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Dear Career Doctor,I did my PhD at Oxbridge in the 1990s, a time when working with animals other than rodents was becoming increasingly difficult and expensive in the UK. As a result we had to abandon what we really wanted to do, and so only one paper has been published so far. Two more (rather weak ones) are in the wings. Both the published paper and one other have the postdoc as the first author because the lab follows the old-fashioned alphabetical order principle. Thus despite the fact that the published work was based on my dissertation, there is no indication of my major contribution. This is quite simply because I had just arrived from India and didn't know what to expect.My first postdoc was at US Ivy League University. There I spent a year getting the lab up and running, but at the end of my second year I had to leave rather hastily as the university administration had bungled my US taxes. I do have a paper from this postdoc, and lots of data (that we are still struggling to comprehend).I am now in a brilliant lab in Canada, one of the best in the field. But this lab produces papers rather slowly, some taking up to 5 years, and my track record is causing me serious worries. Being Indian, the only grants available to me are if I become a faculty member here in Canada, or I move back to the US or the UK as a postdoc again.I am working on a new technique which can revolutionise (I hope) the field of in vivo techniques, but that is still a long way off. Meanwhile I cannot become faculty with a track record that is so poor.What can I do to get out of this quagmire?Mas
Dear Mas,
I'm sorry that your career has been stalled by problems with publishing your work leaving you with less evidence of your research capability than you feel you deserve. You are right to recognise that securing a faculty position is going to be particularly difficult with your track record, and however harsh that may sound you first need to ask yourself how much you want to pursue your dream of academia.
It is perhaps easier in academia than any other career to follow a path without really taking time to work out where you are going. A first degree goes well, so a PhD is the natural next step. The work is interesting, so a postdoc follows. Then you start to think this is all that you are suited to, so another postdoc seems the right thing to do. ? Then suddenly there's nowhere to go. Sadly there are no guarantees that even a good publishing record will lead to a secure academic post in any of the countries you mention.
Take some time to look critically at academia and yourself and make an objective decision about your mutual suitability. You should be approaching your current and former supervisors for feedback on your potential for an academic career. I'm sure that some academics will tell you (for your own benefit) that your chances are small (or worse), but ask them for advice or alternative ideas.
Alternatives to Academe
The good news is that there are alternatives between banging your head on the academic brick wall and leaving research altogether. In my previous column I referred to a change in the relationship between academic research and the commercial environment in the UK, a trend that applies equally across the pond. Look at the Innovations Foundation at the University of Toronto or the Technology Transfer and Business Enterprise unit at the University of Ottawa to see how this global trend is changing research in Canada. These ongoing changes may offer a real opportunity for you, particularly if your belief in the potential revolutionary impact of your research is well placed. So give more thought to the potential applications of your research and the industry areas that may be interested in it.
Of course there are many alternatives and you'll find plenty of resources right here on Next Wave, but in the rest of this column I'll concentrate on ways in which you may be able to pull your career back onto the tenure track.
If you're sure that academia is the right path for you, then you need to stop the drift right now. Set yourself some achievable goals and review your progress regularly (at least every month) to ensure that your career is developing in the right direction. Try to set a few clear objectives to work towards for the next 6 months, and write down in a calendar or diary the times at which you will review your progress.
Learn From Your Experience
To tackle the heart of your problem you must take control of your situation and learn from the problems you've had to date. Identify those elements that you can directly affect (i.e., writing your own manuscripts or preparing funding proposals even if they need significant revision); those elements that you can influence (perhaps the impact of your work in joint publications or the direction of your research in your wider group); and the areas over which you have little or no power (the order of names on publications and eligibility for certain sources of funding).
Concentrate your effort on the actions which will most improve your situation. Ideally these will be consistent with at least some of the demands of your boss, but if not, you need to find or make time for them, even though this probably translates into a significant increase in your workload.
You have learnt the hard way that the only person really committed to your development is yourself and the key measures of that development in academic science are publications and research income. Therefore your first objective is to look back over the work you have done already and identify data that can be published--you mention two papers from your PhD which are still "in the wings". Although you are thousands of miles away from the lab in which the work was done, if you want your contribution to be accurately reflected, you must be involved in the preparation of the manuscript.
Adding to the Publications List
Could you draw attention to your concerns with your former supervisor by sending an amended manuscript in which your work has more impact? Merely voicing your concerns may not be enough given the traditional approach to writing that the lab adopts. PhD students are often "bumped down" the author list, which is frustrating, but as it is commonly known, this doesn't have the same negative impact as it would with later papers. If you can't change the way your PhD research has been used, this experience has shown that you need to present your work more effectively in the future.
I would also try to get more out of your work in the States. Do you think there is anyone else as committed to its publication as you are? If so, contact them and work together to draw out any material which may form a paper. If not, again you need to take the lead on this. This may mean you'll have to work fairly autonomously to prepare the manuscripts--a skill that you definitely need to develop if you are planning to remain in academia--but remember, it is doubtful anyone understands your work as well as you.
You will also have to bear the brunt of the anonymous refereeing process. Referees can be quite brutal, so don't be disheartened. By going through this process you will learn a great deal which will help you as you write up other work. I don't underestimate the effort required to take raw data to publication, but if the work has potential it is important to disseminate it whilst it is still reasonably recent.
Finally, the publication time scale (5 years) that you refer to in your current lab isn't unusual in academic circles, but there are often quicker publication channels available. Many esteemed journals have sister publications for rapid communications--could you write brief papers for these? Can you take control of your current work by focusing on experiments with a better chance of early publication or getting involved in related projects which may lead to papers more quickly? If your group tends to publish in high-impact journals then they might argue that in the long run your career is better served by this approach in terms of the reputation you will build. You need to balance this against your short-term need to boost your publication record--in 5 years you may no longer be in academia.
Generating Research Income
The next barrier to your career path is the other fundamental measure of academic success--research income, so therein lies your second objective. Institutions now look for evidence of success in securing substantial research income when making academic appointments, which is a Catch-22 situation for most postdocs. You have again identified the problem in that you cannot apply for the most generally available funds, so you need to look for alternatives.
As an Indian national working in Canada, you should investigate the fellowships available from the Association of Commonwealth Universities and the programmes managed by the British Council's Scholarship, Training and Exchanges team in India. If you don't appear to meet the eligibility criteria for the programmes on these Web sites, I'd suggest you contact the organisations directly--the staff that manages them may be able to offer you useful advice.
You should also look for help within your current institution. Identify the administrative support and advice that is available to researchers (as an example, check out the services offered by the Research Grants Office at McGill University), and make an appointment to discuss your background and particular issues. Many universities are familiar with a huge range of funding bodies, researchers of all nationalities, and matching up research interests to funding sources.
By now you should be leading the direction of your work and developing your own research agenda. Discuss these ideas with your supervisor in anticipation of preparing a research proposal. This will need a clear sense of purpose and anticipated outcomes. The description of your future research must be convincing and credible. Even if you don't feel ready to apply for your own funding, you need to be developing autonomous ideas for future work.
Raising Your Profile
You also need to build your reputation and raise your profile. Again, look at how other scientists promote themselves and have built their reputations--can you adopt some of these approaches as you begin to network more widely? Conferences can be a particularly effective means to both disseminate your work (once it has been published or at least accepted for publication) and promote yourself to potential research partners. The process of applying to speak at prestigious conferences mirrors elements of grant applications so you will have a chance to develop these skills. Important scientific meetings will attract successful academics and you should make a point of talking to them, perhaps even sending reprints of your work, and discussing their own careers with them. They may be willing to share their insights into academic success, have ideas for funding, or be interested in working with you.
I would also suggest that you contact your professional body and ask for their advice. Many scientific organisations run competitions for researchers at different levels which may also be a means of promoting yourself, raising your credibility, and finding funding.
For more good advice on career management including some specific ideas on making your job work for you, check out the Virtual Career Coach. Part of the Windmills Programme, it includes seven tactics for career success, including career boosting. A book I've found useful is The Chicago Guide to Your Academic Career: A Portable Mentor for Scholars from Graduate School Through Tenure by John A. Goldsmith, John Komlos, Penny Schine Gold--and I liked the friendly, easy-to-read style.
Finally, I hope that you can also recognise the successes in your career to date. Despite your self-confessed naivety and lack of publications, you have managed to work in three highly prestigious institutions. Although you have had problems working overseas, your scientific potential and credibility have overcome the rigorous immigration barriers of three different countries. You have prevailed over a series of research hurdles and maintained your confidence and commitment to your work. If you can take control of your research outputs and apply your tenacity and motivation to managing your career, I'm sure you'll pull yourself out of your current quagmire.
All the best in your career,
The CareerDoctor


text: Our censorship has sort of gotten a little too far. Too much censorship is just as bad as having none at all. Children need to be exposed to things, because if they don't see it, eventually, it's not like it's not going to happen, but it's just that there needs to be a balance.

subset: commoncrawl


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When interviewing for a bank teller position, you want to do everything you can to show the interviewer you are accountable, honest and able to be trusted with large sums of money. While you should always be prepared for common job interview questions, there are teller-specific questions that you'll want to make sure you have practiced before hand.
Why did you choose our bank?
This question says more about you than the bank itself. The interviewer knows that you probably applied to, and perhaps interviewed with, various institutions. He or she is curious about what you think makes them stand apart and why you would be a good fit. Banks tend to have very similar company cultures so be sure incorporate something that would differentiate them from competitors.
"I have been a client of your bank for five years. I believe that gives me an advantage because I know what other clients of your bank are looking for in a teller. I have seen how you all treat your clients and think I would fit in seamlessly here. It is clear that you all are customer driven and have a high standard of professionalism. I appreciate how team-oriented the environment is at your institution. Also, seeing that you all have been in business since 1872 it is apparent that you have maintained a strong sense of tradition. "
What do you know about our bank?
This question is slightly similar to the first, but in most interviews you will be asked both. You should do some research before your interview so that when this question arises you have a few facts to rattle off. Look into the bank's products, mission, core values, etc. and tailor your responses around that information.
"You all are the most popular bank in the United States, in terms of number of clients. Innovativation is a huge focus, which is apparent with the way you integrate technology and banking. You all specialize in client satisfaction and personable tellers. I hope to become one of those tellers. Lastly, I am aware that one of your top sellers is your wealth management program."
How would you convince a customer to become a client of this bank?
A good teller essentially needs to be a good salesperson as well. The bank will want to know that you can sell their products. Use your previous experience to describe a time where you had to sell something or persuade someone.
"Through sparking up a conversation with a client, you can get a feel for their wants and needs. I would recommend a product that best fits their lifestyle. For example, at my previous place of employment I had a 19 year old college student come in. She just got her first job and was looking to open an account. Just based on that information I knew we should keep things simple, not have a required minimum balance, and have little to no additional charges. Most likely she wanted to have the option to save, but not be restricted by it. I suggested opening a student banking account. She could have the option of putting her money in her savings or checking account, but transfer money as often as she would like for no cost whatsoever. Showing the client that you are listening and have their best interests in mind will initiate building up trust between the client and the bank."
A customer has come in and states we wrongly charged her a fee. However, she has overdrawn her account. How would you handle the situation?
It is to be expected that clients will come to you with problems regarding their business with the bank. The interviewer wants to know you will remain calm and patient, but still handle the situation thoroughly.
"I would let the customer voice her complaints and explain the situation from her point of view. Then, I would inform her of the bank's overdraft policy and let her know why she was charged. I would continue by recommending she download the bank's text alert feature so that she will be notified when her account reaches a certain balance. Incorporating bank products and services into problem resolution can be very successful. But it all comes down to partnering up with my client to figure out what works best and how we can prevent any issues in the future. "
What if you saw a fellow employee take $100 from our institution? What if it was just $10?
Although this may seem like the answer is obvious, the interviewer want to ensure that you are honest and trustworthy in an environment where you are handling something as sensitive as money.
"Whether the amount is $10 or $100, stealing is stealing. I would abide by company policy and notify our superior. Our clients come here with a certain level of trust in us that we will protect their money to the best of our ability. If I turned a blind eye to such behavior, I would be doing my clients a disservice and might as well be guilty myself."


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Recently, the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) launched Access Arkansas, an online method of applying for state services. Arkansans can now apply online for several DHS programs, including ARKids First, the Medicaid Savings Program, TEA Cash Assistance and SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program.
This past week, I attended the grand opening of the Access Arkansas Processing Center in Batesville. The Center will manage these new online applications smoothly and efficiently with greater oversight. And, because it is a Web-based system, the application process will be streamlined. Previously, applications and pre-screenings could only be completed on paper at DHS county offices across the State. Now, they can be sent through the Internet to a centralized clearinghouse.
This state-of-the-art Center will process an estimated 30,000 applications and renewals each month. With the ability to access documents electronically, employees can determine an applicant's eligibility more rapidly, resulting in reduced labor costs. Their work will be of higher quality and more consistent, thanks to the Center's specialized staff training and restructured eligibility processes. Additionally, increased caseworker supervision will allow for continuous evaluation of employee performance and productivity.
As an added benefit, the Center will help us better guard against fraudulent claims. By processing thousands of applications at the Center in Batesville, the volume of cases and number of applicants visiting state offices will be significantly reduced. This will allow caseworkers in the county offices more time to review complex applications and cases, enhancing their ability to detect suspicious or questionable information. If something appears to be in doubt, it can be referred to the DHS fraud unit for further investigation. To assist in fraud detection, the technology at the Batesville facility will allow for the comparison of real-time earnings information with the information provided by applicants.
This streamlining also spurs local economic development without increasing the overall size of state government. While the opening of the Center means 100 new jobs in Batesville, all 100 of these positions were previously located at DHS county offices throughout the State. As those jobs were vacated over time, they were reassigned to the Center. Funding for the building that houses the Center came from federal stimulus funds. That same recovery money also allowed the Department to hire programmers to add online applications to Access Arkansas and convert existing county case files into electronic records.
The new Access Arkansas Processing Center will help DHS conduct its business in a more economical and user-friendly way. Arkansans can more easily obtain the assistance they need and state employees can perform their duties more efficiently. With continued conservative budgeting, cautious spending and thoughtful operation of state agencies, Arkansas will remain a leader in government competence from which the rest of the nation, and particularly the federal government, can learn.
Source: http://governor.arkansas.gov/newsroom/index.php?do:newsDetail=1&news_id=3109


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Nuove e vecchie sfide per le Politiche di Food Safety: un'applicazione della swot Analysis
Food safety has become a priority for advanced societies, especially after several food scares, having disrupted the European agro-food system over recent decades. This theme is considered one of the main issues for the agricultural policies of the European Union. In particular, with the Food Safety Law, included in eu Regulation 178/2002, many interventions aiming at enhancing foodstuff quality, in terms of healthiness and food borne risk reduction, have been implemented. Consequently, it is proper to wander whether food safety policies, beside the purpose of guaranteeing safety to consumers, are also suitable to assure sustainable prices for both consumers and enterprises. Another research enquiry concerns weaknesses of European Legislation. More precisely, is it possible to highlight fragilities of policy tools and to propose new solutions for improving their effectiveness? Are there strengths, which allow improving the competitiveness among European agro-food industries? Considering that the effectiveness of food safety tools depends upon interactions with the external environment, the whole economic system, the international commerce, technical advances, consumers, firms; are there recent threats for the European Legislation? By contrast, are there incentives and opportunities? For its immediacy of interpretation and precision of results, in this paper the strategic analysis of eu Regulation 178/2002 is carried out by means of the swot. The swot method (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) regards the analysis of an organisation's internal and external environment, and its application allows a deep and accurate analysis of European Legislation on food safety, with the aim of identifying strengths, which will allow taking advantage from external opportunities and avoiding or contrasting threats. At the same time, weaknesses will be highlighted, with the purpose to make a balance and to understand where the Legislation fails, and where it is necessary to intervene. Attained results, in fact, permit the assessment of effective efficiency of food safety tools, in order to face new and old challenges for the agro-food system, and also the capability, or potentiality, in achieving consumer's welfare, with the social equity objective. These results can be useful for policy makers, taking into account the most recent evolution of the economic system and society. Some of results can be also used by agro-food firms needing to better understand dynamics of legislative, economic and social environment, with the aim of improving their productive and commercial strategies.
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Volume (Year): 12 (2010)
Issue (Month): 1 ()
Pages: 159-176
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I have a form for entering data into fields of a database. Additionally, this form has a binding source that allows the form user to move through the records from beginning to end of the table. The table is from an access database connected to Visual Basic as a Microsoft database file.
The form allows the user to add a record, delete a record or modify a record. However, once the form is closed the records in the database do not reflect the changes made. Basically, the actual database does not seem to be updated with new data.
This is the code (the subroutine was from the form class) that I thought would do the trick:
Private Sub SaveToolStripButton_Click(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles SaveToolStripButton.Click
'TODO: This line of code updates the record after any changes are made
'into the '_MasterBase_00DataSet.tblFileMaster' table.
'changes made to form inputs are made, but not saved when form closed
End Sub
Obviously I am missing something and anyone who might have an idea of what it takes to get data updated back to the connected database (that is what I had thought I had done with this), would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Saving data to a database
|Glenn Walker · January 11, 2015
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Nothing to see here.
Visual Basic
129,980 followers
One of the first products to provide a graphical environment and a paint metaphor for developing user interfaces.
|Bucky Roberts Administrator


text:
Glavine Not Concerned
Tom Glavine knows he has peaks and valleys over the course of a season. That's why the New York Mets left-hander isn't concerned about his recent slump heading into Friday's opener of a three-game series against the Oakland Athletics at Shea Stadium.
Glavine (5-5, 4.67 ERA) has been stuck on 295 career victories since May 19, going 0-4 with a 7.31 ERA in his last five starts for New York (38-32).
Oddsmakers have made New York -145 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for todays game, the over/under has been set at 9ev total runs (Matchup). Our public betting information shows that 64% of bets for this game have been placed on New York -145 (View MLB Bet Percentages).
Despite allowing 16 runs and 19 hits in just 8 1-3 innings in his last two outings, the 41-year-old Glavine is not concerned this negative trend will continue.
"In 20 years, I've never had a season that didn't have one of these periods when I went through this kind of thing," he told the Mets' official Web site.
"No, I'm not depressed, frustrated. I've had two bad games," he said. "It's not fun going through it, but it's part of the process. It's more mechanics than anything else. I haven't had that feel I want out there on the mound."
Glavine's interleague starts in 2007, though, suggest he may again miss out on win No. 296. He is 1-2 with an 11.93 ERA in three appearances, giving up 19 runs and 28 hits in 14 1-3 innings, but does have a 15-10 lifetime record against the AL.
He lost his only career start against the A's in 2005.
The June swoon for the Mets continued with Wednesday's 6-2 loss to Minnesota, their 14th defeat in 18 games this month. That record includes a 2-7 mark at Shea, where New York is 18-18 overall for the worst home record among teams above .500.
In losing 13 of its last 16 games overall, New York has scored more than three runs just three times. While No. 2 hitter Paul Lo Duca is batting .239 this month after hitting .393 in May, 3-4-5 batters Carlos Beltran, David Wright and Carlos Delgado have combined for only two homers over the last nine games.
"We're going through a tough time right now," manager Willie Randolph said. "But mama said there would be days like this. Or weeks - that, too. It's not earth-shattering. Other teams around the league are struggling, too. Most of our guys are struggling at the same time."
The Athletics (39-32) salvaged a split of their six-game homestand with a 5-3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday. The A's won for the 13th time in their last 18 games.
Lenny DiNardo (2-3, 2.21) takes the mound hoping to bounce back from his worst performance in four starts since joining Oakland's rotation. The left-hander pitched six scoreless innings in back-to-back starts before being reached for five runs and seven hits in 3 2-3 innings of a 15-6 loss to St. Louis on Saturday.
"I never found the rhythm, and when I was ahead of somebody I couldn't put them away," said DiNardo, who fell to 1-2 as a starter. "I couldn't throw strikes, and that's part of putting people away."
This will be just the second road start for DiNardo, who allowed four hits and two walks in six innings of a 2-0 victory at San Francisco on June 10. He has never faced the Mets.
Oakland is 14-8 against left-handers.
This game would have marked Mike Piazza's first game at Shea Stadium in an AL uniform, but the former Mets star catcher remains on the disabled list with a shoulder injury.
Another player from Oakland's opening-day lineup who will not be playing is Milton Bradley, who was designated for assignment on Thursday.
The veteran outfielder was expected to play a key role offensively for the A's after a strong 2006 postseason, but has had three stints on the disabled list this year and been limited to 65 at-bats. Bradley was hitting .292 with two homers and seven RBIs.
by: Dave Michaels - thespread.com – Email Us
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Facebook users who like the pages for television shows are 75 percent more likely to watch those shows, according to a recent study by media giant Viacom and its Viacom International Media Networks division.
The study gathered data from more than 5,000 viewers of Viacom networks, who were between the ages of 13 and 49, residing in the U.S., the U.K., Germany, Brazil, and Russia, all of whom are active on at least two social networks on a weekly basis.
Viacom said the study found that social media ranked third as a source of show discovery, at 39 percent, trailing promos (54 percent) and word of mouth (50 percent), adding that social media outranked word of mouth in Brazil.
The study also found that 70 percent of respondents were more likely to watch live debuts of shows they discovered on social media, compared with 48 percent if those shows were discovered elsewhere. For shows past their first seasons, those figures were 41 percent and 28 percent, respectively.
Viacom said results of its study determined three distinct motivations for social TV: functional, communal, and playful. The media company also shared more of its findings:
- 45 percent of respondents use social media to keep up with the latest news on shows.
- 44 percent do so to stay informed about air dates and times.
- 37 percent access exclusive information about shows.
- 36 percent access videos.
- 36 percent access plot clues.
- Viewers aged 13 through 17 were more likely to use social media to search for schedules and exclusive videos, while those between 18 and 24 were more likely to search for news and spoilers.
- 34 percent of respondents said they use social media to brand themselves and share their tastes.
- 28 percent use it to connect with shows.
- 28 percent use it to connect with other fans.
- 41 percent access social media more after viewing shows.
- 39 percent visit websites for shows or channels more often.
- 27 percent were more likely to download applications related to shows.
- More than 30 percent of respondents play games related to TV shows, and 75 percent of those respondents play while the shows are out of season.
- 25 percent of respondents use social media to play show-related games.
- 24 percent do so to obtain freebies.
- 24 percent access quizzes and polls.
Viacom Media Networks Executive Vice President and Chief Research Officer Colleen Fahey Rush said:
Our objective with this research was not only to understand what drives our audiences to social media, but also to see how their social media activity impacts viewing behaviors. At Viacom, we're focused on creating social experiences that continue the conversation off-screen and deepen the relationships between our fans and their favorite shows and characters.
Readers: Did any of Viacom's findings surprise you?
Image courtesy of Shutterstock.


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I've been informed earlier today that the finalists for The 2006 Weblog Awards have been announced. Guess who's in the Best Asia Category? Phew. No Xiaxue. From The 2006 Weblog Awards:
The Weblog Awards are the world's largest blog competition, with over 1 million votes cast in the last three years for nearly 1,000 blogs. This year's edition is the biggest ever with 45 categories to choose from. Nominations ended November 24, and voting is scheduled to begin December 7....Lots of surprising finalists there. I'll blog more about the awards when the poll opens tomorrow. Remember that's when you guys (die, die) have to vote.
Best Asian Blog
The China Law Blog
Pinoy Stupid
IZ Reloaded
The Western Confucian
One Man Bandwidth
The Daily Dumpling
Kristin Collins (Commontales)
Japan Marketing News
(Thanks to Shy, Mr Big and all who informed me today)


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The FARM Share Studio Experience in New 'Be Grateful' Video – Exclusive Premiere
One of the songs fans of the FARM will be talking about after listening to their new self-titled debut album is track No. 4, 'Be Grateful.' It's a song about appreciating what you have, rather than complaining about what you don't. Nick Hoffman, Damien Horne and Krista Marie prove they're doing just that in this new video, premiering exclusively on Taste of Country.


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FIVE friends are taking on the Virgin Money London Marathon to raise funds for a leading cancer charity.
Paul Cook, from Darlington, and his friends Mark Haymer, Mike King and Jamie and Charlie Gardner, hope raised more than £10,000 for Children with Cancer UK by the time they complete the 26.2-mile race on Sunday, April 13.
Mr Cook, who is a member of Darlington Harriers, ran the marathon for the same charity last year and hopes even more people with support the cause this time around.
Loading article content
"I knew I wanted to raise funds for a children's charity as I am a father myself," said Mr Cook, 39.
"The more I learn about Children with Cancer UK, the more passionate I feel about the cause. I can't imagine what it must be like for the children or their parents."
To help them reach their fundraising target, the team has organised a charity ball and auction at Rockliffe Hall Hotel on Friday, March 7.
Top athletes and many local businesses have donated prizes for the event, including the Newton Aycliffe-based shower designer and manufacturer Roman.
Tickets have already sold out for the ball but people can still support the team by making an online donation at uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/Londonmarathon2014


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How I Did It
Three major league GMs recount their path to the top job
Compiled By Alan Schwarz
2005 General Manager Package:
• General Manager Roundtable
• Ten Tips For Getting Into The Game
• Three Major League GMs Recount Their Path
• Fighting To Get In: Getting To The Top Isn't Easy
• GM History Lesson: Dave Dombrowski's College Thesis
• Minor League GMs Focus On Customers
• Indy GMs Find Added Worries
• The Baseball America Executive Database
JIM HENDRY, Chicago Cubs
I didn't take a very normal route to the GM job. I was the coach at Creighton University from 1984-91, and never had it on my radar screen. Originally I hadn't even planned on being a coach--I wanted to be in television--but landed in coaching and loved it.
You can't help but meet pro people as a Division I coach. I guess I left a good impression on three executives in Montreal, Dave Dombrowski, Gary Hughes and Orrin Freeman, because after they went to the Marlins in 1991 they approached me about joining the expansion team. It was a pay cut but this was maybe my only chance at pro ball, so I said yes.
I was everybody's assistant at once, especially preparing for the expansion draft in November 1992. I had to learn every organization top to bottom. There was a ton of grunt work, but they treated me like I had a future. I figured I could be a farm director or something, maybe an assistant GM when I was 50. But after a few years, Dave told me one night, "You've got a chance to become a general manager someday." I respected Dave a ton. I knew he wouldn't say that lightly.
After another year or two I became the Cubs' farm director, and things have grown from there. I started to get the confidence that I could be as successful in pro ball as I'd been in college. It was handling players, evaluating them, being organized with what they can do and can't do. But you can't start off in baseball thinking, "In two years I'm going to be this and five years the GM." I'm very lucky--my path is not only unique but it was pretty fast. Tons of great people in this game don't get those types of breaks.
I went from being a pretty prominent coach coming off Omaha to a 35-year-old stringing film for Gary for the draft and working Dave's draft board at 11 o'clock at night after I'd scouted two amateur games that day. Why? I trusted the people I was doing it for.
TIM PURPURA, Houston Astros
A lot of people will tell you that Roland Hemond helped get them into the game. I'm one of those lucky ones.
In 1988, I was about 30 and a dean of students at a school in California. I liked going to baseball games, though, and loved watching early batting practice. I met Roland in the stands--he was there scouting--and I told him, "I love baseball and it means a lot to me. How do I get in? How do I make it a career?" Roland said, "Go to law school. Someday lawyers are going to run the game." What a prophet!
While I was getting my degree from Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego. I kept in touch with Roland--maintaining relationships is what baseball is all about, I've learned--and he recommended I not wait until graduation to get some practical experience in the game. I volunteered at the All-Star Game in Anaheim in 1989, doing all sorts of miscellaneous tasks, and from 1990-92 I took time off of work and school to go to spring training with the Angels. I did a player-development internship with Bill Bavasi, I met Mike Port, and it was a great foundation for a career in player development.
When Mike left to start the Arizona Fall League, he hired me to help. I was able to see those players and sit with scouts and pick their brains about how to evaluate. After that the Astros hired me as assistant director of minor leagues, and I moved up from there.
Although I was in the door, I had to learn what it means to run a baseball department, beyond evaluation to dealing with coaches and managers and putting together teams. And if you're lucky enough to become a general manager, you take on a whole new level of responsibility, to your owner and the whole finance and budget part of it. If I could re-do my academic career I would have taken many more courses in accounting and finance because there are some pretty lofty things you have to deal with in this job.
ALLARD BAIRD, Kansas City Royals
I was never somebody who considered baseball work. If you're in baseball, whether it's in baseball operations, on the field or on the business side, if you consider this work, you're in trouble. You're going to be expected to go the extra mile all day every day.
I learned that early, when I was a coach in the minor leagues. You don't watch the clock. I was at the ballpark all the time, learning about players and helping them learn, too. Then I went into scouting, and any scout knows that's no 9-to-5 job. Sometimes you have to watch three games in three different states on the same day. But believe me, when you have a chance to scout and sign a good prospect, it's worth every bleary-eyed hour you put into it.
If you're given the opportunity to work in baseball, I would definitely encourage you to start on the field somewhere, or in scouting, or at least be around the field as much as possible. I know that many people today get into baseball through internships and the analytical side of the game, and that is great. But traditional methods go hand-in-hand with new innovations to maximize your decision-making. What you gain from several seasons on the field cannot be learned in an office, especially if you wind up working for a smaller-revenue team where player development experience becomes paramount.
Either way, remember that the best-laid plans are great, but life occasionally
gets in the way. You have to have a backup plan, you have to have a
third plan. You can't have only one way to go about a career in
baseball. A diversified skill set will allow you to execute whichever
plan you use. You have to have in the back of your mind other alternatives
because whatever road you're offered might be the one you have
to take.
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text: I am new to the form. I have questions and advice for everyone. I have been smoking for about 10-11 years now mostly with charcoal smokers. I am a butcher by trade so getting different cuts of meat to smoke is not so hard for me. I have built a few smokers at home for many things and enjoy doing it. If anyone has any questions for me you are more than welcome to PM me. Thanks TXG Derwood57


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Brent Comber: Designer
Brent Comber is a Vancouver-based craftsman and designer with an international reputation. His work graces NY restaurant Dos Caminos and is shown at ICFF every year. We noticed Brent's recent work there a few weeks ago and NY blogged it here, so we're just going to fill in the background to make sure that Bay Area and PNW reader are aware of this Northwest Coast great.
Comber's very much a man of his place, "an aesthetic interpretor of the Pacific Northwest" with its distinctive, wild shapes and materials. We agree that installing a Brent Comber piece like the Alder Cubes (above), made to evoke the clean vertical density of a forest, would most definitely make a statement about your love for the woodsy Northwest, but this goes way beyond log cabin clichés. Comber's style is modern and extremely sophisticated.
Comber's sculpture, environments, and even some of his functional pieces share a meditative mood that stems from his curiosity-driven process ("What would happen if I tried juxtaposing different grains randomly?") In the hands of a less accomplished artist this would run the risk of producing a lot of failed experiments, but the results here are consistently crowd-pleasing, easy to embrace from a variety of design schools and perspectives.
In addition to re-assembled tables (like Alder) and the spooky lighting blogged here, Comber's studio produces sculpted objects and full-on design environments like Dos Caminos.
This cohort of latter-day Nakashimas works exclusively with sustainable materials like naturally-fallen cedar, maple, and Douglas Fir, and hand-crafts every piece.


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Most of you have heard of Jacob & Co., the number one jeweler of the hip hop world. To date they have made a lot of noise, usually because of their huge watches, packed with diamonds. This time they played around with the MTV Moon Man.
Jacob &Co., together with MTV, has designed a one-of-a-kind Diamond "Moon Man" to celebrate the 2007 Video Music Awards. Recognizing the talent, dedication and hard-work put forth by each year's winners, as well as the magnitude of the event overall.
Featuring 15 Carats of Black and White Diamonds set in 14K Yellow Gold, the Jacob & Co. "Moon Man" stands at 13″ tall and just over 900 Grams (2lbs) – worth more than $200,000. At this point we are not sure what they will actually do with this piece, we doubt that every MTV Music Award Winner will get one!
Check out pictures of the full size Moon Man after the jump.


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Get DVD Talk Feeds
"Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure 3D" is a very brief 40 minute program originally designed for IMAX theaters (many of which are located in museums). A large part of the program relies on the 3D gimmick and while it works without a hitch in an IMAX theater (due to the great advances in the technology at the theater level), that experience translates horribly on the home screen and in doing so, exposes the serious flaws of this well-intentioned program.
Like many IMAX programs designed for museums, "Sea Monsters" raises more questions than it answers. It rockets through facts at lightening pace and assumes the viewer will be more wowed by the CGI recreations of the ancient beasts, than actually learning about them. There is a loose connection to modern society through some hastily interspersed live-action recreations of fossil discoveries, which bring up some fascinating points (for instance, the ocean area the program focuses on was located in the middle of what is now the United States), but feel mostly like time fillers.
The narrator, Liev Schreiber, does a more than adequate job at guiding the viewer through the program, despite the very limited narration. He's a great example of a big celebrity name being used effectively without stealing the spotlight. However, his limited narration is the biggest detriment to the entire production. The facts he provides to viewers are few and far in between, you'll hear a handful of descriptors regarding juveniles of one species, before the program spends a minute or two showing off the 3D effects and settling on a new species to vaguely introduce. In all, a small number of sea creatures are featured and honestly, I can't say I learned much about any of them. In a museum this would be fine, but when the credits roll in my living room, I have no expansive exhibit to fill in details waiting in the next room.
Finally, the production values must be addressed, as frankly they are far from IMAX quality. The CGI creatures are hokey looking to put it nicely, even for a film made two years ago. The movement of the creatures feels stilted and the texturing of the skin gives the whole affair away. I'm not expecting ILM or WETA quality graphics here, but when I can get more lifelike quality from an Xbox game, than I can from a National Geographic funded IMAX film, something is wrong.
Lastly, the 3D presentation earns a mark of shame. The disc comes with four pairs of standard red/blue cardboard 3D glasses, which are nothing like the clear polarized glasses found in IMAX 3D theaters or RealD 3D theaters. Firstly, you have to increase the brightness quite a bit for the effect to even marginally work. I could only tolerate five minutes of the 3D presentation: it was overly bright, far from seamless (I could still see partial double images), and horribly colored.
The 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer unfortunately doesn't reflect the visual quality one would expect from an IMAX production. The level of detail is moderate, but the image is unfortunately plagued with some noticeable edge enhancement, most apparent during the live-action sequences.
The Audio
The 5.1 Dolby Digital English audio track is a bit lightweight in terms of a rich aural experience. The program is narrative heavy, with creature effects and music warming up the surrounds from time to time. English and Spanish 2.0 tracks are also included.
The Extras
An interactive timeline is the sole bonus feature; it adds a more grounded context to the program content, but offers no additional depth.
"Sea Monsters" is going to leave any viewer, even young audiences, who are likely the biggest target group, unsatisfied. It's an average production marred by below average depth. The jump from the big museum screen to the television screen is a jump that should have never been made in the first place. If you want to learn about ancient sea creatures, my advice is to seek out a meatier documentary program or pick up a book. Skip It.


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Dinner parties in Sweden can be very formal, not least the Grade A glamfest hosted in Stockholm City Hall each year as the Nobel laureates jet in to collect their prizes.
But how should one act when attending such an event, or any other dinner party in Sweden for that matter?
When The Local got in contact with etiquette expert Mats Danielsson looking to find out all there is to know about Swedish dinner manners, he could only laugh.
"If you want to know everything, we'll be talking till sunrise," he said with a hearty laugh.
"But I can give you the top ten things you need to know."
It's almost as if he read our minds…
Click here for the top ten tips to tackling a Swedish dinner party
But beware, there's a lot more to it than simply chewing with your mouth closed and remembering your pleases and thank yous.
And whatever you do, think twice about where you put that dinner napkin. One wrong move and you're flirting with the hostess...
Oliver Gee


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VANCOUVER The Presidents Trophy banner is normally used to wipe away tears after an early playoff exit.
Only seven times in 24 years has the team that finished first overall gone on to win it all.
So youll have to forgive the Vancouver Canucks if they keep the celebrating to a minimum after clinching first overall.
There were some high fives, but five minutes after the game guys were back in the gym working out, same as usual, said defenceman Kevin Bieksa. At the end of the season you can look back at this and well be pretty happy with what we accomplished, and the organization will be pretty happy with it. But if we go out there and we dont play well in the playoffs, if something happens in the first round, this season would be considered a major disappointment.
Theyve absolutely dominated the regular season, leading the league in every category that matters. Offence, defence, special teams and goaltending. The Sedins could finish 1-2 in the scoring race.
Armed with all that, and the Presidents Trophy banner on order, somebody was asking players if this is the best Canucks team ever.
Nope, that would be the team that went to Game 7 of the Cup final.
These guys havent won a single post-season game yet.
Its going to be what we do in the playoffs, said Bieksa. A lot of teams have had great regular seasons, San Joses done it a number of years. Detroits done it and not done well in the playoffs. Were yet to be judged. Playoffs are what were getting ready for.
They dont want to dismiss what they accomplished, winning the Presidents Trophy is no small thing, but keeping it in perspective seems to be the dressing room mantra.
It was one of our goals to have a great regular season, said Christian Ehrhoff. But what matters most to us is coming up in a couple of weeks.
It was a good accomplishment, a mini goal on the way to the bigger goal, agreed Ryan Kesler. Im proud of the guys in this room and what we accomplished but at the same time we have bigger fish to fry.
All the regular season proves is that theyve got the team to win it all. Whether they do or not ...
It means we have a great team, Henrik Sedin said of the numbers. It doesnt mean we are going to win it all, but it means we have a great shot at it.
Seven in twenty-four, according to history.
I think I heard through the grapevine that the percentage of teams that won the Presidents Trophy and went on to win the Stanley Cup is about 30%, said coach Alain Vigneault. I dont mind those odds. Its a tough trophy to win.


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No decorating maven's home is complete without a vintage-inspired bell jar. Whether housing succulents or a quirkly collection of miniatures, this jar with a distinctive base will be the focal point of the room.


text: A few examples of riders getting adventurous with their bar tape wrap. The classic "Harlequin" wrap, top and bottom, and the retro "Fade" in the center. The "Harlequin" looks like it requires no more than a couple of rolls of color and a lot of patience. If you are interested in getting the "Fade" you will need to find something like the Pelten Shade (There is some on ebay here).


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TakePart presents "Anna Breslaw's 600-Word Sprint," a weekly column of pop culture analysis and social justice insight. Look for Anna's Sprint every week on the homepage of TakePart.
After being asked by Fordham University's College Republicans student group to speak on campus at a November 29 event, Ann Coulter was unceremoniously uninvited from appearing on the Bronx Jesuit institution's grounds by the same College Republicans.
Coulter, of course, is notable mostly for her polemic essays and statements on behalf of the right. Recently she's veered into touchy territory offensive to either side with her repeated, unapologetic use of the word retard to describe President Obama.
This is hardly the only reason to believe she's unfit to speak on a college campus, especially if you happen to be among the half of the people in this country who are female.
MORE: Ann Coulter Slings 'Retard' Word, Enters Gallery of Outrage
One factor cited in Obama's reelection is the increased population of single female voters.
Shortly before the election, Fox News personality Bill O'Reilly released a rage-inducing man-on-the-street segment of his program that featured producer Jesse Watters trolling single women in New York on Halloween night. Watters asked these women—many of them drunk or in "sexy" outfits—who they'd be casting their ballot for on November 6. Watters pulled faces as the women spoke up for President Obama, seeming to intimate: The fate of our country rests with these sluts?
Although O'Reilly's stunt "journalism" is one of the more fully realized examples of the patronizing nature that conservatives have toward single women, it's hardly uncommon and it is a particularly rotten plank in Coulter's public platform.
For as much vitriol as she spews about gay people, disabled people and minorities, Coulter—a single woman herself—seems to have a particular brand of loathing for people of her sex. From a 2007 interview with The New York Observer:
If we took away women's right to vote, we'd never have to worry about another Democrat president. It's kind of a pipe dream, it's a personal fantasy of mine, but I don't think it's going to happen. And it is a good way of making the point that women are voting so stupidly, at least single women.
Within hours after Coulter's Fordham speaking date was announced, the outcry began, summed up in a letter from Fordham's president, Father Joseph McShane. McShane expressed disappointment with the College Republicans student group for providing a platform to the polemicist and insisted that Coulter doesn't represent the Jesuit views of the college.
There are many people who can speak to the conservative point of view with integrity and conviction, but Ms. Coulter is not among them. Her rhetoric is often hateful and needlessly provocative—more heat than light—and her message is aimed squarely at the darker side of our nature.
However, Father McShane was not forced to use his veto power to cancel the event. A student-run petition against Coulter's appearance garnered 2,000 signatures within 24 hours, stating that campus organizations such as College Republicans were partly funded by each individual matriculant's tuition—and not everyone who paid to go to Fordham necessarily wanted to pay to subsidize Ann Coulter's bigotry.
Eventually, the CR club released a statement that indicated it had rescinded Coulter's invitation: "Looking at the concerns raised about Ms. Coulter, many of them reasonable, we have determined that some of her comments do not represent the ideals of the College Republicans and are inconsistent with both our organization's mission and the University's. We regret that we failed to thoroughly research [Coulter] before announcing."
First Amendment absolutists might argue that preventing someone from speaking at a college—even Ann Coulter—violates the basic tenets of anti-censorship and the principles of free speech.
And yet, the impressionable nature of 18-year-olds, never to be underestimated, should not be left out of consideration. They're at times susceptible to joining crusades led by unrelenting, harsh, anti-humanist rhetoric. Just look at how many of them like Ayn Rand.
Should Ann Coulter been allowed to speak at Fordham? Say why or why not in COMMENTS.
These are solely the author's opinions and do not represent those of TakePart, LLC or its affiliates.
Related Stories on TakePart:
• 30 Faces of Domestic Hate Groups
• Dr. Rand Paul Fails Asthma Science
• Nemesis List: Free Speech Violators
Anna Breslaw is a regular contributor to Jezebel, New York magazine's Vulture and Glamour, and her writing has been featured elsewhere. She lives in Brooklyn. Email Anna | Anna's Tumblr


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It's called the Roar of the Rings.
And anybody who was there will remember the roar from 10,267 fans which followed the shot in the ninth end which put Edmonton's Kevin Martin one win away from getting to the Olympic Winter Games for the third time in his career.
Call it a runback-raise-angle jam double takeout, or whatever terminology you want to use, the circus shot put three points on the scoreboard and put Martin's men in Sunday's final with the winner advancing to the five-ring circus in Vancouver.
Martin made big shots on the eighth, ninth and 10th ends to score an 8-6 win over Ontario's Glenn Howard in a game which looked lost when Howard scored three on the fourth.
"What a fantastic game," raved Team Martin second Marc Kennedy.
"That's the best entertainment you're going to get in a curling game. That was two teams which wanted to beat each other so badly there were almost yelling matches."
There was even an accusation that Team Martin lead Ben Hebert was littering the ice with some broom debris in the path of a Howard shot in the eighth end.
Kennedy pleaded innocence for Hebert.
"We don't have to cheat to win. We've beat them in four big games now," he said.
Kennedy went directly to the locker-room after the game.
Howard said: "Look at the tapes."
But that business aside, Martin was the story with the big shots when they mattered most.
"The Old Bear made a roll on eight, that great shot on nine and another big one on 10," said Kennedy.
"Kevin played great"
If you expected brooms to be thrown in the air in glee and hugging and dancing on the ice, you don't know this Martin crew, which also includes Calgarian John Morris.
But other than about three big "whews" from Martin from the time he left the ice to when he took his position in the media scrum, there was nothing.
"I was one win away and lost the final of this thing to Mike Harris, remember?," Martin reminded the media of the first-never-won-a-Brier guy Canada sent to the Olympics, in Nagano 1998.
"It doesn't mean anything," he added.
"We're not going to think too much about it," said Kennedy of the final which already had a pre-sale of just under 12,000 before Martin --the only surviving Edmonton team -- put himself in the game.
"It's going to be exciting --the biggest game of our life. Sure I'm super excited. But you have to keep your focus and relax," said Kennedy.
"There is so much pressure," said the 27-year-old. "That's why young guys don't do well at this sometimes."
Howard and Martin made the match by dramatically reducing the Olympic hopes of Edmonton's Randy Ferbey and Kevin Koe, respectively, in the morning draws.
They went into the final game of the round-robin with Howard at 6-0 and Martin 5-1, knowing that the winner would get a first-place pass.
For four years since Martin tore his previous team apart and put this one together, his mantra has been to get to as many finals as possible to deal with the pressures which make them so difficult to survive. This is a man who was heavy on a last-rock draw at Salt Lake 2002 which cost him a gold medal and lost last year's Worlds because of his first rock "non-shot."
Last night he was the big game, big shotmaker he's been on most other stages in his legendary career.
But he said it all wouldn't have been there if Howard, who had the hotter hand early in the game, hadn't finally missed one.
"If Glenn's first rock on the ninth doesn't crash, we'd only have got two," said Martin.
Howard had a real run interrupted with the loss. He was 12-1 in winning the 2007 Ford Worlds here and 6-0 going into last night. He also won his last five in capturing the 1987 Brier here as a third on brother Russ Howard's rink.
"It's been a fantastic run here. But I don't know that I wanted to go undefeated," he said and then fessed up.
"We really wanted to win this game. We just want to get to that final Sunday. One way or the other, just get to that final."
Martin will be waiting for him, or Jeff Stoughton who you remember beat Howard in the semifinal to meet Martin in the 2009 Brier final in Calgary.
There's more Roar to come.


text: Obama Condemns Violent Anti-Trump Protesters Posted on June 4, 2016 by Charlie Spiering "We saw in San Jose these protesters starting to pelt stuff on Trump supporters," Barack Obama says. "That's not what our democracy is about. That's not what you do. There's no room for violence. There's no place for shouting."


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Leonor Varela's Burgundy Dress on 'Dallas'
Leonor Varela's worked a sophisticated look on Dallas by wearing her tailored dress with a tonal belt and cognac tote. We love her no-nonsense style—and, to get the look, check out Hybrid's oxblood V-neck dress at Asos.
See more looks from Dallas.
Official site: Dallas on TNT
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British companies are channeling a smaller proportion of their research and development cash to UK universities, and evidence suggests that some – including the pharmaceutical industry – are focusing their attention on bigger markets in Asia, an interim report from the Council for Industry and Higher Education (CIHE) said last week.
The report shows that between 1993 and 2000, the amount UK businesses spent on funding research in British universities rose from less than £150 million to over £250 million annually. But since then, business investment in research and development in universities has remained broadly static – which, in the context of inflation, represents a decline, according to the report.
"The pattern is now fairly stable, having risen substantially in the 1980s and 1990s," Richard Brown, chief executive of CIHE and co-author of the report, told
The plateau in funding has meant that while universities secured a growing slice of industry R&D cash during the 20th century, they "did not manage to maintain this increase into the 21st century," the report says. Businesses spent 1.67% of their research and development with universities in 1985, 2.39% in 1990, 2.51% in 1995, 2.99% in 2000 and 2.81% in 2002.
The businesses consulted by CIHE generally regard UK universities as producing good graduates and doing good research, Brown said. But there are other factors at play that put the UK at a disadvantage, such as the relatively small size of its market. For example, the UK has only 3% of the worldwide market for prescription drugs.
"What we're postulating is that an increasing amount of near-market clinical and medical research funded by these companies is going to major world markets, increasingly India and China," Brown said.
One of the major drivers of this shift is the need for firms to carry out their late-stage development where they are likely to sell most of their product, according to the report, entitled
As Brown put it: "You're not going to do clinical research for the Chinese market in south-east England."
This has become a more important issue in recent years as markets in the Far East have begun to open up, Brown said. "It's only in the past 3-4 years that companies have begun to realize the strengths and sophistication" of those markets, timing which coincides with the change in UK university funding from businesses.
A spokesman for Universities UK, the umbrella group for the UK higher education sector, agreed that UK-based businesses were spending less on British university research in real terms. "Universities have welcomed the government's commitment to an increased budget of £238 million over two years to help universities in this area."
However, the spokesman noted that increase only represents 2% of the Higher Education Funding Council for England's annual grants to higher education institutions, which amounts to over £6 billion per year. "Clearly, more needs to be done to stimulate business spending on R&D."
According to the CIHE report, universities would also benefit from trying harder to capture more company funds dedicated to earlier stages of research and development—horizon scanning, fundamental research, and problem solving. "An increasing amount of international businesses are coming to the UK universities to ask them to do some of their basic research," Brown said.
CIHE will publish its full report on the subject of business funding in UK universities in May 2006.


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Full Details
- Charge 2 or 4 NiMH batteries at a time
- Auto power cut off
- Compatible with AA/AAA NiMH batteries
- LED Indicator displays charging status
- USB compatible
- Light and compact making it ideal for daily use and travel
|USB input
|USB output current
|Charging time (hours)
|2 or 4 x AA/AAA = 8 hours


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INDIANAPOLIS - Andrew Luck's record-setting day helped the Colts beat the Dolphins.
Luck threw for 433 yards, a rookie-record, against the Dolphins defense.
Ryan Tannehill was impressive for Miami.
After missing much of this week's practice with a leg injury, Tannehill was 22/38 for 290 yards and a touchdown.
But Luck was simply better.
Indianapolis' starting quarterback threw touchdown passes to former Miami Hurricane Reggie Wayne and former FIU Panther T.Y. Hilton.
Reggie Bush was limited to just 41 yards rushing, but ran for an impressive 18-yard touchdown.
The Dolphins record drops to 4-4.
They host the Tennessee Titans next week.
The Colts improve to a surprising 5-3.
Copyright 2012 by Post Newsweek. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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The Bridge to Empathy and Peace
- Published by Aydın Eroğlu
No one can understand the above mentioned values better than the Anzacs and the Turks as by now it must be part of our very own DNA. Imagine two warring sides, only eight meters apart inside their trenches; killing each other and sometimes in darkness killing their own soldiers because of chest to chest combat.
However each day at cease fire offering each other chocolates and cigarettes for a period of nine and a half months; eventually becoming friends, after getting to know who the enemy was and not shooting at each other anymore was one of the major reasons why the battle of Gallipoli came to an end.
A gentleman's war as recorded by some historians where the number of casualties from both sides reached to six hundred thousand including the dead, wounded and those who were missing in action; all in a time frame when a child could be born. What a waste for the human kind!
In Brad Pitts movie Troy the King of Thessaly says to King Agamemnon ''Remove your army off my land'' and the response is ''but I like your land''.
In Ephesus under Trojans foot where once his seven meter tall statue stood; it writes: ''Here it is under my feet I conquered it all'' referring to the world which is presently standing as the globe.
Trajan's people knew the world was round from Erostatanes and Marinos; two famous Greek scholars who had measured and had drawn maps of the world showing it as the globe we know it today. So how was it possible that the human kind lost that information for fifteen hundred years until Christopher Columbus discovered America and proved the rest of the world how correct those two scholars were. I often wonder who had pushed the delete button causing this valuable piece of information to be lost for one and a half millennium.
Was it just by coincidence that one of the ships during the Gallipoli campaign that tried to go through Dardanelles was named Agamemnon, on the 18th of March 1915? We all need the correct information and the history will keep repeating itself as long as we humans do not seem to learn from the mistakes of our grandparents. One may want to conquer the world and keep on liking those lands that belong to others and never take into consideration the feelings of those peoples whose lands are under occupation. When will this lack of empathy terminate? It is sad to see that sometimes the human effort that is shown to a whale is not shown to all the Syrians who are being massacred by their own tyrant right now. It seems to me that this lack of empathy will continue and the level of human tragedy will go beyond borders of our imagination.
If the Anzacs and the Turks of today can embrace each other after hundred years and show great respect to each other for the heroic encounter of their grandparents and empaties knowing that their ancestors who killed each other today can bring them together in the hope that the future generations will pick up this lesson of history and continue their lives by building bridges of peace and empathy and make the world a better place to live and only then we can hope for a brighter future to come.


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My Nonprofit Reviews
Review for Marina's Kids, Glenside, PA, USA
I was asked to help with agricultural projects at orphanages in Ukraine ( Odessa area) and took my first trip this past October. Upon visiting an orphanage in the Ukraine, I met Marina for the first time. What a joy it was to see how the children have bonded to her. She works very hard to raise money and collect clothes, in order to help fill the basic needs of these kids. She loves these kids, and does all she can to be like a parent that many of these kids do not have. On her twice annual visits, she spends time with these kids just before bed, reading stories, talking one on one with those who need a listening ear, encouraging every one she can, and tucking them in bed. The kids love this, and drink it up. She also stays in touch with these kids through phone calls, while she is back in the United States. Marina also works to fund maintenance, and rebuilding projects, so the kids have lovely bathrooms, to use and a warm house to live in through the cold winters. It was a joy to work with Marina, as she supports these kids in so many ways!!
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All is bright on Sky at night
The Sky opened up on Irish League football last night as Monday Night Football breezed into Belfast for the first time.
Sky Sports had already agreed to plough £10million into Northern Ireland's international games but viewers across Britain and beyond, couldn't have envisaged a wet and windy night in north Belfast lighting up their Monday night with the remote control.
Quite what the armchair audience made of the spectacle remains to be seen, but on this showing this first step into the 20th century seems to be just what the Carnegie Premier League and Irish FA needed.
Cliftonville and Linfield fans came out in their numbers as Solitude was awash with colour. Air-horns, flags and fancy dress were the order of the day - even a cuddly alligator and Donald Duck made their way from the Waterworks for the night.
But if this is what live TV does for the local game, then bring it on.
Both stands were crammed to the rafters and what the game lacked in fireworks on the pitch in the first half, was made up for with an impromptu firecracker display behind the Reds' famous cage.
This was the last stand for the cage behind the goal as the builders move in next week to redevelop that side of the old ground, but it certainly added its fair share to the occasion.
Despite a goal-less first half, both sets of fans got in on the act in what was a cup final atmosphere.
It obviously wasn't just the players and referee Davy Malcolm who fancied getting their mugs on TV as the nine cameras and numerous microphones brought the carnival atmosphere to life.
Cliftonville weren't taking any chances of a drab affair as they enlisted the help of Hole In The Wall Gang actor and lifelong Reds fan Tim McGarry to whip the home supporters into a frenzy before kick-off with his "da" routine.
Thankfully he gave all our heads peace by taking his seat before kick-off and left the singing to the Red Army.
If the first half was all about the colour and noise of the occasion, the second half showed the product Irish League has to offer if the powers that be put the effort in.
Linfield took the lead against the run of play, thanks to Glenn Ferguson but the Reds hit back within two minutes thanks to Davy McAlinden.
Back came the champions as Thomas Stewart swept the ball home only for former Linfield player Stephen O'Neill to draw Eddie Patterson's troops level again to secure a share of the spoils.
Unfortunately for Cliftonville boss Patterson, he was forced to watch from the stand thanks to a touchline ban but that wouldn't have mattered when substitute O'Neill steered the ball into the net with his first and possibly only touch of the night.
Both clubs and sets of fans played their part and Sky can't complain about their first foray into Northern Ireland's top flight.
While the supporters, players and officials enjoyed the national attention, both clubs even seemed to have more hangers-on than normal - it's amazing what a TV camera will do!
The trick now, of course, is to keep these people interested long after the Sky entourage disappear.
Belfast Telegraph
Related Content
- Reds and Blues are left feeling Sky high
- O'Neill denies Blues with Red-letter goal
- Spike's special moment ... but Linfield ace would have preferred win to historic goal


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The Uncut Story of Mewtwo's Origin
| The Uncut Story Of Mewtwo's Origin
First broadcast
English themes
Japanese themes
The Uncut Story Of Mewtwo's Origin is an anime short released as a special on the Mewtwo Returns DVD, which was released on August 17, 2001 in Australia and on December 4, 2001 in the United States. It is a prequel to Mewtwo Strikes Back and is based on the radio drama The Birth of Mewtwo. These scenes were added to the start of Mewtwo Strikes Back for Japanese home video releases, being first released on June 23, 2000.
Dr. Fuji speaks of being sent out by Giovanni to look for Mew, supposedly the strongest Pokémon known to mankind. However, he also said that with the research funds, he wants to try recreating his daughter Amber, while Giovanni simply wants control of said most powerful Pokémon known to mankind. They start to bring back what they believe is a Mew Fossil and hopefully, will be enough to create a new super Pokémon. They begin research and start to create the DNA for a new Pokémon.
Mewtwo and Ambertwo begin to speak with each other through telepathy. Mewtwo asks her what are those sounds being made, to which Ambertwo simply replies that they are speaking. Mewtwo wonders what she is and she says that she is a girl. Mewtwo ponders if he is a Pokémon or a human and Ambertwo says it should never matter which one it is. The researchers figure out that the clones are speaking to each other. Fuji simply looks at the tubes in joy but anger. Ambertwo explains they call her Ambertwo but she is still Amber inside. Fuji hopes that his daughter will be able to live once more. His wife whines that he shouldn't try to bring their daughter back to life. She breaks up with him, explaining she can't stand to see him try this fruitless efforts and she leaves.
Fuji and a researcher talk about Giovanni happily for having the strongest Pokémon of all soon while Fuji hopes to have new knowledge of how to bring his daughter back to life. Ambertwo shows Mewtwo and the rest of the clones—Charmandertwo, Squirtletwo and Bulbasaurtwo, clones of Charmander, Squirtle and Bulbasaur respectively—a memory where she used to live and shows him elements of life, wind, sun, rain and times of the day. Mewtwo asks Ambertwo if the Moon is the Sun and is told the moon is there to keep people from being afraid of the dark. The clones slowly fade away, including Ambertwo. "It feels like it's time to say goodbye," which leaves Mewtwo feeling very sad and alone. He fears being alone and Ambertwo told him that it will be alright and thanks for caring for her. She tells him being alive is wonderful. Mewtwo's uncontrollable sadness starts to affect the lab and they try to stabilize its powers by administering it with a memory-wiping serum, and they almost fail. Dr. Fuji is glad Mewtwo survived but outraged that his daughter is gone forever.
Mewtwo slowly grows up both mentally and physically. In its sleep, it wonders how it feels like it has been asleep for what seems like forever. It still has slight memories of Amber, and ponders on her last words. Finally, it wakes up at the laboratory, and sees a world completely different from before, realizing that everything it saw before was just a dream.
Mewtwo Strikes Back continues from this point.
- Dr. Fuji
- Dr. Fuji's wife
- Ambertwo
- Archaeologists
- Team Rocket scientists
- Mewtwo (anime)
- Mew (movie)
- Bulbasaur (Dr. Fuji's; Bulbasaurtwo)
- Charmander (Dr. Fuji's; Charmandertwo)
- Squirtle (Dr. Fuji's; Squirtletwo)
- Mankey (multiple)
- Butterfree (multiple)
- Mew
|Dr. Fuji
|Addie Blaustein
|Dr. Fuji
|Yōsuke Akimoto
|Young Mewtwo
|Addie Blaustein
|Young Mewtwo
|Showtaro Morikubo
|Kerry Williams
|Kyoko Hikami
|Tara Jayne
|Etsuko Kozakura
|Michael Haigney
|Yūji Ueda
|Eric Stuart
|Satomi Kōrogi
|Adult Mewtwo
|Adult Mewtwo
|Masachika Ichimura
|This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of the Pokémon anime.


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My plant as an altar
Hecate has written passionately piece about how her garden can be an intensely demanding lover, especially right now, when it never stops needing her attention, and the relationship, I can only imagine, is sweaty and exhausting, and I hope satisfying. … Continue reading
Posted in theaology Tagged awareness, botany, daily practice, life, nature, theaology, worship 11 Comments
Act III: Paging Nurse Empathy
This series was started by an odd confluence of events: I saw the performance of Dr. Horrible, and shortly thereafter I ended up on one of those random Web-walks exploring doctors' and nurses' blogs. It started with ER humor, but … Continue reading
Posted in ethics, politics Tagged compassion, empathy, ethics, health care, life, love 5 Comments
Objective fear, Part II
In Part I, I talked about how a conservative Objectivist mindset transforms the existence of those in need into a perceived threat. The catalyst for this weird transformation of perception is fear, the fear which is the touchstone and the … Continue reading
Why love spells go pear-shaped
All right, everybody, time for your friendly local Witch to offer a February Public Service Announcement: Don't do love spells. Just don't. Why? Because they go wrong. Yes, there are also issues of consent. (How would you feel if someone … Continue reading
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Living with, not dying from disease
This is in some ways a follow up to "I refuse to live in fear." The NY Times has a brief interview with the author of a new book, After the Diagnosis: Transcending Chronic Illness. This is something near and … Continue reading
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Everton young gun Ross Barkley was delighted to improve his game whilst on loan with Sheffield Wednesday.
The 18-year old midfielder is back at Goodison Park after his two-month stint at Hillsborough, where he scored four goals in 13 outings, and was thrilled with how he developed with the Owls.
"I enjoyed it," Barkley told the club's official website.
"I was there for two months and it was valuable experience, which I needed because playing in the Under-21s, it's good, but you need to be playing competitive football for points.
"It helped. By going away I feel like I've turned into a better player. I've learned quite a lot in a short space of time.
"The players talk more because they're fighting for points and we were low in the league and trying to get up. Also with the Under-21s, it's not really as physical as it is in the Championship, and it's much better playing in front of crowds too."
Click here to reach the No1 destination for hard news and exciting gossip on Everton


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With more and more people realizing the productivity gains of working on a 4K monitor, Kensington has an easy way for you to upgrade your laptop without the need for a 4K graphics card. The VU4000D 4K Video Adapter simply plugs into a USB 3.0 port on your laptop and connect to the DisplayPort video cable of your monitor, projector or TV so you can see your content in Ultra HD. You can either mirror your laptop screen or extend it for the ultimate in productivity.
- Enable 4K resolution in Ultra HD from a laptop to a 4K monitor, TV or projector without need for a 4K graphics card
- Simple USB 3.0 to DisplayPort connection
- Extend to a 2nd monitor or mirror the screen on your laptop to improve productivity
- Plug & Play installation
- Compatible with Windows® 8.1, 8, 7
- Backwards compatible with 1080p displays
|Connector 1
|Connector 2
|Colour of product
|Compatible operating systems
|Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8
|4K Monitors, 4K Projectors, Desktop PCs, Laptops, Ultrabooks
|Plug and Play
|Cable colour
|Cables included
|DisplayPort, USB


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Israel Anti-boycott Bill Pulled Ahead of N.Y. Assembly Vote
Bill to cut state funding to academic associations that boycott Israel is withdrawn for reconsideration; speaker says he will re-introduce bill.
A New York State Assembly bill intended to punish academic groups that boycott...
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SS LAA 5 years ago
Andrelton Simmons is not in the Braves' lineup Tuesday due to a sore left shoulder.
Simmons was injured after landing awkwardly on a diving defensive play Monday. "I felt good during the game, then afterward it starting feeling sore," Simmons said. "I thought it was going to go away [overnight], but woke up this morning and couldn't lift my arm." Simmons hopes to be back in the lineup as soon as Wednesday.


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Not Making it Easy
The Indiana Pacers continue to make things tough on themselves as they try to remain a serious contender in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Things won't get easier as the Pacers look to avoid a fourth straight loss and a season sweep to the Toronto Raptors when the teams meet Friday night at Air Canada Centre.
Oddsmakers from SBG Global have made Toronto -10 point spread favorites (NBA Odds) for today's game, the over/under has been set at 208 total points (Matchup). Our public betting information shows that 73% of bets for this game have been placed on Toronto -10 (View NBA Bet Percentages).
Indiana (22-36) fell 113-107 at home to Chicago on Wednesday for its 13th loss in 16 games. Despite the skid, the Pacers are still hanging around in the Eastern race - they are within four games of the eighth and final playoff spot - in part because only five of the conference's teams have winning records.
The Pacers, though, will need to improve their play if they want to make a push in the final stretch of the season. The challenge will only get tougher Friday as they try to avoid a fourth consecutive defeat overall, and fifth in a row to Toronto.
The Raptors (32-24), fourth in the East, have won three straight games, including a 102-98 victory at Indiana on Monday night. Toronto already has clinched its first season series win over the Pacers since 2000-01, and now seeks its fourth straight home victory over Indiana.
The Raptors have won their last four games at Air Canada Centre overall, and each of those victories was by at least 17 points.
"Games are getting more crucial down the stretch and we have to do a better job at home," said Toronto's Chris Bosh, who had 28 points in the Raptors' 107-85 home win over Minnesota on Wednesday.
Bosh had 24 points and 10 rebounds against Indiana on Monday, and he is averaging 22.7 points and 10.0 boards in three games versus the Pacers this season.
In Monday's meeting, Toronto used a 13-2 run in the final period to beat the Pacers. Two nights later, Indiana blew an 11-point second-half lead and shot 6-for-19 in the fourth quarter against Chicago.
"It seems like I say this quite a bit because it happens quite a bit," coach Jim O'Brien told the Pacers' official Web site. "We're not getting the job done in the fourth quarter and it's cost us a number of winnable basketball games."
Mike Dunleavy had 25 points and Travis Diener added 22 for the Pacers, who shot 41.0 percent in playing their 18th straight game without star Jermaine O'Neal (knee) and ninth in a row minus point guard Jamaal Tinsley (knee).
"We just have to find a way to make plays," said Diener, who is taking Tinsley's spot in the starting lineup. "One night it's this; one night it's that."
Dunleavy and Diener combined for 24 points in Monday's loss to Toronto as the Pacers shot 42.5 percent and were outrebounded 46-39.
The Pacers bench will be thinner than usual Friday. Reserve forward Shawne Williams will miss at least this game after a man who had just left his home was arrested on a murder charge Wednesday night. Team CEO Donnie Walsh said Williams was not suspended but needed time to sort out what happened.
As for the Raptors, they appear firmly entrenched in the playoff race, but remain focused on finishing strong. They have won 15 of their last 22 games, with the last nine victories by an average margin of 23.2 points.
"We are just coming out and playing basketball," Toronto's Jamario Moon said. "We are really not paying to much attention to the standings right now, we just want to come out and get the job done."
By: Marc Young - theSpread.com - Email Us
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