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I have a few questions: (1) Please explain the conflict between science and the occult, (2) what is the relationship between astrology and karma, and (3) are there just two kinds of karma—good and bad?
There has not always been a conflict between science and the occult. As a matter of fact, the occult is the father of Western science. Alchemy became chemistry, and astrology preceded astronomy. What binds them together is the acceptance of the law of causation. The difference is more in the goal of their search, one being more mental-metaphysical directed, and the other being more material directed, but with each linked to the eternal and immutable law of causation.
There has never been any disagreement between the occult and the religious schools of Asia: Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, etc. On the other hand, there has been a continual battle between the main Western church and the occult. Nonetheless, it was not always so. For example, the early Catholic Church used to talk about astrology from the pulpit, using Jesus Christ's horoscope as an example of the ideal personality. (The date was not December 25, nor was the year zero.) And Martin Luther taught astrology in the basement of his church after he seceded from the Catholic Church. Despite the church's opposition to astrology, it is fairly common knowledge that the popes had personal astrologers, and in Europe many people used astrology for guidance in their earth life as well as in their spiritual search.
The fall of astrology in Europe was due to unskilled astrologers and the work of French author and philosopher Francois Marie Arouet. You most likely know him under his pen name, Voltaire. He was born November 21, 1694 and educated at a Jesuit college in Paris where he said he learned nothing except "Latin and the Stupidities." Voltaire's humorous verses made him popular in society; however, his sharp wit got him into trouble, and he was imprisoned in 1717 for a year in the Bastille for writing a scathing satire about the French government. Voltaire made fun of almost everything, including astrology, and that was the beginning of the decline of astrology's popularity in the Western world.
Mystics, who link meditation to astrology, say that if there is no wisdom in the astrologer, no wisdom can be found in the astrological chart. If there is no depth of being, the person will not obtain anything from the science of astrology. Voltaire was sometimes justified in his mockery. If I didn't know astrology was true, I, too, would be convinced that astrology is foolishness when I hear some astrologers' predictions for the coming year.
There is another vital principle that differentiates Eastern astrology from Western astrology. The philosophy behind Western thought is that the aspects (spatial relationships between the planets) cause the events to happen. For example, if a person's chart shows Mars (which relates to accidents) is in inharmonious aspect to Mercury (which rules the neck), and the person breaks his or her neck, then others who have that aspect should break their necks, but they don't.
In Eastern thought, the question of karma arises. That is to say, it's not the aspects that cause the accident; it is the karma that is stored in a person's memory track. An aspect is a gate that opens, allowing the stored karma to be released—if there is any there.
The East is more advanced than the West in astrology because there was not a break in the teaching. The Eastern churches did not forbid the study of science (the law of causation); therefore, the astrologers did not have to go underground.
It has been only a short period of time that the degradation of the occult has occurred. Even as late as the 18th century, one of the most influential Western systems was alchemy. The alchemists were trying to transmute lead into gold. As long as people and the church thought the alchemists were talking about making actual gold from actual lead, there would be no problems for the alchemist. However, if they thought the alchemists were trying to take everyday lead consciousness and transmute it into God-consciousness, then the alchemist would be in serious trouble.
The alchemists were talking about turning lead-consciousness (Saturn chakra) into gold-consciousness (Sun chakra). However, because what is true of consciousness must be true of the physical elements, the more mystical alchemists knew that actual lead could be made into gold. The medieval alchemists (900 AD), the forerunners of modern chemistry, knew this to be true, and 1,000 years later modern physicists made gold from lead in very small amounts. But to do so cost thousands of times the price of gold. Though it was not commercially feasible, it did prove that the alchemists were correct.
How far had astrology advanced? Quite far if we study the life of the English doctor, occultist, and astrologer William Lilly (1602-1681), who predicted the Great London fire. Lilly was exceptionally skillful at interpreting astrological charts using horary techniques and predicted the Great London Fire of 1666 some 14 years before it happened. When it did happen, he was at the center of a great controversy. Lilly predicted the day and the hour that the fire would start. He said the fire would start in a given area of the city and would burn in one direction for two hours, and then would stop and move in another direction, burning another area of the city, and that it would continue moving northwards. His details were so specific that when the London fire did occur, the government accused him of starting it and arrested him.
In his defense, Lilly said, "Now, I could have started the fire, but I predicted that two hours later the fire would stop at a given street and move in a different direction. Do I have control over the wind?" The government then charged him with the additional crime of witchcraft.
Yes, there is a direct link between karma and astrology in the Eastern system, but definitely not in the classical Western system. Karma is often referred to as past life karma, which includes any time from one second ago to many lifetimes ago. In classical yogic thought, there are three types of karma:
(1) All the karma a person has created is referred to as the total tank of karma known as sanchitta karma: san (with), chitta (mind). Thus, all karma is made with the mind, or attitude. Sanchitta is all the karma you have ever accumulated. In this lifetime, however, you will only experience a small amount of your total karma.
(2) The karma that will manifest in this lifetime is called parabdha karma. You draw off some of the sanchitta karma from the large vat into a goblet, which is symbolically the karma that will manifest in this lifetime, leaving the rest to manifest in a future lifetime.
Now, if these were the only two karmas that existed, then there would be no free will to override past karma. However, there is a third type of karma, which can manifest because of a person's mind-choice.
(3) Kriya-mana karma is the karma that you are consciously creating right now in this lifetime. It will modify—for better or worse—the parabdha karma of this present life, as well as the sanchitta karma that will manifest in future lives. It needs to be pointed out that kriya-mana karma is action produced by your free choice, not action produced or caused by your past-life karma. How do you know which it is? My mother had the answer: If it's easy to do, it's past karma. If it's very hard to accomplish, it is free choice.
The kriya-mana karma flows into the goblet and also into the vat. The vat is very large, and thus the kriya-mana karma has little immediate effect on the sanchitta karma in the vat. However, because the goblet is tiny and holds very little karma, any kriya-mana karma flowing into it will produce major improvements or major worsening in this present lifetime! It is because of the kriya-mana karma that a person has the ability to modify the karma of this lifetime—even before it manifests.
Thus, free-choice actions performed each day change not only the future lifetime karma, but also the potential karma of this lifetime. However, most people aren't concerned about tomorrow because they are still struggling with today's problems—if not yesterday's problems. That is why you need to meditate and reflect concerning the weak points of your personality. After all, personality is destiny.
There is a magic moment within every life called the eternal now. It is magical because the NOW—this moment in time—is the only moment that you can create kriya-mana karma and thus improve your present life by overriding the effects of past constrictive karma.
Why should you meditate? At some moment in meditation you are going to come out of that meditation and bring it out into your life. When you bring that meditative state of conscious out into your life, your life will be forever improved because you will be able to invoke the devatas , which is to say, you will be able to invoke the creative forces within your being and catch the parabdha karma before it begins to manifest. At some point the kriya-mana karma of meditation and of self-awareness, and thus of freedom, will become strong enough that it will manifest forever—not just in this lifetime.
I close with this wise watchword, especially for today, from Voltaire: "Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities."
Be at peace, be wise; be wise so that you can be at peace.
Reprinted from the March–April 2010 issue of Yoga Chicago.
follow compra viagra online is doxycycline expensive source url kamagra 4 x 100mg taking prednisone for severe copd lipitor memory loss study 2012 http://thedsd.com/how-to-write-a-good-narrative-essay/ dissertation abstracts international https://www.mitforumcambridge.org/multiple/analysis-of-the-essay-of-studies/2/ go site source link popular creative writing proofreading website for masters mexico essays https://www.texaskidneycare.com/takecare/qual-sao-os-efeitos-do-viagra/120/ source link paraphrasing essay assign from https://pharmacy.chsu.edu/pages/3d-animator-cover-letter-examples/45/ https://www.cei.utah.edu/wp-content/blogs.dir/15/files/2013/?speech=english-essay-writing-format viagra que es yahoo dissertation help online especialista receta viagra results and discussion thesisВ xtabentun mexican viagra que es mejor viagra o sialis viagra photos https://www.aestheticscienceinstitute.edu/medical/schadet-viagra-den-krper/100/ accomplishments essay trimox delivered in 3 days higher doses of viagra how long before crestor becomes generic Goswami Kriyananda was the founder and spiritual preceptor of The Temple of Kriya Yoga, 2414 N. Kedzie, Chicago, and the author of several books and home study courses. He transitioned in April 2015. A complete audio/video library of Kriyananda's lectures, courses, and discussions are available at kriyaU.org. The Temple continues to offer many courses, including a Kriya yoga seminary, yoga teacher trainings, and meditation teacher trainings. For more information, please call 773.342.4200 or visit yogakriya.org.


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Here is a Valentine's card I created. I just love the Fresh Prints Designer Paper Stack.
It's a 4 1/2 x 6 1/2 sheet of paper. You get 48 sheets, 4 each of 12 double sided designs.
They are great to just grab one and create a card, or mount a 4 x 6 photo or
grab and use to write a special day in a journal. Easy to carry in my purse and
have on hand.
Materials used to make the card above:
Stamp Sets: Sketched Birthday
Colours: Coastal Cabana, Real Red, Whisper White, Champagne, Black,
Other: Fresh Prints Designer Series Paper Stack 132996
Coastal Cabana 3/8" Ruffle Stretch Trim
Glimmer Paper 127885 Champagne and 121790 Red
Apothecary Accents Frame Lits 127003
Heart a Flutter Framelits 130159
Hearts Collection Framelits 125599
3/16" Corner Punch 119871
It's not too late to register.
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
6:30 - 8:30
We will make some cute projects and cards. The picture above is only
a few of the things we will be making. Enjoy some sweets and there
will be door prizes and lots of fun.
Cost: $25 or FREE with a $35 Stampin' Up! Order (before S&T) only
through me, Denise Donald.
Bear Hugs,
Denise Donald
Crafts Forever, Housework Whenever

subset: commoncrawl


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The Manatee That Flew is about an adventurous young manatee named Manford. Though his story is fiction, it is based on true facts and events that actually happened in the life of a real manatee. Most kids know that manatees could never fly, but Manford actually did. His adventure started when his urge to explore new places led him on an exciting and dangerous journey that almost cost him his life. The story reads at a fourth grade level.
List Price: 12.95 / Web Special: $6
Special Pricing for PTAs / Schools!
Contact Publisher for special pricing.
This book is already in over 20 elementary schools in Northeast Florida.


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Southern Star 2009
April 24, 2009 @ 12:00 am - April 26, 2009 @ 12:00 am EDT
The Charlotte Amatuer Astronomers Club is hosting Southern Star 2009, our annual Astronomy Convention at beautiful Wildacres Retreat in teh Blue Ridge Mountains near Little Switzerland, NC
The convention features door prizes, lectures, swap tables, astrophotography displays, solar and evening observing under 6th magnitude skies. This year the convention co-incides with a new moon. Bring your own telescope or take the opportunity to circulate among the many telescopes that are sure to be present.
This year our keynote speaker will be Carolyn Shoemaker.
For additional information and registration forms & information, visit our website
or contact Jim Lamm @ email@example.com
Registration information will be avaialbe beginning Jan. 24th


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The expectations of quality care are supported for every patient treated in an American Hospital Association (AHA) member hospital. In 1973, AHA member hospitals voted to adopt a Patient's Bill of Rights and revised it in 1992. In 2001, AHA hospitals replaced "A Patient's Bill of Rights" with "The Patient Care Partnership: Understanding Expectations, Rights and Responsibilities." The new statement "a straightforward, plain language statement that clearly outlines what patients should expect during their hospital visit." ©2003 American Hospital Association. All rights reserved
A copy of the full version may be obtained through an AHA member hospital in your area or from the AHA (see FOR MORE INFORMATION in this guide) . Rights and responsibilities - both are important to your hospital care. Be sure to ask for a copy of this commitment during a hospital admission process.
What to expect during your hospital stay:
"Patient safety is one of the Nation's most pressing healthcare challenges. A 1999 report by the Institute of Medicine estimates that as many as 44,000 to 98,000 people die in U.S. hospitals each year as the result of lapses in patient safety." The AHRQ consumer fact sheet "Five Steps to Safer healthcare Patient Fact Sheet" tells what you can do to get safer healthcare. It was developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the American Medical Association.
Medicare Patients have additional rights including a review of your hospital discharge by the Quality Improvement Organization. You have the right to ask a Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) to review whether you are being discharged too soon. To view these rights go to CMS website.


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Seniors Make Extra Money Online
Seniors are circumventing massive unemployment by becoming on-line entrepreneurs. We are all too familiar with the fate of seniors, most of whom find themselves under financed for their "golden years" When they search for employment, even for part-time work, they are shunned. If they have a job, they must live in fear of the dreaded pink slip. Now, however, seniors are turning the tables and becoming more aggressive than ever. They are becoming on-line entrepreneurs. If they have a Masters Degree or the equivalent, they can choose to teach their subject specialty on-line. Save on the gas bill; save on cleaning. Stay in your pajamas.
How do the senior on-line entrepreneurs begin? They do a search for on-line schools. There are hundreds of community colleges that sponsor on-line programs in composition, math, and basic liberal arts courses, the courses required for certification. You need not worry about WHERE you are going to teach. You can be in Alaska and teach a course which is in an on-line program located in a department of a university in New York City. You will transcend space. No more moving about the country and living in places where you do not want to live. You choose the school and program based on the merits of the school.
Senior On-Line Employment
Senior on-line employment searches can be very systematic. There are a number of universities that publish on line lists of schools that sponsor on-line programs. Scan these lists and pick the school that looks interesting to you. As you probably know, each school will provide a website and you need to study these websites very carefully. Be aware that the websites are first and foremost intended to address students and student need. You need to dig down into the stack of ads and information on the school until you find a link labeled EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES. This is where you need to spend some time. Search for a form to fill out to apply for on-line teaching at that institution. Note any other information requested, such as your transcripts, references, CV or other relevant information. It is a good idea to put all this information into folder so you don't have to recreated the wheel each time you apply. Most schools want your unofficial transcript first and then if they are interested they may request an official transcript. Some universities will pay the transcript fee; others do not. You need to be aware of this information. It is a good idea to set a schedule and to send out several applications per week. You will be applying as an adjunct and this means part-time work. However, you can accumulate classes from many colleges so that ultimately you may end up working for five or six colleges. Since the work is asynchronous, there is little likely overlaps in time. But specifically, how does an asynchronous time schedule work?
Students will write essays or solve problems and you will provide corrective feedback. Usually, you are given 24-48 hours to respond to the student. You could respond at 3:00 in the morning or at midnight. There is no room to enter, no building to find and enter. So you can see how you could work with many time zones and be making money in each zone. Some teachers make $100,000 per year. This results from developing multiple streams of income. You are working a little for several colleges and it all adds up. What income you will make depends on your investment of training. Virtually, all the colleges require the beginning adjunct to go through a training period and work with a mentor before and during the first course taught. But once you become an instructor, you may continue to take workshops provided by the company: workshops on giving feedback, on evaluation and grading, on tracking a student's progress, etc. As you gain proficiency, you may at some point be offered a full-time job, in which you are likely to be assigned to train new adjuncts. But even if you are never offered full-time work, know that it is always possible for you to earn as much or more than full-time employment obtains.
The Specific Tasks of Making Money via On-line Teaching
What do you actually do when teaching on-line? Remember, time is money and the more efficiently you have set up your classroom, the easier it becomes to make money. Actually, there are sequences of tasks you must perform. You must first set up your classroom. Usually this entails providing your students with information that shows on your monitor. You must welcome your students and give them your office hours. You must go over the outline of the course. You do not have to create a course syllabus; this is done for you. Next you list rules for class behavior: Time limits on submitting work, penalties for late work, avoiding plagiarism, any clarification from the administration, how to communicate with you as a teacher: e.g. by email, in the context of an announcement, is an entry of an assignment, in Ask the Professor.
Make money on line by mastering the essentials cited above and by anticipating student need. The more you have a handle on this, the more efficient you will become, increasing the amount of discretionary time you have to search for other schools and going through the same process. Keep in mind that the aforementioned is general. You will have to master the specific platform your university requires, so be flexible. The main task you have before you is to master navigating on any site presented to you. So any training that enables you to navigate smoothly and efficiently will increase your earning power. Also, do not get lost in technicalities. Remember that you are working with live human beings and you must maintain civility at all times. This entails being able to diffuse anger on the part of the students. Sometimes a private conference is necessary to make things run smoothly again. Respect your students and the whole system will operate efficiently.
Please note that the designation for online schools and programs entails a lot of duplication and overlap of terminology. Sometimes the titles are just in reverse word order. online degree programs may be presented as degree programs online. Sometimes the words distance educaation is used to eauate with online programs. Sometimes, perhaps most of the time, general designations are used, such as online degree programs, but sometimes the titles are very specific.For example there is the pointer to psychology degree online, online law degrees and online degree accounting.


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- A Quora user asked: 'What are things about 5-star hotels that they do not want you to know?'
- Users with experience in the hospitality industry, including with roles at Rosewood Hotels and the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, replied to the thread.
- Here are their most interesting behind-the-scenes secrets.
Whether your lifestyle allows you to stay in them or simply admire them on Instagram, five-star hotels are an appealing prospect.
From the doormen to the Champagne-filled suites, the most luxurious hotels in the world give off the idea that they have everything seamlessly under control. But there's more going on behind the scenes than you might think.
A Quora user asked the question: "What are things about 5-star hotels that they do not want you to know?"
A number of people who claim to have experience in hotels and hospitality replied to the thread – here's what they had to say.
Your social status matters…
Business Development Leader Cameron Nezam, whose LinkedIn profile cites senior roles at Rosewood Hotels & Resorts and Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, noted that your status gives you more leverage when staying in a plush hotel.
"If you are a high-profile guest, VIP guest, loyal guest, you provide value for them by staying there so they will most likely put you on the 'special attention' list," he wrote. "How special your experience turns out to be all depends on who you come across whether it's a front desk agent, reservations agent, front office manager, sales manager, etc.
"Notice when that manager comes around the desk quickly when an A-list guest is in their periphery, they want to make sure everything is ok."
He added that this "special attention" often happens behind the scenes through notes in the property management system.
"A celebrity or wealthy guest will definitely be watched after with more attention than a regular citizen at these hotels," he wrote.
…and they often know who you are before you arrive
Nezam said high-end hotels try to Google every guest who stays with them "to get an idea of who they are, what they are like, and once again, rank the status of each. This will determine how good of a room they will get. A VP of a small company will likely get a better room than a Senior Associate of a large well-known company."
Your behaviour is recorded in a database
"If you flip out at someone, that goes in your 'profile,'" Nezam said. "If you make a big deal about being put in a room near an elevator, that gets recorded.
"This is so they can get better at anticipating your needs and providing intuitive service which is considered 5-star level. If you are a troublemaker they may have a manager handle your check-in/check-out."
They can't enter your room if your Do Not Disturb sign is on
This is a legal matter, according to Nezam, and it's a "big deal" if they do it anyway.
They often give free rooms to celebrities and influencers…
This is in hopes they will get a promotional Instagram post in return – and they usually do.
…but they will never reveal who is staying there
"This is a BIG rule and the reason they earn their reputation and they rather rely on the guests to promote on their own," Nezam said.
Bruce Claver, who claims to have over 25 years of experience in luxury hospitality, wrote: "In fact, the employees themselves are required at many upscale hotels to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement prior to employment.
"They have a duty to maintain supreme secrecy in order to continually attract and maintain their designated market, the affluent guest… They have money to spend and usually friends and family who also have money to spend and are potential guests."
He added: "Famous people never stay under their real name and we allow people to be registered under an alias or as an NRG, non-registered guest, so their name does not pop up on the computer screen if the front desk agent types it in."
They will protect your privacy if you're having an affair
"You will see people come with their side girlfriend/boyfriend one weekend and then with their family another," Nezam said. "The staff will look the other way and will make sure they don't accidentally mention something."
You'll be treated better if you tip
While this one may seem obvious, Nezam added: "Once you tip well, word gets around and bellmen and other staff will act more nicely towards you in case you decide to tip well again."
Luxury hotels have cockroaches too
That's according to Claver, who, with "20 years of providing luxury hospitality experience at the five star/five diamond level" according to his LinkedIn profile, said that "even the best-maintained hotel kitchens have some roaches."
There are perks they don't advertise…
Andrea Lopez, an employee at Mexican Beach Resorts since 2010, says every good hotel has benefits and amenities they don't advertise because they don't want guests to make the most of them. This can include free Champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries, special decorations in your room, free breakfast, and even a room upgrade.
…and you'll get access to them by making friends with the concierge
"Since most people approach them mad or with a complaint, concierges always appreciate a guest who treats them nicely and will reciprocate with extras or good information," Lopez said. "There can be no better ally than the concierge, especially if you are on vacation."
Jim Stevens, the founder of jimsbeachdeals.com, added: "Hotel employees often are at the tail end of demanding customers and complaints. So a little kindness can go a long way."
If someone dies, you'll never know
Stephen J Serva Dei, who runs a catering service, wrote that people regularly die in hotels – and the establishment will do whatever it can to keep them quiet.
This can range from elderly people passing away in the night of natural causes to drug overdoses and even suicide. "No hotel advertises if someone ever died in a particular hotel room, for obvious reasons," Serva Dei added.
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Interview with dad, vocal coach, songwriter, and producer Don Wolf about being a father. Don talks about raising teenagers, the importance of being an involved parent and teaching respect.
What Is Mike Wearing?
Check out Mike's shoes in the video! Here's what he's wearing: Skechers Relaxed Fit: Define – Soden
Disclosure: Although TopDaddies received Skechers shoes to wear, our opinions are absolutely authentic! TopDadddies was not financially compensated for this placement.


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Dead and Company is a group that fans have been clamoring for since the Grateful Dead stopped performing together following the death of front man Jerry Garcia in 1995. When the newly formed Dead and Company group takes the stage at the DCU Center, they will perform music that fused together numerous genres of music including reggae, space rock, folk, bluegrass, country, and so many others. This fusion of multiple genres is what helped the original Grateful Dead group become the pioneers of the jam band industry. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and has sold more than 35 million records worldwide.
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There's a biweekly indie RPG group here in Zürich. I still remember the exhilaration at the table after we played our first session of Spirit of the Century. Yesterday, there was a similar feeling at the table when we finished our session of Lady Blackbird.
They talked their way out of the Hand of Sorrow but captain and pilot were NPCs and had hidden away. A guard notices that the mechanic was a lousy pilot and was killed by the bodyguard. They fled, dodged cannon balls, dove into the depths and escaped. I skipped all sky squid encounters because the pilot was an NPC. They had to organize an updated star chart and decoder wheel, the captain got kidnapped and freed, thugs were beaten up, they agreed to smuggle a load of weapons into the Remnants, got boarded by a bounty hunter called Buxom Bunny, they hid themselves, found a way into the cargo room, set up a time bomb, crossed over to the bounty hunter's ship while the Owl blew up, Lady Blackbird recognized an old love in Buxom Bunny, they all ended up at the pirate captains' dinner and Lady Blackbird went in disguise and thus she had to fight Uriah Flint's champion, which she did. As a reward she claimed a kiss by Uriah to test his faithfulness. When he moved to kiss her, she slapped him and accused him of wenching, he lost his temper and we ended the session with a sorcery fight between Lady Blackbird and Uriah Flint. The lady won!
The actual rules of the game fit on half a page of text, the character sheets are another half a page of text each – and thus every page you hand out to your players is their pre-generated character and the entirety of the rules. As a GM, there's a page of flavor text, half a page with a map, and half a page with adventure ideas. I basically ran the 2½h session using copies of the character sheets and the half page of adventure ideas.
The mechanics are a mix of Solar System RPG (keys, secrets), Mouse Guard (helping dice, d6 dice pool, conditions) and FATE (traits and tags felt a lot like aspects). There were no skills. I loved it.
The story has hints of Firefly (something that's not science fiction "in space") and Star Wars (Leia, Han Solo, the boarding of ships) to inspire but it is sufficiently open ended to adapt itself to your players' taste. I also liked the many female characters and the romantic framing story. That makes it ideal to introduce new players to it.
Or, according to the author:
I made a game package inspired by the things they like: Firefly, World of Warcraft, and Laputa (Castle in the Sky). The system is my homebrew fusion of TSOY, The Pool, and Mouse Guard. [...] The PDF has a setting guide, starting situation (Poison'd style), pregen characters, and an airship data sheet. It's presented "oracle style" with plenty of suggested bits for you to fill in as you play. – announcement on Story Games
After the game we wondered whether the simple mechanics would work just as well if we had created the starting situation and characters with their traits, keys and secrets ourselves. How important is this setup?
I think one has to be careful to stick to well know tropes in terms of mechanics, characters and initial situation. As Brand Robins said in the same thread:
John is using genre communication to get across what his games are about. Its pretty easy to see where he does this on the fictional level – drawing on tropes that those the game is for will have some familiarity with and an emotional response to. He's also doing a similar thing on the mechanical level, where coherent bits are built out of elements across different games.
I'm definitely in the mood to try out more Lady Blackbird Hacks!
Tags: Lady Blackbird Indie RPG
It was truly an awesome session! Personal highlights:
Playing Lady Blackbird was great fun. But your remark about dick moves re. abandoning team members in the Owl made me think: was blowing up the owl essentially a dick move on my part? In hindsight, I should have asked if this was OK with everybody. Of course, as I know Johannes he would not have objected. But still....
Thanks Alex! This awesomeness was to a large extent driven by your GM'ing skills!
I wanted to mention this but forgot it during our wrap-up discussion: We were extremely fast, story-wise! We had this whole complete adventure in well under 3h, including introduction to the system. I guess that is also thanks to the absence of meaningful mechanics for PC-cooperation: You loose the possibility for intricate, complex scenes but the mechanical simplicity of each scene lets you go through an enormous number of scenes per session. Interesting.
– lior 2011-08-24 14:39 UTC
Thank you for the kind words.
No, blowing up the ship was not a dick move because the player characters were not blown up. I think this is the important part because players did not expect this to be a player vs. player game.
As for the speed: I think this was deliberate because I knew I wanted to finish by 22:30, 23:00 at the latest. Plus, I skipped all adventure ideas involving piloting. I have read accounts in the Story Games thread saying that they spent an entire session getting out of the Hand of Sorrow. Thus, it was just a question of how complicated I wanted to make it, how many obstacles there were to overcome.
– AlexSchroeder 2011-08-24 16:02 UTC
I'm so sad that I couldn't make it to this session.
– Harald Wagener 2011-08-25 09:23 UTC


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Table of Contents
- Temporal Proteomic Analysis of Pancreatic β-Cells in Response to Lipotoxicity and Glucolipotoxicity
Temporal proteomes of INS-1 cells exposed to high palmitate in the absence and presence of high glucose were quantitatively measured using mass spectrometry by isobaric labeling strategy. Such time-course datasets not only reveal the dynamic features of previously reported and newly identified lipotoxicity- and glucolipotoxicity-related molecular events in more detail, but also are of benefit in identifying potential molecular targets for mechanistic studies of lipotoxicity and glucolipotoxicity in pancreatic β-cells.
- Development of a Gill Assay Library for Ecological Proteomics of Threespine Sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus)
A tissue-specific assay library for quantitative proteomics by DIA LC-MS/MS has been developed for threespine stickleback gills. The utility of this assay library for discriminating proteomes from four stickleback populations representing different ecotypes has been demonstrated. The results reported reveal that this assay library provides comprehensive insight into population-specific stickleback gill proteomes. This insight informs targeted studies on mechanisms of adaptation to extreme habitats.
- Isomeric Separation and Recognition of Anionic and Zwitterionic N-glycans from Royal Jelly Glycoproteins
Royal jelly has special properties as the sole food for queen honeybees, but is also considered to be bioactive in other animals. Using an off-line LC-MALDI-TOF MS approach, we reveal a highly complex N-glycome with novel anionic and zwitterionic N-glycans being present on specific royal jelly glycoproteins. These glycans are shown in microarray format to bind protein ligands, revealing that there exists potential for interactions with the human innate immune system.
- Global Interactomics Uncovers Extensive Organellar Targeting by Zika Virus
The geographical range of Zika virus (ZIKV) has expanded dramatically in recent decades, but no antiviral drugs or vaccines are available for the treatment or prevention of ZIKV infection. Here we map host cell protein interactions for each of the ten ZIKV polypeptides, generating a protein network comprising >3000 interactions. Mining this rich dataset, we highlight multiple examples of how ZIKV may usurp or disrupt the function of host organelles and uncover an important role for peroxisomes in ZIKV infection.
Technological Innovation and Resources
- A Versatile Lentiviral Delivery Toolkit for Proximity-dependent Biotinylation in Diverse Cell Types
The proximity-dependent biotinylation approach BioID is increasingly used to define proximity interactomes and subcellular organization, but is most often limited to a few easily transfectable cell lines. Here, a versatile set of lentiviral delivery vectors that enable BioID across cell types is described that incorporates features such as inducible expression and selectable markers. Benchmarking of these vectors demonstrates their ease and versatility across primary and immortalized cell systems. The lentiviral vectors are available through the Network Biology Collaborative Centre (nbcc.lunenfeld.ca).
- gpGrouper: A Peptide Grouping Algorithm for Gene-Centric Inference and Quantitation of Bottom-Up Proteomics Data
gpGrouper is a gene-centric peptide inference and quantitation algorithm that prevents gene origin mixing and isoform omission in parsimonious protein-centric approaches. A simple classification schema indicates distinguishable gene products, with shared peptide quantities distributed by ratios of corresponding unique peptides. This approach accurately determines tumor content and deconvolution of proteomes from mixed species patient derived xenografts without elimination of species-shared peptides. iBAQ quantities are calculated from label-free, isotopic, or isobaric data, allowing comparisons within and across samples and methodologies.
- A Novel LC System Embeds Analytes in Pre-formed Gradients for Rapid, Ultra-robust Proteomics
Because of low throughput and limited robustness, nano-scale liquid chromatography has been a bottleneck for advancing proteomics in biomedical research. Here, we developed and evaluated two new LC concepts—"pre-formed gradients" and "offset gradients for peptide re-focusing"—that are both implemented in the Evosep One instrument. We evaluated robustness with more than 2000 HeLa runs, demonstrated absence of cross-contamination with crude plasma samples, high proteome coverage by fractionated HeLa and routinely measuring more than 5000 proteins/sample in just 21 minutes.


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Senior Technical Architect
Senior Technical Architect …
NTT Data Singapore Pte Ltd
in Singapore
Permanent, Full time
Last application, 28 Oct 20
NTT Data Singapore Pte Ltd
in Singapore
Permanent, Full time
Last application, 28 Oct 20
Senior Technical Architect
In a constantly changing world, we work together with our people, clients and communities to enable them to fulfill their potential to do great things. We believe that by bringing everyone together, we can solve problems using innovative technology that can create a world that is sustainable and secure. At NTT, we encourage you to remain continuously curious, as that is what keeps you fast, flexible and relevant. No two days will be the same but that is what will help you grow and realize your full potential.
The power is in your hands to do great things. It's time to lead the change, be the authentic you, to solve difficult challenges, to set the pace of change and to unleash your potential.
Want to be a part of our team?
The Senior Technical Architect works with colleagues and contributes to the development and design of complex solutions based on their technical knowledge across two or more technology domains. The individual in this position is required to complete the overall technical design and build of the large, complex elements of the solution to meet a client's business requirements.
\"Provides primarily pre-sales technical support for the development and implementation of complex products/applications/solutions. Uses in-depth product knowledge to provide technical expertise to sales staff and the customer through sales presentations and product demonstrations. Assists the sales staff in assessing potential application of company products to meet customer needs and may prepare detailed product specifications for the development and implementation of customer products/applications/solutions. May create detailed design and implementation specifications for complex products/applications/solutions. May build a mini-application based on customer requirements to demonstrate feasibility of the application, often requiring rapid prototyping and/or product demo for client. May provide consultation to prospective users and/or product capability assessment and validation. Report only those incumbents with incentives not tied to product sales.\"
Working at NTT
Key roles and responsibilities:
Provides detailed and specific advice regarding the application of their specialism(s) to the organisation's planning and operations.
Responsible for solution design, business development and transition of projects from presales to delivery as well as ongoing sales support.
Select and apply appropriate design standards, methods and tools, consistent with the agreed enterprise and solution architectures and ensure that these are effectively applied and adopted.
Guide successful implementation and execution of system solutions.
Contributes to the development of solution architectures in specific business, infrastructure or functional areas.
Map business processes and relationships clearly, in line with the solution features, and ensure that the recommended approach supports the overall scope of the solution.
Designs components using appropriate modelling techniques following agreed architectures, design standards, patterns and methodology.
Provides pre-sales technical support and expertise in analysing client requirements, in conjunction with the client's current infrastructure, architecture, system capabilities and business challenges.
Responsible for influencing and guiding members of the Sales team to ensure that they are equipped to close deals.
Provides input to the requirements baseline and investigates, manages and applies authorised requests for changes to base-lined requirements, in line with change management policy.
Develop the technical design document to match the solution design specifications.
Lead the scope of work determination, product pricing and RFP/RFI responses and assist with the decision to pursue or abort a deal.
Manages client proof of concept (POC) initiatives, which require appropriation of appropriate resources, and setup and delivery of the POC.
Provide coaching and mentorship to junior Technical Architects
Knowledge, skills and attributes
Good product knowledge integrated with deep technology understanding
Solid understanding of the vendor's products, business and technology positioning
Excellent communication skills both verbal and written
Ability to establish and create excellent client relationships with their technical expertise
Ability to develop and leverage their knowledge of reference architectures
Continuously maintain knowledge of trends and development in technology domains
Deep and specialist knowledge of the problem domain that their systems are to provide solutions for
Demonstrated knowledge in core frameworks used
Academic qualifications and certifications:
Qualification in Information Technology, Computer Science or Information Systems
Certification and working knowledge of Enterprise Architecture methodologies (e.g. TOGAF, Zachman, SOA, ITIL, COBIT, etc.)
Relevant vendor and industry certifications, e.g. Cisco, Microsoft, Oracle,
Software and programming languages, e.g. C++
SAFe Scaled Agile certification advantageous
Experience required:
Strong track record as a developer and architect of new systems/solutions
Demonstrated work experience working as a systems administrator or network engineer
Proven client engagement and development consulting experience
Experience managing expectations when balancing alternatives against business and financial constraints
Extensive experience in a variety of architectures for specific domain or specialization
Experienced designer and development know-how
Good project management experience
Demonstrated experience presenting technical solutions to non-technical audiences
Experience working in an agile development environment
What will make you a good fit for the role?
Standard career level descriptor for job level:
• Have wide-ranging experience
• Uses professional concepts and company objectives to solve complex issues in creative ways
• Networks with others outside own area of expertise
• Exercises judgment in selecting methods, techniques and evaluation criteria to obtain results
• May coordinate others' activities
• Typically requires significant related experience with a Bachelor's or equivalent degree
Join our growing global team and accelerate your career with us. Apply today.
Equal opportunity employer
NTT is proud to be an equal opportunity employer with a global culture that embraces diversity. We are committed to providing an environment free of unfair discrimination and harassment. We do not discriminate based on age, race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, veteran status, or other protected category.
Job ID: R-47640
Posted Date: 31 Oct 20
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"Because I come from where they come from, so I try to be their voice whenever I make a song."
Check out the interview with JayTrey exclusively on Skilly Magazine Online.
Skilly: Where did this all start? Tell us about your journey in the entertainment business.
JayTrey: It all started after taking a trip to California in 2016. We had also thought about pursuing music but never found our drive. After discovering my uncle's recording studio in his house while out there it began to motivate me and my friend/producer Anthony Church. A month later we would go to multiple music shops and purchase equipment to get us started on pursuing our dreams.
What would be your biggest piece of advice for the young kids out there trying to do what you do?
My biggest advice I could give would be to find your passion and whatever it is you are passionate about pursue it. Whether that be entertainment, education, or military. And also, don't let anyone tell you that your dream is not achievable or that the odds are stacked against you. Focus on you and only you.
What are some of the hardest challenges and tasks in your position?
Recording and mixing are the two toughest. We have had to learn how to do all the ways of producing a track in the last year and it took us quite some time. We would get frustrated if a track didn't sound up to par or just felt unfinished. So we studied many people in order to provide the perfect sound quality to present the public.
We all know the entertainment business is very tough, but what do you find is the best way to promote and advertise your music?
The best ways I've learned so far are through magazines, like this one, and also music blogs. However, it doesn't just stop there. I try to communicate with almost everybody while also using my social media platforms. Getting music out there is a tough task, but I feel if you make connections with people and just be yourself people will help you.
Tell us about your city. How are the artists and the fans?
I'm from Canton, OH and the music scene around here is not the greatest, but it's not terrible. There are a few artists that I believe are doing their thing and I wish nothing but success for them. The fans around here are so supportive and caring and want to see a person like me shine. Because I come from where they come from, so I try to be their voice whenever I make a song.
Where do you see yourself a year from today?
I see myself, hopefully, signed with a label with my debut project Self Expression out for the fans. I hope to also be on a tour and spreading my music to other states and spreading my positivity to the country.
Who and what were your biggest inspirations? Who do you look up to in today's world?
My biggest inspirations are Jay Z, J. Cole, and Eminem. Those three really spoke to me with their music and I just felt I could relate with them not just as a fan but personally. Jay Z is probably my biggest influence that I look up to. Ever since I was a kid I wanted to be Jay Z and live in his shoes.
How do you feel about the music coming out today? Do you like it?
I do actually. I'm not talking particularly mainstream, but there are plenty of great artists coming out today that I enjoy. Kendrick, Big Sean, Joey BadA$$, and Travis Scott are just a few names that I often listen to. I feel hip hop is divided in many different forms that everybody can enjoy and how can you hate that.
Where can we contact you and find you online?
You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat @jaytrey42.


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South African cities face enormous challenges. Despite the provision of more than two million houses and associated services, the fundamentals of the apartheid city remain intact.
However, in a real sense one can at best speak of the (post) apartheid city in a way that recognises how little has changed spatially…In the absence of apartheid legislation, the technocratic clarity about who has a right to the city and who does not has fallen away. It is clear how political will (and lack thereof) private capital and often the political collusion of political power and private capital are mostly determining urban spatial arrangements. – Stephan F. de Beer (2016).
Spiralling unemployment, widening inequality and continuing urbanisation drive a growing demand for poor households to access well located urban land to secure livelihood opportunities in the city. Meeting this demand is central to a bigger project of urban restructuring to address deep spatial inequality.
There is a damaging spatial divide between where most people live and where jobs and resources are located. The economy is much more concentrated geographically than the population, resulting in extensive unemployment and poverty for people living in the periphery, and imposing an imposing extra cost on their mobility (an 'Apartheid tax'?) (Turok, I. et al. 2017).
South Africa's cities and towns, after 22 years of democracy, are still characterised by spatial inequality and racial segregation. The evidence is clear:
In the democratic era, housing policy makers assumed that providing people with subsidised houses would contribute to poverty reduction, but in practice this has had little impact (Charlton, S and Kihato,C. 2006). A Department of Human Settlements evaluation published in 2015 noted that subsidised housing units are sold "well below capital investment values" and that "poor location of projects in relation to employment opportunities and to socio-economic opportunities remains the most serious problem associated with the Housing Subsidy Programme". The evaluation also reported that "fully subsidised government housing has had a negative effect on municipal finances" (Centre for Development Support. 2015).
Recent research suggests that "opportunities for poor people to live close to jobs" would have more impact than the current emphasis of the human settlements' policy on the asset-based potential of housing ownership (Budlender, J. and Royston, R. 2016). Living in a badly-located area makes it more difficult to find a job but, at the same time, the costs associated with living in well-located areas are unaffordable for the poor. This is a quintessential poverty trap, which poses the difficult challenge of how to make well located and affordable options available for poor households.
The development of new housing policy during the 1990s was influenced by the long history of private sector and state interventions in the housing sector. Corporations in the private sector had launched the Urban Foundation (UF) in 1977 in response to what they saw as the mounting urban crisis. Early statements by the UF leave no doubt as to what lay behind its original motivation to create an urban home-owning class:
Only by having this most responsible section of the urban black population on our side can the whites be assured of containing on a long-term basis the irresponsible economic and political ambitions of those blacks who are influenced against their own real interests from within and without our borders. (Cited in Davies, R. 1984).
The apartheid state had also been involved in a range of initiatives which aimed to provide a social buffer in the urban areas through the creation of a home-owning black middle class. State initiatives included:
The 1980s saw the formation of the United Democratic Front (UDF) in 1983 and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) in 1985, and the launch of the period of ungovernability. Prolonged rent, service and bond boycotts precipitated the collapse of the state and UF/ banking sector drive to promote homeownership.
The National Housing Forum established in 1993 negotiated the basis for new housing policy where the state would provide a range of housing subsidies to allow the private sector and community-based organisations to deliver housing and shelter.
The 1994 Housing White Paper anticipated the right of South African citizens to have access to adequate housing. This would be written into the final Constitution in 1996. The White Paper set out government's commitment to provide "a permanent residential structure" and enable delivery of one million houses in five years. In a section on land use planning the White Paper noted:
As a key public sector intervention land use planning should serve a range of objectives. The objectives relevant to housing are:
Over time, a substantive critique of housing policy and practice developed which identified the limitations of the "width versus depth" and "market-centred" approaches. These were criticised as extensions of prior policies of the Urban Foundation and the Independent Development Trust which had failed to challenge the fundamentals of the apartheid city.
But at the same time, critics found it hard to resist calling out what they saw as the slow rate of subsidy disbursement and housing construction. It was these criticisms about programme performance, rather than those focused on policy fundamentals, to which government chose to respond. This spurred its attempts to speed up delivery and improve the numbers, rather than address the complex and contested process of unravelling apartheid planning.
Government focused on initiatives to accelerate delivery. Measures to address "delivery bottlenecks" met with significant success in that the government was able to deliver its first million houses – each comprising a 30 m² unit on a 250 m² plot of land – within seven years. This was a rate of delivery which remains "unparalleled internationally" (Rust, K. 2006). In the period 1994–2009 government built 2.8 million houses for almost 11 million people at a rate four times the level of private sector house construction in the same period. However despite this progress, 1.9 million people remained in informal dwellings, of whom 0.6 million were living in backyard shacks (Turok, I. 2011).
State housing policy frameworks have not assisted poor people to move to where opportunities are. Critics of housing policy identified the dangers of "a prescriptive top-down model of "delivering" housing and services" (South African Cities Network. 2011) and the inappropriateness of policies designed to eradicate shacks rather than upgrade informal settlements.
A policy of slum eradication or replacement by formal housing in these areas is unhelpful, as most of those affected would probably not qualify for state housing, and they would in any case struggle to afford the accompanying running costs of electricity and water charges. Also unable to afford to rent upgraded housing, they would be displaced by better-off households and forced to move to the cheapest shack areas on the periphery. – (Cross, C. 2010).
There are moves to re-emphasise spatial inequality and move it up the policy and planning agenda. The South African National Development Plan (NDP) lists spatial justice as one of its overarching principles for spatial development. In the NDP, spatial justice is explained as meaning that:
The historic policy of confining particular groups to limited space, as in ghettoisation and segregation, and the unfair allocation of public resources between areas, must be reversed to ensure that the needs of the poor are addressed first rather than last. (National Planning Commission 2012).
Spatial justice is also the first development principle in the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act of 2013 (SPLUMA). This principle creates a legal obligation that future spatial planning, land development and land use management must accord with the principle.
Despite these undertakings practical application will be challenging. The Integrated Urban Development Framework notes that:
Despite significant service delivery and development gains since 1994, apartheid spatial patterns have largely not been reversed. Indeed, in part because of the pressure to provide housing and services quickly after 1994, most of the post-1994 infrastructure investments have unintentionally served to reinforce the apartheid status quo. The cumulative effect is that it is harder to reverse apartheid geographies today than in 1994. (COGTA. 2014).
This suggests that the urban space is increasingly going to be the focus of social contestation and that it is here that the land issue will need urgent resolution.
Noma Sozwe spent most of Sunday rebuilding her daughters' two shacks after the structures were demolished by a group of people who wanted to occupy the space in Gunguluza, Uitenhage, in the Eastern Cape.read more
Members of the shack dwellers movement, Abahlali BaseMjondolo have marched to Durban City Hall over forced evictions and corruption.read more
"The thieves must be called to justice" says ABM deputy presidentread more
All photos used on this site are open source. Thumbnail images accompanying news articles may be subject to copyright.
A project of Phuhlisani NPC supported by Absa. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike. International License.


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Posted On Oct 25, 2020
Real estate has continued to prosper over the past year, despite the straining challenges the sector has faced in recent months following the currency devaluation in November, 2016 and the shortage in foreign currency.
A vibrant and strong demand prevailed across several sectors in the Egyptian real estate market, increasing in 2017 compared to previous years, according to a report by Property Finder, an online platform for buying and renting property in Egypt, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Morocco, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia.
Although gloomy market predictions haunted investors and economic experts at the beginning of the year, several elements have managed to decimate some of these challenges and secure investors' faith in the market.
Among these elements are the country's mega projects that seek to ease the concentration of the population in overcrowded Cairo, including the New Administrative Capital, government-owned affordable housing across other govern orates and tourism and industry development in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone).
"The market is expected to continue to operate normally being a safe investment haven to many buyers, but some components may differ in 2018, for example there is a growing demand on the Administrative Capital city that will continue to rise in 2018," Mohamed Banany, senior vice president at Coldwell Banker, an international real estate franchise that works on analyzing the real estate market, tells Business Today Egypt.
But though real estate experts, including developers, are shying away from determining which products buyers should invest in in 2018; the market is steady as more supply is bound to bring about change in trends, diversity, and smart and affordable solutions and sales.
"Generally it is not really a matter of what to invest in, the question is rather whether there is another safe investment that will ensure that the value of your money will not depreciate other than real estate," CEO of leading real estate developing company Tatweer Misr, Ahmed Shalaby, tells Business Today Egypt.
Challenges and market trends
In a noticeably short period of time, new opportunities and market trends began to emerge throughout the year despite the challenging atmosphere. Reports have emphasized that the most popular and wanted provinces and areas among investors and tenants are located not only in Cairo, but also in Giza, the Red Sea, Suez and Alexandria.
Other investment trends have grown clearly in the second-home market where the North Coast is greatly favored, compared to other areas when buyers and tenants consider purchasing a vacation home. North Coast areas have proven to record the highest occupancy level by tenants and buyers, specifically during the summer season.
A demand or a desire to acquire a certain lifestyle has not only grown common among Egyptians abroad and expat investors—who were the first to benefit from the devaluation, which resulted in affordable luxurious housing prices—but it has also benefited international tourists who can easily afford long holidays at some of the best hotels in the country, thus boosting the tourism industry. Both buying and renting properties have become leading trends of the year, increasing demand in 2017 compared to 2016.
Popular trends in purchase have prevailed in certain areas in the capital deemed as prime locations, including Nasr City, Maadi, Sheikh Zayed, Helioplis, Sixth of October and New Cairo (Fifth Settlement), according to data compiled by Global Property, a website dedicating to providing intelligence for residential property investors.
Although 2017 has witnessed a positive boost in market trends, Egypt's population of over 90 million requires an additional 175,000 to 200,000 housing units per year to cater to the housing shortage of 3.5 million. Reports have confirmed the existence of 5.6 million vacant units nationwide, but these properties are beyond the purchasing power of low and middle-income classes.
With affordability being a growing issue for these socioeconomic classes, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi in 2014 announced a plan to build 1 million affordable units for low-income youth across 13 cities in collaboration with UAE-based company Arabtec.
A part of the project is expected to be finalized by the end of this year, and the entire project is set to be delivered by 2022. This comes in parallel to the 62,000 homes being developed for the same segment as part of the Central Bank of Egypt's (CBE) initiative to provide affordable housing.
The concept of social housing units has been on the rise especially in recent years, however the cheapest units in these projects have increased by 14% per year over the past eight years; most citizens, whose average annual income tends to increase by no more than 1%, can hardly keep up.
Providing investment benefits to private companies, the Egyptian government has attempted to attract local private developers to construct such projects. However, the private sector's cheapest housing unit stands at $13,946, which outweighs the actual purchase power of this class of society; therefore developers do not supply homes to this income group and rather target high-end buyers.
Shalaby expects that market trends in 2018 will continue as is, rendering real estate as a safe haven that safeguards consumers' confidence from the wavering value of currency and devaluation. He also added that demand for real estate peaks not only when there is a need for housing, but also as a long-term investment.
"The flotation will be positive for the real estate sector and will create an attractive investment climate that brings stability to the market," Shalaby says. "While we cannot say definitively how the outlook will be at the current time until things become clearer, we do not expect in the short future that demand on housing will vary as there may be increased demand by those seeking investments to offset demand by those seeking housing. Real Estate developers will have to also play their role in finding creative offers and incentives that will attract customers."
When searching for competitive offerings, buyers should consider two primary factors; the location and the credibility of the developer, according to Coldwell's Banany. Even though considering location is crucial, the current market inventory is experiencing an undersupply, according to Banany, as some locations ran out of supply completely; especially prime locations in Ain Sokhna and the North Coast. He advises home buyers to avoid searching for special locations in Rehab, New Cairo, Sixth of October and Sheikh Zayed because they were all sold out.
Market demand and 2017 prices
Demand for housing in these locations grew among Egyptians living abroad as well as resident expat investors where the median price of a one-bedroom apartment amounted to LE 1 million ($56,180) in 2016, based on the global online market place OLX. Over 30,000 residential units are expected to be delivered in New Cairo and Sixth of October City within the next three years.
New residential projects in Egypt were favored by foreigners and Egyptian expats all year round due to several factors, including currency devaluation, high salaries granted to them abroad, and the ability to formulate a savings plan.
Other factors were provided by developers contributing to increasing investments in the country, including offering customized residential units based on consumer preference, such as smaller units and flexible payment plans. This approach carried out by developers resulted in a higher purchase rate where expats bought residential units in higher-end districts at sensible prices that they couldn't afford before.
Prime locations outside Cairo, such as El Gouna and the North Coast, were recorded in 2017 as having a higher price value than the capital. Average prices for apartments in resorts in El Gouna ranged in 2017 from LE 18,500 ($1,041) to LE 19,500 ($1,097) per square meter, according to data issued by Colliers International; while villa prices had a starting price of LE 26,000 ($1,463) to LE 38,000 ($2,139) per square meter.
The Red Sea area is mostly demanded by expats, while residents and Egyptians abroad have a higher preference for the North Coast where property prices have become half of those of El Gouna's. Apartment prices range from LE 9,000 ($507) to LE 21,000 ($1,182) per square meter, while villa prices have a starting price of LE 10,000 ($563) per square meter.
Demand has always been driven in Egypt based on the diversified offerings and buyers' needs, according to Shalaby; however he confirmed that preference is mostly given to gated communities and second homes.
Despite eradicating the element of affordability to the majority of local Egyptians who considered rent as an alternative solution, properties in 2017 have recorded a higher rate in sale and rent during the first quarter of 2017 by 179.17% compared to 2016, and have remained steadily strong throughout the first part of the year.
Assessing demand in 2017 and determining the type of projects that accounted the highest demand in retrospect, Banany confirms that a great majority of Egyptians primarily demand apartments while villas account for the second highest demand in the market.
The overall demand for leased apartments in Egypt has increased in 2017 by 78.59% compared to 2016, while the supply offered for rent has decreased by 19.57%. Demand for villas for rent has increased by 124.78%, however supply of villas offered for rent has also seen a 52.43% decrease. The demand for apartments available for sale increased in 2017 by 84.07% accompanied with a 30.3% decrease in supply, emphasizing a clear sign that investors are more willing to pump money in the real estate sector in 2018.
Ambitious projects resolving undersupply
The increase in demand accompanied with a low or average rate of supply was likely to cause a real estate bubble; however that was not the case in the Egyptian market because several new projects by both the government and private companies have rapidly surfaced in 2017 to bring the gap closer together.
Although all sectors of the real estate market suffer low supply, the supply of residential units in specific falls behind the demand at the demographic landscape of Egypt, according to Shalaby who doesn't expect a market saturation for many years. However, experts predict that the residential sector in specific will face saturation in the short to medium term.
"Considering population growth, Greater Cairo is expected to be undersupplied by approximately 400,000 units by 2020. The majority of the undersupply is expected [to fall] within the middle-income market.
Egypt's mega project, the Administrative Capital, is set to lead the future of accommodation in Egypt. The new capital includes an exhibition city, convention center, medical city, government residential district, international airport, relocation of state institutions and an embassy district.
Another promising project under construction is the Golden Triangle Economic Zone that will boost Upper Egypt. Around 65% of the project consists of modern industrial hubs while the remaining area is completely dedicated to touristic, commercial and residential units.
Spanning 48,000 feddans, New El Alamein City is the recreational version of the North Coast, representing a tangible turning point to the North West Coast region of the country.
The project is already attracting investors and residents who are anticipating the completion of the first phase's 10,000 residential units that will span 8,000 feddans.
A number of key players are also presenting new projects this year, including Palm Hills Development which announced expanding its mixed-use developments in West Cairo. The company plans to launch the first phase of a new project in 2018 that will span 12.6 million square meters and is expected to add a residential build up area ranging from 6 million square meters to 8 million square meters.
The Ministry of Housing's New Urban Communities'Affiliate (NUCA) has been actively developing deserted areas across the country through launching new recreational cities within each governorate.
Resolving the land scarcity crisis that was often the main challenge facing any developer, NUCA has managed to offer several land tenders with feasible payment plans in efforts to encourage private developers to partner with the government on mega projects such as expanding communities in unpopular parts in Cairo and other governorates. Mona Kamel, NUCA's official spokesperson, explains that the authority has launched several projects and land tenders throughout 2017, taking citizens' diverse needs more into consideration.
"Some of the land plots owned by NUCA were offered to real estate companies as part of the public-private partnership (PPP) system; 13 land plots ranging between 58 and 2,800 feddans are located in New Cairo, Sixth of October, and Sheikh Zayed cities," Kamel says.
The NUCA also offered 59 land plots dedicated to residential projects and ranging between 4 and 403 feddans for sale in west Qena, west Assiut, New Cairo, New Qena city, New Minya city, 15th of May city, Badr, New Borg El Arab city, new Sohag and New Damietta.
Those residential projects are part of the government's plan to expand home supplies through social housing, middle-income housing (Dar Misr project), above-average housing and high-end housing units.
NUCA has been applying the concept of mixed use developments after realizing that Egyptians are willing to relocate only in the presence of operational facilities and amenities near their new homes. Consequently, many lands were dedicated not only for industrial or residential investments, but also for public services.
Land tenders were offered by NUCA throughout 2017 for amenities and an array of facilities ranged in floor plans between 540 and 110,441square meters. Projects under construction on those lands included sports clubs, hospitals, nurseries, medical centers, conference halls, hypermarkets, offices, commercial markets, entertainment facilities, gas station and bakeries.
Renowned real estate alliance Mountain View-Sisban has also began developing high-end projects in 2017, in collaboration with NUCA.
Both partners have worked to develop iCity October in Sheikh Zayed, a replica of the iCity project in New Cairo. The integrated community project is spread over 500 acres offering 18,000 residential units ranging from apartments, townhouses and standalone villas that will all be completed by 2020.
The Egyptian Armed Forces Engineering Authority has also contributed to the construction of several projects throughout the year and is expected to deliver around 1,350 projects by the end of 2018; estimating its total contribution to the country's GDP to be at about 1% to 1.5%.
New contributors to real estate projects have also recently entered the market such as Capital Group Properties (CGP), which launched Al Bourouj; a joint mixed-use development with Hassan Allam Construction Co.
"New companies entering the market are quite few including CGP; however, established real estate developers have expanded their activities in 2017, acquiring new tenders, diversifying projects, and buying more lands from the government," Banany says.
Anticipating real estate market changes in 2018
Shalaby points out that surprisingly, the Egyptian real estate market is still performing well, despite a rise in inflation. He cites a report by Euromonitor confirming that Egypt is expected to become the world's fast-growing real estate market in 2017 based on the strong, buoyed demand from both domestic and foreign home-buyers.
"While nobody is holding a crystal ball and can accurately predict the future to see what is in store for 2018, in the real estate sector there is confidence that demand is driven by need; in addition, investments will continue to rise strongly in value in the coming years—and high-end construction is booming to meet demand," he adds.
Shalaby predicts that 2018 should be interesting in terms of an expected increase in supply, resulting in a change in the trends of offerings and services. With previous predictions of a 3.5% growth in economy throughout 2017, this rate is expected to rise to 4.5% in 2018.
Although home buyers may fear any sudden negative change in the market, Banany assures that real estate prices in specific will drive a normal annual increase ranging between 10% and 15% saying; "No sudden price increases are expected because the effects of the devaluation are already wearing off," Banany says.
He also points out that development-related changes should be considered by public and private developers in 2018, emphasizing that some sectors within the real estate market lack development. "At Coldwell Banker we conducted a study that identified a noticeable shortage in education facilities, medical centers, small supermarkets, entertainment facilities and malls.
For example, Alexandria became overcrowded; thus an extension to Borg El Arab city has been made within the past two years and only a few number of citizens have relocated to the new city due to the lack of facilities and services," he explains.
"Development of other specific areas in real estate would require improvement…including skills to develop hospitals or clinics to standards, manufacturing plants, schools and universities to name just a few.
All those require specific skills which are not the focus of most real estate developers in Egypt at present," Shalaby concludes.


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The Muong Thanh Can Tho Hotel was officially opened on April 28; the first five-star hotel in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.
Located on Cai Khe Islet in Ninh Kieu district the hotel is just 10 km from Can Tho International Airport and 169 km south of Ho Chi Minh City. "Muong Thanh Can Tho is our 30th hotel," said Ms. Le Thi Hoang Yen, CEO of the Muong Thanh Group. "This year we will also open hotels in Cua Lo, Ho Chi Minh City, Lao Cai, Quang Nam, Quang Binh and Quang Ngai. We will continue to affirm our position in the industry with our international standard hotels in Vietnam."
The Muong Thanh Can Tho Hotel covers an area of 1.7 hectares and overlooks the Hau River and Can Tho Bridge. The hotel has 23 floors with 309 bedrooms and four multifunction conference rooms that can cater to 30 to 1,200 people and feature state-of-the-art facilities.
With 30 hotels the Muong Thanh Group now has a total of more than 5,000 rooms and employs 3,000 people. Its aim is to continue to expand not only within Vietnam but also into other countries and become a network of Vietnamese hotels of premium standard.


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Are you planning a trip and not sure what you should be thinking about? There are a lot of things to remember when planning a trip to make sure that nothing will go wrong! Read on for some ideas on what you need to remember to have a safe trip.
As you travel, if you make use of public computers, do not use sensitive data or information for any reason, especially involving money. There may be malware that takes your information
TO ensure you have a pleasant and safe traveling experience, make sure your health insurance is valid in the country you're traveling to. Doing this will make you feel more secure, and make it easier to enjoy your trip. It could prevent big problems down the line if you do fall ill.
Travel Booking Sites
Make your travel plans more affordable by booking your flight through a meta-search site. It can be tempting to get your tickets from a website whose purpose is to locate cheap airfare, but a meta-search site looks through a variety of airlines and travel booking sites at the same time. It will then redirect you to the site that has the price you want, saving you money.
Travel Deals
Check out last minute travel deals. If you have the flexibility in schedule and destination, you can save a lot of money by booking your travel at the last minute. Many hotels and airlines drastically reduce prices for dates in the near future to fill seats and rooms that will otherwise go empty.
Always continue to search for travel deals on hotels and car rentals, even after you have secured your reservation. These companies often drop prices significantly to make sure their inventory is used, so keep looking. Make sure that you understand the cancellation policy before you try to switch out your room or car.
Travel Guide
When you are travelling to a new location it is necessary to gather as much information as possible beforehand. It is no longer necessary to purchase a travel guide (although these are very useful when on location). There is a wealth of information available for free on the Internet. You will especially want to research the hotels that you will stay in.
Travel Packages
Planning your travel in advance is always good advice to follow. Make sure to plan your trip at least a month or a few weeks in advance to ensure you have enough time to make changes. Planning ahead leaves more room for error and gives you more time to get the best deals on travel packages.
There are lots and lots of cruise lines offering fine travel packages in the Caribbean. Some are more memorable than others, though: Consider a barefoot windjammer cruise as an exciting alternative to a more modern, conventional cruise ship. Visiting the islands of the Caribbean powered along by wind and the tides is more romantic than steaming around them on a massive cruise liner.
As you can see, there are so many things to think about when planning your trip to make sure it's as safe and enjoyable as possible. If you're planning a trip, make sure to go over this list carefully and check off each idea to make sure your trip will be the best it can be.…Continue Reading


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How to Replace a Garage Door Window
Panelized garage doors often include windows that are vulnerable to damage and breakage. Some windows consist of a frame with glass or plexiglass, and the entire unit is replaced. Others consist of glass or plexiglass inserts that fit into the framework on the door. Obtain the new window or insert based on the size, configuration and manufacturer of the door. The method used to replace a damaged or broken window varies with the type of frame.
Frames and Windows
Remove the screws at the face of the frame with the appropriate screwdriver. Save the screws. Ask an assistant to push the frame from the opposite side and remove it from the opening at the door.
Place the new frame and window unit atop a piece of plywood or thin wood strips with the wider sides -- outside -- of the frame facing up. Place the provided template on the window and align the guide marks with the corresponding edges of the frame. Secure the template to the frame with short strips of masking tape.
Set up a power or cordless drill with a 1/8-inch drill bit. Drill holes through the frame using the appropriate marks on the template as guides.
Install the frame and window in the opening with the wider sides of the frame facing out and the rubber seals along the edges facing in. Attach the frame using the saved screws at each of the drilled holes.
Straighten the small tabs that hold the edges of the glass or plexiglass insert in the frame with a putty knife. For wood stops, carefully pry the stops from the edges of the opening with the tip of a wood chisel. Save the stops.
Wear work gloves. Cut the bead of caulking at the edges of the opening with a utility knife. Remove the glass or plexiglass from the opening. Remove any residual caulking at the opening with the tip of a wood chisel.
Apply a uniform bead of all-weather caulking around the edges of the opening. press the new panel into place. Bend the steel tabs against the face of the panel by hand. For wood stops, apply an additional bead of caulking along the outer edges of the opening and reinstall the stops in the original configuration by hand.
Things Needed
- Screwdriver
- Plywood or thin wood strips
- Masking tape
- Power or cordless drill
- 1/8-inch drill bit
- All-weather caulking
- Work gloves
- Putty knife (optional)
- Wood chisel (optional)
- Always wear work gloves when working with broken glass.
- Some frames do not have an integral rubber seal around the inside edges. Caulk the edges of the frame before installing it in the opening.
- Snap-in replacements are as easy to replace as the name implies. Pop out the old window frame with a putty knife and press in the new frame by hand until it snaps into place.
Photo Credits
- Thinkstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images


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Isaac Camacho was a Special Forces Engineer Sergeant serving in an SF Base Camp, Hiep Hoa, SVN when the base camp was attacked and overun by the Viet Cong on 24 November 1963. Ike was subsquently captured with three other Army SF soldiers and marched over 150 kilometers to the COSVN POW Camp B-20 where he was shackled by the leg, chained to a tree, caged like a wild dog - in the triple canopy jungle. He is worked like an animal; tossed into the 'punishment-hole' often; routinely interrogated by a COSVN Commissioner; Interrogated by two Cuban Officials, a Chinese Official, and interviewed by an Australian Journalist, and along the way Isaac Camacho suffered from Falcipurm Malaria, Hepatitis "C", and beri-beri, losing 50+ pounds of weight. Throughout 21 months of captivity in the open jungle Ike never lost his resolve, determination, or decidedness to escape his cage, for the purpose of living up to the Military Code of Conduct – and to 'fight another day' against an enemy of the United States. Isaac Camacho escaped during a driving monsoon rain - through the upper bars of his cage within 8 meters of the duty guard; evaded search by a Viet Cong patrol with dogs; making his way 50KM to the south, to a friendly US Army Special Forces A-Camp – at Minh Thanh, SVN on 13 July 1965. Chapter IX, SFA was named after Ike when it was believed he was KIA. Ike serves the community today, both the Special Forces community and the El Paso community at large with appearances at many events; talking to high schoolers about serving their country; through the Chapter's charitable events; and, through his suport of the Jerry Rainey Memorial Scholarship, named after Ike's close friend and lifelong Chapter member, Jerry Rainey, a former Special Forces medic.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Isaac Camacho - Chapter namesake
Posted by Chapter IX Commo Sgt at 12:49 PM
Labels: Ike Camacho, POW, Vietnam
3 comments:
- AnonymousFebruary 19, 2011 at 9:35 AM
Good job Ike, the VC still doesn't know, where do you left :-).ReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 23, 2013 at 8:44 PM
I hung out with Comacho in A co. 1st SFG, Oki in 1962. He was an SFC, a very good soldier, and a lot of fun, too. He rotated back to Bragg in 63 while I went South so I never got see him leave. Comacho and Dick Perkins were the best soldiers I ever met. I lost my best buddy Neil Maciver in spring of 63 KIA. And the other best buddy 65 KIA. It's all like it was yesterdayReplyDelete
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Trig probably finishes this easily, but I present an elementary solution.
Construct points D and E on AB and AC respectively such that DE is parallel to BC, and angle EBC=60. Since triangle ABC is isosceles, angle DCB=angle EBC=60. Let BE and CD intersect at F and notice that BCF and DEF are equilateral. Now angle DCA = angle DAC = 20 which leads to DC=DA which is DM+DA=DF+CF=DF+BC which is DM=DF=DE. Since angle ADE = angle ABC = 80, angle DME = 50 since triangle DME is isosceles. Now DFM is isosceles too, with angle FDM=140, angle FMD=20, therefore triangle BFM is also isosceles, FM=BF=BC, therefore F is the circumcentre of BCM. Angle BMC is then half of angle BFC, therefore abgle BMC=30, angle CME=20, angle MCA=10.


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UN-Habitat Executive Director, Dr. Joan Clos, and architect-activist PK Das have won the first ever international Jane Jacobs Medal.
The Rockefeller Foundation Jane Jacobs Medal was created by the Municipal Art Society (MAS) in 2007 to honor the author and activist who died in April 2006 at the age of 89. The Rockefeller Foundation's relationship with Jane Jacobs dates back to the 1950s, when the Foundation made a grant to the then-obscure writer from Greenwich Village, for the research and writing of the book, The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Now more than 50 years later, Jane Jacobs' work remains one of the most influential books ever written on urban design.
In previous years, the Medal has been awarded to New Yorkers whose work advances the spirit of Jane Jacobs in NYC by creating new ways of seeing and understanding cities, challenging traditional assumptions, and creatively using the urban environment to make their city a place of hope and expectation. In 2016, MAS and the Rockefeller Foundation collaborated to expand the award globally. The medal will be officially awarded at a reception in Quito, Ecuador, during the United Nations Habitat III Conference that will take place on October 17th, 2016.
What defines the character of a city is its public space, not its private space.-Dr. Joan Clos, Executive Director, UN Habitat
"It is a great honor to award the Rockefeller Foundation Jane Jacobs' Medal to our first-ever global winners, Dr. Joan Clos and PK Das," said Dr. Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation. "It is fitting that during the week of Habitat III, the effort spearheaded by Dr. Clos, we honor and recognize his tireless efforts to elevate the global discussion on resilience through smart urban development. And this is the perfect moment to honor Mr. Das, as we look ahead to implementing the New Urban Agenda, his vision for Mumbai and reimagining its citizens' access to open space and improved affordable housing in one of the most densely populated cities on the planet serves as a model for us all."
PK Das is a prolific Mumbai-based architect who takes people and places seriously. He has worked on over 150 diverse projects big and small, from museums to stadiums, offices to residences. He famously spearheaded the renewal of Mumbai's coastline as chairperson of the Mumbai Waterfronts Centre, which used a participatory planning process to create a transformative public space in a city that offers only a quarter acre of public space per thousand people. Das has also collaborated with activists and journalists to bring democratic planning and design to residents in the slums of suburban Goregaon outside Mumbai, providing a model that could be an inspiration for redevelopment around the city. He has also campaigned for reform in the city's real estate-driven planning system more generally, and after years of effort, Mumbai's citywide plan finally includes citizen participation policies.
Last week, both Das and Clos spoke at Placemaking Week, an international gathering of placemakers and active transportation professionals in Vancouver, organized by Project for Public Spaces. While Clos offered opening remarks, Das spoke on the subject of resilience at the closing plenary of Pro Walk / Pro Bike / Pro Place, telling the audience: "I see placemaking as an incredible democratic tool for social and environmental change, for democratization of cities, for unification of fragmented landscapes, and undoubtedly, being a planner and architect, for planning and design efforts. Our concern for building resilience truly rests on such unification." Das also spoke eloquently on behalf of the architectural profession during a Placemaking Leadership Forum panel exploring how we can reorient our planning, development and architectural systems toward making great places.
"How do we popularize architecture? Through our long years of education we have developed an exclusive skill of communication, of expertise. We speak in languages, we draw in ways that if we put them up in public spaces, no one can understand… How do we evolve and devise new languages of communication with the public—in public spaces? That's really the test of the times for professionals." -PK Das
Joan Clos and PK Das, Project for Public Spaces salutes you both and your inspiring work, and we wish you the best of luck in your ongoing efforts to democratize public space and to build resilient and sustainable cities for all!