text:
Tel: 01562 711114
Balmoral UK,
I would just like to say thank you to everyone who worked on my Corniche this past week.
On the drive home it was running better than I ever remember. I could have happily kept on driving all afternoon, it was such a pleasure to feel it running at it's best.
And as for the bodywork/paint shine it looked like it had come straightout of the R-R showroom (or maybe better).
You all did a great and I very much appreciate it.
R. Barrett, Shropshire.
February 2020
Dear Alan
I have just returned to the office having visited you to look at an engine management warning light – which appears fine and fixed and my thanks to you and Andy.
The purpose of this mail is to repeat my thanks not only for the prompt attention to the car but with no charge.
I will sing the praises of your garage as often as I can!!!
My sincere thanks for good old fashioned "proper" service!
S. Beckett, West Midlands.
March 2019
Hi Alan
Just a belated email to thank you and your team for sorting out the Bentley S2.
As you know, the car has been to various 'experts' and also one of your competitors. None have sorted it as well as Balmoral.
The car is in the best shape it has been since new - it starts first time, accelerates strongly, handles well and stops well. Thanks to the halogen headlight conversion, I can see better than a modern car at night and the electric fan cools the car even in the heaviest modern traffic.
Thanks again, the car is now a real gem and practical in modern traffic. I will certainly be bringing the Rolls Royce in next!
I. Mulingani, Warwickshire.
June 2018
Back in Ireland safe and sound. The car never missed a beat on our journey, must say it's a fabulous car in all respects. I must thank you and your staff for the wonderful service I received. I will look after the car while in my care. Once again I must thank you.
J. Kennedy, Ireland.
February 2018
Hello Alan
I've picked my car up today and are so surprised by what I found! A spotless gleaming bentley running to what I class as perfection you really have done a great job so are just presenting this e mail as a thank you I also have to comment on the expertise of your mechanic he is so knowledgable about these cars yet is also gifted in explaining in layman terms the problems with the car A big thumbs up from me and again thank you so much because of you I can now experience a Bentley.
J. Oakes, West Midlands.
March 2017
Hello Alan and the team.
How do you improve on 110% service because that's what you gave me when I asked you to look for an Arnage, the one you found for me was superb in every way the service was excellent throughout the purchase and what a car even to the two bottles of champagne in the cars fridge. Once again many thanks from a new loyal customer.
B. Kilburn, Worcestershire.
September 2016
Dear Alan,
I am writing to thank you and everyone at Balmoral UK for supplying me with such a fine example of a Bentley Arnage. The car is running and driving beautifully and I am thoroughly enjoying owning it.
I would just like to say what an outstanding serivce you all have provided to me when I purchased, in my opinion, a wonderful Bentley Arnage. I searched the country for a long time looking for my perfect example. I travelled over 100 miles to Balmoral UK to meet Alan. He met me on a Sunday (out of hours) to show me the best I had seen. I am fussy and I gave Alan a list of extras I wanted doing and when I picked up the car the following week everything had been carried out perfectly.
I will take the car to Balmoral for all servicing and repairs. I am overjoyed with the car and cannot wait to drive it on the weekends.
Dealing with you and everyone at Balmoral has been an enjoyable and satisfying experience which in turn adds greatly to the enjoyment of the car.
I. Gorst, Lancashire.
March 2016
I was pleased to have the car returned yesterday. The illumination when reversing is much improved and I am sure it will help manoeuvring in the dark in busy hotel car parks. I am hoping when I drive up to Darlington next week to find that the wind noise is also less apparent.
Huw has just called by with a replacement key ring. I would like to say how much I appreciate this level of service from Balmoral.
M. Garner, West Midlands.
February 2016
Dear Alan,
As you know it has been six years since I purchased my Silver Seraph from you.
What has impressed me from the outset was your advise on the purchase of a Rolls Royce motor car and not the pushy sell.
During the six years I have found the regular servicing of my car to be first class. With attention given to the smallest detail.
I would recommend anyone thinking of owning a Bentley or Rolls Royce to talk to Balmoral UK.
PS. The recent leather restoration work has been well done, I am very happy with the results.
R.A. Hadley, Worcestershire.
July 2015
Hi Alan,
Just a short email to say Thank you to you and your staff. My car drove home great and looked fantastic. Very pleased and should I need anything else will be in contact with Balmoral with out hesitation.
M. Dolman, Staffordshire.
July 2015
Thank you again for your attention to my Arnage and for delivery to my home.
I am pleased to report that my trip to Surrey and back on Saturday (about 220 miles) was without incident; the car ran extremely well, with immediate throttle response and smooth acceleration throughout the range. Please give my compliments to those who worked on her.
M. Stephens, Warwickshire.
July 2015
I am writing to thank you, and everyone at Balmoral UK for supplying us with such a fine example of a Continental R. The car is running and driving beautifully and I am thoroughly enjoying owning it.
I much appreciate the work done on the car to present it to me in such excellent condition which was above my best expectation.
Dealing with you and everyone at Balmoral has been an enjoyable and satisfying experience which in turn adds greatly to the enjoyment of the car.
It is a testimony to your approach to the work that my fussy petrol head club members could not find any fault with the car!
Thank you also for sending me a tin of touch up paint and 'Bentley' badges for the key remotes.
Best wishes to you and all at Balmoral UK.
R. Grant, Aberdeen.
September 2014
Dear Alan and team,
I would just like to say what an outstanding service you all have provided to me when I purchased, in my opinion, a wonderful Bentley Anarge. I searched the country for six weeks and walking away disappointed from the seller trying to sell me a car that was sub standard ie poorly serviced, poor condition etc I travelled 100 miles to Balmoral UK to meet Steven, Alan's son. He met me on a Sunday (out of hours) to show me the best I had seen. I am fussy and I gave Steven a snag list and when I picked up the car the following week everything had been carried out perfectly.
I will take the car to Balmoral for all servicing and repairs. I am overjoyed with car and can not wait to drive it on the week ends.
R. Cutting, Hampshire.
August 2014
Thanks Alan for all your assistance and professionalism in the purchase from Balmoral of the Arnage.
The car was presented in immaculate condition with all the items on my 'snagging list'! dealt with and an absolute joy to drive on the 100 mile home trip.
C. Coventry, Hertfordshire.
Dear Mr Ledington
I have driven the Rolls on several occasions since it was returned.
I am pleased to say she now drives perfectly, and is a pleasure, along with all things hydraulic!
My thanks and appreciation to you and your team for the work involved.
F. Baldwin, West Midlands.
Dear Alan,
Thank you.
I was very reassured by the thoroughness of your attention to the service of my Bentley Arnage Red Label and your efforts to resolve the negligence of the main dealer who has been servicing it since it was originally sold some 10 years ago and for my own part, over the last three years.
I have invested considerable time and effort and money working with the main dealer to try and maintain the car and it transpires that even the most fundamental and basic areas have been overlooked, indeed, on each visit, it has been suggested that I part exchange the car for a new one.
I will be recommending you, and your business, from now on.
I greatly enjoyed my drive back; testament to the work and effort that your team has performed and thank you for that.
I would like to thank you and your team for the levels of service, advice, and friendship since I became a customer in August 1998, with the 1st purchase of a Bentley Mulsanne S, followed by a Bentley Turbo R 1991, and then a Bentley Turbo R 1996 some 6 years ago.
When the time came to sell my Turbo R, you very kindly took on the task of finding it a new home, and this you did, in a very courteous way, ensuring the purchaser, and I had a fair deal, for which I thank you.
I do hope that in the very near future I can become a customer again, with a Bentley Arnage or even a Rolls-Royce.
You even found time to look after our Black Labrador Brookland, when he was a puppy, as well as always making a fuss of him, when he came to visit.
I am more than happy to recommend your services to anyone I meet who is looking for Rolls-Royce and Bentley for sales, service, advice etc.
The journey back to Amsterdam was perfect / splendid (except for the weather ... constant downpour) ... I must have set a record in speed and time for the distance of your dealership - I drove off at 11.30am - to Folkestone! I arrived in Amsterdam at 23.00 hours.
But more important ... the Wraith drove like the proverbial "smooth as silk"...
The next morning I have dropped off the car at www.brabocars.com, my Rolls Royce garage in The Netherlands ... to have the car prepared for technical inspection by the Dutch authorities prior to official importation. My contact at Brabocars showed his sincere appreciation for the Wraith and told me ... I had done a nice deal meaning "You did not overpay for this car." ...
The Wraith is still at Brabocars ... I am planning to pay them a visit tomorrow to check in person on their progress. It was a pleasure meeting you and my congratulations on your dealership / garage... as they say "The Proof of the Pudding is in the Eating!"...
You are a kind person and ... not a "car salesman" at all! After the Wraith is on Dutch plates and after I have some more experience with it ... I will write you again ... I have read the testimonial chapter on your site - in total - and ... IT WORKS! I am a businessman myself and the best promotion for your business and reputation is by ... "Word of Mouth". Once Again ... Thanks.
It was a surprise: when looking for spare parts for my Jag something transported me back and I remembered myself being 6 or 7 years old and drawing a Rolls Royce grill, and the curved lines of the 1961 Silver Cloud II.
Years passed and I continued to love classic English cars. The day came when I could finally afford a much sought 1990 Daimler 4.0. Time has gone by since and now, in the days when retirement is around the corner, when a child's dreams can come true and after 36 long years of flying as a professional pilot, seeing the RR badge on the imposing engines of my plane every day, Balmoral U.K., crossed my way - with Alan at the forefront of what was to become a life-long dream come true.
It was a 1996 Royal Blue Silver Spirit, not curved at all, boxy, but the real and last true Rolls Royce inviting me to realise my child-fantastic world.
I received a highly professional, friendly and distinguishable service – something difficult to come about now a days - from Alan in my first trip from Spain and throughout the duration of the transaction. I immediately fell in awe with the Silver Spirit as when I was a young boy the first time I saw her. All in all with Balmoral and Alan's attention to detail and with his experience I was smoothly and pleasantly guided into the particular world of Rolls Royce ownership.
Three weeks passed in which Alan and the Balmoral team serviced the car fully and prepared all the papers for her export. I have to thank Alan for a job very well done, his patience with all my requirements imposed by the E.U. and for an overall 5-star and highly recommendable service and business.
On a cloudy day the Royal Blue new Silver Spirit III left the Balmoral U.K. premises heading to Plymouth and Spain, with its new owner and his youngest son.
Thanks a lot Alan and Balmoral team.
It is now two years since I first came to see you pursuing a dream of owning a Rolls Royce.
I just had to write to say that I have always found you and your staff to be very friendly, polite and extremely helpful. Your company, Balmoral UK Ltd, is a credit to the motor trade and I would have no hesitation in recommending you.
I came to you after visiting other dealers that I found far less helpful than you. As you are aware I am a wheelchair user so life was a little more complicated for you with conversions to the car, VAT issues etc.
From our initial meeting, I was impressed with your knowledge and experience of the Rolls Royce motor car. Nothing was too much trouble and I felt very welcome.
The car supplied, Silver Spirit III, has been a joy to own with only minor issues sorted out by yourselves with little inconvenience or hassle.
I waited a long time to own a Rolls Royce, and finally having got to the point of being in a position to do so, have found the experience nothing short of GREAT, aided by a company that cares about the cars they supply and the customers to whom they are supplied.
Thank you for the recent service and please find enclosed a cheque to cover the work carried out.
Again thank you and your staff for a friendly and professional service.
Thank you for your email, I was very pleased to come back to Balmoral in the hope of acquiring a further Bentley motor car from yourselves as I am sure you will recall I am very pleased with my "Eight" you have kept to your reputation and delivered a cracking example of the Eight series car.
I understand your ethos in not wishing to retail my green Turbo R and there are no hard feelings on my part at all so please do not feel you have offended me in any way, I enjoyed my day out and meeting your sons and yourself talking Bentley shop. I am sure we will do business in the future as I am always looking at your website and keeping my ears to the ground, I was not sure if the silver car was the right one for me so I will keep on looking to see what you may have in the coming months.
Please do feel free to contact me if you are likely to obtain a car that you feel I might enjoy, I have made the decision that Balmoral will be the providers of my cars of the make Bentley in the future and thank you for taking the time to see me on Saturday.
Just a short note to thank you for taking the hassle out of buying my first Bentley, it was truly a pleasure to do business with you.
Now that we have driven the Bentley for about two months, I can honestly say that the car is better than I expected, it is a beauty, admired by everyone that sees it.
When the Bentley is due for its first service I intend to drive it down to Balmoral and have three to four days holiday in the area at the same time.
My sincere thanks again to you and your team for the way you all looked after us so well when we visited you in October.
After the purchase recently of our second car, a Rolls Royce Silver Spur, from you we feel we wish to say how delighted we are with both the car & the personal advice, input & support which Balmoral cars give to their customers. We have been very satisfied with our Bentley Turbo R which we purchased 2 years ago from Alan. We continue to recommend Alan Ledington & all the staff at Balmoral UK, not only for purchasing your Rolls Royce or Bentley but also the servicing & after sales care of your special car.
Just to thank you for all of your help to our family this year as in every year. Take care and all the best for 2007.
A. Hayward, Guernsey.
Dear Mr Ledington,
Following my purchase from you of a Silver Spirit last month, I now wish to put on record my thanks for finding this car for me. It exactly suits my needs.
You had told me that it had covered a very low mileage, and when I first saw it on your premises my impression was that it was in very good condition. Now that I have had it for one month and had time to examine it in detail and use it for work and pleasure, I find that it is quite immaculate overall, and in truely "as new" Show Room condition.
As you know, this is not my first RR car. My previous Silver Shadow (which I owned from 1984) had been serviced by your engineers to keep it in full order up to its 214,000 miles when I handed it over to you. My many and regular trips in this Silver Shadow to the north of Scotland were a joy to me. Time and again you and your engineers demonstrated to me the great encyclopaedic knowledge which you have of RR cars of all ages.
Over the years, as I have visited Balmoral UK to have my Silver Shadow serviced, I have wandered around and seen many outstanding cars in your showroom but the quality of this Silver Spirit, in all respects, is quite astonishing, which is why I write to you now.
I have never hesitated to recommend your services to friends and others, and certainly will continue to do so.
Thanks again to you and your engineers for you wise counsel on all "RR" matters.
A. Craig, Solihull.
This is just a quick line to say thanks for sorting out the bits on the Continental R. You made the purchase process and what followed a painless experience. I've no doubt my next one, whatever it may be, will be purchased from Balmoral.
Will you please pass on my thanks to Craig for facilitating its return when I myself was tied up with work.
Thanks again,
It is now just over 12 months since I purchased my Bentley Brooklands R from you in October 2004. Over the years I have owned several Bentley/Rolls-Royce cars which I have purchased from main Official Dealers and Specialist Dealers like yourself. As like most people who buy cars from Dealer I have had both good and bad experiences with most of them. However I must say that of all the Dealers I have dealt with you and your Company stand out from the majority of them.
There are several aspects to be considered when purchasing a used vehicle, such as - part exchange allowance, preperation of the vehicle being purchased, genuine warranty's with no hidden small print, service back up with fully trained staff and equipment, and last but not least dealing with honest sincere people.
In my experience I feel that you have achieved all of the above points, and I would like to thank you for supplying me with a superb vehicle and giving me the service and back up that is so rare these days.
If at any time in the future I should decide to up date my present car, rest assured you will be my first port of call. I would have no hesitation in recommending your company, keep up the good work.
Thank you for helping me to fulfill my dream. I am enjoying the experience and with your support, long may it continue.
Dear Alan
D. Boden, Australia.
I would just like to say that the service I have received from you and the Balmoral team has been exceptional. Nothing appears to be too much trouble, the quality of the cars on offer is superb and I look forward to the vehicle servicing being the same.
B. Henderson, Lancashire.
A quick word to say how pleased we are with the Bentley and your handling of paperwork etc. made everything so easy. Many thanks.
J.A. Mealor, Gloucestershire.
The quality of the service that Balmoral UK provides never fails to impress me. As well as the quality of the work on the car, all the staff I have dealt with have been extremely courteous; very rare these days. It is also a positive pleasure to speak to Tony and the others in the workshop about the cars.
T. Randle, Worcestershire.
December 2003
When I was looking for a Rolls-Royce, I was impressed by the excellent condition of the cars offered for sale and the courtesy shown to me. Since acquiring my car from Balmoral I have been very pleased with the standard of after sales service.
M. Hall, Derbyshire.
February 1997
After Extensive enquiries and investigation all over the UK, I purchased my Bentley Turbo R from Balmoral UK. This being my first purchase of this marque I found Mr Alan Ledington and his staff very knowledgeable, helpful and courteous at all times.
A. Davies, South Wales.
February 1997
I called at Balmoral UK when passing some three years ago just to look at the display of cars having no intention to purchase. I was treat with utmost courtesy although I explained that I was not in the market place and the meeting did change my mind. I did purchase a few months later from a garage who had taken one in part exchange. Balmoral went and inspected the car at a very modest fee and negotiated a good price for me. Balmoral have since serviced my Rolls-Royce giving good value for money and excellent service.
D.F.L. Harrison, Shropshire.
February 1997
Thank you to Alan and all the staff at Balmoral U.K. for the professionalism, thoughtfulness and courteous way in which you conduct your business. A pleasure to do business with you.
E. Fryer, Derbyshire.
If approached by 'Which' magazine and was asked would I purchase my Bentley from a Company I have never heard of (Balmoral UK) I would say No! But after speaking to Alan and his team and seeing their operation I would have to say Yes! P.S. I did purchase my Bentley Turbo R from Balmoral and I go as far to say, this has been the best Bentley I have ever owned.
J. Bowen, Lancashire.
It was my life-time's ambition to own a Rolls-Royce, when I first started to search for my car I found it was very difficult to understand which model of Rolls-Royce I should have. I came across Balmoral from one of their adverts and after visiting their showroom and meeting all the staff, I purchased my life-time ambition. I would recommend this experience to anyone.
B. Beard, Leicestershire.
They live and breathe Rolls-Royce. The personal service is excellent.
J.J. Morris, Worcestershire.
They made the financial pain to restore my Bentley a pleasure. I strongly recommend the experience.
K. Barritt, West Midlands.
Registered Office: Balmoral UK Cars Ltd,
12 Northbrook Close, Worcester, Worcestershire, WR3 8BP
Telephone: 01562 711114
Email: email@example.com
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Credence Systems shares moved up 3 3/16, or 6 percent, to 58 Monday after Morgan Stanley Dean Witter started the maker of test equipment and software for the semiconductor industry with a "buy" recommendation.
In its latest quarter, Credence (Nasdaq: CMOS) topped analysts' estimates, earning $33.5 million, or $1.26 a share, on sales of $153.8 million.
Its shares also split 2-for-1 in May.
First Call Corp. consensus expects it to earn 75 cents a share in its third quarter.
All 11 analysts tracking the stock rate it either a "buy" or "strong buy."
Its shares moved as high as 79 3/8 in April after falling to a low of 16 7/8 last July.

subset: commoncrawl


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Recreation of Elegant Squares Manicure with Tutorial featuring three SpaRitual shades
Hello lovelies,
I liked yesterday's SpaRitual Optical Illusion shade very much so I've done a nail art manicure with it. This manicure is not my idea, it has been inspired by lovely Sophie from My Awesome Beauty blog. Sophie created a video tutorial of the 'Elegant Squares' manicure so if you prefer video over pictures, watch the video here. Make sure you visit My Awesome Beauty blog as Sophie is extra nice person full of great ideas!
Now to the manicure: I've used SpaRitual Optical Illusion a base colour and SpaRitual Conduit and Back To Your Roots for the different coloured section. I've also used striping tape for defining the sections.
This manicure is super easy to recreate so I've done picture tutorial. However don't forget that Sophie created a video tutorial as well and I don't ask for credit for this manicure. So if you recreate it, feel free to credit Sophie from My Awesome Beauty as it was her idea.


text:
Almost 40 years in shipping industry. Since 1977 working in Golden Union Shipping Group.
In 1984 was appointed as Purchasing Manager. In 1989 was appointed to set up and develop Golden Cargo as Managing Director.
Born and raised in Chios. Graduate the City of London Polytechnic (London University). Holds a BSc in Maritime Economics and MSc in Logistics
27 years in the shipping industry . The first 3 years from 1991 till 1994 I was employed in the crew dept of Golden Union Shipping , after this period I moved to Golden Cargo as an accountant . Stay 3 years till I move to the import dept as import manager and responsible on the same time for the network agent payments and receivables .
On 1999 I promoted as operation manager and business development manager and the last 3 years promoted as General Manager of Golden Cargo having also the import dept and the sales activities of our group .
I was born in S.Africa and raised in Athens, graduate from the Technological Educational Institute of Athens and I have degree in accounting.
I am holder of customs broker license and approved , I am keeping the certificate of 1st class accounting raised by the economical chamber of Athens and I am member of the economical chamber of Athens . I have certificates for transportation of dangerous goods along with the certificate for the basic general cargo approved by the IATA .
Born and raised in Vrontados, Chios with a family with strong ties to shipping and seamanship, graduated from the University of Plymouth in 1998 and hold a BSc degree in Maritime Business & Maritime Law.
Following his military service, joined Golden Cargo SA in 2001 and currently holds the position of business development for the air & sea product in Golden Cargo SA and maintains a team leader role in the export department actively involved in the daily operational activities.
Sebastian Ostermann, Global Industry Manager Industrial Spare Parts – LUFTHANSA
Theodore E. Veniamis
President, Union of the Greek Shipowners
President & Managing Director, Golden Union Shipping Co. SA
Mr. Theodore Veniamis was born in Vrontados Chios in 1950. He graduated from the University of Athens (School of Business and Economics) obtaining the extended title/specialization in Economics and Law.
Since 1977, he is the founding director of Golden Union Shipping Co. S.A., a dry cargo Ship Management – Operating company of which he is the President/CEO. Golden Union currently operates 41 dry bulk carriers of about 5.5 million TDW and with another 6 vessels on order. He is the head of Golden Union Group, which in addition is actively involved in a growing number of shipping and non-shipping related activities.
Since 2009, Mr. Veniamis is the President of the Union of the Greek Shipowners and an elected member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee since 1987.
Mr. Veniamis is President of Otesat Maritel (Telecommunications services provider) and a Member of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Mutual War Risk Association. He is also the Honorary Chairman of the DNV Hellenic Committee, a Non-Executive Director of North of England P&I Association, Member of the Hellenic Advisory Committee of Lloyds Register, Member of the Hellenic Committee of RINA (Italian Class Society), Member of the Greek National Committee of ABS (American Bureau of Shipping
George Teriakidis is a naval architect and currently holds the position of DNV GL Regional Business Development Manager, for Region South East Europe & Middle East.
He has completed studies of B.Eng. in Marine Technology with Honours in Naval architecture at the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne as well as of a M.Sc. in Ship Production Technology at Strathclyde University of Glasgow. Upon completion of his studies, he joined DNV office of Dubai, UAE as a trainee surveyor. During his 8 year stay in Dubai he became surveyor for various types of vessels and got involved in various projects. In 2006 he became the Service Manager for CAP surveys for Middle East & India as well as the debuty head of the DNV Dubai Maritime Service Centre.
In August 2008 he joined DNV Piraeus as the Marketing and Business Development Manager. Since then he has been working on business development towards the Greek and Cypriot market for Maritime as well as Oil & Gas. Also, he has delivered various presentations in seminars, training sessions and conferences. Since the merger of DNV and GL in 2013, he has been the Regional Business Development Manager for Region South East Europe and Middle East.
He is married and is the proud father of a young princess. During his free time he still enjoys photography and listening to music.
Mr. Nicolaos Veniamis was born in Athens in 1984 and he is from Vrondado of Chios. He has graduated from Manchester Business School (MBS), with a degree in Business Administration. He, then, proceeded with his postgraduate studies in shipping at MIT and at City University of London in Maritime Law. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers (ICS).
In 2012 he founded and holds the position of CEO of Starboard Shipping and Trading, which manages bulk carriers, with specialization in Panamax vessels (70-85,000 DWT). The company manages today 18 vessels. He is also Director of Golden Union, which manages 48 bulk carriers.
He is a member of the board of the Union of Greek Shipowners (U.G.S.) as well as a member of the board of the European Community Shipowners' Associations (ECSA). Lastly, he is member of the board of The London P&I Club and the Hellenic War Risk Insurance.
Ioanna G. Procopiou graduated from Bath University in 2000 with a BEng in Electrical and Electronic Engineering.
After University she continued her studies gaining an MSc from City University in Shipping Trade and Finance.
In 2003 she joined Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd in Glyfada, Greece.
In 2010, after heading the Sale and Purchase and Projects activities in Dynacom for 4 years, Ioanna formed Prominence Maritime S.A. a company which manages 6 bulk carriers.
In addition to the above Ioanna supervises all activities of Sea Traders S.A. which currently manages 35 bulk carriers.
Apart from these shipping activities, Ioanna is also actively involved in real estate development, as well as human resources for Dynacom Tankers Management, Dynagas Ltd and Sea Traders S.A.
Ioanna is on the directors board of the North of England P&I association and is an elected member on the board of the Union of Greek Shipowners Association.
George was born in Athens in 1983.
He graduated from the University College of London in 2004 with a Masters degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering.
After completing his military service in 2006, he began working at Common Progress S.A. first by sailing for 3 months on one of the company's ships. In 2007 he took charge of the company's shipbuilding program and in 2009 he relocated to China from where he returned to Greece in 2011. He works until today at the company's offices in Athens.
He is a member of the Hellenic Committees of Lloyds Register and Bureau Veritas and member of the Greek Technical Committee of Det Norske Veritas. He is also a member of the Committee on Maritime Safety and Protection of the Marine Environment and the Committee of Foreign Affairs of the Union of Greek Shipowners.
Basil holds a first class honours MEng degree in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College London, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Basil has been the Managing Director of Alassia NewShips Management Inc since the company was founded by Nicolas Hadjioannou in 2009. Alassia is a ship management company offering the full spectrum of services, and currently managing a fleet of 11 modern mostly Japanese dry bulk vessels (ranging from Handysize to Capesize) with an average age of just over 5 years and total carrying capacity of in excess of 800,000 dwt.
Basil started his career in investment banking with NM Rothschild & Sons Ltd in London. He subsequently worked in mid-market UK private equity investing, first with European Capital Financial Services Ltd and then with the Principal Investments Group of HSBC, both in London. Basil also served on the Board of Directors of Safebulkers Inc as a non-executive member from the IPO in 2008 until the formation of Alassia in 2009.
Danae Bezantakou is CEO of Navigator Shipping Consultants, shareholder of KEFI S.A. (Travel Agency) and MATILDA HOTEL in Zakynthos Island. She is also President of iforU-Greek Mentoring Network, which empowers women's entrepreneurship through mentoring, a founding partner and President of the 1st Hellenic U.S. Alumni Association of State Department. She is the founder of YES Forum, the leading platform of open dialogue in the Greek Shipping and Sea Tourism Industry among principals, executives and university students, recent graduates and young executives. Danae represented Greece twice in International Visitor Leadership Programs (IVLP) "Women in Leadership" organized by Hilary Clinton (March 2011) & "On Demand Opportunity: Alumni Association Development" (December 2017), has been selected to be one of the European Young Leaders (2014) and her name was included in the "Purpose Economy Europe 100 List 2014", as well as in the 40under40 list of Fortune Greece. She was also appointed as Young Global Leader from World Economic Forum for the years 2015-2020, holds Global Dignity's Greek Country Chair and has been nominated to join the World Economic Forum's Expert Network with more than 5,000 world-leading experts engaged by the Forum to help shape the global agenda. She has an 8 year old daughter.
Executive Director
Investments & Finance Ltd
Katerina has a total working experience of 36 years of which 32 years have been in managerial positions in the fields of Shipping and Banking.
Since 2000, Katerina has been with Investments & Finance Ltd as Executive Director. The company is a financial consultancy firm dedicated in providing financial and investment advisory services to shipping and corporate clients. She has also held the positions of Head of Shipping Finance and Credit Committee member for two Greek private Banks, and Assistant CFO for Athenian Sea Carriers.
Katerina is Executive Committee Member of WISTA International, active member of WISTA Hellas, member of the Greek Shipping Bankers Association, member of the International Propeller Club in Greece, member of the Advisory Board of Blue Growth, as well as Mentor and Board Member of iforU.
In 2016 Katerina co-organised the 1st Young Executives Shipping Forum held during POSIDONIA 2016, and continues to be an active YES Volunteer supporting and mentoring the young generation looking to develop their talents by pursuing a career in Shipping.
Katerina is also a Lecturer on Shipping Finance at the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, a Shipping Finance Trainer with DNVGL and a frequently invited Speaker and Moderator in International Shipping Conferences held in Greece and abroad on Shipping Finance and General Maritime issues.
She holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration, majoring in Finance from the University of Maryland, USA.
George Alexandratos , Managing Director – APOLLONIA LINES S.A. & Vice-President – Hellenic Chamber Of Shipping
Philippos is the Vice-chairman of YoungShip Cyprus (one of the founders) and Board Member of YoungShip International. Being an active citizen, has participated in the formation and running of different national and international organizations holding various positions of responsibilities.
He is currently working for ABB in Switzerland. He has gained international work experience in shipping, real estate and power & energy industries.
He studied Engineering, Law and Business in United Kingdom, France and Italy.
Local Councilor for Local Growth & Entrepreneurship, Piraeus Municipality Co-Founder Aephoria.net – BlueGrowth Initiative.
As co-founder and impact investor of social enterprises such as organization Earth, an environmental NGO, and Aephoria, a sustainable development startup incubator, Petros Kokkalis is a firm believer of the transformation of local communities through mass resource mobilization. He currently serves as Vice President of the Kokkalis Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is the promotion of a peaceful, democratic and prosperous Southeastern Europe. He also serves as the President of Athens Information Technology, a non-profit technology academic and research institution, and he is president of Athens Tech, a private technology, innovation and entrepreneurship college. He frequently serves as judge to Greek and international business and startup competitions, mentors young entrepreneurs and also serves on the Endeavor senior advisor network. Previously, he was the Vice-President and shareholder of Intracom Holdings, one of the largest multinational technology groups in South-Eastern Europe, and the Vice-President and shareholder of Intralot S.A., a gaming technology supplier and lottery licensed operator. He was also the Vice-President of the Greek football club Olympiacos CFP from 1995 to 2008. He is currently an independent city council member in Piraeus Municipality responsible for European Affairs and the founder of Hope Refugee FC. Hope Refugee FC was established in November 2016 for adult refugees living in Athens. The team participated in an independent league and has played 38 friendly matches with Greek and immigrant teams.
Being passionate about helping startups and entrepreneurs grow, Markos has joined Endeavor to support Small Medium Businesses develop and reach their full potential. At the same time as a Co-Founder of Reload Greece, a London-based organisation aiming to mobilise the diaspora to create new ventures that can have an impact in Greece, Markos has contributed in the inception of over 85 innovative ideas, 14 of which have raised combined funding of £3M and have created 136 new jobs. Prior to Endeavor, he was a Partnership Manager at the MassChallenge accelerator. Earlier in his career, while working at CustomMade.com in the US, he helped the company secure a $2.1M investment from Google Ventures and First Round Capital and contributed in the acquisition of Kopi.co.uk by Cafedirect. Other than startups Markos has worked for MIT University and for big corporates such as Siemens and Expedia. He holds a BSc from Warwick Business School and an MBA from Northeastern University.
Michael Foustanos is Director of the Greek Shipping Miracle (www.greekshippingmiracle.org), the first online maritime museum, established in 2014 in order to raise awareness about shipping and promote its heritage. The project has so far attracted around 100,000 visitors from over 170 countries and continues to grow.
Born in Athens in 1986, Michael has commercial experience in shipping, having previously worked as a shipbroker and research analyst for a London agent representing a shipmanager operating a mixed fleet of tankers, bulk carriers and container ships. He also has seafaring experience onboard an aframax tanker.
Michael has an interdisciplinary academic background comprising an M.A. (Hons) in Economics and an M.Litt. in Art History, both from the University of St Andrews. His M.A. dissertation examined the price determinants of second-hand tankers and bulk carriers during the 2000s shipping market boom using econometric modelling, while his M.Litt. dissertation focused on World War II Greek photography.
He enjoys history, architecture and cinema.
George Xiradakis graduated from the Nautical Marine Academy of Aspropyrgos-Athens and he holds a diploma in Commercial Operations from City of London Polytechnic and an MSc in Maritime Studies from University of Wales. He served as Senior Manager in the French bank Credit Lyonnais before established XRTC Business Consultants Ltd. XRTC is acting as Commercial Representative of international banks and institutions in Greek Shipping Market. Since 2010 XRTC has been an advisor of China Development Bank.
George Xiradakis is the President of the Board of Governors of the International Propeller Club of the United States –International Port of Piraeus; General Secretary of the Association of Banking and Shipping Executives of Hellenic Shipping and a BoD member of Paragon Shipping Inc. He is also a Vice President of the Greece- China Association and member of various maritime organizations including The Marine Club of Piraeus, HELMEPA, Mediterranean Committee of China Classification Society and Greece-China Chamber.
Mrs. Athena Kanellatou, Regional Director, MacGregor Mediterranean.
Athena Kanellatou is engaged over two decades in international shipping serving the vision of sustainable operations at sea and cargo flows for a better every day.
She started her career in the MacGregor Group, holding a number of key positions in the Greek entity being CFO, Business Controller, Managing Director and Global Life Cycle Support Sales Manager.
Athena studied Business Management, specialized in Economics, Business Analysis, Controlling and Internal Auditing and
furthered her education in Sales Strategy and in Marine Engineering Management.
During her association with MacGregor Group, A. Kanellatou is actively involved in different company workgroups in Merchant Marine division and other managerial projects focusing on Greek shipping community.
In 2018, Mrs. A. Kanellatou took a step further in her career with her nomination as MacGregor Director of Mediterranean Region being responsible for the operations of seven company branches active in Merchant shipping and Offshore business.
MacGregor is world leading provider of engineering solutions and services for handling marine cargoes and offshore loads, member of Cargotec Group stock listed in Helsinki.
Dorothea has a Juris Doctorate from St. John's University School of Law in New York and a BA from the City University of NY. After relocating to Greece in 1997, Dorothea initially worked in local law firms and was involved in commercial as well as maritime law. In January of 1998, Dorothea entered the marine insurance industry joining Allied Insurance Brokers Ltd. to manage the Marine Insurance Claims Department. In 2005, Dorothea joined SCB (Hellas) Inc., the Piraeus Claims Liaison Office for the Managers of the American P&I Club, (Shipowners Claims Bureau Inc., NY) as a Claims Executive and in 2009 took on the claims management as well as general management of the office. In 2010 she became the first woman to be appointed to the Executive Committee of the N.Y. management company, Shipowners Claims Bureau Inc. In 2013 she became the Regional Business Development Director for Europe Middle East and Africa and since June 2015, she holds the position of Global Business Development Director and now also holds the position of Chief Commercial Officer making her the first woman to occupy a top level global executive position in the history of the American Club and its managers. Dorothea is active in the shipping industry, a frequent speaker at events, a known mentor for young professionals and in 2017 Dorothea was awarded with the Next Generation Shipping Award for 2017 at the Lloyd's List Global Awards in London. She also served on the Board of WISTA Hellas for four years as Vice President, currently serves as a board member of the Piraeus Marine Club and is a member of the American Hellenic Chamber of Commerce, as well as the Propeller Club. Most recently she was also appointed as a board member of the American Hellenic Hull Insurance Company, Ltd., a wholly owned hull insurance subsidiary of the American P&I Club.
COSTAS KONTES has been working as a General Manager for V.Ships Greece Ltd. since 2016 while he has been previously serving as Business Development Manager for V. Group since 2008. He is responsible for the office in Greece and for operating a large fleet of Container and Bulk Carrier vessels.
Previously he has been working for Iberojet Cruceros. Being responsible for the Marine and Technical operations, Costas has set up the operation in Madrid for the company later on to expand from 1 to 3 ships and sold to Costa Crociere.
Other positions held previously were with Martinoli SAM in Monaco following the fleet of the Renaissance Cruises being involved on the successful initial launching of Oceania Cruises, as well as working for Festival Cruises both onboard the ships and on the newbuildings in France.
He has a BSc, MSc in Marine Engineering from Newcastle University Upon Tyne and a MSc in Shipping, Trade and Finance from Cass Business School. Later additional qualification was the attendance of Seatrade Cruise Masterclass course and the Executive Leadership Development Course designed for V.Group from Strathclyde Business School while holding the title of the Chartered Engineer from the British Engineering Council.
Costas has served 5 years at the International Propeller Club Port of Piraeus as a governor out of which the last two years served as Secretary General and 2nd Vice President.
Mr. Costis J. Frangoulis is a Greek entrepreneur born in Athens, Greece.
A holder of a B.A from the University of Richmond, U.K in Economics and Business Administration since 1988.
From 1988 till 1990 he served in the Hellenic Navy as a non-commissioned officer.
He is the Founder, President and CEO of Franman Group which he formed in May 1991.Franman is a leading provider of diversified services to the shipping industry.
Over these 3 decades and through a number of companies the Group got involved in the promotion of shipbuilding equipment, spare parts, shiprepairs, shipmanagement, communications,Bunkers,boating and marine equipment, I.T, maritime security ,cyber security and consulting. Currently through 4 companies, Franman today represents 132 corporations promoting their equipment, products and services in Greece and 13 other shipowning nations to over 600 customers.
In year 1996, he formed Imperium Shipmanagement SA which managed and owned 5 handysize bulk carriers. Mr. Frangoulis acted as President & CEO .After a decade and while the Dry Cargo market was booming, he decided to sell the vessels, in order to take advantage of the extremely high asset values at the time.
Mr. Frangoulis is a Governor of the International Propeller Club of the United States,Port of Piraeus, a member of the Piraeus Marine Club, the Yachting Club of Greece,The Helmepa Organization, The Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry and a former Board Member of the Make a Wish Greece Foundation and Executive Vice-President of the Hellenic-Korean Chamber of Commerce.
Wanda Costopoulos is the Managing Director of the family owned shipping company of Arkas Hellas Group, for the last 12 years.
She studied Architectural Lighting in New York and worked as a designer for numerous years before she decided to dedicate herself in the shipping industry.
Mrs. Costopoulos also holds a degree in Human Resources which she exercises in the Group's companies.
She is a member of WISTA (Women's International Shipping & Trading Association) and mother of one child.


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One of my favorite conversations with people who love mezcal is asking them for their 5 Mezcals Everyone has to Experience. It always stimulates discussion and I get lots of good insight not only into some great mezcals, but how people think.
I'll never forget my time upstairs at La Olla Restaurant in Oaxaca when I asked Chef Pilar Cabrera that question.
We sat there a few minutes as she thought about it and then she asked her bartender to bring over a couple of bottles. We started to taste them as she explained their flavor profiles. After about 45 minutes, and three more live samples, I had her list, and had experienced it with her.
Today, as we close out 2018, I want to give you another list.
The 5 most recommended mezcals on Dave Miller's Mexico, all from industry insiders, chefs, maestro mezcaleros, and various aficionados. Maybe you have all of them, maybe not, but without a doubt, all of these mezcals should have a prominent place in your personal collections.
So here they are, in no particular order.
Rey Campero… the Jabali. This has consistently been on people's list since I first posed this question to Erick Rodriguez way back in 2013. If there's a rock star in the mezcal world, this might be it.
Koch… their Espadin. Year in and year out this wonderfully clean crisp espadin gets high marks. It's also one of my personal favorites.
Marca Negra… the Espadin. These guys had a cool bottle before folks figured out that bottles could be a marketing bonanza. But don't be fooled, this mezcal, with a strong ABV of 50% is a clear winner.
El Rey Zapoteco… the Espadin. A totally under valued mezcal, this is one of the best and is a favorite of many of their competitors in the market. Next time you're in Matatlán, make it point to get a bottle.
Real Matlatl… the Cerrudo. Hands down, the experts love this mezcal. It ain't cheap, but it's well worth having in your collection.
And in the honorable mention category…
Wahaka Mezcal… Although no single mezcal received sufficient love to make our specific list, Wahaka garnered enough total overall praise to merit recognition. The bottom line on Wahaka is this… all of Alberto Morales' mezcals have been recommended over the years.
Mezcal Almamezcalera… From Erick Rodriguez, his line falls in the category of Wahaka. Because he has such excellence across a variety of mezcals, reviewers couldn't pick just one, choosing instead to say, just get some of Erick's offerings.
So there you have it. If you're having a party tonight and want to make a real splash, pick up one or two of these mezcals and you'll be richly rewarded.
Happy New Year. From the Dave Miller's Family, I hope 2018 was a wonderful year and that 2019 will be even better for you and yours!


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This week Aoi discovers the perfect way for Akane to be able to be more assertive and comfortable with helping people without being crippled by her shyness: become someone else. Kanade supposedly creates a set of "jamming glasses", but as the cold open indicated, they don't actually work; rather, both Akane's siblings and the general public are well aware she's Akane, they just don't want to let on that they know, lest she revert to her painfully shy state. A nice case of mind over matter.
Even when Akane saves someone without her glasses or cosplay, she simply concludes it's because "Scarlet Bloom" has become so popular, they're mistaking her for Akane. Meanwhile, the superhero act works wonders, propelling her from fifth place to second, even beating out Kanade, who along with Aoi perpetuated the tapestry of lies that facilitated their younger sister's rise.
Meanwhile, Sad, Insecure Misaki is sad and insecure again, and needs Haruka to cheer her up and tell her she's the best sibling to be king, because she has the perspective of the masses, what with being average and all. That only holds water, if you set aside the fact she can make highly-talented clones of herself, and that's not something so easily set aside!
Finally, Aoi, architect of Akane's rise, feels bad about the way her friends are mistaken as her entourage of attendants by onlookers. They also mysteriously abandon her one after the other, with flimsy excuses. Alone, Aoi starts to rethink socializing with her friends so much, since she'll only become more of a burden to them as King, or something.
Of course, she's quite mistaken; her friends only went off to set up a surprise birthday party for her, confirming the value they place in their friendship with her. While still leading in the polls, Aoi still doesn't want to be king. She'd rather help her siblings reach that goal, while in the meantime enjoying the friendships she forged on her own, without any mind control.


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I've spent the last few months banging though the bits and pieces of the work that Stacey Son implemented for QEMU to allow us to more or less chroot into a foreign architecture as though it were a normal chroot. This has opened up a lot of opportunities to bootstrap the non-x86 architectures on FreeBSD.
Before I get started, I'd like to thank Stacey Son, Ed Maste, Juergen Lock, Peter Wemm, Justin Hibbits, Alexander Kabaev, Baptiste Daroussin and Bryan Drewery for the group effort in getting us the point of working ARMv6, MIPS32 and MIPS64 builds. This has been a group effort for sure.
This will require a 10stable or 11current machine, as this uses Stacey's binary activator patch to redirect execution of binaries through QEMU depending on the ELF header of the file. See binmiscctl(8) for more details.
Mechanically, this is a pretty easy setup. You'll need to install ports-mgmt/poudriere-devel with the qemu-user option selected. This will pull in the qemu-user code to emulate the environment we need to get things going.
I'll pretend that you want an ARMv6 environment here. This is suitable to build packages for the Rasberry PI and Beagle Bone Black. Run this as root:
binmiscctl add armv6 –interpreter "/usr/local/bin/qemu-arm" –magic
x00x28x00″ –mask "xffxffxffxffxffxffxffx00xffxffxffxff
xffxffxffxffxfexffxffxff" –size 20 –set-enabled
This magic will load the imgact_binmisc.ko kernel module. The rest of the command line instructs the kernel to redirect execution though /usr/local/bin/qemu-arm if the ELF header of the file matches an ARMv6 signature.
Build your poudriere jail (remember to install poudriere-devel for now as it has not been moved to stable at the time of this writing) with the following command:
poudriere jail -c -j 11armv632 -m svn -a armv6 -v head
Once this is done, you will be able to start a package build via poudriere bulk as you normally would:
poudriere bulk -j 11armv632 -a
poudriere bulk -j 11armv632 -f <my_file_of_ports_to_build>
Currently, we are running the first builds in the FreeBSD project to determine what needs the most attention first. Hopefully, soon we'll have something that looks like a coherent package set for non-x86 architectures.
For more information, work in progress things and possible bugs in qemu-user code, see Stacey's list of things at:


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by Lorraine Murray
—The following article is a revision of a post originally published on Advocacy for Animals in 2007, "The Big Business of Dairy Farming: Big Trouble for Cows."
Most people are aware that dairies in the United States bear little resemblance to the idyllic pastures of yesteryear.
As with other branches of animal agriculture, such as chicken and egg production, hog farming, and beef production—as well as crop growing—small, traditional dairy farms have been steadily pushed out of the business by large agribusiness concerns. Since the mid-20th century, the growth of factory farming has led to the transformation of agriculture, forcing small farmers to "get big or get out." Small farms cannot compete with big agricultural firms because they cannot achieve the same economies of scale.
The American dairy industry annually produces about 24 billion gallons of raw milk, which is processed and sold as butter, cheese, ice cream, dry milk, fluid milk, and other dairy products. In 2009 revenue from dairy production in the U.S. was about $84 billion. There are between 65,000 and 81,000 U.S. dairies, yet corporate consolidation means that about half of the milk sold comes from just under 4 percent of the farms. While the large number of brands and labels on store shelves would seem to indicate a diversity of sources, in reality many of these brands are owned by a handful of large corporations. For example, the country's largest dairy producer, Dean Foods, owns 40 or so brands, 3 of them representing organic milk. In North America, just 14 dairy producers represented more than 60% of sales in 2012.
As the number of dairy farms has decreased, the size of those remaining has increased. Between 1991 and 2004, the number of U.S. dairies dropped by almost half, and the number of dairies with 100 or more cows grew by 94 percent. In 2012, more than half of the milk produced in the U.S. came from mega-dairies, farms having 500 cows or more. Herds of 1,000 cows or more are common. One of the largest dairy farms in the world, located in Indiana, has 30,000 cows; an even huger herd, 38,000 cows, is in Saudi Arabia. Globally, dairy consumption is on the rise as Western diets and food preferences make inroads into countries where dairy consumption is not traditional, such as in East Asia. Because big businesses typically seek continuously increasing profits, production must be maximized, almost always at the expense of the cows in one way or another. The cows must be pushed to produce more and more milk. The production of large amounts of milk has called for changes that affect the animals' health, including the use of drugs, mechanization, and factory-like housing conditions. Most dairy cows are raised in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs); about 10 percent of those are considered large CAFOs, each with more than 700 dairy cattle.
One of the keys to higher production and higher profits is to increase the milk yield while raising fewer cows. Between 1950 and 2000, the number of dairy cows in the United States fell by more than half, yet during that same period, the average annual milk yield more than tripled. What made this possible, and how has it affected the welfare of the animals?
Frequent pregnancy
Cows are like any other mammal in that they produce milk for the nurturing of their young; in order to lactate, a cow must recently have given birth. In her natural state, a cow gives birth after nine months of gestation and nurses her calf for seven months to a year. This is "wasted" time that a dairy factory farm can ill afford—in addition to the fact that the milk is meant to go to market, not to the calf—so calves born to dairy cows, whose primary purpose in being born is to induce lactation, are taken away either immediately after birth or within a day or so. This separation causes great distress to the mother, who would normally feed the calf more than a dozen times a day and, like other mammals, forms a strong bond with her young soon after birth. Male calves are killed or sent off to be raised for veal or beef. Females become dairy cows like their mothers; frequent replacement of herd members is necessary because the death rate of dairy cows is very high. Cows' natural life expectancy is 20 years or more, but the average dairy cow lives just 3 to 4 years, exhausted by constant lactation and frequent disease.
Cows on factory farms give birth once a year as a result of artificial insemination. About two to three months after calving, a cow is once again impregnated, and the cycle begins again. Lactation continues throughout, except for a few weeks' break in between its cessation (about eight months or so after calving) and the next time she gives birth. Thus, dairy cows are induced to produce milk for most of the year.
High-protein feed and growth hormones
Cows naturally eat grass, which is how the bucolic image of dairy herds grazing in pastures became so well recognized. A diet of grass, however, is high-fiber and of low nutritional density and does not result in a high milk yield. The milk produced from this diet would be enough to feed a calf, but it is not enough to satisfy market needs. So modern dairy cows are fed a low-fiber, high-protein diet of grains such as corn and soy along with animal by-products. As ruminants, they have stomachs with four compartments that are made to process high-fiber grass; partially digested food, or cud, is regurgitated to again be chewed and swallowed, a process that occupies cows for up to eight hours a day. The feed given to cows on dairy farms, however, does not lend itself to this process and is thus difficult for them to digest, causing health problems. In addition, the use of high-protein diets—because they contain animal protein, including, in the past, tissue from diseased cows—has been implicated in the proliferation of mad cow disease.
Another tool to increase milk yield is the use of the genetically engineered growth hormone rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone). This hormone contributes to an average milk production of 100 pounds of milk per cow per day, 10 times as much milk as a calf would need. Maintaining such high production for such an unnatural length of time exhausts the cows' bodies and depletes them nutritionally to such a degree that even the nutritionally dense feed cannot compensate. Copious milk production causes cows' bones to become severely deficient in calcium. They thus become prone to fracture, and the result is a sharp increase in the number of "downed" cows, or "downers," a general term for farm and food animals who collapse, unable to stand up again, and must be destroyed.
The use of rBGH causes other serious problems, including chronic mastitis (a painful bacterial infection and swelling of the udder), which is related to overproduction of milk. To treat infections and help prevent them, dairy farms routinely administer antibiotics to their cows. Antibiotics and rBGH find their way into the milk that humans drink. It is known that the overuse of antibiotics, including routine preventative use, encourages the development of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. In addition, milk from cows given rBGH shows an increased presence of IGF-1, an insulin-like growth factor, which has been shown to cause cancer in humans. The amount of IGF-1 present in milk produced by cows given rBGH is two to 10 times that in non-rGBH milk. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which is responsible for regulating the use of such supplements, not only has allowed the use of rBGH but has also refused to allow the labeling of milk to advise consumers that it contains the hormone. The United States is the only industrialized nation that permits the use of growth hormone in animals used for food.
How dairy cows are housed
In the United States, the majority of dairy cows have no access to pasture. Cows in many dairies are housed in a combination of outdoor and indoor facilities, such as sheds, outdoor dirt corrals, and stall barns that may not have access to the open air and where cows may be tied up or otherwise restrained for long periods of time. Cows who are restrained in stalls show signs of stress from social isolation and the inability to lie down; further, they are likely to develop teat and skin injuries, lameness, and susceptibility to a variety of diseases.
Over the last few decades, agribusiness dairies have experienced great growth in the southwestern United States, which has a very different climate from the country's traditional dairy-producing regions, including New England and the Midwest. The Southwest does not have expanses of grassland, and most dairy cattle there are housed in unpaved dirt lots, or drylots. The undeveloped surface of such lots is hard on the cows and causes frequent lameness. Drylots offer inadequate protection from the elements, and heavy rains create layers of mud and manure several inches thick, often making it difficult or impossible for the cows to walk or lie down on a dry surface, which dairy experts recognize as a health requirement for cows. Further, the population density on dirt feedlots tends to be very high. In the southern regions of California, one of the largest dairy-producing states, the average number of cows per dairy was 800 to 1,000 in 2005—more than three times higher than it was in 1972. High density makes it difficult to maintain sanitation, and dairy cows housed this way are subject to frequent illness and infections.
Organic dairies
Unlike the sorry state of most so-called "free-range" chicken facilities, the majority of organic milk producers do treat their cows well, providing access to pasture and proper feed, avoiding growth hormones, and adhering to ethical standards. However, the growth of the organic milk industry in the 1990s and the early 2000s has attracted the attention of agribusinesses, whose desire to participate in this lucrative market has led them to compromise organic standards and lobby for the degradation of such regulations at the federal level. According to a 2014 the Cornucopia Institute, a farm-policy research group, filed formal legal charges against 14 agribusiness operations that produced milk, meat, and eggs sold as "organic." The charges were filed after Cornucopia Institute found "a systemic pattern of corporate agribusiness interests operating industrial-scale confinement facilities providing no legitimate grazing, or even access to the outdoors, as required by federal organic regulations." The Cornucopia Institute had complained for years to the USDA, which enforced neither the letter of the law nor its intent. In Cornucopia's estimation, the enforcement situation, which had been bad enough during the George W. Bush administration, only worsened during that of Barack Obama.
To Learn More
- Cornucopia Institute report rating organic dairies across the United States
- Cornucopia Institute report on the apparent abuses by the U.S. certified organic operations, including a photo gallery.
- 2012 article from Mother Jones on mad cow proteins found in milk
- GRACE Communications Foundation Web page on industrial livestock production, including dairy farming
- Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Alliance
- Organic Consumers Association
- "The Meatrix II"


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It is important to not let fatigue and uncertainty overwhelm you when you're trying to figure things out. While being forced to completely revise my entire itinerary due to several flight delays and issues, I reminded myself to not let stress overcome me. Right from the moment I stepped off the plane in Auckland, everything started to happen so quickly. I felt somewhat foolish walking around the airport with all of my luggage, but there were at least fifteen other people that were in the same exact boat as I was. After going through customs, I had to be redirected to another flight, for I had missed my last connection to Dunedin. This put me very behind schedule…to say the least.
Instead of taking a direct flight to Dunedin, I had to fly to Queenstown instead and then take a 3.5 shuttle bus ride to Dunedin. The other option was to take a direct flight to Dunedin nine hours later. At that point, I just wanted to get to my final destination. It seemed as if the first option seemed to be the most efficient one. That being said, I sprinted to the gate and boarded the flight to Queenstown.
In the end, my decision turned out to be the wisest one. The two hour flight barely seemed like two hours long, for my eyes were glued to the window the entire time. This must be the scenic route, I thought as we flew, but it was just a typical course. I watched the geography of the country become a reality. As the plane entered the south island, I became anxious to see more of the country. The surrounding mountains of Queenstown were extraordinary. The closer the plane came to landing, the more impressive and surreal they became. I hadn't even walked off the plane and I was already significantly impressed by what was before my very own eyes. Once we landed and the doors of the plane were lifted, a small wave of brisk air hit my face almost immediately, indicating that it was winter.
I was even more awed by the scenery from our shuttle bus ride to Dunedin. The rolling hills and vast lands were nothing like I've ever seen. Pictures could not do it any justice, no matter how hard you tried (I was unable to take any because my phone was on its way to dying and my camera was inaccessible. Besides, the driver's driving was quite reckless in a way that made it difficult to stay stabilized and get a decent image. Although I do admit, the roads were fairly hilly and windy due to the geography). I began to appreciate winter in a completely new way.
And never before in my life have I seen so many sheep. Left and right, hundreds of them were grazing. I must have seen at least 2,000 throughout the duration of the drive (that's most likely an underestimate). Apparently, there are approximately 60 million sheep in New Zealand, which is 15 times the amount of people.
I was overcome by my first surge of nervousness once the shuttle driver dropped me off at my address. I didn't see my house instantly, which concerned me. So there I was standing out all alone in the streets of Dunedin with all my bags in the darkness and cold air. Fortunately, it only took three minutes for me to figure out that I had to walk down an alley to get to my flat, making it a slightly more secluded area.
As I opened the doors of my new home, a wave of housewarming smell overcame my senses. Lucky for me, my Kiwi host, Jenny, was currently in the process of cooking my flatmates and me a home cooked meal, which consisted of my first New Zealand lamb and vegetables. My flatmates, Erling from Norway and Andras from Hungary, were all there to greet me as well. I don't know what was more shocking to me: the immediate welcoming nature of the flat or that it felt like 11:00 pm when it was actually 7:00 pm.
Many of the Kiwi hosts have done their best to make all the international students feel at ease throughout the first week. Since a majority of the international students live in close vicinity, it is a very tight knit community and it has been easy to become close with one another. My friend Lee is a one minute walk from my flat, so it's nice to have a familiar face very close by. Everyone has come to New Zealand for many different reasons and interests; yet, we all have the same intention of getting out and wanting to see the country. Whether it be a potluck dinner or a party, different flat areas will host events almost every night, inviting everyone in the area, for the Kiwis genuinely want to meet and befriend as many people as they can.
Orientation has been fairly simple and straightforward so far. There was a two hour meeting the first day, providing the basic, important information to all the students. Following that, everyone had to go through Course Approval, which required students to obtain all of the necessary signatures from professors in order to officially enroll for their class. This semester, I will be taking Evolution, Microbiology and Musicianship Skills (for my General Education Visual Arts requirement).
I've had many chances to walk around the city of Dunedin in the past few days. I was not expecting the surrounding area to be so busy and urban-like. It is very different from what I'm used to, but I've adapted to this new way of living without difficulty and I enjoy it. The only thing that I find challenging is grocery shopping and making my own meals, for I was a never a chef to begin with (Erling likes to give me a really hard time about my poor cooking skills, which really helps support the American stereotype, sorry). Regardless, everything I need to live is easily accessible and a simple ten minute walk away.
It feels strange celebrating the Fourth of July outside the United States. It's difficult to honor America when you're surrounded by people who are currently oblivious to this holiday. I'm sure that they are aware of what the holiday is. But if they were reminded that today was the day, it would just be passing information to them. To have no parades, cookouts or fireworks on the Fourth of July just seems so out of the ordinary to me. But then again, I'm in a a different world. In New Zealand, Independence Day isn't on their calendar.
Instead of sitting on the shores of the harbors of Boston and watching the fireworks jet off into the night sky, I found another way to celebrate the Fourth with all of the other Americans that are here. After all of the Independence day festivities that took place here in Dunedin, I figured that it's not necessary to be in the United States to celebrate the holiday. Leaving home and getting over here was quite gruesome and hectic, but so far that journey has definitely been worth it.


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A friend of mine, John Harlin, sent me a link today that is just great--stellar aerial photos of Mt. Robson taken just a few days ago by John Scurlock. Spend 10 minutes checking them out, well worth it, sounds like Scurlock is an interesting guy.
Edit--as Anon noted, the name is "Scurlock," not Spurlock. Fixed, sorry about that.


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Sam Park
Sam Park has over 20 years' of experience in the energy sector, with a record of safely delivering complex renewable energy and power projects. He has been involved with construction and project management services in offshore wind markets worldwide.
With a career spanning the commissioning and construction of both conventional power plants and renewable energy projects, Mr Park has extensive and relevant experience in construction project management, worldwide. He brings a wealth of practical knowledge to clients on how to solve the inherent problems with the delivery of projects.
For the last 15 years, Mr Park has contributed to the expansion of the offshore wind industry, initially taking development roles in the early projects followed by over a decade of project delivery experience. He has taken senior delivery roles in multiple offshore wind projects, with significant technical, commercial and safety responsibility. Assignments have included Works Package Manager, Deputy Project Manager and Technical Adviser to a project board. During this time, Mr Park has led teams of experts, including package managers and engineering project management experts in offshore turbines, structures, subsea cables, marine surveying and marine construction. In addition to work planning and quality control, he has had direct responsibility for staff welfare and development. Recent assignments have included operational risk and due diligence reviews for clients, worldwide. In the past, Mr Park also served as offshore project lead for a wind turbine manufacturer.
Mr Park is a Chartered Engineer and Professional Member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). He is also qualified in renewable energy systems technology. He has received advanced training in project management and the safe construction of projects.
Representative Assignments
- Package management
- Led project packages related to the onshore elements of multiple offshore wind farms, from the procurement phase through to the execution and delivery stage. This included specifying and negotiating the contracts, recruiting delivery team, managing the delivery with commercial and safety responsibility.
- Project director, offshore wind EPC contract
- Led a team of project managers and experts in marine construction to deliver the engineer, procure and construct contract of an offshore meteorological mast attached to a UK offshore wind farm.
- Engineering inspections of renewables projects, South Africa
- Reviewed three solar photovoltaic projects and one wind farm project in South Africa for, and on behalf of, a major global renewable energy insurance provider. Reporting included an assessment of the people, management systems, infrastructure and technology being used. The reports were also distributed to the asset owners.


text: Greek Weddings offers full wedding planning services to couples that wish to get married in Greece. Mae Mavroudis leads her team of wedding experts and specializes in every single detail of memorable weddings. Greek Weddings is more than an ambition. It is a life dream, a passion and an inspiration at the same time. Greek Weddings team is composed of long time experienced and professional wedding and event coordinators that share the same passion for designing, planning and organizing the perfect wedding.


text: Description Reviews The Number of Books:1 Size: 7.44 x 9.25 soft cover / Pgs.400 Publisher: Taalib.com / Translated & Compiled by: Abu Sukhailah Khalil Ibn-Abelahyi al-Amreekee * This is the self-study edition which includes the entire course, exercises and answer key. This book is intended for the Muslim individual for: self-study, and for us as Muslim parents in our essential efforts to educate our children within Islam and our ongoing endeavor of cultivating them upon the extraordinary character and behavior of our beloved Prophet. It is also intended to be an easy to use classroom resource for our Muslim teachers in the every growing numbers of Islamic centers, masjids, and Islamic weekend and full-time schools. Divided into 30 daily selections of one or more related authentic narrations along with a brief explanations and practical discussions on implementing their guidance in our lives from the well known scholar: Sheikh Zayd Ibn Muhammad Ibn Haadee, may Allaah have mercy upon him.


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KAPIC Carbon Cranks: Not compatible with non-boost frames. Use L135 for boost and 141 for super boost.
KAPIC Aluminium Cranks: Use L135 for non-boost frames and the 141 for boost applications. 144 axle coming soon for use on super boost.
Boost: Q-Factor: 169.5 mm, Chain line: 52 mm
SuperBoost: Q-Factor: 178.5mm, Chain line: 56.5 mm
KAPIC's axle features a cleverly designed spline interface when mounted to Direct Mount chainrings that delivers a robust yet smooth engagement allowing you to maximise the efficiency in transmission of power in your pedal rotation.
Combined with our new modular KAPIC cranks and Q RINGS oval chainrings or Round chainrings, the innovative axle includes refined OCP Mount technology so you can now adjust your optimal chainring position by precise one degree increments.


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Oh, if only things had gone differently.
That's the recurring thought among the four main characters of "In Some Other World, Maybe," as they trade in the suffocating confines of '90s suburbia for big-city lives.
But for author Shari Goldhagen, things are going just fine.
The 38-year-old Northwestern alumna is in the midst of a tour for her second book, released Jan. 13. Her debut novel, "Family and Other Accidents," published in 2006, received generally positive reviews.
Goldhagen, who grew up in the Cincinnati suburbs and now lives in New York, literarily returns to the Chicago area with "In Some Other World, Maybe." Parts of the book are set in Evanston in the 1990s, about the same time Goldhagen lived there while attending Northwestern.
Goldhagen spoke via phone Tuesday from Cincinnati about being a comic book fangirl, what she doesn't miss about Chicago and why she sometimes contemplates a return to the suburbs.
GO: Shari Goldhagen appears at City Lit Books (2523 N. Kedzie Blvd.) in Logan Square at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. More information at citylitbooks.com.
This is your second novel. How was it easier to write this one after completing your first one?
I think it was actually more difficult in a lot of ways. My first book I wrote, I actually wrote part of when I was still at Northwestern as an undergrad, and then I wrote a lot of it, most of it, at my MFA program in Ohio State, so this was actually one of the first things that I was doing pretty much alone, without being graded or being required to write. ... Also, for so long my goal had been to publish *a* novel, get a novel published, and then when it happened, I was sort of confused because I hadn't actually planned beyond that, and so there was some confusion about what I was going to do next and how I was doing it. So that took a lot of time.
When did you start having the first ideas for the book?
Well, I think I actually started it at Northwestern. I was in the English major writing sequence, so I did a lot of creative pieces as part of my thesis, and one was just a short story a guy who was basically obsessed with airplanes. I published that story in 2002 or something, it was the first piece I ever published. Then I wrote a whole other novel and all of that, and I just kept thinking about that short story, and I kept going back to it in my head, and I was just curious about what happened to the characters after, so I started playing around with that. So, yeah, theoretically, once I sort of figured out what I was doing, it probably took about two years to write, but really, it was something that started back in the late '90s.
Chicago, and mainly Evanston, feature prominently in the book. Do you get to come back to the area often?
I get there probably once a year, I would say. A lot of my friends are still there. I came back for the reunion, my 10-year reunion a few years ago. ... But it still sort of stays with me. When I wrote, a lot of the book takes place in the Evanston area around the '90s, which is when I was there, in the late '90s and early aughts, and I just feel like I see it so clearly because it was such an important part of my life, college and all that. So, it's back there, hopefully true to 1999 form.
Whenever you do come back, what's the first place you go to?
We always seem to get Chicago-style pizza. Usually we go to Carmen's because it's close to Evanston, but honestly, I'm not super picky. I like Todino's actually, if it's still around. I used to go there a lot after work because it was right by my apartment I lived in after graduation. Chicago-style pizza is definitely the first stop. I usually try to get a hot dog or two or seven, and there was a—I think actually went out of business a few years ago—but we used to go to Buffalo Joe's a lot. So we were always back there. I'm not sure they're still around.
I think they still are.
Oh, OK. Good! Good, good. I think maybe it was [another place on] Clark, somewhere we used to go a lot. I know when I would visit I was like, devastated by this. But yeah, we try to get back to those places.
Is there anything about living in the Chicago area that you don't miss at all?
When I was in Evanston, it was pretty much contained when I was in college. But what I don't miss about Chicago is that the public transportation is good but not quite good enough to get you a lot of places. So it was almost like you needed to have a car, even though having a car was difficult. That's the one thing I sort of don't miss at all because at least in New York, we don't really—I don't have a car, but it's not necessary, although it's annoying now that I have a kid. So that's the only thing I feel was, the transportation was tauntingly almost good enough in Chicago, but if you had to go to the suburbs or something, it was just a hassle.
The main characters throughout the book are frustrated with suburban life. It's something they want to get away from, but at the same time they come home to there. How did that affect your own childhood?
I'm from the suburbs of Cincinnati, and yeah, I do remember growing up and feeling like I never quite fit in. I just felt like it wasn't for me. Then I went to school in Evanston, which is close to Chicago. ... That was great for me, and then I moved to New York. So I felt that, what they're saying, that desire to escape suburbia.
But on the flip side, now that I'm older and especially now that I have a kid, I come home and I am just amazed by how much space you have, how you can have storage, how it's just so easy to do things and get things done. My husband and I talk about this quite a bit. We have escape plans. Like, "Maybe we can go to Chicago someday." "Maybe we can go to Cincinnati, much of my family's there." It's interesting how I've sort of changed on that almost completely in the past few years. I completely understand why people live in the suburbs now. It's easier!
Throughout the books, we're switching perspectives between the four main characters. Which one did you struggle with writing the most?
It's interesting because I think I really got into each character when I was writing him or her. But the one character that's actually the most like me on paper is Sharon. She's from the area I'm from, she works at the kind of magazines that I worked at, she's a comic book fangirl. ... But I feel like that, in a way, was harder because she wasn't like me in other ways, or I would assume things and then I wanted to make sure she was a clear character on the page. I think I actually struggled with her probably more so than the characters I had less in common with because for those people I had to invent them from the ground up. I knew everything about their history because I spent the time inventing it versus someone who was kind of like me, where I was sort of letting things kind of just fill in for a while, and then I realized I had to back and actually flesh her out and make sure I had the same scope of knowledge of her and not just letting the fact that she's similar to me take over.
When you were writing, did you write chronologically like the book goes, or did you sit down with one character and follow their storyline through and go back with another one?
I did a little bit of both. I treated each chapter—some of the chapters can actually come out as stories, stand-alone pieces, so some of it was done that way. But it was sort of tricky because I had to go back and make sure that the things actually lined up. I'd say, "Oh, well, this character can be here with this character and I have to make sure that character wasn't doing something else that would prevent them from doing that." So that was kind of tricky. I would say—my husband always yells at me because I have like 17,000 windows open on my computer screen at all times, so I think I did a lot of going back and forth between the pages, between the sections.
You mentioned that you were a comic book fan like Sharon in the book. Were there any other fandoms or anything like that that you were into when you were young, or even into today?
I unabashedly own all four seasons of "Batman: The Animated Series." Yeah, I mean I still love all that stuff. ... I actually still have an entire bookcase of comic books, so clearly nothing has changed. I don't have that much time to read them anymore, but I still get excited by certain storylines. I try to keep track.
Eat. Watch. Do.
I was more of a DC person than a Marvel. I know that's probably not cool to say. When I was a kid, with Marvel, I watched a lot of the cartoons, like "X-Men," I thought that was a great show, and I was very excited by the "X-Men" movies because it's similar to cartoons when I was a kid. But yes, definitely, I'm still interested in it. I try to go to Comic Con whenever I can. Usually I get a press pass because then I feel like I'm actually doing something for work, but really I'm just there for me.
It's becoming more of a mainstream thing, with all the movies coming out.
That's the sort of interesting thing. When I was a kid, I was sort of like Sharon in that I really liked these comic books, but I never shared them with people because my friends weren't into it. It was a very private thing. But the one really amazing thing—well, one of the amazing things—about the Internet is, now you can just reach out and have people talk about this for hours with you. The communities are just there, and I think that would have been huge for me as a kid. But, alas, we can't go back and change that.
In the title you refer to "In Some Other World, Maybe," and a lot of the characters think about how they could do other things differently. Is that something you find yourself thinking about a lot?
I think it's sort of a trap. And I sometimes find myself, I'm like, "Oh well, if only I had done this one thing differently. If only I hadn't done this thing, everything in my life would have been different." And I feel like there are some moments that are probably truly like that. But even in the chapter where one of the characters is really contemplating that, there are several chances for him to un-screw up the thing he screwed up, but given the same opportunity, he'd probably do it again because he doesn't actually fix it. He just sort of laments it.
I think that's a very human response to have an origin story, and"this is why I am the way I am. This is why things are the way they are." But then there's probably been lots of chances for you to fix that or change it, change the narrative, but you don't. So that's what I liked about the title."In Some Other World... Maybe." Maybe you'd be better, maybe you wouldn't. Maybe you'd try to be the same thing. Probably.
firstname.lastname@example.com | @elisekdelo


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Two months after ceasing regular operations on his popular YouTube series, Ray William Johnson has landed a role in a feature film. The former star of =3 is one of the three stars of Who's Driving Doug, an indie road movie.
Who's Driving Doug follows a disabled recluse who goes on a road trip with his new driver. The writer of the film, Michael Carnick, is himself confined to a wheelchair. In addition to Johnson, the cast includes RJ Mitte, who played Walter White's son on Breaking Bad and himself suffers from mild cerebral palsy. The final member of the announced cast is Paloma Kwiatkowski of Bates Motel. "We are so excited to have cast these passionate performers to bring this honest and gritty story to life," said the film's producers in a press release.
Johnson, who has more than 10 million subscribers on YouTube, hosted his final installment of =3 on March 13th. In that episode, he discussed his desire to move on to new platforms, which he will accomplish through his first major role in a live-action film. He previously had a small part in Jay & Silent Bob's Super Groovy Cartoon Movie, an animated installment of Kevin Smith's Jay & Silent Bob series.
Subscribe to get the latest creator news
While he has left =3, Johnson has remained active on his YouTube channel. He and his girlfriend and production partner Anna Akana (herself a talented YouTube creator) host a video podcast called Runaway Thoughts.
Few details are known about the specifics of Who's Driving Doug. Johnson has offered comment in the form of a tweet.


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You are here
African School on Internet Governance
African School on Internet Governance
Submitted by olga
Organised by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), The goal of AfriSIG is to give Africans from multiple sectors and stakeholder groups the opportunity to gain knowledge and confidence to enable them to participate effectively in internet governance processes and debates at national, regional and global levels.
AfriSIG also builds the capacity of people with existing expertise in internet governance by including them as faculty and resource persons.
Read about this year's debriefing article: https://www.apc.org/en/news/african-school-internet-governance-2016-mult...
Location:Durban, South Africa
Event date:Tuesday, October 11, 2016 - 09:00


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Adjusting reports to only show responses from a given date range
Let's say you wanted to compare survey results from two different periods of time. What you can do in SurveyTown is filter the reports so that you only see the results from responses between certain dates. Here's how.
First, click the "Report" icon.
Next click the "Filter Survey Results".
From the next page you can adjust your reporting page to show just the results from a given time period.
Selecting a date range will limit the responses that are shown in the aggregate results and in the individual responses.


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RAZER Lycosa Gaming Keyboard
Published: 5th September 2008 | Source: Razer | Price: £59.48 |
When it comes time to upgrade my peripherals, I must admit that I do my research and read a lot. And usually before I fork out some cold, hard folding stuff on a new item the old one has usually snuffed it or is on its last legs anyway. My reasoning behind this kind of purchasing behaviour is that I have something that serves me well; does everything that I need it to and the thought of having to swathe through countless reviews and retailer sites scares me. Or you could call me lazy :D
I'm sure that many of you have probably been in the same scenario, and to be honest peripheral purchases can tend to be a bit of a hit and miss affair. In the absence of hard data and benchmarks that make PC hardware purchases considerably easier, the same cannot be said for peripherals.
My Logitech G15 rev. 1 keyboard is starting to look very long in the tooth, and the W,A,S and D keys have all bar worn off. But hey it still does everything that I need it to do. The thought of trying to find another keyboard of the same calibre as the G15 conjures up images of painful experiences from the past. However, those images quickly faded away the day I was introduced to the RAZER Lycosa Gaming Keyboard.
The RAZER Lycosa is a gaming orientated keyboard named after the European Wolf Spider (from the Latin - Lycosidae). Interestingly, Lycosidae have a very strong tendency to flee at the approach of any large animal - I hope this isn't indicative of what we can expect from the RAZER Lycosa :D. Jokes aside, the RAZER Lycosa Gaming Keyboard is an impressive piece of kit and I'd like to start this review by taking a look at its specifications.
* Backlight illumination with WASD cluster lighting option
* Fully-programmable keys with macro capability
* Gaming cluster with anti-ghosting capability
* Slim keycap structure with Hyperesponse™ technology
* TouchPanel™ easy access media keys
* Gaming mode option for deactivation of the Windows key
* 10 customizable software profiles with on-the-fly switching
* 1000Hz Ultrapolling™ / 1ms response time
* Earphone-out and microphone-in jacks
* Detachable wrist rest
* One integrated USB extension port
* Approximate size:
469mm (length) x 168mm (width) x 15mm (height) – without wrist rest
469mm (length) x 221mm (width) x 15mm (height) – with wrist rest
System Requirements
Windows® XP / x64 / Vista / Vista64
PC with built-in USB ports
CD-ROM drive (for drivers)
At least 35MB of hard disk space (for drivers)
With its non-slip rubber finish, the Razer Lycosa offers optimum tactile comfort and makes slipping up in the heat of action a thing of the past
Make darkness your ally. While your enemies fiddle in the shadows, command precision and take hold of their fate with backlight illumination on the Razer Lycosa. With the right keys lit up, you can always be sure of your next move.
Be one step ahead of the competition with fully-programmable keys with macro capability that enable instantaneous command executions.
Most Recent Comments
1. The extra connectivity bits on the back for headphones/USB... etc was detachable from the main cable, i have no need for either, and just gets in the way.
2. There was a luminosity control for the back light as in strong daylight it gets quite dimmed.
Apart from that it's defo class, i have no qualms about purchasing it, even for the price.Quote
I am a huge fan of Hotkeys.Quote


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04 February 2011
Lloyds customer given two-year suspended sentence
By Lynda Roughley
A Southport barman was grabbed round the throat by a customer who was caught trying to steal from the till, a court has heard.
Mark Gavin spotted Ian Bugby, who was a regular in Lloyds Bar on Lord Street, behind the counter by one of the tills.
Mr Gavin approached him asking what he was doing but 41-year-old Bugby made no reply and began pressing the till buttons to get into it and then lifted it up and began shaking it, said Brian Forshaw, prosecuting.
"He was again confronted by Mr Gavin saying, 'What are you doing?'. The defendant proceeded to grab him by the neck with both hands and began squeezing his throat.
"He felt the defendant's fingers go into his wind pipe and was concerned for his own safety. He began panicking slightly as his breathing was impeded.
"He tried to grab hold of the defendant's hands and pull them away but the defendants's grip was too tight and he panicked even more as the grip tightened," said Mr Forshaw.
"He pushed his arm into the defendant's face and pushed his head backwards and they spun round slightly and the grip was loosened. Bugby repeatedly said, 'open the till now'.
Mr Gavin struggled with him and meanwhile the police were called and officers arrived and arrested Bugby, said Mr Forshaw.
When interviewed he said he had wanted to leave the town and wanted money in order to do so.
Bugby, of London Street, Southport, pleaded guilty at Liverpool Crown Court to robbery. He has previous convictions but had never received a custodial sentence.
Frank Dillon , defending, said that Bugby, who suffers from depression, had had a change in medication and had taken drink that night "which may have contributed to his thought processes."
He is a lonely individual but had been a volunteer with the CAB where he formed friendships which alleviated his depression.
However the DWP sent him on a three month 'back to work' course which meant he could not do the CAB work and he lost those work friendships and his depression returned.
Since the offence he has sought help and been referred to a psychiatrist, said Mr Dillon.
Judge Bryn Holloway said that if Bugby had come to his senses when challenged the incident would probably never have been reported to the police.
"This was a serious offence but one at the low end of the levels of seriousness. It was committed heavily in drink with little chance of success."
He sentenced him to nine months imprisonment suspended for two years and placed him under supervision for 12 months.
He pointed out that if he had not pleaded guilty at an early stage he would have gone immediately to prison.


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Today's guest blogger is Ville Taajamaa, business development and internationalization manager at FinderBase.
There is an old story about three blind wise men trying to make sense of an elephant. They started each from their own corners and felt their way through. Then the arguing started:
- Elephant is an animal with a big long nose said one
- no, elephant is an animal with bulky legs said the other
- no, you are both wrong, elephant is an animal with huge ears.
There was no resolution although everyone was right.
My China is this elephant.
My China is a nation that puts great value to people, education, learning, working hard and strong family and friendship ties. Not to forget the best food in the world. The next steps in both the local and the global path for China are evident:
- The environment has to last also to our grand children's children.
- The difference between the quality of life in cities and in rural areas needs to be diminished.
To tackle these challenges, China differs from other BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India & China) nations in one crucial perspective. China is centralistic. Once something is decided, it can be implemented with a speed that leaves you gasping for air.
FinderBase could be one blind wise man to the elephant.
FinderBase has a great opportunity to offer valuable platform to the Chinese audience. China is a community that cares. There is an actual need for a service that connects people with their lost valuables to those who care and want to help.
With one word the market can be described as big. In China people are honest and always eager to help. FinderBase can offer technological and service-based value by connecting both urban and rural areas and helping people to find each other.
Let's make the world a better place!