Featured Cardmaker: Allison G. Fort Worth, TX | Operation Write Home

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Happy Thanksgiving everyone! If you are like me and plan to spend your day crafting instead of joining in the crowds that ?Black Friday? shoppping brings I have some terrific inspiration to get you started. This week it?s my pleasure to introduce you all to Allison. Allison joined the OWH Blog Team earlier this year and has been instrumental is planning our huge hops among other things. She is also a member of the Doodle Pantry Creative Team and blogs regularly over at Allison?s Creations. Please be sure to take a moment to say hello in the comments section on this post and then make a trip over to check out her blog and she what she?s been up to lately.

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How long have you been stamping? ??I started seriously scrapbooking in 2004 when I completed a scrapbook of my daughter?s first year. ?During this time, I just dabbled in making cards, usually through friends who were Stampin? Up! demonstrators or by making my own Christmas cards. ?In 2011 I discovered Operation Write Home. ?That?s when the serious card making began and with it came stamping, using digi images, and blogging.

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Do you have a craft room or specific area where you stamp/craft?? ?I am so fortunate to have an entire room in the house devoted to my crafts. ?For years we lived on our family farm where my husband built me an ?outbuilding? to use as a craft room, but because it was a separate building I rarely made it out there. ?With the room IN the house now, I spend most weekends happily crafting away!

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What are your favorite stamp/craft products? ??I love Doodle Pantry pre-colored digis and coordinating papers and Stampin? Up! supplies because everything goes together ? are you seeing a trend here?! ?Other stamps I like to use are Hero Arts and Lawn Fawn. ?My biggest weakness is paper ? I have more paper than I could ever use in a lifetime and somehow I continue to accumulate more!

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Do you have a favorite technique? ??If using sketches is a technique, then it?s my favorite! ?Of course, Operation Write Home sketches are the best because the measurements are included (yes, I measure everything to the disappointment of my LSS owner who encourages me to ?eyeball? everything!), but I also like Mojo Monday, Clean and Simple Stamping, and Something For You To Try sketches. ?As far as tools, my Big Shot and dies get used the most!

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Are there colors you love to include on your cards?? ?Bright colors are my favorites, but I?ll use just about anything ? after all, with all the paper I have I can find just about anything in my stash!

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How did you hear about Operation Write Home? ??In January 2011, I received my February issue of Scrapbooks Etc. magazine announcing a Craft It Forward feature/challenge they were starting. ?I went to their website for more information where they listed Operation Write Home as an organization I could donate cards to for deployed troops to write home on. ?I thought it was a fantastic idea and set a goal of making 365 cards in 2011. ?I ended up making 1,280 cards in 2011 and have never looked back! ?Now I spend more time card making than scrapbooking.

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What motivates you to make cards for our heroes? ??The war in Iraq began just months after my daughter was born. ?She is now about to turn 10 years old. ?Knowing that our troops have voluntarily served our country in an effort to keep us safe, preserve our way of life and maintain our freedom to live in a democratic society for as long as my child has been alive motivates me to do whatever I can to show them my gratitude and appreciation for their sacrifices.

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Source: http://operationwritehome.org/featured-cardmaker-allison-g-fort-worth-tx/

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Can Travel Insurance Compensate for Coverage Gaps? | Travel ...

Travel insurance providers often share valuable travel information on their websites, blogs or agent newsletters. The following information is from iTravelInsured?s agent newsletter, and details what may or may not be covered through a traveler?s existing insurance.

Credit Cards ? The average American has four credit cards. Less than 15% actually provide some type of travel insurance as a credit card benefit, and then on a very limited basis. Trip cancellation and interruption benefits are not typical benefits offered by credit card programs.

Homeowner or Renter?s Insurance ? Personal property coverage on this type of insurance generally provides for loss to personal property, anywhere in the world, subject to named perils (i.e. theft, vandalism, etc.) less a deductible (usually $500 or $1,000), that is contained in temporary living quarters occupied by the named insured. This insurance does not provide coverage for trip cancellation, interruption, travel or baggage delay or medical.

Health Insurance ? Traditional domestic health insurance plans may not provide coverage outside the U.S. If they do, the plans may impose high deductibles ($1,000 and up) and co-pays of 20% to 50% of eligible charges. Out-of-country emergency medical transportation services are not commonly offered under health care plans due to the cost for this service.

Medicare ? To be eligible for Medicare, a U.S. citizen must be aged 65 or older. Medicare does not provide coverage outside the U.S. unless a Medigap (C or higher) plan is purchased. Medigap plans generally limit coverage to 80% of emergency medical treatment costs less a $250 deductible. Most Medigap plans have a lifetime maximum of $50,000.

U.S. Embassies ? The U.S. government will not arrange or provide coverage for medical costs or medical transportation needs. The State Department may assist in arranging medical transportation, but the responsibility for payment is yours alone.

Related articles:

Source: http://blogs.squaremouth.com/travel-advice/can-travel-insurance-compensate-for-coverage-gaps/

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Cheniere, Woodside Confirmed as 2012 World ... - LNG World News

The CWC Group today announced the winners for the 8th Annual LNG Awards to be presented on Wednesday 28 November at the World LNG Summit Awards Gala Evening at the Castell de Sant Marcal in Barcelona. The evening is hosted by Petrobras, Shell, GAIL, and Gazprom Marketing & Trading LNG.

The 2012 Award winners are:

CWC / WGI Annual LNG Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Industry: Cheniere Energy

LNG Technological Innovation Award: Woodside Energy

LNG Executive of the year Award: Charif Souki, Chairman and CEO, Cheniere Energy

Charif Souki, Chairman and CEO of Cheniere Energy stated: ?I am very grateful to receive the CWC LNG Executive of the Year award. As a relative newcomer to LNG, I am continually impressed by the calibre of people in our business and their graciousness in accepting Cheniere as peers. This award is an incredible honour for me personally, and I want to thank the CWC for providing a successful forum for our leaders to convene and share ideas that will shape the future of the LNG industry.?

The World LNG Awards Gala Evening is known for being a pivotal event in the LNG industry and a highlight of the World LNG Summit. This year sees the awards being presented by Roger Bounds, General Manager, Global LNG Shell Upstream International, Jon Cook, COO, Excelerate Energy and Martin Houston, COO & Executive Director, BG Group.

LNG World News Staff, November 22, 2012; Image: Cheniere

Source: http://www.lngworldnews.com/cheniere-woodside-confirmed-as-2012-world-lng-award-winners-spain/

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Low-cost, finger-nail sized radar

ScienceDaily (Nov. 23, 2012) ? EU-funded researchers have squeezed radar technology into a low-cost fingernail-sized chip package that promises to lead to a new range of distance and motion sensing applications. The novel device could have important uses in the automotive industry, as well as mobile devices, robotics and other applications.

Developed in the 'Silicon-based ultra-compact cost-efficient system design for mm-wave sensors' (Success) project, the device is the most complete silicon-based 'system-on-chip' (SoC) package for radar operating at high frequencies beyond 100 GHz.

'As far as I know, this is the smallest complete radar system in the world,' says Prof. Christoph Scheytt, who is coordinating the project on behalf of IHP in Frankfurt, Germany. 'There are other chips working at frequencies beyond 100 GHz addressing radar sensing, but this is the highest level of integration that has ever been achieved in silicon.'

Measuring just 8 mm by 8 mm, the chip package is the culmination of three years of research by nine academic and industrial partners across Europe, supported by EUR 3 million in funding from the European Commission. The team drew on expertise from every part of the microelectronic development chain to develop the groundbreaking technology, which is expected to be put to use in commercial applications in the near future.

Operating at 120 GHz -- corresponding to a wavelength of about 2.5 mm -- the chip uses the run time of the waves to calculate the distance of an object up to around three metres away with an accuracy of less than one millimetre. It can also detect moving objects and calculate their velocity using the Doppler effect.

From a commercial perspective, the technology is also extremely cheap: manufactured on an industrial scale, each complete miniature radar would cost around one euro, the project partners estimate.

That gives it the potential to replace ultrasonic sensors for object and pedestrian detection in vehicles, to be used for automatic door control systems, to measure vibration or distance inside machines, for robotics applications and a wide range of other uses. It could even find its way into cell phones.

To develop the miniaturised radar system, the team had to overcome a range of technical challenges, not least integrating and ensuring the reliability of the tiny antenna.

'In this area, size matters a lot,' Prof. Scheytt notes. 'The main motivation for using high frequencies rather than lower ones is that the antennas can be smaller.'

While an FM radio has an antenna that's about one metre long and a WiFi router's antennas are about 10 cm in length, at mm-Wave frequencies (between 30 GHz and 300 GHz) the antennas can also be at the millimetre scale. Given the increasing miniaturisation of modern devices -- from cell phones to robotics components -- working in the millimetre range is therefore a significant advantage.

A novel substrate to solve attenuation

However, at high frequencies unwanted electromagnetic radiation and high attenuation are serious problems. 'The higher you go in frequency the more the wiring radiates: modelling this interface was a big challenge,' the project coordinator says.

The Success team addressed the issue through precise modelling, a novel technique for antenna integration, and using a polyamide substrate for the antenna.

'The project partners researched and tested a lot of different substrates for the antenna to find one that was the least lossy. Then they used a technique to print the antenna on it and connect it through solder bumps,' Prof. Scheytt explains. 'The antenna itself is planar, meaning it is mounted flat on top of the chip. This is completely different to the packaging technology of other millimetre-wave systems, which usually have bulky antennas with tube-like conductors. The advantage is that the whole "system-in-package" is a lot smaller.'

Another issue with high frequency devices is testing that they work as they are designed to. Current testing techniques are expensive and ill-suited to the high-volume testing necessary if the device is to be manufactured commercially. To address this, the Success team took the unusual step of including self-testing features built in to the chip package.

'Built-in self-testing is quite common for cell-phone chips that work at much lower frequencies, but it is something quite novel for millimetre-wave chips,' Prof. Scheytt says. 'Our industrial partners put a lot of emphasis on including this as it makes no sense to have a chip that can be manufactured for a euro and then have to spend 30 or 40 euro to test each one.'

The built-in test features enable technicians to easily and cheaply test if the antenna is connected correctly, the transmit power of the device and if it is operating in the right frequency range. And, because there is no radio frequency interface to deal with, integration onto a printed circuit board is similarly cheap and easy.

'Since all the high-frequency circuitry is in the package you have only low-frequency interfaces to work with,' Prof. Scheytt notes.

He points out that an application engineer can handle the chip, because it is a standard surface-mount package, in much the same way they would fit an ultrasonic sensor or microcontroller.

'Users can solder the chip onto their standard circuit boards and receive low-frequency signals that can be processed without difficulty,' says Prof. Thomas Zwick, head of IHE at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), a project partner.

The different partners in the Success consortium are now looking to use the technology commercially. Bosch, for example, is investigating deployment possibilities, seeing major potential for low-cost radar operating at high frequencies, while other partners, such as Silicon Radar in Germany, Selmic in Finland and Hightec in Switzerland are also expected to incorporate the work carried out in Success into their industrial processes.

Success received research funding under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by European Commission, CORDIS.

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/matter_energy/technology/~3/50AvX8OHN6c/121123092738.htm

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Tagliabue expects to rule on bounties by December

NEW ORLEANS (AP) ? Former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue plans to complete all hearings in the NFL's bounty probe of the Saints by Dec. 4 and make a ruling shortly after.

Such timing potentially could be disruptive for the Saints, who could lose starting defensive end Will Smith and linebacker Jonathan Vilma while trying to claw back into playoff contention.

In a document obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, Tagliabue directs the NFL to produce key witnesses in the New Orleans Saints' cash-for-hits program, including former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and former defensive assistant Mike Cerullo.

Four players initially were suspended, but those punishments were vacated. Commissioner Roger Goodell re-issued the suspensions with some modifications, and when the players appealed again, Goodell appointed Tagliabue to oversee the new hearings. Vilma and Smith are still playing pending the outcomes of their appeals.

Smith said he was pleased with Tagliabue's decision to hold the NFL responsible for producing witnesses who helped with the league's investigation.

"The most important thing is that Gregg Williams and those other guys are going to have to testify and be cross-examined," Smith said. "We'll see if their story stays the same."

Even as Tagliabue moves the process forward, a federal judge is still considering arguments by players that Tagliabue should be removed as arbitrator because he is biased in favor of the NFL. Based on the schedule laid out by Tagliabue, U.S. District Judge Ginger Berrigan could choose to rule as early as next week.

Smith said he was "not concerned" about the NFL's timeline calling for a decision before the season ends, adding, "Whatever happens, happens. I don't think I'll be surprised."

Vilma was not in the Saints' locker room while it was open to reporters.

For now, only Williams, Cerullo, Vilma, Saints assistant head coach Joe Vitt, NFL chief security officer Jeff Miller are the only scheduled witnesses.

They are scheduled to appear in a series of hearings in Washington D.C. running from Tuesday through Dec. 4. That means Vilma and Smith likely will be available at least for the Saints' next two games against San Francisco this Sunday and at Atlanta on Nov. 29. They could also play at the New York Giants on Dec. 9.

Vitt said after Wednesday's practice that he did not know anything about Tagliabue's schedule and declined comment, saying he's focused on getting ready for the 49ers.

Saints linebacker Curtis Lofton said the Saints cannot afford to be distracted by the possibility that they will lose Vilma and Smith late in the season, but he did not diminish the importance of the two players to the Saints' defense.

"These guys have been here for years and they're kind of like the foundation of this team," Lofton said. "So having those guys being able to play has mentally and physically been a boost to this defense and it's great to have those guys out there."

None of the players have served a game of their suspensions yet, though Vilma was barred from attending Saints training camp before Goodell's initial rulings were vacated during Week 1 of the regular season.

Vilma initially was suspended the entire 2012 season and Smith for four games.

The two other players punished are former Saints: Cleveland linebacker Scott Fujita, who is now on injured reserve, and free-agent defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove. Hargrove initially was suspended eight games, but that later was reduced to seven with credit given for the first five games he missed as a free agent. Fujita initially was suspended three games and that was later reduced to one game.

Facing resistance from the NFL Players Association and lawyers separately representing Vilma, who had argued that Goodell could not be objective, the commissioner removed himself as arbitrator in the bounty matter and appointed Tagliabue, his predecessor, in his place on Oct. 19.

Tagliabue noted in his most recent memo that other witnesses could be scheduled. Tagliabue also said he expects to decide by Monday whether to allow the Saints' personnel file on Cerullo to be included as evidence.

Players have argued that Cerullo was the NFL's primary source of information about the Saints' performance pool. They've also argued that Cerullo's credibility is in question because he was fired by the club after the 2009-10 season and he had accused the club of preventing him from getting a job on another NFL coaching staff.

The NFL investigation concluded that Saints players were rewarded for hits that knocked targeted opposing players out of games from 2009-2011. The league said there was evidence that the Saints placed bounties on star quarterbacks including Brett Favre, Kurt Warner and Aaron Rodgers.

Saints players and coaches have acknowledged they had a pool that paid rewards for big plays including interceptions, forced fumbles, sacks and big hits, similar to programs other teams have had across the league for generations. However, they say no one ever intended to injure an opposing player.

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Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tagliabue-expects-rule-bounties-december-164853678--nfl.html

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Flu and heart disease | Umberto Tassoni Health & Fitness Blog

The dating scene can sometimes be considered a daunting experience especially for those who be a part of it for the first time. For these kinds of persons or for more knowledgeable persons, Umberto Tassoni provides some suggestions for becoming successful. Umberto Tassoni is experienced in relationship management and offers some really useful experience into developing effective dating techniques.

Probably the most important dating techniques that provides you with success is that you should comprehend the preferences of one another. Become familiar with the passions, interest and needs of the individual you?re dating. Understanding and reacting positively to those interests and needs allows you to definitely strengthen your relationship and increase the risk of it making it through even difficult challenges.

As observed by Umberto Tassoni, people crave attention and therefore you have to incorporate this to your dating techniques. Give consideration for your partner making them feel special which you take care of them. Should you choose this, your lover will even respond similarly and give consideration to meeting your emotional needs.Flu and heart disease

Flu is a viral infection that is spread from person to person in secretions of the nose and lungs, for example when coughing and sneezing. This ailment can leave most people sick for a few days, but it can be a much more serious ordeal if someone is ?
See all stories on this topic ?

Why Having A 'Check Up' Makes No Difference To Your Health (PICTURES)

The NHS Health Check programme aims to help prevent heart disease, stroke, diabetes and kidney disease. People between the ages of 40 and 74 who have not already been diagnosed with one of the conditions are invited once every five years to have a ?
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Source: http://umbertotassoni.biz/umberto-tassoni-health-and-fitness/flu-and-heart-disease/

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5 Reasons Why Groupon Is Struggling | Personal Finance ...

When Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN) went public in November 2011, Investing Daily?s Jim Fink labeled it the worst Internet IPO of the year.

Just over 12 months later, it?s hard to argue with that call. Groupon has plummeted 88% from its IPO price of $20. Even Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), after its botched IPO, looks good compared to Groupon, with a fall of ?only? 40% since its initial offering back in May.
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Bad News Keeps on Coming for Groupon Investors
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Groupon?s latest stumble?a one-day 30% plunge to an all-time low of $2.76?came on November 9, after the company released yet another disappointing earnings report.
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In the third quarter, Groupon?s revenue rose 32% from a year ago, to $568.6 million. The company lost $3.0 million, or nil per share, compared to a loss of $54.2 million, or $0.18 a share, a year ago. Both figures missed the Street?s expectation of $0.04 a share in profits on revenue of $590 million.
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Groupon CEO Andrew Mason pointed ?continued challenges in Europe? as the main reason for the disappointing results. But that?s an oversimplification of the problems at Groupon. More worrying is the fact that its revenue growth has continued to slow as the daily deal craze fizzles.
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?In the fourth quarter of 2011, in its first earnings report as a public company, Groupon said its revenue nearly tripled,? writes the San Jose Mercury News. ?That fell to 89 percent in the first quarter of this year, 45 percent in the second quarter and 32 percent in the third.?
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What?s more, Groupon has never turned a profit, either prior to its IPO (see page 7 of its SEC registration statement) or after.
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Five Key Reasons Why Groupon Is Struggling
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Here are five other reasons why the daily deal site has fallen so hard in the past year. They also provide a good illustration of things to keep in mind when you?re deciding whether to add any new stock to your portfolio:

1. Groupon faces stiff competition: At the end of the second quarter, Groupon controlled 53% of the daily deals market in the US, down from 56% in the previous quarter, according to data from industry research firm Yipit.

The company?s biggest competitor is privately held LivingSocial, with a 22% share, followed by Amazon Local at 20%. However, it also faces a growing number of small, locally based competitors in its main markets. As well, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) has also entered the daily deals space with Google Offers. The move came after Groupon rebuffed the search giant?s effort to buy the company for $6 billion prior to the IPO.

You have to think they?re regretting that decision: Groupon?s market cap?the value of all its outstanding shares?is now just above $2 billion.

2. Groupon?s business model is easily duplicated: The reason for the heightened competition? Groupon?s business model?of sending out daily emails offering recipients deals on a wide range of products or services?is easily copied.

As a result, the company is scrambling to move beyond daily deals. To that end, it launched Groupon Goods, an e-commerce site that sells a wide range of products. This business accounted for almost all of the company?s revenue growth in the latest quarter.
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However, selling products directly gives Groupon lower profit margins than the daily deals business, under which it simply connects vendors with customers and takes a cut of the sale. The company also faces massive competition in this space, including Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN).

3. Groupon?s customers are frustrated: The appeal of the daily deal coupons is clearly wearing off for the consumer. That?s partly because the discounts often come with strings attached that make them less convenient than they seem.

Even worse for Groupon, the retailers it relies on to provide the deals are souring on the strategy. A recent Raymond James survey found that 39% of merchants who had tried Groupon promotions were unlikely to do so again in the next couple years. Reasons included overly steep commission rates and the fact that one-off deals are a lousy way to encourage repeat customers. The study also showed that 32% of the businesses had lost money on the promotion.

4. Groupon has a long record of accounting issues: The company has run afoul of the SEC on numerous occasions, including having to restate its 2011 fourth quarter earnings, as Jim Fink writes in ?Groupon?s Cooked Books: Beware IPOs With Shady Histories?:

?On March 30,?Groupon announced?that it would need to restate its fourth-quarter financial results because of a ?material weakness in its internal controls.? Specifically, its?initial reporting of fourth-quarter results?back on February 8 overstated revenue by $14.3 million, operating income by $30.0 million, net profit by $22.6 million, and earnings per share by $0.04.?
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That?s just one of the problems the company has had with overstated results. Others included two orders from the SEC to refile its registration statement in the run-up to the IPO. In the first instance, in August 2011, Groupon understated its operating losses by $120 million. The second time, the SEC ordered the company to lower its 2010 revenues by $400 million to reflect only net revenues and not revenues paid out to vendors.

5. Groupon has a turnover problem: The company has now gone through three COOs in two years. In addition, in August it was revealed that Groupon?s head of national sales, Lee Brown?who had only been with the company since December 2010?was leaving. The news came shortly after the departure of Jayna Cooke, one of the company?s leading salespeople.

Bottom line: A company with even one of these problems represents a huge risk to your investments. One with all five should be avoided at all costs.
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This article by Chad Fraser was originally published on Investing Daily.
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No positions in stocks mentioned.

Source: http://www.minyanville.com/trading-and-investing/personal-finance/articles/groupon-grpn-facebook-fb-ipo-groupon/11/21/2012/id/46036

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