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As a heated debate rages over Muslim preacher Dr Zakir Naik's status as a Malaysian permanent resident, Zaid Ibrahim has emphasised the importance of scientific understanding.
Noting how some have praised the Indian-born televangelist's prowess in comparative religion, the former law minister questioned if this knowledge was essential.
"Do we need this?" he asked in a Twitter posting this afternoon.
"Muslims are better off understanding science so they can show more concern about the poisonous environment, Lynas, the dying fish and dying Orang Asli," he added.
Agreeing with the need for Malay leaders from both sides of the political divide to unite, Zaid, however, said this should be done to treat the "greatest ailment" afflicting Muslims in Malaysia.
Though a lawyer by training, he diagnosed the community as suffering from "mind atrophy."
"Muscle atrophy will debilitate us, mind atrophy will enslave us. Take this seriously," he added.
According to Zaid, the unity of Malay Muslims should be for useful things such as better education, being pro-science, pro-excellence and to combat corruption.
"Don't bash Pakatan Harapan, DAP or liberals. That is a waste of time," added the DAP member.
Zakir's permanent resident status is now under threat following his remarks about Indian and Chinese Malaysians during a recent ceramah in Kelantan.
Prime Minister Dr Mahathir had accused the preacher of crossing the line with his statements, which are now the subject of police investigations.
Mahathir also said his permanent resident status hinges on the outcome of the investigations.
Following a marathon questioning session at Bukit Aman exceeding 10 hours, Zakir (above), yesterday, apologised for the hurt caused by his remarks.
The preacher said he was not a racist and claimed that his remarks were "used selectively with fabrications added to them."
Zakir is wanted by Indian authorities for allegations of money laundering, which the preacher claims are fabricated and the Interpol's refusal to issue a red notice against him is proof of this.


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Sunday Reads: The end of the world? It's no nightmare.Posted: April 8, 2018 Filed under: First Amendment, Free Press, Gaza, Israel, Journalism, morning reads, open thread, Palestine, public education, racism, Republican politics, Russia, Syria, the GOP, Trump, U.S. Politics, Violence against women, We are so F'd | Tags: John Bolton, Trump Tower 31 Comments
Today's images come from the blog, We Had Faces Then. This is a fantastic photo blog, where the tagline proclaims:
A gay man of a certain age and a certain sensibility searching for meaning in the flickering images of classic Hollywood.
I have decided to feature photos of Merle Oberon, I hope you enjoy them.
Paul Lukas and Merle Oberon in Berlin Express (Jacques Tourneur, 1948)
So, late last night…I am saving images for this morning's post, and the two above are the last things I see before I go to sleep. I don't know if that had something to do with influencing my dreams? It could also be the fact that we have a disaster leading the country, and no one serving as National Security Adviser…technically…the Bolton Beast starts his reign on Monday.
Many of you might have already seen that clip on Friday's Maddow, if you haven't take a look.
But, my dream from last night was this…
The end of the world, I am sitting with my family in Florida, my aunt Celeste and the rest of the circus. We are all drinking and laughing outside while we await the apocalyptic explosion that is to commence shortly, when… "Mother Earth collides with Mars."
The joke being, "HaHa…Wait, there was no collusion!"
"Hey, the end of the world is not brought on by tRump?"
Yeah, our last words to each other were not I love you, but we were astounded by the reason the Earth was being annihilated…and that tRump was not the actual direct cause of the destruction of the planet.
Now that is some fucked up dream. Is it because in the back of my mind…Mueller is taking so damn long…the earth would be colliding with some other celestial body before tRump gets charged or impeached?
tRump has been on the Twit box a lot this morning and last night. I was only going to share today's tweets but might as well give you a few from last night, so you can have a perspective on the links throughout the rest of the thread.
I want to throw up every time I see or hear any direct communications or commands from this asshole.
Here are a few responses to the Hair Loser's tweets. (Dak, I love that nickname.)
I wonder how long before Hair Loser walks back the Syria tweet?
Onward, with a few other responses to the fire at tRump Tower from last night:
Then there was this tweet:
Not sure on the veracity of that statement…Just putting that out there.
*Edited to add this link:
Trump Tower fire is second 2018 blaze in sprinkler-free residential tower – CBS News
The fire on the 50th floor New York City's Trump Tower that left 67-year-old Todd Brassner dead and six firefighters injured was the second fire in the building in 2018. President Trump's centerpiece Manhattan skyscraper opened in 1984, but does not have sprinklers on its residential floors, a measure required in new buildings since 1999. President Trump, then a private citizen and property developer, lobbied to try and prevent the mandate at the time.
New York City in 1999 became last big city in the nation to require sprinklers, according to the New York Daily News. Under the 1999 legislation, buildings constructed before then were only required to have sprinklers if they underwent gut renovations.
According to The New York Times, Mr. Trump was one of the developers in the late 1990s who lobbied against sprinklers in buildings. He then recanted once the legislation passed with grandfathering provisions that meant existing buildings did not need to install them, saying that he understood they made residents "feel safer." FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said on Saturday that there is extra fire protection at Trump Tower when Mr. Trump is there.
Then-New York city mayor and now staunch Trump ally Rudy Giuliani signed the bill requiring sprinklers into force on March 24, 1999, having opposed it when it was first proposed in 1997. The legislation was spurred on by a major fire in a so-called "fireproof" apartment block with no sprinklers on New York's Upper West Side the previous December, and another in a Brooklyn housing project the same month in which hallway sprinklers failed. Survivors wanted all buildings to have sprinklers, but the legislation that was passed was not retroactive, much to the delight of existing property owners who cited cost as a major reason not to be compelled to retrofit their buildings. At the time the legislation was being discussed, Mr. Trump had just started construction on a 72-story tower near the United Nations, and he subsequently said he would install sprinklers there at a cost of $3 million.
Saturday's fire is the second fire in Mr. Trump's Fifth Avenue building this year: Two civilians suffered minor injuries and a firefighter was hurt by debris in a fire on Jan. 8 on the top of the building. That blaze was sparked by an electrical issue, Mr. Trump's son, Eric, said at the time. Eric Trump said the fire had been in a cooling tower.
Well, there is that.
In other news this weekend:
And hey, let's not forget this little nugget:
That is huge…and I don't think enough people are talking about it.
Meanwhile, in Gaza:
Here, add Tony Robbins to the list of assholes. (Granted, I personally had him on the list to start with, but this truly confirms my suspicions.)
Robbins actually pushes back on this woman, forcing her to step backwards. It is a physical intimidation…and it is disgusting.
So much of this post is disturbing, as the reality of our world today. This last tweet can put everything into focus. This was a mock headline that The Boston Globe published in April 2016:
Boston Globe Trump front page: The GOP must stop Trump – The Boston Globe
PDF: A front page in Trump's America
Donald J. Trump's vision for the future of our nation is as deeply disturbing as it is profoundly un-American.
It is easy to find historical antecedents. The rise of demagogic strongmen is an all too common phenomenon on our small planet. And what marks each of those dark episodes is a failure to fathom where a leader's vision leads, to carry rhetoric to its logical conclusion. The satirical front page of this section attempts to do just that, to envision what America looks like with Trump in the White House.
I'd say they were spot on…
This is an open thread. Have at it.
31 Comments on "Sunday Reads: The end of the world? It's no nightmare."
Poor Merle Oberon, she spent her whole life denying her Asian heritage. I don't blame her for "passing;" in that era, who wouldn't have done the same? I get angry at people who judge her harshly.

subset: commoncrawl


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Caught this in the news. Read the snippet first.
The struggling history of Dr Mahathir
Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has been attacking Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in recent days, the sharpness of his criticism is even greater than criticisms from the opposition.
Some criticisms are justified while some are so unfounded to the extent of character assassination, showing his determination of destroying the target at all costs.
However, he does not seem to care at all!
The question is, why does Dr Mahathir keep doing this? Should we ask Machiavelli? Or Freud?
Machiavelli might say that it could be due to political power struggles and interest conflicts; Freud might tell you it could be a psychological problem of a political strongman.
It reminds me of Singapore's founding father, the late Lee Kuan Yew.
Also a former Prime Minister, also a strongman who had named his successor, Lee, however, did not break relationship with his successor, he did not attack him with abusive words either. The leadership baton of Singapore was passed smoothly.
When Lee passed away, his successor Goh Chok Tong made some emotional words, "He made sure he arrived before me for all events.
"As I respected him as my elder and mentor, I told him to dispense with this practice at non-formal events.
"But he explained that it was important to observe this protocol.
"Otherwise, people might draw the wrong conclusion that he did not respect me and take their cue from there."
Lee had considered even such details. No wonder he was so respected and loved by his team and the whole government was so united.
In contrast, even when he was still a freshman, Dr Mahathir had already contradicted the then Umno President and Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman.
When he became Prime Minister, two giants in the party and government, Tun Musa Hitam and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, had broken relationship with him, become his political opponents and were eventually defeated by him.
His hand-picked successor, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was stopped when he was about to step into the Prime Minister's Department and imprisoned, smashing his dream of taking over the office into pieces.
Another successor Tun Abdullah Badawi, a nice guy who tries not to offend anyone, had to step down under Dr Mahathir's severe condemnation.
Today, it's Najib's turn.
Lee said in one of his books, "If the new PM fails, I have failed… Mahathir never thought that way. He undermined his successors."
Lee said that as a former Prime Minister, his role was to advise the next generation of leaders in the republic.
As for Dr Mahathir, more than half of his "role" was to defeat his opponents, including the opposition parties, his leaders, colleagues and successors over the more than half a century from the 1960s to 2015.
It is indeed weird as Malaysia has been played in his hands over all these years.
If he spent the energy on fighting against corruption, improve government efficiency and unite the people, he could have won more respect and gratitude from the people.
It makes people wonder whether his actions are for the good of the country? Or himself?
In China, you can hardly imagine Hu Jintao hindering Xi Jinping. In the US, it is quite impossible for Bill Clinton to criticise Barack Obama.
It is a question of the system, as well as part of political ethics. Otherwise, how can a country be governed?
Under a sound system, the opposition and the media are responsible to monitor the government while the Parliament and jurisdiction will restrict the government. Ethically, veteran or former leaders can give advice and criticise policies, but it should not be made based on personal preference. They should never get involved into an endless struggle because of personal and family interests.
What Najib can do is to positively respond to Dr Mahathir's accusations and put everything under the sun to let the people make their judgements, instead of confronting endlessly with the old man.
This Opinion article was first published by Sin Chew Daily on April 5, 2015
I wonder why people like to compare Dr.M with other leaders? That's like comparing you with your cousins. It's like expecting everyone's success or failure to be rooted from the same few plot of stories. I can tell you, it's always unwarranted – because everyone has their own way of getting up there. (if you don't get me, nevermind)
Dr. M, I think, employs a different style than LKY in the south (not that I know him personally but, even blind guys can actually fucking tell already). You know that crazy-ass bald guy in that 'Whiplash' movie last year who won an Oscar by being a dick, and the excuse he gave in the movie for being like that? That's pretty much like Dr. M's style. He uses pressure and hardship to eke out the best of leaders to take over the country (albeit with a much calmer and composed way, not as Oscar winning as JK Simmons). The fact that he is able to criticize anyone/everyone (and none of them could do jackshit about him) – goes on to show how weak as leaders these people Dr. M criticized are (and they probably deserved it). So, why lah can't you people just shut the fuck up and let the leaders step up to their war of words like real men?
We need people with balls and brains to run the country. Dr. M – I believe – is trying to find a guy like that. So far, not much luck I guess. Now we watch who steps up for himself.


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Froome back in action
Chris Froome returned to action in the 2016 Liège-Bastogne-Liège, although conditions were far from the warm sunny weather the double Tour de France winner prefers.
Gilbert suffers
Philippe Gilbert drops to the back of the main bunch in the 2016 Flèche Wallonne. The former world champion had a dismal Ardennes Classics campaign after breaking his finger the week before.
Cav in Croatia
Mark Cavendish waits for the start of stage four of the 2016 Tour of Croatia. The Manxman took victory on stage two of the week-long race.
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Nibali feels the cold
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Fun at La Flèche Wallonne sign-on
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Landa shows his form
Mikel Landa celebrates retaining the overall lead on stage three of the 2016 Giro del Trentino. The Spaniard took the overall victory in the race as he prepares for a Giro d'Italia campaign.
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Big splits develop in the bunch on the second stage of the 2016 Tour of Croatia. Mark Cavendish took the victory on the day, beating Giacomo Nizzolo of Trek-Segafrdo.
The new climb of La Doyenne
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Riders tackle the rough farm roads of the 2016 CiCLE Classic. Connor Dunne of JLT-Condor took the victory in the Leicestershire race from a late attack.


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Taking care of South Africa's unique natural landscapes and special wildlife is quite a daunting task, and CapeNature's 70 000-hectare reserve in the Hottentots Holland mountains is no exception. It stretches from Elgin to Villiersdorp, from Stellenbosch Mountains to the Groenland Mountains - and all of this is managed by one cool lady.
Before working as conservation manager at the CapeNature reserve, Monique Ruthenberg worked for SANParks for 19 years, starting out as a student in Kruger National Park. "It was the days before smart phones and digital cameras and memories were either preserved on photos taken from a 'mik-en-druk' camera or simply committed to memory," says Monique on the CapeNature blog.
SEE: #WorldElephantDay: The secret lives of elephants and a woman's fight to save them
She moved to Cape Town and worked at what was then known as the Cape Peninsula National Park, and eventually worked as a section ranger at Table Mountain National Park's Simon's Town section among the penguins of Boulders Beach.
But what does a typical day for a conservation manager look like? For Ruthenberg, it's completely unpredictable, which she loves. When you're dealing with Mother Nature on a daily basis, you'll never be bored at the office.
"I might plan my day thinking I have to attend two meetings, respond to the 100+ emails in my inbox and work on a management plan that is due, only to receive a call at 05:00 about a fire that has started in the reserve. This call could easily mean three days out of the office.
"At the end of the day, the best we as managers can do is plan for the unexpected, make the best of each day and take the bull by the horns."
PICS: Quick facts about 10 awesome women explorers from history
She's been involved in various animal rescue operations - even had some scary run-ins with a few wild animals, including some abalone poachers. She's been on the front lines during fire outbreaks, which is common in Hottentots Holland, and dangling off cliffs trying to do an alien clearing inspection.
Ruthenberg has also rubbed shoulders with some pretty famous people, like Michelle Obama and Forest Whitaker, but she always remembers the people she's worked with with strong ethics and values that inspire her.
And how can you become just like her?
"Do everything with integrity and stay true to your values. When you see a challenge as an opportunity you will be amazed at what an interesting turn your life can take and how you can positively impact others. Lastly, make sure that you do what you love and love what you do. When you no longer love what you do, it's time to make a change!"
SEE: Rise of the Matriarch: All-women expedition across southern Africa tackles poaching head on


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Only 1 left
The year is 1905 and Chai Mingzhi, an immigrant newly arrived in the port-town of Malacca, takes Engi, an indigenous boy from the tropical forest, to live with him. Trapped in a realm he doesn't recognize and finding himself caught up in Chai Mingzhi's bitter personal affairs, Engi quickly learns to take on the shape of the legendary mouse deer in order to survive in the outside world. Twenty years later, Engi sets out to unravel the mystery surrounding Chai's past, his tireless quest for the land where the grand Minang Villa is built, and the tragedy that destroyed him.
The Mouse Deer Kingdom is a tale of love and betrayal against the backdrop of a troubled time when hundreds of thousands of Chinese fled poverty and the Qing Empire for Southeast Asia, where their arrival unsettled native life in their new home.


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Skip to 0 minutes and 3 seconds In this video, we'll explain how a good plan can help you put an end to your procrastinating ways. And how to come up with such a plan. We humans have a bit of animal instinct in us. Take this lion, for example. He has just eaten and is snoozing under a tree. And then a limping antelope passes by. It walks very slowly, getting closer and closer to the lion. Easy prey. But what does the lion do? He just lies there. His stomach is full, so he doesn't really feel like eating. It would be a great idea for the lion to catch the prey now so that he already has something to eat the next time he's hungry.
Skip to 0 minutes and 45 seconds But the lion only cares about what he wants now. He's not thinking about the future. We humans should know better than the lion. Present pain for future gain. But unfortunately, we still have a bit of this lion in us too. Something that's far away often seems relatively unimportant. Former researcher and student coach Henri Schouwenburg has studied this phenomenon. It even has its own special curve, the so-called discount curve. Time is on the horizontal axis and perceived importance is on the vertical axis. You can see that the exam, as long as it is far enough in the future, doesn't seem all that important at the moment.
Skip to 1 minute and 33 seconds That's not a bad thing as such, but this curve can be applied to all other activities as well. Look, this is just an average party. Because it has ended up lower on the importance scale. But thanks to the curve, just before the party is about to take place, it seems that it is more important than the exam, which means that there's a good chance you'll end up going. And since our lives are full of all kinds of short-term temptations and activities, this pattern can continue like this and ruin an entire study period. So what could you do to break this pattern? Setting short-term goals that have a better chance of competing against other short-term activities.
Skip to 2 minutes and 21 seconds Imagine you want to watch a series. That's much more fun than studying for an exam that is still so far away. But now you have set yourself a short-term goal. For example, you want to read pages 220 to 240 of a book that afternoon. That's a concrete plan. It still might be difficult to sit down and study, but chances are that you'll be motivated to get through the 20 pages before you start watching that series. Now let's have a go at making your own plan. What do you need to do? Firstly, you have to work out how much you will need to do to prepare for your exam.
Skip to 3 minutes and 1 second Make a note of everything– the number of pages in your study books, readers, and articles, exercises that you have to complete, reports that you have to write, and PowerPoints that you want to look through before or after your lecture. You can use this form to help you, which is available as an attachment to this video. Then you need to look up when you have exams and other deadlines. Write this down in such a way that you can clearly see how many weeks or days there are until the exams. Then you divide all your study material over the number of weeks you have before your exam. From now until your exams, write down what you want to study in each week.
Skip to 3 minutes and 43 seconds Also try to divide your writing assignments into weekly tasks. Don't forget to add a revision to your week. Try to get through all the material a few days before the exam so you have a buffer. The next step, for each week write down all the other things you have to do besides studying. Are there weeks in which you have a lot of appointments or another important deadline? Or are you going away for a few days? Then shift study-related activities from those weeks to relatively quieter weeks. Depending on what you're studying and your personal situation, this can be quite easy to do or a puzzle in itself.
Skip to 4 minutes and 23 seconds Finally, check whether the amount of work you've allocated to each week is actually doable. If you get your plan right, you will think, "Yes, I can do this!" Now you have a plan of what you want to study each week. This gives you a better overview, which will help you to tame your inner lion.
How and why to make a plan
We all have a little bit of an animal instinct in us. If something is not needed right now, we tend to procrastinate.
When you have a party and end up sacrificing study-time, there are usually good reasons to do so: socializing and time for yourself is important. However, it becomes a problem when study-time always comes second. This video helps you to prioritize the things that you need to do by making a long term plan. This way you can do the hard work first and then reward yourself with the things you enjoy or that you find relaxing!
Parts of this video:
0:00 to 2:49: Why to make a plan
2:50 to 4:49: How to make a plan (actual instruction)
Please share with the other learners:
Are you used to making study plans?
Which elements should be included in a plan to be helpful to you?
© University of Groningen


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"Don't be satisfied with stories, how things have gone with others. Unfold your own myth." – Rumi
Napoleon was short.
Bulls get angry at the color red.
Twinkies stay fresh for years.
There are hundreds of similar myths that we hear repeated. Again, and again. Some have their origins in ancient insults. Others are from a misunderstanding of rituals. And others are just wishful thinking.


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Photo specifications have been updated to include that no text can be present on any submitted photos. A full description of photo specifications can be found in each category submission requirements.
Square Footage for Production and Custom Homes
The overall square footage for a Production Home should include a developed basement if it is a standard feature in the home's design. The overall square footage for a Custom Home or a Custom Urban Homes should include a developed basement if it is an included feature in the home's design.
Category Changes
The definition of Custom Urban Home has been modified to promote the inclusion of infill homes built on spec.
The Custom Urban Home Multi-Unit category has been split into two categories as follows:
B7 Custom Urban Home: Semi-detached
B8 Custom Urban Home: Multi-unit (3+ units)
The "C" categories have been updated as follows:
C1 Low to Mid-Rise Building (6-80 units)
C2 High Rise Building (80 units or more)
C4a Mid to High-Rise Unit 500 sq. ft. or under
C4b Mid to High-Rise Unit 501 sq. ft. or more
The Green categories have been rebranded as Innovative/Green Awards and streamlined to better reflect entries as follows:
G1 Innovative/Green Production Home of the Year
G2 Innovative/Green Custom Home of the Year
G3 Innovative/Green Renovation
Ottawa Citizen's Peoples' Choice Award
One of the biggest awards of the evening, this award is judged by the general public in an online capacity, as well as at the Ottawa Fall Home Show, taking place at the Ernst and Young Centre, September 28 – October 1, 2017. Based on member feedback, we will have a new system for voting online and at the Ottawa Fall Home Show. Additional details to follow with the announcement of award finalists.


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Harpist Fiona Gryson has cut back on her performance schedule to concentrate on her Masters in Music Performance but still got to enjoy being part of two memorable performances in Dublin and Wexford.
February 20, 2017
I've cut back on how much I am playing right now as I am preparing for my Masters in Music Performance at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama. Sometimes it's easy to forget that I am in final year, but I've to be very focused right now with assessments coming up in February, May and my dissertation due in September.
I played a lot in the run up to Christmas, so it was nice to enjoy a quiet January. I really enjoyed performing for the DIT opera production of Handel's Susanna in Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin earlier in February. The harp was not originally written in the score, but the director liked the idea of having a harp in it and I was delighted to oblige.
Last week I joined six other pedal harpists from the DIT Harp Ensemble for a performance of Wagner's Die Walküre in the National Opera House, Wexford with the Wexford Sinfonia, conducted by Fergus Sheil.
That was an amazing experience! We don't get the opportunity to play Wagner too often in Ireland, particularly with six harps! The orchestra, joined by vocal soloists, performed a scene rather than the whole opera. In it, the harps play a part known as the magic 'fire music' where one of the characters is encircled by fire to protect her.
It is quite unusual to have six pedal harpists studying at one college in Ireland but we all get on fantastically well with each other and the experience of playing together in Wexford was an early highlight of the new year for us all.
January Update
January 28, 2017
Things were a bit quieter this month in terms of performances but Fiona was kept busy with work for her Masters degree. In this vlog, she mostly reflects on how grateful she is to be a musician. Exciting times to come over the next few months!
December cheer and reflecting on 2016!
January 9, 2017
December was a very festive month and full of highlights of the year! In this vlog Fiona shares some of the performances and key moments of December including; performing in Christmas concerts with, the Culwick Choral society conducted by Bernie Sherlock, the Greystones orchestra conducted by Alan Duff, Cantemus Choir conducted by Tony Morrison and the Ulster Orchestra with conductor Christopher Bell! As well as her own student's Christmas concert, a radio recording for RTE and lots of other events and occasions.
December 9, 2016
Harpist Fiona Gryson has been much in demand this month joining orchestras for performances to commemorate the 1916 Rising and to celebrate new music commissioned by Music Network.
I'm just back from London after a busy month which began at the Basilica Church in Knock where I performed as part of an orchestra of musicians from around the country who performed a Requiem by Odhrán O'Casaide to commemorate the 1916 Rising.
The Requiem has kept me busy this month. I recorded the sections featuring the Irish lever harp in DIT Rathmines with Ben Rawlins and Laoise O'Brien before the performance in Knock. My trip to London was to play the harp in the Requiem as part of a mass at St. Patrick's Church in Soho.
One of the most enjoyable events of the month for me was a masterclass with Annaleen Lenaerts who is the principal harpist with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. It was amazing and I learned a lot from it! It was a truly eye-opening experience!
I also performed at Belfast City Hall for the first time as part of the IRFU Women's Rugby World Cup draw. My fellow Nissan Generation Next ambassador, Sophie Spence also attended but our respective commitments on the day meant that we had to settle for a wave across the room rather than a chat.
My schedule also took in DIT graduations, long service awards and remembrance services. It was really lovely too to perform at a wedding in the beautiful St. Andrew's Church in Malahide and at a corporate event in the Teelings Whisky Distillery in Dublin.
Another project I really enjoyed was participating in a project organised by Music Network called 'Avoca – A Celtic Journey'. Music Network commissioned Philip Martin to compose a piece including pieces collected by Edward Bunting which was performed at Royal Hospital Kilmainham.
Bunting in renowned for having been inspired to collect music from around Ireland having attended the Belfast Harp Festival in 1792. He published three volumes of music and some of this music was included in Philip Martin's piece which I performed as part of a harp ensemble, conducted by David Brophy, one of the country's leading conductors. I filmed a piece with other harpists from DIT and the RIAM for RTE News in the Irish Architectural Archive to raise awareness for the event.
I also joined the Dublin Symphony Orchestra for a wonderful concert in St. Mary's church on Haddington Road.
Recording, performances and lots of travelling!
December 1, 2016
November was another busy month and in this vlog Fiona shows some of the highlights including; a few performances across the country and in London of 'Marbhna 1916' by Odhran O'Casaide (a piece composed for the 1916 commemorations), a masterclass with Annaleen Lenaerts and a big harping event organised by Music Network, showcasing the Irish harp with a newly-commissioned work by Philip Martin called 'Avoca: A Celtic Journey'.
Non stop October for Fiona!
November 1, 2016
In this vlog Fiona talks about playing at DIT Graduations in St. Patrick's Cathedral as well as performances at Leopardsown Racecourse, Newgrange Hotel, Christ Church Cathedral with the City of Dublin Chamber Orchestra and the Hibernian Orchestra. She also shares videos and photos of the various activities during the month including a weekend spent at a residential recording studio called Grouse Lodge in Co. Westmeath!
October 9, 2016
Harpist Fiona Gryson likes being busy, which is just as well given the demands of attending to a full schedule of performances around the country and returning to college to complete the final year of her Masters in Music Performance.
September was a busy month. It got underway for me at the café in the Kilkenny Design shop on Nassau Street in Dublin where I played during breakfast. The performance was hosted as part of the celebrations surrounding the Aer Lingus College Football Classic so there was a great buzz in the city that weekend and the occasion was enjoyed by all those stopping by for breakfast.
We had two family weddings in September and I performed at both. I played with my sister Róisín, who sings and plays the guitar and flute, at our cousin's wedding in the Dunboyne Castle Hotel and Spa. My uncle Aidan got married the following weekend in City Hall in Dublin which is a spectacular venue. It was wonderful to play there alongside my uncle Dermot who sang and played guitar and the flute on the day.
I am back at college now and in my final year of a Masters in Music Performance at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama. In our first week back, the Conservatory hosted an excellent workshop with Scottish harpist Maeve Gilchrist. We also got to enjoy her inspiring performance at a concert in the Sugar Club presented by Music Network where she played alongside dancer Colin Dunne, fiddler Tola Custy, and uilleann piper David Power.
I played with the DIT Harp Ensemble at St. Werburgh's Church in Dublin to celebrate Culture Night. The church is situated close to the famous Burdock's Fish and Chip shop so we didn't let the opportunity pass to pay it a visit after the performance.
I teach harp and piano and it was lovely to return to teaching in September, to meet continuing and new students alike and to make plans for the year ahead.
The Dunshaughlin Harvest Festival is always a great family day out and I performed at that before heading to a wedding showcase in the Newgrange Hotel in Navan.
October began with the O'Carolan Harp Festival which included concerts, workshops, competitions and expos by harp markers. I remember participating and competing at the festival as a student so it was interesting to attend as a teacher and have my students be involved.
I also performed at a school graduation at Leopardstown Race Course and at some of the DIT Graduations in St. Patrick's Cathedral. It is always a privilege to perform at the graduations and it is something that I am looking forward to doing again soon.
Cultural roadtrip
October 6, 2016
In September Fiona played during breakfast in Kilkenny Design on Nassau Street, played at 2 family weddings, went back to college for the 2nd year of her Masters and plays at DIT Harp ensemble on Culture Night.
On the road with NV200
September 6, 2016
In her August vlog Fiona collects her NV200, reflects on her visit to Switzerland, volunteers at the Boyne festival, plays at a couple of weddings and enjoys some well deserved days off in Kerry.
Recordings, summer camps and Áras an Uachtaráin.
August 24, 2016
Harpist Fiona Gryson has spent the summer attending a harp course in Switzerland and recording a version of Lukas Graham's chart topping hit '7 years' which was so impressive that he decided to share it with his fanbase.
This summer has been great fun and really busy! It got off to an exciting start, performing with my friend, Katie Hyland as part of the Aurora Duo at wonderful Garden Parties hosted by President Michael D. Higgins and Mrs Sabina Higgins for their esteemed guests at Áras an Uachtaráin.
July began with a summer camp for children aged 8 to 12 years at DIT in Grangegorman called the 'Idea Camp'. I was a student facilitator at the camp which promotes and encourages creativity.
The first week involved helping children to complete activities in five areas; music, drama, food, audio and art and design. The second week I helped the music facilitator, Paula Hughes with the music module. It focused on creativity in music where the children composed, listened to, engaged and responded to music. The focus was on being creative around music. It was a really great learning experience for me and a lot of fun too!
I also spent two weeks in Switzerland where I participated in the Harp Masters Summer Academy hosted by Irina Zingg, Milda Agazarian and Petra Van der Heide who are renowned as some the world's greatest harpists and teachers. Their Academy promotes excellence in harp performance through workshops, lectures and concerts. The first few days were focused on preparing and training for auditions followed by a series of masterclasses and workshops. It was absolutely amazing!
One of the projects I really enjoyed was performing with the second and third class students at Scoil Cholmcille, Skryne in Tara where my mam, Fionnuala, is a teacher. The school were recently awarded their third Green Flag for water and they had a Green Day to celebrate raising the flag with local MEP, Mairead McGuinness.
The students wrote their own lyrics about the environment and conservation and put them to the music of Lukas Graham's hit '7 Years', facilitated by their teacher, Kieran Fanning. The school's bodhran teacher Aimee Farrell-Courtney and I heard it, and agreed that it was a really special performance and it deserved to be shared. We worked on it with the students and recorded it with sound engineer, Stuart Gray from Jealoustown Studios, Skryne. I accompanied them on the harp and feel very proud to be involved in such a project. Lukas Graham loved our version and even shared it himself, so the children and their teachers had more than one reason to celebrate.
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Campaigners against nine massive wind turbines just outside an East Coast resort are stepping up their fight by delivering leaflets to 1000 homes.
Residents are battling proposals for the turbines near Fraisthorpe beach, near Bridlington, which will stand 62ft higher than the top of the dome of St Paul's Cathedral.
Air navigation service provider National Air Traffic Services Ltd has now lodged an objection to the wind farm, which is being developed by TCI Renewables.
It says the turbines could generate "false plots" on the primary radar service based 40 miles away near Claxby, high on the Lincolnshire Wolds, as well as reducing the chances of picking up genuine targets.
John Elsom is part of a group campaigning against the scheme, which they say will ruin views of Bridlington Bay and undermine the tourist trade.
The wind farm at Lissett, which opened in 2009, already forms a backdrop at Bridlington's South Beach and Mr Elsom says the two together would form a "new industrialised vista."
Just across the main A165, there are proposals for another wind farm of five turbines, 125m high, which he warns, could give Bridlington a reputation as a "wind farm town."
He suggests what happened in California, where some decommissioned wind farms have been left to rust away, could happen on the East Coast: "If it all becomes unmanageable for this government or a future government the turbines would presumably be stopped and are likely to be left standing and become unkempt and rusty.
"This apparently has happened in California where what are known as wind farm graveyards are left standing uglifying local communities.
"What if this happened in Bridlington? A town surrounded by graveyards of wind turbines would become miserable with decay. Do we really want to take the risk?"
Mr Elsom said 1,000 leaflets were being delivered to homes: "The difficulty in Bridlington is that people here knew very little about this until recently and think, not unnaturally, Fraisthorpe is seven miles away, but by the coast it is only a mile and a half.
"It seems to me there is a lot of apathy and boredom on this subject; some people who say 'aren't they beautiful' and a lot who say they are ugly and horrible and they are spoiling not only the beaches round Bridlington Bay, but the countryside; the MPs who have come out against them claim it's 50/50, if it is then 50 per cent of the people who come to Bridlington will think it is ugly and a proportion won't come and spend their money in the town."
East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight, one of 105 Conservative backbenchers who are putting pressure on the Government for a rethink on subsidies for onshore farms, said he would be lodging an objection to the Fraisthorpe plans. Mr Knight said he believed nuclear power was a "clean, efficient and safe" technology in a country like Britain which didn't have earthquakes, along with tidal and wave power. He said: "We have now reached saturation point where any further wind farm developments are blighting our beautiful landscape."
He said the Government had indicated "that Britain is already hitting its 2002 targets which indicates to me that the planners should not now be looking at renewable targets as a reason to say yes."
Supporters say as well as decreasing reliance on volatile overseas fuel supplies, wind farms also create green jobs. RenewableUK, which represents the wind industry, has said opposition generally isn't as widespread as suggested and "even at a local level it seems to be about a vociferous minority."
Bruce Hutt, from TCI Renewables, said the scheme would supply "almost all" the homes in Bridlington and would bring economic benefits to the area, with £220,000 going into a community fund every year for 25 years. They were also discussing setting up an apprenticeship scheme for young people in wind farm maintenance and construction.


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Perhaps you can relate to this. Recently, I started feeling stuck – a victim of my circumstances. It felt like my days were jam-packed responding to the needs of others or following through on commitments I had made. I felt overwhelmed, overworked, and unfulfilled. I was not getting to the stuff I really wanted to.
This is dangerous territory for anyone. When we feel we are losing control, stress is not far behind. Beyond the personal toll this situation can take is the damage we leaders can do to our team by letting this situation persist. So, for our own sanity and the sanity of our team members, we need to be vigilant when we see this situation getting serious for ourselves.
The best defence I have for this is Stephen Covey's The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, specifically habit #2. In this habit, Covey focuses on personal leadership and talks about how all things are created twice. There's a mental or first creation, and then a physical or second creation. Covey asserts than many of us don't take enough responsibility for making sure that the first creation – the plan for the things we want to accomplish – is in line with our personal values, hopes, and dreams. We instead let the actions of others define our path, be it our plans for the next day, the next week, or the rest of our lives. We move right on to the physical doing and, as a result, we feel like victims and we don't feel in control.
This learning has been with me for a long time. It led me to write a personal mission statement as well as define what my key values and life goals are. Important first steps, and not easy ones. I revisit this often and always ask myself: "If I were to die tomorrow, would I be okay with the life I have led?" This question really helps me get clarity on my goals and on what values are important to me.
If I have this clarity, how is it that I still get that sinking feeling from time to time that external things are controlling me? This comes down to not reviewing my goals and values often enough and/or not having the guts to push back on things that are taking me too far away from my goals and values. All I really have to do is look at what I am working on and ask myself: "Is this helping me get to where I want to go? Is this in line with what is important to me?" These questions give me a lot of clarity on my priorities.
In my experience, each and every time I stop and review my goals and values, reset my priorities, and then communicate my need to stop doing certain things, ask for help with some things, and delay the rest indefinitely, I can focus more clearly on what matters most to me. Of course there are things we have to do that are not in line with our goals and values, like following through on commitments we have made, address organizational demands, etc. But each and every time I go through this process I see a big increase in focus and a big reduction in stress. It feels as if I have thrown off the shackles, and I am left wondering why I don't do it more often.
If you are feeling like your life is out of control and you are not reaching your goals, read, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. And make it a habit to refer back to it when you feel that things might be getting out of control.


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We're launching a new look and a new name on Oct. 26. Click here to learn more.
The Lafayette Police Department provides certified VIN checks only. A certified VIN inspection is an inspection that is conducted by a certified inspector and completed on forms provided by the Department of Revenue. The certified inspector checks both the public and discreet VINs against state and national databases of wanted and stolen vehicles. Certified VIN inspections are only required for certain cases. Please call 303-665-5571 x2, during normal business hours, to make an appointment with a Certified VIN Inspector.
You may also call the Colorado State Patrol, 303-239-4500, for a certified VIN check.
For all other VIN checks, please contact Colorado State Patrol or the Colorado Department of Revenue, Division of Motor Vehicles.


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By Geno Perez
Sports Reporter
The Bobcats started off the tournament a little shaky, allowing three home runs in the first three innings of the game. The next two innings the Bluejays scored two more runs on singles. In the sixth inning the Bobcats fought back by scoring on a sacrifice fly to center field and a single to right field. After allowing another run in the sixth inning, the Bobcats scored three more runs but end up falling short with a score of 6-5. Nicholas Fraze struggled pitching, allowing nine hits and six runs, but did have a career high of eight strikeouts. All of the runs scored by the Jays were earned.
Texas State (3-2) v. McNeese (3-2)
The Bobcats had a shootout against the Cowboys, winning the game by a score of 18-10. The Bobcats started off on fire, scoring three runs in the first inning. The Cowboys did not allow those runs to go unanswered by scoring a pair of their own runs in the first inning. The Bobcats scored four more runs in the third inning and once again the Cowboys scored a run of their own with a homer over right center field. The fourth and fifth inning were when Texas State really blew the game wide open, scoring seven runs putting them at 14. McNeese added five more of their own at the end of the fifth inning. The Bobcats would score two more runs in the seventh and the ninth, while the Cowboys only scored two in the eighth. A big part of why Texas State was successful because out of the 16 hits they had, they also had 16 RBIs. All of the pitchers in this game struggled. The Bobcats went through four pitchers and the Cowboys used five.
Texas State (4-2) v. Creighton (4-1)
In the rematch against the Bluejays, it looked to be a similar start to the first game when Upton homered in the first inning. However, once again the Bobcats came back scoring two of their own in the bottom of the first. Hunter McMahon hit three batters in the third inning which allowed two more runs for the Jays to score. Texas State was pretty quiet until the bottom of the sixth where they rallied with two outs to score six runs making the score 10-6. From this point on, the Bobcats extended the lead to 12 and the deficit seemed to be too much for the Jays. The Jays made a mini-comeback by scoring three in the final two innings but it wasn't enough. With a final score of 12-9, Texas State got revenge after falling just short to the Jays in the tournament opener.
Texas State (5-2) v. McNeese(3-4)
This game was a relatively low-scoring game compared to the last two that the Bobcats played. The Bobcats and Cowboys each started off the first inning scoreless, but both scored a run in the second inning. Texas State had two doubles to start off the inning, but failed to keep the momentum going for the rest of the inning. The same could be said after the McNeese homered over the right field fence. John Wuthrich doubled to right field in the top of the third and brought in two runs after a wild pitch in the third put a Cowboy in scoring position. Two batters later McNeese scored after a single up the middle. The Bobcats held the lead of 3-2 till the ninth inning when the Cowboys scored a run causing the game to go into extra innings. After a scoreless 10th inning, the Bobcats rallied with two outs with help of the Cowboy's defense that made an error as well as intentionally walking a Bobcat. Skyler Valentine hit a double which caused two runs to score. Although the Cowboys started the inning with a double, they failed to get any of the base runners home. The Bobcats win 5-3 after extra innings.
Texas State finished the tournament with a record of 3-1. The Bobcats batting average as a team was .306. With a record of 5-2 overall, the Bobcats look to take down A&M-Courpus Christi at San Marcos on Feb. 27, at 6:00 p.m. Be sure to follow us on Twitter @KTSW_899 or listen to the game at KTSW.com.
Featured image by Texas State Athletics.


text: Emma was awarded a PhD in Buildings Archaeology from Durham University, for which she was the 2011-12 British Archaeological Association Ochs Scholar and the recipient of the 2011 Society for Church Archaeology Research Grant. Previously, she achieved a Distinction in the MA in Buildings Archaeology from the University of York. She is a Practitioner of the Institute for Archaeologists and a member of the Society for Architectural Historians, Society for Church Archaeology, British Archaeological Association and the Society for Medieval Archaeology. Having founded her own heritage consultancy, she has worked on a variety of high-profile projects including the Leverhulme-funded Lindisfarne Gospels, and HLF-funded 'Charting Chipeling: The Archaeology of the Kiplin Estate'. Emma has also contributed to various BBC and Channel 4 programmes, and is a lecturer in theology at York St John University.


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NASA Reviews Images of Chandrayaan-2 Landing Site: Report
Chandrayaan-2 mission recently made an attempt to soft land its Vikram module on the Moon
Houston: NASA is analysing, validating and reviewing the images clicked by its lunar orbiter of the area on the Moon where India's Chandrayaan-2 mission made an unsuccessful attempt to soft land its Vikram module, according to a media report that quoted a project scientist of the US space agency.
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft has snapped a series of images during its flyby on September 17 of Vikram's attempted landing sight near the Moon's uncharted south pole.
The LRO's deputy project scientist John Keller shared a NASA statement confirming that the orbiter's camera captured the images.
"The LROC team will analyse these new images and compare them to previous images to see if the lander is visible (it may be in shadow or outside the imaged area)," Mr Keller was quoted as saying in the statement by cnet.com.
NASA is validating, analysing and reviewing the images. It was near lunar dusk when the orbiter passed over, meaning large parts of the area were in shadow, the report said.
In the early hours of September 7, Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) plan to soft land Chandrayaan-2 Vikram module on the lunar surface did not go as planned.
The lander lost communication with ground stations during its final descent. ISRO officials said the orbiter of Chandrayaan-2 -- second lunar mission -- remains healthy and safe.
A NASA spokesperson had earlier said that the space agency will share any before and after flyover imagery of the area around the targeted Chandrayaan-2 Vikram Lander landing site to support analysis by ISRO.


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Senior portfolio managers earned average total compensation (including bonuses) of $1,465,468 in 2014, according to the 2014 Hedge Fund Compensation Report by Institutional Investor's Alpha. Junior-level portfolio managers earned mean annual salaries of $887,717. Portfolio managers at hedge funds with assets of more than $1 billion earned average salaries of $1 million in 2014, according to Infovest21, an information services company for the hedge fund industry.
Earnings - Outlook - Resources & Associations and more
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|Eric Abrahamsen
|Re: Emacs as a translator's tool
|Thu, 17 Sep 2020 09:03:12 -0700
|Gnus/5.13 (Gnus v5.13) Emacs/28.0.50 (gnu/linux)
Arthur Miller <email@example.com> writes: > Eric Abrahamsen <firstname.lastname@example.com> writes: > >> Eric Abrahamsen <email@example.com> writes: >> >>> Jean-Christophe Helary <email@example.com> >> >> [...] >> >>>>> 2. Link terms in the translation to a glossary pulled from the original. >>>>> This would be character names, places, special terms, etc. They might >>>>> not always be translated the same way, but I need to know how I've >>>>> handled them earlier in the document. Glossary terms would be >>>>> highlighted in the source text, and when you came to the equivalent >>>>> spot in the translation, you'd use a command like >>>>> insert-translation-term that would prompt for the translation, >>>>> offering completion on earlier translations, and then insert that >>>>> term into the translated text with a link to the original in the >>>>> glossary. There would also be two multi-occur commands: one that >>>>> prompted for a translation and showed all the places in the source >>>>> text where it came from, and another that did the opposite: prompted >>>>> for an original glossary term and showed all the places in the >>>>> translation where it was translated. >>>> >>>> Very nice ideas. >>> >>> Maybe this will inspire me to write some code! The nice thing about the >>> glossary is that it wouldn't have to just be vocabulary. You could just >>> as easily use it for "every time the car crash is referenced", or >>> something like that. You'd just have to manually mark the passage in the >>> original, rather than automated marking by text search. >> >> Okay, I've finally implemented this, and pushed a version 0 of a package >> called org-translate to ELPA. You can see the code here: >> >> https://git.savannah.gnu.org/gitweb/?p=emacs/elpa.git;a=blob_plain;f=packages/org-translate/org-translate.el;hb=HEAD >> >> I'm going to fool with it a bit longer, then make a real release. >> >> It basically does what I was describing up-thread: basic segmentation, >> tracking of correspondences between source and translation text, and >> maintenance of a glossary for automatic translation. >> >> Comments very welcome! I hope it will eventually be used by more people >> than just me :) >> >> Eric > I am currently translating a book; and have 1/3rd left. I am using my > own (simplistic) org solution; but I would definitely like to test it. > > I have just downloaded it and took a quick look, but I don't have time > to test it today; will be interesting to try it tomorrow. Great! Thanks for helping test it. Maybe let me fix up a few things first -- right now it assumes you haven't started the translation yet, so it doesn't segment the translation text. That would be easy to add. The glossary stuff is also pretty rudimentary -- are you keeping a glossary? What sort of format is it in? Thanks, Eric
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It was announced this weekend that Hood by Air would be going on hiatus. In a statement, co-founders Shayne Oliver and Leilah Weinraub, revealed that they would be putting the streetwear label to rest for the time being as they focused on solo projects. Rumours about the cult streetwear brand taking a break have been circling for a while, Weinraub is currently working on an art installation,* Shakedown*, while Oliver now has a role at Helmut Lang creating a capsule collection due for release in September 2017.
© Rex
Victoria Beckham's Target collection release was met with great commercial success, but not without issue. Selling out almost immediately, many keen buyers were subject to technical difficulties causing the mother of four to issue a statement on Twitter. "I am overwhelmed by your response to my Target collaboration launch," she wrote. "Thank you for your patience and sorry for any frustration!"
© Getty
The collection was available for purchase via Target's US stores and also via her own website, and is now selling for close to four times the original price on eBay. One dress - a black shift with white collar detail - was initially priced at £35 but is now commanding £100 on the resale site.
Read more: Five Minutes With... Victoria Beckham
At the Olivier Awards, *Harry Potter and the Cursed Child *swept the board to take home nine of the prestigious trophies including the best actress in a supporting role for Noma Dumezweni (Hermione Granger) and the Virgin Atlantic award for best new play. See the full list of winners here.
© Rex
Jay Z has removed a large part of his musical catalogue from streaming site Spotify, only leaving his first three records and a collaboration with R.Kelly available. Spotify told the BBC: "We can confirm that some of Jay Z's catalogue has been removed at the request of the artist." In 2015, Jay Z purchased his own streaming site Tidal for £45m and currently boasts approximately 3,000,000 subscribers to Spotify's 50,000,000.
© Getty
Jay Z is not the first artist to take his music off the site. In a row about artist payment, Taylor Swift removed all her previous works from the streaming website while Adele's 25 was made available after seven months of only hard-copy release.
Read more: What is Tidal?
Don't expect booking or hailing a cab to get any easier when on your Italian summer adventures, as Uber has been banned in the country. Reuters reports that a Roman court has ordered the private car service to cease trading in all of Italy as it provides unfair competition for taxi drivers when it comes to journey fees.
© Getty
"We are shocked by the Italian's court decision and will appeal," said the American company in a statement, reports The Guardian. "Thousands of professional, licensed drivers use the Uber app to make money and provide reliable transportation at the push of a button for Italians." Uber now has 10 days to remove its phone applications on the country's territory, along with all promotions including advertising. If it does not comply, it will be subject to a fine of €10,000 per day.


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Learn Oil and Gas Oil and Gas Equipments Oil and Gas Processes Process-Operation and Production Jobs February 4, 2019 June 4, 2019 A boiler is a closed vessel which is used to convert the water into high pressure steam.Read More
Oil/Gas Fired Boilers. Savemax – Oil/Gas Fired Boilers are the basic 3 pass internal furnace smoke tube type design in which flue gases are inside the tubes while water is outside the tubes in the shell. The combustion of oil and gas in a furnace requires atomization of the fuel.Read More
We specialise in all aspects of boiler repair/boiler replacement and heating works including gas boiler service, gas boiler installations and gas boiler repairs in Dublin and Bray. We hold a large supply of gas boiler parts and oil boiler parts in stock for all makes of boilers for your gas boiler service to run efficiently.Read More
oil and gas wer plant boiler operation - tsche-ac.in. list of oil can be fired in power plant boiler. which type of boiler is most efficient for steam power plant In a fossil fuel power plant using a steam cycle for power generation, the primary heat source will be combustion of coal, oil, or natural gas.In some cases byproduct fuel suchRead More
Boiler returns to standby mode; Please note: The above sequence of operation for both hot water and central heating are not identical for every boiler out there, however, the sequence of events will not progress any further forward, if there are no feedback signals or if they are incorrect. See also our boiler servicing procedure page.Read More
2016-4-23 · of blast furnace gas (BFG) make the boiler operation more like art than science. In this paper the importance of operation and maintenance and the effect on the efficiency of boiler is discussed. For this we are considering a case study of a 16 TPH boiler capable of generating steam of 42Kg/Cm2and temperature 420±5oC. A system for automaticRead More
2019-10-13 · Superheater operation is similar to that of the coils on an air conditioning unit, although for a different purpose. The steam piping is directed through the flue gas path in the boiler furnace, an area in which the temperature is typically between 1,300 and 1,600 …Read More
2019-9-10 · How to Calculate Operation Cost of Gas Fired Boiler 2018-09-11 10:56:33. Gas fired boiler is one of the most widely used boilers at present. It is a low nitrogen condensing boiler used in many areas, such as residential heating, hotel heating, food factory steam supply and so on.Read More
2019-11-5 · The oil and gas industry uses many acronyms and abbreviations. This list is meant for indicative purposes only and should not be relied upon for anything but general information.Read More
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Introduction to Data Mining for Associations
The TV show, Parks and Recreation, recently had an episode where a huge tech company used data mining to the extreme-- knowing what would be the perfect present for every person in the town. In the episode it caused a huge stir due to privacy concerns. And I am sure most of you remember the incident where Target predicted a girl's pregnancy before her family even knew. Although data mining is getting a bad rap lately, when done in a way that respects the privacy of your customers, it can provide valuable information for your association.
What is it?
Data Mining is just using computational power to comb through large amounts of data in order to find patterns and uncover meaningful information.
What does it involve?
- Classification - This takes your data and determines what bucket it goes to. Suppose you ran a model on your data to determine who is likely to renew or who is likely to drop their membership. Classification would then take this model and break out your members and put them in buckets depending on how likely they are to renew.
- Factor Analysis - A useful tool for investigating relationships within complex areas such as socioeconomic status, dietary patterns, or psychological scales. It allows researchers to investigate concepts that are not easily measured directly.
- Regression analysis – is used to understand which among the independent variables (e.g. job sector, meetings attended, etc.) are related to the dependent variable (e.g. member retention), and to explore the forms of these relationships. Regression analysis is also widely used for predicting and forecasting.
- Segmentation – Most of us do segmentation all the time. You can segment your organizations by number of employees or individuals who have similar job titles.
- Association – If you have been to Amazon you have seen how association works. Let's say I buy a NutriBullet and a FitBit, an algorithm runs to see other people who have bought those items and what else they buy. Then Amazon will recommend those products to me.
- Sequence Analysis - This type of analysis looks for patterns of values that happen in sequence. For example, if you were looking how your customers interact with your website, you can see if accessing web pages in a certain sequence means they are more likely to purchase products.
How do I do it?
Now that you understand all the different types of analysis that can be performed while data mining, the next step is to understand how you can get started.
- Define the problem you want to solve- As smart as most computers are, they won't be able to answer a question when none is asked. First determine what question you want to ask, for example, "Who is most at risk for not renewing membership?" or "What is the profile of our optimal customer?"
- Determine what analysis is appropriate for your question – Now that you have defined what you need to ask, you need to determine which of the 6 analysis types above will best help you answer your question.
- Prepare your data – Now you will need to find and clean your data. You can only analyze data you have access to and the answers you will get from analysis will only be good if your data is clean.
- Training – Just like a person, your model will need training as well. Think of this like giving a new employee a tour when they first start. They meet all the staff and get to find out how your association works and what everyone does.
- Testing - Once you run an analysis on your data and a model is created, you then make sure that the model is accurate. The best way to do this is by using historical data and run it through the model to see if it accurately predicts what has already happened.
Data mining is an advanced part of Business Intelligence and should be an end goal for any association analytics initiative. It allows you to take your most valuable asset, data, and use it to help you not only in the present but also help you plan for your association's future.


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Electronic road barrier system installed near Stenbock House ({{contentCtrl.commentsTotal}})
On police recommendation, the Government Office had an electronic road barrier system installed on Rahukohtu Street near Stenbock House, the seat of the Estonian government.
Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) spokesperson Olja Kivistik told ERR that the electronically controlled road barriers will not affect traffic patterns, but will further help prevent unauthorized vehicles from driving along Rahukohtu Street.
Currently there is a no-entry sign with an additional sign stating "Except those authorized by the Government Office" posted at the top of the street.
Kivistik explained that the road barriers will remain in a raised position 24 hours per day, but can be lowered to allow authorized vehicles to access Rahukohtu Street.
Electronically controlled road barriers have also been installed by the city of Tallinn on Viru Street. There are similar road barriers by the U.S. Embassy in Estonia on Kentmanni Street as well.
Editor: Aili Vahtla


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"Humble yourselves…and he will lift you up." Jas 4:10 NIV
Peter Marshall, chaplain to the U.S. Senate, once prayed, "Lord, when we are wrong make us willing to change, and when we are right make us easy to live with." When God promotes you to a higher level of responsibility, He calls you to a deeper level of submission. "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." Each time God blesses us with something good He runs the risk that it'll take our focus off Him. Indeed, the more God blesses us with, the more self-absorbed we tend to become. So His Word says, "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (Jas 4:7 NIV). Submission brings strength. It's the submitted life that has the power to overcome. Every time the enemy meets with this kind of resistance, he flees.
The Koh-I-Noor Diamond is among the world's most spectacular gems. It's part of the British Crown Jewels, and was first presented to Queen Victoria by the Maharajah of India when he was just a boy. As a grown man he visited her again and asked to see it. Taking the diamond in his hand, he knelt before her and presented it again, saying, "Your Majesty, I gave you this jewel when I was but a child, too young to really understand what I was doing. Now I want to give it to you in the fullness of my strength, with all my heart and affection and gratitude, now and forever, fully realizing what I do." Today, kneel and say, "Lord, I give myself fully and completely to You!"
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The recent demise of the John Doyle Group illustrates how hard it can be for contractors to obtain payment in a recession, but there are ways to improve cashflow
On Thursday 21 June 2012 companies in the John Doyle Group entered administration. The group, which was established in the sixties, consisted of three core businesses: core concrete frames, commercial fit-outs and refurbishment and plant hire.
The administrators at Deloitte have eight weeks in which to issue their proposals providing details as to the cause of the group's decline, but according to Building magazine, the contractor suffered "working capital strains" and had struggled to get customers to pay on time, with the termination of one particular high-end residential job in London triggering the firm's collapse.
If an employer is not making payments as they fall due, a contractor needs to act quickly
Notwithstanding the efforts of management, in some circumstances it is not possible to protect a company from the insolvency or financial distress of others, and here we make no comment on the efforts of the Doyle management to try to save the companies. In order to try to protect a business from the financial distress of employers it is recommended that contractors consider the following points:
1. If there is not a written contract, try to formalise the position into a written contract to ensure all parties are clear as to the terms on which you trade. Consider (i) What are the payment terms? Can the terms be tightened? (ii) What are your rights on a payment default? (iii) Is English law applicable?
2. If you supply goods, consider whether you have a valid and enforceable retention of title clause, whereby you retain title to the goods until payment. If so, do you retain title to all goods until all debts have been paid in full or only retain title to the particular goods that have not been paid for? To assert retention of title you need to identify the goods supplied. If goods are mixed with another party's goods, title to the goods supplied may be lost notwithstanding such a clause.
3. Will the employer pay deposits or make payments in full prior to delivery of goods or services to assist cash flow? If the employer does not feel comfortable making a payment up front it may be possible to agree the monies are paid into an escrow account with an independent third party or a separate retention account. An agreement should be carefully drafted to set out the circumstances in which the monies will be paid out and that the monies are held on trust for the contractor such that they are not available for other creditors of the employer.
4. Could the employer pay your subcontractors direct? This would assist a contractor's cash flow if the employer is late in making payments to it. However, consider carefully how your profit element will be received as this arrangement leaves you exposed to the employer for payment.
5. Third party security will spread the risk. In accordance with a guarantee, a third party will agree to perform the principal's obligations under an agreement. A guarantee will generally only relate to the contractual obligations at the time that the guarantee is entered into unless the guarantor expressly agrees otherwise. A performance bond from an insurance company or bank may be appropriate where the other contracting party has to perform works (i.e. subcontractors) and will usually expire at the end of any rectification period. A payment bond, however, may be useful if an employer is situated in a foreign jurisdiction
If a circumstance arises in which an employer is not making payments as they fall due, a contractor needs to act quickly. The key things to remember are:
- A contractor has a statutory (and possibly contractual) right to suspend performance of all or any obligations where a party owes a debt and no notice to pay less has been received
- Assert any retention of title or or possession claim and identify goods quickly
- If an employer, or subcontractor, enters an insolvency process, contact the relevant office holder as soon as possible and only negotiate with the appointed office holder. The directors may no longer have the power to bind the company
- Reserve rights against third parties and review whether claims can be made against those third parties
- In insolvency situations in the context of a construction contract, contractors can rely on "pay when paid" provisions.
Claire Martin-Royle is restructuring partner at Taylor Wessing


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Neuralink News and Discussions
Posted 17 July 2019 - 05:26 AM
So Neuralink just revealed some really interesting stuff this night/morning. What do you guys think?
I'm a radical demo-publiacrat.
This is Scatman's world, and we're living in it.
Posted 17 July 2019 - 10:23 AM
Didn't notice this thread before posting the article below in another thread. No real thoughts that I want to share at this moment, but I thought having the article cited might give some useful background.
Elon Musk unveils Neuralink's plans for brain-reading 'threads' and a robot to insert them
(The Verge) Elon Musk's Neuralink, the secretive company developing brain-machine interfaces, showed off some of the technology it has been developing to the public for the first time. The goal is to eventually begin implanting devices in paralyzed humans, allowing them to control phones or computers.
The first big advance is flexible "threads," which are less likely to damage the brain than the materials currently used in brain-machine interfaces. These threads also create the possibility of transferring a higher volume of data, according to a white paper credited to "Elon Musk & Neuralink." The abstract notes that the system could include "as many as 3,072 electrodes per array distributed across 96 threads."
The threads are 4 to 6 μm in width, which makes them considerably thinner than a human hair. In addition to developing the threads, Neuralink's other big advance is a machine that automatically embeds them.
Musk gave a big presentation of Neuralink's research Tuesday night, though he said that it wasn't simply for hype. "The main reason for doing this presentation is recruiting," Musk said, asking people to go apply to work there. Max Hodak, president of Neuralink, also came on stage and admitted that he wasn't originally sure "this technology was a good idea," but that Musk convinced him it would be possible.
The principles of justice define an appropriate path between dogmatism and intolerance on the one side, and a reductionism which regards religion and morality as mere preferences on the other. - John Rawls
Posted 17 July 2019 - 10:51 AM
I was not able to watch the presentation yet because 4am and then work.
From summaries I have seen it looks like there's no major unexpected news, just a restating of the mission, and confirmation that they have tested in animals and it works and they are now after FDA approval for use in people with paralysis.
This is happening quicker than I expected, Was Musk's original (typically ambitious!) prediction that they would have a commercial non-medical device in 10 or so years from 2017?
So if we have medical implants in humans by end of 2021 they have 6 years to improve things enough that people will want them even if they're not paralysed, which seems much more plausible than the original 10 years from nothing estimate.
The fact that they are creating an implanting machine is huge as it means mass deployment at relatively affordable prices will be possible. (training a brain surgeon to install them would take a long time I suspect! and most brain surgeons are probably busy with life saving surgeries.)
Monkey controlling a computer is cool, but depends on what he did with it.
Also will Openwater make this whole company pointless somewhere along the way?
Posted 17 July 2019 - 09:01 PM
Posted 17 July 2019 - 09:24 PM
Full immersion vr by the 2040s lads, I'm calling it. It won't have 1:1 realistic graphics but visuals will be good enough and all 5 senses will be satisfied.
2040 feels about right. Might even say earlier, dude.
Thought it was pretty metal seeing the full suite in concert. The minimally invasive implant under the scalp connected to the external earpiece that supplies power and connectivity. It looked a lot like Black Mirror.
For those who haven't seen Neuralink's presentation, the current architecture begins with a small (≈4mm) hole being drilled into the skull. This hole is 'plugged' with a fully integrated SOC which is ensconced inside an hermetically sealed casing. From this SOC skull-plug, extremely thin tendrils (roughly the diameter of a single neuron, or 4μm in diameter) are inserted into the brain with robotic precision. Each tendril is thin enough, and flexible enough, to minimise trauma to brain tissue and evade veins and capillaries, producing "no noticeable bleeding". The tiny incision in the scalp (4mm), above the implant, heals ("without visible scarring"), and the wearer places an external, wireless, earpiece over their ear to provide the implant with both power and (literally) bluetooth connectivity.
What it looks like, is a person attiring an earpiece, that looks much like a modern bluetooth earphone, over their ear which wireless powers and communicated with their sub-dermal implant.
In other words, when you watch some Black Mirror episodes and you see people place a small device on the outside of their temple, you're seeing a miniaturised and refined version of what we mere mortals were shown today.
It's pretty dope.
So dude, FIVR by 2040 actually makes some sense.
My own conjecturing is that these invasive tendrils will eventually give way to either an injection that allows free-floating electrodes to circulate their way into the brain where they settle, or perhaps even be ingested and make their way to the blood stream via the liver. From there, they will exit the capillaries in your brain and perform the same read/write functionality to neuron clusters / individual neurons.
In any case, hopefully we will always maintain the physical failsafe for power and connectivity--if we pull the externally mounted power/antennae source off our face, the entire system will be excommunicated/shut down.
Bring on the singularity, habibi
If you're going through hell, keep going. - Winston Churchill
You don't decide your future. You decide your habits, and your habits decide your future.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power. - Abraham Lincoln.
Posted 17 July 2019 - 09:45 PM
So, it looks like
have quickly caught up with the incumbents (e.g. blackrock). There is nothing revolutionary but a range of really creative ideas (love the guide tube like needle idea). I need to see more data but they seem to be on a great track.
Sussillo also wasn't blown-away by what was presented, but thinks they are holding back (Musk's monkey comment supports this view):
I haven't read the paper, but I did watch the show in full last night. IMO they likely have significantly advanced the engineering aspects of BMI without showing anything earth shattering. They are well positioned for medical applications / science apps over the next 10 years.
Posted 18 July 2019 - 01:56 AM
On the other hand, if they can make it much less invasive, then this could go rather far. I think near-infrared-based BCIs will steal the spotlight away from Musk very soon -- e.g. the work of Mary Lou Jepsen's Openwater, the Edgefield device being researched at Facebook, and then also the DARPA-funded projects in the N^3 program. Probably Facebook's device will get the lion's share of the media attention in the coming months; then, eventually, Openwater. What Neuralink needs to do, in order to get a large number of people to try it, is to build a device that works without surgery. Surgery is going to be a no-go for most people. Perhaps it will be possible to make a pill that, upon ingestion, moves little nano-particles into your brain, that are sensitive to neural impulses, and whose state can scanned using a small wearable device; this would still be "invasive", but I could see a large percent of the population trying it. I believe one of the DARPA N^3 teams is pursuing something like this.
To find out more about the human-enhancement potential of BCIs, see this posting of mine:
There are 3 or 4 posts in that thread that lay out where I see these BCIs going in the coming years. I don't discuss FIVR-like applications, as those are further in the future (at least 20 years); most of what I discuss will be possible in the next 10 years.
Posted 19 July 2019 - 03:00 AM
Kording sounds excited. He says that academia is good at coming up with ideas, but is not so good at integrating; and Neuralink's work seems to be about taking a lot of good ideas that are already known, and then bringing them all together into a single unit. He says industry can really complement academia in that regard.
Posted 19 July 2019 - 02:45 PM
Could we use brain implants to determine which animals are sentient?
Posted 19 July 2019 - 03:14 PM
I do wonder... If we've hooked up animals to computers (especially dolphins and fellow apes), would we be able to hold conversations with them?
We're already fairly close with dolphins.
Birds had a massive headstart since they actually could speak to us in our own language, but they have never really been able to converse meaningfully beyond a few questions, probably because their brains are too small. Apes might be much closer to us in that regard; if they didn't have to rely on memorizing symbols and having overly interpretative trainers, they may be able to speak to us via BCIs. However, it's still up in the air if they converse with each other like we do, which will naturally retard our ability to communicate beyond basic commands and questions (which is closer to what we ought to expect from dogs).
Dolphins, though, we already know to be able to hold organized conversations. We just don't understand what they're saying. So I'm eager to see the effects of BCIs there.
And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future.
Posted 25 July 2019 - 02:38 AM
But perhaps I am been far too optimistic, and maybe a healthy dose of short term pessimism is called for.
Posted 25 July 2019 - 02:44 AM
Posted 25 July 2019 - 02:47 AM
Outlook's secret song of the ~week: https://youtu.be/GMYezR1cwFA
Posted 25 July 2019 - 10:45 AM
I guess the singularity could occur when humans uisng BCIs become super intelligent?
If the singularity is supposed to be the point where our ability to predict things breaks down because we have no experience of superintelligence and therefore no way to predict what it would do then this could be bought about by BCI or even genetic re-engineering rather than through AI.
Posted 25 July 2019 - 12:49 PM
I merged your thread. Please check for other threads before creating a new one.
Posted 30 July 2019 - 10:58 PM
YouTube video
Many of those are bit too "out there" -- it's going to take decades before we see many of those things using invasive methods.
By the way, near the end he mentions an upcoming program about Kernel's progress. They are another big BCI company, that has kept pretty quiet about what they've been up to. Apparently, they are working on both invasive and non-invasive methods. You may recall this post from a few months back:
Posted 31 July 2019 - 05:12 PM
Could we use brain implants to determine which animals are sentient?
We Could, but i'm pretty sure an MRI could do the same, sentience is technically just the ability to experience sensation, so its a pretty broad category that includes most living things (although not most plants and possibly not all insects?)
Although, especially in sci-fi sentient and sapient get mixed up all the time. We could probably use the BCI to figure out how sapient an animal was but if it only monitors a limited number of neurons it may be a while before we have enough coverage to get a good idea of everything that's going on in a chimps head.
Posted 31 July 2019 - 07:52 PM
by Bob Yirka , Medical Xpress
A team of researchers at the University of California's Department of Neurological Surgery and the Center for Integrative Neuroscience in San Francisco has taken another step toward the development of a device able to read a person's mind. In their paper published in the journal Nature Communications, the Facebook-funded group describes their work with epilepsy patients and the technology they developed that allowed them to read some human thoughts.
Technology to peer inside the human mind to monitor thoughts has been explored in science fiction for years. But in recent years, scientists have made important strides toward creating such devices. For example, brain-computer interfaces currently exist that allow a person to spell out words using a virtual keyboard. But it is slow going. In this new effort, the researchers report that they were able to read some complete words from the minds of epilepsy patients.
Also tagged with one or more of these keywords: Musk, Neuralink, 2019, Transhumanism, Singularity, Technology, Elon
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Make a Memorial Gift for Jay Childers
Jay Childers was an accomplished outdoorsman who owned and operated a hiking tourism company called Las Vegas Summit Adventures. He was incredibly passionate about protecting the environment, and used the training he received from Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics throughout the remainder of his life. We invite you to please donate to a cause that was so dear to Jay's heart.


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U.S. Marine Corps enlisted retention: an analysis of stakeholder incentives for the retention of tier 1 first-term Marines
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Cole, Alexandra L.
Arkes, Jeremy A.
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Seagren, Chad W.
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This study analyzes the Marine Corps reenlistment process and the relationship between a Marine's expiration of active service (EAS), reenlistment request submission month, and submission timeline on the quality of first-term Marines. In 2011, a computed tier was added to reenlistment requests and added an objective component to an otherwise subjective request. This study also looks at the influence of stakeholders in identifying and retaining quality under both reenlistment measures. Graphical trend analysis, cross tabulation, and linear regression models were used to analyze Total Force Retention System and Total Force Data Warehouse data with quality identified using a computed submitted tier, commander's recommended tier, and modified tier score. The findings indicate that reenlistment requests submitted within 30 days of a Marine's EAS have had negative effects on quality and outside of this window there is no observable effect on quality. Additionally, over the course of the reenlistment period, lower quality is associated with months following the start of the reenlistment period in July. The graphical analysis also suggests that the computed tier provides an objective anchor for commanders' recommendations.
RightsThis publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.
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