Lecompton Hopes Movie Puts Them Back on the Historical Map ...

LECOMPTON, Kan. ? The new movie ?Lincoln,? directed by Steven Spielberg, takes a lot of its material from ?Team of Rivals,? a book by Doris Kearns Goodwin, who in turn based a lot of her research on what happened in a Kansas town not far from the metro.

In that book, Goodwin mentions the city of Lecompton five times, according to the Lecompton Historical Society.

?Lecompton is what we like to say is the birthplace of the Civil War, when slavery began to die,? said Paul Bahnmaier, the President of the Lecompton Historical Society.

The writing of the Lecompton Constitution in Constitution Hall caused the national Democratic Party to split.? Four people ran for president in 1860, Abraham Lincoln won with 39% of the vote.

?So without the splitting of the Democratic Party over the Lecompton Constitution, that was written right here in this room that we?re sitting in, Lincoln would not have been elected President most likely in 1860,? Bahnmaier explained.

The Lecompton Constitution was a pro-slavery document.? The U.S. Senate passed it, the house didn?t, and Kansas joined the Union as a free state, shifting the national balance of power? to free states.? That helped push? the southern states to secede, and eventually the Civil War.

?What happened here in Lecompton was very much a part of the civil war, and our nation?s history,? Bahnmaier said.

Few people, however, seem to know about Lecompton?s role.

?To the victor goes the spoils, and our history has not been recognized statewide and nationally to a certain extent,? said Bahnmaier.

Six thousand people come to visit the city each year, but Bahnmaier believes more should know about its significance, and they might with this new movie about Lincoln.

?All you have to do is look at how much billions of dollars are made in the southern states over the Civil War history, and when the fact is that the Civil War started right here in Kansas, in Lecompton, it could be a major boom to the state of Kansas,? Bahnmaier explained.

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Source: http://fox4kc.com/2012/11/15/lecompton-hopes-movie-puts-them-back-on-the-historical-map/

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High school football: Catching up with...

Afton

Berryhill

Senior quarterback Zach Jackson is impressed by the 3A No. 5 Chiefs' quarterfinal opponent, unranked Stigler (9-2). "I think Stigler's an under-the-radar team," Jackson said. "We started watching film on them, and they've got a very talented offense, a very talented quarterback, a lot of trick plays. We're gonna have to show up and have a heck of a game to beat 'em, but I think we'll come out on top."

Nowata

After a 28-21 Week 5 loss to No. 5 Adair, the Ironmen (9-2) have reeled off six straight wins, including a 41-0 victory in their playoff opener against Colcord. This week, they will challenge No. 4 Stroud (10-1) in 2A's second round. "Rankings are just what they are at this point of the season. It's not who you play, it's how you play," said coach Matt Hagebusch. "Our players are confident enough in their ability." Sophomore running back Corey Hobbs had 22 carries for 202 yards and four touchdowns in last week's win. Hobbs now has 629 yards and 13 TDs on 74 carries this season. One of the Ironmen's other options at tailback, Nate Moore, has 64 carries for 783 yards and 12 touchdowns on the year. "We've done a really good job of spreading the ball around in this win streak," said Hagebusch. "Corey had a big game last week, Nate's always a threat to score, and Tyler Lewis does everything for us. This week, our quarterback Wyatt Steigerwald will have to come through for us on third down."

Vian

The top-ranked Wolverines (11-0) host Kansas in a 2A second-round game Friday. Last week, it was more of the same for the high-scoring Wolverines in their playoff opener, as they defeated Haskell, 78-8. Vian (11-0) has averaged 63.6 points per game on the season, while only giving up 2.8 points per game. The eight points scored against them was the most allowed all season.

Rowdy Simon had seven carries for 120 yards and two touchdowns, along with a punt-block that he returned for a TD. Receiver Tre Locust had two catches for 131 yards and two TDs.

"Our senior leadership is what has kept us so consistent this year. A lot of our seniors have been playing since they were freshmen, so they know what it takes to be consistent," said coach Brandon Tyler. "We haven't played down to our competition yet this year."

Wesleyan Christian

The No. 7 Mustangs (8-3) will vist No. 1 Tipton (11-0), last year's state runner-up, for a spot in the Class C semifinals.

"Our guys are super motivated to take on the No. 1 team. It's big for our school," said coach Nathan England. "We had an eye-opener game early in the season against Cherokee, but we've gotten so much better every week since then."

Quarterback Brian Beal leads the way for the Mustangs. Beal has rushed for 1,786 yards and 17 touchdowns on the year, and has thrown for 821 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Source: http://www.tulsaworld.com/site/articlepath.aspx?articleid=20121116_227_B6_hCATCH942858&rss_lnk=227

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Scientists discover ways to optimize light sources for vision: Tuning lighting devices could save billions

ScienceDaily (Nov. 15, 2012) ? Vision researchers at Barrow Neurological Institute have made a groundbreaking discovery into the optimization of light sources to human vision. By tuning lighting devices to work more efficiently with the human brain, the researchers believe billions of dollars in energy costs could be saved.

The research was conducted by Stephen Macknik, PhD, of Barrow's Laboratory of Behavioral Neurophysiology, and Susana Martinez-Conde, PhD, of Barrow's Laboratory of Visual Neuroscience. The study is published Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The paper is believed to be the first attempt to tune light-emitting devices to the optimal temporal dynamics of the human visual system.

The discovery concerns the way humans perceive temporal modulations of light. For example, most light-emitting devices, such as light bulbs, video monitors and televisions, flicker. Faster flicker rates result in reduced perception of flicker, which is more comfortable to viewers. In studying this phenomenon in the brain, the researchers discovered that there is a range of flicker dynamics of light that optimizes the perceived brightness of the light without increasing power.

"We found a temporal sweet spot in visual perception that can be exploited to obtain significant savings by redesigning light emitting devices to flicker with optimal dynamics to activate visual system neurons in the human brain," says Dr. Macknik.

The researchers estimate that if every light-emitting device in the U.S. -- from light bulbs to cell phones -- operated at optimal efficiency for the human visual system, it could result in billions of dollars of savings in electricity and power.

To come to their conclusion, the researchers conducted experiments into two contradictory theories of temporal visual perception, or how bright a light appears. Bloch's Law states that the perceived contrast of a visual stimulus increases with its duration, but eventually plateaus at approximately 100 milliseconds. For example, a 5-millisecond flash will appear half as bright as a 10-millisecond flash, but a 200-millisecond flash will be just as bright as one of 400 milliseconds. The Broca-Sulzer Effect, on the other hand, states that perceived contrast increases with duration initially, but then peaks and falls again.

The researchers discovered that the discrepancy between Bloch's Law and the Broca-Sulzer Effect is caused by an intrinsic bias among experiment subjects, leading to dramatically skewed data. By improving their experimental design to overcome this bias, something that has never been before reported or intentionally controlled for, the results demonstrated that temporal vision actually follows the Broca-Sulzer Effect.

"Researchers have been studying temporal vision for more than 125 years, but because ours is the first experiment of its kind to control for all known forms of criteria, it is the first to accurately measure the role of temporal dynamics in brightness perception," says Dr. Macknik. "Thus, the power savings are ripe for the picking because we can adjust our lighting to flicker to take advantage of this peak in perception."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. H. Rieiro, S. Martinez-Conde, A. P. Danielson, J. L. Pardo-Vazquez, N. Srivastava, S. L. Macknik. Optimizing the temporal dynamics of light to human perception. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2012; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1213170109

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_science/~3/0k1J8eU_CTA/121115152659.htm

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Home Pest Control Slows The Need For Home Improvement | Pro ...

Exterminating a trail of ants or a pack of rodents may not feel like you?re doing much for your home, but more to appease the annoyance factor of an infestation. However, home pest control does more for your home than you can imagine, including the need for frequent home improvement and repairs.

By getting rid of nuisance pests, not only are you preserving the aesthetics and foundation for your home but you?re eliminating any harmful health factors created from bugs and other pest creatures.

Some pest infestations you may be able to eliminate on your own using natural methods. But with almost all pest infestations, it?s imperative to take action early or the problem will grow to an unmanageable level, resulting in the need of a pest professional.

Easy Now, Difficult Later

Don?t delay inspecting or treating your home for pests, since pests can multiply rapidly within a matter of days. For example, a termite colony can grow into the millions over a few years, resulting in a much larger consumption of wood in comparison to an average colony. An average termite colony can consume a foot of a 2 by 4 board in about 6 months, depending on the size of the colony the rate can vary. Formosan termites can deteriorate a home more rapidly, so be sure to handle termite and other pest infestations promptly.

Just Because You Don?t See It, Doesn?t Mean It?s Not There

Rodents are infamous for their messy habits of gnawing and leaving an abundance of droppings. But with their timid personality and stealthy nature, you may never see the culprit that leaves these unpleasant surprises. Rodents can definitely cause damage to your home. Grease marks on baseboards, droppings and urine littered throughout the insulation, and gnaw marks on rafters are a few of the issues that impact the preservation of your home.

Pay attention to the subtle signs of rodent problems. When you spot some of the above mentioned in your home, it didn?t just spontaneously appear, there is a rodent nearby ? get rid of it.

Pest Control Starts With You

While professional control techniques can effectively remove a pest problem, it is a collaborative effort to prevent the return of pesky critters.

You probably know vacuuming, cleaning spills, and de-cluttering are strong methods to discourage attracting bugs, but an occasional deep cleaning is necessary. Food and spill residue from behind the oven and refrigerator are ideal place for insects and rats to comfortably retrieve food and liquids.

Inside your home is not the only area of concern. Secure trash receptacles to make it inaccessible to rodents and wildlife. Compost piles or fire wood stacks should be positioned away from your structure and window screens and weather stripping should be inspected for effectiveness.

News Archives ?

Source: http://www.propacificpestcontrol.com/2012/pest-control/home-pest-control-slows-the-need-for-home-improvement/

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Food supply in Rome 2

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Source: http://forums.totalwar.com/showthread.php/53089-Food-supply-in-Rome-2?goto=newpost

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House GOP picks woman for a top leadership post

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Stinging from double-digit election losses among female voters, House Republicans elected a woman to their top leadership team Wednesday in a tense test of gender politics and the clout of the GOP's power brokers.

The election of Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington state to the No. 4 leadership position among House Republicans dispatches conservative favorite Tom Price of Georgia, who had been endorsed by Mitt Romney's running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. House Speaker John Boehner didn't take sides, but McMorris Rodgers was considered the leadership favorite.

Newly elected Rep. Susan Brooks of Indiana said it was important to have a woman in a top role.

"It does show our party values strong female leadership," Brooks said of McMorris Rodgers' election. She said she expects the party now to "try and do a better job of getting our message out to a broader audience."

The race for such an obscure post carried big symbolism after women voted for Democrats by an 11-point margin in the presidential and generic congressional races, according to an exit poll by The Associated Press and television networks. Republicans widely decried their party's domination by white males, and Democrats declared themselves the party of diversity.

In the Senate, the GOP was once thought to be poised to gain control of the chamber but instead lost two seats to Democrats. In the House, Republicans retained the majority but lost as many as eight seats, with some races still uncalled. And Obama defeated Romney 332-206 in the Electoral College.

The lessons of the election weighed heavily on the lawmakers returning this week to Capitol Hill for a lame-duck, end-of-year session. McMorris Rodgers' supporters had touted her conservatism and her work as Romney's House liaison. Ryan touted Price as a proven leader and advocate of conservative policies on budget, tax and health care issues. Vote totals were not released.

Earlier in the day, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., surrounded herself with other female lawmakers to announce that she will run again for leader despite her party's failure to gain the 25 seats it needed to flip control of the House. The nation's first female speaker of the House, Pelosi largely skipped over that disappointment and focused on election results that she said made her caucus the most diverse in history.

"The point is that if America is going to reach its full fulfillment as a nation, we must have the further empowerment of women," said Pelosi, who put the formality of leadership elections off until after Thanksgiving.

Her motivation was closer to home, too.

"Being actively involved in politics at this level is really insatiable," Pelosi said. "There's so much more I want to do, I don't know how to get any more hours in the day. You can only sleep so less."

House Republicans reacted with derision.

"There is no better person to preside over the most liberal House Democratic caucus in history than the woman who is solely responsible for relegating it to a prolonged minority status," said Paul Lindsay, spokesman for the National Republican Campaign Committee. "This decision signals that House Democrats have absolutely no interest in regaining the trust and confidence of the American people who took the speaker's gavel away from Nancy Pelosi in the first place."

Pelosi's announcement was one of several throughout the day that would give more clarity to the leadership and direction of the next Congress. As in the House, senators re-elected their top leaders, Nevada Democrat Harry Reid and Kentucky Republican Mitch McConnell. Republicans elected Texas Sen. John Cornyn as the vote-wrangling whip, South Dakota Sen. John Thune as the GOP conference chairman, Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso as policy committee chairman and Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the party's campaign arm.

For Senate Democrats, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin remains whip and New York Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York remains policy committee chairman. Washington Sen. Patty Murray will serve as secretary, leaving open the chairmanship of the Democrats' campaign committee. Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet was said by Democratic officials to be a leading contender for that spot.

Another question answered about the makeup of the next Congress: Newly elected Sen. Angus King, a Maine independent, announced that he will caucus with Democrats next year.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/house-gop-picks-woman-top-leadership-post-215448978.html

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LA leaders find inspiration at innovative special needs programs for ...

November 15, 2012


Wyatt Isaacs and Eliza Wilson joined by Federation?s Lori Klein at the Sensory Garden at Israel Elwyn. Photo courtesy of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles

Wyatt Isaacs and Eliza Wilson joined by Federation?s Lori Klein at the Sensory Garden at Israel Elwyn. Photo courtesy of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles

Eliza Wilson?s holy moment in Israel didn?t come at the Western Wall. Sure, the 21-year-old with autism was honored and moved to place a note in the Wall on behalf of the 40 people traveling with her on a mission to learn about Israel?s programs for adults with special needs.

But Wilson?s most intense inspiration came at Beit Issie Shapiro, an innovative nonprofit promoting disability inclusion programs for children and adults in Israel. There, Wilson visited the Snoezelen room, a multisensory Mecca of lights, textures, sounds and aromas meant to both calm and stimulate those with developmental disabilities.

?When the lights went on, it was like being at Disneyland. It was amazing. I was blown away by it,? Wilson said.

She spoke about the July mission at a meeting Nov. 5 at The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles for 140 parents, advocates and professionals who came to hear what members of the Federation-sponsored trip learned in Israel, and what could apply to Los Angeles? rapidly growing population of young adults with special needs.

?I know that a lot of you were thinking we were going to come back and we were going to build a kibbutz over here in West L.A. ? and we did think about that while on the trip,? said Judy Mark, an activist who co-chaired the trip.

But, she said, while the group saw many examples of innovative programs, what became most apparent was the need for a force to benefit the entire emerging field.

Mark and others on the mission outlined a list of goals centered around funding, advocacy, research and collaboration, and said they hoped to mobilize working groups quickly.

At the same time, the Federation has invited the mission?s leaders, as well as a targeted group of Jewish professionals and lay activists in the field, to a planning meeting at the end of this month to chart a comprehensive communal approach for adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

?This has become a priority for the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles, and we are very proud to partner with so many of you in this room and to see how we can go forward and make a difference and meet the needs,? Lori Klein, the Federation?s senior vice president in charge of Caring for Jews in Need, told the meeting.

The move toward comprehensive planning comes at time of heightened focus on helping adults, and not just children, with developmental disabilities. In addition to the Israel mission, lay activists locally are working on creating a pooled trust, so that parents can set up communally monitored private accounts to fund long-term care for their adult children. Etta Israel, an advocacy and service program for individuals with special needs, has just merged with Ohel Children?s Home and Family Services, a social service organization in New York, raising its profile and programming expectations. Various parent groups are experimenting with independent living models, and Bet Tzedek legal services is spearheading a task force focused on the elderly with disabilities.

Federation and Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles together run HaMercaz, an information clearinghouse and communal umbrella group for families of children with special needs. But HaMercaz is not yet equipped to meet the exploding needs of adults with special needs.?

In the next few years, the population of adults with autism is expected to rise by 500 percent. Parents need to plan for the long term by finding not only stable living situations, but programs that will enable their children to have meaningful daily activities, friends, jobs and romance, said Michelle Wolf, who co-chaired the mission to Israel.?

The goal was to bring home ideas from successful Israeli programs.

At the Nov. 5 meeting, a film showed highlights of the trip and members of the group described visiting Kibbutz Harduf, where residents with developmental disabilities grow their own organic food and serve it in a cafe they run, and where they create pottery and handmade paper. The film showed Kishorit, a village where residents live mostly in private quarters and participate in the village?s industries ? making toys, breeding champion dogs and raising horses, goats and free-range chickens.

The group also visited other models, where those living in private apartments in the community receive enough support services and job opportunities to live independently.?

They visited inclusive playgrounds that are being replicated across the world and a deaf/blind theater ensemble.

?It exemplified how they are bringing out the best in each person,? said Elaine Hall, director of Vista Del Mar?s Vista Inspire programs, which bring art and spirituality to children with developmental disabilities. ?We can do the impossible because it?s being done every day in Israel.?

While Israel still has some work toward becoming a fully inclusive society, mission-goers were inspired by a man with Down syndrome who works at an army base, and by parent advocates who work to bring together government and private funding to get their needs met.

Mark said the group was most inspired by the collaborative model at Beit Issie Shapiro, a model she can see replicating in Los Angeles, and, she said, Beit Issie Shapiro is committed to helping Los Angeles lay the groundwork.

While Beit Issie Shapiro creates programs, facilities and therapies, Mark said she is more interested in the advocacy aspect of its work, which supports widespread innovation and brings different groups together.?

?I see at least a half-dozen of you sitting here today who are building something of some sort, and most of you don?t know each other. One of the best things we as a group can do is to introduce you to each other,? Mark said.?

That collaboration is one of six goals Mark and others outlined at the meeting. In addition to bringing cooperation and communication where before there was competition, they hope to raise inclusion awareness, advocate for more government and private funding and provide families with thorough, accessible information. They also hope to fund research into quality of life issues, and then to use that research to fund the most effective programs.?

While expressing gratitude for Federation support, Mark cautioned that the needs of the community are too urgent for bureaucratic slow down.

?I think we have to figure out the balance between being inclusive and getting as many voices as possible heard, and moving forward as quickly as we can, because we?re in an urgent situation,? Mark said.?

Klein responded that the understandable sense of urgency has made this process evolve faster than anticipated, and Federation is eager to organize the various strands.

?We are not holding this up for the sake of holding it up, but there are things to consider. Every time we have a conversation, everyone has their own priorities, whether it?s about housing or a resource center or a pooled trust. Everyone has what they want, and we believe it is our role to say we?re going to take the lead on this and figure out what are all of the communal needs, and how are we going to prioritize those,? Klein said.

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Source: http://www.jewishjournal.com/los_angeles/article/la_leaders_find_inspiration_at_innovative_special_needs_programs_for_adults

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UK lawmakers slam Starbucks, Amazon and Google on tax | The ...

From Yahoo Finance:

UK lawmakers criticized executives of Starbucks, Google and Amazon on Monday for not paying more tax in Britain and Amazon said it had received a $252 million demand for back taxes from France.

Britain?s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which is charged with monitoring government financial affairs, invited the companies to give evidence amid mounting public and political concern about tax avoidance by big international companies.

Britain and Germany last week announced plans to push the Group of 20 economic powers to make multinational companies pay their ?fair share? of taxes following reports of large firms exploiting loopholes to avoid taxes.

. . . .

Members of Parliament (MPs) on the committee quizzed Starbucks Chief Financial Officer Troy Alstead about how the group?s UK unit managed to report 13 years of losses.

?You?re either running the business badly, or there?s some fiddle going on,? Austin Mitchell MP said.

A Reuters report last month showed that Starbucks had paid no corporation, or income, tax in the UK in the past three years and had paid only 8.6 million pounds since 1998.

. . . .

Members of the committee repeatedly criticized Andrew Cecil, Brussels-based Director of Public Policy for internet retailer Amazon, for failing to answer questions about the group?s operations.

Cecil declined several times to tell the committee the level of Amazon?s sales in the UK.

?We have not disclosed those figures ever publicly,? he said.

Link to the rest at Yahoo Finance

Amazon, International

Source: http://www.thepassivevoice.com/11/2012/uk-lawmakers-slam-starbucks-amazon-and-google-on-tax/

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Share button for iOS, Android and Facebook mobile site goes live

Facebook moves fast: one day after the news broke the social site said it was introducing a share button on its mobile site, the company revealed the feature is now available on its iOS and Android apps as well.

"Today, Facebook announced that you can now use the Share button on iOS, Android and the Facebook mobile website to share news feed stories," the company told TechRadar in an email.

"This gives people a fast way to share stories with friends from their mobile devices, just as they can from their computers."

The share button works through the Facebook for Android app, Facebook for iPhone and iPad app and Facebook mobile website.

Spreading stories

Facebook also posted the announcement in its Newsroom, explaining how the feature works (not that most Facebookers aren't familiar with sharing).

"When you click share on a news feed story in your Facebook app or on m-site, you can re-post the story on your own Timeline so your friends can see it," the announcement outlined.

Something like this has been missing from Facebook's mobile presence for an oddly long time, so it's not too surprising the social network wanted to push this out as soon as possible.

Source: http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/share-button-for-ios-android-and-facebook-mobile-site-goes-live-1112955?src=rss&attr=all

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