EAST LANSING — East Lansing's growth spurt might not be over.
The East Lansing City Council approved an ordinance last week on a 3-2 vote that allows for an additional 20 feet of height on some buildings along Grand River Avenue.
The decision bumped height limits in parts of downtown to 160 feet, about 14 stories. That means future developments could be two stories taller than the tallest building currently under construction downtown.
“I’m comfortable with 160 feet because I'm comfortable with 140 feet," East Lansing Mayor Mark Meadows said.
The ordinance makes downtown more flexible for future growth, he said.
The new rules follow a flurry of new development downtown. The council has approved three high-rise apartment projects since October of 2017, all of them along Grand River Avenue. All told, they'll add 930 apartments and 867 parking spaces to downtown East Lansing.
Meadows said the development underway has already enticed people to look into buying property downtown, although he said he's not aware of any specific development proposals in the works.
“The value of that extra two stories is what makes the difference in purchasing a property for a higher value," he said.
The new rules apply to the four blocks east of Abbot Road and west of Bailey Street in between Albert Avenue and Grand River Avenue.
The bumped-up height restrictions were meet with criticism from some quarters.
David Ledebuhr, who owns the building containing the now-closed Menna's Joint and Black Cat Bistro wrote to the City Council to express concern about the proposal.
"By only placing the Grand River frontage and Albert frontage facing north, you are creating a Tall (sic) wall with no depth," he wrote.
The original ordinance also included the areas adjacent to the Peoples Church. About 30 members of the church protested the increased height proposal at the board's April 9 meeting. Many cited parking issues and the ordinance's divergence from the master plan the city approved last year.
The master plan recommends that buildings in the area adjacent to the church be a maximum of 10 stories.
"(This ordinance) is the wrong thing at the wrong time," said George Brookover, the church's attorney. "And the community has invested tons of effort into the master plan, the comprehensive plan to make these decisions."
Meadows said the height restrictions in the master plan weren't in line with the projects the city had already approved for parts of downtown.
He also amended the ordinance so that it no longer includes the area adjacent to the church and the land at the corner of Abbot and Grand River intended for the Park District project, a 10-story hotel and 11-story apartment building.
Meadows said he expects a mix of buildings to make up East Lansing's downtown.
“You’re always going to have low-rise and high-rise buildings in an area," he said. "This isn’t New York City. You’re not going to all of a sudden see Grand River turn into a bunch of 14-story buildings."
And a more dense downtown is good for businesses, Meadows said. More residents living downtown will bring in additional foot traffic, he said.
But density doesn't necessarily require height, said Christopher Zimmerman, vice president for economic development at Smart Growth America, an urban planning and development non-profit based in Washington D.C.
Rather, density depends more on the way space is used, he said.
Zimmerman said height also isn't the most important factor for cities to consider when looking at new developments. The important thing is that streetscapes are designed to be welcoming for people walk on. People shouldn't walk past loading docks and blank space.
An additional 20 feet of height on a building likely won't make a big difference, he said.
"My guess is most people wouldn't notice the difference between a 140-foot building and a 160-foot building," he said.
Still, tall buildings can become jarring if they're not designed well, said Lars Graebner, a professor of practice in architecture at the University of Michigan and principle of VolumeOne Design Studio in Detroit. A tall building is less intimidating if its footprint isn't large and architects use design tools such as setbacks.
“The height can sometimes be positive, but it can also sometimes be devastating depending on the facade and design," Graebner said.
The ordinance approved Tuesday originally came about in response to the proposed Park Place project on the current Dublin Square site in downtown.
The final version didn't include the properties.
Okemos-based Vlahakis Companies and Royal Properties of Champaign, Illinois, submitted plans to the city in December for two 14-story buildings near the corner of Abbot Road and Albert Avenue.
Together, the buildings would have 80 condominiums, 450 parking spaces, 410 market-rate apartments, a 34,000-square-foot movie theater, 24,000 square feet of office space and 25,000 square feet of retail space.
Some of the sites the developers plan to use are zoned B-3, which only allows for up to six stories. That prompted the need for increased height restrictions.
But Meadows said Tuesday night that residents shouldn't expect Dublin Square to be torn down anytime soon.
“Not everything works out the way you hope in the beginning," he said .
Developer Paul Vlahakis did not return calls seeking comment last week.
Vlahakis previously told the State Journal that the additional height was key in marketing the condos at the top of one of the buildings.
East Lansing City Council Member Shanna Draheim voted no on the proposal. She said she's not opposed to taller buildings downtown but that the ordinance felt rushed. She said she wanted to wait on the issue to get more feedback from residents.
“We all want a movie theater downtown," she said. "But I also care about the way things look."
Kathleen Boyle, vice chair of the planning commission and a former East Lansing City Council member, said the city needs to slow down and wait and see the response to the developments currently under construction.
She also said she didn't like that the ordinance came about because of the Park Place proposal.


Comely Melana Scantlin chose studly California waiter Jason Peoples over goofy Manhattan trader Adam Mesh in the finale of NBC’s hit – proving in this reality show, that brawn wins over brains.
“When I look at you I see a future with you . . . and I’m excited about that,” Scantlin told a shocked Peoples.
“I’m really excited to spend more time with you. I think you’re amazing,” Peoples said.
“Tonight the romance has to end,” Scantlin told Mesh – who arrived after Peoples and was convinced he would win.
In the show, a slew of ordinary-looking “average Joes” competed to win the heart of Melana, an ex-Kansas City Chiefs cheerleader and model. They had to compete with three “hunks” thrown into the mix.


San Antonio, TX – Tim Duncan scored a game-high 15 points to go along with six rebounds as the San Antonio Spurs cooled down the Toronto Raptors with a 100-80 decision at AT&T Center.
Manu Ginobili followed with 14 points, while Tony Parker added 13 and seven assists for San Antonio, which won its third straight game.
Alan Anderson and Amir Johnson each netted 12 points to pace the Raptors, who had their season-high five-game win streak snapped.
Terrence Ross and John Lucas III scored 11 points apiece off the bench in a losing effort.
"That is probably the best team in the NBA right now. They're playing well together," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said about the Spurs. "The few days of good practice they had and we took days off showed."
San Antonio connected on four of its first six shots from the floor while the Raptors went just 1-for-6 from the field to give the Spurs an early 9-3 lead.
Toronto netted the next five points to close its gap to one, but the Raptors would get no closer until Johnson later capped a 6-0 push with a layup to knot the game at 16-16 with a little over two minutes left in the first quarter.
The Spurs, however, scored six of the final eight points of the frame and carried a 22-18 lead into the second quarter.
Toronto followed Stephen Jackson's opening basket of the second with an 11-3 spurt to take its first lead of the game at 29-27.
The lead would exchange hands three times from there as the teams traded blows, with the last coming on a pair of Danny Green free throws as part of a 14-4 run by the Spurs over the final three-plus minutes of the half to give them a 44-37 advantage at the break.
After Duncan drained a jumper to start the scoring in the third quarter, the Raptors battled back with an 11-5 push to get within 51-48.
San Antonio responded with six straight points to regain a nine-point edge and following a brief 5-0 spurt by Toronto that brought the Raptors back within 57-53, the Spurs closed out the third with a 13-4 run to take a 70-57 lead into the fourth quarter.
Toronto never threatened in the final stanza, trailing by double digits throughout the entire fourth quarter.
"I thought our defense was very good in the second half," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "They did a much better job in the pick-and-roll and our pace was better offensively. We got back into our usual flow and it worked out well."
Spurs guard Gary Neal sat out the game with a strained right calf ... The Raptors have not won six in a row since March 22-April 4, 2009 ... Toronto allowed an opponent to surpass 100 points for the first time in eight games and fell to 0-14 this season when allowing an opponent to do so ... San Antonio leads the all-time series between the teams, 23-9 ... The Spurs have now won seven straight at home and improved to 11-2 at AT&T Center this season ... The Raptors fell to 2-15 on the road.


Trinity Western University abandons its community covenant after Canadian Supreme Court loss.
Rise of honorary degrees raises concern about misuse of “Dr.” in ministry.
Trinity Western University’s loss over its LGBT stance is seen as a blow to religious freedom.
New offerings and global reach prompt more institutions to adopt “university” designation.
Dream Forward initiative by Wheaton, Gordon, SBC seminaries, and others builds on Martin Luther King Jr. commemorations in Memphis.
What The Lord of the Rings can teach Christian leaders in higher education (and elsewhere).
Foreign students offer US schools treasure in heaven and on earth.
Very often, people behind bars already have a relationship with God.
A Q+A on how college savings plans can now be used to pay for private K-12 tuition.


Film scouts will be in Derbyshire looking for teenagers to offer them paid roles in a new production.
They are seeking youths aged 13-20 to be cast in a new feature film.
Open auditions will be held at Quad Derby in Cathedral Quarter, Derby, on Sunday, August 14, between 2pm and 5pm.
Casting company Kharmel Cochrane’s previous film credits include The Witch (2016) and Lifting (2014).


* Teen STEPS is now open to the public, no access code needed! Visit Teen STEPS @ www.TeenSTEPS.org.
That’s the theory behind STEPS – Screening, Treatment, and Education to Promote Strength – a first-of-its-kind virtual mental health initiative for teens and their parents.
Created by New York University’s Christopher P. Lucas, an Associate Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, STEPS aims to reduce risk of suicide and school violence through online education, self-help and screening. The voluntary, school-based program features a Web site for both teens and parents accessible at school or at home. On each site, visitors can find scientific information, chat around the clock with online clinicians and with each other, and participate in a confidential suicide questionnaire.
Since its launch last fall in two New York high schools, STEPS is already showing signs of success – with membership numbers nearly doubling. Lucas says he hopes the program will attract at-risk teens not only with its wealth of information, but also with its edgy style and interactive features.
“STEPS is really the result of seeing what works and what does not work in the suicide prevention field and really trying to leverage the power of technology and the way that teenagers relate to each other,” says Lucas.
While STEPS is currently being studied in only five schools in New York State, Lucas and his colleagues hope to introduce STEPS to at least a dozen high schools by the end of this year. They believe that successful intervention with teens who are at risk can be achieved by improving the mental health of an entire student population.
“The goal at the end of this is to get people to seek help,” Lucas says.


Earth Day is April 22. To celebrate, Cornell Cooperative Extension- Yates County will partner with Two Can Dan’s Redemption Center to again host a recycling and Earth Day educational event Tuesday, April 23.
Two Can Dan’s will once again accept household appliances, electronics (no box TV’s), and all metal, large appliances for recycling (anything with a coolant requires a $10 fee) at their location, 137 Benham St., Penn Yan.
Small boxes of personal papers for recycling may be brought to the CCE- Yates event in the rear of the First Baptist Churchparking lot. There will also be locked bins at the CCE- Yates site for shredding confidential documents. (Please ensure that all paper/binder clips are removed. If bringing five or more boxes, please call the CCE-Yates office ahead of time) This event is free and open to the public. CCE workers will be handing out free reusable silicone drinking straws, yard waste bags and native shrubs at the event.
Two Can Dan’s, owned by Dan and Melissa Gurba of Penn Yan, has been taking the hassle out of returning bottles and cans for over a decade, with customers ranging from local residents, to areas as far as Rochester and Elmira.


That building has won over everything.
but what are they for?
wherever your suns take you.
between the horizon and the lice.
We’re off to the sea, someone said.
minute, stone so simple the next.
Past the gaga experiments to ginger high school thriller days I wheel fragile issues: a fight on there, bulbous antennae, a herald carved alone in the archer position—sweet! We had a few people over to celebrate the monotony of the new place.
In the republic of other things when we live in a bathroom, weird issues short out what sense orders for us. Like a tired research assistant, you chose to flap around, prompted by hunger, not being sure that the crate of plums arrived.
Than a hare paused amid the gorse and trembling bellflowers and said its prayer to the rainbow through the spider’s web. Oh the precious stones that were hiding,—the flowers that were already peeking out. Stalls were erected in the dirty main street, and boats were towed toward the sea, which rose in layers above as in old engravings.


In Europe an estimated 60 million live trees are bought, decorated and dumped; it’s around 30 million in America. The majority of real trees are grown specifically for Christmas so forests are not being depleted, but after the festivities most real trees are thrown away and as they decompose, methane (a greenhouse gas) is produced. Artificial trees leave their own carbon footprint due to their production and transportation. Most are made in China and amass a great many polluting air miles on route to their Western destination, and when discarded end up in landfill sites. In order to make up for the amount of energy used in its production, according to The Woodland Trust, a plastic tree would need to be reused every Christmas for twenty years. Under the tree, of course, is to be found the Festive Icons – the presents. Worldwide, adults are said to spend on average $475 on gifts, half of which are unwanted, but in this throwaway world of ours, instead of returning them, most of these rejected trinkets are dumped in the rubbish bin and end up in a landfill site.
Christmas and rubbish are synonymous terms in more ways than one. It’s the time of year when the largest amount of consumer waste is produced and the overwhelming bulk ends up in a hole in the ground. Over 114,000 tons of plastic waste is estimated to have been produced in Britain over Christmas and not recycled, together with “more than 88,000,000 Sq. m of wrapping paper and 300,000 tonnes of card packaging”, The Times relates. In the Capital of Consumerism, America, a colossal $10 million is spent on wrapping paper, most of which is not recyclable, and the number of Christmas cards sold requires 300,000 trees to be cut down.
Then there’s the unbridled cruelty reserved for the animals that are raised for the festive table; around 10 million turkeys are eaten in Britain; it’s closer to 25 million in America, where the major turkey cull is Thanksgiving. The vast majority of birds stuffed and roasted are factory farmed. Their short lives are spent in appalling conditions and end when they are plunged head first into electrified stunning baths, after which they have their throats cut in the slaughterhouse. The industrial farming of turkeys is not just barbaric, like all animal agriculture it produces huge amounts of the greenhouse gases which fuel man-made climate change. Add in Christmas travel by road and air and the enormous environmental impact of Christmas begins to become clear: from 15th December to 4th January a record 52 million people in America took to the air and 97 million hit the highways. In Britain over thirteen million vehicles clogged the roads in the days leading up to the Big Day, and both Heathrow and Gatwick airports had their busiest days on record: around four million people in total, with record numbers taking long-haul flights. Aviation is a major source of greenhouse gases, and the further one flies the greater the environmental damage.
Whilst the festive period allows much needed time for rest, and for some, warm family gatherings (tense misery for others), in its current form it is little more than an exercise in mass consumerism. The ‘Christmas Spirit’, which suggests peace, brotherhood and ‘goodwill to all men’, is widely absent, replaced by an exaggerated version of how life is conducted the rest of the year; contemporary values (which are not values at all, of course) of greed and selfishness are relentlessly encouraged and to a large degree, prevail.
This article was posted on Thursday, February 8th, 2018 at 9:29pm and is filed under Capitalism, Consumer Advocacy, Culture, Environment, Fossil Fuel Emissions, Life/Animal Rights, Methane emissions, Plastic, Pollution, United Kingdom, United States.


Watch the Official Trailer from Telugu movie 'Bichagada Majaka' starring Arjun Reddy, Neha Deshpandey, Babu Mohan and Suman. 'Bichagada Majaka' movie is directed by K.S.Nageswara Rao and produced by B.Chandra Sekhar. To know more about 'Bichagada Majaka' trailer watch the video. Check out the latest Telugu trailers, new movie trailers, trending Telugu movie trailers, and more at ETimes - Times of India Entertainment.


Onaga was the very embodiment of a politician and every negative connotation that goes with that word. He never put Okinawa or its people first; it was always about him, his backers and getting reelected. Through the years he changed his stripes so many times he could have painted a whole heard of zebras. These changes were not about a maturing philosophy, he just flip-flopped to suit whatever got him in front of the media, money and elected to office. The man’s ego always proceeded him and he preened in media attention, which the Okinawa “bought and paid for” TV stations, such as RBC were willing to provide. A good example of his conceit and arrogance was his wearing of that monstrosity helmet wig. He continued to refuse to admit he was bald when he became ill, he insisted on wearing a hat to cover his baldness. When he found the golden goose in opposing the US military bases, Okinawa’s bigger and more pressing problems were pushed so far down the list to be ignored while he railed on getting rid of the US military. I only hope the People of Okinawa will wake up and elect a governor who has the integrity and courage to have a balanced administration and actually govern for the benefit of all the people and their needs and not just the special interest group that has been buying the governors’ office for several years.
The rules don't apply to celebrities, everyone knows that. When you get caught with your hand in the cookie jar, just blame someone else........ kinda like I was drunk at the time.
If the Okinawa people want the bases out, that is their call. But it should be the choice of the OKINAWA people, not the faction that has hijacked Okinawa politics. People are starting to wake up and realize that the steady diet of anti-base propaganda is not reality. I agree that Okinawa has an unbalanced percentage of US troops, but a reduction and compromise should be worked out with the central government based on mutual respect and the wishes of the majority of the Okinawa people. Onaga and the other puppet government officials have thrown Okinawa under the bus to achieve their political agenda, which has absolutely nothing to do with the welfare of the Okinawan people. When you have all the radio, TV and newspapers on Okinawa in the political regime's pocket and in full propaganda mode, you know something is rotten and stinks on high.
When the grid fails and you are standing in a pile of rubble, a coin in your pocket will still spend.
Back to the helicopter problem........ The Marines are suffering from the same infliction that their parent DOD branch is undergoing. When the Navy had several major ship accidents in less than a year, they were in a state of denial until the accident reports came out. Seasoned military aircraft mechanics will tell you there is no such thing as an old aircraft but there is such a thing as a poorly maintained aircraft. The military has a lot of old aircraft the are better than they were when they rolled off the assembly line. The MC has a maintenance problem, the sooner they come to grips with that fact the better for them and everyone around them. The Navy moved to fire and prosecute personnel from admirals on down, its time for the MC to do the same. Maybe start with the MC general on Okinawa?
The Japanese Government pays the land owners far more than fair market value for rent. The land owner of a 200 tsubo plot, which is about the size of a standard US city lot, gets $90,000 a year rent. If you live in a noise zone around an air base you get noise canx windows installed and upgraded every 10 years, you get air conditioners and ventilation installed and replaced for free. The children of residents of Kadena town go to school free. Every Japanese worker that works on base in a GOJ supported position, gets hardship pay and language pay on top of location pay and their regular salary. There is a lot of very upset Okinawan people who owned worthless mountain land that was being used as the Northern Training Area, about 10,000 acres, that was returned to them. Onaga and his agenda made them loose millions of yen. What does Japan get in return? It rents the worlds most powerful military at a fraction of the cost it would cost to field it.
Its amazing how anything you feed your pet that does not come out of a can or package labeled dog/cat food is bad for your pet! I suspect a bit of fear mongering by the pet food industry.
"All our weapons, including atomic bombs, hydrogen bombs and ballistic missiles are only aimed at the United States, not our brethren, nor China and Russia," Pyongyang's chief negotiator, Ri Son Gwon, said.
.........and what do these US and ROK troops do when lil' Dumplin starts chucking missiles at the US? Wave?... don't think so. If NK goes hostile toward anyone, it will have to include SK.
If she didn't know anything then why doesn't she just shut up now?
Streep says in a statement Monday that Weinstein "needed me much more than I needed him and he made sure I didn't know." The Oscar winner says her association with him brought him credibility, which she says he used "to lure young, aspiring women into circumstances where they would be hurt."
Yeah Meryl, we believe you! I had to read this paragraph twice to believe my eyes. Talk about a conceded statement! With the voracious gossip and rumor machine in Hollywood, how could anyone on the inside not know? The hypocrisy of these people totally destroys any credibility they pretend to have.
In 1996 the Japanese Government and US Government agreed on relocating MCAS Futenma from the densely populated area in Ginowan to Camp Schawb which is located in the far north of Okinawa. The move entailed building a V shaped runway into the bay that forms one side of Camp Schwab. Initially this move was hailed as a good solution by both the Okinawa government and Japan, but then a political faction, with one paramount agenda to oust all American Forces came to power, fueled with outside money. This faction has used continuous delaying tactics to drag the move out for over 20 years, with no regard to the wishes of the people of Okinawa. The influx of millions of outside political money has ensured this faction remains in power. The newspapers and TV on Okinawa are controlled by this faction and report a continuous diet of fake or distorted news and disinformation, while the Okinawa people continue to suffer from a government that that does address it's real problems and needs.
I don't think so. The bases have substantially retarded Okinawa's growth as a tourist destination. It's ideally located to become the Hawaii of East Asia, especially with the new casino legislation having been passed and hundreds of millions of Chinese tourists just an hour or two away by plane.
The economy would not collapse, but there would be a significant impact that would take several years to recover from. Tourists are great, but what is not being said is the overcrowding, crime, and inflated prices that comes from them. Tourism has been around for many years on Okinawa and the average Okinawan has not benefited. All the construction, hotels and tourist destinations are owned/operated by mainland Japanese companies, the money goes back to Japan. Okinawa still has the highest unemployment of any prefecture, along with the highest rate of alcoholism, lowest school test scores, highest divorce rate, AND food prices here are higher than mainland Japan. What is the cause?..... Corrupt government from the prefecture level on down.
Add in where do those troops go on US soil, current bases got space to accommodate them all, or new bases would need to be build prior to moving them.
Not true, there are many military bases in the US that have been downsized and with very little effort and expense, could be reactivated to capacity. When the US government considers closing a base in the US, the city and state where it is located, protests the CLOSING of the base. They recognize the economic impact. You would be very hard pressed to find any city that would turn down having a base located nearby.
The solution is simple, have a referendum vote and let the people decide. But this is something else that will not happen. The political machine that has Okinawa in its grip will see to that. There is so much outside money that is poured into Okinawa politics, it is impossible for a pro people candidate to win. This machine has an agenda of it's own and cares not the least for the people of Okinawa. There are regular posters on JT who are drinking the Kool-Aid and aiding and abetting the machine either knowingly or thinking they are noble by howling for the ouster of the US Military. If the Okinawa people want the US gone, then it should be made so. Up to this point, all the rancor and indignation is a product of the Japanese Communist Party and the Far Right Ultra-nationalists........ get the pitch forks and get rid of the round eye devils!
Any discussion of Micky Ds always brings out a lot of people who rant on how bad their food is, I can't understand why they have to express an opinion on it, if you don't like it just don't go there. I like it sometimes, I like sushi, would not eat either one every day. I strongly dislike tofu, but would not disparage anyone who does................and YES, bring back the quarter pounder!
Seen this room before in other photos and interviews with audio. It is a "set" and the pegboard wall is acoustic dampening. Not sure why they chose it for a photo op though.
Agree... I once found a boat adrift about three miles off the coast, it was a japanese registered fishing boat. I called the J/coast guard and reported it. The next day I was "requested" to come to the local office for an "interview". It lasted just over 3 hours. They then hounded me for a couple of more months with the same questions........how many ways can you say you saw the boat floating, investigated, no one was on board and then you called the Coast Guard.
turning the home into a corporate store front," the McAfee report said.
This coming from a company that will constantly pilfer use data from your computer and spam you to death if your use their software.
I suspect she will marry early to a commoner to get out of the Imperial Prison and its inflexible littleny of keepers.
The government should just let the man retire while he still has time to enjoy it. I think the date has been pushed into 2019 instead of the original 2018.
I thought the Queen's duties came before her personal life. Maybe it's just a royal thing...... let them eat cake!
US sanctions are inhumane and drive ordinary citizens to desperation.
Little Dumplin' is taking food from his peoples mouth to build a nuke or more likely several nukes and you blame it on the US? Posts like yours are just troll poop.
I think they do it to flavor it up as there's less fat than the US burgers.
The meat is from Aust. or NZ and the chicken nuggets from either Thailand or Viet Nam.
Lauer just got his ticket punched on the Karma Train and Ann Curry was the conductor.
The thing is this: Takanoiwa was photographed smiling at training the following day and them making a courtesy visit to a local city hall in Fukuoka.
I did not really catch all of the piece, but I saw what i thought was a news piece about the gash and stitches on Takanoiwa's head, I believe it was yesterday, did anyone else see this? There was a picture of his scalp.
There has been something "fishy" going on in Sumo for a couple of years now. The wins and losses are not consistent. When one Yokozuna's get too far ahead in wins, they mysteriously lose a couple of matches. I suspect they are pressured to do this to keep the customers attention. In the last tournament, everyone heard the referee shout stop, that is why Hakuho stopped fighting and got pushed out of the match for his only loss. The judges let it stand. Hakuho protested and now is being reprimanded for his actions.
Get real that is so out of topic and way off target. The various aisles and different drinks is not about being supportive of drinking irresponsibly, but rather sales.
Sure it is about sales and more sales and then more sales. It constitutes enabling and just reinforces how important alcohol is in military culture. When a person walks into a military convenience store and the ratio of alcohol products to food products is 3 to 1, it just reinforces and normalizes the use of alcohol. I drink, sometimes I get a bit drunk. I don't advocate getting rid of alcohol, but when you have excessive access, its use and consumption becomes trivialized,and not something that needs to be treated with respect and care.
I'm not so sure it is BS. Harumafuji has shown himself willing to do things the easy way in a number of his matches when he needed to win. His performance as a Grand Champion has been mediocre at best. The reports say Takanohana was being "counseled" by the other Mongolian wrestlers or was it bullying? There has been a lot of suspicious wins, matches, and "injuries" lately in MHO.
The military wonders why it has a drinking problem, all you have to do is walk into one of the AAFES stores on base and the reason will be clear. Let's take the most mind boggling of these; the Kadena on base service station. It has exactly two and a half center shelves with automobile related merchandise. The other three double sided aisles are alcohol. Everything from hard liquor to wine and beer. Between the aisles and on the ends are cases of craft beers and ciders stacked 3 or 4 high. The AAFES run convenience stores are the same. One or two aisles of junk food and the rest alcohol.
I guess a slight bonus is, I don't ever see seniors using smart phones and driving.
Your are correct.... they slam on the brakes and swerve off to the side while fishing for the ringing phone. Then they carry on with the conversation with the rear of the car sticking out in traffic or if the road is narrow, completely blocking the lane.


Police said they are awaiting the results of tests before they are able to say if Niolon shot and killed his wife and child before taking prescription pills. He never regained consciousness.
The Sun Herald updates this story in Thursday's print and online editions.


Local authorities say a shooting spree in the eastern state of Pennsylvania has left four people dead and three state troopers wounded.
Officials say the shootings occurred over several kilometers in Frankstown Township, about 150 kilometers from the Pennsylvania state capital, Harrisburg. They say the shooter was among those killed and the emergency is over. The shooter shot dead two men and one woman during the melee.
The bloodshed comes one week after a disturbed young man in Newtown, Connecticut, massacred 20 children and seven adults before committing suicide.


When Iowa state Sen. Matt McCoy learned Donald Trump had appointed Matthew Whitaker to be acting attorney general of the United States, he was aghast -- he believes Whitaker was behind a politically motivated prosecution that was personally "devastating" to him.
It started in 2007, when McCoy was a rising Democrat in state politics, and the state's first openly gay lawmaker. Whitaker was the US attorney for Iowa's Southern District at the time.
A grand jury indictment accused McCoy of using his elected office to try to extort $2,000 from a Des Moines home security company where McCoy was a consultant. The charges came after an elaborate undercover investigation in which the FBI had McCoy's business partner wear a recording device. McCoy demanded money he says he was owed for his consulting work.
In an interview with CNN this week, McCoy said Whitaker "certainly tried to prove that I had done something really awful when, in fact, it was a garden variety business dispute that should have been handled in small claims court, if anywhere."
The trial lasted more than a week, with prosecutors trying to prove the business partner never agreed to pay McCoy for his consulting and the defense torpedoing the partner's testimony because he couldn't recall many details and admitted he had trouble with sobriety, according to Des Moines Register articles on the trial.
In the end, the jury reached a not guilty verdict in an hour and a half, including time for lunch, according to the Des Moines Register.
"I believe it was a political prosecution, there's no doubt in mind, I'm 100% certain that it was," McCoy said, adding he believes he was targeted not just because he's a Democrat, but also because he's gay. "As US attorney (Whitaker) spoke at Christian Coalition events and would often refer to bringing God into his decision-making process and being guided by God's hand," McCoy said, "and so I believe that he was very much resentful of my lifestyle and I believe that played a factor in it."
Whitaker has been facing questions from reporters about whether the case was politically motivated since the day the indictment was announced in 2007. An editorial in the Des Moines Register soon after McCoy was acquitted called for the government to compensate McCoy for his legal fees and questioned, "Was the McCoy prosecution a product of poor judgment, inexperience, misplaced zeal or partisan politicking? Perhaps all of the above."
A Justice Department official sent a statement to CNN defending the case. "As a U.S. Attorney, then-US Attorney Whitaker had a responsibility to uphold the rule of law and pursue credible allegations of illegal activity. The Department of Justice signed off on bringing the case, the FBI conducted an independent investigation, and career prosecutors handled the case throughout its duration. The jury's verdict does not negate the obligation of law enforcement agencies to open cases when they determine laws may have been broken."
McCoy said the two-year legal battle exhausted his finances and left a lasting impact on his life. "I was putting my whole family in an emotional state as a result of that. I had elderly parents, I had a young son ... It took an emotional toll on the people that I loved and it was completely unnecessary."
McCoy continued as a state senator for 11 more years, a position he will hold until January. He was just elected to the Polk County Board of Supervisors, winning with 82% of the vote.
Whitaker left his position as US attorney in 2009 and ran unsuccessfully for the US Senate in 2014. He also unsuccessfully vied for a seat on the Iowa Supreme Court, then went on to create the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust, a Washington nonprofit funded almost entirely by dark money. In 2017, he became former Attorney General Jeff Sessions' chief of staff until this week, when he stepped into his former boss' job.


When Donald Trump became the 45th president of the United States, it underlined the need for the wider world to understand exactly what was going on politically in the major superpower.
The London School of Economics’ United States Centre responded by launching the State of the States, a free, apolitical online resource giving in-depth information about each of the 50 US states, along with up-to-date information about policies and political developments drawn from local news sources and blogs.
It developed from the centre’s US American Politics and Policy blog, where academics posted daily articles and book reviews on all aspects of US governance, economics, culture, politics and society. With Trump’s victory relying on narrow margins in a handful of states, they felt that an understanding of trends in specific US states was needed to help predict future developments.
Using digital agency Soak to build the interactive aspects of the website, the team began data-gathering, bringing together more than 2,500 pieces of information and producing a prototype of the site, with the aim of making it as user-friendly as possible for those with no knowledge of US politics. Users click on a map of the US to access a mini-profile of each state, plus stats on the political makeup of the state senate and assembly, key political figures, representation in Congress, demographics, economy, healthcare and attitudes to policy areas ranging from capital punishment to cannabis.
It is also possible to search, by time period and state, for political updates on specific topics such as abortion, free speech, gun laws and trade unions.
The website launched on 6 November, the same day as the US midterm elections, and has been updated regularly since.
The LSE’s South Asia Centre is now developing a similar interactive resource ahead of the Indian elections in 2019, and the State of the States will be the model for a future global electoral interactive overview being planned by the university’s government department.
Many universities have experimented with online degrees but Coventry has done so with spectacular gusto. In just 18 months, its provision of wholly online degree education has grown from nothing to reach 80,000 learners in 188 countries.
Coventry University Online now delivers 12 degrees and 45 open courses, and the aim is that by 2022 the number of degree programmes will have increased to 50.
Coventry launched its first online master’s degree, in nursing, in January 2018, before adding a suite of further master’s including construction management, cybersecurity, emergency management and organisational psychology. Students can take an online master’s in business administration focusing on a specific specialism such as healthcare, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity management or sustainable tourism.
The university has also developed a postgraduate certificate in higher education practice for its staff across the world to study for an internationally recognised teaching qualification, and pre-sessional English provision for prospective students to improve their English language provision before undertaking further study.
It has partnered with the Open College Network London to deliver an open course in mental health targeted at school leavers, and with Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia to deliver a postgraduate certificate in entrepreneurship. The aim is “to give people a ladder up to begin a degree or progress, not just complete one course and log off”.
This rapid development was made possible by the university becoming the first UK higher education institution to partner with the social learning platform FutureLearn. It has also invested in a studio to create its own digital media, including video content and high-quality podcasts.
But flexibility has been key. Students are able to scale their studies up or down each semester according to their personal circumstances, using a pay-as-you-go financial model. They are also encouraged to “try before they buy” by engaging in the first two-week course of each module, which is free, before enrolling on a full degree. Every course is suitable for PCs, tablets and mobile devices in low bandwidth areas.
Once signed up, students become part of a small cohort with access to a network of named tutors, learning coaches and technical support, and on graduation receive the same qualification as on-campus students.
The results have been as impressive as the rate of expansion, showing 96% retention and 85% student satisfaction.
How can universities respond to the demands of a large student body that expects answers on demand 24/7 without driving staff into the ground? The answer, for Staffordshire University, is artificial intelligence.
Beacon is its new AI-driven chatbot – or digital coach and assistant – primed to support students with everything from remembering where their next lectures are to filling in council tax forms. The university estimates that within three weeks of being launched in January 2019, it had helped more students than a single member of staff would in a year.
The app recognises students when they log in and can respond either to text or voice. As well as being able to answer questions about timetabling, how to log in to university wifi, where to find something to eat or when the library opens, it can proactively suggest societies for students to join and events to attend, as well as prompting them about revision, giving them reminders about lectures and assignments, and notifying them of the next bus home.
The idea is that Beacon will become smarter the more students use it, offering personalised advice such as which books and study aids to use. It should also be able to step in when students’ engagement appears to be waning, setting new goals for them to reach and reminding them to see a personal tutor.
Staffordshire was the first university in Europe to migrate fully to cloud hosting, which has made digital innovation easier. It has laid out a digital vision for 2030, which includes the idea that over the next 10 years students will interact more with AI day-to-day than with any member of staff.
Students, academics and a development company with experience of AI all contributed to the Beacon project before its release. It is now one of the top apps in the App Store for education, and Staffordshire county council is exploring with the university how Beacon could also be used to support local school children.


About 50 children enjoy a hot lunch from the summer parks program in 2010. Burbank has cut the program this summer.
Local families dependent on free and reduced-price school meals could find it harder to keep their children fed this summer.
The city of Burbank will not be offering its summer parks program and complimentary free meals due to budget cuts, officials said. In the past, the program has operated at four sites, including McKinley and Miller elementary schools and Lundigan and Maxam parks, serving more than 8,500 meals.
Roughly one-third of Burbank Unified's 16,670 students qualify for free and reduced-price meals, which are subsidized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Technically, nutritional support continues during summer school, but for the third consecutive year, the district will offer a heavily scaled-back program due to budget constraints.
Burbank school officials and social service agency representatives say they are trying to fill in where the city has left off. Burbank Unified will provide meals at McKinley Elementary School from June 11 to June 28 and July 16 to July 26, Monday through Thursday only. Service will run from 10:30 to 11 a.m.
All children under 18 are eligible, but must be accompanied by an adult.
Shanna Warren, executive director of the Burbank Boys & Girls Club, said she and her colleagues expect a crowd at their free summer drop-in program at Lundigan Park. Students are given a morning and afternoon snack.
While families are asked to provide a sack lunch, those who are unable to do so will be accommodated, Warren said.
Barbara Howell, executive director of Burbank Temporary Aid Center, said reductions in federal and state funding have hit social service agencies hard.


Businessman Eike Batista is a man whose rise and fall mirrors that of his country's economy.
Brazil's Eike Batista was worth about $30bn over a year ago, and confidently declared that he was on his way to becoming the world's richest man, surpassing Carlos Slim and Bill Gates.
Backing this up was his belief that he was sitting on oil fields off the coast of Brazil valued at $1tn. But four of the five fields were shut down after proving to be little more than duds, and Batista's oil and gas company OGX has now filed for bankruptcy protection.
On its own, Batista's is an interesting story. But it also speaks volumes about Brazil, and its economy as a whole.
Brazil saw protests earlier in the year, which demonstrated that people felt the last decade of economic growth had been wasted, with little investment made in infrastructure and education.
Back in 2010, its economy expanded by 7.5 percent - thanks in large part to foreign investors and a credit and consumption boom. But now, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), its economy is barely eking out 2.5 percent growth, and the Central Bank has stepped in to raise interest rates in a bid to tame inflation.
Carlos Caicedo, the principle Latin American analyst at IHS Country Risk in London, speaks to Counting the Cost about the Eike Batista story, while Al Jazeera's Gabriel Elizondo reports from Brazil.
Elsewhere, the big gold miners say they spend billions in developing nations, but with gold off its peak, how long will it last?
Accountancy firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers estimates that gold mining contributed $78bn in gross economic value to the 15 leading gold producing countries, with the creation of 530,000 direct jobs.
And the World Gold Council says its 15 members - all big mining corporations - spent $55bn last year in the countries they operate in.
That breaks down to $8.4bn in tax and royalty payments to governments, $35bn to local businesses, to provide essential services to mining operations, and $8.3bn to pay wages to the quarter of million people they employ.
But the price of gold has really fallen since 2012, which hurts the earnings of the big miners and, in turn, hurts the revenue of the developing nations where the gold comes from.
So how does it all balance out? Counting the Cost speaks to Terry Heymann, the director of Responsible Gold at the World Gold Council, to find out.
Gulf air carrier Qatar Airways has joined one of the world's big three airline alliances - the groupings which bring together airlines, connections, lounges etc - all, they say, for the convenience of the passenger.
The big three alliances are SkyTeam, Star Alliance, and oneworld, which is the alliance Qatar Airways joined. The oneworld alliance now has 13 member airlines, including big players like British Airways, American Airlines and Qantas, plus another three which are in the pipeline to join.
Combined, it carries 475 million passengers a year to a thousand airports in over 150 countries. That translates into annual revenue of $150bn.
But for a long time Qatar Airways did not want to join any alliance - a view still held by the other major Gulf players, Etihad and Emirates, who want to keep more control over their own destiny.
We speak to Bruce Ashby, the CEO of the oneworld alliance, to discuss the recent move by Qatar Airways and whether it will pay off.
Finally, we look at Ecuador, which is giving up on a controversial drilling plan in the Amazon.
It first wanted rich countries to pay it not to drill for oil in the rainforest, effectively saying they would not go after the oil riches if they were compensated not to do so.
However, the government is allowing oil exploration in one of the most pristine parts of the country, and many people are unhappy about it. Al Jazeera's Monica Villamizar reports from the Ecuadorian Amazon.


Regional courts in Africa should be allowed to prosecute international crimes as a way of strengthening complementarity on the Continent, Chief Justice Hassan Jallow of The Gambia has suggested.
“I remain convinced that complementarity can and should be taken a notch higher by vesting African regional courts such as the ECOWAS Court and the East African Court of Justice with the mandate to prosecute international crimes,” Mr Jallow said at the recent West African Stakeholders’ Consultation on Emerging Trends on Complementarity in Banjul.
This would help in burden sharing where the task was too great for the country of primary jurisdiction and ensure that the process of accountability occurred not far from the community directly affected, while respecting the principle of complementarity, he said.
The programme was organised by Africa Legal Aid (AFLA), a flagship non-governmental organisation on justice and accountability based in The Hague, in conjunction with the Attorney General’s Chambers and the Ministry of Justice of The Gambia, and the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights in Sweden.
Members of the Judiciary, prosecutors, civil societies, legal fraternities and victims of crimes of atrocity from West Africa attended.
Chief Justice Jallow said; “The current patchwork or mosaic of bilateral treaties on mutual legal assistance – some dating a century or more between states – does not facilitate cooperation between states in this field.
He said such a global or regional multilateral treaty would provide an ideal framework for cooperation in pursuit of global justice and accountability.
Mr Jallow, also a former Judge of the Appeals Chamber of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, and ex-prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, said there were constant arguments over the role of the ICC in Africa, which felt hampered by the Court, as the Continent attempted to move forward with complementarity.
“It is…fitting that periodically we review the trends in complementarity and explore ways in which that fundamental principle of justice can be further strengthened.
“For the future of justice and accountability lies ultimately on the extent to which we can give concrete reality to the principle of complementarity,” he said.
He, however, acknowledged that weak national legal systems and overburdened international tribunals had given rise to fertile territory for impunity to flourish.
In that regard, Mr Jallow said he wanted to see states “empowered – individually or collectively – to discharge their primary responsibility for the prosecution of serious crimes”.
Evelyn Ankumah, the Executive Director of AFLA, said: “In simple terms [complementarity] means that the ICC should not deal with a case if national or local criminal systems can and will deal with it.
She said international criminal justice should be pursued in the village, the province, the state or region where the crimes were committed, adding that The Hague was not the ideal place where international criminal justice should be first pursued.
“Justice should be done at home, or as close to home as possible,” she added.
Morten Kjaerum, of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute, said there were numerous setbacks to the prosecution of international crimes, which include “the tension between Africa and the Global North over prosecutions, and the lack of popular knowledge about the ICC, which makes people vulnerable to populist attacks on the Court and what it stands for”.
Mr Kjaerum said consultations like the one in Banjul were crucial to strengthening the current efforts for the promotion of human rights and the global fight against impunity.
He said the exchange of promising practices and honest deliberations about hurdles and barriers could push the Continent forward, as she explored how to optimise the use of the current human rights landscape.
The Banjul Consultation was the first of a series of two regional meetings on complementarity in Africa, with the one for East and Central Africa scheduled for July in Kampala.
Southern Africa has been excluded because the Region does not appear to have issues with complementarity.
Meanwhile, in a new report by the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) looks at the extent to which the ICC can encourage domestic trials, avoiding the need for the Court to conduct its own investigations.
The report draws lessons from four case studies: Colombia, Georgia, Guinea, and the UK.
“Twenty years after the Rome Treaty, the ICC’s burgeoning caseload and limited resources underscore the need for fair and effective domestic prosecutions,” said Elizabeth Evenson, Associate International Justice Director at HRW.
She said more ICC member countries should support the prosecutor’s efforts to encourage successful local proceedings, adding that the ICC prosecutor’s office should tailor its approaches in each preliminary examination.


Meet Benji! This three and a half month old chihuahua mix is a fun-loving puppy with a unique brindle coat.
To learn more about Benji and other dogs, visit www.rescueachi.com.


An update of Washington Irving's classic tale about Ichabod Crane, who wakes up in the 21st century but finds his 18th-century nemesis, the Headless Horseman, has also come along for the ride.
Could Capt. Frank Irving and Castiel exterminate demons together?
Could this be the next Witness?


There’s no better time to talk about how to get out of the rough than U.S. Open week. As the best players in the world deal with the thick rough at Erin Hills, we figured you could use a few tips on how to handle the rough at your course. Bill Schmedes III, one of our Golf Digest Best Young Teachers out of Fiddler’s Elbow in N.J. says that he sees players make two major mistakes when they’re hitting out of thick rough.
First, he sees players try to hit more club than they should. It’s a common mistake that people justify by saying the rough is going to take yardage off their shot, so they need to club up. Schmedes says what they don’t realize is that they’re leaving themselves with a club that doesn’t have enough loft to get the ball out.
Instead of trying to lift the ball out of the rough, Schmedes says to think about these swing motions instead. “Limit any lateral movement off the ball. To do this, think about your head staying in a fixed position as the body tilts and turns around it.” He also says to stand a little taller at address. This will keep your upper body from tilting forward too much, which means your angle of attack will be steep. That’s going to limit how much grass gets between the clubface and the ball.
Cleaner contact means you’ll get out of the rough easier. We’re not saying you’re going to have a two-footer for birdie, but you’ll certainly be able to get yourself out of the thick stuff.


The Asian Art Museum's opening gala for the latest exhibit, China's Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor's Legacy, took place on February 20, 2013. Guests enjoyed entertainment, cocktails and a first look at the ancient Terracotta Army.
Marissa Mayer at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition. The Asian Art Museum's opening gala for the latest exhibit, China's Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor's Legacy, took place on February 20, 2013. Guests enjoyed entertainment, cocktails and a first look at the ancient Terracotta Army.
Yuan Yuan Tan and Marissa Mayer at the Asian Art Museum's opening gala for the Terracotta Warriors exhibit.
Rosina Sun and Rebecca-sen Chan at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Willie Brown with Sonya Molodetskaya at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
San Francisco Ballet principal Yuan Yuan Tan at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Goretti Lui at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Chong-Moon Lee, Goretti Lui and Jay Xu at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Jerry Yang and Marissa Mayer at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Komal Shah at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Jennifer Raiser, Komal Shah, Jean-Charles Boisset and Gina Boisset at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
In addition to getting a first look at the Terracotta Warriors, Gala guests enjoyed entertainment.
Akiko Yamazaki at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Helen Hilton Raiser and Jennifer Raiser at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Linda and John Marren at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Letitia Kim and Michael Kim at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Marissa Mayer at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Phoebe Cowles at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Jay Xu, Jamie Chen, Chong-Moon Lee, Superviser Jane Kim and Goretti Lui at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
A piece from the China's Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor's Legacy exhibit.
Part of the China's Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor's Legacy exhibit.
Patrick King and Carolyn Chang at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Judy Wilbur at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Stephanie Ejabat at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Akiko Yamazaki, Jerry Yang and Goretti Lui at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Guests enjoy entertainment during the Asian Art Museum's opening gala for the China's Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor's Legacy exhibit.
A Terracotta Warrior on exhibit at the Asian Art Museum.
Fred Levin and Nancy Livingston at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Yuan Yuan Tan at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Nanci Mishimura and Joe Cotchett at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Jim Hormell and Michael Nguyen at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.
Chong-Moon Lee and Jay Xu at the opening gala for the Asian Art Museum's Terracotta Warrior exhibition on February 20, 2013.


Grand Forks, N.D. (Valley News Live) Multiple people were taken to the hospital after a driver lost control on a slipper overpass and crashed into three other vehicles.
Grand Forks Police say it happened Tuesday morning around 8 on the Columbia Road overpass.
A pickup driven by Sandy Mangelsen was going south when he crashed into three other vehicles all going north on the overpass.
Everyone taken to the hospital is expected to be ok.
Mangelsen was cited for care required due to the slippery conditions of the roadway.
Authorities are urging people to watch out for slippery road conditions.


Fluorescence micrograph of a human kidney stone from the Mayo Clinic.
Mayandi Sivaguru, Jessica Saw from Bruce Fouke Lab, Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, U. of I.
Recent research found that kidney stones have many more similarities with real stones than anyone previously thought. The team of both medical students and geologists were able to piece together how kidney stones form, their changes through time, and how they can record the health of a person's kidney.
The research, published in Scientific Reports, upends our understanding of how kidney stones grow. Kidney stones grow much like coral reefs or stalagmites grow, adding sequential calcium carbonate layers on top of each other. In between growth cycles, kidney stones can also dissolve slightly, leaving gaps in their structure.
In geology, rocks can unlock clues to the environments they were exposed to. For example, a stalagmite grows in size by the slow drip of mineral-rich water in a cave. Each water droplet contains dissolved minerals, which precipitate out to add a tiny amount rock to a stalagmite.
As calcium carbonate layers form from the sequential drip of mineral-rich waters, trace elements within the water record changes in Earth's environment. For example, by analyzing the oxygen isotopes within the calcium carbonate layers, scientists can determine the precipitation record in the surrounding region.
A 2,000-year-old stalagmite with layers of calcium carbonate corresponding to the wet and dry season each year. Scientists can detect tropical cyclones in these layers from very depleted levels of oxygen-18.
Much like these rocks, kidney stones grow through time, layer by layer and in doing so record the health of a person's kidneys. Kidney stones are primarily made up of calcium oxalate, which was previously thought to be insoluble within the kidney. However, through analyzing kidney stones using geological approaches, the team was able to identify dissolution zones within the crystals.
This indicates that the kidney stones both grow and dissolve as time passes. The breakthrough in understanding could lead to proactive measures to dissolve kidney stones instead of painfully passing or surgically removing the stones.
A human kidney stone from the Mayo Clinic.
The research team concluded in their paper that kidney stones could be used to read a minute by minute history of a person's health, similar to how geologists read rock layers to understand past environments.
By investigating kidney stones under X-Ray spectroscopy and fluorescence microscopes, tools typically used in geology, the team was able to see unprecedented detail with resolutions up to 140 nanometers.


In-form Tranmere goalkeeper Owain fon Williams is ready to make his first start for Wales on Friday.
Williams is the only one of the three goalkeepers in Wales manager Chris Coleman's squad currently playing regular first team football.
The 25-year-old has kept six clean sheets in the 11 game unbeaten run which has put Rovers four points clear at the top of League One.
"I'm going thinking I'm going to play," he told BBC Radio Merseyside.
Wales play World Cup qualifiers against Scotland in Cardiff this Friday and against Croatia in Osijek the following Tuesday.
Gareth Bale, Joe Ledley and Adam Matthews all missed Wales training on the Tuesday ahead of the visit of the Scots to the Cardiff City Stadium.
The goalkeeping position has developed into a problem for Coleman since first-choice Wayne Hennessey ruptured his cruciate knee ligament in April.
Hennessey's usual deputy, Boaz Myhill of West Bromwich Albion, is also unavailable following surgery to his thumb.
Neither of the other two goalkeepers in Coleman's squad, Jason Brown of Aberdeen and Lewis Price of Crystal Palace, are regular starters for their club, leaving Williams in pole position to start.
"It's a great opportunity for me," said Williams after Tranmere's latest win, away at Notts County.
"I've wanted to play for my country since I was a boy, and it'll be a massive thing for me if I get the nod.
"My form is good because I'm working very hard every day - [Tranmere goalkeeping coach] Dave Timmins is a big part of that, he's always on my back pushing me, working on my game.
"Goalkeeping is not just about shot-stopping, it's also about how you control what's going on in front of you so you don't have to make a save in the first place.
"But it's also because I'm enjoying my football with Tranmere. Who wouldn't? We're top of the league, 11 games unbeaten, and have kept six clean sheets."
Williams, who comes from Penygroes in Gwynedd, has already represented Wales from U17 to U21 level.


Today (June 1) marks the 40th anniversary of The Beatles classic ’Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, and what better way for NME to celebrate then by getting Kaiser Chiefs to quiz Paul McCartney for us.
Summing up the groundbreaking thirst for invention that The Beatles encapsulated on ’Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ he explained “anyone with any taste or boredom threshold doesn’t want to make the same album again”.


Angela Wimmer was at red light, blocks from home, when a truck plowed into her car and killed her. The man accused in the crash, Todd Grudznske, had six prior DUI convictions.
Editor’s Note: All this week on 9NEWS and 9news.com is an in-depth look at repeat drunken drivers, the tragedies they’ve been blamed for, and how a new state law intended to crack down on them is – or isn’t – working.
KUSA - Randy and Linda Wimmer had 200 miles to go, cutting across U.S. 287 outside Memphis, Texas, when the phone buzzed and their lives were altered forever.
It was Sept. 30, 2018, and they were on their way home after visiting their son in Albuquerque. The call was about their 25-year-old daughter, Angela, a technician at an optical center in Lakewood.
“The policemen said that she'd been in a car accident, that she was in surgery and she was having brain surgery,” Linda Wimmer said as she and Randy sat in their rural home on the plains northwest of Dallas and talked about the oldest of their three daughters, the second of their children.
None of it made sense to them. Angela had just bought a new Mazda sedan the day before – her first brand new car – and exchanged playful text messages with them earlier that morning. Angela, they knew, was headed to mass. What happened?
Angela Wimmer was 25 years old when she was killed in a car crash. The suspect is a repeat drunk driver.
Angela Wimmer enjoyed coffee while on a pilgrimage in Ecuador.
Angela and her sisters, Stacie and Maria.
Angela and her boyfriend Brandon Johnson.
Angela on the way to the Great Sand Dunes with two of her friends.
Angela Wimmer was living in Colorado when she was hit by an alleged drunk driver. She grew up in Texas.
Angela and her friend Teresa Cory at the Denver Night Run 2017.
Angela Wimmer was the second child and oldest of the three Wimmer girls.
Angela with her mother and sister.
Angela and her family celebrate her sister Stacie's wedding.
Angela celebrated her sister Stacie's wedding.
Angela (second from left) with sisters, Maria, Stacie and their mother, Linda Wimmer.
At a gas station, Randy and Linda tried to figure out how to get to Denver. Should they drive? Fly? What?
Then the phone rang again. This time it was a doctor.
Linda and Randy Wimmer would drive through the night to get to Denver. They would find themselves overwhelmed with grief, their daughter killed in a crash that police and prosecutors blamed on a man with six prior convictions for drinking and driving. A man, according to court documents obtained by 9Wants to Know, who had a blood-alcohol level more than four times the legal limit 90 minutes after the crash.
Repeat drunken drivers are nothing new in Colorado – a man named Richard Strock killed his ex-wife in a 2005 crash along Interstate 70. It was his 19th drunken driving arrest, according to court documents and Colorado Bureau of Investigation records.
A four-month 9Wants to Know investigation, which included the examination of police and court records from multiple jurisdictions, found that a similar pattern played out for Grudznske in DUI case after case: He was allowed to plead guilty to the lowest possible crime while other charges, such as driving with a with a revoked license or driving without insurance, were dismissed.
When he failed to follow through on the requirements of those deals – by going to alcohol classes, performing public service or staying out of trouble – he was given chance after chance, those documents show. An examination of every criminal court case involving Grudznske over nearly two decades found 10 instances when he could have had his probation revoked for failing to follow the terms of a plea deal – but it wasn’t.
When probation finally was revoked in one case, the judge gave him a do-over – starting the same requirements anew.
In another case, a judge finally just canceled his probation after he didn’t complete it, then lumped a jail sentence together with what he was serving in another case.
The Sunday morning that was Sept. 30 was warm and sunny in the Denver area. Angela’s new Mazda still had some of the factory tags on it as she headed out to church – she was a devout Catholic, and Sunday morning mass was part of her routine.
She did not know Todd Grudznske, a 47-year-old tree trimmer who came to Colorado from Wisconsin, although they lived less than a mile from each other. Both of their homes were along Miller Street west of Kipling Street.
That same morning, Grudznske headed out, wearing a Green Bay Packers jersey, and stopped at three separate bars, according to court documents and the court testimony of Lakewood police officers Jim Moffat, Jason Ezell, Jeromy Rohling and Gregory Strandberg.
This surveillance photo shows Todd Grudznske in a bar before he was allegedly involved in the fatal crash that killed Angela Wimmer, police said.
Strangberg testified at Grudznske’s preliminary hearing that his morning began sometime around 9 a.m. at Swig Tavern, 11810 W. Colfax Ave., where investigators allege that over approximately an hour he downed a beer and three shots of Rumple Minze. Then, according to Strandberg, he headed off to another bar, Tavern on 26th, 10040 W. 26th Ave., which is operated by his landlord, according to Colorado Liquor Enforcement Division records. He didn’t stay long, but while he was there he had a beer and a shot of tequila, Strandberg testified.
Grudznske arrived at Misfits Sports Bar & Grill, 11475 W. Colfax Ave., at 10:57 a.m. Three minutes after walking in, he ordered his first beer, according to Strandberg. A little later, a shot of whiskey. Then another beer. Then more shots. At one point, he sent over a round of shots to other Packers fans; Strandberg said investigators believe Grudznske may have done shots with that group.
At 12:39 p.m., Grudznske stood and walked out. The tally at Misfits: two beers, and at least five shots of whiskey – Wild Turkey and Jameson, Strandberg testified.
His total consumption over the previous 3½ hours, as alleged by Lakewood police: four beers and nine shots (three Rumple Minze, one tequila, five whiskey).
What officers testify Todd Grudznske drank before he was allegedly involved in a fatal crash.The final tally was four beers and nine shots.
Around the same time, Angela Wimmer was headed south on Kipling toward her home. She was a couple minutes away when she stopped at a red light at Colfax Avenue. She was the only southbound vehicle at the light.
Police would later conclude that Grudznske’s gold Chevy pickup, its bed overflowing with tree limbs, was headed down Kipling at between 68 and 71 mph before its speed dropped as it approached Colfax, Rohling, one of the officers, testified in court. Suddenly, the truck plowed into Angela’s car – investigators put the truck’s speed at the moment of impact at between 58 and 64 mph, Rohling testified. The impact was so powerful it launched Wimmer’s car into the intersection – just a quarter second after the crash, she was careening across the pavement at 44 mph.
There were no pre-impact skidmarks left by the truck, according to court documents.
Traffic camera video shows the moments before and after the fatal crash.
Angela’s Mazda smashed into another vehicle, and two more cars got caught up in the chain-reaction wreck.
Up the road, Becky Shorey was approaching the intersection, headed to a home center.
“I saw a bunch of smoke, steam, something, up ahead just past the intersection, which caught my attention,” said Shorey, a teacher and former EMT. “And then I looked and I saw cars in the intersection; everybody was stopped.
Then she went to the pickup, where a man in a Packers jersey was at the wheel, bloody, and appeared to be attempting to get away.
First responders speak to Todd Grudznske in the moments after the crash.
Eventually, she left, but not before stopping for a moment where paramedics were working on Angela.
“I knew that she was in real trouble and she would be lucky to survive,” Shorey said.
Angela died at the hospital, a little more than two hours after the crash.
Grudznske’s six prior drinking and driving convictions made him a candidate for a felony DUI charge – a new law enacted in 2015. It makes it a felony to be convicted of drinking and driving more than three times.
In addition to his six prior convictions, 9Wants to Know found three other instances in which Grudznske was suspected or reported to have been drinking and driving – but he wasn’t charged with DUI in any of those cases.
There was a 2004 case in Lakewood in which an officer pulled him over because his license plates weren’t valid, later learning that his license was revoked because he’d been deemed a habitual traffic offender.
A composite of Todd Grudznske's past mugshots.
Most records in the case have been destroyed, and it is not clear whether the officer asked Grudznske to perform roadside tests or give a sample of his blood or breath to see if he was impaired or intoxicated. John Romero, Lakewood police spokesman, said he could not answer questions about how the case was handled because there aren’t documents to detail what happened.
There was the case in 2011 in which a woman called 911 and reported an erratic driver near Kipling Street and 44th Avenue. She provided a license number, and officers traced it to the woman Grudznske was married to at the time, going to the couple’s home to investigate.
But when officers questioned Grudznske, he claimed he hadn’t had anything to drink until after he’d gotten home. The man he was with that day denied they’d been drinking.
In the end, police charged Grudznske with evading an interlock device – his own vehicle had the machine installed that required him to pass a breath test before it could be started, something he was required by a court to do. His wife’s car didn’t have the device installed.
There was also a case in July 2017 where a man called police to report that a couple was fighting in front of his home. The couple was Grudznske and his estranged girlfriend, according to Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office reports. The woman told officers that they’d been at a bar drinking and were returning to her house – with Grudznske at the wheel – when he physically assaulted her. By the time the officers arrived, he was nowhere to be found.
He was arrested in that case more than a week later.
Todd Grudznske's mugshot after he was involved in a crash on Sept. 30.
In the wake of the Sept. 30 crash, Grudznske faces charges of first-degree murder, three counts of attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault, vehicular homicide-DUI, vehicular homicide-reckless driving, three counts of attempted first-degree assault, felony DUI, violation of a protection order, and reckless driving as well as two counts of committing a crime of violence, a sentencing enhancer.
His blood-alcohol level, according to court documents obtained by 9Wants to Know, was .341 at 1:49 p.m. – a little more than an hour after the crash. That’s more than four times the level of .08 at which a motorist in Colorado is considered intoxicated.
Grudznske has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is being held without bail. He is scheduled to go on trial June 3.
In addition, prosecutors have begun the process of trying to revoke his probation in the 2017 domestic violence case on the allegation that by drinking he violated the requirements imposed in his plea deal.
Grudznske denied a 9NEWS request for an interview.
Randy and Linda Wimmer spoke to 9NEWS about the loss of their daughter.
Becky Shorey, who came upon the crash in Lakewood moments after it happened, is bothered by the idea that Grudznske was still on the road with his history of DUI convictions.
It’s a question that Randy and Linda Wimmer wrestle also with.
Angela Wimmer was laid to rest at age 25 after she was hit and killed by a man who police said was driving drunk.
Randy Wimmer told 9NEWS he believes that people should be denied the right to drive after one or two DUIs – but he also acknowledges that is easier said than done.
And there’s the pain of the loss.
Angela Wimmer's mom called her death the worst thing that has ever happened to her.
Blood-alcohol content or breath-alcohol content: Both are commonly referred to as BAC. Each is a measurement of weight against volume. When blood is tested, the results are expressed as a measurement of grams of alcohol in 100 milliliters of blood. When breath is tested, the results are expressed as grams of alcohol in 210 liters of breath.
Driving while ability Impaired: Commonly referred to as DWAI, it is the lowest-level charge that can be filed against someone accused of drinking and driving. A person is presumed to be DWAI with a BAC of .05 to .08 while driving. It is a misdemeanor and a conviction can carry a sentence of up to 180 days in jail.
Driving under the influence: Commonly referred to as DUI, it is the more serious of the two charges most often filed against someone accused of drinking and driving. A person is presumed to be DUI with a BAC of .08 or higher while driving. It is a misdemeanor and a conviction can carry a sentence of up to 1 year in jail.
Under 21 drinking and driving: A person under age 21 can be charged with drinking and driving with a blood-alcohol level between .02 and .05. It is a traffic infraction.
Felony DUI: A new law passed by the Colorado Legislature and signed by then-Gov. John Hickenlooper in 2015 made it a felony to be convicted of DWAI or DUI for a fourth or subsequent time. A conviction can carry a prison term of up to six years.
Expressed consent: Anyone who drives in Colorado is presumed to have expressed the consent to submit to roadside tests or a blood or breath test to check for intoxication if requested by a law officer who has probable cause to suspect that person has been drinking and driving.


Cancelled flight? Know your rights.
Gabor Lukacs, founder of a national air passenger rights group, explains what you can do if your flight is suddenly cancelled.


A PERFECT CIRCLE, the band featuring former Tool vocalist MAYNARD JAMES KEENAN and ex-GUNS ‘N’ ROSES drummer JOSH FREESE, have upgraded their UK tour to larger venues.
The band were due to make an appearance at London LA2 on July 13, but due to a high demand for tickets, the gig has been transferred to the London Kentish Town Forum for the same day.
Their shows in Manchester, Nottingham and Glasgow have also been moved to larger venues.
Tickets purchased for the original dates are valid for the upgraded shows, and more tickets have been made available.
The band release their debut singe, ‘Judith’, on July 10 through Virgin.


MADISON COUNTY Ala. -- Fewer and fewer young people are learning trades or going into the skilled labor workforce. Construction companies say they can't find new employees. Manufacturing firms say they can't find skilled workers.
"I've always had college in mind, that I wanted to go to college," said 17-year-old Matt Dailey, a Huntsville High School student.
"I think my parents kind of expect me to go to college, and get the kind of jobs that they have," said 19-year-old Will Freeman.
"I've always had college in mind too. It's not been an option to do something else," said 18-year-old Kyle Jansen, a Huntsville High School student.
While college is the right path for many high school students, employers say it is not the only one. They say there are trades to learn and a skilled labor market in need of new workers, like construction.
"A lot of our superintendents and foreman are retiring. And there's not a lot of workforce coming into the industry," said Stephanie O'Melia, the HR and Safety Director for Dunn Building Company.
Over 6,000 high school students attended the college and career fair, most lining up at the tables of the colleges and universities.
"I feel like going to college is the safest thing to do. Get your degree, it's something to lean on," said 17-year-old Terrell Coleman, a Huntsville High School student.
Many of the kids say they think college is the best way to get a lucrative career. But employers say they can offer a path to a good future, without the college debt.
"Really and truly it's a lot about the money. They're really interested in whenever I tell them as a superintendent you can make $100,000 a year," said O'Melia.
Matthew Tola told students about jobs in HVAC, plumbing, and electrical work.
"Make money a lot quicker than having to go through that four-year traditional college," said Tola, with H.C. Blake Company.
They say more students are considering learning a trade, and that change starts with the guidance counselors, letting kids know all of the options.
"It's a good way to go. You go to trade school then get out and get a fast job," said 16-year-old Stephen Cagle, a Junior at Huntsville High School.
The Huntsville/Madison County Chamber debuted their new career website. It lists local career opportunities and internships, as well as videos from real people on the job, and online training.


Two dozen migrant and anti-racist groups have penned a letter demanding that German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer change his stance on migration or leave office following his comments in the wake of protests in Chemnitz.
“An interior minister for everyone should not divide the society any further but instead clearly take a stand for the core values of our country,” read an open letter titled “Not our interior minister.” It was signed by more than 20 groups, including several associations of Turkish, Polish and Serbian communities, as well as pro-migration, pro-diversity and anti-fascist groups.
It called out Seehofer particularly over statements he made following massive protests in the eastern German city of Chemnitz in the wake of the murder of a German man, which was allegedly committed by two asylum seekers. Clashes between right-wing protesters and leftists resulted in some 20 people being injured, according to the police. At that time, Seehofer said he would join the protesters if he was not a minister.
Another point of contention was Seehofer’s support for Hans-Georg Maassen, chief of Germany’s domestic security agency, who said that he was “skeptical” about media reports of right-wing extremists chasing down foreigners during the protests in Chemnitz. While many politicians slammed Maassen over what they called a failure to defend the constitutional order, Seehofer said he had “full confidence” in the domestic security chief.
The development comes as Germany witnesses a wave of protests following migrant-involved deaths. Apart from Chemnitz, a new series of protests was triggered last weekend in the city of Kothen, where a man died after a scuffle with a group of Afghans. The victim died of heart failure, according to prosecutors, but two migrants were detained, sparking public outrage both from right-wingers and leftists.
On Tuesday, German police opened more than a dozen investigations after a rally in the city of Halle saw scuffles with police and demonstrators exhibiting Nazi salutes and slogans.


If you want a great hangover cure, look no further than international breakfast foods. Down a French croque madame — a ham and gruyere-stuffed sandwich topped with an egg — after throwing a few back, and you’re golden the next morning. Kill a full Irish breakfast, including black pudding (which is not really pudding, but blood sausage), and you’re also probably going to feel better. And so it goes.
On that note, one of my favorite international breakfast hangover cures is the Filipino “silog” plate, a plate of toasted garlic rice, a fried egg and different cured meats. It’s like a Filipino version of DIY Chinese fried rice or Korean bibimbap. The meat choices are endless: There’s bacsilog (which includes bacon), chiksilog (which includes fried chicken) and even hotsilog (which includes, yep, hot dog).
My favorite is tosilog, aka silog with cured pork belly, which is usually crispy on the outside, silky on the inside and coated in a gooey candied crust. Because a lot of Chicago Filipino restaurants serve their food in steam tables, you don’t often see a lot of silog offered — a fried egg or even bacon isn’t going to hold well moldering away over constant heat.
Grill City inside Seafood City, the gigantic Filipino supermarket, serves a decent selection. Uncle Mike’s in West Town does a nice version with a pungent vinegar-kissed tomato and onion salsa on the weekends.
But, even when it’s offered, tocino (cured pork) can also be chewy and an unnatural shade of red that taps into worries about food dye.
And that is why I like the tocilog at Kubo ($11). It’s fundamentally different. There is no dye. Instead of pork belly, it features hunks of tender pork shoulder coated in a sticky molasses-like sauce that features burnt caramel notes from a pineapple, brown sugar, onion and garlic-infused glaze. The salty fried egg and the heady garlic perfume off the rice lull you into a sated trance.
Kubo was launched by owner Christine Ledesma, a Filipino chef who grew up in the city of Bacolod and immigrated to Chicago in 1999. The restaurant is an attempt to introduce Americans to an Asian cuisine in the shadows of Chinese or Thai food. Toward that end, Ledesma opened Kubo in Lakeview and has branded traditional dishes like Lumpia Shanghai “skinny egg rolls” ($8) and grilled adobo barbecue pork as “sweetie pork on a stick” ($7).
Despite the more accessible names, the cooking is pretty authentic, especially a bowl of kansi soup ($18) that’s so soulful it offers another great hangover cure.


Animal welfare groups, industry officials and political leaders are renewing their calls for stricter federal oversight of thoroughbred horse racing, after a series of reports by the News4 I-Team.
Supporters of two different pieces of legislation have cited the I-Team’s findings in championing their proposals for change.
The I-Team investigation in August revealed at least 160 horse deaths at the Charles Town Races track in West Virginia since 2014. Though the rate of horse deaths at Charles Town is nearly average the rate of thoroughbred breakdowns nationwide, the investigation also detailed dozens of positive drug tests by horses at Charles Town and an ongoing dispute over the positioning of race stewards at the track by the West Virginia Racing Commission.
The I-Team’s report raises questions about whether the feds should order the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency to provide nationwide oversight of the use of medications in the industry, U.S. Humane Society Chief Executive Officer Wayne Pacelle said.
The Humane Society is part of a coalition advocating for a new federal law. The coalition includes former Maryland Jockey Club Chief Executive Officer Joe DeFrancis, who said the industry needs a national governing body.
The congressional bill providing authority to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, House Resolution 3084, was formally introduced in 2015. In a statement to News4, the National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association was critical of the proposal.
“The path to national medication uniformity in horse racing is not through an additional layer of bureaucracy, but rather working together through appropriate research,” the statement said.
Drug tests nationwide show only a small percentage of violations, according to the organization, and the industry is already working on uniform standards.
“Rules will rapidly be adopted by regulators across all jurisdictions, negating the need for federal legislation,” the statement said.
Other industry organizations have not yet taken firm positions on the bill.
Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.) said the findings of the I-Team’s report were troubling.
Pitts has sponsored a separate bill in Congress to outlaw the use of race day medications.
“That’s the solution, with severe penalties for those who don’t abide by those standards,” he said.
The 160 deaths reviewed by the I-Team include a freak and tragic incident in December 2014 in which a horse stumbled, lost its jockey, then broke free in the wrong direction, triggering a head-on collision with other thoroughbreds on the track.
An investigation into the incident ordered by the West Virginia Racing Commission recommended changes in safety protocols to prevent future mishaps, including a recommendation that a state racing steward watch future races with binoculars from an outdoor position along an elevated rail above the grandstand. The investigation found the stewards were instead watching the December 2014 race on a TV monitor from inside a glass-enclosed booth when the incident occurred.
The I-Team review of multiple races at Charles Town in the year since the recommendation was issued found stewards are continuing to watch races exclusively from inside the glass-enclosed booth, not out on the railing with binoculars. During 12 races viewed by the I-Team, racing stewards watched the race from the recommended position on the railing zero times.
The stewards would be better positioned to see wrong-way horses and other safety hazards by watching races live along the outdoor rail, Charles Town Races operations manager Erich Zimny said.
“Clearly in that incident there were a number of failures that allowed the tragic situation to play out,” Pacelle said. “They should have taken steps to fix that problem, and it's disappointing that they haven't done so."


A fry-out and family activities will be held after the service.
Zion Covenant Church, 1125 N. 6th St., Sheboygan, will hold a 10 a.m. service on Aug. 23 at Site 1 of Evergreen Park.
In case of rain, the service, fry-out and activities will be held at the church.


Lattice is a relatively low level package for plotting in R. It is very powerful, but often requires a lot of tweaking to get the results just right. Many recent packages ([wiki:HlpLab/R/MCMCPackage MCMCPackage], [wiki:HlpLab/R/MCMCPackPackage MCMCPackPackage], [wiki:HlpLab/R/LME4Package LME4Package], [wiki:HlpLab/R/DesignPackage DesignPackage], etc.) build their graphics on top of Lattice.


RICHMOND, VA (WWBT) - Getting sick at work is as easy as hitting a button right now. So how can you stay healthy?
There are many cleaning hacks you can try out to help you avoid getting sick.
You can keep a plant on your desk to help you absorb indoor pollutants. Also, try moving things from your desk and storing them! That way, when you go to clean, you won’t have to navigate around the clutter. And finally, keep just one or two pens on your desk, any more than that and your neighbors will want to share.
You might not be able to avoid getting at sick, but at least you can keep the germs at bay.


Britain's Prince Harry has prompted romance speculation with his ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy.
The couple dated on and off for seven years, calling time on the relationship in 2010 with rumours circulating that Chelsy didn't want to lead the life of a princess. However they've remained friends and after reports that Chelsy has split with her boyfriend of a year Charles Goode, many think a reconciliation is on the cards.
"Harry and Chelsy are talking nearly every day. They have always had amazing chemistry, so it's no wonder they've been drawn back together," an insider told British magazine Grazia.
"Harry and Chelsy's closeness definitely had an impact on her split with Charles. They have amazing banter as well as chemistry. They've always got on so well and everybody can see it."
Since their 2010 split, Harry enjoyed a highly publicised relationship with Cressida Bonas. Many thought the pair would marry, but they went their separate ways in 2014 after two years together.
After seeing Chelsy at a memorial service for their mutual friend Henry van Straubenzee in December, Harry has apparently been chatting more and more to his ex.
"They have mutual friends so they're always at the same events, but there was something about meeting before Christmas. Since then it's been very flirty. Everyone in their circle jokes that Chelsy is Harry's Camilla because, like Camilla for his father, Chelsy is the one woman Harry could never get over," the source says.
However Chelsy may not be as up for the reconciliation, as her views on a public life haven't changed.
"There are still the same problems as before, because Chelsy doesn't enjoy life in the spotlight and the duties that come with dating the prince. But her reluctance spurs him on. He loves a challenge and he's always seen her as the one that go away," the insider divulged.


Louisiana voters on Tuesday decided that unanimous jury verdicts should be required in order to convict someone of a felony for crimes that take place after 2018.
By approving the state constitutional amendment, voters helped end a Jim-Crow era law that has long influenced Louisiana’s legal system, NOLA.com reported.
Louisiana and Oregon are the only two states in the country where a person can be sent to prison by juries that aren’t unanimous.
Democratic state Sen. J.P. Morrell reportedly celebrated the victory at a gathering on Tuesday.
Jee Pak, who heads the Innocence Project New Orleans, told the publication he hopes the decision will lead to fewer convictions in the state and more thoughtful jury deliberations.
“I’m hoping if they have to deliberate to a full consensus, they would have to be more mindful of having to discuss whether the state proved their case beyond a reasonable doubt,” Pak said.
According to NOLA.com, Louisiana was the only state in the country where someone could get a life sentence without parole on a jury ruling of 10-2 or 11-1.
In 1974 the state raised the requirement for jury conviction from a 9-3 split to 10-2 and the state has faced numerous lawsuits over the years stating that the requirement was unconstitutional.
According to the local publication, the ballot measure drew support from both conservative and left-leaning organizations, with backers of the measure including the Louisiana Republican Party and the Southern Poverty Law Center.


Hannah Stanley fills in for Brian Noonan with a shortened show and is joined by producer Ben Anderson and Roger Badesch. Hannah starts off by sharing the 16th Annual Downers Grove South Marching Mustang Music Bowl she announced with WGN Radio’s John Hansen. We also hear about her upcoming open mic night Oct. 24th at Zanies in St. Charles. Hannah and Ben then discuss the recent LaCroix lawsuit and how it has affected her family. Later, Hannah and Roger Badesch talk about the International Olympic Committee and how they have narrowed down the field of city selections. The show ends on a happy note as we hear about the junior from the University of Oregon who became the first athlete with cerebral palsy to sign a contract with Nike.