Virginia Tech scientists discover record-breaking black hole energy blast

Public release date: 28-Nov-2012
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Contact: Rosaire Bushey
busheyr@vt.edu
540-231-5035
Virginia Tech

Powerful quasar outflow lives up to predictions

Virginia Tech physics researchers have discovered a quasar with the most energetic outflow ever, a finding that may answer questions about how the mass of a galaxy is linked to its central black hole mass and why there are so few large galaxies in the universe.

Researchers studied the quasar known as SDSS J1106+1939 in great detail using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in Paranal, Chile the world's most advanced visible-light astronomical observatory, and found the most energetic quasar outflow ever discovered.

The rate that energy is carried away by the huge mass of material ejected is equivalent to two trillion times the power output of the sun.

"This is about 100 times higher than the total power output of the Milky Way galaxy it's a real monster outflow," said Nahum Arav, an associate professor of physics in College of Science and leader of the research team, which includes Benoit Borguet, now a postdoctoral researcher now at the University of Liege, Belgium; Doug Edmonds and Carter Chamberlain, both graduate research assistants at Virginia Tech, and Chris Benn, a collaborator who works with the Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes in Spain.

The findings were released today (Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012) by the European Southern Observatory.

Theorists have predicted energy flows of this magnitude, and simulations have suggested these outflows impact the galaxies around them, but it has all been speculation until now.

"For the last 15 years many theorists have said that if there were such powerful outflows it would help answer many questions on the formation of galaxies, on the behavior of black holes, and on the enrichment of the intergalactic medium with elements other than hydrogen and helium," Arav said. "This discovery means we can better explain the formation of galaxies. There are hundreds of people doing the theoretical side of the work. They hypothesize outflows in their simulations, and now we've found an outflow in the magnitude that has only been theorized in the past. Now they can refine their already impressive models and base them on empirical data."

Quasars are light phenomenon produced as material falls into a black hole producing a huge amount of energy. The bigger the black hole, the bigger the quasar. The Milky Way, according to Arav, is a big galaxy with a "smallish" black hole. The black hole at the heart of quasar SDSS J1106-1939 is massive, estimated to be a thousand times heavier than the black hole in the Milky Way.

And while black holes are noted for pulling material in, quasars accelerate some of the material and eject it at high speed. The larger the quasar, the more material it can take, the higher speed it can accelerate it, and the further it can eject the material.

"Quasars have been known for 40 years," Arav explained. "We were able to figure out how to measure the mass of mechanical energy the black hole is putting out by calculating the size of the outflow, how far away from the black hole it was, and how much mass it had per unit area."

The quasar's outflow is at least five times more powerful than the previous record holder, also discovered by Arav and his research group in 2009, and material from the outflow is inferred to be about a thousand light years away from the black hole at the heart of quasar SDSS J1106-1939.

Every year, according to the team's analysis, a mass of more than 400 times that of the sun is streaming away from the quasar at a speed of 8,000 kilometers per second.

"I've been looking for something like this for a decade," Arav said, "so it's thrilling to finally find one of the monster outflows that have been predicted."

###

The European Southern Observatory contributed information to this report.

The study was supported from NASA STScI grants GO 11686 and GO 12022 as well as NSF grant AST 0837880.

---

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 28-Nov-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Rosaire Bushey
busheyr@vt.edu
540-231-5035
Virginia Tech

Powerful quasar outflow lives up to predictions

Virginia Tech physics researchers have discovered a quasar with the most energetic outflow ever, a finding that may answer questions about how the mass of a galaxy is linked to its central black hole mass and why there are so few large galaxies in the universe.

Researchers studied the quasar known as SDSS J1106+1939 in great detail using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in Paranal, Chile the world's most advanced visible-light astronomical observatory, and found the most energetic quasar outflow ever discovered.

The rate that energy is carried away by the huge mass of material ejected is equivalent to two trillion times the power output of the sun.

"This is about 100 times higher than the total power output of the Milky Way galaxy it's a real monster outflow," said Nahum Arav, an associate professor of physics in College of Science and leader of the research team, which includes Benoit Borguet, now a postdoctoral researcher now at the University of Liege, Belgium; Doug Edmonds and Carter Chamberlain, both graduate research assistants at Virginia Tech, and Chris Benn, a collaborator who works with the Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes in Spain.

The findings were released today (Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012) by the European Southern Observatory.

Theorists have predicted energy flows of this magnitude, and simulations have suggested these outflows impact the galaxies around them, but it has all been speculation until now.

"For the last 15 years many theorists have said that if there were such powerful outflows it would help answer many questions on the formation of galaxies, on the behavior of black holes, and on the enrichment of the intergalactic medium with elements other than hydrogen and helium," Arav said. "This discovery means we can better explain the formation of galaxies. There are hundreds of people doing the theoretical side of the work. They hypothesize outflows in their simulations, and now we've found an outflow in the magnitude that has only been theorized in the past. Now they can refine their already impressive models and base them on empirical data."

Quasars are light phenomenon produced as material falls into a black hole producing a huge amount of energy. The bigger the black hole, the bigger the quasar. The Milky Way, according to Arav, is a big galaxy with a "smallish" black hole. The black hole at the heart of quasar SDSS J1106-1939 is massive, estimated to be a thousand times heavier than the black hole in the Milky Way.

And while black holes are noted for pulling material in, quasars accelerate some of the material and eject it at high speed. The larger the quasar, the more material it can take, the higher speed it can accelerate it, and the further it can eject the material.

"Quasars have been known for 40 years," Arav explained. "We were able to figure out how to measure the mass of mechanical energy the black hole is putting out by calculating the size of the outflow, how far away from the black hole it was, and how much mass it had per unit area."

The quasar's outflow is at least five times more powerful than the previous record holder, also discovered by Arav and his research group in 2009, and material from the outflow is inferred to be about a thousand light years away from the black hole at the heart of quasar SDSS J1106-1939.

Every year, according to the team's analysis, a mass of more than 400 times that of the sun is streaming away from the quasar at a speed of 8,000 kilometers per second.

"I've been looking for something like this for a decade," Arav said, "so it's thrilling to finally find one of the monster outflows that have been predicted."

###

The European Southern Observatory contributed information to this report.

The study was supported from NASA STScI grants GO 11686 and GO 12022 as well as NSF grant AST 0837880.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-11/vt-vts112812.php

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Major quakes can trigger faraway events

Major earthquakes might set off incredibly slow earthquakes thousands of miles away, new research suggests.

These findings, detailed online Sept. 11 in the Journal of Geophysical Research-Solid Earth, shed light on how earthquake zones might communicate with each other over large distances, scientists added.

The cluster of devastating earthquakes that rocked the globe during the past decade from Japan to Sumatra to Haiti is one reason why scientists are investigating whether temblors in different parts of the world are linked to one another. Although research to date suggests that major quakes aren't likely to trigger other massive quakes around the globe, they can set off tremors worldwide.

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Now researchers find that large quakes might also trigger mysterious slow earthquakes thousands of miles away. One kind of slow earthquake known as a slow-slip event can last for weeks, shifting the Earth as much as an ordinary earthquake of magnitude of 7 would in mere moments.

The investigators focused on the magnitude 8.8 Maule earthquake that struck Chile in 2010. They found it generated surface waves that, within hours, set off tremors in the Guerrero region of southwestern Mexico 4,140 miles (6,660 kilometers) away. Data from GPS stations also revealed the earth there began moving southward at the same time tremors there began.

The tremors and movements of the GPS stations lasted for about six months after the 2010 Chile quake.

"Such an observation may indicate that the Maule earthquake triggered a slow-slip event in Guerrero," said researcher Dimitri Zigone, a seismologist at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.

Near Guerrero lies a subduction zone, where a tectonic plate under the Pacific Ocean is diving under the continental North American plate. The seismic energy from Chile apparently increased the stress in the segment of the subduction zone near Guerrero, which may explain the resulting slow-slip event.

"The fact large quakes can have effects so far away could be important because it may change the recurrence time between earthquakes in a specific location," Zigone told OurAmazingPlanet. "Usually we assume that the seismic cycle ? the recurrence between earthquakes ? is regional, on a single fault system or at a plate boundary, for example. If these large-scale interactions exist, it may indicate that even at large distances, a mega-earthquake can modify the conditions in another region."

Follow OurAmazingPlanet for the latest in Earth science and exploration news on Twitter @OAPlanet. We're also on ?Facebook? and? Google+.

? 2012 OurAmazingPlanet. All rights reserved. More from OurAmazingPlanet.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49983211/ns/technology_and_science-science/

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Aunt Emily's Lip Smacking Strawberry Sauce - Tv Food and Drink

This is a recipe for my Aunt Emily?s Lip-Smacking Strawberry Sauce.? Aunt Emily is not exactly the warm, inviting face of home and hearth you might imagine on a jar of desset topping, but she is definitely worth a few minutes of your time.? She met my Uncle Raybon on a blind date at a mini-golf and pirate-themed adventure park just before the bicentennial.? They were married six weeks later, the second time for both.? The first piece of furniture they split fifty-fifty was a tiki bar with light up palm trees and wooden, half-pineapple ashtrays.? It was the focal point of their sunken den, and the home base for all their football parties.? Raybon would mix the drinks and Emily would sit on one of the stools, sipping and barking out raunchy jokes with set-ups always involving someone who farted at the worst possible time.

While she was married, Emily worked as a cocktail waitress in a hotel bar.? Her bouffant Brenda Vaccaro hair was almost exactly as wide and exactly as red as the short, ruffled skirt that was her uniform.? In between the hair and the skirt was a crowd of hilly cleavage and a deep, weary tan. Emily liked to twirl in her waitress skirt before she left the house and say, ?It?s the preferred look for today?s cocktail gal? Mexican square dancer with super titties.?? Then she would run her fingers in circles around her blouse where her nipples were underneath and stick her tongue out sideways like a rock star, while my mother shouted out her name with reproach and the rest of us fell on the floor.

I remember that Emily was always more socially fearless when she had a cigarette going.? When she wasn?t smoking, her hands weren?t sure what to do with themselves, and the attention they required took away her ability to focus on anything.? With a Pall Mall and a martini, she could re-tell a story exactly the way Robert Klein had told it on tv.? Without them, she was a downright kook, though that never stopped her from contributing.? Once, she was recruited by my parents to audition as part of a team for Family Feud. When the mock-host challenged them with, ?Name something you bake in the oven.? my dad said, ?Pies.? My mom said, ?Cakes.?? Aunt Emily wrung her hands and frantically spat out, ?Tennis shoes!?? Next, they were asked: ?Name something you dig out of the ground.?? Dad went with potatoes.? Mom came up with onions.? My Aunt Emily said, ?People!?? They were not asked to stay and meet the Executive Producer.

She divorced my Uncle Raybon in the middle of the 1980s because she said he loved beer cans more than he loved her can.? She moved with the children that weren?t his to Philadelphia where she got a job helping to re-write a company?s old greeting cards so they?d rhyme and could be re-issued. Eventually, she talked her way into a writer job with a product branding firm and re-located to Norfolk.? Now in her sixties, she still lives there today.? After my twin brother Dax sent her a link to TvFoodAndDrink.com, she e-mailed me her recipe for this strawberry sauce, which she swears was invented by her great grandmother whose real name was Lucille, but that everyone called ?Lippy.?? The e-mail reads:

?Tell people I?ve watched young men fall to their knees after tasting this sauce, but that may have something to do with what they were eating it off of at the time?ha!? But seriously Gar, you know any men out in Hollywood with long, overgrown curly hair?? I mean real tumbleweeds!? Tell them I?m coming to visit you and I want to play desert island games with them? ha HA ha! Mai Tais on Emily!?

Despite her countless inappropriate body gestures and endless drunken nights ending in, ?I?m fine!? I?m fine!? Aunt Emily has actually done darn well for herself in the professional world.? If you?ve ever been to the grocery store and passed bottles of Sloppy Uncle Pete?s Rootin? Tootin? Barbecue Baster or picked up some Sane Granny Margaret?s Soup in a Bag with the cartoon old lady winking as she stirs up chowder in a burlap sack, you?ve seen the work of my Aunt Emily.? She says that adding the name of a fictitious cherished family member to a product, then adding an oddball back story about them adds an immeasurable ?comfort value? that just about everyone will embrace.? That makes sense to me, even though it?s coming from a member of my family who?s never been very interested in sensible behavior. I haven?t actually laid eyes on the woman in over twenty years.? I can?t imagine what she might look like now.? In my head it?s still the wide ruffled skirt, the big hair, the youthful cleavage and the just-slightly twisted brain that wrote this on my eighth grade graduation card: ?Whenever you don?t have anything to say, just go ahead and make a pile of shit up! ?Love, Aunt Emily.?

Aunt Emily?s Lip Smacking Strawberry Sauce

• 1 quart strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

In a small pot over medium heat, combine the strawberries, sugar, water, lemon zest, lemon juice and cornstarch. Bring to a simmer and whisk gently until mixture thickens slightly. ?Allow to cool slightly, then serve over ice cream

Source: http://tvfoodanddrink.com/2012/11/homemade-strawberry-sauce/

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THE LONG RUN ? Replacing addiction with a healthy obsession ...

In his memoir, ?The Long Run,? Mishka Shubaly chronicles his journey from ?irreverent young drunk? to ultra-runner. The author sobered up by running five miles at a time, then 10, then 50.

It was Shubaly?s editor who first suggested he write about his road to recovery.

?I told him point-blank, ?No one wants to hear me cry about how I f***ed up my own life,? ? Shubaly said. ?And I was totally wrong.?

When ?The Long Run? was published on Amazon?s Kindle Singles list in 2011, it hit No. 1, bumping Stephen King out of the top spot.

The book?s popularity may have been a surprise to Shubaly, but experts know he?s not alone in using exercise to overcome addiction. Groups have been popping up around the country to help people stay sober by staying active.

?It?s a great way to introduce people into something that then later becomes ? sort of their coping mechanism, as opposed to picking up a drink or a drug,? said Scott Strode, one of this year?s top 10 CNN Heroes. Strode?s nonprofit, Phoenix Multisport, provides free athletic activities and a sober support community to thousands of people in Colorado.

In 2008, the National Institute on Drug Abuse pledged $4 million to research the effect of physical activity on drug use. Preclinical research has provided evidence that exercise can help treat ? and even possibly prevent ? addiction, and now human trials are taking place.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, abuse of illicit drugs and alcohol contributes to the death of more than 100,000 Americans every year. While intervention and treatment programs have improved, relapse rates range from 60% to 90% in the first year of sobriety, the institute said.

?Habits play an important role in our health,? the institute?s director, Dr. Nora Volkow, said in a National Institute of Health newsletter. ?Understanding the biology of how we develop routines that may be harmful to us, and how to break those routines and embrace new ones, could help us change our lifestyles and adopt healthier behaviors.?

Psychology professor Mark Smith researches the effects of exercise on addiction in laboratory rats. One of his first preclinical studies on the subject showed lab rats that had access to an exercise wheel in their cage were much less likely to self-administer cocaine than their sedentary counterparts.

He and his colleagues have also completed several follow-up studies, duplicating the results with male and female rats; with low, medium and high doses; with heroin; and with different models of substance binges and relapses.

?I was amazed at how consistent the effects of exercise were,? Smith said.

Other researchers have published animal studies with similar results. For example, a 2009 study in Pathophysiology Journal showed treadmill exercise reduced morphine use in male rats. And in 2011, a study in the journal Current Neuropharmacology demonstrated animals? preference for saline over amphetamines when they exercised.

?These results lead us to conclude that a previous practice of regular physical activity may help in preventing amphetamine addiction,? the study?s authors wrote.

While evidence mounts that exercise may help prevent and treat addiction, scientists are trying to figure out why.

To get clean, addicts often give up their past social lives, including any friends who use. During their recovery, they have a lot of free time and not a lot of support.

Understanding the biology of how we develop routines that may be harmful to us ? could help us change our lifestyles. Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse

Exercise and sporting groups could help fill that void, said Richard Brown, a professor of psychiatry and human behavior at Brown University and director of addictions research at Butler Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island.

When Brown and his colleagues started their human study on exercise and alcohol abuse, they theorized that physical activity would reduce the depressive symptoms alcoholics often suffer from, thereby reducing the risk of a relapse.

They asked one group of study participants to work out once a week with the rest of the group and to work out on their own another two to three days. At the end of a three-month follow-up, the researchers found the exercise group had fewer drinking days and fewer heavy-drinking days than a group that didn?t exercise as regularly.

What the researchers didn?t expect was feedback from participants who said they enjoyed the structure that regular exercise provided to their lives.

?They liked the fact that they were getting healthy and doing something for themselves,? Brown said.

Exercise provides a ?high? that could be important for addicts trying to combat cravings, experts say. In addition to decreasing anxiety and stress, physical activity helps increase levels of dopamine in the brain. Dopamine, a chemical that?s associated with feelings of pleasure, is often diminished over time by substance abuse.

Some researchers have hypothesized that addicts are simply replacing one addiction with another. Smith?s response? Fantastic.

?One of those addictions leads to basically a devastation throughout all aspects of your life and probably premature death,? he said. ?The other addiction leads to improved cardiovascular health, better self-esteem, better self-efficacy and maybe some joint problems when you get older. It?s an apples-and-chain saws comparison.?

Brown has more theories on why exercise may help addicts stay clean. In unrelated studies, exercise has been shown to regulate sleep, a common problem for addicts early in recovery. It can even improve cognitive function, something that?s often impaired by chronic substance abuse.

?These are just hypothetical,? Brown said. ?They need to be tested.?

While scientists search for more answers, Shubaly said he is content knowing that running works to keep him sober, day in and day out.

?For me, exercise is the opposite of alcohol,? he said. ?Alcohol is the easiest, fastest and most effective way of saying: ?I don?t care. I don?t care about the good things in life or life at all.?

?Exercise, especially for someone who has been a sedentary alcoholic for a long time, is brutally difficult. And, as such, it?s a very meaningful way of saying: ?OK, I actually do care now. I care a lot. I care enough about my life that I am willing to endure this torture to get better.?

?Doing the hard work of exercising totally reversed my worldview. I went from a life that was headed toward one thing to a life of nearly infinite potential.?

Source: http://www.pokerheadrush.com/2012/11/26/the-long-run-replacing-addiction-with-a-healthy-obsession-jacque-wilson/

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Bonds, Clemens, Sosa set to show up on Hall ballot

FILE - In this Aug. 24, 2007, file photo, San Francisco Giants' Barry Bonds, right, hits his 761st career home run, a solo effort, off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Chris Capuano in the fourth inning of a baseball game in San Francisco. Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa are set to show up on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012, and fans will soon find out whether drug allegations block the former stars from reaching baseball's shrine. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 24, 2007, file photo, San Francisco Giants' Barry Bonds, right, hits his 761st career home run, a solo effort, off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Chris Capuano in the fourth inning of a baseball game in San Francisco. Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa are set to show up on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012, and fans will soon find out whether drug allegations block the former stars from reaching baseball's shrine. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)

FILE - In this July 23, 2007, file photo, New York Yankees starting pitcher Roger Clemens throws against Kansas City Royals' David DeJesus in the first inning of a baseball game in Kansas City, Mo. Clemens, Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa are set to show up on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012, and fans will soon find out whether drug allegations block the former stars from reaching baseball's shrine. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga, File)

FILE - In this June 20, 2007, file photo, Texas Rangers' Sammy Sosa acknowledges cheers from fans after hitting his 600th career home run against the Chicago Cubs in a baseball game in Arlington, Texas. Sosa, Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds are set to show up on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012, and fans will soon find out whether drug allegations block the former stars from reaching baseball's shrine. (AP Photo/Tim Sharp, File)

NEW YORK (AP) ? Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa are set to show up on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time, and fans will soon find out whether drug allegations block the former stars from reaching baseball's shrine.

The 2013 ballot will be announced Wednesday.

Craig Biggio, Mike Piazza and Curt Schilling are certain to be among the other first-time eligibles. Jack Morris, Jeff Bagwell and Tim Raines are the top holdover candidates.

Longtime members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America will vote through next month. The much-awaited results will be announced Jan. 9, with players needing to be listed on 75 percent of the ballots to gain induction.

The upcoming election is certain to fuel the most polarizing Hall debate since career hits leader Pete Rose's betting problems put him on baseball's permanently ineligible list, barring him from the BBWAA ballot.

Bonds, Clemens and Sosa each posted some of the biggest numbers in the game's history, but all were tainted by accusations that they used performance-enhancing drugs.

Bonds is baseball's all-time home runs leader with 762 and won a record seven MVP awards. Clemens ranks ninth in career wins with 354 and took home a record seven Cy Young Awards. Sosa is eighth on the home run chart with 609.

Fans, players and Hall of Fame members have all chimed in about whether stars who supposedly juiced up during the Steroids Era should make it to Cooperstown.

Many of those opposed say drug cheats should never be afforded baseball's highest individual honors. Others on the opposite side claim the use of performance-enhancing drugs was pervasive in the 1980s and 1990s, and shouldn't disqualify candidates.

If recent voting for the Hall is any indication, the odds are solidly stacked against Bonds, Clemens and Sosa.

Mark McGwire is 10th on the career home run list with 583, but has never received even 24 percent in his six tries. Big Mac has admitted using steroids and human growth hormone.

Rafael Palmeiro is among only four players with 500 homers and 3,000 hits, yet has gotten a high of 12.6 percent in his two years on the ballot. Palmeiro drew a 10-day suspension in 2005 after a positive test for performance-enhancing drugs, and said the result was due to a vitamin vial given to him by teammate Miguel Tejada.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-11-27-Hall%20of%20Fame%20Ballot/id-72247fd0c1fe4da586795d654876fd93

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The unappreciated Jay Cutler

Reuters

If you don?t like Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, you?re not alone. A poll of fans conducted last season found that Cutler was one of the Top 5 most disliked players in the NFL.

And if you?re looking for reasons not to like Cutler, you saw one when the Bears beat the Vikings on Sunday: Cutler committed one of the dumber penalties of the day when he ran out of bounds and then threw the ball at Vikings cornerback A.J. Jefferson. Throwing the ball at an opponent is an automatic 15-yard penalty, as every NFL player should know. Yes, Cutler can be an idiot sometimes.

But if you don?t think Cutler is a good quarterback, well, you?re wrong. Cutler?s abilities were on display in Sunday?s 28-10 win over the Vikings, but they were even more on display in the way the Bears completely fell apart without him a week ago against the 49ers. And Cutler?s importance to the Bears is on display in every game he misses: In the last three years, in games Cutler both started and finished, the Bears are 26-9. In games Cutler either missed entirely or was knocked out because of an injury in the first half, the Bears are 1-8.

No, Cutler doesn?t put up the kinds of numbers that the NFL?s elite quarterbacks produce, but Cutler doesn?t have anywhere near the kind of offensive talent surrounding him that the NFL?s elite quarterbacks have. The Bears have had one of the NFL?s worst offensive lines for Cutler?s entire tenure in Chicago, and they only got a high-level wide receiver for the first time this year, when they traded for Brandon Marshall.

I believe it?s that Chicago offensive line and that Chicago receiving corps ? as well as, yes, acting like a jerk at times by doing things like throwing a ball at an opponent ? that has made Cutler one of the most underappreciated players in the NFL. This is a good quarterback, playing on a team that appears headed toward the playoffs, in the NFL?s second-biggest media market, and he should get more credit than he does.

Cutler has a great opportunity, however, to change the way he?s regarded over the next couple of months. With the Bears right in the thick of the NFC playoff race, Cutler has the chance to do what he didn?t do when a knee injury knocked him out of the NFC Championship Game a couple years ago, and play the best football of his career on the biggest stage. I think Cutler is going to open some eyes in December and January. And maybe by February, he won?t be unappreciated anymore.

Here are my other thoughts on Sunday?s games:

Robert Ayers was the toughest player in the league on Sunday. Ayers, a backup defensive end for the Broncos, found out late on Saturday night that his father had died suddenly. But instead of heading home right away, he decided to stay in Kansas City to be there for his team against the Chiefs. Ayers played and played well in a 17-9 win in which the Broncos? defense shut down the Chiefs? offense, then was awarded a game ball in the locker room afterward and headed home to tend to his family.

Jared Allen got away with a brutal cheap shot. While his teammate Antoine Winfield was returning an interception, Allen launched himself directly into the head of Bears offensive lineman Lance Louis, delivering a hit that knocked Louis out of the game. Allen said after the game that he thought the hit was legal, but he?s wrong. That?s a blatant penalty that the officials somehow missed, but the league office won?t. Allen is in for a big fine.

The Chiefs got too cute. Kansas City?s opening drive against Denver was running smoothly, with an emphasis on running: Out of the Chiefs? first nine offensive plays, eight of them were runs, and those eight runs produced 48 yards. So what on earth were the Chiefs thinking with the play they called on third-and-3 in the red zone? Instead of running it again, the Chiefs called a bizarre trick play on which running back Peyton Hillis took the snap, ran to his right, then turned around and threw it to quarterback Brady Quinn. Hillis?s pass showed that there?s a reason he?s not a quarterback: He threw an ugly duck that didn?t even get close, falling to the ground a few feet in front of Quinn. That was a dumb play call that stopped a promising drive.

Something has to be done about the officials, Part 1. Everyone saw the horrendous call on Thanksgiving in which the officials somehow ruled that Texans running back Justin Forsett had run 81 yards for a touchdown, even though he was obviously down after just eight yards. But on Sunday not as many people noticed that the opposite mistake was made in the 49ers-Saints game: San Francisco receiver Michael Crabtree caught a pass, got hit, put his hand down to steady himself and kept running, about to break a big play ? except that the officials whistled the play dead, wrongly thinking Crabtree had been down. If we can?t count on the officials to get it right on a call as fundamental as whether or not a player was down, what can we count on them to get right?

Something has to be done about the officials, Part 2. Remember during the lockout, how everyone complained that the replacement refs were dragging out the games by taking way too long to make their rulings? No delays from the replacement refs were as bad as the ridiculous delay late in Sunday?s Ravens-Chargers game. After Ray Rice made an amazing play to turn a short pass into a first down on fourth-and-29, the officials delayed the game by a whopping 10 minutes to watch a replay and re-measure the spot of the ball, only to discover that it had been correctly ruled a first down on the field all along. A 10-minute delay late in the fourth quarter of a close game takes all the energy out of the building. Make the call and move on, refs.

Anyone want to help Charlie Batch out? With Batch, the Steelers? 38-year-old third-string quarterback, pressed into duty on Sunday, the Steelers needed to get big games from their running backs. Instead, Pittsburgh?s four running backs ? Rashard Mendenhall, Jonathan Dwyer, Isaac Redman and Chris Rainey ? combined for just 49 yards on 20 carries, while fumbling six times. Mendenhall and Rainey had two fumbles apiece, while Dwyer and Redman each had one. The Steelers? eight turnovers were the most for any NFL team in one game since 2001, and the Steelers were upset by the Browns.

Jim Harbaugh made the right decision. Colin Kaepernick is a better quarterback than Alex Smith, and if anyone doubted it before, no one should doubt it after Kaepernick led the 49ers to a big win at New Orleans on Sunday. Harbaugh was wise to bench Smith in favor of Kaepernick, who is now 2-0 as a starter with wins over the Bears (playing without Cutler) and Saints. With Kaepernick under center, the 49ers are going to be a tough team to beat in January. Although if they meet again in the playoffs, I like the Bears? chances with a healthy Cutler.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/11/26/nfl-morning-after-the-unappreciated-jay-cutler/related/

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The Value Of Brick And Stone Masonry | Barocks Home ...

Did you know that every architectural choice you make affects the your home?s resale value? You may not be thinking of selling now, but the decisions you make today in masonry will weigh heavily when you are ready to sell. A wise homeowner makes careful choices.

The first thing you need to do is research. Choose a knowledgeable realtor and ask him or her what?s hot in your area. Great economical choices are both brick and stone masonry for the exterior of your home. For a long stretch of time throughout American history, people have loved the durability they provide.

Plus, they denote clear signs of quality to any potential buyers. Siding and stucco are also good choices, but they don?t have the attraction value these two dynamos have. As soon as a potential buyer drives into your driveway, they?ll be checking out the curb appeal.

Not only will you be able to pass along the value of the home to the next homeowner, but they can pass it along too. Sound building materials like these just can?t be beaten.

If you?re planning to buy a home made of brick or stone masonry, always take great care with the home inspection. Check to see if any cracks have arisen within the mortar. These may be the result of the house settling or some other wall stress.

Also, check the weep holes system. These holes drain excess moisture directly behind the walls. Make sure they?re not filled with debris. Check the ground level areas where these holes could possibly be allowing moisture in during heavy rains. All in all, these two materials are mostly maintenance free and long lasting, while adding value to your home.

When you visit the brick and stone masonry company, you?ll be pleasantly surprised at how many choices of color and style there are. Many stores have faux walls, which help give you a better idea of how the exterior will look when finished.

But one of the best ways to decide is to drive around a few neighborhoods and check out the styles and colors for yourself. You?ll soon be able to easily determine which option you want to enhance the exterior of your home.

Cost is always a consideration as well. Today, there are numerous companies who install these materials so do your homework, ask around and you?ll soon find one who has the competitive pricing you need.

And, there aren?t many problems associated with brick and stone. The protection they add to a home creates a fortress-like atmosphere. Remember the story of the Three Little Pigs? When the wolf huffed and puffed he could not blow down the house made of brick.

Brick and stone masonry exteriors have both proven successful surfaces over time. Just look at the oldest homes in America, and you will see the ones created from these two products have stood the test of time. After all, it?s a large investment you?re protecting ? your home and your family.

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Source: http://www.barocks.com/the-value-of-brick-and-stone-masonry

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