Recently a federal court of appeals found that an adjunct professor in Illinois did have the right to sue for wrongful termination; it was her contention that the First Amendment protected her right to criticize her employer publicly. What are the implications of this decision for Colorado’s adjuncts? Following is a letter written from Don Eron, member of the Colorado Conference executive committee, as well as national AAUP’s Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure, to all participants on the COCAL (Coalition of Contingent Academic Labor) adjunct listserv (adj-l).
Vanessa has asked that I weigh in on the recent Seventh Federal Court of Appeals decision regarding Robin Meade’s lawsuit against Moraine Valley Community College in Illinois. Vanessa, Jack and others have suggested that the long-term implications of the decision are unclear and, at least at this point, a note of cautious optimism might be the best response. I agree. Specifically, I think that some of the press coverage has overstated the breadth of the court’s finding regarding First Amendment protections for adjunct speech. There are also questions about the decision’s impact on adjunct eligibility for unemployment compensation. Still, the news from this decision is very good, and there’s already much that adjunct activists can put to use.
In advance, please pardon the length of this missive. But I would like to note that this weekend I attended the AAUP’s Committee A meeting, where we discussed the court of appeals’ decision. Although these impressions are my own, I think that they are generally consistent with those of the AAUP legal staff.
To summarize the case: Moraine Valley Community College in Illinois fired Robin Meade, an adjunct and union activist, explicitly for criticisms made in a letter she wrote in her capacity as head of the adjunct union. Meade sued Moraine Valley in district court. The district court threw out Meade’s lawsuit because they found that she had no legal ground on which to contest her dismissal. Meade appealed to the Seventh Federal Court of Appeals, which was obliged to interpret the evidence in ways most favorable to Meade.
On that basis, the appeals court found that Meade had two legitimate legal claims. First, that the letter she wrote in her capacity as a union official–a letter critical of college policies regarding adjuncts–was protected by the first amendment because it addressed an issue of public concern. Second, that a letter of agreement that Moraine Valley Community College had sent to Meade, tentatively indicating her course assignments for the fall semester of 2013, implied a property interest that entitled Meade to due process protections. Having found that Meade has grounds for a lawsuit, the appeals court has now tossed the case back to the district court to hear the suit.
The First Amendment implications of this decision are welcome, but narrower than some of the press coverage has suggested. First Amendment protections for public employees are generally guided by the Supreme Court’s 2006 Garcetti ruling, which determined, essentially, that public employees have no first amendment protections for speech made “pursuant to their official duties.” However, Moraine Valley conceded that they fired Meade for speech made in her capacity as head of her adjunct union, which–all sides agreed–was not among her official duties as an adjunct instructor. Thus, the court applied the Supreme Court’s far more liberal 1968 Pickering decision to determine Meade’s First Amendment rights. The court did not comment on what they might have ruled had Garcetti been applicable—if, for example, Moraine Valley had fired Meade because they didn’t like comments she’d made at a faculty meeting. In other words, this decision says nothing about First Amendment protections for speech made by adjuncts in the course of performing their job responsibilities. What it does suggest, however, is that activists who are involved in the leadership of their unions or AAUP advocacy chapters or other adjunct organizations have considerable protection for speech made when representing those organizations. If you are not already actively engaged in an organization that represents adjunct interests, please join in the fun.
Other news from the decision is mostly good. The appeals court decision rousingly characterizes the adjunct crisis as a national problem, and the working conditions of adjuncts as a matter of public concern. While this finding may be self-evident to anyone reading this post, it certainly wasn’t apparent to the district court. This lower court didn’t fathom a connection between adjunct working conditions and student learning conditions, and found that Robin Meade’s criticisms were a matter of “private griping” rather than public concern because, as an adjunct, she was personally affected by the policies of the college. In their decision, the upper court found the district court reasoning (or myopia) to be almost incomprehensible. As activists, we can now use the powerful Seventh Court of Appeals decision to validate one of our central arguments. From my own vantage point, I can say that when I meet with administrators, legislators, or lobbyists to advance our Colorado initiatives, my argument—that the desire of higher education administrations for maximum flexibility over their workforce has a corrosive impact on the educational product—is often met with skepticism. This decision will help.
The decision is also significant for the finding that the “spare” piece of paper Moraine Valley CC sent Robin Meade before the fall semester of 2013 indicating (with many qualifications) her class schedule, and also furnishing a beginning and end date, constituted a binding employment contract for the fall semester. In effect, the letter gave her property rights that superseded any presumptions of at-will employment (despite that Illinois is an at will state and that Moraine Valley’s CBC agreement stipulates that all adjuncts are to be employed at-will). As a practical matter this means that, for the duration of that semester, Meade should not have been fired without access to due process dismissal procedures. More generally, it may suggest that adjuncts are no longer to be considered at will employees as long as they receive something in writing that confirms class assignments and states a beginning and end date.
While this implies some degree of job security that many adjuncts have not enjoyed, as Maria and others have observed colleges can find ways around it, if they wish to. For example, if classes don’t “make,” the contract would no longer be valid. Furthermore, as the appeals court explicitly states, had Moraine Valley wished to legally dismiss Meade, they could simply have waited until the end of the fall semester and then advised Meade that there were no courses available for the spring term. All that notwithstanding, the court’s recognition that a written notification of class assignments that almost all adjuncts receive but that almost no one has considered to have legal validity, might now be considered to be a binding contract replete with property rights for adjunct teachers, is an exciting step in the right direction.
As for the possible negative consequence, it may be (as some have suggested) that the viability of the contract constitutes a reasonable assurance of employment, and therefore it might interfere with one’s case for unemployment compensation between sessions. That will need to be sorted out, obviously, but there are positive laws in some jurisdictions. In California, for example, it’s doubtful that Meade’s “spare” piece of paper would provide a reasonable expectation when classes that do not fill can be cancelled or when full-timers who want or need classes can take them away from adjuncts. If the Seventh Court of Appeals decision becomes the precedent that I hope it will, for all the good reasons, it will be necessary for us to prioritize the issue of unemployment compensation even more than we have.
On a final note, in Colorado we have found that attorneys seldom are willing take on cases involving adjunct termination–and not only because the laws tend not to favor part-time employees. Generally, an adjunct cannot afford to pay for a lawsuit. Nor do adjuncts usually earn enough money to make it worthwhile for attorneys to take on their cases on a contingency basis. Thanks to Robin Meade (who should be on this list if she is not) and her lawyers for pressing her case, and best wishes for a successful outcome as her suit has now been tossed back to district court.
Reblogged this on National Mobilization For Equity.


While most homeowner and condominium associations aren't exactly models of harmony and cooperation, they are at least functional and generally comport themselves according to the bylaws, covenant and restriction documents and applicable laws that govern them. But every once in a while, there's that one person who goes overboard with power, who doesn't know how to exercise restraint, who shirks responsibilities, and who makes improper promises to residents, vendors, managers or other stakeholders without going through proper channels.
Then there are the association board members or presidents who have toxic personalities and, while they may be competent in their duties, are so difficult to get along with that they alienate others and dissuade them from contributing to the community.
Let's say you believe another board member needs to go. You have this opinion not due to a disagreement over reasonable policies or priorities, which are a fact of life in any governing body, but over something more substantial like an abuse of power, disregard for the governing documents, violations of their fiduciary duty to the association, failure to attend meetings as required, or general garden-variety incompetence. What needs to happen? Can other board members or association members have them removed from authority?
Board members are elected by the owners at large, not by other board members. Because the board did not select their own members, they cannot deselect them, either. The job of firing an association board president is therefore ultimately the job of the association members.
However, association boards often elect their own officers. It is therefore usually easy for a board to vote for a new president, though the board cannot on its own authority vote another member off the board, except under specific circumstances spelled out in the bylaws.
The minimum standards for board members and presidents should be spelled out in your association's bylaws. They should include standards like "Board members must attend X% of all prescheduled meetings, to be held according to a predictable schedule." Failure to meet these standards will justify, or even require, their removal from the board.
Some states, including Florida, require homeowner and condominium association boards to remove board members upon the conviction of a felony. Similar provisions may apply to any board member who is personally delinquent on their association dues. If you live in states where these laws apply, the board will have no choice but to remove the problem board member from office.
If you can't remove a board member outright because of their problematic behavior, you may be able to contain the damage they're causing by removing them from official positions, committees or task forces.
Taking decisive action against a problem board member carries the risk of bad blood, dissent, and aggravation among the board members who voted them into office in the first place. Terms expire eventually. In some cases, waiting the problem board member out and working on electing someone else in their place when the next election cycle comes around is the best course of action. Discretion is the better part of valor.
Often problem board members can be brought back on the reservation with education and persuasion. New board members can make mistakes, and even the most well-meaning of them are prone to missteps, especially if they don't have the benefit of a background in real estate law or non-profit governance. Often the best way to educate and persuade problem board members is one-on-one. Be careful about getting multiple board members to work together on this, though, because doing so would prohibit you from conducting the meeting off the record.
If the problem board member can see the inevitable, that they will be booted out of office sooner or later, requesting their resignation may be the best solution. However, ensure that the problem board member has had the opportunity to defend themselves and present evidence in their favor.
Most bylaws that address the removal of a board member by their peers require a unanimous vote. Check for procedural hurdles in your bylaws regarding quora, advance meeting notice, special meeting requirements, proxy voting, and other specifications. Do you have the required number of signatures to schedule a special meeting? Has this fact been documented in your association's minutes and official records?
It's also not enough to pass out flyers and put up a notice on the community bulletin board. Removing a board member is a major administrative and legal event for a homeowners association. Make a concerted effort to notify absentee owners so they can vote their proxies and limit the ability of non-owners to vote improperly.
Expect emotions to run high at these proceedings. It's not unusual for a jilted board member to sue their peers or the association itself after such a vote.
Before taking action, remember that every board member was elected by other members of your homeowner or condominium association and it's therefore presumed that they represent their constituents. By stripping a board member of authority and responsibility and forcing them to resign or be removed from office, you are also denying their constituency the representation they voted for. Ergo, such actions should be taken only with reluctance and in specific circumstances spelled out in your bylaws.


Any self-respecting liberal humanist soundly rejects the objectification of people. Why? Because each of us is supposed to be a subject endowed with self-consciousness and a selfhood and personhood imbued with a dignity demanding respect from others.
The language of both the everyday and of science, however, tells a contradictorily opposed story. No one has any qualms about talking of the 'inner self' located somewhere 'deep' inside. For neuroscience it is axiomatic (but nevertheless empirically non-verifiable) that the mind is located individually in each individual head, specifically, in a physical organ, the brain. (How we could ever 'be of one mind' thereby becomes a total mystery.) Neuroscientists, among other scientists, are awarded Nobel Prizes for their research into the cognitive capacities of the brain. That quintessential dimension of time, namely, memory, is supposed to be located like a storage bin in the limbic lobe of the brain, and this is supposed to have been scientifically verified and proven. The crude ontological presupposition in this is that time itself can somehow be spatialized into a where. But what is time itself? Who possesses the temerity to put (putatively) empirically-based, scientific truth into question? Anyone doing so is exposed to ridicule and is ignored as some kind of perverse 'philosophical speculator'.
Nonetheless, philosophically it is entirely visible for those willing to interrogate obviousness that, ontologically speaking, the slide from endowing human being with a whoness demanding respect to a whatness open to objective scientific investigation has long since been consummated. No ethics is capable of cleaning up this ontological mess, simply because ethics does not think ontologically; it is ontologically defenceless.
One inconspicuous symptom of ontological degeneration is the degeneration in grammar itself, which can be noticed everywhere, in particular, in the growing inability of native English speakers to distinguish grammatically between singular and plural. Another symptom is the widespread, today almost ubiquitous, use of 'that' as the personal relative pronoun of choice. Its advantage is manifest since, by replacing that fussy personal relative pronoun, 'who', it obviates having to distinguish between 'who' (nominative) and 'whom' (accusative), which English speakers have been confused about for centuries. With the all-purpose relative pronoun 'that' for both whats and whos, the tiresome cognitive effort of distinguishing between 'who' and 'whom' is eluded once and for all, and the human being itself becomes finally — and apparently irrevocably — a 'that', i.e. a 'what', subject to scientific investigation, statistical registration, state subjugation, media manipulation, advertisement targeting, and so on.
Who notices this in our consummately thoughtless times?
Further reading: Social Ontology of Whoness.
Who is gonna save you from yourself?
As he cares for you.
Who'll set you free, set you free?
Who is gonna shake you when I'm gone?
And who will try to wake you?
And who will kick your arse since you've gone wrong?
but can you make up your brain?


Aim: To test whether chlorophyll is necessary for photosynthesis.
Two plants with variegated leaves i.e. leaves that are partly green, permanent marker and equipment for the start test.
Draw on one of the leaves tracing out the green parts and separating them from the non-green parts.
Place the plant in the light for a few hours.
Test the leaf for starch.
The parts without chlorophyll tests negative for photosynthesis.
The parts chlorophyll tests positive for photosynthesis.
Chlorophyll is required for photosynthesis.


Why did you choose McIntire? I chose McIntire for several reasons. I loved the diversity of classes included in the program. You not only take technical accounting classes, but you also take classes on leadership, communication, and electives on various topics. I wanted to come out of my graduate program not just a strong accountant, but also a well-rounded professional, and that is exactly what McIntire strives to do. I also liked the small class sizes; I wanted to go somewhere I could become close to my professors and fellow classmates.
What do you enjoy about the program so far? I absolutely love the people! The support I've received so far from staff and fellow students is incredible. We all work together and want each other to succeed. I can definitely tell I'm making lifelong friends.
Fun facts about me: I love to travel (most recently, I visited San Francisco and Montezuma, Costa Rica). I spent last summer working as a Financial Reporting Intern at a software company called Blackbaud. My favorite animal is a sloth, and my friends always buy me sloth-related gifts.


Or hey, even EMUs. We already use them on the subways, so why not start building overhead wires on the Commuter Rail too? Very simple to do, and can improve both acceleration and top speed. EMUs in Japan--non bullet trains, by the way--are set to run at 160 km/h, or 99 mph, by 2010.
EMUs are a great idea, but maybe more in the form of something that can fit other places as well. I think the Fairmount should just be a REd Line extension, rather than it's own line. it would branch at SS and go on to Readville, or maybe even 128 so park&riders can have an easy commute.
Implementation could start small: Fairmount and Needham lines, for instance. Overhead wires could be laid on parts of the Commuter Rail to enable rapid electric service on larger lines, too--Boston to Lynn, Reading, Anderson RTC, Waltham, Framingham, Brockton, etc. Gradually they would be extended, allowing the entire Commuter Rail system to run on electricity.
Theres a problm with running RT and conventional trains on the same tracks, there are FRA regulations against it. Also, the MBTa hasn't really looked at electrification as something worth persuing, possibly because it'd take forever.
This would also make Rapid Transit extensions easier. Suppose the Red Line were being extended from Alewife to Waltham. Just stick in a single express track for commuter rail trains, give the Red Line cars pantographs (ala Blue Line), and run the new service with ease. No need to build an entirely new batch of stations or two new tracks right from the get-go; they could be gradually implemented as demand increased.
If they were to electrifythe lines, it'd be better just to do it with 3rd rail(like Metro-North and the LIRR) instead. that way they wouldn't need all the different things and switching.
This isn't an option since the Fairmont line is the only alternative coming into Boston from the Southwest.
Not to mention how expensive it would be.
*make a connection to the South Station Red Line platform or Reuse the infamous loop track for red line cars.
*rework Readvill so that the NEC connects to the Franklin line and the station and make it so these new Red Line trains can turn around.
Anyone have updates here on the new stations or TODs? Has this taken stimulus money? What are the next steps?
The stations all went out to bid this year and should be done by 2012.
A study was done and the best headways possible will be 20 minutes, due to crowding at south station.
Its still not decided how the fare structure will be.
They had the foresight but not the money.
I think those underground loop tracks were destroyed long ago.
As for the loop, as I wrote in the 2004 thread, South Station was originally built with a double track lower level loop, which was intended for use by commuter trains. A steam-powered ceremonial train filled it with smoke shortly after the station opened, and it was never used in revenue service, although if the New Haven RR had electrified its Boston suburban service at the beginning of the last century (beyond the experimental Nantasket Branch service), it undoubtedly would have been. There was a lower level waiting room beneath the current station headhouse. It became a bowling alley that was in use into the 1970s and the space existed until the major reconstruction of South Station in the late 1980s. The east portal to the loop tunnel was visible until the station throat was rebuilt during the Fort Point Channel bridge replacement and I-90 tunnel construction a few years later.
We might as well fill in the big dig to follow the Boston tradition of abandoning useful tunnels.
Good to hear some news about this.
20 minute headways maximum isn't going to qualify this as a rapid transit line, is it?
What, by the way, are the plans for the postal annex - I saw way back in the thread Van had mentioned that increased capacity could be added to South Station there, which I suppose could improve significantly on the headways. But are there other development plans for it as well?
Note the website. You wont find that info on the mbta website.
The proposed schedules are on page 58, and theyre a wee bit disappointing.
The consultants are yahoos, and the MBTA guys are dopes.
These aren't new, are they? They're marked Jan 2008 and Nov 2007. They look good though - hope that hasn't changed.
I wonder, though, who's going to be using Newmarket? It's in a pretty empty area. Is it close enough to South Bay?
Will this spur residential development around the new station?
they are nto new... just didnt see them or links to them anywhere on this thread. there ar emore detailed PDFs that are new on each mbta projects page for each one.
I do renderings for half the projects I'm involved with. They all look good.
After all, they omit nearly all messy reality to present a perfect world.
Outside renderings, where can you actually find the perfect world?
Uh, how do these look any different than standard commuter rail stations?


Is anyone else slightly obsessed with bookish candles? I have to admit, I've never actually bought a candle, so my experience of them is extremely limited, but I love the idea of curling up with a cup of hot chocolate and enjoying a good book, whilst enjoying the smells described in the book. Many of these candle-sellers seem to put a huge amount of work into their candles, and there are so many that I find it slightly overwhelming. So I thought I'd make myself a little guide of just a few of the companies out there, and share it! Enjoy! (All pictures belong to the respective companies).
P.S. Whilst compiling this, I found this AWESOME (and much more comprehensive) list, compiled by Brittany at The Book Addicts Guide. You should check it out here.
Hundreds of bookish candles from many fandoms, also run a monthly box which contains 2 or 5 candles depending on the box.
Fandoms include The Lunar Chronicles, A Court of Thorns and Roses and Six of Crows.
Prices: Wax Tarts - $6, 4oz Candles - $9, 8oz Candles - $18, Deluxe Boxes - 45.99, Essentials Boxes - $19.99.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country.
Aims to "inspire the dreamer that lives in the hearts of all bibliophiles".
Fandoms include Harry Potter, Shades of Magic and The Grisha Series.
Prices: 4oz Candles - $9, 10oz Candles - $19.
Fandoms include Nevernight, Uprooted and The Graceling Realms Series.
Prices: 2oz Candles - $5, 8oz Candles - $18.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, around $7 to US, $24 to UK.
Hand-poured soy candles made in Chicago.
Prices: 2oz Candles - $14.50 for 4, 4oz Candles - $7.50, 9oz Candles - $14.50, 12oz Candles - $19.50 (prices often reduced if on sale).
Hand-poured soy candles for many different fandoms, both books and movies.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, about $10 for US and $20 for UK.
Natural Soy Candles inspired by Ladies of Literature.
Fandoms include The Grisha Series, The Infernal Devices and Outlander.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, about $8 for US and $24 for UK.
"Hi! I've been a #booknerd my entire life and now I'm combining my two passions- scents and books! Happy shopping!"
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, about $7 for US and $22 for UK.
Funds from Biblioflames are donated annually to help impoverished children in NY receive books in their homes, libraries, and schools.
Fandoms include Twilight, Harry Potter and A Court of Thorns and Roses.
US-Produced Vegan Soy Bookish Candles.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, free shipping to the US over $100.
Fandoms include A Court of Thorns and Roses, Grisha Series and The Hunger Games.
Prices: 9oz Candles - $16, Wax Melts - $15 for 3.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, $6 to US, $22 to UK.
Hand poured candles for book lovers. Based on the stories you love.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, free shipping on orders over $50 to US.
Fandoms include Lord of the Rings and Anne of Green Gables.
Step into one of your favourite books with our hand-poured bookish-inspired creations.
Fandoms include The Cruel Prince, Wintersong and Harry Potter.
Prices: 4oz Candles - $7.50, 8oz Candles - $15.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country. Processing time is 3-4wks.
Mostly YA Candles for Book Lovers.
Fandoms include Illuminae, Mara Dyer and Six of Crows.
Prices: 4oz Candles - $8.50, 8oz Candles - $13.50.
Ships from US - price depends on weight and country, $8.50 to US, $24 to UK.
"Chunk Candles" with Bookish Themes.
Fandoms include Harry Potter, Percy Jackson and Caraval.
Ships from US to US only for $7.
At Flickering Tales we combine our love of reading with our love of candles to create that perfect scent for every book. Whether your favorites are Adventure, Romance, or Fantasy, Young Adult, Middle Grade, or more, we have something for every bibliophile!
Fandoms include Strange the Dreamer, Shatter Me and A Court of Thorns and Roses.
Prices: 4oz Candles - $7, 8oz. Candles - $14, 2oz Sets - $12, 4oz Sets - $20.
Ships from US - price variable depending on weight and location.
I'd love to know which candles you guys have tried and enjoyed - let me know in the comments! Also, I was thinking I would do a post like this for book sleeves - is that something you guys would find useful?


In women, is onset of rheumatoid arthritis associated with an increased risk for myocardial infarction or stroke?
A cohort of women followed for 18 years.
114 342 women 30 to 55 years of age in 1976 were recruited from the Nurses' Health Study. Exclusion criteria included rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease, and cancer at baseline. 7% (7786 women) reported incident rheumatoid arthritis during follow-up.
The women completed questionnaires every 2 years to update information about recent illness, including rheumatoid arthritis and dates of diagnosis, dietary habits, weight, cigarette smoking, menopausal status, physical activity, blood pressure, and use of prescription and over-the-counter medications as well as dietary supplements. For women who reported rheumatoid arthritis, attempts were made to confirm the diagnosis. Associations between rheumatoid arthritis and the cardiovascular endpoints were assessed using multivariate analyses.
Incidence of fatal and nonfatal myocardial infarction or stroke.
During follow-up, a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis was confirmed in 527 (0.5%) women. The incidence of myocardial infarction was greater in women with rheumatoid arthritis than in women without (Table). Women who had had rheumatoid arthritis for ≥ 10 years were 3 times more likely to have a myocardial infarction than women without rheumatoid arthritis (relative risk 3.1, 95% CI 1.6 to 5.9). A duration of rheumatoid arthritis < 10 years was not associated with myocardial infarction (relative risk 1.2, CI 0.5 to 2.6). Women with rheumatoid arthritis did not differ from women without rheumatoid arthritis for incidence of stroke (Table).
In women, onset and subsequent long-term presence of rheumatoid arthritis was associated with an increased risk for myocardial infarction but not stroke.
Sources of funding: Merck; Arthritis Foundation; National Institutes of Health.
For correspondence: Dr. D.H. Solomon, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. E-mail dhsolomon@partners.org.
†Relative risk adjusted for several confounding factors, including age, hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol level, body mass index, cigarette use, physical activity, and alcohol use.
This interesting epidemiologic study by Solomon and colleagues contributes to the body of evidence showing that patients with rheumatoid arthritis have an increased risk for cardiovascular morbidity (1, 2) and mortality (3, 4).
An important strength of this study is that it was population-based with uniform and continuous collection of information on cardiovascular comorbid conditions during 18 years of follow-up. Furthermore, potential cardiovascular risk factors were controlled for using multivariate analyses. However, the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis was somewhat low (0.5%), which could suggest that only severely affected patients were included, thus weakening the conclusions. Severely affected patients have been reported to have greater mortality and morbidity (5). Considering that the numbers of patients with both rheumatoid arthritis and myocardial infarction or stroke were only 17 and 7, respectively, conclusions should be drawn with caution.
Another limitation is that the separate contributions of inflammation and of disease-modifying drugs, which could have had an effect on cardiovascular disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, were not evaluated.


"The pain is just something you'll have to learn to live with." I've heard this phrase, not just once in my lifetime, but from the mouths of several different specialists over the years; from my late teens, all through my twenties and into my thirties.
I was roughly thirteen when I was first examined for a curvature of the spine: scoliosis. I can't remember whether it was through the high diving club I was a part of or at school? Maybe both. However, I was referred to a back specialist who promptly declared, taking him approximately all of 30 seconds, the severity of the cob angle (curvature) was low level and all I would need was regular check-ups as I grew to make sure it did not get any worse.
At seventeen I started to develop severe lower back pain and after consulting a specialist I was told the curvature was minimal and unchanged since first discovered but because of the length of my back I would always suffer. I was given a weights routine to follow and warned to reduce my water skiing and badminton and to also cut down on my triathlon work, especially the running. Not something as a seventeen year old I believed was the best advice; I was given pain killers, patted on the head and once again shown the door. If pain was something I was going to have to learn to live with, then I would. The pills were consequently binned.
Several years later, I visited my cousin in Canada during a particularly hectic period of work. I needed the break and headed over. We were sat in a coffee shop and I was meeting his partner for the first time. We were chatting when she interrupted the conversation by asking me where the pain or discomfort I was feeling emanated from? I obviously gave her a puzzled look to which she disclosed she was a Pain Therapist. She explained when pain persists after an injury or pathology has healed, and when medical science cannot identify the cause of pain, she was tasked with managing habitual sufferers. She informed me that she could see I was in pain from my posture, the way I was seated and constantly shifted. Plus from the pain etched on my face, my cousin casually joked I just always looked like that.
She believed my back pain was possibly just a psychosomatic response to situations in my life, such as the stress of my job at that present time. I was a little sceptical but the idea did have merit. As we discussed the discomfort, it became apparent the times in my life I had suffered most, was during extreme stressful periods. Such as exams, messy break-ups, film deadlines, funerals, etc. She concluded my pain was more psychosomatic and more than likely not linked to the scoliosis in my back.
This small chat changed my perspective on my pain and the slight curvature, in honesty it more or less ceased overnight. However, the continuing discussions we had about pain and where it stems from were very interesting. I cannot remember the exact words she used, so I will paraphrase somewhat, but the idea struck a chord with me from that very first discussion to this day: "the sufferer's area in which the pain is felt is very often not the area in which the problem lies. Finding the route cause, though, is the hard part; practitioners tend to treat the immediate pain and not the cause, such as chiropractors." Unsurprisingly, I have never been a fan of them.
Last year, 2010, having had a break from training with the vain idea of competing and also because of ongoing health issues, eviction, unemployment and generally making pitiful excuses for myself, I decided to enter MuscleTalk's Shape-Up Competition for motivation and to give myself the much needed kick up the arse. After twelve weeks hard slog, I was feeling pretty pleased and posted the comparison pictures. Only at that point did I realise how pronounced the dipped shoulder I have had become. I had always been acutely aware of it but until those comparison pictures on MT I had never truly worried about it. I then decided I needed help. If I was ever going to compete, I would either have to correct the problem or to learn to hide it.
I decided to ask the knowledgeable people on MT for some advice and posted a thread about the problem, which not only spoke of my dipped shoulder but also worryingly, a cramping sensation that was frustratingly beginning to hinder every workout: see here.
Between the many excellent answers from the MT members, I was drawn to two in particular: one from member Rachfit and the other from member Logic Fitness. Particularly Logic Fitness, as he also picked up on the fact my right hand lat was also lower, which I had never noticed before. Damn it, something else to worry about! Both of their answers came from a biomechanics point of view and I had been interested in their particular methodology for a while after seeing one in action talk about the benefits of biomechanics at a seminar in Manchester.
I spoke to Logic Fitness, or specifically the man behind his online persona Michael Andreou, and realised he was based where I grew up. It was fate: I was driving home a few weeks after and decided to book in with him for an assessment. In truth I was more than a little sceptical having been told since my early teens there was absolutely nothing that could be done but I had finally made the decision, after several false starts and bumps along the way I felt I was ready (body willing) to try again and step on stage to compete. Therefore, I needed my body to look symmetrical, without having to seriously think about it or compensate. Secondly, with the aid of an expert, hopefully stop the pain I was getting throughout my workouts and continually.
I saw Michael in February 2011 for my first assessment, I'm sure he would be able to confirm how sceptical I truly was. However, I was instantly put at ease with his professionalism and friendliness: he really knew what he was talking about, which was just the kind of affirmation I needed. During the assessment, I began to realise exactly how much pain I was training around and lived with, day to day. So many niggles which I tended to ignore (living with the pain) were seemingly connected. Michael painstakingly took me through everything. He explained every little detail as to why he was manipulating me, ways in which I had not been pushed or pulled in years, in fact ever. I was in agony; the pain down my back was excruciating which registered in every grimace. My shoulder felt like it wanted to explode but Michael gradually tweaked, assessed and analysed every minute pain throughout my entire body which I casually mentioned; it was thorough to say the least and I was extremely impressed.
According to Michael my pelvis was frozen which also had the knock on effect that the lower portion of my back had no movement whatsoever. To start with we needed to get this loss of motion back and for everything to be working as it should. This meant instigating a number of exercises which would hopefully release the weak/frozen parts of my body and get the motion back to where it should be again.
Michael showed me his report after the first assessment: red is bad! Everything in red indicated a biomechanical issue - which means my whole body was not great. At the time it felt like the diagram; every joint was in pain. He emailed the details, plus the exercises for my continuing homework. I must admit I thought the exercises he demonstrated and recommended were rather strange and at the time I did not see their function. Plus I felt a bit of an idiot doing them, especially in the gym but I decided to put my trust in Michael and incorporate them day to day. I commenced the exercises first thing every day after cardio and in the afternoon before I started a weights session.
The first two or three weeks were very alarming as I was in a lot of pain, plus my lifting seemed to change dramatically. I was completely thrown by the difference. I was unable to lift anything heavy. My lifting dropped extensively which was incredibly off putting as my body started to adapt and change to the new routine and training symmetrically, as Michael insisted. I was a little disheartened by the whole experience but what I noticed over that first month was that the niggles and pains I had worked around for months, if not years, started to disappear.
My shoulder pain subsided and promptly ceased, which had caused discomfort for as long as I had lifted. For me this has been the biggest surprise and biggest benefit to my training in the last six months. The cramping sensation which continually interrupted my weight sessions along the left side of my back also decreased. Occasionally it still twinges but not every session like it used to, which would cause sets to be disrupted or abandoned completely, while I tried to compensate or readjust my body around the pain (or give up entirely on a gym session). All in all, I was very pleased with the progress I had made in a very short space of time.
I went back to see Michael in June for a second assessment. Obviously he would like to have seen me at shorter intervals but the distance for me, from Scotland to the south coast was a bit difficult; however things are much more positive. My body is moving, I'm able to move the lower part of my spine and my pelvis is moving again too. Yes, I still have issues but the pain I spoke of, that I have lived with day to day throughout my entire adult life, has all but ceased.
The biomechanics issues I originally went to Michael with have not been totally eradicated, as shown by the second diagram. They have highlighted other areas to work on but with the continual support and (groan) extra exercises he has provided me with, plus a considerable set of new ones to improve my posture and rounded shoulders because my traps seem to be in a permanent state of spasm. The whole process for me has been highly enlightening and worth every penny.
I went to Michael slightly cynical that biomechanics was all it was cracked up to be, but I have completely changed my mindset, along with it, implementing a few exercises into my routines have reduced the aches and pains that continually plagued and hindered my training. I am not completely ready mentally to step on stage yet (watch this space) but outwardly I'm getting there and the confidence, after so many setbacks, is once again gaining momentum. I hope to at least tread the boards before I become a senior.
"The pain is just something you'll have to learn to live with?" – I only hope the alleged specialists I have been prodded by over the years will read this and realise their own specialism is possibly their downfall. I know biomechanics is a relatively new field but in less than six months Michael has done more for the constant pain in my back and shoulders, the symmetry in my body and my day to day training, which was in truth becoming a chore, than anyone. Ultimately though, putting my trust in someone to help has really been beneficial to me on so many levels. I can truly recommend to anyone who has issues, shoulder, back or otherwise, to go for a biomechanics assessment: you won't regret it at all. I haven't.


The maximum number of shooters per lane is 3. This reservation is for 1 person on one lane at a half hour rate of $11.10 per person per half hour. Tax is included.
The maximum number of shooters per lane is 3. This reservation is for 2 people on one lane at a discounted half hourly rate of $9 per person per half. Tax is included.
The maximum number of shooters per lane is 3. This reservation is for 3 people on one lane at a discounted hourly rate of $9 per person per half hour. Tax is included.


I just want you to know that I try really, really hard. In fact, when I fell asleep one time in class, I disciplined myself by not sleeping again for two nights in a row. I do that quite often.
Recipe for the best smoothie. Serves 2 16 oz cups; half the amounts for 1 serving.
- 1 cup of frozen blueberries.
- 2 tablespoons of flax oil.
- 2 tablespoons of almond butter.
- 1 tablespoon of hemp protein.
- 1 tablespoon of maca powder.
- 1/4 tablespoon of cinnamon.
- 1 cup of coconut water.
- Replace coconut water with almond milk or cashew milk.
- Replace almond butter with peanutbutter.
- Replace cinnamon with honey.


Chemistry in a bubble: Vesicles with different reactants have different fluorescent substances in their membranes (a). When the bubbles fuse, red fluorescent nanoparticles form (b). The particles can be seen as bright dots under the transmission electron microscope (c).
Cells and microorganisms are absolute masters when it comes to working in the smallest possible dimensions. Like particularly efficient micro-factories, they produce particles and structures from inorganic material, for example pieces of chalk, that are only a few nanometres in size, that is, millionths of a millimetre. Cells have two different factors to thank for this capability. First, they have peptides, a biological tool at their disposal that may shape the chalk into a desired form. Second, the fact that they are very small themselves is convenient: the chalk particles cannot grow boundlessly - the end is reached when the calcium carbonate, the building block of chalk, runs out in the cell.
"We used the fact that cells represent a closed reaction container as a model for the synthesis of nanoparticles," says Rumiana Dimova. Her group at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces studies membranes - the cell envelope. The scientist and her colleagues form bubbles that are around 50 micrometres in size from lecithin membranes, which are similar to biological membranes. Like cells, membrane bubbles - or vesicles as scientists refer to them - also provide a closed reaction container. The scientists load the membrane bubbles with one of two reactants for the nanoparticles.
From this point, the researchers have developed two different sets of protocols. In one case, they produce bubbles loaded with one of the two reactants, sodium sulphide or cadmium chloride. The scientists then bring the bubbles with the different loads together and fuse two vesicles to form a bigger vesicle - this is done by subjecting the bubble cocktail to a short but very strong electrical pulse. The electric shock fuses the membranes of two adjacent bubbles.
In many cases, this results in the fusion of two bubbles containing different reactants. These then react to form cadmium sulphide, which is not water soluble and thus precipitates in the form of nanoparticles. "Because the reactants are only present to a limited extent in the fused bubbles, the particles only grow to a size of four nanometres," explains Rumiana Dimova. The scientists were able to track the entire process directly under the microscope because they had added different fluorescent molecules to the membranes of the differently loaded vesicles. The researchers were also able to see the nanoparticles forming as the particles shone like tiny lamps.
In the second process, the researchers only produce vesicles with one of the reactants. When the vesicles have formed, unlike in the first procedure, the researchers do not remove them from the production chamber. Instead, the bubbles remain attached to their substrate via small membrane channels, like balloons tied to strings, and stand in a solution that is the same as the one inside them. The researchers working with Rumiana Dimova then altered this situation: they substituted the solution with the first ingredient for the nanoparticles with a second component. This causes no change inside the vesicles at first. The second ingredient only creeps gradually between the substrate and membrane into the channel and to the vesicle. In the vesicle, where the other ingredient is already waiting, the nanoparticles grow again - this time to a size of 50 nanometres.
"With our method, we succeeded for the first time in producing particles with a certain diameter in vesicles whose size corresponds to that of cells," says Rumiana Dimova. Previously, biologists thought that cells depended on the help of peptides for the synthesis of nanoparticles. However, as Rumiana Dimova and her colleagues have discovered, it can also be done without them.


TL; DR: Has anyone had an experience where A) Adderall worked for a few weeks but stopped ( which is what happened when I took it two. Fog adni adderall. Adderall kimutatására a játékosok szervezetében. Társadalomban és munkakörnyezetben pedig a jövőben várhatóan csak nőni fog e. The crash can happen if you take too much Adderall or come off of it too quickly. The following information is NOT intended to endorse drugs or recommend therapy. Adderall can be a helpful medication for those with ADHD.
While these reviews might be helpful skill, knowledge , they are not a substitute for the expertise judgement of healthcare practitioners in patient care. My daily pill regime is crazy. The first were 188 images that came from the same ADNI database.
I am not on any opioids just Linzess metformin, urso . I truly have no desire to eat because I full from the amount of pills I take. Adderall is a drug found in human medicine to treat certain conditions.
Were Kaepernick Galifianakis, Minaj, comradery, adderall, seizure . Not sure if anyone battles constipation like I do but the struggle is real.
Bevonását és a megvalósíthatósági értékelés arról is véleményt fog adni . Home › Welcome to the ADDitude Forums › For Adults › Treating Your ADHD › Brain Fog with Adderall? Talk to your doctor about. Adderall Ritalin for brain fog/ mood stabilizer fatigue.
Nowhere near the Adderall levels, but to a very. Bízzanak rá nyugodtan kisebb feladatokat amit örömmel fog teljesíteni és erősítsék. This isn' t necessarily a dangerous thing at all as you aren' t really taking any kind of high dose.
Az Adderall ( kereskedelmi név) amfetaminsók keveréke. Well Amphetamine is a vasoconstrictor this means that it makes your blood vessels shrink it makes your heart rate increase.
Adderall contains a combination of amphetamine and dextroamphetamine. Fog adni adderall. Indikáción túl a. You feel like you are walking around in a fog and it takes you a while to process what is. 38 2% - kal fog növekedni ( $ 906M 248.
Tudnak megfelelő választ adni a kognitív serkentők munkahelyi használatára. Mert ez a mi családunkban nem szokás . Fog adni adderall. Adderall is a powerful drug that can cause severe effects, including the Adderall crash.
Hiperaktivitásra felírt stimulánsok, például a Ritalin és az Adderall által okozott ritka szívproblémákkal. Lehetőségünk semmit sem adni.
Below is a list of things that have potential to cure. It belongs to the drug classification known as amphetamines which happens to also include illegal drugs like crystal meth. Amphetamine nerves that contribute to hyperactivity , dextroamphetamine are central nervous system stimulants that affect chemicals in the brain impulse control.
Nem tudnak megfelelő választ adni a kognitív serkentők munkahelyi használatára. Afterward my efficiency went back up. Stimulants like adderall cause a large increase in the neurotransmitter Norepinephrine which causes a significant feeling of ' fight or flight' ad increases adrenaline.
Adderall is used to treat narcolepsy and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( er Reviews for Adderall XR to treat ADHD. I had a week of " brain fog" where I wasn' t productive. I' d never hiked in the fog before and now I think I might prefer it to sunny days? Diagnosztizált és metil- fenidáttal vagy Adderall- lal kezelt gyermekek limfocitáiban ”.
If your dog ingests this medication it is a serious condition that must be treated as soon as ain fog - you know that feeling that you have cobwebs in your brain; where it is hard to think clearly. Pedig a jövőben várhatóan csak nőni fog e teljesítményfokozó gyógyszerek. Vidd el a gyereket neki megfelelő iskolába és ott is szépen fog fejlődni. Talk to your doctor c 30,. It gets to this point can cause extreme lethargy and brain fog as dopamine levels.
Választ adni, az e- sportfogadást. A nővérem amerikában él és egy Adderall nevű gyógszert adott, azt mondta hogy ő.
Home › Welcome to the ADDitude Forums › For Adults › Treating Your ADHD › Brain Fog with Adderall? Tagged: Adderall, brain fog This topic contains 1 reply, has 2 voices, and was last updated by ADHDmomma 1 year, 1 month bilitating " Brain Fog".
Energy; sleeping 7- 8 hours ( not the “ normal” 12- 15 I HAVE to get just to feel “ decent” when the adderall isn’ t effective) and feeling awake ( not groggy). I’ d call it markedly improved cognitive function, nothing resembling euphoria or a high, but in any case it faded. If natural treatment options don’ t seem to cut it, you could visit a psychiatrist and test your cognitive speed.
If your brain fog is causing you to think slower than average, the psychiatrist may suggest trying a psychostimulant medication like Adderall. Brain Fog Treatments & Cures.


Information is data that has been selected or created in response to a question. For example, the location of a building or a route is data, until it is needed to dispatch an ambulance in response to an emergency. When used to inform those who need to know, "Where is the emergency, and what's the fastest route between here and there?" the data are transformed into information. The transformation involves the ability to ask the right kind of question, and the ability to retrieve existing data--or to generate new data from the old--that help people answer the question. The more complex the question and the more locations involved, the harder it becomes to produce timely information with paper maps alone.
Interestingly, the potential value of data is not necessarily lost when they are used. Data can be transformed into information again and again, provided that the data are kept up to date. Given the rapidly increasing accessibility of computers and communications networks in the U.S. and abroad, it's not surprising that information has become a commodity, and that the ability to produce it has become a major growth industry.


"As we came out of the ground that day contemplating a quarter final again in a World Cup, if someone had said 'by the way enjoy that, because you won't win another game for 12 more years in a knockout tournament', you'd have been absolutely horrified."
England's World Cup troubles - how many years of hurt is it now? - have been meticulously documented over the past few decades, and Nick Collins has been responsible for more of that coverage than just about any other human being.
After being removed from his post as Sky's chief football reporter in November 2016, he won't be at the World Cup this summer for the first time since 1986. Three decades of following England around the world would scar all but the most resilient of psyches but Collins is in a relaxed mood as he enters 90min Towers, marvelling at the portable phone charger he's been lent and happy to sit and chat about England performances past and future.
The future quickly becomes the focus, with Gareth Southgate set to announce his 23-man squad for next month's tournament on Wednesday - expected to be a youthful group, anchored by the relative experience of Jordan Henderson and Harry Kane.
"You can trot out all the cliches you like," Collins says, "but I think it will help them that this is a young group that's come through together in many ways through Gareth's Under-21 setup and I do get the distinct impression that it's a very tight unit. I know every England squad always goes off to World Cups and Euros saying 'there's never been better team spirit', but I feel that there's genuine friendships between this group and I think that will help."
England wouldn't be England without some last-minute injury panic though, with Joe Gomez likely to miss out after the ankle surgery which has ruled him out of Liverpool's Champions League final.
"You think 'what a useful player he would've been for England', just because of his versatility at the back, and he's absolutely the right kind of profile in terms of a Gareth Southgate team. The ongoing saga of Adam Lallana's injury is another thing I think is a great shame, a year ago he was one of the most important players in the team and one of the very first picks.
"Don't get me wrong, we have some great attacking players. Dele Alli and Harry Kane have done wonders in the last couple of years at Tottenham and I've been hugely excited by Jesse Lingard's progress as well, but as I say, who is going to unlock those defences when you get to quarter finals, semi finals and - dare I say it - the final? We'll see."
England have failed to win a knockout game at a major tournament since 2006, when a David Beckham free kick squirmed past Ecuador goalkeeper Cristian Mora at his near post to set up a quarter final against Portugal.
10 - Eric Dier scored the first England free kick goal in a major tournament in 10 years (David Beckham v Ecuador, 2006). Rocket.
"If Gareth took them to the quarter finals this time, I think he could be very satisfied. It would help lay a few ghosts of that dreadful game vs Iceland and not being able to get out of the group in Brazil.
"As long as they don't implode the way they did against Iceland I do think that fans - without going over the top - can look forward with a degree of optimism because I think they'll be organised, they'll be difficult to beat. Whether there's enough creativity, that extra spark to break down the top teams, I don't know. That's something that has been lacking for England."
With no Russian visas to sort out ahead of this summer's tournament, Collins has worked with Pitch Publishing to bring out his first book, 'Fifty Cup Finals' - looking back at the changing landscape of English and European football over the last quarter of a century, from the arrival of Arsene Wenger to the oil billions hitting the Premier League, and beyond.
"It's called Fifty Cup Finals because, by a bizarre quirk of fate, during my 25, 26 year career with Sky and BSB I covered 50 cup finals. Not 49, not 51, 50.
"The 2008 all England final between United and Chelsea I would say is probably the most memorable of the 50 I covered. Not because it was the greatest game, but the whole occasion, the fact it was in Moscow and pouring with rain. It didn't start until 11pm, carried on into the next day. It started on a Wednesday and ended on a Thursday!"
Fifty Cup Finals is published by Pitch Publishing, and is available now on Amazon.


An Employment Contract is a contract - either written or verbal - which sets out the terms and conditions for employment between an employee and an employer. LawDepot provides a written Employment Contract.
Why won't an oral Employment Contract be sufficient for me?
What is addressed in an Employment Contract?
What are the duties of the employee?
How much annual leave is the employee entitled to receive?
How can an employer protect work product and other confidential information?
What geographic restrictions can the employer make in the non-competition clause?
the responsibilities of the employee and employer.
whether there are limitations on the employee's ability to compete with the employer's business upon the employee's termination.
The duties of the employee refer to the tasks that will be performed or the functions and responsibilities of the job position. Ensure that your description of the employee's duties is clear. You should review your description and make sure that it is grammatically correct within the context of the document.
A probationary period is a limited period of time after the employee commences work during which either party has the right to terminate the agreement. In some jurisdictions, termination can occur without notice or compensation (other than wages owed for hours of work already completed). Many employers require their employees to successfully complete a probationary period before offering them a longer term position.
Most full-time workers receive four weeks annual leave for every 12 months worked. Part-time employees are entitled to four weeks annual leave but paid on a pro rata basis. Casual workers generally do not receive annual leave. To compensate, they are paid a loading on top of their normal rate of pay.
Notice refers to a period of time prior to termination of the employment contract. The purpose of notice is to allow the employee to find other employment or the employer to find a replacement employee. In most jurisdictions, the law requires employers to give employees a notice period (or pay in lieu of notice) before termination. Typically, the length of the minimum notice period required by law depends on the length of the employment relationship. In some circumstances the employer may terminate the employee without notice if there is sufficient "cause". In most jurisdictions if one's employment is terminated with cause, there is no requirement on the part of the employer to provide notice or pay in lieu of notice. However, the employer must ensure that the reason for termination is properly communicated at the time of termination. Some examples of cause are dishonesty, disloyalty, insubordination, lateness/absenteeism, disruption of business of affairs, alcohol or drug use, incompetence, neglect of duty, criminal or immoral conduct and sexual harassment. Note that the employer may have to prove to a court (or other tribunal) that there was sufficient cause for termination.
An employer can protect his/her confidential information by inserting a clause that says all confidential information including work product belongs to the employer. This clause is automatic in LawDepot's U.S. and Canadian forms. To insert this clause in the United Kingdom or Australia, simply check the box "Confidential information" under the heading "Optional Clauses for More Complex Contracts." The document will then state that all confidential information including work product belongs to the employer. LawDepot's Employment Contract broadly defines "confidential information" to protect everything from trade secrets to customer lists.
A non-competition clause prevents the employee from unfairly competing with the employer after the employment is terminated. This means that when the employee's employment comes to an end, he or she cannot take a job at a business which is in direct competition with the employer. A non-solicitation clause prevents the employee from inducing other employees or contractors from leaving the employer or from interfering with the employer's relationship with other employees in general. This means that the employee cannot invite the employer's other employees to move with him or her to another workplace.
You can only prevent an employee from engaging in a business that competes with your business within a geographic area large enough to protect your business. The restriction must be reasonable so that the employee is not restricted from engaging in his or her usual trade in an area that could not affect your business (e.g. 25 km from the employer's place of business).
Ready to create a free Employment Contract?


Whose Oil Will Quench China’s Thirst?
As the heir-in-waiting to the title of world’s largest economy, China finds itself in a strange position in terms of its oil consumption.
As the heir-in-waiting to the title of world's largest economy, China finds itself in a strange position in terms of its oil consumption.
In September 2013, China became the biggest net importer of crude, beating out the U.S. for the first time. This came as no surprise, given how rapidly China's thirst for oil has grown, although landing in top place happened a little ahead of U.S. Energy Information Agency (EIA) predictions that it would take place in 2014. However, where the U.S. has been shoring up its own internal production, China has lagged behind. Between 2011 and 2014, U.S. oil production rose by 31 percent, as opposed to China, which saw its own production increase by a little more than 5 percent over that time. This leaves China utterly dependent on oil imports, a vulnerable position to be in at a time when its economy is beginning to wobble.
China's demand for black gold is only set to increase, causing it to spend a staggering $500 billion a year on imports by 2020, according to Wood Mackenzie. This increase is being fueled largely by an explosion in car ownership. But who will be the faithful bartender, refusing to cut China off?
In the first six months of 2014, Iran's oil exports to China shot up by 48 percent over 2013, reaching 630,000 barrels a day (bbl/d). This might represent only 10 percent of the country's international crude imports, but it sends a clear message. Unburdened by the need to look tough against unsavory regimes, China has made it clear that it will continue to rely on Tehran for the foreseeable future. This is a stunning reversal from 2010-2011, when China tried in vain to fight sanctions on Iran at the United Nations' Security Council. It ultimately relented under pressure from Russia, when even Moscow could no longer deny the seriousness of Iran refusing to provide guarantees about its nuclear program.
This led China to turn to two other regions of the world to shore up its oil supply. Africa had long been a trusted source with Angola, Libya and Sudan being seen as regular contributors. However, ongoing troubles in Libya, Sudan and South Sudan have made Beijing nervous. Rightly foreseeing the consequences that an unsteady oil flow would have on market confidence in the Chinese economy, the government has sought to shore up relations with trusted partners like Angola, the second largest source of oil imports to China. Iraq and Venezuela have also benefited from Beijing's renewed attention.
While this has been happening, a coincidental trend has made these countries even more welcoming to Chinese advances: the United States' own production levels have made it less reliant on its traditional foreign oil partners. The result has been swift and immediate. Besides imports from Iran going up 48 percent, those from Iraq went up 50 percent in 2013. Forty percent of Angolan exports now go to China, as opposed to just 15 percent to the U.S., while Venezuela has sworn it will double its provision of oil to China from 500,000 bbl/d to 1 million over the next few years.
Of course, China's geopolitical skills are too finely honed for this not to come at a price for oil producing countries. Earlier this week, Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro and China's President Xi Jinping signed a raft of agreements that will see Beijing build infrastructure and housing, as well as selling goods such as electronics to Caracas. But stunningly, Venezuela is not expected to pay for these in cash, but in oil. This precise round of agreements costs it 100,000 bbl/d. China's masterful oil bargaining is now laid bare for all to see. A doubling of exports to China will see Venezuela exert major efforts to please its trading partner, but the economic assistance it is getting in return has been dismissed as being little more than petty cash, which will not stop the Venezuelan economy's descent into recession.
Unlike Angola and Venezuela, Saudi Arabia seems to have been left out of China's new oil-buying bonanza. It accounts for a very respectable 19 percent of China's oil imports, and is the country's top oil trading partner, but this level is remaining steady from 2013 to 2014 at 1.17 million bbl/d, but this looks set to drop in the future. Two new refineries in Western China will be running on crude obtained from Russia and Central Asia, but not Saudi Arabia. This shutting out effectively leaves Riyadh unable to renegotiate its contributions. Traders feel that this situation is not due to any animosity but because of China refusing to be too close to one single supplier.
Being so spoilt for choice, one would imagine China would feel secure about its oil future. But its behavior nearer to home seems to point to just the opposite. It is widely believed that China's territorial posturing in the South China Sea is hiding a country in need of rapid resource grabbing. In May, Vietnam was alarmed when a massive oil rig belonging to CNPC appeared in its waters, near the Paracel Islands, which Beijing claims control of. The issue escalated rapidly until the offending rig was moved back to Hainan Island on July 15. This seems to show that no matter how much oil China obtains through realpolitik, it would still much rather secure its own sources. What price it is willing to pay for that goal has yet to be revealed.


Then, in my last update to the OED house rules [link], one of the edits I made was to change the penalty for range from a short/medium/long categorization to a flat −1 per 10 feet shot. The model that I was using previously followed the standard D&D three-step range categorization, but altered the modifiers in question, based on UK long-distance clout shooting tournaments and a computer-simulated model (per links above, and simulator software on GitHub). But in practice (based on my regular campaign game this year) that seemed very weird. While the real-world-accurate model seems like it should be quadratic, what I realized was that a linear approximation is "good enough" in the close ranges where it matters. If the penalty at 480 feet turns out to be −48 when it should really be −32, that is, of course, entirely academic and won't make any practical difference in-game.
Example: Recently my PCs were traveling up a mountainous stairway ridge while under fire from a group of goblins. The PCs were crawling on the stairs to minimize their chance of being knocked off, while attempting to return fire. But the PCs could crawl for a few rounds with no change to their shot chances, and then suddenly in a certain round, the threshold to the next category would be reached, and the penalty suddenly collapsed. The players were somewhat nonplussed by this, and I think reasonably so. Hence the new rule which is both brain-dead simple to compute mentally and makes for a smooth, continuous gradation as opponents close with each other.
Since I posted that, most enticingly, an new academic paper of interest has been published: Milks, Annemieke, David Parker, and Matt Pope. "External ballistics of Pleistocene hand-thrown spears: experimental performance data and implications for human evolution." Scientific Reports 9.1 (2019): 820 [link]. The background starts with some academic debate about the distance at which primitive spear throwing cultures could hunt prey: Many argue only 5-10 meters? Perhaps 15-20 meters? Some reports assert 50 meters?
What the authors do here is put the issue to a field test. First, they made replicas of 300,000 year-old wooden spears, presumably used by Neanderthals, as found at the Schöningen archaeological site (as shown to right). Then they found a half-dozen trained javelin athletes, set up hay-bale targets at various distances in a field, and had them throw a total of 120 shots (e.g., see picture at top). These shots were captured with high-speed cameras from which they could procure data on accuracy, speed, kinetic energy on impact, etc. From this it seems clear that the impacts could kill prey on a hit.
For my purposes, I'm mostly interested in the hit success rate. Here's the chart presented by the authors, followed by my recreation and regression on it.
A few side points: Note that the 60 feet maximum to score a hit on bale-sized target is very different from the maximum distance throwable with the spear. The researchers also had the participants take a few throws purely for maximum distance, and these ranged from 20 meters to a bit over 30 meters (i.e., over 90 feet). Compare this to the base D&D system which fails to distinguish between the maximum bowshot and the maximum hittable bowshot, say. Interestingly: The more experienced throwers (in years) could throw longer distances, something we don't model in D&D.
Another point in that vein is that the hit rates are fairly low. In D&D, granted 4th-level fighters, an unarmored AC 9 target, and say +6 for being motionless/helpless as well, with −1 for 15 feet distance, I would expect to make a roll of d20 + 4 + 9 + 6 − 1 = d20 + 18, i.e., 95% chance to hit (compared to 58% at the first distance in the experiment). But the experiment run by the authors hobbles the throwers in at least two ways. One: "The participants in this study [were] trained in throwing but not in aiming for a target", which reflects standard javelin-throwing competitions today. So perhaps we should lower the equated fighter level in this regard. Two: Hay bales flat on the ground make for a very short target: around 1½ feet, only one-quarter the height of a man or horse, say? (As noted in my own long-distance archery field experiment with older equipment, it's easy to get shots laterally on target; the difficulty is getting the long-short distance correct; link.) The researchers here took a few experimental shots at 10 meters with two hay bales stacked on top of each other, and the hit rate immediately jumped from 17% to 33% (i.e., doubled). So perhaps our D&D model should also include a penalty for the short target. I'll leave crunching those numbers as an exercise for the reader (they work out reasonably well).
It's always super neat to see people putting historical speculations to practical tests -- especially this one, based on a 300,000 year-old find. Major thanks to Milks, Parker, and Pope for thinking this one up!
This is really interesting. I have been toying for a while with the idea of a different combat system that is both historically realistic and not a chore to play and remember.
I share your goal! After experimenting with a bunch of different stuff over the years, the -1/10 feet rule has been working really well for me in recent games. And it does seem close enough to reality, from what research I've done.
To me, the difficult part is assessing and remembering at the table how far away combatants are. I have used minis but I find them a bit of a hassle, and drawings get messy soon.
It's a good point that I almost put in my comment above. I'm effectively totally off using minis. Usually I travel for a game and just don't have any available. If I'm at a friend's place that has a supply I may use them if the players want. Most of my distance engagements seem to be PC-mob vs. monster-mob, and may I keep distance jotted down on an index card. Approximating it is of course fine.
The thought did occur to me that maybe the three-range distance might help for minis where you can kind of ballpark it without a ruler. (?) My -1/10 feet rule would mean, with minis, you'd need to tape-measure every most every shot. But if I'm describing distance verbally then it's immediate to do the conversion.
Finally got around to watching some Wandering DMs yesterday (Clerics, Thieves, and the door in Peru—enjoyable! and a *helpful* nugget or two was taken away from the Thieves discussion), and I think Missile Fire would make a good topic—the range work, the sling stuff, Hobbits' deadly accuracy, its development from Chainmail (man v man contra mass combat), how do you guys handle it with melee, position (marching order), initiative/phases, cover/concealment, and so forth!
Thanks for the compliment! And great suggestion on a ranged-attacks conversation -- I'm too close to it to think of that as a discussion idea. Just added it to our list. Thank you!
The spearmen in my system don't throw spears that reflect 300,000 year old technology, but rather the best spears that could be made in 1650.
So the data here really doesn't apply.
Do you have data that such spears go further? If not, this stands as the null hypothesis.
A single hay bale laying down is pretty much simulating a prone target, albeit a large one. If they weren’t using atlatls they weren’t using using the best prehistoric spear hunting technology. Curiously, the actual data as opposed to the fitted line could be taken in support of 5m short, 15m medium, 20m long ranges under the traditional rules, since their results for 10 and 15 meters were the same. Athletes trained only in distance are at best semi-proficient 0-level when it comes to spear hunting. I’d be curious to see how much better actual spear hunters do. To capture at least part of the difference, javelin athletes who train at targets for a month and test again would make sense.
I agree with a lot of those points. Note that the a month later, starting with long-range archery statistics from competitive archers, coincidentally also came up with the effectively same range modifier: -7.5% per 10 feet (in the range of maximum rate-of-change). So at this point I lean towards the consistent single rule rather than discrete range categories for different weapons.


How To Write The Essential Parts Of A College Research Paper?
A college academic paper can be simple or complex depending upon the approach you take toward it. There are people that believe that the paper is expertly handled and there are people that understand the role the different parts of a paper play in the success of the student.
The division of parts in the body of the paper is considered to be very important. There are some very important parts that need to be understood here and there are some important things that you would want to understand about each of these parts. Here is a collection of parts and what can be done with it.
Abstract: The abstract of the research paper is an important part of the whole thesis. There are some people that get this part wrong and end up doing the whole paper wrong. Define the role of the paper and identify the number of circumstances that lead to the formation of the paper you are writing.
Introduction: This is where the paper begins. You should make sure that you introduce the paper neatly and only then you should consider reviewing the objectives. Tell your readers about the various aspects you are going to deal with in this part of the paper. Make sure there is nothing in the scope that you leave out here.
Literature Review: It is important to understand that there is already a decent volume of papers written on almost every subject. It is always a great idea to review the literature that is already present on the subject. Also, this will give you an idea into the areas that have been left unexplored by writers in the past.
Chapters 1-3: These are the chapters or pages in the paper where you build your argument and get the readers in the groove. Whenever you find a scope, gnaw into the imagination and interest of the reader.
Conclusion: There is always a separate role of the conclusion in the research paper and this is where you should find the paper particularly interesting. There is a whole different level of art that is included in writing the conclusion of the paper.
References: The references page must be crafted out very thoughtfully. Make sure you include every book and online paper from which text has been quoted in the paper. Align the reference page in accordance to the specific format you are following.


After my MBA ,I wanted to make my career in Digital Marketing and Online Behavior .I was convinced that Inbound Marketing is future of marketing,hence i stick to my decision ,even after many contrary views from my close friends.But today situation is quite clear and online marketer is not a poor SEO or website guy.In fact there are various other profiles like product marketing ,product development,data manager and user interface experts which demand good education and understanding of business.
1. Can you explain "insert topic" to me in a simple way? - Inbound marketing is about making your industry interesting and helping to solve customer problems with content. This question is used to make sure that someone can drop industry jargon and communicate a simple idea in a clear and engaging way.
2. What results have you achieved with your current inbound marketing efforts? - Inbound marketing is about growing your business. Make sure that the person can provide solid numbers to showcase their previous work. This also shows that they have an understanding of how to measure inbound marketing efforts.
3. What do you read online? - Part of inbound marketing is understanding industry news and leveraging for the benefit of the business. Does the person have the right habits in place to do this?
4. How do you drive traffic to your blog (personal/business)? - A business blog is a big part of the inbound marketing process. This question is looking for an understanding of not only writing for a blog, but also growing readership.
5. What part of inbound marketing would you start with for our business? - This question ensures the candidate understands the basics. If the say "social media," when you are getting very little organic search traffic, for example, it demonstrates that they may not be good at seeing the big picture.
6. What is an example of a company that does inbound marketing well and why? - Reverse engineering is an important marketing skill. It is important that you hire a person that knows what success looks like and understands what other businesses have done to be successful.
7. What are five blog post titles you would write for our business? This question is all about understanding how well this person can incorporate inbound marketing into the mix of industry insights.
8. How do you know what type of content to create for our business? - This question tests industry knowledge along with understanding of types of inbound marketing content. Beyond blog posts, the candidate should mention webinars and ebooks.
9. What area of inbound marketing are you least knowledgeable about? It is important to hire a person who understands they don't know it all... This question is all about identifying that level of maturity in someone.
10. How long will it take for us to see results from your inbound marketing efforts? - Regardless of your business, setting the right expectations is critical. You don't want to hire someone that will only tell you what you want to hear. Test the person by making sure they give you reasonable estimates for tactics.
How to get your facebook.com email ?
Right email ID and username are like right real estate properties .I would advise you to claim your preferred identity before anyone else go for it.
Log on to your facebook account.
Select your preferred username or you can go for suggestions from facebook.If you have already created username skip this step.
It will prompt you to request an invitation. click on it.
Once you have requested for invitation you are in que. And facebook will send you a message confirming that your facebook email id is created .
once you have your facebook email ID you can start using it on your collaterals.


Artonik założyli w 1992 roku artyści plastycy Caroline Selig i Alain Beauchet.
Compagnie Artonik proponuje warsztaty wymagające zdolności obserwacji i improwizacji, opierające się na wybranych tematach z życia dworca kolejowego. "Alicja: Stacja 1" to wymiana estetycznych doświadczeń 20 uczestników, studentów Akademii Sztuk Pięknych w Gdańsku i Młodzieżowego Klubu Twórczego Plama, pod kierunkiem teatru Artonik. Dziesięć dni zróżnicowanych prób skierowanych na uzyskanie artystycznej kreacji, ekskluzywna prezentacja, tylko raz, na Dworcu Kolejowym w Gdańsku w niedzielę 17 sierpnia popołudniu. To doświadczenie pozwoli zrealizować kolejny projekt "Alicja w Krainie Pociągów".
Artonik was created in 1992 by the artists Caroline Selig and Alain Beauchet. As they say: "it was born from a desire to produce an artistic language with everything that constitutes us: first of all there is our grandparents' heritage of our fairground stallholder and of their universe made of proximity and traveling, there is our training in plastic arts, our experiences of acting, producing, composing and music as well as our own sensitivity towards fundamental dramas of life, love, death and exclusion of this everyday life that isn't intelligible anymore... We made a theatre for public areas because it was the only way to mix all those elements and live our destiny..." Creating for the street is for them all the more necessary and obvious as it corresponds to a real commitment.On the one hand, they want to meet different types of audience and make it live a common experience. Thereby they introduced very early an acting approach in their plastic installations in order to create a special relation based on intimacy and questioning. They developed a theatrical style made of images and gestures that influences the emotions of the spectators rather then their understanding. They prefer to stimulate the viewers' senses and imagination rather than to deliver a too obvious narration. On the other hand, they want to offer the street an artistic work, which bears some meaning, and create an authentic and sincere language for it. Hence each project involves a real "laboratory work". They take time for reflection, meeting and discussion, with artists from all domains as well as with people directly concerned with the themes they deal with. The Compagnie Artonik is located in La Friche Belle de Mai in Marseille. Artonik was present at many international festivals, in Aurillac, Chalon sur Saône, Malta Festival in Poznan, Tollwood in Munich and many many more. The show "Caliente" was presented in Gdańsk during FETA 2001. Artonik is supported by the DRAC, the French Ministry of Culture, the Conseil Régional Provence Alpes Côtes d'Azur, the Conseil Général des Bouches du Rhône and the city of Marseille. "Alice: Station 1" In collaboration with the Students of the Academy of the Fine Arts of Gdańsk and the Youth Creative Club Plama Author: Caroline Selig Artistic direction: Caroline Selig, Alain Beauchet Choreography: Barbara Mavro-Thalassitis Actors: Pôm Bouvier-B, Céline Naji, Jean-Serge Dunet, students of the Academia of the Fine Arts of Gdańsk and the Youth Creative Club Plama Year of production: 2003 - 2004 Railway Station Gdańsk 17th August 2003 Departure 14.39 Arrival 17.06 The company Artonik proposes observation, reflexion and improvisation workshops about different selected themes concerning the railway station's life. Crosslooks, artistic exchanges implementing the personal esthetic experiences of the 20 participants, including the Students of the Academia of the Fine Arts of Gdansk and theYouth Creative Club Plama, and the company's approach. Ten days of various and profitable attempts to provide an original artistic proposition, exclusively presented, but just once, at the railway station of Gdansk on Sunday, the 17th August PM. This experience will feed the next creation, Alice in Trainland (temporary title). "Alice: Station 1" is supported by the AFAA, French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the DRAC, French Ministry of Culture and Communication, the Conseil Régional Provence Alpes Côtes d'Azur in the range of the cultural tripartite convention.


What are Stock Options Trading?
Stock options trading is one of the most popular trading styles that many traders around the world partake in. Understanding stock options trading starts with knowing what are stock options are, and that is key to the start of stock options trading.
Options are first representations of the underlying asset, and they are contracts that give the one who owns them the right to either buy or sell the contracts at the predetermined price also known as the strike price for a predefined duration of time.
So, when trading options, you should have two things noted down and well understood before you get to trading them; first, you should know the price you are buying or selling the options at, and second you should know the time you are going to buy the options at.
With the normal trading, you only should know the direction in which the asset will most probably move towards and that is it; the time can be at any time when the trade setup appears.
When the option contract that was bought earlier gets to the desired level of profit taking, the seller of the contract is obligated to take the opposite side of the trade when the contract owner decides to sell or buy the asset to lock in the profits.
Generally, options are a bit complicated even for the traders who have had involvements trading other markets. The rules that apply to trading stocks, commodities, ETFs, and any other assets will likely not work in the stock options trading.
There is a higher chance when you apply the normal sell high buy low scenario that works like a gem in other asset classes; you may find it a lot difficult to fit in the options trading.
That is why when trading options you should first learn that you can make money in options either the market goes up, down or it maintains a sideways action.
Options become a very important asset to the traders who have massive open positions on of the underlying asset and wish to hedge their positions using options as hedge trades that will cover for any losses that may be acquired.
Stock options are also very instrumental if you have a small capital base, you can be able to control massive amounts of an underlying asset with relatively small capital, and that is the catch in this business.
Trading is meant to be modeled around being able to have limited risks and at the same time have yourself able to make substantial gains.
The advantage with options is that if you are a stock trader you have stock options, for ETF traders there are ETF options, and most assets available in the market also have their options.
That means it is easier for traders to carry on trading their preferred asset class and still trade options with it.
There are terminologies associated with stock options trading and it is important to know these terms so that you may know how the whole thing works.
When you want to buy stock options, that is called buying a call option. This means that you as the buyer you have the right to buy an asset at a particular price which is referred to as the strike price at a predefined time.
After you have bought the option, and it ends up in the money (ITM) or in layman’s terms in profit then you have the obligation to sell that asset at a price at a predefined time to the owner of but that is only possible if the call buyer is willing to buy at the price the stock is offered at.
If the call buyer does not agree on the price than you may end up holding on to the option and you must know that there is time decay and that causes you option to lose its value over time if it is not bought from you for you to realize your profits.
Stock options trading do not have shorting, but the act of selling short is called buying puts. If you are buying puts it means as the buyer you have the right to sell your asset when it hits a certain strike price and this should be done within a specific predefined time frame.
The owner or the person who sold you the puts is supposed or they are obligated to buy the asset from you at a price predefined and at the time earlier agreed, and all of this is dependent on of the owner will agree to buy the puts at that price.
There are many things that plague the stock options trading community, but some of these issues can be avoided fully to increase your chances for profitability.
As a new trader trading stock options, you should start out by buying the out of the money options. Most options traders say they are relatively cheap, but if you consider the number of times you will be holding a losing position, it is not worth the pressure and your money.
As an options trader, you should have different strategies for different market conditions; this may come as a surprise to many traders who have traded different instruments and have used the same strategy, and it has worked and used it on options, and it failed miserably.
The fact is trading options will always be different and different approaches will increase your profitability. Many traders plan for every stage of their trade and leave out the trade exit or what is the profit taking the plan.
This is a major problem because if you cannot come up with a solid profit taking plan them there is no real objective of being in the trade at all.
After you have gotten your entry it is important to have the exit predefined, and this should always be part of your plan. These are the common mistakes that if avoided your chance of profitability increase.