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Monday, April 2, 2012
Harris Corporation (HRS) Dividend Stock Analysis
Linked here is a detailed quantitative analysis of Harris Corporation (HRS). Below are some highlights from the above linked analysis:
Company Description: Harris Corporation focuses on communications equipment for voice, data and video applications for commercial and governmental customers.Fair Value: In calculating fair value, I consider the NPV MMA Differential Fair Value along with these four calculations of fair value, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
HRS is trading at a discount to 1.), 2.) and 3.) above. Since HRS's tangible book value is not meaningful, a Graham number can not be calculated. The stock is trading at a 35.4% discount to its calculated fair value of $68.76. HRS earned a Star in this section since it is trading at a fair value.
Dividend Analytical Data: In this section there are three possible Stars and three key metrics, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
HRS earned three Stars in this section for 1.), 2.) and 3.) above. A Star was earned since the Free Cash Flow payout ratio was less than 60% and there were no negative Free Cash Flows over the last 10 years. The stock earned a Star as a result of its most recent Debt to Total Capital being less than 45%. HRS earned a Star for having an acceptable score in at least two of the four Key Metrics measured. Rolling 4-yr Div. > 15% means that dividends grew on average in excess of 15% for each consecutive 4 year period over the last 10 years (2002-2005, 2003-2006, 2004-2007, etc.) I consider this a key metric since dividends will double every 5 years if they grow by 15%. The company has paid a cash dividend to shareholders every year since 1941 and has increased its dividend payments for 11 consecutive years.
Dividend Income vs. MMA: Why would you assume the equity risk and invest in a dividend stock if you could earn a better return in a much less risky money market account (MMA) or Treasury bond? This section compares the earning ability of this stock with a high yield MMA. Two items are considered in this section, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
1. NPV MMA Diff.
2. Years to > MMA
HRS earned a Star in this section for its NPV MMA Diff. of the $83,691. This amount is in excess of the $2,400 target I look for in a stock that has increased dividends as long as HRS has. The stock's current yield of 3.38% exceeds the 3.1% estimated 20-year average MMA rate.
Memberships and Peers: HRS is a member of the S&P 500 a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers™ Index. The company's peer group includes: The Boeing Co. (BA) with a 2.3% yield, General Dynamics Corporation (GD) with a 2.8% yield and Raytheon Company (RTN) with a 3.3% yield.
Conclusion: HRS earned one Star in the Fair Value section, earned three Stars in the Dividend Analytical Data section and earned one Star in the Dividend Income vs. MMA section for a total of five Stars. This quantitatively ranks HRS as a 5-Star Very Strong stock.
Using my D4L-PreScreen.xls model, I determined the share price would need to increase to $142.97 before HRS's NPV MMA Differential decreased to the $2,400 minimum that I look for in a stock with 11 years of consecutive dividend increases. At that price the stock would yield 1.1%.
Resetting the D4L-PreScreen.xls model and solving for the dividend growth rate needed to generate the target $2,400 NPV MMA Differential, the calculated rate is 9.6%. This dividend growth rate is well below the 20.0% used in this analysis, thus providing a significant margin of safety. HRS has a risk rating of 2.00 which classifies it as a Medium risk stock.
HRS has an incredible record of dividend increases. For the last 10 years, the company has averaged nearly a 30% annual dividend increase. The range is from a high of 60% in 2003 to a low of 10% in 2010 (2011 was 13.6%). With 72% of its revenue coming from the U.S. government, future budget cuts are a concern and will likely hamper growth prospects. To offset this, HRS plans to diversify its business with offerings in new end markets, including energy and health care. The company should benefit from agencies focus on improving their communications systems. Trading well below my calculated fair value of $68.76, it is one I will keep a close eye on.
Disclaimer: Material presented here is for informational purposes only. The above quantitative stock analysis, including the Star rating, is mechanically calculated and is based on historical information. The analysis assumes the stock will perform in the future as it has in the past. This is generally never true. Before buying or selling any stock you should do your own research and reach your own conclusion. See my Disclaimer for more information.
Full Disclosure: At the time of this writing, I held no position in HRS (0.0% of my Dividend Growth Portfolio). See a list of all my dividend growth holdings here.
Important Information
Material presented on Dividend Growth Stocks is for informational and entertainment purposes only and is the opinion of the author and should NOT be relied on or taken as investing advice. The information and content should not be construed as a recommendation to invest or trade in any type of security. Neither the information, nor any opinion expressed, constitutes a solicitation of the purchase or sale of any security or investment of any kind. Before acting on anything you read on this site, you must do your own research and you must come to your own conclusion which you will ultimately be responsible for, including any loss you may incur. [More] | {
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The Secret to Scale Lies in What Your Brand Believes
Author: Melanie Fawcett,
Producer on Purpose
Melanie Fawcett is the Founder and Head of Storytelling at Producer on Purpose, an educational hub and movement of mindful storytellers with a focus on empowering people and brands to share stories that matter. Mel writes and talks a lot, whether that be through video, digital content, old-fashioned books, speaking or teaching workshops that focus on forward thinking marketing meets mindful self development. Her first book #popphilosophy will be out in 2017.
Tasha Wakefield of ocean-inspired and wanderlust loving Spindrift Collections, is loud and proud in her deep respect for legendary adventure brand, Patagonia.
In one of Tasha’s favourite books, the Founder of Patagonia talks about how every time they made an ethical decision, it turned out better for their business’s growth. He shares how he paved the way for Patagonia to grow, through focusing on the values they stood for and allowing them to be the foundation of what they do and how they do it.
“Our philosophies aren’t rules; they’re guidelines. They’re the keystone of our approach to any project, and although they are ‘set in stone,’ their applications to a situation isn’t. In every long-lasting business, the methods of conducting business may constantly change, but the values, the culture and the philosophies remain constant.”
Yvon Chouinard, Let My People Go Surfing
Tasha made a conscious decision early on that she wanted to scale her jewellery brand, she knew she loved to design, but she didn’t want to individually handmake her pieces in huge quantities herself. She knew that for her, expanding into overseas markets was really important. Even though there are many different ways to have a jewellery business and be a maker, she realized it would be hard to scale her production without the help of a trusted partner.
We wanted to know more. So we went a little deeper.
OC: How do you scale your business when having a global brand is your ultimate goal?
TW:The biggest thing for me has been diversifying my sales efforts. I realised that I needed to diversify my sales channels in order to maintain a steady income stream all year round. My product is very much a summer beachy product and so by expanding into local stockists in my home country of the UK and opening up the UK sales market, this has really helped me to maintain my income even in the quieter months. I also have an online shop, I trade at local Australian markets and larger festivals and I now have stockists all around Australia.
OC: Why did you expand your brand into manufacturing in Bali?
TW: Different brands have different goals. For me, I have always loved creating the design of each piece. When I got my first large scale wholesale order I realized, I really needed help in producing my jewellery to keep up with growing demand. I wanted to continue to focus on the designing of new products and building my relationships with my customers, rather than spending all my time hand making each product.
OC: How did you find the right manufacturer who had a synergy with Spindrift’s values and ethics?
TW: Working in 100% recycled silver and working ethically was my number one priority, it took me over a year of research and I spent many hours googling and meeting people and eventually I found the company I now work with. From the first contact, I just knew they were the right company for me. I loved their ethos, their strong values and that they could work with 100% recycled sterling silver.
Bali was my first choice of location to work with, it’s only a few hours away from Sydney, which means my products would not have as far to travel as working with a company on the other side of the world. It also means it’s very easy for me to visit regularly.
Most importantly, we share the same values. The company I work with, really care about their staff, the environment and the quality of their products. I was understandably worried, before my first visit, wondering if the working conditions were going to be as a had hoped. But it turns out I had nothing to worry about I love how they run the company and when I visited, I knew that I would be so happy to work there myself! That was my benchmark, I had to feel like it was a place that I could be part of.
OC: It was so scary to start ordering in huge quantities, what made the decision easier for you?
TW: I have really strong values for Spindrift, values on how I want my business to run and to grow. I had to take a leap of faith in order to start ordering products in larger quantities.
With each big business decision.I think, is this direction right? I ask, does this fit with my core values? This makes every business decision easier. It’s your company and you can do what feels right for you.
Here are Tasha’s top #OChustlehacks for scalin’ your business when you want to think BIG.
1. DEFINE YOUR VALUES EARLY ON.
“The wording of your values does not need to be perfect from the start. It’s a constant work in progress and that’s ok. But the core ideas are always there, even if the exact way you express it grows with your business. Before the OC, I hadn’t really even considered by mission, vision and values. It was a great opportunity to get clear on the direction of my business. Soon after doing the OC Mastermind, I wrote the Spindrift Manifesto and it hangs in my studio where I see it everyday. Every time I look at it, it inspires me to keep going.”
2. LISTEN TO YOUR INSTINCT ON TIMING.
“I sat on the fence for months about expanding my manufacturing overseas! What I have realised is not to worry. If it doesn’t work, you can fail fast and move onto the next thing. Don’t let your fears get in the way. Realise it’s ok to fail it’s just part of the growth of your business.”
3. INVEST IN YOURSELF.
“Like Pru has said, the amount of personal development we do as business owners is huge! It’s so important to invest in yourself. What I have realised is if you never try, you will never know. Every time I have invested in myself it ultimately paid off. You only ever regret the things you don’t do.
You can find out more about how The Owners Collective Mastermind can help you define your values and scale your biz here.
Could You Write An Awesome Book?Jacqui Pretty is the Founder of Grammar Factory, a Melbourne based publishing company that turns entrepreneurs into authors, and the author of Book Blueprint: How any entrepreneur can […] | {
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This report calls for an end to the current loop of self-monitoring where universities teach, award and mark their own degrees - and urges research-intensive universities to design standardised curricula that can be taught in the majority of institutions.
It warns that government plans to introduce a market in higher education may have undesirable consequences, with more providers making quality and value less easy to determine. It is suggested that moving to common standards and independent marking will be an effective quality control measure, similar to A-levels.
"CentreForum's report is the first systematic explanation of the case for separation of teaching from accreditation. It is hugely important for the debate about teaching in higher education - and not just in this country." | {
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Month: April 2018
When a legal problem is something you’re dealing with, your attorney needs to be honest, competent and experienced. However, you might not know what else your attorney should be. Use these tips so you make the right choice when you are looking for the perfect lawyer, because a good lawyer is indispensable.
Do not hire the first lawyer you see. Do your homework thoroughly, as choosing the wrong lawyer may lead to a negative outcome. Make inquiries and learn everything possible about your best prospects.
Before you sign up for a lawyer’s services, find out about his or her past. Just because a lawyer is a lawyer doesn’t mean they’re good at what they do. Learn about their record so that you’re confident that they can accomplish the job properly.
You should know that anything tell your attorney will be kept in strictest confidence. So if you tell them you’re guilty, your company’s secret recipe or your wife’s age, they can’t tell a soul.
Make sure to ask plenty of questions when interviewing lawyers. They should have an answer for all of it. It’s their duty to ensure you are satisfied with their knowledge level and experience. If something doesn’t feel right, go with your gut and move on to find someone more suitable.
Use a lawyer referral service. They can often connect people to an attorney that is right for them. The quality level can be inconsistent, since some screen lawyers carefully and include just the ones with a certain set of qualifications and experience. Some others tend to include any lawyer with the requisite level of liability insurance. These are things that you want to look at before deciding which referral service to go with.
Many websites offer detailed reviews of area lawyers, but others fail to provide current, accurate and useful information. Before you make an appointment to meet with a lawyer, do your homework and find information online. Your meeting will substantiate the accuracy of the online source.
Try to get the vibe of the lawyer’s office when you walk in. Anytime you call the office, write down the amount of time it takes for you to return it. In addition, note the receptionist’s tone of voice. If the office takes a long time returning your messages, that may give you a hint of how you’ll be treated when you are actually a client.
Before you file for Worker’s Compensation, do some research. Each state establishes different laws with regards to court proceedings. Do not deal with Worker’s Compensation as you would other legal matter, as it is different. You must adhere to several different standards.
Preparation is the key when planning to meet with your lawyer. They’re paid hourly. Therefore, whenever you call a lawyer for questions or advice, or you need to search for paperwork, your costs are increasing. You will spend less and have a resolution if you properly prepare yourself prior to meeting with them.
Now, you hopefully are more knowledgeable of how to find the best attorney. Remember the information from this article when you meet with attorneys. If you do, you greatly increase your chances of hiring a great lawyer that will win your case.…
It is not easy to find a lawyer that you like. After all, there are a lot of attorneys out there so you have to be careful and trust the right one. This article is filled with tips that will help you find a great lawyer.
Never hire the very first lawyer that is found when you’re trying to locate one. Be sure to research thoroughly, because lots can be at stake. Ask as many people as you can to get quality information.
If there’s a specific lawyer really gunning for you, don’t be compelled to hire him. Lawyers who have to reach out to potential clients usually lack the qualifications needed or might even run scams. Do due diligence in order to get the best attorney on your own terms.
You may be nervous about how much a lawyer, particularly one experienced in your case, will cost. But, don’t be discouraged. The average lawyer will need to spend much more time researching the law pertaining to your case than one who is already familiar with that are of the law, resulting in less hourly fees.
Don’t give an attorney a large sum of money up front. If a retainer is required, you must require a refund guarantee for monies that are not used. Try asking around since many lawyers will take smaller retainers and charge the difference.
When you interview prospective lawyers, ask a lot of questions. They should have an answer for all of it. Their responsibility is to make you as comfortable as possible with their experience and knowledge. If they do not accommodate your requests, simply leave.
If you need the assistance of a lawyer soon, it is wise to effectively communicate with him. If your case has deadlines attached to it, then you must provide your lawyer with anything that is needed. Doing this will help you win your case.
Make sure you are comfortable with your lawyer. Find someone who knows his stuff but makes you feel good at the end of the day. If you do not feel right about your lawyer, do something and get a new one.
You can use services online to look for a lawyer, but don’t put all your trust in them. Instead, you should research the recommended lawyers that these online services provide. Talk to them face-to-face prior to hiring them so that you can determine their history and whether or not they are a good fit for your case.
Keep in mind that lawyers cannot snap their fingers and win every case. If your lawyer says there is no doubt he or she will win the case, do not trust them. Nothing can be guaranteed, and you should not hire a lawyer who seems overly confident.
You absolutely must have the best lawyer to represent you during legal matters. Choose carefully and make sure you are satisfied. The advice above can help you that. You do not want to make a mistake when it comes to dealing with the law. Legal issues are stressful enough and you want someone you can trust on your side.…
When you find yourself in some kind of legal situation, you may start to worry about finding a good lawyer. You shouldn’t worry about it. While the thought of it may be daunting, it isn’t too hard. Read the below article to learn more knowledge about finding the best lawyer to represent you.
One of the last things you will want to do is to simply go with the first lawyer that you find. Do some research since choosing the wrong one can end badly. If you are interested in a particular lawyer, see if you can find personal references.
Set a schedule as to when you and your attorney are going to meet. Some lawyers are hard to reach as soon as they are hired. When you have a schedule in place, you’ll avoid issues down the road.
Although you should always be mindful of any advice provided by your lawyer, understand that this person works for you, not the other way around. When you’re not comfortable, say something. While your lawyer works for your best interest, they may have quite the case load.
If you need a lawyer for a business matter the best way to find one is to ask other business owners for recommendations. Companies who work with attorneys on a regular basis can be a good resource for referrals. For example, suppose you need a lawyer to help you with articles of incorporation for your small business. A financial professional may be able to help you with that. They will surely be able to tell you about a good lawyer.
You should only hire a trustworthy lawyer. This goes double if you are looking for a lawyer to help with your business. After all, you may have to sign a blank check. Your financial fate is literally in their hands, then. Try as much as possible to protect yourself.
It is important to do your own research into any lawyers you are considering hiring. Look for reviews online and contact your local bar association to find out more about the lawyers you are interested in. It will save you cash, time and stress.
One thing to keep in mind when working with lawyers is that you should communicate what you feel with them. Learn the deadlines and make sure all of the paperwork is ready to go. This will increase the chances of a positive outcome.
When you’re shopping around for an attorney, choose one that specializes in the same type of court case you’re involved in. Lawyers specialize in all sorts of legal matters from real estate law to criminal defense and everything else in between. If you sort your possible lawyers by specialty, you can hone in on just the right ones to pursue.
Once you know about the various kinds of lawyers and what kinds of cases they deal with, you will find dealing with lawyers to be easier. Begin making needed calls, ask whatever questions you have, and help will soon be on its way. Good luck with your endeavor.… | {
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Gold Coast has tapped Rick Ax, formerly an agent with the Gage Group, to head the new division as senior manager. The expansion into the talent management arena is a milestone for the Santa Monica-based production outfit, founded in 1992 by partners Matthew Papish, Jay Renfroe and David Garfinkle.
“This move is in recognition of the strategic importance talent management plays in project development,” said Papish.
Although mostly known for TV, Gold Coast has recently ventured into the feature pic production arena. The partners are exec producers of the short film “Waiting for Woody,” featuring George Clooney, Jennifer Aniston, Tate Donovan and Samantha Mathis. The comedy, now making the film festival rounds, was written and directed by Gold Coast client Heslov.
Gold Coast and Phoenician Films also produced the Slamdance fest winner “20 Dates,” which has been picked up by Fox Searchlight for distribution this fall.
Gold Coast’s TV production credits include the syndie series “Sports Bar” and “A.J.’s Time Travelers,” in addition to numerous specs and docus for cable’s USA Network and Sci-Fi Channel. | {
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Golden Bone Broth
When I shared a photo of my latest bone broth stash on Instagram a few weeks ago, I got a lot of requests for the recipe. One of the things that I secretly love about making broth is that it’s inexact. I spend the vast majority of my time in the kitchen, measuring and timing things so that when you try to recreate the recipe at your house, it works.
But bone broth is less precise, and it really can’t go wrong.
This is how I make my chicken broth every few weeks. Sometimes it gels, and sometimes it doesn’t, but it always tastes great, and I know it’s loaded with nutrients. This recipe produces somewhere between 8 and 10 quarts of broth, which I then usually turn into Chocolate Chili and Silky Gingered Zucchini Soup. This same technique also works with 6 pounds of beef bones; just follow the rest of the recipe as written. If you use beef bones, you might want to roast them in a 450F oven for 20 minutes before making the broth.
Tools & Ingredients
Stockpot: I have an enormous stock pot. It’s this one, and it’s 16 quarts. You don’t have to buy a behemoth pot like that one, but I’m lazy and like to make a giant batch all at once.
Chicken wings: These little babies are loaded with collagen and add a lot of flavor. When I can’t find good ones locally, I order online from White Oak Pastures,
Chicken feet: Yes, they look creepy, and I once accidentally got one caught in the garbage disposal so it looked like a hand crawling up out of the drain, but… they’re also loaded with collagen and make the broth luscious. I order online from White Oak Pastures,
Other chicken parts:KOL Foods, Slanker, and US Wellness Meats all offer chicken soup bones and US Wellness Meats sometimes has feet, too. I usually roast a whole chicken or some bone-in thighs and save the bones instead of buying chicken soup bones.
The Witch Bag: I have a freezer bag that I use to store chicken bones from any birds that I roast, along with the ends of celery, carrot butts, and bedraggled parsley. Dave calls it my Witch Bag because it looks a little bit like a horror show, but those somewhat unappetizing leftovers turn into beautiful broth.
One Final Note
As I alluded to at the beginning of this post, there are lots of ways to make broth. This is the pattern I’ve settled into. But you can use this post as a guide, not a rule book. Happy brewing!
Golden Bone Broth
Ingredients:
leftover chicken bones, whole or parts. The amount is imprecise, but usually equals about 1 chicken
1/3 cup cider vinegar
2 dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
2 onions, unpeeled and cut into quarters
2-3 carrots, unpeeled and cut in half crosswise
2 celery butts and the inside stalks with leaves (If you don’t have a witch bag, use a few stalks of fresh celery.)
1/2 to 1 head garlic, cloves smashed but not peeled
a handful of fresh parsley
cold water
Directions
1
Place the chicken feet, wings, and other bones in a large stock pot. Add the cider vinegar, bay leaves, and peppercorns, then add water to the pot to cover the bones. You don’t want a ton of extra water in there, but you want a few extra inches of coverage at the top because it will evaporate as it cooks. This is an eyeball-it thing; don’t stress.
2
Place the pot on the stove over high heat and bring to a boil uncovered, then immediately reduce the heat to a simmer and remove any foamy stuff that’s formed on the top.
3
Add the onion, carrot, celery, parsley, and garlic to the pot; stir to combine.
4
Cover and simmer for 24-36 hours. I check the pot every 4 hours or so (except for overnight when I’m sleeping), and I adjust the temp so that it’s barely simmering. There’s hardly any movement on the surface of the water, but if I bump the heat up, it immediately starts to move.
5
When the brew is finished cooking, let it cool a bit, then strain it. I manage this by placing an extremely large wire strainer in an equally-large bowl inside the sink. Then I carefully tip the stockpot and pour the broth into the strainer/bowl. I can do about half the pot at once.
Then I ladle the broth into Mason jars and repeat the strain/ladle process until it’s complete.
Be sure to leave room at the top of the jars for the broth to expand! I put the jars in the fridge—with the lids on loosely—to cool for a few hours, then tighten the lids and transfer them to the freezer.
6
To use the broth, let it defrost in the refrigerator, then go about your business. It will make your favorite soups taste even better than before, and on its own in a mug—maybe with a little ghee and dried chives—it’s restorative.
Commercial Bone Broth
If you cannot deal with all of the above, or simply run out and need broth in a hurry, these brands are high-quality and taste really good.
The fat will solidify as the stock cools. If there’s a lot, I usually remove it, but if it’s a very thin layer, I keep it because it adds such great flavor.
I usually have a VERY slight simmer — just a tiny bit of movement under the surface. It freaks me out when it’s just sitting there like a still pond; I imagine yucky things growing in there because it’s not hot enough.
We use a crock pot, but the crock pot was running 225°, it too was a bit gaggy, I made this control box, effectively making a Sous Vide cooker. We cooked our chicken at 165° and the smell was wonderful. The bird was done a little longer at that temp. Boned the bird and put all bones back in the crock pot for 3 days of heavenliness odor and a beautiful golden brown broth.
Also, I got this idea from another person, but try freezing some of the batch of broth in ice cube trays, then popping out and storing in a Ziploc. Then you can add just the amount you need for recipes without thawing a whole jar!
One thing I have been adding to my bone broth as it cooks is a “finger” of fresh turmeric. I cut it up irregularly and plop it in with peppercorns. It creates a beautiful golden color with anti-inflammatories of turmeric. The peppercorns are a must with turmeric. They work synergistically. We don’t think the broth tastes turmeric-y either. I’m sold!
I make mine almost exactly the same with a slight variation. I don’t put in the peppercorns until after I’m done skimming (used to skim them out) and I don’t put in the veggies until 6 hours before done because to me they get a funky flavor if left 24 hours.
AWESOME broth!!! Thanks so much for this. Also, White Oak Pastures are great, and the owners are salt of the Earth people. So happy to see you enjoy their products too and share them with your followers! Love your blog!
When you get the chicken feet from the vendor, they should be ready to go! They have to process them — I think they usually singe a layer of… something?… off the feet before packaging them. I have read that some people remove the toenails; I’ve never bothered. The ones I buy online are super clean and ready to be cooked. Hope that helps!
I don’t have a skimmer recommendation — sorry! — but this is the strainer I use. It’s very light weight, but I like it because the mesh is very fine, which is great for broth. http://amzn.to/28xnb88 Have fun with your witch’s brew!
Last questions, I swear!
1–I keep seeing people online asking about adding water as they go because the water evaporates?
2–Some people say don’t boil it at all because it makes it cloudy?
3–I take it the veggies, chicken and bones have to be discarded?
1. If you add more water during the cooking process, it will not gel because the additional water dilutes the broth and collagen.
2. That may be true! I always bring my pot to a boil for a second, then reduce the heat and it’s not crystal clear, so that may be why. If that matters to you, try not boiling and see how it goes.
3. Yes, I always trash the dregs. If I’ve used very meaty bones, sometimes I toss the veggies, then do another batch with the same bones. It doesn’t taste as good, but it still has nutrients from the bones. You can reuse bones until they fall apart.
Thanks, Melissa! I don’t know why I am so scared to cook this. I am such a perfectionist and I think I’m afraid I’m going to lose all of my chicken (I got backs, wings and feet from my local farmer). I’ll let you know. 🙂
Any concerns about leaving the stove on while sleeping? Do you leave it on when not home? I’ve made broth but for not long enough for fear of leaving it unattended… And it isn’t as flavorful. I have a gas stove, if that matters. And the Crock Pot just isn’t big enough!
I also have a gas stove, and no, I don’t really worry about it leaving it on overnight or when I’m not home. The gas stove has a pilot light, so it’s essentially “on” anyway. The flame is VERY low, and it’s covered by a heavy, enormous pot. If you have kids, a frisky dog, or another strong, curious pet, you might not want to leave it unattended.
I have cats, and while I know they are mischievous on the counter, I think they would stay away from something hot. Many thanks! I’m about to do my first Whole30 and your books and meal plans and everything have been SO helpful!!
Hi Melissa,
I’ve made beef bone broth once before in the slow-cooler but wasn’t to keen. I found that I’d make more use of chicken bone broth. I have a 6 quart slow cooker and was wondering if I still add enough water to cover the bones or slightly less because much won’t evaporate during cooking?
Also is this flavourful enough to replace using chicken stock in recipes? Thank you for your advice : )
2. Why cook it so long? Is that the difference between “bone broth” and just soup? I’ve made chicken soup/broth before and just cooked it for however long I had…2 1/2-3 hours and it was delish. But does the longer cooking time create elements or texture?
1. There are conflicting opinions among broth makers whether or not it’s true, but the vinegar *may* help break down the bones to get them to release the most minerals. Some chefs say you can skip it. I include it just in case becasue it doesn’t affect the flavor.
2. Regular broth and stock can be simmered for much shorter time. Bone broth requires a long simmer to release the minerals and collagen from the bones. If you’re just looking for homemade broth, you can go with a shorter simmering time. If you want the health benefits of bone broth, it needs to simmer for much longer.
Another good store-bought broth is Imagine Foods, http://www.imaginefoods.com/ Sprouts and Whole Foods carry it, and the ingredients all look good. Imagine is a subsidiary of Hain.
I’ve picked up two different ‘organic’ Pacific broths that listed added sugar, so I’ve switched to Imagine preferentially. It takes me a couple of months to build up enough bones and ‘stuff’ to make broth, and I end up buying it most weeks.
I usually remove the skin because it’s so fatty and will just have to be skimmed off later—but it doesn’t matter that much. Make sure you don’t put salt in while you’re cooking the ingredients. Leave the seasoning for after the long-term cooking is done.
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New York
How we vote on November 8 will be the first step in a long process of building a new economic and political order in New York State and in the United States. It is an opportunity to push the nation - and Dems - forward. It is important to vote the Working Families Party (WFP) line for several reasons. The WFP is an independent progressive political party that in New York State can run progressive candidates who are endorsed by both the WFP and the Democratic Party.
Executive orders are meant to avert imminent or existential crises that cannot await legislation. It's as if we are being asked to believe that BDS is some deplorable enemy endangering our very existence as a free society, and that only those who really care, take action on behalf of the rest of us, who have not yet awoken to the grim reality. For Cuomo, fighting this fight on behalf of Israel is all about "freedom, liberty and democracy".
After Occupy in 2011, and the wave of fast-food strikes the following year in New York City, the movement to raise wages took a new turn and a bolder stance: $15 an hour and a union. When the campaign first began, that pay demand seemed like a pipe dream. Yet the call for $15 resonated. Now, the movement has scored victories in two of the biggest states in the country.
The ideology and practice of neoliberalism, resulting in rising inequality and the imposition of austerity policies, brings us to the national debate about whether it is appropriate for public funds to underwrite the costs of public higher education or whether higher education is essentially to be seen as a private good and an individual (or familial) responsibility.
Legendary rock star Patti Smith's look back expresses supremely well the tentativeness of every movement forward, the sense of following a path so risky, so sketchily perceptible, that at any moment one might go astray and never be heard from again, never perhaps even hear from the deepest part of oneself again. For a book that ends in success, it is acutely sensitive to that abyss of failure that haunts the attempt to become any kind of artist. | {
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Ruuxa(CQ) the Cheetah and Raina, a Rhodesian Ridgeback Dog, play in an enclosure at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, California on Tuesday, January 20, 2015.(Photo by Sandy Huffaker for The New York Times) | {
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There are three Navy ships that had the name USS Wilkes, after Commodore Charles Wilkes. This USS Wilkes, DD-67, was the second ship to bear the name. It was a Sampson-Class destroy and helped conduct ....
In 1987, the USPS issued a 22-cent stamp (Scott #2259) to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Girl Scouts of America. It is a nice stamp, multi-colored, and features the images of 14 badges Girl ....
Note: I originally published this article on LinkedIn. Through my life, by accident or design, I've found myself repeatedly in a role of leadership. It may have been as a patrol leader in Boy Scouts, .... | {
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Archive for: January, 2016
The January 7th Social Enterprise University Cause Story Telling class was a great success. Led by master storyteller and social entrepreneur Suzanne Smith, participants learned how to craft their organizations’ story to capture hearts and minds. Suzanne is one of the pioneers of social enterprise and has worked with numerous organizations from the Red Cross… | {
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Ask Farnoosh
Ask Farnoosh about money, work, life, or a recent guest below and she'll do her best to answer your question during an upcoming Friday episode on So Money. Record a message below or type in your question.
Arteen Arabshahi
Venture Capitalist from Forbes 30 Under 30
February 16, 2016        Uncategorized
Today I have a family friend on the show, a good friend and college buddy of my brother, Todd. Arteen Arabshahi is here. He recently made Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for 2016 in the Venture Capital category. Arteen is just one of those guys where you justknow he’s on to accomplishing big things.
In 2013, Arteen joined as #2 at Karlin Ventures, an LA-based early stage fund with investments such as Gyft, Cirrosecure, Laurel & Wolf and others. Before investing in enterprise software and marketplaces he spearheded the launch of Build in LA, an online community for digital entrepreneurs and innovators. Outside of his work with startups, Arteen sits on the board of TEDxVenice Beach and he’s an active supporter of To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA), a non-profit raising awareness and support for mental health. He also teaches at General Assembly and The Unique CAMP.
Arteen is a natural people person. I’ve known him for many years now. It’s something that all of us identify in him. He’s an extrovert, so how does he harness that to then build and advance in his career? How does Arteen make decisions when it comes to the next steps in his career? He doesn’t really listen to a lot of people. He talks about his strategy. Plus, how does this So Money Millennial manage his money? What are some of the investments that haven’t done so well for him and how is he trying to make the most of his paycheck?
If you’d like to learn more about ArteenArabshahi visit his website arteenin.la or follow him on Twitter @arteeninLA. | {
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Friday, June 11, 2010
Fresh after profiting (but not enough) from deathbed pictures of Gary Coleman, his ex-wife Shannon Price has unearthed a handwritten will, dating back to 2007. The will was written one week after the couple wed and naturally, names Shannon as the sole heir of Gary’s estate.
Even though the will was not witnessed (except by the other personalities in Shannon’s head that give her seizures) or notarized, Price insists that Coleman was of sound mind when he wrote it, as he loved her with all of his heart --the functioning part, anyway.
We were able to land a picture of the document and its authenticity is probably going to be VERY difficult to determine. It is clear that Coleman planned to leave Price his personal possessions in the will, but it is unclear if he planned for her to carry on his legacy of ill will toward his parents. The real ones, not Mr. Drummond. See for yourself. | {
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On 5am on Sunday, December 29th, Otunga called Mr Gabriel and said he had fought with his wife but there were no serious injuries.
Mr Gabriel took a taxi to his daughter's home in Northolt, Middlesex, and Otunga ushered him in.
Prosecuting at the Old Bailey, Tim Cray said: "He found the defendant in the hallway and noted two things - that all the internal doors were closed and that a mobile phone had been smashed into pieces in the hallway.
"The defendant told Mr Gabriel that Shamim had been talking to another man and was always being praised for her beauty by other men.
"He said that he had lost consciousness and control, that he was very sorry about what he had done and what had happened to Shamim.
"Otunga opened the kitchen door and Mr Gabriel saw that his daughter was lying on the floor, and his impression was that she was naked apart from a pair of pants.
"She had been stabbed many times and the kitchen was covered in blood."
Mr Gabriel asked Otunga: 'Is this what you called me for, to show me the body of my daughter?'
Otunga made no reply and repeated he was 'very sorry.'
He later told officers: "I killed her. She was getting text messages from men at work, we both work for Royal Mail.
"We argued and she went to the kitchen and picked up a knife and said she would kill herself, so I took it and killed her."
Richard Otunga, who killed his wife in a jealous rage, stabbing her 32 times (Photo: PA)
Mr Cray said: "The fatal attack was not some sudden or unusual event but rather a culmination of violent behaviour on the part of the defendant towards his wife, including previous threats to kill her - he had thought about it before."
The Old Bailey jury convicted Otunga of murder and he is due to be sentenced on Monday.
Detective Chief Inspector Chris Jones of the Homicide and Major Crime Command (HMCC) said: "Richard Otunga was a jealous controlling man who could not accept his wife having any contact with other men.
"Otunga tried to convince the jury that he had feared an immediate threat of violence from his wife and then lost control.
"The jury clearly did not accept this and have returned a verdict of murder.
"He tried to state that his wife had been having affairs but there was no evidence whatsoever to substantiate this.
"The family of Shamim who have had to give evidence at court have acted with great dignity and I hope that this conviction can be some comfort for them." | {
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Can I purchase on EDU?
Overview
A marvel of innovation. You have instant access to 85% of a sphere, making this far and away the quickest to position ballhead. There is no vertical notch necessary. The surface is coated with a scratch-resistant, smooth shell which reduces vibration transmission while allowing the user to move the gear with ease and expedience. There is no independent panning capacity, however this can be solved by using the Novoflex Universal Panorama Plate. Together these two pieces provide quicker use than all other ballheads. This will hold the biggest of medium format equipment as well as supertelephoto lenses. | {
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Sabol is a former Franklin County Public Defender who earned a reputation as a tough and aggressive defense lawyer. He is currently the head of the criminal and traffic defense departments at Luftman, Heck & Associates.
Sabol has earned recognition throughout Ohio for his OVI / DUI defense work. He is a frequent speaker at OVI / DUI legal seminars and has appeared on television talking about criminal and traffic defense. | {
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Awakenings from Then ’til Now allows you to Embrace Your Past, Empower the Present, Enrich Your Future.
Welcome to Awakenings
Life IS history in the making. Every word we say, everything we do becomes history the moment it is said or done. Life void of memories leaves nothing but emptiness. For those who might consider history boring, think again: It is who we are, what we do and why we are here. We are certainly individuals in our thoughts and deeds but we all germinated from seeds planted long, long ago.
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Santa's First Climb
Along with Christmas time comes the anticipation of Santa Claus whose story stretches all the way back to the third century. The legend of Santa Claus has roots connected to a monk named St. Nicolas. It has been said he gave away his wealth traveling the countryside helping the poor and sick. Thus, the introduction to St. Nick about whom there are actually many legends! One in particular is celebration of his feast day, which occurs on the anniversary of his death, December 6.
This feast day, of course, did not occur on the shores of America. So, the question becomes, "When did he appear on American soil?" St. Nickolas made his first appearance in American pop culture near the end of the eighteenth century in December, 1773 and again in 1774. Groups of Dutch families actually gathered in celebration of the anniversary of Sinter Klaas, aka Sinterklaas, Nick's Dutch nickname.
In 1804, John Pintard, a member of the New York Historical Society,
distributed woodcuts of St. Nicholas at the society's annual meeting.
The background of the engraving contains now-familiar Santa images
including stockings filled with toys and fruit hung over a fireplace. In
1809, Washington Irving helped to popularize the Sinter Klaas stories
when he referred to St. Nicholas as the patron saint of New York in his
book, The History of New York. As his prominence grew, Sinter Klaas was
described as everything from a "rascal" with a blue three-cornered hat,
red waistcoat, and yellow stockings to a man wearing a broad-brimmed hat
and a "huge pair of Flemish trunk hose."
There is a lot of tradition behind Sinter Klaas, aka Sinterklaas. Just click the picture below and visit Mia's Musing for a Dutch girl's eye view.
Is this the same Santa seen in the shopping malls? Same origin, but with a slightly different look. When stores begin advertising Christmas shopping in the 1820s, gift-giving centered around children. By the 1840s, newspapers specialized in creating special holiday advertisements, which often featured images of the newly-popular Santa Claus. Today, you can find Santa busily entertaining children as they sit on his lap burning his ears with Christmas wishes.
One last question probably comes to mind, "Where does the chimney enter the picture?" There are various stories why Santa comes down the chimney. The one most commonly known appears in the famous Christmas poem "An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas" even though Santa's connection with chimneys dates back several centuries before the poem.
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;...
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof, The prancing and pawing of each little hoof--
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound...
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work, And fill'd all the stockings; then turned with a jerk, And laying his finger aside of his nose, And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose...
Embrace the Past...
Significant influences of Santa Claus in America include:
1659 - Puritanical theocrats brought the hammer down on Christmas traditions. From1659-1681, a fine of five shillings was imposed for feasting and celebrating Christmas in Boston. Wishing a fellow colonist a mere "Merry Christmas" brought on the hefty fine. Perhaps this is where Ebenezer Scrooge got his beginnings!
In contrast, the settlement of Jamestown actually openly celebrated the season.
1820 - Advertising for Christmas shopping began in stores in America.
1822 - Clement Clarke Moore, an Episcopal minister, wrote a long Christmas poem
for his three daughters titled "An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas," which begins with the famous line 'Twas the night before Christmas'. His imagery in the poem beget the jolly Santa Claus.
1840 - American newspapers began to
creating separate sections for holiday advertisements, which often
featured images of the newly-popular Santa Claus.
1841 - A life-size Santa Claus model lured thousands of children into a Philadelphia shop. This was only the beginning for the 'store Santas'.
Early 1890s -Salvation Army provided free Christmas meals to needy families. As the
tradition grew, money was needed to fund the project. Unemployed men
were dressed up in Santa suits who, in turn, hit the streets of New York
ringing bells for donations, a tradition that is still live and well
today. Also, in the 1890s, Christmas ornaments
were arriving from Germany and Christmas tree popularity was on the rise
around the U.S.
1914 - On and around Christmas Day 1914, roughly 100,000 British and German troops were involved in unofficial ceasefires on the battlefields of WWI. The artillery in the region fell silent being replaced by the sounds of Christmas carols in favor of holiday celebrations in the trenches and
gestures of goodwill between enemies.
1931 - On Christmas Eve 1931, while the nation was mired in the Great Depression, a 20ft Christmas tree was
erected by construction workers on a muddy site of what would become the
Rockefeller Center in New York. Two years later, a Rockefeller Center Publicist organized the first official tree-lighting ceremony. Today, it is a multimillion-dollar extravaganza that attracts thousands of tourists each year.
1939 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is the most famous reindeer of them all, yet he was 'born' over a hundred years AFTER his eight counterparts. Robert L. May, a copywriter at theMontgomery Ward department store, is accredited with his creation. He wrote a Christmas-themed story-poem to help bring holiday traffic into
his store using a similar rhyme pattern to Clement Clark Moore's Christmas poem.
1949 - One of Robert May's friends, Johnny Marks, wrote a short
song based on Rudolph's story. It was recorded by Gene Autry selling over two million copies. Since then, the story has been translated
into 25 languages and been made into a television movie narrated by
Burl Ives, which has charmed audiences every year since 1964.
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About Me
Sharla is a graduate of Troy State University and an educator with a flair for writing in poetic verse. Her latest book, Awakenings from Then ’til Now is available from Tate Publishing. It is dedicated to those who laid the foundation and established the platform for our American freedom: those who have served in the past, presently serve, or will serve our military forces in the future. A profound appreciation is extended for the sacrifice of these brave men and women who left or will leave their homes and family to ensure America’s freedom endures.
A grave price is being paid every moment of every day of the year for all the freedom America has to offer. Let us not forget those who have fought or are fighting for our nation; they are the epitome of the human spirit called freedom! | {
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Description: I am often asked in my Introductory Psychology classes, just before exams, “do we have to memorize the names of the you talked about in class?” My answer to that question is not No but rather “I will not ask you any questions on the exam where the answer is a Psychologist’s name.” It is not that I think the concepts and theories that I am introducing my student to are any more important than the people who developed and tested them. Provide the names of many of the researchers and theorists we talk about in class partly out of respect for them, partly as part of providing some interesting life context to the research and theories we talk about and partly to help students to see that the science of Psychology is not just about human being but it is also a human enterprise that they, themselves can actively participate in and, at a minimum, think about and usefully apply to themselves and the world they find around them. The article linked below is to an obituary for Eleanor Maccoby, a psychologist of great stature and a good example of another little secret reason why I tell my students I do not ask name-answer questions. If one gets interested in and engaged with the theoretic debates and research activities associated with an area of study within Psychology (as I did with the issue of gender differences in self-reflection while working on my graduate degrees in developmental Psychology) the names of the key players in those areas will, along with their work, bury itself deep within your memory along with appreciation, respect, and curiosity such that you will never forget who they are or what they added to the discipline. As a result, I learned Eleanor Maccoby’s name early on and have not, not will I not ever, forget her and her work. The obituary linked below does not get into details of her work, but it does point to a number of key insights and motivations Eleanor provided over her many years of work. Imagine what it was like to be working on the general question of gender differences in areas of Psychological functioning while a faculty member at Harvard University and as such a member of the Harvard Faculty club and yet not be permitted to enter through the “men only” front door of the club? Imaging noticing that the results of a single or small number of studies showing sex differences in an area of functioning are taken to define the truth about sex differences in spite of the fact that many more well-designed studies showing no sex differences in those areas are not published due to being viewed as uninteresting by journal editorial boards. Have a read through the description of Eleanor Maccoby’s life and work in the link below and look for some of the wisdom or just plain thought provoking insights she offered us about Psychology and the nature of human development.
Source: Eleanor Maccoby, Pathbreaker on How Boys and Girls Differ, Dies at 101, Katharine Q. Seele, The New York Times.
Eleanor Maccoby DID conduct a lot of research but she also built and shared a very well informed and broad perspective on what Psychological research was or could be telling us about the sex differences – that there are not nearly as many as we believe, that those that exist are not as large as we believe, and that we socio-culturally follow patterns of development that socialize the thinking of our children in ways more in line with our beliefs than with what the data is telling us is the truth. Researchers and theorists like Eleanor deserve our respect, our thanks, and space in our memories as we move forward within and with Psychology.
Questions for Discussion:
Who was Eleanor Maccoby and what did she contribute to Psychology in terms of our understanding of sex differences?
What were one or two of Eleanor Maccoby’s larger scale observations about the extent to which males and females are different (or not)?
What did Eleanor Maccoby suggest about the enterprise of Psychological research in relation to sex differences in human ability and functioning and what, of that might generalize to other areas of Psychology? | {
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Sales-Comp and Benefits Survey
General
This survey is conducted every two years by a group of state, local and regional societies of association executives with support from Whorton Marketing & Research.
1,315 associations across the U.S. participated in this year’s survey, including members and non-members of 26 SAEs.
Participation included 11 South, 8 Northeast, 8 Midwest, and 5 West states and areas.
Each SAE report features its own data, state-wide or for its region.
The national study compares compensation across states for 39 positions.
The full national and state reports present detailed compensation overall by budget and staff ranges, geographic scope and membership structure, and by state. In addition to the multi-state report, you'll also receive the Georgia-specific report.
The report meets the IRS guidelines regarding third party compensation reports. Available in PDF format. | {
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Arrive in Cochin, Representative of Gianna pick you from airport. Check-in at hotel. Proceed for half-day city tour to visit Dutch Palace, Jewish synagogue, Chinese fishing nets, St. Francis church, Santa Cruz church and Fort-Cochin beac. Overnight stay in hotel.
Day 2: Munnar
After the breakfast at the hotel, drive to Munnar approximately 4 hours (135km). Check-in at the hotel in Munnar. After Lunch proceed for sightseeing in Munnar and Overnight at the hotel in Munnar.
Day 3: Munnar
After breakfast, take a sightseeing tour of Munnar and visit and Eravikulam National Park to get a view of variety of flora and fauna. In the evening return to the hotel and enjoy the dinner and comfortable overnight at the hotel.
Day 4: Thekkady
After the breakfast, check out of the hotel and drive to Thekkady approximately 4 hours by road (110 km. Check into the hotel. After the lunch, proceed for a boat cruise at Periyar Lake in Thekkady. Thekkady is synonymous with wildlife and nature treks. Later in the evening, elephant ride and experience the traditional Kalari show. Dinner and Overnight stay in hotel
Day 5: Alleppey
After the breakfast, check out of the hotel visit Spice Planation which will last for an hour. There are kind of so spices cultivated in Thekkady. Drive to Alleppey approximately 5 hours by road (151km) and check in to the house boat. Enjoy Lunch, dinner and a comfortable overnight stay at the Houseboat. | {
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ComicsAlliance’s 11 Best Comics of 2011, #11 – 9
As 2011 draws to close, ComicsAlliance has assembled its annual list of the best comics and graphic novels of the year, with the help and input of our editors, writers, and readers. Like any list, it is naturally subjective, but we've packed it chock full of eleven comics that have awed us, excited us, and entertained us over the last 12 months and books that we're passionate about recommending. We'll be rolling out the rest throughout the week, but for now we begin at the beginning with the first three books in our Top 11 Comics of 2011.
#11. Atomic Robo, by Brian Clevinger and Scott Wegener (Red 5)
Since Atomic Robo's premiere in 2007, the series about a scientific adventure robot created by Nikola Tesla has been a shining example of so many things that are right about comics. It's a book that's funny and yet surprisingly touching at times, a book that features car chases, gun fights and robots punching other robots but never uses them as an excuse to give up on being smart. And it's a book I recommend with the same enthusiasm to both someone who's never read a comic before and someone who's been reading comics their entire life.
Robo's adventures place throughout most of the 20th century, jumping back and forth through different eras across different volumes where Robo combats strange scientific and supernatural phenomena. But as each new story is told the audience gains a more complete understanding and appreciation of Robo's personality and the events that shaped him, including the last two volumes where we saw Robo beginning his life of adventure in the 1930s and then back in the present day, as the leader of an organization of action scientists with decades of memories behind him.
In the former story, The Deadly Art of Science, Robo is brash, reckless, and yearning to become a pulp hero, much to the frustration of both his caring yet eccentric creator, Nikola Tesla and his reluctant mentor Jack Tarot. It's the first time we see Tesla on the page rather than hear about him as part of Robo's backstory, and Clevinger and Wegener do a great job of making a historical figure fits perfectly into the universe they've built as a wise, powerful father figure. (And his final battle with Thomas Edison is spectacularly done.)
With its sixth volume, Ghost of Station X, the series jumps ahead to a point where it's Robo has become the wise and powerful one, and must look after a team of scientists rather than being looked after by them. When Robo is nearly destroyed in an emergency rescue mission to save trapped astronauts he has to come to terms with the fact that someone is trying to kill him, and that he's not as invincible as he'd like to be. The small moment where Robo loses the revolver Jack Tarot gave him, the trusty sidearm he'd carried with him for over seventy years, is a tiny, well-done scene. And it's many tiny well-done scenes like this -- mostly funny, some exciting, a few heartfelt -- that come together to make this book stunningly good.
I've noticed a tendency in the field of comics blogging, or perhaps pop culture commentary in general, where a writer cites the more outlandishly fantastic aspects of a story as means of objectively justifying its awesomeness. As if to say "this cultural product is worthwhile because this is a thing that happens in it." And you could argue that this approach doesn't quite successfully convey a holistically critical argument for why a certain piece of work is worth checking out.
Then again, one of the main characters in Infinite Kung Fu is a martial arts master named Moog Joogular who rolls around in a track suit and a sweet afro and occasionally ends his fights by throwing his own head at people. Now I could make the argument that the opportunity to see that kind of thing in a comic book is more than enough reason to go out and read this thing, and it's a pretty good reason, but I'd be a silly kind of fellow go to staking the value of something so brilliant on just one little piece of it.
Infinite Kung Fu is Kagan McLeod's grand tribute to a genre that he clearly loves in a serious way. We know that this is a guy who spent a huge amount of time watching kung fu flicks growing up, and it shows. It's the kind of book that Brian Benben's character from "Dream On" would have made about television. This book contains a perfectly crafted kung fu epic, with a hero's journey, and one of the best casts of characters I've seen in quite some time. And even if you're not an expert on the genre, it feels like you're reading a melting pot of the best flicks lining the wall of that one video store you always pass on the way home from work. The one with all the kung fu movies.
If you're familiar with Kagan MacLeod's art, you've probably seen his illustrations in any number of popular magazines. That was my primary reference point for his work prior to picking up this book. My limited encounter with his style had left me knowing that he did some pretty cool drawings of celebrities. It's an understatement to say that picking up this book expanded my view of his style. There's a fluidity and a sense of motion to MacLeod's artwork in this book that lends itself perfectly to a story that's at least 30% sweet kung fu action. He brings together his sketching and brushwork in a perfect marriage. When folks are fighting in Infinite Kung Fu, you feel them moving, and it flows like Bruce Lee playing ping pong with nunchuks.
When you look at the best books these days, more often than not, you'll find that they tend to be absolute labors of love crafted by people with a true affection for the types of stories being told. Infinite Kung Fu is a perfect example of this, and the future of the medium will likely (hopefully) be carried forth by lovers like Kagan MacLeod.
Hellboy started as the story of a demonic superhero and paranormal investigator, sort of a Benjamin Grimm meets Van Helsing kind of guy. In its sister book, the BPRD (Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense) hunted cryptids and monstrous frogs. Together, Hellboy and BPRD are two of the most creatively successful and consistent series you'll find on the stands, and while they've drifted far from their beginnings, you'd be hard pressed to find a fan that's upset about that. Mignola, John Arcudi, and Guy Davis took BPRD to the limit and decided to keep pushing.
Late last year, BPRD: Hell on Earth: New World welcomed us to the middle of the apocalypse while the brave men and women of the BPRD tried their hardest, but failed to stop the coming storm. This year, Mike Mignola's Hellboy franchise doubled down on completely and irrevocably disrupting its status quo in 2011. Other-dimensional beasts roam the world, eager to convert it to something that they can survive and thrive in. Pockets of corruption have spread rapidly, bringing a distinctly personal touch to this new world. Now, the BPRD's mission of prevention and protection has turned into containment. Across the Atlantic, Hellboy left behind a newfound love and a safe England, ran right to his destiny, passing into myth and legend in the process -- and fell.
There have been no take backs or easy outs. Well-loved characters die, and die ugly, just like everyone else. Others have doubt cast over their actions and past, sending them spiraling down a web of mystery. The past couple years of BPRD have seen constant change, from the rapid-fire upheavals to the loss of longtime series penciller Guy Davis. The transition to new regular penciller Tyler Crook has gone fairly smoothly, with barely a drop in overall quality.
Hellboy is a clinic. Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo charted the rise and fall of a true hero. They began with a standard Hellboy adventure and then went ahead and expanded the story, drawing in even more legends and fairy tales in the process, before turning around and tying it right back into the core of the Hellboy mythos. This year's Hellboy: The Fury miniseries was a perfect event comic. It didn't overstay its welcome, and every single one of its three issues had the impact of a punch to the stomach. On top of that, Mignola and Richard Corben continued their collaboration with Hellboy: House of the Living Dead, a standalone graphic novel and sequel to Hellboy In Mexico, last year's best comic. Once again, Mignola and Corben knocked it all the way out of the park.
Hellboy, as a franchise, is a blueprint for how to do comics right. Characters evolve and grow. Talented creators are given the freedom to do some genuinely stellar work. The books come out on a schedule that makes sense, rather than being a monthly or ongoing series just for the sake of it. Each series has a point. These are incredibly good comics, and I'm glad to see that "Everything Changes" is a feasible approach for an ongoing series. | {
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NEVER MISS A BEAT !!
outstanding terraces! – sponsored
Waking up each morning, to go sit outside in the side and just soak up the city’s vibe is an absolute pleasure. Beautiful terraces and balconies however big or small can be your sanctuary in the times when you need to wind down the most. Terraces provide you that connect with nature, which gives add so much more in your day. How can you transform your outdoor space? Here’s how you can help you property with that long-awaited sunshine! These outstanding terraces will give you ideas on how to transform an outside space into a party paradise.
Teak GazeboThatched Roof!
Gazebo – Create a beautiful wooden trellis have creepers grown over time. You want to plan ahead so you have some creepers by the time your entire house is ready. Bougainvillea or night jasmines are great options to plant, as they look stunning. Natural tones are better because then it blends in well with the green. You can even go Mawi, with a thatched look. We love bamboo canopies as well. They are eco-friendly and look chic.
Outdoor Swing!
Furniture – A teak cocktail table and lounge chairs punctuate the airy terrace. Lounge chairs or swing sofas are nice if you have large spaces, but comfy chairs which can fold up if you have less space also work well. Outdoor fabric is a key element, especially in India when the weather is so erratic. Alfresco dining looks beautiful with a combination of wrought iron chairs.
Flooring – Outdoor deck wood is expensive and very common but is a classic and looks stunning. Stone options in grey tones look lovely and are easy to maintain. Slightly raised decked sections divide up the area and maximize the space while a border of plants, add a more secluded feel. Remember to use coatings to protect your flooring from getting leakage, there are a host of options available from the house of Dr. Fixit. The most apt for Indian climatic condition would be protective topcoats like Newcoat, Newcoat Coool and Newcoat Ezee, which repair your terrace without breakage. We usually go to the Dr. Fixit, The Happy Homes Blog to find out more information on all our waterproofing solutions. They have a solution to every watery problem you could possibly face. Their new initiative ‘Freedom from Dampness’ encourages Indians to make their home moisture free and live better healthier lives.
Vertical Garden.
Green – Vertical gardens are the top favourite these days. Easy to maintain and covers up walls which would otherwise be an eye sore. Artificial green is also the huge rage these days. If herb gardens could be your thing, then making a small herb garden patch on your terrace can not only give your daily herbs but also be a hobby between your families and be a conversation starter. | {
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Author
Topic: iTachWifi Plugin Created (for UI7) (Read 11831 times)
I recently called Vera tech support to find out the status of the GC100 plugin as it relates to UI7 as I had read in their release notes that they fixed it to support UI7. It turns out that was not true and that they do not officially support it, at least that is what the person I spoke to said.
So I decided to role up my sleeves and solve my own problem by creating a new plugin to support the iTachWifi set of devices from Global Cache.
It is built to support either one device, or multiple devices and auto detects how many you have it configured for. This is very similar to the GC100 in that respect. I have only configured it to support sending IR commands, so no support for Serial devices. If there is a desire for that, I am happy to modify, but I do not personally have that use case and therefore have no way to test it out.
I just submitted the code to apps.mios.com, so I am waiting for it to be approved. I am looking for some beta testers, so if there is any interest in giving it a try, please PM me and let me know. | {
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Columbia business owner sees himself as model of perseverance
Ten years after starting his business, C.R. Dynamics and Associates, Charles Ramos began to wonder if it was ever going to work.
He was confident in his business plan and strategy, but it was taking a lot longer than he hoped to get his marketing and sales-support business off the ground.
"I didn't think it would be as difficult as it was the first 10 years," said Ramos, a Columbia resident.
"We were most tested in the fourth and fifth years," he said. "I didn't think I could do this any more — and then things happened. Persistence is the key. Persistence is everything."
That's the message Ramos said he hopes to convey to those who attend the Maryland Hispanic Business Conference on Tuesday. Ramos — who is of Puerto Rican descent — was recently named winner of the conference's American Dream Award, which recognizes an entrepreneur who has achieved business success while overcoming obstacles. Howard County Executive Ken Ulman will be the featured speaker at the conference gathering at the Bethesda North Marriott & Hotel Conference Center.
"Charles Ramos represents what the Hispanic entrepreneurial spirit is all about — hard work, integrity and a love for community," said conference founder Bill Villanueva in a statement.
Born in the Bronx, N.Y., Ramos moved to Massachusetts after his father was accepted into Harvard graduate school. He started working for Digital Equipment Corp. in 1983 and moved to Maryland in 1993, when he joined Frederick Engineering as regional sales manager. In 1994, he was laid off and decided it was time to start his own business.
"I was walking around with all of this newfound knowledge and this strong desire to start my own company," said Ramos. He and his wife, Patty, started the marketing and sales-support business as a home-based endeavor, financing it with their credit cards.
Today, the company has a multimillion-dollar annual revenue and a clientele that has included AT&T, Frito-Lay, American Express, GE Information Services and the Social Security Administration. Recently, the firm was awarded a five-year call center contract from the state of Maryland.
The firm has a core of seven people and about 15 to 20 other employees, and occupies some 7,600 square feet in a call center in Baltimore's Inner Harbor area.
While it seems an appropriate honor, Ramos said he was surprised by the American Dream Award.
"It came out of left field," he said. "A lot of people work very hard serving their community, helping lots of people, and never get any credit. To receive this kind of honor is very humbling."
He appreciates that it honors him for overcoming obstacles, but Ramos said success is about more than his personal story.
"Most people who look like me have heard all of that stuff before and probably experienced similar situations, so why hash through all of that?" he said. "I'd rather talk about the importance of perseverance, believing in yourself and not listening to negative garbage — don't listen to it. And always remember that it takes time. Just keep moving forward."
For anyone dreaming of starting a business, Ramos recommends it be done for the right reasons.
"Do it because you love it. Do it because you enjoy it," Ramos said. "Don't do it for the money. There will never be enough money."
He said when he first moved to Maryland 23 years ago, he thought he would stay only five years. Now he plans to remain in the area and watch his company grow — though he may cut himself some slack now that he's 50 and the company is a success.
"I've learned to let loose a little bit now, not be so controlling," Ramos said.
"It's been my baby," he said of C.R. Dynamics. "I'm willing to open it up now and let more folks in now. We're always looking at other areas. Looking how to see opportunities and how to help." | {
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Wallace Wins Another One
BARBERVILLE, Fla. — Kenny Wallace no doubt has his eyes set on the ‘Gator Championship’ race, locking into the big event’s redraw by winning his third UNOH DIRTcar Nationals presented by Summit Racing Equipment feature worth $1,000 on Sunday night.
“I’m humbled and this is really a dream come true for me,” said Wallace. “You should be excited when you win and I am! If you’re not excited you shouldn’t be out here racing. This is definitely a special Speed weeks for me because we are just rednecks out here living the dream.”
Wallace used his outside front row starting spot to maneuver past Sunday afternoon winner Ty Dillon en route to his third victory over the first six nights of UNOH DIRTcar Nationals by Summit competition. NASCAR veteran Kenny Schrader found his way around Dillon within the first five laps of the 20-lap event and held on to finish in the runner up spot.
Dillon finished third after starting on the pole. Michael Long held on to his fourth place starting spot as former UNOH DIRTcar Nationals by Summit champion Dave Hess, Jr., finished fifth. | {
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There has been talk that Floyd “Pork Chop” Womack will be at left tackle with the No. 1 offense when minicamp practices begin in the morning because Pro Bowler Walter Jones is recovering from shoulder surgery. …
Running back Julius Jones met with the beat writers this morning, and made it very clear in his first interview since being signed in March that he was targeting the Seahawks in free agency. He likes just about everything about the team, the city and especially the stadium. … | {
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Tag: Good vs. Evil
If it was easy, everyone would do it. This is why Jesus Christ states that the pathway is narrow to the Kingdom of God, and few will enter. The earth is a spiritual jungle, and it is important to understand this. And what does living things do within a jungle, they are constantly trying to survive. In the spiritual jungle, we have to do this. Because for humanity there are too many predators for its souls. Our tool for survival is prayer in order to tap into the supernatural connection and protection through the blood covering that Jesus Christ provided at the Cross, on Calvary by which He reestablished the direct connection back with God, the Father of Creation. This is why Jesus Christ said, “It is by me through which you enter the Eternal Kingdom.” For me, Jesus Christ was saying, if you truly know of me, and what I did for Humanity, you will understand what is expected of you by the Creator. It is not about a religion, because Jesus Christ died for ALL of Mankind. If we are sincerely Christians, we would be followers of Christ’s teachings. This is what Christ meant.
God talks to His Children, (those that have chosen the path and those with the testimony),in a supernatural sense. So Satan has to attack you on a supernatural level in order to to prevent you from tapping into your direct connection with God, the Father of Creation, through which Jesus Christ established through His Death and Resurrection on the Cross. Jesus Christ was the Life Example that God, the Father of Creation provided for Huamanity to follow. It is not an outdated example, it is an Eternal Example. Satan wants to deceive Humanity that it is an example that is “oldfashioned“, or “outdated“, or even “impossible to do“. As the saying goes, if it was easy, everyone would do it. This is why God, the Father of Creation states that the pathway to His Wisdom, and those that are aware of His Wisdom, you will be on the narrow path, and will not be with the majority, but by the minority. This is why Jesus Christ stated that those that are last on this earth, will be first in the Kingdom of God. True believers is what God, the Father of Creation is seeking, not those that are half hearted.
The end does not justify the means, this is what Satan wants you to believe. He wants to de-evolve the human being to that of the animals in the wild. This is why he wants human beings to act on their 5 senses, to which he can manipulate with earthly means. God says His Ways are not of the world, but are beyond them. So for us to make the goals of our soul in achieving the things of this world, by any means necessary does not follow God, the Father of Creation’s Divine Laws of Love, and the path to the Eternal Kingdom, but leads to the path that leads to God’s Wrath for rebelling against the Divine Laws of Love.
Seek faithfully, and God will work on you, to make fertile ground within your soul to find the Path to His Throne Room, and return back to Him, as He has always meant for it to be, as His Most Precious out of all Creations.
Like this:
A lot of people seem to be living by the law of “Survival of the Fittest” which was meant for the animals in the wild, and not for Mankind. This includes the philosophy of the “ends justify the means”. When the Prophets, Jesus Christ and the Disciples roamed the earth, they showed us through their own life example, quite the contrary. That the means of reaching your goal DOES MATTER, in the Eyes of God. It will also determine if the “end result that was being aimed for, will be either permanent or temporary”.
In order to keep guard over the soul given to each person, once they were conceived in their mother’s wombs, it is important to remain faithful to God’s Divine Laws of Love. In order to refine and purify our souls, we must continue to be faithful from the everyday small things in life to the big things that we want to achieve in life. So, in the Eyes of God, the Father of Creation, the means do justify the ends. I think Mother Theresa said it best in the following: “God did not call us to be successful, but to be faithful. Like Paul we are bound and beaten, but our body remains.” We have to remain faithful in all we do before God.
The antithesis of this would be that which is subscribed by the animals in the wild, following the “Survival of the fittest ” which is “the end justifies the means”. If we call ourselves followers of Christ Jesus (Yeshua, Yeshu Christu, Yeshuay) we should see the Life Example that He provided for us, as He roamed the earth. He showed us that the means to which we lived life, does matter to the Almighty God of Creation. That He keeps account of the intentions, thoughts, behind our actions to which we have, as we roam this earth. This is how we begin to purify the soul within, to which the Holy Spirit is seeking for a fertile ground to take root in…which is a soul that is constantly seeking the Eternal Kingdom of God, and adopting one step at a time, purifying the soul.
When you have a soul grounded in seeking the Eternal Kingdom of God the Father of Creation, this soul will be worthy ground for the Holy Spirit to dwell, Who will guide you to the Path to the Eternal Kingdom. And because the path is narrow, and followed by few, according to what is said in the Scriptures of the Holy Bible, which means though the opportunity is given to all to enter the Path to the Eternal Kingdom, FEW will enter the path, and few will have fertile ground for the Holy Spirit to dwell within.
If we are not faithful in following the Divine Laws of Love of the Eternal Kingdom, which will mold our everyday life, which make us see that the path to the end result does matter, then we will be forced to the wider path, to which is followed by the majority; and not a pure and fertile ground for the Holy Spirit to dwell within such a soul; and as a result will not be able to discern the deception through which Evil has planned for Mankind to willingly choose with their freewill, to rebel against God, the Father of Creation (Yahweh, Devum, Jehovah). As a result, some may never enter the path, some may enter but then permanently fall off. The deception that evil has planned for Mankind is to confuse humanity as to what is right and wrong, and to tell you that as long as things work out in the end for the good, then it does not matter how you got there. If Satan was once Lucifer, does he not know how to twist God’s Scriptures for his purposes. God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Yahweh, Jehovah) declared Humanity as His Greatest Creation; and Lucifer got kicked out of Heaven for envying this unconditional love that God had for Humanity, which transformed Lucifer (who was once God’s Highest Ranking Angel) to Satan. So, Satan wants to prove God wrong. He wants to prove that Humanity is a complete waste of God’s unconditional love. And those of who have chosen to follow the Path, Satan wants to exhaust us from spiritually fighting against him, by throwing trial after trial against us. He wants to even use our faith, and twist it so that he can try to throw us off of the path. It is important for us to seek the Eternal Kingdom, with our soul and mind in order to become spiritual warriors through our prayer. It is through prayer that the Holy Spirit can guide us, and God can provide us His Wisdom in order to fight against the deception of Satan, who was once Lucifer.
This is why it is so important for us to understand what Jesus Christ did as He roamed this earth. We must understand that the deception that Satan brings to humanity was first established in the Garden of Eden, by introducing rebellion of God, and His Ways to Adam and Eve, which disconnected Humanity from the direct connection that God had with Humanity at the time of their creation. Why Satan wants to discredit Jesus Christ is because he knows what Jesus Christ did with His Death on the Cross.
Jesus Christ through His Life, Death, and Resurrection was able to conquer Satan on behalf of Humanity by becoming the Sacrificial Lamb; and through shedding His Blood through His Death on the Cross, Jesus Christ (Yeshu Christu, Yeshua, Yeshuay) provided us the Blood Covering of Protection from this deception and the eternal damnation that evil is trying to bring to Humanity, the same sentence that Satan Himself has received from God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh). This blood covering is the equivalent to the lamb’s blood covering that God, the Father of Creation, had instructed for Moses to put on the doorways of the homes of the Jewish slaves in Egypt, while He was sending the Angel of Death over the first born males of Egypt. Jesus Christ also reestablished this direct connection between God and Humanity with His Life. Once we understand what Jesus Christ did at the Cross, such a soul that has found this meaning will understand the teachings that Jesus taught as He roamed the earth, and how it is important to be faithful in the small things that you do being in accordance to God’s Divine Laws of Love, and even the path to achieve things in life matters. It determines what is permanent, and what is everlasting. When we are faithful in the daily things, the Holy Spirit will help you to discern the deception of evil.
Prayer is our way of directly talking with God. God talks to His Children in the spiritual sense. Evil will try to distract you from a prayer life, which is why those who are not distracting must prayer for others that are. It is important to pray for our loved ones, so that we can try to save them from the deception of evil. Once we are given the testimony of the existence of God’s Existence, we were given a window to God’s wisdom. And when God bestows upon a soul a piece of His Wisdom, it is the responsibility of such a soul to share that wisdom to others, in order to give that soul a chance to be able to find their way back to God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh). We were created to have dominion over all God’s Creation. This is how much God, valued us above all His Creations. He had the confidence in Humanity to do so, because He has the confidence that they will live in accordance to His Divine Laws of Love. However, God understands that His Divine Laws of Love can get misconstrued by those that do not see the importance of being faithful to him in all things.
Like this:
Upon the creation of Humanity in the Garden of Eden, through Adam and Eve, God had deemed it as His most prized creation. As a result, the most annointed amongst His Creation. It is the only creation to which He gave the gift of freewill, so that they can have the ability to think, and to chose; while others of God’s Creations do not have that ability. This gift of freewill is what puts Humanity above all of God, the Father of Creation’s (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh’s) creations.
As a result this gift of freewill is what makes Humanity annointed. The ability to chose God and His Divine Laws of Love is what makes humankind even above the angels in God’s Eyes. This is why Satan destroyed the direct link between Humanity and God, through the rebellion that he led by tempting Adam and Eve to rebel against God, in the Garden of Eden. It was Jesus Christ (Yeshua, Yeshuay, Yeshu Christu) His Son, through His earthly life, death on the Cross at Calvary, and resurrection, that this connection was reestablished. He took on the sins of Mankind, by becoming God’s Sacrifical Lamb, at His Alter, for the sake of becoming the “shock absorber” of mankind’s sins. The blood that Jesus Christ shed on the Cross became the shield from the Angel of Eternal Death and Damnation, that has been assigned to all those that have rebelled against God’s Divine Laws of Love, which are ways of Unconditional Love, Mercy, and Nonviolence. It those that have seen the importance of this death on the Cross, and the divinity of Jesus Christ, and have taken on His Life Example, that become the Holy Remanant of God’s Eternal Kingdom, within Humanity.
You see, through Jesus Christ’s (Yeshuay’s, Yeshu Christu’s, Yeshua’s) Death on the Cross, we (Humanity) were brought back to the Grace of God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh). As a result, Humanity was given the chance to make the choice of chosing God’s Divine Laws of Love and the path the Eternal Kingdom, or not,through the free will that God, the Father of Creation had created them with. Those that decide to follow the narrow path of the Divine Laws of Love and to the Eternal Kingdom, are those who God will deem as the HOLY REMANANT. As a result, those that become a part of this holy remanant, will begin to understand why God, the Father of Creation states, that His Ways are not of this world, but are beyond them. Members of the Holy Remanant will begin to see the world around them, the way that God, the Father of Creation sees the ways of this world, with the Guidance of the Holy Spirit. Those that are lukewarm or lost to the Divine Laws of Love, follow the wide path to Destruction and God’s Wrath.
This is what Jesus Christ demonstrated through His Earthly Life Example….this is how much God, the Father of Creation loves Humanity, to the point of understanding us, and knowing that we can learn by having an example to follow. Jesus Christ, as His Son, willingly came down from the heavens in the earthly form, to become this example. So, Humanity is annointed by God, the Father of Creation, out of all the things that He created. However, through how Humanity uses their freewill, is what will distinguish the difference between those that are annointed and those that are a part of the Holy Remanant. This is something that I have learned very recently.
The Holy Remanant will be those have been deemed by God, the Father of Creation, that faithfully sought His Eternal Paradise, and His Divine Laws of Love. That their faithfullness in seeking the truth of His Ways outweighed anything else that was within their earthly lives. With this faithful seeking, the Holy Spirit, will guide such a soul through the Refiner’s Fire, to refine the sinful human nature that damages the holy soul that was put within each human being, upon their conception in their mother’s wombs. Guarding the soul that God has given us is the most important job that humanity has, whether it be our own, those of our children, parents, siblings, friends, foes, and even the many different strangers we meet in our earthly lives. It is through the refinement of our souls that we become the testimony of God’s Holy Existence amongst Humanity, and on this earth. It is the evidence the proof to Humanity that God still does love us, despite how far we stray away; He just wants us to find our way back to Him, willingly. He does not force it upon us, because He wants to us to discover the greatness that He originally created for us to be, a greatness that exceeds the parameters of this world, and a kinship that is above any of those that exist ever.
Jesus Christ defeated our foe, we just have to realize this. He showed us what it takes to become a part of the Holy Remanant. It will require undergoing trials and tribulations. It will require to go against the grain, to travel the narrow path, just as God’s Son, Jesus Christ, (Yeshua, Yeshuay, Yeshu Christu) showed us through His Earthly Life. God gives us the chance to make this choice till our last earthly breaths on this earth. He sees the true intent of the heart and soul, to the inner depths of the intentions of our hearts. He gives sight to those that willingly chose to take the narrow path, with windows into His Divine Wisdom, through the Guidance of the Holy Spirit. Remember, Jesus Christ has said through the Holy Scripture, that the only sin that can not be forgiven is going against the Holy Spirit.
This brings me to a question, to which just came to me while writing this….If we are all annointed as Humanity, does this mean that freely…willingly….chosing to rebel against the Divine Laws of Love of God’s Eternal Paradise, Whose Ways are revealed by the Holy Spirit, the sin that God is not willing to forgive? I have to pray about this, and hope God’s gives this answer….
Like this:
God states that His Ways do not conform to the ways of this world, but are beyond them. He sees what the human eyes can not see, what the human ears can not hear, what the human senses can not sense or feel. He sees the innermost intentions and purity of the heart and soul, and that is what He considers pleasing or not in His Eyes. God works beyond the earthly realm because He states that His Ways do not conform to the earthly.
This is why He states in the Holy Bible, the following:
Whatever the earth classifies as that which should be admired, or envied, or even idolized on this earth, may be considered as last in God’s Eyes in the Divine Eternal Kingdom; while that which is considered first in God, the Father of Creation’s Eyes within the Divine Eternal Kingdom, will be considered as last or disregarded altogether, as valuable, in the earthly kingdom. This only supports the earthly life and death to which God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh) gave His Son, Jesus Christ (Yeshua, Yeshu Christu, Yeshuay) gave His Own Son, while He roamed this earth. Though being the Kings of all Kings, and a Member of the Most High Court, in the Eternal Kingdom of God, the Father of Creation….He showed us, that even His Son will not conform to the world’s ways, because that is how beneath Him, or how far away the ways of this world are from the ways of the Divine Eternal Kingdom.
Those that have been given the testimony have all realized this. Those that uphold the wisdom that was revealed to them through their testimony will begin to see the world, the way that God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh) see the ways of this world, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The human senses can easily deceive a soul, because it relies on the human senses, which Satan and demonic spirits were given jurisdiction over to manipulate for its purpose. This is why God, the Father of Creation states the He and His Ways should be first and foremost. That those that seek His Kingdom faithfully will have His Guidance through the Holy Spirit.
Beauty is in the soul that God has put within each creation, something that He can only see. This is why He states that we should invest in our bodies as a temple. It is not to beautify the outside vessels to make them temples, it is beautify the souls within so that it will reflect out to the world that we roam within, as a beacon of light. Outer beautification is what Satan uses to manipulate the human senses to bring Mankind further away from the path of the Eternal Kingodm. For it states the following in the Holy Bible.:
Those of us that have been given the testimony, had this piece of wisdom not only revealed to us, but also witnessed by us, through the victory in the testimony that we were given. We are given the wisdom that we must turn away from our sinful ways, that were made so alluring by Satan and his demons.
We must always consult God and the Holy Spirit as to the beauty which is of the Eternal Kingdom, and that which is not. We must never rely on the spirit of the flesh, it is what Satan and demons have dominion over. The conviction of our wrongs and to change from them is the connection that Humanity has with God, the Father of Creation, through which Jesus Christ reestablished through His Death on the Cross at Calvary; to which Satan initially destroyed in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. It is up to us to chose with our FREEWILL to chose to turn away from them and resist the sinful human nature through which looks so EASY, BEAUTIFUL, PLEASUREABLE, and even SELF REWARDING.
What may appear to be beautiful in the earthly sense may not be beautiful in the Divine Sense. This is only understood by a soul that faithfully seeks the ways of the Eternal Kingdom, which are ways that conform to the Divine Laws of Love, which are ways that are not self serving, but are selfless. It is to devalue the earthly ways to the point of upholding His Divine Laws of Love to the point of possible giving up your earthly life to uphold them. Isn’t this what Jesus Christ did at the Cross? Did not Satan given him a way out in the wilderness? And what was Jesus’ response to Satan? It is as follows in
Luke 4:1-3:
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tempted[a] by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”
4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’[b]”
5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 If you worship me, it will all be yours.”
9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. 10 For it is written:
“‘He will command his angels concerning youto guard you carefully;11 they will lift you up in their hands,so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’[d]”
12 Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’[e]”
13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
Our temptations to lead astray from God, the Father’s Eternal Kingdom will continue until our last breaths on this earth. We must understand this. If Christ, as His Son was not exempt, that who are we so flawed, in comparison to His Perfection, to think that we will be exempt from the earthly trials to break us away from our sinful human nature?
Like this:
As humanity focuses on what they see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, we often forget that there are supernatural forces that influence even all these things, behind the scenes. When Jesus Christ walked on this earth, He revealed to Humanity how this occurs. He also showed us, how to walk the path back to the Eternal Kingdom to which God, the Father of Creation, to where He awaits for our return back to Him.
The greatest distraction and deception that Satan and minions have brought to God’s most prized creation, Humanity, is to focus on the earthly things, and to ignore what is spiritual. Once humanity forgets about the spiritual, we become vulnerable to the supernatural spiritual world that does exist. This is the tactics of evil. Often this kingdom conducts its activities in the darkness, with deception and even in mannerisms that cause confusion. It’s ways are selfish, self serving, and animalistic, though as human beings we were created with our freewill to behave in mannerisms above that which is demonstrated by the animal kingdom. Evil’s deception is to regress Humanity from the original greatness that God, created for it to be. It is a world of darkness. God, the Father of Creation’s Kingdom, is a world of light. It is world of certainty, and its ways are straightforward, selfless and looks to the overall good of others. This was demonstrated through the earthly life and death of His Son, Jesus Christ.
God, has rewarded His Faithful Servants with a protection that can only be described in the earthly sense as “supernatural”, in that it can not be explained by earthly human logic; with a soul that is so beautiful that it can not be explained, but only felt; and even with a presence that is warm that it can not be shown by no one else but someone that is bound to the path to the Eternal Kingdom. This supernatural spirituality is undeniable even to those that are bound to the path of the kingdom of darkness. This is why it is so important for humanity to be aware of the original greatness that God, the Father had originally created for us to be; in order to understand our inheritance. We must actively seek, and actively find the tools that are given to humanity in order to fight against what evil never wants us to find…..our entrance into the throne room.
Those that actively seek the Eternal Kingdom and its ways have experienced this supernatural protection, that comes with the relationship with God, the Father of Creation; and this is first obtained through the TESTIMONY given to each individual that was called to the path, once they faithfully sought. This testimony is where God first revealed the spiritual warfare that is occuring in the spiritual realm over the souls of humanity, to that individual. And when this is revealed it is the duty of that person to fight against it because Satan and his demons will try to steal this piece of wisdom away from you.
Those that this has been revealed to will so much more aware of the spiritual realm that exists, because now God has revealed to them what is occurring, to which Satan was preventing humanity from seeing. This is why those that have been given the testimony are the main warriors on the forefront, in this spiritual fight, as a representation of God’s Kingdoms, within Humanity. It is important that those of us with the testimony continue to seek, in order to find the tools to fight against evil’s attacks. It is important that we continuously feed our souls with the strength provided through the Word of God. This is why Satan and demons want to destroy the very example to which Jesus Christ set for before Humanity, so the there will be no example to follow, and the Truth can be hidden from Humanity, as to how to conquer it. Evil wants to hide its opposition against God, and His Kingdom. Jesus Christ was attacked since the time He was conceived in His Mother’s Womb till the death of His Earthly Body. This is how badly Satan did not want Christ’s Story and message to spread. After Jesus Christ, the next people to be attacked by Satan’s Kingdom will be those that were given the Testimony, in order to prevent the wisdom revealed to them, to be revealed to other members of humanity. Jesus Christ was the Ultimate Example to what God meant that His Ways are not of the world’s ways but are beyond them. His Son had to go to the point of dying and earthy death to show us this. What makes us think that we are exempt from such trials, if Jesus Christ, Himself had to endure….to be in the same kinship, are we any better to be exempt? He instructed us to, “take up our own Crosses, and follow Him.”
So, with our faithful seeking of God, and His Eternal Kingdom, God provides His Supernatural Protection, through the Blood Covering that Jesus Christ shed, on the Cross at Calvary. Jesus Christ, became the Ultimate Sacrificial Lamb, that was a the only worthy offering before the great alter in God’s Eternal Kingdom, where His Son’s Blood became the Shield over those that that have understood what His Love for Humanity, and the reason why Jesus Christ had to die on the Cross. This blood covering became the shield of protection from evil’s eternal damnation, it reveals to such souls the ways of God, Eternal Kingdom through the Divine Laws of Love, which are ways of Nonviolence, Mercy, and Uncondtional Love. It is devoid of violence, but yet shows the strength of a warrior, just as our Chief Commander, Jesus Christ. It shows a certainty of the spirit, and discerns the deception to which evil tries to constantly throw at them.
This supernatural spirituality does not confine itself to the parameters of earthly boundaries. It sees what is beyond the human senses. Such a soul that is bound by this supernatural spirituality, knows that God, the Father has provided the ultimate shield of protection through the blood shed by His Son, Jesus Christ. It is not about a religion or a sense of identity through it. It is about understanding the true purpose behind what Jesus Christ did at the Cross. He did not restrict the salvation that He provided through His Earthly Death as the Son of God, to those that are found worthy by earthly parameters. In fact, as Jesus Christ roamed this earth, He sat with those that were considered the outcasts, the sinners, the poorest in the society. He even went as far as to say that those that were “religious” were missing the mark as to what God was trying to tell through the Scriptures. God sees the heart and soul, to which the human heart and eyes can not feel or see. Only He sees who is worthy of the wisdom of His Eternal Kingdom; and sees who is fighting the good fight in the spiritual realm. He knows that we are not perfect, but we are faithful in seeking and finding Him.
Such souls that are guided by the supernatural spirituality will be able to heal the most wounded of souls, thaw out the coldest of hearts, and even make Satan and his demons so envious of them, knowing that they are bound to the path to a place that not only they were kicked out of, but are now absolutely forbidden to return to. God, gives ALL of humanity the opportunity to seek the ways of His Eternal Kingdom, till the last breath in their earthly bodies. However, Satan and those within his kingdom, do not want you to know this. As each day goes by, we get one step closer to the end of times. We must actively seek for this supernatural spirituality that God, the Father of Creation, through not only what Jesus Christ showed huanity through His Earthly Life and Death, but through which Jesus Christ Himself told us as the promise that was made to us, as His Brothers and Sisters.
Like this:
The Path to the Eternal Kingdom will be follow by few. Are you willing to take up your Cross, and take the road travelled by the few? Your radiance will shine so bright because of the light that the Holy Spirit brings to you, as a representative of a member of the Eternal Kingdom.
ROMANS 8:10-17
10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.
12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
As I study more and more about the Holy Trinity: 1) God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh); 2) the Son, Jesus Christ (Yeshua, Yeshu Christu, Yeshuay); 3) and the Holy Spirit; I come to the understanding that they are 3 different entities that serve the purpose of bringing Humanity back to God, Eternal Kingdom, by way of the Divine Laws of Love, which are ways of Nonviolence, Unconditional Love, and Mercy. Out of the the 3 entities, there is this enigma behind the Holy Spirit. Very little is understood about it. However, the Holy Spirit is mentioned all through out the Holy Bible; and as you can see from the Scripture above, being guided by the Holy Spirit is key to entering the Kingdom of God, the Father of Creation; key in inherited the kinship with Jesus Christ; and even key to qualifying us for the Eternal Kingdom of God, is to have the Holy Spirit testify on our behalf by what the Spirit witnesses within our own soul and spirit. The very soul and spirit that God, the Father of Creation created within each human as they were conceived in their mother’s wombs, according to His Divine Plan in His Creation.
The enigma that surrounds the Holy Spirit, makes me believe that the purpose and the role of the Holy Spirit are only revealed to those that seek out the path to the Eternal Kingdom, and once God, the Father of Creation is first and foremost, and the meaning of what Jesus Christ did on the Cross on Calvary was understood by such a soul, the Holy Spirit will find worthy ground to take root within this soul, and guide this soul to the Kingdom. The soul has to be worthy to receive the Holy Spirit’s guidance, and the worthiness is only determined by God, the Father Himself. He can sees beyond what the human eyes, hears beyond what the human ears hears, and beyond what the human heart feels. He is the Creator, and He knows His Creation; however through the freewill that He has given us, He hopes that we will CHOOSE to be with Him and to dwell with Him, in His Eternal Kingdom. He does not pick and choose….He does not force His Way upon us. If we want to dwell in the Eternal Kingdom, we have to come and seek it, and He promises that you will find it through your seeking. However, such a soul should understand that the pathway to His Eternal Kingdom is travelled by very few. He requires such a soul to break away from the ways of this world, and the ways of the majority, because His Ways do not conform to the ways of His Creation, but are beyond them. He requires that this breaking away requires to undergo trials and tribulations, and even anguish, to which He showed us through Jesus Christ, His Son. And once such a soul dedicates its purpose while they roam this earth to seeking the Kingdom of God, the Father of Creation, and die daily from the ways of this evil driven world, the Holy Spirit will find worthy ground within such a soul, in order to take root and dwell in. He will guide such a souls towards the path to the Eternal Kingdom.
The guidance of the Holy Spirit is so crucial to reaching Heaven, and the throne room of God. This is what Jesus Christ preach and lived by, as He roamed the earth. The Guidance of the Holy Spirit pricks our souls, each time we violate the Divine Laws of Love, in order to correct us, and make us worthy before God, the Father. It is this same Holy Spirit Guidance that tells us what is right and wrong; tells us when we should and should not do something; protects us from satan and demonic spirits; guides us to our victories, and carries us out of danger and death. It constantly polishes our souls from the rough diamonds that we are born as, to the radiant glittering lights that represent the Kingdom of God, the Father of Heaven, to become beacons of light as they walk on the Earth, as a testimony of God, the Father’s Existence in his world. For the existence of goodness and light in this world is not by our own achievements and doing on this earth, as satan and demonic spirits would lead Mankind to be, but through a Higher Force that originally made all of His Creations to be beacons of Light. Just look at nature, or even the wonderment of the animals in the wild. They never violate God’s Laws, yet nothing is more majestic or beautiful in the manmade world, as that which God created Himself.
The Holy Spirit guides such souls, which ways or who come from the same path to the Eternal Kingdom, which ways do not. the Holy Spirit, allows for such a soul to view the ways of this world, that are not part of the same path. The Holy Spirit reveals to such a soul bits and pieces to the righteous wisdom of the Eternal Kingdom. Such a soul is not confined by the restraints of earthly human logic; but can expand and beyond the boundaries of this earth, with complete reliance on Divine Guidance.
This worthiness is not something that earned in the earthly sense. It comes with a lot of anguish, and a lot of trials in the earthly sense. It is not by feeding the lusts and pleasures in the earthly sense. The Holy Spirit sees the fruit of such a soul. God sees worthiness from all walks of life, but with one common theme….those that do not rely on their spiritual success based on the earthly riches that they have, nor the earthly measures that will constitute one as a spiritual authority; or even earthly pleasures. In the past, God, has called a drunk (Noah), a prostitute (Mary Magdalene), an outcast (Zachias), many children (like Mary who bore Jesus Christ and David to conquer Goliath), he has called even the very old to bear into the world people like John the Baptist, the taxcollectors and fisherman, as well as physicians and soldiers. So you see, a soul that is rooted in the Holy Spirit will be led by Him to those that are called onto the same path. Such souls will know who is of their same path and those that are not. The Holy Spirit will also lead such souls to those that need to be brought on the path.
The Holy Spirit is what differentiates those that are bound to the path to the Eternal Kingdom, and those that are not. The Holy Spirit separates those that will inherit the kinship with Jesus Christ, in Our Father’s Eternal Kingdom. There is no mistake to this. Good deeds can be empty and futile, without the Holy Spirit. God sees the intention…if it is to be in obedience to the Divine Laws of Love or to fulfill a selfish pleasure that satifies the human flesh to make one “feel good about doing something good”.
The choice is yours….decide today whether you want to dwell in the Eternal Kingdom, or the falsehood of this world. The Holy Spirit will dwell within to guide you towards the Eternal path, or abandon you to fall to the vices of this world, to which evil will have their way with you. God, tells us each day that we have this choice; and that we must choose willingly what we desire. For the Holy Bible states in Romans 8:18-25:
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that[e] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
Like this:
42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me.43 Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say.44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.45 Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me!46 Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me?47 Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”
As the Sacrificial Lamb for Humanity, Jesus Christ showed us the Divine Laws of Love. Now He leads His Lambs.
When you take on a spiritual walk or path, you realize that there are limitations to the human logic that exists, and that spirituality brings you to truths that are beyond what human logic can provide. Truth follows along this wavelength, and this is why truth of any form, withstands the sands of time, and perpetuates despite the earthly circumstances surrounding it. The extraordinary feature of humanity is that God, the Father of Creation, (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh) had given it the sense of freewill. Freewill is what separates human beings from the animal and plant Kingdoms, as well as the angels and demons. It is this freewill, which comes through the soul of a human being, that feels truth.
So, how does a soul feel truth through freewill.It is through this soul, that we, as human beings, have a direct link to God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh). It is through the freewill of the soul, that we are given the CHOICE to choose to live and follow the path to the Eternal Kingdom of God, the Father of Creation through His Divine Laws of Love. Once sin was introduced into Mankind, in the Garden of Eden through Satan, every human being was born as sinner, because our nature is that we are attracted and distracted by the sinful human nature, that was birthed on that day, when Adam and Eve rebelled against God, when Satan gave them the option to question God, in the Garden of Eden. As Satan was once Lucifer, at one time being God’s, (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh) high ranking angels, he knew how to perfectly tweak God’s Words, to fit his agenda in bringing Mankind away from from the Eternal Kingdom to which he no longer can enter. It is from this point to which Satan forces his ways on mankind, while God gives us the choice. God wants us to seek out His Eternal Truth, in order to enter His Eternal Kingdom, through the Divine Laws of Love, which are ways of Nonviolence, Unconditional Love, and Mercy. This is why Jesus Christ said, that the gateway to heaven is through a narrow gate, and the gateway to hell is through the wider path. Very few, that truly seek out the Eternal Kingdom and its ways will feel the truth through the souls that God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh) had given all of Mankind, at the time of conception while we are in our mother’s wombs. We were made in His Image, while God, breathed life into us, in our mother’s wombs.
Truth is felt. When Jesus Christ (Yeshuay, Yeshu Christu, Yeshua) died on the Cross, at Calvary, He reestablished this pathway for the soul to have a direct connection back with God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh). But again God, gives the choice to choose to follow the majority through the wider gateway, or to follow the minority, through the narrow gate. Satan made the wider gateway full of earthly pleasures and temporary moments of happiness, which appears to come with such ease in comparison to the narrow gate that goes against the grain of the ways of this world, to which God, the Father of Creation states that His Ways are not a part of, but follow the Divine Laws of Love. All truth comes from God, the Father of Creation. Once the soul has been reconnected back to God, the Father of Creation, human beings have the freewill to choose to tap into that direct link to God, the Father of Creation.
Truth is felt.At the Cross, while Jesus Christ (Yeshua, Yeshuay, Yeshu Christu) hung alongside the 2 criminals for their deaths, remember, one criminal made it to paradise through their undying belief, in the truth he saw in Jesus Christ, on his dying last breaths, in his last hours…minutes on this earth. This is the beauty of God, the Father of Creation’s Love for Mankind. He gave His Son, Jesus Christ, as the sacrificial lamb, to take on the punishment that was meant for Humanity based on their sinful human nature, to give us protection, and one final chance to come back to Him. He gives us till the very last breaths in our earthly bodies, to find our way back to Him, in order to reconnect with Him, in His Eternal Kingdom, through the Divine Laws of Love.
Truth is felt.Once a soul has reconnected back to God, the Father of Creation, by way of Jesus Christ (who showed us the earthly ways and teachings as to how to reconnect back with God, the Father), His Divine Laws of Love, as well as the ways of Jesus Christ will become so deeply engrained within such a soul….that it will AUTOMATICALLY feel God’s Eternal truth, and discern the deception that Satan and his demonic spirits try to push through his realm (the earth) through the earthly parameters that they try to force upon Mankind. God wants true seekers and believers. Through His Son, Jesus Christ (Yeshua, Yeshu Christy, Yeshuay) God, the Father understands the earthly trials and tribulations that we, as Mankind faces through such evil devices. However, it is also through His Son, that God, the Father showed us how to overcome such vices, and to become victorious over them. The Holy Spirit leads those souls that are connected to God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh) away from the lies of evil, and towards the truth of Divinity. That truth is the gut feeling through which the Holy Spirit puts within such souls. We are commanded by Jesus Christ (Yeshua, Yeshu Christu, Yeshuay), and convicted by the power of the Holy Spirit….that a soul feels the truth of the Divine Laws of Love, towards the Eternal Kingdom, where God, the Father of Creation (Devum, Yahweh, Jehovah) awaits for us. The pleasures of such a soul are things that are spiritual….not carnal or earthly, as evil would like to distracts humans to believe.
Truth is felt.It is through this freewill of the soul to chose to find the spiritual path towards the Divine Laws of Love, that truth is felt. This truth is undeniable. It makes evil hate such souls…which is what brings forth the trials and tribulations of such people who possess such souls. They seem poor in the earthly sense…even weak in the earthly sense, or even niave or foolish in the earthly sense. That is because such souls have found the power of Divinity and its ways which follow the Divine Laws of Love. They felt the truth through such ways, and know that Satan’s ways and his time are temporary; while God and His ways are forever and permanent. Such a soul that has felt the truth of Divinity, will know no other way to live, but to follow the Divine Laws of Love, and view the ways of this world the way that God, the Father of Creation, views them, through the Divine Truth that He reveals through such souls.
Truth is felt, and it will discern the deception of evil. Souls will only achieve this through an investment of the soul, and a relationship with Divinity; not just being religious and following things that look good in the earthly sense.
Like this:
We have to remember and get refreshed in why Jesus Christ had to come on this Earth, as the Son of God. We have to get refreshed on why He had to walk amongst us, even though He was a Member of the Most High Court, in the Heavenlies. As I say, “A spiritual path is not dictated by Human Logic, but by Divine Logic.” A spiritual journey can only be pursued by the strong spirited, not by the weak. Divine Logic is definately not for the weak, but only for the strong. It is bestowed upon those that decided to walk the path, and decide to go against the grain, based on the Scriptural fact, that Divinity’s Ways do not conform to the ways of this world, but are beyond them. The Creator does not conform to the ways of His Creation, but are beyond them.
As we look at the plight of Christians, since the time of Jesus Christ, we see that there was always an attempt to silence those that proclaimed such a way of life, that went against the grain. Even Jesus Christ was persecuted, since the time He was conceived in His Mother’s Womb, until the time He was put to death on the Cross at Calvary. His Disciples were all (with the exception of 1) killed for spreading His Teachings through different parts of the world. When you believe in a Truth, dying for the sake of being able to believe and express it, would be worth it. There are many through out the world, who are dying or have already died to uphold and practice their belief in Jesus Christ. However, even then, the Gospel has not been silenced.
God, always allows for His Truth to prevail, despite what the earth may try to do in preventing it be revealed to more people. God gives everyone the chance to hear His Truth, and the choice to choose to hear it and believe in it; but only a few actually hear and see it. Because it may conflict with Human Logic, those that are not convinced to follow a spiritual journey will decide that human logic is more valuable than Divine Logic, and this is what Satan and his demons want Mankind to believe. Following the Divine Laws of Love, requires a strength that is indomitable, without any physical reward. Truth is not dictated by earthly or physical parameters. Truth is what the Creator puts in the heart and soul of His Creation. A soul anchored in Divine Logic will see the things of this world the way that God, the Father of Creation sees them. Souls that are anchored in His Divine Logic will persist to the point of death to the earthly body, to uphold the Divine Truth revealed in His Divine Laws of Love, which are ways of Nonviolence, Unconditional Love, and Mercy. That has no value for the earthly things of this world, and only value in the things to which Jesus Christ professed, and LIVED while He roamed this earth. As the Son of God, He stepped down from His Throne to walk amongst us, to show us that WE were worth fighting for, in God’s Eyes. However, God does not want to force this upon us, but to give us the choice to choose to see how much He loves us, through the FREEWILL that He gave us, human beings. It is through the persistance of God’s People that the Life Example that Jesus Christ, as the Son of God, left us, was still brought into the light for generations after Him to see and hear for themselves. His Truth still persisted centuries after His Earthly Death.
God’s Servants know no other way to live than to live it in such a way as to upholding His Truth. Nothing else will soothe their souls in doing so. Evil will try to shackle God’s Servants to the ways of this world; so that they will need to live away from God’s Truth. God, will protect those that are bound to the path that leads right back to Him and His Eternal Kingdom. They may appear weak in the earthly sense; or poor in the earthly sense; or even foolish in the earthly sense. But those whose souls are anchored in God’s Truth know that:
Like this:
If you look at anyone that has been Divinely inspired, they have understood that the wealth of this world is TEMPORARY. Earthly wealth DOES NOT EQUAL TO Divine Wealth. All that have been Divinely inspired have equated and came to this very same conclusion, no matter what faith, religion, or way of life they follow. God is universal, and He has not strayed away in enlightening people that He saw fertile ground in, to reveal this piece of Divine Wisdom to. It is true that God has given everyone a different set of circumstances in the lives He has given them, as they roam this Earth. He wants to see what you do with the circumstances and the resources given by Him to you, in order to discover His Divine Wisdom, and to see the treasures of the Eternal Kingdom. He wants to see if you know that He is the One that gave them to you. He wants to see if you use them to glorify yourself, or Him, as your Creator.
The Father of Creation (Devum, Jehovah, Yahweh) is not impressed by those who give, in expectance of something back in return for that good deed. He wants you to CHOOSE to find His Divine Wisdom. He is not impressed by you doing good deeds, because YOU think it is the right thing to do. He wants you to CHOOSE to see that it is because it is what is dictated by the Divine Laws of Love, to which Humanity was meant to live by. It is not for self gain, self glory, self redemption that you do good things…it is because the Divine Laws of Love are so deeply engrained in you that you do not know any other way to live, and it is the only way for your soul to be at peace.
A Divinely inspired soul will see the things and the ways of this world, the way that God sees them. That every injustice that evil commits to humanity, is a personal injustice to a soul anchored in God’s Divine Laws of Love. That the things in this world, including our time here on this Earth, is temporary. So if we put value in temporary things…..are we only investing in our souls to have a value that is also temporary? We are God’s most prized creations, and we were meant to live with Him, in His Eternal Kingdom, for Eternity. So wouldn’t it be foolish to invest in the things and the ways of this world, that are…..TEMPORARY, when we are promised Eternity?
You see Satan and his demons want us to be distracted by the temporary things of this world, so that we will never be aware or know of this Promise that God, the Father of Creation, has for Humanity. He wants us to be distracted by all that “FEELS GOOD” or “LOOKS PRETTY”, all that “GLITTERS” in this world, on the outside. Because Satan only has jurisdiction to manipulate what the human 5 senses can feels, because they are bound by the parameters of this temporary world. A soul that feels the TRUTH in God’s Divine Laws of Love, which are ways of Nonviolence, Mercy, and Unconditional Love, will not be moved by what Satan and his demons try to manipulate with the other 5 Human Senses. They will try…just like they did with the Prophet Job, and all the other Prophets that walked before us. However, those that have the testimony, through which God revealed His Divine Wisdom through, will become so convicted in the Truth of the Divine Laws of Love, that they will see that the things that have value in this world, do not have value in the Eternal Kingdom of God, the Father of Creation; and those things that do not have value in this world, will have extreme value in the Eternal Kingdom of God, the Father of Creation and are in accordance to the Divine Laws of Love.
Earthly blessings DO NOT = to God’s Divine Blessings. Those of us that decide to pursue the path to the Eternal Kingdom will know that God’s Blessings come from many trials and tribulations, through which He will reveal His Presence in. Those of us that decide to pursue the Path to God, the Father of Creation’s Eternal Kingdom, will know that there is more to our existence that what we SEE, HEAR, SMELL, TASTE, and TOUCH with our human senses. A soul that is Divinely inspired will not be at Peace until it does what is in accordance to the Divine Laws of Love, and has that communion with God, the Father of Creation.
So are you a part of the crowd that feels that if you do good things that it will negate the bad that you have done in your life. THIS IS NOT WHAT THE DIVINE LAWS OF LOVE DICTATES.
Are you are part of the group of people that feels that if you pray and give to false idols that the earthly wealth gained is a DIVINE BLESSING? NO MATTER WHAT RELIGION OR FAITH YOU FOLLOW, EVERY DISCIPLE OF GOD, THE FATHER OF CREATION WAS BESTOWED WITH THE DIVINE WISDOM THAT SUCH A WAY OF THINKING DOES NOT FOLLOW THE DIVINE LAWS OF LOVE.
Do you focus MORE on perfecting the outer vessel that God’s gives you, without perfecting the inner vessel that He gives you, by seeking the Eternal Path of God? THIS DOES NOT FOLLOW THE DIVINE LAWS OF LOVE.
We must always have our eyes, hearts, and souls focused on God’s Divine Laws of Love, so that we can meet the Father of Creation, that created us in His Image, and loved us so much to the point of giving us the chance to choose Him, through the Sacrificial Lamb that He provided through His Own Son, Jesus Christ (Yeshua, Yeshuay, Yeshu Christu). | {
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AAF Power Rankings – Week 5
What a week of football as the entire Alliance and the power rankings were turned upside down outside of the #1 spot. Orlando continues to be the solid leader in the league, but Birmingham fell for the first time while Memphis and Atlanta made quarterback changes and got their first wins of the season.
This week sees some huge match-ups as Orlando and Birmingham face off at Legion Field Saturday afternoon. Atlanta and Memphis face off to help determine third place in the East while Salt Lake and San Diego fight to avoid the bottom of the West and San Antonio and Arizona fight to take possession of the top of the West.
1. Orlando Apollos (4-0) –
Week 4: defeated Salt Lake 20-11
Orlando continues to be the best team in the league and there is no question about it. A solid performance from Garrett Gilbert again as he goes 22/32 for 244 yards and 1 TD. Even in the snow, he still threw it around and found seven different receivers, including Charles Johnson who had 9 catches for 105 yards and continues to be the best receiver in the league. The defense didn’t force any turnovers despite the cold and snowy conditions, but did hold Salt Lake to only two scores and 265 total yards compared to four scores and 363 yards for Orlando.
This week, Orlando goes to Birmingham in a battle of the top two teams in the league.
2. Birmingham Iron (3-1) –
Week 4: lost to San Antonio 12-11
It’s tough to find the exact place Birmingham belongs. You look at them against Memphis and Atlanta (pre-QB changes) and they look like the best team in the league. You watch them against Salt Lake and San Antonio and compare them to the way Memphis/Atlanta looked this week and they have a case to be near the bottom. Overall, they are 3-1 with the second best record in the league and stay at second place…for now.
The defense on this team is the very definition of “bend but don’t break”. The Iron gave up 256 total yards, but 142 of that was to Kenneth Farrow on the ground. Farrow had a field day against Birmingham but still the Iron only let in one touchdown overall. You watch this defense sometimes and question if they are still as strong, especially when San Antonio had a 21 play, 78 yard drive that lasted 9 minutes and 34 seconds. However, that drive ended in a field goal. They also had a drive end in a field goal near the end when Birmingham turned the ball over, and Birmingham held tough through six plays (including a pass interference) and forced the Commanders to kick.
Watch the insane goal line stand here:
The offense on this team has a lot of question marks. Luis Perez was 19/39 for 202 yards and 2 INT – he has still yet to throw a touchdown pass. Meanwhile, Trent Richardson had only 8 carries for 15 yards even though he did have yet another touchdown. Brandon Ross had the best carries in the game, but he also had a costly fumble that might have ultimately lost Birmingham the game.
This week, it doesn’t get any easier as the Iron welcome in Steve Spurrier and the Orlando Apollos to Legion Field.
3. San Antonio Commanders (2-2) +3
Week 4: def. Birmingham 12-11
San Antonio got a big win over Birmingham, which moves them up to #3 in the rankings. San Antonio’s two losses are to San Diego (who they also beat) and Orlando (who is the #1 team) and they have this win over Birmingham now. They have a chance to solidify themselves in the top 3 and maybe even move to #2 if they can beat Arizona this weekend on the road.
Kenneth Farrow had a day against Birmingham’s staunch defense as he rushed for 142 yards on 30 carries. There are still some questions at quarterback with Logan Woodside as he was only 11/25 for 106 yards, but the team didn’t ever turn the ball over.
This week, they travel to Tempe to take on Arizona.
4. Salt Lake Stallions (1-3) -1
Week 4: lost to Orlando 20-11
Salt Lake is an interesting team. They currently sit at 1-3 with two of their losses coming thanks to their starting quarterback, Josh Woodrum suffering an injury at the start of the season. Woodrum is a good player, going 16/22 for 161 yards this week. Branden Oliver had 71 yards on the ground and their rushing attack has looked good throughout the season.
Next week, Salt Lake has a chance to put themselves back in the playoff hunt against San Diego. The winner of that game will be in a great position for the postseason when it comes to tiebreakers at the halfway mark.
Salt Lake travels to San Diego this week.
5. San Diego Fleet (2-2) -1
Week 4: lost to Memphis 26-23
San Diego lost a close game to Memphis that saw them blow a 14 point second quarter lead and an 8 point 4th quarter lead. Zach Mettenberger had plenty of success throwing the ball against the Fleet while Alex Ross came in for the injured Phillip Nelson and only went 8/18 for 80 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Nelson was 9/12 for 110 yards and a touchdown before going out with an injury. That injury is part of why we still have San Diego at #5 ahead of Memphis despite the Express winning.
One key factor for the the Fleet that was held in check was Ja’Quan Gardner, who has played so well this season that he is still the leading rusher in the league despite a 9 carry, 6 yard performance this past weekend.
This week, San Diego hosts the Salt Lake Stallions.
6. Memphis Express (1-3) +1
Week 4: def. San Diego 26-23
Memphis gets on the board and it’s not too shocking to anyone that saw Zach Mettenberger’s play in week three as the Express game Orlando their toughest game yet. Christian Hackenberg hit the bench and Mettenberger comes in to go 18/25 for 174 yards and a touchdown (plus another rushing touchdown and a rushing 2-point conversion). The Express rushing attack was somewhat held in check with Zac Stacy only getting 39 yards on 18 carries. However, despite being outgained, the Express won after getting four turnovers from the Fleet.
Memphis will have a chance to keep themselves in the playoff hunt as they travel to Atlanta this weekend.
7. Arizona Hotshots (2-2) -2
Week 4: lost to Atlanta 14-11
This explains the Hotshots’ weekend:
Arizona dropped their second game in a row as they fell to Atlanta. Atlanta has been the consensus worst team in the league since day one, yet they got the best of Arizona. That’s not to say Arizona didn’t play well, they just couldn’t get points on the board. John Wolford was back from injury and went 17/31 for 185 yards and a touchdown. Jhurell Pressley had 14 carries for 110 yards.
However, the defense struggled, giving up 454 yards to Atlanta which led to a couple of late field goals to give Atlanta the win.
This week, Arizona hosts San Antonio who is fresh off their win over Birmingham on the road.
8. Atlanta Legends (1-3) –
Week 4: def. Arizona 14-11
Someone has to be last, and there are many teams that could make a case to be down here. The Legends finally looked good as Aaron Murray was given the starting nod for the first time. He was 20/33 for 254 yards and also led the team in rushing with 7 carries for 54 yards. Denard Robinson finally got going as well with 9 carries for 43 yards and a touchdown. The offense gained 454 yards total. Younghoe Koo continues to be a solid kicker for the team as well.
Atlanta has a chance to move up the rankings with a win over Memphis this week. Both teams have made a quarterback change and it has made them serious contenders again.
Jon Lunceford is a sports media broadcaster and digital professional. Jon is a graduate of the University of Alabama school of journalism, and played football at Birmingham-Southern College. He has also won two AHSAA Football State Championships while at Homewood High School and was a two-time World Cyber Games Team USA representative. He currently hosts Primetime on WJOX 94.5 and runs the high school athletics site JoxPreps. | {
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Friday, February 12, 2016
Cuarto / Indiosingracia - Krilin Split (2016)
Comment:I
am very glad that the Italy-based imprint La bèl is back with their brand new
one which is a split album for Cuarto, and Indiosingracia. Indeed, both artists
provide a handful of tracks the former is more world music/ethnic music centred
and the latter`s concept used to rotate around the more orthodox folk and
electronica tinged concept. On the other side, this differentiation is indirect
and contingent just based on some diverse chords and tendencies between the two
artists. The most important thing is that the result is consistent and accomplished
from start to finish having no signs about weak and accidental compositions. A
common thread is that both artists provide instrumental music despite there are
represented some vowel effects now and then. Of course, all those tiny
fragments and bits which used to appear over there have significant weight and
impact. At times those suits can ring loosely yet consistently and elegantly as if it were produced near
the campfire (I mean it indirectly). Cuarto´s Harco´s e-mail is an example of blissful crossover which consists of world rhythms, free jazz/improvised sonic mist and folktronic undercurrents. As I said previously I am very glad that
La bèl is back with their brand new one…which used to reflect upon such sort of
music they are the masters of pertaining to (with regard to the likes of Plusplus, Nick Rivera, Elisa Luu, for instance). Get this and the previous ones
under La bèl. | {
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American Dream Faces Harsh New Reality
Above: The American Dream has long evoked the idea that the next generation will have a better life than the previous one. Today, many Americans feel that dream is in jeopardy.
Though the phrase has different meanings to different people, it suggests an underlying belief that hard work pays off and that the next generation will have a better life than the previous generation.
But three years after the worst recession in almost a century, the American Dream now feels in jeopardy to many.
The town of Lorain, Ohio, used to embody this dream. It was a place where you could get a good job, raise a family and comfortably retire.
"Now you can see what it is. Nothing," says John Beribak. "The shipyards are gone, the Ford plant is gone, the steel plant is gone." His voice cracks as he describes the town he's lived in his whole life.
"I mean, I grew up across the street from the steel plant when there was 15,000 people working there," he says. "My dad worked there. I worked there when I got out of the Air Force. It's just sad."
Uniquely American
The American Dream is an implicit contract that says if you play by the rules, you'll move ahead. It's a faith that is almost unique to this country, says Michael Dimock of the Pew Research Center.
"When Germans or French are asked the same questions about whether it's within all of our power to get ahead, or whether our success is really determined by forces outside our control, most German and French respondents say, 'No, success is really beyond our control,' " Dimock says.
In the wake of the recession, that sentiment is now growing in this country.
"I think the American Dream for the average man doesn't exist any more," retiree Linden Strandberg says on a recent visit to the Smithsonian American History museum in Washington, D.C.
The Strandberg family story has been repeated millions of times in the last century. His parents immigrated from Sweden in the 1920s for economic opportunity. Linden grew up and worked at the phone company in Chicago for 35 years.
"I wasn't smart enough to go to college, so I wanted to get a steady job with decent pay," he says. "With my overtime I was able to buy a house, take trips to Europe and visit relatives there. I don't think a young person — woman or man — coming out of high school now could ever achieve that."
This sense that the contract is threatened intrigued political scientist John Kenneth White of Catholic University. "We have a lack of confidence by many Americans in the future of the country," says White, who edited a collection of essays called The American Dream in the 21st Century.
This crisis of confidence is not just because the economy is bad. In fact, the American Dream flowered at a time when the economy was at its worst.
"If you go back to the Great Depression where the American Dream originated as a concept, strikingly enough, there was still hope and optimism about the future," White says.
A Long History Of Optimism
In 1931, author James Adam wrote a book with the working title The American Dream. Ultimately it was retitled The Epic of America. Historians say that text marked the American Dream's emergence into the spotlight.
Yet the underlying themes had been bubbling up through the American psyche for much longer. In 1925, F. Scott Fitzgerald opened his iconic novel The Great Gatsby with these lines:
In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since. Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, he told me, just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had.
The American motifs of growth and optimism even stretch back as far as the Constitutional Convention.
"The chair in which Washington sat had a sun, and the question was asked, is it rising or setting?" White says. "And the framers answered that question by saying it's a rising sun."
At that time, the American Dream was not available to everyone in the country. Black people were kept as slaves. Women were not allowed to vote or own property.
The story of the 20th century is one of the American Dream gradually being extended to more of the population.
Composer Aaron Copland, a gay Jewish son of immigrants, captured the expansive optimism of the American Dream in 1942, in his "Fanfare for the Common Man."
Six years later, the gospel singer Mahalia Jackson expressed her faith that blacks will "Move on Up a Little Higher." The single became an overnight sensation — the best-selling gospel record to date.
The Statue of Liberty silhouetted by sunset in New York City.
In 2009, President Obama looked back across those decades as he took the oath of office. He described his inauguration as a fulfillment of the American Dream, where "a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath."
While Obama embodies the American Dream in a powerful and specific way, this is a theme that every president and would-be president adopts in some fashion.
On the campaign trail, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney talks about how his father grew up poor. "Only in America could a man like my dad become governor of a state where he once sold paint from the trunk of his car," he says.
"Only in America" is a universal phrase in domestic politics. The challenge for politicians today is to convince Americans that the phrase still applies — that hard work and dedication still guarantee success.
Skepticism Grows
That faith is faltering, especially among the poor, says pollster Dimock. "Lower income whites and lower income African-Americans are more skeptical about the American Dream. Higher income blacks are pretty optimistic about the American Dream, as are higher income whites."
As cynical as this may seem, the numbers suggest that the people most likely to believe in the American Dream today are those who've already attained it.
"There's a certain truth to that," Dimock says. "There are people struggling. And what you're seeing especially right now are people who feel like they played the game the right way, like they did what they were supposed to do, and the rules they thought they could play by and be OK have changed on them somehow."
Economic statistics validate those feelings. According to the Census Bureau, an average man working full time made 10 percent less money last year than he did a decade ago.
The question for this country is, can the dream be restored? And if it can't, what does that mean for our identity as Americans? Or, as the poet Langston Hughes put it, "What happens to a dream deferred?" | {
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New York City Council determined to pass “police state” pregnancy center gag law next week
NEW YORK, February 25, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Pro-life sources in New York City have learned that a bill designed to gag pro-life crisis pregnancy centers (CPC), much like one in Baltimore that was deemed unconstitutional, is slated to be voted out of committee and immediately put to a full Council vote next Wednesday.
The bill mandates that pro-life centers display a sign declaring that they do not provide abortions “in writing, in English and Spanish ... conspicuously posted in the entrance of the pregnancy cervices center; at least one additional sign posted in any area where clients wait to receive services; and in any advertisement promoting the services of such pregnancy service center in clear and prominent letter type.”
Any CPC in violation of the rule would be liable for up to a $1000 fine for a first offense, and up to $2,500 for subsequent offenses, as well as up to six months imprisonment.
The measure has been strongly supported by NARAL Pro-Choice New York, who had helped spur introduction of the measure with an investigative report that claimed CPC workers misled women about abortion. Ironically, the title of the report, “She said abortion could cause breast cancer,” portrayed as a myth a health risk that has been verified by top researchers.
In November 2010 testimony before the Committee on Women’s Issues of the New York City Council, Jeanneane Maxon, general counsel for the CPC network Care Net, pointed out the “clear Constitutional concerns” over government regulation of speech raised by Int. No. 371 for specifically targeting only facilities that do not offer abortions. “It would not matter how professional, honest, forthright, and/or legally compliant the pregnancy center is; the proposed local law would still apply only because the pregnancy center holds a pro-life viewpoint,” said Maxon.
Last month, a federal judge ruled that a bill forcing Baltimore pregnancy centers to post signs stating that they don’t refer for abortions was “unenforcable” for unconstitutionally controlling the centers’ speech.
Ed Machmann, the Assistant Director for the Family Life/Respect Life Office at the Archdiocese of New York, told LifeSiteNews.com Friday afternoon that although the city council has “been hearing quite a lot from our side,” the battle was decidedly uphill. The city council is overwhelmingly controlled by the Democrat party and led by Speaker Christine Quinn, who is an open lesbian closely allied to the abortion lobby.
“It’s a tough audience,” Machmann said. “There has been some mitigation of the terms of the bill, but they’re still dead set on passing it.” Machmann said nonetheless that pro-life forces were ready to challenge the constitutionality of the initiative in court should it pass.
There are about two dozen crisis pregnancy center offices in New York, which has been dubbed the “abortion capital of the world” for its extremely high rate of abortions, with 89,000 unborn children killed there every year. There are reportedly about 45 licensed abortion clinics in the city, in addition to an estimated two dozen more that are unlicensed.
Chris Slattery, founder of Expectant Mother Care and a top pro-life advocate in New York City, will be hosting a rally against the bill Wednesday starting at Trinity Church at 12:15pm.
“Please help us fight hard to defend a mother’s right to know the unadorned truth about abortion, to give her true help and hope, and to operate as in a free country and not a police state,” Slattery wrote in the appeal for donations. | {
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Michigan State UniversityMichigan State UniversityCloseMenu buttonMenu and Search buttonOpenCloseNewsVideoEventsresourcesnewsletterExpertsProgramsYouTubeFacebookTwitterGoogle PlusAsk an ExpertSee how spartans make a difference in Michigan. MI Spartan Impact
The weedy-seedy plants of fall
Three of Michigan’s most annoying weeds that produce seeds are hedge parsley, sandbur and common burdock.
Every fall,
hikers, walkers and gardeners – anyone who spends much time outside – run into
a similar dilemma. They look down at their pant legs and they are covered with
seeds that do not brush off. Or, they bump their head into some weed that is
loaded with seeds and those weed seeds become hopelessly entangled in their
hair. And there’s not just one seed, but hundreds.
Not only are
there loads of seeds sticking tightly, they will not come loose. Sometimes,
it’s faithful Fido who is coated after a romp in the great outdoors. To add
injury to insult, one of these plant’s burs can cause painful injuries if it
becomes embedded in skin.
Some of these
plants are biennial, taking two years to complete their life cycle. The first
year they are a small plant with no flowers or seeds, and the next year they
grow much larger and produce flowers and seeds, and then their life is over.
Several weedy-seedy
plants that make the “Very Annoying List” for all seed pickers are hedge
parsley, sandbur and common burdock.
Hedge parsley or spreading hedge
parsley
For many
parts of Michigan, this appears to be a new weed or one that is seen more
frequently in the last several years. This biennial plant grows in both sun and
shade and can grow to over 5 feet tall. The leaves are a rich, shiny green and
look slightly like flat-leaf parsley.
Plants
produce small, white flowers like tiny Queen Ann’s Lace on the upper part of
the plant. The seeds are extremely annoying and produced in wild profusion by August and later. The seeds are very small and
have rows of mini-hooks on them that secure them to every passing form of life.
In hair, they become matted clumps. On clothes, they cling tenaciously. Luckily,
they do not stick to canvas or denim well.
Hedge
parsley. Photo credit: Valter Jacinto, Flickr.com
Sandbur
This weed is
an annual, yellow-green, spreading annual grass that is mostly erect, but can
occasionally form mats. It thrives in dry, sandy soils and this is how it got its
name. The seeds are contained in a bur that has extremely sharp spines. Each
seedhead has multiple burs. Because the spines on the burs are so long and
sharp, they can cause a great deal of pain if contact is made.
Sandbur. Photo credit: Matt Lavin, Flickr.com
Common burdock
This biennialproduces thistle-like burs on a plant
that can range in size between 3 and 5 feet tall. The bristly bracts are hooked
and form a round seed head below a small tuft of lavender florets. Burdock burs
were the inspiration for the invention of Velcro.
Removal of
seeds can be a monumental task. There are a number of techniques to try to
remove the seeds, but wearing gloves may help protect your fingers while doing
this. Tools that might work with various seeds are lint rollers, sticky tape or
duct tape, fine tooth comb and a disposable razor. If hair or pets with hair
are involved, massage in vegetable oil, comb gently and then wash. Pet
“de-shedding” tools or scissors are recommended on pets.
Related Resources
David Smitley, Michigan State University Department of Entomology, and Deborah G. McCullough, Michigan State University Departments of Entomology and Forestry | Guidelines for homeowners with hemlock trees infested with hemlock woolly adelgid. | {
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Apartment:2 Bedroom, 1 Bathroom, Sleeps 4Location:Oberaula, Hessen, GermanyDescription:This spacious holiday apartment is located on the outskirts of the tourist town called Oberaula in the northern Hessen Mountains. You can reach you...
Cottage:8 Bedroom, 2 Bathroom, Sleeps 9Location:Kirchheim, Hessen, GermanyDescription:Enjoy a great stay in this cottage (village 4, House No. 14) which is nestled in a well-maintained holiday park in the mountain region of North-Hes...
Home:3 Bedroom, 1 Bathroom, Sleeps 6Location:Kirchheim, Hessen, GermanyDescription:This holiday home (Village 1, House no. 20) is located in a well-kept holiday home park in the North-Hessian highland. The plots on which the house... | {
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BERKELEY-Before the season started, Cal head football coach Jeff Tedford welcomed the fact that the Bears weren't mentioned in a single preseason poll. A lack of expectations, he said, would help the team to focus. It would be back to the role of the underdog, a role that Tedford's early Cal teams played to perfection as they ascended as high as No. 2 in the nation.
But, the combination of having scored 104 points in two weeks and sporting a revamped defense that ranks No. 1 in the nation, tends to create just a bit of buzz. Going into Friday's nationally-televised tilt with Nevada, the Bears see themselves ranked in both the ESPN.com Power Rankings as well as the USA Today Coaches' Poll, at No. 24. Good news, right? | {
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I resolved to do a lot more drawing this year. I’ve been posting my sketches and doodles on Tumblr and hope to keep it up, as well as working on my middle-grade book, Friends Against Bullies (FAB) Club – see next post. | {
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This is our remix of The Kannibalen Anthem by Black Tiger Sex Machine!!
Be sure to check out the Kannibalen records website and soundcloud for tons of awesome stuff!! Big things on the horizon!
www.kannibalenrecords.com
http://soundcloud.com/kannibalenrecords
Enjoy!! <3 | {
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Day 30 – Take Agile Results to the Next Level
“The true meaning of life is to give our life meaning.”— Tate T. Weber
Your Outcome: Review the basics of the Agile Results system and set the stage to take your life to the next level by exploring more of the Agile Results principles, patterns, and practices.
I wanted the end to be a good beginning … for the rest of your life. Well, here we are. It’s day 30 of 30 Days of Getting Results, based on my book Getting Results the Agile Way. It’s been 30 days since we started and you can browse all the lessons at 30 Days of Getting Results. Revisit them when you need them, or share them with friends and family to help give them the edge.
I hope one of the most important ideas that came across during our journey together is that you are your ultimate investment, throughout your life. Investing in yourself is how you turn your world around and how you turn other people’s world around. It breathes spirit into life and it’s contagious.
At the end of the day, you are the one that makes your life happen. You are the one that takes care of your business. Whether you’re getting your game on at work or taking care of your business of life, I hope that Agile results can help you succeed far beyond your wildest dreams. It’s there to enhance you and help you unleash what you’re already capable of. Everybody deserves a chance at “the good life”, and this is the ultimate toolkit that I can give you that can help you make the most of what you’ve got.
Write Your Story Forward … A Day at a Time
As a reminder of what Agile Results is, it’s a simple system for meaningful results. You can use it to step up your game and support you for the rest of your life, in everything you do. It gives you an extreme advantage by giving you state of the art practices from a variety of disciplines for improving your thinking, feeling, and doing. I know many parents who are using Agile Results to help their kids improve their focus, their energy, their time management, and basic productivity. I know companies using it to help drive change and to help build a rhythm of results for their teams. I know many people that are using Agile Results to geta new lease on life. The common theme behind the system is one simple ideas:
… Be the author of your life and write your story forward.
By using three stories to drive your day, your week, your month, and your year, you take charge of your life, and you live life on your terms. It helps you be who you want to be and create more of the experiences you want to create. By spending the right time, on the right things, the right way, with the right energy, you unlock a powerful combination for your life that unleashes your best possibilities and helps you make the most of what you’ve got.
Back to the Basics
The basics work and they’ll support you. Let’s do a quick recap:
You can use The Rule of 3 to avoid getting overwhelmed.
You’re the author of your life and you can write your story forward, one moment or one day at a time
You can use three stories to drive your day and and light up your day by connecting to your values (Daily Outcomes).
On Mondays, you can use three stories to drive your week (Monday Vision).
On Fridays, you can use Friday Reflection to celebrate your wins and find your personal success patterns.
You can map out what’s important in your life using Hot Spots to create a meaningful map.
You can let things slough off with skill … no more straws breaking the camel’s back .
You can add power hours and add creative hours to breathe life into your week and get more done, in less time, with better results.
You can use metaphors to inspire yourself with skill and make meaning in everything you do.
You can achieve a peaceful calm state of mind, where worries melt away, and your clarity and focus come to the forefront.
You can setup boundaries and buffers to achieve work-life balance with skill.
You can feel strong all week long, by playing to your strengths and spending less time in weaknesses and things that drain you.
You can do something great and make it a month long project. Great things can happen in month-long packages, and it’s a way to rock your world, a month at a time.
Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection is the Backbone
Each day or each week is another way to get the system on your side. All you have to do is remember this simple pattern:
Monday Vision – Identify three stories or outcomes you want for the week. This sets the stage.
Daily Outcomes – Each day, identify three outcomes or stories that you want to achieve for the day.
Friday Reflection – Each Friday, identify three things going well and three things to improve.
I wanted a system that was easy to adopt and immediately get the benefits, and that if I fell off, I wanted it to be easy to hop back on. The system is super simple to get back on if you fall off. On any given day, simply ask yourself, what are three outcomes you want for the day, and you’re back on saddle again.
Where to Go from Here
Oh, the places you’ll go. For your journey for the rest of your life, take the system with you and get the force on your side:
For inspiration, read the testimonials and some of the stories of adoption and real-world case studies at Getting Results.com.
If you had a chance to go through Day 27 – Do Something Great, hopefully you have something in mind that you are excited about and ready to tackle. I have something that I’ll be working on, and I’m looking forward to cranking things up. | {
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Follow
Tri-Cities Door Canvass (1-4 pm on March 25)
Optional email code
Will you come?
Send me email updates
Send me text messages
How many other people are you bringing?
Don't publish my RSVP on the website
Hey team,
Ready to canvass? Our amazing canvass team will be heading back up to the area around College Park to do some doorknocking. We're meeting at the Starbucks on St John's Street for our check-in, then taking transit up together. Please plan to be on time or a little early, as we'll be starting right at 1 with a quick training, and please let me know if you have a car and can give others a lift to the turf.
Meeting location: Starbucks 2350 St Johns S, Port Moody
We'll be canvassing on Site C (you can learn more about Site C at www.stopsitec.org/learn_more), but the option of continuing with the Kinder Morgan petition will definitely be available for anyone who feels more comfortable working on that campaign.
Your canvass captain is Amy at 604 767 0914 - give her a call if you get lost or confused :).
Morag
Areas: 70, 71, 72, 73, 74
Force of Nature takes the safety of all of our volunteers very seriously. We encourage you to get in touch with Morag at 778 998 6793 if you have any concerns, are made to feel uncomfortable in any way, or experience any kind of harassment or other incident that you would like us to address. If you would prefer to speak to a male organizer, you can also contact my colleague Gab at 778 877 2362. If you are uncomfortable addressing your concerns with staff, Force of Nature also has a volunteer ombudsperson, Amy Lubik, who you can contact at 604 767 0914. | {
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Press releases
Release Date:
Search in the title:
3 March 2015MadridSpain
Tourism development in Africa challenged by wildlife crimeWildlife watching tourism is one of the most important tourism segments in Africa, according to new UNWTO research released on the occasion of World Wildlife Day. In view of tourism’s potential in advancing inclusive growth across the continent, poaching and illicit trade in wildlife pose a serious threat to the future of Africa’s socio-economic development, the publication warns.
3 March 2015BerlinGermany
The Travel and Technological Revolutions: UNWTO Secretary-General at ITB 2015In his ITB 2015 opening address, UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai highlighted how new technologies are changing society and shaping the tourism sector, shifting power from governments and companies to citizens and consumers. Rifai recalled that with power comes responsibility and highlighted tourism´s capacity to overcome prejudice in an often divided world (ITB Berlin, Germany, 3 March 2015).
UNWTO activities at ITB 2015The 5th Silk Road Ministers’ Meeting, community empowerment through tourism and creative industries and the 30th meeting of World Tourism Network on Child Protection are UNWTO’s main activities during the ITB Travel Trade Show 2015 (Berlin, Germany, 4-8 March, 2015).
18 February 2015MadridSpain
Governments recognize benefits of visa facilitationVisa facilitation has experienced strong progress in recent years, particularly through the implementation of visa on arrival policies according to UNWTO’s latest Visa Openness Report. This largely reflects an increased awareness among policymakers of the positive impacts of visa facilitation on tourism and economic growth.
9 February 2015MadridSpain
Former head of UNICEF to chair the UNWTO World Tourism Network on Child ProtectionUNWTO is pleased to announce that Carol Bellamy, former Executive Director of UNICEF (1995-2005), is the new chair of the UNWTO World Tourism Network on Child Protection. Ms. Bellamy starts her tenure at the Network’s 30th meeting in connection with ITB Berlin in March 2015, where the Network’s agenda for the coming year will be established.
Middle East & North Africa: Tourism adapts to challenges and gains new momentumThe tourism sector in the Middle East and North Africa has been largely able to adapt and recover in recent times and even bounce back over the past year. Against this backdrop, several tourism ministers of the region, Spanish authorities and private sector representatives focused on future tourism prospects at the third Ministerial Round Table on Tourism Development in the MENA Region, during the Madrid International Tourism Fair (29 January, FITUR Madrid).
3 February 2015MadridSpain
Investour 2015: Africa needs a stronger brandBranding and promotion, foreign direct investment, human resources development and visa facilitation were among the key topics in focus at the VI Investment and Tourism Business Forum for Africa (INVESTOUR). 16 Tourism Ministers from Africa and the Middle East and experts from different areas attended the yearly Forum, held on the occasion of the International Tourism Fair (FITUR). The debates focused particularly on the need to work towards a stronger Brand Africa (Madrid, Spain, 29 January 2015). | {
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Grammarist is a professional online English grammar dictionary, that provides a variety of grammatical tools, rules and tips in order to improve your grammar and to help you distinguish between commonly misspelled words.
Doodle
Though the word doodle dates back to the 1600s, its meaning has changed over the years. We will examine the current definition of the word doodle, its evolution in meaning and origin and some examples of its use in sentences.
A doodle is a rough drawing usually made absent-mindedly. Doodles may be small pictures or abstract patterns. A secondary meaning of doodle is to play music in a free form manner. The original meaning of the word doodle, when coined in the 1600s, was a person who is foolish. The word doodle most probably is derived from the German words dudeltopf or dudeldop, meaning simpleton. In the 1930s in the United States, the word doodle was described as meaning a simpleton who drew mindless pictures. Eventually, the word doodle came to mean the pictures themselves or the act of drawing these pictures, and not the person drawing them. Doodle may be used as a noun or an intransitive verb, which is a verb that does not take an object. Related words are doodles, doodled, doodling, doodler.
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Examples
A teenager has won over Twitter with an adorable hand-drawn doodle of her girlfriend, which she placed in lieu of a photo inside a heart-shaped locket. (The Daily Mail)
Instead of scribbling illegible names onto each paper cup, Jason Tocewicz is adding doodles, caricatures, and famous animated faces to each order. (The Huffington Post)
Numerous separate doodles make up this crowded scene, reflecting readiness to take in new information and the rapid association of ideas of a lateral thinker, although there is logic, too, in the zigzag lines and angular shapes. (The Guardian)
If you’ve ever doodled a cartoon on a piece of paper during school, or at an office meeting that drones on endlessly, Dave Hartman is an inspiration. (The Billings Gazette) | {
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Dorna Sports partners with Lenovo™ for MotoGP™ eSport Championship
Dorna Sports is delighted to announce a multi-year global partnership with Lenovo as the exclusive technology sponsor of the MotoGP eSport Championship, and exclusive provider of gaming PCs, monitors and accessories for the Championship’s live events. In addition to a co-branding sponsorship, the Championship players will game on Lenovo Legion’s high-performance gaming devices for a smooth and immersive experience.
This key partnership will power the Championship to new heights as contestants once again race for incredible prizes this season. Eight online challenges with live onsite semi finals and the season finale event to follow later in the year. The Lenovo Legion-powered Semi-Final 1 will take place at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli in September, followed by the Movistar eSports Center in Madrid in October, and culminating in the Grand Final MotoGP season finale in Valencia in November.
“Given eSports is one of the fastest growing areas in both gaming and sport viewing that’s captivating millions of fans around the world, sponsoring Dorna’s MotoGP eSport Championship is the natural step from our technology partnership in the MotoGP World Championship. It gives us the opportunity to deliver powerful and immersive experiences to the global gaming community – bringing together our Lenovo Legion gaming technology with Dorna’s critically acclaimed MotoGP game,” said Gianfranco Lanci, Lenovo Corporate President and Chief Operating Officer.
“I’m thrilled that Lenovo will be a part of the MotoGP eSport Championship,” said Pau Serracanta, Managing Director, Dorna Sports. “The Lenovo Legion gaming PC brand stands for sleek and powerful performance and with this partnership, some of the best gamers in the world will now be able to play on the Lenovo Legion devices during the Semi-Finals and the Grand Final. I’m confident this agreement between Lenovo and the MotoGP eSport Championship will welcome a future full of success.”
About MotoGP™ eSportThe critically-acclaimed MotoGP™ eSport Championship returns in 2018, with more challenges, more chances to win, and an increased number of platforms available to compete on, making it sure to be a bigger and better show than ever before. For this season, the competition is available for players on the three gaming platforms: Sony PlayStation® 4, Xbox One and PC, giving more opportunities for gamers to become World Champion. For more information on MotoGP eSport Championship visit esport.motogp.com or follow @MotoGPeSport on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitch.
About Dorna SportsDorna Sports is an international sports management, marketing and media company, founded in 1988. The organisation has its headquarters in Madrid, and further branch offices in Barcelona, Rome and Tokyo. Dorna has been the exclusive commercial and television rights holder for the FIM Road Racing Grand Prix World Championship, MotoGP™, since 1992. With more than 60 years of history, MotoGP™ is the pinnacle of motorcycle racing. Dorna has an all-encompassing Grand Prix event management philosophy, with 360º direct involvement in all areas of the MotoGP™ World Championship. Dorna has additional involvement in further motorcycling events, such as the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship, the FIM CEV Repsol Championship and the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, which seeks to promote the development of the next generation of riding talent.
About LenovoLenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) is a US$45 billion Fortune 500 company and a global technology leader in driving Intelligent Transformation through smart devices and infrastructure that create the best user experience. Lenovo manufactures one of the world’s widest portfolio of connected products, including smartphones (Motorola), tablets, PCs (ThinkPad, Yoga, Lenovo Legion) and workstations as well as AR/VR devices and smart home/office solutions. Lenovo’s data center solutions (ThinkSystem, ThinkAgile) are creating the capacity and computing power for the connections that are changing business and society. Lenovo works to inspire the different in everyone and build a smarter future where everyone thrives. Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Weibo, or visit us at http://www.lenovo.com/ | {
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A narrow escape
The shadowy figure saw something fall out of the corner of its eye. It hovered above the cave floor momentarily and looked at the warg… the warg was still passed out. After a moment’s indecision, it landed, setting the warg off to the side. It went to the object on the ground and picked it up. A chicken bone? It gave itself a once-over to ensure nothing was sticking to it. It paused in its looking and sniffed the air.. it sniffed again and then sniffed the bone. Warg scent! It eyed the warg slyly. So… pretending to be sleeping… can fix that! It let out a low cackle as it went swiftly towards the cave entrance.
Deathwulf opened his eyes when he was sure the shadowy figure was gone. He looked at the area the bone should have landed in. It’s gone! Deathwulf closed his eyes when he heard the shadowy figure return. The shadowy figure didn’t stop as it got nearer. Suddenly, Deathwulf felt his jaw raised and a sweet substance was viciously rubbed all along his teeth. What is he… the sleeping berries! Deathwulf could feel the effects of the berries as his ‘pretending’ soon became a reality.
The shadowy figure held the warg’s jaw firmly as it made as much of the berries as it could go down the warg’s throat. It watched as the warg swallowed a few times and then went limp in his arms. It let out a soft cackle. Thought you were smarter than me! I’ll get you to my master, yet!
It grabbed hold of the branches and lifted the incapacitated warg from the cave floor and out the entrance of the cave.
——————-
Chucaro woke up with a start.
“Easy, there.” a voice said while petting her gently on the side.
She got up and turned to face Tregoan. “You tainted the rabbits, didn’t you?”
“I did what I had to do to force you to get some much needed rest. You weren’t going to make it much longer.”
Chucaro glanced towards the opening out into the night. “I have to leave…. I’ve already lost valuable time.” she said to the big hunter. “It feels like they are getting father away.”
Silentknife had come up to the hunter and warg. “Ah, you’re awake.” he said.
“I can’t talk now, I have to go after them! Deathwulf needs me… I have to go!” Chucaro insisted.
Silentknife saw Sophwen get up and start getting the packs ready. “Creami is still out, but she can sleep in the sled. We will go after whoever took Deathwulf, but we go together… understand?”
Chucaro thought about using stealth and leaving by herself, but she didn’t know who had taken Deathwulf and the number of those who did. She may need their help in getting him free. “I will wait… but hurry! We are losing precious time…”
Tregoan got the sled ready to travel and Silentknife and Sophwen both got the packs on the sled. Silentknife had Creami in his arms as he approached the sled. Sophwen sat down and took the sleeping minstrel in her arms as she covered them both in blankets. She nodded to Silentknife when they were secure. Silentknife gave a brief nod to Chucaro and Tregoan and moved the sled after the hunter and the warg.
“We’re coming, Deathwulf… just hold on a little longer,” Chucaro pleaded to herself.
————————
Deathwulf woke up around snow. He could barely move and couldn’t figure out why. Once the effects of the berries wore off, his eyes shot open. The berries! He looked down at his paws and saw they were tied. He looked around as much as he could and saw a mound the resembled the shadowy figure. Deathwulf waited, but the mound didn’t move. He didn’t know if something killed the creature and thought he was dead or what happened. He slowly crawled to the sleeping mound so as not to wake the shadowy figure up… the fact that he was tied up wasn’t lost on him, either.
The shadowy figure didn’t move a muscle as the warg came up to it. From what Deathwulf could see, it looked like the shadowy figure stopped for some food, judging from the dead rabbit near it. He looked at the shadowy figure and noticed it hadn’t washed off the berries before eating the rabbit. So… it fell asleep from the same method it used on me… how ironic…
Deathwulf locked in on the shadowy figure’s claws. I can use those to cut through the ties on my mouth! Deathwulf suppressed his joy and inched his way to the shadowy figure’s claws. The shadowy figure still didn’t stir. Deathwulf kept a cautious eye on the shadowy figure as he slowly moved his jaws up against the claw… being careful to not only make sure the claw didn’t slide away, but that he didn’t come in contact with the berry juice, should it still be there.
After what seemed to the warg like an eternity, he felt the ties binding his jaws suddenly give way. He carefully opened and closed his mouth, letting his jaws stretch out and carefully moved away from the shadowy figure. When the warg felt he was far enough away, he used his teeth to get the bindings off his feet. When he got the last of his bindings off, his paws fell to the ground. He moved them as much as he could to get the circulation going, but there was no way he could stand at the moment. He drug himself further away from the shadowy figure and went stealth. At least I can appear invisible to it, should it awaken… that’ll give me time to get the blood flowing to my paws.
The sun was on the apex downward when the shadowy figure stirred. Its eyes popped open as it realized where it was. It turned around and saw the torn bindings from where the warg used to lay. The shadowy figure screamed as it picked up a piece of the torn binding. It threw it to the ground as it seethed. As it looked around, it sniffed the surrounding air, trying to get a scent of the warg. Blood! It hopped to the spot where it smelled the blood and was angry that the blood came from what it had killed earlier. It kicked the carcass in rage. As it looked around, it realized the warg may be in stealth, watching it. Fear crept over the shadowy figure as it started to shiver. Master will be mad with me. Must make it to master! An involuntary shiver overcame the shadowy figure as it spread it’s membrane to catch the air. It leaped into the air and came down with a thud. Looking at its wings, the shadowy figure saw one side was ripped. It howled in rage and stomped around. When it was done with its fit, it looked around with a look of hatred, seeing one last time if the warg was around. Finally, it turned and began walking away towards its master.
Deathwulf quietly watched from the shadows as the shadowy figure walked away. Soon, you will be mine.
—————–
Something didn’t feel right to Chucaro. She found a bone that had Deathwulf’s scent on it, but that wasn’t where the bone came from. It was almost as if it were thrown there, as that was the only bone they came across. The others thought that it was odd being the only one they could find, as well. What bothered Chucaro, though, was that she lost the ‘feel’ of where Deathwulf was a little while ago… it was as if the feeling suddenly vanished. She didn’t know which way to go to find him anymore and hoped that the bone would give a clue. They had split into two groups, Silentknife and Chucaro and Tregoan, Sophwen and Creami, who had woken up with fresh resolve after hearing the promising news that Deathwulf was alive.
After searching for a while, the burglar and warg couldn’t find anything else to indicate where Deathwulf was. As they made their way back to the camp, the met with Tregoan, Sophwen and Creami. The human minstrel had a catch of rabbits to feed the group as they were the only positive news they brought back with them. They, too, could find no other evidence that Deathwulf was even there. As Tregoan made a small campfire to cook the rabbits, Creami tossed a couple to Chucaro. She nodded her thanks to Creami and moved the rabbits to the side… waiting until the other rabbits cooked and trying to figure out where Deathwulf was. Silentknife kept looking at the bone, but no other clues came to his mind.
When the rabbits were done cooking, they ate in silence. Chucaro didn’t realize how hungry she was and tore into the rabbits she had. When they were done eating, they sat around the fire wondering what to do next. Tregoan spoke first, “Since we really don’t know anymore which direction Deathwulf went, we should continue over the Mistys and make our way to the river. We can decide what to do next when we get there… but while the players in the mission seem to have changed, for the time being, we need to continue as if nothing has happened. Chucaro will have to infiltrate the enemy as she is the only one who can blend in.”
Chucaro felt like she was blind-sided with that comment. All I’ve thought about was finding Deathwulf this whole time… any part in this mission was never a concern to me. She looked at the others, who were looking back at her, waiting for some kind of response. I know he’s out there, but I can’t ‘feel’ which direction he is in anymore. Chucaro looked away again. When she looked back she answered, “Fine, though I don’t feel like I’m right for this operation.” Tregoan surprised her with a smile. “You are more capable of this than all of us combined!” laughed the hunter. “I know that finding Deathwulf is still a priority for us, but it isn’t the main one… not anymore, since we can’t track him. But I’ve seen the way you both handle yourselves and the only difference I see is one is female and one is male. I’d fight next to either of you and be more than happy to do so.”
The others chimed in at that comment. It never dawned on her that the others viewed her that way… again, she never thought about how others saw her… she just did what she felt she had to do. She felt a bit better at the answer she had given them and at the trust they showed in her. As she was about to tell the others to pick up the camp and head out, her connection to Deathwulf came back, stronger than before. She looked in the direction she ‘felt’ him in… it was leading over the eastern part of the Misty Mountains… similar to where they were heading. As much as the trust and hope the others showed in her felt, a sense of relief flooded over her when she could again feel Deathwulf.
“If I need to, I will still do what is asked, but I can feel Deathwulf again, and stronger this time… I don’t think he is too far from us.”
The others paused in what they were doing to hear her out. After a quick glance at each other, they appeared to double their efforts to pick up the camp. It seemed like they were ready to head out in no time, with Chucaro to lead the way. She went in the direction that she could feel him at, hoping they would meet with him soon. | {
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Top Mac Cosmetics Love Me Lipstick Collection
Top Mac Cosmetics Love Me Lipstick Collection – Another day, MAC released a new lipstick formula, and I just Was required to pick up some shades. These are generally the Mac Love Me personally Lipsticks – a weightless argan oil-infused lipstick that will delivers an instant hit regarding powerful colour and all-day moisture in a luxurious satin-soft finish.|In a wager to promote self-love, harmony along with respect, makeup giant MAC is rolling out a empowering collection of 24 beautiful lippies, aptly named: Adore Me Lipstick. From shameless nudes to powerful whites and high-impact purples, the collection features bold, flattering hues that redefine comfort using its lighter-than-air texture and ultra-moisturising wear.|One level up from MAC’s iconic mattes, the revolutionary formula features a creamy, pigmented formula that will glides on like spread and wraps lips inside intense colour and gentle shine. A adding nourishment to blend of Lychee Fruit extract as well as Argan Oil impart immediate along with long-lasting softness and moisture, while True-Colour Gelled Program enables ultra-refined pigments hanging in a translucent gel matrix, to evenly disperse. Anticipate bright and smooth coloring with rich payoff. Housed in an ombre lipstick topic.|Love at first swipe! Fall in love with an argan oil-infused formula that delivers an immediate hit of powerful shade and all-day moisture. The True-Colour Gelled System of ultra-refined pure pigments evenly disolve bright, smooth colour regarding high-impact one-swipe payoff. A mixture of lightweight oils and specific waxes makes this lipstick sense luxurious, super-silky and rarely there. The ultra-gliding food lays down beautifully in the thin film for a creamy and conditioning texture. Which has a weightless feel as well as satin-soft complete, M. A. C Love Me Lipstick loves you back.}
Top Mac Cosmetics Love Me Lipstick Collection
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Today I’ve received the new MAC Love Us Lipstick Collection for inmediatamente. This collection features 24 new lipstick shades inside a creamy formula. This method is actually new for MAC PC and it’s called the “True-Colour Gelled System”. It contains lychee fruit extract and argan oil with ultra-refined colors, which gives you a bright, rich and creamy and smooth finish and feel.
There are three color families in the collection which are: Nudes/Corals, Reds and Plums/Violets. I love how the tube has the exact correlating color family!
I like this formula. It feels very creamy and comfortable on my lip area and I don’t feel like is considered sucking all the moisture away from my lips. They are effectively pigmented and really gorgeous colours. My personal faves of the kinds I’ve swatched are This particular language Silk, Let Them Eat Wedding cake!, My Little Secret and Give Me Fever.
You can find the MAC Love Me Lipstick Collection unique site and in stores today.
MAC Love Me Lipstick is a new moisturizing array of lipsticks infused using argan oil that leaves lips smooth and nourished. We liked this formula a lot. It has a creamy, lightweight feel with a subtle sheen finish off that applies smoothly on to my drier lips and has an even and smooth appear. It wore for several hours and the pigment had been perfect through that don without fading or migrating. It’s a quite comfortable lipstick to have on and feels perfectly hydrating like a balm of sorts throughout the wear! | {
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} |
Monday, September 28, 2009
The infamous bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995 sent a collective shiver up America’s spine, a moment that will never be forgotten, particularly for those who lost family, were injured or had to run for their lives in the immediate aftermath.
It was a rude awakening that highlighted the hatred of the American government that lurked in the heartland of America among folks like farmers and militia members. The FBI has released some soundless videotapes showing the chaos that errupted after the bombing on April 19, that killed 168 and injured hundreds.
The FBI seems to be taking a new approach to terrorism plots. Instead of quickly picking up people, often on lesser charges, they’re letting the plots unfold a little more so they can charge suspected terrorists with more serious offenses. The tactic seems to have worked in recent cases around the country.
Aftermath of the World Trade Center/fbi photo By ED TIMMSThe Dallas Morning NewsDALLAS – After terrorists slammed airliners into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon, the law-enforcement community had one overriding priority - preventing another attack.
Making criminal arrests or detaining noncitizens on immigration violations was seen as an expedient way to disrupt any nascent terrorist plots after the Sept. 11 attacks. But the majority of those taken into custody were never prosecuted, or they were charged with relatively minor offenses.
“With 3,000 people incinerated, we weren’t going to take the chance that we were sacrificing security for prosecution of the more serious offenses,” said Jeffrey Addicott, director of the Center for Terrorism Law at St. Mary’s University School of Law in San Antonio.
WASHINGTON — As the ex-wife of the notorious D.C. sniper emptied herself during a 30-day fast five years ago, one question tormented her — why did he want to kill her?
Mildred Muhammad wrote about that isolation and torment for years in her journals. She began when her ex-husband, John Allen Muhammad, took their three young children from her nearly a decade ago. She continued when he was convicted of the 2002 sniper attacks in the Washington area, and still jots down her emotions as her ex-husband awaits his scheduled Nov. 10 execution.
"The paper don't talk back," the 49-year-old told The Associated Press in a recent interview. "It just lets you write down your thoughts and you're able to express anger, shame and guilt."
They were all emotions that Muhammad, who is Muslim, had to purge during that 30-day fast in July 2004, just as her ex-husband's second trial was beginning. She had to understand everything she poured into the journals so she could finally move on.
Those journals became the genesis for her new memoir, "Scared Silent: When the One You Love ... Becomes the One You Fear," due out Oct. 13 from Simon & Schuster imprint Strebor Books International, based in Largo, Md.
In her narrative, Muhammad documents her ex-husband's dismissive retorts: "I don't mind because you don't matter," she writes. At one point, he told her: "You have become my enemy and as my enemy, I will kill you."
Congressman Charles Rangel is reportedly angry over the news that the Obama administration involved itself in the New York governor's race.
Word surfaced last week that the aides to the president were pressuring Governor David Paterson not to seek a full term.
In an interview with the Daily News, Rangel called the move "not presidential."
Rangel tells the paper he's glad he was kept out of the loop and that the local politicians Obama reportedly tapped to deliver the news to Paterson should be embarrassed.
Meanwhile, during an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, the governor denied claims that his campaign will drag down other Democrats.
Paterson says he's fighting for both his party and New Yorkers. He also blamed his low poll numbers on the tough choices he's had to make in order to deal with the state's growing deficit.
Paterson says while the president has never directly told him not to run, he knows the administration has concerns.
"They certainly sent the message they have concerns and I appreciate that, but let me just tell you at the outset, I am running for governor in 2010," Paterson said. "I don't think that this is an issue other than for the people of the State of New York to decide."
Aides to the president have told NY1 that Obama did point out that Paterson's low approval ratings will make it difficult for him to win and could bring down fellow Democrats.
A recent statewide Marist Poll found six in 10 New Yorkers believe the Obama Administration should not have involved itself in the governor's race.
The 51-year-old singer has hinted she is ready to settle down with her 22-year-old lover, even though they have been dating for less than a year.
She is quoted as saying, “It can go either way. But why not? I could definitely see myself marrying him. Yes, it’s definitely on the table.
“He’s so sweet. He checks in with me all the time. I probably should do the same, but you know me. I think he gets it now that I’m a little, shall we say, self-involved.”
Madonna who has been married twice – to actor Sean Penn and British film director Guy Ritchie, is considering a lavish wedding to show the world just how in love she is with the Brazilian model.
A relative of the pop legend said, “She knows that’s what Jesus wants. She has a lot of wonderful memories of both of her weddings. She doesn’t want to slip off and do it quietly. She definitely wants a big and rather fantastic affair.”
Madonna began thinking of walking down the aisle again following the death of her friend Michael Jackson in June.
The loss of the ‘Bad’ singer who died of acute Propofol intoxication made her more determined to live her life to the full.
She is also keen to show the world she is serious about the relationship, especially as she knows some people have been surprised by her decision to date someone almost 30 years her junior.
A friend told this week’s edition Britain’s Hello! magazine, “When Madonna and Jesus were just dating, back when she thought it was a fling, she was OK with it. But when she realized she was starting to have feelings for him, she started to become self-conscious about the relationship. ‘I don’t want my family to think I’m having a mid-life crisis,’ she told me. ‘And my friends, too. I don’t want people to think I have lost my mind.’ ”
The four-inch skull fragment has a hole where a bullet reportedly passed through Hitler’s left temple when he shot himself and is kept in Russia’s federal archives along with what are said to be his jawbones. Together, they are all that is left of Hitler’s body, the charred remains of which Soviet forces first recovered in 1945. For years, the Russians have held up the artefacts as proof that Soviet troops found Hitler’s body in the ruins of Berlin and that he died on April 30 when he shot himself just after taking cyanide.
But a History Channel documentary programme broadcast in the US called Hitler’s Escape claims the skull fragment belongs to a woman under 40 and not Hitler, who was 56 when he died. It quotes Nick Bellantoni, an archaeologist and bone specialist who took DNA samples from the skull in Moscow and had them tested at the University of Connecticut. He and his colleagues are sceptical that the skull fragment could belong to Eva Braun, Hitler’s long-time companion, since she is thought to have committed suicide by cyanide rather than with a gun.
The findings are likely to revive conspiracy theories suggesting that Hitler did not die in 1945 but survived and fled to South America or elsewhere. Proponents of that theory believe Soviet troops found only his body double.
However, the Russians have never held up the skull as exhibit one, always insisting that the jawbones — said to be in perfect condition – are confirmation. Soviet forces tracked down an assistant to Hitler’s dentist in 1945 who confirmed their authenticity. The contested skull fragment was found later, in 1946, when the Russians began an investigation after rumours that Hitler was still alive. It was found in the same hole outside Hitler’s bunker where his body was first found.
According to the Brits, one US satellite, Saudi Arabia, will allow another, Israel, to bomb the Iranian nuclear power plants and low-grade enrichment facilities that they ae allowed to maintain, under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Israel, ehich refuses to sign the treaty or allow international inspections of its huge nuclear bomb sticckpile, is portrayed as the victim as it acts to preserve its WMD monopoly. I agree that Iran should have no nuclear bombs, not that there is any evidence they do, and neither should Israel nor Pakistan nor India nor the US nor anyone else.
The unemployment rate for Americans 16 to 24 years of age has hit the highest rate since the Great Depression.
The unemployment rate for young Americans has exploded to 52.2 percent -- a post-World War II high, according to the Labor Dept. -- meaning millions of Americans are staring at the likelihood that their lifetime earning potential will be diminished and, combined with the predicted slow economic recovery, their transition into productive members of society could be put on hold for an extended period of time. And worse, without a clear economic recovery plan aimed at creating entry-level jobs, the odds of many of these young adults -- aged 16 to 24, excluding students -- getting a job and moving out of their parents' houses are long. Young workers have been among the hardest hit during the current recession -- in which a total of 9.5 million jobs have been lost.... During previous recessions, in the early '80s, early '90s and after Sept. 11, 2001, unemployment among 16-to-24 year olds never went above 50 percent. Except after 9/11, jobs growth followed within two years. A much slower recovery is forecast today. Shierholz believes it could take four or five years to ramp up jobs again. Many of these kids are coming out of college deeply in debt. A four or five year delay in starting their careers could effect the entire rest of their lives.
Imagining in 1998 a “vast right wing conspiracy” to impugn and discredit conveyors of accurate information about her husband's activities with an intern was ludicrous enough when Hillary Clinton made up the foil, but eleven-plus years later NBC's David Gregory treated it as a reality, cuing up Bill Clinton in a Meet the Press interview pre-recorded in New York City: “Your wife famously talked about the vast right wing conspiracy targeting you. As you look at this opposition on the right to President Obama, is it still there?” Former President Clinton, naturally, agreed: “Oh, you bet. Sure it is.”
Gregory also pressed Clinton to assess President Obama from a set of liberal presumptions: “Do you think the President has leveled with the American people on this fact, that Americans are going to have to pay higher taxes if they want health care reform?” And, recalling how “in 1996 you declared the era of big government over,” but now “the era of big government being over appears to be over in and of itself, whether it's the stimulus, whether it's bailouts, financial regulation or this issue of health care,” Gregory wondered: “Do you think the President's done a good enough job selling government as the solution?”
From the Sunday, September 27 Meet the Press:
DAVID GREGORY: Let's talk about some of the big challenges back home for President Obama. And on health care, as this debate rolls through, you remember it well, do you think the President has leveled with the American people on this fact, that Americans are going to have to pay higher taxes if they want health care reform?...
But let me ask you a broader question. In 1996 you declared the era of big government over. Well, the era of big government being over appears to be over in and of itself, whether it's the stimulus, whether it's bailouts, financial regulation or this issue of health care. Do you think the President's done a good enough job selling government as the solution?...
Your wife famously talked about the vast right wing conspiracy targeting you. As you look at this opposition on the right to President Obama, is it still there?
BILL CLINTON: Oh, you bet. Sure it is. It's not as strong as it was, because America's changed demographically, but it's as virulent as it was. I mean, they're saying things about him – you know, it's like when they accused me of murder and all that stuff they did. But it's not really good for the Republicans and the country, what's going on now....
Abbott Laboratories expects to close early next year on a $6.6 billion deal to buy the pharmaceutical business of Belgian conglomerate Solvay Group.
Abbott Park, Ill.-based Abbott (NYSE:ABT), whose Ross Products division is based in Columbus, said the acquisition of Solvay Pharmaceuticals will add more than $3 billion in annual sales, mostly outside the U.S. The deal also includes Solvay’s vaccine business and global rights to cholesterol drug fenofibrate, the U.S. rights to which Abbott has owned under a royalty deal with Solvay.
The Solvay deal, Abbott said, should boost share earnings by about 10 cents next year and potentially more than 20 cents, but that’s excluding one-time costs the company will disclose later. Abbott also could pay more than $400 million from 2011 to 2013 if certain product milestones are met.
The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2010.
Abbott has about 69,000 employees, including about 2,000 in Central Ohio, and earned $4.88 billion on $29.5 billion in revenue last year.
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates denied Sunday that a rift exists between the Obama administration and America's military commanders on how to proceed in Afghanistan. The secretary's remarks came after a report by the U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan calling for additional troops was leaked to the news media last week.
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates Army General Stanley McChrystal's stark assessment of deteriorating security conditions in Afghanistan has yet to be formally presented to President Barack Obama. But it is already driving debate on the future of America's mission in the strife-torn country where the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States were plotted.
McChrystal's leaked report makes an urgent case for additional U.S. troops in Afghanistan, warning that the mission could fail in a year without more resources. But President Obama is insisting on a new, comprehensive review of American strategy before making any decisions on further deployments to Afghanistan. Mr. Obama already has sent an additional 21,000 U.S. service members to the country.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates says there is no rift between President Obama and U.S. military commanders, and that General McChrystal has voiced support for the strategy review.
"General McChrystal was very explicit in saying he thinks this assessment, this review that is going on right now, is exactly the right thing to do," said Gates. "He obviously does not want it to be open-ended."
Gates spoke on ABC television's This Week program. He added that a strategy review is timely, coming after Afghanistan's contested national election, and that failure to carry out the review would endanger U.S. forces.
"Having the wrong strategy would put even more soldiers at risk," he said. "I think it is important to get the strategy right. And then we can make the resources decisions."
Appearing on another U.S. television program, Gates said that an early U.S. exit from Afghanistan would be a "mistake," and that allowing the Taliban and al-Qaida to emerge victorious in the country would have, in his words, "catastrophic consequences".
But some powerful legislators of President Obama's Democratic Party are arguing against a protracted U.S. military commitment in Afghanistan.
The Chairwoman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Dianne Feinstein of California, spoke on the Fox News Sunday program.
"I think the president is correct to take his time to really examine what the alternatives are at this time," she said. "True, the Afghanistan strategy so far has not gone well. Now the question comes: Is there an alternative to this long-term, comprehensive counter-insurgency strategy? I hope there is, because I do not believe the American people want to be in Afghanistan for the next 10 years."
But the ranking Republican on the committee, Missouri Senator Kit Bond, cautioned that General McChrystal has already mapped a way forward in Afghanistan and that failure to act quickly on his recommendations would invite defeat.
"[President Obama] has the answer to the question he asked of General McChrystal. [The report] is here; it is clear; it is in great detail," he said. "We need troops now."
As a presidential candidate and now as President, Barack Obama has described the U.S. mission in Afghanistan as one of necessity, to prevent terrorist attacks on the United States and its allies.
On the face of it, Germany's general election has delivered a clear mandate for economic reforms: neo-liberal but socially conservative, in favour of free markets and less regulation, hoping to boost the economy by lowering taxes.
This may be a surprise, given Germany's history of maintaining a highly regulated "social market economy," and the fact that its export-focused industry is suffering badly because of the market failure that has devastated industrialised economies the world over.
Pushing hard for reforms will be the junior party in Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition, the liberal, self-proclaimed "pro-business" FDP. Boosted by strong election gains, its leaders say that they will force their business agenda into the pact that will outline the coalition's policies.
In contrast, Mrs Merkel's party, the Christian Democrats (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party CSU, lost votes, slumping to its worst showing at the polls in 60 years.
The liberals' election manifesto, however, is unlikely to survive contact with both Germany's economic situation and the realpolitik of coalition politics.
Unemployment threat
Germany's economy may be growing again - earlier than the US or the UK - but it also saw a sharper contraction than many other countries, and economic growth does not immediately translate into more jobs or higher tax revenues.
Chancellor Angela Merkel has been a cautious reformer The state of Germany's public finances is dire. Already CDU politicians are warning their liberal partners-to-be that tax cuts are unaffordable right now.
Government spending is the other tough issue. Unemployment has been kept artificially low, with 1.4 million workers put on "Kurzarbeit" - where they work shorter hours while the government makes up some of the lost salary.
However, at many companies the arrangements for this salary subsidy are about to reach their statutory maximum duration. Unless the government is prepared to accept a sharp rise in unemployment, the FDP's neo-liberals will have to swallow their economic principles and accept more market-distorting state intervention.
Furthermore, the realities of German coalition building means that the FDP's political leverage will be fairly limited. FDP leader Guido Westerwelle firmly nailed his party's flag to the CDU mast.
There is no alternative coalition partner for him to fall back on, while the CDU could arguably (albeit reluctantly) continue its grand coalition with the Social Democrats.
Is Angela Merkel a reformer?
So what about Chancellor Merkel's ambitions? Four years ago, when the grand coalition got going, it pursued an ambitious agenda of economic reform. After a few early successes, it quickly got bogged down in squabbles over money and the protection of special interests.
Mrs Merkel, ever the seeker of consensus and campaigning on the promise of staking out the middle ground, did little to push reform.
Now conservative commentators in Germany are wondering whether Mrs Merkel will discover a taste for reform at last or whether she is a consensus-seeking social democrat at heart.
Chances are that she will turn out to be the true heir of the CDU's previous chancellor, Helmut Kohl. He was notorious for "sitting out" conflicts and avoiding bold economic decisions.
It would be politics as usual for Germany. But it is unlikely to be the recipe for leading Germany out of the economic quagmire.
Iranian state media report the military has successfully test fired its longest-range missile. The test is part of military exercises that coincide with new accusations from the U.S. and others about Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
The Shahab-3 missile is thought to have a range of some 2000 kilometers, enough to put Israel, most Arab states and southern Europe in its sights.
State TV broadcast the countdown and launch.
Tehran, which introduced the missile last year, says it is meant to act as an interceptor to deter any foreign attack.
But some western defense analysts believe the Shahab-3 is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. Earlier this year, Tehran's arch-enemy Israel test fired its own Arrow 2 missile in a simulation of stopping the Shahab-3.
Iran's military exercises, which started Sunday and have included test launches of short- and medium-range missiles as well, come just days after the disclosure that Tehran is building a new uranium enrichment plant.
Iran was apparently forced to reveal its existence after it became aware that western intelligence agencies had known about it for years.
Tehran denies there was any secrecy involved, and that the plant hadn't reached the point where the government needed to disclose its existence.
Major world powers disagree and are expected to drive that point home with the threat of further sanctions in talks with Iranian nuclear representatives in Geneva Thursday.
Iran argues that it has a right to nuclear energy, a point of agreement with Western powers. But the West and the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency want greater access to Iran's nuclear facilities to ensure that energy is all that Tehran is seeking.
The Associated Press (AP) news agency has accidently published internal notes about the arrest of film director Roman Polanski instead of a story.
The document details an exchange of messages between reporters about Mr Polanski, who was held in Switzerland and faces extradition to the US.
In the note, one reporter asks if his colleague can "do some more probing" and speculates that Switzerland was under pressure from the US.
AP swiftly filed a replacement article.
The mistake came to light on 27 September, with the headline "Swiss arrest Polanski on US request in sex case".
But rather than a conventional news story, the post contained basic information as to when the press conference would start, and then continued, saying the reporter would "push out another writethru [sic] with some more background details before press conference", while a colleague wondered if the Swiss were under "intense pressure" and whether they wanted "to throw the US a bone".
Sent in error, the copy was picked up by the Google News service, as well as being automatically posted to a number of websites, including Forbes.
The Associated Press subsequently sent out the proper news copy, saying that "Director Roman Polanski was arrested by Swiss police for possible extradition to the United States for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl".
Exile
Mr Polanski has lived in France since fleeing the US in 1978 to avoid facing a prison sentence after pleading guilty to having sex with a minor.
Since then, Mr Polanski has been unable to return to the US for fear of arrest, and has even avoided making films in the UK because of the danger of extradition.
However, the film maker was detained in Zurich on Saturday as he travelled from France to collect a lifetime achievement award at the Zurich Film Festival.
SCLC TODAY
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Frontline: Raising Adam Lanza
In the wake of the mass killings at Sandy Hook, FRONTLINE looks for answers to the elusive question: who was Adam Lanza?
Blog Talk Radio: Antoinette Harrell
Is genealogy a hobby or not for people of African Descent?
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Fact Sheet: Office of Safety R&D
The FHWA Office of Safety Research and Development (R&D) is helping to reduce highway crashes and related fatalities and injuries by developing and implementing safety innovations through a program of nationally coordinated research and technology. Selections from this broad research portfolio are highlighted below.
Roadway Departure
Almost 60 percent of all U.S. roadway fatalities occur as a result of roadway departure crashes.1
Advanced Crash Analysis Program
Advanced finite element models and crash simulations are used to (1) study the effectiveness of roadside hardware such as guardrails, sign supports, and concrete barriers; (2) assess how differences in vehicle characteristics affect vehicle-to-hardware impacts; (3) investigate crash causes; (4) formulate improved guidelines for the selection and deployment of roadside hardware; and (5) develop concepts for new roadside treatments. These efforts provide transportation agencies with new ways to mitigate roadside safety problems. Researchers are developing guidelines for the design and placement of cable median barriers, analyzing roadside terrain effects on vehicle trajectories, and evaluating how commonly used roadside hardware will perform under proposed new national crashworthiness criteria. The models, data, and results of this program are freely shared and have been the basis for other safety research worldwide.
Managing Pavement Marking Retroreflectivity
FHWA is developing minimum standards for pavement marking retroreflectivity for inclusion in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. Research supporting this effort focuses on identifying how to utilize these minimum standards in pavement marking management procedures so that States and municipalities can maintain pavement markings at a level that provides drivers with the information they need to make safe driving decisions.
Pavement Marking Demonstration Projects
During demonstration projects in Alaska and Tennessee, researchers will consider the cost effectiveness of different pavement marking systems, the safety effects of increasing pavement edgeline widths, the potential environmental impacts of the pavement marking systems included in the study, and the effects of state bidding and procurement processes on the quality of pavement marking materials used.
Intersections
Intersection-related crashes make up 21 percent of all fatal crashes.1
Intersection/Interchange Improvements
Researchers are developing and evaluating novel intersection designs to improve intersection safety while also increasing capacity, reducing congestion, and minimizing infrastructure costs. These designs include the Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI), the New Jersey Jughandle Intersection, median U-turn intersection treatments, and the Continuous Flow Intersection (CFI). While some of these intersection designs are under construction, researchers are using the Highway Driving Simulator in the FHWA Human Centered Systems Laboratory to collect drivers' evaluations of interchange geometries and marking and signage alternatives. Also under development is the Cooperative Intersection Collision Avoidance System (CICAS), which warns drivers about to violate a red light and helps drivers correctly judge gaps in traffic when making left turns. Under field evaluation is the Detection-Control System (D-CS), which detects vehicles approaching isolated rural intersections at high speeds and alters traffic signal timing to reduce the likelihood of dangerous red light violations, while also minimizing delays to others waiting to use the intersections.
Surrogate Safety Assessment Model
The Surrogate Safety Assessment Model (SSAM) is a new software tool that uses trajectories generated from traffic simulation models to analyze indirect indicators of the likelihood of a collision, including time-to-collision, deceleration rates, and post-encroachment time.
Safety Assessment of Access Management Techniques
Researchers are developing algorithms to assess the safety impact of access management techniques such as driveway spacing, nontraversable medians, and dedicated turn lanes along a particular roadway. Those algorithms will be incorporated into an access management safety evaluation tool to help practitioners evaluate access management needs along a specific highway and develop alternative access management approaches.
The objective of this project is to determine the effectiveness of new and innovative countermeasures, including the HAWK-beacon signal, rapid-flash beacon, and shared-lane markings, in reducing pedestrian fatalities and injuries and in minimizing conflicts between pedestrians and motor vehicles.
Measures of Pedestrian Exposure to Risk
Effectively assessing pedestrian safety requires information on pedestrian exposure to risk. This is typically defined as the ratio of crashes to total exposure. Vehicle exposure is represented by million vehicle miles traveled. However, currently no analogous pedestrian exposure metric exists. In this project, TFHRC human factors researchers are examining pedestrian crossing behaviors at seven different facility types that are used by both pedestrians and vehicles (e.g., intersections, midblock crossings, parking lots) to develop a new pedestrian exposure metric.
Research indicates that more than 75 percent of drivers claim to drive at speeds appropriate to the roadway regardless of posted speed limits. However, a driver-selected speed may not correspond with the speed the road was designed around. In this program, researchers developed methods for estimating operating speeds based on drivers' perceptions of design features, environmental factors, and operational conditions on low-speed urban roadways.
Typology of Speeding-Related Crashes
Speeding-exceeding the speed limit or going too fast for conditions-is a contributing factor in many severe crashes. In this project, researchers are analyzing crash data to learn what speed-related crashes are like and to identify where they occur most often, when they are most likely to happen, and who is most likely to be involved in these crashes. The results will help highway agencies identify ways to reduce the number and severity of speed-related crashes.
Demonstration and Evaluation of Speed Management on Main Roads in Rural Communities
In many rural communities, the main road that runs through town is a state or county highway with high speed limits outside of the city boundaries. Motorists often do not slow down when they enter the center of town. Because traffic calming measures such as enhanced signing, lane width reduction, pavement markings, and gateway structures are known to work in larger urban areas, in this program researchers evaluated the effectiveness of such traffic calming treatments for reducing speeds on main roads in rural communities.
Evaluation of Speed-Activated Displays on Curves
Speeding and curved roadways are a dangerous combination. Many run-off-the-road fatal crashes on horizontal curves are speed related. This project is a national field test of the effectiveness of low-cost, speed-activated Dynamic Curve Warning Systems (typically a speed-measuring device combined with a variable message sign) in reducing speeds and improving safety on horizontal curves in rural roadways.
Safety Management
Evaluation of Low-Cost Safety Improvements
FHWA is partnering with 26 States to evaluate low-cost safety improvement strategies taken from NCHRP Report 500: Guidance for Implementation of the AASHTO Strategic Highway Safety Plan. The effectiveness of many of these strategies has not been rigorously established previously. Before-and-after evaluations are being conducted at sites where these strategies have been previously implemented, and additional evaluations are planned for future sites. FHWA's Highway Driving Simulator is also being used to help determine the effectiveness of these safety strategies.
Highway Safety Information System
The Highway Safety Information System (HSIS) is a safety database in which accident, roadway inventory, and traffic volume data are combined to help users study current highway safety issues, direct research efforts, and make the best possible decisions about safety improvements. Presently, seven States and two urban centers are actively providing data to be entered into the system. Data from the HSIS have been used to study the safety effects of converting rural two-lane roadways to four-lane roadways, the relationship of median width to safety, the safety of lighting options on urban freeways, and many other safety topics.
Interactive Highway Safety Design Model
The Interactive Highway Safety Design Model (IHSDM) is a suite of software tools for evaluating the safety and operational effects of geometric design decisions on two-lane rural highways. IHSDM is available as a download. The Geometric Design Laboratory within the Office of Safety R&D provides technical support to IHSDM users. Ongoing research and development will enhance and expand the capabilities of IHSDM, in coordination with the Highway Safety Manual being developed by the Transportation Research Board.
SafetyAnalyst
SafetyAnalyst, a software package with state-of-the-art tools, is being developed to correspond to the six main steps in highway safety management: (1) network screening to identify sites and corridors that hold the most potential for reducing crashes, (2) diagnosis of safety problems at specific sites, (3) selection of appropriate countermeasures, (4) economic appraisal of candidate improvements, (5) priority rankings for candidate improvements, and (6) before-and-after evaluations of safety improvement projects.
Advanced Research
Real-Time Pedestrian Detection System
The research objective of this project is to develop an on-board, sensor-based system that detects and tracks pedestrians and other objects on or near roadways during day and night from a moving vehicle and then warns drivers of potential collisions.
Driver Visibility Requirements
The purpose of this human factors project is to examine the kind and amount of information that a driver needs to drive safely at night. The results will help guide road designers in their selection of roadway delineation and traffic control measures. Moreover, the results will be used to refine a control model for a robotic vehicle so that the vehicle will respond as much as possible like a human driver to the available pavement markings, signs, and other cues that human drivers use. The "final exam" for the control model will be the robotic vehicle and a human-controlled vehicle driving along the same section of a test track.
Digital Highway Measurement System
FHWA's Digital Highway Measurement System (DHMS) is an instrumented vehicle which uses multiple sensors to collect a range of data, including roadway and roadside geometries, roadside inventories, and pavement condition information, all located very precisely. Information is collected in one pass and at highway speeds. DHMS provides data for enhanced safety analysis capabilities to support a State's safety decisions, as well as to meet asset management needs including the data elements established by the Model Minimum Inventory of Roadway Elements (MMIRE). | {
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The Sound of Broadway Music
A Book of Orchestrators and Orchestrations
Steven Suskin
First book written on Broadway orchestrators, the unsung musical stars who give Broadway its unique sound
Written by expert author
The Sound of Broadway Music
A Book of Orchestrators and Orchestrations
Steven Suskin
Description
Broadway's top orchestrators - Robert Russell Bennett, Don Walker, Philip J. Lang, Jonathan Tunick - are names well known to musical theatre fans, but few people understand precisely what the orchestrator does. The Sound of Broadway Music is the first book ever written about these unsung stars of the Broadway musical whose work is so vital to each show's success. The book examines the careers of Broadway's major orchestrators and follows the song as it travels from the composer's piano to the orchestra pit. Steven Suskin has meticulously tracked down thousands of original orchestral scores, piecing together enigmatic notes and notations with long-forgotten documents and current interviews with dozens of composers, producers, conductors and arrangers. The information
is separated into three main parts: a biographical section which gives a sense of the life and world of twelve major theatre orchestrators, as well as incorporating briefer sections on another thirty arrangers and conductors; a lively discussion of the art of orchestration, written for musical theatre enthusiasts (including those who do not read music); a biographical section which gives a sense of the life and world of twelve major theatre orchestrators, as well as incorporating briefer sections on another thirty arrangers and conductors; and an impressive show-by-show listing of more than seven hundred musicals, in many cases including a song-by-song listing of precisely who orchestrated what along with relevant comments from people involved with the productions. Stocked with intriguing
facts and juicy anecdotes, many of which have never before appeared in print, The Sound of Broadway Music brings fascinating and often surprising new insight into the world of musical theatre.
The Sound of Broadway Music
A Book of Orchestrators and Orchestrations
Steven Suskin
Table of Contents
Verse: On Orchestrators and Orchestration Refrain: Men of Notes (And a Few Women, Too) I. The Dreyfus System II. Twelve Major Orchestrators III. Ghosts and Other Helpers IV. Valued Members of the Music Department V. Comparative Orchestrators Bridge: The Art of Orchestration VI. From Song to Stage VII. The Arrangement VIII. Overture IX. Meet the Colors X. And Then Comes the Orchestrator XI. The Orchestration XII. Putting it Together XIII. "Sweeney in the Pit with Steve" Final Refrain: What's the Score? XIV. About the Listings XV. The Listings XVI. Additional Shows by Other Orchestrators Coda Chronology Acknowledgements Sources and Bibliography Index
The Sound of Broadway Music
A Book of Orchestrators and Orchestrations
Steven Suskin
Author Information
Steven Suskin is the author of numerous books on the Broadway musical, including Show Tunes (OUP, fourth edition released March 2010), Second Act Trouble (Applause, 2006), and the Opening Night on Broadway series. He has written hundreds of columns and reviews for Playbill, Variety and other publications.
The Sound of Broadway Music
A Book of Orchestrators and Orchestrations
Steven Suskin
Reviews and Awards
"An invaluable book."-Terry Teachout, The Wall Street Journal
"Entertaining and meticulously researched. The Sound of Broadway Music is chock full of intriguing facts and juicy anecdotes and offers new insight into the world of musical theatre."-Judy Samelson, Playbill
"One of the most magnificent books our favorite art form has ever had"--Peter Filichia, Theatermania.com
"The problem most orchestrators face: No one understands what they do, how they do it, or even who is doing it.. The Sound of Broadway Music will forever change that for lovers of musical theatre. This is probably the most valuable theatre book ever written about a subject you never considered precious --Matthew Murray, Broadwaystars.com
"Steven Suskin's six hundred and fifty pages of information substantiating the contribution of orchestrators to the music of Broadway is nothing less than jaw-dropping. Their working relationship with the composers of Broadway scores and directors of Broadway shows is fascinating in its detail. There can be no comparable feat of research more meticulous than this valuable addition to the history of American musical theater."--Hal Prince, director
"Backstage has been the unwarranted space where the wondrous talent of orchestrators remained until now. Steven Suskin has meticulously opened the curtain so that this array of musical magicians can finally take their long overdue bow. May this composer be among the first to shout, 'Bravo!'"--Jerry Bock, composer
"Fans as well as musical theatre scholars will be forever indebted to Steven Suskin for this book. It's fascinating, entertaining and an essential addition to the literature of American musical theatre."--Michael Feinstein, composer, performer
"Suskin does an absolutely masterful job of covering a fascinating but obscure, often arcane and frequently technical subject in a manner that makes it not only understandable but thoroughly fascinating to novice and expert alike. A valuable reference work as well as a history and appreciation of a neglected art."--Potomac Stages
"When we speak of the historians who write about theater, no we can put Steven Suskin in the circle of the truly great ones. The Sound of Broadway Music will make us have a greater appreciation every time we listen to a Golden Age of Broadway original cast album."--TheaterMania
"Invaluable...intriguing and well told."--The Sondheim Review
"Suskin does an absolutely masterful job of covering a fascinating but obscure, often arcane and fequently technical subject in a manner that makes it not only understandable but throughly fascinating to novice and expert alike." --DC Theatre Scene
"Offers a detailed appreciation of such technically skilled craftsmen as Hans Spialek...Suskin has produced a charming tribute to such vital, hitherto-forgotten talents as Hershy Kay, Irwin Kostal and Sid Ramin." --Newark Star-Ledger | {
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India retains top position in ODI rankings
India retained the top spot in the latest ICC ODI Championship table released in Dubai on Saturday, while Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina slipped in the Twenty20 batting charts.
Kohli slipped two places to be placed eighth, followed by Raina at ninth. Yuvraj Singh was at 14th after a fall of one place while Gautam Gambhir was down at 17th.
In the T20 bowling chart, Ravichandran Ashwin, the only Indian in the list, slipped two places to be positioned 18th.
In the all-rounder's list, Yuvraj Singh retained the third position with 337 points.
In the team rankings for ODI, topper India have 119 points, followed by England and Australia.
England have an opportunity to reclaim the number-one ranking on the ODI Championship table when they take on New Zealand in a three-match series that commences in Hamilton from Sunday.
England are on equal points with India (119 ratings points) but are ranked behind the world champions as ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point.
If England win all three matches, they will reclaim the number-one ranking.
In the T20 rankings, England's Alex Hales and Steven Finn, along with West Indies' Sunil Narine, have achieved career-best rankings in the latest list.
The latest rankings were released at the completion of England's 2-1 series win over hosts New Zealand yesterday and West Indies' win over Australia in the one-off match.
While Hales has jumped nine places to a career-best fifth in the rankings for T20I batsmen, Sunil Narine has leaped six places to a best-ever third and Steven Finn has moved up 20 places to a career-best sixth in the rankings for T20 bowlers.
Also making an upward movement within the top 10 batters is New Zealand's Martin Guptill, who has moved up five places, to join former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene in third place. | {
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Sporting KC adds Brazilian midfielder
Sporting Kansas City on Saturday announced the addition of Brazilian midfielder Jéferson to the club.
He last played for Brazilian club Vasco da Gama.
“I’ve been preparing physically to be able to come here and make an immediate impact, Jéferson said. “I’m very excited to be here and I come with the goal to help the team fulfill its goal of making the playoffs and ultimately going to the final.”
Jéferson, 27, will spend the rest of the 2011 season with Sporting Kansas City on loan and becomes the third Designated Player in club history, joining the team’s current leading goal scorer Omar Bravo and former Argentine forward Claudio Lopez. | {
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Iran says Detects Sabotage at Nuclear Facility
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - A senior Iranian official says authorities detected sabotage at the country's heavy water reactor facility and neutralized it before any damage was done.
Semiofficial Fars news agency quoted Asghar Zarean, a senior official in charge of nuclear security at the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, as saying Saturday that Iran's intelligence agencies were instrumental in uncovering the plot. He didn't provide further details.
Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment facility was the target of the so-called Stuxnet virus in 2010 that temporarily disrupted operation of centrifuges, a key component in nuclear fuel production.
Tehran says Stuxnet and other computer virus attacks are part of a concerted campaign by Israel, the U.S. and their allies to undermine its nuclear program.
Copyright 2015 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Online Public Information File
Viewers with disabilities can get assistance accessing this station's FCC Public Inspection File by contacting the station with the information listed below. Questions or concerns relating to the accessibility of the FCC's online public file system should be directed to the FCC at 888-225-5322, 888-835-5322 (TTY), or [email protected]. | {
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Republicans Kill A Bill To Expand Full Day Kindergarten
Republicans love to complain that our current education system is failing our children, yet when they are presented with a strong solution to boost early education, they adamantly reject it.
Earlier this month, New Hampshire legislators were given the opportunity to expand the state’s kindergarten program from half-day to full day. The bill, HB 1563, would simply provide additional state funds for schools who are already offering full day kindergarten and those who switch from half-day to full day.
“Full-day kindergarten helps make sure that students build the strong base of learning they will need to succeed throughout school and life,” wrote the National Education Association. “Full-day kindergarten can produce long-term educational gains, especially for low-income and minority students.”
Are more prepared for school: they do better with the transition to first grade, show significant gains in school socialization and are equipped with stronger learning skills
Have higher academic achievement in later grades
Have better attendance in kindergarten and through the primary grades
Show faster gains on literacy and language measures when compared to half-day kindergarten students
Have enhanced social, emotional and behavior development
Have reduced retention and remediation rates.
These are substantial gains for children and a significant boost to our education system as a whole. Investing in early education will also build a stronger, well-educated workforce in the years to come.
Sadly, this will not become a reality this year because Republicans in the NH House rejected the idea.
In a completely partisan vote, the NH House rejected HB 1563, 205 to 152. Everyone who voted against expanding full day kindergarten was a Republican.
Republicans should stop their whining about the failures of our education system and start looking in the mirror. They are the ones who are failing to invest in a proven, successful program that will create lasting effects on a child’s ability to learn and grow.
We need to elect legislators who are willing to do what is needed to improve our education system, not just what is best for their political careers.
UPDATED to correct an error. Not all the Republicans in the House voted against expanding full day kindergarten as previously reported. Eight Republicans voted for the bill, however all of the votes against the bill were Republicans.
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About Matt Murray
Matt Murray is the creator and an author on the NH Labor News. He is a union member and advocate for labor and progressive politics. He also works with other unions and members to help spread our message. Follow him on Twitter @NHLabor_News | {
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Happy Memorial Day 2013
Happy Memorial Day 2013
Happy Memorial Day 2013 – Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday which occurs every year on the final Monday of May. Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died in the Civil War. By the 20th century, Memorial Day had been extended to honor all Americans who have died while in the military service. It typically marks the start of the summer vacation season, while Labor Day marks its end.
Many people visit cemeteries and memorials, particularly to honor those who have died in military service. Many volunteers place an American flag on each grave in national cemeteries.
Annual Decoration Days for particular cemeteries are held on a Sunday in late spring or early summer in some rural areas of the American South, notably in the mountains. In cases involving a family graveyard where remote ancestors as well as those who were deceased more recently are buried, this may take on the character of an extended family reunion to which some people travel hundreds of miles. People gather on the designated day and put flowers on graves and renew contacts with kinfolk and others. There often is a religious service and a “dinner on the ground,” the traditional term for a potluck meal in which people used to spread the dishes out on sheets or tablecloths on the grass. It is believed that this practice began before the American Civil War and thus may reflect the real origin of the “memorial day” idea.
Memorial Day is not to be confused with Veterans Day; Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving, while Veterans Day celebrates the service of all U.S. military veterans. | {
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Topics
"Saturday Night Live" plans to celebrate its 40th anniversary this month, with NBC confirming a long list of participants during the Super Bowl. The massive reunion special will air on Feb. 15. The biggest surprise is Eddie Murphy's planned attendance. Murphy confirmed his intention to go to the reunion to NewsOne Now last week. Murphy got his start on the show as a teenager but hasn't returned since he left in 1984. He didn't attend the show's last big reunion show in 1999. In addition to Murphy, the reunion show will feature former cast members Jimmy Fallon, Chevy Chase, Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Molly Shannon, Mike Myers, Amy Poehler, Dana...
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"Saturday Night Live" plans to celebrate its 40th anniversary this month, with NBC confirming a long list of participants during the Super Bowl. The massive reunion special will air on Feb. 15.
The biggest surprise is Eddie Murphy's planned...
It is just a few minutes into "Grown Ups 2" when star Adam Sandler is peed on in the face by a deer. How one feels about that — is it funny, is it cheap, is it a weird curiosity? — will likely be an accurate litmus test for responses to the rest...
Another weekend, another big-budget misfire at the summer box office.
Following the failure of the pricey action flicks "After Earth," "White House Down" and "The Lone Ranger," Guillermo del Toro's $190-million "Pacific...
Comedy Central has been doing quite well for itself for a while now in late night with the one-two punch of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. But increasingly, it looks as if Chris Hardwick might be part of that regular lineup, based on the straight out of...
In addition to the Ravens on the field for Super Bowl XLVII, Baltimore viewers are going to see some familiar faces on the NFL Network's coverage leading up to the game.
Starting Jan. 28 through gameday Feb. 3, the channel will offer 140 hours of...
Comic actor David Spade has listed his Malibu beach home for $13.5 million.
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Comic actor David Spade has listed his Malibu beach home for $13.5 million. It joins more than three dozen other houses for sale in the coastal city priced at $10 million and up.
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"The Walking Dead,"AMC's epic, buzzy zombie apocalypse drama, returns from its midseason hibernation this Sunday at 9 p.m. with the first of six episodes closing out the second season.
The midseason finale, which aired on Nov. 27, saw a... | {
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Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, informed Trump about a conversation he had with the Kremlin seeking help to build a skyscraper in Moscow in 2016 during the U.S. presidential campaign, according to a court filing.
Trump’s slogan
Trump’s slogan
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30.11.2014 0
Russian President Vladimir Putin will have a brief impromptu meeting w...
Russian President Vladimir Putin will have a brief impromptu meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Argentina just as he will with other leaders at the G20 summit, RIA news agency cited Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying on Friday.
01.12.2018 0
There were many nasty shocks for California Republicans in the midterm...
There were many nasty shocks for California Republicans in the midterm elections of 2018. And now President Donald Trump is being blamed -- not just for losses of congressional seats but also for causing the | {
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On this 7-day/6-night Amazon jungle tour, you will journey deep into hidden areas of the Amazon where its lush vegetation and fascinating wildlife will be revealed. You’ll make authentic contacts with the indigenous Siona people, visiting the home of a local family and participating in a spiritual cleansing ceremony led by a shaman medicine man; other highlights of this tour include nighttime caiman spotlighting in a canoe and piranha fishing in the surrealistic waters of the Laguna Grande Lake and the Igapo flooded forest. On this Amazon tour, you’ll also go on easy jungle treks where you’ll observe exotic wildlife, bird and plant life. While based at the comfortable Tapir Lodge, you will also experience two nights of camping “under the stars” in the tropical rainforest, where you will learn jungle survival techniques, fall asleep under the orchestra of the sounds of the jungle night, and likely wake to spider monkeys swinging through the forest canopy.
Testimonials
“We booked our Galapagos/Peru trip through Surtrek and are very glad that we did.”A. Arima
Tapir Lodge: Detailed Itinerary
Day 1
Quito – Nueva Loja – Cuyabeno Amazon Reserve – Tapir Lodge
AM: Our services start at Lago Agrio (Nueva Loja) Airport. This point can be reached from Quito by either bus or by plane (the approximate travel time by bus is 8 hours, while the flight will take approximately 40 minutes). From Lago Agrio, we will drive to the northeast side of Sucumbíos province to El Puente (“The Bridge”), taking us between 2 and 2½ hours to reach this spot, depending on weather and traffic conditions. Throughout this drive, you will have the opportunity to view beautiful landscapes of agricultural fields, small highland villages, rainforests and rivers.
PM: We will take a break on the road to enjoy lunch, and then we will get ready for the next leg of our journey on board a motorized canoe. The lodge will provide you with a raincoat and a life vest, while your luggage will be covered in plastic to prevent it from getting wet in the event of rain. Throughout the trip on this narrow river, you will be able to admire the wide variety of plant, animal and bird life that the Cuyabeno Reserve has to offer. We will ride for approximately 2 hours to reach our destination: the Tapir Lodge. Once at the lodge, guests will be shown to their rooms for a chance to unpack and make themselves comfortable. After dinner (served at 7:30 p.m.) the guide will provide general explanations about Tapir Lodge as well as discuss the Cuyabeno Reserve and the activities that will take place over the next several days.
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Lunch - Dinner
Day 2
Laguna Grande “Igapo” Excursion – Rainforest Hike – Night Trek
AM: Our day will begin with a healthy and delicious breakfast that will be served at around 8:00 am. After that, we will meet at the pier and make sure that everyone is prepared for the excursion and provided with a pair of rubber boots (available up to size 45 EU). Our tour will start at 9:30, when we´ll take a motorized canoe upriver for around 30 minutes to Laguna Grande (Big Lake). At Laguna Grande, we will have the opportunity to observe that surroundings flora and fauna. The plant life found in the lake is quite unique, as this “Igapo” (blackwater-flooded Amazonian forests) is noted its ancient trees that have adapted to the surrounding environment by growing straight out of the water. These majestic trees create the perfect habitat for other plants, such as bromeliads, macrolobium flowers, orchids, ferns and cacti. Once the Igapo excursion has been completed, we will travel onto “terra firme” and begin a trek on a path called “Palma Roja” (Red palm), a trail that was once part of a scientific research station belonging to the Catholic University. Before starting our hike, your guide will provide a brief explanation regarding the basic ecology of the rainforest. Along the way, you will have a chance to see and hear many species of birds, including woodpeckers, tanagers, macaws and toucans. And – if we’re lucky – you might even come across two of three species of monkeys.
PM: We will return to the lodge for lunch, which is served at 2:30 p.m. Afterwards, travelers will have approximately two hours to relax. At around 5:00, we will meet at the pier and take a canoe ride to a different area of Laguna Grande. On the lake, we will ride through the surrounding area in search of exotic birds and other animals. If desired, guests can go for a swim, which is a perfectly safe and very relaxing activity. Depending on the weather, you may be able to admire a breathtaking sunset. Once the evening activities have ended, we will return to the lodge for a refreshing drink at the lodge’s bar or a chat with the guide about the day´s events. After dinner, served at 8:00, and depending on the weather conditions, we can go on a quick night trek around the lodge looking for frogs and other night wanderers.
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Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner
Day 3
Camping – Rainforest Trekking
AM: On the third day, we will start our camping expedition riding downriver in the motorized canoe for about 4 hours. On our way, we will take a break and enjoy a delicious box lunch.
PM: Right after lunch we will search for the perfect spot on the banks of the Cuyabeno River and set up our camp. We will then trek through the rainforest and might even see some diurnal mammals. We will return to the campsite for dinner and spend the night there.
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Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner
Day 4
Rainforest Trekking – Birdwatching – Caiman Spotting
AM: We will have an early start and ride by canoe downriver, which we will give you the opportunity to enjoy the sounds of the various animals along the way. We will then find the right spot in the heart of the rainforest to enjoy our breakfast. After eating, we will trek through the rainforest for about 4 hours searching for birds such as herons, egrets, curassows, hawks, Screaming pihas, oropendolas, Flycatchers and Kingfishers, as well as different species of monkeys.
PM: We will then return to the camp for lunch. Afterwards, we will have a well-deserved resting period of about 2 hours before riding along the Cuyabeno River for more birdwatching until nightfall. Once the night settles, with the aid of our flashlights we will search for caimans and other nocturnal animals. We will return to the campsite for dinner and spend the night there.
AM: After an early breakfast, while enjoying the mood of the rainforest, we will begin disassembling the campsite. We will then head upriver following the Cuyabeno River. During our return, we will stop at a small settlement. Here we will have the opportunity to visit and meet Tomas, the local Shaman who belongs at the Cofan ethnic group. Tomas spends most of his time curing and treating the local inhabitants with his vast knowledge of medicinal plants. He will share with us his experience in the rainforest as well as the processes for healing people. For those interested in taking part in a healing ceremony, this will be an option (it should take about 40 minutes). Handicrafts are also available for purchase, all of them crafted out of materials provided by and obtained in the rainforest.
PM: Following lunch, at around 3:00 p.m. we will start our canoe trip back to Puerto Bolívar, where we will be greeted by a local Siona family. From them, you can observe how they prepare cassava bread – an essential food supply and perhaps the main source of carbohydrates for the indigenous communities of the rainforest. We will then head back to the Tapir Lodge, where we will have dinner at around 8:00 and spend the night.
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Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner
Day 6
Optional Activities – Farewell Dinner
AM: Breakfast will be served at 7:30 a.m., though the rest of the day will be scheduled according to your interests, as guests will have the option of choosing their activities. Several alternative activities are available, ranging from birdwatching and canoeing to fishing or hiking in the rainforest.
PM: Lunch will be served at the Tapir Lodge, and in the afternoon guests can enjoy some leisure time before enjoying their last sunset on the lake. After dinner, you will be served a farewell passionfruit cocktail and have a chance to bid farewell to the lodge’s hardworking, attentive and diligent staff members.
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Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner
Day 7
Departure – Lago Agrio
AM: Breakfast will be served at 8:00 a.m., after which time you can check out of your room and prepare for your departure from the lodge. Departure is generally between 10:00 and 11:00 a.m., depending on flight times, the river’s water level and the weather conditions. The lodge’s staff will attend to your luggage and make sure it is all loaded onto the canoe. We will depart and take a relaxed 2-hour motorized canoe trip to the bridge, looking forward to catching our last glimpse of the last species on your visit. Private transportation will be waiting for you and will drive you back to Lago Agrio with plenty of time to check in at the airport for your flight back to Quito.
[If you are taking the early flight back to Quito, breakfast will be served between 4:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m., and departure should be at around 5:30 a.m. (depending on the river’s water level)]
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Breakfast
Tapir Lodge: Prices
2018 - Price per person
Days
Price per person
2 - 4 Persons
7
US$1177.00
Included in the price:
Private transportation (Lago Agrio – Cuyabeno – Lago Agrio)
Accommodations in a double room with private bathroom and hot-water shower, and daily house keeping | {
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SAIP INSURANCE
Sport Athlete Insurance (SAIP) is an accident insurance policy that is specifically designed to make extended medical coverage available and affordable for you to participate in snowboard training and competition.† It covers costs associated with incurring an accident while participating in a sanctioned training or competition activity.† There are many costs included that arenít traditionally covered by your standard Provincial/Territorial health care coverage.† For full details about SAIP, click here.
SAIP is purchased online through your profile after purchasing a Basic, Recreational/Training, Advanced or Coaching License.
In order to be covered by SAIP, you must be participating in a Canada Snowboard sanctioned training or competition activity, wearing a certified helmet, and under the supervision of a licensed coach.† You must also have current Provincial Health Care Coverage.
Level 3: $69
Available to all members, minimum requirement for FIS. No out of country coverage is included in Level 2A. Coverage only valid when training or competing under the supervision of a Canada Snowboard Coach and in a Sanctioned Activity.
Level 2: $416
Available to all members, similar coverage to 2 and includes up to 30 consecutive days out of country. Requests for out-of-country trips for more than 30 days will be reviewed on a trip-by-trip basis. Coverage only valid when training or competing under the supervision of a Canada Snowboard Coach and in a Sanctioned Activity.
Level 1: $1010
Available to National Team Members or by Special Request. Additional coverage includes up to 60 consecutive days out of country. Coverage only valid when training or competing under the supervision of a Canada Snowboard Coach and in a Sanctioned Activity. | {
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The Inn at Aspen will exceed your expectations. The modern lobby features a 24-foot-high grand entryway with floor-to-ceiling windows, which offer center-stage views of the slopes. Providing the only ski-in, ski-out access at Buttermilk, the Inn at A...
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A short walk from these vacation condominiums will find you in the midst of Aspen's many fine restaurants, shops and glimmering nightlife. Just down the street is the free skier shuttle that will take you to Snowmass, Buttermilk, or Aspen Highlan...
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The Molly Gibson Lodge is centrally located in Aspen with world class shopping, dining, entertainment and recreational activities just blocks away. The Molly Gibson Lodge offers a room style for every taste and budget in mind. A complimentary contine... | {
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Find PRESTO in Your Community
Metrolinx’s strategic regional transportation plan, The Big Move, has 10 specific strategies to meet its goals. Strategy #6 is “Implement an Integrated Transit Fare System”. With 9 transit agencies in the GTHA, each with their own fare structure, riders travelling across the region have in the past had to use multiple different methods of fare payment for a single trip.
PRESTO provides transit customers with greater convenience, savings and security PRESTO will, within the next few years, be the preferred means for convenient, seamless and efficient transit fare payment for both riders and our Ontario municipal transit partners. By 2016, more than 2.5 million Ontario riders will subscribe to PRESTO. We are on track to meet our goal.
As of November 2013, more than 935,000 customers are using PRESTO cards to tap on to the following public transit systems: | {
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} |
Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella are two major foodborne pathogens of significant concern. Two optical
evanescent wave immunosensors were evaluated for detection: Antibody-coupled fiber-optic biosensor and a surface
plasmon resonant (SPR) immunosensor. In the fiber-optic sensor, polyclonal antibodies for the test organisms were
immobilized on polystyrene fiber wave -guides using streptavidin - biotin chemistry. Cyanine 5 -labeled monoclonal
antibodies C11E9 (for L. monocytogenes) and SF-11 (for Salmonella Enteritidis) were used to generate a specific
fluorescent signal. Signal acquisition was performed by launching a laser-light (635 nm) from an Analyte-2000. This
immunosensor was able to detect 103 - 109 cfu/ml of L. monocytogenes or 106-109 cfu/ml of Salmonella Enteritidis and
the assays were conducted at near real-time with results obtained within one hour of sampling. The assays were specific
and showed signal even in the presence of other microorganisms such as E. coli, Enterococcus faecalis or Salmonella
Typhimurium. In the SPR system, IAsys instrument (resonant mirror sensor) was used. Monoclonal antibody-C11E9
was directly immobilized onto a carboxylate cuvette. Whole Listeria cells at various concentrations did not yield any
signal while surface protein extracts did. Crude protein extracts from L. monocytogenes and L. innocua had average
binding responses of around 150 arc sec (0.25 ng/mm2), which was significantly different from L. grayi, L. ivanovii, or
L. welshimeri with average responses of <48 arc sec. Both fiber-optic and SPR sensors show promise in near real-time
detection of foodborne L. monocytogenes and Salmonella Enteritidis.
Commercially available alfalfa seeds were inoculated with low levels (~ 4 CFU/g) of pathogenic bacteria. The
inoculated seeds were then allowed to sprout in sterile tap water at 22°C. After 48 hours, the irrigation water and
sprouts were separately transferred to bovine heart infusion (BHI) media. The microbes in the BHI samples were
allowed to grow for 4 hours at 37°C and 160 rpm. Specific immunomagnetic beads (IMB) were then applied to capture
the E.coli O157 and/or Salmonella in the growth media. Separation and concentration of IMB-captured pathogens were
achieved using magnetic separators. The captured E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella spp were further tagged with
europium (Eu) labeled anti-E. coli O157 antibodies and samarium (Sm) labeled anti-Salmonella antibodies, respectively.
After washing, the lanthanide labels were extracted out from the complexes by specific chelators to form strongly
fluorescent chelates. The specific time-resolved fluorescence (TRF) associated with Eu or Sm was measured to estimate
the extent of capture of the E. coli O157 and Salmonella, respectively. The results indicated that the approach could
detect E. coli O157 and Salmonella enterica from the seeds inoculated with ~ 4 CFU/g of the pathogens. Non-targeted
bacteria, e.g., Aeromonas and Citrobacter exhibited essentially no cross reactivity. Since the pathogen detection from
the sprouts was achieved within 6 hours, the developed methodology could be use as a rapid, sensitive and specific
screening process for E. coli O157 and Salmonella enterica in this popular salad food.
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been discovered in insects, mammals, reptiles, and plants to protect against
microbial infection. Many of these peptides have been isolated and studied exhaustively to decipher the molecular
mechanisms that impart protection against infectious bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Unfortunately, the molecular
mechanisms are still being debated within the scientific community but valuable clues have been obtained through
structure/function relationship studies1. Biophysical studies have revealed that cecropins, isolated from insects and pigs,
exhibit random structure in solution but undergo a conformational change to an amphipathic α-helix upon interaction
with a membrane surface2. The lack of secondary structure in solution results in an extremely durable peptide able to
survive exposure to high temperatures, organic solvents and incorporation into fibers and films without compromising
antibacterial activity. Studies to better understand the antimicrobial action of cecropins and other AMPs have provided
insight into the importance of peptide sequence and structure in antimicrobial activities. Therefore, enhancing our
knowledge of how peptide structure imparts function may result in customized peptide sequences tailored for specific
applications such as targeted cell delivery systems, novel antibiotics and food preservation additives. This review will
summarize the current state of knowledge with respect to cell binding and antimicrobial activity of AMPs focusing
primarily upon cecropins.
Modern agriculture depends on pesticides to curb infestations, increase crop yield and to produce the quantity and
quality of food demanded by today's society. However, potential pesticide residue contamination of food is of critical
concern to the food industry and the regulators responsible for health and safety. For example, many pesticides kill
insects by attacking the central nervous system, and the use of these pesticides above the EPA set tolerance levels (from
0.1 to 50 ppm) could pose a threat to humans, in particular infants. Unfortunately, rapid, chemical analysis of pesticide
residues is unavailable, and only a very small fraction of foods are inspected. The greatest concern is food imported
from nations that simply ignore US regulations. In an effort to address this need, we have been developing a simple
device to collect residues from food surfaces, perform a rapid chemical separation, and detect and identify pesticides by
surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Capillaries are coated with a metal-doped sol-gel that both separates
chemicals and generates SER spectra when irradiated. SERS of pesticides at ppm concentrations, and a preliminary
product to aid inspectors is presented.
The U. S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service has been developing a method and system to
detect fecal contamination on processed poultry carcasses with hyperspectral and multispectral imaging systems. The
patented method utilizes a three step approach to contaminant detection. Spectra of homogenous samples of feces,
ingesta (undigested food particles), and skin were first collected. Then those spectra were evaluated with multivariate
analysis techniques to identify significant wavelength regions for further analysis. Hyperspectral data were then
collected on contaminated poultry carcasses and information learned from the spectroscopic data was used to aide in
hyperspectral data analysis. Finally, the results of the hyperspectral data were used to identify a few optimum
wavelengths for use in a real-time multispectral imaging system. In this work, two techniques for developing spectral
datasets and algorithms for classifying surface contaminants on poultry carcasses were explored. The first consisted of
a scanning monochrometer that measured the average spectra of uncontaminated breast skin and fecal and ingesta
contaminants. The second technique used regions of interest (ROI) from a hyperspectral image to collect spatially
averaged spectra. Comparison of the spectra from each instrument showed variations in the spectra collected from
similar samples. There was an offset of absorption values between the two instruments and the hyperspectral imaging
system had better resolution at higher absorption wavelengths. Although both systems were calibrated prior to
measuring, there was also a slight shift in absorption peaks between the two systems. Both techniques were able to
classify contaminated skin from uncontaminated skin in a full cross-validated test set with better than 99% accuracy.
However, when the classification model developed from the monochrometer spectra was applied to whole-carcass
hyperspectral images, numerous common carcass features, such as exposed meat and wing-shadowed skin, were
wrongly identified as false positives. Since spectra of entire poultry carcasses were available in the original
hyperspectral dataset, the hyperspectral ROI technique allowed researchers to easily add the spectra of these false
positives to the calibration dataset. New partial least squares regression models with meat and skin shadow spectra
resulted in different principal component loadings and improved classification models. The classification model with
the combined ROI spectra from skin, feces, ingesta, meat, and skin shadows gave a classification accuracy of 99.5%.
When this model was compared to the original model developed from the monochrometer dataset on a few
hyperspectral images of contaminated carcasses, fewer false positives were classified with the hyperspectral ROI
model without sacrificing the accuracy of contaminant detection. Further research must be done to fully characterize
the accuracy of the model.
Successful differentiation of normal chicken livers from septicemic chicken livers was demonstrated using
visible/near-infrared (Vis/NIR) spectral data subjected to principal component analysis and then fed into a feedforward
back-propagation neural network. The study used 300 fresh chicken livers, 150 collected from normal
chicken carcasses and 150 collected from chicken carcasses diagnosed with the septicemica/toxemia (septox)
condition as defined for condemnation under U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) standards for food safety.
Using a training set of 200 samples and testing set of 100 samples, the best neural network model demonstrated a
classification accuracy of 98% for normal samples and 94% for septicemia/toxemia samples. These results show
that Vis/NIR spectral methods have potential for use in chicken liver inspection as part of automated online systems
for food safety inspection. Liver abnormalities are identifying characteristics of the septox condition; consequently,
liver screening would be extremely useful as part of an automated inspection system to meet USDA food safety
requirements for poultry. Automated inspection systems capable of real-time on-line operation are currently being
developed, and spectroscopic liver inspection is potential tool that could be implemented as part of such systems to
help poultry processors increase production while meeting food safety inspection requirements.
A visible/near-infrared spectroscopic system for high-speed on-line poultry carcass inspection was developed and
demonstrated. The inspection system, which was an area scanning system designed to measure the interactance
spectra of poultry carcasses in the visible to near-infrared regions, consisted of a fiber optic probe, a spectrograph, a
spectroscopic charge coupled device detector, a quartz tungsten halogen light source, an industrial computer, and inhouse
developed software modules. On-line trials of the visible/near-infrared chicken inspection system were
conducted during a 5-day period in a poultry processing plant in Athens, Georgia. Spectra (431-943 nm) of 450
wholesome and 426 unwholesome chicken carcasses were measured. The instrument measured the spectra of
veterinarian-selected carcasses on a processing line running at speeds of 140 and 180 birds per minute. Results
showed this visible/near-infrared system can be used to differentiate between wholesome and unwholesome poultry
carcasses at high speeds. For the 140 bird per minute line speed, the best model achieved classification accuracies
of 95% for wholesome and 92% for unwholesome birds. For the 180 bird per minute line speed, the best model
achieved classification accuracies of 94% and 92% for wholesome and unwholesome birds, respectively. The
system is ready to be implemented for operation on high speed poultry processing lines.
The use of spectral sensing has gained acceptance as a rapid means for nondestructive inspection of postharvest food
produce. Current technologies generally use color or a single wavelength camera technology. The applicability and
sensitivity of these techniques can be expanded through the use of multiple wavelengths. Reflectance in the
Vis/NIR is the prevalent spectral technique. Fluorescence, compared to reflectance, is regarded as a more sensitive
technique due to its dynamic responses to subtle changes in biological entities. Our laboratory has been exploring
fluorescence as a potential means for detection of quality and wholesomeness of food products. Applications of
fluorescence sensing require an understanding of the spectral characteristics emanating from constituents and
potential contaminants. A number of factors affecting fluorescence emission characteristics are discussed. Because
of relatively low fluorescence quantum yield from biological samples, a system with a powerful pulse light source
such as a laser coupled with a gated detection device is used to harvest fluorescence, in the presence of ambient
light. Several fluorescence sensor platforms developed in our laboratory, including hyperspectral imaging, and
laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) and steady-state fluorescence imaging systems with multispectral capabilities are
presented. We demonstrate the potential uses of recently developed fluorescence imaging platforms in food safety
inspection of apples contaminated with animal feces.
Fluorescence can be a sensitive method for detecting food contaminants. Of particular interest is detection of fecal
contamination as feces is the source of many pathogenic organisms. Feces generally contain chlorophyll a and related
compounds due to ingestion of plant materials, and these compounds can readily be detected using fluorescence
techniques. Described is a fluorescence-imaging system consisting primarily of a UV light source, an intensified camera
with a six-position filter wheel, and software for controlling the system and automatically analyzing the resulting
images. To validate the system, orchard apples artificially contaminated with dairy feces were used in a "hands-on"
public demonstration. The contamination sites were easily identified using automated edge detection and threshold
detection algorithms. In addition, by applying feces to apples and then washing sets of apples at hourly intervals, it was
determined that five h was the minimum contact time that allowed identification of the contamination site after the
apples were washed. There are many potential uses for this system, including studying the efficacy of apple washing
systems.
In this paper, the feasibility is investigated to improve discrimination between different defect and diseases on
raw French fries with multispectral imaging. Four different potato cultivars are selected from which French
Fries are cut. Both multispectral images and RGB color images are classified with linear Bayes normal classifier
and a support vector classifier. The effect of applying different preprocessing techniques on the spectra prior
to classification was also investigated. The classification result are compared with both RGB images and the
full spectra classification results. Experimental results indicate that the support vector classifier gives the best
performance for both multispectral and RGB color images and is less preprocessing dependent. The multispectral
image classification results outperform the RGB color classification results with a factor 15 at best. An explorative
multispectral analysis also shows that latent defects can be detected with multispectral imaging, in contrast with
traditional color imaging.
A computer vision system was established to explore a method for citrus maturity detection. The surface color information and the ratio of total soluble solid to titratable acid (TSS/TA) were used as maturity indexes of citrus. The spectral reflectance properties with different color were measured by UV-240 ultraviolet and visible spectrophotometer. The biggest discrepancy of gray levels between citrus pixels and background pixels was in blue component image by image background segmentation. Dynamic threshold method for background segmentation had best result in blue component image. Methods for citrus image color description were studied. The citrus spectral reflectance experiments showed that green surface and saffron surface of citrus were of highest spectral reflectance at the wavelength of 700nm, the difference between them reached to maximum, about 53%, and the image acquired at this wavelength was of more color information for maturity detection. A triple-layer feed forward network was established to map citrus maturity from the hue frequency sequence by the mean of artificial neural network. After training, the network mapper was used to detect the maturity of the test sample set, which was composed of 252 Weizhang citrus with different maturity. The identification accuracy of mature citrus reached 79.1%, that of immature citrus was 63.6%, and the mean identification accuracy was 77.8%. This study suggested that it is feasible to detect citrus maturity non-invasively by using the computer vision system and hue frequency sequence method.
This paper describes a novel approach for detection of foreign materials in deboned poultry patties based on real-time imaging technologies. Uneven thickness of poultry patties could lead to a significant classification error in a typical X-ray imaging system, and we addressed this issue successfully by fusing laser range imaging (3D imaging) into the x-ray inspection system. In order for this synergic technology to work effectively for on-line industrial applications, the vision system should be able to identify various physical contaminations automatically and have viable real-time capabilities. To meet these challenges, a rule-based approach was formulated under a unified framework for detection of diversified subjects, and a multithread scheme was developed for real-time image processing. Algorithms of data fusion, feature extraction and pattern classification of this approach are described in this paper. Detection performance and overall throughput of the system are also discussed.
This paper presents the research results of the performance of classification methods for hyperspectral poultry imagery
to identify fecal and ingesta contaminants on the surface of broiler carcasses. A pushbroom line-scan hyperspectral
imager was used to acquire hyperspectral data with 512 narrow bands covered from 400 to 900 nm wavelengths. Three
different feces from digestive tracts (duodenum, ceca, colon), and ingesta were used as contaminants. These
contaminants were collected from the broiler carcasses fed by corn, milo, and wheat with soybean meals. For the
selection of optimum classifier, various widely used supervised classification methods (parallelepiped, minimum
distance, Mahalanobis distance, maximum likelihood, spectral angle mapper, and binary coding) were investigated.
The classification accuracies ranged from 62.94% to 92.27%. The highest classification accuracy for identifying
contaminants for corn fed carcasses was 92.27% with spectral angle mapper classifier. While, the classification
accuracy was 82.02% with maximum likelihood method for milo fed carcasses and 91.16% accuracy was obtained for
wheat fed carcasses when same classification method was used. The mean classification accuracy obtained in this
study for classifying fecal and ingesta contaminants was 90.21%.
We consider a feature selection method to detect skin tumors on chicken carcasses using hyperspectral reflectance
data. This allows for faster data collection than does fluorescence data. A chicken skin tumor is an ulcerous lesion
region surrounded by a region of thickened-skin. Detection of chicken tumors is a difficult detection problem because
the tumors vary in size and shape; some tumors appear on the side of the chicken. In addition, different areas of normal
chicken skin have a variety of hyperspectral response variations, some of which are very similar to the spectral
responses of tumors. Similarly, different tumors and different parts of a tumor have different spectral responses. Thus,
proper classifier training is needed and many false alarms are expected. Since the spectral responses of the lesion and
the thickened-skin regions of tumors are considerably different, we train our feature selection algorithm to detect lesion
regions and to detect thickened-skin regions separately; we then process the resultant images and we fuse the two HS
detection results to reduce false alarms. Our new forward selection and modified branch and bound algorithm is used to
select a small number of λ spectral features that are useful for discrimination. Initial results show that our method offers
promise for a good tumor detection rate and a low false alarm rate.
Incompletely closed glumes, germ and disease are three characteristics of hybrid rice seed. Image-processing
algorithms developed to detect these seed characteristics were presented in this paper. The rice seed used for this study
involved five varieties of Jinyou402, Shanyou10, Zhongyou207, Jiayou and IIyou. The algorithms were implemented
with a 5*600 images set, a 4*400 images set and the other 5*600 images set respectively. The image sets included black
background images, white background images and both sides images of rice seed. Results show that the algorithm for
inspecting seeds with incompletely closed glumes based on Radon Transform achieved an accuracy of 96% for normal
seeds, 92% for seeds with fine fissure and 87% for seeds with unclosed glumes, the algorithm for inspecting germinated
seeds on panicle based on PCA and ANN achieved n average accuracy of 98% for normal seeds, 88% for germinated
seeds on panicle and the algorithm for inspecting diseased seeds based on color features achieved an accuracy of 92% for
normal and healthy seeds, 95% for spot diseased seeds and 83% for severe diseased seeds.
The need exists to improve sensitivity of detection of toxic pollutants and pathogenic microorganisms, ensuring food and water safety. Developing methods that would increase antibody binding surface area and/or improve the sampling process by specifically concentrating the analyte of interest from the diluted extracted food sample would increase the chances of finding and detecting food pathogens and their toxins. Our approach to improve sensitivity was to generate high surface nanofibrous membranes with covalently attached molecular recognition elements (MREs, e.g. antibodies and peptides) for the selective capture of target analytes through the use of electrospinning. Electrospinning is a process by which high static voltages are used to produce an interconnected membrane-like web of small fibers with diameters ranging from 50-1000 nanometers. These nanofibrous membranes can have surface areas approximately one to two orders of magnitude higher than those found in continuous films. The association of MREs with electrospun fibers presents the opportunity for developing both biosensor detection platforms with increased surface area and membrane concentrators. It is expected that the available surface area demonstrated by this technique will provide increased sensitivity, capture efficiency and fast response time in sensing applications. Antibodies and peptide-based receptors were selectively immobilized onto these nanoporous membranes for bioaffinity capture. Initial results involving fluorescent and chemiluminescent imaging for quantifying attachment and activity in association with the electrospinning process will be discussed.
We present the spectroscopic study of milk with soy and discuss using that for express-analysis. In the non-elastic light scattering spectra the luminescence band are found in visible region. A peak of the band is dramatic changed with changing soy concentration in milk. the nature of phenomenon is discussed. The obtained results can be used for instrumental express-analysis soy in milk by modified the laser device <MIG> have constructed for determining fat and protein in milk.
Incompletely closed glumes, germ on panicle and disease are three characteristics of hybrid rice seed, which are
actual reasons of poor seed quality. To find how many and which categories should be classified to meet the demand of
produce actually, the effects of various degree of incompletely closed glumes, germ on panicle and disease on ratio of
germination in changed storage periods were studied with standard germination rate test. An electronic scanning
microscope was used for micro-observation and measurement. Then the possibility of automation inspection was tested
with a machine vision system. The measures of increasing quality of hybrid rice seed were discussed in the paper at last.
In the light of the periods of treatment and the classification of characteristics, difference steps should be taken. Before
storage, Seeds with germ or severe disease should be rejected at first. Then seeds with incompletely closed glumes or
spot disease might be stored separately for a shorter time in dried condition and treated with antisepsis before using for
some special fields with lower quality demand. The seeds with fine fissure between glumes should be stored in a strictly
controlled condition separately and inspected before use, just like other normal and healthy seeds.
Surface roughness is an important physical property of soil in agricultural applications. It is a key parameter affecting the
optical reflectance of bare soils, which can be computed from imagery acquired with airborne or space-based remotesensing
devices. Accurate ground-truth roughness data need to be collected before a correct computational interpretation
can be made. This paper presents the development of a real-time, geo-referenced, ground-based imaging system that
produces quantitative ground truth information of soil surface roughness. The system applies Fourier transform
profilometry (FTP) to an image of a soil area under study to obtain relative height data of the surface. Then it computes
parameters such as root mean square (RMS) and correlation length as measures of roughness. Measurement experiments
have been carried out successfully both under simulated conditions in the laboratory and in the field. The results show
that the system is capable of generating reliable ground-truth soil surface roughness information. In comparison with
other approaches, this developed system is fast, efficient and inexpensive.
Soil characteristics in agriculture represent one of the primary key-factors affecting soil productivity and quality of the
produced products. Soil characterization are conventionally performed adopting integrated physical-chemical analyses
based on soil portion (samples) directly collected in situ. Such an approach is obviously time consuming. In this work is
examined the possibility offered by digital imaging based spectrophotometric techniques in order to perform fast and
reliable tests able to identify and quantify specific soil characteristics of primary importance in horticulture. The
proposed approach is very simple to apply and for its flexibility can be profitably utilized also for other applications (i.e.
environmental monitoring) where soil reclamation plays a pre-eminent role.
This paper introduces the use of aerial RGB digital photography to detect changes in soil structure at field level before
vegetation appearance and in the early stages of crop development. Aerial digital photographs of a field trial were used
as basis for soil structure mapping. Images were acquired right after sowing the crop, and image-processing routines
made it possible to detect and map changes in soil structure. The detected pattern could be recognized in the growth
pattern of the canopy a month later. The field trial used in this work was subdivided into areas receiving different
amounts of fertilizer, and the aerial digital photographs clearly showed the detected soil variations to overpower the
influence of the differences in fertilization.
Aerial hyperspectral imagery has been used to find the temporal relationship between image and corn yield. A total of
five hyperspectral images were taken during the growing season. For each image, the optimal vegetation index was
selected among many candidate vegetation indices. At the same time, the optimal band subset was selected to calculate
the vegetation index. The optimal band subset has the minimum number of bands and represents the most significant
image bands (or wavelength) for yield prediction. The optimization process used the EAVI (Evolutionary Algorithm
based Vegetation Index generation) algorithm. Results showed that the EAVI algorithm generated the best vegetation
index among many comparison indices for yield estimation. For image taken at different date, the algorithm selected a
different optimal vegetation index and image bands. The most common sensitive wavelength identified was in the red
edge at 700 nm and in the NIR region at 826 nm. This study showed that images taken from the beginning of full canopy
coverage to the corn ear formation period provided the best and stable result for corn yield estimation. It is suggested
that this period of time during the growing season would have great potential for remote sensing based corn yield
prediction.
Several plant species release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) when under stresses such as herbivore feeding attack.
The release of these plant-produced VOCs (i.e. terpenes) triggers the release of active biochemical defenses, which
target the attacker. In some cases, the VOCs send cues to nearby carnivorous predators to attract them to the feeding
herbivore. Volatile compounds are released both locally by damaged leaves and systemically by the rest of the plant.
These compounds are released in large quantities, which facilitate detection of pests in the field by parasitoids.
Detecting the plant’s VOC emissions as a function of various parameters (e.g. ambient temperature, atmospheric
nitrogen levels, etc.) is essential to designing effective biological control systems. In addition these VOC releases may
serve as early warning indicator of chemo-bio attacks. By combining Raman spectroscopy techniques with Laser
Remote Sensing (LIDAR) systems, we are developing a Standoff detection system. Initial results indicate that is it
possible to detect and differentiate between various terpenes, plant species, and other chemical compounds at distances
greater than 12 meters. Currently, the system uses the 2nd harmonic of a Nd:YAG; however plans are underway to
improve the Raman signal by moving the illumination wavelength into the solar-blind UV region. We report on our
initial efforts of designing and characterizing this in a laboratory proof of concept system. We envision that this effort
will lead to the design of a portable field-deployable system to rapidly characterize, with a high spatial resolution, large
crops and other fields.
A plant health sensing system was developed for determining nitrogen status in plants. The system consists of a
multi-spectral optical sensor and a data-acquisition and processing unit. The optical sensor’s light source provides
modulated panchromatic illumination of a plant canopy with light-emitting diodes, and the sensor measures spectral
reflectance through optical filters that partition the energy into blue, green, red, and near-infrared wavebands.
Spectral reflectance of plants is detected in situ, at the four wavebands, in real time. The data-acquisition and
processing unit is based on a single board computer that collects data from the multi-spectral sensor and spatial
information from a global positioning system receiver. Spectral reflectance at the selected wavebands is analyzed,
with algorithms developed during preliminary work, to determine nitrogen status in plants. The plant health sensing
system has been tested primarily in the laboratory and field so far, and promising results have been obtained. This
article describes the development, theory of operation, and test results of the plant health sensing system.
The development of precision farming requires new tools for plant nutritional stress monitoring. An operational
fluorescence system has been designed for vegetation status mapping and stress detection at plant and field scale. The
instrument gives relative values of fluorescence at different wavelengths induced by the two-excitation sources. Lightinduced
fluorescence has demonstrated successful crop health monitoring and plant nutritional stress detection
capabilities.
The spectral response of the plants has first been measured with an hyperspectral imager using laser-induced
fluorescence. A tabletop imaging fluorometer based on flash lamp technology has also been designed to study the
spatial distribution of fluorescence on plant leaves. For field based non-imaging system, LED technology is used as
light source to induce fluorescence of the plant. The operational fluorescence system is based on ultraviolet and blue
LED to induce fluorescence. Four narrow fluorescence bands centered on 440, 520, 690 and 740nm are detected. The
instrument design includes a modular approach for light source and detector. It can accommodate as many as four
different light sources and six bands of fluorescence detection. As part of the design for field application, the instrument
is compatible with a mobile platform equipped with a GPS and data acquisition system.
The current system developed by Telops/GAAP is configured for potato crops fluorescence measurement but can easily
be adapted for other crops. This new instrument offers an effective and affordable solution for precision farming.
Fuzzy excess green (ExG) crisp indices and clustering algorithms such as the Gustafson-Kessel (GK) have been
successfully used for unsupervised classification of hidden and prominent regions of interest (ROI’s), namely green
plants in crop color images against bare clay soil, corn residue and wheat residue, typical of the Great Plains. Each
process can be enhanced with Zadeh (Z) and Gath-Geva (GG) fuzzy enhancement techniques. Enhanced indices and
clusters can be then sorted by final degree of fuzziness, and recombined into labeled, false-color class images, which
can be used as templates for further shape and textural analyses. ROI’s with the lowest degree of fuzziness were
consistently found to be plant clusters according to foveated or prominence of the region size within the image.
Clustering performance according to partition densities and hyper volume was also evaluated. These latter measures can
be used to select the number of clusters and evaluate the computational time needed to find plant ROI’s with complex
backgrounds under different lighting conditions. Enhanced GK clustering methods have performed very well and have
identified plants in bare soil, corn residue plants , and wheat straw plants, well into the high 90 percentages, depending
on plant age category and the relative proportion of plant size within the image. Improved clustering algorithms with
textural finger printing could be potentially useful for unsupervised remote sensing, mapping, crop management, weed,
and pest control for precision agriculture.
In this study, using the pepper leaves in facility agriculture as the experimental materials, research the application of near
infrared spectrum analysis technique to obtain plant growth information. Chlorophyll content of plant leaves is useful
information in describing and interpreting the performance of whole-plant systems grows under various conditions, and
Near-infrared spectroscopy is a non-destructive analytical technique, which is widely used in farm production. In order
to establish a model to predict the relationship between near infrared spectrum and leaf chlorophyll content, a
chlorophyll meter and a near infrared spectrometer were used to get chlorophyll content and spectrum of pepper leaf
respectively, after that, we use OMINIC and TQ software to acquire and process spectrums of leaves, and use partial
least squares (PLS) technique to analyze the data we get by normal experimentation and near infrared spectrometer, set
up a calibration model to predict the leaf chlorophyll content based on the characteristics of diffuse reflectance spectrums
of pepper leaves. Result showed that NIR technique could acquire chlorophyll content in plant leaves conveniently and
quickly. The best model of chlorophyll content has a root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) of 2.44 and a
calibration correlation coefficient (R2) value of 0.969.
Absorption spectroscopy and multi-angle scattering measurements in the visible spectral range are innovately used to
analyze samples of extra virgin olive oils coming from selected areas of Tuscany, a famous Italian region for the
production of extra virgin olive oil. The measured spectra are processed by means of the Principal Component Analysis
method, so as to create a 3D map capable of clustering the Tuscan oils within the wider area of Italian extra virgin olive
oils.
Hyperspectral (HS) data for the inspection of whole corn kernels for aflatoxin is considered. The high-dimensionality of HS data requires feature extraction or selection for good classifier generalization. For fast and inexpensive data collection, only several features (λ responses) can be used. These are obtained by feature selection from the full HS response. A new high dimensionality branch and bound (HDBB) feature selection algorithm is used; it is found to be optimum, fast and very efficient. Initial results indicate that HS data is very promising for aflatoxin detection in whole kernel corn.
Opto-electronic methods represent a potential to identify the presence of insect activities on or within agricultural
commodities. Such measurements may detect actual insect presence or indirect secondary changes in the product
resulting from past or present insect activities. Preliminary imaging studies have demonstrated some unique spectral
characteristics of insect larvae on cherries. A detailed study on spectral characteristics of healthy and infested tart cherry
tissue with and without larvae (Plum Curculio) was conducted for reflectance, transmittance and interactance modes for
each of UV and visible/NIR light sources.
The intensity of transmitted UV signals through the tart cherry was found to be weak; however, the spectral properties
of UV light in reflectance mode has revealed some typical characteristics of larvae on healthy and infested tissue. The
larvae on tissue were found to exhibit UV induced fluorescence signals in the range of 400-700 nm. Multi spectral
imaging of the halved tart cherry has also corroborated this particular behavior of plum curculio larvae. The gray scale
subtraction between corresponding pixels in these multi-spectral images has helped to locate the larvae precisely on the
tart cherry tissue background, which otherwise was inseparable.
The spectral characteristics of visible/NIR energy in transmittance and reflectance mode are capable of estimating the
secondary effect of infestation in tart cherry tissue. The study has shown the shifting in peaks of reflected and
transmitted signals from healthy and infested tissues and coincides with the concept of browning of tissue at cell level as
a process of infestation.
Interactance study has been carried out to study the possibility of coupling opto-electronic devices with the existing
pitting process. The shifting of peaks has been observed for the normalized intensity of healthy and infested tissues. The
study has been able to establish the inherent spectral characteristic of these tissues. It was found that there existed
promising futuristic possibilities to use opto-electronic sensing to estimate the degree of secondary effect of insect
activities within the tissue.
Multispectral imaging in reflectance and fluorescence modes combined with neural network analysis was used to
classify various types of apple disorder from three apple varieties (Honey Crisp, Red Cort, and Red Delicious). Eighteen
images from a combination of filter sets and three different imaging modes (reflectance, visible light induced
fluorescence, and UV induced fluorescence) were acquired for each apple sample as a base for pixel-level classification
into normal or disorder tissue. Two classification schemes, a 2-class and a multiple class, were developed and tested in
this study. In the 2-class scheme, pixels were categorized into normal or disorder tissue, whereas in the multiple class
scheme, pixels were categorized into normal, bitter pit, black rot, decay, soft scald, and superficial scald tissues. Results
indicate that single variety training under the 2-class scheme yielded highest accuracy with total accuracy of 95, 97, and
100 % for Honey Crisp, Red Cort, or Red Delicious respectively. In the multiple-class scheme, the classification
accuracy of Honey Crisp apple for normal, bitter pit, black rot, decay, and soft scald tissue was 94, 93, 97, 97, and 94 %
respectively. Through variable selection analysis, in the 2-class scheme, fluorescence models yielded higher total
classification accuracy compared to reflection models. For Red Cort and Red Delicious, models with only FUV yield
more than 95% classification accuracy, demonstrating a potential of fluorescence to detect superficial scald. Several
important wavelengths, including 680, 740, 905 and 940 nm, were identified from the filter combination analysis. The
results indicate the potential of this technique to accurately recognize different types of disorder on apple.
Firmness and sweetness are key quality attributes that determine the acceptability of apple fruit to the consumer. The
objective of this research was to investigate a multispectral imaging system for simultaneous acquisition of multispectral
scattering images from apple fruit to predict firmness and soluble solids content (SSC). A circular broadband light beam
was used to generate light backscattering at the surface of apple fruit and scattering images were acquired, using a
common aperture multispectral imaging system, from Red Delicious and Golden Delicious apple fruit for wavelengths
at 680, 880, 905, and 940 nm. Scattering images were radially averaged to produce one-dimensional spectral scattering
profiles, which were then input into a backpropagation neural network for predicting apple fruit firmness and SSC. It
was found that the neural network performed best when 10 neurons and 20 epochs were used. With inputing three ratios
of spectral profiles involving all four wavelengths, the neural network gave firmness predictions with the correlation (r)
of 0.76 and the standard error for validation (SEV) of 6.2 N for Red Delicious apples and r=0.73 and SEV=8.9 N for
Golden Delicious apples. Relatively good SSC predictions were obtained for both varieties with SEV=0.9° Brix.
To identify fruits on the tree and determine their locations are the key to harvest fruits by robots. The main features and
applications of infrared thermal imaging were reviewed, and main methods to locate fruits on trees were compared. As
the low identification rate of common machine vision system, a new method to identify the citrus in a tree canopy by
means of infrared thermal imaging was put forward. About 45 infrared thermal images of citrus on trees were acquired
from the citrus orchard. It was found that the different thermal distribution among citrus, leaves and branches was about
1°C and these differences clearly appeared in the gray-level image, which could be easily used to segment the citrus
from other parts in the image by using binary image at T=190. A multilayer-masks edge operator was used to extract
edge of the image. The results indicated that it was possible to identify citrus on trees using infrared thermal imaging,
and it was much easier than the methods presently used.
Obtaining clear images advantaged of improving the classification accuracy involves many factors, light source, lens
extender and background were discussed in this paper. The analysis of rice seed reflectance curves showed that the
wavelength of light source for discrimination of the diseased seeds from normal rice seeds in the monochromic image
recognition mode was about 815nm for jinyou402 and shanyou10. To determine optimizing conditions for acquiring
digital images of rice seed using a computer vision system, an adjustable color machine vision system was developed.
The machine vision system with 20mm to 25mm lens extender produce close-up images which made it easy to object
recognition of characteristics in hybrid rice seeds. White background was proved to be better than black background for
inspecting rice seeds infected by disease and using the algorithms based on shape. Experimental results indicated good
classification for most of the characteristics with the machine vision system. The same algorithm yielded better results in
optimizing condition for quality inspection of rice seed. Specifically, the image processing can correct for details such as
fine fissure with the machine vision system.
The increasing numbers of illnesses associated with foodborne pathogens such as Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli O157:H7, has renewed concerns about food safety because of consumer preferences for minimally processed foods that offer convenience in availability and preparation. Accordingly, the need for better control of foodborne pathogens has been paramount in recent years. Mechanical removal of microorganisms from food can be accomplished by centrifugation, filtration, trimming and washing. Cleaning and sanitation strategies can be used for minimizing the access of microorganisms in foods from various sources. Other strategies for control of foodborne pathogens include established physical microbiocidal treatments such as ionizing radiation and heating. Research has continued to demonstrate that food irradiation is a suitable process to control and possibly eliminate foodborne pathogens, for example Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli O157:H7, from a number of raw and cooked meat and poultry products. Heat treatment is the most common method in use today for the inactivation of microorganisms. Microorganisms can also be destroyed by nonthermal treatments, such as application of high hydrostatic pressure, pulsed electric fields, oscillating magnetic fields or a combination of physical processes such as heat-irradiation, or heat-high hydrostatic pressure, etc. Each of the non-thermal technologies has specific applications in terms of the types of food that can be processed. Both conventional and newly developed physical treatments can be used in combination for controlling foodborne pathogens and enhancing the safety and shelf life of foods. Recent research has focused on combining traditional preservation factors with emerging intervention technologies. However, many key issues still need to be addressed for combination preservation factors or technologies to be useful in the food industry to meet public demands for foods with enhanced safety, freshness and appeal. As a result of systematic study in these areas together with detailed assessment of technological performance of available preservatives and preservation technologies in real food formulations, new intervention processes and products are likely to be developed. The ultimate goal is to identify potential new approaches for the safer production of foods. The purpose of this presentation is to discuss key developmental activities concerning microbial reduction by intervention technologies.
Evaluation of internal quality is very indispensable in storing, circulating and processing of chicken-egg. The potential of
the UV/VIS (200-1000nm) transmittance method to evaluate the freshness of intact chicken egg was examined. A total of
350 chicken-eggs were tested and one of 200 eggs were used to spectral measurement in the tracing test. The
transmittance spectral characteristics of intact egg were also investigated. The correlation models between transmittance
versus wavelengths and the storing time, freshness index (Haugh Unit and Yolk coefficient) and the storing time were
established by linear regression analysis of SPSS10.0. The correlation coefficients were 0.86, 0.94, 0.99 and 0.98
respectively. The sensitive wavelength used to evaluate freshness was also found at 465nm and the correlation model
between transmittance and freshness was built. The test results show that: Nondestructive evaluation freshness by
transmittance properties is feasible in the range of 400 -600nm, while it is impossible to evaluate egg freshness in the
range of 200-400nm owing to the low transmittance.
Some issues related to nondestructive evaluation of valid acidity in intact apples by means of Fourier transform near infrared (FTNIR) (800-2631nm) method were addressed. A relationship was established between the diffuse reflectance spectra recorded with a bifurcated optic fiber and the valid acidity. The data were analyzed by multivariate calibration analysis such as partial least squares (PLS) analysis and principal component regression (PCR) technique. A total of 120 Fuji apples were tested and 80 of them were used to form a calibration data set. The influence of data preprocessing and different spectra treatments were also investigated. Models based on smoothing spectra were slightly worse than models based on derivative spectra and the best result was obtained when the segment length was 5 and the gap size was 10. Depending on data preprocessing and multivariate calibration technique, the best prediction model had a correlation efficient (0.871), a low RMSEP (0.0677), a low RMSEC (0.056) and a small difference between RMSEP and RMSEC by PLS analysis. The results point out the feasibility of FTNIR spectral analysis to predict the fruit valid acidity non-destructively. The ratio of data standard deviation to the root mean square error of prediction (SDR) is better to be less than 3 in calibration models, however, the results cannot meet the demand of actual application. Therefore, further study is required for better calibration and prediction.
Fourier transform near infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopy was tested as a non-destructive method to assess the sugar content (SC) and the valid acidity of intact peaches. Calibration models were created from spectral and constituent measurements. Data recorded from two sides of individual peach served as the calibration and the validation sets. Partial least squares (PLS) technique used to develop the prediction models by different data preprocessing. The best model for SC had a high correlation efficient (0.956), a low SEP (0.532), a low SEC (0.542), a SDR value of 3.34(>3.00), and also a small difference between SEP and SEC. The best model for valid acidity had a high correlation coefficient (0.948), a relatively low SEP (0.129), a relatively low SEC (0.124) and a SDR value of 2.68 (<3.00), and also a small difference between SEC and SEP. The results of this study suggest that FT-NIR method can be feasible to detect sugar content rapidly. However, the low acid content in the fruit might have caused the relative insensitivity for prediction valid acidity. Further work is required to optimize and implement this technique.
A near-infrared spectral reflectance system was developed and tested online to predict 14-day aged, cooked beef tenderness. A contact probe with a built-in tungsten-halogen light source supplied broadband light to the ribeye surface. Fiberoptics in the probe transmitted reflected light to a spectrometer with a spectral range of 400-2500 nm.
In the first phase, steak samples (n=292) were brought from packing plants to the lab and scanned with the spectrometer. After scanning, samples were vacuum-packaged and aged for 14 days. They were then cooked in an impingement oven to an internal temperature of 70°C. Slice-shear force values were recorded for tenderness reference.
In phase two, the spectrometer was modified for packing plant conditions. Spectral scans were obtained on-line on ribbed carcasses (n=276). A partial least square regression model was developed to predict tenderness scores from spectral reflectance. In phase three, the developed model was validated by scanning carcasses (n=200) on-line. The predicted shear-force values and samples were sent to the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center for third-party validation. At up to 70% certification levels, the system was able to successfully sort tough from tender carcasses.
Microbial contamination has become a mounting concern the last decade due to an increased emphasis of minimally
processed food products specifically produce, and the recognition of foodborne pathogens such as Campylobacter jejuni,
Escherichia coli O157:H7, and Listeria monocytogenes. This research investigates a detection approach utilizing
bacteriophage pathogen specificity coupled with a bacterial bioluminescent bioreporter utilizing the quorum sensing
molecule from Vibrio fischeri, N-(3-oxohexanoyl)-homoserine lactone (3-oxo-C6-HSL). The 3-oxo-C6-HSL molecules
diffuse out of the target cell after infection and induce bioluminescence from a population of 3-oxo-C6-HSL bioreporters
(ROLux). E. coli phage M13, a well-characterized bacteriophage, offers a model system testing the use of bacteriophage
for pathogen detection through cell-to-cell communication via a LuxR/3-oxo-C6-HSL system. Simulated temperate
phage assays tested functionality of the ROLux reporter and production of 3-oxo-C6-HSL by various test strains. These
assays showed detection limits of 102cfu after 24 hours in a varietry of detection formats. Assays incorporating the
bacteriophage M13-luxI with the ROLux reporter and a known population of target cells were subsequently developed
and have shown consistent detection limits of 105cfu target organisms. Measurable light response from high
concentrations of target cells was almost immediate, suggesting an enrichment step to further improve detection limits
and reduce assay time.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has implemented new procedures for meat and poultry establishments, egg products plants, and companies that manufacture and sell technology to official establishments to notify the Agency of new technology that they propose to use in meat and poultry establishments or egg products plants. If the new technology could affect FSIS regulations, product safety, inspection procedures, or the safety of Federal inspection program personnel, then the establishment or plant would need to submit a written protocol to the Agency. As part of this process, the submitter will be expected to conduct in-plant trials of the new technology. The submitter will need to provide data to FSIS throughout the duration of the in-plant trial for the Agency to examine. Data may take several forms: laboratory results, weekly or monthly summary production reports, and evaluations from inspection program personnel.
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Advanced PhotonicsJournal of Applied Remote SensingJournal of Astronomical Telescopes Instruments and SystemsJournal of Biomedical OpticsJournal of Electronic ImagingJournal of Medical ImagingJournal of Micro/Nanolithography, MEMS, and MOEMSJournal of NanophotonicsJournal of Photonics for EnergyNeurophotonicsOptical EngineeringSPIE Reviews | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Meredith Woerner
Meet Flipper! Flipper was born with a twisted spine, meaning her back legs can't walk on the same plane as her front legs. And that, in turn, means she has to drag her hind quarters around whenever she wants to go somewhere. Cue the members of the Blitz Robotic Club at Conifer High School in Colorado. Together the high school kids built Flipper a pair of wheels, it's just... so...HUGS FOR EVERYONE! | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
STATEMENT
sweaters in a black and white world. My work is the antithesis of this. My work is to be explored; allowing the viewer to make discoveries about himself and the human experience, not just about the artist. This is the way the work is created. Starting with an image, changing it, exploring variations of it, and allowing a combination of both conscious and instinctive choices that determine the path along which the work will travel and from which the final image will emerge.
I deliberately work with blurry, layered images and indistinct juxtapositions in order to cause the viewer to wonder, to dig a little. Of course the work carries the stamp of myself, the artist, with it; but in the digging my hope is that the viewer finds a commonality in the emotional underpinnings. A type of shared human space maybe embedded in some of the ideas behind a universal consciousness but on a more personal level.
These images can be thought of as being created from the shapes you see indistinctly in the dark, or maybe the face of the person you only see from behind. As I said; I am giving the viewer a visual image to explore. In that exploration he should find out not about the image or the artist but about himself and how that self relates to the world around him. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Aceee hot water forum
Updated 10:56 am CST, Wednesday, December 19, 2018 In this photo released by the Pike County Sheriff's Office, Sheriff Charles S. Reader, left, and Interim Waverly Police Chief Dennis Crabtree apprehend an escaped inmate on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018, at an Ohio senior living community, in Waverly, Ohio. The inmate is back in custody after being found soaking in a hot tub at the center, still wearing her yellow jail outfit. The Pike County Sheriff's Office says the 34-year-old woman fled while being booked on drug-possession charges Tuesday. (Pike County Sheriff’s Office via AP) less In this photo released by the Pike County Sheriff's Office, Sheriff Charles S. Reader, left, and Interim Waverly Police Chief Dennis Crabtree apprehend an escaped inmate on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018, at an Ohio ... more Photo: AP … [Read more...] about Inmate in hot water: Police find escapee soaking in hot tub
PUBLISHED: 07:01 12 November 2018 | UPDATED: 07:01 12 November 2018 Benjamin Court. Photo: Colin Finch Archant A group of vulnerable people were left without hot water and heating for six days after a boiler broke in their care unit. Benjamin Court in Cromer. Picture: Ally McGilvrayResidents living on the Benjamin Court site in Cromer had been unable to wash with warm water, or put heating on, since Sunday November 4.Operated by Broadland Housing Association (BHA), and separate to the NHS hospital, the homes are occupied by residents with a range of care needs.Steve Stone’s 90-year-old mother, who is currently ill with a severe chest infection, had been confined to her bed to keep warm and, despite being provided with a fan heater, her flat remained cold.Mr Stone, of Mundesley, said: “This has implications for the hygiene of both those residents and the staff. It really is intolerable that this has gone on for this long and you would think that there would be some means … [Read more...] about Vulnerable elderly residents left without heating and hot water for six days
Updated PUBLISHED: 10:44 19 August 2018 | UPDATED: 12:13 19 August 2018 Dominic Moffitt Picture: SARAH LUCY BROWN Archant Police are appealing for information after two incidents of violence in Colchester which they believe are linked. The Essex Police Firearms Support Unit were called to both incidents in Colchester Source: TWITTER @EssexPoliceFSUBoth events occurred in the early hours of this morning, August 19 and required assistance from the Essex Police Firearms support Unit (FSU). Essex police first received calls at around 2.20am after a man was stabbed in the back while walking in St John’s Walk by a man who fled the scene. The victim was taken hospital with a stable condition.They were then called by the ambulance service at around 3am after another man had an unknown liquid, thrown at his chest and neck in Sussex Road. This man was also taken to hospital and Essex Police later confirmed that it was a hot water attack. A 19-year-old … [Read more...] about Hot-water attack and stabbing in Colchester leads to police appeal
A county sheriff in Georgia is in hot water after using nearly $70,000 in asset forfeiture funds to purchase a Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat. Gwinnett county sheriff Butch Conway took delivery of the 707-horsepower sedan and uses the car for transportation to and from work, as well as for field operations and as an undercover police vehicle. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last Thursday that the Department of Justice called the purchase of the Charger Hellcat "extravagant" and said "the vehicle in question is a high-performance vehicle not typically purchased as part of a traditional fleet of law enforcement vehicles." Guidelines for the "equitable sharing program," which is part of the DOJ’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, explicitly prohibit spending on extravagant purchases. Instead, the funds are meant to support local agencies and support their various missions. According to the report, county officials will comply with a request by the DOJ to … [Read more...] about Georgia sheriff in hot water after buying Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
Mark Hicks The Detroit News Published 3:05 p.m. UTC May 26, 2018 A Pontiac woman has been charged for burning her 1-year-old son with hot water, the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office announced Friday. Carmen Ann Smith-Portee initially denied harming the child when deputies responded to their home about 12:05 p.m. May 19 in the 100 block of Apple Lane to find emergency personnel treating scalds and burns to his arm, back and forehead, investigators said in a statement. The mother told them she ran hot water in a bathtub for the boy, left him in another room while gathering cleaning supplies then returned to find her son “burned and screaming as a result of climbing in,” the release read. After detectives interviewed her, Smith-Portee eventually “admitted to placing the child in the scalding hot water in the bathtub intentionally because she had become frustrated” with him, county officials wrote. Her son was transported to St. Joseph’s … [Read more...] about Officials: ‘Frustrated’ Pontiac mother burned 1-year-old son with hot water | {
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Franklin Autoswing™ Carriage Door Opener (AOW2)
AOW2 Key Features:
- No programming necessary for most applications
- GREEN, Solar Powered upgrade option
- Swing Arms with superior leverage and higher wind resistance
- Homelink compatible option available
The Cadillac of automatic carriage door openers is the Franklin Autoswing.™ This sleek and quiet low-voltage opener system installs directly over the doors and pushes them out with articulating arms. Perfect for cathedral ceilings, garages with a car lift, and finished living spaces, this "trackless" system offers the convenience of a powerful, less intrusive opener for those wishing to automate their carriage doors. Available for purchase separately from our doors.
NOTE: This is NOT the "Estate Swing". The Franklin Autoswing™ is a NEW, high quality, very reliable carriage door opener system tailored by Real Carriage Door. With our extensive experience with other unreliable opener options on the market, we've developed the maintenance free Franklin Autoswing. Advanced engineered circuit boards with simpler wiring, easier setup and programming, the AOW2 is significantly easier to install than ever before.
Video of AOW2
Ceiling Mounted Outswing opener (AOCM)
Great engineering is the secret behind the simplicity and smooth operation of this ceiling-mounted opener. Featuring a DC motor, this whisper-quiet opener system is an exercise in simplicity. A traveler glides along the track, pushing the doors out with a pair of rods. Installation is easy, and requires a single 120V outlet mounted to the ceiling. Available for purchase separately from our doors.
Video of AOCM
Edison Sliding Openers™ (AOS) for Garages Doors or Pole Barns
Great for vehicular sliding door applications, our Edison is both quiet and sleek. Don't get off your tractor to open those sliding barn doors! With our Edison Sliding Openers™ and our high quality sliding hardware, you can open your sliding doors with the push of a button. These versatile openers are available for single leaf or bi-part sliding garage or barn doors. As with our other openers, the motors are extremely quiet. Automate your sliding doors today! | {
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Remembering antarctica's nuclear past with 'nukey poo'
PM-3A McMurdo Station, Antarctica. Credit: US Army Engineer Research and Development Labs - United States Antarctic Program, Antarctic Photo Library
We think of Antarctica as a place to protect. It's "pristine", "remote" and "untouched". (Although a recent discovery reveals it's less isolated from the world than previously thought.)
But it wasn't always this way. Between 1961 and 1972 McMurdo Station was home to Antarctica's first and only portable nuclear reactor, known as PM-3A, or "Nukey Poo." The little-known story of Nukey Poo offers a useful lens through which to examine two ways of valuing the far south: as a place to develop, or a place to protect.
The story of Nukey Poo
By the late 1950s nuclear power was viewed with optimism, as an exciting new solution to both the world's energy and social problems. The Antarctic Treaty was signed in 1959, designating Antarctica as a place for international scientific cooperation. Both the USA and USSR were original signatories, and both were concerned about the possible use of nuclear weapons in the far south.
The Antarctic Treaty therefore included freedom of inspection of all facilities, and stipulated "any nuclear explosions in Antarctica and the disposal there of radioactive waste material shall be prohibited".
When Nukey Poo was built by the US Navy it was described by Admiral George Dufek as "a dramatic new era in man's conquest of the remotest continent."
While the early explorers set out with flags, pitting their bodies against the elements to claim new territory, nuclear technology represented a modern way for man to triumph over the hostile environment. PM-3A was seen as a trailblazer, and – if all went well – it was planned to be first of many installed in Antarctica.
Dufek also envisaged nuclear energy making possible a wide range of human activities in the far south. His imagined version of "Antarctica in the Year 2000" included nuclear-driven greenhouse crop production, geoengineering of the world's weather, and mining ventures that helped broker world peace.
"Nukey Poo" began producing power for the McMurdo station in 1962, and was refuelled for the first time in 1964. A decade later, the optimism around the plant had faded. The 25-man team required to run the plant was expensive, while concerns over possible chloride stress corrosion emerged after the discovery of wet insulation during a routine inspection. Both costs and environmental impacts conspired to close the plant in September 1972.
This precipitated a major clean up that saw 12,000 tonnes of contaminated rock removed and shipped back to the USA through nuclear-free New Zealand. The clean up pre-dated Antarctica's modern environmental protection regime by two decades, and required the development of new standards for soil contamination levels.
This elaborate process ensured that the US did not violate the Antarctic Treaty by disposing of nuclear waste on the continent. It also foreshadowed a shift in environmental attitudes away from development and use, towards protection; the removal of so much as one pebble from the Antarctic without requisite permits is now prohibited.
Today, all that physically remains at the site of the PM-3A reactor is a missing hillside and a plaque. Nuclear power is no longer viewed with the optimism of the 1960s, thanks to disasters such as Chernobyl and Fukushima.
However, a site with a past of nuclear contamination does not sit well within modern narratives of Antarctica as a place to protect, so this episode in the continent's history is not often told.
When Admiral Dufek wrote in 1960 "Antarctica will be a fantastic land in the future" he had a very different vision in mind to the Antarctica we see today. Today, the far south is not a place to be improved upon with human innovation, so much as a place to be protected from our influence – including climate change.
The episode of Nukey Poo reveals the modern association between science and the Antarctic environment has not always been so. In demonstrating how Antarctica went from being seen as territory to conquer to a fragile environment, we are reminded that its protection cannot be taken for granted.
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On-X - Though its voice circuits are below standard (probably a prototype K-9 chip), this robotic horse could have saved the day by itself. However, nobody bothers to tell it to defend Spectra from the invaders. As a result, a fully loaded equine combat drone flies around while the heroine shoots rainbows at the bad guys.
The Sprites - Little creatures that are indigenous to Rainbowland and Spectra. Some species are hunted for their feet, which are highly prized for use as car buffing pads.
Orin - He is the sprite equivalent of Moses and also has the best star sprinkles on Spectra. You want good star sprinkles, you see Orin. He will hook you up.
Twink - Rainbow Brite's pet sprite.
Brian - A young boy who is Rainbow Brite's only friend. He probably goes to school and brags about being friends with the rainbow girl, her rainbow horse, and the magical rainbow belt that she wears. I imagine he spends a lot of time running away from older boys who want to shove his head into a toilet.
The Color Kids - Ask me again how I did not go insane watching this movie.
Murky & Lurky - One is a rocket scientist; the other is a pile of hair that wears Keds.
The Evil Princess - Spoiled brat who posseses a magical jewel and commands an unstoppable army. She is in need of parental discipline, but her father is nowhere to be found. She dies horribly when her spaceship explodes.
The Plot:
This might strike some as an odd choice for Badmovies.org, but I can provide insight into why a Rainbow Brite movie appears here. When I was much younger, about thirteen or so, this movie traumatized me. My mother and (much) older sister returned from the video store with some tapes. One of them was intended for my niece and neither Mom nor my sister would tell me what it was. The whole episode played out like the "What's in the box?" scene near the end of "Se7en" with me as Brad Pitt and my mother cast in place of Morgan Freeman. Acting with incredible foresight and wisdom for a thirteen-year-old, I vacated the house before the movie started. My mistake was returning prior to the film's end. For thirty seconds, my mind was exposed to the visceral horror of rainbows shooting off in all directions while a talking horse carried what could only be described as a psychedelic Cabbage Patch Kid across the sky. I fled, screaming, into the night.
Starlite wakes up after a bipedal bee lands on his rump. The horse then gallops across the countryside, singing to all the inhabitants of Rainbowland. Once he reaches the glittering, moat-protected castle that is Rainbow Brite's fortress, all of the Color Kids join the chorus. The noise wakes up Rainbow Brite, who immediately asks Twink for a handful of star sprinkles. You know, just to get her going for the day. Anyway, pretty soon the multi-hued horror is mounted on Starlite; the horse gallops across the sky on a rainbow bridge.
For those of you who thought that Earth's seasons were caused by the planet's tilt, which is regulated by the moon, you are way off. Winter is caused by Stormy, another one of the bizarre entities that populate Rainbowland. Stormy is capricious and delights in causing foul weather. It is Rainbow Brite's job to rein in Stormy, then spread star sprinkles across the land to bring about Spring. However, this year something is different. The star sprinkles dissipate without causing the snow to melt. All of the flowers will die! Flowers are pretty; don't let them die!
This film will cause brain damage in any organism above the level of eight-year-old girl.
The sudden arrival of On-X provides an explanation why the star sprinkles are failing. Something is wrong on Spectra, the center of all light and color for the entire universe. The robot horse was sent to find Rainbow Brite. Only she can save the diamond planet from its peril and prevent all life in the universe from dying. With no time to lose, Rainbow Brite climbs atop Starlite and the pair race off after On-X. The trip to Spectra requires a long journey through outer space, something easily accomplished by traveling one of the ubiquitous rainbow paths laid down by the color belt.
How is it that a chubby blonde girl who shoots rainbows out of her belt is judged to be the best choice to defeat the Princess? Let me tell you something: the Princess has a bad habit of looking out the windows of her dark fortress. She does not move around and provides a good silhouette when framed by the backlighting. On-X should have stopped by Quantico, VA and picked up a Marine Scout Sniper. The next time that freaking brat appeared in a window she would have taken a .50 round through the brain housing group. End of story.
(Note: I am not saying that a Marine, even a hallowed 8541, putting a bullet through an evil teenager's head would make a good children's film.)
Murky and Lurky pursue Rainbow Brite to Spectra. They are her usual opponents, but prove entirely ineffective in this movie. The Princess and her various forces are far more dangerous. As such, I am going to largely ignore the little B&W man (who, disturbingly, looks a bit like Ron Jeremy) and his clumsy furball.
What Rainbow Brite finds on Spectra is more evil absurdity. Since the planet is made from diamond and all light must pass through it, the inhabitants are sprites with furry feet. They spend their days polishing the planet's surface by skating back and forth. What the polishing sprites eat or how they deal with bodily wastes is never explored. Maybe the sprites subsist on something colorful, like butterflies, and defecate polishing compound. How is that for bizarrely useful evolution? Gah! This film is driving me nuts!
To return to the story at hand, a great many of the sprites have been hypnotized by glitterbots. Once under the control of the robot masters, the sprites do nothing besides work on knitting a huge net. The net obscures the planet's equator, meaning it must be thousands of miles wide. Like true government workers, all of the unaffected sprites ignore the ones that are making the net. Starlite tries to sabotage the net and finds out that doing so attracts the attention of numerous glitterbots. Rainbow Brite and her horse spend the next couple of scenes fleeing, while On-X saves their butts time after time.
They eventually run into Krys (drop a rowboat on him is more precise a description, but I refuse to explain). He is the last free defender of Spectra. He is also contemptuous that a simple girl, even one who can make rainbows shoot out of her belly button, can stop the Princess. However, when Rainbow Brite says that she is going to see the Princess, Krys agrees to accompany her.
Stop! The plan is to go to the Princess' fortress, unarmed, and tell her that what she is doing is wrong? Right. Good.
The plan works exactly as you and I have foreseen, except the Princess does not have the two guardians of Spectra executed immediately. Both of them are tossed into a floating detention cell, but not before the Princess takes Rainbow Brite's belt. It will go perfectly with her gloss black bodysuit! Fortunately, Starlite charges into the fortress and locates the color belt. On-X returns the prismatic artifact to Rainbow Brite, allowing her and the sexist Megaman avatar to escape their prison. What the group cannot escape is a magical vortex summoned by the Princess. The horses and riders are sucked through a wormhole and transported to a remote prison facility.
By now I'd have removed the behavior safeties from On-X and sent the horse to hover over the Princess. The robot's ion jets would turn her body into a burnt husk within seconds. Again, maybe a little too graphic for a children's movie. How will they defeat the Princess without killing her?
The prison complex is an arid wasteland made up of bare rock and tall stone spires. Krys and the horses are captured by Obi-Wan Iguana Sloths, while Rainbow falls though a crevice and finds herself in an underground lake that is teeming with the monsters. There she joins up with Orin and enrages the giant beasts by shooting them in the face with rainbows. The Obi-Wan Iguana Sloths go on a rampage. The resulting ceiling collapse buries the monsters under tons of rock. Our animated heroine and her fuzzy friend easily rescue the others from the stockade and Krys receives a gift from Orin. The old sprite provides the Spectra guardian a prism wrist blaster. When Rainbow Brite shoots rainbows into it, the blaster can be used to freeze enemies solid or turn them into a school of multicolored fish.
What does not make sense to you? That Krys' weapon can turn a monster into a multitude of rainbow fish? Have you been paying attention at all? I have spent several paragraphs telling you about rainbow belts, polishing sprites, and robots that spit out rope on command. This is what you harp on? While we are at it, "Obi-Wan Iguana Sloths" is probably one of the most accurate descriptions I have ever invented. Don't knock it until you see the movie.
So, as you may have guessed, the freedom fighters do manage to defeat the Princess by destroying the jewel that is the source of all her power. Meanwhile, on Spectra, Orin and a loyal team of sprite polishers cut up the net and push it into a canyon. It looks like Rainbow Brite has won. Except, a massive spaceship, with the Princess at the controls, is headed right for Spectra! If she cannot have the diamond world, then nobody will. The vile girl is going to shatter the planet by ramming it! At the last minute, Rainbow Brite uses her belt to create a rainbow that repulses the ship and causes it to explode in midair. The sprites probably spent the next two weeks picking up debris and chunks of the Princess, but don't tell the kids.
If you know what is good for you, you will not tell your daughters or nieces that this movie exists.
You know what I think? Hallmark created this movie as a way to torture PCP addicts. I have never used it myself, but have encountered people under its influence. They are unpredictable and can experience vivid hallucinations. If you painted a room a soothing shade of blue, decorated it with a glass of pure white milk atop a plain table, then gave someone Angel Dust and locked them inside, they would probably be pounding on the door and screaming their head off after ten minutes. Imagine exposing someone who was already dealing with a distorted sense of reality to ninety minutes of this film. Right around the time that Rainbow Brite starts shooting the Obi-Wan Iguana Sloths in the eyes with her rainbows, I think the shrieking would reach a crescendo. The poor bastard would probably die while trying to climb up the wall, looking for all the world like a grotesque human version of those cicada nymph shells that children find stuck on trees.
Things I Learned From This Movie:
Horses hibernate through the winter.
All of the light in the universe comes from a diamond planet. It is protected by Megaman's rainbow cousin.
Earth's ice ages were caused by political turmoil on another planet.
Rainbows are capable of reaching escape velocity.
Lasers make ricochet sounds when they hit a crystal.
Black holes are caused by magic.
Stay out of spawning pools, no matter what the species.
Rainbow Brite needs to have a talk with Jenny Craig.
Stuff To Watch For:
7 mins - I have no idea what is going on.
11 mins - Stormy must have a summer cottage in England.
22 mins - For those wondering: Murky used teflon-coated rivets.
29 mins - Opposable thumbs would make your ruse much more convincing.
34 mins - Wait a minute, what about your magic rainbow belt? Oh, of course it would not work near a waterfall.
38 mins - Face it, dog, you are going to die. Wait until the boy collapses from hypothermia and then eat the body.
47 mins - Does the castle have 37mm flak lasers or are those the gauss flux arcs?
55 mins - I am not certain how much more of this I can take. If I see one more rainbow...
Rainbow Brite: "Spectra is the diamond planet. All the light in the universe has to pass through it." Lurky: "Boy, Murky, I bet it's shiny." Murky: "Not after I get done with it. This is my chance to rid the universe of color forever!"
Rainbow Brite: "The light of Spectra is the life of the universe. With that net all over everything, the light can't get through!" On-X: "Princess plans to pull Spectra with spaceship. Net is for spaceship to hold onto."
Krys: "This is what you call help, a girl? Orin's locked up someplace, the glitterbots have everybody on Spectra hypnotized but me, and that's only because I can run faster than anybody, the Princess is wrapping the whole planet up like a birthday present, and you bring me a girl?"
Rainbow Brite rocks hard. So do all the My Little Pony Tales, and My Little Pony episodes/movies. Care bears were awsome too. It's rediculous and it amuses me, but it does have it's own magical qualities and I have always loved it. Even my brother loved it when he was little.
Long live psychadellic rainbow horse warrior girl spritey fuzzy furball people! Ponies and rainbows and plots that don't make sense!
You wanna see a bad movie, you go watch Manos: The Hands of Fate. That will for sure traumatize you.
Rainbow Brite rocks hard. So do all the My Little Pony Tales, and My Little Pony episodes/movies. Care bears were awsome too. It's rediculous and it amuses me, but it does have it's own magical qualities and I have always loved it. Even my brother loved it when he was little.
Long live psychadellic rainbow horse warrior girl spritey fuzzy furball people! Ponies and rainbows and plots that don't make sense!
You wanna see a bad movie, you go watch Manos: The Hands of Fate. That will for sure traumatize you. | {
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Gutenberg Clock Keeps Time by Reading Books
We’ve seen a wide variety of hacks that keep time, but [ch00f]’s latest build takes a new spin on counting the seconds. The Gutenberg Clock keeps time by reading books on a scrolling LED screen.
The content for the clock is sourced from the Project Gutenberg, which releases books with expired copyright for free. The library on the clock consists of around twenty thousand such books. Read at eighty words per minute, the clock won’t repeat a passage for the next thirty-three years.
While the clock doesn’t display time itself, it is synchronized to time. Two identical clocks should display the same text at the same time. To get the time, [ch00f] first tried hacking apart a cheap radio clock, which is synchronized to NIST’s 60 kHz broadcast. After reverse engineering the protocol with great success, stray RF energy from the display turned out to cause too much interference.
With the cheap solution out the window, [ch00f] built a custom breakout for an Adafruit GPS module and used it to get the time. This was his first RF board, but it worked out fine.
Books are loaded onto a FAT filesystem on an SD card, and [ChaN]’s FatFS is used to interpret the filesystem. A microcontroller then sends the text out at a constant rate to a serial port on the display which he hacked his way into.
The project is a neat mix of art and electronics. Stick around for a video overview after the break.
It just seems that this project thumbs its nose at everything it encompasses. Time keeping, and text. The beauty of text is that it is not time clocked, you start it when you want to. I suppose the beauty of time is that everything does not happen at once. I’m not sure how time enhances text though.
With a light alteration to that LED display, it would be feasible to ‘Spritz’ (silly verbed name I admit,for an old idea) the words instead of scrolling them…. http://www.spritzinc.com which looks quite neat.
Well, unlike the nattering nabobs above, I think this is incredibly cool. Dealing with commercial LED matrix signs always seems to involve some dirty hackery since they’re never well-documented or designed for this sort of integration, but that’s really not the point.
The point is that this device starts conversations. It’s not meant to sit in your private lab and tell the time — it’s not really a clock in that sense. Put it in the study, put it in the family room, put it in a coffee shop or a gallery or a courthouse. It’s a reminder of how much time humans have spent writing down our thoughts, and how much time it would take to absorb them all. This has already been shown to be impossible:
The irony is that ch00f’s project will, in fact, run out of material in just a few decades. Maybe by that time, copyright law will have been reformed and the next version will read for a millennium, or maybe it’ll just be stuck reading the same 29,000 out-of-copyright books forever, emphasizing how *modern* human knowledge is not as free as it once was. Even as the practical barriers to writing and distribution get almost infinitely low..
What a beautiful Idea. I love it. there really is something special about being able to look up and see words from books long ago have little to no clue what you may be reading. I could get lost staring at this. Great project. | {
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A neurosurgeon who has pioneered the use of “deep brain stimulation” and a cardiologist who has transformed the care of heart failure have been awarded the third annual Margolese National Brain and Heart Disorders Prizes, among the most prestigious prizes bestowed by UBC.
This year, the two $50,000 prizes are being awarded to scientist-clinicians in Ontario: Andres Lozano, Professor and Chair of the Division of Neurosurgery at the University of Toronto, and Peter Liu, Scientific Director of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute and a Professor of Medicine at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre at the University of Toronto.
The Margolese Prizes are awarded to Canadians who have transformed care in heart and brain diseases, with the expectation that the recipients will continue their outstanding research to improve the lives of individuals with these disorders. The recipients were chosen following the review and adjudication of an international panel of experts as well as an internal UBC committee chaired by Gavin Stuart, the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and UBC’s Vice Provost, Health.
The two prizes were created by an estate gift to UBC by Leonard Herbert Margolese to recognize Canadians who have made outstanding contributions to the treatment, amelioration or cure of brain or heart disorders. Margolese, who died in 2000, was a Vancouver businessman who had a heart condition and whose brother had Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr. Lozano and Dr. Liu will be honoured by UBC at a celebratory banquet in the fall.
Andres Lozano
Andres Lozano
Dr. Lozano, winner of the Margolese National Brain Disorders Prize, is a world leader in deep brain stimulation (DBS) – implanting electrodes in different parts of the brain to ameliorate a variety of neurological and psychiatric conditions, especially Parkinson’s disease. He and his team have operated on more than 1,000 patients with Parkinson’s disease and related disorders, with direct impact on their tremor and mobility. He has established Toronto as a global hub for these procedures.
He was the first to explore the effectiveness of the procedure for treating depression and Alzheimer’s disease; he is now leading a multi-centre trial involving 50 Alzheimer’s patients, and another involving 200 patients with depression. He also has explored the procedure’s potential for treating epilepsy, obsessive compulsive disorder, biopolar disorder, chronic pain, Tourette’s syndrome and severe anorexia.
Dr. Lozano also is a leading figure in mapping the human brain, discovering the electrophysiological function of critical regions, including the thalamus, which regulates consciousness, sleep, and alertness, and the pedunculopontine nucleus, a part of the brain stem that is involved in arousal, attention, learning, reward, and voluntary limb movements and locomotion. These discoveries carried important potential clinical implications, not only for DBS, but to understanding disorders of sleep, wakefulness, and other neuropsychiatric conditions.
Dr. Lozano has authored or co-authored over 400 peer-reviewed publications, many in top-tier medical journals, and is one of the world’s most cited neuroscientists (and the most cited in the field of DBS). He is a member of the scientific advisory boards of some of the most influential research organizations, including the Michael J. Fox Foundation. He is a member of the editorial boards of 18 international journals (two of which he serves as deputy editor); and a former president of the American Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery and the World Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery.
Peter Liu
Peter Liu
Dr. Liu, winner of the Margolese National Heart Disorders Prize, has explored the interplay between viruses and the body’s immune system and how this can inflict often fatal damage on the heart muscle. Such viruses are common, but some individuals – particularly in infancy or childhood – cannot contain the viruses, which degrade the heart muscle cells’ ability to contract, and may kill those cells, thus rendering the pump ineffective. In other cases, the immune system over-reacts, causing excessive inflammation. Dr. Liu’s elegant use of mouse models and human systems biology tools have elucidated the interplay between the viral invasion and the body’s response.
He also revealed the biological processes responsible for “heart remodeling,” in which the heart adapts to insults like a restriction of blood supply or viral injury. Those remodeling changes, however, can carry their own problems, including larger and abnormally shaped chambers, and are harbingers of heart failure or sudden death.
Dr. Liu has extended his research well beyond the laboratory to examine the epidemiology of heart disease, including a 2006 warning shot in the New England Journal of Medicine about the rising incidence and mortality of diastolic heart failure – in which the heart doesn’t relax properly between beats, preventing blood from filling the ventricles. He contributed to Canada’s innovative heart failure practice guidelines, ensuring that research knowledge is translated into point-of-care benefits for patients. He also led the harmonization of cardiovascular risk factor management guidelines that have been adopted across the country.
He has published over 350 peer-reviewed scholarly articles. He is currently President of the International Society of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Failure, and served previously as the Scientific Director of the Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. | {
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Quotations
"We as conservatives have got to step away from this crony capitalist style of development," said Rep. Adam Kwasman, R-Oro Valley. "We cannot afford to pick winners and losers in industry. We believe in low taxes for everybody. We believe in simple rules for everybody." | {
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Amber Campion
Amber Campion (E-500 RYT) is a Transformational Leadership Coach, Yoga Teacher & Teacher Trainer. She is committed to serving emerging leaders (yoga teachers, coaches, conscious entrepreneurs, community organizers, activists, and other mindful, go getting creatives) to step into their power, presence, and purpose - taking a stand for their deepest truths as they reach for their potential and actualize their visions. Through her esteemed coaching programs, trainings, and retreats she has guided hundreds of people to live, love, and give bigger than they ever thought possible.
She is the creator of Dynamic Release Method™ and the transformational 200 hour Alchemy of Body, Mind, & Soul Personal Development and Leadership Yoga Teacher Training. She is also the Founder of the Living Powerfully Movement and the Peace In Peace Out Project™ (launching in May of 2016). | {
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Monthly Archives: April 2019
You know it’s been too long between posts when you can’t remember how to log in to your own website. Which could be good for security. Say if someone dangled me by my feet over a cliff and yelled “tell me the password to your website or it’s all over baby!” I could honestly reply “Well I’d genuinely love to help you but I can’t remember.” Might get me out of that sticky situation.
I’m beyond excited about my new book Vincent and The Grandest Hotel on Earth coming out on 2 July! You won’t believe this place. It really is wilder than the African savanna, more fantastical that Disneyland and more magical than Shangri-La. Can I just say pocket dogs and sloths…and wait till you hear about the rooms…. | {
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Category: Blogjet
I decided that I can fine a software software program that I can go and type my blogs in, instead of login to my blogger account, I rather I have something that I can make it easy for me to blogs www.blogjet.com What do you think, please let me know and if you blog! What blog service do you use, if like it please comment down letting me know why you like it! | {
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Guideline for Submission of Comments
Author: pknappstein
What not to forget!
Some things just make life a whole lot easier when you remember to take them with you when going abroad – even though you might not think of them in the first place.
by Pia Knappstein
Power strip
Photo by Karl Baron
Something so small, so easy to forget but nevertheless one of the essential things that you should fit into your suitcase. This way, you need to take less adapters and you can easily charge or use any electronic device you want to without too much effort.
But don’t forget to take an adapter, too!
Tourist guide
Photo by spykster
You will probably get a tourist guide before you leave from your parents, family or friends. Make sure to take it and have a look at what you can do! Usually, they have information about the country, culture and also the city you will be visiting. Have a look inside to get some insights about nice spots to go sightseeing, shopping and eating. But make sure to ask the locals for some special tips as well. They will have interesting perspectives and can definitely give you insights that are different than the ones a tourist would get. And that’s the goal, isn’t it?
Chocolate
Photo by Eric Hossinger
No matter if you like chocolate or not – the locals you will get to know will definitely be excited to try some candy of the country you come from. Plus, you will really appreciate to have something to offer to people – it is interesting for others and it is a nice way to get in touch with people talking about your own culture. Additionally, I can tell you from experience, that sometimes while you are travelling you are more than happy to eat things you didn’t like before. In Germany, we have a really dark bread called Pumpernickel that I absolutely disliked when I was in Germany. Being abroad for some time, I found it really nice – until I came back to Germany again.
Something from where you come from
Photo by Romain Guy
Bring something unique to the region or country you come from. It could be a nice wine for your Homestay family, a game you really enjoy to play or music that a local band produces. As you grow into the new culture, and learn many new things, you should give something back to the people around you. For example: I brought one of my favorite games called “Ligretto” and fridge magnets from the city I come from.
Travel Diary
Photo by Frederik Rubensson
No matter if you like writing or not, you really should hold on to your memories. You are going to experience so much in the upcoming time that it is almost impossible to keep all of that in mind. Photos capture some of these moments, but it is also nice to have a place to write down funny stories and new impressions. I am 100% sure after your return, you will enjoy flipping through the pages seeing all those memories. It is one of the best feelings going back in time to these wonderful moments. You can also find very nice applications for your computer. Mac users might like Day one that looks very user-friendly and you can also add photos and export it as a PDF file.
Cooking Skills
Photo by Laura D’Alessandro
The saying goes that The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach – this is also true for friends and family. You should absolutely be able to prepare a traditional meal or desert for friends and family abroad. This creates an international understanding of the culture and maybe corrects the impression people have on your origin before getting to know your culture. Furthermore, you are going to want to show off with the great things your national cuisine offers! And of course, sometimes you are going to miss your mother’s cooking skills and then it’s up to you to take over the cooking spoon.
How-To Washing Machine
Photo by Christian Senger
Although your parents might still be doing your laundry at home, there is no guarantee that your host family is going to do the laundry for you, too. So now is the time to look over your parent’s shoulder and get some tips and tricks how to use the tools you might need. You don’t want your favorite shirt to turn out to be the shirt that is too small since the last laundry load. And even if you don’t need to do your laundry yourself – maybe you don’t want your homestay to wash your underwear.
Last but not least be sure to bring an open mind and be ready for all the new adventures that will come your way!
I’m Pia and I’m from Germany. My Muskoka Language International experience is not the traditional student experience, but rather a university student experience. What I’m doing is an internship. I have now been with the company for over two months and I feel it has been one of the best decisions that I have made.
When I was 16, my parents gave me the chance to spend 9 months abroad in Auckland, New Zealand. That was when I fell in love with travelling, going abroad and getting to know new cultures. That is also the reason, why I came to Canada to do my internship. I knew that I wanted to do the curricular internship for university abroad and when my boyfriend was accepted in a laboratory here, I had to take the chance.
And now I’m here. And I love it.
So far, what I can tell you about MLI is that it is fun! The team is absolutely fantastic.
The first person I got in touch with was Kathy. I called her from Germany and the first impression was lovely. Every time we talked I was more and more looking forward to go to Canada. She made me feel welcome and valued before I came and she did not disappoint me once I arrived. Every time we talked on Skype I was more and more excited about what was to come.
When Cindy picked me up from the airport, she talked about Muskoka Language International as “the family”. I think that is just the right term for the company. Kathy welcomed me with a hug, I had a long chat with Mike about the company history and we had lots of cake – which was a really nice thing, of course.
I am working for Muskoka Language International with Michelle on social media. When I came, the media presence was… interesting. We started setting up all the different networks, went through all the material and sent many organisational emails. Going through all the photos and videos, I was reminded of the great experiences I was given as a student abroad and I am now being given again during this internship.
If you want to know what the company with the slogan of small town Canada is about, it is really about family. What Mike, Bev and Cheryl want for the students is also what they live behind the windows of MLI. Everybody is welcome, it is personal and everybody is as valued coming as leaving. The team has built very strong ties.
Besides working with Michelle on social media, I got the opportunity to gain some insights into the other departments and understand the different issues that arise and see first-hand how people support each other in problem solving. I don’t know if this is just Canadian nature, however I never experienced this level of teamwork before.
After 2 months of work, I feel that I have now decided the business I want to work in for the rest of my life. I am very much looking forward to all that is still to come. I can’t wait for it! | {
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12 entries set for the final Guernsey event of 2016
The fifth and final event of the 2016 Stanley Gibbons Investment Series will take place this weekend with 12 entries.
V24
Martyn Roberts and Tim Abbot will be the sole entrant V24, It Wasn’t Us has placed second in the 2016 British V24 championship and can’t be beaten in the Guernsey V24 Series.
Club Class 2
Jai Rive and Kirsty Savident will be competing in Grey Sea (above) having already won the Guernsey Club Class 2 Championship in their first year of racing.
Club Class 3
Gareth and Matt Keast lead the Club Class 3 Championship in their Phantom, The Governor and will be sparring against 2016 UIM Silver Medalists Paul Etasse and Chris Stonebridge in Slayer.
Having gone through more saddles this year than John Wayne in a Hollywood western, the team are using this weekend as a springboard for their attempt on the Class 3A World Speed Record at Lake Coniston later this month.
Sue Cosgrave and Quentin Petit are teaming up for the first time in Dirty Deeds and Sue is taking to the wheel in place of regular driver Mark Terry.
Chris Bates and Jon Le Page in Bad Influence will not let an up close and personal encounter with a turn buoy stop them as we found out in the last event!
Finally in this class are regular entrants from Jersey, Scott ‘Chaka’ Walker and George Carter in 3-666 Bellona.
The team have been plagued with mechanical issues all year but are confident this weekend to make the start and finish line on both days.
Z Class
3 teams will be battling it out in Z Class.
Z-27 Dewpacabra – Patrick and Philip Dewe are leading the Championship with Bill Gladstone and Z-121 – Me Too!
Katie Sauvarin and Ben Backhouse in Z-38 Money Monster have had a great year in their new rig taking mechanical problems in their stride, learning and improving every race.
Club Class 1
John Richardson with Sophie Le Prevost in 1-48 Easy Emily will race against Sean Homer with Dave Le Maitre in 1-7 Wonky Donkey.
Richardson is hoping he has more luck with his engine at this event after melting a piston and having to change the powerhead last time around.
Homer and Le Maitre have also put an entry in hoping to gain valuable points towards the Class Championship.
The racing this weekend is Saturday and Sunday with the teams taking to the Havelet/Lowerheads course involving multi laps for the different classes.
The start times are 10.15 Saturday and 11.15 Sunday with the best viewing points on Havelet wall, The Cows Horn or the Castle Breakwater. | {
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This article was not born by chance. On the Internet you will find lots of information on eBay and most of the information on how to easily, quickly and perfectly to make money, as well as numerous algorithms for registration and Answers to the question – what to sell (article: 'The truth about phones for $ 0.99'). This, of course, there is a grain of truth, but most importantly it is not. The main thing – it's approach to the work at auction. That's what we'll talk.
Below are six terms, which will lead you to success. First, discard the view that this is a freebie, and did not spent any work you will earn millions. In some books they write: '… I dug around in his home and found a bunch of useless things (Teddy bear, an old camera, old radio, Soviet stamps, etc., etc.), put it all on the auction and paid a lot of money …. '. Stocks will not last forever, but what next? In the words of the famous cat Matroskin Cartoon: 'Before you sell anything unnecessary, you need to buy anything unnecessary.
" Golden words! Most of what happens, you first purchased the goods, and then put up for auction for sale. Here and work begins, which is: in the selection of goods that will be in demand, the right timing and duration of the auction, drawing and describing a display lot, packing and shipping the lot buyer. This is really interesting and exciting work. Some are selling something, somewhere bought, others sell what they did with their hands. Professional Auction that are really making good money, not sprayed on the sale of a heap of unnecessary things, but choose one or a few niches and sell the same type of product (for example: cameras and accessories). Here is this all we are learning, making a first purchase and sell on eBay. Second, believe in forces, be active. Maybe not all at once you will get and therefore the first failure should not give up. Should consider their actions and try to find mistakes, correct them and to take into account when next billing lots. In each failure, look for the positive aspects associated with the accumulation of experience, so as not to step on the same rake twice. Only with experience comes confidence and will be less errors. Third, analyze all your shopping successful and unsuccessful, to gain experience to use in their sales and not rely on chance. Only serious attitude to business account and allow to extract the maximum profit. Notices every little thing which contributed to your sales. Fourth, use the experience of others, sometimes the mistakes are very costly. Try to find sources on the Internet that will be useful, it's forums and libraries. If this is not enough contact to sites. Fifth, copy, look how others exhibiting similar lots. Before that a copy try to understand why it is so entered the seller, add a description of the lot that see fit, blind copying any good will not. Gradually, you develop your corporate identity. Sixth, automate the process. When you have a dozen lots of time on the processing takes a little bit, and if it is fifty or more lots, then you pogryaznite in daily routine. In runet can find many interesting programs, such as on putting lots, web-design, and to record shipment, availability, etc. etc. As you can see, nothing complicated, the main correct approach to business and all you get. Be bold.
Hello dear users of a PC. This article is about earning online. I offer you a couple of options for earning on the Internet: 1) Paid surveys 2) Focus Group 3) Telephone interviews 4) View Film Clips 5) Samples of the products you can earn: participation in online surveys – $ 5 from 80 USD FOR ONE OPROS.UCHASTIE in focus groups – from $ 30 up to $ 150 FOR ONE CHAS.TELEFONNOE INTERVIEW – from $ 5 up to $ 50 FOR INTERVYU.PROSMOTR Film Clips – from $ 5 up to $ 30 FOR ONE CHAS.POLUCHAYTE hundreds of samples of new products – FREE. 1 Paid Surveys: This survey is carried out which company to get your opinion on this or that product. Many companies spend millions of dollars for market research, they do not want to make a mistake that will cost billions of dollars, so they create these polls.
Usually consists of 8-60 survey questions on one or more subjects. All you need to just simply choose yes or no. For interviews, you can choose the time convenient for you. 2 Focus Groups: Focus groups are group interviews conducted by the organizers in the form of discussion, according to a predetermined scenario with a small group of "typical" representatives of the studied population, similar in basic social characteristics. All you need to just come navego in a certain place, at the appointed time and engage in a discussion topic group (Yogurt, cigarettes, MTS, milk and dairy products, wine and digustirovaniya ETC) 3 Telephone interview: an interview with Time 5-15 minutes, during which you will ask questions and you respond accordingly. This work considered less paid. 4 View Film Clips: This is the way to hold on earnings, you are shown the spot after which you are asked to prokamentirovat this video. Number 5 And the last thing I can suggest this sample products.
You will be sent home Test your work product is that it would try to imagine and prokamentirovat. I'm not kidding it's all real, give an example: Top 5 recruiters Payments Vorontsov Elena1430 ye Abaturov Marat1322 ye. Zabrodin Pavel1031 Orlovsky Kirill920 ye ye. Miller Mihail810 ye I know what they really earn this money, because I am working with them and even with 173 920 participants. My advice is to sign up to give 100% for the work they pay. I have searched many sites but no where to work were not paid, so ekonomlyu real time to move on and start earning. By filling in a survey in the day, giving it 15 minutes, you can earn $ 150 a month for 1 hour daily work. Now imagine that you do not fill out a simple questionnaire to $ 2, and 'average' for $ 9 … you get $ 270 per month! * This is not an easy job, money is never distributed just so. selected certain group, I personally know that people make for myself at work but in any case you are involved in the prize draw. On this website () you can earn up to $ 1,400 each month.
And carefully read the customer comments about that needs to be done. 8. Start with the easiest. So, selecting a task, you must click ‘get to work’ – then click ‘Run’ – then, in a new tab opens in which your work will be assigned a serial nomen work, click on the link ‘URL for the job. ” 9.
In the new tab that opens click on ‘link to go’, which will transfer you to a site on which the steps are required to leave their message. 10. Usually this is a forum, blog or website. To no one could do something to pre-register. It’s easy. Click the link ‘REGSTRATSIYA’ and there, you enter your user name, e-mail address (some forums sent to this address link to activate registration) and password to login to this forum. 11.
If register online go to him again on the link of the job and leave in a particular subject the post. For this selecting the topic at the bottom of the page Buttons ‘answer’ – in the form that appears, you enter your comment. 12. In the course of writing the post monitor its length, keeping the bare minimum (for this copying is not sent the text, right-click drag it into the form on the page where he was given the number of your work – the meter automatically indicate the size of your post. .) 13. By clicking ‘submit’ you enter the post to the forum. After of viewing the post on the forum page, and copy with him (again, right-click) the address of your post (from the address bar of your browser) in the remaining open form with a number of the rectangle in the ‘URL of executions work ‘. Also, copy the text in the post box ‘text of the work,’ and copy the post in the topic title ‘title’ 14. After filling in all boxes press the ‘Finish’ 15. All your work is done, to wait check its customers and charging money for this work to the internal account in the system. At 10 ye set you can transfer money to your WMZ-purse. 16. Sometimes, if you are not exactly fulfilled the conditions of the job, the customer asks finish – you can see it going in your aakaunt and clicking on the link ‘RESERVED WORKS’ – in this section nohodyatsya not paid work. I have tried to describe the work as detailed as possible with this program, I hope that all clear and no problems should arise. If anything – write and ask.
Since the Internet firmly entrenched in our lives, humanity enjoys its benefits. More and more people begin to earn money through internet. Given the universality of such communication means as the Internet can be seen that the role of many spheres of human activity associated with it greatly increased. It’s believed that Ben Horowitz sees a great future in this idea. Anyone, any company can use the Internet for the benefit of themselves. With it you can promote a variety of services and goods. But for qualitative advancement in the modern Internet, you must be one of the first. Be the first in the pages of Yandex and Google. One method of promoting a competitive environment is a unique and high quality content. Douglas R. Oberhelman follows long-standing procedures to achieve this success.
To do this, and need a copywriting. Copywriting is the writing and development of unique promotional text for site content. He an integral part of any advertising campaign. This is work that requires a lot of knowledge in such areas as advertising, psychology cheloveka.Dlya successfully create high-quality advertising copywriter must have a text but it has many abilities. It should first be attractive. Very useful knowledge about the company, the specifics of its goods or services. To write a quality sales letter just need to identify the target audience of the company for which written the text.
Writing texts – it is the combination of creativity and advanced technology Internet – marketing. By creating attractive texts, including a description of the goods and you create a site merits its offer, able to bring your site in top positions of search and keep visitors on the site. So, you're helping your visitors to take a constructive decision to purchase, download, register it on your sayte.Ispolzuya quality content, you increase the sales of your products and services. The Internet kopiraytig – one of the most popular industries of earnings. You can become a copywriter. After all, man is nothing impossible. Of course a day or two is impossible. In any case, in order to reach a good level may take several months. Skill over time pridet.Poprobovat forces can be exchanges of copywriting. For example here. Here you can find a job and get the original experience. Start with short texts. Then proceed to the more serious. Write your unique lyrics and sell them!
Website Design – a very well-paid types of earnings on the Internet. Keith McLoughlin might disagree with that approach. The main thing is to find a customer who wants to build a website and having the financial means to pay for this work. Let's look at how to organize creation of sites for beauty and to make money. Due to strong competition and a number of different proposals, they need high-quality advertising to attract more affluent customers. Creating such a site is not difficult work even for novice webmasters, the main fact here is unique information. In addition, they have their advantages – many unspoiled knowledge and experience of thinking. But still require certain skills and knowledge.
Maybe should create a team where everyone will do their part of the work – writing texts, optimized for the site, graphics processing, etc. If something does not know to Distinctive features the same Internet. Maybe someone will want to independently perform a full range of activities – from creating a site to promote its search engine, the choice is yours. Just once I want to give advice. You should not create its own site of the first who got you to sample from the Internet.
Believe me, it becomes boring when you see exactly the same sites of various companies, except that different pictures. Believe in your strength, show originality and you can make good money online. Maybe that's you – a rising star. So the first thing that you have to do – is to find a good photographer is able to show original and new work of the salon look at it from side. Write interesting and vivid texts can offer students, journalists, and as payment for their work can offer the services of the same cabin. Solves two problems – quality text and free model. Good luck to you start, gentlemen.
Many welcomed the message 'passive income' but not everyone knows the real meaning of this phrase. Passive income to 'build' the most. That is to say to you the money trickled into the pocket without significant interference to you for your this is hard and long work. This article will talk about how to organize the return from the site with Google AdSense. What is it? It's simple …. accommodation is majoring in advertising theme of your site using Google. For even more opinions, read materials from Howard Schultz. To access – register as a webmaster on Google.
Once you have placed the proposed code to the page of your site is content analysis processes and displays advertisements. For example you have a website on the topic machine, then advertising will be roughly as follows: "Repair Machines', or 'purchase of machinery', etc. You'll earn after the user clicks on your site advertising message. After danogo action into your account a certain sum, which depends on the performance of traffic to your site. Typically the cost of a click on the ads will bring you 0.01 to $ 2 But it is not so simple.
For tangible income is a lot of work. The site must create, promote and maintain. Before you use advertising from Google AdSense is familiar with the terms of its placement. Not in any way disturb them! It threatens to ban as a good site and advertising. At this stage you have probably there was a great idea! And why not 'poklatsat' own advertising on the site? The answer is simple – you are banned and you never use the system. Not limited to one site. Make a few and uskospetsializirovanyh relinks each other. Place each from Google AdSense roeklamu. It is not necessary to save time for such work. With the right approach, you eventually reach the desired success.
Now you should be prepared for direct sales from your website. Site promoted, advertisers found. There is only one question – what price to set for the sale of advertising on your site. Ben Horowitzs opinions are not widely known. Sponsors want it is always view reports, learn what they are paying and what benefits it brings to them. Reports about your job, about the effectiveness of impressions, clicks, and sales opportunities. Try to provide them with these reports more detailed and qualitative. Figures Remember that there is a cheaper advertising (eg, Google AdWords), and you have to be competitive. If you provide a good advertising space, such as the sidebar, then the place to start would be to put the price in $ 0.5 per 1,000 impressions.
If your blog gives 10 000 page impressions per month, thus placing a banner on the side will cost $ 50 a month. Start with low prices and their subsequent rise. Cross-checking Analyze how much you could earn with AdSense and adjust your price accordingly. Second, you can also check similar sites that are already engaged in direct sales. Be accommodating flexibility in the relationship is crucial.
First of all, negotiate about advertising from month to month. People do not want anything to do, if they are not sure entirely. If someone offers you a place more ads on your website – give him a discount. Suggest a trial period if you have a popular resource, you will find potential advertisers who want to spend money. Sometimes offer a free trial period. Some of Advertisers will want to continue to work with you on a fee basis. In any case, you lose nothing.
I assume you already understand what will be discussed further. Read additional details here: Douglas R. Oberhelman. Of course, on how to achieve financial health, not leaving the house. Identified several areas of earnings on the Internet: Freelance. This, as you know, remote work. That is, you register on the exchange of freelancing (the most popular free-lance.ru), looking for a job that you like (and forces) are doing, get the coin on your wallet (WebMoney, YandeksDengi or any other).
You do not have to be super-duper professional in design, programming or copywriting, you can perform a variety of unskilled and work. I remember doing such things as the search word in the internet (for a subsequent rewrite, apparently) The database of names of enterprises, printing the content on sites, image processing in large quantities (superimposition of the watermark) – so much all there. I'll tell you from experience – his thousand and 02.03 per month you can earn (on at, least, do not die of starvation). True, it's boring. BUT! If you know how to make websites, or you have the talent of designer / artist / architect, or you own a masterly pen (that is able to express their beautiful or strange thoughts on a topic) – then you can earn a freelance 5-10 thousand rubles a month, maybe more. The main thing is less pathos, more cases (as new entrants to the exchange of dumping on the remote-terrible – and if you ache prices for their services, then left with nothing.) Miscellaneous crap that takes up a lot of time and almost no revenue.
Such as: pay per click, polls, spam, etc. Labuda, means a lot in our home Internet. Maybe someone has something on it and running, but I think this is an exception, not trend. For example: the year that way in 2006, I signed up for globaltestmarket.com – online service interviews with world-renowned. Fill in information about yourself, you'll periodically send links with the invitation to the survey, this survey was conducted you, you enroll at the expense of glasses. With the accumulation of 1000 points, you can exchange them for money, on their course – 1000 points – $ 50. So, at first I really hard to answer these tests in the hope of a comfortable future, then I got sick, but the invitation came. Sometimes, from time to time, when there was nothing to do, I still held polls. And then, finally, after 3 years, I gained the coveted 1000 points, designed the output from the system and … no, no, I have not cheated, I actually sent a check for $ 50, though a check of a U.S. bank, cash which is not so easy. I learned to VTB-24, to come to this Cheque encashment issue, they sent the check back to America, and Pindos transfer money to the account of VTB, and I get their money, minus commission VTB (20 bucks at least for this operation) is only 2 months. In short, I lie this check, so to speak for a rainy day. Since then, I was disappointed in these services, and advise you not to spend them on time. Finally, the most interesting and perhaps profitable way of earning money – it's earnings through its website (Or sites). There are so many different nuances, aspects that I think I'll talk about this in the next few notes. Hopefully this article has opened your eyes to the truth about the earnings in the network and brought invaluable. | {
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Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Another Scarf...
Just wanted to pop in and show you that I have managed a wee bit of hooky lately. I'm working away on my latest Granny Square but it is slow progress when you are using 4 ply wool and a 3.5 hook.
Anyway, the lovely teacher who received this scarf, handed me a bag of the most scrumptious wool at the kid's Sports Day and asked if I could make her a Winter scarf, so here it is. I can't find the label but it was a wool cashmere mix - I think... and is super soft. Again, the usual, unimaginative UK Tr Crochet stitch, but I think it looked ok and I have just received a message to say she loves it!
Not the best photo but I was taking it as I was running out the door to pick Smallest Boy up from Pre-school. I was told off by a friend recently for not taking photos of everything I make so made the effort to remember!
Why aren't you on Ravelry? Join! What blanket are you making? Who's it for? I'm making one just now too, the Double Diamond pattern: http://www.bernat.com/pattern.php?PID=2301
Lastly, I rather like that green scarf. Don't you find hooking odd length yarn difficult? It's hard to gauge because the yarn is thick in some places and fine in others. I've donated tons of it to the art dept at school because it looks lovely in the shop and then I can't find a thing to make with it. Art teacher loves me and my failures; so many wooden spoon people with weird yarn hair for the kids to enjoy.
Great scarf, I have some wool that looks very similar to that I brought it on a whim during the winter and havent used it... I think I know what Ill use it for now, but maybe next winter- its not exactly scarf weather here now. Hope you are having a lovely week! Janette x
Thanks for the comments! I actually love the green and wish I had found the yarn for myself, no leftovers unfortunately! Because it's so chunky and skinny at the same time, I use the biggest hook I have, a 15mm, and keep it as loose as I can manage. I was roasting even just tying it on, so I imagine she will be putting it away for awhile.Sx | {
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Wednesday, 17 December 2014
Maya Winter Submission - Pencil - Textures
A low-quality picture of the textured versions of my Pencil and Eraser characters, learned a few interesting things like how to make camera shots and select faces. Should make life easier in view of texturing everything. | {
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Waiting for Justice
A federal appeals court recently freed a man who had been incarcerated nearly seven years awaiting trial. Although the court labeled Joseph Tigano III’s pretrial incarceration “egregiously oppressive,” it suggested there was no one factor to blame. “Years of subtle neglects,” the court wrote, “resulted in a flagrant violation of Tigano's Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial.”
Tigano’s case fits a familiar narrative of clogged courts and bureaucratic indifference. There is, however, another factor that has been overlooked in coverage of it. While the appeals court and subsequent media portrayals suggest that prompt trials are the solution to cases like Tigano’s, the real fix is long-delayed, bipartisan sentencing reform. That is because the problem in Tigano’s case was not neglect, but a 20-year mandatory-minimum sentence that loomed over every decision in the case.
Tigano’s case was no Agatha Christie mystery. Federal agents found 1,400 marijuana plants growing in Tigano’s residence. What’s more, three separate agents testified that Tigano confessed that he grew the marijuana. That’s a tough case to fight. He was going to lose at trial, it seemed, and he was going to lose big.
While many states are lining up to cash in on marijuana legalization, federal law still dictates that a person who grows “1,000 or more marihuana plants … shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment which may not be less than 10 years.” That’s a 10-year mandatory prison term for growing marijuana—doubled for anyone, like Tigano, with a prior felony drug conviction.
That is why the attorneys and lower court judges in Tigano’s case overlooked the speedy trial rule. They were not neglecting Tigano. They were, instead, repeatedly delaying his case — to the point of ordering three needless mental competency examinations — in the hope that Tigano would agree to a plea deal. With 20 years on the horizon, everyone, including Tigano’s own attorneys, could put up with an otherwise unconscionable delay that would ultimately be deducted from his eventual sentence.
Tigano, however, insisted on his constitutional right to a trial. After seven years, he finally got it. There were no surprises. The jury convicted and the judge sentenced him to 20 years in federal prison. Of course, no one expected the final twist. On appeal, the lengthy pretrial delay set Tigano free.
That’s not going to work for future defendants caught in Tigano’s predicament. Most will take plea deals to avoid mandatory sentences, even if they are innocent. Others will insist on a speedy trial and get it, along with the accompanying crushing prison term. But there is one thing that can consistently fix this form of injustice: eliminating mandatory minimums.
The appeals court’s opinion says that “no single, extraordinary factor caused the cumulative seven years of pretrial delay.” That’s wrong. The 20-year mandatory sentence for growing marijuana ignited all the chaos in Tigano’s case. That’s the dirty secret about mandatory minimums: they don’t just lead to unjust sentences; they distort proceedings in countless cases where they are never imposed. Most alarmingly, harsh mandatory sentences pressure even innocent people to plead guilty to avoid long prison sentences. And for the bold few who still go to trial, like Tigano, these laws prevent judges from imposing fair sentences.
Tigano’s case is an embarrassment to the criminal justice system for a whole host of reasons. But it could have a positive impact if it helps push Congress to enact long-awaited sentencing reform. Among the principles that a bipartisan group of senators agree on is reducing the number of mandatory minimum sentences. The Tigano case illustrates why this principle should appeal to the entire Congress.
Mandatory minimums don’t just ensure harsh, often disproportionate sentences. They also cause massive distortions in the criminal justice system, leaving it a pale shadow of this nation’s ideals. | {
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Everything about this tube is good. Threads look nice and the finish is excellent. However, I didn't know this was a Commercial diameter buffer tube, as it isn't labeled on the product page! Just thought I'd throw out an FYI! | {
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Everyday Chinese
Most of us love to go out for (or buy take-out) Chinese food. We don't often try cooking it at home because of the assumption that Chinese cuisine is complicated and requires exotic ingredients and equipment, like a wok.
Mother-daughter team Leeann and Katie Chin have heard those objections and made a culinary career of putting them to rest. "I think so many people got a wok for Christmas 15 years ago, and it's been sitting in their closet ever since," says Katie, who runs the Los Angeles-based catering company Double Happiness with her mother, Leeann. "My mother has taught me that a nonstick skillet is fine." Through their books, such as Everyday Chinese Cooking, and a PBS cooking show called Double Happiness, the Chins have taught people that creating simple, authentic-tasting Chinese dishes is easy-even without a wok.
"Much of Cantonese cooking consists of simple stir-fries, noodles with vegetables and small amounts of meat, or dishes that start on the stove and finish in the oven," Leeann says. Keeping a few basic ingredients on hand such as rice, cornstarch, frozen shrimp, and soy and oyster sauces makes it quick to prepare recipes like Garlic Pork with Tomato and Basil.
Ultimately, preparing Chinese cuisine in an American kitchen was a matter of necessity for Leeann. She was raised in an affluent family in Canton (now Guangzhou), China, at a time when girls of her background were not supposed to cook. But she often sneaked into the kitchen anyway.
After immigrating to the United States in 1956, she got her chance to cook when she and her husband, Tony, settled in Minneapolis in 1956. The Cantonese greeting "Sik fan mei?" literally means "Have you eaten?" Tony was fond of asking friends this question and then inviting them unannounced to dinner, Leeann recalls. Katie says that's how her mother learned to cook authentic-tasting Chinese food quickly with ingredients she had on hand and with what was available in local stores. Back then, it was impossible to find items such as bok choy and Chinese broccoli.
Eventually, Leeann taught cooking classes, started a catering business that involved her six children, and later opened a popular restaurant named Leeann Chin Chinese Cuisine Restaurant in Minnesota. The chain has grown to include more than 40 locations in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Katie once had a successful and hectic career in marketing and promotions for major movie studios, and her mother's tips helped her find time to cook Chinese dishes in her own home. In 2000, she left her Hollywood career to create cooking shows, write books, and cater with her mother, recalling that the two of them were closest when they cooked together. "My mother's favorite thing to do is cook, so the more time I spent in the kitchen, the more we talked to each other," Katie says.
Leeann, who has semiretired in Palm Springs, California, says she enjoys teaching other people to create Chinese food at home. "It's really healthy and flexible," she says. "You can spend a lot of money or a little-either way it tastes good." | {
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Activities for December 7 to 9
PublishedDecember 7, 2018
***Please be advised: We work hard to collect all the information listed. You should always call ahead to make sure the times and locations are correct before attending any event. Times and locations can change once we have published our list***
Friday , December 7
Visit Santa at Fairview Pointe Claire (Pointe-Claire )
Make your shopping trip a breeze and reserve a time for your little ones to take in the wonder of the jolliest man around. No long lines, no waiting for the moment of magic – simply choose a time that suits your family best and enjoy an extra special Santa experience including a gift!
Expo for Kids: Surprise Boxes (POinte Claire)
Self-educated artist Christiane Chami, from Du coq à l’âne, brought her talent, ideas, and creativity from Aleppo, in Syria, to Montreal. For her surprise boxes, she draws inspiration from her life in Aleppo and Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood to tell tales from here and abroad through meticulously crafted scenes that reflect the moments she has witnessed.
Teen Zone (Dorval)
An awesome way for teens to have a fun night out with activities and games.
Where: Sarto-Desnoyers Community Centre 1335 Lakeshore Dr. Dorval
Time: 5:00pm-10:00pm
Cost: FREE with membership card ($10) or $1 per visit
Age: 11 to 17 years old
Additional Info and info provided by: www.facebook.com/dorval.zone
Alight at Night Festival ( Ontario)
It’s that time of the year! Bundle up for a magical family tradition with over one million lights! #UpperCanadaVillage transforms into a one-of-a-kind magical backdrop for #AlightatNight – a memorable winter wonderland!
SuperHero Party ( Pointe Claire)
Calling all Superhero’s at Mon Gym. Dress your guys and gals up in their Superhero costumes and we will play games, swing like Spiderman, fly like Superman, run like Flash, use your magical lasso’s like Wonder Woman, think like Batman and have juice and cookies.
Gingerbread House Decorating Class (Pierrefonds)
Start a new tradition! Join us at the Cooking School to decorate your very own gingerbread house. We provide the pre-assembled house, royal icing, and all the candies, and you have a blast decorating. When your masterpiece is complete, we‘ll wrap it in cellophane ready for you to take home to display! Children under five years of age must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver. Maximum two people per house. $ 18 per house.
Saturday , December 8
Visit Santa at Carrefour Laval (Laval)
Make your shopping trip a breeze and reserve a time for your little ones to take in the wonder of the jolliest man around. No long lines, no waiting for the moment of magic – simply choose a time that suits your family best and enjoy an extra special Santa experience, complete with a gift!
Where: Carrefour Laval, 2025 boul le Carrefour Laval, QC
Time: 9:00am-4:30pm
Cost: a visit with Santa is free, picture prices vary depending on package
Visit Santa at Fairview Pointe Claire (Pointe-Claire )
Make your shopping trip a breeze and reserve a time for your little ones to take in the wonder of the jolliest man around. No long lines, no waiting for the moment of magic – simply choose a time that suits your family best and enjoy an extra special Santa experience including a gift!
Sherbrooke Academy Holiday Fair (Beaconsfield)
Our annual Holiday Fair is fast approaching! Don’t miss out on the fun & prizes. The event is being held at the Sherbrooke Academy Sr. Campus in Beaconsfield. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
Artisans for Animals( Pointe Claire)
Over 30 juried artisans will be displaying their handmade goods just in time for your holiday shopping! Come buy a raffle ticket for our famous handmade gift bags. 100% of the proceeds raised from the sale goes to Animatch Dog Adoption.
Santa & Mrs. Claus are Coming to town! ( Pointe Claire)
Santa & Mrs. Claus are coming to town
Saturday, December 8th from 10am to 3pm
Pictures with Santa and Christmas activities await you and your family.
All donation will benefit West Island Community Shares.
Also, please donate non-perishable food to On Rock’s food drive.
La Grande Buche de Noel ( Ste. Anne de Bellevue)
La Grande Bûche de Sainte-Anne de Bellevue is back again this year!
This family-friendly event includes an impressive 20M long Christmas log sold by the slice or as a 30 cm. (12″) boxed section to bring home for the holidays.
Come enjoy authentic Swiss hot chocolate, live music, face painting and much more. Santa will be visiting from the North Pole as well so come join us at this unique event
Saturday December 8th from 10:00am to 5:00pm at Lalonde Park.
Where: Lalonde Park
Corner of Ste. Anne St. and St. Pierre St.
Ste. Anne de Bellevue
Marche de Noel St. Lazare ( St. Lazare)
The Town of Saint-Lazare is happy to present the third edition of the Saint-Lazare Christmas Market. The Christmas market will take place at the Saint-Lazare Community Centre on Saturday December 8 and Sunday December 9, 2018.
The Christmas Market is reserved for artisans, producers, independent artists and food merchants who wish to offer artistic works, items, regional products or foods that will ensure quality offerings at the market.
The Christmas Market is a community event focused on artisanal, artistic and culinary products and creations. The sale of products other than those outlined in the registration form will not be accepted.
Expo for Kids: Surprise Boxes (POinte Claire)
Self-educated artist Christiane Chami, from Du coq à l’âne, brought her talent, ideas, and creativity from Aleppo, in Syria, to Montreal. For her surprise boxes, she draws inspiration from her life in Aleppo and Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood to tell tales from here and abroad through meticulously crafted scenes that reflect the moments she has witnessed.
Teen Zone (Dorval)
An awesome way for teens to have a fun night out with activities and games.
Where: Sarto-Desnoyers Community Centre 1335 Lakeshore Dr. Dorval
Time: 5:00pm-10:00pm
Cost: FREE with membership card ($10) or $1 per visit
Age: 11 to 17 years old
Additional Info and info provided by: www.facebook.com/dorval.zone
Alight at Night Festival ( Ontario)
It’s that time of the year! Bundle up for a magical family tradition with over one million lights! #UpperCanadaVillage transforms into a one-of-a-kind magical backdrop for #AlightatNight – a memorable winter wonderland!
Mon Gym-Parent Night Out (Pointe-Claire)
This incredible evening for your children (3-10 years) is filled with a variety of fun games, rides and activities, and they won’t want the night to end! And don’t worry about snacks– we’ll take care of that too!
Sunday, December 9
Visit Santa at Carrefour Laval (Laval)
Make your shopping trip a breeze and reserve a time for your little ones to take in the wonder of the jolliest man around. No long lines, no waiting for the moment of magic – simply choose a time that suits your family best and enjoy an extra special Santa experience, complete with a gift!
Where: Carrefour Laval, 2025 boul le Carrefour Laval, QC
Time: 9:00am-4:30pm
Cost: a visit with Santa is free, picture prices vary depending on package
Visit Santa at Fairview Pointe Claire (Pointe-Claire )
Make your shopping trip a breeze and reserve a time for your little ones to take in the wonder of the jolliest man around. No long lines, no waiting for the moment of magic – simply choose a time that suits your family best and enjoy an extra special Santa experience including a gift!
Expo for Kids: Surprise Boxes (POinte Claire)
Self-educated artist Christiane Chami, from Du coq à l’âne, brought her talent, ideas, and creativity from Aleppo, in Syria, to Montreal. For her surprise boxes, she draws inspiration from her life in Aleppo and Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood to tell tales from here and abroad through meticulously crafted scenes that reflect the moments she has witnessed.
Alight at Night Festival ( Ontario)
It’s that time of the year! Bundle up for a magical family tradition with over one million lights! #UpperCanadaVillage transforms into a one-of-a-kind magical backdrop for #AlightatNight – a memorable winter wonderland! | {
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From Batch to Retail Payment Processing
Some people rightfully consider the addition of a retail payment processing component to a recurring payment processing payment system a great challenge. True, the process involves a lot of major tasks to be solved, such as implementation of card-present EMV solution, new payment processor integrations, addition of retail credit card processing functionality, which enables the payment ecosystem to handle one-time payments smoothly, merchant on-boarding and supporting them throughout their whole life-cycle. However, due to increasing complexity of merchant services market, many businesses need to switch to more universal operations models anyway. So the best option for these businesses is to treat the need to introduce a retail component into a payment ecosystem, initially targeted at subscription billing services, as an opportunity to switch to a more robust and flexible solution.
A detailed transition strategy to be followed by a company, which decides to add a retail component to its existing recurring payment processing ecosystem, is set forth in the respective article on Paylosophy. | {
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This partnership is the first wide-scale offering of PayPal for government payments in Australia and responds to the increasing customer demand for mobile digital services, giving NSW citizens more choice and flexibility in how they pay for government services. With 7.2 million customers in Australia, more than one-in-three NSW adults is a PayPal user.
Service NSW provides customers with access to more than 1,000 government transactions from around 40 different agencies. With PayPal, the public won’t need to enter their card number and expiry date, they can simply enter their PayPal username and password, simplifying payment and saving time when paying via mobile.
“Millions of NSW citizens already have PayPal accounts so it makes sense to offer this payment option for government transactions. Service NSW has become the one-stop shop for licences and household savings and this partnership will now offer customers a one click solution for payment,” said Victor Dominello, Minister for Finance, Services and Property.
“Customers are already giving the new platform the thumbs up – in less than a week PayPal currently represents 13 per cent of all digital payments which is about 9,000 transactions.”
“People in NSW can now use PayPal to pay their car rego and driver’s licence through Service NSW,” said Libby Roy, Managing Director, PayPal Australia.
“PayPal is delighted to be supporting Service NSW to make digital payments for state government services easier. You won’t have to fumble for your credit card or enter long strings of numbers. By paying with PayPal on smartphones, you’ll literally be able to pay via the Service NSW App with the touch of a finger.”
Must Reads
Advertisers will lose $42 billion of ad spend globally this year to fraudulent activities committed via online, mobile and in-app advertising. Forty. Two. Billion. The figures are contained in a new study by Juniper Research. The figure is bad, but it’s even worse when you realise that it’s accelerating. Back | {
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Advice Book
Feng Shui at the Center
Feng Shui at the Center
Date of Advice:
January 2000
Date Posted:
January 2018
This advice about the benefits of feng shui was given by Rinpoche to all FPMT center directors. Rinpoche also asked the centers to put up a picture of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, in order to create the causes for him to guide us.
Dear center directors,The main cause of success and difficulties is good karma and negative karma, but there are external conditions for success and prosperity, and also for problems.
The correct feng shui is set up inside the house and in the external environment, by placing cures for a disturbing environment. This is done in order to bring success and to stop problems. These are the conditions. However, when good karma is very strong, the external and internal conditions naturally change due to the power of this good karma, even without any idea of feng shui.
Having an understanding of feng shui helps, therefore I am sending this book [about feng shui] to all the centers, especially for those centers where there is a lot of disharmony and many financial problems. This can help to solve these things, depending on how extensively correct feng shui is done. Feng shui can even help the FPMT centers that have been developed for many years and are doing quite well due to much purification, merits and correct Dharma understanding.
Within the organization, we are building retreat centers and setting up city centers, so we need many things for success, to benefit Dharma. When there is much harmony, stable finances and things are going well, people can have more space in the mind to develop compassion and a good heart. In this way they are able to continue their practice without much pressure, worry and fear about running the center. Also, they will be more mentally clear and physically healthy.
Of course, for bodhisattvas the harder it is the happier they become, because they have the opportunity to sacrifice their life and bear hardships for others.
I feel that the first, best and biggest benefit, and the main solution, is Dharma. I think feng shui is the next most important solution to help others and to stop the normal problems that people always talk about, such as their relationships, jobs, health, education, wealth and long life.
I would also like to request all the centers to put a picture of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in the south-west part of the director’s office at the center. This is to create the causes for His Holiness to guide us. | {
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After seeing my father in law die this way I find this story rather disturbing and upsetting. While I agree that if the patient wants to be put on this pathway it should be granted but I see no argument for doctors deciding when to remove food and fluids from a terminally ill patient.
When I saw my father in law, who was terminally ill, heavily sedated I assumed that is was purely for pain relief. However, I started to get concerned when I noticed that he was never offered, tea, water or food. At one point he came round from the sedatives and I took the opportunity to make him a cup of tea and offer him some food. The poor bloke was desperate for a drink and I spoon fed him food that one of the care assistants brought for me. While I did this I noticed the care assistant being disciplined by a senior nurse. The nurse came over and told me that he was NIL by mouth....which I questioned and asked why but was never given a reason.
Sadly within minutes the nurse administered another does of sedatives and that was the last time I spoke to him. He lasted another 2 weeks without food and water but all the time I trusted those caring for him, I assumed he was in some sort of coma but now I know why they did it.
I know it would not have changed the outcome but I still feel that he would have wanted to at least eat and drink until he was unable to. Although he was not my father I feel absolutely terrible that I let someone be starved to death.
Daily Mail report on 60,000 people being put on the dying pathway
I never believe what the newspapers say, which is why half the time i dont read them, and today proved that. There was a report about 60,000 people being put on the dying pathway, also known as the Liverpool Care Pathway (LCP). For those not in the know, it is a document that nurses and doctors use when the patient in a hospice / hospital are deemed to be very poorly, and have not got long to live.
In real terms, and as a hospice nurse, all it means is that we are condensing down all the care plans we have to write, into one document. If we put someone on the LCP, it is after families have been spoken too, where we have told them, that their loved one is less well, and time is short. We dont always tell them we are putting the patient on the LCP, since in real terms, it means nothing. The care, the treatment, doesnt change. It is just a document for us, that also allows future nurses looking at the care notes, to be able to access certain information quicker, and acts as a guide, that this particular patient will need more observation than others.
If people go on it, certainly from a hospice perspective, treatment such as infusions, further radiotherapy etc, will have been discussed on initial contact to the ward. So like i say the LCP doesnt change anything.
Well i just thought i would write this here, since i am not on any other websites, Facebook etc, but for those who saw that headline today, dont be afraid, that we are condoning people to death. Its never that straight forward. But for those who want to know more, feel free to email me here.
So...
"If we put someone on the LCP,
it is after families have been spoken too, where we have told them, that their
loved one is less well, and time is short."
"We dont always tell them we are putting the patient on the LCP, since in
real terms,...it means nothing."
I see, you speak to them, but you don't always tell them...
Because, "in real terms, it means nothing..."
"It doesnt change anything."
This is a Professional LCP Clinician.
Well, it certainly meant something to
richard978...
And it certainly meant something to his father-in-law!
The
national audit of the Liverpool Care Pathway which revealed these
devastating facts and figures was conducted by the Marie Curie Palliative Care
Institute in Liverpool and the RoyalCollege of Physicians.
It found that in 44 per cent of cases when conscious patients
were placed on the pathway, there was no record that the decision had been
discussed with them.
Mr. Hunt, 44% is rather more than 'one or two cases'.
Attempting to put a spin and a shine on these catastrophic figures is
dismissive and insulting. One third of families did not receive a leaflet to
explain what was being done to their loved one.
But this doesn't matter...
Because, "in real terms, it means nothing..."
"It doesnt change anything."
This has only become public knowledge through the efforts of a
national newspaper - The Daily Mail.
It is this newspaper which Professional LCP Clinicians
disparagingly refer to as The Daily Fail!
With their senseless banter, these
'professionals' behave and act as though they belong in the school playground.
Alas, they are involved in making and taking life and death decisions
concerning our loved ones!
So, in this Brave New 21st
century, in the U.K., it appears that National Health Service Apparatchiks
are permitted to instigate a medical protocol and instruct their
functionaries to withdraw sustenance and medicine from patients - whom they
have themselves selected - without the patient's knowledge, the patient’s family,
or even that of the GP...
Although, as the GP 'Find your 1%
campaign' is rolled out and Death Lists are compiled, this process will involve
and may well be at the behest of the GP!
O whither is our familiar 'Family
Doctor' gone...?
No need for mum or dad or nan to be informed. Everything is under control. They
are in capable hands.
About Me
I am distraught and I despair that these events have befallen this family. The picture is of me and my lovely mum, murdered on the NHS (National-socialist Health Service). Murdered. Is that too strong a word? Her life was taken without her permission. By omission and by commission, actions taken and not taken conspired to end her life. She was kept in ignorance of what was proceeding before her very eyes, as were we. Was she, then, not murdered? | {
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In the School of Life there...
In the School of Life there are always tests, and you can always repeat if you don't pass the first time. However, I have found that the lessons get more expensive the more times you have to redo them. So learn the lesson, while it's cheap! | {
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Toyota Corolla Hatchback Video Review
Following the new Avalon and Corolla hatchback , the RAV4 becomes the third vehicle in Toyota's lineup to get Apple CarPlay . The engine comes mated to a new eight-speed automatic transmission, while the hybrid models will get the existing CVT unit.
Air India's direct flights to Israel take-off
Israel's flag carrier El Al, excluded from the Saudi route, says its Indian competitor now has an unfair advantage. Saudi Arabia - birthplace of Islam and home to its holiest shrines - does not recognize Israel.
New York Yankees suffer DEVASTATING blow ahead of Opening Day
Neil Walker and Tyler Austin can fill in until Bird comes back (Don't be shocked if Adam Lind finds his way back in Pinstripes). He missed 2016 after surgery to fix a torn labrum in his right shoulder. "Tyler Austin is ready for this opportunity".
North Korea and South Korea to talk next week
Ri Son Gwon, chairman of North Korea's committee for the peaceful reunification of the country, will lead the North's delegation. North Korea had been silent on the proposed Trump-Kim summit since Trump agreed to the talks on March 8, 2018.
The Fantastic Four are returning to Marvel Comics
Writer Dan Slott (The Amazing Spider-Man) will pen the series, which will feature art by Sara Pichelli (Ultimate Spider-Man).
Marvel has pulled the veil off the big secret it teased yesterday, revealing that the Fantastic Four are returning to MarvelComics this summer. Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm floated around the Marvel Universe, joining the Guardians of the Galaxy and The Inhumans, respectively, before teaming up together recently in Marvel 2-in-1.
Though Fantastic Four was the comic that catalyzed Marvel's superhero comics revolution, it hasn't been published since April of 2015, with Fantastic Four #645 being the final issue before the series' cancellation.
"It's the right time, and we wanted the right team to do it, and we wanted the right story to get across", Cebulski said when talking about the relaunched title. He felt that the FF were "sort of taken for granted" and that it didn't "resonate" with the public in the same way that X-Men or Avengers do now.
Cebulski stated in the video that "it's the right time" because they have "the right team" and "the right story".
BUT, then you announce a creative team with Dan Slott and Sara Pichelli, and I am all in!
Drawing comic book characters is a form of acting, and that's why Cebulski thinks Pichelli is the right artist for the job.
"I can't wait to draw a lot of the characters, but there's one in particular I can't reveal yet", Pichelli told the New York Times. "You will know why they're my favorite when you read the book!" "He has that uncanny ability to have this encyclopedic memory of everything that's ever happened in a MarvelComics, including Fantastic Four, and respect the past in the stories but also drive the stories forward with new ideas and new ways of thinking we haven't seen before". Previous attempts to give this team their very own franchise have, ehhh, not gone outstandingly well, but under the guidance of Kevin Feige and set within the confines of the MCU, there's reason to believe we might finally see these characters on the big screen as they were meant to be seen. | {
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Prawn : Pasta Recipes With Cream
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Mr. President, I rise today to speak about legislation I am introducing. I am pleased to introduce this legislation, along with 43 cosponsors, making that 44 Members of the Senate sponsoring legislation to improve the Keystone XL project.
This legislation would approve Keystone XL under article 1, section 8 of the Constitution. That provision, the commerce clause, gives Congress the authority to regulate commerce with foreign countries, and that is the authority Congress needs to use, just as Congress used that authority in 1973 to approve the Alaskan Pipeline.
Moving forward with the Keystone project will create tens of thousands of jobs--tens of thousands of jobs at a time when our country badly needs those jobs, at a time when we have more than 13 million people out of work, or 8\1/2\ percent unemployment. It will create those jobs without spending one Federal taxpayer dollar. Not one. This is private sector investment--more than $7 billion that will help generate tens of thousands of jobs at a time when our economy badly needs them and when we need to get people back to work.
Also, this will reduce our dependence on oil from the Middle East--830,000 barrels a day. The Keystone XL Pipeline will move 830,000 barrels of oil a day from Canada and from States such as my own, the State of North Dakota. That is 830,000 barrels of oil a day we don't have to get from the Middle East at a time when we have rising tensions in the Middle East, at a time when Iran is threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz, at a time when we could see gas prices going to $4, maybe even $5 a gallon.
The reality is, even if we don't build the project, the oil will still be produced. The oil in Canada will still be produced. It is just that it would not come to the United States. It will go to China, and we will have worse environmental stewardship, not better. Building the project will actually help us provide better environmental stewardship because we don't need to haul that oil overseas, around the world. We would not need to continue bringing in oil from the Middle East. That 830,000 barrels a day will go to our refineries where there are higher standards with better environmental stewardship.
President Obama recently turned down this project. He turned down the project because he said he couldn't make a decision in 60 days. He said he couldn't make a decision on the project in 60 days. That was too soon. But the project has been under review for more than 3 years. Let me repeat that. This project has been under review by the administration for more than 3 years. The EPA and the State Department have been reviewing the project.
In our legislation we simply say this has been under review for more than 3 years, and it is time to make a decision. It is time to move forward. Furthermore, for the one portion of the route that was contested, the Nebraska portion, we say: Take as much time as you need to reroute in Nebraska--after 3 years--to make sure we provide enough time for the decision.
I have a chart here that shows this timeline. Let's take a minute and go through it.
The application was originally submitted in September of 2008. September of 2008 is when the process started. So as you can see, it has been under review in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011.
The State Department itself, EPA through the NEPA process and the State Department, has responsibility to make a decision on the project and, as you can see, on their own timeline they had planned to render a decision before the end of last year. As a matter of fact, I received a letter from Secretary of State Clinton indicating they intended to have a final decision before the end of the year. Yet, when we passed our earlier legislation, the President said, Well, we can't make a decision in 60 days.
Do you mean 3 years and 60 days? How long does it take to study this process and make a decision--particularly when in the last bill which we passed 89-10 by this body, and now in this legislation again we say, as to the only contested portion of the rule where you may want to reroute through Nebraska due to the Oglala aquifer, we provide as much time as needed to do the rerouting. But at some point we have got to make a decision to move forward with the project.
So maybe you say, Well, okay, it has been studied for 3 years, but more time is needed somehow because it is a unique project. Actually, it is not a unique project.
Before coming to the Senate last year, I was the Governor of North Dakota for 10 years. While I was Governor, TransCanada built a very similar project. The red line here is the Keystone project. It goes from Calgary down to Patoka, IL, much the same route, bringing oil from Canada into our refineries. That was permitted, not in 3 years, that was permitted in 2 years. In 2 years, that was permitted. We have been studying Keystone XL, a sister pipeline--very similar. It goes down to Cushing into the refineries along the gulf coast. We have been studying for 3 years a very similar project already approved in 2.
You may say, Well, I don't know. Still, you only have one kind of project there and maybe there is some new or challenging thing you have to take into account. So, yes, we have been studying it for 3 years and you need that kind of time because somehow we are recreating the wheel or doing something new and different. Well, that is not quite the case, either.
Let's go to my third chart. These are the oil and gas pipelines in the United States. All these red lines show oil and gas pipelines throughout our country, already existing, already in place, already moving oil and gas around the country. So now we are going to bring another one through here with all these pipelines, with the latest technology, the latest safeguards. And you mean to say that, after 3 years, that is not time to figure out whether we can approve another pipeline when we have hundreds of pipelines all over this country that people count on every day for their supply of oil? For their supply of gas? That is the situation.
Clearly, we can make this decision. Clearly, after more than 3 years of study, it doesn't make sense to not move forward, particularly when we are talking about tens of thousands of jobs that we need. Not only will it not cost our Federal Government revenue, it will generate hundreds of millions in revenue back to local, State, and Federal Government.
In addition to creating jobs, it reduces our dependence on Middle East oil. And if we don't do it, the oil goes to China. It is still produced, but it goes to China. So, actually, we have better environmental stewardship with the project.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce last year did a study. In that study, they cited 351 infrastructure projects that are being held up in the country right now--351 infrastructure projects that are being held up in the country right now due to regulations and bureaucratic delays. If we can get those projects going, based on the study the U.S. Chamber did, that would generate almost $1.1 trillion in gross domestic product for our country. It would generate--their estimate--1.9 million jobs, not with more government spending, but enabling the private investment to go forward by taking the bureaucratic delays out of the way, by reducing the regulatory burden, by green-lighting projects like Keystone XL, which has been under study for more than 3 years.
Back to one of these earlier charts. In my home State of North Dakota, we now produce more than 500,000 barrels of oil a day. We need to put 100,000 barrels a day into this pipeline so we can get it to market, so we can get it to consumers and companies throughout this country. That is 100,000 barrels a day right now that we have to move through other means, such as truck or rail. That is equal to 500 truckloads a day, or 17 million truck miles a year. Think of the toll on our roads, think of the traffic fatalities that result when that product should be going through pipeline. And at the same time that we have less traffic safety, tremendous wear and tear on our roads, we suffer a discount. Our companies, our mineral owners, our people suffer a discount because it is more expensive to transport that product by rail and by truck. Those are the realities of getting our economy going.
Again, I go back to the national security concern: 830,000 barrels a day that we have got to get from the Middle East.
With these kinds of developments, with this kind of infrastructure, together with Canada and some oil that we get from Mexico, by building Keystone XL Pipeline we can produce more than 80 percent of the oil we consume right here in our country. That means we don't have to get it from the Middle East. And look what is going on in the Middle East. Look at Iran, threatening to blockade the Strait of Hormuz. That is a fundamental national security issue.
Unions across this country have said, Hey, we need these jobs. We support this project. We want to move forward with this and other infrastructure projects. But it is not just about the jobs and the economy, although that is vitally important to all the people who are out of work; it is a vital and national security issue, and it is going to continue to be a more important national security issue as we continue to see gas prices rise and as we continue to see instability in the Middle East.
Again, back to the environmental issues. This oil will be produced. It is either going to China or it is coming here. If we bring it here, we have better environmental stewardship because it goes in a pipeline to refineries that have the lowest emission standards. If we don't, the pipeline goes to the west coast. They load it on tankers. You have to haul it to places such as China where it is refined in refineries with higher emissions. And then, guess what. We have to ship oil from the Middle East--generating more emissions--to bring to our refineries. Again, it makes no sense. It is time to move forward.
There is clear precedence and clear authority. Article 1, section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the constitutional authority to act under the commerce clause. Congress exercised that authority in 1973 for the Alaskan pipeline. It is time for Congress to exercise its authority again for the good of our economy and for the good of our country.
Founded in 2006, the Sunlight Foundation is a nonpartisan nonprofit that advocates for open government globally and uses technology to make government more accountable to all. Visit SunlightFoundation.com to learn more.
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This is a very interesting article about monitoring the migrations of birds, and eventually butterflies, bees, fruit bats, even insects, from SPACE. The mystery of exactly where the world's 10-20 billion migratory birds go and how they navigate perilous journeys across continents and oceans without experience or guidance from parents has long puzzled people. Being able to track birds, and eventually very small insects, is now seen as vital tool for conservation as well as a benefit for human health, which is increasingly linked to the movement of animals and people. About 70% of worldwide epidemics, like Sars, West Nile virus or bird flu, result from animal-human contact. Uschi Müller, co-ordinator of the Icarus Project states, "To start with, Icarus scientists will use 5g transmitters but in the future we will use much smaller ones, under 1g, which will allow us to follow insects. It will be used for conservation, health and disaster forecasting". Because animals are known to sense imminent tectonic activity, she visualizes birds and other animals living near disaster-prone zones being fitted with the transmitters. "It could give people an extra five hours warning of a disaster"."Icarus and the miniaturisation of telemetry means we are going to be able to monitor the natural world for the first time. We know hardly anything about bird migrations. We can now see that in evolutionary terms birds must know when it's a good time to migrate. We knew it was something like this but not at the individual level. This is answering questions and posing more," says Kasper Thorup, a bird migration researcher at Copenhagen university.Until 10 years ago, satellite tracking was used only on large animals which could be fitted with powerful transmitters with long lives, but the new solar-powered devices only switch on when a satellite passes overhead, and are getting smaller every year."By next year we hope to have devices that weigh just 2g, which will be small enough to place on songbirds like wood thrushes, warblers and finches," says Chris Hewsom, research ecologist at the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). "These will allow us to track birds like nightjars, too. We are getting to the stage we could do swifts, which would need devices that weighed no more than 1g."
There is also hope that this project can address the decline of a number of bird populations. Bryan Watts, director of the Center for Conservation Biology at William and Mary college in Virginia, USA says,"Understanding the routes they take can help us preserve them and prevent higher than normal rates of infection among wildlife populations. We still don't know where they go and many are only here for a few months. Without knowing exactly where they go and when we can not understand how to conserve them."We are getting close to a full life cycle understanding of birds," says Watts. "We used to see birds at different places at different times, but we did not know they were the same ones. What we are seeing now for the first time is the way birds connect places. We are reducing the size of the world." | {
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Rezinate Zen Business – mp3 music
You will receive a copy of the tracks via email in a downloadable format. This is not a hard copy.
Designed for the conscious business person, choose which track you need daily and practice the art of mindfulness to super charge your business life and success.
About Zen Business
Zen Business is a meditation album using guided vocals embedded on a rich sound platform. Designed by a business person for business people.
Each track is customised by business topic and has accompanying music to engage and awaken a specific energy centre in the body relating to that topic. These energy centres (Chakras) are an ancient oriental system of energy flow and wellbeing. The music inspires an opening of that energy point so that both vocals and music blend together for the ultimate meditation experience.
Product Description
Mindfulness Meditation Music Tracks, their composition and their meaning. You will receive a copy of the tracks via email in a downloadable mp3 format. This is not a hard copy CD album.
1. Start the Workday – Base Chakra theme
Super-charge your energy for the day ahead and start with a calm, clear and motivated mind. For grounding and strength, this meditation guides you into a mountain landscape which energises and prepares the body for heightened awareness. Choose your theme for the day and gain a clear focus on your top priorities.
2. Abundance & Receiving – Sacral Chakra theme
Great for bringing in the flow of support and resources. Align and replenish your energetic flow with a meditation landscape that involves sinking your entire body into a golden water pond. You will feel the infinite support of water bringing the support you require to help with abundance on all levels – people, financial, emotional, physical or spiritual.
Recharge and renew your inner fire. Designed to power your central engine and strengthen immunity. Great for repairing the adrenals and any tiredness.
The visualisation involves a trip into the desert to receive purification and then lays your body on a rock to provide a solid energy flow through you central core system. The sun will revive you and reset your inner flame.
4. Creative Flow – Heart Chakra theme
Open up the creative spark of life within. Get the inspiration you need for creative projects & strategies in life and work. The heart centre is the most powerful in the body and houses your inner spirit. Cleanse yourself of any stagnation with a powerful visualisation that takes you into a giant lotus flower to rebirth that spark of life within. You will feel a letting go of old ideas and a fresh new creative flow.
5. Release Conflict – Throat Chakra theme
Let go of any negative energy, arguments or business blocks. Free up any attachments you are holding on to. Working deeply on the throat energy point, this meditation guides you into the fire to purify and let go of any tension you may be holding on to – whether self-created or an outstanding conflict with another.
With a wise fire chief and a journey into the lower earth, this meditation is self-therapy at its best.
6. Release the Workday – Third Eye Chakra theme
Unwind from the busy thoughts and stresses of your work day. Brings you back into your body and out of the thinking brain with a meditation on a mountain with the sun setting. Both calming and releasing, you will see all of the busy-ness of the day being cut free from your 3rd eye energy point whilst you are getting recharged on the mountain side. Go to bed clear and clean from the crazy day.
Music Instruments: Ambient Chimes, Bamboo Flute, Gasong Drum
Third Eye Chakra relates to intuition, insights, strategy, vision, clarity and the ‘way’ you see the world.
7. Super Charge Your Sleep – Crown Chakra theme
Get a deep and nourishing sleep to repair your senses. Talk your body into a deep rhythmic pattern with a guided meditation in a tree trunk. Feel yourself being rocked to sleep by mother earth in this dreamy and deepening visualisation.
Having worked under famed Beatles engineer Richard Lush on hundreds of projects for TV, Josh, then a 23 year old, began forging a name for himself as a freelance producer, immersing himself in London’s Urban and Dance scene, and working with such names as Seanie T (Roots Manuva), Estelle (Kanye West). Josh returned from the UK to base himself in Sydney were he continues to work in both the Music and TV arenas. To date, Josh has worked with an eclectic array of recording artists including Daniel Merriweather, Steve Spacek, Mark Pritchard, Jade Macrae, Tyrone Noonan, Luke Dickens, Aya Larkin, Tina Harrod, Human Nature, Disco Montego, Thirsty Merc, Nikka Costa……..
Josh dedication to music and audio and broad understanding of it’s architecture combine to allow him to adapt to any project to create a truly moving soundscape. Josh’s compositional TV credits include Bondi Rescue, Guerilla Gardiners, and Recruits 1 & 2.
Bek Wermut – Music Therapist
http://sound-oasis.com.au/
Bek Wermut started playing piano at the age of five and later went on to learn percussion and guitar. She completed a Bachelor of Arts majoring in music and psychology in 2000 and went on to study music therapy in 2005. She has done extensive training in the use of rhythm for healing and wellness, and puts this into practice on a daily basis in her work as a music therapist. She also performs on various instruments with some of Sydney’s finest musical acts.
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NEVER IN MY WILDEST DREAMS - Dan Auerbach
NEVER IN MY WILDEST DREAMS
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Dan Auerbach (born Daniel Quine Auerbach on 14 May 1979 in Akron, Ohio) is an American musician. A multi-instrumentalist, Auerbach is best-known as the guitarist and vocalist for The Black Keys, a blues/rock group from Akron, Ohio.
Auerbach grew up in a family with musical roots. His second cousin once removed was the late guitarist Robert Quine, an American guitarist known for his innovative guitar solos. Auerbach became infatuated with blues music during his childhood after being exposed to old records by his father. Show more ...
NEVER IN MY WILDEST DREAMS - Dan Auerbach
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Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) leverage the communication system of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). Recently, Delay-Tolerant Network (DTN) routing protocols have increased their popularity among the research community for being used in non-safety VANET applications and services like traffic reporting. Vehicular DTN protocols use geographical and local information to make forwarding decisions. However, current proposals only consider the selection of the best candidate based on a local-search. In this paper, we propose a generic Geographical Heuristic Routing (GHR) protocol that can be applied to any DTN geographical routing protocol that makes forwarding decisions hop by hop. GHR includes in its operation adaptations simulated annealing and Tabu-search meta-heuristics, which have largely been used to improve local-search results in discrete optimization. We include a complete performance evaluation of GHR in a multi-hop VANET simulation scenario for a reporting service. Our study analyzes all of the meaningful configurations of GHR and offers a statistical analysis of our findings by means of MANOVA tests. Our results indicate that the use of a Tabu list contributes to improving the packet delivery ratio by around 5% to 10%. Moreover, if Tabu is used, then the simulated annealing routing strategy gets a better performance than the selection of the best node used with carry and forwarding (default operation).
Ad hoc networks have attracted much attention from the research community over the last years and important technical advances have risen as a consequence. These networks are foreseen as an important kind of next generation access networks, where multimedia services will be demanded by end users from their wireless devices everywhere. In this thesis, we specially focus our research work on mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) and on vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs), two kind of ad hoc networks over which interesting multimedia services can be provided. The special haracteristics of MANETs/VANETs, such as mobility, dynamic network topology (specially in VANETs), energy constraints (in case of MANETs), infrastructureless and variable link capacity, make the QoS (Quality of Service) provision over these networks an important challenge for the research community. Due to that, there is a need to develop new routing protocols specially designed for MANETs and VANETs able to provide multimedia services.
The main objective of this thesis is to contribute in the development of the communication framework for MANETs and VANETs to improve decisions to select paths or next hops in the moment of forwarding video-reporting messages. In this way, it would be possible to have a quick answer to manage daily problems in the city and help the emergency units (e.g., police, ambulances, health care units) in case of incidents (e.g., traffic accidents). Furthermore, in case of VANETs, a real scenario must be created and thus we have analysed the presence of obstacles in real maps. Also, in case of an obstacle found between the current forwarding node and the candidate next forwarding node, the packet is stored in a buffer, for a maximum time, until a forwarding neighbour node is found; otherwise, the packet is dropped. To improve the communication framework for MANETs, we propose a new routing protocol based on a game-theoretical scheme for N users specially designed to transmit video-reporting messages. Our proposal makes the network more efficient and provides a higher degree of satisfaction of the users by receiving much more packets with a lower average end-to-end delay, lower jitter and higher PSNR (Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio).
In addition, we propose a geographical routing protocol for VANETs that considers multiple metrics named 3MRP (Multimedia Multimetric Map-Aware Routing Protocol) [1]. 3MRP is a geographical protocol based on hop-by-hop forwarding. The metrics considered in 3MRP are the distance, the density of vehicles in transmission range, the available bandwidth, the future trajectory of the neighbouring nodes and the MAC layer losses. Those metrics are weighted to obtain a multimetric score. Thus, a node selects another node among its neighbours as the best forwarding node to increase the percentage of successful packet delivery, minimizing the average packet delay and offering a certain level of quality and service. Furthermore, a new algorithm named DSW (Dynamic Self-configured Weights) computes for each metric its corresponding weight depending on the current network conditions. As a consequence, nodes are classiffied in a better way.
One of the main concerns of the cities' administration is mobility management. In Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), pedestrians, vehicles and public transportation systems could share information and react to any situation in the city. The information sensed by vehicles could be useful for other vehicles and for the mobility authorities. Vehicular Ad hoc Networks (VANETs) make possible the communication between vehicles (V2I) and also between vehicles and fixed infrastructure (V2I) managed by the city's authorities. In addition, VANET routing protocols minimize the use of fixed infrastructure since they employ multi-hop V2V communication to reach reporting access points of the city.
This thesis aims to contribute in the design of VANET routing protocols to enable reporting services (e.g., vehicular traffic notifications) in urban environments. The first step to achieve this global objective has been the study of components and tools to mimic a realistic VANET scenario. Moreover, we have analyzed the impact of the realism of each one of those components in the simulation results.
Then, we have improved the Address Resolution procedure in VANETs by including it in the routing signaling messages. Our approach simplifies the VANET operation and increases the packet delivery ratio as consequence. Afterwards, we have tackled the issue of having duplicate packets in unicast communications and we have proposed routing filters to lower their presence. This way we have been able to increase the available bandwidth and reduce the average packet delay with a slight increase of the packet losses.
Besides, we have proposed a Multi-Metric Map aware routing protocol (MMMR) that incorporates four routing metrics (distance, trajectory, vehicle density and available bandwidth) to take the forwarding decisions. With the aim of increasing the number of delivered packets in MMMR, we have developed a Geographical Heuristic Routing (GHR) algorithm. GHR integrates Tabu and Simulated Annealing heuristic optimization techniques to adapt its behavior to the specific scenario characteristics. GHR is generic because it could use any geographical routing protocol to take the forwarding decisions. Additionally, we have designed an easy to implement forwarding strategy based on an extended topology information area of two hops, called 2-hops Geographical Anycast Routing (2hGAR) protocol. Results show that controlled randomness introduced by GHR improves the default operation of MMMR. On the other hand, 2hGAR presents lower delays than GHR and higher packet delivery ratio, especially in high density scenarios.
Finally, we have proposed two mixed (integer and linear) optimization models to detect the best positions in the city to locate the Road Side Units (RSUs) which are in charge of gathering all the reporting information generated by vehicles.
Road safety applications envisaged for VANETs depend largely on the exchange of messages to deliver information to the concerned vehicles. In the last years, several dissemination protocols have been presented in the literature. In this paper we study and evaluate the dissemination of emergency messages in realistic vehicular scenarios. In the evaluation, some protocols are examined from two perspectives: qualitative and quantitative. We identify the principal mechanisms of dissemination and examine the factors that most impact on the simulation results. In addition, we investigate the effects of the shadows of buildings and other vehicles in the performance of the dissemination protocols. The simulation results suggest the need to include scenarios with fixed and mobile obstacles to increase the credibility of the performance of the evaluated protocols.
Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) are infrastructureless networks formed by wireless mobile devices. Routing in MANETs is a process where the best path will be selected so that packets will be forwarded. When a MANET is heavily loaded, single path routing begins to have congestion problems. To cope with this issue, multipath routing protocols were proposed improving the single path routing in terms of packet delivery ratio and quality of service (QoS). Normally, QoS metrics are used to classify paths in order to chose those (i.e., number of paths >2) who satisfy the QoS-user-requirements. Besides, paths are classified with an equal metrics weights which we do not consider as an optimal way. In this article, we aimed to design a new form of distributing weight values for metrics so that paths would be classified in a better way. Each time we want to classify paths, our proposal seeks to give a proper value to each metric weight depending on the metric current value with respect to an average one previously defined. We consider that depending on the variation of metric value, a corresponding weight to this current variation must be given. To achieve that, a simple algorithm has been designed. Finally, paths are classified taking into account our algorithm to calculate all weights value. Simulations have been done to show the benefits of our proposal where interfering traffic and mobility of the nodes are present.
MobilitApp is a platform designed to provide smart mobility services in urban areas. It is designed to help citizens and transport authorities alike. Citizens will be able to access the MobilitApp mobile application and decide their optimal transportation strategy by visualising their usual routes, their carbon footprint, receiving tips, analytics and general mobility information, such as traffic and incident alerts. Transport authorities and service providers will be able to access information about the mobility pattern of citizens to offer their best services, improve costs and planning. The MobilitApp client runs on Android devices and records synchronously, while running in the background, periodic location updates from its users. The information obtained is processed and analysed to understand the mobility patterns of our users in the city of Barcelona, Spain.
In this paper, we propose a simple and scalable optimization model for the deployment of road site units (RSUs). The model takes advantage of the inherent stochasticity provided by the vehicles’ movements by using mobility traces to determine which are the best positions to place RSUs to maximize connectivity in a multi-hop VANET scenario and keep the number of RSU as low as possible. Our simulations results validate that the solutions offered by our model are accurate.
The prevention of accidents is one of the most important goals of ad hoc networks in smart cities. When an accident happens, dynamic sensors (e.g., citizens with smart phones or tablets, smart vehicles and buses, etc.) could shoot a video clip of the accident and send it through the ad hoc network. With a video message, the level of seriousness of the accident could be much better evaluated by the authorities (e.g., health care units, police and ambulance drivers) rather than with just a simple text message. Besides, other citizens would be rapidly aware of the incident. In this way, smart dynamic sensors could participate in reporting a situation in the city using the ad hoc network so it would be possible to have a quick reaction warning citizens and emergency units. The deployment of an efficient routing protocol to manage video-warning messages in mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs) has important benefits by allowing a fast warning of the incident, which potentially can save lives. To contribute with this goal, we propose a multipath routing protocol to provide video-warning messages in MANETs using a novel game-theoretical approach. As a base for our work, we start from our previous work, where a 2-players game-theoretical routing protocol was proposed to provide video-streaming services over MANETs. In this article, we further generalize the analysis made for a general number of N players in the MANET. Simulations have been carried out to show the benefits of our proposal, taking into account the mobility of the nodes and the presence of interfering traffic.Finally, we also have tested our approach in a vehicular ad hoc network as an incipient start point to develop a novel proposal specifically designed for VANETs.
Buildings are important elements of cities for VANETs, since these obstacles
may attenuate communications between vehicles. Consequently, the impact of buildings has
to be considered as part of the attenuation model in VANET simulations of urban scenarios.
However, the more elaborated the model, the more information needs to be processed during
the simulation, which implies longer processing times. This complexity in simulations is
not always worth it, because simplified channel models occasionally offer very accurate
results. We compare three approaches to model the impact of buildings in the channel model
of simulated VANETs in two urban scenarios. The simulation results for our evaluation
scenarios of a traffic-efficiency application indicate that modeling the influence of buildings
in urban areas as the total absence of communication between vehicles gives similar results
to modeling such influence in a more realistic fashion and could be considered a conservative
bound in the performance metrics.
The interest in vehicular communications has increased notably. In this paper, the use of the address resolution (AR) procedures is studied for vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs).We analyse the poor performance of AR transactions in such networks and we present a new proposal called coherent, automatic address resolution (CAAR). Our approach inhibits the use of AR transactions and instead increases the usefulness of routing signalling to automatically match the IP and MAC addresses. Through extensive simulations in realistic VANET scenarios using the Estinet simulator, we compare our proposal CAAR to classical AR and to another of our proposals that enhances AR for mobile wireless networks, called AR+. In addition, we present a performance evaluation of the behaviour of CAAR, AR and AR+ with unicast traffic of a reporting service for VANETs. Results show that CAAR outperforms the other two solutions in terms of packet losses and furthermore, it does not introduce additional overhead.
A primary aim of wireless ad-hoc networks is to deliver data in areas where there is no pre-defined infrastructure. In these networks, the users, but also the network entities can be potentially mobile. Wireless ad-hoc networks have recently witnessed their fastest growth period ever in history. Real wireless ad-hoc networks are now implemented, deployed and tested, and this trend is likely to increase in the future. However, as such networks are increasingly complex, performance modeling and evaluation play a crucial part in their design process to ensure their successful deployment and exploitation in practice.
This special issue on Modeling and Performance Evaluation of Wireless Ad-Hoc Networks aims to open a new critical debate on the evaluation of wireless ad-hoc networks. It includes original theoretical and/or practical contributions, from researchers and practitioners that identify and address issues in evaluating wireless ad-hoc networks.
Message encryption does not prevent eavesdroppers from unveiling who is communicating with whom, when, or how frequently, a privacy risk wireless networks are particularly vulnerable to. The Crowds protocol, a well-established anonymous communication system, capitalizes on user collaboration to enforce sender anonymity. This work formulates a mathematical model of a Crowd-like protocol for anonymous communication in a lossy network, establishes quantifiable metrics of anonymity and quality of service (QoS), and theoretically characterizes the trade-off between them. The anonymity metric chosen follows the principle of measuring privacy as an attacker's estimation error. By introducing losses, we extend the applicability of the protocol beyond its original proposal. We quantify the intuition that anonymity comes at the expense of both delay and end-to-end losses. Aside from introducing losses in our model, another main difference with respect to the traditional Crowds is the focus on networks with stringent QoS requirements, for best effort anonymity, and the consequent elimination of the initial forwarding step. Beyond the mathematical solution, we illustrate a systematic methodology in our analysis of the protocol. This methodology includes a series of formal steps, from the establishment of quantifiable metrics all the way to the theoretical study of the privacy QoS trade-off. Copyright (c) 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Obstacles in Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) in urban scenarios are an important issue. Normally, in traffic simulators vehicles can send/receive packets between each other if they are in the same transmission range no matter if an obstacle is presented or not between them. For this reason, checking if there is an obstacle between sender and receiver is an important goal. In this paper, we present a program named REVsim1.0 (Realistic Environment for Vanets simulation) [1] capable to detect at each instant of time if between a sender and a receiver a communication can be established or conversely, if an obstacle is found and such a communication is not possible. Parameters such as a, ß, road resolution and transmission range have been defined and used in our proposed algorithm. Finally, a validation of our algorithm is shown.
Many proposals have studied the optimization of
the EDCA mechanism used by the IEEE 802.11p MAC layer to
provide QoS. In this work, we focus on the queuing process done
by the different Access Categories (ACs). We propose the use
of a single common buffer with a prioritized buffer allocation
algorithm inspired on the MAX-MIN principle for a fair sharing
of a common resource. We test the proposed algorithm with a
fixed and a dynamic guaranteed queue size for each AC. Results
obtained from simulations in a multihop VANET scenario show
that our approach outperforms traditional queuing used in MAC
802.11p.
This paper proposes a mixed linear and integer optimization model for multi-hop ad-hoc networks to select the positions of the gateways over a certain area. This model mimics the routing behavior of such network and takes into account the maximum bandwidth capacity of the network gateways. We also include a suboptimal solution for the cases in which the complexity or the amount of the data make the optimal solution infeasible. Results in a pedestrian mesh network and in a VANET scenarios show that the model locates gateways in an efficient way and that the suboptimal solution is close to the optimal one in terms of the number of required gateways or the common selected gateways.
Buffer overflow is an important phenomenon in data networks that has much bearing on the overall network performance. Such overflow critically depends on the amount of storage space allotted to the transmission channels. To properly dimension this buffering capacity a detailed knowledge of some set of probabilities is needed. In real practice, however, that information is seldom available, and only a few average values are at the analyst disposal. In this paper, the use of a solution to this quandary based on maximum entropy is proposed. On the other hand, when wireless devices are taken into account, the transmission over a shared medium imposes additional restrictions. This paper also presents an extension of the maximum entropy approach for this kind of devices. The main purpose is that wireless nodes become able to dynamically self-configure their buffer sizes to achieve more efficient memory utilization while keeping bounded the packet loss probability. Simulation results using different network settings and traffic load conditions demonstrate meaningful improvement in memory utilization efficiency. This could potentially benefit devices of different wireless network technologies like mesh routers with multiple interfaces, or memory constraint sensor nodes. Additionally, when the available memory resources are not a problem, the buffer memory reduction also contributes to prevent the high latency and network performance degradation due to overbuffering. And it also facilitates the design and manufacturing of devices with faster memory technologies and future all-optical routers.
In this paper, we review the workflow of the channel and physical layer modules in VANET simulations and briefly survey some of the most used propagation and packet error models in network simulators for this kind of networks. Through numerical simulations, we compare these propagation models working with a realistic and straightforward packet error model. Our results indicate that there is not a most conservative propagation model and that conservative models vary with the channel capacity. Furthermore, different propagation models specifically designed for VANETs obtain very close results in channels with intermediate capacities.
Objectives and problems to be solved:%LThis project aims to develop a MF-SOFC stack with a nominal rating of ~20 kWe, which will be suitable for retrofitting with internal reforming modules aggregating ~50 kWe. Design and manufacturing specifications will be produced, including procedures of building and operating a sub-megawatt system. The universal MF-SOFC module, which is the building block of the system, requires scale up in rating and performance in line with commercial targets of durability, reliability and cost. A detailed understanding of the factors effecting degradation in performance over time is required, and is as such a major focus of development within the programme. Description of work: There are six main work packages within the project:%LWP1 Design and build of a MF-SOFC stack and system;%LWP2
In recent years, the general interest in routing for vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) has increased notably. Many proposals have been presented to improve the behavior of the routing decisions in these very changeable networks. In this paper, we propose a new routing protocol for VANETs that uses four different metrics. which are the distance to destination, the vehicles' density, the vehicles' trajectory and the available bandwidth, making use of the information retrieved by the sensors of the vehicle, in order to make forwarding decisions, minimizing packet losses and packet delay. Through simulation, we compare our proposal to other protocols, such as AODV (Ad hoc On-Demand Distance Vector), GPSR (Greedy Perimeter Stateless Routing), I-GPSR (Improvement GPSR) and to our previous proposal, GBSR-B (Greedy Buffer Stateless Routing Building-aware). Besides, we present a performance evaluation of the individual importance of each metric to make forwarding decisions. Experimental results show that our proposed forwarding decision outperforms existing solutions in terms of packet delivery.
In recent years, the general interest in routing for vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) has increased notably. Many proposals have been presented to improve the behavior of the routing decisions in these very changeable networks. In this paper, we propose a new routing protocol for VANETs that uses four different metrics. which are the distance to destination, the vehicles’ density, the vehicles’ trajectory and the available bandwidth, making use of the information retrieved by the sensors of the vehicle, in order to make forwarding decisions, minimizing packet losses and packet delay. Through simulation, we compare our proposal to other protocols, such as AODV (Ad hoc On-Demand Distance Vector), GPSR (Greedy Perimeter Stateless Routing), I-GPSR (Improvement GPSR) and to our previous proposal, GBSR-B (Greedy Buffer Stateless Routing Building-aware). Besides, we present a performance evaluation of the individual importance of each metric to make forwarding decisions. Experimental results show that our proposed forwarding decision outperforms existing solutions in terms of packet delivery.
This paper proposes an adaptation of the collision probability used in the measure of the available bandwidth designed
for Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs) and which is described in ABE [12]. Instead, we propose a new ABE+ that
includes a new function to estimate the probability of losses. This new function has been specially designed for Vehicular
Ad hoc Networks, to be suited to the high mobility and variable density in vehicular environments. In this analysis we
do not only consider the packet size, but also other metrics, such as, density and speed of the nodes. We include the
ABE+ algorithm in the forwarding decisions of the GBSR-B protocol [14], which is an improvement of the well-known
GPSR protocol. Finally through simulations, we compare the performance of our new ABE+ compared to the original
ABE. These results show that ABE+ coupled with GBSR-B achieves a good trade-o in terms of packet losses and
packet end-to-end delay.
This paper proposes an adaptation of the collision probability used in the measure of the available bandwidth designed
for Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs) and which is described in ABE [12]. Instead, we propose a new ABE+ that
includes a new function to estimate the probability of losses. This new function has been specially designed for Vehicular
Ad hoc Networks, to be suited to the high mobility and variable density in vehicular environments. In this analysis we
do not only consider the packet size, but also other metrics, such as, density and speed of the nodes. We include the
ABE+ algorithm in the forwarding decisions of the GBSR-B protocol [14], which is an improvement of the well-known
GPSR protocol. Finally through simulations, we compare the performance of our new ABE+ compared to the original
ABE. These results show that ABE+ coupled with GBSR-B achieves a good trade-o in terms of packet losses and
packet end-to-end delay.
Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) have emerged to leverage the power of modern communication technologies, applied to both vehicles and infrastructure. Allowing drivers to report traffic accidents and violations through the VANET may lead to substantial improvements in road safety. However, being able to do so anonymously in order to avoid personal and professional repercussions will undoubtedly translate into user acceptance. The main goal of this work is to propose a new collaborative protocol for enforcing anonymity in multi-hop VANETs, closely inspired by the well-known Crowds protocol. In a nutshell, our anonymous-reporting protocol depends on a forwarding probability that determines whether the next forwarding step in message routing is random, for better anonymity, or in accordance with the routing protocol on which our approach builds, for better quality of service (QoS). Different from Crowds, our protocol is specifically conceived for multi-hop lossy wireless networks. Simulations for residential and downtown areas support and quantify the usefulness of our collaborative strategy for better anonymity, when users are willing to pay an eminently reasonable price in QoS.
Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) are infrastructureless
networks formed by wireless mobile devices. Recently,
the demand over multimedia services such as video streaming
has increased specially since the number of mobile end users is
growing as well. MPEG-2 VBR is one of the most fitting video
coding techniques for MANETs which improves the distribution
of video streams specially when it is used with a proper multipath
routing scheme. In this article, we aimed to design a routing
scheme to dynamically select the forwarding paths using a
game-theoretic approach over a multipath routing protocol. Our
proposal seeks to describe an equation of the probability p of
sending video frames through the best available path. p depends
on network parameters that vary throughout time. The aim is
that the most important video frames (I+P) will be sent through
the best path with a certain probability p and will be sent through
the second best path with a probability 1-p. To achieve that, we
carried out simulations done with fixed values of p and after that
we applied a lineal regression method to obtain the coefficients
of the equation for p. Simulations have been done to show the
benefits of our proposal where interfering traffic and mobility
of the nodes are present.
The constant mobility of people, the growing need to be always connected, the large number of vehicles that nowadays can be found in the roads and the advances in technology make Vehicular Ad hoc Networks (VANETs) be a major area of research. Vehicular Ad hoc Networks are a special type of wireless Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs), which allow a group of mobile nodes configure a temporary network and maintain it without the need of a fixed infrastructure. A vehicular network presents some specific characteristics, as the very high speed of nodes. Due to this high speed the topology changes are frequent and the communication links may last only a few seconds. Smart cities are now a reality and have a direct relationship with vehicular networks. With the help of existing infrastructure such as traffic lights, we propose a scheme to update and analyse traffic density and a warning system to spread alert messages. With this, traffic lights assist vehicular networks to take proper decisions. This would ensure less congested streets. It would also be possible that the routing protocol forwards data packets to vehicles on streets with enough neighbours to increase the possibility of delivering the packets to destination. Sharing updated, reliable and real-time information, about traffic conditions, weather or security alerts, increases the need of algorithms for the dissemination of information that take into account the main beneffits and constraints of these networks. For all this, routing protocols for vehicular networks have the difficult task to select and establish transmission links to send the data packets from source to destination through multiple nodes using intermediate vehicles efficiently. The main objective of this thesis is to provide improvements in the communication framework for vehicular networks to improve decisions to select next hops in the moment to send information, in this way improving the exchange of information to provide suitable communication to minimize accidents, reduce congestion, optimize resources for emergencies, etc. Also, we include intelligence to vehicles at the moment to take routing decisions. Making them map-aware, being conscious of the presence of buildings and other obstacles in urban environments. Furthermore, our proposal considers the decision to store packets for a maximum time until finding other neighbouring nodes to forward the packets before discarding them. For this, we propose a protocol that considers multiple metrics that we call MMMR (A Multimetric, Map-Aware Routing Protocol ). MMMR is a protocol based on geographical knowledge of the environment and vehicle location. The metrics considered are the distance, the density of vehicles in transmission range, the available bandwidth and the future trajectory of the neighbouring nodes. This allows us to have a complete view of the vehicular scenario to anticipate the driver about possible changes that may occur. Thus, a node can select a node among all its neighbours, which is the best option to increase the likelihood of successful packet delivery, minimizing time and offering a level of quality and service. In the same way, being aware of the increase of information in wireless environments, we analyse the possibility of offering anonymity services. We include a mechanism of anonymity in routing protocols based on the Crowd algorithm, which uses the idea of hiding the original source of a packet. This allowed us to add some level of anonymity on VANET routing protocols. The analytical modeling of the available bandwidth between nodes in a VANET, the use of city infrastructure in a smart way, the forwarding selection in data routing byvehicles and the provision of anonymity in communications, are issues that have been addressed in this PhD thesis. In our research work we provide contributions to improve the communication framework for Vehicular Ad hoc Networks obtaining benefits toenhance the everyday of the population.
Road safety has become a main issue for governments and car manufacturers in the last twenty years. The
concept of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) is used when talking about communication technologies between vehicles and
infrastructure to improve, among others, road safety. In this paper, we propose a warning service to prevent accidents by
alerting drivers about accidents and dangerous road conditions. This service includes the definition of a new broadcast dissemination mechanism. A VANET highway scenario is simulated to evaluate how the use of safety schemes decreases the driver’s reaction time when an unexpected situation occurs.
Wireless vehicular communications are a key technology to provide drivers with novel services such as collision avoidance, safety warnings and real-time traffic information. Other services are high-speed toll collection, infotainment and wireless ubiquitous connectivity. It is clear that vehicular communications will be a cornerstone of the future transport systems which will significantly change our daily lives. Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) have rapidly emerged and raised novel research challenges such as the design of network protocols adapted to the specific features of VANETs, e.g. the high speed of vehicles. Also, the design of realistic simulation frameworks is an important goal to speed up the development of VANETs. This paper presents the design and evaluation of GBSR-B, a routing protocol based on GPSR that seeks to improve the performance of VANETs over urban scenarios. Our proposal includes a novel algorithm to select the optimal next-hop forwarding node. This paper also presents an alternative to the perimeter mode used in GPSR. We compare our proposal GBSR-B to GPSR and AODV using the network simulator NCTUns 6.0, showing better results in terms of packet losses.
Vehicular communication for intelligent transportation
systems will provide safety, comfort for passengers, and more
efficient travels. This type of network has the advantage to warn
drivers of any event occurred in the road ahead, such as traffic
jam, accidents or bad weather. This way, the number of traffic
accidents may decrease and many lives could be saved. Moreover,
a better selection of non-congested roads will help to reduce
pollution. Some other interesting services, such as downloading
of multimedia services, would be possible and available through
infrastructure along the roadside. Providing multimedia services
over VANETs may require a QoS-aware routing protocol that
often need to estimate available resources. In this paper, we
study the performance, in realistic VANET urban scenarios, of
an extension of AODV that includes the available bandwidth
estimator ABE [1]. AODV-ABE establishes forwarding paths
that satisfy the bandwidth required by the applications. The
results, obtained on the NCTUns simulator [2], show that AODVABE
could be used in urban-VANETs where vehicles’ speed is
moderate.
Road safety has become a main issue for governments and car manufacturers in the last twenty years. The development of new vehicular technologies has favoured companies, researchers and institutions to focus their efforts on improving road safety. During the last decades, the evolution of wireless technologies has allowed researchers to design communication systems where vehicles participate in the communication networks. Thus, new types of networks, such as Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs), have been created to facilitate communication between vehicles themselves and between vehicles and infrastructure. New concepts where vehicular networks play an important role have appeared the last years, such as smart cities and living labs [1]. Smart cities include intelligent traffic management in which data from the TIC (Traffic Information Centre) infrastructures could be reachable at any point. To test the possibilities of these future cities, living labs (cities in which new designed systems can be tested in real conditions) have been created all over Europe. The goal of our framework is to transmit information about the traffic conditions to help the driver (or the vehicle itself) take adequate decisions. In this work, the development of a warning system composed of Intelligent Traffic Lights (ITLs) that provides information to drivers about traffic density and weather conditions in the streets of a city is proposed and evaluated through simulations.
Nowadays, video on demand is one of the services more highly appreciated and demanded by customers. As the number of users increases, the capacity of the system that provides these services must also be increased to guarantee the required quality of service. An approach to that end is to have available several videoservers at various distribution points in order to satisfy the different incoming demands (videoservercluster). When a movie demand arrives to such a cluster, a load balancing device must assign the request to a specific server according to a procedure that must be fast, easy to implement and scalable. In this article we consider the problem of appropriately splitting this load to improve on the system performance. After an analysis of the video packet generation, we point out the similarity between this problem and that of optimally routing packets in data networks. With this similarity in mind, a new mechanism to select the appropriate videoserver is proposed. The purpose of this mechanism is to minimize the average packet transfer time (waiting time plus transmission time) at the videoservercluster. In this way, we are able to obtain a dynamic load balancing policy that performs satisfactorily and that is very easy to implement in practice. The results of several experiments run with real data are shown and commented to substantiate our claims. A description of a practical implementation of the system is also included.
The number of portable electronic devices capable of maintaining wireless communications increases day by day. Such mobile nodes may easily self-configure to form a Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET) without the help of any established infrastructure. As the number of mobile devices grows, the demand of multimedia services such as video-streaming from these networks is foreseen to increase as well. This paper presents a proposal which seeks to improve the experience of the end users in such environment. The proposal is called dCW-MMDSR (dynamic Contention Window-Multipath Multimedia Dynamic Source Routing), a cross-layer multipath routing protocol which includes techniques to achieve a dynamic assignment of the Contention Window of the IEEE 802.11e MAC level.
In addition, it includes multipath routing suitable for layered coded video to improve the performance of the service. The operation is simple and suitable for low capacity wireless devices. Simulations show the benefits under different scenarios.
The number of portable devices capable of maintaining wireless communications has increased considerably in the last decade. Such mobile nodes may form a spontaneous self-configured network connected by wireless links to constitute a Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET). As the number of mobile end users grows the demand of multimedia services, such as video-streaming, in such networks is envisioned to increase as well. One of the most appropriate video coding technique for MANETs is layered MPEG-2 VBR, which used with a proper multipath routing scheme improves the distribution of video streams. In this article we introduce a proposal called g-MMDSR (game theoretic-Multipath Multimedia Dynamic Source Routing), a cross-layer multipath routing protocol which includes a game theoretic approach to achieve a dynamic selection of the forwarding paths. The proposal seeks to improve the own benefits of the users whilst using the common scarce resources efficiently. It takes into account the importance of the video frames in the decoding process, which outperforms the quality of the received video. Our scheme has proved to enhance the performance of the framework and the experience of the end users. Simulations have been carried out to show the benefits of our proposal under different situations where high interfering traffic and mobility of the nodes are present.
In the last years, wireless networks have become a widely spread type of communication technology and also a challenging scientific area for new fields of research. Many contributions in ad hoc networks, such as WSNs (Wireless Sensor Networks) and VANETs (Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks), have been proposed. Nowadays, the huge amount of cars in transit has raised a big interest in vehicular communication technologies. A new type of network has been developed, named HSVN (Hybrid Sensor and Vehicular Network) in which WSNs and VANETs cooperate with the aim of improving road safety. Recent projects, such as CVIS [1] and COMeSafety [2], are focused on improving the road driving. This type of approaches will warn the driver and the co-pilot of any event occurred in the road ahead, such as traffic jam, accidents, bad weather, etc. This way, the number of traffic accidents may decrease and many lives might be saved. Besides, a better selection of non-congested roads will help to reduce pollution.
In addition, other attractive services, such as downloading of multimedia services or Internet browsing, would be easily available through infrastructure along the roadside.
Transportation in motorways will be easier, safer and more comfortable for passengers. In this paper a HSVN platform is presented, also a communications protocol between VANETs and WSNs is described and evaluated using the NCTUns [3]
simulator.
The increasing spread of mobile nodes along with the technical advances
in multi-hop MANETs (Mobile Ad hoc NETworks) make this
kind of networks an important type of access network of next generation.
The demand of multimedia services from these networks is expected
to significantly grow in the next years. Multimedia services, though, require
the provision of Quality of Service (QoS). Nevertheless, the highly
dynamic nature of MANETs, the energy constraints, the lack on centralized
infrastructure and the variable link capacity, makes the QoS provision
over MANETs a matter that challenges attention. These features make self-configuration and system adaptation questions of major importance when developing a QoS-aware framework. To tackle this issue, we have designed a-MMDSR (adaptive-Multipath Multimedia Dynamic Source Routing), a multipath routing protocol able to self-configure dynamically
depending on the state of the network. The approach includes cross-layer techniques especially designed to improve the end-to-end performance
of video-streaming services over IEEE 802.11e Ad Hoc networks.
Besides, a straightforward analytical model to estimate the path error probability is presented. This model is used by the routing scheme to estimate the lifetime of the paths. In this way, proper proactive decisions can be made before the paths get broken. The model simplicity is appropriate for low capacity wireless devices. Simulation results validate the proposal and show the improvement on standard DSR (Dynamic Source Routing) and on a previous static version.
Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) are infrastructureless networks formed by wireless
mobile devices with limited battery life. In MANETs for civilian applications, the network
nodes may not belong to a single authority and they may not have a common goal. These
MANETs are particularly vulnerable to selfish behavior, as some nodes may prefer saving
resources to forward data. There are a few generic reputation-based systems for MANETs
which could be used to enforce cooperation among nodes. However, we envision that
the system performance can be highly improved by using cross-layer techniques that take
into account the specific characteristics of each particular service. In this article, we propose
a distributed and easy-to-implement routing mechanism based on reputation for
the provision of MPEG-2 video-streaming services over MANETs. The main novelty that
we introduce regarding the existent literature is that our proposal is service aware, that
is to say, we consider the video-streaming service characteristics to develop a cross-layer
design with the routing protocol. In addition, we do not introduce extra signaling overhead
to monitor reputation because we use the standard video-streaming end-to-end signaling.
Finally, simulation results show that our proposal clearly outperforms both standard
Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) and OCEAN (a generic reputation-based mechanism). | {
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The price of Bitcoin is back over US$1,000 after gaming giant Zynga became the latest company to adopt the virtual currency.
The US company started accepting Bitcoin for in-game payments on a selection of its Web-based games this weekend, a move that helped the valuation of the cryptocurrency break the symbolic $1,000 mark once again, according to popular exchange Mt. Gox. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
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When the time comes to list your townhouse in The Assembly, it’s appropriate to investigate what townhouses have sold at The Assembly in 22030 in Fairfax. That can give a a starting point for determining your brick Traditional’s value. Phone Alan Clerinx to get a free and more accurate assessment of your townhouse‘s value. Alan Clerinx can also prepare a marketing plan to show you how we plan to get you the best price as quickly as possible.
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Alan Clerinx
Alan is licensed in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Alan was born and raised in Belgium. He moved to the US to marry his wife, an attorney from Hawaii and he became a U.S citizen. Her career as a staffer and political-appointee kept them in the National Capital Area. Alan became a Realtor after a successful career in finances and investments. (Alan was an agent in Europe long ago as well.)
For the past 20 years, Alan and his family have largely made their home in the Springfield area. As a Realtor, Alan is well acquainted with Springfield, Annandale, Arlington and Falls Church, Virginia.
Like many people born and raised in Europe, Alan speaks several languages and for this reason, Nesbitt Realty often considers Alan our international connection.
Call him at (571) 398 7061 | {
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Cody Winter is a super sexy kinkster, he has the most beautiful porcelain like skin, and his dark pink large uncut cock it just so amazing. In this video you will see as I insert and pushed the full 15 inch rod down his VIRGIN urethral path, and his facial expression it was priceless. I fucked him with many different rods and some as large as 24fr (I forcefully shoved it down with cock ring), till his body shivers. In the middle of the shoot he wants to smoke few cigarettes to ease off some of the pain and pleasure. Finally after insert a 18 fr catheter I started milking his dark blue colored (gored with ) cock as his urine gushing out of the catheter, and he started screaming.
Dan came from PA, this is his first time doing DEEP SOUNDING and CATHETER MILKING. He was introduced to me by another model from previous videos. First he started jerking himself to a HUGE cum shot (if you like big cum shots you should love what Dan produced in this video). After the huge cum explosion I started sounding his sensitive urethra for the first time in his life. Slowly, I begin inserting the sounding rod deeper and deeper inside of his urethral track, until my rod has passed his inner prostate and I started fucking him inside out, throughout the full play his hands are holding a tight and his body shivered in agony. During the last part of the sounding play I started forcefully jerking him off, as his cock become harder so as his agony and pleasure increased. When I pushed a large 20fr sounding rod into his now fully engorged cock, it pushed him to the maximum threshold…. One of my biggest fetish is milking a guy with catheter deeply inserted into his bladder, I decided to try this milking process on Dan. As I forcefully inserted the catheter into his full bladder I started milking him slowly. I think you want to see what happened next. Enjoy the video!
Farm Boy David is back for another video, this boy has amazing blue eyes ( you will see those baby blue in the video). First I started milking him relentlessly. You can hear my hand moving up and down on his hard shift. Eight times I have bring him to the edge of the cumming and 8 times I stopped right before he was about to cum. One thing I have noticed from previous video shoot was that this boy is able to produce a large amount of cum, in addition his cum is extremely white creamy and thick. At beginning I planned to use a glass to capture his cum and show the audience how much he is able to cum. Then the greedy part of me took over right before this farm boy's cum shot... I captured every last drop of his creamy white cum in my hand and had wonderful gastronomic experiences. (END OF PART 1 of 2) Next comes the sounding and catheterization on his extremely sensitive post-cum cock and urethra. As large sounding rod going deeper into this urethra you will see his eyes begin to watery up and his hand started rubbing his eyes. I have to say it is amazing sight to see, up and close, when those amazing baby blue eyes tearing up. I almost stopped, but I didn't... finally I catheterized him and collected his urine in the large collection bag you will see it at end of the video. (also i fucked him few times with the catheter as I push in and out few times for my enjoyment). (THE END PART OF 2 of 2)
Farm Boy David is back for another video, this boy has amazing blue eyes ( you will see those baby blue in the video). First I started milking him relentlessly. You can hear my hand moving up and down on his hard shift. Eight times I have bring him to the edge of the cumming and 8 times I stopped right before he was about to cum. One thing I have noticed from previous video shoot was that this boy is able to produce a large amount of cum, in addition his cum is extremely white creamy and thick. At beginning I planned to use a glass to capture his cum and show the audience how much he is able to cum. Then the greedy part of me took over right before this farm boy's cum shot... I captured every last drop of his creamy white cum in my hand and had wonderful gastronomic experiences. (END OF PART 1 of 2) Next comes the sounding and catheterization on his extremely sensitive post-cum cock and urethra. As large sounding rod going deeper into this urethra you will see his eyes begin to watery up and his hand started rubbing his eyes. I have to say it is amazing sight to see, up and close, when those amazing baby blue eyes tearing up. I almost stopped, but I didn't... finally I catheterized him and collected his urine in the large collection bag you will see it at end of the video. (also i fucked him few times with the catheter as I push in and out few times for my enjoyment). (THE END PART OF 2 of 2)
His girlfriend contacted me, told me that her boyfriend just got out of the Army and he would like to model for me, at first I cannot believe it. On the day of the shoot I was amazed how beautiful and manly this soldier was, however he was extremely nervous about the video shoot. This soldier has a large set of balls. After he laid-down on the table, I wasted no time, I started squeeze his balls HARD and hitting his balls with my other hand. In the video you will see how I was able to force his big testis under the thin layer of scrotum skin and how I was able to hitting his sensitive balls as he screams in agony. After playing with his balls I started deep sounding the guy... Man I had such awesome time pushing large sound rods inside of his virgin urethra. You will see all the facial expressions as I push and pull the sounding rod in and out of his urethral for the first time in his life. In the middle of sounding process. I started milking him slowly and when he was about to cum I denied his pleasure, and continuously fucking him with rosebud rod in his post ejaculated urethra, as this soldier's white cream pump out of his urethra by the rosebud sounding rod while his body twitched uncontrollably. (note.. You will hear a second set of the footsteps and moaning, that was his girlfriend, She was masturbating throughout the shoot)
For a long time I have been asking this beautiful curly hair twink to do my sounding and catheter video, and he has been reluctant to do it. One day I received a phone call from him and he told me that he wants to do the video, because he needs the money badly. Man was I excited! One of the biggest reason I want to do the sounding and catheter video on him is because not only he has one beautiful cock, in addition, he has one very small urethra opening. On the day of the shoot First I started with a slow milking process, as he getting closer to cum, I started fucking him with figures. That drove him over the edge. His cum jet out of his small urethra opening and landed on this chest. -- After cum; it comes the exciting part of sounding and catheter. I used three different size sounding rods. You will see from the video that the last sounding rod I used has a larger diameter than his urethra. That really pushed the limit and threshold on this beautiful twink and give the true meaning to the term "tight virgins". After the sounding rods, NOW comes the most erotic part of the video - CATHETER - I picked a two size larger catheter than his urethral opening (his urethra opening is 12fr, I used 16fr) to catheterized him. As I push that thick and large catheter passing through the inner urethra canal and right before enter his bladder... WOW his facial expression it just priceless. Enjoy the full video guys.
David comes from a farming community, and he had never done porn before. He was extremely nervous, he never had a guy touching his cock before. As I started jerking him off his heartbeat is racing. I can feel his heartbeat through the dorsal artery as his cock pulses. David is BIG SHOOTER and he has a large sets of balls, his cum shot jetstremed out of his peehole and filled the bottom of the glass enclosure (you need to see this for yourself to believe it). After the large cumshot. I started ease him into the extreme kinky fetish of sounding and catheter. MAN he didn't take the fetish well at first. His heart beats so fast he got lightheaded. We took few breaks during the shoot. However as I am fucking him with more sounding rods he is getting more and more intense. At end I catheterized him two times, one with smaller size (14fr) and another with 16fr. I almost forgot to mention his cock is 9.5 inchs and his urethral opening is (you need to see the video to find out the size, because I measured 3 times) -- 1of2 -- SOUNDING + CATHETER ONLY -- 720P
David comes from a farming community, and he had never done porn before. He was extremely nervous, he never had a guy touching his cock before. As I started jerking him off his heartbeat is racing. I can feel his heartbeat through the dorsal artery as his cock pulses. David is BIG SHOOTER and he has a large sets of balls, his cum shot jetstremed out of his peehole and filled the bottom of the glass enclosure (you need to see this for yourself to believe it). After the large cumshot. I started ease him into the extreme kinky fetish of sounding and catheter. MAN he didn't take the fetish well at first. His heart beats so fast he got lightheaded. We took few breaks during the shoot. However as I am fucking him with more sounding rods he is getting more and more intense. At end I catheterized him two times, one with smaller size (14fr) and another with 16fr. I almost forgot to mention his cock is 9.5 inchs and his urethral opening is (you need to see the video to find out the size, because I measured 3 times) -- 1of2 -- CUM ONLY -- 720P
Mr. Lean Muscle Stud comes back for more intense urethral and catheter play. This time I started stimulating his prostate until his pre-cum flowing out of the urethral meatus. Then I told him to flip over and begin sounding him with 12 inch long Rosebud rod. As the Rosebud rod fully inserted into this urethra he is getting harder and harder. I keep fucking him inside out until he told me he is about to cum, then I let him jerked himself to a creamy cumshot. Right after his ejaculation I started fucking his sensitive urethra again with multiple large Rosebud rod, inserted deeply passing the prostate urethra and using his own cum as lubricant ... when his urethra turned to redish pink color... I catheterized him with a 18fr and drained all of his urine from his full bladder (see for yourself how much urine he can hold in his bladder.. you will be surprised). -- Full Movie -- All 3 Parts
This lean muscle stud, father of one, has never done cock sounding or catheter before. First he jerked himself to a blast of cumshot onto his 8 pack abs. After his virgin urethra is coded with a thick layer of cum I started sounding him with different size of Pratt dilators. As the tip of the dilator touch his sphincter muscle his cock got extremely hard and pre-cum started flow out of his cock tip. Finally I catheterized him with a 18fr catheter to let him release over 500ml of yellow urine into the urine collecting bag, which he has been holding in from the start. -- All 3 parts -- full film in 720P | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
Baxi Potterton Myson Evening
Update on regulation issues & agreement on next step in pursuit of our objectives
Training and Information Evening
Louis Fitzgerald Hotel, Newlands Cross, Naas Road, Dublin.
Loads of free parking
Food Served (after work)
Hot Food will be served free of charge from 6.30pm.
APHCI meetings will begin at 7.30pm Sharp.
Free Bar
A free bar will be open
Free Training
BAXI Potterton Myson will have engineers on site to provide training, technical advice & product information
Our Mission
“To represent members without fear or favour, in order to create a level playing field and an environment which is open, fair and transparent”
We have been working with Insight Consultants to achieve our goals. We are in ongoing correspondence with members of the Joint Oireachtas Committee the RGII, CER and the SEAI
New Members Welcome
As a qualified Plumbing and Heating Engineer you are now invited to join the APHCI.
This is an unprecedented opportunity for heating and plumbing contractors throughout the country to have a say in how the business is regulated, and to lobby and exert influence over issues which impact unfavorably on our livelihoods.
In addition to the above Benefits of Free Training and Special Offers you have the advantage of collective representation to Government and Regulatory Bodies such as the CER, RGII, and the SEAI.
We are increasingly obtaining competitive rates on Public Liability, Employers Liability, Motor vehicle insurance, Health insurance, and professional services from Solicitors and Accountants.
We are providing you with a broader skills base by means of Supplier Training Evenings.
The annual subscription is €100 per member. Join online www.aphci.ie where you can pay by a variety of methods PayPal, Credit Card and even monthly.
We are therefore extending this invitation to you to join us and become a Member.
On the night we will also bring you up to date on the various discussions with the authorities which will prove very interesting, so please play your part in pushing our boundaries. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
March 14, 2014
Russia's connect the dots
Connect the dots on events in Russia. I'm not talking about the Ukraine, but clearly all of this is related to the crisis in the Crimea. We know that Putin is a totalitarian. He wants Ukrainian territory. He wants as much as he can get away with taking without consequences. But I'm talking about connecting the dots with respect to something else entirely. What I'm talking about are the covert actions that are going on while the Ukrainian crisis plays out.
Thursday the Russian government shut down several websites critical of the government in an effort by the power hungry leadership (i.e. Putin) to consolidate power and crush dissent. That's Dot #1. Dot #2: Likely in response to the website crackdown, the Kremlin website and other government sites in Russia have been hacked.
Hackers knocked out the Russian presidency's website several times on Friday and brought down the central bank website, the Kremlin press service said.
"A powerful cyber attack is under way on the (Kremlin) site," a Kremlin spokeswoman said, adding that the attack was continuing and security experts were trying to prevent further disruptions.
As of yet there's no Dot #3. But I hope that Dot #3 turns out to be that the hacking is coming from the U.S. It would provide me with a sense that the administration is actually doing something about the crisis. Because this, is not cutting it:
One way of telling that the Kerry response is effete, is the Russian position coming out of the meeting. It hasn't really changed.
Unfortunately it is far more likely that Dot #3 is that the hacking is coming from dissenting parties within Russia (I do not mean political parties). While that is encouraging, it has more elements of discouragement within it. Internal dissent in Russia is fractured and on the run. It has been growing ever more so since Putin initially took power in Russia. It would also mean that the United States isn't doing enough other than sending over more drones (an Obama favorite) to be shot down or captured by the Russians. | {
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
} |
An estimated 15,000 people died
from hepatitis C in the U.S. in 2007,
when it surpassed AIDS as a cause of
death.
Sovaldi, a new pill for hepatitis C,
cures the liver-wasting disease in 9
of 10 patients, but treatment can cost
more than $90,000.
teacher assistant Margarita Sokolova, second from left, helps Giuliana Zautta, 17, of
Menlo Park, Calif., during a Girls Who Code class at Adobe Systems in San Jose, Calif.
Girls Who Code, a national non-profit organization that aims to inspire, educate and
equip young women for futures in the computing-related fields, kicked off its summer
program in partnership with the world’s leading tech companies. The summer program
will reach 380 high school girls across 19 classes in New York, Boston, Miami, Seattle
and the Bay Area. Fewer than one percent of high school girls think of computer science
as part of their future, even though it’s one of the fastest growing fields in the U.S. today
with a projected 4.2 million jobs by 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.(
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) -- Diana Navarro loves to code, and
she’s not afraid to admit it. But the 18-year-old Rutgers University
computer science major knows she’s an anomaly: Writing software to
run computer programs in 2014 is - more than ever - a man’s world.
“We live in a culture where we’re dissuaded to do things that are
technical,” Navarro said. “Younger girls see men, not women, doing
all the techie stuff, programming and computer science.”
Less than one percent of high school girls think of computer science
as part of their future, even though it’s one of the fastest-growing
fields in the U.S. today with a projected 4.2 million jobs by 2020,
according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
REPORT: CHINESE PHONE
COMES PRELOADED
W I T H S P Y WA R E
Leading medical societies recommend the drug as a first-line treatment, and patients are clamoring
for it. But insurance companies and
state Medicaid programs are gagging
on the price. In Oregon, officials propose to limit how many low-income
patients can get Sovaldi.
This undated handout photo provided by Gilead Sciences shows the Hepatitis-C medication Sovaldi. Sovaldi, a new pill for hepatitis C, cures the
liver-wasting disease in 9 of 10 patients, but treatment can cost more than
$90,000. Leading medical societies recommend the drug and patients are
clamoring for it. But insurance companies and state Medicaid programs
are gagging on the price. In Oregon, officials propose to limit how many
low-income patients can get it.
Yet if Sovaldi didn’t exist, insurers
would still be paying in the mid-tohigh five figures to treat the most common kind of hepatitis C, a
new pricing survey indicates. Some of the older alternatives involve more side effects, and are less likely to provide cures.
So what’s a fair price?
The cost of this breakthrough drug is highlighting cracks in the
U.S. health care system at a time of heightened budget concerns.
The Obama administration has a huge political stake in controlling treatment costs, but its critics may cry rationing.
“If it’s going to get me the medicine,
I’ll put my hand out there with a tin
cup,” said Stuart Rose, a hepatitis C
patient in New York City. His insurance would pay only $4,000 a year
for medications, but Rose was able to
get assistance from charitable foundations. He recently started taking
Sovaldi.
Until the drug’s approval late last
year, standard treatment for the most
common type of the disease required
daily pills and extended use of interferon, an injection that can produce debilitating flu-like symptoms. “Brain fog,” said Rose.
Taken once a day for 12 weeks, Sovaldi greatly reduces the length
of interferon treatment, making things more tolerable for patients.
Now, many more people might want to try the cure.
A similar drug, Olysio, also approved last year, is priced a bit
lower.
“People are going to want to try to dodge this hot potato,” says
economist Douglas Holtz-Eakin.
The nation’s largest care provider for chronic hepatitis C, the
federal Veterans Administration, sees promise. With 175,000 patients, the VA has started more than 1,850 of them on Sovaldi.
For insurers, there’s a frustrating twist: For each middle-aged person they pay to cure with Sovaldi, any financial benefits from preventing liver failure are likely to accrue to Medicare, not to them.
“After 20 years in infectious diseases, I never thought we would
be in a position to cure this disease,” said Dr. David Ross, head
of the VA’s program.
More than 3 million Americans carry the hepatitis C virus, and
many don’t realize it. It’s a public health concern since the disease
can be transmitted by contact with infected blood, and sometimes
through sexual activity. Health officials advise all baby boomers
to get tested.
By law, the VA gets drug discounts of over 40 percent. Will the
agency break even by avoiding the disease’s worst complications?
The illness is complex, with distinct virus types requiring different treatments. While it progresses gradually, it can ultimately
destroy the liver, and transplants average $577,000.
Private insurers will probably introduce Sovaldi gradually. “Not
everybody is going to get this all at once,” said former Medicare
administrator Mark McClellan.
Not necessarily, said Ross. “If it leads to cost benefits in the long
run, that’s gravy.”
continued on page 3
FDA PREPPING LONG-AWAITED
P L A N T O R E D U C E S A LT
on making foods less salty. The IOM advised the government to
establish maximum sodium levels for different foods, though the
FDA said then - and maintains now - that it favors a voluntary
route.
Americans eat about 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt daily, about a third
more than the government recommends for good health and
enough to increase the risk of high blood pressure, strokes and
other problems. Most of that sodium is hidden inside common
processed foods and restaurant meals.
BERLIN (AP) -- A cheap brand of Chinese-made smartphones carried
by major online retailers comes preinstalled with espionage software, a
German security firm said Tuesday.
G Data Software said it found malicious code hidden deep in the
propriety software of the Star N9500 when it ordered the handset from
a website late last month. The find is the latest in a series of incidents
where smartphones have appeared preloaded with malicious software.
G Data spokesman Thorsten Urbanski said his firm bought the phone
after getting complaints about it from several customers. He said his
team spent more than a week trying to trace the handset’s maker without
success.
“The manufacturer is not mentioned,” he said. “Not in the phone, not in
the documentation, nothing else.”
The Associated Press found the phone for sale on several major retail
websites, offered by an array of companies listed in Shenzhen, in
southern China. It could not immediately find a reference to the phone’s
manufacturer.
G Data said the spyware it found on the N9500 could allow a hacker to
steal personal data, place rogue calls, or turn on the phone’s camera and
microphone. G Data said the stolen information was sent to a server in
China.
Bjoern Rupp, chief executive of the Berlin-based mobile security
consultancy firm GSMK, said such cases are more common than people
think. Last fall, German cellphone service provider E-Plus found
malicious software on some handsets delivered to customers of its Base
brand.
“We have to assume that such incidents will increasingly occur, for
different commercial and other reasons,” said Rupp.
a shopper walking down the canned soup aisle at a grocery store in Cincinnati. Food
companies and restaurants could soon face government pressure to make their foods
less salty _ a long-awaited federal effort to try and prevent thousands of deaths each
year from heart disease and stroke.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Food companies and restaurants could
soon face government pressure to make their foods less salty - a
long-awaited federal effort to try to prevent thousands of deaths
each year from heart disease and stroke.
The Food and Drug Administration is preparing to issue voluntary guidelines asking the food industry to lower sodium levels,
FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg told The Associated
Press. Hamburg said in a recent interview that the sodium is “of
huge interest and concern” and she hopes the guidelines will be
issued “relatively soon.”
“We believe we can make a big impact working with the
industry to bring sodium levels down, because the current level
of consumption really is higher than it should be for health,”
Hamburg said.
The food industry has already made some reductions, and
has prepared for government action since a 2010 Institute of
Medicine report said companies had not made enough progress
In addition to flavor, companies use sodium to increase shelf
life, prevent the growth of bacteria, or improve texture and
appearance. That makes it more difficult to remove from some
products, Hamburg noted.
Once the guidelines are issued, Americans won’t notice an immediate taste difference in higher-sodium foods like pizza, pasta,
bread and soups. The idea would be to encourage gradual change
so consumers’ taste buds can adjust, and to give the companies
time to develop lower-sodium foods.
“I think one of the things we are very mindful of is that we need
to have a realistic timeline,” Hamburg said.
Health groups would prefer mandatory standards, but say voluntary guidelines are a good first step.
Still, Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public
Interest says he is concerned companies may hesitate, worried
that their competitors won’t lower sodium in their products.
If that happens, “then FDA should start a process of mandatory
limits,” Jacobson says.
That’s what companies are worried about. Though the limits
would be voluntary, the FDA is at heart a regulatory agency, and
continued on page 6
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Wealthy
donors are lavishing money on
their favored charities, including
universities, hospitals and arts institutions, while giving is flat to
social service and church groups
more dependent on financially
squeezed middle-class donors,
according to the latest comprehensive report on how Americans give away their money.
social woes persist in many
communities, Palmer said.
Rooney noted that many
social-service organizations focus on obtaining
government contracts and
grants, while devoting fewer
resources to courting wealthy
donors. Universities typically
have large, highly professional fundraising staffs, and
an easily identifiable pool of
potential benefactors.
The Giving USA report, being
released Tuesday, said Americans gave an estimated $335.17
billion to charity in 2013, up 3
percent from 2012 after adjustment for inflation.
Reflecting the nation’s widening
wealth gap, some sectors fared far
better than others. Adjusted for inflation, giving was up 7.4 percent for education, 6.3 percent for the arts and humanities, and
4.5 percent for health organizations, while giving to religious
groups declined by 1.6 percent and giving to social service
groups rose by only 0.7 percent.
Experts with the Giving USA Foundation and its research partner, the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy,
said it was the fourth straight year of increased overall giving,
and predicted that within two more years the total could match
the pre-recession peak of $347.5 billion.
During and immediately after the recession, some wealthy
donors shifted their giving to social service groups working to
combat hunger and homelessness, according to Patrick Rooney,
associate dean of the school of philanthropy. Now, many of
those donors - including some making multimillion-dollar gifts
- are refocusing their attention on higher education, the arts and
other sectors long patronized by the affluent, he said.
The trend is readily apparent in the listings of recent major charitable gifts compiled by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, which
provides news coverage of the nonprofit world.
Among the 100 largest recent gifts, which range from $7.5
million to $275 million, the recipients overwhelmingly are universities and hospitals, along with a few arts institutions. Only
four of the gifts are to social service organizations and one to a
religious group.
Children Incorporated
4205 Dover Road
www.childrenincorporated.
Almost all the U.S. income gains from 2009 to 2012 flowed
to the top 1 percent of earners, according to tax data analyzed
by economist Emmanuel Saez at the University of California,
Berkeley. By contrast, median household income was $51,017
in 2012, $4,600 below its peak in 2007, according to the Census
Bureau.
“It’s the very wealthiest who have recovered the most in terms
of the giving potential, and the very wealthiest do tend to give
their biggest gifts to colleges and hospitals,” said Stacy Palmer,
the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s editor.
Those are the institutions that ask more effectively, she added.
“They have development offices who offer donors these ambitious plans.”
POTECTING SPEICIES
In contrast, she said many social service organizations rely
heavily on less wealthy donors who may not yet feel they
have fully recovered from the recession. Compounding their
struggles, some of those organizations are still experiencing
increased demand for services as high unemployment and other
“For many wealthy alumni,
their alma mater is an important part of what made them
who they are,” Rooney said.
As usual, religious organizations received more donations than any other sector in 2013,
with $105.5 billion in gifts. However, Giving USA said that
was the lowest portion of total giving - 31 percent - for church
groups in four decades.
Rooney said giving to churches has been relatively flat for about
15 years, as many denominations report declining attendance,
and polls show a drop in the percentage of Americans who
consider themselves religious.
“If you don’t attend church, you’re not likely to give,” said
Rooney. “And most churches’ fundraising efforts are `Pass the
plate.’” They don’t have staff with a more scientific approach.”
The Illinois-based research firm Empty Tomb, which tracks
religious giving trends, says church members are giving less of
their income to their churches than they used to - 2.3 percent in
2011 compared to 3.1 percent in 1968.
One consequence, according to Empty Tomb vice president
Sylvia Ronsvalle, is relatively less money available for the
churches’ social service and missionary programs.
“I fault church leadership for not giving people a vision,” she
said. “We’ve left the playing field to these other categories.”
The nation’s largest Protestant denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention, reported earlier this month that the total of gifts
to its churches dropped by nearly 1.4 percent last year.
Bill Townes, the SBC’s vice president for finance, said the denomination continued to believe it can carry out its mission, but
said of the giving trend, “We’d like it to turn around.”
Depending on the means of measurement, both wealthy Americans and those of more modest means can claim credit for their
generosity.
According to a 2012 Bank of America study, the wealthiest 3
percent of American households accounted for about 35 percent
of all giving by individuals in 2011.
Yet the National Center for Charitable Statistics, citing IRS data
for 2011, said Americans with incomes under $100,000 gave
away a higher percentage of their income - about 3.6 percent
- than those with incomes between $100,000 and $1 million,
for whom the figure was about 2.5 percent. Other studies have
found that residents of relatively poor states in the South - including Alabama and Mississippi - are among the most generous
in the nation in terms of the percentage of their discretionary
income that they gave to charity.
worldwildlife.org
www.redcross.org
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Now the question that conservators at The Phillips Collection in
Washington hope to answer is simply: Who is he?
It’s a mystery that’s fueling new research about the 1901
painting created early in Picasso’s career while he was working
in Paris at the start of his distinctive blue period of melancholy
subjects.
Curators and conservators revealed the discovery of the portrait
for the first time to The Associated Press last week.
Patricia Favero, associate conservator at The Phillips Collection, points to an image
of a man found underneath one of Picasso’s first masterpieces, “The Blue Room,” on
Tuesday, June 10, 2014, in Washington. Scientists and art experts have found a hidden painting beneath the painting. Advances in infrared imagery reveal a bow-tied man
with his face resting on his hand, with three rings on his fingers. Now the question that
conservators at The Phillips Collection in Washington hope to answer is simply: Who is
he? It’s a mystery that’s fueling new research about the 1901 painting created early in
Picasso’s career while he was working in Paris at the start of his distinctive blue period
of melancholy subjects.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Scientists and art experts finally know
what’s beneath one of Pablo Picasso’s first masterpieces, “The
Blue Room,” using advances in infrared imagery to reveal a hidden portrait of a bow-tied man with his face resting on his hand.
Experts long suspected there might be something under the surface of “The Blue Room,” which has been part of The Phillips
Collection since 1927. Brushstrokes on the piece clearly don’t
match the composition that depicts a woman bathing in Picasso’s
studio.
A conservator noted the odd brushstrokes in a 1954 letter, but it
wasn’t until the 1990s that an X-ray of the painting first revealed
a fuzzy image of something under the picture. It wasn’t clear,
though, that it was a portrait.
In 2008, improved infrared imagery revealed for the first time a
man’s bearded face resting on his hand with three rings on his
fingers. He’s dressed in a jacket and bow tie, painted in a vertical
composition.
R A R E S TA M P C O U L D S E T
R E C O R D AT N Y C A U C T I O N
McKinnon kept it for five years before selling it to a Liverpool
dealer who recognized the unassuming stamp as highly uncommon.
He paid 120 pounds for it and quickly resold it for 150 pounds to
Count Philippe la Renotiere von Ferrary, one of the world’s greatest
stamp collectors.
Upon his death in 1917, the count bequeathed his stamp collection
to the Postmuseum in Berlin. The collection was later seized by
France as war reparations and sold off in a series of 14 auctions with
the One-Cent Magenta bringing $35,000 in 1922 - an auction record
for a single stamp.
Arthur Hind, a textile magnate from Utica, New York, was the
buyer. King George V was an under-bidder. It is the one major piece
absent from the Royal Family’s heirloom collection, Beech said.
This photo taken June 5, 2014 shows diagrams in a room where the Drake bug collection is held at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington. When Dr. Carl
J. Drake died in 1965 he left the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History
$250,000 and his collection of thousands of bugs. Drake, an entomologist, spent his life
studying insects, and he gave the Smithsonian a mission for his money: buy more bugs.
After nearly half a century, however, the Smithsonian is having a hard time following the
directives of Drake’s will.
NEW YORK (AP) -- A 1-cent postage stamp from a 19th century
British colony in South America is poised to become the world’s
most valuable stamp - again.
The 1856 British Guiana One-Cent Magenta could bring $10 million to $20 million when it goes on the auction block at Sotheby’s
on Tuesday.
Three times in its long history, the little stamp has broken the auction record for a single stamp.
Measuring 1 inch-by-1 1/4 inches, it hasn’t been on public view
since 1986 and is the only major stamp absent from the British
Royal Family’s private Royal Philatelic Collection.
After Hind’s death in 1933, the stamp was to be auctioned with the
rest of his collection until his wife brought a lawsuit, claiming it
was left to her.
The next owner was Frederick Small, an Australian engineer living
in Florida who purchased it privately from Hind’s widow for
$45,000 in 1940. Thirty years later, he consigned the stamp to a
New York auction where it was purchased by an investment consortium for $280,000 - another record.
The stamp set its third record in 1980 when it sold for $935,000 to
du Pont.
APNEWSBREAK: HEMP
S E E D S S E I Z E D AT
US-CANADA BORDER
“You’re not going to find anything rarer than this,” according to
Allen Kane, director of the Smithsonian National Postal Museum.
“It’s a stamp the world of collectors has been dying to see for a long
time.”
An 1855 Swedish stamp, which sold for $2.3 million in 1996, currently holds the auction record for a single stamp.
David Beech, longtime curator of stamps at the British Library who
retired last year, has compared it to buying the “Mona Lisa” of the
world’s most prized stamps.
The last owner was John E. du Pont, an heir to the du Pont chemical
fortune who was convicted of fatally shooting a 1984 Olympic
champion wrestler. It’s being sold by his estate, which will designate part of the proceeds to the Eurasian Pacific Wildlife Conservation Foundation that du Pont championed.
Printed in black on magenta paper, it bears the image of a
three-masted ship and the colony’s motto, in Latin, “we give and
expect in return.” It went into circulation after a shipment of stamps
was delayed from London and the postmaster asked printers for
the Royal Gazette newspaper in Georgetown in British Guiana to
produce three stamps until the shipment arrived: a 1-cent magenta, a
4-cent magenta and a 4-cent blue.
While multiple examples of the 4-cent stamps have survived, only
the tiny 1-cent issue is known to exist today.
Its first owner was a 12-year-old Scottish boy living in South
America who added it to his collection after finding it among family
papers in 1873. He soon sold it for a few shillings to a local collector, Neil McKinnon.
cating cousin.
DENVER (AP) -Hundreds of pounds of
industrial hemp seeds
bound from Canada to
Colorado have been
seized by federal
authorities in North
Dakota, marking the
latest bump along the
road to legalization of
marijuana’s non-intoxi-
At the center of the dispute is hemp activist Tom McClain. Armed
with a copy of last year’s federal Farm Bill, which allowed states
to permit hemp cultivation for research and development, he set
off for MacGregor, Manitoba, and bought 350 pounds of seeds
used to grow a strain known as X-59 or Hemp Nut.
Hemp is legal in Canada, and North Dakota is one of 15 states
with laws that allow limited hemp production. However, under
the Farm Bill, importing hemp seeds requires permission from
the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
McClain’s seeds were confiscated Saturday at the border
crossing in Hansboro, North Dakota, after he says he declared
the seven bags in his trunk. McClain, however, has not been
charged with a crime.
“They treated me very professionally,” McClain said after he
returned to Colorado - without the seeds. “They were just a little
confused as to what to do. According to them, I couldn’t bring
them in.”
Shawn Neudauer, a spokesman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, confirmed the seizure.
I N
M A
3
G
N
“It’s really one of those moments that really makes what you do
special,” said Patricia Favero, the conservator at The Phillips
Collection who pieced together the best infrared image yet of the
man’s face.
“The second reaction was, `Well, who is it?’ We’re still working
on answering that question.”
Scholars have ruled out the possibility that it was a self-portrait.
One possible figure is the Paris art dealer Ambrose Villard, who
hosted Picasso’s first show in 1901. But there’s no documentation and no clues left on the canvass, so the research continues.
Over the past five years, experts from The Phillips Collection,
National Gallery of Art, Cornell University and Delaware’s Winterthur Museum have developed a clearer image of the mystery
picture under the surface. A technical analysis confirmed the
hidden portrait is a work Picasso likely painted just before “The
Blue Room,” curators said.
Since the portrait was discovered, conservators have been using
other technology to scan the painting for further insights. Favero
has been collaborating with other experts to scan the painting
with multi-spectral imaging technology and X-ray fluorescence
intensity mapping to try to identify and map the colors of the
hidden painting. They would like to recreate a digital image
approximating the colors Picasso used.
Curators are planning the first exhibit focused on “The Blue
Room” as a seminal work in Picasso’s career for 2017. It will examine the revelation of the man’s portrait beneath the painting,
as well as other Picasso works and his engagement with other
artists.
For now, “The Blue Room” is part of a tour to South Korea
through early 2015 as the research continues.
Hidden pictures have been found under other important Picasso
paintings. A technical analysis of “La Vie” at the Cleveland
Museum of Art revealed Picasso significantly reworked the
painting’s composition. And conservators found a portrait of a
mustached man beneath Picasso’s painting “Woman Ironing” at
the Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan.
“When he had an idea, you know, he just had to get it down and
realize it,” Phillips curator Susan Behrends Frank told the AP,
describing how Picasso had hurriedly painted “The Blue Room”
over another complete picture. “He could not afford to acquire
new canvasses every time he had an idea that he wanted to pursue. He worked sometimes on cardboard because canvass was so
much more expensive.”
Dorothy Kosinski, the director of The Phillips Collection, said
new knowledge about Picasso and his process can be discovered
through the high-tech collaboration among museums.
“Our audiences are hungry for this. It’s kind of detective work.
It’s giving them a doorway of access that I think enriches, maybe
adds mystery, while allowing them to be part of a piecing together of a puzzle,” she said. “The more we can understand, the
greater our appreciation is of its significance in Picasso’s life.”
“The shipment is currently undergoing scientific evaluation, as
hemp seeds can look much like marijuana seeds,” Neudauer
said in a statement.
The seizure underscored the difficulties facing the fledgling U.S.
hemp industry after five decades of prohibition.
Hemp is prized for oils, seeds and fiber, but its production
had been prohibited because the plant can be manipulated to
enhance the psychoactive chemical THC - the intoxicant found
in marijuana.
In another recent case, U.S. customs officials in Louisville, Kentucky, held a shipment of hemp seeds from Italy that was bound
for research grows.
Kentucky agriculture authorities sued the Justice Department,
the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Customs and Border
Protection and Attorney General Eric Holder to force the return of
the seeds. The DEA eventually relented and issued a permit to
allow limited hemp planting for research in the state.
McClain and Jason Lauve of the Colorado-based activist group
Hemp Cleans have appealed to congressional representatives in
the state to resolve the seed flap in North Dakota.
A spokeswoman for Colorado’s Agriculture Department, Christi
Lightcap, said the agency hasn’t been approached to intervene.
Colorado has accepted more than 40 hemp-cultivation applications. But the state has a “don’t-ask-don’t-tell” policy about the
origin of the seeds used in the work.
Growers, meanwhile, have expressed frustration over the limited
availability of seeds that are affordable and haven’t been smuggled into the country.
The seeds confiscated in North Dakota were destined for experimental plots. Lauve said owners have only about two weeks to
get the seeds planted so they can harvest the hemp before snow
falls.
4
The Weekly News Digest, June 23, 2014
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tornado was spotted southwest of Pilger, according to the Stanton
County Sheriff’s Office. Shortly afterward, the town suffered a “direct
hit” that leveled several buildings, including the Fire Department
building.
Pilger’s 350 residents evacuated their homes after the powerful twisters slammed the area Monday afternoon. Nebraska State Patrol closed
all roads into town.
Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman declared a state of emergency, and the
National Guard was preparing to assist local emergency responders
and help with the cleanup. Heineman and officials with the Nebraska
Emergency Management Agency were expected to arrive Tuesday
morning. A shelter for displaced residents was established at Wisner-Pilger Jr.-Sr. High School in nearby Wisner.
“More than half of the town is gone - absolutely gone,” Stanton County Commissioner Jerry Weatherholt said. “The co-op is gone, the grain
bins are gone, and it looks like almost every house in town has some
damage. It’s a complete mess.”
Larry Nelson, 73, has lived in Pilger, about 80 miles northwest of
Omaha, for 23 years. He rode out the storm in his neighbor’s basement, emerging later to find his home completely gone.
“I’m grateful I was over there,” Nelson said.
Another resident, Trey Wisniewski, said first his weather radio alerted
him, then the power went out and the tornado sirens started to sound.
The sky went black and he and his wife took their pets into the basement.
“My wife was holding our animals and I was holding on to my wife.
We could feel the suction try to pull is out of there,” said Wisniewski,
43. “It wasn’t raining. It was raining debris.”
Stanton County Sheriff Mike Unger estimated that 50 to 75 percent
of Pilger was heavily damaged or destroyed and the school was likely
beyond repair.
The storm was part of a larger system that tracked across the nation’s
midsection Monday. More storms are forecast for Tuesday, stretching
from eastern Montana to New York, but the system likely won’t be
as powerful as on Monday, said Steve Corfidi, lead forecaster at the
Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma.
The greatest risk for tornadoes will be in the Dakotas, eastern Montana
and northeastern Wyoming. Hail is expected west of the Mississippi
River, while damaging winds could down some trees in upstate New
York, Corfidi said.
Stanton County Sheriff’s deputy Josh Bennett said a 5-year-old girl
was killed in Pilger on Monday. Bennett did not identify the child
further or provide details about her death.
Unger said Tuesday that a motorist also died in a single-vehicle
Tornadoes also caused damage in Cuming and Wayne counties, the
Nebraska Emergency Management Agency said in a news release.
Meteorologists also tracked a reported tornado near the town of Burwell, in central Nebraska.
Two tornados approach Pilger, Neb., Monday June 16, 2014. The National Weather Service said at least two twisters touched down within roughly a mile of each other Monday
in northeast Nebraska.
accident just east of Pilger as the storm pounded the area. State patrol
confirmed that a male driver died in Cuming County.
At least 19 people were taken to hospitals.
The National Weather Service said the two twisters touched down
within roughly a mile of each other. Crews planned to examine the
area Tuesday to determine the intensity of the unusual twin tornadoes, said Barbara Mayes, a meteorologist with the National Weather
Service in Valley.
“It’s less common for two tornadoes to track together for so long,
especially with that same intensity,” she said. “By no means is it
unprecedented. But we don’t see it often.”
Residents were poised to return Tuesday morning to survey the damage and gather valuables. Sheriffs said law enforcement would escort
residents to their properties.
Jodi Richey, a spokeswoman for Faith Regional Health Services in
nearby Norfolk, said 16 people were treated there. Some were in critical condition but others were treated and released.
Providence Medical Center in Wayne treated three tornado victims,
including two who had lacerations, said hospital spokeswoman Sandy
Bartling. Two were released Monday evening, and the third was in
stable condition.
Authorities said the first tornado touched down around 3:45 p.m. and
downed several power lines before it leveled a farmhouse. The second
K E N YA P R E S I D E N T B L A M E S
LOCALS FOR DEADLY ATTACKS
leaders. He did not get more specific.
Kenyatta said police officials in Mpeketoni had advance intelligence about the attack but did not act on it. The president
said some officers have been suspended and will be prosecuted.
Kenyatta said that some political leaders are preaching the
idea that some Kenyans are less human than others. “My deputy and I will never go the route of ethnic violence,” Kenyatta
said.
Abdullahi Abdi, left, Chairman National Muslim Leaders Forum ( NAMLEF) with members
of the Muslim Council of Kenya speaks to the media in Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, June,
17, 2014. Extremists attacked a coastal area of Kenya for the second night in a row,
killing at least nine people a day after the deaths of nearly 50, an official said Tuesday.
Police spokesman Masoud Mwinyi said that al-Shabab militants attacked Majembeni
village. The Somali militant group also claimed responsibility for the Sunday night attack
in nearby Mpeketoni that killed 48 people. The Muslim leaders condemned the killings
as savage acts and warned that they should not divide Kenyans along religious lines.
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Kenya’s president blamed political
leaders inside Kenya Tuesday for carrying out two nights of
deadly attacks that killed at least 60 people in coastal communities, saying that despite claims of responsibility from
al-Shabab, the Islamic extremists were not behind it.
President Uhuru Kenyatta, in a nationally televised address,
said evidence indicates that local political leaders inside Kenya
were behind what he termed ethnically motivated violence. The
Somali militant group al-Shabab had claimed responsibility for
two nights of attacks near the tourist resort island of Lamu that
targeted non-Muslims.
The newer attack came Monday night in Majembeni village
in which 10 people died. The village is next to Mpeketoni,
where four dozen Christian men were slaughtered Sunday
night and Monday morning.
Al-Shabab said the second attack killed government workers
and Christians. A county commissioner, Benson Maisori, said
the attackers appear to have been the same in both cases.
“The style of killing is the same. They slit the victims’ throats
wide open or shot them several times in the head,” said Maisori.
But in a surprising turn of events, Kenyatta said outright that
al-Shabab did not plan and execute the attack, but rather local
The back-to-back attacks underscore the weak security
around the Lamu area, which lies just south of the Somali
border. Lamu once attracted swarms of foreign visitors but its
tourist sector has been suffering in recent years because of the
violence.
Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said a new slate of government and security officials have been installed in Lamu, in
part because “there seems to be some inside job.”
Ole Lenku said the problem facing the country “is elaborate
and is intended to cause discord among our people.” Meanwhile, Muslim leaders on Tuesday conferred inside Nairobi’s
largest mosque, a grand white facade nestled among the capital’s high rises. The bearded elders from four different Muslim
groups condemned what they called savage acts and ghastly
killings and said there was no justification for the deaths.
The Muslims leaders warned of a potential sectarian rift.
“The continued violence risks tearing the country apart,”
they said, continuing later: “We need to be cognizant of the
fact that some of these attacks are aimed at planning seeds of
discord and animosity among Kenyans and divide the country
along ethnic and religious lines.”
The Muslim leaders said the government is taking “kneejerk reactions” and harassing specific communities, a
reference to Kenya’s Somali population, which has suffered
in a widespread crackdown the last several months which has
seen the arrests of thousands of Somalis and the deportation
of dozens.
Kenya has seen ethnic violence rip apart the country in
recent years. More than 1,000 people were killed in ethnically
motivated violence after the country’s 2007 election. That
violence, though, did not have religious component to it.
$ 1 , 0 0 0 - A - P I L L
continued from page 1
Drug maker Gilead Sciences, Inc., reported Sovaldi sales of $2.3
billion worldwide in just the first three months of this year. Gilead
will not disclose its pricing methods, but vice president Gregg
Alton said the drug’s high cure rate makes it “a real huge value.”
In many countries, the government sets drug prices. In the US,
insurers negotiate with drug companies. Medicare is forbidden
from bargaining, a situation that critics say saddles U.S. patients
with high costs while subsidizing the rest of the world.
The Associated Press asked DRX, a technology company that
researches drug prices for major insurers and government programs, to look at Sovaldi. The findings:
- There aren’t many deep discounts:
The midpoint - or median- discount that private payers are securing is about 14 percent off the average wholesale price of $1,200 a
pill, bringing it down to $1,037. The biggest discount DRX found
was nearly 36 percent, approaching the VA rate, and bringing the
cost to $773. DRX surveyed more than 300 payers.
- How do other drugs compare?
DRX compared the total drug cost of treating the most common
type of hepatitis C with Sovaldi and three alternatives. The regimen included pills, interferon and an antiviral called ribavirin.
Treatment with Sovaldi had the highest cost, a median of $97,376.
The lowest was $48,084 for Victrelis, a somewhat older drug with
a lower cure rate.
Two others were about $8,000 less than Sovaldi. The total median
cost with Incivek was $89,178. With Olyisio, it was $89,319.
“While Sovaldi still is the most expensive, all of these are five-figure regimens,” said Jim Yocum, DRX executive vice president.
“Sovaldi is an advance ... and it doesn’t seem to be priced completely out of whack.”
But Dr. Sharon Levine, a top official working on drug policy with
insurer Kaiser Permanente, disagrees.
“There was never any question that we would cover and prescribe
this drug,” said Levine. But she firmly believes the price is out of
line. Countries where the government sets drug prices are paying
much less, she noted.
U.S. insurers aren’t interested in price controls, said Levine, but
“eventually the American public is going to start getting very
uncomfortable” with high prices. Drug costs have moderated in
recent years, but new medications in the pipeline for cancer and
other diseases are expected to push spending up.
The California Technology Assessment Forum, a private group
that reviews medical treatments, recently voted Sovaldi a “low
value,” because it would be cost-prohibitive to treat the high
number of potentially eligible patients. But after their own assessment, the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases issued clinical
guidelines recommending that doctors use Sovaldi as a primary
treatment.
Meanwhile, Gilead has a new hepatitis C pill close to approval
that will not require interferon use.
There’s no word on how it will be priced.
again, rebuilding its reserves and preventing the recession from
getting even deeper.
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) -- Argentina’s president is
refusing to go along with a U.S. judge’s ruling requiring a $1.5
billion repayment of defaulted bonds, even though the U.S.
Supreme Court rejected her government’s appeals and left the
order in place.
U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Griesa order requires that
$1.5 billion be paid “all together, without quotas, right away,
now, in cash, ahead of all the rest” of bondholders, Fernandez
said.
In a national address Monday night, Cristina Fernandez repeatedly vowed not to submit to “extortion,” and said she had been
working on ways to keep Argentina’s commitments to other
creditors despite the threat of losing use of the U.S. financial
system.
Her hard line came hours after the justices in Washington
refused to hear Argentina’s appeal, and it could be a last effort
to gain leverage ahead of a negotiated solution that both sides
say they want. But with only days before a huge debt payment
ordered by the court is due, many economists, analysts and
politicians said the country’s already fragile economy could be
deeply harmed if she didn’t immediately resolve the dispute.
Argentina’s Economy Minister Axel Kicillof will hold a press
conference at 6 p.m. local time (5 p.m. EDT) to explain the
Supreme Court’s decision and how Argentina’s government
will proceed.
Refusing to comply with rulings that have been allowed to
stand by the U.S. Supreme Court “would be very damaging to
the Argentine economy in the near future,” said Miguel Kiguel,
a former deputy finance minister and World Bank economist in
the 1990s who runs the Econviews consulting firm in Buenos
Aires.
Argentine markets were already reflecting fear. The Merval
stock index dropped 10 percent after Monday’s court decision,
its largest one-day loss in more than six months, and the value
of Argentina’s currency plunged 3 percent on the black market.
But on Tuesday, Argentina’s official peso currency opened
stable at 8.14 against the U.S. dollar. The black market peso
“This represents a profit of 1,608 percent, in dollars!” she complained. “I believe that in all of organized crime there has never
been a case of a profit of 1,608 percent in such a short time.”
A woman looks at old currency during the opening of the Foreign Debt Museum in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The museum, which is the world’s first dedicated to a country’s
debt, opened nearly four years after Argentina staged the largest debt default in modern
history. Argentine President Cristina Fernandez said Monday June 16, 2014 that Argentina can’t comply with U.S. court orders to pay $1.5 billion to winners of a decade-long
legal battle over defaulted debt, the position her country was left in Monday when the
U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear her government’s final appeal.
also remained nearly unchanged trading between 11.85 and 12
against the dollar. The Merval index was down 2.28 percent
in opening trade. The Edenor Argentine electricity distribution
company, was trading 6.28 lower after plunging by 20 percent a
day earlier on the Supreme Court’s decision.
Singer’s NML Capital Ltd. has now won in the U.S. courts
- and if Argentina doesn’t hand over $907 million to the plaintiffs in the next two weeks, the judge will order U.S. banks
not to process Argentina’s June 30 payment totaling an equal
amount to all the other bondholders.
Fernandez urged her countrymen to “remain tranquil” in the
days ahead.
Fernandez said her government “will not default on those who
believed in Argentina.” But analysts have questioned whether
holders of restructured debt would accept payments outside the
U.S. financial system.
Bowing to the U.S. courts would force her to betray a core
value that she and her late husband and predecessor, Nestor
Kirchner, promoted since they took over the government in
2003: Argentina must maintain its sovereignty and economic
independence at any cost.
But a chorus of analysts said that if she complied with the
ruling, it would become much easier for Argentina to borrow
R E D U C E
S A LT M I N I M U M WA G E
D E B AT E P I T S C I T I E S
the guidelines would be interpreted as a stern warning.
AGAINST STATES
Brian Kennedy of the Grocery Manufacturers Association,
continued from page 1
which represents the country’s biggest food companies, says the
group is concerned about the FDA setting targets and any guidelines should be based on a “rigorous assessment of all available
scientific evidence.”
Many food companies and retailers already have pushed to
reduce salt. Wal-Mart pledged to reduce sodium in many items
by 25 percent by next year, and food giant ConAgra Foods says
it made a 20 percent reduction. Subway restaurants said it has
made a 30 percent reduction restaurant-wide.
The companies say that in some cases, just removing added salt
or switching ingredients does the trick. Potassium chloride can
also substitute for common salt (sodium chloride), though too
much can cause a metallic taste.
Levels can vary widely. According to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, sodium in a slice of white bread ranges
from 80 milligrams to 230 milligrams. Three ounces of turkey
deli meat can have 450 milligrams to 1,050 milligrams.
Those ranges give health advocates hope.
“Those differences say to me that the companies that make the
highest-sodium products could certainly reduce levels to the
same as the companies that make the lower-sodium products,”
Jacobson says.
Still, the guidelines could be a hard sell. In recent years, congressional Republicans have fought the Obama administration
over efforts to require calorie labels on menus and make school
lunches healthier. When the administration attempted to create
voluntary guidelines for advertising junk food for children, the
industry balked and Republicans in Congress fought the idea,
prompting the administration to put them aside.
Other members of Congress are pushing the agency to act.
“As the clock ticks, America’s blood pressure, along with health
costs due to chronic disease, continues to rise,” says Sen. Tom
Harkin, chairman of the Senate committee that oversees the
FDA.
“Some people say, `Why don’t you pay them and end all this
right now?’” the president said. “It’s because there’s another
problem, even more serious. There’s another 7 percent who
would be able to demand payment from Argentina, right away
and now, of $15 billion. That’s more than half the reserves
in the Central Bank. As you can see, it’s not only absurd but
impossible that the country pays more than 50 percent of its
reserves in a single payment to its creditors.”
“It’s our obligation to take responsibility for paying our creditors, but not to become the victims of extortion by speculators,”
she said.
The plaintiffs said her government needs to settle now.
“The time has come for Argentina to enter into good-faith
negotiations with holdout bondholders,” said Richard Samp, an
attorney for the Washington Legal Foundation who has acted as
a spokesman for NML’s position throughout the case. “Argentina has expressed a desire to be permitted to re-enter financial
markets around the world. The only way that it can do so is by
coming to terms with its existing creditors.”
The food industry has pointed to a separate 2013 IOM report that
said there is no good evidence that eating sodium at very low
levels - below the 2,300 milligrams a day that the government
recommends - offers benefits. The government recommends that
those older than 50, African-Americans and people with high
blood pressure, diabetes or chronic kidney disease eat 1,500
milligrams a day. The American Heart Association recommends
that everyone eat no more than 1,500 milligrams a day.
Those pushing for sodium limits say it’s pointless to debate how
low the recommendations should go - Americans are still eating
around 3,400 milligrams a day.
But Fernandez also said repeatedly that her government is
ready to negotiate with the “speculators” who scooped up
Argentine junk bonds after the country’s 2001 default. Owners
of more than 92 percent of the nearly worthless debt agreed
to accept new bonds worth much less than their original face
value, but investors led by New York billionaire Paul Singer
held out and litigated instead, seeking to force Argentina to pay
cash in full plus interest.
People rally for an increase in the minimum wage on the Great Western Staircase at the
Capitol on Tuesday, June 17, 2014, in Albany, N.Y. Several hundred fast-food workers
and other low-wage employees from around New York gathered to pressure lawmakers
to raise the minimum wage from $8 to $10.10 an hour and let local cities raise it even
higher.
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- Dominique Mayfield makes $8.25 an hour
washing dishes and busing tables at a Syracuse brewpub. Shantel Walker makes $8.50 an hour at her pizzeria in New York City, where the rent
is more than double what it is in Syracuse. Two very different cities, but
nearly the same wage.
The economic differences between America’s big cities and elsewhere
have prompted leaders in Seattle, New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Oklahoma City and other cities to push to raise the minimum wage
within their borders.
The efforts are running into opposition from state lawmakers from both
parties and business groups who say a patchwork of minimum wages
could lead to a confusing and unequal business climate in which labor
costs would vary dramatically from city to city.
The minimum wage has emerged as perhaps the top issue of a newly
emboldened, urban liberal movement that in many places is led not by
governors or state lawmakers, but by local leaders backed by organized fast-food workers. After years of grappling with state and federal
budget cuts, mayors and city councils are pushing back against state and
federal officials who they say don’t understand the income inequality of
21st-century American cities.
Refusing to comply was “the best option” among a series
of grim alternatives that Cleary, Gottlieb, the U.S. law firm
representing Argentina in Washington, presented to Fernandez
ahead of the Supreme Court decision. That guidance suggested
Argentina should default on all its debts before negotiating in
order to gain more leverage.
well intended, it’s misguided,” said Cara Sullivan, a minimum wage
policy expert at ALEC. “In Seattle they raised it to $15, and right across
the city line it’s $5 less. It increases the cost of doing business for businesses in that city. You’re creating chaos from one business to the next.”
Members of the city council in Providence, Rhode Island, considered
raising the minimum wage from $8 to $15, but only for workers in the
city’s large hotels. In response, the Democratic leaders of the Rhode
Island General Assembly have moved to block the proposal by taking
away cities’ authority to set local minimums.
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin, a Republican, signed legislation in April
that prohibits cities from setting their own wage after organized labor
groups suggested that Oklahoma City raise its wage from $7.25 an hour
- the federal minimum - to $10.10.
B.J. Marsh, a single mother in a suburb of Oklahoma City, says the
$7.25 she makes requires her to choose between eating or getting to
work. Marsh said her 7-year-old son began living with her father to save
on expenses and allow her to work.
“I don’t eat because I have to have gas in my car,” she said.
But supporters of Oklahoma’s new law said higher local minimum wages were likely to hurt the very low-income workers they were proposed
to help by raising food prices and reducing employment.
“So many people have been pushed out of this city,” said Seattle City
Councilman Nick Licata, who successfully pushed to raise the city’s
wage to $15, more than $5 higher than the state wage. “Local politicians
don’t have the luxury of not doing something. The state and federal
governments, they’ve been AWOL. They haven’t been engaged.”
“We have seen businesses flee from cities that have tried this in other
states,” said Republican House Speaker Jeff Hickman. “Artificially
inflating the minimum wage raises the price of everything from housing
and rental costs to a loaf of bread, and causes the loss of jobs which
means fewer opportunities for those working to feed their families.”
The fight to raise minimum wages has lawmakers in many states on the
defensive, arguing that higher wages will lead to reductions in hours
and jobs for low-income workers - and retail price increases that are
likely to hit them hardest. The business-backed American Legislative
Exchange Council argues that local minimum wages could lead to a race
to the bottom, where businesses locate in whatever city within a region
has the lowest starting wage.
In 2011 and 2012, four states passed laws keeping state minimum
wages from being higher than the federal wage. This year, 14 such bills
have been introduced, according to the National Conference of State
Legislatures.
“This is a debate that’s happening around the country, and although it’s
In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio and members of the City
Council are seeking authority to raise the local minimum wage to $15
continued on page 8
___________________________________________________________________
The Weekly News Digest, June 23, 2014
7
OBAMA SETTING ASIDE MASSIVE
P A C I F I C
O C E A N
P R E S E R V E
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Vowing to protect fragile marine life,
President Barack Obama acted Tuesday to create the world’s
largest ocean preserve by expanding a national monument his
predecessor established in waters thousands of miles from the
American mainland.
agency IHS Energy, said no one is currently exploring for oil or
gas in the area.
But conservation groups said it’s critical to take proactive steps
to safeguard underwater ecosystems even if direct human damage isn’t imminent.
The designation for a remote stretch of the Pacific Ocean marks
a major symbolic victory for environmentalists, who have
urged the president to take action on his own to protect the
planet as Congress turns its focus elsewhere. But the initiative
will have limited practical implications because little fishing or
drilling are taking place even without the new protections.
Protecting the world’s oceans and the vibrant ecosystems that
thrive deep under the surface is a task that’s bigger than any one
country but the U.S. must take the lead, Obama said, announcing the initiative during an ocean conservation conference.
“Let’s make sure that years from now we can look our children
in the eye and tell them that, yes, we did our part, we took
action, and we led the way toward a safer, more stable world,”
Obama said in a video message.
Obama hasn’t settled on the final boundaries for the expanded
Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, and will
solicit input from fishermen, scientists and conservation experts. Obama’s senior counselor, John Podesta, said that process
would start immediately and wrap up “in the very near future.”
President George W. Bush, a Republican, created the monument in 2009 by setting aside waters that encircle an array of
remote islands in the south-central Pacific, between Hawaii and
American Samoa.
Bush’s protections extend about 50 miles from the shore of the
U.S.-administered islands, but maritime law gives the U.S. control up to 200 nautical miles from the coast, forming the outer
limit of what Obama could protect using the 1906 Antiquities
Act.
Conservation groups urged Obama to be bold. If Obama opts
D R .
O N
O Z
W E
“These are fairly long distances from any ports, and they’re
very expensive to get to,” said Lance Morgan of the Marine
Conservation Institute. “Still, we don’t know what all the future
uses are going to be.”
President Barack Obama speaking in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.
Vowing to protect fragile marine life, President Barack Obama moved Tuesday to create
the world’s largest ocean preserve by expanding a national monument his predecessor
created in waters thousands of miles away from the American mainland. The expansion
marks a major symbolic victory for environmentalists, who have urged the president to
take action on his own to protect the planet as Congress turns its focus elsewhere. But
the initiative will have limited practical implications for a remote stretch of the Pacific
Ocean where little fishing or drilling is taking place even without the new protections
for the full 200 miles, conservation groups said, he could
roughly double the amount of ocean that’s protected worldwide.
A geographic analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts estimated
Obama could protect more than 780,000 square miles - almost
nine times what Bush set aside - and far more if he included the
waters around other U.S. islands in the Pacific Ocean.
“Our oceans are feeling the strain of human activity from
increased acidification, overfishing, and pollution, and we need
to take bold action to protect this vital natural resource,” said
Carol Browner, the former Environmental Protection Agency
administrator.
But in practical terms, the expanded sanctuary will likely have
a modest impact.
Very little commercial fishing is conducted around the islands.
And Bob Fryklund, chief upstream strategist for analytics
Republicans reacted with similar indignation Tuesday and
accused Obama of overreaching.
Rep. John Fleming, R-La., who chairs the House subpanel dealing with oceans and wildlife, said Obama was invoking climate
change even though the century-old Antiquities Act wasn’t
intended to deal with global warming.
“This is clearly way outside of his constitutional boundaries,”
Fleming said in an interview. “It’s just another step in the
wrong direction for our imperial president.”
In another environmental move, Obama launched a task force
to combat black-market fishing and seafood fraud, in which
seafood products are mislabeled to hide their origin. One-fifth
of wild marine fish caught each year are considered to be part
of the black market, the White House said. The black market
for fish cost the legitimate fishing industry $23 billion. The
presidential memorandum calls for the task force to submit
recommendations within six months.
S C O L D E D
A T
H E A R I N G
I G H T
L O S S
S C A M S
pills and cure-alls to millions of Americans desperate to lose
weight.
Oz appeared before the Senate’s consumer protection panel and was
scolded by Chairman Claire McCaskill for claims he made about
weight-loss aids on his TV show, “The Dr. Oz Show.”
Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon, acknowledged that his language about
green coffee and other supplements has been “flowery” and promised to publish a list of specific products he thinks can help America
shed pounds and get healthy - beyond eating less and moving more.
On his show, he never endorsed specific companies or brands but
more generally praised some supplements as fat busters.
McCaskill took Oz to task for a 2012 show in which he proclaimed
that green coffee extract was a “magic weight loss cure for every
body type.”
Dr. Mehmet C. Oz, chairman and Professor of Surgery, Columbia University College
of Physicians and Surgeons, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, June 17,
2014 , before the Senate subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and
Insurance hearing to examine protecting consumers from false and deceptive advertising
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Under pressure from Congress, celebrity
Dr. Mehmet Oz on Tuesday offered to help “drain the swamp” of
unscrupulous marketers using his name to peddle so-called miracle
4 I N J U R E D
T O S P E A K
Obama has increasingly invoked his own authority to impose
environmental protections during his second term, wary of
ceding control to lawmakers who have shown no appetite for
major legislation to fight climate change and other ecological
challenges. Earlier this month Obama unveiled unprecedented
pollution limits on power plants, enraging Republicans and
even some Democrats.
“I get that you do a lot of good on your show,” McCaskill told Oz,
“but I don’t get why you need to say this stuff because you know
it’s not true.”
Oz insisted he believes in the supplements he talks about on his
C I R C U S A C R O B AT S
A B O U T A C C I D E N T
In this May 2, 2014 file photo provided by Frank Caprio, performers
hang during an aerial hair-hanging
stunt at the Ringling Brothers and
Barnum and Bailey Circus in Providence, R.I. Seven of the eight acrobats who fell to the Dunkin’ Donuts
Center floor during that same stunt
in Providence two days later have
hired a Chicago-based law firm to
BOSTON (AP) -- Four
circus acrobats injured
during a hair-hanging
stunt were expected to
discuss the accident that sent them plummeting to the ground
during a live performance in Rhode Island.
The four were to speak on Tuesday at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston, although that number could change
depending on their conditions, said their lawyer, Michael
Krzak.
Eight acrobats were injured during a May 4 performance of
the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in Providence when the apparatus from which they were suspended
fell, sending them plummeting to the ground. Most have not
spoken publicly about the accident and their injuries.
Krzak said on Monday that seven of the women recently hired
his firm, Chicago-based Clifford Law Offices. The eighth acrobat has hired her own local lawyer, he said.
show as short-term crutches, and even has his family try them. But
there’s no long-term miracle pill out there without diet and exercise,
he said.
Within weeks of Oz’s comments about green coffee - which refers
to the unroasted seeds or beans of coffee - a Florida-based operation
began marketing a dietary supplement called Pure Green Coffee,
with claims that the chlorogenic acid found in the coffee beans
could help people lose 17 pounds and cut body fat by 16 percent in
22 weeks.
The company, according to federal regulators, featured footage from
“The Dr. Oz Show,” to sell its supplement. Oz has no association
with the company and received no money from sales.
Last month, the Federal Trade Commission sued the sellers behind
Pure Green Coffee and accused them of making bogus claims and
deceiving consumers.
The weight-loss industry is an area where consumers are particularly vulnerable to fraud, Mary Koelbel Engle, an associate director
at the FTC, testified at the Senate hearing. She said the agency conducted a consumer survey in 2011 and found that more consumers
were victims of fraudulent weight-loss products than of any of the
other specific frauds covered in the survey.
Oz stressed during the hearing that he has never endorsed specific
supplements or received money from the sale of supplements. Nor
has he allowed his image to be used in ads for supplements, he said.
“If you see my name, face or show in any type of ad, email, or other
circumstance,” Oz testified, “it’s illegal” - and not anything he has
endorsed.
While the firm has not yet filed any lawsuits, he said it is conducting an in-depth investigation into what happened. He said
the firm is waiting to get access to several pieces of evidence,
including a broken carabiner clip, which held up the mechanism that suspended the women and which local investigators
said snapped into three pieces.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration is
still investigating the accident.
Samantha Pitard, 23, a native of Champaign, Illinois, who was
less severely injured than the others with fractures on her spine
and a head injury, is among those who hired Krzak. She told
The Associated Press last month that every circus performer
knows they are risking their lives every time they perform, and
it’s a risk they take to make people happy. She said she hoped
to return to the ring someday.
Children Incorporated
4205 Dover Road
www.childrenincorporated.
8
The Weekly News Digest, June 23, 2014
___________________________________________________________________
U S F O R C E S M O V E I N T O I R A Q
W I T H
S E C U R I T Y
M I S S I O N
es were under consideration. But spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden
said that while Obama would not send troops back into combat,
“He has asked his national security team to prepare a range of
other options that could help support Iraqi security forces.”
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Nearly 300 armed American forces are
being positioned in and around Iraq to help secure U.S. assets as
President Barack Obama nears a decision on an array of options
for combating fast-moving Islamic insurgents, including airstrikes
or a contingent of special forces.
It’s not clear how quickly the special forces could arrive in Iraq.
It’s also unknown whether they would remain in Baghdad or be
sent to the nation’s north, where the Sunni Muslim insurgency
has captured large swaths of territory ringing Baghdad, the capital of the Shiite-led government.
The U.S. and Iran also held an initial discussion on how the
longtime foes might cooperate to ease the threat from the al-Qaida-linked militants that have swept through Iraq. Still, the White
House ruled out the possibility that Washington and Tehran might
coordinate military operations in Iraq.
Obama met with his national security team Monday evening to
discuss options for stopping the militants known as the Islamic
State of Iraq and the Levant. Officials said the president has
made no final decisions on how aggressively the U.S. might get
involved in Iraq, though the White House continued to emphasize
that any military engagement remained contingent on the government in Baghdad making political reforms.
Still, there were unmistakable signs of Americans returning to a
country from which the U.S. military fully withdrew more than
two years ago. Obama notified Congress that up to 275 troops
would be sent to Iraq to provide support and security for U.S. personnel and the American Embassy in Baghdad. The soldiers - 170
of which have already arrived in Iraq - were armed for combat,
though Obama has insisted he does not intend for U.S. forces to
be engaged in direct fighting.
“We are hard-wired into their system,” the fledgling democracy
that America helped institute, said Ryan Crocker, a former U.S.
ambassador to Baghdad. “We can’t walk away from it.”
About 100 additional forces are being put on standby, most likely
in Kuwait, and could be used for airfield management, security
and logistics support, officials said.
Separately, three U.S. officials said the White House was considering sending a contingent of special forces soldiers to Iraq.
Their limited mission - which has not yet been approved - would
Shiite tribal fighters raise their weapons and chant slogans against the al-Qaida-inspired
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the northwest Baghdad’s Shula neighborhood, Iraq, Monday, June 16, 2014. Sunni militants captured a key northern Iraqi town
along the highway to Syria early on Monday, compounding the woes of Iraq’s Shiite-led
government a week after it lost a vast swath of territory to the insurgents in the country’s
north.
focus on training and advising beleaguered Iraqi troops, many
of whom have fled their posts across the nation’s north and west
as the al-Qaida-inspired insurgency has advanced in the worst
threat to the country since American troops left in 2011.
Taken together, the developments suggest a willingness by
Obama to send Americans into a collapsing security situation
in order to quell the brutal fighting in Iraq before it morphs into
outright war.
If the U.S. were to deploy an additional team of special forces,
the mission almost certainly would be small. One U.S. official
said it could be up to 100 special forces soldiers. It also could
be authorized only as an advising and training mission - meaning the soldiers would work closely with Iraqi forces that are
fighting the insurgency but would not officially be considered
combat troops.
A customer enjoys a coffee at Starbucks in Miami. It turns out Starbucks isn’t contributing any upfront scholarship money to an online college degree program it introduced on
Monday, June 16, 2014.
NEW YORK (AP) -- The scholarship portion of a new education
program Starbucks is offering to help workers pay for an online
degree consists entirely of a discount from Arizona State University and not money from the chain.
The Seattle-based company this week unveiled a benefit that is
designed to let college juniors and seniors earn a degree from ASU
at no cost. For the freshman and sophomores years, workers would
pay a reduced tuition. Workers who are admitted to ASU could
pick from 40 degree programs, and wouldn’t be required to stay
with Starbucks after they earned their degrees.
A major aspect of the program is an upfront scholarship Starbucks
said is an investment between itself and Arizona State University.
When asked how much of that scholarship portion the company
is providing, Starbucks initially said financial terms weren’t being
disclosed.
Following the announcement, however, Arizona State University
President Michael Crow told The Chronicle of Higher Education
that Starbucks is not contributing any money toward the scholarship portion. Instead, Arizona State will essentially charge workers
less than the sticker price for online tuition.
Starbucks said Thursday that the scholarship is a reduced tuition
rate. It estimates the reduction in tuition would average about
$6,500 over two years to cover tuition of $30,000.
To cover the remainder in the freshman and sophomore years,
workers would apply for federal aid, such as Pell grants, and pay
for the rest either out of pocket or by taking out loans. Starbucks
would bear no costs in those years.
For the junior and senior years, Starbucks would reimburse workers for whatever tuition they had to cover either upfront or through
loans, once they completed 21 credits.
Matt Ryan, chief strategy officer for Starbucks, said on Thursday
that for a worker’s junior and senior years, the company could
potentially cover up to 58 percent of the tuition, in cases where
The troops would fall under the authority of the U.S. ambassador
in Baghdad and would not be authorized to engage in combat, another U.S. official said. Their mission would be “non-operational
training” of both regular and counterterrorism units, which the
military has in the past interpreted to mean training on military
bases, the official said.
However, all U.S. troops are allowed to defend themselves in Iraq
if they are under attack.
The three U.S. officials all spoke on condition of anonymity
because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the plans by
name.
Obama made the end of the war in Iraq one of his signature
campaign issues, and has touted the U.S. military withdrawal in
December 2011 as one of his top foreign policy successes. But he
has been caught over the past week between Iraqi officials pleading for help - as well as Republicans blaming him for the loss of
a decade’s worth of gains in Iraq - and his anti-war Democratic
political base, which is demanding that the U.S. stay out of the
fight.
The crisis has sparked a rare alignment of interests between the
U.S. and Iran, which wants to preserve Iraq’s Shiite-dominated
government. The U.S. and Iran are engaged in sensitive nuclear negotiations and used a round of talks Monday in Vienna,
Austria, to hold a separate bilateral discussion on Iraq.
While the U.S. and Iran have similar short-term goals in Iraq,
they have different long-term aims. The United States would like
to see an inclusive, representative democracy take hold in Iraq,
while predominantly Shiite Iran is more focused on protecting
Iraq’s Shiite population and bolstering its own position as a
regional power against powerful Sunni Arab states in the Gulf.
If workers did qualify for grants, he said Starbucks could be
responsible for very little, if anything. He noted that workers financial situations can vary greatly.
Crocker said that Iran should “use all the influence” possible
to keep the al-Qaida-style Islamic group from exacerbating the
sectarian strife in Iraq.
Laurel Harper, a Starbucks spokeswoman, said previously that the
company’s analysis with ASU found most of its workers would
qualify for federal Pell grants.
Appearing Tuesday on “CBS This Morning,” Crocker said if he’d
have Secretary of State John Kerry “on a plane right now for
Baghdad.”
A representative for Arizona State wasn’t immediately available for
comment.
“I would have liked to have seen more sustained, high-level diplomatic engagement with the Iraqis,” Crocker said. He said that
for the country to have any change at survival there must quickly
be a show of “Kurdish, Shia and Sunni” solidarity.
The program, which has been widely praised because education
benefits are rare for low-wage workers, brought attention to the
struggles people face in paying for college. It is unusual because
workers can pick from 40 different degree programs and aren’t
required to stay with Starbucks after they complete their degrees.
It’s not clear how much the program will end up costing Starbucks.
But Ryan said the company expects that it will “for sure” be a
much bigger investment than its current tuition reimbursement
program, which will be phased out by 2015.
That program offers up to $1,000 a year to take classes at City
University of Seattle or Strayer University, with no limit on the
number of years they can apply. Since it was rolled out in October
2011, Starbucks said the program has cost it $6.5 million.
Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of EdVisors.com, a website about paying for college, said the program could benefit all parties involved.
Workers could get a chance at a degree from Arizona State University at a reduced rate. Arizona State could get a revenue boost
from federal aid and out-of-pocket costs workers and Starbucks
later pays. And Starbucks could attract a better pool of workers and
burnish its corporate image.
Starbucks said its workers are “embracing this benefit with
overwhelming excitement; ASU has seen an enormous uptick in
interest.”
Republican Rep. Mike Rogers of Michigan, chairman of the
House Intelligence Committee, said Washington must move
immediately “to disrupt their ability to continue their operations.”
He said the insurgents are holding sway currently and that “all
the ingredients are going into the stew. We see it happening on
our watch.”
Appearing on CNN, Rogers said he believes there still is time for
the United States to make a difference, but that Washington must
move now.
While the White House continues to review its options, Iran’s
military leaders are starting to step into the breach.
The commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force, Gen. Ghasem Soleimani, was in Iraq on Monday and consulting with the government there on how to stave off insurgents’ gains. Iraqi security
officials said the U.S. government was notified in advance of the
visit by Soleimani, whose forces are a secretive branch of Iran’s
Revolutionary Guard that in the past has organized Shiite militias
to target U.S. troops in Iraq and, more recently, was involved in
helping Syria’s President Bashar Assad in his fight against Sunni
rebels.
M I N I M U M
WA G E
continued from page 6
- nearly double the state’s $8 minimum. State law doesn’t currently
permit cities to set their own minimums, and while Democratic Gov.
Andrew Cuomo first warned the idea would lead to a “chaotic” business
environment, he now supports a proposal to raise the wage to $10.10
and let cities impose a minimum up to 30 percent higher.
Restaurant owners and business groups have opposed the plan, and on
Thursday it appeared state lawmakers would adjourn without voting
on the measure. The state’s minimum wage is already set to increase to
$8.75 at the end of this year and to $9 at the end of 2015.
For Shantel Walker, the pizzeria worker in Brooklyn, the proposal
would mean nearly $5 more per hour. Walker went to Albany last month
to rally for a higher minimum wage outside a McDonald’s at the Capitol. She said it makes no sense that fast food workers in New York City
are held to the same minimum wage as those upstate.
If we have to do this every week, t
BAGHDAD (AP) -- Possible signs emerged Tuesday of reprisal
sectarian slaughter of Sunnis in Iraq, as police said pro-government Shiite militiamen killed nearly four dozen detainees
after insurgents tried to storm a jail and free them northeast of
Baghdad.
On Monday, the Islamic State captured the strategically located
city of Tal Afar near the Syrian border, a move that strengthens its
plans to carve out a state-like enclave on both sides of the border.
The Iraqi military insisted the Sunni inmates were killed when
the attackers shelled the facility outside the city of Baqouba.
Neither account could be independently confirmed, but a local
morgue official said many of the detainees had bullet wounds to
the head and chest.
The allegation of Shiite killings of Sunnis was the first hint of the
beginnings of a return to sectarian warfare that nearly tore the
country apart. Sunni militants also have been accused of atrocities in areas they have captured over the past week.
The insurgents were repelled, but the fighting around the jail was
the closest to Baghdad since the al-Qaida breakaway group the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant began its lightning advance,
seizing several key cities in the Sunni heartland in northern Iraq.
There were conflicting details about the fighting in the al-Kattoun
district near Baqouba, the capital of Diyala province and one of
the bloodiest battlefields of the U.S.-led war, and on how the detainees were killed. The city is 60 kilometers (40 miles) northeast
of the Iraqi capital.
Three police officers said the police station, which has a small
jail, came under attack on Monday night by Islamic militants who
tried to free the detainees, mostly suspected Sunni militants.
The three said Shiite militiamen, who rushed to defend the facility, killed the detainees at close range. A morgue official in Baqouba said many of the slain detainees had bullet wounds to the head
and chest. All four officials spoke on condition of anonymity
fearing for their own safety.
However, Iraq’s chief military spokesman Lt. Gen. Qassim
al-Moussawi, told The Associated Press that 52 detainees who
were held at the station in al-Kattoun died when the attackers
from the Islamic State shelled it with mortars.
The group is known to be active in Diyala, a volatile province
with a mix of Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds and where Shiite militiamen are deployed alongside government forces. Sunni militants
have for years targeted security forces and Shiite civilians in the
province, which abuts the Iranian border.
Nine of the attackers were killed, al-Moussawi said.
The conflicting reports could not immediately be reconciled,
but if the version of events provided by the policemen and the
coroner is independently verified, then the incident would be an
example of the sectarian strife and atrocities that Iraq’s ongoing
crisis could yield.
Iraqi military officials said some 400 elite troops and volunteers
who have joined security forces were flown to an airport outside
Tal Afar on Monday, but were immediately pinned down by
heavy artillery shelling from the militants.
Iraqi men flash victory signs as they leave the main recruiting center to join the Iraqi
army in Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, June 17, 2014, after authorities urged Iraqis to help
battle insurgents. Hundreds of young Iraqi men gripped by religious and nationalistic
fervor streamed into volunteer centers across Baghdad Saturday, answering a call by the
country’s top Shiite cleric to join the fight against Sunni militants advancing in the north
Iraq has been in danger of sliding back to the wholesale Shiite-Sunni bloodletting of 2006 and 2007 since Sunni militants
seized at least one city and significant parts of the countryside in
Anbar province west of Baghdad early this year.
Continuous bombings blamed on Sunni militants in Baghdad and
elsewhere, and targeted assassinations of members of both communities have deepened fears of outright sectarian warfare.
During the United States’ eight-year presence in Iraq, American
forces acted as a buffer between the two Islamic sects, though
with limited success. The U.S. military withdrew at the end
of 2011, but it is now being pulled back in - albeit so far on a
limited basis.
Nearly 300 armed American forces are being positioned in and
around Iraq to help secure U.S. assets as President Barack Obama
nears a decision on an array of options for combating the Islamic
militants, including airstrikes or a contingent of special forces.
The White House has continued to emphasize that any military
engagement remained contingent on the government in Baghdad
making political reforms.
The U.S. and Iran, Iraq’s Shiite neighbor and close ally, also held
an initial discussion on how the longtime foes might cooperate to
ease the threat from the al-Qaida-linked militants that have swept
through Iraq. Still, the White House ruled out the possibility that
Washington and Tehran might coordinate military operations in
Iraq.
The Islamic State has vowed to march to Baghdad, and the Shiite
holy cities of Karbala and Najaf in the worst threat to Iraq’s stability since U.S. troops left. The three cities are home to some of
the most revered Shiite shrines. The Islamic State has also tried
to capture the city of Samarra north of Baghdad, home to another
major Shiite shrine.
The push by the Islamic State’s militants has largely been
F L O R I D A M O R E V U L N E R A B L E
T O T W I S T E R S T H A N M I D W E S T
An American flag flying over the
remains of a tornado-ravaged
neighborhood in Tuscaloosa, Ala.,
a month after a killer storms in
Alabama. Oklahoma and Kansas
may have the reputation as tornado hotspots, but Florida and the
rest of the Southeast are far more
vulnerable to killer twisters, a new
analysis shows. (
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Oklahoma and Kansas may have the
reputation as tornado hot spots, but Florida and the rest of
the Southeast are far more vulnerable to killer twisters, a new
analysis shows.
Florida leads the country in deaths calculated per mile a
tornado races along the ground, followed by Tennessee, North
Carolina, Ohio and Alabama, according to an analysis of the
past three decades by the federal Southeast Regional Climate
Center at the University of North Carolina.
That’s because Florida is No. 1 in so many factors that make
tornadoes more risky: mobile homes, the elderly and the poor,
said center director Charles Konrad II, who headed the new
work.
“People are just much more vulnerable in a mobile home than
they are in a regular home,” Konrad said.
Florida’s death rate of 2.4 deaths per 100 miles of tornado
ground track is more than two-and-a-half times that of Oklahoma and nearly five times that of Kansas.
Along with Florida, Dixie Alley - including Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky,
western parts of the Carolinas - is where “more people die
from tornadoes” than anywhere else in the world, said Conrad.
Three years ago, a four-day outbreak of more than 200 tornadoes killed 316 people in Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee,
Virginia and Georgia.
Florida doesn’t get as many tornadoes as Oklahoma and they
aren’t as strong, but when Florida does get them, “people
are especially vulnerable,” Konrad said. He presented the
research at an American Meteorological Society meeting in
Colorado this week.
Konrad’s work makes sense and fits with earlier research on
tornado fatalities, said Florida State University meteorology
professor James Elsner and Barb Mayes Boustead, a National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration meteorologist and
tornado chaser.
Visibility is another problem for tornadoes in the Southeast.
Because of atmospheric conditions, the region tends to get
more tornadoes at night, making them harder to see, Konrad said. It also means some people may be asleep and miss
warnings.
The South also has more trees and buildings to block the view
of oncoming tornadoes, Konrad said. And they also tend to
come from low-hanging clouds, making them harder to see.
Florida tends to get tornadoes more in the winter, while the
Southeast tornado season is February through April, Konrad
said. The Midwest generally sees them in the spring and
summer.
This year, which is so far unusually quiet, seven tornadoes
have killed 35 people, 32 of them in the Southeast, including
16 in Arkansas and 11 in Mississippi.
D o n t Te x t a n d D r i v e
In Baghdad on Tuesday, a sticky bomb attached to a car exploded, killing three passengers and wounding 11 bystanders, according to police and hospital officials, who spoke on condition of
anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to the media.
M E LT I N G A R C T I C
continued from page 1
This week Google, with a driverless car and Web-surfing eyeglasses
under its belt, has given The Associated Press an early look at how
it’s trying to change the gender disparity in its own workforce, and in
the pipeline of potential workers, by launching a campaign Thursday
called “Made with Code.”
The initiative begins with an introductory video of girls- silly, serious
and brave - meeting President Obama, painting over graffiti and
goofing around. The narrator says: “You are a girl who understands
bits exist to be assembled. When you learn to code, you can assemble
anything that you see missing. And in so doing, you will fix something, or change something, or invent something, or run something,
and maybe that’s how you will play your bit in this world.”
A website features female role-model techies who write software
to design cool fabrics or choreograph dances. There are simple, fun
coding lessons aimed at girls and a directory of coding programs
for girls. The search giant is also offering $50 million in grants and
partnering with Girls Who Code, a nonprofit launched in 2012 that
runs summer coding institutes for girls, including the one that helped
focus Navarro’s passion for technology.
A preview test run of Google’s online coding lessons this week was
deemed “awesome” by Carmen Ramirez y Porter, 11. “It’s not very
complicated. It’s easy and fun and really cool to see how it turns out
when you finish,” she said.
National Center for Women & Information Technology CEO Lucy
Sanders, a leading advocate for women in computer sciences, sees
the Made With Code initiative as a pivotal moment in what has
been a long-term challenge of getting more girl geeks growing up in
America.
“It used to be that as a computing community we didn’t really talk
about gender issues. But now we’re really pulling together, from corporations and startups to nonprofits and universities,” Sanders said.
“I’m very optimistic.”
There’s plenty of room for change.
Female participation in computer sciences has dropped to 18 percent,
down from 37 percent in the 1980s, and only seven percent of U.S.
venture capital deals go to women founders and CEOs. Just 20 percent of the 30,000 students who took the Advanced Placement computer science test last year were girls, according to a College Board
analysis, which showed no girls at all took the test in Mississippi,
Montana or Wyoming.
YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, one of the earliest Google employees,
points to societal and economic drawbacks if women are not participating in the booming tech economy.
Also, she said, “I miss having more women counterparts.”
Tech firms are overwhelming male - Yahoo on Tuesday released a report showing 62 percent of its global employees are men. At Google,
about 70 percent of the roughly 44,000 people it employs throughout
the world are men. This year, the search giant commissioned a nationwide study to find out why so few women pursue technology careers,
asking 1,600 people about whether they were encouraged to study
computer sciences and had opportunities to learn to code.
Their findings, shared with the AP this week in advance of public release: Girls have little exposure to technology and computer sciences.
That doesn’t mean they’re not interested, however. If parents, friends
and teachers encourage their daughters to pursue computer sciences,
schools offer more courses and more role models step forward, the
field can be leveled.
But to capture girls, it’s got to be fun.
That’s the plan for a “Made With Code” kick-off event in New York
Thursday for 150 girls, where indie rockers Icona Pop will perform
and coders will demo how they make everything from animated
movies to designer fabrics with software. Actress Mindy Kaling, who
is the event’s master of ceremonies, said she fights gender bias in
Hollywood, but when a techie friend told her about Silicon Valley’s
gender gap “it was staggering.”
“Just as television and movies need to reflect their audience, I think
it’s important that people who create technology reflect the diversity
of people who use them,” she said.
Chelsea Clinton, who is representing the Clinton Foundation at
Thursday’s event, said she got her own first computer in 1987 from
Santa Claus.
continued from page 6
I R A Q :
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The bodies were taken to the Baqouba morgue, where an official
said most had gunshot wounds to the head and chest. One detainee,
however, survived and was taken to the hospital.
BAGHDAD (AP) -- Signs emerged Tuesday of a reprisal sectarian
slaughter of Sunnis in Iraq, as police said pro-government Shiite
militiamen killed nearly four dozen detainees after insurgents tried
to storm the jail northeast of Baghdad.
Police later arrived at the hospital and took the wounded man
away, said a hospital official.
A local morgue official said many of the detainees had bullet
wounds to the head and chest, though the Iraqi military insisted
the Sunni inmates were killed by mortar shells in the attack on the
facility outside the city of Baqouba.
The police officers, the hospital and morgue officials all spoke on
condition of anonymity, fearing for their own safety.
A different account was provided to The Associated Press by Iraq’s
chief military spokesman, Lt. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi. He said
52 detainees who were held at the station in al-Kattoun died when
the attackers from the Islamic State shelled it with mortars.
In Baghdad, meanwhile, the bullet-riddled bodies of four men in
their late 20s or early 30s, presumably Sunnis, were found at different locations in the Shiite neighborhood of Benouk, according to
police and morgue officials who spoke on condition of anonymity
because they were not authorized to talk with the media.
The discovery was a grim reminder of a dark chapter in Iraq’s
history when nearly a decade ago the city woke up virtually every
morning to find dozens of bodies dumped in the streets, trash heaps
or in the Tigris river with torture marks or gunshot wounds.
The allegation of Shiite killings of Sunnis near Baqouba and in
Baghdad were the first hints of the beginnings of a return to sectarian warfare that nearly tore the country apart in 2006 and 2007.
Sunni militants also have been accused of atrocities - an apparent
attempt to provoke Shiite militias into revenge attacks that would
strengthen the hand of an al-Qaida splinter group within Iraq’s
Sunni community.
A U.N. commission warned Tuesday that “a regional war in the
Middle East draws ever closer” as Sunni insurgents advance across
Iraq to control areas bridging the Iraq-Syria frontier. It said Iraq’s
turmoil will have “violent repercussions” in Syria, most dangerously the rise of sectarian violence as “a direct consequence of the
dominance of extremist groups.”
During the United States’ eight-year presence in Iraq, American
forces acted as a buffer between the two Islamic sects, though with
limited success. The U.S. military withdrew at the end of 2011, but
it is now being pulled back in - albeit so far in far fewer numbers.
Iraqi men flash victory signs as they leave the main recruiting center to join the Iraqi
army in Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, June 17, 2014, after authorities urged Iraqis to help
battle insurgents. Hundreds of young Iraqi men gripped by religious and nationalistic
fervor streamed into volunteer centers across Baghdad Saturday, answering a call by the
country’s top Shiite cleric to join the fight against Sunni militants advancing in the north.
The fighting around the jail was the closest to Baghdad since the
al-Qaida breakaway group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
began its lightning advance, seizing several key northern cities in
the Sunni heartland last week.
There were conflicting details about the clashes in the al-Kattoun
district near Baqouba, the capital of Diyala province and one of
the bloodiest battlefields of the U.S.-led war, and on how the detainees were killed. The city is 60 kilometers (40 miles) northeast
of the Iraqi capital.
Officers said the local police station, which has a small jail, came
under attack Monday night by Sunni militants who arrived in two
sedan cars to free the detainees. The militants fired rocket-propelled grenades on the building before opening fire with assault
rifles.
A SWAT team accompanied by Shiite militiamen rushed to scene
and asked the local policemen to leave, according to the officers.
When the policemen later returned to the station, they found all
those in the detention cells dead.
B I T C O I N
F A C E S
B I G G E S T
THREAT YET: A MINER TAKEOVER
painstakingly produced by computers churning through millions
of calculations. Bitcoin transactions are recorded in a virtual
public ledger, known as the blockchain. Miners are in charge
of maintaining the blockchain. As their computers perform the
calculations to do that, the process rewards them with newly
minted bitcoins.
A single mining computer might take years to produce a single
block of coins, and there’s no way to know when that might
happen. In pools, miners divide the bitcoins they create among
themselves in proportion to the work done, providing with them
with a steadier stream of income. The pools aren’t created to
threaten the trust placed in bitcoin; it’s a side effect of the pool’s
growth.
A man arrives for the Inside Bitcoins conference and trade show in New York. The Bitcoin
digital currency system is in danger of losing its credibility as an independent payment
system because of the growing power of a group that runs the some of the computers
behind it.
NEW YORK (AP) -- The Bitcoin digital currency system is
in danger of losing its credibility as an independent payment
system because of the growing power of a group that runs some
of the computers behind it.
In recent weeks, a British-based “mining pool” called GHash
has amassed nearly half of the Bitcoin computing power and has
briefly gone over 50 percent. Miners operate the computers that
keep track of bitcoins and create additional coins.
Miners pool their computing power to spread the financial risk
of their operations. If GHash amasses more than half of the computing power devoted to Bitcoin, it could in theory control the
flow of transactions, freeze people out of the network and keep
all future bitcoins for itself.
Although GHash says it’s committed to preserving Bitcoin as
a trustable technology, the mere fact that one player can amass
majority control could undermine trust in the currency, which is
worth only what people are willing to pay for it.
“The entire premise of bitcoin relies on the fact that no single
authority would control the majority of the mining power,” said
Ittay Eyal, a Cornell University researcher who studies bitcoin
vulnerabilities.
The value of bitcoins has fallen 6 percent in a week to around
$600 as the threat posed by GHash has become clearer, although
the decline is within the range of normal fluctuations for the
volatile currency.
Bitcoins allow people to send money over the Internet without
going through banks. This means transaction costs are low, but
it also means they’re useful for illegal activities such as money
laundering and drug sales. Bitcoins have also become a target
of speculators betting on a continued run-up in the currency. Its
value has grown a hundredfold over two years.
From a technical standpoint, bitcoins are sequences of numbers,
GHash is controlled by a British company, CEX.IO Ltd. The
company said in a statement Monday that it wants to protect
Bitcoin, but it doesn’t want to turn away people from the pool
or impose other temporary solutions to back away from the 50
percent threshold.
GHash said it’s arranging a “round table” meeting of key players
in the Bitcoin system in July to “with the aim of discussing and
negotiating collectively ways to address the decentralisation of
mining as an industry.”
Eyal said the problem needs to be fixed in “a very drastic fashion” to reduce the incentive to create pools. That will probably
with an update to the software the underlies the system, he said.
continued from page 9
“Ultimately computer science is helping to create the future,” she
said. “So when we think about the future, we know we need to be
doing more in this country and around the world to ensure that girls
and women see computer sciences as real, viable options for them.”
Nine of the attackers were killed, al-Moussawi said.
The Islamic State is known to be active in Diyala, a volatile
province with a mix of Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds and where Shiite
militiamen are deployed alongside government forces. Sunni militants have for years targeted security forces and Shiite civilians in
the province, which abuts the Iranian border.
The Islamic State has vowed to march to Baghdad, and the Shiite
holy cities of Karbala and Najaf in the worst threat to Iraq’s
stability since U.S. troops left. The three cities are home to some
of the most revered Shiite shrines. The Islamic State has also tried
to capture the city of Samarra north of Baghdad, home to another
major Shiite shrine.
Nearly 300 armed American forces are being positioned in and
around Iraq to help secure U.S. assets as President Barack Obama
nears a decision on an array of options for combating the Islamic
militants, including airstrikes or a contingent of special forces.
The White House has continued to emphasize that any military
engagement remained contingent on the government in Baghdad
making political reforms.
The U.S. and Iran, Iraq’s Shiite neighbor and close ally, also held
an initial discussion on how the longtime foes might cooperate to
ease the threat from the al-Qaida-linked militants that have swept
through Iraq. Still, the White House ruled out the possibility that
Washington and Tehran might coordinate military operations in
Iraq.
The push by the Islamic State’s militants has largely been unchecked as Iraqi troops and police melted away and surrendered in
the onslaught on the city of Mosul and Trikrit, Saddam Hussein’s
hometown.
On Monday, the Islamic State captured the strategically located
city of Tal Afar near the Syrian border, a move that strengthens its
plans to carve out a state-like enclave on both sides of the border.
Iraqi military officials said some 400 elite troops and volunteers
who have joined security forces were flown to an airport outside
Tal Afar on Monday, but were immediately pinned down by heavy
artillery shelling from the militants.
Iraq has been in danger of sliding back to wholesale Shiite-Sunni bloodletting since Sunni militants seized at least one city and
significant parts of the countryside in Anbar province west of
Baghdad early this year.
Continuous bombings blamed on Sunni militants in Baghdad and
elsewhere, and targeted assassinations of members of both communities have deepened fears of outright sectarian warfare.
In Baghdad on Tuesday, a suicide bomber set off his explosives
outside a central Baghdad store that sells military uniforms, killing
seven people and wounding 22, according to police and hospital
officials.
Elsewhere in the capital, a sticky bomb attached to a car exploded,
killing three passengers and wounding 11 bystanders, according to
police and hospital officials.
The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they
were not authorized to talk to the media.
Entrepreneur Dez White wasn’t necessarily pursuing a tech career
when she asked a patron at her family’s restaurant to teach her to
write software. She just had an idea for an app and wanted to make
it.
“It was very hard for me to get my head around it,” White said. “I
didn’t go to Stanford for code.”
Today, she hires coders for her firm Goinvis, which sells privacy
apps that allows users to send texts that self-destruct at a set time and
emails that disappear from an inbox after they’re opened.
But in addition to her day job, as a successful female African-American entrepreneur, she realizes she needs to be a mentor as well.
“I think young women don’t even realize computer sciences are an
option. It’s not laid out like nursing and social work,” she said.
Next year, she’s planning to organize a technology retreat for high
school girls, and she tries to hire women for her growing company.
“It’s hard. We have to really look. Their numbers are very, very
slim,” she said.
Children Incorporated
4205 Dover Road
www.childrenincorporated.
___________________________________________________________________
B R O O K S ’
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The Weekly News Digest, June 23, 2014
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“I told some teammates that I dreamed that I scored in the 80th
minute and we won the game,” he said. “And now it was the 86th
minute and we won.”
substitute on the 2010 World Cup team. Among the five German-Americans on the 23-man roster, Brooks made his national
team debut last August and had only four appearances entering
the World Cup. He was benched twice last season by Hertha Berlin, his club in the German Bundesliga, for a poor performance
in December and being unable to train in April because he was
hampered by a tattoo on his back.
One of the surprise picks by U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann,
Brooks hadn’t been in the starting lineup for the Americans’
World Cup opener against Ghana. But after central defender Matt
Besler felt tightness in his right hamstring during the final five
minutes of the first half, Klinsmann sent the 21-year-old Brooks
on for the start of the second.
“With John, I saw, we saw, very early that his passing is amazing.
He’s very calm for his age. Obviously he’s very strong in the air
because he’s so tall,” Klinsmann said. “This is what you read,
then you have to figure out is he ready for such a big thing like a
World Cup already or maybe does it take another year or two in
his development?”
NATAL, Brazil (AP) -- Smiling ear to ear after winning a World
Cup match with his first international goal, John Brooks had a
story to share.
Just four minutes after Andre Ayew’s 82nd-minute goal wiped
out a lead Clint Dempsey had given the U.S. just 29 seconds in,
Brooks outjumped Ghana’s John Boye to meet Graham Zusi’s
corner kick and bounced an 8-yard header past goalkeeper Adam
Kwarasey.
Overcome with emotion, Brooks ran in disbelief, slumped to the
ground arms first and felt teammates pile onto him. When they
finally moved off, he put both hands to his lips and blew a kiss.
United States’ John Brooks celebrates scoring his side’s second goal during the group G
World Cup soccer match between Ghana and the United States at the Arena das Dunas
in Natal, Brazil, Monday, June 16, 2014. The United States defeated Ghana 2-1.
Brooks thought back to two nights earlier and the dream.
It also was on a header.
From a corner kick.
Just liked it happened.
“It was unbelievable,” Brooks said. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Klinsmann chose Brooks over Clarence Goodson, an unused
P E T E R O S E M A N A G E S T E A M ,
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About 50 fans paid $250 each to get into a “meet and greet”
with Rose before this game and others paid $150 to have lunch
with him. He did sign some free autographs as he took the field.
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) -- Pete Rose stood behind the batting cage Monday, joking as former major leaguer Joe Mather
hit ball after ball to center field during batting practice for the
Bridgeport Bluefish.
“I asked him, `What are you working on, a sacrifice fly?’” Rose
said.
Charlie Hustle’s jersey was too big and he was wearing slacks
as he exchanged lineup cards with opposing manager Butch
Hobson at home plate. But Rose was back in his element, managing a baseball team, if just for one day.
Rose could take this one-game job because the Bluefish are not
affiliated with any major league team. He said the appearance
wasn’t about bringing attention to the ban or getting reinstated.
He said he was trying to show he could be a good ambassador
for the game.
“If I’m ever reinstated, I won’t need a third chance,” he said.
“Believe me.”
The Bluefish players asked for autographs took pictures and
listened to Rose’s stories of his glory days. Many, like Rose,
also are hoping for one more shot at the big time.
“He’s here, so I’m definitely going to ask him about stuff,” said
40-year-old Luis Lopez, who has spent 20 years playing baseball, but just two at the major league level. “I’m going to pick
his brain about everything, especially hitting, because eventually I want to coach.”
Rose said he would never consider managing an independent
league team full-time. It just doesn’t pay enough. He makes
a lot more money these days making personal appearances
around the country and signing autographs for cash on the Las
Vegas strip.
As the American Outlaws chanted their way out of the stadium,
Brooks missed the chance to meet Vice President Joe Biden when
he visited the locker room. Brooks and Jermaine Jones had been
chosen for random drug tests.
Brooks, who lives in Berlin and has family in Chicago, has only
visited the U.S. for training camps and vacation. But speaking
one day in California last month, he said, “When I’m here, I’m a
full American. I play with heart for America.”
He had nerves initially Monday, yet is thrilled with how things
ended.
“He’s done his time,” he said. “It’s time.”
Nearly two hours after the final whistle, Brooks was among the
last U.S. players to leave the locker room. Someone asked whether he thinks he will start against Portugal on Sunday.
“All I can say about Donald Sterling is, my fiancee is a lot
better looking than his girlfriend,” Rose joked before getting
serious for just a moment.
“A lifetime ban,” he said, “is a long time.”
“I think the first goal was perfect, a perfect start. Couldn’t be
better,” Brooks said.
“I don’t expect anything,” he said. “I just give my best in every
training session, and we’ll see.”
NOTES: The team returned to its base camp of Sao Paulo and
U.S. F Jozy Altidore was scheduled to have his injured left
hamstring examined Tuesday afternoon, U.S. Soccer Federation
spokesman Neil Buethe said. Altidore was hurt in the first half
and replaced by Aron Johannsson.
S P A C E W A L K E R S C O M P L E T E
TIRING ANTENNA INSTALLATION
“Slowly but surely,” one of the spacewalkers said as he worked
with the connectors.
Running behind schedule, Skvortsov and Artemiev moved on
to their next chore. Their to-do list included moving a payload
boom and switching out science experiments.
The 73-year-old whose 4,256 hits are the most in major league
history served as guest skipper for the Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League during their 2-0 win over the Lancaster
(Pennsylvania) Barnstormers. He also coached first base for the
team for the first five innings.
The game at the 5,300-seat stadium was his first managing
job since 1989, when as the skipper of the Cincinnati Reds he
agreed to a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball for betting
on baseball. He later admitted that he bet on Reds games while
running the team.
“They expected more from him the last season. There he got a
little bit of a lesson from his coach,” Klinsmann said. “It’s part
of growing, as well. But we knew that if we had the time now for
more than a month to work him through every training session,
to teach him some elements of the game, that he’s willing to take
that on and learn it quickly. And obviously he learned it quickly.”
About 4,500 fans paid to see the game. George Libretti, 46 of
Beacon Falls, brought his 10-year-old nephew, Robert Rosko,
so the boy could one day say that he saw the greatest hitter who
ever lived. Libretti said he supported Rose’s ban 25 years ago,
but believes the time has come to put him in the Hall of Fame.
Rose said he’s learned to live with his ban. He was asked during
his pregame news conference if he had any advice for Los Angeles Clipper’s owner Donald Sterling on how to deal with his.
Pete Rose, left, and Lancaster Barnstormers manager Butch Hobson, right, talk at home
plate before a game at The Ballpark at Harbor Yard, Monday, June 16, 2014, in Bridgeport, Conn. Rose, banned from Major League Baseball, returned to the dugout for one
day to manage the independent minor-league Bridgeport Bluefish.
The four astronauts inside kept tabs on the 260-mile-high action,
while conducting their own work.
“Pretty neat up here right now,” U.S. astronaut Reid Wiseman
said via Twitter. “Two Russian crew mates are spacewalking but
business as usual for me and (at)astro-alex,” he said, referring to
German Alexander Gerst.
Russian space station crew member Oleg Artemiev floats outside the International
Space Station during a space walk by two Russians, Thursday, June 16, 2014, to install
a new antenna and move a cargo boom. Alexander Skvortsov and Artemiev will also
switch out some science experiments.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- A pair of spacewalking
astronauts managed to install a new antenna Thursday outside the
International Space Station, despite some equipment trouble.
The crew includes three Russians, two Americans and the one
German. The Americans are supposed to venture out on NASA-led spacewalks in August. Skvortsov and Artemiev al
Russians Alexander Skvortsov and Oleg Artemiev panted and
sighed as they dealt with balky clamps and latches. Mission Control outside Moscow urged them to take frequent breaks.
“Resting is most important,” Mission Control radioed in Russian.
Two hours into the spacewalk, the first-time spacewalkers still
were struggling to secure the antenna, considered a major job.
They hauled the antenna out with them, at the start of the spacewalk.
“We almost have it. Almost there,” one of the astronauts said as
the work dragged on.
Two of the three locks clicked into place on the antenna. But
the third would not work right, and the astronauts had to use a
wire tie instead. Each spacewalker tugged on the tie to tighten it.
With that finally complete, the two successfully made a series of
connections, eliciting a “Hurrah!”
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MARE ISLAND, Calif. (AP) -- In drought-stricken California,
young Chinook salmon are hitting the road, not the river, to get
to the Pacific Ocean.
Millions of six-month-old smolts are hitching rides in tanker
trucks because California’s historic drought has depleted rivers
and streams, making the annual migration to the ocean too
dangerous for juvenile salmon.
The silvery smolts, just inches long, acclimated to the water in
the net pens before Fishery Foundation boats took them out to
the bay, where the fish were released and pulled to the ocean by
tides.
“The drought conditions have caused lower flows in the rivers,
warmer water temperatures, and the fish that would normally
be swimming down the rivers would be very susceptible to
predation and thermal stress,” said Kari Burr, fishery biologist
with the Fishery Foundation of California.
California has been trucking hatchery-raised salmon for years
to bypass river dams and giant pumps that funnel water to
Southern California and Central Valley farms.
But this year state and federal wildlife agencies are trucking
nearly 27 million smolts, about 50 percent more than normal,
because of the drought, according to the California Department
of Fish and Wildlife.
Each spring, the Coleman National Fish Hatchery usually
Trucking the smolts ensures a large number will survive and
grow to be the California king salmon prized by fishermen
and seafood lovers. But skipping the river journey means the
migratory fish won’t know how to swim home to spawn in
three years.
releases about 12 million smolts into Battle Creek, a tributary of
the Sacramento River near Redding. But this year, it trucked 7.5
million of them to San Francisco Bay because the drought had
made the 300-mile swim too perilous.
On a recent morning, a small convoy of tanker trucks carrying
A stuffed lion’s head is displayed at a news conference at JFK international Airport,
Monday, June 16, 2014 in New York to highlight efforts by U.S. Customs and Border
Protection and U.S. Fish and Wildlife to deter illegal trafficking in wildlife. The items
displayed were seized from baggage and cargo arriving at the airport. The government
is cracking down on the illegal trafficking, saying some of its import-export activity may
be linked to terrorists.
NEW YORK (AP) -- The U.S. government is stepping up its
crackdown on the illegal trafficking of wild animal products
across the nation’s borders, saying some may be linked to terrorists, federal officials said Monday.
“Poaching in Africa is funding terrorist groups,” U.S. Trade
Representative Michael Froman told a news conference at Kennedy International Airport.
A dead elephant is worth about $18,000 - mostly from the tusk.
Also seized was a small rhino horn libation cup worth tens of
thousands of dollars.
Kennedy handles the largest cargo volume of any U.S. airport,
about $100 billion a year, said Patrick Foye, executive director
of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs
the airport.
And the wildlife element plays an especially powerful role in
national security, said Froman, the chief U.S. trade negotiator
and adviser to President Barack Obama.
More than 20,000 elephants were killed last year along with
about 1,000 rhinos, meeting a rising world demand resulting in
declining populations across Africa, according to officials with
the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of
Wild Fauna and Flora.
This treaty was signed by more than 170 countries to protect
animals that end up as contraband including live pets, hunting
trophies, fashion accessories, cultural artifacts and medicinal
The state-run Nimbus Fish Hatchery near Sacramento usually
releases 3 million of the 4 million Chinook smolts it raises into
the nearby American River, but this year it’s releasing all of
them into the bay.
“Because of the conditions this year and the mortality, it’s better to put them straight into the bay and get them back in three
years,” said fish technician Gregory Ferguson, who was herding
the smolts in ponds toward pumps that sucked them into the
truck tanks headed for Mare Island.
In February, Obama approved a new strategy for fighting trafficking through enforcement, as well as partnerships with other
countries, communities and private industry. For the first time,
U.S. officials are asking trading partners to agree to conservation
measures for wildlife and the environment in return for signing
agreements.
The commercial and recreational fishing industries have been
pushing for the expanded trucking program to increase the
chances of a decent salmon season in 2016, when the smolts
released this year will be adults.
Kennedy customs officials are reaching out to local businesses, plus auction houses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s and even
Carnegie Hall to alert them to illegally traded valuables that may
come their way.
“I actually make my living just trolling for salmon, so it’s pretty
important for me,” said John Terry, commercial salmon fisherman from Aberdeen, Washington, who was unloading his catch
at San Francisco Fisherman’s Wharf at the start of commercial
salmon season. “We need the help.”
20,000 ELEPHANTS POACHED
IN AFRICA IN 2013
efforts across multiple countries, as well as greater political and
public attention to this unfolding crisis,” said John Scanlon, the
CITES secretary-general.
About 28 percent of Africa’s elephants are in eastern Africa,
but most of them - close to 55 percent - are in southern Africa.
Some populations of elephants continue to face an immediate
threat of local extinction.
B U F FA L O Z O O R H I N O
CALF FROM CINCINNATI
RHINO SPERM
On display in an airport cargo warehouse operated by the U.S.
Customs and Border Protection was a collection of wildlife
products seized at Kennedy - from ivory disguised to look like
a wooden statue and the stuffed heads of a lion and leopard to
handicrafts, artworks and musical instruments hiding animal
parts.
Paul Chapelle, the agent in charge of New York for the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, said one horn case resulted in 16
arrests, including that of a mobster from Ireland now serving 13
months behind bars.
The federal hatchery in Shasta County did release 4.5 million smolts into Battle Creek in April after rain temporarily
improved river flows. Hamelberg hopes at least a small number
of them will return in a few years and serve as broodstock for
future generations.
U.S. trade officials believe that groups benefiting from the
poaching include the militant Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda
and South Sudan, the Janjaweed comprised of Sudanese Arab
tribes, and al-Shabab, a jihadist group based in Somalia.
He said such illegal trade is a threat to global security because
it’s driven by criminal elements, including terrorists using
profits from items such as rhinoceros horns and elephant tusks
to finance their activities.
The single priciest item was a rhino horn. It fetches $30,000 per
pound - or about 30 percent more than its weight in gold.
“Because that imprinting cycle is broken, it’s unlikely that
many fish will make it back to Coleman. In other words, they
stray. They won’t find that scent to where home is,” said Scott
Hamelberg, who manages the Coleman National Fish Hatchery.
In this photo taken Tuesday June 10, 2014 and supplied by International Fund For Animal Welfare (IFAW), an orphaned elephant calf, left, one of two, is introduced to an
adult at the Game Rangers International Release Facility at the Kafue National Park
in Zambia. The two calves, whose parents were killed by poachers when they were
two, are to be integrated with the resident orphan herd and later released into the park.
More than 20,000 elephants were poached last year in Africa where large seizures of
smuggled ivory eclipsed those in Asia for the first time, international wildlife regulators
said Friday June 13, 2014.
GENEVA (AP) -- More than 20,000 elephants were poached
last year in Africa where large seizures of smuggled ivory
eclipsed those in Asia for the first time, international wildlife
regulators said Friday.
Eighty percent of the African seizures were in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, three of the eight nations required to draw up
plans to curb ivory smuggling, officials with the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (CITES) reported.
The report says poaching is increasing in Central African
Republic, but declining in Chad. But CITES, which regulates
35,000 species of plants and animals and which banned ivory
trade in 1989, says the overall poaching numbers in 2013
dropped from the previous two years.
“We are seeing better law enforcement and demand-reduction
CINCINNATI (AP) -- The Cincinnati Zoo says a female Indian rhino calf
born recently in New York was produced by artificial insemination using
sperm from a now-dead Cincinnati rhino.
Zoo officials call the calf born June 5 at the Buffalo Zoo a victory for
endangered species.
The father was named Jimmy and died at the Cincinnati Zoo in 2004. His
sperm was frozen, stored and later taken to Buffalo.
The calf’s 17-year-old mother is named Tashi. She previously conceived
and successfully gave birth through natural breeding in 2004 and 2008. But
her mate died, and Buffalo’s new male Indian rhino hasn’t reached sexual
maturity.
Buffalo officials say the calf weighed 144 pounds at birth. They say there
are only 59 Indian rhinos in captivity in North America and about 2,500 in
the wild. | {
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-0.61(-0.99%)
-6.60(-0.50%)
-0.18(-1.07%)
-0.00(-0.04%)
Apple CEO Tim Cook took aim at President Donald Trump’s statements defending white nationalists — and pledged in a memo to employees that the company would provide monetary support to anti-hate groups.
“We must not witness or permit such hate and bigotry in our country, and we must be unequivocal about it,” Cook wrote in the memo, distributed Wednesday. “I disagree with the president and others who believe that there is a moral equivalence between white supremacists and Nazis, and those who oppose them by standing up for human rights. Equating the two runs counter to our ideals as Americans.”
Cook, the chief executive of the largest technology company in the world, is the latest business leader to speak out against Trump in the wake of the violence in Charlottesville. On Wednesday, Trump’s manufacturing advisory panel and the White House’s Strategic and Policy Forum disbanded after numerous executives resigned, looking to distance themselves from the president’s comments.
In his memo to Apple staffers, Cook said the company will make contributions of $1 million each to the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League. In addition, the company will match two-for-one employee donations to these and several other human rights groups, between now and Sept. 30. Also, Apple’s iTunes will soon provide a way for users directly donate to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
“What occurred in Charlottesville has no place in our country,” Cook wrote in the memo. “Hate is a cancer, and left unchecked it destroys everything in its path. Its scars last generations.” | {
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Elizabethan Proverb Commentary: Here is today's proverb commentary, this time by Conybeare: Suo ipsius indicio periit sorex: The Ratte betrayed herself with her owne noyse and so was taken. It is a proverbiall speakinge of anybodye that ys betrayed by his owne wordes.
Proverbs of Polydorus: Today's proverb from Polydorus is: Beatum est potius dare quam recipere (English: It is more blessed to give than to take).
Proper Name Proverb from Erasmus: Today's proper name proverb from Erasmus is Tithoni senecta (English: The old age of Tithonus; from Adagia 1.6.65 - Tithonus was the moral lover of the goddess Eos who asked that he be granted immortality, but she forgot to ask that he be granted eternal youth as well!).
Tiny Proverbs: Today's tiny proverb is: Amaltheae cornu (English: The horn of Amalthea). Amalthea, sometimes shown as a goddess, sometimes as a divine she-goat, was the one who nursed Zeus when he was a baby concealed in a cave on the island of Crete.
For an image today, here is the divine goat Amalthea shown on the obverse of a coin:
Audio Latin Proverb: Today's audio Latin proverb is Nemo nisi sapiens liber est. (English: No one, unless he is wise, is free). To read a brief essay about this proverb and to listen to the audio, visit the Latin Via Proverbs blog.
Animal Proverb from Erasmus: Today's animal proverb from Erasmus is Mus non ingrediens antrum, cucurbitam ferebat (English: The mouse couldn't get into its hole because it was carrying a pumpkin; from Adagia 3.3.79).
Elizabethan Proverb Commentary: Here is today's proverb commentary, this time by Taverner: Neque mel, neque apes: I have neither honie, nor bees. As who should say: I have no hony, bycause I have no bees, nor will not take the paines, to kepe and abide the bitinge and stinginge of them.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Here is a round-up of today's blog posts - plus an announcement about this summer's project. I've now got a basic, very preliminary first draft done of the Scala Sapientiae: Latin Vocabulary Through Proverbs. Using a database program and some fancy algorithms, I've found a way to organize 5000 Latin proverbs in a kind of ladder, so that you can move through the proverbs "step by step" (hence the ladder) with no more than one new vocabulary word needed as you move through the proverbs one by one. To see how this works, take a look at Scala Proverbs 1-50, 51-100 and 101-150 which I've published today in blog format. I hope to add about one hundred proverbs each day for the rest of the summer as I make my own way through the ladder. You can find out more about the project here: Climbing the Scala Sapientiae. I'm curious what people think about this - it's a project I have gotten really fascinated with, and I hope it will end up being useful to others, too!
3-Word Mottoes Verb-less: Today's 3-word verb-less motto is Celeritas et veritas (English: Swiftness and truth - although I guess it might be better to say "truthfulness" to capture the sound pattern of the Latin).
Latin Animal Proverb: Today's animal proverb is Sicut canis ad Nilum, bibens et fugiens (English: Like a dog at the Nile, drinking and fleeing - he is fleeing to escape the crocodiles, as the Aesop's fable explains).
Proverbs of Polydorus: Today's proverb from Polydorus is: Qui ignorat ignorabitur (English: He who is ignorant will be ignorant in the future).
Proper Name Proverb from Erasmus: Today's proper name proverb from Erasmus is Attici Eleusinia inter sese (English: The Athenians keep the Eleusinian mysteries to themselves; from Adagia 2.5.66; you can read what we know today about the Eleusinian Mysteries in this Wikipedia article).
Greek Proverb of the Day: Today's proverb is Δυεῖν ἐπιθυμήσας, οὐδετέρου ἔτυχες (English: Trying to get two, you end up with neither one).
Audio Latin Proverb: Today's audio Latin proverb is Omne solum forti patria est ut piscibus aequor (English: Every land is a homeland for the courageous man, as water is a homeland for the fish). To read a brief essay about this proverb and to listen to the audio, visit the Latin Via Proverbs blog.
Animal Proverb from Erasmus: Today's animal proverb from Erasmus is Tunc canent cygni, cum tacebunt graculi (English: When the jackdaws fall silent, the swans will sing - although if the jackdaws refuse to be quiet, we will never get to hear those swans singing; from Adagia 3.3.97).
For an image today, here is a postage stamp showing Hercules and Geryon:
3-Word Mottoes: Today's 3-word motto is In tempestate floresco (English: I flourish in the storm).
3-Word Proverbs: Today's 3-word proverb is Veritas vos liberabit (English: The truth will set you free).
Rhyming Proverbs: Today's proverb with rhyme is: Non lapis hirsutus fit per loca multa volutus (English: A stone does not get hairy when it is rolled through many places - which is to say "a rolling stone gathers no moss").
Elizabethan Proverb Commentary: Here is today's proverb commentary, this time by Taverner: Canes timidi vehementius latrant: Fearefull dogges do barke the sorer. Greate braggers commonly be least fighters, and most cowardes, even as the most barking dogges, be for the most part lest biters.
VERBUM HODIERNUM: Today's word is MOS - read a brief essay about the word at the Verbosum blog. Here's one of the sayings you can find in the essay: Si fueris Romae, Romano vivito more, which expresses in Latin the same saying we have in English: "When in Rome, do as the Romans do" (that vivito in the Latin phrase is a future imperative).
In addition, I've put in the scripts for some daily stories and proverbs below; they won't come through in the email, but just check the blog post to see what's new for the day... it will be automatically updated while I am gone, thanks to the magic of javascript!
VERBUM HODIERNUM: Today's word is SIVE / SEU - read a brief essay about the word at the Verbosum blog. Here's one of the sayings you can find in the essay: Neque Iuppiter ipse - sive pluat seu non - unicuique placet, "Not even Jupiter himself - whether he rains or doesn't - can please everybody" (a nice reminder of the fact that Jupiter stood for the "weather" in Latin, in addition to being the father of gods and men!).
Latin Animal Proverb: Today's animal proverb is Mus rapitur subito, qui solo vivit in antro (English: A mouse is quickly caught if he lives in a single mousehole).
Proverbs of Polydorus: Today's proverb from Polydorus is: Plus valet bonum nomen, quam divitiae multae (English: A good name is worth more than many riches - a proverb that resonates nicely with today's anecdote about Themistocles, supra).
Proper Name Proverb from Erasmus: Today's proper name proverb from Erasmus is Multitudo imperatorum Cariam perdidit (English: An abundance of generals lost Caria; from Adagia 2.7.7 - something like "too many cooks spoil the soup," but with the great city of Caria in place of the soup).
VERBUM HODIERNUM: Today's word is PONO - read a brief essay about the word at the Verbosum blog. Here's one of the sayings you can find in the essay: Pone gulae metas; erit tibi longa aetas, "Put limits on your greedy eating; you will have a long life" (notice that the Latin rhymes, too!).
Audio Latin Proverb: Today's audio Latin proverb is Palma non sine pulvere (English: No palm without dust). To read a brief essay about this proverb and to listen to the audio, visit the Latin Via Proverbs blog. | {
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Monday, November 24, 2014
St.
Louis - Citing a legal authority for a law enforcement officer to use
deadly force when necessary and the human right of all persons to use
deadly force to defend themselves, St. Louis County Prosecutor Bob
McCulloch announced that after an exhaustive 3-month investigation,
the Grand Jury returned no true bill of indictment against against
Officer Darren Wilson on all of five counts leveled against him.
The
prosecutor remarked that many witnesses who alleged he shot Michael
Brown, 18, in the back, changed their stories or merely refused to
testify once they were confronted with physical evidence to the
contrary. | {
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The Nation | IN BRIEF / MASSACHUSETTS
Artist's Pornography Conviction Overturned
Massachusetts' highest court has overturned the child pornography conviction of an art student who photographed a 15-year-old girl with her breasts exposed.
The Supreme Judicial Court said that John C. Bean, 40, who was taking courses at the Worcester Art Museum, "had no lascivious intent" and the pictures were "neither obscene nor pornographic."
A judge had sentenced Bean to six months' probation on a charge of "posing a child in the nude." Bean also faced having to register as a sex offender.
Bean "was trying to work in an artistic manner and if his conviction had been upheld it would have been a devastating message to people trying to earn a living creatively," said Benjamin Keehn of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, who handled the appeal. | {
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