American Silver Eagle

The American Silver Eagle is the official silver bullion coin of the United States.

It was first released by the United States Mint on November 24, 1986. It is struck only in the one-troy ounce size, which has a nominal face value of one dollar and is guaranteed to contain one troy ounce of 99.9% pure silver. It is authorized by Title II of Public Law 99-61 (Liberty Coin Act, approved July 9, 1985) and codified as 31 U.S.C. § 5112(e)-(h). Its content, weight, and purity are certified by the United States Mint. In addition to the bullion version, the United States Mint has produced a proof version and an uncirculated version for coin collectors. The Silver Eagle has been produced at three mints: the Philadelphia Mint, the San Francisco Mint, and the West Point Mint. The American Silver Eagle bullion coin may be used to fund Individual Retirement Account investments.

The Silver Eagle coins were sold out in the first week of July 2015. The Mint said its facility in West Point, New York, continued to produce coins and it resumed sales at the end of July 2015. This was the second time the mint's silver coins had sold out in the past nine months. The Mint ran out of 2014-dated American Eagles in November 2014. In 2013, the historic drop in silver increased demand for silver coins, forcing the mint to ration silver coin sales for 18 months.

Sheldon coin grading scale

The Sheldon Coin Grading Scale is a 70-point coin grading scale used in the numismatic assessment of a coins quality. It is used by nearly all major coin grading companies, the main two being NGC and PCGS. The scale was invented by William Herbert Sheldon.

Original Sheldon Scale (1949)

In 1949 the original scale was first presented in "Dr. William H. Sheldon's Early American Cents" titled "A Quantitative Scale for condition" as a way to grade Large cents. The scale is known today as the Sheldon scale.

Adopted scale (1970s–present)

By 1953 the original Sheldon scale had become outdated. It was not until the 1970s, however, that the ANA chose to adopt the scale for use on all US coins. The scale used today is a modification of the original Sheldon scale, with added adjustments, additions, deletions, and modifications to it.

Note: Some early American coin varieties are almost always found to be weakly struck in places. This does not bring the grade of a coin down and is considered normal for early coins.

Silver

Silver is the metallic element with the atomic number 47. Its symbol is Ag, from the Latin argentum, from a PIE root reconstructed as *h₂erǵ-, "grey" or "shining". A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it possesses the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. The metal occurs naturally in its pure, free form (native silver), as an alloy with gold and other metals, and in minerals such as argentite and chlorargyrite. Most silver is produced as a byproduct of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining.

Silver has long been valued as a precious metal. More abundant than gold, silver metal has functioned in many premodern monetary systems as coinable specie, sometimes even alongside gold. Its purity is typically measured on a per-mille basis; a 94%-pure alloy is described as "0.940 fine". In addition, silver has numerous applications beyond currency, such as in solar panels, water filtration, jewelry and ornaments, high-value tableware and utensils (hence the term silverware), and also as an investment in the forms of coins and bullion. Silver is used industrially in electrical contacts and conductors, in specialized mirrors, window coatings and in catalysis of chemical reactions. Its compounds are used in photographic film and X-rays. Dilute silver nitrate solutions and other silver compounds are used as disinfectants and microbiocides (oligodynamic effect), added to bandages and wound-dressings, catheters and other medical instruments.

Goo Goo Dolls (album)

Goo Goo Dolls, also known as First Release, is the debut studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls. All of the songs are sung by bassist Robby Takac, who was originally the band's lead vocalist. It is the hardest to find of all the band's studio albums, being only an LP, out of print, and not in wide circulation to begin with. The song "I'm Addicted" was the only song from Goo Goo Dolls represented on the band's 2001 compilation album, What I Learned About Ego, Opinion, Art & Commerce. The song "Torn Apart" was also included on the compilation album Volume Two, which consisted of other album tracks, b-sides and rarities.

The album was recorded in three days during the winter of 1986, on a $750 budget at Trackmaster's Studio in Buffalo. The band admitted in their 1999 VH1 Behind the Music special that the album was recorded under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Rzeznik stated "[We had] a lot of beer, a lot of truck stop speed, a lot of pot...[I] don't remember a lot of it."

Mr Little Jeans

Monica Birkenes, better known by her stage name Mr Little Jeans (also stylized Mr. Little Jeans), is a Norwegian singer-songwriter living in Los Angeles, CA. She has released one studio album, ''Pocketknife'' (2014).

The pseudonym Mr Little Jeans is inspired by Kumar Pallana’s character in Wes Anderson’s film “Rushmore.”

Early life

Birkenes grew up in rural Grimstad, Norway, the daughter of a ship-builder and secretary. In her youth she performed in town plays and musical events, as well as church choirs and retirement homes. At age 18 she moved to London to study drama while waitressing to make ends meet.

Music career

2010–present: Pocketknife

After signing to independent label Neon Gold, Birkenes released her first single "Rescue Song" in 2010. The Guardian compared her sound at the time to Lykke Li, Robyn, and Annie. Later that year she put out her first EP entitled "Angel EP." Birkenes grew in popularity with her 2011 cover of Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs." She often collaborates with Los Angeles producer Tim Anderson, who was instrumental in creating her debut album, Pocketknife. The record was released on Harvest Records on March 25, 2014.