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How net neutrality affects the healthcare industry
Net neutrality stops internet service providers (ISPs) from blocking legal content and slowing down connections for accessing certain apps, sites, and services. In essence, it's currently illegal for ISPs to reduce the speed or block specific internet content. Everyone gets equal access to content, apps, and services irrespective of the source. Without net neutrality, it could be more difficult to access different parts of the internet.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) made a recent announcement that it plans to end net neutrality. The FCC chairman stated that stopping net neutrality would end the micromanaging of the internet and enable consumers to buy service plans that best suits their needs. Supporters of net neutrality say that it prevents ISPs from exercising too much control and from dictating what people can and can't access. The fear is that ISPs will be able to choose which services to prioritize, which will result in a less fair internet.
What does an internet without net neutrality look like?
It's envisaged that, without net neutrality, the internet may become slower. This is because ISPs can separate services into fast and slow lanes where they'll be able to charge more for higher and more powerful internet speeds. This could mean that, if a content company can't or won't pay for faster services, ISPs could reduce their internet speed, which might result in consumers leaving their service.
The end of net neutrality may also mean higher prices for you and me. If content providers, like Netflix, are charged higher prices, it's likely that the costs will be passed to the end consumer. Without net neutrality, the more money you're able to spend on the internet, the better your browsing experience will be.
As well as affecting private individuals, the plans to get rid of net neutrality will also have implications for different industries. Healthcare is one industry that'll be affected by these changes. With more healthcare providers depending on the internet to stay in touch with patients, order prescriptions and record patient communications, any limitations on the internet can have far-reaching consequences.
At present, net neutrality enables all traffic to be treated equally when it comes to cost and speed. It's anticipated that electronic health records and telehealth are just two of the health services that could be affected without net neutrality. To emphasize the importance of the internet and healthcare, the American Medical Informatics Association informed the FCC that access to broadband is a key factor in health.
Here are four ways net neutrality affects the healthcare industry:
1. Growth in mobile health
Mobile health is using mobile and wireless technology to achieve health objectives. The rise of smartphone fitness apps, wearable devices, and patient portals has seen the mobile health market valued at $23 billion in 2017. Net neutrality enables anyone with a mobile device to access mobile health. As mobile health depends on wireless networks, higher prices could restrict access to some users. With a forecast of 266 million mobile phone users in 2017, net neutrality can have a big impact on a large number of people through mobile health.
The World Health Organization (WHO) mHealth New Horizons for Health Through Mobile Technologies survey discovered interesting findings about Americans' use of mobile health. An assumption can be made that the positive outcomes of mobile health have been enabled by net neutrality.
Here are some of the findings from the WHO's survey on mHealth:
- Americans had some of the highest mobile health adoption rates (50%).
- The regions of the Americas have a higher than average rate of adopting mobile health solutions to deal with emergencies (70%).
- America has the highest percentage of using mobile health technology for appointment reminders (58%).
- The use of telemedicine for things like mobile communication between health professionals was the highest in America (75%).
- Mobile health was also used for health surveys by 42% of American respondents.
- The survey found that 33% of American participants use mobile health for patient monitoring initiatives.
- 42% of American respondents said they use mobile devices to create patient record initiatives.
The statistics above demonstrate the use and growth of mobile health initiatives on a global scale with America leading the way at 42%. Fifty percent of American respondents in the WHO survey cited legal guidelines and confidentiality as the two most important barriers to mobile health. It can be deduced that the presence of net neutrality has made the internet a non-factor in implementing mobile health schemes.
2. Telemedicine software requires high speed internet
Telemedicine is using I.T and telecommunication technology to provide health care from a distance. Medical software is often complex and requires the best internet performance to maintain optimal performance. Given the implications of slow internet or internet failure for patients, healthcare providers rely on net neutrality to provide a consistent and reliable telemedicine service.
If net neutrality is taken away, health care providers may need to pay extra for the processing power they are accustomed to. This extra charge may need to be passed on to the end consumer or patient.
As well as high-speed internet access for telemedicine, fast broadband is also needed for connecting personal medical devices and sensors for remote patient care.
Innovative ideas may be less likely to be explored if there's no net neutrality. For example, there could be opportunities for patients to use their router or set-top box as a point of access for a constant connected link to smart medical devices. This kind of innovation needs an open internet system to be compatible with all cable providers. This potential breakthrough and other medical advances may be threatened if net neutrality comes to an end.
There has been a long campaign to convince health care providers to transition from paper systems to online. Doctors, hospital administrators and policy makers are eager to leave the paper-based world behind. For the health care providers that are using electronic-based systems, high-speed internet access is a must-have for electronic health records (EHR). Cloud-based EHR technology is growing in popularity and a cost-effective and fast broadband service is vital. Fast internet access is also required to handle large amounts of data for services like remote radiology applications.
3. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) sets out the requirements for protecting patients' information. Companies that handle protected health information need to have physical, network and process security in place to safeguard data.
Technical security requirements include providing controlled access to electronic and protected health information only to authorized people. Network safeguarding consists of preventing unauthorized public access to patient information across every method of exchanging data including email and the internet.
The people who need to comply with HIPAA legislation include anyone who:
- Administers treatment
- Deals with healthcare payments and operations
- Has access to patient information
- Is a subcontractor or business associate of health service providers
The HIPAA has stringent requirements to protect patient data. Net neutrality helps health care providers comply with these conditions because everyone who is part of the patient information trail has the same level of internet access.
According to supporters of net neutrality, a major benefit is that it protects our privacy. Given that 50% of American respondents of the WHO survey have concerns about legal guidelines and confidentiality in relation to mobile health, the end of net neutrality will do nothing to alleviate these fears.
Over 15 million Americans received remote care in 2015 and the numbers have been steadily rising with forecasts that over 10% of doctor visits in the U.S will be done over internet video chat sessions. Given that more patients are conducting sensitive medical conversations over the internet, privacy becomes a very important factor. This aspect of telemedicine could be under threat with the revocation of net neutrality and may lead to people opting to physically go to see their doctor instead of relying on technology.
Doctors and patients aren't the only ones who are concerned about the erosion of privacy. This letter to the chair of the FCC is signed by 50 Republicans and warns about the dangers of failing to protect consumer privacy.
The end of net neutrality could result in the increased likelihood of a violation of the HIPAA's regulations on patient privacy. It's proposed that ISPs should divulge how they intend to screen content to determine what level of charges to apply. This means that there's a potential for ISPs to screen patients' data to offer the healthcare provider the required level of internet access. This practice may present security and HIPAA compliance issues.
4. Smaller health practices remain competitive
Net neutrality helps small health practices compete against their larger competitors. Without net neutrality, ISPs would provide the best-performing broadband speed to those who can afford it. It's more likely that larger health practices would have the resources to absorb these extra costs or pass it onto their patients. Where smaller practices are unable to pay for the right internet speed, the quality of patient care could be negatively affected.
Small practices in rural and low-income areas could be particularly vulnerable if net neutrality is stopped. Telemedicine is used to provide high-quality healthcare to remote and rural communities to redress the balance in healthcare. An example is the Mercy Virtual Care Center, a hospital without beds, located in St. Louis. Doctors and nurses work different 24/7 shifts to provide remote support to emergency rooms, intensive care units and other services in 38 smaller hospitals. Net neutrality facilitates this service as both the Mercy Virtual Center and the small hospitals have equal internet access. It remains to be seen what impact the cancellation of net neutrality has on smaller hospitals and health care providers.
Telemedicine doesn't only close the gap in terms of proximity, but it also provides low-income families access to health care. More low-income families can use the internet thanks to services like The Lifeline Program. If internet costs rise, these low-income families may not be able to afford the new charges. Net neutrality helps to level the playing field for low-income families to access telemedicine.
Net neutrality has appeared to provide the health industry the platform and freedom to innovate and take advantage of technology to deliver a better and more efficient service. Telemedicine may be a lifeline to patients and anything that threatens the status quo will attract fierce criticism. Everyone in the health industry relies on fast internet access to manage patients and the business. The benefits of net neutrality are evident. If the FCC's proposal is accepted, only time will tell what a post-net neutrality era will mean for the healthcare industry.
Important Notice
The information contained in this article is general in nature and you should consider whether the information is appropriate to your needs. Legal and other matters referred to in this article are of a general nature only and are based on Deputy's interpretation of laws existing at the time and should not be relied on in place of professional advice. Deputy is not responsible for the content of any site owned by a third party that may be linked to this article and no warranty is made by us concerning the suitability, accuracy or timeliness of the content of any site that may be linked to this article. Deputy disclaims all liability (except for any liability which by law cannot be excluded) for any error, inaccuracy, or omission from the information contained in this article and any loss or damage suffered by any person directly or indirectly through relying on this information.


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- Paralysis symptoms:
- Introduction
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Have a symptom?
See what questions
a doctor would ask.
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a doctor would ask.
Further information about Paralysis symptoms is below, or review more specific information about these types of Paralysis symptoms: facial paralysis, hemiparesis, sleep paralysis, jaw paralysis, Leg paralysis, partial paralysis, total paralysis, muscle paralysis or other types.
Paralysis symptoms: Loss of body control and/or feeling. See detailed information below for a list of 385 causes of Paralysis symptoms, Symptom Checker, Assessment Questionnaire, including diseases and drug side effect causes.
» Review Causes of Paralysis symptoms: Causes | Symptom Checker » | Assessment Questionnaire »
The following medical conditions are some of the possible
causes of Paralysis symptoms.
There are likely to be other possible causes, so ask your doctor
about your symptoms.
See full list of 385 causes of Paralysis symptoms
» Review Causes of Paralysis symptoms: Causes | Symptom Checker » | Assessment Questionnaire »
Home medical tests possibly related to Paralysis symptoms:
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See full list of 108 types for Paralysis symptoms
Listed below are some combinations of symptoms associated with Paralysis symptoms, as listed in our database. Visit the Symptom Checker, to add and remove symptoms and research your condition.
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Real-life user stories relating to Paralysis symptoms:
Symptom specific forums: The following patient stories in our interactive forums and message boards relate to Paralysis symptoms or relevant symptoms:
Various tests are used in the diagnosis of Paralysis symptoms. Some of these are listed below :
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diagnostic tests for Paralysis symptoms
Some of the comorbid or associated medical symptoms for Paralysis symptoms may include these symptoms:
See all associated comorbid symptoms for Paralysis symptoms
Research the causes of these more general types of symptom:
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Research the causes of these symptoms that are similar to, or related to, the symptom Paralysis symptoms:
During a consultation, your doctor will use various techniques to assess the symptom: Paralysis symptoms. These will include a physical examination and possibly diagnostic tests. (Note: A physical exam is always done, diagnostic tests may or may not be performed depending on the suspected condition) Your doctor will ask several questions when assessing your condition. It is important to openly share any pertinent information to help your doctor make an accurate diagnosis.
It is also very important to bring an up-to-date list of all of your all medical conditions, medications including dosages, and names of numbers of any specialist you see.
Create your printable checklist here.
See Paralysis symptoms Assessment Questionnaire (29 listings)
Read more about causes and Paralysis symptoms deaths.
Vitamin B12 deficiency under-diagnosed: The condition of Vitamin B12 deficiency is a possible misdiagnosis of various conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (see...read more »
Read more about Misdiagnosis and Paralysis symptoms
Other ways to find a doctor, or use doctor, physician and specialist online research services:
Conditions that are commonly undiagnosed in related areas may include:
The list of organs typically affected by Paralysis symptoms may include, but is not limited to:
The list below shows some of the causes of Paralysis symptoms mentioned in various sources:
See full list of 385 causes of Paralysis symptoms
This information refers to the general prevalence and incidence of these diseases, not to how likely they are to be the actual cause of Paralysis symptoms. Of the 385 causes of Paralysis symptoms that we have listed, we have the following prevalence/incidence information:
See the analysis of the prevalence of 385 causes of Paralysis symptoms
The following list of conditions have 'Paralysis symptoms' or similar listed as a symptom in our database. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.
Select from the following alphabetical view of conditions which include a symptom of Paralysis symptoms or choose View All.
The following list of medical conditions have Paralysis symptoms or similar listed as a medical complication in our database. The distinction between a symptom and complication is not always clear, and conditions mentioning this symptom as a complication may also be relevant. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.
Ask or answer a question about symptoms or diseases at one of our free interactive user forums.
Medical story forums: If you have a medical story then we want to hear it.
See a list of all the medical forums
This information shows analysis of the list of causes of Paralysis symptoms based
on whether certain risk factors apply to the patient:
Depending on the seriousness of the onset of Paralysis symptoms, you may want to consult one of the following medical professionals.
Important:In extreme cases, always seek advice from emergency services :
Subtypes of Paralysis symptoms:
Facial paralysis (70 causes), Hemiparesis (47 causes), Sleep paralysis (9 causes), Jaw paralysis (13 causes), Leg paralysis (33 causes), Partial paralysis (4 causes), Total paralysis (2 causes), Muscle paralysis (26 causes), Spastic paralysis (14 causes), Paraplegia (80 causes), Quadriparesis (11 causes), Flaccid paralysis (12 causes), Ankle paralysis (16 causes), Arm paralysis (29 causes), Back paralysis (19 causes), Elbow paralysis (13 causes), Eye paralysis (31 causes), Eyelid paralysis (14 causes), Finger paralysis (15 causes), Foot paralysis (16 causes), Knee paralysis (13 causes), Thigh Paralysis (15 causes), Vocal cord paralysis (24 causes), Wrist paralysis (15 causes), Hemiplegia (55 causes), Bell's palsy (9 causes), 7th cranial nerve palsy (12 causes), Acquired facial paralysis in children (13 causes), Asymmetrical paralysis in the legs (11 causes), Cerebral palsy in children (9 causes), Complete hemifacial weakness (7 causes), Contralateral paralysis (8 causes), Cranial nerve palsies (62 causes), Cranial nerve palsy (108 causes), Double elevator palsy in children (7 causes), Extraocular muscle palsies of both eyes (11 causes), Extraocular muscle palsies of one eye (11 causes), Facial palsy (44 causes), Facial paralysis in children (23 causes), Facial paralysis in newborns (7 causes), Feet paralysis (3 causes), Foot paralysis in children (5 causes), Guillain-Barre syndrome (5 causes), Gastroparesis (23 causes), Gastroparesis in children (3 causes), Handlebar palsy (1 cause), Hemiparesis in children (20 causes), Hemiplegia in in children (24 causes), Hoyne's signs (2 causes), Inability to move (11 causes), Inability to move extremities (21 causes), Loss of limb function (21 causes), Monoplegia (15 causes), Ocular and facial palsies (30 causes), Oculomotor palsy (23 causes), Oculomotor palsy due to diabetes (3 causes), Oculomotor palsy due to multiple sclerosis (2 causes), Ophthalmoplegia (43 causes), Ophthalmoplegia in both eyes (6 causes), Ophthalmoplegia in children (9 causes), Paralysis of the chest wall muscles (6 causes), Paralysis of the muscles in the trunk (35 causes), Paralysis of the muscles of the extremities (11 causes), Progressive bulbar palsy (9 causes), Progressive external ophthalmoplegia (2 causes), Quadriplegia (36 causes), Radial nerve palsy (4 causes), Respiratory muscle paralysis (28 causes), Spastic hemiplegia (14 causes), Unilateral paralysis (11 causes), Unilateral paresis (11 causes), Upgaze palsy in children (4 causes), Sudden onset of GB syndrome (9 causes), Asymmetrical paralysis of the lower limbs (6 causes), Gradual onset of progressive bulbar palsy (6 causes), Sudden onset of bulbar palsy (8 causes), Sudden onset of pseudobulbar palsy (5 causes), Sudden onset of oculomotor palsy with contralateral hemiplegia (1 cause), Sudden onset of asymmetrical paralysis of the legs (11 causes), Sudden onset of cranial nerve dysfunction (11 causes), Ophthalmoplegia as present in acute congestive glaucoma (11 causes), Paralysing weakness in the muscles of the extremities (17 causes), Sudden onset of facial diplegia (5 causes)
Medical Conditions associated with Paralysis symptoms:
Weakness (3752 causes), Movement symptoms (6001 causes), Muscle symptoms (7251 causes), Musculoskeletal symptoms (6264 causes), Nerve symptoms (9132 causes), Neurological symptoms (9575 causes), Brain symptoms (2787 causes), Head symptoms (10192 causes)
Symptoms related to Paralysis symptoms:
Numbness (497 causes), Weakness (3752 causes), Tingling (951 causes), Paresthesias (453 causes), Collapse (105 causes), Hemiparesis (47 causes), Facial paralysis (70 causes), Loss of movements, Moror symptoms, Sensory symptoms (7134 causes), Memory loss (142 causes), Sensory loss, Light touch, Pin prick, Two point discrimination, proprioception (17 causes)
Doctor-patient articles related to symptoms and diagnosis:
These general medical articles may be of interest:
See full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis
Our news pages contain the following medical news summaries about Paralysis symptoms and many other medical conditions:
Medical research papers related to Paralysis symptoms include:
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Copyright © 2014 Health Grades Inc. All rights reserved. Last Update: 13 August, 2015 (0:31)

subset: commoncrawl


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WASHINGTON — Marcelo Sarvas and Patrick Mullins scored three minutes apart in the second half and D.C. United rallied for a 2-2 draw with the New York City Red Bulls on Sunday in a game delayed 75 minutes because of lightning.
Sarvas scored his first goal on a penalty kick in the 70th minute and Mullins got his first with a header off a corner kick in the 73rd as D.C. United (6-8-10) moved ahead of Orlando City on the red line in the Eastern Conference. Both teams have 28 points, but D.C. holds the tiebreaker for the sixth spot.
The comeback was unexpected for the lowest scoring team in the MLS, especially after the Red Bulls (10-9-7), third in the East, took the lead on the soggy field. The delay came in the ninth minute.
Bradley Wright-Phillips, in the 38th minute, knocked in the perfect serve from Mike Grella. Wright-Phillips became the fourth player in league history to reach 15 goals in three consecutive seasons. Then in the 64th minute Felipe notched his third, pounding the ball into a small opening just inside the post.
We're revamping our Comments section. Learn more and share your input.


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Degassing Shafts & Rotors
MMEI's patented QUAD-zilla® Shaft & Rotor features a unique rotor head and superior metal treatment that achieves better degassing results in less time. With its ability to operate at lower RPM's, the MMEI design eliminate "dead zones" to ensure complete treatment of the molten metal. The new RHINO sleeve protects shaft for longer service life. You can use the QUAD-Zilla on your existing degassing unit.
Furnace Treatment Shafts & Rotors
With our state of the art machining centers, MMEI can supply replacement graphite parts for your furnace treatment and degassing equipment. We offer improved designs, as well as direct replacements if you're not able to make a process change. With competitive prices and quick deliveries, MMEI should be your preferred graphite supplier.
Refractory Lined Pipe
- Sch. 40 steel pipe
- Available in any configuration
- Any diameter
- Any length
- Straights or elbows
- 1 or 2 flanges
- Replacement liners available
- Will reline at our facility
- "Special orders don't upset"


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Trainers & Accessories
Elite Novo Force Trainer
Features: - to make use of training software the Misuro B+ sensor is sold separately - Novo frame: integration of steel and technological plastic materials - magnetic resistance unit, very compact - 8 resistance levels adjustable by a practical selector on the handlebar - maximum stability at high speeds or...
Elite Qubo Power Mag Smart Trainer
Top Features of the Elite Qubo Power Mag Smart Trainer Comes with Elite's innovative Misuro wireless speed sensor which allows you to use your Bluetooth enabled device as a powerful, multifunctional trainer head unit • Compatible with Bluetooth enabled iPhone 4s and above, iPad 3 and above as well as...
Tacx Flux Direct Drive Smart Trainer
Tacx Flux Smart Trainer (Updated 2018 Version) Max 1500 Watts, 10% Slope, ANT+, Bluetooth, Magnetic, Shimano/Sram Freehub Body, Model T2900 The Tacx Flux Direct Drive Smart Trainer is designed for athletes wanting to up their training all year round. Incorporating ANT+, FE-C & Bluetooth Smart open this product is ideal...
Tacx Neo Smart Direct Driver Trainer (without Cassette)
Interactive Smart trainer with direct drive: the Neo Smart T2800 trainer from Tacx The Neo Smart is the most powerful and silent indoor trainer to date. It is the only real direct drive as it does not contain any physical transmission like a roller or belt. The Neo is also...


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By Russ Ragan
The Dodge County Middle School (DCMS) Lady Warriors have kicked off their 2017 season. They started things off with a 5-5 tie against Bryan County. They turned things around with a 5-1 win over Reidsville.
The Lady Warriors opened region play with a big 10-9 win over West Laurens. Dodge then hit the road for the Stinger Classic in Hazlehurst. Dodge defeated Portal 3-0. They defeated Ebenezer 1-0. The Lady Warriors dropped a 7-6 decision to Mary Persons Middle School. They dropped a 5-1 game to Jeff Davis County and an 8-2 game to Ware County.
They returned to regular season play on Wednesday, as they defeated Vidalia 8-5. Dodge dropped a 7-4 game to Bleckley County. Here is a rundown of the statistics of those games.
In Reidsville, Jayci Yawn was one for two with one run batted in (RBI); Dylana Barton was one for two; Brooke Perdue had an RBI; Makiyah Roberson was one for two with one run scored; Skye Meadows had a walk and run scored and Reagan Graham had a walk and run scored.
Against Bryan County, Yawn had an RBI; Barton had two doubles; Roberson had two hits and two RBIs; Ava Rowland was two for three with a run scored; Meadows had an RBI; Ava Maxwell was one for one with an RBI and Carson Etheridge had a double with a run scored.
Against West Laurens, Yawn had a double; Barton had a double, two runs scored and two RBIs; Perdue had a triple and an RBI; Roberson had a single, a double, a triple and an RBI; Rowland had a double, a run scored and an RBI; JaiunaVae Pattillo had an RBI and Annie Jones had a single, two walks and two runs scored.
Against Portal, Jones had a single and an RBI; Meg Lewis had a single and a run scored; Pattillo had two RBIs and two walks; Rebecca Bowling had an RBI and Reagan Boney had a single and a run scored.
Against Mary Persons Middle School, Barton was one for three with an RBI and run scored; Perdue had a run scored; Roberson had a single and a run scored; Rowland had a single and an RBI; Maxwell had a single, a walk and a run scored; Etheridge had a single, walk, run scored and two RBIs and Jones had a single, a run scored and an RBI.
Against Jeff Davis, Rowland had a walk and a run scored.
Against Ware County, Meadows had a double, a walk and a run scored and Pattillo had two walks and a run scored.
Against Vidalia, Barton had a single and two runs scored; Rowland was three for four with a double and a run scored; Pattillo was two for four with two runs scored; Roberson was two for four with two runs scored and a triple; Maxwell was one for three with a run scored and Jones had a single.
Against Bleckley County, Yawn was one for three with a walk and a run scored; Barton was one for four with one RBI; Pattillo was two for four with a run scored and a triple and Jones was two for three with an RBI and two runs scored.
Dodge County Middle School Lady Warriors kick off season
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Home > Jellycat > by Range > Kutie Pops
Our Jellycat Kutie Pops Bunny Pouch Mirror is super cute and perfectly sized to keep in your bag at all times. Comes complete with a protective faux leather bunny pouch. Hop Hop!
Finished in durable metal with the mirror on the reverse side.
Brand: JellycatAge: 3+Size: ⌀
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6 Black Vulture pairs are incubating in the Pre-Pyrenees28. April 2014
The reintroduction project for the Cinereous Vulture (or Black Vulture) is doing very well.
As the Spanish NGO Grefa writes, there are currently 6 pairs breeding the the Pre-Pyrenees:
For more information see here:
6 Black Vulture pairs are incubating in Lleida's Pre-Pyrenees
In Spanish:
6 parejas de buitre negro están incubando en el Prepirineo de Lleida


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We recently reported that Angelina Jolie had settled on Disney's Maleficent as her next movie, and now it looks like producers have found their protagonist. Jolie has long been attached to play the powerful villain in the pic, and now Twitch reports that Elle Fanning is in talks to Princess Aurora, "the young beauty sent into a lengthy slumber in the classic tale." Jolie no doubt has a meaty character to dive into, but I think Fanning is an inspired choice for the princess. The actress has come into her own as of late with turns in Cameron Crowe's We Bought a Zoo and Francis Ford Coppola's Twixt, but I was particularly impressed by her work in Sofia Coppola's Somewhere. She has a youthful innocence that goes hand in hand with her emotional maturity, and it'll be interesting to see her stretch in the fantasy film.
Robert Stromberg is making his feature directorial debut on the project, but his resume as a production designer on films like Avatar, Alice in Wonderland and Oz the Great and Powerful promise that he's got a vast imagination to bring to the table. Not many plot details are known about the project other than the fact that it tells the Sleeping Beauty story from the villain's perspective. If Fanning signs on, expect more casting announcements soon.
Update: THR reports that Maleficent will start shooting this June in London.


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K&B Remodeling the entire Bay Area one Kitchen and Bathroom at a time!
K&B Remodeling is the full-service kitchen remodeling companies in the San Francisco Bay Area. For more than years our unique, tailored approach to remodeling services has built a strong reputation for our family-owned company. Our kitchen design consultants and craftsmen attend to every detail and work tirelessly to give you the kitchen of your dreams.
What We Do
K&B Remodeling will assist you at every stage, from preconstruction to completion.
While our company of independently-owned, currently over years and growing, our business is built on offering one-on-one attention and commitment to providing you the highest standard of quality work
Learn more about the services we provide.
Meet Our People
All of our team are highly qualified individuals with degrees in architecture, engineering or construction. We exclusively employ personnel with long-term construction experience in order to ensure optimum results.
Nancy V. in Redwood City says:
Yonis of K&B Remodeling performed above and beyond expectations. The bathroom is showcase beautiful and the custom cabinets (which he designed) are fantastic. Moreover Yonis assisted with moving out of our old residence and removed wiring that I had no idea how I was going to get it done. When I asked how much I owed him, he responded "never miss an opportunity to do someone a favor." When Yonis is discovered (and he will be) you will be hard pressed to retain his services because he IS SO GOOD. He continues to finish more projects at our home and am so happy to have him around as he has such a positive can-do attitude.
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The Nations is a booming area of West Nashville. Loosely, its borders run along I-40 on the south, 44th Ave N on the east, the Cumberland River on the north and 63rdAve N on the west. There are conflicting stories on where the neighborhood name comes from. One version states that the name came from the Chickasaw Nations that lived there in the eighteenth century and traded with early settlers. The Chickasaw leader Piomingo and his tribe allied with white settlers in 1780. In 1783, James Robertson and tribal leaders met at the Treaty Oak (which once stood at the corner of 61st and Louisiana avenues) to sign a pact guaranteeing the rights of the Chickasaw Nations in exchange for their help in protecting the Nashville settlement.
After a lengthy period of decline the resurgence of The Nations is undeniable. This revitalization is due in part by the demand for urban housing and infill development, its proximity to downtown, great highway access, and the work of champions who believe in the area. It is truly unbelievable how quickly this once crime ridden neighborhood is being transformed. A drive will show block after block of vintage Craftsman and Victorian homes being renovated or demolished to make room for new homes. Rows and rows of new construction and some of the most affordable new homes in the city with promise of increased property values in the near future.
Inventory is low as homes fly off the market before even being completed, but there are a few large-scale projects pre-selling.
Shops, restaurants, and bars are quickly snagging up space in the Nations. Below are some local favorites.
Frothy Monkey – The Nations: 1400 51st Ave North
Stocking 51– 5016 Centennial Blvd
Project 615 – 1404 51st Ave North
House, a social eatery– 712 51st Ave. North
Fifty First Kitchen and Bar– 5104 Illinois Ave
BarreAmped Nashville West– 803 51st Ave North
The Mill Boutique– 812 51st Ave. N.
Tin Wings- 816 51st Ave N
The Nations will one day appear in textbooks as a case study exemplifying the rapid transformation and gentrification of a neighborhood. Once considered an undesirable neighborhood this area is now thriving. Get in while you can.
If you are interested in scheduling a tour of the Nations or to learn more about real estate in Nashville, TN contact Gabriela Lira at 615-440-6327 or by email at firstname.lastname@example.com. Gabriela is a professional REALTOR® and a RE/MAX Masters agent. Each RE/MAX office is independently owned and operated.
The Nations Homes for Sale
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SAS Faith Formation
Youth Ministry
Adult Faith Formation
The SAS Faith Formation Program coordinates the Children's Liturgy of the Word, Youth Activities, Youth Group, as well as the K-9 Faith Formation program, 2nd grade Sacrament preparation, 9th Grade Online Program, 10th grade Confirmation program, and Adult Education Word Search events.
Each year nearly 500 children, youth, and adults take part in SAS sponsored events and there are many opportunities for involvement and volunteering. It is only through the help and support of volunteers that all these programs can be offered.


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LOTS OF folks have lots of reasons for wanting their own piece of land out of town.
This is Sara's: "I was pregnant, and I went to hear Richard Louv speak at Town Hall. I came out of there and I'm saying, 'I can't raise a child just in the city!' "
Louv, author of "Last Child in the Woods," is a child-advocacy expert who links the lack of nature (he calls it nature-deficit) in the lives of the wired generation to some of the most disturbing childhood trends: obesity, depression, attention disorders.
Sara, a zoologist, was horrified. She could not allow such a disconnect for her soon-to-arrive son. "I wanted woods, salamanders and pileated woodpeckers," she says.
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Sara and her husband, Jed, went right out and snagged nine secluded and thoroughly wooded acres on Vashon Island.
Then they set up camp.
"We didn't have the money to build right away, so we put up all these tents," Sara says. "We had a toilet tent, a kitchen tent, a Costco tent and a three-dome, 10-person tent with two queen blowup beds." The Census Bureau, believing it to be a commune, left them an official-type inquiry asking how many people lived there. Just the three.
The tents are gone now. In their place is the new, timber-frame cabin the family gets away to every chance they get — a place that is open yet compact, contemporary yet cozy, complete with a screened-in "porch" that expands the main living space whether the NanaWall folding-glass doors are open or not.
"Out here, my husband is a full-on Paul Bunyan," Sara laughs. "He's out there hacking trails and chopping wood. I'm going to get him a mule!"
(Jed should be concerned. They already have a dog, chickens, three horses and a rather large rabbit. "His name is Winter," Sara says of the latter. "But Jed calls him We're Not Keeping Him." They are.)
Most of the time Jed is very busy not being Paul Bunyan with his all-consuming job in downtown Seattle. "I promise you," Sara says, "he does not decompress until he comes here. Then he cooks breakfast, he makes dinner, he bakes bread."
Jed explains: "It's the ferry. You just switch gears on the ferry. Plus, Vashon's special. There's everything to do and nothing." Standing before the blackened-steel hearth he says, "I'm a big fan of fires. In the city you get up and go to work. Here, I get up and make a fire."
The home was designed by FabCab (and architect Emory Baldwin), a Seattle architecture firm that advocates environmentally minded homes prefabricated and built for aging in place. It was built by Greg Kruse of Potential Energy. The family's cabin, customized, is rated three stars by Built-Green (an environmental building program of the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish counties) for its structural insulated panels and three-pane windows. Concrete floors have radiant heat, which Sara can control anywhere using her iPhone.
Architect Tamra Groh, who remodeled the family's Green Lake home, helped with interior spaces. Roche Bobois' Mah Jong modular sofa system commands the living room in orange, cherry, lime, a pink stripe and a Missoni pattern. Before the fireplace sits Ligne Roset's Togo sofa in smokey gray. Walls are bravely black (Soot from Benjamin Moore, entry and master) or jade or eggplant.
Cabinets are Ikea, counters butcher block. ("We can upgrade later if we want," Sara says.) Walls into the woods are glass.
"Literally, it's the opportunity at every turn to see lizards, salamanders and pileateds," she says. "I love having this for my son."
Rebecca Teagarden writes about architecture and design for Pacific NW magazine. Benjamin Benschneider is a magazine staff photographer.


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Let's let that title sink in for a minute, shall we? You don't EARN the right to wear (and enjoy) a bathing suit. You are born with that right, no matter what your body looks like. No, really. It's … [Read more...]
3 tips for seeing fireworks with scared little ones
Parents with little ones in Myrtle Beach for the 4th of July, listen up! If you're planning to see fireworks but have someone in your family who's afraid, here are a few tips that saved me when … [Read more...]
Hurricane Matthew update from Myrtle Beach – and it's confusing.
Let me give you some backstory. On Tuesday we all knew that Hurricane Matthew was a possibility for the Grand Strand and the chatter among Myrtle Beach moms started on Facebook. "I'll bet there will … [Read more...]
5 beach reads worthy of neglecting your family (kidding!)
I've got a stack of beach reads ready to be devoured during the remaining weeks of summer. Here are my top five books that will make you laugh, cry, and neglect your children. Important safety … [Read more...]
Thinking of starting a business? Here's one local mom's story of using disappointment for development and creating something cool
This article appears in the April 2015 issue of Parent News. How much money have you spent on toys for the kids that ended up being a huge disappointment? Maybe I was delusional as a kid, but it … [Read more...]
7 things you can do to shake off the cold and get ready for summer now
This article was written for and can be found in the March 2014 issue of Parent News magazine. Find it here! On one hand it feels like this school year has been never ending and on the other, I … [Read more...]
Join me at 3 pm today on Twitter for a FlipKey Weekend Getaway chat!
Are you thinking of getting away for the weekend? Or are you planning a Myrtle Beach vacation? Join me, along with the great folks at FlipKey and several other very talented bloggers from places like … [Read more...]
Holiday giving that has nothing to do with wrapping paper and ribbon
This post originally appeared in the December 2014 issue of Parent News. Find it here! There are two mason jars on my kitchen counter. In one there are colored slips of paper. The other holds … [Read more...]
Last-minute stocking stuffer ideas for ages newborn through 8
I'm a blogger over at BabyCenter and pulled together a few posts I did over the past week filled with stocking stuffer ideas for all ages! I couldn't resist sharing them with you. Check them … [Read more...]
Looking at old photos makes you realize how fast time flies
This article appears in the September 2014 issue of Parent News. Earlier this evening I logged into a blog I was writing several years back, but long since abandoned. I've always been a little … [Read more...]


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Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Obama's Afghanistan speech: We will not try to make Afghanistan a perfect place
9/11 in the first sentence. Very Giulianiesque.
U.S. MOTTO: ROUTING THE TALIBAN SINCE 2001: "In the days that followed, our nation was united as we struck at al Qaeda and routed the Tahleebhan in Afghanistan." Just has to stress that second syllable, doesn't he?
SPENT ENORMOUS BLOOD: "Then, our focus shifted. A second war was launched in Iraq, and we spent enormous blood and treasure to support a new government there."
EIGHTH, ACTUALLY, BUT DOESN'T TIME FLY WHEN YOU'RE HAVING FUN? "By the time I took office, the war in Afghanistan had entered its seventh year."
WHAT WE ARE MEETING: "Thanks to our men and women in uniform, our civilian personnel, and our many coalition partners, we are meeting our goals." For some reason, he offers no proof of this.
So he's offering to reverse the 2009 "surge," i.e., to reduce the number of troops he has in Afghanistan to the number there were when he took office, by, oh, just about election day. "After this initial reduction, our troops will continue coming home at a steady pace as Afghan Security forces move into the lead." A steady pace. Could mean 10,000 a year, could mean 3 a year. But at least it'll be steady.
ALSO, LIFT AND SEPARATE: "Our mission will change from combat to support. By 2014, this process of transition will be complete, and the Afghan people will be responsible for their own security."
TAKE OUT MENU: "Together with the Pakistanis, we have taken out more than half of al Qaeda's leadership." Although in the Pakistanis' case, this means taken more than half of Al Qaida's leadership to dinner and a movie.
OH, AND DID I MENTION LATELY THAT WE KILLED BIN LADEN? "And thanks to our intelligence professionals and Special Forces, we killed Osama bin Laden, the only leader that al Qaeda had ever known. This was a victory for all who have served since 9/11. One soldier summed it up well. 'The message,' he said, 'is we don't forget. You will be held accountable, no matter how long it takes.'" Way to spin the complete failure to find bin Laden for a decade as a sign of American perseverance, one soldier.
WHERE WE HAVE PUT AL QAIDA: "But we have put al Qaeda on a path to defeat".
SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO GET COMFORTABLE: "This is the beginning -- but not the end -- of our effort to wind down this war."
He favors "initiatives that reconcile the Afghan people, including the Taliban."
WHAT WE WILL NOT TRY: "We will not try to make Afghanistan a perfect place."
ENDURES & ENSURES: "What we can do, and will do, is build a partnership with the Afghan people that endures -- one that ensures that we will be able to continue targeting terrorists and supporting a sovereign Afghan government." Forever and ever and ever.
IS IT AT THE END OF A TUNNEL? "And even as there will be dark days ahead in Afghanistan, the light of a secure peace can be seen in the distance."
NOTHING SAYS "ANCHOR OF GLOBAL SECURITY" LIKE BEING ENGAGED IN FIVE SIMULTANEOUS WARS: "Some would have America retreat from our responsibility as an anchor of global security, and embrace an isolation that ignores the very real threats that we face. Others would have America over-extend ourselves, confronting every evil that can be found abroad. We must chart a more centered course." Phew, for a minute there I thought he'd advocate one of those less centered courses.
WHAT WE MUST EMBRACE: "Like generations before, we must embrace America's singular role in the course of human events." This is just a badly written speech. Who inserted the latter phrase, from the Declaration of Independence, in a sentence about embracing America's singular role, whatever that means. Is it anything like American exceptionalism?
AS PRURIENT AS WE ARE PRIAPIC: "But we must be as pragmatic as we are passionate". Just can't resist an alliteration, can he? Also, could Obama possibly be less passionate about Afghanistan?
"In all that we do, we must remember that what sets America apart is not solely our power -- it is the principles upon which our union was founded. We are a nation that brings our enemies to justice while adhering to the rule of law". For example, we shot bin Laden in the head and dumped his body in the ocean, but adhering to the rule of law.
WHAT WE STAND NOT FOR: "We stand not for empire, but for self-determination. That is why we have a stake in the democratic aspirations that are now washing across the Arab World. We will support those revolutions with fidelity to our ideals, with the power of our example, and with an unwavering belief that all human beings deserve to live with freedom and dignity." Unless they live in Bahrain or someplace with oil or US military bases, obviously.
WHAT WE MUST RECAPTURE: "And most of all, after a decade of passionate debate, we must recapture the common purpose that we shared at the beginning of this time of war." Revenge?
HEY KIDS, WHAT TIME IS IT? "America, it is time to focus on nation-building here at home."
Kept saying we need to end the war "responsibly." Responsible to whom, he did not say.
Another Obama speech with no obvious purpose. If he meant to inform us of his vague timetable for troop reductions (what will the 2014 transition from combat to support mean for troop levels, when if ever will all troops be out of Afghanistan?), a three-sentence press release could have handled it. If he was looking for the active support of the American people for something, I missed hearing that call. I think the upshot was that the war is kind of slowly winding down – he actually used the phrase winding down! – so if we all stopped thinking about it and talking about, that would be okay with him, and it'll probably all turn out more or less okay.
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200+ staff
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A hot runner gating system is understood to be an extension of an injection molding machine. The function of the hot runner system is to adiab...01-11-2018


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Trademarks, copyrights, and patents are all different tools that are used to protect ideas and content. Quite often people tend to confuse these three. It is important to have a clear working knowledge of what they are since we encounter them everyday. Business owners, inventors, and content developers like artists, musicians and writers, all have a need for these forms of protection to safeguard their work. Even others need to know about intellectual property protection to ensure that they do not accidentally plagiarize or use another person's work incorrectly.
An Explanation of Copyrights
Copyrights are used to protect works that have been authored by someone. This can include songs, books, screenplays, paintings, photographs, designs, and so on. A copyright can apply to such works even if they have not been published. The person who owns the copyright is the only one who is legally allowed to reproduce or distribute that piece of work. They can also create derivative works (for example, altering an image), hold public performances of the work, or display it in public. Keep in mind that copyrights are typically used for abstract works. For example, if it was applied to the description of a new invention, the copyright would not actually protect the invention itself. Rather, it would protect the description.
- The Basics of Copyrights (PDF)
- Copyrights and Fair Use
- Copyrights and Public Domain Works
- An Overview of Copyrighted Materials
What Are Servicemarks and Trademarks?
Trademarks are typically words, logos, or even devices that are used in association with the sale of products. Their purpose is to help others recognize which individual or company created the goods, and it also serves to make the goods distinctive from other ones. In comparison, a servicemark functions in much the same way, except that it is applied to services rather than physical goods. If an object is trademarked, others might still make similar products but they may not use the same or similar mark to identify it. Trademarks and servicemarks are useful in clarifying and conveying information to customers pertaining to the origins and authenticity of the product.
- Using Trademarks
- How to Use Trademarks Properly
- A Guide to Trademark Law
- An Explanation of Trademarks and Servicemarks
An Introduction to Patents
The Patent and Trademark Office issues patents as a type of protection for inventions. It is known as a property right. In order for someone to acquire a patent, their invention needs to be something that is new, useful, and it should function differently or do things in a different manner from any existing devices. New patents are valid for a period of twenty years. Having something patented means that the inventor has the right to exclude other people from reproducing, selling, or using their invention.
Differences Between Copyrights and Trademarks
Although copyrights and trademarks are so often confused, they do hold some key differences. Copyrights are primarily used to safeguard works that have been authored. A copyright can be applied to writing, art, music, performance arts, and film. On the other hand, trademarks are applied to logos, phrases, or single words that are used in conjunction with the trade of a good (or services, in the case of servicemarks). There are some scenarios where a copyright as well as trademark might be used. For example, a series of books with a very distinctive logo and slogan might hold a copyright to protect the content and cover art of the books, and a trademark to protect the logo and slogan. The distinction is that in general, copyrights are not used for single words or brief phrases, such as slogans. Protection of images can vary depending on how they are used. Photographs used in advertising campaigns can be copyrighted, but the company's logo in the same campaigns would be trademarked.
There are different processes for applying for a copyright or a trademark. Copyrights involve a minor filing fee and a brief registration period. In addition to this, the Copyright Office will check that the forms and application are satisfactorily completed. When registering for a trademark, the cost and time involved are significantly larger. Besides this, the Trademark Office also has to perform an in-depth check to ensure that the content is not too similar to other content that is already trademarked. Finally, content that is copyrighted is subject to royalty and licensing fees. Imagine that a band creates a song and holds the copyright to it. A customer might pay to purchase a compact disc for personal use at home. Suppose the same customer wants to use this song in a movie they have made. Even though they already paid for a copy of the CD, they would still have to pay licensing fees to the band for the use of the music in their movie. In other words, each separate use of the content is subject to additional royalty or licensing fees. This type of concept does not apply to trademarks.
- Copyrights Versus Trademarks
- When to Use Copyrights or Trademarks
- How Trademarks and Copyrights Differ
- How Are Copyrights Related to Trademarks?
If indeed you do need a trademark, trademark attorney Xavier Morales can guide you through the process, from search to filing to protection.


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To manually stop students from posting replies to discussion posts, you can use the Close for Comments option.
- You can automatically set your post to close for comments on a specific date by creating discussion availability dates.
- For graded discussions, the Close for Comments option will not appear until after the discussion due date.
Close from Discussions Page
To close a discussion from the index page, locate the discussion. Click the Options icon [1] and click the Close for Comments link [2].
Close from Individual Discussion
To close comments within an individual discussion, click the title of the discussion.
Next Topic:How do I set up a graded discussion to be sent to my institution's student information system (SIS)?
You are hereTable of Contents > Discussions > How do I close a discussion for comments in a course?


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High-heel strappy sandals with double ankle strap
Vinyl heeled sandals
Block heel sandals with straps and tie detail
Heeled quilted sliders
Heeled sandals with crossover straps
Strappy high-heel sandals
Metallic strappy sandals with methacrylate heels
Bejewelled strappy flat sandals
High-heel sandals with vinyl straps and methacrylate heels.
High-heel sandals with straps and tie detail
High heel sandals with methacrylate heels
Methacrylate heeled mules
Heeled sandals with iridescent straps
Multi-strap heeled sandals
Strappy platform sandals with gems
Platform slide sandals
Embossed metallic high-heel sandals
Strappy platform sandals with buckle
Sporty platform sandals
Bejewelled heeled sandals
High-heel platform sandals
Heeled sandals with rhinestone straps
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Tagged With "Ghost Rider"
Ghost Rider and Molecule Man on Max Spiers and more. YPX News Interview
check out this new interview done by YPX News, visit www.YPXNews.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBsbpR5oCXU
interview with molecule man and ghost rider
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eWq2PcUOJ0 check out this interview, it should be on ypxnews.com soon as well
Codex of the Matrix from a Timeline Perspective
Timeline - A specific vibration that attunes to specific ideas within a universe, and the resulting effects on the world around it. Can have multiple timelines within a universe, and can have timelines in different universes. Negative Timeline - A timeline where the general consensus is that the principles cause oppression, destruction, stress, and/or unbearable/unlivable environments as a whole from the perspective of the one walking with in it. Usually deep in the matrix meaning you are...
Simplifying the Matrix and Your Potential to Grow
Ever hear of a god, or a main character in a story? What if I told you there is little difference between the two? What if I told you that acquiring at least some form of power in the matrix is as simple as visualizing an archetype and becoming one with it? Well, for the most part it is. Some people on earth meet the requirements for becoming assimilated with the attributes of certain gods. Everyone else can become a lesser god. Pagans tend to mess this one up monumentally though. Worshiping...
Re: interview with molecule man and ghost rider
Very nice
Re: interview with molecule man and ghost rider
about half way thru Nate, i posted on your site here...fb banned me for 72 hours...i can read everything on there i just can't comment until some time tomorrow afternoon. lol
Re: Codex of the Matrix from a Timeline Perspective
Great post. This comes close to my perception of "time". Every stream of consciuosness or time is basically one strong Intention. These Intentions gain what we percieve as linear time by interacting with each other through human beings which manifest these different ruling intentions, knowingly or unknowingly. In Gnosticism the ruling demiurge thrives on chaos and distruction so it makes sense that we start there. Then we finally begin to spiral out, but can get drawn back in anytime. I can...
Re: Codex of the Matrix from a Timeline Perspective
Timeline 6 is rules by black hole entities known as vampires. They learn from people who provide such services. There's not much to it other than that. Each timeline is a method of learning for the shaman who can navigate it. Each timeline has an energy to master. Once outside the matrix, it's about innovation. But timeline 6 is where you start to learn to turn the archon system and 12 aeon prison on it's head and make it work for you. It's usually up to you to find a service provider as...
Re: Codex of the Matrix from a Timeline Perspective
How do you integrade physical and non physical realities in this model?
Re: Simplifying the Matrix and Your Potential to Grow
Interesting....going to work on that. Thank you. Has to be similar to taking on attributes of an ancient former self.
Re: Simplifying the Matrix and Your Potential to Grow
This resonates greatly with my own research so far. Thanks!


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This week's Game Developers Choice Awards at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco saw some of the usual big hitters win, but also, intriguingly, smaller independents such as puzzle game Papers, Please (2013), which won the Innovation Award and Best Downloadable Game, revealing a new trend in videogame storytelling.
So, what's the trend?
Genre-pushing games such as action horror The Last of Us (2013) and first-person shooter BioShock (2007), which both swept the awards this week, present a compelling case for storytelling through new techniques and technologies such as full performance motion capture and detailed environment design.
But the influx and success of smaller independents such as puzzle games Braid (2008) and Papers, Please has presented new approaches to storytelling through gameplay and design.
While theories around concepts such as "player agency" (the player's sense of self within a game environment), game structure (linear and non-linear) and disciplines such as "game narrative writing" are well established, the connection between the act of gameplay and story design is more nebulous.
What is story design?
Story design considers the typically mechanical qualities of a game, such as rules and interactions, as expressive parts of a game's story. Instead of being told through a screenplay or script, a game's story can unfold through the game's rules at a more intrinsic level.
Sometimes our engagement with a game's story is not explicit. When we hit buttons, waggle the controller, touch the screen or click a mouse we engage with the game's story; enacting and progressing its narrative. Sometimes a game's story may subvert our expectations, as in the case of Papers, Please.
In Papers, Please the player takes on the role of a bureaucrat manning a booth on the border of a fictional Nineteen Eighty-Four inspired country. The task is simple: check, stamp or reject the passports of immigrants. Every passport successfully cleared on a daily basis (against a ticking clock) results in money for your wife, child and relatives.
During gameplay immigrants enter the player's border-control booth on command and slide their documents across to be assessed. The player must visually identify discrepancies, question or interrogate the character – the pressure to do so is compounded by a daily time limit and external financial pressures.
The player wants to clear as many passports as possible, but changing border security policies, difficult characters and increasingly obtuse document checks, make it all the more difficult. But it's possible to alleviate this. The player is seamlessly presented with choices: bribes may be taken, revolutionaries may be supported and officials (to their own benefit) may encourage you to bend the rules, at a price.
On the surface, the game is a simple timed-based "match the objects" puzzle within the context of a thriller story. But it quickly becomes a method of challenging the players' own principles and ethics as they're forced to respond to the story and make crucial narrative decisions through the understated game mechanics.
Papers, Please is only one of many smaller more self-contained indie games presenting a compelling game narrative through its game design.
Indie games take the lead
In interactive adventure Gone Home (2013) the player takes on the role of Katlin Greenbriar, returning to an empty home after a year-long trip.
The player explores the home environment through minimal game mechanics: walking, looking and interacting with objects. As a story about mystery and discovery, Gone Home's minimalist design and a lack of explicit structure allows the player to soak in the details and build a picture of its missing inhabitants and the reason for their absence.
It's a stark contrast to the concentrated challenges presented by the methodical document checking in Papers, Please.
Examples range from simplistic to obtuse. The visually abstract and highly complex city builder game, Dwarf Fortress (2006 - present), builds surprising narratives as the player manages a colony of vulnerable dwarven settlers.
In action-adventure Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (2013) the player controls two characters with each thumbstick on a game controller within a fantasy tale with no dialogue. As the player comes to terms with the obtuse control mechanics they facilitate the characters' co-dependency and gradual character development through the journey.
Of course, these are just a few of the indie games using their designs to tell stories. Each game enlists deliberate game designs in conjunction with other storytelling methods (visual design, script, animation and so on).
While larger budget escapades such as the BAFTA-nominated The Last of Us are valuable for their storytelling qualities, their game mechanics and design are often not the dominant mode of storytelling. The core gameplay design revolves around exploration and combat, showcasing a brutal post-apocalyptic world. But the cycle of combat that dominates the game often feels like a means to an end.
Character development and drama happens predominantly during cinematic cut scenes – a typically brief in-game film. It's little surprise that The Last of Us may end up having a film adaptation.
These differences in game storytelling capture how diverse and divisive game narratives and their story design can be.
Further exploration will lead to richer game stories, a responsibility that lies with game creators such as those converging this week in San Francisco.
Eyes and ears will be pointed not only towards creators of larger more prestigious games, but smaller ones such as experimental narrative-driven The Stanley Parable (2013) and horror Amnesia: The Dark Descent (2010).
While lacking the clout of the bigger studios, these smaller developers have championed new storytelling directions through unique game designs.
They are a taste of future developments by creators inspired to push game stories in their own, unique direction.
Are you an academic or researcher working in game design or videogames? Contact the Arts + Culture editor.


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Complex decision-making is a prominent aspect of requirements engineering and the need for improved decision support for requirements engineers has been identified by a number of authors. A first step toward better decision support in requirements engineering is to understand decision-makers' complex decision situations. To gain a holistic perspective of the decision situation from a decision-makers perspective, a decision situation framework has been created. The framework evolved through a literature analysis of decision support systems and decision-making theories. The decision situation of requirements engineers has been studied at Ericsson Microwave Systems and is described in this thesis. Aspects of decision situations are decision matters, decision-making activities, and decision processes. Another aspect of decision situations is the factors that affect the decision-maker. A number of interrelated factors have been identified. Each factor consists of problems and these are related to decision-making theories. The consequences of this for requirements engineering decision support, represented as a list that consists of desirable high-level characteristics, are also discussed.
In the present study, 64 users were asked to convey eight distinct emotion to a humanoid Nao robot via touch, and were then asked to evaluate their experiences of performing that task. Large differences between emotions were revealed. Users perceived conveying of positive/pro-social emotions as significantly easier than negative emotions, with love and disgust as the two extremes. When asked whether they would act differently towards a human, compared to the robot, the users' replies varied. A content analysis of interviews revealed a generally positive user experience (UX) while interacting with the robot, but users also found the task challenging in several ways. Three major themes with impact on the UX emerged; responsiveness, robustness, and trickiness. The results are discussed in relation to a study of human-human affective tactile interaction, with implications for human-robot interaction (HRI) and design of social and affective robotics in particular.
Social robots are expected gradually to be used by more and more people in a widerrange of settings, domestic as well as professional. As a consequence, the features and qualityrequirements on human–robot interaction will increase, comprising possibilities to communicateemotions, establishing a positive user experience, e.g., using touch. In this paper, the focus is ondepicting how humans, as the users of robots, experience tactile emotional communication with theNao Robot, as well as identifying aspects affecting the experience and touch behavior. A qualitativeinvestigation was conducted as part of a larger experiment. The major findings consist of 15 differentaspects that vary along one or more dimensions and how those influence the four dimensions ofuser experience that are present in the study, as well as the different parts of touch behavior ofconveying emotions.
Socially interactive robots are expected to have an increasing importance in everyday life for a growing number of people, but negative user experience (UX) can entail reluctance to use robots. Positive user experience underpins proliferation of socially interactive robots. Therefore, it is essential for robot developers to put serious efforts to attain social robots that the users experience as positive. In current human-robot interaction (HRI) research, user experience is reckoned to be important and is used as an argument for stating that something is positive. However, the notion of user experience is noticeably often taken for granted and is neither described nor problematized. By recognizing the complexity of user experience the intended contributions can be even more valuable. Another trend in HRI research is to focus on user experience evaluation and examination of user experience. The current research paths of user experience of socially interactive robots are not enough. This chapter suggests that additional research directions are needed in order accomplish long-term, wide-spread success of socially interactive robots.
Socially interactive robots are expected to have an increasing importance in human society. For social robots to provide long-term added value to people's lives, it is of major importance to stressthe need for positive user experience (UX) of such robots. The human-centered view emphasizes various aspects that emerge in the interaction between humans and robots. However, a positive UX does not appear by itself but has to be designed for and evaluated systematically. In this paper, the focus is on the role and relevance of UX in human-robot interaction (HRI) and four trends concerning the role and relevance of UX related to socially interactive robots are identified, and three challenges related to its evaluation are also presented. It is argued that current research efforts and directions are not sufficient in HRI research, and that future research needs to further address interdisciplinary research in order to achieve long-term success of socially interactive robots.
Simulation-based training for prehospital emergency care is characterized by high degrees of complexity. Thorough knowledge of both the work and the setting is crucial and it is therefore important to involve both end-users and other stakeholders during the whole design process. This paper investigates a design process by focusing on how project participants experience the work process and participation of a multi-disciplinary, research-practitioner design team. This case study focuses on the work within a development project of a new prehospital emergency training facility. Open-ended interviews were conducted with the project participants halfway through the project. Strikingly, the results show that while there are problems and tensions that potentially could overturn the project, all participants express strong satisfaction with their participation in the project. This implies that the accumulated positive experiences are so strong that they overshadow tensions and problems that under other circumstances could have caused a project breakdown.
Complex decision-making is a prominent aspect of requirements engineering and the need for improved decision support for requirements engineers has been identified by a number of authors. A first step toward better decision support is to understand decision-makers' complex decision situations. Aspects of decision situations are decision matters, decision-making activities, and decision processes. In this paper we present two requirements engineering decision processes and their decision-making activities and decision matters. These were identified in a case study conducted at Ericsson Microwave Systems. We also discuss the consequences of these for requirements engineering decision support.
Complex decision-making is a prominent aspect of requirements engineering (RE) and the need for improved decision support for RE decision-makers has been identified by a number of authors in the research literature. Decision-supporting features and qualities can be integrated in RE tools. Thus, there is a need to evaluate the decision-supporting capabilities of RE tools. In this paper, we introduce a summative, criteria-based evaluation method termed DESCRY, which purpose is to investigate to what extent RE tools have decision-supporting capabilities. The criteria and their related questions are empirically as well as theoretically grounded.
Complex decision-making is a prominent aspect of requirements engineering (RE) and the need for improved decision support for RE decision-makers has been identified by a number of authors in the research literature. A first step toward better decision support in requirements engineering is to understand multifaceted decision situations of decision-makers. In this paper, the focus is on RE decision-making in large scale bespoke development. The decision situation of RE decision-makers on a subsystem level has been studied at a systems engineering company and is depicted in this paper. These situations are described in terms of, e.g., RE decision matters, RE decision-making activities, and RE decision processes. Factors that affect RE decision-makers are also identified.
Affective touch has a fundamental role in human development, social bonding, and for providing emotional support in interpersonal relationships. We present, what is to our knowledge, the first HRI study of tactile conveyance of both positive and negative emotions (affective touch) on the Nao robot, and based on an experimental set-up from a study of human–human tactile communication. In the present work, participants conveyed eight emotions to a small humanoid robot via touch. We found that female participants conveyed emotions for a longer time, using more varied interaction and touching more regions on the robot's body, compared to male participants. Several differences between emotions were found such that emotions could be classified by the valence of the emotion conveyed, by combining touch amount and duration. Overall, these results show high agreement with those reported for human–human affective tactile communication and could also have impact on the design and placement of tactile sensors on humanoid robots.
In recent years, we have seen an ever increasing push for new public e-services. Such e-services must be useful and beneficial for governments but also for citizens. In order to develop e-services that are effective, efficient and satisfactory for the citizens, the citizens have to be kept in focus and be involved in the development process. However, municipalities face pressure to develop a wide range of e-services, but at the same time battle palpable scarce resources. In this paper, a concept that addresses this problem within an ongoing research project is presented. We express this concept as 'figurative user participation through the use and reuse of empirically grounded personas with help of persona repository including usage guidance that is shared among several municipalities'. The purpose of this paper is to empirically explore municipalities' perceptions and attitudes towards this concept. The result shows that the municipalities are positive to the concept and consider it having great potentials. However, some challenges and pitfalls have also been brought out that need to be taken into account and addressed.
A fundamental challenge of human interaction with socially interactive robots, compared to other interactive products, comes from them being embodied. The embodied nature of social robots questions to what degree humans can interact 'naturally' with robots, and what impact the interaction quality has on the user experience (UX). UX is fundamentally about emotions that arise and form in humans through the use of technology in a particular situation. This chapter aims to contribute to the field of human-robot interaction (HRI) by addressing, in further detail, the role and relevance of embodied cognition for human social interaction, and consequently what role embodiment can play in HRI, especially for socially interactive robots. Furthermore, some challenges for socially embodied interaction between humans and socially interactive robots are outlined and possible directions for future research are presented. It is concluded that the body is of crucial importance in understanding emotion and cognition in general, and, in particular, for a positive user experience to emerge when interacting with socially interactive robots.
We here present results and analysis from a study of affective tactile communication between human and humanoid robot (the NAO robot). In the present work, participants conveyed eight emotions to the NAO via touch. In this study, we sought to understand the potential for using a wearable affective (tactile) interface, or WAffI. The aims of our study were to address the following: (i) how emotions and affective states can be conveyed (encoded) to such a humanoid robot, (ii) what are the effects of dressing the NAO in the WAffI on emotion conveyance and (iii) what is the potential for decoding emotion and affective states. We found that subjects conveyed touch for longer duration and over more locations on the robot when the NAO was dressed with WAffI than when it was not. Our analysis illuminates ways by which affective valence, and separate emotions, might be decoded by a humanoid robot according to the different features of touch: intensity, duration, location, type. Finally, we discuss the types of sensors and their distribution as they may be embedded within the WAffI and that would likely benefit Human-NAO (and Human-Humanoid) interaction along the affective tactile dimension.
The purpose of this paper is to promote sustainability as an important research topic within the computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) community. CSCL can play a crucial role in the achievement of sustainability, which is paramount for the well-being of current and future generations. While CSCL brings formal educational settings to mind, computers and cooperative learning should be considered in a wider perspective since learning also takes place in and through people's everyday practices. This paper considers two on-going research projects outside mainstream CSCL research, to illustrate ways that technology can lead to changed practices for the benefit of increased environmental and social sustainability. The projects concern children's online practices and social sustainability, and information and communication technology (ICT) and practices in sustainable agriculture, respectively.
The e-service concept has been a central concern in many researchand practitioner areas in recent years. There are expectations of citizens, customers,commercial companies and public organizations of what e-services are,their functionality and benefits. However, there is conceptual confusion thatmay hamper collaboration and research viability. This paper explores the conceptualvagueness and presents an empirical investigation of how the e-serviceconcept is treated in practice, along with its kindred concept "IT service". Resultsshow that public and commercial organizations approach e-services differently,that translation problems can cause lack of comparability in research results,and that additional concepts may be introduced instead of e-service.


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