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Hey guys, I saw a really nice idea on another blog and decided to give it a go (credits for the idea go to this blog: http://benlowden.wordpress.com/2013/03/28/1-week-challenge/ ). What is this idea you ask? Make a game in a week. This seemed like a great challenge to me, although I have a lot to do in terms of work round about now, so I decided to make it a month-long challenge for me to compensate. I will start the challenge at the beginning of April, and I will try to make a working game by the end of the month. Any ideas will be welcomed, and if your idea is used by me in the final product, your name will be featured in the credits. I will try my best to get a working game finished by the end of the month, and I hope you will help and support me in this, especially if you can give me any good ideas on what genre the game should be, what kind of characters should be on it, and what general direction to take the game in.
I will also be properly starting development on my main game project extremely soon, it will be a 3D platformer/RPG blend created using the Unity game engine, featuring a mix of open environments and more enclosed levels, as well as fun minigames and an intuitive battle system. My thoughts are for a Crash Bandicoot-like platformer, but with a rich ecosystem of creatures to battle, with a more RPG-like feel to fighting enemies, and colourful and varied environments to engross the player into the game world. The game will feature one main open hub world to act as a tutorial and a fun area to play around in, then lots of worlds connecting from it, with increasing difficulty as you progress and unlock new levels. You will have to find some sort of collectibles in order to progress to the next level, and fight bosses to reach new worlds. I hope you look forward to playing it, I will periodically update you on its progress, and any ideas are welcome and worthy of mention in the game's credits. Thanks for reading!


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RA Research Initiative
Removing the Guesswork
Today, Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) affects 1.5 million people in the U.S. – most of them women. The disease can be highly unpredictable, with extreme inflammation, rapid progression and joint degradation in one patient while causing limited inflammation and a small degree of joint deterioration in another. Such variation makes RA difficult to treat and means the medication and dosage that treats one patient's RA may prove toxic or ineffective for another. Safe and effective treatment depends on a range of factors, from an individual's physiology to her environment and lifestyle.
Thanks to the Arthritis Foundation's research program in RA, Foundation-funded RA research now focuses on discovering and developing tools that will allow physicians to implement personalized treatment plans for individuals with RA.
More specifically, the goals of the Foundation's RA research program include:
• Identifying reliable genetic and environmental factors that may predict who gets RA;
• Determining which drugs are most effective for specific patients based on how long they've had the disease, its progression, genetics, etc.;
• Developing and validating ways to predict disease outcome, measure response to treatment, and identify specific subsets of people with RA
• Developing strategies and treatments that will slow progression and inhibit long-term effects of the disease.
To help achieve these goals, the Foundation launched the Arthritis Internet Registry (AIR) as a cornerstone of its Rheumatoid Arthritis Flagship Research Initiative.
Large clinical databases, such as AIR, where comprehensive patient data is recorded will provide researchers with a basis for analyzing similarities and differences between patients and their responses to specific treatments. Through this initiative, AIR will establish a solid database of information to guide researchers to newer and safer drug therapies for arthritis patients. We will also help physicians determine the best course of personalized care for every RA patient from the outset of their treatment. Ultimately, we will give patients and their families confidence in the safety and efficacy of treatments that may not only stop the progress of their disease, but also restore their quality of life.
To build on the learnings that patient registries can provide, the Arthritis Foundation has also committed in 2012 more than $1.6 million in research grants to study RA. We believe that through our investment in AIR and RA research, we will reach a significant milestone by the year 2020, when physicians will be able to rely on genetic profiles of each patient to provide specifically tailored, individualized treatment.
How You Can Help
Unless we reverse the trend, an estimated 67 million Americans will have arthritis by the year 2030. To curtail these numbers and achieve our research goals, the Arthritis Foundation needs your help. To learn more about how you can give click here.

subset: commoncrawl


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Selenium WebDriver
The biggest change in Selenium recently has been the inclusion of the WebDriver API. Driving a browser natively as a user would either locally or on a remote machine using the Selenium Server it marks a leap forward in terms of browser automation.
Selenium WebDriver fits in the same role as RC did, and has incorporated the original 1.x bindings. It refers to both the language bindings and the implementations of the individual browser controlling code. This is commonly referred to as just "WebDriver" or sometimes as Selenium 2.Selenium 1.0 + WebDriver = Selenium 2.0
- WebDriver is designed in a simpler and more concise programming interface along with addressing some limitations in the Selenium-RC API.
- WebDriver is a compact Object Oriented API when compared to Selenium1.0
- It drives the browser much more effectively and overcomes the limitations of Selenium 1.x which affected our functional test coverage, like the file upload or download, pop-ups and dialogs barrier
- WebDriver overcomes the limitation of Selenium RC's Single Host origin policy
WebDriver is the name of the key interface against which tests should be written in Java, the implementing classes one should use are listed as below:
ChromeDriver, EventFiringWebDriver, FirefoxDriver, HtmlUnitDriver, InternetExplorerDriver, PhantomJSDriver, RemoteWebDriver, SafariDriver
For More information on Selenium WebDriver, please see the documentation and Remote Control to WebDriver Migration Notes.


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Join Ray Villalobos for an in-depth discussion in this video Learning responsive class updates, part of Bootstrap 3 New Features and Migration.
One of the cool features of the old Bootstrap was the ability to mark content…so that it only appeared in certain devices.…That remains in the new version, but the class names have changed.…And that's really important because you'll have to modify all your classes if you upgrade.…So instead of using classes like visible phone, visible tablet, visible desktop,…hidden phone, etc., you're now using classes called visible-sm for small,…visible-md for medium, and visible-lg for large.…Bootstrap 3 also adds classes for print design, and that's really cool, because it…will let you decide whether certain elements in your layout will show up only…when printed. So, although this is not a huge change,…it's super important and deserves separate mention, because it's something that…you'll have to replace or adapt to in your older layouts.…
- Installing Bootstrap 3
- Using the new grid systems
- Working with typography
- Understanding the responsive class updates
- Using panels and list groups
- Migrating from Bootstrap 2.3 to Bootstrap 3.0


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London Gay Tours offers you to take a morning cycle ride in Central London. Experienced tour guides have expert knowledge of the city. They will safely guide you around the city on cycle paths, parks and quieter streets, telling you the history of the city and the sights as the tour unfolds.
We Saddle up at our cycle hire centre at Gabriel's Wharf located on the South side of the river near Waterloo station. After choosing a bike, our guide will escort you along the riverside, down side roads and alley ways though central London. We'll stop along the way to admire the amazing engineering achievement of the London Eye, one of the largest observation wheels in the world, and then just under the bridge, the story of Big Ben and The Houses of Parliament, with plenty of time for photos.
From the courtyard of Westminster School you can admire the belfry of Westminster Abbey, then over to St. James' Park. The reason for starting early is to meet up with the (not to be missed) pomp and pageantry associated with the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace.
Heading back to Central London, we walk though Trafalgar Square with Lord Nelson looking down from his pedestal, then Leicester Square, skirting Chinatown, followed by Covent Garden. Taking a break and watching some street theatre on offer in the market piazza we then get back on the bikes, and ride though London's legal district and over to the colourful Leather Lane Market and Smithfield Market, London's recently redeveloped meat market.. with some horrible history! Then over to Sir Christopher Wren's amazing St Paul's Cathedral.
With the river in sight, we cross south on the famous Wobbly Bridge past the Tate Modern Art Gallery, and you will now feel that you have a real orientation of London.
- Southbank
- The National Theatre
- The London Eye
- Houses of Parliament
- Big Ben
- Lambeth Palace
- Westminster Abbey and School yard
- St James' Park
- Buckingham Palace
- The Changing of the Guard (on days when Scheduled)
- The Mall
- Admiralty Arch
- Trafalgar Square
- Leicester Square
- Chinatown
- Covent Garden
- Lincoln's Inn
- Leather Lane Market
- Smithfield Market
- The Old Bailey
- Paternoster Square
- Temple Bar Gate
- St Paul's Cathedral
- 3 hours
- Bike rental
- Helmet
- Spending money
- Comfortable shoes
- Money for drink stops
- English
- Dutch
- French
- Italian
- Spanish
- Portuguese
- German
- Japanese
For cancellation you may write an email indicating the reference of your booking and your wish to cancel it to email@example.com
All cancellations may have a charge according to when you tell us your wish to cancel your booking.
This service has these Cancellation Fees,
- Cancellations up to 7 days before the services: No Cancellation Fee.
- Cancellations between 7 and 2 days before the services: Cancellation Fee of 20% of cost of your booking.
- Cancellations within 2 days before the service or No Show: Cancellation Fee of 100% of cost of your booking.
Any banking fees because of returns will be paid by customers.
For changes you may write an email indicating the reference of your booking and your requested changes to firstname.lastname@example.com
We can not guarantee any change until we have provider's confirmation. Some changes may have an additional cost.
Meeting Point
Adults – £26/pp
Kids (10-15 yrs) – £20/pp
Minimun: 4 persons
On Request
Pictures of Tour
Queen's Guard
London Eye
St Paul's Cathedral
The Mall
Westminster Abbey
Fill in this form with your prefered date and hour for the tour. We can not guarantee this availability but we will do as much as we can to achieve it.


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The evergreen romance that blooms with elegance is reflected in the vintage wedding dresses for bride. Inspired by the timeless charm of old Hollywood darlings, the modern bride's demure appearance in a vintage bridal dress will come with a slight alluring appeal.
Whether it's in the form of long sleeve wedding dresses or tea length wedding dresses, the glimmering opulence of vintage style will always remain in fashion.
Ravishing Vintage Wedding Dress with Bow
A half-backless dress is flaunting and framed the bride's slender back with romantic floral lace strapped from each side of the shoulder.
The figure hugging silhouette is adorned with a pretty bow, just right above the buttons that lead to a liquefying ornament lace, sparkling with silver threads.
Luxurious Vintage Wedding Dress
The luxurious feel is exuding heavily from the silver embroidered lace over pristine white satin.
A figure-hugging silhouette that flares away into a soft swaying skirt with the train is glimmering with sparkling sheen. The open back is best suited for brides with the slender back.
Champagne Vintage Wedding Dress
The wedding dress in champagne color, soft flowing fabric with lace details and loose fitting design is giving a nod to the past.
The romantic and feminine vibe from chiffon fabrics is embodied in the sheath silhouette with ruffled sleeves and satin bows that amplify the vintage feel.
Flowing Vintage Wedding Dress
Multiple layers of ivory chiffon sway with the bride's steps. The romantic strapless lace bodice is perfect to complement brides with slender arms and shoulder.
An accent of the champagne satin belt, with sparkling beads embellishment, adorns the dress and shape the silhouette.
Vintage Wedding Dress with Silhouette Neck
With multiple layers of perforated floral textured fabric, a versatile A-line silhouette appears extraordinarily gorgeous with a hint of timeless charm.
The illusion neckline reveals an alluring sight from the floral details.
Glamorous Vintage Wedding Dress
Sparkling beads, glimmering sequins, and slightly faded color are the iconic elements of the glamorous vintage era.
The exquisite sweetheart neckline is adorned with cascading strands of shimmering beads on the shoulder. While the heavily beaded lace material is showcasing an opulence impression.
Sheath Vintage Wedding Dress
Soft sheer lace with floral delicate floral details over satin is bringing a nostalgic glam to the wedding aisle.
The pretty cape sleeve with scalloped edges and pretty ribbons on the side beautifully adorned the sheath silhouette. Top off the overall look with a short, wavy pin-up hairstyle.
A-line Vintage Wedding Dress
As a versatile option, the A-line silhouette is flattering to all body shapes – adjust the neckline and sleeve accordingly to enhance the overall look.
A vintage dress with deep V-neck and cap sleeves is looking feminine and romantic with vintage lace material. The sparkling belt beautifully accentuates the silhouette as the skirt starts to flare away from the body.
Dramatic Vintage Wedding Dresses
The dramatic approach to the A-line silhouette is infusing a hint of timeless vintage elegance.
A tight-fitting bodice with slim cap sleeve is glimmering with silver embroideries and sparkling beads. The decoratively embellished belt hugs the waist as the skirt seductively flows to the floor.
Geometric Vintage Wedding Dress
Embracing the excitement of vintage geometric pattern, the dress is boasting a subtle white on white stripes on the strapless bodice.
Slightly cinched at the waist, the slightly draped skirt then flares with a subtle chic chevron pattern as a nod to the exciting past.


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Paid Downloads History: Hollywood
After years in which paid downloads saw little traction, Hollywood is focused on ad-supported streaming in '08.
Top showbiz executives largely agreed on that point both during a panel sponsored by Variety and as reflected in the new initiatives they unveiled on the first day of International CES, here.
Execs overseeing digital distribution for ABC Disney TV, Fox, Warner Bros. and Paramount joined Variety president/publisher Charlie Koones for the panel. Most of the talk about 2008 focused on high-quality on-demand streaming, from Paramount's "Jackass 2.5" to Fox and NBC's Hulu.com to ABC's media player.
"People online want to watch for free, because they can get content for free via piracy," said Fox digital media president Dan Fawcett. "Downloading to own and keep on a PC seems to be losing out. People like to watch on an impulse."
Approach was mirrored in Sony Pictures TV's Monday morning announcement that it will start distributing its Minisode Network, which shrinks old TV shows to five minutes for the Web, on Google-owned YouTube. Deal makes Sony the only major Hollywood entertainment company distributing more than short promotional clips on YouTube, as most have been bypassing it in distribution deals with other sites due to concerns over piracy.
Sony, however, will put its 21 Minisode channels, including new entrants "NewsRadio" and "Married With Children," on YouTube, where it will get a cut of revenue from the Netco's ads, which are overlaid on the bottom of videos.
At an hour-long showcase of its content on the opening day of the show, Sony Pictures president Steve Mosko noted that Sony engaged Nielsen to do an original research project on the total reach of its on-air and digital media offerings. The press event, which featured appearances by Jerry Seinfeld, Alex Trebek, Vanna White and Tony Bennett, was the only one at CES put on by a studio.
At the Variety panel, execs said that while they now have the technology to distribute their content in a variety of ways online and via mobile, they're still trying to figure out the most effective ways to monetize it. ABC-Disney TV digital media exec VP Albert Cheng said his network still hasn't been able to sell all of the ad inventory that its content online is generating.
"The inflow of revenue isn't tracking demand yet," he told the audience. "We haven't caught up yet."
While most of the focus was on ad-supported content, panelists all agreed that download-to-own, particularly through Apple's iTunes, is a net positive for their companies. That may become even more important since Apple unveils a movie rental service via iTunes at MacWorld a week after CES (TWICE, Jan. 21, p. 1).
While all agreed that digital media revenue won't match income from traditional distribution in the foreseeable future, they were quick to react to an audience member's question about when they would start making money from their businesses.
"There is revenue being created today," said Paramount digital president Tom Lesinski. "It's not a lot, but we're not losing money."
Ben Fritz is a reporter for Variety, published by Reed Business Information and a sister publication of TWICE.


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Why does being bad feel so good? Pride, envy, greed, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth: It might sound like just one more episode of The Real Housewives of New Jersey, but this enduring formulation of the worst of human failures has inspired great art for thousands of years. In the 14th century Dante depicted ghoulish evildoers suffering for eternity in his masterpiece, The Divine Comedy. Medieval muralists put the fear of God into churchgoers with lurid scenarios of demons and devils. More recently George Balanchine choreographed their dance.
Today these transgressions are inspiring great science, too. New research is explaining where these behaviors come from and helping us understand why we continue to engage in them—and often celebrate them—even as we declare them to be evil. Techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which highlights metabolically active areas of the brain, now allow neuroscientists to probe the biology behind bad intentions.
The most enjoyable sins engage the brain's reward circuitry, including evolutionarily ancient regions such as the nucleus accumbens and hypothalamus; located deep in the brain, they provide us such fundamental feelings as pain, pleasure, reward, and punishment. More disagreeable forms of sin such as wrath and envy enlist the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC). This area, buried in the front of the brain, is often called the brain's "conflict detector," coming online when you are confronted with contradictory information, or even simply when you feel pain. The more social sins (pride, envy, lust, wrath) recruit the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), brain terrain just behind the forehead, which helps shape the awareness of self.
No understanding of temptation is complete without considering restraint, and neuroscience has begun to illuminate this process as well. As we struggle to resist, inhibitory cognitive control networks involving the front of the brain activate to squelch the impulse by tempering its appeal. Meanwhile, research suggests that regions such as the caudate—partly responsible for body movement and coordination—suppress the physical impulse. It seems to be the same whether you feel a spark of lechery, a surge of jealousy, or the sudden desire to pop somebody in the mouth: The two sides battle it out, the devilish reward system versus the angelic brain regions that hold us in check.
It might be too strong to claim that evolution has wired us for sin, but excessive indulgence in lust or greed could certainly put you ahead of your competitors. "Many of these sins you could think of as virtues taken to the extreme," says Adam Safron, a research consultant at Northwestern University whose neuroimaging studies focus on sexual behavior. "From the perspective of natural selection, you want the organism to eat, to procreate, so you make them rewarding. But there's a potential for that process to go beyond the bounds."
There is no sin center in the brain, no single node of fiendishness that we might be able to shut down with drugs or electrodes. With the advent of modern imaging techniques that peer into the brain as it functions, though, we at least gain some perspective on our bad habits. At the same time, we can indulge in another gratifying pastime: As other people misbehave, we can sit back and watch.
LUSTIn the annals of sin, weaknesses of the flesh—lust, gluttony, sloth—are considered second-tier offenses, less odious than the "spiritual" sins of envy and pride. That's good news for us, since these yearnings are notoriously difficult to suppress.
When it comes to lust, neuroimaging confirms that the prurient urge is all-encompassing. Watching pornography calls upon brain regions associated with reward, sensory interpretation, and visual processing. It enlists the amygdala and the hypothalamus, which deal with emotional information; it also stimulates the reward-processing ventral striatum, probably due to the satisfying nature of watching erotic stimuli. All said, the most notable thing about lust is that it sets nearly the whole brain buzzing, Safron says.
These responses are so unique and distinctive that, in the context of an experiment, it is possible to determine whether a man is aroused just by looking at an fMRI brain scan. "These are huge effects," Safron says. "You're looking at the difference between something that elicits intense desire and something that does not." (Women show a less spectacular response, Safron says, and it is unclear exactly why.)
If lechery is all-consuming, how do we ever manage to control it? As with other powerful impulses, we try to shut down arousal by calling upon the right superior frontal gyrus and right anterior cingulate gyrus, according to research led by Mario Beauregard of the University of Montreal. He and others propose that these brain areas form a conscious self-regulatory system. This network provides us with the evolutionarily unprecedented ability to control our own neural processing—a feat achieved by no other creature.
GLUTTONYToday it is difficult to regard overeating as a sin, considering the overwhelming evidence that physiology plays a more powerful role than morals in appetite and indulgence.
Physician Gene-Jack Wang of Brookhaven National Laboratory has studied the brains of overeaters since 1999, when he and colleague Nora Volkow originally observed that obesity and drug addiction alter the same brain circuits. These pathways, which rely on the neurotransmitter dopamine, are often referred to simplistically as the "reward system" but are also involved in motivation, attention, decision making, and other complex functions. In their studies, Wang and Volkow found that both drug addicts and obese people are usually less sensitive to dopamine's rewarding effects. Being relatively numb to the pleasure and motivation signal may make them more likely to chase after a stronger thrill: more food or a bump of cocaine. Excessive stimulation further desensitizes dopaminergic neurons, and the compulsion snowballs.
In some of his experiments, Wang asks his volunteers to come hungry. He then torments them, asking them to describe their favorite food in loving detail while he heats it up in a nearby microwave so that the aroma wafts through the room. When these miserable souls go into a positron-emission tomography (PET) scanner, Wang sees the motivation regions of their brains go wild. Parts of the orbital frontal cortex, which is implicated in decision making, also light up.
In the brains of obese people, the regions that regulate sensory information from the mouth and tongue are more active, suggesting that they may experience the sensations of eating differently. While sensory processing is elevated in many of these subjects, other research shows that their reward sensitivity is lower. The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) and other areas involved in inhibitory control are underactive; the heavier the person, the lower the activity there. "Overeating downregulates your inhibition control," Wang says.
For the gluttonous, neuroscience offers moral absolution. After all, Saint Thomas Aquinas asserted that a sin must always be voluntary, or else it is not really a sin. "Our brain evolved for us to eat in excess, in order to survive," Wang says. "This kind of excess is built into the brain."
Mere laziness does not seem to qualify as a truly deadly sin. It helps to know that this moral failing was originally conceived of as acedia, an outmoded term that conveys both alienation and tedium, tinged with self-contempt. Acedia afflicted jaded monks who had grown weary of the cloistered life. Their sin was turning away from their moral obligations and toward selfish pursuits—a monastic form of ennui.
Today, paralyzing lassitude is often seen as a symptom of disease rather than of turpitude. Apathy is a classic sign of frontotemporal dementia. In this neurodegenerative disorder, the frontal lobes of the brain are slowly eaten away, causing social and mood changes as well as cognitive decline. Patients with such dementia often become increasingly withdrawn.
Sadness and listlessness are also hallmarks of major depression. With frontotemporal dementia the symptoms are caused by dead and dying cells; in depression the root cause is still unknown. Interestingly, the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex has an unusual pattern of activation in both conditions. Related to its ability to inhibit impulses, this region has a role in sustaining attention over the long haul, which is necessary for motivation. Abnormal function in the dlPFC might be connected to the lethargy associated with both conditions. Conversely, activity in this area may keep a lid on negative emotions; in some studies, depression lifted with stimulation of the dlPFC.
Early theologians saw pride as the fundamental sin—the "queen of them all," according to Pope Gregory the Great, who codified the list of seven deadly sins in the sixth century. Indeed, psychologists say that arrogance comes naturally in Western society. Most of us perceive ourselves as slightly smarter, funnier, more talented, and better-looking than average. These rose-colored glasses are apparently important to mental health, the psychological immune system that protects us from despair. "Those who see themselves as they truly are—not so funny, a bad driver, overweight—have a greater chance of being diagnosed with clinical depression," says Julian Paul Keenan, director of the cognitive neuroimaging laboratory and professor of psychology at Montclair State University in New Jersey.
For most of us, it takes less mental energy to puff ourselves up than to think critically about our own abilities. In one recent neuroimaging study by Hidehiko Takahashi of the National Institute of Radiological Sciences in Japan, volunteers who imagined themselves winning a prize or trouncing an opponent showed less activation in brain regions associated with introspection and self-conscious thought than people induced to feel negative emotions such as embarrassment. We accept positive feedback about ourselves readily, Takahashi says: "Compared with guilt or embarrassment, pride might be processed more automatically."
Pride gets its swagger from the self-related processing of the mPFC, which Keenan calls "a very interesting area of the brain, involved in all these wonderful human characteristics, from planning to abstract thinking to self-awareness." Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), in which a magnetic field applied to the scalp temporarily scrambles the signal in small areas of the brain, he was able to briefly shut off the mPFC in volunteers. With TMS switched on, his subjects' normal, healthy arrogance melted away. "They saw themselves as they really were, without glossing over negative characteristics," he says.
Righteous humility has traditionally been depicted as the virtue that opposes pride, but the work of Keenan and others calls that into question. He is using TMS to disrupt deliberate self-deprecation—the type of unctuous, ingratiating behavior that seems humble but is actually arrogance in disguise. Patterns of brain activation during self-deprecation are fundamentally the same as those during self-deceptive pride, Keenan is finding. Both are forms of one-upmanship. "They're in the same location and seem to serve the same purpose: putting oneself ahead in society," he says.
Despite the enormous pool of potential research subjects, greed has not yet been systematically investigated in brain research. However, neuroscience does offer insight into a related phenomenon, the indignant outrage of the cheated.
Our hatred of unfairness runs deep, even trumping rational self-interest. In the lab, researchers frequently use the "ultimatum game" to test our responses to injustice. One of two partners is given a sum of money and told that he must offer some amount of his own choosing to his partner. If the partner rejects the offer, neither gets to keep any of the money. On a rational basis, the receiving partner should accept any nonzero offer, since getting some money is always better than getting none. But people's sense of violation at unfairness is so strong that they reject offers of 20 percent or less about half the time.
It makes sense that we are so sensitive to being cheated, notes Matthew Lieberman, a professor of psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles. "Mammalian survival depends on social bonds, and fairness is a really important social cue," he says. Inequitable treatment might be an important sign that we are not valued by the group, he says, so we had better pay attention.
In response to unfair offers, the brain activates the pain detection process that takes place in the multitasking dACC. Interestingly, it also engages the bilateral anterior insula, an area implicated in negative emotions such as anger, disgust, and social rejection. The picture that emerges from fMRI is that of a brain weighing an emotional response (the urge to punish the guy who cheated you) against a logical response (the appeal of the cash).
When Lieberman increased the money being offered, he found that accepting a share that was larger but still unfair—say, $8 out of $23—was linked not with reward circuitry but with increased activity in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and downregulation of the anterior insula, changes often seen during the regulation of negative feelings. People seemed to be suppressing their indignant reaction in order to accept a reward that was inequitable but appealing. Similarly, getting a fair offer—even if it was small in absolute terms—activated regions in the brain such as the ventral striatum and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex that are involved in automatic and intuitive reward processing. Justice apparently feels good.
The sin of pride turned on its head, envy is the most social of the moral failures, sparked by the excruciating awareness of someone else's supreme talent, stunning looks, or extremely expensive car. For that reason, it is also the least fun of the deadly sins; feeling jealous provides no dirty thrill.
Only one imaging study (conducted by Takahashi's group in Japan) has probed the neural basis of envy. Volunteers in fMRI machines were asked to read three scenarios. In the first, "student A" was portrayed as similar to, but better than, the volunteer in every respect. "Student B" was depicted as equally successful but very different from the subject, and "student C" sounded pretty much like a loser. Reading about the awe-inspiring student A activated the volunteers' conflict-detecting dACC brain region, perhaps responding to the gap between the default setting of self-aggrandizing pride and the ugly truth of someone else's triumphs. This same region is enlisted when feeling pain, suggesting to Takahashi that envy is a kind of "social pain in the self."
On the other hand, indulging in schadenfreude—the delight in someone else's downfall—can be downright blissful. Aquinas termed this "morose delectation" and condemned it as a failure to resist a passion. Indeed, Takahashi found that rejoicing in a rival's defeat brings pleasure just as surely as envy does pain. In the second phase of his study, volunteers read about student A's downfall, causing the ventral striatum to light up. The striatum is part of the so-called reward system, which can be activated by such pleasures as money, food, or sex, Takahashi says. "Schadenfreude is a social reward." The stronger the dACC activation in the first study, the stronger the striatum response in the second.
It may not have been the original sin, but rage is certainly primordial: You would think that lust and gluttony would predate any emotion, but much of the brain circuitry active during anger is very basic and very fast. In humans, anger enlists the conflict-detecting dACC, which immediately alerts other regions of the brain to pay attention. The more upset you get, the more it activates, found Tom Denson, a psychologist at the University of New South Wales in Australia. In people with short fuses, this part of the brain seems to be primed to feel provocation and personal slights, Denson says.
Some of us are more easily enraged than others, but few are able to stifle rage completely. Instead we may convert overt hostility into angry brooding. To investigate the difference between short fusers and brooders, Denson antagonized his lab volunteers, insulting them while he scanned their brains. "Within seconds you see differences," Denson says. The medial prefrontal cortex, associated with self-awareness and emotional regulation, quickly lit up in angry brooders. So did the hippocampus, involved in memory. As they fume, people repeatedly relive the event in their minds. Denson found that the degree of hippocampal activation predicted how much people tended to ruminate.
Probing the underpinnings of vengeful behavior, a German group led by neuropsychologist Ulrike Krämer allowed people who had been provoked during an experiment to punish their antagonist with a blast of extremely annoying noise. While the subjects pondered how loud to set the volume, the dorsal striatum, part of the brain's reward circuitry, lit up at the prospect of retaliation. "We have this primitive brain that says, 'Do it! Do it!'" Denson says. Similarly, people asked to imagine themselves engaging in aggressive behavior actively suppress activity in the prefrontal cortex, where social information is processed. By deliberately inhibiting our natural social response, we make ourselves detached enough to strike out.
Historically, moralists have not paid much heed to the findings of science, and it is safe to say that all the brain-scans in the world probably will not persuade modern theologians to recalculate the wages of sin. But they might want to pay heed to one recent finding from modern neuroimaging: It turns out that acting virtuously does not really require a hair shirt. In fact, research suggests it feels pretty good.
Jordan Grafman recently found that virtue literally is its own reward. Altruistic behavior sends reward-related brain systems into a pleasurable tizzy—even more so than the prospect of self-interested gain. "The big punch line is that all things being equal, your reward system fires off a lot more when you're giving than when you're taking," says Grafman, who is chief of the cognitive neuroscience section at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Call it the dirty little secret about being good: It might be even more fun than being wicked.
Discover Magazine


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Winter 2017 64-Hour Health Care Interpreter (HCI) Training
Student Page
thank you for being a part of our training program! you were a wonderful class. best wishes in your pursuit of professional interpreting! If you ever need anything, just call or email us at firstname.lastname@example.com / 503-893-9660.
also, consider enrolling in one of continuing education or exam prep courses, more info below:
the spring class is now open for registration: www.ohcia.org/2017spring
News for interpreter skill building, Saturday, march 11th:
Things to Know:
- If you would like, bring food for the potluck! Please arrive by 8 AM to set up, and bring food finger that can stay at room temperature.
- The job fair will be happening during lunch.
- We will be filming a promotional video for the film throughout the day.
- We will be in the 1st floor auditorium the remainder of the course! Expect a better acoustic experience.
- Arrive by 8:10 AM to check in (especially if you need to pay). Students showing up late may be turned away.
- Dr. Juan Gutierrez Sanin from the National Institute for Coordinated Healthcare will be instructing.
- Scroll below for PowerPoints and handouts.
- If you haven't paid yet, bring a debit or credit card.
- Bring a lunch, or $$ for the OHSU cafeteria (ten minute walk).
- Plan to stay until 5:30 PM.
- No coffee will be provided this module (please make time to pick up some beforehand). A limited amount of pastries will be provided.
- Get ready for an exciting class!
Class Materials
Toc Soneoulay-Gillespie's Email: email@example.com
interpreter volunteer opportunities
Clackamas Volunteers in Medicine (The Founder's Clinic) - Oregon City
Dayna Velasco - 503-722-4400 - firstname.lastname@example.com
OHSU - Portland
503-418-5376 - email@example.com
Southwest Community Health Center
Cecily Peterson - 503-977-0733 - firstname.lastname@example.com
Voz Workers' Rights Education Project
Celestina Nuñez - 503-233-6787 - email@example.com
Wallace Medical Concern
Court Interpreter certification information
General Information from the Oregon Judicial Department
Flow Chart of Process for Becoming an Oregon Certified Court Interpreter
National Council on Interpreting in Health Care Ethics
National Council on Interpreting in Health Care Standards
International Medical Interpreters Association Standards
California Healthcare Interpreting Association Standards
Office of Equity and Inclusion Contact Information
General Email: email@example.com
Kweku Wilson - HCI Learning Collaborative Coordinator
certification/qualification materials
Quick Guide to Oral Language Proficiency
CCHI National Exam Reference Sheet
NBCMI National Exam Reference Sheet
Comparison of National Exams Reference Sheet
CCHI Medical Glossaries (your email sign up is required)
English-Spanish Medical Terminology Glossary
insurance for interpreters
These are some links to insurance options:
interpreter agencies in Oregon
Below is a list of agencies. Each agency will have its own standards and requirements for working with them. This is not a complete list, so there may be some agency names missing.
Certified Languages International
Evergreen Interpreting & Translating Services
Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization (IRCO)
Molano Multicultural Communication
Oregon Certified Interpreter's Network


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Peggy Bourke (B.S. '71, M.Ed. '75 Reading) has created decks of Numbers Are Fun! cards for pre-K, kindergarten, and first grade students, with math activities so that parents, grandparents, baby-sitters, and siblings can have fun "mathing" as well as reading with kids. There are 52 cards in a deck and each card is aligned with the CCSSM.
Peggy lives in Evanston, Ill., and has sold the decks of cards to several school districts who give them to parents at conferences. The decks of cards can be ordered on her website for $10 per deck. The feedback from parents has been fantastic. "I firmly believe that we need to make a national campaign for math in this country, especially for early math. If you have a 4, 5, or 6 years old do not wait!" numbersarefun.biz


text: National Factbook 2013 Dec 27, 2013 If the housing market continues growing at anywhere near its current pace and the commercial segment performs as expected, 2014 may turn... 2014 Regional Factbook Gallery Nov 25, 2013 Region by region, the electrical market is looking stronger based on construction projects planned or underway... Riding the Rebound: Herm Isenstein's 2014 electrical industry outlook Nov 25, 2013 Had we recovered at the same rate as the previous recovery our industry revenues this year would be about 20%... Sign up for Electrical Wholesaling's digital magazine Increase sales and pump up profits by subscribing today. Sign up today Sign up for the EW Update newsletter. 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List Leave this field blank 2014 Market Planning Guide Nov 18, 2013 NAHB thinks residential market growth will continue and is calling for solid 2014 increases in total housing starts (+25%); single-family starts (+31%); and multi-family starts (+10%). That's nothing but good news for the electrical wholesaling... 2014 South Atlantic Region Forecast Nov 15, 2013 The region's diversity is its strength - from ultra-high-end residential in the Dezer-Porsche Tower in Miami to a new 600,000-sq-ft data center for the NSA... 2014 East North Central Region Forecast Nov 14, 2013 Oil and gas development in the region is driving growth in construction for pipelines, processing facilities and power plants... 2014 Mountain Region Forecast Nov 07, 2013 Historically, this region has some of the nation's fastest-growing housing markets in Denver, Las Vegas and Phoenix, but this year none of these cities logged building permit at a pace much over the national average of +24% for single-family... 2014 New England Region Forecast Nov 07, 2013 New England is growing nicely, led by commercial construction in the Boston market... 2014 Middle Atlantic Region Forecast Nov 07, 2013 New York City's construction market is going strong with an estimated $31.5 billion in construction spending expected... 2014 East South Central Region Forecast Nov 07, 2013 A big tire plant in Mississippi is the largest project in the region... 2014 West North Central Region Forecast Nov 07, 2013 The Bakken region's oil boom gets the attention, and it is the biggest game around... 2014 West South Central Region Forecast Nov 07, 2013  ... 2014 Pacific Region Forecast Nov 07, 2013 Construction activity is booming on all fronts in the Pacific region... 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text:
In trading on Monday, shares of KKR Financial Holding LLC (KFN) crossed below their last reported book value — defined as common shareholder equity per share — of $12.18, changing hands as low as $11.91 per share. KKR Financial Holding LLC shares are currently trading down about 3.2% on the day. The chart below shows the one year performance of KFN shares, versus its 50 and 200 day moving averages:
Click here to find out which 9 other stocks recently crossed below their book value »


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The Buffer Cache/
The buffer cache is virtual memory for databases. It loads pages from disk into main memory and keeps them in memory for fast access. When the cache is full, pages in memory are flushed to disk and new pages are loaded into memory. It acts like any other cache. That means all the caching algorithms like how to remove items from cache, etc are all valid here.
All requests for data come through the buffer cache. The buffer cache has an API called getPage(PageId pid). Each tuple stored in the database is located on a page somewhere in disk and has metadata about which page it's stored on. For example, when a query needs to "select * from table", every page on disk is actually loaded through the buffer cache. When getPage is called, it first needs to check if the page is in the cache. If the page is not in the cache, the buffer cache reads the page from disk and stores it in memory. Let's see the code.
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class BufferCache { HashMap<PageId, Page> _cache; public Page getPage(PageId pid) { if (!inCache(pid)) { Page page = readFromDisk(pid); _cache.put(pid, page); } return _cache.get(pid); } private bool inCache(PageId pid) { return _cache.containsKey(pid); } }
This is a really really simple BufferCache. In reality, it's not even a cache because it never evicts anything from the cache, but functionally it's doing all a buffer cache is supposed to do. All requests for data from disk come through BufferCache.getPage with a page identifier. If it's in the cache, return the page. Otherwise, we fetch the page from disk and store the fetched page in the cache.
Evicting a Page
How about when the cache is full, how do we know when and which page to evict? Setting the size of the cache is probably a dark art filled with hours tuning to find heuristics in commercial databases. Which page to evict is an easier story. When a page in memory is modified, it is considered "dirty". Dirty means that the page in memory is different from the page on disk due to a write. Generally, we never evict a dirty page from the cache because then we have to flush the page back to disk. This is complicated because pages are modified in transactions, which we'll get into later.
We know that we can only evict pages that aren't dirty, which is still a sizable list. This is where caching policies come into effect. What real commercial databases do is probably also another dark art flooded with heuristics gathered over the years. A simple caching eviction policy is least recently used (LRU). To implement this, we just have to mark that a page was used. A really simple LRU implementation just uses a list:
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class BufferCache { private ArrayList<PageId> _lru; public Page getPage(PageId pid) { if (isCacheFull()) { evictPage(); } if (!inCache(pid)) { ... } updateUse(pid); return _cache.get(pid); } private void updateUse(PageId pid) { // Yes this is incredibly slow, // can use a hashmap -> list index // to make faster, but simple implementation int index = _lru.indexOf(pid); int front = 0; Page page = _lru.get(index); _lru.remove(index); _lru.add(front, page); } private void evictPage() { int last = _lru.size() - 1; Page page = _lru.get(last); // Need a separate structure to detect // dirty pages, simplified for now assert (!page.isDirty()); PageId pid = page.getId(); _cache.remove(pid); _lru.remove(last); } }
Now we have a working BufferCache. It evicts pages when the cache is full. When a page is in memory, we don't have to go to disk to find the data. Assuming data locality, this really speeds up accessing data. However, our implementation is still too small. First, we totally ignore transactions.
Working with Transactions
Everything in a database is wrapped in a Transaction. A transaction is a sequence of SQL statements that happen atomically. When a transaction starts, it can start requesting pages from the buffer pool. However, multiple transactions can occur at the same time. In order to have parallelism, you need locks. At what granularity you lock items is another heuristic supported by years of dark art performance tuning. Some databases lock at the page level, some at the row level, table level, etc. Assuming our implementation uses page level locks, we need to ensure that only a single transaction has a write lock on a single page. Multiple transactions can have multiple read locks on a page. Thus we need something like a LockManager that guarantees only one transaction has a write lock on a given page. Thus we have to modify our getPage a little to also grab the lock for a given page.
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class BufferCache { public Page getPage(PageId pid, Transaction transaction, Permissions permission) throws TransactionAbortedException { if (isCacheFull()) {...} if (!inCache(pid)) {...} try { _lockManager.grabLocks(pid, permission); } (Exception e) { throw new TransactionAbortedException("Could not grab locks"); } return _cache.get(pid); } }
Locking is pretty complicated, so I'll go into it in another blog post. Just note that for now, the buffer cache has to call the lock manager to ensure that only one transaction has an exclusive write lock on a page. Multiple transactions can have a read lock.
That's the essentials of a buffer cache. We ignored logging for now, which changes the buffer cache a little bit. We'll get into that in another post, but the conceptual requirements of a buffer cache are all here. You can checkout one implementation of a buffer cache on github here.
* Thanks to Ivan Ostres, you can combine HashMap and an LRU cache with Java's LinkedHashMap.


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Saturday, July 16, 2005
I am always late
Today it's sweetu's b'day, I wanted to be the first one to wish her so I called her up at around 12:00 AM but my call was on wait, sure to be someone had already wished her before me, the same happened on Asha's b'day I could only be the second one to wish her :( I am always late. It had happened earlier when I wanted to wish someone first on their b'day, I couldn't.
2 comments:
- sweetu said...
its ok dumdum(}) jus not to worry
its not imp who wishes first or last
jus tht u wished me
n for ur info you were the third one
not too late also
so dont worry n keep smiling n always be happy
- Cool Deepz said...
Hmmmm ok! But not to be late the next time, let me wish you Happy Birthday in advance ;-)
See I am the first one who wished you for your next birthday. :D
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text: MORE sexual harassment at Fox News, and now it's Sean Hannity. COWARDLY RIGHT WINGER storms out of Georgetown Panel. Fox & Friends alum gets cushy GOVT JOB. A new lawsuit Tantaros claims Fox News did what shut down News of the World. Tomi Lahren is going to get to the bottom of her bottom warmer in her lawsuit against Glenn Beck & The Blaze. Maddow is a ratings juggernaut with Bill O'Reilly out of the way. On demand when you want!


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15 Minutes With STLFW Judge Todd Thomas
Native Midwesterner and man of fashion Todd Thomas has one of those STL-to-NYC success stories that sounds more like a cool indie flick than someone's real life. Full of fashion, art, music and food in the early stages of the St. Louis cultural scene, Thomas has taken his early STL connections and crafted a successful career in the Big Apple as a fashion designer, director, strategic brand consultant and adjunct professor at Parsons The New School.
This week, Thomas returns to attend Saint Louis Fashion Week and will be a special guest judge for the Wear It: Fashion Challenge, the first event of its kind in the area that invites 10 local designer finalists to create a look inspired by an iconic or contemporary work of art. I've known Thomas for a while, so when the opportunity came up to ask him several burning questions, I couldn't resist.
Sarah Stallmann/ALIVE: I first met you through your good friend Carol Crudden, who owned the iconic St. Louis boutique Ziezo. It was almost an Andy Warhol/Factory of sorts for creativity in the '80s—can you tell us a little bit about your experience there and your involvement in that early fashion movement that was happening in St. Louis at the time?
Todd Thomas: What fond memories I have of a very cross-culturally inspired and active time. When I first came to St. Louis, I fell in with a group of cultural creators who participated different milieus: art, music, culinary, fashion, academic. It was all about cross-cultural support and creating a lifestyle: Fashion as lifestyle.
The communities then—as what I observe in St. Louis now—are really influential on each other. It's all linked. I certainly made lifelong friends, like Carol (Crudden) and Zoe Robinson. At the time in the early '80s when we were all exploring the beginnings of our work, there was a naiveté of youth, a fearlessness and an abundance of resources to work with. Venues to make and do were abundant, and still are compared to the large cities. There are important things happening in St. Louis, fashion being one of them. I am very fortunate to have that experience of developing my work in this community.
SS: You have such a variable body of work from costume design to women's and menswear collections, to spending time as the designer for the Victoria's Secret fashion show. Do you have a favorite project or accomplishment that you hold the closest to your heart?
TT: The trajectory of my career has lead me to a place where I'm most interested in how the fashion system at-large has the ability to empower and elevate people, communities and lives. Now I'm really into the the big picture of how we're affected regionally and globally.
The meaning of luxury and status and appropriateness is all shifting, but at the end of the day, I'm still in love with the process of making a garment: the needle, the thread, transforming the two-dimension into the third dimension. Also some of my favorite projects are the least popular … like working with Cindy Sherman on her movie—an all-time personal favorite. As a professor of Design Communication, I urge my students to analyze the motivation and relevance in all fashion systems … high, low, fast, slow and the effects cultural zeitgeist has on how we make and transmit fashion ideas and products. To cull an approach that is authentic to self.
SS: Everyone seems to be fascinated with your circle of friends—which includes legends like Cindy Sherman and Debbie Harry and pop culture icons like Parker Posey and Molly Ringwald. Do you find that spending time with fellow creatives of a certain caliber has influenced your work at all? How do you remain grounded while in a world that seems almost surreal to the average person?
TT: Well … it's all relative. We all face the same fears, frustrations, disappointments and expectations. We all have a desire to transmit an idea and be acknowledged. Ultimately, we all have fears and failures to deal with. I've spent many an after-yoga lunch with Parker Posey, crying in our quinoa over how we'll never work again … how tough things can be, struggling for meaning and relevance. Or pondering how to muster motivation to approach the daunting task of a new body of work with friend Cindy Sherman. Like with any relationship, it's an acknowledgment of the other.
As creatives, it's important to have that camaraderie, empathy and even some good old competition now and again. But let's face it … if you're going to make something for Blondie, chances are you'll bring your A-game! I've worked very hard and had wonderful opportunities to work with some established people who inspire, but the real inspiration and influence for me comes from the unexpected other.
SS: We are really excited to have you back in STL for STLFW. What are some things you are most excited about doing during your visit?
TT: I'm excited to come back! There are so many things I love doing here: shopping, eating, music. I plan on catching as much of STLFW as I can, including the "Apex Predator/Darwinian Voodoo" opening at projects+gallery and the Wear It event—I am looking forward to meeting the local designers and supporters.
Other than that, I always want to visit a few of my favorite places: Bar Les Freres—for a chic nosh and drink—the Saint Louis Art Museum, Olio for dinner, yoga, thrift shopping and a trip to Cherokee Street to grab a strong coffee at Mud House.
I love to take a drive over the Stan Musial Bridge. I'm in love with this structure… so beautiful and well-designed. I'll have a look and take the tour of the Washington University Fashion Department. A visit to Skif and The Hill—a favorite neighborhood of mine—and a few other stops that I love to pop in to.
I'm also very excited to end the visit with Ms. (Alexis) Tucci's NIGHTCHASER. The last time I was in town, I went to one of her events and it was seriously the most fun I've had anywhere in years. So forward, so progressive. Such a great integrated mix of people, the most open, cool, inclusive vibe and amazing DJs. What she's doing here is a prime example of the progressive cultural relevance St. Louis has to offer. I can't wait!


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It's no secret that the folks over at the Star dislike me. Tim Steller–justly–took me to task for a column in which I inadvertently misspelled his name. That, somehow, morphed into a Twitter conversation during which he accused me of poor writing, and even offered his aid to teach me how better to write.
Look, if anyone wants to enhance my skill, I will always be a willing pupil.
But when I tore yet another inane Star editorial to ribbons and Mr. Steller could argue only with my mishandling of his name–and I genuinely am sorry for that ignominious oversight–but not argue with any of the points I handily dismantled or made myself, well, I had a damn hard time imagining that anyone in the legacy media, much less the Star, could offer me much I didn't already know.
Save for how to pander to the already brainwashed audience of the legacy media, I suppose.
I'm not sorry to say my meager writing ability is already advanced well beyond that point, and I can thank you, the readers of the Arizona Daily Independent, for keeping me motivated to continue learning and improving.
I am also not sorry to say that the Star's latest editorial hires come as no surprise either: They didn't come to knock on my door.
Or call me.
Or even tweet me.
But Sarah Garrecht Gassen–yes, I verified the spelling this time–is ebullient in her proclamation that the Star now has two "Conservative with a 'big C'" commentators on the opinion page.
Forgive me a bit of graphic imagery, but it was when I read that "big C" line that I found myself in need of a rag to wipe my beverage off my keyboard. And my chin. Nobody should read something that amusing while sipping from a glass.
Interestingly enough, one of the two "Conservative with a 'big C'" writers is not just a fledgling author but also a benefactor of the failed–and embarrassing–John Winchester campaign. Yes, that's right, Joseph Morgan joins the Star after campaign finance records reveal he received at least $4,500 in payment for "field director" services to the unbelievably foul Winchester campaign. You see, Joseph Morgan is little Johnnie Winchester's cousin. Fake conservatives and fake news are close relatives, too, you know.
I'll pause here to allow you to find a rag and clean up your keyboard.
Supposedly, this Mr. Morgan–spelled correctly, too–writes for another publication. But I've seen a couple of his pieces, and he clearly was no English major. Granted, neither was I, but I take pride in my work. And I certainly do not fill pages with bunk in support of the establishment's choice to defeat the one representative in Pima County who had actually worked to curb the gross malfeasance that typifies Pima County governance. Morgan had written several junk editorials and letters to the editor in support of his relative that first praised Ally Miller for holding to her campaign promises, then chided her for being "incompetent to the extreme", and then defended Winchester's frivolous lawsuit against the City of Tucson.
And this is how the Star adds "conservative" voices. No, seriously. Does the editorial board over there want to help make them better writers, too?
This move of desperation belies the fact that the Star and the legacy media are in their death throes. They promulgate the same "fake news" that the general public learned to despise even more broadly in 2016, and you and the growing number of ADI readers innately know that. Maybe they think some shoddy writing from a couple of alleged "Conservatives with a 'big C'" will magically and instantaneously imbue them with some specter of balance, but reality will prove their new efforts futile.
We see right through these thin, sputtering smokescreens and realize the narrative from that rag remains the same. So let them throw up a token "conservative" column each week. It's like giving a dose of aspirin to the brain-dead victim of a fallen grand piano: It fosters classic comedy, but it won't even delay the inevitable.
Two things still bother me, though: How does any ill-conceived campaign of a worthless candidate under the control of a ruthless bureaucrat have $4,500 to waste as specious payment to a family member, and why would the Star–that acts as a willful extension of the Huckelberry-Bronson waste machine's media arm–hire on a relative of the candidate that Chuck back-doored into the primary? Anybody else wonder if Huckelberry needed to get that raise and to create new jobs so he could pay back some of the money his cronies threw away on the failed Winchester primary and the costly-but-razor-thin Bronson victory?


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No one is really surprised that Pakistan's I.S.I. (Inter-Services Intelligence) was playing on both the American and the Taliban sides. Just look at that acronym. There's one "I" on one side of the "S" and one "I" on the other. Talk about building double agency and split personality directly into the organization. And what does "Inter-Services" mean anyway? How can you trust an intelligence agency with the prefix "inter" — like INTERstate, and INTERnational, and coitus INTERruptus. You have to know any secrets you share with the ISI are going to be INTERcommunicated with the other "Services" which probably include the Taliban's Sadistic Human INTERment Teams (SHITs). Anyway, ISI is the least trustworthy spy agency acronym in history.
Look at ISI's opposite palindrome acronym, S.I.S., the intelligence service for the United Kingdom. Only one "I": the Intelligence safely tucked between the Secret and the Service. You never see double agents coming out of England. Just ask Kim Philby.


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Andrew Toth/FilmMagic
It looks like Joshua Malina isn't on the best terms with his neighbors.
According to documents obtained by E! News, the Scandal star's Malibu neighbor was granted a temporary restraining order against the actor on Sept. 26. The neighbor filed a request for civil harassment restraining orders against Malina for "verbally assaulting" and "threatening" the neighbor's family.
"Josh Malina has been harassing my family for the past 3 yrs," the neighbor, Jarod Lam, wrote in the request. "He's called me several times with a private number and verbally assaulting us and threatening us."
But these aren't the only forms of harassment Lam claimed Malina had committed.
"He's also come to my house at night unannounced and verbally attacked me and my wife," the request read. "He also stalked me online and sent messages. I NEVER gave him my number and asked him to stop harassing us repeatedly."


text:
If you bought (or remember) the soft bra from Vanjo the first time round, you'll be pleased to know that it's coming back but with a slight alteration to the pattern to ensure a better fit and support.
Drafting out the patterns is one of my favourite things to do as it's the start of bringing a design from your mind into reality. Having worked with different designers I've noticed that lingerie designing usually falls into two camps; one where the design is drafted out exactly how it will be, and the other where the final design is designed until the pattern is right. I fall into the latter category.
Using the right fabric
I don't like to design the final piece (fabric wise) until I know that the pattern is exactly how I want it, there are a couple of reasons for this:
1. It uses up any old fabric.
2. It allows me to keep a track of each sample I made, I don't have to work out which is the first or second sample if they are in different fabrics.
3. It keep me excited to keep designing, I like to make the same thing over and over in the same fabric when it's not 100% right, as when I reach the final piece I'll be bored of making it.
So if i'm making a sample out of cotton jersey which is one of my favourite fabrics to work with, I'll make sure that the fabric content is exact to my final piece (usually 95/5 : 95% cotton, 5% elastane) and the stretch is the same and go from there. Then each time I fit the garment and re-make the it I change up the fabric, that way it seems like I'm designing more than I actually am and sometimes I come across colour combinations or trim ideas I probably wouldn't have thought of if I was just designing on paper.
At this I'm 80% certain of the designs and shapes, and although I have so many I want to do, I'm editing it down to the strongest few.
"The Van Journal is all about starting Vanjo again and a honest look behind the scenes of how I'm going about starting the label again".


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4.1 What to measure?
There are a lot of parasites in optical networks, that deteriorate signal's transmission, but only two of them has special influence to the PON network: attenuation and return losses.
Attenuation — power loss of optical signal when its expansion in optical fiber and when its passing through passive network elements: splitters, mechanical and welded connections.
Figure 23 - Attenuation influence to signal amplitude
ORL — OpticalReturnLoss) — optical signal alteration, when its expansion in optical fiber under the action of return signal, that forms on mechanical and more rear on welded connections.
Figure 24 - ORL
*ORL determines as log likehood of base signal power to return signal power, that is why as higher ORL rate, as better the quality of transmitted signal.*
It is possible to decrease reflected signal, using some connectors with APC polishing in places of mechanical connections (ORL = 65…70dB) instead of standard UPC (ORL = 50…55dB). As it was mentioned above, is it most significantly to pay attention to ORL rate in case if You want to transmit CATV through PON, because reflected signal strongly influences to analogue TV quality (especially of it has amplitude modulation).
Thus, when PON network building and using, it is necessary to attend to only two rates: attenuation in the line and return losses (ORL).
4.2 With a help of what to measure?
To measure PON the same equipment is using as for FTTX, but with more absolute characteristics. That is why we will not describe here work principles of one or another devices (we hope, the reader has minimal idea about it), and will only provide with a list of necessary measuring equipment with main technical parameters, that fit to PON network measuring.
OpticalPowerMeter — ОРМ.
Main characteristics: photodiod type (Ge, GeX or InGaAs), working waive length (nm), photodiod sensibility (dBm). When OPM choosing, it is better to attend to models with gallium arsenide photodiod (InGaAs), as these meters work stable in any temperature conditions. Fro work with PONOPM must meter a signal with power from -40dBm to +20dBm om waive length 1310nm, 1490nm (1550nm and 1625nm — optional).
StabilizedLightSource — SLS.
Main characteristics: lazer power (dBm), working waive length (nm). SLSs usually generate low signal with power -5...-7dBm, so to attenuation measurement between terminal nodes of PON network, SLS should work together with OPM, that can measure a signal to -40dBm. It is desirable for SLS to support mot only standard waive length (1310 nm and 1550 nm), but also 1625 nm (on the present waive length is is comfortable to fulfill measurement in "living" network).
*There are devices on market, that combine OPM and SLS - OpticalLossTestSet — OLTS. If there is a pare of such devices, it is possible to fulfill two-side testing of the optical line very effectively.
Optical Time Domain Reflectometer — OTDR.
Main characteristics: working waive lengths (nm), impulse widths (ns), dynamical range (dB). Usually OTDR fulfills measurements in two waive lengths (1310nm and 1550nm). Nevertheless, OTDR, that can also work om waive length 1625nm, lets to detect more clear fiber defects (macro kinks) and can fulfill measurements in the working network without connection breach.
Impulse width - is a rate, makes all the difference of dynamic range. Wide impulses let take reflectogram from more long lines, but deteriorate measurements specification. Short impulses, vise versa, let to clearly specify a discontinuity location, but on small distances. Reflectometer of good quality can generate impulses with width from 5ns to 2000ns.
Dynamical range specifies fiber length, that reflectometer can "illuminate". If installer has a task to "illuminate" that small part of PON, OTDR with dynamical range ~30dB will be suitable; but if it is necessary to "illuminate" all PON tree completely, it is better to choose reflectometer with dynamical range that is not less 35dB (better 38-40dB).
*In OTDR characteristics, dynamical range specifies together with impulse width, at which it was changed, that is why at equal dynamical ranges, it is better to choose device, that has lower impulse width.*
ORL meters.The present devices are rare produced as separate device — instead ORL modules are built in many OLTS and OTDR. ORL meter is somehow similar to reflectometer, but it meters return loss level more careful.
Main characteristics: working waive lengths (nm) and ORL range (dB). Simple ORL meters work on two waive lengths (1310nm and 1550nm), more expensive work on waive length 1625 nm as well. ORL range fro middle-class meters in near 50dB. It is quite enough for PON. If there is a task to install PONCATV, it is necessary to measure the most low reflected signals and in such case ORL range must be lower than 60dB.
Exclusive standards to measuring equipment for PON networks are results of large optical loss budget (more than 25dB), installed to the very technology. If there is no task for network installer to measure signal between terminate network points ( crudely speaking, between OLT and ONU), there is no necessity to purchase the most modern and expensive meters.
4.3 How to measure?
On all optical network building stages (PON is not exclusion), it is necessary to fulfill it's quality examination - to measure attenuation per unit length of cable span, attenuations on separate passive components (adapters, splitters) and on welded connections, complete attenuations between network termination points, as well as return losses.
In most cases, network installers are economical and practical people, thus they use for measurements of only Source Stabilized Light (SLS) and of Optical Power Measurement (OPM). Connecting them to different network points, it is possible to measure attenuations, as on separate passive elements and connections, as all optical pathway power losses (Figure 25).
Fig 25 Connection sample SLS+OPM
The most economical networkers use power meter only. They use optical modules transmitters (SFP, XFP, etc.) instead of SLS. In this case measurements will be less exact (±1dB), while transceivers transmitters are not constant light sources. In such scheme (figure 26), measurements flexibility losses, while radiation source is connected to one network point.
Figure 3.2 OPM + terminal equipment connection sample as radiation source
If you plan to transmit CATV through PON, you will fatally meet one more problem - how to measure the signal power on concrete waive length. Usual OPM have wide range photodevice and don't have built filters, i.e. they measure group signal. It is necessary to connect OPM to line through CWDM flack (light filter) in such case, that will reduce undesired signal.
Figure 27. OPM connection through CWDM flack.
But there is simpler solution - its bushing-type PON instrument, that can measure signal on three waive lengths (1310nm, 1490nm, 1550nm) at the same time, bringing minimal attenuation (<1.5dB) into the line. The other exclusive side of the present meter will be specified below.
Figure 28. Bushing-type PON instrument connection sample
As a rule, when network building ends, it is important to document all important optical line rates. As such documents, usually acting taken from different network nodes reflectograms. When breaches, presence of base reflectogams let to detect fast breach place and type due to base and "breach" reflectogram comparing.
Figure 29. Reflectometer (OTDR) connection sample
But if reflectometer using in FTTX network is usual and simple, there are a lot of questions when installer is in PON network.
After the network is built and is put into operation, new question arise: how to fulfill measurements in operating network? Measurements on waive lengths 1310nm and 1490nm are not possible for reasons you can appreciate. Only 1550nm (if Your network doesn't have CATV) and reserve 1625nm(that was mentioned above) are left. That is why it is desirable to purchase SLS, OPM and OTDR, that are able to work with such waive length. To insert reserve signal from SLS to the fiber and outcome it from the fiber to OPM, it is enough to use two CWDM flasks (one on transmitting side and one on receiving side). The same connecting has reflectometer.
Figure 30. Measuring sample without connection breach.
The one more problem is signal power from ONU measuring. If connect the meter to ONU, it will show nothing, i.e. ONU does not transmit the signal without OLT "permission" (Figure 31/a). If connect the meter to ONU through the splitter (Figure 31/б), it will show incorrect rate, i.e. usual meter calculates average power rate for specified time period, and ONU is "silent" most time.
Figure 31. ONU transmitter power measurement variants
To solve this problem lets PON-meter, that was mentioned above (Figure 31/в). On waive length 1490nm it works as usual power meter, but on waive length 1310nm, it works in impulse mode, i.e. meters the peak signal amplitude, that lets to measure ONU transmitter power correctly.
Results: to build and maintain the optical network of high quality (not PON only), it is necessary to have and to operate by measuring equipment. Measuring equipment absence may cause time and subscribers loss and bring additional charges (for example, outsourcing of specialist with measuring equipment, in any, even "small" and not important case).
Within the project UA.PON, that has started more than three years ago on the territory of Ukraine, in was made a decision to build PON based on active equipment (OLT and ONU), produced by Chinese company BDCOM. BDCOM choice is not random: It is leading in China in network equipment producing and selling as on domestic, as on international market. Moreover, equipment is of quite high quality and consumer grade. And this all together with complete support of native Research and Developing Department, that may solve any program or apparatus problem in shortest terms.
Thus within the RU.PON project, the BDCOM company equipment was expected chosen.
As GEPON technologies become more and more popular worldwide, BDCOM creates a greater variety as of head stations, as of subscribers equipment.


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2017 Daniel Fast: Awakening Days 19, 20, & 21
Journal Writing Reflections: "We see idol worship as detestable to God throughout our study. How can we make sure we do not practice idolatry? Describe the awakening in Zechariah 12."
"Discuss the 1/3 of the people who will be the remnant of God. They obeyed God no matter what. Why is our obedience now a matter of life and death? Are you in the 1/3?"
"Discuss the reign of the Messiah. How does this Jerusalem in Zechariah Ch. 14 resemble the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21?"
Days 19-21 Bible Study: Zechariah Chapters 12, 13 & 14
Week 3 Memory Verses: John 4:23-24 (NIV) & 1 Corinthians 2:13-14
Spiritual Gift: Discerning of Spirits
We are ending the final three days of our fasting study looking at Zechariah's prophecies and a flash forward to John's end times prophecy in Revelation 21. When all the nations (some say this is the final battle on the earth, Armageddon) come against Judah and Jerusalem, God will make Jerusalem an immovable rock and He will keep watch over Judah. Judah will consume all their enemies. The house of David will mourn for Jesus Christ. It will be a day of awakening when they clearly see the Messiah for who He is. They will grieve bitterly because they will finally see. False prophets will be punished and afraid to proclaim their ministry because of all their lies and deception. God hates idolatry and He puts and end to it. God will strike down 2/3 in the whole land (the world, earth). If you calculated 2/3 of the entire world's population and the remaining 1/3; thsoe are frightening numbers. Only God's people will escape the wrath of God (1/3). Finally, the Lord's day is coming.Jesus says there will be a great split and His people will flee. Then the Lord will come and all the holy ones. On that day, there won't be any more sunlight, cold, or darkness – no more distinction between day and night. The people who came against Israel (Jerusalem) will have rotting flesh, eye sockets, and tongues. There will be a great panic. Revelation 21:6-8 "He said to me: 'It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.'"
The end of this fast is an opportunity to reflect on the entire fast but also on how your life should be transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit operating in you. There are some things you will never do again by the power of the Holy Spirit. You sacrificed and stayed away from sinful habits for 21 days. To return to those things would be rebellion. There are ways that you will never treat the people of God again. Prejudices and racist spirits have already been commanded to leave in Jesus's name. Some of us haven't been able to receive a Word or the truth from certain prophets because of the color of their skin.
Click Here.
The Spirit of Racism DOES Exist
I'm declaring and decreeing that those hidden and subconscious prejudices and even hate come to the surface so we can rebuke it and be delivered in Jesus's name. Your eyes are awakened to the synagogue of Satan and you now know the real Israel from the counterfeit. Your eyes have been awakened to the spirit of oppression, psychological warfare, whitewashing, and covering the truth (Exodus 1 & Deuteronomy 28). How can a movie be written and produced about a group of Hebrew women who computed all the Mathematical hidden figures for NASA and the world never knew about it? We are awakened to the deception and lies of Satan. You know of a great awakening to come during which God's chosen people will have the scales to fall off their eyes and wake up to who we really are (Ezekiel 37 & 38). You know that there will be a convergence of the Jew (Hebrew Israelite) and the Gentiles when the time of the Gentiles is fulfilled (Ephesians 2, Romans 11). We have even been awakened about who we are as individuals in the five-fold ministry. As a result of of the awakening in us, we will preach and prophesy the truth God revealed or be held accountable for not speaking the truth. January 21, 2017 at 6:00 will complete the 3rd (holy number) cycle of 7 (number for completion and perfection). God bless and prosper you always in Jesus's name. I love you.


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Symbiosis is a family of 46 academic institutions, imparting quality education for over 40 years. It is host to over 27,000 Indian and International students on campus. These campuses epitomize the Symbiosis vision, 'Promoting International Understanding through Quality Education' and are a beehive of International students from all across the globe, being privy to Indian culture and hospitality.
Symbiosis is offering scholarships to foreign students to give them the opportunity to take advantage of the educational programs available at Symbiosis. The Symbiosis International Scholarships are funded by the Symbiosis Society Foundation and are offered to deserving and meritorious foreign students from various African, Asian and Middle Eastern countries.
One Partial : (50%) Academic Scholarship for a Post Graduate Program at any Institute of SIU.
One Full : (100%) Academic Scholarship for an Under Graduate Program at any Institute of SIU.
One Partial : (50%) Academic Scholarship for an Under Graduate Program at any Institute of SIU.
Two Partial : (25%) Academic Scholarships for an Under Graduate Program at any Institute of SIU.
These scholarships cover only academic fees. Students must bear all additional costs including application fee, IELA exam fee, administrative fee, travel, housing, food, etc.
1) Hold a valid foreign passport.
2) Have obtained more than 75% as a qualifying grade in 12th Std. Those appeared for final exams and awaiting final results should submit predicted results (in case of Undergraduate programs)
3) Have obtained more than 60% as a qualifying grade in graduation ( in case of Post graduate programs)
4) Have appeared for an English Proficiency test conducted by British Council (IELTS) with a minimum score of 6 or the IELA test with a minimum band of 3.
For further details of admission please write to Prof. Anita Patankar, Deputy Director, Symbiosis Centre for International Education (SCIE), Symbiosis


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Why Video Marketing has become essential to the modern marketer
The unfortunate reality for most businesses in 2017 is that if your marketing strategy does not contain some form of video, then your business is slowly falling behind. Video marketing is becoming essential as it finally came of age in 2016, and this means there is a boatload of opportunity for business to take advantage. Don't just take it from […]Read more >>


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Three Oaks and an Aloe Boutique Hotel offers guests a quiet retreat, with fantastic service and stunning facilities. With large gardens, dining room, swimming pool and a fully licensed bar.
Separate entrances, in-room safes and back-to-base security, guests can be assured of a peaceful nights rest. All of the rooms at Khayamanzi feature DSTV television, free coffee and tea, complimentary wi-fi internet access and fully stocked bar fridges.
Self catering open plan holiday apartments with a swimming pool situated only 700 m from Hartbeespoortdam. These apartment have a build in braai on the pation and safe off-street parking.
Situated in the main village at Hartbeespoort with 10 spacious double en-suite rooms, semi self-catering / family rooms, air con & free wi-fi in all rooms, secure off-street parking and close to major tourist attractions. Airport transfers arranged.
To visit the safety haven of Elsa is like moving into another world. Frieda Khalo experience right here in Hartebeespoort Dam, only 60km from Jhb and less than 40 from Pretoria. Perfect for a private get-away for a sexy weekend or just a moment to relax.


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I bought these Wargames Foundry figures (Code: MED 209) a few years ago at a local show intending to use them almost as terrain pieces in games but for some reason never quite got round to painting them.
|Group shoot
Contrary to popular belief and Hollywood the vast majority of people didn't clothe themselves in various shades of brown or filthy raps. It is true that there were strict rules as to what you could wear according to your social status but if you look at contemporary illustrations combinations of red, blues and greens materials are often portrayed.
|Ladies of various social class with the posh Lady of the manor on the right
Black clothes were also popular but idea of the colour being jet black isn't quite appropriate, with various shades of grey probably being more accurate description. What we today would consider true black was a difficult and expensive colour to achieve due to repeated dying process required to produce it. It is probably also this reason you occasionally see it chosen as livery colours by such wealthy people as the Duke of Buckingham for example. It was a deliberate display of wealth and would have indicated the wearer was a person of note or was employed by someone who was. It would have been immediately obvious to someone of the period to identify the class of a person by their choice of clothes and the colours they wore.
This, to a certain degree, still remains the case today whether we realise it or not. Most people will have preconceptions upon seeing someone dressed in a shell suit, baseball cap and trainers just as they will seeing a person wearing a tweed jacket, flat cap, corduroy trousers and Hunter Wellingtons.
|Working types - front view
|Working types - rear view
There is a direct connection to Dudley illustrated in the Psalter but I'll detail this in another post.


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A long-running gag in the Peanuts comics and cartoons has been Snoopy's fascination with World War I air battles. Specifically, Charlie Brown's pet beagle likes to imagine that he's a famous flying ace engaged in dogfights against the legendary Red Baron. Now, thanks to Namco-Bandai Games, that gag has been made into a video game. Snoopy vs. the Red Baron is a lighthearted take on the air combat genre that lets you take control of the Sopwith Camel and other aircraft, go on missions that primarily involve shooting down swarms of enemy planes, and watch a charming wartime story unfold that features familiar Peanuts characters in the starring roles. Of course, there isn't any sort of "blood and guts." Instead, everyone parachutes to safety when you blow their planes to bits. But don't let that kid-safe tint fool you. Snoopy's game is loaded with intense shooting action that players of any age can appreciate.
In a nod to the comics and cartoons, the game opens with a scene showing Snoopy asleep on top of his doghouse. Charlie Brown and Lucy walk by and wonder aloud what Snoopy might be dreaming about. When Snoopy sits up and makes rat-a-tat noises, Charlie Brown suggests that he was probably dreaming about being a famous World War I flying ace. As it turns out, that's exactly what Snoopy was dreaming about, and the purpose of the game is to take you on a firsthand journey through Snoopy's fantastic dream. You control Snoopy, as the WWI ace, and go on a campaign of 22 missions for the Allied army, which is struggling to free Europe from the tyranny of the Red Baron and the Central Powers. The game isn't set in the Peanuts gang's hometown--as Snoopy's imagined skirmishes take place in six different locations spread across Britain, France, and Germany--but that doesn't mean the game isn't thick with Peanuts flavor. Familiar Peanuts characters assume the roles of Snoopy's commanding officers and wingmen. They fight alongside him during gameplay and act out the story during the animated video scenes that appear at the end of certain missions.
You won't find anything particularly new or innovative while you're playing, but as air combat games go, this one does a good job with tried-and-true concepts. The campaign comprises 22 missions that are split up into multiple segments. In one mission, for example, you have to retrieve a set of plans from a retrieval robot, take the plans back to base, and then escort a blimp carrying Rerun and Linus to safety. Despite the varying goals, missions generally involve shooting down countless numbers of enemy planes and blimps and sinking whatever gunships you come across. Each mission also has a number of secondary goals, such as destroying a certain number of enemy vehicles or collecting a certain number of balloons. The flight controls and combat are best described as easygoing. Snoopy's Sopwith Camel has a primary machine gun with unlimited ammo, as well as a secondary weapon with limited ammo, which you can outfit with bottle rockets, balloon bombs, and other comically inspired weapons. Shooting at enemies is a simple matter of locating them in your gun sight and pressing one of the attack buttons. While you're flying, other buttons let you kick in the turbo or air brakes or perform evasive maneuvers, like a roll, loop, or Immelman turn. You'll be shot down if the Camel takes too much damage, but enemies frequently leave behind root-beer items that you can grab to regain armor. The skies are usually littered with enemy planes, and more appear to replace the ones you shoot down, so there's always something to shoot at.
Getting through the campaign doesn't take very long, but it's a good ride while it lasts. You can reach the final mission in the better part of a day. There's some incentive to go back and replay missions a few times to increase your rank and to find all of the letters that let you buy more pilots at Pigpen's store. Beyond that, it's fun to replay missions because the combat is exciting and satisfying.
Another satisfying aspect is the game's overall look and feel. There's some mild cel-shading afoot during combat that helps give the action a crude look similar to how Charles Schulz might have animated the game if he were still alive. Seeing Snoopy in the cockpit of the Sopwith Camel and watching the Red Baron and his army fly by in propeller planes from the early 1900's is quite a thrill for a Peanuts fan. Outside of combat, it's amusing to see the shy Marcie running a flight school or Pigpen selling weapons out of a carnival stall. Peanuts fans will especially appreciate the intermission scenes that appear between missions. The characters look and sound just like they do in the cartoons, and they often chime in with trademark quips, such as Sally referring to Linus as her "Sweet Baboo" or Lucy saying "Good grief" every time Charlie Brown gets into trouble. During missions, the music is dramatic and serious. At the campaign hub and during intermissions, however, the soundtrack is a close replication of Vince Guaraldi's score from the original Peanuts animated features. In the technical sense, the game doesn't flex the graphical horsepower of any of the systems it's on. Nevertheless, the scenery and aircraft are reasonably detailed, the frame rate is generally smooth, and the screen is often littered with dozens of planes and their assorted exploding bits. All of the accompanying sound effects for the various bullets, missiles, and explosions are also sufficiently loud.
Since the game is currently available for the PC, PlayStation 2, and PSP, some people will likely be concerned with bringing home the best version. There really isn't a clear winner in that comparison. All three are roughly identical in terms of graphics, audio, and the contents of the campaign mode. The PC version looks sharper, since it can render the graphics at a high resolution, but its free-for-all mode doesn't support any kind of multiplayer configuration. The PS2 version looks just dandy on a TV, though, and it also lets two players duke it out split-screen style. The PSP version, meanwhile, is missing the snazzy smoke and cloud visual effects that the other two versions have, and you'll notice that there are fewer enemy planes in the air at any given time, but it offsets those shortcomings by letting as many as six players compete in any of six different match types. On the PSP, players can fly solo or in teams to see who can rack up the most kills, who can hold territory the longest, and who can capture the most flags. You can also play a rousing game of midair tag. No matter which version you bring home, you'll probably be satisfied if the idea of an air combat game based on Snoopy's fantasies is a concept that appeals to you.
All told, Snoopy vs. the Red Baron is a good example of the right way to produce a video game based on a licensed property. The underlying gameplay provides a nice mix of tried-and-true concepts from the air combat genre, while the integration of the Peanuts characters and situations is handled in a way that's faithful to Charles Schulz's original stories. When you play the game, you really get the idea that you're the famous World War I flying ace piloting the Sopwith Camel to victory against the nefarious Red Baron.