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Devi usare la creatura che in assoluto risulta la piu forte di tutti...o quanto meno quella che nell'ultimo periodo ha sconfitto in percentuale piu avversari rispetto alle altre tue creature... Almeno con me ha sempre funzionato cosi. Buona fortuna
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What happened to the comment that I posted on this thread? It was relevant to the question. In fact, it answered the question about whether or not this habitat was part of a quad, and I went in to quite a bit of detail about the new habitats for this month. Annoying
You posted a response on another thread. Telling Tales World Event. In the future please do not discuss mod actions on the threads.
You can send me a PM and I can check to see what happened if you feel a post was removed.
Hi! I couldn't reply to your PM because your mailbox is full. Let me know when you have space and I'll send the full reply.
Your pm box is full. I couldn't pm you a reply on your Support case. Please let me know when clear.
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Your PM box is full. In answer to your questions on the Leaderboard for Fanasty, the team is currently looking into this issue.
Censorship seems to be alive and well at S8. 😂🤔😝 It's amazing how quickly they can fix something if they don't like it.
Yes, it was deleted. But of course. 🙄
Am I imagining it, or did your post about the change in the breedability of the Seafoam Unicorn get deleted?
Rhino Keeper

subset: commoncrawl


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The study, which set out to analyze whether the U.S. power grid is prepared for technologies and power sources over the next 20 years, recommended a host of policy changes to gird the grid against coming challenges, including new powers and authorities regarding the emerging smart grid, particularly around cybersecurity.
Currently, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation are empowered to create and police cybersecurity standards for power plants, but no organization has oversight over the grid itself, and states are headed in their own directions. In addition, the agencies with cybersecurity responsibilities aren't working together enough, the study found.
[ Cybersecurity is one part of the feds' four-pillar smart grid plan. Learn about the other three: White House Unveils National Smart Grid Strategy Framework. ]
"To cope more effectively with increasing cybersecurity threats, a single federal agency should be given responsibility for cybersecurity preparedness, response, and recovery across the entire electric power sector, including both bulk power and distribution systems," the report says. "Ongoing jurisdictional confusion raises security concerns, underscoring the need for action."
That's a point of major concern for a power system that the MIT report points out will soon see massive growth in the amount of data flowing over its lines as smart meters and synchophasors (devices that measure and help optimize power transmission) come online and power companies begin to push more and more data-enabled services over power lines.
"With the collection, transmission, processing, and storage of increasing amounts of information also comes heightened concern for protecting the privacy of that information," the report said. Information on personal electricity use habits, for example, will become more widely available to electric companies than ever before.
Hackers, not just the corporations themselves, will likely be interested in this data and opportunities to disrupt the grid. The Wall Street Journal reported in 2009 that Chinese and Russian government hackers were likely already looking for points of cyber weakness in the smart grid.
Various observers and policymakers also have argued for a centralized point of authority for smart grid cybersecurity, with various parties arguing for the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Energy, or the current electricity and energy regulatory bodies. MIT didn't recommend any particular agency over any other, but said designating one should be a high priority.
In addition to better management of cybersecurity, the MIT researchers recommended that the government spend more on research and development into procedures for response to and recovery from cyberattacks on the grid.
Cybersecurity wasn't the only IT fix the MIT study recommended to bolster the power grid in the future. The researchers also suggested that the energy industry do more R&D into using IT for bulk power system operations and planning for power transmission over wide geographic areas.
In this new Tech Center report, we profile five database breaches--and extract the lessons to be learned from each. Plus: A rundown of six technologies to reduce your risk. Download it here (registration required).


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If you follow climate news, you're probably familiar with media claims that global temperatures have supposedly "stopped rising" for the last 16 years. Ignoring the cherry-picking inherent in that claim, it's also fundamentally wrong – the energy may have stopped appearing in the atmosphere, but it's continued being absorbed by the much larger heat sink that is the oceans.
The folks at Skeptical Science (SkS) put together the following video to illustrate just how wrong the "16 year pause" claims actually are.
For those of you who want more information, here's the most recent post in a very long line of posts going back to 2009 at SkS debunking this erroneous claim.
Categories: Environment/Nature, Science/Technology


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Justin Bieber's Manager Brainwashes Girls on Webcam
A little-known aspect of Justin Bieber's rabid Internet fan base is the role that Bieber's camp plays in stoking the flames. Last night, Bieber's manager held an impromptu webcam chat and urged girls to lure guys into his new movie.
It's the stuff of legend among the Beliebers: Justin Bieber will sometimes spontaneously post a link on Twitter to a chat room and interact with fans. Last night it was only Justin's manager, Scooter Braun, who tweeted a link to the webcam service Tinychat and hung out for about an hour. But 600 tween- and teenaged girls still joined to worship the adult who probably knows Justin better than anyone except his mom. Once in the room, Braun made the few Beliebers lucky enough to be "on cam" turn off their mic and respond via a system of thumbs-up/thumbs-down. (Most were limited to text-only chat.)
He then brainwashed them. It was imperative that the girls spread the word about Justin's upcoming movie, he told them. They should do for Never Say Never 3D, which opens next month, what women did for Sex and the City: "We want you guys to tell all the girls all over the world to get dressed up, put your make-up on, put your high heels on. look fancy and go see the movie." And they must bring boys: "Tell all the boys that if they want to make out they have to go to the back of the theater with you for the Justin Bieber movie. You will not be allowed any makeout session at any other movies for Valentine's Day weekend."
Here's the audio from this part of the chat:
[There was a video here]
Priming these die-hard fans through a medium they're so comfortable with is a brilliant marketing strategy. After the chat, the girls hit Twitter and Tumblr and YouTube, carrying the Good News from Scooter. "Scooter Braun on the the tinychat said to get all fancy when you see the premier… I'm down with that…" tweeted itssMackenziee. (At the top of this post is a video taken by a fan while Scooter discussed rumors that Justin and fellow child star Selena Gomez were dating.)
But it's also kind of unsettling. Here's a 30-year-old man on webcam instructing a horde of girls half his age to lure young boys into theaters with the promise of make out sessions that are in reality secret favors to Justin Bieber, the boy they really want, who also happens to be the 30-year-old man's client, and also happens to be making him very rich.


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Dynotech Driveshaft Install - The Straight Skinny
What a Good Driveshaft Should Be
Like Rodney Dangerfield, a driveshaft gets no respect. Or even much thought, for that matter. Until we exceed its design limits, that is, at which point the extreme importance of this delicately balanced, high-revving power transmitter comes suddenly, and sometimes frighteningly, to the forefront. Consider this: the factory driveshaft under your vintage Ford was engineered to withstand the rigors of OEM power levels, traction limits, and speed/rpm capabilities for many years, which it likely has. But we'd never go broke by betting that all those factory power, grip, and speed parameters have long since been exceeded in most of our readers' rides, 'cause we don't call this Modified Mustangs & Fords for nothing.
Forcing a stock driveshaft to work with increased power levels is a recipe for disaster, as a broken U-joint or twisted driveshaft can damage the chassis, drivetrain, and in extreme circumstances, even pole vault the car at speed. So it may be time to give more than a passing thought to that long, thin shaft spinning furiously mere inches away from your posterior. Is it up to withstanding your modified Ford's current horsepower and torque? Do you spend any time on the 'strip (or street) launching on the latest and greatest sticky tires? Does your quarter-mile trap speed now far exceed your ride's original top speed? Have you just replaced your tranny with one of a different length? Heck, even if you haven't (yet) powered up your classic, does it simply wear a rusty 40-year-old driveshaft? We see your collective heads nodding, so we turned to the experts at DynoTech Engineering in Troy, Michigan, for some driveshaft facts and advice.
Limiting FactorsThe ideal driveshaft is both light and strong. A lighter shaft consumes less power to rotate and therefore passes on more engine power to the drive wheels. When it comes to strength, driveshafts are rated and limited by two factors: torsional strength (resistance to twisting) and "critical speed." The latter being the velocity at which a normally straight and true driveshaft begins to look somewhat like a banana and plots a rotational path not unlike that of a skipping rope, causing much vibration and possible shaft failure in the process. As a rule, for any given construction, the longer the driveshaft, the lower its torsional strength and critical speed limit. Otherwise, these strengths and limits are principally determined by driveshaft material and wall thickness, overall shaft diameter, and such details as degree of balance, location of balance weights, and U-joint phasing and clearance.
Despite the name, driveshafts are not actually solid shafts, but instead constitute some form of hollow tube of steel, aluminum, composite, or hybrid (aluminum with carbon-fiber wrap) construction. Let's look at each:
Odds are your Ford's factory driveshaft was made of "seam tube" (rolled, and welded along the seam) steel, the cheapest and most common OEM construction, and perfectly adequate for standard duty and light high-performance use. On the downside, seam tube is heavy, forms the weakest of the steel driveshafts, and also has the lowest critical speed.
Next up the steel hierarchy are DOM (drawn-over-mandrel) driveshafts which are seamless, slightly more expensive than seam-tube shafts, but notably stronger, and with higher critical speeds. The DOM process work-hardens and strengthens the steel, making it suitable for nearly any high-performance application.
Most expensive of the steel driveshafts are the chrome-moly variants. These have extremely high torsional strength, but are available only in 3- and 3.5-inch diameters, and are relatively heavy and pricey.
Most aluminum driveshafts are constructed of 6061 T6 alloy. These are light in weight, never rust, and have higher critical speeds, but less torsional strength, than steel shafts, making them suitable for moderate horsepower and/or lightweight vehicle applications. If you happen to have a mirror under your car, they also look kinda cool.
Like most everything made of carbon fiber, composite driveshafts are very strong, very light, and very expensive. Though extremely well suited for race applications, they're probably overkill for your restomod Ford. They also ooze high-tech coolness, so it's almost a shame to hide one beneath a car.
Take an aluminum driveshaft, wrap it in a thin carbon-fiber layer, and you have a hybrid that's stronger than aluminum, cheaper than full-on carbon fiber (though still not inexpensive), and with a very high critical speed.
And that about covers the gamut of basic driveshaft materials in the DynoTech Engineering lineup, but really just scratches the surface of what makes a good driveshaft. Proper U-joints are obviously also critical, but perhaps what most separates a great driveshaft from a merely average one is the precision with which it's built. Remember: a driveshaft does its work while spinning madly. A vibration-free driveshaft requires minimal "tube runout"--a measurement of the deviation from straightness or trueness of the shaft as it rotates. Smaller runout needs fewer balance weights, so DynoTech claims to maintain runout at 0.020 inches or less over the entire tube length.
Orientation (or "phasing") of the U-joint assemblies at either end also demands precision construction techniques, as does the centering of those U-joint assemblies on the driveshaft tube (if a U-joint is mounted off-center, the entire weight of the driveshaft is then rotating off the driveshaft centerline--a huge imbalance.) Performance companies like DynoTech often use special fixtures to ensure extremely accurate U-joint phasing and centering.
The faster a driveshaft rotates, the greater the effect of any imbalance; this imbalance force increases as the square of rpm increases. In other words, as shaft rpm doubles, imbalance force increases four-fold, or if shaft speed triples, imbalance force increases by a factor of nine. The solution is to balance the driveshaft at high rpm. While many driveshafts are reportedly balanced at 1,800 to 2,800 rpm, DynoTech's are balanced at a minimum of 5,000 rpm.
Anyway, now that we know some of the theory, let's see the practical side as the folks at Livernois Motorsports install a DynoTech driveshaft on a customer's '67 Mustang fastback that has had recent power upgrades that dictated replacement of its original factory driveshaft.
DynoTech's Formula For a Strong, Straight Shaft
No matter how strong a driveshaft, if it's not extremely well built and balanced, its longevity--and your enjoyment--will suffer. Both materials and manufacturing processes are of critical importance. Michigan's DynoTech Engineering currently manufactures about 85 percent of the driveshafts used in NASCAR, and also acts as a consultant to Detroit's Big Three on driveline issues, so it must be doing something right...
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Some of us like a good cuss every now and then. Others like to send dirty messages to our, err, loved ones. But in Pakistan, that's soon to stop, as the country is banning rude text messages.
While older generations bang on about how detrimental the culture of email and SMS is, officials in Pakistan must have decided that it was what gets said in text messages that's the problem.
They clearly got quite carried away by it all, too, because the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has created a list of more than 1,000 words and phrases which will be banned from appearing in text messages according to The Guardian.
So, what made it onto the list? Let's start with the obvious ones. There were 50 phrases using the word "fuck" and 17 involving "butt", alongside 17 variants on "tit" and 33 on "cock". As well as 1,109 wonderfully rude English words, the PTA also banned 568 in the national language Urdu.
The PTA is clearly quite perceptive, too, and has included a bunch more - what's the word? - figurative phrases too. They include gems such as "strap-on", "beat your meat", "crotch rot", "love pistol", and — wait for it — "flogging the dolphin". I can only guess at what that one means.
To make things tricky, they've also included some words that seem fairly innocuous, like "flatulence", "deposit" and "fondle". I don't know how sensible, or easy, it is to police those, to be honest.
Which brings us to how the ban will take effect. The PTA ordered mobile phone firms to just block messages including the offending words this week, though the Guardian reports that the blocking technology isn't 100 per cent effective.
No word yet as to whether other countries are thinking of following suit. If they do, though, my text messages will end up a hell of a lot shorter. [The Guardian; Image: lirneasia]


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Bucs to honor senior class of Jaime, Kedzo, Navrostska and Wieliczko
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (April 12, 2012) – The ETSU women's tennis team enters the final weekend of the regular season with two home matches, as it is set for a make-up date with Appalachian State along with its regular season finale against USC Upstate.
Originally scheduled for Feb. 19 in Boone, N.C., ETSU's (9-8, 6-2 A-Sun) match with Appalachian State (12-10, 5-5 SoCon) will be played in Johnson City, Tenn., on Friday at 3 p.m. The contest was postponed earlier in the year due to inclement weather. The Bucs then conclude the regular season at the Buddy Hartsell Tennis Center on Saturday when they are scheduled to face USC Upstate (7-13, 4-4 A-Sun) at 2:30 p.m.
Saturday will also be Senior Day for ETSU's senior tandem of Paula Jaime (Madrid, Spain), Karina Kedzo (Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela), Diana Navrostska (Lviv, Ukraine) and Marine Wieliczko (Rouen, France), who will all be honored and recognized for their accomplishments before the start of the match.
ETSU heads into Friday looking to restart its home winning streak which was snapped last Saturday against Kennesaw State. Before falling in a 4-3 heartbreaker to the Owls, ETSU had not lost a home match since March 24, 2009 when it dropped a 5-2 result to Winthrop. Regardless, last week was not all bad for the Bucs as they won their sixth A-Sun match of the season in a 7-0 sweep of Mercer on Friday.
Jaime continues to impress this spring with an 11-6 dual record and a current six-match winning streak. Jaime is also 23-9 overall through the fall and spring seasons, just two wins shy of her career-best 25-8 mark she posted during her freshman season. Two wins this weekend would make Jaime just the fifth Buccaneer to reach 90 career victories, as she is currently 88-45 in her four years with the Bucs.
Freshman Jessica Brumit (Elizabethton, Tenn.) shares Jaime's lead in dual victories with an 11-5 spring record. Brumit is also in the midst of a five-match winning streak, and primarily plays in the No. 6 spot where she is 9-4.
Not far behind Jaime and Brumit is Navrostska. Like Jaime, Navrostska has won her last six singles matches and is 7-1 this year in A-Sun play. Navrostska's current spring record stands at 10-6.
Appalachian State played two matches earlier in the week, defeating Wofford 6-1 in its conference finale on Monday, before falling 4-3 to Charlotte in Boone, N.C., on Tuesday. The Mountaineers have faced one nationally ranked team this season when they met with then-No. 61 Virginia Tech on Feb. 5, losing 7-0.
Gabby Gabriel leads Appalachian State with the most singles victories this spring, currently holding a dual record of 14-7. Gabriel has spent most of her time in the No. 6 slot where she is 10-1. Two wins behind Gabriel is Jennifer Ansari, who is 12-8 with all 20 of her spring matches coming at the No. 2.
USC Upstate heads into its final meeting of the regular season as winners of three of its last four matches. The Spartans most recently defeated Mercer, 7-0, last Saturday, but fell 6-1 to Kennesaw State on Friday. The weekend prior, the Spartans defeated both Belmont and Lipscomb in Nashville, Tenn.
Maria Tonani has been swinging the hottest racket for Upstate this spring. Tonani – primarily the No. 6 starter – is on a six-match winning streak and is a team-best 12-8 through dual play. Talia Rojas sits a win behind Tonani at 11-9, having split her time fairly evenly between the No. 2, 3 and 4 matches.
Friday's meeting with Appalachian State will be ETSU's first since April 9, 2005, when the Bucs blanked the Mountaineers, 7-0, in a Southern Conference match at the Buddy Hartsell Tennis Center. ETSU's last meeting with USC Upstate came on March 19 of last season in Spartanburg, S.C., with the Bucs coming away with a 6-1 victory.
For more information on ETSU tennis, please visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the tennis links.


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God bless those Europeans: Across the EU, more than 120 million people have never been online. How do they cope without Facebook and YouTube?
In Romania, 54 per cent of the population have never used the Internet, whether via home access, at an internet cafe or over a smart phone, reports Reuters. In Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus and Portugal, only half of homes have an internet connection. Across the entire EU, 24 per cent of 16-74 year olds across 27 countries — a population of 500 million people — have never accessed the Internet.
That is a pretty bleak situation in connectivity terms.
It's not all bad news, though. In the Netherlands — Europe's most connected country — 94 per cent of people have Internet access, and Luxembourg, Sweden and Denmark all have access rates of 90 per cent or above.
Because of the poor access to the internet in some copuntries, online retail has been slow to take off too. In Romania and Bulgaria, for instance, just 13 per cent of people have purchased items over the Internet. Compare that to 80 per cent in the UK, which has Europe's most advanced online economy, and things look sad for those in Eastern Europe.
While the figures make for a good headline, what's really worrying here is the disparity. By and large, its the poorest countries in the EU that come bottom in terms of connectivity — and there doesn't seem to be much sign of the gulf narrowing. [Reuters; Image: eric.beasley]


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Problem 44946. Solve a System of Linear Equations
Solution Stats
Problem Comments
4 Comments
The problem statement clearly states to use mldivide (\)
How can the leading solution be cos(theta)+sin(theta)*[-1;1]
My code is working perfectly on my desktop Matlab version, but here it's not accepting and displaying as incorrect..anyone help me out!
The syms function is in a toolbox—Cody does not currently support any toolbox functions.
what is coefficient matrix?I can't understand the meaning of the question
Solution Comments
1 Comment
1 Comment
The only big problem is that half of the question was not rendered. That is a problem with the web page itself not the question (fix for firefox).
1 Comment
1 Comment
4 Comments
Your last solution is false.
I had to use a trick to get a pass.
it's [0.3982; 1.357] and not [1.357;0.3982]!!
The last test case is correct...
Your solution has the -sin() and +sin() flipped.
Good problem
3 Comments
Does anyone know how the 'size' value is calculated? Is it related to the # of lines of code, or the complexity? Does anyone have any tips regarding how to reduce size? I keep writing high 'size' code...
"Cody uses a node-count calculation to determine the solution size based on the number of nodes in the parse tree. Think of size as code length." - via the Official Cody homepage.
You can reduce size by reducing no. of operations as well as no. of variables.
function y = plus_one(x)
y = x+1;
Function size = 12
function y = plus_one(x)
z = x;
y = z+1;
Function size = 16
For an example related to this question, instead of defining b, you can do x = A\[1;1].
You can also take a look on other user's solutions to get some more idea.
However, in the long run that is not the best practice you would want to learn. As we write complex code, defining variables clearly and explicitly helps understand the code better. I would say what you have done is a good example of a clean code.
That is a very helpful comment, @Dyuman Joshi.
1 Comment
What is this? I don't even understand the question?
The answer is:
A=[cos(theta) sin(theta); -sin(theta) cos(theta)]; % coefficients of X1 and X2
b=[1;1] % It is a column vector
1 Comment
1 Comment
whats wrong with this problem, it runs perfectly on my matlab.
Developers guys, you should fix this problem
1 Comment
1 Comment
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Over the past few days, we've discussed many peculiar aspects of Rahmstorf smoothing and centering: incorrect disclosure; seeming unawareness of what the smoothing did; unattractive properties of the triangular filter; the enhancement of "successful" prediction; opportunistic policy changes.
It's not though IPCC hadn't turned its mind to smoothing. IPCC AR4 enunciated a sensible policy on smoothing in AR4 chapter 3 : "Observations: Surface and Atmospheric Climate Change" Appendix A. In that chapter, they condemned Rahmstorf procedures and, unlike Rahmstorf, described their filter in unambigous terms – no cat-and-mouse. They stated:
In order to highlight decadal and longer time-scale variations and trends, it is often desirable to apply some kind of low-pass filter to the monthly, seasonal or annual data. In the literature cited for the many indices used in this chapter, a wide variety of schemes was employed. In this chapter, the same filter was used wherever it was reasonable to do so. The desirable characteristics of such filters are 1) they should be easily understood and transparent; 2) they should avoid introducing spurious effects such as ripples and ringing (Duchon, 1979); 3) they should remove the high frequencies; and 4) they should involve as few weighting coefficients as possible, in order to minimise end effects. The classic low-pass filters widely used have been the binomial set of coefficients that remove 2Δt fluctuations, where Δt is the sampling interval. However, combinations of binomial filters are usually more efficient, and those have been chosen for use here, for their simplicity and ease of use
These are sensible policies. "Easily understood and transparent" clearly excludes Rahmstorf's Copenhagen description of a triangular filter of length 29 as – "smoothed over 15 years". Criterion 2 -excluding ripples and ringing – excludes Rahmstorf's triangular filter on other grounds. Criterion 4 – "as few weighting coefficients as possible" also precludes Rahmstorf's filter.
IPCC went so far as to provide a standard filter to "remove fluctuations on less than decadal time scales" for chapter 3, described in unequivocal terms as follows:
The second filter used in conjunction with annual values (Δt =1) or for comparisons of multiple curves (e.g., Figure 3.8) is designed to remove fluctuations on less than decadal time scales. It has 13 weights 1/576 [1-6-19-42-71-96-106-96-71-42-19-6-1]. Its response function is 0.0 at 2, 3 and Δt, 0.06 at 6Δt, 0.24 at 8Δt, 0.41 at 10Δt, 0.54 at 12Δt, 0.71 at 16Δt, 0.81 at 20Δt, and 1 for zero frequency, so for yearly data the half-amplitude point is about a 12-year period, and the half-power point is 16 years. This filter has a very similar response function to the 21-term binomial filter used in the TAR.
Instead of simply complying with standard IPCC procedures, Rahmstorf used a filter procedure described only in the AGU newspaper – the triangular filter properties of which were not described in the original article and indeed the authors say that they unaware of this defect at the time.
As so often in climate science, Rahmstorf changed smoothing policy not just once, but twice. First, in Rahmstorf 2007, he abandoned IPCC policy in favor of an article in the AGU newspaper; then he changed accounting parameters in the Copenhagen Report – all without explicitly stating that he had changed policy from the IPCC report and accompanying the change notice with an explicit accounting of the impact of the change.
Here's what happens with Rahmstorf's results if IPCC filter procedures had been followed. Rahmstorf can no longer assert that observations are in the "upper" part of models, with the implication that things are "worse than we thought". R07 is looking shakier and shakier.


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← Back to UVI's contributions to the Digital Library of the Caribbean
About dLOC Project Introspection
Using funding from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Title III, Project Introspection produced a variety of materials on various aspects of the history and culture of the U.S. Virgin Islands. The goal is to coordinate units of work on the Virgin Islands and Caribbean from all available sources had a two-fold objective:
- to discover and reproduce such material for instruction, and
- to provide a medium for wide dissemination of this material for the benefit of all Virgin Islands school children and ultimately the entire community.
Titles in the Project Introspection series include:
- Book: Beautiful Inkberry Tree: A Christmas Story for Young Virgin Islanders
- Brief Historical Notes on Schools of the Virgin Islands
- European and African Influences on the Culture of the Virgin Islands
- Book: Footsteps to Follow
- Historical Account of the Purchase and Transfer of the Danish West Indies
- Hurricanes and Holidays: Supplication Day; Local Thanksgiving
- Profiles of Outstanding Virgin Islanders
- Salute to Our First Elected Governor: Melvin Evans
This collection was contributed to the multi-institutional collaborative Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC) project by the University of the Virgin Islands. Visit the dLOC to view materials submitted by over a hundred partner institutions.


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Surprise!!! More Baseball
The Arizona Fall League starts today out in the dessert and several other Winter Leagues are already underway. The Arizona Fall League is probably the most glamorous of all the Winter Leagues due to the fact it is normally a who's-who of top prospects from all 30 MLB teams. Let's just run down the list of who will be in Arizona for a few extra weeks of fun in the sun. Well the top two picks from this summer's draft will be there with Stephen Strasburg (Washington Nationals) bringing his millions of dollars and 100-MPH fastball. No. 2 pick Dustin Ackley will be there representing the Seattle Mariners. Including Strasburg and Ackley, five of the first 10 picks from last summer's draft are scheduled to be in Arizona. The Giants uber-catching prospect Buster Posey will be there. The Marlins are sending Andrew Miller in hopes of getting the big lefty back on track. The Kansas City Royals top prospect Mike Moustakas will play third for the Surprise Rafters. Former Ole Miss Rebel and Collierville, TN-native Zach Cozart will represent Cincinnati. And all those guys are just a few of the best, future big leaguers.
So if this the best-of-the-best prospects league, who are the Cardinals sending? Since the Cardinals traded four of their Top 10 prospects from last year fans will definitely see some new, yet familiar faces wearing the Birds on the Bat while playing for the Surprise Rafters this fall. The players the Cards have slated on the Rafters Opening Day Roster are below along with their position and the highest level they reached in 2009.
- Gary Daley – RHP – Double-A Springfield – Daley pitched in just nine games, all in relief, for the S-Cards this past season going 0-2 with a 4.76 ERA. The right-hander didn't make his debut until August 19 for Springfield after starting the year with Single-A Quad Cities, where he went 4-3 with a 6.93 ERA in 32 games, 10 starts. Daley was the Cardinals third round pick out of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 2006.
- Scott Gorgen – RHP – Double-A Springfield – Gorgen reached Double-A in just his first full year of pro ball after being a fourth round pick out of California-Irvine in 2008. The right-hander went 4-5 with a 5.20 ERA in 11 starts for the S-Cardinals after posting a 3-5 record with a 2.93 ERA in 14 games, 13 starts, for Single-A Palm Beach. Gorgen's twin brother was a 16th
round pick of the Rays last year.
- Mike Parisi – RHP – Single-A Palm Beach – Former Redbird Mike Parisi will be one of very few guys in the Fall League with MLB experience. Parisi pitched in 12 games, two starts, for St. Louis in 2008 before blowing out his elbow in a game with Memphis at Sacramento in early August. The right-hander missed almost all of 2009 recovering from Tommy John surgery.
- Adam Reifer – RHP – Single-A Palm Beach – Reifer racked up 21 saves in 54 games for the Cardinals this past summer going 4-7 with a 4.47 ERA along the way. In his first full year of pro baseball Reifer followed up a stellar 2008 when he was tabbed the third-best prospect and best pitching prospect in the New York-Penn League after punching out 41 batters in 30.1 innings.
- Bryan Anderson – C – Triple-A Memphis – Anderson is another former Redbird scheduled to get some extra at-bats in the Fall League after missing significant time due to an injury. Anderson was the 'Birds starting catcher before going down with a shoulder injury sustained in a collision at the plate in late June. The California-native is still considered one of the Cardinals best prospects but needs to use the Fall League to vault into 2010.
- Daniel Descalso – 2B – Triple-A Memphis – The Arizona Fall League will be the icing on the cake to an amazing 2009 campaign for Descalso. After crushing the Texas League for a .323 average and 26 doubles in 73 games, Descalso was promoted to Memphis for 46 games before joining Team USA for their gold medal run in the World Cup. He'll share the Rafters infield with Team USA teammate Ike Davis from the New York Mets organization.
- Tyler Henley – OF – Double-A Springfield – Henley just wrapped up the best season of his young career leading Springfield with a .303 average and 31 doubles in a career-best 123 games. The former Rice star hadn't even played in 123 games in his two previous years as a pro until this past summer. Henley is on the taxi squad for the Rafters, which means he is only active on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
- Daryl Jones – OF – Double-A Springfield – Jones has been one of the Cardinals top prospects since he was drafted in the third round out of high school in 2005. However, since then his career has been up-and-down until 2008 when he was named the Cardinals Minor League Player of the Year. Jones will be making up some at-bats this fall as well after missing a lot of time in the second half of the season with a leg injury.
Other former Redbirds playing ball this fall are Jon Jay, who is hitting .400 in four games for Leones del Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League, and Fernando Salas, who has turned in 1.1 scoreless innings for Naranjeros de Hermosillo in the Mexican Pacific League. Naranjero translates to orange seller in case you were wondering. Follow us on twitter (@memphisredbirds) and check back here for updates on our Boys of Fall. You can also follow the Arizona Fall League games pitch-by-pitch over on MiLB.com. Games start at 1:35 p.m. CT so if you're bored at work or like us and get to say it's part of your job check it out.


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Quayle: wide appeal but untried on national stage
| New Orleans
DAN Quayle is handsome enough to compare with Robert Redford, young enough to call George Bush ``pops,'' conservative enough to make Jerry Falwell happy, and just experienced enough to become the next vice-president of the United States. All of which, GOP tacticians hope, will ensure that the White House remains in Republican hands come January. Though presidential candidates protest that they seek a running mate who would make a first-rate president, the selection of a vice-presidential candidate is, first and foremost, an exercise in political strategy. And as such, Senator Quayle's selection as Mr. Bush's running mate constitutes a dramatic effort to strengthen support for the Republican ticket where it needs it most.
``He's got a track record appealing to all kinds of people - conservative Republicans, Reagan Democrats, women, moderates,'' says Mark Helmke, a GOP political consultant who has closely watched Quayle's political career. ``Quayle is a very versatile politician.''
Above all, he is a very conservative one. Quayle served only two terms in the House of Representatives before riding into the Senate on Ronald Reagan's coattails in 1980, unseating Indiana's venerable liberal senator, Democrat Birch Bayh, in the process. Since then, he has established himself as one of President Reagan's most loyal supporters in the Congress, generally voting up and down the line with the administration on matters of foreign and domestic policy.
Moreover, an early reputation as a photogenic featherhead - a stigma that stuck, perhaps unfairly, during his years in the House - has been largely dispelled by his efforts on the Senate Armed Services Committee, where he has emerged as a leading advocate of a strong military and of high defense expenditures. Most recently, Quayle led the fight against a defense spending bill that President Reagan ultimately vetoed, in part, because its funding levels were too low.
In other areas, too, Quayle has established himself as an active presence in the Senate. Earlier this year, he strengthened his conservative credentials by leading the fight in the Senate against a bill requiring 60-days notice of plant closings. In 1986, Quayle championed the nomination of South Bend, Ind., lawyer Daniel Manion to be a federal appeals court judge. After a nasty partisan feud, the nomination was approved when Bush cast the tie-breaking vote.
So his selection as the party's vice-presidential nominee is a salve to those conservatives who had been less than delighted at the thought that the moderate George Bush might select a similarly inclined running mate. ``I couldn't be more grateful,'' gushed Mr. Falwell. Added Sen. Gordon Humphrey (R) of New Hampshire: ``It will energize conservatives and that's very important.''
More than that, however, the Bush campaign is hoping that Quayle's popularity with women and moderates in Indiana will carry nationally and will provide Bush with much-needed boost among those groups. And, as important as that appeal is, many Republican strategists believe there is nothing about Quayle's candidacy that is quite so compelling as his potential appeal to young people. At 41, Quayle would be one of the youngest vice-presidents in US history if sworn into office in January.
``They are not a monolithic bloc, if someone could get the lion's share of the [youth] vote, it's an automatic win. I do think there will be a certain amount of pride and excitement generated in large segments of that group because this is the first time that anyone in that generation has run for national office,'' says Bush campaign manager Lee Atwater. ``He's a phenomenon, which is going from nowhere to somewhere.''
Actually, it is less than accurate to characterize Quayle's origins as ``nowhere.'' While it is true that he grew up in a small community in Indiana, he also grew up in a family that controls one of the country's largest publishing fortunes.
Nor could Quayle ever have been characterized as a ``failure'' from which he could become a shining ``success'' - at least, not in the sense that, say, Harry Truman became President after bankrupting himself as a haberdasher. Graced with a handsome face, a winning personality, and wealthy parents, Quayle himself admits to having led a charmed life, once telling an interviewer that the only thing he could recall ever losing was an election at a college fraternity.
Indeed, Quayle's childhood sounds like a full season of ``Mayberry, R.F.D.,'' except that Mayberry never had a family like the Quayles that controlled a trust estimated by Forbes magazine at $650 million. In any event, Quayle's Mayberry was the town of Huntington, Ind. - reasonably conservative, mostly white, mostly protestant, mostly middle-class. Like their neighbors, the Lian church.
Quayle's elementary school principal, Everett Goshorn, describes him as a ``bright youngster,'' a toe-head kid who liked to run through the fields and ice skate on the pond. In high school, Quayle was on the golf team and wrote for the school paper. He met his wife at Indiana University law school. Naturally enough, he was being groomed for the newspaper business. Politics was never a consideration.
Until 1976, that is. That year, the local Republican candidate for the House unexpectedly dropped out of the race. Party regulars, left casting about for an available alternative, asked Quayle, who was then working as the associate editor of the Huntington Herald-Press, to run. Quayle said yes.
He was the clear underdog against an entrenched Democrat, Edward Roush. ``No one even wanted to run against Roush,'' says Janet Houghton, a childhood friend. ``Danny's father didn't think he had a prayer.'' Still, Quayle plunged into areas of the Fourth District, which had weak ties to Democrats and where voters were receptive to the appeal of a fresh, young face. With the support of evangelicals and disaffected suburbanites, he slid to victory.
Since then, Quayle has become something of a political phenomenon in Indiana. His 1980 victory over Senator Bayh was close, though decisive. His reelection in 1986, however, came by the largest margin of any senator in Indiana's history, and it was facilitated by support of the very sorts of voters that the Bush campaign hopes to attract.
Yet for all this Quayle remains very much of an untested political commodity, so much so that political allies back home were a bit dazed at the news of his imminent nomination. ``While he's a very popular guy in Indiana, he doesn't have a national constituency,'' points out Indiana Lt. Gov. John Mutz. The astonishment was shared by other constituents as well. In downtown Indianapolis, says Brian Vargus, director of the Public Opinion Laboratory of Indiana University at Indianapolis, ``working people ... were just sort of shaking their heads.''
Indeed, Quayle has yet to be subjected to the rough-and-tumble that a truly brutal campaign - such as the one that the coming presidential contest promises to be - can inflict. His House race victories came in an area where his family name was well known. His first Senate victory was based on a theme - ``a new generation of leadership'' - that fit in nicely with the national political currents that swept Reagan and the Republican Party to victory that year. His reelection in 1986 - over the challenge of a Valparaiso, Ind., city councilwoman - was a foregone conclusion.
Moreover, his record in Congress has yet to be subjected to the sort of scrutiny that the Democrats and the press will inevitably apply. The only ripple of scandal in his private life concerns a weekend in 1980 with a trio of lawmakers, one of whom had a liaison at the time with a female lobbyist, who was working against a crop insurance bill. All three later voted against the bill, though all three denied that the lobbyist, Paula Parkinson, had influenced their votes. Quayle, meanwhile, was not accused of any assignations.
But his record as a senator could be held up to some potentially effective ridicule by the Democrats. The plant-closing bill Quayle fought against, for example, was finally signed by President Reagan, reportedly after a plea from Bush. Twice last year, Quayle joined a small band of conservatives voting against a bill to restrict federal funding of institutions that discriminated on the basis of sex, race, age, or handicap. Quayle and his fellow conservatives argued that such a bill would increase federal intrusion, expand abortion rights, and trample on religious freedom.
Indeed, the attacks have already begun. Hours after the announcement of Quayle's nomination, a Democratic staff member of the Senate Armed Services Committee offered a reporter a snippet from a floor debate late last year over a massive defense spending bill. In the debate, Quayle was opposing a Democrat-sponsored provision to ban anti-satellite weapons tests, partly because such weapons had proved to be such an effective defense for the US against Soviet attack in the best-selling novel, ``Red Storm Rising'' by Tom Clancy.
``At least,'' said the staff aide. ``We know he can read.''
Sen. Dan Quayle: a biographical sketch Born. Feb. 4, 1947, Indianapolis Education. DePauw University, Greencastle, Ind., BA 1969; Indiana University, Bloomington, Ind., JD 1974. Military career. Indiana National Guard, 1969-75. Occupational history. Indiana attorney general's office, 1970-71; administrative assistant to Gov. Edgar Whitcomb, 1971-73; Indiana Department of Revenue, 1973-74; associate publisher, Huntington (Ind.) Herald-Press; lawyer. Family. Wife, Marilyn Tucker Quayle (a lawyer); three children. Religion: Presbyterian. Political career. US House, 1977-81; US Senate since 1981. Congressional committees: Armed Services, Budget, Labor, and Human Resources. Views on social and foreign policy issues Abortion. Opposes federal funding of abortion, except in cases of incest or rape. Civil Rights Restoration Act. Opposed initial passage and a subsequent override of presidential veto. Contras. Supports military aid to the Nicaraguan rebels. Death penalty. Favors capital punishment for drug dealers. Farm aid. Advocates drought relief for farmers. Military. Favors Strategic Defense Initiative; voted for INF Treaty, banning intermediate-range nuclear missiles. South Africa. Supports limited sanctions against South Africa. Key Senate votes 1983 Overturn Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion Yes Allow chemical weapons production Yes Create Martin Luther King Jr. holiday Yes Bar funding for MX missile No 1984 Permit school prayer Yes Keep tax indexing Yes Retain funds for ``star wars'' defense research Yes 1985 Produce MX missiles Yes Weaken gun control laws Yes Reject school prayer No Limit textile imports No 1986 Amend Constitution to require balanced-budget amendment Yes Aid Nicaraguan contras Yes Block chemical weapons production No Impose sanctions on South Africa Yes 1987 Override Reagan's veto of highway bill No Mandate retaliation against unfair trade practices No Limit testing of antiballistic missiles in space No Continue compliance with SALT II missile limit No Confirm Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork Yes Reject plan to place nuclear dump in Nevada No SOURCE: CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY


text: As noted in Wired yesterday, tragedy in chaos writes, "Senator and Presidential-hopeful John McCain has managed to get a new bill signed into law, in the hope of ridding online social networks of the sexual predation of children. The 'Keeping the Internet Devoid of Sexual Predators Act of 2008,' as it is called, calls for a database to be made in which all registered sexual offenders must also register their e-mail addresses so that MySpace, Facebook, etc. can run current and hopeful users through it, and eliminate access to the offenders. Though a noble goal, this is not very well thought out in methodology. They are asking known criminals to be honest, and are expecting them not to utilize any of the free and readily available e-mail services that exist so as to circumvent the system. There is also a potential for the crafty sex offender to possibly cause false positives by just registering an address that does not belong to them, thereby drawing in innocent bystanders."Read more of this story at Slashdot.


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Orion Samuelson and Steve Bridge have a post-show conversation where they discuss farm meetings, travel, increase in pork price and the role of bankers.
Over a Cup is a weekly tradition where show hosts Orion Samuelson and Max Armstrong cover items they didn't have time to discuss during the show. Often they are joined by meteorologist Greg Soulje, and sometimes other guests for deeper conversation. The topics or Over a Cup can range far and wide, and offer insights into key topics from these veteran agriculture broadcasters.


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Normally I post the Poetry Friday link at the bottom of the episode, but I wanted to make sure all of you know that you can find more poetry each and every Friday at the Poetry Friday Round-up. This week Laura Purdie Salas is hosting at Writing the World For Kids. If you'd like to know more about Poetry Friday, click HERE for an explanation by Renee LaTulippe.
Hello, Great Readers of our series! Just In case you haven't visited before, let me tell you a little about A Great Nephew and A Great Aunt. My great nephew, Landon (a sixth-grader) and I (his great aunt) collaborate. I write a poem which he illustrates. We started this collaboration in the fall of 2014 and have had so much fun with it that we decided to invite others along. Landon and I will continue to have a new episode on the second Friday of each month. The other Fridays are filling up quickly with guests. I have created a page on my website to view all the episodes of A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt. Click HERE to visit the page and enjoy past episodes.
Since it's a second Friday, Landon and I are up!
The Poem
The Art
When Landon's mom sent me his art, she happened to mention that S'mores are one of Landon's favorite desserts. No wonder his S'more drawing is heavenly 🙂
(By the way, don't forget to look for Landon's "signature" hidden object! I admit that I completely missed it and suggested to his mom that he might want to add it. But she let me know it was there—just hidden very well.)
Thanks so much for joining us today. Come back next week for a new guest episode.


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6100 Mason-Montgomery Road|Mason, OH 45040|513-398-5025
During MHS's first semester, 602 students were at school every day and earned a chance to win cash from the Greater Cincinnati Credit Union. This marks the eleventh year that GCCU has sponsored the Perfect Attendance Program at MHS. Russ Henry from GCCU presented $100 to each of the honorees. The company donates $1,200 each semester for twelve students who maintain perfect attendance. GCCU also provides lunch to the winners and their guests during the awards ceremony, which was held on Tuesday, December 12.
The second semester's twelve GCCU winners were freshmen Collin Fleming, Nathan Schaufele, and Ann Vettikkal, sophomores Sophia Barker, Nicholas Flood, and Drashti Patel, juniors Jeremy Capehart, Madeline Fago, and Benjamin White, and seniors Joseph Deaton, Connor Garry, and Elissa Santoleri.
Also present to congratulate the students and their parents were MHS Assistant Principal Brandon Rompies, Guidance Counselor Sally Clark, Truancy Officer Rick Huff, and Mary Steed and Robert Talifero from the Warren County Probate-Juvenile Court.


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If you're in the habit of making New Year's resolutions, perhaps you've made familiar promises like losing weight, running a 5k race or joining a gym. How about this one: "I resolve this year to take better care of my teeth." Better yet, you needn't wait for the next January 1st — you can begin better oral hygiene habits today.
Although maybe not as glamorous as other self-improvement habits, oral hygiene still promises huge benefits not only for your teeth and gums, but also for your general health and possibly your wallet. Daily brushing and flossing reduces your risk of tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease, which can in turn reduce your long-term dental care costs. Besides, clean teeth just look better!
If brushing your teeth hasn't been a regular habit for you, here are a few tips to get you on the right track:
Pick the right brush. For most people, a soft bristled, multi-tufted toothbrush is the best choice. If you're not sure what kind of brush to use, ask us for recommendations.
Look for the basics in toothpaste. Store shelves are filled with toothpastes promising everything from teeth whitening to tartar control. Just be sure of two things: that the product contains fluoride (proven to reduce the risk of tooth decay) and it has the American Dental Association's Seal of Approval. If you have sensitive teeth, ask us about toothpaste options that address this or other special situations.
Easy does it with the technique. Over-vigorous brushing can harm your teeth's enamel and cause gum recession. Hold the brush handle between your fingertips with no more pressure than you would hold a pencil. Position the brush-head at the gum line at about a 45-degree angle and gently clean all your tooth surfaces. If you're trying this approach for the first time, the task should take about two minutes.
Visit your dentist twice a year to keep on track. Think of your dental healthcare team as your "personal trainers" in oral hygiene. Besides monitoring your overall dental health and removing hard to reach plaque through semi-annual cleanings, they'll also coach you on your new lifetime habit of better oral hygiene.
If you would like more information on oral hygiene, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article "Oral Hygiene."


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I am a download junkie. There's no denying it – the 28,000+ songs on my hard drive weren't all ripped from my CD collection that now does little more than keep one of the basement walls from being bare. A healthy chunk of my music has known no other home but the computer and isn't likely to find its way to disc. Occasionally I still buy a CD (they still make 'em, can you believe it?), but generally out of necessity – some of the stuff is obscure enough that I can't find it to download.
Still, I get nostalgic for my former music buying habits – paying for an actual, tangible object that might have even required unwrapping. Hmm…I guess a benefit of the mp3 is that you don't have to wait for your fingernails to grow before you can get the shrink wrap off a CD. How about those awful plastic cases CDs and cassettes used to come in that required super human strength or a machete to open?
I've survived a few music formats. Beyond 45 records, my first-ever album music purchase was a K-Tel compilation eight track. That might evoke more than a few chuckles, but there's even more ammo when it comes to the cassette department, considering my first venture into the tape world was the Xanadu soundtrack. I am proud of my first CD buy – Marillion's Clutching at Straws, even if I didn't own a CD player when I bought it. I already had the cassette, but the CD had a bonus track and my buddy across the hall in the dorm let me play it on his CD player.
In my pre-digital adult life, Tuesdays were weekly holidays since that's when new releases came out. In my college days, the only game in town was (shudder) Wal-Mart, but I occasionally hopped a ride with a buddy to Streetside Records thirty minutes away. In post-college days, my musical hunts often took me to Westport. For those unfamiliar with the Kansas City area, Westport is the kind of neighborhood where, well, there were lots of used record shops. My favorite was Music Exchange. It was one of those places that smelled of dust from the crates of old records and whose door and windows were wallpapered with notices of when and where local bands were playing.
Once the CD dominated, my most frequent stop was Disc Traders. Neither would win a best-name contest, but at the latter they knew me by name, knew my tastes well enough to make recommendations, and weren't wearing brightly-colored smocks and asking if I needed a shopping cart. It was a relief to know that even in suburbia, I could hit a store that didn't have a TM after their logo – or even a logo for that matter.
Wrapped or unwrapped, once the acquisition was home or in the car, I'd check out the album packaging, read off song titles, peruse the liner notes and lyrics, and plop the thing in for that virgin listen. What really heightened the experience is when the tunes of choice were either 1) new stuff by a favorite act, or 2) a been-on-my-most-wanted-list-forever item.
I can't remember the last time I plopped down cash or credit card on an actual counter instead of clicking on the "Pay Now" button. While grabbing up 7 Worlds Collide on Amazon.com may not be the same as stumbling across that long-sought 3rd Matinee disc (complete with a "For Promotional Use Only" label) at whatever-the-name-of-that-place-was-on-75th-Street, both methods can still elicit joy.
Last Friday, two new Kevin Gilbert CDs greeted me in my mailbox. There hasn't been a "new" KG album since 2002's Kaviar Sessions. Of course, unless you're Elvis, Hendrix, or 2pac, you aren't moving a lot of product from the grave. To the credit of KG's estate, they've released a handful of gems since his untimely passing in 1996, most notably The Shaming of the True in 2000 – my favorite album of the last decade. No worries if you don't know the name – his solo stuff hasn't even scraped the bottom of the Billboard charts. His greatest fame comes from his 1990 Toy Matinee project that sold a few hundred thousand shy of gold on the strength of minor album-rock hit "Last Plane Out" and his stint as one of the under-appreciated musicians behind Sheryl Crow's success with Tuesday Night Music Club. If you're curious about him, check out my Dave's Music Database page on him or go straight to the official KevinGilbert.com website.
However, I digress. The point of this blog wasn't to convert you to KG's music (well, maybe a little), but to simply relive those music buying experiences in era when phrases like "backmasking" and "dropping the needle on a stack of vinyl" dominated instead of "iTunes" and "synching up your musical device." The names and formats in your own collection will vary, but there remains one constant among anyone who's ever bought music – the elation of that perfect purchase, the discovery of a lost treasure, the arrival of a long-awaited must-have. Go ahead and break out that Xanadu soundtrack again – nobody has to know but you.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
The Thrill of the New
1 comment:
- AnonymousNovember 6, 2009 at 9:17 PM
You know, I actually noticed a couple days before I saw your post that there still IS a Streetside Records alive and well in Columbia. There can't be too many left!ReplyDelete
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14 Great Midwest Bike Trails
Iowa: High Trestle Trail
To evoke the sensation of descending into one of Iowa's historical coal mines, 41 steel frames spiral the ½-mile, 13-story bridge traversing Des Moines River Valley. It's even more dramatic at night when blue LED lights on these "cribs" glow. Stop at one of the six observation decks on the bridge to see its supports—pillars from the original train treste—and read about wildlife. The 25-mile trail runs between Ankeny and Woodward. (515) 288-1846; inhf.org
- Photo courtesy of Dave Heilman.
Wisconsin: Elroy-Sparta State Trail
You'll find yourself winding through woodlands, wetlands, farms and fields on this route. Silos and farmhouses are blurs at the edge of the small town of Elroy, where the converted rail-trail begins (60 miles northwest of Madison). You can head out on a multiday adventure, choosing from more than 100 miles that vary in length and difficulty. Three old tunnels add chilly mystery to the easygoing ride. (608) 463-7109; elroy-sparta-trail.com
Nebraska: The Cowboy Trail
Ghosts of the railroad's past dot this trail: bridges, weathered mileposts, a depot and the Neligh Mills gristmill. From Chadron to Norfolk in northern Nebraska, the 321 miles (only 195 miles are finished) will follow what was called the Cowboy Line past farmland, ranches and canyons. Get a bird's-eye view of the Niobrara River from bridges soaring more than 145 feet. bikecowboytrail.com
Michigan: The Little Traverse Wheelway
Stunning scenery (and no hills) link Charlevoix, Petoskey and Harbor Springs as you cut through wooded residential areas and hug portions of Lake Michigan shoreline. The best views on the 26-mile trail are south of Petoskey, but you'll also want to make your way north to explore the sand beaches of Petoskey State Park, where teens bake on towels and families play in the waves of Lake Michigan. (231) 823-0015; michigan.org
Iowa: Trout Run Trail
It's named for the trout hatchery it passes and Trout Run Creek you skirt, but in addition to the sparkling waters, you'll see sculptures and a 7-foot-long mosaic on this 11-mile loop in Decorah. At night, the bridge over State-9 glows with LED lights in colors to suit the seasons. (800) 463-4692; troutruntrail.com
Michigan: Kal-Haven Trail
The romance of small towns, orchards and even a covered bridge beckons from the 34-mile Kal-Haven Trail Bike Trail. Stretching from Kalamazoo to South Haven—thus its name—the former rail bed is now a fine gravel surface with some sections blacktopped. kalhavenbiketrail.com
Illinois: Chicago's Lakefront Trail
Extending 18 miles from Hollywood Avenue on the north end of Chicago to 71st Street on the South Side, the trail leads cyclists through parks, beaches and gardens. Tourists appreciate that the trail links many of Chicago's big-name attractions, including Buckingham Fountain and Soldier Field. (312) 744-3334; choosechicago.com
Indiana: Pumpkinvine Nature Trail
Named for its many curves and turns, the 26-mile trail takes in tidy farms, rustic wooden bridges and the bubbling creeks of Amish Country in Elkhart, Middlebury, Goshen and Shipshewana. pumpkinvine.org
Missouri: Katy Trail State Park
This 240-mile, rails-to-trails bike route runs right through the heart of Missouri—its fields, forests, rivers and towns. Stretching from Clinton to Machens, the trail will eventually encompass 300 miles when it connects Kansas City to St. Louis. The crushed limestone path keeps your pace sedate, which means you'll have plenty of time to enjoy the wildlife (muskrats, turtles, heron); wildflowers; canopies of maple, ash and oak; and the Missouri River. bikekatytrail.com
- Photo courtesy of Daniel Thomas.
Illinois Prairie Path
Contrary to its name, the 61-mile Illinois Prairie Path actually winds cyclists past more ponds, wetlands and forests than prairies. Leaping suburb to suburb out of Maywood (20 miles west of Chicago), riders eventually choose one of four crushed-limestone spurs to end up along the Fox River near Elgin, Geneva, Batavia or Aurora. (630) 752-0120; ipp.org
Indiana: Monon Rail Trail
Just north of Indianapolis, the Monon Rail Trail stretches 7.6 miles from 96th Street to Fall Creek. Dozens of residential neighborhoods and parks line the route. Pack a picnic lunch or grab a bite at one of the restaurants along the trail. (317) 327-7431; visitindy.com
South Dakota: The George S. Mickelson Trail
With peaks towering on all sides, the George S. Mickelson Trail snakes through South Dakota tunnels and across 100 trestles, where trains serving Black Hills gold mines once rumbled. The 109-mile route (named after the state's late governor) follows a century-old railbed from Deadwood south to Edgemont, treating bicyclists to the best of both worlds: mountaintop views and mostly easy pedaling. mickelsontrail.com
North Dakota: The Maah Daah Hey Trail
Pause near the steep drop-offs to drink in the view of the Little Missouri National Grasslands on this 144-mile path. The Maah Daah Hey Trail's northern point is 15 miles south of Watford City (about 180 miles northwest of Bismarck). parkrec.nd.com
- Photo by Kendra L. Williams.
Ohio: Little Miami River Scenic Bike Trail
Starting west of the bridge in Milford and running right through the little town of Loveland (about 25 minutes northeast of Cincinnati), the former railbed has become a tranquil way to tour southwest Ohio. Soak in quaint towns, river views and pretty woodlands as this scenic path plays hide-and-seek with the Little Miami River. littlemiamibiketrail.com


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SALT LAKE CITY – The newest Utah polygamous family featured in a reality TV show says sharing their story with a wide audience has been liberating.
Brady Williams and his five wives were a bit apprehensive ahead of the airing of a pilot episode in September, but they said this week an interview with The Associated Press that it felt liberating to be open about who they are and what they believe.
'It really is like coming out of the closet,' said Brady Williams, 43. 'It's very liberating.'
His wives feel the same way, including his second, Robyn Williams, 40, who said: 'I feel more free to just be who I am and not be so afraid.'
The first of nine episodes of the show, 'My Five Wives,' airs Sunday on TLC. It chronicles the life of Brady Williams, his five wives and their 24 children who live in a small rural community outside of Salt Lake City dominated by a branch of the fundamentalist Mormon church.
The family once belonged to the group, known as the Apostolic United Brethren, but withdrew during the mid-2000s after re-evaluating their core beliefs. Now, they practice polygamy not because they think they must to get to heaven, and avoid hell, but because they prefer the lifestyle.
Their show begins airing in a social and political climate that has softened significantly toward plural families in recent years.
A federal judge in Utah struck down key parts of the state's polygamy laws in December, marking a victory for the Williams and hundreds of other polygamous families in the state. The ruling decriminalizes polygamy, making only bigamy – holding marriage licenses with multiple partners -illegal.
The family that brought that lawsuit against the state of Utah, Kody Brown and his four wives from TLC's 'Sister Wives,' is credited with helping create greater acceptance for plural families. Their show, which debuted in 2010 with footage of the family at their house in northern Utah, was ground-breaking in demonstrating to viewers across the country that not all polygamists are child predators like Warren Jeffs, the imprisoned leader of a polygamous sect on the Utah -Arizona border.
The Williams family members said they don't expect viewers to be surprised by much, other than maybe how similar they are to non-polygamous families. It's normal times five, the family jokes. Viewers will see tears, joy and quarrels, they said.
TLC is banking on viewers being fascinated by the unique dynamics of a plural family: regular family sit-down meetings among the adults where Brady Williams follows an agenda written on a notepad; side-by-side multiplexes where they live; and nightly family dinners where the children line up like kids in a school cafeteria to get their food.
Then there's the always-intriguing dynamic among the wives who share a husband. In the first episode, Brady Williams suggests the women work out their issues directly with one another rather than always coming to him, only to see it lead to hurt feelings and shouting.
Among the topics discussed by the family during the season is a possible move out of Utah, maybe even to Washington state.
The Browns of 'Sister Wives' fled Utah for Las Vegas after their show aired under the threat of prosecution from a county official. The Williams aren't terribly worried about that happening to them, as long as the recent court ruling stands. But they say they don't feel welcomed in the tight-knit community where almost everyone but them belongs to the church.
'There haven't been any overt acts of disapproval,' Brady Williams said. But he added: 'We want to be able to feel comfortable in our own skin.'
Aaron Bronson, a principal at the school in the community and member of the Apostolic United Brethren, said he doesn't begrudge the Williams family for doing the show. He said the production crews have been respectful, and he's heard no complaints from the Williams family's neighbors.
'If they want to go public with what they believe, it's their choice,' Bronson said. 'It's not something I would choose to do with my family. It's a rocky road.'
Follow Brady McCombs at https://twitter.com/BradyMcCombs


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Late last year San Diego-based TelCentris came on the scene with a powerful (and free) tool offering universal access to virtually all of one's e-mail, IP telephony, social network, and instant messaging connections.
VoxOx gives a user a single interface to access all of these programs, combining all the associated passwords and login names and profiles into a unified dashboard.
With the release of VoxOx 2 this month, TelCentris beefs up that highly successful initial offering with expanding capabilities in the realms of telephony, IM, and social networking. "There were a lot of things that people wanted to see that weren't in the [initial] software," said Kevin Hertz, CTO and co-founder of TelCentris.
VoxOx hit it big from the start. Developers had planned to cap the beta at 5,000 users and they hit that figure on the first day. So far the application has seen 100,000 downloads. Those users have been generous with their feedback, Hertz said.
First off, they were dissatisfied with the visual footprint: The GUI took up too much real estate on the screen. Developers have now streamlined the visuals and made it possible to minimize the box to a smaller size.
The first version ate up memory with eye candy, things like dressy title bars and a busy preferences pane. By taking out the customization and reverting to the operating system defaults, developers gave the interface a more familiar feel and cut memory requirements by one-third, Hertz said.
The download size is down one-third too, from its original 120 megabytes.
These mechanical changes topped the must-do list. VoxOx needed to be more comfortable before it could be more muscular. It's in the substantial new features, though, that VoxOx 2 begins to differentiate itself.
Hertz's favorite is the personal assistant. This virtual presence answers calls and tracks down recipients based on pre-set criteria. Family calls might ring all phones at once, for example, while business calls may be routed to desk or cell during business hours. Users also can personalize the rings that callers hear.
The new-and-improved version also offers an on-demand feature set that includes ad hoc conferencing. "You can be driving in your car or sitting in a hotel in France and you can make a 20-person conference call," Hertz said.
The system also can record calls on demand, and can transfer conversations seamlessly between laptop, cell phone, and desktop. "These are all done on the fly and they are done on any phone that you are talking on," Hertz said. "And we are giving away every one of these things for free."
Users can opt to pay for certain added features, as part of VoxOx's overall business plan. They can buy unlimited calling plans, for instance, or pay a penny a minute to call within the U.S. and Canada using a VoxOx-assigned phone number. Users will soon have the option to watch ads and receive compensation from advertisers.
As a CLEC (def.), TelCentris offers users their own phone numbers, and as with any CLEC the company receives compensation from the connecting phone company any time a call comes in.
Overall, Hertz said he expects only about 2.5 percent of personal users to ever opt to pay for any service within VoxOx.
At the same time, TelCentris is laying the groundwork for VoxOx adoption among the potentially more lucrative business community.
"We have prepared VoxOx in such a way that it is primed to be used as a business tool," Hertz said. The system is robust, secure, and based on open standards, so that any SIP phone will be able to put VoxOx to use.
"As we migrate into that business space we expect to have lots of users who actually want to pay for the service," including phone service, enhanced voice mail, and other business-friendly features, he said.
A broader list of VoxOx 2 enhancements gives a sense of the energy TelCentris is pouring into the product.
Two-way worldwide messaging is new, with free incoming messages or two-cent outbound messages to international destinations.
Penny-a-minute outbound faxing has been added to the service's free inbound faxing.
Instant messaging has been expanded to embrace Facebook, MySpace, and Skype. Users also can use VoxOx to simultaneously update their status amongst all their social networking sites at one time.
Looking across all the enhancements to VoxOx 2, it's clear TelCentris is trying to balance the wants of its individual users with the needs of its anticipated business clientele.
"The younger generation of people who are using this, they like the fun gadgets, they like having the ability to do all of these crazy things," Hertz said. "The business users really like the advanced tools like personalized call routing and conference calling."
VoxOx was a hit in its initial release. If the new version can keep up the momentum, it may be a good indicator of the public's growing desire to sweep together all its virtual desktop communications clutter into a single, unified portal.


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A new year, new semester and newclasses
can only mean one thing: a new YOU! After surviving my first semester as a college student, I am more confident and adjusted and therefore feel as though I can take everything that I learned in the fall and use it to my advantage this spring!
- Where to study: First semester is all about getting acquainted with new surroundings, but once you have experienced studying in the library, a lounge, a local café, etc., it is easy to figure out what suits you best.
For me: The lounge at the bottom of my dorm is quiet and convenient.
- Where to meet guys: In the first few months of school, you meet TONS of new people, but the multitude of new faces won't continue to show up as frequently in the spring. If you want to meet guys, head out to social events, whether that be to a sport game, house party or club on campus.
For me: Sporting events are an easy way to bond over a similar interest while showing school pride.
- Which parties are worth a cold walk in a tight skirt: Let's face it: winters in the north can be very cold and can easily dampen any "party" mood on a Friday night. This is a great place to take into consideration what you experienced first semester. If a certain sports team or frat is known to have great music and an even better crowd, I would throw on jeans and head on over. However, if a house's reputation tends to be focused on creepy guys and dirty floors, I suggest bundling up and heading to bed.


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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida safety Cody Riggs, who started every game last season, will transfer for his final year of eligibility.
Florida head coach Will Muschamp announced Riggs' intentions Wednesday, saying Riggs, a junior from Fort Lauderdale, wants a fresh start.
Riggs is on pace to graduate in May and will be able to transfer and play right away in the fall.
Riggs ranked fourth on the team with 51 tackles in 2013. He also had three pass breakups and 1 1/2 sacks. He played in 40 games in three seasons, totaling 107 tackles, two sacks and an interception.
The Gators also lost safety Jaylen Watkins to graduation, and cornerbacks Loucheiz Purifoy and Marcus Roberson left school early to enter the NFL draft. So without Riggs, Florida will have to revamp much of its secondary.


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To half of your Deadspin editors they're divisional rivals, and to the other half they're "those motherfucking Cowboys," so there's no hidden sympathies here. But should we laugh at Wade Phillips's constant befuddlement and Jerry Jones's impotent rage? Or feel pity?
The Cowboys season is over while the Rangers are still playing baseball. Their fans are setting videos to Yakety Sax, never a good sign:
Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong for a team almost unanimously picked to win their division. Touchdowns called back for blatant holds. Excessive celebration penalties giving opponents short fields. A complete inability to move the ball when it matters. You know who their leading rusher was yesterday? Felix Jones, with 32 yards. (Even sadder, he was their leading receiver as well.)
The other 1-win teams: Detroit, Cleveland and San Francisco. Yet there's little glee taken from their respective failures, even for a 49ers team that was hyped just as much as Dallas. There's a sense of, "oh, sucks to be a fan there." Whence the schadenfreude for the Cowboys?
A third of the teams in the league have won Super Bowls since the Cowboys last did, so they're not the unstoppable juggernaut who wins too damn much. The Packers were a mid-90s mini-dynasty who emerged from dark days to be lovable underdogs, so it's not as if historical trends dictate our rooting interests. Yet there's still plenty of hatred for Dallas.
You know why? Because they're the motherfucking Cowboys. You don't get to dominate a decade with an unlikable team of criminals, monopolize the Thanksgiving day game, have a prickly, senile drunk of an owner who should be a cartoon character, draft and promote a pretty-boy semi-celebrity as your quarterback, build a billion-dollar stadium in the middle of a recession as a monument to a legendary status to which only you subscribe, put a hole in the roof because you're convinced God likes your team, call yourself America's Team, have bandwagon fans around the country, and just generally be insufferable twats who genuinely believe you're some kind of institution that's bigger than the game, and not have the nation dance in the streets when you're piddling around in your own mediocrity.
Yup, the Cowboys almost make you feel sorry for them. Almost.
[Ed. note: You're right, Romo was undrafted. If you think that was the salient point, then you're probably not taking much from this post.]


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Aug. 28, 2009— -- As Jaycee Dugard gets to know her family again after 18 years in depraved captivity, a California sheriff admitted today that his officers booted a chance to rescue Jaycee nearly three years ago.
"We missed an opportunity to bring earlier closure to this situation," Contra Costa County Sheriff Warren E. Rupf said in a news conference today.
"I am first in line .... to offer my apologies to the victims and accept responsibility for missing an opportunity to rescue Jaycee," he said.
Rupf said that a woman called 911 on Nov. 30, 2006 complained that people, including children, appeared to be living in tents in the backyard of Phillip and Nancy Garrido's house in the town of Antioch, Calif. "The caller also said Garrido was psychotic and had a sexual addiction," he said.
By the time of that call, Jaycee had been Garrido's backyard prisoner for more than 15 years and bore two children fathered by him.
A fund has been established for Jaycee Dugard and her two children. Contributions can be sent to Dugard's mother: Terry Probyn, c/o Viewtech, P.O. Box 596, Atwood, Calif. 92811
The sheriff said an officer sent to check out the 911 complaint met with Garrido in his front yard, determined nothing criminal was going on, and left.
"He did not enter or request to enter the backyard," Rupf said. "This is not an acceptable outcome. Organizationally, we should have been more inquisitive, more curious and turned over a rock or two."
The sheriff also said the officer was not aware that Garrido had previously been convicted of kidnap and rape and was a registered sex offender.
"I cannot change the course of events," a contrite Rupf said. "But we are beating ourselves up over this and will continue to do so. I am first in line to offer organizational criticism, and to offer my apologies to the victims, and accept responsibility for missing an opportunity to rescue Jaycee."
The sheriff's statement came as questions were being raised over how Jaycee's ordeal went undetected so long despite at least two visits to the house of horror by law enforcement authorities in recent years.
Dugard, who is now 29, has been reunited with the mother she hasn't seen since she was snatched off a California street at the age of 11. Also at the reunion is her 19-year-old stepsister Shayna, who was 1 when Jaycee disappeared.
"As of this moment we are just reuniting and everything is going well," Shayna wrote in response to a question from ABC News on her MySpace page.
"Shes only 29. She has the rest of her life to live and I have a lot of love to share with my sister and new nieces. In due time my mom will make statements and so will I if needed, but you have to understand this time is critical and the media attention would just add stress to something so delicate."
The message ends with, "Thanks, Shayna."
Aerial photos show that the alleged kidnappers' had neighbors on either side of them and directly behind them. Nevertheless, the secret lives contained in that jumbled back yard of tents, sheds, an abandoned car and appliances remained hidden for nearly two decades.
Police twice knocked at the Garrido's door in the last two years, but didn't notice the secret lair of tents and sheds that allegedly held Jaycee – and later her two daughters – for 18 years.
Contra Costa County Capt. Daniel Terry told ABCNews.com today that authorities from the county's multi-agency task force had visited Garrido as part of routine compliance check, but did not offer any details regarding frequency or how thoroughly the property was checked.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the task force visited the Garrido's Antioch home last summer.
"There were zero signs of kids living there," Antioch Police St. Diane Aguinaga told the Chronicle, adding that authorities looked in the back but saw only a porch and shed.
El Dorado County Undersheriff Fred Kollar on Thursday confirmed that a parole officer had looked in the back, but said the secret yard was hidden by a six foot fence and tall trees. The entrance was concealed by a tarp that had to be pulled aside. If a person didn't know the yard existed, Kollar said, there would be no way to know there was an entrance.
"The way the house is set up, the way the back yard is set up, you could walk through the back yard, walk through the house and never know that there was another set of living circumstances in that back yard," the sheriff said.
And the view by neighbors was also screened. "The tents and outbuildings were strategically placed to inhibit outside viewing," Kollar said.
Neighbors Didn't Notice Jaycee Dugard Was Held Captive
Next-door neighbor Helen Boyer, who Thursday described the Garridos as "nice people," told ABCNews.com today that she was "numb" after learning about the abuse allegedly at the hands of people she'd known for more than 10 years.
"I feel terrible," she said. "When they mentioned the house of horror, it upset us really bad."
Boyer said she had seen three young girls at the house, who she now believes to be Jaycee and her 11-and 15-year-old daughters, but never thought anything was amiss.
She had known for a long time that Garrido was a registered sex offender, but didn't think to call authorities "because it was supposedly Nancy's friend's kids."
Boyer was also shocked to learn about the complicated backyard labyrinth, telling ABCNews.com that it's not visible from her yard even now that she knows about it.
""We have real big backyards and there would be no occasion for me to even look back there. There's a high fence," she said. "If I stood on something I would look over there, but you wouldn't be able to see all the tents."
Another neighbor, Diane Doty, told the Associated Press she could see the tents and often heard children playing in the backyard, the corner of which abuts her own backyard. She said she even suspected the children lived in the tents, but her husband said she should leave the family alone.
Jaycee's family is still reeling from the little girl who disappeared in 1991 is alive, although has had to endure brutal conditions.
Carl Probyn, who had long since given up hope of finding his stepdaughter alive, told "Good Morning America" today that getting reacquainted is going to be a challenge for everyone. Jaycee is largely uneducated, having spent the majority of her life relegated to the Garrido's backyard.
"It's pretty sick," Probyn said. "I feel sorry for Jaycee going through this. The way he's had her locked up in the backyard for basically 18 years."
Jaycee's two daughters with her accused kidnapper, 11 and 15, have never been to school or seen a doctor.
Registered sex offender Phillip Garrido and his wife Nancy have been arrested in connection with the case and charged with kidnapping and rape. Garrido had previously been convicted of kidnapping and rape.
New details emerged in court papers today about Jaycee's ordeal. It was alleged in the documents that a stun gun was used to subdue the girl when she was grabbed off the street.
And in addition to be repeatedly raped over the years by Garrido, the documents alleged that Nancy Garrido also had sex with the girl.
Jaycee Feels Guilt
Jaycee, who had been renamed Allissa, and her two daughters are now with her mother, Terry Probyn, in Northern California.
"My wife says that Jaycee looks good. She looks almost like when she was kidnapped," Probyn said. "She looks very young. She doesn't look 29 at all."
"Jaycee feels really guilty for bonding with this man," Probyn said. "There's really a guilt trip here."
Jaycee was snatched off the street 18 years ago as she waited for the school bus. Probyn heard her scream and saw her get pulled into a grey Ford with a man and a woman. He even chased them down on his bike, but couldn't catch them.
A massive search effort was launched, and Probyn even came under scrutiny. The Probyns' lives were shattered -- the couple moved from their home and their marriage broke up, though they are still legally married.
Though Garrido was monitored by authorities because of his sex offender status and neighbors knew he was spending time around children, it took 18 years for him to make a mistake -- taking Jaycee's daughters to hand out religious material at a local college, where they caught the eye of a police officer.
"He's ruined our lives," Probyn said of Garrido. "Maybe changed his life but it sure screwed ours up. I have no compassion for this guy. He's just out in left field."
Garrido has already begun speaking out, trying to tell his story. In a jailhouse interview with a local television station, he said his story was not one of torture, but of redemption.
"Wait until you hear the story of what took place at this house. You are going to be completely impressed," Garrido said. "It's a disgusting thing that took place with me at the beginning. But I turned my life completely around, and to be able to understand that you have to start there."
Garrido said that having children with Jaycee changed his life and that "they slept in my arms every single night since birth. I never touched them."
His online blog is full of ramblings and notes that he can speak in tongues and control sounds with his mind.
Garrido's brother told ABC News that he used LSD as a teen and met his wife while in prison.
Jaycee Dugard, Children Kept in 'Complete Isolation'
El Dorado County Undersheriff Fred Kollar said in a news conference Thursday that Jaycee had been held captive at a house in Antioch, Calif., since the day she was abducted and that none of their neighbors ever knew.
He described the location as a "hidden back yard" within a larger yard that was arranged in such a way "to isolate the victims from outside contact."
Entrance to the secret yard was guarded by a 6-foot-tall fence, tall trees and a tarp, he said.
Kollar said Jaycee and the two children lived in a series of sheds, including one that was soundproofed and that could only be opened from the outside. In addition, there were two tents in the yard.
"None of the children had ever gone to school, they had never gone to a doctor," Kollar said. "They were kept in complete isolation."
When asked about Jaycee's condition, the undersheriff said, "She is in good health, but living in a backyard for 18 years does take its toll."
"There is nothing to indicate this was anything other than a stranger abduction," Kollar said. "No connection to the family. They literally snatched her off the streets."
Helen Boyer, the Garridos' neighbor for more than 10 years, said she would be completely shocked if it turned out they really were involved with Jaycee's kidnapping.
"There was no girl living next door, as far as I knew," she said.
Boyer said the couple were caregivers to Phillip Garrido's bedridden mother. They would sometimes have three young blonde girls -- friends of the family, she said -- come visit.
"They were real good neighbors," she said. "Real nice people."
Jaycee Dugard's Rescue Gives Hope to Others Whose Children Are Missing
Ernie Allen, president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, told ABCNews.com today that while remarkable, the possible discovery of Jaycee reinforces data that shows kidnappers who are not related to the child typically aren't child killers.
"The Jaycee Dugard case is huge," he said. "There are some people who assume that when a child disappears, there is no hope.
"This provides hope," he said, "for so many searching families."
Many children abducted in the same manner as Jaycee do not have such a happy ending.
Though the country rejoiced when Elizabeth Smart was found alive months after the 14-year-old was snatched, many abducted kids are never heard from again.
One of the most famous missing children cases is that of Etan Patz, the Manhattan boy who disappeared while walking to a school bus in Manhattan in 1979. Despite 30 years of investigations and theories, no trace of the boy has been found.
In June, it appeared that a boy who disappeared in 1955 had turned up alive. John Barnes of Michigan was convinced that he was actually Stephen Damman, snatched from his stroller when he was 2 years old and living on Long Island, N.Y.
Stephen Damman's 78-year-old father, Jerry Damman, became hopeful that he was finally being reunited with his son, but DNA tests dashed his dream.
"It's disappointing and it's too bad we had to go through all of this for actually nothing in the end," Damman said after the results of the tests were revealed.
Steven Stayner also was a prominent case of a kidnapped boy. He was a California boy who was snatched at the age of 7 in 1972. Nine years later, he went into a police station after his captor had grabbed another boy.
"I know my first name is Steven," he told police.
Stayner's story later became a television movie.
More recently, in 2007, Shawn Hornbeck, and a second missing boy were found in Kirkwood, Mo., after Hornbeck allegedly had been held prisoner for four years after vanishing from a St. Louis suburb at age 11.