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Archive for 'SME's'
Intangible Assets and SME's…
April 19th, 2012. Published under Intangible asset strategy, Managing intangible assets, SME's. No Comments.
Michael D. Moberly April 19, 2012
For management teams and senior leadership of SME's, there may be few better uses of one's time, particularly in this increasingly knowledge-based and intangible asset driven global economy than to ensure those intangible assets are being effectively managed, profitably exploited, and firmly embedded in the company's operating processes and culture. Management teams unfamiliar with or reluctant to engage their intangibles will find this a prudent and much needed undertaking that can produce enterprise-wide benefits.
SME management teams who have already achieved operational familiarity with intangibles recognize those skill sets can produce numerous benefits, not the least of which is to serve as a starting point to elevate the probability a company will not merely experience mediocre success, but stand out in their market space and among competitors by…
- being innovative
- sustaining and enhancing their competitive advantages, and
- effectively and efficiently exploiting (producing, bundling, positioning) other intangible assets.
Respecting the economic fact that 80+% of most company's, including SME's, value, sources of revenue, and 'building blocks' for growth and profitability today evolve directly from intangible assets, there is, in my view, ample room-opportunity for managerial discretion and maneuverability to make such an initiative not merely worthy of their time, but lucrative and strategically beneficial to their company as a whole.
It's still fair to say though, respectfully, and there is virtually no evidence to the contrary, that significant percentages of SME founders, owners, and management teams remain unfamiliar with, unconvinced about, and/or disinterested in…
- the intangible assets their company has developed, produced
- the contributory value of those assets to particular projects, business units, or the enterprise as a whole
- strategies to effectively exploit those assets to add value, depth, and sustainability to their company.
That said, it remains nothing short of an operational (business) imperative today that SME management teams seek any and all opportunities to develop a strong understanding and appreciation for intangible assets that include, among other things, methodologies – strategies to:
- identify and unravel intangibles' origins, and assess their contributory value
- promote effective and efficient utilization of intangibles, i.e., leverage them internally, externally, and among stakeholders to influence additional and continued innovation, and
- exploit them to enhance – secure competitive advantages, reputation, image, and goodwill, and relationship capital, etc.
Unfortunately however, there remain numerous real and perceptual hurdles that, in essence, discourage, even deter some management teams from engaging their intangible assets and related opportunities to exploit those which are internally produced. This is largely because intangibles are still not consistently recognized or accounted for on a company's balance sheet or financial statement other than being folded into goodwill which, in my view, falls short of providing SME management teams with a sufficiently strong rationale to aggressively and profitability engage them!
Too, key parties and institutions that presumably would have direct interest in using an SME's financial reports (if they fully addressed intangibles), i.e., (a.) lenders for assessing asset-backed lending decisions, or (b.) SME management teams relative to fiduciary incentives to (better) manage, use, and exploit their intangibles, are discouraged from doing so, in part due to the (perceived) absence of objective and replicable methodologies to measure the performance and (contributory) value of intangible assets.
Still, the professional – personal incentive a business leader might enjoy from engaging – embarking on an intangible asset focused course of action is a worthy and useful starting point for making many (tactical as well as strategic) business decisions, and certainly for commencing any business transaction, because inevitably, intangible assets will in play in both circumstances.
SME management teams should therefore not overlook, especially in this globally charged knowledge-based economy, the reality that intangibles represent the dominant drivers – foundations to (company) value, revenue generation, growth, and profitability.
Unfortunately, as noted above, there remain, what some would describe as, real disincentives, which many SME management teams default, as a rationale for not engaging the intangible assets which they have fiduciary responsibilities for managing, overseeing, and stewarding.
Each blog post is researched and written by me with the genuine intent it serves as a useful and respectful medium to elevate awareness and appreciation for intangible assets throughout the global business community. Most of my posts focus on issues related to identifying, unraveling, and sustaining control, use, ownership, and monitoring asset value, materiality, and risk. As such, my blog posts are not intended to be quick bites of unsubstantiated commentary or information piggy-backed to other sources.
Comments regarding my blog posts are encouraged and respected. Should any reader elect to utilize all or a portion of my posts, attribution is expected and always appreciated. While visiting my blog readers are encouraged to browse other topics (posts) which may be relevant to their circumstance or business transaction. I always welcome your inquiry at 314-440-3593 or firstname.lastname@example.com
Intangible Asset Literacy: Avoid Being A Management Team That's Reluctant To Engage Intangible Assets
March 23rd, 2012. Published under Managing intangible assets, SME's. No Comments.
Michael D. Moberly March 23, 2012
I have found many management teams and business decision makers in SME's (small, medium enterprises) and SMM's (small, medium multinationals) are inclined to interpret the phrase 'knowledge-intangible asset based global economy' to be more cliché than reality and more relevant to Fortune 1000's, presumably rich in intellectual property, know how, and R&D.
Frankly, I don't share those interpretations. Instead, I advocate this reality…unless and until more management teams, c-suites, D&O's, shareholders, investors, and other SME and SMM stakeholders recognize:
- intangibles today comprise 65+% of most company's value, sources of revenue and building blocks for growth and sustainability
- the prudence of engaging intangibles through consistent stewardship, oversight, and management
- the necessity to develop practical strategies to sustain control, use, ownership, and monitor asset value and materiality
…such interpretations and perceptions will likely persist.
Should such intangible asset illiteracy persist, two, among numerous potential adverse outcomes will be; significant unrealized (asset) value and exploitation opportunities are left on the proverbial table, and the assets will remain vulnerable to the myriad of economic and competitive advantage adversaries (globally) to acquire and exploit to enhance their company or client.
In a respectful defense of SME and SMM management teams and decision makers though, many lack sufficient familiarity with intangibles or perhaps the inclination today to take the time to try to turn their intangibles into potentially revenue generating assets. Too, SME decision makers are, broadly speaking, realists and exhibit more aversion to what they interpret as risk, i.e., engaging in a new initiative like intangible assets. Admittedly, such sentiments may be more central to their decision making and planning during this extended recessionary period in which business futures remain unsteady.
Also, experience suggests, many leaders of SME's with their inclination for pragmatism, recognize that before embarking on any new initiative, particularly one that departs from what they interpret as being very workable past practices, i.e., engaging intangible assets, three things, at minimum, must be in place (up front):
- availability of practical and relevant training that provides sufficient familiarity with intangibles to be immediately useable/applicable with respect to identifying, assessing, and exploiting, i.e., maximizing and extracting value from the assets as sources of revenue, enhancing company value, and/or foundations for growth and sustainability
- financial incentives, i.e., specific tax advantages and direct (immediate) financial inducements, etc., and/or
- regulatory mandates that require every company to commence reporting and accounting for their intangible assets.
While #1 and #2 above would obviously require legislative action, #3 is essentially independent. That is to say, forward looking – forward thinking SME management teams, decision makers, boards, and stakeholders are obliged in my view, as a fiduciary responsibility, to seek and achieve the necessary familiarity with intangible assets that enables them to successfully engage those assets through effective stewardship, oversight, management, and monitoring practices.
While visiting my blog, you are respectfully encouraged to browse other topics/subjects (left column, below photograph) . Should you find particular topics of interest or relevant to your circumstance, I would welcome your inquiry at 314-440-3593 or email@example.com
Intangible Assets and Small Businesses
January 9th, 2012. Published under Intangible asset strategy, Intangibles as strategic assets, SME's. No Comments.
Michael D. Moberly January 9, 2012
According to the Small Business Administration, SME's in the U.S. are:
- 20+ million in number
- deliver approximately 39% of the U.S. GDP
- and reportedly produce two and one half times as much innovation (intangible assets and IP) per employee compared to larger firms
This leaves little question that SME's produce and possess intangible assets that deliver value, revenue, profitability, and serve as foundations (viable building blocks) for growth and sustainability. It's now time to believe it, act on it, and reap the benefits!
Obviously, I am a strong proponent/advocate of intangible assets. With few exceptions, they are embedded in every company, regardless of size or industry sector and after all, it is an economic fact that today 80+% of most company's value and sources of revenue lie in – evolve directly from intangible assets.
But, why is it that a significant number of SME management teams' familiarity with – interest in intangibles is sporadic, if not dismissive in terms of understanding…
- what they are
- how they're produced
- where they exist
- the different forms they take, and
- how they can be profitably utilized and exploited
Numerous studies, many referenced in this blog, consistently report that senior executives consider the management, utilization, and risks to their intangibles to be a significant priority. Unfortunately, those important messages do not appear to be sufficiently resonating with SME management teams and boards to prompt them to take action and literally engage their intangibles.
Perhaps, there lies, at least in part, the crux of the challenge regarding intangible assets and SME management teams and boards, i.e., there needs to be a well-articulated repertoire of business (plan) oriented messages directed specifically to SME management teams and boards, that…
- bring clarity
- emphasize universality, and
- describe efficient strategies to identify, unravel, utilize, exploit and otherwise manage intangible assets
…to enhance a company's value, deliver new sources of revenue, and serve as foundations (or building blocks) for company growth, profitability, and sustainability.
Another aspect of the challenges SME's experience with intangible assets is that for a significant number of SME management teams, their initial exposure to intangibles was literally thrust upon them, sometimes in near 'crisis-mode' by regulatory mandates, i.e., Sarbanes-Oxley, FASB, and/or ISO standards. Of course, compliance with either of these requires significant staff time, the development of new procedures, and most certainly, additional resources and costs. Too, in today's highly competitive but still recovering business environment, many SME management teams and boards already have 'full plates' insofar as remaining ahead of the recession wrecking ball.
This leaves less time, inclination, or curiosity to explore the variety of benefits that can accrue from the exploitation of intangibles, e.g., to enhance a company's value, revenue, competitive advantages, and profitability.
Other reasons that contribute to, what I believe are SME management team/board reticence to pursue intangibles beyond addressing regulatory minimums include…a significant percentage of management teams still have limited experience with intangibles and retain a tendency to rely on (their) intuition and past practice business acumen, versus seeking and applying objective tools to quantify and measure intangibles' overall contributory value, and otherwise devise projective (return-on-investment) business plans to justify devoting resources to their utilization and exploitation.
Helping SME's and start-ups identify ways they can advance their company's and render it more profitable and sustainable through the effective use of the intangible assets, which in most instances they have already produced, possess, or have acquired, will lead to elevating (intangible) asset performance by unlocking and enhancing their contributory value.
I often believe, however, and respectfully so, the manner in which management teams and board members frame their questions about utilizing and exploiting intangibles…
- is related to various levels of misunderstanding and operational un-familiarity with either the existence or utilization of the intangible asset side of their business.
- may not be so much oriented to company specific management, stewardship, and oversight of intangibles as it is seeking a one-size-fits-all…snap-shot-in-time template which they can take for the proverbial test drive in their company
I engage, on a daily basis, the real world of SME's, which many times include (the SME's) founders, owners, management teams, and boards who, in the midst of this lingering economic downturn remain somewhat skeptical about 'quick fixes' or 'silver bullets' particularly when their credit lines have been marginalized or depleted, and even the best articulated and structured proposals for (intangible) asset-backed utilization and/or lending fall short.
Each blog post is researched and written by me with the genuine intent it serves as a useful and respectful medium to elevate awareness and appreciation for intangible assets throughout the global business community. Most of my posts focus on issues related to identifying, unraveling, and sustaining control, use, ownership, and monitoring asset value, materiality, and risk. As such, my blog posts are not intended to be quick bites of unsubstantiated commentary or information piggy-backed to other sources.
Comments regarding my blog posts are encouraged and respected. Should any reader elect to utilize all or a portion of my posts, attribution is expected and always appreciated. While visiting my blog readers are encouraged to browse other topics (posts) which may be relevant to their circumstance or business transaction. I always welcome your inquiry at 314-440-3593 or email@example.com


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subset: commoncrawl


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Magazines' rosy outlooks often followed by market downturn
NEW YORK – When United-ICAP analyst Walter Zimmermann set eyes on the big, boldface, tabloid-esque headline "DOW 15,000" on the Feb. 13 cover of Barron's, it was akin, he says, to a black cat crossing the path of stock investors.
The next day, he e-mailed a report to clients warning that the respected financial weekly's upbeat story — which laid out why the 3-year-old bull market had more room to run — might be signaling just the opposite. Citing history, he argued that the bullish message splashed on the cover of Barron's was a textbook contrarian signal showing that investor optimism was getting too euphoric. Zimmermann concluded that all the ingredients were in place for a "major, world-class top" in the stock market.
Bullish cover stories, Zimmermann's extensive research shows, are more akin to a Wall Street curse. A sign of coming bad luck. A warning flag.
STORY: Should we return to the gold standard?
COLUMN: Chasing past stock winners is usually a recipe for disaster
Zimmermann bases his bearish reaction to the bullish story on what he dubs the "Cover Story Syndrome."
"History has shown," he says, "that by the time a financial trend has lasted long enough and been powerful enough to make it onto the front page of a magazine, that trend is typically ending, (is) already over or has already reversed direction."
Often, what has been flying the highest is also at risk of falling the hardest. The "cover curse" is not just tied to the stock market. Bullish cover stories related to oil, the U.S. dollar, gold, individual stocks, hot companies, superstar CEOs, even elite athletes, often portend topping action. The reason: Cover stories are always super-bullish at the top or at times of peak performance.
The Dow has doubled since its bear market bottom three years ago and would have to rise another 12.7% to reach 15,000. The night before the Barron's story touting Dow 15,000 hit newsstands, the Dow closed at 12,801. It's currently trading roughly 300 points higher at 13,091, after dipping as low as 12,716 in early April.
Outlier performances by stock indexes, companies and sports stars are hard to sustain, setting big winners up for a fall. All sublime performances are subject to "mean reversion": At some point, the outperformance ends, and more-average performance returns.
The risk for investors is that they may get overly confident after reading optimistic cover stories, let their guards down and dive into the stock market, even though the bulk of the big move up has already occurred, says Price Headley, chief investment strategist at BigTrends.com.
"Regular investors say to themselves, 'This is a great time to buy,' " says Headley.
Up from the bear market low
Dow Jones industrial average, 3 years.
A better time to buy, Headley says, is when there is "maximum pessimism and fear," and the media are running stories that warn of impending doom. The best example is the infamous BusinessWeek cover story, "The Death of Equities," that ran in its Aug. 13, 1979, issue. Stocks, of course, were about to start a two-decade bull run.
Bob Dickey, of RBC Wealth Management, noted in a report that stocks "voted most popular" by the press tend to be near the end of their rallies.
• A Time magazine cover at the height of the Internet boom in December 1999 that named Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos as "Person of the Year" also marked the peak of Amazon's stock in that market cycle. The online retailer hit an intraday high of $113 in mid-December 1999, only to fall to a low of less than $6 a share in late September of 2001.
Omens and warnings?
History proves that nothing lasts forever, no matter how good the story seems at the time:
•Near the last stock market top in 2007, for example, a March 5 Fortune magazine cover story dubbed Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of private-equity firm Blackstone, "The New King Of Wall Street." Three months later, on June 25, Blackstone's stock peaked on the first day of its initial public offering. It closed that day at $32.44 and fell nearly 90% before bottoming at less than $4 a share in February 2009.
•A similar fate has befallen football players selected for the box cover of the Madden NFL video games. It's called the "Madden Curse." Quarterbacks Michael Vick and Donovan McNabb both suffered injuries and missed time after appearing on the cover.
•There's also the famous Sports Illustrated "cover jinx," in which athletes featured on the sports magazine's cover go on to experience bad luck. Race car driver Pat O'Connor was featured on the cover of SI's 1958 Indianapolis 500 preview. He was killed in a 15-car pileup during the race's first lap. In 2002, SI did an analysis of the "cover jinx" and found that nearly 40% of its cover subjects suffered a major misfortune or decline in performance after they graced the cover.
A trending buzz
Cover stories that make major market calls are rare, as they occur only after editors deem it the story with the most buzz after sifting through any number of hot topics trending among the masses. These stories, which tout coming booms or busts, also tend to be reliable contrarian indicators. In other words, by the time a story such as Dow 15,000 attains cover status, it's usually a sign that most of the good news is already priced into the market and that the investing herd is all leaning dangerously in the same direction.
"Readers want to read about the latest, greatest thing," explains Zimmermann. "What's booming. What's going up. What company or person is shining the brightest. But by the time it makes it to the cover of a magazine, the trend has been on an ascent for a long time. Nothing goes up forever."
A BigTrends.com analysis of bullish and bearish cover stories in the past three decades found that the stock market moved in the opposite direction of the article's call more than 70% of the time. A big reason stocks tend to slump after major bullish stories is that media coverage raises expectations too high.
"Think of it like raising the bar higher and higher for a high jumper," says Headley. "Each time you raise it, it increases the risk of disappointment."
Just when investors might benefit from a story warning of the potential risks ahead, the news tends to follow the trend and point out all the reasons stocks have been going up, which could cause investors to jump in at the wrong time.
Collating the signs
Wall Street has long sought to identify contrarian signals. Magazine cover stories are just one tool. Investors measure bullish and bearish sentiment by tracking weekly polls of individual investors, financial newsletter writers and investment advisers. In general, when the polls get overly bullish or bearish, analysts alert investors to the possibility that the market's price action will move in the opposite direction.
The most recent poll of members of the American Association of Individual Investors shows that only 31.2% are bullish, which is below the 39% long-term average and the 38% of bulls at the market peak in April 2011. Still, the level of bullishness is far from excessive, as it's way below the level of around 60% bulls that marked tops in 2000 and 2007. But another sentiment poll tracked by Zimmermann is nearly as bullish as it was near the peaks in 2007 and 2000.
Right now, even though the Barron's story sent a super-positive message, other sentiment indicators suggest that optimism is far from extreme, which bodes well for stocks, counters Carmine Grigoli, chief investment strategist at Mizuho Securities USA.
"Some key elements that point to excessive optimism are missing," says Grigoli. "What is missing are excessive valuations, extensive involvement in the stock market by individual investors and excessive speculation. While there is some bullishness out there, there is not enough to say, 'This is the time to check out of stocks.' "
Retail investors have yanked money out of U.S. stock funds nine consecutive weeks, says the Investment Company Institute, a mutual fund trade group. And the broad market is trading at 13 times projected 2012 earnings, below the average price-to-earnings ratio of 15, says S&P Capital IQ.
The usefulness of the Cover Story Syndrome as a market-timing tool is most accurate when it's evaluated in the context of all the current business conditions driving stock prices, says Chris Johnson, director of research at JK Investment Group.
"You don't want to call it an indicator on its own," he says. Currently, given the improving economy, positive price action of the Dow, and the fact that retail investors are still skittish and yanking money out of stock mutual funds and pouring it into bond funds, suggests that Barron's Dow 15,000 cover may be a realistic price target.
"The Dow 15,000 cover makes a little bit of sense," Johnson says. The market's upturn, he adds, is far from the final stage of a bull market, what he dubs the "euphoria stage." If it were, investors would be "all in," and dumping their bond funds to buy stocks.
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Today's Matt Lauer scored a Jerome Bettis-sized TD this morning by asking a question regarding the current Muslim rioting that was as unexpected as it was perspicacious. Meanwhile, former Clinton diplomat Bill Richardson offered the instinctive Democratic response to a threat to our security: bring on the UN!
Richardson, currently the New Mexico governor, described the grim state of the Muslim world: "I've never seen the situation so dire with with the threats from Iran, the victory of Hamas, the escape of Badawi in Yemen. This is a very dangerous situation. It seems that the Muslim world is exploding."
Being the good Democrat he is, Richardson laid the blame . . . at the feet of George Bush: "Our obsession with Iraq has caused us to neglect these huge other trouble spots."
That's when Lauer unloaded a question on many minds but one you'd hardly expect to hear on the lips of an MSM host:
"If you listen over the weekend, governor, you hear a lot of people saying 'why aren't these people taking to the streets when hostages are beheaded on videotape in the name of Allah or when planes are flown into buildings in the name of Allah? How would you explain that?"
Richardson fleetingly acknowledged that "it is a bit of a double-standard." A bit? But he quickly moved off any such criticism and onto to his call for the real solution: "I would call a summit," later cautioning the President, "don't talk about the Axis of Evil."
Lauer compared our treatment of Iraq and Iran, while offering a damning indictment of the latter:
"It is striking. Four years ago we were talking about Iraq, saying they may have been trying to seek nuclear weapons, we thought they were sponsoring terrorism, so we went to war. Here's a country that's saying right to our face they are going forward with a nuclear program, we've proven that they've sponsored terrorism, and they have a president who says he wants to wipe one of our key allies off the map. And we're treating them differently, aren't we?"
Richardson gave the quintessential Dem response: "Diplomacy really is our only option." He emphasized that the UN and Russia should play a predominant role.
Right on, Bill! If Kofi Annan and Vladimir Putin can't get it done, I guess we'll just have to let Iran develop nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them.
Finkelstein lives in Ithaca, NY, where he hosts the local TV show "Right Angle." Email him at: firstname.lastname@example.com


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InsectPlant Species Quest 07: Minervamon Challenge
- Description: Go visit Minervamon in Palette Amazon
- Client: Okuwamon
- Difficulty:
- Prerequisites: Have "lazy" Okuwamon in Farm
- Tasks:
- Talk to Okuwamon in the Farm
- Meet Minervamon in Palette Amazon
- Find and fight Deramon (lvl 43)
- Find and fight Minervamon (lvl 63)
- Report to Okuwamon in the Farm
- Recieve a reward at the quest counter
- Reward: Tamer Points: 220, Reward Bits: 14240, Reward item: Speed RingT
- Summary:
What could possibly be wrong with gaining knowledge and information?
This article is a stub and is missing information.
Minervamon wants a fight, so a fight she gets. She waits for you at the entrance of Pallete Amazon. Despite being inspired (in name) by Minerva, Roman Goddess of Wisdom, she doesn't seem to be impressed with you, and so she tells you to fight Deramon to prove your worth. It's a pretty big leap from a worthy fight, especially considering the difference in levels, but, since she is setting the rules for later appearances, it is worth the slight effort it takes to pulverize him. Follow the road left until you find him. After you decimate him, which will NOT take long, (he's a wimp) he wishes you luck and tells you that Minervamon awaits you further down. There is only really one route to go, so follow it until she meets you again. This time, she seems to believe you actually DID defeat Mercurymon and accepts your challenge. After the fight, she admits defeat and commends you on your strength, entrusting the future of the world on your shoulders. Gate disk your way back to the City, talk to Okuwamon and get your reward at the quest counter!


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Crysis, Consoles And Crytek: Cevat Yerli Interview
How are things over at Crytek right now? You must be very busy with your many projects.
Yeah busy, and more than ever before too. I mean, times are really hectic and tense, but they are also very exciting for us. So exciting in fact, that I can't talk about any of the projects I'm referring to. [Laughs]
When we spoke with Crytek earlier in the year – around the time that Crysis 2 received its Direct X11 upgrade – we discussed the way that Crytek is now a multi-studio business. But now you're focusing on binging your biggest in-house title, Crysis, back to consoles. Is this something you've always wanted to do?
Well, I wish we were actually able to launch the original Crysis on consoles at the same time we launched it on PC. There was a lot of constraints and knowledge that had to be broken down before we could do this, and a lot of content had to be broken down from an engine perspective as well.
The maturity of console platforms also had to be dealt with. We had to better understand the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 first, and overcome some of the boundaries that everybody in the industry faces with those platforms.
Crysis has required a lot of optimisation, and a lot of new technology. But we've done a lot of smart streaming implementation and memory management that goes way beyond the typical streaming capabilities in most games.
That tech enabled us to deliver Crysis 2, and then we realised that we might be able to bring the original Crysis back as well. As we started to give it a try, things looked very promising and we built a small team to try and bring the first Crysis to home console – not as a port – but as a remastered edition.
Though smoke and mirrors effects are in place, Crysis should still look stunning on consoles.
The timing is perfect as well, given the success of Crysis 2 on consoles.
I'm very excited about this, because Crysis was a game that not many people have played, or certainly not enough people have played. This is due to some people having a preconception around the game's demand on PC hardware.
The difference is that consoles now are very cheap, and so the access barrier to Crysis has been reduced, as most people in our target market have a console now. The low price downloadable game cost helps, and from my perspective, there was also a tremendous amount of requests for the first Crysis on consoles, round the time we shipped the game on PC.
Unfortunately, we had to tell people back then that Crysis on consoles wasn't possible, which was honestly the case at that point. We never imagined it could be possible at the level we wanted, so that we wouldn't compromise the quality of the game.
It almost seems as if Crysis 2 came about as a result of your research into bringing the first game to consoles. Is that right?
No, it's the other way around. Our research into Crysis 2 has resulted in the first game coming to consoles. Without Crysis 2, we probably wouldn't have had Crysis on consoles. Most people aren't aware of this, but Crysis 2 is actually pushing more textures and data than the first game.
Would you say that technically, that Crysis 2 is the superior game on all formats?
Not from all angles, but in regard to the amount of texture detail per frame, Crysis 2 is like two or three times more intense than Crysis. However, the first game offers greater horizontal play space, and this also takes a lot of memory.
When we discovered we were dealing with more textures but less space in Crysis 2, we said, "OK, maybe we can actually deal with more space but less textures on consoles." So when we went about to try it with the original Crysis on consoles, it actually worked very well, because we had more, smart ways of dealing with memory management.
Was that the biggest, most technical thing you had to overcome to make Crysis on consoles a reality?
Memory was the biggest challenge, and then the amount of shaders. I thought the visual fidelity was as good as Crysis 2 already, but dealing with memory management in the innovative way that we did was key to cramming all the data from Crysis on PC, into Crysis on consoles.
Compared to Crysis 2's linear exploration, the original Crysis's open world will take more work to render.
Does the finished product on consoles run at the specs you would like?
Yeah, it runs at the same fidelity as Crysis 2, but the frame rate is a solid 25-30, it's not a 60FPS game. It feels very fluid on consoles, and we've also made an effort in remastering the content for consoles.
What I mean by that is we've given it a whole new lighting path, quite a few new special effects, we've added the Nanosuit 2 controls, and all of this has added to, as well as improved the experience.
I want to be clear; when I say the console versions look better than Crysis on PC, I mean that as a factual thing, not in terms of technical specifications.
So you mean as more of an art consideration?
'Artistic perspective' is better. But then if you look at it from a purely technical perspective; the original Crysis on a super duper PC will always run better than on consoles. There's no doubt about that.
But from an artistic lighting and gameplay perspective, if you look at Crysis 2 on consoles, which runs on similar specs as the PC version – just to get the same resolution and so on – the first Crysis on consoles looks much better.
We recently saw Nvidia talking about the PC market, and they released a graph that showed the increase in graphic card power in PC. The company said that its latest graphics card is to be nine times more powerful than the current generation of consoles. Is this something you would agree with in terms of visual fidelity?
Performance power and visual fidelity are not things that should be compared. Nine times more brute force power might not result in nine times more visual quality. It may, in fact, only result in 50 per cent more visual quality. Any benefit we get from increased hardware power today, is applied more and more to the finer details.
There is a diminishing return with every increase in power. I would expect from a ten times more powerful spec set-up, a perceived improvement of visual experience, somewhere between a factor two, or two and a half. You would not get much more than that.
If you were to have the same assets, but running on a PC that had a ten times faster GPU, you would get a ten times faster frame rate, but that's not what you want. That's not a visual improvement.
When you start adding more complex shaders, then the power can be seen in the details. You get better lighting slightly and maybe smoother pixels, but for an average Joe – not for hardcore gamers – that image will not improve a lot.
Will we be seeing games like Crysis go free-to-play one day?
It sounds like you've had that sort of experience with Crysis 2's DX11 update?
In fact, that's exactly one of the reasons. The Crysis 2 DX11 specs are somewhere like three to four times larger, but the quality upgrade is in the hardcore, trained eyes only. The true benefit of that is, if you're trained, you will get an improvement of 30-40% or even 50% in some cases when tessellation is one of the things that can add more of an impact.
If people are using a completely different approach of graphics with – let's say 10 times more computational power – then the impact can be higher, but if you go down the path of traditional optimisation as we did in any game over the last 10 years and there's a diminishing return.
Can we ask you about the price point for Crysis on consoles? We're talking about a game with triple-A visuals, but you're only charging £16 for that in the UK for that – are you trying to pioneer a different model with Crysis on consoles?
We're just hope that we get as many as possible users playing Crysis 1, we want the community of Crysis 1 to increase. It's kind of a unique kind of scenario where we bring a game that has been successful on PC – and for many a benchmark on PC – to consoles many years afterwards. I mean, it's almost four years later.
There is some aging on the content, but I think it still holds up there. I think the price point is fair, and I think that people, hopefully, are going to enjoy it a lot. And maybe this will enable to offer more of these kind of offerings in the future.
We were going to ask you about the original Crysis again in terms of the original release. Could you ever see Crytek such a technical powerhouse of a title that's only really available to a small minority at launch based on PC specs, could you ever see yourself doing another title like that in the future?
If you look at the retail markets right now and where they are, and if you look at the calculation trends that Nvidia put out in regards to the market then maybe I should say yes, but I don't believe the retail trends are as Nvidia put out. But that being said, the PC market is going to be strongly growing in the free-to-play market.
But then again free-to-play requires huge community, so it means accessibility. It's kind of contradictory to running a high-tier game where the community will be very small, but those community will be paying for the retail game and not for a free-to-play experience.
When you want to go free-to-play you're trying to target millions of users so you get a percentage of them to pay for something. In the high-end space, those players are already investing a lot of money into their PC specs, so for them to buy a game it's not going to be a problem, but at the same time the retail market is going down – so the expected sales are very low.
But free-to-play market is exploding, but yet it needs more reach. I think the short story is: Crytek will push the technology boundaries going forward, but if we make a game that is commercially viable I don't think so.
CryEngine 3 will soon be used for much more than triple-A titles like Crysis, indies will be supported too.
It sounds like you're trying to look at all the different areas: you've got a free-to-play game in the works, and you're still making console and PC games and you've got your engine business too. Is it safe to say that you're trying to look at all these different areas of the industry?
Yeah, but more importantly what I think we're really trying to do now – as an initiative going forward – is to try and increase the quality of the free-to-play market.
So that's a huge focus for Crytek?
Yeah, we want to release triple-A free-to-play games, going forward.
Would you see those games funded by microtransactions like other games we're seeing at the moment?
Yeah. It's a win-win for everybody. I mean, we're saying we're going to offer you high-quality entertainment for free. And that means you can play the game forever for free, but then you can pay for transactions to speed up certain things.
Last time we spoke to your colleagues, we talked about next-gen. Do you have any extra thoughts on that; do you think it's getting any closer or you've changed your predictions on anything?
My predictions were 2012-13 was when next-gen will come, and I still hope for that.
Okay. OnLive has launched in the UK recently, what are your thoughts on cloud gaming and streaming technology were and if you could ever see Crytek's titles using that technology in the near future.
We are going to announce to the public that some of our games will appear in some form or other on the cloud. Not necessarily OnLive, I don't want to name the service now, but it will be announced shortly.
But the important thing is that I believe in a future where games are free, and the kind of business model that current cloud gaming operators are dealing with can't sustain a free gaming market with that. It's just prohibitively expensive.
At Crytek we are very interested in the cloud gaming business. I would say so much that you can be assured that we are going to announce something in this regards. But we are dealing with it in a very different approach that OnLive and Gaikai would do.
That being said, I do want to applaud OnLive and Gaikai and some of the others that are working on streaming techniques right now. Because if you look at OnLive or Gaikai and similar services, usually their limitations aren't scale; if you have 100 users you need to have between 50 and 100 PCs concurrently running.
In a free-to-play market that will create 50 or 100 PCs worth of cost, but because only a few percentage of the players are going to pay the cost of the current model is prohibitively expensive. But that being said I want to applaud the initiative because if the markets were not changing to a free-to-play model and it was staying true to digital retail then I think this is one of the best models you can do.
But as I said, at Crytek we believe games will be free and this is not sustainable. That type of cloud gaming, where one-on-one scaling is done, that cannot be possible.
But if cloud gaming changes to support the free-to-play model, then I think that is going to be very interesting for gamers around the world. So for those companies who are trying to replace the retail models, they are doing the first steps on this, to pave the way for next-generation cloud gaming and I think that should be applauded.
Are there any recent developments or progress on CryEngine as a product and mobile space for CryEngine as well?
Yeah, we can't announce our plans for mobile just yet, but we're definitely working on it. And we're working on some of the showcases for that, though it's too early to give any details on that.
But what's important is that we are excited about mobile tablets and browser gaming; we are definitely looking at these markets in a strong way and we will have some exciting announcements very soon.
And one other thing, as you know we released CryEngine 3 SDK. That has now reached 430,000 downloads I believe since its launch. And it's been a massive success for us, from a free downloadable engine perspective.
We are the fastest download engine ever, and that's something that is huge for us because it feeds a great community of users who are going to create content and games of all types.
And we are working on something interesting for it's creators as well. We really want to promote the indie community, the users of CryEngine, to become successful ultimately.
Almost like monetising their own products?
That sort of thing, yeah, but I can't actually go into details right now but I'm very excited about this. It's one of the most excited things we're dealing with right now internally at Crytek.
Finally, we've heard your great news that Crytek will be working with THQ on the next Homefront at your UK office. How much of a challenge is it going to be to take all the things you've learned from the Crysis franchise and to make that work for a different type of game for THQ?
For Homefront I can't really talk about that just now. It's way too early. But Homefront is Homefront and Crysis is Crysis. We will have lessons to share, of course. But how the game will turn out it's too early to determine. It will be some new take on it, however, people shouldn't just expect it to be a Far Cry of Crysis in the Homefront universe.
Of course, when we heard the announcement we thought it was such a great fit from Crytek's perspective and the types of games you've put out already.
We are very excited about this. We want to make sure this Homefront just rocks, and we want to be sure its great. In terms of releases, we're sure it's the best title we've released so far.


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June 8, 2000
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, I am pleased to testify today on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs on services in the VA for women veterans. I am accompanied by Carole Turner, RN, MN, CNAA, Director, Women Veterans Health Program, Veterans Health Administration (VHA) , and Mr. Robert Epley, Director, Compensation and Pension Service, Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA).
Women have officially served in the United States military forces since 1901 when the Army Nurse Corps was established. As early as 1938, an article in the American Journal of Nursing stated that the Veterans Administration had 287 hospital beds and 45 domiciliary beds for women beneficiaries. At that time, there were 3,511 women receiving disability compensation as a result of their military service.
Many women have served during the wars of the 20th Century: 34,000 women served during World War I; 400,000 during World War II; approximately 3,000 served in country in Korea, over 7,000 served in Vietnam; and 49,950 were deployed in the Gulf War. In reviewing the history of women in the military, it is important to remember that, until 1973, the number of women serving on active duty was limited by law to 2% of the active duty force, and the roles in which they served were limited. However, following the dissolution of the draft, that cap was removed and more military occupational specialties were opened to women. As a result, women today comprise 15% of the active-duty force and, with the exception of the Marine Corps, 20% of new recruits. Additionally, all military occupational specialties, with the exception of the combat arms and submarine service, are open to women.
Despite this long history of military service, the 1980 census was the first ever to ask American women if they had served in the military, and it was something of a surprise to find that there were over 1.1 million living women veterans at that time. According to the 1990 Census, women veterans comprise 4% of the total veteran population, and statistical projections indicate that, by the year 2010, that number will increase to 10%. This will be a dramatic change in the demographics of the veteran population and will have significant implications for VA.
In 1982, the General Accounting Office (GAO) reviewed VA's efforts to serve this growing number of women veterans and found that action was needed to assure equitable services for men and women. Subsequently, a number of dramatic actions occurred to improve services to women veterans. One of the most important was Congress' establishment of the Advisory Committee on Women Veterans, in 1983. That Committee has been an invaluable asset to the Department and the women who served our country. The Committee's most recent report will be discussed later in my testimony.
In February 1984, following the establishment of the Advisory Committee, VA implemented an outreach program for women veterans and assigned Women Veterans Coordinators at each of VBA's regional offices. These positions continue today. Locally developed outreach programs have been very effective in identifying individual women veterans, as well as service organizations, with predominately women membership. A recent example of this outreach includes a special VBA Fact Sheet entitled "Disability Compensation for Sexual Trauma," which is distributed nationally during Transitional Assistance Program (TAP) briefings for active duty personnel within 180 days of separation from the military. During FY 1999, VBA military services coordinators briefed over 217,000 active duty personnel and their families on VA benefits and services.
The Compensation and Pension Service Women Veterans Advisory Group was created in the early 1990's to review policy and procedures regarding benefits delivery to women veterans. The advisory group has conducted several case reviews of issues generally considered to be associated with women veterans' claims, such as gynecological diseases - - including disorders of the breast and PTSD secondary to sexual/personal trauma. As a result, field-training tools have been developed. These include satellite broadcasts and a "Guide to Developing Personal Trauma Claims." The Women Veteran Coordinator Intranet Site provides materials to assist VBA coordinators in outreach and claims-processing activities. VBA and VHA also worked collaboratively to develop and present, via satellite broadcast, a three-part training series on "Women's Health Issues."
A number of other steps have also been taken by VHA to improve services. In 1986, Women Veterans Coordinators were appointed at all VA Medical Centers to be advocates for women seeking care and to promote the provision of high-quality care in an appropriate setting. The availability of gynecology and other gender-specific services was also markedly improved. In 1992, Congress enacted the "Veterans Health Care Act of 1992" (Pub. L. No. 102-585), which authorized counseling for sexual trauma. The Act also authorized certain women veterans' health services. Since then, thousands of women have received counseling and related services. During that same year, VA established the first four Comprehensive Women Veterans Health Centers (expanded to eight the following year) and established Women Veterans Stress Treatment Teams at four VA medical centers. The VA National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder established a Women's Division in 1993. Under the reorganization of health care in VHA, known as "The Vision for Change," the Women Veterans Health Program was designated as a special program and a full-time director was appointed in Central Office in 1997.
In December 1993, the Department established the Women Veterans Program Office to assure all VA programs, policies and practices were responsive to the needs of women veterans. In 1994, at the urging of the Advisory Committee, Congress enacted the "Persian Gulf War Veterans' Benefits Act" (Pub. L. No. 103-446), which established the Center for Women Veterans in VA. At that time, the Women Veterans Program Office was reorganized to meet the requirements of that law. The Director of the Center serves as chief consultant to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on all issues related to women veterans and also as the Executive Secretary of the Advisory Committee.
As women make up a larger proportion of the Armed Forces, they will make up an increasingly larger proportion of the veteran population. VA is committed to meeting the needs of women veterans in all its programs. The Advisory Committee continues as a valuable partner in these efforts, and I am pleased to appear before you to discuss their latest report.
The 1998 report of the Advisory Committee on Women Veterans, including VA's response to recommendations contained therein, was submitted to Congress in May 1999. The report included 42 recommendations covering 11 areas:
VA concurred with, or supported, the intent of 36 of the recommendations but did not concur with 6, including the following:
Rationales for VA's non-concurrence in these recommendations were included in the Department's formal response to the Advisory Committee. A copy of that response was provided to Members of this Committee in May 1999 and is included as an attachment for the Record. I will be glad to answer specific questions regarding these recommendations.
The primary concerns of the Advisory Committee, as reflected in the 1998 report were:
VHA currently operates approximately 500 community-based outpatient clinics (CBOC's) to provide access to health care services closer to veterans' homes, to reduce congestion and travel times and to improve patient satisfaction with VA health care. Coupled with the emphasis on primary care, in some locations specialty clinics are being streamlined as a result of expanding CBOC capabilities. Some VA medical centers originally designed Women's Health Clinics to provide gender-specific specialty care; e.g., gynecology exams, Pap, general reproductive and breast care, and sexual trauma screening for women veterans, as well as comprehensive primary care. Others established Women's Clinics, which were, in fact, gynecology clinics, or infrequently scheduled clinics providing only preventive services. With VHA's shift from disease-oriented specialty care to holistically-oriented primary care, the trend has been to mainstream women's health, as well as all other specialties, into primary care clinics/teams. There is a difference of opinion between providers and consumers about the impact of mainstreaming women's health into primary care. Advocates of this approach believe that the individual needs of these women are being met in clinics of another name/type. Others believe that this practice does not address the concern that VA primary care providers may be less attuned to women's health issues and less skilled in gender-specific care because of the small number of women patients seen in VA. An effective compromise between these two positions has evolved in some facilities where one primary care team has been designated as the women's team. These teams are designed to provide comprehensive primary care to women, including gender-specific health care, and are consistent with the direction the VA health care delivery system is moving. In all VHA facilities, referral to gynecologists or other specialists is available to all enrolled women veterans, as clinically indicated.
Recognizing that women's health care delivery in VA is evolving and requires further evaluation, VHA, in collaboration with the Center for Women Veterans, has established a task force to assess the current status of women's services in VA and provide recommendations to assist management in developing innovative, creative and cost-effective programs that are responsive to the needs of the women veteran population. The task force is comprised of representatives from the National Leadership Board, Women Veterans Comprehensive Centers and the Women Veterans Coordinators. The Director, Center for Women Veterans, is a consultant to this group.
As I have indicated, most of the issues identified by the Advisory Committee in the 1998 report have been addressed, and in some cases, resulted in subsequent programmatic or statutory amendments.
The Center for Women Veterans will continue to monitor the status of their 1998 recommendations and will work closely with VA staff to assure that those recommendations with which VA concurred are implemented.
Finally, the Center for Women Veterans is hosting "Summit 2000: A National Summit on Women Veterans Issues," June 23 - 25, 2000, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington D.C. The summit is being co-sponsored by the Disabled American Veterans and the White House Office on Women's Initiatives and Outreach. The summit is designed to provide representatives from the women veterans' community, veterans' service organizations, veterans' service providers, Federal agency representatives and other interested individuals with a forum in which to:
I am pleased that staff members from both the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees have agreed to participate in a panel presentation at the summit. We appreciate their support.
The Center for Women Veterans will publish proceedings of the summit, which will include the issues and initiatives suggested by the summit working groups. This document will be distributed to Federal and State agencies, Congress, veterans' service organizations, and veterans' service providers for consideration in organizational strategic planning activities.
VA is grateful for the work of the Advisory Committee on Women Veterans. Its activities and reports play a vital role in helping the Department assess and address the needs of women veterans.
This concludes my formal testimony. My colleagues and I will be pleased to answer any questions.
House Committees | Senate Committees | Find my Representative | Find my Senator
Veterans and their family members who wish to contact the Department regarding a claim, benefits, or services, may call VA Toll-Free at 1 (800) 827-1000 or 1 (800) 829-4833 [TDD], or Contact the VA via the web.
VA Home | Privacy | FOIA | Regulations | Web Policies | No FEAR Act | Site Index | USA.gov | White House | National Resource Directory | Inspector General
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - 810 Vermont Avenue, NW - Washington, DC 20420
Reviewed/Updated Date: November 10, 2009


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– Jamie Lee
Amanda was amazing,and my husband and I are so grateful for her help and support throughout our pregnancy and birth. Not only did she help us prepare and educate ourselves for welcoming our first child,but she was an excellent emotional support when we experienced the loss of a dear family member just 2 months before our birth. She's warm,genuine,sensible and emotionally available to her clients, she's also very well informed and very knowledgeable. She supported us like a mother or a best friend would and we are so happy that she was there with us : -)
– Lisa Durand
I took Childbirth classes with Amanda Beaver from The Birth Nest in Niagara and it was an amazing birth! Amanda also attended my birth as my doula. The whole experience was very relaxed and mostly pain free – what pain/pressure there was was totally manageable using the visualizations and breathing that I learned in class. I was even in denial that I was in transition until Amanda insisted on calling the midwives after timing a few of them. She was right and the midwives arrived just in time! Even after my baby was born I was still totally shocked that it wasn't "harder." I'd definitely recommend Amanda to anyone wanting to avoid drugs during childbirth!
– Steve Goode and Tanya Pavelko
On February 28th we met with Amanda and our backup Doula Jesslyn to discuss our birth plan which included a water birthing pool. Tanya was having what she thought were "Braxton Hicks" during the meeting so they didn't think anything of it, as our due date was March 27th. At 2am Tanya was woken by what she later discovered to be surges (contractions). She sprung me from a deep sleep at 3am and I initially did not believe that she was in labor. After speaking to Pilar, our midwife, and observing Tanya's condition, I understood otherwise. What followed next was an anaerobic work out up and down 3 flights of stairs as I put the two kits together (one for her, one for baby) for our time at the hospital. We finally arrived at the hospital at 5 am. Ewalina had plans of her own! When I arrived in the room, Tanya was well into her world of active and passive concentration, largely thanks to the preparation experienced from Amanda's childbirth classes. I reminded Tanya of her deep breathing exercises and Pillar smiled informing me, to my surprise, that we were way beyond that and that Tanya was in her final stage, fully dilated. Tanya was calm and focused throughout her labor and I can proudly say that I am still amazed to this day by the miracle of life that I was allowed to witness. I cannot think of another experience that has made more of an effect on me than the witnessing of our child's birth into this world. Ewalina was born 40 minutes later, coming into the world at 5 pounds and 5 ounces, 17 inches long, alert and ready to eat. Much to our surprise and joy she was also born as a leap year baby! I highly recommend having a doula and attending these childbirth classes as a couple, as they prepare you for the dialogue of the birth journey.
– Meghan, Dave and Baby Elliot
My partner and I were very pleased with our Doula Amanda Beaver. She helped to make our birthing experience a memorable and positive experience. Her knowledge and positive attitude was uplifting and reassuring before, during and after the birth of our son. She was a tremendous help to us during our long labour. She reminded us of our hopes and wishes, was encouraging when things weren't going as planned and was a much needed hand to my partner when exhaustion took hold. Without her support our birthing experience would not have been the same. We highly recommend Amanda's doula services and The Birth Nest!!
Amanda provided me with my birth tub for my home birth of my first child. Amanda was amazing. She delivered the tub, showed us how to set it up and take it down. I was able to contact Amanda any time with any questions I may have. Amanda picked up the tub and was a get support to us. I had difficulties breast feeding and she was able to give me suggestions and get additional information for me.
My husband and I highly reccomend Amanda! We had a great experience working with her throughout my pregnancy and birth. She was wonderful and supportive to our decisions during brith which was very reasuring. I was orginally disapointed in not being able to work with a midwife during my pregnancy but finding Amanda and having her as our doula was the best of both worlds. We would not hesitate to work with her again!
Thank you so much Amanda! I could never have done it without you. Even my husband, who could't quite understand why we were spending money on a doula, said the best thing we did for this birth was have you there with us. We're all so happy you could be there with us. I will recommend you to anyone and everyone I know.
We had the pleasure of using Amanda Beaver as our Doula for our fourth baby. We did not know what to expect with a Doula, and we weren't sure what above care she would provide above our midwives, but we had heard good things about Doula's. We were pleasantly surprised to the amount of detail Amanda paid attention to, and extra information she gave to us before the birth of our daughter. Amanda was there from the beginning of the birth, and stayed until we told her things were good, after our daughter was born. Amanda was a major part of keeping me calm during our daughters birth, as our daughter came really quickly, and I began to panic. Amanda kept me calm and gave encouragement to me while the midwives took care of the baby. Amanda did not take the place of my husband, but was able to complement him. The two of them worked together beautifully. Amanda also helped to take care of his needs as well. We are so thankful for the quality of care we received from Amanda, and would hire her again in a heart beat. She was there throughout the postpartum days as well, ensuring I was getting what I needed and offering information, and websites to other professionals for questions I had. Thank-you Amanda Beaver for your wonderful service you offered to our family.
We met Amanda while taking her childbirth class. Her knowledge and her cheerful and easygoing demeanor helped to relieve a lot of the anxiety I was feeling before the birth of my first child. My husband and I decided to hire her as our doula based on how much we liked her and got along with her. She was extremely supportive, non-judgmental and calming during the whole experience. Amanda did everything in her power to keep me comfortable and she was completely prepared for anything with her amazing doula bag which was filled with anything and everything you would ever need during labour. She acted as my advocate when I was admitted to the hospital when I was hoping to have a home birth. We feel extremely lucky to have had Amanda by our side for the two days it took to induce and deliver my son. Amanda was very flexible and was willing to work with us on her fee. We still keep in touch with her. She is a kind and giving person. She is a wonderful doula. If you hire her, you will not be disappointed. She was a very calming and gentle influence in contrast to some of the harsh and abrupt personalities of the hospital staff. If I ever have another baby, I would not hesitate to hire Amanda again.
"Meghan was a fantastic doula. She was completely non-judgmental and so kind. I really enjoyed having her in our home during the postpartum period. When I couldn't figure out what I needed her help with she found something to do that was helpful to us. She helped me figure out a latch issue with my son as well. It was great to have her help and to have someone to chat with for a few hours. I really enjoyed the help and support." – Nikki W.
We wish every new parent and every new baby could have such wonderful support! Meghan helped us out for about two months after the birth of our son. She was incredibly supportive and encouraging in teaching us basic skills and helping us through various nursing challenges. As new parents, we felt comfortable placing our son in her capable hands and her presence gave us the chance for a little much needed down time. Thanks to her help we felt confident to travel internationally with the baby. Now the only problem is that we all miss Meghan from abroad! -E.G.
"[Meghan] should clone herself so every new parent can have her support!"
Meghan was a terrific resource for us as new parents for explaining the basics. She also provided a kind, compassionate and knowledgeable ear whenever the challenges of parenthood felt overwhelming.
You are truly blessed if you choose Julie as your doula. There is no one I'd trust more. She is maternal by nature, and knows just how to "mother the mother". Julie goes above and beyond for her clients and ensures that their birth day is an empowered one.
B.H. , Port Colborne, ON


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1. Butternut Squash Ravioli with Organic Vodka Marinara: The raviolis are already stuffed and ready to go. Get them in the refrigerator section of TJ's (near the tofu and cheeses at mine). They are a little sweet, so I chose the vodka marinara (also from TJ's) and added shaved parmesan cheese and hot pepper flakes to spice it up. For a different taste my mom sautes them with butter and fresh sage leaves.
2. Honey Apple Butter Spread: We returned from our summer road trip craving assorted cheeses. It wasn't too long ago that I despised the taste of blue cheese and its stinky cousins, but after friends and family in Chicago and New York re-intorduced us to many cheese varieties we became hooked and make a toast and cheese plate once a week. To prepare this snack, I toast multi-grain bread and then spread the honey apple butter on it (serving it with a tiny little knife makes it look fancy, too), adding cheese of choice on top. Lately, we have had brie and gouda cheese. I usually have some hummus out as well.
3. Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread: I'm just gonna come out and say it: it came from a box. Yep, and it was good. If you want to make this delicious holiday staple from scratch I suggest trying Tammy's recipe. It's probably better. If you don't have a lot of time (or are a lazy baker like me), Trader Joes (and probably other stores) make a box kind. All you have to do is add eggs, oil, water and chocolate chips. The box says to bake at 350º, but I lowered the temp to 325º and cooked it an extra 10-15 minutes to account for the added chocolate chips. I wouldn't have known this if my mom didn't tell me. I also used light olive oil instead of vegetable. I wouldn't have known this if it weren't for my mom, either. I made this bread with the five year old I tutor and, although she said the pumpkin smell was "stinky" and plugged her nose while stirring it, it was a fun and simple recipe to make with a kid who loved it once it was baked (and so did we).
I hope you like these (easy) fall foods. I'm off to surf now. The waves have been pretty good so far this fall and I'm still wearing my spring suit (only 2mm thick versus 3 or 4mm) since the water is so warm. I've been working on my top turns and have honestly been a little frustrated with my progress. I'm trying to get to a place where I come off the top and turn my torso back towards the white wash behind me, but it's hard. After that, I am going to the salon to support a friend who is shaving her head before chemo therapy. I don't think I'm prepared for how emotional it is going to be. If you're the praying kind, please send out a prayer for my friend, if you're not, please send positive thoughts. They are very appreciated.


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Latin American Student Organization
The purpose of the Latin American Student Organization is to:
- Promote and address the educational, cultural and social aspects of Latino communities on all levels. This shall be done through creative events such as lectures, workshops, films and/or attending any Latino conference or performances, etc.
- Work with students, faculty, staff and other community resources in addressing issues of diversity, particularly as they relate to Latino students, by reaching out to other groups to expand our horizons and gather information on other societies in the surrounding area.
- Aid in providing assistance to incoming and enrolled students and help them adapt to life at Eastern Illinois University.
- To support all members in achieving their fullest potential by providing social and academic leadership along with spiritual growth experiences.
Meeting information
Interested in joining LASO? We hold meetings weekly, alternating between social and business agendas. Business meetings are held at 7 p.m. Thursdays in the Martinsville Room in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union. Social meetings alternate — please feel free to e-mail any of the officers for a current meeting schedule.
President — Gladys Valentin - firstname.lastname@example.com
Vice President — Stephanie Dominguez - firstname.lastname@example.com
Secretary — Catherine Almazan - firstname.lastname@example.com
Treasurer — David Sanchez - firstname.lastname@example.com
Public Relations - Julia Abalos - email@example.com


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After I heard that William Hallet had recently opened, I was eagerly looking forward to a chance go visit. So on Saturday night, a few friends and I planned to meet there for dinner.
Michelle and I arrived just before 9pm, and all the tables were filled, so we sat at the bar to await the arrival of the rest of our party while we admired the ambiance and décor. The staff was very friendly, and we ordered two glasses of Pinot Grigio at the bar. Just before Maria and Sasha arrived, a table in the front window opened up, so we ended up with what seemed like the best seats in the restaurant (we had a view of the whole bar as well as a window looking out on the street – and passers by seemed interested in the new restaurant as well, one woman walking by heard the music from inside and started dancing on the sidewalk).
Maria was ecstatic when she saw the menu – and after much debating between different options, she ended up ordering the turducken sandwich. Sasha chose the heirloom tomato salad with a side of french fries, and Michelle and I both opted for the vegetable tatin. I had been craving onion rings lately, so after hearing a glowing recommendation for William Hallet's, I ordered a side of those as well.
We'd been worried there wouldn't be a lot of vegetarian food options, since we hadn't seen the menu yet, but in addition to the salads and the vegetable tatin, there was also a vegetable terrine appetizer and many vegetable side dishes. I think in the future I would enjoy ordering a selection of vegetable sides and making a meal out of that, but this time I was very excited to try the tatin.
Everyone enjoyed their food immensely – Maria kept gushing over her turducken sandwich, "I'm in my happy place!" she proclaimed, "I love food so much!". Michelle and I both savored every bite of the delicious vegetable tatin – a puff pastry base loaded with herbs and roasted vegetables and greens. I could tell there were a fair number of mushrooms in it, and I normally dislike mushrooms, but they didn't even bother me in this dish – dare I say I might have even enjoyed them? That's how good it was. I ate every last bite, mushrooms and all! I love anything that mixes sweet and savory, and the flakey light sweetness of the puff pastry with the rich heartiness of the vegetables was just perfect.
Vegetable tatin
The fries were delicious, thick-cut and perfectly crisp on the outside with a tasty dusting of herbs and spices. And the onion rings… we all adored the onion rings! There was something about them that just set them apart from other onion rings, an ingredient in the batter that we couldn't identify. As amazing as they were though, we could barely finish them because we were so full of food by this point.
…Yet we couldn't resist dessert! We were going to order one trifle and one whoopie pie and share them both among the four of us, but when we were told that they were out of the whoopie pies this evening we just decided to get two trifles instead.
The soft, moist poundcake and the lemon curd were the perfect summer treat – and then we dug our spoons into the dish further and discovered the cherries at the bottom. "There are cherries in here! There are f-ing cherries in here!" exclaimed Maria, excitedly. "Oh my god, oh my god, there are cherries in the bottom!" echoed Michelle.
You would think we were a group of starving people, the way we devoured this dessert. Even though our stomachs were already bursting from dinner. I had thought the desserts would be small, and each one just a couple bites for us to share, but the trifle was actually quite large, and we probably could have been fine splitting just one! But they were so delicious that we managed to eat both of them anyway.
All four of us were thoroughly satisfied with our experience at William Hallet, and we made plans to return again in the near future. Maria said she wished she could just move in and live there all the time. The food was delicious, the place looks beautiful inside and out, our waitress Ellie was wonderfully friendly and nice to us, all of the music that was playing over the speakers while we ate was great, and we had a fantastic time.
36-10 30th Ave
Queens, NY 11106
(718) 269-3443
Views: 337
This place looks and sounds amazing...can't wait to try it and sugarfreak! The exterior is too cool!


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Only this time, the feeling isn't so good. John Maine is getting the ball up and Derek Jeter just took him out. It's the fourth inning and he's already thrown 91 pitches. Because the Yankees' pitching isn't so great, the Mets are still in this, but they aren't getting much help from Maine.
For all things Yankees, "check out the Yankees blog by my colleague Peter Abraham":http://yankees.lohudblogs.com/


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You are currently viewing the abstract.View Full Text
Amyloids are highly organized cross–β-sheet–rich protein or peptide aggregates that are associated with pathological conditions including Alzheimer's disease and type II diabetes. However, amyloids may also have a normal biological function, as demonstrated by fungal prions, which are involved in prion replication, and the amyloid protein Pmel17, which is involved in mammalian skin pigmentation. We found that peptide and protein hormones in secretory granules of the endocrine system are stored in an amyloid-like cross–β-sheet–rich conformation. Thus, functional amyloids in the pituitary and other organs can contribute to normal cell and tissue physiology.
↵* Present address: School of Bioscience and Bioengineering, IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai 400076, India.


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Regrettable Tattoos: Think Before You Ink
Anonymous_1 on 7 Mar 2011 at 12:00am
We all make mistakes. That summer you professed your love to your [now very ex-] boyfriend by getting his name scripted on your shoulder. And let's not forget the time you had your college mascot – that's right, the turtle – inked onto your neck.
Sounded like a good idea at the time.
But we're here today as a public service to tell you to think before you ink – and to provide the photo proof that it's a smart mantra to live by.
Even celebs change their mind about ink. Famously, Angelina Jolie [and shouldn't she be just Angelina by now, no surname needed, like Bono or Sting?] broke up with Billy Bob Thornton, and had her tattoo of his name creatively converted to the names of her kids.
Johnny Depp, in true Johnny style, cleverly morphed his tattoo of "Winona Forever", a previous homage to ex Winona Ryder, into the wry "Wino Forever".
And Mark Wahlberg compared tattoo removal to being burnt with hot bacon grease.
Just over two-thirds of those who had tattoo removal done said it was Worth It. But at an average price of $942 to remove a tattoo, it's not an inexpensive procedure. Tattoo removal costs vary according to the size, location, and quality of the tattoo.
Of course, if you've recently presented at the Oscars, you have an advantage: the gift bag included a tattoo-removing product, WreckingBalm. According to RealSelf community member supreme, this cream isn't effective, though: "WreckingBalm doesn't work at all…I used it for a year and my tattoos still look the same…it didn't fade a bit and my tattoo been on me for ten years and it wasn't even professional."
So how do you get rid of a tattoo?
They represent a challenge:
- Requires numerous clinic or office visits
- Removal involves – gulp –considerable pain, and no guarantee you'll entirely remove the ink
- Skin type and color is a major factor in which tattoo colors can be effectively and safely treated. For example, the darker the skin, the more challenging it becomes when treating lighter colors of tattoo ink.
Removal options include:
A final note -- don't try this at home: tattoo removal at home is unlikely to lead to complete removal of the ink, and may cause burns or other unwanted skin damage. Ouch – best leaving the job to the [board-certified medical] professionals.
And remember – think before you ink.
Community members' answers are edited for clarity and brevity.
Photo of a tattooed hand bearing the name "Fred", from RealSelf.com photo gallery, courtesy of Atlanta Facial Plastic Surgeon Louis M. DeJoseph, MD.


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Amrut Peated Indian single malt whisky is made from selected Indian barley grown at the feet of the Himalayas, nurtured by the waters flowing there and cultivated by old and traditional agricultural practices. It is carefully mashed and distilled in small batches to preserve the natural aroma and matured in oak barrels in a unique tropical condition,at an altitude of 3,000 feet above sea level at Bangalore, the garden city of India.To retain the natural characteristics of this oak aged Indian Malt Whisky, we do not chill filter, some haze may therefore be noticed in the product. Amrut presents this product as a humble tribute to the Indian farmer,who has grown this barley with care and affection with which he has tilled the soil
Nose : Unusually dry peat; not dissimilar to peak reek absorbed by an old leather arm chair, a hint of citrus too;
Taste : Despite the nose, the immediate sensation is one of being caressed by molassed sugar and then a ratching up of the peat notes. As they get more forceful, so the experience becomes that little bit drier and spicier, though not without the molasses refusing to give way;
Finish : You can tell the quality of the distilate and the barrels it has been matured in by the crystalline depth to the finish. Everything is clear on the palate and the butterscotch vanillas wrap the phenols for a comfortable and clean finale


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The trailer highlights Owen's on-screen daughter who is forced to confront a faceless demon, which desperately desires love but only knows how to spread fear and hate.
A fresh official trailer for Clive Owen's horror movie "Intruders" has been debuted. Being jam-packed with multiple goose-bumping scenes, the sneak peek focuses on Owen's John Farrow whose daughter is haunted and possessed by a fearsome demon called Hollow Face. Compared to the previously released trailer, the new one offers a closer look at the faceless demon.
Though no one can see him, Hollow Face lurks in the corners, desperately desiring love but only knowing how to spread fear and hate. The demon creeps into Farrow's life after his beloved daughter Mia is assaulted in their home. The line between the real and the imaginary blurs as fissures start to open within the family unit. It seems that no security measure can keep Hollow Face out.
"Intruders" has received positive reviews after it was premiered at the 2011's Toronto International Film Festival. The movie will also be screened at this year's South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival, before opening in the U.S. theaters on March 30.
Working behind the lens for the horror film is Oscar nominee Juan Carlos Fresnadillo. The script, meanwhile, is written by Spanish scribe duo Jaime Marques and Nico Casariego. Rounding up the cast ensemble are Carice van Houten, Kerry Fox, Ella Purnel and Mark Wingett.


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Get an overview of this hotel3-star hotel with restaurant and bar/lounge
Collecting Nectar Points
Special Offer: Book by 2 August 2017 and collect double Nectar points!
Simply enter your Nectar card number when you check out. Your points will be credited 35 days after you return from your trip.
*Terms and conditions apply.
Popular property highlights
Situated in Lublin, this hotel is within 3 mi (5 km) of Catholic University of Lublin, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, and Henryk Wieniawski Lublin Philharmonic. Lublin Plaza and Lublin Museum are also within 6 mi (10 km).
Hotel Features
This smoke-free hotel features a restaurant, a bar/lounge, and a conference center. WiFi in public areas is free. Additionally, a business center, conference rooms, and concierge services are onsite.
Room Amenities
All 34 rooms offer free WiFi, room service, and LCD TVs with cable channels. Guests will also find coffee makers, free bottled water, and hair dryers.Information missing or incorrect? Tell us!Opens in a new window
Hotel Focus Centrum Konferencyjne
Hotel Amenities
Hotel Amenities
The hotel offers a restaurant. A bar/lounge is on site where guests can unwind with a drink. This 3-star property offers access to a business center and a meeting room.
Public areas are equipped with complimentary wireless Internet access. Event facilities measuring 6650 square feet (618 square meters) include a conference center. This business-friendly hotel also offers a terrace, tour/ticket assistance, and a garden.
Hotel Focus Centrum Konferencyjne is a smoke-free property.
- Total number of rooms - 34
- Bar/lounge
- Breakfast available (surcharge)
- Business center
- Concierge services
- Conference space
- Elevator/lift
- Tours/ticket assistance
- Free WiFi
- One meeting room
- Garden
- Terrace
- Restaurant
- Safe-deposit box at front desk
- Conference space size (feet) - 6650
- Conference space size (meters) - 618
- Conference center
- Smoke-free property
- Television in common areas
- Wedding services
Available in all rooms: Free WiFi
Available in some public areas: Free WiFi
Room Amenities
- Air conditioning
- Phone
- Free bottled water
- Coffee/tea maker
- Private bathroom
- Free toiletries
- Hair dryer
- Shower only
- Desk
- Iron/ironing board (on request)
- Cable TV service
- Free WiFi
- Room service (limited hours)
Where to Eat
Buffet breakfasts are available for a surcharge between 7 AM and 10 AM.
Onsite venue - This restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Room service (during limited hours) is available.
If you have requests for specific accessibility needs, please note them at check-out when you book your room.
Hotel Policies
Minimum check-in age is 18
Check-out time is 12:30 PM
Payment types
Children and extra beds
- Children are welcome.
- Pets allowed for an extra charge of PLN 50 per pet, per night
You need to know
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy.
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card or cash deposit are required at check-in for incidental charges.
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges. Special requests cannot be guaranteed.
24-hour check-in
Optional extras
- Fee for buffet breakfast: PLN 20 per person (approximately)
- Pet fee: PLN 50 per pet, per night
Hotel Name
- Focus Centrum Konferencyjne
- Focus Centrum Konferencyjne Lublin
- Hotel Focus Centrum Konferencyjne
- Hotel Focus Centrum Konferencyjne Lublin


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My Notes:
This home could reduce your energy costs »
From I-465 take Exit 33 North onto Keystone Avenue. Go North on Keystone Avenue and follow this to take the exit for 146th Street. Head East (right) on 146th Street. Follow this to Hazel Dell Parkway. Head north (left) onto Hazel Dell. Then head West (left) onto 169th Street. Slater Woods is located on your left.
If using a GPS please use the address 16835 Rosetree Court Noblesville Indiana 46062 for your destination address
Welcome home to the Serenity at Slater Ridge. This marvelous classic style home is part of our Prestige Collection and offers the most "must-have" features and designs for today's home buyers. Beautiful brick wraps all four sides of the home on the first floor, complimented by the James Hardie ColorPlus Fiber Cement siding on the remainder of the home's exterior.
Through the front door and into the airy foyer you are greeted with a sneak peak of the beautiful great room. But first, to your left is a hallway leading to two spacious bedrooms and a full bathroom. Back out into the foyer and pass the powder room, the home opens up into the great room. An open concept design gives you direct view of the kitchen from the great room and vice versa. So you will never miss a thing while entertaining guests or watching the kids. The open concept is even accentuated by the hardwood flooring in the entryway, kitchen, breakfast nook, and hallway.
The great room features a marble front gas fireplace that will keep the whole house warm all winter long. Wall insets on both sides of the fireplace are perfect for cabinets or an entertainment center. Moving to the gourmet kitchen, a huge island gives you plenty of counter space to prepare all of your meals. Granite countertops and loads of cabinetry make this kitchen ever more gourmet. This kitchen also features GE appliances including, dishwasher, double oven, and microwave, and an electric cooktop. A quaint breakfast nook sits off of the kitchen and is a great place to enjoy your morning coffee or grab a quick bite to eat. From here you can access a wonderful deck perfect for enjoying a beautiful day or grilling out.
Tucked away in the back of the house is the master retreat. A great place to relax with a huge walk-in closet and an attached garden style bathroom. This spa-like bathroom features dual vanities and a walk-in shower with a rain head and ceramic tiling. The master retreat also features an extension giving you that little extra space you have always needed.
Moving upstairs is a spacious finished bonus room overlooking the great room. Also on this floor is another spacious bedroom and full bathroom. This home also comes with a full unfinished basement with a full bathroom rough in. Leave the space unfinished and use it for all of your storage needs. Or finish it and use the space as a guest retreat or a great man cave. The possibilities are endless with this additional space.
Call us today to schedule your personalized tour of the Serenity design.
Estimated Completion Date:Ready Now


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To the Editor:
(President Barack) Obama mentioned several times in his speech about the children that were killed in Syria. However, there was no concrete proof given that the Syrian government was responsible for the killing. I do agree that whoever is to blame should be held accountable.
My question to Mr. Obama is, "What about the American children that are killed every day?" Who is responsible?
Our own U.S. government supports the killing of American children. This includes our president, Mr. Obama; the Supreme Court; senators and members of Congress.
This also includes every person that votes for the wholesale slaughter of innocent children called abortion. This killing of American children is protected by our government.
My question to Mr. Obama is, "If we are going to hold Syria accountable, who will hold us accountable?"
Steve Kirkham


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Fall Product Roundup {A few of my favorite things}
Post contains affiliate links. As you know, I like to do my product round-ups every season because so much canRead more
Post contains affiliate links. As you know, I like to do my product round-ups every season because so much canRead more
I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of aRead more
Last weekend, I attended my first Bloggy Boot Camp. Usually this time of year, I was gearing up for theRead more
My oh my, I feel like it's been ages since I wrote a post just about my life in general.Read more
When people first meet me, they usually try to segment me one way or another. I've heard things varying from,Read more
You guys have heard all about my puppy over the last couple months. Some good things, and some of myRead more
Oh boy. Well the holidays somehow managed to come and go. Right now I feel like one of those cartoonsRead more
Vistaprint is currently offering a FREE personalized calendar! "Personalize your own 2013 calendar with your favorite memories and pictures fromRead more
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNER: Stephanie G!!!! ****Don't forget: You can get FREE shipping on your orders from Sweetest Bug BowsRead more
Hubby and I have a bucket list that we've gradually added to over the years. We added some of ourRead more


text: National American University Holdings, Inc. (the "Company") (NASDAQ: NAUH), which through its wholly owned subsidiary operates National American University, a regionally accredited, proprietary, multi-campus institution of higher learning, today announced that on August 27, 2012, the Company's Board of Directors declared a cash dividend in the amount of $0.04 per share on all shares of the Company's common stock outstanding and of record as of the close of business on September 30, 2012, to be paid on or about October 5, 2012. This represents an increase from the previous quarterly period in which the Company paid a dividend of $0.0325 per share. The Company operates on a May 31st fiscal year. Ronald L. Shape, Ed.D., Chief Executive Officer of the Company, stated, "This quarterly $0.04 dividend represents a 23% increase over the previous quarter's $0.0325 dividend. We believe the Company is well positioned in fiscal year 2013 as we continue to focus on developing our existing campus locations and realize the benefits of our geographic expansion over the past couple of years. These efforts have positioned the Company to continue our growth opportunities while returning capital to our loyal shareholders." About National American University Holdings, Inc. National American University Holdings, Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary, operates National American University ("NAU"), a regionally accredited, proprietary, multi-campus institution of higher learning offering associate, bachelor's, and master's degree programs in health care and business-related disciplines. Accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, NAU has been providing technical and professional career education since 1941. NAU opened its first campus in Rapid City, South Dakota, and has since grown to multiple locations throughout the central United States. In 1998, NAU began offering online courses. Today, NAU offers degree programs in traditional, online, and hybrid formats, which provide students increased flexibility to take courses at times and places convenient to their busy lifestyles.


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Company Description
Energi Talent Resourcing is a specialist Oil & Gas and Power Recruitment firm. We are a new breed of recruitment solutions providers. We are setting the standard in Oil & Gas and Power industry recruitment by offering the highest level of service and delivery.
Job Title: Test Engineer - Single Phase Meters
Job Qualification
BSc, HND, BA
Job Experience
5 years
Job Location
Akwa ibom
Job Category
Engineering, Technical
Method of Application
Qualified Persons should forward CV and Application to email@example.com using the job title as the subject of the mail
Closing Date
Not Stated
Share this job now with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin......Latest, most current jobs in Nigeria
Monday, 11 April 2016
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When an arctic science team finds an alien buried in the ice, they bring it back to their facility where it gets loose and tries to drain their blood to feed its progeny in The Thing from Another World, directed by prolific television director Christian Nyby and produced by Howard Hawks. This is a great monster movie that well exceeds expectations for the genre and the period it was made. While the team protect themselves and learn more about the creature's mysterious origins, they also argue about whether they should destroy it or keep it alive for scientific study. The infighting almost gets as serious as their fight for survival. I didn't know any of these actors before, but they make a solid ensemble. I enjoy their rapid-fire banter, perhaps a remnant from Hawks' earlier screwball comedies. Dmitri Tiomkin spooks things up a bit with a healthy dose of theremin in his musical score.
Maybe it's mature for its time, or maybe the filmmakers just never let the genre confine their approach to storytelling, but I think this is one of the best '50s sci-fi flicks I've seen. (And John Carpenter's 1982 remake may just be the best remake of all time.)
Rating: 3.5/5
About Scott_S
Scott studied film and sociology at Indiana University and is currently the video producer for a large publishing company. He is the director of several independent films, including "House of Hope," "Off the Beaten Path," "The Day Joe Left," and "Found." For more about Scott, visit www.scottschirmer.com. Scott is also one of the principal organizers of the Dark Carnival Film Festival. (www.darkcarnivalfilmfest.com)
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