text:
Former Florida Gators striker Abby Wambach, who captained and led the U.S. Women's National Team to exhilarating victories and a second-place finish in the 2011 Women's World Cup over the summer in Germany, has been named the 2011 Female Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press.
Wambach dominated the balloting, receiving 65 of 214 first-place votes, and became the first individual soccer player in the country's history to win the award.
She scored four goals for the United States in the World Cup, leading the Americans to the final match where they eventually lost to Japan on penalty kicks. Wambach received the Silver Ball and Bronze Boot awards by FIFA for her efforts during the event.
In addition to her soccer awards, she was also named Sportswoman of the Year by the Women's Sports Foundation in October and was announced in September as one of eight former letter winners who will be inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as part of the 2012 class. She was also a late entry and eventual winner of the ESPY award for Best Play in July.
Wambach's heroic efforts over the summer included a game-tying goal two minutes into injury time during extra time against Brazil in the quarterfinals, what became a game-winning goal against France in the semifinals, and a near game-winning goal 14 minutes into extra time against Japan in the finals.
Photo Credit: Martin Meissner/Associated Press


text:
Application of the finite element method in high-side gondola rail car design
MetadataShow full item record
Finite element models of four design configurations of a proposed composite aluminum-steel high-side coal gondola rail car were developed. The designs were analyzed for compliance with the loadings set forth by the Association of American Railroads. Each of the first three designs were analyzed to check design concepts and alternatives with the fourth design being the final design planned for a prototype car.
The results of the finite element analyses indicate that the final design is acceptable. However, two areas exist where results taken literally indicate a negative margin of safety. These areas are in the end sill to draftsill connection and in the draftsill casting. These conditions appear to be inconsequential since in the end sill case, the high stress is apparently caused by modeling constraints and the draftsill casting is a traditional design and is in common use on current cars and therefore should not cause any service problems.
Step-by-step application of the finite element method to this design process is presented along with discussion of some significant element formulation assumptions and modeling methods.
- Masters Theses [19179]

subset: commoncrawl


text:
massage therapists in chester, new hampshire
Sorry, but we currently have no businesses in the Massage Therapists section of our directory who call Chester their home. If your business falls under the category of Massage Therapists and are in Chester, New Hampshire (NH), you can Join the Directory for free today!
There are some very stressful moments when dealing with cancer. Below is our directory of New Hampshire Massage Therapists who might be able to relive some of that stress. If you are searching for a Massage Therapist in Chester, New Hampshire (NH), than check out the listings below. Are you a Massage Therapist in Chester? Join the directory and help those who are need of your services.


text:
Quality Care
The Future Quality Assurance Program
Here's what we're doing with our Quality Assurance Program to support nurses with their continued learning.
CNO maintains a Quality Assurance Program (QA) to meet its mandate of protecting the public by making sure nurses are taking responsibility for practicing nursing safely throughout their careers. All 26 regulated health professions in Ontario are legislated to establish and maintain such a program.
So, what exactly is CNO's QA Program? Quality Assurance is our commitment to public safety. It's a mandatory program where all nurses are accountable for actively updating their knowledge and skills to strengthen and enhance the quality of their practice. You can learn more on our QA Program page.
The future Quality Assurance (Future QA) model supports nurses accountabilities of their continued competence and ongoing professional development.
In the new model, all nurses will complete an Action Plan when renewing their annual membership. Nurses selected for Practice Assessment will have to complete a self-assessment, submit their Action Plan to CNO and obtain feedback from peers in the form of a multisource feedback process.
In 2019, we will be engaging with nurses to understand their current experience with QA and evaluating the usability and effectiveness of the new self-assessment tools. We will also start designing a new online tool for nurses to access QA information and complete their QA requirements. As well, we will begin developing the components of the multisource feedback tool.
Future QA project development timelines
download pdf
In 2016, CNO's Council explored the purpose of QA and future trends. It was decided that Council would lead the development of a new QA model for CNO.
At each of the four Council meetings in 2017, Council members reviewed different reports and evidence, listened to experts in QA and continuous learning and provided their feedback. The objective was for Council to choose a new model for the QA Program by the end of the year.
In December 2017, Council approved a conceptual QA model
In 2018, CNO started the development of the new QA model. The work included the design of two new self-assessment tools; a Practice Reflection worksheet and an Action Plan (formerly known as the Learning Plan). Evidence research and a literature review informed the design of the self-assessment tools.
CNO also consulted with other key stakeholders to assess and obtain feedback on important elements of the Future QA model, including the online and multisource feedback components.
These are the resources that have been presented to Council to help generate discussion and develop a future model for the QA Program.


text:
West Harlem business owners opposed to Columbia University's proposed expansion have sued the Empire State Development Corporation to get information over the planned use of eminent domain, the Columbia Spectator reports. What makes this special, apparently, is that the group had received similar information in the past without all of this fuss. Of course, maybe the state economic development agency learned from the last time that it released information like that.
UPDATE: Curbed has an internal memo stating that Columbia's B-school would be part of the first wave of gentrification under the university's expansion.
– Matthew Schuerman


text:
Ala Blouse in Grandiflora
A relaxed take on the classic cotton button-down, the Ala blouse is everything you want to wear, whether hosting friends for lunch or enjoying an intimate dinner for two. Featuring a dynamic floral print inspired by Ala's summer garden, style this signature blouse with white jeans for a casual look or slim-cut silk pants for dressier occasions.
The model is 5'10" and is wearing a size small which measures 29" from shoulder to hem. Share Facebook Pinterest
• Side slits
• Cotton Voille
• Dry clean
• Cotton Voille
• Dry clean


text:
Non-recourse litigation funding-you pay no fees unless you succeed.
Access best lawyers,barristers and arbitrators.
Litigation Funding Options:
- No-Win, No-Fee Agreements (Conditional Fee Arrangements)
Only pay the lawyer fees, and an additional success fee, if the case is successful.
- No-Win, Low-Fee
Pay lawyer fees, reduced at up to 70% of usual rate. If the case is successful, the client will also pay a success fee.
- Third Party Funding
We pay for all or some of the costs involved in litigation under a litigation funding agreement. You only pay legal fees if the claim is successful.
Why use litigation funding?
- Falcon Advisory Panel of lawyers, arbitrators, barristers, former judges (combined experience in over 1,000 disputes) available to assess if claim fulfills our funding criteria.
- Successful award does not always lead to payment of a judgment debt. Before we fund, we assess challenges of enforcement and opponent's ability to pay.
- We fund disputes in English Courts; UAE Courts (including DIFC and ADGM Courts); Qatar Courts; Oman Courts; LCIA; ICC; SIAC; DIAC; ADCCAC; Ad-Hoc arbitration.
- We will look at funding disputes of value above US $ 250,000.
- You pay no fees, unless you succeed.


text:
T-Glide® Work Files DUA
This Work Files DUA (job files) series are specially developed for visual materials.
Sizes below are available:
- Code: 1108001 (size 435 x 273mm)
- Code: 1108002 (size 493 x 390mm)
- Code: 1108003 (size 563 x 444mm)
- Code: 1108004 (size 700 x 569mm)
- Code: 1108005 (size 770 x 643mm)
- With Pocket insert on both side
- Sold in box of 50 files
T-Glide® Deskstand
Portable T-Glide® Deskstand
Ideal for storing active working files at the desk. The Deskstand keeps files hanging neatly at the desk, facilitating easy viewing of file identification tabs.
- Dimension: 430 x 250 x 350mm
- Unit of Sale: Each
- (*Deskstand set only, Files not included)
Personal Filing Kit
Personal Filing Kit is a desktop filing kit that helps you to keep your active files neat and tidy with the advantage of mobility. No more messy files on your desk.
Personal Filing Kit includes:
- 1x T-Glide® Deskstand
- 1x T-Glide® Bulk 50mm File
- 15pcs of T-Glide® A4 files
- 15pcs of Smart Dividers
- 1 set of Ezi Colour Labels:
- A-Z (10 labels each)
- 0-9 (10 labels each)
- 1 x blank white labels (24 labels/sheet)
Unit of Sale: Set in a box
RadarPrint White Labels
RadarPrint Blank White Label Sheet
To use with RadarPrint Label Making Software Program.
- Plain white labels (5 labels per sheet)
- Sold in individual sheet


text:
EU States Opt-Out of Innovation
October 12, 2015
Guest blog post by Karen Batra, Director of Food and Agriculture Communications at the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO). A number of international media outlets are reporting on EU member states choosing to opt-out of GMO cultivation. Using a law signed in March giving countries the right to seek exclusion from any approval request for GMO… » read more
Posted by Kasia Jasik
Science & Policymaking, Trade & Industry, Agriculture & Food, Agriculture & Food
, agriculture, biotech, choice, farmers, GMO, imports, science, trade


text:
Over the river, and through the wood,
The WMATA app knows the metro sleigh
through the blue, green, orange, red and yellow line.
Over the river, and through the wood undefined
Oh, how the economy does blow!
It stings the ego and bites the pocketbook
As over the readjustment we go.
To celebrate a [job, return from PC, grad school, etc.]
Hear the cells ring, "Ting-a-ling-ding",
Hurrah for Thanksgiving Day!
There is so much to give thanks for; why limit it to just one day!This year, come join RPCV/w for an early Thanksgiving Dinner. Bring your favorite dishes and share your traditions and memories of Peace Corps past. The turkey will be provided along with an array of drinks. For questions and/or suggestions please contact Andrianne at firstname.lastname@example.com.
Please register for this event by COB Nov. 10, 2010.


text:
A fine Tuesday morning to you, Insiders, and thank you for your patience as we resume regular blog duties following an extended holiday weekend. Some of the news from this post has already been shared in commenting or elsewhere over the World Wide Web, but as we transition back to the work week, it's time to recap what has recently taken place. Several stories here will be expanded on later today.
KINGS SIGN IAFALLO: I'll have a more informative post coming up later, but the Kings, as first noted by the Buffalo News, added to their prospect pool over the weekend in signing Buffalo-area prospect and NCAA free agent Alex Iafallo, who recently finished his senior season at Minnesota-Duluth with 21 goals and 51 points in 41 games played. His 20th of the season came with 26 seconds remaining in the national semifinal game at the NCAA's Frozen Four:
Here's a stick tap to Buffalo native and former
Red Raider Ken Baker, who shot LAKI a heads up on Iafallo, another product from Greater Buffalo. The 6-foot, 185-pound Iafallo strung together seasons of 22, 25 and 23 points before breaking out as a senior this season. Again, more a informative look at Iafallo's game will come.
WAGNER, PATS ADVANCE: The Regina Pats did it the hard way but ultimately advanced to the WHL's Eastern Conference Final after erasing a three games to one series deficit and defeating the Swift Current Broncos 5-1 in Game 7 Monday night. Austin Wagner had two more goals – including a shorthanded empty-netter to seal the series – to give him 10 in the postseason, which ranks second across the league. Wagner, who is known for his blazing speed but will look to develop and use all of his abilities in concert with each other at a high pace, had three separate two-goal games in the second round series. Regina will face the winner of tonight's Lethbridge-Medicine Hat Game 7 with the opportunity to advance to the Western Hockey League championship series on the line.
WATS-ON A ROLL: The Mississauga Steelheads, coached by James Richmond, who has worked in LA Kings development, made quick work of the Oshawa Generals in the second round of the OHL Playoffs and have advanced to face Peterborough, who finished 10 points clear of Mississauga in the race for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. With 16 points (10-6=16) over an eight-game point streak, 20-year-old Kings prospect Spencer Watson has caught fire, while 18-year-old defenseman Jacob Moverare has three assists and a plus-nine rating over his first 11 playoff games.
THE OTHER ONTARIO: Meanwhile, some 2,200 miles west, the Ontario Reign concluded their 2016-17 season with a record of 36-21-10-1, and with 83 points have drawn a first round match-up with the rival San Diego Gulls, who finished with a 43-20-3-2 record and 91 points. Final team statistics are here; your scoring leader is T.J. Hensick, who totaled 16 goals and 52 points in 67 games, while defenseman Matt Roy (amongst the newcomers) recorded one assist and a plus-one rating in eight games, forward Matt Luff earned one assist and a plus-one rating in two games, and defenseman Chaz Reddekopp did not record a point and drew a minus-two rating in three games. The series takes a 1-1-1-1-1 best-of-five format, with games in Ontario on Saturday, April 22 and Monday, May 1 (if necessary), and in San Diego on Friday, April 21, Friday, April 28 and Tuesday, May 2 (if necessary). With the Ducks holding one of those "commanding" three games-to-none series leads, the Reign could benefit from not facing a squad that would receive reinforcements such as Shea Theodore and Brandon Montour, both of whom are up with the parent club. Ondrej Kase went down and up this past week, so he's worth keeping an eye on. Via Gulls PR, Nick Ritchie and Chris Wagner are also eligible to play in the series; they're unlikely to do so, barring a major Ducks-Flames turnaround. Ontario Reign Insider Lindsay Czarnecki will be on the scene with reports throughout the entire series.
More to come on Reddekopp and Iafallo, Insiders. Let's talk soon.


text:
Sharing her story to Reddit, poster 'cfabriziostanton' explained she lost 50lbs (three stone five pounds) in just four months.
The mum-of-three revealed she still has another "10-20lbs of fat loss" to go before she is finished.
Her images garnered lots of comments on the social media site, with most asking her how she did it.
Responding to one commenter, cfabriziostanton said: "I follow a ketogenic diet. I feel like it has a bad reputation but it doesn't need to be super greasy and fat laden for most who are trying to lose weight.
"Once my body switched to using fat as fuel I had TON of excess fat already attached to my body to fuel it.
"I eat protein of all kinds (fish, meat, eggs) fat (avocados and cheese mainly) and low-carb veggies (broccoli, asparagus, cabbage, lettuce, spinach and zucchini) but my portion sizes are significantly smaller since being in ketosis- because my appetite is suppressed and my thinking of what "normal" is has been completely rewired.
"I'm starting to plan on how to transition successfully out of a strict ketogenic diet to a more balanced low-carb diet as I start introducing running and weight training."
On hearing she followed a keto diet, some commenters asked her how she found it, and she replied: "Keto can seem really intense and gross and greasy depending on who you're following. People with a lot of body fat to lose do not need to eat a ton of fat to be in ketosis. I didn't.
"A normal day for me looks like this: Breakfast: two-three eggs, avocado with tajin seasoning, bacon (or breakfast sausage, or neither if I'm not that hungry) or a low-carb whole food meal replacement shake with unsweetened almond milk.
"Lunch: if breakfast was big and filling I often skip lunch and have an early dinner, but that's because I'm already in ketosis and my body feels good even when I haven't eaten in a while.
"If I'm eating lunch it's often turkey and cheese lettuce wraps with onions, pickles, mayo and mustard or whatever else I want to include. Sometimes lunch is a small snack, like salami and cheese with a small salad or pickles.
"Dinner: I am the only one in my house eating keto. I still have my husband and three kids to think of so I usually cater dinner to them and either tweak it for myself or make myself something I'd normally have for lunch.
"Keto is easy in the way that I can find a low carb pasta sauce (Raos or I make my own for marinara, Alfredo, garlic/butter/parm) and protein (chicken, meatballs, sausage, ground beef) and have mine over veggies while my family has it on noddles.
"Same with most rice dishes. Mexican food is super easy to make keto, just leave out the carbs (rice, beans, tortillas, corn) until the end and use a low carb veg instead or make it into a salad and then add the carbs for everyone else.
"Eating out keto is stupid easy, lettuce wrapped cheese burgers, steak and veggies, hearty salads."
She also revealed the other diets she had tried that hadn't worked for her, and said: "I was paleo for a while, did whole 30, have been dairy free… nothing has worked, been as satiating, or easy to maintain.
"I was pre-diabetic having dizzy spells twice a week four months ago. My pancreas is happy as a clam right now, and I feel like a million bucks. I drink water, electrolyte drinks without sweeteners, la croix and coffee."


text:
|The Thor Message Board >> View Post
Subj: Re: Thor beats Hulk confirmed (see attachment)
Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 at 03:14:42 pm CST (Viewed 131 times)
Reply Subj: Re: Thor beats Hulk confirmed (see attachment)
Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2018 at 04:21:21 pm CST (Viewed 156 times)
Quote:And that was WITHOUT the Odin Force. He tells Bill a few pages later that the OF had abandoned him when he reset everything from the Reigning.
Spot On--proving Thor had this ability long before the movie came out. Oemings Disassembled Ragnarok saga was published 14 years ago.
Thor's statement in the scan also backs up/is in alignment with Odin's statement in the Ragnarok movie:
Are you a God of Hammers???
Posted with Google Chrome 63.0.3239.132 on Windows 10
|Alvaro's Comicboards powered by On Topic™ © 2003-2020 Powermad Software


text:
Product Details
Fire Alarm
JETEE, proudly as the fire and safety leader in Jordan, installed the very first Conventional Fire Alarm System back in 1981, and also the very first Addressable Fire Alarm System in 1992. 30+ years have passed and JETEE still provides the latest and most up to date technology in Analogue Addressable and Conventional Fire Alarm Systems in addition to special detection systems ranging from Flame, Linear Heat and toxic Industrial Gases detection.
Analogue Addressable Fire Alarm Systems
Capacities Up to 10 Loops Per CPU , 24 Loop Per Panel
250 Devices Per Loop
Capacities of Up to 64 Networkable Panels
UL Listed FM Approved, EN54 Option Available
Conventional Fire Alarm Systems
2,4,6,8, 16 & 24 Zone Capacities
25-30 Device Per Zone
EN54 and UL Approvals
Flame, Linear Heat & Gas Detection:
• Special Hazard Alarm Systems with UL,FM, ATEX Approvals


text: STOP RUN PHOTOGRAPHY BY VOLKMAR KUNTZ, PITTSBURGH TECHNICAL COLLEGE Pittsburgh Technical College instructor Phil Grabowski leads students in the 2016 IBM Master the Mainframe contest. Grabowski has been instrumental in bringing mainframe education to the school. Enthusiastic Education Instructor brings the mainframe to eager students Valerie Dennis is senior editor of IBM Systems Magazine. hil Grabowski is passionate about bringing the power of the mainframe to students. His enthusiasm is apparent, as witnessed at the recent SHARE user group event, where he was full of smiles and positive words for and about the students and technology. The instructor from Pittsburgh Technical College (PTC) chartered a bus from Pennsylvania to Providence, Rhode Island, so 29 students could experience the platform firsthand. Before attending the event, Grabowski says the students had no knowledge of mainframes and believed the servers were a niche market talked about in history books. Going to SHARE "opened up P the eyes to students the vast opportunities of what is available to them in the job market," he says. Mainframe education at PTC began in March 2016. The college was already an academic partner with IBM, giving it resources to bring software and technologies into the classroom. Grabowski worked with Paul Newton, consulting IT specialist, IBM, and educator Packy Laverty, professor of computer and information systems, Robert Morris University, to bring mainframe training into the PTC curriculum. "When I spoke with Paul Newton, he was so eager and excited to give us the opportunity for our school to pursue main- 40 // JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 ibmsystemsmag.com frame technologies," Grabowski recalls. Newton gave PTC its own z/OS* splash screen with 20 logins and an administrative login, allowing students to use a mainframe as part of their education and training. PTC's School of Information Technology, where the mainframe is taught, has about 350 students. It's a career-driven school featuring industrial and hands-on experience, so it's important for students to have access to the technology. "Explaining to students that mainframes do over a billion transactions a day and run Western civilization's digital economy- especially how you can explain that the infrastructure is used by everyone almost every day- becomes a great story," Grabowski says. "Learning about the vendors that are using mainframe technologies becomes a perfect launch point to inspire students about the different job opportunities available to them." The college continues to move education forward, just like the mainframe itself. In 2016 the program was approved to provide a Bachelor of Science in IT and business administration. And since the summer SHARE event, students have started a mainframe club and participated in the IBM Unchain the Frame and Master the Mainframe events. As for the future, Grabowski would love to have a course devoted to z/OS and COBOL, which he plans to integrate into the baccalaureate program. "The students are so enthusiastic," Grabowski notes. "They want to explore more opportunities for a mainframe career."http://www.ibmsystemsmag.com


text:
You can search the PLD
using a combination of the following criteria:
To conduct a search, either type the required search terms (individual
words or phrases) into the relevant search boxes or select them
from a browse list. Search
Options are selected from drop-down lists.
In the Search page, you can combine search terms using Boolean
and proximity searching, search for
variations on search terms using wildcard characters.
Note: Between search boxes, all terms are treated
by default as if they were combined using the Boolean
operator and.
When you have finished making your selections, select Search.
The Search Results with Context page will appear
displaying the results of your search.
See also Searching PLD.
Click Durable URL at the top of the page to obtain a Durable URL compliant link that will point to the page you are currently viewing. A pop-up box will appear with the Durable URL. Simply copy and paste the link into documents, email, or add it to your bookmarks
Send your suggestions, comments
or queries to our Webmaster.


text:
At almost five hours long, this has got to be one of the longest Council meetings on record. Or, at least the longest in a very long time. When I served on the Council in the 80's we used to have some long meetings but in recent years they have gotten shorter and shorter. Some contentious zoning issues, proposed charter amendments, the budget hearings and metro benefits for same-sex couples make for a crowded agenda. While many council meetings are boring, this one is not. This is one of the most interesting council meetings I have observed in years.
To get your own copy of the analysis and agenda, follow this link. Here is a summary of the meeting.
- Same sex benefits for metro employees passed on second reading 26-5 with 3 abstentions. Councilman Josh Stites publicly spoke against it. God Bless Josh Stites.
- No one spoke against the Mayor's $1.9 billion budget but some wanted more spending for their favorite interest or department and the budget passed on second reading. No one speaks for more government efficiency or points out waste except in years when taxes are to be raised; proponents of more spending are constant advocates.
- All proposed charter amendments were rejected. That is a surprise to me. Some had passed the Charter Revision Commission. I thought something would get passed.
Public hearings on the operating budget starts at time stamp 13:42 and ends at 35:18. There is no point in watching it, it is pretty boring. Everyone who speaks, speaks in favor. There is no opposition. Policemen want more money, a 3% pay raise. Bruce Wood of BURNT laments pockets of poverty and what he sees as misplaced priorities. Advocates of free bus passes speak as well as advocates of shuttle bus service and other advocates of mass transit. Advocates of improved fire service speak. The budget is approved and referred back to the Budget Committee.
Public hearing on the Capital Improvements budgets: The Capital Improvements Budget is not really a budget but a planning document that prioritizes what will be built if money is available to build it. It is an important document but does not actually appropriate any money. Rick Williams who heads the anti-AMP group speaks in opposition to an item in the document to fund the AMP on West End. He makes the point that to make the improvements on West End would require State legislative approval. See his remarks at time stamp 37:09.
BILL NO. BL2014-747 defines "communication huts" which is a step necessary for Goggle's proposed new network to move forward. It passes with no one from the public speaking pro or con.
BILL NO. BL2014-769 which would allow smaller secondary houses on lots with an owner occupied house generates some comments. I think this as a good bill. (see time stamp 1:22:45)
BILL NO. BL2014-770 would allow two houses to be constructed on a lot without the little
|A tall skinny Nashville duplex
BILL NO. BL2014-771 would allow the council to create a "contextual overlay district" in a neighborhood. This is in response to the trend of developers buying small existing houses and tearing them down and building much larger houses that are out of scale to the existing neighborhoods. This COD designation would impose size limitations on replacing of an existing single family home with a larger home. I initially thought this was a positive development, but after hearing from the public, I am persuaded that the bill needs to be withdrawn or deferred and rewritten. I do not like to see modest homes torn down to build McMansions, but that is a matter of taste and aesthetics.
The market is responding to demand and I am not sure that we should impose these restrictions on redevelopment. Nashville is growing. If we are going to discourage urban sprawl and grow the tax base, we should not prohibit the market from responding to demand. If developers cannot tear down a one-bath, two- bedroom house build in the 50's and build the kind of housing people want, such as a three-bedroom, two-bath home, then the kind of homes people want will be build in surrounding counties. We need to let the market dictate the size and type of homes and Nashville needs the increased tax base if we are to provide the services the city needs without raising taxes. It should be pointed out that these restrictions would not automatically apply to any area but this designation would have to be applied to the area by the Council. To see the discussion of this bill, see time stamp 1:37:18-2:22:26. This bill is deferred two meetings.
BILL NO. BL2014-776 would create the Music City Cultural Heritage Overlay District which
|Lower Broad
I do not think a Wallgreens on lower Broadway would destroy it. Tourist attending live outdoor music downtown may need a Tylenol or sun glasses or sun screen or a lawn chair or bottled water. However, I do want to see lower Broad remain primarily a strip of honky tonks, but an occasional something else added to the mix might enhance the area not distract from it. The Merchants Hotel restaurant does not have live entertainment, so under this bill, it they were not already there, they would not be allowed open. Sometimes, tourist visiting Nashville may want to eat a good meal in a relaxed environment and take a break from live music. On Second Ave especially, I think this is just too restrictive. Candy shops, sports memorabilia stores, ice cream shops and art galleries may enhance the mix and the tourist experience. I support the basic intent of this bill but think it needs more thought. Not every music venue that opens downtown makes it. Some fail. While I think we should try to guide development in this area to protect what has made it popular, I don't think we can micromanage development. Some of the advocates of the bill and the sponsor admit that the bill needs more work. The bill is passed on second reading, made amendable on third and deferred to the July 3rd meeting. (see 2:29:46- 3:09:38)
RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1052, RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1087, and RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-1088 are all proposed Charter amendments and they are lumped together for discussion. One proposed amendment would prohibit Metro Council members from serving any other elective office while serving in the Metro Council, another would reduce the size of the Council to 27 members, one would increase the number of terms a council member could serve to three, and one would prohibit Metro Government from asking a potential employee about his criminal record and one would remove protections for the Fair Grounds. (If you are following along on the Council staff analysis, see page 9.) The amendments are taken one at a time regardless of which resolution they are a part of. There is some very good discussion.
Council member Megan Barry makes a good argument why one should not be permitted to be a council member and a member of the State legislature. However, she makes the common liberal comparison that the relationship of city to state is the same as that of state to federal government, which of course is incorrect. States have sovereignty; cities do not. Cities only exist at the will of the state. That proposed amendment fails 10 to 22.
There is a good discussion about term limits and the size of the Council. I think term limits were a mistake. Having council members who have served a long time gives them some power to balance the power of the bureaucracy which serves the interest of the Mayor. We have a very strong Mayor form of government and Council term limits makes the Mayor even stronger. However, all attempts to repeal term limits have failed. The size of the Council is discussed with Emily Evans arguing for the smaller council and Ronnie Stein, Tim Garrett and others arguing against it. The argument in favor of the large council is that less wealthy people can serve in the Council because with smaller districts is does not take as much money to run and that with smaller districts council members are more available to their constituents. While I think those are valid arguments, I think the downside of a large Council is that it makes the Council less powerful and concentrates more power in the hands of the Mayor. The bill to reduce the size of the Council fails 10 for, 24 against.
Council members Robert Duvall and Duane Dominy speak against the bill that would weaken the fair grounds protections and that amendment fails 12 in favor and 20 against.
Council members Gilmore's proposed amendment that would prohibit metro from asking about a job applicant's criminal history fails 23 for and 11 against.
The argument in favor of the other proposed amendment which would increase the number of terms a councilman could serve from two terms to three terms is made by Charlie Tygard. It fails 23 for and 12 against. All proposed amendments fail and the three resolutions containing the amendments are withdrawn. For the discussion of the proposed amendments see time stamp 3:15:12 - 3:57:32.
RESOLUTION NO. RS2014-984 requests the Davidson County Delegation to the Tennessee General Assembly to introduce and support the necessary legislation to provide a dedicated funding source for local mass transit. At the request of the sponsor it is deferred indefinitely.
BILL NO. BL2014-698 attempts to curtail the litter caused by those free Tennessean newspapers that litter the neighborhoods. Due to First Amendment protection, the press has a greater right to litter than other people so this bill can't do a lot but it is an attempt. In response to this effort the Tennessean agreed to adopt some policies to police itself and the sponsor request passing it on second reading and then an indefinite deferral. There is some good discussion of this bill and opposition to passing it on Second reading. There is allegation and concern that the sponsor tried to use this bill to force the Tennessean to write an article on the issue. The bill fails to pass on a machine vote of 10 for and 21 against. (see time stamp 4:03:3- 4:15:09)
BILL NO. BL2014-775 establishing the tax levy. It is deferred and rerefered to the Budget and Finance Committee of the Council.
BILL NO. BL2014-779 is the metro benefits for same-sex couples bill. Council member
|Josh Stites
For news reports on last nights meeting follow this link , this link , this link, and this link.
Top Stories


text:
Category Archives: RentMen
New Fetish Label RentMen Available From AlphaMaleUndies
RM 'NIPPLES-TOP' – BLACK This tank is crafted from lightweight, soft breathable mesh. The front of the tank is cut out extra slim fit, also allowing you to show off your nipples. This stretch tank fits perfectly to any body … Continue reading
Posted in RentMen, Sexy male models, Sexy underwear, Sheer Underwear Tagged 2HOLES BOTTOM, Bodysuit, Fetish label, Harness, NIPPLES-TOP, RENTMEN, sexy, sheer Leave a comment


text:
HP Sprocket Photo Printer
ProsFast photo printing. Highly portable. Prints from your phone or tablet's photo albums. Easy integration with Facebook, Instagram, and Flickr.
ConsLimited to wallet-size (2-by-3) prints. Can only print from smartphones and tablets via Bluetooth.
Bottom LineThe tiny HP Sprocket Photo Printer can produce wallet-size prints from your phone or tablet's photo albums or your social media accounts, although its output quality could be better.


text:
Never miss an issue! Subscribe now to receive our quarterly magazines delivered to your doorstep for only $25 per year.
Receive copies of any current issue of Careers with STEM from as little as $2.95 per mag. Discounts are applied for bulk orders.
Stock your classroom with magazines chock-full of STEM career inspiration, with bonus posters included.
These free, downloadable resources for Teachers include guides for teaching with our magazines, as well as general STEM subject guides.
This list of coding resources covers everything from; teacher guides, hackathons, coding camps, mentoring programs and simple how-to's.
Use the Careers with STEM teacher guides for teaching alongside any magazine. Teacher guides are free to download!
Additional info
Please email firstname.lastname@example.com for international enquiries or to request an invoice. Please also contact us if you are not able to pay with PayPal or credit card, and we will organise an alternative for you.
Your order will be processed by Refraction Media. By placing an order, you are agreeing to comply with our Terms and Conditions and our Refund and Returns Policy.
Shipping time is 15 working days.


text:
Children's Wheelchairs - Quality Assured
Dash Kids: Outrigged Wheelchair SP & AP£319.99 – £349.99 ex VAT Select options
Children's wheelchairs are specially made to assist with a child's development.
Children's wheelchairs are sometimes referred to as paediatric wheelchairs or even 'baby wheelchairs'. Children's wheelchairs provide great balance and mobility, comfort, and control. They grant children the independence to play and learn at school and in the home, and during hours of play.
Our children's wheelchairs for sale are manual wheelchairs. Available in either self of attendant propelled models. Children's wheelchairs are ultra portable, lightweight, and fold-able. They are also 'tilt-in-space' wheelchairs. This can help with posture, positioning, and important medical functions. (Such as facilitating respiration, reducing pressure, and helping with feeding.)
There are important considerations to make before purchasing a kid's wheelchair. For example, does the child's health conditions need specific requirements? How much physical support does the child need? And most importantly, what does the child want most?
For access, care, and positioning, children's wheelchairs are ideal for disabled children or children with extra requirements.
If you have questions about which wheelchair is the correct one for your child, please contact us. We also stock products to enhance a child's wheelchair's function. If you are looking for cushions, aids, or custom seats, check out our wheelchair accessories page. Or our wheelchair parts page.


text:
Home » Press & News » Press Releases » Celebrating Today's Women with The Akai Aiksho Song
SVF Music release their much-awaited festive single 'The Akai Aiksho Song'
Kolkata, 2nd November 2019 – SVF Music known for gifting the Bengali audience with a unique content every festive season, released the much-anticipated Bengali festive song of this year The Akai Aiksho Song in association with Nihar Naturals. The song was released on the Diwali weekend, amplifying the festive fervour of the music loving audience.
The Akai Aiksho song is directed by Bengal's one of the most sought-after directors, Dhrubo Banerjee, who has gifted the audience with the successful 'Guptodhon' franchise. This is his debut music video and his first association with SVF Music where he has directed five eminent women of the Bengali Entertainment Industry: Paayel Sarkar, Darshana Banik, Oindrila Sen, Anindita Bose and Tuhina Das
Sung by the powerhouse Sona Mahapatra and Vivek Hariharan, The Akai Aiksho Song celebrates the power of womanhood narrated through the story of the above 5 women. At the onset of the video we see one of the women (Darshana) getting married and in spite of being the bride she full fledgedly participates in the wedding decorations asserting her father that she is there for him both as a son and a daughter. The scenario moves to the second woman, Paayel, who is a successful pilot doing justice to her work but does not forget her old father and ensures his wellbeing. We then come across Anindita, who has set out to make a career in cricket which is known as a male dominated profession. She is carefree and focussed. On the other hand, we see a millionaire's daughter, portrayed by Oindrila Sen, teaching underprivileged children in a school, doing her bit for the society. Finally, we meet Tuhina, a creative designer who has chosen to become a homemaker, managing her family and pursuing her work through freelance. A phone call by Darshana to these women, reunites the five friends at her wedding who celebrate their free spirit and their ability to don multiple roles.
Positive about this fresh new number, director Dhrubo Banerjee said: "The Akai Aiksho Song is a music single that tells us that no matter how much we try, we will never be able to multitask like how a woman does in her daily life. This song is an ode to all those free spirited and hardworking women in our society. A song for today's Akai Aiksho women".
Co-founder and Director of SVF Music, Mahendra Soni said: "SVF Music is known for its versatile content that becomes a favourite in every Bengali's playlist. The Akai Aiksho song is dedicated to all women in our society who balance everything in today's fast paced life and is set out to achieve their dreams, no matter what. This is SVF Music's first branded song collaboration with Nihar Naturals and we are working towards multiple similar content together. I thank Nihar for associating with us in this thoughtful endeavour"
Beautifully composed by Gaurav Chatterji, penned by Ritam Sen and produced by SVF Music, The Akai Aiksho Song released on the Diwali weekend on SVF Music and has since then been gaining rapid views since it's release.
The lively number can be heard here: bit.ly/TheAkaiAikshoSong
ABOUT SVF Music:
SVF Music is the largest library of contemporary Bengali songs, providing a platform for collaboration of national and international artistes. A music label that thrives on not just film-music, but independent original music as well, SVF Music organizes musical concerts and music tours, incorporating artistes beyond borders. With unique and engaging content across all audio-visual platforms in India and globally, the SVF Music label has the maximum reach of top musicians and artistes of the industry. SVF Music's content is available on OTT and Web streaming platforms, in India and globally. Awarded the Silver Play Button by YouTube, SVF Music – with 900+ songs, is now a family of more than 1,50,000 subscribers, and has garnered a whooping 30 million+ video views and counting!
Sanjukta Nathan –
Salankara Biswas –


text:
Moscow Mule Cocktail Syrup (1 oz.)
Carefully crafted from fresh ginger, cane sugar and lime juice, this small-batch syrup is designed to help you mix up a perfect Moscow Mule. Simply add ½ oz syrup to 1 ½ oz vodka and 3 oz seltzer. Stir over ice, garnish with fresh lime and enjoy.
Made in
the USA
Materials: Amber Bottle, Metal Cap, Matte Seal
Makes 2 Cocktails | 1 fl. oz. (30 mL)
Made in the USA
Craft. Cocktails. Quick.
Pour. Stir. Serve.
Designed to simplify home entertaining, each bottle replaces numerous fresh ingredients. Just add the spirits of your choice.
Nonalcoholic Mixers
Seeking alternatives to alcohol? These zero-proof mixers can also be added to seltzer or nonalcoholic spirits.


text:
Product Overview
Main Features
- Upgrade license
- 1 named user
- commercial
- Win
Your software needs to run faster. It performs tasks that you need to get done sooner, not later including big data analytics, image analysis, time-critical financial analysis, and simulations. Intel Parallel Studio XE is a software development suite that helps boost application performance by taking advantage of the ever-increasing processor core count and vector register width.


text:
From Steam Engines to Robots… The Hierarchies of Robotic Devices
By F. W. Chesson
The defining of just what constitutes a robot has been dimmed by anthropological bias, or the impediment of seeing the robotic scene through Human-Colored glasses. That shambling and amiable tin-man traveler, on the Yellow Brick Road to Oz may be far more acceptable to the viewer than the most complex but immobile logic device. Consequently, there's the rub … or byte! When does a computer become a robot brain?
The History of Robots
By Forest J. Ackerman
This article is excerpted from a record made by the author. Consequently, to enjoy it to its utmost, turn off all the lights but one, sit back in your easy chair and read. As you read, you will find yourself being taken on a fantastic journey into the world of robots.
Hello, this is Forrest Ackerman, Editor of Famous Monsters of Filmland and Spacemen. I've heard from thousands and thousands of you fans since the world's original film monster magazine began in 1958, and many's the time I wished that I was the beast with a million eyes — in order to read all your letters quicker. Well, having heard from all of you, it seems only fair — doesn't it — that you should hear from all of me.
Star Wars Special Production and Mechanical Effects
By John Stears
Special Production and Mechanical Effects Supervisor "Star Wars"
Although the robots that appeared in "Star Wars" were not true robots, they did stir a great deal of interest. Consequently, we asked the genius behind them, John Stears, to give us an idea of what went into their design.
We would like to thank the Star Wars Corporation, and Twentieth Century-Fox Corporation, for giving us permission to use this story. —Editor
(In conjunction with the production designer, who was responsible for their general appearance.) The problems were many, inasmuch that the director wanted to use a human as much as he could so as not to loose the character to a pure mechanical machine.
For Further Information on the Quasar Industries Robot Featured in this Publication and how you can obtain it for your Trade Show and Promotional Needs
(Exclusive Western Representatives lor Quasar Industries)
(213) 445-5330 or (213) 266-1994
2324 Lenta Lane, Arcadia. California 91006
The Quasar Industries' Robot
A Dream That Came True
By Gene Beley
Android Amusement Corporation Robots are going to be part of our everyday lives, and Quasar Industries seems to have a head start on getting us there.
Gene presents the story of Quasar in a light-hearted fashion, and whets the imagination for future developments. —Editor Nine years before Star Wars jetted through the movie theaters of the world, introducing two lovable robots, Quasar Industries, Inc. of New Jersey gave birth to a full-size working 'droid, Klatu. Even though Klatu was the result of more than 40 designs submitted by an eight-man team of engineers and scientists, of whom nearly all succumbed to death or serious illnesses before his successful completion, there was no worldwide media fanfare.
Where Robot Mice And Robot Men Run Round In Robot Towns
By Ray Bradbury
They asked me where I'd choose to run, which favored? Ups? or Downs?
Where robot mice and men, I said, run round in robot towns.
But is that wise? for tin's a fool and iron has no thought!
Computer mice can find me facts and teach me what I'm not.
But robot all inhuman is, all's sin with cog and mesh.


text:
Welcome to our Windows 10 tutorial series.
We will be spending time walking you through the ins and outs of Windows 10.
The current build we are working with is Windows 10 Build 9926 but as always, we will make updates as the builds evolve.
Today we will be talking a little about the new Windows 10 Taskbar located at the bottom of the screen.
Windows 10 Taskbar
If we take a closer look, we can see the following components:
First, we have the Windows icon – Click on that and you get the new [Only registered and activated users can see links. ].
Next we have the preliminary Cortana box where you can type a query or use the microphone icon to indicate that you will be using your voice to ask Cortana something.
Next, we have the Task View icons that allow you to add multiple desktops.
The next icon on the bar is the Internet Explorer icon – this opens up Microsoft's famous internet browser – Internet Explorer. This might be replaced by the Spartan browser in the future.
Next, there is an icon for File Explorer which allows you to get a view of your files.
Finally, there is an icon for the Windows Store. This opens up the store in a window that can be resized, maximized and closed back down.
That's what's on the Windows 10 Taskbar so far. We will look at a lot of those components in more detail later.


text:
Huge thank you to the many Softworks customers who joined us at our Customer Summit on May 27 at Druids Glen Resort. We had a fantastic day and were very taken by the lovely and kind comments received – Thank you so much for taking the time to get in touch!
We are delighted to share the video of our Customer Summit with you all:
We hope you enjoy the video and if you didn't make the summit this year, perhaps this will encourage you to join us next year. It was a great day! You can also view the photos on our website.
We look forward to meeting you at our next event. To reserve your place for the 2017 Summit email us today.
Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you don't miss out on more awesome upcoming videos!
You can also follow Softworks on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.


text:
*MAP & Directory of Lake St. Clair Vacation House Rentalshttps://www.stclairrental.info/
Map of Vacation Rentals Around Lake St. Clair & St. Clair River! Close to fishing and great boating!
Anchor Bay Chamber of Commercehttp://www.anchorbaychamber.com/directory
Anchor Bay Chamber members are great resources to grow your business and get involved with the community.
Anglers Point Marina – Chesterfield Twp.http://www.anglerspointmarina.com
Anglers Point Marina Chesterfield Township is located across from the Selfridge DNR Launch Ramp. We sell bait and fishing licenses, have fishing boat rentals, a fuel dock, & vacation rental with boat well for visiting fishermen, and are open year round for ice fishing too!
CJ Browns Boatyard Grille – Chesterfield Twp.
CJ Browns Boatyard Grille is located on Jefferson in Chesterfield Township. We are walking distance from several marinas… or stop by via car on the way home from your marina! We offer specialties of Detroit style Pizza, ribs, chicken, and Lake Perch.
L & M Marine – Chesterfieldhttp://www.landmmarine.net
L & M Marine Service and marina offers boat wells starting at $900 on the Salt River just off Lake St. Clair. We also offer a variety of services including shrink wrap, winterizing, detailing, and storage. Marine Services include: Electronics installation, air conditioning, generators, alarm systems, bow thrusters, water makers, video/audio, marine toilets.
Marine One Construction – Chesterfield Twp.http://www.marineoneconstruction.com
Marine One Construction is fully equipped to build and repair your seawalls, boat hoists, docks. Our equipment can take care of dredging, piling, bridges, and marine salvage on Lake St. Clair in Macomb County.
North Bay Marine – Chesterfield Twp.http://www.northbaymarine.com
North Bay Marine sales, service, and repair of boat Engine / Outdrives / Transmission by Lake St. Clair. Authorized dealer for MerCruiser, Mercury, Mariner, Verado, OMC, Volvo Penta.
PGA Collision – Chesterfield Twp.http://www.pgacollision.com
PGA Collision provides marine, RV, auto, & PWC structural & cosmetic repairs, custom gel coat matching – fiberglass, paint, carpentry. We are located on Lake St. Clair in Macomb County, with boat access on the Salt River.
Propeller Basin Marina, Storage, & Service – Chesterfield Townshiphttp://www.propellerbasin.com
Just off Lake St. Clair's beautiful Anchor Bay in Chesterfield Township, Propeller Basin Full Service Marina is conveniently located only a few minutes off I-94.
Sun-Up Marina – Chesterfield Twp.http://www.sun-upmarina.com
Sun-Up Marina is located on the Salt River on Anchor Bay, just off of Lake St. Clair. Everything you'll need is right here! Marina, fuel dock, party store, bait, marine supplies, restaurant and carry outs within walking distance, club house, picnic areas, and more.


text:
In a letter to shareholders today, San Diego's Amylin Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ALMN) urges them to vote for the company's slate of directors on a blue proxy card. Amylin's annual meeting will be held on May 27th. The diabetes drug developer asks shareholders to discard gold or white proxy cards with board candidates nominated by billionaire Carl Icahn or Eastbourne Capital Management. Amylin defends its policy in its letter, citing the opportunity of its exenatide diabetes drug, and criticizing Icahn and Eastbourne for "fundamentally misunderstanding" the company.
By posting a comment, you agree to our terms and conditions.


text:
Snowflake Cookie Favors
Wende LLT. Webber
Capture these delicate symbols of winter's beauty in dough, and share them with your wedding guests. Gingerbread cookies, piped with royal icing and highlighted with sugar and nonpareils, are perfect snacks for the post-reception ride home or the day after the wedding. Package them in clear acetate containers banded with ribbon and a quilling-paper label (ours reads "A love like no other"), both held on with double-sided tape.


text:
John Havlicek Images
John Havlicek was recently honored at the Boston Celtics last home game of the 2014-15 season for the 50th anniversary of the legendary "Havlicek Stole the Ball" play.
Three generations of the Havlicek family recently attended a Baltimore Orioles – St. Louis Cardinals game where they enjoyed America's number one pastime and had a chance to do a meet and greet with the team.
John Havlicek visits the Celtics at their practice room to give some advice. Havlicek is known often to stop by and give the team some perspective, as he most famously gave to Ray Allen when looking back on his 1969 game against the Lakers, offering the advice to "fight and claw back to get back to 2-2, to even." Though he never took up the position of coaching, he has remained active in trying to impart his views on the game and what it takes to win.
This photo features John Havlicek being inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. With a total of 26,395 points scored, Havlicek, along with the Celtics, would win eight championships. New York Knicks coach Red Holzman described him by saying, "On stamina alone, he'd be among the top players who ever played the game."


text:
Automated corporate credit processing solution
Banks have resisted efforts to automate their corporate lending operations, perceiving these services as unique and relationship-driven. Even today, users rely mainly on spreadsheets and other manual tools to review and approve loan proposals with multiple handoffs across functional teams.
Consequently, Relationship Managers (RMs) spend most of their time chasing data instead of developing business. While they have access to specialized applications like loan management systems, credit risk scoring engines, and CRM applications, these are poorly integrated, if at all, so getting a holistic view of the loan process is difficult.
Ultimately this fragmented, labor-intensive approach leads to lengthy turnaround times, frequent data-entry errors, and unacceptable business risks. In a rapidly evolving, fiercely competitive and highly regulated industry, there needs to be a better way.
Introducing Mindtree's Corporate Credit Processing Solution — a market-proven, fully integrated platform that transforms the way banks appraise, approve, and track corporate loans. Our Credit Processing Solution enables banks to:
- Improve operational efficiency and minimize loan decisioning turnaround time
- Ensure loan-processing predictability and transparency
- Comply with stringent audit and compliance requirements
- Empower relationship managers to focus on consultative selling, rather than managing data
Inside Mindtree's Flexible, BPM-driven Solution
Mindtree engineered its Credit Processing Solution using advanced business process monitoring (BPM) technology that integrates seamlessly and securely with virtually any existing business or technology infrastructure, including risk scoring engines, loan management systems, and collateral management systems.
The result is a convenient centralized platform that integrates and automates the entire corporate loan lifecycle, from sourcing to appraisal to disbursement.
Easily accessible to every stakeholder involved in the loan approval process, the Mindtree platform comes with pre-built activities and business rules that can be configured to replicate the business process intrinsic to each bank.
Credit Processing Solution Overview
Corporate Lending the Existing Way: Highly manual processes with multiple handoffs
The Better Way with Mindtree CPS Solution: Automated workflows, holistic views, better controls, and multichannel access
Mindtree leverages more than a decade of experience building technology solutions for the financial services industry.
End-to-End Benefits
By adopting Mindree's Automated Credit Processing Solution, banks can:
- Reduce turnaround time by allowing teams to work on different aspects of a loan proposal concurrently
- Boost efficiency by consolidating data from multiple systems and providing near real-time process updates
- Increase productivity by assigning tasks to the right person based on role and approval limit
- Ensure high performance by enforcing SLAs for activities and providing proposal status updates to all stakeholders
- Control business risk with detailed views of direct and indirect exposures and timely alerts
- Improve compliance by eliminating the need for offline conversations and creating comprehensive audit trails
- Increase transparency with SLA and turnaround time reports and 360-degree customer views
Maximize revenue by empowering relationship managers to focus on consultative selling rather than data management
End-to-End Automated Credit Approval Processing
Mindtree orchestrates the entire process with concurrent activities to improve productivity and reduce turnaround time.


text:
Darren shares feedback with Council about the YTL Arena.
Darren Jones MP has written to the Bristol City Council Democratic Services team to request a statement is read at the next planning meeting for the YTL Meeting.
Darren says
Following feedback from my constituents about the proposed YTL Arena, I ask that a full transport assessment and plan is published. The proposal for an arena has been met with great interest by myself and my constituents, I hope that details on how the arena will impact local life will be published in an accessible and transparent format.


text:
Sumer means "Land of the Lords of the Sun" ... "Land of the Lords of Brightness"
Evidence of wheeled vehicles appeared in the mid 4th millennium BCE, near-simultaneously in Mesopotamia, the Northern Caucasus (Maykop culture) and Central Europe. The wheel initially took the form of the potter's wheel. The new concept quickly led to wheeled vehicles and mill wheels.
The Sumerians' cuneiform writing system is the oldest that has been deciphered. The status of older inscriptions such as the Vinca signs and the even older Jiahu symbols is controversial.
Jiahu symbols refer to the 16 distinct markings on prehistoric artifacts found in Jiahu, a neolithic Peiligang culture site found in Henan, China, and excavated in 1999. The Jiahu site dates to 6600 BC; some archaeologists believe the markings to be similar (although without necessarily having the same meaning) to some characters used in a much later writing system related to the oracle bone script, but there is currently no consensus. A 2003 report in Archaeology interpreted them "not as writing itself, but as features of a lengthy period of sign-use which led eventually to a fully-fledged system of writing." The earliest evidence for a corpus of writing in the oracle bone script dates much later to the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC).
The Sumerians were among the first astronomers, mapping the stars into sets of constellations, many of which survived in the zodiac and were also recognized by the ancient Greeks. They were also aware of the five planets that are visible to the naked eye.
They invented and developed arithmetic by using several different number systems including a mixed radix system with an alternating base 10 and base 6. This sexagesimal system became the standard number system in Sumer and Babylonia.
They may have invented military formations and introduced the basic divisions between infantry, cavalry, and archers.
They developed the first known codified legal and administrative systems, complete with courts, jails, and government records.
The first true city states arose in Sumer, roughly contemporaneously with similar entities in what is now Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. Several centuries after the invention of cuneiform, the use of writing expanded beyond debt/payment certificates and inventory lists to be applied for the first time, about 2600 BC, to messages and mail delivery, history, legend, mathematics, astronomical records, and other pursuits.
Conjointly with the spread of writing, the first formal schools were established, usually under the auspices of a city-state's primary temple.
Finally, the Sumerians ushered in the age of intensive agriculture and irrigation. Emmer wheat, barley, sheep (starting as mouflon), and cattle (starting as aurochs) were foremost among the species cultivated and raised for the first time on a grand scale.
The history of Sumer, taken to include the prehistoric Ubaid and Uruk periods, spans the 5th to 3rd millennia BC, ending with the downfall of the Third Dynasty of Ur around 2004 BC, followed by a transition period of Amorite states before the rise of Babylonia in the 18th century BC. The first settlement in southern Mesopotamia was Eridu. The Sumerians claimed that their civilization had been brought, fully formed, to the city of Eridu by their god Enki or by his advisor (or Abgallu from ab=water, gal=big, lu=man), Adapa U-an (the Oannes of Berossus).
The first people at Eridu brought with them the Samarran culture from northern Mesopotamia and are identified with the Ubaid period, but it is not known whether or not these were Sumerians (associated later with the Uruk period).
The Sumerian king list is an ancient text in the Sumerian language listing kings of Sumer from Sumerian and foreign dynasties. Some of the earlier dynasties may be mythical; and only a few of the early names have been authenticated through archaeology. The best-known dynasty, that of Lagash, is not listed there at all.
Sumerian King List
Permanent year-round urban settlement may have been prompted by intensive agricultural practices. The work required in maintaining irrigation canals called for, and the resulting surplus food enabled, relatively concentrated populations. However, this analysis, often identified with Karl Wittfogel's theories on the Asiatic mode of production, is hotly controverted, and few archaeologists or historians today accept it as a sufficient explanation for the first cities.[citation needed] The centres of Eridu and Uruk, two of the earliest cities, had successively elaborated large temple complexes built of mudbrick. Developing as small shrines with the earliest settlements, by the Early Dynastic I period, they had become the most imposing structures in their respective cities, each dedicated to its own respective god. From south to north, the principal temple-cities, their principal temple complex, and the gods they served, were
Ur, E-kishnugal, Nanna (moon)
Larsa, E-babbar, Utu (sun)
Uruk, E-anna, Inana and An
Bad-tibira, E-mush, Dumuzi and Inana
Girsu, E-ninnu, Ningirsu
Umma, E-mah, Shara (son of Inana)
Nippur, E-kur, Enlil
Shuruppak, E-dimgalanna, Sud (variant of Ninlil, wife of Enlil)
Marad, E-igikalamma, Lugal-Marada (variant of Ninurta)
Kish, Ninhursag
Sippar, E-babbar, Utu (sun)
Kutha, E-meslam, Nergal
In the possibly mythical[citation needed] pre-dynastic period, the Sumerian king list portrays the passage of power from Eridu to Shuruppak in the south, until a flood occurred, from where it relocated to the northern city of Kish at the start of the Early Dynastic period. Hegemony, which came to be conferred by the Nippur priesthood, alternated among a number of competing dynasties, hailing from Sumerian city-states traditionally including Kish, Uruk, Ur, Adab and Akshak, as well as some from outside of southern Mesopotamia, such as Awan, Hamazi, and Mari, until the Akkadians, under Sargon of Akkad, overtook the area. Archaeologists have confirmed the presence of a widespread layer of riverine silt deposits, shortly after the Piora oscillation, interrupting the sequence of settlement, that left a few feet of yellow sediment in the cities of Shuruppak and Uruk and extended as far north as Kish. The polychrome pottery characteristic of the Jemdet Nasr period (3100-2900 BC) below the sediment layer was followed by Early Dynastic I artifacts above the sediment layer.
The Early Dynastic Period began after a cultural break with the preceding Jemdet Nasr period that has been radio-carbon dated to about 2900 BC at the beginning of the Early Dynastic I Period. No inscriptions have yet been found verifying any names of kings that can be associated with the Early Dynastic I period. The ED I period is distinguished from the ED II period by the narrow cylinder seals of the ED I period and the broader wider ED II seals engraved with banquet scenes or animal-contest scenes
The Early Dynastic II period is when Gilgamesh, the famous king of Uruk, is believed to have reigned. Texts from the ED II period are not yet understood. Later inscriptions have been found bearing some Early Dynastic II names from the King List. The Early Dynastic IIIa period, also known as the Fara period, is when syllabic writing began. Accounting records and an undeciphered logographic script existed before the Fara Period, but the full flow of human speech was first recorded about 2600 BC at the beginning of the Fara Period. The Early Dynastic IIIb period is also known as the Pre-Sargonic period.
After a flood occurred in Sumer, kingship is said to have resumed at Kish. The earliest Dynastic name on the list known from other legendary sources is Etana, whom it calls "the shepherd, who ascended to heaven and consolidated all the foreign countries". He was estimated by Roux to have lived approximately 3000 BC. Among the 11 kings who followed, a number of Semitic Akkadian names are recorded, suggesting that these people made up a sizable proportion of the population of this northern city.
The earliest monarch on the list whose historical existence has been independently attested through archaeological inscription is En-me-barage-si of Kish (ca. 2700-2600 BC), said to have conquered Elam and built the temple of Enlil in Nippur. Enmebaragesi's successor, Aga, is said to have fought with Gilgamesh of Uruk, the fifth king of that city. From this time, for a period Uruk seems to have had some kind of hegemony in Sumer. This illustrates a weakness of the Sumerian kinglist, as contemporaries are often placed in successive dynasties, making reconstruction difficult.
Mesh-ki-ang-gasher is listed as the first King of Uruk. He was followed by Enmerkar. The epic Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta tells of his voyage by river to Aratta, a mountainous, mineral-rich country up-river from Sumer. He was followed by Lugalbanda, also known from fragmentary legends, and then by Dumuzid, the Fisherman. The most famous monarch of this dynasty was Dumuzid's successor Gilgamesh, hero of the Epic of Gilgamesh, where he is called Lugalbanda's son. Ancient, fragmentary copies of this text have been discovered in locations as far apart as Hattusas in Anatolia, Megiddo in Israel, and Tell el Amarna in Egypt.
This dynasty is dated to the 26th century BC.[citation needed] Meskalamdug is the first archaeologically recorded king (Lugal from lu=man, gal=big) of the city of Ur. He was succeeded by his son Akalamdug, and Akalamdug by his son Mesh-Ane-pada. Mesh-Ane-pada is the first king of Ur listed on the king list, and it says he defeated Lugalkildu of Uruk. He also seems to have subjected Kish, thereafter assuming the title "King of Kish" for himself.
This title would be used by many kings of the preeminent dynasties for some time afterward. King Mesilim of Kish is known from inscriptions from Lagash and Adab stating that he built temples in those cities, where he seems to have held some influence. He is also mentioned in some of the earliest monuments from Lagash as arbitrating a border dispute between Lugal-sha-engur, ensi (high priest or governor) of Lagash, and the ensi of their main rival, the neighboring town of Umma. Mesilim's placement before, during, or after the reign of Mesannepada in Ur is uncertain, owing to the lack of other synchronous names in the inscriptions, and his absence from the king list.
The Awan Dynasty was the first dynasty of Elam of which anything is known today, appearing at the dawn of historical record. The Elamites were likely major rivals of neighboring Sumer from remotest antiquity; they were said to have been defeated by Enmebaragesi of Kish (ca. 25th century BC), who is the earliest archaeologically attested Sumerian king, as well as by a later monarch, Eannatum I of Lagash.
Awan was a city or possibly a region of Elam whose precise location is not certain, but it has been variously conjectured to be north of Susa, in south Luristan, close to Dezful, or Godin Tepe. According to the Sumerian king list, a dynasty from Awan exerted hegemony in Sumer at one time. It mentions three Awan kings, who supposedly reigned for a total of 356 years.
Enshakushanna was a king of Uruk in the later 3rd millennium BC who is named on the Sumerian king list, which states his reign to have been 60 years. He was succeeded in Uruk by Lugal-kinishe-dudu, but the hegemony seems to have passed to Eannatum of Lagash for a time.
Following this period, the region of Mesopotamia seems to have come under the sway of a Sumerian conqueror from Adab, Lugal-Ane-mundu, ruling over Uruk, Ur, and Lagash. According to inscriptions, he ruled from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean, and up to the Zagros Mountains, including Elam. However, his empire fell apart with his death. Sumerian records also show Nin-Kasalsi as the first ruler of the city of Adab. Like the later "King" of the Third Dynasty of Kish, Nin-Kasalsi was a woman.
Lugal-Ane-mundu's power may have been limited, however, as his reign seems to have been contemporaneous with the Third Dynasty of Kish, inaugurated by Kug-Bau or Kubaba, unique in the fact that she was the only woman ever to reign as "king". Before overthrowing the rule of Enshakushana of the Second Uruk Dynasty and becoming monarch, the king-list says she was a tavern-keeper. In later centuries she was worshipped as a minor goddess, achieving important status in the Hurrian and Hittites periods, when she was identified with the Hurrian goddess Hannahannah[citation needed]. In the post-Hittite Phrygian period she was called Kubele (Latin Cybele), Great Mother of the Gods.
Akshak too achieved independence with a line of rulers extending from Puzur-Nirah, Ishu-Il, and Shu-Suen, son of Ishu-Il, before being defeated by the rulers in the Fourth Dynasty of Kish.
Akshak was a city of ancient Sumer, situated on the northern boundary of Akkad, sometimes identified with Babylonian Upi (Greek Opis). Its exact location is uncertain. Classical writers located it where the Tigris and Euphrates rivers are closest together and it was mentioned along with Kish in early records. Archaeologists in the 1900s placed Akshak at the site of Tel Omar (or Tel Umar) where a pair of sites straddles the Tigris, but that turned out to be Seleucia (possibly earlier Upi/Opis) when it was excavated by LeRoy Waterman of the American Schools of Oriental Research. Michael C. Astour placed it on the Tigris, on what is now the southern outskirts of Baghdad.
This dynasty is dated to the 25th century BC. En-hegal is recorded as the first known ruler of Lagash, being tributary to Uruk. His successor Lugal-sha-engur was similarly tributary to Mesilim. Following the hegemony of Mesannepada of Ur, Ur-Nanshe succeeded Lugal-sha-engur as the new high priest of Lagash and achieved independence, making himself king. He defeated Ur and captured the king of Umma, Pabilgaltuk. In the ruins of a building attached by him to the temple of Ningirsu, terracotta bas reliefs of the king and his sons have been found, as well as onyx plates and lions' heads in onyx reminiscent of Egyptian work. One inscription states that ships of Dilmun (Bahrain) brought him wood as tribute from foreign lands. He was succeeded by his son Akurgal.
Eannatum, grandson of Ur-Nanshe, made himself master of the whole of the district of Sumer, together with the cities of Uruk (ruled by Enshakushana), Ur, Nippur, Akshak, and Larsa. He also annexed the kingdom of Kish; however, it recovered its independence after his death. Umma was made tributary - a certain amount of grain being levied upon each person in it, that had to be paid into the treasury of the goddess Nina and the god Ningirsu.
Eannatum's campaigns extended beyond the confines of Sumer, and he overran a part of Elam, took the city of Az on the Persian Gulf, and exacted tribute as far as Mari; however many of the realms he conquered were often in revolt. During his reign, temples and palaces were repaired or erected at Lagash and elsewhere; the town of Nina - that probably gave its name to the later Niniveh - was rebuilt, and canals and reservoirs were excavated. Eannatum was succeeded by his brother, En-anna-tum I. During his rule, Umma once more asserted independence under Ur-Lumma, who attacked Lagash unsuccessfully. Ur-Lumma was replaced by a priest-king, Illi, who also attacked Lagash.
His son and successor Entemena restored the prestige of Lagash. Illi of Umma was subdued, with the help of his ally Lugal-kinishe-dudu or Lugal-ure of Uruk, successor to Enshakushana and also on the king-list. Lugal-kinishe-dudu seems to have been the prominent figure at the time, since he also claimed to rule Kish and Ur. A silver vase dedicated by Entemena to his god is now in the Louvre.
A frieze of lions devouring ibexes and deer, incised with great artistic skill, runs round the neck, while the eagle crest of Lagash adorns the globular part. The vase is a proof of the high degree of excellence to which the goldsmith's art had already attained. A vase of calcite, also dedicated by Entemena, has been found at Nippur. After Entemena, a series of weak, corrupt priest-kings is attested for Lagash. The last of these, Urukagina, was known for his judicial, social, and economic reforms, and his may well be the first legal code known to have existed.
Urukagina ( ca. 2359�2335 BC short chronology) was overthrown and his city Lagash captured by Lugal-zage-si, the high priest of Umma. Lugal-zage-si also took Uruk and Ur, and made Uruk his capital. In a long inscription that he made engraved on hundreds of stone vases dedicated to Enlil of Nippur, he boasts that his kingdom extended "from the Lower Sea (Persian Gulf), along the Tigris and Euphrates, to the Upper Sea" or Mediterranean. His empire was overthrown by Sargon of Akkad.
The Akkadian period lasted ca. 2334�2218 BC (short chronology).
The Gutian dynasty came to power in Mesopotamia around 2150 BC (short chronology), by destabilising Akkad, according to the Sumerian kinglist at the end of the reign of king Ur-Utu (or Lugal-melem) of Uruk. They reigned for perhaps around one century (copies of the kinglist vary between 25 and 124 years; 91 years is often quoted as probable). The dynasty was succeeded by the 3rd dynasty of Ur. The Gutian people (Guti) were native to Gutium, presumably in the central Zagros Mountains; almost nothing is known about their origins.
The Gutians practiced hit-and-run tactics, and would be long gone by the time regular troops could arrive to deal with the situation. Their raids crippled the economy of Sumer. Travel became unsafe, as did work in the fields, resulting in famine.
The Sumerian king list indicates that king Ur-Utu of Uruk was defeated by the barbarian Guti, perhaps around 2150 BC. The Guti swept down, defeated the demoralized Akkadian army, took Akkad, and destroyed it around 2115 BC. However, they did not supplant all of Akkad, as several independent city states remained alongside them, including Lagash, where a local dynasty still thrived and left numerous textual and archaeological remains.
Ultimately Akkad was so thoroughly destroyed that its site is still not known. The Guti proved to be poor rulers. Under their crude rule, prosperity declined. They were too unaccustomed to the complexities of civilization to organize matters properly, particularly in connection with the canal network. This was allowed to sink into disrepair, with famine and death resulting. Thus, a short "dark age" swept over Mesopotamia.
Akkad bore the brunt of this as the center of the Empire, so that it was in Akkad that the Guti established their own center in place of the destroyed Akkad. Some of the Sumerian cities in the south took advantage of the distance and purchased a certain amount of self-government by paying tribute to the new rulers.
Uruk was thus able to develop a 5th dynasty. Even in the city of Akkad itself, a local dynasty was said to have ruled. The best known Sumerian ruler of the Gutian period was the ensi of Lagash, Gudea. Under him, ca. 2075 BC (short), Lagash had a golden age.
After a few kings, the Gutian rulers became more cultured. Guti rule lasted only about a century - around 2050 BC, they were expelled from Mesopotamia by the rulers of Uruk and Ur, when Utu-hengal of Uruk defeated Gutian king Tirigan. Utu-hengal's victory revived the political and economic life of southern Sumer.
Lagashmodern Tell al-Hiba, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq) is located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about 22 kilometres (14 mi) east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah. Lagash was one of the oldest cities of the Ancient Near East. The ancient site of Surghul/Nina is around 6 miles (9.7 km) away. Nearby Girsu, about 25 km (16 mi) northwest of Al-Hiba, was the religious center of the Lagash state. Lagash's temple was E-Ninnu, dedicated to the god Ningirsu.
From inscriptions found at Girsu such as the Gudea cylinders, it appears that Lagash was an important Sumerian city in the late 3rd millennium BC. It was at that time ruled by independent kings, Ur-Nanshe (24th century BC) and his successors, who were engaged in contests with the Elamites on the east and the kings of "Kiengir and Kish on the north. Some of the earlier works from before the Akkadian conquest are also extremely interesting, in particular Eannatum's Stele of the Vultures and Entemena's great silver vase ornamented with Ningirsu's sacred animal Anzu: a lion-headed eagle with wings outspread, grasping a lion in each talon. With the Akkadian conquest Lagash lost its independence, its ruler or ensi becoming a vassal of Sargon of Akkad and his successors; but Lagash continued to be a city of much importance and above all, a centre of artistic development.
After the collapse of Sargon's state, Lagash again thrived under its independent kings (ensis), Ur-Bau and Gudea, and had extensive commercial communications with distant realms. According to his own records, Gudea brought cedars from the Amanus and Lebanon mountains in Syria, diorite from eastern Arabia, copper and gold from central and southern Arabia, while his armies were engaged in battles with Elam on the east.
His was especially the era of artistic development. We even have a fairly good idea of what Gudea looked like, since he placed in temples throughout his city numerous statues or idols depicting himself with lifelike realism, (Statues of Gudea). At the time of Gudea, the capital of Lagash was actually in Girsu. The kingdom covered an area of approximately 1,600 square kilometres (620 sq mi). It contained 17 larger cities, eight district capitals, and numerous villages (about 40 known by name). According to one estimate, Lagash was the largest city in the world from ca. 2075 to 2030 BC.
Soon after the time of Gudea, Lagash was absorbed into the Ur III state as one of its prime provinces. There is some information about the area during the Old Babylonian period. After that it seems to have lost its importance; at least we know nothing more about it until the construction of the Seleucid fortress mentioned, when it seems to have become part of the Greek kingdom of Characene.
These dynasties are not found on the Sumerian King List, although one extremely fragmentary supplement has been found in Sumerian, known as the rulers of Lagash. It recounts how after the flood mankind was having difficulty growing food for itself, being dependent solely on rainwater; it further relates that techniques of irrigation and cultivation of barley were then imparted by the gods. At the end of the list is the statement "Written in the school", suggesting this was a scribal school production. A few of the names from the Lagash rulers listed below may be made out, including Ur-Nanshe, "Ane-tum", En-entar-zid, Ur-Ningirsu, Ur-Bau, and Gudea.
Lagash is one of the largest archaeological mounds in the region, measuring roughly 2 by 1 miles (3.2 by 1.6 km). Estimates of its area range from 400 to 600 hectares (990 to 1,500 acres). The site is divided by the bed of a canal/river, which runs diagonally through the mound. The site was first excavated, for six weeks, by Robert Koldewey in 1887. It was inspected during a survey of the area by Thorkild Jacobsen and Fuad Safar in 1953, finding the first evidence of its identification as Lagash. The major polity in the region of al-Hiba and Tello had formerly been identified as SIR.BUR.LA (Shirpurla).
Tell Al-Hiba was again explored in five seasons of excavation between 1968 and 1976 by a team from the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Institute of Fine Arts of New York University. The team was led by Vaughn E. Crawford, and included Donald P. Hansen and Robert D. Biggs. The primary focus was the excavation of the temple Ibgal of Inanna and the temple Bagara of Ningirsu, as well as an associated administrative area.
The team returned 12 years later in 1990 for a final season of excavation led by D. P. Hansen. The work primarily involved areas adjacent to an as yet unexcavated temple. The results of this season have apparently not yet been published.
This dynasty lasted between ca. 2055�2048 BC short chronology. The Gutians were ultimately driven out by the Sumerians under Utu-hegal, the only king of this dynasty, who in turn was defeated by Ur-Nammu of Ur.
The Third Dynasty of Ur is dated to ca. 2047-1940 BC short chronology. Ur-Nammu of Ur defeated Utu-hegal of Uruk and founded the Third Dynasty of Ur. Although the Sumerian language ("Emegir") was again made official, Sumerian identity was already in decline, as the population became continually more and more Semiticized.
After the Ur III dynasty was destroyed by the Elamites in 2004 BC, a fierce rivalry developed between the city-states of Larsa, more under Elamite than Sumerian influence, and Isin, that was more Amorite (as the Western Semitic nomads were called). Archaeologically, the fall of the Ur III dynasty corresponds to the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age. The Semites ended up prevailing in Mesopotamia by the time of Hammurabi of Babylon, who founded the Babylonian Empire, and the language and name of Sumer gradually passed into the realm of antiquarian scholars. Nevertheless, Sumerian influence on Babylonia, and all subsequent cultures in the region, was undeniably great.
During the third millennium BC, there developed a very intimate cultural symbiosis between the Sumerians and the Akkadians, which included widespread bilingualism. The influence of Sumerian on Akkadian (and vice versa) is evident in all areas, from lexical borrowing on a massive scale, to syntactic, morphological, and phonological convergence.
This has prompted scholars to refer to Sumerian and Akkadian in the third millennium as a Sprachbund - also known as a linguistic area, convergence area, diffusion area or language crossroads - is a group of languages that have become similar in some way because of geographical proximity and language contact. They may be genetically unrelated, or only distantly related. Where genetic affiliations are unclear, the Sprachbund characteristics might give a false appearance of relatedness. Areal features are common features of a group of languages in a Sprachbund.
Akkadian gradually replaced Sumerian as the spoken language of Mesopotamia somewhere around the turn of the third and the second millennium BC (the exact dating being a matter of debate), but Sumerian continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and scientific language in Mesopotamia until the first century AD.


text:
Phoenix, Arizona Divorce Mediation - Finding a Mediation Resolution
At Agreement House, we're committed to helping people overcome conflict - in the home and in the office. One of the most common conflicts today is divorce and our brand of Arizona divorce mediation, Assisted Divorce, utilizes DORA, the Divorce Options Review and Assessment, experienced divorce attorneys and divorce mediators to develop a functioning AZ divorce that will not only allow a couple to separate, but also to function after the fact with post divorce mediation scheduling, parenting, child support and custody.
Phoenix, Arizona Divorce Mediation - What To Expect
What makes up Arizona divorce mediation? How is it different than any other divorce or mediation? If you are an Arizona resident, then you can take advantage of the laws of Arizona to have your divorce filed here, where our attorneys have decades of experience in Arizona divorce procedure, and have created a program that can be customized to your particular needs, whether you:
- Are fighting over every issue
- Have an idea about what you want, but don't know how to proceed
- Have everything worked out, but just need your divorce processed
Whatever your conflict level, or your divorce progress from other methods, we can show you what needs to be processed to get an AZ divorce, conduct divorce mediation to help you find a reasonable solution to each issue, and fill out and process all of the paperwork necessary to complete your Arizona divorce.
More about Arizona Divorce Mediation
Once processed, you only need to wait 60 days, and then your divorce is final, freeing both parties to go their separate ways. This is facilitated by our staff of Arizona certified divorce attorneys, divorce mediation experts and Arizona-specific document preparers, working together to bring you AZ divorce mediation for less cost in money, time and stress.
Arizona Child Support
One of the most critical concerns in any divorce mediation, is Arizona child support. Our Arizona family certified lawyers and mediators are specially trained to deal with all child specific divorce issues including child support, custody and parenting. We can even modify Arizona child support after the fact, whether it was decided in court or in a previous Arizona divorce mediation.
Arizona Divorce Mediation, Arizona Child Support and Conflict Negotiation
Agreement House provides Arizona mediation services for divorce, business partners and other conflict negotiation to solve disputes without going to court. Our attorneys, mediator team and document preparers provide legal and financial knowledge, guided negotiation and document processing to give you the best conflict resolution experience possible and to make Arizona mediation a reality.
Agreement house provides these services from our offices in Gilbert and Phoenix.
Meet our Arizona mediator team
Call us at 480-496-2201 for more information and to set up an appointment.
Agreement House: Leading You To A More Agreeable Future


text:
The second TESTFEST has been co-organised by the InterCor project together with the partners of SCOOP@F project . The TESTFEST took place on April 23 – April 26 around the city of Reims, France, on the A4 and A344 highways. The main goal of this TESTFEST was to check the use of different Public Key Infrastructures (PKIs) and the authentication of messages sent from different ITS stations. In total, 144 people from 11 countries have participated to this event.
Different security scenarios have been tested on a 23 km loop along the highway with services such as roadworks warning (RWW), fixed or mobile, salting vehicles, hazardous location notifications (stationary vehicle, human on the road), etc. Twenty-two On-Board Units (OBU) and 12 Road Side Units (RSU) have exchanged messages and around 30 000 messages have been received by each RSU installed on the loop.
Day 1 – Monday 23 April 2018
The morning of the first day of the PKI Security TESTFEST was reserved for welcome, set up and desk top testing for 80 participants. Peter Schmitting, ERTICO – ITS Europe gave an introduction to the participants and explained the mandatory safety rules. After solving some expected technical obstacles, all the present teams received DENM (Decentralized Environmental Notification Message) from French and Dutch Road Side Units (RSU).
The afternoon was reserved for open road testing with scenario #1. During the first test run 19 car platoons drove around the test trajectory with promising results. All participants' On Board Units (OBU) were successful and received and understood the RSU generated events. Part of the vehicle generated DENM remained invisible for some participants due to the distance between their car and the message emitting vehicles. In the second test run participants report same or better results.
Day 2 – Tuesday, 24 April 2018
On the second day of the PKI TESTFEST participants had the opportunity to test the vehicles in morning and afternoon sessions. In both sessions several platoons and individual test runs took place including repetitions of scenario 1 from the first day. The results reported scenario 1 as successful for all participants. Scenario 2 was reported well by half of the participants while technical restrictions made it not testable for one quarter of the participants. The testing was redone on day 3 for these participants to verify results. While the scenario 3 has proved successful for most participants, a few had to repeat the test for various reasons. All in all, the participants considered the second day of the TESTFEST a good day of testing. Scenarios 2 and 3 would be re-tested on the third day in parallel with scenarios 4 and 5.
Day 3 Wednesday, 25 April 2018
Day 3 of the InterCor PKI TESTFEST saw three platoon test runs where participants tested scenarios 4 and 5 and also re-tested scenarios 2 and 3 to verify the test results of day 2.
Two participating RSU providers configured their equipment to add extra test events (e.g. human on the road) to the test track around the university campus. Those events where successfully recognized by the OBUs of the other participants.
Day 4 – Thursday, 26 April 2018
The last day of the TESTFEST was reserved for a second round of testing of all six test scenarios with 9 events (routes). During the afternoon debriefing of results has been done with the participants and later also with InterCor partner. Participants have proven satisfied with the testing and the preliminary results were promising.
InterCor PKI TESTFEST in numbers
During the four days for the TESTFEST 27 different institutions participated to the TESTFEST including ministries, 10 different PKIs were used and nearly 12 tours for each OBU have been made.
A total of 144 participants used tablets to record results and USB sticks to save traces for further in-depth validation. Around 30 000 messages have been received by each RSU installed on the loop.
InterCor is excited to organise the pre-TESTFEST in Helmond in 13-14 June 2018 and the next TESTFEST in the UK Member state in October 2018. More information will follow soon on the website.


text:
Swaffham Prior: St Mary
9am Said Holy Communion Service on Sunday 18 October is in Swaffham Prior; Zoom service as usual at 10.20am.
Midweek services take place in Lode on Thursdays at 10.30am.
You are welcome to attend a service at any church. Please contact Rev'd Sue on [email protected] to say you wish to attend for contact tracing and in order that social distancing can be properly implemented.
Please note: face-coverings are now required in churches when other people will be present. "We strongly advise that face coverings should be worn by all those attending a place of worship, including ministers, worshippers, staff, volunteers, contractors and visitors, where there may be other people present; remembering that they are mainly intended to protect other people, not the wearer, from coronavirus COVID-19 and that they are not a replacement for physical distancing and regular hand washing."
We are continuing with our online Zoom services and activities: please send an email via "Get In Touch" if you would like a link to the Sunday morning service at 10.20am, prayer and bible study groups, etc.
St Mary's, Swaffham Prior will be open for private prayer each day between approx 10am and 5pm. Please follow social distancing guidelines and advice in church.
You may like to take a look at this wonderful blessing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUtll3mNj5U&fbclid=IwAR36orzfQdMJwJLWlmygxpY7qqUQDcpwbAWccBPBY8ZAeMy_rf1mN8rjbrQ
St Mary's, Swaffham Prior is part of the Anglesey Group of parishes, together with the parishes of Bottisham, Lode, Stow-cum-Quy and Swaffham Bulbeck.
The parish of Swaffham Prior: St Mary is committed to the safeguarding of children, young people and adults. We follow the House of Bishops guidance and policies and have Benefice Safeguarding Officer(s), for the group of churches. The Diocese of Ely's safeguarding pages contain vital links and information including contacts for the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor (DSA) who advise our PSOs. If you are concerned that a child or adult has been harmed or may be at risk of harm please contact the DSA. If you have immediate concerns about the safety of someone, please contact the police and your local authority Children or Adults Services.
Giving to Mara
Supporting projects in our link diocese of Mara Tanzania.Go to donation page


text:
Our most effective collection efforts will be made on the telephone and occasionally calling on the customer in person. Other contacts will be made by letter, fax and e-mail, but we recognize that it doesn't have the same quick two-way communication or the sense of urgency.
However, letters do have their place and can be effective if used at the right time to convey the right message. Most of us know this includes the early stages of collection activity, when we want to remind and perhaps prod a customer for a payment. Another effective stage for a letter can the the last or almost last contact with your delinquent customer. On these somber occasions, a collection letter may convey the message that they have just about exhausted any reservoir of good will and 'further' and more serious action is about to be taken. The letter medium helps to deliver the message that 'this time' you 'really mean it'.
This technique is based on what my history books referred to as "The French/Indian War"[1] as depicted in a movie.
In August of 1757, the French army with Canadian militia and various Indian tribes surrounded and conducted a siege of Fort William Henry. The British negotiated a surrender, and before long they began a march towards Fort Edward.
In the movie it was shown that the Indian allies of the French were none too happy when the hostilities ceased. Many of them were looking for a good fight and the plunder that had been promised to them from the French. They were determined to get it one way or another and began attacking the retreating British. The reports at the time indicated a very large number of people were massacred but historians figure the number was in the 150 range.
In the 1992 move, 'Last of the Mohican's', the action was a bit more sinister than untrained allies getting getting out of hand, wanting others to have a bad hair day. In the film, General Montcalm expresses displeasure to one of his supporters that he'll just have to fight the same British troops again later. Serious eye contact is made and the rest is left to the viewer's imagination.
How many times do you want to fight the same battle with the same opponent?
That happens to us a lot in collections and it's not unexpected. A lot of the same folks will be past due again and again. Sometimes we figure that's just the business – but there will be times when we figure enough is enough.
When I was the Mortgage Collection Manager for a large Trust company we decided the old letters just weren't doing it for us. Historically, people might let other bills slip but they always paid their mortgage on time. If they couldn't, they would call to explain and let you know how they would 'make it right'.
After a period of high interest rates, a lot of people seemed to be taking their mortgage payment responsibility rather lightly and we took a stronger approach with some of them. The message we delivered included:
➢ Over the last two years, your mortgage has been in a past due situation on X occasions
➢ Please bring your mortgage up to date no later than 3:00 pm. On XX date.
➢ Once your mortgage is current, we encourage you to ensure future payments are made on time and honored by your financial institution.
➢ If this is not the case, we will not contact you further by letter or telephone but assign your account direct to our attorneys for appropriate action to commence".
It is a strong message, but please keep in mind we were willing to work with our customers who may have found themselves in a difficult situation. This letter was directed to those individuals who we determined were playing a form of cash management – with our money. As a result, we did not have to fight the same battles time and again.
[1] I'm sure the French history books and the Indian legends called it something else.


text:
Jump to navigation
The three new laws that legailze sports betting vary in significant ways, including where the activity is allowed to occur and whether wagering on college sports is allowed.
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a sweeping gambling expansion into law in May, legalizing sports betting at the state's casinos and "racinos" (racetracks with casino games), as well as on mobile devices.