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I'm glad you mentioned this. Rotten Tomatoes led me to Sunset Boulevard, and I was thinking of watching it - would it be a complete waste of time?
I know nothing about "Blackboard Jungle" except that it's "the other" teen-angst film from 1955 that I was going to watch, along with "Rebel Without a Cause." The notorious high school principal, Mr. Warneke, is played by John Hoyt, who you'll find playing the Chief Medical Officer on the Starship Enterprise before Dr. McCoy came along in the "Star Trek" series pilot, "The Cage." (don't forget, the central action in "The Cage" takes place thirteen years before most of the current cast has come into the picture). It's amazing how many character actors you become familiar with over time - in this movie is someone I've encountered several times recently: "The Maytag Repairman," Jesse White, not credited in this film, but pictured here to the left of Glenn Ford (our right). White was in so many things I've seen lately that I'm thinking of giving him his own thread: And who's that in the glasses playing the student named Santini? It's Jameel Farah in his film debut. Interestingly, the Lebanese-American Farah (born in Toledo, OH) used his real birth name in this film; he eventually changed his stage name to Jamie Farr. You know how people say "the good old days were only old; they were never good?" This is one example of something that's both old *and* good: an ethnic actor unafraid to use his birth name for fear of being ostracized. So many famous actors, like this student, Artie West in the film, to the left of the column with curly hair and a cap on: Unfortunately, this actor, Vic Morrow - like James Dean - became more famous for how he died than how he lived. The opening of this film is a virtual parade of future Hollywood stardom, like that kid in the restroom smoking a cigarette: Twelve years later, he'd have the most successful year in all of Hollywood, winning Best Actor for "In the Heat of the Night" (yep: Sidney Poitier). Then, much later in the film, comes along Richard Deacon for a cameo: *** SPOILERS FOLLOW *** With about thirty minutes left, Richard Dadier (Glenn Ford) went from being completely ostracized by his students - with his wife threatened - to borderline accepted, for seemingly no reason. Perhaps it's Miller (Sidney Poitier) who was finally won over, and Miller is (as has been implied the entire film) leader of the gang, so to speak. The transition just seems a little abrupt to me, but regardless, it takes a *lot* of stress off of the viewer. This all happens shortly after Dadier walks in on Miller's gospel group, singing about Moses - a side of Miller that has not yet been seen before (it should be remembered that this film was released just one short year after Brown vs. Board of Education was decided). I've been negligent in not mentioning Dadier's lovely wife Anne (played by Anne Francis). Easily the main sub-plot of the film, Anne wants Richard (Glenn Ford) to move to a better school, with students who are more receptive, but she does have a secret ulterior motive: She has started to get anonymous letters, warning her about another woman - as far as the viewer can tell, these letters are absolutely untrue, and are efforts from the students to destroy Richard - that's why it's a little surprising that this all started happening right around the same time he was becoming accepted by them. With only thirty minutes left in the film, it's going to be interesting to see how this all plays out. I have a hunch that it might be Lois Hammond herself ("the other woman") sending these letters, because she might have a crush on Richard. I say that, yet it's clearly a man who has called twice to warn the (expecting) wife, and that man is shaping up to be Miller (Poitier) - why on earth would he be doing this when Richard has shown absolutely *no* sign of infidelity? Maybe Miller really *does* want Richard to get the hell out of this school, and teach somewhere he can be appreciated - that would be fitting, because Dadier has been good to Miller this entire film, and Miller knows it. I'm writing this paragraph about ten minutes after the last one - Artie West (Vic Morrow) has quietly been perhaps the strongest supporting actor in this movie, and the producer and director have *very* cleverly led the viewers to follow their own biases down one street, when it has been West all along that was the source of all troubles (although I was almost certain West was the one who slugged Richard in the alley). Vic Morrow should have been nominated for Best Supporting Actor if he wasn't, because he is *terrific* in this film. About the *only* over-the-top element (and I'm just about at the end) was when Santini (Jameel Farah) stopped West's attack with the American Flag - that was awfully heavy-handed, but I can give this fantastic movie one mulligan. Props also go to Rafael Campos who played Latino student Pete Morales - he was yet another quietly brilliant actor in this movie. If "Blackboard Jungle" was Poitier's springboard to Hollywood stardom (and his career began almost a decade earlier, so it might not have been, but *if* it was), it's perfectly understandable, because he comes across as the type of actor who America would embrace for his role in this film. He was brilliant, but so were any of a dozen other people - even small roles, such as Richard and Anne's doctor (Warner Anderson) were just brilliantly played. It's funny, I thought that the principal, Mr. Warneke (John Hoyt) was going to have such an influential role in this film, but he did almost nothing (which, in-and-of-itself, was *very* influential in terms of how the high school was run), but in terms of the movie, he was nearly non-existent, and it was the command performances of so many other actors that made "Blackboard Jungle" leaps-and-bounds better than "Rebel Without a Cause" - the former is *so* much better than the latter, that they really can't be compared; one is a period piece - a "Catcher in the Rye"-type piece of pablum, famous only for James Dean; the other, "Blackboard Jungle," is one of the finest films I've seen - easily the best "50s-era problem-teen" film I've ever watched, and if this wasn't nominated for Best Picture, and if several people weren't nominated for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, then that's criminal. Do yourself a favor and watch this movie at all costs. I'm not going to "rank" it, but I will say that it's one of the finest movies I've ever seen - top 20? top 30? I don't know ... just see it, trust me and see it. People say this film is dated, and a product of its time; I think it's underrated, and way ahead of its time - it is *so much* more important than "Marty," which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, and the acting is *so much* better than it was in "Rebel Without a Cause," which had a lot more nominations - the academy simply wasn't ready for this type of movie in 1955. It's time for "Blackboard Jungle" to have a renaissance.
Yet another film that I've always wanted to watch, but never have, "Rebel without a Cause" is such an American icon that even the title alone breeds familiarity. I'm not sure I've ever seen a film with James Dean in it before, either. Dean stars as Jim Stark, Natalie Wood co-stars as Judy, and Sal Mineo is in a supporting role as John "Plato" Crawford. Other famous names include Jim "Mr. Magoo" Backus as Frank Stark, Dennis "Blue Velvet" Hopper as Goon, and Edward "Sorry About That, Chief" Platt as Ray Fremick - what an all-star cast this was! And there was plenty more talent in this picture, too - you might even recognize Jesse "The Maytag Repairman" White in an uncredited role as a policeman, questioning Sal Mineo early on. The title instantly reminds of Marlon Brando's line in "The Wild One," in which Kathie Bleeker asks Johnny Strabler, "What're you rebelling against, Johnny?" To which Brando replies, "Whaddya got?" I had never before heard of a Sam Browne before this scene: From what I've seen so far, it's no coincidence that this "teen angst" film came out just four years after J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye" (which, incidentally, may be the most overrated book I've ever read - at least, that's my interpretation of it upon first reading - if anyone can convince me otherwise, I'll have another go at it at some future point, but I found it very dated and painfully boring). "The Wild One," Rock-N-Roll music ... this is all Post-WWII expression, I suppose. I hate to say it, but we almost *need* another World War to remind ourselves of just how good we have things (and no, I'm not hoping for another World War, because the cost of that lesson would be far too expensive). Wow, this movie is more intense than I thought it would be, and from what I see in the scene where Jim's tires are slashed, he's a rebel *with* a cause - a very solid cause. Buzz Gunderson (played by Corey Allen) is a real shit-and-a-half, and why Jim agreed to go for round two after he so decisively won round one is beyond me. The editing (and cinematography) in this film is really good - it has a "slashy" feel to it, which mirrors a knife fight. Also, the juxtaposition of family problems (between families) is really effective at telling separate, but similar, stories. With 45 minutes left in the movie, I'm starting to wonder if "Rebel Without a Cause" means something entirely different than what I always assumed it meant. Jim has plenty of reason to be a "rebel" (if that's even the right word for it); but there was no good "cause" that should have made him this way. Restated, there was no justifiable "cause" that Jim should have become so troubled - and here I thought that James Dean was going to be a Marlon Brando-type character (in "The Wild One") - rebelling without any end game in mind, rebelling simply for the sake of rebelling. It's the difference between asking "What caused the rebel?" and "What's the rebel's cause?" Yes, he had a lousy family life, but that was a needless situation - it shouldn't have been like that, but, alas, it was. At 1:09 in the movie (on Amazon Prime), the song playing over the radio - dedicated to Jim from Buzz - is the exact same song in the Bugs Bunny cartoon, "Little Red Riding Rabbit": "The Five O'Clock Whistle." I'm having some trouble figuring out the meaning of the scene in the abandoned mansion with Jim, Judy, and Plato - I understand them needing some refuge, but it's an extended scene, and it doesn't seem like it quite fits in with the rest of the film - I suppose Jim and Judy needed some "alone time" to develop their relationship. Wow, now *Plato* - he was a rebel without a cause. Roger Ebert succinctly pointed out that Plato was gay in this film - something that I didn't pick up on, but I'm almost certain is correct - this shows you why Ebert is such a legendary film critic, and I should probably stick to writing about food and wine. DIShGo (who is watching the movie as I type) pointed out that Plato has a picture of "Shane" in his locker, lending further credence to Plato most likely being gay. You know, I'm observant enough, and I've watched enough films in my lifetime, that I *really* need to be picking up on things such as this - shame on me. This movie left me with some thinking to do - I'm not sure that I just watched a great film; I am certain that I just watched an important piece of Americana. It is certainly fitting that the movie ended where it was shortly after it began - in the planetarium, where the lecturer essentially gave an Existentialist talk about mankind. Foreshadowing? Oh, yeah. Rebel Without a Cause was also the final Hollywood film played by Marietta Canty, an important Black-American actress we should all know about.
You have two choices when watching "The Wild One": 1) Watch it through the eyes of older people who lived through The Great Depression and World War II, and were genuinely afraid of seeing society unravel and go to hell in a handbasket, or 2) roll your eyes, and scream aloud, about fifty times, "My *God* this is dated!" "The Wild One" is so dated that it comes across as a parody of itself. The acting is so overwrought, and the dialogue is so corny that it comes across as being about as rebellious as "Rock Around the Clock." One of the leaders of the Black Rebels Motorcycle Club is Jerry Paris, who played the dentist in "The Dick Van Dyke Show" - I'm sorry, but seeing Rob Petrie's next-door neighbor Jerry Helper in a black leather jacket is just not that frightening. Clocking in at just under an hour and twenty minutes, "The Wild One" seems interminable. You have to acknowledge its influence as the first-ever biker flick, and for Marlon Brando influencing both Elvis Presley and James Dean (and hence, the rebellious 1960s). This film is, at once: terrible, important, influential, dated, forward-looking, inane, and ridiculous. Marlon Brando's stunt-double was *so obvious* that it was, at times, laughable, as he didn't look anything like Brando, and the transitions between Brando and his stunt-double were very poorly done, and not edited well at all. If you want to watch a movie for a good time, take a pass on "The Wild One"; if you want to be a good film scholar and watch a historically important movie, then go for it. That's about the best I can do for you - I felt like I was watching an episode of "Route 66," and not a particularly good one, either. --- But there is this legendary quote: Kathie Bleeker: "What're you rebelling against, Johnny?" Johnny Strabler: "Whaddya got?" --- The Hollister Riot, the staged picture of which - in Life Magazine - influenced the whole biker genre.
I had never before seen "Ordinary People," a quadruple Oscar winner for 1980 which included the award for Best Picture. This was Timothy Hutton's first major role, and because of that, he was nominated for (and won) the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor even though, in my mind, he clearly had the lead role in this film. I'm not sure how nominees are made, but perhaps it's the motion-picture companies that submit entrants to the Academy for consideration, and Paramount neither billed, nor perhaps nominated, Timothy Hutton as a lead actor due to his inexperience - while Donald Sutherland was extremely strong, it was Hutton who made this film what it was. Mary Tyler Moore, to me, will always be Laura Petrie, and to some, she will always be Mary Richards, both slightly neurotic, but lovable, characters in polar opposite roles (the former, a homemaker; the latter, a career-oriented woman) - but in both cases, slightly neurotic and intentionally a bit silly. I have since seen her in two major roles in motion pictures ("Thoroughly Modern Millie" and now "Ordinary People"), and in both roles, she seemed completely out of her element - yes, she's typecast to me, and there's nothing I can do about it, just as Leonard Nimoy will always be Spock, and therein lies the difference between "bias" and "prejudice" - prejudice is something that is much, much more difficult to overcome, and goes deeper than a simple "preconceived notion." The music in Ordinary People was "composed" (more appropriately, "arranged") by Marvin Hamlisch, and aside from an extremely astute and clever use of Pachelbel's Canon, which clearly represented Timothy Hutton and Friends reliving the same agonies over, and over again, without a logical endpoint, there wasn't much "there" there - in fact, there was a particularly cloying violin solo during a sad moment to which I said, aloud, "They can lose the violin anytime now." Ordinary People is a great movie - whether or not it merits being named "Best Picture" is up for debate, as two of its competitors were, in my mind, *clearly* superior films: "Elephant Man" and "Raging Bull," both of which were not just "great," but transcendent.
There are some movies that are so bad, they are good. "Five, isn't one of them. "Five" is simply bad. It is a low-budget film that looks like one. Writer, producer and director Arch Obolor used recent graduates from the University of Southern California film school as his crew, and it shows. Oboler's own home, an unusual Frank Lloyd Wright design, is the setting for most of the film. This interesting house is the highlight of the movie, for me. Five is the number of people remaining on earth following an atomic bomb disaster. It has been written that this film is the first to deal with a post-apocalyptic world, which makes watching it seem less like a complete waste of time. There are huge holes in the implausible plot. The actors seem to have been given very little direction. There is one woman remaining at the end of the world, and four men. Two handsome guys fight for the hand of this mother-to-be, who is committed to learning if her husband survived. She has the personality of a rock, yet the men all want her. I suppose that is what happens when you are the last woman on earth. The other characters are stereotypes. There is one funny scene--the only time "Five" crosses over into the so-bad-it-is-good category--where the evil Russian runs away, bumping into and nearly toppling a large, supposedly solid outdoor mailbox. There is another scene, involving the mother and her child, that was almost good. But one scene a movie does not make. Unless you are interested in the evolution of post apocalyptic films, I would suggest skipping this one.
I'd never seen the entire film "Reefer Madness," a propaganda, "˜Tell Your Children'-type film about the evils of Marihuana [sic], originally written as a moralistic, over-the-top piece financed by a church group. Most people here, I suspect, have seen clips of people toking on reefers, and instantly breaking out into maniacal laughter (which eventually leads to madness and its various forms of depravity), but I suspect many have never watched it "as a film," certainly not at the midnight movies. Well, I tried to do it, and while there are *some* bright moments, as a whole, it fails miserably, and is a long, challenging 68 minutes to get through. Yes, there is a plot, but the acting is horrible (note in particular the piano playing), and I suggest to anyone viewing it as "cinema" rather than as a "cheap laugh," that they memorize the important characters before the movie begins. They often come in pairs, and it's not easy to distinguish them in this black-and-white film. Invest five minutes before you watch: 1) Central Protagonists: Mae Coleman and Jack Perry (the main pushers - "May Jack") 2) Minor Protagonists: Ralph Wiley and Blanche (the transitional college students who became intermediary pushers - Ralph looks a lot like Ralph Fiennes; Blanche has "blanched" hair) 3) Bill Harper and Jimmy Lane (high school students) Mary Lane (Jimmy's sister and Bill's girlfriend - Bill, Jimmy, and Mary have All-American names) 4) Dr. Alfred Caroll, who you'll have no trouble remembering, as he stands alone. If you commit the seven characters in 1) - 3) to memory early on, you'll have an easier time of things, trust me. I thought I could skim through this piece of drudgery, and ended up rewinding over thirty minutes to get the characters straight - a small investment in concentration early on will pay dividends later. Is it as ridiculous as everyone says? Sure, but so were a lot of things back then. As a work of art, it falls short. As a work of propaganda, it also falls short. As a piece of history and culture, it's worth seeing once.


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Emory Healthcare along with partner, HealthFair, is excited to announce the March schedule for cardiovascular screenings in the metro Atlanta area.
The cardiovascular screening plans offered by HealthFair meet the screening guidelines established by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association. Each patient, along with the medical staff, can tailor their screening packages to their specific needs. Details about the screenings can be found at emoryhealthcare.org/screening. This collaboration will provide metro Atlanta communities with greater access to important screening services and to Emory Healthcare physicians and providers.
March 2014 Cardiovascular Screening Schedule
- March 1, Rite Aid, Kennesaw
- March 3, Kroger, Atlanta
- March 4, Publix, Powder Springs
- March 5, Walgreens, Duluth
- March 6, CVS, Acworth
- March 7, Walgreens, Lawrenceville
- March 7, Delmar Gardens of Gwinnett, Lawrenceville
- March 8, Just Fitness 4U Marietta, Marietta
- March 10, Kmart, Canton
- March 11, Kroger, Buford
- March 12, LA Fitness, Roswell
- March 13, Walgreens, Austell
- March 14, Rite Aid, Atlanta
- March 15, Kroger, Decatur
- March 18, Rite Aid, Smyrna
- March 19, Kroger, Atlanta
- March 20, Walgreens, Snellville
- March 21, Walgreens, McDonough
- March 22, Robert D. Fowler Family YMCA, Norcross
- March 25, CVS, Ellenwood
- March 26, Dunwoody Pines, Dunwoody
- March 27, Kroger, Alpharetta
- March 28, Piedmont Church, Marietta
- March 29, CVS, Atlanta
For more information and to register for the specific location for each screening listed above please visit emoryhealthcare.org/screening.
Related Links
- Emory Heart Disease Prevention Center
- Emory Healthcare x HealthFair Mobile Screening Schedule & Appointments
About the Emory Healthcare/HealthFair partnership
In January 2014, Emory Healthcare established a partnership with HealthFair – a national testing provider that brings convenient and affordable health testing to community neighborhoods via its mobile screening buses. HealthFair is a mobile screening company that works with academic medical centers as well as community hospitals across the United States. HealthFair currently offers cardiovascular screenings to organizations and communities in the Atlanta area but will also begin offering mammography screenings in June 2014.
Tags: atlanta heart screening, cardiovascular screening, heart screenings atlanta, mobile health screening, mobile heart screening, mobile screening in atlanta

subset: commoncrawl


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IIE Lisa Zaken Award For Excellence
IIE's scholarship and fellowship program is in place to recognize graduate and undergraduate industrial engineering students for academic excellence and campus leadership. The Lisa Zaken Award For Excellence is available to undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in any school, and pursuing a course of study in industrial engineering. This award is intended to recognize excellence in scholarly activities and leadership related to the industrial engineering profession on campus. Candidates for this award must:-Be active in a student chapter-Have demonstrated leadership and promoted IIE involvement on campus-Have an overall GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale-Have at least one full year of school remaining from the date of nominationStudents may not apply directly for any scholarships. They must be nominated by IE department heads or faculty advisors and nominations must be submitted to the Institute headquarters.For more information or to apply, please visit the scholarship provider's website.
Award Amount: $700
Competitive: Yes
Essay required: Yes


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I worked at The Big Box Store last night, and it was complete Bedlam; people everywhere, stuff everywhere and almost every small child in the place screaming his or her head off. Luckily, it kept me busy enough that I didn't have time to get bored, so the evening went by quickly. However, I observed several things when it comes to shopping and small kids that I'd like to share with you, my 18 Faithful Readers. It's a bit of a rant, so please bear with me.
What follows are, in my humble estimation, a list of guidelines to consider when taking small kids shopping. I know that sometimes you just can't help but take your kid out when they're having a bad day, so what I'm really doing is poking fun at idiots who just don't care about the ramifications of their actions.
#1 – If your baby has a dirty diaper, for the love of all that's holy, please take your kid to the restroom and get him or her some clean drawers. I know that you have important shopping to do but, by delaying the inevitable, you not only make your child and yourself miserable, but also everyone else around you. The desperate screaming is bad enough, but dragging your poor little kid through the store trailing an eye-watering stench behind you is just mean, especially when you walk right by the restroom and look at it and keep walking.
#2 – Please don't drag your small children out to go shopping at 10pm at night for fun. Everyone has times where they have need to make a quick emergency run because they're out of diapers/milk/food/whatever, but taking a leisurely stroll through a busy store with small kids late in the evening just because is insane. Your kid is tired, doesn't want to be there, doesn't appreciate that you dragged him through the toy section and didn't buy him anything, and is now screaming his head off. Wow, amazing how your kid has lungs the size of the Grand Canyon…are you that proud that you like to show them off?
#3 – For those of you who live in any place that is now experiencing a heat wave of 40-50 degrees, like North Dakota, please do not truss your child up as though he or she will be traveling through an apocalyptic blizzard. I see you wearing your light jacket unzipped, no hat, no gloves, and no snow boots. Why, then, do you stuff your child into seven layers of clothes and expect that they will not protest being in their own portable sauna? The angry screaming and frantic tugging at their clothing would be the big clue here.
#4 – I know I've said this before, but it's worth saying it again. Please do not come to My Toy Department for sight-seeing purposes, and bring your small child with you. Unless you have to shop for a gift for some other child, it's not a good idea to tell your kid, "We're going to the Toy Department now, and I'm not buying you anything." All I will say here is that you reap what you sow, buddy. The begging and pleading for a toy, following by angry screaming when you make them leave empty-handed is very predictable, and you knew better. Did you actually think this third time trying that would work? That's right, I remember you.
#5 -My Toy Department is not a babysitting station. Leaving your kid to play with the toys while you shop for TWO HOURS is not only wrong, but the mess they leave behind is a testament to your lack of regard for everyone else. If you needed time alone, leave your kid with a friend or loved one.
#6 – Feed your kid before you come to The Big Box Store, or at least bring a bottle or snacks with you, if you intend on shopping at supper time. Your poor kid is running on empty and hasn't got the ability to hold in the frustration of feeling like he or she is starving to death while you go up and down rows and rows of food that is to be seen, but not eaten at the moment. Your child will not appreciate the long wait in line either. I guarantee that you, and everyone in a quarter mile radius of you, will be much happier if you plan ahead a little.
~~Ok…now I've worked myself into a complete snit. One moment please, while I take a deep breath and calm down. I've arranged to have some familiar Muzak playing while you wait. While I'm getting myself together, you'll be treated to the dulcet tones of Suicide is Painless and The Girl from Ipanema, the two Muzak songs that always play in elevators. Ok…much better now. Thanks for your patience! ~~
Lucky #7 – Pay attention to the full moon. If you see a full moon out, please make every effort to stay home with your small child. You think I'm kidding, but I'm drop dead serious. If you think about it, the Moon controls the tides of our oceans, and our bodies contain a lot of water. It's no wonder The Big Box Store turns into absolute Bedlam on a weekend with a full moon, like this one.
So now, it's early Saturday morning and I am getting ready to go back for more fun and games. The good news is that most people don't take their kids shopping at 8am. They are all sleeping in from staying out too late at The Big Box Store too late last night!


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Exclusive Travel Retail Miniatures Fragrance Set:
Discover Givenchy's most iconic fragrances in a prestigious Travel Exclusive collection. Exclusively dedicated to travellers, this set suggests each fragrance in an individual box:
Eau demoiselle Eau Florale, Live Irresistible Eau de Parfum, L'Interdit Eau de Pafum, Live Irresistible Eau de Toilette Blossom Crush, Dahlia divin Eau de Parfum.
Shop with confidence at World Duty Free
World Duty Free offers exceptional year-round value across its entire product range, so its promise to you is that if you purchase anything from World Duty Free and then find the identical item cheaper on the UK high street within the next 28 days, it will happily refund the difference.
World Duty Free regularly surveys the prices of its fragrance, cosmetics, skincare, spirits, wine and champagne range on the UK high street. An independent company travels the country to find the brands stocked in its airport stores in the shops you typically buy from week-in week-out. It uses these observations to create an Average UK High Street Price; this is the comparison price it shows its savings against.
Typically you will enjoy 20% off the Average High Street Price (where surveyed) on all of World Duty Free's fragrance and non-vintage champagne. You can save up to 50% off selected spirits and you will save the equivalent of VAT on cosmetics, skincare, sunglasses*, watches* and jewellery* (*savings compared to RRP)


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University and Student Version
optiSLang Research Licenses for Universities
As an integral part of your training and research you can use optiSLang with special conditions.
Methods of optimization and stochastic analysis are key components of successful virtual product development in the 21st century. Gaining knowledge about these methods and their integration into the process chain represents an attractive advantage in the development practice. It is therefore essential to integrate sensitivity analysis, multidisciplinary optimization, reliability analysis, robustness assessment and robust design optimization (RDO) into training programs. In regard to this topic, with optiSLang you will teach your students and graduates practice-oriented state-of-the-art technology.
- Complete functional package for robustness evaluation and reliability analysis
- Optimization of non-linear tasks with practical defaults
- Combining of optimization and robustness analysis for robust design optimization
- Sensitivity analysis in large parameter spaces
- Full range of algorithms for optimization and stochastic analysis and their continuous development
- Competent support
Special Offer
In order to provide methods of optimization and stochastic analysis to become an integral part of training and research, we offer optiSLang licenses to public educational institutions for 10% of the standard purchase or leasing price.
Free optiSLang version for students
Dynardo supports you in your studies, bachelor's, master's or doctoral thesis with a marketing license (full version).
- For non-commercial use as part of your studies at a university, we offer students the free use of our software optiSLang.
- The period of validity is 6 months and can be extended up to 6 months if required.
- The student will be obliged to submit a publication presenting the use of optiSLang, for example, at the Weimar Optimization and Stochastiktagen (WOST) or at the CADFEM ANSYS Simulation Conference (CASCON).
- The presentation can have the form of a scientific lecture, article or poster, and can be used by Dynardo for marketing purposes.
Please provide a brief description of your thesis as well as a valid certificate of matriculation.


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George & Martha
Format: 2D
Season: 1, 2
Episodes: 1 to 26
Length: 52 x 11 mins
This animated series is based on the popular books by James Marshall and co-produced with Maurice Sendak, creator of Nelvana's show Seven Little Monsters and acclaimed author and illustrator of Where the Wild Things Are. George And Martha is the sweet story of two best friends who happen to be hippos. These dear, ditzy, down-to-earth hippos, voiced by Academy Award-winner Nathan Lane and renowned Canadian actress and comedienne Andrea Martin, share an enduring friendship that is sometimes trying, sometimes touching, but always tons of fun.


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The other day I was watching True Life on MTV (I know, I know, what a great source of information for a personal finance blog!) and they showed a man who was ALWAYS on his phone or on his laptop. He did not have a good work-life balance at all.
His addiction was so bad that him and his girlfriend went to therapy because he was addicted to work and staying online.
He said he worked 100 hours each week. Whether they were eating, driving, having fun or finding out that they were going to have a child, he was constantly doing work online.
I guess since self-employment is still relatively new to me, I find myself online or on my phone all the time too.
And, just last night, W told me that I'm a workaholic.
That isn't new though. I've always kind of known that I'm addicted to work. [Read more…]


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IN REACTION to the nuclear views of Dr Kelvin Kemm, Fin24 user Gary Koekemoer puts forward an opinion on behalf of NoPEnuke.
Kemm serves on the ministerial Advisory Council on Energy. In an opinion piece Kemm touched on the local economic benefits for Port Elizabeth, why South Africa needs nuclear energy and the safety issues around the programme.
Koekemoer says NoPEnuke represents a small group of concerned citizens within the Nelson Mandela Bay area. They oppose the Thyspunt project on the grounds of affordability, inappropriateness of the site, safety concerns and the actual need within the Eastern Cape.
READ: SA nuclear site set to get green light
Koekemoer writes:
We are associated with Thyspunt Alliance and Amandla Resource Centre and work closely with Greenpeace and Earthlife Africa.
Reading anything nuclear-related written by Dr Kemm is a little like falling down the rabbit hole alongside Alice, into the world of Wonderland. Fairy-tale characters abound – from scaremongers masquerading as Mary Poppins – to nuclear executives in shining armour riding in to save the day. Sorting fact from fiction is always difficult when it comes to advertising.
Dr Kemm is the CEO of Nuclear Africa, whose business interest is to advise companies on how best to set up for opportunities within the nuclear industry. The Rosatom-sponsored public information pamphlets on their website give a clear indication of where the vested interest lies. This is not to negate what Dr Kemm says - rather it is to understand its place.
Nuclear power is first and foremost an industry whose primary objective is to profit from the generation and sale of electricity. It is an industry that has reached saturation point in its traditional western markets. The standard executive strategy when faced with potential decline in sales is to explore new markets.
Africa, with only two reactors at Koeberg, is the obvious place to deploy your marketing team. South Africa, with its relatively advanced infrastructure, is an important beachhead from which to launch a survival strategy.
The global nuclear industry is in decline. Currently there are 438 operationally-ready nuclear plants across the world (391 if idle plants are excluded). Nuclear's share of the global electricity mix peaked at 17.6% in 1996 and has dropped to 11% in 2014. In 2010 there were 15 new constructions launched. Post-Fukushima this has dropped to three. Most tellingly, installed capacity peaked at 368 GW in 2010 and sits at 337 GW in 2014 – an 8% decline.
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If you're Rosatom (a Russian state-owned enterprise launched in 2007), what do you do about that balance sheet? Or Areva – technically bankrupt and challenged in getting its answer-to-all product (EPR) up and running at various sites? Things aren't looking as rosy as they used to. So, you do what good corporates do – you bring in the marketing team and launch a communication campaign designed to secure orders in the hope that your bank manager will stave off the final hammer.
What does the communication programme focus on? It emphasises the strengths of the product, slipstreams the global "green" movement, muddies the waters when it comes to your product failures, supports any allied voices like Dr Kemm and demonises any opposition as emotional, unscientific and unpatriotic.
This brings us back to Dr Kemm and his Wonderland tales. Did you notice that when talking up the localisation benefits, there is very little detail? Dr Kemm never produces evidence of how it has worked elsewhere and which specific businesses have benefitted. There is never a commitment to an actual localisation percentage. With the industry focus on the new builds in China (22 plants currently under construction), how does Dr Kemm envisage South African firms could compete with existing local Chinese firms already supplying that market?
If Rosatom is chosen, they stitch up the entire value chain in favour of other Russian State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) – this is clear from how they are operating in Turkey and India. Why would they do anything different in favour of SA industries? For them it just doesn't make business sense.
When discussing Fukushima Daiichi – which the UN's International Atomic Agency declared a disaster and Japan gave the highest nuclear accident rating possible – notice how Dr Kemm focuses on deaths from radiation as the defining element of a disaster. No mention of TEPCO's recent announcement that one of the plant workers has leukaemia, the 9 plus workers killed on site from cleaning up accidents, the 1 000 plus Fukushima citizens who have died as a direct consequence of the evacuation, the 100 000 plus persons still unable to return home, and the 130 000 plus tonnes of contaminated top soil from local farms that have been bagged and stored.
The meltdown of three reactors at Fukushima Daiichi in 2011 was, and continues to be, a disaster no matter how many red herrings Dr Kemm conjures up. The suggestion that the assessment of risk attached to nuclear power is simply "scaremongering", is the opinion of an industry lobbyist, not a balanced scientific assessment of past and potential accidents and the inherent risk nuclear fission contains.
When discussing costs, Dr Kemm says nothing about CSIR studies showing the cost of electricity being highest from nuclear - no reference to UCT's ERC study for the National Development Plan (and the updated IRP 2010) showing that nuclear is unaffordable and unnecessary.
But then, would you expect anything less? How likely is it that an industry lobbyist, desperate to breathe life into a dying product, would acknowledge that nuclear had its chance? Like the Concorde and the Space Shuttle its time has come to be replaced by more cost-efficient and safer technological solutions to our energy challenges. South Africa does not need nuclear and simply cannot afford it, no matter how good a game Dr Kemm talks.
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