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0.998201 | Based on the concepts of dynamic field theory (DFT), we present an architecture that autonomously generates scene representations by controlling gaze and attention, creating visual objects in the foreground, tracking objects, reading them into working memory, and taking into account their visibility. At the core of this architecture are three-dimensional dynamic neural fields (DNFs) that link feature to spatial information. These three-dimensional fields couple into lower dimensional fields, which provide the links to the sensory surface and to the motor systems. We discuss how DNFs can be used as building blocks for cognitive architectures, characterize the critical bifurcations in DNFs, as well as the possible coupling structures among DNFs. In a series of robotic experiments, we demonstrate how the DNF architecture provides the core functionalities of a scene representation. |
0.991795 | As a management consultant, I have observed that most problems in an organization are the result of people failing to communicate effectively. Have you ever said "you didn't understand my directions" or "we don't see eye to eye"? Effective communication occurs when the receiver comprehends the information or idea that the sender intends to convey.
Communication: Two-way process of reaching mutual understanding, in which participants not only exchange (encode-decode) information but also create and share meaning.
Communication is the label for a group of behaviors (the things you do and the things you say on a regular basis) that are important when working with people. The communication process involves having a message that you need to communicate, and the message is sent to the receiver, either verbally or non-verbally. The receiver then translates the words or nonverbal gestures into a concept or information.
The effectiveness of the communication depends on three factors: content, context, and the receiver. Content is the actual words or symbols that constitute a part of the message, known as language. It can be either spoken or written. We all interpret words in our own ways, and even simple messages could be understood differently.
Context is the parts of communication that surround a spoken or written word or passage that can influence its meaning. The context for communication may sometimes seem to contradict the communication—for example, when factual information that the person knows about the subject challenges or contradicts what is being conveyed in the communication itself. In spoken communication, context might include body language, facial expressions, gestures, and the level or state of emotion. In my observations while coaching leaders, I have seen that context is a critical component of effective communication that often gets overlooked. As we believe what we see more than what we hear, we sometimes trust the accuracy of nonverbal behavior more than verbal behavior. So when we communicate, the other person notices what we say, how we say it, and what he or she knows about the subject.
How you should communicate with the receiver (e.g., e-mail, voicemail, brief written summaries, dialogue and interaction). E-mail is a great way to deliver data. It is a poor way to communicate personal information, and it is often ineffective as a tool to get support or to address conflicts. Personal contact and dialogue (e.g., phone, face-to-face, or handwritten notes) are the best ways to communicate personal messages such as performance improvement suggestions, conflict, praise, etc.
What you should communicate to the receiver—does this person need this information/message?
When you should communicate with the receiver—do you need to set an appointment with them? Does anytime work? One-on-one meetings or in a team? Only when they ask? A particular time of the day or week?
How frequently you should communicate with the receiver (e.g., daily, very frequently, only when there is a problem, same time each week).
What preparation is needed to gain the receptivity of the receiver—will it require significant preparation? Short and sweet will work fine? Someone else needs to be there, too? Multiple conversations?
Normally we think communication is complete once we have conveyed the message; "I don't know why it was not done. I had asked him to do it." Chances are the message was not perceived properly. A message hasn't been communicated successfully unless the receiver understands it completely. The only way to know if the message has been properly received is by two-way communication or feedback. Here are the communication barriers to two-way communication or feedback.
Ourselves: Focusing on ourselves, rather than on the receiver, can lead to confusion and conflict. Often, we are thinking about our response, rather than focusing on what the other person is saying. Some other factors that cause this are defensiveness (we feel someone is attacking us), superiority (we feel we know more than the other does), and ego (we feel we are the center of the activity).
Personal Biases: If we have a preconceived concept about the other person (e.g., they're a complainer, they're lazy, etc.), we may dismiss the person. Our preconceived attitudes affect our ability to listen.
Relating—low stress, highest clarity in thinking, and able to use the energy and consider perspectives of others.
Reflecting—low stress, high clarity in thinking, and ample time to draw upon our memories, feelings, and thoughts.
Responding—our energy is used for acting or deciding, but not thinking, so we don't consider different perspectives, and we are subject to our own biases.
Reacting—this is a high stress state, and the clarity in thinking is very low.
It is important to be aware of whether or not the receiver is able to hear and receive the message due to his or her current emotional state or stress (i.e., thinking condition). I'm always amazed that business people fail to recognize that it is an exercise in futility to try to communicate with someone when they are in Thinking Condition 4. In this respect, we can all learn a lesson from 6-year-olds. Six-year-olds know just the right time to approach mom or dad about that new toy they want. They know the thinking condition that presents the opportune time to approach the parents for this request.
These barriers are filters that we use to decide what is useful for us. No one can completely avoid these filters. A way to overcome these filters when you want is through active listening and feedback.
All of us can hear, but not all of us can listen. Hearing and listening are not the same thing. Hearing is involuntary, and listening involves the reception and interpretation of what is heard. It decodes the sound heard into meaning.
Do not finish the sentences of others.
Are aware of their biases. We all have them … we need to control them.
Plan responses after the other person has finished speaking, not while the person is speaking.
Provide feedback but do not interrupt incessantly.
Take brief notes. This forces one to concentrate on what is being said.
Feedback is restating the other person's message in your own words. It helps to make sure that you understood the message correctly. How much better daily communication would be if listeners tried to understand before they tried to evaluate what someone is saying! |
0.999958 | Gulf War Syndrome: George H Bush was the 41st American President who served in office from January 20, 1989 to January 20, 2001. One of the important events during his presidency were the reports of Gulf War Syndrome experienced by military veterans of the Gulf War.
Summary and definition: The Gulf War Syndrome is a mysterious medical illness experienced by returning military veterans of the Persian Gulf War (2 August 1990 – 28 February 1991), that was fought against the Iraqi forces of Saddam Hussein.
The causes of Gulf War Syndrome has been attributed to exposure to a combination of smoke and fumes from oil well fires, pesticides, parasites, nerve gas, and other toxic chemicals. Vaccines and medications given against biological and chemical warfare agents have also be hypothesized as the cause of Gulf War Syndrome. The divergent symptoms of the chronic multi-symptom disorder, referred to as Gulf War Syndrome, include headaches, tiredness, joint pain, indigestion, depression, sleep problems and memory difficulties.
The following fact sheet contains interesting facts and information on Gulf War Syndrome.
Potential Causes: The Persian Gulf War (2 August 1990 – 28 February 1991) was a conflict in the Middle East in which 88,500 tons of bombs, some containing Uranium, were dropped on Iraq. Conventional warfare tactics disintegrated as Iraq began an "environmental war" against its enemies.
Potential Causes: The "environmental war" waged by Iraq included blowing up Kuwaiti oil wells. Over 700 oil wells were set alight and an estimated one billion barrels of oil burned.
Potential Causes: The Kuwaiti oil fires produced heavy smoke and pure black soot-filled plumes that polluted both the soil and the air. The smoke from the oil fires contained a cocktail of chemicals, notably, benzene, hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide and have been linked to the Gulf War Syndrome.
Potential Causes: The "environmental war" included the use of scud missiles (long-range surface-to-surface guided missiles) that were used by Iraq to strike targets in Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Potential Causes: Israel feared that the Iraqi scud missiles were filled with nerve agents, such as sarin. The concerns of the government were so great that gas masks were issued to Israeli citizens.
Potential Causes: Low levels of sarin were released after the Persian Gulf war when US troops destroyed the large ammunition storage depot at Khamisiyah in southeastern Iraq.
Potential Causes: Vaccines and medications given to the military against biological and chemical warfare agents have also be hypothesized as a possible cause of Gulf War Syndrome. The US military issued pyridostigmine bromide (PB) pills to protect against exposure to nerve gas agents such as sarin.
Potential Causes: Another risk factor that has been investigated is the use of chemical based pesticides that were used against sand flies that spread a parasitic disease.
Symptoms: Joint pains and chronic fatigue were the most common symptoms followed by headaches, muscle and joint pains, short term memory loss, sleep disturbance and various skin problems such as unexplained rashes and dermatitis.
Symptoms: Other symptoms included depression, stress, breathlessness, hair loss and gastrointestinal complaints such as diarrhea, nausea and abdominal pain.
Symptoms: Similar reports of the divergent symptoms of the chronic multi-symptom disorder were reported by American, Canadian, British and Australian veterans alike. Although experts believed that the Gulf War Syndrome was not contagious, the spouses of veterans also reported similar symptoms.
In 1994 an advisory panel organized by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one of the world's foremost medical research centers, reported that the Gulf War syndrome represented many illnesses and many causes. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) deemed biological and chemical warfare agents unlikely as causes.
In 1999 medical researchers reported that the brain scans of some sick Gulf War veterans revealed signs of damage caused by exposure to toxic chemicals.
In 2004 another study suggested that some veterans may have been sensitive enough to experience low levels of poison gases to cause symptoms associated with the Gulf War syndrome.
In 2008 the US Department of Veterans Affairs Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans Illnesses appointed by US Congress, headed by chief scientist Dr Beatrice Golomb, analyzed more than 100 research studies of the Gulf War Syndrome.
The committee reported that evidence suggested that acetyl cholinesterase inhibitors, that occur naturally as venoms and poisons, used as weapons in the form of nerve agents such as sarin or used as insecticides may be the cause of the Gulf War syndrome.
The UK government has yet to acknowledge the existence of Gulf War syndrome as a physical illness caused by military service in the Persian Gulf.
Dr Beatrice Golomb, of the University of California, San Diego said "Psychological stressors are inadequate to account for the excess illness seen" |
0.999903 | How did you come to Bradford and why Bradford?
My father was a dentist in Berlin and he had to get permission from the Home Office and the Dental Board to come here in the first place and to practise as a dentist. When he got permission from both the Home Office and the Dental Board, my father didn't know much of the geography of England, and he asked where he could work and they said anywhere but London and Manchester because there were already too many Jewish refugee dentists in those towns. So my father said "Where can I work?", and the clerk put a metaphorical pin in the map, and Bradford was fairly central and so he said go to Bradford. So my father got onto the next train to Bradford and reconnoitred the situation here.
Has the Jewish community changed a lot from when you were younger, and if so how has it changed?
When we came to Bradford there were probably over a thousand Jewish people in Bradford. Most of them belonged to the Orthodox synagogue, and the remainder belonged to the Reform synagogue. The two synagogues were on the two sides of Manningham Lane but within walking distance, and on Yom Kippur I can remember if the services got a bit boring, people from both synagogues would cross Manningham Lane to the other one, for half an hour or so, and on Manningham Lane there would be like a stream of ants meeting each other going to the other synagogue. But now I should think there are no more than about 300 Jewish people in Bradford and the Orthodox synagogue has moved to Shipley a couple of miles away from the Reform which is still where it was, and so there is no longer the interchange of people on Yom Kippur. Attendance at synagogue has dwindled, mainly because there are fewer people, and people have moved away to outlying districts and would think twice now about coming to synagogue on Shabbat or festivals.
Tell me about your family background.
Both my grandfathers were very Orthodox. My paternal grandfather died when he was about 53 in about 1913 and so I didn't know him, and he was President of the Jewish community in Purtzaltzhaur or Ratslav depending on whether the name of the town was in Polish or German, and he was also the mohel of the community. My maternal grandfather lived in Frankfurt where the Jewish community was a very unique one they had their own minhag for some of the services they were so frum. He emigrated to what was then Palestine in 1934, but I did know him. His wife died in 1929 of cancer and I knew her briefly when I was 3. My paternal grandmother I knew very well until our emigration in 1937 and she later died in Terezenstadt concentration camp, I believe of old age, I don't think that she was actually murdered. My parents in Berlin had a kosher household and we used to go to synagogue fairly regularly -- I would go on Shabbat as I didn't have school, but my father worked and he would go on the festivals. When we emigrated in 1937 we settled in Bradford, and we continued to have a kosher household and during the war the food situation was not very good and I seem to remember that the Chief Rabbi gave dispensation to people that they could eat not kosher food. We joined the Orthodox synagogue until about 1950, when we changed to the Reform synagogue, for personal rather than religious reasons. We fitted into the Reform synagogue quite well, and my father became chairman eventually and I became chairman as well; I'm chairman now in my second time round. In 1955 I married a girl who came from London, to a girl who had a similar background to mine; she came from Bretslav in Germany which is now called Vrotslav in Poland. We settled in Bradford where I had become a dentist, and we had four children, two boys and two girls and they too have got married, and we now have eight grandchildren, aged from 13 down to a few months old.
How do you find living in Bradford?
I was lucky enough to get a place in Bradford Grammar School when we first arrived in Bradford and my school days were happy -- it was a good school and I was a fairly good pupil. The people in Bradford were friendly, whether they were Jewish or not Jewish and life was fairly leisurely compared with London. Life in London is hectic, it's very nice to go there and visit relatives and friends, but it is very nice to come back to Bradford it is a quiet, or a quieter life. I have always liked living here and I feel very much at home in Bradford. |
0.982404 | Better taste - Organic food tastes better; this is the simple message given by many people who eat organic.
Healthier -Organic foods have far less residues of pesticides, growth promoters and antibiotics. It has been shown in a number of studies that organic food contains more vitamins, nutrients and cancer-fighting antioxidants than non- organic food.
Animal friendly - Organic farming places great emphasis on animal welfare and is more animal friendly, where animals are not treated with synthetic growth hormones or drugs.
GMO free - Genetically Modified Organisms are not allowed in organic agriculture.
Fair Play - By avoiding expensive inputs of agrochemicals, organic farmers can manage to reduce production costs and get out of the debt trap. Fair prices additionally can enable farmers to get reasonable returns for their efforts.
More sustainable - Organic production aims, at all times towards sustainability while having best management of the environment and wildlife as a priority. This implies a sustainable management of natural resources; soil water and bio diversity. Organic systems are less dependent on non-renewable resources.
Traditions meeting Science - Organic systems rely on a modern and scientific understanding of ecology and soil science, while also integrating traditional agricultural knowledge.
The promise of higher prices is often the primary driver used to induce adoption of organic methods. It is often farmers who bear the shock of realizing that the market for their organic product may not be so easy to access or may not pay much of a premium. As many of the case studies point out, the organic requirements and the realities of those markets sometimes surprise farmers and development professionals alike, and lead to a first useful lesson: it can be devastating to unfairly raise expectations that any farmer can readily convert to organic and earn considerably more.
to maintain or improve valuable local natural resources and biodiversity. |
0.984793 | Refractors have always been found better suited than reflectors to the ordinary work of observatories�they lend themselves with far greater facility to purposes of exact measurement.
The 19th century saw an expanded scope for telescopes using lenses (refractors) as the professional astronomer's most important tool. As optical technology improved, the refracting telescope became a rugged and precise instrument. It was well suited for the research interests of scientists, who were mainly concerned with accurately measuring the positions and relative movements of stars. Astronomers' desire for ever bigger telescopes caught the attention of wealthy American benefactors. By the end of the century, Americans boasted the two biggest telescopes in the world. Just as important for cosmology was astronomers' gradual acceptance of astrophysics, which merged physics theory with the study of stars.
The triumph of the refracting telescope as a serious research tool depended on technological progress. Glassmakers had to perfect the manufacture of high-quality optical glass, and opticians had to figure out ways to avoid the smearing of colors by lenses (chromatic aberration). Until the early part of the twentieth century, glassmaking was more a craft than a science. Optical glass in particular had to be exquisitely free of defects and residual color. For example, iron impurities in the sand used for glassmaking could tint the glass, while tiny bubbles or other defects could render the glass useless for lenses.
A major advance in overcoming the chromatic aberration inherent in refracting lenses came in the 1750s. An English optician, John Dolland, learned of earlier studies that showed how to the eliminate nearly all the chromatic aberration. The trick was to combine a concave lens made from a leaded ("flint") glass with a convex lens made from a glass with a slightly lower density. The colors dispersed by the first lens were bent back together by the second. These came to be called achromatic lenses. Dolland received a patent for his design, but the poor quality of the flint glass available at the time limited its usefulness.
One of the great obstructions to the construction of large achromatic telescopes is the difficulty of procuring large disks of flint glass of a uniform density of good color and free of veins."
In the early 19th century, advances in the production of optical glass led to better refracting telescopes. Between 1784 and 1790, Pierre Louis Guinand, a Swiss craftsman, taught himself the basic skills of glassmaking and began to experiment with optical glass. His first attempts were unsatisfactory. Not until the late 1790s was Guinand able to make high-quality lenses as large as six inches. Guinand's big breakthrough came in 1805, when he replaced the long wooden rods used to mix the hot glass in the furnace with stirrers made of clay. The new stirrers brought unwanted bubbles to the surface and mixed the glass well enough to produce a nearly flawless material.
Guinand was enticed to Munich by a German optical firm, where he passed on his secret to Joseph Fraunhofer, an apprentice optician. Fraunhofer, skilled in both mathematics and optical design, was the first scientist to examine the dark lines that mark the spectra of light from the stars. After Guinand moved back to Switzerland, Fraunhofer continued to experiment with glassmaking and lens design.
Fraunhofer's efforts bore fruit in several excellent refractors, built before his death in 1826 at the age of 39. One of these was a 9.5-inch telescope at Russia's Dorpat Observatory, installed in 1824 by F.G. Wilhelm Struve. The famed Russian astronomer commented that upon seeing the instrument, he was unable to determine "which to admire most, the propriety of its construction� or the incomparable optical power, and the precision with which objects are defined." Struve and other astronomers used the telescope to survey over 120,000 stars.
The 14-foot long "Great Dorpat Refractor" was noted not only for the high quality of its lenses but also for its mounting. It was the first example of what became known as equatorial mounting. It had a "polar" axis which was accurately aligned with the rotational axis of the Earth (that is, the axis pointed, roughly speaking, towards the North Star). Together with a "declination" axis, at a right angle to the polar axis, this allowed the telescope to be rotated toward any part of the sky. The great advantage of Fraunhofer's equatorial mounting was that the polar axis was continuously rotated by a clock mechanism. It was driven at precisely the rate that counteracted the apparent daily movement of the stars across the sky. Thus the telescope tracked stars automatically. Fraunhofer's innovation became part of the standard design of telescopes in the 19th century, allowing astronomers to peer much more easily into the night skies. The clock-driven equatorial mounting proved essential when photography was introduced into astronomy in the latter part of the 19th century, for it made possible lengthy exposures of photographic plates.
Techniques for making high-quality glass and lenses spread to France and England. The English government, for example, saw the potential for a profitable industry, and asked scientists to apply their skills to improve the nation's optical glass production. Meanwhile, Fraunhofer's success in making astronomical instruments helped create a German optics industry which led the world for more than half a century.
In 1825, President John Quincy Adams complained that while European nations could boast of having over 130 "lighthouses of the skies," America had only a few observing facilities in private hands. By the end of the century, this was remedied as Americans financed a tremendous surge in telescope building.
The first observatories built in the U.S. were equipped with telescopes from Europe. An example was the new 15-inch refractor dedicated in 1847 at the Harvard College Observatory. Donations from Boston citizens paid for it. Dubbed the "Great Refractor," it was the largest refractor in the world for twenty years. The Harvard instrument (like a similar one at Russia's Pulkovo Observatory) was made by a German firm.
Alvan Clark (center) with his sons Alvan Graham Clark (left) and George Bassett Clark (right).
The first telescope to surpass the Russian and Harvard 15-inch telescopes was made not by a European firm, however, but by an American. Alvan Clark, along with his sons Alvan Graham Clark and George Basset Clark, became the world's preeminent makers of telescopes in the second half of the 19th century. Their company, Alvan Clark & Sons, built instruments for almost every American observatory as well as some overseas. Five times the Clarks beat their own record by making the lens for the world's biggest refracting telescope. Some are still in operation today.
U.S. Naval Observatory's 26-inch refractor in Washington, D.C.
The Lick 36-inch telescope. Lick's body is interred in the concrete under the telescope.
The biggest commission of the elder Clark's life came in 1880. The purchaser was James Lick, a San Francisco businessman without an heir who decided to immortalize himself by funding the world's biggest telescope. After Lick's death in 1876, Mount Hamilton near Santa Cruz, California, was chosen as the site for Lick's monument. Alvan Clark & Sons were given the contract to produce a 36-inch lens for the giant telescope. A French company made the blank glass discs (it took them 19 tries over three years). The grinding and polishing was finished in 1885. The telescope's dome was advanced for its time, with a design that compensated for the expansion and contraction of metal with changes in temperature. The circular floor of the dome rises and descends through approximately seventeen feet to follow the eyepiece of the 58-foot-long telescope tube.
Alvan Clark died at the age of 83 in 1887, the same year that the Lick 36-inch refractor was dedicated. The excellent quality of the 36-inch telescope, combined with Mount Hamilton's excellent observing conditions, helped Lick Observatory become one of the world's premier astronomy institutions. Lick had also helped start a trend of building major American telescopes under the relatively cloudless western skies.
Yerkes will "lick the Lick"
George Ellery Hale was perhaps the greatest American science entrepreneur of his time. He inspired, organized, and helped find funding for three of the most important observatories in the history of astronomy. In 1892, the 24-year old Hale was a recently married associate professor at the University of Chicago, an ambitious young scientist in an ambitious young institution. That October, he accompanied University of Chicago president William R. Harper to visit the offices of Charles T. Yerkes. Yerkes was a Chicago tycoon who had made his fortune through streetcar and railroad franchises. His unsavory business practices had earned him the scorn of many Chicago residents. Recently married to a chorus girl, Yerkes was interested in his social position and legacy. One path to higher community standing was to promote science in a splendid fashion. Hale and Harper left Yerkes' office with a mandate to build "the largest and best�telescope in the world�and send the bill to me." Local papers ran headlines like "Street-Car Boss Uses a Telescope as a Key to the Temple Door" and boasted the new telescope would "lick the Lick."
The whole enterprise will cost Mr. Yerkes certainly half a million dollars. He is red hot and does not hesitate�It is a pleasure to do business with such a man.
Hale set himself to organizing what would become Yerkes Observatory. He knew that Alvan Clark & Sons had a partly finished lens, 40 inches in diameter, left over from another telescope project that never materialized. A few days after the visit to Yerkes, Alvan Graham Clark arrived in Chicago and agreed to finish the 40-inch lens for the new observatory. The noted instrument firm Warner and Swasey would make the telescope mount.
Alvan Clark & Sons finished the lens (actually an achromatic pair, one lens of crown glass and one of flint glass) in October 1895. It weighed 500 pounds and had a focal length of 62 feet. In 1897, the lens was shipped to Williams Bay, Wisconsin, the chosen site of the new observatory. The telescope with its moving parts and counterweights weighed over 20 tons, yet it was so well-balanced that small motors could easily move it to point at any part of the sky. As at Lick, astronomers could raise and lower the entire floor of the observatory in order to reach the eyepiece. Astronomers who used the new telescope were delighted with its quality.
Hale meant to devote Yerkes Observatory to a relatively new branch of astronomy, astrophysics. Breaking with the established classical astronomers, who mainly concerned themselves with the positions and movements of the stars and planets, Hale was determined to promote the study not just of how celestial bodies moved, but of what in fact they were.
Hale's ambition is reflected in the architecture of Yerkes Observatory. The giant 40-inch telescope was not centrally located in the observatory but in a dome off in one wing. Much of the observatory's floor space was laboratory space. This was devoted to photography and spectroscopy, two new areas of physics that would increasingly dominate astronomers' research in the 20th century. |
0.995931 | This article is about the film studio. For the cinema chain, see Regal Entertainment Group. For the former record label, see United Artists Records.
United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American film and television entertainment studio. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studio was premised on allowing actors to control their own interests, rather than being dependent upon commercial studios. UA was repeatedly bought, sold, and restructured over the ensuing century. The current United Artists company exists as a successor to the original; as a distributor of films across MGM and third-party titles and as a provider of digital content, in addition to handling most of its post-1952 in-house library and other content it has since acquired. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquired the studio in 1981 for a reported $350 million ($1.0 billion today).
On September 22, 2014, MGM acquired a controlling interest in Mark Burnett and Roma Downey's entertainment companies One Three Media and Lightworkers Media, then merged them to revive United Artists' TV production unit as United Artists Media Group (UAMG). However, on December 14 of the following year, MGM wholly acquired UAMG and folded it into MGM Television.
UA was revived yet again in 2018 as United Artists Digital Studios. Mirror, the joint distribution venture between MGM and Annapurna Pictures was renamed as United Artists Releasing in early February 2019 just in time for UA's 100th anniversary.
Pickford, Chaplin, Fairbanks, and Griffith incorporated UA as a joint venture on February 5, 1919. Each held a 25 percent stake in the preferred shares and a 20 percent stake in the common shares of the joint venture, with the remaining 20 percent of common shares held by lawyer and advisor William Gibbs McAdoo. The idea for the venture originated with Fairbanks, Chaplin, Pickford and cowboy star William S. Hart a year earlier. Already Hollywood veterans, the four stars talked of forming their own company to better control their own work.
They were spurred on by established Hollywood producers and distributors who were tightening their control over actor salaries and creative decisions, a process that evolved into the studio system. With the addition of Griffith, planning began, but Hart bowed out before anything was formalized. When he heard about their scheme, Richard A. Rowland, head of Metro Pictures, apparently said, "The inmates are taking over the asylum." The four partners, with advice from McAdoo (son-in-law and former Treasury Secretary of then-President Woodrow Wilson), formed their distribution company. Hiram Abrams was its first managing director, and the company established its headquarters at 729 Seventh Avenue in New York City.
The original terms called for each star to produce five pictures a year. By the time the company was operational in 1921, feature films were becoming more expensive and polished, and running times had settled at around ninety minutes (eight reels). The original goal was thus abandoned.
Griffith, Pickford, Chaplin (seated), and Fairbanks at the signing of the contract establishing the United Artists motion-picture studio in 1919.
By 1924, Griffith had dropped out, and the company was facing a crisis; the alternatives were to either bring in others to help support a costly distribution system or concede defeat. Veteran producer Joseph Schenck was hired as president. He had produced pictures for a decade, and brought commitments for films starring his wife, Norma Talmadge, his sister-in-law, Constance Talmadge, and his brother-in-law, Buster Keaton. Contracts were signed with independent producers, including Samuel Goldwyn, and Howard Hughes. In 1933, Schenck organized a new company with Darryl F. Zanuck, called Twentieth Century Pictures, which soon provided four pictures a year, forming half of UA's schedule.
Schenck formed a separate partnership with Pickford and Chaplin to buy and build theaters under the United Artists name. They began international operations, first in Canada, and then in Mexico. By the end of the 1930s, United Artists was represented in over 40 countries.
When he was denied an ownership share in 1935, Schenck resigned. He set up 20th Century Pictures' merger with Fox Film Corporation to form 20th Century Fox. Al Lichtman succeeded Schenck as company president. Other independent producers distributed through United Artists in the 1930s including Walt Disney Productions, Alexander Korda, Hal Roach, David O. Selznick, and Walter Wanger. As the years passed, and the dynamics of the business changed, these "producing partners" drifted away. Samuel Goldwyn Productions and Disney went to RKO and Wanger to Universal Pictures.
In the late 1930s, UA turned a profit. Goldwyn was providing most of the output for distribution. He sued United several times for disputed compensation leading him to leave. MGM's 1939 hit Gone with the Wind was supposed to be a UA release except that Selznick wanted Clark Gable, who was under contract to MGM, to play Rhett Butler. Also that year, Fairbanks died.
UA became embroiled in lawsuits with Selznick over his distribution of some films through RKO. Selznick considered UA's operation sloppy, and left to start his own distribution arm.
In the 1940s, United Artists was losing money because of poorly received pictures. Cinema attendance continued to decline as television became more popular. The company sold its Mexican releasing division to Crédito Cinematográfico Mexicano, a local company.
In 1941, Pickford, Chaplin, Disney, Orson Welles, Goldwyn, Selznick, Alexander Korda, and Wanger—many of whom were members of United Artists--formed the Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers (SIMPP). Later members included Hunt Stromberg, William Cagney, Sol Lesser, and Hal Roach.
The Society aimed to advance the interests of independent producers in an industry controlled by the studio system. SIMPP fought to end ostensibly anti-competitive practices by the seven major film studios—Loew's (MGM), Columbia Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures, RKO Radio Pictures, 20th Century Fox, and Warner Bros./First National—that controlled the production, distribution, and exhibition of motion pictures.
By 1958, SIMPP achieved many of the goals that led to its creation, and the group ceased operations.
Needing a turnaround, Pickford and Chaplin hired Paul V. McNutt, a former governor of Indiana, as chairman and Frank L. McNamee as president. McNutt did not have the skill to solve UA's financial problems and the pair was replaced after only a few months.
On February 16, 1951, lawyers-turned-producers Arthur B. Krim (of Eagle-Lion Films) and Robert Benjamin approached Pickford and Chaplin with a wild idea: let them take over United Artists for ten years. If, at the end of those years, UA was profitable, they would own half the company. Fox Film Corporation president Spyros Skouras extended United Artists a $3 million loan through Krim and Benjamin's efforts.
In taking over UA, Krim and Benjamin created the first studio without an actual "studio". Primarily acting as bankers, they offered money to independent producers. UA leased space at the Pickford/Fairbanks Studio but did not own a studio lot. Thus UA did not have the overhead, the maintenance, or the expensive production staff at other studios.
With the instability in the film industry due to theater divestment, the business was considered risky. In 1955, movie attendance reached its lowest level since 1923. Chaplin sold his 25 percent share during this crisis to Krim and Benjamin for $1.1 million, followed a year later by Pickford who sold her share for $3 million.
United Artists went public in 1957 with a $17 million stock and debenture offering. The company was averaging 50 films a year. In 1958, UA acquired Ilya Lopert's Lopert Pictures Corporation, which released foreign films that attracted criticism or had censorship problems.
In 1959, after failing to sell several pilots, United Artists offered its first ever television series, The Troubleshooters, and later released its first sitcom, The Dennis O'Keefe Show.
In the 1960s, mainstream studios fell into decline and some were acquired or diversified. UA prospered while winning 11 Academy Awards, including five for best picture, adding relationships with the Mirisch brothers, Billy Wilder, Joseph E. Levine and others. In 1961, United Artists released West Side Story, which won a record ten Academy Awards (including Best Picture).
In 1960, UA purchased Ziv Television Programs. UA's television division was responsible for shows such as Gilligan's Island, The Fugitive, Outer Limits, and The Patty Duke Show. The television unit had begun to build up a profitable rental library, including Associated Artists Productions, owners of Warner Bros. pre-1950[note 1] features, shorts and cartoons and 231 Popeye cartoon shorts purchased from Paramount Pictures in 1958, becoming United Artists Associated, its distribution division.
In 1963, UA released two Stanley Kramer films, It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and A Child Is Waiting. In 1964, UA introduced U.S. film audiences to the Beatles by releasing A Hard Day's Night (1964) and Help! (1965).
At the same time, it backed two expatriate North Americans in Britain, who had acquired screen rights to Ian Fleming's James Bond novels. For $1 million, UA backed Harry Saltzman and Albert Broccoli's Dr. No in 1963 and launched the James Bond franchise. The franchise outlived UA's time as a major studio, continuing half a century later. Other successful projects backed in this period included the Pink Panther series, which began in 1964, and Spaghetti Westerns, which made a star of Clint Eastwood.
In 1964, the French subsidiary, Les Productions Artistes Associés, released its first production That Man from Rio.
The second United Artists logo, used during the company's sale to Transamerica from 1967 until 1982.
On the basis of its film and television hits, in 1967, Transamerica Corporation purchased 98 percent of UA's stock. Transamerica selected David and Arnold Picker to lead its studio. UA debuted a new logo incorporating the parent company's striped T emblem and the tagline "Entertainment from Transamerica Corporation". This wording was later shortened to "A Transamerica Company". The following year, in 1968, United Artists Associated was reincorporated as United Artists Television Distribution.
UA released another Best Picture Oscar winner in 1967, In the Heat of the Night and a nominee for Best Picture, The Graduate, an Embassy production that UA distributed overseas.
In 1970, UA lost $35 million; thus the Pickers were pushed aside for the return of Krim and Benjamin.
Other successful pictures included the 1971 screen version of Fiddler on the Roof. However, the 1972 film version of Man of La Mancha was a failure. New talent was encouraged, including Woody Allen, Robert Altman, Sylvester Stallone, Saul Zaentz, Miloš Forman, and Brian De Palma. In 1973, United Artists took over the sales and distribution of MGM's films in Anglo-America until the latter bought UA in 1981 due to the massive losses from Heaven's Gate. Cinema International Corporation assumed international distribution rights for MGM's films and carried on to United International Pictures (made from CIC and UA's International assets being owned by partner MGM) in the 1980s.
In 1975, Harry Saltzman sold UA his 50 percent stake in Danjaq, the holding-company for the Bond films. UA was to remain a silent partner, providing money, while Albert Broccoli took producer credit. Danjaq and UA remained the public co-copyright holders for the Bond series, and the 2006 Casino Royale remake shares the copyright with Columbia Pictures.
UA released One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in 1975 a film which won the Best Picture Academy Award and earned $56 million. UA followed with the next two years' Best Picture Oscar winners, Rocky and Annie Hall.
However, Transamerica was not pleased with UA's releases such as Midnight Cowboy and Last Tango in Paris that were rated X by the Motion Picture Association of America. In these instances, Transamerica demanded the byline "A Transamerica Company" be removed on the prints and in all advertising. At one point, the parent company expressed its desire to phase out the UA name and replace it with Transamerica Films. Krim tried to convince Transamerica to spin off United Artists, but he and Transamerica's chairman could not come to an agreement. Finally in 1978, following a dispute with Transamerica chief John R. Beckett over administrative expenses, UA's top executives, including chairman Krim, president Eric Pleskow, Benjamin and other key officers walked out. Within days they announced the formation of Orion Pictures, with backing from Warner. The departures concerned several Hollywood figures enough that they took out an ad in a trade paper warning Transamerica that it had made a fatal mistake in letting them go.
Transamerica inserted Andy Albeck as UA's president. United had its most successful year with four hits in 1979: Rocky II, Manhattan, Moonraker, and The Black Stallion.
The new leadership agreed to back Heaven's Gate, a project of director Michael Cimino, which vastly overran its budget and cost $44 million. This led to the resignation of Albeck who was replaced by Norbert Auerbach. United Artists recorded a major loss for the year due almost entirely to the box-office failure of Heaven's Gate. It destroyed UA's reputation with Transamerica and the greater Hollywood community. However, it may have saved the United Artists name, as UA's final head before the sale, Steven Bach, wrote in his book Final Cut that there was talk about renaming United Artists to Transamerica Pictures.
In 1980, Transamerica decided to exit the film making business, and put United Artists on the market. Kirk Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp. purchased the company in 1981. Tracinda also owned Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
In 1981, United Artists Classics, which had formerly been a division of the company that re-released library titles, was turned into a first-run art film distributor by Nathaniel T. Kwit, Jr. Tom Bernard was hired as the division's head of sales and Ira Deutchman as head of marketing. Later the division added Michael Barker and Donna Gigliotti. Deutchman left to form Cinecom, and Barker and Bernard formed Orion Classics and Sony Pictures Classics. The label mostly released foreign and independent films such as Ticket to Heaven and The Grey Fox, and occasional first-run reissues from the UA library, such as director's cuts of Head Over Heels and Cutter's Way. When Barker and Bernard left to form Orion, the label was briefly rechristened MGM/UA Classics before it ceased operating in the late 1980s.
The merged companies became MGM/UA Entertainment Company and in 1982 began launching new subsidiaries: the MGM/UA Home Entertainment Group, MGM/UA Classics and MGM/UA Television Group. Kerkorian also bid for the remaining, outstanding public stock, but dropped his bid, facing lawsuits and vocal opposition.
After the purchase, David Begelman's duties were transferred from MGM to MGM/UA. Under Begelman, MGM/UA produced unsuccessful films and he was fired in July 1982. Of the 11 films he put into production, by the time of his termination only Poltergeist proved to be a hit.
As part of the consolidation, in 1983, MGM closed and marketed United Artists' long time headquarters at 729 Seventh Avenue in New York City.
On August 7, 1985, Ted Turner announced that his Turner Broadcasting System would buy MGM/UA. As film licensing to television became more complicated, Turner saw the value of acquiring MGM's film library for his superstation WTBS. Under the terms of the deal, Turner would immediately sell United Artists back to Kerkorian.
In anticipation, Kerkorian installed film producer Jerry Weintraub as the chairman and chief executive of United Artists Corporation in November 1985. Former American Broadcasting Company executive Anthony Thomopoulos was recruited as UA's president Weintraub's tenure at UA was brief; he left the studio in April 1986, replaced by former Lorimar executive Lee Rich.
On March 25, 1986, Turner finalized his acquisition of MGM/UA in a cash-stock deal for $1.5 billion and renamed it MGM Entertainment Co. Kerkorian then repurchased most of United Artists' assets for roughly $480 million. As a result of this transaction, the original United Artists ceased to exist. Kerkorian, for all intents and purposes, created an entirely new company implementing the inherited assets; thus, the present day UA is not the legal successor to the original incarnation, though it shares similar assets.
Logo from 1987 to 1994.
Due to financial community concerns over his debt load, Ted Turner was forced to sell MGM's production and distribution assets to United Artists for $300 million on August 26, 1986. The MGM lot and lab facilities were sold to Lorimar-Telepictures. Turner kept the pre-May 1986 MGM film and television library, along with the Associated Artists Productions library, Gilligan's Island and its animated spin-offs, and the RKO Pictures films that United Artists had previously purchased.
United Artists was renamed MGM/UA Communications Company (MUCC) and organized into three main units: one television production and two film units. David Gerber headed up the TV unit with Anthony Thomopoulous at UA, and Alan Ladd, Jr. at MGM. Despite a resurgence at the box office in 1987 with Spaceballs, The Living Daylights, and Moonstruck, MUCC lost $88 million.
In April 1988, Kerkorian's 82 percent of MUCC was up for sale. MGM and UA were split by July. Eventually, 25 percent of MGM was offered to Burt Sugarman, and producers Jon Peters and Peter Guber, but the plan fell-through. Rich, Ladd, Thomopoulous and other executives grew tired of Kerkorian's antics and began to leave. By summer 1988, the mass exodus of executives started to affect productions, with many film cancellations. The 1989 sale of MGM/UA to the Australian company Qintex/Australian Television Network (owners of the Hal Roach library, which both MGM and UA had distributed in the 1930s) also fell-through, due to the company's bankruptcy later that year. On November 29, 1989, Turner Broadcasting System (the owners of the pre-May 1986 MGM library) attempted to buy entertainment assets from Tracinda Corporation, including MGM/UA Communications Co. (which also included United Artists, MGM/UA Home Video, and MGM/UA Television Productions), but failed. UA was essentially dormant after 1990 and released no films for several years.
Eventually, in 1990, Italian promoter Giancarlo Parretti purchased UA. He purchased a small company and renamed it Pathé Communications anticipating a successful purchase of Pathé, the original French company. But his attempt failed and instead he merged MGM/UA with his former company, resulting in MGM-Pathé Communications Co. During the transaction, Parretti overstated his own financial condition and within a year defaulted to his primary lender, Crédit Lyonnais, which foreclosed on the studio in 1992. This resulted in the sale or closure of MGM/UA's string of US theaters. On July 2, 1992, MGM-Pathé Communications was again named Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. In an effort to make MGM/UA saleable, Credit Lyonnais ramped up production and convinced John Calley to run UA. Under his supervision, Calley revived the Pink Panther and James Bond franchises and highlighted UA's past by giving the widest release ever to a film with an NC-17 rating, Showgirls. Credit Lyonnais sold MGM in 1996, again to Kirk Kerkorian's Tracinda, leading to Calley's departure.
In 1999, filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola attempted to buy UA from Kerkorian who rejected the offer. Coppola signed a production deal with the studio instead.
In 1999, UA was repositioned as a specialty studio. MGM had just acquired The Samuel Goldwyn Company, which had been a leading distributor of arthouse films. After that name was retired, MGM folded UA into Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures. G2 Films, the renamed Goldwyn Company and MGM's specialty London operations, was renamed United Artists International. The distributorship, branding, and copyrights for two of UA's main franchises (Pink Panther, and Rocky) were moved to MGM, although select MGM releases (notably the James Bond franchise co-held with Danjaq, LLC and the Amityville Horror remake) carry a United Artists copyright. The first arthouse film to bear the UA name was Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her.
United Artists hired Bingham Ray to run the company on September 1, 2001. Under his supervision, it produced and distributed many art films, including Bowling for Columbine, 2002's Nicholas Nickleby, and the winner of that year's Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, No Man's Land; and 2004's Undertow, and Hotel Rwanda, a co-production of UA and Lions Gate Entertainment, and made deals with companies like American Zoetrope and Revolution Films. Ray stepped down from the company in 2004.
In 2005, a partnership of Comcast, Sony and several merchant banks bought United Artists and its parent, MGM, for $4.8 billion. Though only a minority investor, Sony closed MGM's distribution system and folded most of its staff into its own studio. The movies UA had completed and planned for release—Capote, Art School Confidential, The Woods, and Romance and Cigarettes—were reassigned to Sony Pictures Classics.
In March 2006, MGM announced that it would return again as a domestic distribution company. Striking distribution deals with The Weinstein Company, Lakeshore Entertainment, Bauer Martinez Entertainment, and other independent studios, MGM distributed films from these companies. MGM continued funding and co-producing projects released in conjunction with Sony's Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group on a limited basis and produced tent-poles for its own distribution company, MGM Distribution.
Sony had a minority stake in MGM, but otherwise MGM and UA operated under the direction of Stephen Cooper (CEO and minority owner of MGM).
On November 2, 2006, MGM announced that Tom Cruise and his long-time production partner Paula Wagner were resurrecting UA. This announcement came after the duo were released from a fourteen-year production relationship at Viacom-owned Paramount Pictures. Cruise, Wagner and MGM Studios created United Artists Entertainment LLC and the producer/actor and his partner owned a 30 percent stake in the studio, with the approval by MGM's consortium of owners. The deal gave them control over production and development. Wagner was named CEO, and was allotted an annual slate of four films with varying budget ranges, while Cruise served as a producer for the revamped studio and the occasional star.
UA became the first motion picture studio granted a Writers Guild of America, West (WGA) waiver in January 2008 during the Writers' Strike.
On August 14, 2008, MGM announced that Wagner would leave UA to produce films independently. Her output as head of UA was two films, both starring Cruise, Lions for Lambs and Valkyrie. Wagner's departure led to speculation that a UA overhaul was imminent.
Since then, UA has served as a co-producer with MGM for two releases: the 2009 remake of Fame and Hot Tub Time Machine—these are the last original films to date to bear the UA banner.
A 2011 financial report revealed that MGM reacquired its 100 percent stake in United Artists. MGM stated that it might continue to make new films under the UA brand.
On September 22, 2014, MGM acquired a 55 percent interest in One Three Media and Lightworkers Media, both operated by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey and partly owned by Hearst Entertainment. The two companies were consolidated into a new television company, United Artists Media Group (UAMG), a revival of the UA brand. Burnett became UAMG's CEO and Downey became president of Lightworkers Media, the UAMG family and faith division. UAMG became the distributing studio for Mark Burnett Productions programming such as Survivor. UAMG was to form an over-the-top faith-based channel.
On December 14, 2015, MGM announced that it had acquired the remaining 45 percent stake of UAMG it did not already own and folded UAMG into MGM Television. Hearst, Downey, and Burnett received stakes in MGM collectively valued at $233 million. Additionally, Burnett was promoted to CEO of MGM TV, replacing the outgoing Roma Khanna. The planned over-the-top faith service became a separate entity owned by MGM, Burnett, Downey and Hearst.
By August 2018, MGM relaunched the United Artists brand as a digital production and distribution company aimed at creating original motion pictures, television programs, short-form content and digital series as well as building upon MGM's existing IP for distribution across digital platforms. Known as United Artists Digital Studios, the company's projects include mid-form original series Stargate Origins, interactive digital series #WarGames, and scripted series The Baxters (which is also the first for LightWorkers Media) and Weekend at Bernie's. In early October 2018, MGM and Walmart agreed to a partnership for MGM Digital to create exclusive content for Walmart's Vudu and Movies On Us service to begin showing in the first quarter 2019.
MGM's and Annapurna Pictures' Mirror distribution venture was rebranded as United Artists Releasing on February 5, 2019, 100 years to the day of United Artists' founding.
A majority of UA's post-1952 library is now owned by MGM, while the pre-1952 films (with few exceptions) are now either owned by other companies (such as Turner Entertainment) or are in the public domain. However, throughout the studio's history, UA acted more as a distributor than a film studio, crediting the copyright to the production company responsible. This explains why certain UA releases, such as High Noon (1952) and The Final Countdown (1980), are still under copyright but not owned by MGM.[original research?] The MGM titles which UA distributed from 1973 to 1982 are now owned by Turner.
UA originally leased the home video rights to its films to Magnetic Video, the first home video company. Fox purchased Magnetic in 1981 and renamed it 20th Century-Fox Video that year. In 1982, 20th Century-Fox Video merged with CBS Video Enterprises (which earlier split from MGM/CBS Home Video after MGM merged with UA) giving birth to CBS/Fox Video. Although MGM owned UA around this time, UA's licensing deal with CBS/Fox was still in effect. However, the newly renamed MGM/UA Home Video started releasing some UA product, including UA films originally released in the mid-80s. Prior to MGM's purchase, UA licensed foreign video rights to Warner Bros. through Warner Home Video, in a deal that was set to expire in 1991. In 1986, the pre-1950 WB and the pre-May 1986 MGM film and television libraries were purchased by Ted Turner after his short-lived ownership of MGM/UA, and as a result CBS/Fox lost home video rights to the pre-1950 WB films to MGM/UA Home Video. When the deal with CBS/Fox (inherited from Magnetic Video) expired in 1989, the UA released films were released through MGM/UA Home Video.
Before the Magnetic Video and Warner Home Video deals in 1980, United Artists had exclusive rental contacts with a small video label called VidAmerica in the US, and another small label called Intervision Video in the UK. for the home video release of 20 titles from the UA library (e.g. The Great Escape, Some Like It Hot, and Hair, along with a few pre-1950 WB titles).
United Artists owned and operated two television stations between the years of 1968 and 1977. Legal ID's for the company would typically say "United Artists Broadcasting: an entertainment service of Transamerica Corporation," along with the Transamerica "T" logo.
by Gray Television Licensed to Lorain. The call letters stand for United Artists Broadcasting, which founded the station.
Kaiser Broadcasting owned a minor stake from 1975 to 1977 following the closure of crosstown WKBF.
In 1977, Gaylord Entertainment Company acquired WUAB.
Additionally, United Artists Broadcasting also held the permit to KUAB-TV in Houston, Texas, which would have possibly launched sometime around 1969 on channel 20. United Artists also owned one radio station, WWSH in Philadelphia, from 1970 to 1977.
UAB/Transamerica left the broadcasting business in 1977 by selling WUAB to the Gaylord Broadcasting Company and WWSH to Cox Enterprises.
United Artists Releasing (UAR), formerly Mirror (commonly, given its former use as the third party label), is a film distribution joint venture between Annapurna Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and MGM's Orion Pictures unit with offices in West Hollywood and Annapurna's offices in New York City's Soho neighborhood. The distributor also offers alternative services to the major studios and streaming companies with 10–14 films to be released each year.
Mirror was founded as a film distribution joint venture between Annapurna and MGM in December 2017. This marks MGM's return to domestic distribution, in which they expect to have approximately six to eight releases per year starting in March 2018. Annapurna's existing distribution staff would be the initial staff of the joint venture. Films issued by MGM and Annapurna would be distributed respectively under their own names, while films released for third parties would use the Mirror releasing label. Death Wish was MGM's first release by the joint venture on March 2, 2018. Under the initial agreement, the distribution unit reported to MGM and Annapurna on their movies. By the end of January 2019, the distributor released eight titles total.
The venture was rebranded as United Artists Releasing on February 5, 2019, 100 years to the day of United Artists' founding. Reasoning behind the move is to better compete against the major studios given their tentpole films that dictate the release calendar. Orion Pictures, an MGM company, would add its distribution staff and films to the venture as part of the change. Pam Kunath, a former Screen Gems executive, was appointed chief operating officer. A board of directors consisting of executives from the partner firms would oversee the three executives running UAR; Kunath, David Kaminow and Erik Lomis, Annapurna's president of marketing and president of distribution, respectively. Missing Link would be the first release under the UAR banner.
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Balio, Tino. United Artists: The Company Built by the Stars. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1976.
Balio, Tino. United Artists: The Company That Changed the Film Industry. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1987.
Berg, A. Scott. Goldwyn. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1988.
Gabler, Neal. An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood. New York: Crown Publishers, 1988.
Schickel, Richard. D.W. Griffith: An American Life. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1983.
Thomson, David. Showman: The Life of David O. Selznick. New York: Alfred A, Knopf, 1992.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to United Artists.
United Artists Corporation Records 1919–1965 — at the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research. |
0.999049 | As the opening attraction of the Cal Performances 2002 season, the Mark Morris Dance Group offered an evening of light diversions. Most evident was Morris’ ability to hear music and render it in illuminating physicals terms. His innate sense of humor and his freedom from conventional strictures enable him to summon unexpected observations. No matter what kind of music inspires him, the ideas that flow through his movement reveal human relationships in often wry detail.
The main attraction of the evening was the world premiere of “Something Lies Beyond the Scene” set to William Walton’s Fa�ade.Inspired by the almost-nonsense poetry of Edith Sitwell, in the early 1920s Walton composed a divertissement of musical jokes, mimicking popular music of the day. There is an atmosphere of music hall entertainment, not to mention general zaniness. In 1931 Frederic Ashton had one of his biggest successes when he created a ballet to this score, capturing the tone of the music in a series of vaudeville-like turns. It remains in the repertoire of the Royal Ballet and used to be performed in the U.S. by the Joffrey Ballet. Four dancers (including Mark Morris) read the poetry. The rest of the company cavorted through a series of vignettes that took their inspiration from the music and the words. It is a stripped-down and modernized version of what Ashton perceived.
The evening began with “Resurrection,” created in homage to Richard Rodgers’ centennial. It uses the Slaughter on Tenth Avenue music, which began as part of the 1936 musical On Your Toes choreographed by George Balanchine, who later made it into a ballet for his company, the New York City Ballet. Morris eschews the plot of the actor chased by gangsters, but retains the element of murder.He has envisioned a reverie of dancers clad in bold black-and-white pajamas (Isaac Mizrahi’s witty designs). The woman of the leading couple is felled by the first gun shot, causing her partner to “search” for her. As they are reunited, shots ring out again, and this time he is felled.A corps of dancers provides a Busby Berkeley-like backdrop, replete with unison wave movements and the characteristic star pattern created by bodies lying in a circle on the stage floor.The movements echo the period of the music, with repetitions cleverly timed to the music. There is a sweet nonchalance to the piece.
Three other short works completed the program. “A Lake” is a stylized, courtly trifle in which dancers dressed in ballet-peasant costume engage in flowing, changing patterns that have a formal, 18th century feel. The music is Haydn’s Horn Concerto No. 2. The most sober piece of the evening, “Foursome” takes two male couples, who interact with each other to music of Satie and Hummel. Is it an older couple and their younger selves? Is it a commentary about friendship? Morris and Guillermo Resto, his longstanding company member, were the “older” couple, moving with less fluidity than their younger counterparts. Morris’ understated, deadpan humor, brought laughs with his less-polished movements.Concluding the program in a flash of bright sequins, “Lucky Charms” took Ibert’s Divertissement and matched the bubbling score with energetic movement. The dancers wore sequined tops: the four men in bright blue, the eight women in pairs of red, green, purple and gold. Morris plays with the musical parodies of the score, filling the stage with bursts of action like a dancing Christmas tree. |
0.999996 | Why does the skin in my mouth peel after I brush my teeth? Is there a toothpaste I can use that will prevent this from happening?
The best thing you can do is to see a knowledgeable oral pathologist or oral surgeon. Skin peeling does not occur without a cause, although this does not mean it is something serious. Someone must evaluate your mouth for different kinds of systemic lesions to determine the culprit.
If your mouth is sensitive and irritated, it's a good idea to use the softest toothbrush available and a very gentle toothpaste, such as Tom's of Maine, which can be found in most stores. I also suggest that you rinse your mouth with warm salt water three or four times a day, just to bathe the tissues and make them feel better. However, you must see a professional to determine the cause of the problem so it can be properly treated. Treating the symptoms might make you feel better in the short term, but finding their cause is most important. |
0.99997 | Operating a stand up forklift is completely different than operating a sit down version. Your movements are different, as is the way you pick and move loads. If you do not know how to operate a stand-up forklift, you could cause harm to co-workers and yourself. You must follow the proper safety rules when operating a stand up forklift. There are basic operating standards that you must adhere to when operating the stand up forklift.
Stand up on the forklift and get a feel for the controls and the steering knob. The steering is done with the knob steering plate instead of a steering wheel. This knob moves very fast, so you must become accustomed to moving it sensitively and don't oversteer. The horn is on the control handle, as well as the control for forward, backwards and the movement of the forks. The floor pedal gives the forklift power to move.
Turn the key to start the forklift. Make sure that the forks are retracted. They should be pointed slightly upwards when you are moving around the floor. Never drive with the forks extended. If you are going forward, move the control handle forward and step on the pedal to make the lift go forward. If you are backing up, beep your horn and look behind you to make sure the way is clear. Pull the control handle towards you while stepping on the petal.
When turning corners, use your steering knob to turn in the direction you need to go while keeping your foot on the power pedal and your other hand on the control handle. If you are turning left, the steering knob will go in a counter-clockwise direction and for turning right, the steering knob will move in a clockwise direction when going forward.
Use the control handle to raise the forks up to grab a pallet in a rack. Pull in front of the rack and use the control handle to raise the forks to the pallet you need. Then you will press the button on the control handle to extend the forks. If you need to move closer to the load, do that now. When the forks are in the pallet securely, raise the pallet slightly off the rack and retract the forks. Move the forklift back so that you clear the rack and lower the load to the floor. Keep the load about 1 to 2 inches off the ground when moving. When placing a load in the rack, reverse this process.
When moving up a ramp tilt the forks slightly downwards and when moving down a ramp raise the forks slightly. The goal is to keep the load as level as possible going up and down. To stop the stand-up forklift, move the control handle to the middle position and release the handle.
Always practice on any new lift in an area where there is nothing you can damage.
You need to have a license to operate a forklift.
Always beep your horn at pathways and when backing up to warn people you are moving.
If you keep the forks extended when driving, you can cause cause the lift to become unstable and risk injuring someone.
Never drive a lift with a load in the air, no matter how short the distance.
Gardapee, Pamela. "How to Operate a Stand Up Forklift." , https://careertrend.com/how-4813089-operate-stand-up-forklift.html. 04 March 2019. |
0.999816 | What is the estimated point value of deferring after winning the coin toss?
In American football, the winner of the coin toss can make a choice now (usually to receive the kick-off which starts the game), or can defer their choice to the second half (thus having the option to receive the kick-off in the second half).
Suppose there were two evenly matched teams, and the halftime score were 17-16. Before evaluating their chances, I would want to know (at least) one more thing.
If the 17-point team had deferred, and was now receiving the ball in the third quarter, I would consider it ahead, both on points and on the "deferred" reception.
But suppose this right belonged to the 16-pointer. Would the deferred reception give them the better chance of winning?
The value of this could be no more than a touchdown, and probably a lot less. It may not even be the value of a field goal.
Are there any estimates or quantifications of the deferred reception privilege, and the "extra" possession privilege that it confers?
Since 2008, the average NFL team scored 11.21 points per half(1). If each team has about 6 possessions per half, that would appear to be 1.86 points per possession(2).
Whether it comes into play or not is another question. By taking the ball to start Q3 you add to the chance that your opponent will get the ball the expected 6 times, but game plan, effectiveness, injuries and turnovers can affect the Time of Possession and actual possessions.
The next question might be: "What percentage of the time does a deferring team get 1 (or) more second-half possession(s) than the opponent?"
Although having the ball in the beginning of the second half means you'd have at least as many drives as the other team, you can't really translate a possession to points. Your question really depends on the game. For example, if the game is happening in poor weather conditions, then having the ball doesn't increase a team's chances of winning much. They just need to make efficient drives. Or if the game has been very defensively dominant by both teams, you can argue that having the ball one more time than your opponent does not give you an edge.
After all, games are won by points and nothing else matters as much. A team could win with less time of possession given they are more efficient offensively and can create turnovers defensively.
Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged american-football statistics or ask your own question.
What's the point of winning the opening tip off in basketball?
How is a penalty enforced on an extra point to end the half?
On an onside kick, what happens when a return man signals fair catch and is obstructed from reaching the ball?
Why are CFB polls so week-to-week compared to NFL's power ranking style?
What made Notre Dame, Notre Dame?
Is there any guideline the NFL uses to refrain from calling a penalty due to unusual celebrations or mass reactions? |
0.985883 | the following error when I try to save.
and then the same error after it.
try to change the field I end up getting the same error. |
0.99481 | The problem I am having is while constructing waveguide ports via the Python API. The waveguide height and width dimensions auto extend to the simulation boundary. Where can I find the functions to explicitly control the height and width of the waveguide port?
First please consult the python cookbook, section “Creating Waveguide Ports (FEM only)” in chapter 3, on how to define a waveguide port.
It shows a function makeWaveguide on how to make a waveguide port, but it auto extends the waveguide to the simulation boundary.
By setting the property usePaddingBox to True, it will no longer expand.
# getting a good face Id is the trickiest part.
# Here we'll create a simple sheet, since it only has one face.
# Excluding the sheet from the mesh to make it transparent.
"assuming that a sheet only has one face!"
# Use a power feed to get modal S-parameters.
# Add copy to project, and retrieve it again. |
0.96407 | TL;DR: Vector cross products are not like products of real numbers, for which there is an inverse operation to “undo” multiplication. I don’t think we should introduce cross products as a form of “multiplication” in introductory physics courses because it may reinforce the urge to “divide by a vector.” A better approach may be to formally present ways of unwrapping cross products consistent with Gibbsian vector algebra. But first, a geometric understanding is necessary.
In the last post in this series, I showed how to unwrap dot products. In this post, I will show how to unwrap cross products. As with dot products, we will see that there is no unique solution. There is an additional constraint on cross products that does not exist with dot products, and that is direction.
So what is a cross product? It is an operation that takes two vectors and produces a new object that we sometimes mistakenly call a vector. Actually, it is a pseudovector. It has the obligatory magnitude and direction (which, as you should understand by now, do not define what is and is not a vector) but it has the additional property that it behaves a certain way under a coordinate inversion. I will not address that in this post however. As with dot products, we begin by introducing some geometry which helps with visualization.
Consider two vectors and with the former being the unknown, their cross product, and the resulting object.
We want to find all vectors that satisfy this equation. The problem is that there are infinitely many of them.
While and are fixed, different combinations of and give values equal to . Let’s look at some geometric implications.
If we pick a value of then there are vectors with a magnitude, indeed THE magnitude, that satisfies the equation. These vectors lie in the plane perpendicular to . Picking a different value of produces a different vector in that plane.
If we pick a value of then there are two vectors making an angle consistent with having a value .
All solutions are constrained to lie in the plane perpendicular to . Since cross products can be associated with planes this might be geometrically significant. Notice that the tips of all the solution vectors lie on a line. This suggests that unwrapping a cross product might be related to the equation of a line.
must be a solution, where is a real number, and this is merely a multiple of .
But this is not the most general solution, because we could also add an arbitrary vector that is parallel to since this would not affect the original equation. Getting an arbitrary vector parallel to is as simple as forming a multiple where is an arbitrary real number. Accounting for a potential parallel component seems directly analogous to adding a constant of integration to an indefinite integral, something which introductory physics students seem content to accept.
It is probably intuitive that unwrapping a cross product leads to another cross product, but what is the significance of ? We can solve for by plugging this solution into the original equation and doing a few lines of algebra. The same process shows that is irrelevant; that conclusion relies on a cross product of a vector with itself.
By the way, did you notice that this is the same equation we arrived at in the last post for unwrapping dot products? How can it be that unwrapping both dot products and cross products results in the same equation? If this doesn’t bother you, it should because it’s a huge hint of things to come.
Here is a GlowScript program written with Trinket that illustrates the geometry, and visualization thereof, involved in unwrapping a cross product. Embedding with Trinket lets users modify the code, run it to see the result of the modification, and then restore the original code. Experiment with it yourself.
In researching the literature for this post, I came across an interesting notational problem. Specifically, when we write , by definition we must account for the angle between the two vectors if they are not orthogonal (in which case accounting for the angle simply gives a factor of 1). If and are not orthogonal, and if we are only interested in the direction of the cross product, we need a way to notate the direction. In other words, we need to notate the direction of the cross product without implying the need to account for the angle between the vectors. Does that mean we need to write something like ? I don’t know, but it’s something I’m thinking about. Clear and unambiguous notation is important, especially in introductory physics.
In the next post in this series, I will show how to unwrap cross products algebraically and will demonstrate why a dot product is part of that process. I have never seen this explained before so I hope to make it worth your time to read.
As always, feedback is welcome. I am especially interested in feedback on the clarity of my writing. |
0.999997 | According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel were 190.58% higher in 2019 versus 1955 (a $11,434.60 difference in value).
Between 1955 and 2019: Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.68% per year. In other words, apparel costing $6,000 in the year 1955 would cost $17,434.60 in 2019 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 3.57% during this same period, inflation for apparel was lower.
Therefore, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, $6,000 in 1955 has the same "purchasing power" as $17,434.60 in 2019 (in the CPI category of Apparel). |
0.965162 | Thorn in America's side Osama Bin Laden came to the world's attention on 11 September 2001, when the attacks on the United States left more than 3,000 people dead and hundreds more injured.
In a matter of three years, the Saudi-born dissident had emerged from obscurity to become one of the most hated and feared men in the world.
Osama Bin Laden was born in 1957, apparently the 17th of 52 children of Mohamed Bin Laden, a multimillionaire builder responsible for 80% of Saudi Arabia's roads.
His father's death in a helicopter crash in 1968 brought the young man a fortune running into many millions of dollars, though considerably less than the widely published estimate of $250m.
While studying civil engineering at King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Bin Laden came into contact with teachers and students of the more conservative brand of Islam.
Through theological debate and study, he came to embrace fundamentalist Islam as a bulwark against what he saw as the decadence of the West.
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979 changed Bin Laden's life forever. He took up the anti-communist cause with a will, moving to Afghanistan where, for a decade, he fought an ultimately victorious campaign with the mujahideen.
Intelligence experts believe that the US Central Intelligence Agency played an active role in arming and training the mujahideen, including Bin Laden. The end of the war saw a sea change in his views.
His hatred of Moscow shifted to Washington after 300,000 US troops, women among them, were based in Saudi Arabia, home of two of Islam's holiest places, during the 1991 Gulf War against Iraq. Bin Laden vowed to avenge what he saw as blasphemy.
Bin Laden was the chief suspect behind the Nairobi embassy bomb Along with many of his mujahideen comrades, he brought his mix of fighting skills and Islamic zeal to many anti-US factions within the Middle East.
American pressure ended brief sojourns in Saudi Arabia - which removed his citizenship in 1994 - and then Sudan, and Bin Laden moved back to Afghanistan in January 1996.
The country, in a state of anarchy, was home to a diverse range of Islamic groups, including the fundamentalist Taleban militia, which captured the capital Kabul nine months later.
Though geographically limited, Bin Laden's wealth, increasing all the time through lucrative worldwide investments, enabled him to finance and control a continuously shifting series of transnational militant alliances through his al-Qaeda network.
Sometimes he worked as a broker, organising logistics and providing financial support. At other times, he would run his own violent campaigns.
In February 1998, he issued a fatwa - or religious edict - on behalf of the World Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders, stating that killing Americans and their allies was a Muslim duty.
Six months later, two bombs rocked the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Some 224 people died and nearly 5,000 were wounded. He was indicted as chief suspect, along with 16 of his colleagues.
The 9/11 attacks targeted New York's financial district Almost overnight, Bin Laden became a major thorn in the side of America. A byword for fundamentalist Islamic resistance to Washington, he soon appeared on the FBI's "most wanted" list, with a reward of up to $25m on his head.
The US fired 75 sea-launched cruise missiles into six training camps in eastern Afghanistan in a failed attempt to kill him. They missed their target by just one hour.
As well as the African bombings, Bin Laden was implicated in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York, a 1995 car bomb in the Saudi capital Riyadh and a truck bomb in a Saudi barracks, which killed 19 US soldiers.
"I always kill Americans because they kill us," he said. "When we attack Americans, we don't harm other people."
In the case of the bombs in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, his words rang hollow. The vast majority of the dead and injured were African, not American.
The arrogance of wealth saw Bin Laden make the government of Kazakhstan a multi-million dollar offer to buy his own tactical nuclear weapon.
It comes as no surprise, then, that both the US and Israel are believed to have sent assassination squads after him.
Then came the events of 11 September 2001. Two hijacked aircraft smashed into, and destroyed, the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York.
Bin Laden exhorted all Muslims to wage war against America Another aircraft ploughed into the Pentagon in Washington and a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Altogether more than 3,000 people died in the attacks, which led to the US-led operation against the Taleban.
Allied forces moved into Afghanistan late in 2001. At the time, it was believed that Bin Laden might have been killed during the battle for the Tora Bora cave complex.
In reality, he had slipped across the border into Pakistan, a country in which he achieved the sort of cult status usually reserved for pop stars or film actors.
In February 2003, an audio tape, purporting to be of Bin Laden, was delivered to the al-Jazeera television company.
Of the impending US-led invasion of Iraq, the voice said: "This crusaders' war concerns, first and foremost, all Muslims, regardless of whether the Iraqi socialist party or Saddam remain in power.
"All Muslims, especially those in Iraq, should launch a holy war."
The US conceded that the voice was probably Bin Laden's.
The last known sighting of Bin Laden by anyone other than his very close entourage remains in late 2001 as he prepared to flee from his Tora Bora stronghold.
He was widely assumed to have travelled east, across into Pakistan to be given hospitality and shelter by certain local Pashtun tribesmen loyal to the Taleban and opposed to their own government led by President Pervez Musharraf.
Bin Laden has carefully timed his media appearances The hunt for Bin Laden took a dramatic turn with the arrest in Pakistan, in 2003, of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
The head of al-Qaeda's operations and the suspected mastermind of the Twin Towers attack, it seemed as though the net had begun to close in on Bin Laden himself.
A major offensive to capture Bin Laden was launched by the Pakistani army along the Afghan border in May-July 2004.
But a year later, Mr Musharraf admitted the trail had gone cold.
Though al-Qaeda has been prolific in issuing audio messages, often on the internet and featuring the network's second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri, videos of Bin Laden himself have been rare.
His appearances have been carefully timed and aimed, analysts say, at influencing Western public opinion by driving a wedge between citizens and their leaders.
One such video was issued in 2004 - the same year as the Madrid bombings - and days before the US election.
A second surfaced as the sixth anniversary of the 11 September attacks approached, timed to quell rumours that he had been dead for some time.
To his supporters, Bin Laden was a fighter for freedom against the US and Israel, not, as he was to many in the West, a terrorist with the blood of thousands of people on his hands. |
0.999999 | It’s common knowledge that exercise is good for the mind, body, and soul. Being physically active reduces the risk of chronic illness and premature death, decreases stress and blood pressure levels, and so much more. But do you have to be a complete fitness fanatic in order to reap the benefits of physical activity?
The United States Department of Health and Human Services recommends at least two and a half hours of moderate exercise per week in order to have a positive effect on a person. Many people find themselves wondering if this 150 minutes should be broken up a certain way. Is there a difference between spreading the exercise out over 4-5 days a week, or just cramming it all in over one weekend? Do the frequency and duration of the exercise sessions matter?
Researchers at Loughborough University investigated various physical activity patterns with their associated health benefits and mortality records, and published their findings in JAMA Internal Medicine.
Regularly active – Moderate-intensity exercise for at least 150 minutes per week, or vigorous-intensity exercise for at least 75 minutes per week, broken up into 3 or more sessions.
Weekend warrior – Moderate-intensity exercise for at least 150 minutes per week, or vigorous-intensity exercise for at least 75 minutes per week, broken up into 1-2 sessions.
Insufficiently active – Less than 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise for per week, or less than 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise for per week.
Inactive – No physical activity whatsoever.
The findings of the study were that “weekend warrior, insufficient, and regular physical activity may all reduce the risk of mortality, regardless of the exercising frequency.” In other words, regardless of the frequency and duration of the exercise session, there were positive health effects..
Article: Is weekend exercise just as good as being active every day?
Furthermore, a similar study conducted by researchers at the University of California-San Diego found that living a sedentary, inactive lifestyle can actually speed up a person’s biological aging.
The research discovered that women who exercised for less than 40 minutes and were sedentary for more than 10 hours per day had biologically “older” cells than women who were more active and exercised more. In fact, low physical activity accounted for about an 8-year biological age gap between the women who exercised and those who did not.
Not only does exercise reduce the risk of chronic illness, premature death, and the like, but there is new evidence showing that just 20 minutes of exercise can also decrease inflammation in the body. While the anti-inflammatory benefits of physical activity are not new to researchers, this study dug deeper into the process.
Researchers found that just one session of about 20 minutes of moderate treadmill exercise resulted in a 5% decrease in the number of stimulated immune cells producing TNF (a cytokine with pro-inflammatory properties).
“Our study shows a workout session does not actually have to be intense to have anti-inflammatory effects. Twenty minutes to half an hour of moderate exercise, including fast walking, appears to be sufficient. Feeling like a workout needs to be at a peak exertion level for a long duration can intimidate those who suffer from chronic inflammatory diseases and could greatly benefit from physical activity.” – Suzi Hong, Ph.D.
So, in sum – no, you certainly do not have to be a fitness fanatic or exercise guru to see and feel the benefits of physical activity. Benefits can come from as little as a 20-minute exercise session to decrease inflammation. Feeling stronger than that? Step it up a notch and become a weekend warrior! Or, of course, you can go all out and exceed that 150 minute weekly minimum. Listen to your body, talk to the professionals, and do what you think is right for you. Whatever you decide, just get up and get active!
HSG offers a wide range of corporate health classes and workplace exercise programs that can be included in your workplace wellness program to keep your workplace healthy and productive.
We have an extensive, nationwide network of facilitators and fitness instructors, allowing us to provide health and fitness services throughout Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, Geelong, Newcastle, and more. Our facilitators are Australia’s leading practitioners in their fields, so you are guaranteed the very best quality classes and sessions.
Boot Camp: Group classes that promote camaraderie, team effort, and fat loss. They’re designed to motivate, inspire, and push people a bit further than they’d normally push themselves.
Flexibility and Stretching Classes: These classes are a gentler form of fitness training, similar to yoga.
Pilates: Pilates at work is a low-risk activity that is suitable for a wide range of employees. Promotes strength, muscle tone, balance, flexibility, endurance, and concentration. Sessions are typically one hour long, and a group size of up to fifteen is recommended to ensure appropriate individual attention.
Cardio/Zumba Sessions: Sessions are designed to increase your employees’ heart rates, keep them huffing and puffing, and get them fit.
Weight Loss Sessions: Sessions are focused on helping your employees burn fat as quickly as possible.
Boxing and Fitness: These classes are great for helping your employees have fun, feel empowered, and release their stress.
Martial Arts: A group fitness class that teaches defense, discipline, and spirituality.
Fun Run: We can help you plan your own office Fun Run or other event!
Yoga at work provides a positive return on investment because it keeps your office staff both physically and mentally fit, healthy, and flexible. Our workplace yoga classes provide all the benefits that result from reducing stress, plus the additional benefits from improved physical health!
Tai chi (Qi Gong) is quickly becoming one of the most popular components of corporate wellness programs around the world, as it refreshes, relaxes, and re-energizes employees without the strain of other kinds of exercise sessions. |
0.954446 | LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): A woman I know, Caeli La, was thinking about relocating from Denver to Brooklyn. She journeyed across country and visited a prime neighborhood in her potential new headquarters. Here's what she reported on her Facebook page: "In the last three days, I've seen three different men on separate occasions wearing sundresses. So this is definitely the right place for me.' What sort of signs and omens would tell you what you need to do to be in the right place at the right time, Libra? I urge you to be on the lookout for them in the coming weeks. Life will be conspiring to provide you with clues about where you can feel at peace, at home, and in the groove.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Simon & Garfunkel released their first album in October 1964. It received only a modest amount of airplay. The two musicians were so discouraged that they stopped working together. Then Bob Dylan's producer Tom Wilson got permission to remix "The Sounds of Silence,' a song on the album. He added rock instruments and heavy echo to Simon & Garfunkel's folk arrangement. When the tune was re-released in September 1965, it became a huge hit. I bring this to your attention, Scorpio, because I suspect you're now at a point comparable to the time just before Tom Wilson discovered the potential of "The Sounds of Silence."
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): "Consider how hard it is to change yourself,' wrote author Jacob M. Braude, "and you'll understand what little chance you have in trying to change others.' Ninety-nine percent of the time, I'd advise you and everybody else to surrender to that counsel as if it were an absolute truth. But I think you Sagittarians will be the exception to the rule in the coming weeks. More than usual, you'll have the power to change yourself. And if you succeed, your self-transformations will be likely to trigger interesting changes in people around you. Here's another useful tip, also courtesy of Jacob M. Braude: "Behave like a duck. Keep calm and unruffled on the surface, but paddle like the devil underneath."
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In 1969, two earthlings walked on the moon for the first time. To ensure that astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed there and returned safely, about 400,000 people labored and cooperated for many years. I suspect that in the coming months, you may be drawn to a collaborative project that's not as ambitious as NASA's, but nevertheless fueled by a grand plan and a big scope. And according to my astrological calculations, you will have even more ability than usual to be a driving force in such a project. Your power to inspire and organize group efforts will be at a peak.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): I predict your ambitions will burn more steadily in the coming months, and will produce more heat and light than ever before. You'll have a clearer conception of exactly what it is you want to accomplish, as well as a growing certainty of the resources and help you'll need to accomplish it. Hooray and hallelujah! But keep this in mind, Aquarius: As you acquire greater access to meaningful success not just the kind of success that merely impresses other people you'll be required to take on more responsibility. Can you handle that? I think you can.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): What's your top conspiracy theory? Does it revolve around the Illuminati, the occult group that is supposedly plotting to abolish all nations and create a world government? Or does it involve the stealthy invasion by extraterrestrials who are allegedly seizing mental control over human political leaders and influencing them to wage endless war and wreck the environment? Or is your pet conspiracy theory more personal? Maybe you secretly believe, for instance, that the difficult events you experienced in the past were so painful and debilitating that they will forever prevent you from fulfilling your fondest dream. Well, Pisces. I'm here to tell you that whatever conspiracy theory you most tightly embrace is ready to be disproven once and for all. Are you willing to be relieved of your delusions?
ARIES (March 21-April 19): "I am my own muse,' wrote painter Frida Kahlo. "I am the subject I know best. The subject I want to know better.' Would you consider trying out this perspective for a while, Aries? If so, you might generate a few ticklish surprises. You may be led into mysterious areas of your psyche that had previously been off-limits. You could discover secrets you've been hiding from yourself. So what would it mean to be your own muse? What exactly would you do? Here are some examples. Flirt with yourself in the mirror. Ask yourself impertinent, insouciant questions. Have imaginary conversations with the person you were three years ago and the person you'll be in three years.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): "Happiness comes from getting what you want,' said poet Stephen Levine, whereas joy comes "from being who you really are.' According to my analysis, the coming weeks will bear a higher potential for joy than for happiness. I'm not saying you won't get anything you want. But I do suspect that focusing on getting what you want might sap energy from the venture that's more likely to thrive: an unprecedented awakening to the truth of who you really are.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Sigmund Freud was a medical doctor who laid the groundwork for psychoanalysis. Throughout the twentieth century, his radical, often outrageous ideas were a major influence on Western culture. When Freud was 50, he discovered a brilliant psychiatrist who would become his prize pupil: Carl Jung. When the two men first met in Vienna in 1907, they conversed without a break for 13 consecutive hours. According to my reading of the astrological omens, you could experience a comparable immersion sometime soon: a captivating involvement with a new influence, a provocative exchange that enchants you, or a fascinating encounter that shifts your course.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): In the next twelve months, I hope to help you track down new pleasures and amusements that teach you more about what you want out of life. I will also be subtly reminding you that all the world's a stage, and will advise you on how to raise your self-expression to Oscar-worthy levels. As for romance, here's my prescription between now and October 2018: The more compassion you cultivate, the more personal love you will enjoy. If you lift your generosity to a higher octave, there'll be another perk, too: You will be host to an enhanced flow of creative ideas.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Are you interested in diving down to explore the mysterious and evocative depths? Would you be open to spending more time than usual cultivating peace and stillness in a sanctuary? Can you sense the rewards that will become available if you pay reverence to influences that nurture your wild soul? I hope you'll be working on projects like these in the coming weeks, Leo. You'll be in a phase when the single most important gift you can give yourself is to remember what you're made of and how you got made.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Louisa May Alcott wrote a novel entitled A Long Fatal Love Chase, which was regarded as too racy to be published until a century after her death. "In the books I read, the sinners are more interesting than the saints,' says Alcott's heroine, Rosamund, "and in real life people are dismally dull.' I boldly predict that in the coming months, Virgo, you won't provide evidence to support Rosamund's views. You'll be even more interesting than you usually are, and will also gather more than your usual quota of joy and self-worth but without having to wake up even once with your clothes torn and your head lying in a gutter after a night of forlorn debauchery. |
0.937316 | This article is about the modern Russian assembly. For the historical body, see State Duma (Russian Empire).
For other uses, see State Duma (disambiguation) and Duma (disambiguation).
The State Duma (Russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, tr. Gosudárstvennaya dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma (Russian: Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper house is the Council of the Federation. The Duma headquarters are located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to as deputies. The State Duma replaced the Supreme Soviet as a result of the new constitution introduced by Boris Yeltsin in the aftermath of the Russian constitutional crisis of 1993, and approved by the Russian public in a referendum.
The State Duma was founded in 1905 after the violence and upheaval in the Russian Revolution of 1905 and was Russia's first elected parliament. The first two attempts by Tsar Nicholas II (1868-1918) to make it active were ineffective. Subsequently, each of these Dumas was dissolved after only a few months. The third Duma was the only one to last until the end of its five-year term. After the 1907 electoral reform, the third Duma, elected in November 1907, was largely made up of members of the upper classes, as radical influences in the Duma had almost entirely been removed. The establishment of the Duma after the 1905 Revolution was to herald significant changes to the previous Russian Imperial autocratic system. Furthermore, the Duma was later to have an important effect on Russian history, as it was one of the contributing factors in the February Revolution of 1917, the first of two that year, which led to the abolition of autocracy in Russia and the overthrow of the Tsar.
Several generations and 75 years later after another revolutionary era, in the December 1993 elections pro-Yeltsin parties won 175 seats in the Duma versus 125 seats for the left bloc. The balance of power lay with the sixty-four deputies of the ultranationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia. Only parties that won more than five percent of the vote were given party-list seats: eight passed the threshold in 1993. In addition to those eight parties, a pool of thirty-five deputies was entitled to form a registered group to reflect regional or sectoral interests. Business was governed by a steering committee, the Duma Council, consisting of one person from each party or group. The most important task was dividing up the chair positions in the Duma's twenty-three committees, which was done as part of a power-sharing "package" deal.
Despite the fact that the 1993 Russian Constitution states that the State Duma is elected for four years, it was decided to elect the first State Duma for two years.
During the second half of the 1990s, the Duma became an important forum for lobbying by regional leaders and businessmen looking for tax breaks and legislative favors. The work of the leading committees, such as those for defense, foreign affairs, or budget, attracted a good deal of media attention and lobbying activity.
In the early 2000s, following the 1999 parliamentary elections, the pro-presidential Unity party and the Communist Party were the leading forces in the State Duma.
After the 2003 elections, a Dominant-party system was established in the State Duma with the pro-presidential United Russia party. In all subsequent elections, United Russia has always received an absolute majority of seats (more than 226). After the 2007 elections, a four-party system was formed with a United Russia, Communist Party, Liberal Democratic Party and A Just Russia. Other parties could not get enough votes to go to the State Duma. Only in 2016 elections, two other parties, Rodina and the Civic Platform, were able to get one seat.
In 2008, after the adoption of amendments to the Constitution, the term of the State Duma was increased from four to five years.
A 2016 exposé by Dissernet showed that one in nine members of the State Duma had obtained academic degrees with theses that were substantially plagiarized and likely ghostwritten.
In 2018, it became known that the State Duma Building will be reconstructed. In March 2019 it became known that the repair will begin in May 2019 and will end in September 2020. During this period, the State Duma will temporarily be located in the House of Unions. In addition, a draft of a new conference room, which would be an amphitheatre, was presented.
Consent to the appointment of the Prime Minister of Russia.
Hearing annual reports from the Government of the Russian Federation on the results of its work, including on issues raised by the State Duma.
Deciding the issue of confidence in the Government of the Russian Federation.
Appointment and dismissal of the Chairman of the Central Bank of Russia.
Appointment and dismissal of the Chairman and half of the auditors of the Accounts Chamber.
Appointment and dismissal of the Commissioner for Human rights, who shall act according to federal constitutional law.
Bringing charges against the President of the Russian Federation for his impeachment (requires a two-thirds majority).
The State Duma adopts decrees on issues relating to its authority by the Constitution of the Russian Federation.
Decrees of the State Duma are adopted by a majority of the total number of deputies of the State Duma, unless another procedure is envisaged by the Constitution. All bills are first approved by the State Duma and are further debated and approved (or rejected) by the Federation Council.
Relatively few roll call votes have been published that identify individual deputies' votes. The votes of individuals are recorded only if the voting is open and the electronic method is used. While not all votes are officially roll call votes, every time a deputy electronically votes a computer registers the individual deputy's vote.
Duma Building on Manege square.
The State Duma forms committees and commissions. Committees are the main organs of the House involved in the legislative process. They are formed, as a rule, according to the principle of proportional representation of parliamentary associations. Chairmen of committees and their first deputies and deputies are elected by a majority vote of all deputies of the parliamentary representation of associations.
Implement prior review of bills and preparing them for consideration by the State Duma.
Preparation of draft regulations of the State Duma.
Preparation of opinions on draft laws and draft resolutions brought before the State Duma.
Training in accordance with the decision of the House requests the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation.
In accordance with the decision of the Council of the State Duma, State Duma Chairman requested preparation of draft regulations of the State Council to send representatives to the State Duma of the Constitutional Court of Russia.
Organization of the parliamentary hearings.
Opinions and proposals on appropriate sections of the draft federal budget.
Analysis of the practice of law.
Any Russian citizen who is age 21 or older is eligible to participate in the election may be elected deputy to the State Duma. However, that same person may not be a deputy to the Federation Council. In addition, a State Duma deputy cannot hold office in any other representative body of state power or bodies of local self-government. The office as deputy of the State Duma is a full-time and professional position. Thus, deputies to the State Duma may not be employed in the civil service or engage in any activities for remuneration other than teaching, research or other creative activities.
Three seats are vacant as of February 2019.
^ "Умер депутат Александр Коровников". 2018-08-11. Retrieved 2018-08-11.
^ "Избирком зарегистрировал Фургала губернатором Хабаровского края". 2018-09-28. Retrieved 2018-09-28.
^ "Сергей Бидонько сложил полномочия депутата Госдумы". 2018-12-13. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
^ "Ушел из жизни Николай Дмитриевич Ковалев". 2019-04-05. Retrieved 2019-04-06.
^ Neyfakh, Leon (2016-05-22). "The Craziest Black Market in Russia". Slate. ISSN 1091-2339. Archived from the original on 2016-12-30. Retrieved 2016-05-23.
^ a b Chandler, Andrea (2004). Shocking Mother Russia: Democratization, Social Rights, and Pension Reform in Russia, 1990-2001. University of Toronto Press. p. 97. ISBN 0-8020-8930-5.
^ Ostrow, Joel M. (2000). Comparing Post-Soviet Legislatures: A Theory of Institutional Design and Political Conflict. Ohio State University Press. pp. 24–25. ISBN 0-8142-0841-X. LCCN 99-059121.
Parliamentary elections were held in Russia on 12 December 1993. They included the last elections to the Federation Council of Russia.
Vyacheslav Viktorovich Volodin is a Russian politician who has served as the 10th Chairman of the State Duma since 5 October 2016.
The State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation the 6th convocation is the former convocation of the legislative branch of the State Duma, Lower House of the Russian Parliament. The 6th convocation meets at the State Duma building in Moscow, having begun its term on December 21, 2011 following the last session of the 5th State Duma. The term of office expired October 5, 2016, when the next parliamentary elections.
The State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation the 5th convocation is the former convocation of the legislative branch of the State Duma, Lower House of the Russian Parliament. The 5th convocation meets at the State Duma building in Moscow, worked from December 2, 2007 to December 21, 2011.
The State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation the 4th convocation is the former convocation of the legislative branch of the State Duma, Lower House of the Russian Parliament. The 4th convocation meets at the State Duma building in Moscow, worked from December 7, 2003 to December 24, 2007.
Oksana Genrikhovna Dmitriyeva is a Russian politician and economist. One of the leaders of the Party of Growth. Deputy of the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg. Former Deputy of the State Duma and former Minister of Labor and Social Development.
The Legislative Assembly of Kamchatka Krai is the highest permanent and only legislative body of the Kamchatka Krai. Together with the executive and judicial branches, the Krai's legislative assembly is vested with power to control the krai's own affairs with moderate levels of autonomy from Moscow. All members are elected by public vote and are titled as deputies. The tenure of the deputies are currently 5 years long. |
0.95971 | What is Industrial Engineering and Management?
Industrial engineering and management is an engineering subject that deals with value creation; how goods and services are developed, produced and sold. Industrial engineering and management makes technology happen; it is a bridge between the engineers work to develop, produce and sell products with an increasingly high degree of technology and knowledge in it.
Therefore, Industrial engineering and management is a broad subject. Examples on areas that are part of it are quality management, management control, machine design, production, production management, innovation management, leadership, entrepreneurship, strategic management, project management and marketing. |
0.999687 | Some important things that You should know about Deaf people.
1 ) Deaf want you to talk directly to them even when you are using the interpreter. The Interpreter is just a means for communication between you and the Deaf person. Never talk to the Interpreter directly when you are talking with the Deaf person.
2 ) Eye contact is very important to a Deaf person. Just like when you are having a conversation with another Hearing person. Eye contact makes the Deaf person know you are paying attention to them.
3 ) Treat them with respect. Deaf are just like you they don’t have a disease they just can’t hear. They deserve the same respect you would give a Hearing person.
4 ) Don’t ignore them. Deaf have feelings just like you and me. They don’t like being ignored or left alone too long just because you can’t communicate with them.
5 ) Deaf can tend to be blunt . Just be patient with them.
6 ) Some Deaf also tend to take things literally. You need to make sure you explain what you are saying clearly. This is best done with an American Sign Language Interpreter. This is the best effective way to make sure that your conversation with this Deaf person is not misunderstood.
7 ) Deaf are very social. They keep each other informed about the events that are happening. |
0.955597 | As our knowledge of the complexity of gene architecture grows, and we increase our understanding of the subtleties of gene expression, the process of accurately describing disease-causing gene variants has become increasingly problematic. In part, this is due to current reference DNA sequence formats that do not fully meet present needs. Here we present the Locus Reference Genomic (LRG) sequence format, which has been designed for the specific purpose of gene variant reporting. The format builds on the successful National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) RefSeqGene project and provides a single-file record containing a uniquely stable reference DNA sequence along with all relevant transcript and protein sequences essential to the description of gene variants. In principle, LRGs can be created for any organism, not just human. In addition, we recognize the need to respect legacy numbering systems for exons and amino acids and the LRG format takes account of these. We hope that widespread adoption of LRGs - which will be created and maintained by the NCBI and the European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI) - along with consistent use of the Human Genome Variation Society (HGVS)-approved variant nomenclature will reduce errors in the reporting of variants in the literature and improve communication about variants affecting human health. Further information can be found on the LRG web site: http://www.lrg-sequence.org.
In 1993 Ernest Beutler wrote an eloquent letter to the editor of the American Journal of Human Genetics highlighting the deficiencies of the systems then used to describe DNA variants . That same year, the editor of Human Mutation invited Arthur Beaudet and Lap-Chee Tsui to produce a nomenclature for variants in genes and proteins . From these simple beginnings, the last 17 years have borne witness to the steady development of the nomenclature used to describe sequence variation that is now maintained under the auspices of the Human Genome Variation Society (HGVS) [3, 4]. To some, the present nomenclature may seem like an arcane art-form jealously guarded by zealots. This may have been a valid criticism in the past, but advances in human genetics mean that embracing the nomenclature fully is now essential. With the completion of the human genome sequence, the number of known variants has expanded dramatically, with many identified as being associated with medical conditions. For such variants, especially in the clinical setting, the need to describe them systematically is paramount [5–7].
A crucial element of variant nomenclature is the reference DNA sequence with respect to which a variant is described. Ideally, the sequence should have been submitted to a primary DNA sequence database and be identified by an accession number and its version. For the most part, this requirement is complied with nowadays, though the quality of the sequence data is sometimes questionable. For some genes, the de facto reference sequences were established before the advent of high-throughput sequencing technologies. Intron and intergenic sequence data were often less reliable than those of the exons for these legacy sequences due to the deficiency of read-depth coupled with the lack of corroboration of the DNA sequence against a corresponding protein. At the start of the millennium, recognizing the need for higher quality reference data, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) established a database of curated non-redundant reference sequences of genomes, transcripts and proteins known as RefSeq [8, 9]. Until recently, most human genomic DNA sequences represented in RefSeq have been of genomes rather than individual genes. Consequently, the reporting of variants in genomic DNA coordinates using RefSeq genomic contig sequences has been cumbersome, especially if the gene of interest lies on the reverse strand. For example, the human COL1A1 gene is the reverse complement of bases 13535609 to 13553152 in the RefSeq record NT_010783.15. Beginning in 2007, RefSeq has been extended to embrace reference sequences for individual genes through the creation of RefSeqGene records . Many authors still prefer to report intronic sequence variants in terms of cDNA coordinates (for example, c.2451+77C>T, or the now deprecated format, IVS36+77C>T), even though the nomenclature to do so is somewhat awkward. However, the use of cDNA coordinates is permitted with RefSeqGene reference sequences.
In spite of these welcome developments, users of these sequences must be aware of the update policies of public sequence databases. There are two types of modification to a public sequence record: changes to the sequence, or changes to the annotation or description of that sequence. The latter type of change is reflected only by a change to the modification date of the record, and will be changed if the gene symbol changes, citations associated with the record change, or the position of features (such as the coordinates of exons) within that sequence are revised. The former type of change - that is, to the sequence itself - results in the incrementing of the version of the sequence. For example, the sequence of the desmoglein 2 gene, DSG2, was revised from version NG_007072.1 to version NG_007072.2 in December 2007. In May 2008, re-interpretation of the mRNA coding regions of the sequence of NG_007072.2 resulted in a change of version number for the corresponding RefSeq mRNA record for DSG2 from NM_001943.2 to NM_001943.3 though no change to the RefSeq protein record NP_001934.2 was necessary. The RefSeqGene genomic DNA record and the RefSeq protein record both retained the same version numbers as before, but the RefSeq mRNA record version was incremented. Anecdotal evidence, especially from journal editors, suggests that these issues are poorly understood by researchers who fail to mention the version number of reference sequences that they have used as the basis for reporting sequence variants. Variant reports that do not clearly define the version of the used reference sequence might have ambiguous interpretations.
Failure to fully embrace the issues surrounding versioning of reference sequences can lead to inconsistency of variant descriptions from one generation of patients to the next. An individual testing positive for a given variant today may have children who, years later, wish to seek genetic counseling and be tested for that same variant. To avoid any misunderstanding or confusion by the counselor and the staff of the diagnostic laboratory, it is essential that changes to reference DNA sequences are closely monitored by these parties to militate against the possibility of a change of description for the tested variant (see Box 1 for a hypothetical example).
Nomenclature problems because of reference sequence versioning.
Another limitation is that current reference sequences may not represent all transcripts that arise through the use of distinct transcription start sites, alternative splicing, or polyadenylation signals (Box 2). Currently, genomic reference sequences do not necessarily record all of the known mRNAs, focusing instead on information concerning the single most abundant mRNA. Ideally, a reference sequence for a gene would include all relevant spliced transcripts necessary for variant reporting, reducing the risk that an effect of the variant on an alternatively spliced transcript might be missed.
Genes with multiple spliced transcripts.
A further limitation is that the present annotation scheme does not take account of well-established legacy numbering schemata that are in use at present, or have been used in the past, to number features such as exons or amino acids. The globins and the collagens provide excellent examples of legacy systems (Box 3). Ideally, reference sequences would be annotated in a fashion that would allow for verification of variants reported using either legacy or HGVS-compliant nomenclatures.
To address these limitations, a meeting sponsored and organized by the multi-institute European Union-funded GEN2PHEN project was held, with representatives of GEN2PHEN (Genotype-To-Phenotype Databases Project), European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI) and NCBI in attendance, to discuss the specification for stable reference genomic DNA sequences better suited to the task of reporting variants. The participants were geneticists, bioinformaticians, clinicians and Locus-specific Database (LSDB) curators. In advance of the meeting, a survey was conducted by GEN2PHEN with the help of the HGVS to assess the views of the curators of LSDBs.
The primary goal of the meeting was to create a universally acceptable standard: a new specification for human genomic DNA reference sequences that would address the shortcomings of non-standardized reporting resulting from a variety of issues. These include the lack of universally agreed genomic reference sequences for some genes even though mRNA, expressed sequence tag and genomic assembly records already exist. Sometimes, there are DNA sequence inconsistencies between existing ad hoc genomic reference sequences (where no RefSeqGene record has yet been created) and their NCBI RefSeq mRNA sequence counterparts. Inconsistent and incomplete (and sometimes outdated and inappropriate) annotation of existing ad hoc reference sequences and missing annotation of clinically relevant transcripts is an additional problem. Present sequence record systems do not provide support for legacy amino acid and exon numbering schemes. Finally, the new standard needed to address the lack of understanding of the significance of 'versioning' of sequence data.
The principles guiding the discussions with respect to the specifications for genomic reference sequences were threefold. First, the sequences need not represent real alleles of genes: they can be composites that provide a practical working framework for the reporting of variants. Second, research or diagnostic laboratories, LSDB curators, mutation consortia, and so on that have a direct interest in given genes will have the final say in defining the sequences and their annotation. Third, stability of the sequences, their core annotation, and their identifiers is essential to ensure consistency of variant reporting over time frames of many decades.
The agreed solution was the concept of an LRG (Locus Reference Genomic) , which builds on the initial ideas from NCBI for RefSeqGene. LRGs will only be created in response to demand from the community which, in practice, is likely to be from LSDB curators or from diagnostic laboratories. LRGs are not restricted to protein coding genes, but will be created for any region of the genome within which sequence variation needs to be recorded, including regulatory regions that encode RNAs. However, the mitochondrial genome is explicitly excluded as its sequence (RefSeq NC_012920.1) and variation is already managed by MitoMap . The LRG system provides a genomic DNA sequence representation of a single gene that is idealized, has a permanent ID (with no versioning), and core content that never changes (that is, nucleotide sequence, transcripts, exons, start and stop codon positions). This core annotation will be known as the 'fixed-annotation layer'. Although LRGs are created for single genes, some might encompass all, or part, of overlapping or adjacent genes, as currently happens with RefSeqGene records. The LEPRE1 (leucine proline-enriched proteoglycan (leprecan) 1) LRG (LRG_5) also includes part of the C1orf50 (chromosome 1 open reading frame 50) gene, which is encoded on the opposite strand. A separate LRG will be created for C1orf50 if there is a request from the community.
Additional annotations, known as the 'updatable-annotation layer', that may change with time (each item carrying its own date stamp) will provide ancillary information about a gene. Such annotations will include details of additional transcripts and information for mapping the LRG sequence onto genome assemblies (for example, currently NCBI 36 and Genome Reference Consortium Human (GRCh) 37) as well as cross-referencing of features in the fixed-annotation layer to legacy coordinate systems.
More than one LRG can be created for a region of interest, should the need arise. If essential changes to any of the core sequence data are required, such as the need to include a newly discovered upstream exon, a new LRG record will be generated with a new ID. Sequence variants may be validly expressed with reference to the original LRG (which will not be retired) or to its replacement. An LRG provides a stable sequence and numbering system against which samples can be compared and variation be reported. Although annotation is provided, the LRG is not intended to aggregate and report all known variants.
Variation will be reported using HGVS nomenclature and the use of an LRG as the reference standard supports all coordinate systems: using genomic DNA coordinates, LRG_1:g.8463G>C is equivalent to NG_007400.1:g.8463G>C; using coding DNA coordinates, LRG_1t1:c.572G>C is equivalent to NM_000088.3:c.572G>C; using protein coordinates, LRG_1p1:p.Gly191Ala is equivalent to NP_000079.2:p.Gly191Ala. As a feature of the LRG project, the coordinate system of a RefSeqGene that matches an LRG will be so indicated and will not be changed.
LRGs afford three key improvements in comparison with RefSeqGene records. LRGs provide a 'one-stop' sequence record for a gene (with a single accession number) comprising sequences for the gene itself, all of the transcripts essential for the reporting of sequence variants, and the corresponding predicted proteins translated from each transcript. The locking of the sequences within the LRG means that 'version-control' is not an issue in the reporting of sequence variants. No sequence (genomic DNA, mRNA or protein) within the fixed layer will ever be changed or removed. Finally, the inclusion of the necessary data facilitates reference to features, such as exons or amino acids, using legacy numbering or naming schemes.
NCBI continues to identify genes of clinical interest and create RefSeqGene records . In March 2010, RefSeqGene sequences were available for more than 2,800 genes and many of these are already in use in LSDBs. To ease the transition towards the use of LRGs, they will be created from any pre-existing RefSeqGene record. The goal is to maximize the similarities. When a RefSeqGene record is assigned an LRG accession, it means that the sequence, transcripts, proteins and exons are identical for that version of the RefSeqGene and the LRG. In other words, it will make no difference if variants are reported in LRG or RefSeqGene coordinates.
XML was chosen for exchanging and storing LRGs because of its ease of extensibility and validation as well as its natural hierarchical structure, which lends itself well to the nature of the information in LRGs. There are numerous existing programmatic tools for defining, validating, parsing and transforming XML. The XML schema is defined using Relax NG and is available on the EBI FTP site . XSLT style-sheets have been produced that will transform the XML into more user-friendly HTML or plain text. These are also available from the FTP site.
The LRG file has separate XML sections for the fixed-annotation and updatable-annotation layers. Within the tags for the fixed layer are the genomic sequence and transcripts that define the LRG, together with the corresponding cDNA sequence, amino acid sequence and exon coordinate markup. The updatable section contains database cross-references, reports of any overlapping LRGs, detailed information on how the LRG maps to the human genome assembly and information to map systematic exon and amino acid coordinates onto their legacy equivalents.
LRGs will be compiled and maintained by the NCBI and EBI. This will ensure that the data contained in LRGs are accurate and consistent with data in other existing sequence records. The key involvement of these organizations means that the LRG format has an assured long-term future on which users can rely beyond the end of the GEN2PHEN project.
The LRG website provides access to existing LRG records and mechanisms for requesting new LRGs. Before making a request, it is advisable that users familiarize themselves with the complete LRG specification , which is available on the LRG website, and feedback is invited on any aspect of the specification.
To facilitate viewing of LRGs, Ensembl [20, 21] has adapted their browser. NCBI supports displays of LRG sequences and reported variants using client software (NCBI Genome Workbench ) and the graphical sequence viewer . Use of these tools facilitates integration of LRG data variant data in dbSNP (NCBI Database of Genetic Variation) [24, 25]. The NGRL Universal Browser (National Genetics Reference Laboratory, Manchester;) already provides a graphical view of LRGs with the ability, for some genes, to display tracks linked to dbSNP and to appropriate LSDBs.
A major issue with variant curation is how DNA sequences might be visualized to make the process simpler and less prone to error. Journal editors and referees are well aware of the frequency with which authors report variants erroneously. Ideally, a browser will be developed that will integrate fully with the commonly used LSDB systems, such as LOVD (Leiden Open Variation Database) [27, 28], UMD (Universal Mutation Database) [29, 30] and MUTbase (Maintenance and Analysis of Mutation Databases on the World Wide Web) [31, 32], allowing curators and submitters to automatically generate standards-compliant variant descriptions using the LRG sequences as a reporting reference standard.
Tools such as Mutalyzer [33, 34], both in its standalone form and through the API used by the LOVD variant database system, have made the process of correctly naming variants relative to all annotated transcripts and protein isoforms much simpler, but more sophisticated variant-visualization systems would be a welcome development. Just as with Mutalyzer, such systems would parse the annotated features of reference DNA sequences to provide the necessary visual cues to help generate an HGVS-nomenclature-compliant description of any variant. Ideally, such a system would incorporate cross-checking with legacy numbering systems. To achieve this, a robust and comprehensive feature-annotation scheme with a controlled vocabulary will be essential. The LRG specification does not specifically entail the production of a dedicated sequence browser, but producing one that uses LRG sequences would facilitate the successful adoption of LRGs. To this end, the LRG XML schema is fully open and has version control, allowing any party, commercial or public, to develop visualization tools.
The LRG specification is the culmination of considerable debate among those participating in the project and has also been fashioned by the advice of external commentators. Most of the proposals have been accepted readily, but two in particular have been controversial. The first is the proposal to allow addition of transcripts to the fixed-annotation layer. The argument is that this amounts to versioning and does not solve the existing version problem. Versioning is an issue with traditional reference sequence records because the actual sequences differ from version to version for records with the same accession number. In the fixed-annotation layer of the LRG, the sequence data for the genomic DNA, the transcripts and their translation products will never be changed or removed. Consequently, a variant description such as LRG_13:g.8290C>A will always remain valid and will not be subject to misinterpretation.
Likewise, the proposal to allow more than one LRG for the same gene region has also provoked similar arguments about versioning. If it is no longer possible to describe a sequence variant in terms of an existing LRG, it might be necessary to create a totally new LRG with a uniquely different number (for example, LRG_1275 instead of the existing LRG_89). The original LRG will not be 'retired' and it will remain valid to describe variants with respect to that sequence record. Creation of additional LRGs for an existing gene or genomic region will only be considered in the most exceptional circumstances and each will be cross-referenced with the other in the updatable annotation layer.
Finally, queries have been raised about the ability of LRGs to support the reporting of copy number variation (CNV). LRGs are no less well suited to the task of CNV description than existing reference sequence records. Requests will be considered for the creation of a new LRG representing a particular allele with respect to CNV and we will work with the requesting party to achieve the best practicable solution to represent the allele. Again, this will only be considered in the most exceptional circumstances. The issues that have been raised during the development of the LRG specification are the subject of a frequently asked questions (FAQs) page, accessible from the LRG home page.
In the absence of any proposals of alternative solutions to deal with these issues, we feel that LRGs provide a pragmatic solution to the needs of LSDBs and clinical laboratories with respect to reporting sequence variants in a stable fashion.
Initial discussion of the need for improved reference sequences suited to the task of curation of variants in LSDBs took place at the first general assembly meeting of the GEN2PHEN project in January 2008. Immediately following that meeting, a survey was distributed to LSDB curators through the HGVS and the results were analyzed in March 2008. In April 2008, a two-day workshop was held at EBI to formulate the specification of an improved reference sequence that is now known as Locus Reference Genomic (LRG). Creation of the formal LRG specification began in May 2008 and several versions were produced in response to internal discussion and to feedback elicited through the HGVS. The current version (version 12) was agreed in June 2009.
Creation and revision of the LRG XML schema began in March 2009 (currently at version 1.6) and the first LRG records were created in June 2009. At present, LRGs have been finalized for ten genes and a further four await final approval. Requests have been received for approximately 90 additional genes and these are currently in production. We invite enquiries concerning the creation of additional LRGs.
Access to further information and to LRG sequence records is available at . A search facility is provided and there is a link to frequently asked questions (FAQs). Specific links are provided to request technical support, to request the creation of new LRGs and to allow feedback on the LRG specification.
We are grateful for the help of the Human Genome Variation Society in distributing the survey that was used in the initial development of the LRG specification. We are also grateful to those who responded to the survey and those who provided feedback on drafts of the specification. The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement number 200754 - the GEN2PHEN project.
The manuscript was drafted by RD with contributions from FC, GP and AD. The manuscript was edited by RD, PF, FC, CB, HL, PEMT, JTdD, AD and DRM. RD, PF, CB, HL, PEMT, JTdD, EB, AJB and DRM participated in the conceptual basis and design specification of LRGs. AD gathered and represented the views of a group of potential users and developed an illustrative example of the requirement for LRGs. GP and FC defined and implemented a format for LRG files. PF, FC and DRM coordinated implementation of the LRG informatics infrastructure. AA, RET, WMM, YC, and PL implemented the software and infrastructure for the project. GD developed the NGRL LRG browser. PEMT and JTdD tested the LRG format for compatibility with existing software tools. BWV designed and implemented the LRG website. RD wrote the FAQs on the LRG website. |
0.953977 | Is public investment in E-Sports a good idea?
Malaysia seems about to embark on creating a new industry centered around playing video games. Such an industry would make Malaysia unique as one of the few countries that seem to be embracing an activity that encourages a sedentary lifestyle and asocial behavior but the idea seems to have growing support from the government. Think of the long-term consequences of such an industry. Is this a good idea?
It depends on who you ask. Winners would include the few top gamers who emerge to capture whatever purse is available in the various tournaments, sponsors who support (financially) large gaming tournaments, and software developers (the people who actually write the games). But are there losers in such an industry? Yes, unfortunately there are and they would include any youth who believe that a life of professional gaming is a viable career choice.
Over the past year or so the evolution of E-Sports, the market friendly term for video gaming, has been getting a lot of attention in the Malaysian press. This comes at a time when excessive video gaming is on the verge of being classified as a mental disorder by the World Health Organization and when many parents lament the time spent by their children in this time-wasting, health destroying pastime.
During the 1980s when video games were confined to large consoles found only in gaming centers, authorities prevented these centers from opening, raided them frequently, or actively discouraged youth from going to them. Thirty years later it's a different story, gaming is now OK, and if the press reports are right, encouraged by the government who now seems intent on creating a video gaming or E-Sports industry.
There are two problems with this initiative. First is its association with sports. While there may be competition between players in video games no rational person would classify it as sport. The traditional idea of sport involves some kind of physical activity. This is part of the reason countries embrace sport; it helps people stay healthy. E-Sports are the exact opposite of this concept.
It's true that video gaming is very popular and kids love to play them but that is not a reason for public promotion. Popular they may be, but so is smoking and other unhealthy activities.
The second problem is directly related to long-term health of those who overdo it with video games. Lack of physical activity, low or no interaction with others, poor diet, etc. are all part of becoming a video gaming celebrity. Just as any other endeavor, it takes a long time to reach a level of proficiency in these games to actually be successful. But at what cost?
To become a professional gamer will require one to be immersed in the games leading to possible addiction, unhealthy lifestyle, violent and aggressive behavior, an unsocial and isolated life, a possible increase in depression and anxiety, and not to mention the big four lifestyle diseases of cancer, stroke, heart disease, and diabetes, which are all associated with low physical activity levels.
Parents may use video games as a way to occupy youngsters for short periods, at first, but if Junior gets drawn to the dark side and starts spending all his free time staring at the gaming screen parents get alarmed and begin looking for healthier alternatives. Adding to this problem are parents themselves that get sucked into black hole of gaming. This is not just a kid thing. Adults as well can become addicted to what starts as a pastime and then takes over their life.
Video games can be great entertainment and this article is not an attack on video games themselves but rather the misguided notion that video gaming is a possible career. If E-Sports can make it on their own then so be it but this is not an industry that should be supported with public funds. |
0.93736 | Listen The Everly Brothers songs and lyrics from youtube The Everly Brothers, are a American (Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, USA) duo of singing brothers: Don and Phil, (Don Everly, born Isaac Donald Everly February 1, 1937, Brownie, Kentucky, Phil Everly, born Phillip Everly, January 19, 1939, Chicago, Illinois) are male siblings who were top-selling country-influenced rock and roll performers, best known for their steel-string guitar playing and close harmony singing. Their greatest period of chart success came between 1957 and 1961. Don, the older brother was born in Brownie, a now-defunct coal mining town located outside of Central City, Kentucky. Phil Everly was born in Chicago. The sons of country musicians, Margaret Embry and Isaac Milford ("Ike") Everly, Jr., the Everly Brothers grew up in Iowa. They performed with their parents on live radio and in small-market live shows in the midwest. In addition to both being competent guitarists, the brothers used a style of close harmony singing in which each brother sang a tune that could often stand on its own as a plausible melody line. This is in contrast to classic harmony lines which, while working well alongside the melody, would sound strange if heard by themselves. One of the best examples of their close-harmony work is their recording of "Devoted to You". The duo's approach to harmony singing had a strong influence on the rock and roll groups of the 1960s. For example, both The Beatles and The Beach Boys developed their early singing style by performing Everlys covers. The Beatles based the vocal arrangement of their song "Please Please Me" directly upon that of "Cathy's Clown." The Everly Brothers recorded their own first single, "Keep A' Lovin' Me," in 1956, under the aegis of Chet Atkins, but it flopped. However their next single, "Bye Bye Love," (which had been rejected by 30 other acts, including Elvis Presley), became an across-the-board smash, reaching #2 on the pop charts, and #1 on both the Country, and the R & B charts. The song, written by the husband-and-wife songwriting team of Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, became the Everly Brothers' first million-seller. They soon became known as the stalwarts of Archie Bleyer's Cadence Records label. Working with the Bryants, the harmonic duo had a number of hits in the U.S. and the UK, the biggest of which were "Wake Up Little Susie," "All I Have to Do Is Dream," and "Bird Dog." In 1960, when they signed with Warner Bros. Records, they continued to have hits. Their first with WB, 1960's "Cathy's Clown," launched the brothers back to the top of the charts. It was released as number WB1, the first release in the United Kingdom by Warner Brothers Records. Other singles followed, such as "Crying In The Rain" (1963) and "The Ferris Wheel" (from 1964), but the years after 1962 saw the Everly Brothers selling many fewer records than before. Their enlistment in the United States Marine Corps in 1963, to meet military obligations, took them out of the spotlight immediately before The Beatles broke loose in the United States and changed the pop-music landscape. Warner Brothers released a "Golden Hits" album in 1962, which included their Warner Brothers hits, from "Cathy's Clown" to "That's Old-Fashioned" (their last Top 10 hit) in 1962. The 1964 album "The Very Best Of The Everly Brothers" included new versions of six of their Cadence hits (re-recorded in Nashville), along with six of the original Warner Brothers hits. Some of these re-recordings are sometimes played and mistaken for the originals, such as "Devoted to You" and "Til I Kissed You." In 1963, Cadence released a more complete album of those original hits, titled "15 Everly Hits." After their army experience the brothers regained a moderate level of success for a few more years. Singles and albums continued to be released. They had somewhat more success in Britain and Canada in that period. Some fans find their mid-60s music most impressive, the songs "The Price of Love" and "Love Is Strange" being good examples. The album title "In Our Image" referred to their influence on a new era of singers like the Beatles, who were inspired by their harmony. The album "Two Yanks In England" was recorded there with backup by the Hollies and is a reflection of their success there, and a gesture of camaraderie with the new wave. The album "Roots" is touted by some formal critics as superior, but from a music fan's standpoint it was not special. Their contract with Warner Bros lapsed after its ten years. The duo split in 1973, but reformed in 1983 with a new album produced by Dave Edmunds. "On the Wings of a Nightingale", written by Paul McCartney for the brothers, became a hit single in both the US and UK, and their 1983 Reunion Concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London, which was instigated by English virtuoso guitarist Albert Lee (who was also the musical director), resulted in both a well-received CD and video. They then earned a final charting country-music hit with "Born Yesterday." At around the same time, Phil enjoyed some success as a soloist, with an album Phil Everly, recorded mainly in London, and including musicians such as Dire Straits guitarist Mark Knopfler, Rockpile drummer Terry Williams, and evergreen session keyboard player Pete Wingfield. "She Means Nothing To Me", featuring Cliff Richard as co-lead vocalist, was a Top 10 hit in the UK, and "Louise" reached the Top 50 in 1983. In 1994, a new recording of "All I Have to Do Is Dream," featuring Cliff Richard and Phil sharing vocals, was a UK Top 20 hit. Even though the brothers have not produced any new studio albums since 1989's "Some Hearts," they continue to tour and perform. Throughout their careers they have collaborated extensively with other performers, usually singing either backup vocals or duets. For example, Don Everly recorded a duet with Emmylou Harris in 1979, "Everytime You Leave", on her album "Blue Kentucky Girl" In 2006, Phil Everly sang a duet, "Sweet Little Corrina", with country singer Vince Gill on his much acclaimed album These Days. He previously supplied harmony vocals on J.D. Souther's "White Rhythm and Blues" on his 1979 album "You're Only Lonely". The Everly Brothers have had a total of 26 Billboard Top 40 singles. In 1986, they were among the first 10 artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 1997, they were awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In addition, they were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2004. Their pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. The Everly Brothers have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7000 Hollywood Blvd. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked The Everly Brothers #33 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time . They are also #43 on the list of UK Best selling singles artists of all time. They were also accomplished songwriters, penning a number of their own hits, including "Till I Kissed You" (Don), "Cathy's Clown" (Don and Phil), and "When Will I Be Loved" (Phil). "Cathy's Clown" and "When Will I Be Loved" later became hits for Reba McEntire and Linda Ronstadt, respectively; (for the latter, the Everly Brothers even sang the back up chorus). Also, the Norwegian band a-ha covered "Crying In The Rain" in 1990 for their fourth album, East of The Sun, West of The Moon. They still perform occasionally, despite having declared their retirement from both touring and the studio more than once. Most notably, they joined Simon and Garfunkel as the featured act in the Simon and Garfunkel reunion tour of 2003 and 2004. As a special tribute to the Everly Brothers, they were not the opening act, rather Simon and Garfunkel opened their own show and had the Everlys come out in the middle for three or four songs. For Paul Simon, it was not the first time he had performed prominently with his heroes. In 1986, The Everlys sang background vocals on the hit title track of Simon's landmark album Graceland. |
0.962507 | A survey of the best places to work in Scandinavia has found Microsoft topping the list more than once, with fellow tech companies both large and small not far behind.
Microsoft might be the ranked only 75th best place to work in the US, but it's shaping up far better in Scandinavia.
Is the office dead to everyone but Yahoo?
The office isn't always the best place to get stuff done, according to a survey of businesses.
In a survey by local chapters of the Great Place to Work Institute, Microsoft was found to be the best place to work in two Scandinavian countries, and the second best in another.
The company took first place for employers with 250 or more staff in both Norway and Sweden in the institute's recently-published list of best employers for 2012. On the other side of the Baltic Sea, Microsoft was found to be Finland's second best workplace in the 50 to 499-employee category.
Microsoft isn't the only IT company to get plaudits in the region. Sweden's top 10 list is littered with tech companies and consultancies: in the 'large organisation' category behind Microsoft, which employed 451 people in Sweden, was consulting giant Accenture, which employed 927 staff, followed by IT consultancy Enfo with 452. Payments startup Klarna, with 640 staff, was fifth, while business intelligence firm QlikTech, which employs 254 people, was ninth.
According to Great Places to Work Sweden, the best employers promote workplace friendships, are inclusive towards employees' families, and find ways to promote success in line with the company's culture.
The institute's junior consultant, Anna Fahlgård, points to Klarna's intranet and a feature called 'Face List', which lists employee's birthdays every day and encourages staff to get to know each other, while Enfo holds hackerkväller or hacking evenings for staff to review new products. Microsoft Sweden's HR chief Anne-Marie Andric put its success in the workplace survey down to flexibility and that management place trust in their employees to get the job done.
A number of tech companies make Norway's top 10 list for larger companies. Cisco follows Microsoft in sixth place, with Canon and HP in seventh and eighth respectively. In Denmark, Microsoft is the only tech company in the top 10, which is headed by Swiss pharma giant Roche.
In Finland, there are no tech companies in the top list in the 500-plus employee group, and one company notable by its absence is the Helsinki-headquartered Nokia. So long as you're not one of the thousands laid off recently, it's historically been regarded as a good place to work and offers outgoing employees programs such as its Nokia Bridge start-up plan .
Companies do have to apply to the institute to be considered for inclusion in the list, so it's not a complete list of employers in the region and a few notable omissions from the Swedish list include, for example, Spotify and Ericsson. Similarly, while Swedish-founded Ikea does not make Sweden's top 10 list, it is considered the top workplace in Finland at the large end with more than 500 employees.
For a comparison, the Great Place to Work US list rates Google as the top workplace, followed by enterprise software company SAS. Microsoft is down at 75, behind storage vendor NetApp, chipset maker Qualcomm, Intuit, Rackspace and others. Noticeably missing from this list however is Apple, which is ranked 34th on the best places to work list compiled by careers site Glassdoor.
According to the Glassdoor list, Facebook is actually the top place to work for, followed by consulting firm McKinsey & Co. Ikea is ranked 43 on the list. |
0.991492 | ON_THIS_DAY_IN_HISTORY - 25TH JANUARY 1919The first steps of the League of Nations were taken on this day a century ago, as the world learned exactly what Woodrow Wilson's idea meant for them and the future relations of so many states. What kind of principles would be adhered to, and which ones would be abandoned? How could Wilson traverse the objections, cynicism and scepticism of his friends and rivals? What did other people who were present at the time have to say about this second plenary conference?Considering the fact that the world had been welcomed to Paris, it was strange indeed that this was only the second time that all of its inhabitants had been welcomed together at once, but they were not here to debate or change Wilson's mind, only to listen and hopefully approve. This was the president's dream, and as far as was concerned only HE was qualified to make this dream a reality...***************The Versailles Anniversary Project is possible because of your support and interest - make sure to spread the word, engage with the debate, and look at the different ways you can help this project succeed!->Visit the homeland for this new project!->Become a delegate and play the Delegation Game for just $6 a month!->Support the podcast financially and access ad free episodes with transcripts from just $2 a month!->Follow WDF on Twitter!->Join the Facebook group!->Subscribe on iTunes!. . . |
0.99017 | What is the Highest Score on LSAT Ever?
The LSAT stands for the Law School Admission Test conducted at designated testing centers around the world for aspiring students who wish to get admission in top law schools. The test administered by the LSAC (Law School Admission Council) is accepted in top law colleges in countries like USA, Canada, Australia, and many more. The examination has parts like logical, verbal reasoning, and reading comprehension to assess the proficiency of the interested candidates.
Raw Score: The raw score reflects the number of questions the candidates have answered correctly. As the total number of questions for the LSAT examination ranges from 100 to 102, the maximum raw score is 102. Each question carried one mark each. From the total five multiple choice questions, only four is taken for valuation (as the fifth is experimental) and the essay section has no score. Out of the total 86 LSAT examination result declared publically, four of 99 questions, 18 of 100 questions, 62 of 101 questions and 2 of 102 questions. Therefore, the maximum LSAT raw score a student can achieve is 102.
Scaled Score: The scaled score obtained by converting the raw score is helpful in comparing the scores to the other candidates and determine how well a person has performed. The scaled score aids in determining the percentile rank of a candidate and ranges from 120-180. The highest score attainable on the LSAT is 180, so a person receiving it has a percentile rank of 99.97. It is due to the fact that getting the highest score is very rare. The data published by the LSAC (from 2006 to 2009) suggests that only 0.1% of the total students (approximately 144,000 per year) have received a perfect score of 180. Therefore, only one in three thousand applicants can get the high score.
Though many law schools decide on the admission process based on the entire application of the candidate, it relies heavily on the LSAT score. So, an aspirant with the top score like 180 can choose the top-tier law school and get admission easily. The high LSAT score also helps in getting the merit-based financial aid for students to complete their studies without spending too much from their pockets. Therefore, the LSAT score aids in strengthening the law application of the candidates.
The students have a good study plan and follow it religiously to optimize their exam preparations.
The high scorers have the better understanding about the LSAT questions as they identify the correct and wrong answers with ease.
They have experience in solving the full-length LSAT examinations by taking the mock examination.
Many have taken the LSAT prep course to effectively understand the pattern of questions.
The LSAT examination is consistent as well as predictable, so a candidate with good motivation and study plan can achieve the top score. As no magic formula is available to get the top score, every person who wishes to get the perfect score must put their best foot forward to attain their goal.
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0.925587 | "In choosing a profession be passionate, and you will never work a day in your life"
If you've ever studied the strategies of selling and marketing, you probably recognize a similar pattern in the steps of the sales process. The sales process goes something like this: First, you build rapport, then uncover needs, address the needs, probe for objections, overcome objections, trial close and finally close the sale. Although a board meeting, sales presentation and employment interview seem like three totally different scenarios, they are very much the same. In all three situations, individuals are positioning to influence others in order to reach a desired outcome.
In order to successfully influence, motivate or sell an idea, or concept, it is necessary to follow the basic steps of the sales presentation. To quote the influential media billionaire, Rupert Murdoch, In motivating people, you've got to engage their minds and their hearts. To properly position yourself in an interview, you must engage the interviewer's mind and heart. This is accomplished by asking strategic questions that uncover needs and identify what is commonly called hot buttons. If we can successfully address the interviewer's hot buttons, we are that much closer to getting the offer, or as we say in the sales process, closing the deal.
Before engaging an interviewer it is critical to be properly prepared. Preparing for the interview requires several steps. First, we need to become familiar with the company. Knowing their size in assets, geographic locations and other statistical data is important, but I also recommend understanding the corporate vision, history, culture, values, and how they measure success. In other words, know where they are today in their market, know where they came from, and try to understand where they want to be in the future. You can usually get most of this information from the company web site, company brochures or annual reports if available. Additionally, investor relations can be very helpful.
Secondly, it is important to know your resume, your career history and be able to tell your story. You should be able to verbalize where you've been, how you got there, and where you want to be in the future. Get comfortable with elaborating on your achievements as well as your challenges and how you were able to overcome adversity during your career. Roll play as if you were in an actual interview. Practice until you are comfortable answering specific questions regarding why you left a particular company, industry changes or specific changes in job focus. There should be a smooth transition and it should reflect sound judgment and continuous career progression. This is where a professional recruiter or coach can be invaluable.
The third and probably most important step is to create your interview questions. I can't tell you the number of times a CEO or key hiring authority has said to me, Hank, your client asked all the right questions, and we would like to make an offer. Your questions, though subtle, send a message loud and clear. Each question tells a story. It tells the interviewer many things about you. The questions you ask and even the questions you don't ask, indicate your motivation, experience, polish, education, agenda, ethics, values, attributes, work habits, strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, consider carefully what you wish to say about yourself when composing your questions.
Your questions should be open ended to encourage and stimulate conversation. They should tend to keep the interview flowing smoothly, like a waltz. A good interview is like dancing, although both partners cannot lead, they should complement one another. Stimulating conversation allows you to develop chemistry and connect with the interviewer. Connecting with the interviewer is the key to getting to the next stage of the interview process and ultimately getting the offer.
Our interview questions should accomplish two things. They should express our interest in understanding what the company wants to achieve and how we can assist them in reaching their objectives. Remember, in the early stages of the interview it is critical to build rapport and position us to get to the next stage. This is done by finding out what their hot buttons are. An example of a good probing question would go like this: Specifically, Mr. CEO, what could I do in my first year as your CFO that would exceed your expectations and meet all corporate objectives Notice the question is not me oriented. Me questions, will always get you in trouble if asked at the wrong time. You don't ask dad for the keys to the car right after he sees the F on your report card. On the other hand, you could probably get the car and even some spending money if you ask him right after you paint the house and mow the grass. Timing is everything.
In the beginning of the interview process, stay away from me questions. It's not about what's in it for you; it's about what's in it for them. Later, after you've won their hearts, you can ask for the car keys.
The final step of the interview is the close. It is perhaps the most difficult step in the interview process. This is where we separate the pros from the amateurs. Many interviewers fail at this juncture because they are fearful to ask the defining question. What concerns do you have regarding my ability to be an effective member of your team? The question obviously places us in a somewhat vulnerable position, however if we do not address it, we have no way of overcoming a perceived objection. An objection in the mind of an interviewer is like a wall we cannot get through.
Remember, we cannot close until we overcome every objection. Even if the objection is perceived and not valid, it will inhibit us from getting to the next step. In the interview, perception is reality. Therefore, if we can identify a perceived objection, we have a chance of changing a false perception by addressing it with the interviewer and overcoming the objection. It is critical for us to get the interviewer to share any concerns they might have regarding our candidacy, otherwise we won't get to the next stage. Once all objections have been addressed and the interviewer is satisfied that we are qualified, we can now move to the close and ask our final closing question. What is our next step?
The closing question will reflect confidence and demonstrate your interest in going forward. Additionally, it tells the interviewer you are a serious contender for the position and requires him or her to respond. Any answer other than, we would like you to meet the rest of the team or we would like to go to the next step could be an indication that there are some reservations about you. It is important that you validate this response, by asking for reassurance or probing for additional concerns that need to be addressed. Hopefully, the interviewer will open up and share why he or she has reservations and provide you with another opportunity to discuss the objection and possibly overcome it. Do not be afraid to ask for clarification. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Persistence never lost an opportunity.
Similar to a chess match, the interview requires concentration and strategic maneuvering. As an executive recruiter, I spend hours preparing my clients for these career chess matches. Today, many corporate executives are not properly prepared to professionally engage in an interview, many of which will spend too much time selling and telling, and not enough time asking and listening. Interviewing is an art. Surprisingly, the most qualified individual is not always the winner. Usually, the one who interviews best gets the offer. If you prepare properly, do your homework and utilize these techniques, you'll increase your odds of getting the offer. |
0.997465 | Marijuana is also known as weed, tea, reefer, pot, marihuana, and grass. In crude form, the drug is composed of the flowers and leaves of various plants in the Cannabis genus. As such, the term cannabis is sometimes used interchangeably with marijuana - although the former specifically refers to its plant genus that comprises of C. sativa, C. Indica, and C. Ruderalis.
That said, marijuana tends to vary greatly in terms of potency. This often depends on the strain/variety, as well as how and where it is grown, stored, and prepared for use. Either way, its active ingredient is THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), which is present in every part of both the female and male plants.
However, the greatest concentration of THC is found in the cannabin (or resin) at the flowering top of female plants. Another powerful form of marijuana is hashish. It is made from a collection of dry resin and is close to 8 times as strong as most of the weed that is smoked in the US.
That said, marijuana is mostly used for its pleasure giving effects. The plant can grow to about 16 feet or 5 meters tall although most of the strains that are grown for their intoxicating effects are usually short stemmed and highly branched.
Pot has one of the longest histories of use by human beings. However, most ancient cultures did not grow marijuana for its intoxicating effects. Rather, they would use it as herbal medicine - a trend that might have started around 500 BC in Asia.
In America, the history of marijuana cultivation dates as far back as the early colonialists, who would grow hemp for rope and textiles. In the 20th century, however, racial and political factors came into play, leading to the criminalization of the drug in the country - a trend that has been changing with the legalization of marijuana in some states.
It is believed the origins of the hemp or cannabis plant evolved in Central Asia from where people introduced it to Europe, Africa, and (eventually) the Americas. At the time, hemp fiber had commercial applications in the manufacture of rope, sails, paper, and clothing, while people took its seeds as food.
Since hemp tends to grow fast and easy to cultivate (and because it has so many uses), it was grown widely throughout colonial America as well as in most of the Spanish colonies of the Southwest. In fact, farmers in the Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Virginia colonies were legally required to grow it at the time.
The early hemp plants, however, had low levels of THC - the chemical that is responsible for the mind-altering effects of marijuana. However, there is evidence showing that some ancient cultures understood the psychoactive effects of the plant.
Among these cultures were those that might have cultivated several varieties of cannabis to ensure that they would produce higher THC levels. These plants would later be used in healing practices and religious ceremonies. In fact, burned marijuana seeds have been unearthed in some graves of shamans in Siberia and China dating as far back as 500 BC.
Sir Willian Brooke O'Shaughnessy - an Irish doctor who was studying in India - discovered in the 1830s that extracts of cannabis were useful in lessening vomiting and stomach pain in cholera patients. After that, other doctors started using the drug for this purpose, and experimenting on it.
By the turn of the century, many doctors' offices and pharmacies in the US and Europe sold cannabis extracts for the treatment of a variety of ailments, including but not limited to stomach and digestion problems.
Later, scientists discovered that the THC in marijuana was the source of its medicinal properties. Since THC is a psychoactive compound that comes with mind-altering effects, it was also found to interact with the areas of the brain that can promote hunger and lessen nausea.
Today, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has approved two drugs that contain this compound, which are now prescribed as Syndros and Marinol pills for the treatment of nausea arising from chemotherapy as well as the loss of appetite experienced by AIDS patients.
One of the earliest recordings of the recreational use of marijuana was by Herodotus, a historian in ancient Greece. He recorded and described an incidence involving a group of Iranian nomads from Central Asia - the Scythians - where they were inhaling smoke from the smoldering flowers and seeds of the cannabis plant.
Apart from the above, the purified form of the drug that is typically smoked through a pipe - hashish - was used widely in parts of Asia and the Middle East by around 800 AD.
The rise in popularity of marijuana corresponded with the widely spreading Islamic religion in the region. This could be because the Quran specifically prohibits the use of intoxicating substances like alcohol but does not mention cannabis.
In the US, the recreational use of marijuana did not come about until the early years of the 20th Century. The common belief is that the recreational practice of smoking weed could have been introduced by the Mexicans that immigrated to the country during and after the Mexican Revolution. Eventually, the practice found its way into mainstream American culture.
However, the social unrest and massive rates of unemployment of the Great Depression were to stoke American resentment of the Mexican inhabitants. It also fueled public fear that weed was an evil substance. As a direct result, and in keeping with the Prohibition era which viewed all intoxicants in a bad light, 29 states outlawed the drug by 1931.
In 1937, the federal government passed its first law to criminalize cannabis around the country. Otherwise known as the Marijuana Tax Act, this law imposed stringent excise taxes on the sale, transfer, and possession of every hemp product. By so doing, it effectively criminalized every use of the plant, apart from its industrial applications.
The first person to be prosecuted under this Act was Samuel Caldwell, a 58-year-old farmer who was arrested and charged for selling cannabis a day after the Act was passed. He was eventually sentenced to 4 years of hard labor.
Despite this, people continued growing industrial hemp throughout the Second World War. Eventually, its domestic cultivation was widely encouraged especially after the Philippines - one of the major sources of hemp fiber - was taken over by Japanese forces. However, the last hemp fields in the US were planted in Wisconsin in 1957.
In 1970, President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act into law as part of the nationwide War on Drug. This Act effectively repealed the earlier Marijuana Tax Act. Instead, it classified cannabis as a Schedule I substance - alongside ecstasy, LSD, and heroin. This classification meant that marijuana came with a high potential for addiction and abuse and that it had no medical uses.
In 1972, the Shafer Commission (or the National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse) wrote a report recommending the partial prohibition of the drug, as well as lowering the penalties for people found in possession of small marijuana amounts. However, the findings of the report were largely ignored by President Nixon and the establishment at the time.
In 1996, California passed the Compassionate Use Act. By so doing, it effectively became the first US state to officially legalize the medicinal use of marijuana by people with chronic or severe illnesses. Today, 29 states, Washington DC, and the US territories of Puerto Rico and Guam allow the limited medical use of cannabis.
As of January 2018, Washington DC and 9 other states have legalized the recreational use of the drug. This was after Washington and Colorado became the first states to legalize this form of use in 2012. Due to these laws, adults above the age of 21 can now use marijuana without a medical prescription in Oregon, Vermont, Nevada, Massachusetts, Maine, California, and Alaska.
However, US federal law still views marijuana as an illegal substance. As a direct result, the evolving legal status of the drug has been the subject of ongoing news and controversy both in the country and around the globe.
The checkered legal status of marijuana is mostly as a result of the effects of marijuana, both physical and mental. The short term effects of the drug may include mood changes, increased appetite, heightened sensory perception, and euphoria.
Although some people experience a happy and pleasant high after they use marijuana, others can experience panic, fear, and anxiety. These negative effects tend to be more common for people who use marijuana in excess or if the batch they are using is unexpectedly potent.
In recent decades, the amount of THC in cannabis has dramatically increased. For instance, the average content of THC in marijuana confiscated in the 1990s was 4%. It grew to about 12% by 2014, with some strains of the drug containing levels of THC that were as high as 37%.
The earliest written record of marijuana use is from 2727 BC from Shen Nung, a Chinese emperor. Additionally, Ancient Romans and Greeks were also familiar with the drug.
In the Middle East, the use of cannabis spread all through the Islamic regions stretching to North Africa. Eventually, in 1545, it found its way to the Western Hemisphere. At the time, the Spaniards imported the cannabis plant to Chile where it would be used to create fiber.
Hemp, a form of cannabis, was also grown on many North American plantations for use in manufacturing paper, clothing, and rope during the colonial period.
The legalization of marijuana - especially for medical uses - is a controversial subject. This is mostly because the therapeutic properties of the drug are still being questioned and scrutinized.
Also referred to as hash, hashish is the most potent and concentrated form of marijuana. It contains very high levels of the chemical THC, and is made by drying the resins of the cannabis plant before compressing them into various forms, such as sticks, cakes, and balls.
Today, Afghanistan, Pakistan, North Africa, and the Middle East produce the largest volumes of hashish. People use the drug by breaking pieces of hash before placing them in pipes for smoking.
This is a refined oily extract from the cannabis plant. The oil varies greatly in color depending on the technique used for refinement - ranging from dark brown to amber. The average content of THC in hash oil is around 15%, and people usually mix the oil with marijuana and tobacco for smoking.
Hemp was one of the very first fiber plants to be commercially grown and used - way before the widespread application of cotton. Historically, it might have originated in Central Asia.
In India and the Middle East, hemp was mostly used for religious purposes and in natural medicine. Later, it found its way to Europe where people used it as fiber. Eventually, the plant got to the Americas where it became popular as a raw material for paper, clothing, and rope.
The cannabis plant has been used across the globe for many years, as shown by evidence derived from the regions where prehistoric man lived to Viking Ships and China.
In a recent report, Barney Ward describes the origins of marijuana use as starting in Asia thousands of years ago before finding its way to other regions of the globe - including the United States and the Americas.
In the pre-modern period, marijuana was widely used spiritually and medicinally. For instance, medieval Germans and the Vikings would use the drug for toothaches and as a pain relief medication during childbirth.
While studying the history of marijuana, it is vital that you distinguish between the main subspecies of cannabis. Cannabis Sativa, in particular, comes with psychoactive properties. On the other hand, hemp (or Cannabis Sativa L, named after Carl Linnaeus, a famed botanist) does not have any psychoactive properties and was historically used to manufacture products like fuel, clothing, and oil.
Another psychoactive species is Cannabis Indica. It was first identified by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, a French naturalist. The most uncommon species was named Cannabis Ruderalis by D.E. Janischevisky - a Russian botanist - in 1924.
It is now believed that the cannabis plant evolved in the Central Asian steppes, particularly in the regions that now comprise Southern Siberia and Mongolia. However, its use dates back more than 12,000 years ago - effectively placing the plant among the oldest cultivated crops on the face of the Earth. It is highly likely that the cannabis plant flourished in the largely nutrient-rich dumping sites used by prehistoric man.
Burned seeds of the plant have additionally been found in the Kurgan burial sites of Siberia, which date back to around 3000 BC as well as some of the tombs of nobles buried in the Xinjiang regions of Siberia and China dating to around 2500 BC, which included relatively large quantities of psychoactive marijuana that was mummified.
As such, it is highly likely that both psychoactive marijuana and hemp were widely used in Ancient China. However, the first recording of the medicinal use of the drug dates to about 4000 BC noting that the herb was largely used as a surgical anesthetic. Stories also say that one Chinese emperor - Shen Nung - used the drug in 2737 BC.
The drug might have found its way from China when coastal farmers took it to Korea around 2000 BC (or even early). This is according to Archeology in Korea, a book detailing findings of the plant in the area.
From 2000 BC to 1000 BC, the plant found its way to the South Asia subcontinent after Aryans invaded the region. The Aryans were a warrior group with an archaic Indian-European language.
With time, the drug was used widely in India, where people celebrated it as one of the 5 kingdoms of herbs that get rid of anxiety. It was also described in an ancient Sanskrit Vedic poem titled the Science of Charms.
The cannabis plant might have found its way to the Middle East anywhere between 2000 BC and 1400 BC. The Scythians, an Indo-European nomadic group, were recorded using the drug. They may have carried it into Ukraine and southeast Russia because they occupied these territories for many years.
Germanic tribes, on the other hand, brought marijuana into Germany from where it spread to Britain over the 5th Century as a result of the Anglo-Saxon invasions of the time.
Some cannabis seeds have additionally been found in Viking ships remains that date back to the mid-9th century. In the next centuries, the drug migrated to other regions of the globe - traveling all through Africa and getting to South America around the 19th century. Afterwards, it was carried north and eventually reached North America.
After its relatively long trip all through both the pre-modern and the modern worlds, the cannabis plant eventually got to the United States around the turn of the 20th Century. The plant arrived from Mexico in the Southwest US where it was carried by Mexican immigrants escaping the Mexican Revolution of 1910 to 1911.
Most of the early prejudices against the drug were largely racist fears of the Mexicans who smoked marijuana, an idea that was promulgated in some of the reactionary newspapers of the time. Mexicans were often blamed for smoking the drug, and eventually seducing children and engaging in property crimes and murderous sprees.
Interestingly, American law did not recognize the differences between Cannabis Sativa and Cannabis Sativa L. Instead, Utah became the first state to outlaw the plant in 1915. By 1931, marijuana was illegalized in 29 states.
When Harry Aslinger was appointed as the first commissioner of the FBN - the Federal Bureau of Narcotics - in 1930, he took up the fight against marijuana and tried to make it illegal in every American state. As a result of his efforts - among those of others - the Marijuana Tax Act was passed in 1937. It effectively put marijuana under the DEA's (Drug Enforcement Agency) regulation and criminalized the possession of the drug all through the country.
Today, marijuana is still classified as a Schedule II controlled drug by the federal government - alongside LSD and heroin. This indicates that it has a high potential for addiction and abuse, and that there are no acceptable medical uses for the drug. The classification also asserts that there is no safe level of marijuana use.
Mentioned in a Chinese herbal record that dates back to 2700 BCE, cannabis has long been considered to be valuable as a sedative, an antibiotic, an antidepressant, an anesthetic, and an analgesic.
Almost most people used to take it externally - through smoking or as a balm - others would administer the tips of the cannabis plant (particularly during the 19th Century) internally for the treatment of angina pectoris and gonorrhea.
That said, the effects of marijuana vary greatly, mostly depending on the amount and the strength consumed, the setting you take it in, and the particular experiences of the users.
However, its psychological effects predominate its physical effects, and many users experience mild euphoria after taking marijuana. The drug also leads to alterations in judgement and vision, which can result in distortions of space and time.
Acute intoxication, on the other hand, occasionally tends to induce psychosis, paranoid reactions, extreme mood changes, depression, anxiety, and hallucinations. These adverse effects can last anywhere from 4 to 6 hours.
The physical effects of the drug include dryness of the throat and mouth, red eyes, a moderate increase in heartbeat, tightness in the chest (if you smoke the drug), muscular incoordination, unsteadiness, and drowsiness.
Chronic use may or may not lead to physical dependence and is of controversy. Many people claim to experience extreme discomfort when withdrawing from marijuana as well as extreme emotional and psychological withdrawal symptoms. However, it is evident that the drug is psychologically habituating and may lead to dependence and addiction.
Around the world, the use of hashish and marijuana as intoxicants has raised many social and medical questions - some of which are still under scientific investigation. The drug was first studied in the mid-1960s after THC was synthetically isolated and produced. At the time, most researchers focused on identifying the long- and short- term physical effects of the drug.
During the last years of the 20th century and in the early 21st century, research showed that marijuana (and THC) has various therapeutic effects. Scientists also showed that these drugs were useful in helping glaucoma patients lower their internal eye pressure. It was also found to be useful in alleviating vomiting and nausea as caused by the drugs used in chemotherapy treatments for cancer and AIDS. Today, marijuana is medically certified as useful for reducing muscle pain as a result of multiple sclerosis, as well as in preventing epileptic seizures.
In the 1980s, scientists and researchers also discovered that certain mammals - including humans - has a receptor for THC (and THC-related chemicals) inside the brain. This finding showed that the brain can naturally produce a substance very similar to THC for performing a couple of functions that are similar to those of THC. The substance was eventually found and called anandamide - from the Sanskrit word ?nanda for bliss.
The international trade in hashish and marijuana was officially controlled in 1925 following the International Opium Convention. By the 1960s, most countries had officially enforced strict restrictions on the use and trafficking of these two drugs and imposed severe penalties for the illegal supply, sale, and possession of marijuana.
Starting in the 70s, some jurisdictions and countries started reducing the penalties for possessing small quantities of the drug. One such example is The Netherlands, where the government tolerates the sale of relatively small amounts of weed. Around the same time, other European countries started debating the decriminalization of soft drugs, including but not limited to marijuana.
In the US, some states passed laws in the late 70s and early 80s to legalize or fund research on the medical uses of marijuana. However, some of the statutes eventually lapsed or were later repealed.
In the 1990s, renewed decriminalization efforts led to marijuana being legalized for medical uses in several states, including Washington DC, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, California, Arizona, and Alaska.
However, the US Supreme Court ruled in 2001 against the use of medical marijuana. Later the same year, Canada also passed a law that eased the previous restrictions on the drug. These new regulations by Canada allowed the licensing of marijuana farmers to allow them to produce the drug for use by individuals with chronic diseases and terminal illnesses.
In 2009 Eric Holder, the US Attorney General, issued new guidelines for use by federal prosecutors in the states where medical marijuana had been legalized. This shift in policy stipulated that federal resources were to be primarily focused on the prosecution of the illegal trafficking and use of marijuana.
It effectively rendered the cases of medical application - in which people who were in possession of marijuana are in compliance with the laws of various states - less prone to legal investigation.
Apart from the legalization of medicinal marijuana, many states passed different decriminalization laws during the late 20th and early 21st centuries. These laws imposed some penalties - apart from jail time - for possessing small amounts of the drug. As a direct result, most offenders found guilty had to pay civil fines as punishment.
Washington DC and Colorado officially became the first US states to legalize the recreational use of the drug. This was after citizens largely voted in favor of such legislation in 2012. |
0.974835 | Does it makes sense to practice balance on all four’s when we are not exactly likely to fall in this position? Yes, it does makes sense because it makes your balance muscles fire. It makes those balance muscles more likely to fire and work correctly when you are in a standing position.
Kneeling on all four’s, lift your right hand off the floor just 2-3 millimeters. Once balanced, keep the right hand lifted and now lift the left knee 2-3 millimeters. Keep in mind that 2-3 millimeters is VERY small. If someone were standing across the room watching you perform this exercise they might not be able to tell that you have moved at all. Now put the right hand and left knee down and pick up the alternate side. Each time you lift a hand and an arm, hold for three seconds.
Standing next to a support (the kitchen counter is great), place your right heel directly in from of your left toes. Slowly, try to let go of the counter and see if you can maintain your balance. Keep your hand close to the counter or support, though. You want to be able to grab the counter if you need the support. Try to build up to 30 seconds of balance and then change legs. |
0.998758 | Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A., commonly referred to as Lamborghini, is an Italian carmaker based in the small township of Sant'Agata Bolognese. The company was founded in 1963 by manufacturing magnate Ferruccio Lamborghini. It has changed ownership numerous times since, most recently becoming a subsidiary of German car manufacturer Audi AG (itself a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group) in 1998. Lamborghini has achieved widespread recognition for its sleek, exotic designs, and its cars have become symbols of performance and wealth.
Ferruccio Lamborghini entered the car manufacturing business with the aim of producing a high-quality grand tourer that could outperform and outclass offerings from local rival Ferrari S.p.A. Lamborghini met with success in 1966 with the release of the mid-engined Miura sports coupé, and in 1968 with the Espada GT, the latter of which sold over 1,200 units during ten years of production. After almost a decade of rapid growth, and the release of classic models like the Countach in 1974, hard times befell the company in the late 1970s, as sales plunged in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis. Bankruptcy crippled the automaker, and after passing through the hands of a number of Swiss entrepreneurs, Lamborghini came under the corporate umbrella of industry giant Chrysler. The American company failed to make the Italian manufacturer profitable, and in 1994, the company was sold to Indonesian interests. Lamborghini would remain on life support throughout the rest of the 1990s, continuously updating the Diablo of 1990 in lieu of a planned expanded range of offerings, including a smaller car that would appeal to American enthusiasts. Reeling from the Asian financial crisis of the previous year, in 1998 Lamborghini's owners sold the troubled carmaker to Audi AG, the luxury car subsidiary of German automotive concern Volkswagen Group. German ownership marked the beginning of a period of stability and increased productivity for Lamborghini, with sales increasing nearly tenfold over the course of the next decade.
Assembly of Lamborghini cars continues to take place at the carmaker's ancestral home in Sant'Agata Bolognese, where engine and car production lines run side-by-side at the company's single factory. Each year, the facility produces less than 3,000 examples of the four models offered for sale, the V10-powered Gallardo coupé and roadster and the flagship V12-powered Murciélago coupé and roadster. The range is occasionally complemented by limited-edition variants of the four main models, such as the Revent�n and a number of Superleggera trim packages.
Automobili Lamborghini was founded by Ferruccio Lamborghini, the child of viticulturists from the comune of Renazzo di Cento, Province of Ferrara, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. After serving as a mechanic in the Regia Aeronautica, during World War II, Lamborghini went into business building tractors out of leftover military hardware from the war effort. By the mid-1950s, Lamborghini's tractor company, Lamborghini Trattori S.p.A., had become one of the largest agricultural equipment manufacturers in the country. He was also the owner of a successful gas heater and air conditioning manufacturer.
Lamborghini's wealth allowed him to cultivate a childhood interest in cars, owning a number of luxury cars including Alfa Romeos, Lancias, Maseratis, and a Mercedes Benz. He purchased his first Ferrari, a 250GT, in 1958, and went on to own several more. Lamborghini was fond of the Ferraris, but considered them too noisy and rough to be proper road cars, likening them to repurposed track cars. Lamborghini gradually gained the impetus to create cars as he envisioned them, and decided to pursue an car manufacturing venture of his own.
In 1963, Lamborghini purchased a property at 12 via Modena, in the commune of Sant'Agata Bolognese, less than 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Cento. Sant'Agata was deep in the cradle of Italy's car industry, meaning that Lamborghini's operation would have easy access to machine shops, coachbuilders, and workers with experience in the automotive industry.
A car was designed and built in only four months, in time for the Turin motor show in October 1963. Due to an ongoing feud with Giotto Bizzarrini over the engine's design, a working engine was not available for the prototype car in time for the unveiling; the first Lamborghini, the 350GTV went up for display in Turin without an engine under its bonnet, and received a warm response from the motoring press. According to folklore, Ferruccio Lamborghini had the engine bay filled with 500 lb (230 kg) of bricks or ceramic tiles so that the car sat at the appropriate ride height, and made sure the bonnet stayed closed throughout the show. With the initial success behind them, the Automobili Lamborghini Societ� per Azioni was officially incorporated on October 30, 1963.
Though reviews had been positive, Ferrucico Lamborghini was unimpressed with the build quality of the 350GTV, and declared it a one-off. The car disappeared into storage for the next twenty years, until it was purchased and restored by a local collector. Using the prototype car as a starting point, the bodywork was restyled by Carrozzeria Touring of Milan, and a new chassis was constructed in-house. Against Bizzarrini's wishes, the engine was detuned for the production run, developing only 280 bhp, down from the original design's 360 bhp. The refined car, dubbed 350GT, debuted at the 1964 Geneva Motor Show. The 350GT was received with equally enthusiastic response; production began shortly afterwards, and by the end of the year, cars had been built for 13 customers, sold at a loss in order to compete with Ferrari. The 350GT remained in production for a further two years, selling a total of 120 examples.
By the end of 1966, the workforce at the Sant'Agata factory had expanded to 300. The factory continued to produce copies of the 400GT, along with several 350 GTS Roadsters, a convertible model produced by Touring. Ferruccio commissioned the coachbuilder once more to envision a possible replacement for the 400GT, based on the same chassis. Touring created the 400 GT Flying Star II, a poorly-finished, ungainly vehicle. Facing mounting financial difficulties, Touring would close its doors later that year.
The Espada was Lamborghini's first truly popular model, with more than 1,200 sold during its ten years of production The car was debuted at the 1969 Geneva show with the name Espada, powered by a 3.9-litre, front-mounted evolution of the factory's V12, producing 325 bhp. The Espada was a runaway success, with a total production run of 1,217 cars over ten years of production.
As a world financial crisis began to take hold, Ferruccio Lamborghini's companies began to run into financial difficulties. In 1971, Lamborghini's tractor company, which exported around half of its production, ran into difficulties. In 1972, Lamborghini sold his entire holding in Trattori to SAME, another tractor builder.
The entire Lamborghini group was now finding itself in financial troubles. Development at the carmaker slowed; the production version of the LP500 missed the 1972 Geneva Show, and only the P400 GTS version of the Jarama was on display. Faced with a need to cut costs, Paulo Stanzani set aside the LP500's powerplant, slating a smaller, 4-litre engine for production. Ferruccio Lamborghini began courting buyers for Automobili and Trattori; he entered negotiations with Georges-Henri Rossetti, a wealthy Swiss businessman and friend of Ferruccio's, as well as being the owner of an Islero and an Espada. Ferruccio sold Rossetti 51% of the company for US$600,000, thereby relinquishing control of the carmaker he had founded. He continued to work at the Sant'Agata factory; Rossetti rarely involved himself in Automobili's affairs.
As the years passed, Lamborghini's situation became even more dire; the company entered bankruptcy in 1978, and the Italian courts took control. They first appointed Dr. Alessandro Arteses to run the company's operations, but a year later, Raymond Noima and Hubert Hahne, who was Lamborghini�s German importer, were appointed to take over the running of the company. In 1980, the Swiss Mimran brothers (Jean-Claude and Patrick), famed food entrepreneurs with a passion for sports cars, were appointed to administer the company during its receivership. During administration, the carmaker reworked the failed Silhouette into the Jalpa, which was powered by a 3.5-litre V8 that had been modified by former Maserati great, Giulio Alfieri. More successful than the Silhouette, the Jalpa came closer to achieving the goal of a more affordable, livable version of the Countach. The Countach was also updated, finally allowing it to be sold in the U.S. with the release of the LP500 model in 1982. By 1984, the company was officially in the hands of the Swiss. The Mimrans began a comprehensive restructuring program, injecting large amounts of capital into the floundering carmaker. The Sant'Agata facilities were rehabilitated, and a worldwide hiring campaign to find new engineering and design talent began in earnest.
The immediate results of the investment were good. A Countach "Quattrovolve", producing a mighty 455 bhp, was released in 1984; the fumbling Cheetah project resulted in the release of the Lamborghini LM002 sport utility vehicle in 1986. However, despite the Mimrans' efforts, the investments proved insufficient to revive the company. Seeking a large, stable financial partner, the brothers met with representatives of one of America's "Big Three" carmakers, the Chrysler Corporation. In April 1987, in an acquisition spearheaded by Chrysler chairman Lee Iacocca, the American company took control of the Italian carmaker. According to Jolliffe, the Mimran brothers were the only owners of Lamborghini to ever make money out of the company, having sold it for many times the dollar amount they paid for it six years earlier.
Iacocca, who had previously orchestrated a near-miraculous turnaround of Chrysler after the company nearly fell into bankruptcy, carried out his decision to purchase Lamborghini with no challenges from the board of directors. Chrysler people were appointed to Lamborghini's board, but many of the company's key members remained in managing positions. To begin its revival, Lamborghini received a cash injection and aimed to produce a car to compete with the Ferrari 328 by 1991, and also wanted the Italians to produce an engine that could be used in a Chrysler car for the American market. The decision was made to finally take the company into motorsport; the effort would be known as Lamborghini Engineering S.p.A., and would develop engines for Grand Prix teams. The new division was based in Modena.
At the time, Lamborghini was working on a successor to the Countach, the Diablo. Chrysler executives commissioned the American car-maker's own design team to execute a third extensive redesign of the car's body, smoothing out the trademark sharp edges and corners of the original design. The Diablo had been intended for release in time for September 1988, when Lamborghini would celebrate its 25th anniversary; once it was clear that mark would be missed, a final version of the Countach was rushed into production instead. The Anniversary Countach was later acclaimed as the finest version of the car to be built.
The Diablo was released to the public on January 21, 1990, at an event at the Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo. The Diablo was the fastest car in production in the world at the time, and sales were so brisk that Lamborghini began to turn a profit. The company's U.S. presence had previously consisted of loosely affiliated and disorganized private dealer network; Chrysler established an efficient franchise with full service and spare parts support. The company also began to develop its V12 engines for powerboat racing. Profits increased in 1991, and Lamborghini enjoyed a positive era.
In 1992, sales crashed, as the Diablo proved ultimately to be unaccessible to American enthusiasts. With Lamborghini bleeding money, Chrysler decided that the carmaker was no longer producing enough cars to justify its investment. The American company began looking for someone to take Lamborghini off its hands, and found it in a holding company called MegaTech. The company was registered in Bermuda and wholly owned by Indonesian conglomerate SEDTCO Pty., headed by businessmen Setiawan Djody and Tommy Suharto, the youngest son of then-Indonesian President Suharto. By February 1994, Lamborghini had left Italian ownership, and MegaTech took over the carmaker, its Modena racing engine factory, and the American dealer interest, Lamborghini USA.
The Diablo would be Lamborghini's mainstay throughout the 90s, and was continuously updated throughout the various changes in ownership. Never leaving the red despite its increase in sales, a number of company executives and consultants were let go and production overhauled in order to achieve a 50 percent gain in productivity. In 1997, Lamborghini finally passed its break-even point, selling 209 Diablos, thirteen more than it needed to be profitable.
The financial crisis that gripped Asia in July of that year set the stage for another ownership change. The new chairman of Volkswagen AG, Ferdinand Pi�ch, grandson of Volkswagen's founder, Ferdinand Porsche, acquired Lamborghini. Lamborghini was purchased through Volkswagen's luxury car division, Audi AG.
Under German ownership, Lamborghini found stability that it had not seen in many years. In 2003, Lamborghini followed up the Murciélago with the smaller, V10-equipped Gallardo, intended to be a more accessible and more livable than the Murciélago.
Lamborghini is structured as part of the Lamborghini Group, consisting of a holding company, Automobili Lamborghini Holding S.p.A., with three separate companies: Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A., manufacturer of cars; Motori Marini Lamborghini S.p.A., maker of marine engines; and Lamborghini ArtiMarca S.p.A., the licensing and merchandising company. The group additionally contains Volkswagen Group Italia S.p.A. and Volkswagen Group Firenze S.p.A. |
0.999695 | Managers craft strategy and lead their team members to achieve goals. When you’re recruiting a new manager (or promoting from within) make sure you set the stage for success with a carefully planned onboarding process.
The following checklist will help you properly onboard new managers, whether they’re new hires or current employees. Combine this template with our first-day onboarding checklist and new employee training checklist to design a complete onboarding process.
Motivation: Managers need to inspire team members to remain productive, despite difficulties.
Conflict management: Disagreements could arise within a team and a good manager should not let issues escalate.
Time management: Team leaders manage deadlines and delegate tasks, so they need to know how to prioritize work and complete tasks on time.
Team management: Managers should learn how to coach team members on-the-job, track performance and plan career paths.
Schedule periodical meetings between new managers and your HR department. Make sure they are fully settled into their new role and allow them to address any questions they may have during their first 30, 60 and 90 days. |
0.979993 | Textile designer, writer and social pioneer, William Morris and his work have long been associated with the V&A. In 1865, his company Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. was rising to prominence, and Morris was commissioned to design the West Dining Room at the museum. Morris collaborated with architect Philip Webb and painter Edward Burne-Jones to create what is now known as the Green Dining Room, which features early examples of a number of the organic patterns that would make his name.
Born in Walthamstow in 1836, Morris was captivated by nature from childhood, spending much of his time exploring Epping Forest and the surrounding countryside. These themes informed much of his textile design, and his mastery of pattern ensured an enduring appeal.
Morris is credited with a revival in British textile arts, encouraging local manufacture and working to improve conditions for factory workers. As such his prominence at the V&A is in keeping with its ethos, as the museum was originally known as the Museum of Manufactures, with the mission of improving the standards of British industry through education.
Textile designer, writer and social pioneer, William Morris and his work have long been associated with the V&A. In 1865, his company was commissioned to design the West Dining Room at the museum, which features early examples of a number of the organic patterns that would make his name. Born in Walthamstow in 1836, Morris was captivated by nature from childhood, spending much of his time exploring Epping Forest and the surrounding countryside. These themes informed much of his textile design, and his mastery of pattern ensured an enduring appeal. |
0.999959 | Located on what used to be Zagreb's main thoroughfare, the Hotel Antunovic Zagreb puts guests within easy reach of many of the city's businesses and attractions. The hotel is located near a major shopping center and a highway, and it puts guests within easy reach of the city's cultural and historical attractions, restaurants, and entertainment venues. The Hotel Antunovic Zagreb is easily accessible by car, and its guests can also get around town on buses or by foot.
This hotel features plenty of room choices, and all the rooms of the Hotel Antunovic Zagreb come with amenities like air conditioning, telephones, radios, safes, minibars, and pay-per-view televisions.
The Hotel Antunovic Zagreb offers guests plenty of modern amenities, including a fitness center, a solarium, a swimming pool, and a spa. The hotel also offers room service, laundry and dry cleaning services, a shoe shine station, a currency exchange desk, and an on-site gift shop. Besides all this, the hotel offers an on-site wellness center, which includes a Jacuzzi and which offers massage therapies,, and the hotel's on-site restaurant serves a buffet breakfast each and every morning. |
0.944547 | Are Facebook and Starbucks Taking on Netflix?
Both companies are moving into original content, or at least trying to.
There was a time, not so long ago, that original television content was limited to broadcast networks and syndicated shows like Xena: Warrior Princess. That quickly changed in the 1980s with the rise of cable, first with lower-quality schlock then moving into top-quality programming on premium channels like HBO. Now, high-end shows can be found not only up and down the television dial, but also on Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX), Hulu, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) Prime, and a handful of other services.
Original content has become a very crowded space, but its ability to attract eyeballs makes it attractive even though it has become much harder to actually do that. In a world where people already have an unprecedented wealth of choices on Netflix alone, the idea of entering the original content space seems foolhardy.
But that has not stopped companies from trying, even if original content airing on places like Verizon's Go90 service have had little, if any, success. Now it appears that Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) has plans to become a player in original content while Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) has put its toe further into the water.
Starbucks has a new animated show, 1st & Main, from three Simpsons writers. Image source: Starbucks.
Facebook has been dancing around the edges of the scripted content space for the past few years. The platform, for example, aired the premiere episodes of HBO's Ballers and The Brink in 2015. That deal not only let the pay cable channel try to entice subscribers by showing them two highly anticipated shows for free, it got people used to the idea of watching scripted shows on the social media platform previously known for short videos.
Now Facebook has reached out to television studios and other video producers about licensing shows, Recode reported. These are not Game of Thrones-level deals or even ones in line with Amazon's or Hulu's efforts to produce high-quality shows on smaller-than-normal budgets by offering creators more freedom than traditional TV. Instead, the social media leader appears to be looking to explore different formats.
"Our goal is to kickstart an ecosystem of partner content for the [Video] tab, so we're exploring funding some seed video content, including original and licensed scripted, unscripted, and sports content, that takes advantage of mobile and the social interaction unique to Facebook," company executive Ricky Van Veen told Recode. "Our goal is to show people what is possible on the platform and learn as we continue to work with video partners around the world."
Starbucks entered the original content space in September with Upstanders, a show that offered 10 stories, "each told in written, video and podcast form, about ordinary people doing extraordinary things to create positive change in their communities," according to a press release. At the time, the series was presented as an effort to counteract the "divisiveness and cynicism currently fueling our national discourse." The episodes were available on the Starbucks website.
And while creating an original television-style show may have been a new move for the company, its message was in line with other efforts supported by the chain. Now, Starbucks has announced a new original content effort, 1st & Main, a series of 90-second animated shorts "highlighting warm and familiar everyday moments that happen in Starbucks stores across the country," according to a press release. The seven-episode series, written by The Simpsons writers John Frink, Joel H. Cohen, and Rob LaZebnik, debuts Dec. 16 on the company's website.
Will Facebook or Starbucks become content players?
It's hard to see exactly why Starbucks has decided to enter the content space. Upstanders seemed like a branding exercise with the company spending money to create a show in line with its social messaging. 1st & Main is something else entirely, as it does not have a social purpose nor will people's watching it directly lead to people buying coffee.
Instead, the animated show is an attempt to reach a younger audience by attempting to go viral. It's a marketing play and not really a sign that Starbucks plans to make a big play in the original content space.
Facebook, however, while it may downplay its ambitions, sees the ability to attract and monetize viewers for original shows. Netflix had over 83 million paying subscribers at the end of Q3,2016. Facebook has 1.18 billion daily active users, and 1.79 billion monthly active users.
That means nearly 25% of the entire global population could watch a show on Facebook. That's also an audience the social-media leader needs to constantly find new ways to engage.
Starbucks is essentially playing with video and seeing if it can use its audience to launch content that advances its brand. Facebook sees how long-form original video could be a next big thing for the site. Currently, that's not a threat to Netflix, but in the long term, if scripted video works on Facebook, then it's easy to see how the company could become a major player in the space. |
0.997294 | Context: But you can't make people listen. They have to come round in their own time, wondering what happened and why the world blew up around them. It can't last. |
0.967337 | NEW YORK (CNN) - In June, a young Pakistani student studying in Minnesota managed to get his hands on the documents that explained why he wouldn't be allowed to join the United States Army.
The MAVNI program was shut down in late 2016, during the waning days of the Obama administration, because it was deemed "vulnerable to an unacceptable level of risk from insider threats such as espionage, terrorism, and other criminal activity." Pentagon officials described several major "hair-raising" issues that were discovered in the process, arguing that the discharges are not about purging immigrant recruits from the military's ranks -- the vast majority of whom are from Africa and Asia -- but about security red flags.
"Department of Defense and Army policy require all recruits to undergo a suitability review as part of the military accessions process," Army spokesperson Lt. Col. Nina Hill said. "One aspect of the suitability review is a security screening. Any recruit, to include those recruited through the MAVNI program, who receives an unfavorable security screening is deemed unsuitable for military service and is administratively discharged."
Margaret Stock, a founder of the program as well as a retired lieutenant colonel and immigration lawyer, accuses the "incompetent bureaucrats" in the Pentagon of destroying a formidable talent pool and taking advantage of an anti-immigrant climate to create an impossibly high bar for foreign recruits to join the Army and put themselves on a path to citizenship.
"It's a fear of foreigners. It's a couple of bureaucrats at the Pentagon who don't want foreigners in their ranks," Stock told CNN. "People at the Pentagon who think [the Army is] a jobs program for poor Americans."
The new "extreme vetting" background checks have created what Stock says is a decade-long backlog of candidates. But rather than admit they don't have the resources to process everyone, she says, the Army is getting rid of the recruits.
Little of this stems directly from the Trump administration and its harsh policies on immigration. Stock points to the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. One new regulation from Secretary of Defense James Mattis is that in order to get expedited citizenship, one most serve for 180 days. Of course, the number of those even getting to boot camp has dried up in the wake of the stricter background checks.
"It's collapse. They took a system that was working fine and they broke it," said Stock. "More hurdles and not funding any of the hurdles. True national security means welcoming immigrants who are going to help our national security." CORRECTION: The images accompanying this story have been updated to show members of the US Army. |
0.957957 | For many people in North America the issue of home-lessness is closely tied to the phenomenon of deinstitutionalization, which refers to the process of having people who were hospitalized with psychiatric problems leave the hospital in order to live in the community. In the United States and Canada, the movement away from long-term hospital stays in favor of short-term, crisis-oriented hospitalizations and then community placements occurred in force during the 1960s and 1970s. Life in the community was considered more humane than life in the large psychiatric institutions. However, approximately 10 years after the community placements began, there appeared to be a visible segment of former patients wandering the streets and generally not being cared for by "the community." The early placements in group homes, boarding houses, and apartments fell into disarray (or were tenuous at best in the first place). The former patients wandered away from the placements, and many stopped taking their medications. How many of the homeless population really are mentally ill became an object of great interest in the research community and in the general public during this time period.
When rates of mental illness among the homeless are contrasted with rates in the general population, we find that most studies with good methodology report that 20-50% of the homeless population in the United States suffer from severe mental illness (i.e., schizophrenia, major affective disorders, paranoia and other psychoses, and personality disorders) in contrast to 1% in the general population (Burt, 1992, pp. 108-109). Although much attention has been given to the effect of the deinstitution-alization of the mentally ill on rates of homelessness, researchers were reporting a 20% rate of severe mental illness among skid row residents even in the 1950s, before the era of returning the hospitalized mentally ill to the community (Burt, 1992, p. 109). |
0.997218 | Ready to finally learn how to create a website? These are two main categories of diy website design tools:. Web site creators are popular because they do not require extensive knowledge of programming or web design. Creating a website with Website Builder.
Rebuilding a website from the ground up is an immersive educational adventure where you learn a new range of abilities that could be useful in the long run. You can use the great website you created yourself to increase your chance of being interviewed. Although the role you do is not related to website development, you can still use it as a means of proving your persistence, your readiness to build new capabilities, and your ability to manage projects.
No matter whether your aim is to expand your on-line portfolios or your retailing, creating your own website can be the perfect way to do so. For example, if you are a professional looking for new ways to make a living, your website will be your on-line calling-card and a portfolio you have full access to.
Designing your own website provides the right occasion to open up to inter-disciplinary perspectives and look at things from a wider angle. A wide range of professionally designed website creation utilities available to you can help you make a huge saving and redistribute these resources to other areas of your organization.
Creating the website, creating your own contents, and creating the designer objects for yourself may leave a little more cash for your web marketing. Even though it may seem frightening at first, creating a website itself is an interesting and entertaining challenging and a good occasion, both from a commercial point of vie and for your career as well. |
0.999727 | Create five or six questions for which the answers should give you an indication whether there is a business opportunity. Also, make sure that some of your probes bring the contact’s pain to the surface, helping you raise the stakes and move to the next step in the sales process.... I’m a professional voice artist with over a decade of experience providing voice over for television, radio, film, web, animation, and corporate presentations. I specialize in providing a vast range of tones, styles, and vocal affectations.
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The voice impression itself, that Caliendo is able to achieve is uncanny, but it’s the bursts of rage Caliendo adds to his impression of the NFL legend that makes it really pop.
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0.996065 | Whether one goes to an Eastern Orthodox Church in Chicago, Los Angeles, Toronto, Moscow, Athens or Thessalonica, one will hear precisely the "same" liturgy that was written by Saint John Chrysostom (the "golden-mouthed") in the 4th century. Sure, the language might be different - Greek or Slavic, but the liturgy is the same, and I know many English speaking people who have been able to follow the liturgy by using the liturgical manual, which has the English translation.
So what is this liturgy all about? Yes, when you walk into an Eastern Orthodox Church your senses are filled - smells of incense, beautiful iconography, Byzantine chants. And if you are theologically astute, and you understand the Eastern Orthodox theology of worship, then the entire church becomes a theological feast as you sing hymns and pray in unison with the faithful, citing ancient creeds and confessions of faith.
Sadly, many of the churches are nominalistic and ethno-centric rather than Christo-centric; however, for the student of theology, there can only be appreciation for the high theology and christology that this church has to offer. |
0.998869 | Which do you consider more delusional: flying a plane into a government building in retaliation of government abuse or believing that the government exists to protect your individual rights?
If you answered the former, you're certainly not alone. However, though you might not have thought twice before responding to what appeared to be a silly question, perhaps it's worth considering the moral premises that led to your belief.
On February 18, 2010 at about 10:00 AM, 53-year old father, husband, software engineer, and pilot Joe Stack flew his Piper Cherokee PA-28 airplane into an IRS building in Austin, TX. According to his 6-page suicide note that, only hours later, the FBI censored by forcing the hosting vendor to remove, the basic reason for his action was that the government had destroyed his life. Overly dramatic you think? Although I encourage you to closely read the particular reasoning he used, it isn't my intent to judge or to analyze his thoughts. My intent is to explore and compare the morality of the two proposed delusions.
A useful exercise would be to compare the "hate-filled diatribe" and "rant" of Thomas Jefferson with the "hate-filled diatribe" and "rant" of Joe Stack.
Once upon a time, journalism was about unbiased research, checking facts, commitment to truth, and a deep suspicion of government. (Why do you think freedom of the press was considered important to the Founding Fathers, so much so that they put it into the First Amendment of the Constitution?) The mainstream media-government cheerleaders, who haven't done any of the research into the deep legal issues about which Joe Stack committed suicide, as expected and in an attempt to prove delusion, immediately came out strong to express their disapproval with Joe's actions. They painted his actions as crazy. Time magazine called Joe's suicide note "rambling." ABC called Joe's note a "lengthy, hate-filled diatribe," misinterpreting Joe's anger as stemming from "years spent working and paying taxes, but not reaping the benefits of what he considered to be a functional government." CBS called it "a twisted suicide note / bomber's manifesto... in which he ranted against the IRS." The Washington Post makes a cheap attempt to associate Joe's "rant" and the "extreme elements of the Tea Party movement."
Based on personal experience but understanding the logical problem with making overly broad generalizations, I think that most people I know claim to be moral relativists. A moral relativist is someone who believes values are solely chosen based on personal preferences. In this sense, all values are arbitrary as the morality of a situation depends on how you choose to look at it, how your "culture" considers it, your own experiences, how it impacts "society," and the like. People who claim to be moral relativists make statements such as "there's no such thing as black-or-white," "the world is made of gray," "how can you be so sure you're right," "who decides what's right or wrong," "who are you to judge," "I'm not judgmental," and the like. To keep their logic consistent, those who consider themselves moral relativists (if they consider it at all) either refuse to judge a situation in terms of morality or have a confirmation bias focused on facts within a narrow context. For example, one moral relativist said to me that he wasn't sure if war was right or wrong. Another claimed to me that Joe Stack hurt and killed individuals who did nothing specific to him - they were just people doing their jobs. Ergo, what Joe Stack did was wrong. Fair enough.
Interestingly, for relativists who do judge the morality of a narrow situation, their logic requires them to refuse acknowledgement that they are still dealing in absolutes. For example, to claim that Joe Stack's actions were immoral because he killed individuals who did nothing specific to him are indirectly stating a moral absolute that it is wrong to kill someone who has not specifically harmed you. How does the relativist deal with the obvious absolute? Very simply - he refuses to see it. After all, if a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? In other words, as long as you are able to deny perception of something, it might as well never have occurred or been a factor. And, as it is only specific factors within a particular context that matter, non-existent factors are, by definition, not factors at all. Refuse to perceive it and it doesn't exist. Kind of a clean, neat trick, don't you think?
So, for those who think "the world is gray," it would make sense that Joe Stack was a deluded, bad person, as he destroyed property and life with his actions without reason. Why is their morality right compared to the converse? Look no further than the context. Easy.
Thomas Jefferson wrote in his magnum opus that "when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."
What was the context? The Declaration of Independence listed the context in terms of grievances (what the New York Times, Washington Post, ABC News, and CBS News define as "extremist," "rants," and "hate-filled diatribe" for not "reaping the benefits of... functional government"). Grievances against the government included: not following the law, passing laws that are "formidable to tyrants only," "fatiguing [people] into compliance," invading the rights of people, obstructing justice (especially through the establishment of "Judiciary Powers"), creating "Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance," keeping "Standing Armies," holding "mock Trial[s]," "imposing Taxes... without... Consent," "waging War against us," "destroy[ing] the lives of our people," "transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny," and ignoring "Petition[s] for Redress in the most humble terms." That was the context. A useful exercise would be to compare the "hate-filled diatribe" and "rant" of Thomas Jefferson with the "hate-filled diatribe" and "rant" of Joe Stack. Notice any similarities in context?
Based on his suicide note, Joe Stack likely didn't voluntarily give the government or "society" the authorization to infringe on his rights. Yet it's interesting to note how many in "society" are angry that Joe Stack infringed on their "collective rights" (e.g., destruction of a "public" building and the lives of "public" employees). Relativists quickly retort that the person who died (other than Joe himself) wasn't the "public" - he was an individual. How logical and correct that is. But then who is the public? Was Joe Stack part of the public/society? If so, and if his rights were infringed upon, where was the outrage then? Selective perception does away with this logic problem quite nicely: the IRS agent killed was an individual who had rights, and Joe thus committed a crime against society. But, no matter what wrong Joe incurred, he did not have individual rights and anything that was done to him by the IRS was not a crime against society. Did you understand that logic? Neither did I. Yet that's one of the conundrums relativists attempt to ignore.
Confused yet by the moral relativist logic? Let's try something simpler. The Nazis are always a reliable example for discussing morality, as clearly what the Nazis did was wrong. The relativist is on solid ground when he claims that the US government was morally correct to defend/protect the victims from Nazi atrocities. However, there are ample examples of people who have been victims of US aggression, both within and without the US. From "tax honesty" victims like Irwin Schiff, Larken Rose, Ed and Elaine Brown, Sherry Peel Jackson, Bob Schulz, to torture victims like Binyam Mohamed, Mohammed al Qahtani, and Omar Deghayes. In fact, Aaron Russo (producer of American classics such as The Rose featuring Bette Midler and Trading Places with Dan Akroyd and Eddie Murphy) produced an excellent documentary called America: From Freedom to Fascism on the horrors from which Joe Stack suffered and ultimately died trying to fight.
But if the US government was morally proper in using aggressive force against Nazi soliders to protect and defend victims, why is it not proper for Joe Stack to use force to protect and defend the likes of Irwin Schiff, Larken Rose, Ed and Elaine Brown, Sherry Peel Jackson, Bob Schultz, Binyam Mohamed, Mohammed al Qahtani, and Omar Deghayes (to name just a few)? Any destruction Joe Stack caused to the US government's "war machine" (I'm including the US government's war on civil liberties in that term) would mean that less US government property and "soldiers" (e.g., IRS agents) exist to destroy civil rights and property rights. Ergo, wasn't Joe Stack's action simply protecting those who were unable to defend themselves against the US government's aggression, just as the US government's actions were to defend people against the Nazis? After all, the Nazis weren't attacking the US government; on the contrary, the US government was actively trying to get into the war. If, in the virtuous name of protecting victims, the US government had the moral authority to attack foreign governments who hadn't harmed Americans, why doesn't Joe Stack have the moral authority to attack the US government who has, in fact, harmed both Americans and non-Americans?
But wait - the Nazis didn't just steal property. They actually exterminated human beings. That is quite different from the circumstances with Joe Stack (remember: limit context). Fair enough. But Joe Stack is also now dead, just as dead as the human beings that the Nazis exterminated. The IRS was able to accomplish an individual extermination without ever pulling a trigger. They motivated Joe to pull the trigger himself just by stealing his property, ignoring his civil rights, and ensuring that he had no chance to get either back. And to think some called the Nazis efficient killers.
It is terrible that Joe Stack felt he had no hope left for ever regaining his rights, much less his property. You might now empathize with him, even if you don't agree with his methods. But where was your empathy when Joe's civil rights were being infringed... when his property was being stolen... when the US government, and specifically the IRS, was destroying his life? Why didn't you have empathy then? Why didn't you stick up for Joe Stack, someone who wasn't able to defend himself against the violence of the IRS? Before February 18, it was only the IRS who used force. Before February 18, Joe Stack had never used violence against anyone. As he said in his suicide note, and as his friends and family indicated, he just wanted to live his life as he saw best and in peace.
I have read comments from people calling Joe Stack's actions selfish. A selfish act is something you do solely for your own advantage. The IRS chose to use force against Joe Stack in order to seize his property. After begging for relief nicely, Joe Stack made the only choice the IRS allowed him: to use force to destroy destruction. The IRS gained much when they stole Joe Stack's property. Yet Joe Stack gained nothing by destroying IRS property or killing an IRS employee. How can you call an action for which you gain nothing "selfish?"
Terrorism is defined as the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. The US government, as a system and as a group of individuals, is guilty of crimes against humanity through the initiation of force. The US government is guilty of destroying the individual rights of so many famous and unknown individuals. Countless individuals have written letters and petitioned for redress. Their voices were like trees falling in an unpopulated forest. The US government has removed the people's ability to fight back. The laws now work to support violence committed by the US government against individuals, while punishing individuals who use violence against the government. This is the expected and intended outcome of the underlying philosophy: moral relativism. Indeed, history repeats itself.
The Declaration of Independence clearly sanctions that individuals have the moral authority to retaliate and destroy governments that abuse the rights of others. No matter how you read his suicide note, that is clearly all Joe Stack was doing - he was retaliating against the government's violent force toward him. When the IRS violated Joe Stack's rights, they placed themselves inside a ring of violence. As any boxer knows, if you go into a ring, be prepared to get hurt. In such a situation, there is no recourse available but force. Violence is the logical result of moral relativism.
Joe Stack was not delusional for wanting freedom, as freedom is not a delusion. Joe Stack killed himself because he wasn't willing to live under the philosophical or legal terms the US government set. Getting to vote on which master restrains you and how heavy the chains that bind you will be is not freedom. Freedom is an absolute. You either have it or you don't.
My sincerest condolences to his family. Rest in peace, Joe Stack. I'm sorry we weren't there to defend you sooner. Your courage and integrity to fight tyranny, and the moral relativistic philosophy that supports it, will be missed. |
0.999993 | According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items were 77.52% lower in 2019 versus 2000 (a $15.50 difference in value).
Between 2000 and 2019: Telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items experienced an average inflation rate of -7.55% per year. This rate of change indicates significant deflation. In other words, telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items costing $20 in the year 2000 would cost $4.50 in 2019 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 2.04% during this same period, inflation for telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items was significantly lower.
In the year 2000: Pricing changed by -9.84%, which is below the average yearly change for telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items during the 2000-2019 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 2000 (3.38%), inflation for telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items was much lower.
Years with the largest changes in pricing: 2015 (-13.03%), 1999 (-11.20%), and 2016 (-10.82%).
Therefore, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, $20 in 2000 has the same "purchasing power" as $4.50 in 2019 (in the CPI category of Telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items).
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking the Consumer Price Index for Telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items in 1997. In addition to telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items, the index produces monthly data on changes in prices paid by urban consumers for a variety of goods and services. |
0.914636 | Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by self-starvation, unrealistic fear of weight gain, and conspicuous distortion of body image.
There are two subtypes of anorexia nervosa: a restricting type, characterized by strict dieting and exercise without binge eating; and a binge-eating/purging type, marked by episodes of compulsive eating with or without self-induced vomiting and/or the use of laxatives or enemas. A binge is defined as a time-limited (usually under two hours) episode of compulsive eating in which the individual consumes a significantly larger amount of food than most people would eat in similar circumstances.
Anorexia nervosa was not officially classified as a psychiatric disorder until the third edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in 1980. It is, however, a growing problem in the early 2000s among adolescent females. Its incidence in the United States has doubled since 1970. The rise in the number of reported cases reflects a genuine increase in the number of persons affected by the disorder and not simply earlier or more accurate diagnosis. Estimates of the incidence of anorexia range between 0.5 percent and 1 percent of Caucasian female adolescents. Over 90 percent of patients diagnosed with the disorder as of 2001 are female. The peak age range for onset of the disorder is 14 to 18 years. In the 1970s and 1980s, anorexia was regarded as a disorder of upper- and middle-class women, but that generalization is as of 2004 also changing. Studies indicate that anorexia is increasingly common among females of all races and social classes in the United States.
While the precise cause of the disease is not known, anorexia is a disorder that results from the interaction of cultural and interpersonal as well as biological factors.
The rising incidence of anorexia is thought to reflect the present idealization of thinness as a badge of upper-class status as well as of female beauty. In addition, the increase in cases of anorexia includes "copycat" behavior, with some patients developing the disorder from imitating other girls.
The onset of anorexia in adolescence is attributed to a developmental crisis caused by girls' changing bodies coupled with society's overemphasis on female appearance. The increasing influence of the mass media in spreading and reinforcing gender stereotypes has also been noted.
The risk of developing anorexia is higher among adolescents preparing for careers that require attention to weight and/or appearance. These high-risk groups include dancers, fashion models, professional athletes (including gymnasts, skaters, long-distance runners, and jockeys), and actresses.
Girls whose biological mothers or sisters have or have had anorexia nervosa appear to be at increased risk of developing the disorder.
Although anorexia nervosa largely affects females, its incidence in the male population is rising in the early 2000s. Less is known about the causes of anorexia in males, but some risk factors are the same as for females. These include certain occupational goals and increasing media emphasis on external appearance in men. Homosexual males are under pressure to conform to an ideal body weight that is about 20 pounds lighter than the standard attractive weight for heterosexual males.
Diagnosis of anorexia nervosa is complicated by a number of factors. One is that the disorder varies somewhat in severity from patient to patient. A second factor is denial, which is regarded as an early sign of the disorder. Many anorexics deny that they are ill and are usually brought to treatment by a family member.
Extreme weight loss in an anorexic adolescent.
it has one of the highest mortality rates of any psychiatric disorder. Moreover, the disorder may cause serious long-term health complications, including congestive heart failure, sudden death, growth retardation, dental problems, constipation , stomach rupture, swelling of the salivary glands, anemia and other abnormalities of the blood, loss of kidney function, and osteoporosis.
Most anorexics are diagnosed by pediatricians or family practitioners. Anorexics develop emaciated bodies, dry or yellowish skin, and abnormally low blood pressure. There is usually a history of amenorrhea in female patients, and sometimes of abdominal pain , constipation, or lack of energy. The patient may feel chilly or have developed lanugo, a growth of downy body hair. If the patient has been self-inducing vomiting, she may have eroded tooth enamel or Russell's sign (scars on the back of the hand). The second step in diagnosis is measurement of the patient's weight loss. DSM-IV specifies a weight loss leading to a body weight 15 percent below normal, with some allowance for body build and weight history.
The doctor will need to rule out other physical conditions that can cause weight loss or vomiting after eating, including metabolic disorders, brain tumors (especially hypothalamus and pituitary gland lesions), diseases of the digestive tract, and a condition called superior mesenteric artery syndrome. Persons with this condition sometimes vomit after meals because the blood supply to the intestine is blocked. The doctor will usually order blood tests, an electrocardiogram, urinalysis, and bone densitometry (bone density test) in order to exclude other diseases and to assess the patient's nutritional status.
The doctor will also need to distinguish between anorexia and other psychiatric disorders, including depression, schizophrenia , social phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder , and body dysmorphic disorder. Two diagnostic tests that are often used are the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT) and the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI).
Treatment of anorexia nervosa includes both short- and long-term measures and requires assessment by dietitians and psychiatrists as well as medical specialists. Therapy is often complicated by the patient's resistance or failure to carry out a treatment plan.
Hospital treatment includes individual and group therapy as well as refeeding and monitoring of the patient's physical condition. Treatment usually requires two to four months in the hospital. In extreme cases, hospitalized patients may be force-fed through a tube inserted in the nose (nasogastric tube) or into a vein (hyperalimentation).
Anorexics who are not severely malnourished can be treated by outpatient psychotherapy. The types of treatment recommended are supportive rather than insight-oriented and include behavioral approaches as well as individual or group therapy. Family therapy is often recommended when the patient's eating disorder is closely tied to family dysfunction. Self-help groups are often useful in helping anorexics find social support and encouragement. Psychotherapy with anorexics is a slow and difficult process; about 50 percent of patients continue to have serious psychiatric problems after their weight has stabilized.
Anorexics have been treated with a variety of medications, including antidepressants , antianxiety drugs, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and lithium carbonate. The effectiveness of medications in treatment regimens is as of 2004 debated. However, at least one study of fluoxetine (Prozac) showed it helped the patient maintain weight gained while in the hospital.
A key focus of treatment for anorexia nervosa is teaching the principles of healthy eating and improving disordered eating behaviors. A dietician or nutritionist plays an important role in forming a nutrition plan for the patient; such plans are individualized and ensure that the patient is consuming enough food to gain or maintain weight as needed and stabilize medically. The anorexic's weight and food intake are closely monitored to ensure that the plan is being followed.
Figures for long-term recovery vary from study to study, but reliable estimates are that 40 to 60 percent of anorexics make a good physical and social recovery, and 75 percent gain weight. The long-term mortality rate for anorexia is estimated at around 10 percent, although some studies give a lower figure of 3 to 4 percent. The most frequent causes of death associated with anorexia are starvation, electrolyte imbalance, heart failure, and suicide.
Short of major long-term changes in the larger society, the best strategy for prevention of anorexia is the cultivation of healthy attitudes toward food, weight control, and beauty (or body image) within families. Early treatment such as counseling may help to prevent early signs of disordered eating from progressing into more serious behaviors.
Amenorrhea —The absence or abnormal stoppage of menstrual periods.
Binge —A pattern of eating marked by episodes of rapid consumption of large amounts of food; usually food that is high in calories.
Body dysmorphic disorder —A psychiatric disorder marked by preoccupation with an imagined physical defect.
Hyperalimentation —A method of refeeding anorexics by infusing liquid nutrients and electrolytes directly into central veins through a catheter.
Lanugo —A soft, downy body hair that covers a normal fetus beginning in the fifth month and usually shed by the ninth month. Also refers to the fine, soft hair that develops on the chest and arms of anorexic women. Also called vellus hair.
Purging —The use of vomiting, diuretics, or laxatives to clear the stomach and intestines after a binge.
Russell's sign —A scraped or raw area on the patient's knuckles, caused by self-induced vomiting.
Superior mesenteric artery syndrome —A condition in which a person vomits after meals due to blockage of the blood supply to the intestine.
See also Binge eating disorder ; Bulimia nervosa .
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Pritts, Sarah D., and Jeffrey Susman. "Diagnosis of Eating Disorders in Primary Care." American Family Physician 67, no. 2 (January 15, 2003): 297–304.
Rome, E. S. "Eating Disorders." Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics of North America 30, no. 2 (June 1, 2003): 353–77.
Rosen, David S. "Eating Disorders in Children and Young Adolescents: Etiology, Classification, Clinical Features, and Treatment." Adolescent Medicine 14, no. 1 (February 1, 2003): 49–59.
——. "Eating Disorders in Adolescent Males." Adolescent Medicine 14, no. 3 (October 1, 2003): 677–89.
Sigman, Gary S. "Eating Disorders in Children and Adolescents." Pediatric Clinics of North America 50, no. 5 (October 2003): 1139–77.
American Anorexia/Bulimia Association. 418 East 76th St., New York, NY 10021. Telephone: 212/734–1114.
National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. Web site: http://www.anad.org.
National Institute of Mental Health Eating Disorders Program. Building 10, Room 3S231. 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892. Telephone: 301/496–1891. |
0.932595 | A charge card is a card that provides a direct debit payment method enabling the cardholder to make purchases which are paid for by the card issuer, to whom the cardholder becomes indebted. The cardholder is obligated to repay the debt to the card issuer in full by the due date, usually on a monthly basis, or be subject to late fees and restrictions on further card use. Charge cards are distinct from credit cards in that credit cards are revolving credit instruments that do not need to be paid in full every month and a balance may be carried over, on which an interest is paid. Charge cards are typically issued without spending limits, but credit cards usually have a specified credit limit that the cardholder may not exceed.
In 1914, Western Union opened the first charge account for its customers and provided them with a paper identification. There were many larger department stores which opened store charge accounts for their customers with paper identification, enabling the customer to make purchases on credit provided by the store. However, these accounts could be used only within the store which issued them. In 1950, Diners Club began opening charge accounts with paper identification cards, directed at the travel and entertainment markets. The novel feature of these cards was that the charge card could be used in a large number of stores. These stores had to enter an agreement with Diners Club, and pay a fee to the company. For the fee, Diners Club carried the cost of setting up accounts, authorizing each transaction, processing transactions and collections, bore the financing costs and assumed the risk of cardholders defaulting. The new system was especially appealing to smaller stores in competition with the larger stores but who could not justify setting up their own charge account facilities. Eventually the larger stores began accepting these cards, testifying that the fees charged by the card operator were lower than the store's cost in running their own store accounts. In 1957, American Express also entered the field, and in 1959 was the first company to issue embossed plastic charge cards to ISO/IEC 7810 standards.
In Europe, the MasterCard-affiliated Maestro brand (which is a debit card rather than a charge card) replaced the European Eurocheque brand for payment cards in 2002. Many Eurocheque cards, particularly in such countries as Austria and Germany, were charge cards branded with the Eurocheque logo. In addition, the European Eurocard, issued as the competitor for American Express was, and in some countries (such as the Nordic countries) still is, a charge card. Therefore, the majority of MasterCards in these countries still are charge cards. Visa charge cards are also available in Europe.
The user of the charge card has to pay the balance of their account at the end of each month and the charge card company, unlike a credit card, does not charge interest. A charge card company's main source of revenue is the merchant fee, which is a percentage of the transaction value which typically ranges between 1 and 4%, plus an interchange or minimum fee.
Many charge cards have the option for users to pay for some purchases over time. American Express charge card customers, for instance, can enroll in the Extended Payment Option (internally referred to as ExPO) to be able to pay for purchases over $200 over time, or in Sign & Travel to be able to pay for eligible travel-related expenses over time.
Most charge cards also have a feature called No Preset Spending Limit (NPSL). While consumers often take NPSL to mean that their cards are without limits, NPSL really means that a card's limit changes, often from month-to-month, based on factors such as consumer charging and payment history as well overall economic trends. According to a CardHub.com NPSL study, the way NPSL charge cards are reported to the major credit bureaus varies by issuer and can lead to artificial increases in credit utilization, thereby lowering one's FICO Score.
Governments and large businesses often use charge cards to pay for and keep track of expenses related to official business; these are often referred to as purchasing cards. Some retailers and banks issue charge cards to customers (ex. British Petroleum, Speedway, Shell Oil Company, ExxonMobil, ARCO, Sinclair Oil Corporation, Kwik Fill, Kwik Trip, Silicon Valley Bank, Sunoco, FleetCor Technologies, Inc., U.S. Bank, Lloyds Bank, World Fuel Services, Casey's General Stores, Edenred, 7-Eleven, Chevron Corporation, Valero Energy, MAPCO Express, Inc., Citgo, Lukoil, Phillips 66, Alon USA, Holiday Stationstores, PNC Financial Services, Citibank, Gulf Oil LP, Murphy USA, GetGo, Kum & Go, Meijer, QuikTrip, Sheetz, Wawa, Inc., Marathon Petroleum, Circle K, CEFCO, EZ GO Stores, Petrol Plus Region, Mansfield Energy Corp., Simonson Station Stores, ASAP Energy Inc., Daigle Oil Company, Riggins Inc., P-Fleet Inc.). Some American Express and Diners Club cards are charge cards, rather than credit or debit cards such as VISA and MasterCard. WEX Inc. issues 13 charge cards (all fuel cards). The SELECT Black Card is a charge card.
^ "No Pre-Set Spending Limit Credit Card Study – 2010". CardHub.com. Retrieved 2011-06-23. |
0.928558 | Please read the following information carefully. This isn't your typical, boilerplate disclaimer. And this document contains two distinct parts.
Part 1: DISCLOSURES ABOUT OUR BUSINESS contains critical information that will help you use our work appropriately and give you a far better understanding of how our business works - both the benefits it might offer you and the inevitable limitations of our products.
Part 2: PROMOTION DETAILS contains facts, figures, explanations, annotations, full testimonials, and other resources about the promotional piece you just viewed. If you have questions or want more information about the marketing material you just viewed, the first place to look is Part 2 of this document.
Investing always involves the risk of loss.
Paradoxically, investing is often most risky when it appears safest. This lesson of history led us to adopt a rather unconventional strategy - a contrarian approach to investing.
We believe our approach has great merit, based upon our reading of history of our own track record to date. But as you surely have heard before, the past isn't necessarily a guide to the future. No matter how well we do our job, no matter how much research we conduct, no matter how promising the opportunity, or certain our analyst... you cannot escape the fact that every investment opportunity (and particularly in stocks) comes with the risk of a loss.
These risks are part of the reason why great investment ideas are rare and incredibly valuable. You should understand why a business - like ours - would be willing to share investment ideas with you and under what terms.
We've prepared this document to help you understand exactly why we publish our best investment ideas (instead of simply investing in them or managing a hedge fund or other investment pool). It will give you insight into the specific conflict of interest we face as publishers and describe how we collect our track records. It will describe our posture in regards to guarantees and refunds. It will explain the regulatory and legal framework that governs how we operate and perhaps most important, it will set the stage for a long and happy business relationship.
We've been successful in this business over many years because we've always been dedicated to serving our subscribers by only publishing materials we'd want our own families to read and follow, by always being completely transparent about the utility of our products (track records), and by always considering how we'd want to be treated if the roles were reversed.
If you'll take the time to read this document, we believe you will be far more likely to succeed using our materials. You will know more about our approach to serving investors. You'll know more about the limits of what we can help you achieve. And most of all, you will know a lot more about the risks you inevitably face as an investor.
The first thing to know about our business (Stansberry Research) is that we are NOT money managers, brokers, or fiduciaries of any kind.
Our published work is NOT a low-price replacement for an experienced money manager, broker, or investment advisor. Instead, Stansberry Research LLC is a publishing company and the indicators, strategies, reports, articles, and all other features of our products are provided for informational and educational purposes only.
Under no circumstances should you construe anything that appears in our newsletters, reports, or on our website as personalized investment advice. Our recommendations and analysis are based on Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, current events, interviews, corporate press releases, and what we've learned as financial journalists. It may contain errors, and you shouldn't make any investment decision based solely on what you read here.
If you are not an experienced investor, we urge you to get as much education as possible and to consult a licensed individual advisor before making investments of any kind.
The regulatory regime for investment advisors and money managers makes it difficult (if not impossible) to serve both the general public and individuals. We have chosen to provide our research to the general public for a number of good reasons. For one, we know that Wall Street has enjoyed a dramatic advantage over the average investor for decades. And we want to level the playing field as much as possible. But the most important reason for serving the general public relates to something called the "prudent man" rule.
Historically, the best investment opportunities have arisen amid circumstances most investors believed were risky. For example, opportunities to buy large-cap U.S. stocks at attractive prices have occurred almost exclusively during periods of great economic uncertainty. Recently such opportunities arose in 1987, 1994, 1998, 2002, and 2008. We are confident that such opportunities will occur again. Excessive greed and fear are the emotions that drive the public markets.
Likewise, individual securities often trade at the most attractive prices when serious problems arise in a given business. We call these company specific problems "warts." Like warts on someone's face, it usually requires a strong stomach to see past them and into a brighter day. However, precisely because most investors are repulsed by such securities, investors willing to study them can produce large investment returns.
We seek to take advantage of these opportunities for the benefit of our subscribers. As I'll explain later, our firm does not own any stocks, nor do we allow our investment analysts to own the stocks they cover for our subscribers.
Investment fiduciaries are often forbidden by regulations - most notably the so-called "prudent man" rule - from taking a contrarian approach like ours with a majority of their investments. These regulations date back to 1830 (though the rules have been significantly revised over the years). The rule boils down to a simple concept: Fiduciaries have an obligation to avoid taking investment risks that are contrary to the public's opinion.
Individual investment managers with fiduciary obligations are legally required "to observe how men of prudence, discretion, and intelligence manage their own affairs." These rules essentially require registered investment advisors to invest alongside the public. They are forbidden, for example, from shorting stocks. This makes taking a truly contrarian approach nearly impossible because of regulatory and legal liability concerns.
Our company's primary approach to investing is based in contrarian strategies that may be significantly at odds with conventional wisdom and mainstream approaches to capital management.
That means many of the recommendations and strategies we cover in our publications will seem risky and controversial. It also helps explain why investors and media outlets that follow a more conventional "prudent man" approach frequently criticize our work and even accuse us of malfeasance.
We urge you to consider our investment ideas carefully and to follow all of our strategies for risk management, especially position sizing and trailing stop losses. But most of all... we urge you to educate yourself about the philosophy that underlies our approach. If you will take the time to understand why we believe our strategies are likely to work, you can acquire the emotional fortitude and the discipline necessary to successfully apply our strategies. If you lack this understanding, you are very unlikely to succeed.
We are NOT responsible for your results - good or bad. We will NOT take credit (in the form of a percentage of your profits) for your success. Nor are we legally liable for any of your losses.
Subscribing to our newsletters will not make us responsible for your investment results. You will bear the full burden of the risks you decide to take. As we will regularly remind you: It's your money, and it's your responsibility. Our lack of fiduciary responsibility might cause you to second-guess our work. That's fine with us.
We urge you to be critical and skeptical of all investment recommendations, no matter the source. But the simple fact is, if we were subject to legal liability for any losses resulting from our recommendations, our business would disappear overnight.
A very important warning: We make mistakes.
We are human. We make mistakes. Sometimes our ideas and hunches turn out to be wrong (though not often, we're pleased to report).
More frequently our "timing" is off. That is, an investment theme we expect to develop only does so in a timeframe that makes it difficult to earn a profit. And of course, there are also times when we are misled, despite reasonable efforts to confirm our sources.
Based on the large number of customers we have acquired and retained and based on our own internally kept track records (more on these below), we feel confident that on the whole our work is extremely reliable. We doubt you'll find work by any other publisher that is as detailed and well-sourced. Nevertheless, it is important for you to realize that no published materials anywhere - not even the New York Times - is regularly published without at least occasional mistakes. When we make mistakes, you can count on us to correct them as quickly and honestly as possible.
It is very unlikely (though it does happen from time to time) that you will become wealthy from trading stocks, bonds, options, commodities, or other financial instruments. The most realistic way to become wealthy, in our view, is by building your own business or by playing a key role in the creation or the significant growth of an existing one. Our newsletters are intended to serve people who are in the process of wealth building by helping them manage their savings or people who already have significant amounts of savings earn a higher average return.
Why not simply manage money or keep our ideas for ourselves?
Most knowledgeable investors are willing to share their ideas with other investors in exchange for a fee. Sharing ideas doesn't reduce returns and can generate substantial amounts of income for good investors. Fees for top-quality money managers are high - especially for investors who are able to pursue contrarian strategies. Hedge funds, for example, typically charge 2% of assets under management and 20% of profits. Fees generated by successful hedge funds can reach into billions of dollars.
While we have considered for many years launching such a fund, the regulatory burden and the cost of raising large amounts of capital, are significant. On the other hand, thanks to the First Amendment, there are relatively few legal burdens to publishing and thanks to the Internet, there are few capital constraints.
These low barriers to entry allowed us to achieve a significant amount of success very quickly. We reached 100,000 subscribers within five years of operations. Within about 10 years of operations, we'd reached well over a million total readers and more than 500,000 paid subscribers.
Thus, in about 10 years, we grew from a start-up (Porter Stansberry wrote our first sales letter on a borrowed laptop computer from his kitchen table) to the world's leading subscription-based financial publisher (according to various databases of subscriber figures). We know of no other business in our industry that has ever achieved growth equal to even a fraction of these numbers so quickly.
We don't believe such rapid success would have been possible if we'd attempted to build a money-management business.
You should know that we attribute our success to three simple factors: our contrarian approach (we cover valuable opportunities others won't or can't), the number of very highly skilled analysts we were able to recruit and retain (primarily by offering a work environment that promised lucrative rewards for success with almost no conflicts of interest), and the integrity with which we have always approached our endeavors. Or as our founder likes to say in jest, "All it takes is a decade of hard work to become an overnight success."
Our path to success was set in motion by a simple choice: We decided to publish our investment ideas to millions of people around the world at a relatively low price rather than sharing our ideas exclusively with a very small group of wealthy investors at a high price. In the long term, for this approach to be successful, we must continue to provide large numbers of subscribers with unique, contrarian investment advice that is reliable and profitable.
We have structured our business in an effort to avoid conflicts of interest, but a significant potential conflict of interest still exists.
We believe everyone involved in finance has some conflict of interest. Hedge-fund managers, for example have a tremendous incentive to produce short-term capital gains so that they can generate fee income (20% of gains). This might lead them to take short-term risks at the expense of safer and more lucrative long-term gains. This conflict will exist even if the manager keeps all or most of his wealth inside the fund. It also helps explain why successful hedge-fund managers often end up earning far more from running the fund than their clients make investing in it.
We generate our profits almost exclusively from the subscriptions we sell. While our business generates marginal amounts of advertising revenues (from insert advertising and banner ads on our website), the vast majority of our income comes from subscriptions. This was deliberate. We do not want our subscribers to wonder whether we were recommending a company or an investment because the company or investment sponsor advertised with us. This has been one of the ways that we have steered clear of potential conflicts of interest but it's not the only one.
We don't accept compensation (or favors) from the companies we recommend as investments. As you may know, many newsletter companies do not adhere to the same guidelines that we do. Some accept compensation from the companies whose stock they recommend and cover.
We could argue that our policies described above leave us completely free of any conflict of interest. Other financial publishers will surely make such a claim. But it's not completely true. We have made efforts to structure our business so that we don't have any conflicts of interest. But despite our efforts, we do have a conflict. It's a conflict that's systemic throughout the investment community and complex to explain... so bear with me.
The investing public has the unfailing tendency to rush into the worst possible investments at the worst possible time. We call this the "paradox" of finance. People can figure out when it's a good time to buy groceries - when they're on sale. But when it comes to securities, people tend to ignore them when they're cheap and stampede into them when they're expensive.
For example... you'll remember that in 1999 and 2000 investors all rushed into tech stocks... at the wrong time. Then, they rushed into the housing market... at the wrong time. We believe this irrational behavior is linked to the emotional need many people have to conform. It's the same psychology, essentially, that powers the fashion business.
We can't say what investment passion will strike the crowd next, but we know, when it occurs, it would prove lucrative for us to publish information confirming the crowd's passions... even when it involves making bad or dangerous recommendations. That is, during bubble periods, we have a financial incentive to help inflate the bubble because that's the kind of information the public will demand in those periods.
This conflict - the temptation to sell the public the information it wants even if it's not in their interests - isn't unique to financial publishers. All forms of media face this conflict. That's why, at market tops, you will commonly find magazine covers and other types of mainstream media embracing the bubble.
We attempt to balance this conflict by focusing on proven contrarian approaches to investing. We further advocate strict risk-management strategies that have so far largely prevented us from being caught up in investment manias.
You should also know that the structure of our company and the factors that drive our profits help minimize the financial temptation to "go with the crowd" in the short term. Essentially all of our profits are derived from renewal sales or additional sales to existing customers. We typically market to new customers at a loss. This allows us to reach more potential subscribers and, over time, to build a bigger business. It also means that unless our subscribers choose to renew in large numbers, we are unlikely to succeed at our business. This helps to align our interests with the long-term success of our subscribers.
We believe we are unique in this long-term strategy among all financial publishers.
Just to be clear, though, no financial business is totally immune to all conflicts of interest - just as no investment is totally free of risk.
No matter how dedicated our executives are to the success and wellbeing of our subscribers, at least some of our employees will be motivated by a need to sell, to motivate, to persuade, and to captivate our subscribers to produce revenue for our business. It is difficult to sell anything without embracing, at least somewhat, the mood of the public. Thus, we urge all subscribers to reference our most recent newsletters and to consult with an individual advisor before making any investments.
Likewise, we would urge you not to rely - at all - on any of our marketing pieces or sales letters when making your investment decisions. These publications are designed to sell our research products and thus, by design, lack the more fully balanced analysis of the risks and rewards of any particular investment idea that you will find in our newsletters.
We offer one of the most generous refund policies in our industry... and perhaps in the world.
More so than any other business we can name, we believe in "parting as friends." If we cannot meet your expectations, you should always have the opportunity to call us on the phone, tell us how we've failed you, and get your money back.
That is why, since the first day of our operations, we have always maintained in-house customer service, hiring college-educated, bright, and dedicated young people and employing them in our headquarter buildings. They work in the same building as our senior executives and our owners. Whatever the purpose of your call, it will be answered promptly and handled professionally. Our wait times are normally less than one minute. And our average call duration is less than five minutes. We are open for business (on the phone for customer service) from Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. through 5 p.m. Eastern time. Our phone number is: 1-888-261-2693.
This is one of the main reasons why, despite running such a large business, we still maintain an "A+" rating with America's leading consumer advocacy group.
Some cynical readers have suggested that we offer such generous refunds because we don't really believe in (or stand behind) our work. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our guarantees reflect the complete confidence we have in our products. Our goal is to never publish anything our founder wouldn't want his own parents to read and to follow.
Our basic philosophy is that we have to earn your business, which is why we offer you the chance to ask for your money back. This "we haven't earned it yet" attitude encourages us to continue to do great work for you.
But that's not all we promise.
To encourage subscribers to try our products, we further provide complete refunds on virtually all of our entry-level products for periods of up to 30 days (our offers vary). We only pay sales commissions on a post-refund basis. Thus our employees have no financial incentive to mislead anyone. Furthermore, our potential customers are encouraged to try our products with zero financial risk. If we can't deliver on our promises, they're entitled to all of their money back on virtually every entry-level product we offer. You can "get to know us" without taking a single penny of risk.
In most cases, our investing and trading services also come with a 30-day guarantee as well. We want you to be completely satisfied with your decision. If you’re not, our Baltimore-based customer service team will promptly refund the full amoun fee of your purchase if you call within 30 days.
We include this fee to discourage people from signing up for our more sophisticated trading services, accessing all of the research and then cancelling. We think it is unfair to our paying subscribers for people to access the information with no intention of remaining a subscriber. We want to find customers who are serious about our work…not people that are looking for loopholes to access valuable information for free.
Subscribers may also request a sample issue (containing out-of-date information from a previously published newsletter) from our customer service team to evaluate for themselves, at any time, the value of these products.
The policies - offering plenty of no-risk-whatsoever opportunities in conjunction with asking customers to make a small commitment on certain products - provides a reasonable balance between the rights we have as a content provider with valuable information and those of our customers to avoid making a purchase that's doesn't match their investing styles or interests.
From time to time, we will make offers that don’t include the option to receive a refund. A skeptical reader might suggest that we are trying to trick people into subscribing to a service that isn’t right for them so we can make more money. But the exact opposite is true. We want to limit the sales of that particular offer to only the most serious readers. We want to make sure that the subscribers to these offers intend to subscribe and stick with that particular newsletter.
In the past we’ve had people subscribe just to read about the situation we were describing in the marketing offer. They would download all of the information and then call us for a refund. That is unfair to the other subscribers and to us as publishers. Those aren’t the kind of subscribers we are looking for. We want subscribers that understand the value of our work and are committing to being a long-term customer of our business. So, we use the “no refund” offer exclusively for situations where we want to limit the sales to subscribers who are serious about buying the information and remaining subscribers.
If a customer buys one of these offers and finds out that they can’t act on the advice our Customer Service team will find a way to apply the money from that purchase to another newsletter via our credit system.
We cannot imagine a reasonable person being disappointed in our willingness to provide a refund, a subscription extension, or a credit. Our policy - of always being willing to "part as friends" - has kept our business on the right side of nearly every potential conflict. In over 15 years of operations, we've never once been the subject of any Federal Trade Commission investigation or of any serious dispute with a customer, a partner, or an employee.
No matter which one of our products you purchase the terms of the offer are always clearly described on the order form. We strive to make sure every customer understands exactly what they are buying, how much it costs and what their options are if they choose not to keep their subscription.
While we know it is impossible to avoid every potential misunderstanding and to make everyone happy all of the time, we're proud of our ability to consistently please so many of our customers. We have among the industry's highest renewal rates and, as far as we know, the largest base of lifetime customers. Our company's most important asset is our reputation for trustworthiness, and maintaining that reputation is our highest goal.
Why our business model is almost exclusively based on subscriptions.
You may have noticed that the vast majority of our products are offered only via subscription. To protect free speech and to encourage public debate and the exchange of ideas, the SEC has carved out what's known as the "publisher's exemption" from certain securities laws.
This exemption doesn't mean that we can write whatever we want. It means that we aren't required to be licensed by the SEC. It means that we can publish freely, without "prior restraint." And it means that we can write about things registered advisors would find difficult to get through their compliance departments - such as extremely contrarian advice.
To qualify for this exemption from securities licensing (and avoid the "prudent man" restrictions we mentioned earlier), we must be a "bona fide" publisher, which under law is defined as a publisher who offers commentary to the public on a regular schedule via subscription. The SEC frowns on "tip sheets" that sell one-off reports. These policies help create accountability for publishers. If we aren't able to live up to our promises and the expectations we set, our clients have the right to demand a refund. And that's why we've always had such a liberal and generous refund policy. We have no problem proving our value to subscribers. It's exactly how we'd want to be treated if our roles were reversed.
Newsletter track records: Why they're not like mutual funds.
The mutual-fund industry has become, like the wine trade, addicted to extremely simplistic, almost ritualistic, evaluations of quality. A wine is a 96. That's great. A fund is five-star. That's great. What's your newsletter's rank?
The problem is, unlike a mutual fund, newsletter track records have no precise starting point or ending point. The size (number of positions) grows over time, as the letter adds recommendations. Thus, a newsletter can't really be compared - directly - to either a mutual fund or a stock index.
The closest comparison we can manage for newsletters is to give you the average annual return of each recommendation made and the average holding period. This gives you the annualized return - which is an approximation of what you might have earned following the advice of a newsletter.
It's far from precise. It doesn't account for taxes (if you're investing in a taxable account) or "slippage" - which is the price you paid when you bought versus the recommended price and the price you got when you sold versus the recommended sell price. We can only track prices that are available in the market at the time we publish.
Occasionally, someone will complain that our track records aren't reliable because they don't reflect actual investment returns. It's important for you to realize that your results might be better or worse than the results we represent. We simply have no way to know what your entry price was, what your exit price was, or what taxes you've paid (or will eventually pay). We strive to make our track records accurate. They may, or they may not, be representative of your actual results.
Now... here's the problem with track records and the reliance some investors place on them.
There's not a single mutual fund in the world whose long-term track record is great (10 years with double-digit annual returns) that doesn't also have periods of terrible investment performance. Likewise in the newsletter business, we have some analysts and some strategies that excel during bull markets. Some that excel during bear markets. And some that can produce very consistent (but not world-beating) results. We had an editor, for example, close out 136 winning positions in a row, where the average return on each position was roughly 10%. Of course, he held those positions open for two to three months. So his annualized return over that period was 52%.
Nearly all of our products are based on a fundamental approach to securities analysis. A few offer advice based on the market's technical outlook. We've developed a preference for fundamental factors (like the underlying quality of the business and a rational evaluation of the stock's intrinsic value versus its market price) because we've found these qualitative measures to be the most reliable.
The most important thing that you need to understand is that no single investment strategy (or investment analyst) can provide consistently market-beating advice at all times and in all markets. Our analysts use a variety of contrarian-based strategies. Our efforts are designed to allow you to use the right tools in the right market conditions.
All of our publications maintain a track record. Virtually all of them post their open positions on our website and almost all of them are also printed with each issue. All of the back issues are available on our website. You can see for yourself how each analyst has done with every recommendation he or she has ever made. You can see how each of our products has performed in the past, during various market conditions. All of these things we do to inform our readers about the products that they've purchased and represent our efforts to be transparent.
Each year we publish the "Report Card" in which our founder, Porter Stansberry, personally reviews all of the recommendations made across all of our products. He selects various time frames for these reviews based on market movements - bull markets, bear markets, flat markets.
In these reviews we publish the hard data - the number of recommendations, the percentage of winners, the average returns, the days held. This gives our readers a good idea of what to expect from our various publications in any given market. But remember, past performance is no guarantee of future success.
To give you some context, in early 2015, we gave one of our services, Extreme Value, a grade of A in our annual Report Card because the Editor, Dan Ferris, had an 69% Win Percentage and an average annualized return of 16.3%. Similarly, we gave Porter Stansberry's service, Stansberry's Investment Advisory, a B with a 55% Win Percentage and an average return of 15.4%.
Again, your results will likely vary - you may make more or you may make less, possibly much less and you may lose all of your investment if you act on the information that we publish.
Our idea is simple: Provide transparency to our customers. Let the readers decide how to best utilize the resources we provide.
Please understand: The best thing an investment research product can bring you is a good idea that's right for the market conditions and offers an overwhelming potential for success versus a moderate level of risk.
No investment newsletter is likely to make you rich overnight, although we've seen huge profits in volatile industries, like mining and biotechnology. Most of your success as an investor will be determined by how much capital you have to invest, how much time you have to invest, and your asset allocation, that is, how much of your capital you have in stocks versus bonds and cash. If you want to be successful as an investor, our best advice is to become an expert at avoiding risk. Simply putting your money into high-quality stocks and bonds is very likely your best bet.
Another way we try to avoid conflicts: Our analysts do not buy the stocks they recommend to you.
Our company policy forbids our investment analysts from owning any stock they write about. In addition, other employees of Stansberry Research and associated individuals may not purchase recommended securities until 24 hours after the recommendations have been distributed to our subscribers on the Internet, or 72 hours after a direct-mail publication is sent.
Some subscribers profess to be disappointed that our analysts don't "eat their own cooking" or have any "skin in the game" since they aren't allowed to own even a token amount of the stocks they've recommended. That opinion is naïve. Nothing is more important to the long-term success of an analyst in our industry than a reputation for producing excellent results for their subscribers. An analyst's standing in our company and our industry is measured by his or her ability to produce a winning track record using a given strategy. This is real skin in the game - far more skin than simply investing a few thousand dollars in a particular stock.
This position also allows our analysts to be genuinely independent. That guarantees us that the only reason they have to recommend a stock, to re-recommend a stock, or to recommend selling a stock is that they fully and sincerely believe that's the best course of action. Without this independence the possibilities of a conflict of interest are infinite.
And we have a legal reason to keep our writers out of the stocks they write about. The SEC claims complete jurisdiction (despite the publisher's exemption) over anything that's written about securities that are purchased in connection with the purchase or sale of a security.
As long as our writers aren't purchasing securities, they are granted far greater protections under the First Amendment because their speech isn't connected with the purchase or sale of any security. As we explained earlier, this doesn't mean we can write anything we want. It simply means our writers are able to venture much farther into contrarian strategies without facing significant legal liabilities. This gives us the ability to cover opportunities that other research groups, which may also be buying securities, cannot.
We have been sued and threatened with lawsuits, from time to time, because of the things we've published.
From time to time, our contrarian views and our relentless efforts to publish information that's valuable leads us into conflicts with government regulators and powerful corporations.
You might think that, in America, the freedom of the press is sacrosanct, but sadly, the truth is our ability to give our subscribers extremely valuable information is, from time to time, severely restricted.
For example, over a decade ago in 2002, Porter Stansberry claimed in a published report that a former unit of the Department of Energy - a unit that was sold to investors in 1996 and is now known as USEC - was withholding material information from the public about an agreement that had been made. Specifically, Porter learned that the company would soon announce a very advantageous pricing agreement with its Russian supplier of uranium, the company's key raw material input.
Because USEC was trading at a very distressed price (half of book value) and was paying such a high dividend (yielding more than 8%), Porter believed the stock would soar once this long-pending agreement was made public.
Based on what he'd learned from a company insider (the director of Investor Relations), Porter wrote that the agreement would be announced at a major nuclear summit featuring presidents Bush and Putin on May 22, 2002. The insider confirmed Porter's analysis, telling him to "watch the stock on May 22." Later Porter sent a complete copy of his report to his source to confirm all of the facts. The source never requested any correction.
And in fact, the long-awaited announcement about the agreement came about a month later, on June 19, 2002.
Following the new agreement with the Russian uranium supplier, the stock traded all the way up to nearly $18 over the following three years - more than doubling as Porter predicted.
Keep in mind, Porter did not trade this stock. Instead of taking advantage of this information, he published a report, which was made available to all of our subscribers urging them to buy the company before news of the pending agreement was made public. In our view, that's what any responsible journalist would have done given the circumstances.
But, instead of pursuing USEC's managers and bankers for withholding material information from the public, the SEC decided to sue us. Even more ironically, they accused us of lying and charged us with securities fraud. Remember: Porter didn't use this information for his own personal gain. He didn't buy the stock. And, he didn't tell his friends to buy the stock. Instead, he published a report about what he'd learned and offered to sell it to any (and all) interested investors.
He also sent his complete report (and the accompanying marketing materials) back to his source at the company. The source never asked for a correction. The company when asked by multiple media outlets (Bloomberg and Reuters) never offered a correction to our reporting. In our view these facts proved conclusively that our report was correct in every material aspect. And, of course, as everyone knows now, the new pricing agreement was in fact approved.
We couldn't imagine how the SEC would win this case given these facts. And, we didn't believe they had any jurisdiction in any case. They brought the suit against us alleging we'd committed fraud in connection with the purchase or sale of a security. We don't broker securities. We don't manage money. We're not fiduciaries. The SEC isn't normally in the business of suing the Wall Street Journal when it gets its facts mixed up - assuming we had in fact gotten the story wrong.
We saw this case as government retribution pure and simple. We'd pointed the finger at the Department of Energy and alleged government officials were profiting by gaming the timing of USEC's announcement. And the government was going to try to silence us - and put us out of business.
We passed up the opportunity to settle this case - which is what most Wall Street banks do when the SEC comes knocking. Instead, our company spent millions fighting the SEC because we knew we did nothing wrong and that our best interests were always aligned with our subscribers.
More than 20 publishers, broadcasters, and press freedom organizations agreed with us and they spent their own funds hiring lawyers to support our position. Our supporters were a who's who in publishing including the Associated Press, New York Times Co., Washington Post Co., Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Society of Professional Journalists, Gannett, Hearst, McClatchy and many others.
The Maryland Court of Appeals - the state's highest court - unanimously agreed with our position that the SEC does not regulate the media, and we won the state action. But the federal court somehow determined that the First Amendment was not at play, and we lost the federal case. Incredibly, even though our advice would have made money - a lot of money - for our subscribers, we were forced to pay a $1 million fine. That was on top of the millions we'd spent on attorneys defending ourselves.
Naturally, we appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court because we did not understand how we could win unanimously in state court and lose in federal court. But as you may know, the U.S. Supreme Court receives approximately 10,000 requests for appeal each year and accepts only 75 - 80 of those cases.
We learned a valuable lesson through this process: When it comes to opposing the federal government in a lawsuit, the facts rarely matter.
A few years later, we were threatened with another lawsuit, this time by the Social Security Administration. We had uncovered what was essentially a secret program, only known about by Washington insiders. The program allowed Social Security recipients to elect to begin receiving their benefits at age 62. Normally that meant you had to settle for smaller monthly payments than if you waited until 65 to begin collecting. But this program allowed people "in-the-know" to switch their election at age 65 and receive the full payments. In short, this was a program that allowed the insiders to seriously cheat the program.
We published all of the details and urged hundreds of thousands of our readers to take advantage of the program. The Social Security Administration then threated to sue us for $2 billion. They claim to own the words "Social Security" and claimed we were using their words without permission. And sure enough, back in the 1960s, Congress passed a special law that makes it a crime to use the words "Social Security" without permission. Obviously, they don't enforce this law, except selectively. But we also knew that this time, if we lost, they could put us out of business. We settled for $76,000.
Yes, that's right. We paid a huge fine just for writing about how retired Americans could enjoy the full benefits of Social Security - benefits Washington insiders were obviously trying to keep for themselves.
If you doubt our interpretation of events, just consider this... within a few months of our reporting, Social Security canceled the program citing a wave of new applicants and the resulting financial burden they caused the program.
We've also been threatened with lawsuits from time to time by various large corporations who object to our writing. Often times it's companies who don't want us to tell people about the advantages of owning their shares. This might seem hard to believe until you think about it carefully. When we tell thousands of subscribers about good investment opportunities, we make it more difficult for insiders to continue to keep good opportunities nearly private.
There's no doubt that, if we're doing our job and doing it well, we will be sued or threatened with lawsuits from time to time. We urge you to consider these cases carefully. We believe you'll find that the facts of these lawsuits give us credibility instead of detracting from our reputation.
The ownership structure of our company is private, but it's not a secret.
You deserve to know who owns our company. How else could you decide to trust us enough to depend on our investment research?
Stansberry Research is majority owned by Agora Inc., a private global holding company based in Baltimore, Maryland.
Agora Inc. has been in business since 1979. It has interests in dozens of publishing entities around the world, from book publishing in Paris, France (Les Belles Lettres) to magazines in London, England (Moneyweek, the leading financial magazine in Great Britain) to financial newsletters in the United States, South America, Australia, and Spain. Through its holdings, Agora is the world's largest investment newsletter company. Stansberry Research is Agora Inc.'s largest operating subsidiary.
Agora also holds interests in several other private businesses, conducting operations in diverse fields, such as accounting and beachfront real estate development.
Bill Bonner is the majority owner of Agora. Mr. Bonner is a well-known economist and commentator in his own right, having written daily about the world's financial markets since 1999. Millions of investors around the world have read Mr. Bonner's columns via The Daily Reckoning and his current editorial project, Diary of a Rogue Economist.
Porter Stansberry, our founder, partnered with Mr. Bonner and Agora Inc. to launch Pirate Investor in 1999 - the forerunner to Stansberry Research. Pirate Investor quickly developed a large global following. Mr. Stansberry was able to successfully launch several additional titles, broadening the investment strategies being covered in Pirate Investor's publications. In 2004, the name of the business was changed to Stansberry Research to better reflect the evolution of the business.
Today Stansberry Research remains headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. We have approximately 150 employees, who work in our three main offices.
We have one satellite office in Delray Beach, Florida, one outside of Jacksonville, Florida, and our headquarters is located in the historic Mt. Vernon district of Baltimore, Maryland. More than a million people, in more than 120 countries, read our products daily. We have more than half a million paid subscriber accounts, making our firm one of the largest (if not the largest) independent investment newsletter firms in the world.
Founder Porter Stansberry serves as CEO of our company. Porter Stansberry, Steve Sjuggerud, Mike Palmer, and David Eifrig hold a partnership interest in the business alongside Agora Inc.
Over the years, our research analysts have been cited, interviewed, or featured in nearly every major financial publication in America, including: CBS Market Watch, Fox Business, Bloomberg, Barron's, USA Today, TD Ameritrade, ABC, Forbes, The Street.com, The Wall Street Journal, Business News Network, Newsmax, Seeking Alpha, and The Huffington Post, to name just a few.
The following contains facts, figures, explanations, annotations, full testimonials, and other resources about the promotional piece you just viewed.
In short, these are the resources used to put together the previous promotion. As you have seen, we publish testimonials in our promotions. All of those testimonials are the words of real subscribers that we received in real letters, emails, and other feedback. We do not make these results up, and we do not pay or compensate subscribers for their testimonials.
What portion of his or her overall portfolio was put into the trade.
We ask these questions because we want a clearer picture of the results that the subscriber attained so that we can pass that information on to you.
While we ask these questions, we are aware that this financial information is personal and sensitive. Some subscribers do not feel comfortable sharing this information with us, especially knowing that we may publish it. You should keep these questions in mind when assessing whether to purchase our products and whether you could obtain similar results.
If the subscriber does not give us this information, then we cannot publish it. Even if we do publish all of these details with the testimonial, you should know that we do not ask for copies of the brokerage statement or take other actions to independently verify the subscriber claims, nor do we audit their results for accuracy. We publish this information to let you know that these results are possible and have been achieved by real people after reading our research. However, you should also understand that we are advertising these testimonials because they are atypical. These results are examples of the very best possible outcomes.
Past results like these are no guarantee of any future result.
We wouldn’t recommend anticipating such outstanding results with your own investments. Yes, you could have results like these – or perhaps even better. But, it’s simply not prudent to assume you will immediately make large investment returns. Instead, we urge you to read our work carefully, to follow our risk management strategies conscientiously, and to invest cautiously while setting expectations that are based around our long-term performance averages. You can learn more about these by reviewing our annual Report Cards found in the Digest archives.
As for our flagship publication, Stansberry’s Investment Advisory, Porter has published monthly since July 1999. Since that time, he has made 291 investment recommendations. The average return of all of these recommendations (winner and losers) as of April 10th, 2014, is 37.9%. The average holding period for each position was 520 days.
What follows are the facts, figures, resources, and full testimonials from the accompanying promotion for Stansberry’s Investment Advisory.
The details listed below are listed in the order they appear in the accompanying promotion.
If you have any questions or want more information about the marketing material you just viewed, here’s where you should start. Remember, you can also call our Customer Service team at our Baltimore Headquarters, from Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. through 8 p.m. Eastern time. Our toll–free phone number is: 1–888–261–2693.
“Prosperity cannot be created out of thin air”: Paul, Ron. The Revolution: A Manifesto. New York: Grand Central Pub., 2008. Print.
Barton Biggs Quote: Biggs, Barton. Wealth, War, and Wisdom. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2008. Print.
I received the printed book, but not the “e” version of “America 2020”. Outlook may have blocked the email…I love the book; it is so clear and concise. Though I have studied a bit about the smartest way to survive what is coming, this put all the best ideas together in one place! My hat is off to you guys!
I need to buy another 12 of your books for my family and friends.
4. educational to know how to evaluate value, and how to continue with Stanberry Research as a guide.
So then: Can I buy 12 copies to give out to family and friends? I would expect to pay what your normal cost would be.
Also : I want to give Porter 4 books.
I would like to bring them to your offices in Baltimore and see Stanberry Research.
I did receive the book and read it the first day I had it. It is a great book that explains our current situation simply and very accurately. I intend to continue to use this book as a guide for investing and I will recommend it to my family and friends. Larry R.
I have not quite finished the last chapter of the book. I can say, this is a story that all Americans should know about. Unfortunately, when I try to explain it to friends, they don’t believe me. Most people simply want to bury their heads in the sand and pretend that nothing is happening.
I don’t usually buy things off the internet, but I am extremely glad that I made an exception in this case.
and your awesome PUT STRATEGY.
I guess this was your standing invitation to come visit anytime..
I will also try to make it to your next annual Alliance conference.
PS: I really have been making a small killing with selling your puts!!!
I have been an S&A Alliance member since it was first offered. I believe it to be one of the best decisions I have ever made. The investment advice gleaned from Steve, Dan’s and Porter’s advisories made me a better, more knowledgeable investor. Since joining, my portfolio has grown by several hundred thousand dollars. Subscribing was a no-brainer – imagine having access to all the advisories for life at a cost that was covered by less than 4 trades! I look forward to a long and prosperous relationship. |
0.999993 | Dr. Hans Arora '01 received an M.D. and a Ph.D. from Northwestern University's Medical Scientist Training Program. He is currently a Urology Resident at the Cleveland Clinic, and he is the Chair of the Governing Council for the Resident & Fellow Section of the American Medical Association. Dr. Arora recently spent a month working for a Congressman as a Holtgrewe Legislative Fellow. Ted Jou '99 spoke with Dr. Arora about his medical training, his leadership activities, and his eventful month on Capitol Hill.
You spent the last month on Capitol Hill. Tell me about that experience.
My official title was the Holtgrewe Legislative Fellow through the American Urological Association, and this is only the second year that they have offered the fellowship. One of the key parts of the fellowship is the Hill experience, so they work with a legislator to find a slot to be part of their office. I had a desk in Congressman Pat Tiberi's (R-OH) office, and I was able to work closely with his legislative staff on health issues.
It's pretty open-ended; it's a combination of being a useful part of the office - working on legislative issues, taking constituent meetings, and taking constituent phone calls just like every other staffer - but at the same time also being able to work on my own independent projects. For example, if there is a health policy issue that the Congressman is interested in learning more about, I could reach out to important stakeholder groups in healthcare like the American Hospital Association or the American Medical Association, and they are very engaged when you are calling from a Congressman's office.
I also attended committee hearings, and I acted as a resource when the staffers needed a resource on health issues. A big part of the experience is building a personal relationship with a Congressman and his staff, so if they a question, you can be the go-to person to give them the answer or help them figure it out.
This past month has been an exciting one in health policy. Were you involved specifically with the American Healthcare Act?
The day that I started was the day that the American Healthcare Act was released (Washington Post). Rep. Tiberi is the chair of the Health Subcommittee of the House Ways & Means Committee, which had a very prominent role in the health care legislation. I got to sit in when the bill was introduced for markup in the Ways & Means Committee, which lasted 18 hours (CNN) - I didn't stay the entire time but I was there for a good 8 to 10 hours, and that was my third day in the office. I also went to the Energy and Commerce Committee hearing (NPR) and went over to the Capitol to watch debates on the House floor.
It was very partisan issue, and a lot of the messaging came from the Ways & Means Committee staff rather than Rep. Tiberi's office, but we dealt with a lot of constituent phone calls on the issue, and also a lot people who were visiting in person who were very interested in finding out how the bill would affect them, and the people with whom they interact or feel responsible for in some way. Sometimes we had to wade through protesters - it was an interesting time.
We didn't necessarily know what was going to happen beforehand, although when the President was calling a specific caucus or group of Congressmen to the White House, we might find out an hour or two before that happened. Otherwise, we were just watching C-SPAN and reading things on Politico - the press was everywhere.
What other things did you work on during your time on the Hill?
There were a couple bills that were introduced where I wrote briefs for the Congressman and tried to reach out to stakeholders about those issues. For example, there was a bill to reform the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), and I had an opportunity to speak with the Chair of the USPSTF to get her perspective on the proposed changes.
I enjoyed getting the opportunity - as someone who has been in academia my whole life - to bring our approach to researching issues, bringing real evidence-based research to the health services area. They don't tend to use PubMed that often, but they were very receptive to suggestions and ideas that I had coming from the scientific and medical literature. Jumping into the middle of it was a humbling experience but also a very rewarding experience that makes you feel like you are contributing to the greater good.
You have been active in leadership and public policy issues from the time you were a medical student - how did you get involved in these activities?
When I started medical school in 2005 as an MD-PhD student at Northwestern, I thought I would be doing drug discovery or device design following my undergraduate training as a chemical engineer (at Penn State). But a friend of mine was very involved in the American Medical Association (AMA), so halfway through my first year of medical school I went to a state medical society meeting. And what I found was that there are so many things about medicine that are not taught in medical school. There are so many things that influence the way we practice and the way we deliver patient care that are not found in any textbook. And these things are constantly changing. While attending that first meeting, I found it fascinating, and I met so many people that felt the same way - they were also fascinated by all of these things that are changing healthcare that we don't learn about in school. So I went to another meeting, and another meeting, and had an opportunity to join in an AMA lobby day where I participated in meetings in Congressional offices.
I was able to step into elected and appointed roles in the AMA, and after I chose a specialty (urology), I started doing the same thing with the American Urological Association (AUA). So I have had the opportunity to be involved in the analysis, decisionmaking, and also - one of the best parts about it, in my mind, is helping other people who have some interest in this area find where exactly their niche is, where exactly they can get more involved in the broader scheme of organized medicine, whether it's with legislative issues, with education, with health policy or public health, and helping them figure out where they see themselves and where they fit the best.
Do you have an official title or role now in the AMA? What positions did you have in the past?
When the President's January 27 Executive Order on immigration was enforced, a Cleveland Clinic resident, Dr. Suha Abushamma, was detained and sent back to Saudi Arabia.
Dr. Arora helped to organize a gathering of Cleveland Clinic doctors and residents on February 2 to show support for their colleague. About two dozen doctors gathered to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and stand in silent protest. Dr. Arora explained: "There was not a lot that we could do as physicians - we wanted to show her that we were thinking of her and felt for the difficulty she was in."
The next week, after the executive order had been stayed, Dr. Abushamma was able to return to Cleveland.
I am the Chair of the Resident's Committee of the AUA, and I am the Chair of the Governing Council for the Resident and Fellows Section of the AMA. I had several roles when I was a medical student, including a corresponding position as Chair of the Governing Council for the Medical Student Section of the AMA.
Where are you now in your medical career?
I have two more years of residency, and I am planning on pursuing a fellowship in health services research. Looking at how and whether people access care, and the economics of health care, has been very interesting to me, and a way to mix my research background with my policy interests. I am still planning on being a practicing physician - practicing medicine is the bulk of what I want to do, but I also want opportunities to do research, particularly in the health services area.
Did you know you wanted to become a doctor when you were in high school?
I always knew I wanted to be a doctor and go to medical school. The idea of being a medical researcher is something that has grown as I have gone through training from college onward - when I was in high school I didn't think about physicians doing a lot of research, but I spent my summers working in labs - including two summers at NIH and one at Naval Medical, and I continued working in labs in college.
Other than the research experience, are there other things about the Magnet Program that influenced you?
I think the really great thing about the Magnet Program is that it was always a safe place to be smart, because so often in high school it's not cool to be smart but in the Magnet it was cool to be smart - it was cool to like math. And not being at the top of the class - the smartest person who always got 110% on every quiz - was actually kind of nice. It made you feel normal. The Magnet Program really solidified that insatiable curiosity to learn more about the world around you - although that's something that we all had growing up, Blair really told you: "Don't push that away; embrace it." That is something I've really carried with me.
A lot of people are now becoming more interested in political advocacy for science or other issues. What would be your advice to other alumni who are looking for ways to get involved?
Everybody has to start somewhere, and you have to be humble about it when it's an area where you're not as familiar. Depending on how involved you want to get, you can go to your local political party meetings, volunteer in your community, and attend town halls. You can visit your Congressman's district office if you aren't close to DC. If you see an issue that is interesting to you or where you can offer some expertise, then lend that expertise - if you are a geneticist and a bill about genetics comes up, who else is going to be more informed about the implications of genetics-based policy than you? It's important to be able to lend that expertise and to able to share your own personal stories as well as data.
We are taught to be scientists, but that concept isn't necessary limited to the physical sciences. That mindset, which we all have coming out of the Blair Magnet, you can use that same approach and critical thought process, and apply it to policy issues. If you're a physician and there is an issue that affects your patients, give your testimony - tell your representatives the stories that you have. When you go a district office you likely won't meet directly with a Congressman, but if you sit down with a member of his staff, that person can be a great resource for helping the Congressman understand both sides of an issue. And that staffer is often someone very approachable with whom you might be able to develop a relationship. And if you do build a relationship, it's important to maintain that relationship over time. |
0.99936 | If you are visiting China for the first time then you should explore The Great Wall Of China. It is one of the seven wonders of the world. It is China's most important cultural and historic symbols. It starts from the Shanghaiguan in the east of China and ends in the Jiayuguan in the west of China. It covers a total distance of around 6,300 kilometres.
The Great Wall of China was first built as a defence line against the nomadic incursions. The construction of this wall was begun around seventh century BC. Every year millions of tourists visit the great wall and are amazed by its sheer scale. The Wall of China is also known as a paradise for photographers. So, if you have a passion for photography, take your camera and be sure to visit this amazing sight.
To experience the marine life of China, you can explore the Ocean Aquarium in China. This is one of the favourite tourist spots of the country. Ocean Aquarium is the largest aquarium in the world. You can see several marine creatures here and it is well worth a visit. |
0.808326 | For other people named Richard Webster, see Richard Webster (disambiguation).
Richard Everard Webster, 1st Viscount Alverstone, GCMG, PC, FRS (22 December 1842 – 15 December 1915) was a British barrister, politician and judge who served in many high political and judicial offices.
His interest in cricket and foot-racing was maintained in later life. He refereed races for the early Amateur Athletic Club and set rules for long jump and shot put. He was President of Surrey County Cricket Club from 1895 until his death, and of the Marylebone Cricket Club in 1903.
Webster was called to the bar in 1868, and became QC only ten years afterwards. His practice was chiefly in commercial, railway and patent cases until (June 1885) he was appointed Attorney-General in the Conservative Government in the exceptional circumstances of never having been Solicitor-general, and not at the time occupying a seat in parliament. He was elected for Launceston in the following month, and in November exchanged this seat for the Isle of Wight, which he continued to represent until his elevation to the House of Lords. Except under the brief Gladstone administration of 1886, and the Gladstone-Rosebery cabinet of 1892–1895, Sir Richard Webster was Attorney-General from 1885 to 1900.
In 1890 he was leading counsel for The Times in the Parnell inquiry; in 1893 he represented Great Britain in the Bering Sea arbitration; in 1898 he discharged the same function in the matter of the boundary between British Guiana and Venezuela.
In the House of Commons, and outside it, his political career was prominently associated with church work; and his speeches were distinguished for gravity and earnestness. In July 1885, he was made a Knight Bachelor. In December 1893, he was appointed to the Order of St Michael and St George as a Knight Grand Cross. In January 1900 he was created a Baronet, but in May the same year succeeded Sir Nathaniel Lindley as Master of the Rolls, being raised to the peerage as Baron Alverstone, of Alverstone in the County of Southampton and sworn of the Privy Council, and in October of the same year he was elevated to the office of Lord Chief Justice upon the death of Lord Russell of Killowen. He presided over some notable trials of the era including Hawley Harvey Crippen. Although popular, he was not considered an outstanding judge; one colleague wrote after his death that "the reports will be searched in vain for judgments of his that are valuable". He received the honorary degree Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) from the University of Edinburgh in April 1902, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society later the same year. In late 1902 he was in South Africa as part of a commission looking into the use of martial law sentences during the Second Boer War.
In 1903 during the Alaska boundary dispute he was one of the members of the Boundary Commission. Against the wishes of the Canadians it was his swing vote that settled the matter, roughly splitting the disputed territory. As a result, he became extremely unpopular in Canada.
He retired in 1913, and was created Viscount Alverstone, of Alverstone, Isle of Wight in the County of Southampton.
Webster married in 1872 Louisa Mary Calthrop, daughter of William Charles Calthrop. She died in March 1877. They had one son and one daughter. Their only son, the Honourable Arthur Harold Webster (1874–1902) died childless in August 1902, aged 28, after an operation for appendicitis. The Arthur Webster Hospital, opened in 1905, was presented to the town of Shanklin, Isle of Wight by Lord Alverstone in memory of his son. The building is still in use as the Arthur Webster Clinic.
He commissioned the architect Edward Blakeway I'Anson to build Winterfold House near Cranleigh in the Surrey Hills in 1886, in a classic late Victorian style, and laid out grounds with flowering trees and shrubs.
Lord Alverstone died at Cranleigh, Surrey, in December 1915, aged 72 and was buried at West Norwood Cemetery under a Celtic cross. His peerages became extinct on his death.
^ Although The Viscount Alverstone was a baronet, by custom the post-nominal of "Bt" is omitted, as Peers of the Realm do not list subsidiary hereditary titles.
^ After Queen Victoria died and King Edward VII ascended the Throne, the post-nominal of QC became KC.
^ "Webster, Richard Everard (WBSR860RE)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
^ Haigh, Gideon (2006). Peter The Lord's Cat and Other Unexpected Obituaries from Wisden. London, Eng: John Wisden & Co. p. 7. ISBN 1845131630.
^ "No. 25490". The London Gazette. 14 July 1885. p. 3239.
^ "No. 26465". The London Gazette. 8 December 1893. p. 7183.
^ "No. 27157". The London Gazette. 26 January 1900. p. 512.
^ "No. 27202". The London Gazette. 15 June 1900. p. 3752.
^ "No. 27192". The London Gazette. 15 May 1900. p. 3066.
^ "University intelligence". The Times (36740). London. 12 April 1902. p. 12.
^ "Fellows 1660-2007" (PDF). Royal Society. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
^ "Library and Archive catalogue". Royal Society. Retrieved 2012-02-25.
^ "Martial Law in South Africa". The Times (36894). London. 9 October 1902. p. 3.
^ "No. 28783". The London Gazette. 19 December 1913. p. 9337.
^ "Obituary". The Times (36842). London. 9 August 1902. p. 5.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Alverstone, Richard Everard Webster" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, 1916 edition: obituary.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Richard Webster, 1st Viscount Alverstone.
Her Majestys Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians, who are present or former members of either the House of Commons or the House of Lords, the Council holds the delegated authority to issue Orders of Council, mostly used to regulate certain public institutions. The Council advises the sovereign on the issuing of Royal Charters, which are used to grant special status to incorporated bodies, the Privy Councils powers have now been largely replaced by the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The Judicial Committee consists of judges appointed as Privy Counsellors, predominantly Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. The Privy Council of the United Kingdom was preceded by the Privy Council of Scotland, the key events in the formation of the modern Privy Council are given below, Witenagemot was an early equivalent to the Privy Council of England.
During the reigns of the Norman monarchs, the English Crown was advised by a court or curia regis. The body originally concerned itself with advising the sovereign on legislation, later, different bodies assuming distinct functions evolved from the court. The courts of law took over the business of dispensing justice, the Council retained the power to hear legal disputes, either in the first instance or on appeal. Furthermore, laws made by the sovereign on the advice of the Council, powerful sovereigns often used the body to circumvent the Courts and Parliament. During Henry VIIIs reign, the sovereign, on the advice of the Council, was allowed to enact laws by mere proclamation, the legislative pre-eminence of Parliament was not restored until after Henry VIIIs death. Though the royal Council retained legislative and judicial responsibilities, it became an administrative body. The Council consisted of forty members in 1553, but the sovereign relied on a smaller committee, by the end of the English Civil War, the monarchy, House of Lords, and Privy Council had been abolished.
The remaining parliamentary chamber, the House of Commons, instituted a Council of State to execute laws, the forty-one members of the Council were elected by the House of Commons, the body was headed by Oliver Cromwell, de facto military dictator of the nation. In 1653, Cromwell became Lord Protector, and the Council was reduced to thirteen and twenty-one members, all elected by the Commons. In 1657, the Commons granted Cromwell even greater powers, some of which were reminiscent of those enjoyed by monarchs, the Council became known as the Protectors Privy Council, its members were appointed by the Lord Protector, subject to Parliaments approval. In 1659, shortly before the restoration of the monarchy, the Protectors Council was abolished, Charles II restored the Royal Privy Council, but he, like previous Stuart monarchs, chose to rely on a small group of advisers. Under George I even more power transferred to this committee and it now began to meet in the absence of the sovereign, communicating its decisions to him after the fact.
William Ewart Gladstone, FRS, FSS was a British Liberal and earlier conservative politician. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times, more than any other person, Gladstone was Britains oldest Prime Minister, he resigned for the final time when he was 84 years old. Gladstone first entered Parliament in 1832, beginning as a High Tory, Gladstone served in the Cabinet of Sir Robert Peel. After the split of the Conservatives Gladstone was a Peelite – in 1859 the Peelites merged with the Whigs, as Chancellor Gladstone became committed to low public spending and to electoral reform, earning him the sobriquet The Peoples William. Gladstones first ministry saw many reforms including the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland, after his electoral defeat in 1874, Gladstone resigned as leader of the Liberal Party, but from 1876 began a comeback based on opposition to Turkeys reaction to the Bulgarian April Uprising. Gladstones Midlothian Campaign of 1879–80 was an example of many modern political campaigning techniques.
The government passed the Third Reform Act, Back in office in early 1886, Gladstone proposed Irish home rule but this was defeated in the House of Commons in July. The resulting split in the Liberal Party helped keep out of office, with one short break. In 1892 Gladstone formed his last government at the age of 82, the Second Home Rule Bill passed the Commons but was defeated in the Lords in 1893. Gladstone resigned in March 1894, in opposition to increased naval expenditure and he left Parliament in 1895 and died three years aged 88. Gladstone was known affectionately by his supporters as The Peoples William or the G. O. M, Gladstone is consistently ranked as one of Britains greatest Prime Ministers. Born in 1809 in Liverpool, at 62 Rodney Street, William Ewart Gladstone was the son of the slave-owning merchant Sir John Gladstone. Although born and brought up in Liverpool, William Gladstone was of purely Scottish ancestry, in 1814 young Willy visited Scotland for the first time, as he and his brother John travelled with their father to Edinburgh and Dingwall to visit their relatives.
West Norwood Cemetery is a 40-acre cemetery in West Norwood in London, England. It was known as the South Metropolitan Cemetery, one of the first private landscaped cemeteries in London, it is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries of London, and is a site of major historical and ecological interest. Its grounds are a mixture of historic monumental cemetery and modern cemetery, but it has catacombs, cremation plots. The Main gate is located on Norwood Road near the junction with Robson Road and it is in the London Borough of Lambeth. The local authority are the current owners, the site, with some of its neighbouring streets, forms part of a conservation area. It is one of the Magnificent Seven metropolitan lawn cemeteries of the Victorian era, Lambeth have recognised it as a site of nature conservation value within the Borough in addition to its outstanding value as a site of national historic and cultural interest. English Heritage have placed it on the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens, the entrance gate is set within railings, painted a historically accurate spice brown.
Railings and walls were high in order to dispel fears of body snatchers. There is a second entrance nearby, normally kept locked, in Norwood High Street which is close to West Norwood railway station, many of these mausolea are listed, such as the Grade II mausoleum for Sir Henry Doultons family, constructed appropriately of pottery and terrcotta. As a contrast, just a few yards to the west of the crematorium is the simple headstone to Isabella Mary Mayson Beeton, aka Mrs Beeton. The cemetery was founded by its own Act of Parliament of 1836, by 2000, there had been 164,000 burials in 42,000 plots, plus 34,000 cremations and several thousand interments in its catacombs. In 1830, George Frederick Carden, editor of The Penny Magazine, over time they passed a number of laws that effectively halted burials in Londons churchyards, moving them to places where they would be less prejudicial to the health of the inhabitants. The new cemetery was consecrated by the Bishop of Winchester on 7 December 1837, until 1877, the consecrated grounds were overseen by the Diocese of Winchester, and Rochester, before coming under the authority of Southwark from 1905.
A Queens Counsel, or Kings Counsel during the reign of a king, is an eminent lawyer who is appointed by the Queen to be one of Her Majestys Counsel learned in the law. The term is recognised as an honorific. Queens Counsel is a status, conferred by the Crown, that is recognised by courts, members have the privilege of sitting within the Bar of court. As members wear silk gowns of a design, the award of Queens Counsel is known informally as taking silk. Appointments are made from within the profession on the basis of merit rather than a particular level of experience. However, successful applicants tend to be barristers, or advocates with 15 years of experience or more, the Attorney-General, Solicitor-General, and Kings Serjeants were Kings Counsel in Ordinary in the Kingdom of England. The first Queens Counsel Extraordinary was Sir Francis Bacon, who was given a patent giving him precedence at the Bar in 1597, the new rank of Kings Counsel contributed to the gradual obsolescence of the formerly more senior serjeant-at-law by superseding it.
The Attorney-General and Solicitor-General had similarly succeeded the Kings Serjeants as leaders of the Bar in Tudor times, but the Kings Counsel emerged into eminence only in the early 1830s, prior to when they were relatively few in number. It became the means to recognise a barrister as a senior member of the profession. It became of greater importance to become a KC. The KCs inherited the prestige of the serjeants and their priority before the courts, the earliest English law list, published in 1775, lists 165 members of the Bar, of whom 14 were Kings Counsel, a proportion of about 8. 5%. As of 2010 roughly the same proportion existed, though the number of barristers had increased to about 12,250 in independent practice, in 1839 the number of Queens Counsel was seventy. In 1882, the number of Queens Counsel was 187, the list of Queens Counsel in the Law List of 1897 gave the names of 238, of whom hardly one-third appeared to be in actual practice. In 1959, the number of practising Queens Counsel was 181, in each of the five years up to 1970, the number of practising Queens Counsel was 208,209,221,236 and 262, respectively.
Isle of Wight is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2001 by Andrew Turner of the Conservative Party. Created by the Great Reform Act for the 1832 general election it covers the whole of the Isle of Wight and has had the largest electorate of any constituency in all General Elections since 1983, the Isle of Wight forms a single constituency of the House of Commons. One problem the independent body cited in 2008 was a difficulty of dividing the island in two in a way that would be acceptable to all interests, however, in the 2018 review now underway, dividing the island into two separate constituencies is a requirement. The Commissions draft proposals divide the island into two seats and West, before the Reform Act 1832 the island usually had three Parliamentary boroughs, Newport and Yarmouth each electing two MPs. In 1654 an Isle of Wight constituency was created for the First Protectorate Parliament, the island was represented by the two members for Hampshire.
London, or Greater London, is a region of England which forms the administrative boundaries of London. It is organised into 33 local government districts, the 32 London boroughs, the Greater London Authority, based in Southwark, is responsible for strategic local government across the region and consists of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. The county of Greater London was created on 1 April 1965 through the London Government Act 1963, Greater London was first established as a sui generis council area under the Greater London Council between 1963 and 1986. The area was re-established as a region in 1994, and the Greater London Authority formed in 2000, the region covers 1,572 km2 and had a population of 8,174,000 at the 2011 census. In 2012, it had the highest GVA per capita in the United Kingdom at £37,232, the Greater London Built-up Area—used in some national statistics—is a measure of the continuous urban area of London, and therefore includes areas outside of the administrative region.
The term Greater London has been and still is used to different areas in governance, history. In terms of ceremonial counties, London is divided into the small City of London, outside the limited boundaries of the City, a variety of arrangements has governed the wider area since 1855, culminating in the creation of the Greater London administrative area in 1965. The Greater London Arterial Road Programme was devised between 1913 and 1916, one of the larger early forms was the Greater London Planning Region, devised in 1927, which occupied 1,856 square miles and included 9 million people. The LCC pressed for an alteration in its boundaries soon after the end of the First World War, noting that within the Metropolitan, a Royal Commission on London Government was set up to consider the issue. The LCC proposed a vast new area for Greater London, with a boundary somewhere between the Metropolitan Police District and the home counties, protests were made at the possibility of including Windsor and Eton in the authority.
The Commission made its report in 1923, rejecting the LCCs scheme, two minority reports favoured change beyond the amalgamation of smaller urban districts, including both smaller borough councils and a central authority for strategic functions. The London Traffic Act 1924 was a result of the Commission, Greater London originally had a two-tier system of local government, with the Greater London Council sharing power with the City of London Corporation and the 32 London Borough councils. The GLC was abolished in 1986 by the Local Government Act 1985 and its functions were devolved to the City Corporation and the London Boroughs, with some functions transferred to central government and joint boards. Greater London was used to form the London region of England in 1994, a referendum held in 1998 established a public will to recreate an upper tier of government to cover the region. The Greater London Authority, London Assembly and the directly elected Mayor of London were created in 2000 by the Greater London Authority Act 1999, in 2000, the outer boundary of the Metropolitan Police District was re-aligned to the Greater London boundary.
The House of Lords of the United Kingdom, referred to ceremonially as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster, the full name of the house is, The Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled. Unlike the elected House of Commons, all members of the House of Lords are appointed, the membership of the House of Lords is drawn from the peerage and is made up of Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal. The Lords Spiritual are 26 bishops in the established Church of England, of the Lords Temporal, the majority are life peers who are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister, or on the advice of the House of Lords Appointments Commission. However, they include some hereditary peers including four dukes. Very few of these are female since most hereditary peerages can only be inherited by men, while the House of Commons has a defined 650-seat membership, the number of members in the House of Lords is not fixed.
There are currently 805 sitting Lords, the House of Lords is the only upper house of any bicameral parliament to be larger than its respective lower house. The House of Lords scrutinises bills that have approved by the House of Commons. It regularly reviews and amends Bills from the Commons, while it is unable to prevent Bills passing into law, except in certain limited circumstances, it can delay Bills and force the Commons to reconsider their decisions. In this capacity, the House of Lords acts as a check on the House of Commons that is independent from the electoral process, Bills can be introduced into either the House of Lords or the House of Commons. Members of the Lords may take on roles as government ministers, the House of Lords has its own support services, separate from the Commons, including the House of Lords Library. The Queens Speech is delivered in the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament, the House has a Church of England role, in that Church Measures must be tabled within the House by the Lords Spiritual.
This new parliament was, in effect, the continuation of the Parliament of England with the addition of 45 MPs and 16 Peers to represent Scotland, the Parliament of England developed from the Magnum Concilium, the Great Council that advised the King during medieval times. This royal council came to be composed of ecclesiastics, the first English Parliament is often considered to be the Model Parliament, which included archbishops, abbots, earls and representatives of the shires and boroughs of it. The power of Parliament grew slowly, fluctuating as the strength of the monarchy grew or declined, for example, during much of the reign of Edward II, the nobility was supreme, the Crown weak, and the shire and borough representatives entirely powerless. In 1569, the authority of Parliament was for the first time recognised not simply by custom or royal charter, further developments occurred during the reign of Edward IIs successor, Edward III. It was during this Kings reign that Parliament clearly separated into two chambers, the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, before his accession to the throne, he served as heir apparent and held the title of Prince of Wales for longer than any of his predecessors. During the long reign of his mother, he was excluded from political power. He travelled throughout Britain performing ceremonial duties, and represented Britain on visits abroad. His tours of North America in 1860 and the Indian subcontinent in 1875 were popular successes, as king, Edward played a role in the modernisation of the British Home Fleet and the reorganisation of the British Army after the Second Boer War. He reinstituted traditional ceremonies as public displays and broadened the range of people with whom royalty socialised and he died in 1910 in the midst of a constitutional crisis that was resolved the following year by the Parliament Act 1911, which restricted the power of the unelected House of Lords.
Edward was born at 10,48 in the morning on 9 November 1841 in Buckingham Palace and he was the eldest son and second child of Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He was christened Albert Edward at St Georges Chapel, Windsor Castle and he was named Albert after his father and Edward after his maternal grandfather Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn. He was known as Bertie to the family throughout his life. As the eldest son of the British sovereign, he was automatically Duke of Cornwall, as a son of Prince Albert, he held the titles of Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Duke of Saxony. He was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 8 December 1841, Earl of Dublin on 17 January 1850, a Knight of the Garter on 9 November 1858, and a Knight of the Thistle on 24 May 1867. In 1863, he renounced his rights to the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in favour of his younger brother. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were determined that their eldest son should have an education that would prepare him to be a constitutional monarch.
Charterhouse is an independent day and boarding school in Godalming, Surrey. Today pupils are referred to as Carthusians, and ex-pupils as Old Carthusians. Charging full boarders up to £36,000 per annum in 2015/16, Charterhouse is amongst the most expensive Headmasters and it has educated one British Prime Minister and has a long list of notable alumni. In May 1611, the London Charterhouse came into the hands of Thomas Sutton of Knaith and he acquired a fortune by the discovery of coal on two estates which he had leased near Newcastle-on-Tyne, and afterwards, removing to London, he carried on a commercial career. Charterhouse established a reputation for excellence in care and treatment, thanks in part to Henry Levett. Levett was widely esteemed for his writings, including an early tract on the treatment of smallpox. Levett was buried in Charterhouse Chapel and his widow married Andrew Tooke, the school was moved to its present site in 1872 by the headmaster, the Reverend William Haig Brown – a decision influenced by the findings of the Clarendon Commission of 1864.
The school bought a 68-acre site atop a hill just outside Godalming, in addition to the main school buildings, they constructed three boarding houses, known as Saunderites and Gownboys. The school was built by Lucas Brothers, who built the Royal Albert Hall. As pupil numbers grew, other houses were built alongside the approach road, each was titled with an adaptation of the name of their first housemaster, such as Weekites and Girdlestoneites. The last of these is referred to as Duckites, reflecting the unusual gait of its original housemaster. There are now the four old houses plus eight new houses. The twelve Houses have preserved a unique identity and pupils compete against each other in sports and the arts. The school continued to expand over the 20th century, around 350 names have been subsequently added to commemorate those who died in the Second World War and other more recent conflicts. Most still attend a chapel service there six times a week. Charterhouse was all male until the 1970s when girls were first admitted in the sixth form, of over 400 sixth formers today, almost a third are girls.
The shot put is a track and field event involving throwing/putting a heavy spherical object —the shot—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, homer mentions competitions of rock throwing by soldiers during the Siege of Troy but there is no record of any dead weights being thrown in Greek competitions. The first evidence for stone- or weight-throwing events were in the Scottish Highlands, in the 16th century King Henry VIII was noted for his prowess in court competitions of weight and hammer throwing. The first events resembling the modern shot put likely occurred in the Middle Ages when soldiers held competitions in which they hurled cannonballs, shot put competitions were first recorded in early 19th century Scotland, and were a part of the British Amateur Championships beginning in 1866. Competitors take their throw from inside a marked circle 2.135 metres in diameter, the following rules are adhered to for a legal throw, Upon calling the athletes name, the athlete may enter from any part of the throwing circle.
They have sixty seconds to commence the throwing motion otherwise they are banned from the game, the athlete may not wear gloves, IAAF rules permit the taping of individual fingers. The athlete must rest the shot close to the neck, the shot must be released above the height of the shoulder, using only one hand. The athlete may touch the surface of the circle or toe board. Limbs may however extend over the lines of the circle in the air, the shot must land in the legal sector of the throwing area. The athlete must leave the circle from the back. The athlete may enter the circle at the location of their choice. Foul throws occur when an athlete, Does not pause within the circle before beginning the throwing motion, does not complete the throwing movement within sixty seconds of having their name called. Allows the shot to drop below his shoulder or outside the plane of his shoulder during the put. At any time if the shot loses contact with the neck it is technically an illegal throw, during the throwing motion, touches with any part of the body, the top or ends of the toe board the top of the iron ring anywhere outside the circle.
The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a take off point. Along with the jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a group are referred to as the horizontal jumps. This event has a history in the Ancient Olympic Games and has been a modern Olympic event for men since the first Olympics in 1896 and for women since 1948. If the competitor starts the leap with any part of the foot past the foul line, a layer of plasticine is placed immediately after the board to detect this occurrence. An official will watch the jump and make the determination, therefore, it is in the best interest of the competitor to get as close to the foul line as possible. Competitors are allowed to place two marks along the side of the runway in order to assist them to jump accurately. At a lesser meet and facilities, the plasticine will likely not exist, at a smaller meet, the number of attempts might be limited to four or three.
Each competitor has a set number of attempts and that would normally be three trials, with three additional jumps being awarded to the best 8 or 9 competitors. All legal marks will be recorded but only the longest legal jump counts towards the results, the competitor with the longest legal jump at the end of competition is declared the winner. In the event of a tie, comparing the next best jumps of the tied competitors will be used to determine place. In a large, multi-day elite competition, a set number of competitors will advance to the final round, a set of 3 trial round jumps will be held in order to select those finalists. For record purposes, the maximum accepted wind assistance is two metres per second, the long jump is the only known jumping event of Ancient Greeces original Olympics pentathlon events. All events that occurred at the Olympic Games were initially supposed to act as a form of training for warfare, the long jump emerged probably because it mirrored the crossing of obstacles such as streams and ravines.
Sir Nathaniel Lindley, who made key judgments in a variety of important cases and was the last Serjeant-at-Law appointed, the last to sit as a judge and the last surviving.
Graves and memorials in the cemetery. The tomb holding Maria Zambaco is in the foreground.
Osborne House and its grounds are now open to the public.
Don Bradman of Australia had a record Test batting average of 99.94.
A modern SG cricket bat (back view).
Halteres used in athletic games in ancient Greece.
Standing long jump, detail of a page from the Luzerner Chronik of 1513.
Emmanuelle Chazal competes in the women's heptathlon long jump final during the French Athletics Championships 2013 at Stade Charléty in Paris, 13 July 2013.
Surrey's home ground The Oval, overlooked by the famous gasholders.
Surrey's all-time top scorer Jack Hobbs.
Mark Ramprakash, who joined Surrey from Middlesex in 2001.
The House of Lords meets in a chamber in the Palace of Westminster.
Charles Pepys as Lord Chancellor. The Lord Chancellor wore black and gold robes whilst presiding over the House of Lords.
Benches in the chamber are coloured red. In contrast, the House of Commons is decorated in green.
Gladstone c. 1835, painted by William Cubley.
Gladstone in 1859, painted by George Frederic Watts.
A wounded British officer reading The Times's report of the end of the Crimean War, in John Everett Millais' painting Peace Concluded.
Helena Normanton, first female British barrister.
A painting by Sir George Hayter that commemorates the passing of the Reform Act of 1832. It depicts the first session of the newly reformed House of Commons on 5 February 1833. In the foreground, the leading statesmen from the Lords: Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (1764–1845), William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne (1779–1848) and the Whigs on the left; and Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769–1852) and the Tories on the right.
Andrew Turner (pictured in 2010) served as the MP from 2001 to 2017.
Queen Victoria convened her first Privy Council on the day of her accession in 1837.
A 1903 caricature of Robert McCall KC (formerly QC) wearing his court robes at the Bar of England and Wales. For court, he wears a short wig, and bands instead of lace at the collar, but he retains the silk gown and court tailcoat worn on ceremonial occasions. |
0.999918 | As I live and breathe: Signs of lung infection and when to contact a dr.
Preventing Respiratory Infection and Avoiding IrritantsPeople with COPD have difficulty clearing their lungs of bacteria, dusts and other pollutants in the air. This makes them at risk for lung infections that may cause further damage to the lungs.
Avoid air pollution, including tobacco smoke, wood or oil smoke, car exhaust fumes and industrial pollution which can cause inhaled irritants to enter your lungs. Also avoid pollen.
Drink plenty of fluids - at least 6 to 8 eight-ounce glasses per day (unless your doctor gives you other guidelines). Water, juices and sports drinks are best.
Frequently wash your hands with soap and warm water, especially before preparing food, eating, taking medications or breathing treatments; and after coughing or sneezing, using the bathroom, touching soiled linens or clothes, and after you've been around someone with a cold or the flu as well as after you've been at a social gathering.
Follow your doctor's medication guidelines.
Talk to your doctor or health care provider about getting a flu shot every year and get the pneumonia vaccine if you have not had one.
Call your doctor if you experience any of the warning signs of an infection (listed below). Also call your doctor if you have any symptoms that cause concern.
If you have any of these symptoms, contact your physician right away, even if you don't feel sick.
Following weather reports and avoiding extreme weather. During cold weather, cover your face when going outdoors. During extreme humidity, try to stay in air conditioned areas. |
0.99981 | Como podéis suponer el nombre de mi blog ‘From The Blue Side’ está relacionado con el hecho que vivimos en un planeta azul, y ello es debido a que los océanos cubren más del 70% de la superficie de nuestro planeta. El porqué del giňo al lado oscuro os lo contaré otro día. La parte ‘divertida’ de que nos referiramos a nuestro planeta como el Planeta Azul, es que esto es así desde que las primeras imágenes de la Tierra vista desde el espacio nos han convencido de ello. ¿Qué hay de divertido en esto? Pues que hemos necesitado ir al espacio para reconocer la importancia de los océanos en nuestra vida, y sin embargo en el aňo 2000 todavía la mayoria de las áreas del oceáno de nuestro planeta no habían sido muestreadas desde la superficie hasta el fondo más de una vez (Stewart, 2008).
As you can imagine, the name of my blog ‘From the Blue Side’ is related to the fact that we live on a blue planet due to the ocean covers over seventy percent of its surface (I will explain you the reference to ‘the dark side’ in the title of the blog in other moment). The funny part that we call our planet the Blue Planet is that we do since the first images of the Earth from the space have convinced us of this fact. Which is the funny part? Well, we have needed to go to the space to realize about the importance of the ocean in our lives, while, by the year 2000, most areas of the ocean had been sampled from top to bottom only once (Stewart, 2008).
The hydrothermal activity is associated with the presence of divergent plate boundaries, also known as mid-ocean ridges as that in the mid-Atlantic where the discharge of magmatic material makes the European and American continental margins separate. The presence of fractures in the ocean bottom in these regions enables the contact between the bottom sea-water with the magmatic material below. It makes that the bottom sea-water penetrating along these fractures get very high temperatures (300-400°C) in such a way that when they merge towards the deep ocean again they ascend through the ocean water column due to they are lighter than the surrounding waters. Imagine the chimney of a fabric through which water vapor is released. The water vapor ascends quickly as a white plume that dilutes in the atmosphere until its density is equal to the air at the same level. Returning to our hydrothermal plume, during its ascent, it entrains ambient deep ocean water, colder and saltier, that makes increase its density. This upward movement continues until its density is equal to the ambient water, sometimes several hundred meters above the seabed. Thus, the hydrothermal activity implies a heat injection to the deep ocean, as well as a transport of water masses due to the vertical movements that I have described. The deep water masses in the different ocean basins are very slowly renovated, and, in some places, the transports produced by hydrothermal plumes can be comparable with the magnitude of flows predicted for these basins (Lupton et al., 1985).
Pero no es sólo calor lo que se intercambia entre el fondo y el océano a través del agua que penetra y posteriormente emerge a través de esas fracturas, sino diferentes metales y compuestos que se encuentran en distinta concentración en el océano y en el interior de la Tierra. Por ese motivo, la actividad hidrotermal afecta la química del océano (Stein et al., 1995), proporcionando incluso una fuente de energía alternativa que es capaz de mantener ecosistemas únicos que distan a veces entre una zona de actividad hidrotermal y otra. Nuestras ‘nubes’ de agua hidrotermal no contienen oxígeno pero son ricas en ácido sulfídrico (H2 S), el cual puede ser usado por bacterias como fuente de energía para la producción de material orgánica que después mantiene cada uno de esos ecosistemas a pequena escala (Longhurst, 1998).
Nevertheless, it is not only heat what is exchanged between the ocean bottom and the water column through the water penetrating and later emerging through those fractures but different metals and compounds that exist in different concentration in the ocean and the Earth interior. For this reason, the hydrothermal activity affects the chemistry of the ocean (Stein et al., 1995), even providing an alternative energy source able to maintain unique ecosystems differing sometimes from one hydrothermal vent to another. Our hydrothermal ‘clouds’ do not contain oxygen, but they are rich in hydrogen sulfide (H2 S), which can be used by some bacteria as energy source to produce organic matter that later maintains each of these small-scale ecosystems (Longhurst, 1998).
En el Ártico encontramos uno de esos márgenes divergentes entre placas a los que se asocia la actividad hidrotermal. El Gakkel Ridge es una extensión de la dorsal medio oceánica más al sur en el Atlantico. Tiene una longitud de unos 1800 km. y cruza el Ártico desde las costa de Groenlandia hasta Siberia (Fig. 2). Como el resto del Ártico, es una de las zonas océanicas menos exploradas por lo que cuál es la importancia de la actividad hidrotermal en todos los procesos que os he comentado más arriba es todavia una pregunta sin contestar. La actividad hidrotermal podría tener implicaciones de mayor importancia aquí debido a que las capas profundas (últimos 2000 metros) están menos estratificadas que en otros océanos. Eso significa que en el Ártico la diferencia de densidad entre agua a diferentes profundidades es menor. Por tanto, nuestras ‘nubes’ de agua hidrotermal podrían ascender más en el Ártico. Ello movería un mayor volumen de agua verticalmente, siendo mayor también su contribución a la circulación de masas de agua profundas en esta cuenca. Por supuesto, el calor liberado al océano a través de la actividad hidrotermal también afectará al calor almacenado en el fondo del Ártico. Así que, estoy encantada de que durante nuestra campana hayamos podido obtener medidas sobre el Gakkel Ridge, y que esos nuevos datos puedan ayudarme a intentar encontrar respuesta a alguna de esas preguntas. Para los que no lo sepan las aguas profundas del Ártico y Mar de Groenlandia son mi objetivo de estudio actualmente.
In the Arctic, we find one of these divergent plate boundaries associated with hydrothermal activity. The Gakkel Ridge is an extension of the world-encircling ridge, represented further south in the Atlantic by the mid-Atlantic Ocean Ridge, through the Arctic Ocean. It extends along 1800 km. crossing the Arctic from Greenland to Siberia (Fig. 2). As the rest of the Arctic Ocean, it is one of the less sampled oceanic areas, and so the importance of the Gakkel Ridge hydrothermal activity in all the processes that I explained above is still an open question. The hydrothermal activity in the Arctic could have larger implications than in other basins, because its deeper layers are less stratified than other ocean basins. It means that here the density difference between different depths is smaller. Thus, the hydrothermal ‘plumes’ may reach shallower depths in the Arctic. It would imply a larger vertical movement of water, being also higher its contribution to the circulation of the deep water masses in this basin. Of course, the heat released to the ocean by hydrothermal activity will also affect the heat storage in the deep Arctic Ocean. Thus, I’m really happy and excited with the idea that we have sampled above the Gakkel Ridge, and that these data will help me to give insight in these questions. For those that don’t know, the deep water masses of the Arctic and the Greenland Sea are the aim of my research nowadays.
No puedo terminar sin contaros otra cosa más y con esto os prometo que acabo. El Océano Ártico está comunicado con el resto de oceanos desde hace relativamente poco en su historia geológica, no existiendo todavía hoy ningún paso suficientemente profundo como para intercambiar agua a la profundidad en que esta actividad hidrotermal tienen lugar. Por tanto, es esperable que nuevas especies que hayan evolucionado aisladas y se hayan adaptado especialmente a las condiones del Ártico y la actividad hidrotermal estén todavía por descubrir (Edmonds et al., 2003).
I can’t finish without telling you one more thing, but with this I finish. I promise. The Arctic Ocean is connected with other ocean basins for relatively little time in its geological history. Besides, there is no opening nowadays deep enough that enables the direct exchange of water at the depth where the hydrothermal activity in the Gakkel Ridge takes place. Thus, we can expect that new species which have evolved in isolation and adapted to the Arctic and hydrothermal vent environments will be discovered here (Edmonds et al., 2003).
Longhurst, A. (1998), Ecological Geography of the Sea, Academic Press London.
Lupton et al., 1985. Entrainment and vertical transports of deep-ocea water by hydrothermal plumes. Nature, Vol. 316. 1985.
Stein et al., 1993.‘Heat flow and hydrothermal circulation‘ in ‘Seafloor Hydrothermal Sytems: Physical, Chemical, Biological and Geological Interactions‘. Geophysical Monograph, 91. American Geophysical Union.
Ya casi hemos hecho la mitad de nuestra campana. Hoy comenzamos nuestro viaje de retorno durante las siguientes cinco semanas, desde el Laptev Sea (frente a la costa de Siberia) hacia Bremerhaven (donde vivo ahora y se encuentra la sede del AWI) pasando por el Polo Norte. Los últimos 10 días han sido bastante ajetreados y por eso no he tenido mucho tiempo de contaros lo que iba pasando mientras tanto. Además, la última estación en el hielo no fue muy afortunada para nosotros, las cosas no salieron como esperábamos y, en cierto modo, no creía que tuviese mucho que contaros. Estaba equivocada y eso me ha dado pie a escribir este post.
We have almost done half of our cruise in the Arctic. Today, we start our return trip from the Laptev Sea (in front of the Siberian Coast) to Bremerhaven (where I live now and where AWI is located) passing through the North Pole. The last 10 days have been very busy, and, for this reason, I haven’t had plenty of time to write any post for the blog and tell you what was happening during that time. Besides, the last ice-station was not very lucky for us, things didn’t go as we expected, and I thought I didn’t have a lot of things to tell you. I was wrong, and that has given me a theme for this post.
Así pues, hoy no solo os voy a hablar de éxitos, de resultados asombrosos y de instrumentos extraordinarios que nos permiten observar cosas que hasta hace poco parecían imposibles sino también de todo el esfuerzo que hay detrás de todos esos resultados, y el que a veces nos olvidamos de mencionar.
Thus, today I will not tell you only about big successes, amazing results and/or extraordinary instruments that allow us the observation of processes that until recently we couldn’t imagine. Today, I will tell you also about the effort that is behind all these advances, and that sometimes we forget to mention.
Las fotos que tenéis más arriba se corresponden con el material y la colocación de un ITP (Ice-tethered Profiler) en el hielo. Un ITP es CTD (para los que no sepáis lo que es un CTD podéis mirar el post anterior ‘New Eyes to see the Ocean’) perfilador autónomo, lo que significa que es un instrumento que toma perfiles de la columna de agua de manera automática, midiendo temperatura, salinidad y presión como el resto de CTDs, aunque pueden añadirse otros sensores. Para ello, el perfilador va montado sobre un cable de 800 metros de longitud dotado en el fondo de un muerto que lo mantiene vertical y unido en la superficie del hielo a una boya (la boya amarilla que véis en la foto). De este modo, el perfilador realiza unos dos o tres perfiles al día desde unos 800 metros de profundidad hasta la superficie debajo del hielo. Desde la boya en superficie los datos son enviados vía satélite según son tomados. Esto permite conocer como el hielo va derivando en el Ártico -el hielo no se mantiene estático sino que se forma y posteriormente deriva empujado por el viento fuera de éste a través principalmente de Fram Strait- así como las propiedades de las masas de agua debajo de este. La mayoría de las medidas en zonas polares se toman durante los meses de verano cuando la extensión y espesor del hielo permiten realizar campañas oceanográficas. Estos instrumentos permiten obtener medidas durante todo el año que de otra manera no pueden realizarse. Por eso, suponen un gran avance y durante nuestra campana tenemos la intención de colocar 5 instrumentos de este tipo en distintas áreas del Ártico. Nos quedan tres.
The photographs that you see above correspond with the material and deployment of an ITP (Ice-tethered Profiler) on the ice. An ITP is an autonomous CTD (for those that don´t know what a CTD is, you can read the previous post ‘New Eyes to see the Ocean’) profiler. It means that this instrument makes profiles of the water column automatically, measuring temperature, salinity and depth as the rest of CTDs, although other sensors can also be installed. The profiler is mounted over a cable of 800 m. length equipped with a weight at the bottom that maintains the cable vertically orientated and joined to a superficial buoy on the ice surface (the yellow buoy that you see in the photograph). Once it has been installed, the ITP makes two or three profiles per day from 800 meters depth to the surface below the ice. From the surface buoy, the registered data are sent by satellite. It allows knowing how the ice drifts in the Arctic Ocean -the ice is not static, but it forms inside the Arctic Ocean and lately it is transported by the winds out from the Arctic Ocean- and the properties of the water column below the ice. Most of the oceanographic measurements in Polar Regions are taken during summer months when sea ice extension and thickness allow the sampling. These instruments enable to obtain measurements during the whole year that are not possible to be carried out in other way. For this reason, they represent a big advance, and we have the intention to deploy five of this type of instruments during our cruise. We still have to deploy three of them.
Como os decía, lo que quiero destacar esta vez no es solo lo que estos instrumentos nos proporcionan sino todo lo que conlleva poner estos aparatos en funcionamiento.
As I told you, today I not only want to highlight the ‘goodness’ of these new instruments, but also all the effort involved in putting them into operation.
1- Para empezar debemos mover todo el material al hielo, lo cual no es una nimiedad teniendo en cuenta que todo junto pesa alrededor de una tonelada. Arriba a la izda. en la foto veis la mayoría del material necesario para colocar uno en sus distintas cajas.
First, we must move all the material onto the ice, which is not a triviality considering that all together weighs within 1 ton. Above, on the top-left corner photograph, you can see most of the material that we need for an ITP deployment.
2- Después hay que montar todo el material auxiliar para poder desplegar el cable de 800 metros, colocar el perfilador y la boya en superficie. Previamente habremos hecho un agujero en el hielo de unos 3 metros de profundidad. Pueden ser 2 ó 4.5 metros dependiendo del espesor del hielo. Como veis en la foto de abajo a la izda. tampoco es un juego de niños. Todo lo que veis ahí, estaba inicialmente dentro de las cajas.
Later, we must assemble all the auxiliary material that enables to lay out the 800 m. of cable together with the weight in the bottom, the deployment of the profiler, and the surface buoy. Previously, we will have done a hole in the ice of three meters depth on average. It can be 2 or 4.5 depending on the ice thickness. As you see in the photograph in the bottom-left corner, it’s neither a child’s game. All that you see there were initially inside the boxes.
3- Una vez colocado todo, se comprueba que el perfilador funciona, se vuelve a meter todo el material auxiliary en las cajas, de manera que cuando nos vamos solo la boya de superficie que veis en la foto de arriba a la dcha. indica que hemos estado ahí y colocado un ITP.
Once the ITP has been deployed, a test is carried out to check its performance. Then, all the auxiliary material is put again inside the boxes, in such a way that when we leave only the presence of the surface buoy indicates that we have been there, and that an ITP is deployed there (photograph in the top-right corner).
4- ¿Y qué pasa si el perfilador no funciona? Pues hay que volver a recoger los 800 metros de cable en el tambor, recuperar el perfilador con su muerto de 150 kilos, guardar la tonelada de material de nuevo en sus cajas y volver con todo al barco. A veces pasa, pero este esfuerzo es necesario para obtener todos estos nuevos datos que después están a disposición de toda la comunidad científica y del público en general, lo cual hace ese trabajo aún más merecedor de ese esfuerzo.
And…what happens if the profiler doesn’t work? Well, then, we must to put the 800 meters of cable again in the winch; to recover the profiler and the weight at the bottom; and to keep the ton of material again in their boxes, and return it to the ship. Sometimes, this kind of things happens, but this effort is necessary to obtain these new data that later will be available for all the scientific community and the general public. It makes this work even more worthy of this effort.
Y todo esto me da pie a hablar de otro trabajo que también pasa desapercibido para el público; bueno, eso considerando que nuestro trabajo como oceanógrafos es sobradamente conocido ;-). Ese es el trabajo de los miembros de la tripulación de los barcos oceanográficos. Para prácticamente todo lo que realizamos a bordo durante una campana necesitamos su ayuda. Sin ellos, cualquier cosa que quisiésemos realizar sería mil veces más complicada, suponiendo que consiguiésemos llegar a hacerla. Es increíble a la velocidad que pueden hacer y deshacer nudos, manejar tornos, desplegar zodiacs en el agua y recogerlas, o hacer con el barco y su navegación lo que nosotros queramos o necesitemos. Incluso disponemos de un helicóptero con el que con la ayuda de los pilotos y el resto de personal podemos hacer incluso más cosas, o intentarlas de manera diferente, por si todo lo hecho en el barco no fuese suficiente. Hoy en lugar de fotos del hielo, os dejo algunas fotos de ellos.
Overall, it has made me think in other work that also goes unnoticed for the public; of course, this considering that our work as oceanographers is well known ;-). This is the work of the members of the crew of a research vessel. For almost everything that we do onboard, we need their help. Without them any task would be thousand times more difficult, assuming that we would be able to do in such case. It’s incredible how fast they can do and undo knots, to operate the winch, to put zodiacs in and out of the water, and make with the ship and its navigation anything that we need. Even, we dispose of two helicopters with which we can try alternative maneuvers to all the previous done onboard with the help of the pilots. Today, instead of ice photos, I leave you photos of some of them. |
0.993692 | This section is still very much under construction more Free C+ + Source Code / Library links will be appearing in the future. This page is about ee C / C+ + Source Code Library Links. Helgrind is a Valgrind tool for detecting synchronisation errors in C C+ + Fortran programs that use the POSIX pthreads threading primitives.
0) 32- bit Database on Red Hat Advanced Server 4 ( x86, kernel 2. It' s time for web servers to handle ten thousand clients simultaneously, don' t you think?
Glibc linuxthreads download. System Tuning Info for Linux Servers NOTE: Most of the info on this page is about 3 years one two kernel versions out of date. Gzファイルからインストールした場合は、 easy- rsaサブディレクトリはソースツリーを展開したトップディレクトリの下にあります。 Gzファイルからインストールした場合は、 easy- rsaサブディレクトリはソースツリーを展開したトップディレクトリの下にあります。 Windowsを使用している場合には、 コマンドプロンプトを開き、 \ Program Files\ OpenVPN\ easy- rsaディレクトリに入ります。 次のバッチファイルを実行して設定ファイ.
Life cycle of SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server 11 ( SLES 11) An overview of the various life cycles for the SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server product line can be found in SAP note 936887. The tool works for any program that uses the POSIX threading primitives or that uses threading concepts built on top of the POSIX threading primitives.
Gzファイルからインストールした場合は、 easy- rsaサブディレクトリはソースツリーを展開したトップディレクトリの下にあります。. After all, the web is a big place Here is a summary ( HOWTO) how I installed: Oracle 9iR2 ( 9. 0 Red Hat Advanced Server 2.
Here are some useful add- in related links I' ve started collecting. This saves the trouble of asking them sometimes the trouble of encountering a problem. The C10K problem [ Help save the best Linux news source on the web - - subscribe to Linux Weekly News!
DRD is a Valgrind tool for detecting errors in multithreaded C and C+ + programs. The FAQ tries to answer questions before they' re asked. If any Free C+ + Source Code / Library link dies, please contact me. 1 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux Advanced Server 3 ( RHEL AS 3).
Glibc linuxthreads download. This hapens due to the shift from LinuxThreads to NPTL ( Native POSIX Thread Library) and the stalling Oracle 9i on RedHat Linux 7. General information about these FAQ' s Why this FAQ?
GNU tools; Linux kernel; User land; Debian Packages; Other tools - Oprofile, gen_ gdbinit. GNU Cross Tools for M32R For Linux/ M32R We modified GNU tools for Linux/ M32R. Both binary and source packages are available. OS / platform: issue / workaround: scope: Linux / IA32: Segmentation fault with Red Hat 9 Issue: Running Dynamo on a Linux machine with a glibc ( GNU libc) version 2.
3 or higher ( having NPTL support) - Red Hat 9 for instance - it comes to a segmentation fault after ending a test. |
0.99981 | A drink driver has been jailed for six years for a fatal hit and run where he mowed down a police worker's mother at speeds of up to 100mph.
A court heard Paul Tomlinson, 33, was speeding and swerving in and out of traffic and driving so badly at the time of the crash that another motorist called police shortly before he hit and killed Susan Smythe.
The crash took place at a pedestrian crossing as she made her way home from playing bingo at around 9.45pm on September 9 in Stretford, Greater Manchester.
Callous Tomlinson has today been slammed by the victim's family after gave a thumbs up from the deck before he was led away to begin his prison sentence.
A court heard despite the call by the concerned motorist officers were unable to locate Tomlinson's VW Golf and 45 minutes later he ploughed into Mrs Smythe, 59.
Tomlinson left her dying in the road after hitting her at what witnesses estimated to be 70mph to 100mph and, at the least, more than 60mph, Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester heard.
His girlfriend, Shelby Keedy, who had been screaming and begging him to slow down and stop, fled his house to a nearby police patrol and told officers her boyfriend had been driving the car which killed Miss Smythe.
When police tracked him down the victim's son, a forensic crime scene investigator, was deployed to work on the suspect's car - only to discover the victim was his own mother.
The court heard Tomlinson claimed to have had a single drink of vodka, although his girlfriend - a passenger in the car who had begged him to slow down - said she could smell alcohol on his breath.
An initial screening test by police at his home in Sale Moor an hour after the crash showed him to be four times the drink-drive limit.
Tomlinson said he had been drinking after the crash but he refused to give a breath or blood test when arrested and taken to the police station.
He was not charged with drink-driving but the father of one pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to causing death by dangerous driving, failing to stop after a road accident and failing to provide a specimen of breath.
He was banned from driving for eight years.
Passing sentence Judge Stuart Driver QC said: 'Susan Smythe was an innocent pedestrian. The sudden and unnecessary end to her life is a terrible loss to her family and friends.
'No words of this court can soften the bereavement and no sentence imposed can change what has happened.
Earlier the court heard Tomlinson had picked up his girlfriend near Manchester city centre and was weaving in and out of traffic, travelling at 'motorway speeds' through built-up areas of the city.
As his passenger begged him to slow down he 'smirked' at her and began to race another driver, the court heard.
Police traced him quickly after the crash when a witness passed on a partial registration plate for his vehicle, and also used CCTV images.
Richard Littler, mitigating, said the defendant had only a single previous conviction and only three points on his licence and was otherwise of good character and from a respectable family.
Mr Littler added: 'This is an offence which is totally out of character. This will be his first experience of a prison sentence and he will inevitably find that difficult.
Gail O'Brien, senior crown prosecutor for CPS North West, said: 'Tomlinson partook in a series of dangerous manoeuvres, overtaking and undertaking other vehicles at speed and had a near-miss with a car a short time before he hit Mrs Smythe.
'He showed no signs of slowing down as he approached the crossing and even after his car threw her in the air, he proceeded to drive at speed from the scene, leaving her on the road with catastrophic head injuries which proved to be fatal.
Today in court he thanked the judge and gave a thumbs up to his family from the dock as he learned he could free in just three years.
He was also banned from the roads for eight years. The maximum sentence he could have faced is 14 years in jail.
After the case Ms Smythe's sister Kathleen Condon, 59, said: 'I don't feel like Susan's got any justice - the fact this man put his thumbs up in court is about as disrespectful to us as you could be.
She added: 'The case all seemed to be about him and his family. Susan was not spoken about at all in court.
'She was a lovely, bubbly person. She would have turned 60 in January and we would have had a family party but we will just have to go out on our own and celebrate her life. |
0.959264 | How could you shop for a woman who already owns every thing she wants? It's not as hard as you may be thinking while there is always a special approach at buying for the girl who seemingly has a closet full of clothes or even a box full of jewelry. Besides, there's always room for one more outfit or piece of jewelry.
Diamonds are timeless and always in style. The most frequently found are white diamonds, but what about a blue, cognac or black stone? They're most certainly not something that you see at the local jewelry store without seeing a huge price tag to match. If you're looking for a good choice of jewelry for Christmas gifts, at an affordable price, look around the web and compare prices.
Being that Christmas falls in winter, it is always nice to have a set of snuggly pajamas for those chilly evenings. Fleece pants are perfectly comfortable for an evening in the home and, matched using a cotton tshirt, come in a variety of cute types and make wonderful Christmas gift ideas.
If she is the star in your daily life, let her know by naming a star in her honor. You will find many novelty stores online, that provide star naming services. To get a set price, you can give a dedication date to it, identify a star and present it as a present to the special girl in your daily life. The specialty store frequently supplies a framing package, but you can save some big bucks if you purchase a great frame at an area store and frame it yourself. It's very nearly certain that she doesn't have her very own star, which means this is a truly unique Xmas gift. |
0.986572 | In the last two decades, television series have grown extremely popular. This popularity rises from the phenomenon called complex television, which was made possible thanks to what media theoreticians, among the first of which was Jason Mittell, call narrative complexity. Narrative complexity developed thanks to the technological transformation of production, broadcasting and especially of the ways of watching television programs. The term revolution in watching is used to denote this transformation, made possible especially by DVDs and downloading. The narrative complexity of television series can be seen within the broader context of the contemporary digital revolution, globalization, neoliberalism, consumerism, media imperialism and narrative imperialism.
The main characteristic of these TV series is hybridity: they are usually realized as a mixture of ‘a series’ and ‘a serial’, as well as by mixing various genres. Some theoreticians, as well as the makers of the series, directly connect the narrative complexity of the TV series with the complexity of novels by writers such as Dickens, Trollope and Zola (Brett Martin, David Simon). Another points to the fact that the TV series have drawn from the already developed literary genres within which they operate (Jean-Pierre Esquenazi). Others, like Mittell, insist that these TV series and serials are an inherently television genre and that they should be considered as such.
Narrative complexity can also be considered within the context of the commercialization and appropriation of avant-garde strategies by the creative industries. As a consequence of this appropriation, television audiences are used to watching complex audio-visual media representations and narrativizations. Therefore, it is no surprise that audiences of the TV series now enjoy, not only the story told, but also, and even more, trying to understand the way the story is constructed. This creative mechanics has been labeled metareflexive by Jeffrey Sconce, while Mittell writes of narrative special effects, and Neil Harris writes of operational aesthetics.
The TV series enter into dialogue with contemporary political, economic, social, and cultural tendencies (the economic crisis, the war on terrorism, the decline of the welfare state, the function of mass media in the process of the normalization of contemporary political tendencies, global politics, the decay of medical insurance and all levels of education, along with the culture in general, of drugs and crime, racism and misogyny, violence, and so on). There is some debate, however, about who is genuinely criticizing elements of neoliberalism in these series. Many theoreticians like Fredrick Jameson and Slavoj Žižek have written about the engagement and criticism towards the many aspects of neoliberalism in television serials like The Wire, while others like Liam Kennedy and Stephen Shapiro question whether there is a complicity in their advocacy, which should itself be criticized.
These television series provoke us to think about the narrative mechanics by which they are constructed, as well as about the way they represent globalization, neoliberalism, post-feminism, etc.
Book Review: Aleksandra Mančić, Egzotizam i kanibalizam. Transmisije drugog i avangardni oblici prevođenja [Exoticism and Cannibalism. Transmissions of the Other and the Avant-Garde Forms of Translation]. Beograd: Službeni glasnik, 2017.
Book Review: Sanja Kovačević: Kvalitetne TV serije: milenijsko doba ekrana [Quality TV Series: Millennial Screen Time], Zagreb: CeKaPe, Jesenski i Turk, 2017. |
0.994021 | I have created LDAP user "ldapuser" and exported its home directory "/home/LDAP/ldapuser" to LDAP client by following steps and its working but when I replace /home/LDAP/ with /home/testdir/ or only /home it is not allowing to modify database.
How can I export the user home directory from same location /home on client with "/home/ldapuser"?
# /usr/sbin/exportfs -a Step 4. |
0.973351 | High-throughput analysis of animal behavior requires software to analyze videos. Such software analyzes each frame individually, detecting animals' body parts. But the image analysis rarely attempts to recognize "behavioral states"-e.g., actions or facial expressions-directly from the image instead of using the detected body parts. Here, we show that convolutional neural networks (CNNs)-a machine learning approach that recently became the leading technique for object recognition, human pose estimation, and human action recognition-were able to recognize directly from images whether Drosophila were "on" (standing or walking) or "off" (not in physical contact with) egg-laying substrates for each frame of our videos. We used multiple nets and image transformations to optimize accuracy for our classification task, achieving a surprisingly low error rate of just 0.072%. Classifying one of our 8 h videos took less than 3 h using a fast GPU. The approach enabled uncovering a novel egg-laying-induced behavior modification in Drosophila. Furthermore, it should be readily applicable to other behavior analysis tasks. |
0.614404 | Where the Wild Things Are, Op. 20, is a fantasy opera in one act, nine scenes, by Oliver Knussen to a libretto by Maurice Sendak, based on Sendak's own children's book of the same title. Knussen composed the music from 1979 to 1983, on commission from the Opèra National, Brussels.
In form and subject matter the work relates to Maurice Ravel's L'enfant et les sortilèges, as well as Stravinsky's The Nightingale. Knussen also included a number of musical quotations, including Debussy's La boîte à joujoux and the bell motif from the coronation scene of Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. Robin Holloway has noted affinities of the score with aspects of Harrison Birtwistle's Punch and Judy and Benjamin Britten's Death in Venice.
The first version of the opera was premiered in Brussels at the Théâtre de la Monnaie, under the title Max et les Maximonstres on 28 November 1980, conducted by Ronald Zollman. Knussen continued work on the score, and the final version was first performed by Glyndebourne Touring Opera at the National Theatre, London on 9 January 1984, with the composer conducting. The first US production was at the Minnesota Opera in September 1985, directed by Frank Corsaro. The same Minnesota production was given at the New York City Opera in November 1987. New York City Opera revived the opera in April 2011. The cast included Danya Katok as Max, Leslie Davis as Mama/Tzippy, and Lawrence Jones as Wild Thing with Beard, Andrew Sauvageau as Wild Thing with Horns, Adam Cannedy as Rooster Wild Thing, and David Salsbery Fry as Bull Wild Thing. Julian Kuerti conducted and Sean Curran was director. This was the first performance where the opera was performed off-book, entirely from memory.
The published score notes that "all the Wild Things should be played by dancers on stage with singers (amplified) off-stage".
Max is a rambunctious boy who dresses in a wolf suit. After he throws a tantrum, Mama (his mother) confines him to his room. Max then escapes in his dreams to a forest, and then to the island of the Wild Things. The Wild Things eventually hail Max as their king, and the "coronation" culminates in a frenzied dance, the Wild Rumpus. In the course of the Rumpus, Tzippy, the female Wild Thing, loses her head, which causes Max to halt the Rumpus. At the end, the dream is over, and Max starts to eat the food his Mama had left for him during his dream time.
^ Andrew Clements (27 July 2002). "London Sinfonietta/Knussen". The Guardian. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ Holloway, Robin, "First Performances: Where the Wild Things Are" (June 1981). Tempo (New Ser.), 137: pp. 36–38.
^ Michael Walsh (14 October 1985). "Mastering the Wild Things". Time. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ John Rockwell (14 November 1987). "City Opera: A Mozart and Knussen Pairing". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ a b c Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "Where the Wild Things Are, 28 November 1980". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).
^ Hunt, Christopher (1986). "Where the Wild Things Are. Oliver Knussen". The Opera Quarterly. 4 (1): 152–154. doi:10.1093/oq/4.1.152. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ Bray, Trevor, "Recordings – Knussen: Where the Wild Things Are" (March 1986). Tempo (New Ser.), 156: pp. 27–28.
^ Galloway, Malcolm, "Record Reviews – Oliver Knussen: Higglety Pigglety Pop!; Where the Wild Things Are" (October 2001). Tempo (New Ser.), 218: pp. 62–63.
This page was last edited on 28 January 2019, at 05:28 (UTC). |
0.999979 | Which Retirement Income Option would you have taken?
So, as you know I read quite a few blogs and I came across this one that posed an interesting question: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2013/04/03/retirement-income-option/?utm_source=feedburner&u...|+A+BiggerPockets+Blog%29&utm_content=Google+Reader It started me thinking: Anyone have some great investment stories? Any properties that you bought that exceeded your hopes or ones that didn't turn out so great that you'd like to offer advice to everyone else on how to avoid the situation? Just curious. |
0.96558 | Look at the two Leaning Towers of Pisa. Does one lean more than the other?
The tower on the right seems to lean more, so it is surprising, that these are actually two identical pictures of the tower side by side!
The Leaning Towers Illusion was first published the journal Perception in 2007. The illusion also won the Best Illusion of the Year contest in 2007.
The illusion occurs because of the nature of perspective. Two tall structures that are actually parallel, like two towers, will actually converge on the two-dimensional surface of the photo when photgraphed from below. One can see this in the photo below of the Petronas Towers. Kingdom et al. (2007a) claim that our brain corrects for this distortion and represent the towers as parallel.
Thus, if two towers do not converge on the surface of a photo or image, as they do not in the Leaning Tower Illusion, our brain interprets the towers as diverging in real life. The mechanism that usually works so well when interpreting the world breaks down when interpreting two photos side by side. One can also see this in the two identical photos of the left-hand Petronas tower side by side below.
Kingdom et a.l (2007a) suggest that our brains go wrong because they treat the two images as if they were part of a single scene, when they are not. The fact that we cannot overcome this suggests that there is some degree of cognitive impenetrability in our vision. In other words, our belief (indeed knowledge) that the two towers are identical does not affect our visual experience of them such that we come to experience them as identical. We continue to experience one as more leaning than the other. For an examination of the general issue of cognitive penetration, see Macpherson (2012).
Kingdom et al. (2007a) also point out that this effect is not limited to photos of tall things photographed from below. One gets the same effect from many photographs that involve parallel lines. One can see this illustrated by the pairs of photographs below.
Finally, Kingdom et al. (2007b) produced a figure that shows that the leaning tower effect does not accumulate. This means that if many leaning towers are next to each other, while each subsequent figure to the right seems more leaning than the one to its left, the effect does not add up so that a figure more than one to the right of another does not look more leaning than the one to its immediate right. That this does not happen can be seen in the image below. Although each tower looks to be more leaning than the one to its left, the rightmost tower looks no more leaning than the second left tower does when contrasted with the leftmost tower.
This means that the series appears somewhat paradoxical. There could not be a series of six towers where the one to the right was always more leaning that the one to its left, and yet the rightmost tower was not more leaning than any of the other towers. This image then is a form of impossible figure. There are many such figures in the Illusions index that you can search for and read about in more detail.
Kingdom, F.A.A., Yoonessi, A.and Gheorghiu, E. 2007a. "The Leaning Tower Illusion: A New Illusion of Perspective", Perception, 36(3): 475-477.
Kingdom, F.A.A., Yoonessi, A.and Gheorghiu, E. 2007b. "Leaning tower illusion", Scholarpedia, 2(12): 5392. doi:10.4249/scholarpedia.5392, accessed 30 August 2017.
Macpherson, F. (August 2017) "The Leaning Tower Illusion" in F. Macpherson (ed.), The Illusions Index. Retrieved from https://www.illusionsindex.org/i/leaning-tower-illusion. |
0.983576 | India Bisq Market Maker I need somebody to make a market in BTC-INR on Bisq (https://bis...project is ideally suited for someone who is: -Already familiar with Bitcoin and P2P exchanges. -Has a fully working INR payment method to make and receive payments. -Knows the difference between a market maker and a taker, bid and ask, limit and market orders. |
0.945588 | We all know a few of them. Those naturally skinny people who seem to be able to eat whatever they want, and never gain an ounce. Those people who can truly just "take a taste", and stop, without scarfing down the entire piece of chocolate cake. What is up with these people? Are they really different from the rest of us?
The answer is yes, they really ARE different. They are a genetic variant, and they make up less than 30% of the population. And they make the rest of us feel guilty for struggling with our food intake, because they just don't understand that we are biologically wired differently. They say things like "Just listen to your body," and they don't realize that we ARE listening. It's just that our bodies, and their bodies, are not saying the same thing.
We make literally hundreds of conscious and unconscious decisions every day on eating. Naturally skinny people don't have to think consciously very much about this, because their bodies are giving them good, reliable signals on when to eat, how much, and when to stop. There are many chemical signals involved in feeling full and satisfied, including leptin, insulin, ghrelin, CCK, GLP-1, dopamine, and Peptide YY. Naturally skinny people have appetites that are like fine-tuned machines - it is relatively effortless for them to control their food intake, because their appetites are on "auto-pilot" - it simply isn't that hard for them. For the rest of the population,it is not so easy. Even minor "malfunctions" in our fullness signals mean that we can unconsciously eat a few more calories; small calorie increases over time can lead to big weight gain. Weight gain itself can "snowball", since excess weight itself can lead to further "malfunctions" in our ability to regulate intake.
Human eating behavior is very complicated. Hunger and fullness (or "satiety") is controlled by numerous chemical signals in our brain, gastrointestinal tract, and fat cells. These signals can be affected by genetics, environment, types of food eaten (some foods make you HUNGRIER, ironically), exercise, stress, sleep, psychological factors, medications, illness, and other factors. This is a lot to look at, a lot to control. It is tough to do on your own; that is why people come to our program for help.
The next time someone tells you to "just push away from the table", tell them to just hold their breath for sixty seconds. It won't kill them, of course, but the physiologic drive to take a breath will be almost overwhelming. They probably won't understand that you face a similar physiologic drive to eat, but hey, it will be fun for a minute to watch them struggle with something for a change! But don't despair -there are MANY tactics to help you control your appetite and drive to eat. There are specific ways of eating, exercising,and lifestyle measures, and sometimes medication changes, and different ways of addressing medical issues, that can make the battle much easier!
Well, it's Mother's Day, and what am I doing? Taking a few minutes for myself, to catch up on things, including my blog! A little peace and quiet, and time to oneself, can be a great gift to moms - and everyone else, really!
And don't forget to splurge on yourself, a little. You read that correctly. Studies have shown that if people feel overly restricted in spending money, they will tend to over-indulge in food. And vice-versa (over-restricted in food, then they'll spend more money.) Hmmm, interesting conundrum, isn't it? Obviously, we don't want to FEEL overly restricted in food, or money, so what do we do? Try to feel indulgent in both areas! How do we do that on a limited financial budget, and limited calorie budget? Tricky, I know, but this is where creativity comes in.
If you are severely financially restricted, try to figure out how much, if any, "play" money you can sneak away for yourself. If you have $5, maybe a magazine (gossip, fashion, sports, hobby - your choice!) Or maybe a flavored lip gloss - you get the idea. Something you don't really "need", but something that is fun. Depending on your budget, maybe a CD or DVD, or a new scarf or belt - something that won't break the bank, but will make you feel like you "splurged", or "got away with something." If you really don't even have a spare $5, then try to "steal" some time away for yourself. Sneak off to the bookstore, or go for a walk in a new place, or watch some "junk" on tv, or read online. The point is to do something you don't HAVE to do, so you feel like you "splurged" on yourself! For all you moms who feel locked up at home with the kids, try to find someone to swap kid-watching duties, so you can get away for a bit!
So Happy Mother's Day! Enjoy and indulge!
Vitamin D deficiency has become the "hot topic" in the news lately - and for good reason. There is mounting evidence that low levels of vitamin D may be associated with increased risk of obesity, weight gain around the waist, cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, type I and type II diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, muscle and joint pain, autoimmune diseases, fatigue and depression, and other diseases, along with the more well known problems with bone density.
According to this article from the April 15th issue of Family Practice News, "(a)recent analysis of data collected by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) during 1988-1994 and 2001-2004 even suggests that an epidemic of vitamin D deficiency may have hit the United States."
The article further notes that the "Institute of Medicine is reviewing its 1997 guidelines for vitamin D intake, and will likely recommend increased supplementation when new guidelines are published in 2010..."
According to the article, Dr. Jared P. Reis, a researcher in the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, analyzed data from adolescents aged 12-19 during 2001-2004 in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), run by the National Center for Health Statistics, and found that teens with the lowest vitamin D levels were more than fivefold more likely to have a BMI at the 95th percentile. They also " had a significantly higher rate of low levels of HDL cholesterol, high triglycerides, and metabolic syndrome, compared with the teens in the highest vitamin D quartile." Dr. Reis explained that "Vitamin D reduces activation of the renin-angiotensin system, thereby lowering blood pressure. It also reduces insulin release from pancreatic beta cells and raises insulin sensitivity. Low vitamin D levels produce opposite effects, activating renin-angiotensin to raise blood pressure, boosting insulin release, and lowering insulin sensitivity."
How did this "epidemic" come about? What has changed in our lifestyle in this country, that would lead to a widespread lack of vitamin D? The answer may be more simple than one might expect.
Vitamin D comes from three main sources: diet, sunlight, and supplements. Many experts believe that we need 1000-2000 I.U.'s of vitamin D per day, just to keep up a normal D level in our bodies. A glass of milk only has about 100 I.U.'s of vitamin D (and even that amount is destroyed if it is exposed to light). Most people do not drink 10-20 glasses of milk per day, so we can't get all of our D from milk! Very few other foods have a large amount of vitamin D. According to the first article above, “you cannot eat enough vitamin D-containing foods to get anywhere near 1,000 IU of vitamin D per day,” according to Dr. Weaver, who served on the IOM committee for the current guidelines.
So our next option is sunlight. Our skin IS capable of producing vitamin D from the sun, but this ability is blocked if we wear sunscreen. Our skin is also less capable of producing vitamin D as we age, gain weight, or have darker skin tone. Add this to the fact that very few of us spend much time outdoors hunting or gathering anymore, and we have the scene set for vitamin D deficiency.
So the final, and ultimately best option, is going to be supplementation. Many multi vitamins have between 400 and 800 I.U.'s of vitamin D. Calcium and D combination supplements may have anywhere from 100 to 500 I.U. of vitamin D. And there are plain old vitamin D supplements, all by themselves. I do NOT advise trying to guess, all on your own, how much vitamin D you need. It IS possible to take in too much vitamin D; it is fat-soluble, and can build up over time, with high doses. The best route is to check with your primary care physician, and ask about his or her approach to vitamin D. Ask if he or she is aware that the Institute of Medicine is reviewing its 1997 guidelines, and will likely be changing them with the new 2010 guidelines (oh boy, your doc will love me for this one!) Ask if you need to have a blood test to determine your current blood level of vitamin D, and if you need treatment. Be aware that there is no widespread consensus on ideal levels and treatment courses - there is wide variation among physicians. Also be aware that certain people can be at risk of overtreatment with vitamin D - people with hyperparathyroidism, or sarcoidosis, for example.
If your blood vessels aren't happy, the rest of your body isn't happy. After all, it is the blood vessels which bring our bodies nutrition and oxygen - and keep us alive!
Luckily, a new study show a simple "trick" we can use to keep our blood vessels flexible, resilient, and happy - simply eat at least five servings of fruit and vegetables, ideally spread throughout the day.
The good news is that it can be pretty easy, with just a little planning, to get in at least five servings of fruit and vegetables. Fresh, organic veggies are great, of course, but for people who have trouble getting to the Farmer's Market, it is good to know that frozen vegetables, and even dried fruit, are an inexpensive, convenient, and healthful way to get your servings!
Frozen berries (with no sugar added) can be added to breakfast smoothies, cereal, yogurt, or served as dessert with a little low cal whipped topping.
Frozen vegetables can be added to egg white omelets, or for dinner, into stir-fry, tomato sauce for pasta, hidden as an extra "health boost" into many dishes.
1 Bag of frozen vegetables.
Put the chicken broth and mayo into a saucepan over medium to medium high heat and stir. Once smooth and blended, add the minced onion. Continue to cook until onion is soft; finally add frozen vegetables. Cook and stir over medium heat until vegetables are coated, and most of liquid is absorbed - then enjoy!
This is so easy, I could almost cook it myself (but thanks Ron!) We had this with some easy frozen salmon filets from a "big box store", cooked on the "George Foreman" style grill. Inexpensive, easy, healthy, and delicious.
Exercise: How Much, What Kind, and What if you have a Medical Condition?
This is a very extensive paper on exercise, including links to guidelines ("2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans" (www.health.gov/PAGuidelines)), a fitness test(http://www.adultfitnesstest.org/.), the American College of Sports Medicine's fitness planner (www.myexerciseplan.com/assessment), a NIDDK guide to overcoming exercise barriers (http://win.niddk.nih.gov/publications/tips.htm), the ACSM's tip sheets on exercise issues related to physical activity, including Alzheimer's disease, blood clots during exercise, anxiety and depression, heart conditions, cancer, low-back pain, and visual impairment www.exerciseismedicine.org/public.htm, and more!
60 minutes or more of moderate or vigorous physical activity every day.
They also should do muscle-strengthening and bone-strengthening activity on at least 3 days per week.
Vigorous aerobic activity 1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes) a week (that comes out to 15 intense minutes per day, 5 days a week).
Aerobic activity should be performed in episodes of at least 10 minutes, preferably spread throughout the week.
For all individuals, some activity is better than none.
People with diagnosed chronic conditions (such as diabetes, heart disease, or osteoarthritis) or symptoms (e.g., chest pain or pressure, dizziness, or joint pain) need to consult with a health care provider about physical activity.
I will soon post a reprint of my WebMD University interview on starting an exercise program...don't be discouraged!!! Even 10 minutes a day of exercise will begin to improve your health!
Is It Really Important to Keep Blood Glucose Normal In Adult Onset Type II Diabetes?
How important is it to keep "tight control" of blood glucose numbers if you have Type II Diabetes (Adult Onset Diabetes Mellitus)?
The simple answer: VERY IMPORTANT.
There was confusion last spring when one study (the ACCORD trial), seemed to suggest that people were better off if they did NOT keep their blood sugars at the "normal" range. This made no sense to physicians, and indeed, after looking more closely at the data, it appears that early, tight control of blood sugars gives substantial health benefits. Experts now agree that the best approach is to INDIVIDUALIZE the treatment of patients with Type II diabetes (imagine that!). There are many health benefits from "tight", careful control of blood sugars, as long as dangerously low blood sugars are avoided, and intolerable medication side effects are avoided.
To summarize, this study began with 4,209 patients with newly diagnosed diabetes, and then broke them into groups, with different treatments. One group received only dietary restrictions, another group received insulin or an older type of oral medication known as sulfonylureas, and a third group (who were overweight) received an oral medication known as metformin (or Glucophage.) To make a long story short, both medicine groups were much healthier in the long term than the diet-only group, and the metformin (Glucophage) group was healthier than the sulfonylurea/insulin group.
"In the metformin group, significant risk reductions persisted for any diabetes-related end point (21%, P=0.01), myocardial infarction (33%, P=0.005), and death from any cause (27%, P=0.002). "
Highlights from this article: "In the past, doctors usually have told newly diagnosed patients with type 2 diabetes to try diet and exercise first to bring down their blood sugar. Now that should change. They should immediately begin taking medicine. This doesn't mean that diet and exercise are not just as important as before. As blood sugar gets under control, medicine can be tapered. In some cases, it can be discontinued.
For most, metformin should be the first medicine. This is especially true if the person is obese...There are exceptions. People with impaired kidney function probably should avoid metformin. Caution is advised with heart failure and some types of severe liver disease...Whether you were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes yesterday or 20 years ago, you want your blood pressure less than 130/80. Your LDL cholesterol should be less than 100 (preferably closer to 70). Achieving these goals clearly decreases the risks of heart attack and stroke and helps protect the kidneys.
Some doctors already advise their patients to start metformin if they are at high risk for developing diabetes. This would include obese patients with high normal blood sugar who have a strong family history of type 2 diabetes. Research is under way to help answer whether starting medicine even before the onset of diabetes improves results."
As always, discuss all treatment options with your own physician. |
0.943856 | Can You Get the Flu in the Summer?
The flu is a highly contagious respiratory infection caused by the influenza virus. The virus causes seasonal epidemics of respiratory illness that occur during the fall and winter months.
Despite the seasonality of influenza activity, many people experience flu-like symptoms during the summer. Although the detect influenza viruses year-round, these symptoms may not be due to influenza infection.
Flu season is when influenza activity is highest. The incidence of influenza infection typically begins to increase in October and peaks in the winter months of December, January, or February.
It’s believed that the seasonal nature of influenza may be due to the colder, drier climate that’s present during the winter months. During this time, the virus may be more stable. A in a guinea pig model supports this idea, finding that influenza viruses are transmitted more effectively between animals at a low humidity and low temperature.
Another factor that may contribute to influenza peaking in the winter could be the fact that people spend more time indoors. This makes them more likely to share an enclosed space with infected individuals. Additionally, lower levels of vitamin D due to less exposure to sunlight could possibly contribute to an increased susceptibility to infection.
The symptoms of flu are also common symptoms of other illnesses. If you’re experiencing flu-like symptoms during the warmer months of the year, they may be due to another illness or condition other than the flu.
The common cold is another respiratory infection caused by a variety of viruses.
There’s a lot of overlap between the symptoms of the common cold and those of the flu, such as a runny nose or congestion, coughing or sneezing, and sore throat.
However, unlike the flu, the symptoms of the common cold develop gradually and are most often less severe. There are other differences between a cold and flu as well.
Although gastroenteritis is often referred to as the “stomach flu,” it’s not related to influenza. It’s often caused by a number of viruses, such as noroviruses or rotaviruses.
Common symptoms between gastroenteritis and flu include fever, headache, and body aches and pains.
In contrast to the flu, the symptoms of gastroenteritis are more focused around your gastrointestinal tract and may include watery diarrhea and abdominal cramps.
Pneumonia is an infection of your lungs. While it can be a complication of the flu, there are also other causes. These include other viruses, bacteria, fungi, and certain chemical or environmental agents.
The common initial symptoms can be very similar to those of the flu and can include fever, chills, and headache.
Symptoms to look out for that can point specifically to pneumonia include cough with green or yellow mucus, shortness of breath, and sharp chest pain.
Bronchitis is an inflammation of the bronchial tubes in your lungs. Like pneumonia, bronchitis can sometimes be caused by the flu virus. However, it can also be caused by other viruses or environmental factors such as cigarette smoke.
Overlapping symptoms between the two conditions include cough, fever, chills, and fatigue or malaise.
Similarly to pneumonia, symptoms to look out for that may indicate bronchitis include a cough with mucus, shortness of breath, and discomfort in your chest.
You get food poisoning by consuming food that’s contaminated by pathogens, such as viruses, bacteria, or parasites.
Unlike the flu, symptoms are focused on your gastrointestinal tract and include nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and fever.
You may notice symptoms shortly after consuming contaminated food, although they may also take days or weeks to appear.
Lyme disease is caused by a type of bacteria that’s spread through the bite of a tick. If left untreated, it can cause serious complications.
The early symptoms of Lyme disease can be very similar to those of the flu and can include fever, chills, body aches and pains, and fatigue.
Most people with Lyme disease also have a characteristic bull’s-eye rash at the site of the tick bite. However, the rash doesn’t occur in all people.
In some cases, Lyme disease has been for a summer case of the flu. If you’re experiencing flu-like symptoms and have a tick bite or have lived or traveled in an area where Lyme disease occurs, you should see your doctor.
Although the influenza virus can circulate throughout the year, it’s most common during the winter months. If you’re experiencing flu-like symptoms during the summer months, it’s unlikely that you have the flu.
The best way to prevent getting sick over the summer months is to practice good health habits. This can include things like washing your hands frequently, covering your nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze, and avoiding people that are sick.
If you do have flu-like symptoms that become severe or are causing you concern, you should see your doctor to discuss your symptoms. |
0.972733 | Ask a Canadian to describe the city of Edmonton, Alberta, and the two words you are likely to hear are “cold” and “boring”. Edmonton is the northernmost large city in North America, sitting on roughly the same latitude as Moscow – and, as your correspondent discovered while living there, Edmonton can indeed be cold. Very cold. Like “outdoor temperature of -35C and windchill” cold.
However, despite its nickname of “Deadmonton”, Edmonton is not boring. Its winters are long and dark, but many of its residents grew up in small Prairie towns where, if you were bored, you made your own fun. So when Edmontonians get an idea, instead of thinking of reasons why it won’t work, they figure out how to make it happen. That adventurous attitude of “hey, this could be fun” led to the ’72 album Procol Harum Live: In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra – a significant milestone in Procol Harum’s career, and a huge influence on the city where it was recorded. |
0.926189 | We all have unique strengths, interests and capabilities. Our personalities, passions and aspirations are as diverse as the way we look. Thankfully today we can personalize everything from pizza toppings to phone contracts. However, in many parts of the world education is lagging behind with a one-model-fits-all approach. Let’s take a closer look at why personalized learning is important from the very start.
Personalized learning enables the most important step in growth and development, self-awareness. I must first understand where I am at right now as a learner. What am I good at and what do I need to be better in? In doing so, I become aware of my individual learning strengths and weaknesses. Moreover, I can now identify the ways in which I learn best. Do I prefer sitting in silence and reading, to project work with peers, or a mixture of both? Following self-evaluation, I can decide where I want to go from here, which will be my learning goal. Then I can harness my strengths and improve my weaknesses to reach this goal.
Learning happens most organically when we like what we learn. Say for example, I’m super interested in all things space related. I’m passionate about space exploration and aspire to become an astronaut one day. This means I’m intrinsically motivated to learn more about this topic, without someone else making me do so. Personalized learning taps into the intrinsic motivation of individual learners. It’s crucial to encourage younger children in particular, to pick and learn about topics they like most. Furthermore, it is possible to integrate and teach core subjects such as mathematics, physical education or language under umbrella themes that kids find interesting. Through personalized learning we can nurture a passion for learning from a young age.
By learning what you like, the way you like, you will start to develop knowledge and skills necessary for everyday life. You become resourceful by independently searching for new information and asking for help from others when needed. More importantly, you will begin to appreciate and enjoy the level of work, practice and dedication that goes into learning. In other words personalized learning helps us to learn how to learn.
Once you learn how to learn, you can apply the knowledge and skills gained in different contexts. Additionally, personalized learning also helps you to discover the joy of learning. As a result, putting the work necessary to learn things which you don’t enjoy but are important to navigate through modern life, becomes less challenging. Personalized learning is a step by step process which empowers learners to become the best versions of themselves. This is why it is important to learn things your way from the very start.
Discover Fun Learning solutions to support your little one in a personalized manner from the very start. |
0.997612 | •Diamonds are made entirely of highly-compressed carbon 90 to 120 miles below the surface of the earth.
•The carbon atoms form in a unique way that makes a diamond the hardest natural substance on earth.
A diamond's value is based upon four characteristics: color, cut, clarity and carat weight, often referred to as the "Four C's". Each characteristic is analyzed and measured to determine the quality of the diamond. A description of each characteristic is provided below.
Color is measured on a scale from colorless to shades of color with colorless being the rarest and most expensive. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) uses a color grading scale of D-Z, colorless to shades of color respectively. As mentioned above diamonds come in different colors and anything outside this color scale are referred to as "Fancy Colors". The rarest and most expensive diamonds are considered Fancy Colors which include red, pink, blue, and green.
•I1 - I3 Included - inclusions such as large crystals or large feathers viewed without magnification and may affect the transparency and brilliance.
Carat weight (ct.) is the unit of measurement to weigh a diamond. One carat equals 1/142nd of an ounce, or 1/5th of a gram (0.200 gram). Diamonds are weighed into a thousandth of a carat(0.001) and then rounded to the nearest hundredth. Diamond sizes are also referred to as "Points". One carat is divided into 100 points, each point is 1/100th of a carat. A "10-point" diamond weighs 1/10th of a carat and a 50-point stone weighs half a carat.
It is important to note that diamond gradings between the different gemological laboratories are not always consistent. Since the grading of color and clarity is based upon subjective judgment, different grades can be given to diamonds that are borderline between two grades. |
0.953619 | T-bird worked fine until I filtered sextortion e-mails. Now it crashes when one gets filtered. Can they control T-bird?
Thunderbird worked great until I set up a filter to delete sextortion e-mails. When ever one goes through the filter Thunderbird locks up and doesn't respond. I have to close and restart Thunderbird and everything is OK. Can they really hack my e-mail? I didn't have this problem before and the only time I have it now is when they make another attempt to extort me. I haven't even looked at the e-mails let alone click on anything. As soon as I got the first extortion e-mail I wiped out my hard drive and loaded the latest Linux. They probabably hacked my wife's windows 10 laptop to get my email address. Every claim they made was phony. I didn't fall for it.
Host: boss-NUC7i3BNH Kernel: 4.15.0-45-generic x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 7.3.0 Desktop: Cinnamon 4.0.9 wm: muffin dm: LightDM Distro: Linux Mint 19.1 Tessa base: Ubuntu 18.04 bionic Machine: Type: Desktop System: Intel product: NUC7i3BNH v: J31191-312 serial: <filter> Chassis: type: 3 v: 2 serial: <filter> Mobo: Intel model: NUC7i3BNB v: J22859-312 serial: Thunderbird worked great until I set up a filter to delete sextortion e-mails. When ever one goes through the filter Thunderbird locks up and doesn't respond. I have to close and restart Thunderbird and everything is OK. Can they really hack my e-mail? I didn't have this problem before and the only time I have it now is when they make another attempt to extort me. I haven't even looked at the e-mails let alone click on anything. As soon as I got the first extortion e-mail I wiped out my hard drive and loaded the latest Linux. They probabably hacked my wife's windows 10 laptop to get my email address. Every claim they made was phony. I didn't fall for it. |
0.999997 | When we built Eidolon last year, Swift was still pre-1.0 and we couldn't rely on the wide variety of available Swift libraries we enjoy today. I wanted to build it using functional reactive programming, because that's how I believe everyone should write software, but there were no Swift-based FRP libraries at the time. As a compromise, I used ReactiveCocoa's Objective-C API (the Swift API was months away from an alpha).
Swift 2's guard statements helped clean this up, but the fundamental problem was that we were using an FRP library not suited for Swift.
While we had built replacements for the Objective-C runtime features that weren't available in Swift, we knew that a migration away from RAC's Objective-C API would eventually be necessary.
I used a bit of down-time recently to tackle the problem, starting with some small bits and pieces before dedicating two weeks to finish it. Here we go!
Using the type-checker to catch bugs at compile-time.
Writing fewer lines of code.
Having fun with the type checker and protocol extensions.
When Apple announced Swift, they stressed how safe of a language it was. Now that we were moving to a Swift-based FRP framework, we would finally benefit from those safety features.
This makes new features easier and faster to build. It gives me more confidence when I make a new deploy that things won't break. And like I mentioned above, it's just a lot more fun to write Swift with Swift-based frameworks.
When we wrote Eidolon, ReactiveCocoa was more-or-less the only iOS FRP library around. That's fine, because ReactiveCocoa is awesome. But today, there are a variety of frameworks and they're all awesome. So we have a choice to make.
Sticking with ReactiveCocoa would mean that we could make a gradual transition (there's a bridge between the Objective-C and Swift APIs). This is kind of a benefit, but also kind of a drawback. I don't really trust myself enough to move off of Objective-C's API completely if a bridge is there – it's just too tempting to leave some parts of the app using the old API.
So instead I decided to not consider the existing code. I asked myself: "If I were choosing an FRP library today for a brand-new app, which one would I choose?"
The answer to that question is RxSwift.
RxSwift is a Swift implementation of the ReactiveX APIs, which bring a few great benefits. The API is well-defined and unlikely to include breaking changes, there are reference implementations for Rx in other languages, and tutorials/resources for other Rx frameworks apply directly to this library. There is some extra overhead from having to interact with a larger community, and there are technical distinctions that might influence your decision. Ultimately, though, I chose RxSwift because I've found their community much more pleasant to interact with.
I started the process by removing ReactiveCocoa and adding RxSwift to our Podfile. Of course, that made the entire app break, which was fine.
I was working off a "develop" branch, so having the app in an uncompilable state for a few weeks would be no problem.
Then the remaining process was simple: find a compiler error, fix it, and find a new one. 27 days later, we merged the changes into master.
Get the app compiling again.
Get the app more-or-less working (no crashes for common use cases).
Get the unit tests compiling again.
Get the unit tests completing without crashing.
Get the unit tests passing (locally and on CI).
Thoroughly test the app to verify it still works properly.
We're currently wrapping up the final stage, but I expect to release a new build for production use later this week.
The biggest challenges were keeping an eye on the end result. When you go for so long without being able to see the benefits of your work, it's easy to get discouraged.
This is the first major app I've written in Swift with FRP, so there were new patterns and practices I had to learn. Checking in with the RxSwift team helped a lot, with a lot of assistance from Junior in particular. Making the changes in the open also let others provide feedback on our progress.
One of the biggest challenges was the structure of the existing code. Our bid-fulfillment process shares a lot of state – much of it in ways that we wouldn't write today. But I didn't want to increase the scope of the transition to RxSwift to also include removing all shared state from the app – scope creep is really dangerous when your project already spans weeks. It was hard to resist this temptation, but I feel it worked out for the best.
I tried to get rid of dynamic properties in views, controllers, and view models, but left them on models to use KVO with rx_observe. I tried not to use KVO a lot, and instead rely on Variable properties, which wrap a value in a type that can be observed. I'm still finding a balance between these two approaches, but this is largely a personal preference.
A common pattern became defining a private Variable and a public Observable, which would constrain the state (a common theme in FRP).
_password is now the read/write property accessible only within the type, while password is a publicly read-only Observable. This pattern takes a bit of typing, so I'm still looking for a way to further abstract it. Maybe a Swift preprocessor would help.
So I wrote an extension to the ObservableType protocol that would abstract this unit-testing code into a reusable function and operator.
This is just one example – one that we will be moving into its own library.
Swift's type system is really, really powerful. Here are some RxSwift-specific extensions we added to UIKit, and here are some general Swift extensions that we've found helpful.
There's a danger in going overboard, of course. A few times, I was tempted to make an extension on string-convertible Variables to make them themselves string-convertible, for example. That might make writing code easier, but its functionality would not be obvious when reading it later on.
I tried to keep changes like this as obvious and simple as possible, and every addition was peer-reviewed by Orta.
Throughout the course of the transition to RxSwift, I made a few contributions to the framework, but the things I wanted to add were outside the immediate scope of the project maintainers' vision. Totally understandable. With their assistance, Orta and I and others helped to create a new organization for community-run, RxSwift-based libraries.
Now RxSwift can stay lean and focused while the community has a dedicated space to improve all of our ideas, together. One library I wrote during this project is already under the organization's umbrella, with another on the way.
Helping to create a new organization gave me an opportunity to practice my community-building skills. It was exciting to re-apply Moya's contributor guidelines in a new setting, helping to set a positive tone for a growing community. I had a lot of guidance from Orta and Eloy, who of course have done this before.
Making positive changes to the developer community – and, on a larger scale, to the world – is something I've decided to pursue as my career. I wouldn't have come to that conclusion if it weren't for the thoughtfulness and generosity of my colleagues and of the RxSwift community.
This transition project has been exciting, but at times it has been exhausting, too. While I'm glad it's over, the past few weeks have impacted my life in a significant – and positive – way. I've never been more excited to be doing what I'm doing, and to be working in the growing open source Swift community. Thank you, everyone. |
0.989954 | The dress fit perfectly! The quality is great and I'll be wearing it for my wedding!
I received the order on time, the dresses were beautiful. The email communication with Chris was an example of excellent customer service. Everything was done to ensure I received an excellent product and received the items on time. Credit where credit is due. Really pleased with my order. |
0.837771 | Make unique Tumblr headers in minutes. No design skills needed.
The blogging platform Tumblr is a great way for both businesses and individuals to share ideas, photographs and generally helpful information. Today, more than 319 million users take advantage of Tumblr to reach followers. If you want your Tumblr to look professional and cohesive and bring in potential customers, it's important not only to consider the content on the page -- but also its design, including the banner.
Luckily, there are some software solutions, like Adobe Spark, that allow you to create beautiful and professional-looking Tumblr banners -- for free -- without needing to hire a professional designer.
One of the best reasons Tumblr users choose to use Adobe Spark is because it's an easy tool for creating cover photos that are unique. The app contains preset image sizes designed to fit the Tumblr template, so you can ensure they look good no matter what device a viewer is using. It's also packed with a huge selection of design assets, including royalty-free photos, fonts and layout templates. Spark also allows you to upload an image of your choice as your banner. You can edit and tweak your banner from a mobile device and sync between desktop and mobile -- which means that you're free to work on your Tumblr headers no matter where you are.
If you want to make personalized banners for Tumblr using Spark, there are many ways you can customize your creations. First, use custom images, instead of choosing a photo from the library. Simply upload your own from Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe Lightroom, Dropbox or Google photos. Next, try tweaking pre-made themes. Themes exist to make things easier for users, but you can change once you've chosen it by editing the text, photos or icons to make your banner work best for your blog. Finally, consider purchasing a font. Several unique fonts are available on Adobe Spark for a small fee, and you can buy one to add a unique look to your Tumblr wallpapers.
Many Internet users that want to utilize Tumblr don't have any expert design knowledge, and hiring a professional graphic designer to create a Tumblr banner or header image can be prohibitively expensive. However, Adobe Spark is a Tumblr banner maker that conveniently provides pre-designed themes, layouts, fonts and photos, which ensures your Tumblr looks professional when visitors view it. Because the Adobe Spark app is free, you can save your precious resources for other business endeavors, instead of spending them on a professional designer.
Select the proper-sized image for your Tumblr banner to match your template. This step ensures that the entire image is visible -- and legible -- when visitors access your blog.
Pick a pre-designed theme from Adobe Spark's selection. Then, easily tweak the theme to fit your Tumblr's needs.
Select an image to serve as the background for your header. You can pick your own image or choose one from the royalty-free photo library.
Use a font that best fits your banner's and brand's aesthetics. You can choose from a wide range of professionally designed fonts from the typography library.
Once your banner has been designed, you can download it to use on your page. |
0.999899 | Which of the following statements as regards cash journal is/are correct? It is a tool for managing cash that supports posting of cash receipts and cash payments. You can create a cash journal for each currency. You can post to customer, vendor and G/L accounts. You can run several cash journals in each company code. Cash journal identification is a six-digit alphanumeric key.
You have to enter the appropriate values for the following fields in setting-up new cash journal for a company code. These are: Company code Cash journal identification key G/L accounts Currency Name of cash journal identification key Language key Document types.
You have to enter document types in setting-up new cash journal for a company code for the following: G/L account postings Outgoing payments to vendors Incoming payments to customers Outgoing payments to customers Incoming payments to vendors.
The standard business transaction categories offered by the system that you have to set up before you process different transactions within the cash journal are the following: Revenue postings Expense postings Accounts Receivable postings Accounts Payable postings Cash transfer from bank to cash journal Cash transfer from cash journal to bank Accrual postings.
Which of the following statements as regards creation of business transaction is/are correct? You can only define the new cash journal business transaction in Customizing. Set the co. code in which the business transaction should be created. You could always indicate the G/L account for a particular business transaction. You don't have to specify tax codes for business transactions E (Expense) and R (Revenue). You can indicate whether G/L account or tax code for the business transaction to be changed when the document is entered. You can set an indicator that blocks the business transaction for further postings. Upon saving, a number is assigned to the newly created business transaction. This number can be called up during document entry aside from its name.
Which of the following statements as regards cash journal posting business transaction is/are correct? You can process cash journal bus. transaction in a single screen (hence, Enjoy). You can save cash journal entries locally in the cash journal subledger, and copy or delete them. Entries saved are then posted to the G/L for example, at the end of the working day. You can print the cash journal entries you have saved and the entries posted in the time period displayed. You can copy and/or delete cash journal entries saved, but once deleted, you cannot display it anymore. You cannot enter checks in the cash journal.
Which of the following statements as regards cash journal document is/are correct? You can enter it with a document split. It can contain several items with different tax codes and/or account assignments relevant to cost accounting. When it is forwarded to Financial Accounting, only one accounting document is created. You can create a business transaction that is linked to a one-time account. |
0.999932 | I would like to ask for views on my plan for a trip to Iceland from 28 March to 5 April 2015.
There are four of us are going, and two of us have been before. In 2007 we did a 7 day self drive package tour of the Golden Circle and the South Coast as far as Höfn, staying in a new B&B or cottage each night.
This time we plan to hire a 4x4 and do some walking, and visit the Golden Circle and the South Coast again (eg Dyrhólaey, Skaftafell National Park and Jökulsárlón), but also visit some of the Western Region, like Snæfellsjökull and Kirkjufell (weather permitting!).
I thought this time we could stay in a self catering cottage for 3-4 nights in or near Vik or even as far as Kirkjubæjarklaustur using that as a base to do the South Coast. We could then use Reykjavik as a base for the rest of the trip.
Is there a reason that staying in only two places and taking day trips would be a bad idea? It seems lots of tours or itineraries suggest staying in a new place each night as you visit the sights - so is that a more sensible idea?
Also part of our stay includes Easter and I understand that many shops and museums will be closed for several days over the public holiday. Would it be better to be staying in or near Reykjavik in the first half of our trip and head into the countryside before things shut? Or should we stay in the city as the public holiday starts because at least some things will still be open there?
Thank you very much for any advice or suggestions!
I would recommend you to make a round trip around Iceland, you have enough days and you will not miss the north (a must see!).
Day 1: Arrival in Keflavík - Reykjavík (tunnel) or trough Hvalfjördur – Glymur – Borgarnes – Landnámssetrið – Hraunfossar – Sleep at Borgarnes area.
Day 2: Ytri-tunga – Arnastapi - Hellnar (nice trekking here) – Lóndrangar – Djúpalónssandur – Ólafsvík, Kirkufellsfoss – Bjarnahöfn (eat Hákarl) – Stykkishólmur – Sleep at Hvammastangi or Blönduós.
Day 3: Blönduós (church) – Glaumbaer (museum) – Hófsos – Öxnadalur – Akureyri (church, botanic garden & christmas house) – Godafoss – Dimmuborgir – Sleep at Mývatn (night bath at Mývatn jarðböð).
Day 4: Mývatn – Skútustaðir – Námafjall ( Hverir) – Krafla – Sleep at Mývatn.
Day 5: Mývatn – Egilsstaðir – Lagarfljót – Hengifoss – Sleep at Höfn.
Day 6: Höfn – Vatnajökull Region –Jökursárlon – Skaftafell ( Sjónarnipa, Svartifoss) – Sleep at Vík.
Day 7: Reynisfjara – Dyrhólaey – Seljavallalaug – Skógafoss – Seljalandsfoss – Golden Circle – Sleep at Reykjavík.
Day 8: Reykjanes peninsula – Krísuvík – Blue Lagoon – Reykjavík.
Thank you very much for your suggestions. I'm sorry for taking so long to reply to thank you - I thought I posted a reply last week but it hasn't shown up!
I hadn't realised that it might be possible to travel all the way around the ring road and visit the sights at that time of year, so I will look into your suggestions.
Thank you too for suggesting Cars Iceland - I've read good things about the company so I'll definitely investigate hiring our car with them.
Regarding being in Iceland during the Easter public holiday, will many shops/petrol stations around the country be shut? I want to be prepared and plan around the closures if that is the case!
You also will find self gas stations around Iceland so you can do it yourself!
What is Easter like in Iceland? Are there any really good churches to go to you would recommend?
The celebration in Iceland of the week is not very special.
Many shops close on Thursdays and Fridays. Children receive a chocolate egg. Many families get together to eat and others decide to go on vacation to a summer house or abroad.
In Iceland the majority of the population is Lutheran. There are no large churches but I must make a special mention to the church of Hallgrimskjrkia in Reykjavik. |
0.988469 | Who is sabotaging your public speaking?
Who is sabotaging your public speaking?
1. The saboteur who holds you back Consider the attractive looking person the other side of the bar. You're feeling pretty positive and are about to make a move. Then. Out comes the saboteur to remind you... you're not wearing the right clothes, you don't know what to say, s/he might think you're strange/ too forward/ not intelligent enough. Instead, you turn back and hunch your shoulders around your drink You hate the saboteur for it, you wish you were stronger, but the result is there. Too much thinking and your saboteur has talked you out of it. 2. The saboteur who makes you lazy Even more tricky is the saboteur who keeps you 'stuck' and you don't even notice. This is a voice that's subtle and deep rooted. It encourages you not to bother, or not to look for new solutions - 'It's easier to stay how you are' or 'stick to what you're good at.' It tells you that you're too old / busy / experienced to change and that you couldn't even begin to learn to paint / dance / speak in public. This is the voice that thinks it knows what we're capable of. And it's the voice that keeps us firmly kept in our comfort zone, doing the same things as we've always done.
1. The first step is to become aware that a saboteur is present. In your daily activity, start to notice the energy levels in your body and the language that's knocking around in your head. Watch out for slumped body language and a feeling of being squashed, restricted or pushed down. Listen out for thoughts or words like "I should..." or "I have to..." or "I'm supposed to..." coming out of you, which are all signs that you're acting out of obligation, rather than choice. This is the environment a saboteur likes to create for themselves, as they feed from insecurities.
2. Once you think you've found a saboteur, it's time to investigate it. Shine a strong light on many saboteurs and you realise they were just like a little dog with a big bark. By inviting the negative part of your mindset a chance to air its frustrations and concerns, you can get some distance to those thoughts, rather than risk being controlled by them in a moment when you can do little else. As those thoughts come out, we often see how unreasonable and unnecessary they are.
3. Now that you're starting to know more about your saboteur, you can study the triggers for them showing up. What leads you into this pattern of thought and what can you do next time to stop it from happening?
4. Understanding and visualising an image of your saboteur can help you to undermine it. By having a (frankly ridiculous) image of my own saboteur, I'm able to treat him light-heartedly - like a difficult relative - and say "Oh, that's just Jeremy's way, don't worry about him, he'll be finished soon."
5. Soon you'll learn that you choose which thought processes you put energy into. Do you want to spend time indulging the negative pattern of a saboteur, or would you prefer to let those thoughts pass in favour of something more encouraging and energising?
More information on how to challenge your inner saboteur?
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To have a vision…? Your holiday leadership challenge. What if my audience hates me? Why you should stop saying sorry! The Anatomy of an Inspiring Speaker: Jill Bolte Taylor - "My Stroke of Insight" Anatomy of an Inspiring Speaker: Anthony Robbins - "Why we do what we do" |
0.999995 | The regional status of Hezbollah has markedly improved since the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011. What does their bolstered footing mean for Lebanon and the region?
The reality of Hezbollah's position within the Lebanese system and the regional political order is a result of a number of sectarian and political factors. The group owes much if its success to its Twelver Shi'i supporters and allies domestically and internationally, but its secular politics are essential to its survival within the multiethnic and religiously pluralistic Lebanese society. Hezbollah's alliances with Syria's Assad and the Iranian regime have provided it with the arms it requires to maintain its status, but Hezbollah's domestic political strategy has earned it a prominent position in the Lebanese political system.
Although it's part of a coalition government with seats in Lebanese parliament, its real power comes from the status of its paramilitary wing. Almost overshadowing the Lebanese military, Hezbollah's armed forces provide the group an appeal among many facets of society. Anti-Israeli sentiment is ubiquitous since the 2006 war, and Hezbollah's role in combating the Israeli military earned it a seat that is unlikely to be given up any time soon. Now, with the most brutal phase of the Syrian war winding down, Hezbollah's status as a regional bulwark against Sunni terrorist groups is further legitimizing the Shi'ite Islamist group's position as a powerful actor within Lebanese politics.
The civil war in Syria, which initially appeared to be a popular revolution, was overwhelmingly influenced by foreign actors. The regime's strategic and natural allies changed the tide of the war with their military support, including Russian, Iranian, and Lebanese Hezbollah troops. The regime's opposition was also highly influenced by outside forces. Obviously, foreign fighters joining ISIS in both Syria and Iraq had an effect on the war, but Sunni Lebanese fighters flocked to Syria in order to join more moderate rebel groups, too. At the outset of the conflict, there were several rebel factions seeking to bring democracy to Syria to improve life for the masses, who were Sunni. Before and after the radicalization of the Syrian opposition, Lebanese Sunnis saw it necessary to join and fight for the rights of their Sunni "brothers." The radicalization of Sunni rebel groups was partly a natural process in the war of attrition, but it was aided and encouraged by the Assad regime in order to detract from any democratic ambitions in the opposition. Assad's regime released influential jihadists from its prisons, while Salafi groups in Lebanon were recruiting Sunnis to kill the "apostate" Shi'ites across the border. The sectarian divide will not subside in post-war Syria, nor will it soften in Lebanon while Hezbollah continues to gain power.
The ongoing spat with Israel over offshore oil and gas exploration has allowed Hezbollah to take the front seat in any conflict or negotiations, sidestepping the legitimate Lebanese government officials in the conduct of that country's foreign policy. Hezbollah's role in the current diplomatic crisis will help to generate public support among non-Shia Lebanese, particularly as the Sunni-Shia rift deepens. The group's role in support of Assad's regime is a break from its traditional role as an anti-Israeli organization. Its formation and its past operations have been in support of destroying the Israeli state in order to establish an Islamic Palestine. However, Hezbollah's active role in killing Sunni rebels in Syria have galvanized Lebanese Sunnis against the group. Tension have been running high in Lebanon, particularly in cities like Tripoli, where firefights have become commonplace once again since the start of the Syrian war.
The growing power of Hezbollah's Shia militancy, in combination with extremist Sunni elements within Lebanon, threatens to reignite internal sectarian conflict. In the context of worsening Sunni-Shia relations, the dispute between Lebanon and Israel over hydrocarbon exploration rights is a perfect opportunity for Hezbollah to take a bold stance. It sends a message to the Lebanese people that Hezbollah acts on their behalf against the common enemy, Israel, while also showing the Lebanese and Israeli governments that it is a heavyweight that must be respected. Hezbollah's growing arsenal from its foreign allies, Iran and Syria, is of great concern to Israel, which is responding with the construction of a wall on its Northern border with Lebanon.
Hezbollah's status in Lebanon will continue to be a thorn in the side of Western, Israeli, and Sunni interests in Lebanon and the region as long as sectarian conditions allow for it to grow. Shi'ite hegemony is on its way in, and the apparent newfound relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia's crown prince may serve to bolster Hezbollah's status as the legitimate Islamic representative in the region. I don't suggest that Sunnis will convert to Twelver Shi'ism, but they may support the opposition to what they see as a corrupt Saudi regime working with Israel against Arab and Islamic interests. The more likely outcome, however, is that Sunnis will continue to radicalize and join extremist groups in order to counter the corruption and lack of legitimacy among the supposed Sunni representatives in the region. |
0.9474 | For other people named Robert Altman, see Robert Altman (disambiguation).
Robert Bernard Altman (/ˈɔːltmən/; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. A five-time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director and an enduring figure from the New Hollywood era, Altman was considered a "maverick" in making films with a highly naturalistic but stylized and satirical aesthetic, unlike most Hollywood films. He is consistently ranked as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in American cinema.
He preferred large ensemble casts for his films, and developed a multitrack recording technique which produced overlapping dialogue from multiple actors. This produced a more natural, more dynamic, and more complex experience for the viewer. He also used highly mobile camera work and zoom lenses to enhance the activity taking place on the screen. Critic Pauline Kael, writing about his directing style, said that Altman could "make film fireworks out of next to nothing."
In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized Altman's body of work with an Academy Honorary Award. He never won a competitive Oscar despite seven nominations. His films MASH (1970), McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), and Nashville (1975) have been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. Altman is one of the few filmmakers whose films have won the Golden Bear at Berlin, the Golden Lion at Venice, and the Golden Palm at Cannes.
Altman was born on February 20, 1925, in Kansas City, Missouri, the son of Helen (née Matthews), a Mayflower descendant from Nebraska, and Bernard Clement Altman, a wealthy insurance salesman and amateur gambler, who came from an upper-class family. Altman's ancestry was German, English and Irish; his paternal grandfather, Frank Altman, Sr., anglicized the spelling of the family name from "Altmann" to "Altman". Altman had a Catholic upbringing, but he did not continue to follow or practise the religion as an adult, although he has been referred to as "a sort of Catholic" and a Catholic director. He was educated at Jesuit schools, including Rockhurst High School, in Kansas City. He graduated from Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri in 1943.
In 1943 Altman joined the United States Army Air Forces at the age of 18. During World War II, Altman flew more than 50 bombing missions as a crewman on a B-24 Liberator with the 307th Bomb Group in Borneo and the Dutch East Indies.
Upon his discharge in 1946, Altman moved to California. He worked in publicity for a company that had invented a tattooing machine to identify dogs. He entered filmmaking on a whim, selling a script to RKO for the 1948 picture Bodyguard, which he co-wrote with George W. George. Altman's immediate success encouraged him to move to New York City, where he attempted to forge a career as a writer. Having enjoyed little success, in 1949 he returned to Kansas City, where he accepted a job as a director and writer of industrial films for the Calvin Company. In February 2012, an early Calvin film directed by Altman, Modern Football (1951), was found by filmmaker Gary Huggins.
Altman directed some 65 industrial films and documentaries before being hired by a local businessman in 1956 to write and direct a feature film in Kansas City on juvenile delinquency. The film, titled The Delinquents, made for $60,000, was purchased by United Artists for $150,000, and released in 1957. While primitive, this teen exploitation film contained the foundations of Altman's later work in its use of casual, naturalistic dialogue. With its success, Altman moved from Kansas City to California for the last time. He co-directed The James Dean Story (1957), a documentary rushed into theaters to capitalize on the actor's recent death and marketed to his emerging cult following.
Altman's first forays into TV directing were on the DuMont drama series Pulse of the City (1953–1954), and an episode of the 1956 western series The Sheriff of Cochise. After Alfred Hitchcock saw Altman's early features The Delinquents and The James Dean Story, he hired him as a director for his CBS anthology series Alfred Hitchcock Presents. After just two episodes, Altman resigned due to differences with a producer, but this exposure enabled him to forge a successful TV career. Over the next decade Altman worked prolifically in television (and almost exclusively in series dramas) directing multiple episodes of Whirlybirds, The Millionaire, U.S. Marshal, The Troubleshooters, The Roaring 20s, Bonanza, Bus Stop, Kraft Mystery Theater, Combat!, as well as single episodes of several other notable series including Hawaiian Eye, Maverick (the fourth season episode "Bolt From the Blue" also written by Altman and starring Roger Moore), Lawman, Surfside 6, Peter Gunn, and Route 66.
Through this early work on industrial films and TV series, Altman experimented with narrative technique and developed his characteristic use of overlapping dialogue. He also learned to work quickly and efficiently on a limited budget. During his TV period, though frequently fired for refusing to conform to network mandates, as well as insisting on expressing political subtexts and antiwar sentiments during the Vietnam years, Altman always was able to gain assignments. In 1964, the producers decided to expand "Once Upon a Savage Night", one of his episodes of Kraft Suspense Theatre, for theatrical release under the name, Nightmare in Chicago.
Two years later, Altman was hired to direct the low-budget space travel feature Countdown, but was fired within days of the project's conclusion because he had refused to edit the film to a manageable length. He did not direct another film until That Cold Day in the Park (1969), which was a critical and box-office disaster.
In 1969, Altman was offered the script for MASH, an adaptation of a little-known Korean War-era novel satirizing life in the armed services; more than a dozen other filmmakers had passed on it. Altman had been hesitant to take the production, and the shoot was so tumultuous that Elliott Gould and Donald Sutherland tried to have Altman fired over his unorthodox filming methods. Nevertheless, MASH was widely hailed as an immediate classic upon its 1970 release. It won the Palme d'Or at the 1970 Cannes Film Festival and netted five Academy Award nominations. It was Altman's highest-grossing film, released during a time of increasing anti-war sentiment in the United States. The Academy Film Archive preserved MASH in 2000.
Now recognized as a major talent, Altman notched critical successes with McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), a Revisionist Western in which the mordant songs of Leonard Cohen underscore a gritty vision of the American frontier; The Long Goodbye (1973), a controversial adaptation of the Raymond Chandler novel (scripted by Leigh Brackett) now ranked as a seminal influence on the neo-noir subgenre; Thieves Like Us (1974), an adaptation of the Edward Anderson novel previously filmed by Nicholas Ray as They Live by Night (1949); California Split (1974), a gambling comedy-drama; and Nashville (1975), which had a strong political theme set against the world of country music. The stars of the film wrote their own songs; Keith Carradine won an Academy Award for the song "I'm Easy". Although his films were often met with divisive notices, many of the prominent film critics of the era (including Pauline Kael, Vincent Canby and Roger Ebert) remained steadfastly loyal to his oeuvre throughout the decade.
Audiences took some time to appreciate his films, and he did not want to have to satisfy studio officials. In 1970, following the release of MASH, he founded Lion's Gate Films to have independent production freedom. Altman's company is not to be confused with the current Lionsgate, a Canada/U.S. entertainment company. The films he made through his company included Brewster McCloud, A Wedding, 3 Women, and Quintet.
In 1980, he directed the musical film Popeye. Produced by Robert Evans and written by Jules Feiffer, the film was based on the comic strip/cartoon of the same name and starred the comedian Robin Williams in his film debut. Designed as a vehicle to increase Altman's commercial clout following a series of critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful low-budget films in the late 1970s (including 3 Women, A Wedding and Quintet), the production was filmed on location in Malta. It was soon beleaguered by heavy drug and alcohol use among most of the cast and crew, including the director; Altman reportedly clashed with Evans, Williams (who threatened to leave the film) and songwriter Harry Nilsson (who departed midway through the shoot, leaving Van Dyke Parks to finish the orchestrations). Although the film grossed $60 million worldwide on a $20 million budget and was the second highest-grossing film Altman had directed to that point, it failed to meet studio expectations and was considered a box office disappointment.
In 1981, the director sold Lion's Gate to producer Jonathan Taplin after his political satire Health (shot in early 1979 for a Christmas release) was shelved by longtime distributor 20th Century Fox following tepid test and festival screenings throughout 1980. The departure of longtime Altman partisan Alan Ladd, Jr. from Fox also played a decisive role in forestalling the release of the film.
In 1982, Altman staged a production of Igor Stravinsky's The Rake’s Progress at the University of Michigan, where he concurrently taught a course on his films. Shortly thereafter, he returned to film Secret Honor with students. In 2008, the University of Michigan Library acquired Altman's archive. He also co-wrote John Anderson's 1983 hit single "Black Sheep".
The teen comedy O.C. and Stiggs (1985), an abortive return to Hollywood filmmaking retrospectively characterized by the British Film Institute as "probably Altman's least successful film", received a belated limited commercial release in 1987 after being shelved by MGM. Adapted by Altman and Sam Shepard from the latter's Pulitzer Prize-nominated 1983 play for The Cannon Group, Fool for Love (1985) featured the playwright-actor alongside Kim Basinger, Harry Dean Stanton and Randy Quaid; it fared better than most of his films from the era, earning $900,000 domestically on a $2 million budget and positive reviews from Roger Ebert and Vincent Canby. Still, widespread popularity with audiences continued to elude him.
He regained a modicum of critical favor for his television mockumentary Tanner '88 (1988), a collaboration with Garry Trudeau set in the milieu of a United States presidential campaign, for which he earned a Primetime Emmy Award.
In 1990, Altman directed Vincent & Theo, a biopic about Vincent van Gogh that was intended as a television miniseries for broadcast in the United Kingdom. A theatrical version of the film was a modest success in the United States, marking a significant turning point in the director's critical resurgence.
He revitalized his career in earnest with The Player (1992), a satire of Hollywood. Co-produced by the influential David Brown (The Sting, Jaws, Cocoon), the film was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Director. While he did not win the Oscar, he was awarded Best Director by the Cannes Film Festival, BAFTA, and the New York Film Critics Circle.
Altman then directed Short Cuts (1993), an ambitious adaptation of several short stories by Raymond Carver, which portrayed the lives of various citizens of Los Angeles over the course of several days. The film's large cast and intertwining of many different storylines were similar to his large-cast films of the 1970s; he won the Golden Lion at the 1993 Venice International Film Festival and another Oscar nomination for Best Director. In 1996, Altman directed Kansas City, expressing his love of 1930s jazz through a complicated kidnapping story. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1999.
Gosford Park (2001), a large-cast, British country house murder mystery, was included on many critics' lists of the ten best films of that year. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay (Julian Fellowes) plus six more nominations, including two for Altman, as Best Director and Best Picture.
Working with independent studios such as the now-shuttered Fine Line, Artisan (which was absorbed into today's Lionsgate), and USA Films (now Focus Features), gave Altman the edge in making the kinds of films he always wanted to make without studio interference. A film version of Garrison Keillor's public radio series A Prairie Home Companion was released in June 2006. Altman was still developing new projects up until his death, including a film based on Hands on a Hard Body: The Documentary (1997).
In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded Altman an Academy Honorary Award for Lifetime Achievement. During his acceptance speech, he revealed that he had received a heart transplant approximately ten or eleven years earlier. The director then quipped that perhaps the Academy had acted prematurely in recognizing the body of his work, as he felt like he might have four more decades of life ahead of him.
Altman was married three times. His first wife was LaVonne Elmer. They were married from 1947 to 1949, and had a daughter, Christine. His second wife was Lotus Corelli. They were married from 1950 to 1955, and had two sons, Michael and Stephen. At fourteen Michael wrote the lyrics to "Suicide Is Painless", the theme song to Altman's movie, MASH. His son Steven is a production designer who often worked with his father. His third wife was Kathryn Reed. They were married from 1957 until his death in 2006. They had two sons, Robert and Matthew. Altman became the stepfather to Konni Reed when he married Kathryn.
In the 1960s, Altman lived for years in Mandeville Canyon in Brentwood, California. He resided in Malibu throughout the 1970s, but sold that home and the Lion's Gate production company in 1981. "I had no choice", he told the New York Times. "Nobody was answering the phone" after the flop of Popeye. He moved his family and business headquarters to New York City, but eventually moved back to Malibu, where he lived until his death. Altman despised the phenomenally popular television series MASH which followed his popular 1970 film, citing it as being the antithesis of what his movie was about, and citing its anti-war messages as being "racist." In the 2001 DVD commentary for MASH, he stated clearly the reasons for which he disapproved of the series.
Altman died on November 20, 2006, at age 81 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. According to his production company in New York, Sandcastle 5 Productions, he died of complications from leukemia.
The film director Paul Thomas Anderson dedicated his 2007 film There Will Be Blood to Altman. Anderson had worked as a standby director on A Prairie Home Companion for insurance purposes, in the event the ailing 80-year-old Altman was unable to finish shooting.
During a celebration tribute to Altman a few months after his death, he was described as a "passionate filmmaker" and auteur who rejected convention, creating what director Alan Rudolph called an "Altmanesque" style of films. He preferred large casts of actors, natural overlapping conversations, and encouraged his actors to improvise and express their innate creativity, but without fear of failing. Lily Tomlin compared him to "a great benign patriarch who was always looking out for you as an actor," adding that "you're not afraid to take chances with him."
Altman's personal archives are located at the University of Michigan, which include about 900 boxes of personal papers, scripts, legal, business and financial records, photographs, props and related material. Altman had filmed Secret Honor at the university, as well as directed several operas there.
Since 2009, the Robert Altman Award is awarded to the director, casting director, and ensemble cast of films at the yearly Independent Spirit Awards.
"Altman was a genuine movie maverick," states author Ian Freer, because he went against the commercial conformity of the movie industry: "He was the scourge of the film establishment, and his work generally cast an astute, scathing eye over the breadth of American culture, often exploding genres and character archetypes; Altman was fascinated by people with imperfections, people as they really are, not as the movies would have you believe." Director Alan Rudolph, during a special tribute to Altman, refers to his moviemaking style as "Altmanesque."
I had just finished filming Last of the Red Hot Lovers when Bob called me one day at home. "Sally, do you want to be in my picture after next?" he asked. "Only if it's a good part," I said. He hung up on me.
Similarly, Altman also blames the failure of O.C. & Stiggs on its being marketed as a typical "teenage movie," rather than what he filmed it as, a "satire of a teenage movie," he said.
Altman favored stories expressing the interrelationships among several characters, being more interested in character motivation than in intricate plots. He therefore tended to sketch out only a basic plot for the film, referring to the screenplay as a "blueprint" for action. By encouraging his actors to improvise dialogue, Altman thus became known as an "actor's director," a reputation that attracted many notable actors to work as part of his large casts. Performers enjoy working with Altman in part because "he provides them with the freedom to develop their characters and often alter the script through improvisation and collaboration," notes Derry. Richard Baskin says that "Bob was rather extraordinary in his way of letting people do what they did. He trusted you to do what you did and therefore you would kill for him."
Patricia Resnick often wrote his screenplays.
Altman first used overlapping soundtracks in MASH (1970), a sound technique which movie author Michael Barson describes as "a breathtaking innovation at the time." He developed it, Altman said, to force viewers to pay attention and become engaged in the film as if they were an active participant. According to some critics, one of the more extreme uses of the technique is in McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), also considered among his finest films.
Thomson later recognized those aspects as being part of Altman's style, beginning with MASH (1970): "MASH began to develop the crucial Altman style of overlapping, blurred sound and images so slippery with zoom that there was no sense of composition. That is what makes Nashville so absorbing." Altman explained that to him such overlapping dialogue in his films was closer to reality, especially with large groups: "If you've got fourteen people at a dinner table, it seems to me it's pretty unlikely that only two of them are going to be talking." Pauline Kael writes that Altman, "the master of large ensembles, loose action, and overlapping voices, demonstrates that . . . he can make film fireworks out of next to nothing."
Altman's distinctive style of directing carried over into his preferences for camerawork. Among them was his use of widescreen compositions, intended to capture the many people or activities taking place on screen at the same time. For some films, such as McCabe and Mrs. Miller, he created a powerful visual atmosphere with cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond, such as scenes using fluid camerawork, zoom lenses, and a smoky effect using special fog filters. Director Stanley Kubrick told Altman that "the camerawork was wonderful," and asked, "How did you do it?"
In Nashville, Altman used sets with noticeable colors of reds, whites and blues. For The Long Goodbye, he insisted that Zsigmond keep the camera mobile by mounting it to moving objects. Zsigmond states that Altman "wanted to do something different" in this film, and told him he "wanted the camera to move—all the time. Up. down. In and out. Side to side." Cinematographer Roger Deakins, discussing his use of zoom lenses, commented, "I would find it quite exciting to shoot a film with a zoom lens if it was that observational, roving kind of look that Robert Altman was known for. He'd put the camera on a jib arm and float across the scene and pick out these shots as he went along – quite a nice way of working."
Vilmos Zsigmond's cinematography in McCabe and Mrs. Miller received a nomination by the British Academy Film Awards.
When using music in his films, Altman was known to be highly selective, often choosing music that he personally liked. Director Paul Thomas Anderson, who worked with him, notes that "Altman's use of music is always important," adding, "Bob loved his music, didn't he? My God, he loved his music". Since he was a "great fan" of Leonard Cohen's music, for example, saying he would "just get stoned and play that stuff" all the time he used three of his songs in McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), and another for the final scene in A Wedding (1978).
For Nashville (1975), Altman had numerous new country music songs written by his cast to create a realistic atmosphere. He incorporated a "hauntingly repeated melody" in The Long Goodbye (1973), and employed Harry Nilsson and Van Dyke Parks to score Popeye (1980).
A number of music experts have written about Altman's use of music, including Richard R. Ness, who wrote about the scores for many of Altman's films in an article, considered to be a valuable resource for understanding Altman's filmmaking technique. Similarly, cinema studies professor Krin Gabbard wrote an analysis of Altman's use of Jazz music in Short Cuts (1993), noting that few critics have considered the "importance of the music" in the film.
Jazz was also significant in Kansas City (1996). In that film, the music is considered to be the basis of the story. Altman states that "the whole idea was not to be too specific about the story," but to have the film itself be "rather a sort of jazz." Altman's technique of making the theme of a film a form of music, was considered "an experiment nobody has tried before," with Altman admitting it was risky. "I didn't know if it would work. . . . If people 'get it,' then they really tend to like it."
Vincent & Theo (1990) – British miniseries in 4 parts, later released in edited form worldwide as feature film.
Black and Blue (1993) – a Primetime Emmy Award-nominated filmed play which aired on PBS' "Great Performances"
^ Lemons, Stephen. "Robert Altman". Salon.com. p. 2. Archived from the original on December 8, 2006. Retrieved November 22, 2006.
^ a b The Daily Telegraph (November 22, 2006). "Robert Altman, 81, Mercurial Director of Masterworks and Flops". The New York Sun. Retrieved November 22, 2006.
^ a b "The Religious Affiliation of Robert Altman". Adherents.com. July 28, 2005. Retrieved November 22, 2006.
^ "Spotlight: Catholics at the Movies". Catholichistory.net. Retrieved August 24, 2014.
^ Butler, Robert W. (March 5, 2006). "Finally, An Attitude Adjustment: Hollywood's Establishment Now Embraces Rebel Director Altman". The Kansas City Star. p. 5.
^ "Famous B-24/PB4Y Crew Members". B-24 Best Web. 2011. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
^ "Fan uncovers Robert Altman's first film". Content.usatoday.com. March 14, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2014.
^ "Robert Altman's Lost Classic: 'Modern Football'". Forbes. March 13, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2014.
^ "Nashville Director Robert Altman Dies". Country Music Television. November 21, 2006. Retrieved November 5, 2014.
^ Murray, Noel (March 30, 2015). "Vincent & Theo". The Dissolve. Archived from the original on April 7, 2016. When The Player came out in 1992, it was greeted as a welcome comeback for director Robert Altman, who spent much of the previous decade working small—making filmed plays instead of the ambitious, character-heavy genre reinventions he’d been known for in the 1970s. But Altman actually reclaimed his critics’ darling status two years earlier with Vincent & Theo, a luminous biopic about painter Vincent Van Gogh (played by Tim Roth) and his art-dealer brother (Paul Rhys).
^ "Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter A" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved April 15, 2011.
^ "Robert Altman Has A Hard Body". Empire.
^ "Robert Altman". Find A Grave. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
^ Lyman, Rick (November 21, 2006). "Robert Altman, Iconoclastic Director, Dies at 81". The New York Times. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
^ "Director Robert Altman dies at 81 – More news and other features – MSNBC.com". MSNBC. November 22, 2006. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
^ Altman, Kathryn Reed; Vallan, Giulia d'Agnolo (2014). Altman. Martin Scorsese (introduction). Harry N. Abrams. ISBN 978-1419707773.
^ Weber, Bruce (March 18, 2016). "Kathryn Reed Altman, Film Director's Widow and Archivist, Dies at 91". The New York Times.
^ Suzie Mackenzie (May 1, 2004). "Still up to mischief (Suzie Mackenzie interviewing Altman)". The Guardian. Retrieved May 1, 2013. Still, it's worth noting that by the age of 20 this whistle- blower had resisted two of the most powerful institutions – church and army, both. He is an atheist, "And I have been against all of these wars ever since."
^ "NORML Advisory Board – NORML". Norml.org. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
^ "Krin Gabbard: Stony Brook University". Stonybrook.edu. Archived from the original on August 19, 2014. Retrieved August 24, 2014.
^ "Berlinale 1976: Prize Winners". berlinale.de. Retrieved July 16, 2010.
^ "Berlinale: 1999 Programme". berlinale.de. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
Judith M. Kass. Robert Altman: American Innovator early (1978) assessment of the director's work and his interest in gambling. Part of Leonard Maltin's Popular Library filmmaker series.
The English band Maxïmo Park have a song named "Robert Altman", a b-side to their single "Our Velocity"
Description and details on the Short Cuts Soundtrack for more in-depth information about this title.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Robert Altman.
Listen to Robert Altman discussing his career – a British Library recording.
Robert Altman receiving the Academy Honorary Award in 2006 on YouTube, 11 min.
Documentary: Robert Altman in England on YouTube, 60 min. |
0.951005 | J Cardiovasc Thorac Res. 2019;11(1):43-47.
Introduction: microRNAs (miRNAs) are highly conserved, noncoding RNA molecules that regulate gene expression on the post-transcriptional level. Some evidence indicates that microRNAs dysfunction plays a crucial role in human disease development. The role of microRNAs in cardiac growth, hypertrophy, heart failure, cardiovascular complications in diabetes and many other hearth conditions are demonstrated. In this study we aimed to evaluate the expression of six microRNAs (mir-100, mir-126, mir-127, mir-133a, mir-133b and mir-145) that have been shown to overexpress in aortic and carotid plaques.
Methods: Thirty Coronary Artery Disease patients who underwent elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery were enrolled in the study. The expression patterns of six miRNAs (mir-100, mir-126, mir-127, mir-133a, mir-133b, and mir-145) were examined in 30 patients of whom we obtained aorta and saphenous vein samples.
Results: In three miRNAs, mir-100, mir-127 and mir-133b, we did not obtain expression data from real-time experiments. We found that the expression level of mir-126, mir-133a and mir145 were lower in aorta in comparison with saphenous vein. Mir-126 was highly expressed in saphenous vein samples (13.8±1.1) when compared with aorta samples (20.2±1.1), although mir133a was highly expressed in saphenous vein samples (16.1±0.5) when compared with the aorta (17.9±1.5). Expression of mir-145 saphenous vein samples was also dramatically higher than aorta (7.2±0.5 versus 10.8±0.6) that was statistically significant (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Understanding the role of miRNAs in cardiovascular physiology and diseases might suggest miRNA- based therapeutic methods in the management of coronary artery disease.
Please cite this article as: Jodati A, Pirouzpanah SM, Fathi Maroufi N, Pezeshkian M, Safaie N, Bijanpour H, Khamane M, Mota A, Nouri M. Different expression of Micro RNA-126, 133a and 145 in aorta and saphenous vein samples of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery. J Cardiovasc Thorac Res 2019;11(1):43-47. doi: 10.15171/jcvtr.2019.07. |
0.999993 | Langham House Close on Ham Common in Ham in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is a development of three Grade II* listed buildings designed in 1955 by the British architects James Gowan and James Stirling. The Le Corbusier-influenced buildings were the architects' first major project working together and cemented their reputation as leaders amongst the Brutalist movement. The development was constructed during 1957–58 for Manousso Group.
Langham House Close is a cul-de-sac off Ham Street, Ham Common, London located to the north of the Cassel Hospital and behind Langham House, both Grade II listed. After the death of former owner, Sir Lyonel Tollemache, in 1953 the house and garden were sold separately, Langham House was converted from a single dwelling into flats and the garden plot was sold for development on a 999-year lease in 1955.
Langham House Close was the inaugural built design project of the partnership of Gowan and Stirling in 1955. The partnership were engaged by developer Luke Manousso, the father of one of Stirling's former students.
The development comprises three flat-roofed blocks, one three-storey block of eighteen flats designed by Stirling and two, two-storey blocks of six flats designed by Gowan, the two architects following common themes yet expressing individual features. Constructed of second-hand stock brick reflecting the construction of old Langham House, the buildings utilise in-situ shuttered concrete, blatantly exposed on exterior and repeated in interior surfaces.
Stirling's large block lies nearest Langham House with three communal stairwells providing access to six flats each. Gowan's "garden pavilion" blocks lie further away from Ham Common. The pair are mirror images of each other and provide access to each of the six flats from a central stairwell. The flats themselves share common features. Each has a central fireplace with back boiler and linen cupboard set in exposed stock brick with concrete lintels and shelves repeating the exterior surface themes on a smaller scale. There are four different designs for the fireplaces though, two in the main block and two in the pavilions which adds variety between each flat. This central unit separates the main living space from the kitchen. The flats vary in number of bedrooms, from one to three adding further variety. Detailed attention has been given to the size and location of windows, a further variable feature.
the first building in a new tough style which was as much a reaction against well-meaning vacuity as the Angry plays and novels. The fierce but not overbearing yellow brick and exposed concrete still make their protest straight.
Langham House Close was listed Grade II in 1998 and reclassified Grade II* in 2006 following pressure from the Twentieth Century Society.
^ a b c d e Historic England. "1–18 Langham House Close (1033380)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
^ Historic England. "19–24 Langham House Close (1033381)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
^ Historic England. "25–30 Langham House Close (1051027)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
^ Sturgis, Matthew (24 January 2004). "The century makers: 1958". The Telegraph. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
^ Historic England. "Langham House (1080830)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
^ Historic England. "Cassel Hospital (1080829)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
^ Fison, Vanessa (2009). The Matchless Vale: the story of Ham and Petersham and their people. Ham and Petersham Association. pp. 41–42. ISBN 978-0-9563244-0-5.
^ Pritchard, Evelyn (2007). Ham House and its owners through five centuries 1610–2006. Richmond Local History Society. pp. 63–65. ISBN 9781955071727.
^ "Langham House Close Richmond upon Thames | The Modern House". Retrieved 18 July 2015.
^ Baker, Geoffrey Howard (2011). The Architecture of James Stirling and His Partners James Gowan and Michael Wilford: A Study of Architectural Creativity in the Twentieth Century (illustrated ed.). Ashgate Publishing. p. 39. ISBN 9781409409267.
^ a b Branscome, Eva (May 2005). "Post-War par excellence". The Twentieth Century Society.
^ Wainwright, Oliver (21 June 2015). "James Gowan obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 July 2015. |
0.930812 | When asked the primary reason to remember the year 1711, the event probably not on the minds of many is the invention of a device called the tuning fork. The tuning fork has been used as an source of resonating pitch for over three hundred years, and is still used to tune musical instruments today. While the tuning fork was initially applied to tune musical instruments, the concept of resonant frequency of a material or object has been utilized in numerous commercial, scientific, and industrial applications to provide feedback or insight into a process or operation. The vibrating fork level switch is one such industrial application where resonant frequency is used to deliver a data point or provide a control output for process operation.
The operating principle of the vibrating fork is based on the oscillating fork resonating at a known frequency in air when it is set in motion. Upon contacting a medium other than air, the resonant frequency is shifted, depending on the medium contacting or immersing the fork. Typically, fork-type level switches are installed on either the side or the top of a liquid process tank. An exciter keeps the fork oscillating, and a detector circuit monitors fork vibrating frequency, providing a change in the output signal when the frequency changes. Contact or immersion of the fork in liquid will change the fork vibrating frequency sufficiently to produce a change in output signal. Depending on the configuration of the level switch, it can function as a liquid level alarm, or provide a control output for a pump, valve, or other device. Sensor response, the change in fork vibration frequency, is a function of liquid density. Liquids with greater density will generally produce a larger frequency shift in the vibrating fork.
The wide use of vibrating level switches across various process industries is a testament to the reliability of the technology. The devices protect against overfill, indicate high and low points inside tanks, and are useful over a wide range of temperatures. A sturdy design, coupled with product variants that include a variety of sensor materials, selectable probe length, and specialized output features make vibrating fork switches applicable in many operations where level indication is needed. Chemical processing, mining, food and beverage, plastics, and other industries utilize the switches, thanks to their customizable designs and consistent performance. An advantage offered by vibrating fork level switches is a resistance to factors that sometimes confound other technologies employed for level indication. The devices will reliably function despite flow, bubbles, foam, vibration, and coating complexities related to the subject liquids. Additionally, vibrating fork switches are reliable in both high level and low level indication scenarios.
Highly viscous liquids are generally not good candidates for the application of a vibrating fork level switch. Some liquids present the potential for material accumulation between the forks, possibly resulting in poor performance. Both of these limitations are addressed by various design features incorporated by different manufacturers.
The SIEMENS SITRANS LVS200 is a vibrating point level switch for high or low levels of bulk solids. The standard LVS200 detects high, low or demand levels of dry bulk solids in bins, silos or hoppers. The liquid/solid interface version can also detect settled solids within liquids or solids within confined spaces such as feed pipes. It is designed to ignore liquids in order to detect the interface between a solid and a liquid. Additionally, the SITRANS LVS200 has an optional 4 to 20 mA output for monitoring buildup on the fork to determine when preventative maintenance should be performed in sticky applications.
For more information on any level sensing application, contact Ives Equipment by visiting http://www.ivesequipment.com of calling 877-768-1600. |
0.998312 | The latest: The chart above is one small part of Equinor's annual Energy Perspectives report out Thursday, a wide-ranging look at what global energy systems — electricity, transport, industry and more — might look like in the future.
Equinor (formerly Statoil) breaks their outlook to 2050 into three umbrella categories, which are . . .
The new Equinor energy outlook also offers more grist for the mill on the question of when global crude oil demand will peak.
Crude question: They don't exactly offer a central outlook, but the date is 2030 in their "reform" scenario, where demand peaks at 111 mbd and then falls to 105 mbd in 2050. For comparison, it's currently in the 98–99 mbd range.
Go deeper: S&P Global Platts delves into the crude oil analyses in the report here.
"Equinor's energy outlook painted a more pessimistic picture for oil than the International Energy Agency and BP, which estimate, respectively, that oil demand could peak after 2040 or in the late 2030s," they report.
The Energy Department says it's not dissing the gas industry as the administration weighs plans to aid economically struggling coal-fired and nuclear plants.
Why it matters: New comments signal how the potential intervention in power markets is causing friction with an industry that has typically had a good rapport with Republicans.
Natural gas has taken substantial market share from coal, and bountiful cheap gas is a big reason why the coal and nuclear industries are struggling.
The latest: The Interstate Natural Gas Association of America, a trade group representing gas pipelines, issued a strongly worded statement yesterday attacking claims in a leaked administration memo about pipelines' vulnerability to cyber and physical attacks.
The memo lays out security justifications for preventing retirements of "fuel secure" facilities, i.e. coal and nuclear plants.
Quoted: INGAA said it's "deeply troubled by the Trump administration’s apparent move to scapegoat natural gas to prop up uneconomic coal and nuclear plants," and accused the administration of a plan to "punish" gas.
DOE response: Shaylyn Hynes, a DOE spokesperson, said yesterday evening saying that it's "absurd" to argue the administration is seeking to punish gas.
"DOE views natural gas as a vital part of our energy mix," she said, and touted administration efforts to bolster production and exports.
But Hynes noted, "DOE also recognizes that there are serious threats and vulnerabilities to critical infrastructure nationwide, including pipelines."
The context: The White House is eyeing a plan to ensure purchases of generation or generation capacity from coal and nuclear plants while it reviews electricity system vulnerabilities. But critics say the administration is grafting a security rationale onto a plan to nakedly prop up coal.
Out today: A new analysis says policymakers should consider alternatives to a common tool for estimating damages from carbon emissions — the "social cost of carbon" (SC-CO2) — when setting CO2 taxes and clean energy subsidies.
Noah Kaufman, an economist with Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy, instead suggests crafting CO2 prices based on what cost-effectively puts countries on a pathway toward long-term "net-zero" emissions.
Between the lines: While carbon taxes are a non-starter in Washington right now, the paper is part of the think tank's wider effort to generate analyses that can guide policy decisions if a political window opens in the future.
The details: Kaufman compares the benefits and drawbacks of the SC-CO2 versus setting prices based on a "net zero" target in the latter half of the century. Better still, he writes, is a near-term — perhaps 10-year — emissions target that creates an initial pathway to the "net-zero" goal.
The paper lays out reasons why the all-encompassing SC-CO2 can be ill-suited to creating tangible policy, noting there's less uncertainty involved with creating carbon prices to achieve a specific emissions outcome.
"[M]odeling the economy of one jurisdiction over a handful of decades is inherently easier than modeling the climate and economy of the world over centuries," he writes.
One level deeper: "The presumption that today’s CO2 prices should reflect a start-to-finish solution to the climate problem may give disproportionate influence to the most uncertain aspects of the climate problem," Kaufman writes.
"Instead, like the doctor who tells her patient to take two pills and call her in the morning, a humbler approach to developing CO2 prices could enable a focus on the aspects of the problem that we understand well and a willingness to adjust our strategies as we learn more," he adds.
Speaking of carbon dioxide, Axios' Andrew Freedman reports that the amount of CO2 in the air exceeded 411 parts per million during the month of May, which was the highest monthly level ever recorded, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as well as Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
Why it matters: Based on studies of historical levels of greenhouse gases in the air, this is also the highest level in human history.
The big picture: CO2, is the most important long-lived greenhouse gas and human activities, primarily via burning fossil fuels for energy, are adding more of it with each passing day.
Scripps and NOAA monitor CO2 levels at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii as well as other locations.
This year, the May average peaked at 411.31 ppm, according to Scripps researchers, the organization reported in a press release. NOAA’s reading was 411.25 for the month, according to a press release.
In addition, the growth rate of CO2 in the atmosphere is increasing, NOAA data shows.
The rate of growth averaged about 1.6 ppm per year in the 1980s, and 1.5 ppm per year in the 1990s, but it has climbed to 2.3 ppm between 2016 and 2017.
This was the sixth straight year-to-year increase above 2 ppm, scientists said.
Offshore: Per The Wall Street Journal, "The world’s largest energy companies lined up Thursday for a major auction of coveted Brazilian oil fields, even as Brazil’s government rolled back some market-friendly policies that would have made its oil industry more competitive."
Their piece and other reports note that companies together paid over $800 million for access to the huge resources off the country's coast in the so-called pre-salt formations.
U.S. shale: Bloomberg has the latest on the effect of pipeline constraints in the prolific Permian basin.
"Eight of the Permian’s so-called pure-play drillers lost $15.6 billion in combined market value in the 15 days through Tuesday, as shipping constraints devour the profit they can fetch for a barrel of crude," they report.
Aramco IPO: The BBC writes about efforts by financial regulators to land the planned (though uncertain and delayed) IPO of Saudi Aramco and offerings from other state-owned companies.
"A new category has been approved for companies traded on the London Stock Exchange, which will allow oil giant Saudi Aramco to list shares in London. London has been accused of watering down corporate governance rules in order to accommodate the huge listing," they report.
Errands, part 1: Per The Washington Post, Pruitt "asked members of his 24/7 security detail to run errands for him on occasion, including picking up his dry cleaning and taking him in search of a favorite moisturizing lotion, according to two individuals familiar with those trips who spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk frankly."
Errands, part 2: Via The Daily Beast, "According to four sources familiar with the work environment at the Environmental Protection Agency, its scandal-plagued EPA administrator has regularly sent his subordinates out during the workday to pick up his favorite snacks and treats." |
0.613989 | There has been for most of this century a broad (if not unanimous) consensus among mathematicians that mathematics as a whole can and should be regarded as founded in first order set theory.
Among theoretical computer scientists, typically less attached to set theory, there has arisen a pluralistic culture in which any one of many logical systems may be adopted, depending on the purposes in hand. Anti-foundational views are now popular in the Philosophy of Mathematics.
Mathematics, Science and Engineering require many different notations. To conduct rational arguments involving these notations requires special logics whose inference rules reflect the semantics of the notations and are convenient for use in the domain.
Software tools aiming to support the use of logic should therefore be engineered to support a plurality of diverse logics.
Set theoretic foundations for mathematics are based on the premise that all mathematically interesting abstract entities should be coded up as sets.
Since these ideas were developed mathematics has become more abstract. These codings are now considered arbitrary and unmathematical in character. Mathematics studies structures up-to-isomorphism and the reductionism involved in the foundation of mathematics on set theory is contrary to the spirit of modern mathematics.
Notational pluralism, fully supported by sympathetic proof systems, is realisable within a single foundational framework using techniques of semantic embedding.
Mathematicians, despite the wide range of their subject and its applications right across science and engineering, do not find it necessary to give any thought to which logic they should be using, however much they hop from one problem domain to the next. First order logic and set theory are thought to provide a topic neutral framework supporting applicability of results from one subject domain in another.
Just as mathematics has become more abstract, so have logical systems. Support for defining new concepts has been augmented by support for liberal forms of conservative extension, permitting constants to be introduced without selecting a particular encoding from the many possible.
Used in this way the use of set theory can be confined to the reduction of the fundamental questions of consistency (does a structure exist satisfying a certain property) and similarity (is there a morphism relating the structure of two entities).
Gödel's incompleteness results tell us (for certain classes of logical systems), that if in logic A we can prove the consistency of logic B then B cannot prove the consistency of A. This induces a partial ordering on these proof systems according to how good they are at proving consistency results, which is related closely to the question whether a semantic embedding of one system in the other is possible (since a semantic embedding provides a relative consistency result). proof theoretic strength is a measure of how high you are up this partial ordering.
If semantic embedding is intended, a foundation system should therefore have high proof theoretic strength. |
0.981356 | Anyone interested in a freebie OOB editor?
Status: offline I've just finished up tidying up my oob editor, something I've been fooling around with on and off for a while now. It's still pretty rough - no real data checking - but it does do a few things the bundled editor doesn't Weapons: * Displays in game range beside range fields * Field multiply - able to multiple any weapon field (bar name of course ) and multiple that by a value - either only on that weapon or over the entire weapon list * Speed clear - got a block of weapons to clear, this will do it quickly Units: * Displays the penetration/kill ratings of each weapon of the unit * Displays the effective armour of each face with slope taken into account * Speed clear (as for weapons) Formations: * Display unit type (med tank etc) * Display rarity code * Display availability dates of subformations/units * Set units in formation to x no - so for formations with 10 units, one click = all set to 1 or 2+ (mortars etc) * Speed clear (as above) General: * Clear unused weapons - wipes all weapons in the oob that aren't used by any unit * Display formation counts - for any given year it displays the count of formations on each of the types (armour, artillery, infantry, miscellaneous), to help avoid any dropping off the bottom (not so bad now that it's 800x600 ). * Change nationality - swap one nationality throughout the Oob for another * AI Pick List Testing - something I threw together when I first started playing around with formations to assist in working out what formation slots the AI uses. It basically creates 199 formations and 249 units where the unit names are unit1 to unit249 and formation x has unitx as it's occupant - using Fred Chlanda's WaWED it's then very easy to see what formation slots are being used under the battle summary. Haven't gotten around to copy/paste functions yet, me mind needs to be functional for that . If anyone's interested, lemme know and I'll fire off a copy for you.
Status: offline Kao16, send me an email, and I'll fire off a copy to ya . MacCready, it's on its way. Hope it covers what you need .
From: Directly above the centre of the Earth.
From: Lost somewhere in the upper backwoods of Michigan!
Status: offline Okay guys, will do. Just going to take a while - stuck at work now .
Status: offline Thanks for the editor StuNZ! Cheers!
Status: offline StuNZ Given the level of interest, it may be worth your while asking someone like Tankhead to host the programme on their web site.
What's the weight of a pull-thru?
Status: offline Hopefully it'll be up on either Fabio's or Tankhead's site before too long, but I've fired it off to all of you who've asked about it anyway (me poor smoking modem ).
Status: offline I would like a copy also please.
Status: offline Hi! if you can , send me a copy too please [email protected] Thanks!! -------------- Senta à Pua!!!
Status: offline Among the nice features of this editor are: In the UNIT display: (1) Display of weapon penetration (and HE Kill) with each weapon, plus (2) the convertion of armour thickness and slope into a single value for easy comparison In weapon display (1) ranges are converted to the number of hexes, (2) weapon ranges over 200 are converted to the actual range (use of the formula) e.g., 214 = 112 hexes, 216 = 128 hexes. Better weapon range awareness... Missing (or did I just miss it) (1) Ability to copy a unit/weapon and paste it in another slot e.g., copy a sherman, paste it somewhere else and change the weapon in the new vehicle.
Originally posted by kao16: Missing (or did I just miss it) (1) Ability to copy a unit/weapon and paste it in another slot e.g., copy a sherman, paste it somewhere else and change the weapon in the new vehicle. |
0.99924 | Article Summary To love unconditionally, accept those you love as they are since unconditional love is about acceptance. Couples experience this most frequently when falling in love. But neither can it thrive if we deny our own desires, which can create resentment. Good communication is the best way to get to the bottom of what happened. At its heart is the premise that the person giving the love the lover does so because they get something back in return — namely a response from the person receiving the love the beloved that meets their, often. Now, Conditional love is not a love based on conditions, it is the unconditional love with less intensity due to interference caused by sheaths of opinions. You may not love someone's behavior, but you can still love the person.
In return, I try to give him all my time, attention, and of course every drop of my love. What exactly does it mean to love this way? Make sure you get the next article too! Parents are the first to forgive their child when they do something wrong. For this reason, you will think long-term about how you can build a life with this person. You want to grow old with your partner, and are ready to do life together — no matter what the future holds. They love their child no matter how wealthy, good-looking, famous, or what their personality is like.
Unconditional love allows you to love yourself first, so that you have the strength of heart and mind to give the same to another person. You will not have to second guess it, change yourself, or compromise your core values. You realize it is not important to be right or win the argument, Rappaport says. But later we wonder if we can live with the other person day in and day out. Love is part of our emotions, chemicals in the for those inclined , and spirit for those inclined.
Once you're in love with someone, it's hard to remember how you lived without him or her. This helped me to reassure myself of my own feelings and actions regarding the examples of unconditional love given. You'd do anything If I tried to construct a list of things I wouldn't do for my girlfriend, the list would be pretty empty. Support them when they are in trouble, motivate them, and also tell them that you are with them at all times. You Can Experience Negative Emotions At The Same Time Unconditional love does not mean that you feel warmth and affection towards your beloved at all times; you are human after all.
Show love to them daily and do random acts of love and kindness for them often. Every object in this world is like a planet, some are stationary planets and others revolve around in an orbit. Nobody can tell you to do something wrong, unless you allow them. We've never met, but she has shared a tremendous amount of wisdom with me concerning unconditional love within relationships. Now, you can also apply laws of reflection to love. You begin with the essentials of self-love and mutual love and respect.
Unconditional love never imposes, never tries to change the other person. This will certainly make them feel wonderful about you being in their life. Dealbreakers keep you safe and happy. Ask yourself Am I truly acting with the most love I can for this person at this moment? Have we stored up hurts and resentments that leak out? Another great post Barrie and just what I needed today. Related Articles: ©Love Wide Open.
Why does it hurt when you love someone unconditionally?
They want the unconditional love they yearned for from a parent, and try to love and give unconditionally without conflict or boundaries. On the other hand, the distinction between love and relationships is upheld with individuals that say healthy relationships are necessary too. Unconditional love is a beautiful concept. Ted continually earns her on-going love. Offering unconditional love to yourself means you are able to view yourself as lovable and worthy — in spite of any perceived flaws or past mistakes. First of all its a myth that one can love someone without any condition.
By being his friend i can achieve my ambition n dreams. It is for this reason that most of us would rather love than be loved. Instead, you support him and share in it with him. This type of love cannot be wished for, chased, or accumulated; it can only be. Occasionally, these relationships work if the stronger personality is kind and considerate.
Seek out those with mutual interest. Because of the innate uncertainty of the future, unconditional love can exist only as a feeling and not as a mental or verbal concept this article itself can by no means describe the very essence of it. In couples counseling, they can learn to communicate in healthier, non-defensive ways that allow their love to flow. What we end up doing is falling right back into the pattern of what she said earlier in which you are seeking someone to provide your own emotional and psychological nourishment. But, to me, they're not imperfections — they're unique qualities and things I love. Hopefully as a couple, you grow and change together. It is a good way to live, a good practice, even if we can't achieve it all the time.
Do it without anyone knowing it. You acknowledge the influences of their upbringing, life experiences, and ingrained behaviors. In any circumstance where we feel we have been wronged, neglected or taken advantage of, if someone doesn't apologize, it's inherently the most loving to them and to yourself to choose to let go of any anger and resentment. Unconditional love for ourselves and our partners is an important first step to extending unconditional love to others beginning with friends, moving on to those we feel neutral toward and even learning to develop unconditional love for people who irritate or harm us. You will love someone independent of what they do, or not do, say, or not say, to you. Extricating yourself from an environment in which you are repeatedly mistreated or taken advantage of can be a loving choice for both yourself and the other person. Which is why I advocate the use of the term abiding love As in the hymn Abide With Me which is to say we are loved equally whether our behavior or the situation is goodor bad, perhaps loved even more so in the latter. |
0.983335 | What is Wheatstone Bridge ?
The Wheatstone bridge is an electrical bridge circuit used to measure resistance. It consists of a common source of electrical current (such as a battery) and a galvanometer that connects two parallel branches, conta ining four resistors, three of which are known. One parallel branch contains one known resistance and an unknown (R4 in the above example); the other parallel branch contains resistors of known resistances. In order to determine the resistance of the unknown resistor, the resistances of the other three are adjusted and balanced until the current passing through the galvanometer decreases to zero. |
0.946171 | North America's oldest Bornean orangutan has died at Phoenix Zoo aged 52, after a weeks-long battle with an aggressive form of cancer.
Duchess, a popular primate considered the matriarch of the zoo since its opening in 1962, was euthanized on Sunday after her condition worsened. She had been suffering from lymphatic cancer.
'The cancer was incredibly aggressive and over the past few days, Duchess became increasingly weak and more lethargic,' Gary West, executive vice president of animal health, said in a statement.
Duchess had been diagnosed with the cancer two weeks ago after zoo officials noticed she had a loss of appetite and lethargy. An ultrasound test revealed the cancer.
West said efforts were made to make Duchess 'as comfortable as possible' in her final days. She could be seen peeking from underneath her blanket in her enclosure, too weak to get up.
Duchess was born in the Borneo jungle, where she was orphaned at a young age. She arrived at the Phoenix Zoo when she was two, and was one of the park's first animals when it opened in 1962.
In the zoo's early days, she would tour local businesses as part of fundraisers and became comfortable with human contact, officials said.
A mainstay of the zoo and one of its most popular attractions, Duchess was feted with an all-day celebration in March 2010, marking her 50th birthday.
She was given a frozen treat with her favourite fruit inside, a giant birthday card signed by zoo-goers and a 'Happy Birthday' song from visitors.
It kicked off a fundraising campaign for a $4 million orangutan exhibit, which opened in April 2011.
In her life, Duchess gave birth to seven offspring who are now at zoos across the country. She outlived four of her children.
She leaves behind a daughter, Bess, a granddaughter, Kasih, and the lone male, Michael, at Phoenix Zoo. Among her other offspring across the country, she leaves behind a great grandchild.
Officials at the zoo mourned the passing of Duchess, but noted that it is common for orangutans to live 30 years in the wild and an estimated 40 years in captivity.
'Although we are deeply saddened by Duchess's passing, she long surpassed the number of years that orangutans live in zoos and preserves, as well as in the wild,' the zoo's president, Bert Castro, said in a statement.
Keepers at the zoo became emotional as they talked about their relationship with Duchess.
'I spend more time in a day, in a week, in a month than I do any human in my life,' senior keeper Bob Keesecker told News 12.
'What I remember really is my relationship with her. Everyone that works at the zoo pretty much knows I had a special relationship with her.
Fans flocked to the zoo's Facebook page to pass on their condolences and memories.
'I've been taking my students to observe primates at the zoo for 5 years,' wrote Lisa Marsio, a teacher from Scottsdale.
Zoo president Bert Castro added in a statement: 'We have been grateful for the outpouring of memories and stories about Duchess through our social media outlets over the past week.
A celebration to honour Duchess will be held on Saturday between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the zoo. |
0.988934 | Everyone wants what is best for the children in their lives. That’s why parents spend so much time trying to find the best schools and why people can be very picky about things like screen time and the type of entertainment young ones are exposed to. But what about when it comes to the types of toys children play with? Sure, flashy options seem like fun, but toys that spontaneously move, make sounds, or light up are actually not the best options for your kids. If you are looking for a toy that can inspire, help develop creativity, and that has educational value, wooden toys should be your first, and only, stop.
One of the biggest practical advantages to wooden toys is that they are durable. These items are built to last and are easily able to with stand the type of rough play babies, toddlers, and young children often enjoy.
Since these types of toys don’t have voices or electrical parts that tell children how to interact with them, these toys encourage open-ended play. Kids can use their imagination, creating elaborate ways to incorporate their toy in play.
Playing with wooden toys also helps children develop reasoning and problem-solving skills, as they need to find ways to use the toy without being told exactly what to do. Flashy toys do this work for children, making them much more problematic for childhood development.
Finally, plastic toys are often the subject of recalls. This means that what might be your child’s favorite toy today could be recalled tomorrow, which can be a scary thing for a parent or caregiver to endure.
Anyone looking for a new toy to give to a child of any age should first consider wooden toys. These are timeless items that are resistant to breaking, malfunction, and recalls, as well as carry fantastic educational value. Skip the flashy, noisy options and go for something made from wood instead. |
0.950099 | As part of the general exploration of the New World, Spanish conquistadors set out on various expeditions in the early sixteenth century. One such expedition was led by Francisco Pizarro in 1533, heading towards the western coast of South America where it was fortunate in discovering the vast Inca empire just as it was reaching the end of a civil war. With just forty soldiers (aided by friendly native warriors), Pizarro quickly conquered much of the empire, acquired vast new territories, and set up the foundations of Peru. Just a decade later, in 1542, the viceroyalty of Peru was created to rival that of New Spain in terms of the territory and potential wealth it controlled. At its height it ruled all of western, central and southern South America, often through governors such as the captaincy general of Chile.
Initial wealth was brought about through the mining and textile trades, but when Spain controlled Portugal between 1580-1640, there was no restriction on Portuguese settlement in Brazil. In the eighteenth century, the creation of the viceroyalties of New Granada and Rio de la Plata reduced the importance of the Peruvian capital at Lima and removed much territory from Peru's control. It also served to move some of the lucrative Andean trade to Buenos Aires. Added to the decline in productivity from the mining trade and textile production, this combination of events saw Peru lose much of its initial importance to the Spanish empire.
A tentative first expedition by Francisco Pizarro to conquer Peru from his base in Panama City fails when he is forced to turn back. The second expedition in 1526 finds the northern edges of Inca territory. The third, in 1527-1528 sets up a temporary base on the edges of Inca territory, while the fourth requires a return to Spain and an interview with the king. This gains Pizarro the titles of governor and captain general of New Castile, the territory expected to be conquered by his expedition. By 1532 Pizarro is ready to head back into the lands which promise so many riches.
First Spanish governor of New Castile. Assassinated.
Pizarro leads his small body of troops southwards from Panama to conquer the Inca empire, opening up vast new territories in South America. Pizarro is accompanied by his siblings, Hernando and Gonzalo Pizarro.
Governor of Guatemala, Pedro de Alvarado, heads to the Andes, hoping to gain the rumoured riches of Peru, but he is warned off by the men of Francisco Pizarro. In the same year, Pizarro's leadership is questioned by Diego de Almagro, and the latter man leaves, given permission by the king of Spain to explore southern Peru (modern Chile).
Pizarro explores the west coast of northern Peru, and founds the city of Lima as the capital of the new territories. His brothers govern the Inca capital Qusqo (or Cusco), exhibiting great brutality towards the native subjects. An uprising results, almost recapturing the capital until the Pizarro brothers are able to defeat it.
In the same year a former companion of Pizarro, Diego de Almagro, leads his band of conquistadors south into Chile in search of gold. He claims the territory for Spain but founds no cities, and returns in 1536 having abandoned his discoveries. Two years later he is executed after having failed to oust Pizarro as governor.
Almagro's return to Peru sees him temporarily imprison Gonzalo and Hernando Pizarro. Once reunited, the Pizarro brothers defeat Almagro's attempts to usurp control at the Battle of Las Salinas in April 1538. Almagro is executed on 8 July. One of Pizarro's captains, Hernando de Soto, becomes governor of Cuba in 1538.
Pizarro is assassinated by Almagro's followers on 26 June 1541. Gonzalo Pizarro returns from an expedition into the interior to find that the official representative of the Spanish crown has arrived to take control of Peru, and the assassins and their forces are defeated at the Battle of Chupas on 16 September 1542. In 1544, the king of Spain appoints Blasco Nunez Vela as the first viceroy of Peru (which includes the captaincy general of Chile and the New Kingdom of Granada). He introduces new laws aimed at preventing the previous exploitation of the natives and Gonzalo Pizarro rebels, with the backing of the many conquistadors who lose out under the new laws. The situation is not fully resolved until Pizarro is defeated at the Battle of Jaquijahuana in 1548 and is immediately beheaded.
Half-brother of Francisco. Claimant viceroy of Peru.
The viceroys continually attempt to persuade the Inca ruler to come down from his independent mountain capital and reside in his former capital at Qosqo, where he can be controlled by Spain. It takes until 1559 before Sayri Tupac does so, and he accepts Christianity at the same time.
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Spain 1535-1550).
Died before he could take office.
Toledo makes an extensive tour of the viceroyalty and reorganises it. He establishes the Inquisition in Peru (1570) and promulgates laws that treats natives and Spanish equally. In 1572, the last Inca ruler, Tupac Amaru, is arrested, tried, and beheaded. His city is burned and its location forgotten.
Spain gains control of its Iberian neighbour, the kingdom of Portugal, and any attempts to prevent the Portuguese colonisation of eastern South America in Brazil are relaxed.
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Spain 1590-95 & 1607-11).
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Spain 1603-1607).
Francisco de Borja y Aragon divides the government of the districts of Rio de la Plata in two, creating Buenos Aires and Paraguay, both of which remain dependencies of Peru.
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Spain 1612-1621).
A Portuguese attack from Brazil on a Spanish mission results in the enslavement of 60,000 natives. The raid is one of a series in what is effectively a low level war of territorial conquest, despite Spain governing the Portuguese.
Cabrera puts down an uprising by the native Uros and Mapuche natives.
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Spain 1642-1648).
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Spain 1650-1653).
Pedro Bohorquez, a Spanish adventurer, crowns himself emperor Inca Hualpa of the Calchaqui natives, inciting their tribes to revolt. He is captured and eventually hung and beheaded. Rich landowners also chose this period to revolt against the government.
The English privateer Henry Morgan takes the Peruvian port of Chagres, before capturing and sacking the city of Panama in Granada.
President of the Audiencia, resumed interim vice-regency.
Archbishop of Lima (and interim governor of New Granada 1671).
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Spain 1686-1688).
President of the Audiencia governing on an interim basis.
The viceroyalty of New Granada is created from Peru's northern territories, Bogota, Panama, and Quito.
The viceroyalty of New Granada is recreated on a permanent basis.
There is a native uprising under the leadership of Juan Santos Atahualpa in the Andean jungle provinces of Tarma and Jauja. Although Atahualpa dies in 1756, the area is not fully regained until the 1780s.
The Treaty of Madrid between Portugal and Spain legitimises the established borders of the colonial territories in Peru and Brazil. The treaty also stipulates that Spain receives the Sacramento Colony and Portugal the Misiones Orientales, seven independent Jesuit missions in the upper River Uruguay. Spain and Portugal combine forces and crush the resisting colonies in the Guarani War of 1756 (as shown in the film, 'The Mission').
The viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata is created from Peru's southern territories, Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and the Eastern Strip (Uruguay).
Spanish viceroy of Peru (and of New Granada 1773-1776).
Shortly after Manuel de Guiror is removed from office by the Crown's inspector, the Inca begin an uprising in Peru led by Jose Gabriel Condorcanqui Noguera under the name Tupac Amaru II. It is a result of oppressive Spanish control, and it takes the new governor a year of fighting to regain control. Known as the Tupac Amaru Rebellion, its leader is killed during the fighting against the Spanish with the result that he becomes a near-mythical figure in the Peruvian struggle for independence.
Named viceroy of Rio de la Plata in 1804 but took Peru instead.
Following the French occupation of Spain and the subsequent weakening of the crown, various wars of independence break out across the Spanish Americas, including New Spain and Guatemala. Peru serves as a centre for the royalist opposition to these revolts. When Buenos Aires revolts in May, Abascal reincorporates the provinces of Chile, Cordoba, La Paz and Potosi (both in modern Bolivia), and Quito (part of New Granada) from Rio de la Plata.
On 8 September 1820, the Liberation Expedition of Peru is organised in Chile and lands on the beach near the city of Pisco in Peru, under the command of Jose de San Martin. Lima is occupied on 21 July 1821 after negotiations with the viceroy fail. The independence of Peru from Spain is proclaimed on 28 July, with the viceroy retiring to Cusco with a sizable armed force under his command.
Despite temporarily recovering Lima, the acting viceroy is defeated in open battle against nationalist leader Simon Bolivar. Royalist control of Peru is reduced to a small area around the city of Ayacucho, in the south-central highlands. On 9 December the Battle of Ayacucho (or the Battle of La Quinua), is won by the nationalists under Antonio Jose de Sucre, Bolivar's lieutenant, at Pampa de La Quinua, close to Ayacucho. The viceroy, Serna, captured after the battle, agrees that the Spanish will leave Peru. Juan Pio de Tristan y Moscoso assumes the office of provisional viceroy in order to transfer power to the nationalists.
Nominal viceroy, but not exercising power. Died 1860.
The early years of the new republic were marked by power struggles. A provisional government was formed between 1821-1822, with a republic being declared in 1822. Elected president in 1824, the former nationalist leader Simon Bolivar turned created a dictatorship four years later, but his governance was also very short-lived. In fact, Peru's nineteenth century history was scarred by repeated dictatorships.
The name Peru originates from that of a native ruler who lived near the Bay of San Miguel in Panama in the earliest days of exploration into South America. In 1522 Biru was visited by Spanish explorers who were venturing into new territory for the colonists, and the name came to be used to designate all of the initial conquests to the south. In modern times the country's population is a reflection of that colonial period, consisting of the descendants of European settlers and African slaves, native Amerindians, and Asians.
After the provisional government creates a republic in 1822, the Peruvian congress names the president of Gran Colombia, Simon Bolivar, president of Peru on 10 February 1824. He is able to reorganise the armed forces and decisively defeat the Spanish at the Battle of Ayacucho in that year.
Also president of Bolivia & Gran Colombia.
During Bolivar's presidency, in 1825 the Congress of Upper Peru creates the republic of Bolivia, which is named after him. Trying to prevent the break-up of Gran Colombia, he proclaims himself dictator on 27 August 1828, but the following year Peru fights Gran Colombia over the latter's claim that its territory extends beyond the Andes mountain range to the River Amazon, and includes the Amazonian basin. The war is ended with the Battle of Tarqui and the Gual-Larrea Treaty being signed on 22 September. The treaty specifies that the Colombian-Peruvian border is to retain the line it bore under Spanish colonial control (the peace lasts until 1859). Bolivar resigns the post of dictator on 27 April 1830 after an assassination attempt dents his confidence.
A coup by Pedro Pablo Bermudez is succeeded by a second coup under Felipe Santiago Salaverry on 23 February 1835, leading to a further year of dictatorship. Salaverry is defeated and executed by Bolivian forces which invade the country. Juan Pio de Tristan y Moscoso, having chosen to remain in Peru after independence, participates in the creation of the Peruvian-Bolivian Confederation which survives until 1839.
Dictator. Deposed in a second coup.
The dictator of Peru is defeated and executed by Bolivian forces which invade the country. Marshal Andres de Santa Cruz creates the Peruvian-Bolivian Confederation which survives until 1839. Tension between the confederation and Chile leads to the latter declaring war on 28 December 1836. Chile's ally, the Argentine confederation, follows suit on 9 May 1837. Eventual defeat for Bolivia comes in 1839 and Santa Cruz flees to Ecuador. A period of stability within Peru follows. In 1841, the new Peruvian president attempts to return the favour by invading Bolivia, but he is defeated and killed.
Arguing that treaties signed with Gran Colombia have been rendered void upon the dissolution of that federation, Peru fights another war over disputed territory bordering the Amazon, this time with the federation's successor in the region, Ecuador.
Dictator or 'interim president'. Deposed.
With the resources which had made the country stable since the 1830s having been squandered, Peru is now heavily indebted and political in-fighting is on the rise. A dictatorship is formed under Prado after a coup removes the previous dictator.
Spain recognises the independence of Peru in 1879. Another dictatorship is formed almost immediately under Nicolas de Pierola, but his Peru is defeated by Chile in the War of the Pacific between 1879-1883. After Lima is occupied, the country loses the provinces of Arica and Tarapaca. Internal struggles following the war are followed by a period of stability under the Civilista Party.
Dictator. Defeated by Chilean forces and resigned.
On 29 May, supporters of the opposition Democratic Party force their way into the presidential palace to demand the president's resignation. However, Augusto Leguia refuses and is kidnapped and taken to the Bolivar Monument where he repeats his refusal to resign. The police arrive and rescue the president by force in a battle which results in over a hundred deaths.
During the same period the country's border with Brazil is settled with the signing of the Treaty of Velarde-Rio Branco. This sets the border along the rivers of Yaravi and Yaverija. In the case of Bolivia, the Treaty of Polo-Bustamante formally partitions Lake Titicaca, and also marks the boundary with Tacna (which until then had been part of Chile).
In October 1917, Peru declares for the allies in the First World War against Germany and the Austro-Hungarian empire, but plays no active part in the conflict.
Leguia returns to office and, fearing the government will not recognise his re-election as president, launches a successful military coup. From there, a new parliament is convened which elects him constitutional president. Leguia introduces a new, more liberal constitution and proceeds to ignore it himself, ruling in dictatorial style.
Dictator. Overthrown during the world economic depression.
With the signing of the Treaty of Salomon-Lozano, Leguia agrees the borders with Colombia by seceding all territory between the Putumayo and Caqueta rivers, to the detriment of both Peru and Ecuador. The treaty is only published after the overthrow of Leguia on 22 August 1930.
In March 1932 the president, Luis Sanchez, is the target of an attempted assassination as he leaves church. The assassin misses his target and the president almost shoots him in return, only being stopped by his bodyguards. In June a minor revolt is put down, and in September a revolt seizes a whole town. By the end of that month, the Treaty of Salomon-Lozano has been declared null and void and Peru and Colombia prepare for war, although it is never announced as such. Before hostilities can commence, on 30 April 1933, Sanchez is shot through the heart as he finishes reviewing twenty thousand young army recruits. His replacement negotiates peace with Colombia (by 1934) and introduces a new constitution.
The Ecuadorian-Peruvian War is fought between 5 July 1941 and 31 July 1942 as a continuation of the 1840 war. The Rio Protocol brings peace until 1960. In 1942 Peru also becomes the first South American nation to declare war against Germany and its allies.
Despite having a president who has attempted to liberalise the country, in October 1948, rebel sailors and officers seize five warships, locking up or shooting their commanders, and send landing parties ashore under cover of a ragged bombardment. Sailors already on shore take over the Naval Academy, the Naval Armoury, and the Real Felipe Fortress. Troops loyal to the government crush the revolt and the president, Jose Bustamante, suspends all civil rights. It is not enough for the military cabinet who, responding to economic strife, stage a coup on 29 October. The coup leader takes over as president.
Dictator. Arranged elections in 1956 and stepped down.
President Velaco declares the Rio Protocol with Ecuador to be null and void, although little immediate impact is caused by the decision.
Another coup, this time by Ricardo Perez Godoy and Nicolas Lindley Lopez, both generals in the Peruvian army, delivers a year of government by military junta under Godoy. He is deposed by Lindley who delivers democratic elections to the country, turning over the office of president to election winner Fernando Belaunde.
Dictator. Overthrown by his coup co-conspirators.
Dictator. Arranged free elections for the same year.
Belaunde is removed from office in a military coup. The country is ruled by the army under General Velasco, who manages to destroy the economy.
Dictator. Overthrown in a coup.
Dictator. Stepped down after elections.
With the country in economic depression, the military allows an election to restore constitutional rule. Fernando Belaunde's return fails to halt the rise of internal conflict, especially by the left-wing Shining Path movement. However, he comes to be regarded as the father of Peru's modern democracy.
Following the sudden and unexpected occupation by Argentina of the Falkland Islands, Peru promises support while Chile sides with Britain.
President Alan Garcia's presidency leaves the country with hyperinflation and no progress against the growing Shining Path rebel movement. Garcia also has the question of his involvement in human rights abuses hanging over his head. He is replaced by the half-Japanese president, Alberto Fujimori.
A new constitution is drafted.
The aftermath of the 1995 Cenepa War between Peru and Ecuador sees one of the western hemisphere's longest territorial disputes reach a final conclusion. On 26 October 1998 both countries sign a definitive peace agreement.
Fujimori has fared little better than his predecessor on the human rights issue, although he has brought an end to Shining Path's fifteen year reign of terror and has noticeably improved the economy. Now facing a corruption scandal, he flees to Japan. Following a visit to Chile in 2005 he is arrested and faces deportation to Peru.
Alan Garcia regains power, still with questions hanging over him regarding his conduct. However, he is regarded as the lesser of two evils by voters who are more worried by Venezuela gaining political influence over the country. In 2007, former president Fujimori is handed over to Peru to face charges and imprisonment for six years. |
0.999996 | 命题人：高一英语组 审题人：于金苓 胡景 说明：本试卷分为第Ⅰ卷（选择题）和第Ⅱ卷（非选择题）两部分。请将第Ⅱ卷答案答 在答题纸相应位置，考试结束后将答题纸上交。满分 120 分，考试时间 90 分钟。 第Ⅰ卷（选择题，共 100 分） 第一部分 听力(共两节，共 20 小题，每小题 1.5 分，满分 30 分) 做题时，先将答案标在试卷上。录音内容结束后，你将有两分钟的时间将试卷上的答案转涂 到答题卡上。 第一节 (共 5 小题) 听下面 5 段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的 A、B、C 三个选项中选出最佳选 项，并标在试卷的相应位置。听完每段对话后，你都有 l0 秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅 读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。 1. What has the man bought for Mary? A. A shirt. B. A coat. C. A skirt.
2. What does the boy want to be in the future? A. A businessman. 3. How old is Carl now? A. 16. B. 19. C. 25. B. A lawyer. C. A tour guide.
4. What does the woman prefer to watch? A. Cartoons. B. Music programs. C. Sports programs.
5.What are the speakers mainly talking about? A. A concert. 第二节 (共 15 小题) 听下面 5 段对话或独自。每段对话或独自后有几个小题，从题中所给的 A、B、C 三个选项 中选出最佳选项， 并标在试卷的相应位置。 听每段对话或独白前， 你将有时间阅读各个小题， 每小题 5 秒钟；听完后，各小题给出 5 秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独自读两遍。 听第 6 段材料，回答第 6、7 题。 6. What is the weather like? A. Warm. B. Cold. C. Cool. B. A country. C. A band.
7. What do we know about the man? A. He is unwilling to clear the snow. B. He loves spring most. C. He is fond of skiing. 听第 7 段材料，回答第 8 至 10 题。 8. What is Mr. Carson doing now? A. Having a meeting. B. Making a phone call. C. Having lunch.
9. When will the man probably talk to Mr. Carson on the phone? A. Before lunch. 10. What is the man’s number? A. 68264172. B. 68261472. C. 68261427. B. After lunch. C. After work.
听第 8 段材料，回答第 11 至 l3 题。 11. What is probable relationship between the speakers? A. Boss and secretary. B. Teacher and student. C. Classmates.
12. Why does the man want to hand in his paper later? A. He forgot to do it. B. His computer has broken down. C. He wants to do more research on it. 13. What will the man do during his vocation? A. Study. B. Have a trip. C. Stay at home.
听第 9 段材料，回答第 14 至 l6 题。 14. How did the man do in the race? A. He was in the middle. B. He was one of the fastest. C. He was one of the slowest. 15. What advice does the man offer to the woman? A. Take a training course. B. Run with him after work. C. Take part in the race. 16. What will the woman probably do next?
A. Add some hot water. B. Examine the man’s feet. C. Deal with the man’s aching arm. 听第 l0 段材料，回答第 17 至 20 题。 17 How do some young people celebrate Christmas in Australia? A. By having a beach barbecue. B. By traveling overseas. C. By surfing.
18. How many visitors come to the Bondi Beach on Christmas Day in recent years? A. 20,000. B. 40,000. C. 50,000.
19. Where do many young people see Christmas as a time to escape their families? A. In Singapore. B. In Austria. C. In Russia.
20. What do we know about Christmas in California? A. Some traditions are different from the past. B. There are Christmas lights up along the shopping street. C. Some people wear red diving suits on surfboards on Christmas Day. 第二部分 阅读理解 （共两节，满分 40 分） 第一节 （共 15 小题；每小题 2 分，满分 30 分） 阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题 卡上将该项涂黑。 A Country music is one of the most popular kinds of music in the United States today because it is about simple but strong human feelings and events--love, sadness, good times, and bad times. It tells real-life stories and sounds the way people really talk. As life becomes more complicated(复 杂), it is good to hear music about ordinary people. Country music, sometimes called country-western, comes from two kinds of music. One is the traditional music of the people in the Appalachian Mountains in the eastern United States. The other is traditional cowboy music from the west. The singers usually play guitars, and in the 1920s they started using electric guitars. At first city people said country music was low class. It was popular mostly in the South. But during World War II, thousands of Southerners went to the Northeast and Midwest to work in the factories. They took their music with them. Soldiers from the rest of the country went to army camps（军营）in the South. They learned country music.
23. During World War II many Southerners went to the Northeast and the Mid-west because__________. A. they wanted to take music with them B. they wanted to make other people like country music C. they wanted to work in the factories there D. they wanted to make country music popular 24. Country music is one of the most popular kinds of music in the world today because__________ . A. city people said it was low class B. people in different countries could sing it in their own languages C. it started with cowboys and poor Southerners D. it is loved by the people in the United States and Canada 25. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage? A. Country music is about human feelings and events. B. Country music is sung by stars all in English. C. Country music is popular among city people today.
29. Which of the following is NOT true? A. Thanksgiving Day used to be a holiday to celebrate a good harvest.
B. Abraham Lincoln was not the first to decide on thanksgiving celebrations. C. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated to express the Indian people’s thanks to God. D. There’s little difference between the American way and the Canadian way to celebrate Thanksgiving Day. 30. The passage mainly tells us .
C Every once in a while, it is necessary to take a step back in order to take a long, hard look at where we are in our lives. At this point, it is good to ask yourself some key questions. Are you at the point in your career where you want to be? Have you so far achieved all of your goals in life? If so, then maybe it is time to make goals that improve yourself a bit more. If you have not achieved your goals in life, then perhaps you have made the mistake of setting too many goals or trying to achieve them at a fast pace. It is necessary to set reasonable, intelligent goals in order to succeed in life. Do not be unrealistic because life is not a fairy tale. But you should try to recognize what you want, and to be as specific (特定的，确切的) as possible. In order to sufficiently motivate(激励) you, the goal needs to be a major one. The bigger your goals are, then the more motivated you will need to be to work towards achieving them. If you want, for example, to be the greatest concert pianist in the world, then you are going to find yourself a lot more motivated than you would be if your goal were merely to play a couple of Beethoven pieces extremely well. If you are a beginner, then no doubt mastering those tough songs is a very intelligent and realistic goal. But if that is your only goal as a pianist, then you will stop growing as a pianist once that goal has been achieved. This is why it is necessary to constantly stop and renew our goals so that we are aware of what they are, and thus stay motivated. 31. From the passage, if your goals have all been achieved, you should then ______.
When I was 16 years old, a boy gave me an important gift.
alone. So smile at the world and it will smile back.
A. It was a smile. B. That smile changed my life. C. It's impossible to make friends here. D. As a result, no one knew who I was. E. He's living in Australia now and he loves it. F. At that moment, a boy entered the classroom. G. I’ m happy now because all the dark days have gone.
some examinations, he was told he was badly ill and wouldn’t live longer than one year. Hearing that, the man became depressed. He was so worried about himself 63 he wanted to do nothing.
He was still alive one year later. When he returned to his home country, he was happy and (health).
When something bad happens to us, we shouldn’t be anxious. Instead, we should overcome our anxiety. Things will not be as bad 70 we expect them to be.
71. There were many students spend little time learning English, which upset their English teacher. 72. At the Spring Festival in China, people may give children lucky money in a red paper. 73. They take care of each other even if they were brothers. 74. Tom mightn’t have told me your secret, but he meant no harm. 75. Henry was an honest American businessman and always kept his words. 76. The boy in rag used to be a prince. 77. I found myself carry out to sea by a strong wind. 78. As matter of fact, she is a stubborn woman who never changes her mind. 79. Learning English well is of many benefit and I believe I can benefit from it. 80. It is obviously that we were fooled into buying these useless things.
第三部分 英语知识运用 第二节 语法填空（共 10 小题；每题 1.5 分，满分 15 分） 61. ________________ ________________ ________________ 70. ________________ 62. ________________ 65. ________________ 68. ________________ 63. ________________ 67. 64.
第四部分 短文改错 (共 10 小题；每小题 1 分，满分 10 分) 71. There were many students spend little time learning English, which upset their English teacher. 72. At the Spring Festival in China, people may give children lucky money in a red paper. 73. They take care of each other even if they were brothers. 74. Tom mightn’t have told me your secret, but he meant no harm. 75. Henry was an honest American businessman and always kept his words. 76. The boy in rag used to be a prince. 77. His opinion is on contrary to mine. 78. The girl couldn't account for her absent from school. 79. Learning English well is of many benefit and I believe I can benefit from it. 80. It is obviously that we were fooled into buying these useless things. |
0.996981 | The president of the Peruvian Federcalcio (FPF), Edwin Oviedo, was detained for a preliminary ten days for his alleged membership in the criminal organization "Los Cuellos Blancos del Puerto". The employer must respond to the payments he would make to the former supreme judge César Hinostroza in exchange for judicial favors.
According to the hypothesis of the prosecutor Rocío Sánchez, who is included in the resolution of the National Criminal Appeal Chamber, Edwin Oviedo It is part of the "third level of corruption" of "Los Cuellos Blancos del Puerto". The role of the entrepreneur within the network, according to the investigation, is to "solve" the head of this, the former supreme judge César Hinostroza, "with gifts".
Sánchez also indicates that Oviedo used his position as president of the Peruvian Football Association "to seek the expansion of the corruption network, maintain hegemony and impunity".
"Los Cuellos Blancos del Puerto" consisted of three levels: the first network or external network, made up of trial lawyers and businessmen who had been favored in judicial proceedings; the second network or internal network, supplemented by administrative and judicial staff of the Superior Court of Callao, where the suspended judge Walter Ríos operated; and the third where they were senior officials.
The public Ministry not only attributes to Edwin Oviedo the alleged crime of the criminal organization, but also the specific active corruption, because it would be committed to Hinostroza to deliver the tickets for the qualifications to the World Championships in Russia 2018 "in order to obtain judicial favors".
According to the sentence, one of these was the Supreme Court n. 326-2016, issued by the Second Transitory Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court, composed of Hinostroza, who declared the protection of the rights deposited by the owner of the founded FPF. With this measure, the Supreme Court handed over to the Prosecutor of Chiclayo, who is investigating Oviedo for the "Los Wachiturros de Tumán" case, five days to correct his investigation.
Prosecutor Sánchez also stated in his request that Hinostroza had advised Oviedo in filing the amparo case in April of this year, in which he asked to be excluded from the proceedings for the alleged murder of murder qualified by the events that occurred. . in the Tumán sugar mill. This appeal was declared inadmissible at the beginning of October.
The public ministry presented as proof of this advice an email sent by the president of the FPF to the business man Antonio Camayo.
Edwin Oviedo, according to an effective declaration of collaboration No. 409-2018, he paid the 24 tickets used by César Hinostroza and his relatives to take part in the three games that the Peruvian soccer team played in the World Cup in Russia. In total it has covered $ 5,040. The witness explained that the former supreme judge paid his tickets through a third party to avoid raising suspicions, but then the money was repaid by the president of the FPF.
The same contributor noted that Oviedo, through Camayo, donated 5,000 soles to Gloria Gutiérrez Chapa, wife of the former supreme member, at the Jorge Chávez International Airport, before traveling to Russia.
The informant reported that César Hinostroza participated with his family "to all parts" that the Peruvian team played in Lima in the last qualifications. The cost of these tickets was 13 thousand dollars, also at the expense of the head of national football.
But these were not the only gifts that Edwin Oviedo had given to the former supreme judge, but they also favored him with physical therapies at the Villa Deportiva Nacional (Videna) and with the monthly payment of 3,300 soles.
The public ministry attributed it to Edwin Oviedo "Being connected" with members of Fuerza Popular, "to whom I would have provided tickets in exchange for political protection" to continue leading the Peruvian Football Federation.
The Court of Criminal Appeal considered, on one of the grounds, that the elements presented by the prosecutor's office "show that there is a strong possibility of escape" and an obstacle to the action of justice from part Edwin Oviedo.
He added that the president of the FPF "committed the crimes attributed to him (criminal organization, specific active corruption and smuggling of influence) with the clear purpose of hindering the action of justice" in the case "Los Wachiturros de Tumán", " The situation that is possible can be repeated in this preliminary preliminary investigation ".
The request made by the prosecutor Rocío Sánchez to proceed to the preliminary arrest Edwin Oviedo, president of the FPF, for his alleged belonging to the criminal organization "Los Cuellos Blancos del Puerto" was admitted in the second instance, after initially the judge of the third National Court of preparatory investigation rejected him.
Sánchez, in his appeal, argued that the judge did not adequately assess the evidence that was brought to his knowledge or the "imminent danger of evasion" of the defendants in the investigation. |
0.9346 | addChild() Adds a new root element and returns it.
addChildAt() Inserts a new root element into a specified position by index and returns it.
createIndexOn() Creates an index on a specified field.
getChildAt() Gets the child by index.
getChildren() Returns a copy of roots array.
getTraverser() Creates tree data traverser.
indexOfChild() Gets the index of child in a roots array.
mapAs() Returns a new mapping for the tree.
numChildren() Returns a length of roots array.
removeChild() Removes tree's root data item.
removeChildAt() Removes the child at specified position.
removeChildren() Removes children of the tree.
removeIndexOn() Removes index on a specified field.
search() Performs a data search.
searchItems() Performs search of an array of the items.
filter() Filters the tree data items using the filter-function.
Adds a new root element and returns it.
anychart.data.Tree.DataItem - An instance of the class for method chaining.
Inserts a new root element into a specified position by index and returns it.
child Object | anychart.data.Tree.DataItem | anychart.data.TreeView.DataItem Child object.
data Array.<Object> | string Raw data.
fillingMethod anychart.enums.TreeFillingMethod | string Filling method.
csvSettingsOrDeps Object | Array.<anychart.data.Tree.Dependency> CSV settings object or dependencies data.
anychart.data.Tree - Self instance for method chaining.
Creates an index on a specified field.
It can't be indexed by 'parent' or 'children' fields because these fields are not available by treeItem.get(field);.
asString boolean If the value should be treated as string always.
comparisonFn function(value1:*, value2:*) Indexing comparison function.
Should take 2 arguments to compare and return a negative number, zero, or positive number depending on whether the first argument is less than, equal to or greater than the second.
The binary insertion mechanism is used to index the data by a specified field (for further search acceleration using the binary search).
There is a default sorting function for the number, string, and boolean values. Other types require custom function in order for indexing and search to work correctly. To search using the anychart.data.Tree#search and anychart.data.Tree#searchItems) methods on an indexed field with a custom comparison function, the comparison function specified for the indexing must be applied. The index on the 'id' field is created automatically when the data tree is created.
Gets tree CRUD events dispatching.
boolean - Returns enabled state.
Starts or stops tree CRUD events dispatching.
Filters the tree data items using the filter-function.
The filter function accepts a data item. After the action with the data item, the function must return a value of "true" or 'false', specifying whether to include this data item in the result of the filtering or not.
Note: the filter performs a full data passage.
Array.<(anychart.data.Tree.DataItem|anychart.data.TreeView.DataItem)> - An array of data items.
Gets the child by index.
index number Index of child to find.
anychart.data.Tree.DataItem | undefined - Child into a specified position.
Returns a copy of roots array.
Array.<anychart.data.Tree.DataItem> - Copy of roots array.
anychart.data.Traverser - An instance of the class for method chaining.
Gets the index of child in a roots array.
child anychart.data.Tree.DataItem | anychart.data.TreeView.DataItem Child for getting of index.
number - Index of child.
Returns a new mapping for the tree.
mapping Object Mapping for the tree.
anychart.data.TreeView - An instance of the class for method chaining.
Returns a length of roots array.
number - Number of roots.
Removes tree's root data item.
child anychart.data.Tree.DataItem Child for removal.
Removes the child at specified position.
index number Index of data item for removal.
anychart.data.Tree.DataItem - Removed item or null if item is not found.
Removes children of the tree.
Removes index on a specified field.
Returns null if nothing is found, tree data item if there's a single result and an array of tree data items if there are multiple matches.
The search method is used to find the exact value.
field string Search field name.
value * Value to be found.
comparisonFn function(value1:*, value2:*) An optional comparison function by which the array is ordered. Should take 2 arguments to compare and return a negative number, zero, or positive number depending on whether the first argument is less than, equal to or greater than the second.
anychart.data.Tree.DataItem | Array.<anychart.data.Tree.DataItem> | null - The found tree data item or null or array of found tree data items.
Same as anychart.data.Tree#search but the result is always an array.
The searchItems method is used to find the exact value.
Array.<anychart.data.Tree.DataItem> - An array of found tree data items. If nothing is found, the array is returned empty. |
0.999995 | Detect and respond to double taps a user makes on Apple Pencil.
You can use Pencil interactions to allow users to access functionality in your app quickly. Double-tapping the Apple Pencil lets the user perform actions such as switching between drawing tools without moving the Pencil to another location on the screen.
To handle double taps from Apple Pencil in your app, create a UIPencilInteraction object and set its delegate to an object that implements the UIPencilInteractionDelegate protocol. Finally, add the interaction to your app’s view, as in Listing 1.
The delegate receives the double tap event when the user double-taps their Pencil. It implements the pencilInteractionDidTap(_:) method, which the system calls after the user double-taps the Apple Pencil.
In your implementation of this method, decide whether to perform the action selected by the user in the Settings app, or perform an alternative behavior that’s suitable for your app. When possible, perform the user’s preferred action.
Taking this step allows you to provide a consistent user experience across apps that support Pencil interactions. To check the user’s preferred action, use the preferredTapAction class property on UIPencilInteraction, as in Listing 2.
Should you decide not to support the preferred action, provide an intuitive way to let the user know what will happen when they double-tap the Pencil, and give them the option to disable this action. |
0.999665 | Why should I do internet marketing?
Internet marketing allows you to make a valid statistical evaluation of your advertising campaign. That gives you the ability to automatically find if this action suits you and to which extent.
It is proven that internet marketing is the most cost effective way of advertising. Its biggest advantage however is that there is no minimum cost or minimum duration. You can start with a few money and only for a day. The final cost is determined by the field in which your company is involved and the size of promotion you desire to have. |
0.955574 | Robert Curthose, sometimes called Robert II, succeeded his father, William the Conqueror as Duke of Normandy in 1087 and reigned until 1106. Robert was also an unsuccessful claimant to the throne of the Kingdom of England. The epithet "Curthose" had its origins in the Norman French word courtheuse "short stockings" and was apparently derived from a nickname given to Robert by his father; the chroniclers William of Malmesbury and Orderic Vitalis reported that William the Conqueror had derisively called Robert brevis-ocrea.
Ralph d'Escures was a medieval Abbot of Séez, Bishop of Rochester and then Archbishop of Canterbury. He studied at the school at the Abbey of Bec. In 1079 he entered the abbey of St Martin at Séez, and became abbot there in 1091. He was a friend of both Anselm of Canterbury and Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester, whose see, or bishopric, he took over on Gundulf's death.
William de St-Calais was a medieval Norman monk, abbot of the abbey of Saint-Vincent in Le Mans in Maine, who was nominated by King William I of England as Bishop of Durham in 1080. During his term as bishop, St-Calais replaced the canons of his cathedral chapter with monks, and began the construction of Durham Cathedral. In addition to his ecclesiastical duties, he served as a commissioner for the Domesday Book. He was also a councilor and advisor to both King William I and his son, King William II, known as William Rufus. Following William Rufus' accession to the throne in 1087, St-Calais is considered by scholars to have been the new king's chief advisor.
Thomas of Bayeux was Archbishop of York from 1070 until 1100. He was educated at Liège and became a royal chaplain to Duke William of Normandy, who later became King William I of England. After the Norman Conquest, the king nominated Thomas to succeed Ealdred as Archbishop of York. After Thomas' election, Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury, demanded an oath from Thomas to obey him and any future Archbishops of Canterbury; this was part of Lanfranc's claim that Canterbury was the primary bishopric, and its holder the head of the English Church. Thomas countered that York had never made such an oath. As a result, Lanfranc refused to consecrate him. The King eventually persuaded Thomas to submit, but Thomas and Lanfranc continued to clash over ecclesiastical issues, including the primacy of Canterbury, which dioceses belonged to the province of York, and the question of how York's obedience to Canterbury would be expressed.
Hervey le Breton was a Breton cleric who became Bishop of Bangor in Wales and later Bishop of Ely in England. Appointed to Bangor by King William II of England, when the Normans were advancing into Wales, Hervey was unable to remain in his diocese when the Welsh began to drive the Normans back from their recent conquests. Hervey's behaviour towards the Welsh seems to have contributed to his expulsion from his see. Although the new king, Henry I wished to translate Hervey to the see of Lisieux in Normandy, it was unsuccessful. |
0.9999 | State of Alabama ? Department of Human Resources.
The Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR) is a state agency created in 1935 to provide social welfare services to the citizens of the state. DHR is governed by the State Board of Human Resources, chaired by the governor. A commissioner provides direct supervision of day-to-day services divided among four areas: field services, including staff development and training; fiscal and administrative services; family resources, including financial assistance, food stamps, and child-care services; and children and family services, including child protective and foster care services, adoption, and adult services. DHR's central office is located in the state capitol, Montgomery, with offices in each of the state's 67 counties.
The department currently employs some 600 social workers, making it the largest employer of social workers in the state. Its client population includes some 6,000 children in foster care and more than 4,700 adults alleged to have been victims of maltreatment. According to recent data, DHR investigated 18,150 reports of child maltreatment in a single year, of which 9,290 were substantiated. During the same period, there were 48,117 individuals receiving financial assistance through the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program, and 29,200 children receiving subsidized child care.
Of the $1.25 billion DHR spent during 2005 and 2006, more than $297 million were spent for child welfare services, $100 million for TANF recipients, more than $650 million for food stamp services, and $108 million for child-care services. More than $998 million of the agency's funds came from federal sources.
The forerunner of DHR was the Alabama Department of Child Welfare (ADCW), created in 1919 by the state legislature in response to pressure from advocacy groups, including the Alabama Federation of Women's Clubs, the Alabama Equal Suffrage Association, the Women's Christian Temperance Union, and the Alabama Child Labor Committee. These groups had successfully lobbied for passage of child labor, juvenile court, and compulsory school attendance laws and considered the creation of ADCW to be the crowning achievement in their efforts to secure adequate living conditions for the children of the state. The National Child Labor Committee and the Russell Sage Foundation also conducted studies of Alabama's social welfare system during the preceding decade, and recommended the creation of a state-level child welfare agency.
social workers, then called child welfare superintendents, to provide services to at-risk children and families. The county child welfare boards were composed of the judge of the juvenile court, as chairman, a representative from the court of county commissioners, and one from the local board of education. The judge also had the authority to appoint three additional members, two of whom had to be women. The child welfare superintendent administered the school attendance law, served as probation officer for the juvenile court, and worked with families and children to prevent juvenile delinquency. The state legislature authorized the creation of the boards in 1923, making Alabama one of the first six states in the nation to do so. Between 1927 and 1929, 53 counties created child welfare boards, and by 1931 65 counties had followed suit.
In 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression, ADCW took on primary responsibility for administering financial assistance provided under the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA). With the passage of the Social Security Act in 1935, ADCW became a part of the newly created Department of Public Welfare (DPW), Alabama's first state-level social welfare organization. The creation of DPW enabled the state to receive federal monies for new programs for the blind and disabled, for aid to dependent children, and for child welfare services.
Alabama's record in implementing the social welfare programs mandated by Pres. Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, while pioneering in some ways, was problematic in others. Alabama was the first state in the nation to secure federal approval to use child welfare funds provided by the SSA. But the state administered the newly created Aid to Dependent Children program along segregationist lines, maintaining separate offices and staff for blacks and whites when the program began in the 1930s. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, the DPW focused on such issues as improving standards for adoptive homes and for day-care facilities. The agency was renamed the Alabama Department of Pensions and Security (DPS) in 1955. In 1965 DPS sponsored the creation of the state's first child-abuse reporting legislation, the Child Abuse Reporting Act. After the passage of the federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) in 1974, state law was amended to mandate reporting of neglected as well as abused children.
The 1970s saw the passage of new federal laws affecting child welfare programs, including federal block grants for child welfare services and child-support programs. In general, block grants are large allotments of money from the federal government for specific programs that allow states flexibility as to how the money is spent. With the new efforts, reports of child maltreatment increased dramatically, from fewer than 800 in 1975 to approximately 33,000 in 1988, partially as a result of child abuse and neglect reporting legislation that was passed in the 1960s and 1970s. The department had difficulty responding to this increase, with the result that investigations were often delayed, and follow-ups were frequently inadequate. The federal passage of the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act (1980) brought about significant changes in state services to families and children, and Alabama was no exception. The legislation required states to provide reasonable efforts before removing children from the family of origin and develop a permanent plan for the child no longer than 18 months after they came into care and also mandated that children removed from their homes be placed in the least restrictive placement possible.
DHR adopted its current name in 1986 and began to develop programs to comply with the new federal law. That same year, the governor appointed a Commission on Child Welfare Services, which issued a report documenting the need for additional staff, training, and resources. Despite the development of some new resources, such as an independent-living program for teens in long-term foster care, lack of funding prevented the agency from making significant progress. In 1988, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a class-action lawsuit, R.C. v. Walley, against DHR for failing to provide adequate services to vulnerable children and families and asking that Alabama's child welfare system be placed under federal control. The lawsuit stemmed from a case involving a child, "R.C.," who, according to the ACLU, was removed from his father's custody and placed in a mental institution without adequate attempts to first provide services that would allow him to remain in his own home. The state agreed to settle the lawsuit and to make sweeping changes in its child welfare system.
In the consent decree settling the suit, signed and approved by the federal court in 1991, DHR agreed to reforms that included emphasizing prevention of out-home-placement of children, providing individualized services for children and their families, pursuing family reunification for children already in care, using home and community-based services, and facilitating the participation of children and their families in case planning and implementation. The decree also required DHR to enhance training programs for child welfare workers and to develop new services and programs to assess service outcomes and to protect the rights of the agency's clients. The reforms were to be overseen by a monitor appointed by the court.
During the 1990s, DHR began to implement this new approach, providing intensive, home-based family preservation services to prevent child removal, requiring the development of individualized service plans for children and families, and involving families in the case-planning process, insuring the provision of reasonable efforts to prevent removal of children from their homes, and developing and implementing a new training program for child welfare workers. The purpose of these reforms was to develop a "system of care" with specialized services to allow children in foster care or in DHR custody or those at risk of such placement, especially children with emotional or behavioral problems, to either remain in or be returned to their families of origin. Such services were also to be provided to children who were at "high risk" of developing such problems, and who were at imminent risk of placement.
The 1990s also saw significant changes in DHR's financial assistance programs. The federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, commonly known as "welfare reform" replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) with Temporary Assistance for Need Families (TANF), a block-grant program. Under the new law, Alabama and other states require recipients of public assistance to work or engage in work-related activities in exchange for benefits. States also implemented new methods of child support collection and instituted work requirements for food stamp recipients.
In January 2007, the U.S. District Court released the state from federal oversight of its child welfare system, certifying that each county in the state had successfully achieved an adequate system of care. The Alabama Department of Human Resources has had varied success in meeting its clients' needs over time, but in general it has, particularly in the field of child welfare, often been a pioneer in developing and implementing new approaches to meeting human need. This is its continuing challenge in a new century.
Welch, Kathryn. "Public Facilities for the Care of Dependent Children in Alabama." M.S.W. thesis, University of Chicago School of Service Administration, 1935. |
0.952077 | My child receives speech-language services in school, what can I do at home?
Throughout your day to day activities, have your child use longer phrases and sentences to describe what is going on around them. For example, if you are on a play-date at the park and see a dog, have your child describe the dog. Feel free to prompt them if they need a little help. Here are a couple ways to use describing words in sentences: “I see a black dog. The dog is eating grass. The boy is walking the brown dog. There is a big dog under the table. The black dog is standing on top of the hill.” Ask your child questions like, “who drives your bus, what do you use a crayon for, where do we go when we’re sick, why do we go to bed, when do you go to the doctor?
Have your child follow a variety of directions with conceptual vocabulary. If you are coloring with your child, give them directions such as “Give me the blue crayon,” or “Find the crayon under the table.” Use conceptual vocabulary (in, on, under, etc.) frequently when talking with your child.
If your child is showing some difficulty with reading in school, read to your child more frequently at home. If your child is reading to you, make sure that the stories that they select are very simple and below their reading level in school. Choosing books that are simple decreases the frustration at home and encourages your child to read. Have your child pick the books that they want to read. Check with your local librarian because they can help you find books at certain reading levels. When you are done with the story, begin to ask your child simple “who, what, where, when, and why” questions. Talk about the events and characters in the story.
If your child is having difficulty pronouncing some of their speech sounds, begin to model those sounds for your child and have them practice. Even 5-10 minutes of practice a couple times a week can help your child’s speech production skills! Ask your school speech therapist to send home some of the words that they are working on in speech so that your child can practice that sound at home.
Those are just a couple ways to address your child’s speech and language skills at home. If you have questions or need more resources or training on how to implement strategies at home, reach out to your school-based speech therapist for help. |
0.999999 | front of the second object, as in "I gave you money. => I gave money TO you."
>John drove Mary crazy. => *John drove crazy TO Mary.
>John called the dog Spot. => *John called Spot TO the dog.
sentences aren't any sort of object: instead they're _predicatives_.
*Crazy is seemed by Mary.
*A dog is been by Spot. |
0.945843 | Richard had a total of 9 DUI arrests. He had previously lost his license and had gone through a hearing and won his driving privileges back. However, after getting his license back, he started drinking again and was arrested for several more DUI’s. As a result, his license was revoked and he turned to me for help. The challenge here would be to overcome the high number of arrests (9) and to deal with the fact that he had previously been approved for a license only to incur several more DUI arrests.
The hearing officer was convinced and granted Richard driving privileges. |
0.999201 | Why is it that glaciers do not contain salt?
Glaciers form from accumulation of snow over time. When water evaporates from oceans (salt water), the salt is left behind because it cannot evaporate. The evaporated water turns into clouds and there is no salt when the snow precipitates. |
0.977741 | Give me a call to discuss options and ideas for your next event!
Pricing starts at a one hour minimum rate. Pricing factors include: length of performance, travel, day of the week of the event, number of impersonators, impersonations, look-a-likes/characters. Some entertainers are more expensive due to demand, popularity and travel distance.
A one hour appearance includes a 35 to 40 minute performance and a 20 to 25 minute meet and greet, mix/mingle and pose for photographs with your guests after the show.
What do Celebrity Impersonators, Celebrity Look-a-likes, Historical and Original Characters do at an event?
They may be hired for a red carpet event to greet your guests as they arrive, make a special appearance to sing Happy Birthday/Anniversary, assist client with raffles, distribute trophies or prizes, announce award recipients, perform a stage show, demonstrate or distribute product at trade show booths, mix/mingle during cocktails or throughout your event, pose for photographs and more. We can supply any celebrity impersonator, celebrity look a like, historical character or original character to fit your theme or help you with a theme.
Do Celebrity impersonators/Celebrity look-a-likes sing live?
If the celebrity impersonator, look a like or character you choose is a singer, yes, they SING LIVE. If the celebrity impersonator, look a like or character is a comedian or movie star/actor, they will perform stand up comedic bits that can be customized to fit your event or mission statement. All of our entertainers interact with your guests/audience throughout their performance.
How far do performers travel?
Entertainers coast to coast and worldwide. |
0.999996 | In English, there is an idiom, as comfort as an old shoe. It is a known fact that an old shoe is most comfortable to wear. However, old shoe wears off, eventually you can’t wear it any longer. So, what is the most comfortable shoe other than your old shoe? Of course it is a new shoe that is exactly the same as your old shoe!
I have been wearing the Nike ACG hiking boots for many years. It has been so long that I couldn’t keep track of how many pairs I had, probably 8 or 10 pairs. On average I wear out a pair every year, so I need to get a new pair every year. Shoes are on sales at Foot Locker, buy one and one half prince. Since I will need a new pair every year, why don’t I buy an extra pair and save it for next year? Not only I got a great discount, but also save me the trouble to shop for shoes next year.
I wonder what should I wear if Nike discount the ACG hiking boots. I guess I don’t have to worry about this question for the foreseeable future. I heard from the sales at Foot Locker, Nike ACG hiking boots are one of their best sellers. It would not make much business to discontinue a popular model.
The last sentence could be rephrase to read “It would not make any business sense to discontinue a popular model.
Thanks for pointing out the mistake. Believing it or not, I was thinking “It would not make much business sense to discontinue a popular model”, but somehow it became “It would not much any busines to discount a popular model” when I wrote it down.
i need this pair any one can help me?
I too desperately are looking for a pair of this model. It is such a good build.
I no longer wear Nike ACG boots. I found better ones, Palladium boots.
Nike discounted this model a few years ago. I switched to wear Palladium boots now. |
0.981733 | What is a single word for something that takes on shape slowly?
I am looking for a single word describing something that takes on shape slowly (such as a silhouette in the night that gets more defined the closer you get to it).
It would be great if the word could be used for the process of getting to know someone better (their character would be taking on shape slowly the more you get to know them).
For years, I wondered who had signed up for all of the slots, and eventually a character started to crystallize in my imagination.
There may be an even better word for it, only it seems to escape me just now.
"resolve", opposite of "dissolve". "the outlines of his true character resolved only gradually..."
Source - "materialise. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. http://www.dictionary.com/browse/materialise (accessed: April 16, 2017).
Synonyms: become clear, become definite, become tangible, crystallize, gel, come together, fall into place.
The Free Dictionary lists takes shape as an idiom, which is kind of like one word ... if you're willing to stretch it. If not, I'll go with gel, which hasn't been mentioned yet.
Addendum: More examples from OD in response to @Tonepoet's comment. These examples generally show that taking shape occurs over time, gradually, slowly, in the OP's sense. Taking shape does not occur immediately or abruptly; it implicitly requires time, as per emphasis added and prevalence of various forms of "begin".
take shape or coalesce, especially to form a satisfying whole. "the ballet failed to congeal as a single oeuvre"
grow by accumulation or coalescence.
form (a composite whole or a collection of things) by gradual accumulation: "the collection of art he had accreted was to be sold"
This is not the best fit for the scenario given in the OP, but the verb struck me upon reading the OP title.
After many sessions, the features of his psychosis accreted into something recognizable: sociopathy.
OP: It would be great if the word could be used for the process of getting to know someone better (their character would be taking on shape slowly the more you get to know them).
"Blossom" evokes flowers and gentle development during a special time of growth.
Still — in a way — nobody sees a flower — really — it is so small — we haven't time — and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time.
Our friendship (grew, evolved) from common interests.
verb (used with object), evolved, evolving.
It's very basic but the verb usage of "form"
"the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another"
to make more acute; strengthen or sharpen.
Consider also emanates and emanation--good for a ghost, perhaps not so good for a person.
"to make more fine, subtle, or precise, or to improve or perfect by pruning or polishing".
Realize it's not so befitting considering the requirement you raised in the second paragraph but my first instinct when I saw the question was to answer with the word primordial, provoked by my thoughts of the slow, sprawling transformation of early Earth.
Stew. Seems to me all of the below definitions of its use as a verb from Dictionary.com could easily be described as states of change resulting in a new form, tangible or intangible.
He stewed about his chaotic state of affairs all day.
Stumbled through this site in the past but your question prompted me to sign up with that, thought it was an interesting non-standard use of the word.
Warp. Although it means to twist out of shape, when used to describe a character of a person, it could mean transform into a new less appealing shape. Maybe transform can be used in a more neutral (ie, less negative) way.
An adjective for something that 'takes shape slowly' could be viscous.
Although this mainly refers to liquids that can't pour easily, for example honey, mud and crude oil all are a all viscous.
If you pour a viscous liquid on a flat table, it will indeed take shape slowly. You could use this metaphorically, I suppose like any other adjective in the English language however someone would need to have a very good grasp of the English language to understand.
With rarely-used words like these it may be best to simply take two simple words and combine them. I.e. just say slow-forming and everyone will understand perfectly.
in·cho·ate inˈkōət,ˈinkəˌwāt/ adjective just begun and so not fully formed or developed; rudimentary. "a still inchoate democracy" |
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