31 Aralık 2012 Pazartesi

Academy of Environmental Medicine: Get The WiFi Out of Schools!!!

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Source: Academy of Environmental Medicine


The American Academy of Environmental Medicine
Statement on WiFi in Schools

Adverse health effects from wireless radio frequency fields, such as learning disabilities, altered immune responses, and headaches, clearly exist and are well documented in the scientific literature. Safer technology, such as use of hard-wiring, is strongly recommended in schools.

Approved by the American Academy of Environmental Medicine Board of Directors on October 3, 2012.



Young Writer's Learning Experience at the 2011 Milan Bluegrass Festival

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Okay, I'm not going to sit here and lie to you all and say that I'm a big fan of bluegrass music. I'm not. (For reference, if I was writing this to a group of my friends its very possible I wouldn't say "lie" in the previous sentence, but instead say "front." Sorry.) But I also don't dislike bluegrass music. Its influences can be seen in some of the music I listen to in the terms of prevalent vocal harmonies and finger-picked acoustic guitar. See: Fleet Foxes, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

Plus, I really like "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" That's a really great movie! And that was my first real experience with bluegrass, and some of those songs were really good! But as a I sat and walked around KC Campground on Saturday at the festival, there was something there that to an uninitiated observer hit me more than the music: the atmosphere and the people. I got a chance to talk with one of the bands that performed on Saturday, HeartTown, and they talked a lot about precisely that: the crowd at the Milan Bluegrass Festival is a group of people who love and really know their bluegrass. I've been to shows where there's people there who really care about the band, or at least appreciate their style of music, and then there are people there posturing or just trying to look cool. (I feel like the moral of this post is: Kevin is still kind of young.) For the record, at shows I'm usually near the front shouting along with all of the lyrics, so obviously not one of the people trying to "look cool."

But there was certainly nobody at the Festival who wasn't there to enjoy a long day (or weekend) of bluegrass music. Even when i asked people what acts they liked the best, no one could pick one. "I like them all," was a very common response. "We see these guys basically every week," said Tim Laughlin of HeartTown. "Bluegrass is like a traveling carnival, and we're the carnies," said HeartTown's Darren Beachley.

Ride along with the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office

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I went on a ride along with a deputy of the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday this week. I have been looking forward to it for awhile. As the police and court reporter covering Washtenaw County, I wanted learn more about the sheriff’s department and its methods. I was assigned to ride along with Deputy James Roy, who has been with the sheriff’s department for about five years. He is part of a violent crime unit stationed in Ypsilanti Township, but there are a number of aspects of his job. Deputy Roy explains it himself in this video:



Deputy Roy showed me around Ypsilanti Township and the different areas he regularly patrols, which include neighborhoods like West Willow, some apartment complexes like Village Grove Apartments, and trailer home parks. Part of the reason for the patrols is simply to have a visible police presence in the community. I’m still pretty new to the area so I was seeing quite a few things for the first time. He also talked about the different technology and techniques he uses, and about his own experience as a law enforcement officer.

The different kinds of technology used by police are among what I learned about on the ride along. Recording equipment is heavily used. Deputy Roy showed me a body microphone held in patrol vehicles. When he leaves the vehicle he clips it onto his uniform, and it provides an audio record such as for interactions with residents and suspects. Patrol vehicles have cameras in them. Footage gets downloaded wirelessly when a vehicle gets to the station, which for him is usually the Ypsilanti Township Civic Center on Huron River Drive.

The sheriff’s department also looked into portable video cameras for deputies to keep on themselves like the microphone. Deputy Roy said he tested a few of these cameras out over the summer, trying to find something that works out good. It needs to be easily portable, he said, because deputies carry plenty of equipment already.

From my own understanding, recording equipment is used both as a record of what happened if needed in court and as a means to protect officers from accusations.

I was also shown the computer deputies connect to their vehicles while on the road. They look like heavily armored laptops. There’s all kinds of features, such as a touch screen and easy to navigate screens that allow deputies to look up information even while on the move. Systems are in place capable of pulling up any driver’s license photographs and mug shots a person may have, allowing deputies to cross reference – useful for determining if somebody has a fake ID. Some of the computers even have a print reader, which is able to pull up this information with the imprint of a finger or thumb.

I also learned quite a bit about Deputy Roy during the ride along. I could tell he was passionate about being part of the sheriff’s department and working to make the community a better place.

“I could do this every day,” he said. “It’s what I always wanted to do.”

Three members of his family are also in law enforcement, two cousins and an uncle, so one explanation for his interest in law enforcement is that it’s simply in his bloodline.

Overall the ride along was a good experience. I’m glad I got to know Deputy Roy. He invited me to do another ride along pretty much whenever, but there were some suggestions like a midnight shift in July. I was told that’s one of the most active times in the year for law enforcement – mostly because people are themselves more active and get out more when its warmer, and this activity peaks in July.

It's time to get those potholes filled, Washtenaw County Road Commission

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The most obvious sign of the warm weather we've had the last few weeks can be spotted on Austin Road, west of Saline in Saline Township. The potholes are some of the worst I've driven in quite some time.

They stretch from the west side of the City of Saline and then mostly through Saline Township. Once you get to Bridgewater, most of the nasty potholes stop.

The weather looks pretty nice out, perhaps the county could take their truck and fill some of them...?


It's paczki day: where did you get yours?

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Tomorrow begins the season of Lent for Catholics and many Protestants, a season of fasting and penitence. Which means it's time for the metro Detroit favorite, the paczki.


Breakfast of champions...?

A Polish favorite, the paczki has gained statewide popularity. I picked mine up at Benny's Bakery in downtown Saline this morning, and the line was the longest I've ever seen at the bakery.
Where did you pick yours up around Washtenaw County today? And who makes the best paczki?

27 Aralık 2012 Perşembe

Young Writer's Learning Experience at the 2011 Milan Bluegrass Festival

To contact us Click HERE


Okay, I'm not going to sit here and lie to you all and say that I'm a big fan of bluegrass music. I'm not. (For reference, if I was writing this to a group of my friends its very possible I wouldn't say "lie" in the previous sentence, but instead say "front." Sorry.) But I also don't dislike bluegrass music. Its influences can be seen in some of the music I listen to in the terms of prevalent vocal harmonies and finger-picked acoustic guitar. See: Fleet Foxes, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

Plus, I really like "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" That's a really great movie! And that was my first real experience with bluegrass, and some of those songs were really good! But as a I sat and walked around KC Campground on Saturday at the festival, there was something there that to an uninitiated observer hit me more than the music: the atmosphere and the people. I got a chance to talk with one of the bands that performed on Saturday, HeartTown, and they talked a lot about precisely that: the crowd at the Milan Bluegrass Festival is a group of people who love and really know their bluegrass. I've been to shows where there's people there who really care about the band, or at least appreciate their style of music, and then there are people there posturing or just trying to look cool. (I feel like the moral of this post is: Kevin is still kind of young.) For the record, at shows I'm usually near the front shouting along with all of the lyrics, so obviously not one of the people trying to "look cool."

But there was certainly nobody at the Festival who wasn't there to enjoy a long day (or weekend) of bluegrass music. Even when i asked people what acts they liked the best, no one could pick one. "I like them all," was a very common response. "We see these guys basically every week," said Tim Laughlin of HeartTown. "Bluegrass is like a traveling carnival, and we're the carnies," said HeartTown's Darren Beachley.

Ride along with the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office

To contact us Click HERE
I went on a ride along with a deputy of the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday this week. I have been looking forward to it for awhile. As the police and court reporter covering Washtenaw County, I wanted learn more about the sheriff’s department and its methods. I was assigned to ride along with Deputy James Roy, who has been with the sheriff’s department for about five years. He is part of a violent crime unit stationed in Ypsilanti Township, but there are a number of aspects of his job. Deputy Roy explains it himself in this video:



Deputy Roy showed me around Ypsilanti Township and the different areas he regularly patrols, which include neighborhoods like West Willow, some apartment complexes like Village Grove Apartments, and trailer home parks. Part of the reason for the patrols is simply to have a visible police presence in the community. I’m still pretty new to the area so I was seeing quite a few things for the first time. He also talked about the different technology and techniques he uses, and about his own experience as a law enforcement officer.

The different kinds of technology used by police are among what I learned about on the ride along. Recording equipment is heavily used. Deputy Roy showed me a body microphone held in patrol vehicles. When he leaves the vehicle he clips it onto his uniform, and it provides an audio record such as for interactions with residents and suspects. Patrol vehicles have cameras in them. Footage gets downloaded wirelessly when a vehicle gets to the station, which for him is usually the Ypsilanti Township Civic Center on Huron River Drive.

The sheriff’s department also looked into portable video cameras for deputies to keep on themselves like the microphone. Deputy Roy said he tested a few of these cameras out over the summer, trying to find something that works out good. It needs to be easily portable, he said, because deputies carry plenty of equipment already.

From my own understanding, recording equipment is used both as a record of what happened if needed in court and as a means to protect officers from accusations.

I was also shown the computer deputies connect to their vehicles while on the road. They look like heavily armored laptops. There’s all kinds of features, such as a touch screen and easy to navigate screens that allow deputies to look up information even while on the move. Systems are in place capable of pulling up any driver’s license photographs and mug shots a person may have, allowing deputies to cross reference – useful for determining if somebody has a fake ID. Some of the computers even have a print reader, which is able to pull up this information with the imprint of a finger or thumb.

I also learned quite a bit about Deputy Roy during the ride along. I could tell he was passionate about being part of the sheriff’s department and working to make the community a better place.

“I could do this every day,” he said. “It’s what I always wanted to do.”

Three members of his family are also in law enforcement, two cousins and an uncle, so one explanation for his interest in law enforcement is that it’s simply in his bloodline.

Overall the ride along was a good experience. I’m glad I got to know Deputy Roy. He invited me to do another ride along pretty much whenever, but there were some suggestions like a midnight shift in July. I was told that’s one of the most active times in the year for law enforcement – mostly because people are themselves more active and get out more when its warmer, and this activity peaks in July.