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Christmas Eve 2016
Christmas Eve is always spent with my family. I sure do love how it is ALWAYS a Mexican Fiesta. Well Arizona style, where my mom grew up. Not really true Mexican style. Maybe one of my brothers will marry a Latin girl that can really show us how to have a Fiesta? And make the cutest babies alive. Also one day I want to see my mom in a full mumu.
UNTIL THEN! We had a fun time. Poor Santa (my Dad) was sick so tried to stay away from everyone best he could. We did the nativity theatre spot. Ate tamales. This time we hosted it in a church to make everyone fit. I missed having it in a home and some people were in sour moods. So I think we need a redo on the fiesta.
BUT we did get to see baby Livia, who is ADORED by all five of us. Seriously whenever she is feeling down. She just needs to book it to our house where she is treated like a complete queen.
I mean look at her holding my hand during the movies. I melt.
Oh and I got a karaoke machine. I will get my parents back one day by getting my Dad a very loud tool. I kid, it is a lot of fun, and the girls use it tons.


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About Black Phoebe on wiki
Bird D´Pot
Great sighting and photos. I have not seen this Phoebe, I hope to add it to my list someday. I wish you all the best in 2013, Happy New Years!SvaraRadera
Excellent shots!SvaraRadera
Did I ever tell you Buddy and I have made 4 trips to Costa Rica to the Pacific side. Stayed at a place called Tisquita Jungle Lodge...a wonderful birding paradise and a favorite place for the British birders to visit. If we could, we would move there tomorrow. These shots are so pretty. What a sweet little bird. Love the name....Black Phoebe. Here's wishing you happiness and good health in 2013. I have been out for 3 weeks with iron deficiency anemia, but am on the mend finally. Have missed you and your posts these past weeks. genieSvaraRadera
Beautiful!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.SvaraRadera
Gorgeous lighting in these images this week.SvaraRadera
thanks everyone.SvaraRadera
I love the shot and the bird!! Fantastic job!!SvaraRadera
I love comments so please write something. I usually responds to everyone on their own blogs. But nowadays I often find it impossible to comment on many blogs or on Google+. Often the word verifications is unreadable. And after three times I give up. Other times the systems seems to think I am a spammer. Lots of bloggers loose comments that way. :( So, if you don´t see me comment on your blog that is the reason.

subset: commoncrawl


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SWABI: The students of Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology are participating in the Shell Eco-Marathon Asia, 2017
It is a challenge for students across Asia to design, build and test vehicle that travels farthest on a liter of fuel.The vehicles are highly specialized and optimized for the event and are not intended for everyday use for now. The design represents what can be achieved with current technology and offers a glimpse into the future of car architecture based on minimal environmental impact in a world with reduced oil reserves.
Over 100 teams from around Asia will be taking part in this mega event, which will be held in Singapore from March 16th to 19th2017.
The students from Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute has been participating in the event since 2009. Including all the past achievements, in 2014, the team astonished the audience finishing an overall 6th position in Asia while participating in the Prototype Battery Electric category in Manila Philippines. The car produced a mileage of 205.6km/kWh falling short by only 57.8km/kWh from the 1st place. This year Team Toyota Hammerhead Arc will uphold the legacy of its predecessor's form GIKI.
Faray Majid, the team captain, explained how are they going to the competition. He said, "We are really proud to have the exclusive opportunity to represent our University and our beloved Pakistan on international grounds. For the upcoming contest, we have improved our design and efficiency, keeping in mind the tough competition."
The team consists of many talented and hardworking engineers from different faculties. Although the team has an advisory panel of faculty members but research, design, manufacturing, testing, developing, marketing, management, and finances are managed by the students.
Of so many members of Team HammerHead proudly standing around their car in their lab, only eight would be going to Singapore. As for the car, it will be packed up and sent to the event location before the event "But not before we can tune its engine to perfection and run our tests on it to ensure a smooth fuel-efficient run during the competition," says Waleed Hafeez, the team member, and the chief mechanical engineer.
Among the other Gikians and fellow team members, the team advisor Professor Taqi Cheema is also buoyant for the team's future accomplishments in the competition. He guided the students in every aspect for the improvement of the vehicle. He said, "We have high expectations from our students that they will stand as the pioneering team from Pakistan for this global initiative.It is not just an educational platform that encourages innovation but also reinforces conservation and encourages the development of leading technology for greater energy efficiency".
Team Toyota HammerHead will be representing Pakistan in Shell Eco Marathon Asia 2017 in March this year.
News Reference: http://www.giki.edu.pk/


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J.B. Pritzker, the Democratic candidate for governor, and Juliana Stratton, his running mate, made a trip Wednesday to social services agency Cornerstone Services, located at 777 Joyce Road in Joliet, where they met with staff members and clients.
"People who work here, who do such amazing work, are underpaid, and they haven't seen a pay increase for too many years now," Pritzker said.
He said these agencies have long waiting lists filled with people who need help.
"Seeing it, talking to the clients, listening to the staff here helps us actualize what the challenges are," Pritzker said.
Stratton said visits like this are an opportunity to see damage done by Gov. Bruce Rauner.
"Under Bruce Rauner, many of those [health] facilities closed or diminished significantly because he was unwilling to fund them," Pritzker said.


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Barbara Bach (born August 27, 1947) is an American actress and model, best-known as the Bond girl from the James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). She is married to musician Ringo Starr, former drummer of The Beatles.
Bach was born Barbara Goldbach in Queens, New York, the daughter of Marjorie and Howard Goldbach, a policeman. She was the oldest of five children. Her father was Austrian Jewish and her mother was Irish Catholic, and she attended a Catholic high school, Dominican Commercial in Jamaica, N.Y.[1] Bach left school at sixteen to become a model, quickly rising to the ranks of top models.
Bach met [Italian] businessman Augusto Gregorini [on a flight to Rome] in 1966. They were married in 1968 and moved to Italy where they had a daughter, singer-songwriter Francesca Gregorini (born August 7, 1968) and a son Gianni (born in 1972).
In 1971, Bach co-starred with two other Bond girls, Claudine Auger and Barbara Bouchet in the mystery La Tarantola dal ventre nero giallo and had small roles in other Italian films.
In 1975, Bach separated from her first husband Augusto Gregorini and moved back to the United States with her two children. In 1977, her role as Anya Amasova in The Spy Who Loved Me gained her recognition as an international sex symbol and the following year she appeared in the movie Force 10 from Navarone. Bach has 28 films to her credit, although she has not worked as an actress since the mid-1980s.
Bach met Ringo Starr on the set of the film Caveman in February, 1980, and they were married on April 27, 1981, a few weeks after the film's release. Bach in recent years has accompanied Starr on his tours. Bach has appeared on some of Ringo's music videos, and played on some of his tracks.
Bach holds a Master's Degree (UCLA, 1993) in psychology. She started the Self Help Addiction Recovery Program (S.H.A.R.P.) with the help of Patti Boyd, Harrison and Clapton. Bach and Starr created 'The Lotus Foundation', a charity with many sub-charites.
Barbara Bach
Click the picture to start download


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Leadership Development
On the basis of success and failure patterns of leaders in the corporate world we have identified leadership competency clusters in the areas of Leading performance,Emotional intelligence,leading technology and communicationf.These competencies are enhanced through a competency development processwhich catalyzes application as well as experiential learning.
Innovation Systems Consulting has made a breakthrough in Leadership Development through leadership coaching.
Leadership coaching has been successfully executed for director as well as manager levels.personnel.
Focus areas for Leadership Coaching


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The Divide Length tool is used to divide a curve into segments of a predetermined length. The C variable is the curve that you are wanting to divide and the L variable is the length of each division (determined by a slider). P exports the coordinates of each division point, which I used to draw a line to an arbitrary point that I placed.
Curve/Division/Divide Length
Posted by 02 Brad Callahan on February 6, 2012


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At 01:24 25/02/97 -0800, firstname.lastname@example.com wrote: >CSS1 Features Not Supported: > - In-line styles (STYLE attribute) not supported > - CLASS as selectors: use of CLASS kept yielding JavaScript > errors (??) The problem is rtelated with the text/css MIME type as far as investigated (thanks to Dr Marcus Hennecke in the latex2html mailing list who checked this carefully). Communicator ignores the text/css type when transmitted by the server and then tries to interpret external style sheets with its JSS thing (I don't want to go into this and don't want to know what this is...). The only way to avoid such errors is by declaring external style sheets with a forced type to "text/css". <link rel="styleshhet" type="text/css" href="my.nice.style.sheet.css"> Of course, I refuse to do this with all my CSS'ed documents. Netscape has to fix this. -- Christian Perrier Office National d'Etudes et Recherches Aerospatiales Chatillon, France <URL:http://www.onera.fr/>Received on Wednesday, 5 March 1997 05:40:38 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Monday, 2 May 2016 14:26:42 UTC


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An accident is not the kind of things that many people plan on but truth is it does happen and the accident takes place, there will loss that will take place in one way or the other. Whenever a loos in incurred, what follows next is on the seeking of compensation that most people tend to use legal approval to accomplish this effect. If that is your option as well, it is important that you seek the assistance of an injury lawyer who will help you in your defense and also in winning the compensation forms. Let's look at some of the reasons why having an DeSalvo Law injury attorney is important.
You are seeking legal approach in order for you to be able to win your compensation back. What not many do not know is when it comes to law, there are a lot of things that need to be put into consideration and winning of the case is not that easy as one might thought it is. You need to have some of the basic knowledge on court representation and since it will take you some time to learn the basics, hiring an injury attorney who is qualified to handle such cases is one way of guaranteeing you that you will the case as they will apply their knowledge and experience in defending you.
Insurance Company
Coming into agreement with an insurance company can be a good way of giving you future income source but a challenge and insurance companies is compensating you on your loss can be quite hard. You will come across of people complaining that their compensation is taking too long or others complaining that the insurance company is refusing with their compensation. Having an injury attorney to your advantage, they will be effective in speeding up the payment process that the insurance company is delaying with or even help you reclaim money that you invested with the insurance company. Your attorney will also deal with a workers comp case manager and ensure that you get the right amount you deserve.
To win any court case especially since compensation cases might involve significant amount of cash, one has to have accurate evidence that they will use it to their advantage. Collecting of evidence requires law basics as it will guide you on how to go about it but since you do not have the law basics, having an injury lawyer to your possession, you can be sure that winning the case count be that hard for you as they will help in the research and collection of evidence.
More here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLQ8I1W1gR8.


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The School of Public Health of the University of the Western Cape, South Africa equips health professionals with the knowledge and skills to contribute to transforming the health and welfare sectors in developing countries. Health professionals can study while they work, and gain credits incrementally towards a Master in Public Health or PG Diploma in Public Health. These flexible, modular Programmes use text-based learning modules and some e-learning opportunities as its learning media, with optional contact sessions in Cape Town in February/March and June/July every year.
Please view Programme Handbook 2017 for more information.


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Your shopping cart is empty!
Music Centre Gosford is a full line music store located on the beautiful Central Coast of NSW, established in 1998 the store remains family owned & fiercely independent while holding one of the largest stock ranges in NSW.
Our pricing means we are serious about looking after our customers and with our price match policy you will never pay a dollar more than the best on offer.
We hope you enjoy your visit to our site and if your passing by please drop into our store and say hello.
Shop 4 / 39 Central Coast Hwy
West Gosford NSW
Phone: 02 4325 4900
Opening Hours:
Monday-Friday: 9am-5:30pm
Saturday: 9am-4pm


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DEGIRO just updated a few things about the cash you hold in your account.
Since Netherlands investment firms are not permitted to hold cash, Degiro invest the cash from your account in a money market fund. There is a separate money market fund for each currency that you can hold with Degiro. Money market funds are principally investing in government bonds, with very high quality. However, the interest rates are very low and even negative for many European countries. Therefore, some money market funds, such as the EUR or CHF cash funds, have a negative interest rate.
Until now, DEGIRO was compensating for the negative interest rate, as well as the fund management fee (0.09%), directly into the fund. Due to a new legislation in 2018, this is not possible anymore. However, it will still compensate you by reimbursing you this money. So you'll see this compensation has a credit on your account. In the case of positive interest rate, nothing will change, your cash fund will show this. In the end, there won't be any change in returns. It is only a change on how the compensation is made to your account.
Linked to this, you'll also positions for your foreign currencies in the portfolio instead of seeing them only in your Cash Fund Overview. And they will improve these views to show more information related to currency exchange.
For me, this won't change a lot since I don't hold foreign currencies in DEGIRO. Moreover, until now I only held CHF for a very short time (less than a day) before I used it. Maybe this will change in the future. But I don't think I will store money in my broker account any time soon.
I'm glad they are very transparent about this new information. I'm also glad they are compensating for the negative interest rates. Even if they may not do it forever.
What do you think about this update ?
If you want some information about DEGIRO, you can read my extensive review of DEGIRO. If you want more information, you can also consult the official Cash fund information from DEGIRO.


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Troy Lum has been named EVP, international production at Entertainment One. He has been elevated from managing director, Asia Pacific at the independent studio.
As Lum starts in the newly-created role, Sandie Don will step up to managing director, Australia and New Zealand, at eOne. She will oversee eOne's film activity in the territories and report to Alex Hamilton, co-president, international film.
Lum will source content from international markets, reporting to Lara Thompson, EVP, production and acquisition. He is currently working on sci-fi horror movie "Necromancer" and developing a biopic of photo journalist Lee Miller, starring Kate Winslet.


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Thu, 8 March 2018
Benny Hinn, Paula White, Donald Trump and Rome
Connecting the dots proves the existence of both the Devil's Simulation and the Biblical "Whore of Babylon". The history of "religion", more specifically, Christianity, is powerful, surprising and even shocking. "Shocking" because so much of it has been erased by a hidden hand. Biblical Christianity…Read More


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The base of a triangle is 6cm. The height of the triangle is 10cm. What is the area of the triangle?
To solve this problem, we must understand what the formula is for the area of a triangle. The formula for the area of a triangle is Area = (b x h) / 2, where b is the base and h is the height. We plug in the information that we are given in the problem. We will have Area = ( 6 x 10) / 2. Order of operations tells us that we must do the operation inside of the parenthesis. We will now have Area = 60 / 2. Now we will divide to give us 30. The area of the triangle is 30cm
Karen has 9 apples. John has 6 apples. Karen gave John 3 apples. How many apples does Karen have now? How many apples does John have now?
First we look at what we are doing. Karen is giving John 3 apples. Karen originally started out with 9 apples. If we take away 3 apples from 9 apples, we are left with 6 apples. Therefore, to answer our first question, Karen has 6 apples. To answer the second question, we must add 3 apples to the amount of apples that John has. John started out with 6 apples. If we add 6 + 3, we get 9 apples. John now has 9 apples.
Kelly spent $42 for shoes. This was $14 dollars less than twice what she spend for a pair of jeans. How much were the jeans?
The way that we would solve this problem is simple. First we will put all of the information we have into an equation. We will use this equation: 2x - 14 = 42. 2x represents that the shoes were twice the price of the jeans. We then look at the key word of the problem, "less than." This means that we are going to do the subtraction operation in the problem. So we will subtract 14. 42 is the price of the of the shoes. At this point, we will start to solve the equation. The first move we will make is moving the 14 to the other side of the equal sign. We will do this by a technique called "zero pair." We have to do the opposite operation of what the equation is doing. What you do to one side of the equation, you must do to the other. So our equation will look like this: 2x - 14 + 14 = 42 + 14 Now we will clean up our mess by canceling out the - 14 + 14 on the left side and adding 14 to 42 to have this equation. 2x = 56 Now, to get x by itself, we will divide both sides by 2. Remember, what you do to one side, you must do to the other. When we divide by 2 we are left with this: x = 28 28 is our answer and it represents how much the jeans cost in our problem. To check our answer, we can plug 28 back into the equation to make sure that both sides of the of the equation are equal 2(28) - 14 = 42 56 - 14 = 42 42 = 42


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Sharing Your Faith at Work - Special Guest: David Lermy
Special Guest Blogger: David LermyAbout the Author | David Lermy
David is an ordained minister, public relations specialist, and freelancer writer. As an avid reader, he is rarely without a book close by and loves sharing about what he's reading. You can learn more about David and check out some of his other posts and book reviews at http://www.leadinghappy.com.
Typically, sharing faith at work has been seen in two diametric opposites. Either it's the incredibly passionate religious zealot others run and hide from or the lazy, religious hipster who finds anything other than prayer and contemplation beneath him.
I am pretty sure through my journey as a Christian I have been in both groups. Obviously, this is a gross exaggeration because there are so many nuances in-between. But you get the point.
For us, we want to look at productive and healthy ways to share faith at work – that place we spend 40 plus hours a week or more. Many separate out their life as work, family, and recreation. Yet, when added up, we spend a huge amount of time at work around the same people for months and years on end.
When I realized this, I found that my work relationships and contacts were much deeper than I first realized. There was time created influence there that I had not tapped into for the kingdom of God.
So I came up with the acronym W.O.R.K. to help me and later others become more gospel-oriented at work.
W – Work Diligently
I recall my first job as a young teen. I was 13 years old and volunteering for a local hospital. I remember sitting back and reading or goofing off with other volunteers while the "paid guys" did the work. I will never forget what my direct report said to me.
"David, I know your parents, and I know you are a Christian. You setting around being lazy makes you look bad. It makes us Christians look bad. We should be the hardest workers. We serve longer and with more care than others should!"
Rudy, the chief of security at the hospital, knew my parents well as he and my dad worked around each other for over 20 years. His words affected me. That summer ended up being awarded the hardest worker merit for us "candy striper volunteers." When I gave the thank you speech, I was able to thank Rudy, and I was also able to speak about my faith in Christ to the hospital employees present.
The writer of Proverbs provides us some insight into the value of hard work:
In other words, hard work is what leads to promotion, to more freedom in your work-life balance. Working hard allows you to move up the ladder and the further up you go the more platform and influence you hold. Work hard, gain respect, and become the leader God desires you to become.
O – Opportunity Wise
As I moved up the leadership ladder, I found I had more time and space to influence people. So I began to pray that God would open my eyes to opportunities to share my faith.
I wanted my mind to alert to when those I worked for, alongside of, and especially above to know I was here for them. Not just as a colleague but as a caring friend. I prayed I would not be opportunity blind, an idea I first heard of from pastor and author, Mark Batterson. I was willing and I was ready!
Be ready to answer those who need hope. I knew I needed to focus on making Jesus real to people with real work, family, and life issues. I was learning to be a pastor in a company, which can be trickier than in a church. New mission; new methods!
R – Reinforce Values
Every work culture has values. Most of the time, they are plastered all over walls, business cards, and their webpage. Nevertheless, having values printed doesn't mean the values are imbedded and lived out.
One thing I have done for years is to learn the values of the company or church I was working with and then to fold those values into how I worked and lived. This has never let me down.
Plus, values are something that Christians are taught to take to heart, think on, and live out. Values shape and mold us. As above, Rudy instilled in me the Christian value of hard work and servanthood. Further, Paul teaches that they are worthy of praise!
For example, the current company I am with values health, wellness, and vitality. Many of the employees can be seen multiple times a day walking around the property. They walk for health benefits, but walking with others builds comradery. I've been able to share my faith at various times walking around with co-workers. Embracing the values of the company may allow you unique ways to share with others.
K – Kindness Matters
Finally, kindness matter isn't simply a nicety, but the way we should approach anything we value. When you value someone you care for them. You are willing to put up with some junk to stay in relationship with them. You correct them when they are off the path.
The author of Ephesians explains,
The same is true for us. We must first show we care for others before we can hope to share Christ with them. Think of it like this. If I am a jerk for a boss or a really incompetent leader, and then I go to others and share my faith, how much credit would I hold? Sure, the gospel has intrinsic value and worth in and of itself, but in today's culture, the messenger matters. If you desire to carry the message of Jesus in the workplace, kindness must come naturally.
So to conclude, sharing the gospel at W.O.R.K. can be a stressful endeavor only because we try to do so in ways that don't feel natural. Applying what we have discussed here can help you find a more natural fit to sharing with those you work with and lead.
Go ahead. Try it. You won't regret it!
Your Christian faith is becoming NSFW. How can you talk faith when HR tells you to keep quiet?
*All verses are from the New Living Translation.


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(from Tokyo Time Out)
by Blake More
"I love the development of our music. It grows. That's why every day people come forward with new songs.
Music goes on forever."¾ Bob Marley
More prophetic words from the man who's Rastafari-induced, one love philosophy has outlived everything from terminal brain cancer to the decade of greed and influenced everyone from the Clash to the government of Zimbabwe. And once again, Bob Marley's reggae music is swaying world culture. This time in young Japan, where the red, green and gold spotlight is blazing upon a generation hungry for "the words of the Rastaman say," as the skeptical wait backstage to see whether "this time it's gonna last."
Browse through Shibuya, Harajuku, Dogenzaka, Shimotikazawa, or any one of the other spawning grounds where the barely of age brandish their wears, and you'll discover a reggae eruption. Things like Jimmy Cliff and Burning Spear wailing inside Mos Burger, reggae magazines like Riddim and RM sharing rack space with Tokyo Walker, and 20-year-olds with dreads that should have taken fifteen years to grow are a common phenomenon. Rasta colors, derigueur for the stylistically correct, are parading down streets as wristbands, T-shirts, canvas sneakers--or any apparition thereof--and seem to be rivaling the ubiquitous black at the cash register.
In addition, the summer reggae festival has hit high tide with not just one but two splashes riding the boom across Japan: Reggae Sunsplash, which first arrived in 1985, and Japansplash, which, as the largest outdoor concert in the country, is fueling the theory on Japan's ability to copy. And besides its berth as a summertime phenomenon, reggae has become a weekend force as well. With DJ bars like Club 69 and Pigeons, which is rumored to have been graced by Bob in the flesh back in '79, and live houses like Hot Corocket and Chocolate City, Tokyo alone is reputed both here and abroad for its "wicked" reggae scene. Besides coming out to hear local Jamaican bands, such as Mackaruffin and Birth Right Posse or outside imports, like Sugar Minott and Freddie McGreggor, Japanese youth are lining up to jam with homebred artists like Sister Sayoko, Rankin Taxi, PJ, Nahki, and Cheiko Beauty, all of whom are proving you don't have to be Jamaican or African to sing reggae in Japan.
And considering the number of Japanese companies currently feasting on the public tide, reggae's star is shinning from a marketing standpoint as well. Even Japanese companies who have historically stuck to traditional Japanese music, such as Teichiku, Alfa, and CBS Sony, are laying their cards next to domestic path pavers Tachyon and Overheat in the rat race for artists and Japanese releases.
Obviously reggae has gone gold, both physically and fiscally, and is acting as if it's planning to stay, but so what. Isn't reggae just a relative, albeit distant, of heavy metal, rockabilly and the host of other musically influenced styles any way? "Definitely not," says Daniel Babu, a natural health practioner and a "cultural worker" who produces roots and culture shows at clubs like Yellow and MC1000.
Get Up, Stand Up For Your Rights
Dating back to the 1930s, Rastafari rose from the rubble known as Jamaican neo-colonialism around the time when Marcus Garvey was spreading the message of black equality and black leader Ras Tafari, who immediately adopted the throne name of Haile Selassie, was crowned Emperor of Ethiopia. An ireful manifesto, Rastafari was immediately labeled as millenarian and escapist by the white minority government, who bearing their own rip-off slogan, "Out of Many One People" rushed to stamp out those "crazy dreads" from the hills. Thus, from the start, Rasta was identified by its symbols of resistance--the flag, the lion, the drum, the tam, the chalice, the locks, the red, green, and gold colors, and the distinctive language--all of which have come to reflect a rejection of common values.
What eventually emerged is a kind of living patchwork on theology, as the early doctrine of Rastafari was heavily influenced by Hindu and Christian ideals, but later unfolded into a movement particular to its own beliefs. In the words of New York born Babu, a 17-year Rasta who came to Tokyo in 1990 to study Eastern spirituality: "Rastafari is a oneness. It is about ital [natural] living, about not fighting to enslave nature but to live in harmony with it. Rasta's approach is to avoid the artificialities and to find the real value, to do good and make a better universe."
So, what really adds spice to Japan's "ire" movement is reggae's ties to Rastafari and thus the almighty Jah. Most Rastas believe that Japanese are more receptive to Rasta's unadorned belief system and because, historically speaking, Japan itself has never been strictly tied to an ordered religious doctrine. Like Zen, Rasta is a way of life rather than a religion, and Japan's new converts are relating to the parallels between the two. Looking for a direction, they see the lifestyle of Rasta as both a spiritual injection and a release from the narrow striving of materialism.
Babu feels people are being influenced by the Eastern calendar, which he explains is now coming to its complete circle. "People all over are moving more towards the spiritual and reggae and Rasta are just part of a bigger whole. The music appeals to the young people and starts them thinking, and I believe gives them a deeper appreciation for their own culture."
Most concerned see two currents of youth--those to whom reggae is just a new freedom, an excuse for doing anything they want, and the serious, or those who are digging to uncover a way out of the frantic pace of today. Tokyo University student Hiroyasu Tanigawa sees it as a search for order in an artificial world, "Many Japanese city kids don't have much spirit because they have less chance to experience nature. They walk on concrete and forget that a drive to the countryside wasn't necessary in past times. Even if a person doesn't understand the exact spirituality of Rasta, they feel it in the rhythm." Seconds his girlfriend Sumi Sanda, "We're always told to be a good child, a good student, but still we don't know how to be ourselves. Reggae is helping us do that."
Tokyo based reggae artist Macka Ruffin and Yugi Kaneko, founder of I & I Productions, Japan's new kid on the scene, adopt a more fundamental slant. "The roots and culture of Jamaican people and Japanese people are similar. Reggae may have started in Jamaica, but now Japanese are realizing its their roots too," explains Macka, who's album Way Back Home was released by Columbia this September.
Actually, there are an assortment of parallels. The nyabingi drum rhythm compares to the sound of the Japan's traditional taiko drums. Rice, tofu, and seaweed were the ital staples of Japanese culture centuries before MacDonaldos's and KFC's ruled the sidewalks. Both are island countries, and both peoples were forced to abandon their natural ways of living and accept an alien culture. Japan even knows how to worship an emperor as god. Both start with Ja... Okay, so not everything is the same, but as Macka says, "The whole attraction is in the reality of the world movement's return to roots." And, of course, the Rastaman himself.
Jah Sun Is On The Rise Once Again
Like the generations before them, Yumi and Kohei Sakazaki also rode into Rastafari on Marley's redemption songs. Relates Yumi, "He made me think about suffering and racism for the first time. I'd never even considered equal rights. Japanese don't think they are Asian, but instead consider themselves white Japanese. It came as a shock to learn that I was brainwashed by my education. We in Japan are slaves too. We have economical slavery. By travelling to Jamaica and learning from the Rastas we discovered what was real--not the covered story in Japan where everybody is so rich they waste things. After this experience, reggae music became my bible." Now, both she and Kohei are "soldiers" of Dr. Bagga, the Jamaican herbal doctor who taught them the ways of Rasta and cleared the path for their natural living. "Our Jah walk is showing people how to be healthy in the modern world," says Kohei who works as a garbage man by day. "Unfortunately," injects Yumi, "they think this Babylonian system will stay forever."
And in a smaller city like Kamakura, even simple appearances can be disastrous. Yumi and Kohei say that their clothing style has set them apart from their community. "Our old friends, neighbors, even some family members feel sorry for us, some are ashamed to be with us. They say 'Oh Kohei and Yumi changed. They are running away from society." Yumi plans to hang up her batik and drag out her old Isaton skirts and blouses when she goes to town. "In Tokyo, no one pays much attention, but in Kamakura some people think I'm dirty and don't like it when I dress like a Rasta woman. I'm hoping that because I look more normal, my neighbors will accept other Rastas when they come to visit our house."
Similarly, twenty-six year old Tomakazu "Paul" Kaneko, found Bob Marley during a university vacation in Florida and, inspired by Marley's "groundation in reality," made the pilgrimage to Jamaica. "While there, I met many Rastas and reggae musicians. We spent everyday reasoning, and I learned all about central energy, which is Jah. I felt a deep, cultural connection." When he returned to Japan, he 'grew' dreads and became a vegetarian. "My mom went a little crazy," he laughs, "but now my younger brother has long dreads and she doesn't even care." While today Paul's no longer natty, he is still wed to the Rasta lifestyle. "Most of my friends are Rasta's, or at least heavily into reggae music, and my Jamaican friends don't care that I'm from Japan. If we have the heart things, they respect."
Nineteen year old Wataru Iwata had a more precocious awakening, "When I was 15-years-old, I was really bored in school. Then I learned from Bob Marley and saw that my school was part of the Babylon system--always the same thinking, the uniform, the haircut--set up to keep us down. I faced a similar repression and was looking for a way out. He touched my soul." He says he was lucky, because his parents, "old hippies from the Beatles era," are open minded. "They understand that this society is crazy and that there is much more than the material things around us. The values I grew up around were almost all Westernized. Everything came in after World War II, so much of what we once believed was lost in our rush to become white."
Yet Miyoko Ohyashiki, now a writer for Japan's Flash magazine, approached color from the opposite end of the spectrum. "At first, I just liked the rhythm because I felt comfortable, then my friends told me about its message. My feelings changed, and I worked to understand the spirit of Rasta peoples. But I wanted to be black. I had dread-like hair and was very tan, but I still couldn't change my face."
Babu, however, points out that the Rasta movement is not a color game. "Separation and division are not characteristics of Rasta--yet, we also realize that Rasta is part of a cultural identity. Japanese youth are finding something that's missing within their own society, just as those who came before them did."
We Are The Children Of The Rastaman
So just who are those people? Who are the first homegrown Rastas, the actual pioneers of the reggae scene in Japan? Says journalist Midori Yamamoto, "there were about 50 then, and for the most part the same 50 are still at it now. Without reggae, many of us would not be where we are today." And where is that?
Well, for starters, there's Jah K.S.K. Highly respected, both here and in Jamaica, for his contributions to reggae, he is one of the core members of the early syndicate. In the mid 70s, he opened Club 69 in Shinjuku, which is the longest standing reggae bar and is still one of the few clubs that plays strictly roots and culture. He is a performer, promoter and supporter of reggae, who even now, gets on stage once a year to commemorate Bob Marley's death.
Then there's Yamamoto herself, who in 1976 went to London to see Bob Marley live, since "he still hadn't come to Japan." She returned to Tokyo in '79 and started a music store in Kichijoji called Natty Dread with Yuko Takano, and Shambi Ishida. "Later, I remember we were starting a band about the time PJ started coming around the store. At first, he didn't like reggae. Then one day, he asked if he could practice with the band," she smiles, "The rest you may say is history." So, in 1984, with PJ, who was only 13 at the time, as lead vocalist, the trio closed Natty Dread and formed Cool Runnings, which became the first all Japanese reggae band in Tokyo as well as the cornerstone of PJ's reggae fame. While no longer performing herself, Yamamoto is still actively involved in reggae. "Besides writing about reggae, I also translate reggae lyrics into Japanese for import and am currently translating Bob's book, in his own words, for Japanese publication."
And tucked away in his little bamboo shanty cum reggae paraphernalia store on an obscure side street in Shibuya is Jah Hiro, the exuberant author of Rastaman Vibration, a novel about a Japanese youth who discovers reggae. "It's kind of biographical fiction, the drop out story of a Japanese roots man." Hiro discovered reggae about 13 years ago at the knee of Gap, the owner of a reggae bar bearing the same name. "He taught me the history, particularly about Bob Marley. The main reason I started Trench Town was to keep the memory of Bob alive. Now the store is like a little Jamaica." He continues, "I'm not Rastafari in the exact sense--my heart is part Buddha, but I'm a stranger to modern society, like Rasta. I am trying to change the social consciousness of Japanese people. We shouldn't live for money, but for a rich environment and spirit. What we need is a Japanese Bob Marley."
Finally, there's Haruki Okada. Rawboned and angular with what looks like a long black rope dangling from the back of his collar, Okada could probably pass for a Bon Jovi devotee were it not for his Bob Marley T-shirt. But no way, he was literally pulled into reggae during Bob Marley's 1979 Japan tour. "Over 4 days, only 6,000 people came to see him, so the security was very loose. At the end of the show, Bunny Wailer took my hand and brought me up on stage and invited me backstage. Somehow I got to meet Bob. When I took his hand, Bob said, 'This isn't the first time we've met' and, immediately, we became good friends."
So, believing it was his duty to share Marley's teachings, this early disciple, as well as his equally devoted, 54-year-old mother Minako, opened Sound Terminal, a category defying business that imports reggae albums, produces reggae events, DJ's, organizes a free concert in celebration of Marley's birthday once a year, offers free nyabingi (traditional African drum) instruction to anyone who asks, and fights against the "exploitive media" and big businesses who lead people astray. "Now, the cycle of life is so fast, it's like a shinkansen. Reggae is a slow train that stops at every station so you can see the beauty surrounding you."
You Can Fool Some People Sometimes
But, since everything begins on the surface anyway, is riding the fashion express really so bad? Even the tenderest of romances must start some place.
Paul agrees. "The more I listened, the deeper I went." He believes reggae's popularity will continue regardless, because there are so many lost "hippies" in Japan who need Rasta consciousness "We need a movement. Like back to Africa, this is ours." Iwata thinks so too. "I think Rasta will stay beyond the current popularity, but probably not on the mainstream. Rasta is teaching that we are all really one. Humans not the earth have made the boarders and named the countries. People are always saying they are drop outs, but to me the drop outs in this society are the real humans."
True enough. Emancipating one's self from mental slavery seems a credible alternative to bowing at the feet of a personality squashing system. Doesn't it? For who wouldn't spurn the technological intrusions, the political corruption, and the trading conglomerates to return to a gentler life if tomorrow's Visa bill could still be paid on time?
Then again, this is Japan.
A source who prefers to call himself "Jah Runnings," because "even I don't know my name--I just know everything comes from Jah," says, "To me, 99 percent of the Japanese are just pirates seeking enjoyment. Them youth don't even know reggae--the ones that love reggae even." But, after a noticeable pause, apparently sensing the impact of his strident opinion, he softens, "If I'm wrong, their hearts will show it in the end." Then, assuming he'd made amends, he tosses out another, "There's a place run by a a big long natty called Ital Food in Shimoda that sells meat and things--even ham. It's a joke, strictly business, just a Japanese guy doing a Japanese thing." Concurs Izaba Rogers, a 22 year dread, poet, singer, actor, agent, filmmaker, producer, and reggae almanac who left his native Jamaica in 1984, "The movement is hollow. "It's katachi--or form--someone who dreads their hair overnight just to become a 'Rasta'."
How are youth perfecting that faux-natty do anyway? Well, at least three ways in Tokyo alone--Light Staff and King-Bee in Shimokitazawa and Seen in Ebisu. Yet despite the current catwalk, Light Staff owner Shiina Kuniyasu has seen a drop in his reggae-related sales in the last year. Just quietly, this may be because his specialty is natting locks at 80,000 to 100,000 yen a head. "Now we do three or four per year, but during the bubble, we did two or three per day." But wouldn't your customers get more satisfaction investing a few thousand extra yen and buying a roundtrip ticket to Kingston? "It's so expensive because we have to perm the hair into an Afro-style, and then each strand must be dreaded individually. It's a very long process that takes 7 or 8 hours. Today's customers are the dedicated, usually reggae musicians, who come in for maintenance." Incidentally, these musicians must be doing more than busking in front of the OX store in Shimokitazawa since it takes at least three sessions a year to maintain illegitimate locks.
"They miss the whole point," exclaims Jah Runnings. "Youth don't need locks, cause its all about a natural life." "For us," muses Babu, "dreads aren't a style but a statement reflecting an inner life, just like the Buddhist monk who shaves his head to show his separation from worldly things."
But still, there are some hard core fans who aren't sporting a tam to hide the fact they don't have dreads. Babu, who's waist length dreads and open smile make him a clear target for closet aficionados, says he's often approached by businessmen while riding on the train. "These guys are very into the music and listen to obscure groups like Black Slate. I remember one guy who opened his brief case to show me that it was full of reggae tapes." Agrees Okada, "I have customers who never wear the fashion but are so serious that they'll buy only original recordings. These people are very spiritual inside and don't need the colors to prove it."
And this includes, people like Hiroko Naki, the mama-san of Fushigi Tei in Shimokitazawa. Shaking her dreadish bob and clasping her hands across her "One Love" T-shirt, she releases a mighty grin that offers a glimpse at the young girl who first fell for the reggae "heartbeat," and confides, "Even if it is only fashion for some people, they are at least touching the reggae love feeling. Now reggae has become famous and business is up. But mine is not a business life--all I need to be happy is the reggae feeling."
No Smoke Reveal Jah To I
Of course, there is the less legal aspect of that reggae feeling that most, at least while here in Japan, would prefer to keep hidden away like nude baby photos. Imported from India, marijuana, or ganja as it is called in Jamaica, has been part of the Jamaican culture since the early days and, as in India, has generally been used for many purposes--made into twine and clothing, brewed as a medicinal tonic, cooked in food, and applied externally to name a a mere few. Thus, to the Rastas, the herb wasn't a drug or "illegal substance" but a integral part of the natural lifestyle--something for spiritual and social communication.
However, time and judicial systems have corrupted this mystical understanding, and since many people come to understand Rasta through reggae, they take one look at Bob chewing on a big fat spleef and assume that Rasta and ganja are the one in one love. Yet there are some Rastas who aggressively contest this general misconception. The most widely known of the Jamaican Dub Poets, Mutaburka, has a poem titled "Dispel the Lie" in which he states loudly that not all Rastafarians use marijuana. Says Mutaburka, "The true essence of Rastafari is not only Reggae, ganja and a lot of flashlocks. Rastafari is much more than Reggae and much more than ganja smoking." Like Mutaburka, Babu fiercely defends the stance of Rasta, "The youth here that are smoking are not Rasta. Its an unfair judgement to think that herb is Rasta, when so few understand that Rasta's read the bible. The Hindus smoke more than the Rastas, but it's not an issue--why is that?"
Still, some Japanese continue to miss the subtleties of the argument. According to a 20-year-old who wished to be called Taimasuke, "I smoke ganja because it makes me feel holy and I can't say untruthful things. If Rasta don't smoke, it's okay. Ganja is medicine, not food, so only people who need ganja smoke." But in a country like Japan, even this seemingly innocent statement about ganja can mean police harassment and surveillance, although like both India and Jamaica, this country also used ganja for more than geta straps at one time. Most of the 'Rastas' believe that the serious reggae youth aren't into the herb, whereas the ones pimping the fashion are, and would be whether they were listening to reggae or something else. "Human beings have always wanted to change their minds--caffeine, drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes, even food--so really it depends on how you define high. What is the real reality? But if you go too much into one reality, whichever it is, you lose perspective of all others," says Iwata.
Cause Reggae Is Another Bag
Okay, so reggae's reality isn't exactly black and white, especially when the effects of dance hall music are tossed into the pot. So what about the butterfly sound that's filling places like Nishi Azabu's Club Jamaica with sweaty youth who don't understand things like bom clot and lick your boom boom now? It seems that the youth of today discovering music of a nature far removed from Bob Marley's dolefully beautiful "No Woman No Cry."
"Dance hall sings about sexual things which young Japanese love," says Paul Kaneko. But the others don't think the music penetrates even this deeply. "The dance hall beat is fast, and people are living fast, so kids are into it," observes Izaba, who now books for Hot Corocket and spreads the "real cultural message of reggae" through his own "reggae purpose" company Yardstick, Inc., I & I One Love Society. Paul's brother Yugi has the same idea: "It's what they like, but dance hall is like nothing. When they learn what the DJ is saying, they will come back, which is why I & I is strictly promoting spiritual artists like Bunny Wailer and Garnet Silk." Adds Macka, "Dance hall music is like a branch of the reggae tree: the branch will break off, but the root of the tree, which is the roots spiritual music, will remain strong."
Yet dance hall style reggae worries both the old timers and those in the serious category. Says Yamamoto,"all this business is taking the sound away from the essence of culture and commercializing it." Babu agrees, "Real Rasta influenced reggae isn't a promotional thing--which is one reason the record industry has trouble understanding it. For true Rastas, there is no truth in the saying 'it's just business' because the spiritual dimensions run through everything--there is no 'just'."
"But," contributes Jah Runnings, "reggae HAS become a business here because everyone is a chip in the giant computer. They are all programmed to work and build up Japan, Inc." Then why does he stay? "Business" he replies without a hint of irony.
Time Alone, Oh, Time Will Tell
So, in this land mapped by high school entrance exams, one can't help but speculate as to whether the "new Rasta" youth are drawn towards reggae's unrestrainable freedom or-are just fashion magnets passing time before buttoning themselves into salariman-blue or OL-drab. Is reggae's moment in the rising sun a big business commodity, spiritual tillage or a fleeting illusion? Most seem to think it is a mixture of each, and no one is throwing away the red and white flag yet. "Many are called and few are chosen, so maybe only half will understand the music and the words themselves, the others will simply turn to something else. I really hope there are those in the young generation who will catch the true fire of reggae," sighs Yamamoto.
Well Ms. Yamamoto, it looks as if at least one person has found the flame, even if it's not heating only the Rasta camp. For in the words of Wataru Iwata: "I'm a Rasta, but I'm also a Buddhist, a Christian, a Hindu. I'm all religions. Everybody climbs the same mountain, but the mountain can be climbed from any direction, the East or the West, but the top of the mountain is just one. So although I still like the way of Rasta, I'm always moving forward. I can't stick to the label 'Oh he's a Rasta.' To me, it must be where is the truth? After I shaved off my dreads, I realized now I can really find myself. I can finally make my own way."
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- Research article
- Open Access
Hyperosmotic response of streptococcus mutans: from microscopic physiology to transcriptomic profile
- Chengcheng Liu†1,
- Yulong Niu†2,
- Xuedong Zhou1,
- Keke Zhang1,
- Lei Cheng1,
- Mingyun Li1,
- Yuqing Li1,
- Renke Wang1,
- Yi Yang2 and
- Xin Xu1Email author
© Liu et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2013
- Received: 16 July 2013
- Accepted: 26 November 2013
- Published: 1 December 2013
Oral streptococci metabolize carbohydrate to produce organic acids, which not only decrease the environmental pH, but also increase osmolality of dental plaque fluid due to tooth demineralization and consequent calcium and phosphate accumulation. Despite these unfavorable environmental changes, the bacteria continue to thrive. The aim of this study was to obtain a global view on strategies taken by Streptococcus mutans to deal with physiologically relevant elevated osmolality, and perseveres within a cariogenic dental plaque.
We investigated phenotypic change of S. mutans biofilm upon hyperosmotic challenge. We found that the hyperosmotic condition was able to initiate S. mutans biofilm dispersal by reducing both microbial content and extracellular polysaccharides matrix. We then used whole-genome microarray with quantitative RT-PCR validation to systemically investigate the underlying molecular machineries of this bacterium in response to the hyperosmotic stimuli. Among those identified 40 deferentially regulated genes, down-regulation of gtfB and comC were believed to be responsible for the observed biofilm dispersal. Further analysis of microarray data showed significant up-regulation of genes and pathways involved in carbohydrate metabolism. Specific genes involved in heat shock response and acid tolerance were also upregulated, indicating potential cross-talk between hyperosmotic and other environmental stress.
Hyperosmotic condition induces significant stress response on S. mutans at both phenotypic and transcriptomic levels. In the meantime, it may take full advantage of these environmental stimuli to better fit the fluctuating environments within oral cavity, and thus emerges as numeric-predominant bacterium under cariogenic conditions.
- Streptococcus mutans
- Hyperosmotic condition
- Transcriptional profile
- Biofilm dispersal
- Environmental fitness
- Dental plaque
Dental plaque is a densely-packed microbial biofilm and the residents living inside lead a "famine and feast" life style due to the fluctuation of nutrients within the oral cavity [1]. In addition to many commonly studied environmental stimuli such as acidic and hyperthermic conditions to which dental plaque residents are frequently exposed, osmotic stress is also believed to have a great impact on dental plaque ecology and the development of dental caries [2]. Acidogenic bacteria within dental plaque are able to metabolize carbohydrate to produce organic acids, which not only decrease the environmental pH, but also increase ionic strength of the plaque fluid due to tooth demineralization and consequent calcium and phosphate accumulation [3]. It has been reported that the ionic strength of plaque fluid is doubled after sugar challenges, increasing from roughly 150 mM to approximately 300 mM [3, 4]. Thus, persistent residents within dental plaque have likely evolved sophisticated molecular machineries to counter the detrimental effect of elevated osmolality on their growth.
S. mutans is normal resident in the dental plaque and has been considered as the primary causative agent of dental caries for decades. S. mutans is able to take advantage of low pH to emerge as numerically predominant resident in cariogenic plaque [1, 2]. In addition, S. mutans has developed intricate machineries to counter those detrimental environmental challenges such as hyperosmotic stress, in order to persevere within the dental plaque [1, 5]. Many microorganisms respond to hyperosmotic challenges by increasing the intracellular levels of K+ and accumulating compatible solutes [6, 7]. The complete genome sequence of S. mutans has revealed several genes sharing homology with K+ transporters and the Opu family of ABC transporters of Escherichia Coli[8, 9]. These findings suggest that S. mutans may rally a series of intricately regulated genes and pathways to internalize K+ and compatible solutes, and thus perseveres under hyperosmotic conditions. A previous study from Burne's group has identified a few candidates involved in the hyperosmotic stress response of S. mutans, and a possible cross-talk between osmotic and oxidative stress responses in S. mutans has also been suggested [10]. However, the traditional "hypothesis-driven approach" to investigating selected genes sharing homology with stress response related genes of model bacteria may not suffice to give a global knowledge about the strategies used by this caries pathogen to cope with hyperosmotic challenges.
Although a number of studies have described transcriptional responses of S. mutans under various conditions [11–15], the molecular response of this bacterium under physiologically relevant hyperosmotic condition has not been profiled at transcriptomic level. In this study, we used microarray to profile the transcriptome of S. mutans under hyperosmotic conditions. Several genes and pathways were identified and further correlated with phenotypic changes of the organism observed under hyperosmotic challenges. The aim of this work is to provide a comprehensive insight into the sophisticated machineries adopted by S. mutans to better fit the physiologically relevant elevated osmolality, and thus perseveres within the oral cavity.
Results and discussion
Hyperosmotic conditions initiate biofilm dispersal
Selected genes up- or down-regulated 2-fold or more under hyperosmotic stress
Functional annotation
FC: (class1/class2)
pfp (Q.value)
Hypothetical protein
Putative ribosome-associated protein
Putative PTS system
Putative lactoylglutathione lyase
Hypothetical protein
Hypothetical protein
Tagatose 1
N-acetylornithine aminotransferase
Putative Clp proteinase
Putative transcriptional regulator
Hypothetical protein
Putative maltose/maltodextrin ABC transporter
Putative transcriptional regulator
Hypothetical protein
Putative permease; multidrug efflux protein
Putative glutaredoxin
Competence stimulating peptide
Putative Zn-dependent protease
30S ribosomal protein S20
Hypothetical protein
Hypothetical protein
Hypothetical protein
Putative acetyltransferase
Hypothetical protein
Putative thioredoxin reductase (NADPH)
Pyridoxamine kinase
Hypothetical protein
Hypothetical protein
Thiol peroxidase
Transcriptional regulator Spx
Putative transcriptional regulator/aminotransferase
Hypothetical protein
Putative MDR permease; multidrug efflux pump
Putative glycerol uptake facilitator protein
Hypothetical protein
Hypothetical protein
Hypothetical protein
Hypothetical protein
It's noteworthy that a recent transcriptomic profiling of S. mutans in the presence of oxygen also showed significant down-regulation of gtfB and genes involved in ComCDE quorum sensing system [13]. This suggests that a motile lifestyle may be a common strategy employed by S. mutans to adapt adversary conditions.
S. mutansincreases carbohydrates consumption in response to hyperosmotic challenge
Hyperosmotic challenge prepares S. mutansfor better fitness under multiple environmental stimuli
As mentioned above, several genes involved in the carbohydrate metabolism of S. mutans were up-regulated. S. mutans may take full advantage of this increased energy generation to cope with multiple environmental stimuli. Previously study from Burne's group has shown that two oxidative stress genes, sodA and nox were induced during hyperosmotic stress, and certain up-regulated gene (Smu.2115) upon hyperosmotic challenges was also involved in acid/oxidative stress responses [10]. These findings suggest a potential cross-talking between hyperosmotic stress responses and other environmental responses of S. mutans. In the current study, we found that Lactoylglutathione lyase (lgl, smu1603), and ClpB (smu1425) were significantly induced during hyperosmotic stress (Table 1 and Figure 3). lgl has been shown to play an essential role in the acid tolerance response of S. mutans by detoxifying cytotoxic metabolite methyglyoxal in the cytoplasm [21]. Therefore, up-regulation of lgl under hyperosmotic conditions may enhance the aciduricity of S. mutans. ClpB encodes a chaperone subunit with two ATP-binding domains involved in heat shock response [9]. Previous study from Burne's group has also shown a significant up-regulation of ClpB in S. mutans during oxygen challenge [13]. The up-regulation of ClpB upon hyperosmotic challenge may assist unfolding the denatured protein amassed during environment stimuli, thus promoting the fitness of S. mutans under other detrimental conditions such as oxidative and heat stresses.
On the other hand, it has been demonstrated that dispersal cells from bacterial biofilm can colonize different and/or more niches than the bacteria that initiated the original biofilm, leading to better fitness of those bacteria in the environment [22]. The induced dispersal of S. mutans biofilm under hyperosmotic stress may to an extent enhance the colonizing capacity of S. mutans cells, leading to a potential "niche expansion", and thus benefit its fitness under the fluctuating environment within the oral cavity.
Taken together, this study has investigated phenotypic and transcriptional effects of hyperosmotic stress on S. mutans, and revealed genes and pathways essential for the hyperosmotic tolerance in this caries associated bacterium. We believe that although hyperosmotic challenge may induce significant stress response on bacteria, S. mutans has evolved sophisticated molecular machineries to counter those elicited detrimental effects. Additionally, S. mutans can mobilize genes and pathways to take full advantage of these environmental stimuli to better fit the fluctuating environments within the oral cavity, and thus emerge as the numeric-predominant bacteria under cariogenic conditions such as frequent sugar uptake.
Bacteria strains and culture conditions
Streptococcus mutans UA159 was commercially obtained from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC). Bacteria were grown in brain heart infusion broth (BHI; Difco, Sparks, MD, USA) at 37°C in a 5% CO2 atmosphere until the cells reached the mid-logarithmic phase (OD600nm = 0.5). To determine the sub-inhibitory level of hyperosmotic challenge, bacteria were grown in BHI supplemented with 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0 M of sodium chloride respectively. For in vitro biofilm establishment, bacterial cells were grown in BHI supplemented with 1% sucrose (wt/vol).
Bacteria susceptibility assays
The sub-inhibitory concentration of sodium chloride was determined by a microdilution method as described previously [23]. Growth curves of S. mutans UA159 were further constructed by monitoring the optical density (OD600nm) of the cultures for 24 h using a Bioscreen C analyzer (Oy Growth Curves AB Ltd., Finland) [24]. The formation of S. mutans biofilm under increasing concentrations of NaCl was quantified in a 96-well microtiter plate as described previously [25]. Briefly, S. mutans UA159 (1 × 106 CFU/ml) was grown in BHI supplemented with 1% (wt/vol) sucrose and NaCl (0.05 M to 1.0 M) at 37°C for 24 h. The culture supernatant from each well was then decanted, and the adherent biofilm was washed three times with PBS, fixed with methanol for 15 min, and stained with 0.1% (wt/vol) crystal violet (Sigma-Aldrich Corp., St. Louis, MO, USA) for 5 min. Subsequently, the wells were rinsed with deionized water until the blank wells appeared colorless; 200 μl of 95% ethanol was added. The plates were shaken at room temperature for 30 min, and the absorbance at 595 nm was recorded. The short-term effect of hyperosmotic challenge on the pre-established biofilm was also determined by quantification of the biomass of 24 h S. mutans biofilm after exposure to 0.4 M NaCl for 15 min using the same method as described above. All the experiments were performed in three-replicates and the average was calculated.
Biofilm viability assays
24 h pre-established S. mutans biofilms were treated with 0.4 M NaCl for 15 min, gently harvested with a cell scraper, and suspended in PBS to an OD600nm of 1.0. The bacterial cells suspension was then serially diluted and plated in triplicate on BHI agar plates. After 48 hours incubation at 37°C (5% CO2), colony forming unit (CFU) of biofilms was enumerated.
The treated biofilms were also stained with a two-color fluorescence assay kit (LIVE/DEAD BacLight-Bacterial Viability Kit 7012, Invitrogen, Molecular Probes, Inc., Eugene, OR, USA) according to the manufacturer's instructions. The biofilms images were captured using a Leica TCS SP2 confocal laser scanning microscope (Leica, Germany), and the percentage of viable cells was calculated by Image Pro-Plus 6.0 (Media Cybernetics Inc., Bethesda, MD, USA).
Microbial biofilm configuration
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was performed as described previously [26] to investigate the configuration of S. mutans biofilm under hyperosmotic condition. S. mutans biofilms were either established on glass slides in the presence of 0.4 M of NaCl for 24 h, or pre-established 24 h biofilm on glass slides and then treated with 0.4 M of NaCl for 15 min. Biofilm samples were gently washed two times with sterile PBS to remove planktonic cells and fixed with 2.5% glutaraldehyde at 4°C overnight. The samples then were dehydrated in a graded series of ethanol (50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 95% and 100%), dried in a freeze dryer, gold coated and observed under a SEM (FEI, Hillsboro, OR, USA).
The biofilm samples were also double-labeled by the method as described by Koo et al. [27, 28]. In brief, the extracellular polysaccharides matrix of S. mutans biofilm was labeled by incorporating 2.5 μmol l-1 of Alexa Fluor 647-labelled dextran conjugate (10000 MW; absorbance/fluorescence emission maxima of 650/668 nm; Molecular Probes Inc., Eugene, OR, USA) into the newly formed glucan. The bacterial cells in biofilms were labeled by means of SYTO 9 green fluorescent nucleic acid stain (2.5 μmol 1-1, 480/500 nm; Molecular Probes Inc.). The biofilm images were captured using a Leica TCS SP2 confocal laser scanning microscope (Leica, Germany). The confocal image stacks were analyzed by the image-processing software COMSTAT as described previously [29]. The three-dimensional architecture of the biofilms was visualized using AmiraTM5.0.2 (Mercury Computer Systems, Chelmsford, MS, USA).
RNA isolation
Mid-logarithmic phase cells of S. mutans (OD600nm = 0.5) were incubated with 0.4 M of NaCl at 37°C for 15 min. Cells were collected and then treated with RNAprotect reagent (Qiagen, Valencia, CA, USA) immediately. Total RNA was extracted using RNeasy Mini kits (Qiagen) as described previously [30]. Rnase-Free DNase Set (Qiagen) was used to remove genome DNA. A Nanodrop ND 1000 spectrophotometer (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Pittsburgh, PA, USA) was used to determine total RNA concentrations, and an Agilent 2100 Bioanalyser (Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara CA, USA) was used to evaluate the RNA quality (see Additional file 2 for RNA quality control). The isolated RNA was stored at −80°C before use.
Microarray procedures
Streptococcus mutans UA159 (NC004350) NimbleGen Genechip (4*72 K) whole-genome array was employed for transcriptional profiling in this study. The oligoarrays included 1949 S. mutans UA159 open reading frames with twelve 24-mer probe pairs (PM/MM) per gene, and each probe was replicated 3 times. The design also included random GC and other control probes. Array images were scanned by Gene Pix® 4000B Microarray Scanner (Axon Instruments, Union City, CA, USA). Raw data were normalized using RMA algorithm by Roche NimbleScan software version 2.6. We used the average value of each replicate probe as the signal intensity for the corresponding gene, and all the values were log2 transformed for further analysis. The normalized data with annotation information was processed by combining several different R/Bioconductor packages. We conducted a non-parametric statistical method contained in the RanProd package to detect the differentially expressed genes (DEG) [31]. With 100,000 permutation test, genes having a minimum 2-fold change with the false discovery rate (FDR) smaller than 0.1 were considered as DEG, indicating a significant up- or down-regulation under hyperosmotic stress. For the pathway analysis, we firstly constructed the whole S. mutans UA159 pathway database based on the KEGG Pathway. Then gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was used to determine the pathways that changed significantly in response to hyperosmotic stress [32, 33].
The microarray results were further validated by quantitative RT-PCR for selected genes (see Additional file 3 for detailed primer sequences for qPCR). Quantitative RT-PCR assays were performed using a SYBR Green reverse transcription-PCR kit (TaKaRa, Dalian, China) according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Statistical analysis
We used Student's T-test to compare the non-treated control groups with treatment groups. All statistical procedures were conducted by R software [34]. Data were considered significantly different if the two-tailed P-value was < 0.05.
Microarray data accession
All the microarray raw data have been submitted to the NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus database under the accession number GSE47170 (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/query/acc.cgi?acc=GSE47170).
This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number: 81170959), Doctoral Fund of Ministry of Education of China (grant number: 20120181120002) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number: 81200782). The authors would like to thank Arne Heydorn from Section of Molecular Microbiology, the Technical University of Denmark, for proving image-processing software COMSTAT.
Authors' Affiliations
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This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


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Orchards at Orenco featured in Building Design + Construction11.12.14
The Orchards at Orenco, an affordable housing project being developed by REACH CDC and for which Green Hammer has been serving as the Passive House consultant, was featured in the October 2014 edition of Building Design + Construction. The project team includes Walsh Contruction (builder), Ankrom Moisan Associated Architects (architect-of-record) and William Wilson Architects (design architect).
Orchards at Orenco is the largest precertified Passive House building to date.The project is expected to achieve nearly 90 percent energy reduction for heating and 60-70 percent for overall energy use compared to a LEED building.
Read the full article from Building Design + Construction.


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The Gun Tear Challenge & Campaign
Tear the Gun Instructions
First, Download a picture of a gun sketch off our website or create your own gun sketch (use stickers, crayons, coloring pencils, glitter even a picture of your loved one etc.)
Second, hold the picture in front of you while videoing your story on how illegal gun violence impacted you and your family or your thoughts on illegal gun violence in your neighborhood, community and city.
Third, DO YOUR TTG STOMP/STEP/DANCE/STRUT before Tearing your paper gun and say the words "I Tear my Gun...... (examples below)
- I tear my gun against ALL illegal gun violence and crime."
- I tear my gun against bullying
- In memory of my loved one (e.g. I tear the gun in honor of my daughter Kathy who lost her life March 9, 2010)
- I tear my gun for all the innocent children who died to gun violence
- I tear my gun in honor of my son Josh who committed suicide
Speak the words in your heart!
Fourth, make your donation on tearthegun.com website
Fifth, Send your video to firstname.lastname@example.com
Sixth, nominate three other people to participate in the challenge.
Please note: NSF will be uploaded your video to social You Tube. (we will notify you) NOW … Tell a friend or family member about the Gun Tear Challenge. See you on the net


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I'd set aside time today to do a 7.3 review, but rarely do things go the way you planned. I've read a few stories of those with suboptimal systems struggling with the complexity of new textures and when the patch data decided to reset all my graphic settings as soon as I logged in, I was less than impressed. However, once I'd sorted stuff out, everything was fine, or so I thought. Then I had to answer the door mid fight and got locked into an instanced fight without the means to escape, and all that hard work at immersion went out of the window.
However, a lot has changed in a decade plus, and with fifteen minutes and a cuppa, I was up and running again. 7.3 promises a lot, and complaints that lore was missing for a while back there certainly have not fallen on deaf ears. In fact, if I didn't know better, Azeroth's about to get a whole lot greyer in the whole Light/Dark department. In the first hour of playtime there's an extremely clear message: nothing you previously believed about lore or indeed the entire fabric of Azerothian society is safe any more. Not only have the wheels fallen off the Good/Bad wagon, it's also on fire.
If you wanted change on that front, you're going to get it.
However, relying on cinematics to tell a story should not be what makes a decent patch. In that regard, Argus is robustly challenging, required more than a modicum of thought and is proper hard at my 899 iLevel. I had an upgrade within 30 minutes (which is also quite satisfying) and am able to make new Leatherworking items within an hour. In this regard, pacing seems well pitched. There are elements however of every end game self-contained zone here that some players will find hard to dismiss, especially when we end up with three months to go until the next Expansion. If there were a way to take the game off the rails it seems determined to keep travelling down, I'd love to see it, but right now there are no advantages to being left just to explore.
That's what I think I miss most about (wait for it) Warlords. LOOK I SAID IT. I miss the horrible Expansion that took Pandaria's idea of not needing to precisely complete quests in a certain order and combined it with free loot just lying around. Gone now are vignettes and side stories, except when they help you to a buff that stops you dying. No longer does anything you do feel organic and exciting, but
all part of the Light's plan instead there's a calculated, determined need to make the most of the playtime, without getting lost and distracted. For many people, this was the key: give us the ability to play in small bursts, and not lose the ability to feel more powerful as we do.
The most enjoyment I gained in my two hour playing window was, undoubtedly, soloing a demon with 112m HP, without anybody else joining in. What this proves to me is that however attractive and blingy the rewards are made in the end game patch, I'd rather be fighting stuff on my own. Fortunately it doesn't matter now whether I do this or not, as armour tokens have returned to being Battle.net bound, so everything that's surplus to requirement will find a home regardless. I found the NPC who's going to give me a mount in exchange for Demon eyes completely by accident, and laughed for a full 5 minutes afterwards when I grasped the Devs finally realised that this is the real way to get people like me to keep coming back, time and again. It doesn't matter that I won't complete this content immediately. It just has to be possible to do it in Legacy, eventually.
In a game where visuals now are more important than mechanics, Argus is a triumph. It really is: tried and tested gameplay paths, familiar rewards, easy to do if you're solo playing just by pressing a button. Granting the Broken Shore an Emissary is perhaps the most significant master-stroke of all, because now there's no excuse: the entire game's on rails, you just have to want to make the journey, and there's enough rewards being wafted for those of us with alts to now make that incentive attractive. If I can level an alt with 10 Invasions plus Professions quests, it's worth the effort, and as I can now skip the Broken isles completely and just use WQ's to gear until an alt can survive? There's no need to go to Argus anyway. The job is done.
This is what people wanted, asked for and have got. There's no excuse now for everyone. If the game matters enough to play, you have no excuse not to.
Get out there and start grinding.


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Who will work on building your brand?
I draw on only the highest quality graphic and social media professionals. But they work for me — and therefore you — only as they are needed. So you pay for them only if and when they are actually working on your business.
But be assured, if you require the reassurance of a larger support team, for media buying, research, focus groups, direct marketing, publicity and so on, Porte Advertising is at your beck and call. Or you can use whatever resources you have in place and are comfortable with. The point is to build your brand, not build my ego.
Jay: Guides the process to make certain that the ideas adhere to the agreed upon strategic guidelines. (How do you know if you've arrived if you do not know your destination?)
Jay: Creates the good ideas that will be the basis of all communications.
Jay: Develops the copy and headlines that bring the concepts and strategy to life, with relevant yet unexpected solutions.
The talented graphic designers, art directors, social media specialists, web site creators and so forth who are available, as needed, to make your communications sparkle across all channels.


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Ken Totushek is an internationally known singer/songwriter, acoustic instrumentalist and worship leader, with six acclaimed CDs of inspirational work since 1994. He has performed in Japan, Europe, the Middle East, throughout the U.S., and of course in the Ocean State of R.I. Ken defines himself as a musician living and sharing "freedom Songs". His music is down to earth, inviting, and tends to capture the heart of the listener as he leads one through a calming and hope filled musical journey– aspects of
his own life and spiritual pilgrimage. Venues range from concerts and special music, house concerts, hospitals, restaurants and pubs to leading worship at international church services and conferences. In 2013 Ken was awarded Japan's Kansai Music Conference "Building Bridges Through Music" Award. Ken resides with his wife Kathy in Barrington, RI.


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Awesome news
May 3rd, 2009 Posted in Rant |
As you know, my home computer is crap and I've been using my grandma's computer and the school ones to transcribe. Well, my brother has just installed a new OS on this Mac so now it runs beautifully. This means updates during the Summer! Awesome stuff.


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- Description
Details(Highbush Blueberry) Enjoy the ripe freshness of Vaccinium 'Bluecrop' Blueberries in your own backyard. Hardy in zones 4-7, 'Bluecrop' Blueberries form larger berries with the classic blueberry taste. A good all-around variety with excellent yield, disease resistance and easy to grow. In the early summer small white flowers emerge followed by tasty berries in July- mid August. 'Bluecrop' Blueberries are adaptable to many soil types as long as they are in well-drained soil with a pH level between 4.0 and 5.0. A full sun location is recommended for best performance. 'Blue Crop' are considered partially self-fertile. We recommend planting more than one variety to increase your yield, size of berries and to extend your harvesting season. Blueberry 'Bluecrop' is considered a High Bush variety with standing cold winters. Standing 4-6 foot tall at maturity, we recommend that you let your plant put on growth for the first 3-4 years pinching back any blossoms that form. This will allow your plant to put on good, strong growth. Once your plant has matured, at around 5-6 years, you will reach full production. We recommend at this time to trim any dead or weak branches out, this will stimulate new growth meaning more berries.
- More Info
Vaccinium 'Bluecrop'
Common Name Blueberry-Highbush USDA Hardiness Zone 4, 5, 6, 7 Plant Type Edible Sun Exposure Full Sun (+6 hrs.), Part Shade (4-6 hrs.) Soil Moisture Needs Moderate Nature Attractions Bee-Friendly, Butterflies, Hummingbirds, Songbirds Attributes Deciduous Growth Habit Mounding Season of Interest (Flowering) Summer Edible Type Fruit Restricted States GA, OR, WA
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Not that this event was unusual, but is something worth writing about.
There we were, walking back and forth the road which was right in front of our house. The 4 of us went for walking last night after dinner. The weather was pleasant; neither too hot nor too cold.
I, unlike the weather, was a bit irritated.
There is a family of 5 street dogs that are in charge of the area we live in. We would feed the dogs with the remaining bones from whenever we eat chicken (that is, about twice a week). The family of dogs became our friends. They would come to us whenever they see us, then they would sit right in front of our gate, indicating that they were hungry. One of them (the youngest one) was walking along with us. He was a bit shy, but he understood most of the stuff we say.
He seemed to have a small injury on the rear-right leg.
He would walk ahead of us, then stop to scratch or lick himself, then the moment he sees that we are overtaking him, he would run all the way ahead of us again, and keep repeating the same thing over and over again. Whenever he ran ahead of us, he would go from right under my hand, wanting me to pet him. Whenever we walk past our house, he would sit in front of our gate, thinking that any one of us will go inside and get him something to eat.
Even though he had an injury on his leg, he ran around happily; not thinking about the pain, but thinking of how he would run past us, play with us, eat something tasty and have others pet him. Thinking of that made me feel happy. As a reward, I pet him in the way he likes.
He gave me the lesson to not to think about the things I don't like, but to think about the things I love.