Texas town allows teachers to carry concealed guns

HARROLD, Texas (AP) ? In this tiny Texas town, children and their parents don't give much thought to safety at the community's lone school ? mostly because some of the teachers are carrying concealed weapons.

In remote Harrold, the nearest sheriff's office is 30 minutes away, and people tend to know ? and trust ? one another. So the school board voted to let teachers bring guns to school.

"We don't have money for a security guard, but this is a better solution," Superintendent David Thweatt said. "A shooter could take out a guard or officer with a visible, holstered weapon, but our teachers have master's degrees, are older and have had extensive training. And their guns are hidden. We can protect our children."

In the awful aftermath of last week's Connecticut elementary school shooting, lawmakers in a growing number of states ? including Oklahoma, Missouri, Minnesota, South Dakota and Oregon ? have said they will consider laws allowing teachers and school administrators to carry firearms at school.

Texas law bans guns in schools unless the school has given written authorization. Arizona and six other states have similar laws with exceptions for people who have licenses to carry concealed weapons.

Harrold's school board voted unanimously in 2007 to allow employees to carry weapons. After obtaining a state concealed-weapons permit, each employee who wants to carry a weapon must be approved by the board based on his or her personality and reaction to a crisis, Thweatt said.

Employees also must undergo training in crisis intervention and hostage situations. And they must use bullets that minimize the risk of ricochet, similar to those carried by air marshals on planes.

CaRae Reinisch, who lives in the nearby community of Elliott, said she took her children out of a larger school and enrolled them in Harrold two years ago, partly because she felt they would be safer in a building with armed teachers.

"I think it's a great idea for trained teachers to carry weapons," Reinish said. "But I hate that it has come to this."

The superintendent won't disclose how many of the school's 50 employees carry weapons, saying that revealing that number might jeopardize school security.

The school, about 150 miles northwest of Fort Worth near the Oklahoma border, has 103 students from kindergarten through 12th grade. Most of them rarely think about who is carrying a gun.

"This is the first time in a long time that I've thought about it," said Matt Templeton, the principal's 17-year-old son. "And that's because of what happened" in Connecticut.

Thweatt said other Texas schools allow teachers to carry weapons, but he would not reveal their locations, saying they are afraid of negative publicity.

The Texas Education Agency said it had not heard of any other schools with such a policy. And the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence did not know of any other districts nationwide that allow school employees to carry concealed handguns.

But that may change soon.

Oklahoma state Rep. Mark McCullough said he is working on a bill that would allow teachers and administrators to receive firearms training through the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training, which would authorize them to carry weapons at school and at school events. Other states are proposing or considering similar measures.

However, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder this week vetoed legislation that would have allowed concealed weapons in schools, churches and day care centers, saying he seeks a more "thoughtful review" that includes school emergency policies and mental health-related issues.

In Texas, guns have an honored place in the state's culture, and politicians often describe owning a gun as essential to being Texan. At the state Capitol, concealed handgun license holders are allowed to skip the metal detectors that scan visitors.

Gov. Rick Perry has indicated he would prefer to give gun owners the widest possible latitude. Just days after the Connecticut attack, Perry said permit holders should be able to carry concealed weapons in any public place.

Last year, many Texas lawmakers supported a plan to give college students and professors with concealed handgun licenses the right to carry guns on campus, but the measure failed.

Opponents insist that having more people armed at a school, especially teachers or administrators who aren't trained to deal with crime on a daily basis, could lead to more injuries and deaths. They point to an August shooting outside the Empire State Building, where police killed a laid-off clothing designer after he fatally shot his former colleague. Nine bystanders were wounded by police gunfire, ricochets and fragments.

"You are going to put teachers, people teaching 6-year-olds in a school, and expect them to respond to an active-shooter situation?" said Ladd Everitt, a spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, who called the idea of arming teachers "madness."

Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner said she would not have felt better if teachers at her children's Seattle school had been armed during a May shooting at a nearby cafe. A gunman killed four people at the cafe and another woman during a carjacking before killing himself. The school went on lockdown as a precaution.

"It would be highly concerning to me to know that guns were around my kids each and every day. ... Increasing our arms is not the answer," said Rowe-Finkbeiner, co-founder and CEO of MomsRising.org.

Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign, said focusing on arming teachers distracts from the "real things" that could help prevent a school shooting "and at worse it furthers a dangerous conversation that only talks about guns as protection without a discussion about the serious risks they present."

As the debate continues, Harrold's school plans to leave its policy unchanged.

"Nothing is 100 percent at all. ... But hope makes for a terrible plan, hoping that (a tragedy) won't happen," Thweatt said. "My question is: What have you done about it? How have you planned?"

___

Associated Press writers Juan A. Lozano in Houston and Nomaan Merchant in Dallas contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/texas-town-allows-teachers-carry-concealed-guns-081017416.html

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Archeologist: Mayans Did Not Predict Apocalypse (Voice Of America)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/271889109?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Gizmodo: Ten Bucks Buys a Sony Watchman, the iPhone of 1986

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Source: http://forum.iphoneworld.ca/iphone-news/gizmodo-ten-bucks-buys-sony-watchman-iphone-1986-a-271708.html

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A mathematical formula to decipher the geometry of surfaces like that of cauliflower

Public release date: 19-Dec-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Ana Herrera
oic@uc3m.es
Carlos III University of Madrid

This press release is available in Spanish.

The scientists have found a formula that describes how the patterns found in a multitude of natural structures are formed. "We have found a model that describes, in detail, the evolution in time and in space of cauliflower-type fractal morphologies for nanoscopic systems", explains Professor Rodolfo Cuerno, of UC3M's Mathematics Department, author of the research, together with scientists from Universidad Pontificia Comillas (UPCO), the Instituto de Ciencia de los Materiales de Madrid (the Materials Science Institute of Madrid) of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientficas (CSIC) (Spanish National Research Council), la Escuela Politcnica de Pars (Polytechnic School of Paris, France) and the Universidad Catlica de Lovaina (Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium).

This work, which was recently published in the New Journal of Physics, falls within the field of fractal geometry, which is based on the mathematical description of many natural forms, such as sea coasts, the borders between countries, clouds, snowflakes and even the networks of blood vessels. A fractal is characterized because its parts are similar to the whole. "In the case of cauliflowers, this property (self-similarity) becomes evident if you look closely at a photo of them," says another of the researchers, Mario Castro, a professor at UPCO. "In fact," he adds, "without more information, it is impossible to know the size of the object." This way, using relatively simple algorithms, complex structures almost indistinguishable from certain landscapes, leaves or trees, for example, can now be generated. "However, the general mechanisms that govern the appearance or evolution over time of those natural structures have rarely been identified beyond a merely visual or geometric reproduction," clarifies the researcher.

From the supermarket to the laboratory

The cauliflower-type morphologies were known is this realm in an empirical way, but no one had provided a model like the one that these scientists have developed. "In our case," they comment, "the connection came about naturally when a certain ingredient (noise) was added to a related model that we had worked on previously. When we did that, in the numeric simulations, surfaces appeared, and we quickly identified them as the ones that our experiment colleagues had been able to obtain, under the right conditions, in their laboratories." Based on the characteristics of this theoretical model, they have inferred general mechanisms that can be common and can help in making models of other very different systems, such as a combustion front or a cauliflower like the ones that can be found in any supermarket.

Fractals of this type are interesting because they are ubiquitous, that is, they appear in systems that vary widely in their nature and dimensions. In general, fractals can be found in any branch of the natural sciences: mathematics (specific types of functions), geology (river basins or the outline of a coast), biology (forms of aggregate cells, of plants, of the network of blood vessels...), physics (the growth of amorphous solid crystals or the distribution of galaxies), chemistry (the distribution in space of the reagents of chemical reactions). Moreover, they have also been studied due to their relationship with structures created by man, such as communication and transportation networks, city layouts, etc.

This finding may help to discover concrete applications for improving the technologies used in thin film coatings, and to understand the conditions under which they are smooth or have wrinkles or roughness. "This is also useful in generating textures in computer simulations," the researchers point out. "And, conceptually," they add, "this can give us clues about the general mechanisms involved in forming structures in areas that are very different from the ones in which the model was formulated, such as those in which there is competition for growth resources among the various parts of the system."

###

Further information:

Universality of cauliflower-like fronts: from nanoscale thin films to macroscopic plants

Authors: Mario Castro, Rodolfo Cuerno, Matteo Nicoli, Luis Vzquez and Josephus G. Buijnsters

Journal: New J. Phys. 14 (2012) 103039 doi:10.1088/1367-2630/14/10/103039 http://iopscience.iop.org/1367-2630/14/10/103039/article

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 19-Dec-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Ana Herrera
oic@uc3m.es
Carlos III University of Madrid

This press release is available in Spanish.

The scientists have found a formula that describes how the patterns found in a multitude of natural structures are formed. "We have found a model that describes, in detail, the evolution in time and in space of cauliflower-type fractal morphologies for nanoscopic systems", explains Professor Rodolfo Cuerno, of UC3M's Mathematics Department, author of the research, together with scientists from Universidad Pontificia Comillas (UPCO), the Instituto de Ciencia de los Materiales de Madrid (the Materials Science Institute of Madrid) of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientficas (CSIC) (Spanish National Research Council), la Escuela Politcnica de Pars (Polytechnic School of Paris, France) and the Universidad Catlica de Lovaina (Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium).

This work, which was recently published in the New Journal of Physics, falls within the field of fractal geometry, which is based on the mathematical description of many natural forms, such as sea coasts, the borders between countries, clouds, snowflakes and even the networks of blood vessels. A fractal is characterized because its parts are similar to the whole. "In the case of cauliflowers, this property (self-similarity) becomes evident if you look closely at a photo of them," says another of the researchers, Mario Castro, a professor at UPCO. "In fact," he adds, "without more information, it is impossible to know the size of the object." This way, using relatively simple algorithms, complex structures almost indistinguishable from certain landscapes, leaves or trees, for example, can now be generated. "However, the general mechanisms that govern the appearance or evolution over time of those natural structures have rarely been identified beyond a merely visual or geometric reproduction," clarifies the researcher.

From the supermarket to the laboratory

The cauliflower-type morphologies were known is this realm in an empirical way, but no one had provided a model like the one that these scientists have developed. "In our case," they comment, "the connection came about naturally when a certain ingredient (noise) was added to a related model that we had worked on previously. When we did that, in the numeric simulations, surfaces appeared, and we quickly identified them as the ones that our experiment colleagues had been able to obtain, under the right conditions, in their laboratories." Based on the characteristics of this theoretical model, they have inferred general mechanisms that can be common and can help in making models of other very different systems, such as a combustion front or a cauliflower like the ones that can be found in any supermarket.

Fractals of this type are interesting because they are ubiquitous, that is, they appear in systems that vary widely in their nature and dimensions. In general, fractals can be found in any branch of the natural sciences: mathematics (specific types of functions), geology (river basins or the outline of a coast), biology (forms of aggregate cells, of plants, of the network of blood vessels...), physics (the growth of amorphous solid crystals or the distribution of galaxies), chemistry (the distribution in space of the reagents of chemical reactions). Moreover, they have also been studied due to their relationship with structures created by man, such as communication and transportation networks, city layouts, etc.

This finding may help to discover concrete applications for improving the technologies used in thin film coatings, and to understand the conditions under which they are smooth or have wrinkles or roughness. "This is also useful in generating textures in computer simulations," the researchers point out. "And, conceptually," they add, "this can give us clues about the general mechanisms involved in forming structures in areas that are very different from the ones in which the model was formulated, such as those in which there is competition for growth resources among the various parts of the system."

###

Further information:

Universality of cauliflower-like fronts: from nanoscale thin films to macroscopic plants

Authors: Mario Castro, Rodolfo Cuerno, Matteo Nicoli, Luis Vzquez and Josephus G. Buijnsters

Journal: New J. Phys. 14 (2012) 103039 doi:10.1088/1367-2630/14/10/103039 http://iopscience.iop.org/1367-2630/14/10/103039/article

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-12/ciuo-amf121912.php

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mankesune: When Going To An Eye Doctor | health and fitness ...

Your eyes are very important for you need the sense of sight to be able to do most of your activities. That is why it is important for one to visit an eye doctor in San Antonio even though he has no problems with his vision. When visiting an ophthalmologist, patients should also prepare themselves.

One thing that you need to do when you want to seek an ophthalmologist in San Antonio is to look for a doctor that will examine you. This can be an easy task if you already have someone that you always go to. However, if this is not the case for you, you should do your homework before going to anyone's clinic.

Even if you will only go to the visit to for a San Antonio eye check up, preparation is still something that is necessary. This is because it can help make the examination or check up easier on your part. Doctors would appreciate it if their patients are prepared for this helps make the session faster and more productive.

Part of the preparation is to get all the necessary things ready before you will go to the clinic. To know what you should bring or do, contact the clinic and ask for the necessary instructions. If you are wearing an eyeglass or contact, you will be asked to bring this. It is also better if you can list your allergies and health history.

If you have health insurance, find out first if this will be accepted in the clinic where you will go to. It would be too inconvenient to go there only to find out that you are not covered. You will also need to bring with you your insurance information for this will be needed by the clinic or any other health facility.

You should take note of the tests the might be done to you. If you know what kind test will be done, you can prepare yourself properly. There are some tests that need some preparation. Doctors will usually tell their patients what to do in advance. If the test is going to impair your vision temporarily, make sure to bring someone with you.

Once you are finished with your visit, you need to be sure that you have taken the necessary things with you especially your prescription. Do not leave is you still have many questions. It is better if you will talk with your doctor while he is still around.

An eye doctor in San Antonio can help you take care of your vision. It is advisable for adults to go to him to have themselves checked. This helps avoid vision problems and deal with issues right away.

Source: http://healthandfitnessupdates.blogspot.com/2012/12/when-going-to-eye-doctor.html

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Source: http://mankesune.blogspot.com/2012/12/when-going-to-eye-doctor-health-and.html

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Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools finance officer Shirley gets national ...

Sheila Shirley, the quiet force behind Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools? annual billion-dollar budget drama, won a national award for her service to public education.

Shirley, CMS? chief financial officer since 2000, was honored by the Council of the Great City Schools during last week?s CFO conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

?Few people in the United States have contributed more to the financial integrity and improvement of urban public education than Sheila Shirley,? said Executive Director Michael Casserly, who called the award ?long overdue.?

The soft-spoken Shirley maintains a low public profile. But her job puts her in charge of the $1.2 billion budget for one of the region?s largest employers, which must follow federal, state and local financial rules.

The political decisions connected with the CMS budget are often controversial, especially during a tenure that has seen CMS swing from dramatic growth to layoffs and other budget cuts. But the budget itself has repeatedly gotten clean reports from external auditors, and the finance department has gotten numerous awards during Shirley?s time.

Before coming to CMS, Shirley worked in private finance offices, including Husqvarna and Novant Health. She is now working for her sixth CMS superintendent, Heath Morrison.

?We?re very fortunate to have her on our team,? Morrison said.

Source: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/11/19/3676936/cms-finance-officer-gets-national.html

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Holiday Cuisine Causes Problems For Pets ? CBS Miami

Tia says this is ?Timber Paws.? (credit: Tia/CBS Viewer)

MIAMI (CBSMiami) ? As you celebrate and feast these upcoming holidays with loved ones and family; you may want to think twice about letting your furry friend enjoy the leftovers.

While you celebrate with turkey and all the trimmings you may be tempted to include your pet, however, some parts of the holiday feast could actually make your pets sick.

Experts say foods like turkey, onions, macadamia nuts, chocolate, raisins, garlic, grapes, the sugar substitute xylitol, and raw or undercooked food can create health problems for pets.

Sneaking a juicy turkey bone or a chicken bone under the dinner table is more harmful than you think. The bones could splinter, causing the intestines to be pierced.

Feeding pets uncooked or undercooked meat could be a potential cause of salmonella as well as pancreatitis.

You should also stay away from herbs and spices, like the sage used in stuffing, which can contain oil and resins that can cause pets to vomit or have diarrhea. Cats are particularly sensitive to spices.

It is best to keep your pets on their normal diets and tightly seal garbage bags, placing them in a tightly covered container to prevent your pets from getting into something that could injure them.

If you simply can?t resist sharing, a little mashed potatoes, a bit of pumpkin pie, green beans, sweet potato, and a tiny bit of boneless cooked turkey are considered safe for your pets.

Source: http://miami.cbslocal.com/2012/11/19/holiday-cuisine-causes-problems-for-pets/

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Windows 98 Solitaire Deck Immortalizes Our Most Important Pre-Internet Distraction

Is $20 too much for a deck of playing cards styled to look exactly like the pixelated designs in Windows 98 Solitaire? Not a chance. As their creator Evan Roth points out, before the internet Solitaire was the only real distraction an office drone could rely on. So why not give it the respect and immortalization it deserves with this lovely deck printed on genuine Bicycle playing cards? More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/kt-cxw4Z0nw/windows-98-solitaire-deck-immortalizes-our-most-important-pre+internet-distraction

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Ind. home explosion now a homicide investigation

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ? Authorities launched a homicide investigation Monday into the house explosion that killed a young couple and left numerous homes uninhabitable in an Indianapolis neighborhood.

Indianapolis Homeland Security Director Gary Coons made the announcement after meeting with residents affected by the Nov. 10 blast and shortly after funerals were held for the victims, who lived next door to the house where investigators believe the explosion occurred.

"We are turning this into a criminal homicide investigation," Coons said, marking the first time investigators have acknowledged a possible criminal element to the case.

Search warrants have been executed and officials are now looking for a white van that was seen in the subdivision the day of the blast, Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry said. Federal authorities are offering a $10,000 reward for information in the case.

Curry said the investigation is aimed at "determining if there are individuals who may be responsible for this explosion and fire," but neither he nor Coons took questions or indicated if investigators had any suspects.

Officials have said they believe natural gas was involved in the explosion, which destroyed five homes and left dozens damaged, some heavily. Investigators have been focusing on appliances as they search for a cause of the explosion, which caused an estimated $4.4 million in damage.

"We thought something like this was not just an accident," said Doug Aldridge, who heads the neighborhood Crime Watch.

Aldridge said he and other residents frequently saw a white van parked outside the home, though he didn't know who owned it. He said residents were angry and upset, but he expects most of them to stay in the neighborhood.

"It's surprising that it finally came to that. Everyone had their suspicions," Chris Sutton, who lives a street away from the blast site, said after learning about the homicide investigation.

"It's kind of scary that someone might set off a gas explosion," he added. "It's really scary."

Hundreds of people attended the funerals earlier Monday for the couple killed in the explosion, 34-year-old John Dion Longworth and 36-year-old Jennifer Longworth.

She was a teacher remembered for knitting gifts for her students, while her husband, an electronics expert, was known as a gardener and nature lover.

Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, who spoke at the news conference, said he went to the Longworths' funeral and had a hard time coming to peace with what had happened.

"There is a search for truth and there is a search for justice," Ballard said.

The couple lived next door to the house where investigators are focusing. The co-owner of that house, John Shirley, told The Associated Press he had recently received a text message from his daughter saying the furnace in the home, which she shares with her mother and her mother's boyfriend, had gone out.

Shirley's ex-wife, Monserrate Shirley, said her boyfriend, Mark Leonard, had replaced the thermostat recently and the furnace had resumed working.

She and her boyfriend were away at a casino at the time of the blast. The daughter was staying with a friend, and the family's cat was being boarded.

Monserrate Shirley's attorney, Randall Cable, declined comment Monday night.

___

Associated Press writer Ken Kusmer contributed to this report from Indianapolis.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ind-home-explosion-now-homicide-investigation-232646565.html

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Urgent -Power cuts threat as sun storm hits earth | World Chaos

A huge mass of electrically-charged particles thrown out by a gigantic eruption on the Sun is due to strike the Earth tonight.

Scientists expect it to trigger one of the most violent geomagnetic storms ever recorded.

The result could be widespread power surges and even blackouts, disrupted TV and mobile phone signals, and broken down communication satellites.

At the same time the Northern Lights, normally confined to polar latitudes, may produce dazzling displays in the skies above southern Britain.

At least one satellite has already been knocked out of action by the storm. Japan?s space agency said its Kodama communications satellite had been temporarily shut down after malfunctioning.

The solar flare that caused the eruption burst out of a sunspot at 10.54am yesterday.

Experts said it was the strongest flare seen in the past 30 years. The explosion caused a coronal mass ejection (CME) which is now speeding towards Earth.

Disruption

Last week another CME only hit the Earth a glancing blow, yet was able to disrupt airline communications.

The solar flare was classified as an X18-category explosion, meaning it can trigger planet-wide radio blackouts and long-lasting radiation storms.

Although the charged particles present no direct danger to people on the ground, they could have a devastating effect on electrical equipment.

Geomagnetic storms are classified on a scale of one to five. Initial indications are that the looming storm could reach the highest G5 level and last for 24 hours.

Northern Lights

The most obvious manifestation of the storm is likely to be glorious auroras lighting up the night sky.

Usually the Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, is only visible in Britain from northern Scotland. The Earth?s magnetic field channels the solar particles that cause auroras towards the poles.

But experts say that over the next two days the Northern Lights may be seen at latitudes as low as Florida and Texas ? and even south enough to cover the whole of Europe. Dailymail

Source: http://aworldchaos.wordpress.com/2012/11/18/urgent-power-cuts-threat-as-sun-storm-hits-earth/

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Sun eruption captured in NASA video

The sun unleashed a monster eruption of super-hot plasma Friday in back-to-back solar storms captured on camera by a NASA spacecraft.

The giant sun eruption, called a solar prominence, occurred at 1 a.m. EST (0600 GMT), with another event flaring up four hours later. The prominences was so large, it expanded beyond the camera view of NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which captured high-definition video of the solar eruption.

In the video, a colossal loop of glowing red plasma erupts from the lower left of the sun, arcing up and out of frame as it blasts away from the star.

"The red-glowing looped material is plasma, a hot gas made of electrically charged hydrogen and helium," officials with NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, which oversees the SDO mission, explained in a description. "The prominence plasma flows along a tangled and twisted structure of magnetic fields generated by the sun?s internal dynamo. An erupting prominence occurs when such a structure becomes unstable and bursts outward, releasing the plasma."

Friday's solar eruption does not appear to be aimed at Earth, so will likely have little effect on our planet. But that was not the case earlier this week when a powerful solar flare erupted on Monday (Nov. 12). That flare registered as an M6-class eruption, a moderate but still intense solar event.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, space weather conditions sparked a geomagnetic storm that supercharged the Earth's auroras, creating spectacular northern lights displays for observers at high latitudes.

When aimed directly at Earth, the most powerful solar flares and eruptions can pose a threat to satellites and astronauts in orbit, and also interfere with communication, navigation and power systems on the ground.

The sun is currently in the middle of an active phase of its 11-year solar weather cycle. The current cycle is called Solar Cycle 24 and is expected to peak in 2013.

Editor's note: If you snap an amazing photo of the northern lights created by recent sun flares, or any other sky object, and you'd like to share it for a possible story or image gallery, send images, comments and location information to managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.

You can follow SPACE.com Managing Editor Tariq Malik on Twitter@tariqjmalik and SPACE.com on Twitter @Spacedotcom. We're also on Facebook & Google+.

? 2012 Space.com. All rights reserved. More from Space.com.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49867380/ns/technology_and_science-space/

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Online Property Games ? can they teach you real life lessons ...

I was fascinated to recently read about the uptake of online property games in Australia and how ?thousands of Aussies are building property empires online?.

Highlighting this trend was Century 21 Australia?s game ?Property Mogul? which has apparently recorded over $3.4 trillion worth of property transactions since it was launched a year ago.

While I?ve only had a brief flirtation with the game, I was reminded of my love of playing Sim City growing up. I think it was Sim City 2000 to be more precise.

The open-ended city-building game handed you the task of founding and developing a city from scratch. While I played this game purely for fun, I?m sure it would have set me in good stead if had I planned a career in town planning or local politics.

The game allowed you to revel in the constructing of huge skyscrapers and bridges but it also required you to consider that your residents required electricity and water. You also had to think about budgets and finance such as setting tax rates and collecting money to develop your city further.

My point is this: while online property games are designed for fun, perhaps there is merit in teaching people about the property market in general. Just as I learned that my people needed basic utilities, players of property games will learn the ways an investment property can generate income. The aim is to educate and demystify wannabe property investors and that can only be a good thing.

Granted there are some massive differences ? in Property Mogul you start out with $1 million in virtual cash ? but the basic task of buying, selling and managing properties remains the same. And just like real life you can climb the property ladder and even increase your reputation as a good landlord.

So without further ado, I?m off to create my property empire!

http://www.c21propertymogul.com.au/

Source: http://blog.aussie.com.au/online-property-games/

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Choosing The Genuine And Legal Patent Attorney Agent In Malaysia

Trademark in Malaysia provides you a chance to how your small business presence in the consumer market and it?s really essential for your corporation settlements. The country has applied varied provisions under its constitution with a view to register trademark logo and renewing the same. In actual fact, you?ll have to look for one of the best patent attorney agent here to get under the process.

It is a well-known indisputable fact that trademarks refer to the logos, texts, pictures, slogans and other unique elements of your business which give it a special recognition in the eyes of consumers. Patent attorney agent tries to verify your corporation credentials and examine your enterprise property. After, it you might be declared eligible to register trademark logo in Malaysia.

In Malaysia, every business has a special trademark logo which is valid for the following 10 years. After this confined period, you will have to go to reputed patent attorney agent for renewing the same business logo. This process gives you the entire rights for protection and copyright once you renew or register trademark logo for your business.

The society will face the challenge of corruption, chaos and disorder in absence of laws. The function of the Patent and Trademark Office is to concentrate on the functions of the agents and attorneys that cater to needs of interested customers under division of intellectual property rights to register trademark logo for his or her business. Malaysia has a separate division for these types of business solutions which have further boosted the business productivity.

Legal action ns have to be taken by the business owner is another person uses the identical pattern or credentials or logo. You?ll be required to register trademark logo for your corporation if you want to avail this facility on legal basis. The selection of patent attorney agent will certainly enable you to here in this field because he will be well educated and well trained for this job.

The main function of the patent attorney agent is to make sure the facility| that the clients may get the correct patent for a specific business structure. Apart from it, the patent attorney may even assist in fighting against the copyright in the judiciary and local court topic to the restrictions. Malaysia provides you plenty of benefits to the business models in this field with out compromising with the cost and quality of solution.

It is best to further| be sure that the patent attorney agent have to be a council member or bar which is the required eligibility criteria to o to your case. You can find a number of patent agents in Malaysia that boast of offering the best solution to your business. You just must register trademark logo for your small business in order to get the legal services of the country.

Your preparation and planning for the search of right and most authentic patent attorney agent will definitely help you. When you get the right agent, you may move ahead to register trademark logo for specific company.

The legal patent attorney agent should be allowed to work under the patent jurisdiction. Of course, the patent agents will also attempt to register trademark logo for your business in Malaysia to verify your credentials.

Norunnuha Sdn Bhd was the brainchild of its founder Norunnuha Datuk Hj Nawawi, a registered patent, trademark and industrial design agent. We have a strong initiative to be a key player in intellectual property area. We also encourage and support recruiting, retaining and advancing women executive at norunnuha Sdn Bhd.

Source: http://www.businesslistingnow.com/blog/choosing-the-genuine-and-legal-patent-attorney-agent-in-malaysia/

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Just venting about sound... - IndieTalk - Indie Film Forum

Yesterday, 02:48 PM	? #1
Basic Member ? Join Date: May 2011 Location: London Posts: 284	Just venting about sound... Great, I've shot my first short, the musician whose music I borrowed liked it so much she is spending money on shooting a music vid, I have another short next Feb / March and a few other bits and pieces kicking around. Sure, I had my short critiqued by an industry pro who taught me a huge amount about what I should've done. I was beginning to get compliments, feeling smug that I was making progress and then, and then... I sat for 2 hours with a sound engineer. I helped him with a little thing which means that in return, he's happy to give me lots of his time recording free of charge when he's around and also to give me a few lessons. In that two hours, I learned more about the mistakes I'd made than I could ever possibly have imagined. Sound design for individual scenes (creating depth, shape), mood and recording live. The amount I learned was absolutely unbelievable. I felt like a complete, total and utter sound fool, almost as if I'd never shot anything before. He showed me simple little elements which would've improved my first short immeasurably. I had absolutely no idea and feel like a total, complete and utter idiot relating to the sound which was recorded. Before I met him, I thought I knew something about sound but afterwards, I feel the way Einstein's cat must've felt when he was talking about Quantum mechanics. It feels like the more I know, the more I don't know... Anyhow, just venting... And incidentally, if anyone has a minute, I have a trailer for a second short in the narrative screening room. If you have (literally) a minute, I'd appreciate if you'd have a look and critique. And if you do have a look, please be brutal. And sound people - I can now hear the issues... Jeez, I feel like a total noob... Last edited by gorillaonabike; Yesterday at 02:50 PM.
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Yesterday, 02:54 PM	? #2
Basic Member ? Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Brownsville Texas USA Posts: 122	oh god now i'm going to be self conscious about my audio
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Yesterday, 03:25 PM	? #4
IndieTalk Filmmaking Guru ? Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: hollywood Posts: 6,462	Quote: I felt like a complete, total and utter sound fool, almost as if I'd never shot anything before. I understand that you are just venting. I assume you're venting in public knowing people will comment. Mostly I'll let your own words comment: Quote: In that two hours, I learned more about the mistakes I'd made than I could ever possibly have imagined. Quote: The amount I learned was absolutely unbelievable. Learning is what it's all about in my opinion. Everyone posting here has been where you are or will be there. I've been where you are. Don't beat yourself up. Enjoy the learning. Quote: It feels like the more I know, the more I don't know... Quote: Jeez, I feel like a total noob... Aren't you a noob? Clearly when it comes to audio you are. Is there something wrong about being a noob? I've been making movies for a long time - I've been making my sole living (not part time, not hobbiest) for my entire working life in film so I'm no longer a noob, but everyday it feels like the more I know, the more I don't know. I LOVE that! I am always learning from someone who knows more than I do and that's what keeps me going. Do you not feel that way? Usually I recognize and understand that we all feel differently about most things - but not this. I can't imagine anyone not absolutely loving the fact that the more you know the more you find out you don't know. I would be stifled if I actually knew everything about filmmaking. I would stop making movies if I did. Learning new things is what keeps me going - it's my favorite part of this job.
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Yesterday, 03:32 PM	? #5
Premiere Member ? Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 3,261	My audio guy has 20 plus years in studio recording and live venue recording. The last thing he did for me (Kohlman Files) is now the 10th film/video project he has worked on. I believe if you count everything (mix, Foley, ADR, music, etc...) he put 200 hours plus into a 22 minute video. We STILL consider what we are doing on the sound side really rudimentary at best.
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Yesterday, 04:15 PM	? #6
Premiere Member ? Join Date: May 2012 Location: Europe Posts: 457	I'd definitely second what Directorik said. I've been making my living from sound (music and audio post) for nearly 30 years. Many consider me to be an expert but that doesn't mean I know it all, in fact far from it. Being an "expert" means that I am knowledgeable and experienced enough to realise just how limited my knowledge really is, whereas you are just starting to learn how limited your knowledge is. Even after 30 years I still know only a small fraction of what there is to know about sound but it's this which drives me. If I really did know it all, I'd probably give up out of sheer boredom. In other words, don't let ignorance get you down, use it to push yourself forward. That's what I do! G
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Yesterday, 05:09 PM	? #7
Basic - Premiere Expired ? Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Fairfield County, CT Posts: 4,544	All I've learned is that I still have an awful lot to learn... Sound is the hardest part of filmmaking. You can't see it, you can't touch or feel it, and no one ever bothered to teach you how to listen. Listening is so completely automatic that you never think about it. Your ears were the only sense that was completely active when you were in your mothers womb. Your ears never "turn off," they are active 24/7. They are your alarm system when you are asleep, still processing everything you hear, listening for threats. Your hearing is multidimensional without moving your head; you can pinpoint sounds left or right, front or back, up or down. You can close you eyes if you don't want to see something, but you can''t close your ears; at best you can stuff your fingers in your ears and mute the sound a bit. That is the issue; you take your hearing completely for granted. Until you learn how to listen you will always have problems with film sound.
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Yesterday, 05:48 PM	? #8
Basic Member ? Join Date: May 2011 Location: London Posts: 284	Quote: All I've learned is that I still have an awful lot to learn... Sound is the hardest part of filmmaking. You can't see it, you can't touch or feel it, and no one ever bothered to teach you how to listen. Listening is so completely automatic that you never think about it. Your ears were the only sense that was completely active when you were in your mothers womb. Your ears never "turn off," they are active 24/7. They are your alarm system when you are asleep, still processing everything you hear, listening for threats. Your hearing is multidimensional without moving your head; you can pinpoint sounds left or right, front or back, up or down. You can close you eyes if you don't want to see something, but you can''t close your ears; at best you can stuff your fingers in your ears and mute the sound a bit. That is the issue; you take your hearing completely for granted. Until you learn how to listen you will always have problems with film sound. It is unbelievably hard... and easy at the same time. However, what really struck me is how obvious certain elements of sound design are... and how I completely overlooked them. I put a couple of them into the f@cked up trailer I put together (in the narrative section) but the sound had already been recorded badly by the time I got to it... Back to beating my head against my computer screen...
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Yesterday, 08:10 PM	? #9
Basic - Premiere Expired ? Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Fairfield County, CT Posts: 4,544	Quote: ... the sound had already been recorded badly by the time I got to it... GIGO - Garbage In, Garbage Out As I've been preaching for years, it all starts with the production sound. At the indie level you cannot afford - financially and artistically - to ignore capturing quality production sound. "Sound is HALF of the experience."
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Yesterday, 09:02 PM	? #10
Basic Member ? Join Date: May 2011 Location: London Posts: 284	Quote: That is the issue; you take your hearing completely for granted. Until you learn how to listen you will always have problems with film sound. I would add 'in a film-maker's way.' I can hear lots of elements of classical music and back in the day we were all trained to strip a score down just by listening to it. However, this is the first time I have had to consider how sound carries an image, the way the brain interprets etc... This is all new.
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Yesterday, 09:43 PM	? #11
Premiere Member ? Join Date: May 2012 Location: Europe Posts: 457	Quote: However, this is the first time I have had to consider how sound carries an image, the way the brain interprets etc... This is all new. This observation is IMO fundamental to filmmaking. What we see isn't reality and neither is what we hear. We don't see or hear the world around us as it is, instead we perceive the world around us as our brains interpret it. This distinction between reality and perception is what allows film to work. Without it, everyone would experience film for what it is, edited together clips of almost pure fakery and film would not exist as an art or as entertainment. As filmmakers we need to have a good understanding of perception, so we can manipulate it to tell our story. The fact is that perception is a single combination of senses rather than a set of individual unrelated senses. This is massively important to appreciate because it means that our perception of what we are hearing is influenced by what we are seeing and how we perceive the images we are seeing is influenced by what we are hearing. Filmmakers who concentrate on the visual aspect of filmmaking are wasting their time, if they are not equally considering how the sound will affect the perception of those who will be watching the images. Here's an excellent demonstration of what I'm talking about and of how the perception of sight and sound are completely interlinked rather than being two independent senses.
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Today, 12:44 AM	? #12
Basic Member ? Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: bay area Posts: 53	Holy crap! I didn't even notice his mouth at first, i just started hearing fa fa fa instead.. That is very interesting. This whole thread has been making me think about my sound. Sound is one of the things that was extremely lacking for me in the past and still is. I have no clue how to even get started on getting into making better sound. My friend who is working on films with me is the one with the real passion for sound. Although, he is at the same place as me and I don't really know how to get him started on actually learning how to create proper sound for our films. I don't even know where to start myself..
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Today, 01:40 AM	? #14
Basic - Premiere Expired ? Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Fairfield County, CT Posts: 4,544	One place to start is to read Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema by David Sonnenschein. He discusses the artistic, psycho-acoustic and other esoteric aspects of sound rather than the technical ones. You may also want to watch/listen to folks like Randy Thom, Ben Burrt, Gary Rydstrom and Walter Murch discuss the craft of sound design on YouTube and on the DVD extras of the films on which they worked. (I posted a Randy Thom interview today, as a matter of fact: http://www.indietalk.com/showthread.php?t=44361) You may also want to spend some time at FilmSound.org. Randy Thom is especially forthcoming. He used to be a frequent participant on an audio post forum I subscribe to; he doesn't participate much these days as he now basically runs SkyWalker Sound. He was a great help to me when I started out, answering my endless questions. Production sound is highly technical and requires great skill, but does not allow for much in the way of creative artistry, although it is an art-form unto itself. Audio post is another world entirely. Sound design is about the emotional content of the sounds, how they propel the story and enhance the characters. One thing that immediately becomes apparent is that you need to be able to understand and use technology instinctively so that it doesn't interfere with the creative process. You are creating, from scratch, an entire sonic world. The audience must believe it entirely, yet not really notice it. I'm not trying to denigrate your interest in sound, but it requires a very large commitment. You really need to love sound. You need to spend a lot of time listening to the real world and how sound designers translate the real world into the film medium. I can't tell you how many hours I have spent with a hidden mic and headphones in bars, diners, train stations, bus stations, parks, beaches and dozens of other locations listening to people talking (to get the flow for dialog editing) and how real world sounds are radically changed when coming through a microphone - and then how it changes again when played through speakers. I also spend a lot of time listening to films without watching the visuals; it's amazing how much just the sounds (and the score) let you what is going on in a film.
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Today, 06:40 AM	? #15
Basic Member ? Join Date: May 2011 Location: London Posts: 284	Quote: Get a shotgun mic on a boom pole... get that sound into a pair of headphones somehow... then walk around and listen to your environments and people talking and turn the microphone in different directions while pointing at the subject's chin to see what the differences in the background noises and quality of the foreground noise (subject) when you do this. Same as with a camera, until you actually turn it on and look at the image on the screen, it's all just theory and words. You HAVE TO experience it to start to understand it. Just so you see where I am, at this stage, I have a five mic setup for tomorrow which I am running through a pro mixer (most kit has been borrowed) and am beginning to understand sound design and how the brain interprets sound. The mics were selected and lent to me by a professional sound engineer who talked me through sound design and selected the mics based on the specific functions for each one. Funnily enough, I did not understand why a mixer was necessary! I was reading all the posts about sound and thought I had an idea but I really did not understand. Part of this was because I lacked an understanding of the basics of sound design - emphasis on the word 'design' which gives depth, movement and realism to any short / music recording. This is where a mixer and sound design meet... Jeez I'm dumb for not understanding this before! There are some flaws with my setup for tomorrow which are around the recording (plus the human element). Again, I did not understand about the weakest link in the chain concept of sound. Sure, I understood the concept but would not have really been able to put my finger on exactly why the recorder I am using is a weak link. After the discussion, practice and demo with the sound engineer, I now genuinely understand the basics and it is as if a million pennies have dropped. As a note, the professional sound engineer offered to lend me a piece of professional equipment to record the sound and gave me a brief tutorial. Unfortunately, I was unable to take the recorder as I was physically unable to carry it away under the weight of the mixer, the cables, the mics and the other gear I had on me! Cameras are so much easier!!!!! For my next short in Feb / March, I will have a dedicated sound recordist who has a smattering of sound recording experience. I could've described what the different buttons on a mixer did but I hadn't made the connection in the relationship between design and a mixer as well as how we, as humans, interpret sound. I feel so dumb!!!! I feel like an idiot!!! Last edited by gorillaonabike; Today at 06:42 AM.
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