Did Marshall University Research Corporation Make a Stimulus Quote Mistake?

I just can’t seem to tear myself away from stimuluswatch.org as there never appears to be any progress. Case in point ~ Marshall University Research Corporation:

University Communications – Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Contact: Ginny Painter, Communications Director, Marshall University Research Corporation 304-746-1964

---

Marshall research community to benefit from $2.6 million federal stimulus award to state

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall University researchers and students will benefit from a $2.6 million National Science Foundation grant to the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission.

The cyberinfrastructure award, which was announced earlier this week by U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller and West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin, will assist with scientific discovery by building capacity and promoting the use of high-performance computing cluster resources at Marshall University, West Virginia University and West Virginia State University.

More than $1 million of the grant funds will be used at Marshall over the next three years to help upgrade computing networks and enhance immersive visualization capabilities.

Dr. Tony Szwilski, professor of engineering and director of the university’s Center for Environmental, Geotechnical and Applied Sciences, will coordinate the project on Marshall’s campus. Other members of the Marshall community who are involved include Dr. Jan Fox, senior vice president for information technology and chief information officer; Joseph Fuller, associate professor of  computer science; Dr. Venkat Gudivada, professor of  computer science; and Dr. Jack Smith, visualization manager.

According to Dr. John Maher, vice president for research and executive director of the Marshall University Research Corporation, the grant will be used to establish advanced high-performance computing and visualization resources at Marshall and to assist with connection to other high-performance computing systems and resources around the world, allowing faculty researchers – and their students – to collaborate in real time without geographic limitations.

“Engineering and scientific research today require computing infrastructure that will allow faculty to work with very large data sets and complex computational systems. This project will give our researchers tools to make them more competitive for outside funding, and will allow them to work with colleagues across the country and around the world,” said Maher. “We are pleased to be part of this collaborative.”

Fox added that the computerized visualization capabilities provided through the grant will help faculty communicate and explore both abstract and concrete ideas in health care and scientific and engineering research.

“By providing computing power that was, until recently, available only to the most prestigious research institutions, this project will assist Marshall’s growing research community in its quest to address problems that require the minds and resources of a global, collaborative community,” she said. “From the development of approaches to real-time, image-guided surgery to the provision of a platform for management of communities, emergencies and other complex processes, the capabilities provided by this funding will have a long-term, positive impact on our community, state and nation.”

In addition to the research equipment that will be provided through the grant, the project will help develop a work force that can create and sustain cyber-based systems, tools and services. A network of faculty and information technology professional staff will be developed at Marshall to help researchers expand the use of high-performance computing and advanced visualization in their work, as well as to provide expertise on the operational and technical aspects of using supercomputing resources.

“Cyberinfrastructure includes computational systems, data and information management, visualization environments and people – all linked together by collaborative software and advanced networks,” said Szwilski. “These significant resources will be a catalyst at Marshall for technology innovation and economic development.”

He added that complementary outreach activities will be undertaken at the high school, undergraduate and graduate levels to help teach students computational science and visualization skills, also with the goal of developing a high-tech work force.

The award was funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. For more information, contact Szwilski at szwilski@marshall.edu.

Do you think MARSHALL UNIVERSITY RESEARCH CORPORATION misunderstood?

HUNTINGTON, WV

MARSHALL UNIVERSITY RESEARCH CORPORATION

Total Received: $3,797,971.00 – Visit on the Web

Below you will find all the contracts, grants, and loans received by MARSHALL UNIVERSITY RESEARCH CORPORATION as of October 30, 2009. You can sort by the different table columns. Click on an item for more information and to comment and vote on the item.

Primary Recipient

Type	Description	Amount	City	State	Jobs	Vote
Grant	A MECHANISTIC STUDY OF METHAMPHETAMINE NEUROTOXICITY: INVOLVMENT OF HO-1 & MNSO	$35,309	Huntington	WV	0	-1
Grant	West Virginia IDeA Netwok of Biomedical Research Excellence (WV-INBRE)	$590,453	Huntington	WV	0	0
Grant	West Virginia IDeA Netwok of Biomedical Research Excellence (WV-INBRE)	$529,094	Huntington	WV	0	0
Grant	Transcription Factors in Cancer	$490,224	Huntington	WV	0	0
Grant	ADVANCE INSTITUTIONAL TRANSFORMATION AWARD: ADVANCING WOMEN IN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING AND MATH AT MU	$750,000	Huntington	WV	0	-2
Grant	West Virginia IDeA Netwok of Biomedical Research Excellence (WV-INBRE)	$751,506	Huntington	WV	0	0
Grant	West Virginia IDeA Netwok of Biomedical Research Excellence (WV-INBRE)	$651,385	Huntington	WV	0	0

Probably more sloppy bookkeeping between here, there, and everywhere.

Where’s those jobs? Where’s the money?

But engineer plans concern me, who’s paying for this…



…as it was already on the drawing board.

Ah, yes, supplemental income!



hmm?

And this video just makes me a bit sad~



Research via surfing the web?

And the research is… MUCD-CORP Community of Research Practice

I’m just saying………….

A Lose, Lose Situation on Who’s Whose – Sorry FOX!

From the FoxNews.com Speaker’s Lobby page

July 22, 2010 | 6:00 AM ET

Has Obama’s “Race to the Top” Lost its Shine?

President Obama’s $4 billion education initiative to spur school reform has become a veritable piñata as the program heads into its second round. Not only has Congress raided the account to pay for teacher layoffs to be averted, prompting a White House veto threat of the war supplemental to which it’s attached, but there’s a quiet rebellion going on by some in the education community to ditch the program.

Find out how much this program costs by using Fox’s Taxpayer Calculator.

So why has the contest lost some of its shine? According to the ranking member on the House Education and Labor Committee, it’s a loss of confidence in the system.

“Competition is generally a good thing,” says Minnesota Republican Representative John Kline. “The question is fair, whose doing the judging? How’s the point system put together? Let’s face it, in anything like this where you have judges,  whether it’s an Olympic diving competition or something like this, you have some subjectivity. In your state you would like to know what the rules are and want as little subjectivity as possible.”

Minnesota recently joined eight other states in opting out the second round of the contest.

Race to the Top’s aim is to prepare students for a better future. States participate by competing for a federal grant, administered in phases, and fulfilling what the program calls the four assurances: instituting rigorous standards and assessments, recruiting and retaining effective teachers, turning around low-performance schools and establishing data systems to track student achievement and teacher performance.

Phase I winners were announced on March 29th, and the deadline for submitting Phase II applications was June 1st. The winners for this phase will be announced later in September.

The $4.35 billion dollar incentive program was designed by the United States Department of Education and is funded by the ED Recovery Act as part of the American Recovery Act of 2009. It was announced by President Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on July 24, 2009.

The National Education Association, the largest labor union in the U.S. representing teachers and other support personnel, gave the program a vote of “no confidence” earlier this month. Many saw it as a symbolic slam on the Obama administration. The item would eventually pass, but only by a razor-thin margin.

One member at the NEA convention where the resolution was approved actually offered a resolution to call for the ouster of Secretary Duncan, in part because of the program. That resolution was never approved.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Teachers Union, called the program a mixed bag. “The real issue is that ‘Race to the Top’ in principle would be a good program if we didn’t have the kind of budget shortfalls that we have right now. It’s hard to be innovative and to do new and different things that require time and resources when we’re seeing state after state having devastating budget cuts.”

But that hasn’t stopped several states, 35 of them in fact, plus the district of Columbia, from lining up for a slice of the grant money.

Representative Jared Polis, D-Co., told Fox News, “For every dollar they spend they’re getting reforms all across the country. Reforms that encourage good teachers to stay in teaching. Reforms that intervene in changing schools, removing caps for the number of charter schools. These are all things that are happening nationally because of ‘Race to the Top.’”

Bottom line – has this contest overstayed its welcome, particularly in the face of rising deficits? Or should Congress reinstate funding and add even more money than President Obama is seeking?

Fox News’ Trish Turner contributed to this report.

The glaring offense from above:

“Competition is generally a good thing,” says Minnesota Republican Representative John Kline. “The question is fair, whose doing the judging?”

Why don’t they just ask the Japanese how to educate properly? Their system works. And, if you can’t tell the difference between whose and who’s in a news article about education what sense does any of this make?

Hat Tip to Hubby XXXO

Ugly Women – Agenda of the O-baa-ma Nanny State?

The Story of Cosmetics (2010)

storyofstuffproject | July 20, 2010

http://storyofcosmetics.org

The Story of Cosmetics, released on July 21st, 2010, examines the pervasive use of toxic chemicals in our everyday personal care products, from lipstick to baby shampoo. Produced with Free Range Studios and hosted by Annie Leonard, the seven-minute film by The Story of Stuff Project reveals the implications for consumer and worker health and the environment, and outlines ways we can move the industry away from hazardous chemicals and towards safer alternatives. The film concludes with a call for viewers to support legislation aimed at ensuring the safety of cosmetics and personal care products.

Import Problems:
http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cms_ia/industry_53.html

Recalls:
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/default.htm

Warnings:
http://www.newser.com/story/95999/beware-toxic-beauty-products.html
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10201/1073854-314.stm
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/196232/eco-group-mercury-tainted-cosmetics-still-being-sold

So who creates the slack of guidelines and the poor inspections within the United States of America and why? Why are there any imports to begin with? Can we not supply our own country with the most basics of comfort essentials in healthy care and glamour products? Would it be regulations up the wazoo? Could it be taxes?

The Personal Care Products Council weighs in with a statement which also does not make one feel warm nor fuzzy all over.

Okay, can Washington, DC get busy and legislate the hell out of it? I mean there’s nothing more pressing like the corruption in government, unemployment or a Bogus POTUS!

Rule of thumb, too much of anything isn’t good but~
It might be time for this:
Homemade Cosmetics Recipes Search
Homemade Cosmetics Supply Search

or how about just Au Naturale?