Home Prices Up 11 Percent - Speaking of Real Estate

Home sales dropped a bit over the last month but they remain strong compared to this time last year and price gains remain robust.

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun released NAR?s September 2012 existing-home sales figures on Friday last week, and they?re down 1.7 percent from August figures, to an annual sales pace of 4.75 million units. That?s still 11 percent above where they were last year, suggesting that the long-term upward trend continues.

The upward trend of prices continues as well. The median price, at $183,900, is up a strong 11.3 percent from year-ago levels. Part of that increase stems from the mix of houses being sold today. We?re seeing fewer distressed sales as a percentage of the market, and prices are reflecting that more favorable mix. But Yun said on Friday that the increase is also reflective of genuine price appreciation. Indices that look at price changes of the same assets over time, like Case-Shiller and the Federal Housing Finance Agency price index, are showing similar price increases. So, the gains aren?t just from a change in the mix of homes being sold; they?re also from asset appreciation, Yun said.

Two other notable data points from Friday?s release:

1. Inventory is dropping, so you can expect upward price pressure to continue. The supply of homes available for sale is now at 5.9 months, the first time in a number of years the number has dropped below 6 months. Total inventory stands at 2.32 million units.

2. Time on market has dropped to a median 70 days, with roughly a third of all sales closing in 30 days or so. At this time last year, the median time on market was more than 100 days, so the trend is positive.

You can learn more in the 5-minute video from Yun?s press conference above.

Access NAR?s news release on the latest figures.

Source: http://speakingofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2012/10/22/home-prices-up-11-percent/

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The Truth About the Personal Growth Industry ? hot news

People are talking a lot about the world of Personal Growth these days, not least because of the well-documented events at James Ray?s retreat at a sweat lodge in Arizona last fall, and the probe into the deaths that occurred there. I can?t even begin to say how tragic I think it was, and of course want to express my condolences to the families of the victims, and everyone else involved. That said, I don?t think James Ray should be considered a con man, or that his entire career in helping people achieve personal and business success should be slammed because of what happened. So, for now, let?s leave Ray himself out of it-?whether he was in the wrong is up to the people investigating the case to decide. More than that, it bothers me that an entire industry is being pilloried based on one (admittedly horribly sad) event.

The Personal Growth (also known as Personal Development, Self Help, Self Improvement and more) industry produces overwhelmingly positive and tangible results for a wide array of people, plain and simple. Take it from me. I grew up in an affluent area, but my parents struggled financially. I couldn?t help attaching my self worth to my parents? net worth (or lack thereof), and at the same time, started to overeat to compensate for my feelings of inadequacy. I wasn?t exactly a happy kid, and no one in the medical or education systems seemed to be able to light on the right words (or prescriptions) to help me. I learned later that unlike standard medicine and/or education, Personal Growth encompasses a holistic approach, and deals with root issues of problems, not just symptoms. As I got older, I got in with the wrong crowd, which for me meant drinking, drugs, and other unhealthy behavior. I was arrested four times before graduating high school, and then ended up dropping out of college to take over my father?s business and start others. Entrepreneurial spirit aside, the businesses failed, and I found myself hitting rock bottom a short time later. I?d ballooned to 245 pounds, been clinically depressed for more than ten years, and I was $100,000 in debt. At the young age of twenty-four, in addition to failing at all the commercial ventures I?d undertaken, I?d also already failed in six intimate relationships. I even contemplated suicide as the only solution I thought was possible for a world I couldn?t figure out. Looking back, I realize I was just never given an -?owner?s manual-? of how to be successful in my life, whether that meant to be healthy, make a decent living, or just to be happy. I was introduced to Personal Growth by reading about it and hearing about it, and to be honest, I was skeptical. Up until that point, everything I attempted to better my life had failed. But I suppose I felt I had nothing more to lose, and maybe even something to gain. So I made the decision, and signed up for a four-day seminar that promised to unleash my -?Power Within.-? Over the course of the seminar?s four days, I learned more about my life than I had in the previous twenty-four years. My transformation began then and there. With the help of the seminar?s instructor, I came up with a plan to turn my life around and stuck to it (with more help from mentors and coaches). In eleven short months, I lost fifty pounds, got myself out of the six-figure debt, began my first lasting and healthy relationship (with my now-wife), and discovered a satisfying and lucrative career path. The Personal Growth industry has given millions of people from all over the world the same opportunity. It might manifest differently for each and every one of them, because -?Personal Growth-? can mean a lot of different things. And as my journey demonstrated, it certainly doesn?t just include spiritualism, sweat lodges, or other esoteric practices. In fact, there isn?t much that?s -?mystical,-? or mystifying, about it. Though some critics might suggest otherwise, the truth is, we human beings do have the ability to transcend our limitations, be they emotional, physical, or even spiritual. But please-?none of us who truly understand Personal Growth is suggesting that only visualization and positive thinking will get you there. A positive attitude is important, but taking real action is even more important. So at its core, Personal Growth is a synonym for personal responsibility and the understanding that we create our own reality. We are the referee and judge of our own life. We create the meaning and purpose of our life. Similarly, if we insert ourselves into an environment where somebody is leading us, it?s still imperative that we take charge of ourselves-?if Personal Growth teaches anything, it?s that. But of course, there are people who might follow an expert in the field too far and do things that go beyond their core beliefs, values and capabilities. In other words, extreme elements-?and major mistakes-?unfortunately show up in just about everything, and I know that what happened in that sweat lodge was a true anomaly in the bigger picture of Personal Growth. To knock down an entire industry that does a lot of good for a lot of people because of one incident is unfair. Instead, let?s keep a positive perspective, and allow people to see for themselves what Personal Growth can do. What are your thoughts about this industry and movement? Please click the -?Post Your Comments-? button below to share your thoughts. http://www.PersonalGrowth.com/blog Connect with us on Facebook http://bit.ly/8ZOtQW

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Spelheim, the Citylands

In a realm of magic, war rages. Will the continent be consumed by strife, or will the people unite against the greater danger?

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Spelheim, the Citylands

Landscape
The landscape of Spelheim is one of gentle hills and meandering rivers. The mud roads are well kept, connecting one village to the next. Much of the land surrounding the capital was deforested and made into farmland, but a few deciduous woods remain in the more southern areas.

Aside from the capital, a number of other places of interest exist. An academy for military magic exists on a small western island, a little out of the western coast. Only students that have been tested for devotion and loyalty to the City are accepted here ? others remain at the general academy, locked within the City walls. A second island can be seen to the south-east of Spelheim. The murderous sea prevents reaching it, but when the Veil was still intact, it originated (or ended) in an ominous tower on this isle. Additionally, mysterious dolmen sites are spread throughout the Citylands.

People
The people of Spelheim are colloquially referred to as Citians, even those that have never set a foot inside the City. They possess brown or red hair, and spend their days farming, crafting, or hunting. Magic is almost thing of myth to most ? any discovered magician will be immediately relocated into the City.

A second group of people exists within Spelheim ? a group of nomads-turned-traders known as the Socharev. They travel between the two kingdoms, trading wares and stories. These nomads are not an ethnic group per se - anyone is free to join their caravans. However, their appearance breeds true, and offspring between Citian and Socharev tend to have the latter?s characteristic black hair. Lately, they have been submit to heavier discrimination than before, as the Apostate was born from these people.

Government and politics
A village may only call itself a Town after reaching a sufficient level of civilization. When the City Council bestows a Township, that Town is appointed a City noble as its regent. In effect, most towns are governed by representatives of nobility, as it is considered a shame upon one?s house to reside outside of the capital. Towns manage the taxes and laws of the surrounding area, and possess administrative offices and communication post that act as the City?s eyes and ears. Any Town in Spelheim has a stable with horses that may reach the City in less than one day and night.

Technology
Though the City raises prodigious builders and architects, due to an over-reliance on its mages, Spelheim?s non-magical technology has certain gaps. Due to the overwhelming offensive capabilities of magic, gunpowder has not yet been weaponized to the extent it has in Id-Heren. Armour craft, on the other hand, is highly advanced, and often comes with specialized structures for reinforcing Earth magic to latch on to.

Religion
For those living outside of the walls, the entirety of the City is a holy place, a target for pilgrimage. The monopoly on magic is considered proof that the supreme god ? the Maker ? has a special place in its heart for Spelheim and its people. Every settlement must own a church dedicated to the Maker?s glory to be eligible for Township.

The Socharev are a primarily spiritual people, believing instead in a number of guardian animals, which are worshipped through decorative woodwork - primarily on their wagons, but also on jewelry. Officially, the Socharev have all been forcibly to converted to the Church of the Maker, but the sincerity with which this is practiced varies wildly.

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On War and Peace, George McGovern Will Die Vindicated (Atlantic Politics Channel)

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Breakthrough offers new route to large-scale quantum computing

ScienceDaily (Oct. 19, 2012) ? In a key step toward creating a working quantum computer, Princeton researchers have developed a method that may allow the quick and reliable transfer of quantum information throughout a computing device

The finding, by a team led by Princeton physicist Jason Petta, could eventually allow engineers to build quantum computers consisting of millions of quantum bits, or qubits. So far, quantum researchers have only been able to manipulate small numbers of qubits, not enough for a practical machine.

"The whole game at this point in quantum computing is trying to build a larger system," said Andrew Houck, an assistant professor of electrical engineering who is part of the research team.

To make the transfer, Petta's team used a stream of microwave photons to analyze a pair of electrons trapped in a tiny cage called a quantum dot. The "spin state" of the electrons -- information about how they are spinning -- serves as the qubit, a basic unit of information. The microwave stream allows the scientists to read that information.

"We create a cavity with mirrors on both ends -- but they don't reflect visible light, they reflect microwave radiation," Petta said. "Then we send microwaves in one end, and we look at the microwaves as they come out the other end. The microwaves are affected by the spin states of the electrons in the cavity, and we can read that change."

In an ordinary sense, the distances involved are very small; the entire apparatus operates over a little more than a centimeter. But on the subatomic scale, they are vast. It is like coordinating the motion of a top spinning on the moon with another on the surface of Earth.

"It's the most amazing thing," said Jake Taylor, a physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Joint Quantum Institute at the University of Maryland, who worked on the project with the Princeton team. "You have a single electron almost completely changing the properties of an inch-long electrical system."

For years, teams of scientists have pursued the idea of using quantum mechanics to build a new machine that would revolutionize computing. The goal is not build a faster or more powerful computer, but to build one that approaches problems in a completely different fashion.

Standard computers store information as classical "bits," which can take on a value of either 0 or 1. These bits allow programmers to create the complex instructions that are the basis for modern computing power. Since Alan Turing took the first steps toward creating a computer at Princeton in 1936, engineers have created vastly more powerful and complex machines, but this basic binary system has remained unchanged.

The power of a quantum computer comes from the strange rules of quantum mechanics, which describe the universe of subatomic particles. Quantum mechanics says that an electron can spin in one direction, representing a 1, or in another direction, a 0. But it can also be in something called "superposition" representing all states between 1 and 0. If scientists and engineers can build a working machine that takes advantage of this, they would open up entirely new fields of computing.

"The point of a quantum computer is not that they can do what a normal computer can do but faster; that's not what they are," said Houck. "The quantum computer would allow us to approach problems differently. It would allow us to solve problems that cannot be solved with a normal computer."

Mathematicians are still working on possible uses for a quantum system, but the machines could allow them to accomplish tasks such as factoring currently unfactorable numbers, breaking codes or predicting the behavior of molecules.

One challenge facing scientists is that the spins of electrons, or any other quantum particles, are incredibly delicate. Any outside influences, whether a wisp of magnetism or glimpse of light, destabilizes the electrons' spins and introduces errors.

Over the years, scientists have developed techniques to observe spin states without disturbing them. (This year's Nobel Prize in physics honored two scientists who first demonstrated the direct observation of quantum particles.) But analyzing small numbers of spins is not enough; millions will be required to make a real quantum processor.

To approach the problem, Petta's team combined techniques from two branches of science: from materials science, they used a structure called a quantum dot to hold and analyze electrons' spins; and from optics, they adopted a microwave channel to transfer the spin information from the dot.

To make the quantum dots, the team isolated a pair of electrons on a small section of material called a "semiconductor nanowire." Basically, that means a wire that is so thin that it can hold electrons like soda bubbles in a straw. They then created small "cages" along the wire. The cages are set up so that electrons will settle into a particular cage depending on their energy level.

This is how the team reads the spin state: electrons of similar spin will repel, while those of different spins will attract. So the team manipulates the electrons to a certain energy level and then reads their position. If they are in the same cage, they are spinning differently; if they are in different cages, the spins are the same.

The second step is to place this quantum dot inside the microwave channel. This allows the team to transfer the information about the pair's spin state -- the qubit.

Petta said the next step is to increase the reliability of the setup for a single electron pair. After that, the team plans to add more quantum dots to create more qubits. Team members are cautiously optimistic. There appear to be no insurmountable problems at this point but, as with any system, increasing complexity could lead to unforeseen difficulties.

"The methods we are using here are scalable, and we would like to use them in a larger system," Petta said. "But to make use of the scaling, it needs to work a little better. The first step is to make better mirrors for the microwave cavity."

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Princeton University, Engineering School, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. K. D. Petersson, L. W. McFaul, M. D. Schroer, M. Jung, J. M. Taylor, A. A. Houck, J. R. Petta. Circuit quantum electrodynamics with a spin qubit. Nature, 2012; 490 (7420): 380 DOI: 10.1038/nature11559

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

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/n36-2zUZfko/121019141254.htm

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