2007 Homicide Report: An Analysis of Homicides in Oakland from January through December, 2007

In past years Urban Strategies Council has produced quarterly or biannual reports on homicides in Oakland using detailed data provided by the Oakland Police Department's Homicide Section. Due to staffing shortages, the Oakland police Department is no longer able to provide this detailed data to the Council. As a result the 2007 Homicide Report uses data gleaned from public sources and some aggregated tables from the OPD's official report. From these data we have created this report on the characteristics of the 127 homicides that occurred in Oakland from January 1 through December 31, 2007. This report presents annual data from 2007 and shows how characteristics of homicides in Oakland changed from 2006 to 2007 and how 2007 homicides compare with the five -- year averages from 2003-2007.This report summarizes available information such as victim demographic characteristics (suspect details are less complete and less precise), locations and times of the incidents. Comparing 2007 data to a five-year average of homicides helps to provide a context for understanding whether there are emerging patterns that differ substantially from the patterns in prior years.This year sees the inclusion of some additional types of data relating to the nature of the homicides taking place in Oakland such as premises and types of weapons involved

A Snowflake--An Observation

With my face pressed against the cool pane of the window, I watched the snow drifting slowly past. Then my eye was caught by a particularly beautiful flake, lodged on the sill. It was perfectly symmetrical in shape, looking like a delicate white butterfly poised for flight, or a lacy, imaginative valentine, left over from that saint s name-day

Heat-shrinkable jacket holds fluid in contact with tensile test specimen

Heat-shrinkable plastic tubing can be quickly sealed around a metal tensile test specimen and used as a jacket for any compatible liquid

At the Limits of Visibility: Noritaka Minami’s Past Won’t Pass (Catalog #52)

A brief essay about the work Past Won't Pass (Catalog #52) by artist Noritaka Minami

African American Male Achievement Initiative: A Closer Look At Suspensions Of African American Males In OUSD

This report examines the data, literature, and policy around suspensions of African American male students to uncover and better understand the disparities between this group and all other ethnic and gender groups. This report analyzes one year of suspension data from the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD, 2010-11), looking at suspensions by demographics, grade level, school level, and types of offenses

April

From tall trees, The cool moisture rushes To the ground..

The mechanical behavior of cross-rolled beryllium sheet

In response to the failure of a conical section of the Insat C satellite during certification testing, the use of beryllium for payload structures, particularly in sheet product form, is being reevaluated. A test program was initiated to study the tensile, shear, and out-of-plane failure modes of beryllium cross-rolled sheet and to apply data to the development of an appropriate failure criterion. Tensile test results indicated that sanding the surface of beryllium sheet has no significant effect on yield strength but can produce a profound reduction in ultimate strength and results obtained by finite element analysis. Critical examination of these test results may contribute to the modification of a JSC policy for the use of beryllium in orbiter and payload structures

2006 Homicide Report: An Analysis of Homicides in Oakland from January through December, 2006

Urban Strategies Council has produced quarterly reports on homicides in Oakland throughout 2006. Through the cooperation of the Oakland Police Department Homicide Section, we have obtained detailed information on the homicides occurring during 2006. From these data we have created this report on the characteristics of the 148 homicides that occurred in Oakland from January 1 through December 31, 2006. This report presents annual data from 2006 and shows how characteristics of homicides in Oakland changed from 2005 to 2006 and how 2006 homicides compare with the five -- year averages from 2001-2005.This report summarizes available information such as victim and/or suspect demographic characteristics, locations and times of the incidents. Comparing 2006 data to a five-year average of homicides helps to provide a context for understanding whether there are emerging patterns that differ substantially from the patterns in prior years

African American Male Achievement Initiative: A Deeper Look At African American Males In OUSD

This report provides further insights into the status of African American boys in Oakland Unified School Distric (OUSD) and aims to reverse the academic and social inequities they face in seven key areas: the achievement gap, graduation rates, literacy, suspensions, attendance, middle school holding power, and juvenile detention. A framework of three levels of well-being (on course, at risk of falling off course, and off course) was used to understand how African American male students are faring in these areas