February 1, 1958, just hours after Explorer 1's successful orbit insertion was verified, William Hayward Pickering, James Van Allen, and Wernher von Braun were ushered to the National Academy of Sciences building in Washington, D.C. to conduct a press conference that would make headlines around the globe.
That press conference produced one of the most iconic images of the Space Age. In the image, Pickering, Van Allen, and von Braun stand triumphantly, holding a model of Explorer 1 high above their heads.
A Moment in Time: Explorer 1 – Each of these three men thus represented a component of Explorer 1's success: the rocket, the satellite and the science payload. Each represented an institutional underpinning crucial to the fledgling American space program: the Army, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and scientific research as represented by the University of Iowa. Each had converged from his own path to the singular moment depicted in the triumphal image.
The success of Explorer 1 can't be overstated. It proved the efficiency that could be achieved through collaboration between civilian and military agencies, it was one of the major sparks that ignited the Cold War space race, and it confirmed the United States as a powerful contender to the Russians.
Here's a companion video I created about Explorer 1:
At the time of launch, also designated as Alpha 1958 ↩
Tagged ABMA, discovery, Explorer 1, history, James van Allen, JPL, Juno 1, rockets, Space Race, Wernher von Braun, William Hayward Pickering
Ceres–Either the Most or Second-Most Popular Dwarf Planet
By Ryan Marquis January 23, 2015 January 23, 2015 Ceres, Discovery, Dwarf Planets, Uncategorized
It has been nearly a decade since the International Astronomical Union (IAU) formally defined the word 'planet', resulting in the reclassification of Pluto as a 'dwarf planet'. Some people still remain upset about the decision, considering the new classification as a demotion. If you roll with the kinds of people that I do, battle-lines have been drawn around the issue and many a friendship have been lost in the process. I don't want to rekindle those debates (this is likely inevitable, however, as Pluto will be in the news quite a bit in the coming months as New Horizons is finally about to have its encounter with the dwa… whatever-you-want-to-call-it), so let's take a look at a dwarf planet that appears to have finally found comfort in its classification: Ceres.
Color view of Ceres as imaged by Hubble in 2004 – Credit: NASA, ESA, J. Parker (Southwest Research Institute), P. Thomas (Cornell University), L. McFadden (University of Maryland, College Park), and M. Mutchler and Z. Levay (STScI)
If you thought Pluto's designation was complicated and controversial, just wait until you Ceres's story.
Ceres has had a bit of an identity crisis of its own. Italian astronomer Giuseppe Piazzi discovered Ceres on New Years Day, 1801. He at first thought it was a star, but observed its movements against the stellar backdrop over the course of a few days and determined it to be a planet. He took a conservative approach in his announcement however, by referring to it as a comet.
I have announced this star as a comet, but since it shows no nebulosity, and moreover, since it had a slow and rather uniform motion, I surmise that it could be something better than a comet. However, I would not by any means advance publicly this conjecture. – Giuseppe Piazzi in a letter to fellow Italian astronomer Barnaba Oriani
With the help of other astronomers and using a method for calculating orbits developed by Carl Friedrich Gauss, it was confirmed that the object was not a comet, but in fact some sort of small planet. German astronomer Johann Bode had been promoting his hypothesis that planets orbited their host stars at distances that could predicted by mathematics. This hypothesis predicted a planet should exist between Mars and Jupiter. When Bode heard news of Piazzi's discovery of an object at precisely that location, he rushed to announce that the missing planet had been located and even went as far as to name it himself. The name he gave: Juno. Piazzi, however, had taken the liberty as the new planet's discoverer to give it the name 'Ceres Ferdinandea', honoring the patron goddess of Sicily and King Ferdinand of Bourbon. Piazzi rightfully objected to Bode's stake on naming rights:
"If the Germans think they have the right to name somebody else's discoveries they can call my new star the way they like: as for me I will always keep it the name of Cerere and I will be very obliged if you and your colleagues will do the same." Piazzi in a letter to prominent astronomer and editor of scientific journals, Franz Xaver von Zach.
Piazzi's name ultimately won out, though it was shortened to its currently-accepted name: Ceres.
"Giuseppe Piazzi" by F. Bordiga – Image from Smithsonian Institute Library
After more objects were discovered orbiting in the same area, Sir William Herschel, in 1802, labeled these new objects, including Ceres, as asteroids (though the term asteroid, which means "star-like", wasn't commonly accepted until the early 1900s).
So thus, Ceres became the first, and largest, of the asteroids that orbit between Mars and Jupiter in a loose collection that we collectively refer to as the asteroid belt. But Ceres's identity crisis wasn't over just yet. Ceres was king of the asteroids until 2006, when that controversial IAU reclassified it as a dwarf planet. 1
From star, to comet, to planet, to asteroid, and finally to dwarf planet, Ceres looks to Pluto and remarks, "Psh… and you think you had it bad."
Now that this introduction is out of the way, stay tuned for more information about Ceres. I'll tell you about this fascinating world and get you up to speed on NASA's Dawn spacecraft that will be arriving at Ceres in March of this year.
Animation of Ceres as viewed by the Dawn spacecraft on January 13, 2015. – Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA/PSI
(Much of the information in this post came from Giuseppe Piazzi and the Discovery of Ceres, G. Foderà Serio, A. Manara, and P. Sicoli, published in Asteroids III by the University of Arizona Press)
Since Pluto's reclassification from planet to dwarf planet was viewed by many as a demotion, I wonder if it's safe to refer to Ceres's reclassification from asteroid to dwarf planet as a promotion. ↩
Tagged asteroids, Ceres, Dawn, dwarf planets, Franz Xaver von Zach, Giuseppe Piazzi, history, Johann Bode


Watching the news draws a pretty dim view of the world's future right now. It would appear that we are heading into yet another war. And the Bible says these things must indeed come to pass. So it isn't very likely it isn't going to happen, because the revealed word of God is just that. God went ahead in time and watched what all stupid stuff we did, and then came back and wrote it down for us in the Bible. It's kind of like renting a movie video. After you've seen it, you know exactly how it ends. Then your friend invites you over to watch the same movie. You've already seen it. The plot looks like it's going to develop one way, but you say, no, it's not going to end like you think. Such and such is going to happen. Your friend says, no way, I'll bet this will happen. But you know, don't you? You've already seen the end of it. Well, now you know you can rely on what the Holy Bible says, right down to the letter. God has already been to the future and came back and told us what we did.
Many people will try to convince me that if they pray hard enough, God will change His mind, and all this war stuff will be averted and it won't happen like it says in the Bible. Listen, friends, God has told us what we did, plain and simple. And He isn't going to re-write the Bible for you or me, or anyone else, whether they pray or not. But there is one thing that you can change, and that is whether you are saved or not. You see, the overall picture of events will take place just like the Bible says. And what you do about God is part of what is written in the Bible. Yes, your decision whether to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior is part of the big picture. God already knows what your decision will be. It's already written. He already saw what you did. But have you?
whether you do or not. But I do care. And there's one who cares even more than I do, and His name is Jesus. My friend, Jesus bled and died for you, that your sins may be blotted out and that you may live forever with Him. He gave Himself so that all mankind might be saved. But not all will be saved, because He gives us the power of choice. Many, many will refuse to ask Jesus to be their Lord and Savior. Many will not intend to, but through neglect, will just never "get around to it", and will die needlessly in their sins. Still others will not be willing to surrender their own will, and take up their cross, and follow Him. God says He is not willing that any perish, but that all come to repentance. God is willing to draw close to you and give you eternal life, but are you willing to draw close to God?
If you knew what troubles are very soon coming to the world, you would drop everything you are doing and get things right with God this very moment, while there's still time. Don't be one who neglects their salvation so freely offered by God. Don't think that just because you are reading this article that you are safe with God. Stop whatever you are doing this moment and ask Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, if you don't already know Him as such.
But if you do know Jesus as Lord and Savior, there is good news. Not everything is bad news. Read Psalm 91:1-7 says, "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou has made the Lord which is my refuge, even the Most High thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways." That's GOOD NEWS!
And you can keep reading the whole Psalm. Some say that was written to prophesy of Jesus, and that it applies only to Him. Well then, let me remind you of Romans 8:16-17,"The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with Him that we may be also glorified together." What Jesus gets, those who love Him also get. And not just the crumbs that fall off the table. No! We get to share and share alike with Jesus! This is the heritage of the man or woman who knows Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
All the promises, all the blessings belong to the child of God. The future for us is bright ahead! Regardless of what goes on all around us, the world will see that God has His hand on His children. While they are in terror we can be in peace in the middle of the storm. Why, this alone would be enough to make most people run to Jesus. But there's more, much more that God wants to bless us with. He wants to bless us with being in His presence forever! It doesn't get any better than that!
But, if you don't belong to Him, you don't qualify, sorry.
So make sure you qualify, right now, even. Don't put it off for even another second, for the devil has a way of stealing your time. I'm making a second plea to you. Don't let him steal your salvation from you. Many will wake up before the throne of God and tell God they truly meant to get saved. But it will be too late then. Their chance for eternal life is forever gone. They neglected the only salvation they could ever have. He will tell them to depart from Him into the lake of fire. Maybe you can already imagine how sick you would be at hearing those words? Are you sweating a little bit? Is God pulling at your heart right now? Then He's calling for you. Maybe you're listening finally for the very first time. He knows what you've done, and He loves you and wants to save you anyway. He knows every detail of your life, there isn't anything hidden from Him.
I'm going to really get in your face and get bold here…is there really any reason you shouldn't be saved? Is anything worth going to hell over, especially when the price of your salvation is already paid for by Jesus? Are you going to say "no" to Him this time? Will there be a next time? Maybe, maybe not. Are you willing to gamble on it? Ask people who buy lottery tickets, what are your chances of winning the biggest lottery in history?
Better than you going to heaven without Jesus. I rest my case. Do it now.
DRAW CLOSE TO GOD AND HE WILL DRAW CLOSE TO YOU!
Father God, I want to live forever with You. I'm sorry for my sins. I ask You to forgive me in the name of Christ Jesus. I ask Jesus to come into my heart now and be my Lord and Savior. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and guide and direct me in the way I should go. In Jesus' name I ask. Amen.
If you just prayed that prayer, let me know that I may rejoice with you for your name is written in the book of life.


While Pete agonizes over a decision to quite the squad, an old foes comes after the trio - with murder on his mind. Flashbacks trace the early days of the squad, their growing respect and friendship, and some memorable moments spent together.
Other Guests: Richard Eastham, Mar k Tapscott, Florence Halop, Roberta Randall, Jerry Strickler, Janice Barr.
Gary Vinson reprises his role from episode #1, and Russ Conway returns as Dr. Milton from episode #15. Flashbacks to episodes 1, 3, 7, 13, 15 and 42.


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Home » Nigeria's promising star Jonan releases love hit
Nigeria's promising star Jonan releases love hit
30th January 2015: Jonan, a promising Nigerian musician has released a new love song titled "My Bonnie". This catchy title means my significant half.
Jonan sings about that important lady in each man's life
"It means that important 'other half' of you that you can't do without," Jonan told The AfroNews. "The song is about love and admiration for that 'one' special, pretty lady that any man could have in his life."
"My Bonnie" is a Reggae hit with a dance hall rhythm (Reggaeton). It also has other different mixes including the "Drum and Bass Mix" by Marco Zappala from Brazil and the "Club Mix" or the DJ Mix by DJ Christian from the US.
Jonan draws his inspirations from circumstances, personal experiences and happenings around him.
He grew up listening to the legendary Bob Marley, Musical Youths, Don Carlos, Max Romeo and The Maytals while his major influences are Sizzla Kalonji, Damien Marley, I-Wayne, Morgan Heritage and Nas.
Jonan's manager is Carol Jiani, a veteran Nigerian singer based in the UK, best known for her early 1980s hit "Hit 'N Run Lover".
"The new single is bound to be a big hit from all indications," Ms Jiani said.
Aware of the difficulties many people are facing at the moment, Jonan says: "Never despair; never give up and never give in."
The young musician based in Abuja is convinced that "music is indeed the most powerful tool that can help make change."
Jonan is appealing to his fans worldwide to keep supporting him and good music too. "Thank you all, I love you all and God bless," he says.
By Stephen Ogongo Ongong'a
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The final release (to date) from Matt Pike's stoner doom legends, Sleep. This was the rough, original cut of their Jerusalem album which was released years earlier, released as an extended single hypnotic track (with a bonus live track, if that wasn't enough seeing as the main album is 63 minutes plus!). For stoner doom fans, this is the holy grail. An original pressing on Tee Pee Records (though, I hear it's soon to be re-issued - about time too!).