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Journal Article
© Jun 2009 Volume 7 Issue 3, Editor: Dan Remenyi, pp297 - 397
Look inside Download PDF (free)
In the past years Knowledge Management has dealt with various aspects of knowledge retention, knowledge sharing and knowledge development. It is agreed that knowledge documentation is essential for all these purposes, in order to enable their re‑use. Many books and articles have been written on accessibility of documents, revealing an understanding that knowledge that cannot be accessed cannot be re‑used. Most effort has been invested in providing the focused list of relevant documents to the user, while less research has been conducted on how to write the documentation so as to ease its reading, understanding and use. This issue seems to be critical as we notice that existing organizational knowledge is far from being fully utilized: for example, regulations and procedures, including the organization's wisdom, are written; however, recurring faults do occur. People tend not to re‑read entire or partial documents, even when the knowledge therein is needed. This paper describes a framework for the document's internal design. The research hypothesis claims that internal design, using the proposed enabling technique, eases understanding and usage of documents. It therefore reduces the knowledge loss. The research methodology implemented was a qualitative method; the strategy chosen was instrumental: multiple case study (Stake, 1995). The research sample included both organizations (public sector) and the public (KM readers), the research instruments consisting of documentation, archival records, interviews, direct‑observations, participant‑observation and physical artifacts. The findings suggest that internal documentation design eases reading, eases understanding and probably eases use. It therefore leverages knowledge understanding in documents, and reduces knowledge loss. The proposed framework may be useful for a large range of organizational documentation needs, from procedures of work, through SOW's, Engineering Specs, white papers and professional doctrines including organizational knowledge. The framework was designed for organizational Knowledge Management needs, but serves for external rich knowledge documentation as well. It has been used since 2007, in more than fifty cases in five different organizations in Israel.
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text: I've been watching my She-Ra DVDs, to learn more about the charactes. I never really whached She-Ra as kid. I like many really want a Shadow Weaver figure, she was the one character that did catch my attention as a kid. But now that I've watched the cartoon more closely I was wondering how Matty would make her work as a figure. Her sleeves drap down and attach to each other in the back. How would that work in figure form? They only way I can think of would be with cloth but that would not fit with the rest of the figures in MOTUC. Do you think they would just make he sleeves seperate? Then how would they make them look good when her arms are both raised and by her side. There seems to be a lot of design issues the 4H would have to work out. I have no doubt that they could make her look great, and I hope they get the chance too. What does everyone else think?

subset: commoncrawl


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Board Member Grover Norquist Repudiates NRA's "Massive Obama Conspiracy"
Blog ››› ››› TIMOTHY JOHNSON
National Rifle Association board member Grover Norquist undermined the NRA's conspiracy theory that President Obama would use his second term to destroy the Second Amendment during a radio appearance on Monday. The NRA has used that claim as the centerpiece of their election efforts.
Citing the ability of Congress and the Supreme Court to check the power of the Executive Branch, Norquist stated, "So if Obama was king would he go after your guns? Probably. He ain't king." Norquist's comments came during the inaugural edition of Media Matters' new radio program, The Agenda:
ARI RABIN-HAVT, HOST: Now according to the [NRA's] CEO Wayne LaPierre, this is has all been part of -- and this is a quote -- "a massive Obama conspiracy" to quote "lull gun owners to sleep" so he can eliminate the Second Amendment in his second term. You know, you're a very reasonable guy. Frankly that statement seems unreasonable, that it's all part of a secret plot. Do you agree with Wayne LaPierre on that? That Barack Obama is trying to lull America to sleep so he can ban guns in his second term? Something I don't think is even legislatively possible at this point?
GROVER NORQUIST: I think in his heart of hearts Obama is not a strong supporter of the Second Amendment and would limit gun rights to the extent that he can. Now the good news for people who care about the Second Amendment is that the House and the Senate have strong support for the Second Amendment. So one of the reasons Obama has been reasonable is that he doesn't have the votes to do something other than be reasonable. And the Supreme Court has also come down on the side of an individual right to be armed. So if Obama was king would he go after your guns? Probably. He ain't king.
Norquist's statement that Obama "ain't king" stands in sharp contrast to the musings of NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre, who has been warning NRA adherents about an Obama plot to end private gun ownership. The theory was first aired out at a political rally in September 2011, when LaPierre suggested that the president's inaction on the gun issue evidenced a "massive Obama conspiracy to deceive voters and hide his true intentions to destroy the Second Amendment in our country." He went on to claim:
We see the president's strategy crystal clear: get re-elected, and with no other re-elections to worry about, get busy dismantling and destroying our firearms freedom. Erase the Second Amendment from the Bill of Rights and exorcise it from the U.S. Constitution. That's their agenda.
The theory has been widely ridiculed since its conception. Jon Stewart characterized it as "so crazy, it's f--king crazy." MSNBC host Rachel Maddow summed up the outlandish nature of the theory nicely in October 2011, stating, "The NRA says the way you can tell Obama is coming for your guns, is that he's not coming for you guns. It's genius! That is the insane paranoid message from the NRA this year." Hardball's Chris Matthews reacted to LaPierre's speech by calling him "another strain of the crazy far right."
But so far the mockery has done little to dampen the NRA's enthusiasm for pushing the conspiracy as the paramount theme of the organization's campaign against Obama's re-election.
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Single room - 1 person
Sir Hotels, best accomodation in Bucharest
The 2-star Hotel Sir Orhideea is the best accomodation option for tourists who visit Bucharest, business people who need affordable accomodation, families during vacation or celebrating an unforgettable moment, such as a relative's wedding and people who come especially to attend events in Bucharest, such as seminaries, conferences, concerts.
The hotel has 63 rooms, cleanliness matching the highest standards, and it is located in a quiet area, with facilities of a 3-star hotel:
Make a reservation now - book a room in Bucharest at our hotel in sector 6 - Hotel Sir Orhideea!
"For having rooms fit for people with disabilities, congratulations!!!!"
- Gotthilf Lorch
"Very pleasant atmosphere; during our stay, the staff was kind and professional like in a western hotel; we've only spent here one day - should we've stayed longer, we'd had the same great stay, the room was clean and quite comfortable: we had warmth, a fridge, TV, breakfast was exceptional and - this is a plus - it was included in the price I paid for the room."
- Paunescu Virgil


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Forget another big scare over the U.S. debt ceiling. Democrats and Republicans will soon strike a deal to raise the amount the federal government can borrow and squash any chance of a crisis.
That's the conventional wisdom (again) in Washington. Republicans would rather keep the focus on what they perceive as the Obama White House's haplessness, analysts say, instead of highlighting divisions within conservative ranks, especially with the midterm elections approaching. Conservatives have a chance to retake control of the Senate.
In the "buildup to November's mid-term elections, we expect another suspension of the debt ceiling without a major fight," the Wall Street firm Morgan Stanley told clients.
What the so-called experts can't quite figure out is how the deal will come about once the debt limit is set to be reached again – technically on Feb. 7 but the Treasury probably can manage the situation until the end of the month.
"There is virtually no chance of a U.S. default or any material credit event, but there is not yet a clear path to a deal," according to an analysis by the Washington office of the Eurasia Group, a global political and economic consulting firm.
The one worry among political cognoscenti is that the symbolic to-and-fro over the debt limit could accidentally turn into full-fledged fight.
A large coterie of House Republicans, for example, still want to make a ritualistic display of opposition to show conservative voters they are not giving in without a fight. They are sure to demand some concessions from the White House, perhaps approval of the Keystone pipeline or delay in some aspects of Obamacare.
Yet Democrats are certain to balk since they did so successfully in the last round of fighting.
What to look for? Watch what President Obama says about the debt ceiling on Jan. 28 during his annual State of the Union address. And pay attention to the response by top Republicans after the party's annual retreat ends on Jan. 31.
- Jeffry Bartash
Follow Jeffry on Twitter @jbartash
Follow Capitol Report on Twitter @capitolreport
Also read: Geithner said U.S. would respond to S&P downgrade
Hillary Clinton's no slam dunk in 2016, and more must-reads


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Orion 18 is tested and supports the following business versions of Microsoft Windows:
Trimble is an international company focusing on positioning-related technology for different industries. Tekla software solutions for advanced building information modeling and structural engineering are part of Trimble offering.
© Trimble Solutions Corporation.
All rights reserved.
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Public Interest Law Association
Who We Are
The Public Interest Law Association (PILA) is New England Law | Boston's primary public interest student organization. PILA strives to raise awareness of the needs, issues, and employment opportunities within the public interest area of law and promote public interest law within the New England Law community. We also provide an outlet for students, no matter what their interest level, to request speakers and information about public interest law.
Executive Board 2018-2019
- President: Sabrina Rocco '19
What is Public Interest Law?
Public interest law is one of the larger sectors in the legal field. It Includes federal and state administrative and regulatory agencies, advocacy groups, legal aid agencies, lobbyist groups, prosecution agencies, and public defenders, just to name a few. Almost any area of the law has a public interest element to it.
What we do
PILA's main event is an auction in the spring, where donated items are bid upon and monies raised are then used to fund our highly successful summer grant program. Additionally, we hold speaker panels and a networking event inviting practicing attorneys from the public interest area of law to speak to students and provide valuable contacts. We also create opportunities to volunteer at local agencies and host fundraisers to benefit those Boston organizations. Ideas from all students are welcome and encouraged to make our activities meaningful for everyone!
When do we meet?
During school year we hope to schedule PILA meetings often to facilitate more sharing about opportunities and interests. If you have a topic for a meeting, drop us an e-mail. If you think something needs to be discussed, let us know. Our purpose is to raise awareness so invite your friends to join us, there is no commitment required. This organization is about helping each other explore our interest in serving others and using our legal expertise to accomplish this.
Why join?
Get involved in the New England Law | Boston community! There are no dues! Membership is by participation. You can become a member simply by signing up for our TWEN site or joining us for a meeting or two. Your participation is what will make PILA a great way to enhance your experience at New England Law. We do ask that those who sign up for a committee take their participation seriously. However, the purpose of committees is to reduce the pressure and split up the work, so we can all give what we feel comfortable with and while allowing us all to graduate!
Get involved!
- Sign up on our TWEN page to get details about our upcoming events through e-mail!
- "Like" our NELB Public Interest Law Association Facebook page! (https://www.facebook.com/NelbPublicInterestLawAssociation)
- Attend one of our events or meetings!
- E-mail firstname.lastname@example.com for more information!


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CERN is to use a new remote data centre in Hungary to process and store data from its Large Hadron Collider (LHC) project, which is seeking to discover how the universe was formed.
CERN's data centre in Budapest is supported by the GANT terabit network and is hosted by he Wigner Research Centre for Physics.
The data centre will use multiple 100Gbps (Gigabits per second) links to support the Big Data needs of the LHC project.
GANT is the high speed European communication network dedicated to research and education. Co-funded by the European Commission, GANT contributes to the development of emerging internet technologies.
The LHC generates around 30 petabytes of data every year and the rapid distribution of this data to centres around the world for analysis is vital to the success of the LHC.
David Foster, deputy head of the CERN IT department, said, "Having a remote site and operations places a lot of requirements on the networking solutions. We will be implementing state-of-the-art capabilities to connect CERN and Wigner."
The Budapest facility will act as an extension to CERN's existing data centre as well as providing business continuity in case of any issues that could affect on-going service.
GANT's migration to the latest transmission and switching technology is designed to support up to 2Tbps (terabits per second) capacity across the core network, effectively future-proofing Europe's critical network up until 2020.
500Gbps capacity is available across the core network, delivering circuits across Europe that will allow individual users to transfer data at speeds of up to 100Gbps, or multiples thereof.
Earlier this year CERN said its researchers in Geneva were being held back from adopting cloud computing on any significant scale due to the delay in establishing a European regulatory framework for data protection.


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Rugby on TV in March
BOULDER, Colo. – USA Rugby has updated its list of rugby matches televised in the United States for the month of March. Not counting the sixth and seventh rounds of the IRB HSBC Sevens World Series in Hong Kong and Tokyo, respectively, 46 rugby matches from around the world will be broadcast live across five different networks.
Men's Eagles Sevens
Alexander Magleby's Eagles Sevens excited the home crowd in Las Vegas last month with inspiring performances and a Plate Semifinals berth. They are not done yet, however, as the Hong Kong Sevens and Tokyo Sevens both take place this month.
Universal Sports and NBC Sports Network will double-up on coverage duties for each round. In Hong Kong, Universal Sports will take 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. ET and NBC Sports Network will cover the 11:00 PM to 1:00 AM time slot. The Eagles play France, Kenya and New Zealand in the largest round of the year.
In Japan, Universal and NBC Sports again share two-hour coverage times from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. ET. Look for the pool draw for the Tokyo Sevens in the coming weeks.
Six Nations
BBC America is the exclusive carrier of the annual Six Nations Championship in America, though Universal Sports airs replays (check here for Universal's schedule).
Ireland, who will come to Houston, Texas, in June for a test match against the Men's Eagles, is currently in fourth place in the competition and will face France on March 9.
Last year's champion Wales will have its final match – against England – on BBC America on March 16. As of March 1, England tops the Six Nations table with six points to Wales' four, good for second place.
RaboDirect Pro12 Rugby
Fox Soccer Plus will air three RaboDirect Pro12 matches in March. Pro12, which runs through May, features 12 teams from Italy, Scotland, Ireland and Wales.
Italian team Zebre made its debut in the competition this season, and will get airtime on Fox Soccer Plus on March 1 against the Irish side Connacht.
Connacht will also feature in an all-Ireland match against Munster on March 23, while Glasgow and Leinster, currently second and third, respectively, in the table, will play later that same day.
Aviva Premiership
Fox Soccer Plus will also air four of the English top-flight Aviva Premiership matches this month, including Men's Eagle Chris Wyles and the Saracens against newly-promoted London Welsh on March 3. The three other matches scheduled for Fox Soccer Plus are to be determined, but will air on March 22, 23, and 24. The Rugby on TV schedule will be updated when those fixtures are announced.
LV= Cup
Featuring the four Welsh Pro12 teams and all twelve Aviva Premiership teams, the LV= Cup knockout competition is in its final stages this month. Fox Soccer Plus will have the Final live on March 17, with Harlequins, Bath, Sale and Saracens each in the semifinals.
Super Rugby
One of the world's largest rugby union leagues, Super Rugby and its 15 teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa begin Week 3 of the 2013 season on March 1 on DirecTV's channel 490. In all, DirecTV will air 33 matches live in the United States this month. Because matches are played in the three previously-mentioned countries, start times range from early morning to late at night.
New Zealand's Chiefs, last year's Super Rugby Champions, have five matches on the schedule, while South Africa's Sharks, the runners-up, have four.


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Time-keeping systems
In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of two ways, or a combination thereof: real-time and turn-based.
- 1 Real-time
- 2 Turn-based
- 3 Sub-types
- 4 Real-time vs. turn-based gameplay
- 5 See also
- 6 References
- 7 External links
Real-time[edit | edit source]
- See also: Action role-playing game, Real-time strategy, and Real-time tactics
In real-time games, game time progresses continuously according to the game clock. Players perform actions simultaneously as opposed to in sequential units or turns. Players must perform actions with the consideration that their opponents are actively working against them in real time, and may act at any moment. This introduces time management considerations and additional challenges (such as physical coordination in the case of video games).
Real-time gameplay is the dominant form of time-keeping found in simulation video games, and has to a large degree supplanted turn-based systems in other video game genres as well (for instance real-time strategy). Time is an important factor in most sports; and many, such as soccer or basketball, are almost entirely simultaneous in nature, retaining only a very limited notion of turns in specific instances, such as the free kick in soccer and the free throw and shot clock in basketball. In the card games Nertz and Ligretto, players must compete to discard their cards as quickly as possible and do not take turns.
While game time in video games is in fact subdivided into discrete units due to the sequential nature of computing, these intervals or units are typically so small as to be imperceptible to the player.
Turn-based[edit | edit source]
- See also: Tactical role-playing game, Turn-based strategy, and Turn-based tactics
In turn-based games, game flow is partitioned into well-defined and visible parts, called turns. A player of a turn-based game is allowed a period of analysis (sometimes bounded, sometimes unbounded) before committing to a game action, ensuring a separation between the game flow and the thinking process, which in turn presumably leads to better choices. Once every player has taken his or her turn, that round of play is over, and any special shared processing is done. This is followed by the next round of play. In games where the game flow unit is time, turns may represent such things as years, months, weeks or days.
Turn-based games come in two main forms depending on whether, within a turn, players play simultaneously or take their turns in sequence. The former games fall under the category of simultaneously-executed games (also called phase-based or "We-Go"), with Diplomacy being a notable example of this style of game. The latter games fall into player-alternated games (also called "I-Go-You-Go", or "IGOUGO" for short), and are further subdivided into (A) ranked, (B) round-robin start and (C) random—the difference being the order under which players start within a turn: (A) the first player being the same every time, (B) the first player selection policy is round-robin, and (C) the first player is randomly selected. Some games also base the order of play on an "initiative" score that may in part be based on players' attributes or positions within the game or other, outside factors as well as dice rolls. Power Grid is an example of this style.
The term turn-based gaming is also used in Play-by-mail games and to refer to browser-based gaming sites that allow for game-play to extend beyond a single session, over long periods of time—often taking months for complex games like Go or chess to finish.
Sub-types[edit | edit source]
Various adaptations of the real-time and turn-based systems have been implemented to address common or perceived shortcomings of these systems (though they often introduce new issues that did not exist before[1]). These include:
Timed turns and time compression[edit | edit source]
Timed turns are designed to resolve issues of fairness where one player uses a greater amount of time to complete his or her turn than another player. In chess, for instance, a pair of stop clocks may be used in order to place an upper limit on the game length.
In exchange chess, four players on two teams play on two boards with each team taking one white and one black side. Any taken piece is given to a teammate, and can be placed on his board as a standard move (in any position that does not put his opponent in check). A common strategy is to gain a temporary material advantage, pass it on to a teammate, and then stop playing on one's own board—thereby allowing the teammate to use the advantage for many future moves on his board. To avoid this, players are often limited to ten seconds per move—with their opponent being allowed to remove one of the player's pawns from the board for each additional ten seconds consumed.
Puzzle games such as the Bejeweled series (2001-) often feature time limits that can be extended through skilled play.
The turn-based strategy game Utopia (1982) featured an early example of timed turns.[2] The early Ultima role-playing video games were strictly turn-based, but starting with Ultima III: Exodus (1983), if the player waited too long to issue a command, the game would issue a "pass" command automatically, thereby allowing enemies to take their turns while the player character did nothing. A similar timed-turns system was used in Final Fantasy III (1990). Further, many browser-based games allocate a number of turns that can be played within a certain period of time, called a tick (see next section).
Time compression is a feature commonly found in real-time games such as flight simulators, that allows the player to speed up the game time by some (usually adjustable) factor. This permits the player to shorten the subjective duration of relatively uneventful periods of gameplay.
Ticks and rounds[edit | edit source]
A tick-based game is a game that is played using ticks, or units of time. Not to be confused with a game round, a tick can be any measurement of real time, from seconds to days or even months, and is the basic unit upon which all important game actions take place. Players in tick-based games are allocated a certain number of turns per tick, which are subsequently refreshed at the beginning of each new tick. Predominantly found in browser-based MMORPGs, tick-based games differ from other turn-based games in that ticks always occur after the same amount of time has expired. Conversely, in a typical turn-based game, a turn would end only once every player has made all of his or her moves. In real-time games players are not limited, time-wise, in the number of actions they can take.
In some real-time games, a notion of rounds exists, whereby game actions are timed according to a common interval that is longer than 'real time'. For instance, units might only begin or cease to act at the beginning or end of a round. In video games such as the Baldur's Gate (1998–2001) and Neverwinter Nights (2002–2008) series, the notion of rounds is carried over in part from the pen-and-paper rule systems they are based upon; and a similar (but unrelated) example is when a game unit's ability to act is limited by the length of its combat animation, in which case the unit may become unresponsive until the animation has completed.
Online turn-based gaming uses the term rounds differently: in these games a round refers to when a new game begins following the completion of a previous one (i.e. after someone or some group of people has "won").
Active Time Battle[edit | edit source]
The "Active Time Battle" system was introduced by Hiroyuki Ito in Final Fantasy IV (1991).[3] In this system, time-keeping does not stop at the end of a turn.[4] Instead, each character has an ATB meter that gradually fills over time in real time, and players must think and act quickly lest they miss their chance to take their turn.[5] Once filled, the player is allowed to issue a command for that character.[6] The fact that enemies can attack or be attacked at any time is credited with injecting urgency and excitement into the combat system.[4] The ATB system was fully developed in Final Fantasy V (1992), which improved it by introducing a time gauge to indicate to the player which character's turn is next.[7] The ATB system has since been used in nearly all later Final Fantasy role-playing video games up until Final Fantasy X (2001), after which subsequent Final Fantasy games experimented with different combat systems. The other ATB system is also used in other Square games, most notably Chrono Trigger (1995). Final Fantasy XIII also uses the ATB system, with some variations. On March 16, 1992 Square Co., Ltd. filed a United States patent application for the ATB system under the title, "Video game apparatus, method and device for controlling same", and was awarded the patent on February 21, 1995.
Simultaneously-executed and clock-based turns[edit | edit source]
In simultaneously-executed games (also called "phase-based" or "We-Go"), turns are separated into two distinct phases: decision and execution. During the decision phase each player plans and determines his units' actions. The decision phase occurs at the same time for everyone, so there is little wait for anyone to finish. In the execution phase, all players' decisions are put into action, and these actions are performed more or less automatically and at the same time. The execution phase is non-interactive, and there is no waiting for other players to complete their turns. Video game examples include Laser Squad Nemesis (2003), and the Combat Mission (2000–2007) and Master of Orion (1993–2003) series.
Clock-based games tie all unit actions directly to the game clock. Turns begin and end depending on the duration specified for each action, resulting in a sequence of turns that is highly variable and has no set order. This system is frequently cited for its realism when compared to other turn-based systems. It is also possible in this system for different players' actions to occur at the same time with respect to the game clock, as in real-time or simultaneously-executed games. Examples of video games that use this type of system include Typhoon of Steel (1988) and MechForce (1991), both originally for the Amiga.
Unit initiative and acting outside one's turn[edit | edit source]
In some games the sequence of turns depends on the initiative statistic of each unit no matter which side the unit belongs to. Games of this type are still technically sequential (e.g. "I-Go-You-Go"), as only one unit can perform an action at a time, and the duration of actions is not tied to the game clock. Examples include the video games The Temple of Elemental Evil (2003) and Final Fantasy Tactics (1997).
Some games—notably, the X-COM series (1993–1998) of video games and the board wargame, Advanced Squad Leader (1985)—allow players to act outside of their normal turn by providing a means of interrupting an opponent's turn and executing additional actions. Typically, the number and type of actions a player may take during an interrupt sequence is limited by the amount of points remaining in the player's action point pool (or something similar) carried over from the previous turn.
The Silent Storm (2003–2004) video game series includes an "Interrupt" statistic for each character to determine the likelihood of out-of-turn action. In the video game M.A.X. (1996), defensive units may be set to fire out of turn at the expense of being able to fire in their own turn. In the board game Tide of Iron, the player may play a card that allows him to interrupt an opponent's turn and perform an action. In both Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003) and Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time (2005), the player has a chance to "counterattack" on the enemy's turn, causing damage.
Special turns and phases[edit | edit source]
In some turn-based games, not all turns are alike. The board game Imperium Romanum II (1985), for instance, features a "Taxation and Mobilization" phase in every third turn (month), which does not occur in the other turns. In the board game Napoleon (1974), every third player turn is "night turn" where combat is not allowed.
Other turn-based games feature several phases dedicated to different types of activities within each turn. In the Battle Isle (1991–2001) series of video games players issue movement orders for all units in one phase, and attack orders in a later phase. In the board game Agricola (2007) turns are divided into three phases: "Upkeep", "Replenishing" and "Work". A fourth phase, "Harvest", occurs every few turns.
Partially or optionally turn-based and real-time[edit | edit source]
Many other games that are not generally turn-based retain the notion of turn-based play during specific sequences. For example, the role-playing video games Fallout (1997) and Silent Storm (2003)[8] are turn-based during the combat phase, and real-time throughout the remainder of the game. This speeds up portions of the game (such as exploration) where the careful timing of actions is not crucial to player success. Some turn-based games have been criticized for omitting this feature.[9][10]
Other video games, such as the Total War series (2000–2011), X-COM (1993) and Jagged Alliance 2 (1999), combine a turn-based strategic layer with real-time tactical combat or vice versa.[11]
Lastly, the video games X-COM: Apocalypse (1997), Fallout Tactics (2001) and Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura (2001) offered players the option to play in either turn-based or real-time mode via a configuration setting. The latter also offered a "fast turn-based" mode, though all three of the game's modes were criticized for being poorly balanced and overly simplified.[12][13]
Pausable real-time[edit | edit source]
In real-time games with an active pause system (also called "pausable real-time", "real-time with pause" or "smart pause"[14]), players are able to pause the game and issue orders such that once a game is un-paused, orders are automatically put into effect. This type of system can offer additional tactical options compared to games like Diablo;[5][11] and it can resolve issues that arise in other real-time games where orders must be given to multiple units at the same time (normally an impossibility in real-time games), and where players desire extra time for analysis before issuing actions.
The pausable real-time system was popularized among computer role-playing games by the Baldur's Gate series (1998–2001),[15] though it was also present in the pioneering real-time strategy game, Homeworld (1999), as well as earlier role-playing games such as Knights of Xentar (1991),[16][17] Darklands (1992),[5] Secret of Mana (1993)[18] and Parasite Eve (1998).[19] Further, it is used exclusively in the slow-paced grand strategy games developed by Paradox Interactive;[11] and like SimCity (1989) before it, was the originally intended mode of the Civilization series (1991-) before the developers decided to switch to turn-based.[11] A variation of active pause, called "Smart Pause Mode", is also an advertised feature of Apeiron's Brigade E5: New Jagged Union (2006) and 7.62: High Calibre (2007).[14][20]
There are several variations of pausable real-time combat. In Parasite Eve and Vagrant Story (2000), the player could pause to take aim with a weapon,[19] in Vagrant Story's case allowing specific body parts to be targeted — a mechanic later re-used in Fallout 3 (2008) and Last Rebellion (2010).[21] Final Fantasy XII (2006) expanded on active pause combat with its "gambits" system, which allows players to collect and apply preferences to the artificial intelligence routines of partner characters, who will perform certain actions in response to certain conditions. A similar "tactics" system later appeared in Dragon Age: Origins (2009)[22] and Dragon Age II (2011).[23]
Knights of Xentar[17] and Secret of Mana[24] also allowed adjustable artificial intelligence to take control during combat.[17][24] In Baldur's Gate's case, players also have the option to allow the artificial intelligence to take control during combat, though they can press the spacebar at any time to regain control of their characters.[5] Further, players are able to configure the game to automatically pause when certain conditions are met, such as at the end of an arbitrary round or upon the death of a non-player character.
Real-time vs. turn-based gameplay[edit | edit source]
A debate has emerged between fans over real-time and turn-based video games (usually some type of strategy or role-playing game) based on the merits each system.[25][26][27][28][29]
Various arguments are made by proponents. Arguments made in favor of turn-based systems include:
- Players are able to plan their moves to a greater degree given the extra time available to them,[11][30][31] allowing game designers to cater to these players by offering additional tactical and gameplay options.[1][11][32] The same options when used in combination with the time-pressures of real-time games, on the other hand, can cause new players to feel overwhelmed.[11]
- Games are more fair due to a lack of reliance upon player reflexes.[1] A player with slower reflexes is not at a disadvantage compared to faster players; rather, only the ability to think through and solve the current problem is important.
- Games can in theory have better artificial intelligence due to the greater amount of computer processing power available to them.[30][32]
- It is more realistic to control multiple units intelligently using this system, as players do not have to divide their attention among multiple independent units all moving simultaneously.[25][30] Likewise, it is easier to keep track of what the enemy is doing at all times since the player is typically informed of every move in advance (not taking into account fog of war).[1]
Arguments made in favor of real-time systems include:
- Armies pausing mid-combat to take turns and act in a sequential manner is unrealistic. Real-life combat occurs simultaneously with no side pausing to let the other side move;[27][30] however, this only pertains to sequential turn-based systems, not "we-go" systems.
- Thinking (and acting) quickly is part of the strategy[30] and constitutes an additional element of challenge.[1][30]
- Real-time systems are viscerally exciting[26][33] and add to players' sense of immersion.[1][11][33] Players feel more like they are really "there" and experiencing game events first-hand.
- Turn-based games have too many rules and are difficult to master.[27][33]
- Real-time games are more multiplayer-friendly.[11] Sitting around and waiting while other players take their turns can become tiresome,[11][27][30] and can be abused as means of retribution against a winning player.
- The added element of a shared clock ensures that each situation cannot be reduced to an easily repeatable sequential series of steps. Rather, the reliance upon player timing introduces an element of chaos and ensures that outcomes are highly variable.[11]
See also[edit | edit source]
- Role-playing game
- Strategy
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Davies, Gareth (December 10, 2002). Treatise on Combat to Pink Floyd. RPG Codex. Retrieved on 2007-04-05
- ↑ Utopia, GameSpy
- ↑ Final Fantasy Retrospective Part XIII. GameTrailers (2007-11-02). Retrieved on 2009-03-30
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Andrew Vestal (1998-11-02). The History of Final Fantasy — Final Fantasy IV. Gamespot. Retrieved on 2008-12-31
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Barton, Matt (2008). Dungeons & Desktops: The History of Computer Role-Playing Games. A K Peters, Ltd.. ISBN 1-56881-411-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=IMXu61GbTqMC. Retrieved 2010-09-08.
- ↑ Hironobu Sakaguchi and Hiroyuki Itou, "Video game apparatus, method and device for controlling same", US patent 5390937, issued 1995-02-21
- ↑ Meyers, Andy (2006). Final Fantasy V Advance: The Official Nintendo Player's Guide. Nintendo. pp. 14–15. ISBN 1-59812-017-4.
- ↑ Butts, Steve (January 27, 2004). Silent Storm Review. IGN. Retrieved on 2007-12-12
- ↑ Metalheart: Replicants Rampage — First Look Preview. Total Video Games (December 2, 2004). Retrieved on 2007-12-12
- ↑ Ocampo, Jason (February 16, 2005). Cops 2170: The Power of Law. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-12-15
- ↑ 11.00 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.04 11.05 11.06 11.07 11.08 11.09 11.10 Johnson, Soren (November 6, 2009), Analysis: Turn-Based Versus Real-Time, Gamasutra, http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=25920, retrieved 2011-07-08
- ↑ Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura (PC) Reviews. PC Games Reviews by CNET.. CNET. Retrieved on 5 October 2006
- ↑ Gamespot Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura. Gamespot. Retrieved on 11 March 2009
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Tait, John (January 30, 2007). Brigade E5: New Jagged Union — PC Game Reviews — The Armchair Empire. The Armchair Empire. Retrieved on 2008-11-13
- ↑ Babovic, Branislav (October 20, 2000). Combat Systems in RPG Games. ActionTrip. Retrieved on 2007-12-02
- ↑ Knights of Xentar at MobyGames
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 Dragon Knight III: Staff Review, Honest Gamers
- ↑ Secret of Mana, RPG Fan
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Jeremy Parish (2006-03-18). Retronauts: Volume 4 - Yasumi Matsuno. 1UP.com. Retrieved on 2011-04-09
- ↑ Strategy — Brigade E5: New Jagged Union. Strategy First. Retrieved on 2008-06-18
- ↑ European date fixed for the action / RPG Last Rebellion (Translation), Jeuxvideo.com
- ↑ Stephen Totilo, You Can Play Dragon Age: Origins Sort Of Like Four Other Games, Kotaku
- ↑ Stephen Totilo, Dragon Age II Definitely Not As 'Dumbed Down' As Mass Effect, Kotaku, February 18, 2011
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Secret of Mana, Thunderbolt
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Saltzman, Marc (July 1, 2003). 'Nations' offers 2 types of game play. CNN.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-02
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 Breeden, John. A Thinking Man's Wargame. Game Industry News. Retrieved on 2007-12-02
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 A Hex on You. StrategyPlanet (December 4, 2000). Retrieved on 2007-12-02
- ↑ Quick, Dan. Zeus: Master of Olympus. GameSpy. Retrieved on 2007-12-02
- ↑ Maddox, John (April 26, 2001). Interview: John Tiller on Game Design and His Perceptions of the Industry. Gamesquad.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-02
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 30.3 30.4 30.5 30.6 Point — CounterPoint: Turn Based vs. Real Time Strategy. StrategyPlanet (June 27, 2001). Retrieved on 2007-04-05
- ↑ Icarus: Sanctuary of the Gods Review. Yahoo! Games. Retrieved on 2007-12-02
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 Walker, Mark. Strategy Gaming: Part V -- Real-Time vs. Turn-Based. GameSpy. Retrieved on 2007-10-28
- ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 Wojnarowicz, Jakub (February 22, 2001). Editorial: What Happened to Turn-Based Games?. FiringSquad. Retrieved on 2007-11-19
External links[edit | edit source]
- Time Systems - RogueBasin - Discusses several different types of timing systems used in roguelikes.
- 12 ways to improve turn-based RPG combat systems - Editorial discussing how to design turn-based combat systems.
- Taking Turns (Or Yes, It IS Your Job to Make Me Have Fun) - Editorial at Gamasutra.
- Turn Based Strategy Makes Me Care - Editorial at Gamasutra.


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"TickleMe Plant Live on TV"
Joshua – California
I can't wait to start growing them again, my kids think they are terrific
Yvonne – New Jersey
I was even more excited when I learned that it could be planted in the house. It's a really cool plant
Thomas - Georgia
I plan to grow them and give them as gifts to my class. Thanks.


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Saving Money During the Cruiseby Paul Motter | 03.06.12
The experienced CruiseMates cruisers tell us how to save money on shipboard charges during a cruise.
We turned to the experienced CruiseMates cruisers to tell us how to save money onboard the ship during a cruise. There were so many great suggestions it would be impossible to use them all, but we think you can certainly pick and choose the ones most fitting your personal cruise style.
In fact, as a mostly inclusive vacation, cruising is already a very good value proposition; you get all of your meals, entertainment and transportation to ports of call included in the price of the cruise. So, to simplify matters let's just say saving money onboard boils down understanding what things are worth buying onboard:
It is easiest to begin with items and services that are not good values:
1. The Casino Even if you enjoy playing slot machines you will probably find that cruise ship casinos do not pay out as generously as Las Vegas or other gambling destinations. For that matter, it is generally true that even Las Vegas does not pay out like it once did. However, I have heard that some people have won big jackpots on cruise ships, so if you want to test the waters, I suggest you set a strict limit on how much you are willing to lose, and don't be disappointed if that happens. If it takes you 30 minutes to lose $50 that is actually pretty good in any casino these days. Most cruise ship casinos I have experienced will take $50 from you in under 10 minutes, easily; on slot machines anyway. But table games like blackjack and craps tend to pay out better, but be aware that tiny rules can work in the favor of the house. For example, if a craps table will not allow double odds, or if a blackjack table uses six decks instead of one or two, the house has an edge. If you happen to get dealt a blackjack the payout should be 3:2, not 6:5. And in any casino, roulette is one of the worst games you can play.
2. Photographers
Shipboard photography used to be a huge money maker for the cruise lines before the advent of digital cameras. Ships used to have several photographers working the crowds every night, and they would print every decent shot and put it on display for sale. Most people spent something to buy some souvenir pictures. But these days the cost of pictures taken by ship photographers has gone up exponentially, as much as $10 for a single 8x10. It just isn't worth the price anymore, especially when you can take literally thousands of digital pictures of your own and view them on your home computer, choosing to print only very specific ones for less than $1.00 apiece.
3. The Spa
The Spa is a wonderful place for an indulgence; however, you should know that spa prices on cruise ships are generally much higher than they are at some of the newer massage franchises like Massage Envy, and about the same price as tony resort spas such as Canyon Ranch. Expect to pay as much as $125 for a 60-minute massage, two to three times what a professional massage therapist will charge on land.
To get the most out of your spa appointment we suggest booking a morning appointment. Most masseuses onboard work all day, and they get tired. Because of their busy schedule they also do not work as hard as many land-based massage therapists. The standard massage treatment on a cruise ship is a "Swedish Massage," also known as "classic massage." You should know that Swedish is a style of massage that does not necessarily focus on deep tissue work. It involves long, flowing strokes, rubbing and kneading. But if you have a knot in your neck or under your shoulder blade what you need is deep tissue work.
If you want a therapeutic massage we suggest you ask for a deep tissue massage, and ask the spa manager which therapist will be best for this style before you book the appointment. Watch out for gimmicks like "fat burning wraps" that they claim will take inches off your body immediately. They won't.
Another aspect of cruise ship massage sessions is the "hard sell" at the end of the session. Therapists are required to try to sell you a certain number of products; body lotions, bath salts, etc. after each session. There is no stopping this, so do not get upset. Just say, "I know you are required to ask me to buy these products, but I really want to just enjoy the afterglow of my massage. So let's just say we have already done this, and I will be on my way." Then thank them and leave.
4. Alcohol Most people want to have a few drinks onboard, but drinks can become expensive. Some cruise lines (Specifically Carnival Corp. brands; Carnival, Cunard, Princess, Holland America, Costa) allow each adult to bring a bottle of wine onboard. You are allowed to drink it in your stateroom. If you take it out of the stateroom, to dinner for example, you will be charged a corkage fee (to open the bottle) of as much as $25. Many cruise lines have drink packages where you can drink as much as you want for a set amount per day. Using Celebrity cruises as an example; a soda package is $14/day while you can have all the beer, wine and cocktails you want for $44/day per person. A premium package allows you to get the better brand names for $54/day. You can get a barroom set up in your stateroom on many cruise lines for about $80 per package. This includes a liter bottle of your favorite spirit plus mixers like tonic or soda.
Do people sneak alcohol aboard the cruise ship? Yes they do, and the cruise line will x-ray your luggage upon boarding and remove any bottles they see, returning them to you on the morning you depart. Obviously, people who sneak alcohol onboard find non-glass and metal-free containers that will not show up on x-ray. We do not advocate breaking the rules; we want to save you the embarrassment of becoming targeted during your embarkation.
5. Gratuities
Service charges are a part of cruising. You should pay the recommended daily amount and no more or less. Every drink and special meal you sign for will already have a service charge added to the price. You will also see a space to add an additional tip. You have already paid the service charge, so there is no reason to pay an additional tip. If you do want to give a crewmember a special tip you should hand it to them in cash very discretely, including your masseuse. Any gratuity you give over by signing a tab will most likely be put into a pool and shared by all the people in that department.
6. Internet Access
Most ships now have Internet access, but they mostly charge anywhere from 30 to 75-cents per minute - although a few luxury cruise lines have moved to a "by the day" model which is really a much better deal. The only way to save money onboard is to log off.
Yes, you can use your iPad on a cruise ship, but keep in mind you do not want to stay logged onto your account while typing up an email. iPads are generally designed to be used only while connected to the Internet, using your webmail instead of an email program, for example. The same is true of workstations in a cruise ship's Internet center.
A laptop will give you the ability to sign on only long enough to pick up new email messages. You can then compose your replies offline and then sign on again long enough to send them. Laptops also give you a place to offload your digital camera pictures in memory so you can shoot more pictures.
If you take a cell phone onboard never use it to access the Internet. You will have to pay a data roaming charge that will generally cost about $5 per megabyte. Your cell phone should have an option to disable "data roaming" which you must use.
Here is another warning; even with data roaming turned off be very careful of incoming text messages. If someone sends you a picture by text message and you open it, you will be charged the data roaming rate even if you have data roaming turned off. This happened to me once. Someone sent me a singular picture of my dog as a text message attachment. I looked at it just a few times. The picture was probably five megabytes (common with today's digital cameras), but to me it appeared as a one-inch square. When I got home I had an extra charge of $485 added to my regular cell phone bill. The charge was noted as simply data-roaming (which I am certain I had turned off). I found out the cost of data roaming on a cruise ship is $25 per megabyte. Unbelievable.


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text:
The original extraterrestrial rock that fell to Earth must have been several metres in diameter, but disintegrated into small fragments, of which the Hypatia stone is one, Ladysmith Gazette reports.
The colourful rock that was found in western Egypt in 1996 contains micro-mineral compounds not found on Earth, in any meteorite or comet, or elsewhere in the solar system.
READ MORE: 'Mystery' signal from space is solved. It's not aliens
In the formation of the Hypatia matrix most of the polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), a major component of interstellar dust, have been transformed into tiny diamonds thought to have been formed in the shock of impact with the Earth's atmosphere or surface.
These diamonds made Hypatia resistant to weathering so that it is preserved for analysis from the time it arrived on Earth.
Findings of Prof Kramers and his team at UJ
Prof Jan Kramers from the University of Johannesburg (UJ), a geochemist and expert in dating techniques and the analysis of extraterrestrial objects, describes the internal structure of the Hypatia stone as similar to a fruitcake that has fallen into some flour and cracked on impact.
"We can think of the badly mixed dough of a fruit cake representing the bulk of the Hypatia pebble, what we call two mixed 'matrices' in geology terms. The glacé cherries and nuts in the cake represent the mineral grains found in Hypatia 'inclusions'. And the flour dusting the cracks of the fallen cake represent the 'secondary materials' we found in the fractures in Hypatia, which are from Earth."
The Hypatia mineral matrix (represented by fruitcake dough), looks nothing like that of any known meteorites, the rocks that fall from space onto Earth every now and then.
"If it were possible to grind up the entire planet Earth to dust in a huge mortar and pestle, we would get dust with on average a similar chemical composition as chondritic meteorites," says Kramers.
"In chondritic meteorites, we expect to see a small amount of carbon and a good amount of silicon, but Hypatia's matrix has a massive amount of carbon and an unusually small amount of silicon."
Hypatia consists of interstellar dust, which existed before our solar system was formed
"Even more unusual, the matrix contains a high amount of very specific carbon compounds, called polyaromatic hydrocarbons, or PAH, a major component of interstellar dust, which existed even before our solar system was formed. Interstellar dust is also found in comets and meteorites that have not been heated up for a prolonged period in their history," adds Kramers.
Kramers believes the pebbles could be preserved remnants from the much larger body that impacted the Sahara and melted its sands into Libyan desert glass some 28 million years ago, though there is no way currently to test the theory.
Watch: Prof Kramers discusses his findings about the Hypatia stone.
For more news your way, follow The Citizen on Facebook and Twitter.


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NEW YORK (AP) JaKarr Sampson scored a career-high 20 points, including six straight in the second half that helped St. John's rally past Holy Cross 65-53 Wednesday.
The Red Storm (3-2) trailed 37-35 when D'Angelo Harrison hit a 3-pointer to give them the lead. Sampson followed with three straight baskets during a 9-2 run that put St. John's ahead 44-39 with 13 minutes left.
Harrison added 17 points and Phil Greene IV had 15 for the Red Storm, who had 10 blocks in the game, including six from Chris Obekpa.
Dave Dudzinski and Justin Burrell had 12 points apiece to lead Holy Cross, which shot just 30 percent in the second half after hitting 46.4 percent before the break.


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Cal admits to serious student-athlete flaws
UC Berkeley officials, responding to recent reports of lax admissions standards and poor graduation rates among student athletes, admitted this week that the university has a serious problem that is at times exacerbated by the desire to succeed on the field.
"At a point, the pressure to win caused us to put more focus on the athletic piece and, as a result, we saw less performance on the academic side," said Cal Athletic Director Sandy Barbour.
Barbour added that the university is working to improve the situation for student athletes by adding more instructors to its student-athlete study center. She also said preliminary NCAA data show that more football players stayed in school and graduated last year when compared with previous years.
"We have an issue. No doubt," said Barbour, during a wide-ranging discussion between The Chronicle and top Cal officials. "It's a serious one. And we have taken several measures to correct it. We're not done."
The acknowledgment comes in the wake of NCAA data that showed Cal's football and men's basketball teams have the lowest graduation rates among 72 major-conference schools, 44 and 38 percent respectively.
A report by two UC Berkeley scholars further fueled concerns at the school by revealing that Cal is admitting student athletes with surprisingly low grades in the revenue-generating sports of football and men's basketball.
It all adds up to a volatile situation at UC Berkeley, widely considered the best public university in the world.
The panel of UC Berkeley officials - which included members of the athletic department, faculty members and public relations staffers - blamed a variety of factors for the rock-bottom graduation rates among Cal's revenue-generating athletes. They said the school encourages a culture in which coaches shield student athletes from challenging courses, and pressure to succeed on the field supersedes academic concerns, at times.
Opportunity to succeed
But UC Berkeley officials questioned the correlation between low admission standards and poor graduation rates. They said athletes admitted to Cal under lowered admissions standards still have the opportunity to succeed, but some student athletes get caught up in situations that prevent them from doing so.
"It's something in the culture," said Richard Rhodes, an associate dean who heads the Academic Senate's committee on admissions. "The coaches tend to be afraid of certain courses. So, students delay in taking them."
As a result, some student athletes at Cal avoid courses deemed difficult to pass by their coaches. And some of those courses are required to graduate. Rhodes identified classes in "Quantitative Reasoning" and "Reading and Composition" as two such courses.
The issues among student athletes at Cal vary wildly by sport. While revenue-generating sports such as men's basketball and football have suffered dramatic reductions in graduation rates, other sports, such as women's lacrosse and crew, often boast near-perfect rates.
To address academic issues encountered by student athletes, Cal has beefed up its Athletic Study Center, headed by Director Derek Van Rheenen.
Van Rheenen said Cal has hired six full-time employees to beef up his staff, which provides tutoring and advice to student athletes. The department has had some recent success offering core courses over the summer months, when student athletes may have less hectic schedules.
"It makes sense, in that we have a captive audience," Van Rheenen said. "It's a full load, in a shorter period of time."
UC Berkeley officials are also optimistic that graduation numbers are looking up, at least for football players. The estimated graduation rate for players who had enrolled in 2007 was 65 percent last spring, according to data released early by the NCAA and provided to The Chronicle by Cal officials.
But that's a number that tracks only one year of graduates. The more comprehensive, four-year figure released last month showed a graduation rate of 44 percent. Even with a one-year uptick to 65 percent, the four-year average will remain low.
Improvement expected
But it's a step in the right direction, Cal officials say. The NCAA also tracks how long many student athletes stay in school, in a metric they call the Academic Progress Rate. Last year, Cal football scored a 923, which is below the accepted standard of 930. This year, the NCAA estimates a result of 969 for Cal.
Despite those apparent gains, critics say it will take more than a one-year improvement to solve a complex and difficult problem that has oftentimes divided the UC Berkeley campus.
John Cummins, former head of intercollegiate athletics who retired in 2008 as associate chancellor and chief of staff, co-authored the paper on Cal's low admission standards for student athletes with Kirsten Hextrum, a doctoral student in the Graduate School of Education.
"The graduation rates will improve because the focus is there," Cummins said. "There's no question it will be turned around. ... But what happens in 10 years?"
Al Saracevic is sports editor of The San Francisco Chronicle. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com Twitter: @alsaracevic


text:
Between Explorer, Excursion and Expedition, Ford has just as many "Exes" as Demi Moore. One of them, the subject of this overview, Ford's Expedition was introduced back in 1997, as a replacement for the Ford Bronco. The O.J. Simpson "slow-speed chase" in Los Angeles — piloted by Simpson's longtime friend Al Cowlings — made that Ford suv infamous.
And while that bit of trivia undoubtedly had very little to do with Ford's discontinuation of the Bronco, the subject of this overview, the Ford Expedition, did benefit from the Bronco's axing. And while it was Ford's mid-size SUV when it was introduced, today, the Expedition is Ford's largest SUV offering. Additionally, with the conversion of the Explorer to a unibody configuration, the Expedition is the last body-on-frame, truck-based SUV in Ford's lineup.
There have been three generations of the Ford Expedition offered since it was introduced.


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Only about five years overdue, here is the new-and-improved teamscr.com! What started in 1997 as the home of the biggest Saturn road racing team in North America has evolved into your comprehensive resource for improved vehicle dynamics and high-performance brake system engineering. Through our open-enrollment engineering seminars and plain-English technical publications, our years of high-performance race engineering experience can help take you from mid-pack to the front of the field in no time at all.
For those die-hard Saturn race fans who continue to turn to us for technical assistance, we have retained all of the race team content from the old teamscr.com. In our motorsports section you can still find a wealth of information about our cars as they continue to race under new sponsorship (yes, we have kept up with them), our drivers (we tell ourselves that we were real race car drivers before the kids came along), our crew (those selfless, dedicated volunteers who were too easily bribed with promises of Outback Steakhouse), and our vast technical database. Over twenty years of combined SCCA road racing experience is here at your virtual doorstep. We hope that you continue to find the material both entertaining and informative.
Our three-way partnership in 2002 and 2003 with SPS racing, R^3 motorsports, and the original team scR provided a couple of knockout race seasons. So, sit back and surf on. Get Current News on our various exploits (racing and otherwise), read up on Tech Articles written by people who actually race their cars, peruse our tongue-in-cheek Newsletter Archive, browse our extensive Photo Gallery, watch our action-packed Videos, meet the Drivers and Teams, and get official scR Stuff. Any way you look at it, if you are a Saturn motorsports enthusiast, there is something here for you. Thanks for stopping by!


text:
Welcome to MADS Outdoor Products
Manufacturing, sales, service and custom fabrication
Marine Automated Dock Systems, Inc.
If you are looking for Docks, Boat Lifts, Avalon Pontoons Boats, MirroCraft fishing boats, Yamaha Outboard Motors, Fishing Pole Holders, Aluminum Blinds, Ice Houses or just some custom fabrication, MADS welcomes the opportunity to work with private and commercial projects. MADS specialize in improvements for lake front cottages, homes, marinas and developments. We provide custom designs and look forward to working with any new innovative ideas our customers may have.
MADS projects range from large commercial jobs to the individual homeowners. No job is to big or to small.
MADS is Central Michigan dealer for Avalon Pontoon Boats and Yamaha Outboard Motors. If you are looking for the complete Avalon Pontoon Boat, Yamaha Outboard, MADS Dock & Lift, it is hard to find a better price then the one MADS will offer.
MADS also carries a complete line of Swim Decks, Pontoon Trailers, Vinyl Handrail and Decking, Aluminum fabrication and a complete line of docking and boat lift accessories.
We are also proud to be the Central Michigan deal for Featherlite Aluminum trailers.
Marine Automated Dock Systems, Inc.offers a wide variety of products and services. MADS manufactures products for the Marine Industry and Hunting and Fishing Industry. Aluminum and Steel Fabrication, Sales and Service are all provided under our 9000 sq ft. facility in Harrison, Michigan.
If you have any comments about our site and would like to provide us feedback, please use our Customer Feedback form to let us know.
Did you know we now have email subscriptions available? You can keep up to date by subscribing to a number of different topics. Subscriptions are available for all customer account holders and guests. Subscribe today to stay up to date.


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Jack Wallace II
Home TownSouth Carolina
Archery StyleCompound Target, 3D Target
Pro SummaryIn 1995, Jack's dreams of becoming a pro athlete came true with a surprise monetary gift from a long-lost relative. That gift provided Jack with enough money to pay his entry fees and travel the professional archery circuit for the season that started it all.
Professional Achievements
- USA Level 3 Archery Instructor
- 4 Current World Records:
(Highest 1 day ASA 12 ring scoring round, Highest 2 day ASA 12 ring scoring round, Most ASA 12 rings in a tournament, Most ASA 12 rings in a 20 target round..."16!")
- 4 Past World Records:
(Youngest shooter to win a pro tournament, Youngest to win a pro shooter of the year title, Highest 12-ring tournament count, Highest 12-ring tournament score)
- 2018 ASA Ft. Benning, Alabama Pro/Am Champion
- 2018 ASA Foley, Alabama Pro/Am Champion
- 2018 ASA Metropolis 2nd Place
- 2018 ASA Texas 3rd Place
- 2018 ASA Shooter of the Year 3rd Place
- 2017 IBO World Championship 2nd Place
- 2016 IBO Triple Crown National Champion
- 2016 IBO Nationals West Virginia 2nd Place
- 2016 IBO Nationals Pennsylvania 3rd Place
- 2014 ASA World Classic Champion
- 2014 IBO Nationals Indiana 3rd Place
- 2014 ASA Kentucky Pro/Am 3rd Place
- 2014 IBO Spring Nationals Champion 1st Place
- 2014 IBO Winter Nationals 2nd Place
- 2013 IBO National Champion Team 1st Place
- 2013 Regions Lancaster, Pennsylvania Pro/Am Champion
- 2013 ASA Georgia Pro/Am 3rd Place
- 2012 IBO Shooter of the Year
- 2012 ASA Kentucky Pro/Am 3rd Place
- 2012 IBO Southern Triple Crown Overall Champion
- 2012 IBO Southern Triple Crown Georgia Champion
- 2012 IBO Southern Triple Crown Alabama Champion
- 2012 IBO Southern Triple Crown Florida Champion
- 2011 IBO Shooter of the Year
- 2011 IBO World Championships 3rd Place
- 2011 ASA Illinois Pro/Am Champion
- 2011 IBO Ohio 3rd Place
- 2011 IBO Southern Triple Crown Champion
- 2011 IBO Southern Triple Crown Alabama Champion
- 2011 ASA Louisiana Pro/Am 2nd Place
- 2010 IBO Southern Triple Crown Alabama Champion
- 2010 ASA Illinois Pro/Am 2nd Place
- 2003 IBO Shooter of the Year
- 2002 IBO World Champion
- 2002 IBO National Triple Crown Champion
- 2002 IBO National Champion Ohio
- 2002 ASA Florida Pro/Am Champion (Record Score)
- 2001 IBO World Champion
- 2001 IBO National Triple Crown Champion
- 2001 IBO National Champion Indiana
- 2001 IBO National Team Champion
- 2000 IBO National Team Champion
- 1996 ASA Shooter of the Year
- ASA All-Time High 12-Ring Tournament Score Record and 12 Count
- Numerous ASA and IBO National Podium Finishes
Jack Wallace II
LP Archery Pro-Light DX Digital Light Kit
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Bohning Blazer Vanes$15.99 (100-pack)
Jack Wallace II Bio
Jack Wallace always wanted to be a professional athlete. He was a successful high school football player, but his prospects were looking grim for a post high school career.
"I was playing football for a pretty good team, but I knew I would never be a pro football player," says Jack.
On the other hand, Jack realized that his skill with a bow and arrow was special.
"I thought I could be a pro archer."
In 1995, Jack's dreams of becoming a pro athlete came true with a surprise monetary gift from a long lost relative. That gift provided Jack with enough money to pay his entry fees and travel the professional archery circuit. That season started it all for Jack.
One short year later he won his first ASA Shooter of the Year title.
Jack credits his dad, Jack Sr., with providing inspiration for his career along with archery idols Randy Ulmer and Dave Powers.
"They have helped shape me, who I am and what I strive to be."
One of Jack's most memorable moments in archery came when he got the chance to go head to head in an eight target shoot off with Randy Ulmer for ASA Shooter of the Year and $50,000. Jack won that competition and later went on to win the IBO National Championship Triple Crown and the IBO World Championship two times each.
"Archery has taught me how to visualize a dream, make it a goal, and work towards turning it into a reality," says Jack.
Jack believes that with the right guidance and determination, other archers can achieve similar goals.
"Find a coach or a well-known pro that is willing to help or teach you," says Jack. "They will help you to sort through all the misinformation out there."
Strategies of the pros
Everything Jack does as an archer is designed to improve the consistency of his tournament performance. His goal is to reward his sponsors by placing as high as possible in each competition that he enters.
The challenge is to develop a technique that allows him to shoot the same shot under any conditions.
When he practices, Jack works very hard on his shot process. "When I get to a tournament, everything is completely automatic. I waste no mental effort thinking of anything other than aiming."
Jack practices on his father's private indoor range. He also has about 70 McKenzie 3D targets set on 3 different courses.
"To me perfect 3D practice would be to walk to a blank bale, shoot a group to warm up, go to the animals, judge the distance to a target, set the sight and shoot an arrow, range the target's true distance, make a sight adjustment if necessary and fire a second arrow referencing the first.
"Twenty targets like this, finishing with a group or two of blank baling, would be a great round of 3D practice for me. This done 3 days per week with 3 days per week of strictly yardage estimation would be about as good as anyone can prepare for 3D archery tournaments."
Jack intentionally spends enough time with each bow that he and the bow begin to function together like one machine.
"I like a bow with at least 7 inches of brace height…38 inches of axle length…a fairly smooth draw cycle at my draw weight…just a touch of a soft wall in the back so I'm less likely to pull off the dot and a grip that I get no left to right or low to high slippage in. This helps me maintain a steady consistent sight picture."
While many archers spend hours relentlessly fine tuning their equipment, Jack keeps his as close to factory specs as possible.
"I spend very little time on the equipment as I believe the physical shot and the shooter's mental preparation and confidence are the true keys to success."
That's not to say that Jack doesn't tune his equipment, he simply doesn't obsess over it.
"I try to shoot the largest diameter arrow I can reach my 3D speeds with. I start with paper tuning to check each individual shaft then, if everything lines up well down the stabilizer I will go to longer distance group tuning by moving the rest in very small amounts up, down, left and right. I typically don't tiller tune my single cam bows."
Jack credits stabilizers for balancing the entire shot process. "Stabilizers are key in getting a bow to not only hold steadier on the bulls-eye but, also to maintain a consistent motion you are comfortable with in order to execute a your own style of shot."
"On 3D targets I shoot a .010 blue fiber optic with no lens. On indoor bulls-eyes I shoot a 4X lens with a black dot."
Shoot it in the middle
"My favorite indoor round to play is the Lancaster Archery Classic format," says Jack. "It truly rewards an archer for hitting the middle."
But Jack's strongest performances are in 3D archery where he has won world and national titles with both a wrist strap release and a back tension release.
"With the back tension I pull to the wall, stay against it as I aim and squeeze through the shot. I do not pull against the string as I pull myself off the aiming spot. With a wrist strap I pull to the wall, stay against it and squeeze slow and continuous as I aim - as if I am shooting a bench rest rifle."
In 2002, shortly after winning his second IBO World Championship, Jack was in a near-death auto accident.
Jack was hit when a dump truck pulling a back-hoe ran a stop sign. The impact crushed his passenger door and pushed him across traffic where he was hit again by an on-coming semi. He was air lifted to the nearest major trauma center. Jack had broken his right arm in two places, tore the right bicep off the tendon, broke his left wrist, his left ankle, had his hip broken and glass cut into his left eye.
That wreck and the long recovery refocused Jack's love and passion for life and the sport of archery.
"I love the sport of archery," says Jack. "I played it when there was no money in the game. I play it now and hope to play it as long as I live."
Jack Wallace II Videos
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DVD and the performance music CD produced by Prairie Public Broadcasting, Fargo, North Dakota, 2005
In the 18th and early 19th centuries, thousands of German-speaking people established major German settlements in Russia, first along the Volga River in the north, and secondly along the Black Sea in South Russia and nearby Bessarabia. Eventually, many migrated yet again, this time to North and South America. Throughout their travels, these Germans now Germans from Russia maintained their traditional religious music, their lullabies and folk songs, their vocal and instrumental music alike.
A Soulful Sound, Music of the Germans from Russia blends expert commentary with performances of traditional music from regional talent, including St. Andrew's Lutheran Centennial Choir (Zeeland, ND), University of Mary Concert Choir (Bismarck, ND), Jamestown College Concert Choir (Jamestown, ND), Young People's Hutterite Singers (Hawley, MN), Alive Gospel Choir (Kulm area, ND), James Valley Singers (Jamestown, ND), Centennial Men's Choir (Harvey area, ND) and the Napoleon area folk singers. Singers featured in the program include Maria Appelhans (Fort Collins, CO), Rosalinda Kloberdanz (Fargo, ND), John J. Gross (Napoleon, ND), Tony Wangler (Kintyre, ND) Robert E. Erbele (Lehr, ND) and Ron Volk (Harvey, ND).
Enjoy Marv Zander (Mandan, ND), Victor Schwahn (Bismarck, ND) and their bands as they perform accordion music and recreate a traditional wedding reception in the Blue Room in Strasburg, ND; and take a trip to Torrington, WY, to partake in an evening of "Dutch Hop" music.
A Soulful Sound, Music of the Germans from Russia was produced by Prairie Public Television in partnership with the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection, North Dakota State University Libraries, Fargo; and the Germans from Russia Cultural Preservation Foundation. It is the fourth in a series of documentaries about the Germans from Russia produced by Prairie Public Television.
Includes 40 minutes of bonus performance footage.
Production funding provided by the North Dakota Council on the Arts, The North Dakota Humanities Council, Roger and Bernadine Lang Kuhn, Clarence and Marilyn Bauman, Thomas and Janice Huber Stangl, Michael M. Miller, the Germans from Russia Heritage Society, and the members of Prairie Public Television.
2006 Aurora Award
"A Soulful Sound Music of the Germans from Russia"
produced by Prairie Public
Broadcasting in cooperation with the Germans from Russia Heritage
Collection, NDSU Libraries, Fargo, and The Germans from Russia Preservation Foundation with additional funding from the The North Dakota Council on the Arts, The North Dakota Humanities Council, Roger and Bernadine Lang Kuhn, Clarence and Marilyn Bauman, Thomas and Janice Huber Stangl, and Michael M. Miller has won a 2006 Gold Aurora Award in the Documentary-Cultural category. The program has been distributed nationally to PBS stations by NETA.
The Aurora Awards recognizes individuals in the film and video industries who have achieved that same ability to captivate their audiences with the displays produced from their own creative forces. Competitors come from private and corporate production groups, advertising agencies and television stations throughout the country.
The Aurora Awards is also an international competition designed to recognize excellence in the film and video industries. Entries have come from across the US, and abroad, such as Canada, Hong Kong, Denmark, Mexico, etc.
The judging functions are performed by panels of working film and video professionals that are set up in major cities across the country. Most are writers, producers, or directors who are previous award winners. Judges with specific proficiencies are matched with specific categories; for example music composers sit on the original music panels. The basic premise of the judging structure for the Aurora Awards is receiving the endorsement of your peers that your work is outstanding. Programs are judged on a fixed scale in areas of creativity, message effectiveness and technical excellence. Added together this provides a score that is measured against an absolute scale to determine if the program is award worthy or not. Using this method there could be several winners in one category or none at all. Overall scores from each panel are also compared to a statistical model to see if there is a consistency and fairness in each panel. Less than 2 out of every 10 entries receive an award.
Bob Dambach
Director of Television
Prairie Public Broadcasting
Fargo, North Dakota
Comments about documentary:
We watched the documentary last night. It
is an excellent production. You have
preserved another important piece of the German-Russian culture for this generation
and those to come to appreciate. We enjoyed having the opportunity to be a part of
the music for it. My wife, Lucinda (Schmitt), is from a German -Russian family. Her
father and his siblings grew up in the sacred music tradition. Her grandparents had
one of those beautiful pump organs and her grandfather played it and the children
sang with him. One of her cousins still has the organ.
--- Jeff Malm, rural Kulm, North Dakota
Member of the ALIVE Gospel Choir
For more information about the Germans from Russia videotape documentaries, consult the following websites:
Prairie Public Broadcasting, Inc., Fargo,
North Dakota
Germans from Russia Heritage Collection,
North Dakota State University Libraries, Fargo, North Dakota
at the Media section "Video Documentary and Other Projects"
Related Articles
A Soulful Sound: Music of the Germans from Russia
The price of A Soulful Sound DVD is $30 each plus postage and handling.
The price for A Soulful Sound performance CD is $15 each plus postage and handling.


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Checking in on… Conference USAPosted by Brian Goodman on November 23rd, 2010
Steve Coulter is the RTC correspondent for Conference USA.
A Look Back
- Kendrick out at Memphis: There may not be a bigger headline from Conference USA this season than the news of Memphis cutting ties with their McDonald's All-American Jelan Kendrick before the Tigers' first regular season game. It's a surprising move for second-year coach Josh Pastner, who cut the start recruit for an overall indifference towards the team. According to reports, Kendrick missed at least two weeks of practice in the preseason for "personal reasons." In addition, Kendrick had several opportunities to make good with the head coach and his staff, but failed due to an utter indifference toward the program's rules. From a personnel standpoint, his departure is a disappointment to most fans, considering the hype around Pastner's club has sky-rocketed from last season to this season, where the Tigers are slotted as a preseason top 20 team. The absence of the 6'6 freshman, who seemed poised to start and possibly lead the team in scoring, leaves a hole in the Memphis lineup. However, the move speaks highly to Pastner's belief in the team and their ability to win without Kendrick. Pastner's confidence has paid off thus far, as the Tigers have jumped out to a 4-0 start, beating Miami 72-68 on national television the day after cutting Kendrick loose. Pastner continues to make character a high priority. During the season opener against Centenary, the 33-year-old coach didn't play freshman Chris Crawford, citing academic reasons. Also, he kept star Wesley Witherspoon on the bench after he showed up late to practice. Three weeks into the college basketball season, one thing is clear in Memphis — if you want to get on the court, you have to play by Pastner's rules.
- Clarkson rising for Tulsa: Freshman Jordan Clarkson, of San Antonio, has emerged as a possible favorite for freshman of the year. The guard finished with two double-figure scoring games, while leading the Golden Hurricanes to a pair of wins. At week's end, Clarkson was shooting 66% from the floor and above 50 percent from the field. Tulsa was able earn wins over Oral Roberts and Missouri State due to Clarkson's 17-point and 13-point efforts, respectively.
- Culpepper continues to score: The Preseason Player of the Year is well on his way, as UTEP's Randy Culpepper has already emerged as the conference's top scorer. After only three games, the guard is averaging 20.3 points a game, shooting over 45 percent from both the field and the three-point range.
- Dia lifts Mustangs to SMU Invitational victory: Papa Dia's performance in the SMU Invitational was enough to cement the senior center as the tournament's MVP, while the Mustangs (2-3) ran away with wins over Lamar and Portland State. Dia was also named C-USA Player of the Week, after averaging 18.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists in four games last week. The big man is shooting a crazy 71.8 percent from the field.
Power Rankings
- Memphis (4-0): Undoubtedly the best team in conference. Wins over Miami and LSU help create momentum as this team continues a rough out of conference schedule. So far, all the players have responded positively to the last minute departure of Jelan Kendrick. If they continue to win games, Josh Pastner will look like a coaching genius for cutting his prize recruit on the eve of the Miami game.
- Southern Miss (3-0): R.L. Horton shoulders too much of the scoring load, averaging 19.5 a game. However, the Golden Eagles are undefeated thus far and after trouncing South Alabama last week, everything is looking good. Angelo Johnson in the backcourt could pose a problem to many clubs come conference play.
- UAB (2-1): It is impossible not to mention Aaron Johnson when talking about UAB. The guard's 9.3 assists per game are unmatched right now; the next best is Zamal Nixon of Houston with 6.8 a game. It doesn't hurt that Cameron Moore is averaging 19 points and 10 rebounds thus far. A close loss to Arizona State is a good measuring stick to where this team is. This week they will travel to Little Rock, Ark., to take on Arkansas.
- Central Florida (3-0): Although South Florida is a bottom tier Big East team, UCF still has to feel good about their out-of-conference upset. However, Marcus Jordan and Keith Clanton carry too much of the scoring burden at the moment. They are the only teammates, besides Tulsa's Jordan Hurtt and Steven Idlet, which rank in the top ten scorers in conference. Clanton's above 73 percent shooting percentage is impressive.
- UTEP (2-1): Randy Culpepper may be leading the conference in scoring, but the Miners will need to amp up their scoring all around if they want to topple New Mexico State and Georgia Tech this upcoming week.
- Houston (3-1): The Cougars remain in the top part of the conference, still relying on the magic from last season's improbable run in the conference tournament. It helps that Maurice McNeil is averaging 11 rebounds a game, while registering 1.8 blocks a contest. A perfect 3-0 record will be tested in upcoming weeks, as the schedule gets tougher.
- Marshall (3-1): Marshall doesn't boast any big wins, defeating Maryville and Glenville State by large margins. Tom Herrion's club has a good record, but right now the out of conference schedule remains soft, which forces the question. How good can the Thundering Herd be if they aren't competing against high quality opponents?
- Tulsa (2-1): The duo of Jordan Clarkson and Justin Hurtt give this team a lot of talent in the backcourt. Add in newcomer Scottie Haralson, who is currently averaging 15 points, a game, and the Golden Hurricanes could a trio of guards that make them a threat come March. Battles with UNLV and potentially Stanford (if not Murray State) loom.
- Tulane (3-1): Kendall Timmons is having an outstanding start to the year, averaging 13.7 points in the conference. In addition, he is second in the conference in rebounds (11.3 rpg) and first in steals (3 spg). However, the Green Wave have beaten up on lowly Maryville and Centenary, so it is hard to tell what kind of a team they are at this moment.
- SMU (2-3): The Mustangs are the only team with a losing record in conference. However, that will most likely change with Wayland Baptist coming in on Wednesday. Not an ideal early start for SMU, but stout performances by senior center Papa Dia has people excited.
- Rice (3-1): Projected to be one of the worst teams in the conference by most analysts, the Owls have jumped off to a quick start, but don't be fooled by the record. Last week's 75-58 win over St. Gregory's is nothing to get excited about. North Texas comes into tonight and should prove to be a good measuring stick. Arsalan Kazemi is currently leading the conference with 12 rebounds per game.
- East Carolina (3-2): Two losses to North Carolina State and Charlotte should have them ranked higher, but considering whom they have beaten, East Carolina is still a low tier team in this conference.
A Look Ahead
- Memphis' schedule only gets tougher: Surviving Miami and LSU wasn't easy, however Memphis can't be looking for a breather just yet. The team's out of conference schedule only gets tougher from here. The December schedule features a game against a tough Western Kentucky team, which is followed by games against Kansas and Georgetown. In addition, the Tigers will hit the road later this season to take on Tennessee and Gonzaga. Overcoming Miami's backcourt tandem of Durand Scott and Malcolm Grant as Memphis did in the 24 Hours of Hoops Marathon is a good sign for what is a very young and inexperienced backcourt. Freshmen Joe Jackson and Will Barton will be relied upon as the season progresses, an will certainly be tested during a tough opening stretch. Also, the duo has had to deal with the departure of the aforementioned Kendrick, which only increases the pressure.
- UTEP enters pivotal nonconference stretch: At 2-1, the UTEP Miners could be looking at a sub-.500 record if they can't pull out a key victory over either New Mexico State or Georgia Tech. Tonight UTEP hosts NMSU at 7:05 CST, while they travel to Atlantic City on Friday to play in the Legends Classic Championship where they will take on Georgia Tech. UTEP advanced to the championship in Atlantic City after a home victory against Western Carolina last week in the Legends Classic Regional's.


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Birthday Keepsakes coupon
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How to Save Money on Brakes
October 5, 2011
It's no secret your vehicle's brakes are an essential safety system. With complex hydraulic mechanisms and plenty of parts that need replacing on a regular basis, it's always tempting to put off your brake service as long as possible to save a few pennies. The truth is, failing to keep up with routine maintenance is a sure-fire way to cause yourself extra headaches in the future. That doesn't mean you can't try to reduce the cost of this necessity. Check out DriverSide's list of great ways to save money on your vehicle's brakes.
Keep Up With Maintenance
Make sure you do all of your brake maintenance on time. Failing to do so can cause damage to expensive parts, sticking you with a hefty bill. For example, it's easy to overlook replacing you vehicle's brake fluid, but if you skip the job for a long time, you could cause damage to your brake lines, calipers and your proportioning valve. Replacing all of those parts could cost well over $1,000, whereas bleeding your brake system shouldn't cost more than $50.
Use Quality Parts
It may be tempting to go for the cheapest parts possible when picking up new bits for your car, but the truth is lackluster replacement parts fail quicker than their name-brand counterparts. Rotors from Mexico may cost as little as $30, whereas a quality example may be closer to $60, but if you have to replace the $30 rotor three times as often, you've lost any money you gained in the first place. Do yourself a favor and pick up OEM or mechanic-recommended equipment.
Change Your Driving Habits
More than anything else you can do, changing how you drive will save you tons on your vehicle's brake costs. Slowing down earlier, not coming to abrupt stops and not riding the brakes will go a long way toward making your car's equipment last longer than it otherwise would.
Ask if Your Calipers Can Be Rebuilt
If you haven't taken the best care of your brake system and your mechanic tells you the vehicle will need a new caliper, ask if it can simply be rebuilt instead. In most cases, rebuild kits cost around $30 and the job doesn't take very long. Compare that to over $100 for a caliper on most cars, and you can see the savings.


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2014 America's Brain Health Index
America's Brain Health Index, a state-by-state measure of the nation's brain health, evaluated the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia based on 21 factors including diet, physical health, mental health and social well-being. See how each state has progressed, held its own or lost ground in taking measures to improve brain health over the past three years.
America's Brain Health Index is part of a national health education campaign, Beautiful Minds: Finding Your Lifelong Potential. The campaign is designed to empower Americans to develop and maintain healthy, beautiful minds.
- Key
- Above
- Average
- Below
Click on a state above
to see the data
National Rankings
The map displays rankings (Above, Average and Below) based on scores within selected categories. Note that the national average is 100*.
Select Diet, Physical Health, Mental Health and Social Well-being to view results by category
Select List View to see the complete rankings (1-51) of each state, plus the District of Columbia
State Rankings
Click on a state within the map or list view to display rankings, results and provide access to more detailed data.
The summary will show overall scores and break down the brain health strengths and challenges for each state
Selecting View Details will provide detailed findings for each state and comparison data from the previous Indexes


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Mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing an unprecedented ban on the sale of large servings of soda and other sugary drinks in the city's restaurants, delis and movie theaters in one of his most aggressive efforts yet to fight obesity.
"The percentage of the population that is obese is skyrocketing," Bloomberg said Thursday on MSNBC. He added: "We've got to do something."
The proposal marks the first time an American city has so directly attempted to limit sugary-drink portion sizes. City officials said they believe it will ultimately prove popular with New Yorkers and push governments around the U.S. to adopt similar rules.
The idea immediately sparked renewed accusations that the Bloomberg administration is sticking its nose into matters best left to individuals.
"New Yorkers expect and deserve better than this. They can make their own choices about the beverages they purchase," Coca-Cola Co. said in a statement. "We hope New Yorkers loudly voice their disapproval about this arbitrary mandate."
The proposal requires the approval of the city's Board of Health - considered likely because its members are all appointed by Bloomberg.
The administration's proposal would impose a 16-ounce limit on sugary drinks sold at restaurants, movie theaters, sports venues and street carts. It would apply to bottled drinks - many plastic soda bottles contains 20 ounces - as well as fountain sodas.
Bloomberg said people who want to guzzle 32 ounces would still be free to order two drinks. But he said restricting sodas to 16 ounces could help curb consumption.
"You tend to eat all of the food in the container. If it's bigger, you eat more. If somebody put a smaller glass or plate or bowl in front of you, you would eat less," he said.
The ban, which could take effect as soon as March, would not extend to drinks sold in grocery or convenience stores that don't primarily sell foods meant to be eaten right away. Businesses that violate the rules would face fines of $200 per failed inspection.
The ban would apply only to sweetened drinks that contain more than 25 calories per 8 ounces. (A 12-ounce can of Coke contains about 140 calories.) It would not affect diet soda, and any drink that is at least half milk or milk substitute would be exempt, too.
City officials said they believe some calorie-heavy beverages wouldn't be affected. Starbucks Frappucinos, for example, would probably be exempted because of their dairy content, while the Slurpees at 7-Eleven wouldn't be affected because the stores are regulated as groceries.
Officials cited research linking sugary drinks to rising rates of obesity, diabetes and heart disease.
"We have a crisis of obesity," City Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said. "And people often go with the default choice, and if the default choice is something which is very unhealthy and is feeding into that health crisis, it's appropriate for the government to say, 'No, we think the default choice should be healthier.'"
Under the three-term mayor, the city has campaigned aggressively against obesity, outlawing trans-fats in french fries and other restaurant food and forcing chain restaurants to post calorie counts on menus. The mayor has also led efforts to ban smoking in the city's bars, restaurants, parks and beaches.
His efforts have drawn criticism from those who accuse him of instituting a "nanny state."
"There they go again," said Stefan Friedman, spokesman for the New York City Beverage Association, who called the latest proposal "zealous."
"The New York City Health Department's unhealthy obsession with attacking soft drinks is again pushing them over the top," he said. "The city is not going to address the obesity issue by attacking soda because soda is not driving the obesity rates."
The Bloomberg administration has tried other ways to discourage soda consumption. The mayor supported a state tax on sodas, but the measure died in Albany, and he tried to restrict the use of food stamps to buy sodas, an idea federal regulators rejected.
Mark Kalinowski, an analyst with Janney Capital Markets who covers companies including McDonald's, said it is unlikely the ban will be enacted.
"Folks who want to buy Big Gulps and Frappucinos, a lot of those customers, you're only going to be able to take it away from them by prying it out of their cold, dead hands," he said.
And if it does go into effect, he said, customers will probably just respond by ordering two drinks.
"Maybe the mayor can outlaw all soft drinks and outlaw all fun while he's at it," Kalinowski scoffed.