sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2011
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Welcome to National #2 Pencil Day!
- A good-size tree will make about 300,000 pencils.
- Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star Spangled Banner” in pencil.
- A pencil can write in zero gravity, under water, and upside down
- Pencils were originally painted yellow because the color was associated with royalty and respect
- The #2 pencil is the most common. There is a #1, #2.5, #3 and #4. The numbers are based on hardness and darkness. That’s why most tests are taken with #2 pencils.
- John Steinbeck was an obsessive pencil user and is said to have used as many as 60 pencils a day. His novel East of Eden took more than 300 pencils to write.
- Henry David Thoreau penciled Walden Pond. After all, his father was a pencil manufacturer.
- Thomas Edison had his pencils specially made by Eagle Pencil. Each pencil was three inches long, was thicker than standard pencils and had softer graphite than was normally available.
Syracuse basketball recruit Darius Bazley takes huge leap in 2018 rankings (PS; Waters)
It might not sound like much for a high school recruit to move up 14 spots in the national rankings.
But Darius Bazley's jump in At their request, this network is being blocked from this site.'s recently updated rankings for the 2018 class is a significant move up the charts.
Bazley, a 6-foot-9 forward from Cincinnati, Ohio, committed to Syracuse in early July prior to the start of the NCAA's summer evaluation period. At the time, Bazley was ranked No. 26 by At their request, this network is being blocked from this site.. That ranking fell into place with his rankings of 32 and 27 on ESPN.com and , respectively.
After the July period ended; however, At their request, this network is being blocked from this site. moved him up to No. 12 nationally.
"It is a significant move,'' Evan Daniels, At their request, this network is being blocked from this site.'s national recruiting director, said. "A lot of people don't fully understand that the higher you get in the rankings, there's a better chance of falling than jumping up 14 spots. We moved him ahead of some really good players.''
Daniels said he had a sense before the summer began that Bazley would move up in the rankings.
"The truth is I kind of wanted to put him in that range before the July period,'' Daniels said. "I as impressed with him in the EYBL and the NBA camp.''
Bazley's 14-spot jump was the fourth-biggest increase among players in At their request, this network is being blocked from this site.'s Top 50 for the class.
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Lonnie Walker can help Miami's offense win the ACC (si.com; Marks)
It should come as no surprise to college basketball fans that freshmen have come to possess a significant portion of the star power in the sport. Just look at this year’s NBA draft, where the first upperclassman was not selected until Duke sophomore Luke Kennard with 12th pick. So while some returning players will undoubtedly have a major impact in 2017–18 season, it’s important to get to know the new faces who may come to occupy the spotlight.
With that in mind, SI.com will be introducing you to the top 25 incoming freshmen in college basketball and breaking down the impact those players could have this season. We move to the No. 16 overall recruit, Miami’s Lonnie Walker.
WHAT HE MEANS FOR MIAMI'S RECRUITING CLASS
Miami added a highly-touted shooting guard recruit last offseason in Bruce Brown; one year later, coach Jim Larrañaga is double-dipping into that pot with Walker, rated the third-best shooting guard in the class of 2017. The 6' 4", 196-pound Walker won’t be the only new Hurricane, though: joining him in Miami are diminutive point guard Chris Lykes (No. 14 at his position) and developmental big man Deng Gak. Walker is the most talented of the three and should see substantial minutes from the get-go, even for a Miami team that returns six guys from last season’s eight-man rotation.
HOW HE FITS
It’s going to take Walker some time to get into a groove for the Hurricanes, but that’s no fault of his own: He tore his right meniscus during practice earlier in July, and while he’s expected back for the team’s season-opener on Nov. 10, Larrañaga shouldn’t rush his top newcomer onto the court. Still, once he’s at full strength, Walker should start showing off his scoring prowess—his length makes him a creative finisher around the basket, and he’s an improving outside shooter, too.
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Other
Are you a real Upstate NY foodie? Try to identify these 13 regional specialties (newyorkupstate.com; Axelson)
Upstate New York is home to some very unusual and well-loved regional cuisine. Some of these dishes and foodstuffs have grown in popularity to a national level while others you will be hard pressed to find anywhere outside Upstate NY, or even outside the city where they were invented.
Take our Upstate NY food quiz, and see how many dishes you can identify just by looking at them.
