Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Not so long ago, a museum survey of Indian paintings pegged to individual artists would would have been inconceivable. The accepted wisdom about so-called miniature painting held that it was the product of anonymous workshop craftsmen churning out images conforming to the inherited norms and prevailing tastes of their court or patron. But at a lecture series at the Freer Gallery of Art in the mid-1990s, scholars talked about finding names of artists in minute inscriptions in the paintings, as well as clues from archival materials about their family ties and movements from court to court. From behind each miniature there began to emerge the shadowy image of an individual. The audience of art historians was visibly astonished, and in subsequent exhibitions curators began to include some names in labels and to change the language in wall texts, increasingly referring to "artists creating" rather than paintings simply exemplifying a style or period. Wonder of the Age: Master Painters of India, 1100-1900 is at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art through Jan. 8. The show, which features some 190 works, is divided into six chronological sections, such as "Early Hindu-Sultanate Painting, 1500-1575," and "The Golden Age of Mughal Painting, 1575-1650." Within each section paintings are grouped by artist, about two-thirds of whom are named, the rest designated by title based on the style or subject of their work. Lee Lawrence
See one of the pictures and count the number of animals in it at:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204226204576599313867070544.html?mod=WSJ_LifeStyle_Lifestyle_5

tuition [too-ish-uh n, tyoo-] noun
1. the charge or fee for instruction
2. teaching or instruction
3. Archaic guardianship or custody. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/tuition

Eric Carle, author of the picture-book classic "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," was very hungry himself. He insisted on serving lunch—smoked turkey sandwiches, fruit and chocolates—before adjourning to his studio here to discuss his new work, "The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse." A tribute to the early-20th-century artist Franz Marc, and a celebration of unbridled creativity in 49 words, "Blue Horse" chronicles a young boy's unconventional palette. It's a deeply personal story to Mr. Carle, 82, whose books include "The Very Quiet Cricket," "The Very Lonely Firefly," "The Grouchy Ladybug," "The Very Busy Spider" and "The Mixed-Up Chameleon." "This book is the freest burst of Eric's artistry," said Mr. Carle's longtime editor, Ann Beneduce. "The first version he sent me, the pictures were beautiful but not realistic. It was a little too adult. But when he added the figure of a child as the artist, the point became clear." The "Blue Horse" illustrations, like those in Mr. Carle's other books, are gorgeous collages of hand-painted tissue papers; there are drawers and drawers of the rainbow-colored sheets in his studio, some striated, some dotted, swirled or hole-pocked. Mr. Carle's 70 books—some as illustrator, most as author-illustrator—have sold 100 million copies. "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" alone, published in 1969, has 30 million copies in print in 50 languages. Caterpillar-phernalia (pajamas, board games, plush toys, magnets, plates, cups, rattles and picnic baskets) generate a reported $50 million annually. One beneficiary is the nine-year-old Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Mass. Joanne Kaufman See pictures at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903999904576468013910460164.html?mod=WSJ_LifeStyle_Lifestyle_5

Sedums, or stonecrops, are known for their signature shapes that offer neverending interest in the garden. The Latin name Sedum, meaning "to sit," is an appropriate name for these low-growing succulents. They're great for growing as groundcovers or trailing over the side of a container. Sedums are among the easiest plants you can grow in your garden, but they don't like clay soil, says gardening enthusiast Ciscoe Morris of Seattle, Wash. "If you stick them in clay, the roots are going to rot." These perennial succulents require well-draining soils and very little water. They are also easy to propagate, have colorful flowers and, although they spread rapidly, are not invasive.
http://www.hgtv.com/landscaping/sedum-and-other-succulents/index.html
Sedum is a succulent plant and thrives readily in most sunny locations in a landscape. Sedum is also an easy plant to transplant from place to place in your landscape. edum tolerates the stress of transplanting quite well at almost any time of the year. http://www.ehow.com/how_5509939_transplant-sedum.html

IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer. Founded in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad in Sweden, the company is named as an acronym comprising the initials of the founder's name (Ingvar Kamprad), the farm where he grew up (Elmtaryd), and his home parish (Agunnaryd, in Småland, South Sweden). The firm is known for the attention it gives to cost control, operational details and continuous product development, allowing it to lower its prices by an of average 2-3% over the decade to 2010, while continuing its global expansion http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKEA

Ingvar Kamprad has been a tax exile since the 1970s, living in the Swiss village of Epalinges. Yvan Tardy, the mayor of Epalinges, says: "Unfortunately, he has never done anything for our village." Kamprad's nickname in town is the Miser. Last year, the Malmö City Theatre in Malmö, Sweden premiered "Ingvar! A Musical Furniture Saga." In the production, the Kamprad character is crucified on a Maypole. He sings, "Do you think this can stop Ingvar?"
The New Yorker October 3, 2011

Flickr has announced it now has 200 Million (and counting) public Creative Commons licensed photos. You can browse and search those CC photos by license, or find exactly the one suitable for and available to you by using advanced search, ticking the CC checkbox, and searching for whatever image you are looking for. http://blog.flickr.net/en/2011/10/05/200-million-creative-commons-photos-and-counting/?utm_source=sel&utm_medium=scap&utm_campaign=email

Website of the Day The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project www.gwu.edu/~erpapers
Today, on the birthday of Eleanor Roosevelt (she was born Oct. 11,1884), check out this website, which is a repository for the former first lady's papers. The site also has links for teachers about how to approach Mrs. Roosevelt and human rights.
Number to Know 21: Number of Emmy Awards that "Saturday Night Live" has won.
This Day in History Oct. 11, 1975: The NBC sketch comedy/variety show "Saturday Night Live" debuts with George Carlin as the host and Andy Kaufman, Janis Ian and Billy Preston as guests.
Today's Featured Birthday Writer Elmore Leonard (86)
http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/x663896427/Morning-Minutes-Oct-11#axzz1aTRtQW3r

Monday, October 10, 2011

I had the privilege of hearing Marcus Jackson read a selection of poems from his first book, Neighborhood Register, on October 6. Published by CavanKerry Press Ltd. in 2011 as part of its New Voices series, the paperback contains 41 poems, most based on growing up in Toledo. According to the foreword written by Toi Derricotte, the book registers the lives of people in a neighborhood--a register of one speaking from the inside, a profession of loyalty. While the book looks like autobiography at first, the poet is hardly ever at center stage--he has a way of stepping back so that the light shines on the other. You will not forget this neighborhood, or this poet.

Another story of growing up in Toledo, this one in prose, is Journey of the heart: a loving family memoir by Virginia Hannaford Eyster, with four 4 editions published between 1986 and 1995. It took readers by surprise when they felt emotional while reading it, even if they had no connection with Toledo. It took publishers by surprise when its popularity was widespread rather than regional.

The Incas were masters of plant domestication, especially potatoes. Their development of the potato was remarkable: from 8 species of weeds having toxic tubers to more than 3000 distinct potato varieties. They pioneered a seven-year potato crop rotation to prevent decimation by a nematode pest whose life cycle was six years and constructed an ingenious agricultural research station in the high Andes that reproduced growing conditions of different ecological regions of the empire. The base of the excavated depressions was consistently 15 degrees warmer than ground level and each agricultural terrace corresponded to 3000 feet (900 m) in altitude. Using this complex, the Inca could experiment with new crops and anticipate yields from anywhere in the empire, from the lowland rainforest to the montane cloud forest to the high Andes. http://www.mongabay.com/07davis_incas2.htm

ONLINE: Exploring Technology & Resources for Information Professionals covers interesting subjects in the September-October 2011 issue:
Meaning-Based Computing: Text Analysis Takes a Great Leap ForwardClick here for FREE full-text version. Terence K. Huwe
INTELLIXIR: A Patent and Literature Analysis Product: Q&A With Developer Jean-Michel Careil Mark Hutcherson
Dow Jones: Firmly in the Knowledge Business Barbie E. Keiser
American FactFinder: Take Two Joann M. Wlekinski
Limits in Intellectual Property Protection Vera Münch
Productivity-Enhancing iPad Apps for Information Professionals Curtis Brundy
Where the Jobs Are, Free and Open Source (FOSS) Waits for You Stephen E. Arnold Link to current or past issues at: http://www.infotoday.com/online/ Some, but not all, information is free.

Alpha, bravo, charlie are code words for letters of the alphabet to help prevent misunderstandings. See other code words at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO_phonetic_alphabet

The Mason–Dixon Line (or Mason and Dixon's Line) was surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the resolution of a border dispute between British colonies in Colonial America. It forms a demarcation line among four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia (then part of Virginia). In popular usage, especially since the Missouri Compromise of 1820 (apparently the first official use of the term "Mason's and Dixon's Line"), the Mason–Dixon Line symbolizes a cultural boundary between the Northeastern United States and the Southern United States (Dixie) and legality of slavery as a result, although the Missouri Compromise Line had much more definitive geographic connection to slavery in the United States leading up to the Civil War. The line was established to end a boundary dispute between the British colonies of Maryland and Pennsylvania/Delaware. Maryland had been granted the territory north of the Potomac River up to the fortieth parallel. Pennsylvania's grant defined the colony's southern boundary as following Twelve Mile Circle counter-clockwise from the Delaware River until it hit "the beginning of the fortieth degree of Northern latitude." From there the boundary was to follow the 40th parallel due west for five degrees of longitude. But the 40th parallel does not in fact intersect the Twelve Mile Circle, instead lying significantly farther north. Thus the Pennsylvania's southern boundary as defined in its charter was contradictory and unclear. The most serious problem was that the Maryland claim would put Philadelphia, which became the major city in Pennsylvania, within Maryland. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mason%E2%80%93Dixon_Line

Ahead of the 2012 elections, a wave of legislation tightening restrictions on voting has suddenly swept across the country. More than five million Americans could be affected by the new rules already put in place this year -- a number larger than the margin of victory in two of the last three presidential elections. This report is the first full accounting and analysis of this year's voting cutbacks. It details both the bills that have been proposed and the legislation that has been passed since the beginning of 2011. Find link to full report at:
http://web.docuticker.com/go/docubase/65235

You say you wanna revolution? Well, let’s head across the pond then and check out a new law in England and Wales that allows non-lawyers to sell legal services. Under the Legal Services Act, taking effect October 6, banks, supermarkets and the like can offer legal services to consumers, according to this BBC report http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-15187154 on the new law. These would-be competitors to law firms can create what are called Alternative Business Structures, which will offer a one-stop stop of legal and financial advice to consumers, according to the BBC, which notes that some regulatory kinks still must be ironed out before solicitors can join the alternative structures. Here's another report on the new law from The Lawyer: http://www.thelawyer.com/law-firms-forced-to-wait-for-abs-approval-as-lsa-comes-into-force/1009671.article
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2011/10/06/a-legal-revolution-is-underway-in-england/

American Libraries has launched an “E-Content” blog (http://americanlibraries.org/e-content) that provides information on e-books, e-readers, e-journals, databases, digital libraries, digital repositories, and other e-content issues. The blog complements the new section on e-content that appears in the weekly e-newsletter American Libraries Direct and focuses on similar issues. Read more at: http://web.resourceshelf.com/go/resourceblog/65243

LYON, France—In a nondescript storefront in a quiet, cobblestoned neighborhood, Brigitte Hautier practices one of the oldest professions in France. She is a public writer. This latter-day Cyrano de Bergerac still performs many of the services her professional forebears did: She writes résumés, polishes job applications, composes eulogies and even the occasional love letter. She does this mostly for working-class people with little education, many of them immigrants with a tenuous grasp of French. Even in the age of the Internet, it turns out there's plenty of demand for the écrivain public, a vocation that dates back centuries to times when most people needed a professional to perform writing on their behalf. The latest trend in the public-writing industry is producing biographies commissioned by those who want the histories of their grandparents, many of whom had first-hand experiences with the Nazi occupation of France, preserved in writing. In France, public writers have been in vogue since the 1200s, when artisans and tradesmen began settling in cities in greater numbers, and needed help not only writing, but reading letters of all kinds. The role of the public writer or scribe has existed since at least the time of the Egyptian Pharaohs, and remains in much the same spirit throughout the world. Jane Mace, a British consultant and author of "The Give and Take of Writing: Scribes, Literacy and Everyday Life," says public scribes are still found today in most developing nations, often setting up writing desks "in hot countries, under trees," next to post offices or other government buildings. Saskia Sassen, a professor of sociology at Columbia University, says it's logical that the profession has endured in France since "the French are famous for having invented bureaucracy in the 12th century." She says, "it's perfect that they have this." Read more at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204422404576597221746691088.html

Friday, October 7, 2011

Declaring that Tony Packo's Inc. is a community asset and "part of our Toledo legacy," Judge Gene Zmuda, of Lucas County Common Pleas Court, on October 6 ordered the restaurant chain sold for $5.5 million to local fast-food magnate Bob Bennett. The decision removes from ownership the family that started the well-known local company eight decades ago. It also leaves the family member who last year initiated legal action, which led to the court-supervised sale, without any further involvement. The judge cited Mr. Bennett's offer — the "highest, best offer" — as the one that could best settle the restaurant chain's debts and expenses, leaving it a free and clear financial slate and in the strongest position to succeed in future years, given an uncertain economic climate. The offer was submitted under the name TP Foods LLC. It was not known whether the sale will be appealed or whether other related aspects would be challenged in court. Possibly still under contention is whether the company's name and secret recipes will transfer with the sale. There is a court hearing on that issue scheduled for November 6.
http://www.toledoblade.com/Courts/2011/10/07/Judge-selects-Bob-Bennett-to-be-new-Packo-s-owner.html

Monkeys can reason by using analogy, it seems. In an experiment recently reported in the journal Psychological Science, baboons in a lab proved capable of realizing that a pair of oval shapes is "like" a pair of square shapes and "unlike" a pair made of two different shapes. This finding suggests that you can have analogy without language. The experiment, run on 29 baboons by Joel Fagot of the University of Provence and Roger Thompson of Marshall College, found that the monkeys could ignore the fact that some symbols were more familiar from previous sessions and stick with the task of selecting those that came in pairs, and that they still partly recalled the skill after a year. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204422404576594723966172468.html

Copyblogger writes: A metaphor is a figure of speech that uses one thing to mean another and makes a comparison between the two. The key words here are “one thing to mean another.” A simile compares two different things in order to create a new meaning. In this case, we are made explicitly aware that a comparison is being made due to the use of “like” or “as.” An analogy is comparable to metaphor and simile in that it shows how two different things are similar, but it’s a bit more complex. Rather than a figure of speech, an analogy is more of a logical argument. http://www.copyblogger.com/metaphor-simile-and-analogy-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/

Response to copyblogger An allegory is a one-to-one comparison or substitution of something figuritve for something literal. While this is extremely similar to a metaphor, allegories are usually more subtle and a lot more involved, taking up entire books and pieces of art. Perhaps the most famous allegorical tales are in literature, Sir Walter Raleigh’s Faerie Queen and Orwell’s Animal Farm are two famous examples I can think of. http://intopr.prblogs.org/2007/05/07/weekly-grammaticalness-analogy-allegory-metaphor-and-simile/

Architecture as allegory We all know that architecture sometimes depends on simile, because we hear critique like, that building looks like a rocket, or a ship, or a dump truck. Sometimes the goal is metaphorical, like in public buildings and fortresses designed to portray the idea of power, or churches that use the play of light and darkness. But very few know that buildings have been used for centuries to depict full blown allegories. See pictures and rest of the story at: http://dcsymbols.com/dc_cathedral/intronew.htm

Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society.
Reportedly said by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (1841-1935) Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932, in a speech in 1904. Alternately phrased as "Taxes are what we pay for civilized society, including the chance to insure", Compania General De Tabacos De Filipinas v. Collector of Internal Revenue, 275 U.S. 87, 100, dissenting; opinion (21 November 1927). The first variation is quoted by the IRS above the entrance to their headquarters at 1111 Constitution Avenue.
See many of his quotes at: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Oliver_Wendell_Holmes,_Jr.

Free to Think, description of five prison writings by Martin E. Marty
Conversations With Myself by Nelson Mandela (2010)
"'I feel I have been soaked in gall" was Nelson Mandela's summary of his 27 years in prison during the struggle against the apartheid regime in South Africa.
De Profundis and Other Writings by Oscar Wilde (1973)
The Gulag Archipelago by Alexander I. Solzhenitsyn (1974)
Civil Disobedience and Other Writings by Henry David Thoreau (1849)
The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius (sixth century)
Read more at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904106704576580972323285768.html

Wikipedia Loves Libraries is a wiki-coordinated program of distributed micro-conferences (editathons) to be held at libraries and archives in cities across North America around October 2011. It is modeled on this past summer's Great American Wiknic (multiple wiki-meetups on a single day), the broader WikiProject GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, Museums) collaboration effort, and the June 2011 Editathon at the British Library, where Wikipedians gathered at the library, and were given access to library resources in order to expand Wikipedia articles about miscellaneous topics. See lists of events by region at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Loves_Libraries

The 1916 Cumberland vs. Georgia Tech football game was an American football game played on October 7, 1916, between the Georgia Tech Engineers and the Cumberland College Bulldogs. The game became the most lopsided in the history of college football, as Georgia Tech was victorious 222–0. Cumberland College, a school in Lebanon, Tennessee, had discontinued its football program before the season but was not allowed to cancel its game against the Engineers. The fact that Cumberland's baseball team had crushed Georgia Tech earlier that year 22-0 (amidst allegations that Cumberland used professionals as ringers) probably accounted for Georgia Tech coach John Heisman's running up the score on the Bulldogs. He insisted on the schools' scheduling agreement, which required Cumberland to pay $3,000 ($60,349 in inflation-adjusted terms) to Tech if its football team failed to show. So, George E. Allen (who was elected to serve as Cumberland's football team student manager after first serving as the baseball team student manager) put together a team of 14 men to travel to Atlanta as Cumberland's football team. Another reason for Heisman's plan to run up the score was that collegiate rules at the time ranked teams based on how many points they scored. Heisman did not consider that statistic a true mark of a team's success, and may have unleashed his players on Cumberland to make his point. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1916_Cumberland_vs._Georgia_Tech_football_game

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Robert Sabuda makes paper do strange things. A tornado spins on its axis and tears across the prairie in his pop-up book version of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." A hot-air balloon inflates and hovers above the page, suspended by two strings attached to wood sticks. One hundred four tiny playing cards explode out of his pop-up "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," flying in an all directions—forward, back, sideways. Mr. Sabuda's pop-ups don't just pop—they spin, float, flip, rotate. His books are cross-disciplinary works involving feats of engineering, drawing and storytelling (he often writes the text). He's published 33 pop-up books in the past 15 years, and his methods are defiantly old school. Read more plus see pictures at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204831304576597200764936760.html

Simple Pop-Ups You Can Make http://www.robertsabuda.com/popmakesimple.asp

Taxation during the Great Depression and World War II
The Price of Civilization, a publication of the Tax History Project at Tax Analysts, is a broad-ranging study of U.S. federal taxation between 1932 and 1945. In particular, the project seeks to illuminate the development of mass-based personal income taxation, uncovering the ideas, interests, and imperatives that moved the income tax to the center of federal finance. http://taxhistory.tax.org/www/website.nsf/Web/ThePriceOfCivilization?OpenDocument

The Price of Civilization: Economics and Ethics After the Fall by Jeffrey Sachs, published October 2011, is a controversial book exploring government, business and citizens meeting common goals.

Cole noun [ Middle English col , caul , Anglo-Saxon cawl , cawel , from Latin caulis , the stalk or stem of a plant, esp. a cabbage stalk, cabbage, akin to Greek .... Confer Cauliflower , Kale .] (Botany) A plant of the Brassica or Cabbage genus; esp. that form of B. oleracea called rape and coleseed . http://www.encyclo.co.uk/webster/C/107

The Conch Republic is a micronation declared as a tongue-in-cheek secession of the city of Key West from the United States on April 23, 1982. It has been maintained as a tourism booster for the city since. Since then, the term "Conch Republic" has been expanded to refer to "all of the Florida Keys, or, that geographic apportionment of land that falls within the legally defined boundaries of Monroe County Florida, northward to 'Skeeter's Last Chance Saloon' in Florida City, Dade County Florida, with Key West as the nation's capital and all territories north of Key West being referred to as 'The Northern Territories'." While the protest that sparked the creation of the Conch Republic (and others which have occurred since then) have been described by some as "tongue-in-cheek", they were motivated by frustrations over genuine concerns. The original protest event was motivated by a U.S. Border Patrol roadblock and checkpoint which greatly inconvenienced residents and was detrimental to tourism in the area. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conch_Republic

The Dry Tortugas are a small group of islands, located at the end of the Florida Keys, USA, about 70 miles (113 km) west of Key West, and 37 miles (60 km) west of the Marquesas Keys, the closest islands. Still further west is the Tortugas Bank, which is completely submerged. They are an unincorporated area of Monroe County, Florida and belong to the Lower Keys Census County Division. With their surrounding waters, they constitute the Dry Tortugas National Park. The first European to discover the islands was Spanish explorer Ponce de León. He gave them the name on his first visit in 1513. The name is the second oldest surviving European place-name in the U.S. They were given the name Las Tortugas (The Turtles) due to 170 sea turtles taken on the islands and shoals by de León's men. Soon afterward, the word "Dry" was added to the name, to indicate to mariners the islands' lack of fresh water. See more plus pictures and maps at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dry_Tortugas

Adapt or perish, now as ever, is Nature's inexorable imperative.
Herbert George Wells (1866-1946) a British writer best known for his science fiction novels Other quotes at: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/H._G._Wells

Publications from across government, on topics including: Cars | Consumer | Protection | Education | Employment | Federal Programs | Food | Health | Housing | Money You’ll find hundreds of free publications to read online, download in PDF format, or order in print. http://publications.usa.gov/USAPubs.php

Tomas Tranströmer, the Swedish poet whose sometimes bleak but powerful work explores themes of nature, isolation and identity, won the 2011 Nobel Prize in Literature on October 6. Mr. Tranströmer, 80, has written more than 15 collections of poetry, many of which have been translated into English and 60 other languages. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/07/arts/swedish-poet-wins-nobel-prize-for-literature.html

Israeli scientist Dan Shechtman was awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry on October 5 for his discovery of a new form of crystal whose patterns and configuration defied previously held laws of nature and altered chemists' understanding of solid matter. The Tel Aviv-born professor's 1982 discovery of what would become known as quasicrystals provoked controversy in his field, demonstrating that atoms in some crystals were packed in patterns that could not be repeated, which was once thought impossible. "His discovery was extremely controversial," the Nobel committee for chemistry at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences noted in announcing the prize, which includes a $1.4-million award. "In the course of defending his findings, he was asked to leave his research group. However, his battle eventually forced scientists to reconsider their conception of the very nature of matter."
Since Shechtman's discovery, scientists have found naturally occurring quasicrystals in minerals from a Russian river and a certain form of steel. They have also been produced in labs. Scientists are searching for practical applications in goods varying from diesel engines to frying pans. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/middleeast/la-fg-nobel-chemistry-israel-20111006,0,376852.story

Nobel Prize 2011 announcements: http://www.nobelprize.org/

Website of the Day German-American Heritage Foundation www.gahfusa.org Today, on German-American Day, check out this website, which is dedicated to the contributions of German-Americans. The site has information about the group, information about the museum in Washington, D.C., and more.
Number to Know 1983: Year when German-American Day was revived in the U.S. The commemoration – held every Oct. 6 – was discontinued during World War I.
This Day in History Oct. 6, 1945: Billy Sianis and his pet billy goat are ejected from Wrigley Field during Game 4 of the 1945 World Series, beginning the Curse of the Billy Goat.
http://www.therecordherald.com/newsnow/x981213906/Morning-Minutes-Oct-6

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

The octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms. Octopuses have no internal or external skeleton (although some species have a vestigial remnant of a shell inside their mantle), allowing them to squeeze through tight places. Octopuses are among the most intelligent and behaviorally flexible of all invertebrates. Octopuses have three hearts. Two branchial hearts pump blood through each of the two gills, while the third pumps blood through the body. Although less efficient under normal conditions than the iron-rich hemoglobin of vertebrates, in cold conditions with low oxygen pressure, hemocyanin oxygen transportation is more efficient than hemoglobin oxygen transportation. The hemocyanin is dissolved in the plasma instead of being carried within red blood cells and gives the blood a bluish color. See many pictures at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus

Florida's latest arrivals are giant African land snails that grow as long as eight inches, chew through plants, plaster and stucco, and sometimes carry a parasite that can infect humans with a nonlethal strain of meningitis. The gastropods are among the most dangerous in the world, agriculture officials say. They each have male and female reproductive organs and can lay 1,200 eggs a year, allowing them to proliferate rapidly. Thousands of them have infested at least five separate neighborhoods in the Miami area. Federal and state agriculture officials have responded with a large-scale eradication effort. They've deployed 70 people to hunt for the pests house by house in the affected areas. Since the snails were first detected on Sept. 8, workers have collected about 10,000 of them from 114 properties. It's not the first time the snails have plagued Miami. In 1966, a boy brought home three of them from a trip to Hawaii and kept them in a terrarium, says Richard Gaskalla, director of the agriculture department's division of plant industry. Eventually, the child's grandmother released them into the garden. The creatures propagated wildly. It took authorities almost a decade to wipe them out, with a campaign that cost more than $1 million and snared 18,000 snails. Originally from east Africa, the snails can now be found in the Pacific Rim, Hawaii and several Caribbean islands. It's illegal to bring them into the U.S. without a permit from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and no permits have been issued for years, says Mr. Gaskalla. Florida has had plenty of practice fighting off imported pests, which pop up in the state an average of once a month, says Mr. Gaskalla. Some arrive by chance, carried on cargo ships or air currents, while others are set loose by owners, intentionally or by accident, and then flourish in the subtropical climate. Arian Campo-Flores http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203791904576608673000592148.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_editorsPicks_1


schlemiel or schlemihl or shlemiel (shluh-MEEL) noun
An inept, clumsy person: a habitual bungler.
From Yiddish shlemil, from Hebrew Shelumiel, a Biblical and Talmudic figure who met an unhappy end, according to the Talmud. Earliest documented use: 1892. No discussion of schlemiel would be complete without mentioning schlimazel, one prone to having bad luck. In a restaurant, a schlemiel is the waiter who spills soup, and a schlimazel is the diner on whom it lands.
celadon (SEL-uh-don) noun
1. A pale green color.
2. A type of ceramics having a pale green glaze, originally made in China.
After Céladon, a character in the novel L'Astrée by the French novelist Honoré d'Urfé (1568-1625). Céladon is a shepherd who wears green clothes. Earliest documented use: 1768.
onomasticon (on-uh-MAS-ti-kon) noun
A dictionary of names, especially personal names or place names.
From Greek onomastikos (of names), from onoma (name). Earliest documented use: 710. A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg

In 1867, the Western Reserve Historical Society was founded to preserve and present the history of all of the people of northeast Ohio. Today, it is the largest privately supported regional historical society in the nation. When the original colonies of the United States were formed, most of the western borders were left blank, since the settlers didn't know how far west the land went. In 1786, the State of Connecticut gave up its claims to Western lands of the United States, except for a portion of northeastern Ohio known as the Connecticut Western Reserve. Later, the land was sold to the Connecticut Land Company, which surveyed and settled the region, but the name Connecticut Western Reserve - or just Western Reserve - continued to be used to describe the northeastern section of Ohio. See map showing Ohio directly west of Connecticut at: http://www.wrhs.org/index.php/homepage/about

The Connecticut Western Reserve was land claimed by Connecticut from 1662 to 1800 in the Northwest Territory in what is now northeastern Ohio. Although forced to surrender the Pennsylvania portion (Westmoreland County) of its sea-to-sea land grant following the Yankee-Pennamite Wars and the intercession of the federal government, Connecticut held fast to its right to the lands between the 41st and 42nd-and-2-minutes parallels that lay west of the Pennsylvania border. Within the state of Ohio, the claim was a 120-mile (190 km) wide strip between Lake Erie and a line just south of Youngstown, Akron, New London, and Willard, about 3 miles (4.8 km) south of the present-day U.S. Highway 224. Beyond Ohio the claim included parts of what would become Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and California. The east boundary of the reserve follows a true meridian along Ellicott‘s Line, the boundary with Pennsylvania. The west boundary veers more than four degrees from a meridian to maintain the 120 mile width, due to convergence. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut_Western_Reserve

Ohio's criminal statutes are in Chase's Statutes of Ohio (3 volumes, published 1833, covers 1788 to that date), Chapter LIII, An act respecting crimes and punishments (Jan. 15, 1805), with 38 sections beginning on page 438 of volume 1. This was in the 3rd General Assembly. Prior to that, Ohio used Northwest Territory law. Thanks, Rick.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

So, was it really a $16 muffin? The Justice Department’s acting inspector general said it was a $16 muffin. Her office’s 148-page audit report http://www.washingtonpost.com/r/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2011/09/30/Editorial-Opinion/Graphics/justice-muffin-report.pdf cites it nine times as an example of profligacy. I think the IG makes a good case that Justice spends too much on conferences. But I don’t think it was a $16 muffin, and several things tell me it wasn’t: the IG’s own numbers; a statement from Hilton Hotels; a visit to the Capital Hilton’s restaurant, which is a few hundred feet from The Post; and my experience going to and setting up events in Washington. The total cost of food and beverage for the five-day conference, with 534 attendees, was $39,360, including an automatic 20 percent service fee the hotel puts on food for conferences. That amounts to $7,872 per day for breakfast and snacks. Divide that by 534 people attending, and you get $14.74 per person per day for continental breakfast and snacks. That’s 2 pennies per person per day above the Justice guidelines on what can be spent each day on refreshments. Gosh, two cents. The IG’s report acknowledges that figure is correct, notes that Justice officials asked Hilton to keep the price to about $14 per head, and credits Justice for not providing other meals for the five-day conference. So why did the IG’s office say the immigration judges were eating $16 muffins? Because the itemized receipts from Hilton are imprecise: The coffee and fruit were provided free, and they allocated all the fees to the muffins, croissants, bagels, brownies and cookies provided for morning and afternoon refreshment. Hence it looks like $16 per morning pastry and $9 for afternoon brownies, cookies, and bags of chips. But really it was $14.72 per head per day. Patrick B. Pexton http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/another-look-at-justice-departments-16-muffin/2011/09/30/gIQARIYBBL_story.html
Caution: Check the facts on Internet rumors before spreading them further.

For scenery, consider the spectacular views of the Blue Ridge Mountains from Charles Frazier's front lawn, perched on a narrow ridge, a 10-minute drive up a twisty road from downtown Asheville. To the north, through the morning mist, he points out Tennessee, more than 30 miles away. And to the west, 6,030-foot-high Cold Mountain, made famous by Frazier's 1997 Civil War best seller. Cold Mountain was a debut novel that came out of nowhere, as they say in publishing, and grew into a phenomenon. For back roads, Frazier, 60, hits the nearby mountain bike trails. He maintains a daily tally of the miles he rides and the words he writes. "I try to do 1,000 miles over the summer," he says. And the words? "Well, I'm a slow writer," he replies with a shy smile. "For me, a good day is a page, maybe a page and a half. I'd love to be more efficient, but I am not." Cold Mountain was a rare literary best seller: a debut by an unknown former English professor. It was popular even before it won the National Book Award or was turned into a hit movie in 2003 starring Jude Law and Nicole Kidman. Frazier has eclectic taste in music, from old-time fiddling to Gillian Welch. "If I had to give up reading or give up listening to music," he says, "I suspect I'd stick with the music." http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/story/2011-09-26/charles-frazier-nightwoods-cold-mountain/50561620/1

The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), and the Bureau of Justice Assistance(BJA). The IC3 accepts online Internet crime complaints from either the actual victim or from a third party to the complainant. http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx

TIPS ON AVOIDING FRAUDULENT CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION SCHEMES
Do not respond to unsolicited (SPAM) e-mail.
Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as officials soliciting via e-mail for donations.
Do not click on links contained within an unsolicited e-mail.
Be cautious of e-mail claiming to contain pictures in attached files, as the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
To ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes, make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf.
Validate the legitimacy of the organization by directly accessing the recognized charity or aid organization's website rather than following an alleged link to the site.
Attempt to verify the legitimacy of the non-profit status of the organization by using various Internet-based resources, which also may assist in confirming the actual existence of the organization.
Do not provide personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions: providing such information may compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identity theft.
http://www.ic3.gov/media/2011/110311.aspx

New Release: Statistical Abstract of the United States 2012 September 29, 2011
This annual factbook contains more than 1,400 tables of social, political and economic facts about our nation and the world. Among the broad topics covered are marriage and divorce, health, education, law enforcement, national security, social insurance, business, science and technology, agriculture, natural resources, energy, information and communications, banking and international statistics. Find full article at: http://web.resourceshelf.com/go/resourceblog/

ProQuest Expands Historical Newspaper Collection September 28, 2011
The world’s largest digital newspaper archive is expanding to provide researchers with access to unique, targeted perspectives on the news as ProQuest digitizes collections of historic American Jewish and regional newspapers. The papers, dating from 1841 and covering regions such as Boston, the Ohio valley and New York City will be added to ProQuest’s Historical Newspaper collection. Find link to full article at: http://web.resourceshelf.com/go/resourceblog/

Origin of the names of the months
January Named after the Roman god of beginnings and endings Janus (the month Januarius).
February The name comes either from the old-Italian god Februus or else from februa, signifying the festivals of purification celebrated in Rome during this month.
March This is the first month of the Roman year. It is named after the Roman god of war, Mars.
April Called Aprilis, from aperire, "to open". Possible because it is the month in which the buds begin to open.
May The third month of the Roman calendar. The name probably comes from Maiesta, the Roman goddess of honor and reverence.
June The fourth month was named in honor of Juno. However, the name might also come from iuniores (young men; juniors) as opposed to maiores (grown men; majors) for May, the two months being dedicated to young and old men.
July It was the month in which Julius Caesar was born, and named Julius in his honor in 44 BCE, the year of his assassination. Also called Quintilis (fifth month).
August Originally this month was called Sextilis (from sextus, "six"), but the name was later changed in honor of the first of the Roman emperors, Augustus (because several fortunate events of his life occurred during this month).
September The name comes from septem, "seven".
October The name comes from octo, "eight"
November The name comes from novem, "nine".
December The name comes from decem, "ten".
http://www.pantheon.org/miscellaneous/origin_months.html
Note that the earliest Latin calendar began with the month of March.

Oct. 4 Word of the Day Bona fides boh-nuh-FYE-deez (noun) Good faith; sincerity; evidence of one's good faith or genuineness; evidence of one's qualifications or achievements
Today’s Featured Birthday Author Anne Rice (70)
Daily Quote “One of the tests of the civilization of people is the treatment of its criminals.” President Rutherford B. Hayes, who was born on this date in 1822.
http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/newsnow/x26168051/Morning-Minutes-Oct-4

Monday, October 3, 2011

When Ella Neary begins reading, her audience doesn't fully grasp the story. Most of the words are too complicated for Jake, for instance, who fidgets, yawns and periodically licks his hairy legs. But that happens when you read to dogs. The sessions at Ford Memorial Library in Western Springs aren't intended to elevate the literacy of hounds but rather those reciting to them each month during the library's read-to-dogs program, which has attracted 100 kids since early 2009. "This started with the need (for children) to practice oral reading," says Anne Kozak, library director. "These animals are not judgmental. Some early readers might prefer reading to dogs than to people," added youth services librarian Dana Folkerts, who has been thanked by parents of tykes who shy away from reading at home but shine when their listeners have tails. "Kids bond easily with them." The program is one of the many unusual ways that libraries throughout Chicagoland are engaging citizens of all ages. Kids can read to dogs, send their stuffed animals on sleepovers or visit a magical forest, and parents can attend a toga party, taste gourmet chocolate or even meet up at a martini bar, all thanks to their local libraries.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-x-xxxx-library-fun-20110928,0,4120815.story

Present Law, Data, And Analysis Relating To Tax Incentives For Homeownership October 1, 2011 U.S. Senate, Joint Committee on Taxation
The Senate Committee on Finance has scheduled a public hearing on October 6, 2011, entitled "Tax Reform Options: Incentives for Homeownership." This document, prepared by the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation...provides general background on the tax incentives for homeownership. The first part of this document describes the tax provisions that offer incentives for homeownership. The second part provides a discussion of the economic incentives and data related to homeownership. Find link to full report at:
http://web.docuticker.com/go/docubase/65200

Consumer Expenditure Survey September 28, 2011 Bureau of Labor Statistics
Average annual expenditures per consumer unit fell 2.0 percent in 2010 following a decrease of 2.8 percent in 2009. Spending on food and housing fell 3.8 percent and 2.0 percent, respectively, contributing to the overall drop in spending in 2010. Find link to full report at: http://web.docuticker.com/go/docubase/

Employer Health Benefits 2011 Annual Survey September 28, 2011 Kaiser Family Foundation
After several years of relatively modest premium increases, annual premiums for employer-sponsored family health coverage increased to $15,073 this year, up 9 percent from last year, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research & Educational Trust 2011 Employer Health Benefits Survey released today. On average, workers pay $4,129 and employers pay $10,944 toward those annual premiums. Premiums increased significantly faster than workers’ wages (2.1 percent) and general inflation (3.2 percent). Since 2001, family premiums have increased 113 percent, compared with 34 percent for workers’ wages and 27 percent for inflation. Find link to full report at: http://web.docuticker.com/go/docubase/65170

Quotes
Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.
The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.
Before every minute of action, there should be an hour of thought.
Henry Ford (1863-1947) American industrialist

Extract of an e-mail from William Lynch, CEO, Barnes & Noble
Dear Borders customer, As part of Borders ceasing operations, we acquired some of its assets including Borders brand trademarks and their customer list. The subject matter of your DVD and other video purchases will be part of the transferred information. The federal bankruptcy court approved this sale on September 26, 2011. Our intent in buying the Borders customer list is simply to try and earn your business. The majority of our stores are within close proximity to former Borders store locations, and for those that aren't, we offer our award- winning NOOK™ digital reading devices that provide a bookstore in your pocket. We are readers like you, and hope that through our stores, NOOK devices, and our bn.com online bookstore we can win your trust and provide you with a place to read and shop. It's important for you to understand however you have the absolute right to opt-out of having your customer data transferred to Barnes & Noble. If you would like to opt-out, we will ensure all your data we receive from Borders is disposed of in a secure and confidential manner. Please visit www.bn.com/borders before October 15, 2011 to do so. Should you choose not to opt-out by October 15, 2011, be assured your information will be covered under the Barnes & Noble privacy policy, which can be accessed at www.bn.com/privacy. B&N will maintain any of your data according to this policy and our strict privacy standards.

Q: How many baseballs are used during a Major League Baseball game?
A: Umpires usually use 96 to 120 baseballs for a nine-inning game, but they prepare about 144 baseballs with rubbing mud just in case, said Mike Teevan, spokesman for Major League Baseball. And Teevan did the big-league math: Between 200,000 and 300,000 balls are used per season.
Q: What did Yogi Berra say?
A: "I never said most of the things I said." The Baseball Almanac.
http://www.thecourier.com/Opinion/columns/2011/Oct/JU/ar_JU_100311.asp?d=100311,2011,Oct,03&c=c_13