Bullions: The MCX Gold which surged higher in its Monday's trading session now opened on a negative note and plunging from the level of 29845.00. However, the MCX Silver continued showing negative sentiment and opened at the level of 38230.00 from its previous closing level of 38283.00. It couldn't sustain its opening level and start plunging just after the opening.
Energy: The MCX Crude Oil opened on a flat note and trading with negative sentiment. It opened at the level of 4678.00 from its previous closing level of 4690.00.


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Fantastic, makes me feel quite proud. 10 out of 10 for great display and editorial effort.
what a wonderful railway, it really is very much what I dream of my railway becoming.
Great website Bryon, we have had a jolly good browse. Hope to see you soon. Sara and Jon.
All very inspirational. A delightful railway. and a first class site, what a lot of toil. April and I hope you are very pleased with it.Of course It is not finnished! these things never are. We are just setting our line out quite literaly, yesterday was hammer and pegs.
Best wishes for the future adventures.
The directors of the Mossley Light Railway have asked me to congratulate you on a superb railway and a superb website. Well done!
I stumbled across your website via the 16mm Assc. links page. All I can say is, SUPERB! What a fantastic line, and website! Very informative, and enjoyable to read. I also like the blue colour scheme, very fetching!
If you don't mind, I'll add your site to my own website links page.
Don't know what's better Stav, as both the railway and website are amazing!


I am not skewing the record to say we watch T .V. only while preparing, eating and cleaning up after meals. Still while watching mainly the news and commercials again the other day, I began to think about the age we are in.
From my school days at the beginning of the Plastic Age, I remember references to the Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. Moving forward in time there were the Dark Ages after the 'light' was turned off in Rome, and the Middle Ages when we groped around until the 'light' was turned on in Paris, I think. I'm not sure why we left the Age of Enlightenment to enter the Industrial Age. I suppose at the time it was considered progress.
More recently there was an attempt to start a New Age of enlightenment to clear the 'pollution' of the Industrial Age, without success. Surpassing at least the publicity of the New Age has been the Information Age. I searched for Information Age on the web and couldn't find any useful information. That didn't surprise me because I think the lack of potential for information providing meaning in our lives has been realized.


text:
Herbert Raymond Myerscough -Walker
RAYMOND MYERSCOUGH-WALKER 1908-1984
Raymond Myerscough-Walker was a most unusual and talented man.
Born 30th October 1908, the eldest of three brothers, in Knaresborough, Yorkshire his early life was one of some hardship and poverty. His father was a butcher who died relatively young of TB and his mother, Ellen Myerscough, was a nurse who rose to become a matron. She was determined her boys should have a profession, and although Raymond wanted to be a jazz drummer, architecture beckoned.
Raymond, and his brother Winston, were both talented and this was recognised by a wealthy patron, Alex Keighley, who initially encouraged them to sketch and then sponsored their university education, first to Leeds School of Art and then by scholarship to the Architectural Association in London.
He won the Tite prize in 1931, but an early indication of his later eccentricity came when he then won the Prix de Rome and refused to take it up..
He felt he had 'been pushed into these competitions and I cannot bear to be confined'.
His draughtsmanship was remarkable and competed with the best of his time. If he felt a building was hideous, he drew it floodlit by night to make it look more interesting. He was a talented architect and his house in Chilwell stands as one of the best, and certainly the prettiest, of the Modern Movement houses of the thirties. He was a prolific writer, both of magazine articles and books, a stage designer, artist and sculptor.
Herbert Raymond Myerscough Walker
married Mamie Carlotta MacIntyre Eccles on the 22 March 1932.
But his life was one of considerable eccentricity. An office life was not for him, nor was a conventional one at home. Much of his life was spent deep in woods in Chichester, for a period in a tent, some time in a rented cottage, and then in a caravan. But always illicitly and avoiding the council officers, social workers, and any figures of authority who tried to find him..
He was a true bohemian, his children he educated himself, refusing to send them to school and whilst he led a somewhat hand to mouth existence he managed to produce perspectives, paintings, sculptures and even a guide book to the public houses of Sussex.
This latter he particularly enjoyed as he could sample the wares as he drew the building.
He can be considered to be not only one of the greatest perspective artists of his time but also at the pinnacle of a long line of English eccentrics whose like it is unlikely we shall see again.
He died in June 1984 Sussex
ELIOT WALKER – Toadsmoor, Stroud 2008
(Black and white illustrations from Raymond Myerscough-Walker Architect and Perspectives by Gavin Stamp, published by the Architectural Association 1984)
House at Chilwell near Nottingham by Raymond Myerscough Walker 1936 Undersides of canopy is white but it is seen here reflecting the red floor of the balcony
<Myerscough Notables>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Dozens of football hooligans have failed to surrender their passports ahead of Thursday's World Cup opening ceremony, raising fears they could attempt to travel to Russia.
Police are now visiting known hooligans who have yet to hand over their travel documents in a bid to ensure they remain at home.
Latest Home Office figures show that 58 people banned from travelling to the World Cup have not surrendered their passports since the exclusion period began on June 4.
Of the 1,312 individuals subject to football banning orders preventing them from travelling to overseas games, 1,254 have either handed over the documents voluntarily, been forced to do so or did not have a passport in the first place.
Police are in place at UK ports to stop any suspected troublemakers trying to get to to the tournament, which promises to open with a spectacular ceremony at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.
Officials say they are confident that few, if any, hooligans will succeed in getting to Russia, and if they do they will be met by a huge security operation.
Nick Hurd , Minister for Policing and the Fire Service said: "The World Cup is a festival of football and is no place for violence or disorder.
Football banning orders lasting up to 10 years aim to stop hooligans travelling to international fixtures and if breached can lead to a fine of up to £5,000 and a six-month jail term.
Around 10,000 fans are expected to travel from the UK to Russia in the coming days, with each required to have a unique fan number allowing them access to the games.
There is a large police presence in parts of Moscow, with airport-style scanners and searches in operation around Luzhniki Stadium ahead of kick off.
Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the UK's national lead for football policing, said: "Ahead of the World Cup, a comprehensive policing operation has been in place across the country to account for passports of those on banning orders, which has once again seen only a handful of those outstanding.
The warnings come after the head of the German football association said the German secret service had identified threats from terrorist groups intent on attacking the tournament.
Reinhard Grindel, president of the DFB, admitted there was no guarantee fans would be safe from the threat from a lone-wolf extremist.
He said: "We know from our secret service there a lot of videos from different terrorist groups which say they want to do something during the World Cup and they request their followers to do actions.
"I think the security administration is so good that groups who were active will be seen and they will prevent a big terror act, but you can never, ever, say it is impossible for a lonesome terrorist to make something.
He added: "It is clear that in a country like Russia you need security and it's in our interest, in the interests of our team, of our fans to have security. On the other hand it should not be so much that it overloads everything so we must find a wise, middle way."
Mr Grindel, who was in Moscow for the FIFA Congress which on Wednesday awarded the 2026 World Cup to a joint bid from Canada, Mexico and the US, suggested the British government's boycott of the World Cup was "unwise".
Officials from the English FA and British Government and Royal Family are not expected to be present, following the attempted assassination of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury in March.


REED. Mr. President, I rise this morning to join my colleagues in calling for action to address climate change. This is a global challenge that has far-reaching consequences for our economy, our public health, and our national security.
I begin by thanking my colleague Senator Schatz, who is with us; Senator Whitehouse, my colleague from Rhode Island; Senator Boxer; and members of the Senate Climate Action Task Force for their leadership and for bringing so many of our colleagues to the floor last evening and through the early hours of this morning to call attention to the critical issue of climate change.
This issue is daunting and difficult. One reason it is so daunting and difficult is that it is a slow-moving crisis. We are often faulted for not responding to critical issues before us, but we are certainly faulted for not responding to those that have evolved over many months and many years--the nature of our political process, the nature of our attention span, and the fact that other issues crowd out these longer term issues. But what we have seen as we look back is a clear path of evidence suggesting that our climate is changing. Our climate is changing in ways that are going to disadvantage us--disadvantage us in terms of our economic productivity, our national security, and it is going to disadvantage us in terms of things that we take for granted.
Senator Blumenthal, Senator Murphy, Senator Whitehouse, and I grew up along the New England coast. I am a little older than my colleagues, but in the 1950s and 1960s those coasts had wide beaches and homes built along those beaches for middle-class workers. All of that has literally eroded over the last several years--particularly these superstorms that have come up our coast. Now we are seeing that places we saw as our summer ideal, beautiful places, have literally been lost. Homes have been upended by storms. Areas that were frequently places for summer relaxation are now gone because of rising seas and because of changing climates around oceans, bays, and our estuaries. This is only one example. I could go on and on. This evidence is so clear-cut, so condemning, and so convincing that we have to take steps now.
Across the globe, these issues are also increasingly important. It is not simply a localized issue. This is an issue which is impacting every person across every part of the globe. We see temperatures increasing, seasons shifting, sea levels rising, extreme water events becoming more frequent, and heat-related illnesses and diseases on the rise.
As I said before, these changes are being felt everywhere--they are being felt in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Hawaii, and all across this country. California has been enduring a crippling drought, and in other parts of the world we have seen unusually large rains. All of these weather patterns suggest that there is a changing dynamic that has consequences. We have to deal with these consequences.
There are some who would argue that we should take no action to mitigate these impacts because there is a cost of addressing these issues, a cost to our economy. In fact, there have been proposals introduced in Congress that would greatly restrict the U.S. EPA, for example. Their position is: See no evil. Hear no evil. Do nothing.
That approach is only going to make this problem worse. That approach is going to make the cost for us but also, more profoundly, for our children and the next generation of Americans, much more severe. We have to act wisely now. We have to move forward wisely now.
I think we have to do so with the notion--which I think is quite obvious and true--that sound environmental protection is not in contradiction to economic growth. In fact, they work together hand in hand. We have to have the long-term combination of sound environmental policy to encourage sustainable, economic growth. A healthy environment is essential for our economy and for our quality of life. Indeed, the strength of the economy depends on the health and resilience of our people, our critical infrastructure, and our natural resources. The cost of inaction, as I have suggested, is substantial, and it will be paid.
We talked today about rising seas, and as we look at most of our major cities, many of them are clustered on the ocean. They started there. They were ports. They were points of entry into the United States. They are the economic engines that drove this country from its founding until today.
But as our seas rise, critical infrastructure is jeopardized. There have been discussions in New York City, for [[Page S1457]] example, of building walls in certain low-lying areas of Manhattan. That whole process is likely a multimillion-dollar process, and it might well have to be taken--certainly, if we do nothing--because the rise of these tides seems inevitable. But if we act now, it might be mitigated or lessened or, through different techniques, avoided. But it takes action now. That is why my colleagues have tried to galvanize us into this session to underscore the need to act and the need to act promptly.
According to the U.S. Global Change Research Program, economic losses from weather-related events, including floods, droughts, and storms, have been significant and have been increasing. That is sort of the dynamic we are seeing. Not only are we seeing an increase in these weather incidents, but we are seeing them in a larger scale and it seems to be an accelerating process--more and larger weather incidents creating more damage.
We in Rhode Island and our sister States, Connecticut and Massachusetts, saw significant damage from Sandy, but we did not receive the brunt of the storm. However, that was a factor that could have altered, indeed, hours before the storm hit. We were concerned it would come straight, pouring down on Rhode Island with catastrophic effects.
Fortunately we missed the worst of it, but that was not the fortune of New Jersey and New York. They suffered billions of dollars in damage. They are still trying to restore communities, and they are still trying to restore services. We have had some effects, too, that we are dealing with.
But what we have seen is these storms coming repeatedly. My sort of vague history of hurricanes in Rhode Island--it was the 1938 hurricane that came roaring through. I was not there, but that was a devastating event. Then there was the 1954 hurricane, Hurricane Carol, and that was a devastating event. But there was, it seemed to me at least--and this is anecdotal more than analytical--a decade or more, 15 years, almost 20 years between storms. In the interim the storms were the old- fashioned nor'easters. They would come and go, and there would be a little damage but nothing significant. But that pattern and intensity of storms seem to have increased in their repetitiveness and their nearness of time. What we are seeing is a barrage, really, of economic events--huge environmental events--that have huge economic costs.
According to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, since 1980 the United States has sustained 151 weather- related disasters where overall damages reached or exceeded $1 billion. The total cost of these events tops $1 trillion. In 2012 Superstorm Sandy, the prolonged Midwest drought, and the nine other weather- related disasters led to damages in excess of $110 billion, making 2012 the second costliest year for disasters.
Let's stop and think. These disasters--that is $110 billion or so for Superstorm Sandy and some of the other incidents that took place in 2012--if they were avoided or mitigated, could allow public resources to be used for other things. That is one of the facts we have to face. This is not free to us.
If this prolonged drought in the West produces more forest fires--and there is a rough correlation between those two--we will pay for that. We will have to fight those fires. That is a huge amount of Federal spending before $1 goes to an Indian health care center or $1 goes to a Federal program to support higher education. Before $1 goes anywhere, we have to respond to those fire crises. That is only one example that is coming from the conditions established by a drought.
When we look at the coastal storms that are bearing down on us, we have to fix the infrastructure, we have to fix the shattered roads that line the coastlines, and we have to fix the sewer systems that have been shattered by these storms. It is not avoidable. So these costs keep accumulating.
Then there is another cost; that is, the opportunity cost of not being able to invest more in schools, invest more in other infrastructure, invest more in lowering the cost of energy--all of these things. We have to recognize that. As I said before, my State has been impacted, along with every other State, by these different weather phenomenon. The Sandy storm--mercifully we missed the brunt, but we still sustained significant damages.
Our coastline is increasingly vulnerable. That is the other factor. These storms weaken our coastlines and our barrier beaches. So when the next storm comes, the damage is even more severe, and when the next storm comes, it is worse. This cumulative effect is accelerating so rapidly that these damages are making us more and more vulnerable to storms.
In fact, it goes back to the frequency and the intensity of these storms. There used to be--at least anecdotally--a period of time where literally the coast could recover. There was a decade or so where, instead of severe storms every summer or fall, we had a period of accumulation of beach sand, of the ocean depositing sand, not ripping it away in a storm. That doesn't seem to be happening. We have to recognize that.
We also have to recognize that we have a Federal perspective, but the States are also spending a huge amount of money on responding to the effects of the storm, and that also diverts their efforts from education, from health care, and from all of the things States have to do.
This is not only a national issue. This is not only a regional issue. This is, as everyone has said on this floor, a global issue. Because of the global characteristics, it touches on interests of national security, which my colleague the Presiding Officer from Connecticut spoke about.
Rising waters--and they are rising for a very simple reason: As the water temperature increases, water expands. That is just simple thermodynamics. It is science. Simple thermodynamics is all I remember from West Point. As the water expands, sea levels rise, and that is going to keep happening.
If we mention the temperatures in the waters around New England over the past 20 or 30 years, they have gone up. And the water levels have also gone up. There is no sinister force out there. There is no whirling machine that is driving the water. There is no high-level combination of winds coming together. That might happen; that is the nature of a storm. But water keeps rising because molecules keep getting farther and farther apart as they heat up.
That water rise is significant to us in Rhode Island, but it is catastrophic to other places. Bangladesh is a country that is essentially on the water, and many parts of it are close to being underwater. If the sea waters rise there you have a situation of a relatively poor country that has had problems with its neighbors, and just to seek shelter people will be forced to move in and to put pressure on the boundaries. It could cause tremendous problems. That is just one example.
In Pakistan, we have invested a huge amount of money to work with the government of Pakistan to provide assistance as they battle the Taliban, to provide assistance as we move supplies through there to our forces in Afghanistan. The floods, the seasonal droughts, the chaotic weather they have seen there weakens an already weak government. This is repeated time and time again around the globe.
So this is, again, not just an issue about whether we are going to preserve our beaches, preserve our coasts or save money here in the United States to devote to more meaningful reasons. It could pose a serious national security threat as people are forced together with political issues already and now are under the threat of environmental catastrophe. They are changing borders, migrating, moving in conflict, and creating huge problems, undermining the weak governments that already exist in these areas of the world and providing further pressure on these governments. The result is chaotic situations which are the breeding ground for much of the terror and much of the carnage we see across the globe. This is related and we have to recognize that.
There is another part of this, too, that is often neglected. It is a challenge, yes, and a serious challenge, but also it is an opportunity. It is an opportunity to create jobs to deal with this evolving problem. Frankly, in the American spirit, one of our greatest characteristics is when we have seen a challenge, we also saw opportunity. Other nations just saw a challenge.
[[Page S1458]] They didn't roll up their sleeves and deal with some of the issues as we did, as our predecessors did, as our parents did. Now it is our turn. Will we roll up our sleeves, look at this as a real serious challenge, and not ignore it but deal with it? If we do that, we can create good jobs. We can create jobs that will reward people and contribute to an improved environment. Weatherization, for example, supports thousands of highly skilled workers and additional jobs in related businesses, materials suppliers, vendors, manufacturers, et cetera. This is a very straightforward way to deal with the issue of climate change. When we make homes more weather tight and better insulated, when we don't waste energy, when we don't have to use as much, when we cut down demand and don't have to generate as much and put as much pollution into the atmosphere, and we do these things on a widespread basis, we put a lot of people to work. These are the types of jobs that many people have the skills to do and that are rewarding. They can do them, and we save ourselves energy. We save the pollution, we save the warming that comes from just spewing excess emissions into the environment, and we put people to work.
This is a low-cost, effective way to deal with employment and with energy. We have to do more of these things. It is not, as they say, rocket science. This is no fabulous, new, high-tech application that we need to develop. This is giving people and communities the resources and the support to go out there and to put better insulation in buildings, to try to use more alternate energy sources, to put better windows in and better doors to hold the heat. This is just straightforward but very powerful. It can help curb energy consumption. Particularly for low-income people, it can reduce the cost of energy.
One of the problems, again and I see my New England colleagues around that we face in New England is our energy costs are much higher than the rest of the country. One is because we have a poor distribution system; and two, we have a system also where we are paying for some of the pollution in the Midwest that comes out of stacks and is taken at high altitudes and then it descends into New England and the Northeast. So we have to compensate not only for our pollution but also for other areas of the country. So all these factors come together.
My point is we can do a lot collectively across the country. It is not just a challenge, it is a huge opportunity, and that means getting our public policies here in Washington right. That means investing in better energy, investing in better distribution systems, investing in improving those systems that exist.
One of our problems in terms of the natural gas distribution in New England is not only that it is old and inefficient in terms of delivering gas, but it leaks methane, which is not a very good environmental component to release.
So we have these challenges before us, and we want to go ahead and deal with these challenges. We see around the globe increases in precipitation, increases in sea level rise, storm surges becoming greater, and all of these are putting to the test every system we have.
Our road systems--I haven't seen the roads as poor in the Northeast in my life. Highways--I-95, there are potholes everywhere. Why? We have had so many storms over the last 2 years, so much plowing, and so little dollars to do the repairs. The roads now leave you bouncing along on the highway like you are not in the United States of America but in some second or Third World country. That is a consequence-- indirect, but a consequence--of the weather and our inability to marshal the resources to deal with the weather. Not just clearing the snow, but then going in and repaving the roads. We see that everywhere. But we have to do more.
This is a threat to our fisheries. It is a threat to our drinking water. It is a threat to our quality of life. Again, growing up in Rhode Island, we took for granted in the 1950s and 1960s that short ride to a beautiful beach--a big, broad, beautiful beach--swimming in the water and not worrying about the beach being closed because of environmental conditions, toxic conditions in the water. Some of that has changed, and we have to go back and reestablish that quality, that lifestyle. It is not just all about dollars and cents. It is also about the quality of our lives.
As I said before, and let me conclude, this is not just an issue of domestic policy, localized issues. This touches upon our national security. Ironically, we debate budgets of billions and billions of dollars about platforms, about what kinds of systems we will have in the air, on the sea, under the sea; what types and sizes of units we will have on the ground and what their training is like. But ironically, one of the things that is likely to trigger the engagement of our forces is this growing environmental crisis throughout the world.
Someone, I think it was one of the defense ministers in Nigeria, said one of the greatest problems the east faces, with the rise of these bands of radicalized young people, is the fact that because of desiccation of parts of his country, traditional farming, traditional aspects of economic growth and jobs and livelihood have been taken away, and so young people can get a gun and that is their new job. I think we have to be very serious about the national security consequences. So as we are moving forward, I hope we will recognize that these environmental challenges are also national security challenges.
There is one thing that was very revealing to me, and that was a few years ago when the Navy announced the Arctic Ocean would be able to be commercially transited during certain parts of the year. Again, growing up in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, if someone had told me the Arctic Ocean was going to be a commercial highway for ships, I would have said that is preposterous. It is frozen. It is always frozen. It will always be frozen. Well, that is not the case. Last year, Arctic sea ice reached an all-time low, and as climate change accelerates, the melting of sea ice will invariably make that a source of navigation.
It will create new opportunities, such as shipping routes, but also new challenges. Who will patrol those seas? Will we have to create not only a Pacific fleet but an Arctic fleet? That costs money. Who owns the rights? Who has access to that area? So we are looking at huge problems that even 10 years ago we thought were fanciful.
That underscores the final point I want to make. We see this climate process, this climate change coming, and it doesn't seem to be affecting us minute by minute, so there is this tendency to be rather cavalier about it. Beyond the people who out-and-out deny it, which I think ignores the facts of science, even people who do tend to recognize it think, yes, well, we have time. But what we are seeing is not just the intensity of these incidents; we are seeing them accelerating, and the consequences of accelerating with such rapidity is that what we thought might be a huge problem 2 or 3 years from now might occur in half that time. So we have to act.
I want to conclude by thanking my colleagues, Senator Boxer, Senator Whitehouse, and Senator Schatz because they have called us to come forward and to recognize this issue--to seize the challenge but also to seize the opportunity. In doing so, they have done remarkable work for the Senate and for this country.


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text:
Category: Honors and Awards
Student Wins Bronze in State Equestrian Competition
By Heather Cass, Publications Manager at Penn State Behrend
While many college students spend their weekends working or catching up on sleep, one Penn State Behrend Marketing major spends her free time in a saddle, and she wouldn't have it any other way.
Faith Wheeler, a first-year student from Edinboro, Pennsylvania, has been riding horses since she was in preschool. She began participating in 4-H horse shows when she was ten years old.
"I started out showing a little pony that I got for Christmas," Wheeler said. "I still have him!"
It was Ziggy, however, Wheeler's faithful Quarter Horse, on which she rode to third place in Pennsylvania in the Ranch Horse Pleasure division of 4-H equestrian competition last month. The two also placed fifth in the state in Reining.
The Behrend Blog recently chatted with Wheeler to find out more about her equestrian hobby and accomplishments.
What equestrian events do you compete in?
For the most part, I compete in reining and ranch riding. Reining is a pattern class that consists of large fast circles, small slow circles, spinning, and sliding stops. Ranch riding is a class that also has a pattern. You do multiple things including loping, trotting fast, slow riding, spinning, and backing up. In this class, you want to have a western outfit and ride like you're out west working on a ranch.
What type of horse is Ziggy?
Ziggy is his barn name. His registered name is Ima Dream Chex. He is an 8-year-old registered Quarter Horse. His grandfather is the famous Hollywood Dunit.
Horses are said to have distinct personalities. What is Ziggy's personality like?
Horses absolutely have personalities. Not everyone can see them, but when you have a bond between you and your horse, you can definitely see it. Ziggy has great personality. He is very loyal toward me and willing to do things that he is not 100 percent sure about. I believe he puts in just as much effort as I do and that's why we compete so well together.
How do you train while you're a student at Behrend?
I live on campus but go home on weekends. My weekends are devoted to my family and horses. I practice on Saturdays and Sundays for about two hours each day. The shows I compete in are usually on weekends, so it doesn't interfere with classes.
What does it mean to have gone to 4-H state competition?
States is the largest Pennsylvania 4-H horse show. You have to qualify by placing in the top three in your class at the district show. Ziggy and I placed in September at the Crawford County fairgrounds.
What does it take to do well in this sport?
It takes commitment, a lot of hard work, and dedication to your horse. It takes both horse and rider competing as one. The horse needs to enjoy what they are doing. If they don't like it, it would be a constant battle and that would be no fun for the horse or rider.
What would people be surprised to know about your sport?
The level of discipline, exercise, and practice required. The rider is an athlete! Riding requires strength in the arms, legs, and core. Riders also have to have patience and courage to build a working relationship with a 1,200-pound animal. Horses have good and bad days and riders must learn to adapt and figure out what works on any given day.
I'd like to work in marketing for a national, brand-name company in the horse/western industry.
Categories Honors and Awards, School of Business, Student News, Uncategorized
Student puts marketing claims to the test
Published on December 3, 2018 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
Are "eco-friendly" ice-melting products really better for the environment?
Dr. Sam Nutile, assistant professor of biology, left, and Megan Solan, a senior Biology major.
By Heather Cass
Publications Manager, Office of Strategic Communications, Penn State Behrend
Most consumers want to do the right thing. Marketers know this, which is why they use words like "eco-friendly," "organic," and "all-natural" on packaging and in advertisements for the products they are selling. But, unless there are government standards attached to those labels—and, in many cases, there are not—these claims can be misleading at best, flagrantly false at worst.
Case in point: Megan Solan, a senior Biology major, recently completed a study of the effects of road salt products on aquatic insects. Solan compared the toxicity of traditional road salt to three other products that are marketed as being more "eco-friendly." Her research produced some surprising results.
"We conducted a series of ten-day tests with midges, an invertebrate that spends its larval stages in freshwater ecosystems," Solan said. "Midges are commonly used when testing chemicals that have the potential to contaminate freshwater habitats because they are generally pollution-tolerant. So, if something affects midges, it will likely affect all of the more sensitive species as well."
Solan worked on the project under the guidance of Dr. Sam Nutile, assistant professor of biology.
"Interestingly, Megan found that the eco-friendly formulations as harmful or worse for the aquatic insects than traditional salt were," Nutile said. "Megan's research is interesting because it represents a disconnect between scientific study and application of the results in society, demonstrating the need for scientists to learn how to bridge this gap."
Solan recently presented her work at the 39th Annual National Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry Conference. She along with Nutile, and Dr. Adam Simpson, assistant professor of biology, and two other students attended the gathering in Sacramento, California, where Solan's poster presentation won first place in the undergraduate division.
Not only did Solan return to Behrend with the top poster award for her work, but she also made several new professional contacts in her field.
"I met many wonderful scientists and spoke with some of them about the graduate programs at their schools," she said.
Solan plans to pursue a Ph. D. in environmental toxicology, which represents a slight curve from her original career plan.
"I initially chose biology because I was going to go to medical school, but after getting involved in this project, I realized that I am passionate about researching environmental issues."
Categories hands-on learning, Honors and Awards, School of Science, Student News, Student projects, Uncategorized
Silver Celebrated: Professor honored for decades of work on journal Freshwater Science
Published on September 18, 2018 September 18, 2018 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
Dr. Pam Silver, interim associate dean for academic affairs and distinguished professor of biology, was in graduate school when she submitted her first paper to what was then the journal of the North American Benthological Society (now the journal Freshwater Science).
"It came back covered in red ink," Silver said. "The founding editor of the journal, Rosemary Mackay, worked with me and taught me how to write."
It's a favor that Silver went on to pay forward for twenty-one years, serving in various roles at the journal, including editor-in-chief for the last thirteen years, until her retirement from the journal this spring.
"Pam worked tirelessly to improve and grow the journal while unselfishly working in the trenches with authors to improve their manuscripts," said Jack Feminella, professor and associate dean of academic affairs at Auburn University, and Charles Hawkins, professor in the department of Watershed Sciences at Utah State University, in their nomination of Silver for the Society for Freshwater Science's Distinguished Service Award. "Over her tenure as editor-in-chief, Pam has been a role model and mentor to many young authors and new appointees to the Editorial Board. Aside from her incredible work ethic, Pam's ability to work effectively with all kinds of personalities is perhaps her greatest strength."
These attributes did not go unnoticed at Penn State Behrend, where last year Silver was tapped to serve as interim associate dean for academic affairs. It was a promotion that ultimately led her to give up her work at the journal.
"My head needs to be here at Penn State Behrend," Silver said.
Before she left the journal, however, they honored her with a Distinguished Service Award at the group's fall conference in Detroit.
Though Silver prefers to avoid the spotlight, we did get her to sit down for a Q&A about the award, her years at the journal, and why the sleep deprivation was all worth it.
Why are scientific journals important?
It's a way to disseminate information in a way that ensures its validity. Is the work scientifically valid? Can the findings be trusted? If it is in Freshwater Science, it's been peer-reviewed. Now, what you can know depends on the tools and techniques that are currently available. And, so, in that way, journals can be historically valuable, too. They contain the history of how that knowledge evolved over time. It's also a way of creating a network of people, a community, that share information. Sharing that information can inspire more curiosity, which leads to more science. It's like scaffolding. Scientists just keep building on top of earlier work. Every paper published is resting on a pyramid of other papers.
Tell us about the journal for Freshwater Science. Who reads it? How is it distributed? Who submits articles?
It's a professional journal for ecologists, biologists, and environmental scientists who both read it and submit to it. The Society for Freshwater Science co-publishes the journal with the University of Chicago Press quarterly. To my knowledge, it's the only major scientific journal in the field of freshwater science that is still society-published. Most other journals have been sold to commercial publishers. There is both a print and an online version that is available to SFS's 1,500 members.
Are all submitted papers published?
Definitely not. Articles are fully peer-reviewed. The editorial board rejects about 60 to 65 percent of submissions.
How did you get involved with the journal?
The journal was founded when I was in graduate school and I submitted a paper. The editor bled red ink all over it, but she taught me how to make it better. I actually thought, 'I want her job.' I applied to be a member of the editorial board (they review the science in the papers) and was accepted in 1997. In 2002, they asked me to be a co-editor. When Dave Rosenberg, the journal's second editor-in-chief retired in 2005, they asked me to take the job.
This was in addition to your full-time job as a biology professor at Behrend?
Yes. It was like having another full-time job. I probably worked an additional forty hours a week editing articles and working with the writers.
What would people be surprised to know about editing a scientific journal?
The amount of work that it requires. Each article involved about twenty hours of time, and we published about 100 articles a year, so that's about 2,000 hours annually. By the time an issue published, I will have read and edited every page at least four times.
Were you responsible for reviewing the science, too?
No. The editorial board did all the science. I did the wordsmithing and double-checked the science.
The people who nominated you for the award said you did that very well.
Yes, I know that the journal got a reputation as a place to teach students how to write and edit. When I announced I was retiring, I heard from dozens of contributors who said, 'How can you retire? We need you!' I think I was a good editor. I was honest, but made every effort to be kind and I tried hard to keep our interactions informal. The authors may not have liked all the changes I made to their paper, but they usually agreed that I made it better.
What is the most frequent problem you encountered when editing?
Organization. If a paper was hard to understand, it was usually because of paragraph, sentence, or word order and inconsistency in how the authors were referring to things.
What are three things scientists (or anyone) could do to improve their writing?
Use precise and concise language.
Use the active voice.
Use forward moving sentences.
Think of the audience. If you can't explain it to a non-scientist, you need to work on your communication skills.
One of the things you're credited with is diversifying the organization as well as the membership.
I made a real effort to increase international diversity and bring more women onto the editorial board. I also tried to include more young scientists. Everyone has something to bring to the table and the publication benefited from having a variety of perspectives.
Why was it important to include young scientists?
For the same reason that I love to teach first-year students. They're young and excited and full of energy and they still want to save the world. You can help mentor them to direct that energy to things that are important.
Did you enjoy editing?
I did. The biggest benefit of editing the journal was learning about so many different and interesting things in freshwater science. In any issue, I might be editing an article about the sex life of a water bug and another about microplastics in the Chicago River and another about molecular biology. Every paper was an intellectual challenge for me, and it made all the work and sleep deprivation worth it.
Well, I have plenty of work to do as the interim associate dean for academic affairs, and I'm hoping to find time to write about my own road salt research work. I'm still teaching a little, too. I have an Urban Ecology class in the spring semester that I'm very excited about. It's going to be a fun challenge.
Categories Around campus, Faculty News, Honors and Awards, School of Science, Uncategorized
Excellence runs in Schupp family, twice chosen to Marshal
Published on May 2, 2016 May 2, 2016 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
By Christine Palattella
Student Marshal Kelsey Schupp
On Friday night, Student Marshal Kelsey Schupp '16 will lead her fellow Black School of Business commencement candidates into Erie Insurance Arena just as her sister, Brooke '14, did two years ago.
Only five Student Marshals are chosen for a commencement ceremony, one representing each of Penn State Behrend's four academic schools plus an Honors candidate to lead the college's Schreyer Scholars. To recognize their outstanding academic achievements, Student Marshals are given the honor of carrying the banners that precede each of the five candidate groups onto the arena floor.
Kelsey will receive concurrent degrees in Accounting and Finance and soon will begin working as a proposal analyst associate at Lockheed Martin's Missile and Fire Control division in Orlando. Brooke joined GE Transportation after graduating with a degree in Interdisciplinary Business with Engineering Studies; this fall she completes her fourth and final rotation in GE's Operations Management Leadership Program.
Was being named Marshal a goal for you, Kelsey?
I wouldn't necessarily say being Marshal was a specific goal I made, but I knew there was a good chance of it happening because my personal goal was graduating with a cumulative 4.0 GPA.
Was Brooke an inspiration? Are you two competitive?
Brooke graduated with a 4.0 GPA too. I've always wanted to do my very best in school purely for my own satisfaction, but Brooke's performance at Behrend pushed me to try even harder. She definitely left me some big shoes to fill.
In my junior year I started a game with myself –I decided to see how much more I could take on while maintaining my GPA. This is when I started working at internships during the school year and participating in academic competitions like the Chartered Financial Analyst Institute Research Challenge. I was captain of the team that reached the global semi-finals, ending as the 21st team out of over 1,000 competing.
I think Brooke and I are more competitive with ourselves than each other. But we do sometimes push each other, to make each other a better person, of course.
Looking back, Brooke, what did the Marshal experience mean to you?
Kelsey summarized it right when she said we are more competitive with ourselves than we are with each other. Being a Marshal allowed me to see that my parents had done an amazing job creating self-motivating adults capable of anything we put our minds to – even a 4.0 in college – a trait I hope I can someday pass on to those around me.
Brooke Schupp, Kelsey's sister and a 2014 Marshal
How do you feel about Kelsey following in your footsteps?
In college I mainly focused on my coursework, working to prove to myself that a 4.0 wasn't impossible. Kelsey took that to the next level by being extremely active in other groups and competitions, for example taking her team to Nationals for the CFA Institute Research Challenge competition! The dedication, time management, and leadership she was able to muster over her senior year is beyond incredible to me and proof that my little sister isn't so little anymore.
Penn State Behrend's 2016 spring commencement will be held on Friday, May 6, in Erie Insurance Arena, 809 French St. The ceremony begins at 6:30 p.m. and will be streamed live at behrend.psu.edu.
Categories Alumni stories, Class of 2016, Honors and Awards, School of Business, Standout Seniors, Standout Seniors 2016, Student News, Uncategorized
Political Science Major Wins Two-Month Fellowship to Berlin
Published on April 11, 2016 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
Megan McConnell
Megan McConnell, a sophomore majoring in Political Science at Penn State Behrend, has won a fully-funded Cultural Vista Fellowship to complete a two-month internship in Berlin this summer. The fellowship also covers an orientation in New York City, airfare, housing, internship placement, and transportation.
Cultural Vista Fellowships offer U.S. college students the opportunity to advance their career goals, develop global competencies, and experience life in another culture.
"Cultural Vista Fellowship is a classic example of engaged scholarship affording students with a hands-on international two-months internship experience, in this case in Berlin, Germany, immersing Megan in German language and culture, and giving her the opportunity to gain solid real world experience by interning with a German employer," said Dr. Eva Kuttenberg, associate professor of German. "I am humbled by Megan's drive and commitment."
McConnell, who is minoring in German and History, is one of just four national recipients of the fellowship.
"I think my strong background in German language and ability to adapt to diverse situations played a big part in why I was selected," McConnell said. "My comfort interacting with people from all walks of life also helped make me a viable candidate."
McConnell will attend orientation in New York City at the end of May before departing for Berlin on June 1. While she is there, she'll be working as an intern with a political organization.
"I'm looking forward to gaining invaluable insight into the German political system and ideologies,"McConnell said. "I plan on pursuing a career in politics and diplomacy, so this experience will help me interact with the country in a diplomatic sense later."
McConnell is the third winner of a fully-funded fellowship from Penn State Behrend. Last year, History major Olivia Duryea won a Teaching Assistants fellowship and spent nine months in Bad Hofgastein, Austria, assisting with English classes. In 2009, Physics and Science major Nicole Gall won a Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst Research Internship in Science and Engineering Fellowship and spent three months working in a physics lab at the University of Tuebingen, Germany.
Categories Honors and Awards, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Student News, Uncategorized
Love of writing defines O'Neill's time at Behrend
Published on August 17, 2015 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
As a child, Katie O'Neill always had a keen interest in writing and creative expression. This affinity continued when she got to grade school, and it was not long before others started to notice.
"I had a teacher when I was in first grade who told my mom to get me a journal," O'Neill recalls.
That would seem to have been excellent advice. As O'Neill has grown up, her passion for writing has become a defining characteristic.
"I've always been a writer before anything else," the Lake Winola, Pa., native says.
That passion is what brought her to Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. The college's BFA in Creative Writing piqued her interest as the only such program in the Penn State system and one of only a few in the country.
"That was definitely the number one draw," she says.
Through the inventive program, O'Neill, who graduated this past May, says she was able to focus intently on improving her inventive writing skills. She also improved her editing abilities serving on the staff of Lake Effect, an international literary journal published by the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Penn State Behrend.
Along the way, O'Neill garnered accolades. This past year alone, her non-fiction story, "Achill Strikes Again," won Behrend's Farrell Nonfiction Award while her fiction piece "Juneau" was the college's Smith Fiction Award winner. Her short fiction piece, "Tony and Rebecca" was also named an honorable mention in the Annual Creative Writing Awards, sponsored by Suffolk County Community College in Long Island, New York.
O'Neill says her inspiration comes from "the weirdest things," but also a more traditional source. Thanks to the college's Creative Writers Reading Series and professional conferences, O'Neill met and networked with numerous professional authors throughout her college career. With every interaction, she says she would pick up a tip or two that she put to good use.
During her time at Penn State Behrend, O'Neill was involved beyond creative writing activities. She was the captain of the college's dance team, a member of the Behrend Choir and a writing tutor in the Learning Resource Center.
This past spring, O'Neill's efforts were recognized with two awards: Behrend's Eric A. and Josephine S. Walker Award and a university-wide Eclipse Award. The Walker Award recognizes a student whose character, scholarship, leadership and citizenship have been directed into student programs and services. The Eclipse Award recognizes Penn State students for service and volunteerism to their campus and local communities.
This fall, O'Neill will start pursuing her MFA in Creative Writing at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. She reflects fondly on her time at Penn State Behrend and hopes new students will choose to follow a similar path.
"My advice is to get involved from the start. I'm so glad I got involved right away. It can be overwhelming, but it's (worth it)," she says. "I've made some amazing friends. I'm going to miss everything about this place."
Categories Alumni stories, Around campus, Class of 2015, Fun stuff, Honors and Awards, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Standout Seniors, Student News•Tags Behrend, Creative Writers Reading Series, Honors and Awards Convocation, Katherine O'Neill, Lake Effect, Learning Resource Center, Penn State Erie
Move over, Bill Nye. Penn State Behrend has its own 'Science Guy'
Published on July 9, 2015 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
Joel Solomon, a physics major, was the recipient of this year's T. Reed Ferguson Award. The award recognizes a junior who has demonstrated scholarship, leadership and citizenship through academic and out-of-class involvement and gives promise of further achievement in the senior year.
For some kids, it's Cartoon Network. For others, it's Nickelodeon. For Joel Solomon, it was the Science channel?
"Growing up, I just always watched that channel," says Solomon, who recently completed his junior year at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. "I was fascinated by what humanity has been able to do over the years, and I knew that I wanted to be a part of that."
Math and science resonated with Solomon, and that interest led the New Wilmington, Pa., native to Penn State Behrend. As he got older, he knew he wanted to pursue research in college, and he could think of no better destination than Behrend.
"Being able to get a great education at a small campus is great," says Solomon, a physics major. "I was looking for a research-oriented institution, and Behrend is one of the few schools in the region that offers such opportunities. I know that with a degree from here, I can go anywhere that I choose."
This past year, Solomon collaborated with Bruce Wittmershaus, associate professor of physics, on a research project titled, "Concentration Dependence of Coated Gold Nanoparticles for Metal Enhanced Fluorescence." The project was recognized as the Best Poster Presentation this past April at the Sigma Xi Undergraduate Student Research and Creative Accomplishment Conference.
Undergraduate research has been a big part of his time at the college, but Solomon's interests go beyond the academic realm. For the past three years, he's been a goalie on the men's soccer team. This past year, Solomon was inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, a national society that honors collegiate student-athletes who excel in both the classroom and in athletic competition. The society recognizes student-athletes who received a varsity letter in their sport while maintaining a cumulative GPA of 3.4 or higher throughout their junior and/or senior years. Solomon is also a former AMCC All-Academic selection.
"I feel as if soccer complements my academics. Just being physically active helps me keep up with my coursework," he says.
Solomon's accomplishments on the field and in the classroom played a key role in his receiving the 2014-15 T. Reed Ferguson Award last April at the college's 66th annual Honors and Awards Convocation. The award recognizes a junior who has demonstrated scholarship, leadership and citizenship through academic and out-of-class involvement and gives promise of further achievement in the senior year.
"I was very happy to receive the award, and it was nice to know my work is paying off," Solomon says. "It just reassured me that I'm on the right path, but I know there's more that I can do."
Solomon will get the chance to fulfill that promise of further achievement this fall, continuing his undergraduate research as the recipient of a grant to explore the topic of "Enhancing the Photostability of Fluorophores Using Metal Enhanced Fluorescence."
For the future, Solomon plans to attend graduate school and possibly work with optics. His ultimate goal, though, has its roots in the programs he watched on Science as a boy.
"My dream job is always going to be something with NASA. I have always been fascinated by all of NASA's accomplishments," he says, "so that's the dream, and that's what I'll keep working toward."
Categories Around campus, Fun stuff, Honors and Awards, School of Science, Student News•Tags Behrend, Behrend Lions, Bill Nye, Cartoon Network, Joel Solomon, Nickelodeon, Penn State Erie, Physics, science, Science Channel
Turnbull Award winner relishes her time spent at Behrend
Published on May 6, 2015 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
First impressions go a long way. Just ask Amyelia Payne.
Four years ago, while searching for colleges, the New Castle native toured Penn State Behrend. That's all it took for her to make up her mind.
"We had this awesome tour guide, and right away, I knew Behrend was for me. I instantly fell in love with the campus," the senior interdisciplinary business with engineering studies (IBE) and international business major recalls.
Payne's experience that day would later influence her campus involvement as a student. When she looked into organizations to join, one club resonated with her.
"I loved Lion Ambassadors because a Lion Ambassador was the first person that I met when I came to campus," Payne says. "I remember how that influenced me, and I wanted to have that same impact on students when they came to tour Behrend."
Joining Lion Ambassadors was just the start of Payne's influence and involvement. She joined Lambda Sigma and Beta Gamma Sigma, both national honor societies, and also became very active in Student Government Association (SGA). As a junior, she was SGA vice president before serving as president this past year.
Through SGA, Payne has left her mark. She's helped spearhead discussions and preliminary plans to transform Erie Hall into a fitness and recreation center and Behrend's SGA played a part in expanding Penn State's smoking policy to include electronic and vapor cigarettes.
As SGA president, Payne also introduced an international seat on the organization's board in response to the college's growing international student population. This past fall, Penn State Behrend welcomed 186 international students, the largest such class ever at the college.
"We've seen such an influx of international students, and this was done to ensure that they had equal representation," Payne says.
Payne's involvement on campus was recognized in April at the 66th Honors and Awards Convocation where she was named the recipient of the Thomas H. Turnbull Award. The award recognizes a Penn State Behrend student who has contributed to the college community through outstanding qualities of character, scholarship, leadership and citizenship.
As it happens, when it came time for the naming of the Turnbull Award winner, Payne was already on stage handing out awards as part of her duties as SGA president.
"I had been standing up there for more than two hours smiling, and by the time they got to the final awards, my face hurt. I heard them say IBE and international business major and I thought, 'Wait a minute; I'm the only one here with that double major,'" she recalls. "I was so shocked, but it was an incredible feeling to be recognized. I've given a lot to Behrend in four years, but I could never repay the experiences that it's given to me."
This week, Payne will graduate with her IBE degree and head to Cary, North Carolina, to intern with LORD Corporation this summer. She will study abroad in Barcelona this fall before graduating with her international business degree in December.
She says she will miss her time at Behrend, but she's also hopeful and excited for the future.
"I'm not sad. There have been times over the past month when I've thought about it, but why be sad? It's inevitable, so there's no reason to dwell on it," Payne says. "Everyone comes to college to get a degree and for their academics, but it's what you do outside your degree that makes your experience unique. I've done all that I could, and I think I'm looking forward to that next stage of my life. "
Categories Around campus, Honors and Awards, School of Business, School of Engineering, Standout Seniors, Student News•Tags Amyelia Payne, Behrend, Honors and Awards, Penn State Erie
Paul Lukasik leaves imprint at Behrend through Servant Leadership Award
Published on April 23, 2015 April 23, 2015 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
Bill Staniszewski (left) was the recipient of the Paul Lukasik Servant Leadership Award at this year's Center for Service and Civic Leadership's Service Awards.
Paul Lukasik unassumingly walked to the podium, flashing an abashed smile at the crowd of more than 50 people in attendance at Penn State Behrend's Center for Service and Civic Leadership's Service Awards.
"Just so you know, my face gets red when I get nervous," said Lukasik, displaying humility that's fitting in light of the award he was about to present: The Paul Lukasik Servant Leadership Award.
The award, created and presented to Lukasik in 2014 and subsequently named in his honor, recognizes a Penn State Behrend junior who, through leadership in a student organization or class, encourages others to engage in service and civic engagement.
This year's honoree was Bill Staniszewski, a junior mechanical engineering major who has completed numerous service projects with THON and Triangle Fraternity.
"Being honored with this award was the highlight of my semester. It really means a lot to me, especially as one of the leaders of Behrend Benefitting THON," Staniszewski said. "When I heard that I was the recipient, it helped to reaffirm my commitment to leading by example."
For Lukasik, having an award named in his honor has been a humbling experience.
"It's hard to put words to it. Presenting the award hammered home to me that this is something that will stay even after I'm gone," said Lukasik, a senior project and supply chain management major. "My hope, though, is that people will look beyond the name of the award and see its intention."
Naming an award after a current student is an unconventional practice, but according to Carrie Egnosak, an academic adviser and a member of the Service Awards Committee that created the award, Lukasik is especially deserving of the honor.
"Paul has just been so involved with service from the very first moment he stepped onto campus," Egnosak said. "He's one of the few students who has participated in every Alternative Spring Break trip since he's been here, and he tends to take on a leadership role with any club or organization that he becomes involved with. Everybody who knows him loves him because he would do anything for anyone."
Since arriving at Behrend, Lukasik has performed services projects through Reality Check, Behrend's community service-oriented club; Omicron Delta Kappa, the national leadership honor society; Relay for Life; and Alternative Spring Break; and has served as a resident assistant.
Lukasik said his commitment to service dates back to childhood, helping out at Fair Haven's Church, founded in North Tonawanda, N.Y., by his grandparents.
He contends his commitment to service won't be changing anytime soon. After graduation, he plans to do volunteer work through GE Transportation, where he has accepted a position in the Commercial Leadership Program, and also hopes to make a service trip to David's Home, an orphanage founded in Haiti by Fair Haven's Church.
Lukasik said he is grateful for all of the opportunities he's received at Behrend, and he hopes new students will continue to pursue service work.
"Behrend as a whole has given me so many opportunities. I've had internships, gone on service trips and had leadership positions," he said. "The service work just draws you in. It's mutually beneficial and so rewarding. No matter how busy you are, there's always something you can do, and I think it's our civic duty to give back."
Categories Around campus, Community Service, Fun stuff, Honors and Awards, School of Business, Standout Seniors•Tags Behrend, Carrie Egnosak, Center for Service and Civic Leadership, Paul Lukasik, Penn State Erie, Reality Check, THON, Triangle Fraternity, William Staniszewski
Alumnus, MIS Professional earns Maryland State Guard Association's Soldier of the Year Award
Published on March 23, 2015 March 24, 2015 by Behrend BlogLeave a comment
Publications & Design Coordinator, Penn State Behrend
Jeremy O'Mard '13 was just ten years old when the planes flew into the twin towers in his hometown of New York City on 9/11. Like millions of other Americans, the event altered the course of his life.
"It really hit home because my brother was a police officer, and we were attacked on our home soil," O'Mard said. "I knew then that I wanted to find a way to help others and give back to my country when I got older."
He participated in JROTC and Civil Air Patrol while in high school, but after graduation he chose to go to college instead of entering the military.
"I didn't really know what I wanted to do with my life and, honestly, I'd gotten used to the comforts of civilian life."
A fortuitous misunderstanding
He ended up at Penn State Behrend by accident.
"I was accepted at University Park, but was confused by how the campuses were set up, so I chose Erie, thinking it was an area of U.P.," he said with a laugh. "When I visited Behrend, I fell in love with the campus and decided to stay."
O'Mard majored in Management Information Systems, because the blend of technology and business appealed to him.
"I liked computers and technology, but I'd always had a business mindset, so MIS really captivated me," he said.
Mixing business and service
Today, O'Mard, who also earned a minor in Operations and Supply Chain Management, works full time as an Oracle business intelligence developer at IBM in Washington, D.C.
He has also found a way to give back.
Since his freshman year in college, O'Mard has been a volunteer in the Maryland Defense Force (MDDF), a uniformed military agency established by the state of Maryland to provide professional, technical, and military support to the state's National Guard and Emergency Management Agency.
"When I returned home to Maryland after my first year at Behrend, I was looking around online to see if I could find anything I might do that summer to supplement my MIS major and I stumbled upon the MDDF's Information Technology unit and saw they needed volunteers," he said.
After initial training, he began helping the MDDF by providing tech support, troubleshooting hardware and software problems, and working on ad hoc problems.
Quick climb up the ranks
His role in the MDDF steadily increased. He was a visible member of the MDDF Information Technology team, participated in training sessions and headquarter drills, and served on the honor guard for military funerals.
In just four years, O'Mard rose to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant and is now the Commanding General's aide-de-camp (personal assistant to a person of high rank). He estimates he volunteers about twenty hours a month.
His peers and superiors speak highly of him, complimenting his leadership skills, positivity, professionalism, and dedication to the MDDF.
Soldier of the Year
In December, they backed up those words with an official award. O'Mard was chosen to receive the Maryland State Guard Association's Soldier of the Year award for his "exceptional leadership, motivation, military bearing, dependability, and loyalty to the mission of the MDDF, the Maryland Military Department, and citizens of the State of Maryland."
O'Mard, who was surprised by the honor, said it was both humbling and inspiring.
"I know I do a lot for the MDDF, but I know many others who do, too, so I was very humbled to be chosen," he said. "It definitely puts things in perspective and makes me want to have an even stronger year this year."
If O'Mard likes the military life, why not make it his career?
He said he enjoys his job at IBM, which offers him myriad opportunities to challenge himself, learn, and advance at the company.
"I feel like this is perfect for me," he said. "I can maintain the civilian life I want and still be in the military. It's the best of both worlds."
Categories Alumni stories, Honors and Awards, School of Business•Tags Behrend, Black School of Business, Maryland Defense Force, Maryland State Guard Association, Penn State Erie, PennStateBehrend


Although this was not universally applied (some families adhered strictly, others "dabbled" and still others ignored it), it can still be helpful in determining the correct entry when confronting the relative lack of information in the Old Parish Registers. It can also give rise to great confusion when eight children of the same family in a small parish name their offspring according to convention! The use of traditional naming patterns gradually declined during the 19th century.
The application of naming conventions and the general desire to ensure that a family forename perpetuated through the generations, sometimes led to duplication of forenames within a family. For example, where a family wished to adhere strictly to the traditional naming pattern, and both grandfathers bore the same forename, that name might be given to more than child. If a child died young, parents might name a later child after the dead sibling. In unfortunate cases, the name may have been used more than once.


text:
Summit County Fair returns this weekend
Eight-day run kicks off on Saturday
Summit County | August 1, 2017
Angelique McNaughton
countynews@parkrecord.com
The Summit County Fair is set to begin its 8-day run this weekend. The fair is scheduled to be held from Saturday, Aug. 5, through Saturday, Aug. 12, at the county fairgrounds in Coalville.
(Park Record File Photo)
Summit County's historic fair, a tradition for more than 50 years, is set to begin its 8-day run this weekend.
The Summit County Fair is scheduled to be held from Saturday, Aug. 5, through Saturday, Aug. 12, at the county fairgrounds in Coalville. The traditional fair will feature a demolition derby, Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Rodeo, 4-H and home art exhibits, a junior livestock sale, vendors, food and a carnival.
"There are more than 27 individual events that happen during the fair and we get people who come from all over to check it out," said Travis English, Summit County Fair coordinator.
Saturday, the food booths and the Beer, Wine & Spirits Garden are scheduled to open at 5 p.m., followed by the popular Demolition Derby event at 7 p.m. to kick off the weeklong schedule of events. English said tickets to the demolition derby sold out last week. However, he added, tickets are still available for the rodeo.
More than 25,000 are expected to visit the county seat to attend the fair. English said attendees typically hail from Park City, the Salt Lake Valley, Evanston, Wyoming, and as far away as Colorado.
"We have this one family from Colorado that comes every year," English said. "Last year I had someone call me from the Los Angeles airport to tell me that they were coming to the fair. I was like, 'Really?' We get a lot of repeat and new visitors every year."
This year, visitors can anticipate a schedule change for the Barrels and Broncs event. The Little Buckaroo Rodeo, traditionally held on Tuesday, is now scheduled to be held on Wednesday and Thursday. The Barrels and Broncs event, which includes barrel racing, will be held at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, in the large arena.
English emphasized a need for submissions to the Home Arts exhibits, such as floriculture and horticulture categories. Submissions will only be accepted on Tuesday, Aug. 8. However, each East Side community has a representative who can also submit entries.
A free outdoor movie screening is a new event that will be featured on Tuesday, Aug. 8, English said. The screening, which will be held on the hill behind the Quonset Hut, will feature the 1987 film "The Princess Bride." Before the film, the winner of the Park City Film Series county-wide film contest will have their film shown.
"We are doing that in conjunction with the Summit County Library and the Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District and we are pretty excited to get that partnership going," English said.
The Carnival Midway is returning beginning Wednesday, Aug. 9, and continuing through Saturday, Aug. 12, from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Carnival Midway is a member of the National Association of Amusement Ride Safety Officials and its rides are regularly inspected, English said.
"They do a great job and they are a great family-owned company," he said.
This will be the final year that the county fair is held in its current configuration, English said. Last year, the county purchased a 12-acre property adjacent to the current fairgrounds to nearly double the site. The parcel will again be utilized for overflow parking and camping.
English said on Friday, Aug. 11, renderings of the new community center, which will replace the Quonset Hut, will be revealed. He said the Quonset Hut and the Livestock buildings will be torn down shortly after the fair to make room for four new buildings.
"We are just really excited for this year's fair and to begin making room for our new additions," English said.
The Summit County Fair opening weekend schedule:
Miss Summit County Scholarship Pageant, North Summit High School Auditorium, 7 p.m.
5 p.m. Food Booths open
5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Beer, Wine & Spirits Garden
5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Live entertainment, entertainment tent
7 p.m. Demolition Derby, large arena (sold out)
10 p.m. Fireworks
2 p.m. to 6 p.m. 4H exhibits entered, Quonset Hut
2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Home arts exhibits entered, Quonset Hut
4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Fine arts exhibits entered, fine arts tent
5:30 p.m. Youth Archery open fun shoot, fairgrounds
6 p.m. Limited food booths open
6 p.m. Barrels and Broncs Event, large arena
6:30 p.m. Youth Archery competition event, fairgrounds
Dusk (between 8:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.) – Outdoor movie, behind the Quonset Hut
For more information about the fair and to view the entire schedule, go to http://summitcountyfair.org/index.php.
Sheriff's report: Fraudsters posing as sheriff's lieutenants scam Parkites
A Snyderville Basin man received texts of dismembered and decapitated bodies as part of an effort to extort money from him.
North Summit schools briefly placed on lockdown Thursday morning
Summit County Council pens a letter to Pompeo welcoming refugee resettlement
Summit County preps for the 45-day state legislative session, ready to play defense
Opponents of Wohali have until Feb. 24 to gather signatures to put development's approval to Coalville voters
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Unstable Alpaca Earl Grey
Lost Fables | Blog
There once was a young man, who lived in a small village with a small community. Everyone in the village knew each other, they had all once lived in another country long before they all moved here. Which made it much easier for them to fit into their new found lives. Sadly in this small village, there weren't enough jobs to go around so many took to traveling to the nearest city while others stayed on welfare to support themselves.
Adam, the young man, had recently found a job in a nearby city. One that required him to work long hours packing items into boxes, ready for transport. He didn't love the job, but knew it was necessary to feed his family, and support his mother through her weaker years.
Today was like any other day, Adam woke up early got ready and headed for his long day at work. But today he managed to be let out 5 minutes earlier, allowing him to catch an earlier bus than normal. But this was a mistake, usually when he went to the station, others were with him from work. But only he had asked to be let out early, which left him alone and vulnerable. Just before the turning into the station 2 drunken men threw themselves in front of him, and started shouting obscene words at him. "get back to your own country, you don't deserve to live here living on our benefits". Adam against his better nature, decided to respond, "I'm sorry, but I work hard everyday to support my family, I agree some people are lazy, but I am not. I appreciate everything your country has given me, and hope to pay it back one day by becoming a doctor". The 2 men laughed, and began to shout while running towards him, after that all that Adam knew was pain and darkness.
A couple hours later, Adam had found himself in an empty alleyway hidden not far from where he was attacked. Adam full of fear and panic quickly got his bearings, and started to run out towards the bus station. He wasn't sure what to do, all he knew is he had to get to safety, and the only place he knew, was home. Luckily for Adam the bus was already there, slowly filling up with passengers who were heading home to their families. After a concerned look from the bus driver, Adam paid his way and began his journey home.
When Adam arrived, he found himself being surrounded by many of his friends from the village. Adam, who was still shuck up and covered in bruises, began to tell them exactly what had happened. His family instantly began to condone him, telling him to head home while they dealt with the issue themselves. Adam agreed and headed off to his house to get some much needed rest. The next day Adam had a call from work telling him he was fired, because he had missed work, and so he had been replaced with another. Adam began to break down, he never expected life here to be anything like this... So he headed out to his friends house, so he could confide in him and decide what he should do next.
After a long talk with his friend, explaining all that happened, his friend decided to speak. "you should know that they are all like this, none of them want us here. We all know this, we all hide away in this village together, because we know we will never be accepted. They all want us to leave and wish us all to die, they only think of us as parasites here only to drain their country. That is why we hide together, no one will help us now, all you can do is hope to find another job. But one day, hopefully they will get whats coming to them, all of them". Adam, a little took back by this, sat up straight and said " I don't believe all of them are like this, how else did I get a job in one of their factories. I understand I was fired, but that's how it is we all need a job, there just isn't enough. Because of this employers exploit us... All of us". His friend simply nodded, but clearly paid no attention to what Adam had said. Shortly after Adam left, he felt too uncomfortable around his friends approach to the matter, and quickly made his way home... I hope he doesn't do anything stupid, he thought to himself.
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Captain America Costume
Want to be the United States of America's go to guy? be The First Avenger, be...Captain America™! Though you don't need to have any injections of experimental serum to enhance you to the peak of physical perfection to be America's hero...oh no, with our range of Captain America costumes and shields you'll be an instant real American hero!
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Captain America is a fictional character that appears in marvel comics, appearing first in 1941. Captain America is the alter ego of Steve Rogers. Rogers is a tall but scrawny fine arts student specializing in illustration. Disturbed by the rise of the Third Reich Rogers attempts to enlist into the army, only to be rejected because of his weak physical form. A U.S. General, Chester Phillips looking for test subjects, offers Rogers the chance to serve his country by taking part in a top-secret defense project — Operation: Rebirth, which seeks to develop a means of creating physically superior soldiers. Rogers volunteers for the research and, after a rigorous selection process, is chosen as the first human test subject for the Super Soldier serum developed by the scientist "Dr. Josef Reinstein" in the test he is given the serum that transforms him overnight, from the frail and weak Steve Rogers to the super new breed of man...Captain America!
Like Batman Captain America has no inherent super powers though unlike Batman whom created himself, Captain America gained his powers through the serum treatment, the formula enhances all of his metabolic functions giving him far more endurance and strength than any human being! Rogers' battle experience and training make him an expert tactician and an excellent field commander, with his teammates frequently deferring to his orders in battle. Rogers' reflexes and senses are also extraordinarily keen. He has blended judo, boxing, kickboxing and gymnastics into his own unique fighting style and is a master of multiple martial arts. Years of practice with his indestructible shield make him able to aim and throw it with almost unerring accuracy. His skill with his shield is such that he can attack multiple targets in succession with a single throw or even cause a boomerang-like return from a throw to attack an enemy from behind. In canon, he is regarded by other skilled fighters as one of the best hand to hand combatants in the Marvel Universe.
Captain America's uniform is made of a fire-retardant material, and he wears a lightweight, bulletproof "duralumin" scale armour beneath his uniform for added protection. Originally, Rogers' mask was a separate piece of material, but an early engagement had it dislodged, thus almost exposing his identity. To prevent a recurrence of the situation, Rogers modified the mask with connecting material to his uniform, an added benefit of which was extending his armor to cover his previously exposed neck.


The Friday networking drinks are always popular, seems everyone really does want to get their weekend started right. And this month we thought we'd mix it up a bit so we're heading to The Maid and Magpie in Stepney.
Members, come on down, because the price is right. Non-members and anyone who hasn't renewed their CALENDAR YEAR 2012 membership (that means all 2011 memberships expired 31 December, yes really) we want you, but we also want you to bring $30 with you. Otherwise you get neither networking, or drinking. Harsh but true.
of every member of the industry in Adelaide.