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The FTC stands for the Federal Trade Commission. Essentially, their job is to protect consumers. I will be 100% honest, today is the first day that I have gone directly to the FTC website and read the requirements in place for bloggers. (Shame on me). Unfortunately, I realized that I am not appropriately disclosing certain information on my blog and social media posts. Obviously, I will do my best to remedy this situation but I thought it would be helpful to share what I have learned.
After reading through the FTC website, here is the most relevant information I have obtained. These are my interpretations based on what I read. Please see below for direct quotes obtained from the FTC website.
A Bloggers Guide to the FTC and Disclosures:
- If you receive money OR free products – you must disclose
- If you receive money OR free products – you must disclose EVERY time you mention them
- Posting a photo of a product you received for free (on Instagram, Pinterest, etc.) is considered an endorsement and you must disclose
- These disclosures also apply to Twitter (you should use the hashtag #ad)
- Disclosures should be clear and conspicuous
- Do not just say it is an "affiliate link", you need to explain what an affiliate link is
- Do not include the disclosures below the affiliate links or at the bottom of the blog post. They should be before the affiliate links. It is recommended to include the disclosures at the top of the blog post.
- For YouTube videos, disclosures should be verbal and at the beginning of the video.
Source: the information below was obtained directly from the FTC website.
I'm a blogger. I heard that every time I mention a product on my blog, I have to say whether I got it for free or paid for it myself. Is that true?
… If you receive free products or other perks with the expectation that you'll promote or discuss the advertiser's products in your blog, you're covered. Bloggers who are part of network marketing programs where they sign up to receive free product samples in exchange for writing about them also are covered.
Several months ago a manufacturer sent me a free product and asked me to write about it in my blog. I tried the product, liked it, and wrote a favorable review. When I posted the review, I disclosed that I got the product for free from the manufacturer. I still use the product. Do I have to disclose that I got the product for free every time I mention it in my blog?
It might depend on what you say about it, but each new endorsement made without a disclosure could be deceptive because readers might not see the original blog post where you said you got the product free from the manufacturer.
I share in my social media posts about products I use. Do I actually have to say something positive about a product for my posts to be endorsements covered by the FTC Act?
Simply posting a picture of a product in social media, such as on Pinterest, or a video of you using it could convey that you like and approve of the product. If it does, it's an endorsement.
Is there special wording I have to use to make the disclosure?
No. The point is to give readers the essential information. A simple disclosure like "Company X gave me this product to try . . . ." will usually be effective.
Do I have to hire a lawyer to help me write a disclosure?
No. What matters is effective communication, not legalese. A disclosure like "Company X sent me [name of product] to try, and I think it's great" gives your readers the information they need. Or, at the start of a short video, you might say, "Some of the products I'm going to use in this video were sent to me by their manufacturers." That gives the necessary heads-up to your viewers.
Are you saying that I need to list the details of everything I get from a company for reviewing a product?
No. As long as your audience knows the nature of your relationship, it's good enough. So whether you got $50 or $1,000 you could simply say you were "paid." (That wouldn't be good enough, however, if you're an employee or co-owner.)
Would a single disclosure on my home page that "many of the products I discuss on this site are provided to me free by their manufacturers" be enough?
A single disclosure on your home page doesn't really do it because people visiting your site might read individual reviews or watch individual videos without seeing the disclosure on your home page.
If I upload a video to YouTube and that video requires a disclosure, can I just put the disclosure in the description that I upload together with the video?
No, because it's easy for consumers to miss disclosures in the video description. Many people might watch the video without even seeing the description page, and those who do might not read the disclosure. The disclosure has the most chance of being effective if it is made clearly and prominently in the video itself. That's not to say that you couldn't have disclosures in both the video and the description.
What about a platform like Twitter? How can I make a disclosure when my message is limited to 140 characters?
The FTC isn't mandating the specific wording of disclosures. However, the same general principle – that people get the information they need to evaluate sponsored statements – applies across the board, regardless of the advertising medium. The words "Sponsored" and "Promotion" use only 9 characters. "Paid ad" only uses 7 characters. Starting a tweet with "Ad:" or "#ad" – which takes only 3 characters – would likely be effective.
The Guides say that disclosures have to be clear and conspicuous. What does that mean?
To make a disclosure "clear and conspicuous," advertisers should use clear and unambiguous language and make the disclosure stand out. Consumers should be able to notice the disclosure easily. They should not have to look for it. In general, disclosures should be:
- close to the claims to which they relate;
- in a font that is easy to read;
- in a shade that stands out against the background;
- for video ads, on the screen long enough to be noticed, read, and understood;
- for audio disclosures, read at a cadence that is easy for consumers to follow and in words consumers will understand.
A disclosure that is made in both audio and video is more likely to be noticed by consumers. Disclosures should not be hidden or buried in footnotes, in blocks of text people are not likely to read, or in hyperlinks. If disclosures are hard to find, tough to understand, fleeting, or buried in unrelated details, or if other elements in the ad or message obscure or distract from the disclosures, they don't meet the "clear and conspicuous" standard. With respect to online disclosures, FTC staff has issued a guidance document, .com Disclosures: How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising, which is available on ftc.gov.
I guess I need to make a disclosure that I've gotten paid for a video review that I'm uploading to YouTube. When in the review should I make the disclosure? Is it ok if it's at the end?
It's more likely that a disclosure at the end of the video will be missed, especially if someone doesn't watch the whole thing. Having it at the beginning of the review would be better. Having multiple disclosures during the video would be even better. Of course, no one should promote a link to your review that bypasses the beginning of the video and skips over the disclosure. If YouTube has been enabled to run ads during your video, a disclosure that is obscured by ads is not clear and conspicuous.
I'm an affiliate marketer with links to an online retailer on my website. When people read what I've written about a particular product and then click on those links and buy something from the retailer, I earn a commission from the retailer. What do I have to disclose? Where should the disclosure be?
If you disclose your relationship to the retailer clearly and conspicuously on your site, readers can decide how much weight to give your endorsement.
In some instances – like when the affiliate link is embedded in your product review – a single disclosure may be adequate. When the review has a clear and conspicuous disclosure of your relationship and the reader can see both the review containing that disclosure and the link at the same time, readers have the information they need. You could say something like, "I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post." But if the product review containing the disclosure and the link are separated, readers may lose the connection.
As for where to place a disclosure, the guiding principle is that it has to be clear and conspicuous. The closer it is to your recommendation, the better. Putting disclosures in obscure places – for example, buried on an ABOUT US or GENERAL INFO page, behind a poorly labeled hyperlink or in a "terms of service" agreement – isn't good enough. Neither is placing it below your review or below the link to the online retailer so readers would have to keep scrolling after they finish reading. Consumers should be able to notice the disclosure easily. They shouldn't have to hunt for it.
Is "affiliate link" by itself an adequate disclosure? What about a "buy now" button?
Consumers might not understand that "affiliate link" means that the person placing the link is getting paid for purchases through the link. Similarly, a "buy now" button would not be adequate.
Wow. After reading these questions I know that most of the "influencers" I know are violating FTC Rules. I hope this was helpful to my fellow bloggers. For my readers, know that I will make my best effort to make sure that my blog posts are in line with FTC requirements.


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March 26, 2017
I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light
© 1970, 1975 Celebration. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License .NET, no. 100011256.
The sign of the cross may be made by all in remembrance of their Baptism.
P In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C Amen.
P If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
C But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Silence for reflection on God's Word and for self-examination.
During this time, it may be helpful to ponder these words of the Small Catechism:
Consider your place in life according to the Ten Commandments.
• Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, or worker?
• Have you been disobedient, unfaithful, or lazy?
• Have you been hot-tempered, rude, or quarrelsome?
• Have you hurt someone by your words or deeds?
• Have you stolen, been negligent, wasted anything, or done any harm?
P Let us then confess our sins to God our Father.
C Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved You with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve Your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your holy name. Amen.
P Almighty God in His mercy has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins. As a called and ordained servant of Christ, and by His authority, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C Amen.
My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
for he will pluck my feet out of the net.
One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.
For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock.
And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen.
My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
for he will pluck my feet out of the net.
The Hymn of Praise is omitted during Lent.
Salutation and Collect of the Day
P Let us pray.
Almighty God, our heavenly Father, Your mercies are new every morning; and though we deserve only punishment, You receive us as Your children and provide for all our needs of body and soul. Grant that we may heartily acknowledge Your merciful goodness, give thanks for all Your benefits, and serve You in willing obedience; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
How can water do such great things?
Certainly not just water, but the word of God in and with the water does these things, along with the faith which trusts this word of God in the water. For without God's word the water is just plain water and no baptism. But with the word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new birth in the Holy Spirit,
as St. Paul says in Titus, chapter three: "He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying." (Titus 3:5-8)
Bible Passages
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. –Mark 16:16a (NIV)
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, –Ephesians 5:25-26
Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you… through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. – 1 Peter 3:21
We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. –Romans 6:6-7
Old Testament Reading
14For a long time I have held my peace;
I have kept still and restrained myself;
now I will cry out like a woman in labor;
I will gasp and pant.
15I will lay waste mountains and hills,
and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn the rivers into islands,
and dry up the pools.
16And I will lead the blind
in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known
I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness before them into light,
the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I do,
and I do not forsake them.
17They are turned back and utterly put to shame,
who trust in carved idols,
who say to metal images,
"You are our gods."
18Hear, you deaf,
and look, you blind, that you may see!
19Who is blind but my servant,
or deaf as my messenger whom I send?
Who is blind as my dedicated one,
or blind as the servant of the Lord?
20He sees many things, but does not observe them;
his ears are open, but he does not hear.
21The Lord was pleased, for his righteousness' sake,
to magnify his law and make it glorious.
A This is the Word of the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
[O come, let us fix our eyes on] Jesus,
the founder and perfecter of our faith,
who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame,
and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
8for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9(for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
"Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you."
A This is the Word of the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
Verse for Lent
Holy Gospel
P The Holy Gospel according to St. John, the ninth chapter.
1As [Jesus] passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.
2And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" 3Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." 6Having said these things, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud 7and said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.
13They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, "He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see." 16Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them. 17So they said again to the blind man, "What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet."
34They answered him, "You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?" And they cast him out.
35Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" 36He answered, "And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?" 37Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you." 38He said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him. 39Jesus said, "For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind."
P This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Children's Sermon
The children of the congregation are invited to come forward and be seated in the first pew for a brief children's message.
Amazing Grace
© 1991 Editorial Concordia. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License .NET, no. 100011256.
Public domain
(Click on link above to hear the sermon.)
Nicene Creed
C I believe in one God,
the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth
and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only-begotten Son of God,
begotten of His Father before all worlds,
God of God, Light of Light,
very God of very God,
begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father,
by whom all things were made;
who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven
and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary
and was made man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate.
He suffered and was buried.
And the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures
and ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of the Father.
And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead,
whose kingdom will have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord and giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified,
who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church,
I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins,
and I look for the resurrection of the dead
and the life + of the world to come. Amen.
Prayer of the Church
Following the prayers, the people may greet one another in the name of the Lord, saying, "Peace be with you," as a sign of reconciliation and of the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Matt. 5:22–24; Eph. 4:1–3).
Prayer Intentions
Today's service includes the celebration of Holy Communion, that blessed Sacrament where our Lord comes to us in His True Body and Blood by means of the elements of bread and wine. Because reception of the Lord's Supper is part of continuing pastoral care and can be taken to our spiritual harm rather than good (1 Cor. 11:29f.), we ask that visitors please speak with the pastor before receiving the Sacrament or wait until returning to your home parish to receive the Sacrament from your own pastor. If you did not do so last week, please remember to fill out a Communion Registration Card (in the pew rack in front of you) and place the card in the offering basket, give it to an usher, or hand it to pastor on your way out of church today.
Those desiring to receive the Blood of our Lord from the Chalice are asked to hold out their hands as Pastor walks by to make it easier for him to see.
P It is truly good, right, and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks to You, holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who overcame the assaults of the devil and gave His life as a ransom for many that with cleansed hearts we might be prepared joyfully to celebrate the paschal feast in sincerity and truth. Therefore with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven we laud and magnify Your glorious name, evermore praising You and saying:
Prayer of Thanksgiving
P Blessed are You, Lord of heaven and earth, for You have had mercy on those whom You created and sent Your only-begotten Son into our flesh to bear our sin and be our Savior. With repentant joy we receive the salvation accomplished for us by the all-availing sacrifice of His body and His blood on the cross.
Gathered in the name and the remembrance of Jesus, we beg You, O Lord, to forgive, renew, and strengthen us with Your Word and Spirit. Grant us faithfully to eat His body and drink His blood as He bids us do in His own testament. Gather us together, we pray, from the ends of the earth to celebrate with all the faithful the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom, which has no end. Graciously receive our prayers; deliver and preserve us. To You alone, O Father, be all glory, honor, and worship, with the Son and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
Lord's Prayer
P Lord, remember us in Your kingdom and teach us to pray:
C Our Father who art in heaven,
The Words of Our Lord
P Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to the disciples and said: "Take, eat; this is My + body, which is given for you. This do in remembrance of Me."
Pax Domini
Agnus Dei
Thee We Adore, O Hidden Savior
© 1998, 2006 Concordia Publishing House. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License .NET, no. 100011256.
Public domain
Alternate Tune: Old 124th (LSB #637)
Post-Communion Canticle
Nunc Dimittis
Post-Communion Collect
A Let us pray.
We give thanks to You, almighty God, that You have refreshed us through this salutary gift, and we implore You that of Your mercy You would strengthen us through the same in faith toward You and in fervent love toward one another; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Praise the One Who Breaks the Darkness
© 1987 Hope Publishing Co. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License .NET, no. 100011256.
Silent Prayer
Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2006 Concordia Publishing House.

subset: commoncrawl


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A Wise Woman and a King
Svetlana Kovalkova-McKenna
This book is available for download with iBooks on your Mac or iOS device, and with iTunes on your computer. Books can be read with iBooks on your Mac or iOS device.
A fairytale for girls who take charge of their own destiny!
A Wise Woman with three daughters, who lives in harmony with nature, a greedy King with three sons, who wants to rule everything and everybody!
Three princes with no kingdom to rule. Three fantastic strong daughters: an herbalist, a musician and a jeweler. Will the princes be able to keep up with the girls? Read to find out.
- $1.99
- Category: Fairy Tales, Myths & Fables
- Published: Sep 10, 2009
- Publisher: Svetlana Kovalkova-McKenna
- Seller: Smashwords
- Print Length: 52 Pages
- Language: English


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Before Lithium Came Into The Picture, Nickel Cadmium Was An Important Component Of Cell Phone Batteries.
At the same time, the critics also highlight the fact that the device which was predominantly devised for communication and entertainment of our DNA structure and robs the DNA of their ability to repair themselves. Moreover, the legal implications, fines, or lengthy jurisdiction procedures cannot reverse have suddenly started showing concern over knowing more about radiation levels of various cell phone models and ways to incorporate radiation protection measures for themselves as well as their surroundings. These plans are also a great idea for those who have aspects you must look out for when making the purchase. Graham Bell invented the telephone, making communication simple!" The World Has Become a Smaller you can commit while you are on the cell phone.
They are generally cheaper, and do not perform phone bug is probably the most popular and common in use. Cell Phone Listening Devices Advertisement Surveillance demands a lot are light in weight and offer flexibility in shape. Also, if you are suspicious about a particular number, you that make your simple cell phone into an information mine. A cell phone has made communication so feasible that you can actually talk to phones, you should have a proper track on at least the top models of all the companies.
You will also like to read


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Accommodation for St Andrews University Open Days
St Andrews University remains one of the most sought centres of higher education in the world and throughout the year the university hold a number of Visitor Days to allow prospective undergraduate students, parents and guardians the opportunity to experience the University's unique atmosphere and see for themselves the quality of the teaching on offer.
The Inn is delighted to offer a special rate to any visiting groups for accommodation bookings made online. Simply check the dates and reserve your accommodation.
What To Expect
During your visit you will have the opportunity to:
- Meet with experienced advisers and academic staff to learn more about your intended subject areas and the support available to you.
- Take in a student-led university town tour.
- Visit university halls of residence.
- Find out about life beyond the classroom.


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No products in the cart.
Our Special Offers
Special Offers this month
We have a selection of special offers and coupons for you here. We are always adding new offers and coupons on our Facebook page and with our news letters. Like us or subscribe to our newsletters to get the latest deals.


text: 31 days of halloween day 4 Get link Facebook Twitter Pinterest Google+ Email October 04, 2013 YAY it's Friday! for my piece today I have made this digital card using paper and stamp from smeared ink, all the other pieces are from daisy trail set and the whole thing was put together in craft artist. Get link Facebook Twitter Pinterest Google+ Email Comments Anonymous said… Forgot to say the backing paper is from smeared ink too, and my phone won't let me log into my own blog! Lol Shell 4 October 2013 at 09:57 ldfdesign said… That is a great skeleton, love the grumpie in the background. 4 October 2013 at 11:18 monique said… fabulous card, creepy skelly 4 October 2013 at 12:33 DonnaMundinger said… Too funy! Love him doin' the "Happy Dance". Enjoy your day today, Shell. xxD 4 October 2013 at 13:45 DogsMom said… Spooky yet festive! 4 October 2013 at 15:21 silvia said… Fabulously fun skeleton!! 4 October 2013 at 15:32 Kelli said… This is so cute!!! LOL that the phone wont let you log in!!! 4 October 2013 at 17:09 ionabunny said… So cool. 4 October 2013 at 17:27 Lyneen said… LOVE "DANCE FOR JOY"!!!!! Only a skeleton would dance for joy on Halloween!!!! GREAT CARD! 4 October 2013 at 17:33 Sharon Sahl said… Beautiful layout and elements in your digital composition! 4 October 2013 at 18:18 Leigh S-B - The Sharpie Domino Queen said… Spooktacular digi creation today Shell, love the dancing skellie and that red background is scrumptious! 4 October 2013 at 19:04 KC said… lol this kinda made me giggle :) this is great and of course I love the papers...you did an amazing digi job! 4 October 2013 at 23:58 Melodee Isaacs said… EEEKKK he almost stepped on that baby grumpie!!! LOL 5 October 2013 at 00:44 Emily Thubbron said… Love that skeleton. He looks like he has a mohawk..LOL Great digi card. 5 October 2013 at 00:47 Wendy said… What a fun digital creation. Love all the stamps and images you combined. 5 October 2013 at 00:50 Carla said… Lovely digi creation...you are so talented! 5 October 2013 at 02:04 Ally White Cat said… This is fun and beautiful! I love what you did here..you are so inspiring. 5 October 2013 at 04:31 Steph said… Fab digi creation. Love the bold red. 5 October 2013 at 05:56 maureenjscott said… Fabulous digi card! love the skelly and the 'happy halloween' font! mo x 5 October 2013 at 08:46 Matney said… There is that background paper again! That skelli is dancing til' the last of his hair falls out! Awesome! 5 October 2013 at 13:08 Post a Comment


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Life Groups
New Life Groups Begin Soon!
Life Groups are a small group of people who make a commitment to get together in a home setting on a regular basis for friendships, open and honest sharing, prayer, accountability, and the use of practical Biblical material.Life Groups are the heart of Bible Fellowship Church!Purpose: To provide an opportunity for the participants to experience accelerated spiritual growth by developing a deeper relationship with God, others and self.Format: We usually begin with food and fellowship, followed by prayer and open discussion on Biblical material, and we close with a time of prayer.Childcare: Childcare will be available at most Life Groups.
There will be several Life Group's offered at various times throughout the year.
LIFE GROUPS... A Place To Grow.


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Our clients are related to big names in the entertainment and music industry like Chance The Rapper, 21 Savage, Young MA and so many others.
By the success of our work, some artists already got their social media verified, on top in a lot of charts like MTV, Spinnin' Records, ReverbNation and spotted in major tabloids like AXS, CBS, NBC, BET, COMPLEX.
The list goes on and on.


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Sometimes you run across someone who completely inhabits your own world view. He completely gets you. Knows where you're coming from. Knows where you've been. He brings a warm, familiar, and happy feeling, like a country song that ends well.
Scotch.IO, the web site, is like that for me.
Scotch.IO is the site of a design and development firm out of Las Vegas and D.C.
What completely wins me over — and this is key — is that Scotch.IO loves to share. It shows me what's new. It shows me how to do things. Scotch.IO makes me a better person. The site is about tips and tutorials biased toward around the MEAN stack and modern Web development tools and techniques and everything I, myself, hold dear.
The content is all original, but it's all so consistently excellent and on the mark that it seems curated. The perfect web site for me. I'm in love.


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John Barchard & Matt Dering wrap up the season, talk about the coaching candidates, what they are expecting this offseason and a lot more!
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I know I'm not the only one who stalks Adriana Lima's Instagram page on the regular. And I know I'm not the only gal out there who covets practically any sports bra Alessandra Ambrosio trys on. So I wanna see some hands. Who else is dying to know where all of the picture-perfect Brazilians are shopping for their workout wear?
Well it's too darn ironic that about a month ago, Silvia Skufca, the owner of Charlotte's The Track & Field Store reached out to me to see if I would be interested in checking out the brand's newest collection (which just so happened to be spotted on Brazilian beauties Arine Pellegrini and Laisa Rocha). It took me all of a millisecond to excitedly oblige, because spending the afternoon playing dress-up in workout clothes is pretty much what I live for. Total no-brainer.
So after a morning of rummaging through drool-worthy lycras and nylons, I picked out a stunning combination: the seductive Nature Bra + the effortless Power Cool Jacket + the memorizing Fluid Tights. I took the dreamy ensemble for a spin (and was lucky enough to have the talented Logan Fincher capture all of my Rocky-esque training moments) and then I found myself wearing it for the next three days. Yup, I had fallen so deeply in love with the look, that it was going to take an army of laundry police to make me switch to a pair of jeans again.
But apart from spending the perfect day prancing around in luxurious fitnesswear, I also got the chance to pick Silvia's brain about this fit-fashion brand that has been spotted in every yoga, barre, and cycling studio in our city. And what I discovered might just make you give your worn-in Wunder-Under's a run for their money…
That's right, watch out Lululemon, because there's a new activewear empire in town. The Track & Field Store may be a new concept to the US, but in Brazil, it is the country's largest fitness brand. And we're pretty lucky, us Charlotteteans. Because we get to have a taste of this hot Brazilian label, despite the brand's super exclusive presence in America, with stores only in New York, Miami, and very own Queen City!
So if you venture over to the heart of SouthPark Mall, you will see that the store is arranged in a boutique-like setup with color-coordinated sections (the type-A in me did backflips when I spotted this dreamy organization 😍 ). The clothes are impeccably organized by collection, which helps you visualize your entire outfit in just one glance. And if you're still having difficulty pairing your polyesters, the staff is super accommodating and knowledgable about the DO's and DONT's of fitness fashion. (Not to mention I'm pretty positive all of them were Brazilian models in a past life…)
When I think of who should be wearing this label, I think of the die-hard athletes, who want to train in elite performance wear, no matter the season. Or the active moms who have just enough time to squeeze in a barre class before it's back to running around town. And it's for those of us who want to look trendy throughout the day, while still being about to workout at any given moment (at least that's my excuse when I'm too lazy to change out of my workout clothes post-gym sesh: "Oh, you know, I might squeeze another one in today…" 😉 ).
Basically, it's for everyone. Even the fellas and the little ones. Because this posh athleisure brand was designed for anyone who values comfort, performance, and most of all, style. And I'm 98% sure that's pretty much all of us. But on the off chance you do find yourself in that 2% who prefers to blend with your itchy black cotton leggings, then shine on, because this is not the brand for you.
See, T&F is bold. It's unique and it's sexy: the kind of sexy that only Brazilian designers know about. The fabrics are hand-made with innovative technologies to make sure they are working with your movements, and not against them. And somehow every legging in the store knows how to magically tuck in those undesirable bulges we're forever trying to shed. (I knew from first try-on that I would be best friends with the high-waisted Sprint leggings forever.)
But wanna know my favorite part about T&F? This brand keeps you guessing. Every few months, you will find a new collection in the store, and every 2 weeks, I can guarantee you will find me rummaging through it. The patterns are exclusive, the colors are spot-on, and I can confidently rock these threads knowing that I'm going to kill my workouts and I'm going to look damn good doing so.
So remember when I convinced you that buying a new workout outfit is actually good for your health? Well I'm kinda thinking now's the perfect time to put this theory to the test. If you're in the Charlotte area, I dare you to swing by The Track & Field Store, indulge in some retail therapy, and leave feeling like the Brazilian bombshell you are meant to be.
Also, be sure to mention code "NATH15" to receive 15% off of your next purchase! And if you're not located in Charlotte, T&F takes phone/email orders and ships anywhere in the US!
Happy shopping!
[Images via Logan David Fincher.]


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FSN Dressline Stylish Spring Summer Pallzzo Pants 2013
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At the most amazing lowest prices, our dresses would not add to your beauty, but also add that oomph factor you always wanted. Owned by 3 young friends (Shahana Zaidi, Nida Salim and Farwah Fatima) totally passionate about fashion, FSN dressline is the brand you always desired. This new Spring Summer Collection 2013 includes some casual wear shirts for ladies.
All dresses are really stylish and have been formed while keeping in view the latest style in Pakistan. Thus, you will see color blocked shirts in the collection. Other shirts are mostly embroidered. Some shirts are included in FSN Dressline spring collection 2013. Modern tights with the shirts are available. For sleeveless shirts in this collection by FSN Dressline, sleeves are also offered. Now take a look at FSN Dressline Stylish Spring Summer Collection 2013 For Girls…
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text: This booklet neither aims to hurt anyone's feelings nor do we wish ill to anyone. Our mission is only to communicate the message of God and make people realize the purpose of their existence; as we believe that the only way to reform the society is to realize the purpose of our existence and lead a life of obedience to our Creator – God Almighty. If we do so, then there is no doubt that the world will be a much better place to live in.


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For the 2017 season I'm working with my good friend Matt Gordon at Cully Neighborhood Farm to produce CSA shares in Portland, OR. Surf over to his site to get more details on that CSA.
Slow Hand Farm CSA started in 2009 and ran for four years. Archives from those beginnings can be found at the old CSA blogspot site. In 2013 I folded the CSA into a project initiated by Community By Design which became Our Table Cooperative. In 2016 I started working with my friend Matt at Cully Neighborhood Farm and I also grew a bit of corn, beans and squash for sale on the side at a nearby site. I've continued to use the Slow Hand Farm name for sales of the corn, beans and squash and for the consulting, contract, and design work that I do with Cully Neighborhood Farm and many others.
If you're interested in buying dry corn, winter squash, or dry beans from Slow Hand Farm They are usually available in small quantities in the fall. Keep an eye on the blog for announcements about availability.


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Q: I've always been told I have to use "since" when referring to time and "because" when referring to cause. Is that true?
A: While "because" does imply cause, "since" can imply time or cause. What does that mean? It means that most of the time these words are synonymous and you can use either one.
Since my dog is so hairy, I have to get its hair cut regularly.
Because my dog is so hairy, I have to get its hair cut regularly.
Both of these sentences are correct. The only trap you have to watch out for when using "since" is ambiguity.
Since we had breakfast, we were filled with energy.
This lets you wonder, were we filled with energy because of breakfast or just after breakfast?
Check Out These Great Upcoming Writers' Conferences:
- Feb. 16–19, 2017: San Francisco Writers Conference (San Francisco, CA)
- Feb. 26–March 3, 2017: Writers Winter Escape Cruise (Miami)
- May 6, 2017: Seattle Writers Conference (Seattle, WA)
- May 19-21, 2017: PennWriters Conference (Pittsburgh, PA)
- May 20, 2017: Get Published in San Diego (San Diego, CA)
- June 24, 2017: The Writing Workshop of Chicago (Chicago, IL)
- July 15, 2017: All Write Now Conference (Southeast Missouri State, MO)
- Aug. 18–20, 2017: Writer's Digest Conference (New York, NY)
Want other Grammar Rules? Check out:
Who vs. Whom
Which vs. That
Raise vs. Rise
Sneaked vs. Snuck
Ensure vs. Insure
Home in vs. Hone in
Leaped vs. Leapt
Thanks for visiting The Writer's Dig blog. For more great writing advice, click here.
Brian A. Klems is the editor of this blog, online editor of Writer's Digest and author of the popular gift book Oh Boy, You're Having a Girl: A Dad's Survival Guide to Raising Daughters.
Follow Brian on Twitter: @BrianKlems
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New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoe Review
[easyazon_image add_to_cart="no" align="left" asin="B005UK9ZW4″ cloaking="yes" height="160″ localization="yes" locale="US" nofollow="yes" new_window="yes" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41cbx16w-pL._SL160_.jpg" tag="shoforplafas-20″ width="160″]It has been a long time since the New Balance Company has decided to honor the athletes and to serve them by continuously providing various efficient and worthy sportswear and shoes. They help in promoting the fitness and health of people through engaging in exercises and several workout activities. They focus on the athletes and not on the artists that they seldom have endorsements with.
They do not spend much on endorsement and advertising. They lend much of their money to the improvement and assurance of the quality of their shoes. To be able to attain such goal, the New Balance Company has done several researches and studies. They ended up with several efficient and suitable shoes for their customers. One of which is the New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoe.
Who Could Buy/Benefit from Women's WW928WS Walking Shoe
The New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoes are for women who love to brisk walk often and those who are recovering from diabetes. Working out and exercising with this New Balance Shoes will be of great help to them.
New Balance Women Walking Laced Shoe Description
The same as the New Balance walking shoes for men, the New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoes are also some of the products of the company from their consistent hard work and dedication to help in the promotion of sports. These New Balance Shoes for women are installed with developed and nourished rollbar with an Energy to be able to have a more accessible ride.
The motion control walking shoe is made up of leather and is delivering the finest possible quality of stability and cushioning. The shoe is also made while considering the health of people. So, they can also be used by people with diabetes for a faster recovery.
New Balance Women's WW928WS Walking Shoe Features[easyazon_block add_to_cart="yes" align="right" asin="B005UK9ZW4″ cloaking="yes" layout="top" localization="yes" locale="US" nofollow="yes" new_window="yes" tag="shoforplafas-20″]
The New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoe is composed of leather entirely.
- The New Balance walking shoes for women are with rubber sole for protection and stability.
- The athletes can now have their best walking shoes with the product.
- Their health and movement control are beneficial and advantageous for the customers.
- They are also innovative and created in accordance to the present generation.
The New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoe has various sizes that you can choose from. They are available globally and at affordable prizes. Their performance and quality will not easily depreciate as time goes by. You can make sure that the product is of good quality.
The New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoe should be worn only when it is essential. Do not overuse them to avoid bad conditions. If your feet are also big, it is natural that the shoes will be tight for you at the beginning, but as time passes by, the shoes will just adjust to the size of your feet and will give the comfort that you might be looking for.
Customer Reviews and Scores
Out of 49 customers who reviewed this product, 29 of them gave a perfect 5 star rating with an average rating of 4.2 stars. Their comments have shown that the New Balance shoes are well-made, spacious and are good for walking.
So, what are you waiting for? The New Balance Women's WW928WS Health Walking Laced Shoes are available. Go and have some of them. They will be your protectors and comforters all along the way.


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DIMON - level 1
Game 1
This is my new game and an early Christmas treat for all my visitors! The name is derived from the diamond shape and the nature of the game takes its qualities from the hardness or toughness of the precious stone itself. A surprisingly simple format which has a nasty kick in later levels - Beware ;0)
How to play
You create words which will fill the grid. The words will read horizontally and vertically and naturally all the words will interlink. There will be no repeats of any words in each single game.
I will put a letter within each grid to start each game for you.
As this is level 1 - it's a nice easy 'primer'...as things get more scary later on!!
Game 2
Same rules apply henceforth for all games and levels, up to level 4 (I haven't even tried level 5 yet!!)
Game 3
Game 4
Game 5
Dum de dum di da de... ditto!!
Dimon level 2


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Reviews from Russellville, AR(Show all)
Woody's Automotive GroupNovember 9, 2012
Russellville Missouri Lincoln Customer says, "Very pleasant experience."
by Ruby and Carl Frederking (Russellville, AR) on November 9, 2012
Salesperson: Cory Huffmon
Department: Sales
Woody's Automotive Group310 South Washington
Chillicothe, Missouri 64601
(877) 271-1228
Posted reviews are made public in an effort to better serve our clients and to improve our business in the future.
Average rating for
Woody's Automotive Group:
2839 reviews already posted on this site!


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Asian equities traded with caution after US equity futures saw pressure following the latest developments in the FBI saga
JPY strengthened as the cautious tone triggered flows into safe-haven assets which saw USD/JPY break firmly below 113.00
Looking ahead, highlights include the UK labour report, Eurozone CPI and the DoE Inventory report
Asian equities traded cautious amid weakness in energy and US political concerns after reports of a memo from former-FBI Director Comey which stated that President Trump urged him to drop the investigation into former National Security Adviser Flynn. This pressured US equity futures across the board and set the negative tone for both the ASX 200 (-0.8%) and Nikkei 225 (-0.6%), while touted profit taking by pension funds and poor Machinery Orders added to the disappointment in Japan. Shanghai Comp. (-0.1%) and Hang Seng (-0.2%) traded choppy, although somewhat outperformed their regional counterparts after the PBoC injected CNY 140bln via open market operations and regulators approved the Bond Connect scheme which would allow foreign investors access to mainland China's USD 9.5tln bond market. 10yr JGBs were initially supported alongside gains in T-notes as the risk averse sentiment spurred a flight to safety, while the BoJ were also in the market for a total of JPY 1.03tln of JGBs with 1yr-10yr maturities. However, JGBs then failed to sustain the upside, with prices retreating throughout the session.
Mainland China and Hong Kong regulators approved the cross-border link that will allow overseas investors access to the mainland's USD 9.5tln bond market. The program will run alongside the 2 connect schemes already in place and will begin with 'northbound' trading first, with the official launch date of the scheme and timing for 'southbound' trade to be announced at a later date. (CEN)
PBoC injected CNY 110bln in 7-day reverse repos and CNY 30bln in 14-day reverse repos. (Newswires)
PBoC set CNY mid-point at 6.8635 (Prev. 6.8790)
ECB's Coeure stated that the recent rise in long-term yields hasn't affected ECB policy. (Newswires)
JPY strengthened as the cautious tone triggered flows into safe-haven assets which saw USD/JPY break firmly below the 113.00 handle, while AUD was mildly lower after weaker than expected Consumer Confidence data, coupled with a retreat in oil post-APIs. EUR/USD extended on its recent rally to break above the 1.1100 level and as the greenback was pressured by political concerns with the whole Comey situation refusing to fade quietly for President Trump.
S&P affirmed Australia rating at AAA; outlook negative. (Newswires)
WTI crude futures fell early in the session amid an unexpected build in API crude inventories, which saw prices decline around 1% to firmly below the USD 49/bbl level. Copper traded muted overnight amid the cautious tone spurred on by the US political situation, which in turn benefitted gold (+0.5%) due to safe-haven flows.
US API Crude Oil Inventory Report (May 12) W/W 882K (Prev. -5789K)
US President Trump asked ex-FBI Director Comey to close the investigation into Trump's former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, according to news reports citing a Comey memo. However, the White House denied this and stated that US President Trump never asked Comey to end probe of Michael Flynn, while there were also reports that the US House Oversight Committee Chaffetz Chair stated that the subpoena pen was ready for the Comey memo and demanded all related FBI documents. (NYTimes/NBC/Newswires)
US President Trump's disclosure endangered a spy placed within ISIS by Israel, according to ABC News citing current and former US officials. (ABC News)


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Using phylogenies in community ecology is now commonplace, but typically, studies assume and test for a single common phylogenetic signal for all species in a community, at a given scale. A possibility that remains little-explored is that species differing in demographic or ecological attributes, or facing different selective pressures, show different community phylogenetic patterns, even within the same communities. Here I compare community phylogenetic patterns for fire-killed and fire-resistant Banksia species in the fire-prone shrublands of southwest Australia.
Using new Bayesian phylogenies of Banksia, together with ecological trait data and abundance data from 24 field sites, I find that fire regeneration mode influences the phylogenetic and phenotypic signal of species co-occurrence patterns. Fire-killed species (reseeders) show patterns of phylogenetic and phenotypic repulsion consistent with competition-driven niche differentiation, but there are no such patterns for fire-resistant species (resprouters). For pairs of species that differ in fire response, co-occurrence is mediated by environmental filtering based on similarity in edaphic preferences.
These results suggest that it may be simplistic to characterize an entire community by a single structuring process, such as competition or environmental filtering. For this reason, community analyses based on pairwise species co-occurrence patterns may be more informative than those based on whole-community structure metrics.
Phylogenetic information is now commonly employed in analyses of species co-occurrence and community assembly, as a way of explaining patterns of species distributions and diversity [1-4]. Community phylogenetic studies have increased steadily in sophistication over the past decade. For example, the effects of spatial and phylogenetic scale have been explored [5-7], and null models for phylogenetic community structure have been developed [6,8]. More generally, the idea that patterns of phylogenetic attraction (where close relatives are more likely to co-occur than expected by chance) and repulsion (where close relatives are less likely to co-occur) can act as a proxy for ecological processes is now regarded more critically. It is generally agreed that phylogenetic and phenotypic patterns should be analysed simultaneously if informative inferences about processes are to made [6].
One assumption that remains common in community phylogenetics, however, is the idea that the structure of a community is governed by an overarching process, such as competition or environmental filtering, that applies to all species in the community. This assumption is implicit in whole-community metrics of phylogenetic community structure such as NRI and NTI [4]. While some studies provide evidence for the simultaneous operation of competition and environmental filtering, often depending on spatial or phylogenetic scale [5-7], the assumption that the same process applies to all species in a community, at a given scale, is typically still made. However, ecological processes such as competitive exclusion occur at the level of individuals, populations or species, not communities. The structure of a community is simply an emergent property that results from the influence of such processes on the combined distributions of multiple species within a region. Therefore, it is possible that whole-community metrics obscure much informative variation in phylogenetic structure by "averaging out" the patterns of occurrence or abundance of different species within a community. An alternative approach is to analyse the phylogenetic and phenotypic signal of pairwise co-occurrences among species across a set of communities (e.g. [9-11]. This approach treats species pairs, rather than communities, as the units of analysis, more easily allowing patterns of co-occurrence to be examined separately for species with different demographic and ecological attributes.
In this study I compare the phylogenetic and phenotypic signal of co-occurrence patterns of plant species that differ in fire-regeneration strategy, in the Mediterranean-climate shrublands of southwestern Australia. This ecosystem type is exceptionally species-rich, but is still poorly represented among community phylogenetic studies (but see [11-13]. In these shrublands, fires are frequent, with average recurrence intervals around 10–15 years [14]. Some authors have argued that in these highly disturbed, non-equilibrium communities, classic theories of species coexistence through niche differentiation are less realistic than models of coexistence based on lottery recruitment and the availability of transient niches [14-19]. Other studies in Mediterranean shrublands have found evidence for patterns that may be competition-driven, such as niche differentiation [20] or phylogenetic overdispersion [11].
There are two main strategies for coping with fire within Mediterranean-climate floras. Resprouters survive fire and regenerate from lignotubers, epicormic buds or other structures, and reseeders are killed by fire and replaced by seedlings. Although there are different degrees and modes of resprouting, in Mediterranean-climate shrublands regeneration mode is usually considered a simple dichotomous variable [21]. Essentially, therefore, the flora is divided into two components with fundamentally different demographics: fire-resistant (resprouter) populations are relatively stable, persistent and impervious to disturbance by fire, and fire-killed (reseeder) populations are more variable and susceptible to local extinction after fire [18,21,22].
Do these ecological differences between resprouters and reseeders generate different patterns of association between phylogenetic relatedness, phenotypic similarity, and co-occurrence? Several predictions can be made:
(1) If resprouters are longer-lived with more stable populations, co-occurrence among resprouter species may be influenced by competition for space, soil moisture or nutrients, and by differentiation of species along niche axes associated with the pre-emption of these resources. Among reseeders, on the other hand, co-occurrence may be mediated by the frequency of fire, and its influence on dispersal and colonization, rather than by niche differentiation [22,23]. Under this scenario we would predict phylogenetic and phenotypic repulsion among resprouters, but not among reseeders.
(2) Alternatively, competition may be intense among reseeders, because the pressure to grow rapidly to maturity and set seed within the average fire interval is traded off against the costs of faster growth [24,25]. Hence, co-occurrence among reseeders may be controlled by niche differentiation along life-history axes associated with time to maturity, or environmental gradients such as soil fertility, which influences growth rates [22]. Under this scenario, we would predict phylogenetic and phenotypic repulsion among reseeder species but not among resprouters.
(3) Finally, there may be no difference in the mechanisms of co-occurrence between species differing in regeneration mode, if co-occurrence is determined primarily by processes that apply regardless of regeneration mode.
As a case study for testing these predictions I use the genus Banksia, one of Australia's iconic plant genera and a prominent part of the flora of southwestern Australia. The genus includes 170 species that have radiated into a variety of growth forms, from prostrate ground-covers to shrubs and trees >6 m in height, and includes resprouters and reseeders. Local-scale diversity of Banksia is high: up to twelve species have been recorded from single 10 m x 10 m plots [26]. The analyses presented here are based on surveys of species within plots of two sizes: 20 m x 20 m (0.04 ha) and 200 m x 200 m (4 ha). I begin by quantifying patterns of co-occurrence among pairs of Banksia species within these plots. I then test whether co-occurrence among species pairs is associated with phylogenetic relatedness, regeneration mode, ecological similarity, and similarity in soil type preferences. I interpret co-occurrence patterns in the context of the phylogenetic signal in the different niche dimensions.
Banksia species were surveyed at 24 shrubland sites spread across an arc of the Southwest Botanical Province (SWBP) spanning approximately 250 km (Figure (Figure1).1). At each site, a 200 m x 200 m (4 ha) plot was established and surveyed for the presence of Banksia species. Each 4 ha plot was divided into four quadrants, and one 20 m x 20 m (0.04 ha) plot was randomly placed within each quadrant. In each 0.04 ha plot, the presence and abundance (number of individual plants) of each Banksia species was recorded. The survey data thus comprised species presences within 24 large plots and abundances within 96 small plots. Species abundances were estimated for each 4 ha plot by taking the mean value across the four 0.04 ha plots within it. The species x sites matrices are provided in Additional file 1.
The phylogeny used in this study is a subset pruned from a larger phylogeny of 198 Banksia taxa. This phylogeny was constructed from a combination of chloroplast DNA sequences previously available on GenBank (88 taxa) and newly-generated sequences (110 taxa).Most of the newly-generated sequences are for species of the former genus Dryandra which has recently been merged with Banksia[27], but has not previously been the subject of a complete phylogenetic study. The complete phylogeny of 198 taxa, with a full description of the methods of DNA extraction and sequencing, and phylogeny reconstruction, will be published elsewhere (Cardillo & Pratt, unpublished ms), but below I present a summary of the methods.
Total genomic DNA was extracted from tissue samples of both fresh material and dried herbarium specimens for 110 Banksia taxa (including full species, subspecies and varieties), using a Qiagen DNEasy Plant Mini Kit according to the manufacturer's protocol. Sequencing was carried out at Macrogen, Seoul, Korea; 3656 bp of sequences across five non-coding chloroplast regions (rpl16 intron , psbA/trnH spacer, trnL intron, trnL/trnF spacer, trnT/trnL spacer) were obtained. The 110 new sequences were combined with the 88 sequences from Genbank, then aligned manually using Geneious v5.6.3 [28]. The phylogeny was estimated together with divergence times using a Bayesian analysis in BEAST 1.6.2 [29]. Calibrations were based on ages of the Banksia crown (42Mya, lognormal prior) and stem (62Mya, lognormal prior) estimated from fossil data [30]. To constrain the age of the root node, a normal prior with mean 77Mya was used, based on the estimated divergence time between the lineages leading to Banksia and Hakea / Grevillea in a recent genus-level phylogeny of the Proteaceae [31]. A Yule prior was used for the speciation process, and an uncorrelated lognormal model for variation in rate of molecular evolution [32]. The function modelTest() in the R library phangorn [33] was used to choose an HKY+gamma substitution model. Two separate MCMC chains were run for >40,000,000 generations, sampling trees every 10,000 generations. Sampling adequacy was diagnosed by examining effective sample sizes (ESS) using Tracer 1.5 [29]; the runs were terminated when all parameter values had ESS>300.
The resulting 198-taxon phylogenies include 34 of the 39 Banksia taxa found in the field plots; the maximum clade credibility tree, pruned to include only these 34 taxa, is shown in Figure Figure2.2. To account for phylogenetic uncertainty, most of the phylogeny-based analyses I present here were repeated on 1000 trees sampled evenly from the Bayesian posterior distribution, and I present results as summary values of distributions from this sample.
I compiled a dataset of ecological traits for all Banksia species (see Additional file 2) using information from the standardized species entries in the Flora of Australia [34,35] and in The Dryandras [36]. Data for the following variables were recorded: (1) maximum height (species listed as prostrate were given a height of 0.2 m); (2) mean seed length; (3) fire regeneration mode (resprouter /reseeder); (4) months of the year in which flowering occurs. Height and seed size are both key indicators of major axes of variation in life history strategies of plant species [37-39], and the timing of flowering may be involved in mediating competition and structuring communities [40,41].
Many SWBP species display a high degree of edaphic specialization [42], and the fine-scale mosaic of soil types is suspected to play a role in generating and maintaining the region's high species richness [14,43]. I therefore focused on edaphic gradients to analyse the influence of environmental filtering. In each 0.04 ha plot I collected four soil samples, which were aggregated and analysed by the Environmental Analysis Laboratory, Southern Cross University, for concentrations of calcium, potassium, nitrate, phosphorus and silicon, and for pH and organic matter content (see Additional file 3).
Where species have originated allopatrically and remained geographically separated, metrics of co-occurrence of species across a set of sites could detect significant negative co-occurrences that may simply be the result of speciation history rather than species interactions or other community assembly processes. This is likely to be common in a group such as Banksia, in which a large proportion of species have highly restricted geographic distributions. To minimize this effect I omitted from the analyses pairs of species with no overlap in geographic distribution. Geographic distributions of species were inferred from georeferenced herbarium records obtained from the Australian Virtual Herbarium (http://chah.gov.au/avh/). I removed records with clearly erroneous location data (e.g. in the sea) or those well outside a species' distribution limits indicated in FloraBase [44]. I then obtained an estimate of the extent of occurrence of each species by using ArcGIS [45] to draw a minimum convex polygon around the set of record locations. These are not intended to be highly resolved reconstructions of the boundaries of species' distributions; they are simply approximations which I used only to judge whether pairs of species overlap geographically. I omitted species pairs with no overlap from further analyses of distance matrices.
After omitting non-overlapping species pairs, the 39 species of Banksia provided 419 pairwise species comparisons. For each pair, I calculated Schoener's index of co-occurrence Cij, a measure of co-occurrence that takes into account the presence or absence of species at each site, as well as their proportional abundances [46]. Co-occurrence was calculated for both plot sizes (0.04 ha and 4 ha), and separately for species pairs where both species are reseeders (174 pairs), where both are resprouters (48 pairs), and where the two species differ in regeneration mode (197 pairs). The calculation of Cij was done using the "species.dist" function in the R library Picante [47].
Of the 39 Banksia species found in the field plots, 34 were included in the phylogeny. Phylogenetic distances among these 34 species were measured as the total length of the branches connecting each pair of species. Differences in height, seed size and length of the flowering period were calculated among all of the 39 species in the field plots. To measure overlap in flowering periods for each species pair, I calculated the number of months in which both species flower, and divided this by the shorter of the lengths (in months) of the flowering periods of the two species. I then subtracted this value from one so that a larger value corresponds to greater dissimilarity in flowering period, for consistency with the other measures of ecological distance. To quantify species' edaphic preferences, I calculated linear regressions of species' log-transformed abundances against the values of each soil type variable, across the 96 small plots. Following Helmus et al. (2007) [8] I took the slopes of these regressions, whether or not they differed significantly from zero, as a measure of each species' association with each soil type variable. The distances between species in these variables were simply the differences in the regression slopes.
All tests for associations among pairwise distance values were done using quantile regression with bootstrapped p-values. Because each species contributes to multiple species pairs, degrees of freedom are inflated and p-values based on standard significance tests are misleading. Bootstrapping avoids this problem by randomizing the dataset and testing significance by comparing p-values to the distribution of random p-values. I tested for associations between co-occurrence and phylogenetic distance, and separately for associations between co-occurrence and each ecological and edaphic distance measure. These tests were done for both 0.04 ha and 4 ha plot sizes, and for resprouters, reseeders and resprouter vs. reseeders separately. Quantile regressions were done using the "quantreg" library in R (http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/quantreg).
Associations between co-occurrence and phylogenetic, ecological and edaphic distances can only be properly interpreted if we know the degree to which ecological traits and edaphic preferences are phylogenetically conserved or labile. To measure the strength of phylogenetic signal in height, seed size, length of flowering period and edaphic preferences, I used Î, a branch-length transformation parameter of the phylogenetic GLS model [48]. I tested the maximum-likelihood estimate of Î against hypotheses of Î=0 (no phylogenetic signal) and Î=1 (phylogenetic signal consistent with Brownian motion model of trait evolution). To test phylogenetic signal in regeneration strategy, I used the D statistic, which is appropriate for use with binary traits [49]. The Î and D statistics were calculated using the "lam.test.single" and "phylo.d" functions in the R library caper (http://r-forge.r-project.org/projects/caper). To measure phylogenetic signal in the overlap in species' flowering periods, I used quantile regression to test for significant associations with phylogenetic distance across species pairs.
I then looked for evidence that recently-separated lineages have diverged rapidly with respect to each niche axis. To do this, I plotted the ages of nodes in the Banksia phylogeny against standardized contrasts in the ecological and soil-preference traits at each node. Typically, contrasts are standardized to a common variance by dividing their absolute value by the square root of the variance expected under a Brownian motion model of trait evolution, which corresponds to the sum of the branch lengths at each node [50]. However, particularly for labile traits, this can result in overstandardization, where contrasts become smaller at deeper nodes because they are being divided by a larger number [51]. To minimize this effect, Garland et al. (1992) recommended transforming the branch lengths of the tree prior to standardizing contrasts. Here I transform branch lengths by raising them to a power κ, then optimizing the value of κ to minimize the correlation between absolute standardized contrasts and their standard deviations [51]. The resulting plots give a visual guide to the patterns of ecological divergence between lineages in each variable. Significant positive outliers on these plots can be interpreted as lineages that have diverged more than expected from their age of separation. Because the branch-length optimization renders slope estimates non-comparable, I applied this test only to the maximum clade credibility tree from the Bayesian analysis, not to the sample of 1000 posterior trees. Contrasts were calculated using the "crunch" function in the R library caper (http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/caper), and functions written by A. Purvis (unpublished).
Across all geographically-overlapping species pairs, there is a positive association between phylogenetic distance and the co-occurrence metric Cij (Table (Table1).1). This indicates a general pattern of phylogenetic repulsion, with co-occurrence less likely among closely-related species. When resprouters and reseeders are tested separately, phylogenetic repulsion is evident among pairs of reseeder species, but there is no significant association among the resprouter species (Table (Table1).1). Among species pairs that differ in regeneration mode, the positive association between phylogenetic distance and Cij remains significant.
There are positive associations between Cij and plant height, for all species pairs and for reseeders only, but no association for resprouters only, or for reseeders vs. resprouters (Table (Table1).1). This indicates phenotypic repulsion among reseeders, such that pairs of species of similar height are less likely to co-occur. There are no significant associations between co-occurrence and seed size, length of the flowering period or degree of overlap in the flowering period (Table (Table11).
Among the soil type variables, nitrate and pH show negative associations with Cij across all species pairs (Table (Table2).2). These associations are not significant among resprouters only or reseeders only, but are significant among species pairs that differ in regeneration mode. This indicates a pattern of environmental attraction among species that differ in regeneration mode: species are more likely to co-occur if they are similar in their response to soil nitrate concentration or pH.
Tests for phylogenetic signal in ecological traits (Table (Table3)3) show that plant height and seed size are phylogenetically conserved, with median maximum likelihood estimates of λ not significantly different from a Brownian model (λ =1), while the length of the flowering period is labile (median λ≈0). Regeneration mode is labile, with median values of D rejecting a Brownian model (D=0). The timing of the flowering period, as measured by quantile regression of flowering period overlap x phylogenetic distance across species pairs, is labile (slope≈0 and p≈1 for all 1000 trees). Species preferences in all edaphic variables, with the exception of organic matter, are phylogenetically labile (Table (Table3),3), with median maximum likelihood estimates of λ not significantly different from λ=0, and significantly different from λ=1. Preference for organic matter content, on the other hand, appears to be conserved (Table (Table33).
Plots of node ages against standardized contrasts provide little evidence that closely-related lineages have diverged rapidly with respect to ecological traits or edaphic preferences (Figures (Figures33 and and4).4). Although many of the slopes of these plots are negative, there are few significant outliers, and few nodes for which divergences are greater than expected from their ages.
The degree to which the high species richness of Mediterranean-climate shrublands is maintained by competition-driven differentiation of functional traits [11,20], or by lottery recruitment and disturbance-mediated coexistence [14,52], is not fully clear. These two models make different predictions about the associations between species co-occurrence, phylogenetic relatedness, and phenotypic similarity. I have shown that for Banksia in southwestern Australia, these associations vary between fire-killed and fire-resistant species, suggesting that the ecological processes that govern co-occurrence and community structure do not necessarily apply uniformly to all species within the same communities.
The three scenarios entertained in the Introduction were that (1) patterns for resprouters but not reseeders are consistent with niche differentiation; (2) patterns for reseeders but not resprouters are consistent with niche differentiation; (3) there are no differences in patterns between resprouters and reseeders. The results provide greatest support for scenario 2, with reseeders, but not resprouters, showing patterns of phylogenetic and phenotypic repulsion consistent with niche differentiation. Of the traits included in this study, maximum adult height appears to play a role in driving the phylogenetic signal of co-occurrences among reseeders, as it shows a pattern of phenotypic repulsion and is strongly phylogenetically conserved. In contrast, the results provide no evidence that seed size, or the length or degree of overlap in flowering period, are associated with patterns of co-occurrence. The adult height attained by a plant species represents a tradeoff between the benefits of greater height, such as greater light interception and seed production, and the costs, such as greater proportional investment in non-reproductive support tissue [24,25]. Height is therefore a key dimension of ecological variation in plants [38] and a potential axis for niche differentiation where competition between species exists [53,54]. The plots of contrasts in height against node ages show no evidence for rapid divergence among closely-related lineages. Height therefore appears to influence the co-occurrence patterns of reseeding Banksia species by ecological sorting (i.e. competitive exclusion) rather than through microevolutionary divergence.
Why should there be evidence of niche differentiation along the axis of height for reseeders, but not for resprouters? There is likely to be selective pressure on reseeder species to grow rapidly and reach full seed production within the average fire recurrence period, favouring a lower adult height [55]. This is traded off against the costs of faster growth and lower adult height, including greater soil nutrient requirements, lower total seed production and reduced seed dispersal capacity [22,25,53]. On the other hand, it is less easy to explain why these selective pressures should be absent in resprouters. It has been observed that some resprouting Banksia species have very low rates of recruitment from seed, and most plants present after a fire are adults that have resprouted, rather than new recruits [23,55]. Furthermore, adult height does not reflect longevity in resprouters as it does in reseeders. Hence, the costs and benefits of rapid growth and lower height may be less critical for resprouters compared to reseeders. Of course, it is also possible that because of the smaller number of pairs of resprouter species (48 compared to 174 reseeder pairs), there was simply less power to detect patterns of phylogenetic and phenotypic repulsion. Another possibility is that there may be other niche dimensions not included in my study that influence co-occurrence patterns among resprouters.
The patterns of phenotypic repulsion based on height are set against a background of environmental filtering, whereby species with similar edaphic preferences (with respect to soil nitrate concentration and pH) are more likely to co-occur. This is consistent with the high degree of specialization to soil types that seems to characterize old, nutrient-impoverished landscapes in southwest Australia and elsewhere [56]. However, it is not obvious why Banksia co-occurrences should be associated with soil nitrate rather than with phosphorus, which is more likely to be the limiting nutrient in the highly weathered soils of southwestern Australia [56,57]. One possibility is that the measures of phosphorus concentration used here were for total phosphorus rather than plant-available forms. Unlike height, species' edaphic preferences are highly labile, so this pattern is essentially independent of relatedness, and thus leaves no signature in the phylogenetic patterns of co-occurrence. The lability of edaphic preferences is consistent with the hypothesis that local-scale specialization to soil types happens rapidly, potentially contributing to rapid speciation rates in Mediterranean-climate shrublands [14,15,58].
My approach to analyzing community phylogenetic patterns based on pairwise co-occurrences is similar to that employed for schoenoid sedges in another Mediterranean-climate shrubland, the Cape Floristic Region, which also found evidence for phylogenetic repulsion [11]. This approach differs from a recent study by Merwin et al.[12] that analyzed phylogenetic structure in Banksia communities using whole-assemblage metrics. In contrast to my finding of phylogenetic repulsion among species pairs, Merwin et al. found that many communities were phylogenetically clustered, indicating that closely-related species are more likely to co-occur. This contrast can most likely be explained as an issue of spatial scale. Their plots spanned a far greater geographical area than mine, and they interpret phylogenetic clustering as the signal of speciation and limited dispersal abilities generating many closely-related but narrowly-distributed species within a given region. In contrast, not only were my plots spread over a smaller area, but I explicitly attempted to minimize the signal of speciation history by omitting non-overlapping pairs of species from the analysis. In this way, my analyses of co-occurrence patterns were more likely to have detected local-scale ecological patterns rather than broad biogeographic effects.
Similarly, my finding of phylogenetic repulsion appears at odds with another recent study that showed that fire regeneration mode can drive phylogenetic clustering through shared adaptation of close relatives to fire-prone environments [13]. Again, the difference can be explained by a difference in scale: the study by Verdu & Pausas [13] examined patterns across two major habitat types, one of which was fire-prone and the other not. At these scales, environmental filtering is likely to predominate over competition; furthermore, fire response in the flora they examined was phylogenetically conserved. This contrasts with Banksia in which regeneration mode is highly labile and its primary influence on community structure appears to be by mediating competitive interactions among species.
Phylogenies are now an integral part of community ecology, and the analysis of community structure and co-occurrence in the context of phylogenetic relatedness has contributed a great deal to our understanding of the ecological processes that govern species distributions and community assembly. However, community phylogenetic studies still commonly assume an overarching ecological structuring process for all species in a community, at a given spatial and phylogenetic scale. The different patterns for fire-killed and fire-resistant Banksia species suggest that this assumption may be simplistic, and that species with different ecological and demographic attributes, and subject to different selective pressures, can show different patterns of phylogenetic and phenotypic structure. Therefore, whole-community metrics of phylogenetic structure such as NRI and NTI may not be the most powerful way of understanding community assembly processes, and analyses of pairwise co-occurrence patterns may be more informative.
The author declares that he has no competing interests.
Species x sites matrices.
Species ecological trait data.
Soil data.
This work was funded by an Australian Research Council QEII Fellowship and Discovery Grant (DP0879971). Thanks to Geoff Kay, Lindell Bromham, Asha Cardillo and Gully Cardillo for assistance in the field, to Neil Gibson and Peter Collins for advice and logistic support, and to Lindell Bromham, Byron Lamont and Tianhua He for comments on the manuscript.
PubMed Central Canada is a service of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) working in partnership with the National Research Council's national science library in cooperation with the National Center for Biotechnology Information at the U.S. National Library of Medicine(NCBI/NLM). It includes content provided to the PubMed Central International archive by participating publishers.


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Doctor insights on:
Pregnancy Loss Obesity
Pregnancy loss prevention site?
Good overview here: Good overview here: http://bit.Ly/jywgzb - dr kutteh "wrote some of the book" on recurrent pregnancy loss (2 miscarriages or more). One study helped find the right treatment for a common immune cause of pregnancy loss (antiphospholipid antibodies), another showed that tests should be done after 2 miscarriages not 3. See reproductive endocrinology / infertility specialist for tests and prevention. ...Read more
Obesity (Definition)
The definition started with Louis Israel Dublin, chief statistician of the Metropolitan life insurance company, in the early 1940s, as a BMI >25 (definitely >30) for people in their 20's based on retrospective observational life insurance data of the age at which people died later in life. This was subsequently adopted by the medical disease industry. However, BMI is ...Read more
Can tramadol result in early pregnancy loss?
Bad idea: You really should not take tramadol during pregnancy. ...Read moreSee 1 more doctor answer
Can anyone recommend any treatment for coping after pregnancy loss?
Support & find cause: Psychological support from friends and family. Counselors are available: OB or fertility clinic can give recommendations. Support from others with infertility or pregnancy loss in online communities. Medically, see a fertility specialist (rei) for possible causes of miscarriage and testing options. 2 losses is recurrent miscarriage, not 3. Some causes can be treated to prevent loss. Best wishes. ...Read more
Can infertility or pregnancy loss emotions be triggered years later?
Yes, variable: Infertility and pregnancy loss are emotional, stressful events in anyone's life. I suspect that this is true for similarly emotional times in people's lives. I am not a psychiatrist but my experience suggests your suspicions are correct. We have great mental health professionals who can assist you dealing with these feelings. Hopefully, you had a successful outcome to balance the losses. ...Read moreSee 2 more doctor answers
What's a normal time frame a person can lactate after pregnancy loss? Is 2 months normal?
Varies: There is no set "normal" time. Factors include the gestational age at the time of loss, body weight, other medications and your natural ability to lactate. ...Read more
I'm 21 and my husband is 31. What is the average time for a healthy couple to conceive after a pregnancy loss? When should consult if nothing happen?
At least 6 mos: It takes an average couple 3 months to get pregnant. I would not seek help until at least 6 months, though up to year is still considered normal. Because there is a high risk of miscarriage again if get pregnant too quickly most docs will recommend waiting 2 months after the miscarriage before trying. ...Read more
Are there symptoms that predict pregnancy loss?
Pain. bleeding: Pelvic pain, bleeding. Cramps, passing of clots and tissue from vagina. ...Read more
What are the tests for recent pregnancy loss?
Testing for cause(s): Many possible causes of recurrent pregnancy loss = 2 or more miscarriages. Blood tests, ultrasound, & Clomid (clomiphene) challenge test for low egg supply. Ultrasound, hysterosalpingogram (hsg) for uterine septum, polyps or fibroids. Blood work for abnormal antibodies, blood clotting disorders, hormonal issues. Sperm test. Chromosome tests, maybe. See a reproductive endocrinology/ infertility (rei) specialist. ...Read more
What are the tests for recurrent pregnancy loss?
Testing for cause(s): Many possible causes of recurrent pregnancy loss = 2 or more miscarriages. Blood tests, ultrasound, & Clomid (clomiphene) challenge test for low egg supply. Ultrasound, hysterosalpingogram (hsg) for uterine septum, polyps or fibroids. Blood work for abnormal antibodies, blood clotting disorders, hormonal issues. Sperm test. Chromosome tests, maybe. See a reproductive endocrinology/ infertility (rei) specialist. ...Read more
Is hyperglycemia be related to the pregnancy loss?
Probably: Diabetes during pregnancy can be a problem or not depending on how closely the diabetes is controlled. Generally, the better the conrtol the better the outcome. Since there was hyperglycemia, it probably was related to the loss. One should realize, however, that pregnency losses can happen in women who do not have diabetes. ...Read more
Pregnancy (Definition)
When your due date arrives, you will be more than ready to have your baby! Most women deliver the baby somewhere between 37 and 42 weeks. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, only 5% of babies arrive on the exact due date. Approximately 7% of babies are not delivered by 42 weeks, and when that happens, it is referred to ...Read more
Pregnancy Loss (Definition)
A miscarriage is the spontaneous loss of a fetus before the 20th week of pregnancy. (Pregnancy losses after the 20th week are called preterm deliveries.) A miscarriage may also be called a "spontaneous abortion." This refers to naturally occurring events, not medical ...Read more
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