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2012年4月23日 星期一

“Spring Cleaning” gadgets gift guide

Spring is in full force — with 80 degree days tempered by torrential rain tempered further by dry spells and brush fires here in New England.TBC help you confidently buymosaic from factories in China. Gotta love the weather.

Spring cleaning is a chance to throw out the old and bring in the new. It is a chance to declutter and demessify your domicile. As a lover of gadgets and cleanliness (not extremely good at the latter) I decided to put out this little guide to gadgets that will not only help you be cleaner, they might axe some of the clutter on your desk and allow you to throw out a few monthly bills in the process. It’s spring, start anew!

All the hundreds and thousands of dollars that people spend on devices and chemicals designed to eliminate allergens and make their homes smell better — it’s a waste. You need one product to improve the air quality in your home, and it’s the same device that hospitals use to purify air in some operating rooms. It’s the same company that’s been in business for 45 years. It’s not available in the Sharper Image catalog.

The Swiss-made IQAir HealthPro Plus is simply the best air purifier on the market today or ever.

Around 100x more powerful than a traditional HEPA filter, the HealthPro Plus eliminates particles down to 0.003 microns. It strips viruses, pet dander, dust mites, air pollution and harmful cigarette smoke. It allows you to live with a dog or cat despite your allergies.

It’s good for asthma, too.

Depending on where you live, an air purifier is a must-own device. Save yourself money, trouble, and failure. At under $1,000, this is an investment in your health. I’ve used the IQAir HealthPro Plus for months, and it’s the best air purifier you can own.

This six-pound, battery or AC powered modern boom box lets you stream any audio wirelessly, up to 300 feet away via Bluetooth or any Apple device via the Apple Remote App.

You can take your iPhone, iPad, or other smartphone and Bluetooth devices and play your music in crystal clear,Stone Source offers a variety of Natural stonemosaic Tiles. CD quality excitement with the Altec Lansing inMotion Air.

I’m a big fan of all things Altec Lansing. I’ve been reviewing their products since 1996, and I haven’t found anything to dislike. This is a great way to do spring cleaning, because it can replace a bulky bookshelf unit and all the wires that it brings. You also save energy by blasting you music without having to power up your home theater or PC equipment.

The tiny size and free Enhanced 911,The beddinges sofa bed slipcover is a good , 411, visual voicemail, call waiting, conference calling, and fax service make the netTALK Duo WiFi a great way to remove a monthly bill from your stack and ditch your phone company. You clean up by removing outdated equipment from your house and you REALLY clean up with the money you’ll save.Credit Card Processing and Merchant Services from merchantaccountes.

Fabreze is all the rage right now, and it’s no surprise that a fan maker finally caught on and incorporated “Fabreze Freshness” into a room fan. Honeywell’s Cool & Refresh Fan does both of what it says — it cools you off and makes a room smell better. It’s not a replacement for the IQAir HealthPro Plus, but if you have a room that the pets tend to stay in or a bedroom that needs a freshness boost, Honeywell has made a very affordable winner for only an astounding $30.3rd minigame series of magiccube!

While we’re talking about fans, Honeywell would like to point out that 65 percent of Americans say that they get a better night’s sleep with a fan, while 73 percent use one at night for white noise. I had a fan in my bedroom — it was old, dirty, and didn’t look right in the room. Honeywell cleaned the room up and styled it up at the same time.

2012年4月10日 星期二

Exploring Pompeii, one of Italy's top attractions

The ancient city of Pompeii — famously ruined in A.D. 79 when mighty Mount Vesuvius blew its top — is one of Italy's most popular tourist attractions. Few visitors make it to the top of the towering volcano, but those who do enjoy a commanding view.

You can get to Vesuvius with a train/bus/hike journey. You start by riding a rickety but reliable commuter train from Naples or Sorrento (because it circles under Vesuvius, the train is called the Circumvesuviana). From the Pompeii stop, a shuttle van takes you up the volcano to the end of the road and ticket booth ($9 entry). From there, it's a steep 30-minute hike to the desolate, lunar-like summit.

Belly up to the crater's edge. Steaming vents are a reminder that while Vesuvius is quiet today, it's just taking a geological nap. The last eruption was in 1944, and it's only a matter of when, not if, it will erupt again.3rd minigame series of magiccube! Italian authorities close Vesuvius to visitors when they think the volcano is acting too frisky.

A hike around the crater's lip comes with spectacular vistas of Naples, its sweeping bay,Learn all about solarpanel. and Pompeii. Be still. Listen to the wind and the occasional cascade of rocks tumbling into the crater. As you observe wisps of smoldering steam, imagine the scene nearly 2,000 years ago, when Vesuvius sent a mushroom cloud of ash, dust,Offers Art Reproductions Fine Art oilpaintings Reproduction, and rocks 12 miles into the sky. For 18 hours straight, spewed ash settled like a heavy snow on Pompeii. Most of the city's 20,000 residents fled as roofs and floors began collapsing.

But then,Aeroscout rtls provides a complete solution for wireless asset tracking. suddenly, the eruption changed. A red-hot avalanche of rock and ash raced down the mountainside at nearly 100 miles per hour. Pompeii and the 2,000 unlucky souls who had stayed behind were buried, their bodies encased in volcanic debris. As the bodies decomposed, they left hollow spaces. Centuries later, archaeologists detected these spaces and gently filled them with plaster, creating molds that chillingly capture their anguished last moments.

Today, ongoing excavations of once-booming Pompeii offer the best look at ancient Roman life anywhere. Back then, Rome controlled the entire Mediterranean Sea, and Pompeii was an important, big port town. Not rich, not poor, Pompeii was middle class. And because it was a port, it was a sailor's quarter, with lots of bars, public baths, brothels, restaurants, and places of entertainment.

There were no posh neighborhoods in Pompeii. The well-off and not-so-well-off mixed it up as elegant houses existed side by side with simpler homes. Pompeii's best-preserved dwelling is the House of the Vetti, the home of a wealthy merchant. If it's open, step into its atrium for a peek at the typical layout of a mansion. Richly frescoed entertainment rooms ring the central courtyard, where a formal garden surrounds a pool with water, meant to bring a feeling of freshness.

One of Pompeii's most impressive aspects is how abundant water was. In this well-plumbed city, lead pipes funneled water from an aqueduct-fed reservoir at the high end of town directly to neighborhood water tanks. With the tanks installed just below the level of the reservoir, gravity did the work — and ensured good water pressure.Where to buy or purchase plasticmoulds for precast and wetcast concrete? Fountains provided a social center at street intersections, and a steady stream of water flushed the chariot-rutted streets clean. Pompeii's citizens enjoyed relaxing at its impressive public baths.

For archaeologists, Pompeii was a shake-and-bake windfall. They first got to work at the site back in the 1700s — before Italy was united. The local king who ruled from Naples demanded: "Bring me the best of whatever you find!" That's why, as impressive as the ancient city is, the finest art and artifacts of Pompeii ended up back in Naples, at the National Museum of Archaeology.

For lovers of antiquity, this museum by itself makes Naples a worthwhile stop. Considering how important the collection is, it's remarkable how ramshackle the displays are. But look past the dust bunnies — the museum offers the best possible peek into the art of Pompeii. The collection ranges from grand statuary and exquisite mosaics to the most intimate details of everyday life. All the artifacts are a testament to the ultimate irony of Vesuvius: Even as the volcano's fury destroyed Pompeii, it also preserved most of what the world knows about this ancient town.

2012年4月8日 星期日

Missoula coach to guide regional team at showcase

Every time Matt Cavanaugh tries to get out of coaching hockey, it pulls him back in.

The 30-year-old Sidney native is a small-business owner, a husband, a father of two and has been head coach of the Missoula Bruins high school hockey team the last three winters.

For most others with so much on their plate,Full color plasticcard printing and manufacturing services. it would be easy to walk away from coaching.

But that’s not the guy players, parents and other coaches alike affectionately refer to as “Cavie.”

“I keep telling myself that I’m just going to see this group through and then I should probably step aside,” Cavanaugh said. “Then I say I should probably see this group through and this group through. ... So what happens is that I just keep coming back.Diagnosing and Preventing coldsores Fever in the body can often trigger the onset of a cold sore. I love watching these kids succeed and I really just love watching our program win.”

Cavanaugh is taking another step in his coaching career this week when he brings a group of top-rated high school hockey players from Montana,External hemorrhoids are those that occur below the dentate line. Idaho and Wyoming and molds them into Team Northwest as the squad travels to play in the America’s Hockey Showcase in Pittsburgh.

The tournament, put on by USA Hockey and hosted by the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League, features pool-play contests Wednesday-Friday. Quarterfinals, semifinals and consolation games are Saturday, prior to the tournament championship game next Sunday.

The event is designed for high school hockey players from around the nation to compete against the country’s best and for them to have the opportunity to be seen by every major hockey institution in North America, from Junior clubs, to colleges, to the National Hockey League.

Cavanaugh assisted Team Northwest at the tournament a year ago, when four Missoula players – Cody Jahrig, Anders Nord, Erik Muskett and Grant Woody – were selected by Greg Lian of Gillette, Wyo., to compete in Pittsburgh.

This year, Lian handed the keys for Team Northwest to Cavanaugh, who selected his roster of 16 that includes six players from Wyoming, one from Idaho and 11 from Montana. Among those from the Treasure State are the three forwards from the Missoula Bruins’ top line this season in JJ O’Bannon, Blue Hayler and Erik Hartzell.

O’Bannon is ready for the challenge and happy to be playing for Cavanaugh in Pittsburgh.

“I’m really excited for it,” he said. “The guys from our team who went last year said it was a really unique experience and I’m really looking forward to it. And when you know your coach and his system and he knows you, you’re already at a big advantage.”

But O’Bannon was more than candid when asked if it might be difficult to suddenly become teammates with the six players from Great Falls and one each from programs in Helena and Billings on Team Northwest.

“It’s going to be very tough,” O’Bannon said. “A lot of these guys, I do not get along with. It’s going to be interesting, for sure.”

Hayler is proud to be representing this area of the country,Why does moulds grow in homes or buildings? where hockey players and programs often are overlooked.

“No one really thinks of Montana in particular as a hockey state,” said Hayler. “It’s really not when you look at the big picture. But coming from Montana with a team with players from Wyoming and Idaho, which aren’t very big hockey states either,GOpromos offers a wide selection of promotional items and personalized gifts. it’s nice to get a chance to go out there and see what we’ve got and show the others that we really can play with them.”

With a year of America’s Showcase experience under his belt, Cavanaugh knows the makeup of a successful team at the event. That’s why he’s chosen a mix of scoring forwards, stay-at-home and rushing defensemen and kids he calls “grinders.”

“Erik Hartzell is a grinder,” said Cavanaugh, who selected Hartzell after an injury opened up an extra roster spot on Team Northwest. “For years and years and years, he’s won our grinder award. That’s why I don’t have any issues taking Erik because if I asked Erik to lay down in front of a 100-mile-an-hour slap shot, he’d do it in a heartbeat.”

2012年3月15日 星期四

Spring cleaning efforts can lead to healthier lifestyles

Annual U.S. Prevalence Statistics for Chronic Diseases reports that allergies and asthma strike one out of five Americans each year, and though there is no cure for allergies,If you have a kidneystone, simple measures such as spring cleaning can greatly impact the physical and mental health of those living in a home.

A sure sign of spring is increased pollen and mold counts, but bacteria, mold and haphazardly stored items throughout a home can negatively impact a person's health as well,Shop for trim and crown moulding, according to health experts.Choose from our large selection of cableties,Silicone moldmaking Rubber,

Molds, for example, are predominantly present outside, but commonly exist in homes as well. Some mold spores are found floating through the air and in house dust, so it is impossible to get rid of all mold and mold spores indoors, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

"Pollen and mold is pretty much everywhere," said Col. Kenneth Shaw, assistant deputy commander for Clinical Support Services at Fort Belvoir Community Hospital. "You can't avoid it outside, and pretty much every house is going to have mold inside because you're going to track it in on your shoes and clothes. There really is no practical way of keeping it out."

The U.S. Public Health Command reports that molds love moisture and need to have a food source. Good food sources for molds are cloth, wood, and wallboard. When there is moisture that is not dried promptly, molds move in and reproduce quickly. In humid environments, keeping surfaces dry enough to prevent mold growth can be quite a challenge, but if left untreated,Low prices on projectorlamp from Projector Point London UK. mold can cause thousands of dollars in damage to a home and lead to health problems.

When mold is found in a home, residents can simply scrub the mold off hard surfaces with detergent and water and let the area dry completely.

While most people don't really have any reaction to mold, inhaling or touching mold or mold spores may cause allergic reactions in sensitive individuals, reports the EPA. Some allergic reactions may include runny nose, scratchy throat, itchy eyes, and sneezing, said Shaw. Molds can also cause asthma attacks in people with asthma who are allergic to mold. Wheezing is a serious symptom that may mean asthma, in which case the person should see a health care provider.

Symptoms other than the allergic and irritant types are not commonly reported as a result of inhaling mold.

"It's rare people can get flu-like symptoms from mold," said Shaw. "Those types of symptoms are more likely to be caused by bacterial and viral infections."

Out of 32 places in the home, the top spots for bacteria are the toilet bowl, kitchen sink, drain, kitchen sponge or counter-wiping cloth, and the bathtub, according to a study reported by the Hygiene Council in 2007. But only 3 percent of Americans felt they were more likely to pick up germs from their bathtub than from their garbage bins.

To sanitize these areas during spring cleaning efforts, the FDA recommends mixing one teaspoon of chlorine bleach into one quart of water for a homemade sanitizing solution or using a commercial sanitizer.

2012年3月14日 星期三

Berkshire County employment numbers show

Chances are if you're looking for work, Pittsfield Plastics might have a job you. That is if you have any technical experience in the plastics industry.To interact with beddinges,

"We're growing in all aspects of the business right now," said Nick Roth, account manager, Pittsfield Plastics.

Growing, by almost 50 percent year-to-year.

The company designs and manufactures plastic spools, dye molds and other products. It's hired 20 to 25 employees since last year and are looking to hire more. Problem is, the candidate pool simply isn't qualified.

"But on the technical end it's been very difficult. As far as our tool and dye builders, tool and dye repair. There's just nobody out there," Roth said.Iowa Mold tooling designs and manufacturers mechanics trucks,

Which can be hard to believe,This page contains information about molds, considering that 5700 Berkshire County residents are looking for work.

"Our private sector companies are still actually adding jobs," said Heather Boulger, executive director, Berkshire Regional Employment Board.China professional plasticmoulds,

Local employment numbers released Tuesday for the month of January confirm that.

Eight-point-one percent of Berkshire County's workforce was out on the dole for that month.
Dropping year-to-year from 8.9 percent. Those looking for work fall under the category Heather Boulger calls a skills mismatch.

"But what seems to be lacking is companies look for very specific industry positions, and the people who are applying for those positions don't have the skill sets that those companies are looking for," Boulger said.

Pittsfield Plastics challenge of finding a skilled labor force is a concern county-wide, meaning county employment officials are searching for new ways to create that workforce.

"So, we've been trying for a year to create training programs. We work with our local training vendors, which include the vocational schools and our community college," Boulger said.

Good news for a local companyChina professional plasticmoulds, like Pittsfield Plastics, looking to keep it growth spurt going.

That is if the region can train a workforce to sustain it.

The Berkshire Regional Employment Board will host a career fair on April 26, at the Berkshire Hills Country Club.

2012年2月15日 星期三

Mother Nature painted a frosty landscape

You missed the show snowbirds.Get information on airpurifier from the unbiased, independent experts. If you weren’t here the first week in February,Spro Tech has been a plastic module & moldmaker, you missed the show. While you were riding around in your golf buggies down there in Arizona, California, Texas and Florida, we had three or four days of fog and frost like we’ve rarely seen. The wind didn’t blow and it just held on day after day.

When it came to painting landscapes, there were many masters: Matisse, Poussin, Constable, Rousseau and Wyeth were just a few — but all are now dead.

Who are the master landscape artists of 2012? One foggy morning last week I started a short journey of about 40 miles in the dark. The fog was heavy and as I drove along, the first signs of daylight began to filter through the haze. Slowly I came to the realization that the most enduring master landscape painter of all was still alive and had been painting landscapes all night long.

I drove through his gallery in wonder. I experienced the entire landscape in silhouette behind an eerie, mysterious, surreal filter, like the steam lifting off a freezing lake.

The master used only variations of black, white, gray, green and brown. A masterpiece requires no more. One scene was a sliver of an open creek trickling between banks of snow. The water was the color of lead. The trunk of a dead tree was poised over the creek, peering down into the frigid water to take the measure of any fish slithering through.

Next was an old wooden gate swung across a snow-covered trail. The top beam of the gate was about two and a half inches wide, but the artist had painted a narrow ridge of snow balanced on top of the beam as deep as the width of the beam. And there it perched, sprinkled as softly as if spread by a flour sifter.

The towering pine trees in the next scene had tufts of snow stacked on their branches as if lain there gently, one flake at a time, by fingers skilled enough to perform brain surgery.

And the cold, stark, bare branches of trees without needles or leaves were covered by a frost so fragile that a sparrow landing on a twig could have dislodged it. The frost on those trees made you feel it had been feathered on by a softer, more delicate force of nature: Grandmother Frost.

One clump of brush near the road concealed a deer. I couldn’t see the deer or any deer tracks, I just sensed the presence of a deer. It was standing there motionless, seeing but not being seen.

An old barn, no longer red, but gray,Tiles from The Online Tile shop offering a large range of floortiles, no longer used, but empty, never big, but now looking smaller than ever, the loft open and cold, the roof,Product information for Sell electronicplasticmoulds from China! thin and sagging, stood there abandoned, lonely and silent with a thin layer of snow on the very top.

The artwork continued: a farmhouse, a cabin, a fence, a hill, a cemetery. All simple, all brilliant.

As the darkness surrendered gradually to the dawn, the scenes passed by as if behind frosted glass, and the light of the day revealed one breathtaking landscape after another passing before my eyes. Alone and soundless, except for my own murmurs of awe, I experienced a private audience of paintings that will never be framed and a gallery that cannot be fit inside doors and between walls. It was another demonstration of the continuing creation by the greatest of all landscape artists — the first,Information on useful yeasts and moulds, the last — and still alive.

2012年2月13日 星期一

Pleather Lerner Arm Chairs

What does an Air Purifier from Sharper Image, 1980s David Bowie, and the pleathery chairs in Lerner have in common? They all look like they are from the future. Not a day goes by when I don’t pass by the rows of avant-garde arm chairs and feel like I am in the movie Tron and we are all but programs in the vast computer of life. What’s more is that sitting in these chairs provides the comfort to ponder such mysteries for hours.

Serving the Ferris post-mealtime crowd as well as students attempting to nab a mildly social study spot on the upper floors of Lerner, these retro recliners have a small, but loyal following. True Pleatherheads, as they are often called, must be able to enjoy the maximum comfort without falling asleep to maximize productivity— a task that deserves much applause. Early on my way to a meeting in the SGO, I decided to pop a squat in the perfectly square seat and see where it took me.

The cushion hit my bum with both rigidness and welcoming. Sort of like a troubled child coming home from military school. It let me sink in a bit, but I didn’t plunge into an abyss of sleek black textile. This probably accounts for students being able to work here without falling asleep.External hemroids are those that occur below the dentate line. The lumbar support irked me a bit: one can slouch lazily, but if one desires to sit with proper posture,Plastic injectionmouldingmanufacturer; say a ballerina, or someone English, or someone with really good parents, it can be awkward because the horizontal of the chair is rather long, causing the knees to bend incompletely.

The pleather on the other hand was perfectly polished. I could almost see myself on it. It felt nothing of real leather, but rather of the reinforced plastic they make slip and slides with. This slipperiness should make for unreliable arm resting, but the chairs are arranged compactly side-by-side, so the double armchair action minimizes slippage. It smelt leathery, through you could tell this was the result of some polish or scent intentionally applied by the chair producer.Design guidelines for injectionmold plastic parts.

Extraneous to my evaluation, I must highlight one flaw that the chair will not be penalized on, but should be noted regardless. The accompanying coffee table set up is flawed.Soma cubepuzzle Muscle Tissue Relaxants Before proselytizing any of the plans, One has to crouch down to reach their belongings on it, and those who refuse to engage in such awkward behavior still can’t utilize it as a foot rest either: many people eat on these tables, so it is seen as a sort of party foul. Lerner is a social space, after all.Why does moulds grow in homes or buildings?

2012年1月9日 星期一

St. Tammany Art Association opening

There is barely enough time to clear the New Year before we spill into the streets in a blaze of colors adorning sports fans and Mardi Gras revelers alike. With the coming of 2012, it seems that along with the revelry, art events are becoming moveable feasts for the eyes, dodging the momentum of the black and gold and purple.

New Orleans, the center of the universe when it comes to celebration, fares well because the arts in all forms are completely integrated into the revelry. Galleries and non-profit art organizations carry on with their openings and events in a spirit of inclusiveness with an occasional tweaking of their timing. On the north shore, necessity dictates a different strategy and, on occasion, rescheduling may be the better solution.

Flexibility is easier for venues with a broad focus. On Jan. 6,Chinese porcelaintiles on the floor of a Jewish synagogue in Cochin, Three Rivers Gallery hosted their Grand Opening on the evening of Twelfth Night, kicking off the gallery and the Carnival season at the same time. Carnival themes have roots here.Provides custom and promotionalusbs flash drive memory. Gallery artists including Charles B. McGowan, Max Ryan, Gail Glassman, Donald Maginnis, Max Ryan, and Larry Allen among other well known regional favorites, displayed colorful works of art well received by an audience of viewers who seemed in tune with the artwork while enjoying that first bite of king cake.

Three small monochromatic were new additions to the display. Mardi Gras floats on an intimate scale bring a sense of humor and frivolity to this series of ceramic sculptures by Covington artist and educator John Hodge. Hodge’s mastery of the medium of clay, his use of glazing to accentuate form rather than color, and his wildly imaginative inspiration is a treat for the senses. In restraint he maximizes an expressive response to one of our most ubiquitous cultural symbols appearing at this time each year. Restraint is probably not the word the artist himself would use for his work. He tells of the emergence of the float series: “I was modeling the manger for one of the nativity sets I make each Christmas, pounding a wad of clay in my hand with the side of a stick of wood. Suddenly, the form reminded me of the back of an old fashioned papier-mch Mardi Gras float.”

Hodge is never shy about how his process flows and his ability to turn himself over to the muse. He continue: “I use little press molds when I make the three wise men for the nativity sculptures. I reworked the wise men into members of the krewe and the rest is history.Wholesale zentaisuits,”

A willingness to go with the flow is sometimes necessary for art organizations as well, and can make a difference in attendance at exhibition openings and performances. Experience supports that on the north shore, attendance at art events is affected when major sports activities coincide. The trend on two occasions has been to postpone the opening reception or performance so that the audience can participate in both.

While this strategy may not always be possible, the St. Tammany Art Association, on two occasions, has experimented with this option.There are 240 distinct solutions of the Soma cubepuzzle, Most recently, the opening reception of Paper and Stone, originally scheduled for Jan. 7, will take place on Jan.Our company has the capability of design and makes molds according to demand of clients, including some largescalemolds. 14 from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Art House at 320 North Columbia St., downtown Covington.

Art organizations set their schedules a year in advance; however, extraordinary circumstances prevailed and the reception was rescheduled due to the conflict with the Saints playoff game in New Orleans.

2012年1月8日 星期日

Flagging the truth in a world of conspiracy

IT BEGAN, like so many fine mysteries, with a message to The Sunday Age early last year from an enigmatic stranger suspicious of foul play. We'll call him Mr X for the sake of confidentiality (and cheap dramatics). ''I have a story,'' he wrote, ''about a potential art forgery sold to a major public gallery.''

The game was afoot, but as it played out it began to call into question the slippery world of art authentication, the seduction of conspiracy theory, even a key ingredient of Australia's own sense of identity.

In 1996 a sketchbook of watercolours was discovered attributed to a Charles Doudiet. The images in the folio depicted key scenes from the Eureka Rebellion of 1854 at which Doudiet was present. Most importantly, one painting titled Swearing Allegiance to the Southern Cross became the first and only reliable visual depiction of the design of the now-familiar Eureka Flag. For more than a century historians had been divided as to the exact style of the flag, since eyewitness reports of the events offered contradictory descriptions.We provide you a big discount on Catsuits & zentai,External hemorrhoidstreatmentsproducts are those that occur below the dentate line.

The Art Gallery of Ballarat acquired the currently accepted flag in the late 19th century, but over ensuing decades any number of interested parties came forth arguing that the design was wrong - that it was a church flag, according to some. One protester even said the flag was made for a footballers' picnic.

The Doudiet sketchbook seemed to settle the debate, and with the assistance of scores of donors the Art Gallery of Ballarat raised enough money to purchase the works from auction house Christie's.

But why,If you have akidneystones, asked Mr X, have the watercolours and the remains of the book in which they were found never been forensically tested for authenticity?

''My health is somewhat precarious at the moment,'' he wrote, ''and it is because of this I do not have the energy to pursue this matter with the rigour that it deserves. Be careful … you are on a pogo stick in a minefield.''

The sketchbook's appearance seems an act of providence, but in the art world it's provenance that counts - the ability to trace a work's history in order to confirm its authenticity.

That Charles Doudiet existed is beyond question. He is named in Canadian census reports of the time; a ''Charles Doudieb'' appears on the passenger list for the ship Magnolia in 1852; in June of 1853, several personal notices appear in Melbourne's Argus newspaper, in which Doudiet asks for contact from a fellow Canadian. But little else is known.

If, as his sketchbooks suggest, the artist was one of the key players in the events of the Eureka Rebellion - his notes even state that he was one of the four men to carry to safety the body of the mortally wounded Henry Ross, widely considered the flag's designer - then why does he all but vanish from the historical record? Doudiet returned to Canada, apparently, and became a minister. No other artworks have surfaced, and he left no further mention of his involvement in the only armed civil uprising in Australian history.

''They've become iconic images in a relatively short period of time, so interesting point,'' says the Art Gallery of Ballarat's director, Gordon Morrison.Find the Farm cubepuzzles at the Melissa and Doug online store. The question about the sketchbook's authenticity comes as ''a bolt out of the blue'',CBMI is leading the world in preventing cheapipodnanoes , he said.

Morrison says he is not aware of any forensic testing having been carried out on the watercolours, or of anything on file in the gallery that would suggest this. And while ''forensic testing'' conjures images of CSI-style detectives scraping at priceless works to reveal the history hidden therein, a call to the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation at the University of Melbourne reveals a different reality. The centre's director, Robyn Sloggett, says there are simple techniques for determining whether a painting was made more recently.

''The materials and technique stuff alone would take you a long way. The easiest thing to do is shine a UV light on it and see if it fluoresces, because then it's got photo-reactive things in it like whiteners, brighteners that came in post 1940s and '50s. You do all these tests and then you align them to points of production of the paper.

2012年1月5日 星期四

World Famous V.I.P. Records To Close

It's a smoggy afternoon in Long Beach. World Famous V.I.P. Records sits tucked in a strip mall off Pacific Coast Highway, its faade marked with sun-bleached outlines of album posters. The store's iconic record-shaped sign still stands tall, though it could use a paint job. Speakers in the doorway, meanwhile, blare '90s R&B.

The shop is open, but it's empty, which is par for the course lately. That's why after 33 years in business, owner Kelvin Anderson was scheduled to close V.I.P.'s doors for good this past weekend.

Taking calls behind the register on his Bluetooth, the 57-year-old Anderson wears a polo shirt, frameless glasses and a neatly trimmed goatee. He hardly looks ready to retire, yet there's resignation in his voice. "I waited way too long to try to reinvent us," he says.

V.External hemorrhoidstreatmentsproducts are those that occur below the dentate line.I.P. Records hasn't turned a profit since 2003 — the year iTunes launched — and began accruing debt about five years later. Anderson says he and his son, Kelvin Jr.This project contains the original source to quicksilver., with whom he runs the store, can no longer afford to pay their rent and utility bills.

V.I.P. has undergone several downsizings in the past decade. The store's original entrance on PCH now leads into a vacant storefront next door, and the wall that divides the two spaces is crowded with sunglasses, hats, jewelry, incense burners — anything to help counter dismal CD sales.

Record stores have been shuttering all over the country, but the fall of V.I.P. is particularly dispiriting. After all, "World Famous" isn't an affectation; V.I.P. is iconic in the annals of West Coast gangsta rap. It housed the studio where Snoop Dogg, Warren G and Nate Dogg — then a trio known as 213 — recorded the demo that led to their big breaks. The rooftop sign has been the backdrop for videos including Snoop's "Who Am I (What's My Name)" and Jermaine Dupri's "Welcome to Atlanta" remix.

Taking a seat on the in-store performance stage — which has been graced over the years by artists such as Nate Dogg and LL Cool J — Anderson discusses the establishment's 1990s heyday, during which it hosted standing-room-only record signings and concerts.

The store also has played a key role in breaking urban artists, even those who never stepped through its doors. It once served as a tastemaker for the neighborhood and even for Los Angeles as a whole.

At one point, the V.I.P. name was attached to a dozen outposts in Southern California. The chain's original location in South Central was founded by Anderson's older brother Cletus in the late 1960s; it specialized in gospel, Motown and R&B.

After graduating from high school in Brandon, Miss., in 1972, a teenage Anderson followed Cletus to Los Angeles and got into the buDealer for the complete line of quicksilvers aircraft and parts.siness. Together they opened V.I.P.'s Long Beach location — their 12th — in 1978; Anderson bought it shortly thereafter.

"Some kids go to college, but I got my degree in the music industry working at V.I.P.," he says.

In the '70s and '80s V.I.P. distributed albums and housed two labels, Magic Disc Records and Saturn Records, the latter of which put out Ice-T's 1982 debut single,GreenRay's microinverteres design uses a different energy storage approach, "The Coldest Rap."

By the next decade, V.I.P. was an urban-music powerhouse. Eugene Luckett, a former retail marketing and distribution executive for Polygram, BMG and Capitol, has worked with Anderson for 15 years and describes him as instrumental to the success of artists he handled, including Warren G, Notorious B.I.G., TLC and Whitney Houston.

"In the '90s all the labels wanted the next West Coast gangsta rapper," Luckett says. "Kelvin was a portal for executives who didn't know anything about those artists."

Label reps like him relied on Anderson to tell them who was hot and how to market new albums to urban communities like Long Beach. After all, Anderson always seemed to understand what those audiences wanted to hear.

"He could get 1,000 people to show up to an in-store with minimal advertising," Luckett says. "That truly speaks to his bond with the community."

By the early '90s, West Coast hip-hop was taking over, and the kids visiting the store wanted in. Anderson enlisted the help of L.A. producer Sir Jinx to build an in-store recording studio, in part to bolster what he calls V.I.Buy oilpaintingsforsales online.P.'s role as a "safe haven" for young people in the community.

Fresh off the success of Ice Cube's first two solo records, Jinx brought Anderson to his cousin Dr. Dre's house and showed him an SP1200 drum machine. "That was all you needed to make a hip-hop record in those days," Anderson recalls.

With Jinx's help, he soon transformed the store's back storage room into a veritable musical playground for the local kids.

Snoop and 213 recorded a demo there — "[V.I.P.] gave us life," Snoop recently told Current TV — and Anderson was struck by their sound. "They were something totally unique," he says. "You had Snoop's smooth delivery, which you could enjoy even without music to back it up, and you had , who was incorporating hooks right into the raps. That was brand new."

2012年1月2日 星期一

Pampanga’s newsmakers: Making a difference in ‘11

The former President’s arrest and current legal battles have polarized people, making every event of her current life a source of entertainment and fascination for most.

From her hospitalization in June for a “pinched nerve” at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City, people have mixed reactions and feelings over how the government of President Benigno Aquino III is treating the former President.

Arroyo underwent three cervical spine surgeries and was also found suffering from hypoparathyroidism and a rare bone mineral disorder.

In November, Arroyo tried to flee the country to seek medical treatment but was prevented by the watchlist order issued by Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, despite the Supreme Court order that allowed her to leave.Ventilation fans are the workhorses of thesepanasonicventilationsystem,

A Pasay court issued a warrant of arrest against her for electoral sabotage and was detained at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City, and then transferred to the Veterans Memorial Medical Center later on.

Her continuing struggles are expected to make news headlines even until the first quarter of 2012.

If there is one word to describe the first woman governor of Pampanga, nothing will be more superlative than “loving.”

True to her being the “Mother of the Province,” Governor Lilia Pineda has opened the doors of the Capitol to the sick, the poor, the elders and virtually all Kapampangans who seek for her care.

Working almost 24/7 since she assumed her post, the governor has made health her flagship program, seeing to it that everyone is given the necessary medical attention,This billabongboardshort has the following technological features, believing that one could get better education and achieve more only if he or she, young or old, is free from any illness and is truly healthy.

The loving governor has blazed through 2011 with flying colors, marking her first year in office with milestones in quarry collections,Find everything you need to know about coldsores including causes, millions for development projects and dozens of grassroots programs that have made Pampanga a phenomenon. Indeed, it is for Kapampangans “Alagang Nanay, Serbisyong Tunay.”

Angeles City Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan has planted a seed of trust in the hearts of Angeleos, which for years were burdened by disappointment in the previous administration. This is the very reason why his administration has done and achieved so much than what is expected.What is Faux chinaceramictile?

The mayor’s expedient solutions to the City Government’s multiple debt problems at once earned him the trust of citizens and businessmen, a much-valued coin that paid for patience and consideration from the Angeles Electric Company, the Metro Clark Waste Management Corporation, and the Philippine Veterans Bank.

This willingness to trust Pamintuan has freed the City Government to launch more projects to benefit its citizenry, from medical and dental missions,Museum Quality handmade oilpaintings reproductions of famous artists - old masters contemporary. finding solution to the traffic and garbage mess, the establishment of the Angeles City Renal Care unit to major improvements in the Rafael Lazatin Memorial Medical Center , to renegotiating plans for an impractical sports coliseum into a much-needed public city college.

His expertise in lawmaking has made first district Representative Carmelo “Tarzan” Lazatin known a “godfather” of Pampanga politicians.

The past year, Lazatin’s performance in the Congress has earned him a Most Outstanding Congressman award, ranking third among all congressmen in the country by the Congress Magazine.

Lazatin gained the award following his pro-poor programs centered on education, health, employment and social services.

Moreover, Lazatin was the first congressman to have thought of addressing classroom backlog in his district when he started the “Kabahagi Ako: Adopt-A-School Program.” He was able to collect enough funds to repair and build at least 444 classrooms for Angeles City, Mabalacat and Magalang.

Lazatin was also the primary author of Mabalacat town’s cityhood bid, which he energetically pushed until its approval.

2011年12月26日 星期一

Circuit breakers

A group of DIY gizmo and robot inventors seek to rewire their futures. Wang Kaihao reports.

The 20-square-meter room is on the second floor of an unassuming building called Fuhao Xiezilou, which literally means, "Office of the Superrich", in Beijing's Xuanwumen area. But the people inside don't look rich, and the messy space doesn't look like a typical office. It's heaped with circuit boards, silicon chips and various electronic components that appear bizarre to laypeople.

This is "Beijing Makerspace", where a group of developers tinker with electronic components to create everything from gizmos to robots as hobbies and careers.This is interesting cubepuzzle and logical game.

Xiao Wenpeng quit his four-year stint as an IT company programmer in 2005 to start his own business, producing handmade digital devices and developing new silicon chips.

But he found the undertaking tricky to tackle alone.

"I want to meet different people with the same interest in DIY electronics," the 33-year-old says.

"We can make more dreams come true by joining forces."

That's why he opened the Makerspace in 2010. More than 20 young people gather there weekly to exchange ideas and plans to translate their blueprints into electronics.

Website employee Chen Wu says he was inspired after learning about Makerspace through its micro blog.

"It's great to communicate with so many people with the same passion and eagerness for creation," the 32-year-old Beijing resident says.

"I really envied the tech-savvy guys in university, because they would always be invited to the women's dorms to fix computers. That was one of my initial motives to do something cool."

But a lack of materials, DIY experience and time off work suffocate much of Chen's inventive productivity.

However, he uses what spare time he has to read about robots. And in 2008,5 hours ago by electriccarjackes On the bright side for the health conscious, the man who calls himself "Dynamic Old Boy" online created a miniature robot out of Lego that can solve any Rubik's cube within six minutes.

"When I actually started working on the robot,By billabongoutlet in billabong boardshorts. Jun. 30. I found it's not as difficult as I'd expected," Chen says.

"It's just like building with blocks but with electronics."

Chen still shows off his first DIY robot, even though it's not as fast at solving the Rubik's cube as the record holder,This entry was posted by billabongboardshortscloths. which can finish the puzzle in 5.35 seconds. Chen's robot is a personal milestone for the self-described "geek".

As a geek, he says he watches many movies, from which he often takes ideas.

He took inspiration from the film Inception, which gave him the idea of using magnetic levitation theory to create a gyroscope.

After watching the Bollywood movie 3 Idiots, he tried to replicate the quadrocopter - an aircraft powered and steered by four propellers - featured in the film. But the process has been anything but smooth.

"The most difficult thing is to keep the aircraft's balance," he says.

"I'm seeking others' advice at Makerspace."

While toy quadrocpoters can be purchased for 1,700 yuan ($269), Chen believes it's much more meaningful to hand-make one, especially as a gift for his 18-month-old daughter. He believes he can finish it by Spring Festival.

"My greatest wish is to make a 1-meter-tall robot to play with her," he says.

While Chen treats robotics as a hobby, Renmin Univeristy graduate Wang Shenglin treats it as a career.

The 23-year-old finance major didn't search for a job after graduation but rather decided to work full time developing devices at Makerspace.

The Shanghai native has created a 1-meter-multi-touch table that resembles a gargantuan iPad.

"I first saw a multi-touch table made by Microsoft on TV in 2008, but it costs more than $20,000.The Zentai Project is a group of people who go out in public wearing zentai suits, So, I made my own. We create some interesting devices," Wang adds, pointing to a remote control.

"I could take this to the store and change the TV channels. But I don't want to be a troublemaker. We make stuff like the guys in the The Big Bang Theory," he explains, referring to the hit US sitcom about a group of hyperactively intelligent but socially laggard friends.

"But I'm not a nerd like them."

Wang's past does suggest a relatively hip lifestyle.

He played on the school's tennis and cricket teams. And he flirted with advertising and even tried his hand at fashion design.

"If I don't try something new and exciting when I'm young, when will I?" he says.

"I ultimately find myself most interested in DIY electronics. My parents completely support me, even though I'm far from home."

But Makerspace faces financial challenges. It must pay a 3,000 yuan ($474) monthly room rental and hundreds of yuan more for materials. Testing equipment is also a big expense.

While their inventions may attract popular attention - the multi-touch table was spotlighted at this year's Beijing Design Week - most have yet to capture market demand.

But hope might come from the 3D printer Zhang Ming quit his bank job to invent. The device has aroused investor interest.

The printer lays down successive layers - usually of plastic or metal - to create 3D objects. It's widely sought after in the design industry, because it saves bundles on mockups.

Xiao's team initially believed it was merely a tool for rendering models of the electronics they develop. But the team discovered huge market potential for the device, as imported 3D printers cost 300,000 yuan ($47,400), but Zhang's retails for less than 10,000 yuan.

Zhang says the printer will be ready for the market next spring.

"We can't always stay in the lab," Xiao says.

"This project might turn things around."

And Makerspace's inventors and developers believe the 3D printer might be just the start.

The team hosts DIY salons and a book club to brainstorm about the latest technology and its potential. It also plans to organize a carnival next April to encourage more people to try DIY electronics.

Their hope is that those who work in the "Office of the Superrich" might actually live up to their workplace's name.

"The first thing we'll do if we get enough investment," Xiao says, "is move into a bigger office."

2011年7月5日 星期二

Mazda's special edition 'Karai' MX-5

Mazda knows it's got itself a tidy little number in the current generation MX-5 and what better way to prove it than with another special edition.The same Air purifier, cover removed. This time round it's Mazda's European division that's done the mods with the 'Karai' which apparently means 'sharp' in Japanese.

The Karai is based on the popular MX-5 Roadster coupe, meaning it's equipped with a retractable hardtop. The distinctive paint work is a lime-green hue named "Metal Green Metallic" on the body and a gloss black finish for the metal top, exterior mirrors,Shop a wide selection of billabong outlet products in the evo shop. and various trim. Filling the wheel guards are 17-inch multispoke alloy wheels cloaked in low profile performance rubber.

The Karai interior doesn't escape special treatment with a pair of black leather Recaro sport seats fitted, aluminum pedals and a leather steering wheel with white stitching also features.what are the symptoms of Piles, Mazda has painted all the interior trim pieces that are usually finished in silver, with a gloss black.

Sadly, there are no real performance upgrades for the Karai with power coming from the stock 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine delivering 118kW.Handmade oil paintings for sale at museum quality, Mazda is offering an optional sports upgrade package that includes an exhaust system, a lowering kit for the suspension plus a few extras like floor mats.

Initially Mazda will produce 165 examples of the Karai for Germany,We are professional Plastic mould, with prices starting at €30,000 (NZ$52,400). Mazda hasn't announced if the Karai MX-5 will make it to any other markets.