text: Plushy 45 Posted December 20, 2012 I've posted this around a couple of times, but figure that with the release of Only War, this deserve a new thread. This has been my pet project for the last four or five months. I've converted the Dark Heresy careers into Only War specializations, brought over a large number of talents from all the game lines, made a comprehensive armoury, and even come up with a bit of all-new content (playable Squats, Beastmen, Orks, and Kroot!). It's been a lot of fun to make; my playtest group loved it, and I hope you all wil as well. Criticism is always welcome. Enjoy! https://docs.google.com/folder/d/0B517sKRcjGNrcmZmV21GSkVoVVU/edit Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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I sometimes wonder whether our uber-connection has left us more than a little disconnected.
There's no denying the ubiquity of iComm. Long ago, we gave up talking in favor of typing. (My land line rarely rings. Does yours?) More recently, email conversations -– thanks to the seductive buzz of the smart phones in our pockets – have given way to pithy texts.
This is especially pronounced among teens, especially girls. (A friend with a teen-aged daughter once told me that their monthly phone bill, which itemized the texts, came in a box, rather than an envelope.)
According to a recent Pew Research Center Report presented at an education conference this week, texting is the dominant form of communication among teenagers – who blast out on average of 60 texts a day. Some quick numbers from the report's summary:
· Older girls remain the most enthusiastic texters, with a median of 100 texts a day in 2011, compared with 50 for boys the same age.
· 63% of all teens say they exchange text messages every day with people in their lives. This far surpasses the frequency with which they pick other forms of daily communication, including phone calling by cell phone (39% do that with others every day), face-to-face socializing outside of school (35%), social network site messaging (29%), instant messaging (22%), talking on landlines (19%) and emailing (6%).
We grown-ups aren't all that different. That same Pew study reports that what we do most with our cells is text. An earlier Pew study found that adults who text send or receive an average of 41.5 messages a day. Among 18 – 24 year olds, that number soars to 109.5. That's a lot of LOLs.
Before I go on, let me assure you that I'm as insanely Apple as the next geek. I have an iMac at work, an even newer iMac on my desk at home, and within reach: a MacBook, an iPad, and an iPad. I've also got an iPod, but I'm not sure where. And yet, Apple cliché that I am, I can't help wondering what we lose when our main form of communication is dependent upon the dexterity of our opposable thumbs. Call it the curse of the small screen, and smaller keyboard? Both render writing (or reading) more than a sentence or two a pain in the ass.
Can you go deep without going long? And do our relationships suffer as a result?
MIT professor Sherry Turkle, author of "Alone Together: Why We expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other", suspects we may be sacrificing intimacy on the altar of instant connection. She agrees that texting is great for keeping in touch, but when texting becomes a replacement for conversation? That's where we enter the danger zone. At a TED Talk earlier this year, she discussed ways in which our instant communication can in fact hide us from each other:
Across the generations, I see that people can't get enough of each other, if and only if they can have each other at a distance, in amounts they can control. I call it the Goldilocks effect: not too close, not too far, just right. But what might feel just right for that middle-aged executive can be a problem for an adolescent who needs to develop face-to-face relationships. An 18-year-old boy who uses texting for almost everything says to me wistfully, "Someday, someday, but certainly not now, I'd like to learn how to have a conversation."
When I ask people "What's wrong with having a conversation?" people say, "I'll tell you what's wrong with having a conversation. It takes place in real time and you can't control what you're going to say." So that's the bottom line. Texting, email, posting, all of these things let us present the self as we want to be. We get to edit, and that means we get to delete, and that means we get to retouch, the face, the voice, the flesh, the body — not too little, not too much, just right.
One more presentation of the iconic self? Communication professor Charlotta Kratz, one of my colleagues at Santa Clara University, hears similar stuff from her students. "They prefer to text because they don't want to talk to anyone," she says. "Even talking on the phone is awkward." She recalled one student telling her that driving the 30 miles over to Santa Cruz with a group she didn't know well for a class project was pure hell.
"We talked about generational differences and I told them that their tech non-savvy grandmas would make three new best friends on that car ride," Kratz said. "They agreed." Still, she says, "I'm not sure we lose anything necessarily [with texting]. I think it's better to ask how things are different. People are available 100 percent of the time now, for one thing."
What's interesting is that the 24/7 availability comes with its own rules that, SCU feminist scholar Laura Ellingson has found, often follow age-old gender scripts, at least when it comes to relationships: women are accused of being curt and mean if they send short texts, men are labeled girly if they are expressive. In a recent feminist methods class, Ellingson's students investigated ways in which texting is gendered. "They found mostly that women send longer, more detailed messages with more emoticons and exclamation points and other ways of expressing emotion more explicitly than men did," Ellingson said. "Both genders found that the medium is prone to misunderstandings and hurt feelings and unintended consequences."
But what Ellingson found disconcerting about the class project was that two of the groups pursued themes around women's over-analysis of texts for subtle meanings, essentially blaming the women for miscommunication, rather than the men who sent extremely brief texts:
"This is not a scientific study by any means, but it was illustrative of the point that in heterosexual relationships, it is still women who bear the majority of the responsibility for maintaining the health of the relationship; they are supposed to text as often as he wants to hear from them, but not too much so as not to be seen as "needy". They anxiously try to ferret out cryptic meanings in texts and then get labeled neurotic by the very men who expect them to competently interpret their meanings. The one thing that men are in charge of is the initial text following the exchange of cell phone numbers when first meeting or first becoming interested in each other. Women and men both said that it is up to the man to initiate first contact, and that women are seen as needy if they text first.
Whew. I have to wonder if all this angst could be eliminated by some good old fashioned facetime. Or a multi-sentence conversation that doesn't need emoticons. The point, I guess, is that life itself is messy, complicated. There are choices to be made and selves to find. And yet: as with all our digital diversions, we avoid actual interaction in favor of the intensity of nonstop, always-on, mass i-teraction. And so you have to ask: what is it that we're after? And, what is it we're avoiding?
I could go on. And would. But I just got a text. Gotta send a reply.

subset: commoncrawl


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I need help with this project. It is one of my projects this semester
HRMS is a human resource management company that acts as a bridge to connect people seeking job opportunities in Information Technology/Computing with companies offering employment prospects.
Companies seeking the assistance of HRMS must register as members of HRMS. Companies inform their job vacancies and provide the job description for each. Each job description is recorded in the database.
HRMS maintains database of the customers seeking job opportunities. Each customer is given a unique registration number.
It is required to develop a GUI for the above system to add to the existing registered company list whenever a new company is included in the company list. It is also required to have GUI facilities to add new customer as registered customer.
GUI must also have facilities to display the total number of Companies /Customers available in the list of Company/Customer.
Company name, address, job-position available and minimum number of experience are the attributes for the Company.
Customer number, name, address, tel-no. e-mail address and job-position are the attributes of the customer.
Note that Customer number is generated automatically in the format of "C99999" – a letter C followed by a five digit integers.
Write a program implementing a GUI according to the Model-View-Controller design pattern. The program should consist of the following classes. See below for further details.
a. Definition of Model classes
b. Definition of Control Classes
c. Definition of View classes
d. Complete Program


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Dawn Patrol
It's 3:17 in the morning on an unseasonably warm Tuesday in late November in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, and Nicole Lapin is hard at work.
Lapin, the 26-year-old co-anchor of CNBC's "Worldwide Exchange," is sitting at her office desk, cell phone in hand, in a three-way conference call with her colleagues in Europe and Asia. Their subjects of discussion include the day's Dow Jones futures; North Korea's deadly shelling of a South Korean fishing village (and its likely effect on world markets); an FBI raid on three hedge funds suspected of insider trading; the reaction to the bailout of the Irish economy; and the monthly survey of the United States residential real estate market.
The call continues as she gets up and walks down the hall to the network's makeup and hairstyling room, where two experts work in tandem, quickly and skillfully, to make her cosmetically ready for the camera. By now it's 3:31 a.m., and in 29 minutes, she will be at another desk, just down the hall in the cavernous, blue-walled and high-ceilinged TV studio in the world headquarters of CNBC, the global business-news network, working with her coanchors in London and Singapore, as "Worldwide Exchange" begins its two-hour report on what has happened, what's happening right now, and what is likely to happen later that day, in the wide and volatile world of high finance.
The program, a rapid-fire mix of reporting, interviews, visual aids and computer graphics—featuring correspondents, commentators and business experts worldwide—is the network's most widely distributed news program, available in more than 100 countries.
Lapin is considered by many to be a rapidly rising star in the TV-news universe. At 22, she was hired by CNN as its youngest anchor. Her move to CNBC in early 2010, with a regular program, one that focuses on no-nonsense business reporting, increased her profile and continued to establish her as a serious journalist, not just a broadcaster with a pretty face (although that face certainly garners notice). She has, she says, no objections to being considered a news nerd. Her work ethic—sometimes it's 18 hours a day in the office—and her eagerness to succeed mark her as someone to keep an eye on. And, she says, cigars play an important role in her job (but more about that later).
"I've never been on such a dynamic show," Lapin says; it's a few minutes after 6 a.m. and she is in her company's cafeteria, winding down after 120 minutes of airtime and dipping a fork into a plastic container of cubed watermelon. "There's a lot to talk about. There are so many moving parts. So much is happening. There's such an intensity. My adrenaline is always flowing. And I love it. I love days like today, trying to make sense of it all, to flesh out all the rapidly moving facts and make them coherent, juggle the many different types of stories, pulling together all this data very quickly. There's so much on my computer screen—so many open applications, charts, e-mails. And you can't really script on a 24-hour-type news show. Most of it is ad lib. It comes out of my brain, hopefully eloquently. You're putting together a very first rough draft of history."
For the petite, svelte Lapin—her inherited beauty comes from her mother Orly, a former Miss Israel—creating that first version of history takes a major part of the 24 hours in a day. And getting where she is today took a significant quantity of, to use her description, chutzpah—a quality that perhaps compensates for her relative lack of downtime.
"My schedule?" Lapin replies when asked about her typical workday. "The short answer is there is no schedule. I make time for the things I need or want to do. When I go to sleep and when I wake up depend on what's happening that day."
So how much sleep does she get? "Sunday night, for example, I got into bed about 8. I fell asleep about 9. I woke up about midnight and started reading—the newspaper websites, The Wall Street Journal, ft.com, the wires, our planning reports. My car picked me up about 2. I live in Hell's Kitchen on the West Side of Manhattan right across the river so it's an easy trip. I kept on reading in the car. I'm always reading something—iPhone apps, our planning reports. Then I came in and did the show"—for the broadcast, she is alone at her anchor desk in a corner of the large studio, which, though lively by day, is almost deserted in the middle of the night. Her producer, Adam Idleberg, sits a few feet away, providing company and guidance. In front of her are preset lights and a fixed, unmanned camera, aimed at her face. The program itself is produced from London, with which she is in constant contact.
"After the show I did a report on the financial markets on 'Morning Joe' on MSNBC. And later I did the 4 p.m. closing bell report on the stock market."
When she can, she tries to catch a few extra hours of sleep in the afternoon. "And sometimes I don't go to sleep at night at all and just sleep during the day. The last couple of days have been more normal than most."
Often, she says, she reports stories—like a recent one from New York's Comic-Con on comic books as investments—and that takes time. "And sometimes I'll travel for special series and reports, and I might fly to other cities. Once I flew to Nashville for a day and flew back to do the show. Once we were in Maine and missed the flight home and drove back to the studio in time to do the show. That's the beauty of the schedule—you can pretty much defy the space-time continuum." (On weekends, she keeps a more normal schedule.)
Her desire for a career in journalism, she says, originated during her childhood in Los Angeles, and in one way was an act of defiance. Her parents emphasized study and forbade her to watch TV news because of its unremitting violence. (Her father Ron Lapin, a surgeon who invented a method of bloodless surgery, using a special piece of medical equipment that closed wounds as it cut to reduce the need for blood transfusions, died when Lapin was 11.)
"I was always an independent young lady," she says. "A little bit rebellious. My family was very proreading and antitelevision news watching. So I would sneak it on." She went to a small private school for "gifted" children that gave no grades and had no grade divisions. "If you were 9 and wanted to study algebra, you could study algebra. We were all a bunch of nerds, but in a good way. There were no judgments for being bookworms. I was always intellectually curious. And it turned out I was able both to read and to watch television news. Fancy that."
By the time she was in high school, she was already doing local news cable-access broadcasts, courtesy of a school program. "I just had this passion," she says. And then she decided she wanted to study dance. "So in my junior year I transferred to a performing arts high school. I was going to transition into a very expensive private school, but the performing arts school was free. It was two buses away, quite far away, through downtown L.A. I wanted it bad, so I did whatever it took to get that experience." She was the class valedictorian.
In fact it could be said that wanting things bad, doing whatever it takes to get them—and here's where the chutzpah comes in—kind of defines Lapin.
After high school, she decided she was less interested in performance and "more in communications—it's communicating with an audience that I especially love." And the communicating she wanted to do was through journalism, the TV journalism she had been forbidden to watch but managed to look at surreptitiously. And so she decided to fashion for herself what she terms "an adhoc education," and to gain as much work experience as she could.
She had, at age 15, taken part in a writing program at Harvard and signed up for graduate literature courses. She took classes at Columbia University in New York and studied European Union politics at The Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris.
She used all those credits for her degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, where she graduated summa cum laude as valedictorian, with a second major in political science.
"Northwestern was very accommodating to my working professionally," she says. "In those years I was working, part of it full time, in smaller markets—you have to pay your dues—at local news affiliates as a general assignment reporter." She was a reporter in Lexington, Kentucky, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Palm Springs, California.
"I went wherever someone would take me. I sent out hundreds of little tapes from the local cable-access news. I begged people to hire me. I worked really hard and studied really hard. I bombarded everybody, took any opportunity—would I like to work weekends, nights, replace someone on maternity leave? 'Yes, yes, yes,' I said. I was so hungry. And I still am."
While at Columbia, she decided she wanted to intern at WNBC-TV with the reporter Asa Aarons. "He's a great mentor of mine. I showed up at his office. I had gone to the Human Resources office, but they said I had to be a senior, and they played by the book. So I just showed up at his desk and introduced myself as a summer intern. He thought I had chutzpah and he hired me. He said if I could figure out how to get through security I could figure out what he needed for me to do as an intern. I spent a lot of hours there while I was studying at Columbia."
ll that experience paid off—in 2006 she wound up, at age 22, at CNN as its youngest anchor.
It was at CNN that she reported live on the massacre at Virginia Tech, the Israeli-Arab conflict, the terror attacks in Mumbai, India, the Hudson River plane crash and the 2008 presidential election. She also interviewed politicians and celebrities, among them Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California. She reported live from Los Angeles for the Michael Jackson memorial service. She pioneered a series called "Young People Who Rock," profiling high achievers under age 30. And she wrote a column for CNN.com.
"I worked very long hours at CNN too, 18 hours a day sometimes. All their networks were in one place in Atlanta—CNN International, CNN Headline News, CNN.com. Being so hungry and excited and wide-eyed, I wanted to work for everybody."
The Virginia Tech story, she says, was the most memorable—and awful. "It was a seminal moment in news coverage," she says. "If you go to the Newseum you see it was a turning point, because the primary visual depiction of the shooting came from a citizen journalist, a student who had shot footage on his cell phone. That changed the game. From that point news was no longer about lighting kits and setups. It was about information. It was about content being king, and being platform agnostic."
Covering the shootings was "horrific," but it also filled her with pride. "It was of course a life-and-death situation, and students would email us saying they were watching from their dorm rooms and they didn't know what was happening. They would ask, 'Is there another shooting?' " Being a source of information for the students "was a great responsibility. It made me proud to be a member of the Fourth Estate."
Working at CNN was particularly exciting, she says, "because we covered everything. You had to become an expert at everything. When I was in local news, you became an expert on worm farming, or hurricanes, or triple homicides. That's what I love about this job, and CNN really hit it home."
And that is what she loves about CNBC, where she has been since January 2010 (her coanchors on "Worldwide Exchange" are Ross Westgate and Christine Tan). "It's business—and everything is connected to business. Every story has a monetary focus. Toward the end of my time at CNN, we were covering the financial crisis. Everybody became a financial reporter. I had been one in Chicago, and I became one again. I realized very quickly that this is the story of this decade, of this generation, and I felt an intense urgency to be part of it."
She is also proud of CNBC, she says, "because it's a higher level of concentration. Nothing is dumbed down. It's more technical. I really like that. I couldn't imagine doing anything else. I like being nerdy."
And what role do cigars play in her life and her work?
First of all, she says, cigars are "a nostalgic experience. It was ingrained in my family life. My father smoked cigars. I remember the aroma. I remember his smoking jacket. When I smoke, it reminds me of him."
But then there are also those very useful workplace cigars. "It's a good thing for 'sourcing,'" for helping to create a mood of camaraderie and collegiality when she meets with people in the business world to make the contacts and get the information necessary for her job. "A lot of financial gentlemen—and ladies—find cigars a recreational experience. Someone, for instance, will invite me to the Grand Havana Room" in Manhattan.
When it's time for her to light up, Romeo y Julieta takes first place, followed by Ashton and Avo: "Lighter wrappers, medium body."
So is Lapin all business? Does she have a personal social life?
"I'd like more of one," she says with a gentle, wistful laugh. "In addition to being anchor, I'm managing editor for North America. That's a large coverage area. I sleep with my BlackBerry and my iPhone. I always want to make sure we're covering stories in the best way possible. I have dinners out, but most of them are meetings. I try to take advantage of New York—I'm still a new New Yorker. It's been almost a year. It's such an interesting place. I love the small pleasures—walking around neighborhoods, finding inspiration in architecture, sampling different local cuisines."
Right now, she says, there is no special guy, no relationship—though eventually she would like one, and a family as well. "It would take a special kind of chap," she says. "Someone who is truly passionate about whatever it is he is doing, who works hard and is devoted—whether it's gardening or basket weaving or finance or politics or environmental issues. Who has a purpose to wake up to."
One thing Lapin is passionate about is Operation Smile, the organization that provides free surgery to repair cleft lip, cleft palate and other facial deformities for children worldwide. "I'm an ambassador for them," she says. "I get a great title. How could you not love to be a Smile Ambassador to Munchkins all over the world. I recently made a trip to Alexandria, Egypt, with a group of global physicians, plastic surgeons whose business is to help these children." The work, she says, helps her "to continue some of my father's legacy of helping young people." She has also been an ambassador for the Starlight Children's Foundation, which works with seriously ill children, and she created a program to help educate children with terminal illnesses on world news.
Lapin is a vegan. "I've been vegan for many years. I'm not a preacher, but it works for me. I don't judge anybody—people can eat whatever they want. I eat anywhere—I find things at steakhouses and, when I'm on the road, gas stations. It's a fundamental philosophy for me of limiting excess. There's so much of everything—overstimulation all the time, at work and streaming on the Web. It's a way of keeping things simple. I like simple things. Plain old food. Simple food. I'm very low maintenance. I'm a cheap date."
Professionally, though, Lapin is still hungry—very hungry. But, she says, one thing that isn't simple is thinking about her future career. "I'm a happy woman, living a dream. It sounds Pollyanna-ish of me, but I'm a happy camper if I can just continue to grow as a journalist. Yet things are changing so quickly that I don't know if I can make any plans. Jobs probably won't be exactly the same five years from now. I find that when I make goals they end up changing a little bit. I'm not taking anything for granted."
For now, though, this young and successful journalist, and lover of cigars, is content. "When I wake up, I say I'm a lucky lady. A lucky lady to be alive. And I'm ready to start the day—or the night—or the morning."
Mervyn Rothstein is a contributor to Cigar Aficionado.


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He gave me permission to use one of his copyrighted images for the next chapter of The Lilith Obsession.
He's an artist, he's Italian, and he is ever so elegant with his words.
(Sit down and have a glass of water ready for this…)
His name.
is Alessandro.
I think I need a doctor.
From whence came the art:
That image is titled bliss, by amanky, and is licensed under the Creative Commons.
Filed under: Art, Erotica, Images, Literature, Literature and Literotica, bliss, Dreamy Italian Guys, Names to Make Your Knees Buckle, ooo la la, swoon


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Z Cam Stars in the Twenty-First Century
Mike Simonsen, David Boyd, Bill Goff, Tom Krajci, Kenneth Menzies, Sebastian Otero, Stefano Padovan, Gary Poyner, James Roe, Richard Sabo, George Sjoberg, Bart Staels, Rod Stubbings, John Toone, Patrick Wils
Z Cam stars are a small subset of dwarf novae that exhibit standstills in their light curves. Most modern literature and catalogs of cataclysmic variables quote the number of known Z Cams to be on the order of 30 or so systems. After a four-year observing campaign and an exhaustive examination of the data in the AAVSO International Database we have trimmed that number by a third. One of the reasons for the misclassification of some systems is the fact that the definition of what a Z Cam is has changed over the last 85 years to what it is today. This has caused many stars formerly assumed to be Z Cams or rumored to be Z Cams to be eliminated from the final list. In this paper we present the results of our investigation into 65 stars listed at one time or another in the literature as Z Cams or possible Z Cams.
ST Chamaeleontis and BP Coronae Australis: Two Southern Dwarf Novae Confirmed as Z Cam Stars
Mike Simonsen, Terry Bohlsen, Franz-Josef Hambsch, Rod Stubbings
Z Camelopardalis (Z Cam) stars are a subset of dwarf novae distinguished by the occurrence of standstills, periods of relative constant brightness one to one and a half magnitudes fainter than maximum brightness. As part of an ongoing observing campaign, the Z CamPaign, the authors focused attention on several Z Cam suspects in the southern hemisphere. Two stars, BP Coronae Australis and ST Chamaeleontis were found to exhibit standstill behavior in 2013, thus confirming them as Z Cam type systems. This adds two more bona fide members to the 19 confirmed Z Cams, bringing the total to 21.


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Not so funny: Bell's Palsy devastates facial nerves
Audrey Hepburn in Funny Face was stunning in front of the camera of her fashion photographer, Fred Astaire. She was most magnificent when she walked down the stairs in the Louvre holding a billowing red scarf. Her face, charm, and style made her an international legend. Even in 2009 a Gap commercial used movie footage of the stylish Hepburn dancing like a bohemian.
What would have happened if the beautiful Audrey Hepburn had contracted Bell's Palsy?
Bell's Palsy is an acute condition of facial paralysis first described by Sir Charles Bell in the 1800s. The facial nerve degenerates to wreak havoc on either the right or left side of the face. The cause of the facial weakness is unknown, though it might be due to viral infection. Pregnant women and diabetics are at increased risk of Bell's Palsy.
One side of the face is suddenly paralyzed to cause that side of the mouth to droop, similar to patients with strokes. Because one side of the mouth is weak, the mouth is drawn to the unaffected side to look like the most extreme of crooked smiles. Puffing out the cheeks, like blowing out candles, isn't possible on the weakened side.
Raising the eyebrows is possible only on the unaffected side. The unmoving eyebrow and forehead on the affected side give the appearance of a skeptical person thinking, "Hm, really?"
And although the eyebrow won't go up, the eyelid of that same affected side won't go down. Not being able to close the eye fully or at all can cause an ulcer of the cornea due to dryness. Also, not being able to blink could allow foreign things (i.e. dust, dirt) to enter the eye. Wearing an eye patch in bed can keep the eye shut. Artificial tears are prescribed to keep the eye moist.
Dry mouth occurs with Bell's Palsy as well. Loss of taste in the front part of the tongue just adds to the misery of this condition. Hyperacusis (pain in the ear due to sounds) can make the whirring sound of a fan seem more like a helicopter on top of the head. Loud sounds (e.g. screaming children or the clank of plates unloaded from a dishwasher) can be unbearable. Wearing noise-blocking headphones can be a lifesaver.
At least half of persons with this condition suffer from psychological stress because the facial droop and the asymmetry of facial movements make their appearance unsettling to others. To make things worse, some folks get synkinesis, which means unintentional facial movements that occur with an intentional movement. For example, when a person blinks, the corner of the mouth on the same side will twitch. Smiling will cause the eye to wink. Synkinesis occurs because, during the recovery process, the regenerating nerves "short-circuit."
Bell's Palsy reaches its worst within three weeks, but almost everyone recovers to some degree within a month. The worse the paralysis, the worse the prognosis for full recovery. In general, two-thirds of people have complete recovery. Recurrence of this God-awful condition is 7-15 percent, usually occurring 10 years later. Rarely, a tumor is the cause of a recurrence.
Oral steroids are used to help treat this condition. If herpetic lesions are evident, anti-virals are used as well.
Audrey Hepburn showed the world that a unique face can be a gorgeous face. I hope the world can be kind to those whose faces are not so typical.
Dr. Hook cracks a joke or two, but he's a respected physician with an interesting website, drjohnhong.com. Email him with your questions!


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Willy Northpole OnDaSpot Invasion Radio Freestyle
Willy NorthPole Goes On DJ Green Lantern "Invasion Radio" On Sirius HipHopNation And Spits A Freestyle.
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KARACHI: Reducing gender inequality is fundamental to eliminating hunger and developing more sustainable food systems, FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva told international experts and country representatives at an International Women's Day event in Rome.
"This year we are celebrating Women's Day against the backdrop of the International Year of Family Farming," Graziano da Silva said. "Family farmers are the dominant force in global food production. And, at the same time, they are among the world's most vulnerable people. Much of the future of global food security depends on their realizing their untapped potential. Rural women are an important part of this, not just as famers but also in processing and preparing food, and in local markets," he added.
In a release from Rome, representatives of United Nations and partner organizations were gathered at FAO headquarters for a panel discussion on the theme, 'Closing the gender gap in agriculture'. The dialogue was jointly organized by FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD); the World Food Programme (WFP); the International Development Law Organization (IDLO); the International Food Policy Institute (IFPRI); and, the World Farmers' Organisation (WFO).
Participants discussed the challenges faced by rural women in developing countries, who are highly dependent on subsistence agriculture to feed their families, but who often get caught in a cycle of poverty and hunger due to lack of access to adequate land and water, agricultural inputs, credit, technologies and training.
The FAO Director-General recalled how, in 2003, it took a court case to defend the decision by the Brazilian government to channel the bulk of cash transfers in that country's Zero Hunger Program to women recipients, based on the premise that they played a "dominant role in family food management." Equality for women is progress for all, Graziano da Silva said.
Keynote speaker Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and currently head of the Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice, said problems brought on by gender inequalities and lack of access to resources in agriculture were compounded by the unpredictable consequences of climate change.
"For global development to be sustainable, the issues of climate change, gender equality and food security must all go hand-in-hand," said Robinson, who is also a member of IDLO's International Advisory Council and a former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights."By actively linking human rights, development, climate change and gender equality in your work, you will empower yourselves and your organisations to break out of the 'boxes' that constrain policy making and implementation, and engage in a new model of truly sustainable development."
"It is vital that at the UN Climate Summit in September, the interlinked issues of gender equality, agriculture, the rule of law, sustainable development and climate justice are addressed in order to achieve an effective framework for the future of our planet," Robinson added.
Ertharin Cousin, Executive Director, WFP and Michel Mordasini, Vice-President, IFAD joined the FAO Director-General in opening the event. Speakers and panellists included representatives of the various organizations involved, in addition to Tehmina Janjua, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and experts from the World Bank's Inequality and Poverty Team.


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Things I'm not good at: making desserts that don't include sea salt. How can you resist? Ever since I made these bars I've been craving a sweet and salty confection in bar form. I think I've become a bit of a lazy baker, but why go to the trouble of scooping out cookies when you can just put all the dough in one pan? WAY easier. And pretty, don't you think?
This recipe calls for a full cup of creamy peanut butter and a whole bag of chocolate chips, tucked within a 9×9 pan. That translates into a very thick and decadent bar, so consider yourself warned! I recommend having plenty of regular milk or almond milk on hand before making them. Enjoy!
Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars inspired by the Brown Eyed Baker
Makes 12 bars
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- ¾ cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 12 oz bag semisweet chocolate chips
- flaked sea salt for sprinkling
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×9 or 9×8-inch baking pan, set aside. (Tip: I like to use the wrapper from the butter to grease the pan!)
In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt, set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the brown sugar, peanut butter, butter and granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Reduce speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until the flour is just incorporated. Using a rubber spatula, mix in the chocolate chips.
Turn out the mixture into the prepared pan and press into an even layer. Sprinkle the top with sea salt. Bake for 25-28 minutes, just until the center is set and top is golden brown. Cool completely in the pan. Cut into bars and store at room temperature in an airtight container.


text: This video is footage from a summer camp, set by a lake. The lake is pristine and beautiful, and by the end of the video it seems a bit more menacing. Not that the video itself is all gloom and doom, in fact it is quite spritely and lighthearted in tone, you can see everyone is having a lot of fun, ..read more >>


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Any kid can get on the honor roll, but how many can get through Super Mario Bros. without using a warp pipe? These are the sort of accomplishments any gaming parent would be proud to display on their bumper.
While I'm not a big fan of bumper stickers, if I were inclined to deliver a message to the masses using the back of my vehicle, these gaming bumper stickers from Das Chupa's 0-Lives blog are exactly the sort of thoughts I'd like to convey. Of course I'd have to convince my better half to have a child and then spend years training him or her starting with the Atari 2600 and working my way up, but that's a small price to pay to not have to lie about the colorful sticker on the back of my car.
Bumper Sticker [0:Lives via BuzzFeed]


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Volunteers Needed for Building Project in Tanzania!
Projects Abroad volunteers in Tanzania have had a busy year! They are coming to the end of a building project in a school in Engikarat, near Kilimanjaro, and in the next month we hope to see its grand opening… Following on from this success we now have even more ambitious plans to build an elementary school in the Maasai village of Meserani, south of Arusha. Now here's where YOU come in!
Our volunteers currently teach in a very basic church building, open to the elements. We want to now build a proper school at this site. The project will give volunteers the chance to help not only with building but with teaching too. The school should take a year or so to build, and our team in Tanzania need as much help as possible. The more help that we can get, the quicker the school will be up and running. It is going to be a lot of fun for all involved!
Projects Abroad's Country Director for Tanzania, Ian Baxter, shares his thoughts: 'To think that in a year or so we might not only have a school manned and run by volunteers, but they might be working in a school built by volunteers as well - is a really exciting prospect. This is an excellent project both for the volunteer experience and to take part in a job that's really worth doing!'
Read more information about the Building Project in Tanzania here.


text:
|*October 22 - 28
|The Church: God's
Read for This Week's Study:
|Rom. 3:24-28; 6:8-11; 2 Cor. 5:18; Eph. 2:1-10; Col. 2:12, 13.
Memory Text:
| "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not
of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should
Frenchman Michael Foucault once advocated tearing down all prisons and letting the prisoners go free. Why? Mssr. Foucault believed that concepts of morality, or right and wrong, good and evil, were purely human constructs, human inventions created by people in power in order to keep other people down. Therefore, taking his beliefs to their logical conclusion, he stated that even the idea of criminality was a human invention, and thus all the prisoners should be set free.
However extreme his idea, it's indicative of the prevailing sentiment in many places that there is no such thing as sin and that such ideas as morality and right and wrong are mere opinions, nothing more.
This week's lessonthough ending on a hopeful and positive notebegins with a clear expression of the reality of sin and the inevitability of its consequence: death (which is hardly a human construct, to be sure). This week, let's see what Paul has to say, not only about evil but also about the only solution to it.
The Week at a Glance:
|Before Christ, what was our condition like? Why and how did God show us grace and mercy? What does being God's workmanship involve? How are we saved?
*Study this week's lesson to prepare for Sabbath, October 29.
|October 23
Dead in Sin (Eph. 2:1-3)
From the time Adam and Eve chose to follow their own will instead of God's, sin has become the lot of the human race. "Just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned" (Rom. 5:12, NKJV). And because sin is universal (Rom. 3:23), death is also.
How do the following texts help us understand the nature of sin?
John 3:4
Ephesians 2:2, 3 tells three things about unbelievers. First, they lived "like the rest of the world" (vs. 2, NLT) in disobedience to God and disunity among themselves. To be a friend of the world is to be an enemy of God (James 4:4), and as enemies they lived a life of darkness and alienation. Second, they followed "the prince of the power of the air" (Eph. 2:2, NKJV). The prince is Satan. Jesus called him "the prince of this world" (John 12:31). While some some would dismiss Satan as a myth, the Bible tells usa reality"a roaring lion," out to devour God's people (1 Pet. 5:8), and an "accuser of our brethren" (Rev. 12:10) who leads men and women to disobey God (Eph. 2:2).
Third, they are corrupt and "by nature children of wrath" (vs. 3, NKJV). Sin corrupts everythingmind, thought, action, desire, will, etc.and, as such, their nature is depraved and within them there is a perpetual conflict. This spiritually corrupt and bankrupt nature makes sinners the "children of wrath" (vs. 3, NKJV)children deserving God's judgment.
So, what is the status of unbelievers? They are dead in sin. They have sealed their own fate by choosing to live "the desires of the flesh" (vs. 3) and becoming children subject to God's wrath. They are dead dead in a sense of finality, humanly speaking.
|Look up James 4:4. What does it mean to be "a friend of the world"? How are we, as Christians, to understand this important point (after all, to be a friend of the world is to be at enmity with God), especially in light of John 3:16, which says that God loves the world? Prepare to discuss your answers in class.
|October 24
"But God . . ."
Paul was a master in conveying God's great truths. In Ephesians 2:1-3, He describes the pathetic plight of unbelievers: dead in sin, slaves of Satan, walking according to the lusts of the flesh, condemned as children of wrath, hopeless and destitute, unable to save themselves. In verse 4, the apostle introduces the glorious alternative available to this pathetic lot in two dramatic words, "But God."
These two words may be among the Bible's most beautiful words. We were dead, "but God"; we were rebels, "but God"; we were under judgment of death, "but God"; we were aliens and strangers, "but God"; Satan may seem triumphant, "but God." As long as those two words are in biblical vocabulary, we have hope.
Look up the following texts and note how the phrase "but God" is used: Psalm 73:26; Acts 13:29, 30; Romans 5:7, 8; 6:16, 17; Philippians 2:27. What hope is seen there for us?
Why did God come forward to deliver us from the bondage of death? Why did God choose to rescue us from the clutches of sin? Why didn't He let Adam and Eve perish in their choice? Why didn't He make Himself new creatures who would love and follow His way?
The apostle provides two answers. First, because God "is rich in mercy" (Eph. 2:4). Mercy is intrinsic to the nature of God: "(`The Lord your God is a merciful God), He will not forsake you nor destroy you' " (Deut. 4:31, NKJV), for "He is good! . . . His mercy endures forever" (Ps. 106:1, NKJV). Mercy is so important to the salvation process that the redeemed are called "vessels of mercy" (Rom. 9:23, NKJV).
Second, "because of His great love with which He loved us" (Eph. 2:4, NKJV). God's loveselfless on the part of the giver, undeserved on the part of the receiveris the motivation for giving "His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16, NKJV). God's "gift of mercy and love is as unconfined as the air, the light, or the showers of rain that refresh the earth."Ellen G. White, Testimonies to the Church, vol. 9, p. 190.
|Write a paragraph that begins, "I [your name] was [talk about your spiritual and mental state before you knew the Lord], but God [now write out what He has done for you through Christ]."
|October 25
"Made Us Alive" (Eph. 2:5, NKJV)
When he speaks of God's grace, love, and mercy toward sinners, Paul repeatedly uses such superlatives as "riches," "rich," "great," and "exceeding." Such usage shows the supreme value this former Pharisee placed on salvation as God's gift and not a result of human works. Ephesians 2:1-8 clearly outlines the movement of sinners from death to life.
Read Ephesians 2:5, 6 and note three things God does for us in Christ. The first few words are given to you.
He has "quickened us"
He "raised us"
He "made us sit"
First, He "made us alive together with Christ" (Eph. 2:5, NKJV). Those who believe in Christ and die with Him become participants of His resurrection power, and they become spiritually alive together with the risen Lord (Rom. 6:8-11).
How have you experienced being "made alive in Christ"?
Second, He "raised us up" (Eph. 2:6, NKJV). This raising up in Christ is not without purpose: We are to live for Him. The new life we as Christians enjoy must be a witness to the power of Christ's resurrection by revealing that power in our life and character.
How have you experienced being "raised up" by Christ?
Third, He "made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (vs. 6). The Christian's ultimate privilege will be that of sitting with Christ and reigning with Him (2 Tim. 2:12, Rev. 22:5). Even now we can be examples to the universe of His enduring love and justice. Even now we can sit in "heavenly places" with Jesus when we, by faith, live in intimacy with Him.
|How have you experienced this "sitting together" with Jesus now?
|October 26
By Grace Through Faith (Rom. 3:24-28; Eph. 2:8, 9; Titus 3:4-7)
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast" (Eph. 2:8, 9, NKJV).
These two verses summarize the heart of Paul's gospel. Paul's thesis is that grace is God's part in salvation, faith is the human response, and the entire salvation experience that comes by grace through faith is a gift of God, not of works.
Grace and faith are the key words here. How do we understand them?
Grace refers to God's initiative and the basis of our redemption from sin. As sinners we deserve death, and God offers us life. We are separated from Him and from one another, and He offers us reconciliation. We are under bondage to sin and judgment, and He provides us freedom. We do not deserve any of what He offers, because we have sinned and stand in rebellion against God (Col. 1:21). Hence, grace is often defined as God's unmerited favor to us.
Grace is God's sovereign initiative and activity for the salvation of sinners. This grace appeared in the "fullness of the time" (Gal. 4:4, NKJV) in the historic event of Jesus Christmore specifically, the act of Christ on the cross. We have no part in either the conception or execution of salvation. It is God's gift to "whoever believes" in Jesus (John 3:16, NKJV).
Read 2 Corinthians 5:18. How does this text help us better understand the concept of grace? Who did the reconciling, and for whom?
Faith is the human response to God's provision. In a Christian sense, faith is not a virtue we develop on our own. It is a response of wonder at what God has done to redeem us from sin and a ready acceptance of God's operating in our lives. Saving faith is a change of allegiancefrom self to God, from denial or indifference to God's claims to unreserved acceptance. Faith opens the heart to the indwelling of Christ. As such, it cannot originate in the carnal heart. It is "the gift of God, but the power to exercise it is ours. Faith is the hand by which the soul takes hold upon the divine offers of grace and mercy."Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 431.
|How would you help someone who says, "I am just so weak in faith. I believe, but my faith wavers so much"? What practical steps can we take to make our faith stronger? How does what we read, think, and say impact our faith?
|October 27
"We Are His Workmanship" (Eph. 2:10)
Paul stresses so clearly in Ephesians 2:8, 9 that we are not saved by works. Then, immediately, in verse 10, he says that we were not only "created in Christ Jesus unto good works" but that we were "before ordained" to walk in those good works. Is there a contradiction here? How do you understand what Paul is saying in these three verses?
Paul's salvation story closes with the affirmation that "we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (vs. 10, NIV). We as individual Christians or as a community of faith owe our existence to God's grace. We are His workmanship, His masterpiece, His work of art, created in Christ Jesus.
This ought not to be a matter of pride. Paul has warned against such boasting in verse 9: "Not of works, lest anyone should boast" (NKJV). Our works, however good and great and lasting they may be, cannot save us. In salvation, self-congratulation has no place. God expects only self-denial, self-death, in order that Christ may reign in our hearts as supremewithout any competitor. "Only the covering which Christ Himself has provided can make us meet to appear in God's presence. . . . This robe, woven in the loom of heaven, has in it not one thread of human devising. Christ in His humanity wrought out a perfect character, and this character He offers to impart to us."Ellen G. White, Maranatha, p. 78.
Christians must guard against two fallacies. First, the idea that we need to add something of our own to God's grace. Second, freedom in Christ frees us from obedience to His claims.
Yes, we are His workmanship. We are a new creation by His grace through faith. But we are new creatures in Christ "to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (vs. 10, NIV). Does this mean our works are a prerequisite to our salvation? Far from it. But they are a requisite of a saved life. Paul's appeal is for a life and a lifestyle consistent with the demands of faith. In effect, the apostle is saying: "Yes, you are saved by faith. You are saved by the free grace of God. But you are saved to live. Your faith experience must move from believing to living. You must live out your salvation. That involves a lifestyle of obedience, just like our great modelChrist Jesuswho obeyed even to the point of humiliation and death (Phil. 2:5-12). And, furthermore, your Christian walk is your personal responsibility; no one else can do it for you."
|October 28
Further Study:
|Righteousness by faith alone. "Let the subject be made distinct
and plain that it is not possible to effect anything in our standing before
God or in the gift of God to us through creature merit. Should faith and
works purchase the gift of salvation for anyone, then the Creator is under
obligation to the creature. Here is an opportunity for falsehood to be accepted
as truth. . . . If man cannot, by any of his good works, merit salvation,
then it must be wholly of grace, received by man as a sinner because he receives
and believes in Jesus. It is wholly a free gift. Justification by faith is
placed beyond controversy."Ellen G. White, Faith and Works,
pp. 19, 20.
On fruit-bearing. "Those who become new creatures in Christ Jesus will bring forth the fruits of the Spirit, 'love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.' Galatians 5:22, 23. They will no longer fashion themselves according to the former lusts, but by the faith of the Son of God they will follow in His steps, reflect His character, and purify themselves even as He is pure. The things they once hated they now love, and the things they once loved they hate. The proud and self-assertive become meek and lowly in heart. The vain and supercilious become serious and unobtrusive. The drunken become sober, and the profligate pure. The vain customs and fashions of the world are laid aside."Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ, p. 58.
Discussion Questions:
| Discuss the question asked at the end of Sunday's study
about friendship with the world and what that means.
As a class, discuss the two Ellen G. White quotes listed above. How do you harmonize the teachings presented there?
Talk about this idea of morals and values and ideas of right and wrong being only relative. Are there some ideas of right and wrong that are purely relative, subjective, and personal, or is everything absolute?
What can you do as a class to help everyone in your local church better understand the great truth of salvation by faith alone?
|I N S I D E Story
|The Church
That Would Not Burn
by ERIGA VICTOR
Southern Sudan has been a battleground for almost 40 years. Guerrilla soldiers repeatedly invade villages, burn homes, rape women, and terrorize the people. Familes have been separated, and thousands have been killed.
In the village of Loa stands the first Adventist church built in southern Sudan. Members continued to worship there even after other villagers had fled. But the men of the congregation refused to join the army or to bear arms. Some soldiers thought that the Adventists refused to join their army because they supported the guerrilla troops from the north. Others were jealous that Adventists were not forced to join the army.
One day some soldiers decided to burn down the Adventist church, hoping to force the Adventists to join the military. At night they lit match after match and tossed them onto the dry thatched roof. But the roof would not catch fire. Finally one man said, "This is wrong, or we would have been able to burn this church down with one match." Others disagreed, and fighting broke out among the troublemakers.
Next the troops decided to force the Adventist men into the military. On Sabbath, they surrounded the church and waited for the service to end. When the congregation came outside, the soldiers rounded up the men and marched them to their camp amid shouts of triumph.
The Adventist men were taken to the base commander, who interviewed them one by one. The men each explained that they had been taken by force. The commander released all those who performed important community duties, such as teachers.
When the soldiers who had captured the Adventists saw that they were released, they threatened to go home too. The commander told them to think carefully about their actions. "We have been in several dangerous situations lately, but God has protected us. Perhaps it is because of the prayers of these Adventists that we have been saved. If you mistreat these people because of their faith, you may find yourself fighting against God. And remember, the day that these Adventists flee their village, God's protection may leave as well."
Three months later fighting in the area grew worse. When the Adventists started to leave, other villagers left as well, for they believed that the safest place to be was with God's people.
Pray that the fighting in Southern Sudan will end, and God's people will be able to return to their homes and farms.
ERIGA VICTOR is a teacher in Adjumani, a Sudanese settlement in northern Uganda.
|Produced by the General Conference Office
of Mission Awareness
Email: email@example.com website: www.adventistmission.org
Join the SSNET moderated email discussion group. You are also warmly invited to join a group discussion of this lesson Sabbath morning with your local Seventh-day Adventist congregation.
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Robin Hood (From The Director Who Created Gladiator)[Movie Trailer]
Director: Ridley Scott Writer: Brian Helgeland Studio: Universal Pictures Cast: Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett, Vanessa Redgrave Release: May 14, 2010 Robin Hood
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Are you in the United States?
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This USB-C™ hub turns your laptop or desktop USB Type-C™ port into two standard USB-A ports, one USB-A fast-charge port, and one USB-C port. You can also extend the range of your USB devices by using this hub as a mid-point repeater.
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Ingram Micro Canada
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UPC Code
Technical Specifications
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|USB Battery Charging Specification Rev. 1.2
USB-A charging port delivers up to 2.4 amps of power
USB 3.0 - Backward compatible with USB 2.0 and 1.1
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|40.2 in [1022.4 mm]
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|5.9 in [15 cm]
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|3.9 in [10 cm]
|Shipping (Package) Weight
|18.4 oz [521 g]
|What's in the Box
|Included in Package
|1 - USB-C hub
|1 - universal power adapter (NA/JP, UK, EU, ANZ)
|1 - USB-C to USB-B cable
|2 - rubber feet
|2 - mounting brackets
|4 - mounting screws
|1 - quick-start guide
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Product Support
Data Sheets
Frequently Asked Questions
Before You Buy
It is possible to use some USB hubs without a power supply, however, doing so may prevent the USB hub or certain high-power USB peripherals from operating. It is always recommended to use an included power supply with a USB hub when possible.
When a power adapter is not used on a hub that comes with a power adapter, power is drawn from the USB port on the computer and then divided between the ports on the hub. This reduces the power delivery to individual ports and high-powered USB peripherals, such as external hard drives, may not start.
On USB hubs that can use a power adapter, more power can be supplied to USB ports than what is possible with a single USB port.
If your USB peripherals require power adapters, they probably do not require power from the USB port and can be used on a USB hub without a power adapter. With USB peripherals that use power adapters, the USB ports on the hub are only used for data transfer and do not draw power from the hub.
USB peripherals that require low power (for example, keyboards and mice) can be used on hubs without a power adapter, in conjunction with other low-power USB peripherals. In this case, power is drawn from the computer's USB port, as described above.
USB-C is a type of USB connector that is capable of supporting the following:
- Data transfer speeds up to 10Gbps, if you use USB 3.1.
- Bi-directional power delivery up to 100W, if both the USB host connection and the device support it.
- Alternate modes, which deliver different types of data at different speeds. For example, DisplayPort Alternate Mode (DP Alt Mode).
If using Thunderbolt 3 over USB-C, the connection is capable of additional features. For example, Thunderbolt 3 is capable of 40Gbps of total bandwidth. For more information, refer to the following FAQ: https://www.startech.com/faq/thunderbolt-3-port-capabilities.
Not all USB-C ports or devices are capable of supporting all of the features listed above, or all of the features at the maximum capabilities. If you require a specific USB-C feature, your USB host connection, cables, and device must all support the feature that you require. For more information about whether your components support specific USB-C features, refer to the information provided by the manufacturers.
When you troubleshoot issues with a USB hub, there are some quick tests that you can complete to rule out potential problems. You can test to make sure that the following components are working correctly and are not the source of the issue:
USB A-to-B cable
Computer USB port
USB peripheral(s)
To test your setup components, try the following:
Use the USB cable and USB peripheral(s) in another setup to see if the problem is with the components or the setup.
Use a different USB cable, USB port, and USB peripheral in your setup to see if the problem persists. Ideally, you should test a component that you know works in another setup.
When you test your cables, it is recommended that you do the following:
Test each cable individually.
Use short cables when you are testing.
When you test the hub, make sure that you do the following:
If a power adapter is included, provide power to the USB hub.
Attach a USB peripheral. The USB hub will not appear in any hardware listings on your system, but USB devices do appear when they are connected.
Install the drivers for the USB peripheral.
Install the latest drivers for the USB controller and motherboard chipset.
Note: No drivers or software are required for the USB hub to work with your operating system. The USB hub works independently of software and works with any operating system.
When testing your USB peripherals, make sure that you do the following:
If required, attach external power.
Confirm that the peripheral works on a standard USB port.
If the USB peripheral(s) can be detected on a standard USB port and not on the hub, do the following:
Use a new USB A-to-B cable.
Test your setup using basic USB peripherals, such as a keyboard or mouse.
Test using another USB port.
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Safety Measures
- If product has an exposed circuit board, do not touch the product under power.
- If Class 1 Laser Product. Laser radiation is present when the system is open.
- Wiring terminations should not be made with the product and/or electric lines under power.
- Product installation and/or mounting should be completed by a certified professional as per the local safety and building code guidelines.
- Cables (including power and charging cables) should be placed and routed to avoid creating electric, tripping or safety hazards.
* Product appearance and specifications are subject to change without notice.
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4-Port USB-C Hub - Metal - USB-C to 3x USB-A and 1x USB-C - USB 3.0
Product ID: HB30C3A1CST


text:
Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter
The Ones That Should Come Have Already Come
The snowfall in Song Zhou finally stopped on the night before Duan Mu An Guo's birthday celebration. Feng Yu Heng sat alone in the room while looking out from the window, but she found that every house was decorated with lights. The leader's birthday was very close to the new year. For the people of the North, this was the equivalent of having two holidays. It was natural for things to be lively. Even the pedestrians appeared to be a in good mood.
Feng Yu Heng knew that for the people, it did not really matter whether the North belonged to Da Shun or Qian Zhou. In fact, they hoped that it would fall into Qian Zhou's control. After all, the three northernmost provinces were forcefully taken from Qian Zhou back then. In the end, the blood that flowed in these people came from Qian Zhou. No matter how well Da Shun treated them, these roots could not be cut.
The Lu family couple finally managed to sort something out with the guards and were led by someone to see the leader. Feng Yu Heng slightly closed her eyes and lay next to the window. She was like a lazy cat. But at this moment, if someone could see her eyes, they would find that there was a sharp look in her eyes.
She knew that if the Lu family couple could successfully meet with Duan Mu An Guo, all of their schemes should be able to succeed. Although she still did not know what sort of gift they had brought for Duan Mu An Guo's birthday, based on the looks that magistrate Lu would occasionally cast at her, the matter of sending her into the leader's palace was most likely determined.
There was no dinner on this night. The Lu family couple had gone out, and only she remained inside the room. The people of the inn would not specially send food for just a servant. This was the degree of human rights under the feudal system. Feng Yu Heng was always thinking that if there came a day, if she had that power, she hoped that, even if this era was imperial, she would still be able to improve the basic human rights of all. For the slaves, this would be the greatest change.
Feng Yu Heng believed that all people should be equal. Although origin and personal ability determined the quality of one's life, there should be no toll on one's body and mind. It was just that this way of thinking was truly too unprecedented for the people of this era. Even if she wanted to do it, it was impossible to do such a sweeping reform. Feng Yu Heng thought that once the matter with Qian Zhou was resolved, she would think of a way to go and take a look at the lands conferred with her title of imperial daughter Ji An. Perhaps that place could be used to perform some small-scale tests.
For the time being, she tossed those abstract ideas to the back of her head. Standing up, she closed the window then dove into her space to eat. When she came out after enjoying a hot bowl of noodle soup, the Lu family couple still had not returned, but it seemed that there were some movements in the inn.
Feng Yu Heng went to the door and went to listen. Amidst the disorderly footsteps, the sound of strong footsteps came. Starting from downstairs it moved upstairs. Not long later, it reached the second floor. After getting upstairs, it stopped around the stairwell and did not move. After a while, the shopkeeper of the inn said: "My lord, there is someone in every room. Aside from the distant relative of the great leader, everyone else is still in their rooms."
The official let out an "un" sound then sighed twice and raised his voice to say: "Everyone inside the rooms, tomorrow is the birthday of the leader of our three northern provinces. The great leader has said that he is thankful that my lords have come to the North from so far away. The gifts that everyone has prepared will be taken away first. You will be able to travel light tomorrow!"
Once this was said, the people inside the rooms were no longer able to sit still. They all opened their doors, wanting to go out and ask some questions, but the guards that had been keeping watch outside immediately brought out their weapons and said in unison: "Get back!"
Feng Yu Heng also opened the door but did not move out. She just stood inside the room and watched. She saw that the person at the stairs was a man in the prime of his life. He was born rather tall and had a full beard on his face. He had round eyes that were comparable to a copper bell, and he looked to be thoroughly ferocious. He said that he had come to pick up the birthday gifts, but if people met him outside, they would mostly think that he was a bandit.
Reality proved that Feng Yu Heng was not the only one with these thoughts. There was even a young miss that was quick to speak, who said without thinking: "You're from the leader's palace? Why do you look like a mountain bandit? Everyone says that the North has plenty of criminals. It would be best if you aren't a scammer."
Once this was said, everyone immediately agreed. After all, the birthday banquet had not yet arrived, yet someone had come ahead of time to receive the gifts. They also spoke so impolitely. Everyone was questioning it.
But the man looked even more ferocious upon hearing this. He raised the sword in his hand and pointed it at the young miss that had just spoken and loudly shouted: "I am a general of the leader's palace. Anyone that dares to question it, be careful that I don't cut your tongue out!"
The young miss was given a fright but was still feeling unreconciled, thus she added: "I am the young miss of the magistrate of Gan Zhou. My father is a court official. What right do you have to speak to me like this?"
With someone taking the lead, the bottleneck was broken through. All of the officials, madams and young misses on this floor began to report their ranks. Upon hearing this, Feng Yu Heng thought to herself, very well, there were provincial officials, city officials and magistrates on the same level as magistrate Lu. There were county magistrates and even a couple prefects. Either way, aside from officials from the capital, there were practically all kinds of people from all other areas.
Apparently, the Duan Mu family did not just fill out this inn. There were another two inns that were the same. It was clear that the number of people that had come North for this was not low. This was also the situation after the people in the capital had found out about it. If this was in the past, perhaps this year's new year's celebration in the North would be even livelier than the capital! Those officials in the capital, even if they had the right to attend the new year's banquet, they would still arrange for someone else to come North. The Duan Mu family would make quite a profit every year at around this time.
With all of the officials revealing their statuses, they had thought that they would be able to stop the bearded man; however, who knew that this would cause him to snort coldly. "Hmph! Officials the size of little green peas really view yourselves to be something important? Why don't all of you think a little about it. Why did all of you come North? If you didn't have the intention of currying favor with our leader, what have you come all this way for instead of staying home for the new year? Since you have already come, don't keep pretending. The North will not accept that act!"
Feng Yu Heng shrugged and smiled. He was right! They had already come to the North. They were just dissatisfied with their current situation. They just wanted to use this opportunity to gain a bit of a relationship with the Duan Mu family. They would try this to try and climb the ladder. They'd already sold themselves out, so why bother will building themselves up.
For a while, everyone shut their mouths and fell silent. But the bearded man had not finished speaking, as he sheathed his sword once more and said something that shocked everyone, "There is a matter that this general will tell all of you about before the great leader's birthday. You don't know about it, right? Including Guan Zhou, Song Zhou and Jiang Zhou, these three northern provinces have already separated from Da Shun many months ago. Presently, we are the three southern provinces of Qian Zhou."
"What?" Everyone was dazed from hearing this. Da Shun's three northernmost provinces had become Qian Zhou's three southernmost provinces? When had this happened?
"Impossible!" Someone raised an objection, "If the North had defected to Qian Zhou, Da Shun would definitely dispatch troops to subjugate them. It's definitely not possible for them to allow the North to separate so easily."
"Right!" Another person said: "For such an important matter, how could the court not have made an announcement. We didn't even hear about it. This must be a lie! What exactly is your goal with making up such a lie?"
Feng Yu Heng leaned on the door, her arms crossed across her chest. It was as though she was a spectator to this comedy. The North did not, clearly having no intention of continuing to play along. They had chosen this time to announce it, just after the last room of the inn had been filled. Duan Mu An Guo's birthday banquet would be tomorrow, but at this moment, the ones that should be coming had already arrived.
"I'm lying to you?" The bearded man coldly snorted three times, "Who would be bored enough to make up such a thing for fun? You are all officials, so why is it that your brains are so slow?" While speaking, he displayed a look of great contempt. In fact, even the soldiers that had accompanied him were filled with pride and smiling. Their smiles caused the officials to turn red in the face.
Everyone began to quietly whisper. They had finally realized the main problem. The North had defected, yet they had come to celebrate Duan Mu An Guo's birthday. What sort of situation was this? Were they abetting the wicked?
The bearded man coldly looked around at the officials, another look of contempt appeared on his face. When the voices grew louder while discussing things, he threw down the sheath of his sword to remind everyone to stay quiet.
After a long time, someone finally asked the key question: "General, I ask you, what exactly is the goal of your visit? It definitely isn't something as simple as collecting the gifts, right!"
The bearded man nodded in satisfaction, "It seems that there is still a smart one. Since you've asked, this general will be direct. This visit to these various lords is for the sake of passing along a message on behalf of our leader. Da Shun did not announce the matter of the northern provinces rejoining Qian Zhou, but just after you entered the North, Da Shun's courts have begun to act. What are they doing? I trust that even if this general does not say anything, you should be able to guess a thing or two. That's right, it's your family members. Da Shun had already taken the decision to take action against your families. In fact, while on my way here, this general heard that the entire family of a prefect living in an inn down the road has already been executed."
Everyone inhaled sharply. If it was just said that they were just worried before, then once this news was revealed, they were completely filled with a sense of danger.
The young misses with less courage had already dropped the ground and became choked with sobs. Even some of the officials began to sob, calling out apologies to their mothers and how they had let down their ancestors.
The bearded man revealed an irritated expression and waved his hand: "Stop causing a fuss! Listen to me speak! We can understand your feelings. Great leader has already dispatched countless guards to Da Shun for the sake of safely bringing your families over from Da Shun. As long as you quietly stay in the North, the Duan Mu family can guarantee the lives of you and your family. The North will do its best to provide you with peace. Of course, those that wish to leave can leave now, but you need to think about the consequences. As long as you walk out of Song Zhou's city gates, the North will not be responsible for you or your family. Even if they have been saved, they will immediately be handed over to Da Shun's government."
Once this was said, who still dared to bring up leaving? With them being forced into this corner, they could only remain to preserve their lives. Only by remaining in the North could they save their family's lives.
Seeing that everyone had begun to feel panicked and regretful, the bearded man was very satisfied with this outcome. He smirked then began to laugh. As he laughed, his eyes landed on the room where Feng Yu Heng was located…


text:
We're talking personal pies. Flat little freeform pies that are full of charm. They're casual and fancy at the same time. And you can make them with all kinds of fillings. But today we are all about apples bathed in butterscotch. I'm not complaining.
The recipe for these is from my friends, Todd and Diane's new cookbook, Bountiful. The recipes inside are inspired by the things they grow in their garden. It's an absolutely beautiful book, but that's a given with these two. They are amazing photographers and videographers. You may remember that I worked with them last year on a fun little holiday video. But, If you aren't familiar, check out the White on Rice Couple Blog for more of their beautiful recipes.
Okay … Galettes! Let's go.
Butterscotch sauce ingredients: sugars, butter, heavy cream, vanilla, scotch and salt. P.S. Yay for heavy cream and brown sugar.
Because it all comes together to make glorious butterscotch sauce.
And you can kick it up a notch with a little scotch. Like my airline size bottle? If I bought anything bigger, it would most likely just go to waste.
Filling ingredients: Apples, apples, apples and a little sugar, flour and lemon juice.
Peel, core and slice those babies so they are nice and thin.
Then we're on to the pie crust.
Prepare the dough and divide into four small discs.
Roll it out into an 8 inch circle. Use a cake pan pressed in the dough as a guide if you want a more perfects. Then just cut off the excess.
Fill the center with apples and spoon on the sauce.
Then just fold the edges, creasing as you go and bake until golden brown.
And dress them up a little bit if you want, too. I used these cute little leaf pie crust cutters I found at Williams-Sonoma.
Butterscotch-Apple Mini Galettes
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons Scotch or Whiskey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 pounds apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 egg yolks
- 3 tablespoons ice water
- heavy cream for brushing on crusts
For the butterscotch:
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Before butter is completely melted, stir in both the sugars. Gently cook stirring occasionally for about five minutes, until the sugars transform from grainy to smooth.
- Add the cream and whisk until completely combined. Increase the heat to medium and cook for 8 more minutes, whisking occasionally. Let cool for 10 minutes. Then stir in vanilla, salt and whiskey. Set aside.
For the filling:
- In a bowl, combine the sugar, flour and lemon juice. Add the sliced apples and toss together until mixed evenly. Set aside. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
For the crust:
- In a medium bowl, use your fingertips to pinch together the flour, butter, salt and sugar until the mixture is crumbly. Make sure any large pieces of butter are flattened or broken apart.
- In a small bowl, whisk egg yolks with ice water until combined. Add yolks to the flour mixture and incorporate until the flour binds together and forms a rough ball, kneading if necessary.
- Divide dough into four equal pieces, flatten into disks and place in the freezer for 5-10 minutes to firm up.
- Roll out dough into an 8-inch circle on a lightly floured work surface. Use a cake pan as a guide to cut a more perfect circle. Then transfer disk to one of the prepared pans. Pile apples in center of disk about 5 inches and wide and three layers deep in apples. Pour a couple of spoonfuls of butterscotch sauce over apples and spread evenly. Then fold dough up and over apples, creasing every inch or so. Repeat with three remaining dough disks. Brush crusts with a little heavy cream.
- Bake for 20 minutes. Rotate sheet pans and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking for 15-20 more minutes or until crusts are golden brown. Note: I forgot and baked them at 350 the whole time and they were fine that way, too.
Now normally I would lather something like this up with ice cream because you know fruit isn't my first choice in a dessert, but after the first bite – oh my…so good – it didn't need anything else.
Hope you enjoy and don't forget to check out Bountiful. It's beautiful.


text:
KVM and libvirt best practices
Setting up my first environment using KVM on RHEL, I am disappointed about the lack of best practices and standardization regarding KVM on GFS clustering. First thing that should be obvious when sharing a complex and flexible piece of software online for production use, don't allow too many things without proper best practices. Otherwise people will do things differently and possibly for the wrong reasons.
For example, while with ESX there are proper locations for putting disks and VM config files on a shared storage, with libvirt both are separated and to me its unclear what part of the default paths should reside on shared storage and what-not. I guess, like many others, I will have to learn it the hard way. What a shame.
It is disappointing that proper conventions are lacking for:
- network bridges (eg. don't use vnetX for bridge names like many docs do)
- disk images (eg. using separate system and data disks)
- hardware/driver (eg. using virtio-net and virtio-blk better or not ?)
- kernel options (eg. should we be using noop elevator, different clock source, divider ?)
- architecture choice (eg. 32bit will probably be sufficient for most services, 64bit only when needed)
- multipath naming (eg. userfriendly names ?)
- LVM naming (eg. use unique names to prevent conflicts)
- GFS and cluster configuration (eg. what conventions are used inside RHEV ?)
For early adopters of libvirt, being able to migrate to RHEV in the future is an important prerequisite. For Red Hat having an easy migration path from a (custom) libvirt setup to RHEV without little hassle is interesting as well.
Have you been setting up libvirt environments, share your best practices here ! If you found interesting links to information, let us know too. Let's fill this void.
what I've learned so far
- use libvirt! You can run kvm directly from the command line, wrap this into a script and reinvent the wheel. But you will not be able to use any management tools. If you don't need a GUI like VirtManager, there is virsh. The only caveat so far, there is no support for that fancy VESA-to-ncurses console wrapper (which allows text-mode installs within a ssh session (so no serial ttys are required)
- use virtio; if available, it's fast (and stable enough for me, since I've upgraded to a recent Kernel!)
- use labels to mount file systems, so that you can easily revert from virtio to scsi emulation (this is what rhev does)
- I name my bridge kvm0 e.g.; it should be obvious to anyone else that this is a special host.
- I store my VMs at /srv/kvm/ and configs in /etc/libvirt/; though, separating config from data looks somewhat odd on a single host environment.
- I'm using some routing tricks, so that I do not loose any ip addresses on my kvm0 bridge (which is necessary with some hosting providers, but this is another story that needs an extra post)
- I prefer to run 64bit clients because the 4 GB limit hits VMs the same way it hits physical machines
- naming storage: I think that's not important, but I derive the naming from the mount points/primary use in general. but: shall I put a (GPT) partition table inside of an iscsi volume?
KVM and RHEL clusters are not supported at the moment
Just thought you should know. According to RHEL, 5.4 KVM Clustering is a tech preview. We were trying to get it setup and ended up giving up on getting it to work due to odd issue after odd issue. Looks like Xen is it for now.
Yes, I know. We're looking at
Yes, I know. We're looking at clustering the hosts, not the guests :-) But clustering guests looks quite interesting as well.
Virtual Machine configuration
Personally I think the location of the configuration files for libvirt (and KVM) are troubling. The virtual machine configuration files are locally installed on the KVM host (/etc/libvirt), unlike the way VMware does it. VMware combines the virtual disk images (.vmdk) and configuration files (.vmx .vmxf) inside the same folder. (note: If you even name the folder with the extension .vmwarevm it is a contained vm for use on Fusion). This way it is easy to start a virtual machine on another node, without the need to move configuration files or migrate the node (you only need to add the .vmx to the server inventory). What would be a best practice for KVM+Libvirt?
unlike the way VMware does it ... now
VMware used to have local config files in the 1.x and 2.x versions of ESX. Version 3.x and up have centrally stored config files, which is much cleaner and easier for anything related to VM mobility (live migration, automatic restart on different host in case of host failure, ...)
Multipath: Don't use "user friendly names"
For multipathing, I recommend turning so-called user friendly names off. I'm talking about the
user_friendly_names setting in multipath.conf. As far as I can tell, user_friendly_names' default value is actually "no", but Red Hat's package overrides this, for unknown reasons.
I find "user friendly names" very unfriendly: In an already complicated coctail of device mapper, LVM, etc, it's not useful to have LUNs aliased. Setting user_friendly_names to "no" means somewhat long device names, but much less confusion, and consistent naming across servers which might share LUNs.
Very nice post, by the way. I agree with all the recommendations put forward so far. Especially the one about using unique names for LVM elements, e.g. a volume group should be called HOSTNAME_rootvg, instead of just rootvg; this makes things much less confusing when you have to work with guest file systems from the host.
I agree, LVM names are
I agree, LVM names are sufficient for most manipulations. Everything underneath is opaque to the user, except maybe when tracing something and then you'll be happy to using something unique, rather than something configurable (and possibly confusing) :-)
libvirt changes iptables
One thing that annoyed me very much about libvirt is that it will change your iptables configuration as soon as you start a routed/natted network.
I patched my libvirt so that I can disable that. For me the default behavior is a no go because I need to control my firewall settings in one place.
KVM tip: data corruption
If you have a cluster of KVM servers, be careful - there is no locking across the cluster - AT ALL(!)
If you try to start the same virtualised host on two servers, nothing will stop you. You'll get silent data corruption and eventually you will notice one or both VMs panic.
Re: KVM tip: data corruption
> If you have a cluster of KVM servers, be careful - there is no locking across the cluster
Hi. What tool do you advice so avoid this problem ?
I've found pacemaker can be a
I've found pacemaker can be a good solution.
libvirt offers
libvirt offers locking/fencing


text:
NEW ORLEANS -- A 57-year-old New Orleans man was accidentally shot and fatally injured by his wife who mistook him for an intruder, police said Monday.
The shooting occurred about 11 a.m. Monday (noon ET) in the 5800 block of North Claiborne Ave. in the Lower 9th Ward.
Police said the man, named by the Times Picayune newspaper as Charles Williams, died at the hospital.
No charges were immediately filed in the investigation.
The newspaper said the man's 53-year-old wife was not arrested.
More on this story from NBC affiliate WDSU 6 New Orleans
The Times Picayune reported that the Orleans Parish district attorney's office is expected to review the case, quoting a news release from a police spokesman, officer Garry Flot.
Williams' daughter said the family was too upset to talk about what happened, the newspaper reported.
More content from NBCNews.com:
- No negative impacts from repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell', study finds
- His American Dream is dead, killed by the recession
- Catholic college course scrutinized for calling homosexuality deviant
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