Grandparents who watch grandchildren should know what Ruth and Dave Halpern of Staten Island have discovered: The weekly children's programs at Holmdel Library at Town Hall are educational, entertaining, and best of all -- free.
"This librarian, she's phenomenal," said Ruth Halpern, who watches over her twin 5-year old Holmdel granddaughters, Danielle and Sandra, on weekdays. Nelson was referring to Children's Librarian Alanah Mellin, who was on the carpet nearby, cheerfully cleaning up goop from a Dr. Seuss activity that had just ended on March 7. "She has patience, and she motivates them," she said.
On weekly storytime days, families like the Halperns arrive early to browse through the picture books in the children's room. When the librarian signals the storytime will begin, the children take a seat on the carpet to hear the story read aloud and a related craft, if included. Unless noted they must stay, the adults can exit to the main library.
On this day the children listened to Mellin read Dr. Seuss' classic, Bartholomew and the Oobleck, about a boy that must save a kingdom from a gooey substance. Then the eight children actually got to make oobleck, from cornstarch, water and a few drops of green food coloring. For little people in the K-2 age demographic, this is an intensely joyful way to spend a Thursday afternoon. The adults who had not retreated to the couch to flip through People Magazine, observed through the big glass windows, grateful this was not a take-home craft.
Zhanna Vernikov of Morganville said she had tried storytime in three other libraries with her son Steven, 6, before coming to Holmdel. It was her first visit, and she said she was impressed by Mellin's gentle manner. Occasionally, the kids interrupted the story, or strayed from the craft, but they were always guided back to the lesson without drama. "She seems to be the most patient," Vernikov said.
Mellin said she had not even noticed the distractions, "Its a natural part of their development. They explore at this age, and you should be concerned if they don't," she said.
2011年7月27日星期三
Arkansas Fires Pelphrey After 4 Seasons
Pelphrey was 69-59 in four seasons with the Razorbacks, including an 18-13 record this season. Arkansas lost to Tennessee in the opening round of the Southeastern Conference tournament on Thursday.
Pelphrey replaced Stan Heath as coach of the Razorbacks in 2007-08 and finished 23-12. Arkansas advanced to the NCAA tournament that season, defeating Indiana before losing to North Carolina.
The Razorbacks struggled in Pelphrey's next two seasons, winning 14 games in each. This season will mark the third straight year Arkansas will miss the NCAA tournament.
Athletic director Jeff Long said in a statement that a national search would begin immediately. The school called a 6 p.m. news conference to address the program's future.
"After a thorough and comprehensive evaluation of our men's basketball program, including an assessment of the overall student-athlete experience within our program, it is clear that we have not made the progress over the last four years that is necessary to return Razorback basketball to a place of national relevance," Long said.
Arkansas saw a steady decline in attendance in Pelphrey's four seasons. The Razorbacks averaged 17,148 in his first season, 16,043 in his second and 13,182 last year. This season, the school averaged 12,022 in 18 games in the 19,200-seat Bud Walton Arena.
During its national championship season of 1993-94, Arkansas averaged 20,134 at home. This season, the school drew a season-high 14,174 for its game against Ole Miss in February.
Two weeks ago, following a home loss to Mississippi State that cost the Razorbacks second place in the SEC West and a bye in the conference tournament, an advertisement ran in the statewide Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The ad called for Razorback fans to contact university officials "on the future of Arkansas basketball before too much times passes."
Pelphrey replaced Stan Heath as coach of the Razorbacks in 2007-08 and finished 23-12. Arkansas advanced to the NCAA tournament that season, defeating Indiana before losing to North Carolina.
The Razorbacks struggled in Pelphrey's next two seasons, winning 14 games in each. This season will mark the third straight year Arkansas will miss the NCAA tournament.
Athletic director Jeff Long said in a statement that a national search would begin immediately. The school called a 6 p.m. news conference to address the program's future.
"After a thorough and comprehensive evaluation of our men's basketball program, including an assessment of the overall student-athlete experience within our program, it is clear that we have not made the progress over the last four years that is necessary to return Razorback basketball to a place of national relevance," Long said.
Arkansas saw a steady decline in attendance in Pelphrey's four seasons. The Razorbacks averaged 17,148 in his first season, 16,043 in his second and 13,182 last year. This season, the school averaged 12,022 in 18 games in the 19,200-seat Bud Walton Arena.
During its national championship season of 1993-94, Arkansas averaged 20,134 at home. This season, the school drew a season-high 14,174 for its game against Ole Miss in February.
Two weeks ago, following a home loss to Mississippi State that cost the Razorbacks second place in the SEC West and a bye in the conference tournament, an advertisement ran in the statewide Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The ad called for Razorback fans to contact university officials "on the future of Arkansas basketball before too much times passes."
2011年7月21日星期四
Despite dire predictions of hellfire
Despite dire predictions of hellfire, brimstone and bumper-to-bumper traffic, the much-feared (and much-hyped) "Carmageddon" that was expected to ravage all of Los Angeles last weekend was somewhat similar to the Rapture two months before — if it happened, most people didn't notice.
That's because, in large part, people seemed to stay home, which presented real opportunities for local businesses that could take advantage of the glut of trapped customers.
CalTrans boasted to media outlets that its aggressive print, broadcast and social media campaigns kept two-thirds of drivers off of compromised roadways, making travel possible for that recalcitrant 30 percent.
In Santa Monica, locals and local businesses jumped at the chance to market Carmageddon-themed deals, like $4.05 menus at Angel's and the Daily Grill, or drinks with names like "Flat Tire" beers and "Road Rage."
Businesses that could draw people in as gathering places reported that they had done well over the weekend, said Kim Koury, owner of Spin Public Relations.
To some degree, Koury and a team of friends, all young professionals in Santa Monica, are somewhat to blame for that.
The team also produced videos, created T-shirts and merchandise and reached out to local businesses to encourage 405 specials to create a party atmosphere out of what was expected to be a car apocalypse.
Car-mageddon debuted three weeks before the actual event, complete with a calendar, maps and a countdown to the closure.
That's because, in large part, people seemed to stay home, which presented real opportunities for local businesses that could take advantage of the glut of trapped customers.
CalTrans boasted to media outlets that its aggressive print, broadcast and social media campaigns kept two-thirds of drivers off of compromised roadways, making travel possible for that recalcitrant 30 percent.
In Santa Monica, locals and local businesses jumped at the chance to market Carmageddon-themed deals, like $4.05 menus at Angel's and the Daily Grill, or drinks with names like "Flat Tire" beers and "Road Rage."
Businesses that could draw people in as gathering places reported that they had done well over the weekend, said Kim Koury, owner of Spin Public Relations.
To some degree, Koury and a team of friends, all young professionals in Santa Monica, are somewhat to blame for that.
The team also produced videos, created T-shirts and merchandise and reached out to local businesses to encourage 405 specials to create a party atmosphere out of what was expected to be a car apocalypse.
Car-mageddon debuted three weeks before the actual event, complete with a calendar, maps and a countdown to the closure.
We went around the market
We went around the market and bought some stuff: orange chocolate chip cookies, a sack of beef jerky, some tomatoes, couple of apples. All that for about $13. The container cost more than the cargo.
On our return trip, we were so engrossed in the novel we were reading on our phone that we overshot our stop and wound up at the Glen Park station again. Lord, if it is your will that we visit Glen Park on this trip, send us some sort of sign.
We got on the train taking us back to Market, where we waited for the MUNI to haul us back up the hill.
Market and 24th is what some people might call a dicey area. It's one of the few neighborhoods in this glorious town that has defied gentrification. We don't mind it. There's a lot of everything there, a collision of Asians, Latinos, blacks, hipsters, old folks, homeless people. Not a lot of rich folks. Our Ferry Building tote stood out like a Gucci in the ghetto.
We sat on a bench near the front of the bus and watched the road for a while as things turned tonier by the block.
We glanced back to find a fellow in his early 30 s peering at us over the waistband of a pair of underpants that he was holding stretched out in front of his nose. We hasten to assure you that it wasn't repulsive. The androgynous undergarment looked like the sort of underpants they might give you in the hospital, if hospitals gave out underpants: They were fresh out of the bag, scrubs-blue, looked almost like they were made of paper, and seemed to maybe be disposable. Yeah, we were looking a long time and he was giving us a big guileless grin.
We turned and watched the road some more as the bus continued to climb the steep grade.
Finally, the road leveled out. We looked back at the underpants guy who was now at the very least shirtless and was apparently working at liberating his more southerly apparel. We seemed to be the only person paying any attention. The rest of the passengers certainly weren't self-absorbed as many of their haughty co-citizens in the nicer parts of the city. Probably, they had plenty of problems of their own and didn't need to add a disrobing bus passenger to their list of cares.
Forgetting that it's our sworn duty in this life to collect weird and marvelous stories for our readers, we reached up and pulled the cord and rose to wait by the doors to get off the bus in the extraordinarily eventless Noe Valley.
On our return trip, we were so engrossed in the novel we were reading on our phone that we overshot our stop and wound up at the Glen Park station again. Lord, if it is your will that we visit Glen Park on this trip, send us some sort of sign.
We got on the train taking us back to Market, where we waited for the MUNI to haul us back up the hill.
Market and 24th is what some people might call a dicey area. It's one of the few neighborhoods in this glorious town that has defied gentrification. We don't mind it. There's a lot of everything there, a collision of Asians, Latinos, blacks, hipsters, old folks, homeless people. Not a lot of rich folks. Our Ferry Building tote stood out like a Gucci in the ghetto.
We sat on a bench near the front of the bus and watched the road for a while as things turned tonier by the block.
We glanced back to find a fellow in his early 30 s peering at us over the waistband of a pair of underpants that he was holding stretched out in front of his nose. We hasten to assure you that it wasn't repulsive. The androgynous undergarment looked like the sort of underpants they might give you in the hospital, if hospitals gave out underpants: They were fresh out of the bag, scrubs-blue, looked almost like they were made of paper, and seemed to maybe be disposable. Yeah, we were looking a long time and he was giving us a big guileless grin.
We turned and watched the road some more as the bus continued to climb the steep grade.
Finally, the road leveled out. We looked back at the underpants guy who was now at the very least shirtless and was apparently working at liberating his more southerly apparel. We seemed to be the only person paying any attention. The rest of the passengers certainly weren't self-absorbed as many of their haughty co-citizens in the nicer parts of the city. Probably, they had plenty of problems of their own and didn't need to add a disrobing bus passenger to their list of cares.
Forgetting that it's our sworn duty in this life to collect weird and marvelous stories for our readers, we reached up and pulled the cord and rose to wait by the doors to get off the bus in the extraordinarily eventless Noe Valley.
2011年7月18日星期一
Massive solar system installed University of Queensland
Australia's largest flat-panel photovoltaic solar power system has been installed at The University of Queensland in Brisbane.
The system generates 1.22 megawatts of power from the sun, harvested from 5004 panels on the rooftops of four of UQ's biggest buildings.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Paul Greenfield said the UQ Solar Array would provide between five and six per cent of peak electricity demand at the St Lucia campus.
The solar panel installation at the University of Queensland. Photo: Stewart Gould via Brisbane Times
The asset will be shared with the community, by giving interested people access to a website showing live and historical data about the solar power generated from the UQ array.
"The project is enhanced by its strong industry partnerships, including research agreements with a number of world-leading companies in renewable power," Professor Greenfield said.
UQ will undertake ongoing solar research projects with:
Brisbane firm Ingenero, which installed the array, and worked on its design and engineering
Separate to the rooftop panels, UQ has installed a ground-mounted, seven-metre-by-six metre 8.4 kilowatt concentrating photovoltaic array (CPV) that follows the sun each day as it moves across the sky.
Ingenero donated the SolFocus CPV array to allow UQ researchers to undertake detailed comparisons with a different type of solar technology.
Designing and installing Australia's biggest rooftop PV solar power system
drew on the combined resources and significant expertise of UQ academics and engineers, working with industry leaders.
UQ's Property & Facilities division and UQ's School of Mathematics and Physics worked closely with engineering consultants Aurecon and lead contractor Ingenero.
The 1.22 megawatt UQ Solar array is almost 25 per cent larger than any other flat-panel PV system in Australia, with the added complexity of being split between four buildings.
The system generates 1.22 megawatts of power from the sun, harvested from 5004 panels on the rooftops of four of UQ's biggest buildings.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Paul Greenfield said the UQ Solar Array would provide between five and six per cent of peak electricity demand at the St Lucia campus.
The solar panel installation at the University of Queensland. Photo: Stewart Gould via Brisbane Times
The asset will be shared with the community, by giving interested people access to a website showing live and historical data about the solar power generated from the UQ array.
"The project is enhanced by its strong industry partnerships, including research agreements with a number of world-leading companies in renewable power," Professor Greenfield said.
UQ will undertake ongoing solar research projects with:
Brisbane firm Ingenero, which installed the array, and worked on its design and engineering
Separate to the rooftop panels, UQ has installed a ground-mounted, seven-metre-by-six metre 8.4 kilowatt concentrating photovoltaic array (CPV) that follows the sun each day as it moves across the sky.
Ingenero donated the SolFocus CPV array to allow UQ researchers to undertake detailed comparisons with a different type of solar technology.
Designing and installing Australia's biggest rooftop PV solar power system
drew on the combined resources and significant expertise of UQ academics and engineers, working with industry leaders.
UQ's Property & Facilities division and UQ's School of Mathematics and Physics worked closely with engineering consultants Aurecon and lead contractor Ingenero.
The 1.22 megawatt UQ Solar array is almost 25 per cent larger than any other flat-panel PV system in Australia, with the added complexity of being split between four buildings.
Scott County supervisors cool to tax breaks for solar project
GATE CITY Scott County supervisors are waiting to hold a public hearing next month before voting on a property tax exemption for solar equipment that would benefit a local energy project.
The tax break a 100 percent exemption projected to total almost $300,000 over the next 10 years would apply to 1,800 solar panels being installed in Duffield through a partnership of the Lenowisco Planning District Commission, Scott County Economic Development Authority and Staunton, Va.-based Secure Futures, LLC.
The solar project is part of a 10-year power purchase agreement that would supply green energy to the Pioneer Business Center and Crooked Road Technology Center.
The $3 million project is funded in part through a $1.75 million research and development grant from the Virginia Tobacco Commission. Additional funding was obtained through state and federal sources. Secure Futures also contributed roughly $250,000 of its own capital to the project.
Representatives from Secure Futures the firm that will install and maintain the solar panels and the Scott County EDA lobbied supervisors for the exemption at the board’s July meeting.
Read the expanded version of this report in the print edition or the enhanced electronic version of the Kingsport Times-News.
The tax break a 100 percent exemption projected to total almost $300,000 over the next 10 years would apply to 1,800 solar panels being installed in Duffield through a partnership of the Lenowisco Planning District Commission, Scott County Economic Development Authority and Staunton, Va.-based Secure Futures, LLC.
The solar project is part of a 10-year power purchase agreement that would supply green energy to the Pioneer Business Center and Crooked Road Technology Center.
The $3 million project is funded in part through a $1.75 million research and development grant from the Virginia Tobacco Commission. Additional funding was obtained through state and federal sources. Secure Futures also contributed roughly $250,000 of its own capital to the project.
Representatives from Secure Futures the firm that will install and maintain the solar panels and the Scott County EDA lobbied supervisors for the exemption at the board’s July meeting.
Read the expanded version of this report in the print edition or the enhanced electronic version of the Kingsport Times-News.
2011年7月15日星期五
A leader in the style of music
A leader in the style of music known as nuevo flamenco, Ottmar Liebert made his wine country debut Tuesday night before a sold-out Napa Valley Opera House crowd. The show proved to be a mixed bag.
Flamenco is a genre of music and dance that originated in southern Spain in the latter part of the 18th century in which Andalusian gypsies played an important role.
Born in the United States, there’s a musical movement derived in part from flamenco, as well as other styles of Latin music and world jazz. It’s been given the name nuevo, or nouveau, flamenco.
After he settled in Santa Fe, N.M., in the late 1980s, German-born Ottmar Liebert formed a band he called Luna Negra and launched a very successful career championing nuevo flamenco. Luna Negra’s initial recording in 1990 included “Barcelona Nights,” a tune that appealed to listeners around the world and propelled Liebert and Luna Negra onto the global stage.
Liebert blazed a new musical trail, and audiences were attracted to this new style of music for a number of reasons — nimble, articulate fingerwork; charming, uncomplicated melodies; and just enough flamenco authenticity to convince pop listeners that they had discovered something exotic.
No one would dispute that Liebert’s repertoire provides graceful and pleasant listening, even though the similarity in tempos gives his recordings a slightly homogenous feel.
And that was the problem Tuesday night. The concert was divided into a pair of approximate hour-long segments. The opening segment was repetitious and ultimately boring. I noted some audience members’ heads bowed, busily texting. Some left at intermission. One local guitarist slept through most of the opening set. It took the headliner’s switch to electric guitar on “Snakecharmer” to liven things up just prior to intermission.
Flamenco is a genre of music and dance that originated in southern Spain in the latter part of the 18th century in which Andalusian gypsies played an important role.
Born in the United States, there’s a musical movement derived in part from flamenco, as well as other styles of Latin music and world jazz. It’s been given the name nuevo, or nouveau, flamenco.
After he settled in Santa Fe, N.M., in the late 1980s, German-born Ottmar Liebert formed a band he called Luna Negra and launched a very successful career championing nuevo flamenco. Luna Negra’s initial recording in 1990 included “Barcelona Nights,” a tune that appealed to listeners around the world and propelled Liebert and Luna Negra onto the global stage.
Liebert blazed a new musical trail, and audiences were attracted to this new style of music for a number of reasons — nimble, articulate fingerwork; charming, uncomplicated melodies; and just enough flamenco authenticity to convince pop listeners that they had discovered something exotic.
No one would dispute that Liebert’s repertoire provides graceful and pleasant listening, even though the similarity in tempos gives his recordings a slightly homogenous feel.
And that was the problem Tuesday night. The concert was divided into a pair of approximate hour-long segments. The opening segment was repetitious and ultimately boring. I noted some audience members’ heads bowed, busily texting. Some left at intermission. One local guitarist slept through most of the opening set. It took the headliner’s switch to electric guitar on “Snakecharmer” to liven things up just prior to intermission.
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