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[This was originally posted on the CORE Education blog.]
A recent announcement from Hon. Hekia Parata signalled that digital fluency will be a key focus for Ministry centrally-funded professional learning support in 2016 (PLD Changes will lift student achievement, 23 Sept. 2015).
The value of growing digitally fluent learners was signalled in the Ministry report, Future Focused Learning in Connected Communities (2014) which asked that "digital competencies be recognised as "essential foundation skills for success in 21st century society" and that they be supported by "cross-curriculum resources, a responsive assessment framework, professional development and a programme of evaluation."
'Digital fluency', as a phrase, does not occur specifically in the curriculum or in other current touchstones for learning with digital technologies. However, the concepts behind it will be familiar to many educators already.
What is digital fluency?
'Fluency' derives from the word 'flow' and when we think about being 'fluent' in any context, it refers to being flexible, accurate, efficient, and appropriate. In other words, the way we use skills, language and speech flows naturally and easily. In a digital context for learning, fluency involves using technologies "readily and strategically to learn, to work, and to play, and the infusion of technology in teaching and learning to improve outcomes for all students"
Broadly speaking, digital fluency is a combination of:
- digital, or technical, proficiency: able to understand, select and use the technologies and technological systems;
- digital literacy: cognitive or intellectual competencies, which include being able to read, create, evaluate and make judgements and apply technical skills while doing so;
- social competence, or dispositional knowledge: the ability to be able to relate to others and communicate with them effectively.
It is helpful to think of fluency as showing wisdom and confidence in the application and use of digital technologies, as reflected in the diagram below (Wenmoth, 2015):
Internationally, there is currently no consistently held definition of digital fluency and at times it is used interchangeably by different jurisdictions. Other phrases appear to be used in its place such as ICT fluency; Digital literacies; Digital competence; Digital citizenship. We often see it broken down into lists and competencies. In some contexts, it is even defined as a separate set of competencies or curriculum (White, 2013).
"Fluency" is broader than "literacy."
Being 'digitally literate' means acquiring the skills to make and create meaning, and select technologies to do so. Being fluent requires competencies and capabilities that go beyond the skill level. Someone who is digitally fluent not only selects tools and knows what to do with them, but can explain why they work in the way they do and how they might adapt what they do if the context were to change.
For example, if you are literate, you might be able to follow instructions to set up a shared document online and use it for a clear purpose. If you are fluent, you can self-select from a range of tools to achieve the same outcome, navigate collaborative spaces effectively and confidently with other people.
Fluency represents the highest order – that of 'unconscious competence' – in the 'hierarchy of competence' that we see in models such as Burch:
Digital fluency can also be considered as part of a broader set of competencies related to '21st Century' learning. Being able to manipulate technologies so we can create and navigate information successfully is supported by our ability to work collaboratively, solve real-world problems creatively, pursue our own learning goals and so on.
Why we all need to be digitally fluent
Crucially, the outcome of being digitally fluent relates to issues of responsibility, equity and access. We all need to be able to fully participate in a digitally-enabled education system and in an increasingly digitised society. If we work with fluency in the way we use technologies, we are able to keep ourselves safe online and take full advantage of life chance opportunities such as being able to apply for work, manage our finances, or be part of our local community).
"In the years ahead, digital fluency will become a prerequisite for obtaining jobs, participating meaningfully in society, and learning throughout a lifetime. (Resnick, 2002, p. 33) [via White, 2013]"
As more services – health, civil, safety, even voting – move online, it has never been more important to ensure citizens are not disenfranchised from accessing services that are central to the well-being of all.
Questions to consider
- What kinds of literacy learning opportunities are offered in school and how do these deliberately teach the skills and competencies to navigate online spaces successfully?
- Consider the key competencies in the NZC: what do these look like when developed in digital contexts?
- To what extent are learning areas explored in ways that invite higher-order engagement, problem-solving and authentic use of technologies? Are students doing more than searching for information? Are they applying it in ways that are real and connected to the world around us?
Acknowledgements: With thanks to Derek Wenmoth who informed the thinking around this post.
- Briggs, C. (2012). Digital Fluency: Building Success in the Digital Age.
- ETS, (2007). Digital Transformation: A Framework for ICT Literacy – A Report of the International ICT Literacy Panel
- Fullan, M. & Langworthy, M. (2014). A Rich Seam: How New Pedagogies Find Deep Learning.
- Global Digital Citizen Foundation: 21st Century Fluencies
- ICT Fluency and High Schools (National Academies Press)
- Ministry of Education, (2014). Future Focused Learning in Connected Communities
- NetSafe, (2015). Digital citizenship in schools
- UNESCO, (2011).Digital literacy in education
- Wenmoth, D. (2015). Information fluency and (2013) Our digital aspiration.
- VIDEOS: Digital literacy on CORE's EdTalks.


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Donovan's Reef (1963)
Directed by John Ford
Genres - Comedy | Sub-Genres - Comedy of Errors | Release Date - Jun 12, 1963 (USA - Unknown) | Run Time - 104 min. | Countries - United States | MPAA Rating - NR
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Synopsis by Bruce Eder
John Ford's last film to deal with World War II, Donovan's Reef is an alternately comical and sentimental look back on the fighting Navy men from that war, and how and where -- in Ford's eyes, and Frank Nugent and James Edward Grant's script -- they should have ended up. Michael "Guns" Donovan (John Wayne), Thomas "Boats" Gilhooley (Lee Marvin), and Dr. William Dedham (Jack Warden), a trio of navy veterans who fought on the Pacific island of Haleakalowa during the war, now live on the island. Donovan and Gilhooley, biding time and enjoying themselves, engage in rough-house hijinks among themselves, and are both part of the doctor's extended family, enjoying the good will of the islanders for whom they fought during the war. While Dedham is away on a call to a neighboring island, his grown daughter, Amelia (Elizabeth Allen), from his first marriage, whom he has never seen, announces that she is arriving from Boston to determine Dedham's fitness of character to inherit the majority shares in the family shipping business. Donovan contrives to present Dedham's three Polynesian children, whom the doctor had with the island's hereditary princess, as his own, and also squires Amelia around the island in her father's absence. In the process, the cold Bostonian woman discovers a whole world -- of passion, joy, heroism, and a life among men and women whose lives have been about something other than making money -- that she's never known. She also understands all of the good that her father has accomplished away from Boston, even though it entailed abandoning her. Sparks and even a few fists fly between Donovan and Amelia (and between Donovan and several other characters), in the usual Ford rough-house manner, before their eventual reconciliation and a romantic clinch at the end, in this sweet, sentimental comedy-drama.
Navy, veteran [military], daughter, father, estrangement, island, family, missing-person, reunion

subset: commoncrawl


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Digital Stereo PhotographyThe art and science of twin camera digital stereo photography. This site features digital stereo photographic pairs, along with practical details for creating your own digital stereo photographs: techniques, cameras, controllers, flash, sync monitors, and mounts.
Products and Stereo Images:
Advanced shutter and flash controller for twin SLR cameras.
Advanced camera and flash controller for twin Sony cameras.
Advanced controller for twin Sony digital still cameras and for twin Sony and Canon video cameras.
Custom, for twin Sony DSC-V3 cameras.
Advanced twin camera flash controller.
Technical Notes and Stereo Images:
The stereo pair is the essence of stereo photography. At the above right is a pair of Sony DSC-V3 digital cameras mounted to take parallel stereo photographs, controlled with a LANC Shepherd wired remote, described in detail in the pages here. To view a stereo pair and enjoy the additional dimension takes extra effort. One can use a viewing device or try your hand at free viewing.
Stereo Image Galleries:
Leda, heroine of Greek mythology, gave birth to the Gemini twins Castor and Pollux. However, Castor was son of King Tyndareus of Sparta, while Pollux was son of the god Zeus. In the constellation of Gemini, the stars Castor and Pollux dominate, and Castor is an astounding multiple star consisting of six separate components, while Pollux is an orange giant, the brightest star in the constellation.


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Landsford Canal State Park S.C. Spider Lilies paddle 5-31-13
It was a great day of paddling down the Catawba River in South Carolina. The Landsford Canal is full of history and one of the few places to see one of the largest remaining stands of Hymenocallis coronaria, the Rocky Shoals spider-lily! This was not the best year for the blooms because of all the heavy spring floods but still a beautiful site to see!Read More
I will return again next year!
I will return again next year!


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Forbes just released its second annual list of America's Most Promising Companies and technology is an overall theme this year.The world is clearly being dominated by more tech and digital companies. No surprise, then, that the IAB had two members in the top 10, seven in the top 50, and ten in the top 100.
Their list also clearly demonstrates the link between digital, innovation, and the economic contribution of the ad-supported Internet on the U.S. economy – confirming a study which we released last October with the Harvard Business School.
Please join us in congratulating Rocket Fuel (#4), OpenX (#7), AdRoll (#30), ShareThis (#35), Mixpo (#39), Rubicon Project (#40), BlueKai (#50), Bizo (#62), LocalResponse (#67), and Media6Degrees (#71). We'd like to recognize each of them as a testament to the energy of American entrepreneurship and the role that it plays in driving innovation and the U.S. economy forward.
It's also a wonderful reminder of the impact and leadership our membership has each day. We salute you! See the full Forbes
list here.
About The Author
Jeff Fryer
Jeff Fryer is Marketing Manager, IAB, and helps the IAB to better listen, understand, and engage in conversations in social media. Tweet him @jfryer2000 and talk with the IAB on Twitter @IAB.


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MASHANTUCKET, Conn.—Cheryl Haase has been serving cocktails for more than two decades, and the 52-year-old waitress says she has a list of foot ailments to prove it.
The miles she has walked carrying trays of drinks through the Foxwoods Resort Casino in high heels have sent her over the years to chiropractors and podiatrists for injections to treat inflammation.
Now she and a union representing her fellow cocktail waitresses at the country's largest casino are fighting for the servers to wear shoes of their own choosing. Many have worked at the casino since it opened in 1992, and some see proposed new requirements as a bid to push them out and make way for younger workers.
"Most of us girls have been here for 20 years, 15 years. This job has really done a number on our feet and they know it," Haase said.
The shoe dispute has bogged down talks for the waitresses' first union contract at Foxwoods, a massive property in southeastern Connecticut that is owned and operated by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation. It is among a few key issues set for arbitration between the casino and Local 371 of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, which represents about 365 Foxwoods workers including 200 beverage servers.
The casino yielded on a recently imposed requirement for 2-inch heels, but it is insisting that servers wear polishable black shoes, subject to approval by management, according to union representative Keri Hoehne and members. Servers could be exempted with a doctor's note for up to a year, but would then have to resign or take another position.
A Foxwoods spokeswoman, Dale Wolbrink, said she would not comment on labor negotiations that she said should be considered private.
From Las Vegas to Atlantic City, footwear for cocktail waitresses has been a spiky issue as image-conscious casinos encourage dress codes to help attract customers. A coalition that formed more than a decade ago in Nevada challenged casinos with rallies against high heels. In New Jersey in the 1990s, female servers sued the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, which had waitresses it dubbed "Borgata Babes" wear high heels and cleavage-baring bustiers. The lawsuit was settled in 2008.
A Connecticut podiatrist, Dr. Eric Levine of Norwich, said he frequently treats casino waitresses who wear high heels. He said many who come to him with painful conditions return to work with a recommendation to not wear high heels for medical reasons, but some waitresses confess they won't give them up easily.
"Several have told me they're not going to stop wearing them. 'The higher the heel, the larger the tip,'" he said.
At Foxwoods, some cocktail waitresses sought out the union around 2009, partly because of their concerns that older workers were vulnerable. One turning point was the arrival of consultants who discussed with cocktail waitresses the high-heeled look that the casino was seeking, bartender Janet Cochran said.
"That's why we got the union in here. They were looking at the older people," Cochran said.
The UFCW is the second union to organize at Foxwoods after the United Auto Workers, which reached agreement on a contract for casino dealers in 2010. The casino, which employs about 8,000 people, has been facing a steady decline in revenue and is also negotiating a deal to try to reduce its debt of $2.27 billion.
Contract talks for the UFCW have stretched on for two years. For the cocktail waitresses, concerns that the casino appeared to be tightening its shoe requirements top a list of issues up for arbitration. The hearings set for September are also expected to address differences over wages, health insurance rates and preferential treatment for tribal employees.
Haase, who has 13-year-old triplets, said she makes only half of what she used to as the gaming slump has cut into her tip money, but she does not want to give up on a job where she enjoys seniority.
Haase said she wears black clogs after a doctor urged her to ditch narrow-toed shoes preferred by the casino, but she worries she would have to switch back if the casino has its way.
"After 20 years of being there," she said, "I can't wear a shoe that's angled like that because my foot is too wide for it."


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Beautiful views in Lower Nuuanu
Located in Lower Nuuanu, this three-bedroom, two-bathroom condo at Craigside offers the convenience of being less than 10 minutes from downtown and the appeal of being in a central location that puts the whole island in easy reach.
Perched on the 24th floor, the unit offers unobstructed views of Punchbowl and the ocean from its large 182-square-foot lanai.
"It's a unique condo in the sense that each floor has only two units," says realtor Khai Tran of Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties. The floors are more private with fewer people in the building than other condos that have multiple units on each floor.
The 1,489-square-foot unit, which came on the market last week, boasts nine-foot ceilings, giving the space an airy feel.
The owners, who are downsizing to smaller digs, have kept the condo in great condition and renovated the kitchen a few years ago installing lots of bright-white cabinetry, terrific for storing all of your culinary accoutrements.
There are A/C wall units to keep you cool, along with ceiling fans if you prefer to enjoy the trade winds. There's also an in-unit full-size washer and dryer.
Designed by architect Norman Lacayo, whose Honolulu credits include Harbor Court and Honolulu Tower Condominium, Craigside's amenities include a pool, a auna, a BBQ area and a tennis court.
The price includes two covered, side-by-side parking stalls. When guests come to visit, there's plenty of parking for them as well.
Fuzz factor: The building is pet friendly, so you can bring along the fur kids.
If you'd like to see it for yourself, there'll be an open house on Sunday, Aug. 12 from 2 to 5 p.m. Click here for details.
Money talk: $700,000 fee simple
Contact: Khai Tran, Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties, 808-392-8822, email@example.com;
Kai McDurmin, Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties, 808-593-6419, email@example.com


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Many women love to own a fancy dress but once acquired often are puzzled as to what is the appropriate occasion to debut that show stopper of a fancy dress. Here are a few creative fancy dress ideas that can clarify for the perplexed woman when and where a fancy dress is warranted.
Fancy Dress Ideas – Bedroom Attire
A quiet, romantic dinner at home is a wonderful opportunity to tantalize your mate wearing a sexy fancy dress. Most people are apt to dress casually while spending time at home but do not only dress for your environment but as well dress for the occasion.
Fancy Dress Ideas – Church
It is often customary that when you attend church, your style of dress should be boring and safe. An alternative to a church outfit can be stylish, classic yet respectful. Attending a church service is a special day and you should approach this opportunity with enthusiasm, excitement and joy. Wearing a fancy dress to church services indicates that you honor and respect your appearance as well as your spiritual development.
Fancy Dress Ideas – Reunion
A class reunion is the perfect occasion to impress your fellow class mates. A reunion is the ideal opportunity to make an excellent second impression by looking your best with a flirtatious and fun fancy dress.
Fancy Dress Ideas – School Events
An appropriate occasion to wear your favorite fancy dress is at a parent conference with your childs teachers or educational faculty member. A fancy dress at a school meeting or event can show, on behalf of your child and family, that you take pride in representing your child and deem important your childs educational development.
There are many unorthodox occasions where you can be inspired to yield to your fancy dress ideas. The next time you visit your local grocery store or make plans to have dinner with friends consider stepping out with a fancy dress on, your self-esteem is guaranteed to improve.


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Man Helps Woman Change Tire, She Returns Favor By Saving His Life [VIDEO]
While traveling by car from Winnipeg to Indiana, 61-year-old Victor Giesbrecht decided to help stranded motorist Sara Berg. But after doing so, he went into cardiac arrest and was miraculously saved by Berg, who performed CPR.
After helping Berg change a flat tire on her car, Giesbrecht and his wife proceeded on their way. Moments later, he had a heart attack. Thankfully, due to Berg's swift intervention, Giesbrecht was kept alive until paramedics arrived with a defibrillator. One good turn deserves another indeed.
Watch this amazing story of two good Samaritans below.
[via MSNBC]


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Pentagon on watch for disruptive technology worldwide
WASHINGTON — Concerned about the potential military consequences of a surge of high tech innovation in China and other nations, the Pentagon is creating a program to track and analyze emerging technology research and patents, military records and interviews show.
China has long been considered a threat to U.S. manufacturing because of its low wages and huge population, but now the nation is seeing a boom in innovation as well. Patents for new technologies in China have taken off, and a graph showing the rise in new patents looks like a "hockey stick," said Patrick Thomas, a principal and director of analytics for 1790 Analytics.
In September 2012, China's defense ministry reported that military-related patents there had increased by 35% a year over the previous decade. U.S. national security policy has shifted in recent years to a greater focus on Asia, and Pentagon policymakers have developed plans to counter China's growing influence.
"The rapid rise of China ... is focusing minds on the geopolitical power balance again and leading to a small revival of military-centered long-term strategic studies," said a 2013 analysis of government "foresight" programs around the world by the European Union Institute for Security Studies.
The Pentagon has launched a new project called Technology Watch/Horizon Scanning, which aims to track developing technologies around the world that could either aid U.S. military efforts or seriously disrupt existing military plans. Thomas' company — based in Haddonfield, N.J. — is one of the chief contractors for the project.
Brian Beachkofski, director of the Pentagon's Office of Technical Intelligence, said the program is meant to keep the military ahead of technological developments 10 to 20 years ahead of time. "When you look at particular data," he said, "it's a long time before it becomes reality."
That program, which follows similar efforts in the United Kingdom and elsewhere, focuses on two elements that can dictate future policies:
• Technology Watch tracks key technology buzzwords to see where they are being used, Beachkofski said. "We look at them and find out what is being developed and whether there could be any future uses for the Department of Defense."
• Horizon Scanning was designed to look for 'the emergence of new scientific concepts and technology applications with disruptive potential," according to a 2011 Pentagon document outlining the program. A 2008 report for the U.K.'s Ministry of Defense defined horizon scanning as the ability to "identify technologies which have not previously been considered relevant, and to propose the possible value of developments that are being made for non-defense applications."
Beachkofski said the program, which is still in development, can mine university and other research journals, as well as patent filings, to track new technologies "on the university level or in early stages of research and development at private companies."
Analysts can then look deeper into each category to determine if there are so-called "emerging clusters" of technological development that need further examination, Thomas said. For example, researchers could find that China is developing new types of technology that could be used in missiles or other weapons that could affect U.S. policies.
Concern over China has been mounting for years. A December 2006 study for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency highlighted China's gains and the implications for U.S. military policy. "Globalization is an irreversible process," the report said. "High technology is no longer the sole domain of the United States and other western countries. In order to avoid military surprise from Disruptive Challenges we must be increasingly vigilant of states such as China and India, who are well positioned to become leaders at the nexus of nano-, bio-, information and materials technology, from which will likely emerge the future disruptive challenges to U.S. national security."
New military technologies, expensive or otherwise, can force armed forces to radically shift their priorities.
The rise of the improvised explosive device in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan showed how a cheap weapon can eradicate the U.S. technological advantage on the battlefield. IEDs devastated the military's flat-bottomed vehicles, like Humvees, forcing the Pentagon in 2007 to start what became a $50 billion program to develop the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle, featuring a hull that is blast-resistant.
Pentagon budget documents released last April said the technology watch program "will develop insight into our relative position in science and technology around the world, as well as determine potential impacts on DoD capability and future threat environments."
"One thing of interest is if you went to track technology and found the United States was absent from (that area of science), you'd want to do something about it," Thomas said.


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You know how *flawless* Zendaya's skin looks on the red carpet? Well, the Shake It Up star's skin is that glowy and perfect IRL, too! When Z stopped by Seventeen to talk all things fashion and beauty, we couldn't stop gushing over her ah-mazing skin! The natural beauty proves that you don't need a ton of makeup to look gorge, and she's sharing all her amazing skincare and beauty secrets with you!
Go easy on the makeup
"I was encouraged by my fans to not wear so much makeup," Zendaya revealed. "You know, especially being a teenager, we like to think that we need makeup every day, even for going to school—like, I can't go outside without my eyeliner. It's weird! I don't know why we do that. So, I enforced this whole natural thing."
More From Seventeen
Keep your skincare routine simple
"Less is more when it comes to taking care of your skin. I use makeup-removing wipes, a really good, lightweight moisturizer, and Carmex for my lips. You can't have chapped lips!" Z shared.
Avoid harsh ingredients
"I use anything that's easy on the skin. I don't like things that are too harsh or too strong," Zendaya said, sharing her must-have beauty products, which include: Neutrogena Make-Up Remover Cleansing Towelettes ($1.99, drugstore.com); Aveeno Ultra-Calming Makeup Removing Wipes ($6.99, aveeno.com); Clinque Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel ($26, clinque.com), and Carmex Moisturizing Lip Balm ($1.69, walgreens.com).
What do you think of the star's simple approach to beauty? Sound off in the comments!
Zendaya Is Starring In A New Disney Channel Movie Zapped
Zendaya Tells You How To Nail Her Trendy Tomboy Style!
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Mitchel Gray


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Beta testing for Star Wars: The Old Republic has been going on for some time now, and in the last couple of weeks the media has finally been let in to poke around and tear up the galaxy. While we were restricted to playing only the lower levels of the Republic side, we were able to see and do quite a bit on the various planets and experience lots of areas of gameplay we haven't yet seen in our other preivews.
Ever since my playtime at PAX East, I have been enamored of the Jedi Knight's force leap (your character lunges several yards to close distance between you and your enemy), and, to be honest, I'd bet this will be one of the most, if not the most, popular class. Hence, in the name of science and that arresting distance-closing ability, I chose to spend most of my time as a knight, swinging my light-stick at various beasts and robots.
One of the cooler touches I noticed was that as your character levels, your combat ability evolves visually. As a Jedi knight, you begin by cautiously waving your practice (plastic?) light saber at the bodies of enemies, executing the occasional sequence of choreographed moves. There is no auto-attack here; you must always choose to attack.
As you rank up your skills through a trainer and you eventually get a real light saber, your movements become swifter and surer, and the attacks' choreographies are longer. When I chose to become a Jedi sentinel (a damage-dealer track versus the tank-focused guardian), I gained a second light saber to dual-wield, and at lower levels my character retained the skill in her main hand while holding the second light saber lamely in the other, save for when she awkwardly used her sole dual-wield attack. It's a small but welcome detail, showing that Jedi Knights aren't born knowing perfect technique.
All this happens as the Jedi completes quests given by the various NPCs scattered around her starting planet, Tython, and later the planet Coruscant. Without giving too much away, I found the Jedi knight track to be less action-oriented than many of the other classes, which is appropriate since the other Jedi you encounter say things like, "there is no emotion; there is peace." The Trooper class story, for instance, starts off faster, but the Jedi knight's story has a great payoff toward the end of your time on Tython.
The quest-giving conversations you will have in the game, across classes, are beautifully scripted and voice-acted. The model works well for conveying the story, especially since almost all of the quests you do are chains. If you get too many storylines going at once, your quest log text updates even as the story evolves between talks with the quest-giver. I often found the nicer responses in the Jedi knight's dialogue to be a little naive and goody-two-shoes, making me wonder if so much trust in her fellow Jedi could come back to bite her, especially given how much corruption she witnessed in the first few levels.
The only thing that sometimes takes away from the high quality of the dialogue is the animation of the NPCs. Some are better than others—usually, expressive eyebrows make a big difference. The NPC gestures are sometimes awkward or forced, and there is a pacing animation that a few characters do—step, step, strike a pose, step, step, original position—that is begging to be set to music. Your own character is always well-animated, though, which makes helmeted characters whose faces you don't see (like some bounty hunter heads) seem like a waste.
But then, it wasn't hard to become attached to my first faceless companion, a droid named T7. If you're eager to romance your companions, as characters in BioWare created games are wont to do, your romantic life will be slow-going at first as a Jedi knight (and potentially nonexistent if you want to stay light side, since love is verboten in the Order). But I liked the Jedi's T7, who delivers his dialogue as equations, better than Kaliyo, who was my companion as an imperial agent. And the fact that I can send T7 to run errands to gain crafting skills and materials is the greatest solution ever to the tedium of skilling up in fields like Diplomacy, Slicing, or Armormech.
As I've found before, the game has fantastic graphics, and is very detailed, though there are weirdnesses; for instance, the grass moves as if it's supposed to be blown by the wind, but the motion is sort of a perpetual undulation, like it's underwater. You'll notice it during the slower moments of NPC conversations.
SWTOR is very light on instancing, a concept that WoW flooded its world with in recent years which allows two players to see the same space with different features. It may be difficult to implement so widely, but there are some minor parts of SWTOR that could use it.
During NPC conversations, the world will continue moving around you and the NPC, which can introduce some frustrations, such as another player stepping in front of one of the camera angles so all I could see was his back instead of the quest-giver for parts of conversations. At another point, a quest-giver was talking about how he could not move a rock with the Force, but as he spoke to me, the rock was lifted and dropped. Really? That rock right there, it can't be moved? Turns out the next step in the quest is for the rock to be moved by other means, and another character at that step in the quest was moving it.
Still, the questing experience is great, and questing inside flashpoints (the SWTOR equivalent of dungeons, instanced areas you explore with friends) is amazing. I played through the Esseles flashpoint, where you help a Republic ship getting harassed by the Empire, and combined with the moral choices you make during your quests that bend you to the light side or the dark side, the flashpoints feel like a movie. When an interesting moral choice is raised (leaving someone for Empire bait or saving them, for example), instead of shouting at or willing the main character to do one thing or another, you are the main character. This feeling will be familiar to players of the Mass Effect series, but it's a great evolution for an MMO.
There's still a boatload to discuss about this game, and I didn't get to play nearly as much as I would have liked (half the time I reserved an evening, the servers were down). But the beta is going away for a while in the next couple of days, and BioWare will be seeding a new build in a few weeks when we'll be able to get a look at the Empire classes and possibly later stages of the game. No dates have yet been set for an open beta, but the full SWTOR game is set for release on December 20.
Note: This article was originally accompanied by several screenshots that did not respect BioWare's embargo. Those pictures have been removed.


text: Some thoughts on each. 1. As a general concept, freedom of speech includes the right to decide how and when to speak, and to whom.2. This freedom of speech also includes the right to choose not to speak, and not to speak to whomever, including to you.3. No one is obliged to have a conversation with you.4. If they are having a conversation with you, they are not obliged to give you the conversation you wanted or expected to have.5. If you challenge someone to a "debate," they are not obliged to have a debate with you.6. If they do not debate you, this does not mean you win. You can't win a debate the other party has not agreed to.7. Not all engagement is useful or fruitful, either for the participants or for the observers. Sometimes the best course of action is not to engage.8. If people do not engage you, it is not necessarily because they are afraid to engage you. Maybe they don't have the time, or interest. Maybe they think you're too ignorant to engage, either on the specific topic or in matters of rhetoric. Maybe they don't want to either implicity or explicitly let you share in their credibility. Maybe they think you're an asshole, and want nothing to do with you. Maybe it's combination of some or all of the above. They may or may not tell you why.9. Communication is not always confrontation. Confrontation is not always communication. If you see communication as an opportunity to fight, you may find yourself without opponents. No, this doesn't mean you "win," either.10. People will communicate as they will. Outside of your own spaces, you have no power to control or compel them. Attempts to dictate the terms of their communication may be ignored. Attempts to demand they comply to your terms for communication will make you look like a child, stamping a foot.That should be enough for a start.


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A broken down life weighed heavy on the shoulders of this boy, now a man. The pain dragged him down along with the negative voices inside. Living in addiction and believing the lies, it was a weight he was tired of carrying. The burden was too great to carry on this way. He spent so much … Continue reading Genesis of Iron
Tag: Healing
Genesis of Metal
A family torn apart. A boy's heart that could never be whole as it was always in two places. He often wondered if things could ever be different, but alas that was just dreaming. He would fly alone as a child to visit one or the other parent. Only an hour flight from the dessert … Continue reading Genesis of Metal
Genesis of Inner Voices
"You're worthless." "You're nothing." "You'll never amount to anything." "This, is all your fault." Sentenced. The screams of a drunken man cutting down the soul of a seven year old. A life of addiction and avoidance of overcoming pain had led this alcoholic man to abuse a child. Filled with regrets and self-loathing, alcohol is … Continue reading Genesis of Inner Voices


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This DIY turtle planter puts the Chia Pet to shame
It's no wonder Pinterest can't get enough
It's no wonder Pinterest can't get enough
Succulents are basically the tiny puppy of the plant world: They're totally adorable and the more, the merrier. And as long as it's not a snapping turtle, most people find these calm animals quite cute, too. So it's a no-brainer that when these two things are combined together, you get a planter that will seriously improve the charm factor in your garden.
The blogger behind Gardening in the Shade made her own and it's a totally genius new take on Chia Pets. To make it, she used a wire basket and chicken wire to create the shell where the soil would live. Then, she mounted the shell on four small clay pots. And the head was made out of a piece of chicken wire she rolled into a tube, then filled with sphagnum moss.
Once you plant the succulents, they'll grow into the "shell" and look like the hard layer most turtles wear as a means of protection and a portable home.
If you like the look, but don't want to make it completely from scratch, the Etsy shop Windmill Floral sells a kit to make your own.
And we also adore this genius planter that might be a bit easier to care for, since it only has space for one succulent (novice gardeners, this one's for you).


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Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 85th birthday today with a commemoration that mingled an important tradition of the Easter season in Great Britain with the real birthday of the oldest British monarch ever to occupy the throne.
Elizabeth was born on April 21, 1926, at the London home of her maternal grandfather, the fourteenth Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne.
Today, with just a week and a day to go until the wedding of the queen's grandson Prince William to Catherine Middleton, the monarch attended Maundy Thursday service at Westminster Abbey on her birthday.
She gave "Maundy money," specially minted silver coins, to 85 men and 85 women, the number representing the years of her life. The recipients were retirees chosen for their "tireless work for the Church and their communities," according to an article in The Telegraph.
The custom, which draws from the explicit example of humility and service Jesus gave his apostles by washing their feet at the Last Supper, is hundreds of years old in England. It replaced an earlier practice in which the king would wash the feet of the poor on Maundy, or Holy, Thursday.
However, British monarchs had drifted away from distributing Maundy money personally, leaving the task to the clergy, until George V, Elizabeth's grandfather, revived the tradition in 1932, according to an article that year in Time magazine.
Queen Elizabeth ascended to the throne when she was 25, and has ruled for 59 years. In 2007, she passed "mad" King George III, who died in 1820 at the age of 82, to become the oldest British monarch. Only Queen Victoria has had a longer reign.
The queen celebrates her birthday officially in June.
Chris Jackson / Getty Images


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A Russian hacker dramatically demonstrated one of the most common security weaknesses in the Ruby on Rails web application language. By doing so, he took full control of the databases GitHub uses to distribute Linux and thousands of other open-source software packages.
Egor Homakov exploited what's known as a mass assignment vulnerability in GitHub to gain administrator access to the Ruby on Rails repository hosted on the popular website. The weekend hack allowed him to post an entry in the framework's bug tracker dated 1,001 years into the future. It also allowed him to gain write privileges to the code repository. He carried out the attack by replacing a cryptographic key of a known developer with one he created. While the hack was innocuous, it sparked alarm among open-source advocates because it could have been used to plant malicious code in repositories millions of people use to download trusted software.
Homakov launched the attack two days after he posted a vulnerability report to the Rails bug list warning mass assignments in Rails made the websites relying on the developer language susceptible to compromise. A variety of developers replied with posts saying the vulnerability is already well known and responsibility for preventing exploits rests with those who use the language. Homakov responded by saying even developers for large sites for GitHub, Poster, Speakerdeck, and Scribd were failing to adequately protect against the vulnerability.
In the following hours, participants in the online discussion continued to debate the issue. The mass assignment vulnerability is to Rails what SQL injection weaknesses are to other web applications. It's a bug that's so common many users have grown impatient with warnings about them. Maintainers of Rails have largely argued individual developers should single out and "blacklist" attributes that are too sensitive to security to be externally modified. Others such as Homakov have said Rails maintainers should turn on whitelist technology by default. Currently, applications must explicitly enable such protections.
A couple days into the debate, Homakov responded by exploiting mass assignment bugs in GitHub to take control of the site. Less than an hour after discovering the attack, GitHub administrators deployed a fix for the underlying vulnerability and initiated an investigation to see if other parts of the site suffered from similar weaknesses. The site also temporarily suspended Homakov, later reinstating him.
"Now that we've had a chance to review his activity, and have determined that no malicious intent was present, @homakov's account has been reinstated," a blog post published on Monday said. It went on to encourage developers to practice "responsible disclosure."
For an excellent analysis of the GitHub hack, and the underlying Rails vulnerability that made it all possible, see this post from Rob Graham of Errata Security.
Updated to differentiate between Ruby and Rails and to add link from Errata Security.


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Keselowski looking for season turnaround at Dover
Dover, DE – With the regular season in the Sprint Cup Series now reaching the halfway point, Brad Keselowski is hoping to get back on track to avoid fear of missing out on this year's Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
Keselowski, the defending Sprint Cup champion, is currently 10th in the point standings and has yet to win a race this year. He is just three points ahead of 11th-place Kyle Busch, who already has two victories for the season.
The top 10 in points after the Sept. 7 race at Richmond will qualify for the Chase. The two wild card positions will go to those drivers between 11th-20th in points that have the most wins.
Keselowski sat third in points following his sixth-place finish in the April 21 race at Kansas, but he has finished 15th or worse in the four events since then, dropping him six positions in the standings. Last Sunday at Charlotte, Keselowski had his streak of 46 races without a DNF come to an end when he was caught up in an accident with Danica Patrick late in the race. He finished a season-worse 36th.
This weekend, the series will be at Dover for race 13 in the 26-race regular season. Dover could be where Keselowski's season moves in the right direction again. Here are two reasons why.
Several key members on Keselowski's No. 2 Penske Racing team, including crew chief Paul Wolfe, are back after serving their suspensions for two points- paying races due to illegal parts found on his car prior to the start of the April 13 event at Texas. Car chief Jerry Kelley, team engineer Brian Wilson and team manager Travis Geisler were suspended as well. NASCAR had penalized each member with a six-race suspension, but National Stock Car Racing Chief Appellate Officer John Middlebrook reduced it to two after Penske made its final appeal.
Kevin Buskirk served as Keselowski's crew chief at Darlington (May 11) and Charlotte, as well as the all-star race (May 18).
"It's going to be nice to get all of our guys back," Keselowski said. "We have one of the strongest teams in the garage. I'm very proud of everyone that stepped up during the last three weeks. We've really improved our depth at Penske Racing, but now everyone can go back to their normal jobs. Hopefully that means we can get some of our mojo back."
Keselowski won the most recent Sprint Cup race at Dover last September, which was the third event in the Chase. He has not been to victory lane since then.
"I'd like to have one, and I feel like this is the week to get it done," said Keselowski, who presently has a 19-race winless streak. "I feel like we've been very, very fast and very under the radar because we haven't one, qualified well, or, two, executed in the race."
Prior to his win in the fall 2012 race, Keselowski had finished no better than 12th in five starts at Dover.
If Keselowski fails to qualify for the Chase this year, he would be become the second driver to miss the playoffs in NASCAR's premier series following his championship season. In 2006, Tony Stewart did not make the Chase after winning the series title the year prior.
"I would certainly like to be in a better position than where I'm at right now," Keselowski noted.
Jimmie Johnson enters this race with a 32-point lead over Carl Edwards. Johnson won at Dover one year ago. He claimed his seventh victory at this track, placing him in a tie with Bobby Allison and Richard Petty for most wins here.
"I'm extremely proud of that," Johnson said. "I've worked hard to put myself in this position and so does the team, and we've been able to capitalize on those opportunities and hard work and get stuff done."
Forty-three teams are on the preliminary entry list for the FedEx 400.
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup. Date: Sunday, June 2. Race: FedEx 400. Site: Dover International Speedway. Track: 1-mile oval. Start time: 1 p.m. ET. Laps: 400. Miles: 400. 2012 Winner: Jimmie Johnson. Television: FOX. Radio: Motor Racing Network (MRN)/SIRIUS NASCAR Radio.


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Girl Dinosaur Nursery Decor, Rainbow Prints or Canvas Set of 3, Dinosaur Baby Girl Nursery Wall Art, Dinosaur Girl Toddler Room Artwork
Girl Dinosaur Rainbow Wall Art Prints or Canvas Set of 3, Watercolor Dinosaur Baby Girl Nursery Wall Art, Dinosaur Girl Toddler Room Artwork
Includes 3 pieces of wall art with 3 available product options.
➡ Photo Prints - Unframed
➡ Gallery Wrap Canvas
➡ Emailed Digital Files - No physical product will be shipped. You print.
Printed borderless on a professional lustre photo paper with a fine grain pebble texture.
Features a rich, sharp color that won't fade or yellow and will last for years to come
Prints are water and fingerprint resistant. Always display prints under glass for maximum print life.
If picture frames are shown in a listing photo it is for inspirational purposes only.
Picture frames are not included with the purchase of a listing.
➡ GALLERY WRAP CANVAS OPTION - Ready to hang!
Museum-quality gallery wrapped canvas 100% polyester base with a 2x1 weave
Printed on genuine artist canvas using UV resistant archival inks that will not scratch or fade in a lifetime.
Mounted onto a 1-1/4" deep frame with an extra 1/4" bleed around the back.
Frame is built with a solid face to support the canvas and keep it from deforming and loosening.
Comes ready to hang with pre-installed hanging hardware.
Your gallery-wrapped canvas will always look as tight and flat as the day it was made.
Digital images for this listing will be sent to your email within 24 hours.
No physical product will be shipped and the frame is not included.
Colors may vary slightly due to different color monitors.
This purchase is for PERSONAL USE ONLY.
PLEASE NOTE - Colors on your screen may appear different in print for all product options.
Thank you for visiting our shop!
Please read my shop POLICIES before checkout.
© Copyright of Cloud Design Shop
You may not resell digital files or printed artwork in whole or in part, original or modified.


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The mysterious and generous philanthropist who goes by the Twitter handle @HiddenCash generated a mini-Gold Rush in San Jose on Wednesday, dropping his first envelope containing $135 on a fire hydrant across from the SAP Center.
The last drop spot turned out to be in the bushes outside the NBC Bay Area studio on North First Street.
"Couldn't help do one last one before leaving town, MEDIA will love this one. There's lots of green in these bushes," @HiddenCash tweeted at 1:58 p.m.
- Photos: "HiddenCash" Frenzy in San Jose
Within seconds, NBC Bay Area content producer Gracinda Carvalho was out in the parking lot searching for the cash. She found it easily.
"It was right there in the bush, just like in the picture," she said. "It's like a fun scavenger hunt. I feel lucky, especially since I'm going on vacation next week."
Carvalho said that she had been following @HiddenCash closely all day and she saw the clue as soon as it popped up on her monitor.
Alex Doxie was another lucky winner of the cash earlier Wednesday, which he opened up on live television. Doxie was hot, sweaty and elated to find the secret stash.
"I just had a hunch," he told NBC Bay Area. "It was fun."
The tweet, with one of @HiddenCash's quintessential clues — "First even San Jose drop: across from where these sea creatures play, a dog pees in the fall" — was sent just before 9 a.m. Doxie had been driving nearby all morning long with his brother-in-law, both of whom were game to participate in the social media-driven scavenger hunt of the game.
Though he's a bit richer, Doxie, who runs an environmental cleaning company, said he doesn't know what he'll do with the cash. His plans are to watch his 18-year-old son's baseball game with his wife and have dinner later Wednesday night.
Then, at 9:02 a.m., @HiddenCash tweeted a second clue: "New SJ drop: Behind a tree, under a leaf, across from the fast dogs' station. Tweet when you find it."
The tweets sent those looking to find some free cash scrambling. These folks were poking in bushes near San Jose's Greyhound station. Someone even ripped apart a homeless person's encampment during the rush. And about 45 minutes later, a radio station employee at Mix 106.5 across the street found $140. She didn't want to face the crowds, but radio hosts "Pope and Marla" came to speak to the media on her behalf. Later in the day, cash was found at San Jose's Oakridge Mall.
@HiddenCash's creator, whoever that might be, says his giveaways are a "social experiment for good." He confirmed his gender to news outlets in an email, also adding that he made millions in real estate.
Earlier this week, the anonymous Twitter user hid money in San Francisco, leading scores on a scavenger hunt. Some money was found on Lombard Street, Pier 39, Crissy Field and the Palace of Fine Arts.
San Franciscan Brian Seward was the first to find the money in San Francisco.
"I saw the tweet, and I knew the place," Seward said on Tuesday. "I saw the vista here, and I walked on over, and over there this envelope was taped up folded with a hundred bucks in it." What is he going to do with the money? "I'm gonna buy my friends food and drink."
Sergio Loza, 28, of San Francisco, said he saw a clue on Twitter Sunday morning with the message "Early bird gets the worm.'' He raced out and found an envelope with $50 inside taped to a parking meter in the city's Mission District. Loza said he spent $30 on clothes for his 2-year-old niece's birthday and gave her the remaining $20 as well.
"I didn't spend it on myself,'' said Loza, a security guard. "It feels good to give, especially in these times.''
@HiddenCash tweeted that money drops should be found in Los Angeles this weekend and maybe New York City next month.
Couldn't help do one last one before leaving town. MEDIA will love this one. There's lots of green in these bushes. pic.twitter.com/1Eco4dyb7h — Hidden Cash (@HiddenCash) May 28, 2014
Somebody at NBC Bay Area found the last @HiddenCash drop @NBCBayArea parking lot. http://t.co/xFmDYYzsuU pic.twitter.com/ddTbiJjPL3 — NBC Bay Area (@nbcbayarea) May 28, 2014
NBC Bay Area's Riya Bhattacharjee contributed to this report.


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I know a big concern for girls when they leave for college is sex. Honestly, yes, more people are having sex in college than in high school, and yes, you'll probably meet guys who are only interested in a one night stand. Still, it's important to realize that you should never let anyone pressure you to go further than you're ready for. Plus, people actually care a lot less about who's still a virgin than they did in high school! Seriously!
What other college myths (about sex, or other things!) are you wondering about? Leave a question in the comments below!


text: What makes an IT organization "world-class?"New research from The Hackett Group describes what top-tier IT teams have in common. According to "The World-Class IT Advantage Part 1: The Benefits of Pursuing IT Operational Excellence," a focus on IT automation and reducing complexity can help achieve higher levels of effectiveness and meet ROI expectations nearly twice as often, while at the same time representing a 15 percent cost-savings.The Hackett Group analyzed benchmark studies performed at more than 100 Global 1000 companies over the past few years and defines world-class IT organizations as those that achieve top-quartile performance across more than 60 weighted efficiency and effectiveness metrics, says Erik Dorr, senior research director, the Hackett Group.According to John Reeves, global IT advisory practice leader for The Hackett Group, automation is a key differentiator for world-class IT organizations. Regardless of whether that IT automation is happening in a company's supply chain, demand chain, purchase order management, or in the data center, if IT is delivering on business units' requests for automation and self-service, they are reaping efficiency and cost-savings benefits, he says.Automate Yourself Into Job Security"IT organizations often struggle with relevance and how to deliver value," says Reeves. "Conventional thinking is that IT shouldn't focus on automation, because they'll automate themselves out of a job; the exact opposite is true. Automating tasks across the enterprise and letting non-IT employees use self-service capabilities frees up IT to become a high-value service provider, dealing with vendor management, data integration, and business-IT alignment and strategy, which are harder for IT, but provide more direct value back into the business," he says.Automation also allows world-class organizations to spend about 15 percent less than comparable organizations on IT functions while doubling the effectiveness of their initiatives, Reeves says.Reduced complexity is another key element world-class IT organizations use to eliminate nonessential spending, maximize staff productivity and drive down costs, Reeves says. The Hackett Group measures complexity in a couple different ways, one of which being asset and type counts, Reeves says."When we look at the companies we benchmark, we look at 'type counts,'" Reeves says. "Types of languages, types of data centers, types of software. We then can measure how many systems you have to support vs. how much you have to deliver. The more complex an organization, the harder it is to change and respond to changing business needs, and that makes businesses slower, less efficient, and more costly," Reeves says.According to the research, world-class IT organizations carry 70 percent less complexity in their technology platforms. This breaks down to 40 percent fewer applications per 1,000 end-users, according to the study. "The performance of world-class IT organizations demonstrates that it is possible to 'do more with less,' minimize cost, and deliver higher qualities of service," says Reeves.Finally, The Hackett Group identified four best practices that set world-class IT organizations apart from their more conventional peers, says The Hackett Group's Dorr. These findings are outlined in "The World-Class IT Advantage, Part 2: The Four Fundamental Practices of Top-Performing IT Organizations."\n \n Keep Score: Align IT Metrics and Formalize Communication with the Business -- While most IT organizations track performance metrics, few companies have formal IT scorecards that provide a holistic view of IT performance and link these performance metrics to IT strategy. These scorecards, according to the research, are used to engage business leaders, demonstrate IT's contribution to the business, and identify areas of improvement. \n\n\n Customize: Standardize Applications and IT Processes -- While most companies try to minimize customization by using a larger number of one-size-fits-all apps and platforms, the research shows that world-class IT organizations focus on creating a common, enterprise-wide platform that can then be customized to address the needs of different business units. Fewer applications result in a less complex IT environment. \n\n Blend: Integration of End-to-End Business Processes -- World-class IT organizations make integration considerations a high priority from the start. Higher levels of integration strengthen both IT and business performance by seamlessly incorporating IT into every aspect of the business. \n\n\n Watch: Monitor Business and IT Outcomes -- For IT to succeed, it has to monitor both IT-specific and general business outcomes. On the IT side, one of the most critical outcomes is making sure architecture and infrastructure don't become too complex. In addition, world-class IT organizations hold IT staff and business owners accountable for realizing promised benefits. \n While making the grade as a world-class IT organization won't happen overnight, it's not impossible if you emphasize these four best practices, says Dorr. "The four practices we've identified in our research are things that any IT organization can address," he says.\n\nSharon Florentine covers IT careers and data center topics for CIO.com.


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In the early morning hours of March 15, 2019, Marine Corps Lance Corporal Riley Schultz was found dead near a guard shack with a gunshot wound in his head. Nineteen-year-old Lance Corporal Schultz was on guard duty at Camp Pendleton in California when this tragic incident occurred. Riley was discovered by a Marine who was assigned to replace him at this entry control point. The Naval Criminal Investigative Services (NCIS) were assigned to investigate Riley's suspicious death but their investigation appeared to conclude when the medical examiner ruled that Lance Corporal Riley Schultz died by suicide via a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Riley's family isn't going to simply accept the outcome of the investigation. His family knows him better than anyone and his brother said Riley was the happiest he had ever been. Riley's mom told the press that becoming a Marine was his dream and he worked hard and prepared for his enlistment before joining the USMC at the age of 17. Riley's mom said he loved being a Marine and things were going well in his personal life when he died. Although this investigation appears to be an open and closed case with the Marine Corps, Riley's family disputes the cause of death and plans to continue to fight for justice for Riley.
In the News:
The Marine from Colorado found dead at a Southern California base earlier this month died by suicide, according to 1st Lt. Cameron Edinburgh, a Marine Corps spokesperson. Rob Low reports. -FOX31 Denver (March 27, 2019)
The Navy is investigating after a Marine from Colorado was shot to death while on guard duty at Southern California's Camp Pendleton. -CBS Denver (March 27, 2019)
Lance Cpl. Riley Schultz was discovered dead around 4 a.m. March 15 with a gunshot wound to the head. -Denver7 – The Denver Channel (March 27, 2019)
Related Links:
Lance Cpl. Riley Schultz From Longmont Killed While On Duty At Camp Pendleton
Marine Found Dead at Camp Pendleton Guard Post from Gunshot Wound to Head
Riley Schultz, Marine, shot dead while on guard duty at Camp Pendleton
Marine shot, killed while on guard duty at California base
Marine Shot, Killed While on Guard Duty at California Base
Colorado Marine shot, killed while on guard duty at California base
Marine from Colorado shot, killed while on guard duty at California base
Marine's shooting death at Camp Pendleton guard post under investigation
Medical Examiner: Marine From Colorado Died By Suicide
19-Year-Old Marine Found Dead at Camp Pendleton Killed Himself: Officials
Death of Marine shot while on guard duty at Camp Pendleton ruled a suicide
Colorado Marine's family not convinced death was a suicide
Family Convinced Marine's Death at Camp Pendleton Was Not Suicide
Family of Camp Pendleton Marine disputes suicide ruling despite Marine Corps findings
Marine From Longmont Shot, Killed While on Duty At Camp Pendleton
Marine killed while on guard duty at California base; services to be held in Colorado
Longmont Marine took his own life
Violent Crime, Non Combat Death, and Suicide at Camp Pendleton, California (USMC)
Lance Cpl Riley Schultz, age 19 | Gun Memorial


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12/11/09 Red Barn
Read More
Blasting Echo & Pedestrians -vs- War Party put on one hec of a show to benefit Caitlyn Neely, a 10 year old girl who is recovering from surgery to remove tumors from her brain. It was a great turn out and it looked like everyone was having a blast. You can see more photos on Metromix.


text: We would call this a holiday news dump if the news wasn't so unsurprising — effective immediately Chevy Chase will be leaving NBC's Community, where he played the lonely, angry, wealthy, needy, racist, lazy Pierce Hawthorne. The show, which premieres Feb. 7, had already filmed the bulk of its 13 fourth season episodes, so there will only be one or two in which Chase does not appear. Chase's departure was reached "by mutual agreement."


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Do you offer any tests that help you make career decisions?
Amarillo College's Career & Employment Services office offers career testing.
Under the Future Student subsection, there is a link for "What career is right for me" which leads to a career assesment site.
For information about our Career & Employment Service and career testing, visit www.actx.edu/career


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Learning is different here
Welcome to The English Lodge, the place where opportunity and interest meet. Based in Granollers, at the heart of Valles Oriental, we have been providing students with our innovative Lodge-Way learning method of language teaching for several years. So, what is The Lodge-Way and how will you learn?
The Lodge Way is about sharing ideas and taking charge of your learning. We believe the confidence that you gain, the support you receive and the connections that you make are essential to education and that's why the classroom is central to our pedagogy. The Lodge Way places a maximum of 8 students in a classroom, sitting around a table with one qualified, native teacher. We refuse to use text books and instead we create all of our material to provide you with dynamic and stimulating classroom activities based on the arts and culture. This also allows our teachers to respond to your personal needs and react to the classes interests, strengths and weaknesses. Although we prepare students for official exams, we do not use exams in our general English courses. Instead we use an evaluation process based on termly, one on one feedback sessions between teacher and student which is a much more constructive and collaborative form of inspiring improvement. Unlike other academies The Lodge Way is about developing true conversation designed to give you the courage to speak and the ability to understand, not only in the classroom but at university, work or abroad.
"Everybody is a genius.
But if you judge a fish by its ability
to climb a tree, it will live its whole
life believing it is stupid"
Albert Einstein
How do I sign up?
Affordability is important. We understand this and that is why we have created a price structure that we believe is fair and affordable for the many and not the few. We will provide you with all of our price structures during the registration process.
It's simple.
Step 1: Send us an email at email@example.com or call us on 931-899-426 to schedule an appointment.
Step 2: We want to know you. We want to know your level, your language goals, your interests and who you are. Come to The English Lodge so that we can meet you and begin the placement process.
Step 3: We contact you with your group details.


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New plan has UF choosing a president in January
The University of Florida won't be getting a new president until next year.
UF presidential search committee chairman David Brown announced Friday that interviews and the selection of a new president are now planned for Jan. 10-12.
The search committee had previously set aside dates this week and next weekend for the possible conclusion of the process. Brown, who is also board of trustees chairman, announced in a letter to the UF community that the conclusion would wait until the new year.
"We decided not to hold campus visits after the fall semester ends or during the holidays, as we want to ensure that all interested parties have an opportunity to observe or be present," he said.
UF President Bernie Machen announced in June that he was retiring by the end of 2013, with the exact date determined by the naming of his successor. A search committee was named in July and started working the next month on details such as the qualifications sought in candidates, campus interview sites and possible compensation.
"You will recall when we started this process last July we anticipated it could take anywhere from six months to a year, and we are almost at the six-month point," Brown said in the letter.
UF's search consultant, Jan Greenwood, has said that major research university presidents are interested in the UF job but waiting until the last minute to apply. Florida's Sunshine Law means their applications are public record, leading candidates to face possible scrutiny on their campuses for seeking new jobs.
UF expects the search process to conclude over three days, during which top candidates will be selected, those candidates will be interviewed on campus and finalists will take part in open forums. Trustees would choose a new president at the end of the third day.
Contact Nathan Crabbe at 338-3176 or email@example.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/nathancrabbe.


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In addition to the linky, I'm taking this opportunity each week to write a little bit about a my favorite moments from the past week. I hope you'll feel inspired to leave a comment telling me about your favorite thing(s) that happened this week, too!
These are a few of my favorite things:
I'm not going to lie: it's been a tough week around here. Daniel kicked off last weekend with a fever, and he was recovering from that well into the week. Jaymz and I have also been battling various sinus issues lately. On top of family colds, Daniel isn't sleeping very well, so we've all been up with the birds every day this week (most days around 5AM, but a few days were earlier than that—ouch!). The weather has been fairly cool and comfortable here until yesterday, but it's going to heat up a lot this weekend and I'm apprehensive about what effect that will have on our sleep. Please send us all your deep, restorative sleepy vibes!
I do have one fun favorite moment to share from this week: Yesterday, Daniel and I were in the car driving back home from preschool and we stopped at a red light. All of a sudden, Daniel exclaimed, "Oh—Momma! There's a beetle crawling on our car!" Sure enough, I looked in the rear-view mirror and saw an insect (though maybe not technically a beetle) crawling on the back windshield toward the roof of the car. Daniel went on to narrate everything the beetle did until he couldn't see it anymore. I loved getting to share in Daniel's joy in watching this little bug: it was something so simple and yet so surprising and wonderful to him.
What was one of your favorite moments from the week?
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Link up your favorite blog posts from the week using the linky below and Maya and I will comment on them! Remember to share the love by reading and commenting on a few other posts from the list after you enter your link in the list. The linky will stay open until Monday afternoon.


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Mike Skupin, a second-year contestant on the CBS television series Survivor, shared his inspirational story last Thursday with approximately 120 En-Gedi Youth Center students (6th grade through high school) and parents at Red Hawk Elementary.
Many remember him as the man who passed out and fell into the fire on live TV and was medivaced by helicopter to a hospital in Australia.
Those who watch Survivor know that Skupin didn't win the show's $1 million prize. Instead, he learned during his time on the show that God had other plans for his life.
Students were fascinated by Skupin's stories of sleep deprivation, eating inspects, extreme temperatures, snakebites, and the emotional challenges of living away from family and friends.
Skupin told the students what it was like for him to walk five hours with only the clothes on his back to the little stretch of dirt in the Australian outback that he and the other contestants would call home for two months. The temperature was 120 degrees, so as soon as they arrived at their campsite, they jumped into the river—and watched in horror as dozens of fresh water crocodiles came thrashing out of the water. Other dangers they encountered were ten types of poisonous snakes, thousands of bats, Dingo dogs that lunged for an animal or human's throat, and six- to seven-foot-long lizards that tried to use their razor-sharp claws to climb humans like trees.
Because Survivor is all about winning, Skupin said that he couldn't become friends with or trust any of the contestants. He felt lonely and started talking to God. He said that in the beginning, he was mostly "whining and strategizing to God," but it was the start of him forming a solid relationship and friendship with someone he could trust.
While trying to survive the weeks in the outback, Skupin learned that "you have to spend time together in order to form a friendship," so he included God in his entire day. He also learned that "prayers are not wasted" and felt his relationship with God growing in his heart during the show.
On the 18th day of the show, Skupin passed out and fell hands and face first directly into the fire. According to Skupin's bio, "Five different burn surgeons told Mike he'd have to have skin graft surgery to repair his hands. After 10 days in the intensive care unit, as Mike was being wheeled to surgery, the chief of surgery removed his bandages and said, 'I've been the Chief of Surgery in the number one burn center in Australia for 35 years and what's happened to your hands is medically inexplainable.'" Skupin's hands had been miraculously healed.
"When a doctor with 35 years of experience tells me what has happened to my hands is medically inexplainable, I knew God had healed me for a purpose," said Skupin.
His goal is to empower kids to make the best choices with whatever is thrown at them. Following his presentation in the cafeteria, Skupin graciously signed autographs, visited with the students, and posed for photographs. "En-Gedi is an amazing gift to this community and a wonderful opportunity to reach out to young people. I can see great potential with this organization," said Skupin.
Skupin has spoken almost 2,000 times to over 8 million people at live events all over the world. He is co-authoring a book with Steven Covey, Ken Blanchard, and Brian Tracy called "Discovering Your Inner Strength" due to come out this summer.
Originally from Farmington Hills, Michigan, Skupin currently lives in White Lake, Michigan with his wife Karen and their seven children.


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10 May 2013
For further information:
Brian Ban
Chicago IL – SIGGRAPH 2013, 21 -25 July at the Anaheim Convention Center in California, released an early preview of its impressive schedule of production sessions that will be featured at this year's conference and are a part of the Computer Animation Festival, which is open to the public.
"The production sessions at SIGGRAPH 2013 are your only opportunity to experience the world's best talent in one place during one week," says Jerome Solomon, SIGGRAPH 2013 Production Sessions Chair from Cogswell College. "Major studios share their latest creative work, allowing attendees to experience the newest and most significant achievements. In many instances this is the first time these particular topics are discussed with the public. Nowhere else but at SIGGRAPH is this type of cutting-edge content available. There are 'must see' sessions every day at SIGGRAPH. It's very exciting for our attendees. And, this preliminary line-up is just the beginning of what we have in plan."
The Computer Animation Festival, chaired this year by Jason R.M. Smith, is recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as a qualifying festival. Since 1999, several works originally presented in the Computer Animation Festival have been nominated for or have received a "Best Animated Short" Academy Award. This year's selections will be featured during the Computer Animation Festival through a series of daily Festival Screenings and the iconic Electronic Theater, allowing attendees to get a glimpse behind the making of computer generated effects, visualizations, and animations
In all there will be more than 15 sessions. Following are the details on just some of the 2013 Production Sessions:
Industrial Light & Magic Presents: 'Cancel the Apocalypse' – The Visual Effects of "Pacific Rim"
Panelists: John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Lindy De Quattro, and Eddie Pasquarello
From aliens that threaten Earth's very existence to massive human-piloted robots, this panel will discuss the wide-ranging scope of Industrial Light & Magic's effects work on Guillermo del Toro's science fiction epic "Pacific Rim". The artists will cover creative and technical challenges overcome in the areas of asset development, character animation, lighting, digital environments, advanced fluid simulation work, and more.
Image copyright: © 2013 Warner Bros. Courtesy of Industrial Light & Magic.
LAIKA Presents: The Seamless Fusion of Stop-Motion and Visual Effects Technologies in LAIKA's Feature Films
Speakers: Georgina Hayns, Creative Supervisor, Puppet Fabrication and Brian McLean, Director of Rapid Prototype.
LAIKA, the Oregon-based animation studio behind the remarkable features "ParaNorman" (2012), "Coraline" (2009), and "The Boxtrolls" (in theaters 17 October 2014) has inspired audiences -- and industry professionals -- with an unprecedented visual artistry. Animators breathe life into meticulously hand-crafted puppets while visual effects artists seamlessly enhance the performance with cutting-edge technologies. This unparalleled fusion of stop-motion and computer graphics has garnered the studio two Oscar nominations and worldwide acclaim. In this session, Georgina Hayns and Brian McLean address the key interdependent and collaborative relationships between these uniquely different but critically important departments.
The presentation will address the following:
- The use of Maya and Zbrush to enhance practical sculpts
- 3D printed material and subsurface scattering to allow puppet builders to break free of previous design limitations
- The advancements in color 3D printing and the enabling of puppet builders to evolve beyond prior design limitations
- The use of in-house developed silicones which enable character performance previously unseen in stop-motion animation
- The utilization of 3D printers to pre-vis puppet construction issues and control how practical materials perform
- The use of laser cutting fabrics to enhance the design and functionality of the puppets' costumes
Production puppets will be displayed during the presentation.
Image Credit: LAIKA, Inc.
OLM Digital Presents the Anime Spirit: From Pokémon, Pac-Man to live action films
Panelists: Koichiro Sato, CGI director OLM Digital; Masashi Kobayashi, CGI Producer OLM Digital; Moto Sakakibara, CEO and creative director Sprite Animation Studios; and Ken Anjyo, R&D supervisor OLM Digital
Anime has gained great popularity in the world for its unique expressiveness in contrast to western animation. OLM Digital, a digital production company in Tokyo, keeps trying new anime styles, making the Pokémon movies over 15 years. This session presents the company's various works in 2D anime, 3DCG, and live action films. The showcase focuses on how the anime spirit of OLM Digital is put into various visual forms. The brand-new Pac-Man animated TV series, which is a collaborative work with Sprite Animation Studios, is also one of the highlights of this session.
Image Copyrights: ©Nintendo·Creatures·GAME FREAK·TV Tokyo·ShoPro·JR Kikaku, ©Pokémon ©2012 PIKACHU PROJECT, ©2012 NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc. and ©2012 CAPCOM / "Ace Attorney" FILM PARTNERS
Rhythm & Hues Studios Presents: How to bake a Pi
Learn first-hand about the story behind the Oscar-winning visuals of "Life of Pi" as Rhythm & Hues takes you on a journey from script to screen through a world of vast oceans, carnivorous islands, flying fish, bioluminescent jellyfish, whales, and tigers. Leaders from the visual effects team will discuss in detail how they attempted to tackle the project, share the hard lessons learned along the way and explain the complex process used to seamlessly combine live-action with extensive digital environments and hand-crafted character animation in a fully stereo pipeline that required a total rethink of much of the traditional vfx process.
Image credit: © 2012 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved. Courtesy Rhythm & Hues Studios.
Sony Pictures Imageworks Presents: Take a Journey Down the Yellow Brick Road
Presenters: Scott Stokdyk, Senior VFX Supervisor; Troy Saliba, Animation Supervisor; and Francisco De Jesus, Digital Effects Supervisor
Sony Pictures Imageworks, under the direction of VFX supervisor Scott Stokdyk, created the majority of the visual effects for Disney's OZ THE GREAT AND POWERFUL.
As a cinematic prequel to L. Frank Baum's first book "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz," the film explores the backstory of the wizard character. The goal of the film was to create a beautiful stylized environment for the land of Oz and bring to life computer graphics characters that accompany Oz on his journey, including Finley the monkey, the porcelain China Girl, and various creatures that surprise them along the way.
© 2013 Disney Enterprises Inc.
Walt Disney Animation and Pixar Animation Presents: Scare School 101: The Making of "Monsters University"
The filmmaking team will guide attendees through the production process of the summer 2013 Disney•Pixar film, "Monsters University". Twelve years after the original film, see how creators rebuilt the Monster world; updated familiar characters into college-age versions of themselves; designed, built, and lit a campus fit for a monster; and populated the university with a student body of diverse, unique, and terrifying monster types. psdisneypixarmonsters
Walt Disney Animation Studios Presents "Frozen": The Craft of Character and Cold
The team from Walt Disney Animation Studios gives a first-time, behind-the-scenes look at the their November 27, 2013 film, "Frozen". Attendees will learn how the team of artists and technologists created the film's characters through visual development, rigging, animation, and advanced rendering tools, and discover how the elements of cold - ice, snow, and frost - were brought to life through new simulation techniques.
Copyright/ImageCredit: © 2012 Disney
About ACM SIGGRAPH
The ACM Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques is an interdisciplinary community interested in research, technology, and applications in computer graphics and interactive techniques. Members include researchers, developers, and users from the technical, academic, business, and art communities. ACM SIGGRAPH enriches the computer graphics and interactive techniques community year-round through its conferences, global network of professional and student chapters, publications, and educational activities.
About ACM
ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery is the world's largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting educators, researchers, and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources, and address the field's challenges. ACM strengthens the computing profession's collective voice through strong leadership, promotion of the highest standards, and recognition of technical excellence. ACM supports the professional growth of its members by providing opportunities for lifelong learning, career development, and professional networking.


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Liz Carmouche will continue to add to her list of UFC firsts, and now she has a new opponent to do it against.
Carmouche (8-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) will meet Jessica Andrade (9-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) this summer at UFC on FOX 8. After being part of the first women's fight in UFC history, she'll now be involved in the first women's fight on the FOX network. Carmouche was scheduled to fight Miesha Tate on the card before Tate was pulled to coach on Season 18 of "The Ultimate Fighter."
Carmouche alluded to the fight on her Twitter account. The matchup was reported by MMA Fighting.
UFC on FOX 8 takes place July 27 at Seattle's KeyArena. The evening's main card, including a flyweight title fight between Demetrious Johnson and John Moraga, airs on FOX following prelims on FX and Facebook.
Carmouche in February made her UFC debut by challenging Ronda Rousey for the UFC's women's bantamweight title. She lost by first-round arm bar, becoming Rousey's latest victim of the move she's famous for. Prior to that, she had a pair of wins under the Invicta FC banner with stoppages of Ashleigh Curry and Kaitlin Young. Carmouche started her career 6-0 before Strikeforce losses to Marloes Coenen and Sarah Kaufman.
Andrade, from Brazil, has won back-to-back fights in 2013 by submission after a loss in December to Jennifer Maia. The 21-year-old won seven of her first eight bouts before the Maia loss. She went 5-2 in a busy 2012.
With the addition, the UFC on FOX 8 lineup now includes:
- Champ Demetrious Johnson vs. John Moraga – for UFC flyweight title
- Jake Ellenberger vs. Rory MacDonald
- Robbie Lawler vs. Tarec Saffiedine
- Jessica Andrade vs. Liz Carmouche
- Michael Chiesa vs. Jorge Masvidal
- Danny Castillo vs. Bobby Green
- Mac Danzig vs. Melvin Guillard
- Matt Mitrione vs. Brendan Schaub
- Yves Edwards vs. Spencer Fisher
- Germaine de Randamie vs. Julie Kedzie
- Ed Herman vs. Trevor Smith
- Aaron Riley vs. Justin Salas
- John Albert vs. Yaotzin Meza
For the latest on UFC on FOX 8, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.
(Pictured: Liz Carmouche)


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New Willamette Valley Tasting Rooms and Events
Dundee lands landmark tasting room: Lauded Evening Land Vineyards may make award-winning wine in Oregon, California, and Burgundy, but they've made do without a tasting room—until now. Their first tasting room is coming to downtown Dundee, next to the Inn at Red Hills and Paulée Restaurant on Highway 99W, on Memorial Day Weekend. The kick-off party will take place on Saturday, May 25 through Monday, May 27 from 10 am to 5 pm. More information.
Ponzi Vineyard's modern tasting room reveals opening date: Oregon's noted multi-generation winery's third tasting room will open its doors in Sherwood on June 15, offering table-side wine tasting service, guided winery tours, two bocce ball courts. More information.
Apolloni's wine cave: Apolloni Vineyards—one of Forest Grove's leading producers of Pinot Noir and Italian style wines—celebrated the grand opening of its new Tuscan-inspired, open-to-the-public wine cave this month. The underground cave, one of only a few in Oregon, echoes the Apolloni family's villa, vineyards, and cave in Italy south of Venice, and relies on 100% passive geothermal regulation to maintain optimal temperature and humidity. For more information and directions please visit apolloni.com.
Custom wine growlers at Bistro Marquee: Thanks to recent Oregon regulation changes, growlers can now be filled on-site at bottle shops and restaurants with wine and cider. Bistro Marquee, the new SW Market Street eatery (debuting Monday, May 20) from Thirst Bistro's Leslie Palmer, is one of the first eateries to brand and sell their own wine growlers. For more information, visit BistroMarquee.com.
5 best new release Oregon rosés: Sustainable wine guru Jeffrey Weissler shared his tasting notes for the best new summer sips from his NE Glisan wine shop Pairings Portland. Find the full list on Eat Beat.
Paulée's one year anniversary celebration "Flights and Bites": Wine country hotspot Paulée will jumpstart summer with its 1 year anniversary celebration. In honor of the restaurant's new neighbors (upcoming tasting rooms for Evening Lands, Le Cadeau, and Tertulia) executive chef Sean Temple will serve four special bites alongside four AVA-specific flights (including one NW beer flight) on Saturday and Sunday, May 18 and 19 and Saturday, May 25 through Monday, May 27 from 11 am until 9:30 pm at Paulée Restaurant (1410 N Highway 99W, Dundee).
Memorial Day Wine Tastings: Each year, over 150 wineries in Oregon's wine country open their doors for weekend-long celebrations to kick off summer with free tastings, tours, and activities. Head to the Willamette Valley Wineries website or the Visit Washington County website to plan your weekend wine escape.
Summer concert series at regional wineries: Tickets are going fast for the summer's hottest concerts, including open-air events at Maryhill Winery and McMenamins Edgefield. Find the full lineups right this way.


text: The conditions 'exclusive investigator' or 'private detective', are exchangeable. The state problems various kinds private detective permits. A number of these certificates are constrained to a particular part of investigations by way of example ' Arson'. A non-public investigator (investigator) needs to be a specialist that is certainly qualified in investigations, monitoring, and data accumulation, among… Continue reading Private Investigator or Private Detective?


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Dells of the Wisconsin
Dells of the Wisconsin, The Dells, or The Wisconsin Dells, scenic part of the Wisconsin River, central Wis., NW of Portage. The river has cut a deep gorge through 8 mi (12.9 km) of sandstone, which is carved into caves, pinnacles, and other interesting shapes, some of which are beautifully colored. The Dells is a major year-round recreation area of the Midwest; several state parks, large indoor water parks, and a casino are nearby.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2023, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: U.S. Physical Geography


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Shin-Soo Choo homers as Reds hold off Angels in series rubber game
CINCINNATI -- Joey Votto? One single in 10 at-bats. Jay Bruce? One double in 13 at-bats with seven strikeouts.
Cincinnati's top run producers barely got the bat on the ball, yet the Reds managed to win the major leagues' first interleague series to open a season. Credit those other guys who don't normally do the heavy lifting.
Shin-Soo Choo homered on Joe Blanton's first pitch of the game Thursday, the first of Cincinnati's three homers off the right-hander, and the Reds won 5-4 over the Los Angeles Angels.
Not too bad considering the big hitters' struggles.
"It means somebody else picked us up," manager Dusty Baker said. "We had excellent pitching. Some of their players didn't get uncaged, either. That was an exciting series. Every game was a great game that could have gone either way."
Todd Frazier also had a solo homer off Blanton (0-1), and Chris Heisey's two-run shot put Cincinnati up 5-3 in the fifth. Blanton gave up five runs and seven hits in five innings during his Angels debut.
Blanton, who signed a two-year, $15 million deal in December, didn't make many bad pitches. He didn't have much luck, either.
"Two of them were off mistakes, and I felt I made maybe a handful of them all day," Blanton said. "That happens sometimes in baseball. One of those things that just happened out of the gate."
Heisey's homer was his first as the full-time left fielder. He's replacing Ryan Ludwick, who had surgery on Wednesday to repair torn cartilage in his right shoulder, an injury that will sideline him for at least the first half of the season.
"I've proven I can play off the bench," Heisey said. "I'm not feeling any pressure."
Bronson Arroyo (1-0) gave up three runs in six innings, including Josh Hamilton's two-run single that was his first hit for the Angels. Albert Pujols drove in a pair of runs with a sacrifice fly and a groundout.
Nobody enjoyed Choo's homer more than Arroyo. Choo has four career homers off Arroyo, his highest total off any pitcher. The Reds got him from Cleveland in the offseason.
"Every time he goes deep for me, it's like a holiday," Arroyo said.
Left-hander Aroldis Chapman pitched the ninth, converting his first save opportunity. Mike Trout led off with a single and was sacrificed to second, but Pujols flied out and Hamilton struck out.
The teams combined for seven homers and 63 strikeouts during the series. The Reds fanned 36 overall, a club record for the first three games of a season. The 36 strikeouts were an Angels record for a three-game series.
Their biggest hitters also have had a tough time getting started.
Pujols and Hamilton were a combined 0 for 17 with six strikeouts before they finally put something together in the third inning. Pujols doubled for his first hit, and Hamilton followed with a two-run single; Pujols slid into home safely while catcher Ryan Hanigan missed his leg while attempting the tag.
Pujols also had a sacrifice fly and a run-scoring groundout, limping on his left foot after he'd run. Pujols is playing through pain from plantar fasciitis.
Choo got the Reds started with his sixth career leadoff homer. Frazier led off the second inning with a homer just inside the left field foul pole, and Heisey connected in the fifth.
The game featured the first replay of the season at Great American Ball Park. Frazier's fly ball went off the yellow padding atop the wall in the fourth, and he continued to third when Trout bobbled the carom for an error. The umpires checked to make sure the ball didn't clear the wall. Frazier scored on Hanigan's sacrifice fly -- Cincinnati's only run that didn't come off a homer.
Baker got through the series without using left-handed setup man Sean Marshall, who's had some tiredness in the front of his pitching shoulder the last couple of weeks. Marshall said Thursday he felt much better and should be available for the opener of a series against Washington on Friday.
Game notes
The Angels head to Texas to play Hamilton's former team in a weekend series. The Reds host the Nationals in a matchup of the NL's top two teams last year: Washington won 98 games, Cincinnati 97. ... Angels manager Mike Scioscia might use Pujols as the DH over the weekend to rest his sore left foot. "He's fine. If he's struggling with something, I'll consider giving him a day. I can look to DH him this weekend," Scioscia said.
Follow Joe Kay on Twitter: http://twitter.com/apjoekay
CIN Wins 2-1
Game Information
- Umpires:
- Home Plate Umpire - CB Bucknor
- First Base Umpire - Todd Tichenor
- Second Base Umpire - Dale Scott
- Third Base Umpire - Bill Miller