Plasma is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and gas). Heating a gas may ionize its molecules or atoms (reducing or increasing the number of electrons in them), thus turning it into a plasma, which contains charged particles: positive ions and negative electrons or ions.

The Agricultural Commissioner/Weights & Measures Department routinely conducts price verification inspections at retail locations to confirm that prices charged to consumers are the same as those posted or advertised. On a typical visit to a store, the inspector will select up to 15 items and then take them to the check stand for payment. When the items’ bar codes are scanned at the register, the price showing at the register must match what is posted on the shelf or advertised. If the prices do not match, the store will receive a notice of violation and the case may be turned over to the District Attorney’s Office or local city attorney for prosecution.

"In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king." - Desiderius Erasmus

The title Grandmaster is awarded to chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain. Once achieved, the title is held for life.

Volunteer hosts went to the airport, picked up assigned students, fed them dinner, took them to the opening lecture at the Clay Center, put them in spare bedrooms for the night, then fed them breakfast this morning and will deliver the outstanding teens to buses that convey them to the mountain retreat where they undergo a month of intensive science training and outdoor fun.

Luckily, this year, enough local families volunteered to host all the brilliant youths. In the past, the number of guest homes sometimes fell short, and some of the visitors slept on cots and sleeping bags at local churches. They're adventurous teens and don't mind this makeshift camp-in but it's better if friendly hosts give them a more personal welcome for their stay.