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When should you loan money to friends and family? There is no easy answer, but here are a few points to consider.
The call was inevitable, but I still wasn't totally prepared for it.
"You know it's been tight since I've laid off. We have a house payment due on the 15th. We e-filed our income tax return and should get our refund by the end of the month which will more than cover. Can I borrow $1500?"
Their financial position was a result of mistake after mistake after mistake. I certainly didn't want my good friends to lose their house, but I didn't want to continue enabling irresponsible behavior. I have worked hard to get to a position where I have extra money and enjoy sharing, but I don't want to be taken advantage of. These are dear friends.
When I called back, I expressed my concern about enabling something that shouldn't be. They understood my point and the income tax refund had arrived, so there was no need for the loan. But then there will be next month.
I'm sure calls like this cause dilemmas to people hundreds if not thousands of times a day. You want to be supportive of your friends and family, but you wonder if by extending credit, you will be subsidizing something that should not be.
You also know that nice Aunt Franny may not be the first creditor your nephew is going to pay back. You don't have the enforcement mechanisms of the mortgage company or landlord, the IRS, or the bank who holds their car loan. You may be remembering the last time you loaned money to a family or friend and it just didn't work out.
Just What Are You Funding?
Anytime you advance money, you are funding either a continuation of a lifestyle or a change. Decide whether this is a change you want to fund.
Does Junior need a new car because he goes six months without checking the oil? Is this the second car this has happened with? Maybe you need to get his attention in other way.
Perhaps, on the other hand, another Junior just got out of law school. He did well and just got a great job with a prestigious law firm. He doesn't have much money, but has some start-up needs (e.g. moving expenses, new clothes, etc.) Financing some of those start-up costs might be useful. He will have immediate income. He has a history of handling money well. You might want to give him a hand by helping him finance these startup costs.
An old proverb goes something like this: Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. (As featured on the home page of this site.) If I were to add a clause for borrowing, it would be "loan him money to buy fish and who knows what will happen."
People borrow money for all kinds of reasons, many of them not so good. Here are a few situations.
Let's go back to Junior with the car. What Junior really needs is a good lesson in how to take care of a car. You may want to ground Junior's wheels for awhile, enroll him in a car care course, and then help him pay for the repair of his car, either partly through a gift or partly through financing. You might want to remind him once he gets his car up and running what he needs to do to take care of it. That way Junior has a skill.
Another situation I often hear about is where children who grew up in affluent homes feel they are entitled to start our with the standard of living their parents attained in middle age. One of my colleagues at work actually took on an extra duty assignment so that her son and daughter-in-law could buy a very expensive refrigerator. I have heard of other adult children wanting to borrow money from their parents for furniture they can't afford.
Better would be to do something like this: Give the adult child a hundred or two for a wise household purchases fund. Then take some time and teach him or her how to use classified ads and other sources to get deals.
Most people who are in a position to loan significant amounts of money got there through hard work, investment, and thrift. You will help your friends and family get there a lot more effectively if you pass on those skills, possibly with a little financing and some gifts combined with counsel, than you will be if you loan money that may or may not come back.
Interesting that recently several of the Rockefellers, Warren Buffet, and a number of America's most wealthy are speaking out against the repeal of the estate tax because they realize that truth.
Some people always seem to need to borrow money because they don't have financial skills. You are better off helping them learn those financial skills than by bailing them out. One family I know was heavily in debt because of financial mistakes early in their marriage. They moved to smaller quarters. The husband took on extra duty assignment at work and the wife took in childcare in addition to caring for their own six children. They couponed massively (with many extra coupons supplied by me on a weekly basis. They made good use of gifts from family. They worked with Consumer Credit Counselors.
After some long and hard work, they got out of their mess. The husband is now thriving in his work and the wife is starting a business. Their marriage is the best it has been in a long time and I think that facing their problems with minimal borrowing set them up for success.
Sometimes you may have someone who is truly down on his or her luck and in need through no fault of his or her own. Perhaps someone sustained an injury that prevents employment for several months. I prefer to give to those people rather than loaning to them. Often I will contact other mutual friends and we find ways to help the person. I would help that person find some other resources that can be of assistance, perhaps through a church or some other agency. I would not want that person to have the burden of paying me back when income just begins to come in. Often I will use my extra coupons to buy groceries for a person in that situation.
Sometimes special situations require creative solutions. Take people who are about to lose their house. One solution I have heard of is this: A consortium of friends and relatives buys the house and rents it out to the people. The family gets a little cash infusion as a result of the sale. The consortium provides a lot of counsel and, if necessary, some supervision.
After a time when the people living in the house get their financial affairs in order, the consortium sells the house back to the people. The members of the consortium have made a profit and the once out of control family gets to live in their house and eventually buy it back.
It's tempting to take the easy way out when someone wants to borrow a large sum of money from you. You can run the other way and have nothing to do with the loan--sometimes appropriate if you feel the person is not ready to face his or her problems constructively. Or, you can assess the situation and see what combination of financing, giving, counsel, or other solutions best serve everyone involved.
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For the waterfall on Ellicott Creek, Williamsville, see Glen Falls (New York).
Glens Falls is a city in Warren County, New York, United States and is the central city of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,700 at the 2010 census. The name was given by Colonel Johannes Glen, the falls referring to a large waterfall in the Hudson River at the southern end of the city.
Glens Falls is a city in the southeast corner of Warren County, surrounded by the town of Queensbury to the north, east, and west, and by the Hudson River and Saratoga County to the south. Glens Falls is known as "Hometown U.S.A.", a title Look Magazine gave it in 1944. The city has also referred to itself as the "Empire City."
As a halfway point between Fort Edward and Fort William Henry, the falls was the site of several battles during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. The then-hamlet was mostly destroyed by fire twice during the latter conflict, forcing the Quakers to abandon the settlement until the war ended in 1783. Fire also ravaged the village in 1864, 1884, and 1902.
The area was originally called Chepontuc (Iroquois; "difficult place to get around"), also referred to as the "Great Carrying Place," but was renamed "The Corners" by European-American settlers. In 1766 it was renamed Wing's Falls for Abraham Wing – the leader of the group of Quakers who established the permanent settlement – and for the falls on the Hudson River. Wing's claim to the name of the falls and the hamlet was transferred to Colonel Johannes Glen of Schenectady in 1788, either on collection of a debt, as a result of a game of cards, or in exchange for hosting a party for mutual friends, depending on which local legend is believed. Colonel Glen changed the name to "Glen's Falls," though it was often printed with varying spelling such as "Glenn's," or "Glens". The spelling "Glens Falls" came to be the common usage.
A post office was established in 1808. Glens Falls became an incorporated village in 1839, and was re-incorporated in 1874 and 1887,[citation needed] expanding the village to what would become the city limits when the state legislature granted the city charter in 1908, at which time the city became independent from the town of Queensbury.
In 2003, with permission from Queensbury, Glens Falls annexed approximately 49 acres (0.20 km2) of the town. The land, known as Veterans Field or the Northway Industrial Park, is on Veterans Road between Luzerne Road and Sherman Avenue and is just east of I-87. The land was vacant at the time. A thin, 0.5 miles (0.80 km) strip of Sherman Avenue was part of this annexation, to comply with state law on contiguity of annexed land. As a result, the city and town share co-own this stretch of highway.
Civil War monument near City Park at the intersection of Bay and Glen Streets.
Crandall Public Library – While the library has existed since 1893, it did not have a permanent home until 1931, with the completion of the library building in City Park, on property local entrepreneur Henry Crandall willed to the library. Charles A. Platt designed the building and Robert Rheinlander built it; it was renovated and expanded in 1969. The city completed the building's first renovation and expansion, involving the demolition of the 1969 addition, in November 2008. The library is a part of the Southern Adirondack Library System.
Civil War Monument – A limestone obelisk at the intersection of Glen, South, and Bay streets, the monument was dedicated in 1872 to honor the 644 men from Queensbury who served in the Civil War. Ninety-five names, those of the men who died, are engraved on the monument. Many battles of the war are listed.
DeLong House – Presently the home of the Glens Falls/Queensbury Historical Association and the Chapman Historical Museum. A Greek Revival and Second Empire edifice on the corner of Glen and Bacon Streets. A Queen Anne style carriage barn is part of the property.
The Feeder Canal– Across from this historic canal is a hydro-electric power-plant on the Hudson River at Glens Falls. The canal was created around 1820 to feed water into the Champlain Canal. During the early 19th century, the New York State Canal System was crucial to the development of the state's economy. Lime, marble, lumber, and agricultural commodities were shipped from Glens Falls from the docks at the base of Canal Street.
First Presbyterian Church - The congregation was chartered in 1803; its fifth house of worship was constructed in 1929. It was designed by Ralph Adams Cram in his "presbyterian style" of neo-gothic architecture.
Fort Amherst Road – Located near this road is the site of the former Fort Amherst. While the fort no longer exists, parts of the wood foundations were known as late as 1880. The fort constituted a block house marking the halfway point on the road between Fort Edward and Fort William Henry at the head of Lake George. This fort system, erected by the British, was built to secure the colony's northern territories from French incursions during the French and Indian War. A restored fort house complex is available for viewing in the nearby town of Fort Ann.
Louis Fiske Hyde House – The center among a triplet of revival-type residences constructed for the daughters of Samuel Pruyn by the architects Robert Rheinlander and Henry Forbes Bigelow, Hyde House houses The Hyde Collection, a world-class museum of European, American, and contemporary art. The principal collection is presented in its original domestic context as a private collection.
The Oldest Building in Glens Falls – In 1864 a massive fire destroyed most of buildings in the central business district. The oldest building in Glens Falls, in the downtown area, is one of the few buildings in the city that predates 1864. The stone and brick structure at the bottom of the hill was erected circa 1815 and served as Calvin Robbin's blacksmith shop.
Quaker Meeting House – Built in 1875, the Quaker Meeting House, an Italianate edifice on Ridge Street, originally did not have a heating system.
St. Mary-St. Alphonsus Regional Catholic School – Formerly known as St. Mary's Academy, the school is on the corner of Warren and Church streets. It is in the neo-Gothic style of architecture and designed by Ralph Adams Cram. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It features a Great Hall with a two-story stained glass window designed by Henry Lee Willett Studios of Philadelphia.
A New York State historical marker referencing American Modernist painter Wilhelmina Weber Furlong was placed near City Hall in 2013, during the Warren County Bicentennial. Furlong spent about a decade at the end of her life living and teaching in Glens Falls.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 3.9 square miles (10 km2), of which 3.8 square miles (9.8 km2) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) (2.54%) is water.
The city is on the Hudson River, in the Adirondack foothills, at the border of Saratoga County, New York.
As of the census of 2010, there were 14,707 people, 6,548 households, and 3,529 families residing in the city. The population density was 3685.97 inhabitants per square mile (1423.72/km²). There were 7,112 housing units at an average density of 1782.46 per square mile (688.48/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.7% White, 1.8% African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 2.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.3% of the population.
There were 6,548 households out of which 26.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.0% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.1% were non-families. 36.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.91.
In the city, the population was spread out with 24.3% under the age of 20, 6.8% from 20 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 27.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.3 males. For every 100 females age 20 and over, there were 90.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was estimated for 2016 at $46,305, and the median income for a family at $60,545. Males had a median income of $41,993 versus $37,988 for females. About 12.6% of families and 16% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.9% of those under age 18 and 8% of those age 65 or over.
The Glens Falls region is a major producer of medical devices. Glens Falls is home to Navilyst Medical, a medical device maker, previously a regional office of Pfizer and Boston Scientific Corporation. Glens Falls is also a principal provider of medical services for a vast 2,600-square-mile (6,700 km2) region from Saratoga County to the south, extending northward to the central Adirondacks. These services are centered around the Glens Falls Hospital, a 410-bed facility downtown. Founded in the summer of 1897 by a group of twelve local physicians, the Glens Falls Hospital was meant to serve the entire Upper Hudson River Valley. Solomon A. Parks donated his home in Glens Falls for the original hospital. The present structure has been extensively modified, enlarged, and modernized several times to better serve the needs of the community, and it is the region's fast-response trauma center. The hospital is now the area's biggest employer. A VA outpatient facility serves veterans' medical needs.
Danfloss Flomatic Corporation is headquartered on Pruyn's Island in Glens Falls. The company is a leading manufacturer of industrial and municipal valves. Also on Pruyn's Island is Umicore, a Belgium-based company manufacturing silver-based contact materials.
Finch Paper LLC, headquartered at the base of Glen Street hill, is a major regional employer and a manufacturer of specialty paper and forest products. It is by far the largest taxpayer in the City of Glens Falls, owning property assessed at $60-million in 2006, according to city records. In mid-June 2007, Finch Pruyn & Company announced it had sold all of its assets, including 161,000 acres (652 km2) of forestland in the Adirondacks, to Atlas Holdings of Greenwich, Conn. The Company name was then changed to Finch Paper LLC. Atlas then sold all of the forestland to The Nature Conservancy.
The Glens Falls Cement company, established 1893, is now a part of Lehigh Northeast, itself a division of HeidelbergCement, one of the world's largest cement producers.
Glens Falls has an old and prevalent history in the region's finance sector. Arrow Financial Corporation, headquartered downtown, is a publicly traded multi-bank holding company for Glens Falls National Bank & Trust Company (1851) and Saratoga National Bank and Trust Company. Evergreen Bank, N.A., formerly the First National Bank of Glens Falls, originated in 1853, and is now owned by banking conglomerate TD Banknorth. Advantage Capital Partners, a venture capital firm, has its New York offices downtown.
The Greater Glens Falls area has a rich history of theatrical productions. The 300-seat Charles R. Wood Theater is home to the Adirondack Theater Festival (ATF), a professional non-profit summer theatre presenting new and contemporary plays and musicals. In addition to ATF, the Wood Theater provides numerous artistic and cultural presentations throughout the year. This theater opened in 2003 on Glen Street, in the heart of Glens Falls. A former Woolworth store, it now introduces culture and theater into the surrounding community. The theater is named for Mr. Wood, a successful local entrepreneur and founder of The Great Escape theme park, in Queensbury. The Glens Falls Community Theatre has produced theatrical productions in Glens Falls for nearly 75 years.
The Lower Adirondack Regional Arts Council (LARAC) promotes the arts in the Glens Falls region, hosting an annual arts festival and maintaining a gallery open year-round at the Lapham Carriage House next to City Park.
Music in Glens Falls is highlighted by the city's professional orchestra, the Glens Falls Symphony, which has been performing classical repertoire for 30 years. The orchestra is under the direction of Maestro Charles Peltz. From 1965 through 1997, Glens Falls was home to the Lake George Opera Festival, a professional company that staged several productions each summer. The company moved to nearby Saratoga Springs and is now Opera Saratoga.
Glens Falls has three museums. The Hyde Collection is a world class European and American art collection situated in its original home context with modern gallery spaces. The Chapman Historical Museum is operated by the Glens Falls/Queensbury Historical Association and offers local history exhibits, educational programs, and tours of the historic DeLong House. The World Awareness Children's Museum is a children's museum focused on cultural diversity.
Art in the Public Eye (APE) is a non-profit arts organization. Its mission is to cultivate a partnership between the area arts community and local businesses, to promote established and emerging artists and local commerce, and to create greater access to the arts through cultural activities and public exhibitions. APE programs include the Third Thursday Glens Falls Art Walk, Outdoor Cinema, Gallery 99, Art Cart, and Chalk Fest. Third Thursday events take place on the third Thursday of each month May through October at approximately 20 traditional and non-traditional venues downtown.
The Shirt Factory Arts and Healing Center is a historic shirt factory that now houses artists' studios, shops, galleries, healing arts and services. More than 50 artists and 13 shops and galleries are in this building at the corner of Lawrence and Cooper Streets. The building was constructed in the early 1900s by architect Ephraim Potter, and is open to the public on a regular basis. The tenants hold yearly open houses, and a celebration of things locally made called LocalFest: Stuff Made Here is held every September.
Glens Falls is also home of The Glens Falls September 11 Memorial, on the May Street side of the Glens Falls Fire Department headquarters at 134 Ridge Street. The memorial is a tribute to the lives lost on that day as well as a tribute to all first responders involved in rescue efforts at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The memorial consists of 12 foot, solid granite towers resembling the trade center encompassed by granite walls to resemble the Pentagon. It also incorporates a piece of steel from the World Trade Center on permanent loan from the NY/NJ Port Authority.
The Post-Star is a daily newspaper printed in Glens Falls with a circulation of approximately 27,000 (30,000 on Sundays). The paper covers Glens Falls and Saratoga as well as the surrounding towns and counties of Warren, Saratoga and Washington. Established in 1895, it has been published since 1909. Writer Mark Mahoney won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize in Journalism (Editorial Writing) for his editorials on local government secrecy.
The Chronicle is a free weekly newspaper with a summer distribution up to 37,000. Circulation at other times of the year ranges from 27,000 to 31,000. Established in 1980, founder Mark Frost remains The Chronicle’s publisher and editor.
Local radio broadcasters include: WROW 590 AM, WGY 810 AM, WABY 900 AM, WMML 1230 AM, WENU 1410 AM, and WWSC 1450 AM; WVCR 88.3 FM, WMHT-FM 89.1 FM, WLJH 90.7 FM, WSPN 91.1 FM WLJH 90.7 FM, WFLY 92.3 FM, WGFR 92.7 FM, (college radio station), WEZF 92.9 FM, WYAI 93.7 FM, WNYV 94.1 FM, WBAR 94.7 FM, WYJB 95.5 FM, WCQL 95.9 FM, WDCD 96.7 FM, WTRY-FM 98.3 FM, WCKM-FM 98.5 FM, WRVE 99.5 FM, WFFG 100.3 FM, WJKE 101.3 FM, WNYQ 101.7 FM, WKKF 102.3 FM, WQBJ 103.5 FM, WAMC 103.9 FM WTMM-FM 104.5 FM, WQSH 105.7 FM, WPYX 106.5 FM, WKBE 107.1 FM, WGNA 107.7 FM. WAMC 90.3 FM and North Country Public Radio 97.3 FM are the public radio stations.
Glens Falls has a tradition of minor league hockey. The highly successful Adirondack Red Wings, four-time Calder Cup champions of the American Hockey League, played in the city from 1979 to 1999. When the parent Detroit Red Wings disbanded the franchise, it was replaced by the Adirondack IceHawks of the United Hockey League, which was renamed "Frostbite" in 2004 before it folded in 2006. From 2009 to 2014, the city was the home to the AHL's Adirondack Phantoms, the principal farm team of the Philadelphia Flyers. On May 16, 2014, the Calgary Flames announced the Adirondack Flames would be their AHL affiliate. The Flames played one season before the AHL underwent a large realignment before the 2015–16 season and the Calgary Flames moved their AHL team to Stockton, California (renamed to Stockton Heat) and moved their ECHL team to Glens Falls, called the Adirondack Thunder.
Glens Falls' East Field is home to the Glens Falls Greenjackets of the Empire Football League. The Greenjackets started in 1928 and is the second oldest-active semi-pro football team in the country. The Greenjackets are 2008 & 2009 NAFL Empire Division Champions (10–0) and the 2009 NAFL North Atlantic Region Champions (14–0), and finished the season at 14–1 as the NAFL Eastern Conference Runners-up, 2009 NAFL Elite 8.
The city is also home to the Glens Falls Dragons, a baseball team playing in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, a collegiate summer baseball league. Since the team's inception in 2003 it has played at East Field.
Glens Falls is part of the Albany/Schenectady/Troy television market. One low-powered station originates from Glens Falls, WNCE-CD (TV-31), broadcasting from its studios on Glen Street in downtown. Offering a variety of locally produced programs, the station's signature show is a weeknight news program, called North News 8.
The 1982 film Basket Case was partially filmed in Glens Falls.
In 2007, the movie Love Conquers Paul was filmed at various location in Glens Falls.
Glens Falls and the natural formation of the bedrock beneath it served as inspiration to James Fenimore Cooper in his historical novel The Last of the Mohicans.
Julia Spencer-Fleming's mystery novels are set in fictional Millers Kill, New York in the Glens Falls area.
Ian Fleming's novel The Spy Who Loved Me features scenes in Glens Falls.
In The Witch of Hebron (2010) by James Howard Kunstler, several characters visit Glens Falls.
The Rick Bass short story "Field Events", which appears in his 1994 collection Platte River, is set in Glens Falls.
The Glens Falls Civic Center opened in 1979 and hosts sports and entertainment events in downtown Glens Falls; it includes an arena for sporting events, concerts, family activities, dance, theater and trade shows as well as banquet facilities. The Civic Center includes 4,806 permanent arena seats focused on an ice hockey/basketball-type arena, but it can accommodate up to 7,800 people for concerts and other events. The arena is the home to the ECHL's Adirondack Thunder.[citation needed] The facility was renamed Cool Insuring Arena in 2017.
The Glens Falls Tennis and Swim Club is a private membership club offering recreational and competition tennis since 1965 at the city's eastern border in the town of Queensbury.
Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport (IATA: GFL, ICAO: KGFL) in Queensbury, formerly the Warren County Airport, provides convenient access to the Glens Falls region for small and charter aircraft. For major air travel, the region is served by the Albany International Airport in Colonie, New York, 40 miles south of Glens Falls.
The Greater Glens Falls Transit System, or GGFT for short, provides regular bus service for the city and surrounding communities. The buses originate at the Ridge Street terminal, across from City Park and City Hall. In addition to the year-round buses, the system operates seasonal trolleys to Lake George. National service is available through Trailways and Greyhound, which operates a terminal near the GGFT bus terminal, on Hudson Avenue.
Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Glens Falls via nearby Fort Edward in the town of the same name. The daily Adirondack (Montreal-New York City) and Ethan Allen Express (Rutland, Vermont-New York City) serve the station.
Interstate 87 – Bypassing Glens Falls to the west, the highway commonly known to locals as the Adirondack Northway has three exits serving Glens Falls. Exit 17N uses U.S. Route 9, and travels to Glens Falls via South Glens Falls. Exit 18 uses Main Street (Warren County Route 28), and is the exit recommended on guide signs for downtown and hospital access. It also accesses the West Glens Falls section of Queensbury. Exit 19 uses New York Route 254 northwest of the city, with access to the northern portions of the city via Glen St./Route 9, Bay Rd., and Ridge Rd./Route 9L.
U.S. Route 9 – Known as Glen Street throughout Glens Falls. Enters Glens Falls from the south on the Cooper's Cave Bridge, crossing the Hudson River from South Glens Falls. Runs through the central business district north into Queensbury. This is a historically significant corridor, once a plank stagecoach toll road to Lake George, and prior to that the military road during the French and Indian War connecting Fort Edward and Fort William Henry.
New York Route 32 enters with U.S. Route 9 from the south via the Cooper's Cave Bridge, then leaves Route 9 at Centennial Circle as it turns to the east on Warren Street. The road leaves Glens Falls to the east in the industrial district of the city, connecting the city with nearby Hudson Falls and Fort Edward. Truck traffic may bypass the downtown traffic and Centennial Circle via Oakland Street, which is designated Truck New York Route 32.
New York Route 9L starts at the intersection of U.S. Route 9 and New York State Route 32 at Centennial Circle, and travels northeast towards the town of Queensbury. The road is known as Ridge Street, becoming Ridge Road at the city line.
Glens Falls has a radial street pattern originating from its colonial settlement.
The city falls within two school districts, both of which are fully independent of the city government. The majority of the city falls within the Glens Falls City School District,[citation needed] which includes parts of the town of Queensbury.
The Glens Falls City School District operates Glens Falls High School, a middle school and four neighborhood elementary schools (Sanford Street School, Big Cross School, Jackson Heights School and Kensington Road Elementary School). Sanford Street School is closed at the end of the 2010–2011 school year.
The Glens Falls Common School District operates an independent public elementary school, Abraham Wing Elementary School, named for a founder of Glens Falls. Saint Mary's–Saint Alphonsus Regional Catholic School serves children in pre-kindergarten through grade eight as a regional parochial school.
Glens Falls, since incorporation as a city in 1908, has had a strong mayor charter. The city's Common Council has six members; one is elected to represent the city at large while the other five are elected from wards. The city is represented on the Warren County Board of Supervisors by five supervisors; one supervisor is elected from each Common Council ward. Such "city ward supervisors" do not have any duties in city government but have all the rights and privileges as any other member of the County Board.
Departments of the City include: Cemetery, Community, Fire, Police, Public Works, Purchasing, Recreation, Controller, Assessment, Civil Service, Clerk, Water & Sewer, and Buildings and Codes.
A balloon festival has been held in the Glens Falls area, with events at the Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport and Crandall Park, in mid to late September every year since 1973. The event draws upwards of 150,000 people over 4 days, and has been named one of the Top 100 events in North America. Originally organized by Walt Grishkot, the event is free to the public, and generally lacks commercialism.
A Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA)-sanctioned charity rodeo.
The LARAC June Arts Festival, held annually since 1972, is considered the first major summer event in the Glens Falls region and it draws crowds of more than 25,000. With the juried art and craft show as its centerpiece, the LARAC June Arts Festival also offers live entertainment by regional performers, food concessions by local non-profits, and activities for the whole family. It is free and open to the public, 10 am-5 pm both days and is held rain or shine.
Each March, The New York State Boys' Public High School Basketball Tournament is held at the Glens Falls Civic Center. This annual tradition has occurred since 1981. 2011 marks its 30th anniversary at the facility. The Federation Basketball Tournament of Champions are also held at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
The Northcountry Microbrew Festival began as a charity fund raising event to benefit the Downtown Glens Falls area. Each year, a different charity is chosen to receive the proceeds. The event takes place at the historic Queensbury Hotel in downtown Glens Falls.
The Third Thursday Glens Falls Art Walk artist's receptions are held at various locations in downtown Glens Falls in the evening on the third Thursday of each month during the summer and fall.
"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan – professional wrestler of Mid-South, WWF and WCW fame. Glens Falls native.
Jimmer Fredette – former combo guard for Brigham Young University's basketball team and consensus 2011 college player of the year; Glens Falls native. As of December 2016, plays for the Shanghai Sharks.
Ferris Greenslet – editor of the Atlantic Monthly (1902–07), was born in Glens Falls.
Carlyle Harris – convicted murderer; executed in 1893 for poisoning his wife.
Peter Mahovlich – retired All-Star hockey player who was on four Stanley Cup-winning teams and is a member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, resides in Glens Falls.
Ed Reulbach – MLB pitcher with the Chicago Cubs during the early 1900s; 1907 and 1908 World Series champion; died in Glens Falls.
Kate White – former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan Magazine; identifies Glens Falls as her hometown.
^ Official website, cityofglensfalls.com; accessed February 16, 2018.
^ a b "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved June 16, 2018.
^ a b c d e "American FactFinder: 2010 Demographic Profile Data – ZCTA5 12801". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
^ a b c "History of Warren County, H. P. Smith – Chapter XXV: History of the Patent and Town of Queensbury – Part 2". Ancestry.com. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
^ a b c d e f Glens Falls Historical Association (1978). Bridging The Years: Glens Falls, New York 1763–1978. Glens Falls, NY: Glens Falls Historical Association. ISBN 0-8081-3885-5.
^ "Towns and Cities of the Southern Adirondacks: City of Glens Falls, Warren County". Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original on March 17, 2010. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
^ a b "Time Line". Chapman Historical Museum Education Department. January 8, 2004. Archived from the original on February 3, 2010. Retrieved July 26, 2009.
^ a b c Randall, Thom (2003-05-21). "Town to cede industrial park". The Post-Star. Retrieved 2010-07-14.
^ a b Thompson, Maury (2003-10-26). "Glens Falls Common Council". The Post-Star. Retrieved 2010-07-14.
^ Google (2015-06-06). "Overview of 2003 Annexation" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 2015-06-06.
^ a b Gereau, John (2002-04-04). "City, town to share Sherman Avenue strip". The Post-Star. Retrieved 2010-07-14.
^ "NEW YORK – Warren County – Historic Districts". Retrieved 2008-05-04.
^ "History Projects". Dr. Marilyn VanDyke, Historian, Town of Queensbury. Archived from the original on February 25, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-18.
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The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American Football team based in Tempe, Arizona. The Cardinals are members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The Cardinals were founded in 1898, and are the oldest continuously run professional American football club in the United States. They are the current NFC Champions.
The franchise's lone NFL championship game victory came in 1947 while they were based in Chicago, and came two decades before the first Super Bowl game was ever played. The club's other NFL championship occurred in 1925, eight years before the league began holding a championship game, and is a controversial title to this day. The much contested title was believed to belong to the Pottsville Maroons but was given to the Cardinals instead in what is called the 1925 NFL Championship controversy. In the six-plus decades since winning the championship in 1947, the Cardinals have qualified for the playoffs only six times and have won only five playoff games, three of which were achieved during their run in the 2008-09 NFL Playoffs in which they reached Super Bowl XLIII. The team has also won only three division titles (1974, 1975, and 2008) since their 1947-1948 NFL championship game appearances. In addition, the club in 2008 became the last NFC team since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to reach the Conference Championship Game.
The Cardinals conduct their annual summer training camp at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff.
The Cardinals are the oldest professional American football club in the United States. The Cardinals began as an amateur athletic club team in Chicago named the Morgan Athletic Club, which was founded by Chicago painter/builder Chris O'Brien in 1898. The club's name changed to the Racine Normals , because they were originally located in Normal Park on Chicago's Racine Avenue (not Racine, Wisconsin, as mistaken in the notes from an early APFA meeting). Their name was changed to the Racine Cardinals after the club started wearing dark reddish uniforms inherited from the collegiate Chicago Maroons.
O'Brien later moved them to Chicago's Normal Park and renamed them the Racine Normals , since Normal Park was located on Racine Avenue in Chicago. In 1901, O'Brien bought used maroon uniforms from the University of Chicago, the colors of which had by then faded, leading O'Brien to exclaim, "That's not maroon, it's cardinal red!" It was then that the team changed its name to the Racine Cardinals .
The team disbanded in 1906 mostly for lack of local competition, but reformed in 1913. They were forced to suspend operations for a second time in 1918 because of World War I and the outbreak of the Spanish Flu Pandemic. They resumed operations later in the year, and have since operated continuously.
In 1920, the team became a charter member of the American Professional Football Association (which became the NFL in 1922), for a franchise fee of $100USD. The Cardinals and the Bears (originally founded as the Decatur Staleys before moving to Chicago in 1921) are the only charter members of the NFL still in existence, though the Green Bay Packers, who joined the league in 1921, existed prior to the formation of the NFL. The person keeping the minutes of the first league meeting, unfamiliar with the nuances of Chicago football, recorded the Cardinals as Racine, Wisconsin. The team was renamed the Chicago Cardinals in 1922, after the NFL placed a team in the Wisconsin city. That season the Cardinals moved to Comiskey Park.
The Cardinals won their first NFL championship in 1925, finishing the season with a record of 11-2-1. In a controversial ruling by the league, the Pottsville Maroons, the team with the best record, had their franchise revoked for violating the territorial rights of the Frankford Yellow Jackets. Thus, the Cardinals won the 1925 title by default.
The Cardinals posted a winning record only twice in the twenty years (1931 and 1935) after their championship—including 10 straight losing seasons from 1936 to 1945.
In 1942 on October 25 the Cardinals would lose their first of 29 straight games against the Cleveland Rams, finishing out their season with a 3–8 record, losing their last 6 games. In 1943 the Cardinals would record their first of two winless seasons going 0-10 in both the 1943 and 1944 seasons. In 1944, owing to player shortages caused by World War II, the Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers merged for one year and were known as the "Card-Pitt", or derisively as the "Carpets". In 1945 after losing their first three games, the Cardinals would end their 29 game losing streak by winning against the Chicago Bears on October 14 in almost 4 years of futility, while finishing their season with a 1–9 record.
The Cardinals won their last NFL championship game in 1947 (28–21 over the Philadelphia Eagles) with their "Million-Dollar Backfield", which included quarterback Paul Christman, halfback Charley Trippi, halfback Elmer Angsman, and fullback Pat Harder, piling up 282 rushing yards. It was the franchise's first home playoff game, but Bidwill was not around to see it; he'd died before the season, leaving the team to his wife Violet. He had, however, beaten the Chicago Rockets of the upstart All-America Football Conference for the rights to Trippi. This signing is generally acknowledged as the final piece in the championship puzzle. They advanced to the championship game the next season, but lost 7–0 in a rematch with the Eagles, played in a heavy snowstorm that almost completely obscured the field. The next year, Violet Bidwill married St. Louis businessman Walter Wolfner.
The 1950s were dismal for the team, with only 33 victories for the decade. Most years found the Cardinals in last place and in their best year of the decade (1956), they finished second with a 7–5 record. Following the 1958 season, they traded their star running back Ollie Matson to the Los Angeles Rams for an unprecedented nine players, but this did little to improve the Cardinals. The team's poor performances, coupled with the near-mythic status of the crosstown Bears, resulted in a decline in attendance and revenue.
The 1959 season, the Cardinals last in Chicago, saw the team decline to a 2–10 record. They left their long-time Comiskey Park home to play four games at Soldier Field on Chicago's lakefront plus two "neutral site" games in Minneapolis. That did not improve attendance as Bidwill started looking elsewhere to move her team.
Eventually, the Bidwills engineered a deal with the NFL which sent the Cardinals to St. Louis beginning with the 1960 season, a move which also blocked St. Louis as a market against the emerging American Football League.
Coincidentally, St. Louis already had a baseball team called the "Cardinals". The established National League team eventually decided against pressing a formal objection to another sports team in the city using the same name. Sports fans and local news broadcasters called the team "The St. Louis Football Cardinals", "The Gridbirds" or "The Big Red" to distinguish the two teams.
The new "St. Louis Football Cardinals" were much improved, and the team was competitive for much of the 1960s. New stars emerged, such as Larry Wilson, Charley Johnson, Jim Bakken, Sonny Randle, and Jim Hart. However, in an era when only two or four teams qualified for the NFL playoffs, the Cardinals' playoff drought continued, though the team did advance to the Playoff Bowl in 1964.
Violet Bidwill Wolfner died in 1962, and her sons, Bill and Charles, Jr. took control. Bill Bidwill became sole owner in 1972 and still owns the team today. Only the Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Giants and Chicago Bears have been in the hands of one family longer than the Cardinals.
In 1973, Don Coryell became head coach and the Cardinals registered a 7–0 record to open the 1974 season. They won the NFC East then and in 1975, losing in the divisional playoffs both times. During this period, the Cardinals boasted an effective offense in the wake of a record-setting offensive line which included standouts Dan Dierdorf, Conrad Dobler, and Tom Banks.
This period for the franchise was characterized by exciting close games, come-from-behind nailbiters, and several frustrating near-misses. The press and league fans began to call the team the "Cardiac Cardinals". Team stars from the 1970s included Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback Roger Wehrli, wide receiver Mel Gray, and running backs Terry Metcalf and Jim Otis.
The Cardinals experienced several years of notoriously poor drafts and unfortunate personnel moves in the late 1970s, typified by the first-round selection of kicker Steve Little and hiring of college coaching legend Bud Wilkinson in 1978. However, the Cardinals had some success in the early 1980s, posting three consecutive winning seasons from 1982 to 1984. The heart of this squad was the prolific trio of quarterback Neil Lomax, wide receiver Roy Green, and running back Ottis Anderson.
In 1987, the team's last in St. Louis, on November 8, the Cardinals had the 12th greatest comebacks in NFL history when trailing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 28–3, the Cardinals scored 28 unanswered points in the 4th quarter to win the game 31–28.
During the Cardinals' 28-year stay in St. Louis, they advanced to the playoffs just three times (1974, 1975, 1982), never hosting or winning in any appearance. The team left St. Louis before the 1988 season, after Bidwill was unable to convince the city to build a new stadium.
In 1988, the Cardinals moved to Arizona, and the Phoenix Cardinals started playing home games in Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University. Before the 1994 season, in order to better market the franchise to a statewide fan base, the name of the team was changed to the Arizona Cardinals .
The Cardinals showed some promise in 1988 and 1989, only to be felled by late-season swoons. They would not even come close to the playoffs again until 1998.
Things began to look up during the 1998 season as Jake Plummer enjoyed his greatest stretch of success during his tenure with the franchise, in terms of victories at least, as his quarterback rating was still an average 75.0. The team during that time had once again been dubbed the Cardiac Cards by the local and national media as eight of their 16 regular-season games were decided by three points or less, and seven of those games ended in favor of the Cardinals. With a 6–7 record going into the 15th week, the team won 3 straight games to clinch a playoff spot, including one overtime win, with a total margin of those 3 victories a mere 8 points. It was only the team's second non-losing season since 1984.
The fact that none of their victories had been against teams with winning records made them heavy underdogs going into their Wild Card Playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys. Considering their two regular season losses to the Cowboys and the fact that they had been on the losing end of 16 of the last 17 games against their division rivals, including 9 straight losses at Texas Stadium, the "Team of the Nineties" seemed to have history, among other forces, on their side. To further the situation, the Cardinals franchise had not won a single playoff game since their title year of 1947, resulting in the longest active drought in professional sports history.
The Cardinals would not have another winning record until 2008. Coming off their playoff run in 1998, the Cardinals were expected to do bigger and better things in 1999, but a tough schedule ranked in the top 5 as well as key injuries resulted in what would be another disappointing season, getting off to a 2–6 start. However, the Cards would make another run winning 4 straight to get back into the playoff chase, but it was not meant to be as Arizona lost their last 4 to finish with a disappointing 6–10 record. The team finished with 5–11 records in 2005 and 2006.
In 2000, Maricopa County voters passed a ballot initiative by a margin of 51% to 49%, providing funding for a new Cardinals stadium (as well as for improvements to Major League Baseball spring training facilities in the greater Phoenix region; and youth recreation). After some legal obstacles, the Cardinals began construction of their new facility in April 2003, in Glendale, one of the western suburbs of Phoenix. University of Phoenix Stadium features a retractable roof and a slide-out grass surface, which is good for the hot desert weather; the new stadium has a state-of-the-art air-conditioning system and high-back seats.
Despite moving to St. Louis and then to Arizona, for decades the Cardinals remained in either an Eastern conference or division. When the league was divided into Eastern and Western conferences prior to the 1953 season, the Cardinals were placed in the East while the Chicago Bears were placed in the West. After the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger, the team was placed in the NFC East. The Cardinals were finally moved to the NFC West, despite the club's objection, as part of the 2002 realignment.
Their current division rivals are the St. Louis Rams (the Cardinals' first trip to St. Louis since the realignment was a nationally televised game on ESPN), San Francisco 49ers, and the Seattle Seahawks.
The 2006 season was one that gave many Cards fans optimism as the team drafted highly touted quarterback Matt Leinart and signed free agent running back Edgerrin James. However the lofty expectations were not to be as the team was plagued with inconsistency as the Cards struggled out of the gate with a record of 1–8. A notable low point of the season was in a home game against the Chicago Bears, the Cards squandered a 20 point lead to lose the game 24–23. The game was notable for coach Dennis Green's post-game conference outburst in which he made the now famous line "They are who we thought they were!". The Cards went 4–3 down the stretch to finish the season at 5–11, but it wasn't enough to save Green's job, as he was fired at season's end.
In 2007, the Arizona Cardinals announced the firing of coach Dennis Green. The leading candidate to coach the Cardinals after the firing was Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt. He was hired on January 14, 2007, with a contract of $2.5 million annually for four years. The Cardinals started their first 10 games at 5–5, and ended the season at 8–8, barely missing the playoffs in Whisenhunt's first season as head coach.
In 2008, the Cardinals started out with one of the best offenses in the league, led by former NFL MVP quarterback Kurt Warner and wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. The Cardinals' decision to approach the 2008 season with Kurt Warner at quarterback instead of Leinart drew criticism, but majorly contributed to their qualifying for the playoffs that year, with Warner passing for 4,583 yards and 30 touchdowns.. At the halfway point of the season, the Cardinals led their division, for the first time since 1998, with a record of 7–3.
On December 7, 2008, the Cardinals won the NFC West Division by beating the St. Louis Rams 34–10. In the process, they clinched their first playoff berth since 1998, and their first division title since 1975 (and third of the post-merger era). However, they proceeded to lose two of their last three regular season games, to the Minnesota Vikings and the New England Patriots, in blowout losses.
On January 3, 2009, the Cardinals won their first playoff game since 1998 and their second since moving to Arizona by beating the Atlanta Falcons 30–24. This was also only the second home playoff game in franchise history, the first being the 1947 title game. In fact, the Cardinals never hosted a playoff game in St. Louis despite winning two division titles.
After the Philadelphia Eagles beat the New York Giants, the Cardinals hosted their first NFC Championship game in Arizona. There they defeated the Eagles 32–25 and won the first NFC Championship game in team history, but lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII 27–23.
In the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft the Cardinals selected Chris "Beanie" Wells out of Ohio State University to replace the aging Edgerrin James who was not retained.
The team has used the cardinal red jerseys since Chris O'Brien bought them for the club in 1901. And for most of its history, the Cardinals have used the same basic uniform design of white helmets, white pants with red stripes on the sides, and either red or white jerseys.
Starting in 1947, the team had a logo of a cardinal bird perched on the stitches of a football. However, the club did not attach a logo to their helmets until they debuted a cardinal-head logo in 1960, the year the franchise moved from Chicago to St. Louis. When the Cardinals moved to Arizona in 1988, the flag of Arizona was added to the sleeves. And in 1990, the team began wearing red pants with their white jerseys.
In 2005, the team unveiled its first major changes in a century. The cardinal-head logo was updated to be sleeker and more menacing than its predecessor, which had been derisively called a "parakeet." Black was added as an accent color, while trim lines were added to the outside shoulders and sleeves, and the sides of the jerseys and pants. Both the red and white jerseys have the option of red or white pants.
Hoping to break a six-game losing streak, the Cardinals wore the red pants for the first time on October 29, 2006 in a game at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers. The Packers won 31-14, and the Cards headed into their bye week with a 1-7 mark. Following their bye week, the Cardinals came out in their all-red combination at home against the Dallas Cowboys and lost, 27-10. Arizona did not wear the red pants since that loss to the Cowboys, and managed to win four of their last seven games. However, the following season, in 2007, the Cardinals again wore their red pants for some of their games. They wore red pants with their white jersey in games on the road at the Cincinnati Bengals and Seattle Seahawks. They paired red pants with the red jersey, wearing the all-red combination for home games against the Detroit Lions, San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, and St. Louis Rams. In 2008, the red pants have not been worn.
For their first 18 years in Arizona, the Cardinals, like many other NFL teams in warm climates, wore their white jerseys at home during the first half of the season—forcing opponents to suffer in their darker-colored jerseys during Arizona autumns that frequently see temperatures over 100 °F (38 °C). However, this tradition did not continue when the Cardinals moved from Sun Devil Stadium to University of Phoenix Stadium in 2006, as early-season games (and other day home games not in the early portion of the season where the temperature outside the stadium is still very warm) are played with the roof closed (except for home games with the temperature outside the stadium at a more comfortable level along with night games excluding preseason). With the temperature inside at a comfortable 70°F (21°C), Green opted to have the Cardinals wear their red jerseys at home full-time. In 2008, the Cardinals did wear their white jersey at home though, for the first time in University of Phoenix Stadium on August 29, 2008 in a preseason game against the Denver Broncos.
Although the team does sell its previous team colored jersey as an alternate "fashion jersey" and even has it listed as the team's "alternate jersey", the team has yet to wear them in a game as a third jersey since retiring the jersey in 2005.
Wilson, Dierdorf, Smith, Conrad Dobler (66, G), Jim Hart (17, QB), and Jim Hanifan (head coach) have been inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
Vice President - Bill Bidwill, Jr.
The Cardinals' flagship radio station was KMVP, "ESPN Radio 860." KMVP assumed the broadcast rights in 2006 after many years on KSLX-FM and KDUS. Dave Pasch, Ron Wolfley, and Paul Calvisi handle the radio broadcast. Most preseason games are televised on KNXV, channel 15, the local ABC affiliate. Mike Goldberg and Bill Lewis are the TV announcers.
On New Year's Day 2007, KMVP began a simulcast of KTAR, which switched to an all-sports format (the news/talk station became 92.3, KTAR-FM). For the 2007 season, KTAR was the official flagship station; however, some broadcasts were also be heard on 92.3 FM because of conflicts with Arizona Diamondbacks baseball games on 620 AM.
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Ask my wife what she thought of Michael Bay's Transformers movie, and she'd tell you it was super-awesome five-out-of-five stars mega-excellent fun cool action flick. Ask me, and I'd say it was alright, better than I was expecting but still quite disappointing. Of course, I grew up as a big fan of the 80s cartoon series, and she didn't, which probably makes a huge difference as to our different in opinions on the movie.
There is a lot of action. Machine guns, explosions, and of course giant robots. Typical Michael Bay action sequences, all of which were obviously big-budge and contain top-of-the-line special effects. But despite there being giant robots, it all seemed rather ordinary. With giant robots, I would expect to see some new kind of action scenes, something with a new twist, not just a new type of prop. And that's kind of the problem I had with this movie; the giant transforming robots felt like props, not like characters.
We are first introduced to the evil Decepticon Transformers when they "infiltrate" a military base and start blowing it all to hell in order to access the computers. They don't get what they're looking for as the computer network is manually shut down, so Frenzy uses stealth (posing as a little boom box) to infiltrate Air Force One and access the network from there. This time the Decepticons are able to get what their after... information about a map, which happens to be imprinted upon a pair of reading glasses that used to belong to an old 19th century explorer named Captain Witwicky.
The current owner of the glasses is Captain Witwicky's grandson, Sam Witwicky (played excellently by Shia LaBeouf), who is attempting to sell them on eBay for some cash to purchase his first car. Apparently, the Autobot Bumblebee is already aware of this and is trying to find Sam. Or has already found Sam. Somehow he knows that Sam is going to buy a car, and knows which used car lot he'll be going to as Bumblebee is already there when Sam arrives. Bumblebee is able to ensure that Sam picks him by blowing out the windows of every other car in the lot (though neither Sam nor the dealer knows that it was Bumblebee who did that).
How far are we into the movie by this point? Half-hour maybe? And still none of the Transformers have any real personality. Okay, so we move on. At night, Sam hears his car leaving and things someone is stealing it. He chases out to some vacant area where he sees his car transform into a giant robot and send some kind of transmission out into space. Sam flees, and runs into a police car... except that this cop car says "To punish and enslave..." on the side. You can guess what that means. Sam is now being chased by a fake police car (why doesn't he just transform into a robot and pick Sam up?), when Bumblebee enters the picture and saves him.
Soon afterwards, the rest of the Autobots land. As they all introduce themselves to Sam, we finally get to see that these robots actually have some kind of personality. We only get a small glimpse of this throughout the entire movie, and it's only ever shown by the Autobots, but the scenes where it does happen just brings a smile to your face. And if it doesn't, then you must be dead inside. Why is there so few of these scenes? And by few, I mean 2-3 max. And absolutely none for the Decepticons. They barely talk at all, and when they do it's in their native language which sounds kinda like static, so we can't really assertion any emotion out of it.
Oh yeah, and I neglected to mention the scenes with the military unit that escaped the attack on the base at the beginning of the movie. That's because they are boring scenes. They're a thread throughout the whole film, but we're never given any reason to care about these military dudes. The characters are basically one-dimensional and I assume were added just so they could have people shooting at the robots. I also didn't mention the scenes with the chick who was brought on board to help decode the Transformers electronic signal. Again, this is because most of her scenes were boring as well. We don't know much about her, and have no reason to care.
I also didn't like the idea of the Allspark, which is what all of the Transformers are after. It apparently grants life to anything mechanical that it touches, and turns it into a transformer. I could understand if it could bring to life a complex mechanical brain or something, but any mechanical device? So a vending machine will suddenly and magically gain all the parts and electronics it needs to become a vending machine that transforms into a robot? That just seems completely retarded, especially since they were apparently trying to go with realism in the robot transformations.
I know that realism and vehicles that transform into giant robots don't really go together real well, but that was the stated reason for redesigning the Transforming characters from their 80s TV show counterparts. And I fully understand and support that decision. I think it would have been dumb to have a giant Megatron transform into a tiny handgun, or a giant Soundwave transform into a mini boom box. But still, I didn't care for the Robot designs. There was too much metallic grays with not enough color, and all the little intricate moving parts that you could see were quite distracting.
Wow, sounds like I really hated this movie, doesn't it? But nah, I didn't hate it. Some of it was really good, such as Sam's storyline. He was a very likable character, much more than Spike from the original series, and the scene of the Autobots out on his lawn was hilarious. Apparently a sequel is already in the works, so hopefully they'll be able to come up with something better now that they've got all the introductions out of the way. Of course, a lot of people were hoping for the same thing with the Tomb Raider sequel, and it turned out to be worse than the first film, so who knows.
The Story Sparks - Steven Spielberg discusses his love for the franchise and early concept art for the film. Explores how the writers adapted the cartoon into a live-action movie and why Michael Bay is the perfect director for the film.
Human Allies - A look at how the actors were selected and their experiences on the set.
Battleground - A piece on the senior officials from the Department of Defense and Air Force who consulted on the film to give it authenticity and the key locations that the U.S. government provided access to.
Rise of the Robots - Explores the interaction between Hasbro designers and Michael Bay to bring the toy line roaring to life.
AUTOBOTS Roll Out - Michael Bay discusses working with Chevy and its designers and the modifications that were made to the cars seen in the film.
DECEPTICONS Strike - The film’s military advisors discuss the “toys” they allowed the production to borrow: F-22 Raptors, Ospreys and A-10 Warthogs.
Inside the AllSpark - ILM’s digital artists discuss the challenges of bringing the TRANSFORMERS to life.
From Script to Sand: The SKORPONOK Desert Attack - An in-depth look at the making of this particularly epic and challenging scene from initial storyboarding through production and visual effects.
Concepts - Early sketch concepts of the robots.
Join the fun and show your support for some of your favorite robots with the Suit Yourself website, where you can transform yourself into Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Megatron, or Blackout just by uploading a photo of yourself. You can then download your photo as a desktop wallpaper, portrait, or IM icon, send it to your friends, or even embed the photo in your website or blog. So be sure to check out the site (http://www.transformersmovie.com/suityourself) and join the war yourself as an Autobot or a Decepticon!
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Orwell's "Newspeak" has arrived, and few of us notice.
My first appointment as a teacher was in the late 50s, to a school in Northolt, outer London. There discipline was maintained by the award to any pupil who offended against the school's ethos of a "black mark." Recipients of these were made to stand up in one of the daily assemblies and were were given a public lambasting by our somewhat ferocious Scottish headmaster. I don't recall any corresponding "white mark" for achievements of which the school approved, but maybe there was one.
However, when in the early 70 I took over my post as deputy headmaster of Port Moresby High School, then in the Australian sphere of influence a more liberal regime operated. Although misdeeds were noted by a "demerit," good works received a "credit." I worked on this system by urging the "demeriters" in private to adopt more virtuous paths, but praising the "top credit winners" publicly in the weekly assembly. I like to think that this was instrumental in improving the "tone" of the school.
In his very readable book "How to Speak Money"* novelist and critic John Lanchester, who claims not to be an economist, attempts to unravel the language of economics for the general reader. To facilitate this he has invented the word "reversification:" a way in which economists in general, but monetarists is particular, turn the meaning of a word into its opposite in order to make the concept it describes more acceptable.
To me the most striking example is the use of reversification to make the concept of debt respectable. Debt used to be a "black mark" or "demerit": a condition entered into by only the most feckless of people. In extreme cases, they were put into prisons. A common form of debt in my youth was called "hire purchase" and my parents were very proud of the fact that, to furnish their home, they never descended to this disreputable device. "Every stick was paid for."
So to make debt respectable we have changed its name to "credit" What was laudable at Port Moresby High School is now the superficially respectable condition which, in what turned out to be its unsustainable private form, brought the western economic system to a halt in the mid 2000s. And if, in Britain, the system is recovering, it is largely the consequence of the accumulation of yet more private debt based on yet another housing boom, the very conditions which brought the system down in the first place.
John Lanchester's book* is a excellent read, even for those who think they know quite a lot about economics.
I have just ordered, but not yet received, a book by Professor Sir John Hills entitled: "Good Times, Bad times: The Welfare Myth of Them and Us". According to the review that prompted me to buy the book, Hills's argument is that our welfare state is not, as the tabloids and Tories pretend, a system by which a virtuous tax-paying majority subsidise a growing minority of layabouts in a "life style choice" (David Cameron) of idleness. Rather, "Britain's welfare state remains a resource for the great majority, not just the feckless few."
This weekend's leaked proposal that the government intends to introduce slower emergency ambulance responses is a case in point. Even the rich have heart attacks, road accidents and all the manifold perils and dangers to which the flesh is heir. As far as I know BUPA runs no emergency ambulance service, nor trains any paramedics, so cutting back on that bit of the state's provision could be just as inconvenient for the wealthy as for the rest of us.
This illustration came too late for Hills's book, but, as the review points out, not just the very wealthy but so called "Middle Britain" (that is, most of us) benefit considerably from such as tax subsidies for the purchase of houses and the tax-subsidised pensions which on average we receive for longer than those at the bottom of the pile. And then there's the heart bypasses which may be beyond the capacity of the private hospitals, and the mental and physicals disabilities for which the private medical sector makes little provision, but which affect indiscriminately all sorts and conditions of men (and women and children) regardless of wealth.
Hence not just the poorest but all of us should be fighting to maintain and indeed improve the level of state services, and fiercely resisting the proposed further cuts.
I look forward to reading the book and having my natural prejudices reinforced by facts.
About the only perk I get as Hon. President of my local Liberal Democrat Party is to give a little talk at each AGM.
b) with the support of the nationalists and the one Green a "rainbow coalition" with Labour would have and a majority of only one. On average three MPs die each year so such a coalition government would have been fighting for its survival at every by-election.
1. Scrapped the Human Rights Act.
2. Further emasculated the BBC.
3. Held a fire sale of the NHS.
4. Maybe “Brexit” from the EU.
5. Made state funded schools available for private profit.
2. The gibe that Liberal Democrat leaders will "sacrifice any principle for a whiff of power and a ministerial car" is risible. No one with that as their priority would dream of joining the Liberal Democrats. Ours is the hard road. Ming Campbell fought five times before he won his seat. Nick Clegg was virtually offered a safe Tory seat by Leon Brittan, his boss when working for the European Commission, but turned it down because he, Nick, was first and foremost a Liberal. Those whose first priority is the trappings of power join Labour or the Tories.
Raising of the income tax threshold.
Increased provision for child-care costs.
Detention of immigrant children stopped.
Free school meals for infants in first three years.
Civil liberties defended against Theresa May’s advances.
Target for 0.7% of GDP to aid retained.
More powers for Welsh Assembly.
Proposals for increase in minimum wage.
Employers’ NICs for under- 21s discontinued.
Vince Cable’s call for limits to executive bonuses.
Equal treatment for mental health patients.
£200m to encourage and make roads safer for cyclists.
£10m to promote electoral registration of students (rather than pensioners on the Costa del Sol).
Unlike our government partners, we were and are unequivocally "the party of IN" on Europe, with the only leader prepared to take on Nigel Farage "head to head."
Some of these are more important that others. In my view the achievement of a fixed term parliament is the most important constitutional advance since the extension of the suffrage to women on the same terms as men in 1928, and £200m for making roads safer for cyclists is small beer compared with and extra £15bn for motorists, but it's better than nothing.
It's not been the government we'd have preferred, but we're proudly confident of what we have achieved with our mere 57 MPs, compared with the Tories' 300+.
So off we go, to face the electorate "with courage high and hearts aglow."
So the country has money to burn and the government is going to splash out with an extra £2bn for the NHS, for road improvement schemes including a tunnel under Stone Henge, for flood defences, railways in the north and Lord only knows what else. All this is possible, in Chancellor George Osborne's very words, because the economy is now "on course for prosperity."
But, just a minute, the economy was growing, when he took over the reigns from Labour and 2010. And not only that, but the deficit was then falling as well: it's rising again now. Had Osborne introduced this public expenditure stimulation at the time, the recovery could well have continued, real rather than zero-hour-contract jobs created, taxation revenues increased through rising prosperity and, most importantly, additional misery for the weakest in our society avoided.
Instead.Osborne put the recovery he inherited into reverse by cutting government expenditure and raising taxes (VAT from 15% to 20%) and we've endured four years of stagnation until a low-wage quasi-recovery fuelled by increasing private debt and yet another housing boom has finally emerged.
In fact Osborne has abused the the classic Keynesian mechanisms to achieve his political ends. In 2010 he deliberately used the existence of a deficit at an allegedly dangerous level (it wasn't) to achieve the Tory goal of shrinking the state*. Now he is using Keynesian expansion in order to win next May's election.
Integrity and devotion to the welfare of the nation are not descriptions which readily.spring to mind.
Privatisation of East Coast Mainline service: why no outrage?
Our East Coast Main Line Railway is somewhat misnamed since most of it doesn't go anywhere near the coast. Certainly the bit I use, Leeds to London King's Cross and back, doesn't.
However, its geographical position is not the cause of the present outrage, or, rather, the lack of any. Like the rest of dear old British Rail it was taken out of public ownership and privatised by the Tories in 1993. Since then two private companies, GNER and National Express, have had to pull out because they couldn't make enough profit, and the running of trains on the route had to be taken back into public ownership in 2009.
Since then the trains have been operated by Directly Owned Railways (DOR), a public body responsible to the Department of Transport. They seem from my experience, albeit I'm an infrequent user, to have made a thoroughly good job of it. Trains to and from Leeds are every half hour rather than the hourly service the private companies offered, they are punctual, and the fares, if you book early enough, are very reasonable.
And they also make a profit, which is handed over to the exchequer.
So on the splendid maxim of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" why not leave things as they are?
But no, our ideologically fixated Tory government has insisted that it be re-privatised, and last week a consortium of two private companies, Sir Richard Branson's "Virgin" and Brian Souter's "Stagecoach," were awarded the franchise. DOR was not even allowed to enter a bid - so much for fairness and the level playing-fields of Eton.
There was a time when the Tories accused Labour of being soaked in ideology whilst they, the Tories were pragmatic. Now it seems they are tarred with the same brush, with a complete lack of evidence to support their case.
What I cannot understand is why this outrageous decision has passed almost unnoticed. We seem to have lost our will to react.
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The games listed below all fall under the rank of poker in that a common theme amongst them is that the result is determined by the best normal five card poker hand. Another similarity is the method of betting that follows same pattern of bet, check or raise and the winner is decided when all players check, and if one player raises after every one else has checked, that player is the winner.
Texas holdem Betting begins before any cards are dealt with the player to the right of the dealer having to post a bet without seeing any cards and so he is betting blind and known as the small blind and the person on his right has to double that bet and is the big blind. Two cards given face down to each player and after looking at the cards the player can elect to play for the cost of the big blind or to fold free of charge. These cards are known as the hand or the pocket. Next, three cards are dealt face up in the centre of the table. They are known as the 'flop'. A further card dealt face up is the 'turn' and then fifth face up card, 'the river', is dealt. The five face up cards are the community cards and are available to all players. Betting is in stages; after the hand is dealt, after the flop, after the turn and after the river. Betting can be a raise or a check. The betting round is completed when all players have checked or dropped out. The winner is decided by who has the best five card normal poker hand using the seven cards available to each player; ie the two card 'pocket' and the five community cards. A player can use one or both cards in his 'pocket' to make up his five card poker hand.
Omaha holdem Is similar to Texas holdem in order of betting, and dealing of the cards with the exception that players are dealt four cards for their hand or 'pocket' instead of two. However when it comes time to decide a winner the player can only use two cards from his hand and three from the community cards in order to make his five card poker hand.
Seven card stud To start the game each player puts in an agreed amount of cash, the ante. Each player is given two cards face down and a third face up. The player with the lowest card bets first; this is the 'bring in' or open and also known as third street. Players may check raise or fold. If there are any raises after a person has checked then the check bet must be increased to the amount of the highest raise in order to continue in the hand. Once every one has checked or folded each player is given a fourth card (fourth street) again face up and betting continues as in third street. The same action is repeated for a fifth and sixth card (fifth and sixth street). The seventh card is dealt face down, betting continues until all have checked and the cards turned down are exposed. The winner is the player with the best five card poker hand made up from the seven cards.
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Warning: This post contains spoilers for season 2 of Stranger Things. Now that we’ve tunneled our way through Stranger Things season 2, we know a lot more about the show’s mysteries.
'Stranger Things' Season 2: New characters teased in episode 2 script Rate this title Two new characters will be introduced in 'Stranger Things' season 2 and more details about Will Byers' predicament in the show.
The second season, titled Stranger Things 2, is set one year later, The Duffer Brothers prepared a script that would essentially be similar to the series' actual pilot episode, along with a 20-page pitch book to help shop the series around for a network.
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Working in North America I've heard it countless times: "Can you really ski in Australia?" My answer is always "Yes, but it's not like here". If I'm being queried by a British tourist I usually try to slip in a comment about how I'd rather ski on slushy snow with rocks poking through than on one of those dry slopes (Hey! We've got some great skiing in the Scottish Highlands don't you know! - Ed).
Australia has such a big reputation for its beaches and the outback, that people simply overlook the possibility that snow could fall there. There are actually 9 functioning ski resorts in south eastern Australia with more to offer than you may think.
The Australian Alps are the highest part of the Great Dividing Range, the largest mountain range in country. These Alps border the states of New South Wales and Victoria, where peaks climb as high as 2,000 metres (6,500 feet). Some of the higher peaks emerge above the tree line and there has been evidence of glacier activity around Australia's highest peak, Mt Kosciuszko (2,228 metres; 7,310 ft).
Snowfall in Australia has been a much discussed topic over recent years. The 2007 season had an excellent start and was well appreciated by the Australian ski community, 2006 recorded the lowest snowfall in 40 years2. Given Australia's ski resorts' proximity to each other, they all experience similar weather.
Rain can come with strong wind, enough to close a resort for days and erode the snow base significantly. But Australia does also have a reputation for blue bird days. Slushy, sunny days are frequent and it can give the feel of endless spring conditions. Extensive cold and stormy periods don't seem to happen as much as they used to, but if the temperature stays low after a snowfall it can be just as fun to ski as anywhere else in the world.
Snow making is a very busy industry in Australia with millions of dollars being invested by resorts every year. Recently the weather has become more unreliable, requiring the snow making infrastructure to be expanded and improved.
Mt Hotham announced last year a sustainable strategy for its snow making reservoirs by treating waste water, an initiative welcomed by the Australian public (Australia has been experiencing severe drought over the last 5 years). During lean snowfall years resorts have to rely mostly on artificial snow to stay open.
By the time September rolls around, the Aussie spring arrives with temperatures over 20°C, causing the snow to recede very quickly. This time of year it's common to see dump trucks full of snow running up and down the alpine roads, dropping the precious cargo in front of the ski school learning areas.
All the talk of Australia's ski resorts being the first to disappear with the world's rising thermostat may have some truth to it, but snow in south eastern Australia can still surprise. It may be inconsistent, but powder days are still common throughout a typical season.
Skiing through the low-lying branches of the snow gums offers a different level of tree skiing as opposed to picking a line through the North American conifers. There is some alpine terrain in the resorts but the majority of ski runs are at or below the tree line. Backcountry lines are accessible but most descents require a rigorous hike out to get back to the resort or the road.
You can find steeps in the resorts; the Extreme Skiing Zone at Mt Hotham and Funnel Web at Thredbo are examples of true expert terrain. Powder days can be epic and leg-burner bump runs are quick to form afterwards. Intermediate cruiser slopes are great early in the day but can get quite crowded and bordering on dangerous during busy periods.
Few foreigners come to Australia for ski holidays, but overseas workers in the resorts are not hard to find. Adrian Seligman is a local to Sunshine Village Resort in Canada. He worked in Mount Hotham Ski School in the winter of 2007 and is keen to return for another season.
"The Aussie Ski Experience was first class. I really had this impression of skiing tiny little hills on a few centimetres of snow. But working at Hotham during one of their better seasons along with some really fun and challenging terrain made the whole ride great."
New school culture has taken off in Australia with most resorts featuring terrain parks and rail/jib gardens. Young Australian skiers are embracing the shift from traditional freestyle mogul and aerial skiing and joining their snowboarder friends in the terrain parks. Australia has recently produced world class free-style riders such as snowboarder Torah Bright (Roxy) and skier Anna Segal (K2).
While the Aussie resorts may not be on the scale of other world-class ski areas, the price of daily lift tickets is surprisingly high. In the 2007 Australian Alpine Club Newsletter, five Australian resorts were listed with daily lift ticket prices more expensive than Canada's Whistler Blackcomb! A full day lift pass at Perisher Blue Resort costs $95 AUD (US$90/£46).
The Australian Alpine Club has stated that "international competition for the Australian snow sports dollar is a reality". Indeed the Australian ski market is broadening its horizons, with many crossing over to New Zealand on a similar budget or saving up for the flight and skiing in Japan or Canada.
The national parks that contain most of Australia's ski resorts have a rich history. As early as 1843, white settlers began to explore the region, cutting trails through the heavily forested hills. Cattlemen, gold miners and bushrangers followed and have all contributed to the heritage of Australia's High Country. The drive from Melbourne along the Hume Highway takes you through the region of one of Australia's most celebrated icons, a bushranger named Ned Kelly.
This outlaw made his name as Australia's most notorious outlaw in the late 1800s. The site of his last stand, located in the small town of Glenrowan, is a popular tourist attraction.
The majority of tourists in Australian ski resorts either Australian, or foreingers living here. Locals often refer to these holiday-goers as 'punters'. Few are above the intermediate level of skiing or snowboarding, yet many refuse to pay for lessons in the hope that they can learn by trial and error or from their friends. Actions that would get you banned from an American ski resort seem more acceptable in Australia, such as skiing out of control into slow zones and ignoring a persons' right of way on the slope.
Despite all the obvious shortcomings of the punter crowd, they are able to have the time of their lives on their holiday. Seeing a family sporting hand-me-down retro outfits, rear entry boots and old hockey helmets is a unique sight and the pinnacle of 'Australiana'.
Fashionable ski wear and the latest equipment is not important - only family, friends and having fun. You'll see them out skiing in the rain until the last chair, determined to get the most out of their snow experience. The bars are alive with families every afternoon and the younger crowd party long into the night.
At first glance the thought of working in one of Australia's ski resorts may sound quite arduous. Long hours, cramped accommodation and inclement weather are just a few of the nuances that one needs to come to grips with working in the Australian ski industry.
But there is something about these towns that draws people back year after year. Being smaller than most North American or European ski communities, locals and seasonal workers develop a kinship that really isn't seen elsewhere.
Most of this kinship is of course developed through spending time at the pub, or talking about what happened at the pub the previous night. Working and living in extremely close quarters to the rest of the town is challenging at first, but once you have experienced it you can find yourself with some of the closest friends you have ever had.
You may not meet as many people as you would in Whistler or Aspen, but the relationships you develop can be much more intimate and easily as memorable. Foreign workers in the Aussie resorts are all about the travelling. Most take some vacation time after the season is done to enjoy Australia's other attractions. Surfing road trips along the coasts are a big hit, as is backpacking through some of the hundreds of beach towns along Australia's east coast. The spring time is warm and the beaches are spectacular, and it's a perfect finish to a winter in the Australian ski hills.
So if you're after an adventure and not afraid of long haul flights or paranoid customs officers, try skiing down under. If it's a good year you'll love the snow and if not, the partying is guaranteed to ensure you still have the time of your life.
Vince Shuley is an Australian ski instructor who lives and works in Whistler, Canada. He shares his time between teaching skiing, travelling and exploring various ski destinations around the world.
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Do higher expected returns demand higher risk? This relationship does not always hold true, as defensively positioned portfolios of high dividend and high quality stocks demonstrate.
One could argue that an investment's downturns are only relevant when losses have to be realized as book losses can, at least in theory, always be recovered. However, percentage-wise, the up- and downside risks are not symmetrical. If an investor who starts with USD 100 loses 20%, his assets amount to USD 80. In order to recover his loss and get from USD 80 back to USD 100, he'll need a gain of 25%. For this reason, minimizing downside risk can pay off in the long term.
Click on image to enlarge. Source: UBS Asset Management. For illustrative purposes only.
It is a generally accepted presumption that a positive relationship exists between risk and expected return. A rational investor would only buy a risky asset class if he anticipated getting compensated for the higher risk by receiving a higher return. Bonds of high creditworthiness therefore have lower expected returns than, for instance, junk bonds or equities.
Within equities, however, this relationship does not hold true. Academic studies suggest that in the long term, stocks with the lowest risk outperform stocks with the highest risk. In the US equity universe the 20% stocks with the lowest volatility outperformed the 20% stocks with the highest volatility by 7% annually over the course of 40 years until 2008. The study covering a global equities universe is about 20 years shorter, but comes to a very similar conclusion.
Click on image to enlarge. Source: Baker, M., Bradley, B. and Wurgler, J (2011) Benchmarks as Limits to Arbitrage: Understanding the Low-Volatility Anomaly. Financial Analysts Journal 67 (1), p. 48.
The above mentioned authors each month sorted all publicly traded US stocks tracked by the Center for Research on Security Prices (CRSP) with at least 24 months of return history into five equal quintiles (each representing 20%) according to trailing volatility (standard deviation) or beta. Volatility and beta are estimated using up to 60 months of trailing returns. In January 1968, USD1 is invested, according to capitalization weights. At the end of each month, each portfolio is rebalanced, with no transaction costs included. 'Low Beta & Volatility Stocks' refer to the lowest Beta and Volatility quintile respectively. 'High Beta & Volatility Stocks' refer to the highest Beta and Volatility quintile respectively.
The fact that stocks with lower risk perform better in the long run than stocks with higher risk could be caused by irrational investor behavior. A significant part of the investment community are willing to pay too much for cyclical stocks in the hope of capturing the maximum upside. Those investors may shun less cyclical stocks because they perceive them to have less imminent upside which can render said stocks comparably cheap. This can be exploited by rational investors.
As outlined in the previous paragraphs, investors are well advised to consider defensive quality-oriented stocks if they seek equity exposure. UBS Asset Management's range of Equity Income strategies offers investors solutions that mitigate some of the downside in bear-market environments, aiming to provide attractive risk-adjusted returns. Moreover, they generate income from various sources including dividends and the sale of call options, and in case of the US strategy, share buybacks also.
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How to use articles (A, An and The) ?
Articles are very important to build sentences in English, in English there are two types of articles.
Use of Indefinite Article A - A is used before countable nouns start with consonants for example.
There is a window in the class.
Here cricketer, car and window start with consonants.
However, if the noun start with vowels but it sound like consonant still article a will be used, for instance.
She will study in a university. (Here university sounds like yuniversity).
Use of Indefinite Article An - An is used before countable nouns start with vowels for example.
Use of Definite Article The - Article The is used before the nouns we previously know, or unique thing in a specific concerns, the nouns may be countable or uncountable .
It can be understood by the examples.
Honesty is the best policy. ( Here no other policy is better than honesty).
IIT is the best engineering institute of India.
AIIMS is the best medical institute of India.
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Classify these salts as acidic, basic, or neutral. KCL, NH4Br, K2CO3, NaCN, LiClO4?
In classifying salts as neutral, acidic, or basic, it’s important to observe the effectiveness of the bases and acids that they result from. A strong acid solution and strong bottom create a neutral salt. A weak acid and strong base produce a basic salt. A strong acid and weak base produce an acidic salt.
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Previous studies have shown that the bursts from 121102 are emanating from a galaxy 3 billion light years from Earth, but the nature of the object emitting them is still unknown. Andrew Siemion, director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center and principal investigator for Breakthrough Listen, said in a statement.
Lickety-split radio bursts are shimmering pulses of radio emission mere milliseconds in duration, conception to originate from distant galaxies. Theories explaining their origin include that they are caused by polarised waves travelling through strong magnetic fields in dense plasma (such as from a neutron star in the cosmic neighbourhood of a galactic core's supermassive black hole or within dense, magnetised nebulas). According to Phys.org, Breakthrough Listen, one of several Breakthrough-themed science research initiatives in cooperation with the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute, has successfully used artificial intelligence to increase the identification rate for recurring fast radio bursts from a deep space source known as FRB121102.
Machine learning algorithms are also being applied to help Listen search for new kinds of candidate signals from extraterrestrial intelligence. The fast radio bursts were picked out from a data set that had already been analyzed by astronomers.
The data comes from the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia (above), which was pointed toward this source of fast and bright (hence the name) bursts for five hours in August of 2017. By analyzing the data using standard computer algorithms, they were able to identify 21 FRB's during the period. The 21 fast radio bursts were all seen within one hour, which suggests that whatever the source of FRB 121102 is, it demonstrated a period of excessive activity. This brings the total number of detected bursts from FRB 121102 to around 300 since it was discovered in 2012.
Zhang's crew passe a few of the similar tactics that net technology companies use to optimize search results and classify photography. Just as the patterns of pulses from pulsars have helped astronomers constrain computer models of the extreme physical conditions in such objects, the new measurements of FRBs will help figure out what powers these enigmatic sources, Siemion said.
In their recent study, the researchers trained their algorithm on simulated signals, teaching it to recognize signs of fast radio bursts, and then "let the trained network loose on the data containing the real signals", Zhang said.
"This work is simply the starting of the use of these noteworthy how to get radio transients", acknowledged Zhang. "We hope our success may inspire other serious endeavours in applying machine learning to radio astronomy".
"Whether or not or not FRBs themselves sooner or later turn out to be signatures of extraterrestrial technology, Step forward Listen is helping to push the frontiers of a unique and swiftly increasing place of residing of our understanding of the Universe spherical us", he added.
Breakthrough Listen is a scientific program in search for evidence of technological life in the Universe.It aims to survey one million nearby stars, the entire galactic plane and 100 nearby galaxies at a wide range of radio and optical bands.
The results were accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal.
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The yield spread is one of the key metrics that bond investors can use to gauge how expensive or cheap a particular bond – or group of bonds – might be.
Very simply, the yield spread is the difference in the yield between two bonds. If one bond is yielding 5% and another 4%, the “spread” is one percentage point. Spreads are typically expressed in “basis points,” which is one-hundredth of a percentage point. Hence, a one-percentage-point spread is typically said to be “100 basis points.” Non-Treasury bonds are generally evaluated based on the difference between their yield and the yield on a U.S. Treasury bond of comparable maturity.
Generally speaking, the higher-risk a bond or asset class is, the higher its yield spread. There's a simple reason for this: Investors need to be compensated for trickier propositions. If an investment is seen as being low-risk, market participants don’t require a huge incentive, or yield, to devote their money to it. But if an investment is seen as being higher-risk, people naturally will demand adequate compensation – a higher yield spread – to take the chance that their principal could decline.
For example, a bond issued by a large, stable, and financially healthy corporation will typically trade at a relatively low spread in relation to U.S. Treasuries. Conversely, a bond issued by a smaller company with weaker financials will trade at a higher spread relative to Treasuries. This explains the yield advantage of non-investment grade (high yield) bonds relative to higher-rated, investment-grade bonds. It also explains the gap between higher-risk emerging markets and the usually lower-risk bonds of developed markets.
The spread is also used to calculate the yield advantage of similar securities with different maturities. The most widely used is the spread between the two- and 10-year Treasuries, which shows how much extra yield an investor can get by taking on the added risk of investing in longer-term bonds.
Yield spreads are not fixed, of course. Because bond yields are always in motion, so too are spreads. The direction of the yield spread can increase, or “widen,” which means that the yield difference between two bonds or sectors is increasing. When spreads narrow, it means the yield difference is decreasing.
Keeping in mind that bonds yields rise as their prices fall, and vice versa, so a rising spread indicates that one sector is performing better than another. Say the yield on a high-yield bond index moves from 7% to 7.5%, while the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury stays even at 2%. The spread moves from 5 percentage points (500 basis points) to 5.5 percentage points (550 basis points), indicating that high-yield bonds underperformed Treasuries during this time.
The bottom line: There’s no such thing as a free lunch – aka super-strong but no-risk return – in the financial markets. If a bond or bond fund is paying an exceptionally high yield, there’s a reason for it: Anyone who holds that investment is also taking on more risk. As a result, investors should be aware that by simply picking fixed-income investments with the highest yield, they could be endangering their principal more than they bargained for.
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Ornithopods are one of three major groups of Ornithischia. The Ornithopoda are a group of medium to large plant-eating dinosaurs. They include one of the earliest discovered dinosaurs, Iguanodon, as well as the famous crested and "duck-billed" hadrosaurs. Several of these are noted for the spacious and bizarrely shaped sinus regions in their skulls. All ornithopods were herbivores and mostly bipedal.
The "duckbilled dinosaurs" were common in the Upper Cretaceous of Europe, Asia, and North America. They were close relatives and possibly descendants of the earlier iguanodontid dinosaurs. Early interpretations of fossil skin impressions suggested that hadrosaur feet were webbed. Recent hypotheses, more consistent with what we know about the structure of ornithopod feet, suggest that hadrosaurs had pads similar to those seen on camel feet. Their stiff tails, supported by ossified tendons, and their sturdy bones and rapidly replaced teeth suggest that hadrosaurs spent most of their time on land, though close to bodies of water, feeding on tough terrestrial plants. The discovery of spectacularly preserved hadrosaur nests and young shows that hadrosaurs migrated to nesting grounds to reproduce.
There are two subfamilies of hadrosaurs, the Lambeosaurinae, which have a crest on the skull (like the top skull at right), and the Hadrosaurinae, which lacked the crest (like the bottom skull at right). The crest on a lambeosaur's skull contains the nasal passages, which "looped" through the crest and often formed sizeable chambers before passing into the airway.
The Marginocephalia ("fringed heads") are a clade of extinct herbivorous dinosaurs that inherited a slight shelf or frill at the back of their skull from their common ancestor back in the Early/mid Cretaceous period. This "margin" was elaborated differently in the two main subgroups of the Marginocephalia. You are probably familiar with some of these taxa — they include the "bone-headed" pachycephalosaurs (above left) and the frilled Ceratopsian, such as the early Protoceratops and the famous Triceratops.
The oldest ceratopsians appeared at the beginning of the Cretaceous, about 140 million years ago. In the Late Cretaceous, about 100 million years ago, the ceratopsians began to diversify in North America and in Asia. Forms without the enormous horns and frills of Triceratops, in the family Protoceratopsidae, include the Mongolian genus Protoceratopsand the unusual bipedal, frill-less dinosaur Psittacosaurus ("parrot-lizard"). The horned, frilled dinosaurs in the family Ceratopsidae are found only in the Late Cretaceous of North America; they are among the last of the dinosaurs such as Styracosaurus and Triceratops.
The Thyreophora are a group of small to quite large armored plant-eating dinosaurs. The most familiar are Stegosaurus and Ankylosaurus, though there were many others. The earliest Thyreophoran was Scutellosaurus, a slender-tailed beast known from the earliest Jurassic of western North America, and is among the earliest known Ornithischians. The next known Thyreophoran is Scelidosaurus, which lived in western Europe a little over 180 million years ago.
The remaining Thyreophorans consist of two major groups: the Stegosauria and the Ankylosauria. The stegosaurids had two rows of spikes or plates runnning along their backs and tails. They were most diverse in the late Jurassic. The other group, the Ankylosauria, had more extensive armoring, and often whole patches of external bone were fused into plates. Early in the Cretaceous, most of these belonged to the Nodosaurid subgroup. In the later Cretaceous, most are Ankylosaurids, distinguished by their broad heads, spikes extending from the backs of their skulls, and heavy club-like tails. It is generally believed that the club could be used as a defensive weapon against predators.
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0.957533 |
Gay daddy bear - Lets Talk!
Gay daddy bear - DaddyBear Just Apologized to HIV+ Men.
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DaddyBear reveals the top ten gay cities in America and the top ten Countries in the world.
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PHP is the big end well-liked programming words as reported beside Jobs Tractor.
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0.925175 |
Source audience flow Where the audience came from for a given program; the source of that particular program's audience.
Retention audience flow Where the audience went after watching a particular program; a measure of effectiveness of a program in retaining their audience for the next program.
The viewing decisions for individual members of an audience is represented in audience flow diagrams as rows and columns of pie charts. The three rows of pie charts in the figure below represent three viewing alternatives. The columns of pies represent times during a selected day.
Yellow: 48.4% of the audience came from the previous half hour of Drama #6 on Network B.
Blue: 14.2% came from Movie #2 on Network A.
Black: 23.7% were either not watching television at 8:38 or were watching local (non-network) programming.
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0.999945 |
You have a choice of climbing of three geometrically shaped hills, which are all 10000 feet high. One of the mountains is a perfect cylinder, another is in the form of a cone, and the third looks like the top half of a sphere. Several from the math work teachers have constructed roads that go from the base to the summit(top) of each mountain. All three roads are constructed so that you scale 1 vertical foot each 20 horizontal feet. If you wish to walk the shortest distance from base to summit, which would you choose?
The cone because the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.
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0.94821 |
Vernon Kay complained through his representatives, Hackford Jones, that an article headlined "Vernon's still walking on eggshells", published in Reveal magazine on 3 July 2012, was inaccurate in breach of Clause 1 (Accuracy) of the Editors' Code of Practice.
The article reported claims about the complainant's marriage following his public admission in 2010 that he had sent flirtatious text messages to several women. It quoted an unnamed source, described as a "close friend", alleging that the complainant felt he was "walking on eggshells" and was "worried [his wife] will never fully forgive him". It also claimed that the couple were "living increasingly separate lives". The complainant said that the claims were inaccurate and had not been put to him prior to publication.
The magazine stood by the article's claims, which it said had been obtained from a reliable source. It contended that the comments did not contribute any substantive new information about the texting incident relative to the details that had been previously reported and which were not in dispute. The magazine denied having suggested that the couple were living strictly separate lives in the marital sense; it had pointed out that both were also occupied with professional obligations. It did not accept any breach of the Code, but offered to publish a statement setting out the complainant's denial that he and his wife were "living separate lives".
The moral obligation imposed on journalists by Clause 14 of the Editors' Code of Practice "to protect confidential sources of information" places clear limits on the Commission's ability to assess the credibility of such sources, and in turn, the information they provide. As the Commission has long emphasised, however, publications cannot simply refer to confidential sources as a defence against complaints about the accuracy of such material.
In these circumstances, publications should generally be able to produce on-the-record material to corroborate significant claims or demonstrate that the individual concerned had a suitable opportunity to respond before publication. The magazine apparently accepted that it had not taken these steps but sought to defend the piece on the basis that the claims were not new. The Commission could not agree: the article had contained specific, and significant, assertions about the current state of the couple's relationship, two years after the texting incidents. The magazine had not demonstrated that it had taken care over the accuracy of the story, and the result was a breach of Clause 1 (i).
In addition, the Commission considered that there was a strong possibility that readers would be left with the inaccurate impression that the claims were accepted by the complainant. The statement the magazine had offered to publish omitted a significant element of the complainant's position: his denial of the claims regarding his feelings about his marriage. It was not sufficient to remedy the issues raised under Clause 1 (ii) of the Code. The Commission had no option but to uphold the complaint.
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0.999996 |
I lived in the UK for three years before setting foot in London. I often commented that I loved England but London just freaked-me-out.
This was all because of an unfortunate experience I’d had on my first visit to this country, several years before. I was on an infamous Heathrow layover that lasted from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to see this famed and historic city, so when I arrived in Heathrow, I made my way through the immigration queue and figured out how to get a train into central London. The memory still pains me to this day, so I won’t get into the details. The summary version is this: While I arrived in the city with no problems, I could not figure out how to get back to Heathrow. I couldn’t find anyone to ask, and the people who I did ask were entirely rude and unhelpful. Even though I started trying with plenty of time to spare, by the time I finally arrived back at the airport, my luggage had been offloaded from theplane and I was forced to pay a hefty fee to reschedule my flight. I spent the night in the airport, exhausted and ashamed. And, of course, by the time I arrived at my final destination, Heathrow had lost my luggage.
It took me a long time after that to get over my fear of London.
And now I live here. It doesn’t scare me the way it used to, and this is the right place for me to be at this point in my life, so here I am.
So… yesterday I was walking somewhere. My destination doesn’t matter, the point is that I HAD a destination. And between being late and wanting some exercise – and having adapted to the local customs – I was walking FAST.
Then a middle-aged Asian man stopped me on the street and asked me where High Street Kensington was. This was near Westminster Bridge, which means, if you know London, he was not particularly close to High Street Kensington. I estimated he had about an hour to walk, or he could catch the Tube, which I recommended.
He didn’t seem to believe me, after all he’d already been walking for a while and felt like he was nearby.
I felt bad – this was reminding me a bit of my own experience of London on that fateful day many years ago. But while he was processing this information, I either had to abandon him on the street to keep up my marching pace, or I had to stop. Actually, for about a hundred metres, I managed to convince him to walk with me, but he soon tired of that idea.
And so I left him behind to his fate of being lost in London surrounded by unfriendly people, one of whom I may have been.
Woe to me for knowing my way around, knowing what it feels like to not know my way around, and still walking as fast as I could.
This entry was posted in travel, Uncategorized and tagged London, tourists, walking. Bookmark the permalink.
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0.999999 |
Turn to an idea that has been compared to a work of Shakespeare: the second law of thermodynamics. According to the second law, entropy, a measure of disorder, always increases in a closed system. Order can only increase at the cost of even greater entropy elsewhere in the system.
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0.931961 |
Bot Azure service byMicrosoft Bot frameworkProvide support and build onAzure functionServer based computing background. The Bot service allows developers to create dialogue applications, and it is embedded in many popular chat applications, including Slack, Facebook Messenger, Skype Microsoft, Teams, Kik and Office 365 etc.. It also supports text and SMS messaging services, and can be embedded in the client's own website.
For software developers, creating a dialog service requires us to change the way we design and build software. Facts have proved that it is quite difficult to do this. For the dialogue, its own characteristics determine the fixed and sudden conversion theme is normal.
Mobile applications are well suited to the use of existing, but not suitable for new.
The problem with applications is that users have to install them on their phones. In reality, people will only use five or more applications on their mobile phones for a number of times. As a developer, the development of cross platform application software is very painful. The task is very heavy. The great thing about Bot is that once you create it, it's everywhere. It makes your life easier. Most people spend most of their time on chat applications when they hold their phones. So when people are using their chat applications, they can request information from the Bot service.
When developers actually want to spend time in the development of robot real dialogue, most developers are caught in a quagmire of 80% of the time, they will be trying to dialogue robot their connection to a variety of services.
Microsoft's Bot-as-a-Service platform is designed to simplify the developer experience. In order to speed up the development process, Microsoft also provides sample code, Visual Studio and Visual Code support, template and an integrated chat window, before publishing the Bot to the Azure in your line, advanced local test. Once your Bot has been released to the Azure, it can be extended by the functionality provided by Azure. With the support of Git and Visual Online Studio, you can also support continuous deployment.
Microsoft supports integration into third channels, as well as Microsoft's cognitive services and other API. Through the combination of cognitive services, developers can take advantage of Microsoft in the accumulation of Natural Language Processing to carry out key phrase detection, sentiment analysis, language testing or subject detection. Developers can also create a language understanding intelligence service (Language Understanding Intelligent Service, LUIS) model. This model supports context aware, as well as self learning dialogue within Bot.
Here's a language understandingExample. Microsoft has talked about this example, is about a stock quotes can be found in the chat application. Although returns a result according to the stock quotes encoding fixed, build such an application is not very challenging, but if the user side is a free text input box, then this is not the same thing. The use of LUIS (language understanding intelligent service model), developers can train machine learning algorithm, let it understand to ask all kinds of questions of expression of stock price difference. This is accomplished by the intent and entity defined in the LUIS console. Developers can then train and test them before they can provide their own model to a Bot application.
When developers use the services provided by Azure Bot-as-a-Service, they only pay for the cost of the resources consumed by the application. This includes calculations related to the Azure function, as well as the API call made by the Bot for any cognitive service. Can inHereFind more information about pricing.
Why Microsoft Bot gamble in the future?
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0.977456 |
An active vacation to experience the wonders of Northern Norway. The journey is a 9-days self-drive tour starting and ending in Tromsø, travelling southward by the coast of Senja and Vesterålen, and northward via the inland roads and by the Lyngen Alps. The trip has been designed and customized for you to offer you the chance to see most beautiful and stunning landscapes of Northern Norway.
Day 1: Tromsø Arrival in Tromsø and pick up your rental car from the airport. Start your journey by exploring Tromsø and its surroundings by joining a tour with Wandering Owl!Activity: Midnight sun hike Day 2: Tromsø - Senja Leave the town behind and drive along the scenic route to Senja. The most spectacular feature of this stretch is represented by the steep mountains which goes deep into the ocean. The beaches are very inviting with their white coral sand. However the swim is for the bravest ones. Day 3: Senja Spend your day on Senja - the second largest island in Norway. Here you are welcomed by an inspiring composition of sea, mountains, beaches, fishing villages and inland areas. Have a guided tour by choosing from activities proposed and make the most out of your visit on Senja. Your journey then continues to Andøya - the northern part of Vesterålen. Activity: Choose between Kayaking or Bicycling Day 4: Andøya You can choose one of the exciting guided activities on Andøya. On the island you can see some of Norway’s most beautiful places to enjoy the midnight sun. If you are lucky you might see seals, whales and eagles. Activity: Choose between Climbing or Whale Safari Day 5: Andøya - Langøya At this point you can choose whether you want to spend the day on the beautiful Andøya and explore the surroundings more or if you prefer to continue to the next destination Langøya already in the morning. Day 6: Langøya - Dividalen The way from Langøya to Dividalen offers a majestic scenery along the fjords. When moving inland you can see some wildlife if you are lucky. After reaching your daily destination, be ready for an exciting afternoon activity. Activity: CavingDay 7: Dividalen - Lyngen Drive through the Dividalen valley and reach the mesmerizing Lyngen Alps. You will find unique surroundings and spectacular coastal scenery in every direction. Get your camera ready! Day 8: Lyngen Spend your day with a guided activity of your choice and experience the Lyngen Alps at its best. In the evening you have time to relax and say farewell to the midnight sun. Activity: Choose between Glacier Hike or RIB-Boat Excursion or Watersports or Bicycling Day 9: Lyngen - Tromsø You are heading back to Tromsø with lots of new experiences and good memories. It´s time to return the rental car and say goodbye. If you have not had enough of Northern Norway yet, we are happy to suggest you some other activities and things to do for the day.
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0.974987 |
Provide a complete protocol for invoking Compiler without logging - that is without logged: parameter.
Make the logging (logged:) version send the non logging version rather than the contrary.
This step may help moving logging out of Compiler in a future version.
a Syntax Error view is created rather than notifying any requestor.
+ ^self evaluate: textOrString for: nil!
- ^self evaluate: textOrString for: nil logged: false!
+ a Syntax Error view is created rather than notifying any requestor."
+ ^self evaluate: textOrString for: anObject notifying: nil!
a Syntax Error view is created rather than notifying any requestor."
^self evaluate: textOrString for: anObject notifying: nil logged: logFlag!
+ of anObject. If a compilation error occurs, notify aController."
Compilation is carried out with respect to nil, i.e., no object."
^self evaluate: textOrString for: nil logged: logFlag!
+ with respect to nil, i.e., no object."
+ ^self evaluate: textOrString for: nil notifying: aController!
with respect to nil, i.e., no object."
^self evaluate: textOrString for: nil notifying: aController logged: logFlag!
+ refer to instance variables of that receiver (the Inspector uses this).
+ notify:at: message before the attempt to evaluate is aborted."
+ theClass := (aContext == nil ifTrue: [receiver] ifFalse: [aContext receiver]) class.
+ ifFalse: [ methodNode generate ].
refer to instance variables of that receiver (the Inspector uses this).
notify:at: message before the attempt to evaluate is aborted."
- theClass := (aContext == nil ifTrue: [receiver] ifFalse: [aContext receiver]) class.
- ifFalse: [ methodNode generate ].
[SystemChangeNotifier uniqueInstance evaluated: cue stringToLog context: aContext].
+ the system no longer creates Doit method litter on errors."
+ theClass := ((aContext == nil ifTrue: [receiver] ifFalse: [aContext receiver]) class).
- ^ self evaluate: textOrStream in: aContext to: receiver notifying: aRequestor ifFail: failBlock logged: false.!
the system no longer creates Doit method litter on errors."
theClass := ((aContext == nil ifTrue: [receiver] ifFalse: [aContext receiver]) class).
+ methodNode := self compileCue: aCue noPattern: true ifFail: [^failBlock value].
+ value := self evaluateCue: aCue ifFail: [^failBlock value].
- methodNode := self compileCue: aCue noPattern: true ifFail: [^failBlock value].
[SystemChangeNotifier uniqueInstance evaluated: cue stringToLog context: cue context].
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0.944037 |
What brand is the best for a man's accessories?
What brand is the best for a man’s accessories?
It is an American fashion brand founded by Ralph Lauren in 196. The brand focuses in high-end clothes, accessories, footwear and fragrance for men. Ralph Lauren has numerous sub-labels with various collections for different lifestyles.
Paul Smith, an English fashion brand, is a popular design in the field of cycling clothing, jeans, perfume, watches, shoes and luxury goods.
Founded by Hans Wildorf and Alfred Davis in London in 1905, Rolex is a luxury watch brand. For many men, this is the only hand accessory which they can invest in that makes it an exceptional timepiece. Famous for the first waterproof wristwatch- Oyster, and the first to show two-time zones at once- Rolex GMT Master, it is a popular accessory brand for men.
A German luxury fashion brand of Hugo Boss, the company has a wide line of products including menswear, perfume, fashion accessories and luxury goods.
Giorgio Armani established this international fashion label in 1975. Armani specializes in designing ready-to-wear clothes, haute couture, fashion accessories and home interiors.
This American fashion label by Calvin Klein includes coats and dresses marketed towards the youth, along with its more popular men’s underwear collection.
Thierry Hermes is best known for leather products with the highest possible quality. They are also expertise in men’s sportswear, riding gloves and belts. With successful years, Hermes is a name not be missed in pop culture for its leather quality.
Burberry offers men with luxury and quality accessories as well as exclusive skincare products that will make your casual style more classy and stylish.
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0.999775 |
The curse of the Bambino is probably the most legendary curse in all of baseball. The story goes like this: Once upon a time, there was a wildly successful baseball team called the Red Sox. They won the first-ever World Series in 1903, and in the decade that followed, they stockpiled a mind-boggling five more wins. They owed much of their success to their star player Babe Ruth, also known as "the Bambino." Then, in 1919, the Red Sox traded Babe Ruth to their archrival, the Yankees. 86 long and frustrating years passed before the Red Sox finally won the 2004 World Series, breaking the curse of the Bambino.
There were countless attempts to break the curse its 86-year history. Beginning in the early 1990's fans regularly altered a "Reverse Curve" sign to read "Reverse the Curse." In 1992, a Boston radio station held an exorcism in front of Fenway Park. In 2001, uber-fan Paul Giorgio climbed Mount Everest and left a Red Sox ball cap on an altar at the summit. In the lead-up to the 2004 overthrow of the curse, Ford Motor Company even aired a television commercial featuring a hitchhiker who was on his way to Boston to because he had "a curse to break."
Though legendary, most would agree that the Red Sox probably didn't deserve to suffer for 86 years. The team that suffered from our next curse, however, deserved everything they got.
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0.940164 |
First, let's look at what happened last year. I took a trip to Cairns with a few friends - two old ones and a new one. I was supposed to start on Sword Fantasy's basic game framework, but ended up coming short. Despite this, I've gotten a lot further with learning the programming required, although my game research has slowed down - owing to books being so costly in Australia. I did somewhat rewrite the first chapter of the story into a more cohesive more readable form. What do I plan to do this year then?
1. Finish a game engine. - Yep, the most ambitious goal yet. Complete a game engine. How ambitious is this project? I intend to build an engine, complete with graphics and sound - with fully scriptable maps. (I intend to implement fully scriptable AI at some point, but we'll see - highly dependent on how far my virtual machine coding has come.) Broken down, this makes it into several tasks: Get a virtual machine running (the most daunting, in my opinion). Get graphics running and reading data from scripts. Get sounds running and reading data from scripts. Learn how to execute scripts the multithreaded way.
2. Get a job. - Yes, I know goals 1 and 2 conflict. I'm not sure if my goal is to get a job for next year, or a part-time job, or just setting up myself a job. What I mean is actually getting into a tighter routine. I think getting into a routine where time is slightly tighter than it is now will make me more hardworking.
3. Cook more. - Time to save myself some money and learn a few more culinary skills. In addition, cooking actually gives me more time for programming. So go figure.
4. Program something for PSP. - Yep, thought I should give it a try. Chances are it'll be a Luaplayer program since I don't want to spend too much time working on the PSP when I should be working on getting stuff working in Windows. It might not even do anything.
This year, I think I won't expand the story any further, owing to spending more time on everything else. I think to me, the most important thing to do this year is expand my software portfolio while studying. I believe that it's time I go back to fullforce computer programming instead of lazing around researching games and RPG systems. It's time to finally build the engine the game is going to run on for real.
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0.984525 |
Pick a starting weight in which you can complete each set with no slowing towards the end of your last reps. Now following the Progression Table below, increase the weight each week by a given increment until you can't get the FIFTH rep on the last set. Once this happens, keep the weight the same for each week until you can accomplish doing so, then increase.
Squat - 15-20lbs for 3-4 weeks, then slowing to 10.
Deadlift - 15-20lbs for 3-4 weeks, then slowing to 10.
Leg Press - 20lbs for 3-4 weeks, then slowing to 10.
Chin Ups/Pull Ups - Once you can get a set of 15 unweighted, add 5lbs until you can accomplish this again and so forth.
Dips - Once you can get 2 sets of 10 unweighted, add 5lbs until you can do so again and so forth.
Every 6 weeks at 60% intensity.
All you need to gain mass in the beginning stages are compound exercises. This program gives you all the compounds you need, and the few isolation's to truly work your full body for maximum mass.
This is where it’s simple, but takes more dedication than actually lifting in my opinion. First, go here: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/ and calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). Now take this number and multiply it by 1.2, this is your daily caloric intake required to maintain your current bodyweight.
Next, go here: http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/users/myplate/ and create an account. This is a calorie counter, and will become one of your best friends throughout your journey and drastically help you be able to strictly adhere to your diet and calorie needs. Once you create an account, go to “calorie goal� at the top of the page. It gives you a few options to adjust your recommended caloric intake for what you want to accomplish. My caloric intake to maintain my bodyweight is around 2100, so I set my Goal to 1.5lbs a week and it gives me a recommend amount of 3,159 a day. This is one of the better calorie counters out there, very clean layout and has any food you can possibly imagine.
It basically speaks for itself. Hit your calorie needs every week, or even exceed them. Don’t miss a day of workouts, even if you’re tired for WHICHEVER reason you can think of and you should be well on your way. That’s really all it is, simple as can be.
Other than that you don’t really need to know much but a few tips I’ll give you. One is milk. Drink it, and LOTS of it. I wouldn’t recommend drinking a gallon a day as some do because of the fat you could gain, but a half gallon a day gives you an easy 800-1,000 calories of your required daily intake. Also, make sure to get a good post-workout weight gainer. This is drastically important, in my opinion, for the recovery process and will work wonders as compared to if you didn‘t eat something within an hour of working out. I wouldn’t recommend drinking more than one of these a day, though, and believe the rest should come from food but that‘s just me.
So there it is, all you need to know to gain mass. Lift hard, eat right, sleep right and good luck!
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0.999873 |
What has dependent type theory done for Haskell? Over the past ten years, the Glasgow Haskell compiler (GHC) has adopted many type system features inspired by dependent type theory. In this talk, I will discuss the influence of dependent types on the design of GHC and on the practice of Haskell programmers. In particular, I will walk through an extended example and use it to analyze what it means to program with with dependent types in Haskell. Throughout, I will will discuss what we have learned from this experiment in language design: what works now, what doesn't work yet, and what surprised us along the way.
Stephanie Weirich is a Professor of Computer and Information Science at the University of Pennsylvania, having received tenure in 2008 and the rank of full professor in 2015. She received her B.A. in Computer Science from Rice University and her Ph.D. from Cornell University. She has published broadly in the areas of functional programming, type systems, machine-assisted theorem proving and dependent types. During the past ten years, she and her students have made significant contributions to the design of the Glasgow Haskell Compiler and its type system. Dr. Weirich has served as the program chair of the The 15th ACM SIGPLAN International Conference on Functional Programming, ICFP 2010 and the 2009 Haskell Symposium and is also an editor of the Journal of Functional Programming. She has given invited talks at many venues, including ICFP, FLOPS, RDP, LFMTP, OPLSS, and PLMW. Her recent awards include a 2016 Microsoft Outstanding Collaborator award, and the 2016 Most Influential ICFP Paper award (for 2006) for the paper "Simple unification-based type inference for GADTs" with her co-authors Simon Peyton Jones, Dimitrios Vytiniotis and Geoffrey Washburn, and the 2016 ACM SIGPLAN Robin Milner Young Researcher Award.
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0.933867 |
Henrique George Mautner (born January 17, 1941), better known by his stage name Jorge Mautner, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, lyricist, violinist, actor, screenwriter, film director and poet, considered to be a pioneer of the MPB scene and of the Tropicalista movement.
Mautner was born in Rio de Janeiro on January 17, 1941, one month after his mother, Anna Illichi, a Catholic Yugoslav, and his father, Paul Mautner, an Austrian Jew, emigrated from Europe to Brazil to escape from the Holocaust. Despite being a sympathizer of Getúlio Vargas, Paul was a part of the Jewish underground resistance. Anna eventually suffered from a major paralysis due to a trauma caused by the fact that Jorge's sister, Susana, was not able to embark to Brazil with them, and so until he was 7 years old a nanny, Lúcia, took care of him; Lúcia was a mãe-de-santo, and introduced Jorge to Candomblé.
In 1948 Jorge's parents divorced, and Anna eventually remarried Henri Müller, a violinist who played for the São Paulo State Symphony, and who taught Jorge how to play the violin. His family later moved to São Paulo, where he studied at the prestigious Colégio Dante Alighieri; despite being an excellent student, he would, however, be expelled before he could graduate from high school because of a text he wrote, considered "indecent" by his teachers.
Mautner began to write his first book, Deus da Chuva e da Morte, when he was 15 years old; it was published in 1962, and in the following year it won the Prêmio Jabuti. Deus da Chuva e da Morte would be the first part of what is today known as his Mitologia do Kaos trilogy, which also comprises Kaos (1963) and Narciso em Tarde Cinza (1965). In it, Mautner would define the main ideology of what he calls the "Kaos Movement".
In 1962 he joined the Brazilian Communist Party, after being invited by Mário Schenberg.
Mautner was arrested during the 1964 Brazilian coup d'état, but was later released, under the conditions of "expressing himself more carefully". In 1966 he recorded his first musical release, the 7" single "Radioatividade", through RCA Records. Soon after he travelled to the United States, where he worked for the UNESCO and as a translator of Brazilian books. He later met poet Robert Lowell, serving as his secretary, as well as Paul Goodman, with whom he developed a strong friendship and suffered an everlasting influence from him.
In 1968 he briefly returned to Brazil, where he worked as screenwriter on Neville d'Almeida's film Jardim de Guerra, that was only released two years later.
In 1970 he travelled to London, where he befriended Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. He later returned to Brazil, settling in Rio de Janeiro once more, where he began to write for the humoristic newspaper O Pasquim. In the same year he directed the film O Demiurgo, which starred himself, Gil, Veloso, José Roberto Aguilar, Péricles Cavalcanti and Leilah Assunção. The film was censored by the dictatorship though, and never received a wide release. (In 2013 Mautner made the film available in its entirety through his official YouTube channel.) Around the same time he met Nélson Jacobina, one of his most prolific songwriting partners, with whom he wrote, among many other songs, the 1974 hit "Maracatu Atômico".
On December 10, 1973, Mautner was invited to partake in the Banquete dos Mendigos "show-manifesto", idealized and directed by Jards Macalé. The show, that happened at the Museum of Modern Art of Rio de Janeiro and was backed by the UN, celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and also counted with the presence of Chico Buarque, Dominguinhos, Edu Lobo, Gal Costa, Gonzaguinha, Johnny Alf, Luiz Melodia, Milton Nascimento, MPB4, Nélson Jacobina, Paulinho da Viola and Raul Seixas, among others. It spawned a double-disc live album, which due to censorship issues was only released in 1979.
In 1988 Mautner took part in a short-lived "joke side project" formed by then-Titãs member Arnaldo Antunes named Vestidos de Espaço, which also comprised Branco Mello, Charles Gavin, Paula Toller of Kid Abelha and record producer Liminha. The band's only release before their demise in the following year was a 7" single with the tracks "Pipi Popô" and "A Marcha do Demo"; the latter was included in the Titãs compilation album E-collection from 2000.
In 2002 Mautner served as a guest musician on synth-pop band Metrô's third album, Déjà-Vu, providing violin and additional vocals for some tracks. In the same year he released a collaborative album with Caetano Veloso, Eu Não Peço Desculpa, which won the Latin Grammy Award in 2003.
A documentary about Mautner, directed by Pedro Bial and Heitor d'Alincourt, was released in 2012 to positive reception, entitled Jorge Mautner: O Filho do Holocausto; it was inspired by his autobiography of the same name, published in 2006. In the same year he collaborated with Rogério Skylab in his album Abismo e Carnaval, writing the lyrics and providing additional vocals for the track "Palmeira Brasileira".
On January 17, 2016, coinciding with his 75th birthday, Mautner published his eleventh book, Kaos Total.
On July 28, 2016, it was reported that Mautner suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the Hospital Samaritano in Rio. He underwent a surgery to implant four stents into his heart, but eventually recovered. One month later, on August 30, he announced that he began work on a 10-volume series of books about his years as a militant for the Brazilian Communist Party during the mid-1960s.
In 2017 Mautner appeared in Laís Bodanzky's film Just Like Our Parents as Homero Fabri.
From 1968 until her death in 1983 Mautner was married to historian Ruth Mendes, with whom he had a daughter, Amora (born 1975), who became a famous telenovela director.
Originally recorded in 1973; contributed with track "Samba dos Animais"
^ Mautner, Jorge (2009), "Nossa amálgama", Figas (interview) (in Portuguese) (1), archived from the original on January 18, 2012 .
^ "Jards Macalé, O Banquete dos mendigos, 1974", 300 discos importantes da música brasileira, WordPress, August 30, 2009 .
^ "Jorge Mautner faz 75 anos e lança novo livro com reunião de letras e poemas" (in Portuguese). Estadão. January 17, 2016. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
^ "Jorge Mautner sofre infarto e passa por cirurgia no Rio de Janeiro". Interior da Bahia (in Portuguese). July 28, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
^ Arnaldo Bloch (August 30, 2016). "'A morte é tudo', diz Jorge Mautner um mês após infarto". O Globo (in Portuguese). Retrieved January 2, 2017.
This page was last edited on 25 January 2019, at 18:56 (UTC).
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Do you speak native Italian and also English on a professional level ?
You must speak on a professional level the Italian and English languages and you need to have a proactive attitude with high communication and great soft skills. To fulfill this job you need to be able to multitask, work together in a team and if you do have already worked in the hospitality/travel industry then you have a big plus in advantage to get this job.
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Translation:The flying car is not cheap.
"나는" is not "my". "나는" is "I". "My" is "나의" or "내".
How can you tell the difference between bow and bow? Flat and flat? Fair and fair (and fair)? Context, duh. Don't act like Korean is unusually awfully difficult for having homonyms.
You didn't give an answer in any of that.
The problem here is there is NO CONTEXT. If you are looking at a single sentence alone, it is difficult to distinguish between a topic marker (~는) and a verb used as a modifier (also ~ㅇ는). And the problem for the student is compounded by Korean's weak use of word order (because it has subject/topic markers) and lots of overlap in the spelling of these grammatical markers (like 는 here, or 면 and 면서). And it doesn't help that Duolingo likes to construct unusual sentences - for example, I don't expect 'flying' to be associated with a car. So I think the criticism is valid.
I would accept all crazy answers as long as they are grammatical, but as @BobPancakes pointed out, 나는 does not mean my. What do you think this sentence would mean if "나는" was a topic?
As a non-native speaker, I obviously don't have the same instincts, but is there a way, easily, to tell "hey, it's not I, it's flying".
What tripped me up was less that they are the same spelling, but rather that for this sentence, both would appear in the same location quite often.
I was sitting here trying to reason how "I do not have an expensive car" would work with the grammar, but figured that made sense.
But yes, are there strategies to help disambiguate words? Every language is difference, and sometimes context isn't quite helpful enough for a non-native speaker. Tips are appreciated!
Are you a car?? 나는 (I) 자동차가 (car) 싸지 않아요 (be not cheap) = I, a car, am not cheap. Unless you're Bumblebee, this makes no sense. Here, -가 identifies a non-human subject, so 나는 must be a modifier. 나는 (flying) 자동차가 (car) 싸지 않아요 (be not cheap) = A flying car is not cheap.
'Bumblebee' part makes me laugh.
Maybe I'm wrong but I think "I do not have an expensive car" would be "나는 비싼 자동차를 없어요".
"나는 자동차가 싸지 않습니다." would be, at best, "My car is not expensive." which is a very odd way of saying it.
Does this mean 나는 자동차가 있어요 mean both "I have a car" and "There is a flying car"?
"나는 네가 거기에서 무엇을 했는지를 안다."
"나는 펜 하나를 가지고 있어. 나는 사과 하나를 가지고 있어."
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For Mains: Infrastructure development- need, challenges and solutions.
Context: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) plans to raise Rs10,000 crore through Bharatmala Taxable Bonds in the ongoing financial year.
As per the internal and extra budgetary resources approved for 2018-19 by the government, a sum of Rs62,000 crore is to be raised by NHAI through various instruments/sources including Bharatmala bonds.
Bharatmala Project is the second largest highways construction project in the country since NHDP, under which almost 50,000 km or highway roads were targeted across the country. Bharatmala will look to improve connectivity particularly on economic corridors, border areas and far flung areas with an aim of quicker movement of cargo and boosting exports.
Mains Question: Critically examine the features of Bharatmala Pariyojana (BMP) initiative and its likely impact on economic growth of India.
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Spyro the Dragon was first released on the original PlayStation in 1998. It was followed by two sequels, Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage and Spyro: Year of the Dragon in 1999 and 2000, respectively. This awesome trio of platforming video games followed the adventures of Spyro the purple dragon, as he explored a huge variety of levels and environments to defeat enemies and complete specific goals, all while collecting large amounts of treasure.
These three games have been remastered (like Star Wars) in Spyro Reignited Trilogy, which is now available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
What is the Spyro Reignited Trilogy?
Spyro Reignited Trilogy is a remastered collection of the first three games in a single package. Each game has been given a complete visual overhaul, transforming rather empty (but still colorful spaces, for the PlayStation 1) into jaw-dropping worlds with tons of new details and rich, vibrant colors that make them feel alive.
In all three games, players must complete a variety of themed levels, making their way from a starting point to an end point while defeating enemies and collecting gems. Players need to do lots of jumping and gliding to make it from one platform to the next, which tests their reflexes if they want to see and do everything each stage has to offer. Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage and Spyro: Year of the Dragon add new features to the formula created with the first game, giving players more to do.
Let’s break each game down one by one.
In Spyro the Dragon, Spyro and his loyal dragonfly companion Sparx must rescue Spyro’s dragon friends, who have been turned into statues by the evil Gnasty Gnorc.
Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage follows Spyro and Sparx on their adventure in the magical land of Avalar, where Spyro is recruited by Elora (a faun), Hunter (a cheetah), and a character named the Professor to save the world from the evil Ripto. This time around, Spyro can learn new abilities, such as how to swim and climb walls (in the first game, water is a hazard).
While levels in the first game can easily be completed to 100 percent the first time through, in Ripto’s Rage, certain areas will only become accessible once Spyro learns specific abilities. Players will need to revisit stages multiple times in order to do everything, much like they need to replay stages in a modern Lego game. Ripto’s Rage also adds secondary quests to each level, allowing players to complete objectives of varying difficulty levels for the local citizens to collect rewards.
Finally, in Spyro: Year of the Dragon, Spyro (again accompanied by Sparx) must recover the dragon eggs that have been stolen by the evil Sorceress. Year of the Dragon introduces additional playable characters to the mix, each with their own abilities. For instance, Sheila the kangaroo can jump much higher than Spyro. The game even lets users play as Sparx in challenging top-down shooter levels.
Collecting gems plays a big role in each game. In the first game, players will need to collect a required number of total gems to unlock passage between a few of the game’s hub worlds. In the second and third games, players will frequently need to collect the required number of gems to pay off Moneybags, a character who will charge Spyro to access bridges, unlock new skills (in the second game), and more. While some gems are easy to find, it becomes a real challenge when trying to collect everything in every level, due to the inclusion of hidden areas, platforms that can only be reached by performing challenging jumps, and more.
While each level contains its own unique enemies, most every enemy falls into one of a few main groups, in terms of how they’re defeated. Small, normal enemies (those without armor) can be defeated by either charging into them or blasting them with Spyro’s fire breath. Large enemies can only be defeated with fire, and finally, any enemy wearing shiny armor needs to be defeated with a charge attack. There are only a few exceptions to these standard types, and the combat remains the same through all three games, so once kids pick up on the rules, they can take out anything in their path without having to memorize complex strategies.
That isn’t to say these game are easy. Levels often contain enemies that are bunched together in small spaces, requiring quick presses of both the charge and fire button to take out each in the appropriate way before Spyro gets hit.
In all three games, Sparx serves as Spyro’s health meter. He starts out gold, but turns blue and eventually green before disappearing entirely as Spyro takes damage. Players can recharge Sparx’s power by defeating harmless critters in each stage, like sheep or rats. However, if players take a hit while Sparx is missing, they’ll lose a life and will restart at the last checkpoint they passed (there are lots of these, so players won’t lose too much progress even if they die).
Are these games ok for young kids?
The Spyro Reignited Trilogy is rated E10+ by the ESRB, with content descriptors for “Cartoon Violence” and “Comic Mischief.” While the content is appropriate for youngsters, the youngest players will likely find it challenging to see and do everything in every level without your help.
Each game also contains a series of flying levels, which ask players to do things like fly through rings, destroy explosive barrels, and more before running out of time. These levels are incredibly challenging even for adults -- far more so than we remember them being back in the day. Thankfully, players will only need to master these stages if they’re going for total completion, and they can retry as many times as they need in order to finish them.
While kids may find completing each game to 100 percent a challenge, the pros far outweigh the cons. For one, players aren’t required to collect everything to beat each game, so if your kids aren’t interested in being challenged, they can skip the more difficult parts. In addition, a helpful mini-map can be activated in the corner of the screen, which will show players their current location so they can avoid getting turned around.
Finally, the games have full voice acting, and most dialog is accompanied by subtitles (though there is no subtitle option for the cutscenes), so kids can practice reading along as characters speak.
One last thing to note: In Spyro: Year of the Dragon, a few levels contain a skateboarding mini-game that’s way more fun than it has any right to be. Players can spend hours mastering all of the skate tricks to try and top their high score, so there’s always something to do.
Spyro Reignited Trilogy is a colorful, charming, and delightful experience for players young and old. Older players can challenge their skills by trying to reach 100 percent completion, while youngsters can have a blast shooting fire at sheep and running around each semi-open world.
Whether you played these games when you were younger, or will be experiencing them for the first time with your kids, these are classic games reborn that (with the exception of some flying stages) are just as fun now as they were the first time around.
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0.999297 |
Enter your email address in all lowercase, and then enter your password. Click Submit.
To log in you must already have an account and have given yourself a password.
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0.986408 |
Our solar system is made up of sun, planets, a number of moons, comets and asteroids. Out of these, the comets are the most mysterious celestial objects. A number of comets have been accidentally discovered. Ashbrook–Jackson is one of them and belongs to the Jupiter family of periodic (P) comets. A close encounter with Jupiter in the year 1945 brought this comet into our solar plane. Originating from the icy zone called the Kuiper belt beyond the distant planet of Neptune, comet Ashbrook–Jackson blazes a dusty trail of water, ice and gas. Let us learn about this comet in detail.
Comet Ashbrook–Jackson was discovered by two astronomers namely Joseph Ashbrook from Arizona, United States and Cyril Jackson from Yale–Columbia Station, Johannesburg, South Africa. While visiting the Lowell Observatory, Arizona in US to study minor planets, Joseph Ashbrook discovered a diffused comet with a short tail. On the other hand, Cyril Jackson was experimenting with a 50 cm focus camera, which could take pictures of the fast moving minor planets and a comet appeared. It is the 47th comet discovered twice within 12 hours on 26th August, 1948. Hence, it was named as 47P/Ashbrook–Jackson.
What were the observations made about 47P/Ashbrook–Jackson?
This comet was observed to be made up of gas and dust. Data suggests that it is very gassy with a higher ratio of gas as compared to that of dust.
An important observation also suggests that it has a perihelion asymmetry. In other words, a great activity was noted when it was closest to the sun on its orbital path.
Its nucleus measures about 5.6 km and its orbit is inclined at 13°.
After its 7th apparition in 2001, it was observed that this comet has a rapid rate of brightening and fading.
On its discovery in 1948, comet Ashbrook–Jackson had a magnitude of about 11.5 and it appeared bright. However, its last observation revealed a magnitude of about 18. Though very bright, it appears faded due to its large perihelion distance.
What was its perihelion distance?
The perihelion distance of the comet 47P/ Ashbrook–Jackson or its orbital point closest to the Sun is noted at about 2.815558 AU. When discovered, its perihelion distance was noted at 2.3 AU. The perihelion and aphelion distances of the comet are affected due to the gravitational pull and push of the giant planet Jupiter.
The orbital period of comet 47P/ Ashbrook–Jackson is noted at around 8.38 years. At the time of its discovery, the orbital period was noted at 7.49 years. Comet 47P/ Ashbrook–Jackson has the most eccentric orbit as its perihelion and aphelion distances keep changing.
Comet 47P/ Ashbrook–Jackson was recovered by Michael Mattiazzo on 4th July, 2000. Comet Ashbrook–Jackson’s apparition depends on its orbital period around the sun.
Comet 47P/ Ashbrook–Jackson had a close encounter with Jupiter in 1945, which reduced its perihelion distance of 3.8 AU to 2.3 AU and led to its discovery in 1948.
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Waterfalls of Bali When you think of Bali a lot of people think of white sandy beaches, rolling surf and watching the sunset by the ocean. If you look away from the coast and head inland you can find the other side. Beautiful waterfalls, hidden canyons and crystal clear swimming holes.
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How do you cite a book in the African and Black Diaspora: An International Journal referencing style?
How to reference a journal article in the African and Black Diaspora: An International Journal citation style?
It is becoming more and more common to reference podcasts in essays or other school work. Here’s how to do it in African and Black Diaspora: An International Journal.
How to cite a piece of music or a song using African and Black Diaspora: An International Journal referencing style?
An example song citation in African and Black Diaspora: An International Journal.
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0.999741 |
What level should I get to meet any monsters or friendly creatures?
Creatures begin to appear on the island starting from level 4. As you unlock new building types on the map, a new creature type appears. Creatures fall in two categories: the first ones should be banished with weapons, while others are natives with whom you can trade various artifacts.
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0.999335 |
Can we use two elisions in a single word?
Can we use an elision in the middle of a word?
Almighty seems to be an edge case, because it's the fusion of all and mighty, so we sometimes see a'mighty, but I am not sure if you can use it in the middle of any word.
It was once common to use multiple elisions withing a single word, writing "cannot" as "c'n't" instead of the now standard "can't". This is now quite rare, but still valid, and may be used in psoetry to achieve a matrical effect. However, it may look contrived, and puzzle the reader, thus disrupting the flow of the verse, which is probably not what is wanted. Anyhtign too non-standard has this risk.
As to omitting the apostrophe as well, there are a few cases in which it is common or traditional to do so. "Til then" as an elision of "Until then" is not uncommon without an apostrophe, and "cant" without its apostrophe seems to be becoming more common. Come to think of it, "its" as the possessive of "it" never takes an apostrophe, as opposed to the contraction of "it is". But if there is any doubt, I would err on the side of leaving the apostrophe in. It makes what you are doing clearer, and reduces possible reader confusion. What is the benefit of leaving it out, after all? You aren't being charged by the character.
As to use in the middle of a word, note that the most commonly used elisions in modern English are the standard contractions "can't", "won't", "wouldn't", "shan't", and the like, all of which elide the "o" of "not" in a compound.
As Jason Bassford notes in a comment, elision can also refer to the omission of an entire word, phrase or sentence. This will not be indicated by an apostrophe, but, if at all, by an ellipsis (...) or possibly a dash. Such omissions are far from unheard of in poetry. Again, the problem is to make what remains clear enough to work for the reader.
mis'ry, comf'table, murd'rous extr'ordin'ry, and maybe us'ly.
misry, comfterble, murdrous, extrordinry, uzhly.
Or, if your poetry has a strong meter, you could just trust your readers to realize that they need to drop some syllables to make it scan.
Personally, I think the apostrophes look better than misspelling the words.
But one comment: Do people actually say apostr'phe? I wouldn't know how to pronounce the sequence of consonants /strf/ in the middle of the word. I can pronounce aposterphe, but that has the same number of syllables as apostrophe, so unless you were trying to make it rhyme with Gloucester fee I don't see why you would want to specify that (not uncommon) mispronunciation.
If you want people to actually read your poetry out loud, I would recommend only using elisions where the resulting word is pronounceable.
Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged creative-writing poetry or ask your own question.
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Are cable companies conspiring to shut out Netflix, Hulu?
Justice Department Probe: So think about it a minute: Would you want to live your life as a pipe, doing nothing but moving everybody else's slush around?
No, of course, you wouldn't and the Justice Department reportedly suspects that Comcast, Time Warner and other cable companies don't like the idea either and is said to be investigating whether they have conspired to squash competition from the likes of Netflix and Hulu.
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U-NII Low (U-NII-1): 5.150-5.250 GHz. Originally limited to indoor use only. Regulations required use of an integrated antenna, with power limited to 50 mW. Rules changed in 2014 to permit outdoor operation, maximum fixed power 1 watt, maximum fixed EIRP 4 watts (+36 dBm) point-to-multipoint, 200 watts (+53 dBm) point-to-point. However, strict out-of-band emission rules limit practical point-to-point power to lower levels.
U-NII-2B: 5.350-5.470 GHz. Currently 120MHz of spectrum not allocated by the FCC for unlicensed use.
U-NII Worldwide (U-NII-2C / U-NII-2e): 5.470-5.725 GHz. Both outdoor and indoor use, subject to Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS, or radar avoidance). Power limited to 250 mW. This spectrum was added by the FCC in 2003 to "align the frequency bands used by U-NII devices in the United States with bands in other parts of the world". The FCC currently has an interim limitation on operations on channels which overlap the 5600 - 5650 MHz band.
DSRC/ITS (U-NII-4): 5.850 to 5.925 GHz. At present U-NII-4 spectrum is being considered by the FCC for unlicensed use. U-NII-4 is presently only usable for Dedicated Short Range Communications Service (DSRC) and licensed Amateur Radio Operators.
U-NII-2B 5.350–5.470 GHz 120 MHz . .
U-NII Worldwide / U-NII-2C / U-NII-2-Extended / U-NII-2e 5.470–5.725 GHz 255 MHz . .
DSRC/ITS / U-NII-4 5.850–5.925 GHz 75 MHz . .
Wireless ISPs generally use 5.725-5.825 GHz.
In the USA licensed amateur radio operators are authorized 5.650-5.925 GHz by Part 97.303 of the FCC rules.
U-NII is an FCC regulatory domain for 5- GHz wireless devices. U-NII power limits are defined by the United States CFR Title 47 (Telecommunication), Part 15 - Radio Frequency Devices, Subpart E - Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure Devices, Paragraph 15.407 - General technical requirements. Regulatory use in individual countries may differ.
The European HiperLAN standard operates in same frequency band as the U-NII.
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0.99996 |
Ashburton Grove - Arsenal news and Arsenal opinion: Wenger's defensive headache -Walcott offered £80k/week deal -Podolski to replace Chamakh?
Wenger's defensive headache -Walcott offered £80k/week deal -Podolski to replace Chamakh?
It's West Brom up next for Arsene Wenger's men and the manager will be looking to achieve a third Premier League clean sheet at the Grove this season on Saturday.
With the shut out against Marseille a good foundation to build on, the manager has got a bit of a headache on who he will pick at the heart of his defence.
The early team news is good. Thomas Vermaelen has not suffered any adverse reaction for his first 90 minutes since returning from surgery, so will be fit to start against Roy Hodgson's men.
Kieran Gibbs is still not available as is Marouane Chamakh, but Wenger says both will be ready to play again after the international break.
But the big decision comes as to which central defensive pairing the manager will pick: Mertesacker/Vermaelen, Merteacker/Koscielny or Koscielny/Vermaelen.
"The balance is vital. In fairness though, I must say that all the three can play with each other. Koscielny and Vermaelen can play together and Mertesacker can play with Vermaelen and Koscielny.
"It gives us a bit of an opportunity to rotate a bit when needed and people are tired.
"Ideally, Vermaelen will play on the left [of the centre-back pair]. But Koscielny can play on the left as well so we have a good potential and balance there. I think that all the three can play at any moment, and we still have Djourou and Squillaci as well.
"People wanted us to buy a centre-back so much and then suddenly you realise we have plenty."
That last sentence to me is disingenuous. He went out and signed Per Mertesacker in the summer, so he did go out and buy a centre back. We were down to three experienced central defenders last winter with Vermaelen out for practically the whole season and yes, fans were calling for a signing in that area because we were weak.
I don't think anyone has suggested since Mertesacker's arrival that we need to sign another central defender. Everyone can see we're well stocked in that area and behind Mertesacker and Vermaelen there is Koscielny, Djourou and even the forgotten Sebastien Squillaci waiting in the wings. And that's even before you think about rookies like Ignasi Miquel and Kyle Bartley.
The manager has a tough call to make on who will start in the middle this weekend. Does he continue with Mertesacker and Vermaelen or recall Koscielny? Personally I would have the Frenchman back in the team for the German because I think against West Brom you want a back line which is more mobile against pace, something which Mertesacker is not.
That said I was impressed with the Mertesacker/Vermaelen partnership on Tuesday night and I can see the manager continuing with them to see how they perform in a Premier League match together. But that decision would be very hard on Koscielny who has come on leaps and bounds this season, enough to earn himself a call up to the French national team.
There is one game to go before the international break, so we really want to end this period with another home win, so it will be an interesting decision the manager makes.
Elsewhere there is speculation in both the Daily Express and The Sun we're about to open talks with Theo Walcott on a new contract.
It's suggested the new deal could push his weekly wages from £60k to £80k a week, if he agrees to sign the extension until 2015.
I think it's fair to say Walcott has still to find consistency in his performances but is certainly moving in the right direction. Is that because he is under more threat than he's ever been at Arsenal of losing his place in the starting 11? With youngsters like Alex Oxlade Chamberlain and Ryo Miyaichi signed in the summer along with the more experienced Gervinho, Walcott has got to be looking over his shoulder.
Has that made him buck his ideas up and focus on playing? Possibly. But it's also made him talk more loudly about being played centrally, something I don't think he's ready for.
Chelsea inquired about his availability last summer and were told he's not for sale. So there is interest elsewhere. I think he'll sign a new deal. He's only 22 and for all my criticism of him, I think he is a good player. If only he could be more consistent.
There is a lot of transfer speculation around this morning.
First up we'll turn to the Daily Mail who says we're offering a one month trial to 21-year-old USA winger Brek Shea. Don't know anything about the player but the wide areas appear to be well stocked at the moment so perhaps Wenger sees Shea's position somewhere else.
Also in the Daily Mail is news we're keeping an eye on the situation of Barcelona's 17-year-old forward Gerard Deulofeu. Apparently he wants first team assurances. Perhaps he thinks he should start ahead of that Lionel Messi guy.
And completing a hattrick of stories from the Daily Mail is speculation that Marouane Chamakh could be off in January - a line this newspaper is running heavily - with Sevilla or Everton being his options at the moment.
If Chamakh did leave - and I don't think he will, especially after Wenger agreed to loan out Nicklas Bendtner at the start of the season - perhaps we'd be sign Cologne and Germany striker Lukas Podolski, who The Sun says we could get on the cheap unless the German club sort out his contract situation.
Imagine a van Persie and Podolski strike force. That would scare defences!
The manager holds his press conference ahead of the West Brom game later. It will be interesting to hear what he has to say about his problem in defence - which two of the three he'll pick - a tough call.
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For a gal who doesn’t typically like whiskey, why in the world would I decide to post about a whiskey drink? Crazy, right?
Some way, some how I discovered the New York Sour and I’m so thankful I did. I don’t make this drink very often, but when I do, I sure do love it. It involves whiskey, lemon, simple syrup and wine. It’s sweet, slightly sour, and doesn’t have an overwhelming whiskey taste (because of the red wine and lemon).
1. Add the whiskey, simple syrup and lemon juice into a shaker and fill with ice.
3. Carefully pour the wine over the back of a spoon so it floats on top of the drink. This part it is rather difficult, so you might want to watch this helpful YouTube video to get it right.
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Who would've envisioned this: Tim Wakefield joining Roger Clemens in the Boston record book? The 42-year-old knuckleballer pitched six scoreless innings to beat the Atlanta Braves 1-0 yesterday, a worthy performance for the game that tied him with Clemens for the most career starts by a Red Sox pitcher.
Who would've envisioned this: Tim Wakefield joining Roger Clemens in the Boston record book?
The 42-year-old knuckleballer pitched six scoreless innings to beat the Atlanta Braves 1-0 yesterday, a worthy performance for the game that tied him with Clemens for the most career starts by a Red Sox pitcher.
Mark Kotsay drove in the game's only run with a sixth-inning single off Javier Vazquez, who certainly pitched well enough to win but got no help from the listless Atlanta offense.
The Braves have scored only one run in two games against the Red Sox this weekend, extending their losing streak to four straight and dropping a season-worst six games under .500 (34-40).
Wakefield (10-3) became the AL's third 10-game winner, joining Minnesota's Kevin Slowey and Toronto's Roy Halladay. The knuckleball was really fluttering on a sweltering day at Turner Field that was 95 degrees at first pitch.
The Braves managed just three singles off Wakefield.
``It feels really good to have 10 wins before the All-Star break,'' he said.
Manny Delcarmen retired all four hitters he faced, Justin Masterson got out of trouble in the eighth and Jonathan Papelbon worked around a shaky ninth to complete the four-hit shutout, his 18th save in 19 chances.
But Wakefield did the bulk of the work.
The Braves threatened against Papelbon. Brian McCann flied out to the wall in right-center and Garret Anderson doubled with two outs, but Casey Kotchman grounded out to end the game.
The Braves didn't get a runner past second until the eighth, and they had to scratch for that. Matt Diaz walked against Masterson, moved up on a wild pitch and took third on a groundout.
Boston took advantage of a lineup weakened by injuries to Nate McLouth and Yunel Escobar. Three of Atlanta's nine hitters came into the game hitting below .200.
McCann and Gregor Blanco both stole second after singling off Wakefield, taking advantage of his slow knuckleball. They didn't get any further. Blanco led off the sixth with another hit and moved up on a sacrifice bunt by Martin Prado, but the Boston starter retired Atlanta's most dangerous hitters: Chipper Jones with a liner to second and Brian McCann on a slow roller to first.
With that, Wakefield's work was done.
Vazquez (5-7) struck out eight to claim the NL strikeout lead from San Francisco's Tim Lincecum (125-124), but a brief spurt of wildness in the sixth was costly.
After retiring the first two Boston hitters, Vazquez issued back-to-back walks to Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz, the latter after getting ahead 0-2 in the count. Big Papi got the call on a breaking pitch that just missed the strike zone, then managed to check his swing on a 3-2 pitch that swerved inside, nearly hitting him.
Kotsay, a former Brave filling in for Jason Bay, came through with a single to left, bringing home Youkilis with the game's only run.
The pitching matchup was a contrast in styles: Vazquez's 90-plus-mph fastballs and hard breaking pitches vs. Wakefield's tantalizingly slow knucklers, usually thrown in the mid-60s and once dipping down to 59 mph on the radar gun.
Vazquez went 7 1/3 innings, allowing just six hits and three walks. He left after Youkilis tripled off the wall in right with two outs in the eighth, prompting the Braves to bring on lefty Eric O'Flaherty, who walked Ortiz intentionally before retiring Kotsay on a weak fly to center.
``You've got too keep battling,'' Vazquez said.
NOTES: Boston's Mike Lowell didn't start because of an ailing hip, but he did come on as a pinch-hitter in the seventh and flied out to right. Francona said he's not likely to start Lowell in today's series finale, either. ... The Red Sox have three shutouts this season, two against the Braves. ... Atlanta had its third straight sellout, 48,151.
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Estonia is a "Baltic State," which is located in northern Europe on the Baltic Sea. Estonia borders Latvia (south) and Russia (east); Finland is close as well, as that country lies across the Gulf of Finland to the north.
Geographically, Estonia is fairly low-lying, but uniform as it stands just above sea level on the Baltic Sea. Much of the country is too low to prevent flooding, hence deterring living, but the northern coast and the far southeast provide better drainage or higher elevations so less flooding. Climatic conditions have a greater role in living conditions than does geography.
Estonia has two primary seasons, plus short springs and falls (autumns). Winter and the surrounding months can be cold as Tallinn only averages about 25˚ F (-4˚ C) during this time.
Summers are short, but have long days as temperatures in Tallinn average about 62˚ F (16˚ C), but the long sunny days can get much warmer.
Living in Estonia's many forests are a number of mammals, including elk, deer, and pigs, along with many rarer animals and dozens of small woodland animals like rabbits, mink, and foxes. There are many sea animals as Estonia is bordered by water on two sides; cod, salmon, and herring are common.
There are numerous birds that migrate to or through Estonia, while few remain year round.
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What is the simplest way to control your weight? Walking? Jogging? Weights? Some combination of the above? No, according to a new study, simply slowing down when you eat is among the best strategies to control weight, and probably the easiest to implement.
The Japanese study found that people who eat slowly are 42 percent less likely to be obese than those who waft down their meals. Other studies have reported similar findings.
So slow down and chew over the benefits of savoring each bite.
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in the bulk medium, where colloids and mucus sheets can form tangled polymer webs (3). Gradients in fluid velocity due to turbulent shear can occur at millimeter scales and result in subtle hydrodynamic interactions with cell shape (11). Salinity can equally vary on submillimeter scales, owing, for example, to pockets of interstitial fluid carried by porous particles sinking through the water column (12).
Likely as a consequence of this heterogeneity, bacteria are also heterogeneously distributed, with recorded variations in cell concentration of up to 20-fold over 10 to 30 mm (13). Thus, despite its superficial homogeneous appearance, the water column can have a rich physical, chemical, and biological microarchitecture, not unlike that of environments dominated by surfaces, such as sediments or animal hosts. In the following, I focus on a specific adaptation to this heterogeneity: chemotactic motility.
Chemotactic motility is not only the most conspicuous adaptation to microscale chemical gradients, but also a de facto demonstration of their existence. A subtle distinction is in order: motility alone does not increase microbial nutrient uptake, whereas chemotaxis can. The description of marine bacteria as the “ultimate swimming stomachs” [J. Stern in (14)] should not be interpreted in the same manner as whales swimming open-mouthed to catch plankton: The uptake rate of a bacterium while it swims is the same as when it rests, except for very high molecular weight solutes (15). In contrast, cells can increase uptake by residing in high-concentration microenvironments, which they find by chemotaxing along gradients. Thus, chemotactic motility is intimately linked to microscale gradients. But how prevalent is motility among marine bacteria?
It contrast to phytoplankton, whose motility is a well-studied, distinguishing trait (e.g., in the competition between diatoms and dinoflagellates), or enteric bacteria, whose chemotaxis is among the best understood cellular processes, bacterial motility and its prevalence have been given less attention in the ocean. On one hand, we know that some numerically abundant organisms, such as Pelagibacter ubique of the SAR11 clade, are nonmotile (16). On the other hand, direct observation has shown that many marine bacteria are motile (17), and the fraction of motile cells can be as high as 20 to 60% (18, 19). Further, metagenomic studies have revealed that genes for motility and chemotaxis can be common in the photic zone (20). Nutrient enrichment can elevate the motile fraction from <10 to >50% in 12 hours (21), which suggests either a lag time for the activation of motility or the occurrence of a rapid community shift upon episodic resource inputs.
organisms (5) and cyanobacterial exudates (25).
can even briefly pursue swimming algae (26).
In contrast, copiotrophs are adapted to take advantage of rare, resource-rich conditions: Their abundance of motility and chemotaxis genes, together with fast uptake kinetics, indicate that their success is linked to an ability to exploit microscale gradients (27), and their abundance will be a reflection of the texture of the resource landscape. The metabolic flexibility of copiotrophs allows them to adapt rapidly to newly encountered microenvironments (30), for example, by disproportionately increasing protease activity upon attachment to particles (31), though their size and uptake kinetics would make them less competitive at low resource concentrations.
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represents a zeta distribution with parameter ρ.
represents a Zipf distribution with range n.
ZipfDistribution[ρ] is also known as the discrete Pareto distribution.
ZipfDistribution[n,ρ] is also known as the Estoup distribution.
The probability for value and finite is given by and for infinite given by .
ZipfDistribution allows ρ to be any positive real number and n any positive integer.
ZipfDistribution[n,ρ] represents a discrete statistical distribution defined for integer values and determined by a positive real parameter ρ and by a positive integer parameter n (the range of the distribution). The Zipf distribution has a probability density function (PDF) that is discrete and monotone decreasing, and whose overall shape (its spread, its domain, and its steepness) is determined by the values of ρ and n. The Zipf distribution stated is sometimes referred to as the Estoup distribution. The one-parameter form ZipfDistribution[ρ] is equivalent to the limit of ZipfDistribution[n,ρ] as n→∞ and is most commonly referred to as "the" Zipf distribution, though it may also be referred to as the zeta distribution, Zipfian distribution, or discrete Pareto distribution (not to be confused with the continuous ParetoDistribution).
The Zipf distribution is named for American linguist George Zipf, who applied the distribution heavily in his work on behavior and psychology throughout the 1930s and 1940s. Though the distribution was studied and applied in similar contexts by French stenographer Jean-Baptiste Estoup as early as 1912, Zipf's work inspired what is now known as Zipf's law (of which the Zipf distribution is the foundation), which states that the frequency of any word in any usage of natural language is inversely proportional to its rank in the language's associated frequency table. Many modern applications of the Zipf distribution are therefore related to linguistics and semantics, though the distribution has also been applied to phenomena in number theory, biology, and economics.
RandomVariate can be used to give one or more machine- or arbitrary-precision (the latter via the WorkingPrecision option) pseudorandom variates from a Zipf distribution. Distributed[x,ZipfDistribution[n,ρ]], written more concisely as xZipfDistribution[n,ρ], can be used to assert that a random variable x is distributed according to a Zipf distribution. Such an assertion can then be used in functions such as Probability, NProbability, Expectation, and NExpectation.
The probability density and cumulative distribution functions may be given using PDF[ZipfDistribution[n,ρ],x] and CDF[ZipfDistribution[n,ρ],x], though one should note that there is no closed-form expression for its PDF. The mean, median, variance, raw moments, and central moments may be computed using Mean, Median, Variance, Moment, and CentralMoment, respectively. These quantities can be visualized using DiscretePlot.
DistributionFitTest can be used to test if a given dataset is consistent with a Zipf distribution, EstimatedDistribution to estimate a Zipf parametric distribution from given data, and FindDistributionParameters to fit data to a Zipf distribution. ProbabilityPlot can be used to generate a plot of the CDF of given data against the CDF of a symbolic Zipf distribution, and QuantilePlot to generate a plot of the quantiles of given data against the quantiles of a symbolic Zipf distribution.
TransformedDistribution can be used to represent a transformed Zipf distribution, CensoredDistribution to represent the distribution of values censored between upper and lower values, and TruncatedDistribution to represent the distribution of values truncated between upper and lower values. CopulaDistribution can be used to build higher-dimensional distributions that contain a Zipf distribution, and ProductDistribution can be used to compute a joint distribution with independent component distributions involving Zipf distributions.
ZipfDistribution is related to a number of other statistical distributions. It is often thought of as a discretized version of ParetoDistribution and hence is related to PowerDistribution, StableDistribution, ExponentialDistribution, PearsonDistribution, and BetaPrimeDistribution. ZipfDistribution is also related to CauchyDistribution, LevyDistribution, PoissonDistribution, PoissonConsulDistribution, and SkellamDistribution.
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0.998446 |
The practice of Movietelling seems so fresh and unexplored. It's so rare to come upon a medium that is both relatively untapped, as well as somewhat resistant to being a novelty. For anyone not yet privy to the term Movietelling, let me begin by saying that it's a term coined by Walter K. Lew, in reference to the revived and renovated practice of the traditional Pyonsa (Korea), Benshi (Japan), Benzi (Taiwan), Lector (Poland), Gavrilov Transltor (former USSR), and other historically and culturally specific live narrators of film. It would be difficult, if not impossible, to sum up the specific function of each of these in a single description, but if we focus on the practices that are most commonly derived from today, the task becomes more reasonable. To that end, Pyonsa and Benshi, among the performances I have been associated with, seen, or read about tend to be the most common. Toward the beginning of the second decade of the 20th Century, silent foreign films were making their way to the countries of Asia (coming mainly from Europe and the United States). As the countries of Korea and Japan already possessed a rich history of stage performance (puppetry, mimes, theater and more), film might have been perceived as a similar art. And like many of the other stage performances, a narrator became a part of the film watching experience. In many cases, long before film narration, a narrator was responsible for far more than general narration; he or she may express the dialogue of each character, adopting a wide range of voices, as well as sound effects and singing. Another important note is the visual presence of the narrator: generally off to one side, as if their range of sight were to fill the gap between performance and audience. Among our current Western traditions, instances of narration are often intentionally hidden from view: a retrospective voice in a film, an announcer at a sports event, or one might even include the dubbing of a pop-singer's performance.
The Pyonsa and Benshi, as with the narrators of many other Asian genres of that period, were always exposed, though in some instances (following several decades of the practice(s)), the narrator presented (amplified) from behind the audience. The narrator often became inseparable from the film watching experience, often to the point of gaining celebrity on par (if not greater than) that of the actors. People often went to see a certain film as a result of it being narrated by a certain Pyonsa or Benshi. This tradition continued even after actors were given voices, but eventually the practice became increasingly esoteric (perhaps as a result of the technologically influenced spectacular scale of later films) and was relegated to the event listings of preservation societies and museums.
I've provided a significantly abridged version of one very small facet of the history of live film narration, and merely for the purpose of briefly contextualizing the contemporary practice of Movietelling. The broadest definition of Movietelling I could give is any instance where a human contingent mediates between an audience and an image. I say this very literally, as I understand that taken relatively it may encompass more than half the pastimes and art forms of the later part of the 20th Century. The following is a quote from my contribution to the Wikipedia "Benshi" page: "While some have adopted the term "Neo-Benshi," other performers have chosen to adopt the title "Movieteller" as an alternative to "Benshi," as they believe it emphasizes both the multicultural past and future(s) of the form, while also inviting further experimentation with the medium, such as a live narration of one's own films, the implementation of instruments as narrative devices, or any instance where a human contingent mediates between an audience and an image."
I think that Movietelling is an ideal form for emphasizing the collaborative process, reinventing the recognizable image, and contributing to a more practical avant-garde, in that it draws together an attentive group, creates new specifications from more general sources, and provides an entertaining, educating unexpected experience. It seems an appropriate medium for those interested in seeking out and/or creating new spaces wherein the distance between artifact, artists and audience is less daunting, and therefore more conducive for building community, which is itself a social art.
I've put all this down because I intend to refer to this practice often, and I hope it will assist in providing some initial context.
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what should आप check for every time आप check back with a table?
The official website for the हटाइए 'Waitress'.
a question जोड़ा गया था: what should you check for every time you check back with a table?
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For other uses, see Walking with Dinosaurs (disambiguation).
Walking with Dinosaurs is a six-part documentary television miniseries created by Tim Haines and produced by BBC Natural History Unit. The series first aired on the BBC in the United Kingdom in 1999 with narration by Kenneth Branagh. The series was subsequently aired in North America on the Discovery Channel in 2000, with Avery Brooks replacing Branagh. The programme explores ancient life of the Mesozoic Era, portraying dinosaurs and their contemporaries in the style of a traditional nature documentary.
Developed by Haines and producer Jasper James, Walking with Dinosaurs recreated extinct species through the combined use of computer-generated imagery and animatronics that were incorporated with live action footage shot at various locations. The Guinness Book of World Records reported that the series was the most expensive documentary series per minute ever produced. A re-edited version of Walking with Dinosaurs aired on Discovery Kids for the first season of Prehistoric Planet. It was made more appropriate for children by removing most of the graphic content and trimming down some footage to fit the run time.
The series received critical acclaim, winning two BAFTA Awards, three Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award in 2000. Walking with Dinosaurs began a franchise that was followed by two additional miniseries, several television specials, spin-offs, a live-theatrical show, and a feature film of the same name.
Conguillío National Park in Chile (top) and the Isle of Pines in New Caledonia (bottom) served as filming locations.
Creator Tim Haines contemplated the idea of a dinosaur-centric documentary in 1996, spurred by the resurgence of public interest in prehistoric life following the release of Jurassic Park (1993). Together, with producer Jasper James and effects specialist Mike Milne, Haines shot a six-minute pilot in Cyprus as a proof-of-concept to BBC Worldwide and Discovery Channel for financing. Principal photography took place at a variety of global locations, including Conguillío National Park in Chile, the Redwood National and State Parks in California, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Tasmania, and the Bahamas. Filming consisted of wide landscape shots devoid of any live-action creatures and close-up shots with animatronics. The only creatures in the pilot that are not shown in the series are Cetiosaurus and Scaphognathus.
Since an extensive amount of computer-generated imagery would be necessary in creating the numerous full-size dinosaurs that the project demanded, Haines initially approached Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), the company responsible for creating the visual effects in Jurassic Park. ILM projected a cost of $10,000 per every second of footage featuring a CGI shot, an estimate which BBC deemed too expensive for a television budget. Instead, Haines contracted Framestore, a local British visual effects company to create the CGI elements. Maquettes were built and then scanned, with the resulting 3D models animated in Softimage 3D and added to the live-action backgrounds. Framestore consulted several palaeontologists in assisting them with developing natural movements and appearances for the dinosaurs. Michael Benton, Thomas R. Holtz, Jr., Peter Dodson, Peter Larson, Dave Martill, and James Farlow, served as consultants; their influence in the filming process was documented in the companion piece, The Making of Walking with Dinosaurs. The CG work was created over the course of two years.
Michael J. Benton, a consultant to the making of the series and professor of vertebrate palaeontology at the University of Bristol, notes that a group of critics gleefully pointed out that birds and crocodiles, the closest living relatives of the dinosaurs, do not urinate; they shed waste chemicals as more solid uric acid. In the first episode of Walking with Dinosaurs, a male Postosuchus urinates copiously to mark a female's territory as his own after she is driven away from it. However, Benton notes that nobody can prove this was a real mistake: copious urination is the primitive state for tetrapods (seen in fish, amphibians, turtles, and mammals), and perhaps basal archosaurs did the same. He believes many other claims of "errors" identified in the first weeks fizzled out, as the critics had found points about which they disagreed, but they could not prove that their views were correct.
Ornitholestes, a theropod dinosaur of the Late Jurassic, is shown with a small crest atop its head. However, subsequent studies have concluded that it most likely did not have such a crest, and that the misconception that it did came as a result of broken nasal bones in the holotype.
Tropeognathus is depicted as far larger than it actually was. In the book based on the series, it was claimed that several large bone fragments from the Romualdo Formation of Brazil possibly indicate that Tropeognathus may have had a wingspan reaching almost 12 metres and a weight of a hundred kilograms, making it one of the largest known pterosaurs. However, these specimens have not been formally described. The largest definite Tropeognathus specimens known measure 6 metres in wingspan. The specimens which the producers of the program used to justify such a large size estimate are currently undescribed, and are being studied by Dave Martill and David Unwin. Unwin stated that he does not believe this highest estimate is likely, and that the producers likely chose the highest possible estimate because it was more "spectacular." However, no other Early Cretaceous pterosaurs reached its size. Similarly, Liopleurodon is depicted as being 25 m (82 ft) long in the series, whereas the adult size known to have been reached by Liopleurodon is around 7 m (23 ft). This was also based on very fragmentary remains of which the 20 metre measurement given have been considered dubious, and it is unlikely that these remains belong to Liopleurodon.
BBC One aired the series weekly on Monday nights, with a regular repeats the following Sunday. In 2010, the series was repeated on BBC Three in omnibus format, as three hour-long episodes.
By a river, a female Coelophysis stalks a herd of dicynodonts called Placerias, looking for weak members to prey upon. Downstream, a male Thrinaxodon resides in a burrow with his family. A female Postosuchus, a rauisuchian and one of the largest carnivores alive in the Triassic, attacks the Placerias herd, and wounds one individual; the herd scatters, leaving the wounded Placerias to the Postosuchus. Early pterosaurs called Peteinosaurus are depicted feeding on dragonflies and cooling themselves in the little water remaining during the drought. Still searching for food, the Coelophysis discover the Thrinaxodon burrow; the male wards them off. Later that evening, after he goes off hunting, an inquisitive pup follows the male to the entrance and is eaten by the female Coelophysis. At night, the Thrinaxodon pair eat their remaining young and then move away. On the next day, the Coelophysis work to expose the nest. The female Postosuchus is later shown to have been wounded by the Placerias, a prior attack on them leaving her with a tusk wound on her thigh. After being unable to successfully hunt another Placerias, she is expelled from her territory by a rival male. Wounded, sick, and without a territory, the female dies and is eaten by a pack of Coelophysis. As the dry season continues, food becomes scarce. The Placerias herd embarks on a journey in search of water, while the Coelophysis begin to cannibalise their young, and the male Thrinaxodon also resorts to hunting baby Coelophysis at night. Finally, the wet season arrives; the majority of the Coelophysis have survived (including the lead female), and the Thrinaxodon pair have a new clutch of eggs. The episode ends with the arrival of a migrating herd of Plateosaurus, foreshadowing the dominance of the sauropods after the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event.
In the credits it is explained that 20 million years later, the aforementioned extinction wiped out many reptile species, but the dinosaurs continued to evolve, with carnivores growing to massive sizes and their prey becoming even larger, setting the stage for the giants of the Jurassic.
This episode follows the life of a female Diplodocus, beginning at the moment when her mother lays a clutch of eggs at the edge of a conifer forest. Months later, some of the eggs hatch; the young sauropods are preyed upon by Ornitholestes. After hatching, the hatchlings retreat to the safety of the denser trees. They face many dangers as they grow, including predation by Ornitholestes and Allosaurus. While fending off a pair of Allosaurus, a Stegosaurus also accidentally kills one of the hatchlings while swinging its tail. Elsewhere, adult herds of Diplodocus are shown using their massive weight to topple trees in order to reach cycad leaves. Each Diplodocus hosts a small mobile habitat of damselflies, Anurognathus, and dung beetles. After some time, the creche of Diplodocus have grown into subadults. Nearly all are killed by a huge forest fire; only three survivors emerge onto the open plains, including the young female. They encounter several Brachiosaurus before two reach safety to a herd of adult Diplodocus. Several years later, the female mates, and is attacked by a bull Allosaurus. She is saved when another Diplodocus strikes the Allosaurus with its tail. Although she is wounded, she rejoins the herd. The closing narration notes that the sauropods will only get larger, becoming the largest animals ever to exist.
In the credits it is stated that the sauropods eventually went into decline with their prairies becoming flooded by rising sea levels, resulting in vast inland seas and the giant marine reptiles that patrolled them.
The episode begins with a Eustreptospondylus being snatched from the shore by Liopleurodon. Meanwhile, hundreds of Ophthalmosaurus arrive from the open ocean to give birth. Hybodus and a Liopleurodon are on the hunt; when a mother Ophthalmosaurus has trouble giving birth, a pair of Hybodus pursue her. They are frightened off by a male Liopleurodon, which eats the front half of the ichthyosaur. Meanwhile, a Eustreptospondylus swims to an island and discovers a turtle carcass; it fights over the carcass with another Eustreptospondylus. Later, during the night, a group of horseshoe crabs gather at the shore to lay their eggs, which attracts a flock of Rhamphorhynchus in the morning to eat the eggs. However, a few of the pterosaurs are caught and eaten by a Eustreptospondylus. While the Ophthalmosaurus juveniles are growing up, they are hunted by Hybodus, which in turn, are prey for the Liopleurodon. While the male Liopleurodon is hunting, he encounters a female Liopleurodon; after the male bites one of her flippers, she retreats from his territory, and a group of Hybodus follows the trail of her blood. A cyclone strikes the islands, killing many animals, including several Rhamphorhynchus and the Liopleurodon, who is washed ashore and eventually suffocates under his own weight. A group of Eustreptospondylus feed on his carcass. At the end of the episode, the juvenile Ophthalmosaurus that survived the storm are now large enough to swim off and live in the open sea.
In the credits, it is stated that even though only turtles remain, marine reptiles were a glory of their age and that another group shared the dinosaur's world, the flying pterosaurs, which are claimed to be just as spectacular.
The episode begins with a male Tropeognathus dead on a beach. Six months earlier, the Tropeognathus, resting among a colony of breeding Tupandactylus in Brazil, flies off for Cantabria where it too must mate. He flies past a migrating group of the iguanodont Dakotadon and the nodosaur Polacanthus. He reaches the southern tip of North America, where he is forced to shelter from a storm. He grooms himself, expelling his body of Saurophthirus fleas; the crest on his jaw begins to change colour in preparation for the mating season. He then sets off across the Atlantic, which was then only 300 kilometres wide, and after a whole day on the wing, reaches the westernmost of the European islands. He does not rest there however, as a pack of Utahraptor are hunting Iguanodon; a young Utahraptor is bullied off an Iguanodon carcass by the adults. The Tropeognathus flies to the outskirts of a forest to rest after stealing a fish from another pterosaur, but is driven away by Iberomesornis. Flying on, he reaches Cantabria, but due to the delays, exhaustion, and old age he cannot reach the centre of the many grounded male Tropeognathus and consequently he does not mate. After several days under the sun trying to attract a mate, the protagonist Tropeognathus -alongside others who lost out- dies from heat exhaustion and starvation. The next generation of Tropeognathus feeds on their corpses.
In the credits, it is stated that the pterosaurs continued to rule the skies for millions of years while the dinosaurs continued to spread across the globe, even in the most extraordinary environments, such as the South Pole.
A few hundred kilometres from the South Pole, a clan of Leaellynasaura emerge during spring after several months of total darkness. They feed on the fresh plant growth, and build nests to lay their eggs; a male Koolasuchus also wakes and heads to a river, where he will stay during the summer. Out on the banks of the river, migrating herds of Muttaburrasaurus have also arrived to feed and lay their eggs. When summer arrives, many of the Leaellynasaura clan's eggs have been eaten; however, those of the matriarch hatch successfully. Meanwhile, a male Australovenator (6m) hunts both the Leaellynasaura and the Muttaburrasaurus, the latter species also having to deal with blood-sucking insects. When autumn arrives, the Muttaburrasaurus herd begins to migrate, and the Koolasuchus leaves the river to find a pool for hibernation. During the migration, some Muttaburrasaurus become lost in the forest; they vocalize loudly while trying to return to their herd, preventing the Leaellynasaura clan's sentries from hearing the Australovenator approaching. It manages to kill the matriarch of the clan. Winter descends and the forest is shrouded in darkness, but the now matriarch-less Leaellynasaura clan is able to stay active, using their large eyes to help them forage for food. The clan and other creatures are also shown to use various methods of coping with the cold such as being frozen alive or suspended animation. Finally, spring returns, and two Leaellynasaura males challenge each other for the right to mate, and the clan establishes a new dominant pair. The closing narration states that continental drift will soon pull this landmass closer to the South Pole, and this unique ecosystem will soon disappear.
In the credits, it is explained that away from the poles, the dinosaurs continued to rule the Earth for another 40 million years before extinction and hints that just before the end of their reign, they had evolved their most infamous predator ever.
Several months before the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction, the last dinosaurs are living under intense environmental stress due to excessive volcanism. A female Tyrannosaurus abandons her nest, the eggs rendered infertile due to poisonous volcanic gases. Her calls for a mate are answered by a smaller male, who kills a young Triceratops to appease her. Three days later, after repeated copulation, she drives him off. The mother fasts as she tends to her nest, contending with raids by Dromaeosaurus and Didelphodon. Meanwhile, herds of Edmontosaurus wander between islands of vegetation among the volcanic ash, and Torosaurus rut for the right to mate, while losing their young to attacking Dromaeosaurus. Only three of the Tyrannosaurus eggs hatch; the mother hunts an Edmontosaurus to feed herself and her brood. Several days later, while defending her two surviving offspring, the mother is fatally injured by the tail of an Ankylosaurus. The juveniles remain expectantly next to the carcass of their mother the next morning; several hours later, they are killed along with the other dinosaurs in the region by the impact of an asteroid. In an epilogue, the present-day African plains are shown; while they are now dominated by mammals after the extinction, they are still populated by numerous surviving dinosaurs: the birds.
50-minute special documenting the series' paleontological influence, animatronic effects, CGI and the real location shooting for the series background.
Ben Bartlett composed the score for Walking with Dinosaurs. Bartlett was encouraged to accept the duties of composing the series' music at the behest of Haines and James. Bartlett wrote different leitmotifs in separate styles for each episode, citing the different themes and settings presented in each episode as inspiration, elaborating, "I tried to create a different sound world for each episode of Walking With Dinosaurs. That was easy, as they all had different moods. The first episode is all about heat and bloodlust, parched deserts and so on, while the second one was pastoral, peaceful, and beautiful, about dinosaurs living in symbiosis with the forests. And so on."
The recording process took place at Angel Recording Studios in Islington, with four sessions scattered over the early months of 1999. The score was recorded by the BBC Concert Orchestra. During these sessions, Bartlett admitted to being enriched with experience by the task, stating, "It was the biggest orchestral endeavour I've ever undertaken, and I learnt so much from the first session. Practical things, like handing out the parts to the players before the session, numbering pages... tiny logistical things that can really screw up a session."
Ben Bartlett's original score for Walking with Dinosaurs was released by BBC Music on CD on 11 April 2000.
All music composed by Ben Bartlett.
Walking with Dinosaurs received critical acclaim following its initial broadcast. The series won two BAFTAs for Innovation and Best Original Television Music and earned six Primetime Emmy Award nominations, winning for Outstanding Animated Program, Outstanding Special Visual Effects and Outstanding Achievement in Non-Fiction Programming – Sound Editing. In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 1999, voted on by industry professionals, Walking with Dinosaurs was placed 72nd.
Common Sense Media praised the program, giving it five stars out of five and saying that, "Somebody had a great idea, which was to make a documentary series about dinosaurs, but with a twist. The ageing Tropeognathus on a desperate final flight to his mating grounds, the sauropod hatchlings struggling for survival in the late Jurassic, the migrating herds and the undersea life of 150 million years ago would all seem as real as a nature program about polar bears or snow monkeys." This technique of narrating the prehistoric life as though it were current has been used several times since, for example in the BBC's 2011 Planet Dinosaur series.
A companion book was written by Tim Haines to accompany the first screening of the series in 1999. The settings of some of the six episodes were changed between the time the book was written and the screening of the television series, and some of their names were changed: "New Blood" is set at Ghost Ranch, and "Cruel Sea" is set at or near Solnhofen in Germany near what then were the Vindelicisch Islands. The book elaborated on the background for each story, went further in explaining the science on which much of the program is based, and included descriptions of several animals not identified or featured in the series.
A companion volume to the first book "Walking with Dinosaurs: The Evidence" by David Martill and Darren Nash was published in 2000. It went into more detail about the research and suppositions that went into making the series.
Walking with Dinosaurs: The Arena Spectacular is a live theatrical show adaptation and travelling exhibition of the series that originated in Australia in January 2007 (as Walking with Dinosaurs: The Live Experience), and toured North America in 2007–10, Europe in 2010, and returned to North America until 2011. It also toured Asia beginning in December 2010. In 2011 the show came to its final destination of its first tour, New Zealand. In 2012, the show toured the UK, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and the Netherlands. For 2018, the show again toured various European cities.
Released in 2013, Walking with Dinosaurs is a feature-length film about dinosaurs in the Late Cretaceous period 70 million years ago. The production features computer-animated dinosaurs in live-action settings with actors John Leguizamo, Justin Long, Tiya Sircar, and Skyler Stone providing voiceovers for the main characters. It was directed by Neil Nightingale and Barry Cook from a screenplay by John Collee.
The film was produced by BBC Earth and Evergreen Films and was named after the original BBC miniseries. The film, with a budget of US$80 million, was one of the largest independent productions to date; it was financed by Reliance Entertainment and IM Global, with 20th Century Fox handling distribution. The crew filmed footage on location in the U.S. state of Alaska and in New Zealand, which were chosen for their similarities to the dinosaurs' surroundings millions of years ago, and on locations in Humboldt County, California. Animal Logic designed computer-animated dinosaurs and added them to the live-action backdrop. Though the film was originally going to have a narrator like in the miniseries, Fox executives wanted to add voiceovers to connect audiences to the characters.
Walking with Dinosaurs premiered on 14 December 2013 at the Dubai International Film Festival. It was released in cinemas in 2D and 3D on 20 December 2013. Critics commended the film's visual effects but found its storytelling to be sub-par and derided the voiceovers as juvenile. The film grossed US$34.4 million in the United States and Canada and US$71.6 million in other territories for a worldwide total of US$106 million. The Hollywood Reporter said the film's global box office performance was disappointing in context of the production budget and marketing spend.
^ 7 day data, including the original Monday broadcast and Sunday repeat for all six episodes.
^ "Walking with Dinosaurs The Origins". Archived from the original on 23 April 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
^ a b McClintock, Pamela (January 15, 2014). "T-Wreck: Why Fox's 'Walking With Dinosaurs' Went Extinct". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
^ "Most expensive television documentary series per minute". Guinness World Records. 14 June 2015.
^ McClintock, Pamela (2 August 2011). "Fox Sets 'Walking With Dinosaurs' for Christmas 2013 Release". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
^ a b c Bell, Matt (February 2000). "Ben Bartlett: Music For Walking With Dinosaurs". Sound on Sound. SOS Publications Group. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
^ Haines, Tim. "The Making of…Walking with Dinosaurs". Retrieved 10 April 2016.
^ Huelsman, Eric (1 March 2000). "Walking With Dinosaurs". Animation World Network. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
^ "birds and crocodiles, the closest living relatives of the dinosaurs, do not urinate". Benton, M. J. 2001. "The science of 'Walking with Dinosaurs'". Teaching Earth Sciences, 24, 371–400.
^ Ornitholestes Prehistoric Wildlife. Web. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
^ Smith, Adam. "Liopleurodon". The Plesiosaur Directory. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
^ Walking With Dinosaurs - Compilations - Episode 1 bbc.co.uk Retrieved 19 September 2018.
^ New Blood: Walking with Dinosaurs, Original series Episode 1 of 6 bbc.co.uk. Web. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
^ https://www.barb.co.uk/viewing-data/weekly-top-30/ Weekly top 30 programmes BARB Web. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
^ "Time of the Titans - Walking with Dinosaurs, Original series Episode 2 of 6".
^ "Cruel Sea - Walking with Dinosaurs, Original series Episode 3 of 6". bbc.co.uk.
^ "Giant of the Skies - Walking with Dinosaurs, Original series Episode 4 of 6". bbc.co.uk.
^ "Spirits of the Ice Forest - Walking with Dinosaurs, Original series Episode 5 of 6". bbc.co.uk.
^ "Death of a Dynasty - Walking with Dinosaurs, Original series Episode 6 of 6". bbc.co.uk.
^ "The Making of Walking With Dinosaurs - BBC One". bbc.co.uk.
^ Wilson, MacKenzie. "Walking with Dinosaurs: Original TV Soundtrack". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
^ "Walking with Dinosaurs review". Commonsensemedia.com. Retrieved 24 March 2011.
^ Martill, Dave; Naish, Darren (2000). Walking with Dinosaurs: The Evidence. London: BBC Books. ISBN 0-563-53743-4.
^ Amar Singh. "T-Rex comes to town". The Mail Online. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
^ Pomerantz, Dorothy (November 8, 2013). "'Walking With Dinosaurs' Is A T-Rex Sized Independent Film". Forbes. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
^ Hesseltine, Cassandra. "Complete Filmography of Humboldt County". Humboldt Del Norte Film Commission. Humboldt Del Norte Film Commission. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
"Walking With Dinosaurs: The Origins". Archived from the original on 23 April 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
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Where is the centre of a country house? For some it may be a favoured study or library, or a sunlit parlour facing the gardens. Yet, from the time of the earliest large residential buildings, the great hall has often enjoyed that rare status of being at the core of daily life. However, as times changed, so too did the function, becoming less a space for the whole household to meet and eat, more a statement about the wealth and status of the owner. The Victorians were keen revivalists for the patterns and forms of ancient aristocratic life and although few used their halls for dining, their role as an impressive reception area, both for receiving guests and entertaining, meant that some embraced the opportunity for grandeur, as can be seen in the recently launched for sale, Dundarave, Co. Antrim, in Northern Ireland.
A medieval country house still reflected the social arrangements of a castle with the lord and his family congregating in the central hall as this was safest and also warmest. As the designs of homes changed from fortifications to the form we recognise today, the family would still wish to be seen and to entertain in the grandest space in the house. It was also still probably the warmest. The huge processions of the Tudor monarchs required a large enough area to accommodate the existing household plus the royal retinue and to have such a capacity was a sign of prestige. The great hall was therefore as much a practical space as it was a statement of the wealth and power of the owner, as shown by the lavish construction, including spectacular hammer-beam roofs, such as at Eltham Palace (built in 1470s) and Burghley (built much later in 1578 – and the last to have an open timberwork roof), and windows with glass.
For the Elizabethans, the great hall was becoming increasingly symbolic, with Burghley the last extravagant flourish of that earlier age. For houses closely associated with the monarchy or the favoured courtiers, the decorative opportunities that a space such as a great hall offered were irresistible. At Wollaton Hall, Nottinghamshire, built between 1580-88 by the brilliant Robert Smythson, a soaring central tower was designed to not only be topped by a prospect room from which to watch the hunting but also to contain a lofty interior, rising 50ft to a hammer-beam roof (though this one is decorative rather than structural). Already the role of the great hall as a daily practical space was diminishing in favour of a more exhibitionist one.
Just over ten years later, in c.1601, the completion of the great hall at Montacute, Somerset, marked the first clear departure in design. Although at the ground level it still had the same traditional features – porch, screen, bay window, steps at the high end – this hall was only a single story, rejecting the customary double-height space. The hall was still an important part of the house with the other rooms designed to lead from it, but decisively its role as the daily venue for the entire household to meet and eat together had passed. Instead the hall became less a space for living and more a space for occasional entertaining; for banquets, balls, and concerts.
The hall was often the centrepiece of the ‘polite’ rooms for guests which formed the main front to a house. This meant that the main entrance would usually lead to a screens passage separating it from one end, with the hall orientated east-west (especially in H-plan houses). As the overall plan of country houses started adopting the double-pile, this arrangement was increasingly awkward and so the hall was re-orientated to north-south, often running through the centre of the house, as can be seen in one of the earliest examples of a transverse hall at Worksop Manor Lodge, Nottinghamshire, also designed by Robert Smythson, in c.1595 (which has been shockingly treated over the last 20 years, including a suspicious fire in 2007). Although exterior fashions were changing to a more austere form, houses such as Forty Hall, Enfield, built in 1629, were still organised internally around a recognisable great hall.
The next major change was the elevation of the bedroom into a formal receiving room, a French practice adopted by Charles II after his return at the Restoration in 1660. This is reflected in the layout of Hampton Court Palace, as redesigned by Sir Christopher Wren between 1689–1700, where the state apartments form the centre of the procession towards the presence of the king (though the existing great hall, added in 1532-35, was the last to be built for a monarch). This fashion had already been adopted by other members of the court, with Charles II’s friend and minister, the Duke of Lauderdale, having created a state apartment in 1672 at Ham House, Surrey (though, as a rebuilding of an earlier house, it still retained a great hall).
With the decline in the importance of the hall, it seemed almost inevitable that it would be used as a convenient setting for the ever grander staircases so beloved by the Georgians or even just as a convenient circulation space to pass through between the fine rooms. The broadening of wealth to those who made their money from trade and therefore preferred to live closer to the cities, led to the development of the villa. Adapted from the Italian model, most famously those of Palladio and Scamozzi, there was neither space nor the social requirement for a great hall. Chiswick House, designed in 1726, by the arch-Palladian Lord Burlington, had a central octagonal hall. In larger houses, such as New Wardour Castle, Wiltshire, built 1769-76, is one of the finest examples of the Georgian interpretation of the hall, a cathedral-like space, with curved staircases leading to a columned gallery with a circumference of 144-ft. Of course, for those favouring the gothic, a great hall was still a core statement of lineal antiquity and so was still included in the plans, leading to beautiful examples such as the Gothic Hall for Henrietta Howard, Countess of Oxford, at Welbeck Abbey in 1751, or as at Ashridge House, Hertfordshire for the Duke of Bridgewater built between 1803-17, decorated with statues of kings.
It was those same intentions to either emphasise a family’s existing heritage or to give the impression that a family had a distinguished past, which led to a broader revival of the great hall in the Victorian era. By having the benefit of eight centuries of the development of the great hall, a family would be able to design for accuracy, for comfort, but almost always for show. Fuelled by romantic visions of the past by books such as Joseph Nash‘s 4-volume ‘Mansions of England in the Olden Time‘, published in 1839-49, the hall was now to be a grand display of whatever values they wish to imprint on this most useful of architectural motifs.
A late-Georgian recreation was at Charlecote Park, Warwickshire, in 1830, where the Elizabethan great hall was reinstated. In 1836, two examples were started independently with accurate medieval revival great halls at Alton Towers, Staffordshire for the Earl of Shrewsbury, and the other for Eustace Tennyson D’Eyncourt at Bayon’s Manor, Lincolnshire. Each of these represent the two strands to the historic revivalism; Alton Towers being a religious statement, designed by A.W.N. Pugin, and Bayons Manor, of giving substance to a family line. Pugin was one of the keenest exponents for the revival of the great hall. A gothic evangelist who promoted the style as the only true architecture for the country as it was linked to a pre-Reformation England of Roman Catholicism. The great hall was a symbol of a paternal system which Pugin related strongly to and which could be incorporated into daily life through the use of a great hall where the family could meet and the estate tenants and workers could be fed.
The great hall at Bayons Manor was equally impressive as Pugin’s but was designed by Anthony Salvin. He had probably developed an affection for them whilst working on the restoration of the one at Brancepeth Castle, Co. Durham, in 1829 at the start of his career, throughout which he would create other notable examples including at Harlaxton (1831-38), Mamhead House (1835), and Peckforton Castle (1844). Firmly in the ‘family heritage’ camp is Arundel Castle, West Sussex, where between 1893-98 a vast Baron’s Hall was built, perhaps one of the closest recreations in form and spirit of the medieval great hall. Although designed by renowned gothic scholar and architect Charles A. Buckler, he worked in exceptionally close co-operation with the 15th Duke, to whom a near constant stream of designs and decisions were passed for his comment and approval. This work was designed to emphasise the great age of the Norfolk family, a re-assertion of their status as one of the premier ducal families.
However, as the nature of the ownership moved increasingly towards those owners whose wealth came from industry and finance rather than landowning, so the need to entertain in large numbers such as the estate workers was less common. Houses were often for weekend entertaining; smaller groups of business and political associates who would wish to dine in convivial intimacy conducive to discussion. The role of the great hall moved back towards being a circulation space at the centre of the house, a place where pre-dinner drinks may be served but little more – though, equally, it still had to amaze.
The hall was often the first room your guests stepped into and so it had to create that all important first impression of your wealth and status. Lofty, substantial rooms were created with muscular columns, galleries, niches for statues, and space for art. It’s in this tradition that Dundarave was built between 1846-49 to designs by Sir Charles Lanyon. This top-lit space evokes something of the grand Roman baths and certainly fulfils the requirement to thrill. The house is currently for sale and I imagine that potential buyers will step through the closed hallway, step out into the great hall and express similar amazement as has been the intention of all owners who have used spaces such as this for centuries; to impress.
This entry was posted in News and tagged alton towers, architecture, ashridge house, burghley, chiswick house, country house, dundarave, eltham palace, for sale, forty hall, great hall, ham house, hampton court palace, montacute, new wardour castle, robert smythson, savills, welbeck abbey, wollaton hall, worksop manor lodge. Bookmark the permalink.
Great piece. And bits about Worksop Manor lodge are fascinating.
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Pay $3,500 for a suite behind home plate and you can wear what you want, right?
In a word: No. A group of Los Angeles Dodgers fans were forced to change into the home-team colors of the Arizona Diamondbacks because they were in front of the cameras.
Deadspin reports that the men sat in Chase Field's Batter's Box were ordered to alter their appearance, or find a new seat, during the series opener in Arizona on Friday night.
Television footage shows the men wearing the blue and white of the Dodgers when the first inning started.
But, as the play progressed, ushers appear carrying grey and burgundy Diamondbacks gear for them to change into.
The order allegedly came straight from Arizona franchise owner Ken Kendrick, who is later said to have had an "animated discussion" with the fans.
Kendrick has come under fire for the move, with many admitting it is "embarrassing" that rival fans are in prime position but they should still be entitled to choose their own clothes.
"You already have their money, so as long as they're not wearing something offensive (division rival colors and logos don't count) why not let them wear what they want?" asked Yahoo Sports writer Mark Townsend.
A Diamondbacks spokesman, however, defended the decision.
He told Deadspin: "Due to the high visibility of the home plate box, we ask opposing team's fans when they purchase those seats to refrain from wearing that team's colors."
He added that Kendrick "offered them another suite if they preferred to remain in their Dodger gear."
And he revealed that: "When they chose to stay, he bought them all D-backs gear and a round of drinks and requested that they abide by our policy and they obliged."
The Diamondbacks beat the Dodgers 3-0 on Friday and 1-0 on Sunday.
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Do Russian attack submarines carry nuclear weapons?
A brief statement by the Russian defense minister last week raised questions about Russia's commitment to the unilateral initiatives of 1991-1992, in which the United States and the Soviet Union and then Russia pledged to remove tactical nuclear weapons from their surface ships and submarines.
What Sergei Ivanov said was that Russia has eight submarines with nuclear weapons at sea - five of them are ballistic missile submarines and three -multipurpose (or attack) submarines. Ivanov's statement got some attention in Russia (but, characteristically, was completely ignored in the United States - by the administration, the media, and the expert community). The consensus seems to be that if there are any nuclear weapons on those attack submarines, these must be the R-55 Granat (SS-N-21) long-range sea-based cruise missiles. The Granat missile is a naval version of the Kh-55 ALCM [UPDATE 09/18/06: I was told that it is not - these are quite different missiles. So, it should be "naval equivalent of Kh-55"], which is in many respects comparable to the U.S. Tomahawk. The argument has been made that since the Soviet military always considered long-range cruise missiles to be strategic weapons, the return of nuclear Granat missiles to submarines would not violate the 1991-1992 commitments.
Well, not really. As I describe below, a fairly strong argument can be made that these commitments cover the long-range sea-launched cruise missiles.
They long-range SLCMs were indeed discussed during the START negotiations with the Soviet Union trying to get them into the treaty and the United States rejecting that "both on the ground that nuclear sea-launched cruise missiles are not strategic weapons and on the ground that limits on nuclear sea-launched cruise missiles are inherently unverifiable" (the quote is from the U.S. article-by-article analysis of the treaty). Eventually, the solution was found in the form of the United States and the Soviet Union making identical unilateral declarations in which they promised not to deploy more than 880 of those. Conventional cruise missiles as well as non-deployed or short-range (less than 600 km) nuclear ones were not included in this limit.
Although mentioning long-range SLCMs in a document that accompanies the START Treaty (but is not part of it) does seem to suggest that they have something to do with the strategic forces, just as the Soviet Union insisted, the fact that SLCMs were not included in the treaty is probably a stronger sign that there was an understanding that they are not. So, the treaty record is inconclusive at least.
the United States will withdraw all tactical nuclear weapons from its surface ships and attack submarines, as well as those nuclear weapons associated with our land-based naval aircraft. This means removing all nuclear Tomahawk cruise missiles from US ships and submarines, as well as nuclear bombs aboard aircraft carriers.
As we can see, the long-range sea-based cruise missiles were included into the "tactical" category and not just rhetorically - the United States actually committed to withdraw these missiles.
All tactical nuclear weapons will be removed from surface ships and multipurpose submarines. These weapons, as well as all nuclear weapons of ground-based naval aviation, will be stored in centralized sites. Part of them will be eliminated. [...] we propose to the United States to eliminate totally, on a reciprocal basis, sea-based tactical nuclear weapons.
On September 27, 1991, as part of a far-reaching initiative on nuclear weapons, the President announced that the United States will withdraw all tactical nuclear weapons from its surface ships and attack submarines, meaning that all nuclear Tomahawk cruise missiles will be removed from U.S. ships and submarines. Therefore, although the U.S. will continue to abide by its political commitment to provide an annual declaration of planned deployments, the annual U.S. declaration will be zero as soon as the Department of the Navy completes implementation of the President's directive. Likewise, consistent with President Gorbachev's October 4, 1991, statement on the withdrawal of Soviet naval tactical nuclear weapons, the annual Soviet declaration is also expected to be zero.
First. In the field of strategic offensive armaments. [...] We are also stopping production of corresponding types of sea-based nuclear cruise missiles. At the same time we are ready, on a reciprocal basis, to liquidate all the existing nuclear long-range sea-based cruise missiles.
As far as I can tell, whoever prepared Yeltsin's speech knew about the "SLCMs-are-strategic" Soviet position and made sure that it was affirmed in the statement. But I would note that the main reason that position existed in the first place was that the Soviet Union was trying to limit U.S. cruise missiles, not to preserve its own. After the United States said it will withdraw all its sea-based cruise missiles unilaterally, sticking to this position made little practical sense. Still, some may say that having placed SLCMs into the "strategic paragraph" Russia confirmed that it did not accept their classification as "tactical" and therefore it is under no obligation to remove them from its submarines.
Not at all. Moving words around matters, but what matters more is the practical policy that a country implements. The United States not just said Tomahawks are tactical, it actually removed them from ships together with other tactical weapons. Russia may have never agreed that its SLCMs are tactical, but it acted as if they were - as far as I can tell, Russia had withdrawn its nuclear cruise missiles from submarines in the early 1990s. I haven't yet seen the declarations on SLCMs from that time (I'm trying to locate them), but I'm quite certain that had the Russian declaration contained anything different from zero in 1994, when the treaty came into force (or every year after that), we would have known about it. And submitting zero confirmed (albeit indirectly) that Russia agrees that SLCMs are covered by the presidential initiatives.
The bottom line is that I don't find the theory about Russia's believing that SLCMs are strategic and therefore exempt from the presidential initiatives very plausible. In practice Russia acted as if it accepted their classification as tactical weapons and complied with it for a long period of time, which means that this definition has become legally binding. Another strong argument here is that the United States withdrew its SLCMs and Russia clearly committed itself to reciprocity. Taken together, these arguments don't leave much room for the "strategic" theory.
If not long-range SLCMs, could Ivanov's nuclear weapons be short-range (anti-ship) cruise missiles or torpedoes? In theory, yes. But this would be an absolutely clear violation of the 1991-1992 obligations. That would have certainly caught attention in the United States, its lack of attention to the developments in Russia notwithstanding.
the Parties agreed to exchange, on a confidential basis, annual information on the number of deployed nuclear sea-launched cruise missiles with ranges between 300 and 600km. Only the Soviet Union possesses nuclear sea-launched cruise missiles in this range. The number of such cruise missiles is not included in the 880 limit referred to in the declarations. Again, consistent with President Gorbachev's statement of October 4, l99l, on the withdrawal of naval tactical nuclear weapons, the Soviet Union declaration should be zero.
Of course, at the times when the United States and Russia seem to believe that abandoning their treaty obligations is not a big deal, I would not be surprised if Russia one day just submitted a declaration with non-zeros in it. But I would still expect that this to be known (if only from the likes of Curt Weldon). This is probably not a very convincing argument, but my experience tells me that we would have.
So, what are those nuclear weapons on multipurpose submarines Sergei Ivanov was talking about? I would certainly like to know it myself. I must note that one should never underestimate the ability of Russian officials to make misleading statements (to put it mildly), so it is quite possible that there were no nuclear weapons there and what Ivanov really meant was that these submarines are nuclear capable. But if those three submarines did carry nuclear warheads, they probably did so in violation of the commitment that the Soviet Union and Russia made in 1991-1992.
"In 1991, the United States and the then-Soviet Union, as a political commitment, voluntarily agreed to cease deploying any nuclear sea-launched cruise missiles on surface ships or multipurpose submarines. The United States has no definitive information that the Russian Federation is not abiding by this political commitment," Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Col. Monica Matoush said in a prepared statement to GSN.
I would guess that if the Russian declarations did not contain zeros, this statement would have been different.
Finally, ArmsControlWonk provided a link to an actual U.S. SLCM declaration in one of the WikiLeaks cables.
I can't see anything strange in reintroduction of TNW in the Russian fleet. Simply Russian Navy conventional capabilities against US Navy are now very limited so only nuclear weapon can offset US naval superiority over Russia. I personally think Russian subs and surface ships are now equipped with anti-ship/ASW nuclear systems as SS-N-15, SS-N-16, SS-N-19, SS-N-22 and nuclear torpedos.
Maybe SS-N-21 are also deployed but it would mean Russia is "de facto" abandoning INF treaty in a very clever way!
There is nothing intelligent in the re-deployment of nuclear weapons aboard non-strategic submarines. This does not enhance Russian security, proof that Russia is an untrustworthy partner. Therefore, I believe that Ivanov simply made a mistake, as there would have been a very strong US reaction otherwise, depite the apparent lack of concern on the part of the DoD.
The reintroduction of tactical nuclear weapons in the Russian Navy serves no useful purpose. If the reason for this decision is to offset US naval superiority, how does this help? How does the reintroduction of such weapons in the US Navy, in response, aid Russia? If Russia has made this decision, it is one of desperation, not reason; politics not military judgment. This you must understand, the Russian Navy is dieing. Based on current building rates, in twenty years the Andreevsky Flag will fly over five Borey-class strategic missile submarines, a few frigates, and little else. As the decision to reintroduce tactical nuclear weapons, if true, makes no military sense, I can only guess the reason is internal politics. The Admiralty is desperate to secure building funds for its fleets to avoid the catastrophe that is coming. If the Russian Navy had to sortie from port today in an emergency, you would be heartbroken to see how few ships would cast off.
No strong US reaction is expected because Rummy told Ivanov a year ago there is unimportant for US whether Russia withdraws from INF or not.
Mr. Shuler: I am sure you misunderstand naval TNW strength if you wrote such a nonsense!
One Russian frigate or sub without nuclear weapon can only sunk a Japan trawler. But the same ship armed with TNW can sunk entire US carrier group with one shot!
Can you perceive this subtle difference???
My friend, if such reassurances were previously given government to government, I agree. In any event whether Russian attack submarines carry tactical nuclear weapons or not, changes the military balance little. By the way, if the Russian Navy doesn’t get some immediate funding for fleet modernization & shipbuilding, that Japanese trawler might prove a worthy adversary!
Can you give me present Russian seaworthy submarine force details?
Historically over the last fifteen years, the Russian Navy has struggled to maintain 25% of its submarine force operationally at sea at any given time. The published decision to procure five Borey-class strategic submarines is based on the need to have one submarine on deterrence patrol at any given time. One submarine would always be in dry-dock maintenance and four would be available to sustain one submarine on patrol. The same availability ratio serves the attack submarine fleet as well. I have always thought the Russian Navy should imitate the French and provide two crews for both its strategic submarines and also its tactical boats. The US Navy has always maintained such a crewing arrangement for its strategic submarines, going all the way back to the beginning with Polaris. Just a thought on how to maximize the value of the Russian submarine force.
If so, Russia has 12 SSBNs, 7 SSGNs, 16 SSNs and 16 SSKs which means 51 submarines including 35 nuclewar powered.
Taken together US Navy has 14 SSBNs, 3 SSGNs and 52 SSNs and 64 submarines, all nuclear powered.
So RN has 13 nuclear subs including 4 SSBNs.
It is 10 nuclear subs including 4 SSBNs.
China has 62 submarines but only 8 nuclear and a huge number of them is obsolete.
I can't see any huge numerical dispariy between Russian Navy and US Navy at present if Russia takes defensive naval posture. Moreover Russian Navy is still superior to the Royal Navy, Marine Nationale and PLAN!
Additionally nuclear TNW gives Russia a formidable offset against US surface ships and subs.
I would add a Delta III and two Typhoons to your list. Also, perhaps the Oscar II numbers could be moved to nine, the Akula to ten. The USN’s numbers should reflect two additional Virginia-class attack boats and an additional Ohio-class undergoing cruise missile conversion. However in your research, you have made my point. The French are building two Le Triomphant-class strategic submarines to replace their older L’Inflexible sisters and have the Barracuda-class nuclear fleet boats funded to replace the existing Amethyste-Rubis submarines. The British have their Astute-class fleet submarines building to replace Swiftsure and probably the rest of the Trafalgar-class in time. The British decision on replacing their Trident boats should come next year. China? Who knows?
If a navy isn’t building; it’s dying.
- three new SSBNs "Borey"
- two or three new SSNs "Yasen"
- two almost finished SSGNs "Oscar-II"
- two waiting for sea trials SSNs "Akula-II"
- one or two SSK "Lada"
So, we have TEN-to-TWELWE new subs under construcion. It is more than any other navy currently builds!
- One Borey ready for sea trials next year, perhaps without her missile armament. The keel for the second is laid. The third is funded in a class of five.
- The SSN Severodvinsk class (Project 885) is suspended. Never heard of Yasen-class. Is it project 885 submarine?
- One additional Akula II may be commissioned, work is 90% finished, but the latest attack boat to be completed, an Akula I class is being “held” for India. Conventional wisdom says if India ever accepts an Akula for its fleet, several existing operational Russian Akula(s) will be refurbished and leased.
- The last Oscar II submarine was suspended at 80% after no work was done for five years. It is being used for parts to support the existing Oscar fleet.
- The Sankt Petersburg (Project 677, Landa) is suspended. India had been approached to provide joint venture funds for the submarines completion and international marketing but decided to procure the French Scorpion diesel submarine in its place.
- THREE project 885 "Granay" (former "Yasen") SSNs are under construction in Severodvinsk. Many more are planned in the 2010-2030 timeframe.
- ONE "Oscar-II" was finished this year but now is waiting for its new 72 SS-N-26 missiles. It will be indeed the last "Oscar-II" class vessel made for Russian fleet.
- TWO project 677 "Lada" SSKs ("Petrozavodsk" and "Kronshtadt") are built for Russian Navy. Only SSK "Amur" class is developed for export purposes.
The Akula I class submarine just launched, the Nerpa (K-152), had her keel laid in 1986. I think that says it all.
I would ask everyone to stick to the facts and refrain from unsubstantiated claims. This includes calling information somehow "anti-Russian" (or "anti-American" for that matter) or opinionating on what could have been "sold for a cup of vodka" and when.
Interesting discussion on Russian Navy’s nuclear submarines and weapon systems. Do we have any additional information on the Project 885 SSN’s? I have tracked the Severodvinsk (Yasen Class) but have no knowledge of the “Granay” follow up program at Sevmashpredpriyatiye. Interested in all information.
Also curious about the SS-N-26 Yakhont system. I was unaware this system was to be refitted in the Oscar II class. The Oscar II has 24 tubes for missile launch. Is the plan to have multiple SS-N-26 missiles in each launch tube?
We all know that Russian military ability is declining at submarine's speed!!! Not only Navy in all departments of military establishment is diminishing day by day. It's really shame for a country which once dominated the world with military might now in real threat to live under shadow of military might of other countries. I can't understand why a democratic free economic country with all the natural wealth, lots of people with tremendous caliber, established industrial and military installations, is not able to provide adequate fund for the defense forces to increase its military ability. Can you people tell me what USSR had that Russia doesn't have now? I am talking about the resources. How did USSR manage such a huge amount of money for its forces that Russia cannot? Do you say that Soviet people were starving then? Well, I think you should have will to build your ability. Money always comes second. I always wonder why Russia is unable to sell more conventional weapons as do other countries specially the US and earn enough money. The more money they can earn, the more money they can spend for its own security.
Now few words for Americans. You are telling that Russia cannot survive a first nuclear attack and Russia doesn't have the ability to attack the US as well. It’s true that Russian forces will be in the worst situation when the entire Soviet made nuclear launchers will be retired within next few years. Russia doesn't have enough conventional military ability either. So why you people are always crying for Russian military ability? Why you are building military installation around Russia? Why you are withdrawing from ABM treaty? Why all the nuclear submarines are on patrol only around Russia? Why you want to keep enough nuclear warheads in your reserve stock which should be dismantled as per START treaty? Why you people spend more than 400 billion dollars a year for defense purpose when you have no real nuclear capable enemy but few so called rogue states which don't have ability to hit America?
I really want a peaceful world. I never like countries like America and Russia go back to arm race once again. They should maintain minimum deterrence for self defense only, not to destroy or finish any other country.
Please understand, I disagree completely on Russia’s future as a nuclear power and her role as a “great power” in international politics. Russia is in the process of great change. She is rebuilding her nuclear arsenal and will have by 2016-18 a completely revamped, modern nuclear capability while the United States will just be beginning replacing its 50-year old Minuteman III inventory, its 60-year old B-52 fleet, and its 40-year old Trident submarine force. America hasn’t built a new nuclear warhead since the early 1990’s with the W-88.
Cry no tears for Russia. She is strong today; she will be strong tomorrow.
It is obvious that the Russian Navy is not in the best shape. But I think it is not in such a bad condition as westerners see (or wish to see) it. Upgrades and repairing are going at a constant level and the accident of the last week showed that al least a few Shchuka (Victor-III) SSN will be subject to extension of service lives. That may indicate that all operative Barrakuda and Shchuka-B will also be retained.
- The Belogorod is 80% complete and it was not decided if it will be continued. Claims about its use as “spare supplier” seems to be hot air.
- The Sankt Petersburg IS in the navy and the first series Lada is being built.
Off course the Navy have suffered very much, because of the disastrous liberal age, but Yeltsin had long gone and fortunately its liberal-“sons” will not regain power. In fact and luckily, pro-western-liberals parties are agonizing.
The navy is severely weekend? YES. Sure. It is dying? Almost with total certainty NO. It is just question to improve planning and management (a lot can be done in this issue), but claims about the “disappearing Russian Navy” seems to be western wishful thinking.
Most of my general information comes from online publications, such as Kommersant. Is this a good format for learning factual information on Russia?
What is the Shchuka-B project?
Confused about the Sankt Petersburg as well. This was the named lead boat in the Lada-class and then construction was suspended. Was this name assign to one of the improved Kilo-submarines? Is the Lada project to continue? Was indeed the Sankt Petersburg the lead Lada submarine and now the project is in series production? Will this submarine be a long term replacement for the Kilo? Thanks for your help.
The "Belgorod" (K-139) will not be commissioned.
The "Nerpa" (K-152) will be completed for the Indian navy.
The first two submarines of this class are in a poor technical condition and will decomission soon.
There are a total of 20 operational non-strategic submarines, with a further 3 in refit and 4 non-operational.
1. Mr. Shuler: SS-N-26 missile was intended to replace SS-N-7/9/22 missiles in the early 1990s. Of course due to known facts it wasn't materialized. Also SSGN Charlie-class subs was to get Yakhonts and because SS-N-7/9 missile tubes are far wider than Yaknont's container diameter it was planned to place three SS-N-26's TPKs in each Charlie's launch tube. In time all Charlies were retired and SS-N-26 was adopted to use in final "Oscar-II" subs because SS-N-19 Shipwreck's successor called "Meteorit" was also abandoned. So each "Oscar-II" can carry 72 SS-N-26 SLCMs to compensate their shorter range by increased salvo rate.
2. Mr. debpc: I also think that present Russian military spendings and weapon aquisition rates (about ONE PERCENT of Soviet outlays!) are some plaintive madness because such a phenomenon can't be explained by any real circumstances. It must be some political obstacle preventing normal VPK functioning. Maybe present Kremlin's party tries to change fundation of Russian influence in the World from military power to resources power? But it isn't impossible that Kremlin's elite is secretly controlled by Western powers which forbid Russia to maintain its military might. This is because the West could afraid reduction of its own influence in the oil and gas reach regions in Euroasia by effective Russian military capabilities. For example any NATO enlargement over former Soviet republics wouldn't be possible in such a situation. It is obvious to me that present US military spendings fixed at Cold War levels, entire NMD programs, apporaching US/NATO military infrastructure closer and closer to the Russian borders aren't accidental. It is well-thought-out US grand strategy aimed at establishing a "cordone sanitare" over Russia, depriving this country any bordering allied states, seizure control over entire Russian oil export routs abroad and finally setting up some kind of secret rule over Russia resting on overwhelming US military and geopolitical superiority over Russia. At the same time Russian rulers are dismantling Russian Army, Navy and VPK to the point where Russia won't be able to produce any kind of modern weapons in the future. Even now there are many signs of this like indefinitely prolongation of entering service all new weapon systems or this sad fact that in the last 15 years Russia wasn't able to field any resonable number of already being in production conventional weapons. Look at Russian military planes aquisitions, it is the best example of this huge breakdown. And when this finally happens Russia will be militarly doomed forever!
- the Belgorod was “frozen”. The same fate for the Severodvinsk. May be they will be scraped but no claims nor final decisions about that were made.
- The Sankt Petersburg was the first vessel of the Amur class. She is a non-series built Amur but is not a Kilo. The first series-built Amur is inching.
-Shchuka-B are known as Akula-class in the west.
-The replacement of P-700 (SS-N-19) by P-800 (SS-N-26) is unclear but supposedly was planned a few years ago. More info about that will be appreciated.
Thanks for the update on the SS-N-26 system. The Yakhonts missile has impressive specifications and would be most difficult to defend. Do we think the entire Oscar II fleet will be so modified or just the last boat?
I agree with you the fall of the Soviet Union was an unprecedented event in world history. The change was so startling in scope that it is easy to forget the current progress of Russia. All the changes in the general Russian economy are certainly reflected in the VPK as well. Modern Russia is only 15 years old, it will take time.
My numbers generally agree. Thanks for your work.
Do you have any data on new Russian nuclear fleet submarine construction? I have tracked the Severodvinsk (Yasen Class) but information is so unreliable. Project 885 submarines are in production, or suspended. One launched but never completed. Work continues. No funding. Class of 18 to be built at Sevmashpredpriyatiye. etc. Just curious.
Would the Shchuka-B refer to the Akula II class? The (B) designation?
Frank, finally, I see with a little bit of surprise that NATO classifications are even more complex than Russian ones (smile).
Shchuka is known in the west as “Victor class”, afterwards, they divide the series in “I”, “II” or “III”. In the same way Shchuka-B is named “Akula class” and then sub-classified as “I”, “Improved” and “II”. For the Russian navy they are simply Shchuka and Shchuka-B and are part of the same family. Although NATO classification have some technical basis, it is not entirely accurate since a vessel is different from its predecessor in some technical parameters, even in the same series (i.e. two Victor-III can have a little bit different parameters).
Shchuka are something like a “evolving class”.
Frank: As I know Russia's total annual budget is about 260 billion dollars while the US is spending around 500 billion dollars yearly for defense purpose only. Oh dear oh dear... It is really Cold War level spending for the US. Cold War is not there, USSR is not there, Warsaw Pact is not there, threat of communism isn't there but still the US is increasing its defense budget and building military installations around Russia. NATO is also expanding. What do you think? What do the US and NATO want to do nowadays when they have no real enemy? What's the need of NATO? Just to work as peace-keepers under UN?
Rokosovsky: I agree with you. Russian administration seems forget about their own defense otherwise they should not let their forces go down at such a rapid pace. Even Russia is struggling to stop separatist and terrorist activities in its own soil. It's a real shame for Russia. I never heard any kind of such criminal activities in USSR. I like to make another point here. You see the US and western countries provide all kind of trade facilities to China although China is a communist country. Americans are pouring huge amount of money there. China enjoys special trade benefit. On the other hand the US is reluctant to provide any kind of real trade facilities to Russia although Russia is a free democratic country. The irony is the US can trust China but not Russia! I don’t know what’s wrong with Russia. I can't understand why the US is opposing Russia's entry to the WTO?
The US is a great country. I always admire her. But sometimes I am very disappointed for her foreign and military policy. Sad part is America sometimes maintains double standard, policy isn’t unique!
Frank, The State Armaments Program envisions the commissioning of two SSNs and four SSKs, so the "Severodvinsk" may be commissioned in the future. However, it is more likely that the SSNs will be of a new, smaller class, as the "Graney" is far too large and expensive for the modern Russian military.
The new small SSN isn’t yet in the design boards. They “are” just some general specifications. So hardly may be commissioned in the next decade. MAY BE the State Armaments Program refers to the Severodvinsk and the Nerpa.
I agree that the two mentioned SSNs are probably the Nerpa (Akula I) and perhaps the Severodvinsk. However, is there a last Akula II to be commissioned? I just have lingering doubts on the Severodvinsk. I completely agree Russia needs a new, smaller nuclear attack submarine that can be placed into service within a reasonable time and produced to replace the Akula, Sierra, and Oscar-class boats. A long term inventory of twelve is necessary to support the Russian Navy.
I don’t see reasons to be pessimist respect to the SSN fleet. Most vessels are fairly new and with proper maintenance works they can operate for 30 years. Retirement of Shchuka can be compensated by commissioning 1 or 2 Shchuka-B plus the Severodvinsk. This will define a relatively young SSN fleet. Antey (Oscar-II) are also relatively new. They are extremely powerful and, the Navy, even with just 6 such vessels will have the capability to disrupt the Oceans.
SSBN fleet seems to be in a more pressing condition. Then, there is no hurry to develop the new small SSN, mostly considering that many littoral warfare tasks will be assumed by the new conventional Amur. SSN should then be liberated to green and blue water tasks.
Off-course a proper maintenance and training program is necessary to keep this situation. If this is achieved, the new small SSN can be introduced after 2020.
Frank, the K-152 is an Akula II, laid down in 1993 and launched on the 24th of June, 2006. It is to be leased to the Indian Navy. The destination of the last hull, order number 519, which was 42% complete in 2002, is unclear. It will either be leased to India or completed for the Russian Navy, but work is proceeding extremely slowly, which is why I did not list it above.
As regards the "Severodvinsk", there will only be one boat, and even her completion is in doubt. Apart from theoretical issues of size and cost, there is a practical and immediate problem - the absence of most equipment originally intended for the "Graney" class. As it was intended to be a "Seawolf" equivalent, a variety of revolutionary electronic devices were to be developed for it, which were never funded.
Can anyone tell me what is the production cost of a Topol-M and a Bulava ICBM?
It's very difficult to estimate cost in defense industry in general and in Russian industry in particular.
Debpc does raise an interesting question, however. I wonder what is the relative cost between the two missile systems? Does a Bulava missile cost twice as much as a Topol-M? Three times? Any thoughts?
Frank, I also wonder what is the relative cost? Production cost of Topol-M and Topol-M1 may also vary! Well Frank, what is the production cost of Minuteman-III, do you have any idea?
Comparison to the costs of a Minuteman III is maybe difficult, because that missile was an upgrade of an already existing missile system and produced in a very large quantity. I think the number of Mintemans (all types including test missiles) should be around 2000 pieces, so the fix costs were split on very many missiles.
Maybe a comparison to the MX is better, which costs 70 Mio USD per missile with maybe 100 produced units (50 operational units + spares and test missiles). Or the Trident II D-5, which cost 29.1 Mio USD per unit.
Even taking into consideration the $7 million price tag of a Minuteman III in 1970, the cost did not include the RV or any warheads. And of course, not the silo or command structure either.
Do the Topol-M´s and Bulavas get new RV´s and warheads or get they those one from phased out rockets?
This is a good question. My guess would be that they use RVs and "physical packages" that were developed back in the Soviet times. This wouldn't be something unusual. On the other hand, there were reports about Sineva missile's getting a new warhead, so this option cannot be completely ruled out.
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American director Sean Penn made a fourth movie on the topic, named "The Pledge" in 2001. Penn's movie incorporates "Das Versprechen"'s darker ending, as preferred by Dürrenmatt.
Friedrich Dürrenmatt had not been happy to see the detective proven successful at the end the story, so he wrote the novel "Das Versprechen: Requiem auf den Kriminalroman" ("") from the previous film script. "Das Versprechen" differs from "Es geschah am hellichten Tag" by having the detective fail to identify the killer in the end because of the murderer's death in an auto accident. This failure ultimately leaves the detective a broken and witless old man.
Among the classics of Swiss German literature are Jeremias Gotthelf (1797–1854) and Gottfried Keller (1819–1890). The undisputed giants of 20th century Swiss literature are Max Frisch (1911–91) and Friedrich Dürrenmatt (1921–90), whose repertoire includes "Die Physiker" (The Physicists) and "Das Versprechen" (), released in 2001 as a Hollywood film.
The Pledge (German: "Das Versprechen") is a crime novella by Swiss author Friedrich Dürrenmatt, published in 1958, after Dürrenmatt thought that his previous movie script, "Es geschah am hellichten Tag" ("It happened in broad daylight") did not have a realistic ending. That made-for-television story had demanded an ending in line with that of a typical detective story. Dürrenmatt, however, was a critic of that genre of literature, and thus he set out to write "Das Versprechen" as an expression of that criticism. Although it has been absent from some subsequent editions of the novella, the title of the original edition included the telling subtitle Requiem for the Detective Novel (German: "Requiem auf den Kriminalroman").
Agócs dialogues with earlier composers, including a homage to György Ligeti as the second movement of her quintet "Immutable Dreams" (2007). She employs Serialist techniques to re-imagine a Bach chorale in "Versprechen" (2004). Agócs performs her own works as a soprano soloist and collaborates with instrumentalists to develop distinct techniques and musical colors. One of many such collaborations is her work with Bridget Kibbey to create a bluegrass piece for harp as part of the suite "Every Lover is a Warrior" (2006).
In 2005 the band regrouped to compile "Ancient", an archival release of demos recorded during the band's initial period of activity. This compilation was released originally on their own King Sol Records label. Following the release of Ancient, Siiiii played the last ever Drop Dead Festival in New York, then followed up with a number of European shows. A live album, "Ein Verdammtes Versprechen", was recorded in Germany in 2008 and given a limited release on the band's King Sol Records.
In the original film "Es geschah am hellichten Tag", the story was directly that of the Matthäi character, rather than being framed through its retelling by Dr. H., as in "Das Versprechen". At the end of the movie, Matthäi had demonstrated his concern for Annemarie by sending her and her mother away to safety before attempting to spring his final trap upon the murderer. The murderer arrived and was killed, thus vindicating Matthäi's persistence in pursuing the case and leading to a happy reunion with Annemarie at the story's conclusion.
There were three earlier film accounts of the White Rose resistance. The first film was financed by the Bavarian state government and released in the 1970s, entitled "Das Versprechen" ("The Promise"). In 1982, Percy Adlon's "Fünf letzte Tage" ("Five Last Days") presented Lena Stolze as Scholl in her last days from the point of view of her cellmate Else Gebel. In the same year, Stolze repeated the role in Michael Verhoeven's "Die Weiße Rose" ("The White Rose"). In an interview, Stolze said that playing the role was "an honour".
In addition to her performances in Munich, Diez also appeared as a guest singer in several other German cites, including Stuttgart, Cologne, Dresden, and Hamburg. In 1866, she was given the title "Kammersängerin" by Prince Luitpold and a jubilee celebration was staged by the Hofoper to mark the 30th anniversary of her debut. Diez officially retired from the company in December 1877, although she made one more appearance the following April as Nandl in one of Ignaz Lachner's Alpine Scenes, "Das Versprechen hinter'm Herd".
In the film, Felix Leiter says that Goldfinger is "British, but he doesn't sound like it"; however, this may simply mean he possesses British citizenship, as by his accent and red-blond hair he is probably German by birth. Fröbe was chosen to play the villain because producers Saltzman and Broccoli had seen his performance in a German thriller titled "Es geschah am hellichten Tag" ("It happened in broad daylight", 1958), based on the story "Das Versprechen" ("The Pledge") by Friedrich Dürrenmatt. In that film, Fröbe played a serial killer named Schrott, who kills children to vent his frustrations with his domineering wife. Broccoli and Saltzman had seen the movie and decided upon the "big bad German" for the role.
Ich erneuere im Vertrauen auf Gott mein Versprechen und gelobe bei meiner Ehre als Pfadfinder unsere Gemeinschaft keiner Gefahr auszusetzen, pflichtbewußt meine Aufgaben zu erfüllen, die Verantwortung für alle meine Kameradinnen und Kameraden mitzutragen, die Natur zu schützen und den Fortbestand unseres Bundes zu sichern. Ich bitte alle Pfadfinderinnen und Pfadfinder, mir bei der Erfüllung meiner Aufgaben mit besten Kräften beizustehen. - "I renew in trust in God my Promise and vow on my honor as a Scout to never put a risk on our community, to dutifully fulfill my tasks, to back the responsibility to all my comrades, to protect nature and to secure our association's continued existence. I plea all Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts to assist me to the best of their ability at the fulfillment of my tasks."
The meaning of the permanent prefixes does not have a real system; the alteration in meaning can be subtle or drastic. The prefixes "ver-", "be-" and "ge-" have several different meanings, although "ge-" is uncommon and often the root verb is no longer in existence. "be-" often makes a transitive verb from an intransitive verb. Verbs with "er-" tend to relate to creative processes, verbs with "ent-" usually describe processes of removing (as well as "emp-", an approximate equivalent to "ent-" except usually used for root verbs beginning with an "f"), and "zer-" is used for destructive actions. "Ver-" often describes some kind of extreme or excess of the root verb, although not in any systematic way: 'sprechen', for example means to 'speak', but 'versprechen', 'to promise' as in 'to give ones word' and 'fallen', meaning 'to fall' but 'verfallen', 'to decay' or 'to be ruined'.
The Promise (original title: "Das Versprechen") is a German documentary film directed by Marcus Vetter with Karin Steinberger. The film tells the crime story of the double murder of Derek and Nancy Haysom on 30 March 1985 in Lynchburg, Virginia. The film focuses on the two main protagonists Jens Söring, son of a German diplomat, and Elizabeth Haysom, the daughter of the murdered couple. Both were sentenced to life in prison. The film makes use of extensive original footage from press archives, as the two court cases were the first lawsuits to be broadcast nationwide on American television. In the film, these recordings from 1985 to 1990 are combined with scenes shot during the making of the film, including interviews with Jens Söring, witnesses, the investigators involved in the case, lawyers, prosecutors and journalists. In addition, extensive materials such as original crime scene photos and evidence, court transcripts, newspaper archives, love letters and diaries of the two main protagonists were evaluated in the film.
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5 Ways to Provide Productive Feedback.
The main point of providing feedback is to let people know how one feels regarding a particular product, service, event or even employee. The information that one hands out via feedback can be very beneficial to businesses as it helps them know what their problems are and what they could possibly do to fix it.
It’s also important that business managers know how to provide internal feedback. This means looking into all employee performance as well as rating each and every one of them. It can help managers know their employees more and see how valuable they are in the business.
It is the cheapest and one of the most effective management tool that everyone has at their disposal. A proper feedback can help businesses gain information that could help propel them to success. Plus it does not just tell business owners what would satisfy customers, but also their own employees as well.
It can be used as a guide to help employees know how they, as well others, perceive their level of performance. Knowing this can these people stay on track on what needs to be done, as well as making sure that they perform to their utmost ability to ensure only positive comments.
It can be used to motivate employees. This can have a direct affect on an employee’s satisfaction as gaining positive feedback can tell them that they are doing a good job and that they might even be rewarded for it. Although one must never forget to point out problems if there are any, but it is best to do so by providing a solution to them as well.
Feedback induces change. Employee’s who receive feedback from managers often receive comments or suggestions on what they must do to improve or reach their goal. Once the employee has heard everything that the manager needs to say, the employee may then determine the best course of action that will ensure that he or she is able to achieve what is expected by the business.
It is used to build relationships. It’s very important that managers keep in touch with their employees to help them better understand how they operate, thus letting them know how to handle them. By providing employees with feedback, managers are able to properly communicate with the employee and assess how he or she handles the responsibilities of a position, as well as letting the employee know that the manager is there to help him or her achieve success.
Feedback can be used to set goals and expectations. By doing a performance appraisal on an employee, a manager can determine what goals he or she should achieve and can even set new one’s to help the employ develop. If an employee has a particular problem in terms of providing service, then the manager in charge of providing feedback may suggest a goal that needs to be achieved in order to see that the problems is fixed. At the same time, it helps the employee make sure that it no longer becomes a problem in the future.
5 Steps to Giving Productive Feedback to Your Employees.
With proper feedback, employers can help employees know what’s wrong and what’s right, as well giving them a heads up on their performance. But they must learn to do so in a professional to ensure that the employee sees the importance of the information being provided. So here are a few steps that can help one’s process in providing productive feedback.
Remember to be kind. It is important that your attitude be encouraging and respectful when providing feedback. If you make the person feel ashamed or if it is clear that you are trying to undermine the employee, the it will just have a negative effect and make him or her feel inadequate, meaning less productivity and quality performance. So always try to make the employee feel safe and secure no matter what kind of feedback your handing out.
Stay positive. Even when you are going to give out bad news on the employee’s performance, try to do what you can to keep things on the positive side. If you want to do an effective employee feedback, then you are going to have to point out the positive things the employee has done first before you touch on anything negative. When you do reach to the part of showing what the employee needs to work on, do so in a way that does not put him or her down, but instead give the employee tips or advice on what to do to fix the problem.
Be strict, but not mean. There is a fine line between telling your employee what he or she did wrong, and showing your frustration as to what the employee did wrong. Always keep your emotions in check and do control yourself during every employee review. Because if you do let your emotions take control and decide to be mean, there is a chance that might bring your negativity into the workplace or the employee might decide to quit.
Be specific with what you want to say. Every time you assess your employee and provide him or her with feedback, you are going to want to clearly point out what he or she did right or wrong. So lets say that the employee has managed to meet the week’s goal, you don’t just say “good job and keep it up”. What you should do is be specific and tell the employee how he or she achieved the goal and properly praise the employee for the effort.
Try to give your feedback as soon as possible. There will be certain circumstances were you will not be able to do so, but always try to give it immediately. This is especially true if there is a problem that the employee is facing when it comes to providing services for the business. Since the incident is fresh, the employee will have a better understanding about the feedback you are providing. If you wait too long, then employee will have to rely on memory alone and there might be confusion due to things being no longer clear.
If you are an employer, then you may go through our available feedback forms in the event that you would like to provide feedback regarding your employee’s performance, or if you would like your employees to evaluate yours.
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At the time of Spanish contact in the sixteenth century, the Aztec were the preeminent power in Mexico, and to the east controlled lands bordering the Maya region. Whereas the Maya were neither culturally nor politically unified as a single entity in the sixteenth century, the Aztec were an empire integrated by the state language of Nahuatl as well as a complex religious system. As the principal political force during the Spanish conquest, the Aztec were extensively studied at this time. Due to sixteenth-century manuscripts written both by the Aztec and Spanish clerics, a great deal is known of Aztec religious beliefs and ritual, including death rituals.
Probably the most discussed and vilified aspect of Aztec religion is human sacrifice, which is amply documented by archaeological excavations, pre-Hispanic art, and colonial accounts. To the Aztec, cosmic balance and therefore life would not be possible without offering sacrificial blood to forces of life and fertility, such as the sun, rain, and the earth. Thus in Aztec myth, the gods sacrificed themselves for the newly created sun to move on its path. The offering of children to the rain gods was considered a repayment for their bestowal of abundant water and crops. Aside from sacrificial offerings, death itself was also a means of feeding and balancing cosmic forces. Many pre-Hispanic scenes illustrate burial as an act of the feeding the earth, with the bundled dead in the open maw of the earth monster. Just as day became night, death was a natural and necessary fate for the living.
The sixteenth-century accounts written in Spanish and Nahuatl provide detailed descriptions of Aztec concepts of death and the afterlife. One of the most important accounts of Aztec mortuary rites and beliefs concerning the hereafter occurs in Book 3 of the Florentine Codex, an encyclopedic treatise of Aztec culture compiled by the Franciscan Fray Bernardino de Sahagún. According to this and other early accounts, the treatment of the body and the destiny of the soul in the afterlife depended in large part on one's social role and mode of death, in contrast to Western beliefs that personal behavior in life determines one's afterlife. People who eventually succumbed to illness and old age went to Mictlan, the dark underworld presided by the skeletal god of death, Mictlantecuhtli, and his consort Mictlancihuatl. In preparation for this journey, the corpse was dressed in paper vestments, wrapped and tied in a cloth bundle, and then cremated, along with a dog to serve as a guide through the underworld. The path to Mictlan traversed a landscape fraught with dangers, including fierce beasts, clashing mountains, and obsidian-bladed winds. Having passed these perils, the soul reached gloomy, soot-filled Mictlan, "the place of mystery, the place of the unfleshed, the place where there is arriving, the place with no smoke hole, the place with no fireplace" (Sahagún 1978, Book 3, p. 42). With no exits, Mictlan was a place of no return.
Aside from the dreary, hellish realm of Mictlan, there was the afterworld of Tlalocan, the paradise of Tlaloc, the god of rain and water. A region of eternal spring, abundance, and wealth, this place was for those who died by lightning, drowning, or were afflicted by particular diseases, such as pustules or gout. Rather than being cremated, these individuals were buried whole with images of the mountain gods, beings closely related to Tlaloc. Another source compiled by Sahagún, the Primeros Memoriales, contains a fascinating account of a noble woman who, after being accidentally buried alive, journeys to the netherworld paradise of Tlalocan to receive a gift and message from the rain god.
A group of men in front of the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico perform an Aztec dance during the feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe on December 12, the most important religious holiday in Mexico. Here they reenact the prepara tion of a sacrifice, a recognition of the inextricable interdependence of life and death to the Aztec.
zenith in the sky, where they would then scatter to sip flowers in this celestial paradise. The setting western sun would then be greeted by female warriors, which were the souls of those women who died in childbirth. In Aztec thought, the pregnant woman was like a warrior who symbolically captured her child for the Aztec state in the painful and bloody battle of birth. Considered as female aspects of defeated heroic warriors, women dying in childbirth became fierce goddesses who carried the setting sun into the netherworld realm of Mictlan. In contrast to the afterworld realms of Mictlan and Tlalocan, the paradise of warriors did relate to how one behaved on earth, as this was the region for the valorous who both lived and died as heroes. This ethos of bravery and self-sacrifice was a powerful ideological means to ensure the commitment of warriors to the growth and well-being of the empire.
For the Aztec, yearly ceremonies pertaining to the dead were performed during two consecutive twenty-day months, the first month for children, and the second for adults, with special focus on the cult of the warrior souls. Although then occurring in the late summertime of August, many aspects of these ceremonies have continued in the fall Catholic celebrations of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day. Along with the ritual offering of food for the visiting dead, marigolds frequently play a major part in the contemporary celebrations, a flower specifically related to the dead in Aztec ritual.
López Austin, Alfredo. The Human Body and Ideology: Concepts of the Ancient Nahuas. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1980.
Furst, Jill Leslie McKeever. The Natural History of the Soul in Ancient Mexico. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1995.
Sahagún, Fray Bernardino de. Primeros Memoriales, translated by Thelma Sullivan. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1997.
Sahagún, Fray Bernardino de. Florentine Codex: General History of the Things of New Spain, translated by Arthur J. O. Anderson and Charles E. Dibble. 13 vols. Santa Fe, NM: School of American Research, 1950–1982.
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0.999924 |
Today we are going to share a Python program to print words with their length of a string. If you are a python beginner and want to start learning the python programming, then keep your close attention in this tutorial as I am going to share a Python program to print words with their length of a string.
print words," (", len (words), ")"
str = "Hello World How are you?"
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0.878748 |
The White House and Democratic leadership are bargaining in bad faith, the author writes.
President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats need Republican support to enact a sweeping amnesty for undocumented immigrants, euphemistically known as comprehensive immigration reform. Democrats need political cover to enact legislation that is certain to make a substantial portion of the electorate angry. They need Republicans to cobble together the 60 Senate votes required to get a bill to the floor. And they will need Republican support to get a bill through the House of Representatives, which is controlled by the GOP.
Many Republicans, still reeling from a bitter electoral defeat last November, desperately want to believe that agreeing to legalize millions of undocumented immigrants is a way to ingratiate themselves with Hispanic voters. Key Republican leaders have been negotiating with Senate Democrats for months behind closed doors, as part of the so-called Gang of Eight. As a bill nears completion, it is obvious that their Democratic colleagues will not agree to even the minimal protections for the interests of the American people that Republicans are seeking. And it is increasingly clear that the Republicans’ most prominent Hispanic member, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, is being undermined at every turn.
Here are five compelling reasons why Republicans should walk away from a bill that is bad for the country and would force them to abandon their core principles.
1. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy will not even allow hearings on a bill.
Rubio has put his reputation and possibly his political future on the line in negotiations with Senate Democrats. One of the things he has insisted upon is transparency in the legislative process. In response, he has been publicly rebuffed by Leahy who has condescendingly informed Rubio and other Republicans that normal Senate procedures will be short-circuited as a bill is rushed to the floor with little or no scrutiny.
2. Democrats will not agree to border security and other enforcement requirements as a prerequisite to amnesty.
Rubio and other Republicans have insisted on border security and other enforcement triggers before legalization could begin. The Obama administration has refused to even provide a metric for measuring border security, while the Senate’s lead Democrat on immigration policy, Sen. Chuck Schumer, demands that legalization take place before border security or other enforcement provisions are in place.
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0.961659 |
Peggy Noonan writes in the Wall Street Journal an article which features all kinds of love and affection for immigrants. (Ms. Noonan, unfortunately, has a heart as big as all outdoors. There have been a number of complaints about it.) But after telling happy stories about immigrants, she calls for tough border enforcement, a moratorium, and the defeat of the horrible Bush-Kennedy bill.
Naturally I hope the new immigration bill fails. It is less a bill than a big dirty ball of mischief, malfeasance and mendacity, with a touch of class malice, and it's being pushed by a White House that is at once cynical and inept. The bill's Capitol Hill supporters have a great vain popinjay's pride in their own higher compassion. They are inclusive and you're not, you cur, you gun-totin' truckdriver's-hat-wearin' yahoo. It's all so complex, and you'd understand this if you weren't sort of dumb.
Let's take time and find out if the immigrants who are here see their wages click up and new benefits kick in as the endless pool stops expanding. It would be good to see them gain. Let's find out if it's true that Americans won't stoop to any of the jobs illegals do. I don't think it is. Years ago I worked in a florist shop removing the thorns from roses. It was painful work and I was happy to do it, and I am very American. I was a badly paid waitress in the Holiday Inn on Route 3 in New Jersey.
And finally, John Podhoretz, asked to choose between destroying America and fighting Iraq, chooses Iraq. His idea is that if Bush hurts his base, and the Congressional Republicans this badly, he'll lose an Iraq funding vote. In the New York Post, he writes thsi article, with a picture of the president, and the caption:"W: To avoid Iraq retreat, needs a united Republican Party. "
Bush needs a unified Republican Party going into the fall, which may be the most difficult moment of his presidency. The most likely scenario is that Gen. David Petraeus will report modest to substantial improvements in the war in Iraq, but not definitively enough to fend off Democratic efforts to use his report as a key occasion to end the war.
The president must have his own party in his corner at that time. And yet the party is on the verge of self-immolation over immigration. Passage of the bill would drain most of the remaining affection and respect for Bush from Republicans on Capitol Hill, who would have to deal with the populist fallout from the bill's passage.
He needs all the help he will get. And he will lose a lot of help.
Podhoretz really likes immigration, and really hates immigration restrictionists. He'd like this bill to pass but he recognizes that it will be suicidal for the Republican Party. What he doesn't realize is that it would be equally suicidal for America.
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0.9638 |
Does Crave have a budgeting fund / block reward?
If you look at the Crave block explorer, you will see that in every block, 10 new Crave are minted - 6 of which go to those running masternodes, and the other 4 to those staking.
So why the website say there is an 11 Crave block reward?
In addition to the 10 Crave minted every block, there is also 1 Crave that is temporarily 'set aside', so to speak. These funds are reserved for budgeting and governance purposes.
Since the block spacing is 60 seconds (one block is added to the blockchain every minute), there are 1440 blocks per day, and 43200 blocks per month. This means that every 30 days, 43200 Crave are 'set aside' for governance.
Can you explain this governance?
Anyone is able to submit proposals to further the growth and development of Crave. If the community likes the idea behind a proposal, masternode holders can vote to have it passed. On the contrary, they can also reject the proposal.
One part of the proposal is a one-time / monthly payment amount. This introduces a bit of competition among those submitting proposals - since everyone is fighting for a portion of the 43200 monthly reserved Crave.
How are these 'reserved' funds allocated?
Every 30 days (43200 blocks), we have this thing called a superblock. The point of the superblock is to reward the addresses that are associated with accepted proposals. It is not until this superblock in which the reserved funds are actually minted and added to the circulating supply.
Say that during a certain month, 6 proposals are accepted, and will take 40000 of the 43200 possible budget funds. The extra 3200 Crave do not go to any Crave wallet or developer address - they are never created.
To summarize - if the accepted proposals were to take 100% of the reserved funds, it would be the equivalent to having an 11 Crave block reward in terms of supply emission. However, if no proposals were accepted and 0% of this reserve were allocated, it would likewise be the equivalent of having a 10 Crave block reward.
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0.997368 |
If I was to summarize 2017 it would be: AI, HDR, VR, AR and Resolve. If you missed any trend they would be Artificial Intelligence (really Machine Learning); High Dynamic Range; Virtual Reality (i.e. 360 or 180 degree video); Augmented Reality; and Blackmagic Design’s Resolve 14.
As Augmented Reality is composited in at the viewer’s device, I doubt there will be any direct affect on production and post production.
Virtual Reality has had a good year with direct support appearing in Premiere Pro CC and Final Cut Pro X. In both cases the NLE’s parent purchased third party technology and integrated it. Combined with the ready availability of 360 cameras, there’s no barrier to VR production.
Except the lack of demand. I expect VR will become a valuable tool for a range of projects like installations, telepresence and travel, and particularly in gaming, although that’s outside my purview.
What I don’t expect is a large scale uptake for narrative or general entertainment functions. Nor in most of the vast range of video production. It’s not a fad, like 3D, but will likely remain a niche in the production world. I should point out it’s very possible to make good money in niches!
Conversely I would not buy a new screen without it being HDR compatible – at least with one or two of the major HDR formats. High Dynamic Range video is as big a step forward as color. I believe it provides a fundamentally better viewing experience than simply upping the pixel count.
High Dynamic Range is supported across the most important editing software but suffers from two challenges: the proliferation of competing standards and studio monitoring.
The industry needs to consolidate to one standard, or sets will have to be programmed for all standards. None currently are. Ultimately this will change because it has to, but some earlier set purchasers will probably be screwed over!
HDR studio monitors remain extremely expensive, and hard to find. There’s also the problem of grading for both regular and high dynamic range screens.
I have no doubt that HDR is fundamental to the future of the “television” screen. It will further erode attendance in movie theaters as the home experience is a better image than the movie theater, and you get to control who arrives in your media room!
In 2017 Resolve fulfilled it’s long growing promise of integrating a fully feature NLE into an excellent grading and DIT tool. One with a decent Digital Audio Workstation also integrated. Blackmagic Design are definitely fulfilling their vision of providing professional tools for lens-to-viewer workflows, while continuing to reduce the cost of entry.
When you hear that editors in major reality TV production companies don’t balk at Resolve, despite being Media Composer traditionalists, I do worry that Avid may be challenged in its core market. Not that any big ProdCo has switched yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see significant uptake of Resolve as an editing too in 2018.
My only disappointment with Resolve is that, as of 14.1, there is now way to bridged timed metadata into Resolve. Not only does that mean we cannot provide Lumberjack support, but no transcript (or AI derived metadata) import either. It’s frustrating because version 14 included Smart Collections that could function like Keyword Collections.
In another direct attack on Avid’s core markets, both Resolve and Premiere Pro CC added support for bin locking and shared projects. Implemented slightly differently by each app, they both mimic the way Media Composer collaborates. Resolve adds a nice refinement: in app team messaging.
The technology that will have the greatest affect on the future of production has only just begun to appear. While generally referred to as Artificial Intelligence, what most people mean, and experience, are some variation on Machine Learning. These types of systems can learn (by example or challenge) to expertly do one, or two tasks. They have been applied to a wide range of tasks as I’ve written about previously.
The “low hanging fruit” for AI integration into production apps are Cognitive Services, which are programming interfaces that help interpret the world. Speech-to-Text, Facial recognition, image content recognition, emotion detection, et. al. are going to appear in more and more software.
In 2017 we saw several apps that use these speech-to-text technologies to get transcripts into Premiere Pro CC, Media Composer and Final Cut Pro X. Naturally that’s an area that Greg and I are very interested in: after all we were first to bring transcripts into FCP X (via Lumberjack Lumberyard). What our experience with that taught us is that getting transcripts into an NLE that doesn’t have Script Sync wasn’t a great experience. Useful but not great.
Which is why we spent the year creating a better solution: Lumberjack Builder. Builder is still a work in progress, but it’s a new NLE. An NLE that edits video by editing text. While Builder is definitely an improvement on purely transcription apps, it won’t be the only application of Cognitive Services.
I expect we at Lumberjack System will have more to show later in the year, once Builder is complete. I also expect this is the year we’ll see visual search integrated into Premiere Pro CC. Imagine being able to search b-roll by having computer vision recognize the content. No keywording or indexing.
I’m excited about 2018, particularly as we do more with our new intelligent assistants.
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0.999999 |
What do neuroscientists assume about brain evolution and how does that influence our understanding of the brain?
In order to understand brain research, it is important to consider three basic assumptions that neuroscientists make about brain evolution. For one, the brain is believed to carry traces of its evolutionary origins deep within its tissues. Just as we carry traces of our earliest childhood within our adult personalities, the brain carries the history of our whole species within its very anatomy. Secondly, the brain has evolved up and out, so that the lowest and deepest parts of the brain are the oldest. The outermost, uppermost, and the furthest forward brain regions are the youngest on the evolutionary scale. Thirdly, our brains have increased in complexity across evolution. The older structures tend to be simpler and more primitive, both in their anatomy and in the behavioral functions they control. Likewise, the evolutionarily newer structures tend to be more complex.
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0.999507 |
My INFJ personality type is the advocate. The career path that I find the most interest in is becoming a doctor. This job would be most recommended for me since I have a desire to guide and connect with others with what they need assistance in. In addition, I find the need to ensure that what I’m doing has a meaning, guides people with what they medically need, improves personal health, and leads with my values, principles and beliefs. A doctor is someone this is qualified and eligible enough to be trusted with medicine and attention seeking patients. A career as a doctor is right for me because I find it easy to develop connections with others and I take pleasure in co-operating with a group of people that have a similar mindset as mine. To become a doctor, there are many key steps to follow.
The first step is to earn a bachelor's degree in any science to get into medical school. Medical schools appeal for applicants who have a comprehensive educational background. The second step is to take the medical college admission test, which is a computer-based standardized exam for medical students.. These performance scores are required by nearly all medical schools in the nation. The third step is to earn a medical degree by attending medical school, which generally last up to four years. The first two years involve classroom and laboratory work, and the other two years enable students to work with patients, but with the supervision of skilled doctors. The fourth step is to complete a residency program. These programs offer aspiring doctors a chance to work directly with patients in a specific area of medicine. The fifth step is to obtain licensure, which is the granting or regulation of licences, as for professionals. All states require physicians to become licensed before medicine practices. The final step is to get certified to advance in a career as a doctor. Although it isn’t required, it could increase your chances of becoming a doctor.
As for the cost, it would add up to $167,000. When it comes to a doctor’s day to day routine, they generally begin the day performing rounds at the hospital by going to multiple patients and checking on their current status. After two to three hours of checking up on patients; doctors go to their private office to look through patient appointments. In a hospital, the business all depends on the season because during winter, it gets more hectic due to the flu. In addition, throughout the day doctors sign forms, write prescriptions and handle other paperwork that need to get done. As for typical pay, it may vary since pediatricians earn a median of $156,000 and radiologists earn a median of $315,000. As for pros and cons, there are many that you should look over before considering to become a doctor. Having an experience of helping patients and giving back to communities really boosts your personal satisfaction, which sounds like an outstanding benefit.
Although it may be a tough job, doctors appreciate above-average earnings, which tend to be over $100,000 for salaries. On the other hand, there are negatives such as the time consumption before getting the job since students often cite prolonged training periods in medical school along with the pricey tuition fee. In addition, saving lives can be satisfying, the responsibilities to worry about tend to bring stress and tension. A key takeaway is to keep in mind that being a doctor may not be the easiest, but a job is a job, and you need to get it done.
What I like about this certain career is that it involves guiding others medically which builds up personal satisfaction. My concerns about this career is how stressful it can be since it is emotionally draining to look at patients going through a difficult state in their life. I was surprised when I discovered that you must take the medical college admissions test in order to become a doctor. Based off what I learned about how I like to work and what I enjoy doing, pros and cons of this particular career, I would say I would be interested in pursuing to be a vet in the future since it’s very much similar, except with animals. In conclusion although it may be a challenge to be a doctor, I will do the most I can in order to get to that goal.
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0.925566 |
Determine the configuration for the given test class and method.
Since a method may be run on multiple test subclasses, indicates which test case is currently being evaluated.
testClass - the test class being evaluated; this might be a subclass of the method’s declaring class.
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0.978689 |
Falkvinge founded the Swedish Pirate party in 2006 to focus on reforming copyright, patents and file sharing laws. The party now has an often marginal presence in 22 countries, with significant presence in Sweden, where it has two members of the European parliament, and Germany, where it polls as the third biggest political party.
Birgitta Jonsdottir, the MP instrumental in Iceland becoming a sanctuary for free speech.
A poet-activist turned politician, Jonsdottir has been a member of the Icelandic parliament since 2009. Best known for her involvement in bringing the WikiLeaks Collateral Murder video to the public, Jonsdottir has also been instrumental in Iceland's efforts to become a free-speech haven, and is one of the plaintiffs suing the US government over the proposed surveillance powers granted by the NDAA bill.
The EFF, founded in 1990, described itself as "the first line of defence" when online freedoms come under attack. Through a mix of direct action, legal challenges and political advocacy, the group lobbies on freedom of speech, surveillance and intellectual property issues. The former Grateful Dead lyricist was one of the EFF's founding members and has been one of its loudest public voices ever since.
Appelbaum, a computer science researcher at the University of Washington, is one of the core team of the Tor project, which protects the anonymity of thousands of internet users across the world. Also described as the group's main advocate, Appelbaum came to wider public attention after being repeatedly stopped and searched by US officials at airports, who confiscated his electronic equipment, after he stood in for Julian Assange at a talk.
The driving force behind WikiLeaks, Assange has directed the publication of secret documents on the Afghan and Iraq wars, Guantánamo Bay prisoner files, and 250,000 US diplomatic cables. Assange is nothing if not a divisive figure, with his many disputes a matter of public record across the world – but despite these (or perhaps because of it), Assange is perhaps the figurehead of the free internet movement and a powerful voice because of it.
Ada Lovelace, who died in 1852, serves as an inspiration on the open internet. Lovelace worked with Charles Babbage on his difference engine, wrote some of the first programs for it, and so is often described as the world's first computer programmer. Unlike Babbage, she foresaw the role of computers in making music, art and more. In recent years Ada Lovelace Day has become an online institution, aimed at promoting the role of women in science and technology, and upping their profile in the media.
A masked hacker of the Anonymous group hacks the Elysée Palace website in January 2012.
One of the world's most vocal advocates for free software (rather than open source, a term he hates), Stallman tours the world preaching the virtues of software which is free to use and free to edit. Stallman is more than a proselytiser, though – he's also one of the principal coders of many components of GNU (an operating system he established).
As inventor of one of the most visible areas of the internet – the world-wide web – Berners-Lee's role in internet history was already secure. He hasn't, however, rested on his laurels: he is instrumental in pushing open data at high level to governments around the world, and is a campaigner against a two-tier internet. He's also recently apologised for the two forward slashes at the start of web addresses (http://), which he admits are "completely unnecessary".
Professor Thrun was not a man needing to worry about his next paycheck: as a tenured professor in artificial intelligence at the elite Stanford University, he had a job for life. Not content with teaching to a relatively small number of students, he opened up access to his lectures online for free, through a site called Udacity. In its first year, more than 140,000 students signed up for his class.
The Anonymous rallying cry – "We are Anonymous. We are legion. Expect us" – is not to everyone's taste, but it's certainly well known. Unlike its sister group Lulzsec, the Anonymous collective is genuinely fragmentary and leaderless – and so has continued despite FBI arrests largely paralysing Lulzsec. The hackers recently took the Home Office and No 10 websites briefly offline in protest at proposed internet surveillance laws.
Bram Cohen is not a popular man in Hollywood. Cohen invented not only the peer-to-peer technology behind the BitTorrent network, but also the software for users to share files. The technology now claims more than 100 million active users each month, downloading about 400,000 files every day – some legal, but many copyrighted films, music and TV programmes.
Peter Sunde was one of the people behind Pirate Bay, a portal for file sharers, and founded Flattr, a micropayments site for bloggers.
For those unwilling to fork out for Microsoft Windows or Apple's Mac OSX, there is a free alternative available, which comes with the added benefit (for coders) that it's open to modify and personalise – Linux. Linus Torvalds is the Finnish-American software engineer who initiated the project, and he's shepherded the numerous different distributions ever since as an advocate for open source and free software.
While many hacktivists are content merely to ignore copyright laws and risk the consequences, Lawrence Lessig has taken a gentler approach, introducing a type of licence allowing the sharing of content without charge. People who create works which would normally be subject to copyright can use Creative Commons (CC) licences to allow free reuse, adding non-commercial or non-modifying clauses if they wish. More than 100m images across the net are already available under CC licences.
Susan Landau is a visiting scholar in the computer science department of Harvard University with a 30-year publishing history on cyber-security, surveillance and cryptography, and is an advocate of users' privacy, and the risks of embedding surveillance in routine communications. She is also an advocate for women in science, and runs the ResearcHers email group. She won the Women of Vision social impact award in 2008.
Jimmy Wales is the man behind Wikipedia, the world's biggest encyclopedia (with 21m articles), and one compiled entirely by volunteer editors, with anyone able to edit articles at any time. On top of these achievements, Wales has recently boosted his open internet credentials by encouraging the site's board to waive the site's famed neutrality for the first time by participating in an internet blackout, effectively closing the English-language site for a day, in protest at the US's proposed Sopa law against piracy.
Peter Sunde was one of the people behind the Pirate Bay – a search engine granting access to more than 4m files on the BitTorrent network, and a key portal for file sharers everywhere. The site has long evaded legal attempts at shutdown, but Sunde has moved on – founding Flattr, a micropayments site aimed at giving independent sites and blogs a voluntary revenue stream. Pirate Bay, meanwhile, claims it is working on servers on airborne drones, to ensure no government is ever able to take it offline.
Clay Shirky was one of the first passionate advocates for crowdsourcing, collaboration and aggregation of online content and journalism, and consequently of the open institutions needed to allow such efforts to take place. Shirky encourages institutions to reform ready for the networked world, and is credited as one of the thinkers who inspired the Guardian's open journalism efforts.
If a Tunisian market-seller began the Arab spring, it is perhaps fair to credit Aaron Swartz with fuelling the "academic spring", if allegations against him are proved. Swartz was accused of downloading more than 4m academic articles from the JSTOR site in an attempt to improve open access to academic literature. After his indictment – to which he pleads not guilty – others around the net shared tens of thousands of papers without permission. Moves to free up access to academic papers through legitimate channels have now accelerated, with a leading funder, the Wellcome Trust, and UK ministers now backing open access.
A campaigner for freedom of information and against the surveillance state, Heather Brooke was instrumental in the legal actions which exposed MPs' abuse of their expenses system. During her research into hacker culture and online activism, Brooke obtained the WikiLeaks embassy cables and was one of the journalists working on the project. She sits on the advisory board of the Open Rights Group and is a visiting professor at City University, London.
Who have we missed? Tell us by nominating your choices for the Open 20 in the comments here.
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0.9997 |
Please be my friend again. Perhaps you feel under-appreciated? I'm sorry if it seemed that way, but this is not the case.
No, I realize I can't replace you. No one can do what you do for me. I can't buy another stomach at a store, nor can any amount of flirting lead to meeting a new one online. I consider you a vital organ, buddy, even if most medical texts leave you off the list.
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0.999361 |
What would you say would be a better route if I want to get into a production role? I could take a computer game design/programming class that will mostly focus on the implementation process or take classes that revolve around operations management and business classes.
From what I’ve seen all of those skills are useful to a producer, though I think you would have easier time getting a job in todays industry with programming training than with business training.
Producers have to form a clear vision of the excellent, profitable game they want to build and then they have to have the leadership and technical skills to coach a diverse team of people (including their supervisors) to build the game and make the needed tradeoffs and improvements along the way. I have yet to meet two producers with the same backgrounds…there are a lot of paths to becoming a producer, though its not a fit for the interests and abilities of everyone. But that is a different discussion.
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0.999507 |
Genesys Customer Experience Platform is customer service software that works to increase profits, revenue and market share through enhanced customer journeys, growth and positive customer relationships. The platform allows users to orchestrate ideal customer journeys utilizing business rules and full context, and is designed to provide full visibility from the beginning of the customer journey all the way through to the end.
The platform allows users to scale insights across regions or globally, identify areas suited for improvements or system changes, and view the entire process from the customer’s point of view in order to optimize customer experiences. Additionally, the software works to ensure customer journey continuity in real-time, utilizes cross-channel contextual insights and is designed to integrate across existing enterprise systems.
Genesys was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Daly City, California.
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0.890526 |
Do you know what Hoar Frost is? I hadn’t heard of Hoar Frost until this weekend. Also called White Frost, according to the all-knowing Wikipedia, Hoar Frost is the white ice crystals that form from frozen dew. It typically forms on cold clear nights when heat is lost into the open sky causing objects to become colder than the surrounding air.
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0.945888 |
When is a tennis coach not allowed to coach?
According to the rules, when sitting on the side of a tennis court, apparently.
Serena Williams made headlines for her sensational blow-up in her US Open final defeat to Naomi Osaka for being penalised three times in the second set, culminating in her losing a game — and then the match — to the unheralded 20-year-old Japanese star.
The incident that sparked Williams' implosion came after the first game of the second set, when chair umpire Carlos Ramos handed her a code violation for "coaching" from her coach Patrick Mouratoglou.
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) rules state: "Players shall not receive coaching during a match."
"Communications of any kind, audible or visible, between a player and a coach may be construed as coaching."
Ramos spotted Mouratoglou holding his hands apart, indicating to Williams that she should be playing a little closer to the baseline, and instantly handed her a code violation.
Although it was Mouratoglou who was the one communicating with Williams, the rules also say that players are responsible for the conduct of their parties, and so Williams was punished.
This first penalty, a warning, then lead to the dramatic events that followed, in which Williams was handed a second violation and penalised a point for smashing her racquet.
Then, after calling Ramos a "thief", she was slugged with a further penalty — this time an entire game — on her way to a straight sets defeat.
When interviewed on ESPN post match, Mouratoglou admitted to the charge, with the caveat that he is not alone in doing so on the tour.
"Well, I mean, I am honest, I was coaching," Mouratoglou said.
"I don't think she looked at me, that's why she didn't even think I was, but I was.
"Like 100 per cent of the coaches, in 100 per cent of the matches, so we have to stop this hypocrite thing."
"Sascha [Bajin, Naomi Osaka's coach] was coaching every point too, it just … "
"It is strange because this chair umpire was the chair umpire for most of the finals of Rafa [Nadal], and Toni [Nadal, Rafael's uncle and former coach] is coaching almost every single point and he never gave a warning, so I don't get it."
Claiming that he was only breaking the rules because everyone else does is perhaps not the greatest defence, but does raise questions as to what is coaching and whether or not the rules should be changed.
Former players readily acknowledge that coaching is endemic during matches on the tour, raising the question as to whether it is being policed properly, or indeed at all.
"For the purposes of this Rule, a 'coach' shall also include any representative and/or relative of a player," the ITF rules state.
Earlier in the tournament, Nick Kyrgios courted controversy by receiving what was described as on-court coaching in between games by umpire Mohamed Lahyani.
As per the ITF rules, this appears to be ok, seeing as the experienced Swedish chair umpire is neither related to, nor a representative of Kyrgios.
Nevertheless, it still created plenty of comment, not least from his opponent Pierre-Hughes Herbert — who was understandably angry — and former player Andy Roddick, who highlighted the challenges the US Open faced with coaching this season.
Further muddying the waters, in most Women's Tennis Association (WTA) tournaments — including US Open qualifying matches — coaching is actually allowed.
Coaches can come on to the court during changeovers or medical breaks and last year, the US Open even experimented with coaching from the players box during the qualification tournament.
Head of professional tennis at the United States Tennis Association, Stacey Allaster, told the New York Times last year that coaches regularly communicate with players, regardless of the rules.
"We know coaches sitting in players' boxes are regularly communicating with players, so there's hypocrisy around us not enforcing the rule.
"You either enforce it or make it part of the game, and we think this adds another element of excitement for the fans."
Are new mothers better athletes?
The physical resiliency pregnancy demands, some claim, has lasting benefit to elite athletes. Though its impact may be mental rather than physical.
That is not the view shared by Wimbledon executive Richard Lewis, who said he was against on-court coaching being brought into the grand slams.
"Allowing coaching is a fundamental change to the sport and would be a really big decision for tennis," Lewis told ESPN.
"We are philosophically very against it. We believe it is a gladiatorial sport, an individual sport; you go on court and the whole premise of tennis is that you are on your own.
"That is one of the beauties of tennis compared to most [sports], if not every other sport."
"For those that say it's difficult to police coaching at the moment and this would solve it — we say it doesn't solve anything at all; it creates different issues.
"We will be pretty challenging and dogmatic on our views on coaching."
Choosing to enforce that rule at a key moment in a grand slam final may come across as a little rough, but according to the rules it was legitimate.
"It is strange to happen in a grand slam final," Mouratoglou said, adding that he has never been penalised for coaching in his career before today.
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National Book Store, Inc. (abbreviated as NBS) is a retail company based in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. It operates a bookstore and office-supplies store chain of the same name.
The history of National Book Store can be traced back to the 1930s.. However, the company has been formally established in 1942. Before the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II, José Ramos and Socorro Cáncio-Ramos, rented a small-corner space of a Haberdashery situated at the foot of Escolta Bridge in Santa Cruz, Manila. With a starting capital of ₱211 (equivalent to ₱15,047 in 2015), the Ramoses set up their first retail bookstore selling GI novels, text books and supplies. During World War II, the store shifted to selling sold candies, soap, and slippers due to stringent book censorship. The store experienced success but was burned down during the 1945 Battle of Manila, rebuilt again and reverted to selling textbooks and stationery, the opening of the rebuilt National Book Store at the corner of Soler Street and Avenida Rizal, coincided with the first academic schoolyear after the war. In 1948, the store was destroyed by a Typhoon Gene but a new two storey building with a mezzanine was built to host National Book Store.
National Book Store began selling greeting cards in the 1950s depicting Philippine subjects to showcase local culture and traditions. The book store also launched a publishing program with international publishers such as McGraw-Hill, Prentice Hal, Lippincott, Addison-Wesley. In 1955, the Ramoses were able to acquire a lot owned by the Guerrero family, where they erected the nine-storey Albercer Building in 1963 which was named after Alfredo, Benjamin, and Cecilia, where a National Book Store was hosted.
National Book Store accumulated enough capital after some several years to acquire rights to reprint foreign brand greeting cards for the Philippine market. The book store had rights to reprint cards by Gibson for a few years. In 1973, outbid a more established competitor for a Philippine franchise of the greeting card brand, Hallmark.
The Ramoses children proposed expanding the scope of National Book Store, and a branch along Recto Avenue was opened, an area often frequented by students. In the 1970s, branches were opened in shopping malls in Makati and Cubao, Quezon City. For the next decades since the opening of the Recto branch, the book store grew with shopping mall owners approaching the Ramoses to set up a store inside their properties. National Book Store became one of the top 100 Philippine corporations in 1988, registering profits of $1 million on gross revenues of $34.7 million. The book store chain also became one of the Top 500 of the list by Retail Asia-Pacific, ranking 308th in 2004.
In 2015, National Book Store captures the majority of the Philippine book market having a share amounting to 80 percent, and operates around 127 branches across the Philippines. It also operates Metrobooks, which opened in Hong Kong in 2007, a subsidiary based in the former British crown colony.
With the pending entry of National Book Store into the Philippine Stock Exchange through the renaming of Vulcan Industrial & Mining Corp., another Ramos-owned company, into National Book Store Retail Corp. they would now also venture into wholesale, publishing, printing, manufacturing, and distribution.
It entered the education industry in 2017 with the launch of NBS College, its first institution for higher learning at the National Book Store building on Quezon Avenue. By 2018, it now has over 230 branches nationwide.
Among National Book Store subsidiaries are Powerbooks, a specialty store for books, and Metrobooks, a book store based in Hong Kong. Anvil Publishing serves as its publishing arm. In late 2016, they launched three new specialty stores: Art Bar, for arts and crafts; Noteworthy, for stationery and gift items; and Work Station, for office supplies and equipment.
The brand name of National Book Store was thought of by Socorro Ramos, one of the co-founders. No marketing research was conducted and was done on Ramos' impulse taking the book store name from the National Cash Register machine, a brand which was popular at the time of the book store's founding.
For fifty years from the book store's establishment, the logo designed by Ramos herself was used which consists of the name of the store in a white background on a surrounded by a red and white stripe design. Ramos first came up with a logo by placing the store's name in a striped wrapper with her children finding the logo satisfactory.
A new logo was adopted in 1996 following a proposal from Ramos' children and grandchildren which features the store's name in a more modern font in a red background. In a voting made within the company, 15 voted for adopting the new logo with only Ramos herself voting against the change. The new logo design was a commissioned work by a Singapore-based company which also came up with a new store lay-out design.
A new store design was executed in 2016, starting with its branch in SM City North EDSA. National Book Store collaborated with French design firm Malherbe for a new and more modern and contemporary design for their book store outlets.
^ a b c Schnabel, Chris (21 March 2015). "How National Bookstore's 'Nanay Coring' grows a nation of readers". Rappler. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
^ "Company Overview of National Book Store Inc". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
^ a b c d e f g Velas, Mary Anne (1 June 2015). "National Bookstore: An accidental brand". Entrepreneur Philippines. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
^ a b c d "Our History". National Bookstore. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
^ "National Bookstore to complete backdoor listing by early next year". BusinessWorld. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
^ "National Bookstore's Ramos family forays into education with NBS College". Bilyonaryo. 2018-03-22. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
^ "Little stores, big ideas". Manila Bulletin Lifestyle. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
^ "Oldest PH bookstore updates look - The Manila Times Online". www.manilatimes.net. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to National Book Store.
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A government career is like a civilian career in many ways: for the most part, you work a regular job while attempting to keep your life, family, bills, housing, car, etc. in order. You will work with other people, have a boss, and have to exhibit initiative if you want to get ahead.
On the other hand, working for the federal government carries much more responsibility. The work that you do directly effects the well-being of fellow citizens, as well as the United States as a nation. Considering that you are a representative of the US government, you must consistently live up to working and presentation standards, and demonstrate exemplary ethics.
Here is a table of some common aspects of life that would be important no matter what you choose to do. In general, civilian life offers more money. But there is a catch: you must first spend more to get yourself educated. You must spend more to travel, stay in hotels, find a place to live, move your things, and pay for health care. The responsibility for you is held entirely by you, whereas in a government job, many things are taken care of: for example, health care, insurance, and retirement funds. Many things are either substantially cheaper or free in the government sector: look at travel and education.
Government: With tax advantages and automatic step pay increases, pay is comparable to civilian sector pay.
Civilian: Usually no tax advantages.
Government: Federal employees enjoy a highly competitive health insurance program called the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program (FEHB).
Civilian: Depends on employer. Often you must pay your own, or pay partial amounts & co-pays.
Government: The federal government offers both group life and long term care insurance programs. Both plans provide employees with a long-term safety net that is becoming increasingly rare in the private sector.
Civilian: Employers may or may not have insurance plans.
Government: Tuition reimbursement programs, graduate education for defeense employees, flexible spending accounts, and eligibility for thousands of scholarships dedicated to helping government employees pay for their education.
Civilian: Your responsibility. Unless you have an especially nice employer, you pay for all of it.
Government: Most likely you will travel to several spots within a year of becoming hired. Cheaper airline and train tickets for almost all employees of the US government.
Civilian: Many choices, but you pay out of pocket for most all travel options.
Government: Excellent! You are challenged by your leaders and peers. The choice is yours if you would like to advance or not.
Civilian: Vary widely. In small companies you may not have much opportunity. In larger companies, you may have opportunities, but often have to work much longer hours.
Government: Excellent! 3-part retirement program includes a social security benefit, a 401(k) type plan, and a defined benefit component based on years of employment and salary history.
Civilian: Vary widely. Most employers will require you to work 35 or more years before retirement.
For more specific information about the benefits of working for the federal government, see our Benefits Overview page.
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Can ATMs be used to launder 'dirty' money back into circulation? If a genuine card is used to make a cash withdrawal from a bank account that has been opened in an environment where there are lax account opening controls, then yes. An account could be opened in one country and fed with 'dirty' money - then a genuine card from that account could be used to make hard currency withdrawals at ATMs in another country up to allowed daily withdrawal limits. The higher the allowed daily limit, the more attractive the country is for criminals. Prepaid cards can be used for the same purpose.
In that context the news that the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) is cracking down on local banks that allow VIP customers to make multiple large withdrawals in a single day is welcome. According to an article in Zawya some banks have been allowing wealthy customers to by-pass the SR 5,000 daily withdrawal limit. Organised Crime Groups (OCGs) spawn wealthy customers, who no doubt search the world for places to maximise hard cash withdrawals. In that context, the SAMA initiative is welcome. Hopefully regulators and monetary agencies in other countries will follow suit.
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How many of you out there would love to just go to school for the rest of your life?
I know a lot of people who would immediately raise their hands like Hermione Granger. I know a ton of people who would say absolutely not, and that is fine too.
I do not know where it came from when I was born and began to evolve my own sliver of primate consciousness, but I have loved learning for as long as I can remember. Not just hearing new information - truly learning it. Letting it seep into my muscles and marrow and the very folds of my brain.
If you read a few posts back about my one-day stand with calculus, you have an idea of my relationship to math. But even math I find fascinating - not enough to keep learning for the flipping fun of it, but for what it is, why it exists, and the way that problems are identified and solved. The logic and the systems of it.
I have come to realize that my interest in math, for example, is the same interest I have in the human mind. The logic, the systems, the way that we face changes and challenges and adapt in order to address them.
Information that we absorb we process and integrate in our minds based on our unique learning styles as well as our biases toward what we have enjoyed learning in the past. I am fascinated by math because of the way human beings invented it, now interact with it, and how math plays a role in explaining so much about the world, not by the act of solving a proof in my high school classroom. Similarly, I am fascinated by physics because of how it explains the universe and how chaotic systems have led to planets and species evolution, not by the idea of solving one of the foreign language formulas that fill up chalkboards in a lab.
I have come to peace with the fact that I may not get the chance to learn most things I would like to in this lifetime (Perhaps I will read about them during retirement in my leather easy chair and velvet robe I will own and with the sun setting perfectly outside the window), and accepting the classic constraints that time places on how much I can learn enables me to happily open myselfto learning everything I can every day.
Access to information is at an unprecedented level and even saying that is becoming redundant with the pace by which apps and websites and companies and programs are evolving while I write this post.
This is profoundly so in the world of business/narrative/branding/marketing/strategy. I just spoke with a colleague and fellow Narrativeologist who said "You are never ahead or on top of how fast the industry and media is moving."
The solution? "Honesty," he says.
"If you accept that you will never be able to get ahead of the world, it will be much easier to tell a client 'Hey, I have not thought of that before. Let's talk about it' when they offer a counter-perspective on your solution. Being honest about not knowing something opens the door to solving problems as a team."
Learning is collaborative. My company's tagline is Confidence through Collaboration and I mean it both ways. There is no such thing as a true expert but I know things that clients find helpful to learn either about themselves or their brands.
Simultaneously, every client knows so many things that I do not know and presents the opportunity in every conversation to teach me something new about myself, my company, and what I think about the human experience.
A lot of my clients are inundated by the billion things out there now to help them grow their businesses. It is my job to simplify things for them, but I cannot do that unless I learn from them what math problems they are facing or what chaotic systems are affecting their evolution.
The opportunity for learning is just that: an opportunity. It comes from something. Whether it is something subconscious like a personal motivation or interest that presents itself, as customary as a teacher presenting something new in class, or as tangible as the pressure to figure out what makes you stand out in your industry (Pro tip: that is why you come to me...), inspiration must be there from a separate source.
So maybe it is not about going back to school for the rest of your life. Maybe life is all the schooling you need.
What is the source of your inspiration? What are you dying to learn about?
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Subwoofer bad power suppply or amp?
A subwoofer (or sub) is a woofer, or a complete loudspeaker, which is dedicated to the reproduction of low-pitched audio frequencies known as bass. The typical frequency range for a subwoofer is about 20–200 Hz for consumer products, below 100 Hz for professional live sound, and below 80 Hz in THX-approved systems. Subwoofers are intended to augment the low frequency range of loudspeakers covering higher frequency bands.
Subwoofers are made up of one or more woofers mounted in a loudspeaker enclosure—often made of wood—capable of withstanding air pressure while resisting deformation. Subwoofer enclosures come in a variety of designs, including bass reflex (with a port or passive radiator in the enclosure), infinite baffle, horn-loaded, and bandpass designs, representing unique tradeoffs with respect to efficiency, bandwidth, size and cost. Passive subwoofers have a subwoofer driver and enclosure and they are powered by an external amplifier. Active subwoofers include a built-in amplifier.
The first subwoofers were developed in the 1960s to add bass response to home stereo systems. Subwoofers came into greater popular consciousness in the 1970s with the introduction of Sensurround in movies such as Earthquake, which produced loud low-frequency sounds through large subwoofers. With the advent of the compact cassette and the compact disc in the 1980s, the easy reproduction of deep and loud bass was no longer limited by the ability of a phonograph record stylus to track a groove, and producers could add more low frequency content to recordings. As well, during the 1990s, DVDs were increasingly recorded with "surround sound" processes that included a Low-frequency effects (LFE) channel, which could be heard using the subwoofer in home theater systems. During the 1990s, subwoofers also became increasingly popular in home stereo systems, custom car audio installations, and in PA systems. By the 2000s, subwoofers became almost universal in sound reinforcement systems in nightclubs and concert venues.
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A complete guide on how to grow tomatoes that are perfect and flavorful!
The most frequent questions I get from spring through early fall concern growing tomatoes properly and how to fix, or avoid, their associated problems.
We all love to grow tomatoes, but they do have their quirks. I have, therefore, put together the most comprehensive article I can in order to answer all the different questions, and make it easier for everyone to grow any type of tomatoes successfully, with confidence, and most importantly, easily.
I know you're probably ready to get started, so let's dig in.
They like soil that has a pH of 5.5 - 6.8, is fertile, deep, well-drained, and that is rich in organic matter. If the soil stays soggy where you want to plant, build a raised bed.
You want soil that will hold water as evenly as possible because uneven uptake of water can cause all kinds of problems with tomatoes including: flower drop, fruit splitting and blossom-end rot.
To help give your tomatoes the best-suited environment you can, till in a good amount of compost or organic matter. A general guide would be 3 inches (7.6 cm) of organic matter into the top 6 inches (15.2 cm) of soil.
You can also grow a cover crop to help build the soil. Plant a grain or legume crop, sometimes called green manure, for the purpose of chopping it down and adding it to the soil.
One way is to plant hairy vetch (Vicia villosa), a nitrogen-fixing legume, in your garden bed in the fall. In the spring, cut it down and till the residue into the soil. This provides both nitrogen and an instant mulch that preserves moisture.
Lastly, many tomato diseases reside in the soil and affect peppers, eggplants, potatoes, and other crops in the nightshade (Solanaceae) family. To break the disease cycle, and to help get rid of the disease-causing organisms, rotate tomatoes with unrelated crops, such as corn, beans or lettuce.
What is the difference between Heirlooms and Hybrids?
Heirlooms, loosely defined, are open-pollinated cultivars that were introduced many generations ago, and were of such merit, that they have been saved, maintained and handed down. It is generally agreed that no genetically modified plants can be considered heirloom cultivars.
Heirlooms are often not as productive as hybrids, but they typically taste better, and you can save their seeds from one season to the next, eventually breeding a variety that is perfectly suited to your conditions. Most heirlooms are "indeterminate" types, meaning they grow long, sprawling vines and produce tomatoes continuously through the season.
Hybrids, on the other hand, are tomatoes whose breeding has been controlled, and organized for specific reasons. For example, they often have disease-resistance bred into them that heirlooms lack.
In fact hybrid tomato varieties have many advantages compared to open-pollinated varieties. Hybrids usually produce higher yields, they generally mature earlier and more uniformly, and many hybrids have better fruit quality.
It's really up to you which you want to plant. If you want to avoid hybrids and plant heirlooms only, look at that tag, there will usually be a "F1" demarcation for hybrids. If you need or want the disease resistant tomatoes, you will have to buy hybrids.
To tell what diseases a hybrid can withstand, look at the letters after its name on the plant tag. For example, VFFNTA means the plant is resistant to Verticillium wilt, Fusarium races 1 and 2, root knot Nematodes, Tobacco mosaic virus, and Alternaria stem canker. A plant marked VFFNTA would be a good choice for you to try if diseases have killed your tomatoes in the past.
In long-season areas, tomatoes can be direct-seeded into the garden, but most people start their seeds indoors 5-6 weeks before the last spring frost, and then plant their seedlings out into the garden.
The main advantage of starting tomatoes from seed, is the huge variety of tomatoes you can grow, because you aren't relying on whatever the garden center or nursery has in stock.
If you're going to buy your seedlings from the garden center or elsewhere, then look for clean, dark green foliage and a sturdy habit. If the bottom leaves are yellow or brown, or if there are any flowers already showing, the plant is stressed.
Look at the leaves and the underside of the leaves closely for any pests. If you see any chew marks, or aphids, don't buy it. Try to buy the healthiest, pest-free, plants available because they will be the most productive plants overall.
Always plant seedlings in the garden after all danger of frost has past. In other words, don't be in a rush to plant! Getting a tomato plant into the ground when the soil is cold causes it to turn purple (purple foliage means the plant can't take up phosphorus).
Wait a week or two after the average last-frost date. and set them out about 24-36 inches (60-90 cm) apart if you are going to allow the plants to sprawl. If you plan on staking or caging your tomatoes, they can be planted about 15 inches (38 cm) apart.
I always put down a small amount of balanced organic fertilizer like a 5-5-5 and work it into the soil right before I plant.
Generally you don't want to fertilize tomatoes too much until the plant is well established, and in full flower, because too much nitrogen will give you lots of foliage and not a lot of fruit. I have found, however, putting down a small amount of balanced fertilizer gets the plants off to a good, healthy start.
Then next time you'll want to fertilize again is when the plants start to flower. Also, spraying your plants with a kelp solution two or three times a season boosts vigor, which helps the vines fend off diseases.
Always plant tomatoes deep, and on their sides.
I plant tomatoes on their sides because the entire stem that is now buried will form roots, giving the plant the best foundation possible and allowing the plant a greater ability to absorb nutrients and water. Plus a larger root system near the soil surface will mean that more heat will be available to the plant, producing earlier tomatoes.
Cutworms chew along the surface and a thin strip of newspaper or cardboard around the plant stem will stop cutworms from chewing through the stem.
When you're finished planting, firm the soil down evenly to ensure the plant is well settled.
When watering, always keep the water towards the base of the plant, and try and keep the leaves dry. Tomatoes can become infected when airborne spores land on wet plants, so never use an overhead sprinkler. Obviously if it rains you can't do anything about it, but try not to unnecessarily get the plants wet.
Water regularly but allow the soil to dry a bit between waterings. You want tomatoes to have a regular available water source without keeping them soggy.
In areas with high heat, you may need to mulch around the base of the plants to keep the roots from drying out, and help with moisture retention.
A study done by the USDA in Beltsville, Maryland, showed that tomatoes mulched with mown vetch produced especially robust root systems and outperformed those mulched with plastic. If you need to mulch, it is recommended to use a 3-4 inch (7.6-10.2 cm) layer of compost or straw.
Another tip that I know about, but have never tried, is to seed crimson clover under tomato plants when they are about 2 feet (30.5 cm) tall. The clover acts like a weed-smothering "living mulch" while fixing nitrogen into its root nodules.
If you live in a cool climate, and have a very short growing season, you'll also want to mulch, because it helps warm the soil.
When tomatoes get too wet or too dry that's when problems start. So try to keep the soil moisture even, without being soggy.
I know this is a fine line, so you will have to water to the plant's needs. If they need to be watered every morning because your summer days get to over 100° F (38° C), that's OK. If you live in an area that stays fairly cool all day, then you may need to water only every 2 or 3 days.
Just pay attention, and in time you will see a pattern of when your plants need to be watered, and you'll get the hang of it.
Indeterminate tomatoes don't stop growing, and produce a lot of suckers from the main stem of the plant. If conditions are good, those suckers can flower and set fruit. Examples of this type of growth habit include 'Big Beef' (most of the beefsteak types), 'Supersonic', 'Early Girl', and 'Big Boy'.
Semideterminate plants have habits of both. Examples would be 'Celebrity' and 'Mountain Pride'.
OK - so which do you choose to grow?
It all depends upon the variety of tomato you want to grow. One isn't better than another, they simply have a different growth habit. The tag on the seedlings or seed packet will tell you what you have.
Determinate tomatoes don't need to be caged or put on a trellis, but then again, neither do indeterminate varieties.
Whether you use cages or not is really your choice and how much space you have in your garden.
I have grown both types of tomatoes, and no matter what kind they are, I let them sprawl on the ground. There are very few insect or disease problems in my area, and the plants thrive.
If, however, you live in a moist area where mildew or insects like slugs and snails may be a problem, or you have a small space to work within, then by all means stake your tomatoes and get them up off the ground.
If you do chose to stake, cage, or trellis your plants, do so when they are small, so you don't damage branches or roots.
For the ties to attach the plants to the cages, use some soft cloth or green growing tape, try not to use anything that will girdle the stem like wire or string.
Some gardeners prune tomatoes by pinching out suckers or the leafy shoots that grow from leaf axils. The leaf axil is the "V" between the central trunk (stem) and lateral branches.
Here is how you determine whether to remove suckers or not.
If left on the plant, suckers will keep growing and usually produce fruit. It can be helpful sometimes to prune suckers out so the overall plant doesn't get top-heavy, or produce more fruit than the plant can mature in time for fall. Just keep in mind, if you prune them, you will get fewer, but larger fruit.
You can let some of the suckers stay on if you want, suckers don't hurt anything. It's up to you how you want your tomatoes to grow. For instance, if your plants are allowed to sprawl along the ground as I do with my tomato plants, I never remove any suckers at all!
If you just don't know, try pruning one plant and not another, and see how each one turns out. That way you'll know for sure which technique works best for you.
This is when irregular shapes and lines, especially at the top of the tomato, are caused by temperature shifts and incomplete pollination in cold weather at flowering time. There is nothing you can do about it. The tomato will still taste great. Next time, don't plant too early, or select varieties that resist catfacing.
This is caused by poor calcium uptake due to inconsistent moisture. If you currently have this problem, remove any rotted or diseased tomatoes, provide consistent moisture, and keep a layer of mulch on the soil. If you live in a super hot area, you need to mulch around your tomatoes to keep them from drying out. They like nice even moisture.
This can happen any time there is a real spike in the heat. If the fruit is far from ripe, chances are that the entire fruit will rot. Remove damaged tomatoes.
This can happen any time the plants experience accelerated growth, which can be brought on by a sudden increase in moisture after being too dry, like summer rains after dry periods. To fix, provide consistent moisture, or look for varieties that are resistant to cracking. Another reason you may see splitting or cracking is that the fruit is overripe. There is nothing wrong with these tomatoes, they are great to eat, just keep them picked.
In addition to this, many cherry tomatoes crack with the slightest shift in weather, and after heavy rains, and there's not much you can do about it. If you can, try and pick all the ripe ones before it rains.
Tomato flowers fall off prematurely when there is a sudden change in the weather because it is too cool, or too hot, or the soil is too dry.
Improve the growing conditions. Mulch to keep the soil moisture even.
Use Blossom Set, which is a product that is all-natural, and environmentally friendly. It's a natural plant hormone that helps blossoms set fruit in spite of poor weather conditions, and produces larger, meatier tomatoes with fewer seeds.
Use early in the season and get tomatoes up to three weeks earlier. When tomato flowers are fully open, spray regularly for bigger yields all season. It can also be used to increase fruit set on cucumbers, melons, eggplants, strawberries, and peppers.
Some tomatoes are unimproved old-time varieties and end up with "green shoulders." That's just the way they grow, and there's not much you can do about it.
Dry or very hot summers tend to produce thick skinned tomatoes, because of extreme heat fluctuations. Even if you're watering the garden regularly, when the sun is hotter, and the air is hotter through the days, it can result in thicker skins as the plants try to conserve moisture.
Inconsistent moisture levels in the soil or excessively high air temperatures contribute to the problem as the plants try to conserve moisture.
So weather and varietal issues are the main causes, and there really isn't much that can be done, except grow more tomatoes next year and hope for cooler temperatures.
See our article on this insect and ways to get rid of it: Tomato Hornworm.
This is caused by a fungus that survives during the winter on old vines. To fix, remove and destroy all diseased foliage. In the future, avoid overcrowding by planting farther apart, and prune for good air circulation. You'll also need to rotate tomatoes with unrelated crops, such as corn, beans or lettuce.
This is caused by a fungus that is favored by wet weather. Their spores travel great distances and can infect large areas. Again, avoid overcrowding, and if the infection is severe and widespread, remove and destroy all affected plants.
Fusarium and Verticillium fungi cause parts of the plant to wilt, and can kill it over time. Fusarium wilt causes leaves on one branch of infected plant to turn yellow. Verticillium wilt first appears as yellowing between the major veins on mature leaves. To help this problem, look for resistant varieties to plant, and rotate unrelated crops, such as corn, beans or lettuce.
Southern Bacterial Wilt results in sudden plant death; leaves droop (wilt) while plant is still green and otherwise healthy. There is nothing you can do except remove and destroy all debris, and do not plant tomatoes where the disease has occurred in the past.
This is caused by microscopic eelworms that live in the soil. In the future, plant resistant varieties, and try rotating tomatoes with marigolds. Select a French variety such as 'Nema-gone', 'Golden Guardian', or 'Tangerine'. Plant the entire affected area heavily with the marigolds, and grow them for at least three months. After three months, till them into the soil.
Growing healthy tomatoes is really fairly easy, but you will want to keep a few things in mind.
Solarize your soil to control nematodes and weeds. It's also an effective treatment for other pests and disease pathogens. Moisten the area and cover it with a sturdy plastic tarp. To be effective, it must remain in place for at least three to four weeks during the hottest part of the summer.
Spraying your plants with a kelp solution two or three times a season boosts vigor.
Spider mites love marigolds, and so do rabbits, so planting marigolds might attract pests into your garden which isn't so great.
On the other hand, however, marigolds can be used to help soil with nematode problems, as long as it's done properly. You'll want to select a French variety such as 'Nema-Gone', 'Golden Guardian', or 'Tangerine'. Plant the entire affected area heavily with the marigolds, grow them for at least three months, and then till them into the soil.
Before you try this, determine if this is a method you want to try considering there are some pros and cons.
To avoid soil-borne diseases, place your tomatoes on a three year rotation schedule, and rotate with unrelated crops such as corn, beans or lettuce, or grow a cover crop. This will give you a chance to solarize your soil and break the disease cycle. Make sure you don't plant your tomatoes in the same place that other members of the tomato family (peppers, eggplants, and potatoes) have grown in the past two years in order to keep them healthy. If that is not possible, grow disease-resistant cultivars if you think your soil has diseases like Fusarium or Verticillium wilt.
Never compost plants with diseases because you risk spreading the disease to the rest of your garden. Instead, throw them away or burn diseased plants and any garden debris, like mulch or weeds, that came in contact with them.
Pick fruit when it is a solid color (red, yellow, etc.) from top to bottom, but still firm. Also, pick often. In fact, you may need to harvest daily or every other day. Keep an eye on how the fruit is developing.
Also, cold can degrade tomato flavor, so store tomatoes on your kitchen counter, where the temperatures are above 50° F (10° C), instead of in your refrigerator's crisper.
The best-tasting tomatoes have a balanced ratio of sugar to acid, and the sugars increase as the fruit colors. In fact, tomatoes that ripen during the longer days of summer have more sugar than those that mature during the shorter days of late summer, and therefore can taste better.
If when the fall months come there are still several green or partially ripe tomatoes on your vines, but not enough warmth and sun to mature them properly, don't give up on them! There are two ways to ripen green tomatoes properly.
1. Always ripen tomatoes indoors! Tomatoes ripen from the bottom to the top and from the inside out. So never put them on a windowsill. That will only turn them red, not ripe. What you want to do is put them in a warm, dark spot and cover them with a single sheet of newspaper. These conditions are the ones tomatoes need most to continue their ripening process, which is internal. Light at this point is not necessary any longer.
2. Try root pruning. Take a large carving knife and cut a semicircle around the plant, 2 inches (5.1 cm) from the stem of the plant, and about 8 inches (20.3 cm) deep. This cuts some, but not all of the root system, enough to shock it into forcing all the plant's final strength into ripening its fruit. Only do this near the end of the season, or if it makes you nervous, just try this on one of your plants to see how it works.
Recent studies have shown that tomatoes are high in vitamins A and C, but more importantly they are high in lycopene. Lycopene is what is responsible for producing the red color, and some studies have shown that lycopene in tomatoes is linked with a decreased risk of cancer.
Since then, plant breeders have been working to produce a tomato that has high amounts lycopene with its cancer-fighting antioxidant, but also keeps a good, flavorful tomato taste. Not always so easy to do.
Apparently Jay Scott, Ph.D., of the University of Florida has developed a tomato variety called 'Flora-Lee,' which contains 25 percent more lycopene than regular cultivars, and is resistant to tomato diseases, and most importantly, it still has a good tomato flavor.
Dr. Scott says the seed for 'Flora-Lee' should be available by the end of 2007. This will be interesting to try out and see if what is said about the new variety is true.
Because we put together our Vegetable Gardening Section after this article was written, we were able to add a few more specific details of newer information.
Use this article in combination with some updated Tomato Growing Information, and there is no way you can not grow perfect, juicy and flawless tomatoes anywhere!
Hilary Rinaldi is a certified organic grower, and a member of the national Garden Writers Association. She regularly speaks and writes about all gardening related topics including container gardening, organic gardening, and vegetable gardening. Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine gives gardening advice to all levels of gardeners.
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What is Content Marketing? And what is the importance of delivering relevant content? Content marketing provides consumers with information they need to make an educated purchasing decision. Thus, encouraging conversions. Content marketing helps improve brand reputation in a busy digital marketplace, by building trust with their leads and customers while continuing to stay relevant in the industry. Good quality content helps to improve conversions, as it allows you to connect and educate your target audience.
Remember, effective content marketing will include a clear call to action of the necessary steps the audience need to take in the conversion process; whether the conversion is in the form of making a purchase, getting more information, or contacting your sales team.
However, in a saturated world of information, customer reviews, endless options and purchasing decisions, how does one’s business stay relevant and stand out from their competitors?
all content must be found relevant. There is no point in focusing on old content that has not much demand for the topic, compared to when it was first published. To avoid such a mistake, use tools such as Google Keyword Planner, Uber suggests, or story base to help you determine high-level keywords and similar words that are being searched for in your industry. Include these words in your content creation.
– remember, setting goals and keeping in mind key performance indicators is always a good way to determine any strategy. Metrics can be used to determine what worked and what didn’t work. Success can also be measured in the number of comments the audience engaged in the most, likes, shares or if they took some kind of action -such as subscribing or making a purchase. Look back at old posts that got the most engagement, analyze whether the topic has changed much since you last talked about it or whether you think the audience’s perspective on it has changed. Publish some new content relating back to those old discussions while opening the floor for further discussion.
– unfortunately, including only text context is not cutting it anymore. Trends in the way audiences are consuming content keep changing in the digital world. Consider sharing your context across many formats as possible for your target audience to engage in. Contemplate sharing your content marketing in the form of a video or podcast and make use of different platforms, such as YouTube, Instagram Stories, SnapChat, and Live video.
– incorporating infographics can be a fresher and visually appealing method when publishing content marketing. Infographics are great for summarizing your content while making it easier and quicker for your audience to pick up on key facts. Look back at old, relevant, and important posts that may have been overlooked in the past; refreshing this information and incorporating it in a visually appealing infographic may be easier for the reader to digest and to be shared across social media.
presenting information with new videos can be a way to meet the ever-changing needs of the audience. Video content has become and continues to become one of the most popular ways to publish content, as attention spans continue to decrease. Go back to your popular videos, pick an old topic and address questions your audience may have commented upon. Ask and answer new questions while building upon your current engagement.
getting an expert in the field will give you and your audience insightful information regarding the challenges and opportunities they face in their industry. Experts can be customers, employers, thought leaders, heads of departments, or if you’re feeling a bit risky get competitors in on their intake. The interview can be published in form of a blog, audio, video, or even do a live session; whichever tool is most resourceful for your business to better engage with your audience. Get them to ask questions, share their opinions, and give feedback.
Content marketing is the strategic marketing approach of providing valuable, consistent, and relevant information to your audience. The objective is to grasp the customer’s attention, educate them about what you have to offer, and build credibility; with the aim of leading them to a profitable customer action. Always keep in mind to include a clear call to action. Customers shouldn’t have to guess or find their way to take action; facilitating the steps to make a conversion will increase the possibilities of the conversion being complete. Finally, always remember that even if other businesses are touching on similar areas as you, you must stick to your niche, uniqueness, and creative work that sets you off from your competitors.
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This document pertains to varying information related to theories and proof suggesting that mind control technology exists, and has been used on the American Public, by organizations such as the CIA.
How is it impossible to design something that is theoretically possible? Who would plan it to be a hoax? Why wouldn’t the real thing be designed, and used instead? How much more effort would it take to implement a working version of mind control, than it would be to study the effects of uses of mind control technologies?
To which I would respond, why then is there so much information available about the topic. It was not like Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, where there was no information about them publicly before they were used in combat.
This pertains to the theory that multiple types of mind control have been used, at different frequencies of use, such that the different types were not all necessarily used in any specific order, and that they may be used again in different orders and frequencies, and that mind control can occur while at a similar timeframe it does not occur.
An example would be initiation of mind control methods, followed by a strategic implementation of mind control, followed by a tactical action of mind control – such as the snapping point, where a subject is forced to commit a crime or commit some other act that sets them apart from the norm, and then a release of mind control, and possibly even erasing their memory, or subjecting their memory to an alteration, which makes it difficult for them to recall what happened.
This type of a use would make it appear that the subject was a criminal, or they were negatively affected by a mental condition, while it may actually require a significant amount of time before the subject can remember what happened to them, and as such they document what happened to them, and as such appeal a judgement or other court finding, such that they were under mind control at the time that they experienced the alteration which changed the direction of their life.
It ruins their credibility to talk about the instances of mind control, because it makes it appear as though they are delusional, or are trying to cover up their misfortunes by blaming other people, or have other psychological defects.
Such as through the promise of an association with the Intelligence Community, the technology told them, or the voices told them, that it was “Top Secret”, such that they had basic knowledge about the forms of secrecy in the Intelligence Community, and the discussions about the technology(s) would damage the credibility of the Intelligence Community. So the subject doesn’t talk about the uses of mind control on them, even if it has negatively affected them, because they believe they are protecting national security by not talking about it.
This concept pertains to the concept that the targeting of mind control occurred originating from the U.S. Secret Service, such as to protect the President of the United States from political, legal, economic, or otherwise damaging tactics or intelligence from the individual(s) targeted, or it is protecting national security originating from the President of the United States and/or other U.S. Secret Service protectees, such that a failure of the systems to function properly could damage the credibility of the protectees.
This is the concept of a cover-up, such that the Intelligence Community investigates foreign powers, such as Russia and/or China for conducting the activities of mind control, using systems that they have in space, to conduct the mind control, in order to sway an asset into their political realm of control, before they enter employment into the U.S. Intelligence Community, or such that it appears that they are unemployable by the U.S. Intelligence Community as a result of their being damaged goods, or being negatively affected by a foreign government, while the actual reaction of the U.S. Intelligence Community is to investigate the uses of the technology for such purposes, and potentially blame foreign power(s) for the acts against their own citizens, in order to protect their own credibility from the internal use(s) of such technology(s).
This pertains to the concept that the subject is simply studying the uses of the technology(s) of mind control, through their activities of studying the possible effects, such that they could have invented the technology(s) to study their uses, such that their intelligence originates from their own use(s) of the technology(s) on themselves, such that they are a high-value asset of the U.S. Intelligence Community.
This doesn’t seem to apply to this case, however it may be possible that there could be other case(s) in which the subject has a grudge towards the U.S. Intelligence Community and/or U.S. Secret Service protectee(s), and is attempting to damage their reputation, as such by exposing potential uses of mind altering technologies.
Through internal knowledge about how the technology works, the subject is litigating the uses of the technology, such that they don’t want other people to experience what they have experienced, or they wish to stop the development of the technology(s), or they wish to control the use(s) of the technology(s), or they wish to prevent the use(s) of the technology(s) as such to their own personal experience(s).
This theory applies to the possibility that multiple nations have contributed to the creation of mind control technology(s), and they are essentially both fighting for control over the subject, such that the mind control technology(s) are being operated separately, with separate but similar technologies, by each of the governments, in order to assimilate the subject through the uses of the technology(s), through the embedding of intelligence from each side, to such that the subject becomes a double agent, such that each side is irremovable from the subject, as a result of the implanting of intelligence from both sides, such that the sides can either agree or oppose each other in public, and the subject is still loyal to both sides because of the implanting of intelligence from both sides.
This is the theory that subject(s) who believe they have been affected by mind control, and have also committed a crime, are subjected to essentially mental torture as a result of their talking about the Mind Control technology(s), such that their government, or law enforcement, forces them to invent information about the Mind Control technology(s) in their jail cell(s), such that they are forced to work on behalf of the U.S. Intelligence Community in order to form their appeal to the charges against them, such that they must explain how the Mind Control system(s) work, who they are operated by, why they were used, what they were used for, how they may be used on other person(s) or animal(s), and any other pertinent information pertaining to their case regarding the mind control technology(s).
This is the theory that the system treats the victim of mind control technology(s) like any other victim, such that they are reminded about how they were attacked, to gather additional information about the mind control technology(s) to use to verify whether they exist or not, in the past, in the present, and in the future. This would pertain to learning more about the mind control technology(s), as such that they are used possibly to invent new technologies based on what the victim(s) of the specific type(s) or description(s) of the technologies are defined as, per the victim(s) of such technology(s).
This theory pertains to the possibility(s) that the victim of such mind control technology(s) as they describe, may invent such technology(s) and use them on the people that they say caused their detriment, through the facts of the case, as such that they may program their world, in the real world, using such technology(s), in return for their not talking about the technology(s) to the public, as such that the perpetrators don’t talk about the technology(s) – either because they have no knowledge of the technology(s), or the facts that they are being controlled, or that they are investigating the subject who has invented the technology(s) as such that their responses are attempting to gather additional intelligence about the invention(s), or investigate the case(s) of the technology(s) as described by the subject who was at minimum, allegedly controlled by mind control technology(s).
This theory pertains to the fact that other subject(s) describe(d) the subject(s) as having erratic behavior, or abnormal sleeping habits, or abnormal thoughts, or failure to follow direction(s) after the subject(s) believed they were being controlled by Mind Control, and such that all biological effects on the individual(s) have been ruled out, such as diseases, or chemical changes in their medication(s) dosing or frequency, such that the activity(s) actually suggest there was mind control, through the presence of erratic behavior, such that the subject(s) also didn’t complain about the activity(s) that they were exhibiting – such as erratic strides, failing classes, having weird feelings, hearing things, and/or other symptoms which would suggest that there is a mental health disorder, while at the same time the subject has exhibited control over their thoughts in other periods of time, such that the subject is not inconsistent in as much respect as they are consistent about other factors of their life, such that the presence of mind control may be exhibiting its self through specific activities or behaviors of the individual, which are unexplained through normal mental health diagnosis, or such that the behaviors are unexplained, and there is the presence of technology development, such as on the level of mind control, telepathy, or other mind-altering or mind-communicating technology(s).
This theory pertains to the existence of individual(s) who state that the Intelligence Community has planted intelligence regarding mind control on their systems, or in their minds, because of Artificial Telepathy, or similar technology(s).
This pertains to the Intelligence Community telling the subject they must describe the Mind Control systems in detail, because the subject has described that they have invented their dependence on the systems, because of the systems allegedly being used on them.
There may be other theories about Mind Control technologies, as they apply to the CIA and MCE123 Technology Development, while we cannot think of all of the theories and cases pertaining to mind control at this time, because we are not “actively” connected to the systems, which supports the theory of different timing of Mind Control technology(s), such that not all of the thoughts pertaining to any one system can be retrieved at one time, however it may pertain to the development of intelligence regarding the system(s), or explaining how the system(s) have been used in the past, due to the timing of the intelligence with other factors that brought out the intelligence through the reference to memory ability of the MCE123 Company Founder.
In this case, information may be created before it is documented, which was the reason the mind reading technology was created – so that Patrick R. McElhiney could Patent information about inventions as he had the knowledge about the inventions, not waiting for him to have to regurgitate the intelligence into a Word document, or otherwise document the intelligence, at a later time.
This type of mind control pertains to a system, such as Optogenetics, taking control of the muscles in the body, or such as through technologies such as cybernetics, to the extent that muscle control is limited or controlled by electronic devices connected to wireless networks or satellites that control the human they are implemented in.
This type of mind control pertains to a system that controls muscle movement, or limits muscle movement, while also having verbal awareness, which could be a law enforcement agent talking to them while their muscles are controlled or limited.
This type of mind control pertains to complete mind control, such that the human has no awareness of the acts or thoughts that they are having, such that they are compartmentalized beyond their control, such that they could be moved through control of their muscles, and their thoughts could also be controlled, such as through Telepathy Satellite Technology or other methods such as Optogenetics.
This type of mind control is passive, such that the subject is connected to an intelligence system that monitors their activities, and responds to them through telepathic speech, such as through Artificial Telepathy systems, which tells the human when they are doing something wrong, or when they are doing something right – and can control them passively through the alteration or addition to their thoughts of verbal speech channels in which they learn to trust, such as representing the speech channels as multiple government agencies that all work together to create a fully functioning agent to their control specifications, in most cases.
The initial implementation of mind control could work using systems, such that the systems or persons using the systems respond specifically to what the subject of the mind control experiment or implementation is doing at that time, or it could implement intelligence methods that override what that subject is doing at that time.
The systems technology makes the subject have thoughts, or they are spoken to with artificial telepathy, telling them that their thoughts are being listened to, or that a system is gathering them.
This can happen through the systems technology specifically implying that government agencies are recording their thoughts, and can occur also with systematic awareness to improve the effectiveness of this method.
This method may actually change the thought structures and the ways that the subject thinks, permanently.
They are made aware of sounds that their bodies are making, and may be used in combination with systems technologies that specifically make the sounds of their body synchronize with their thoughts, or synchronize with specific timing, or make it appear to the subject’s body that the processes are systematic in nature, such that the timing or the nature of the sounds the body is making synchronize to a schedule, or an implication of systems technology being used.
This method can literally drive the subject insane, and require them to be hospitalized for other mental health conditions, as they may swear that systems are controlling their bodily activities and/or sounds, such as the buildup of gas, farting, stomach sounds, and other types of bodily sounds, such as through microwave hearing effect and the Doppler effect, such as implementing the sounds into the tissues of the body, such that they reverberate throughout the body as if they originated from the specific organ.
This is a mind-altering method, that seeks to implement knowledge into the subject’s mind, such that they are made to think that people they have been in communication with have made specific communications with them, or they have intended to make such communications, or they will make such communications – or the suggestion of reading into the future.
This can make the subject develop legal cases or policies that apply to the law, such as limiting the use of telepathic technologies, or making allegations against the government, or suggesting that there have been national security threats that there is no evidence of. This all occurs because of what the people are saying, through the telepathy technology.
This method makes it appears specific people that they either know or don’t know, either identifiable by their name, initials, organization, or other identifying factors, are trying to or are really talking to them telepathically, for establishing a systems awareness. This is primarily where the systems awareness, that leads to the invention of the technology, originates from.
Systematic Sounds, Automation, Warning Messages, Alarms, Etc.
This applies to using systematic processes, such as a beep every so many seconds, indicating as if there is a recording device that is listening to their thoughts, or the presence of automation techniques such as systematic questionnaires or systems that question specific things while implying they apply to counter-intelligence or criminal investigations, or warning messages such that it suggests that a system is recording what they are doing and if they break the law, something will happen to them, or systematic alarms that go off because of specific thought patterns or methods of mind control being used to control what types of thought a subject has.
The whole purpose of the systematic responses is to control the thought processes, indirectly, such that it can still be claimed that the subject had the thoughts, but that the systematic processes failed to stop the thoughts from occurring, as they occurred because of the subject originating the thoughts.
There is also something to be said in regards to this, that it may provoke patterns of threatening thoughts, or threats towards the government, because of the systems technology.
This type of systematic use, through systematic awareness, uses investigations, such as asking questions, such as through criminal investigations or counter-intelligence investigations, such that it makes the subject thing about specific things that it is investigating, such that the thoughts of the subject are essentially limited to the nature of the investigation which is systematic in nature.
This technology, or systematic processes, can be used to implement missions into agents, even if they do not have an established relationship with the sponsoring agency. The problem with this is that it can lead to criminal activities, or at minimum unexplained activities, as the subject may be confused about the nature of the investigations, which can be used in combination with visual or audible distortions, which essentially make things seem to appear and sound like the nature of what they are being asked, which can lead them on wild goose chases to find the information about the selective nature of the investigations.
These are essentially like video games of the mind, in the sense that they may be investigatory, or force the mind to think a specific way, through systematic responses, that reward the subject with “Level Up” or “One Up” types of responses, or responsive investigatory games that allow the subject to do basically anything they want, and then if the thoughts apply to the investigation, or solving the puzzle, the noises go away, or they stop investigating and reward the subject with solving the puzzle.
This type of systematic responses may mislead an investigation to gather intelligence that isn’t unique, or isn’t factual, however it allows the investigation to gather intelligence about the subject, which allows them to be “caught” for having the thoughts, or ‘rewards’ them for having good thoughts that solve the problem, or the puzzle.
This system would pertain to controlling how muscles move, in systematic functions, to perform specific tasks, such as rehabilitating people who have specific medical conditions.
It could also be used to prevent criminal activities, by taking over a potential criminal’s body before they commit the crime, and stopping them from performing the muscle movements that are consistent with performing that crime.
Of course, in this instance, there would need to be a system which has Deep Learning Methods to determine what activities constitute criminal activities, as there could potentially be a wide variety of methods of moving muscles that would constitute criminal activity.
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Person re-identification consists of recognising a person appearing in different video sequences, using an image as a query. We propose a general approach to extend appearance-based re-identification systems, enabling also textual queries describing clothing appearance (e.g., 'person wearing a white shirt and checked blue shorts'). This functionality can be useful, e.g., in forensic video analysis, when textual descriptions of individuals of interest given by witnesses are available, instead of images. Our approach is based on turning any given appearance descriptor into a dissimilarity-based one. This allows us to build detectors of the clothing characteristics of interest using supervised classifiers trained in a dissimilarity space, independently on the original descriptor. Our approach is evaluated using the descriptors of three different re-identification methods, on a benchmark data set.
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The Nika riots (Greek: Στάση του Νίκα), or Nika revolt, took place over the course of a week in Constantinople in 532. It was the most violence Constantinople had ever seen to that point, nearly half the city being burned or destroyed.
The ancient Roman and Byzantine Empires had well-developed associations which supported the different factions (or teams) under which competitors in certain sporting events competed; this was particularly true of chariot racing. There were four major factional teams of chariot racing, differentiated by the colour of the uniform in which they competed. These were the Blues, the Reds, the Greens, and the Whites, although by the Byzantine era the only teams with any influence were the Blues and Greens. The emperor Justinian I was a supporter of the Blues.
The teams had aspects of street gangs and political parties, grouping people by social class and religion, and they frequently tried to affect the policy of the Emperors by shouting political demands between the races. The imperial forces and guards in the city could not keep order without the cooperation of the circus factions which were in turn backed by the powerful aristocratic families of the city: this included some families who believed they had a more rightful claim to the throne than Justinian.
Setting the stage for the revolt, in 531 some members of the Blues and Greens had been arrested for murder in connection with deaths that occurred during rioting after a recent chariot race. Relatively limited riots were not unknown at chariot races, similar to the mayhem that erupts after a soccer or basketball championship in modern times. The murderers were to be hanged, and most of them were. But on January 10, 532, two of them, a Blue and a Green, escaped and were taking refuge in the sanctuary of a church surrounded by an angry mob.
Justinian was nervous: he was in the midst of negotiating with the Persians over peace in the east, there was enormous resentment over high taxes, and now he faced a potential crisis in his city. Facing this, he declared that a chariot race would be held on January 13 and commuted the sentences to imprisonment. The Blues and Greens responded by demanding that the two men be pardoned entirely.
On January 13 a tense and angry populace arrived at the Hippodrome for the races. The Hippodrome was next to the palace complex and thus Justinian could watch from the safety of his box in the palace and preside over the races. The crowd from the start had been hurling insults at Justinian. By the end of the day, at race 22, the partisan chants had changed from "Blue" or "Green" to a unified "Nika" (a Greek exhortation meaning to "win", "conquer", or "achieve victory"), and the crowds broke out and began to assault the palace. For the next five days the palace was under virtual siege.
Some of the senators saw this as an opportunity to overthrow Justinian, as they were opposed to his new taxes and his lack of support for the nobility. The rioters, now armed and probably controlled by their allies in the Senate, also demanded that Justinian dismiss the prefect John the Cappadocian, who was responsible for tax collecting, and the quaestor Tribonian, who was responsible for rewriting the legal code. They then declared a new emperor, Hypatius, who was a nephew of Emperor Anastasius I.
Justinian considered fleeing, but his wife Theodora convinced him to stay in the city. Justinian had his generals Belisarius and Mundus suppress the revolt on January 18, which they did with much bloodshed by trapping the rebels in the Hippodrome. About thirty thousand rioters were reportedly killed. Justinian also had Hypatius executed and exiled the senators who had supported the riot.
Theodora and the Emperor (1952) by Harold Lamb is an historical fiction novel that follows the events of the Nika riots closely, using timelines and characters based on historical documents.
Count Belisarius (1938) by Robert Graves follows the career of the general Belisarius and recounts the build-up of tension and the riots in some detail.
The Guy Gavriel Kay fantasy novel Sailing to Sarantium depicts a revolt inspired by, and very similar to, the Nika riots.
David Drake's novel Counting the Cost retells it as science fiction in the Hammer's Slammers setting, with a very gritty, grunt's-eye view of the fighting.
Jerry Pournelle's novel The Mercenary also retells it as science fiction in the CoDominium setting, as much from a political as military standpoint.
The Blue and The Green, a story-line in British science fiction television series The Tomorrow People, also used the Nika riots as its basis.
In the Heart of Darkness by David Drake and Eric Flint, an alternate history novel from the Belisarius Series, has an alternate version of the Nika riots.
Procopius, "Justinian Suppresses the Nika Revolt, 532", from the Internet Medieval Sourcebook.
J. B. Bury, "The Nika Revolt", chapter XV part 5 from History of the Later Roman Empire (1923).
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Articles » Exercise » Cardio Training » Should I Do Interval Training Before Weights?
You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers. Every week, the BuiltLean Team addresses your fitness and nutrition questions. Read on to find out more.
What are the nutrition facts of the Healthy Mac And Cheese?
Will sprint training help me improve my 1.5 mile time?
Would any exercise cause an “afterburn effect” in a fairly overweight or out-of-shape individual?
What is the ideal waist to hip ratio?
Question #1 – Should I Do Interval Training Before Weights?
I recently read the guide and was just wondering, should I be doing the interval training after the strength training work out, or doing them on separate days?
Also, I read it’s 3 times a week.. is it cool if I did it more than that?
Doing interval training before or after strength training workouts all depends on what your primary goal is, along with how much rest you need. If your main focus is conditioning, then doing interval training right after strength training is fine. If your main objective is to build muscle and gain strength, you should strength train first to prevent the fatigue from the interval training that may interfere with the muscle building process. Here is an article that goes into further detail: Should I Do Cardio Before, Or After Weights?
In regards to question 2, I recommend having at least a day in between both interval training and strength training workouts, especially if they are done on the same day to make sure your muscles and body in general has recovered from the previous workout.
Question #2 – What are the nutrition facts of the Healthy Mac And Cheese?
Sounds great, but what about the nutrition facts of this in comparison to “traditional” Mac n Cheese?
Question #3 – Will sprint training help me improve my 1.5 mile time?
Answer: Hugh: Absolutely. Interval training on a track can definitely help increase your speed and power, thereby improving your 1.5 mile time. However, you could also benefit from building your aerobic base. What I mean is, if you condition your body to be able to run further than 1.5 miles (for example 3 miles), then when you only run 1.5 miles the distance won’t feel as challenging. Once you have a solid aerobic base, adding sprint intervals could help you improve your 1.5 mile time.
Question #4 – Would any exercise cause an “afterburn effect” in a fairly overweight or out-of-shape individual?
A couple of questions, one, if you are fairly overweight or in bad shape, won’t any exercise cause some amount of after burn effect? Basically, walking and jogging for a very sedentary person could be considered “high intensity” for their body, and cause a similar afterburn to what a fit person would feel after sprints or high intensity cardio.
Answer: Jesse – You have some interesting questions. First, regarding the afterburn effect for those not in great shape, I think there will be some calorie burn after exercise, but it simply won’t be very substantial versus a sprint workout, or something higher intensity. The irony of course is that you have to be in shape in order to truly leverage the power of the afterburn effect. It’s like a catch 22. Second, sore muscles is considered the lactic acid contribution of exercise and is part of the afterburn effect. EPOC, or the oxygen debt is a separate component of the afterburn effect. For more detail, you can check out the summary of my interview with Dr. Christopher Scott (Afterburn Effect). Finally, I don’t want to say the only way to burn fat and get lean is doing high intensity exercise, because that’s not true. Simply walking, swimming, and even doing simple body weight exercises like push ups and pull ups while eating whole foods can help you get an awesome build. The efficiency of the afterburn effect type of training, the higher intensity training is what is compelling, but also doing it in a way that is sustainable. It doesn’t take much time and you get a solid bang for your buck.
Question #5 – What is the ideal waist to hip ratio?
Answer: It should be less than one. In other words, your waist measurement should be less than your hip measurement.
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I don't have much information about my Franks ancestors, but from the evidence I have found, it shows that my 4x Great Grandmother Sarah Jane Franks was likely to have been born in the village of Coppingford in the county of Huntingdonshire, United Kingdom.
Where did the Franks family really come from?
After Sarah married Daniel Watson Giddings in 1825, this curiously would have made a Mary Ann Franks her sister-in-law (who had married Daniel's brother James Giddings in 1818). It is currently assumed that this is the sister of Sarah Jane. However, Mary Ann had died in 1824 aged 24 years, just before Sarah's marriage, and just six years into her own marriage. Sadly, this also falls outside of certification of deaths and marriages - both of which through a slim chance, might have provided a further clue to her identity.
On the 1861 Census, Sarah (now a Giddings) states that her place of birth is "Copenforth, Norfolk". This may have been a mis-spelling by the enumerator or maybe he misheard her, as there is no matching parish of that name in the UK. Alternatively, there is a tiny village called Coppingford just a few miles West of March, in what was then Huntingdonshire (now Cambridgeshire). Perhaps this was her place of birth?
John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales, from 1870-1872, begins his description of Coppingford as: "Coppingford or Copmanford...." which also lends a clue to this village being correct.
After checking on the Mormon's Familysearch.org website, I found a Sarah Franks, born in 1802, along with a sister called Mary, born in 1799 - so the dates match... but these were both christened in Ashfordby, Leicestershire. Their parents are given as Matthew and Alice Franks.
Whilst reading through the rest of the 1861 census for March, Cambridgeshire, where Sarah Jane had stated her mystery birthplace, there is another Franks family, this time headed by William Franks. He is aged 56 and living with his wife Ann, aged 57. They both give their birthplace as Guyhirn. Guyhirn is less than 6 miles North of March. However, his birthplace is not consistent through census returns, ranging from 'Cambridgeshire' (1841 and 1871), 'Guyhirn' (1861), 'March', and 'Not Known' (1881). He died in 1886.
With all this information seemingly competing as 'the truth', my research has hit a temporary brick wall with the Franks family.
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Here are some cool and creative products for America's favorite food - pizzas.
Paper Dish Design: A very clever idea for takeaway pizzas that looks more like a makeshift paper plate.
Creative Pizza Box Design: An innovative pizza box that can be divided into 4 serving plates while the remaining box can be transformed into a storage container for leftovers.
Pizza Plate: The clever pizza plate is designed specifically for pizzas; they are triangular stoneware plates that come at that piece of pie from the right angle.
Pizza Cutter Fork: A cool combination of fork and pizza cutter.
Pizza Cutter Scissors: This pizza cutter makes the cutting and serving really easy; it's a combination of a spatula and a pair of scissors.
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The Wright Flyer (often retrospectively referred to as Flyer I or 1903 Flyer) was the first successful heavier-than-air powered aircraft, designed and built by the Wright brothers. They flew it four times on December 17, 1903, near Kill Devil Hills, about four miles south of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, U.S. Today, the airplane is exhibited in the National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C.
The U.S. Smithsonian Institution describes the aircraft as "...the first powered, heavier-than-air machine to achieve controlled, sustained flight with a pilot aboard." The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale described the 1903 flight during the 100th anniversary in 2003 as "the first sustained and controlled heavier-than-air powered flight."
The Flyer was conceived as a control-canard, as the Wrights were more concerned with control than stability. However it was found to be so highly unstable it was barely controllable. Following the first flight, ballast was added to the nose to move the center of gravity forward and reduce pitch instability. However the basics of pitch stability of the canard configuration were not understood by the Wright Brothers. F.E.C. Culick stated, "The backward state of the general theory and understanding of flight mechanics hindered them... Indeed, the most serious gap in their knowledge was probably the basic reason for their unwitting mistake in selecting their canard configuration".
Upon returning to Kitty Hawk in 1903, the Wrights completed assembly of the Flyer while practicing on the 1902 Glider from the previous season. On December 14, 1903, they felt ready for their first attempt at powered flight. With the help of men from the nearby government life-saving station, the Wrights moved the Flyer and its launching rail to the incline of a nearby sand dune, Big Kill Devil Hill, intending to make a gravity-assisted takeoff. The brothers tossed a coin to decide who would get the first chance at piloting, and Wilbur won. The airplane left the rail, but Wilbur pulled up too sharply, stalled, and came down in about three seconds with minor damage.
Repairs after the abortive first flight took three days. When they were ready again on December 17, the wind was averaging more than 20 mph, so the brothers laid the launching rail on level ground, pointed into the wind, near their camp. This time the wind, instead of an inclined launch, helped provide the necessary airspeed for takeoff. Because Wilbur already had the first chance, Orville took his turn at the controls. His first flight lasted 12 seconds for a total distance of 120 ft (36.5 m) – shorter than the wingspan of a Boeing 747, as noted by observers in the 2003 commemoration of the first flight.
In 1904, the Wrights continued refining their designs and piloting techniques in order to obtain fully controlled flight. Major progress toward this goal was achieved with a new Flyer in 1904 and even more decisively in 1905 with a third Flyer, in which Wilbur made a 39-minute, Script error: No such module "convert". nonstop circling flight on October 5. While the 1903 Flyer was clearly a historically important test vehicle, its hallowed status in the American imagination has obscured the role of its two successors in the continuing development that led to the Wrights' mastery of controlled powered flight in 1905.
The Flyer series of aircraft were the first to achieve controlled heavier-than-air flight, but some of the mechanical techniques the Wrights used to accomplish this were not influential for the development of aviation as a whole, although their theoretical achievements were. The Flyer design depended on wing-warping and a foreplane or "canard" for pitch control, features which would not scale and produced a hard-to-control aircraft. However, the Wrights' pioneering use of "roll control" by twisting the wings to change wingtip angle in relation to the airstream led directly to the more practical use of ailerons by their imitators, such as Curtiss and Farman. The Wrights' original concept of simultaneous coordinated roll and yaw control (rear rudder deflection), which they discovered in 1902, perfected in 1903–1905, and patented in 1906, represents the solution to controlled flight and is used today on virtually every fixed-wing aircraft. The Wright patent included the use of hinged rather than warped surfaces for the forward elevator and rear rudder. Other features that made the Flyer a success were highly efficient wings and propellers, which resulted from the Wrights' exacting wind tunnel tests and made the most of the marginal power delivered by their early "homebuilt" engines; slow flying speeds (and hence survivable accidents); and an incremental test/development approach. The future of aircraft design, however, lay with rigid wings, ailerons and rear control surfaces.
After a single statement to the press in January 1904 and a failed public demonstration in May, the Wright Brothers did not publicize their efforts, and other aviators who were working on the problem of flight (notably Alberto Santos-Dumont) were thought by the press to have preceded them by many years. Indeed, several short heavier-than-air powered flights had been made by other aviators before 1903, leading to controversy about precedence (see Early flying machines). The Wrights, however, claimed to be the first of these which was "properly controlled".
The issue of control was correctly seen as critical by the Wrights, and they acquired a wide American patent intended to give them ownership of basic aerodynamic control, despite the brothers' (and others in pioneer aviation circles) likely complete lack of knowledge of the 1868 British patent regarding roll control for aircraft. This was fought in both American and European courts. European designers, however, were little affected by the litigation and continued their own development. The legal fight in the U.S., however, had a crushing effect on the nascent American aircraft industry, and by the time of World War I, the U.S. had no suitable military aircraft and had to purchase French and British models.
Charlie Taylor relates in a 1948 article that the Flyer nearly got disposed of by the Wrights themselves. In early 1912 Roy Knabenshue, The Wrights Exhibition team manager, had a conversation with Wilbur and asked Wilbur what they planned to do with the Flyer. Wilbur said they most likely will burn it, as they had the 1904 machine. According to Charlie, Knabenshue talked Wilbur out of disposing of the machine for historical purposes.
In 1910 the Wrights first made attempts to exhibit the Flyer in the Smithsonian Institution but talks fell through with the ensuing lawsuits against Glenn Curtiss and the Flyer may have been needed as repeated evidence in court cases. In 1916 as the patent fights were ending, Orville brought the Flyer out of storage and prepared it for display at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (Wilbur had died in 1912.) He replaced parts of the wing covering, the props, and the engine's crankcase, crankshaft, and flywheel. The crankcase, crankshaft and flywheel of the original engine had been sent to the Aero Club of America in New York for an exhibit in 1906 and were never returned to the Wrights. The replacement crankcase, crankshaft and flywheel came from the guinea pig engine Charlie Taylor had built in 1904 and used for testing in the bicycle shop. A replica crankcase of the flyer is on display at the visitor center at the Wright Brothers National Memorial to this day.
In 1925, Orville attempted to persuade the Smithsonian to recognize his and Wilbur's accomplishment by offering to send the Flyer to the Science Museum in London. This action did not have its intended effect, and the Flyer went on display in the London museum in 1928. It remained there in "the place of honour", except during World War II when it was moved to an underground vault Script error: No such module "convert". from London where Britain's other treasures were kept safe from the conflict.
Researchers[who?] who promote the accomplishments of pioneer aviator Gustave Whitehead have commented that this agreement renders the Smithsonian unable to make properly unbiased academic decisions concerning any prior claims of 'first flight'.
In 1948 the official handover of the Flyer was made to the American Civil Air Attache at a ceremony attended by representatives of the various flying organizations in the UK and by some British aviation pioneers such as Sir Alliott Verdon-Roe. Later in 1948, the Flyer was returned to the United States on board the Mauretania. When the liner docked at Halifax, Nova Scotia, Paul E. Garber of the Smithsonian's National Air Museum met the aircraft and took command of the proceedings. The rest of the journey to Washington continued on flatbed truck. While in Halifax Garber met John A. D. McCurdy, at the time the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. McCurdy as a young man had been a member of Alexander Graham Bell's team Aerial Experiment Association, which included Glenn Curtiss, and later a famous pioneer pilot. During the stay at Halifax, Garber and McCurdy reminisced about the pioneer aviation days and the Wright Brothers. McCurdy also offered Garber any assistance he needed to get the Flyer home.
In 1981, discussion began on the need to restore the Flyer from the aging it sustained after many decades on display. During the ceremonies celebrating the 78th anniversary of the first flights, Mrs. Harold S. Miller (Ivonette Wright, Lorin's daughter), one of the Wright brothers' nieces, presented the Museum with the original covering of one wing of the Flyer, which she had received in her inheritance from Orville. She expressed her wish to see the aircraft restored.
Numerous static display-only, nonflying reproductions are on display around the United States and across the world, making this perhaps the most reproduced single "pioneer" era aircraft in history, rivalling the number of copies - some of which are airworthy - of Louis Blériot's cross-Channel Bleriot XI from 1909.
^ a b "Telegram from Orville Wright in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, to His Father Announcing Four Successful Flights, 1903 December 17". World Digital Library. 1903-12-17. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
^ "100 Years Ago, the Dream of Icarus Became Reality." FAI NEWS, December 17, 2003. Retrieved: January 5, 2007.
^ Culick, AIAA-2001-3385, Consistently with ignoring the condition of zero net (pitch) moment, the Wrights assumed that in equilibrium the canard carried no load and served only as a control device.
^ "Wright Flyer", A look at handling qualities of canard configurations, Nasa, p. 8, TM 88354, ...the Flyer was highly unstable... The lateral/directional stability and control of the Flyer were marginal .
^ Culick, FEC (2001), Wright Brothers: First Aeronautical Engineers and Test Pilots (PDF), p. 4, The backward state of the general theory and understanding of flight mechanics hindered them.
^ Lindberg, Mark. "Century of Flight." Wings of History Museum, 2003. Retrieved: August 27, 2011.
^ Crouch. Tom D. "A Machine of Practical Utility." American Heritage, Winter 2010.
^ Gibbs-Smith, C.H. (11 May 1956). "Correspondence: The First Aileron". Flight (FlightGlobal.com): 598.
^ "Archived image." at the Wayback Machine (archived August 17, 2002) Glenn H. Curtiss website Retrieved: January 21, 2011.
^ "Glenn H. Curtiss." at the Wayback Machine (archived February 28, 2003) Retrieved: January 21, 2011.
^ O'Dwyer, Major William J. History by Contract. Leutershausen, Germany: Fritz Majer & Sohn, 1978. ISBN 3-922175-00-7.
^ Hallion 1978, p. 55.
^ "Wright Flyer." Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved: January 21, 2011.
^ NASM Press Kit: The Wright Brothers & The Invention of the Aerial Age - News Media Photos." NASM. Retrieved: December 11, 2011.
^ "NC Cultural Resources Newsroom: Full-size Replica Wright Flyer Featured at N.C. Transportation Museum." ncdcr.gov, December 10, 2009. Retrieved: December 11, 2011.
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What are the affects PMS will have on me when I dive?
Premenstrual Syndrome, or PMS, is a group of poorly understood and poorly defined psychophysiological symptoms experienced by many women (25-50 percent of women) at the end of the menstrual cycle, just prior to the menstrual flow.
PMS symptoms include mood swings, irritability, decreased mental alertness, tension, fatigue, depression, headaches, bloating, swelling, breast tenderness, joint pain and food cravings. Severe premenstrual syndrome has been found to exacerbate underlying emotional disorders. Although progesterone is used in some cases, no consistent, simple treatments are available.
Research has shown that accidents in general are more common among women during PMS. If women suffer from premenstrual syndrome, it may be wise to dive conservatively during this time. There is no scientific evidence, however, that they are more susceptible to decompression illness or dive injuries/accidents.
Also, individuals with evidence of depression or antisocial tendencies should be evaluated for their fitness to participate in diving: they may pose a risk to themselves or a dive buddy.
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How about the secrets of basic tournament play?
If you are a regular crapshooter, you might want to enter a craps tournament some day. Some of these contests are free to enter, some cost a few hundred dollars, and a few cost quite a bit more, depending on the prize money. Several casinos also have weekly craps tournaments with no entry fee and a low $50 buy-in, just to bring people in the door.
Wanna know how craps pros succeed at basic tournament play?
In a tournament you make different bets than you would in a normal craps game. You are no longer playing against the house, but against all of your fellow contestants. Your goal is to have the most money at the end of a certain number of rolls (like 100), or a certain amount of time (like 30 minutes). This means you need to keep an eagle eye on the chips in the racks of your fellow players and be aware of their bets.
Let's say, for example, you have $300, your closest competitor has $200 and he bets $90 on the six and eight. You need to aware of the consequences of the six or eight rolling. In this case, he'll jump ahead by $5 (enough to win). Your strategy might be to match his bets to stay ahead.
Or, what if you're in second place with $200 and the number one player has $300? You've placed the six and eight for $90 each and he matched you. Maybe you might bet hard ways or prop bets. You must do something different in order to overtake the front-runner.
Some people who are close to last place resort to bets not normally made - like betting a large amount on the two or twelve. In the last few rolls of the game, they realize it's the only way they can win.
When you begin play, you'll see that there are conservative players, playing pass or come with maximum odds, and aggressive players who bet hard ways and proposition bets. If these aggressive players continue, they'll usually (but not always) lose their money before the final round. If you're in the group playing pass/come, you need some way of breaking out of the pack - like waiting for two consecutive points to be made and then jumping to the don't. You have to start doing something the other players are not doing in order to win.
Let's say the leader has $100 on the pass line and the point is 4. He takes $200 odds. You could then lay the 4 for $200. If a seven rolls, he would lose $300 and you would win $100. You've got to try things, be inventive, and make bets that the other players wouldn't think of making.
For example, in the last few rolls of the game, you must become super aggressive if you're behind. Sometimes this means betting all of your bankroll on one number. Say eight is the point and the leader is $300 ahead and has $100 on the pass line with double odds. You're in third place, and all you have left is $300. You might place the whole $300 on the six, take it down after it hits once, and then pray that a seven rolls before the eight does!
Tournaments are not for everyone, but they're fun to play, especially the inexpensive or free ones. Give them a try. You're sure to learn a lot, make some friends, and maybe some good money as well!
Pssst...! Now you know the secrets of basic tournament play!
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How do you introduce leads in your chronicles for the PCs to fight the Wyrm? I don't believe Garou fight the Wyrm and its minions all the time. There are other things PCs can do in a Garou chronicle. But it is clearly a big part of the game, and for some chronicles that may be all what the PCs do. I am looking for new and novel ways such leads can be given. I don't want to keep using the same old methods as overuse make them stale and sometimes lead to problems.
Some PCs are actually active in looking for leads for their packs. This is very helpful as I can reward their efforts with leads, but I find this to be rare. I find most players and PCs to be passive and reactive - they are looking for the ST to make them aware of opportunities.
Here are the general ways I currently use to provide a prompt for PCs to go out and start hunting or investigating the Wyrm.
An authority figure tells them what to do.
Typically this is the sept leader, but could also be a pack totem, Mentor, or other authority figure in someone's tribe or sept. This is a classic ploy and can be used with many variations (an anruth pack can be given a different mission by each new sept/caern they visit).
Problem: I can't do this all the time. There is a lack of player agency when the ST simply tells them what to do. And sometimes it can make it seem that the NPC packs don't do anything, or that the people in authority are weak by always relying on them.
This is when the plot is created by someone's Allies, Contacts, Kinfolks, or something else (animals or spirits included as well as humans and kinfolk). Maybe they are being directly threatened and that forces the PCs to intervene, they request the PC's help which eventually becomes known as a Wyrm threat, or they simply pass on strange, cruious, or interesting information in common conversation that hopefully provokes a response.
Problem: This strains credibility if used too many times. PCs can also get hostage fatigue if they feel their Backgrounds and backstory always causes them trouble. And sometimes the PCs can simply fail to see the opportunity or Wyrm threat.
There are ongoing issues or hazards that need to be periodically dealt with like mowing the lawn.
These are often low level threats that spawn in areas known to be "permanently" Wyrm tainted. This could be a superfund site that keeps attracting Banes or spawning fomori. Vampires in the nearby city is another classic example.
Problem: This can be easily overused, and can become old very quick. And while it may provide an easy way to introduce a combat or other struggle early on in the game; PCs generally like to achieve victory. So after a few fights, PCs generally want to resolve/eliminate/cure the long term problem. If they can't, they lose interest. If they do, then the ST just lost a way that could be used for future story seeds, or can be used to explain what the other NPC Garou of the sept are doing.
This is coincidence and sheer luck when the next Wyrm conspiracy/plot/monster just happens to be noticed by one of the PCs by being in the right place and the right time.
Problem: This can strain credibility especially when used more than once. And it can seem very forced if the PCs do not engage with the plot, as they could easily decide to ignore it.
This is when the ST complies a list of "plot seeds" known to the sept in general, or just the PCs specifically, culled from a variety of sources. It can be known threats to the sept (while this seems equivalent to the ongoing threats point above, ongoing threats are generally meant to be low level, while in this case this would be a much more active and powerful menace, like the presence of a PENTEX operation that actively produces fomori and has a goal int he near area). It might also be interesting or strange information reported in the newspaper, local hospitals, or police stations - either publicly known or reported to the sept by helpful kinfolk. While nobody asks the PCs to do anything, that list is there for PCs to choose to investigate in a sandbox style game.
Problems: There are only going to be so many of these. They can get exhausted soon as PCs finish off each one. If the ST keeps repopulating the rumor list, it is still the other NPCs (the ST) doing the work while the PCs do nothing proactive.
And such a rumor list begs the question of why aren't the other Garou (NPC Packs) doing anything about the items on the list (are they just lazy, incompetent, or bad members of the nation)?
There is also the issue that sometimes PCs can outgrow the threat hidden in the rumor, and the ST either has to eliminate that lead, put in extra work to make it relevant/worthy of the current status of the PCs), or have a possible underwhelming encounter.
And not ever rumor should lead to an outright Wyrm encounter - some rumors should be false or dead ends to be realistic. Of course having dead ends and false leads are problematic on their own (waste people's time).
By mixing these up (especially by using variations of each one), I'm usually able to keep things interesting and prevent them from being stale. But I am interested if there are other methods people use in generating leads for the PCs. (I want to repeat that this is specifically for Wyrm threats, not ongoing story drama based on normal character development and NPC interaction).
It basically depends on the situation, I like it to be fluid and coherent. When I'm the ST I usually begin with a basic theme for the campaign, then build a rough plot over it and lastly define the key NPCs that will lead the plot. And the NPCs are what I'm aiming to get with all this because they are going to be the plot. Basically, I plan a world that is going to move and act on its own; I use a timetable to define what will happen when and I leave the PCs around, free to mess with the stuff.
- When the local Pentex branch decides to pollute the water supplies the PCs won't know anything.
- Some news might report that some water company bought the right for the local city water supplies. It won't feel suspicious at first, but proper investigations will reveal it to be a Pentex subsidiary. PCs might manage to start with a sizable advantage if they discover the problem at this point.
- As soon as the city water is polluted the PCs might feel that something is wrong if they're in the city when this happens, maybe by sipping or using Sense Wyrm for unrelated matters.
- If no one notices it, after a while the inhabitants will start to stink of Wyrm-taint and the number of banes will increase in the Umbrascape. If the players are visiting the city at that point they'll probably notice that something is wrong; if they aren't, any werewolf NPC living or visiting the city will notice it and report to the Sept, where the leaders will tell the PCs to investigate.
- If no Garou moves through the city during all that time, the news or the local kinfolk will probably talk of a raise of violent crimes, of police investigations on a serial killer or mass hospitalizations due to escherichia coli infections. At this point the news is big enough to sound alarming, still not screaming "Wyrm" but might lead someone to investigate.
I usually NEVER use visions to show a problem since it either feels spoonfeeding to me (if they're self-evident) or takes up too much of my time to figure out how to put that in riddles or symbols. Sadly, my player's Theurge just got Sight from Beyond so I'll have to deal with it somehow.
I like to keep my characters busy, with two or three problems happening simultaneously and a lot of red herrings that might waste their time. The NPCs will also work on the same stuff, each taking care of the part that better fits their personalities (and so, maybe, the Uktena elder might end up misled because in all her wisdom she followed her biases against the Wyrmcomers instead of scouting the local Umbra). I like to give them choices and consequences - will they partecipate in the great battle with all the Sept against a powerful foe that will turn out being just a distraction, or ignore the promise of glory and investigate a different lead on a local BSD pack to foil their plans? The second choice might prevent an attack on the Caern, but the first one could save the life of an Adren that will instead surely die without the PC pack there to assist.
Once every main NPC is set with a goal and a personality the story will basically write itself, you just need to evaluate what just happened and move each of them accordingly to their background - the quest will be discovered by the more appropriate way depending on the situation and the plot will adjust and evolve continuously. I even prepare some key NPC with long-term goals that are unlikely to impact the current adventure just to have something to develop in a potential follow-up, just to keep causality straight.
I hope I somewhat answered to your starting question?
Through kinfolk neighbors, septmates and most importantly their own investigations, maybe some work as counselors or even mailmen or Bartenders. They keep their eyes open. I remember the revised Bonegnawer book or book of the City had a story about a Bonegnawer hobo who would beg for change to buy O’Tolleys but he was really scoping out the place. They should have connections to the world around them.
Ah, yes. These kind of deus-ex-machina leads via oracular visions or dreams is another way. I am with you in preferring not to normally use them. However, if a PC spends the XP to get a Gift like Sight From Beyond I tend to be OK with it because its paid for, and ultimately it gives me an easy way to introduce plots. I do put some thought on what kinds of things are revealed in Sight From Beyond, as not all plots should start that way or should be revealed by them. The greatest challenge I tend to have is coming up with good omens that provide direction to the PCs, but which don't outright reveal things.
But certainly supernatural omens and portents are an option, and sufficient differently from the other kinds that they deserve their own category as opposed to being a variation of. And of course, not all such omens need to come to the PCs themselves, but might occur to NPCs (and not always Garou) and reach the PCs indirectly.
My own chronicles typically have three major components in terms of plot. One is the main "chronicle mystery" that provides an overarching plot over the entire campaign. (In Chicago By Night, this would be the methusalehs' quarrel, in Rage Across New York this was intended to be the Seventh Generation.) Another are plots that result from individual back story and actions of the PCs themselves. The third component is the sandbox environment that should include a variety of Wyrm menaces as well as other conflicts or issues that are of other origins.
It's usually the sandbox elements (which forms the basis of many single game sessions and fill up a lot of time of the players) that require a variety of leads to get the PCs involved.
I use a bit of all. Sept officers handing out quests and tasks (or Spirits), stuff a PC happens to stumble across, allies and friends coming to them with problems or discoveries and yes I use Visions and Dreams.
My Chronicles tend to be built around a Theme which is hinted to in the Chronicle Title that everyone gets to put on the character sheets. Examples include: "Down with 'The Man' "- lots of Pentex involvement but also inter tribal power struggles and other aspects of institutional authority being abused and massive amounts of crisscrossing conspiracies and byzantine plots. "Hearth and Home" - The pack (gathered from whatever cubs could be sent from 5 different septs) is the last hope of a remote Sept that is down to three members, one in Harano, one trying to hide the fact her alpha and elder is in Harano and is a mix of deceit and rage and not wanting help, and one desperate to get the help to work but has massively high, vision led, expectations of them. "A Long Night in Westhaven"- Vampire Dark Ages where a coterie is increasingly stuck in the power struggles of elders that they cannot match, but they may be able to rise from the ashes of the conflict of if they can simply hold out long enough, learn enough and sow the seeds that may bloom into their own power in the long night. "Of Dreams and Crowns" - A Changeling game where the PC's will help determine the future fate of the Kingdoms across the isle of Britannia and maybe even find the new (or become) High King or Queen of the Isle of the Mighty.
I like to have layers in my game, things for the characters to stumble across, ideas of other things happening so when they go looking for stuff or head in odd directions (as players will do) I have results for them handy. Soon they find themselves involved in a number of story lines and depending on what they do decides the outcomes. Sometimes the story line intersect, sometimes they don't, sometimes it doesn't appear like they do and then the characters discover otherwise later on. Of course I also listen to my players suppositions and nothing in my notebooks tends to remain intact session to session as I adjust, alter include and cut things.
However, if a PC spends the XP to get a Gift like Sight From Beyond I tend to be OK with it because its paid for, and ultimately it gives me an easy way to introduce plots. I do put some thought on what kinds of things are revealed in Sight From Beyond, as not all plots should start that way or should be revealed by them.
My own chronicles typically have three major components in terms of plot. One is the main "chronicle mystery" that provides an overarching plot over the entire campaign. (In Chicago By Night, this would be the methusalehs' quarrel, in Rage Across New York this was intended to be the Seventh Generation.) Another are plots that result from individual back story and actions of the PCs themselves.
In my current campaign I used part of a player's backstory to build the main antagonist and I tied another one's family to a secret their Sept is keeping. I like to keep things personal.
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0.981218 |
Myoadenylate deaminase is a skeletal muscle specific isoenzyme of AMP deaminase (AMPD; EC 3.5.4.6) that plays an important role in regulating adenylate energy charge and nucleotide metabolism. An inherited defect of this enzyme has been reported to be due to a single mutant allele with two linked mutations of C34T (exon 2, Q12X) and C143T (exon 3, P48L) of the AMPD1 gene in almost all cases.1,2 Further, a previous report showed a very high frequency (10−14%) of the C34T allele in whites and African Americans,2 although it has not been found in a Japanese population. Although most individuals with homozygous C34T alleles are assumed to be asymptomatic, some have been reported to show a relatively mild clinical phenotype including exercise induced myalgia.1 Recently, additional findings for missense mutations were reported in Japanese (R388W and R425H)3 and in whites (G468T)4 who showed muscle weakness and myalgia. Therefore, the relationship between abnormal purine nucleotide catabolism and skeletal muscle dysfunction4 is intriguing. In addition, other studies have reported that the C34T allele correlates with improved clinical outcome in patients with heart disease.5,6 We speculated that reduced AMPD activity in skeletal muscle would increase the production of the cardioprotection molecule, adenosine, resulting in increased levels of adenosine in the circulating system, although the fundamental mechanisms responsible for the disorder due to AMPD mutations are unclear.
In the present study, we attempted to determine other AMPD1 mutations and their distribution in ethnically diverse population groups, in order to better understand AMPD1 deficiency and its functional relevance. We identified 35 variations in and around the AMPD1 locus, including newly identified missense mutations. By estimating SNP haplotypes and defining typical haplotypes of the AMPD1 locus, we were also able to describe a phylogenic tree for ancestral AMPD1 haplotypes responsible for the most common variant, C34T. Furthermore, we identified two new mutant alleles, A860T (K287I) and G930T (M310I), in German myopathic patients and revealed their enzymatic defect.
DNA samples from German (n = 100), Japanese (n = 50), European American (n = 48), and African American (n = 32) subjects were prepared using a standard protocol after informed consent was obtained. DNA samples from Americans were obtained from the Duke University Medical Center, Center for Human Genetics, while the German samples included those from myopathic patients diagnosed and examined at Medizinische Poliklinik, Universitat Munchen. In addition to the human samples, DNA samples from chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) were also used.
Myoadenylate deaminase (AMPD) deficiency is one of the most common metabolic disorders seen in white populations. For nearly all individuals with this inherited deficiency, a single mutant allele of two linked mutations, C34T and C143T in AMPD1, is causative, with an allele frequency of 10−14% in the general population.
We were interested in whether natural selection might be involved in higher allele frequency, as epidemiological reports have found the C34T allele to be associated with improved clinical outcome in heart disease.
We analysed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the AMPD1 locus in 230 individuals, who comprised 80 German myopathic patients and 150 volunteers from African American (n = 32), European American (n = 48), German (n = 20), and Japanese (n = 50) ethnic groups. To better understand the causative allele of AMPD deficiency, we defined 10 SNP haplotypes based on the 6 SNPs that are commonly shared among different population groups with a high allele frequency.
From our results, we were able to define a phylogenic tree of ancestral haplotypes responsible for the causative allele of AMPD deficiency. We did not find a heterozygote advantage for AMPD deficiency. We identified two new missense mutations for AMPD1, A860T (K287I), and G930T (M310I), in the German myopathic patients. A prokaryotic expression study revealed a functional defect for both of these mutants.
Primer sets were designed for PCR amplification of each fragment ranging from 200 to 400 bp in length, based on the public genome database (GenBank accession nos AL096773 and NT019273) to amplify all 16 exons, including the adjacent partial introns and proximal regions of AMPD1, as shown in table 1. SNPs were genotyped by the following PCR based methods: multiple fluorescence based PCR single strand conformational polymorphism analysis (MF PCR-SSCP),7 denaturing high performance liquid chromatography analysis (DHPLC)8, and direct sequencing analysis. PCR amplification was carried out in a volume of 20 µl, containing 5 ng of genomic DNA, standard PCR buffer (10 mmol/l Tris/HCl, pH 8.3, 50 mmol/l KCl, 1.5 mmol/l MgCl2, 0.001% gelatin), dNTPs (0.2 mmol/l each), primers (0.2 µmol/l each), and 0.5 U of AmpliTaq Gold (PE Biosystems, Foster City, CA, USA) under the following conditions: initial denaturation at 95°C for 10 minutes, followed by 37 thermocycles for denaturation at 95°C for 30 seconds, annealing at 56°C for 1 minute, and extension at 72°C for 1 minute, with a final extension step at 72°C for 10 minutes. MF-PCR-SSCP analysis was performed using an ABI Prism 377 DNA Sequencer (PE Biosystems) at 20°C. PCR products for MF-PCR-SSCP analysis were prepared using fluorescence labelled primers (FAM, HEX, NED, and ROX; PE Biosystems), which were mixed with formamide dye and heat denatured, followed by electrophoresis on a 5% polyacrylamide gel, with or without 10% glycerol in TBE buffer. Data collection and mobility shift analyses were carried out using the GeneScan program (PE Biosystems). DHPLC analysis was performed using a Wave DNA fragment analysis system (Transgenomic, Omaha, NE, USA). PCR products for DHPLC analysis were denatured according to the manufacturer’s protocol. Optimal DNA melting temperatures were calculated with the WaveMaker program (version 3.3; Transgenomic) and sequence variations were screened. Direct sequencing analysis was performed to confirm SNP candidates using a PCR product Pre-Sequencing kit (USB, Cleveland, OH, USA) and Big Dye Terminator Sequencing kit (PE Biosystems) with a DNA sequencer (377, 3700, or 3100 DNA Analyzer; PE Biosystems).
Haplotype estimation and linkage disequilibrium (LD) analysis were carried out using the computer program, LD Support,9 which is a maximum likelihood method based on an expectation maximisation algorithm. The allele frequency for each SNP was calculated by directly counting respective alleles. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was tested by the χ2 approximation method. To confirm the validity of the estimated haplotype, direct checking of SNP haplotypes was performed by a method that employed long range PCR amplification. LA Taq polymerase (Takara Shuzou, Ohtsu, Japan) with allele specific oligonucleotide primers that differed at the end of the 3′ base (table 2), was used for PCR amplification of 3–17 kb fragments of the haploid allele, followed by confirmation of the other SNP sites by direct sequencing.
We searched the sequence variations in the AMPD1 locus for approximately 9 kb, including the entire coding exons (2244 bp), parts of introns adjacent to splice site consensus sequences, and the promoter region. In the Japanese, European American, and African American population groups, we identified 24 SNPs, 6 polymorphisms for insertion or deletion (Ins/Del), and 3 short tandem repeat polymorphisms (table 3). We also found relatively higher allele frequencies (average 22.3%) for SNPs shared among two or three of the population groups, whereas lower allele frequencies (average 2.3%) were observed in population specific SNPs. Among the SNPs detected in the coding region, five of eight were found to cause amino acid substitution. SNP diversity was calculated as 5.3×10−4 in African Americans, 4.8×10−4 in European Americans, and 3.6×10−4 in Japanese. In the German patients with myopathy, we identified two novel non-synonymous variations, A860T (K287I) in exon 7 and G930T (M310I) in exon 8, in addition to the known variants with C34T and C143T. Both K287I and M310I were located at the positions where the amino acid residues were completely conserved among a wide range of species including humans, Rattus norvegicus, Arabidopsis thalliana, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Dictyostelium discoideum, as shown in fig 1. In addition to the myopathic patients, the A860T variation was found in non-myopathic European Americans and in Germans at an allele frequency of 3.1% and 2.5%, respectively, while that in the myopathic patients was found to be 6.5%. In the African American population, another non-synonymous variation, C235T (R79W), was found in two individuals. There was no evidence for heterozygote advantage of AMPD1 variation, as Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was maintained in any of variations.
Non-synonymous variations found in AMPD1 and sequence conservation between species. (A) Three non-synonymous sequence variations (A860T, G930T, and C235T) were newly identified in addition to the common variations, C34T and C143T, when German mypathic patients with AMPD deficiency and myopathy, as well as control subjects from African American (Afr.Am.), European American (Eur.Am.), and German backgrounds were examined. (B) K287I(A860T) and M310I(G930T) substitutions were located at the position where the amino acid residues are completely conserved in AMPDs of many species. Hs, human; Rn, rat; Ce, C. elegans; Dm, Drosophila melanogaster, Dd, Dictyostelium discoidem.
Based on the obtained information regarding sequence variations in AMPD1, we next attempted to determine the SNP haplotypes in this locus. In order to minimise the number of haplotypes within this region, we selected 6 SNPs from the 24 described above, which are commonly found among population groups and comprised one from the 5′ upstream region, one for intron 2, two for intron 4, and two for intron 6, as shown in fig 2. Using information for these SNPs, we analysed linkage disequilibrium (LD) among the representative SNPs in each population group (fig 2). The Japanese population was found to have a greater D’ value than the other groups, which is likely to be due to the low genetic variation within the Japanese population. The African American and European American populations were found to have a rather small value for D’, indicating that a recombination event occurred more frequently. Therefore, it was thought necessary to confirm the haplotypes directly in some individuals to avoid underestimation of the frequency. Following genotyping, we determined haplotype frequencies in the population groups and estimated the diplotype configuration for each individual using the LD Support program. With these procedures, we found 10 major haplotypes for the AMPD1 locus (fig 3).
Common SNPs and linkage disequilibrium in the AMPD1 locus. Six common SNPs at positions −1640, 3167, 10577, 10684, 15699, and 15743 among populations were depicted (A). Linkage disequilibrium between two SNPs was evaluated by calculation of r2 (measure of disequilibrium) and D’ (standardised disequilibrium coefficient measurement) values using the LD Support program9 in European American (B), African American (C), and Japanese (D).
SNP haplotypes in the AMPD1 locus. (A) Ten major haplotypes for six common SNPs (−1640, 3167, 10577, 10684, 15699, and15743) estimated by the LD Support program9 and their frequencies were shown in different populations. A chimpanzee haplotype for those SNPs was also shown as a reference. (B) Haplotypes (Ht 1+, Ht 10+, Ht 11+) for common missense SNPs (C34T, C132T, A860T) estimated by LD Support and relation to major haplotypes shown in fig 3A. Their frequencies in each population or patient group are also depicted.
In addition to the population groups, we determined genotypes for this locus in chimpanzee DNA in order to approximate the most ancestral SNP haplotype. We determined genotypes from five chimpanzees by direct sequencing and found that all six of the polymorphic sites mentioned above were monomorphic. Based on the genotype found in chimpanzee DNA, we determined that the corresponding haplotype, Ht1, was the most ancestral haplotype for AMPD1. Using an order of single step substitution method to create newer SNP haplotypes, we successfully determined the phylogenetic tree of SNP haplotypes, which is shown in fig 3, although we also had to consider the recombination event for some steps. Using these procedures, we found that the C34T (Q12X) allele belongs to two distinct SNP haplotypes, of which the major type is Ht10. We also postulated that the other haplotype, Ht11+, found in the German population, was derived from Ht10 and Ht4 by recombination between introns 4 and 6.
Using recombinant proteins, we evaluated the functional significance of the two missense mutations of AMPD1, newly identified in myopathic patients. We constructed the following expression vectors: pGEX-rAMPD1 for the rat wild type AMPD1, pGEX-K287I for the K287I mutant of rat AMPD1, pGEX-M310I for the M310I rat mutant AMPD1, and pGEX-myc as a negative control, all of which were made to produce fusion protein with glutathione S-transferase peptide in addition to the c-myc epitope at the N terminus of the AMPD1 peptide. All of the constructs were found to produce recombinant proteins at a similar level, which was confirmed by Western blot analysis with anti-AMPD1 and anti-c-myc (9E10) antibodies. The mutant recombinant proteins showed only half or one third of the catalytic activity of the wild recombinant protein under the conditions studied, as shown in table 4. In addition, altered kinetic properties in these mutant recombinant proteins were found based on the measurement of apparent Km values for the substrate AMP (7.3 (1.3) mmol/l (K287I) and 7.6 (1.0) mmol/l (M310I) compared to that of the wild type (3.8 (0.4) mmol/l)).
We found new genetic polymorphisms in the AMPD1 locus, including 24 SNPs, 6 insertions/deletions, and 3 short tandem repeat polymorphisms among 3 ethnically different population groups; however, we did not find the sequence variation for G468T that was recently reported in myopathic patients,4 even though we included individuals from several ethnic groups as well as 80 myopathic patients. As we did not find clear deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium in any of variations, there was no evidence for heterozygote advantage for the AMPD1 mutation. Therefore, genetic drift rather than natural selection of a variant is the likely reason for high frequency of the C34T variation. We also attempted to deduce individual haplotypes based on the genotype dataset for each population group using LD Support. In order to utilise the haplotype information for comparing individuals among different populations, we selected six common SNPs (fig 2) that had a high allele frequency in each population group for further study, as such classification was thought to be useful to assess the ancestral haplotype causing AMPD1 deficiency, as reported previously. Such selection of SNPs resulted in a reduced number of inferred haplotypes of the AMPD1 locus. To confirm the individual haplotype set (diplotype), we also determined SNP diplotypes in some individuals by direct PCR amplification using allele specific primers and by sequencing the respective haploid alleles, although the results did not change the estimated result determined by the LDSupport program in most cases. In all three population groups, the most ancestral human haplotype of the AMPD1 locus, Ht1, was found, although all individuals of European descent with the Ht1 haplotype also contained the A860T (K278I) substitution (Ht1+), whereas no African American or Japanese individuals had the Ht1+ variant. Therefore, we speculated that individuals with Ht1+ were probably widespread among white populations created when their ancestors had migrated from Africa to Europe.
We also classified haplotypes with the C34T substitution as Ht10 derivatives, which were Ht10+ and the recombined haplotype, Ht11. These haplotypes were also thought to have originated relatively recently, probably after the European ancestor had left Africa, as Ht10 is considered to be created by a recombining event between Ht6 and Ht7, and was not found in the African American or Japanese populations. Therefore, the mutation event for the most common AMPD1 deficiency (C34T) was also thought to have occurred after the European ancestor had migrated from Africa. Regarding the relationship between the two haplotypes, Ht10+ and Ht11+, for AMPD1 deficiency (C34T), we speculated that Ht10+ was fixed earlier than Ht11+ in some populations, because Ht11+ is considered to require an additional recombining event with Ht10+, and Ht11+ was found only in the German myopathy patents. However, there was no further information regarding when and where the C34T mutation was added to individuals with Ht10, although the GenBank database (AL096773, NT019273) was found to contain the sequence information for this rare haplotype.
As for haplotype phylogeny, we successfully constructed a haplotype network for Ht1 through Ht7 by assuming single step substitution events, while we also took into account recombining events, as shown in fig 4. This situation was similar to previous reports and is thought to reflect human migration or evolutionary history.12 In addition to haplotypes carrying the C34T mutation, we found another carrying the K287I mutation, Ht1+, in both German and European Americans, but not in the African American populations. The distribution and frequency of Ht1+ was quite similar to Ht10+ carrying C34T. However, the German patients with myopathy did not exhibit any significantly different characteristics regarding the frequency of this haplotype compared with the European Americans. In contrast, the haplotype Ht8 was found to have different frequencies among the different groups, as it occurred more frequently in the German patients and control individuals compared with the European American control individuals (data not shown).
Phylogenic tree of SNP haplotypes in the AMPD1 locus. Ten major haplotypes and three derivative haplotypes (Ht 1+, Ht 10+, Ht 11+) are shown. Frequency of each haplotype in population (Afr. Am., African American; Jpn., Japanese; Eur. Am., European American) is also depicted.
In our investigation, we could not find any causative haplotype allele of the AMPD1 locus specific to the 39 myopathic patients without the AMPD1 mutation, although it is possible that these patients may harbour another causative genetic abnormality. In fact, we found four mutations in AMPD1 in the remaining 41 myopathic patients. Haplotypes carrying the C34T and C143T variants were the most frequent in the patients, as reported previously. Further, these two variant sites were found to have a high degree of linkage disequilibrium with each other and were detected in 35 of the patients with myopathy. In addition to these SNPs, one of the other two mutations, A860T or G930T, was found in nine of the myopathic patients, and it was interesting that one patient was found to be homozygous for the A860T mutation and three were heterozygous for A860T as well as for C34T and C143T. Thus, these four patients could be considered to be homozygotes or compound heterozygotes for the defective AMPD1 allele. It was also notable that the allele frequency of A860T was found to be from 2% to 3% in the German and European American control individuals.
For mutation A860T (K287I), we found a high level of conservation among many species, including Saccharomyces cerevesiae, Arabidopsis thaliana, and humans. Thus, it was intriguing to determine whether this mutation could cause a functional relevance of AMPD1 and provide an explanation for myopathy if all of these variants were not the sole cause of the defective function of AMPD1. To detect the causative variation for AMPD deficiency, we attempted to study the enzymatic activity and characteristics of the A860T mutation. A low level of catalytic activity in conjunction with a lower affinity to the substrate AMP could cause defective AMPD function. As we could not perform further investigations on individuals with an A860T or G930T mutation, future study will be needed to confirm the functional defect in these mutations. However, the functional defect of these mutants would be supported not only by lower activity at higher substrate levels but also by lower affinity to the substrate.
In summary, we successfully surveyed SNP variations in the AMPD1 locus and identified ancestral haplotypes for the most common type of AMPD deficiency, C34T, although we could not precisely determine the functional relevance of this very common genetic defect. We also found another common variant, A860T, which is responsible for the defective AMPD function. Further detailed study will be needed to confirm the relationship between these AMPD variants and cellular functions.
This work was supported in part by research grants from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and the Gout Research Foundation of Japan. We thank Dr Y Sakaki (Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo), Dr A Fujiyama (National Institute of Genetics/RIKEN Genomic Science Center), Dr Y Kuroki (RIKEN Genomic Science Center), and Dr T Ishida (Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo) for providing the chimpanzee DNA samples. We also thank Ms M Shimokawa for her technical assistance.
Sabina RL, Holmes EW. Myoadenylate deaminase deficiency. In: Scriver CR, Beauder AL, Sly WS, Vall D, eds. The metabolic and molecular basis of inherited disease. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2001:2627–38.
Morisaki T, Gross M, Morisaki H, Pongratz D, Zollner N, Holmes EW. Molecular basis of AMP deaminase deficiency in skeletal muscle. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA1992;89:6457–61.
Morisaki H, Higuchi I, Abe M, Osame M, Morisaki T. First missense mutations (R388W and R425H) of AMPD1 accompanied with myopathy found in a Japanese patient. Hum Mut2000;16:467–72.
Gross M, Rötzer E, Kölle P, Mortier W, Reichmann H, Goebel HH, Pngratz D, Mahnke-Zizelman DK, Sabina RL. A G468-T AMPD1 mutant allele contributes to the high incidence of myoadenylate deaminase deficiency in the Caucasian population. Neuromuscl Disorder2002;12:558–65.
Loh E, Rebbeck TR, Mahoney PD, DeNofrio D, Swain JL, Holmes EW. Common variant in AMPD1 gene predicts improved clinical outcome in patients with heart failure. Circulation1999;99:1422–25.
Anderson JL, Habashi J, Carlquist JF, Muhlestein JB, Horne BD, Bair TL, Peason RR, Hart N. A common variant of the AMPD1 gene predicts improved cardiovascular survival in patients with coronary artery disease. J Am Coll Cardiol2000;36:1248–58.
Iwahana H, Yoshimoto K, Mizusawa N, Kudo E, Itakura M. Multiple fluorescence-based PCR-SSCP analysis. Bio Tech1994;16:296–305.
Underhill PA, Jin L, Lin AA, Mehdi SQ, Jenkins T, Vollrath D, Davis RW, Cavalli-Sforza LL, Oefner PJ. Detection of numerous Y chromosome biallelic polymorphisms by denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography. Genome Res1997;7:996–1005.
Kitamura Y, Moriguchi M, Kaneko H, Morisaki H, Morisaki T, Toyama K, Kamatani N. Determination of probability distribution of diplotype configuration (diplotype distribution) for each subject from genotypic data using the EM algorithm. Ann Hum Genet2002;66:183–93.
Marquetant R, Desai NM, Sabina RL, Holmes EW. Evidence for sequential expression of multiple AMP deaminase isoforms during skeletal muscle development. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA1987;84:2345–9.
Evans GI, Lewis GK, Ramsa G, Bishop JM. Isolation of monoclonal antibodies specific for human c-myc proto-oncogene product. Mol Cell Biol1985;5:3610–16.
Cavalli-Sforza LL Feldman MW. The application of molecular genetic approaches to the study of human evolution. Nat Genet2003;33(Suppl):266–75.
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CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 2/11/2019, 12:31 p.m.
(CNN) -- Once again, Virginia's governor caused a nationwide facepalm with race-related comments.
This time, Gov. Ralph Northam told "CBS This Morning" that slaves who landed on the shores of Virginia centuries ago were "indentured servants."
"In 1619, the first indentured servants from Africa landed on our shores ..." he said in an interview Sunday.
The gaffe came as Northam fights to regain public trust after a photo from his medical school yearbook page showed a person in blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan outfit.
But three decades later, why is Northam calling slaves "indentured servants?"
"During a recent event at Fort Monroe, I spoke about the arrival of the first Africans in Virginia and referred to them in my remarks as enslaved," he said in a statement provided to CNN. "A historian advised me that the use of indentured was more historically accurate -- the fact is, I'm still learning and committed to getting it right."
Here's the nuance: Enslaved Africans first arrived in Virginia in 1619. "Before slavery truly became institutionalized in the colonies, some Africans were sometimes treated more like indentured servants who were freed once their service ended or debt had been paid," the National Museum of African American History & Culture said.
"However, this changed dramatically in 1641 when Massachusetts became the first British mainland colony to legalize slavery. From that time forward, colonial slave laws became more restrictive, further codifying the institution."
But ultimately, they were still slaves -- Africans who were brought to these shores against their will, and forced to work without pay.
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0.996243 |
Hector and the Search for Happiness ended up being a combination of Eat, Pray, Love and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, in that Hector (Simon Pegg) takes a trip around the world to find out what others consider happiness to be, and also what makes them happy. He realizes he has a routine that he does every day - meals, work, sleep, and then repeat - and he wants to get out and see the world. His girlfriend, Clara (Rosamund Pike, soon to be starring in Gone Girl), is a bit skeptical of this, since she knows how much he likes his routine, and isn't entirely happy when he says he doesn't know when he will be back from his trip, either.
Hector first travels to China, and he makes a businessman friend on the flight over who shows him the finer things in life - first class on an airplane, dining out, and going clubbing with beautiful women. After China, he heads to Africa, where one of his friends works in a clinic; Hector will help out at the clinic for a week. His final destination is L.A., where he meets up with a woman who is another of his oldest friends (Toni Collette), and also someone with whom he was once romantically involved.
This film is a little slow, but Simon Pegg is great in it. His character often feels child-like, as we sense through flashbacks of himself as a child with his dog, and by the end of the film, he has grown up. Rosamund Pike was good here as well, but I actually liked Toni Collette's performance better, even though she was only in the last 1/3 or 1/4 of the movie; her character feels more realistic, in a sense.
Yes, see this movie, but I will say that Hector is not a character I thought about days after the movie, whereas Walter Mitty (played by Ben Stiller) I still think about now and then. The film is almost like a Walter Mitty "lite" - there are some profound things, but nothing earth-shattering or life-changing. I did like that Hector keeps a journal with doodles and also the keys to happiness (gems like "fear will keep you from being happy" and so on), which are also written out on the screen once he records them in the book. I also enjoyed the scenery in this movie, as China, Africa, and L.A. definitely stand out on the screen. I'd recommend this film for fans of EPL and Mitty, just don't expect an exact replica of either.
Hector and the Search for Happiness is in theaters today, September 26th, and is rated R with a runtime of 114 minutes. 3.5 stars out of 5.
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0.935717 |
Cossacks (Ukrainian: козаки́, kozaky, Russian: казаки́, kazaki; ) are a group of predominantly East Slavic people who originally were members of democratic, semi-military communities in Ukraine and Southern Russia. They inhabited sparsely populated areas and islands in the lower Dnieper and Don basins, and played an important role in the historical development of both Ukraine and Russia.
The origins of the first Cossacks are disputed. Traditional historiography dates the emergence of Cossacks to the 14th to 15th centuries. Towards the end of the 15th century, the Ukrainian Cossacks formed the Zaporozhian Sich centered on the fortified Dnipro islands. Initially a vassal of Poland-Lithuania, the increasing social and religious pressure from the Commonwealth caused them to proclaim an independent Cossack Hetmanate, initiated by a rebellion under Bohdan Khmelnytsky in the mid-17th century. Afterwards, the Treaty of Pereyaslav brought most of the Ukrainian Cossack state under Russian rule for the next 300 years.
The Don Cossack Host, which had been established by the 16th century, allied itself with the Muscovite Tsardom. Together they began a systematic conquest and colonisation of lands in order to secure the borders on the Volga, the whole of Siberia (see Yermak Timofeyevich), the Yaik and the Terek Rivers. By the 18th century, Cossack hosts in the Russian Empire served as buffer zones on her borders. However, the expansionist ambitions of the empire relied on ensuring the loyalty of Cossacks, which caused tension with their traditional freedom and independence. In the 17th and 18th centuries this resulted in anti-imperial rebellions and wars led by Stenka Razin, Kondraty Bulavin and Yemelyan Pugachev. In extreme cases, whole Hosts could be dissolved, as was the fate of the Zaporozhian Sich in 1775. By the end of the 18th century, Cossacks were transformed into a special social estate (Sosloviye); they served as border guards on national and internal ethnic borders (as was the case in the Caucasus War) and regularly supplied men to conflicts such as the numerous Russo-Turkish Wars. In return, they enjoyed vast social autonomy. This caused them to be a part of a stereotypical portrayal of the 19th century Russian Empire both abroad and domestically.
During the Russian Civil War, Cossack regions became centres for the Anti-Bolshevik White movement, a portion of whom would form the White emigration. The Cossacks even formed short-lived independent states, the Ukrainian State, the Don Republic and the Kuban People's Republic. With the victory of the Red Army, the Cossack lands were subjected to extensive repression and the famine of 1932-33 (Holodomor). After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Cossack lifestyle and its ideas have made a return in Russia. In Russia's 2010 Population Census, Cossacks have been recognized as an ethnicity. There are Cossack organizations in Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and the USA.
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0.988626 |
What is Australia's biggest opera company bringing to the Sydney Opera House in 2018?
The centre of Opera Australia’s 2018 season is nothing to sneeze at – and something many opera and theatre lovers will applaud: Barrie Kosky’s return to Opera Australia, 19 years after he directed Wozzeck for them. Since then, and as the artistic director of Berlin’s Komische Oper from 2012, he has become one of the poster boys for opera’s international revival as an artform, with vivid, politically charged and dramaturgically accessible productions including The Magic Flute (slated for a 2019 appearance in Australia) and Saul (at Adelaide Festival in 2017).
Shostakovich wrote The Nose at the tender age of 20, inspired by Nikolai Gogol’s short stories ‘The Overcoat’ (1842) and ‘The Nose’ (1836), in which he satirises the newly wealthy middle classes of 19th century St Petersburg. In The Nose, a civil servant wakes up to find his nose has absconded – and can be found parading the streets of St Petersburg in a coat finer than his own, and a rank exceeding his own.
Kosky’s production features an English-language libretto (translated from Russian by David Pountney) and design by his regular collaborators Klaus Grünberg (set and lighting design) and Buki Shiff (costume design). The choreographer – responsible for the glorious tap-dancing noses – is Otto Pichler.
Opera Australia haven’t favoured Russian operas to date, but Terracini is a fan of this part of the repertoire, and has programmed Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin and remounted Prokofiev’s The Love for Three Oranges in his tenure.
Other highlights of the 2018 season include the previously announced Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour (HOSH) production of La bohème – a new production featuring design by Dan Potra (behind the giant dragon on stage for HOSH Turandot) – and a brand-new production of Verdi’s Aida by Italian director Davide Livermore, featuring what the press release describes as “new digital technologies” (we hope lasers; more likely, the use of video screens and projections).
Another already-announced highlight of the season is a revival of the original 1978 Harold Prince production of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s blockbuster Evita, co-produced by Opera Australia and musical theatre juggernaut John Frost, and starring Australian pop veteran Tina Arena.
Opera Australia are also introducing a new ongoing initiative in 2018: the annual staging of a smaller work (mostly a contemporary Australian work) in the the Opera Centre’s scenery workshop in Surry Hills. They’ll kick that off in September 2018 with a revival of Australian composer Brian Howard’s 1983 chamber opera Metamorphosis, directed by Tama Matheson (who helmed OA’s glam-Gothic 2013 production of The Force of Destiny).
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0.999996 |
What is the term of a commercial lease generally?
The term is the stipulated amount of time from the inception of the lease to the expiration of the lease. It could be stipulated in months or years.
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World B is the world of Dissidia Final Fantasy and its prequel Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, though it is only named and shown in the latter. It is a near-mirror image of the world of the original Final Fantasy, which is called World A in Dissidia 012.
Dissidia Final Fantasy implied the world drew from the other Final Fantasy worlds. World B's nature is expanded upon in subsequent games; Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy reveals gateways were used to allow visitors into other worlds, and Dissidia Final Fantasy NT posits World B grows by feeding on the memories of summoned warriors.
Chaos, Cosmos, and Cid of the Lufaine arrived in World B from World A when Chaos opened a portal to the Interdimensional Rift that drew them in. Shinryu was visiting World B, one of the many dimensions connected to the Rift, and took an interest in them.
Cid made a pact with Shinryu to gain immortality in exchange for giving up his body. Chaos and Cosmos would war with each other using World B as the battleground, and call warriors from other worlds through the Rift to their side to fight for them. Cosmos made her throne in Order's Sanctuary on an island off the coast of Cornelia, while Chaos's throne lay inside a volcano on a floating island near Onrac.
In the twelfth cycle of war, Exdeath opens a portal to the Void near Onrac and releases the manikins the Onrac of World A had produced and sealed away. The manikins swarm World B, threatening to overwhelm Cosmos's forces with sheer numbers, until six warriors venture into the Land of Discord and sacrifice their lives to close the portal. In the thirteenth cycle the southern regions of the world are destroyed when Chaos kills Cosmos, but her warriors survive due to the light of their Crystals and make it to Chaos's throne and destroy him, ending the cycles of war and spiriting them home.
In a secret ending, once Cid is freed from the nightmare world depicted in Confessions of the Creator, he tells Cosmos—who has revived in World B and was waiting for him—that the world will collapse into the Rift now that the balance of power between her and Chaos is shattered. Cid offers Cosmos to join him on a journey, but she rejects the offer, choosing to stay and reign over the abandoned World B for as long as it has left.
As revealed in Dissidia Final Fantasy NT, World B resisted collapse after the appearance of Materia and Spiritus, two gods born from Cosmos's and Chaos's wills. The two gods summon champions from other worlds to sustain World B with battle energy whose memories expand the world. Shinryu, in an attempt to consume the world and its memories, threatens to bring World B back to the Void, but is vanquished by the gods and their champions. After the warriors depart back to their home worlds, projections based on their memories continue to be used by the gods for battle energy.
In Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, with the exception of Confessions of the Creator, the player is restricted on which areas of World B can be explored depending on which storyline they are playing. Certain gateways may be inactive in one story, but active in another. Confessions of the Creator gives the player free reign to explore and features Teleport Stones to warp the player around the world.
World B regions are named after World A's, and several gateways are directly named after its locations. Though the worlds are similar, there are several geographical differences. There is a circular island in World B off the coast of where Cornelia is in World A—this island houses Order's Sanctuary.
The island chain between the two northern continents in World A is a continuous strip of land in World B, and the northwest continent in World B, the Lands of Discord, have a chain of floating islands on their eastern shores housing the Edge of Discord gateway where the Edge of Madness, the seat of Chaos, lies. Peninsulas on the eastern edge of the map and near Melmond are lengthened to provide land bridges, and there are numerous additional small islands, including the Shinryu Isles in the southeast, that contain a Teleport Stone to the Land of Discord.
Cornelia Plains: The main region encompassing Cornelia and Pravoka, as well as the Southern Lufenia Gateway that acts as a blockade to the northern continents. Lies in the north-east of the southern landmasses.
Melmond Fens: The region in which lies the Melmond swamplands and the Western Keep, also contains the Chasm in the Rotting Land and Curses and Hopes of Yore gateways on the landmass to the west near the Cavern of Earth. Lies in the west of the southern landmasses.
Elven Snowfields: A region lying in a snowstorm surrounded by ice-capped mountains, contains the Shinryu Isles and Ryukahn Desert at its far eastern area, and the Marsh Cave in the west, which is the location of the Land of the Stolen Crown gateway. Lies in the south of the southern landmasses.
Ancient Volcano Ring - Gulg: Centering around Mount Gulg, includes the eastern outlying areas around Crescent Lake. Lies in the east of the southern landmasses.
Mirage Sandsea: Centered around the Yahnikurm Desert and Mirage Tower, also encompasses Lufenia and Gaia, and contains the Dreams of a Flying Castle and The Forsaken Lands gateways. Lies in the north-east area of the map.
Bahamut Isles: A strip of land corresponding to the Cardia Islands chain in World A, contains the Citadel of Trials along with The Dragon King's Gateway. Lies in the center northern area of the map.
Land of Discord: Consisting of Onrac and the desert regions to the west, also contains a chain of floating islands on the east coast. Lies in the north-west part of the map.
World B appears as a background in a Field Music Sequence.
World B world map in-game.
In the Report titled "One Man's Monologue", Garland notes he mistakenly believed World B to be World A 2000 years in the past. This refers to the original Final Fantasy's time loop. The destroyed condition of the world implies there was a major catastrophe in World A's past, which coincides with statements made in the later Reports about a war and a cataclysm caused by Chaos occurring around this time.
In spite of Cid's statement that escaping from World B costs an enormous amount of energy, he sent the Warriors of Cosmos back to World A using a Teleport Stone after Chaos's destruction. It is not explained how the Warriors are summoned in the first place.
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FINRA, or the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, regulates securities brokers and the firms they work for.
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, or FINRA, is a private self-regulatory organization that regulates certain aspects of the securities industry and is the successor to the National Association of Securities Dealers, or NASD. While the Securities and Exchange Commission is the ultimate regulatory authority for the industry, FINRA plays an important role when it comes to protecting investors.
FINRA is an independent nonprofit organization that was created from the merger of the NYSE's regulatory committee and the NASD, which had been around since 1939. The agency oversees all brokerage firms and provides regulatory oversight.
That every investor receives the basic protections they deserve.
That anyone who sells a securities product is licensed and qualified.
That securities advertisements are not misleading.
That all securities sold to investors are suitable for their individual needs.
That investors receive a complete disclosure before purchasing any investment products.
In order to achieve these goals, FINRA writes and enforces the rules governing the activities of the entire securities industry, checks for compliance with these rules, and educates investors.
For starters, all brokers must be licensed by FINRA, which means passing qualification exams and completing continuing-education requirements. After brokers pass, FINRA observes their operations and conducts examinations to ensure they operate in a compliant manner. FINRA also reviews any advertisements, brochures, and websites in order to make sure the information is presented honestly and fairly.
FINRA also has the authority to bring disciplinary action in response to rule violations. In 2015 alone, FINRA completed more than 1,500 disciplinary actions and levied fines of $95 million. In addition to imposing fines, FINRA can suspend or ban brokers from the industry, depending on the severity of the infraction.
Last but not least, FINRA devotes a considerable amount of its resources to educate investors to help them make wise financial decisions. FINRA's BrokerCheck lets investors check the backgrounds of registered brokers and firms, and the agency's Market Data Center provides information on all sorts of investments. It also can help investors determine whether an opportunity is a scam by answering just four questions. For FINRA's investor education, check out the agency's website here.
In a nutshell, FINRA is the main organization that monitors and regulates U.S. stockbrokers and brokerage firms. The mission of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is to ensure fairness for investors. The SEC is the primary overseer of the U.S. securities markets and has a broad reach. It is a government organization and has oversight of several other agencies (including FINRA). It is colloquially known as the "watchdog of Wall Street."
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Uber is working on technology that could determine just how drunk passengers are when ordering a ride. According to CNN, Uber Technology Inc. filed a patent for a machine learning application that could accurately predict a user’s state of sobriety and alert the driver with this information.
The patent application describes artificial intelligence that learns how you typically use the Uber app, so it can better spot unusual behavior. Its algorithms weigh a number of factors, including typos, walking speed, how precisely you press in-app buttons, and the amount of time it takes, standing on the curb, to order a ride. Someone botching most words, swaying side-to-side on the curb, and taking 15 minutes to order a ride late on a Saturday, for example, is probably fairly intoxicated.
Uber’s patent also says it could, potentially, use the technology to deny rides to users based on their current state, or perhaps match them with other drivers with relevant skills or training.
Aside from ensuring a rider isn’t cleaning up vomit for the next several hours, the app could also increase safety for both rider and driver.
According to a recent CNN investigation, at least 103 Uber drivers have been accused of sexually assaulting or abusing passengers in just the past four years. While the app won’t stop the predatory nature of some people, it can aid in recognizing impaired individuals so that they can be placed with trusted drivers or those with experience in shuttling intoxicated passengers.
Conversely, a number of Uber drivers have been physically assaulted by passengers in recent years, many of whom were intoxicated.
Edit: Cleaned up the wording in the paragraph about Uber drivers sexually assaulting intoxicated individuals. The previous wording was ambiguous and could have been interpreted as the assaults being the fault of the impaired individual. We certainly didn’t mean to imply that.
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This article is about the English footballer. For the English jockey, see Joe Mercer (jockey).
Joseph 'Joe' Mercer, OBE (9 August 1914 - 9 August 1990) was an English football player and manager.
Mercer was born in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, the son of a former Nottingham Forest and Tranmere Rovers footballer, also named Joe. Joe Mercer senior died, following health problems resulting from a gas attack during the war, while his son was only 12. In later life, after his footballing career was over, Joe Mercer junior became a regular attendee at Tranmere Rovers due to his father's involvement.
Joe Mercer, a left-half, first played for Ellesmere Port. He was a powerful tackler and good at anticipating an opponent's moves. He joined Everton in September 1932 at the age of 18 and claimed a regular first team place in the 1935-36 season. Mercer made 186 appearances for Everton, scoring two goals and a winning a League Championship medal in the 1938-39 season. While playing for Everton he gained five England caps between 1938 and 1939.
Like many players of his generation, Mercer lost out on seven seasons of football due to the Second World War. He became a sergeant-major and played in 26 wartime internationals, many of them as captain. The Everton manager Theo Kelly accused Mercer of not trying in an international against Scotland, but in reality Mercer had sustained a severe cartilage injury. Even after consulting an orthopaedic specialist, the Everton management refused to believe him and Mercer had to pay for the surgery himself. During the war Mercer guested for Chester, making his debut in a 4–1 win over Halifax Town in September 1942 .
Mercer moved in late 1946 for £9,000 to Arsenal, commuting from Liverpool; Theo Kelly brought Mercer's boots to the transfer negotiations to prevent Mercer having a reason to go back to say goodbye to the other players at Everton. He made his Arsenal debut against Bolton Wanderers on 30 November 1946 and soon after joining Arsenal, Mercer became club captain. As captain, he led Arsenal through their period of success in the late 1940s and early 1950s, helping to haul his side from the lower end of the table to win a League Championship title in 1947-48.
Mercer went on to win an FA Cup winner's medal in 1950 and was voted FWA Footballer of the Year the same year. He led Arsenal to Cup final in 1952, which they lost 1-0 to Newcastle United, but the following year bounced back to win his third League title with Arsenal winning the 1952-53 League Championship on goal average. Mercer initially decided to retire in May 1953, but soon recanted and returned to Arsenal for the 1953-54 season. However, he broke his leg in two places after a collision with team-mate Joe Wade in a match against Liverpool on 10 April 1954, and finally called time on his footballing career the year after. Mercer played 275 times for Arsenal in all, scoring two goals.
After his playing career ended Mercer spent a little over a year working as a journalist and a grocer. His wife's family had encouraged him to become involved in grocery during his time at Everton and, while still Arsenal's captain, he ran his grocery business from 105-107 Brighton Street, Wallasey.. He became known as the Footballing Grocer in football annuals of the late forties and fifties.
On 18 August 1955, he returned to football, becoming manager of Sheffield United two days before their first game of the season against Newcastle United. Mercer was appointed to replace manager Reg Freeman who had died during the close season. As a manager he began inauspiciously and his first season ended in relegation; despite Mercer buying Derek Pace, who would go on to become a hero at Sheffield United, from Aston Villa for £12,000 on 26 December 1957.
The rest of his time as manager was spent in the Second Division and in December 1958, wanting to move to a bigger club, he resigned and moved to Aston Villa who were bottom of the First Division. Although he led them to the FA Cup semi-finals he was relegated to Division Two for a second time. He moulded a talented young side at Villa and his team became known as the 'Mercer Minors'. He led Villa to victory in the inaugural League Cup in 1961 but suffered a stroke in 1964, and was then sacked by the Aston Villa board upon his recovery.
Despite this his health improved and he went on to enjoy great success as a manager with Manchester City between 1965 and 1971. In his first season at Maine Road, the club won the 1966 Second Division title to regain top-flight status. Two seasons later Mercer led Manchester City to the 1968 First Division championship, and went on to win the FA Cup (1969), League Cup (1970), and European Cup Winners' Cup (1970).
In 1970-71 Mercer had a dispute with his assistant Malcolm Allison, after the two men became embroiled in Manchester City's takeover battle. Mercer supported the existing Board, led by the respected Albert Alexander, while Allison supported the rival group after being promised that he would be manager in his own right.
The takeover succeeded, and Mercer was shocked to discover that his car parking space and office were removed. This led to Mercer's departure to become manager of Coventry City, whom he managed from 1972 to 1974. During the same time Mercer was also caretaker manager of the England national football team for a brief period in 1974 after Sir Alf Ramsey's resignation. He was in charge for seven matches, during which time England won the 1974 British Home Championship title (shared with Scotland); in total Mercer was in charge for seven games — winning three, drawing three and losing one.
After quitting as Coventry City boss, he served as a director of the club from 1975 to his retirement in 1981. He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to football in 1976. He suffered with Alzheimer's Disease in later life and died, sitting in his favourite armchair, on his 76th birthday in 1990..
He is commemorated by his old club Manchester City with the road Joe Mercer Way at the City of Manchester Stadium being named after him. On the road there are two mosaics by renowned Manchester artist Mark Kennedy of Mercer; one shows his smiling face lifting the League Championship trophy; the other is a version of a famous photograph showing his legs from behind as he looks out over the Maine Road pitch towards the Kippax Stand..
At Maine Road a corporate suite, The Joe Mercer Suite, was officially opened by his widow Norah in 1993. A similar facility named after him exists at Goodison. In 1993 Mercer's official biography, Football With A Smile, was written by Gary James. It sold out within six months. In November 2009 it was announced that the book would be revised and re-published early in 2010.
Mercer was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in the National Football Museum in Preston, England on 4 July 2009. He was inducted for his managerial success.
^ Gary James (1993). Football With A Smile: The Authorised Biography of Joe Mercer, OBE. pp. 16. ISBN 0-9514862-9-2.
^ Chas Sumner (1997). On the Borderline: The Official History of Chester City 1885-1997. pp. 59. ISBN 1-874427-52-6.
^ Gary James (1993). Football With A Smile: The Authorised Biography of Joe Mercer, OBE. pp. 65. ISBN 0-9514862-9-2.
^ Clayton, David (2002). Everything under the blue moon: the complete book of Manchester City FC - and more!. Edinburgh: Mainstream publishing. ISBN 1-84018-687-9.
^ Gary James (1993). Football With A Smile: The Authorised Biography of Joe Mercer, OBE. pp. 247–266. ISBN 0-9514862-9-2.
^ Gary James (1993). Football With A Smile: The Authorised Biography of Joe Mercer, OBE. pp. 290. ISBN 0-9514862-9-2.
^ Gary James (2008). Manchester - A Football History. pp. 461–462. ISBN 978-0-9558127-0-5.
^ "ORDER NOW FOR A DISCOUNTED PRICE & GET YOUR NAME IN THE BOOK: JOE MERCER, OBE - FOOTBALL WITH A SMILE". James Ward. http://www.manchesterfootball.org/publications.php. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
^ "Latest news - Hall of Fame 2009". National Football Museum. http://www.nationalfootballmuseum.com/pages/fame/2009%20hall%20of%20fame.html. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
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Most public health guidelines recommend that adults need to participate in 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on most days of the week to maintain good health. Achieving the recommended 30 minutes of exercise a day can be difficult in middle aged, overweight women. This 12 week study evaluated whether a 10,000 steps per day message was more effective than a 30 minutes a day message in increasing physical activity in low active, overweight women.
Thirty participants were randomized into 2 groups: Group 1 was asked to undertake 30 minutes of walking/day, whereas Group 2 was asked to accumulate 10,000 steps/day using their pedometers.
Results showed that there were no changes in anthropometric and blood pressure measures between or within groups. However, the 10,000 step and the 30 minutes groups' daily average number of steps/day were significantly higher than baseline at week 6 (p = 0.038 and p = 0.039 respectively) and at week 12 (p = 0.028 and p = 0.038 respectively). At week 12, the 10,000 steps group were taking an average of 4616 steps per day more (43% increase) than at baseline and the 30 minutes group were taking an average of 2761 steps per day more (35% increase) than at baseline. There was a significant difference in the number of steps with the 10,000 steps group versus 30 minutes group at 12 weeks (p = 0.045).
This study found that low active, overweight women undertook significantly more physical activity when they had a daily 10,000 step goal using a pedometer, than when they were asked to achieve 30 minutes of walking/day. Therefore we suggest that a public health recommendation of "10,000 steps/day", rather than the "30 min/day" could be applied to promote increased physical activity in sedentary middle aged women.
It is estimated that there are 1.6 billion adults worldwide who are overweight and at least 400 million of them obese . The increased consumption of convenience foods and increased sedentary activity from usage of technology such as the television (TV), computers and cars are examples of environmental factors playing a detrimental role in this obesity epidemic. The World Health Organization estimate that 1.9 million deaths are attributable to physical inactivity. Numerous studies have found many health benefits of physical activity such as improvements in psychological well-being and also a decrease in the risk factors associated with chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease (CVD) and obesity [2–7].
To maintain good health and reduce the risk of chronic disease, most public health guidelines recommend that adults need to participate in 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on most days of the week [8–11]. Achieving such a target can be difficult in sedentary groups and especially in overweight/obese populations, therefore inventing simple, easy to implement methods which help to provide environmental cues and motivation to increase physical activity should be investigated. Previous studies have shown that the daily use of pedometers, a quantifiable walking measure, results in significant increases in physical activity . The feedback received from pedometer step counts encourages behavior change as it raises awareness about current walking behaviors , and through self monitoring can motivate a person to increase their physical activity [13, 14]. A meta-analysis of 26 randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies involving the daily use of pedometers in adults has reported significant increases in the number of steps walked per day . A study by Hultquist et al. compared the number of steps accumulated by two groups of women instructed to either walk 10,000 steps per day using pedometers or instructed to walk 30 minutes per day. The 10,000 steps group accumulated significantly more steps (p < 0.005) than the 30 minutes group, indicating that pedometer use was more effective than the 30 minutes message in increasing walking activity in this group over 4 weeks. Thus, they suggest that public health guidelines should change their 30 minutes/day message to a 10,000 steps per day to promote physical activity in the adult population. In a follow-up study by the same group of investigators, they observed that daily steps were still significantly greater after 12 months compared to baseline, however there were no longer any significant differences between the 30 minutes and the 10,000 steps groups at any time point after the initial 4 week intervention period . No other studies have further compared the effectiveness of these two messages for a longer period greater than 4 weeks. The intervention of 4 weeks may not be long enough to observe the true effect of these 2 messages after the initial novelty of wearing a pedometer has worn off. Further scientific evidence is required if modifications to current physical activity public health messages are to be made.
If sedentary individuals or those who undertake low activity have on average 5000-7499 steps per day then the addition of the recommended 30 minutes of walking per day (equating to 3500 steps) would be close to 10,000 steps per day. Therefore the aim of this study was to evaluate whether a 10,000 steps per day message or the 30 minutes per day message was more effective in bringing about significant increases in physical activity in overweight and obese women over a three month period. We hypothesized that the former message would be more effective in promoting physical activity in sedentary, overweight women. In this study middle-aged women were targeted as > 50% of this group are overweight and therefore at high risk for developing cardiovascular disease, diabetes and hypertension. Women are specifically targeted in this pilot study as they generally have a large input into their families. Thus, any lifestyle changes have the potential to flow on and affect their family members (spouses, children).
Overweight and obese low active, middle aged (35-55 years) women with a body mass index (BMI) between 25-35 kg/m2 were recruited from local community newspapers in Perth, Western Australia. Interested participants were screened and those who met the selection criteria attended a group orientation session where details of the study were explained. Exclusion criteria included current chronic medical and psychological disease, major systemic illness, renal failure, pregnancy, lactation or planning to become pregnant, smoking, hypothyroidism, diabetes mellitus, pre-existing heart conditions or gastrointestinal surgery and greater than two hours of moderate intensity physical activity per week. The Ethics Committee of Curtin University reviewed and approved all procedures and informed, written consent was obtained from each participant prior to participating in the study. Trial registration: ACTRN12609000176268.
Seventy eight women were screened. Thirty four women met the inclusion criteria and attending the orientation session. Two women dropped out of the study before commencement due to work commitments. Thirty two overweight/obese women were then randomized into two groups: Group 1 (30 minutes group) - with a goal to undertake at least 30 minutes per day of walking on top of their baseline activity, or Group 2 (10,000 steps group) - with a goal to accumulate at least 10,000 steps per day, over a twelve week period. The 30 minutes group wore a sealed pedometer for twelve weeks and therefore had no knowledge of their record of steps/day. The pedometer was sealed with tape so that the number of steps/day was concealed and this seal was only broken once a week by the participant so that the total weekly steps could be recorded on a calendar provided. On a weekly basis they were asked to reset the pedometer to zero and re-seal the pedometer. Participants acknowledged that they understood the instructions and would comply with them by signing a form to confirm this. The 10,000 steps group wore an unsealed pedometer which they were able to open and view the number of steps accumulated throughout the day. Participants in this group were instructed to record accumulated steps/day on a calendar and to reset the pedometer to zero each day. Subjects in both groups were asked to record each day when they wore their pedometers on a calendar supplied to monitor compliance.
Before the study commenced, all 32 participants wore a sealed Yamax Digi-Walker SW-200 pedometer to record the amount of steps they accumulated over a one week period, in order to collect baseline data. This pedometer has an overall mean absolute error of 3% . Two studies have compared 13 pedometer models and found that Yamax Digiwalker SW-200 pedometer to be one of the most accurate and suitable for research [20, 21]. The accuracy of the pedometer on each participant was checked by the means of a 20 (+/-2) step test at the outset. Participants wore the pedometer clipped to their clothing at the waist, centered over the foot.
At baseline, both groups were given the National Australian Physical Activity Guidelines and information from these guidelines such as intensity, duration, prompts for exercise and relapse prevention were discussed with the participants. The 30 minutes group were specifically instructed to walk 30 minutes a day to comply with the physical activity guidelines and a 30 minutes/day walking goal was set. This could be achieved in a 30 minute block or in shorter bouts of walking of 10-15 minutes. The 10,000 steps group were instructed to reach a daily step goal of 10,000 steps per day. At baseline, participants from both groups were encouraged to initially set small achievable goals and then to gradually increase the walking goal each week to at least 30 minutes/day (30 minutes group) or 10,000 steps (10,000 steps group). Physical activity was assessed at baseline and at 12 weeks using the short-form International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), which provides information on the time spent walking, in moderate physical activity, in vigorous physical activity and total physical activity (MET·min/wk) (MET = Metabolic Equivalent Task) during a usual week. This version of the IPAQ has been found to be valid and reliable .
Participants were asked to maintain their usual dietary intake throughout the 12 weeks of the study. Dietary intake was monitored through the completion of 3-day food diaries, including two week days and one weekend day, at the beginning and end of the study. Energy and macronutrient intakes from the participants' combined food records were calculated using Food Works (Version 3 Xyris Software, 2002) based on data from the AUSNUT database.
At baseline, 6 and 12 weeks the participants attended at Curtin University for a brief physical examination, including blood pressure, weight, waist and hip measurements. Weight measurements were taken using Tanita scales (UM-018 Digital Scales, Tanita Corporation, Tokyo, Japan), with participants dressed in light clothing without shoes. Height measurements were taken using a mechanical stadiometer (Surgical and Medical Products, Hills, Australia. BMI (kg/m2) was calculated from weight and height measurements. Waist (at umbilicus) and hip circumference were measured from which Waist to Hip ratio (WHR) was calculated. Body composition was also measured using the RJL Systems BIA - 101 Body Composition Analyzer (USA) following the manufacturer's instructions. These standardized protocols have been established in our laboratory.
Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS 17 for Windows (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL). Data are expressed as mean (SEM) and assessed for normality. Differences between groups were analysed using one-way analysis of variance. Data was analyzed further by post-hoc analysis using the Least Square Differences (LSD) method to identify specific differences. Statistical significance was considered at p < 0.05. Sample size calculation was based on a predicted change of 20% in steps/day between 30 minutes and 10,000 step groups as suggested in previous studies [12, 15, 23]. Assuming a standard deviation of 10%, a sample size of 12 participants per group provides sufficient power (80%) to detect changes at the 5% significance level. A total of 32 participants were recruited to ensure adequate numbers in the event of participants choosing to withdraw from the study.
Thirty two participants (16 participants/group) commenced the study, however four participants withdrew due to personal issues (travel and illness). Results were reported on the remaining 28 participants, with 13 participants in the 10,000 steps group and 15 participants in the 30 minutes group. Baseline characteristics of participants, such as height, weight did not significantly differ between the groups (Table 1). The average age was 41.38 ± 2.72 years and 45.27 ± 2.18 for the 10,000 steps group and 30 minutes group, respectively.
Values are means ± SEM. Baseline characteristics were not significantly different between the two groups. There were no significant differences within groups or between groups in BMI, % body fat, waist circumference, or blood pressure at 12 weeks.
Figure 1 shows the number of steps over 12 weeks for the 10,000 steps group and 30 minutes group. For the 10,000 steps group the daily average number of steps/day at weeks 6 and 12 was 9311 ± 954 and 10,847 ± 1006, respectively and was significantly higher than the baseline daily average of 6231.59 ± 342.34 steps/day (p = 0.038 and p = 0.028, respectively). At week 12, the 10,000 steps group were taking an average of 4616 steps per day more (43% increase) than at baseline. For the 30 minutes group, the daily average number of steps at weeks 6 (7472 ± 761 steps per day) and 12 (7786 ± 850 steps per day) were significantly higher than the baseline daily average of 5025 ± 416 steps per day (p = 0.039 and p = 0.038, respectively). At week 12, the 30 minutes group were taking an average of 2761 steps per day more (35% increase) than at baseline (5025.09 ± 416.08 steps/day). There was a significant difference in the number of steps with the 10,000 steps group versus the 30 minutes group at 12 weeks intervention (p = 0.045) but not at 6 weeks.
Average number of daily steps taken at baseline, week 6 and week 12 by the 30 minute group and the 10,000 steps group. The average steps/day were measured at baseline, week 6 and week 12 in both groups. Data are expressed as means ± SEM. Different letters above bar graphs indicate significance between groups at p < 0.05. * Significant difference (P < 0.05) within group (baseline versus 6 weeks and baseline versus 12 weeks).
There were no significant differences within groups or between groups in waist, BMI, waist/hip ratio, % body fat or blood pressure at 12 weeks (Table 1). Table 2 shows that there were no significant differences between the groups in the macronutrient content of their diets at baseline or at 12 weeks.
There were no significant differences in energy or macronutrient intake on the 3 days prior to baseline and week twelve visits of both groups. Values are means ± SEM.
Table 3 shows that there was a significant increase in time spent walking in the 10,000 steps group at 12 weeks compared to baseline (P = 0.034) and a non-significant increase in the 30 minutes group compared to baseline. There was no significant difference in time spent walking between groups at 12 weeks. Time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity was not significantly different between the 10,000 steps and the 30 minutes group at week 12. Although time spent undertaking moderate activity and total physical activity increased in the 10,000 steps group versus the 30 minutes group at 12 weeks, this was not significant.
There were no significant differences at baseline between groups.
P-values represent the between group comparison of the 30 minutes group and the 10,000 steps group at week 12.
There were no significant differences between the 30 minutes group and the 10,000 step group at 12 weeks.
The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of a10,000 steps per day message and a 30 minutes per day message on physical activity levels in low active, overweight and obese women for 12 weeks. Our results show that the 10,000 step group and the 30 minutes group both had an increase in daily steps at 6 and 12 weeks compared with baseline. However, overweight and obese women accumulated significantly more total steps/day when instructed to walk 10,000 steps per day than when instructed to walk 30 minutes/per day after 12 weeks. In addition, those in the 10,000 steps group significantly increased their amount of walking at 12 weeks compared to baseline, while the 30 minutes group did not. Therefore a 10,000 step goal and immediate feedback from using a pedometer was more effective in increasing physical activity levels in low active overweight and obese women than the 30 minutes/day message.
Consistent with our study, the efficacy of having a step goal and using pedometers daily as a way of increasing walking activity has been demonstrated in a number of studies [12, 15]. The four week study by Hultquist et al comparing the number of steps accumulated by women instructed to walk 10,000 steps per day with those told to take a brisk 30-minute walk, concluded that women walk more when told to take 10,000 steps per day compared with those instructed to take a brisk 30-minute walk. This study by Hultquist et al also gave their 30 minutes group a sealed pedometer that was only opened at the end of the week. After four weeks of intervention the 30 minutes group accumulated an average of 8270 ± 354 steps per day and the 10,000 steps group averaged 10,159 ± 292 steps per day. This was similar to our present study where the 10,000 steps group averaged 10,847 ± 1006 steps per day compared to the 30 minutes group who averaged 7786 ± 850 steps per day, after 12 weeks intervention. Another study conducted by our group examined whether the daily use of pedometers could increase physical activity and improve health outcomes in sedentary overweight and obese middle-aged women . Participants were randomized into two groups: The control group wore a sealed pedometer, whilst the pedometer group were given a step goal of 10,000 steps/day, were able to use their pedometers for self-monitoring throughout the day and were asked to record the number of steps on a daily basis for 12 weeks. This previous study showed that the pedometer group significantly increased their steps/day, by 36%, at the end of the 12 weeks, whereas the control group's physical activity levels remained unchanged. This pilot study showed that the combination of having step goals and immediate feedback from using a pedometer was effective in increasing physical activity levels in sedentary overweight and obese women.
A meta-analysis by Bravata et al. on pedometer use concluded that study participants who have a step goal and were able to record their steps daily, were able to significantly increase their physical activity levels compared to those who did not have a step goal. They found that those who used pedometers, had a step goal and recorded their steps, took an average of 2491 more steps a day compared to those who did not have a step goal. They also found that the step goals groups had an average increase of around 27% when compared to baseline levels. In our study, the 10,000 steps group had an increase of 43% compared to baseline levels whereas the 30 minutes group had an increase of 35% from baseline. It appears that participants in the 10,000 steps group were using their pedometer as a measurement tool as they had a quantitative measure and therefore could monitor their daily physical activity. If they had not achieved the 10,000 steps goal, this could motivate them to undertake more activity to reach the 10,000 steps goal [13, 14]. In comparison, participants in the 30 minutes group were not able to view this information as they were not given a measurement tool for daily use to prompt them to meet their 30 minutes walking goal. Although they were given a daily walking goal of 30 minutes over their normal activity, such a goal was not sufficient to match the physical activity levels undertaken by the 10,000 steps group.
Public health guidelines currently recommend that around 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity/day on most days of the week provides significant health benefits and can reduce the risk for a range of conditions [8, 9, 11]. Brisk walking for 30 minutes is equivalent to approximately 3500 steps per day [17, 25, 26]. Tudor-Locke et al suggest that sedentary activity equates to < 5000 steps with 5000-7499 steps being classified as low active. Adding 30 minutes per day (3500 steps per day) to 5025-6231 steps, the baseline means of the two groups in our study, would be close to 10,000 steps per day. Both groups of participants were asked to accumulate approximately 10,000 steps per day. In our study, it appears that those in the 10,000 steps group were better able to comply with the physical activity guidelines with an extra 4616 steps steps/day above baseline steps per day than compared with the extra 2761 steps/day performed above baseline by the 30 minutes group. The 10,000 steps group had a 40% greater increase in steps/day than the 30 minutes group at 12 weeks. Given that 30 minutes of walking is estimated to be equal to approximately 3000-3500 steps, this suggest that the 30 minutes group, on average, did not comply to the 30 minutes/day walking intervention.
There were no significant differences in anthropometric measurements between the 10,000 steps group and 30 minutes group as also shown in other studies . It is possible this could have been as a result of increased energy intake in conjunction with increased physical activity although this is not reflected in the dietary records (Table 2). It is well established however that under reporting of energy intake is widespread in overweight/obese populations [28, 29] and could have occurred here. It is more likely that 10,000 steps/day or an extra 30 minutes/day on top of normal activity is insufficient to achieve weight loss . Although public health guidelines recommend 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity on most days to maintain good health [8, 9, 11], in order to achieve and maintain weight loss, the US Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee has now recommended that overweight/obese adults should achieve at least 60 minutes of physical activity on most days of the week. Saris et al also suggest that moderate intensity exercise of around 60 - 90 minutes (an extra 6000-9000 steps/day), on most days would be necessary for any weight loss to occur. Tudor-Locke et al suggest that brisk walking for 60 minutes equates to approximately 6,000 steps per day therefore overweight individuals would need to walk an extra 6000+ steps for weight loss. The accumulation of 4616 steps/day by the 10,000 steps group and extra 2761 steps/day accumulated by the 30 minutes group at 12 weeks compared to baseline steps/day may not have been sufficient to observe changes in anthropometric measures . Increasing the steps to at least 12,000 per day for overweight adults would be required to achieve these new guidelines and to encourage weight loss although energy intake also would need to be monitored . Further studies would be required to demonstrate whether pedometers used on a daily basis could encourage overweight individuals to achieve at least 60 minutes of activity on most days or at least 12,000 steps per day to achieve the new recommendations for this group . Therefore, favorable changes in anthropometric measures may be achievable after 12 weeks with higher levels of physical activity.
A study limitation involved using a pedometer without a memory chip. A memory chip enables a daily step tally to be recorded which can indicate how many steps were taken on each day. This would have been useful in order to observe if the 30 minutes group, who despite not being able to see their daily steps, had higher step counts in the first 2-3 days in reaction to the study conditions, as has been shown previously . Changing the type of pedometer for future studies with overweight and obese individuals may be appropriate as a piezo-electric pedometer has been shown to be more accurate for those with a higher BMI than a Yamax Digi-Walker .
All participants in the 30 minutes group were given instructions in the beginning of the study to only record weekly steps and reseal pedometers. They all signed a form to acknowledge that they understood these instructions and would abide by them. However, it was unknown whether there was potential non-compliance with resealing pedometers. It was also unclear whether the 30 minutes group observing their step counts on a weekly basis had an influence on their general activity levels.
Another study limitation involved limited information as to how participants undertook their physical activity. Although levels of activity were recorded, such as walking, moderate intensity and high intensity exercise , there was no indication as to whether the exercise was performed in one bout or in smaller bouts per day. It is recommended that exercise should be undertaken in 10 minute bouts and resistance exercise should also be incorporated twice a week [10, 27] although this was not revealed to the study participants. Also, there can be variability between individuals as one person's exercise intensity can be different to another's even though the same number of steps are taken. The increase in the daily number of steps/day for both groups was mainly through walking activity as indicated by the IPAQ results. Walking has been shown to be the easiest way for individuals to increase physical activity levels and maintain them over the longer term . Self paced walking is the most common physical activity reported by overweight and obese individuals and is preferred due to its low-impact nature and reduced risk of injury [8, 36, 37].
In this study, overweight and obese women accumulated more total steps/day when instructed to walk 10,000 steps per day than when instructed to walk 30 minutes/per day. It appears that having a step goal which can be monitored with the use of a pedometer, where progress can easily be tracked from a reference or baseline point, can act as a motivator and enables self monitoring [13, 14] which in turn leads to increased physical activity [7, 38]. Setting a step goal in conjunction with the immediate feedback that the pedometer provides may be key motivational factors for increasing physical activity. Other studies have shown that immediate feedback from the pedometers enable participants to set realistic goals, act as an environmental cue, raise awareness of current walking behaviours , to motivate , to self-monitor [13, 39], and to increase walking behaviours [7, 38]. The present findings may be relevant to the wider sedentary overweight and obese population where using a pedometer and having a step goal may provide a promising strategy to increase physical activity.
In conclusion, this study shows that a 30 minutes message and a 10,000 step message were both useful in promoting physical activity, however, the combination of having step goals and immediate feedback from using a pedometer in the 10,000 steps group was more effective in increasing physical activity levels in low active overweight and obese women. Therefore we suggest that a public health recommendation of "10,000 steps/day", rather than the "30 min/day" could be applied to promote increased physical activity in sedentary middle aged women.
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest in relation to this manuscript.
We would like to thank Healthway, Western Australia for providing funding for this project and Vanessa Ellis for assistance in editing and reviewing the manuscript.
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Over the years, globalization has had effects on diversity and culture in different nations around the world (Ervin & Smith, 2008). For this reason, there are different perspectives, based on globalization as it has dominant influences on both the individual and society. This is because the effects of globalization play a significant role through the interconnectivity of various aspects of the world, ranging from economic, political, cultural, and technological. As a result, globalization has led to the strengthening of cross-border economic and social interactions among organizations and people, thus, developing the global economy (Ervin & Smith, 2008). Even though globalization could have negative effects like democratization and socioeconomic modernization, it is more beneficial as it eliminates the barriers of communication, trade, and cultural exchange that enhance many changes in the society. It is, therefore, necessary to look at the effects of diversity and culture on globalization in depth.
In order to understand the effects of culture and diversity on globalization it is critical to know what the two components involve, especially in the globalization aspect (Diller, 2011). It is, therefore, necessary to understand that globalization is founded by the presence of several studies that challenge to diminish its importance, with the significance of not revealing the dangers, according to some and its favorable effects for others (Ritzer, 2011). As there exists many cultures in different parts of the world among different groups there are different meanings in terms of histories and places (Ervin & Smith, 2008). Culture in the context of globalization involves ethnicity, the way of life, race, socio-cultural group, customs, nation, civilization, tradition, and color. More significantly, culture creates the boundaries of ethnicity, class, race, generation, gender, and territory within the multicultural society that exists today (Ervin & Smith, 2008).
Diversity in the globalization perspective involves the multicultural nature of the society that involves the existence of cultural, ethnic, and linguistic diversity (Ervin & Smith, 2008). As a result of globalization, the effects of culture and diversity comprise of the cultural diversity effects on the society that arises from globalization (Diller, 2011). According to Ervin & Smith (2008), the main components of cultural diversity include gender, ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic variations. There exists a close association between cultural diversity and globalization, because there would be a homogenous world if globalization existed without diversity. This is because in a homogeneous world, all nations or regions would have the same social and economic structure with the same supply side and the demand side, although there would be differences of quantitative level, leading to internationalization.
As globalization involves gradual global associations between people, culture, and economic activity, its process entails the components of change in the structure of markets and technological change (Ervin & Smith, 2008). However, as these two broad components tend to reinforce each other, the effects of culture and diversity on globalization play a significant role in defining the cultural component of a society (Ritzer, 2011). It is, therefore, necessary to look at the positive and negative effects of culture and diversity on globalization, in the different contexts of internationalization, liberalization, universalization, and westernization (Ervin & Smith, 2008).
As globalization spreads worldwide over the nations, there are several positive impacts that its effects has on the society. Notably, globalization has increased the pace of growth in international trade, as it has inevitable interconnectedness in all aspects of social life, including that of the cultural aspects (Ervin & Smith, 2008). This is more significant because culture, as an aspect, in the process of globalization is essential, especially whereby cultural globalization involves an increased exchange of cultural practices between people and their nations. Equally, it eventually results in the realization of cultural diversity effects on globalization (Ervin & Smith, 2008). While it is necessary to understand that the changes in cultural practices existed before the beginning of civilization, thus, diversity and culture has had certain impacts on globalization. Diller (2011) explains that through the analysis of concepts—homogenization, polarization, and hybridization effects on global economy - an individual understands the impact, cultural diversity has on the globalization process. This is because culture is the history, beliefs, customs, habits, and values of different people. It, thus, determines the ways, in which individuals respond to and adapt to changes in the world. This is because local culture establishes the people’s values and priorities. Culture determines the slightest preferences like food and collective goal such as communication and economic well-being (Diller, 2011). Thus, culture becomes an important dimension of globalization, especially in the emergence of paradigm shift from political and economic to cultural realm of globalization.
Globalization affects the culture through individuals’ history, beliefs, customs, habits, and values, thus, resulting to the early human migration, emergence of world religions, early imperial systems, and the development of inter-regional trade networks (Schroeder, 2006). However, globalization effect on culture through global communication and media becomes significant. This is because global communication comprises of different technologies and medium that result from the cultural globalization that includes interpersonal communication, information exchange, and media (Ervin & Smith, 2008). Thus, components of cultural effects, as a result of globalization, involve the westernization from the cultural dimension of globalization. This is because rapid urbanization, congestion, and heightened inequalities have led to the decline of traditional values, increased emotional stress, and other negative manifestations of prosperity (Vaidya, 2006). In addition, globalization has led to the assimilation of Western cultural beliefs and practices to other regions of the world. Therefore, today, globalization has led to religious and cultural movements that, in turn, caused an increase in secularism, individualism, and consumerism (Ervin & Smith, 2008). Even though many individuals view globalization as a phenomenon, it acts as a homogenizing force that makes local cultures outdated. This is evident, because many nations worldwide have assimilated Western influence to the framework of their local cultures, leading to hybridization.
Cultural hybridization emphasizes on the mixing of cultures because of globalization, besides production and integration of global and local markets. The global process involves the integration of different local cultures to produce a distinctive hybrid form that indicates the continuous global heterogenization (Vaidya, 2006). As globalization of local cultures tends to change, utmost people are able to adapt to these changes through developing hybrid identity that comprises of life in local culture and global culture too. Nonetheless, people who understand the difficulties of adapting to rapid changes in their cultures result into the clash of cultures (Diller, 2011). This is because the images, values, and opportunities imparted by the global culture undermine their perceived values of individuals’ local cultures.
In some instances, globalization has led to delocalization, cultural displacement, deterritorialization, or cultural loss (Ervin & Smith, 2008). This is because as the people increase their global consciousness, they tend to lose ties with the place and culture where they live (Tierney, 2007). The common use of television and computers has brought this transformation because this influences the local culture, while allowing access to information in many other places. There is no doubt that the current generation will grow up, exposed to rapid cultural changes, delocalization, and cultural loss (Vaidya, 2006). Even as globalization grows, there has been an observed decline in the power of collectivism. In addition, individuals also face difficulties in finding a relevant meaning of current worldview in their traditional culture such as individualism and consumerism (Ervin & Smith, 2008). This is because today’s world has changed, thus, is not indigenous, and could directly contradict the cultural traditions.
Since globalization involves more than one nation in the whole world, it is important to understand the association between internationalization, and globalization, as they affect the cultural diversity of individuals in a community (Ervin & Smith, 2008). This is because internationalization majorly replicates an implicit reference, based on the diverse activities and processes that spread out away from national boundaries. More significantly, internationalization involves the strengthening of some historical developments in diverse perspectives (Vaidya, 2006). Internationalization emphasizes more towards the improvement of human knowledge through undertaking its establishment on the connection of humanity with one another.
On the other hand, globalization is different from internationalization in one way or the other; this is because most people consider globalization as a contemporary phenomenon that began in the 19th century during the growth of western imperialism (Ervin & Smith, 2008). In addition, the focus of globalization differs with that of internationalization, as it, mainly, focuses towards profit and worldwide market in the global economy, rather than on the advancement of human knowledge. Furthermore, globalization revolves around competition, exploitation, combat, and survival of the fittest among the well-off nation as evident on the global market today (Ervin & Smith, 2008).
This is evident because of the developed nation’s domineering over the developing ones, as they enjoy the positive benefits of globalization (Ervin & Smith, 2008). On the contrary, the primary form of internationalization differs as compared to that of globalization as it involves mutual benefit, cooperation, collaboration, and caring. In addition, globalization differs from internationalization as it is essentially not administered, which is contrary to internationalization that is described by proper governance, as there exists cautious quality control (Ervin & Smith, 2008).
Globalization can also be corresponding to universalization. This is because universalization refers to the making goods, services, culture, and communication to attain the global standards (Ervin & Smith, 2008). It is, therefore, significant that as a result of intensification, there exist nation’s interdependencies in various aspects of social life, regardless of territorial borders (Diller, 2011). Universalization differs from globalization, as it refers to the incorporation of the global society, based on the capitalist principles. As a result, globalization focuses on commercialization of the world at all levels, including financial and economic factors, cultural, political, and communicative (Ervin & Smith, 2008). Nevertheless, the effects of neo-liberal globalization at most violate one important and very crucial goal of universalization as it is not equal to human rights and well-being of underprivileged nations.
Another factor that can be equivalent to globalization is liberalization. This is because they both result in the removal or relaxation of existing government restrictions in terms economic and social policies. As a result of the effects of liberalization on the existing government restrictions, the global economy enjoys free flow of goods and service. This is because when a government demands for the liberalization of trade, it will remove all regulations and restrictions that hinder free trade such as tariff, subsidies, and taxes (Ervin & Smith, 2008). In addition, the government will also liberalize the most important industries through licensing of new favorable industrial policy. As a result of the globalization effect where all nations liberalize their own trading systems, the results will lead to the free flow of goods and services from one nation to another (Ervin & Smith, 2008).
More significantly, researches also contribute towards a more thorough understanding of universalism because it looks into the western concepts such as citizenship, state, human rights, and liberal economics. It is, therefore, significant that globalization about capitalist development consists of a deeply rooted process of modernization. Hence, globalization enhances the continuous and long-term process of modernity (Schroeder, 2006). One of the most apparent ideals of globalization is to fill in development gap primarily through liberalization; thus, globalization has become an inevitable process, as it replaces the notion of civilization and development.
As globalization describes the increased flow of knowledge, goods and services, and resources among nations, it signifies the growth of an integrated global economy that is marked by free flow of capital, free trade, and the exploiting of cheaper global labor markets. On the other hand, globalization focuses on unifying people into a single society, therefore, they can function together (Schroeder, 2006). This is because the globalization process involves a complex combination of technological, socio-cultural, political, and economic forces.
In addition, the three major forces of liberalization, internalization, and universalism contribute to the globalization process. This is because liberalization of capital structures and deregulation, opening of free trade and international competition, and the equally important role of information and communication technologies result to cultural diversification effects. Thus, the history of globalization has a close relationship with the history of liberalization and industrialization, free trade, and technological advancements (Ervin and Smith, 2008).
On the other hand, human beings find it necessary to understand that globalization exists in different contexts. This is because, according to some individuals, globalization is a purely economic phenomenon (Ervin & Smith, 2008). However, the effects of globalization process have been apparent to directly and indirectly affect the economic, social, and cultural aspects of a society. As a result, there are the perceived and forecasted effects of globalization still in the economic, social, and cultural dimensions, as they arise from the observed trend changes from globalization.
Since the globalization process involves the alteration of the social relations and transactions, it affects the social life of individuals in a society. This is because globalization, over time, has made social interactions to be widespread, intensive, and fast. As a result, the social world of today’s world has undergone drastic changes as seen through an international flow of interaction and networks of activity and exercise of power (Schroeder, 2006). In addition, as globalization intensifies the social relations through links among individuals, it has led to a local setting that affects the international scope in one way or another. Therefore, globalization has positively influenced how individuals interact, regardless of geographical and cultural boundaries as they view all cultures equally. However, Tierney (2007) asserts that the social dimension of globalizations has negatively led to the inequality in income, racial and gender discrimination; this is mainly attributable to the increased diversity in the workplace, internationalization of higher education.
On the other hand, globalization, in terms of economic impact, focuses on industry, trade, and liberalization of markets. In terms of economics effects from globalization, the historical process results from human innovation and technological advancements. Globalization is significant in the increase of integration of economies among nations around the world through financial flows and internationalization of trade. As globalization also involves the movement of people for labor and technology across international borders, the liberalization of markets that results from the free flow of trade and investments leads to an international economy (Ervin & Smith, 2008). Even though globalization seems to expand the economic freedom in the market, increase competition, and increases productivity of the economy, it has other effects.
Other economic effects that result from globalization consist of the increase in technology, transportation, and liberalization of trade. As a result of globalization, the global economic market gains improved productivity by firms, as goods, services, and information turn out to be internationalized. In addition, globalization improves the transport network; therefore, companies can transfer their products across national borders to other nations, while the foreign direct investment (FDI) increases worldwide (Ervin and Smith, 2008). On the other hand, as globalization is impartial to liberalization it involves removal of existing government restrictions, thus, leading to a free system of trade in the global economy. Thus, globalization aims to liberalize trade, as it removes all regulations and restrictions, economic and social aspects that could slow down and hinder free trade. As a result of globalization effects, the government is able to provide licenses and industrial policies that support major industries, leading to a steady global economic market.
Given that globalization process brings about a paradox shift in the culture of a given society, it is necessary to look out at the various economic, political, social, cultural factors that arise from globalization. Even though liberalization demonstrates the economic perspective towards globalization, there is a need to also focus on universalization, as it focuses on the social factors that comprise globalization. According to many individuals, they have lost their culture, as they face a life that is always having a feeling of loss and deprivation (Ervin & Smith, 2008).
Even with internationalization, leading to political alliances between nations, the cultural realm, the cultural and diversity impacts on globalization mainly center on inter-existence of homogenization, polarization, and hybridization. There is no doubt that there exist different perspectives, based on globalization, as it has dominant influences on both the individual and society (Ervin & Smith, 2008). However, the effects of globalization play a significant role through the interconnectivity of various aspects of the world, ranging from economic, political, cultural, and technological.
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