text: The savvy Evernote user knows that templates are essential to recapturing time, minimizing mistakes, creating systems, and scaling their business. Whether you are looking for ideas on how to apply templates to your business, or are stuck in Evernote "template trepidation" this session is for you. You'll walk away with a new ideas on how to systematize your business by learning the details you need to create, deploy and use the power of templates in your Evernote account.


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|Home > Toxicity assessment of pollutants sorbed on microplastics using various bioassays on two fish cell lines
Microplastics are tiny plastic fragments resulted from runoff and weathering breakdown of larger plastics debris. They represent an emerging concern for marine ecosystems. Microplastics impacts on aquatic life are little studied. These small particles could be ingested directly by organisms and cause chronic physical and toxicological effects. Moreover, microplastics are the support for a lot of chemicals present in aquatic environment, especially hydrophobic substances. The aims of this study is to investigate toxicity of environmental microplastics samples collected during the Race for Water Odyssey in fish cell lines. A difference of sensitivity was observed between fish cell lines. Preliminary results obtained here support that RTLW-1 could be an interesting tool to evaluate the potential chemical toxicity of microplastics and sorbed pollutants. Toxicity of extracts from MP collected worldwide suggests a biological impact?

subset: commoncrawl


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POLL: Back to Brunette! Which of Demi Lovato's 'Dos Do You Prefer?
Demi Lovato's going back to her roots — literally. After changing up her already-dyed red locks to a way lighter 'do earlier this year, then debuting an even-more-shocking look during the X Factor premieres, D.Lo showed off her more-natural brunette hair during the live TXF performances last night. Although we've gotten used to the bottled blonde by now, we're loving the dramatic switch. But it's not about us; choose your favorite in the poll below, then tell us any of your other Demi-related opinions in the comments or on our Demi Lovato message board!


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Skye McQuarry's heart belongs to one man -- Primrose Creek's lumber baron, Jake Vigil. After a shattering heartbreak in his past, Jake vowed to never again take a chance on love -- until he came to know beautiful Skye. But their delicate bond faces the ultimate test when a business deal threatens to tear them apart -- and battle lines are drawn between two passionate hearts.
Skye is determined to stand her ground. Then a surprise from Jake's past unexpectedly comes to her -- a discovery that may be just the key to unlocking the true, deep, and trusting love that she knows lives deep within Jake Vigil.
Be sure to read all of Linda Lael Miller's splendid Primrose Creek novels!


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AceShowbiz - Pink's brand new song "Blow Me (One Last Kiss)" has hit the web. It came out a year after she gave birth to her first daughter Willow Sage. It's confirmed to be included in her upcoming studio album which is yet to be titled.
"I wrote it with Greg Kurstin and we had an incredible time," she once said. "Willow played bells and bass on a couple of other songs." She added, "I think you are going to like because I really like it and I like it enough for all of us. See ya soon."
It's been 4 years since Pink released a CD with all new materials. The mother of one last dropped such album, "Funhouse", in 2008 before following it up in 2010 with "Greatest Hits... So Far!!!" which boasted three new tracks.
The leaked song reportedly is not a final version.


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The simplest program that can do this is DVD Shrink. You can select to take out perhaps unwanted commentary, or other unwanted audio streams.
Homepage: http://www.dvdshrink.org/
Guide: http://www.mrbass.org/dvdshrink/
I collect untouched DVD's to my hard drive. Sometimes I would like to cut some extra stuff (like credits) out of the stream. Now, I need to do this without re-encoding the WHOLE thing to minimize quality loss. And I also need to fade in/out the audio. Can anyone point me to this kind of software? I've been searching the net for ages, but there doesn't seem to be an editor that supports .vob files. :(


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Case Study: CCH
Maximizing the benefits of a collaborative e-Learning development platform for courseware conversion.
CCH, a part of Wolters Kluwer Law & Business, is a leading provider of research products and software solutions in key specialty areas for legal and business professionals. CCH has set the standard for research, compliance and reimbursement information for healthcare professionals, including attorneys, for over 50 years.
Challenge: Proprietary LMS, Unhappy User Experience
Several years ago CCH, in conjunction with a leading professional services firm, produced a product line of over 100 healthcare compliance-focused e-Learning courses. With the increase in use of online training particularly in large healthcare organizations, the format seemed just what the market needed. The courses were created and offered through a proprietary web-based LMS (learning management system). It wasn't long before CCH learned potential clients were not satisfied with the bundled approach (the courses required use of the proprietary LMS), sales were sluggish, and market research ensued.
Solution: Content Conversion, Collaborative Authorware, Browser-Based Delivery
CCH turned to CourseAvenue for several reasons.
CourseAvenue's collaborative authoring environment provided the type of development platform necessary for the quick conversion of 100+ courses. The conversion process consisted of exporting the content from the old system, importing this content into >CourseAvenue Studio, and finally, reformatting, styling and branding. CourseAvenue's fully hosted, browser-based platform allowed for a group of contributors to set course structure, edit and format text, place graphics, and conduct quality control measures simultaneously, from around the world. Professionals from several offices in the Chicago area along with another in Delhi were all working on the courses at the same time. CourseAvenue's collaborative development environment was instrumental in ensuring that CCH's timeframe for conversion could be met.
CCH management was impressed with CourseAvenue's hybrid e-Learning course customization capabilities which allow clients to customize specific portions of the course, creating an individual "look and feel" to match an organization's branding. And since CourseAvenue allows for simple publication to any major standards-based (SCORM/AICC) LMS, organizations can now purchase the courses for use directly on their own learning system. All the courses' source files are now hosted on CourseAvenue's browser-based platform, therefore CCH has the ability to review and update the courses on their own as content changes and within their timeframes and schedules.
Lastly, CourseAvenue provided CCH with an exciting distribution channel for their newly converted compliance courseware. Through joint marketing agreements, several leading e-Learning courseware distributors have chosen to add the healthcare compliance courseware to their online course offerings, taking advantage of CourseAvenue's simple syndication process.
Conclusion: CourseAvenue Software and Services
As a major publisher of healthcare compliance content, CCH needed a multi-faceted e-Learning company to assist in getting their courses out to the healthcare market. CourseAvenue, as a platform, as a conversion service provider, and as a distribution channel, was exactly what CCH was looking for.


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The purpose of this application was to consolidate a customer's Call Center process that required a dozen+ keystrokes and mouse clicks to enter data into 6+ different GP windows. Dynamics GP does a good job of handling most business processes but not always as efficiently as you might like. In this case, the Call Center regularly enters & receives new GP Field Service Series RMAs, creates Depot Management Workorders, and generates SOP Quotes to record transactions for after sales services offered to their customers. A key pain point for them was their time per call which impacts customer satisfaction and the ability of the organization to scale with call volume.
While working through their upgrade to GP 10 this customer made the decision to build new screens and integrations that will streamline and automate the data entry process to record a new RMA, create a Workorder, and ultimately quote the service for the customer. We chose to use the Visual Studio Toolkit to build the new user interfaces (Screen shot below). A key result is that the Call Center now only enters data into 1 window, down from 6+, and as few as 5 fields, down from a dozen+. The time required to process this data is down to only a few seconds. Now, customers will be happier with their increased service levels and the organization can scale with existing headcount as call volume rises; both critical during these tough economic times.
With their new After Sales Service Entry window the Call Center is able to leverage native GP lookup windows for Equipment, RMA Reason Codes, Items, and Customers and standard drill back functionality to view/edit data in GP such as Customers, Addresses, and Workorders. Information from various screens and data that was not previously as readily accessible (Workorder History) is now consolidated in a single user interface. With only 3 fields for which data is required to be entered after selecting the Equipment Record for which the RMA/Workorder needs to be generated new RMAs and Workorders are generated with a single click of a button.
Mariano has been and will likely continue to write about many of the concepts I applied to build this form. He's just getting started and I plan to learn much more from him. I'll continue to follow his series and hope to complement him with supplementary commentary, sample code, and such using this project as the business case.
Thanks to Steve Gray at 4Penny.net and his Visual Studio Tools Forum for helping through a couple of hurdles and Shane Hall at Axiom Business Software Solutions for the design work.


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Almost everybody has a smartphone with GPS 10 Fun Outdoor Games to Play Using GPS-Enabled Smartphones 10 Fun Outdoor Games to Play Using GPS-Enabled Smartphones Using the GPS functionality that's built into all modern smartphones, you can now walk out the door and start exploring the world -- and make a fun game out of it. Read More these days, but they're still sorely underused when it comes to creative days out of the house. If you're a geek looking to impress a date with your creativity, passion for life and cool tools, then using your GPS to liven things up could be the answer.
If you have no idea what the words geocache, waymark or confluence mean, take a read of this article on 10 Fun Outdoor Games To Play Using GPS Enabled Smartphones 10 Fun Outdoor Games to Play Using GPS-Enabled Smartphones 10 Fun Outdoor Games to Play Using GPS-Enabled Smartphones Using the GPS functionality that's built into all modern smartphones, you can now walk out the door and start exploring the world -- and make a fun game out of it. Read More , before you read this article. It will explain these things to you clearly, so you can make sense of these date suggestions.
1. Set Up Romantic Geocaches
A romantic geocache can easily focus on what is hidden in the cache. If you're hiding things for your date deliberately, don't use publicly known caches. Make your own caches and note the locations in your favourite application (e.g. Treasure hunt). Maybe confuse your date by searching for a combination of public geocaches and your own prepared caches.
Hide memorable trinkets, quotes, poetry, photographs, music, a massage voucher (given by you, of course!), flowers, candles, etc. Make sure you hide things your date will want to keep or that you will both make use of during your date, like a disposable camera or tickets to a play. And don't hide anything too costly as someone else might find it first!
2. Plan A Romantic GPS Treasure Hunt
Use something like Locomatrix's Treasure Hunt application to create the perfect GPS-based day out. Also check out Waymarking, Google Maps or Localscope Localscope Is The Only Local Discovery Application You Will Ever Need [Giveaway] Localscope Is The Only Local Discovery Application You Will Ever Need [Giveaway] With Localscope -- a $1.99 iPhone app -- you can make the online world and real world become one. It allows you to use your iPhone to find all kinds of cool stuff that is... Read More to find the co-ordinates of some interesting things in your area.
For a romantic treasure hunt, it's all about where you go, what you can see and what you can do there. If you've been together a while, you can use shared memories as both clues or part of the prize.
Consider these ideas – the beach, a secluded garden, fruit picking, fancy restaurant, boat rides, hiking, view points, volunteering, planetarium, festivals, lectures, dancing, zoo, bowling, open house inspection, feeding ducks, laser tag, wine tasting, flea market, art gallery, aquarium, library, watch a band, camping, forest, mini golf, rivers, ice cream parlour, waterfalls, luxury bar, bike riding etc.
Consider mixing in some difficulty and give only vague clues to the next point you need to find. And don't forget to end your treasure hunt with a prize! (hint – the prize could be you!)
3. Go Geohashing Or Confluence Hunting With A Picnic
Here's an idea for the truly adventurous. Plan to have a picnic as close to a nearby confluence or the day's local Geohashing point as possible. You could end up anywhere, so make sure the fun is in the adventure and not the end location. Bring along some cards, balls or a frisbee to play with just to keep it interesting – and plan something in a location you know is great for later that day in case things go awry.
4. Mix It Up!
You're in charge here. You can plan your date to involve a little adventure, some romantic locations, a fabulous meal, a few romantic geocaches and some pre-planned thing to do which you will find along the way. The more variety the better!
Why not plan a treasure hunt with a picnic, or hide a picnic basket as your geocache? Perhaps a kite could be hidden in a geocache nearby to your picnic? Or maybe hide a small present for your date in a geocache after your treasure hunt has led you out to lunch at a nice restaurant?
Try to find ways to do things you both love while you're out. For instance, if you both love photography, why not try to ensure your date takes you to as many great views or interesting natural features as possible? Or if you're both into books and literature, print out some romantic poetry 7 Sites To Find Great Valentine Poems For Your Date 7 Sites To Find Great Valentine Poems For Your Date Read More and read it to each other while sitting in a boat or on the side of a hill? It's the little things that make the date!
If you're looking for more romantic date ideas (or people to have the perfect date with), check out HowAboutWe Suggest Romantic Date Ideas & Find Compatible Partners With HowAboutWe Suggest Romantic Date Ideas & Find Compatible Partners With HowAboutWe If you've ever spent any time dabbling in the online dating scene, you've probably realised that it has some huge limitations. Mostly, that it can be really hard to find someone who you're actually going... Read More . It's a great source of date inspiration, whether you're looking for someone to date or not.
What will you be doing for your next date?
Image Credits: ShutterStock, ShutterStock, ShutterStock, ShutterStock, ShutterStock
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Great article! I set up a geocache to propose to my fiancee. It was at the bench where we first kissed years before. I made her search around for a while, and waited for her to turn around while I was crouched down on one knee. She was soaked in her own tears in the middle of the small, quiet park as the sun was setting. Needless to say, it was the most slobbery kiss I have ever received. It was also the best! I surprised her with tickets to a Pink Floyd laser show, and finished the date camping in our favorite spot for the weekend.


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Welcome to Laurel Heights! Our excitingly, unique apartment homes are situated in a serene park-like setting with lavishly landscaped grounds. Laurel Heights provides spacious studios, one, and two bedroom apartment homes to suit a wide variety of needs. Here at Laurel Heights we offer you a comfortable, convenient, and tranquil living environment. Laurel Heights was designed with your comfort and convenience in mind. Lounge by the sparkling pool, hang out in the clubhouse, or barbeque in our picnic areas. All this and more can be yours at Laurel Heights!
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CHARLIEVILLE, TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO — Five years ago, as 19 al-Qaida operatives in the United States put the finishing touches on what would become the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, a frail, asthmatic computer engineer from South Florida paid a visit to this tiny Muslim enclave where he'd lived as a boy.
Adnan Gulshair Muhammad El'Shukri-Jumah, then 25, kept a low profile over the course of the week. He hung out with a small circle of devout older men who were leaders of Charlieville's Islamic community. They prayed in mosques, went fishing and enjoyed long walks and leisurely dinners, recalled one of the hosts, Imtiaz Mohammed.
El'Shukri-Jumah spoke fondly of his father, an influential Islamic scholar and Charlieville community leader two decades earlier. He also spoke of his family life in Miramar, his computer technician business and his travels to the Middle East and other exotic locales.
But El'Shukri-Jumah said nothing about why he was in Trinidad, or what his plans were, acquaintances in Charlieville say.
Two years later, the FBI put out an urgent all-points bulletin for El'Shukri-Jumah, depicting him as one of al-Qaida's most well-trained, intelligent and deadly operatives. He was described as the ultimate "sleeper agent," intent on attacking the United States, possibly with weapons of mass destruction.
Law enforcement officials and terrorism experts now believe El'Shukri-Jumah is one of a handful of young, street-smart leaders of al-Qaida handpicked by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, to keep the terrorist network alive and humming in the face of U.S.-led efforts to unravel it.
Officials concede there is much they do not know about El'Shukri-Jumah, including what he was doing in Trinidad. Within days of the alert in March 2003, agents arrived on the island looking for him, but he was long gone.
Terrorism officials inside and outside the government say they believe El'Shukri-Jumah is a major al-Qaida figure, and the hunt for him is intense, with an FBI team tracking him virtually full time. So far, their quarry has remained elusive.


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Monday, July 4, 2011
June Bugs
I over did it… as usual just because I can do something… doesn't mean I have time to! This is a tough concept for me, because really who wouldn't want to do everything?! But the last few months of spring kicked my trash. So I took care of the things I promised I'd do, and then once school was out I've spent my time playing with my kids.
Pure silly bliss!!!
I've also be slaving away in the yard. Last summer I completely neglected it. So this summer I've been paying for my lack of weeding. However it has been fabulous!
There is something magical about blossoms, earth and fresh air!
We released a bag of 2000 lady bugs into the garden a couple nights ago. To be honest I gave into my kids relentless "please…please….PLEASE" as they goggled at the bag of bugs on the counter at the nursery. I'm so glad I submitted to their begging, in fact I'm thinking it may be a nice independence weekend tradition. Ride liked the idea of it but once one of those red polka dotted beauties crawled onto her little hand she flipped! But Momo and Scooter were in crawling critter heaven.
Little blushing lady bugs…. EVERYWHERE!
After we had a dessert of frosted patriotic sugar cookies on the porch and then went through a bag of those charcoal growing and glowing snake fireworks, my kids love those messy things.
...to all of you fabulous followers, and also to all the lady bugs in my garden!
P.S. Stay tuned, I'm back playing in my studio too!!!
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Labels: motherhood
8 comments:
You are back!! I love the lady bugs. Super darling kids! :)ReplyDelete
Lovely Anj!! So nice to see your back blogging!! I have missed it and look forward to more of your gorgeous creations!ReplyDelete
Love the pic of the handful of ladybugs! I came over through a photo of yours someone pinned on Pinterest. I'm so glad I did! You have a delightful blog.ReplyDelete
Cindy at Rosehaven Cottage
Comments are like a giant blog tip jar. Not necessary, but they sure make me feel good. Thanks for your thoughts!
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Friday Fishing: Adventures in tin
On this week's fishing expedition, Gaurav Sodhi explains why one of two tin miners is worth baiting.
Metals X(MLX)
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Tell an investor that tin—the stuff of baked bean cans—is the hottest metal around and you're likely to be met with a quizzical look.
A simple utilitarian resource, tin lacks the glamour of gold or copper. But there's far less tin on planet earth than there is copper. And, thanks to chronic under-exploration, there are very few tin mines. That's not a bad starting point for a fishing expedition.
Tin is one of the world's oldest metals. Used as an alloy to strengthen copper, it was instrumental in the development of Bronze Age...
Latest Q&A With Our Experts
Metals XQ.
Hi I was interested to get your thoughts on MLX again with Nickel and Tin doing well and some very clever asset purchases for there gold portfolio from management. (well they seem clever to me be nice to get the thoughts of the experts) Cheers Read full Q&A +
Mining and the environmentQ.
In relation to your recent article "Friday Fishing: Adventures in tin", what is the environmental impact and ramifications of the 2 tin mines in Tasmania ?Read full Q&A +


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Machines began to enter homes in the 20th century, helping women to do their housework chores better and more often. This advertisement, showing a woman in a long white apron feeding clothes from an electric washing machine into a standing tub, praises weekly laundry done the electric way and shows the machine as a kind of magical tool for making less work. Mixing water and electric motors is dangerous, however, and one wonders about the safety record. Made by the Hurley Machine Company of Chicago and New York, the 1915 advertisement promises that for 2 cents an hour the "Red Electric" will do the work better and in less time than ever before.
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Disco Night Fridays22 Dec
Friday 19:00 - 01:00
Every Friday is Party Night here at The Britannia with our live D.J. playing a huge selection of music genres all night until Midnight!
Get a group together and dance the night away... you can even indulge in our Fizz Friday deal and snag yourselves a bottle of Prosecco for a discounted price of just £15!
Sorry, it looks like you've missed this event


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Over 200 students from Montana's High Schools showing how much they know about the world beyond our borders - Montana World Affairs Council Academic WorldQuest, 2/23, Missoula, Montana
Reader Comments
|February 19, 2016
|View for printing
Academic WorldQuest (AWQ) is a team game challenging competitors' knowledge of international issues in areas like geography, history, current events, culture and more. As the Montana World Affairs Council's http://www.montanaworldaffairs.org largest education initiative, AWQ began in 2005 with three teams and has grown to include almost 60 high school teams from around the state.
AWQ is an exciting 'global gauntlet' challenge engaging students in international affairs as teams compete for the opportunity to represent Montana at the national competition in Washington D.C., a trip made possible with the generous support of the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation http://www.dpwfoundation.org/ .
Teams of four high school students from any grade level put their heads together to answer 10 rounds / 10 multiple choice questions per round, on critical global issues.
This year, teams will travel to Missoula from all corners of the state, Billings, Noxon, Wolf Point, Great Falls, Gardner, Bozeman, Hot Springs, Stanford, Philipsburg, and Columbia Falls to participate in the global event.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9jSCrl35VE
The competition is held on the in the Ballroom on the 3rd floor of the University Center at the University of Montana. It begins at 4:30pm with welcome remarks from Governor Steve Bullock, Ambassador Mark Johnson, and Provost Perry Brown. Mayor John Engen will be the MC for the evening. The public is welcome to attend and try their hand at the trivia questions.
More information: http://www.montanaworldaffairs.org/a ... worldquest/
Reader Comments:
Events like this are important for Montana's future leaders especially when you see headlines like this: "Montana county takes stand against allowing in Syrian refugees"
We must help people understand that not everyone outside of our borders is bad nor are they all good. Did you know that the second largest group of refugees from Syria are Christians? Complete vetting of refugees should be followed by an open and welcoming community. We've seen this type of reaction before and it's always proven to be wrong.
How many of you have ancestors who had to fight to get into the U.S.?
Our best hope is with our children. Hopefully they will learn that the world is connected much more than ever and we need the innovation, courage and love of America that people from other lands can bring to Montana.
Congratulations to the Montana World Affairs Council for organizing events and speakers who can help us all better understand the world outside of our borders.
Now is your opportunity to join and add your voice to the discussions: http://www.montanaworldaffairs.org/
Reprinted under the Fair Use doctrine of international copyright law. Full copyright retained by the original publication. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.


text: I suppose everybody has heard about the bombs that went off throughout bangkok a few days ago. How does this affect your travel plans if you are going there soon. i will be there this time next month, and for some reason i am not the slightest bit worried. should i be?


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One of two men charged in a string of robberies was arraigned Monday morning in Toledo Municipal Court.
Dustin Werner, 25, of 2555 Castleton Ave., remained in the Lucas County jail in lieu of $330,000 bond.
He is charged with three counts of forgery and robbery, two counts of possession of drugs, and one count each of drug paraphernalia and receiving stolen property.
Also charged is Anthony Fesh, 32, who gave police several different addresses.
Mr. Fesh is charged with two counts each of robbery, forgery, receiving stolen property, and possession of drugs, and one count of drug paraphernalia.
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TThe Communist Party voted to give Solidarity a share in government and union activists called celebrations for independence day to mark the ''new chapter'' in Poland's long history.
Party leader Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski's proposed coalition apparently calls for continued Communist control of Poland but it marks a major increase in Solidarity's power. The government's plan coincided with today's celebrations of the 63rd anniversary of Poland's independence.


text: Hey fellow bhw members. About a year ago i tried to push some clickbank products writing articles related to the products, and by leaving a link to the product. I was a newbie back then, and for what article submission matters, i still don't understand the "rules" I wrote 15 articles, and got ALL my articles taken down because i had a link in the bottom of the article to the clickbank product (cloaked links). My articles stayed up for 1 week before they got taken down, and i'm still wondering why they where taken down. So what is the rules in this game exactly? I see a lot of articles on ezine with links to other webpages. Thanks for your help Marc


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Mission, Vision & Values
Our Vision
Improve community health by being the partner of choice for care providers in the communities we serve while at the same time becoming nationally recognized in integrated, outcomes-based radiology.
Our Values
Patients come first.
We conduct our business, keeping patients as our central focus, through our values of Trust, Respect and Accountability.
- Deliver consistent, high quality results
- Act with integrity
- Follow applicable laws, regulations, policies and procedures
- Treat everyone with dignitiy and compassion
- Embrace diversity and all that it brings to TRA
- Listen, value input and seek understanding
- Consider impact to others
- Honor commitments
- Seek personal development


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Online Shopping – Becoming a Trend Now
Days are gone passed when people spent time buying dresses in dress shops. Now, time has changed everything around us. Nowadays, people prefer to do shopping in online stores. Online stores are now spinning up day to day. This shows that, how much people love to get their shopping done on online sites. And offline stores are as well unveiling their electronic stores to increase their sales percentage. Since, almost all people largely depend on online stores. In such cases, offline stores cannot earn money.
This is the reason why they too have decided to unlock online dress stores or to be an affiliate of any online stores. The best part is that, online stores can be accessible within some clicks. And your orders will be delivered at your door steps. If not you like the orders, you can return them. The delivery man will come and get your orders which you would like to return. Payment modes are very simple and safe. You can buy Indian clothes online as well. You do not have to stick with only one option or choice. Instead, you can find limitless options in dresses.
Right from traditional to trendy, you can find all kinds of dresses in online stores. Indian suits online shopping websites contain clothes for men, women and children. So without any hesitations, you can finish your family shopping at one online store rather exploring more stores. This is an easy and simplest way of shopping. For doing online shopping, you do not have to spend your whole weekend. Just it is enough to spend some minutes or an hour for getting the shopping done for your entire family. There are certain online shopping websites which do not collect shipping money. You can explore and choose an online shopping website like that.
As far as women are concerned, they will never be satisfied with limited choices and collections in their outfits. For them, online shopping is the best idea and there they can find endless beautiful collections of dresses to choose from. Women can buy cotton sarees online. Men can breathe out freely if women choose to do online shopping. As you all know that, women's shopping will take more time. They will look for more choices in all kind of sarees. They really do mind about the colors and designs of the sarees. It is needless to say that, women will get what they want in online stores.


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Kansas football coach David Beaty expressed remorse Monday for his captains' actions before Saturday's 41-3 loss to Oklahoma.
KU's Joe Dineen, Dorance Armstrong and Daniel Wise refused to shake quarterback Baker Mayfield's hand before the game while holding their arms behind their backs. Dineen later said it was done to fire up teammates and partly as an attempt to rattle the short-fused Mayfield.
"First of all, that was absolutely unacceptable. I've had a conversation with (Oklahoma coach) Lincoln Riley, and I've apologized on behalf of myself and our team," Beaty said during Monday's Big 12 coaches' teleconference. "I want to also apologize to really our stakeholders, our Jayhawk fans, Jayhawks currently and all of the ones before us, because it means more to be a Jayhawk. That was a situation where we needed to make a better decision there."
It was a more stern tone than Beaty used after the game, when he said: "I'm proud of our guys for getting to a point, 'We're not going to take it anymore.' You're going to stick your feet in the ground. You're going to defend your grass. I think we've got to display it better than that, honestly, but I get it. I understand where they're coming from."
Beaty said he had a discussion with athletic director Sheahon Zenger since Saturday.
"It's my job to make sure (the players) understand the ripple effects that a decision like that can have," Beaty said. "They'll learn from this and continue to grow into successful productive men and great Jayhawks that the Jayhawk family can be proud of. It's unfortunate, and I apologize to the Big 12 and really to college football, because it's something that was absolutely unacceptable. But we'll move forward."
Beaty, who said he has since spoken to his team about the incident, said he was not aware before the game that his players were going to refuse handshakes.
"I wasn't sure really what was going on, because it was a little bit unique," Beaty said. "I saw one member of their team step forward and not another, and none of ours step forward. I think really before I could understand what was going on, it was over. At that point, you kind of understood what took place, and now it was time to deal with it."
Beaty reiterated a few times that the three captains were men of character, saying if his daughter were to marry someone like them, "I'll be pretty happy."


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Woodland Park Yoga Class Schedule
WINTER is here!! Take this time to integrate your body, mind and spirit with the practice of YOGA. Please join me for classes in Woodland Park and in Colorado Springs at ROOT- Center for Yoga and Sacred Studies. 617 No. 17th St. Suite #200
'YOGA for is for Every Body' WINTER SCHEDULE introducing and/or deepening one's practice of Iyengar Yoga.
PAYMENT POLICY for Woodland Park Classes4 class pass $50---8 class pass $95---Drop-in $15
Mornings in Woodland Park 9:00-10:30 am. M-W-F
Evening in Woodland Park 5:30-7:00 pm Tues. only
The Woodland Park studio is located at 1652 Sunshine Cir. just off of Kelly's Rd. across from Columbine Elementary School.
ROOT- Center for Yoga and Sacred Studies is located at 617 No. 17th St. Suite #200 in Colorado Springs.
Wed. evening at ROOT- Center for Yoga and Sacred Studies in CO Springs 5:30-7:00 pm :Kelly Elliott will be subbing Wed. 3/14
Gail is honored to continue the tradition of teaching the Iyengar Yoga method to the many dedicated students who have supported classes in this region over the years. She also welcomes newcomers interested in beginning or deepening their exploration of the Art and Science of Yoga. Please call or email with any questions you might have concerning your participation in this transformative practice.
Looking forward to seeing all of you soon!!
Santa Fe Spring Yoga immersion w/ Gail Ackerman April 12-15, 2018
We will meet at Brian and Ariane's lovely home studio:
1130 Calle Largo at the end of Old Taos Highway.
Class times are Thurs. and Fri. 9-11 am and 5:30-7:30 pm.
Sat. and Sun. mornings 10-noon.
12 total hours including the FUN potluck Fri. eve after class.
Full attendance $210
4 class $145
Drop-in 2 hr. $ 38.
We ask that you bring all of your own props. Your 50% deposit is appreciated, please mail to address below.
Please let me know ASAP if you plan to join some or all of the classes as it helps me to organize my syllabus.
Please contact White Iris Yoga/Gail Ackerman for further information on the upcoming events. Please join us in deepening your relationship to your own growth and practice!!
Yoga Workshops


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The claimant was involved in an accident with the defendant and alleged that the defendant was at fault. The defendant's insurers admitted liability in April 2013 but did not make any further settlement offer, despite hire charges continuing to accrue and being chased by the claimant's solicitors over 5 times. Proceedings were then issued against the defendant alone in July 2013 and default judgment was obtained a month later. A further hearing assessed damages but the insurers were not notified of the hearing before it took place. When they were told about the award, they then instructed solicitors (in November 2013) and an application to set aside the default judgment pursuant to CPR r13.3 was made, and subsequently granted. The claimant appealed against that decision and the insurers then alleged that the claim was fraudulent and that the claimant and defendant had known each other before the accident.
The Court of Appeal has now held as follows:
- The judge had been wrong to regard allegations of fraud as providing an exemption from the tests set out in Mitchell (see Weekly Update 43/13) and Denton (see Weekly Update 26/14).
- The tests set out in Denton apply to applications under CPR r13.3.
- A default judgment cannot be set aside as a matter of course just because an arguable fraud has been alleged, however long after that judgment the application is made.
- The delay of two months, including the Christmas period, taken by the insurers to investigate the claim after the solicitors were instructed "may not, in itself, be unreasonable". However, there had been no explanation for the delay in instructing solicitors in the first place, or in commencing the investigation.
- The insurers had shown a real prospect of successfully defending the claim (the first part of CPR r13.3). However, the court is entitled (under the second part of CPR r13.3) to take into account whether the application had been made promptly. The Court of Appeal held that after admitting liability in April 2013, the insurers had known it was at risk of proceedings but they had failed to instruct solicitors for a further 7 months. The insurers could also have found out "with reasonable diligence" about the default judgment by the end of September 2013 (and so could then have applied to set it aside). It was held that: "The court cannot ignore that insurers are professional litigants, who can properly be held responsible for any blatant disregard of their own commercial interests".
- Applying the tests laid down in Denton, there was no reasonable excuse for the insurers' delay: "The insurer could and should have protected itself when it knew proceedings were being issued by appointing solicitors to accept service on behalf of [the defendant]…. It cannot avail an insurer in this position to say it was not a party to the claim at that stage. It was directly affected by it and knew that it had to protect its interests from the moment liability was admitted. It was able at any stage to conduct [the defendant's] defence".
- Nor should the order assessing damages be set aside pursuant to CPR r39.3(5). This rule refers to a party who has failed to attend trial for a good reason: "There is an anomaly in the conditions, because they apply to "a party who failed to attend the trial" and the insurer was not such a party. But in a case of this kind, it seems to me that the insurer cannot be regarded as being in a better position than its insured". If the insured failed to protect the insurers' interests (because, it is alleged, he was colluding with the claimant), that is a matter between the insurers and the insured and the insurers will have to pursue what remedies they can by way of a new fraud action.
COMMENT: One point of more general interest in the case is the Court of Appeal's confirmation that a period of two months (including the Christmas period) to investigate a (at the time) low value road traffic accident claim may be reasonable. That is noteworthy because of the potential changes to English law allowing for late payment damages where an insurer has unreasonably delayed paying a claim. It may be recalled that in Brit UW Ltd v F&B Trenchless Solutions (see Weekly Update 29/15), the judge cited a period of 4-5 months as being a reasonable timeframe to allow investigation of a complex claim under a contractors' combined liability policy (plus a decision on whether to avoid). Those two decisions therefore give some indication of the amount of time which the courts may allow for insurers to investigate a claim, if the Enterprise Bill is passed.


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This page features details of entrants to the 2008 Gibtelecom Masters tournament.
Short biographies (and most of the photos) are by - please let me know if I have made any mistakes! Many thanks to others who have supplied photos (Cathy Rogers, Simen Agdestein, etc). We would like to have photos and details of all the participants, not just the big stars. If you are playing at Gibraltar 2008 and we don't currently display your photo, do please send one in to and I'll be delighted to put it up here. Also feel free to write your own mini-biography!
This page last edited: Friday February 8, 2008 6:19 PM
|Page 1 • Page 2
|Wang Yue
|On the October FIDE rating list, 20-year-old Wang Yue broke through the 2700 barrier. His ascent to the elite, along with Bu Xiangzhi and Ni Hua, is a sure sign that China's male players are starting to emulate their female players in terms of achievement. It will be great to have a large squad of China's best players in Gibraltar because they play a wonderfully aggressive style of chess. Wang Yue was a member of the Chinese team which beat Russia and then overpowered the United Kingdom in matches in 2007. In Liverpool he beat Jonathan Rowson and David Howell and drew his other games. He also made a plus score against Russia. At the 2006 Turin Olympiad, he scored an impressive 10/12. There is no telling how far he could go. 2008 result: 7/10 (10th=).
|Bu Xiangzhi
|Bu Xiangzhi seems to have been around forever, but is still only 22. His principal claim to fame was being the first player to qualify as a grandmaster under the age of 14. He did this, aged 13 years, 10 months and 13 days, back in 1999 (though Sergey Karyakin has since broken the record, and Magnus Carlsen and Parimarjan Negi have also qualified as GMs at a younger age). Like many young Chinese players, his inspiration was Xie Jun's winning of the women's world championship. He played top board for China in the 2006 Turin Olympiad, scoring +4, =8, and had a victory in the Canadian Open in Ottawa in July 2007. He showed a talent for blindfold chess in October 2007, winning a big tournament ahead of Topalov, Polgar, Carlsen and others. 2008 result: 8/10, 1st= but lost play-off to Nakamura. Prize money won: £8,000.
|Ni Hua
|The 24-year-old star from China has made a strong impression in the past few years. He first drew attention when scoring heavily against Dmitry Schneider and Hikaru Nakamura in the 2001 China-USA match. In the 2004 FIDE World championship he beat Evgeny Vladimirov in round one but was put out by his fellow countryman Ye Jiangchuan in the next round. 2005 was a little traumatic: China were on the point of snatching an improbable victory in the World Team Championship but Ni Hua's two endgame losses in the final two rounds was arguably the difference between the gold and silver medals. He won the 2006 Chinese national championship ahead of four other 2600+ players. At Liverpool in September he made a creditable 4/6 in the China-UK Summit match. 2008 result: 7½/10, 3rd=. Prize money won: £1,857.
Hikaru Nakamura
Hikaru will be 20 by the time of the 2008 Gibtelecom Masters. In 2003 he broke Bobby Fischer's long-standing record for being the youngest American to become a grandmaster, doing so aged only 15 years and 79 days old. Born in Osaka to a Japanese father and American mother, Hikaru has lived in the USA since the age of two, where he is coached by his Sri Lankan step-father FM Sunil Weeramantry. He won the 2004/5 US Championship and in 2006 helped his country to win bronze at the Olympiad, playing board three below Kamsky and Onischuk. He finished second equal in the 2007 Gibtelecom Masters. Hikaru will be giving master classes in Gibraltar. Visit his website. 2008 result: TOURNAMENT WINNER. 8/10, 1st= and won play-off match vs Bu Xiangzhi. Prize money won: £12,000.
|Wang Hao
|The top Chinese players are all so young: Wang Hao was born in 1989 so he is still only a teenager. In the China versus UK match in Liverpool in September 2007, Wang Hao did as well as his better-known colleagues, scoring 4/6 with wins against Nigel Short and David Howell. He exploded onto the chess scene when he won the 2005 Dubai Open. At that time he was untitled, but he scored 7/9 ahead of a whole host of GMs. Tied first equal with Zhang Pengxiang in the 2007 Asian Championship and took the bronze medal in the World Junior Championship the following October. 2008 result: 7½/10, 3rd=. Prize money won: £1,857.
Viktor Bologan
Born in Moldova in 1971, Viorel Bologan (or Viktor as he is shown officially by FIDE) is a formidable player with some superb results in individual competitions. In 1993 he won the Las Palmas tournament with 8½/9, but this and a number of other excellent results did not secure his entry to super-tournaments until 2003. He took the chance well, finishing a comfortable first ahead of world champion Kramnik, Anand, Radjabov and Leko in Dortmund. Still does not receive as many invitations to the leading tournaments as he should, but he remains a most formidable adversary who always strives for maximum points. Check out our video page for a short interview with Bologan by Peter Doggers. 2008 result: 7½/10, 3rd=. Prize money won: £1,857.
|Kiril Georgiev
|Kiril Dimitrov Georgiev, 42, has played in the Gibtelecom Masters three times. He won it jointly with four other players in 2005 and then on his own (and very comfortably) in 2006. He is one of the most highly respected players on the professional circuit without ever quite receiving the recognition he deserves for his consistent play over many years. He won the world junior championship in 1983 and became a grandmaster in 1985. He has won three Bulgarian national titles, becoming recognized as Bulgaria's top player before the advent of Topalov. He has won many tournaments over the past 20 years and has been rated as high as 2680. 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=.
|Alexander Areshchenko
|It is hard to believe that Ukrainian GM Alexander Areshchenko is still only 21 because he has been on the circuit hoovering up major prizes in opens for some years now. He made his first trip to Gibraltar as an 18-year-old in 2005 and scored 7/10. He proceeded to Coventry the following, winning first prize with 7½/9 and then tied for first in the Isle of Man with Alexander Shabalov. Since then he has scored 7/10 and 7/9 at the last two Gibraltar tournaments and once again tied for first at the 2006 Isle of Man tournament. He is a quiet young man who lets his chess pieces do the talking. 2008 result: 7½/10, 3rd=. Prize money won: £1,857.
Alexander Beliavsky
Gave notice of his great promise when he won the World Junior Championship ahead of Tony Miles and Michael Stean at Teesside in 1973 (despite losing to both of them). Thereafter improved rapidly, winning the Soviet Championship jointly with Tal in 1974, and again with Psakhis in 1980/1, and finishing 1st in a stellar field at Tilburg in 1981 and 1st= at Wijk aan Zee in 1981. His forays into the world championship have been less successful but he is one of few grandmasters in recent who has maintained his strength and continued playing frequently well into his fifties. He is also a prolific and successful author, often collaborating with Adrian Mikhalchishin who, like Beliavsky, now lives in and represents Slovenia. Will be giving master classes in Gibraltar. 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=.
|Zahar Efimenko
|Zahar is 22 years old and is one of a group of Ukrainian stars who travel the world winning large numbers of prizes in open competitions. He has played in Gibraltar in the last three tournaments, scoring 7½/10 (one of the five who finished first equal), 7 and 6½, so he is a highly consistent performer. He won the Hastings Challenger tournament in 2003/4 and was one of six players to tie for first in the 2007 Monarch Assurance Isle of Man tournament. 2008 result: 7½/10, 3rd=. Prize money won: £1,857.
Bartosz Socko
Born 10 xi 1978 in Piaseczno in central Poland. Won the Polish under 16 championship in 1994 and the under 18 in 1995. Awarded his GM title in 1999, since when he has improved steadily to July 2007 when he became the highest ranking player in Poland for the first time, overtaking Michal Krasenkow. One of his best results to date was winning the 2006 Biel Open. Gave a master class at 2008 Gibtelecom Masters which was very well received. 2008 result: 6½/10.
Victor Mikhalevski
Victor is 35 and was born in Gomel in modern-day Belarus. He entered the FIDE List as a young Soviet teenager, but soon emigrated to Israel where he won the Under-20 Championship in 1991 and 1992, becoming a grandmaster in 1996. His rating of 2598 in July 2007 was his highest ever and he was since topped it again in January 2008. He has won a number of strong tournaments both in Israel and abroad in his very active tournament career, including Montreal 2005, Schaumburg 2006 and Sydney Open 2007. As recently as end-October 2007, Victor scored an excellent win in the Calvia Open in Mallorca, scoring 8/9 ahead of a strong field. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=. Prize money won: £500 (shared with Moulthun Ly of Australia).
|Mikhail Gurevich
|As with Jonathan Speelman, it is almost impossible to say everything about "Micky G" (as some English GMs have nicknamed him) in a short biog. He has more than once been a candidate for the world championship, most recently in 2007 when he played in the matchplay qualifiers in Elista which were designed to provide four of the eight contenders at the Mexico world championship of that year. His other stellar achievement was winning the Soviet Championship in 1985. Born in Kharkov in Ukraine in 1959, he later played under the Belgian flag, and now the Turkish one - he has also won the national titles of both those countries. These days he travels the world with his girlfriend IM Masha Klinova playing chess (and cards). Played in Gibraltar in 2006 and 2007, scoring 7/10 and 6½/9 respectively. 2008 result: 7½/10, 3rd=. Prize money won: £1,857.
|Yuriy Kuzubov
|Back in 2004 Yuriy Kuzubov completed his qualification for the grandmaster title at the age of 14 years 7 months and 12 days. An amazing achievement, which might have earned Yuriy some major news headlines in anywhere other than Ukraine and at any time other than 2004. His problem is that he is just two weeks younger than another young Ukrainian prodigy who has grabbed all the headlines - Sergey Karyakin - who earned the grandmaster title at an even younger age. Consequently Yuriy has been rather overshadowed by Sergey, not to mention Magnus Carlsen who was also born in 1990. Yuriy is still only 17 but already a veteran of the open tournament circuit. He performed very strongly at the 2007 Gibtelecom Masters and could even have won first prize but for a last round disaster against Akopian. He has scored 6, 6½ and 6 out of nine at the last three Isle of Man tournaments and a solid 6½/10 at the 2005/6 Hastings Masters. Is eligible for the under-18 prize. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. Prize money won: £500 (shared junior prize).
|Tigran L Petrosian
|A very famous name, though this 23-year-old, whose full name is Tigran Levon Petrosian, is not actually related to the 9th world champion, Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian (1929-84). He was born only a month after the great man died and was named in his honour (his father was a keen chess fan). Tigran was Armenian Under 18 Champion in 2002 and came second in the world junior championship in 2004, the same year that he achieved his GM title (at the Aeroflot Open). He won the ICC-sponsored tournament to qualify for this expenses-paid trip to Gibraltar (he plays as 'Tigrano' on the Internet Chess Club). 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=.
|Vadim Malakhatko
|Originally from Ukraine, Vadim now plays under the Belgian flag. He is 30 years old and married to Anna Zozulia who, like him, was from Ukraine but is now Belgian-registered. They play at a great many international opens and, between rounds, are often to be seen playing cards with Mikhail Golubev, Masha Klinova and others. Vadim has played at the last three Monarch Assurance events, scoring 5½, 6 and 5½ out of 9. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=.
Varuzhan Akobian
Not to be confused with 2007 Gibtelecom Masters winner Vladimir Akopian, though they are both Armenians by birth. 'Var', born in Yerevan, will be 24 by the time of the 2008 Gibtelecom Masters, and he has been registered as a US player since 2002. He arrived in the USA in 2001 as a 17-year-old IM and became a GM in 2003. He shared first in the 2002 World Open and won it outright in 2004 and again in 2007. As of June 2007 he is the top-rated player in the state of California. He has been over 2600 a couple of times with some steady results in 2005. In July 2007 he played in the 4th (biennial) Pan-American Continental Championship in Santiago de Cali in Colombia and finished in a five-way tie for first. Though he did not take the title on tie-break, it was good enough to qualify him for the December 2007 FIDE World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk. Hope Siberia is not too cold for him after California – actually it probably won't worry him because in childhood he once lived in Mongolia. He has his own website – http://www.akobian.com/. 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=.
|Chanda Sandipan
|Chanda Sandipan is 24 and I recall being the first person to step up to congratulate him when he chalked up his final GM norm in the Isle of Man in 2003. He has played three times at Gibraltar scoring 6½ every time (out of 10 in 2004 and 2006 and out of 9 in 2007). In 2004 he was joint leader for six rounds until beaten by Pentala Harikrishna. In 2003 he finished first equal with Surya Ganguly in the mammoth (24-player all-play-all!) Indian Championship and repeated the feat (also tied with Ganguly) in 2004 and 2006 - but in each case he lost out to Ganguly on tie-break. Probably his most notable achievement of 2007 was a remarkable win against Sergey Tiviakov in the Canadian Open...
Sandipan - Tiviakov: 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nf3 b6 4 g3 Bb7 5 Bg2 Be7 6 0-0 0-0 7 d5 exd5 8 Nh4 c6 9 cxd5 Nxd5 10 Nf5 Nc7 11 e4 d5 12 Nc3 Bf6 13 exd5 cxd5 14 Bf4 Nba6 15 Re1 Qd7 16 Bh3 Ne6 17 Ne4 Bxb2 18 Rb1 Bc8 19 Ng5 Bf6 20 Qh5 Bxg5 21 Bxg5 Re8 22 Bf6 gxf6 23 Qh6 Nac5 24 Rbd1 Qb7 25 Rd4 Ne4 26 Rexe4 dxe4 27 Qxf6 Qc7 28 Nh6+ Kf8 29 Qh8+ Ke7 30 Nf5 mate. 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=.
|Hristos Banikas
|Born in 1978, and living in Salonica, Hristos has scored some excellent results in and around his native Greece. He won the Greek championship six times in succession between 2000 and 2005. He has played in five Olympiads for his country and played on board three in 2006. In 2005 Hristos had one of his best results when Greece finished 4th in the European Team Championship and he took the silver medal on board three with a score of 6/8 (a 2735 TPR). 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=. Prize money won: £1,857 for relative rating performance (2500-2599).
|Leonid Kritz
|Born in 1984 in Moscow, this young naturalised German GM is steadily climbing towards the higher echelons of the rating list. He moved to Germany with his family when he was 12. He won the world under-16 championship in 1999 and was awarded the GM title in 2003. In 2004 he took part in the world knock-out championship in Libya and in the same year he represented Germany in the Olympiad for the first time. He now represents Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga. 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=.
|Simen Agdestein
The next time someone tries to tell you that chessplayers are 'geeks' or 'nerds', tell them about Simen Agdestein, chess grandmaster - and international footballer. Simen, aged 40, has won the Norwegian chess championship no fewer than seven times, becoming an IM at 16 and a grandmaster at 18. He finished second at the 1986 World Junior Championship (ahead of the current world champion Vishy Anand) and has been rated above 2600. He won an Olympiad individual gold in 1982, aged 15. He played soccer for Lyn Oslo and made several appearances for Norway at a time when they getting good. These days he coaches chess and soccer at an academy in Norway and takes large groups of young chessplayers to various events - as at the 2008 Gibraltar Masters. His rivals should be warned that his coaching/organising responsibilities do not seem to affect his play. When he took a large party of young Norwegians to the very strong 2003 Monarch Assurance event, he went on to win the competition. You may have heard of one of Simen's most promising pupils - Magnus Carlsen...
|Emanuel Berg
|26-year-old Emanuel Berg tied for first in the 2004 Swedish Championship in Gothenburg gaining quite a number of rating points, and was fourth behind Ivanchuk, Karpov and Kasimdzhanov in the Keres Memorial Rapidplay in 2006. His results in 2006 and 2007 have shown improvement, with a couple of near misses in the Swedish championship and a joint first in the Politiken Cup. 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=. Prize money won: £1,000 for relative rating performance (2500-2599).
Mohamad Al Modiahki
Mohamad is probably better known as the husband of former women's world champion Zhu Chen, but that is rather unfair because he is a grandmaster in his own right with a higher rating than Zhu. Success at the 2001 Tehran zonal took him to the world championship where he lost to Judit Polgar in the first round. His results greatly improved in 2003 and he soon completed his qualification for the grandmaster title. Following his 6½/9 at Gibraltar 2007, in the summer of 2007 he scored a creditable 7½/11 in the Biel Open. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
Gawain Jones
Qualified for the grandmaster title aged 19 in 2007 during his gap year. Gawain made a plus score in the extremely strong Staunton Memorial tournament at Simpsons, London, in August 2007, then won the Porto San Giorgio Open, and followed that success with a battling performance against the powerful Chinese team in Liverpool in September. Along with David Howell, he represents the brightest hope for England's chess future. His mother has written a book on how to survive as a chess parent. According to his website (http://www.gawainj.com/) Gawain has a place at Trinity College, Dublin, to study Italian and Classical Civilization lined up for Oct 2007 (but this may be out of date - he may be proposing to take it up in 2008). 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Sarunas Sulskis
|The 34-year-old Lithuanian GM is a regular visitor to the Isle of Man (four appearances, scoring 6½/9 for 2nd= in 2002 and the same score for 3rd= in 2003) and Gibraltar (three appearances: 6½/10 in 2003 and 6 on the other two). First won the Lithuanian Championship as long ago as 1994 and has won it several times since, as recently as 2007. Has played three times in the FIDE knock-out world championship: in 1997 he lost in the first round to Johann Hjartarson but in 2001 he started by beating Alexander Graf and then won the first game of the second round against Peter Svidler. But the Russian super-GM levelled the match and won the play-off. In 2004 he beat Bartlomiej Macieja in the first round but lost to Sakaev in the second. Spent some time working on his game with Ivanchuk in 2007. He always appears serious, wearing a worried frown at the board, but is unfailingly polite and charming away from it. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=.
Zhu Chen
Women's world champion in 2001, Zhu Chen struck a blow for women when she eliminated her opposite number, the FIDE (open) world champion, Ruslan Ponomariov, in the first round of the FIDE Grand Prix in Dubai in 2002. World Girls Under-20 Champion in 1994 and 1996. Now plays under the Qatari flag alongside her husband Mohamad Al Modiahki. Joint winner of the North Urals Cup in Krasnoturinsk ahead of a very strong women's field in the summer of 2007. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Ruben Felgaer
|Ruben is a 26-year-old GM who ranks very highly in his native Argentina. He won the Panamerican Under 20 Championship in both 2000 and 2001, won the 2001 Argentine Championship and generally has an excellent record in events in South America. He became a GM in 2002. At the FIDE World Cup in 2005, he eliminated Gregory Kaidanov before losing to Boris Gelfand in a rapidplay play-off. He has played three times for Argentina at Olympiads (2002, 2004 and 2006), on top board in each case. He scored 5/9 at the 2007 Gibraltar Masters. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Tiger Hillarp Persson
|37-year-old Tiger Hillarp Persson is a popular and regular visitor to the islands and outposts of Britain, with three tournament victories in Jersey (one with a 100% score), two more in Guernsey, and appearances in the Isle of Man. He plays a particularly aggressive brand of chess and recently won the Swedish championship for the first time (ahead of Emanuel Berg and Pia Cramling who are also due to be playing in Gibraltar in 2008). No, Tiger is not his real name – actually it is Tigger Christopher Robin Hillarp Persson (parents were big Winnie the Pooh fans). 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Mark Hebden
|Mark Hebden has come in at the 11th hour to replace Daniel Fridman who unfortunately had to withdraw. You don't need me to tell you about Mark! And right now I don't have the time to tell you as I shall be on a plane to Gib in a few hours. I'll just say that he is a legendary figure on the English chess scene. He will be celebrating his 50th birthday in a few weeks time. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Geetha Narayanan Gopal
|Another fast-rising teenage Indian player, GN Gopal was not even an IM in 2006 when he became the champion of Kerala, but in the summer of 2007 he chalked up his second GM norm and then completed his third at the Asian Zonal at Dhaka in August. That just left the business of getting his rating up to 2500 - which duly followed in October 2007. His grandmaster title was ratified in November. In the FIDE World Cup in Siberia in November, he had a tremendous tussle with former FIDE champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov and only lost a blitz playoff after four games had been drawn. So 2007 was an eventful year for Gopal. By the time the 2008 Gibtelecom Masters gets underway in January 2008, he will still be a couple of months short of his 19th birthday. 2008 result: 7½/10, 3rd=. A brilliant, breakthrough event for the Indian teenager. Almost beat Bologan in the last round which would have taken him into a play-off for first place. Prize money won: £2,000 (3rd= prize money plus part of the relative rating prize for the 2500-2599 bracket).
Pia Cramling
As at July 2007, Pia Cramling is ranked at number three woman player in the world after Judit Polgar and Humpy Koneru and has rarely been out of the top ten women players in the past 20 years. She was a frequent competitor at the Lloyds Bank Masters tournament in London and qualified for the full IM title in 1983 aged 20. Shortly after, at Biel 1984, she beat Viktor Korchnoi, then almost at the height of his powers. She went on to qualify for the full GM title in 1992. Born in Stockholm, she married Juan Manuel Bellón some years ago and now lives in Fuengirola on the Costa del Sol with him and their daughter Ana. She was European Women's Champion in 2003 and won the 2007 MonRoi Women's Grand Prix in Montreal. (Note: in my first draft of this mini-biog, I wrote "Pia gave early notice of her ability when she drew as Black with Garry Kasparov in the World Under-16 Championship in 1976 (they were both 13 at the time)." But it turns out that this was just incorrect data on the ChessBase Mega Database which I made the mistake of trusting! It was actually Pia's brother Dan who drew with Kasparov in 1976. Thanks to Ian Rogers for pointing this out). 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Zhao Xue
|22-year-old Zhao Xue is one of the conspicuous high achievers of Chinese women's chess (though, remarkably, she seems to have missed gaining the full IM title as yet). She is a team player par excellence. As an unknown, she played as first reserve on the 2002 Chinese women's Olympiad team and made a breathtaking 11/12 (performance rating of 2723). She lost just one game (to Ketevan Arakhamia) on that occasion and that remains the only Olympiad game she has lost in her three Olympiad appearances (10/12, TPR 2603, in 2004 and 10/13, TPR 2615, in 2006). Just for good measure, she led China to victory in the 2007 Women's World Team Championship with 6½/8 (TPR 2693) - how all those achievements don't add up to an full IM title I'm not quite sure! (later: Zhao is an IM elect. She has been awarded the title and is awaiting 60 days for comments) In the 2007 Russia v China match, she started by beating all three of the leading Russian women players in succession. Although she fell back later, the psychological damage inflicted on the opposition at an early stage of the event carried her team through. Her earliest success in individual events was tying for first in the 2002 Women's Under-20 Championship with Humpy Koneru, but being adjudged second on tie-break. But Zhao Xue won the 2003 World Women's Under-20 Championships in India, with Koneru Humpy second, thus reversing the previous year's result. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=. Achieved an IM result but the FIDE website now records her as being a GM elect.
|Krisztian Szabo
|Born in 1989. 2008 result: 7/10, 10th=.
|Manuel León Hoyos
|Has all his GM norms but seeks the 2500 rating. From the Yucatan province of Mexico. Born in 1989. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Jon Speelman
|It is almost impossible to summarise Jon's distinguished career in 200 words or so, but I'll have a go... London-born, Oxford-educated, IM title in 1978, GM in 1980, British Champion three times, twice winner of the Hastings Premier, winner of the Lloyds Bank Masters 1993, world championship candidate 1988 (beat Seirawan, Short, lost to Timman in the semi-finals), again in 1991 (only lost to eventual title challenger Short on a rapidplay tie-break), 14 successive Olympiads between 1980 and 2006 (winning three team silvers, one team bronze and one individual silver on board five in 1986), nine European Team Championships (including one team gold in 1997 and two team bronzes), 'plus'-scores against most of his English rivals, one of only three British players ever to have reached the top five in the world rating list... and I've probably not mentioned a stack of other achievements. As well as a player, Jon is a prolific chess writer and broadcaster, with a daily column in The Independent and a weekly one in The Observer (and - I cannot resist the opportunity for a plug - a column on the endgame in British Chess Magazine). One of the friendliest and most approachable of men, Jon wears his distinction very lightly. Described himself as a 'grizzled old hacker' in his chess autobiography but of course that doesn't do him anything like justice. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. TPR of 2690, his best result for some time. Prize money won: £2,000 for best relative rating performance for the 2400-2499 bracket.
|Lars Karlsson
|Born in Stockholm in 1955, Lars Carl-Gustaf Karlsson was awarded the IM title in 1979 and the GM title in 1982. Amongst his tournament successes are 1st at Malmo 1979, 1st at Helsinki 1983 and 1st= (with Jonathan Speelman) at the Hastings Premier of 1983-84. He has represented Sweden at four Olympiads (1980, 1982, 1984 and 1990) and at three European Team Championships (1980, 1992 and 2005). 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th.
|Zong-Yuan Zhao
|21-year-old Zong-Yuan is the highest rated active Australian player. He qualified as its youngest IM at the age of 14. He gave notice of his ability by winning the 1999 Queensland Under-18 Championship with 8/8 and then finishing just half a point behind Darryl Johansen in the Australian Championship proper, finishing with a remarkable 4/4 burst. In 2000 he finished second to Aleksandar Wohl in the Oceania Zonal and he won the 2001 Australian Junior Championship. In 2004 he won the Doeberl Cup with 6/7 ahead of Rogers, Smerdon, Johansen and Lane. In 2005 he won the Australian Junior Masters with a 9/9 score. 2007 was a good year for Zong-Yuan: he won the Australian Open with 9½/11 in January and in May won the 2007 Oceania Zonal outright with 7/9 points to qualify for the 2007 World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk (where he lost in the first round to subsequent semi-finalist Magnus Carlsen). In December 2007 he achieved his first GM norm at one of the Budapest First Saturday events. He has represented his country in three Olympiads and in 2006 was on board three. He played in the 2001 British Championship and score 6/11. He is now studying pharmacy at Sydney University. Later: Zong-Yuan won the category 10 7th Mondariz Balneario tournament, held from 26 December 2007 to 5 January 2008 in Pontevedra, Spain. He scored 6½/9 and earned a grandmaster norm. We think it might be his final norm. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. Almost certainly his final GM norm achieved. He has the rating so should get the title (Australia's 3rd GM).
Mohamad Al Sayed
Mohamad Naser Al Sayed is one of a trio of Qatari players – Mohamad Al Modiahki and Zhu Chen are the others – who clearly love playing in Gibraltar. Mohamad Naser made a GM norm here in 2007 as he did in 2006, and he will be making his fourth consecutive appearance in 2008. However, he's not interested in norms as he already had enough before achieving the 2006 one – he just needs the tantalising 2500 rating to get the title. That's what the code 'gc' stands for. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=.
Monika Socko
Monika has twice won the Polish women's championship, once under her maiden name of Bobrowska in 1995 and again in 2004. Like her husband, she has steadily improved over the past few years and she has advanced up the ranks of the world's top women players. Then, in September 2007, she had probably her best tournament result to date, winning the 2nd Women's International in Baku, Azerbaijan, ahead of Antoaneta Stefanova, Leia Javakhishvili, Pia Cramling, Katerina Lahno, Viktorija Cmilyte and others. In doing so she recorded a full GM norm. Bartosz and Monika Socko have three children. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Viktorija Cmilyte
|Viktorija, from Lithuania, had some early successes in junior events, winning the European Under-10 Girls in 1993 and the World Under-12 Girls title in 1995. But that was just for starters: in 2000, aged only 16 and rated 2329, she tied first for the full Lithuanian Championship, winning the title on tie-break from three GMs and two IMs. She finished second (to Jovanka Houska) in the European Under-20 Girls Championship. In 2005 she once again finished first equal in the Lithuanian Championship, taking the title on tie-break from Sarunas Sulskis. In August 2007 she won the European Women's Rapidplay Championship. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. TPR of 2578 and a GM norm achieved. Prize money won: £2,250, share of the women's awards.
Antoaneta Stefanova
Antoaneta Stefanova is one of the world's best known and strongest women players, with a peak rating of 2560 which has been bettered only by a handful of women players. She became a full grandmaster in 2003 and won the women's world championship in Kalmykia in 2004. Like Judit Polgar and Pia Cramling, she has played most of her chess against top male players, representing Bulgarian in the open section of the Olympiad. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. Outstanding start to the tournament, beating GMs Gurevich, Petrosian, and Akobian in rounds 2-4 to start with 4/4. TPR of 2690. Prize money won: £3,250 (£2,250, share of the women's awards plus £1,000 second prize for relative rating, 2400-2499 bracket)
|Anna Muzychuk
|Anna Muzychuk is only 17 and has just been confirmed as an IM. Originally from Ukraine, Anna made quite an impression as a child prodigy, winning the Ukrainian Women's Championship in 2003 when she was only 13 ahead of some stiff opposition. She became a Slovenian in 2004 and played on top board for them in the 2006 Women's Olympiad. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Ketevan Arakhamia
|Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant (to give her her full name) has enjoyed a glittering string of successes in her chess career, starting with the world girls championship which she won in 1986. In team chess she has represented USSR and Georgia and won medals with them on many occasions. In 1990 she scored a remarkable 12/12 for the USSR at the Novi Sad Olympiad (although it only brought her a team silver to go with her individual gold). She has gone on to win one team gold in the European Championship and two team golds in later Olympiads. Since marrying Scottish FM Jonathan Grant and moving to Edinburgh, though continuing to represent her native Georgia in team chess [* but see below], she has won the full Scottish Championship and four British Women's Championship titles. In 2006 she came close to becoming the first woman player to win the full British title, finishing in clear second place ahead of a posse of English GMs and only half a point behind the winner Jonathan Rowson. In the UK versus China match in September 2007, she made the British team's best score of 4/6. Shortly after that, she went to Calvia, Mallorca, with husband Jonathan and daughter Elena for what was intended as a tournament-cum-holiday. It was only when tipped off by a tournament official after round eight that she realised she had a chance of her second GM norm. She went on to clinch the norm with a last-round win against GM Mamedov (2582). Keti has played at the last four Gibtelecom Masters tournaments. In 2007 she beat GM Hikaru Nakamura (then reigning US Champion) in round one in a game which went to 100 moves. Keti is a role model for all chessplayers: her charming and dignified manner belies a tough, determined fighter at the board. *
It was announced on 19 January 2008 that Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant's switch of affiliation to Scotland has been ratified by FIDE and takes effect immediately. This means that she will represent Scotland in the 2008 Olympiad. The 2008 Gibtelecom Masters tournament will be Ketevan's first as a Scottish player. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. Prize money won: £2,250, share of the women's awards.
Juan Manuel Bellón
The Valencia-born grandmaster won the Spanish championship when he was only 19 in 1969 (and has won it again four more times). He was awarded the grandmaster title in 1979. He has long been known for his original and creative play. One of the more remarkable things about Juan Manuel is that he is said not to have offered a draw since 1978! Read more on the subject here. 57 years old, he is married to Pia Cramling. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=.
|Harika Dronavalli
|Harika was born in January 1991, so will be 17 by the time of the 2008 Gibtelecom Chess Festival, but she has almost come to be regarded as a veteran, with a string of World, Asian and Indian titles to her name. She became a woman grandmaster when only 14. She comes from Gntur (Anhdra Pradesh). She won the 2004 world under-14 girls championship in Greece and the 2006 world girls youth championship. On the October 2007 world top 20 girls rating list she was third behind her fellow countrywoman Humpy Koneru and the Chinese prodigy Hou Yifan. 2008 result: 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. Prize money won: £2,750 (£2,250, share of the women's awards plus £500, share of the junior prize)
|Pavel Dimitrov
|Born 1991, hence eligible for the under-18 prize. The photo shows Pavel as he was in 2003 - he probably looks a bit older now! He is the youngest IM in Bulgaria and was awarded his title in 2007.
Here is a picture with Pavel on the right and his younger brother Radoslav on the left. No prizes for identifying the man in the middle! 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Andrew Greet
|Andrew is 28 years old and from St Austell in Cornwall. He is something of a late developer: he seemed to be a middling to good player of about 2250-2300 standard until well into his 20s but improved dramatically during 2004 as he chalked up his IM norms in quick succession. He has an impressive record against three times British Champion Jonathan Rowson. At the 1997 British Championship, Andrew offered Rowson a draw - but Jonathan did not hear the offer. Probably just as well for Andrew, because after two more moves Jonathan had to resign! Andrew also beat Jonathan in the 2005/6 4NCL (British Team League) - remarkably, that win was his 15th(!) successive win in the 4NCL (including the whole of 2004/5 season when he won 11 games out of 11). He did well at the 2007 Gibtelecom Masters, scoring 6/9 and winning a game from Jonathan Speelman. Andrew is now a prolific writer of articles and books. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Ioannis Papadopoulos
|Born in 1988, Ioannis could be the coming man of Greek chess. In December 2007 he won the Greek Championship with the mighty score of 7½/9, no fewer than two points clear of Hristos Banikas (who himself won six Greek championships on the bounce between 2000 and 2005, and is himself playing in Gibraltar), Vasilios Kotronias a further half point adrift and various other strong GMs. Strangely, Ioannis lost only one game in the championship, to last-placed Antonios Hadzimanolis, who used to live and play chess in the UK. Not to be confused with the Greek GM named Ioannis Papaioannou. 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=.
|Algimantas Butnorius
|Most chessplayers achieve their best performances relatively early in life: not so Algimantas Butnorius, aged 61, who recently won the 2007 World Senior Championship with the fine score of 9/11 and thereby became a grandmaster after a long competitive career that goes back 45 years. Scored 4½/9 at the 2007 Gibtelecom Masters.2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. Prize money won: £1,000 senior prize.
|Jon Ludvig Hammer
|Born in 1990 - one of Simen Agdestein's most impressive young proteges and improving rapidly. Jumped some 30 points on the January 2008 rating list. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Till Wippermann
|Born in 1980, Till has played in Gibraltar twice before, scoring 5½/10 in 2004 and 5½/9 in 2007. He is 'Polydamas' on the Internet Chess Club and a member and mentor of the 'LeChess' club. In ChessBase's 2004 Player of the Year poll, Till nominated his own father in first place - here is his citation: "1. My dad, for still believing that the King's Gambit is the only playable opening. For sponsoring a talentless chess dude for over a decade." But Till doesn't mention the identity of the talentless chess dude his father sponsored. Odd, that. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Nana Dzagnidze
|21-year-old Nana won the World Girls Under-10 Championship in 1997, and the World Girls Under 20 Championship in 2003, no fewer than 2 points clear of the field. She is growing in strength all the time. She has been board two for Georgia in the last two Olympiads. She won the team silver medal in the 2005 European Women's Team Championship and an individual board four gold medal in the 2007 event. 2008 result: 5/10, 86th=.
|David Berczes
|Born in 1990. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Shen Yang
|Born in 1989, Shen Yang established her place in the competitive cauldron of Chinese women's chess when she had a good result in the Beijing zonal tournament of 2005, finishing just half a point behind the brilliant child prodigy Hou Yifan. She was part of the Chinese women's team which took part in the 2005 World Team Championship. Like most of her colleagues, she found this high-profile event very testing, but finished with a highly creditable win against top Russian GM Sergey Rublevsky despite being outrated by more than 300 points. She played in the 2006 Turin Olympiad, winning a team bronze medal, and then went on to her greatest achievement to date, winning the 2006 World Women's Under 20 Championship in Armenia. In the recent UK vs China match in Liverpool, she lost her individual match to Ketevan Arakhamia by ½-2½ but beat Jovanka Houska 2-1. 2008 result: 5/10, 86th=.
Elisabeth Pähtz
Elli is almost certainly the best German woman player ever but she had a head start: her father Thomas is a chess grandmaster. She won the German Under-11 Championship when she was only 9. At 14, she won the German women's championship, in 2002 she became world under-18 girls champion and two years later the world under-20 girls champion. She will be 23 by the time of the 2008 Gibtelecom Masters. Not much is allowed to stand between Elli and her beloved chess. In 2002 she waded through floods caused by the overflowing River Elbe to travel from Dresden to Mainz for a match with world championship finalist Alexandra Kosteniuk. Elli is currently a soldier in the German army but her ambition is to become a schoolteacher. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Joseph Bradford
|Joe Bradford, originally from Meridian, Mississippi, but now domiciled in Austin, Texas, is 57 years old, but his chess career seems to have been on the up and up since he retired from his job with the Texas Department of Transportation in 2005 to concentrate on chess. He has long been a very strong player, having won the 1978 US Open Championship, held in Phoenix, Arizona. In September 2006 he won the US Senior Open Championship, held in Nashville, Tennessee. Then, in May 2007, he needed a last-round win with Black against Irina Krush at the US Championship to record an IM norm - and did it. Later, at the very strong 2007 Monarch Assurance Isle of Man International he scored 5½/9 for another IM norm and he has since been awarded the title. In the Isle of Man he beat 2618-rated grandmaster Svetushkin and also England's Mark Hebden. Joe also scored 5½/9 at the 2007 Gibtelecom Masters. His other GM scalps over the years include Walter Browne, Anatoly Lein, Robert Byrne and Larry Christiansen (the latter two in the 1980 US Championship). 2008 result: 5/10, 86th=.
|Edwin Van Haastert
|33-year-old Dutchman who does not seem to play too often, but turned out in the Corus-C tournament last January and made a respectable 6/13 in a category 10 event. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
Cristina Foisor
Probably the better-known spouse of the Foisors, with very consistent results in continental tournaments and women's competitions. Finished in a seven-way tie for first in the 2001 European Women's Championship in Warsaw but was edged out of the medals in a rapidplay play-off. Has represented Romania in ten consecutive Olympiads since 1988 (the first under her maiden name of Badulescu), five of them on top board. 2008 result: 5/10, 86th=.
Ovidiu Foisor
48-year-old Ovidiu Doru Foisor is currently the second highest rated of the Foisor clan – four of whom are playing in Gibraltar in 2008. His wife Cristina moved ahead of him on the January 2008 list and has a score of 2-0 against him in recent tournaments (not counting the rather more frequent quick draws). He finished 4th in the 1977 European Junior Championship (won by England's Shaun Taulbut) and ahead of Vishy Anand (whom he beat) in a tournament in Moscow in 1987. Represented Romania in the Olympiads of 1982 and 1988. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
Jovanka Houska
Jovanka is the most active woman player in Britain these days and she has been making steady improvement as a player. Her elder brother is also an IM and her drive and determination to succeed owe a lot to sibling rivalry. She made her first WGM norm at the 1999 British Championship when she was still a teenager, and then scored a big success in 2000, winning the European Girls Under-20 title with 9/11 to secure the WGM title. She did a law degree but still found time for chess appearing in the 1998 and 2000 Olympiads and winning the 2001 Commonwealth Women's Championship. In 2005 she became only the third British woman player to gain the full IM title. She was close to winning the MonRoi Women's Grand Prix in July 2007 – and all four leaders from that event will renew their rivalry at the Gibtelecom Masters. She likes playing in Gibraltar and shared the women's first prize in 2007 against some very strong opposition including two world champions. She has won too many titles and prizes to list here –check her website at http://www.jovanka.co.uk/mambo/. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Thomas Rendle
|Thomas, 21, is from the famous chess town of Hastings in Sussex and now lives in Coventry where he coaches chess. He has been playing chess since he was very young, but came of age at a tournament at Rosny sur Bois in France in 2004 when he scored 7/9 to chalk up an IM norm - he was awarded the title in 2006. He has done well in Gibraltar, scoring 6/10 in 2005 and 6½/9 in 2007 for a GM norm. This also brought him a cheque for £2,000 as the best scorer rated under 2400. Has his own website. 2008 result: 5/10, 86th=.
|Robert Aloma Vidal
|Born in 1989. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=.
|Wang Yu A
|25-year-old Chinese female player Wang Yu was rated in the 2400s when she was about 18. She dropped down somewhat but appears to be on the rise again. In the 2000 FIDE Women's World Cup, she won her six-player qualifying group with 4/5, ahead of Cramling, Chiburdanidze, Kosteniuk and others but lost to the eventual winner Xu Yuhua in the quarter-final. She won the Asian Women's Championship in 2004. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
Sabina Foisor
Sabina-Francesca Foisor is 18 in August 2007 and already a woman grandmaster. Her rating is rapidly approaching that of her parents. 2008 result: 5/10, 86th=.
|Robert Bellin
|Robert is 55 and comes originally from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk. He won the British Under 14 Championship (shared) in 1966 and won the British Championship proper in 1979 ahead of Short, Miles, Nunn, Speelman etc. Earlier in 2007 he won the Reykjavik Kaupthing IM with 7½/9. He has of course had many other excellent results over the years. He represented England in two European Team Championships, being part of the team which finished third and won bronze at Skara in 1980. At Gibraltar 2007 Robert had a marathon (120 move) win against Viktor Korchnoi. But that's nothing by Robert's standards: he drew a game against Mike Yeo at Guernsey 1985 which lasted 136 moves and in which, in the final position when they agreed a draw, only a pair of knights and a pair of bishops had been exchanged. That's right - all the pawns and heavy pieces were still on the board. I know that because, many years ago, I was the poor sap who had to type it up for my club's bulletin. This will be Robert's third Gibtelecom Masters. He scored 5½/10 in 2003 and 4½/9 in 2007. He is a regular visitor to the Guernsey International and last won it in 2004 ahead of Swedish GM Tiger Hillarp Persson. In August 2007 he returned to his home town of Great Yarmouth to score a very creditable unbeaten 7/11 in the British Championship. 2008 result: 6/10, 37th=. Prize money won: £1,000 for the second best relative rating performance in the 2400-2499 bracket. Achieved a GM norm.
|Gildas Goldszteijn
|Born in 1982. "mc" is Stewart Reuben's code for "has all his IM norms but still needs the rating". Personally I pine for the good old days when you were either an IM or not. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Emmanuel Amigues
|Born in 1980. From Marseille, and became an IM in 2006. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Caspi Israel
|Caspi was born in 1989 and he already has a very high rating. His score of 6/9 in the Calvia Open tournament of October 2007 brought him his first GM norm and in the process he defeated three GMs. Two months before Calvia he achieved his third and final IM norm so he just needs to pass 2400 to get the title. Had a 3/3 start to the World Under-18 the month after Calvia but found the going tough thereafter. 2008 result: 4½/10, 114th=.
|Ole Jakobsen
|Born in 1942 in Copenhagen, Ole is a three-times winner of the Danish Championship (1969, 1971 and 1980) and also tied (but lost play-offs) in 1970 and 1984. He became an IM in 1973. He was Nordic Champion in 1969. He represented Denmark in six Olympiads between 1964 and 1984, making the excellent score of 10½/16 on board five at Tel Aviv in his debut Olympiad in 1964. He played top board in 1980. He also played two European Team Championships and won a team bronze medal in the 1966 World Students Olympiad in Orebro.
2008 result: 5/10, 86th=.
|Gerard Welling
|The 48-year-old Dutchman is not to be confused with Dutch chess journalist and writer Jules Welling. He is a regular at big open events around Europe and has travelled as far afield as Australia. He has been a regular visitor to the Isle of Man and played in Gibraltar in 2005 and 2006, scoring a win against 2629-rated GM Tregubov in 2005. 2008 result: 5½/10, 56th=.
|Gary Quillan
|Born in 1970, Gary is a very experienced and popular member of the English chess scene. He has been the strongest untitled player in the country for some time now (he could become an FM any time he likes, of course, having a rating well in excess of 2300); he has a couple of IM norms to his name. He plays for the Waterloo club in Liverpool and has an ECF grade of 212. At last year's UK vs China match in Liverpool, there was an entertaining photo-shoot set up with Gary and England no.1 Mickey Adams, which mimicked a similar photo of the two of them which had been published in a UK newspaper 25 years earlier when the two of them had been playing in the National Primary Schools Championship - click here to see the 1982 and 2007 photos (navigate to the bottom of the page). Neither of them has changed a bit! 2008 result: 6½/10, 21st=. One of the best British scores but it did not amount to a title norm.
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CaliforniaMama Wednesday Nov 13 01:25 PM
November 13, 2013 - Polly-Nate
Lamplighter Wednesday Nov 13 01:48 PM
Maybe it's the difference between pollen and nectar.
Happy Monkey Wednesday Nov 13 02:18 PM
Some bees will collect pollen deliberately on their legs, I believe, but it's in the plant's interest to get pollen on the bee in places that will rub off in other flowers.
Sheldonrs Wednesday Nov 13 02:57 PM
Bee Pollen bukake.
Adak Thursday Nov 14 07:37 AM
Having never seen a honey bee so full of pollen as this one is, I'd suspect the bee was pushed, perhaps by the air pressure generated by the collector unintentionally, into depths of the flower. Depths that she would not have ventured into, on her own.
xoxoxoBruce Thursday Nov 14 07:24 PM
Sundae Friday Nov 15 09:04 AM
Bet she wet the bed that night.


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Cops: Delhi placement agencies trafficking girls with Maoists' help
Jharkhand police suspect banned left wing extremist outfits that are active in several disricts of the state of trafficking girls to metro cities with the help of placement agencies in Delhi.delhi Updated: Jul 28, 2014 00:33 IST
Jharkhand police suspect banned left wing extremist outfits that are active in several disricts of the state of trafficking girls to metro cities with the help of placement agencies in Delhi.
The police force in the east Indian state has also zeroed down on two such outfits — the CPI (Maosists) and the People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI) — after receiving vital information from intelligence agenices. They have initiated an inquiry and identified at least 20 placement agencies involved in the racket.
Police said young girls freuquently went missing from Maoist-hit districts of Khunti and Gumla. While some of them are believed to have migrated voultarily, others — especially the vulnerable ones from very poor tribal families — are lured with baits or forcibly taken.
Khunti police superintendent Anis Gupta said his department inititated an individual probe into the matter after receiving alerts from intelligence agenices."We found the information to be true," Gupta said.
Leaders of the extremist outfits denied the involvement. Deenbandhu, the committee secretary of the CPI (Maoist) in the Bihar-Jharkhand-North Chhattisgarh area said: "It is propaganda cooked by the police to defame us. We oppose migration and all kinds of displacement. It's the work of capitalist forces, not us."
Sampat Mina, inspector general of the Jharkhand CID, said: "We are yet to receive any official information on this; however, we will look into the matter."
Delhi-based NGOs working against human trafficking confirm that agencies supplying Jharkhand girls to work as maids are aplenty in Punjabi Bagh area of the national capital. "We have also found out that they have contacts with the banned outfits in Jharkhand and seek their help in supplying children to households and factories in the NCR," Rishi Kant, founder member of Shakti Vahini, an NGO that has to date rescued over 100 Jharkhand girls in Delhi.
A three-member team of the NGO had recently visited Jharkhand and found links between some placement agencies in Punjabi Bagh area and PLFI groups.
People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) admits that Maoists had been involved in picking up children from villages in Jharkhand. However, the PUCL has no confirmation or complaint regarding the involvement of banned rebel outfits in trafficking children to Delhi. "We are yet to receive any complaints regarding their involvement in human trafficking," said Nishant Akhilesh, president, PUCL Jharkhand.
Earlier this month, 11 minors, all in their early teens, were rescued as they were allegedly being herded to a Maoist training camp in Saranda forests. A Maoist, Motra Chaki alias Samuel, who was taking the children to the camp, was arrested.
First Published: Jul 28, 2014 00:29 IST


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Max Baucus talks with reporters on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Montana Senator Max Baucus, a Democrat who frequently clashed with his party's economic populists as the Wall Street–friendly chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, will step down at the end of his current term.
Baucus, who will retire from the Senate after thirty-six years, played a critical role in the health-care debate that led to the enactment of the Affordable Care Act. Given substantial responsibility by the White House, the Montana senator declared that "single payer was not an option on the table." That drew the ire of activists, who charged that Baucus was tipping the balance in favor of the insurance and pharmaceutical industries, and Finance Committee hearings grew so contentious that the chairman ultimately ordered protesting doctors and nurses removed.
A New York Times profile of Baucus later reported: "He conceded that it was a mistake to rule out a fully government-run health system, or a 'single-payer plan,' not because he supports it but because doing so alienated a large, vocal constituency and left Mr. Obama's proposal of a public health plan to compete with private insurers as the most liberal position."
The senator frequently split with progressive Democrats on critical issues. For instance, he voted to authorize President Bush to attack Iraq and provided high-profile support to President George W. Bush's tax cuts in 2001. A frequent defender of corporate tax breaks, he was criticized for his tepid response to efforts to crack down on abuses of overseas tax haven. In 2005, he opposed repealing the tax subsidy for US corporations that offshore manufacturing operations.
Baucus, who sided with the US Chamber of Commerce 64 percent of the time in the group's 2011 survey of Senate votes, often parted with organized labor on free-trade issues. Famously, after the senator wrote a 2007 Wall Street Journal opinion piece arguing that his party should work with former President George W. Bush to renew so-called "fast-track authority" for negotiating international trade deals—a move that limits the ability of Congress to check and balance the executive branch—the Montana State Senate (which was controlled by Democrats) voted 44-6 in favor of a resolution that urged Congress "to create a replacement for the outdated fast track system." Montana's other Democratic senator, Jon Tester, pointed declared that he was "against fast-track."


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Hello there readers, and good news on this sunny Friday morning. I've just received word that Missing Presumed Dead is to be published in the The Netherlands by the publishing house Verbum. This is my first foray into a foreign market and I'm so excited about it I could do a small jig here-but I won't because that would look daft. I haven't seen the new books yet, but how odd to think of my writing in Dutch. As soon as I have a cover I'll post a picture on line.
Thanks again everyone for all the emails.
Talk to you soon,
Arlene Hunt


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Good locations for restaurants are gett ing harder to find. Not only are operators competing against other restaurants, often they're angling for the same spots as retail behemoths like Walgreen's or Staples. "You've got to be very nimble, quick and responsive," says Rudy Nadilo, CEO of GeoVue, a Boston- based site selection forecasting and statistical analysis firm
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