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The National Assembly Wednesday night unanimously approved GY$2.451 billion to pay remaining severance to 4,723 sugar workers who have been laid off with the closure of several estates across the country. The results of a division (count) showed that 62 parliamentarians voted in favour of the amount after a spirited series of questions posed by the People's Progressive Party's Komal ...Read More »
Monthly Archives: October 2018
PPP govt spent almost GYD$100 million on medical expenses for ministers; no immediate answer on APNU+AFC govt's total medical insurance payment
The People's Progressive Party Civic (PPPC)-led administration spent almost GY$100 million on medical and dental expenses from 2012 to 2014, but Health Minister Volda Lawrence could not immediately say how much her ministry was paying in 50 percent insurance premiums for ministers and their families. In response to questions by opposition PPP parliamentarian, Juan Edghill, the Health Minister said in ...Read More »
Guyanese could get increased salaries, other improvements in 2020, the year of First Oil
Finance Minister, Winston Jordan on Wednesday hinted that government workers would receive salary increases when in 2020 when Guyana begins producing oil estimated to rake in about US$300 million in that year. "I foresee improvements in the social and economic status of Guyana. I foresee progressive improvements in the human, cultural and every other developmental aspect of the country," he ...Read More »
Hess, Exxon Mobil Prep For More exploration offshore Guyana
Velda Addison Senior Editor, Digital News Group Hart Energy Wednesday, October 31, 2018 – 12:28pm Partners Exxon Mobil, Hess Corp. and CNOOC Nexen Petroleum are making progress toward development of the hydrocarbon bounty discovered offshore Guyana. "This month a second exploration vessel, the Noble Tom Madden, arrived to accelerate exploration and appraisal activities on the block starting with the Pluma prospect located 17 ...Read More »
Guyanese dies aboard Guyana-registered oil tanker in Grenada
Police in Grenada have confirmed that a Guyanese man died aboard the MV Ocean Trader – a Guyanese registered ship- that was docked in Grenada last weekend. Dead is 41-year old Permanand "Short Man" Permaul. The vessel departed that Caribbean island Tuesday evening following the completion of an investigation by Grenadian law enforcement agents An official from the Grenada Port ...Read More »
OPINION: Guyana's brain has little to nothing left to drain
By GHK Lall There was this troubling article titled, "Guyana's brain drain at worrying levels -US State Dept. highlights shortage of even semi-skilled individuals" (KN October 20) that brought to a halt. Though this supports existing private assessments, I do not think that the headline tells the whole story, the embarrassing story of how bad things really are. The Guyana ...Read More »
Guyana-born murder accused Marcus Bisram loses extradition challenge in US
A New York Court on Tuesday threw out a challenge by Guyanese- American Marcus Bisram, to his extradition to Guyana to face trial for the murder of a man who had refused his sexual overtures. United States District Judge, Kia A. Matsumoto upheld last October's ruling by Judge Peggy Kuo of the Eastern District Court of New York that there ...Read More »
PNCR's women's arm scolds Kennard over "shut up and listen" order to City Mayor; suggests gender discrimination
In the wake of the Chairman of the Commission of Inquiry into the administration of Georgetown, Retired Justice Cecil Kennard's refusal to apologise to City Mayor Patricia Chase-Green for telling her to "shut up and listen", the women's arm of the People's National Congress Reform (PNCR). The National Congress of Women (NCW) made it clear that it was not commenting ...Read More »
EPA probes alleged noise pollution from Teleperformance's generators
Residents of a section of Robb Street, Georgetown on Tuesday night complained to inspectors of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that a very loud humming sound from generators at Teleperformance call centre was disturbing them from resting. The EPA inspectors used noise meters to conduct almost four-hour long tests outside the Teleperformance building and the neighbourhood, in response to concerns ...Read More »
Colombian facing extradition to US from Jamaica previously held in Guyana in connection with cocaine vessels
Former Head of Guyana's Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU), James Singh says one of the men held in Jamaica on a United States (US) arrest warrant for alleged drug trafficking had been previously held in Guyana during the search of a vessel for cocaine which had eventually triggered a Commission of Inquiry. Current top CANU officials have said the detention of the ...Read More »


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So, I've been completely freelance a year in January, so I thought now was a good time to pass on some of the knowledge I've gained from the journey. I'm not going to claim to be an expert on the subject of being freelance as I've continuing to learn myself, but I often get asked questions about being freelance so thought it would be good to give some advise on the areas that I've been asked about most often.
Why go freelance?
I've always wanted my own business and flexibility with working hours, so that's why I went freelance and it's the flexibility that keeps me going. After over six years of working a variety of normal jobs with normal working hours and locations I learnt that it didn't work for me due to some health issues that often make it difficult for me to thrive in these situations.
I don't know what the reasons are for other people, but for me I would definitely say that going freelance can allow you to have a better work/life balance and flexibility to pursue things that make you happy.
When can I go freelance?
In theory, anyone can be freelance at anytime. However, I think the reason it worked for me is because I already had strong experience in the industry I was pursuing (four years working in digital marketing for some huge brands) so I could prove that I had the knowledge and experience to get work done on my own too. Going freelance worked for me too because I have a good network of people in the industry who recommend me for work and think of me when they need someone, it was working in the industry, attending industry events and being active on social media that helped me gain this network.
I think it's also wise to research your chosen industry thoroughly before making the jump too, ensure that you're going into a field where there is a need for your services. I'm fortunate that I've got a wide range of marketing skills I can offer so I'm not super specialised. I can see that people who specialise purely in social media might start to struggling in coming months as so many companies start to take this in house, so think about the longevity of what you want to pursue too.
So, my advise would be that for success in starting freelance you need to have some experience in your chosen field and a strong network who will help support and promote you. You can't go freelance until you know you've definitely got some sources of work coming for you! When I was thinking of going freelance I downloaded Emma Cossey's e-book and that really helped me get on track.
What hours do I work as a freelancer?
Obviously, this varies depending on what you're doing and who you're working for, but for me my work hours are pretty flexible now. For my biggest client I need to be available on emails within normal office hours, but I can check these on the go so it's not a major constraint. With doing community management for social media it's 24/7 keeping an eye on things, but again it's flexible because I can do it whenever and wherever.
To sum up, hours really vary but generally for me I don't find that I'm working any more than I would if I was in an office environment, I just have the benefit of being able to work around my personal life and have flexibility when I need it.
How much should you charge?
This is the number one question I get asked and again it really varies on what you're offering. Generally my rule is that you need to work out what salary you would be on if you were in a 'normal' job and use that as a basis for working out your hourly rate/project rate. I have some projects that I charge an hourly rate for and keep a log of what hours I spend on a project and then bill the client according to that, but more commonly I have projects that are charged a set fee for completing a pre-agreed set of work, this is still worked out based on how many hours I think it'll take, but often it's not spot on, so take this into account.
When working out your fees, you also need to take into account that you will be paying a tax bill at the end of each financial year and will have higher living costs if you're working from home (you'll use more electric/heating…etc.) If you need a guide on how much to charge I find the Salary Checker on Brand Republic a great source for checking salaries for jobs within the media.
Before going freelance it's really important to make sure you can afford to go freelance too, as it's not a guaranteed income source like a 'normal' job make sure you do a budget of what you need to earn as a minimum and ensure you have a bit saved up just in case!
How does tax work for freelancers?
This is my most hated part of being freelance as I'm generally shit with admin and money things. Basically, you have to declare what you earn to HMRC each financial year and then they send you a tax bill you have to pay. You can also claim tax back on work expenses such as stationary, phone bills, internet…etc. I'm about to do this for the first time via an accountant, so I'll let you know how this goes. I've found Rosie Slosek a really awesome sources of basic information if you need more knowledge. The main thing to remember is that when you go freelance you need to register as self employed with HMRC, they will send you a letter with a code that allows you to login online and then you can go from there. If you want to hire an accountant it seems a reasonable price to expect to pay for this help will be about £300 per tax year, which is pretty worth it if you ask me!
How do I find freelance work?
As I've mentioned before, this is all about your personal network, the more good connections you have in your industry the more chances you will have to pick up work via people recommending you. If you're interested in doing freelance contract work, where you just go an work a 'normal' job for a pre-agree period of time (anything from a week to a year!) you can find these via recruiters and job boards. If you want to do some small, odd jobs you can use sites like People Per Hour and Gumtree to locate these kinds of opportunities.
For me, everything comes through recommendations and social media, making sure your LinkedIn is looking top notch always helps! I've also been very fortunate to work for a couple of awesome agencies as a freelancer, which means I'm always on their mind when something new comes up that they need help with.
The negatives of being freelance…
A lot of people tell me I'm so lucky being my own boss and yes, this is true. But being freelance doesn't come without its downsides and these may not be for everyone. Here's my little list of things that aren't so great about being freelance…
- You have to do your own taxes and it's really not fun and easy!
- You don't have holiday allocation, so you have to organise your work and money around anything that you want to take and I've not experienced how this works yet.
- You have to pay for everything yourself, so if your computer breaks you have to replace it, so it's wise to always have a bit of money to one side for these kinds of emergencies.
- Working from home is full of distractions and probs not too healthy, so make sure you make time to get away from the office.
- You're on your own, most of the time for me this is a good thing, but I've definitely noticed a dip in social activity now I'm out of a 'normal' job so it's extra important to make time to be socialable whether that be within your industry or just with friends.
- Although you can contract your work, some smaller jobs aren't secured with contracts which means you could loose that work at anytime, so you don't have the job security you would in a 'normal' job.
I'm sure there are a few more, if you can think of any, let me know in the comments below!
Overall, I'm glad I went freelance, it was definitely the right thing for me. What I would say is that it isn't going to be the right thing for everyone and there's a lot to think about before you take the leap. I think I'll be self employed as my main income for the rest of my life, but I'm sure it won't be just doing the same thing, being freelance gives me more time to explore other options and have time to be creative again, I'm definitely happier now.
I think I've covered the main things there, if you've got a question leave me a comment or drop me a tweet @JayneKitsch and I'll do my best to answer.
@wearefoodscouts & @KitschInc. Digital Marketing & Creative Direction. Illustration, writing, creativity & style. Fan of films, TV, cartoons, colourful hair & clean beauty. Blogger since 2009.
2 thoughts on "My Tips for Going Freelance"
This is such an honest and well written piece, Jayne and thank you so much for the mention and recommendation.
Tax isn't fun or easy but understanding your money and being clear on it is important if you aren't going to waste a lot of that quality of life you went freelance for in the first place. Getting stressed because you put it off and don't understand isn't good for anyone. Hence why i am a big fan of cake with your tax 😉
If you're a newbie freelancer, or wanting to start freelancing, I have a lot of information on my blog and free resources you can download. I guarantee it's not boring (may include kittens, unicorns and cake).
Can I mention this post in next week's newsletter, Jayne and use a pic of you?

subset: commoncrawl


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School Buses Go Back-to-School with Propane Service
As the kids prepare to head back to the bus stop this month, school bus fleets are heading back to school in style with a greener, cleaner fuel alternative. From Nebraska to Connecticut, many school districts across the country are ditching diesel and opting for eco-friendly propane fuel instead. School systems are looking for meaningful ways to save money and improve their impact on the environment. Propane service's efficiency, reliability and affordability make propane-fueled school buses a growing choice for such demanding, high-mileage routes. Propane vehicles provide a range of low-emission and cost-effective alternatives for public school transportation.
Here are a few benefits of powering your school bus fleet with propane by ThompsonGas:
- Reduced fleet maintenance costs and increased engine life
- Reduced greenhouse gas emissions, nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and particulate emissions in comparison to bus fleets fueled by gasoline
- Promotes environmentally-friendly practices to students, teachers and the community because of their high visibility
- Supports the use of domestically produced fuel, decreasing reliance on foreign imports
- Simple, often onsite, refueling process
- Cost-effective development of onsite refueling infrastructure
- Tax exemptions and credits of 50 cents per every gallon of propane sold
- Lower fuel costs than diesel-fueled alternatives
From start to propane, ThompsonGas is with you every step of the way to ensure your school bus fleet program is constantly achieving its maximum cost and environmental benefits. For more information or to power your school buses now with propane, click here to contact the propane suppliers at ThompsonGas.


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I have many software robots that scan for responses to what I write. Most come directly to me. Some do not like this one at this one at Seeking Alpha:
Merkel's reasons are, to be blunt, stupid.
Voss Capital is long Nintendo, Avid and Extreme Networks despite "Software bubble"
Voss Capital's Voss Value Fund was up 19.91% for the third quarter, while the firm's Voss Value Offshore Fund was up 19.88%. Both funds are now in the green for this year after erasing the damage that was done in March. Year to date, the Voss Value Fund is up 2.41%, while the Voss Value Read More
1: Its too crowded and there is too much competition: While his goals may be to outperform many of us just want to build wealth.
2: Too much information: Just ignore the stuff that is unimportant. More information the better it certainly beats how things were decades ago.
3: "We are in a macroeconomic environment where we are delevering. That is not the best environment for making money"
For someone claiming 20 years of experience that is incredible naive.
First, we build wealth in competition with others, and the competition has grown, not shrunk. The anomalies the allowed smaller investors to prosper are for the most part well-known. Whether they are over-fished is another matter. I think that previously profitable strategies still have value to the degree that they are ignored as no longer valuable.
Second, yes there is way too much noise, and I even create some of it. Yes, I try to filter the information I receive, but I receive a ton of it, and filters are not perfect. Please tell me how to construct a perfect filter, because mine are imperfect. If we could create perfect filters we would be very, very rich, unlike me and the commenter.
Third, I don't get the last comment, except that the person does not understand that periods where lending is expanding usually offers the highest returns for risk assets. Presently we are contracting.
If I am naive, it is that I am an idealist. I want better economic policy, and see lousy governance at the Fed, Treasury, and State levels. As a result, on average, I see low real returns for assets over the next 5-10 years, unless policy changes dramatically.


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If you are part of a local charitable organization or group hosting an event or holding a raffle / auction looking for donation items, the Americans can help!
We ask you to please keep the following guidelines in mind when submitting a request:
- Requests for autographed memorabilia will be considered for charitable purposes only. Due to the quantity of requests we receive, we are only able to assist those charities in our area.
- All requests must be submitted on letterhead if possible.
- To insure timely processing and delivery, requests must be received at least 1 week prior to your event and all donations will need to picked up by a representative of the organization, business or charity.
- Requests must contain the nature of the event, date of the event, a complete mailing address of the organization, contact name and phone number.
- We are happy to supply the memorabilia to be autographed. Items sent to be autographed will be returned unsigned. We can not be held responsible for any items sent to our offices.
Following the above guidelines, please fill out the form below or call us at 972-912-1000 with any questions.
We commend and wish you the best of luck in your fund-raising efforts.


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President Bush says he has a clear strategy for the future of Iraq. Mr. Bush laid out his plan at a time when U.S. public opinion polls show falling support for his handling of the situation in Iraq.
President Bush says U.S. troops in Iraq are not only fighting insurgents but are also battling to make life better for the Iraqi people.
"America's task in Iraq is not only to defeat an enemy, it is to give strength to a friend - a free, representative government that serves its people and fights on their behalf," he says. "And the sooner this goal is achieved, the sooner our job will be done."
Mr. Bush, speaking at the U.S. Army's war college in Pennsylvania, said that there are five steps to help Iraq achieve democracy and freedom: handing power to a sovereign government, establishing security, rebuilding infrastructure, encouraging more international support and moving toward national elections.
The first step is the scheduled June 30 hand-over of power which Mr. Bush says will follow the outlines of U.N. special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi. That calls for a president, two vice presidents, and a prime minister leading to a cabinet with 26 ministers who will be advised by a national council chosen by Iraqis.
To help establish security, the president says U.S. troops will remain in Iraq under U.S. command as part of a multinational force that he hopes will be authorized by the United Nations. Iraqi security forces under Iraqi civilian control will be part of what Mr. Bush calls a strong partnership in defense of two competing visions for Iraq's future.
"History is moving, and it will tend toward hope, or tend toward tragedy," he said. "Our terrorist enemies have a vision that guides and explains all their varied acts of murder."
The president says U.S. troops are also guided by a vision to advance freedom in the Middle East and win what he calls this hard-won ground for the realm of liberty.
Mr. Bush says Washington will continue to rebuild the country's infrastructure with more than $20 billion worth of development projects.
With the approval of Iraqi's new government, Mr. Bush says America will build a new maximum security prison and demolish the notorious Abu Ghraib prison, where Saddam Hussein tortured political opponents and U.S. troops abused Iraqi prisoners. "That same prison became a symbol of disgraceful conduct by a few American troops who dishonored our country and disregarded our values," said Mr. Bush.
The president called for stronger international support for Iraq with a new U.S.-British-sponsored resolution at the United Nations that supports a new interim government and encourages U.N. members to join the reconstruction. That resolution faces doubts at the U.N. about how much sovereignty a new Iraqi government will have with more than 130,000 U.S. troops in the country.
Wrapping-up the president's plans for Iraq is a timetable for free elections by next January where Iraqis will choose a transitional national assembly to name a transitional government and draft a new constitution.
The president's speech comes at an important time for both Iraq's transition - which is five weeks away - and hopes for his own re-election this November. The speech was broadcast by the major American cable news channels but not by the more widely-watched commercial networks.
The White House did not specifically ask those networks to carry the speech as it did not include dramatically new information, but the president's political team hopes the address will shore-up falling poll numbers.
Less than half of Americans approve of the president's overall job performance according to the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll. On Iraq, his numbers were at a personal low, with 58 percent of those polled disapproving of his handling of the situation in Iraq. Fifty-seven percent disapprove of the way he is handling the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. That is up 22 points from earlier this month.
Nearly two-thirds of Americans say the United States has gotten bogged down in Iraq with just 38 percent saying they see significant progress toward establishing a democratic government there.


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5 November 2008 04:18:22 Campus Hiring
Responsibilities include:
- Understanding basic banking operations and investment products
- Keeping updated with the general market and economic movements
- Initiating client contact through phone and appointments
- Identifying clients' needs and managing their portfolio
- Building a network of clients and maintaining relationship with them
Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate would be a passionate hard-working individual who meets the following requirements:
- Male or female within 21 – 26 years old
- S1 degree of any major (nearly graduating students who are preparing their final paper are also eligible to apply)
- GPA min 2.75
- Pleasant appearance and personality
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills
- Excellent command of English is a plus
- Able to work effectively both as an individual or in a team
- Willingness to learn
- Great ambition for success
Opportunity for growth and career advancement is widely available in our institution, and we are looking for capable individuals to fill up the positions. We also offer a very attractive incentive scheme which will ensure that your effort is rightly rewarded.
Interested candidates please submit your CV to the email address below, according to the office location you wish to be placed. Please send your application to one office location only :
(Alumni Service Unit, Unit V 1st Floor), no later than Nov 7th, 2008.
Test/Selection: Nov 11th, 2008, at Auditorium ABFII Perbanas (8.00am onwards)


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Protests Close Some Japanese Shops in China
Anti-Japanese protests spread from Beijing to Guangzhou, as the territorial dispute between China and Japan escalates. The WSJ's Brian Spegele tells us why the Chinese government is allowing protesters to take to the streets.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... the the ... angry protesters in China ... ransacked Japanese isn't this is as the territorial dispute between Japan and China Escalates ... I'm Deborah con and giant now by reporter Brian Spegele from Bejing ... okay Brian ... Brahman and seeing that in soo long Dale were hearing reports about these protests ... I knew you were out one in Bejing over the weekend just how bad is the getting on the ground ... well over the weekend as you said orders to place across China's largest anti Japanese demonstrations ... since nineteen seventy two ... according to Japanese diplomats here of but the court without an ageing they remain relatively peaceful ... aam on Saturday and Sunday ... nonetheless crowd were Play raucous ... about state three to four thousand people there ... at the Japanese embassy ... on Saturday ... elsewhere in China were hearing reports of of of more significant violence Persepolis city of Changsha ... payout ... a Japanese retail center was was was of was ransacked ... and a large fire was outside of it ... of all elsewhere and that in the country were seeing the pictures and hearing reports of a smashed an overturned Japanese vehicles pain including Chinese police vehicles made by Japanese car brands ... many of those who have the report did inside China and that that did the government is not really tolerant and protests but it seems like ... on there being quite homered with the game and that it is is such a national estate issue ... said any sense and whether or not the government is actually be high-end I'm any of these protests ... what's up is exactly what the role that the government is playing in the ... certainly over the course of decades on the Chinese government has allowed its Tehran media the Varin encouraging stay red media ... anti Japanese rhetoric of some inner west from the scene in state run newspapers as well as on the ... official broadcaster slick CCTV ... at the same time however ... there is a feeder for Beijing that by allowing these protests I'm to continue into ... the spiral out of control ... people who are otherwise dissatisfied with this idea with the government ... could use this issue to piggyback on and and and and have their voices heard some it's quite in the government and ... certainly a reason we're seeing such ... a high police presence on Beijing's streets today ... I didn't ask you about that and the how much police presence there is an act actually did it does and doesn't feel like the government is in control of the situation or ... do these potentially Africa de escalate even further ... Linde AG known to please present it is indeed incredibly tightened around the Japanese embassy ... our roads are closed off top so bicycle and vehicle traffic ... however they are allowing people to to to enter into the direct the reader roads around the embassy ... with that said you know there's hundreds if not thousands of ... police many of them in riot gear basically creating a human shield ... of protection of the Japanese Embassy ... to the US embassy is just around the corner and then from the Japanese embassy in Beijing ... and on the roads have also ... been closed off tall tall traffic and well ... of course there is that the Conservatives could escalate further ... it seemed that though authorities in Beijing have things under control for the moment ... Afghanis talk to Annie and Japanese businesses on the ground or be in Japanese citizens living in China and are they fearful on right now ... getting back into the general unease about um um um among Japanese businesses that we speak with present fluent in Beijing and many Japanese restaurants are closed for chick lit knows that better near two ... meters to the Japanese embassy ... for example there that are posted and protesters on the weekend pasted signs ... on the doors of those restaurants that say things like ... exterminate to a Japanese dawn Aurora little taste of Japanese and Chinese flags that the doors of those restaurants actions I there's ... just a very clear David B deep seated ... mistrust ... and resentment in many ways in China of of of of of Japan ... a K and I miss a this issue isn't gonna go way any time seeing things pray much Brian training us from Beijing ... for that star am more will go to Daddy you as stay dot com I'm Deborah con for The Wall Street Journal digital network ...


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redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports – Your Universe Online
The uncanny ability of geckos to adhere to nearly any surface and even walk on ceilings is the result of a biological mechanism in their toes that the lizards can instantly turn on or off, according to new research appearing in the latest edition of the Journal of Applied Physics.
Geckos, along with spiders and some insects, appear to defy gravity with the way they are able to scale walls and cling to high surfaces, the Oregon State University researchers explained. This unique skill, it turns out, is the result of tiny branched hairs on the bottom of their feet known as "seta" that can be activated or deactivated at a moment's notice.
These seta allow geckos to run at great speeds, evade predators and keep themselves alive – all without expending any extra energy. The new study examines the mechanics behind this unique adhesion system, which evolved independently in geckos, spiders and insects and has been around for several millions years, they added.
"Since the time of the ancient Greeks, people have wondered how geckos are able to stick to walls – even Archimedes is known to have pondered this problem," study co-author and assistant professor of engineering Alex Greaney explained in a statement Tuesday. "It was only very recently, in 2000, that Kellar Autumn and colleagues proved unequivocally that geckos stick using van der Waals forces."
According to Stefan Sirucek of National Geographic, the van der Waals forces occur when electrons in one atom generate a magnetic field that stimulates and attracts the electrons in a second, neighboring atom. This phenomenon allows the gecko to use a system known as "dry adhesion" in order to attach to surfaces.
While van der Waals forces are the weakest type of interatomic forces there are, Greaney explained that geckos "are able to take advantage of them because of a remarkable system of branched hairs called 'seta' on their toes. These seta and their hierarchy can deform to make intimate contact with even very rough surfaces – resulting in millions of contact points that each are able to carry a small load."
Greaney added that the angle and flexibility of the seta also play an important role in the adhesive process, which expends a minimal amount of energy. In fact, geckos are capable of darting across a ceiling with millions of seta on their feet becoming sticky as needed. The process which allows them to run at speeds of 20 body-lengths per second, and the forces provided by these foot-based hairs could support 50 times the geckos' own bodyweight.
"Understanding the subtleties of the process for switching stickiness on and off is groundbreaking," he said. "By using mathematical modeling, we've found a simple, but ingenious, mechanism allows the gecko to switch back and forth between being sticky or not. Geckos' feet are by default nonsticky, and this stickiness is activated through application of a small shear force. Gecko adhesion can be thought of as the opposite of friction."
"What's amazing is just how finely balanced and finely tuned this whole system is. We understand it at one level, and as we learn more and more about it, it turns out there's a really subtle interplay of things going on," Greaney, who co-authored the paper along with Congcong Hu of the OSU Computational Materials Research Group, told Sirucek.
While the seta have already served as the inspiration for robots capable of scaling walls, space-age adhesive materials and other types of technology, the researchers believe that their work will actually improve upon the design of tools based on the reliable suction produced by gecko feet, added Washington Post reporter Rachel Feltman.
Shop Amazon – Hot New Releases – Updated Every Hour
Secrets Behind Gecko's Amazing Adhesive Skills Revealed In New Study
redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports – Your Universe Online


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BISC209/F13: Lab2
- 1 LAB 2: Enumerating Microbial Members & Isolating Bacterial Members of a Soil Community
- 2 Abundance Test 1: Finishing the Standard Plate Count
- 3 Abundance Test 2: Enumeration of Community Soil Microorganisms by Direct Count of Microbial DNA Stained & Viewed by Fluorescence Microscopy
- 4 Compare and Contrast
- 5 RICHNESS OF A MICROBIAL SOIL COMMUNITY: Culturing a few Bacteria from a Soil Community to examine structural diversity
- 7 Assignment
- 8 Links to Labs
LAB 2: Enumerating Microbial Members & Isolating Bacterial Members of a Soil Community
Today you will complete your first investigative goal in our semester long project: assessing abundance of a soil microbial community by enumerating its microbes by two methods, one culture dependent and one culture independent. Today you will also continue acquiring and practicing skills used by working microbiologists. The results of the fluorescent DNA stain are available and your plate counts are ready to assess. In addition, you will continue to isolate a few bacteria of interest from your soil community in order to show evidence for richness (diversity) and potential for co-operative and competitive behaviors among community members. Next week we will begin testing the whole soil microbial community : a culture-dependent assessment of carbon source utilization diversity.
Abundance Test 1: Finishing the Standard Plate Count
Last week you started a standard plate count of the culturable microbes in your soil sample on dilute nutrient agar. Today you will complete that plate count to get one kind of enumeration of the microorganisms in your soil community.
Calculating the number of colony forming units (CFU) per gram of soil
Examine the plates at each dilution and find one dilution with between 30 and 300 colonies. You will not assess plates with well over 300 colonies or under 30; they should be designated as "invalid" in your lab notebook. Count all the surface and subsurface colonies on the replicate valid plates (those with 30-300 colonies). The colonies can be more easily counted by using a Quebec Colony Counter which allows proper illumination, a grid overlay, and slight magnification of the plate surface. (There are two colony counters in the lab.) divide the total number of colonies counted by the amount of inoculum plated times the dilution factor of that plate to obtain the number of bacteria per gram of soil.
number CFU/(dilution plated*dilution factor) = number of CFU/gram
For example, if you counted 150 colonies on the 10-6 plate the calculation is:
150/(0.1ml inoculum*1X10-6dilution)= 150X107 which in scientific notation is written as 1.5X109 CFU/gram
Record the number of CFU/ gram of wet soil in your lab notebook and enter your data on the course spreadsheet on the instructor's computer at the front of the lab. Calculate the average and standard deviation for all the plates from your sample site. Note that this number is the average colony forming units/gram WET soil for your sample site.
Soil bacteria are usually not recorded as number of colony forming units (CFU) in 1 gram of WET soil but instead as per gram of DRY weight. Therefore, you will need to figure out your counts as DRY weight. Please weigh each of the three 1 gram samples that you left last week for oven drying. Average the new dry weights. The weights should be considerably less than 1 gram.
Determine the % change in soil weight by subtracting the average dry weight from 1 g wet weight divided by the wet weight, then times 100.
[(wet weight - dry weight)/wet weight] * 100 = % change
Use this % change to convert the CFU per gram wet soil to CFU per gram dry soil. For example: If your dry weight soil averages 0.75 grams, then (1g-0.75g)/1g * (100) = 25% change. The number of microbes should be 25% higher than the number calculated above/gram of wet weight. Calculate 25% (or whatever your conversion factor is) of your CFUs and add that number to the CFUs/ gram of wet weight soil.
Record the number of CFU/ gram DRY weight soil in your lab notebook and add this information to the chalk board. If you are unsure of the accuracy of your calculations of CFUs per gram of wet soil weight and per gram of dry weight, check with your instructor. You will need accurate counts for some of our future testing.
Things to Consider:
Why did we perform so many dilutions when we set up our plate count in Lab 1?
Why should you have only one dilution with 30-300 colonies?
Why did we make up to 4 replicates per site? Do you expect the results of this enumeration of soil microbes in your community to be the same, lower, or higher than the results of our other enumeration test (the DAPI DNA stain)? Why?
Don't discard any plates yet.
Abundance Test 2: Enumeration of Community Soil Microorganisms by Direct Count of Microbial DNA Stained & Viewed by Fluorescence Microscopy
You can directly count a random sample of microbes from the soil extract that you prepared last week and then extrapolate the number per gram of soil. To make the microbes easier to count, you stained the nucleic acids of your soil community microbes (not just the bacteria) with a fluorescent 4'-6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) DNA stain. All the microbes in a 1ml aliquot of the 1% soil extract that you prepared last week were transferred in a Poisson distribution to a small piece of filter paper. Your instructor photographed the discreet bright "spots" of fluorescent DNA in several different areas of the filter paper distribution using fluorescence microscropy. You will each count the discreet "spots" (individual microorganisms = one fluorescent genome/cell) and perform the calculations described below to assess the total microbial concentration in this culture-independent enumeration of your soil community's microorganisms.
The area of each field of view at 1000X using the Fluorescent scope is 10487 μmeters2. The area is determined for the microscope used, in our case, a NIKON 80i fluorescent microscope. The diameter of the filterable section of the borosilicate apparatus is 17 mm (8500 μmeter radius). Therefore, the area is 2.28 X 108 μmeter2. Multiply the number of microorganisms counted on the photomicrograph by a factor of 2.17X104 (2.28 X 108μm2 divided by 1.0487 x 104μmeters2) to determine the number of organisms found in 1mL of filtrate of extract. Then correct for the 1:100 dilution factor of filtrate which is the number of organisms in 1 gram of wet soil. Convert this to the number of organisms in the community in 1 gram of dry weight soil.
After each person has collected their data, post the numbers to the class spread sheet and, of course, enter all calculations in your lab notebook. Record these numbers in scientific notation.
Adapted from Schallenberg, M., Jacob, F. and Joseph B. R. (1989) Solutions to Problems in Enumerating Sediment Bacteria by direct counts. Applied & Environmental Microbiology. p. 1214-1219.
Compare and Contrast
In your notebook, write out the numbers for both enumeration methods with no decimals or exponents. Contrast the two counts that, in theory, should be the same since we are using two methods to figure out the same thing: how many microbes per gram comprise your soil community. Both answers provide evidence for one of our investigative goals: abundance of microorganisms in your soil community. What does it mean if your two experimental methods don't give the same answer?
Consider the relative insignificance of one gram of anything and the enormity of the number of microbes that thrive in a gram of soil! How is it possible that each of the microbial members of such a soil community can find a niche, obtain all the nutrients needed to grow and reproduce, and contribute to overall health of the soil and to the community of microorganisms?
Now that we have some sense of the abundance of microbes in a soil community we can move on to investigating the richness (diversity) and the co-operative and competitive behaviors that maintain it.
Culturing a few Bacteria from a Soil Community to examine structural diversity
Using General Purpose Media for Isolation of Soil Bacteria in a Mixed Population
Please watch the YouTube video on streaking for isolation and pay attention to your instructor's demonstration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyoW18Fzb3o
Directions for Streaking for Isolation are found in the Protocols section of this wiki.
We hope that you have thousands of bacterial colonies on the dilute NA plates that you set up last week for your colony enumeration. You and your partners should share these plates to find interesting bacteria that you would like to study. Your goal is that each student ends up with two pure cultures of bacteria that are different from your classmates. Look for colonies that are different in color, texture, size, or other characteristics. We want to avoid isolating fungi so avoid black, or fuzzy growth that looks like mold. Check with your instructor after you and your partners have each selected a few colonies to attempt to isolate. You can circle the colony and put your initials and an id code on the plastic bottom on the plate to indicate the colonies you've chosen. Draw a simple sketch of the plate and indicate the location of the colony you selected in the sketch. Describe the selected colony in your lab notebook. Use descriptive words for the color (white, cream, yellow, pink), consistency (wet, milky, buttery, powdery, etc.), and shape (round with smooth edges, flat with spreading edges) to describe each colony. When you are ready to sub-culture them, get NA plates from the supply area (one per colony) and follow the directions for streaking for isolation described below. You cannot assume that any of these colonies are from the growth of only one organism, your job over the next few weeks is to separate one organism from the others until you have a pure culture of only one bacterium.
Streaking for Isolation from Solid Medium to Solid Medium:
You can find the steps for Streaking for Isolation in the Protocols section of this wiki.
Your instructor will demonstrate this technique. Practice it carefully and you will not contaminate your plates with organisms found on your hands or in the air.
- Label the recipient plate on the bottom (NOT the lid!).
- Flame your loop, let it cool a few seconds.
- Remove or tilt the lid of the donor agar plate with your non-dominant hand but keep the lid in your hand (don't put the lid down on the bench!). With your dominant hand holding the flamed and cooled loop, touch the loop to an interesting colony of bacteria that you want to study and pick up a TINY amount of the colony. Avoid touching other bacterial colonies.
- Close the lid of the donor plate.
- TIlt the lid of a new sterile plate of solid medium (in this case it will be Nutrient Agar) with your non-dominant hand so that it is partially open. Do not put the lid down on the bench; keep it in your hand! Touch the loop with the bacteria to the surface of the agar in an area near the periphery of the plate and gently glide the loop over the innoculum to spread it over a small area of the plate called Section 1 as shown in the illustration below. Do not gouge the agar! Replace the lid.
- Flame your loop and let it cool for a few seconds.
- Tilt the lid of the plate so it is partially open and drag your loop once or twice through the area you have just innoculated (section 1) and spread the innoculum you picked up across the surface of a new section of the plate. This section is called Section 2.
- Flame and cool your loop.
- Repeat to streak sections 3 and 4 by dragging your loop through the last section innoculated once or twice and then to a new area of the plate. Replace the lid.
- Invert and incubate the plate at RT.
- Check your plate for colonies frequently and record your descriptions of the texture and shape of the colonies that appear. Look for changes from the original description of the colony you selected and notice the time (24 hours, 48 hours, 72 hours) needed for you to see visible growth.
Figure A-2: Two options for aseptic transfer into a plate. (a) Streaking a plate while holding the lid ajar. Note that the lid shields the agar from airborne contamination: (b) streaking a plate while holding the bottom of the plate. Note that the agar surface faces downward, thereby minimizing contamination from the air.
Figure A-3: Pattern for isolation streaking section 1 of a plate.
Figure A-4: Illustration of isolation streak technique section 1 to section 2.
Figure A-5: An example of growth 24-72 hours after isolation streaking a plate to obtain isolated colonies.
Over the next few weeks you will continue to sub-culture onto new plates, using your best isolation streak technique. Your goal is to continue to streak out ONE CFU until you are sure that all the bacterial growth in a colony comes from a single mother cell (pure culture). In subsequent labs you will make a bacterial smear and do a stain these genetically identical bacteria and you will perform other tests from freshly pure cultures to explore the physical and metabolic characteristics of this isolate.
Some bacteria often form tough leathery colonies, so transfer of these bacteria to new media to start a sub-culture is sometimes difficult. The powdery area may be spores, which would be interesting to visualize later. To isolate spore formers try to "break off" a piece of the colony with your sterile loop or with a sterile toothpick and transfer that whole piece of a colony onto zone one of the new plate. Then use your loop for streaking out the other zones. The tiny spores on the surface of the colony are likely to transfer to the next plate or tube when you work with it. (That's a good thing this time.)
This process of transferring a single well isolated colony to new solid medium will continue until you succeed in isolating two different bacteria to pure culture. Our goal as a course is to find a diverse group of interesting soil bacteria .
1. All culture plates that you are finished with should be discarded in the big orange autoclave bag near the sink next to the instructor table. Ask your instructor whether or not to save stock cultures and plates with organisms that are provided.
2. Culture plates, stocks, etc. that you are not finished with should be labeled on a piece of your your team color tape. Place the labeled cultures in your lab section's designated lab area at room temperature (RT), the walk-in 30°C room, or the walk in cold room. Place any tubes in a labeled rack. If you have a stack of plates, wrap a piece of your team color tape around the whole stack and label it with your initials and the date.
3. Remove tape from all liquid cultures in glass tubes. Then place the glass tubes with caps in racks by the sink near the instructor's table. Do not discard the contents of the tubes.
4. Glass slides or disposable glass tubes can be discarded in the glass disposal box.
5. Make sure all contaminated, plastic, disposable, serologic pipets and used contaminated micropipet tips are in the small orange autoclave bag sitting in the plastic container on your bench.
6. If you used the microscope, clean the lenses of the microscope with lens paper, being very careful NOT to get oil residue on any of the objectives other than the oil immersion 100x objective. Move the lowest power objective into the locked viewing position, turn off the light source, wind the power cord, and cover the microscope with its dust cover before replacing the microscope in the cabinet.
7. If you used it, rinse your staining tray and leave it upside down on paper towels next to your sink.
8. Turn off the gas and remove the tube from the nozzle. Place your bunsen burner and tube in your large drawer.
9. Place all your equipment (loop, striker, sharpie, etc) including your microfuge rack, your micropipets and your micropipet tips in your small or large drawer.
10. Move your notebook and lab manual so that you can disinfect your bench thoroughly.
11. Take off your lab coat and store it in the blue cabinet with your microscope.
12. Wash your hands.
13. See you next time!
Graded Assignment:
Assignment 20 points: Enumeration Results: Design, Data, and Analysis. Instructions: Colony Count & Cell Count Enumeration
Do before next lab:
1. Someone from your team must go to your sample site and collect a new soil sample as you did in Lab 1. On the day of Lab 3, BEFORE lab begins, stop by the lab to pick up a plastic bag containing materials for collecting a new soil sample from your sampling site. This time your group will only need enough soil to fill half of a sterile, 15ml, orange capped, conical tube. Make sure you get the sample for THE SAME sampling site as your original sample. Again avoid the top few millimeters of surface soil and wear gloves to avoid contaminating the sample with bacteria from your skin. You probably won't need to use the corer; a disinfected metal spatula or even a spoon should work fine. Bring your new soil sample to lab with you and please be on time.
2. Goal for Cultured Bacteria Isolation: Obtain pure cultures of a variety of interesting bacteria in a soil community
One goal in this project is for your group to end up with pure cultures of 2 unique soil bacteria per student. Work with your partners over the next several weeks so that you each choose different looking bacterial colonies to isolate to pure culture. Your goal is for each team member's subset to be unique and for the whole group sample to be as diverse as possible.
Note that isolation of desired bacteria from mixed culture is challenging. Your best technical and organizational skills are required. You will be expected to come in outside of lab time, on your own, to start, continue or complete the process of isolating to pure culture. We will make every attempt to make the media and reagents that you require available when you need them, but that availability requires advance planning on your part as well as on ours. Communicating your needs or desires well in advance of time of use, will reduce frustration and speed up the process. Remember that because this is an investigative, project based lab course, your instructors do not know the identity of the bacteria you are culturing from your soil habitat. The success of this project is in your hands.
Links to Labs
Lab 1
Lab 2
Lab 3
Lab 4
Lab 5
Lab 6
Lab 7
Lab 8
Lab 9
Lab 10


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Black Bean Kale Burger
Fantastic meatless burgers packed full of flavor and easy to prepare!
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 packed cup Olivia's Organics Baby Kale - chopped
- 1 (15.5oz) can black beans - rinsed and drained
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup cooked corn kernels
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
- 2 tablespoons plus 1/4 cup cornmeal or polenta
- Salt and pepper - to taste
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a sauté pan and add the kale. Cook until wilted. Set aside to cool.
- In a food processor or blender, process half of the black beans with the egg and place the blended mixture into a large bowl. To the bowl, add the other half of whole beans, corn, pecans, pepper jack cheese, 2 tablespoons cornmeal, salt, pepper and sautéed kale. Incorporate mixture well and shape into 4 patties.
- Spread the 1/4 cup cornmeal on a plate and lightly coat the burgers with cornmeal on each side to cover.
- Refrigerate the patties for 20 minutes to set.
- Cook the patties in a heated large sauté pan with 2 tablespoons olive oil until browned on both sides, approximately 5 minutes.
- Serve with lettuce, tomato and avocado on a whole wheat roll.


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SAN BERNARDINO: Symphony Guild presents Bach to Boots
The San Bernardino Symphony Guild presents Bach to Boots
Grab your Stetson and denim and head for the San Bernardino Symphony Guild's third annual "Bach to Boots" fundraiser scheduled for 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 23 at the Old Glen Ranch 369 Lytle Creek Road, Lytle Creek.
"This event is all about keeping music in our community and supporting music education in our local schools," said event chairperson Carrie Schmidt. "It will be a fun-filled summer evening out at the ranch with hay rides, a real chuck wagon steak dinner, great entertainment, and a fabulous dessert dash. This is a one of a kind event you won't want to miss!"
The western-themed event will start with ranch tours and hayrides. A gourmet chuck wagon begins at 6 p.m. and features steaks, ranch beans, and all the fixins. Swing West, a Western swing and country music band, will set the stage for an evening of dancing, and our dance instructor will help you sharpen up your two-step.
Live and silent auctions begin at 7 p.m. and include a sailing weekend, Mammoth vacation getaway, Carlsbad beach condo getaway, a gourmet dinner for eight, a vintage tour of old Hollywood theatres, fabulous art piece by famed artist Charles Wysocki, and much more. There will also be an opportunity drawing and a chance to help sponsor student scholarships.
The evening will surely be the most fun you've ever had with your boots on!
Tickets are $75 per person. Sponsorship opportunities, beginning at $250 are also currently available.
For more information, or to purchase tickets, contact Carrie Schmidt at email@example.com, (909) 534-2693 or visit www.sanbernardinosymphony.org.


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Mechanical Watches
Automatic Watches
A personalized watch
Initium supplies the finest quality components for you to build your watch, the same ones that are used by the region's foremost watch manufacturers; names that are renowned the world over.
Make your choice
Give your Swiss watch the style you want, thanks to the vast assortment of movements, cases, dials, hands and straps that Initium has selected. Initium's professional staff will advise you on the class that matches your wishes.


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Halloween Costumes for Trios!
Aileen Trujillo, Staff
October 9, 2020
Have you been stressing out of even thinking about what you and your friends will mess up as? We'll I got the solution for you! Today I will be listing 5 different costumes you and your friends can where! The first costume up is the three blind mice. This is an easy fun costume you can where with y...
Halloween Movie Playlist
DeAsiah Ball, Chief Editor
September 24, 2018
September 2nd is the official of the beginning of autumn in the 2018 year. With that being said, the most celebrated holiday is coming: Halloween. As the years go on and people get older, they seem to stay in more handing out candy or even just sitting around with a bowl of candy to eat for themselves...
Fall Season is here!!!
Nicholas Gamez, Staff
November 9, 2017
It is official lobos the fall season is here. Grab your jackets and get prepared to watch the green turn yellow. Leaves will fall and the temperature will drop. Fall season is when Arizona finally gets cold. People all over campus are excited about the fall season and are ready to get a break from the...
Daniela Medina, Staff
October 13, 2017
Trunk or treat is an annual event here at La Joya. Trunk or treat is an event for the community. Little kids dress up and trick or treat in the parking lot. Clubs and sports teams hand out candy. Trunk or treat is Wednesday October 25. From 4-6pm. Mrs. Saco is the teacher for STUGO and they're in charge...
Fear farm
Liliana Sanchez, Copy Editor
October 9, 2017
It is October and that time of the year has come once again. The season is filled with fresh air and a great time to get scared. Fear Farm has officially opened for the season and is already attracting many to the scene. Many people who come out to Fear farm every year, can experience all the attractions...
Trunk or Treat!!
Jazmine Page, Staff
October 24, 2016
Are you very excited for Trunk or Treat? Well, if so, it is coming very soon, like right around the corner. Wednesday, October 26, 2016 is the day, at 4pm – 6pm, in the student parking lot. Come out and join us in some frightening fun by dressing up in your favorite or scary costume. Don't have ...
Culture Appropri-What??
October 31, 2015
Remember that time your uncle Ben thought it would be funny to dress up as a Mexican in a sombrero and poncho for Halloween? He probably thought it was funny and harmless, but as it turns out, it's much more damaging than what he might have thought. Cultural appropriation is "a sociological conce...
DIY costumes for Halloween
October 29, 2015
Do you want to have a cool costume but it's too late to shop for Halloween? Here are some costumes you can make from stuff just laying around your house. Mime Supplies: Black and white cream make up, Black and white shirt A red cloth of some sort Black pants and a hat (optional) ...
October 11, 2015
Are you looking to do something this October for the Halloween season? Do you enjoy Halloween décor and scare-tastic events? What about the zoo? Well, add all that together and you get Howl-O-Ween at the Phoenix Zoo! This October, the Phoenix Zoo is throwing their annual Howl-O-Ween event on the 23rd a...
Arizona's Scariest Event: Fear Farm
Dasey Berrueta and Jesus Solano
October 8, 2015
Are you looking for something to do over fall break, maybe even on Halloween night? Will you make it out safely? Find out, head to Fear Farm before it's gone, if you dare. It can be the time of your life. Located at 2209 N. 99th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85037. This year they offer five different horrific...


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One demonstration of lazy evaluation in a programming language is to create an infinitely long list containing the Fibonacci sequence, defined recursively as the concatenation of two lists:
The canonical example code in Haskell is:
memcached is a small executable program. In the most idiomatic deployment, it listens for TCP connections on port 11211. Clients that connect have access to read and write a single in-memory hashtable with short (up to 250 byte) binary keys and longer (up to 1 megabyte) binary values. Clients use a simple text based protocol to store values in the hashtable by key, or get them by key.
memcached makes no guarantees about how long it will store a key/value pair. If you store a key/value, it may or not be there later when you attempt to retrieve it.
Security is often thought of as a level of risk to "assets". An asset is anything of value, like a password, 1000 hours of CPU time, the ability to execute software on a machine, customer credit card numbers, employee Social Security Numbers, etc. A "vulnerability" can be thought of as weaknesses that an attacker who already has access to assets X1, X2, X3, ... can exploit to gain access to new assets Y1, Y2.
Some code to calculate the <key> elements needed to get Gephi to import the labels for nodes and edges exported by neo4j
To start the neo4j docker image with neo4j-shell enabled, run:
docker run \ --publish=7474:7474 --publish=7687:7687 \ --volume=$HOME/neo4j/data:/data \ neo4j sh -c "cd /var/lib/neo4j; sed -i -e 's/#dbms.shell/dbms.shell/g' conf/neo4j.conf; curl http://dist.neo4j.org/jexp/shell/neo4j-shell-tools_3.0.1.zip -o neo4j-shell-tools.zip; unzip -o neo4j-shell-tools.zip -d lib; /docker-entrypoint.sh neo4j"
To rebase all local branches on upstream/master in git:
BASEBRANCH=upstream/mastergit for-each-ref --shell --format="git rebase $BASEBRANCH %(refname:short)" refs/heads/ | sh -x
BASEBRANCH=upstream/mastergit for-each-ref --shell --format="git rebase $BASEBRANCH %(refname:short)" refs/heads/ | sh -x
To display SSL/TLS certificate information about a web server from the command line:
showcert() { HOSTNAME="$1" : | openssl s_client -showcerts -servername "$HOSTNAME" -connect "$HOSTNAME":443 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -inform pem -noout -text }
showcert() { HOSTNAME="$1" : | openssl s_client -showcerts -servername "$HOSTNAME" -connect "$HOSTNAME":443 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -inform pem -noout -text }
Then, call this function with the hostname you want to check, like:
showcert example.com
showcert example.com
(Last updated: API version 2.0.0)
Coder classes in Beam encapsulate the functionality of serializing and deserializing the values that you might find in a PCollection. Every PCollection has a Coder class associated with it, either because it was set explicitly, or inferred from the type of the values in the PCollection.
To get the default Coder for a given type, you can call:
Beam exposes a State API
that lets DoFn classes read and write arbitrary state that
persists across individual stream elements. The DoFn classes
need to be of type DoFn<KV<Key, Value>, ?> and
a separate state will be maintained for each distinct value of Key.
For example here is a DoFn that maintains a separate counter
for each distinct integer key in its input PCollection:
DoFn<KV<Key, Value>, ?>
The actor model, functional programming (including both Map Reduce flavor and Haskell streaming flavor) and materialized views seem to be merging together and producing love children that the cool kids are calling reactive programming and the "kappa" architecture.
This talk about Apache Samza had an insight was new to me -- that you could conceptually think of your video memory in your graphics card as


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28th Anniversary of Salmco Technik GmbH
SALMCO Technik GmbH was founded in 1984 by
Dipl.-Ing. Johann Glösmann in Hamburg, Germany.
It is 28 years ago now that Salmco has placed its first salmon slicer on the market.
Today we offer cold and fresh slicers with a wide range of capacities and options which ad
dress the requirements of small family-run companies as well as those of large industrial operations.
Johann Glösmann
Hamburg-based Salmco Technik is worldwide the only company that produces both cold and fresh slicers for salmon and other kinds of fish. Under the management of its owner Johann Glösmann and his team the company is versatile in other ways, too: Salmco has two further areas of activity in the form of comprehensive consultancy and in the development of complete custom-made solutions for individual companies.
The product range offers everything from simple hand slicers to semi- and fully automatic cold slicers and various fresh slicers. The company offers different solutions for different requirements: a specially modified cold slicer combined with a vacuum packaging machine for the complete production of 200g packages for instance; or the newly developed fresh slicer SM 5290 which uses a variable 15° to 90° cutting angle to produce the 'bacon cut' particularly popular in the USA. By cutting the salmon fillet into three pieces and placing these crosswise on the conveyor belt this machine can also be used to produce rectangular slices for the catering sector. Small alterations to the machines are sufficient to adapt them to processing species of fish other than salmon, too.
The Salmco slicers range from small to middle to large-sized so customers may choose machines to perfectly fit their own production lines. Some producers prefer to have various smaller units in order to achieve a higher level of flexibility. It is a way of reducing risk since - should a machine need down-time - it doesn't mean the whole production-line comes to a standstill.
Salmco is active in three areas: the standard range of slicers, the development and combination of customer-oriented machines as well as complete processing lines and, finally, the comprehensive international consultancy.
The SM 5290 cuts regular, portion and sashimi (sushi) at angles
between 15° to 90°.
Newest application in 2009: Slicing of cold smoked duck breast and
cold/hot smoked chicken breast.
The mostly minor alterations to the standard machines lead inevitably to the second area of activity, the development of individual solutions and complete processing lines. Salmco combines its own fish slicers with machines from other manufacturers whose quality is known and proven and then bear full technical responsibility for the whole line.
Even emergency power generators have been supplied to customers based in regions with an unreliable electricity supply as
part of some projects. The company's international knowledge and
experience in the construction of such processing lines make
Salmco the most competent consultant in fish processing matters.
The SALMCO - Team
Salmco exports to more than 60 countries throughout the world. The company maintains various agencies and, in some countries, cooperation partners.
For, in places like Australia, it may take days for a spare part or even a service technician to arrive from Germany. That is why it is so important to us that, in spite of the high level of humidity/moisture exposure in the working environment within the fish industry and in addition to the high mechanical demands made on the machines involved, there should be no break-downs in the first place. And this means that the machines have to be extremely robust, easy to operate and easy to clean.
Salmco therefore sets great store in fully stainless-steel design, clear operator control panels with only a few keys and easy accessibility and exchange of all parts of the machines.
Application of this philosophy of total quality has made Salmco successful in the market since its foundation in 1984 and has earned the company an excellent international reputation.
Salmco Technik GmbH Tel.0049 40 713 14 72
Ihr E-Mail


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Saturday, April 7, 2012
Spicy Chorizo with Chickpeas on Toast
2 comments :
Yum, yum! No, you are not the only stockpiler. I bring back carob chips from my travels. And cream of tartar. And I want to get some rennet next time I leave Hong Kong, so I can try making cheese at home.ReplyDelete
Thanks for the validation, Sarah! After reading "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" I planned a cheese making binge, ordering all kinds of things from the recommended source http://www.cheesemaking.com/ because we were living in Singapore and I had access to a goat farm and fresh goats' milk. Right when I got back from the summer holidays with my goodies, we were transferred to Kuala Lumpur and my cheese making plans never materialized. One thing I do make, when given the opportunity, is fresh goat cheese. So simple and delicious. http://www.foodlustpeoplelove.com/2011/07/zucchini-flowers-stuffed-with-fresh.htmlReplyDelete


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There are few areas in the country better to own a motorcycle than South Florida. With the great year-round weather, it's the perfect place to get out on the open road. Whether you are cruising down A1A or taking a long road trip, Miami-Dade and Broward motorcycle owners have plenty of options. While motorcycles are fun to ride, they also extremely dangerous. Because drivers are exposed, they face a far greater risk of suffering catastrophic injuries than those involved in car accidents. If you have been injured in a motorcycle accident due to the negligence others, it is important to seek representation from the right personal injury attorney.
Not All Accidents Are The Same
One of the biggest mistakes motorcycle accident victims make is choosing the wrong attorney. Contrary to popular belief, motorcycle and car accidents are not the same. It is vital to choose an experienced and knowledgeable motorcycle accident attorney with an extensive track record of handling these types of accident. Here are some of the reasons why motorcycle accidents are different.
- Motorcycle accident victims tend to suffer more serious injuries
- Insurance companies tend to be biased against motorcycle owners
- Jurors are required to have basic knowledge of motorcycles
- Unfair prejudice against motorcycle owners
Protecting the Rights of Motorcycle Accident Victims Against Bias
Most people who own motorcycles are responsible people who obey the rules of the road. Unfortunately, there is a stereotype that motorcycle riders engage in reckless behavior and driving habits. It not only affects the way accident victims are perceived, is also affects their insurance coverage. Choosing a jury can also be a challenge. Most jurors do not have any experience riding motorcycles. Many have built-in biases against those who own motorcycles.
The sad reality is motorcycle accident victims tend to suffer far more serious injuries than those in car accidents. Just one accident can result in life-changing catastrophic injuries which require permanent medical attention and treatment. Insurance companies are also aware of biases against motorcycle owner and often take advantage of their policyholders. One common tactic is to deny policyholders compensation if they are partially responsible for the accident.
Why You Need a Motorcycle Accident Attorney
When dealing with these biases, it is important to have a personal injury attorney that understands the challenges and obstacles facing motorcycle owners. Motorcycle accident attorneys are also more familiar with Florida laws that specifically deal with these types of motor vehicle accidents.
Have You Been Injured a Motorcycle Accident? Contact Cooper City Personal Injury Attorney Bradley S. Hartman, P.A. For a Free Initial Consultation
When choosing a motorcycle accident attorney, it is important to have complete peace of mind that your lawyer is fighting for the compensation you deserve. For more than 30 years, Cooper City personal injury attorney Bradley S. Hartman has been defending the rights of accident victims. He and his legal team utilize a personable and comprehensive approach to help place accident victims in the best position to succeed. If you have been in an accident caused by the negligence of others, contact the Law Offices of Bradley S. Hartman, P.A. in Cooper City and schedule a free initial consultation to discuss your case.


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The economy continued to expand from late November through the end of the year, according to the Federal Reserve Board's latest report on regional economies (known as the "beige book"). Most Federal Reserve districts reported a modest to moderate rate of growth. Employment growth was modest, as labor market tightness spanning skills and sectors constrained gains in some cases. Modest wage growth continued, but some districts saw an increase in the breadth of industries and positions with rising wages. Staffing activity increased in some districts.
View interactive Beige Book summaries by district, focused on employment, wages, and the staffing industry, at americanstaffing.net/federal-reserve-beige-book.
To learn more about research by the American Staffing Association, visit americanstaffing.net/staffing-research-data. You can also follow ASA on Twitter.
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About the American Staffing Association
The American Staffing Association is the voice of the U.S. staffing, recruiting, and workforce solutions industry. ASA and its state affiliates advance the interests of the industry across all sectors through advocacy, research, education, and the promotion of high standards of legal, ethical, and professional practices. For more information about ASA, visit americanstaffing.net.


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A competitive economy fuelled by innovation is the ambition of many nations today -- developed and developing alike.
But is there a formula for creating an environment in which innovation and entrepreneurialism is fostered and rewarded, generating sustainable jobs and propelling national prosperity?
Looking to demonstrate the answer is Dr. Hayat Sindi, a medical scientist of growing global renown who founded and leads the Institute for Imagination and Ingenuity (i2institute.org) in her homeland, Saudi Arabia.
She is also one of 26 members of the UN Secretary-General's Scientific Advisory Board and was appointed this year by the SG to a 10-member group supporting technological facilitation of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.
Her insights and advice now contribute also to Malaysia's unique "kitchen cabinet" of 51 national and international sustainable development advisers, the Global Science and Innovation Advisory Council.
According to Dr. Sindi, shortages of entrepreneurialism in the developing world generally comes down to a handful of reasons:
- A lack of formal business skills among scientists and engineers
- Culturally intrinsic fear of failure
- Too few potential investors to provide the necessary capital and fewer still willing to finance science-based ventures.
Through fellowships, trainings and mentorships, her i2 Institute seeks to empower and inspire the next generation of innovators and support innovative ideas in four critical areas -- energy, water, health, and the environment -- and cites five factors for success:
- The quality of the business idea
- Unique approaches tailored to regional needs
- Role models and mentorship to build business skills and confidence, and to form bridges to investors
- A strong support network
- Excellence in delivery
Another essential ingredient for entrepreneurial success, says Dr. Sindi: A passion to improve people's lives. While financial rewards often result, personal gain cannot be the driver behind innovation. Needed are agents social change in both the science and business realms.
"That is what drives me to conduct science: Seeing the needs of people and wanting to make life better for them," Dr. Sindi says. "Science was born to solve problems and with talent and vision we can solve any problem that faces us."
"Every innovation started with a need," she says. "Listen to the voices of the developing world. Give people the tools and confidence to meet their own needs. Poor doesn't mean stupid."
Practicality and simplicity are essential, she adds. Though she was personally inspired by Marie Curie, Ibn Al-Haitham and other great scientists who changed the world, "the i2 Institute is not looking to create another Einstein."
"Children in the developing world need clean water, for example. People need electricity in order to work and study. How can we provide these where they are needed in more creative, adaptive and affordable ways?"
Of critical importance, says Dr. Sindi: Impressing on children an understanding and appreciation of how science and technology can improve lives, and to impress on national leaders the imperative to invest in S&T at appropriate levels.
Educated at King's College London, Cambridge, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Harvard Business School, Dr. Sindi overcame long odds to become the first female from the Gulf to earn a PhD in biotechnology. In addition to her institute, she is co-founder of Diagnostics For All, creating novel, affordable point-of-care diagnostic tools for impoverished people.
Dr. Sindi notes that after her scientific training, "the experience that changed my life forever" came in business school, learning "how to talk to investors, how to tell my story, how to assess how many people and which collaborators I need to succeed, and who my competitors will be."
"My dream is that i2 will make stories like mine less exceptional and more possible for every young innovator."
Among those joining Dr. Sindi as a new international member of Malaysia's Global Science and Innovation Advisory Council: The Honourable Deborah L. Wince-Smith, an expert on economic, science and technology policy and President of the Washington DC-based Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC).
Chaired by Prime Minister Najib Razak, GSIAC's mandate is to help Malaysia identify and pursue sustainable means for achieving high income status by 2020.
Secretary of the Council is Prof. Zakri Abdul Hamid, the PM's Science Advisor and, like Dr. Sindi, one of 26 members of the UN Secretary-General's Science Advisory Board.
The converging revolutions expected to drive future productivity and prosperity
According to Ms. Wince-Smith: "The fields of digital technology, precision agriculture, genetics and new materials are all experiencing revolutions, and their convergence is going to create new services and industries we can't yet imagine. These extremely disruptive new industries will impact national wealth, jobs and global security on a massive scale."
Her organization, the Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils, is a global network of leaders from competitiveness councils around the world. The GFCC shares best practices among councils and creates a network of global leaders committed to their national prosperity and the prosperity of the world.
She says the physical and digital worlds are merging as evidence by, for example, ubiquitous sensors, self-driving vehicles, and futuristic robots, such as the machine teaching itself to be a firefighter on US navy ships.
In agriculture, a smarter approach to management of the entire supply chain will help eliminate waste "from farm to fork," offering the opportunity for many to transition from food scarcity to food abundance and high nutrition, she says.
Nanotechnology and synthetic biology -- already a $1 trillion global industry -- is producing materials and products with profoundly important new characteristics.
Ms. Wince-Smith urges nations to direct their innovation capacity to next generation manufacturing, saying that the USA learned a hard lesson when it failed to invest sufficiently to compete successfully in flat panel display manufacturing.
"The old view of manufacturing was based on the four "Ds": dirty, dumb, dangerous and disappearing," she says. "But technology advances are replacing that view with four "Ss": smart, safe, sustainable and surging."
Malaysia, she adds, has strong competitive advantages in the form of an open economy in a dynamic world region, in its agricultural and palm industries, and in the presence of large scale global manufacturers, including such giant tech companies as INTEL and Dell. She urges Malaysia to quickly promote next-generation manufacturing.
In its 2016 Global Manufacturing Competitiveness Index (GMCI), the U.S. Council on Competitiveness - of which Wince-Smith is president and CEO-- predicted that by 2020, Malaysia, India, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam (MITI-V or "Mighty Five") would rank among the top 15 nations in the index. The MITI-V represent a "New China" in terms of low-cost labor, agile manufacturing capabilities, favorable demographic profiles, market and economic growth.
The Index, published in partnership with Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (DTTL) and created from a survey of over 500 leading corporate executives worldwide, ranks Malaysia 17th among the world's top 40 nations and forecasts a rise to 13th place by 2020, by which time the USA will replace China as the most competitive manufacturing nation, with Germany a solid third.
More about Hayat Sindi
- Appointed a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for the Sciences (2012)
- One of the first women appointed to the Saudi Arabia's highest consultative body, the Shura Council
- With a team at Harvard, co-founded the non-profit Diagnostics For All organization to create innovative, inexpensive, point-of-care diagnostic devices for people in impoverished regions. These devices require no power, water or trained doctors
- Invented a machine combining the effects of light and ultra-sound for use in biotechnology
- Named by Newsweek one of "150 Women Who Shake the World" (2012) and by Forbes as number 2 the most powerful Arab woman Saudi Arabia
More about The Hon. Deborah L. Wince-Smith
- President & CEO of the Council on Competitiveness, a unique coalition of leading CEOs, university presidents, national lab directors and labor union leaders that puts forth actionable public policy solutions to make America more competitive in the global marketplace
- An internationally renowned, leading voice on competitiveness, innovation strategy, science and technology, and international economic policy.
- Initiated a widely acknowledged bilateral competitiveness partnership between the United States and Brazil, co-creating a model for collaboration, "The Innovation Learning Laboratory," and convening the 2007, 2010, and 2013 U.S.-Brazil CEO Innovation Summits.
- Spearheaded the groundbreaking 2004 National Innovation Initiative (NII) that played a pivotal role in creating a reinvigorated U.S. competitiveness movement and shaped the bipartisan America Competes Act.
The GSIAC Secretariat is hosted by the Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (http://www.


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The Terminal Date for Equitable Distribution
Why is the terminal date for equitable distribution so important?
In many divorce cases a critical important issue is when is the "cut off" date for equitable distribution. This basically means at what point in time are the marital assets counted to determine equitable distribution. In many marriages the parties stay separated for a very long time before one spouse eventually files for a divorce. In other divorces the case may take years to finalize. In many cases the value of the marital assets may increase or decrease substantially from the date of separation or date when the complaint is filed until the divorce is finalized. The value of mutual funds or stocks may increase or decrease substantially once the parties separate or when the divorce complaint is filed. Moreover, the value of real estate also may fluctuate substantially. Finally, credit card debts are also accumulated during the separation period or the time period when the divorce is being litigated. Given these considerations the terminal date or "cut off" to determine equitable distribution is critically important.
What is the bright line rule to determine the "cut off" date for equitable distribution purposes?
The bright line rule is that date when the divorce complaint is filed is the "cut off" date to determine what marital assets will be eligible for equitable distribution. The seminal case on this area is Painter v. Painter, 65 N.J. 196 (1974). In this New Jersey Supreme Court case the court adopted a bright line rule. The Painter court held that property will be eligible for equitable distribution only up until the date of the complaint is filed. Therefore, any property obtained after the "cut off" is exempt from equitable distribution.
Are there any exceptions to the bright line rule established by the Painter decision?
Yes. Perhaps the most annoying aspect of family law to many people is that it is so confusing. There are very few areas of family law where there are hard fast answers. In my view the answers to many family law issues are constantly in the "grey area." There are exceptions to every rule and to every case. Many clients are utterly baffled as to how inconsistent the field of family law can be. It is important to note that the Painter decision does indicate that there can be some deviations from the bright line rule that the "cut off" date is when the complaint is filed. An important section of the Painter holding provides as follows:
We are under no illusion that what we have said above will provide certain and ready answers to all questions which may arise as to whether particular property is eligible for distribution. We have sought only to implement the legislative intent, as we discern it, by settling forth what we believe should be the general governing rules. Individually problems must be solved, as they arise, within the context of particular cases. Id. at 218.
What are some other important cases that have addressed the issue of the terminal date to determine equitable distribution?
Navigate: Home States New Jersey Divorce Source New Jersey Divorce Articles, News and Resources Property Division The Terminal Date for Equitable Distribution
In order for permanent alimony to be awarded in New Jersey, the marriage must have lasted at least 10 years and one spouse must have become economically dependent on the other. This type of alimony allows the obligee to maintain the lifestyle to which he or she has become accustomed for the duration of the obligor's lifetime (unless the obligee remarries).
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Mathematical modelling of programmatic screening strategies for latent tuberculosis infection in countries with low tuberculosis incidence
Elimination of tuberculosis (TB) requires the management of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in key populations. Thus, people with LTBI need to be diagnosed and treated with appropriate regimens. It is unknown how different screening and treatment strategies of key populations affect TB transmission and progress toward elimination.


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Postponed Israel-U.S. Drill to be Held in October
The report said that the decision to hold the exercise in October was reached late on Thursday night, after lengthy discussions between defense officials.
The "Austere Challenge 12" drill, which is designed to improve defense systems and cooperation between the U.S. and Israeli forces, was postponed on January 15 for what Israel said was "technical" reasons.
Ma'ariv reporte that the postponement was initiated by Israel and was agreed upon by the Americans. After the drill was postponed, the report said, security officials denied that the postponement was linked to economic reasons and suggested that "at this time of year we should not attract attention and prepare for complex challenges" which lay ahead.
Ma'ariv also noted that in preparation for the drill, U.S. military officers will arrive in Israel next week. About 3,000 U.S. soldiers are expected to arrive in Israel to take part in the large-scale exercise, the report said, and they will be joined by about 2,000 IDF soldiers.
I am not a military person, so don't take my word for it: but nine months needed to prepare a drill planned for days ago? Something is not quite kosher here.
October is almost a year away. That means U.S. troops will be stationed on Israeli soil until then, will even add to their numbers, including officers arriving in the next few days, "to prepare for the drill".
Not to mention the contract for Triple Canopy which is going on till September 2012. Not to mention Dyncorp's steady presence too.
What this means is MASSIVE U.S. troops, both official and off the record, are here to stay through the fall.
So, what are they really here for? Good question, I would say.
Sounds like an invasion to me, but on the other hand let's not forget this too:
If they are here because of Iran, then why wait till October for the 'largest-ever anti-missile exercise"? I thought the Iranian danger was imminent, at least as far as Israel is concerned. Obviously the U.S. and Israel will not do a joint drill against Iran until the fall, on the other hand Israel sees Iran as an imminent danger; and yet massive U.S. troops are here to stay. So why are they staying here, what is their purpose? Is this disinformation? Or are they here "just in case" because of the Strait of Hormuz? Deterrence only? But then why so many? Alternatively, against which other major enemy would they be needed here: for an invasion of Syria? Against Egypt? Or against Am Yisrael, against us???
Your thoughts welcome.
Shabbat Shalom


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Creating messages and distributing those messages to your audience will only effect so much change. There are certain intangible influences that will moderate how much change you will see. These include securing community buy-in, causing shifts in language, generating buzz, and stretching the finite dollars.
As you will recall, when we started our social norms project, we had the backing of the community and university. We involved members of the community in our Action Team and in our social norms project, and we have included them in our evaluations and successes. We hold annual stakeholder meetings that give us the opportunity to show where we are being successful and to gain feedback that might increase the effects of our future campaigns. By being inclusive rather than exclusive, not only have we gained invaluable advice from the community, but we have also come to mutual understandings about the goals and outcomes of our program.
This mutual understanding has allowed us to shift the language surrounding our alcohol campaigns. Many campaigns focus on stigmatizing harmful behavior. For example, we have all seen ads that provide us with statistics such as "Every 30 minutes someone is killed by a drunk driver." In many ways, ads such as those normalize drunk driving by making it seem that drunk driving is far more prevalent than it is. Our ads instead focus on the actual norms. For example, one of our ads states, "74 percent choose not to drive after drinking, even if they have only one drink." By securing community buy-in, shifts in language become community wide, standardizing the messages that are sent out. These standardized messages should cause more change than a diverse group of messages sent by different entities.
In addition to securing community buy-in and shifting the language, we have also attempted to generate buzz surrounding our program. We create press releases that emphasize the progress we are making and maintain the consistent shifts in language. Many times newspapers and news stories sensationalize the outcomes of a few bad decisions by a few individuals. Our releases, however, focus on the progress we are making overall and the many good decisions made by the majority of students.