text:
HANG TIME SOUTHWEST — The Dallas Mavericks finally appear to have their big-name free agent and Monta Ellis finally gets his big contract.
Only neither is as big as originally hoped. The Mavs dearly wanted Dwight Howard. He's in Houston. Ellis opted out of $11 million with the Milwaukee Bucks for one final season. He didn't find the market he expected. Now he's headed to Dallas for a reported three years at between $25 million and $30 million.
He joins a roster under extreme reconstruction that, at the moment, is stacked with newcomers in the backcourt. The athletic, volume-shooting Ellis figures to start at shooting guard next to high-IQ point guard Jose Calderon, who signed on for four years and $29 million. Dallas will pay those two around $15 million next season.
ESPN.com's Marc Stein first reported the Ellis agreement. Stein also reported that the three-year deal that Devin Harris (who has dislocated toe) and Dallas agreed to has been shelved.
Sixth man Vince Carter is the lone returnee and only producer from last season's train-wreck backcourt. He enters the final year of his deal at $3.2 million.
Dallas also brought in guards Wayne Ellington on a two-year deal, plus rookie free agent Gal Mekel and draft picks Shane Larkin (who will miss possibly three months with ankle injury) and Ricky Ledo. After realizing top free agents (Deron Williams last summer and now Howard) weren't enamored with a thin roster that wasn't winning any trades either, the Mavs are in the asset acquisition business.
It's a different approach than the last two offseasons when owner Mark Cuban sought short-term bang for his buck, and consistently said he would save his money for foundation-type players. Perhaps the Mavs now believe that the 27-year-old Ellis, who has played in two postseasons in his eight-year career, is one. He was certainly the last remaining "impact" free agent on the market.
At the moment, eight of the 12 players Dallas has or soon expects to have under contract are guards. Talk about going small-ball. Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion and Jae Crowder fill the forward position and second-year center Bernard James, a low-minute player when he got off the bench, is the only big man in the middle.
That has to change, although how is the big question considering the Mavs' cap situation. Dallas remains in pursuit of stop-gap veteran Samuel Dalembert (a sign-and-trade with Milwaukee could be an option) and they've been in discussions with their own hybrid forward-center Brandan Wright. Elton Brand also remains a possibility.
The agreement with Ellis seemed unlikely just a couple days ago when president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said he didn't expect more backcourt additions. With all eyes focused on the depleted center position, Ellis did perk up a fan base wondering where the franchise was headed after missing out on Howard a week ago.
Ellis doesn't turn the summer around for the Mavs, but he does bring with him some needed swag back to Big D. The roster had been virtually bare of playmaking electricity. He gives Dallas excitement, if not also unpredictability, and he'll happily fill the role as the second — and sometimes lead scorer — the Mavs so desperately need next to Nowitzki.
The 6-foot-3 Ellis averaged 19.2 ppg and 6.0 apg sharing the backcourt in Milwaukee last season with Brandon Jennings. He shot just 41.6 percent overall and 28.7 percent from beyond the arc, but he can light it up on any given night and seemed to have a knack for fireworks when he played Dallas.
A rim protector must be on the way, though, or the Mavs' defensive standing at No. 27 in scoring (101.7 ppg) last season could get worse. Ellis' defensive efficiency last season benefited from the Bucks' swat machine Larry Sanders. Ellis consistently ranks high in steals, but his overall defensive prowess is not considered a strong suit, and starting next to Calderon could cause coach Rick Carlisle to go completely bald.
The Mavs aren't done massaging their roster. Friday at least provided a jolt and a little more intrigue for a proud franchise that was quickly looking lottery-bound for a second consecutive season.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Dr. Graça congratulates Thomas Bach on IOC appointment
Lausanne, Switzerland, September 11, 2013 – FIVB President, Dr Ary S. Graça F° has congratulated Thomas Bach after he was elected ninth President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Tuesday.
"On behalf of the extended volleyball family I would like to congratulate Thomas Bach on his election to this important post," said Dr. Graça who was in Buenos Aires for the IOC Session. "I know that he will do well as President as he has all the necessary skills to navigate the IOC to a bigger and better future."
"I look forward to continuing the partnership between the IOC and the FIVB and to seeing the sport of volleyball flourish in future editions of the Games," said the FIVB President.
The FIVB and the IOC have enjoyed a particularly close partnership since 2010 when the FIVB increased its efforts in development and innovation following the launch of the outstandingly successful beach volleyball qualification tournament the Continental Cup. The tournament culminated in the 2012 Olympic Games where beach volleyball at Horse Guards Parade – and volleyball at Earls Court - were both impressively popular. In fact the sport of beach volleyball made headline news around the world as the top 10 of the best Olympic moments on the IOC website.
After taking office in September 2012, FIVB President Dr. Ary S. Graça F° was also appointed to the IOC's Sport for All Commission created by in 1983 in response to the growing public interest in sports practice, health, fitness and physical activity.
Bach beat off rival candidates Sergey Bubka (Ukraine), Richard Carrión (Puerto Rico), Ser Miang Ng (Singapore), Denis Oswald (Switzerland) and Ching-Kuo Wu (Chinese Taipei) to succeed President Jacques Rogge whose 12-year term in office ended with the closing of the Session.


text:
POLITICO's new campaign e-book: An early look
Here's the first look at POLITICO's new e-book, "The End of the Line: Romney vs. Obama: the 34 days that decided the election," by Glenn Thrush and Jonathan Martin. "The End of the Line" goes on sale Tuesday — preorder here.
If there was a date when Obama won reelection, it was probably a hot, sleepy Saturday in late May when much of the country was stocking up on beer and burgers for Memorial Day cookouts.
Story Continued Below
Here was one of the few episodes of actual audacity in a grind-it-out 2012 campaign. The Obama team, meeting in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, settled on a risky preemptive summertime attack on Romney, one that threatened the campaign's financial foundation.
( Also on POLITICO: Obama: I'm not a socialist)
The Citizens United decision of 2010 had lifted restrictions on donations from outside groups, and Republicans, led by Karl Rove and Romney's aides, had far out-raised their Democratic counterparts. The president hadn't helped matters much by refusing to actively support, or even endorse, his own underpowered but feisty super PAC, Priorities USA Action, until January.
Instead, Obama had staked it all on his own online fund-raising operation, banking on an army of small donors numbering in the millions. But things were off to a staggering start. Romney and the Republican National Committee would out-raise Obama and the Democratic National Committee $78.8 million to $60 million in May, the first month of the general election.
( Also on POLITICO: Obama's post-Denver media obsession)
It would get worse: Romney would beat Obama in June and July too, amassing a three-month total of $286 million to Obama's $206 million.
Instead of hoarding cash for a tomorrow that might never come, Obama's advisers— [David] Axelrod, [David] Plouffe, [Jim] Messina and [Stephanie] Cutter, and another veteran Obama hand, Larry Grisolano—were now telling him to blow up the campaign's budget. They urged the president to pump more than $100 million into a barrage of negative ads in swing states attacking Romney where it hurt most—on Bain, his tax policy, and his disastrous opposition to the auto bailout that saved tens of thousands of jobs in Ohio alone.
"You could always get more money," Axe recalled. "Time? Once that was gone, it was gone."
The plan wasn't revolutionary: Bill Clinton had used the same early summer lull to bombard Bob Dole in 1996; he referred to the period as the "interregnum" between the end of the GOP primaries and the party conventions.
But it was, as per [Obama pollster Joel] Benenson's maxim, "tweaked." The super PACs—and the decided advantage they conferred on the GOP—made Obama's decision a far riskier proposition than Clinton's gambit. Obama would have to raid his own budget for September and October, potentially robbing him of cash down the homestretch. That entailed slashing the campaign's broadcast ad spending in the final weeks to a fraction of what Romney's was expected to be—a mere fifteen hundred "points," in advertising parlance, when the challenger was expected to hammer home as much as fifty-five hundred points over the same period.
By hitting early, Obama could preempt Romney and his associated super PACs. Obama's team, which kept a precise accounting of ad bookings, could clearly see that Romney and his GOP-related groups weren't planning a big push in the early summer. That was puzzling: ad rates were lower, and the electorate, not yet subjected to the fall ad blitz, would be more receptive.


text:
House of Commons
Session 2012-13
Publications on the internet
The Register of Members' Financial Interests: Part 1
As at 22nd October 2012
WILSON, Rob (Reading East)
2. Remunerated employment, office, profession etc
Contributing editor to Total Politics magazine, Westminster Tower, 3 Albert Embankment
London SE1 7SP:
January 2012, received £800 for two articles, of September and November 2011. Hours: 6 hrs in total. (Registered 20 January 2012)
Received payments of £400, £425 and £425 for three articles (May, June and July 2012). Hours: 3 hrs for each article; 9 hrs in total. (Registered 30 July 2012)
11 August 2012, in the course of my role as an Olympic Ambassador I received a ticket for athletics event, value £295, and hospitality, value £350, from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. Hours: 5 hours. (Registered 28 August 2012)
5. Gifts, benefits and hospitality (UK)
Name of donor: Lawn Tennis Association
Address of donor : The National Tennis Centre, 100 Priory Lane, Roehampton, London SW15 5JQ
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: two tickets for Wimbledon tennis; value £1,950 plus VAT
Date of receipt of donation: 25 May 2012
Date of acceptance of donation: 28 June 2012
Donor status: company registration 7459569
(Registered 28 August 2012)
Name of donor: Thames Water
Address of donor : Clearwater Court, Vastern Road, Reading, Berkshire RG1 8DB
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: two tickets for Olympic Rowing Final at 2012 Olympics; value £1,500
Date of receipt of donation: 18 June 2012
Date of acceptance of donation: 4 August 2012
Donor status: company registration 2366661
(Registered 28 August 2012)
8. Land and Property
A flat in Reading.


text:
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) The Buffalo Bills have signed Reggie Wells to address an injury-depleted offensive line.
In making the move Tuesday, the Bills placed offensive lineman Colin Brown on injured reserve after the backup hurt his hamstring in a 45-3 loss at San Francisco on Sunday.
The Bills (2-3) play at Arizona this weekend, and are already expected to be missing two starting linemen. Left tackle Cordy Glenn and guard Kraig Urbik are both recovering from right ankle injuries. Backup guard Chad Rinehart's status is also uncertain because of a calf injury.
Wells is a 10-year NFL veteran, who appeared in five games last season with Carolina. He spent his first seven seasons with Arizona, and one year with Philadelphia. He has 91 starts in 117 career games.


text:
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
Science is Cool....
This is a repository for all cool scientific discussion and fascination. Scientific facts, theories, and overall cool scientific stuff that you'd like to share with others. Stuff that makes you smile and wonder at the amazing shit going on around us, that most people don't notice.
Post pictures, vidoes, stories, or links. Ask questions. Share science.
This is in support of the Penny 4 NASA project. If you enjoy anything you learned from this thread, consider making a donation and signing the petition.
Why should I care?:
Last edited by Fish; 01-30-2019 at 04:56 PM..
Posts: 37,695
Space Cadet and Aczabel
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Kansas City, Mo, USA
Casino cash: $43375VARSITY
Of and if you didn't see this in the lounge try this... Amazing
Thanks, Trump for the civics lesson. We are learning so much about impeachment, the 25th Amendment, order of succession, nepotism, separation of powers, 1st Amendment, obstruction of justice, the emoluments clause, Logan Act, conflicts of interest, collusion, sanctions, oligarchs, money laundering and so much more.
Posts: 39,478
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Kansas City
Casino cash: $5000
Posts: 2,740
Doom Cannon
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Brandenburg, Ky
Casino cash: $9148
The US Navy has unveiled plans to make jet fuel out of seawater, with the help of electrochemistry and gas-to-liquid fuels technology.
Researchers at the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) in Washington, DC, have demonstrated that it is possible to obtain CO2 and hydrogen from seawater, then convert these to hydrocarbons suitable for fuelling aircraft.
Keeping ships and aircraft fuelled is a major operation for any navy. The US Navy has 15 refuelling ships known as oilers and last year these delivered 600 million gallons of fuel to ships under way. Generating their own fuel would free up the ships from these logistics and make the navy less dependent on imported oil, said Nancy Willauer, a research chemist who worked on the project.
Refuelling at sea is an expensive process that often relies on imported oil
The technology uses electrochemistry to recover CO2 from seawater, where it is present at a concentration 140 times greater than in air, mostly as bicarbonate with traces of carbonate and dissolved CO2 gas (carbonic acid). The navy team developed a device called an electrochemical acidification cell, which uses ion-permeable polymer membranes and an electric current to lower the pH of the seawater. The three forms of carbon in the water exist in a state of equilibrium, and making the water more acidic alters the balance between them, making gaseous CO2 the most stable form. The cell produces hydrogen gas at its cathode as a by-product.
After demonstrating this at a small scale, the NRL team scaled it up to a skid process a freestanding unit on a scale similar to that which might be used in the field which can reportedly recover up to 92 per cent of the CO2 from seawater taken from the Gulf of Mexico.
The skid unit at NRL, which can recover up to 92 per cent of the CO2 from seawater
Converting these two gases into hydrocarbons uses a technology similar to the Fischer-Tropsch process, which has been used for many years to make fuel from synthesis gas, a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. By modifying the surface compositions of iron catalysts in fixed-bed reactors, NRL has successfully improved CO2 conversion efficiencies by up to 60 per cent, Willauer said.
The iron-catalysed process produces short-chain unsaturated hydrocarbons, which can then be combined to make compounds containing nine to 16 carbon atoms; treating these with a catalyst supported on porous nickel converts them into a liquid suitable as jet fuel, the researchers said.
NRL is now looking into improving the efficiency of the process and scaling it up and believes that the final process should be able to produce fuel at a price of between $3 and $6 per gallon (between fifty pence and £1 per litre). The process could be powered using nuclear electricity or by a method known as solar OTEC, which uses the natural temperature gradient between different levels of the ocean to power electricity generation, the team suggested. The research can be read in this paper.
Read more: http://www.theengineer.co.uk/sectors...#ixzz2CRICukih
Posts: 845
Doom Cannon
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Brandenburg, Ky
Casino cash: $9148
(CBS News) Two men who've had HIV for years may now be free of the disease following bone marrow transplants, researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston announced Thursday.
The new research has some attendees at the XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C. hopeful for a cure.
Timothy Ray Brown, man thought to be first "cured" of AIDS, says he's still cured
Man "cured" of AIDS: Timothy Ray Brown
Both patients were being treated for cases of cancer. One of the patients underwent a bone marrow transplant two years ago at the Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Center in Boston, the other had the procedure done four years ago at the same hospital. NBCNews.com reports that one of the patients is in his 50s and has been infected since the early 1980s towards the beginning of the AIDS epidemic and the other man, in his 20s, was infected at birth.
Both stayed on their antiretroviral medication regimens, the standard treatment of HIV, following the transplants.
The researchers discovered that overtime as the patients' cells were replaced by cells from the donor, evidence of HIV in the patients' blood tests disappeared. The researchers also said both patients have no signs of HIV in their DNA or RNA and levels of their disease-fighting antibodies have also decreased. The researchers think the medications helped allow these cells to be replaced.
"This gives us some important information," one of the researchers Dr. Daniel Kuritzkes, an infectious disease specialist at the hospital and Harvard Medical school said in a press release. "It suggests that under the cover of antiretroviral therapy, the cells that repopulated the patient's immune system appear to be protected from becoming re-infected with HIV."
The researchers themselves won't call it a cure yet, saying they still need to check more tissues for traces of the disease. But they were surprised to see no signs of HIV beyond what's seen in a blood test.
"We expected HIV to vanish from the patients' plasma, but it is surprising that we can't find any traces of HIV in their cells," said co-resarcher Dr. Timothy Henrich, also of BWH and Harvard. "The next step is to determine if there are any traces of HIV in their tissue."
The researchers' announcement comes days after Timothy Ray Brown, the man known as the "Berlin Patient," held a press conference in Washington, D.C., to say he's still cured of AIDS five years after undergoing a bone marrow blood transplant.
However, the researchers noted differences in their two patients' treatment compared to that of Brown.
In Brown's case, his donor was specifically chosen because he possessed a genetic mutation that's found in one person of Caucasian people that makes them resistant to developing HIV. But the donors for the two Boston patient were selected at random. Additionally, Brown had stopped taking his antiretroviral medications following his transplant, while the Boston patients have stayed on the drugs.
Traces of HIV have been found in Brown's tissues, causing some to say the virus had returned, but he denied that at his press conference, saying those are merely dead remnants of the virus still in his body.
"We can't say we've replicated the Berlin patient's cure at this point because our patients remain on antiretroviral therapy," Kuritzkes told NPR. He did add to the station that it's "entirely possible" the two patients will remain disease-free.
Dr. Steven Deeks, an HIV researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, told The Washington Post, "Today might be considered a day when the research agenda moves from basic science and the lab into the clinic," adding that "it is an absolutely critical advancement."
Not all experts were impressed. Dr. Jay Levy, another HIV researcher at UC San Francisco, told The Boston Globe, "The real news would be if they could stop the drugs and not have the virus come back."
Posts: 845
Doom Cannon
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Brandenburg, Ky
Casino cash: $9148
Potential magic bullet vs caner?
PHILADELPHIA A year ago, when chemotherapy stopped working against his leukemia, William Ludwig signed up to be the first patient treated in a bold experiment at the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Ludwig, then 65, a retired corrections officer from Bridgeton, N.J., felt his life draining away and thought he had nothing to lose.
Gene Therapy
Attacking a Tumor
Enlarge This Image
University of Pennsylvania
Tiny magnetic beads force the larger T-cells to divide before they are infused into the patient.
Enlarge This Image
Jessica Kourkounis for The New York Times
FULL OF LIFE William Ludwig, 66, in his RV parked at his home in New Jersey.
Enlarge This Image
Jessica Kourkounis for The New York Times
MAJOR ADVANCE Dr. Bruce Levine lifted cells from a freezer in his lab in Philadelphia last week. Special cell-culturing techniques may have contributed to the labs success.
Readers Comments
Readers shared their thoughts on this article.
Read All Comments (18) »
Doctors removed a billion of his T-cells a type of white blood cell that fights viruses and tumors and gave them new genes that would program the cells to attack his cancer. Then the altered cells were dripped back into Mr. Ludwigs veins.
At first, nothing happened. But after 10 days, hell broke loose in his hospital room. He began shaking with chills. His temperature shot up. His blood pressure shot down. He became so ill that doctors moved him into intensive care and warned that he might die. His family gathered at the hospital, fearing the worst.
A few weeks later, the fevers were gone. And so was the leukemia.
There was no trace of it anywhere no leukemic cells in his blood or bone marrow, no more bulging lymph nodes on his CT scan. His doctors calculated that the treatment had killed off two pounds of cancer cells.
A year later, Mr. Ludwig is still in complete remission. Before, there were days when he could barely get out of bed; now, he plays golf and does yard work.
I have my life back, he said.
Mr. Ludwigs doctors have not claimed that he is cured it is too soon to tell nor have they declared victory over leukemia on the basis of this experiment, which involved only three patients. The research, they say, has far to go; the treatment is still experimental, not available outside of studies.
But scientists say the treatment that helped Mr. Ludwig, described recently in The New England Journal of Medicine and Science Translational Medicine, may signify a turning point in the long struggle to develop effective gene therapies against cancer. And not just for leukemia patients: other cancers may also be vulnerable to this novel approach which employs a disabled form of H.I.V.-1, the virus that causes AIDS, to carry cancer-fighting genes into the patients T-cells. In essence, the team is using gene therapy to accomplish something that researchers have hoped to do for decades: train a persons own immune system to kill cancer cells.
Two other patients have undergone the experimental treatment. One had a partial remission: his disease lessened but did not go away completely. Another had a complete remission. All three had had advanced chronic lymphocytic leukemia and had run out of chemotherapy options. Usually, the only hope for a remission in such cases is a bone-marrow transplant, but these patients were not candidates for it.
Dr. Carl June, who led the research and directs translational medicine in the Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania, said that the results stunned even him and his colleagues, Dr. David L. Porter, Bruce Levine and Michael Kalos. They had hoped to see some benefit but had not dared dream of complete, prolonged remissions. Indeed, when Mr. Ludwig began running fevers, the doctors did not realize at first that it was a sign that his T-cells were engaged in a furious battle with his cancer.
Other experts in the field said the results were a major advance.
Its great work, said Dr. Walter J. Urba of the Providence Cancer Center and Earle A. Chiles Research Institute in Portland, Ore. He called the patients recoveries remarkable, exciting and significant. I feel very positive about this new technology. Conceptually, its very, very big.
Dr. Urba said he thought the approach would ultimately be used against other types of cancer as well as leukemia and lymphoma. But he cautioned, For patients today, were not there yet. And he added the usual scientific caveat: To be considered valid, the results must be repeated in more patients, and by other research teams.
Dr. June called the techniques a harvest of the information from the molecular biology revolution over the past two decades.
Hitting a Genetic Jackpot
To make T-cells search out and destroy cancer, researchers must equip them to do several tasks: recognize the cancer, attack it, multiply, and live on inside the patient. A number of research groups have been trying to do this, but the T-cells they engineered could not accomplish all the tasks. As a result, the cells ability to fight tumors has generally been temporary.
The University of Pennsylvania team seems to have hit all the targets at once. Inside the patients, the T-cells modified by the researchers multiplied to 1,000 to 10,000 times the number infused, wiped out the cancer and then gradually diminished, leaving a population of memory cells that can quickly proliferate again if needed.
The researchers said they were not sure which parts of their strategy made it work special cell-culturing techniques, the use of H.I.V.-1 to carry new genes into the T-cells, or the particular pieces of DNA that they selected to reprogram the T-cells.
The concept of doctoring T-cells genetically was first developed in the 1980s by Dr. Zelig Eshhar at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel. It involves adding gene sequences from different sources to enable the T-cells to produce what researchers call chimeric antigen receptors, or CARs protein complexes that transform the cells into, in Dr. Junes words, serial killers.
Mr. Ludwigs disease, chronic lymphocytic leukemia is a cancer of B-cells, the part of the immune system that normally produces antibodies to fight infection. All B-cells, whether healthy or leukemic, have on their surfaces a protein called CD19. To treat patients with the disease, the researchers hoped to reprogram their T-cells to find CD19 and attack B-cells carrying it.
But which gene sequences should be used to reprogram the T-cells, from which sources? And how do you insert them?
Various research groups have used different methods. Viruses are often used as carriers (or vectors) to insert DNA into other cells because that kind of genetic sabotage is exactly what viruses normally specialize in doing. To modify their patients T-cells, Dr. June and his colleagues tried a daring approach: they used a disabled form of H.I.V.-1. They are the first ever to use H.I.V.-1 as the vector in gene therapy for cancer patients (the virus has been used in other diseases).
The AIDS virus is a natural for this kind of treatment, Dr. June said, because it evolved to invade T-cells. The idea of putting any form of the AIDS virus into people sounds a bit frightening, he acknowledged, but the virus used by his team was gutted and was no longer harmful. Other researchers had altered and disabled the virus by adding DNA from humans, mice and cows, and from a virus that infects woodchucks and another that infects cows. Each bit was chosen for a particular trait, all pieced together into a vector that Dr. June called a Rube Goldberg-like solution and truly a zoo.
It incorporates the ability of H.I.V. to infect cells but not to reproduce itself, he said.
To administer the treatment, the researchers collected as many of the patients T-cells as they could by passing their blood through a machine that removed the cells and returned the other blood components back into the patients veins. The T-cells were exposed to the vector, which transformed them genetically, and then were frozen. Meanwhile, the patients were given chemotherapy to deplete any remaining T-cells, because the native T-cells might impede the growth of the altered ones. Finally, the T-cells were infused back into the patients.
Then, Dr. June said, The patient becomes a bioreactor as the T-cells proliferate, pouring out chemicals called cytokines that cause fever, chills, fatigue and other flulike symptoms.
The treatment wiped out all of the patients B-cells, both healthy ones and leukemic ones, and will continue to do for as long as the new T-cells persist in the body, which could be forever (and ideally should be, to keep the leukemia at bay). The lack of B-cells means that the patients may be left vulnerable to infection, and they will need periodic infusions of a substance called intravenous immune globulin to protect them.
So far, the lack of B-cells has not caused problems for Mr. Ludwig. He receives the infusions every few months. He had been receiving them even before the experimental treatment because the leukemia had already knocked out his healthy B-cells.
One thing that is not clear is why Patient 1 and Patient 3 had complete remissions, and Patient 2 did not. The researchers said that when Patient 2 developed chills and fever, he was treated with steroids at another hospital, and the drugs may have halted the T-cells activity. But they cannot be sure. It may also be that his disease was too severe.
The researchers wrote an entire scientific article about Patient 3, which was published in The New England Journal of Medicine. Like the other patients, he also ran fevers and felt ill, but the reaction took longer to set in, and he also developed kidney and liver trouble a sign of tumor lysis syndrome, a condition that occurs when large numbers of cancer cells die off and dump their contents, which can clog the kidneys. He was given drugs to prevent kidney damage. He had a complete remission.
What the journal article did not mention was that Patient 3 was almost not treated.
Because of his illness and some production problems, the researchers said, they could not produce anywhere near as many altered T-cells for him as they had for the other two patients only 14 million (a mouse dose, Dr. Porter said), versus 1 billion for Mr. Ludwig and 580 million for Patient 2. After debate, they decided to treat him anyway.
Patient 3 declined to be interviewed, but he wrote anonymously about his experience for the University of Pennsylvania Web site. When he developed chills and a fever, he said, I was sure the war was on I was sure C.L.L. cells were dying.
He wrote that he was a scientist, and that when he was young had dreamed of someday making a discovery that would benefit mankind. But, he concluded, I never imagined I would be part of the experiment.
When he told Patient 3 that he was remission, Dr. Porter said, they both had tears in their eyes.
Not Without Danger to Patients
While promising, the new techniques developed by the University of Pennsylvania researchers are not without danger to patients. Engineered T-cells have attacked healthy tissue in patients at other centers. Such a reaction killed a 39-year-old woman with advanced colon cancer in a study at the National Cancer Institute, researchers there reported last year in the journal Molecular Therapy.
She developed severe breathing trouble 15 minutes after receiving the T-cells, had to be put on a ventilator and died a few days later. Apparently, a protein target on the cancer cells was also present in her lungs, and the T-cells homed in on it.
Researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer in New York also reported a death last year in a T-cell trial for leukemia (also published in Molecular Therapy). An autopsy found that the patient had apparently died from sepsis, not from the T-cells, but because he died just four days after the infusion, the researchers said they considered the treatment a possible factor.
Dr. June said his team hopes to use T-cells against solid tumors, including some that are very hard to treat, like mesothelioma and ovarian and pancreatic cancer. But possible adverse reactions are a real concern, he said, noting that one of the protein targets on the tumor cells is also found on membranes that line the chest and abdomen. T-cell attacks could cause serious inflammation in those membranes and mimic lupus, a serious autoimmune disease.
Even if the T-cells do not hit innocent targets, there are still risks. Proteins they release could cause a cytokine storm high fevers, swelling, inflammation and dangerously low blood pressure which can be fatal. Or, if the treatment rapidly kills billions of cancer cells, the debris can damage the kidney and cause other problems.
Even if the new T-cell treatment proves to work, the drug industry will be needed to mass produce it. But Dr. June said the research is being done only at universities, not at drug companies. For the drug industry to take interest, he said, there will have to be overwhelming proof that the treatment is far better than existing ones.
Then I think theyll jump into it, he said. My challenge now is to do this in a larger set of patients with randomization, and to show that we have the same effects.
Mr. Ludwig said that when entered the trial, he had no options left. Indeed, Dr. June said that Mr. Ludwig was almost dead from the leukemia, and the effort to treat him was a Hail Mary.
Mr. Ludwig said: I dont recall anybody saying there was going to be a remission. I dont think they were dreaming to that extent.
The trial was a Phase 1 study, meaning that its main goal was to find out whether the treatment was safe, and at what dose. Of course, doctors and patients always hope that there will be some benefit, but that was not an official endpoint.
Mr. Ludwig thought that if the trial could buy him six months or a year, it would be worth the gamble. But even if the study did not help him, he felt it would still be worthwhile if he could help the study.
When the fevers hit, he had no idea that might be a good sign. Instead, he assumed the treatment was not working. But a few weeks later, he said that his oncologist, Dr. Alison Loren, told him, We cant find any cancer in your bone marrow.
Remembering the moment, Mr. Ludwig paused and said, I got goose bumps just telling you those words.
I feel wonderful, Mr. Ludwig said during a recent interview. I walked 18 holes on the golf course this morning.
Before the study, he was weak, suffered repeated bouts of pneumonia and was wasting away. Now, he is full of energy. He has gained 40 pounds. He and his wife bought an R.V., in which they travel with their grandson and nephew. I feel normal, like I did 10 years before I was diagnosed, Mr. Ludwig said. This clinical trial saved my life.
Dr. Loren said in an interview, I hate to say it in that dramatic way, but I do think it saved his life.
Mr. Ludwig said that Dr. Loren told him and his wife something he considered profound. She said, We dont know how long its going to last. Enjoy every day, Mr. Ludwig recalled.
Thats what weve done ever since.
Posts: 845
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
Ammonites. Giant prehistoric squid/snail predators that could grow as large as a Smartcar....
Ammonites are named after the Egyptian god Ammon, who is often depicted with rams' horns behind each ear.
Female ammonites grew up to 400 percent larger than males, presumably to make room to lay eggs.
Ammonites were predatory, squidlike creatures that lived inside coil-shaped shells. Like other cephalopods, ammonites had sharp, beaklike jaws inside a ring of tentacles that extended from their shells to snare prey such as small fish and crustaceans. Some ammonites grew more than three feet (one meter) acrosspossible snack food for the giant mosasaur Tylosaurus.
Ammonites constantly built new shell as they grew, but only lived in the outer chamber. They scooted through the warm, shallow seas by squirting jets of water from their bodies. A thin, tubelike structure called a siphuncle reached into the interior chambers to pump and siphon air and helped them move through the water.
Ammonites first appeared about 240 million years ago, though they descended from straight-shelled cephalopods called bacrites that date back to the Devonian, about 415 million years ago. Ammonites were prolific breeders, lived in schools, and are among the most abundant fossils found today. They went extinct with the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Scientists use the various shapes and sizes of ammonite shells that appeared and disappeared through the ages to date other fossils.
Fibonacci Sequence
[EDIT: And what's really interesting to me about this 240 million year old snail/squid monster, is that it's another awesome natural occurrence of the Fibonacci sequence. To me, another glimpse of the fascinating math at the root of all life. Another amazing repeatable mathematical pattern evident throughout the chaos of random evolving life. Natural beauty, definable by math and science.]
The shape of the ammonite shell (and the shell of all nautiloids) are aesthetically pleasing because they are one of the natural expressions of the Fibonacci spiral, or golden spiral (also observed in galaxies, the unfurling of fern fiddleheads, the arrangement of leaves around a stem, the fruitlets of a pineapple, the flowering of artichoke, and the arrangement of a pinecone, just to name a few...). A "golden spiral" is easy to construct: 1**2 + 1**2 + . . . + F(n)**2 = F(n) x F(n+1)
The golden spiral is a symbol of beauty and proportional perfection/fit with unlimited room for expansion. The logarithmic proportions of the spiral are consistent throughout, no matter how large the spiral becomes, and the unique spiral can be found throughout the human body and in nature.
The spiral follows a specific mathematical formula: Fn = Fn-1 + Fn-2. Each number in the sequence is the sum of the previous two. If you construct a series of squares with lengths equal to the Fibonacci numbers (1,1,2,3,5, etc) and trace a line through the diagonals of each square, it forms a Fibonacci spiral.
Posts: 37,695
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Scott City KS
Casino cash: $44834
That Fibonacci stuff in nature is profoundly interesting. I've looked at it a little bit while studying markets.
Posts: 40,071
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
Nocturnal Penile Tumescence.... The Science of Morning Wood....
Nocturnal penile tumescence (NPT) is the spontaneous occurrence of an erection of the penis during sleep or when waking up. All men without physiological erectile dysfunction experience this phenomenon, usually three to five times during the night. It typically happens during REM sleep.
The existence and predictability of nocturnal tumescence is used by sexual health practitioners to ascertain whether a given case of erectile dysfunction (E.D.) is psychological or physiological in origin. A patient presenting with E.D. is fitted with an elastic device to wear around his penis during sleep; the device detects changes in girth and relays the information to a computer for later analysis. If nocturnal tumescence is detected, then the E.D. is presumed to be due to a psychosomatic illness such as sexual anxiety; if not, then it is presumed to be due to a physiological cause.
The cause of NPT is not known with certainty. Bancroft (2005) hypothesizes that the noradrenergic neurons of the locus ceruleus are inhibitory to penile erection, and that the cessation of their discharge that occurs during REM sleep may allow testosterone-related excitatory actions to manifest as NPT.
Evidence supporting the possibility that a full bladder can stimulate an erection has existed for some time and is characterized as a 'reflex erection'. The nerves that control a mans ability to have a reflex erection are located in the sacral nerves (S2-S4) of the spinal cord. A full bladder is known to mildly stimulate nerves in the same region. This mild stimulus which during the day is normally suppressed in adult males by competing stimuli and other distractions; during sleep with the absence of such factors could instigate a reflex erection.
The possibility of a full bladder causing an erection, especially during sleep, is perhaps further supported by the beneficial physiological effect of an erection inhibiting urination, thereby helping to avoid nocturnal enuresis.
Posts: 37,695
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
Posts: 37,695
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
Ever seen a spider crab migration?
Stingray is boss...
Posts: 37,695
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: JoCo
Casino cash: $10960
A Fibonacci spiral is not the same as a golden spiral. Close, but not the same. Not sure why the article equates the two.
Posts: 2,543
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
A*Golden spiral is very similar to the Fibonacci spiral but is based on a series of identically proportioned golden rectangles, each having a golden ratio of 1.618 of the length of the long side to that of the short side of the rectangle:
The Fibonacci spiral gets closer and closer to a Golden Spiral as it increases in size because of the ratio of each number in the Fibonacci series to the one before it converges on Phi, 1.618, as the series progresses (e.g., 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8 and 13 produce ratios of 1, 2, 1.5, 1.67, 1.6 and 1.625, respectively)
Fibonacci spirals and Golden spirals appear in nature, but not every spiral in nature is related to Fibonacci numbers or Phi. *Most spirals in nature are equiangular spirals, and Fibonacci and Golden spirals are special cases of the broader class of Equiangular spirals. *An Equiangular spiral itself is a special type of spiral with unique mathematical properties in which the*size of the spiral increases but its shape remains the same with each successive rotation of its curve. *The curve of an equiangular spiral has a constant angle between a line from origin to any point on the curve and the tangent at that point, hence its name. *In nature, equiangular spirals occur simply because they result in the forces that create the spiral are in equilibrium, and are often seen in non-living examples such as spiral arms of galaxies and the spirals of hurricanes. *Fibonacci spirals,*Golden spirals and golden ratio-based spirals generally appear in living organisms.
More info: http://www.goldennumber.net/spirals/
Posts: 37,695
I Lay Wood for a Living
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Who knows?
Casino cash: $39904
Water clouds on Mars:
Posts: 59,547
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
Did you know that bananas are radioactive? They're radioactive enough in fact, their radioactivity has spawned its own unit of measurement of radioactivity. The banana equivalent dose (BED). The source of radioactivity is the Potassium. Potassium is actually a radioactive element. An important and necessary radioactive element that humans need in their diet.
Posts: 37,695
Entropy happens
Join Date: Sep 2005
Casino cash: $29019
Posts: 37,695
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
Linear Mode


text:
Alcohol Service Employee Training Tips
1. Issue a written policy that explains to all managers and employees that your establishment will not sell alcohol to any one who is under 21 years of age. Explain that you are required to obey federal, state and local laws.
2. Provide each employee with a summary of the laws regarding alcohol sales.
3. Require employees to sign an Alcohol Sales and Service Employee Agreement stating that they understand the law regarding alcohol sales to minors and your establishment's policy.
4. Inform your employees that any alcohol sale to minors will result in disciplinary action and penalties.
5. Tell your employees that they must request photo identification from any one buying alcoholic beverage who is not obviously over (30) years of age. Make it clear that your policy is to refuse to sell without proof of age.
6. Teach employees how to read birth dates to determine if a person is 21 or over. Post signs for staff stating "Selling alcohol only to those born on this or before today's date, 19xx."
7. Practice with your employees ways to check ID of customers and how to refuse sales to those under the age of 21.
8. As the law requires, post signs visible to the public stating that it is illegal to sell alcohol to people under the age of 21.
9. Instruct employees on the health and safety risks associated with alcohol use.
10. Provide regular training.
11. Use staff meetings to discuss recent problem situations.
12. Advise employees that you will spot check their compliance and reward employees who show exceptional performance as responsible alcohol beverage sellers.
Last updated Jan 31, 2019


text:
The Last Witch Hunter MovieFull The Last Witch Hunter For Free with duration 106 Min and broadcast on 2015-10-23 and MPAA rating is 239.
- Original Title : The Last Witch Hunter
- Movie title in your country : The Last Witch Hunter
- Year of movie : 2015
- Genres of movie : Fantasy, Action, Adventure,
- Status of movie : Released
- Release date of movie : 2015-10-23
- Companies of movie : Summit Entertainment, Lionsgate, Aperture Entertainment,
- Countries of movie : United States of America,
- Language of movie : English,
- Durationof movie : 106 Min
- Average vote of movie : 5.5
- Youtube ID of movie : c6cyfWbzLxk
- Translation of movie : EN,FR,ES,CS,NL,IT,SV,HU,RU,TR,DE,PT,BG,DA,HE,EL,PL,RO,FI,ZH,FA,AR,KO,HR,
- Actors of movie :
- Vin Diesel ( Kaulder )
- Rose Leslie ( Chloe )
- Michael Caine ( Father Dolan )
- Elijah Wood ( 37th Dolan )
- Olafur Darri Olafsson ( Belial )
- Julie Engelbrecht ( Witch Queen )
- Rena Owen ( Glaeser )
- Lotte Verbeek ( Helena )
- Bex Taylor-Klaus ( Bronwyn )
- Allegra Carpenter ( Fatima )
- Aimee Carrero ( Miranda )
- Isaach De Bankolé ( Schlesinger )
- Armani Jackson ( Armani )
- Samara Lee ( Little Girl )
- Stephanie Bertoni ( Wall Street Witch )
- Inbar Lavi ( Sonia )
- Kurt Angle ( Bodyguard #4 )
The Last Witch Hunter Synopsis:
Watch Streaming The Last Witch Hunter The modern world holds many secrets, but by far the most astounding is that witches still live among us; vicious supernatural creatures intent on unleashing the Black Death upon the world and putting an end to the human race once and for all. Armies of witch hunters have battled this unnatural enemy for centuries, including Kaulder, a valiant warrior who many years ago slayed the all-powerful Witch Queen, decimating her followers in the process. In the moments right before her death, the Queen cursed Kaulder with immortality, forever separating him from his beloved wife and daughter. Today, Kaulder is the last living hunter who has spent his immortal life tracking down rogue witches, all the while yearning for his long-lost family. Movie The Last Witch Hunter Movie HD
! Download free The Last Witch Hunter online movie without downloading. You can watch online movie streaming in HD 106 Min length. Watch streaming movies online free trailer below and also watch full length The Last Witch Hunter Megavideo streaming movie on HD without investigation. You can watch the film with or without downloading here
Director : Breck Eisner, Screenplay : Cory Goodman, Writer : Melisa Wallack, Visual Effects : James Baker, Producer : Bernie Goldmann, Producer : Mark Canton
Yes, now you can Watch Movie The Last Witch Hunter Full Movie Streaming and get the link to The Last Witch Hunter In HD


text:
The requested news item does not exist. Please return to News
SINGAPORE, 2 March 2011 - Residential capital values rose 1.8% q-o-q in 4Q10 across monitored luxury residential markets in Asia. However, price growth has slowed steadily from the 7.4% q-o-q pace recorded in 3Q09, as sales activity cooled after the string of anti-speculative measures implemented in 2010 by various governments. Of the eight featured luxury residential markets, five saw an increase in capital values during the quarter, while capital values remained stable in two cities and declined in Beijing. This compares with the previous quarter when five markets recorded an increase in capital values and the remainder saw stable prices.
Despite the latest round of government measures aimed at curbing speculative demand, luxury residential prices in Hong Kong grew by 6.4% q-o-q in 4Q10, due to continuing rental growth and tight supply. On the other hand, prices in Singapore's luxury prime market remained stable for the second consecutive quarter as buyers remained cautious after recent government tightening measures. In the China Tier I markets, sales activity remained quiet throughout 4Q10 due to greater restrictions on mortgage loans for investors and other policy tightening, while developers had little incentive to lower prices. Capital values of luxury apartments rose marginally by 0.3% q-o-q in Shanghai but fell by 5.4% q-o-q in Beijing.
Luxury residential prices are generally likely to remain stable or see slower growth for 2011 as buyers have become more cautious about further tightening measures by governments. At the same time, downward pressure on prices is likely to be limited, supported by rising rental levels and low holding costs. However, luxury markets in Hong Kong and Singapore should retain some price momentum due to strong end-user demand and with long-term investors continuing to be attracted by the current low holding costs and the potential hedge against inflation.
KK Fung, Managing Director, Jones Lang LaSalle Greater China comments, "Government policy has become progressively tighter in China's Tier 1 cities in an effort to cool the residential markets. It's interesting to see the price trends across Asia Pacific are largely similar in direction to China, if not as dramatic in magnitude. While the Hong Kong government has also been proactive in avoiding an asset bubble by placing more restrictions onto the residential sales market in the last few quarters, the city's luxury residential properties continued to lead capital value growth across Asia Pacific through 2010, suggesting the strong underlying investment demand and market optimism there".
Chris Fossick, Managing Director, Jones Lang LaSalle, Singapore and South East Asia adds, "The Singapore mass residential market increased 12% in 2010 driven by positive sentiment on the back of strong economic performance, population growth and improved affordability as people earn more money and finance costs remain low. The government, I believe, concerned with rising values have introduced measures to keep property price inflation more sustainable and in line with the overall economic growth. However the high end market has been more subdued over the same period with prices increasing 9%. In the rest of South East Asia, market sentiment has improved. In particular economic growth in Indonesia has supported the luxury housing market in Jakarta. Local Indonesian high net worth individuals who traditionally invest in Singapore, are also increasingly buying into the popular downtown lifestyle in their home market".
Reference Charts
Source: Jones Lang LaSalle
Notes: Capital values are on a net lettable area basis Percentage changes are on a local currency basis Luxury residential properties include apartments, condominiums, detached and semi-detached housing located in traditional prime areas
Note: The Index is an average of capital value movements in monitored Asian cities
Nicole Worthington
+65 6494 3641
Dr Jane Murray
+852 2846 5274


text:
The first electric travel guitar I ever played was the Chiquita. Luthier Mark Erlewine and Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top fame designed this guitar in the late 1970's. Despite its small size, it was a joy to play.
The Chiquita comes with a Schaller bridge, modeled in the Bad-Ass wrap-around style, so there was no need for a stop bar. It had only one open DiMarzo humbucking pickup. The neck was bound and the fingerboard was made of rosewood. The six tuners mounted on the offset headstock were also made by Schaller. On the unique body is a single volume control.
The model I played was displayed in a hardshell case.. I later found out it was manufactured by the Samick Musical Instrument Company of Korea and distributed by the Hondo Guitar Company through IMC.
(International Music Company was founded in 1973 by Tommy Moore. Ten years earlier he had traveled to Japan to secure the rights to distribute simple rhythm instruments to the United States school market. He then traveled throughout the Pacific Basin and established relationships and joint ventures to create and sell fretted musical instruments and electronics. These companies are well known, such as Tokai Gakki and Samick. In 1969 he secured worldwide distribution rights for Samick fretted instruments. In 1983 his company was appointed distributor of Akai Electronic Musical Instruments servicing dealers in North America. This company also acquired distribution rights for Charvel/Jackson guitars and opened a plant in Ontario, California.)
In the early 1980's, the Chiquita was selling for just under $300. I also recall a less fancy version with no neck binding that was not as expensive.
Hondo stopped distribution of the Chiquita in 1985.
Mark Erlewine currently manufactures so all Chiquitas in the United States. His own company, Erlewine Guitars, produces and sells them. Erlewine is a custom luthier who builds beautiful guitars for people like Mark Knopfler and Billy Gibbons. His business is in Austin Texas. The custom order electric guitars he builds are exquisite. Though the Chiquita can be found in some music stores, it is more accessible straight from Erlewine. You can see is advertisements in most popular guitar magazines.
The Chiquita is a mere 23 inches from top to bottom; It is an extremely short scale guitar coming in at only 19 inches from nut to saddle. The Chiquita weighs only 4.5 lbs. The short bound neck comes rosewood fingerboard bearing 23 frets. The body is made of solid Honduras mahogany. This guitar uses special strings made for it that can also be purchased through Erlewine guitars. The strings are heavy gauge, as the short scale requires larger diameter strings to maintain tonality. The first string is .013 inches diameter. Some guitarists opt to use regular strings, therefore need to tune up one and a half steps to G to stay in tune. The Schaller tuners that come standard on the Chiquita have 16-1 ratio tuners. A string size chart is displayed on the back of the headstock.
The Chiquita can be purchased with a gig bag or hardshell case, both costing extra. The current US model costs $600-700 US dollars.
The Lazer
As with the Chiquita, it too was originally made by Hondo guitars of Japan through the mid 1980's, but currently manufactured and available through Erlewine Guitars.
The Lazer that Winters plays is a Hondo model.
What makes this guitar unique is that it has a full size neck with 24 frets. The body size, shape and bridge mounted tuners contribute to making this a travel size instrument. The locking tuners are oversized with thumbscrew mechanisms at the distal end and it is known as a Wine-O-Matic bridge.
Regular ball end strings can be used and locked into place on both ends to maintain tonality. The neck travels through the body for added sustain. The rosewood fretboard has white mother of pearl star position markers.
This instrument is longer than the Chiquita, but still less than a meter being only 31 inches from the top to bottom. The scale is 25.5 inches, which is similar to a Stratocaster. This guitar has a single coil pickup in the neck position and a humbucker in the bridge position. There are only two controls; one for volume and one for pickup selection. It weighs in at around six pounds.
They can be found on eBay and through personal ads for between $250-300.
Erlewine Guitars continues to sell high quality hand-made versions of the Lazer and the Chiquita, but they are quite expensive, clocking in at over $600.
The Shorty by Hofner
|Click to enlarge
It came with a full-sized maple, bolt-on neck that had a 24.75 inch rosewood fretboard with 24 frets, one humbucking pickup, chrome hardware and a gig bag. The length of this instrument was 32 inches and the price was considerably less than the Erlewine instruments.
The dot fret markers were made of abalone and medium-jumbo frets are used. The body is basswood. The bridge is a wrap around style that is similar to the BadAss bridge.
This guitar has a volume and tone control. It comes with a single ply pickguard. The instrument has two strap buttons, of which one is placed directly on the neck's heel to offset the weight of the headstock. Recently The Shorty has been reissued. Check out Amazon.com.
Pignose PGG-100
Pignose Industries, the maker of those little battery powered amplifiers, came out with a small guitar a few years ago. This is unique since it comes with a built-in one watt amplifier.
The Pignose PGG-100 guitar has 24.25 inch scale for it's bolt-on maple neck. The 22 fret fingerboard is made of rosewood and has dot markers. The bridge and saddle are adjustable.
The guitar comes with a ¼ inch headphone jack that can be plugged into an amplifer. The only control is a combination potentiometer for volume with a push/pull on/off switch. The control cover is their own design and looks like a pig snout.
On the body, directly below the strings is a speaker with metal grill and a tortoise shell plastic pickguard. It is a handsome looking instrument.
Aria AMG – 10
The AMG-10 has a built-in one watt amplifier, the body is made of alder and the 22 fret, bolt-on neck is made of maple and has a rosewood fingerboard. The neck has a 24 inch scale and joins the body at the 20th fret.
The two controls are a potentiometer for volume and a switch to turn on the built-in single watt amplifier. The hardware is chromed with a fixed Strat-style bridge. The guitar comes with one humbucking pickup.
The Aria comes in Black, Midnight Blue, Pearl White, Candy Apple Red.
The Lapstick
The Lapstick is a short scale guitar compact enough to fit into the pocket of an overcoat. It has a scale length 3/4 of a normal instrument and can be tuned a minor third (G) to a fifth (B) higher than normal.
It is equipped with a 9 volt battery-powered preamp which allows the use of headphones in any situation which requires silent, private practice time. The battery will provide about 50 hours of use.
The preamp has three positions: normal, over-drive and distortion. The guitar sport a ¼ inch headphone and amp jack. The thumbscrew tuners are a unique touch. The volume control is on the body under the strings.
This guitar was designed by Philip Neal and Pepijin De Blecourt and distributed through Torres Engineering of Holland and the UK.
Traveler Guitars
The Escape by Traveler
The Escape comes with a custom Shadow piezo pickup & EQ system that can be played through headphones or an amplifier. All models of Traveler guitar have the tuners in the center of the body and the Escape is no different. The maple neck bears a rosewood fret board with 22 medium frets. The body is carved alder with a natural finish. The guitar weighs a mere 3.75 pounds. The controls are on the upper bout.
The Escape 1 and Escape 2 by Traveler
Currently the Escape comes in two other electric models. The body of the Escape-1 resembles a small one pickup, Les Paul. This series of guitars have one volume and one tone knob. Uniquely there is a built in Pocket-Rocket amplifier, which is turned on and off through a switch near the knobs.
The Speedster by Traveler
In addition to its compact size and portability, the Speedster is built for performance with a high-output dual-rail humbucker pickup, a unique roller-style bridge, and volume and tone controls.
The arm support can be detached for travel, the whole package fits neatly inside a high quality gig bag (included) and is small enough to stow in airline overhead compartments. This weighs in at only 3 pounds.
The Ultra Light by Traveler
It also comes in a nylon string version.
The Traveler Pro Model
This guitar weighs 3.5 pounds and is 28 inches long. It features a single coil pickup and a piezo saddle pickup. This guitar comes with a detachable wooden leg rest. Most features are identical to other Traveler instruments, however this guitar comes with a stethoscope or as Traveler calls it "a stethophone headset to allow private listening. How about that!
The Ministar Castar
This guitar features a maple neck with a 22-fret fingerboard, an adjustable bridge and nut, master volume controls, an on/off switch, three single-coil pickups, die-cast tuners, a tremolo bar, an arm rest rod, extension rod for the strap and a gig bag.
It also has a one-piece construction to allow for maximum tone, sustain, and strength.
This guitar is made from one piece of maple wood, reminds me of the LaBaye 2X 4. The is the only travel guitar to come with a tremolo unit. It features 3 matched pickups, the center one has reversed polarity. The scale is 25.5 inches. There is a single volume and tone control and a 5-way selector switch. The tremolo unit is adjustable. The Castar comes with a gig bag, cord and strap.
The Fernandes Nomad
The body is made of alder, the bolt-on neck is made of maple capped with a 22 fret rosewood fretboard with dot position markers topped with a composite nut. The radius is 14 inches, which is fairly flat.
Fernandes Nomad Bass
The nut is made of composite material. The Nomad bass includes a built-in 10 watt amplifier. The piezo pickup is under the bridge saddle. No humbucker for this baby. There is an on/off switch with LED and a single volume control. It comes in black, pewter or metallic blue.
Both instruments come with a soft case and retail for $299 US. They are powered by a nine volt battery.
The Fernandes Deluxe (discontinued)
The Nomad Deluxe came with the same features as the Nomad, but included a built in drum machine/rhythm trainer that allowed the user to create an infinite loop programmed with differing patterns and tempos. The drum unit came with adjustable volume.
The sound processor came with 25 programmable effects. Ten could be used at the same time. The Deluxe had a built in chromatic tuner allowing for 4 different tuning points.
It had 40 factory preset sounds and 40 user presets to customize your sounds. In addition to the usual output/headphone jack it also came with an input jack for an expression peddle. The Nomad Deluxe had amplifier modeling features and cabinet simulation. Perhaps you could pick one up on eBay.
Soloette Guitars
Wright Guitar Technology owned by luthier Rossco Wright has come up with 6 guitars and 2 bass travel guitars.
The SongBird and The DragonFly Steel String guitars for practicing acoustic and performing electric guitar players. Both instruments are a frame with tuners on the bottom end. A metal frame allows the instrument to rest comfortably on the players leg and gives the illusion of a traditional guitar shape.
The Little Thumper Bass uses nylon string and the Wright saddle pickup. The Soloette Bass has similar features, but it comes with a fretless neck.
The Voyage-Air Travel Guitar
A year or so ago there was a television show for inventors. People would bring their inventions and be judged by four people that had knowledge of patents, marketing and the like. I recall the gentleman that invented the Voyage-Air guitar coming on the show to discuss his most interesting folding guitar. I am not sure what the judges decided, however the company is still in business and the concept, in my opinion is a great idea.
Recently Voyage-Air has come out with two models of electric guitars that can be folded in half and stored in a traveling case that is approved for airline carry-on, called the Transair electric series.
The Belair Limited Edition VE-R1 has a unique shape with Les Paul style acoutrements.
The body is made of alder and has a cutaway. The neck is Canadian maple with a rosewood 20 fret fingerboard and dot mother of pearl position markers. It comes with twin Tonerider pickups. The scale is 24.75 inches. The tuners are 3 on a side and it includes a DuraTrans Semi-Hard Case.
The Telair VE-T1 has the same unique shape as the Belair but the elctronics layout is similar to a Fender Esquire with one single coil in the bridge position.
The Strobel Rambler
The Rambler Travel guitar is a completely portable instrument that breaks down to fit into a briefcase
or computer bag. This instrument was designed by luthier Russ Strobel.
The strings are loaded from the top of the neck.
Dual humbucking pickups provide a full sound and excellent tone.
Separate tone and volume controls provide a wide range of equalization. Intonation and string action is set with a fully adjustable Tune-o-matic bridge. The adjustable nut allows string action to also be adjusted at the top of the neck.
This guitar weighs less than five pounds and with a length of 30 inches Scale length is 24-1/2" with 21 frets.The guitar can be broken down to separate the neck and body. This is accomplished by merely loosening a single thumbwheel on the top of the neck and remove the StringKeeper. Wrap the strings around the body through the StringCatcher, tuck the StringKeeper between the middle tuners.
Finish removing the neck by loosening four thumbwheels.
The Rambler comes in Cherry or Tobacco sunburst.
It is a gorgeous and well made instrument.


text:
During the last few months, Mr. Softie development took a new direction. We put aside the extensive list of new features we want to experiment with to concentrate on making Mr. Softie accessible to a wider audience. The limitations inherent in the original decision to use the Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC), which meant producing a Windows-only application, became increasingly obvious as more people were asking about a OSX compatible version of the software. The idea of running Mr. Softie in a virtual machine like Parallels often lead to blank stares through a thick barrier of entry; it was time to put what we knew aside and leap into cross-platform development.
Enters Qt, a cross-platform application and UI framework that is a peanut butter solution to the hair loss caused by years of MFC use. The idea was simple, stop adding new features for a period of time (as short as possible) and port the code to Qt. It took a bit longer than expected, mostly because of the many Qt features that use different approaches than MFC, and the easily underestimated hours of finicky cross-platform UI tweaking, but we made it to version 1.0b for Windows and OSX.
Needless to say that the trailing 'b' in the version number could be an uppercase at the moment. Most of the features that are present in the last windows-only version of Mr. Softie (v0.9.6.9) made it to this first Qt version. Many features were improved. Arranging text objects forward and back is more flexible than before and can be applied to any type of text objects (i.e. glyph, word, passage) unlike the previous passage-only limitation. Transforming is simpler, no need for a shortcut to rotate objects, handles are available around the selection. There are too many changes to list here.
With every major code transformation comes an infestation of bugs. During the next months we intend to play with Mr. Softie, find those bugs and clean up the application as we release updates up to a stable 1.0 release. Until then, enjoy our experimental typographic text editor.
Download: 1.0b for Windows | 1.0b for OSX
Tags: cross-platform, download, mr. softie, Qt, release


text:
Keep moving.
Don't stop.
Don't make eye contact.
I have felt like Trayvon Martin. Many many times while walking at night, being pulled over by police, being told that I'm not supposed to 'be.' My 'being' in a space has caused questions, concerns, suspicions. In the back of my mind I always wondered if there would be a reckoning. If my 'being' would become so intolerable to someone that they would try to end my existence, rather than engage in a conversation. The only difference between me and Trayvon is that I am still here and he is not. Still, the question lurks around the subconscious when I walk home every night from the subway and a police car slows down alongside me. The squad car slows down. Eyeballs examine my 'being' noticing any signs of anger, insanity, guilt. I continue walking, pretending to be oblivious. In most cases this is the best sign of innocence: by pretending to not notice.
Unlike myself, Trayvon physically noticed the accusation. He noticed the suspicion and dared to walk toward it. Stare at it, as he spoke with his girlfriend over the phone. Curious, as to who could be staring at him so intently he took a step in Zimmerman's direction. Staring directly at George Zimmerman before quickly walking away.
When I am walking in strange or dark surroundings I try to keep it moving. No time to stop. I hear my parents' voice of survival.
You don't know where this person is coming from.
You don't know what they want or what they're trying to get.
They could be trying to get into a fight. They could be trying to rob you. It could be a trap.
Keep it moving.
A few years ago I was headed home from the library. Two figures came out of a building and began pursuing me. From the corner of my eye, I saw that they were two tall football-muscular men in their 20s. They happened to be White. I keep my eyes on the path. They seemed to be trying to catch me.
I flipped up my collar and continued walking briskly. One of the men came alongside me.
Dude, do you have a lighter?
No, I don't smoke.
Stupid nigger.
I continued walking very quickly. This felt like a trap of some sort. I was supposed to react to it. Turn around and get in a fight with two bigger stronger men who seemed worked up about something. I was supposed to turn and scream 'murder' or swing at one of them. I was supposed to react and give them something. I picked up my pace and kept walking. I made sure not to run, but I never made eye contact. The goal was to get home. I was not going to be swayed by a 'word' that was intended to arouse my rage.
The two men eventually trailed off, seeing that I was unwilling to take the bait. Perhaps they found a Mexican, Asian, or another Black man that night. I wasn't going to be 'their one.'
On another occasion a cab driver seemed to go out of his way just so he could spit on my path and give me a murderous look. I was walking down the street carrying my airport luggage.
I could name other incidents of walking while Black: the police slow-downs, pull-overs, suspicious looks. It's all the same because my reaction has to be measured and numb. I pretend not to notice and keep eyes fixed straight ahead. Hands out of pockets and swinging along my side. Maybe I'll start singing. A guilty man wouldn't sing, would he?
More and more the last few years when I find myself WWB, a sad smile comes across my face.After all these years, you're still looking for that sign of suspicion. It's not here. I'm innocent. There is nothing wrong with me. I'm just a Black man out for a walk.


text:
Responsibility Dialogue
The trust of its clients and other stakeholders is essential to the success of a global bank like Credit Suisse. And here, dialogue and transparency are decisive factors. That's why we foster regular dialogue with a wide variety of stakeholders.
Engaging with our Stakeholders
The long-term success of our bank depends on our ability to gain and maintain the trust of our stakeholders.
Our business works on the basis of trust. One of the ways we inspire trust in our stakeholders is by knowing what they expect from us and how their expectations are changing. We therefore regularly engage in a dialogue with clients, shareholders, employees, regulators and NGOs, as well as other groups of stakeholders. We gain an understanding of their needs and interests through discussions and by conducting surveys or participating in events, as well as through our involvement in initiatives, forums and associations. Individual groups of stakeholders have different – and sometimes conflicting – interests and consequently have their own specific expectations of us as a bank. By exchanging our views with these stakeholders, we gain a more detailed understanding of our responsibilities in our core business of banking, as well as our responsibilities toward our employees, society and the environment. At the same time, this dialogue enables us to identify potential issues at an early stage, offer our perspective and help to develop solutions to current challenges wherever possible.
We cultivate an open dialogue with clients, shareholders, investors and analysts to identify their needs and interests, and to provide them with timely and relevant information about our strategy and performance, our company, our investment expertise and our research.
- Annual global survey
- Regular conferences and events for clients
- Relationship Managers
We regularly consult with our clients to help ensure that our products and services meet their needs and expectations. We also share market research and insights on financial issues and social, economic and political topics with clients.
Shareholders, Investors and Analysts
- Investor Relations
- Annual General Meeting
- Quarterly reporting
- Annual report and accounts
- Research
- Conferences, e.g. the annual Asian Investment Conference
We inform shareholders, investors and analysts about our financial and operational performance to support their investment decisions and to help them form an opinion about Credit Suisse. In addition, we organize conferences about topics that are of interest to them, including compensation, global economic developments and investment opportunities. Credit Suisse's Research team makes a contribution to the public debate of key topics through thought leadership publications.
Credit Suisse – in particular the Investor Relations department – provides analysts, investors, the media and other interested parties with relevant, insightful disclosure to enable a comprehensive and accurate assessment of the company's value. Credit Suisse, through its Investor Relations department, also engages with institutional shareholders on corporate governance topics. Specifically they encourage shareholders to execute their voting rights on the Annual General Meeting, and receive important feedback to better inform the Board of Directors which contributes to the overall governance of the bank.
At Credit Suisse, we believe that a sound social environment creates economic stability, which is key to the long-term success of our business. Credit Suisse maintains a direct dialogue with politicians, legislators and regulators, as well as members of the business community, academics and NGO representatives. We take part in discussions about economic, political, environmental and social issues through our involvement in initiatives and associations as well as think-tanks. This provides us with an opportunity to contribute our viewpoint as a global bank and to offer our expertise on a range of topics.
Authorities and Politics
- Public Policy
- Regulatory Affairs
- Regular exchange of information
- Working groups
- Trade and business associations
Government stakeholders and regulators expect Credit Suisse to comply with current financial laws and regulations and to respond appropriately to regulatory developments, including new capital and liquidity requirements and rules governing transparency. Regulators and legislators also expect us to help combat financial market crime. The Public Policy and Regulatory Affairs teams strive to act as reliable dialogue partners and play an active role in associations and governing bodies.
- Corporate Communications
- Media Relations
Media representatives expect Credit Suisse to communicate about its performance, products and services in an open, transparent and timely manner. In addition to inquiring about the financial strength and performance of Credit Suisse, journalists inquire about topics such as compliance, governance issues or compensation. Credit Suisse's Media Relations team strives to act as a reliable partner in this context.
The dialogue with society involves listening to our employees and working closely with national and regional bodies that represent their interests to ensure the needs of our people are taken properly into account. We are also in dialogue with our suppliers to ensure that they are in line with our requirements for responsible social and environmental conduct.
Employees and Trade Unions
- Employee surveys
- Town hall meetings with senior managers
- Credit Suisse Staff Council
- European Works Council
To help ensure that our employees' needs and interests are taken into account, Credit Suisse has, for many years, worked closely with bodies that represent employee interests. We also conduct regular internal surveys to assess our employees' level of engagement. Their feedback provides an important indication of areas with potential for improvement and the corresponding measures that can be taken.
- Ongoing dialogue
- Supplier Code of Conduct
Credit Suisse strives to maintain a fair and professional working relationship with its suppliers. It is important for our business partners to know how our understanding of corporate responsibility affects them. Our Supplier Code of Conduct defines the standards relating to business integrity, labor and social aspects, environmental protection and general business principles that Credit Suisse expects them to meet. To achieve further progress in the areas of social and environmental responsibility, the Supplier Code of Conduct may require suppliers to implement measures that go beyond local laws and regulations.
Credit Suisse participates in a dialogue about various environmental topics. In this context, we share our views and knowledge with various organizations and groups of experts or we provide material for publications. We also maintain an dialogue with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in order to understand their concerns and to identify and to address a range of social and environmental issues. We regularly contribute to the public debate on a wide spectrum of economic, political, social and environmental topics.
NGOs and IGOs
- Sustainability Affairs
- Corporate Citizenship
- Discussions and events
- Participation in global initiatives
Credit Suisse cultivates relations with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in discussions and through our involvement in networks and initiatives, as well as by participating in events. We consider this dialogue to be important since it encourages each party to see key issues from a new perspective and it promotes mutual understanding. Our discussions with NGOs center on topics such as climate change, biodiversity and conservation as well as risks relating to the financing of projects and human rights-related issues. Our involvement in intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) such as the UNEP Finance Initiative and the UN Global Compact helps us to observe internationally recognized principles and to promote a proactive approach to sustainability issues within the company. We also engage in long-term partnerships with the Asian Development Bank and in long-term partnerships in the areas of microfinance and education.
Local Communities
- Corporate Citizenship
- Discussions and debates
- Support for employees who hold a public office
- Employee volunteering
We cultivate constructive relationships with local organizations and institutions and support charitable projects through financial contributions, employee volunteering and expertise sharing. We also consider it part of our social responsibility to support the "militia" system of politics in Switzerland and the work of its political parties in performing functions of state by enabling our employees in Switzerland to hold a public office alongside their regular position at the bank. To promote inclusive growth, we work with partner organizations to make a targeted contribution to economic and social development in the regions in which we operate.
Contributing Expertise
We regularly seek direct contact with stakeholders and contribute our views and experience to the public debate.
Our experience as a global bank has given us wide-ranging expertise in many areas. Our day-to-day work and contacts with society mean that we are constantly building on this expertise. In return, we share this expertise with the society at large. One opportunity to do so is at national and international conferences, where we confer with leading figures from all disciplines and industries, and opinion leaders from the worlds of business, politics, science and society.
In 2013, Credit Suisse was represented at various important international events.
World Economic Forum
Credit Suisse has been a member of the WEF for more than two decades and a strategic partner since 2006. At the annual meeting in 2013, Credit Suisse hosted various events on topics such as financial stability and monetary policy, as well as entrepreneurship and women's leadership.
Asian Investment Conference (AIC)
The AIC is now regarded as one of the most important investor conferences in Asia Pacific, attracting around 2,000 business leaders, academics, politicians and regulators, as well as institutional and high-net-worth investors. The conference enables the participants to meet with experts to discuss global economic developments, to increase their knowledge about investment opportunities in Asia Pacific and to attend presentations by leading listed companies.
Lifefair Forum
Credit Suisse has hosted the Lifefair forum event series for three years. This series of Zurich-based events about sustainability provides a platform to address questions and explore different solutions to promote a more sustainable approach to business. The topics discussed in 2013 include the green economy, energy transition, sustainable investing and ways of securing competitive advantages through sustainable business approaches.
Networks, Initiatives and Working Groups
Credit Suisse takes part in international working groups and initiatives. We promote the exchange of corporate responsibility-related knowledge and experience with other organizations, institutions and experts.
Credit Suisse is currently involved in the following committees and initiatives:
- Energy Model of the Canton of Zurich and Switzerland
- Equator Principles
- Oebu – Swiss Business Council for Sustainable Development
- Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI)
- Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)
- UN Global Compact
- United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiativ (UNEP FI)
- Climate Bonds Initiative
- Green Bond Principles
Contributions to the Public Debate
Credit Suisse's publications regularly include analyses of important current affairs.
Our publications are an important component of Credit Suisse's dialogue with its various stakeholders. We use a range of media and different formats to satisfy the information requirements and preferences of our readers. Our offerings are targeted primarily at clients and investors but are also used by the media and academics, thus benefiting a broad audience.


text:
Accessibility tools
Service tools
Language selector
Navigation path
Left navigation
Additional tools
European Commission
Brussels, 1 October 2012
FAQ: Food: EU adopts list of approved flavouring substances
What are flavourings and what are they used for?
Flavourings are not intended to be consumed as stand-alone products but rather are products added to food in order to impart or modify odour and/or taste of food. Flavourings are normally used to give taste to food and have a long history of safe use in a wide variety of foods, such as confectionery, soft drinks, cereals, cakes and yoghurts. They are used in small amounts so that consumer exposure is relatively low.
The legislation divides flavourings into six different categories:
What flavourings are authorised in food?
Flavourings may be derived from a food or non-food source. The general approach is that if a flavouring is derived from food, it does not require an evaluation and approval. If a flavouring is derived from a non-food source, it would require an evaluation and approval. However, all flavouring substances, whether naturally-occurring or not, smoke flavourings and other flavourings must be evaluated and authorised.
What are the changes introduced by the new rules on flavourings?
The new legislation provides for a list of flavouring substances that may be used in food in the European Union. All flavouring substances not in the list will be prohibited after a phasing out period.
The legislation also allows flavouring substances for which the evaluation still has to be completed to remain on the market until the evaluation and authorisation processes have been finalised.
It also provides time for applicants to submit applications on flavourings other than flavouring substances which have to be evaluated and authorised in accordance with the new rules in the framework regulation.
Are flavouring substances safe?
The safety of around 2100 flavouring substances that will be authorised has been assessed by the Scientific Committee on Food (SCF), the Council of Europe (CoE), the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) and/or the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
Around 400 flavouring substances which are not authorised because the evaluation by EFSA has not been finalised may remain on the market until the evaluation and approval process are finalised. Many of these substances have been used for long time and have already been evaluated safe by other scientific bodies than EFSA. However, the final view of EFSA is still required. A total of around 2800 flavourings have been on the EU market, of which 2100 have undergone the evaluation and approximately 400 flavourings substances will conclude the approval process by end 2015.
How is the safety of flavouring substances evaluated?
EFSA assesses the safety of the flavourings substances. Flavouring substances are evaluated based on a dossier, usually provided by an applicant (normally the producer). Flavouring substances are allocated to chemical groups with common chemical structure. EFSA adopts opinions on each chemical group, known as flavouring group evaluations. To assess the safety of flavourings substances, EFSA scientists look at intake levels, absorption, metabolism and toxicity of individual substances within the group. Where EFSA identifies data gaps – for instance on toxicity or exposure – it notifies the need for further data to the applicant and to the European Commission. In the course of its work, EFSA asked manufacturers to provide further data on around 400 flavouring substances. EFSA will re-assess those substances once the requested data are received. The same approach has been used by other scientific bodies.
What are the conditions to authorise flavouring substances?
A flavouring substance may only be authorised if its use meets the following conditions:
When authorising flavourings other relevant factors may also be considered. These could include amongst others ethical, traditional or environmental factors.
Can any substance be used as flavouring substance?
Only flavouring substances that are listed in the EU legislation can be added to food. Most of the flavouring substances may be used in flavoured foods in accordance with good manufacturing practice.
For certain flavouring substances which may be used in food for other purposes than flavouring, a use level is laid down which refers to their use as a flavouring substance. These substances are caffeine (FL 16.016), theobromine (FL 16.032), neohesperidin dihydrocalcone (FL 16.061) and rebaudioside A (FL 16.113).
In addition, for certain flavouring substances specific conditions of use are laid down to follow the scientific advice that recommends restrictions of use, for example for d-camphor (FL 07.215), three quinine salts (FL 14.011, FL 14.152 and FL 14.155) and glycyrrhizic acid (FL 16.012) and its ammoniated form (FL 16.060).
What is an FL-number?
When EFSA evaluates flavouring substances, it allocates them a unique identification number called an FL-number. FL comes from the word "FLAVIS" which means the EU flavouring information system. An FL-number is not used for labelling purposes.
Is there a list of authorised flavouring substances?
The flavouring substances that are authorised in food and their conditions of use are listed in Part A of Annex I of Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008 on flavourings. Only flavouring substances that are in that list are authorised under specific conditions.
The Commission's flavourings database will be available on the internet once the list is adopted. The EU list of authorised flavourings substances will be adopted on 1 October 2012 and published the following day.
Through this database the consumers and business operators can find out what flavouring substances are authorised and which substances may remain on the European Union market.
When does the Commission authorise flavourings other than flavouring substances?
The first EU list of flavourings substances will form the first part of Annex I of Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008. Once the list is in application, only those flavouring substances which are in the list may be used in or on food in the EU. In the future, this list will also include other flavourings for which evaluation and authorisation are required. To this effect, a transitional period will be set for the flavourings currently placed on the market so that interested parties will have time to submit applications for evaluation and authorisation to the Commission.
What is the procedure for the authorisation of flavourings?
The authorisation procedure for flavourings is laid down in Regulation (EC) No 1331/2008.
A flavouring is usually authorised following an application to the European Commission by an interested party such as the producer or the use of the flavouring. For new flavourings, the Commission will request EFSA to assess the safety of the substance. After EFSA has given its opinion (within nine months following the request), the Commission, together with Member States flavourings experts will consider the authorisation request.
If considered appropriate, the Commission will prepare a proposal for possible authorisation of the flavouring and present it for vote at the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (SCoFCAH) which is comprised of Member State competent authorities. If SCoFCAH supports the proposal, it will be presented to the Council and the European Parliament for opinion. They can still reject it in case they consider that the authorisation does not comply with the conditions of use set out in the EU legislation. This authorisation procedure may take up to a total of 18 months.
How is the consumer informed about the use of flavourings?
Flavourings in food are labelled according the rules set out in Directive 2000/13/EC. In general, if ingredient labelling is required, flavourings may be labelled under category name flavourings or using the specific name, such as vanillin. However, caffeine and quinine used as flavourings must always be labelled with the specific name. A new requirement to label smoke flavourings was also introduced, but only in the case where the smoke flavouring imparts a smoky taste to the food.
To complement these rules on labelling, Regulation 1334/2008 sets out the specific requirements for use of the term "natural". These apply when a flavouring substance or a flavouring preparation is used in food and the food business operator wishes to label these as natural flavourings. The general principle is that when labelling a flavouring as natural, the source of the flavouring should be revealed, for example "natural strawberry flavouring".
What happens if a flavouring substance is found to be on the EU market which is not authorised?
The enforcement authorities of the concerned Member State would have to ensure that food containing the unauthorised flavouring substance is withdrawn from the market. The concerned Member State has a possibility to inform the Commission and other Member States on the substance in question through the Rapid Alert System (RASFF).
Side Bar


text:
The changing times/
A difficult economy means an increasing number of companies are outsourcing as it is hard to justify a full-time IT technician, when even an hour of time not being spent on productive ends can become costly. The truth is, employees in all industries have moments of free-time that occur when on the clock. Outsourcing your IT-needs can alleviate that, after all, you only pay outsourced personnel when they are working. This is why outsourcing server support or VoIP technical support, or network/desktop support can help businesses cut down on expenses.
This is mainly because production varies. A full production website, a complex architecture with disparate systems, databases, operating systems, small business telephone systems, interconnections of all sorts - these were built by your people and are now being run by your people; indeed, you cannot outsource that tangled mess. Production support technicians have become rarities, not only so that their environment can be run more efficiently by outsourced personnel with a variety of in-depth knowledge, but because companies have closed down.
The trend shows that new outsource companies are employing old techs. Before considering to let go of vast human resources expense, outsource it, pay as you go instead. Pay for what you use, don't pay the OASI fees, don't match, don't spend so that your environment is covered by a few sets of eyes that have always watched your servers. They will find work at an MSP, you will have your environment viewed by a wider knowledgeable staff, and your old IT consulting small business techs might just be among them. Your environment will be better kept and cheaper to run. Production support is a hard call to outsource until you've meet some of the folks that are used to watching multiple complex production heterogeneous environments.
It is critical to keep your backups complete, ensuring they restore, and watching the full life cycle of your business so as to capture all critical data. In your company, this was done in its natural way before, by the IT folks that practically live there. They are intimately familiar with what you have and what your needs are. These data recovery service experts can tell you what is coming before it comes.
In the past, general wisdom held that outsourcing your production environment was crossing the line; large corporations across the US have had bean counters who have done the math for ages and concluded that when it is more than a staff of three it should be in-house. That was before the available outsource resources were so highly skilled. It is a new day, it is a new world, and the high-end resources available today are not in the Fortune 500 companies, either those companies have failed, or they have let them go, they are all working for your local technical support managed service outsourcing company. For additional information, visit www.sebasystems.com to learn more.
About Seba Systems
Headquartered in Glendale, California, Seba Systems is a leading information technology services provider and staffing provider for small and medium-size business. Seba Systems provides custom IT Support solutions, at affordable technical support and consulting services. We work in partnership with clients to interpret business strategy into the accurate IT plan. This procedure permits our computer technical support team to meet the IT needs with an excellent match from network safety and IT consulting, IT outsourcing and Virtualization and SAN Storage Consulting.
Visit http://www.sebasystems.com to learn about company


text:
West Virginia
For a small state, the West Virginia Archives have a lot of online material. It's all somewhat chaotically arranged, but still, it's Almost Heaven...
There are materials here for everyone -- historians, teachers, collectors, scholars, students. But for family history researchers, especially, the Mountain State's digital archives are the motherlode.
The West Virginia Archives and History homepage gives a bit of an overview of what's available, but all too typically, makes it hard to distinguish online and offline content. Their collection is offered up under various headings like the History Center, Genealogy Center, Daily Trivia, On-Line Exhibits, and the ever-popular Records Management and Preservation Board.
A few standouts:
History Center arranges materials by topic, covering major WV history, events and themes (but oddly enough, missing anything about Coal or Mining!):
Take particular note of the link to Databases as these provide some powerful look-up capabilities for many of West Virginia's archives, such as:
Speaking of databases, there is a lot of lookup material for family history research:
There is also a series of On-Line Museum Exhibits, which, at the time of this writing, include
Oddly, there's a separate, but largely overlapping, list of online history exhibits as well.
All in all, a wonderful and diverse resource.
More historical archives and research materials can be found at these excellent resources: